you're stronger than me, i couldnt go past the first ep. you can honestly picture how it'll play out in the first…
Yeah, it was painful for me too. I didn’t even watch three episodes in one go... I only continued in my free time because I like the lead actors. But it just didn’t work for me at all. The performances didn’t click, and the whole university student approach felt completely off. The way they played those characters didn’t feel convincing. The dialogues were bad, and the performances too. Don’t ask me about the screenplay and direction. Honestly, if they had gone with different younger actors and shown them alongside the older ones, it might have worked better. Not sure.
Wang Xing Yue- I’ve seen him in some works, and honestly, he’s a very bad actor and quite unattractive. He definitely doesn’t feel like lead hero material. He just doesn’t have the charm or presence to carry a drama. I’m not sure how this one is going to turn out, but I’ll still check it out because Xu Ruo Han is in it-she’s just brilliant.
After watching ep 10: . I’m just loving this drama, and I really want to talk about a particular technical aspect of it & the editing brilliance. In episode 10, when we first see Ui Young’s father’s face, we instantly connect with him. The way his character is presented , his actions, his dynamic with his daughter and ex-wife and how everything comes full circle by the end of the episode is just so well done. The drama introduces a character and then prolongs that character into a more layered conflict in such small scene in a single episode is just brilliant, which gives us that shock value. I don’t think anyone expected her father to be there that’s how cleverly they played it.
They really hooked us into the next episode, because at this stage no one is dropping the drama. Everyone wants to know what that conversation in the house will be like. Now, coming to the editing part, usually, after each episode, there’s a ritual of showing the next episode’s promo. But here, the editing didn’t show even a single shot of their conversation. Instead, it showed much later scenes from episode 11. That’s how the editor completely avoided spoilers while still keeping us hooked.
These small technical choices of using charactersin full circle, I love them so much. I especially love when the screenplay is better than the story, because in dramas, especially romcoms with a love triangle, you already know how it’s going to end. But what really matters is how the screenplay keeps us engaged. And here, the director and actors are really good at it.
I’m enjoying it so much that I even want a spin-off about the main lead’s company employees. I want to know more about them, that’s how impactful these characters are. And honestly, that’s why I miss the 16-episode era.
I really don’t watch wuxia, I don’t think I’ve ever watched any. I find them extremely unrealistic; I’m okay with fantasy, but I don’t fully understand what the genre actually means. I’m not entirely sure what wuxia really is. I’m wondering if I should start watching it, since so many people seem to enjoy this genre.
I just felt like you read my mind. I agree with you from the first word to the last.
Glad that it resonated with you. I actually ignored a lot of points and just wrote whatever came instinctively in that moment. And tbh, I’m really disappointed with the way it went in the second half of the drama, especially towards the end. Many people might call it brilliant or too good because they like the actors in it, I love the actors who are in it too, but I can’t be biased with my feelings.
It’s my unbiased review. I love Zhang Linghe, that’s why I started this drama. It might be a little long, but I hope you read the whole thing.
Pursuit of Jade finished. I don’t even know how to express my anger, my disappointment… my heart is boiling.
I’ve said it before, around episode 17, it was such a fantastic drama. I genuinely wanted to give it a 10/10 rating. After finishing it, I expected it to stay the way it started: slowly building, everything falling into place, truths unfolding step by step. Small obstacles turning into bigger ones, stakes rising higher, consequences becoming heavier. The chase, the players revealing their true colors, attacks coming from everywhere, leaving them with nowhere to go, and eventually winning through pure tactics against powerful forces… I had imagined all of that.
But as the episodes went by, it became so cringe I can’t even describe it. The same things kept repeating again and again. The story just stopped moving. The same lame jokes, even in serious situations.
Still, it somehow held my attention till episode 37. But the last three episodes? Easily the worst episodes of what was once a fantastic drama I was ready to rate 10/10.
What did they even do there?
The action and war scenes were so bad. The staging was dumb and poorly executed, so fake. I mean, so fake. The production quality dropped drastically. You can literally see the wire work. That scene where he goes to sacrifice himself? So badly directed. I’m saying this confidently, I could have directed it better. I genuinely don’t know what went wrong there.
Then comes the philosophy and the whole “17 years later” part. There wasn’t even a strong foundation for the past, and suddenly you want us to absorb everything in a single episode? Are you serious?
In the last 2-3 episodes, it felt like the director just wanted to show everything, closure, a villain’s humanity, emotional depth, all at once. But it didn’t work. I don’t know whose fault this messy ending is, the editor’s or the director’s, but it’s just disappointing.
The narratives became so slow and poorly structured that you’ll literally fall asleep watching them.
And then… the absurd alternate universe concept. I mean, who asked for that?
You showed extreme cruelty from certain characters, massacres, killings, and then suddenly expect us to sympathize with them? To root for them? That completely destroys the emotional weight the drama built earlier. It started as such a realistic, well-crafted story, and ended as something absurd with bad direction, poor editing, and a nonsensical conclusion.
My mind is still not empty, I could write 10 pages about this, but I think that’s it for this drama.
I want to see Nana in more dramas like My Man Is Cupid, I’d love to see her in roles like that more often. She’s such a beautiful actress and she must be absolutely nailing it here too.
Actually, forget it… I’m not ready for any scandal 😭
After watching ep 3: I’m not continuing for now, not because it’s bad, but it’s not holding my interest. I’ll come back to it later.Putting it on hold.
The ones playing Dr. Shin and Momo are so unwatchable, what are they even doing? I can’t sit through their scenes; they don’t even know how to deliver their lines. I think I’ll have to drop it.
They really hooked us into the next episode, because at this stage no one is dropping the drama. Everyone wants to know what that conversation in the house will be like. Now, coming to the editing part, usually, after each episode, there’s a ritual of showing the next episode’s promo. But here, the editing didn’t show even a single shot of their conversation. Instead, it showed much later scenes from episode 11. That’s how the editor completely avoided spoilers while still keeping us hooked.
These small technical choices of using charactersin full circle, I love them so much. I especially love when the screenplay is better than the story, because in dramas, especially romcoms with a love triangle, you already know how it’s going to end. But what really matters is how the screenplay keeps us engaged. And here, the director and actors are really good at it.
I’m enjoying it so much that I even want a spin-off about the main lead’s company employees. I want to know more about them, that’s how impactful these characters are. And honestly, that’s why I miss the 16-episode era.
Pursuit of Jade finished. I don’t even know how to express my anger, my disappointment… my heart is boiling.
I’ve said it before, around episode 17, it was such a fantastic drama. I genuinely wanted to give it a 10/10 rating. After finishing it, I expected it to stay the way it started: slowly building, everything falling into place, truths unfolding step by step. Small obstacles turning into bigger ones, stakes rising higher, consequences becoming heavier. The chase, the players revealing their true colors, attacks coming from everywhere, leaving them with nowhere to go, and eventually winning through pure tactics against powerful forces… I had imagined all of that.
But as the episodes went by, it became so cringe I can’t even describe it. The same things kept repeating again and again. The story just stopped moving. The same lame jokes, even in serious situations.
Still, it somehow held my attention till episode 37. But the last three episodes? Easily the worst episodes of what was once a fantastic drama I was ready to rate 10/10.
What did they even do there?
The action and war scenes were so bad. The staging was dumb and poorly executed, so fake. I mean, so fake. The production quality dropped drastically. You can literally see the wire work. That scene where he goes to sacrifice himself? So badly directed. I’m saying this confidently, I could have directed it better. I genuinely don’t know what went wrong there.
Then comes the philosophy and the whole “17 years later” part. There wasn’t even a strong foundation for the past, and suddenly you want us to absorb everything in a single episode? Are you serious?
In the last 2-3 episodes, it felt like the director just wanted to show everything, closure, a villain’s humanity, emotional depth, all at once. But it didn’t work. I don’t know whose fault this messy ending is, the editor’s or the director’s, but it’s just disappointing.
The narratives became so slow and poorly structured that you’ll literally fall asleep watching them.
And then… the absurd alternate universe concept. I mean, who asked for that?
You showed extreme cruelty from certain characters, massacres, killings, and then suddenly expect us to sympathize with them? To root for them? That completely destroys the emotional weight the drama built earlier. It started as such a realistic, well-crafted story, and ended as something absurd with bad direction, poor editing, and a nonsensical conclusion.
My mind is still not empty, I could write 10 pages about this, but I think that’s it for this drama.
I’m disappointed.
And I don’t think I’ll ever rewatch it. 7.5/10
Actually, forget it… I’m not ready for any scandal 😭