Darkglow

Looks like this might air before SaHPH, unbelievable

I heard the movie version was announced and shot before the drama version and stayed a while in post production. It had Liu Yi Fei who's considered a god level beauty in China and Yang Yang who people think is equally handsome, so when Yang Mi and Mark Chao were announced for the drama everyone thought they were ugly/not ethereal level beauties and the anticipation was low, even the tv ratings started weak. International viewers felt that way too from what I saw in the comments of articles posted in that time period about the drama. In the end the drama became a big hit because of YM & MC's acting and the writing turned out better while the movie version flopped hard because the plot was confusing and Liu Yi Fei &Yang Yang had big shoes to fill.

I felt the same way when I found out 😆Usually once I get into a character it really doesn't matter what they look like or how they're dressed but I've noticed cdrama viewers have these weird beauty standards and most times prioritize them over acting or plot

I saw this over a year ago and the more I think about it the more I love it along with The Bold, the corrupt and the beautiful.

I felt it carried the message of "true beauty lies within" especially with that eye slashing scene.

I hope so too

Are there any characters( aside from a few villains), ever since the journey of flower that are not in some way motivated by love? The genre has evolved into a more fairytale romance aspect ever since then, if it puts you off I don't think the genre is for you ( like I've said before). Also I don't think it's correct to say that any character is solely motivated by romantic love, Dijun didn't go to the mortal realm bcoz he was in love ( because he cannot fall in love), he wanted to experience a love trial and at the same time give Fengjiu what she wanted, I think Feng Jiu was "interesting" to him at first. Dijun's sole purpose has been to protect the heavenly realm and it didn't change in the end. Bai Qian wants to bring her master back to life not because she has romantic affections towards him but bcoz she loves him as a teacher and feels guilty for what happened, She even ignored Ye Hua's advances for a while bcoz of it. Snake girl is driven to restore the relationship between her and her savior, Even though she got her love, she doesn't feel complete without it. Ye Hua only wears black because he doesn't want his loved ones to feel hurt when he's hurt, he has always depended on himself for everything and it even affected his love life. The other disciples spent many years looking for Si Yin and Mo Yuan's body until there was only one left bcoz it was their duty to. Even Xuan Nu seduced Li Jing at first bcoz she wanted to live a good life and she was jealous of Bai Qian, I believe she and Su Jin have a bit of a complex. In the end how many of the main CPs gave up on their love to pursue duty? I could go on and on bcoz I felt really invested in the characters and relationships and cannot forget them. They are interesting because they are flawed and not stereotypical.

Didn't know that was the reason. I just thought they couldn't pull together the investment

Don't remember

No materials for any Yang Mi drama, maybe bcoz of the injury nothing was prepared.

Yang Mi has never been whiny and would never indulge herself more or less than necessary. If she's returned to work it's with the doctor's permission. She's been out for several days and there's no sign of the injury or swelling. She wasn't the only one injured (though her injury was more serious) so it doesn't look good to play pitiful roles and interrupt other people's work more than necessary.

Incredible acting skills that make you forget how ugly the actor/actress is

No prolonged irritating misunderstandings

"Distinct lack of facial expressions" if you're talking about facial creases and muscle movement it's the filters if not we're not talking about the same drama.

Advice: Throw your reservations against Mark Chao out the window, if it's about his looks I assure you the guy has plastic surgery acting skills, you don't want to miss this masterpiece

I enjoyed this drama but I can't get over how much of a bitch Wan was to Yeon Ha. Dumping him was understandable, people get scared right? But being so selfish and such a coward about it, the entitlement and the way she played with his feelings 😤 thankfully the drama wasn't focused on them or I wouldn't be able to continue.

If you have no priority on your watchlist it'll be ok to give a second shot. It's not a great complex story but if you watch without expectations and get invested in the characters, it has emotional value. However if you get to episode 8ish of any drama and don't see the point don't bother lol

I think Eternal love is the best xianxia drama because it has the most interesting group of characters and it has that fairytale romance vibe not to mention stellar acting and chemistry. If you can't find anything intriguing here you'll probably not find it in any other xianxia. You'll probably be more interested in wuxia.

Only the first episode has subs

Yang Mi is really professional, she chose to return to work so quickly despite the injury.