This review may contain spoilers
Missed Potential
I’m a few years late watching this one, but I finally gave it a shot—and honestly, it just didn’t land for me.
The acting was decent, nothing terrible, but the storyline was confusing and hard to follow at times. The pacing felt off, and a lot of plot developments didn’t feel earned. Even for a c-drama, the level of luck the female lead had was unrealistic. It reached a point where it was hard to stay invested because everything seemed to conveniently work out for her.
The maid/assistant character was especially frustrating. From the way she was written to her voice and overall personality, everything about her grated on my nerves. She didn’t add much depth and felt more irritating than supportive.
What really didn’t make sense was the character shift. She originally tried to kill her uncle, the emperor, in front of everyone—but suddenly in her new life she’s calm, strategic, and patient? That drastic transformation needed better development. If she had started that way, maybe the outcome would have been more believable.
I also couldn’t understand why so many people were obsessively fixated on hating her. The whole Ning family marriage arrangement storyline felt forced. His family was rude and unreasonable, yet somehow she was the one blamed. It just didn’t add up.
And can we talk about how long it takes c-dramas to let two characters admit they like each other? The relationship dragged on way longer than necessary.
Visually, it was average. The sets were fine, but nothing stood out. Even the wardrobe lacked that wow factor you expect from historical dramas.
Overall, it just felt underwhelming.
The acting was decent, nothing terrible, but the storyline was confusing and hard to follow at times. The pacing felt off, and a lot of plot developments didn’t feel earned. Even for a c-drama, the level of luck the female lead had was unrealistic. It reached a point where it was hard to stay invested because everything seemed to conveniently work out for her.
The maid/assistant character was especially frustrating. From the way she was written to her voice and overall personality, everything about her grated on my nerves. She didn’t add much depth and felt more irritating than supportive.
What really didn’t make sense was the character shift. She originally tried to kill her uncle, the emperor, in front of everyone—but suddenly in her new life she’s calm, strategic, and patient? That drastic transformation needed better development. If she had started that way, maybe the outcome would have been more believable.
I also couldn’t understand why so many people were obsessively fixated on hating her. The whole Ning family marriage arrangement storyline felt forced. His family was rude and unreasonable, yet somehow she was the one blamed. It just didn’t add up.
And can we talk about how long it takes c-dramas to let two characters admit they like each other? The relationship dragged on way longer than necessary.
Visually, it was average. The sets were fine, but nothing stood out. Even the wardrobe lacked that wow factor you expect from historical dramas.
Overall, it just felt underwhelming.
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