Zhang Ming (2025)

Revenge First, Love Later (Actually… Revenge Always)

Oki, where to start with this.

First of all: Yu Xuan Chen as the ML? Never in doubt. The man showed up, delivered, and suffered beautifully.
This is my third project with this FL and I’m officially sold—she did great. Together they’re painfully good-looking, very stand in dramatic lighting while secrets loom energy.

Now the dynamic, because it’s deliciously unbalanced. I love a yearning ML, and this man is down bad. Meanwhile, the FL has exactly one brain cell and it is labeled REVENGE, so she keeps throwing him under the bus like it’s an Olympic sport. He never catches a break. And yet—he loves her unconditionally. Through lies, schemes, and emotional hit-and-runs. Tragic. Beautiful. I sighed loudly.

The chemistry is there, but the spice is low—and that fits. This was never about flirty fireworks. It’s about pain, loyalty, and emotional suffering with good lighting. Even the kisses reflect that: not awkward, just… not exactly scorching either.

Pacing-wise, ep.1–20 work well, especially since the ML figures out her real identity early. Immediate tension upgrade, no clueless era. Love that.
But around ep.21/22 the story starts dragging. Once the big reveals are out, the conflict stops escalating and just… loops. This did not need to be 30 episodes. Airing viewers suffered. Bingers might survive.

One thing that really doesn’t help the pacing is the excessive use of flashbacks. For a drama with already short episodes, it leans on them far too often, sometimes in very questionable moments—yes, even during intimate scenes. Nothing kills momentum quite like cutting away mid-emotion to replay something we’ve already seen.

Of course, the classic mini-drama tropes are present: revenge/rebirth, childhood connection, ML who’s loved her forever while hurting her to protect her, etc. The last two tropes need a decade-long nap because if I never see them again, it would still be too soon. Budget limitations are very visible, but I’m forgiving with mini dramas—they tend to be bolder, messier, and more fun than full-length dramas that play it safe.

Yes, most side characters are underdeveloped and comically decorative, but this is a short, punchy watch—not a character study dissertation. It knows what it is and commits.

Final thoughts: I was really into this for the first two-thirds. Then it becomes a dragged, messy spiral that makes you mad because the FL clearly outclasses the villains. Add the ML into the mix and the bad guys should’ve been DONE—yet we keep the charade going for no reason. As a revenge story, not very satisfying.

Still messy, still dramatic, still enjoyable in parts, and yes, a happy ending for the leads :)
Consume at your own risk 😉

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10 Episodes Too Long

How is it the FL has no problem stabbing the ML, but didn't want to kill the villain when she had the chance? Her luke-warm revenge plot never made any sense. She gave herself more trouble being stupid and wasting opportunities. And I think that is why I found her character so annoying to me. Her smug looks weren't backed by intelligent scheming. It was just her throwing the ML under the bus, while allowing others to get one and two over on her. Had she been as vicious with the 2nd ML as she was with MML, this drama would have been over with by ep. 20 and would have been more logical and tightly written.

I also hate the trope of ML hurting the FL or vice versa in the name of "Helping" them. Just tell them what the plan is and act accordingly. It's such a lazy writing tactic to manufacture unnecessary drama between the leads. Like the ML is a badass fighter, you mean to tell me that he couldn't kill the male villain with one arrow to the head or chest? This series dragged out the simple plot to a painful length to endure.

There was no reason why the Xiao Hujin should have lasted as long as he did. Couldn't the writers come up with a better villain than him? They continued to give him opportunities to survive just so that he could be a foil, which makes the lead characters stupid. Just because it's a short series drama, doesn't mean it should have crappy story-telling.

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