Main relationship grows well, rest of it is alright
I almost stopped watching this show. I was expecting a smart and capable female lead, but within a few episodes she was screaming and wailing while still being full of herself. Maybe it was supposed to be funny, but I didn’t find it funny. At the same time, I found the male lead to be rude and unlikeable. Even though the FL was legit obnoxious and annoying, the total contempt he directed at her still made me angry. And I don’t think this was the best styling for Allen (ie he didn’t even look good while he was being an asshole).
I’m glad I stuck it out, because it did improve significantly. It took me almost 20 episodes to get into this show. Both characters grew on me, and their slowly building relationship ended up being a highlight. I even started to find the ML better and better looking, haha.
Strong female leads are my jam, and Jinxia did alright. She becomes more down-to-earth and likeable, just a cheerful person trying to do her job… I think she’d be an excellent coworker. And she is shown to be capable in her own right. Unfortunately her abilities are pretty much overshadowed by the ML’s at all times. Ah well.
I wasn’t sure at first how I felt about their boss-subordinate relationship. There’s a reason these are problematic and banned in modern times- unequal power dynamic, relationship affecting work, etc. Luckily it’s handled pretty well. Even as she idolizes him, she keeps her head screwed on straight, and he also maintains his professional bounds. Whether the screenwriters actually considered it or not, I did notice that he confirms it’s mutual before doing anything (otherwise the unequal power dynamic is a problem). His love feels very selfless; no need to assert. After they get together, their dynamic becomes more typical overprotective and overdevoted ML, which I liked less, but it happens fairly late in the show.
More problematic, perhaps, is the male characters who do not go away after being rejected. Personally I found it very irritating. Xiao Xie is annoying but mostly harmless, actually thought Jinxia handles him pretty well. Yang Yue, on the other hand, should have a restraining order against him and be arrested for stalking. Some of the things he says would be modern day sexual harassment. In real life his behavior would be considered creepy and inappropriate; is it supposed to be cute just because it’s in a show? I’m actually a little upset that his unwelcome and disrespectful behavior somehow paid off. I understand it was a sexist society, but as a viewer I had a hard time rooting for this character who’s supposed to be a “good guy”.
There’s also quite a lot of mention of sexual violence in this show. I have no opinion about it, I just found it somewhat surprising because I haven’t seen it much in other shows.
As for the actual story… it’s alright. There are many story arcs but in the end it all comes together under one villain, Yan Shifan, who is not particularly morally complex (eg I never felt sorry for him), but who is quite crafty and also very smarmy. There is the mystery of the FL’s past, which is interesting enough as it unfolds, but in the end I have to subtract points for it (see section on the Ending, contains spoilers).
I feel the strength of this story is really the main couple’s relationship. The story arcs seemed most interesting as a mechanism to watch their relationship develop, leaving a slight void after they finally get together. I wish they had developed some side stories a bit more, especially with many potential great side characters who came to nothing. For example, I would have loved to see more development of the sisterhood between Zhai Lanye and Shangguan Xi.
Stylistically, I was not a huge fan of the director’s style of shooting peoples’ eyes up close. I saw people making comments about Allen’s X-rated stares, I honestly think it was just this stylistic choice which personally I was not a fan of. That aside, I do think Allen did a good job and I could see his character’s emotions evolve. He’s able to convey subtle emotions without overacting.
Technique-wise, the fighting is flashy but decent, and many actors and actresses in this show seem to have some degree of training. Some are better and some are worse; Seven Tan has a nice crescent kick, great flexibility. The choreography doesn’t exactly display supposed skill differentials (eg FL is a great fighter until suddenly she gets beaten badly) but that’s a minor quibble.
World-building is well done. This show is set in the Ming dynasty, which means it’s in the past but not too far back. It’s fun to see signs of modernization that aren’t in more historical Cdramas, like the beginning of guns. I also like that there is no random supernatural phenomenon or unexplained plot devices; although there are some logic leaps and unbelievable developments, at least everything supernatural has an explanation. A little realism is more suitable for a show like this, which dared to declare a specific historical period. And the costumes were gorgeous, especially the embroidered uniforms that give this show its title in Chinese.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW
In typical Cdrama style, the story gets a bit rushed at the end with too many rapid fire twists and turns. Although I saw it coming, I was a little upset they killed off a well-loved character for seemingly not-great reasons. And the final defeat of the main baddie is more a whimper than a bang.
The ultimate ending is happy, but we only get about 10 seconds of seeing them happy together. I had to find the novel online and read its appendices to get closure. I recommend doing this, it made a huge difference for me.
MORE MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD
My main issue is with how the story of her past plays out at the end. I felt very frustrated watching it. Perhaps I just have a hard time resonating because I didn’t grow up in a culture like this. The concept that, because of familial ties, people can be guilty for things they didn’t do or even know of, is so clearly ingrained in all the characters that I’ve tried to accept it as a premise, but I still have a hard time sympathizing with their choices.
Why did he break up with her without telling her- why not let her make her own decisions? But her reaction when she found out- was that really her character all along, and what about their relationship that I was so invested in? And why did he feel the need to pointlessly self-destruct? Could he maybe have done a better job trying to figure out what she actually wanted?
I think the book handles it a bit better (not just her giving him the cold shoulder), but the full-blown last-minute implosion is actually right from the source material. Not an excuse, though; dramas can and do change things. I do think I would be less frustrated if I also felt, intuitively, that family guilt should be inherited, but right now I just feel like I’m missing something that would make all this make sense.
I’m glad I stuck it out, because it did improve significantly. It took me almost 20 episodes to get into this show. Both characters grew on me, and their slowly building relationship ended up being a highlight. I even started to find the ML better and better looking, haha.
Strong female leads are my jam, and Jinxia did alright. She becomes more down-to-earth and likeable, just a cheerful person trying to do her job… I think she’d be an excellent coworker. And she is shown to be capable in her own right. Unfortunately her abilities are pretty much overshadowed by the ML’s at all times. Ah well.
I wasn’t sure at first how I felt about their boss-subordinate relationship. There’s a reason these are problematic and banned in modern times- unequal power dynamic, relationship affecting work, etc. Luckily it’s handled pretty well. Even as she idolizes him, she keeps her head screwed on straight, and he also maintains his professional bounds. Whether the screenwriters actually considered it or not, I did notice that he confirms it’s mutual before doing anything (otherwise the unequal power dynamic is a problem). His love feels very selfless; no need to assert. After they get together, their dynamic becomes more typical overprotective and overdevoted ML, which I liked less, but it happens fairly late in the show.
More problematic, perhaps, is the male characters who do not go away after being rejected. Personally I found it very irritating. Xiao Xie is annoying but mostly harmless, actually thought Jinxia handles him pretty well. Yang Yue, on the other hand, should have a restraining order against him and be arrested for stalking. Some of the things he says would be modern day sexual harassment. In real life his behavior would be considered creepy and inappropriate; is it supposed to be cute just because it’s in a show? I’m actually a little upset that his unwelcome and disrespectful behavior somehow paid off. I understand it was a sexist society, but as a viewer I had a hard time rooting for this character who’s supposed to be a “good guy”.
There’s also quite a lot of mention of sexual violence in this show. I have no opinion about it, I just found it somewhat surprising because I haven’t seen it much in other shows.
As for the actual story… it’s alright. There are many story arcs but in the end it all comes together under one villain, Yan Shifan, who is not particularly morally complex (eg I never felt sorry for him), but who is quite crafty and also very smarmy. There is the mystery of the FL’s past, which is interesting enough as it unfolds, but in the end I have to subtract points for it (see section on the Ending, contains spoilers).
I feel the strength of this story is really the main couple’s relationship. The story arcs seemed most interesting as a mechanism to watch their relationship develop, leaving a slight void after they finally get together. I wish they had developed some side stories a bit more, especially with many potential great side characters who came to nothing. For example, I would have loved to see more development of the sisterhood between Zhai Lanye and Shangguan Xi.
Stylistically, I was not a huge fan of the director’s style of shooting peoples’ eyes up close. I saw people making comments about Allen’s X-rated stares, I honestly think it was just this stylistic choice which personally I was not a fan of. That aside, I do think Allen did a good job and I could see his character’s emotions evolve. He’s able to convey subtle emotions without overacting.
Technique-wise, the fighting is flashy but decent, and many actors and actresses in this show seem to have some degree of training. Some are better and some are worse; Seven Tan has a nice crescent kick, great flexibility. The choreography doesn’t exactly display supposed skill differentials (eg FL is a great fighter until suddenly she gets beaten badly) but that’s a minor quibble.
World-building is well done. This show is set in the Ming dynasty, which means it’s in the past but not too far back. It’s fun to see signs of modernization that aren’t in more historical Cdramas, like the beginning of guns. I also like that there is no random supernatural phenomenon or unexplained plot devices; although there are some logic leaps and unbelievable developments, at least everything supernatural has an explanation. A little realism is more suitable for a show like this, which dared to declare a specific historical period. And the costumes were gorgeous, especially the embroidered uniforms that give this show its title in Chinese.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW
In typical Cdrama style, the story gets a bit rushed at the end with too many rapid fire twists and turns. Although I saw it coming, I was a little upset they killed off a well-loved character for seemingly not-great reasons. And the final defeat of the main baddie is more a whimper than a bang.
The ultimate ending is happy, but we only get about 10 seconds of seeing them happy together. I had to find the novel online and read its appendices to get closure. I recommend doing this, it made a huge difference for me.
MORE MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD
My main issue is with how the story of her past plays out at the end. I felt very frustrated watching it. Perhaps I just have a hard time resonating because I didn’t grow up in a culture like this. The concept that, because of familial ties, people can be guilty for things they didn’t do or even know of, is so clearly ingrained in all the characters that I’ve tried to accept it as a premise, but I still have a hard time sympathizing with their choices.
Why did he break up with her without telling her- why not let her make her own decisions? But her reaction when she found out- was that really her character all along, and what about their relationship that I was so invested in? And why did he feel the need to pointlessly self-destruct? Could he maybe have done a better job trying to figure out what she actually wanted?
I think the book handles it a bit better (not just her giving him the cold shoulder), but the full-blown last-minute implosion is actually right from the source material. Not an excuse, though; dramas can and do change things. I do think I would be less frustrated if I also felt, intuitively, that family guilt should be inherited, but right now I just feel like I’m missing something that would make all this make sense.
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