Wynndzofchange

After arriving at this dramas conclusion I had to take some time to clear out my emotions. I cried a lot after the ml and fl returned to China. For the losses they experienced, the atrocities they witnessed, the terrorism the experienced first hand and the beating their emotions took over their last few days in the East Country.

A lot of the reviews I have read complained of the pace being too slow, not appreciating the leads, etc. But being a person who has not been diagnosed with PTSD but has experienced a great deal of trauma in my years on earth, the storyline grabbed my heart and squeezed hard.

The development of the relationship of the leads was heartwarming and painful. That’s the way that strong but kind and considerate people fall in love. Love requires them to step out of their personal world and learn to communicate, tolerate and embrace the quirks and faults of the one chosen to be loved. Tgis script gave the characters plenty of time to develop personally and as a couple. There wasn’t much time spent on the side couples which I found refreshing. There wasn’t any bff with bitter experiences handing out advice or crazy childhood sweethearts turned manipulative stalker trying to break them apart. Only one competitive woman that worked with the fl who wanted to outdo the fl in every area. Her machinations were wasted and didn’t last long.

I have to say that CZY was impressive in his role. A kind and gentle man who wanted to help the residents of East Country be liberated from those trying to wipe them out and destroy everything and every one in their path. He had a strong personality that was humble and understated which caused respect and admiration from everyone he encountered. He was quick to protect those he cared about and didn’t think twice about saving others even if it meant harming himself to assure their safety.

The fl appeared to be easy to bully, but she was strong and wisely kept her thoughts and opinions to herself until it was necessary to speak and act. She was a little self-absorbed and stubborn to the point of her detriment on several occasions. One minute wise beyond her years and stubborn when there was no need for it.

Their personalities were well suited and their chemistry combined with meeting their “person” helped them slide into becoming a couple - even after a short break-up happened because they both were afraid to admit their weakness as they saw it that caused them both to have PTSD.

The sloppy way the fl was diagnosed with depression and then given a tranquilizer to cope during daylight hours was so off the mark. And it was hard to believe that a trained and educated mental health doctor wasn’t able to distinguish that the fl had PTSD showed a lack of research on the scriptwriters side. I do not know how it was addressed in the novel, but this was poorly represented. Also the fact that being “cured” so quickly was another mark against the script. While the doctor misdiagnosed the fl, she was quick to determine the severity of the ml’s PTSD and offered little advice to family and friends in how to come alongside someone with this diagnosis. This may be an accurate reflection on mental health practices as well. Most treatments and findings come from cases involving male patients and females are often overlooked or misdiagnosed as they are presented differently in women than men. It was a bad diagnosis for the fl and poorly executed therapy for both.

I also found the excessive use of tear drops a bit annoying. Sometimes it was like watching rivers pour down their cheeks and due to the emotional content of a lot of the scenes between the leads, the budget for this drama must have earmarked 20% for tear drops alone.

The casting of the extras was beyond odd. There were Chinese, Indian, African, Middle Eastern, Hispanic and Caucasian actors cast (and why does every cdrama cast some of the most unattractive Caucasian extras??) that all spoke English. The dubbing was bad, but could be overlooked if you focus on other things in the scene. And some of the lines of the terrorists we’re downright funny because of the bad dubbing and poor understanding of swear word usage in English. Now back to the main point of the review…

The scenery outside of the two imaginary cities was lovely and had there not been a war going on, their looked to have been a peaceful place.

The sets allowed for war torn cities to have broken down buildings, poor transportation and hotels that were furnished with rescued furnishings added to try to make the rooms more guest friendly.

There’s more I could go into with the side characters, but while they contributed to the overall success of the drama, it was mainly about the horrible affect war has on people physically, economically and emotionally. They all did an excellent job with their roles - even the kind of creepy overly concerned boss of the ml. his character hinted of having feelings for the ml and yet not. It was just a weird role.

The second traumatic event for our couple was horrible. The portrayal of the abduction and torture of both was genuinely hard to watch. Humans can be so cruel and take pleasure in hurting others in every way possible just because they can. The outcome was devastating for the ml and CZY pulled off the complexity of someone suffering from severe PTSD brilliantly. His transformation reached his eyes and face, it wasn’t just in his acting. He should be recognized for his excellence in this role. He was truly outstanding.

The fl is worthy of accolades as well. Even though she suffered from PTSD as well, she took on the role of caretaker and loved him well. She protected, defended, took care of his personal needs without making him feel like a burden. She was able to communicate with him as her partner without treating him like an invalid incapable of doing anything for himself. This showed how much she truly loved him and respected him as a man.

I was glad that they decided to marry and then to go somewhere far away from the pressure and stress of living in society that focuses so much on perfectionism and shows little empathy or concern for any kind of physical or mental illness.

I still need to decompress from the emotions stirred up from this drama, as I would like to read the novel and watch it again.

If you’re on the fence because of negative reviews, watch this anyway. And watch it without the negativity that some wrote, and put yourself into the story. You will be moved in many ways, and despite the heaviness of the story at times, enjoy the moments of beauty found in even the most terrible situations. And do the same with your circumstances. Love isn’t always sunshine and roses. Sometimes it is bitter, ugly, painful and frustrating. But to love someone truly takes the act of putting your beloved and their needs above your own, talking about hard things, and working together to get through the horrors life can throw at you, no matter how hard it gets or how long it takes.