whitetara32

We do know the real culprit already. The second prince had people there to do some investigation but the CP followed and was responsible for burning the place to the ground. Whether he was manipulated into doing so remains to be seen and it wouldn't be a surprise. But as at the end of s2 all we have are a few moments where the 2nd prince is clearly clueless about it and another few where the CP talks about being afraid of getting caught for it.

I agree. The first 6 or 7 episodes were not very good. I barely got through them. But then everything after that returned to form.

The intrigues were really clever, FX grows so much, and an overall picture emerges that paints the three main characters in the most intricate and compelling ways. It's extremely well done. You can see everyone coming into focus while FX gradually comes into his own as a person who could possibly play alongside the master manipulators.

I know that some would prefer fewer mindgames and more action but the fight scenes of the last ten episodes were also really well done and so, my impression was that, the whole thing comes off just as well as s1.

It's pretty rare to find a drama that makes the mindgames so clever and so interesting with just enough humour and pathos to also make them entertaining and engaging.

There are many types of love and all are important. I totally agree. But could you PLEASE put this under a spoiler tag. Give everybody else a break yeah?

I love the character too. He's so matter of fact in his evil and he wants all of the Grandmasters gone - for sure. He's the megalomaniac who can't abide the fact that there are a handful of people out there who can mount an offence or even a defence against him.

In fact, the way that he talked to FX about the GMs was information but also a clear warning and a threat. All of which makes him that father of lore; the one that is proud of his son but also hates and fears him because he will eventually be surpassed and replaced by him.

I can't, actually, imagine that FX could be in a worse place than he is, stuck between the Emperor father who wants to use his every ounce of skill and the Emperor father who resents, fears and may choose to exterminate him for having it in the first place.

FX may well be one of those Grandmasters at some point soon so, ultimately, I think that he may need to align with them for his own safety and the safety of those that he loves. Because wicked papa is a great character. Shakespeare would have loved him.

He will never stop distrusting and testing FX's devotion and allegiance. So, FX may not really have a choice but to betray him. Or else he'll eventually fail to please the Emperor and suffer the consequences.

I am so addicted to the closing credits for the episodes of this season. It looks and feels authentic but the ost is just spectacular. It's perfect; going from slow, atmospheric and moody right through to steely grit, strength and power.

It finishes and heightens every episode, no matter what the content and developments had been. In fact, I'm totally in awe at how appropriate and skilful it is. I think it elevates the whole season and I absolutely love it!!!

It's funny. I just read a s1 comment from someone who was disappointed that the drama didn't have enough clever intrigue and the protagonist wasn't shrewd the way she had expected. I had thought it was pretty clear in s1 but I had really loved the fact that it was abundantly obvious in s2. It was satisfyingly clear all the way through, I thought, but like you say, the whole exam arc was great. Just brilliant from start to finish from where I was sitting.

Anyway, RR didn't do open chest surgery on FX the way that you're thinking. She just opened up the wounds enough to clean them up, put some stitches inside and then stitch it closed again. It wasn't anything especially expansive or deep. And she has extremely steady hands, you know. :-) And what came next would have solved the possible infection problem although they did take measures to set up an operating table with overhead lights and everything boiled to sterilize.

Because the Emperor gave FX some of his Qi energy before their chat. It made up some of what FX had lost. It enabled his recovering quickly up to the point where he gained consciousness again, In fact, it looked like he would probably have transferred more and more thoroughly healed FX if he hadn't suddenly awoken.

Which is all really important for FX recovery but also because it gives away the fact that the Emperor has this ability ... when we've clearly been told that it could only be done by someone who practices the same kind of training that FX has done. Up to that point, we'd only had two teeny hints that the E had anything like this kind of power and skill.

OK then :-) If you really want them to be XZ's eyes, then they must be XZ's eyes :-)

There really is something that's quite charismatic, engaging and very attractive about this guy. He has talent. He has range. And he's unique. He commands your attention for all the dramatic, and the quiet, moments but he has great comedic timing as well. It's so easy to invest and become attached to his characters because he really breathes something special into each and every one of them.

Nah. I don't think so. You can hardly even see the whites of his eyes until season 2 when we get a few minutes where he removes the mask. So, I guess it could be XZ behind the mask but then again it could be anyone who would be asked to stand-in behind the disguise.

Not sure where you are getting this from. There were no feelings beyond friendship with HT or in the case of SL, there was only sympathy or pity. I watched it and never had a moment of doubt about him or the fact that the others were just poking him to make fun, gossip and trouble. Putting a man in the frame with a woman doesn't automatically mean anything beyond the plot points. We get no female characters at all if everyone is always making their presence into something sexual or romantic.

It seemed to me that they were just teasing him. And where on earth does "disgusting" come from? He didn't let SL or HT get close to close to him. He kept plenty of distance and drew the line quite clearly, I thought. When he was at court in the north, he put on a show with HT. It helped to keep him and everyone in his delegation alive. And, thankfully, she played along. It wasn't either of their faults that people like to tease, make fun and gossip.

I mean, women are people too. And he has to interact with all kinds of people. Instead why don't we celebrate the fact that there are a few women in the story who rate highly enough to be in his sphere as equals (more or less).

He's the son of a high ranking official who was sent north to play spy, but gets caught and has to be saved by the ML... in the last third of the drama.

I think it's not for you. And maybe that's partly due to the fact that you had preconceived notions going into it. Because your reservations don't really make sense. There are no plot holes and it is a political story. It's just that it isn't ONLY a political story. FS is a very competent schemer as well as a poet and martial artist but he is also quite a young guy coming in to the capital from a place of hiding so he wouldn't have had any chance at all, to play any political games if he weren't sponsored by powerful people. Also, I don't understand what you mean by one look and I'm in love three times? FS has only fallen in love once. And the king having more than one wife? You'll have a real hard time finding an historical type drama that strays from this because it was a fact of the times. Anyway, you've recognized by yourself that your expectations set you up to be unhappy with the drama. Maybe if you want to give it a proper chance, you could leave it for a while and then come back in a while to watch it from the top before season 3 swoops in to finish it.

So, FS's mother isn't the only one who has woken up and gone out into the re-evolved world. Others have woken and gone out before her, taking and spreading their knowledge of language and other inventions as she also did. Except that, with her, the dying memories of FS were also encoded in an egg or something so that her baby was born with FS's memories of his first life as it happened in the modern world.

Right so far? And so there may be others in this current age; others that have woken up and gone out as adults like FS's mother did. Which means that FS is unique in that he's a 21st century person who was actually born into the current age. But he also might not be quite as alone as he thinks he is. Because, aside from Wuju, there might also be other woke people in the current day. Only how would he recognize them if they don't want to be known.

In season 2, (don't read if you haven't seen it yet) we see Wuju fighting off another person from the Divine Temple; the martial artist who had come out to find FS's mom and FS himself. Wuju (with his probably not human skills) did away with him but I guess that there will be more like him to come. And the Emperor has just gone and told the world that FS is his mother's son and his illegitimate prince as well. So he'll be much easier to find now, even if he wants to live a quiet life without going to the bottom of the pond to open the forbidden door in the house that his mother shared with the Emperor.

Presumably that wouldn't be the door that the Emperor showed FS in season 2 though. The one with the portrait of his mother behind it? The Forbidden door would have to be a lot more impressive than that right? Like it being a door back to the Divine Temple and the cryogenic chambers etc.

Also, I wonder if you have an opinion on the university student writer. I saw a comment about the abbreviated 25 episode 'correcting' the season 1 writing contest addition to the story so that it follows the book which only talked about FS dying days and nothing else. I thought the addition was clever though. This is, basically, a wuxia style science fiction story. So the drama has just made that really clear with the story within a story format. The writing story makes the protagonists sort-of reincarnation second chance more clear; explaining and giving scope to the title idea about the Joy of Life that he now has a chance to pursue.

He's lying on the road flashing back to things that happened in each time line. We see a group of memories from one time line and then a shot of him lying on the road before the next group of memories and so on.

Those reviews are about peoples thoughts and feelings but you think that they're meaningless while yours are not. Right.

I've been here episode after episode reading many 100s of people's excited and glowing comments. There has been so much happiness and genuine enjoyment day after day. So it's no surprise to read 10/10 reviews that show the same kinds of thoughts and feelings. Some talented people made something that a lot of people really loved. End of story.

I wouldn't have believed this if I weren't looking at it myself. It's like there's a negative swarming going on. A tidal wave of similar sounding reviews and comments. All going over the same shallow repetitive criticisms that give away the fact that the reviewers didn't even watch the drama. I guess they're working hard to bring the rating down too. It's truly bizarre vindictive behaviour. For anyone who's actually wondering if this is honest critique. It's not.
Lovely Runner was a massive surprise hit because its such an excellent romantic comedy. It's fun. It's funny. It's memorable. The characters are fresh and lovable. It's genuinely charming and thoroughly romantic from start to finish.

This is when people swoop in and heroically dare to disagree with all of the amazing reviews.

Some will have taken a look with expectations swollen from all the hype. And found that it didn't deserve the hype in their view.

Some will have watched because of the hype, despite it really not being the kind of drama that they would normally appreciate.

Others will want to puncture the hype and all the high opinions of the people who made it.

Because hype messes with people's expectations and their perceptions.

But you weren't wrong about there being a flood of excitement and good opinion. And it ended well too. That's why the high rating. Of course, many people loved it for many reasons.

So the most recent reviews are less glowing than the thousands that came before. Haha. They're sitting on all the others.

ok. that makes sense. I'll join you on that :-)