Aryael

So far by Ep. 8, it's good. Hopefully it maintains this pace and interesting story line (though I pretty much can guess what it's going to be and see the twists coming) to the end and not flop halfway through like Tribes and Empires.

Gank your heart has more 'other' stories and has more relationship between team mates and politics within e-sports organisations besides the romance between the leads. It's more like a working relationship where both male and female are equals or eventually become equals/achieve success together. GGS focuses more in the female and male lead's relationship. The rest are just side stories with little consequence. GGS also has a dominant much older male character who's the possessive type and a female lead who's the naive, pure type. Those who like the 'dominant-submissive/master-servant' type romance will like GGS better. It's really all about personal preference.

So far they are following the novel with some additional scenes which gives better lead into later scenes. It helps that the author is the screen-writer as well. I am looking forward to when HSY decides that TN is his gf. That's the turning point of their relationship when HSY becomes a possessive and pro-active bf. He's especially good at giving outrageous suggestions and allowing his team and outsiders to 'misunderstand' his relationship with TN. TN, however, remains quite naive and was 'taken advantaged of' by HSY who obviously enjoys having the upper-hand in the relationship.

So far, the story's good, but the OSTs are even better. I think even if the story falls flat later on, the biggest take-away from this drama is the OSTs, especially the Mandarin version of Beyond's classic 海阔天空. Also, I didn't know they got Dimash to sing one of the OSTs as well.

He goes from being a demon master to being a demon lord. The young man definitely has the 'look' to pull off these demon-like roles. I can foresee the next best role for him - the grim reaper!

I really shouldn't be here till end of August! All of your comments are tempting me to start this, but I know it's a good one and it'll be better to watch this once all the episodes are out. I will set aside a free weekend in August and just marathon it. I shall be patient. Good luck to all of you waiting for the next episodes to air!

Don't worry. Wrapping it all up nicely in 50 eps is definitely do-able. There is quite a significant back story/childhood story for ZWJ and as soon as he hits adulthood, the adventures will build on one after another pretty quickly.

Yes.

So far, I am liking this remake. Glad they expanded on the parents' love story and the love story of Yang Xiao and Ji Xiaofu. They also used better looking actors and actresses to play those roles - because let's face it, in the novel, ZWJ's parents were described as good looking and that's where he gets his good looks from. Yang Xiao wasn't too bad either, though he has a Dongfang Bu Bai vibe to his look. In the past, because the parents and Yang Xiao & Ji Xiaofu have short back stories, they always used average looking older actors and actresses to play those roles. Even the other students of Zhang San Feng (ZSF) were better looking than their predecessors from earlier versions of HSDS. This shows the respect the directing and casting team have for the story for not treating these people, who are non main actors and actresses, as less important and that it's not just about having the lowest paid actor to fill in a short role.

I am also happy to see how the current actors and actresses interpreted the roles given to them. ZWJ's dad surely did not come across as a boring, straight-laced Taoist priest with the little smirks and the way he looked at ZWJ's mum; and ZWJ's mum sure is a beauty with attitude! I am even wondering if she will end up as being the prettiest in the female cast! I also like how the actor playing ZWJ's dad showed love and conflict well in his expressions and how ZWJ's mum quietly knew the inner conflict her husband was facing all throughout their relationship.

It took me a while to get used to the more sprightly ZSF as he was always portrayed in past HSDS adaptations as sagely but I am slowly getting used to it. ZSF is more of an old grandpa in this version and he can be indulgent and displayed his emotions more readily. And little ZWJ himself is not doing too bad.

There are little add-ins but they did not distract from the drama following the story in the novel. There are 50 episodes, and I plan to enjoy this slowly. Too bad Lois Cha is no longer with us. I hope they will continue to produce all of his novels into dramas every 3-5 years so that each generation of Chinese and non-Chinese audiences will grow up knowing his work.

Mediocre drama. The fight scene between the two leads in Ep.2 and the way they stood off against each other has a bit of a Yang Guo (Chen Xiao) vs. Dongfang Bu Bai (Joe Chen) vibe. Anyway, dropping this.

@Mari You probably felt that way because the climax for you is the romance arc which in your expectation, ended with marriage. So whatever happens after marriage will not interest you.

Let me emphasise to those who have yet to start this drama:- This is NOT a romance drama. The story is about Ming Lan, as the title suggests. Romance is just a small part of the story just as romance is a small part of anyone's life. In fact, I wouldn't call it romance since the female lead until Ep. 59 have yet to really fall in love with anyone. She's a very smart and intelligent lady but lacked what she would consider as a "weakness" when it comes to matters of the heart. Ming Lan guards her heart closely to herself to the point that she's absolutely okay if Gu Ting Ye takes a concubine; as long as she does her job as the legal wife and mistress to the household properly. That is what frustrates Gu Ting Ye because he's in love with her and she's not.

Family and all its troubles, people to people relationship are what I would say, the main themes of this drama. It's a slice of life drama. I find what happens after Ming Lan and Gu Ting Ye's marriage interesting. The drama had held true to its genre so far. The pace remained the same. It has ups and downs - peaceful days and not-so peaceful days; exciting days and boring days - as per life.

I think Qi Heng is angry not simply because he got rejected but because after he was rejected, she could find happiness in her marriage to GTY - which is a slap on Qi Heng's face. He loved her obsessively but to her, he's expandable. She can be happy even without him as her husband. So, it has become a combination of hatred and jealousy - and not jealousy of their happiness, but jealousy that they are happy when he's not.

Oh, dear! I wasn't disagreeing with you. I was agreeing and reiterated about personal preferences. I made the age gap comment directed at the others in general who made a big fuss about it. Hence the reference to "ppl" not "you". Apologies if you felt the comment was directed at you.

p.s: regarding the stats, for a general statement. it's technically more correct to say it's a more common form of relationship without making assumptions of the opposite because the stats differ greatly between countries. you must not forget that the majority world population is dominated with people from poor countries where traditional forms of marriages still take place; like ones where a man can marry what many of us from the first world will deem as under-aged girls, but it's absolutely acceptable for their culture. also, what we define as "relationship" can range from married, de facto to live-in; but in more traditional countries, "relationship" is strictly defined as marriage only- hence it will be difficult to make assumptions on the less common form of relationships as the government stats differ according to method of data collection and definitions.

I don't think Qi Heng turned bad coz it's against his nature, but I cannot be sure coz I read the novel a while ago and I have read many novels. I also don't remember Qi Heng's character having much story after Ming Lan and Gu Ting Ye came together. The drama might have created more stories for Qi Heng. Currently I am reading three online chinese novels, so I might get the stories from the novels I read in the past confused with each other....but I think Qi Heng maintained a cordial relationship with Gu Ting Ye and Ming Lan. If memory serves me right, I think at the end of the novel, Gu Ting Ye and Ming Lan's kid got married to Qi Heng's kid. They became in-laws. Whoever has read the novel and still remember it well, please confirm if this is correct or incorrect.

To each their own. It all comes down to preferences here. There is no right or wrong. Btw, the female lead is of legal age, so despite the age gap, I don't see what is the big fuss. Ppl just like to make a mountain out of a molehill.

I haven't been watching KDramas for a while now. Today, I was bored and as I was browsing through what's currently available, I saw the high ratings this drama was given despite its rather simple synopsis. Then, I came here and read all the comments about age gap and the making out scene at the end of Ep. 13. That got me curious. So, for 5 hours, I fast forwarded this drama and caught up to Ep. 13. My conclusion:

1) Older man and younger woman is the more common form of relationship than older woman and younger man. Personally, I know a few women in my circle of friends who married much older men - the biggest age gap was 21 years with one of my girlfriend marrying a man of the same generation as her own parents. Initially, her parents were very against the idea but now, they are happy for her. My friend and her hubby have been happily married for 20 years now. My very best friend married a guy 15 years her senior. I myself married a man 7 years my senior. Where is the pedophilia? Many women prefer older and more mature men, and it made sense because older men tend to have more stable career, are the stage of their lives where they are ready to marry and commit to having a family, been through a few relationships and know exactly what sort of woman or relationship suit them better and with older men, they are usually more protective and caring towards their wives, they are more responsible etc etc. Whereas with older women and younger men, people will wonder if something is wrong with the man....if he lacked motherly love or he likes to be mothered etc...to consider a relationship with an older woman. And I bet that parents of the younger man (especially if the woman is so much older) will worry if the older woman is still okay to start a family when their son is finally ready to settle down. Biological clock ticking and all. To this day, such relationship is less common than the relationship between an older man and younger woman. But then again, this is personal preference. At the end of day, love is love, regardless of age or age gap.

2) There's nothing wrong with the making out scene at the end of Ep. 13. In fact, it's very mild and somewhat respectful. No hands going where it shouldn't go. No ruffling of hair or any aggressive passionate movements. No pulling of clothes and definitely no nakedness. It's just a prolonged kissing scene. I can still tell that there's awkwardness between the actor and actress. So, I disagree about them having great chemistry. Maybe chemistry as good friends but definitely not chemistry as lovers.

3) As of Ep. 13, my rating of this drama is 7.5/10. It's okay to past time but not amazing. It's a pretty straightforward story with all the usual storyline you'd expect from a romantic KDrama - down to the characters of the male and female leads. I'll wait till it finish airing and catch the tail end of the final episode to see how it ends, but then again, I expect a standard happily-ever-after as per any run-of-the-mill KDrama.

Oh, my heart! The way old madam Sheng cried when Ming Lan married. I can emphatize with that emotion. I couldn't sleep well the night before my daughter married and pretty much stayed up to make sure everything's ready and everyone's needs catered for. On the wedding day, even though I was happy, I felt sad, tired and nostalgic too. It was a different feeling to when my son married. I was happy and had a well rested night but I bet my daughter-in-law's parents didn't had much sleep. By the way, I think Ming Lan and Gu Ting Ye should offer tea to old madam Sheng too coz strictly speaking, it was the old madam who raised Ming Lan; not the father or official wife. Anyway, the wedding....beautifully done!

As of Ep 40, it's definitely more than 10% of Battle of Changsa. Be patient though as it starts slow and builds up. Enjoy the journey.

yes, but i love to watch the interactions between the Sheng father and mother (first wife). they are totally behaving like a real married couple. the arguments, the childish tantrums, the "one look and i know what you're up to" and at times, the "i have your back and you have mine" chemistry that they have. they very much reminds me of my own interactions with my hubby. we've been married for over 30 years now. he's my best friend and my worst enemy. now, that's marriage! ;)

If you guys are enjoying this drama, may I suggest that you try Battle of Changsa (my No. 1 most favourite Chinese drama to date) and Love Me If You dare, if you haven't watched these dramas? Same director, quality dramas and excellent directing, story and acting. If the director keeps bagging such good dramas, I might just be his fan!