Initially interesting characters flounder and flip flop by the middle and never stop
This started out so well that it was a ten for me up until the leads both reached Bliss Palace. First it became questionable whether Zhao is allowed to make any decisions on her own. Then it became questionable whether any of her decisions make any sense. Instead of letting the leads spent some time apart and let them get in some good pining so that they may come together stronger, the male lead forces their paths to cross at every turn in either icky or straight up nonsensical ways.For a sect drama even if it is not full-fledged wuxia, the fight choreographies are pretty one note and incredibly short until the last episodes. Zhao seemed to be a cool fighter at first, then she just does the same move over and over. The only impressive fight she gets is against one of her uncles.
Whenever the leads make up again they are on the outs once more just as fast. Sadly, Generation to Generation is a downward spiral. The Man in Black is an interesting enough mystery to keep me speeding through the leads' seemingly endlessly repeating woes. By the 26th episode I simply wanted to know if that damn villain is the guy I thought he would be or the lame guy I thought he would be. It was the lame guy.
All the male characters belong in the garbage except Zhao's incredible little brother. The female supporting characters are no more than plot devices except for the master's wife. Barely any character develops. There is just foreshadowing that goes nowhere each time.
Everyone's goals feel all over the place except the male leads, but only because he is allowed to secretly go after his goals during most of the drama. Sadly, that is more handled to justify him interacting with the FL than anything else and is completely disregarded by the end. Their love story turns into a farce of obligation. Where that obligation comes from? Nobody knows.
5/10 for what could have been and the magiepie bridge song, which is a better love story than these two.
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A comedic drama with heartfelt moments and a supporting cast deserving its own story
For me, the side-characters Mr. Bai and the scholars were the breakout stars of this drama. I could watch a few extra episodes only with the scholars. It's been quite some time since I last cared about side characters in a drama or truly any TV-Show to this extend. The romance was alright but certainly simply a more interesting lead dynamic at the start. The leads are lovable, but I didn't really care about it compared to the scheming and the drama surrounding the nation. Therefore, during most of the last episodes I skipped some scenes.The Qiang state being behind most schemes was an interesting addition given its presence in both the Xia and Yan state harem. I would have liked to see Qian explored more. Even if the leads would have just found out the Qiang state is the scapegoat of the original story and then had hit like an invisible barrier when trying to communicate with Qiang because the state itself was never written into the original story. Basically, I think it would have been interesting to see more "out-of-bounds experiences" given the talk about 2D and higher level characters. Why shouldn't "2D places" exist too?
Despite skipping through some scenes, this is a drama that made me cry and laugh in equal measure. I actually teared up a few times and that usually only happens once when it's a good drama. As stated before, they truly had a great supporting cast, only FL's maids - both Mei and Hua Hua - were a bit too canon fodder flavored. Speaking of "canons", Mr. Bai's specifically designed arrows were great. The seizing of the capital was a fun action sequence.
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A glorious short drama
This short drama truly plays to its strengths. The rebirth aspect is used to shorten the time it takes to set up the villains and allies within the harem. Short dramas usually feel rushed to me, not so Glory Back. It truly feels like the screen writers and director condensed a harem drama to its most essential scenes. Glory Back benefits from focusing on the revenge story instead of more sprawling harem and state intrigue, though the hints are there. It is a well-played personal story of the FL finding out who harmed her and who is making a mess of the harem in the process.The male leads are both devoted to the female lead and have their strengths. It is fun to not immediately dislike one over the other. It becomes clear, though, that only one can match the female lead's wit and personality. The progression of the relationships felt very organic.
The visuals are stunning and the production makes good decisions to use the budget they have. They make the harem look like a sprawling place.
Often I feel the last episodes of dramas (both short and standard) can be a real drop in quality, not so here. The very last episode was a bit too wholesome and progressive for the overall story, but that's just how Chinese Drama operate at this point (for good endings).
For a web series this one is simply so good and I am happy a second season has been teased. I would be so interested in this team doing a standard series harem drama.
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