I agree. However, Korean clothing and hairstyles are less disfiguring men (than the Manchu braids and bathrobes in BBJX) - from a Western point of view.
I on the contrary think that character are very fleshed out. I find it very interesting how their insecurities…
Well, I understand that dramas like this are a kind of opera for the Chinese audience: they aren’t going to see smth unpredictable but just the same famous situations, same characters (and enjoy the famous verses they know from school). In this genre, it is good but not to everyone’s taste.
Stylish indoor scenes, no garish robes, no cheesy romances - OK. But characters are traditional cliches (cunning advisor, simple-minded prince, moody old rascal who plays off his sons against each other), antagonists are too fat-brained, the plot goes around in a circle. Disappointment.
The scriptwriter of LMIYD is Hai Yan — the one of the Nirvana in Fire!!! I expected her to make a masterpiece again but in the ep. 16 or 17 the show is converted into a cheap & clichéd action movie. Why didn’t she handle it? She got ill,, didn't she? Or the producers ordered her to make the show more soapy & predictable? Or some censorship intervened (like «don’t defame Chinese police and don’t promote superstitions»)?
Agree. It looks like the scriptwriter suddenly died and some office-cleaner finished writing. Or the Chinese censorship intervened and ordered the remake of the second half of the series, that's why it is so cheap and stupid and the scriptwriter didn't handle with the ending. Even the title is meaningless: what is so dangerous in Simon that she should fear him? I guess the original idea was to make his split personality something real.
Why didn’t she handle it?
She got ill,, didn't she? Or the producers ordered her to make the show more soapy & predictable? Or some censorship intervened (like «don’t defame Chinese police and don’t promote superstitions»)?