YTF123456

No, not really. The show didn’t really need it. There was a little backstory for the senior inspector and his late fiancée but that was more like a background thing.

It had a good mix of goofiness, suspense and heroism. I loved it, especially Jang TangShik’s character. I am now watching all the other dramas Lee Seung Woo acted in. Will start with Vigilante. Suddenly i’m so glad I subscribed to Disney+.

I don’t care if he is a pauper. How can he be so tall, so goofy, so cute and so sexy at the same time? I mean when he had the fake tattoos and gangster hairdo, my heart went badumbadum

This episode was ridiculously funny!

Sorry, don’t know the song, but just wanna say Lee Seung Woo with his fake tattoos look so hawt!

ZLH rocking the stache in E1

Same question.

Such a wonderful review of the drama. I could be wrong but it seems the team made efforts on the historical accuracy not just in the bureaucracy and hierarchy of court officials and legal processes, but also in terms of costumes and language. The lower ranked officials seem to wear coarsely woven robes while senior officers wear more finely woven robes. The ladies playing mahjong spoke in a dialect which may have been historically correct of Ming dynasty and the mahjong tiles also looked authentic for that period. I tend to agree with the view that ZRY’s character is innocent and the observant comment to Feng about the lawyer becoming the new brother in law may be an inconsistent arc by the script writers.

As someone who has been in and out of love, I did not have issues with the 3 year time jump. I will always have a soft spot for my 1st love, regardless how poorly it ended, or how many loves I meet in life.

The creative team led by P'Aof needed a way for Mhok to find his financial independence and develop his career as a chef without being too unrealistic. And the fact Mhok is busy with his career and in a new country, I accept he did not have much opportunity to find love during the 3 years.

As for Day, I believe he broke up with Mhok for 2 reasons. 1st, he wanted someone he could really trust. He grew up in a single parent family, where his father cheated on his mother, so he did not want a partner who will lie to him. Even though Mhok only lied because he did not want Day to know he sacrificed the job opportunity to remain with Day, it backfired because Day was still very young. This was his 1st relationship and Day's ideal partner is someone whom he can trust. Still in University, Day was inexperienced and did not realise life is not all that black and white, but with many shades of grey in between.

Secondly, by breaking up, Mhok will be able to accept the overseas job posting to develop his career. I see that both Mhok and Day loved each other so much, they are willing to be humble and self-sacrifice for each other. I was worried that the eye donor would turn out to be Night or Mhokbut I am glad it was not disclosed. Who knows, if there will be a season 2, would it be the father who donated the corneas? Would August comeback to challenge the love between Mhok and Day? Would Mhok's bisexuality be explored further? Why did Porjai and Mhok breakup? A lot of opportunity for a sequel.

The MDL guidelines to add a drama dictate the production must include an Asian country. Marco Polo the Netflix series does not qualify, as it is a collab with the now defunct The Weinstein Company (yes, the infamous Harvey Weinstein scandal which was the precursor to the Me Too movement).
In any case, the cast is predominantly Asian, and Joan personified her character Empress Chabi flawlessly.
The drama has 2 seasons, 10 episodes each. Unfortunately the 3rd season was not renewed, not sure if it was due to bad timing with the infamous scandal which caused the Chpt 11 of TWC.
The setting and events seem fairly consistent with historical records available on the internet. But I am sure the scriptwriters exercised their fair share of artistic licence to make the plot even more engaging for the modern viewers.
I was surprised that Michelle Yeoh has a smallish role in S2, and that Zhu Zhu could speak English excellently. There were some online discussion regarding the various English accents of the cast, which did not really bother me.
This is an old series, made in 2014, but Netflix has been streaming a high quality version which makes it look very current.
Joan was fantastic in playing her role. She was steely in her resolve, with one look she conveyed her regal disposition, she spoke with grace and gravity, and steered her husband Kublai Khan whenever he was in doubt.
She was also soft and emotive when the situation required her motherly love and affection. In fact I think she does not lose out to Michelle Yeoh in the acting department, except Michelle is a much more all rounded artiste, excelling in martial arts fluidly.
Those who have not seen this, please give this drama a chance. I learnt so much of history from this, and also they employed seldom used English words in the script, which I had to double check for the meanings.

I’m glad this drama made it to the top 10 list I found on Reddit. It is stellar. I have watched The Bad Kids when it came out as my friends were raving about it. Thanks to your suggestion I am now rewatching it. So happy. Do you write professionally in your work? Your reviews here are always a joy to read. I am a fan.

This is my 2nd Chinese modern day drama (in 2023) after watching 13 years of dust. And this was such a redeeming drama. Storytelling at its finest! Like you, I was immensely riveted to the plot and I enjoyed the meandering storyline with interesting subplots. I am also very impressed by the caliber of the make up artists who have ingeniously transformed the cast to look their respective ages. The old ginger is indeed spicier, and the veteran cast was a joy to behold. I am so glad to have watched this. Your review, as always, on pointe!

Ya, several other things in the storyline also need more explanation. Why are victims made to pose like models in fine art? How did 2nd murderer get to know about the pencil? So many unresolved issues. Acting is good, pace is good (I hate draggy shows), but storyline leaves so many questions unanswered.

I chanced upon this drama on the internet. It has a good reputation as one of the better crime dramas in recent years. I quite enjoyed the unconventional storytelling method where explanations of certain situations and relationships were only disclosed when the characters in the drama asked. For example, why Li divorced his wife but continues to maintain a loving relationship with his wife and daughter; why Wei behaves coquettishly with Bai when he is already married with a kid. However, I found there were too many suspects and cases between flashbacks and present day without sufficient resolution. Why did the arsonist kill himself? How did the deputy inherit the bathhouse? Why was bathhouse owner in a coma? Why is Lu’s wife’s childhood friend painted like a creepy suspect? Why did Bai and Wei get married to different people despite being clearly in love with each other? For these reasons I felt the storyline could be tighter. I cannot believe Lu and his wife got a divorce just because they lived separately. I rate this 7.0 for storyline, but 9 for acting skills.

I am here because I have fallen in love with 张晚意 from another drama 长相思.
He sang the beautiful song “dislocation of time and space” and then I found this drama. I have read your awesome review and I am sold! I have to learn more about history and I will watch this.

I was disappointed with the drama but not with your review. I dare say your review is so well written that this drama did not deserve it. Rule #22 rocks. I want to add another rule: it is acceptable to serve the same pastry at every meal.
The drama is inconsistent. Full stop. Sometimes the acting is really good, like the Yongzhou warlord, but his skillful acting is let down by the character development which is almost bipolar.
One moment he is guilty of his sick son visiting his late wife’s grave, the next moment he is so proud of his son’s achievements and grants him a princely title, but yet he is so consumed with fear that his own son would overthrow him that he forces his son to down the inner strength debilitating potion, and finally he skips the appointment of his son as the heir apparent and abdicates instead. WTF??
All in all I would rate the drama as a 7 and I would not rewatch it. The plot is very predictable and even my partner who did not watch the drama fully could guess that Pu Er will die in an attempt to coax our tears. But I was not fooled. But I have to say 1st and 3rd prince are sexy af and the twist that they are both so smart was the only redeeming factor. I wished they had more screen time and topless time. And the 2 old martial artists must be crowned the original brokeback mountain couple because they practiced the sacred jade moon skill together but due to being in the closet they could not truly live together and be of one heart. Hence the unfinished weiqi chess endgame and the inability to breakthrough the ceiling (closet) of the sacred jade moon skill.

I was looking forward to Wu Lei and Diliraba drama The Long Ballad but to my disappointment, Wu Lei had practically the same expression for the entire episode 1. Should I continue?

Honestly I did not expect S1 to be so good. Like you, I will have to rewatch S1 when S2 is available. I wonder if I will cry as much during the rewatch.

I was not expecting this drama to be this good, and I worry I will not find another that is as mesmerising. I agree with your excellent review, and while Deng Wei was the weakest of the male leads, some of his scenes are the most memorable, and hence my adoration for this drama. The part when he refused to kiss her, the part when he found her bleeding to death, and burnt himself to death protecting her, and then wishing to die when she died, OMG I cried like my own parents died. But the most heart wrenching scene has to go to Xiao Yao’s reunion where she mistook the concubine as her mother. That scene had me crying like I lost my child!
I am in love with the selfless and loving character of Xiao Yao, and all the male leads. Jing is my favorite role, just a teeny bit more than CangXuan.

Is CX related by blood with XY? I remember XY’s mother was adopted by XiYan while CS father is the natural son. Does this mean CS and XY are adopted cousins?

I also love CX’s voice. So versatile and theatrical able to sound endearing, soothing, and also commanding and authoritative,

I’m with you on this. They have to expose the fake pregnancy in S2 and let these pair of luckless lovers finally unite for good. Also, he is the only one she ever voluntarily kiss so they have to be together in the end. She cannot end up with CangXuan because wouldn’t that be some sort of incest? Whoever XiaoYao’s daddy is, her mother and CS father are blood siblings, right? Or was the mother adopted and hence not related by blood? This part I’m not too sure.