sophieisasleep

I Can't Stop Thinking About This Drama

Time for my first review! And of course it has to be for this masterpiece.Fated Hearts is a fast-paced drama from the jump. Right away, we're introduced to the seemingly irreconcilable enmity between the generals of two warring states. The show literally starts with our FL shooting our ML with an arrow and it does not slow down after that.Which brings us to our leads, Fu Yixiao and Feng Suige. These two abduct, fistfight, whip and bite each other all within the first few episodes. This is a couple that embodies the enemies-to-lovers trope, but not in a toxic or unnatural way. The love that unfolds between them is tender and based on mutual understanding and respect.What this show does best:- badass FL. Yixiao is strong, compassionate and loyal. She's a force to be reckoned with, even when injured. Rather than always needing to be saved by her man, she and Suige protect each other- the depiction of Yixiao's memory loss. Honestly, this is one of the only usages of the amnesia trope that I didn't find annoying. It didn't hinder the plot or create unnecessary angst, and although Yixiao has amnesia, she never becomes weak or gullible as we so often see- no miscommunication trope. Yixiao and Suige don't do that annoying thing where they break each other's heart "for their own good" or have some stupid misunderstanding. They communicate and don't keep things from one another- a well-written SML. Lately, I've been really annoyed by the trend where the SML appears harmless at first but devolves into a crazy bastard constantly coming between the main couple and doing horrible things because of his so-called love. But here, Xia Jingshi's infatuation with Yixiao does not take up too much screen time or cause dumb conflicts between the leads. He has his own goals and desires completely separate from Yixiao, and is willing to sacrifice her to get what he wants. Don't get me wrong-- he's a vile person. But as a villain, he's well-written and although he has a traumatic backstory, Fated Hearts doesn't use that to excuse his actions like other series with obsessive SMLs do- Feng Xiyang's glow up. I'll admit it, I reached a point in the show where I was actively rooting for her downfall. Like I cheered as she suffered in Jinxiu. But once she comes to her senses in the second half of the show, Xiyang became a strong, compelling character who I began to really like- Xia Jingyan. As an emperor and as a man, he is horrible. But even though his actions were in some ways worse than Jingshi's, I still felt a lot of sympathy for him. Both Xias are huge red flags, but at least Jingyan can love. As toxic as it was, I really was rooting for him and Xiyang- the ratio of action to romance. There are plenty of fight scenes and plenty of sweet moments between our leads. This balance is perfect- Yixiao and Suige's relationship. How can I end this list without mentioning it? This couple complements each other incredibly well-- they truly do feel fatedAlthough Fated Hearts had some minor flaws, these were greatly outweighed by the countless things it did right. I will definitely be rewatching.

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the worst of fl and ml

grr this episode was a bit frustrating, with nie xiguang STILL chasing after that loser zhuang xu. like she literally ran out on her job just to catch a glimpse of a man who talks down to her? then manipulates the shanghai outing with her friends to chance a meeting with him? girl! and yusen is doing the usual thing we see in business dramas where the ml mistreats fl in the workplace because of his pent up frustration about his personal feelings for her. still, i'm optimistic and understand this is just the beginning of the story. and i still like xiguang's character, even if i do very much wish she would stop obsessing over zhuang xu

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can i swear on this website?

i wish gls would stop pushing the narrative that it is at all moral or noble to abandon your partner to please your homophobic parents. it's weak and cowardly and straight up pathetic. and then not only does prem dump pat (and she's not mad at her parents at all?), she also lets them push her into the arms of that man? wth!!! this predictable nonsense always has the same cheap resolution, too: prem's crappy parents will see how sad she is without pat and then they magically become not-crappy and let them be together-- these writers who continue to peddle this angsty, melodramatic storyline should be ashamed of themselves at this point

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