Reviews

This Drama Was One AI Filter Away From Becoming a Luxury Skincare Commercial

I truly think Pursuit of Jade should be studied as a social experiment on how far cinematography can carry a script before viewers collectively start hallucinating depth into it.

Because for a while? It works.

The drama arrives looking absolutely gorgeous. Everyone is stunning. The lighting glows softly like the entire empire discovered moisturizer and emotional repression simultaneously. Every frame is composed like it expects to be screenshotted, edited, color graded again, and uploaded to TikTok with dramatic piano music.

And I understand the hype.
I truly do.

This drama knows exactly who it was made for.

If you are:
a younger viewer looking for intense romantic fantasy,
someone primarily invested in the leads,
or simply emotionally vulnerable to attractive people staring at each other while snow falls dramatically around them,

then Pursuit of Jade probably feels like a spiritual experience.

Now before people panic: I am not above this either. If Jing Boran plays an emotionally constipated man in layered robes looking at me like he has not slept properly since the Ming Dynasty, I too suddenly become more forgiving than logic would normally permit. I have absolutely rated dramas higher than they deserved because the atmosphere seduced me into temporary intellectual collapse.

The difference is that those dramas at least entertained me emotionally.
Pursuit of Jade somehow managed the incredible achievement of being both absurd and boring.

That is difficult. Respectfully.

The problem is not that it is an idol drama. I do not judge idol dramas by the same standards as serious prestige historicals. Logic in idol dramas is often more of a polite suggestion than a governing principle. I accepted that before even pressing play.

But this drama’s writing eventually stops functioning even on idol drama logic.

The female lead especially feels less like an actual human being and more like a fantasy of “the perfect strong woman” assembled from endlessly marketable traits. She is endlessly competent, endlessly righteous, endlessly adored, endlessly capable of surviving situations that would destroy normal people — and the script bends itself into pretzels to constantly reassure us how capable she is.

At some point I stopped watching a character and started watching the screenplay aggressively defend its favorite child against the consequences of reality.

Nothing around the characters feels emotionally grounded. Reactions feel manufactured. Conflicts exist because the plot needs another dramatic montage, not because the characters behave like believable people shaped by their environment.

And the political storyline? Good lord.

This drama starts throwing around revenge plots, military conspiracies, assassinations, hidden identities, massacres, power struggles, dramatic reveals, and emotional speeches with the boldest confidence, while possessing approximately 4% of the narrative discipline required to pull any of that off.

Half the time it feels like the script itself only vaguely remembers what is happening.

And then we arrive at the visual processing.

Now listen carefully because some people online hear criticism of AI/post-production and immediately act like you personally declared war on technology.

That is not the issue.

Technology can absolutely enhance a historical drama. But Pursuit of Jade increasingly crosses into that strange modern-drama aesthetic where everyone looks softly rendered by software instead of lit by actual sunlight. Faces are polished into porcelain. Skin texture disappears. Backgrounds glow suspiciously. Entire scenes look so digitally perfected that the physical atmosphere evaporates.

Historical dramas feel most immersive when they look lived in. Dirt. Shadows. Cold rooms. Heavy fabrics. Uneven lighting. Human faces that still resemble human biology.
Instead, parts of this drama look like ancient China was filtered through three beauty apps and a graphics card.

Which is frustrating because Zeng Qingjie clearly does have visual talent. Some quieter scenes actually breathe. Some compositions work. But the production becomes so obsessed with visual perfection that eventually the atmosphere starts feeling synthetic instead of emotional.

At some point I realized I was no longer watching a coherent story.
I was watching beautiful people emotionally wandering through a very expensive AI-assisted skincare advertisement while the script slowly dissolved into decorative mist behind them.

I dropped this at episode 33 after finally accepting that the drama was not building toward complexity, coherence, or depth. It was simply becoming more aesthetically polished while the writing quietly disintegrated in the background.

Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Pursuit of Jade is what it accidentally reveals:

if the actors are attractive enough and the cinematography glows hard enough, audiences will forgive almost anything short of the writers being rendered in CGI too.

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70s problems more than romance

i like it In start thought it will be slow burn romance I'm at my limit dropping at 20

what I don't like
1.no romantic interaction at all
2.no slow burn
3.random and forced relationship,and romance
4.ml has crush on FML is clearly visible but FML is not interested in him at all from start till end, he is only friend for her, it looked one sided crush always but suddenly they kiss ? that forced into relationship without any development?
5.ml and FML suddenly get married so I thought now their story starts but no ? they're only focused on career or FML family members that's it,
6. story focus more on life in 70s , problems in 70s than romance, romance is non-existent
7. annoying 2nd couple? why would there be 2nd couple when there's already so many side characters? I felt 2nd couple part or romance totally unnecessary
8. FML wants to get into University but she faces so many problems so many times I'm was fed up ? i was like now now she might get chance but till 20 nothing
9. ml feels dumb sometimes, he is really good still
10. FML and ml both unemployed, or FML work in factory the pay is less I think ? FML got out of parents house so she can focus on carreer and her brother can come home ? any problems solved? no .
i thought maybe slowly both will succeed but , ml got job really late and pay is less I think and FML is still working in factory.
10.alot of annoying people the main head female who denies FML application, another villian ml saved this women but this women always from start till 20 creates problems for fml ml, another not that much but gets in the way of FML she is ml friend
11. the story is full of problems but there's family moments, slice of life kinda.
I'm bored,it's repetitive, no development in romance at all

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Akira was groomed, why did nobody say anything?

Our main characters are highschool students: Kanata and Akira. The series centers around their friendship tangled up with their own hardships that they need to overcome in order to be make sense of their newfound feelings for eachother.

What made the story compelling was how well written both the characters were in the sense that their problems and reactions were super valid and relatable. I've seen online hate on Akira, which is totally undeserving of a character as emotionally wrecked as Akira’s.

Even after what he went through, both at the hands of his former crush and his predatory tutor, he communicated so well with kanata. Akira had a clear vision of what he definitely didn't want. Kanata was also very patient with Akira. No wonder it didn't take Akira long to trust Kanata fully.

The only aspect of this series that didn't sit well with me was the fact that we didn't get a valid response out of kanata when he found out about Akira's inappropriate relationship with his tutor.

Throughout the series, the narrative was constantly trying to turn a blind eye to Akira’s involvement with his adult tutor. Moreover, It pushed forward a completely unrelated narrative. They chose to view it as “This relationship was bad because the feelings weren't genuine” instead of “This relationship was bad because Akira was literally groomed into it.” It felt as though the writers themselves didnt think it was problem that a fully grown adult was in a relationship with a highschool student.

Had they addressed the grooming, they could've portrayed the underlying issues that comes with it. Instead, they chose to leave the viewers feeling like something wasn't right, which cheapened the overall writing.

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When Drama Clichés Become Pure Entertainment

Lost Romance is a must-watch for fans of Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese romance dramas. It cleverly takes the most familiar clichés from Asian romance stories and turns them into something fresh, funny, and irresistibly romantic. If you love overbearing CEOs, second lead syndrome, childhood connections, and dramatic confessions but wish those tropes were handled with more self-awareness, this drama delivers exactly that.

The story follows Zheng Xiao En, a romance novel editor who is magically transported into the world of a novel after an accident. To her shock, she discovers that she is not the heroine but the villain. Determined to rewrite her fate, she does everything she can to win the heart of the male lead, who looks exactly like the man she secretly admires in real life. This imaginative premise creates a drama that is both wildly funny and deeply romantic.

Vivian Sung is absolutely perfect as Xiao En. Her comedic timing is excellent, and she brings endless energy and charm to the role. I loved how her character constantly mocked common drama tropes, from accidental falls to overdramatic confessions. She is smart, bold, and hilariously self-aware, making her one of the most memorable female leads in recent romance dramas.

Marcus Chang is equally impressive as the male lead. He plays both the cold CEO in the fictional world and his more vulnerable real-world counterpart with remarkable depth. His chemistry with Vivian Sung is exceptional, and their romantic scenes are some of the most passionate and convincing I have seen in a Taiwanese drama.

The second male lead deserves special mention. He is not just a typical rival but a fully developed and lovable character who leaves a lasting impression. I also appreciated the ending that the story gave him, which felt meaningful and satisfying.

One of the biggest strengths of Lost Romance is its humor. The drama is packed with references to iconic works such as Goblin, Descendants of the Sun, and Kill Me, Heal Me. Longtime drama fans will recognize and enjoy these playful nods. At the same time, the series never loses sight of its emotional core.

Despite its fantasy setup, the story is fundamentally about personal growth, healing, and learning to accept all parts of oneself. Xiao En’s journey is not only about finding love but also about understanding her own worth and overcoming her insecurities.

The pacing is excellent throughout all 20 episodes. There is no drag in the middle, and every episode remains engaging. The supporting cast is strong, and even though many of the actors were new to me, they all delivered memorable performances. The friendship between Xiao En and her best friend is especially warm and relatable.

The romance is the true highlight. The chemistry between the leads is outstanding, and the drama does not shy away from giving viewers plenty of heartfelt kisses, emotional confessions, and intimate moments. Their relationship feels both playful and deeply emotional, making it easy to root for them from beginning to end.

The soundtrack is also wonderful and enhances the emotional impact of the story. Combined with the polished production and engaging performances, it creates an immersive viewing experience.

The only minor weakness is that the real-world storyline becomes more conventional toward the end. However, this does little to diminish the overall enjoyment because the emotional payoff is satisfying and well earned.

Lost Romance is a smart, funny, and irresistibly romantic drama that celebrates everything fans love about Asian romance stories while gently poking fun at them. It is charming, heartfelt, and endlessly entertaining.

My rating: 9/10. A highly recommended watch for anyone looking for a romantic comedy with fantastic chemistry, plenty of laughs, and a creative story that remains engaging from start to finish.

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I hate when someone decides to make a show and invest in everything except for the story, if you don't have a proper script, don't go making a drama full of potholes with rushed ending.

Because that makes everything else seems stupid, all the efforts can be thrown in the gutter if you don't have a consistent story, and let's be honest for a moment, the whole cast are not very professional or extremely talented to save this, I've seen some shows with bad stories but made enjoyable by the actors efforts representing their characters but that didn't happen here.
I'm not saying the cast was bad, they were ok, but not enough to save whatever that was.

I appreciate everything they did and how they tried to bring back an icon in the Chinese BL history but they didn't stick to the novel nor did they replace it with a good story.

I wish next time they will invest more in a proper idea, with better characters maybe and a good ending.

I want to say something positive about it but unfortunately aside from a really underdeveloped side characters' story, there was nothing interesting about it.

Definitely not recommended show, watch the OG (yes, the one that got stopped half way through, it's more developed than this) or read the novel, if you are interested.

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A Beautiful, Chaotic Masterpiece

I started A Veil of Shadows with almost no expectations. The main reason I picked it up was because of Joseph Zeng, but by the end, I stayed for the entire cast. This drama completely surprised me. It’s honestly one of the most visually stunning fantasy dramas I’ve watched in a long time. The production, cinematography, casting, costumes, OST, and overall atmosphere were incredible.
At the same time, this drama is also extremely complicated. That’s both its biggest strength and biggest weakness.
This is not an easy watch at all. You cannot casually put this drama on in the background and expect to understand what’s happening. You genuinely have to sit down, focus, analyze details, and constantly question every character. Nobody feels trustworthy until the very end, and that unpredictability is what made the show so addictive.
The plot twists were insane. Every episode had me on edge trying to figure out who was manipulating who and what the actual truth was. The mystery aspect was done incredibly well, but honestly, the confusion became overkill at times. That’s probably the drama’s biggest downfall for me. The story became too layered and complicated.
The time travel storyline especially gave me a headache. Add in the fact that multiple actors were playing different identities or versions of characters, and it became really difficult to keep track of who was who. The butterfly demon storyline completely confused me at times, and there were moments where I genuinely needed outside analyses just to fully understand everything happening beneath the surface.
I honestly think the show could have benefited from more episodes to flesh things out properly instead of rushing some arcs while dragging others. The first half was phenomenal and completely addictive, but the second half became more nerve-racking and harder to follow.
Visually, this drama is a masterpiece.
The fantasy elements were breathtaking. The foxes, demons, dragons, butterflies, transformations, and fight scenes all looked stunning. Every scene felt cinematic, and the directing elevated the entire experience. This drama genuinely feels made for edits and reels because every frame looks gorgeous.
The costumes and hairstyles were unbelievable, especially for the fantasy characters. Everything felt elaborate and immersive.
And the OST? Absolutely incredible.
I’ve rarely seen a drama with such a huge variety of memorable songs. Every emotional or action scene hit ten times harder because of the soundtrack, especially whenever the song by Liu Yuning started playing. The music added so much emotion and tension to the story.
The Biggest Problem: Unbalanced Screen Time
One of my biggest frustrations with the show was how uneven the screen time became.
The drama initially felt like it was introducing multiple important leads equally, but by the second half, the focus shifted heavily toward Lu Wuyi and Ji Ling. Personally, I felt their romance moved a little too fast. They went from having crushes on each other to literally dying for each other almost immediately. Then the repeated death-and-return cycle started becoming repetitive, and after a while, the emotional impact disappeared because it kept happening over and over.
Meanwhile, Wu Wangyan and Wu Shiguang’s relationship completely stole my heart. Compared to Lu Wuyi and Ji Ling, their relationship felt far more mature, layered, and emotionally developed. They literally spent years growing old together, and that kind of bond felt much deeper and more meaningful to me. I also loved how funny and entertaining their dynamic was at the beginning, and honestly, I wish that side of them lasted longer into the drama.
I really wish the show had balanced both couples more evenly instead of overwhelmingly focusing on one.
Another character who suffered from this imbalance was Shi Guang. He was introduced as such an important figure in the beginning, but later he started feeling more like a supporting character, which genuinely disappointed me because the build-up for him was so strong.
The cast absolutely carried this drama.
Ju Jingyi completely surprised me. I had watched her before and was never particularly impressed, but here she genuinely nailed her role. She perfectly captured the manipulative, elegant, fox-like nature of her character while also delivering the emotional scenes beautifully. Her crying scenes were amazing, she changed my opinion of her.
Chen Duling brought a calm maturity to her role, but I honestly wish she had been given more screen time because I wanted to see more of her dynamic with Joseph.
As for Joseph Zeng, I genuinely feel like he was underused. It felt like the drama initially built him up to be incredibly important only to reduce him into more of a supporting role later on. He did the best with what he was given, but I wish the writing gave him more. I loved his crying at the end when he saw she sacrificed herself. Visually, I also think he suffered a bit because his character was human while everyone else had these elaborate fantasy costumes and transformations. The other characters naturally looked more visually striking, while he looked comparatively plain throughout most of the drama. It suited the character, but it also made him stand out less. I did enjoy his styling towards the end though.
Tian Jiarui, however, was phenomenal.
Even though I was frustrated that his character received more focus than Joseph’s, I can’t deny how incredible his performance was. He portrayed multiple identities and personalities throughout the show—fox, demon, dragon, Lonescale—and managed to make each version feel distinct.
His Lonescale storyline was honestly one of the most heartbreaking parts of the entire drama. You could really see the evolution from a playful and lovable character into someone broken and serious by the end.
His styling was also insane. The costumes, hair, and overall visual design were some of the best in the show.
My only issue was the fake tears. Every time he cried, the tears looked overly thick and artificial, which pulled me out of emotional scenes sometimes. But overall, his acting was still fantastic.
And then there’s Yan An, who completely mesmerized me. This was my first time watching him, and he absolutely stole my attention. Whether as Yan An, Li Jie, or all the other versions of his character, I was fascinated every time he appeared on screen. His storyline was confusing but incredibly intriguing, and his chemistry with Tian Jiarui was honestly one of my favorite dynamics in the entire drama. I loved the friendships and bromance in this show even more than the actual romances. Their dynamic genuinely carried a huge emotional weight in the show. Also his styling was chef’s kiss.
One thing this drama did exceptionally well was the chemistry between the entire cast—not just the couples.
The friendships, betrayals, alliances, sisterhoods, and especially the bromances all felt strong and believable. The cast genuinely felt connected, and that made the fantasy world feel alive. Special mention to the weasel because he brought so much charm and entertainment to the story.
Honestly, I think the friendships and emotional bonds between the characters impacted me more than most of the romance.
A Veil of Shadows is honestly a beautiful mess.
It’s visually stunning, ambitious, chaotic, addictive, emotionally exhausting, and sometimes unbelievably confusing. The production quality is incredible, the cast is fantastic, the OST is unforgettable, and the story constantly keeps you guessing.
At the same time, the mystery and confusion sometimes became too excessive, which made the second half harder to enjoy emotionally because I was so focused on trying to understand everything.
The ending also left me with mixed feelings. Seeing Wu Shiguang only one to remember everything was heartbreaking, but overall the ending felt underwhelming to me. I understand that restarting everything was supposed to be salvation for the characters, but it also erased so many shared experiences, hardships, friendships, and relationships that made those bonds meaningful in the first place. Love becomes meaningful because of everything people go through together, so resetting everything emotionally hurt more than it healed.
Despite all my frustrations, though, I would still absolutely recommend this drama. It’s flawed, messy, overcomplicated, and sometimes exhausting—but it’s also captivating and unforgettable. One of the best fantasy dramas I’ve watched in terms of visuals, atmosphere, and production alone.

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An okay watch, just didn't quite hit emotionally

I had pretty high expectations for this show because I’ve liked other works from this screenwriter, but I ended up kind of disappointed. It was just an ok watch, good enough to pass the time- but not something I really felt invested or interested in.

The FL, Xin Mei, is ok. She’s fairly strong and capable. Her best trait might be her ability to think for herself, which is a great and all... just unfortunately there isn’t that much else to her. I feel she shows the most personality in the first story arc, and after that she’s just a generic heroine. It also doesn’t help her character development that she’s unconscious half the time. Overall she’s just not that interesting, and I wasn’t particularly rooting for her or feeling for her.

The ML is better, with a great backstory, and I did feel emotionally connected to him at times. But his story is not executed that well either. I understood what he’s doing, but I would have felt much more emotionally invested if they did a better job conveying how badly he wants it and why. His goal actually touches upon a thoughtful philosophical question, and contrasts sharply with the Immortals and their own existential crisis. But the show doesn't push this point, instead treating it more like a hero’s quest.

The romance between the two doesn’t develop so much as jump around a few times before stabilizing. Although it is puffed up with plenty of dramatic manufactured moments (eg saving each other back and forth), I just didn’t really feel it. I understood it’s there, but I didn’t care that much.

I had a similar attitude towards the plethora of side characters and all their interlocking stories. There are too many characters, so inevitably nobody is developed enough for me to care about. I did like some of them- some had a little more depth- and I disliked others, but only mildly, and I’d forget about them after they moved out of the story again.

For the plot, I liked the first story arc, but after that it seems to drag on for awhile. I felt most of the show is a ceaseless parade of slightly upsetting events involving too many characters. But everything is also overly dramatic, from the played-up romance scenes, to the fights filled with big fluorishy movements and poses, to all the angsty moments and dramatically performed dialogue in between.

Along those same lines, this is apparently the kind of world where a character wanting something badly enough, or having enough emotion, can make miracles happen. I am too jaded to like this sort of fairy tale stuff anymore.

I liked the show better as it approached the end. There is a break in the angst, just a nice period of sweet and not-too-dramatic existence, as well as finally some clarity on the true nature of the conflict. Also, by this point, many of the characters finally accumulated enough development for me to care about them a little. And I was fairly satisfied with the final villain, who is interesting enough but still easy to hate, making it easy on my emotions. All of this wasn’t enough for me to fall in love with the show, but I did watch with interest for the last 10 episodes or so.

Thematically, this show has echoes of the thoughtfulness and philosophy that I loved about A Moment But Forever (its “sequel”). Ideas explored include using power to oppress vs help the people, questioning rhetoric, living a long life vs truly living a life, etc. In theory these could be done well, but this show somehow slightly misses the mark. The social themes, for example, aren’t subtle or thoughtfully presented, so they come across as preachy. And the giant existential crisis faced by the Immortal sects would feel more meaningful if it were cast in a more philosophical light. Overall with the themes, I felt it flirted with the idea of being deep and then didn’t quite land the hit, making it somehow even more disappointing.

Acting wise, I thought Allen Ren and Wang Herun both did ok, but it’s not the best I’ve seen from either. They both spend a lot of the show with furrowed brows and sour expressions. I also didn’t appreciate that wispy, breathy overtone the FL’s voice actress added to her voice. Many of the side actors I have seen before and like, but watching them enact some of the overly dramatic scenes made me cringe a little. It might be more about the scenes than the actors.

The fighting is overdramatic but decently performed and the CGI is pretty good. I like the costumes, especially the Bei Xiang outfits which look distinctly different. For the music, ...the OST sure has some very specific lyrics... that aside, some of the songs really grew on me, and there is one instrumental I like, but I didn’t really care for most of the BGM.

Overall, I think this show is watchable for some shallow entertainment, but doesn’t really stand out. I know I wrote a lot of negative points- it’s actually not that bad, I just think it missed some opportunities to be a lot better.

By the way, this show happens in the same universe as A Moment But Forever, which I personally really liked (also Love of Thousand Years, which I didn’t watch). There is a common mythology and one crossover character (confusingly played by a different actor), but the stories are fairly independent, so you don’t need to watch one for the other. There are a few things that I knew how they would turn out because I’d seen the other show, and a few references that would not have made sense otherwise. I do feel it made me appreciate the reality of A Moment But Forever better, especially where the human race is at, knowing all this infighting that happened just 20ish years before.

By the way #2, I rather like the gender portrayals, or rather lack thereof, in this show. There are strong, weak, smart, dumb, good, bad, characters of either gender, which I thought is pretty cool.

ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS





I consider this ending bittersweet.

There are a ton of sacrifices as we approach the end. I’d say at least half the characters end up dead. But, as shown in a nice two-episode denouement wrapup, those who are left learn to move on- which is true to the themes of the show (seeking immortality vs learning to be ok with the cycle of life, death, and renewal).

Both main characters survive, but the ML loses his memory. I love that this show acknowledges and addresses that without his memory, he’s basically a different person. The FL is still able to find him at the end, but we never find out how that works out.

A big chunk of the last episode is dedicated to the main characters of the follow-up shows, A Moment But Forever and Love of Thousand Years. I think these segments are nice for anyone who’s watched those shows, but probably a little confusing and not too meaningful for those who haven’t.

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Watched this during the covid lockdown era and honestly, it was such a fun, light time-pass watch. Nothing too heavy or life-changing but exactly the kind of drama that made those long lockdown days feel a little more entertaining.

The characters had enough charm to keep me invested without making me emotionally exhausted. It had this warmth to it that made binge-watching feel relaxing rather than stressful.

Looking back now, I think part of my attachment to this drama also comes from the memories associated with it. It reminds me of late-night binge sessions, trying to make lockdown days feel shorter.

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A Brilliant Masterpiece Ruined by a Messy, Ridiculous Ending

I am a big fan of chinese thrillers like i watched the classics thrillers before. When i heard this plot i was like yeah the plot is damn interesting even the trailer too. I was so excited for this to watch.

But met with disappointed messy climax, till 23 episode it was brilliantly exceuted but after seeing last few episodes made me realize damn i was expecting somebody else as killer. If you are thriller fan it seriously disappoints you with the messy ending for sure.

The points irritated me personally from thriller series pov

1) 2 of them girls did this all of these things when nobody watching them moving the body parts during day time?

2) Incense sticks makes even the room full of blood to cover up the stinky iron pungent smell , while dismemberment of a body.

3) For 18 years no clue and nobody in their homes got stinky smell from her flat and even in the drainage pipes too.

4) i seriously felt ending got rushed off with messy plot twists which was hurting the series itself. The build up they created, just to make it into boredom of 2 girls backstory.

5) i seriously loved Ran and HYH chemistry more than they claiming qiao and xumeng one. Qiao fooling both HYH and her daughter for nearly 18 years it is bizarre.

6) Qiao story ok but she called xumeng just to say like ran wanted me to surrender feels like seriously? Are you sharing with that psycho and just made her kill him and then after in 2015 timeline you are angry at her for killing Ran. It is seriously bizarre plot twist i ever heard.

7) Even qiao knows that xu meng killed yao , wu in same pattern she doesn't even know xumeng killed ran too is bit odd. And they are claiming them as a crime partners and on top of that sisters ?

Seriously disappointed ending from thriller perspective, they made all these build up to just go into vain, i loved the cinematography, cast performance and chemistry between the detective leads is just amazing which saved this whole series because of them.

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The Acting Carries The Story

Without giving spoilers my main thought on this series was that the acting by the leads and most of the supporting cast was absolutely amazing. It's what carried what, in my opinion, was an underdeveloped, repetitive story and sold it to its conclusion.

To touch on a few things: the story was frustrating in a number of respects. One, the conflicts were largely repetitive and didn't develop or evolve in a meaningful way. Basically, the same types of situations kept happening. And two, along a similar vein, I did not feel like our FL was given meaningful development. For me, it was her obvious interest and talent for engineering that seemed like it could have been something to drive her character development from petty revenge scheming to something useful, but instead this interesting aspect to her character became a throwaway in the background and even seen as a character flaw to be beaten into submission. The story got too wrapped up in palace/high society drama and dunking on the FL for basically everything—even hypocritically so when the ML does similar things after chastising her for her behavior. We largely abandon development with her family midway through, when it seemed like this was a focal point for the characters, and then get a rushed montage of events that happen in the years that pass. At the same time, the story took a very frustrating turn in the last several episodes that seemed like it had no purpose except to add shock-value and to draw out the final conflict with a lot of overwrought angst or possibly to just fill the time left.

All of it left me feeling like it was pointless by the end; I really wasn't sure what the overall theme of the story was at that point. With lesser actors I might have quit well before the end, but I do have to hand it to the leads, especially the FL, for their delivery.

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Well paced slice of life about fear and moving forward

**Top Notes**
Twin sisters work together to overcome their fears and find their place in the world. A heartwarming story on adulthood and self-discovery.

More than a healing story, it explores how people move forward in life despite hardship and setbacks.

**Middle Notes**
I've never watched anything with Park Jinyoung except Dream High, which was decades ago. He's a convincing actor, and I really liked the emotional scene he had with his mom later in the show. However, his chemistry with Park Boyoung fell short for me.

I've watched Park Boyoung in many dramas, and she's always had great chemistry with her co-stars, but the chemistry in this one wasn't as strong for me. It might be from the writing since love was a secondary theme, while career and coming of age were the main themes. All their scenes together were very cute, but I just couldn't believe they were actually a couple.

Park Boyoung did a fantastic job playing both sisters. Certified award-winning performance. You could tell which sister she was playing based on the expressions and movement alone.

I've been hooked on that intro song since I heard it. On Your Side — Sion

**Base Notes**
There were so many arcs, all well written. Every arc naturally fits the overall plot and has its own ending. Each main character had a career arc and even parent/family arcs. I loved that they even explored Yeom Bunhong's (Hosu's mom) story. She is a very strong character and deserves her own moment.

The generational trauma was also beautifully written. It's so common yet not portrayed enough in dramas. It is your mother's first life as well; they will not be perfect. I cried a little here because the emotions hit the same as When Life Gives You Tangerines. Not all mistakes in life need to be apologized for or forgiven; you just move on.

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