This review may contain spoilers
Scent of Time 10/10
Just finished watching this drama and I’m genuinely blown away. It’s already 2025, two years since this masterpiece aired, yet I only just watched it. Scent of Time isn’t the type of drama I usually go for, but here I am, about to drop my review after two days and 30 episodes later 🤣While many might say the pacing was too slow, I’d like to disagree. This drama tackled strong themes like regret, trauma, and self-loathing. As expected, Zhou Ye portrayed Hua Qian beautifully. Hua Qian was originally introduced as a villain in the first few episodes, but after the downfall and eventual loss of her family and loved ones, she dies and is sent back in time. Unknown to her, this so-called second chance is nothing but a dream — an escape from her reality, not an opportunity to truly change the fate of her family.
Most of the episodes showing her “rebirth” focused on her determination to change her actions and those of her family, even though by that point, she and her father had already made the fatal mistake that destroyed them in her “past life.” Still, she never gave up. She fought to right her wrongs, even as the emotional weight of realizing some events in this new life differed from her past began to suffocate her. The relationships she rebuilt, the painful confrontations with her parents and older brother — all reflected the deepest regrets she carried.
One of my favorite aspects was the subtle foreshadowing of Zhong Xiwu as the true male lead. 😅 We can all agree he had less screen time than others. In fact, he appeared so little that he almost felt like a side character. That was heartbreaking for me, because he was the one I rooted for, not Hua Rongzhou. A part of me always knew HRZ wasn’t really the male lead, no matter how much the drama paired him with Hua Qian. Honestly, even Zhong Yelan, Hua Qian’s ex-husband, felt more like a main lead than HRZ.
The reveal at the end — that HRZ was merely someone Hua Qian conjured in her desperate attempt to not feel alone — was beautiful. She longed for one person to be truly sincere to her, regardless of everything else. Even though she had feelings for Zhong Xiwu, she clung to the belief that the one destined to stay by her side was Hua Rongzhou, though not even in a romantic sense. When she finally realized it was all just a dream and she still had to return to a reality without her family, status, friends, or loved ones, my heart broke for her. It’s devastating when the family you lost is still alive in that dream 😭.
And Zhong Xiwu… his silent love and unwavering dedication to her deserved more screen time. There should’ve been at least one more episode showing him by her side, helping her adjust to the reality she once left behind. Still, I think the drama tied everything together beautifully. Never in my life did I imagine loving a reverse-harem drama as much as I loved this one — and I’m glad the guy I rooted for was the one for her in the end.
After watching Legend of the Female General, I was desperate for another Zhou Ye drama and ended up picking this one, despite it having a trope I usually dislike 🤣. Honestly, I never thought I’d be able to watch her with anyone other than Xiao Jue (Cheng Lei) from Legend of the Female General 🤣, but Wang Xingyue delivered his role as Zhong Xiwu so well that I found myself on YouTube searching for clips of their chemistry. I still can’t believe how young he is — truly a super talented actor 👏🏽
Also, I just have to say how much I love Zhou Ye. I realized I might sound like a new fan since I mentioned her 2025 drama, Legend of the Female General, but I’ve actually been following her since 2023 when she starred alongside Neo Hou in Back From the Brink. That drama completely changed my view of her — even though I knew her from Word of Honor, I didn’t count that as my “first Zhou Ye drama” since she was only a side character and, honestly, I was too focused on the two male leads that year 😅. But after Back From the Brink, I truly became her fan and started watching more of her works, both dramas and movies.
Scent of Time actually came out the same year as Back From the Brink, but back then I couldn’t get over her insane chemistry with Neo Hou, so I wasn’t ready to see her with another male lead. Plus, I’ll admit I’m a bit childish when it comes to reverse-harem stories, I can’t handle it if my protagonist doesn’t end up with the person I’m rooting for 🤣🤣. Looking back though, I think 2025 was the perfect time for me to finally watch it. I’m more mature now, and I can appreciate it with a clearer, more critical lens. That being said… I still won’t be watching other reverse-harem dramas any time soon 🤣🤣.
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