This review may contain spoilers
A drama for our inner Mulan
Let me start by saying I nearly skipped this drama because I read one review that said it was bad and many comments calling it a temu production. Still, I had waited like most fans for years for this drama to air so it was only fair to judge it after watching it.
I'm so glad I did!
This drama was really well cast and paced, but it's not flawless. There were things that didn't make sense and plot holes, but nothing that would ruin the drama in my opinion.
I think Zhou Ye did a great job portraying He Yan. I greatly sympathised with her hidden identity and felt that her mother should have done more to protect her. Of course I was unaware of the real story behind her mother's situation until the last few episodes (this was a wasted opportunity as a bit of time spent here in flashbacks would have been nice). He Yan's commitment to herself was amazing - there is nothing I love seeing more than a woman who can kick butt and take down men. I also appreciated her feminist speeches which were many and as often as she could deliver them. Her points were always valid and encouraging, never judgemental or patronising. Her entire arc of restarting her life with her own identity (although she had to hide her gender for a while) was inspiring. She picked herself up and worked harder to regain her achievements and find out the truth behind the battle that cost Xiao Jue his father. She was smart, courageous and cutesy (only to irritate and distract her beloved Commander).
Cheng Lei was born for the role of Huai Jin. He mastered glowering and continually glared for the entire drama. I loved it! Not many actors can pull off this expression and make us believe it (my favourites are still Wang Yi Bo in The Untamed and Zhang Ling He in The Story of Kunning Palace). Xiao Jue's pain was so apparent from the first episode and his devastation when he finds out about He Yan was heartbreaking. He clearly was in love with her, but could not be certain if she was his enemy. Also a shout out to him getting ahead of the whole He Yan is a woman drama with the emperor. Well done!
Now let's talk about the most important thing: the fight scenes. This is where the budget went. As a fan of The Long Ballad, I felt so cheated that almost all the fight scenes were drawings with background sounds. This drama though knew we wanted to see our female general fight and they delivered. He Yan is gifted and skilled - I thoroughly enjoyed her taking down He Rufei's right hand man and when she blinded him and told him she was a ghost who came back for revenge, I cheered. It was so satisfying. All her fight scenes were really done well, but putting her and Xiao Jue on the same battlefield and watching them fight side by side was just a masterpiece in how it should be done. That final battle with him in black and her in white fighting in tandem was epic and I loved the details in that fight where we saw them work like yin and yang. Did anyone else love that sword switch? Details make the scene.
My gripe with all costume C-dramas is why is the emperor always a moron? Like how do you rule an entire kingdom but you can't think for yourself and always let someone whisper poison in your ear? Chu Zhao was pathetic when he first came on screen and it didn't surprise me when he devolved into delusion and schemes. Him coming between He Yan and Xiao Jue's marriage was expected, but the moronic emperor making poor Xiao Jue go deliver the decree to He Yan was pure evil. I felt that the emperor was the true baddie because he was just an idiot who couldn't apply logic and took great joy is bringing misery. I would have been find if He Yan and Xiao Jue had killed him instead, but oh well we need to support the loyalty to the throne rubbish. It was so satisfying when the emperor realised he had done wrong when both Xiao Jue and He Yan declared that they'll remain alone for life if they couldn't marry each other. I also loved when she shut down Chu Zhao so fast when he was trying to claim that over time she would be happy being married to him. I absolutely despise characters that force their unrequited affections onto the person they supposedly love and think it's fine to do that. If she doesn't love you, SHE DOES NOT LOVE YOU. End of story.
Overall I felt that the drama lived up to its name because it showed us how He Yan worked from joining the Yezhou garrison to finally became a female general who was openly acknowledged. She reclaimed her title of General Feihong on her own terms and she earned everything rightfully. That ending with her and Xiao Jue ditching their wedding banquet to just go hang out and gaze at their moon was perfect.
My lesson from all this: Don't rely on reviews and comments before watching a drama. Watch it and then make your own decision.
I'm so glad I did!
This drama was really well cast and paced, but it's not flawless. There were things that didn't make sense and plot holes, but nothing that would ruin the drama in my opinion.
I think Zhou Ye did a great job portraying He Yan. I greatly sympathised with her hidden identity and felt that her mother should have done more to protect her. Of course I was unaware of the real story behind her mother's situation until the last few episodes (this was a wasted opportunity as a bit of time spent here in flashbacks would have been nice). He Yan's commitment to herself was amazing - there is nothing I love seeing more than a woman who can kick butt and take down men. I also appreciated her feminist speeches which were many and as often as she could deliver them. Her points were always valid and encouraging, never judgemental or patronising. Her entire arc of restarting her life with her own identity (although she had to hide her gender for a while) was inspiring. She picked herself up and worked harder to regain her achievements and find out the truth behind the battle that cost Xiao Jue his father. She was smart, courageous and cutesy (only to irritate and distract her beloved Commander).
Cheng Lei was born for the role of Huai Jin. He mastered glowering and continually glared for the entire drama. I loved it! Not many actors can pull off this expression and make us believe it (my favourites are still Wang Yi Bo in The Untamed and Zhang Ling He in The Story of Kunning Palace). Xiao Jue's pain was so apparent from the first episode and his devastation when he finds out about He Yan was heartbreaking. He clearly was in love with her, but could not be certain if she was his enemy. Also a shout out to him getting ahead of the whole He Yan is a woman drama with the emperor. Well done!
Now let's talk about the most important thing: the fight scenes. This is where the budget went. As a fan of The Long Ballad, I felt so cheated that almost all the fight scenes were drawings with background sounds. This drama though knew we wanted to see our female general fight and they delivered. He Yan is gifted and skilled - I thoroughly enjoyed her taking down He Rufei's right hand man and when she blinded him and told him she was a ghost who came back for revenge, I cheered. It was so satisfying. All her fight scenes were really done well, but putting her and Xiao Jue on the same battlefield and watching them fight side by side was just a masterpiece in how it should be done. That final battle with him in black and her in white fighting in tandem was epic and I loved the details in that fight where we saw them work like yin and yang. Did anyone else love that sword switch? Details make the scene.
My gripe with all costume C-dramas is why is the emperor always a moron? Like how do you rule an entire kingdom but you can't think for yourself and always let someone whisper poison in your ear? Chu Zhao was pathetic when he first came on screen and it didn't surprise me when he devolved into delusion and schemes. Him coming between He Yan and Xiao Jue's marriage was expected, but the moronic emperor making poor Xiao Jue go deliver the decree to He Yan was pure evil. I felt that the emperor was the true baddie because he was just an idiot who couldn't apply logic and took great joy is bringing misery. I would have been find if He Yan and Xiao Jue had killed him instead, but oh well we need to support the loyalty to the throne rubbish. It was so satisfying when the emperor realised he had done wrong when both Xiao Jue and He Yan declared that they'll remain alone for life if they couldn't marry each other. I also loved when she shut down Chu Zhao so fast when he was trying to claim that over time she would be happy being married to him. I absolutely despise characters that force their unrequited affections onto the person they supposedly love and think it's fine to do that. If she doesn't love you, SHE DOES NOT LOVE YOU. End of story.
Overall I felt that the drama lived up to its name because it showed us how He Yan worked from joining the Yezhou garrison to finally became a female general who was openly acknowledged. She reclaimed her title of General Feihong on her own terms and she earned everything rightfully. That ending with her and Xiao Jue ditching their wedding banquet to just go hang out and gaze at their moon was perfect.
My lesson from all this: Don't rely on reviews and comments before watching a drama. Watch it and then make your own decision.
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