kathleentheturtle

LOL! I totally get it! Dramas depend so much on one's mood too. I hope you'll keep NIRVANA IN FIRE, and THE STORY OF MINGLAN in your list for future watching. I recommend also a Korean historical piece called THE RED SLEEVE. I feel these dramas have the calibre you're looking for in terms of production and writing with a solid cast. I also saw someone recommend MOON LOVERS: SCARLET HEART RYEO (it's a Korean historical piece with fantasy elements), and I will have to say, you might be better off watching the original that one was based off, from a Chinese drama called, BU BU JING XIAN (aka STARTLING STEP BY STEP). That Chinese drama I believe was the first drama to showcase transmigration- a female lead who travels back in time to the Qing Dynasty. But until then, don't dwell too much on the frustration. The lovely thing is being able to go back to revisit the world of LLTG. And then hold off on the other recommendations until your heart and mind are in the right place for them. ❤️

I second what necmu has said, about the calibre of the dramas here. The only thing is, sometimes when you're not in the mood, because your heart is into LLTG (like me) anything else might be hard to watch, except going back to rewatch LLTG! Hope you'll end up liking those! :)

you are awesome!!! Thank you so very much for taking the time to do this for me. It is exactly what you mentioned, the scenes being minor but having a powerful impact. It has left a memorable impression. And so here we are, so very lucky that the drama gods put WL and ZLS together in this drama. *hugs, friend*

okay, now I really have to go find this. And thank you so much again for all your posts and love for them from way back too!!!

Hello again, friend! I love that we're around discussing similar things in the thread. OMG! Thank you for letting me know about this scene, both you and @CaliDreamer. I feel I have to go back to find this...if you have time, and possibly remember, would you mind letting me know which episode you're referring to so I can just jump straight there? 🤣 Please. If it's not possible, please don't worry at all.

I request the highest of fives! 🤣. I felt the EXACT same thing about hte mismatched pair, and also could not finish because the chemistry wasn't there for me with Reba and WL. 🤐 At the time, I felt even scared to express that, because people were shipping so hard and the drama was popular. Thank goodness for the safe space here with you, and the other drama bean friends. Love your post and totally agree about them perfectly matched in all aspects.

Thank you immensely for taking the time to respond to my message and letting me know the scenes, friend. I am going to go back to find them just for the giggles. I couldn't even watch for HaoYan, so I am glad that despite you watching just for HaoYan, you still found and gushed over LS and WL in TLB even though they weren't together there. I remember venting to one of my best friends about it, and she even teased me about cropping the TLB poster and pretending LS and WL were leads. 🤣💀🤣. Anyways, it's truly so nice to chat with a drama bean friend. Thank you again, and LOLLLL I love your profile picture!

They're such a perfect match. I haven't (as with many other drama beans I am sure,) gushed over a couple like this in a Chinese drama in...NEVER until now. 😅 (also, thank you for always posting really fun information throughout the discussion thread. I appreciate it!)

omg, so glad to have found a friend who saw it then too. I remember back then, I TRIED sooo hard to watch TLB. And then the iconic scene (wait, are we talking about the same one? LMAO) of his character holding her at knife point for the exchange, had me thinking "ahh, they did it wrong. They should have paired Leo with Lu Si. Please drama gods, make it happen in the future with a spectacular drama/story." The Drama Gods answered. They rarely do🤣🤣! (also wait, in TLB, which scene was he side eyeing her? I never got around to finishing TLB because it just didn't work for me, but LMAO I prolly have to go back to watch what you just mentioned💀🤣!) But YASS to a fellow drama friend who also felt the same. 💗💗💗

That is insane to me that people thought that they didn't match. UGH. When I saw them in "The Long Ballad", I kept thinking "they're the ones that need to be together in a drama . They are perfectly matched." It's so nice this came true with this drama, and now people can eat their words...🤣. I am shipping them from reel to real. 💗

YES!!! It is so precious that he loves her the way she is. Even in the proposal scene where he said that CSS might not be the obedient and amicable lady, but in his eyes, she's truly the best. Which is a lovely homage to the title of the show, that to him, CSS is the brightest star, the most brilliant light in his life.

Ohh, I love this discussion. Hi drama friends! I hope it’s okay to add my two cents to the discussion from sakuramoon1112 too. I am going to add to the lovely insight by mimi0108, CJKdramaAddict, and especially Darliing’s.

Like mimi0108 said, I think the fact that CSS didn't get to grow up and be raised by her parents, and she was living in a run-down part of town at the beginning of the drama, makes LBY curious initially. I too agree with CJKdramaAddict that I don’t think he’s met “interesting” women before, unless we’re trying to be nice by using the word. Since he grew up in the palace, I think he was exposed to bullying and scheming since young, and those who fawn over him apparently don’t care enough to really get to know him, because all they seem to care for is his status and looks. As Darlling mentioned, it was a breath of fresh air for him when he encountered the Cheng family later on.

The first encounter between LBY and CSS probably left an intriguing impression on him, because she would turn over her family member to do what is right. This perhaps also means a lot to him as well because it’s a case he’s working on that is very tied to his heart, being linked to the possibility of the demise of the Huo Clan with his uncle. Then later on, CSS sent him “gifts” in the form of clues with the hay and piece of fabric to help him continue his investigation. I think by then, he was quite impressed and in awe by her intelligence (which I love that they didn’t do love at first sight like in the novel), and her sense of justice. She piqued his curiosity and interest, leaving an impression that is hard to forget for him. Which makes it even more endearing when he sees her at the lantern festival and developed a crush on CSS. I think the crush was cemented even more when he witnessed CSS kick Princess Yuchang’s henchman into the pond (when the princess was pretending to drown so LBY could save her), foiling the princess’s plan. Then from there on out, the flame kept growing… when LBY saved CSS from the fires, and then working with her to retrieve the map, syncing together their plan for that bridge scene, to how he went out of his way despite his injury, to save CSS during the attack against the rebels. I think LBY was practically in love with her by the time she had removed the arrow to treat his injury. Hook, sink, and liner!

OMG! LMAO I loved reading your comment, Keluli. I feel the same in that I was telling a friend "we're out here eating, breathing, and sleeping LLTG!" I have not shipped a couple like this in AGES. A part of me hopes it'll go from reel to real. But it's as you said, Niao Niao and Zisheng will just live on forever, and this drama truly is phenomenal.

aww. thank you for letting me know, drama friend 🙂

Would anyone happen to have the beautiful background music that usually always plays when CSS and LBY meet each other? I love the piece and wonder if it's available to listen or if we'll have to wait for the OST to release? Thank you so much for any help!

Basically chef's kiss for the scene 🤣

Thanks for taking the time to write back to me and discuss!

I also never finished TLB and only saw snippets. Lol at that time, I think people loved the CP of her ZLS' character with LYN's character, but I truly didn't get into the show or them. So amongst my friends watching TLB, I felt alone in my thought of the one true pairing (OTP) at the the time. Now it's so nice to know so many people felt that back then, and are here like you said with LLTG 🥲

Hahaha! I absolutely agree on their tension in the later eps. It's such a torture waiting for the show and again, seeing how it goes all the way to the end. Here's to more fangirl gushing moments ❤️

I hope you don't mind me answer but it's supposed to be "one true pairing" 🙂

I think the crew has done a spectacular job so far in LLTG in the 12 eps released with the pacing (I know some people had issues with it), building the characters/introducing them, and the wonderful slow-burn romance/build up. I do like that Shaoshang's story shows us/lets us see her growth, as she navigates coming-of-age, and how there are different loves in life. This is my absolute favorite role of hers. As for ADOS, I can see the comparison, in terms of the beautiful cinematography, and the depth of the characters in the respective slice-of-life moments, and the grandeur but realistic aspect of the romance, but it lost me mid-way, so that was a DNF ('did not finish' for me). I didn't have much expectations going into ADOS, and was pleasantly surprised with some of the stuff they tackled, but!, LLTG is a whole different scale of phenomenal story telling in the way they foreshadow and plant seeds that get revealed later on. It's perfection! Also, you don't have to ask for forgiveness from anyone. You love what you love and that's all that matters :)

Absolutely valid that you didn't watch TLB (me either other than that segment of WL and LS which they have nothing to do with each other really in that one), because dramas are so subjective. I actually don't really care for Reba, and her pairing with WL just didn't feel right for me. But we're definitely on the same page of WL and ZL being the OTP. Their scenes together in TLB, while completely unrelated, not even like second love interest or anything, screamed chemistry , and perfectly matched to me, since the moment WL's character held LS's character at knife point... LOL so glad we're both here and able to enjoy this LLTG phenomenal drama so far! :)