This review may contain spoilers
《逐玉》 Zhu Yu — Honest Review
The cinematography of this drama is one of the greatest I've seen so far. The director definitely knows what he's doing and I am all for it. From the first moment Fan Changyu entered the screen to the war scenes to the end, the cinematography never falter. To me, this is what 2026 cinematography should look like. I'm not going to lie, I have watch a lot of Chinese dramas and I always think to myself how can the cinematography be so lacking when we're in the age where it shouldn't be so lacking. But this one... it was beyond magnificent.
To me, this drama was really well done. From the casting to the set to the clothing. Everything was well done. You can definitely tell that the director pour his love into making this drama for us to watch. I haven't read the book so I don't know much about the plot or the characters, but I can definitely say that everyone did an AMAZING job!
Fan Changyu —
She was a breath of fresh air. I know that a lot of Chinese dramas make the female lead weak, even if they are supposed to be strong, but Changyu, she broke the stereotype. She was blunt and arrogant but she can back it up. She was not the smartest in terms of what a woman should be in that time, but she was wonderful in her own way and I am glad that Xie Zheng never tried to change her. Her love for those close to her may lead her to do reckless things, but it comes from a good place. I know that she received a lot of criticism for drugging Xie Zheng or knocking out Li Huai'an, but she did that because she cannot afford to lose anymore people that she love and care for. She had lost so many along the way and she didn't want to lose more. Her entire village was slaughtered by a psychopath who was not only intrigued with her but also vengeful towards her. So, I can understand why she did that. To me, her recklessness actually play towards Xie Zheng's greater cause. No one, not even the enemy, expected a young lady to be so strong so they underestimated her. She killed two important people just because they underestimated her strength and well.
I love Tian Xi Wei so I went into this drama rooting for her, but I am not one to watch because of my favorite actress or actors. I started because of her but I stayed because of Fan Changyu. Tian Xi Wei did an amazing job portraying Fan Changyu. What I really love about Tian Xi Wei is her expression. Her eyes, her eyebrows, her face were able to convey what she was feeling without saying a word.
Xie Zheng/Yan Zheng —
The great Marquis of Wu'an. He was cunning and adorable, but he lacked communication. I enjoyed him as Yan Zheng though. As Yan Zheng, he was gentle, protective, and caring towards the Fan sisters and the Zhao couple. As Xie Zheng — I wished we were able to see more of Xie Zheng. I mean, even when he was Xie Zheng, he was still acting like Yan Zheng. He was the clingy, matrilocal husband. I wanted to see more of the ruthless Marquis of Wu'an. What I loved about him is that he never wanted to change her. He let her be herself throughout the entire drama. He knows that she doesn't know the military laws, so he concocted a scheme to make her understand. He was, to me, the only one who understands her.
Zhang Ling He — I first watched in Love Between Devil and Fairy and I thought that he did an amazing job there. I didn't watch his other dramas -- actually, I tried to watch his other dramas, but the storyline was not doing it for me, so I dropped them. Honestly, he was perfect as the Marquis of Wu'an. I can definitely say that his acting improved since Devil and Fairy.
Qian Qian—
She was one of my favorite character from the drama. From the beginning, she was always independent and we don't see a lot of that in dramas. What I loved about her is that she never wavered and kept true to who she was even when she was held captive by Qi Min. I wished she had a better ending than just being stuck in the palace. She only ever wanted her freedom and now she's confined within the palace walls. I hope that she had a better ending in the novel. She deserves to be carefree.
Qi Min —
I pitied him the most. He was the most tragic character in this drama. I know that a lot of people were only giving him grace because Deng Kai is handsome, but I looked beyond that. I looked into his motives, his story, and his reasons. To me, his life parallels Xie Zheng but with different outcomes.
Two boys who lost everything overnight but one was good and the other evil.
HOWEVER, I gave Qi Min grace because he was different from Xie Zheng. Yes, he lost both of his parents over night, but he was subjected to undeniably and horrible pain just so that one day he can take the throne. AND that is why I pitied him and gave him grace.
He was a man who spent 17 years of his life living as someone else while enduring so much pain. He was burnt and was treated via skin graft — which I can only imagine how painful it must be for him. He endured all of that pain just to be hated and neglected by Lord Changxin.
His relationship with Qian Qian is a suffocating, terrifying obsession born out of his own broken psyche. To me, he was so broken that just by having Qian Qian by his side, even if it meant she is going to hate him, he didn't care, as long as she was with him.
Sui Yuan Qing —
Honestly, I don't have anything against him. He did what he was told. He followed his father because his father truly believed that they are the rightful heir to the throne. As psychotic as he is, he really did love Qi Min and that to me, was his redeeming character arc.
He truly believe to the end that Qi Min cared about him and he was so broken when he realized that the older brother he loved so much had no feelings for him whatsoever.
I would love to see him fight with Changyu again. They had so much chemistry during their scenes together that I almost forgot he wasn't the male lead.
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What I didn't like —
I wished that this drama was longer. It needed more than 40 episodes. I feel that they can pull a "Love Like the Galaxy" and do a 2-part drama. I feel that the political and court scenes were reduced to make it all fit into 40 episodes. I wanted them to spend more time in the court and in the capital. It feels rushed to me.
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I loved that they went back to Lin'an. The scene where she was walking through the town and those that have died was calling her was so heartwarming. I wish that it was real. Lin'an Town lost a lot.
Overall rating: 9/10
I only gave this a 9 because of the last few episodes. I wished that they extended this drama to 50 episodes to fill in all of the political stuff and what happened 17 years ago. I really do feel that that was not fully explained. I was craving for more. I wanted to know more about what happened.
To me, this drama was really well done. From the casting to the set to the clothing. Everything was well done. You can definitely tell that the director pour his love into making this drama for us to watch. I haven't read the book so I don't know much about the plot or the characters, but I can definitely say that everyone did an AMAZING job!
Fan Changyu —
She was a breath of fresh air. I know that a lot of Chinese dramas make the female lead weak, even if they are supposed to be strong, but Changyu, she broke the stereotype. She was blunt and arrogant but she can back it up. She was not the smartest in terms of what a woman should be in that time, but she was wonderful in her own way and I am glad that Xie Zheng never tried to change her. Her love for those close to her may lead her to do reckless things, but it comes from a good place. I know that she received a lot of criticism for drugging Xie Zheng or knocking out Li Huai'an, but she did that because she cannot afford to lose anymore people that she love and care for. She had lost so many along the way and she didn't want to lose more. Her entire village was slaughtered by a psychopath who was not only intrigued with her but also vengeful towards her. So, I can understand why she did that. To me, her recklessness actually play towards Xie Zheng's greater cause. No one, not even the enemy, expected a young lady to be so strong so they underestimated her. She killed two important people just because they underestimated her strength and well.
I love Tian Xi Wei so I went into this drama rooting for her, but I am not one to watch because of my favorite actress or actors. I started because of her but I stayed because of Fan Changyu. Tian Xi Wei did an amazing job portraying Fan Changyu. What I really love about Tian Xi Wei is her expression. Her eyes, her eyebrows, her face were able to convey what she was feeling without saying a word.
Xie Zheng/Yan Zheng —
The great Marquis of Wu'an. He was cunning and adorable, but he lacked communication. I enjoyed him as Yan Zheng though. As Yan Zheng, he was gentle, protective, and caring towards the Fan sisters and the Zhao couple. As Xie Zheng — I wished we were able to see more of Xie Zheng. I mean, even when he was Xie Zheng, he was still acting like Yan Zheng. He was the clingy, matrilocal husband. I wanted to see more of the ruthless Marquis of Wu'an. What I loved about him is that he never wanted to change her. He let her be herself throughout the entire drama. He knows that she doesn't know the military laws, so he concocted a scheme to make her understand. He was, to me, the only one who understands her.
Zhang Ling He — I first watched in Love Between Devil and Fairy and I thought that he did an amazing job there. I didn't watch his other dramas -- actually, I tried to watch his other dramas, but the storyline was not doing it for me, so I dropped them. Honestly, he was perfect as the Marquis of Wu'an. I can definitely say that his acting improved since Devil and Fairy.
Qian Qian—
She was one of my favorite character from the drama. From the beginning, she was always independent and we don't see a lot of that in dramas. What I loved about her is that she never wavered and kept true to who she was even when she was held captive by Qi Min. I wished she had a better ending than just being stuck in the palace. She only ever wanted her freedom and now she's confined within the palace walls. I hope that she had a better ending in the novel. She deserves to be carefree.
Qi Min —
I pitied him the most. He was the most tragic character in this drama. I know that a lot of people were only giving him grace because Deng Kai is handsome, but I looked beyond that. I looked into his motives, his story, and his reasons. To me, his life parallels Xie Zheng but with different outcomes.
Two boys who lost everything overnight but one was good and the other evil.
HOWEVER, I gave Qi Min grace because he was different from Xie Zheng. Yes, he lost both of his parents over night, but he was subjected to undeniably and horrible pain just so that one day he can take the throne. AND that is why I pitied him and gave him grace.
He was a man who spent 17 years of his life living as someone else while enduring so much pain. He was burnt and was treated via skin graft — which I can only imagine how painful it must be for him. He endured all of that pain just to be hated and neglected by Lord Changxin.
His relationship with Qian Qian is a suffocating, terrifying obsession born out of his own broken psyche. To me, he was so broken that just by having Qian Qian by his side, even if it meant she is going to hate him, he didn't care, as long as she was with him.
Sui Yuan Qing —
Honestly, I don't have anything against him. He did what he was told. He followed his father because his father truly believed that they are the rightful heir to the throne. As psychotic as he is, he really did love Qi Min and that to me, was his redeeming character arc.
He truly believe to the end that Qi Min cared about him and he was so broken when he realized that the older brother he loved so much had no feelings for him whatsoever.
I would love to see him fight with Changyu again. They had so much chemistry during their scenes together that I almost forgot he wasn't the male lead.
---------------------
What I didn't like —
I wished that this drama was longer. It needed more than 40 episodes. I feel that they can pull a "Love Like the Galaxy" and do a 2-part drama. I feel that the political and court scenes were reduced to make it all fit into 40 episodes. I wanted them to spend more time in the court and in the capital. It feels rushed to me.
---------------------
I loved that they went back to Lin'an. The scene where she was walking through the town and those that have died was calling her was so heartwarming. I wish that it was real. Lin'an Town lost a lot.
Overall rating: 9/10
I only gave this a 9 because of the last few episodes. I wished that they extended this drama to 50 episodes to fill in all of the political stuff and what happened 17 years ago. I really do feel that that was not fully explained. I was craving for more. I wanted to know more about what happened.
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