abaer

Now I'm wondering whether I'm mixing up the novel with the series... 0_0 Didn't we learn that the men that had killed Qingmei and her guards were sent by the Empress Dowager?

It depends on the director and the project - sometimes the director handles everything, including the script. Sometimes it's the producer. Sometimes the studio execs interfere and neither the director nor the producer can refuse.

It kind of depends. The blame could lie with the director, the producer or the studio executives - depending on how big the names are and/or the terms of the contract which give certain control to certain people. In some series, the director will decide everything, including making changes to the script, but in others the producer will have the 'final' say. I use quotes there because it's the studio that provides financing and often uses (misuses) that power to make decisions on the storyline (for example they want a certain actor to be in the cast and therefore force a certain storyline or a bigger part that just doesn't fit the intended/original storyline - but neither the producer nor the director can refuse because otherwise they won't get funded).

Yeah, it was just one more poorly designed scene among many others.... I feel so bad for A Mai's character (and actress) because it was just so poorly written but had sooo much potential! I can't help wondering how awesome it could have been with a different scriptwriter/producer. I'm still mad about her ML - what a ridiculous partner they designed for her... I never understood how they thought it would be possible to make us believe that interest would last.

She looks exactly the same. Your comment is so vapid I literally facepalmed while reading it.... and yes, you are being rude smh If you start a sentence with a comment like 'I don't mean to be rude but...' or 'I don't mean to be racist but...' or anything like that, then that's a good sign you should stop talking/writing because you clearly know your comment will be exactly that.

In the 1st season we learned it was the Empress Dowager, but Chen Pingping has his own thoughts on the matter...

That's what we learned in the first season but not necessarily the whole story...

No, n the flashback he asks where she has the token, she takes it out to show him and he takes it - we don't know what excuse (if any) he gives to take it

yes, please and thank you XD

As he is a professiona forger, it's quite feasible that the PM arranged for that forger to get CQ the passport, isn't it?

Yes! Chen Yu's wardrobe was probably my happiest part of the entire show, together with the camerawork lol Everything else was depressing (fantastically and beautifully depressing, but still). Amazing series.... but grateful for CY's wardrobe XD

I'm quite sensitive to the propaganda thing (in the sense that I can't stand it) and have had to stop watching several shows because of it.

I didn't feel this had any sort of propaganda whatsoever, and I think they mentioned the party like once (I'm about to watch the final episode, this is probably not going to change!) as part of an official procedure where it made sense. Although it's about the police force, it's not about the actual institution but rather the humans that are part of the story.

If you haven't watched it yet, do - the camerawork is out-of-this-world stunning and the acting is fantastic.

No, this is not a BL is any way, shape or form, it's just the two MLs are like brothers. Absolutely nothing like the Untamed, where clearly there is more, where even if it wasn't explicitly recognised in the series it was fairly obvious in many other ways.

Seriously, what is wrong with you? Tag your comments as spoilers, will you? Most of us don't want to find out the end until we've watched it. Once might have been an oversight but you've posted similar comments several times and not tagged any of them as spoilers, so we can only assume you hate us all and want to spoil it for us?