sony_t

I enjoyed it but it was not as fun as the original. And the fact that they keep using time-travel and parallel universe plots interchangeably was really bugging me.

Actually most of the character from the 1st season are in the 2d. Although the 2d season plot stands on its own, you’ll need to know what happened in the first season to understand the main characters intentions and actions.

The 1st season doesn’t end with a cliffhanger but second season still continues from where 1st season ended. Same main actors are back and though 2d season starts of in the modern era the story doesn’t take place there.
If you were to watch only the 1st season and stop you wouldn’t feel like the story is incomplete. Same with the 2d season ending, though there will be a 3rd season in the future, you won’t find the 2d season ending unsatisfactory.
I personally loved, loved the 1st season more ????

I laughed, I cried and then that ending came. I understand the politics behind it but it was still a bit of a let down. Overall 8/10.

Yes....Both seasons.

One of the most realistic romance i’ve seen in dramas. No simple patting on the head, actua; kissing and not just simple hugs, no being married for a year and not even consummating the marriage, openly flirting and no shyness between them. It was quite refreshing!

I heard about this drama right after I watched my first Chinese drama. All the positive reviews made me push it down the list since i didn’t want to go a watch something that was too hyped up and end up disappointed. Too high expectations would sure let me down right? Nope!
I have to say, this drama is worth every positive review it got. AMAZING! No plot holes, no unnecessary characters/dramas, no filler episodes, well-balanced, it had its heartbreaks and it’s day-to-day normal, silly moments, and no rushed ending. I loved everything about it.
The only mistake I made was starting it on a weekday. Once I started I couldn’t stop, stayed up watching it and ended up showing up at work half asleep and disheveled. Still worth it.

Thanks for the explanation . It’s really great to learn about other cultures. I just kept wondering what was keeping them interested each other or the relationship if all they do is meet up for lunch and dinner.
And I didn’t know anything about the book so now it makes sense. Lol is the title really “Shanshan comes to eat”? Well it makes sense now.

Oh my god! All they do is eat. I can understand the reasoning at the beginning but what about later on in the series? Did they only need to eat? They couldn’t find anything else couples do? That’s some lazy writing right there.

I got it on Spotify

Though I somehow liked the FL character I was not impressed with the actress. Awful kiss scenes. The ML would have gotten better reactions if he had made out with a wall. Are the girl’s lips capable of moving at all? Oof.... to be honest the only reason I finished this show was due to my OCD and the low key romance between KO and Hao Mei.

You’ll see romance, sort of a forbidden love thing but the writers as usual failed to bring it home (in my opinion). I will say this though, the cast is incredible. All around outstanding performance. It’s too bad the last 15 episodes went down in flames.

It’s not that kind of drama. Although there is a love story theme for the main ML and FL, the story is more about power struggle in the royal family. If you’re looking for some romance I wouldn’t recommend this show.

That’s what I felt as well. They gave too much screen time on RY than Xu Feng. I have watched this 4 times already and I pretty much fast forward through his scenes. Such a hateful fish! I still love this drama but if they had given the main couple more time, cut into RY’s crap and spent a little more time on the ending, this drama would have been perfection!

I believe it’s the life of the FL, as the disciple (Sun Yin) , the mortal(Su Su) and the queen (Bai Qin) and how her and these three world and Ye Hua’s life is entangled on the road to love I guess.

The last episode was done badly so it leaves room for confusion. So apparently Bo Hai went to Europe after the car accident (why? We don’t know), we can infer from the fact that Xi Yan has a baby, that Bo Hai has been in Europe for at least a year. I feel like this was an area they could have taken the time to explain what happened after the accident that drove the man to a different continent instead of finishing the proposal he was going to make prior to getting hit by the car.
The proposal in the field, Qi Qi in a white dress, and Bo Hai in a Tux is her dream.
The proposal in front of the flower shop, where he says he came back because he missed her is reality.

Was this drama suppose to be about the main couple or the girl and the other guy? I feel they focused more on the Gu Qi Shao’s love and pain more than they did on Fei Yi. Too much screen time was taken from the main couple. And why do people say it’s a happy ending?

Huh- that hateful fish! Am I the only one who thinks he got off way easy?!
My heart broke for Xu Feng. Honestly, that man suffered so much more than deserved.

Trying to watch something while simultaneously reading subtitles is too much work that I would not make the effort for anything longer than a 2 hours movie. So you have to imagine what it would take for me to invest the time to complete a 70 episode show. I only started watching it as something to pass the time until I fall asleep. I figured since it was a subtitle I would be bored and tired before the 1st episode ends and that would be that. 10 minutes in I was hooked. All idea of sleep was lost and thanks to Netflix I had 30 episodes worth to binge through. I was impressed with everything that I was seeing. Yes, the story moved a bit slow in the beginning, but the characters were well developed, I couldn’t stop enjoying the story.
Impressive acting, beautiful costume, amazing cinematography. I will not dare comment on the accuracy of the costumes or the customs portrayed in the show because as I’m not of Asian background it’s not my place. From my uninformed perspective I can only say that it looked amazing! By second episode I had already fallen in love with Ning Yi and Feng Zhi Wei. I was googling the actors name wondering if they have international recognition and why I had missed out on seeing any of their movies. I was definitely hooked and emotionally invested.
Chen Kun’s, Ning Yi was as multi-layered as they come, he is smart, cunning, calculating and determined. He can be playful, and ruthless, surprisingly gentle as well as stern. He loves fiercely and will do whatever it takes for those he loves. The actor did a superb job portraying this character, you can’t help but feel indignant when he is, laugh when he does, and of course cry your eyes out when he cries. And that face with that long hair – Whoa!
Ni Ni’s Feng Zhi Wei is smart, a little naive but she learns. She’s beautiful as she is fierce. She has an unwavering sense of right and wrong. She is also burdened with the hopes and dreams of everyone without a single person considering what she wants. I loved how she was the more forward one in their relationship and he was the shy one.
I just loved the show I couldn’t stop talking about it. I re-watched old episodes while I waited for Fridays to bring new ones. All other shows I previously followed were put on pause. I had little time for entertainment as it is, whatever I had was going to be spent watching and re-watching these episodes to make sure I did not miss anything while reading subtitles.
This is not to say I didn’t have any issues with it. There were some weird cuts, some story arcs I didn’t care for, FZW talked too fast I sometimes couldn’t keep up and my personal small peeve, I really hated how Ning Yi walked with one hand on his waist and another holding up his cloth lol
And it doesn’t help that somethings were certainly lost in translation (Netflix do better!) But all could be forgiven for an interesting story that included captivating characters depicted by amazingly talented actors.
Then came the Minhai arc to be followed by what I would like to refer to as “an out-of-control car speeding downhill towards a brick wall”. I did not understand where one story ended and where one begun. So many loose ends, so many bad cuts, so many unnecessary characters and plot lines. By the time the show concluded I did not recognize the characters that I fell in love with at the start of the show. The second half of this drama all the way through the end, with its sloppy editing, weird cuts, uncharacteristic actions by the characters at this point you know very well, did a disservice to the incredible actors, production crew who put all the hard work and to the fans that devoted time and emotion.
Now, I am not bitter that it was a sad ending. I will admit I’d have preferred a happy one, especially as I could see multiple opportunities in the story they could have seized on to give the characters a better ending. But it’s a creative decision and I can respect the production choice to end on a sad one. I can respect it, IF it were done properly. What pissed me off about this is none of the characters got what they deserved. Helian Zheng deserved better, Hua Qiong deserved better, even Master Zong deserved better - Ning Yi and Zhi Wei DEFINITLY deserved better.
You can watch a sad ending and feel content. That’s not what happens here. This particular end just leaves a bad taste in your mouth. This feeling was compounded by released photo’s or clips of scenes that you never got to see. I was left feeling cheated and let down and completely unsatisfied.
It wasn’t a sad ending – it was a BAD one.
There are some that say the journey is worth it, not in this case. This is, as one reviewer described it “a best forgotten relationship”.
The title says “The Rise of the Phoenixes” as far as I know Phoenix rises from the ash, it represents rebirth. Who/what rose in this? The Dacheng empire? The lovers? Certainly not FZW. By the end of this drama there was no phoenix to be found, only ashes.
My advice to anyone who wants to watch this drama is, watch is until somewhere between 50-55 and then stop. Let your imagination complete the rest. Whether you believe the story deserves a happy ending or not I guarantee you your imagination will do the story, the characters and yourself much justice then what this show did.
I will say this though, kudos, bravo, well done to all the incredible cast, particularly Chen Kun and Ni Ni. I definitely have become a fan.
I read somewhere the book was a better ending. Hopenfully it will get translated into English and I can replace this disaster with a better version.