Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained; I’m Glad I Took the Shot
It is a wrap! What a wholesome journey it has been. I will definitely miss this series a lot. It will probably takes some time to move on so I am going to rewatch it especially the Xigu Lane arc. A disclaimer; I am just a casual drama watcher, I’m no expert and I am watching for entertainment. This is just my two cents for the drama and I won’t put any spoilers here because I personally do not like getting spoiled.
THE CAST
To whoever did the casting, give him/her an extra bonus, because they did such a great job. I love all the castings, from main leads to all supporting characters, man even the eunuch was a great actor for me. They all fit their characters so well that now I’m reading the novels, it is like another drama adaptation for me in my head.
I follow both TXW and ZLH and imo, this is the best I’ve seen them in roles. I understand the hype of their pairing. Their chemistry is really worth a second drama, or third and fourth.
I don’t think anyone else can carry FCY role as well as TXW; that gap of adorable features and boyish is very hard to pull off. I think it’s refreshing to see FL that does not always have this demure vibe or a crafty mastermind; just a straightforward simple FL but not weak enough to be a damsel in distress. I wish TXW can get a lot more different characters especially action ones, because I think she can pull that off. I also love the fact that she is allergic to romance; you should watch the BTS, they are very fun on their own fr.
ZLH also ate this role; maybe because he doesn’t have many action scenes, I focused more on his acting instead. Someone mentioned that ZLH nailed nuance acting in this and after researching about it, I wholeheartedly agree. You can see how far his acting has grown and I can’t wait to see more. And among all of his dramas, XZ looks the best; he really pull off both masculine and soft looks.
THE OST & CONCEPT USED
I love all the OSTs especially once I read the lyrics. It added so much depth and flavors to the whole series. I also love that from the title and characters’ names, the costumes and the characters themselves stem from historical and cultural inspirations. It teaches me something new which I really appreciate. It makes the series more endearing when I learnt the meaning behind each of them.
THE DRAMA & DRAMA
I have to say the drama surely had tanked a lot of issues. From the rumors the leads had beef with each other, to apparently their agents that actually beefing, fandom billing war, the amount of trolls account they got, data manipulation allegations, pacing issues that was said to butcher the drama up, and the leaks of whole 10 episodes; regardless, look how far the series have gotten. This drama is definitely a breakthrough for CDrama and I’m here for it.
For plot holes and pacing issues, I do not think it is as bad as some people put it. Its main plot is romance and it delivers it very well. (yes, I swoon a lot watching). It is the typical issue for dramas, either flop at the beginning or it drops in the end. I think the most affected arc for me is during Lord Chang Xin arc, too many things happened but too compressed, it feels kind of choppy and they had to cut corners to fit everything in. If only the episode-limit ban was lifted much early on, we could get 50 or 60 episodes at a better pace. But the drama does pick up again towards the end, not as good as Xigu Lane, but it did recover to an extent. I have to say I'm very sad about the cut scene in Ep 38, i don't think it is something that need to be censored. I was looking forward to it real bad too.
All in all, there is no perfect fiction. Fiction in itself meant something of the not real world; it’s a manifestation of someone’s imagination. For any illogical plot or the inconsistencies that exist, the rule of cool applies. The main purpose is for our enjoyment anyways, so I am willing to overlook small plot holes because the vibes and emotions were solid. For any changes from the novel, that is up to the creator’s creative liberty on their own works. Of course, there are few things I love and dislike about the addition in the drama or parts that I prefer to follow the novel, but its quite overboard to discredit the whole drama for the small portion of the issues. And too much analytical and critical judgement sort of take away part of the fun, if I have to do all that, I might as well go to work.
TO SUM UP
In the end, it is whether YOU like it or not that matters. Preference is subjective after all. Give it a shot and see; if you like it then that’s good, we can simp together, if you don’t, also okay, maybe in the next drama we see each other. My suggestion would be to watch the drama first, and then read the novel for the best experience. As writing materials would have more details and elaboration for plot and characters, reading the novel first would create certain expectation for the adaptations; which for me lessen the experience of the drama because I can’t help but compare them together.
Thank you for reading and happy watching guys!
THE CAST
To whoever did the casting, give him/her an extra bonus, because they did such a great job. I love all the castings, from main leads to all supporting characters, man even the eunuch was a great actor for me. They all fit their characters so well that now I’m reading the novels, it is like another drama adaptation for me in my head.
I follow both TXW and ZLH and imo, this is the best I’ve seen them in roles. I understand the hype of their pairing. Their chemistry is really worth a second drama, or third and fourth.
I don’t think anyone else can carry FCY role as well as TXW; that gap of adorable features and boyish is very hard to pull off. I think it’s refreshing to see FL that does not always have this demure vibe or a crafty mastermind; just a straightforward simple FL but not weak enough to be a damsel in distress. I wish TXW can get a lot more different characters especially action ones, because I think she can pull that off. I also love the fact that she is allergic to romance; you should watch the BTS, they are very fun on their own fr.
ZLH also ate this role; maybe because he doesn’t have many action scenes, I focused more on his acting instead. Someone mentioned that ZLH nailed nuance acting in this and after researching about it, I wholeheartedly agree. You can see how far his acting has grown and I can’t wait to see more. And among all of his dramas, XZ looks the best; he really pull off both masculine and soft looks.
THE OST & CONCEPT USED
I love all the OSTs especially once I read the lyrics. It added so much depth and flavors to the whole series. I also love that from the title and characters’ names, the costumes and the characters themselves stem from historical and cultural inspirations. It teaches me something new which I really appreciate. It makes the series more endearing when I learnt the meaning behind each of them.
THE DRAMA & DRAMA
I have to say the drama surely had tanked a lot of issues. From the rumors the leads had beef with each other, to apparently their agents that actually beefing, fandom billing war, the amount of trolls account they got, data manipulation allegations, pacing issues that was said to butcher the drama up, and the leaks of whole 10 episodes; regardless, look how far the series have gotten. This drama is definitely a breakthrough for CDrama and I’m here for it.
For plot holes and pacing issues, I do not think it is as bad as some people put it. Its main plot is romance and it delivers it very well. (yes, I swoon a lot watching). It is the typical issue for dramas, either flop at the beginning or it drops in the end. I think the most affected arc for me is during Lord Chang Xin arc, too many things happened but too compressed, it feels kind of choppy and they had to cut corners to fit everything in. If only the episode-limit ban was lifted much early on, we could get 50 or 60 episodes at a better pace. But the drama does pick up again towards the end, not as good as Xigu Lane, but it did recover to an extent. I have to say I'm very sad about the cut scene in Ep 38, i don't think it is something that need to be censored. I was looking forward to it real bad too.
All in all, there is no perfect fiction. Fiction in itself meant something of the not real world; it’s a manifestation of someone’s imagination. For any illogical plot or the inconsistencies that exist, the rule of cool applies. The main purpose is for our enjoyment anyways, so I am willing to overlook small plot holes because the vibes and emotions were solid. For any changes from the novel, that is up to the creator’s creative liberty on their own works. Of course, there are few things I love and dislike about the addition in the drama or parts that I prefer to follow the novel, but its quite overboard to discredit the whole drama for the small portion of the issues. And too much analytical and critical judgement sort of take away part of the fun, if I have to do all that, I might as well go to work.
TO SUM UP
In the end, it is whether YOU like it or not that matters. Preference is subjective after all. Give it a shot and see; if you like it then that’s good, we can simp together, if you don’t, also okay, maybe in the next drama we see each other. My suggestion would be to watch the drama first, and then read the novel for the best experience. As writing materials would have more details and elaboration for plot and characters, reading the novel first would create certain expectation for the adaptations; which for me lessen the experience of the drama because I can’t help but compare them together.
Thank you for reading and happy watching guys!
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