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Two extremely wounded (but totally badass) people who learn to become an indominable power couple.
This drama has a high production value, a strong script, and top-tier actors. It's full of strengths. So instead of just glazing those strengths, I want to address it's weaknesses. Because this isn't about why it deserves a high score... but rather what's standing between it and me giving it a 10. Because if it weren't for it's weaknesses, I would give it a 10.
As it stands, I don't think it quite reaches the top of the pile. But make no mistake that it's a quality show that deserves to be taken seriously. The pacing and scenery are luscious. Misty jade green forests, beautiful wood architecture and furnishings, thick silk brocades. The acting springs forth from the depths of sincerity for many of the actors including the ML and FL, who gave it their all, and it shows. The plot is thick, dense, meaty.
With that having been said, here's the main sticking points for me that I think a potential viewer might want to be advised about as far as what you're getting into when you watch this:
1) The romantic relationship between ML and FL is very different from the usual standard romantic fare. For some this will be a huge plus, and for others it will read as a minus. This is not a chemistry-based relationship, and there is no spice and kiss scenes are meager. That doesn't mean there's no fire! There is fire between them, but it is purely emotional fire, forged from deep traumas each of them carry into the relationship and try to navigate as a couple. There is affection. Lots of it. This is a genuine and deeply loving devoted couple. But I have to say, all the emotional power of the relationship comes from the screenwriting and dialogue. It is the STORY between them that pulls them closer all the time to one another. These two have really good acting chemistry together and they are excellent actors in their own right, and they play their characters excellently. But the SPICE-chemistry is not there between these two.
There's a very good reason for this.... both of them play characters that are so very very wounded by their pasts that their souls aren't light enough to contain a budding romantic attraction. No one goes on a spicy date right after something traumatic has happened to them. These are two very battered and battle-fatigued souls coming together to learn to love. Watching it feels A) earned and B) sweetly rewarding. But you'll get no spice here. The romance hardly bears any resemblance to a usual romance story. It's more like watching the formation and evolution of a strong and enviable marriage. The focus is not the attraction between them. It's the *dynamic* between them.
Normally I can't live without spice, monitor-combusting chemical attraction, some form of hotness. But here I found it nice, mainly because it suits the story, and suits the characters. But what I didn't like about it was that there was really precious little lovers-chemistry between the leads. For example if LYX had been the ML, you bet your ass there would have been chemistry all over the place. Speaking of which, Ryan Cheng did a REALLY great job, he was power-lifting his role.... but LYX would have been better cast, imo. Maybe he was busy idk. Or maybe they don't want Bai Lu and LYX paired up over and over all the time. But I digress.
2) The plot is REALLY intricate. Names, places, people, backstories, omg.... it was really good, but at times for me it was headache inducing. I think they could have made certain things more clearly laid out for the viewer. At least it's overdone and not underdone though, amirite?
3) Maybe this is nitpicky, but the AI special effects were a little jarring, considering the show itself is so rich and beautiful and immersive. Every time it comes up, it kind of rips you away from that immersion for a minute. Fortunately, it's fairly overlookable because they only use a smattering of it here and there.
4) A tradeoff of more depth for less excitement and thrills. The more thrilling emotions like imminent danger, attraction, sudden joy, rage, combat, surprise, angst, shock... are notably lacking in the overall tone of the show, and instead you get subtle and hidden dangers, shyness, reticence, long standing pain, small mundane happinesses, slow-stewing anger, guilt, confusion, mystery, intrigue, secrets, and repression.
5) The scriptwriting left something to be desired. It's solid. No doubt about that. But there are issues. Such as the "breakup episode" which wasn't necessary and kind of awkwardly written and devised. The occasional episode here or there that sometimes feels like half-filler and doesn't really move the plot forward very much. There's an episode that starts with FL crying, and I don't watch crying, so I skipped it. Well, it was 8 minutes. 8 minutes of just Bai Lu crying over a montage of her past memories. 2 or 3 minutes is cinema, 8 minutes is just filler for emotional masochists. The dead screentime where we watch someone doing something like walking down a street, doing dishes, looking through scrolls, papers and books, etc. It's not that it's bad. It's just that if I were going to give it a 10, I'd want the pacing just a little bit tightened up and the script a little bit fine-tuned.
It was unique, it had plenty of meat on the bones, it was a solid watch, it was high-caliber... but it was not perfect.
I'm a harsh nasty grader of dramas, so I gave it 8.5/10. It was very very decent with some flaws.
As it stands, I don't think it quite reaches the top of the pile. But make no mistake that it's a quality show that deserves to be taken seriously. The pacing and scenery are luscious. Misty jade green forests, beautiful wood architecture and furnishings, thick silk brocades. The acting springs forth from the depths of sincerity for many of the actors including the ML and FL, who gave it their all, and it shows. The plot is thick, dense, meaty.
With that having been said, here's the main sticking points for me that I think a potential viewer might want to be advised about as far as what you're getting into when you watch this:
1) The romantic relationship between ML and FL is very different from the usual standard romantic fare. For some this will be a huge plus, and for others it will read as a minus. This is not a chemistry-based relationship, and there is no spice and kiss scenes are meager. That doesn't mean there's no fire! There is fire between them, but it is purely emotional fire, forged from deep traumas each of them carry into the relationship and try to navigate as a couple. There is affection. Lots of it. This is a genuine and deeply loving devoted couple. But I have to say, all the emotional power of the relationship comes from the screenwriting and dialogue. It is the STORY between them that pulls them closer all the time to one another. These two have really good acting chemistry together and they are excellent actors in their own right, and they play their characters excellently. But the SPICE-chemistry is not there between these two.
There's a very good reason for this.... both of them play characters that are so very very wounded by their pasts that their souls aren't light enough to contain a budding romantic attraction. No one goes on a spicy date right after something traumatic has happened to them. These are two very battered and battle-fatigued souls coming together to learn to love. Watching it feels A) earned and B) sweetly rewarding. But you'll get no spice here. The romance hardly bears any resemblance to a usual romance story. It's more like watching the formation and evolution of a strong and enviable marriage. The focus is not the attraction between them. It's the *dynamic* between them.
Normally I can't live without spice, monitor-combusting chemical attraction, some form of hotness. But here I found it nice, mainly because it suits the story, and suits the characters. But what I didn't like about it was that there was really precious little lovers-chemistry between the leads. For example if LYX had been the ML, you bet your ass there would have been chemistry all over the place. Speaking of which, Ryan Cheng did a REALLY great job, he was power-lifting his role.... but LYX would have been better cast, imo. Maybe he was busy idk. Or maybe they don't want Bai Lu and LYX paired up over and over all the time. But I digress.
2) The plot is REALLY intricate. Names, places, people, backstories, omg.... it was really good, but at times for me it was headache inducing. I think they could have made certain things more clearly laid out for the viewer. At least it's overdone and not underdone though, amirite?
3) Maybe this is nitpicky, but the AI special effects were a little jarring, considering the show itself is so rich and beautiful and immersive. Every time it comes up, it kind of rips you away from that immersion for a minute. Fortunately, it's fairly overlookable because they only use a smattering of it here and there.
4) A tradeoff of more depth for less excitement and thrills. The more thrilling emotions like imminent danger, attraction, sudden joy, rage, combat, surprise, angst, shock... are notably lacking in the overall tone of the show, and instead you get subtle and hidden dangers, shyness, reticence, long standing pain, small mundane happinesses, slow-stewing anger, guilt, confusion, mystery, intrigue, secrets, and repression.
5) The scriptwriting left something to be desired. It's solid. No doubt about that. But there are issues. Such as the "breakup episode" which wasn't necessary and kind of awkwardly written and devised. The occasional episode here or there that sometimes feels like half-filler and doesn't really move the plot forward very much. There's an episode that starts with FL crying, and I don't watch crying, so I skipped it. Well, it was 8 minutes. 8 minutes of just Bai Lu crying over a montage of her past memories. 2 or 3 minutes is cinema, 8 minutes is just filler for emotional masochists. The dead screentime where we watch someone doing something like walking down a street, doing dishes, looking through scrolls, papers and books, etc. It's not that it's bad. It's just that if I were going to give it a 10, I'd want the pacing just a little bit tightened up and the script a little bit fine-tuned.
It was unique, it had plenty of meat on the bones, it was a solid watch, it was high-caliber... but it was not perfect.
I'm a harsh nasty grader of dramas, so I gave it 8.5/10. It was very very decent with some flaws.
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