This review may contain spoilers
one of the most consistent enemies-to-lovers historical romances ever
this has always been my favorite genre, so i was very excited to start this. i've wanted to watch liu yuning dramas but don't know where to start. i was gonna watch his collaboration with zhao lusi since i'm also a huge fan of her, but i'm not ready for that emotional trauma yet so here i am.
to start, manman is an absolute favorite. she has been steady from the very first episode and she has never made any decision i disagreed with. she's very likeable, mature, and knows how to deal with wei shao when he's being an ass. the first few episodes were difficult to watch because of her struggles while adjusting, and it was a very realistic portrayal of their clans being enemies.
the wedding in particular was very well-written. i have always been irked by people labeling tons of things "enemies to lovers" but we only see it in words but never in action. wei shao was a real piece in the beginning and i wanted to smack his head multiple times. i'm glad the writers weren't scared to put him in a negative light in the beginning because it paved the way for one of the greatest redemption arcs i've ever watched.
the political turmoil also made a lot of sense. politics in historical dramas are always hit-or-miss, but this one is a definite hit. they wrote government officials quite accurately, and even the climax in the end where wei shao had to decide whether to take back an area that will greatly aid his tenure as a ruler in the future or go back and defend his hometown where his family resides. the plot armor is a bit too on-the-nose, but i didn't mind it one bit.
one thing i could never forget was just manman's cousin, qiao fan, being unbearable to watch and not because she was a bad actress. she was good! very effective at making me want to pull her hair. admittedly, i didn't care much about her in the end, but the entire thing happened because of her stupid father, who also annoyed the hell out of me. great writing. what's a family without a relative you want to throw in the river anyway?
barring all that, the music is also good, as well as the side characters and their stories. i love the relationship between the generals and the lady's maids. i didn't like how the story panned out for one of the generals because i think it was too obvious that we needed it to further the plot. but i still like the rest of the story.
i, however, needed a longer epilogue.
to start, manman is an absolute favorite. she has been steady from the very first episode and she has never made any decision i disagreed with. she's very likeable, mature, and knows how to deal with wei shao when he's being an ass. the first few episodes were difficult to watch because of her struggles while adjusting, and it was a very realistic portrayal of their clans being enemies.
the wedding in particular was very well-written. i have always been irked by people labeling tons of things "enemies to lovers" but we only see it in words but never in action. wei shao was a real piece in the beginning and i wanted to smack his head multiple times. i'm glad the writers weren't scared to put him in a negative light in the beginning because it paved the way for one of the greatest redemption arcs i've ever watched.
the political turmoil also made a lot of sense. politics in historical dramas are always hit-or-miss, but this one is a definite hit. they wrote government officials quite accurately, and even the climax in the end where wei shao had to decide whether to take back an area that will greatly aid his tenure as a ruler in the future or go back and defend his hometown where his family resides. the plot armor is a bit too on-the-nose, but i didn't mind it one bit.
one thing i could never forget was just manman's cousin, qiao fan, being unbearable to watch and not because she was a bad actress. she was good! very effective at making me want to pull her hair. admittedly, i didn't care much about her in the end, but the entire thing happened because of her stupid father, who also annoyed the hell out of me. great writing. what's a family without a relative you want to throw in the river anyway?
barring all that, the music is also good, as well as the side characters and their stories. i love the relationship between the generals and the lady's maids. i didn't like how the story panned out for one of the generals because i think it was too obvious that we needed it to further the plot. but i still like the rest of the story.
i, however, needed a longer epilogue.
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