5
1
Your favourite band reformed after years . . . but as a cover band?!
If you read comments about this show you will see the following reframe again and again. "I loved the first season, but . . "
Yeah, I am one of them. If you read my original review from 2021, you will see how I raved about it and gave it a 9. It was well deserved as it was like a breath of fresh air. It was low budget, a bit rough around the edges, but it was visionary and the show delivered.
I was excited when I found out there will be a S2 and the same actors are reprising their roles! Hallelujah! While the beginning of the second season looks promising, the longer I watched, the more despondent I became.
Don't get me wrong. It is not a bad show. Quite to the contrary. All the actors have matured, and the production has been given a decent budget which is put to good use. These are all good things. Any first-time viewer will have little to complain about. What triggered me goes deeper than that.
I hate to say this; the show is now just another historical melodrama. What happened to the fresh ideas and chemistry between the couples? It is like watching power couples going through their daily grind. High power, high stress, but not very relatable.
The FL is now the imperial coroner, huzzah! She is good at her job too. The ML is the respected head of the justice department. Their good friends are still there and doing important job. Both couples have been married for 3 years. It would be great if this is a quick recap before another grand adventure.
What we got instead is what I would call "a storm in a giant teacup". There is so much happening, yet it is centred on just one main plot involving a key set of “actors”. There is a lot of scheming and plotting but the antagonists are known and their motives are cliché. We watch their ghastly shenanigans unfold and then watch our leads try to solve the puzzles methodically. It sounds good on paper, right?
While our leads act well, their characters are no longer fresh. Firstly, their roles are now set in stone. Secondly, there is none of the original "will they, won't they" dynamics. They are married couples now. There is a distinct lack of skinship as well. Sure, they are loved up, but there is not a lot of intimacy. See my reference to power couples.
Thirdly, we have the crime solving. It is well crafted and mapped out with great care. I can't help but feel they went a bit overboard though. It is like a Bermuda Triangle of tropey subplots.
Never in the field of Chinese costume drama has so much happened to so few. This could have been their finest hours. (Sigh)
I'm not saying it doesn't work. We do see glimpses of its former glory in the last few eps. As a whole, it is . . predictable. It is as if your favourite band reformed after years . . . but as a cover band! :(
In the end, I don't dislike this show. It is a solid outing. I'm glad that I get to see the next phase of their lives. The bigger budget certainly gives the show a more polished look. I'm thankful that there are no break-ups nor Big White Chariot of Doom™. I just can't help but feel let down by the safe route they took.
Maybe it does mirror reality. The excitement of a new romance fades and is replaced by married life weighed down by mortgage stress and school runs. Peace.
Yeah, I am one of them. If you read my original review from 2021, you will see how I raved about it and gave it a 9. It was well deserved as it was like a breath of fresh air. It was low budget, a bit rough around the edges, but it was visionary and the show delivered.
I was excited when I found out there will be a S2 and the same actors are reprising their roles! Hallelujah! While the beginning of the second season looks promising, the longer I watched, the more despondent I became.
Don't get me wrong. It is not a bad show. Quite to the contrary. All the actors have matured, and the production has been given a decent budget which is put to good use. These are all good things. Any first-time viewer will have little to complain about. What triggered me goes deeper than that.
I hate to say this; the show is now just another historical melodrama. What happened to the fresh ideas and chemistry between the couples? It is like watching power couples going through their daily grind. High power, high stress, but not very relatable.
The FL is now the imperial coroner, huzzah! She is good at her job too. The ML is the respected head of the justice department. Their good friends are still there and doing important job. Both couples have been married for 3 years. It would be great if this is a quick recap before another grand adventure.
What we got instead is what I would call "a storm in a giant teacup". There is so much happening, yet it is centred on just one main plot involving a key set of “actors”. There is a lot of scheming and plotting but the antagonists are known and their motives are cliché. We watch their ghastly shenanigans unfold and then watch our leads try to solve the puzzles methodically. It sounds good on paper, right?
While our leads act well, their characters are no longer fresh. Firstly, their roles are now set in stone. Secondly, there is none of the original "will they, won't they" dynamics. They are married couples now. There is a distinct lack of skinship as well. Sure, they are loved up, but there is not a lot of intimacy. See my reference to power couples.
Thirdly, we have the crime solving. It is well crafted and mapped out with great care. I can't help but feel they went a bit overboard though. It is like a Bermuda Triangle of tropey subplots.
Never in the field of Chinese costume drama has so much happened to so few. This could have been their finest hours. (Sigh)
I'm not saying it doesn't work. We do see glimpses of its former glory in the last few eps. As a whole, it is . . predictable. It is as if your favourite band reformed after years . . . but as a cover band! :(
In the end, I don't dislike this show. It is a solid outing. I'm glad that I get to see the next phase of their lives. The bigger budget certainly gives the show a more polished look. I'm thankful that there are no break-ups nor Big White Chariot of Doom™. I just can't help but feel let down by the safe route they took.
Maybe it does mirror reality. The excitement of a new romance fades and is replaced by married life weighed down by mortgage stress and school runs. Peace.
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