This review may contain spoilers
Fun watch, looks excellent, may have Girl-bossed a little too close to the sun?
I have watched a lot of historical romantic dramas that I dropped, skipped through or just found generally unsatisfying. So even though I don’t think this is a masterpiece, the fact that I was mostly satisfied throughout, enjoyed myself, and think I will probably rewatch it speaks to its overall quality. Despite the areas where I think the writing (and at times, acting) is lacking, I think that this is overall a worthwhile watch.
I think that the single greatest strength of the drama is the warmth and beauty of the world that they have created through sets, cinematography, costuming and styling. It is aesthetically so pleasing to look at and has a richness that I think is sorely lacking in many Chinese dramas with cardboard sets and flat lighting. The leads look absolutely beautiful, and I found myself just absorbed in the splendour of the drama (even if the budget wasn’t huge, it feels like it is).
Saying that the best thing about the drama is the aesthetics doesn’t explain my high rating. I think that the main leads have good chemistry and an endearing dynamic, with genuine moments of emotion. Although there are times when the acting and character-writing is lacking, I think that they make up for it with earnestness. I also am a sucker for the general premise (commoner girl who is tough and kind, skilled warrior guy who no one thought would ever fall in love, fake marriage, etc.) which I think the show pulls off very successfully.
For me, when it comes to historical romances, if the setting feels good and the leads are enjoyable to watch with decent writing, I’m going to have a pretty good time. Hence my rating. However, I do think there are a few areas where the drama is weaker and which keeps me from crowning this as a masterpiece as some other reviewers have done:
(1) I think that as the show progresses the pacing and plotting gets more and more rushed and shallow. I felt like the female lead’s rise to being a general and defeating major bad guys in combat was not earned. Granted, I never felt like this show was trying to be a realistic and gritty historical drama, but I felt like this cheapened her arc and made me less invested in her as a character. The seeds of this issue were planted early, when she is very proficient in martial arts to a degree that I didn’t feel was warranted (yes, I know she was trained by her dad who was very skilled, but it never showed her practicing or training or really talking about those skills, which made them feel tacked on and random).
(2) Character motivations became less and less clear as the show went on, and characters felt more like they were just being moved around for plot purposes, rather than being driven by actual character development
(3) I found the gray-haired villain pretty repetitive and annoying. It was a slog to get through his plot, which was a shame because that is a lot of the drama. Because of that, It made the drama’s second half feel like it was dragging.
I think that the single greatest strength of the drama is the warmth and beauty of the world that they have created through sets, cinematography, costuming and styling. It is aesthetically so pleasing to look at and has a richness that I think is sorely lacking in many Chinese dramas with cardboard sets and flat lighting. The leads look absolutely beautiful, and I found myself just absorbed in the splendour of the drama (even if the budget wasn’t huge, it feels like it is).
Saying that the best thing about the drama is the aesthetics doesn’t explain my high rating. I think that the main leads have good chemistry and an endearing dynamic, with genuine moments of emotion. Although there are times when the acting and character-writing is lacking, I think that they make up for it with earnestness. I also am a sucker for the general premise (commoner girl who is tough and kind, skilled warrior guy who no one thought would ever fall in love, fake marriage, etc.) which I think the show pulls off very successfully.
For me, when it comes to historical romances, if the setting feels good and the leads are enjoyable to watch with decent writing, I’m going to have a pretty good time. Hence my rating. However, I do think there are a few areas where the drama is weaker and which keeps me from crowning this as a masterpiece as some other reviewers have done:
(1) I think that as the show progresses the pacing and plotting gets more and more rushed and shallow. I felt like the female lead’s rise to being a general and defeating major bad guys in combat was not earned. Granted, I never felt like this show was trying to be a realistic and gritty historical drama, but I felt like this cheapened her arc and made me less invested in her as a character. The seeds of this issue were planted early, when she is very proficient in martial arts to a degree that I didn’t feel was warranted (yes, I know she was trained by her dad who was very skilled, but it never showed her practicing or training or really talking about those skills, which made them feel tacked on and random).
(2) Character motivations became less and less clear as the show went on, and characters felt more like they were just being moved around for plot purposes, rather than being driven by actual character development
(3) I found the gray-haired villain pretty repetitive and annoying. It was a slog to get through his plot, which was a shame because that is a lot of the drama. Because of that, It made the drama’s second half feel like it was dragging.
Was this review helpful to you?
