Moonstruck

fair enough, I guess I just really take time to warm up to certain characters. Afterall, Cdramas with 40+eps always require patience and then the climax hits.

lol where did I say that I judged her? I merely said that her portrayal of vulnerable moments are not clicking with me. And that's purely subjective, meaning my own opinion. I never said anything against her as a person or as an actor. you did not understand my original comment

I hope so too. :) And I definitely agree LYN, he does exude manliness here. I normally prefer the anti-hero types, but in this one I do not mind at all how upright his character is. haha

hmm. I don't think so, I didn't even know LiuShiShi is older than YiuNing. Apart from a few ones, I don't really follow Cdrama stars in real life. This means I know most stars purely from their acting portfolio. And even with the stars that I like, it doesn't mean I automatically like all their shows, I have dropped about 80% percent of dramas I've started regardless of who the stars are. Elaine Zhong for example, I've only seen her in Rising with the Wind.
Same for Liu Shishi, this is my first time watching her, so it's purely a clean slate of impression.
Don't get me wrong, I think she's a great actress, as you've mentioned she does exude elegance and badassery. There's just something that is not clicking with me, but it's definitely not a bias with age or her as a person. As mentioned, I probably still have to watch a few more episodes and might change my opinion.

I'm on episode 17, obviously still far behind. I'm still liking it, although I've come to realize the story tone is not as serious as I have expected it from the start.
I guess my only comment is I cannot feel chemistry between the two mainleads although they got together early on than most dramas. There's something about Liu ShiShi that's not clicking with me, I know the character is supposed to be strong and all, but it almost felt like she's overdoing it. It's like she's not on same level as ML and she's too mature for him. Her soft and vulnerable moments are just not believable for me.
I kinda wish it was Zhao LuSi, I know she can play tough too. Or also after watching 'Rising with the Wind', I think Elaine Zhong would also be a good match, she looks strong and tough, but she also portray vulnerable moments very well.
Idk, I hope Liu ShiShi grows on me as it progress.

edit: lol some were triggered about some actress name I dropped. I'm sorry I'm not a fanatic who will argue with you about these actors. If you think they suck, then that's a valid opinion, that's your experience. I happen to think they are good in some series I've seen, and that is there all to it. Please be matured enough to realize not everyone who has a different opinion is hostile or is a fanatic. How embarassing is it to argue on the internet for actors who don't even know you, and go as far as personally insult someone who just stated their own opinion as respectfully as they can. You derail open minded and fruitful conversations from happening🤦🏻‍♀️
And thank you to those who made matured and respectful contribution to the discussion.

I think it's actually the brain that cannot handle it haha, we're so used to the standard film frame rate that anything higher confuses the brain and creates a dissonance on how your mind process what you see. It gives this illusion that it seems faster than normal. :)

Higher frame rate is not bad, actually the opposite, it's good because it captures more details. And when you do slow motion it creates a very fluid movement effect, as opposed to being choppy when you're using low frame rate. For example, in video games, the higher the frame rate the better as it gives you an immersive feel.
In this drama I see it all the time, but I think most obvious is I guess in the battle scenes in ep9or10? Also during the pre-battle scene where they did a one-take shot where the camera moves around and pans at each character within the area.
In movies, I think the standard is only 24-30 fps, it gives this cinematic feel that we are used to. Though 'cinematic' is also subjective, perhaps because we are so used to that setting that it gives this weird feeling when the set-up is different. It's amazing what our eyes can detect, I never really gave frame rates any thought before, but as technology improves I start to wonder why certain videos feels a bit weird, that why I started to look it up.
You can try testing it on your own if your smartphone is capable, try recording on 60fps and play it back and you will definitely notice something too. :)

I get your point, you're coming from a sentimental pov of someone who know all the backstory and the facts and you're probably already more episodes ahead and root for RuYi, but I wrote my comment from the characters' (Qian, SunLang and ShiShan) point of view, that's why I said it's a consistent character writing.
They are soldiers, they have throughout repeatedly outspoken their animosity for members of the Scarlet Guards, because the whole scenario of Wu losing and being King captured was triggered by Scarlet Guards.
RuYi was only with them for a couple days, and they have witnessed with their own eyes that 'she was sending secret info to Scarlet Guards' and have been lying about her identity, how do you compare their bond with RuYi and their bond with their dead comrades? I think it was a no-brainer that they reacted that way, and you can see Qian have been simmering with anger and suspicion days ahead. He gave it a series of test to prove his suspicion. It was a giant misunderstanding as you said, but perception is reality, during that moment RuYi was proven an enemy.
I think it would have been lame if they calmly ask for an open forum with her, also considering they believe she's seducing Ning.

I'm still on ep10, I love how the 3 ganged up against her once they discovered her identity. That's a solid character writing, like even if they were teasing her and Ning in the beginning, they all got serious during that moment (even ShiSan!). No simping and no mercy, it was really bros before hoes as they say. Although the whole thing was a misunderstanding, their loyalty to their brotherhood is admirable.

after watching more episodes, my earlier suspicion that this has been shot with higher frame rate is now confirmed (specially obvious during fight scenes). It really feels weird at times. Because it felt like your seeing the movements with your naked eyes ,it's like as if you are with them during the filming lol so it's kinda giving less cinematic vibes. The story's still good though!

hahaha definitely noticed the ppt transitions too. plus this director seems to be very fond of putting camera angles behind screens, behind leaves, behind twigs, behind whatever. It kinda felt like we audience are spying on the characters haha Also the scenes where the camera 'walks around' or tracks within the area feels weird sometimes.
it doesn't take away from the story but I do find it amusing whenever I notice these things.

ep6 now. Am I the only one who notice? Although some scenes are shot on weird angles, they seem to have shot at highest fps on other scenes. I watch this is dramacool at 720pixels but even with that resolution I can see the movements are so fluid. It's hard to explain but feels like their are using cameras with different settings. I don't know if I'm just tripping, I never notice this on other dramas, but somehow here I can tell.

I'm still on the early episodes and a lot of info overload. Can somebody explain pls the difference between White Sparrows and Scarlet Guard?

just finished ep1. After all the Cdrama disappointments this year, this definitely looks promising.
Liu Yuning looks so good! I don't understand why some netizens bash him and thinks he's not good looking enough to be main role. True, he's not conventionally handsome like the other flower boys, but there is something really attractive and manly about him. I was first impressed by him and his performance in 'The Long Balad'. For me he's giving Lee SooHyuk vibes, very cool and masculine.

Finally done! what can I say? this was such a hidden gem. This year had not been a good year for Cdramas for me, all the ones that I have anticipated weren't satisfying and I had to drop. And surprisingly this one that is not under my radar turned out to be the best modern Cdrama for the year for me.
Funny how I initially thought this was a republican drama because of that poster and industrial setting,haha
This is definitely not everyone's cup of tea, there are no dramatic romance twist and turns. The focus was on JiangHu's journey but that doesn't mean the romance is lacking. It's just not as 'in your face' type of romance like other dramas.
If you're considering watching this, one thing to note is the story progression, unlike other dramas that has several climax or hook points where the story goes up and down, this one has a steady upward trend plotwise.
This means it gets better and better as you progress, I also personally struggled in the beginning because of the pacing and I couldn't immediately connect with the characters and the whole TengYue. But if you stick to it, the characters will grow on you and you'll come to care for TengYue too.
I think there are 3 points in the story where you can decide whether it is for you or not :At
around ep14 where the romance becomes a 'little bit' apparent, ep24 when they're finally together and ep33 the betrayal part.
I love the cinematography and outfits in this drama, the story and script is also not cringey and a lot closer to being realistic than other modern Cdrama. And most importantly, the characters aren't perfect.
The only negative point for me is ZhaoYang, I think the actress is not very good, on top of that the character itself is not likeable. She totally didn't deserve YangJian.
And also, I wish there was an epilogue, that final scene was waaaaaaaay to short.

It's so much fun seeing XuSi get stressed out from jealousy hahahahaha

I'll be honest, I like this a lot more than Only for Love. I see some dropping this because there is not much focus on romance, that is true, but even the business struggle is not that bad. But I do understand that sometimes we have to be in the mood for this type of drama.
I love that almost everything in this drama feels natural and realistic specially after the initial episodes, even how their relationship develop is also very organic. I got mad cringe in Only for Love and had to drop it at some point even though I love Dylan and BaiLu. In comparison. I'm really liking RwtW despite the slow and steady pace.

GongJun's outfit here is always classy and on point. I wish all men dress like this. haha

KyungSoo looks like the kid who's easily bullied but when you try to bully him, he'll end up bullying you instead haha

I think you should carry on atleast to ep14. by then the romance starts to slowly manifest and you kinda starts caring about TengYue.
This one is really a slowburn.