Platinum Fox

The only new thing that I found in this drama is the use of the fingerprint to identify the villain and even then it was lack luster as the man had smashed his hand and couldn't give one. Otherwise, every crime scene before was done elsewhere the selling of illegal salt, villain wants power to take revenge for his home being invaded, ritual killings, etc. Sorry, just don't get excited about this any more as every drama is like this. I am trying Ripe Town next. It has the same premise, but without the "beauty" aspect in it. If you like JJY, she was very good in A Class of Her Own which also has her investigating her own background.

There is no need for a personal attack. I am just disagreeing with you and asking you to back up your claim with evidence from the story. You criticize the story based on what you want in a story. This story was not what you were looking for, again no harm in that. However, the story itself is very well written and put together, especially the first 27 episodes.

You wanted a simple love story. No harm in that. This drama is not it. It fact it challenges that very notion. Love is not something simple. Love is not something that happens upon first sight. Love is not something that happens at a twirl. Love is not something that happens just because somebody rescues you. If you condense this story down to even half, what scenes would you take out to do that and convey the other themes the writers wanted to get across?

Fillers are things like back stories that do not enhance the plot in any way. It would be adding the grandmother's story, the mother's story, the father's story. We know their history through dialogue. It does not need to be shown. The writers have concentrated on the lives of the main leads Shao Shang and Ling Bu Yi. There are no fillers.

These are all about the same thing. A female coroner who goes out and solves cases with a higher authority. They finally came up with a script that could have added something to the genre, but instead they chose to perpetuate the same mentality. This is just my opinion. I do not write reviews, so your numbers will be high, but they should not be in my opinion.

To condense something means to cut or abridge it. The screenwriters are trying to convey messages that pertain to the home life as well as at the national level. The structure of the piece is that of a mirror. The home life reflects that of the nation. They are also playing with the tropes of genre (love at first sight, love at the twirl, love because I rescued you, etc.). I could go on. Are there parts that could be reworked yes, I can think of several. But the scenes in the first 27 episodes need to be there to set up for the second season when her decisions and choices do affect something at the national level. No scene is there as a filler. All scenes move the story along, clarify something, or provide more information that we don't get from the main characters.

You do not have to like the drama. I probably do not like some that you do. It's okay. I am just explaining that if you make the changes that you want, the story would not be the same or convey what the writers are trying to get across. It would not be balanced.

After rereading your post I would like to add to my original post. I get your point. However, if our male lead loves the female lead despite her scar, he has already proven that her looks don't matter. Why does he need to be "tested" again with a female who is "beautiful" on the outside, but "ugly" on the inside? Her friends accepted her no matter what she looked like. However, our male lead must prove over and over again his love for her despite her looks. He's already done that. The only reason SGZ was in the script was to give our heroine a "beautiful" face to go with her "beautiful" soul. Again, perpetuating the notion that beauty means flawless skin. Now our heroine is complete she is "beautiful" inside and out.

Have you seen Miss Truth, Imperial Coroner, Under the Power?

If you cut out what you said to cut out then it would be a totally different drama and would not have conveyed the messages and themes the screenwriters wanted to get across. It also would destroy the structure of the story (the mirror image). Sorry to say, but everything and everyone needs to be in the drama. Think ethos, pathos, logos.

I get your point and that is a start. It is the only redeemable thing about this drama. Otherwise, it was a story full of cliches and done to death plot lines. Again, if they would have stuck with the original character (despite who played the part) and allowed her to investigate her parents death the way she was, it could have been a better story.

I disagree and here is why. Yang Cai Wei had a scar on her face. She is considered "ugly" because of it and is an outcast from society. She literally lives at a place where no one would care what her face looks like (The Coffin House). Her job is that of an undertaker. She purchases items only at the Ghost Market, a place where nobles can't come as it is a place for peasants and outcasts of society. Fortunately, after the kind of life she has led, she has a kind heart and supportive friends. She has a "beautiful" inside. Pan Yue, her childhood friend, loves her despite the flower-shaped scar on her face. Yeah!

If they would have stopped there it would have been great. Once she married Pan Yue, her status in life would have changed. She could have gone anywhere she pleased. Who would have dared to make fun of her? There was no need to bring in the jealous "beautiful" girl, Shang Guan Zhi. The only reason SGZ is there is to give the heroine YCW a "beautiful" outside to match her "beautiful" inside with the face swap. Notice the "ugly" Yang Cai Wei with the "ugly" personality dies within the first two episodes. Hence we are left with the "beautiful" outside of Shang Guan Zhi and the "beautiful" inside of Yang Cai Wei. Pan Yue now has a "beautiful" girl on the inside and the outside. But the biggest question is why did YCW need a "beautiful" face to investigate her parents death?

The biggest need for this change was so YCW could join the dance troop to investigate the case inside the palace. The princess could not do it because she is too well known. The girl who was to do it was tossed out because of the flaws on her face. Enter YCW with SGZ's flawless, "beautiful" face. From that moment on, they are able to crack the case wide open and find out who the real culprit is and bring him down.

As for who played the part, I do not care. I only cared about what message is being sent. Mindsets can be changed if people stop watching and giving high ratings to dramas that perpetuate this mindset.

Not a problem. I love having discussions as well. It is how we learn. Thank you for the discussion as well.

Mika, I am glad there are fans of this novel out there. However, I don't intend to read it. Just as I imagine you will not read The End of Eternity. I admire the production team and cast, especially Chen Zhe Yuan, of Hidden Love for their courage and wish them well. I thank you for your comments and research on the topic. You have helped clarify a few things for me which were bothering me.

I know that I will never be able to persuade you to think differently, and that is okay. However, you must be a little curious about this topic since you did all this research. Don't just accept things at face value. There is more to this story than meets the eye. Hollywood has been using movies and television to promote social change since its conception. They do it discreetly. If you can't change a law, change people's mindset about the law.

My suggestion to you is this, now that you know all of this about the consent and marriage laws of China, go back and watch it again under a different mindset. Just because it is legal doesn't make it right. Pay attention to when and what the characters say and do. Pay attention to the pictures she draws. This tells you a lot about what she is thinking. Pay attention to what he is hiding. Romance is not always about sex. That is why some people have called this a grooming drama. That is the cost of doing this type of drama.

Mika, thank you for the run down on Chinese law. The novel Hidden Love and the drama Hidden Love are two very different works of art. The novel Hidden Love seems to be a simple love story about a boy who meets a girl when she is 13 and he is 20. There is a problem with this age gap according to the Chinese consent law. Once she turns 14, she and he would be free to carry on a sexual relationship. The boy didn't like the girl in that way, thus creating the unrequited love story. I don't know what she does to manipulate him to get him to love her, but she does and they live happily ever after, end of story. My response to this type of love story is who cares? Been there, read that.

Now, the drama is very different. The writers must create something that will make it past the censors, but still convey the message the writers want to get across. Zhao Lu Si always plays a character who goes against societal norms. Why would she play this part? At first, I thought it was just to challenge the age old belief that the sins of the father must implicate the family. I wrote it off as a simple love story. But it bothered me why they would have her speak like a kid and act like a kid until she turns 22. Other commenters have noticed this as well. It is because of what you have told me about Chinese consent and marriage laws. The writers are challenging those laws, but also asking what is the magical age that girls become women and can make their own decisions about sex. In the past it was 15 whether they were ready for it or not. Television is a very powerful medium to get this point across.

The novel The End of Eternity (TEE) does not have any relevance to the novel Hidden Love except at the end, but it has everything to do with the drama. From the reason why Sang Zhi acts and speaks the way she does (even the brother comments on how she speaks), the age gap of the characters, to why the parents act the way they do. You really need to read TEE.

As for your final comment about DJX and her at 17. If you go by Chinese consent law, there would be nothing wrong with DJX at 22 having a romantic relationship with SZ when she is 17. I'm sure she would have consented. However, is it morally right for him to do so? The audience, friends, and family have all said, "No". She is not ready for this type of relationship. DJX tells his friends at the bar in episode 23 that he had a crush on her when she was 17. He was just too embarrassed to admit it and called her his sister because this is the safe choice. It is why they call him a dog during college. However, he does start courting her when she is 17 under the guise of being her tutor and brother. This is the safe choice. Other people might call it grooming. You even commented on this down below. Our perceptions of childhood have changed over the years. Why? TEE answers that question.

Happy pondering. This drama is more than just a simple love story. It asks the audience at what age is it morally right for a girl to start her sexual journey and with whom should she start it with? If DJX had been 14 and 17 at the same time as her would we have the same reactions. It is only because of the age gap that we have the reactions we do.

Just finished this today. At first I was intrigued by the symbolism of "beauty" and "ugly" and wondered how they were going to use this throughout the drama. Sadly, it went right back to perpetuating that beauty means having no physical flaws.

It is neither. This is a costume period piece from the Han dynasty with romance, comedy, and political intrigue.

MikaM, have you read The End of Eternity? If you haven't then how can you say there is no parallel between these stories. According to hollicx (a commenter below), this book is not mentioned in the HL novel. Yet it is shown within the first two scenes of the story and three more times in the first two episodes. She is reading it, he is reading it, and the first scenes are repeated again. You also see it when he puts his stuff away in the dorm room. This tells you the book is important to the story.

I have seen your comments under other dramas. I believe Love Like The Galaxy. That story is also about a 15 year old girl who is pursued by not 1, but 3 males 19-21 years old. In A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College, the main character, played by Zhao Lu Si, is 14-15 years old falls in love with the head master, who is probably 21-24 and who is also her brother's best friend. Not a single commenter has said that this is wrong, why? Yet when the same story romantic wise is told in modern times, this type of relationship becomes problematic, why?

What if the screenwriters had filmed the novel the way it was written? Would it have made it past the censors? What reaction would the audience give? The male character would have been considered a pervert and there are commenters who have said this anyway. The HL novel may be a simple love story telling the story of unrequited love and then giving the main character a happy ending, but the drama, on the other hand, is something else. It is a "hidden" social commentary challenging the notion at what age is the right age for girls to begin their sexual journey. This is why the dialogues in the doorway (14), dorm room (17), and hospital (19) scenes are so important, especially the dorm room and hospital scenes. These scenes take place after a temporal node or when their relationship is put on pause.

There is so much more that the book, including the title, The End of Eternity explains about this drama and many other allusions to different dramas and fairy tales that enhance this commentary.

Thank you for the discussion on this and other posts.

Yes, the events in the novel take place when the girl is between 13 and 15. He is 7 years older than her. However, the age gap in the drama reflects the age gap in the other novel displayed in the drama itself, The End of Eternity. People have missed this important reference and feel that this is just a simple love story when in reality it is not.

5 years

You're right. Ratings are based on a lot of things the actors in the drama, feelings, etc. Also, you're right any female actress and male actor could have played the leads and it wouldn't have received as a high a rating, especially if they are just telling a story. So why would Zhao Lu Si play this role? With her present following any project would be a success. However, if you look at the roles that she has played in the past, her characters are strong, independent, witty, intelligent characters who challenge a societal belief or they grow into one (The Long Ballad).

I, too, am not a fan of modern romance dramas, but I watched this to see what societal belief or trope her character was challenging and how it would be presented. There are at least three. One is out in the open. In most historical dramas, the sins of the father get the whole family killed. Why should the whole family suffer because of the father's mistakes? Why should DJX's life be destroyed because his father killed the girl's father. DJX payed the monetary restitution. Why should he have to marry the girl he doesn't love? This also was a good way to promote therapy for mental health issues. Obviously the girl was suffering and needed counseling. The restitution money could have helped pay for that and for her education to have a career. Hasn't he already paid the price?

Secondly, it bothered me why Zhao Lu Si spoke in a childish voice for most of the drama. Other people commented on the same thing. At first it made sense since she was a child, but at 19 and a woman who had gone through military training speaking like that made me cringe. I literally turned off the sound and watched the rest of the drama without sound. Then, I had to look at the Chinese marriage laws (the whole hospital scene). According to the law she is still a minor, not a full grown adult. There is even a scene where she says to DJX, "You told me that when I got to be an adult I could do anything I wanted to, but there are still things that I can't do." One of those is get married. In most countries the age of consent is 18, why is it 21 in China? That's why I asked you at what age does a girl become a woman? At what age can women start their own exploration of love and sexual relationships?

Third, is the mother character. People have commented on the fact that the actress who played the mother in this drama also played her mother in Love Like the Galaxy. The mother character in LLTG received a great deal of criticism from the audience for her treatment of disciplining her daughter. The father and brothers didn't do any of it. In this drama its the opposite, the mother doesn't discipline her daughter at all. No criticism, yet the girl can't even cut up a watermelon, open her own sucker, or get herself a tissue. At 17, SZ even steals an ID card, buys a plane ticket, and just takes off without telling anyone where she was going. The parents and brother explain it away as going through a rebellious stage. Something audiences couldn't grasp in LLTG. The way the mother disciplined her daughter in LLTG needs to be looked at through a historical lens, not a modern lens which most of the audience did.

There is a lot more to this story and how it is told. That is why Zhao Lu Si chose this part. If you haven't watched Love Like The Galaxy you should at least the first 27 episodes.

Don't get me wrong, I love the emperor too. However, you can cover up your incompetency to run the country with laughter, just like grandma did in raising SS. Grandma and the emperor are foils for each other.