lenje

Finished it, and it was finished strong!

What express package? How come it's not available on my VIP membership??

Douban rating rose again to 8.3!

Douban rating rose to 8.2!

If I remember correctly, this is an original drama, not based on a novel.

Just rose again to 8.5! WELL DESERVED!

Huh, what happened with the score here?
On the other hand -- the douban rating has increased to 8.2! YAYYY!!

He looks a bit young and less Ouyang Ke-ish to me. Compared to the previous version, he is like their nephew who tries to imitate them...

8.1 on douban!! Yippeeee!!!

Echoing the recommendation on Side Story of Fox Volant.

I would also recommend an older drama The Great Protector (2014) with Wallace Huo. It's set in the similar era (post Qing-early Republican), with great cinematography, acting and quirky characters.

Not shipping them romantically, but I really like their dynamics!

The Emperor is as unkempt as the emperor in Joy of Life!

The low rating is perhaps due to technical things. We discussed it also for the Ripe Town -- it's only got 8.1 on MDL, while the majority of reviews gave it 9/10, and the consensus in the discussion seems to be very favorable towards the drama.

But I think you'll agree their acting is top notch.

Wait, what happened with the rating? I don't see anyone hating it in the comments and reviews ... why did the rate go down? Is it a technical error?

It's been a while since I rated a drama a 9, and I'm happy to give it out to this. It's not perfect, there are still some loopholes, but maybe I need to rewatch to see what I missed on first watch. Production value and the writing are top notch, and stellar acting from the cast. My MVP is Yu Yao who extraordinarily plays Lu Zhi -- what a compelling performance! He's been acting since a kid, but a lot of former child actors don't have his range. I'll definitely check out his future projects.

My personal favorite is You Are My Hero (great natural chemistry between the leads, and they ad libbed lot of scenes just like CFY & ZJY here, but the tone is much lighter).

Others may recommend You Are My Glory, Love is Sweet.

IIRC it's planned for Dec 28, so let's see!

Upon watching for the nth time, I just notice that in the morning after their reunion lovemaking, when ZY left to shower, LX moved a bit to her bedside and put his head on her pillow. While it might not mean anything, I'm taking it that he wants to sleep with her scent :)))

It started at 7.2, then quickly rose to 7.4 and 7.5 before dropping back to 7.2 & at one point even got to 7.1. So glad that it's been gradually rising again -- this is how I like it.