Acrobit12

No, I haven't seen those. Which Zhang Yumou films was he in? Of course I can check his bio too :).

He and Li Shuang have a history. Sounds like guilt to me.

Agreed

Xu Kai is the ML

Check out Wonderland of Love, this was my introduction to c-dramas.

The oath was that if he tells anyone about Chanxi Palace he would lose his love, not that he has to kill her himself.

Well, it's not unusual for a c-drama if a couple gets married some episodes before the end for them to be happy for an episode or two and then for things to go south in a big way. I am expecting it.

Honestly, there aren't many women in c-drama that I think of that looked like real soldiers. There were the mothers in Lost You Forever and Wonderland of Love, but neither was a main character or even a significant one. The only one that really fits the bill and had a fairly significant role is the princess in Nirvana in Fire

Oooh, that was him too! That show was good but one giant trauma, I think I am trying to just blank it out!

who was a completely despicable character, but the actor did a phenomenal job. I rarely watch Chinese Republican dramas, especially those with a revolutionary subtext (spent my childhood in a socialist country) but this one was really good.

I just realized that the actor playing the Taijin emperor played the main character' father in This Thriving Land

Yeah, I kept thinking where I saw the other Taijin prince before, now I remember!

I know who you mean, but I don't think he fits the demon aesthetic of this show ;). Which is not to say he isn't good-looking.

And the Chanxi Palace brothers weren't too bad either:).

Yes, my eyes definitely thank the casting team

This started out kind of slowly but I am really liking the last five or so episodes, hopefully the upwards trend continues.

While in general I am not a big fantasy fan, so far I am enjoying this s whole lot more than I did the much-hyped LOFG.

Yes, exactly.

See, that's my problem. I don't think they built up the delusional part very well. Sure, CZ tried to manipulate HY in his direction. But given his mother's history he didn't seem likely to force himself (figuratively, not literally) on a woman who clearly didn't want him. But maybe I am just expecting too much subtlety from a romance cdrama. This one was just not up to par in my book.

Yes, exactly. This last arc was completely unnecessary. But then, to me, this snow didn't have much going for it beyond the chemistry of the leads. And, fwiw, I actually thought that the actor that played CZ was quite good.