This review may contain spoilers
Tsundere, selfless FL x ML with 3 identities who all love and protect her
The court schemes are scheming, war is happening left and right, and mystics from jianghu are going rampant. Amongst all this is our main couple, Li Shuang and Jin An, acting cute, falling in love, and battling evil from both kingdoms. Overall super captivating, fast-paced (as it balances a lottt of plot points), action-packed, and swoonworthy, SHADOW LOVE blends well-loved tropes into an epic, supernatural romance.
BUT - the first couple of things you'll need to get past:
1. FL actress's high pitched voice - I love Song Yi and she's a great actress, but her higher-pitched voice (dubs?) kind of take the "general" out of "female general." Maybe that's just my personal bias but it doesn't match what I expect a fierce general to be like (which her character is supposed to be - tough on the outside but softie on the inside).
2. The random music genres - LMAO don't get me wrong I love the songs but the anachronism also takes me out of the story sometimes. We got some rap, pop/rock, and then actual traditional songs. The ML's theme music when he transforms is so,,,, the song is so good (I love the singer), but it's so cheesy (bye I said what I said).
OKAY so now that that's out of the way...
PROS:
❀ Watching the main couple fall in love was so satisfying | Despite some qualms, I found the progression of our main leads' romance and eventual partnership very satisfying. The ML's character with his amnesia was very boyish and goofy, while the FL's character of selflessness was well-portrayed through her actions and dialogue. She's the type to put others before herself, while he's the type to make sure she actually takes care of herself and indulges. Green flags all around people!! I loved seeing the small gestures he would do for her - like make her favorite pastry - and how she tries to protect him - like not handing him over to any kingdom. It's truly satisfying to see main leads care for and look out for one another in an equitable way (usually it's the ML doing the bulk of the work), and this series definitely delivered on that front. Of course a main contribution was the actors' great emotional expressions and way of conveying emotion. Like dang, my heart feels so warm. Also refreshing to see the FL recognizes the ML's supernatural form very early on so there's really not much conflict or misunderstandings in their romantic development on any front. The very limited battle scenes where do they fight together (I wanted more!!) were stunning as well.
❀ Upgrading secondary characters I see | I really liked the side characters, especially our second couple the FL's best friend/physician and the Wuling Mountain master. Their dialogue was very endearing and I like how the FL's bestie got her own romantic line with its ups and downs. I also appreciated the good relationship the FL's bestie and ML had - these relationships just flowed so naturally in the writing I had to make a point. The FL's younger brother had great character development and 2ML was,,, wow, a very complex yet surprisingly satisfying character. I found him fun, annoying, stupid/delulu, and at the end was also proud to see his character progression. Talk about an emotional rollercoaster! Even characters who get minor screen time like the FL's father and her right hand woman had touching scenes that were short, yet pointed.
❀ There's three million plot points going on but honestly I love how messy it was and how everything was tied up | Fam it's the age of historical Cdramas with good endings with no crazy loose ends and open endings - thank god! Kudos to the writers for being able to address all the plotlines and even side characters' fates within all the episodes. The show starts off with a literal bang as the FL is in the middle of war, the ML is also in the war but also trying to save his brother from an evil concubine and sorcerer who has a supernatural item in his hands... yeah, we're balancing kingdom politics of TWO nations, their relationship, the mystical items of the jianghu (martial arts world, I guess), constant wars on the battlefield, and the main characters' romance on top of it all. If that's not enough to keep your attention, then I'm not sure what will.
❀ Love the production, OSTs, costumes, etc | Gorgeous scenery + matching outfits between the main leads + emotional music (once you get past the anachronism) = visually aesthetic show from start to end. I also liked all the accessories and hairstyles - usually I don't notice this but the hair pieces, earrings, and even weapons were so slay.
CONS:
✕ Dramatic wind-blowing scenes | I'm sorry it was just a lot and it took me out of the storyline. I can handle them especially during battle scenes but when it randomly shows up in like a throne room I'm like y'all,,, let the actors' expressions do the dramatic work please.
✕ I never really felt that "enemies-to-lovers" angst | Despite the story being set up with our main leads as enemies, when the ML regained his memories (very much later in the series) he was still really nice to the FL and I never felt that heartbreak and nostalgia from the FL that I expected. They tried, with certain dialogue and scenes, but I couldn't really take it seriously considering the ML was never that cold and distant. So, good in terms of romance, but a little lacking in terms of angst.
✕ Too much anticipation/storyline set-up | Maybe this is just the impatience in me but I found the storyline dragging in the set-up of major events. For example, we're told this sacrifice is happening and a lot of characters' fates are contigent on that day but the show makes us anticipate that sacrifice day for like 5 episodes while everyone is still prepping and scheming. I'm like, when is this damn day happening so the plot can move forward??!
OVERALL
Get you a mans who falls in love with you while not knowing his own identity and promising to devote himself to you, then forgetting about you while remembering his past as your enemy, then STILL being in love and wanting to protect you. ML plays the romance card well and the FL reciprocates whole-heartedly. Sure there are mystical items, annoying princes, an evil concubine and her scheming sorcerer, and nations at war in the way, but SHADOW LOVE proves without a doubt that love - and justice - always prevails.
BUT - the first couple of things you'll need to get past:
1. FL actress's high pitched voice - I love Song Yi and she's a great actress, but her higher-pitched voice (dubs?) kind of take the "general" out of "female general." Maybe that's just my personal bias but it doesn't match what I expect a fierce general to be like (which her character is supposed to be - tough on the outside but softie on the inside).
2. The random music genres - LMAO don't get me wrong I love the songs but the anachronism also takes me out of the story sometimes. We got some rap, pop/rock, and then actual traditional songs. The ML's theme music when he transforms is so,,,, the song is so good (I love the singer), but it's so cheesy (bye I said what I said).
OKAY so now that that's out of the way...
PROS:
❀ Watching the main couple fall in love was so satisfying | Despite some qualms, I found the progression of our main leads' romance and eventual partnership very satisfying. The ML's character with his amnesia was very boyish and goofy, while the FL's character of selflessness was well-portrayed through her actions and dialogue. She's the type to put others before herself, while he's the type to make sure she actually takes care of herself and indulges. Green flags all around people!! I loved seeing the small gestures he would do for her - like make her favorite pastry - and how she tries to protect him - like not handing him over to any kingdom. It's truly satisfying to see main leads care for and look out for one another in an equitable way (usually it's the ML doing the bulk of the work), and this series definitely delivered on that front. Of course a main contribution was the actors' great emotional expressions and way of conveying emotion. Like dang, my heart feels so warm. Also refreshing to see the FL recognizes the ML's supernatural form very early on so there's really not much conflict or misunderstandings in their romantic development on any front. The very limited battle scenes where do they fight together (I wanted more!!) were stunning as well.
❀ Upgrading secondary characters I see | I really liked the side characters, especially our second couple the FL's best friend/physician and the Wuling Mountain master. Their dialogue was very endearing and I like how the FL's bestie got her own romantic line with its ups and downs. I also appreciated the good relationship the FL's bestie and ML had - these relationships just flowed so naturally in the writing I had to make a point. The FL's younger brother had great character development and 2ML was,,, wow, a very complex yet surprisingly satisfying character. I found him fun, annoying, stupid/delulu, and at the end was also proud to see his character progression. Talk about an emotional rollercoaster! Even characters who get minor screen time like the FL's father and her right hand woman had touching scenes that were short, yet pointed.
❀ There's three million plot points going on but honestly I love how messy it was and how everything was tied up | Fam it's the age of historical Cdramas with good endings with no crazy loose ends and open endings - thank god! Kudos to the writers for being able to address all the plotlines and even side characters' fates within all the episodes. The show starts off with a literal bang as the FL is in the middle of war, the ML is also in the war but also trying to save his brother from an evil concubine and sorcerer who has a supernatural item in his hands... yeah, we're balancing kingdom politics of TWO nations, their relationship, the mystical items of the jianghu (martial arts world, I guess), constant wars on the battlefield, and the main characters' romance on top of it all. If that's not enough to keep your attention, then I'm not sure what will.
❀ Love the production, OSTs, costumes, etc | Gorgeous scenery + matching outfits between the main leads + emotional music (once you get past the anachronism) = visually aesthetic show from start to end. I also liked all the accessories and hairstyles - usually I don't notice this but the hair pieces, earrings, and even weapons were so slay.
CONS:
✕ Dramatic wind-blowing scenes | I'm sorry it was just a lot and it took me out of the storyline. I can handle them especially during battle scenes but when it randomly shows up in like a throne room I'm like y'all,,, let the actors' expressions do the dramatic work please.
✕ I never really felt that "enemies-to-lovers" angst | Despite the story being set up with our main leads as enemies, when the ML regained his memories (very much later in the series) he was still really nice to the FL and I never felt that heartbreak and nostalgia from the FL that I expected. They tried, with certain dialogue and scenes, but I couldn't really take it seriously considering the ML was never that cold and distant. So, good in terms of romance, but a little lacking in terms of angst.
✕ Too much anticipation/storyline set-up | Maybe this is just the impatience in me but I found the storyline dragging in the set-up of major events. For example, we're told this sacrifice is happening and a lot of characters' fates are contigent on that day but the show makes us anticipate that sacrifice day for like 5 episodes while everyone is still prepping and scheming. I'm like, when is this damn day happening so the plot can move forward??!
OVERALL
Get you a mans who falls in love with you while not knowing his own identity and promising to devote himself to you, then forgetting about you while remembering his past as your enemy, then STILL being in love and wanting to protect you. ML plays the romance card well and the FL reciprocates whole-heartedly. Sure there are mystical items, annoying princes, an evil concubine and her scheming sorcerer, and nations at war in the way, but SHADOW LOVE proves without a doubt that love - and justice - always prevails.
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