Surprisingly good plot in the first half
I have been craving for a good costume Chinese drama since ages, but it has been lukewarm or bad. When I discovered this on douban, I thought, well, that seems pretty decent. So after some hesitations, I gave it a try and...
1. The good:
- The plot starts off surprisingly well. It has proper and intriguing storyline and characters that keeps me clicking "next episode" one after another.
- The older side characters are all veteran actors. Like most dramas, they are usually the better/best parts when it comes to acting.
- I like the brother and sister twins. The sister twins are pretty, dare I say than most everyone else. But I don't think they'll do much acting outside of this project, shame.
- Very good cinematography (especially the first episode with all those viral clips) and set designs. Costumes are also adequate and suitable.
- It doesn't focus on overpowering the FL or dumbing down/simping the ML. It explains and develops these characters to a certain degree of success. Honestly, I'm tired of perfect Mary Sue and Gary Sue archetypes in a lot of East Asian dramas.
2. The so-so:
- The acting of the leads: kind of poor. They seem wooden and constricted. Because of this, they create unnecessary emphasis on the characters' looks, which I don't find pleasing. They're saved by how fitting they are to the characters.
The FL looks ghastly and scary at times. Her emotions are limited.
The ML acts well in fight scenes, but one-two dimensional in most others; he tries to act cold, ruthless, tough, uncaring unsuccessfully.
Sweet moments between these two are just okay. So I don't get their online shippers' hype. But I must say, on a regular basis, they have a good, healthy relationship of two people who love and respect each other and enjoy their companionship.
- Ji Yong could have been a better, more memorable character.
3. The bad:
Plot goes downhill around episode 20 with needless minor details and unexplained motivations [SPOILERS] (ie. Song Mo's deadbeat-dad is just ass; Song Han is unusually detached from his brother's misery and attached to his shit-father).
The first few episodes make the main villain so interesting. But a big bad is never developed, which cripples the story.
Got me real annoyed and skipping a buttload until I decided to just leave it there and read the rest of the plot online. Maybe I'll do as suggested here and watch the final episode.
Conclusion: Kind of an eyecandy, wasted potentials.
1. The good:
- The plot starts off surprisingly well. It has proper and intriguing storyline and characters that keeps me clicking "next episode" one after another.
- The older side characters are all veteran actors. Like most dramas, they are usually the better/best parts when it comes to acting.
- I like the brother and sister twins. The sister twins are pretty, dare I say than most everyone else. But I don't think they'll do much acting outside of this project, shame.
- Very good cinematography (especially the first episode with all those viral clips) and set designs. Costumes are also adequate and suitable.
- It doesn't focus on overpowering the FL or dumbing down/simping the ML. It explains and develops these characters to a certain degree of success. Honestly, I'm tired of perfect Mary Sue and Gary Sue archetypes in a lot of East Asian dramas.
2. The so-so:
- The acting of the leads: kind of poor. They seem wooden and constricted. Because of this, they create unnecessary emphasis on the characters' looks, which I don't find pleasing. They're saved by how fitting they are to the characters.
The FL looks ghastly and scary at times. Her emotions are limited.
The ML acts well in fight scenes, but one-two dimensional in most others; he tries to act cold, ruthless, tough, uncaring unsuccessfully.
Sweet moments between these two are just okay. So I don't get their online shippers' hype. But I must say, on a regular basis, they have a good, healthy relationship of two people who love and respect each other and enjoy their companionship.
- Ji Yong could have been a better, more memorable character.
3. The bad:
Plot goes downhill around episode 20 with needless minor details and unexplained motivations [SPOILERS] (ie. Song Mo's deadbeat-dad is just ass; Song Han is unusually detached from his brother's misery and attached to his shit-father).
The first few episodes make the main villain so interesting. But a big bad is never developed, which cripples the story.
Got me real annoyed and skipping a buttload until I decided to just leave it there and read the rest of the plot online. Maybe I'll do as suggested here and watch the final episode.
Conclusion: Kind of an eyecandy, wasted potentials.
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