News 
2
3
1
1
1
1
1
It's a Fantasy—Bride Remained Virginal with Zhang Ling He as Her Husband
What's a trope I hate? No, not that one or that one or even that one (do I have that many I despise?). It's prolonged misunderstandings. The Princess Royal was based on continual, prolonged misunderstandings, but in reverse, which, oddly, was much less painful and a nice twist on the trope. An estranged married couple were sent 20 years back in time after their deaths to a time before they married; they were determined to change their tragic outcomes by working together. Instead of the misunderstandings being painful and tedious, it was almost cathartic to see the couple stumble through their misconceptions to find the truth.
The Good:
• Zhao Jin Mai and Zhang Ling He were the lead actors. Can't find two more attractive people. 'Nuff said.
• I enjoyed the petty jealousy, Zhang Ling He-style.
• The OST was pretty.
The Bad:
• The princess gave everyone the benefit of the doubt except for her husband. This was tiring and irritating.
• I didn't like the characters of the FL and ML. The ML was too co-dependent and willing to be a doormat, and the FL was proud, petulant, angry, and stubborn even when she was wrong. He always seemed more like her subject instead of her beloved husband.
• There was a strong "ick" factor of the FL flaunting a bed-buddy male companion, who, although a eunuch, had her heart, for 17 years during her marriage. This was an extremely frustrating love triangle, especially when the FL learned the truth about some of the hard things in her past and chose to overlook them.
• I'm always extremely disappointed in these second chance dramas when the people involved, who know the future in advance, don't take advantage of their omniscience. I'd sit down and figure out dates and places to try to use my knowledge to the best advantage. The only time I really noted that happening in this drama was when the ML ran to provide an umbrella ahead of the 2ML when the FL was kneeling in the rain.
• The last episode took far too long, with too many flashbacks, to overcome the villain. Die, already. I was tired of xxx early on and was hopeful of a redemption arc to change my mind about xxx, but I'd settle for complete annihilation instead. The director could have played every sympathetic flashback, and did, to try to make me mourn that character, but it only served to bore me.
• Don't pregnancies generally produce babies? Especially after a three-year time skip? And, yet, none appeared.
I added a half star for the attractive leads. If I'm going to watch an irrational drama, it may as well have pretty people.
The Good:
• Zhao Jin Mai and Zhang Ling He were the lead actors. Can't find two more attractive people. 'Nuff said.
• I enjoyed the petty jealousy, Zhang Ling He-style.
• The OST was pretty.
The Bad:
• The princess gave everyone the benefit of the doubt except for her husband. This was tiring and irritating.
• I didn't like the characters of the FL and ML. The ML was too co-dependent and willing to be a doormat, and the FL was proud, petulant, angry, and stubborn even when she was wrong. He always seemed more like her subject instead of her beloved husband.
• There was a strong "ick" factor of the FL flaunting a bed-buddy male companion, who, although a eunuch, had her heart, for 17 years during her marriage. This was an extremely frustrating love triangle, especially when the FL learned the truth about some of the hard things in her past and chose to overlook them.
• I'm always extremely disappointed in these second chance dramas when the people involved, who know the future in advance, don't take advantage of their omniscience. I'd sit down and figure out dates and places to try to use my knowledge to the best advantage. The only time I really noted that happening in this drama was when the ML ran to provide an umbrella ahead of the 2ML when the FL was kneeling in the rain.
• The last episode took far too long, with too many flashbacks, to overcome the villain. Die, already. I was tired of xxx early on and was hopeful of a redemption arc to change my mind about xxx, but I'd settle for complete annihilation instead. The director could have played every sympathetic flashback, and did, to try to make me mourn that character, but it only served to bore me.
• Don't pregnancies generally produce babies? Especially after a three-year time skip? And, yet, none appeared.
I added a half star for the attractive leads. If I'm going to watch an irrational drama, it may as well have pretty people.
Was this review helpful to you?
