DramaAjumma

Thank you for your kind words as always.

I've heard this but I've yet to see this claim that there were 66 episodes slated substantiated because the show was pretty decent up to 51. Maybe there were a few more episodes that didn't make the final cut but 66 is 7 hours of television -- too many to be believable.

Sure, I noticed it but it's not really sufficient especially when the earlier episodes make such a song and dance about what he did to her. To me it's not just about her healing but also an acknowledgment that she was being unduly obstinate. That might not be a problem for others but it's a problem for me as an older viewer.

I agree that the show kind of imply certain things with hints of things here and there but the pacing is definitely off at the end.

LOL. She lost her touch after being stuck in the palace for so long. ;)

Look, I think all the crazy women were just there to remind Niaoniao that she's in love with Zisheng and is missing him. :D It's to nudge things along while she's digging her heals in. Without Lou Li and Wang Yanji's intervention, where would they both be. /sarcasm

I don't have a problem with personality changes after what happened either. Even less so for Zisheng. All I want is for them to do forgiveness properly and the healing that results from that. Because for me that is a crucial part of strengthening their dynamic. They both made mistakes in the aftermath of the revenge and it would be nice to just get some acknowledgment of that.

I blame the pencil pushers and money men certainly but I cannot see how some of the story problems can be so easily resolved by extra scenes alone.

Honestly they should have taken their time to release Part 2 and the final episodes. I much prefer a polished product to something that feels like second rate fanfiction.

Absolutely right. They diminished the healing process.

All good dear. No need to apologize.

I agree with your assessment of Niaoniao and the empress but my original argument is that there are gaps in the narrative that leaves me dissatisfied. I'm not particularly concerned that she didn't grow all that much during the five years because of her inability to forgive and move on because this is what people do to themselves. What concerns me is that everyone is pretending that she's matured and that she is justified in holding on to the grudge for this long without trying to resolve it while wallowing in misery. What's worse is that the show itself never really substantially make her come to this place of realisation that she has to forgive Zisheng to free herself and to move on with her life. All we had was a near death scene and voila, she forgives him.

I don't mind the change so much but the show doesn't deal with Niaoniao's change as well as it could apart from saying she matured. I don't buy into the whole "she's matured" line either because from where I am looking she was utterly miserable. And no one called her out on it.

I have finally finished all the remaining episodes and while the ending is not a bad one for a C drama (I've seen a lot worse TBH and I'm still traumatized by Princess Agents), I can't help feeling that there were quite a few gaps in the last 6 episodes. I haven't read the novel but from a writer's/writing point of view, there were a lot of scenes that were definitely missing. Why was Yuan Shen even in Part 2? He was more or less a footnote. If I took him out of the show, it wouldn't really make much of a difference in the overall scheme of the narrative. He may have had a larger presence in the novel but in the drama, he doesn't feel that pivotal. Characters like the Third Prince and Yuan Shen should been given much more time in the story especially in Part 2 because it's obvious that they are important political figures.

For me 52-54 were much more dragged out (unnecessarily) and then 55-56 were rushed into giving the leads their happily-ever-after. There's a lot of telling at the end and not enough showing. To watch Niaoniao digging her heels in after 5 years of imprisoning herself in the palace was actually the most depressing part of the show. I actually thought the crazy women made more sense than she did.

I've just come off watching Episodes 49-51 and it occurs to me that I would have rather had more episodes/scenes with the Third Prince who would be a great male lead in his own drama. I wish that Wendy hadn't been so recalcitrant about keeping the Crown Prince on the job for so long. I know he was being considerate of the empress too but really sometimes Wendy is far too sentimental for his own good.

The most heart-breaking part about these three episodes is watching two people who love each other act like they're okay with going their separate ways when they're not. Obstinacy can be such a terrible burden to bear.

It's such a huge part of Ling Buyi's arc and I'm glad that the drama played it for whatever it was worth.

My thoughts on Episodes 47-48.
https://40somethingahjumma.substack.com/p/love-like-the-galaxy-2022-episodes-3e9
Thanks for persisting with me. It's a slow process.

We have all the box sets of the Lord of the Rings extended edition and it's about 30 minutes to 60 minutes extra footage but Peter Jackson always shot extras to release them in an extended edition DVD box set.

If the big cut in episode number is due to censorship as others are saying then there's no way there will ever be a director's cut.

I've seen a series of specials for Goodbye My Princess that locates the leads in modern times (I think the male lead becomes a farmer) but I haven't heard of a different version with extras in it like Lord of the Rings. Of course I'm not up on everything. :D

That is 7 hours of footage on the cutting room floor.
But who is saying this? The director? The producer?
I've heard these sorts of claims made before and I'm wondering if it's an excuse to fend off accusations of bad editing.

I would like to know who is saying this -- who the source of this information is. Because that's about 7 hours of footage that didn't make it. That is a lot of television.
I've never heard of a director's cut of any show before. In all the years I've been watching C dramas seriously I've never seen one. Not even of the wonderful Nirvana in Fire. (And I have a box set of that)

I've been seeing comments that this was a 66 episode drama that was cut to 56 due to censorship or broadcasting reasons. A claim I find rather suspect. It's a terrible waste of resources even for a C drama. I can understand if it's anything from 3-5. But 10? That beggars belief. As it is they've already split the drama into two so why couldn't they have added a couple more on either end of each part?

I am a huge fan of his vocal delivery all throughout the series. He does such a brilliant job modulating his voice in his various interactions. I love how he has this special voice reserved for Niaoniao.
He's really on top of his game.