This review may contain spoilers
Love and Crown: A Beautiful Story That Loses Its Soul Midway
If you watch dramas mainly for the actors, visuals and the romance aesthetic, Love and Crown might still be enjoyable for you. Ren Jialun as Xiao Huan (also known as Bai Chifan) and Peng Xiaoran as Ling Cangcang have good chemistry, and the early setup looks promising. But if you care about strong storytelling, logical plot development or consistent character arcs, this drama will likely disappoint you because the writing collapses midway and becomes increasingly chaotic, dragging the entire show down.
⚠️ Spoilers Below
Love and Crown starts with genuine potential. Xiao Huan, the undercover emperor played by Ren Jialun, and Ling Cangcang, the righteous leader of Fenglai Pavilion played by Peng Xiaoran, form a strong and engaging pair. Their journey as they fight corruption, hidden schemes and martial world conflicts feels solid during the first half of the drama. The supporting cast including Zhang Yao as Xiao Qianqing, Wang Zhuocheng as Luo Xianxue and He Nan as Zhong Lin also offer strong performances that help build a compelling start.
Unfortunately, everything begins to fall apart after Episode 22 or something.
The plot becomes messy, inconsistent and filled with sudden twists that lack proper buildup. Alliances shift abruptly, conspiracies appear without explanation and many character decisions stop making sense. What began as a promising mix of romance, palace politics and wuxia slowly turns into a confusing narrative with little structure or logic.
Villain Arc Issue
The drama attempts to introduce stronger antagonistic influence through Du Tingxin, the Imperial Preceptor, who eventually goes rogue. Character have motives, but the drama fails to show any believable path for how they gain so much power or influence.She have no clear alliances, no strategic buildup, no logical political foundation, yet the story suddenly elevates them into major threats. This makes their villain turns feel forced and unearned, weakening the entire plot.
Wasted Performances
Even though the actors give committed and sincere performances, the weak writing undermines everything. Emotional arcs become inconsistent, motivations are ignored and pacing becomes uneven. The cast tries to hold the story together, but the script simply does not support them.
Dragging to 35 Episodes
Instead of tightening the narrative, the plot drags unnecessarily to a full 35 episodes. Conflicts repeat themselves, character actions become confusing and the final stretch feels disconnected from the strong beginning. The ending fails to deliver the emotional or narrative payoff the early episodes promised.
⭐ Final Verdict
Love and Crown had all the ingredients needed for a great historical drama including a talented cast, good chemistry and beautiful visuals. However, the lack of narrative logic, poorly developed villains and chaotic mid-to-late writing ruin the overall experience.
Rating: 4 out of 10. Beautiful production that ultimately wastes its potential.
⚠️ Spoilers Below
Love and Crown starts with genuine potential. Xiao Huan, the undercover emperor played by Ren Jialun, and Ling Cangcang, the righteous leader of Fenglai Pavilion played by Peng Xiaoran, form a strong and engaging pair. Their journey as they fight corruption, hidden schemes and martial world conflicts feels solid during the first half of the drama. The supporting cast including Zhang Yao as Xiao Qianqing, Wang Zhuocheng as Luo Xianxue and He Nan as Zhong Lin also offer strong performances that help build a compelling start.
Unfortunately, everything begins to fall apart after Episode 22 or something.
The plot becomes messy, inconsistent and filled with sudden twists that lack proper buildup. Alliances shift abruptly, conspiracies appear without explanation and many character decisions stop making sense. What began as a promising mix of romance, palace politics and wuxia slowly turns into a confusing narrative with little structure or logic.
Villain Arc Issue
The drama attempts to introduce stronger antagonistic influence through Du Tingxin, the Imperial Preceptor, who eventually goes rogue. Character have motives, but the drama fails to show any believable path for how they gain so much power or influence.She have no clear alliances, no strategic buildup, no logical political foundation, yet the story suddenly elevates them into major threats. This makes their villain turns feel forced and unearned, weakening the entire plot.
Wasted Performances
Even though the actors give committed and sincere performances, the weak writing undermines everything. Emotional arcs become inconsistent, motivations are ignored and pacing becomes uneven. The cast tries to hold the story together, but the script simply does not support them.
Dragging to 35 Episodes
Instead of tightening the narrative, the plot drags unnecessarily to a full 35 episodes. Conflicts repeat themselves, character actions become confusing and the final stretch feels disconnected from the strong beginning. The ending fails to deliver the emotional or narrative payoff the early episodes promised.
⭐ Final Verdict
Love and Crown had all the ingredients needed for a great historical drama including a talented cast, good chemistry and beautiful visuals. However, the lack of narrative logic, poorly developed villains and chaotic mid-to-late writing ruin the overall experience.
Rating: 4 out of 10. Beautiful production that ultimately wastes its potential.
Was this review helpful to you?
