Favorite Villains + Antagonist

My favorite character/part of this entire show was Princess Wanning
- 10/10 acting
- realistic villain portrayal with nuance
- backstory to why/how she became so cruel & 'heartless'
- redeeming qualities; her deep yearning & desperation for love, her desire to be a mother & protective instincts, her loyalty to her brother & mother

Xiao Yuanyi
- Absolutely stunning performance/acting
- A nuanced & complex portrayal of a dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship:
------> On the surface: A toxic mother who is overly strict, undervalues her child, plays favorites, & consistently strains their relationship.
------> Deeper: her struggle & desperation to protect and connect with a child that is completely different than she is. We see that her intentions are good at their very core but she consistently fails to deliver on those intentions over & over again.

Qi Min & Sui Yuanqing
-This show delivered not 1 but 2 [exceptionally attractive] villains with nuance and complexity.
Qi Min
----> On the surface: Qi Min's blatant lack of humanity, intense madness & obsession, brutality, psychological manipulation, devoid of love or emotion apart from his obsession with Yu qianqian
----> Deeper: tragic past, severe ptsd & trust issues, transactional view of humanity, understanding his obsession with Yu Qianqian stems from her being the only one to genuinely treat him as just a human, glimpses of genuine love for Yu Qianqian, his warring impulses for cruelty vs his very human desire for connection, an ultimately pitiful character as stated by Yu Qianqian
Sui Yuanqing
----> On the surface: Sui Yuanqing's disregard for human life, arrogant, brutal, abusive, enjoys tormenting others
 ----> Deeper: genuine & deep love for his family, tragic & misplaced devotion, overly loyal & thus easily manipulated, "golden child" paradox [huge ego, childlike need for love & approval], his final act of defiance appears to us as the 'right thing' to do yet is mainly to ensure the downfall of Qi Min

Su Yunqi (antagonist/protagonist)
- A true anti-hero FL that chooses herself over anyone else over & over again
- Wonderfully written character development:
------> (spolier) when she FINALLY let's love in & then loses it; SO GOOD. I've never loved angst so much. 10/10