nathanL:
I personally love the first half of the series episode 28 ish, i think it's really good and i love the chemistry and the caring love but after that? Eps 30+ are filled with politics, feels a bit rushed and I don't really know why but it just fell off for me. I came here to seek the answer on why i felt that way..? Is it just me or people who have watched up to eps 40 feels the same?
It definitely isn't just you. I have seen many comments where people are saying the drama started going downhill around the same episode as you mentioned. Some people don't want to talk about it on the drama page because of getting hate so I'm hoping this is a space where people can discuss disappointments they may feel about the drama.
AmelieLucan:
It's a weird decision, isn't it, to give side characters more screen time than main characters, who are frequently why people watch a drama in the first place.
Yes. I didn’t have enough explanation on why Changyu stopped worrying about Marquis status. It just sort of happened. And the tutor suddenly disappeared even though he could teach her about war maps and such. And why was sobbing Wei son brought into it? I really don’t care about Wei family, they could’ve just kept him as Wei son without full on 5 min nonsense
Nicky:
Zhang linghe cannnot act. Deng Kai, Lin Mu Ran, Gao Ming Chen and Li Qing are much better actors and it shows. They're all outperforming him. he never frowns, his eyes never change, his forehead never creases and his smiles never reach his eyes.
I think he's a great actor after watching Maiden Holmes and SOKP (must watch) but I see where you're coming from as his character wasn't as developed. I believe that's why he looked stifled in a lot of scenes. I know the drama is FL-centric but it seemed more like Qi Min's character was more developed as they spent more time on his story than Xie Zheng's.
Zhang linghe cannnot act. Deng Kai, Lin Mu Ran, Gao Ming Chen and Li Qing are much better actors and it shows. They're all outperforming him. he never frowns, his eyes never change, his forehead never creases and his smiles never reach his eyes.
I thought he was really good in SOKP too but dont know what happened here. The first time YZ beat up the rival butcher, it was a violent scene but i felt nothing from him there. I find him expressionless in many scenes in this drama.
nathanL:
I legit can't sleep all night thinking what went wrong with the drama cause the first 28 eps were absolute fire but then it kinda lost the passion or something and i keep thinking what's the problem. I just feel like the chemistry's not as good as the village arc back in Lin'an.
I do agree that something felt off after episode 28/29. IMO here's why. This drama was divided into three: the slice of life, the war/battle, and the political/revenge arcs. I read comments from those who read the novel and some were worried that there won't be enough time for the last arc. I believe that's why.the pacing for the revenge arc felt off. So the problem for me was that there were not enough episodes. Think of dramas like the Story of Ming Lan, The Rebel Princess or Eternal Love. The reason why they are classics is because the arcs were well- developed causing us to feel deeply connected to the characters. Unfortunately, stories with several arcs like these will always need more episodes.
Overall, even though we haven't reached the end. this was a beautiful-directed drama with solid actors. To me it's worth a watch especially in comparison to the newer C-dramas. The rating imo is definitely not overhyped.
stay:
I feel the tension between the main leads dying down in the later episodes.. dont get me wrong, the romance is there but the vibe is different. i felt more excited and intrigued in the first half of the drama, back in lin an.
second half's politics is good but yeah feels sort of like a different drama(??).. the romance aspect.. i guess i just liked yan zheng and butcher chang yu more haha
i hope the next few episodes change my mind
ALSO CHANG YU'S HAIRSTYLE WAS SO MUCH MORE CUTER IN LIN AN i miss them bangsssss
i fail to resonate the new chang yu with old one cuz of this (shes still pretty even with the new look though!!!)
I legit did change so the actors did a very good job to convey that. In the First half we have a simple and loving atmosphere a romance dominated by the thoughts of carring for each other and love. In the second half it is still the some romance but with thoughts of officialdom correctness and social aspects aof course that feels differen for onviewers.
And of course do like viewers the first version romance more, simple and uncomplicated love... but in most cases (including in rl) thats not how love looks like....
