UnaSpenser

he comes off here as more marketer/capitalist than artist. it's disappointing.

I'm up to 18 on my rewatch and, yeah, he's so monotone. The viewer has to guess why she would be drawn to him. The only reason I can muster is that she knows he saved her during that opening hunt scene. So, she thinks he's a good person. For me, that's not enough to support romantic feelings. Particularly as he's lording over her and constantly reminding her that she will be killed if she tries to escape slavery. (He could give her her freedom at any time, but he doesn't. He could give all the slaves in his household freedom, but he doesn't. So, he's perfectly fine with having slaves. How can she love someone like that, when she knows what it is to be a slave?)

Anyway, still a compelling story. I just ignore the supposed romantic part.

I'm rewatching and remembering that it took me a long time to get through this, the first time, precisely because I found the ML so boring. I get that he's supposed to seem stoic because he's leading a spy agency, but there are absolutely no subtleties of expression. It's pretty much the same in every shot. And does he train everyone with zero positive motivation or just her?

In juxtaposition, the acting for the cousin (and his grandfather) was too exaggerated. That they and the ML were entwined with each other via family feud, made the acting weakness of each of them stand out even more.

Zhao Yi Ling carries her role well; quiet, insightful and, at times, wonderfully seething. Shawn Dao brings so much energy. Deng Lun is nuanced.

It does that have the old-timey production feel. I don't mind that. The novel is such a well-written story that the drama is watchable, but honestly, I usually only think of it when I think of devastating endings. (I didn't know, at the time, that it wasn't the end. lol )

rewatching, even though I remember being a bit devastated by the ending. (now, that I know it wasn't the end, I guess that won't be so bad.)

I will say, Shawn Dao steels every scene he's in.

can we avoid seeing her articles by blocking her?

She's stalking him. Just no.

because, somehow kidnapping someone and coercing another into an illegal fight to the death is going to shut down the fact that you're wanted? what the hell logic is this? I know he's a villain, but to get this far he had to some self-preservation instinct. Even if he's brutal, he couldn't have built up what he did if he's just a ball of ego-rage. He has to have some amount of intelligence and calculation. *sigh* In the end, it's just off the rails.

on a side note, I'm rather disappointed that not once does anyone say, "hey, you know, a career centered on punching people as hard as you can is maybe not a good choice." Thought I don't believe in victim blaming at all - he's not to blame for what others are doing - some discussion of the social acceptance of this kind of violence - that you can even make a living from it - would have been appropriate here. Is this a choice he ever would have made if he weren't poor? We're still so supportive of the gladiator culture. The underground bloodier version is a natural extension of it, but that's not being discussed.

there are too many serious implausibilities in this. The biggest one: Gun Woo is the target of the villains and they have security on everyone around him, but they're not tailing him? So, he can just go meet the villains?

Also, he's usually so optimistic and no one has noticed that he's gone grim? Any investigative team would see this as a red flag. Also this, "evil people are doing evil things, but it's my fault, I should just go die" trope is so stale. They could have just left it at, "I can't handle having everyone around me at risk, I'll just go die" and it would have been workable. But, the "it's my fault" bs needs to be history in drama writing.

The police know they are dealing with someone expert in bomb tech, after the car explosion, but it doesn't occur to them to take more caution before raiding the hotel?

Anyone could call the front desk and say they were the police. There is no way the receptionist would give out private info like that.

And so many other moments that I can't recall them all right now.

I want to just sit back and enjoy the absurdity of it all and the notion that people can figure out how to fight back, but too many things are jarring me out of willing suspension of disbelief.

Adding: can we also stop with the toxic masculinity of "I'm strong, so I don't need medical care or to follow a doctor's advice"? It's just so stupid. Do people realize that this version of "masculinity" is saying that to be "masculine" you have to be dumb as a rock? Why is this a continuing cultural message?

Did they catch the KDrama bug? so many endings which feel completely disjointed from the rest of the story in KDramaLand.

Later? Is there another season?

The puppet emperor didn't want to be emperor any longer. Plus, everyone recognized that he wasn't fit for it. Bao'er is the great-grandson of the previous emperor and the only one left in that bloodline. so, he is installed as emperor with the team at his side.

It all goes to show why the whole practice of bloodline leadership is so stupid. They'd rather put a child on the throne than get rid of monarchy.

I thought it was in character. He doesn't care about finery. After all, he fell in love with her as a commoner. The woman he loves is a butcher and a warrior.

In the, "if the massacre of 17 years ago had never happened" scenario.

thank you! I wondered what the text said and I was a bit confused.

same. he didn't do anything to justify removing him. he could have just lived a humble life, never really rising in the ranks.

Did we ever learn about Qian Qian's background?

ep 31: can we just stop with the trope of not telling the other person what the heck is going on? it is just stupid.

She can sit at the funeral and defend the "traitorous" general, but can't tell her husband why she's doing that? give me a break. she's going to set up all this drama without informing him of the source of it? that is so out of character for her. a main definer of her personality is how straight forward she is.

Also, it's one thing when he's in her village. It's an entirely other thing, when he's in an active military camp during a war. Getting all of his men to play this game, while they have a serious matter to hand is not just a charade, it undermines seeing him as a serious and admirable leader.

Ok. So, I'm kinda annoyed at the story, now.

He is not a serious general. He jeopardized everything because he wouldn't tell her the truth. And he has all of men, and the princess, going along with the charade? in the middle of a war?

No.