This review may contain spoilers
Prepare tissues for the tears
This drama was just mwaah!! It was such an emotional roller coaster, at some point I think I cried through 4 consecutive episodes T-T.
What I liked:
- An exemplary execution of the storyline. I liked that the comedy kept going until the end. Most dramas leave the comedy when things start to get serious and try to leave it to the final episodes. But in this drama, it broke through even when you're in the middle of crying. There's also the execution of the transmigration trope. I especially liked that repeated scenes were fast forwarded such that we didn't have to sit through every single detail again. It developed organically, in terms of being branded as witchcraft at the start, to prophecy somewhere in the middle (when the screenwriter joins) and everyone accepting that it truly is a scripted world. I also loved the butterfly cookie left for the audience that showed up when the charcters tried to deviate from the iconic scenes. This meant that they didn't just happen magically but as a sequence of actions taken, masterfully covering that plot hole. I also liked the palace drama, which I thought I would skip through, but I actually enjoyed every minute of it.
- The ML. This is the first drama I am encountering Liu Yu Ning, and he was just perfect for this role. Carrying three characters was not easy but he managed to execute them beautifully. The ruthlessness, cuteness overload, heartbreak, beinged wronged were just so on point. When his tears come, you also feel like crying with him. I also liked that his character was smart, not just taking everything at face value, especially when faced with his stereotype in the 'script'.
- The side characters development. Given that we only knew of the FL's POV from the start, since she only read about her scenes, it was amazing to see the side characters being developed. The liveliness of the FL's sister, the redemption of the emperor and 18th prince, and the Nightwalkers. Their antics made the drama so much more wholesome and made it so that driving the plot forward did not entirely rely on the ML and FL.
- The BGM and OST were perfect. Sometimes I focused on the BGM since the lyrics were so hilarious, that I had to rewind to catch what the characters had said in between.
What I did't like:
- The FL's character development. Because she was a self-proclaimed salted fish, I expected her to act like one, but she was too proactive. It would have been interesting to see what would happen if she took all measures to be locked in the house until the iconic scene setting passed. She was too stuck on the script to notice the changes around her, like her sister doing her own independent things, or Nan Heng not actively seeking her out as much as before. Even when confronted by the ML she still refuses to admit that things have changed. I was even screaming at my screen that she doesn't deserve the ML 😆. In a way, she was reduced to being the support character, where she brought change in others but not herself, kind of like a guide.
- Failing to redeem the SML. It felt so unfair that the emperor, the chancellor, the 18th prince (where were all the other princes BTW?), and even the shady screenwriter were redeemed yet everyone gave up on CGH. He aired his grievance of being pushed to fit in a small box of his preset character, but unlike the ML who had an alternate identity to explore change, nothing is really given to the SML to explore change as well. I feel like that there should have been even tiny thing to slightly change his mind, even at death, since not everyone can be perfect.
100% recommend to anyone looking for a cdrama to dive into.
What I liked:
- An exemplary execution of the storyline. I liked that the comedy kept going until the end. Most dramas leave the comedy when things start to get serious and try to leave it to the final episodes. But in this drama, it broke through even when you're in the middle of crying. There's also the execution of the transmigration trope. I especially liked that repeated scenes were fast forwarded such that we didn't have to sit through every single detail again. It developed organically, in terms of being branded as witchcraft at the start, to prophecy somewhere in the middle (when the screenwriter joins) and everyone accepting that it truly is a scripted world. I also loved the butterfly cookie left for the audience that showed up when the charcters tried to deviate from the iconic scenes. This meant that they didn't just happen magically but as a sequence of actions taken, masterfully covering that plot hole. I also liked the palace drama, which I thought I would skip through, but I actually enjoyed every minute of it.
- The ML. This is the first drama I am encountering Liu Yu Ning, and he was just perfect for this role. Carrying three characters was not easy but he managed to execute them beautifully. The ruthlessness, cuteness overload, heartbreak, beinged wronged were just so on point. When his tears come, you also feel like crying with him. I also liked that his character was smart, not just taking everything at face value, especially when faced with his stereotype in the 'script'.
- The side characters development. Given that we only knew of the FL's POV from the start, since she only read about her scenes, it was amazing to see the side characters being developed. The liveliness of the FL's sister, the redemption of the emperor and 18th prince, and the Nightwalkers. Their antics made the drama so much more wholesome and made it so that driving the plot forward did not entirely rely on the ML and FL.
- The BGM and OST were perfect. Sometimes I focused on the BGM since the lyrics were so hilarious, that I had to rewind to catch what the characters had said in between.
What I did't like:
- The FL's character development. Because she was a self-proclaimed salted fish, I expected her to act like one, but she was too proactive. It would have been interesting to see what would happen if she took all measures to be locked in the house until the iconic scene setting passed. She was too stuck on the script to notice the changes around her, like her sister doing her own independent things, or Nan Heng not actively seeking her out as much as before. Even when confronted by the ML she still refuses to admit that things have changed. I was even screaming at my screen that she doesn't deserve the ML 😆. In a way, she was reduced to being the support character, where she brought change in others but not herself, kind of like a guide.
- Failing to redeem the SML. It felt so unfair that the emperor, the chancellor, the 18th prince (where were all the other princes BTW?), and even the shady screenwriter were redeemed yet everyone gave up on CGH. He aired his grievance of being pushed to fit in a small box of his preset character, but unlike the ML who had an alternate identity to explore change, nothing is really given to the SML to explore change as well. I feel like that there should have been even tiny thing to slightly change his mind, even at death, since not everyone can be perfect.
100% recommend to anyone looking for a cdrama to dive into.
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