This review may contain spoilers
I will not get over this. Ever.
I'm writing this review seconds after final credits. My heart is still racing. This series is incredible. In the short while that China has been making use of the loophole they found to be able to produce uncensored, they have managed to put out several amazing series, but this one takes the crown.
Everything is perfect to near perfect. It's setting in the old walled city in HK and the cinematographic opportunities this provided have been used magnificently. It looks gritty, dark but with a succinct 80's vibe. Some costume choices or props looked a bit off, but that happens to the best.
Story and story lines are clean, without loose threads or strange turns. The backstories make sense, and there is explicite room for an airy humorous note here and there. Sometimes subtle, sometimes not really but always fitting to the story.
The acting of all cast is great. From the main leads, the secondary leads up to the guest roles.. Perfection.
As is customary in BL, we find many tropes in this production. Heroic rescue (from a plant, no less), fate, confusion, unconscious kisses, etc. Most of these are acceptable I just found the unconscious kisses a bit meh. We don't kiss people that are not awake, dammit!
And while we are on the subject, the thing that really annoys me is the fact that the rooftop love scene is never mentioned again. Not in thought, not in flashbacks, not in conversation. It's like as soon as the sheets were cleaned, so was the memory. Like, whatt? Not only was this non-consensual, it was ignored. Bad move.
I loved the contrast between the main characters. One dorky in daily life but very forward in affection. The other a real life crime boss, but a shy and cute mess when it comes to love.
The development of the events and the relationship felt natural (if you can speak of natural in that kind of environment).
The last episode was really the climax we were building up to. The final kiss was truly epic. But there are loose ends that desperately need tying. The 2nd couple has no real closure. All they has was a hot encounter and some aggressive flirting. That's not ok.
What I loved most was the build-up, the visuals, the interactions between Liuyu and Chusan and the back stories. This really 'made' this drama for me.
Now hurry and get me an S2.
Everything is perfect to near perfect. It's setting in the old walled city in HK and the cinematographic opportunities this provided have been used magnificently. It looks gritty, dark but with a succinct 80's vibe. Some costume choices or props looked a bit off, but that happens to the best.
Story and story lines are clean, without loose threads or strange turns. The backstories make sense, and there is explicite room for an airy humorous note here and there. Sometimes subtle, sometimes not really but always fitting to the story.
The acting of all cast is great. From the main leads, the secondary leads up to the guest roles.. Perfection.
As is customary in BL, we find many tropes in this production. Heroic rescue (from a plant, no less), fate, confusion, unconscious kisses, etc. Most of these are acceptable I just found the unconscious kisses a bit meh. We don't kiss people that are not awake, dammit!
And while we are on the subject, the thing that really annoys me is the fact that the rooftop love scene is never mentioned again. Not in thought, not in flashbacks, not in conversation. It's like as soon as the sheets were cleaned, so was the memory. Like, whatt? Not only was this non-consensual, it was ignored. Bad move.
I loved the contrast between the main characters. One dorky in daily life but very forward in affection. The other a real life crime boss, but a shy and cute mess when it comes to love.
The development of the events and the relationship felt natural (if you can speak of natural in that kind of environment).
The last episode was really the climax we were building up to. The final kiss was truly epic. But there are loose ends that desperately need tying. The 2nd couple has no real closure. All they has was a hot encounter and some aggressive flirting. That's not ok.
What I loved most was the build-up, the visuals, the interactions between Liuyu and Chusan and the back stories. This really 'made' this drama for me.
Now hurry and get me an S2.
Was this review helpful to you?
