Aya

Not as bad as I expected based on some comments, but definitely not as good as it could have been.

The story is indeed a bit messy, but thankfully it's pretty simple, so you can still follow along. It could have benefited from a more focused plot though.

One of the things that I didn't like were the multitude of extremely annoying characters. I would have minded that less if these characters weren't also boring and unnecessary with storylines that didn't have much of an impact to the overall story at all.

Another is the repetitive plot in addition to some unnecessary arcs, which contributed to the messiness.

There were also some things that I did like. This drama is visually beautiful and it had its moments. Those moments were the cuter, playful parts of the drama and these were the times when the main couple shined. Both seemed to fit those moments better than the emotional and serious ones. The story itself is interesting, but as I said, could have been told better.

The main leads didn't do a bad job, but they weren't consistently good either and I can't help feeling that I would have felt more for the main couple if they were played by actors with more intense chemistry. Not to say that they didn't share any chemistry, but somehow it didn't feel like enough. At least not for this type of story.

All in all, it was good enough for a one time watch.

In the first lifetime (shown later on in the story as a flashback), the two met while she was in her mortal form as Wang Yue and he was undergoing a love tribulation in the mortal world as Chen Yan. Wang Yue is the daughter of a general and goes off to war to fight alongside her father in her brother's stead. They meet in the army, which he joins as a new soldier. What she doesn't know is that he is a spy. They end up falling in love and right before their wedding, the person who saved his life and sent him to the army as a spy gives up his life to force Chen Yan to continue his mission and kill her father. On the wedding day, he drugs her while the enemy army sneaks in and he kills her father with his own hands. She ends up seeing this with her own eyes and her Phoenix bloodline is awakened. Because the Phoenix has awakened, the Heavenly Emperor calls him back and restores his identity as the God of the Red Sun Yan Yue, whose mission it is to kill the Phoenix. Wang Yue comes to meet Yan Yue to ask for an explanation and to ask if he ever truly loved her. He says that he didn't and they start fighting. In the end the both stab each other. Her wound is the more fatal one and part of her spirit turns into the flower Hua Rong. Mu Nan, who has been by Wang Yue's side and has loved her is turned into the Demon Lord and finds and protects Hua Rong until the Phoenix is reborn. The actual story starts with Wei Zhi, who is the reborn Phoenix.

I hope this helps.

I indeed noticed that gap in the story as well. They didn't really explain that fully. It seemed like she was the original Ginseng fairy whose heart was buried in the tomb, but they never really explained what actually happened. Instead of all those scenes with the obsessed Emperor, it would have been better if they have told that story instead.

Also, throughout the whole drama I kept wondering why she's the only fairy in that world. Why are there no other beings like her? I would have liked to know more about that as well.

Oh well, too many missed opportunities. That's why the repetitive nature of this drama was one of the things that bothered me the most. They definitely had the time to make a better drama, but instead wasted it.

I'm only on episode 2, but I'm getting the feeling that Ma Yue got a similar character to the one she already played in Song of the Moon.

It was a nice and interesting short drama. The editing is not the best, but you can still follow the story.

This was a lot of fun to watch. It's very cute and funny.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qCtFUUERpFs?feature=share

Youtube recommending cute things

The Starry Love

Personally, I never found him annoying. Not even when he was supposedly obstructing the main couple.

I really like his character. He was outwardly very silly and upbeat, but had a lot of pain, sadness and loneliness hidden just below the surface. All of his actions make sense for him and he clearly isn't malicious.

For a short drama, they managed to tell an interesting story with a very well matched main couple.
Like most short dramas, the plot is on the predictable side and there are definitely details missing, but it was still fun to watch.

This was definitely one of the dramas that I was eagerly waiting for and it didn't disappoint.

Is this drama perfect? No. It had it's flaws like any other drama. Did I still rate this a 10? Yes, absolutely.

I really liked the main couple. Both Tian Yao and Yan Hui went on a journey and individually grew while still retaining their kindness. I really admire their strength of character. The chemistry between the leads was not the sizzling kind, but instead was warm and gentle which really worked for their characters. They were definitely well cast.

This drama was at times funny and silly and at times emotional and profound. A beautiful journey that swept us into another world for 40 episodes.

I do agree he died too soon. I suppose they wanted to give the other villains a chance to do some damage. I did not want to see Su Ying return though, but I suppose her first ending was too good for her. I hope she suffers before she dies the second time. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the Dark Phantom's story. They call him spirit, but he clearly called Xuelin sister and she was human. So I definitely need to see more of their relationship.

I'm loving the Dark Aura Yan Hui and Baby Dragon Tian Yao.

I'll still have to disagree where Chang Lan is concerned. Revenge might have been part of what he was doing, but he himself explained his reasons and even though he chose a twisted and hateful way to do it, it didn't all come from a selfish place. It seems like the last drop for him was when Tian Yao was betrayed and he realised that being kind and gentle will only leave you open to be taken advantage of. Obviously, that's just my own personal opinion.

I'm only on episode 32 now, but I am curious to see more of Fuyin's story.

So far, I don't have any sympathy for Suying and I don't see how that will change. Both she and her sister are absolute psychopaths.

At this point, I'm also very disappointed with Yan Hui's Master.

I'm on episode 28 and to be honest I can't bring myself to hate Chang Lan. He was a bit suspicious from the start and he did some despicable things, but his twisted mindset is a direct result of a sad life. He's clearly broken. Also, unlike Su Ying whose motives are selfish, Chang Lan in his twisted way wanted to make the world a better place so people wouldn't need to suffer like he did.

His character also provided a different development and reaction to trauma compared to the two leads. Tian Yao was gentle, pure and innocent before he met Su Ying. After he was betrayed, he carried hatred towards Su Ying, but he somehow still remained that pure and gentle person, which is clearly visible in his interactions with Yan Hui. Yan Hui also has had a sad life, where she had to fend for herself until she was found by her Master, but even through all of that she has remained lively, kind and with a strong moral compass.

That's really cute. I was half expecting it to be another Wang He Di

That's good to know. Another reason to rewatch.

I agree with the part that it's only valid when they accept it, because they were pretty much forced into marriage both times, but as long as they accept it, then they can be considered married from the beginning.

Oh good. I haven't made it to episode 27 yet. So it looks like at least Tian Yao is fully aware she has been his wife all along.

Yan Hui is really casual about weddings, isn't she? She married Tian Yao once already when she thought he was a snake spirit. Then she almost agreed to marry that rich friend of hers, because she needed money. I'm now on episode 24 and she has once again married Tian Yao to get her hands on the translation of the Ghostly Eulogy. Granted the last one seems the most justified, because she still has feelings for Tian Yao and her life does depend on the book.

Also, why don't they consider the first wedding valid? They never really dissolved it, did they? So if the first wedding is indeed valid, they have been married this whole time.