Maika

So far all I see:
- HAR crying all the time and spending most of the time finding her mom (wish they didn't make her mom move around so much and gave her the courage to expose the truth earlier instead of tossing the evidence around to KJH.)
- HAR makes the most RECKLESS decisions.
1) Goes to KJH's house when she knows he's a suspect kidnapper and tries to ask for her mom. Sure KJH may not kill her, but STILL. WHO ENTERS A SUSPECTS HOUSE WHERE THE DOOR IS OPEN AND YOU'RE ALONE TOO?
2) She was going to ring the doorbell of SDK's studio when she saw them clearly having an affair? What does she gain by ringing the doorbell? "OH hey KSJ's psycho wife are you having an affair?" You're going to alert them and obviously they wanna keep their affair hidden and you'll be a threat to them so why expose yourself like that??

It was reckless of KSJ to go to that resort too. He didn't think about the consequences of going alone with Dabin's tracker lol. Also how does she not recognize that it was not KSJ's voice. Even if they spoke for a minute each day, shouldn't she hear the difference? Thankfully, she was skeptical when she read the texts and Geon Wook helped her out.

The thriller ended because most of the things people can predict..The way SDK was looking at KHC and how the body of KHC and DB were nowhere to be found. Pretty obvious kidnapping was planned...then the second half too we already knew Chairman Yu was sus from the start.

I feel like this drama would be way better if they cut down HAR's crying by 95% and make her more smarter instead of reckless.

I think there's a difference than that and cheating though. Yes, there are times when people want to find comfort and end up finding it elsewhere. The cop's ex cut all relations with him, but that wasn't the case with CWK's ex husband. It was obvious he was seeing the cop's ex while still being married to CWK. That is cheating and there's no other word to describe it. CWK was damaged because of her trauma and I get that her husband slowly drifted away from her (because he can't be that supportive spouse who will do his part while she overcomes it.) But he wouldn't have been an entirely terrible person in my eyes if he came clean to her himself instead of being caught in the act of cheating. This guy was sleeping with another woman while still being married. If he had a conscience and felt any sort of guilt, then he should've ended the relationship instead of deceiving her and pretend to be supportive when he was fed up with her. I get people in relationships can also fall out of love, but it's best to admit it and end things right away. It felt like he wasn't going to admit his cheating till he got caught.

As for the cop's ex, she treats Eun Seo well for being her step mom and Eun Seo seemed to be okay with her too (without knowing the truth). But I'm not sure how her conscience was either. We don't know how they began to see each other and who pursued who. But it makes me wonder if she ever thought that in a way she can be seen as a homewrecker. Did she not draw the line at all, thinking how it would affect the married man's family? Imagine how the daughter's development would be affected if she found out her dad's with another woman and her parents divorced. Some kids may not care, but most kids do care and end up getting affected. But, there are times when divorce is necessary because the parents being forced to stay together will bring more harm than good to the family and child's development.

Sure CWK & the cop proved themselves as people who don't need a relationship. But what bothers me is that it felt like they were normalizing cheating. You can't justify cheating. The moment he felt his heart was wavering towards the cop's ex or when he first slept with her, he should've ended his relationship with CWK is all I'm saying. But he kept his marriage and continued seeing the cop's ex for who knows how long till he got caught.

It was good at the first half? Then it eventually got too draggy for me. I didn't drop it but fast forwarded through the last episode.

Ah I didn't need to forward. I finished and you're right it's most likely S2. In the end of S1 she did help NQ beat Xia Hou but ended up making her more sick. Watched a few minutes of S2 and looks like it'll take quite a bit for her to get better in there too. Thanks!

Interesting and touched the topic of child abuse. But, everything became predictable and not much of a mystery. Also some characters didn't have much of a backstory. The drama focused so much about Cha Woo Kyung's past and there's not much about the other main leads. They kinda got overshadowed and we were given a 2 minute story of their past.
All we know about Ji Heon is that he may not have suffered as a child and he used to think children as nuisances. When his ex-gf got pregnant, she either had an abortion or miscarriage that led to their breakup? But, then she turns into a homewrecker and takes a married man with a kid as her partner. Min Seok (CWK's ex husband) also is enjoying his life with her after cheating on his wife. Why put such an issue in a drama focused on child abuse? It still pisses me off that he did that then he and KJH's ex are happily living together without any consequences. They also completely disappear from the drama near the end. If they were irrelevant, might as well not put them there. CWK doesn't need her husband's betrayal as a motivation. It affected her, but she was more focused on the dead child and the image of her dead sister.

JSY gets violent at times and hits males (in the club or while arresting a culprit if they insult her) and we're suppose to link it to her brother? They just made these characters 2-D.

Also I felt there were other things missing & other details they skipped.

I agree it was totally out of character. Vincenzo is capable of helping Han Seo and preventing him from dying. He could've freed Cha Young and told her to wait outside in safety (but not catch the guards attention) so she doesn't get shot. And then he could've prevented probably Cha Young getting shot and Han Seo. They made it happen to look more dramatic. Idk what they would do with Han Seo's character with Babel gone in the end, so that's why they probably killed him off. But it was such a weird situation to kill him too. They could've redeemed his character in a different way too. It didn't have to be to sacrifice himself to save those two. He already showed signs of changing by not hitting Vincenzo with the hockey stick and hitting his brother.

Nicely written! I was waiting for the part 2 and just saw you posted this a few days ago.

Me too! I watched it for entertainment. Some things did catch my attention as to "How it's possible?" or "Why didn't they do this instead?"
But I didn't let those things bother me too much cause I know it would affect how I was enjoying the drama. I get that they made certain events happen just to have something to drive the characters and motivate them further to do something.
Sorry kinda went off topic with that last comment. I realized it had nothing to do with the thriller comments. It was just one of the things on my mind.

Yeah I get what you mean. It's just most of the crime/thriller dramas I've watched, it's quite obvious who the bad ones are. Maybe not in the start, but usually I figure out who the bad one is halfway throughout the drama before they reveal it. In those cases, the thriller element is gone for me unless they have something else unexpected to happen. But as for this drama, like you said, you already know who the bad ones are. I felt the way they kept the suspense was on Vincenzo's part like you said (like wondering how he'll get out of a certain situation or what his next move will be to counter the enemy). The one unexpected plot twist was that Prosecutor Jung In Kuk betraying them. I thought he would be killed off by Jang's squad.

The one thing I did was overestimate Vincenzo's abilities. I expected him to predict that the enemy would dig into his personal life and find out his mom (just like how they found out he's in the Mafia). But unexpectedly, he didn't see that coming for some reason. Idk if that makes any sense.

I think it can still be somewhat of a thriller because of the suspense element. Most of the episodes would end in a way leaving plenty of suspense and curiosity as how the next episode would turn out. (That is if you didn't watch the small clips of next episodes preview).

Such a lower rating compared to the first season. I hope it's not over a small matter such as people can't accept that some actors including ML changed in S2. I've only watched Ep 1 of S2 on Viki and saw so many people complaining that they want the previous actors instead of watching it and giving the new actors a chance. I'm not sure how the rest of the drama will go, but so far Dylan is doing a decent job. He may portray NQ's character differently in some ways, but I think it's not a bad change. Also shows how NQ matured a bit compared to S1 which sometimes would get on my nerves. But for now putting this on hold till the time for S3 gets closer and going to find the novel to read.

Thanks for the suggestion! I'll look into it. I just feel so far the drama is mostly focused on males (Ning Que) & their development. I was hoping to see either Sang Sang mature a little or become a bit stronger so she's not shown to be dependent and weak all the time. I can handle a damsel in distress type of story sometimes, but I did end up reading some spoilers about Sang Sang's identity so I was expecting her to develop to a stronger character.

No idea if this speeds up somewhere. But so far, I feel everything is building super slowly. There are nice action scenes in between, but that's it. I'm just hoping Sang Sang plays an important role later on in the story instead of being this weak dependent maid servant all the time. More interested in her development. If she doesn't develop into a stronger character, then I'll be disappointed cause some of these FL characters are made annoying (Princess Yu especially).

Yeah that's what they could've done. But it would be just playing around with our feelings more. Some of their bickering/playful scenes I would forget what LCY has done and then when he's treating her badly, I start to hate his character. I spoiled myself on the ending, and I hate to say it but XF suiciding saved herself from the torment. It was also a good lesson for LCY I think. He obsessed over her, so now he lost it and pretended as if she's alive to fulfill the last promise she asked of him.
Only thing tragic is their relationship and how it was formed.

That's why I think there's a bit of Stockholm Syndrome here.
Not really a fan of it. It's no different how in domestic abuse cases the victim says they love their abuser but don't realize how toxic the relationship is.

But as to why she liked LCY. Initially he ignored her when he was at the library. Then they got to know each other and hang out more (the playful snow scene) and they bickered a lot. When they got married, that's when he was doing that act. Idk love is weird. There's also a chance that although she didn't know he was GXW, her heart felt some sort of spark, the same way as it did when he was GXW, and she was just drawn into him not knowing why.
And then when she finally regained her memories, she realized GXW is LCY. She hated him and herself for loving him again probably. And since GXW is the part of LCY that she loves, in the end she probably accepted she loves LCY b/c he's GXW (idk i didnt finish till the end yet).
GXW personality I would say is LCY as well. He was like that, but palace politics made him corrupted and he changed. He wasn't the same anymore.

The first 13-15 episodes was wonderful. It developed so fast but it was at a satisfying pace and I could feel all the emotions. I wanted to cry there with Xiaofeng. But then we get to the plot where both lose their memories and are in Li Empire. It was fine at the start. But I felt they dragged it out for too long. They wanted to show how Eastern Palace was full of bloodshed and schemes. I eventually got frustrated of it, waiting for the schemes to be over and for both of them or one of them to regain their lost memories.
That whole section is a long game of chess where each player is using their pawns and tossing them away too. It felt so repetitive. And the characters lose the bit of intelligence they have.

What pissed me off was Gu Jian. Chengyin lost his memories but GJ did not. I didn't like him just like I'm not fond of LCY either, but I did pity both of them. Because both of them were dragged into this revenge plot by Chai Mu. CM raised GJ and kept feeding him hate for Gao family and how revenge is a must. Then, does the same with LCY (LCY was also dragged into this revenge b/c of the 1st Crown Prince who got punished for suspecting Gao & killed by fake Danchi). A master puppeteer and manipulator (along with the Emperor). Once CM's daughter is involved, then he feels guilt. But he wanted to keep his own child out of it, but uses other kids. Then you see LCY become a monster based off his teachings and he tells Chai Mu back that he's softhearted (a taste of his own medicine). They could've gotten rid of Gao in other ways. I don't understand why they had to this long battle plan by using people to eliminate Gao. There could've been other methods. CM could've set another path and taken LCY away from the Emperor's game as well.

Seeing how GJ was repenting and saved Xiaofeng & Ah Du, I was thinking ," okay he trying to redeem himself as he should." BUT then he gets crazily jealous and tries to sway Xiaofeng.
I'm like no, neither of you really deserve her. He also tries to force her to remember her memories which is the wrong way to go. She needs to remember them on her own. You don't force someone to recall traumatic memories that they intentionally wanted to forget. They have to be ready for it in some way. Yes, she's not better with LCY either, but she may leave him once she remembers. But, doesn't mean you try to be selfish and lie to her to get love from her. That's no different than LCY deceiving her in the start. Him also taking her to Xi State is an irresponsible move. He should've done it when she asked before she got married into Li and accepted the alliance. If he takes her away, knowing how berserk LCY goes when it comes to XF, he would've declared war on Xi and caused more trauma to her.

Sometimes seeing LCY and XF bicker was cute and I'd end up saying aww like in the start, then I remember what an asshole he was to use her to kill her grandfather. When he lost his memories, I did sometimes pity him because he had to pretend to be mean to he as an act to protect her and XF isn't good at acting so he couldn't let her know about it. But he crossed the line when he slapped her. I'm glad she slapped him back though. I already know she dies in the end and that is the best ending to go. TBH, neither ML deserves her love in that time period. They're both males with a toxic kind of love especially LCY. I have a feeling XF would've eventually forgotten all the harm LCY caused her and still love him if she lived. I didn't want to see some Stockholm Syndrome related stuff here. Maybe in another life with different identities they can get together, but not this one.
If LCY made better decisions in the start when I was desperately hoping him not to hurt her like this, then he'd deserve a life with her. Technically he did tell her a half story about his problems in Danchi, but she didn't understand. He felt some remorse when he thought he would die as well in quicksand about using her. He also allowed XF to kill him when CM protected him. But then everything after went downhill cause he forgot. He didn't have the chance like GJ to show repentance.
They say love is about sacrifice but I only see XF's sacrifice. One mistake XF did make was make LCY obsession stronger. By bringing up GXW who he has no recollection of, he lost it and killed GJ. She should've played it smartly.
Also couldn't bear seeing the Emperor hit on these young girls about the age of his daughters and get them pregnant.

I just finished and have to say I already knew XF would die but that scene did sting a bit, I felt so sorry for her to have to live a young life with so much suffering.

So much happened in the first 13 episodes. I thought for the 55 episodes they'd drag out the betrayal, but I'm glad they didn't. From the start, they mentioned River of Oblivion and now we see them both jump there, losing their memories. I'm assuming their end will be at this River too where the beginning was at.
I saw a lot of debate on whether who's better Li Chengyin or Gu Jian and my answer is neither. Like Xiaofeng said, her teacher knew the plan and intentionally pushed Li Chengyin towards her. Her anger at both of them is justified.
As for both of them, I do feel somewhat bad. They both have their own circumstances. But I feel Gu Jian's circumstances were less. Li Chengyin had to avenge the Crown Prince & get the throne to avenge his mother & Gu family. If he had known that Khan Tomur / Danchi people were innocent, perhaps he would not lead the massacre against them? But then again he is powerless. He holds no position to stop the massacre, and tipping the Danchi off would be betraying his own people. He also how they treated his own people so he used that to justify it. Gu Jian isn't tied by title, sure his adoptive father is manipulative, but he could've acted against him. He had so many chances to take Xiaofeng away when she asked.
But basically now they're both bad guys with whatever reasons they have. Idk how they will act in the rest of the drama..
I just feel sorry for people like Ah Du who have to bear with the truth and forced to be mute.

From the start, the way the direction of the drama headed is obvious. I know either one of them or both die. With what happened, there is no way she'd forgive him.

But, what I found stupid is..when General Gao gave the reason about how Danchi aren't good at close combat, the others didn't think of the same? They still suspected Danchi like how could they do a poor investigation. When Chengyin asked Heshi too, they didn't say a word about assassinating Crown Prince. Like doesn't he suspect why they would feign ignorance?? He could've gathered more info before making a decision about annihilating Danchi.

The suffering A'Du and Xiaofeng have to go through is rough D:

I'd say this is an actual ill-fated relationship type of drama. Haven't finished the drama, but 13 episodes in, and you can feel the character's anguish. The theme of betrayal is also apparent. Aside from the Romeo Juliet style theme, I have to say the ML & FL do a really good job in acting so far. I thought I'd be annoyed by the FL since the character in the drama is roughly 14-15 years. But they do a decent job of trying to show her not completely immature and although she is naive she can still make sense of certain situations

FL at the start sometimes would get on my nerves. I wonder how no guy would suspect her when she's screaming like a girl every time she sees a shirtless guy. I get that it's uncomfortable, but that could blow her cover away? I liked the part of her character where she was good at coming up with plans and tried to persevere as a woman. But then sometimes, she would act childish too? I just felt it was a weird combo of characteristics.
Also I felt the character development in the story was lacking.
I will say I'm glad they didn't go for the typical ending that I've been seeing in Chinese historical dramas where they kill off one person in each couple pair and leave one couple happy. They give you that happy ending and not some bittersweet ending. (Although the Xinyuan is alone..he'll move on anyways. He thinks Dieyi is his cousin and that will be helpful for him to move on.)
And the love triangle isn't annoying either. Gets resolved.