Acrobit12

What exactly were they before? Isn't everyone a commoner unless you are hereditary nobility.

Btw, I think the actor is doing a great job. This character is so different from his character in Blossoms of Power.

They don't give YJX a redemption arc. He doesn't deserve one. But I don't want them to kill him either - that would be too easy for him. I want him to end up in the same way as in the novel - a complaining, whiny useless person with no future or hope. Just without concubines to take care of him.

I just hope

I actually like smart non-cartoonish hard to defeat villains.

There is a price to pay for everything and expecting to keep your hands clean is naive.

He is powerful, not perfect. It's really not surprising that an old fox like Minister Yu can one-up him.

Aww, but he was merciful and left Mo's family alone. Ugh.

Agreed

It actually can be interesting if done well, unfortunately it is very rarely done well.

The drama and the novel have almost nothing in common beyond the characters and the overarching story lines. The novel is much more FL-centric. In the novel, once they get to the capital, Zhao Ling spends a lot of his time serving away from home as a military general. And while I like slice of life dramas as much as the next person, I am not sure I would enjoy watching a woman have 8 kids in 10 or so years. Ouch!

It's a matter of personal preference. I am not getting a "the writer haters his/her characters" feeling which I often get at the end of a drama when the body count starts to go up. I can put up with quite a bit so long as it makes sense and serves the plot.

If it makes you feel better, in the novel, General Mo is just fine.

Well, weak men with overbearing mothers are also a very common thing. Said mothers push them very hard in some respects but also do not teach them how to function in the real world/outside of their control ;).

Are they ride or die, though? If they get in each other's way, one or both won't make it out, methinks.

Yes, success in academia doesn't always translate into success in life/workplace.

I agree. The novel was more balanced. This is turning into nothing but misery. And events are starting to feel very choppy, there is very little room for storylines to actually develop.

Thanks

There is a post up thread now. Single episodes Monday and Tuesday, then express on Wednesday.

Oy. I just hope we don't go back to one episode a day.