CKDramaddicts

Yes, there are a number of C-drama actresses I quite like or enjoy watching, but at the same time, few truly blow me away, especially with their versatility and ability to take on very different roles.

I've watched a few of her dramas - Blossom, Princess Gambit, Heroes, and a few others - but I am not sure she would feel that different from Victoria Song, other than a closer age gap.

I agree with Zhao Liying as a possibility, she was good in Shen Li. Unfortunately, I personally don't really get Zhao Lusi or Yang Mi's appeal as actresses, so they wouldn't work for me. 🫣 Not to mention Zhao Lusi would come across too young to feel like a "jiejie". Or maybe "indifferent" might be more accurate, since I don't dislike them either and have watched their dramas. Same with Dilraba. I do like Tan Songyun, but for me, she doesn't feel like a good fit for this particular role...

Yes, in general, transmigration, time travel, certain types of rebirth, need some kind of "it was just a dream/book/video game" element to pass censors, if I recall. Altering the past, fictionalizing real history, are generally a no-no. Or that was certainly the case a couple of years ago. It also depends on the platform. So if the drama is going to air on Chinese TV, the more strict they are with what's okay/not okay. But there is also a certain amount of self-censoring at play too, since producers/directors also probably don't want to deal with the potential hassle. Overall, short-form dramas and verticals especially are the most lax with what they can and can't do, but as they gain popularity, I've heard they are getting a little more strict too...

Do you mean Zhou Ye from Legend of the Female General? I like her, and liked that drama, but she feels younger than DYX to me, so the older FL/younger ML dynamic wouldn't work. I do like (Sandra) Ma Si Chun as well (who played the doctor from the BJT drama You Are My Hero), but I can't picture her either.

Yes, Liu Shishi is beautiful - absolutely loved her in Journey to Love. I thought she would fit the fighting spirit of the character, and she's a better actress, but wasn't sure how she would pair opposite DYX.

I did want to point out that the vast majority of actors, in Hollywood and Asia -- even recognizable ones -- are still "working actors".

In Hollywood, many take on secondary jobs to make a living wage because they actually aren't paid gobs of money, unlike those at the very, very top. For those who make a decent, but not outrageous sum -- enough to afford or require some support staff -- they also make less than you would think once they pay out their agents, stylists, trainers, assistants, publicists, lawyer, travel, and taxes, etc. Not to mention, many go into the business because they love acting and they are good at it, but hate the fame part and didn't sign up to have their looks picked apart.

From this article: Only 14% of SAG-AFTRA members make at least $26,470 annually to qualify for SAG-AFTRA healthcare coverage
https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/actors-strike-hollywood-sag-aftra-living-wage-healthcare-struggle-1234798347/

And in Asia, actors are typically locked into very strict decade-long contracts. In China, this often means no base salary, requiring cash advances to cover living costs, draconian contract penalties, and they receive as little as 10-30 percent of their earnings during those years. Korean contracts may be different, but they aren't called "slave contracts" for no reason.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slave_contract

https://wuulongcha.wordpress.com/2023/03/05/the-rabbit-hole-c-actress-jiang-jia-en-is-mia/

I seem to be enjoying this more than many others here, and I don't mind Victoria Song or the age gap either. And she's great in the fight scenes. At the same time, I do think maybe someone else could have been a better fit...?

And yet. I am hard pressed to name one actress who would fit the parameters -- someone who looks more mature than DYX, but could have strong chemistry with him, while also looking convincing as a fighter/soldier/martial artist. Everyone that comes to mind either look too youthful, or girly, or delicate, while the more mature actresses all give a similar vibe as Victoria Song including Wu Jinyan, Meng Ziyi, Liu Shishi. The closest I can think of is maybe Song Yi, but I don't think she would be as convincing as a fighter. Maybe Li Qin? Zhao Liying?

Given how fantastic some of LXX's verticals are, this was a bit disappointing, tbh. I was really hoping for more, but still loved that he did an adaptation of When the Phone Rings. This is not an abridged carbon copy of the Kdrama like the vertical "Call for Love" was, since some plot elements were changed here, but still close enough to be instantly recognizable.

I am not too far in yet, but enjoying it so far and whatever VS lacks in acting (and I don't even think it's that bad, certainly decent enough for me to keep watching), she makes up for with her excellent martial arts/fight scenes, likely due to her decades of dance training and experience. My friends who are caught up to date also like the relationship between sisters-in-laws too, and like the slow burn between the OTP.

Yes, I did say she was more than twice her age in real life and "easily looked" a decade older, so mid-20s and up.

In any case, so far, (please don't come at me, haha) VS is giving me the same vibes as WJY, tbh. So I guess I will need to keep watching and see how things unfold! (I am not expecting this to be as good as The Double or anything, but still enjoyable in its own way.)

I'm honestly a bit surprised by all the harsh criticisms for Victoria Song. I don't think she's any worse than other older actresses cast to play younger women. While unmarried, given Chu Yu's life with the army, she likely both *looks* older and *is* older than her unmarried peers who live a pampered and sheltered life at home. So Victoria Song does not look dramatically out of place age-wise (and she looks pretty great for her real-life age too). Sure, her acting is not going to win awards, but she makes a much more convincing female soldier to me than some of the other recent younger female generals (even though I liked them too).

I loved The Double, but I didn't see this much criticism over bad age casting in that drama even though Wu Jin Yan was supposed to be only slightly older than Ai Mi (real life around 15 at the time), but easily looked a decade older and was more than twice her age in real life. I was able to ignore all that and enjoy the show and OTP as is.

As for chemistry, right now where I am, it works as is, because she still sees him as a little brother. DYX is great playing basically a boy who had to grow up fast and the youngest in a large family of grown men who doted on him.

Anyway, I'm enjoying this drama so far!

I don't think there's anything wrong with either his face or physique and he suits his youthful character. He might have a slighter frame, but good things come in all kinds of sizes. But more importantly, he's a better actor than a number of other popular leading idol actors that come to mind who are clearly just a pretty face and otherwise about as expressive as a lump of coal...

We're all free to critique what we like and don't like, but there's no need to be unkind.

I just started this because all my friends are really enjoying it -- more than the more popular releases out right now -- and quite liking it so far. I'm mostly neutral on Victoria Song overall (I don't mind her), but her extensive dance training really shows in the dance/fighting/martial arts sequences, which are spectacular to watch and so much better than a lot of MLs in historicals.

As an aside/warning, my friends have said the drama reminded them of the Yang Family TVB mini-series from the 1980s with Andy Lau and Tony Leung. https://kisskh.at/6624-the-yangs-saga

Unfortunately you would need likely need to watch it on an official platform like iQiyi to get the original edit, sound, background music, etc. The YouTube versions will always have the sound edited out at the very least.

The iQiyi title got changed today to "From Hate to Love in Flames", lol. They can't make up their minds...

I didn't think they included animation on MDL either, just stumbled across it by accident.

This is such a difficult watch, but Zhang Bin bin and Mao Xiao Tong are just so so good here and this drama is equally so. It is especially great at capturing the excruciating aftermath that so often gets glossed over. Qin Nan may be the greenest flag ML of the hundreds of drama I've watched not just for being supportive and kind, but to do so and be so patient and understanding under the absolute most challenging of circumstances.

A part of me is so mad at the FL for not cutting off her horrible mother after what she did at her big city company, but filial piety can be such a strong force, so I totally get it too. But OMG, her mother is truly the worst.

I thought they did a good job explaining how she became that way though, so her portrayal at the beginning made sense.

YES!!!!