More nuance, great addition
Overall, a great addition and viewpoint of this revenge story where a woman goes back in time in order to re-write a fatal destiny with her boyfriend/husband and best friend from school.Some thoughts on this version vs the Korean version.
Japanese version:
The emphasis here on the FL is more introspective, and the flow of the story is slower as it unwinds. This is more about a woman's journey and does a better job showing a meek submissive girl grows into a confident (but not abrasive) woman. I do think the way the FL died in her original timeline was more interesting.
How the ML fits into the FL's story is also more mysterious until finally revealed. I thought the ending was far more dramatic and the scenery spectacular. The ML seems more tortured here vs the K-drama he just comes across as sad.
Here the best friend BF gives more of a "I'll wear your skin and take your life!" vibe. The parents being affair partners doesn't happen (which is something a bit too coincidental in the K-drama version).
On the down side of the J-drama the background sets were ho-hum. There is a lot of standing or sitting around talking without much action. The K-drama was more dynamic in terms of staging the actors and the backgrounds were more vibrant (although the J-drama ending was better imo).
Korean version:
Most of the action happens in the office environment and the heroine comes across as confrontational very quickly. The romance happens faster and there is more of it. I also though the financial manipulation that the FL did with the stocks was explained better and fitted into a returned to the past story. Who wouldn't want to take advantage of your prior knowledge!
The FL and ML plot together midway through and while I liked the beginning, the FL's ruthless attitude about making her former husband and friend suffer started to sour me on her. She didn't give them a chance to change. The FL and best friend relationship gave off a bit of girl love vibe as I definitely could see the BF thinking "I'll have her or no one will."
Overall, if this storyline intrigues you, watch them both! Together they act as bookends to a great storyline, providing different angles to the characters.
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Entertaining romp about a modern girl with modern morals
Set up the typical tale of a general with a marriage of convenience who comes back from the border with a new wife. The scheming concubine, the interfering empress, the doting dad with (another) scheming wife and spoiled daughter, the prince who wants to usurp the throne, along with some sort of weird parasite that needs blood and you probably have a typical C-drama.BUT now add in a thoroughly modern girl who continues being modern throughout and you have a lot of hilarity and some steamy scenes. Steam is pretty steamy between our emperor and modern girl who end up breaking a bathtub! For that alone its worth a re-watch.
Threatened by the emperor she bends the knee and begs but with a wink of "well, I've done this before at my PR job so one more time won't hurt." The thing is the emperor plays it all with straight which makes their scenes even more funny. Like when she sets off the signal flare and the entire army mobilizes (ROFLMAO).
Does she care her husband brought in a new wife? That's a big nope. She'd much rather have the new wife become star wife so she can get her divorce. If the new wife had just played along with her, everyone would have a happy ending but schemers must scheme.
Most of the costumes are ridiculous. The FL's headgear is almost as tall as the Pope's LOL and I swear it gets bigger each time I see it. It's like a cake topper of a Bridezilla's wedding cake! With the guy's outfits you know the costumer said they all needed MORE BRAID!!
Sets are limited. Music almost non-existent. The eps are very short and chopped up so continuity sometimes suffers. The plot hole that he has other wives and concubines is never really dealt with.
Shout out to the Emperor's eunuch who plays matchmaker and enjoys seeing his master happy.
The only place I found it was on YT on Daily Motion and even then you have to keep searching to find the subtitles. And the English subs are BAD! Like you'll grimace reading how bad the translations are.
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Fun light drama for in-between serious ones
This is a bit of fluff which was a pleasant watch mostly because it dealt with 1.) Merchant class (not royal politics); 2.) a different type of character for the male lead (not a general/warrior who is abusive/cruel); and 3.) wasn't exceptionally silly which some of these can get into and hence why I stop watching them.The ML (Zhao Yi Qin) is a quiet and thoughtful, but rather suppressed young man managing a merchant household that deals with perfumes. Because he supplies the royal household he needs to be married and hence why he and the FL lead get together in a contract marriage. The FL (Li Jia Qi ) is a goodhearted and rather naive person herself. The two dance around with silly antics. The ML falls first while the FL is rather oblivious.
What redeems this one for me is the side characters and some themes you don't see in other dramas. There is a great relationship between the ML and his servant who seems to know far more than his master about women; they have a bantering relationship that I liked.
The FL enemies-to-friends relationship with the girl who originally wanted to marry the hero eventually leads to a friendship that is hilarious. Their antics in Ep 5 are especially funny.
There is also a scene when FL and ML go to her home to have dinner with her father and stepmother. How her parents treat her is an eye-opener to the ML and I thought this was a well written, yet gentle scene where we got insight into the FL, and the ML was able to show his care for her. It is also nice to see our FL gain a supportive parent figure with her MIL.
I was less invested in the 2nd storyline with Ping'er.
The costumes, jewelry, and set are rather lackluster due to the budget (it reads like a US TV daytime drama in terms of that). One big problem for me is the music is too LOUD! You can barely hear the actors over it. I also think the show would been better if shorter with a tighter plot, but it is a nice breather between serious dramas. Don't take this one too seriously and it is enjoyable to dip in and out of.
female empowerment, woman owned business, contract marriage, kind hero, nice MIL, servant in disguise, cutthroat merchant business antics, master and servant dynamics, enemies to friend sisterhood
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This review may contain spoilers
Slow burn fantasy battle
Overall I enjoyed this even though I usually avoid xianxia genre. This is a slow burn, low romance between an ancient god and a demon (warrior) princess type. The series can be separated into several different parts with the first two more lighthearted and fun with playful banter and situations. It would be fine for a family to watch together. The rest of the series might get a little dark for young ones.The first part has Shen Li defying the marriage order, falling to the human realm and becoming under the care of Xing Zhi. No surprises here but it has a gentle warmth. The CGI phoenix chicken is a bit cheesy but I rather liked that. This sets the stage for the romance with a suppressed male lead who emotes little (after all he's thousands of years old and a god), with a fiery female lead who would like to kill whoever bothers her.
The second section is mostly in the demon realm where Shen Li and Fu Rong (playboy immortal) square off against each other regarding this arranged marriage. We get a hint of the bigger problem (the Chemi and sealing off the abyss), and of Xing Zhi's jealousy. About halfway through we FINALLY learn why Xing Zhi is keeping Shen Li at a distance - the price is high if he gives in to his emotions. I think this does a disservice to viewers as it becomes frustrating wondering why he can't just love her (until we gain this explanation).
The third part our villains get more dangerous and a lot of people are harmed. Shen Li makes a huge sacrifice (and why, why doesn't Xing Zhi go with her? that was super unclear to me. Because she didn't ask for his help? Because he wanted to separate himself from her problems? why??).
The last part is Xing Zhi's journey, and there are some real tear jerkers here. Him going to the ocean to try to find her, when he does find her, and then helping her to heal got me to mist up.
While I am glad they gave me a HEA, the end seemed shoe-horned on. And the last episode with Jin was completely out of the ballpark in terms of tone. In the end, it just lacks the emotional resonance that I found in Dream within a Dream, and The Double.
Plot confusion: I really think the hall of ancestors of the gods was way underutilized in the worldbuilding. They gave Shen Li certain memories of Xing Zhi so they had some sentient awareness. At the end they seemed to thank Xing Zhi for his actions or at least send him off with respect. It was my thought that since Xing Zhi was born without a known purpose, his actual purpose was to act outside the Natural Law and bring down a system that prevented free will.
Romance: this is going to be a slow burn, mature lovers, with only a few steamy scenes. Most of the relationship is going to be banter and looks (his are far more guarded). This might not be satisfying to some viewers but I was fine with it.
Music: excellent.
Sets: Probably my favorite was the Sky Above with the white circle and marble/brush line throughout. The Immortals was the most boring (as were the Immortals themselves LOL).
Costumes/Jewelry: Loved the costumes, especially the military uniforms of the demon squad. Shen Li had some jewelry I really loved. The turquoise necklace paired with the gold chain; and the dark blue stone that were earrings and a necklace of three pieces edged in gold. Very pretty.
Underutilized roles: the goddess You La- really glad she was showed up to help Shen Li break out (and I also liked her eye makeup during this scene). General Shang Bei who wanted to hear all the gossip. Would have loved to seen him more.
Villains: they bored me. The situation with Mofang went on way too long. Just kill him already. PLEASE!
Overall it was a good watch and kept me wondering what would happen at the end.
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Hilarious farce with ridiculous scenarios
This is like a French Farce x Shakespeare x A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Forum drama with crossdressing, silly misunderstandings, and mistaken identities throughout. If you take this as a complete fantasy where people will be shoved into closets, be mistaken for dead and put into a coffin, and where the best assassin in the world falls for a princess who likes a bit of torture, you'll love the ride.I enjoyed 99.9% of it and it would be a strong rewatch for me. The show keeps a strong pace throughout, with an ensemble cast that really make each episode hilarious.
I've never seen a C-drama that had so many guys stripped down to their waist! LOL The main lead spends a LOT of time in his bathtub which isn't a bad view at all from my viewpoint. Although there are a few pursed lip kisses, the kissing scenes get better as the FL and ML spend more time together. The romance is between equals and there are some playful moments with the woman being in charge which the hero seems to be more than fine with.
The FL (Zhang Yue Nan) had a way of changing the intensity of her gaze when she was in lord-mode that was really good. Some of her standout scenes for me was when she regained her memory and sits on ML's throne telling him who she really is; when she is standing next to the ML and counsels him when the prospective bride shows up (a great moment showing the FL's game level); when she kills the first villain (bow-and-arrow scene); and multiple scenes of her working with the trio of Muxi spies who she calls father and brother.
It can be hard to pair a good male lead with a strong female character, but the ML in this show does an excellent job. I liked that he had a touch of vanity paired with his arrogance and none of the cold cruelty. The dialogue teasing between the two of them was easy to enjoy, and you could see them being not only lovers but good friends.
The story itself doesn't surprise but it's all played for laughs. There is some bathroom-potty humor which I usually dislike but this time it made me laugh as it was so ridiculous. A slight touch of noble idiocy at the end which gets quickly resolved.
What I didn't like: at the end there is a notice that "no animals were harmed" but let's face it - the villain picked up a rabbit by its ears (!) and a rat by its back (!). I honestly don't see how these scenes could have been filmed without some rough handling. Well, at least I didn't have to watch horses going down with a trip wire.
I also didn't like the ? mark ending with the implication that the villain would rise again, but that can be easily ignored.
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Female centric, revenge tale
In this short drama of 18 episodes the plot stays at a good pace throughout. I found the beginning a little confusing until I got about 1/3rd through and the full backstory was explained through flashbacks.The actress (Christy Guo) playing Mo Qingchuan has a beautiful face that the camera obviously loves. She is a stronger actor than her ML, Zhou Zhan, but since the role calls for him to be rather naive and innocent, he was able to pull it off.
Yang Fu Yu plays the female disciple of Qingchuan. This role seems a bit off to me in contrast with the others but she does add a little lighter relief to a story that can grow dark especially at the end.
Female centric, female empowerment, revenge, wronged woman seeking revenge, justice for wrongs.
Overall, I enjoyed the story, the fight scenes, and the FL's arc. It would be a re-watch for me.
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Boring soap opera with unlikeable characters
After seeing a recommendation here, thought I'd give this a try. One word: Boring. Predictable. Lacking. This is a snoozefest and probably one of the reasons the government has said no more stories over 40 eps! LOL I just don't see the magic that everyone else does.Unlikeable characters. Who am I to root for? I was like 10 episodes in and the female hero was still a blank. Dad? Scummy. Main wife? Temper tantrums every day. Concubine? Crybaby manipulator. And the men? They all seemed the same to me and blurred into one anon face.
Acting: it was okay. I mean they worked with what the writer gave them which was boring and predictable so they gave it as good as they could.
Tropes: plenty and none of them are presented in a playful way that might be a wink to the audience. Let's check them off: scheming concubine, main wife with no power, scummy daddy who thinks with what is in his pants (and unfortunately does not die - I went and watched the last ep hoping for it), sister rivalry, scheming servants, Cinderella heroine, etc... There were zero surprises and it was very predictable so why watch 70 episodes of this?
Time skip: from childhood to teendom - the FL's bang tragedy keeps you staring and not in a good way. Since they naturally changed actors it would have been helpful to have the subtitles remind us who these people were. The concubine's face in the teen part didn't seem like the same actress (but it was?).
Male actors: all seem a bit old to be playing the young 20 somethings. Just another oddity next to the young girls that was jarring.
Music: there are some weird upbeats in the music which happens right after a tragedy (i.e. death of FL's mother) that are unsettling. Otherwise nothing of interest here.
Sets: uninspiring. A LOT of brown was used everywhere. It's drab. Lots of drab.
Costumes: I detested them all.
Others say the story changes beats about halfway through but I just couldn't force myself to watch this any longer.
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