m1am1lov3r

This show pulls you in within the first episode with its slapstick humor and over the top antics of some of main characters who have big personalities. There’s nuance and some characters manipulate and lie. If you’re not paying attention to the dialogue, it’s easy to misunderstand what the writers are trying to reveal about the main character personalities and relationships. Episode 6 does a good job of reiterating the misunderstandings to pave the way for the enemies to lovers transition for one couple.

The Li family and Chai An are actively pressing their interests forward which keeps the tempo of the story telling moving. The actors deliver strong performances. Wang Chu Ran, Wang Xingyue, and Liu Xie Ning are as gorgeous as ever. The set design, costumes, use of livestock and horses support the story as a realistic period piece. Also like that the storytelling is showcasing the food (baozi, roasted goose, varities cakes and pastries, etc) of that time period and that when people sit to eat or drink, they are occasionally really ingesting something. I’ve noted in other shows how a group sits down to eat and they talk and no one actually eats.

My only regret after watching the first 6 episodes is that future episodes are being rolled out in 1 to 2 episode increments.