Legend of the Female General

Not your typical historical drama

Keeping it brief — I really enjoyed this drama. It had me hooked episode after episode, always wanting to see what happens next.

The chemistry between the leads isn’t your typical sweet, romantic kind — it’s more subtle and layered. There’s a deep sense of understanding between them, and their shared gazes (especially from Cheng Lei) say so much without needing words. I feel this changes near the end, FL should notice something is off when ML comes back from talking to emperor.

That said, there were a few plot points that felt unclear or unexplained — maybe I missed something? For example, how did he realize she was the girl he once saved at the temple and gave the candy to? Or how did he figure out she was faking her blindness when he brought in the doctor?

Despite those small gaps, I loved the story of her fighting to reclaim her place and the way the drama touched on gender equality. It showed that even if women can’t go to war, they still have powerful roles to play. The last 3 episodes though, I felt the insanity was not needed.

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"I like the moon, but the moon doesn't know."

Zhou Ye and Cheng Lei worked super hard and did super well in their roles as He Yan/General Feihong and Xiao Jue/General Fengyun. This drama is full of beautiful character work, nice cinematography, and some touching full-circle moments and parallels.
In terms of the plot, I liked the pace, it barely dragged and kept me interested throughout every episode. There was something so satisfying about seeing He Yan who lost everything beginning from the bottom again and working hard to achieve her goals. That is what's so refreshing about this drama; usually the female leads tend to be naturally talented at fighting and work for recognition of their talents, but in this drama, He Yan is actually not talented at fighting and rises to the top through hard work and dedication, which is such a beautiful message. Skill and dedication truly matters more than natural talent.
I loved the main characters and Zhou Ye and Cheng Lei were absolutely amazing. There were widespread complaints that He Yan didn't have the general aura at the start, but as the drama progresses, the audience gets to experience her growth and reassumption of her position. I find it kind of funny that everyone was expecting a newbie soldier to be super imposing and emotionless, when that's not how it was written in the novel. One of the biggest downsides of the drama is simply the viewers' own expectations of what the drama should be like without regarding trying to understand what it is.
I thought Zhou Ye portrayed He Yan amazingly, her curiosity, playfulness, dedication and intelligence was on full display, and her struggles with finding herself and her own identity was also executed very well by Zhou Ye in terms of the limitations of the script. He Yan as a character is truly very engaging and the viewer can't help but root for her success and happiness in this new chance at life.
Meanwhile, Cheng Lei lived and breathed Xiao Jue, such an amazing character. Unexpectedly, the part that I enjoyed the most were all of the comedic moments, but the emotional and cool moments were also really great. A lot of male leads have the archetype of cold on the outside and soft on the inside, but I feel with Xiao Jue it was done incredibly well. He's commanding, skilled, but also sweet and dedicated to the one he loves.
The chemistry between Zhou Ye and Xiao Jue was also a huge highlight of the drama, their moments held so much tension, whether emotional, romantic or comedic.
In terms of Chu Zhao, I've seen that other viewers pity him but I think he's just the generic "I'm entitled to the female lead because I 'love' her" type of second male lead, and people who said that he should've been the male lead are absolutely wrong in my opinion. His role as a person who strictly follows his own morals was pretty interesting in the story, there were times when he was united or against the leads, and it all flowed very naturally. Zhang Kangle does have an iPhone face to me, though.
Cheng Lisu and Song Taotao were pretty interesting characters, especially as their romantic relationship is a feature unique to the drama. I wish that they had gotten more screen time, but obviously because of the face swap, it was not possible. Zhang Miaoyi was still very cute in her role, and I honestly could not tell that Li Qing was the replacement for Cheng Lisu's previous actor.
The villains, namely Xu Jingfu and He Rufei, really annoyed me, especially He Rufei's extraordinary delusion. I can't even elaborate more on that because it makes me so angry. He spends all of his screentime acting like an entitled child throwing a tantrum. I wish that the viewers could've received some context for Xu Jingfu's actions.
Last but not least, the male lead's subordinate Feinu and all of He Yan's army buddies survived to the end of the drama, which is an absolute miracle. I have to thank the drama writers for that one.
Honestly, the biggest downside of the drama is its runtime. It would've been so beneficial to have 40 (45 minute long) episodes to give the story breathing space and time to elaborate on other aspects of the plot or characters. I think that the audience could've really benefitted from a deeper exploration into He Yan's psyche and journey of self-discovery outside of He Rufei. The storyline was still present, but it could've been even more impactful and emotional to see He Yan's numerous struggles with her identity highlighted. However, for the time they ended up with and the amount that they had to cut, I think the people behind the drama did an excellent job at crafting a captivating and engaging drama.
I truly commend Zhou Ye and Cheng Lei on their amazing performances, and recommend this drama to anyone wanting to watch a touching story of romance, fulfillment, and growth with excellent acting and fight scenes.

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A Recipe for Delight

While I was in the middle of watching Shadow Love, my husband kept telling me to watch this drama and I never once looked at the cover. I kept skipping it because I wasn’t much into the female disguised as a man trope. Like, she’s so pretty, how can you not see that she’s a woman?? I can’t. But anyway, as I was near the last episodes of Shadow Love, I went ahead and looked at the synopsis of LOTFG. I was surprised that the main male lead was Cheng Lei from Shadow Love. So, I was like, okay, I’m in. I got really excited because Cheng Lei did an awesome job in My Journey to You and Shadow Love, and characters who are generals are up my alley. I know there would be so much action involved. When Xiao Jue and He Yan went to visit He RuFei, he blamed He Yan bc she was the one that stole his identity and earned glory and now he has ended up in prison. Boy, no. YOU are the reason you’re in this predicament now. You deserved what happened to you. Xiao Jue reminded He Rufei that He Yan earned her glory by enlisting twice and it was due to relentless training. He didn’t do sh-t. Anyway, the actor Bai Shu delivered a great performance as the real He Rufei. I’ve only seen him play as a good, funny supporting character in past dramas. But here? He was despicable. The way he schemed around with the prime minister. When Chu Zhao paid a visit to his master in prison, Xu Jingfu guilt tripped him saying he wholeheartedly guided him and then he gets betrayed in the end. The most heartbreaking thing is when Chu Zhao planted seeds of doubt in the emperor’s mind. Poor Xiao Jue had no choice but to deliver the marriage decree to He Yan. He couldn’t abandon the Xiao Army which was his father’s life’s work. I love how He Yan told the emperor that if she can’t marry the man she loves, then she’d rather be alone. Xiao Jue said the same thing. I’m glad the emperor let her have her choice just like what Xiao Jue asked him to do. Stupid emperor asked himself if he was mistaken. Yes, fool, you’re a stupid incompetent ruler. I swear, I had so much respect for Chu Zhao, right until he meddled with He Yan and Xiao Jue’s marriage. All respect flew right out the window. Chu Zhao is a ticking time bomb. He Yan was right. He was definitely becoming another Xu Jingfu, and he doesn’t realize that. Epic fight side to side against the Wutuo army! Chu Zhao got dismissed from his position and got exiled to the borderlands and is unable to return. Sucks for him. Oh well. I’m so happy our couple got an imperial edict that they can finally marry! Yay a Happy ending. *sniff* I really thought that the emperor was going to be the one of the villains, thankfully he realized the two love birds are inseparable. I highly recommend this drama. Never got bored with it. ML and FL were just so cute together. No toxic ML or FL leads. Great cinematography. Wonderful heart tugging music. Suspenseful and exciting fight scenes. Those were my favorites. Especially when they fought side to side. They were amazing! Not only that, the kisses were oh so *chef’s kiss* ooh-lala. Perfect. No dead fish kisses here.

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I recommend to skip the last episodes.

I recommend to skip the last episodes- 33,34,35,36. They make no sense at all.

The drama was ok, but I expected more. I had really looked forward to it and imagined a stronger female lead. It had good ideas that could have been developed further. What was also disturbing is that the female lead had less and less to say the closer her relationship with the male lead became. The last episodes could have been left out entirely. They added an extra storyline that distorted the characters and was also illogical. I don’t understand why they even made those last episodes.

Beautiful cinematography, beautiful fight scenes, beautiful costumes. The actors are fine as well.

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Great chemistry but a not-so-legendary historical drama

I quite enjoyed Legend of the Female General overall, especially because of the undeniable chemistry between the two leads.
Their interactions are engaging to watch and their scenes give the drama a certain charm that keeps it from being dull.
However, despite these strengths, there are aspects of the story that left me disappointed.
The biggest issue for me lies in the way the female lead is written and portrayed. Considering her backstory, I expected a character who carried a sense of gravity, intensity and inner strength. Instead, the drama often presents her in a much lighter, almost playful manner, more fitting for a romantic comedy heroine than a legendary general.
The overall tone of the story also misses the epic, larger-than-life atmosphere I was hoping for.
The drama isn’t without its redeeming qualities. The chemistry between the leads genuinely carries the show, making their relationship a delight to follow and perhaps even overshadowing some of the weaker elements in the script.
For viewers who enjoy light romance wrapped in a historical setting, this drama can still be an enjoyable watch.
While it may not live up to its full potential or the expectations but it has enough charm to keep you watching until the end.

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I can't!!!!!

Okay, first of all, I know that I should be reviewing the plot and cast and be unbiased. But let me fangirl first, like Ryan Cheng's attractiveness since MJTY is off the charts! And on this drama, I screamed and my heart jump every time he is on the screen, like he's seducing me with those eyes and the aristocratic nose! His charm is that of a bad boy that you want to tame and hog for yourself! Yep, I think he is a red flag that you chose to die for! Okay that is an exaggeration but you know what I mean!

Alright enough of my fangirling! On a serious note, even though I only watched the first 4 episodes, I can say that I love the plot. I always gravitate towards a revenge plot story, but of course with a nicely done storytelling! And I can say as early as now that it is nicely done! The pacing so far is good, the action sequence is great and the cinematography so far is nicely done! It's like they are walking you through the drama at a nice pace. I am not bored but definitely anticipating the next episodes. For now, it gives you a sense of wanting to know what's next and gives you just the right amount of excitement! Can't wait for the intense fighting and cunningness of Ryan Cheng and Zhou Ye. I am also waiting for Bai Shu's intense villain act, I don't want to typecast him and put him in a box but I like him more portraying as a villain. Maybe, in the future he can be cast as antihero, coz he knows how to act as a docile, goody main character and a splendid villain!

This is my take for now! Happy watching!

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Brainless Romance That's Fun if You Don't Look At All The Plotholes

Going in to ANY show 100% blind isn't really my thing. I like to KNOW what I'm setting myself up for but this year I've been letting this go more and more. With Legend of the Female General I literally did not even read the synopsis before watching, nor follow any trailers or promo. In fact, I'm not even a fan of Cheng Lei as he always looks like he has resting b*tch face to me and Zhou Ye looks "off" to me for an unknown reason. (This is NOT a jab at either's looks or acting ability but literally just a personal preference as I have watched multiple dramas from both actors and will continue to do so without prejudice, they just don't make me "swoon". 😅 )

This all said, I went in and found myself pleasantly surprised.

Personally, I have been watching this show after a period of being unable to watch ANY airing dramas, but I kept up with this one and it allowed me to get back into the habit. It's script is brainless and dumb. This is NOT a bad thing in my personal mind as I found myself enjoying clicking the next episode and waiting for the next day. I turned my brain off to all the VAST and NUMEROUS number of coincidences and slogans and hand-waves, and plot holes scattered throughout the story and instead focused on enjoying a slowly building romance.

Because I could tell that politics were going to be nothing I refused to think about them or pay attention to any detail. Because side stories were obviously not going to be fleshed out it didn't MATTER if I understood who was who or what they were doing when the aide was sent off somewhere.

The only IMPORTANT things were how was the relationship between the leads progressing... Were they looking at eachother, was he taking her candy? Was she sewing him things like a "little lady"?

Now for side characters I'll be honest, NO ONE, not the leads, not the 2nds, or even the villains showed true character depth. Both generals are shown at the school but then she apparently leaves to enlist? At some point the audience gets information about her enlisting because of a marriage decree but it's a throwaway line and seems to make little sense with anything they'd shown. The 2nd leads, they hate eachother until they meet then it's basically love at first sight but they've seen eachother before so their relationship history was glossed over as them being stubborn. Our 2ML had a grudge with his family that got 2 scenes and a few "mommy issues" flashbacks. Her General was a misogynist one moment and "oh, you're a woman? I'll follow you anyway the next". Even the Emperor was set-up in one direction and then WHAM let's 180° him.

BUT.... with all these issues I still liked the show as a romance between the two generals. I am fully capable of laughing at there being barely any blood splatter on her face after a major battle AND swooning over him giving her a birthday.

8/10 for enjoyment bias
(Storyplot is probably a 6 or 6.5 "maybe" 😅)

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I like moon but moon is not aware

LIKE

He Yan is always getting drunk and did lots of nonsense

Pretty impressed with Zhou Ye in LOTFG - she is good in martial arts

He Yan's true identity constantly being exposed through pulse checking - lol

Xiao Jue's first “kiss” really hilarious and dramatic

Prefer the days when He Yan and Xiao Jue were in military before he exposed her

DISLIKE

All good

MUSIC - personal fav

心海里的光 Xin Hai Li De Guang - 周深 Zhou Shen
夙愿 Su Yuan - 张远 Zhang Yuan
月如歌 Yue Ru Ge - 希林娜依高 Xi Lin Na Yi Gao
锦月书 Jin Yue Shu - 张紫宁 Zhang Zi Ning
忘 Wang - 宁桓宇 Ning Huan Yu

REWATCH VALUE

Shall re-watch some day when I have the time

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