maryxiah

Yay for finishing! This truly isn't easy because like you said, the drama just lost itself in the middle and everything is kind of meh for me in the last stretch though the plot finally picked up. At least it has a happy ending and kind of soothe my shipper's heart. I wasn't aware his fighting scene as Yu Chu Zhi got cut because I remember there was a fighting scene of him rescuing the Hall of Flames disciples?

Actually, it's in line with his character to live an idle life in Moon Valley, it's always been his dream and principle in life. Also, in episode 37/38 just before the cliff scene, Xue Zhi did suggest that they go back to Moon Valley and leave behind the martial arts world, so Tou was assuming that Xue Zhi was ready to let Hall of Flames go. Tou wasn't asking her to give up Hall of Flames immediately, they'd go back, rebuild, and settle everything down before moving on to Moon Valley, however, Xue Zhi was still hesitant because Hall of Flames had been her father's legacy. And it was mentioned throughout the drama that Xue Zhi had been longing to live as Chong Xue Zhi, an ordinary girl, not as the Hall of Flames master, the cursed demoness. I think this would make an interesting conflict in the middle arc, where it dragged so much, because up to that point they have different directions in life and it would make more sense for them to separate for a short while only to realize they want to be together and fight against the villain before ultimately retreating from the martial arts world.

I agree that this drama suffers from a bad writing and directing, so many missed potentials and opportunity! Speaking of episode 33 kiss scene, my sister, who usually doesn't comment on kiss scene because she's shy, was like "what kind of a kiss scene is this?" LOL Their kiss scenes were mainly of them just brushing their lips against each other for 1 second and then changed angle, it's a little awkward to watch.

Nonetheless, I'm having a hard time moving on from this drama, lol. I'm rewatching episodes 33 onward with my sister because she was waiting for English subs. I tried The Chang'an Youth last night because I want something light and mindless watch, I like it so far so hopefully that'll stick. I'm also planning to watch Princess Silver soon, but judging from the reviews, that's a heavy one and I'm not sure I can handle Leo in a heartbroken role, I read that he basically had few screen time. Love a Lifetime and Love in Between are on my watchlist, but 10 minutes into both dramas, I yawned. I think I need better mood for these two and now is definitely not it.

I found one that works but it has limited bandwidth, I can unlock it with a price, but that'd make it more pricey than the international version, so I'm using it to watch previews and trailers on Chinese apps. It's called SpeedCN, available for download on Google Play, you can use it out for free.

I feel for Mu Yuan and agree he deserves better than this, but on principle, I never support the third wheel or the unrequited love. I think when it comes to love, it boils down to who the girl/guy really loves, and there really shouldn't be any room to consider other, if they do, I lose respect immediately because that wouldn't be love but selfishness.

Mu Yuan was a selfless and sincere guy, maybe with the right person, he could have been happy, but I think he threw away his chance with Xue Zhi when he didn't confess way before Tou came along, or even when Tou rejected Xue Zhi the first time. In all honesty, he had plenty of chance to pursue Xue Zhi but he said he was used to it (silently watching over her) and that's on him, he missed his chance, by the time he decided to be selfish and go for Xue Zhi, he inadvertently hurt her instead.

I think Mu Yuan's death was pointless and an effort to stake our hearts for his character, Xue Zhi was handling the arrows and I didn't even feel immediate threat over her life, so for that, I just did not feel for that scene, I was rather upset that they'd disrespect Mu Yuan's character like this. Ugh.

I know, I've seen offers as low as RMB3 per month! Aside from payment issue, I hate having to pay for VPN just to watch dramas, so that's what stopping me for now. I guess I'll just subscribe to international apps for now (my sister prefers English subs),it's the price of a cup of coffee, which I can drink less lol.

You mean Yukee and Ting Wei?

Same, I'd subscribe just to support dramas and actors, plus these Chinese apps are cheap. I'm currently subscribing international iQIYI and WeTV (Tencent), which I think are cheaper than Netflix, but I wouldn't mind paying for the Chinese version.

Yes, they end up getting married.

Yes, happy ending.

Yeah, and coming from a guy who was clamoring for order and laws, it just seems so hypocritical. I think I would have been more upset if the setting is modern drama, my last drama dealt with a similar issue where the main lead has serious criminal issues but given a slap on the wrist because he had a tragic childhood and mental illness, just thinking about it now makes my blood boils.

It's a shame because I feel their efforts in the bts when they were discussing the emotions and lines! It just couldn't translate on screen and I feel like it's a huge waste of their chemistry and potentials.

Yes, poorly developed characters and plot all around. So frustrating to see when they have these two as leads! What a waste of opportunity!

The guy in Love Lasts Two Minds is not acting stiff, he is stiff, he is the definition of stiff, and when he smiles, I feel like he's a doll just staring back at me. Creepy and not amusing.

Oh yeah, I wanted to mention her too but as soon as she left the screen I just forgot about her, guess I'm still holding a grudge because she stole 2 hugs from Tou, lol. She grew up a lot post marriage and it was sad to see her not knowing Qing Mei had died, at least not knowing gives her hope to continue living, but she's as tragic as Mu Yuan.

Speaking of that, I actually thought that makes for an interesting conflict in the middle arc rather than that stupid misunderstanding, because Tou has always been wanting an idle life away from the court and martial arts world, while all Xue Zhi wants is to restore Hall of Flames to its former glory, they clearly have conflicting interests and directions here that could have been properly developed as a plot. Placed at the end of the story where they just defeated all enemies and free to pursue a life together seemed abrupt (although make sense because they haven't spent enough time together to talk about this).

I desperately wanted to try Love Lasts Two Minds for Yukee but the male lead is very painful to watch. The two leads here are far better to watch.

I am not happy with that too but I can understand the reasons behind it. For one, Lord Lu is a prince and the son of the current king, touching him would mean challenging the king's authority over his own family/kingdom. As the crown prince said, "Every kingdom has its own laws, and every family has its own rules." Two, Xue Zhi wants this to end without killing because killing over revenge is a cycle and never ending, she wants to bring him to justice, and they did in the end. I'm just happy that she accomplished it with Tou hand in hand, even if it means no epic battle scene or proper punishment for the villain.

Although I must say, I was slightly moved (can't find a right word) that Lord Lu actually treated Feng Zi well when he found out she was pregnant (probably because it reminded him of Zheng) and he actually shielded his brother when he felt the advisor was trying to harm the crown prince, clearly Lord Lu is still a man of affection, even if his brain is a little fried. I don't empathize or care for his character because he's clearly a coward and poor excuse of a human being, but I can't help feeling he's not totally hopeless.

Lol, there was a bit of a sword scene between her and Qing Mei. And I enjoyed the flying in the air to avoid incoming arrows scene. Although to be fair, there really isn't much of a fight scene in this drama because everyone literally fight for like a second and dies/stop.

But I love, love, love Xue Zhi's solo fight scenes near the end! Selfish as it may be, I don't really want Tou to get in the way by getting over protective and I thought it was a nice touch for him to let her fight her own battle. They even went their separate ways to fight for the same cause, which shows a great teamwork, something I wish they had done sooner.

I'm not very critical about acting but I think she's doing just fine, sometimes her doe-eyes give the impression of a deer in a headlight when she tries to emote but I can still understand what she's trying to convey. I think it's more glaring when she's paired off with Leo because he is a more nuanced actor and his does great eye acting, kind of like how I feel about their characters, Xue Zhi shows strong persona, which in turn highlighted Tou's weakness when paired off with her, the imbalance is clear. I like them enough to look forward their future projects.

So much thoughts I could write an essay here in the comments lol. But I want to say 2 things: 1. It was satisfying to see Lord Lu (the craziest of the bunch) schooling the major sects leaders about martial arts righteousness when these fakers tried to kill Xue Zhi/each other over a secret martial arts scroll. 2. Xue Zhi's growth over the course of the drama is really worth noting, and she has shown strong character throughout everything she has experienced from betrayal, various attempts on her life, rejection and loss of loved ones, etc.

Finally done! A little bittersweet to let this one go, but I'll keep the OSTs on repeat for a while, that's how much I love them. So much "should have, could have, would have," but I have enjoyed this (not the middle part for sure) while it lasted.

Maybe he was fanning himself at the intensity of the fight lol? I thought it was refreshing to see a weapon that isn't a sword and seems harmless. I have no idea who these characters you guys are talking about because I haven't seen wuxia dramas/movies in 10-20 years, this is my first in a awhile, so pretty low expectation here. I have only started exploring xianxia in recent years, couldn't stand them in the past.