Reviews

kill To Love

I've never cried at the end of a series the way I did with this one. The ending was profoundly moving. It felt like the show reached out and pulled me into its meaning. I wasn’t just watching. I was feeling every moment. I'm absolutely blown away by how beautifully this story was written, portrayed, and brought to life by the actors. It’s truly a masterpiece.

The only way they could finally be free, finally be together, was through death. When Duan Zi Ang held Xiao Shu He in his arms as they were both dying, and whispered, "Shu He… you deceived me. You’ve deceived me your whole life." It wasn’t anger. It was love. A love so complicated, so deep, that even betrayal became a kind of devotion. It showed just how far they were willing to go, not to hurt each other, but to protect the love they had for each other. That moment destroyed me. Because as painful as it was, it was also inevitable. In the world they lived in, this was the only ending that could bring peace.

Then came the scene with Xiao Shu's brother, waiting on the other side of the door for years. When Xiao Shu He told him, "I want to wait for someone too. When I died, I was in his arms." I was completely broken. That single line held so much meaning. In every lifetime, no matter how much pain or separation, their souls would always find a way back to each other. When Duan Zi Ang finally crossed through that door… not making Shu He wait. Not for days. Not for years. He came as soon as he could.

Their final smiles weren’t just happy smiles. All the pain, the loss, the fear… gone. In that moment, they had everything they were denied in life.
They were finally home. Finally together.

Just “you and me.”

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I thought I knew where this was going....I was dead wrong.

This drama hooked me from start to finish. While some parts felt deliberately slow, they served a purpose — inviting the viewer to reflect on the complexities of the human mind. It explores how selflessness and greed can drive people to shocking extremes, even leading them to turn a blind eye to the ones they love most.

Legally, the protagonist committed a crime — yet without his actions, the situation would have spiraled from bad to worse. He is neither purely good nor purely evil; he exists in the gray, forcing us to question morality, justice, and the choices we make when pushed to the edge.

The entire cast delivered outstanding performances — each actor fully embodied their role, adding depth and authenticity to the story. As someone who’s only recently begun watching Chinese dramas, I’m completely captivated by the level of acting talent on display.

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I will start this review with saying that I have watched a fair amount of BL dramas in my life. This is the first time I am deeply impressed with one of them though. My expectations were not that high to begin with. When I saw the trailer for this series, I knew I had to watch it as it combines two of my favourite genres, wuxia and boys love. However, I am not a big fan of any of the BL dramas China has released in recent times. 'Kill to Love' really suprised me with its quality and turned out to be an amazing watch. First of all, the acting. You can really see that the actors were professionally trained. Male leads graduated from China's most prestigious acting schols: the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Film Academy. They are really spectacular on screen. The emotions they present to the viewers are raw, they truly embody their characters and the most important thing: their chemistry is off the charts. I also have to praise the scriptwriter, the actor playing Shen Song, for giving us magical and one of the most poetic dialogues I have ever heard in a Chinese drama. If you know the language, they get even better. The cinematography is also really good. I love the colour palette they used as it perfectly mirrors the general feeling of the drama. Male leads have mentioned countless times how limited the budget for this drama was, they even got kicked out of the set on the last day of shooting, but they definitely made the best out of it. I am really in love with the series and if you are still hestitating whether to watch it or not, please just dive straight into it. I think you will enjoy it as much as I did.

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One of the best law dramas I watched in the last years

So I didn't wanna write a review until I saw all the bad reviews that were posted after the last episode just because a lot of people wanted the leads to be in a relationship (and the romance tag misleaded a lot of them into thinking this was a romance drama).

Actually I didn't want to watch this drama initially because as we all know there are a lot of bad shows with lawyers out there, but my mom watched the trailer and said that I would like it so I gave it a try and after the first episode I was very intrigued! The cases are so interesting and in every episode we have something new and entertaining, they were kinda realistic and the lawyers were giving pertinent arguments for solving them. And I am saying that as a law university student, the dialogue, the ethical and legal matters were really good.

Of course the legal procedure wasn't realistic and it was a typical legal drama from that point of view and by that I mean that they were having an "enemy law firm" who represented the opposition in the main cases and also the matters were resolved quickly (not like in months or years like in everyday life), but after all this is fiction and we need entertainment and "Beyond the Bar" offers that in many ways.

The relationship between all the characters is so nicely written, starting from the friendship of the main leads with the side characters and how they were so loyal to each other and ready to help one another. I liked that they also portrayed the competition between some of professional colleagues of the lawyer profession or from the same firm, but also the support and the idea that you can get really close to some people even in the adult life, and how you don't know what difficulties everyone has. This drama also portrays family life in such a relatable way sometimes and I love how it discussed some issues. And we also have a good representation of diverse disabilities and hardships the characters go through, which makes this drama very sensible and emotional sometimes.

As like other people said, this legal drama is about a lot of genres: thriller, psychological, social realism, melodrama, even romance (between the second leads tho!) and from my perspective, the production had success in making them work together. Like I said, every episode is different and it explores several issues of the guest characters, but their problems were really tied to the secondary and main characters' lives in profound ways. Everyone has a complicated life and they don't exist only to make the plot work, but to present life in different ways.

And I also loved the relationship between the main leads, which started from tension, respect and disagreement in work life to a deep friendship, solidarity and loialty. Even if there were little scenes which could have leaded people to think of a romantic relationship between them (I was also confused in some bit parts), I think we don't know what the future will hold for them and also you can love someone dearly at some point in your life and don't want a romantic relationship with them.

And yes, I wasn't satisfied by the end either, but that's because it ended to abruptly (even the last line, that wasn't nice, dear writer) and I would have liked to see even a 30-minutes finale only about our main and second characters.

This show was about all types of love and I think that's what more people should understand. Not only romance is important, but every other way of loving someone is just as important.

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Heart wrenchingly beautiful

Amazing acting. Amazing storyline. Amazing costumes. This story was so heart-wrenchingly beautiful, I just wish there were more episodes. I wanted them to have a happy ending, but it's okay not every love story ends on a happy note, sometimes fate is twisted, dark and ends in tragedy. There are only few bls which you can count on fingers, that touched my heart and I can definitely tell that "Kill to Love" is one of them and in my top list. But when Xiao Shu met Duan Ziang at the gates of the afterlife, it was so surreal and I cried both tears of joy but also sadness. Thank you so much to this BL directors and actors and everyone who was involved in this top-quality production. I appreciate you and thank you for giving us this bittersweet masterpiece. <3

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"Sweet like honey, and sharp like mint"

First and foremost, let me kowtow to our mighty prince-general couple, whom I so adore and respect. 🙇‍♀✨ [Shadow Love] will be remembered as one of the most unique Chinese dramas of the historical romance-fantasy genre. The WHOLE drama really lived up to its name, which can literally be translated to "With Jin Chang'an". If we look back to the earlier episodes, when the leads first met, Shuang gave our ML the name "Jin An" in the hopes of establishing "perpetual peace and stability for the Jin dynasty", the era they live in. Their main goals were to "resolve the crisis and help people live in peace and prosperity" all along, and by episode 38, they brought peace to both Taijin and Da Yao kingdoms, their citizens, and also to themselves..
These references can be found in this article ➡ (https://news.mydramalist.com/article/ryan-cheng-stars-alongside-another-female-general-in-shadow-love)

Now, let me tell y'all what impressed me the most. ʕ⁠っ⁠•⁠ᴥ⁠•⁠ʔ⁠っ💓

One, is the unique character designs (obviously, ain't it? X3). We get to see a lovable and obedient Jin An; the mysterious and wild Xuan Yi Ke; and lastly, the dignified Prince Annan of the Yao kingdom, Duan Ao Deng~ Cheng Lei delivered ALL of these roles with brilliance! 'Dislike' is not even an option here. The role was custom-made for him. The same goes for our FL, Li Shuang, portrayed by Song Yi. Despite the harsh criticisms aimed towards her, 'Li Shuang' wouldn't be perfect if it weren't for our actress. Next is Lu Xin and Mo Yin, our beloved secondary couple, who brought extra smiles to the viewers. I love how sarcastic Lu Xin can be, and how she can handle her man well~😝 No less than our great general Li! Then we have our Qiao'er and Ouyang Jun, the couple we failed to protect😿. Lastly, the person who had the most character development imo would be Li Ting (Shuang's younger brother). He started as a bratty younger sibling who'd always bring trouble to a determined individual who is worthy of respect, and Wu Yu Heng made it convincing~ This link here is proof that they nailed their roles with precision ➡ [ https://youtu.be/rprG6F82cqI?si=dU9_d_EERQaTaLMS ]

Second, there are the tight-knit bonds of various relationships, both platonic and romantic. Li Shuang's love for Jin An (ML) and the male lead's devotion towards her know no bounds, despite the outside influences and his inner turmoil. Their journey was not futile, and every moment was valuable for them to face off the looming angst. Apart from these lovebirds, the most heartwarming bonds can be found in the brotherhood of ML and his Emperor brother, Papa Li and his tiger cubs (Shuang'er and Ting'er), as well as the friendship between Lu Xin, Shuang and Jin An.

Lastly, we can't forget the magnificence of the beautiful settings and CGI, elegant wardrobe choices, hairdo, and makeup, as well as the pleasing OST music from start to finish. Some of my favourite OSTs are Sole Love by Liu Yu Ning, Beyond Fate by Jane Zhang, and Bringing Peace by Huang Xiao Yun~ All the intricate details the editing department has added bring life to not only the characters, but also to the world they live in~✨ It's a fantasy world, but nothing is overdone~ ^^

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Beyond nonsense

Messy!
These days it feels like every time I decide to delve into a K-drama I am just left with regret. This drama was just another one to add to a list of the ever crumbling state of K-drama writing.

What on earth was up with the writing of this drama? It was so poor and the continuation of the plot lines were just non existent. The cases tried to be different and diverse, but each one was so easily handled with no real depth despite the subject matters that it brought up.

1. The case with the genius special needs artist
- Her mother refusing to register as a person with a disability was ridiculous. This should have been a commentary on how South Korea views disability and call awareness to it. Did they do that? Nope. Did they discuss how the girl's father left her and her mother but she still misses him even though we are left to understand that he never bothered to ever contact his daughter again? Nope. Did this make sense? NO!

2. The case with the contract marriage without love
- This one was had so much potential to explore marriage as something that has evolved as a concept and an actual contract that can work outside of the context of romantic love. Instead we are left with a judge on her high horse talking about how marriage can only exist in society if it's based on romantic love. It was so outdated and completely biased.

My issue is not that a drama can't stick to traditional values, my issue is that if you choose to do so then don't be daring enough to bring these topics up. You're bringing nothing but half-baked writing to your audiences and telling us that sure things can change and evolve but here in South Korea we remain in the dark ages happily.
Oh, and no K-drama is complete without violence right? You have the male lead lawyer assaulting anyone he wants, you have the managing partner of the law firm slapping a lawyer, and you have the rookie female lawyer conveniently forgetting that she witnessed school violence and walked away from it. Violence should never be the way forward, except in the case of the news anchor who was physically abused for over 10 years by her husband and then found a wonder drug combo that turned her into the hulk and she beat up her abuser. However, when she's divorcing him and he says "I'm sorry" like it was no big deal what he did and she just gives him a smirk smile? What was that??

The romance or lack of it between the main leads was a non issue for me. Of course they liked each other, I didn't need them to hold hands or kiss to know that. Their actions spoke more than those gestures ever could. The second couple was a nice touch, but again where is the continuity with the writing? Jin Woo clearly liked Min Jeong and I loved that she was 10 years older than him. However, I have questions...
1. After their "mistake" Min Jeong was avoiding Jin Woo, but suddenly by the next episode they are dating? Where was that conversation?
2. The fat suit?? Are we still here K-drama writers???? Must we always be thin to achieve our goals in life? What are you actually telling us in your most irresponsible messaging clunky way?
3. Has Min Jeong not seen her daughter in years? Why would she be ok with not seeing her own kid all this time?
4. Jin Woo's sister obviously would not be on board with him and an older woman and I'm assuming she speaks for the family, so where was this conversation or confrontation between Jin Woo and his large family before his proposal?

Kang Hyo Min's parents and their decision to give away their deaf child????? Okay first of all, what is with the twin/hearing impaired trend of K-dramas? Hyo Ju served zero purpose in this drama. I have questions...
1. How did Hyo Min's mother communicate with her own sister who is hearing impaired if she only learned sign language later so she could one day speak with Hyo Ju? Didn't you grow up with your sister? How did anyone in your family communicate with her if she was deaf?
2. If you gave your child away to your sister, why would you never visit that child? You didn't give her away to a stranger and she wasn't living outside of South Korea. So what is this??
3. The double acting of Jung Chae Yeon was also a waste and utterly ridiculous because Hyo Ju was born deaf so how could she know how words would sound to be able to speak out so clearly? Again, what gives? You could have just had her speak in sign language right? Why are you portraying disabilities like this?

So many aspects of the writing remain in the air, but let's circle the drain with Seok Hoon and his ex-wife and her petty ass new husband (why Lee Sang Yeob, why???) Your ex-wife was not for you, please move on. She did.
Lastly, the writing that was clearly written to either stay in the safe zone with Korean society or to fill the void of the nonsense plot. Seok Hoon's ex wife suddenly claiming she terminated her pregnancy because the ultrasound showed an abnormality? That's some rubbish convenient writing. Her then telling him that she'll only let him keep the dog if he gets a roommate or a wife? Say what now? This of course was to get him to sign up for that AI matchmaking service, but oh hang on do we ever find out why Hyo Min also signed up for it? Nope. So the point of this was to drive home the fact that they are suited for each other or that they are not? Wow the writers couldn't even decide on that.

K-dramas have been nothing but utter nonsense lately. It will take a lot for me to ever watch another one again.

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I don't understand the negativity

I'm astonished at the amount of negative reviews this series has received - I think it was excellent.

The concept of romance in this series is on a deep, layered and nuanced level that speaks volumes to me as a mature adult who's a hopeless romantic. Romance is not just your love affairs to me - it's about our relationship with life and all the different types of love we give, receive, feel and witness.

I highly enjoyed all the journeys - literal and metaphorical - of this series. Every character gave my heart a stir of some kind, even the poor little, anxiously envious old friend and the complete tool of the PD of the Day trip program.

I felt it was more than just a cute little rom-com and am giving it a very generous rating since I feel it deserves it.

Loved the last scene unexpected cliffhanger and sincerely hope the second season will make it all the way on air <3

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ML rocks! hero's arc is well fleshed out. cute office romance with VC investing backdrop

There's nothing new in concept or execution in this story. Age old, rich entitled guy "ill-treats" girl. girl vows to make him eat his words. Girl achieves her goal. Falls in love with guy in the process after discovering that the boorish act is just an act to hide the nice guy. Turns out guy was always in love with her and was denying it. All this over 32(!!) episodes of one hour each!! Help!

One thing to hate about contemporary c-dramas is that the plot tries to force fit "muh china greatest and bestest" at drop of a hat. Here, in the context of angel/VC investing all this is parroted by various actors.

The actor playing the hero Lu jin ming was a great cast! He plays boor, cad, comedy, ineptness, smartness, hopelessly in love exasperated man, tough guy, good friend, etc etc., all on cue. His acting range is great. This serial is his show in the end, and he carries the show squarely.

The script is really well written in consistently showing the hero in a 3-dimensional way. He was always shown to be a thoroughly professional and meritorious when it comes to professional dealings. His tantrums towards the heroine in the beginning were later shown as an awkward attempt to protect her from the dirty investor politics and a subconscious mimicry of his own father's personality which he starts to overcome by himself after realising how it alienated the FL among others.

All of the ML's interactions with the FL are well written and acted out.
Actually kudos to the screen writers for a consistently portrayed character study in all 24 episodes.

Heroine is dressed and presented as way younger than IRL and they do the reverse for the hero, even though they are only 2 years apart. Make-up & costume department was great on this show. Also director does a good job of framing the heroine very pleasingly. Interestingly, the heroine has played a similar role in Flight to You, also released in same year as this one.

The romance b/w ml and fl itself didn't play out sufficiently. The FL actually spends far too much screen time with the SML/villain in romantic settings than with ML. Very disappointing. The SML scenes took far too long and the resolution also ended up very tedious and unbelievable. My low rating comes from this complaint.

The SFL and ML arc took far too long to resolve. The SML arc was a total washout - wasn't needed at all. Totally bombed for me. Big meh. The second couple OTOH were cute scene stealers. The office supporting crew were overall very likeable. Again, the romance angle itself was a big missed opportunity due to all the story resolution taking far too long.

Like many others, I also loathed how much time the SML arc took up on screen, down to the last episode. Good lord, no one cares. The show could have easily given 15-30 mins extra time for the ML to proclaim his love, and then the FL to go doe-eyed on our towering hero and bring him to his knees.

As my wife pointed out the way the last kiss played out could have been done much earlier (at the expense of SML!) and we could have had more romantic interactions post love declaration b/w ML-FL. After all the FL has been pining for the guy since much earlier in the show and that pent up feelings could have been easily channelled through different scenes (her being the first to lovingly lead and plant the first kiss on the hero was totally in character with this picturisation)

Anyway, it's worth a watch. Feel free to use FF button and also the 1.5x play speed button.

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Worth to Watch Drama

Overall, it was a good show. The entire cast is well-chosen and effectively brings out the charm of each character. Every character has their own background and setting, making them very engaging. It's a bit of a shame, though, that we don't learn much about the Wufeng girl. The plot is decent, with plenty of twists here and there. I didn’t particularly like the pacing in some parts, as it felt a bit dragged out, but the story was interesting enough to keep me hooked. Although some people complain about the open ending, I don’t mind it—after all, a good ending doesn’t always mean a happy one. I also really appreciate the soundtrack of this drama; it’s one of the best I’ve ever heard, and it’s not just the main theme. Great job!

Not gonna lie, I’m really drawn to Gong Yuanzhi here. Even though he’s just a supporting character, his role is fascinating. I noticed from the beginning that he’s someone admired yet feared by everyone, which makes me curious about him since I love genius (I heard it's his debut role?). Of course, I won't forget to mention Gong Yuanzhi, Gong Shanjue, and Shangguan Qian form a menacing trio that can be annoying yet lovely at times, haha. Sometimes I find Gong Ziyu rather childish and naive, but he’s also kind and smart, which is why he proves himself worthy in the end. I loved the final teamwork within the Gong family! Everyone from Front and Back family defeating evil? Yes!

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this is a shameless tourism brochure simpfest tumblr BS. misled by high review scores

Holy crap, what did I go through. This one is a classic case of fooled by review scores due to unfair bias of viewer fantasy romance fanfic clouding their judgements.

First 16 or so episodes is just a shameless finland tourism paid propaganda. They don't even try to make it subtle. the actors/acting/lines are filler for this nonsense.

This brain dead cr*p is supposed to be a hero's journey to redemption. Bratty teenager who threw a tantrum, refused to apologise and ran away for decade. We are supposed to sympathise with this POS. As another reviewer mentioned, his "love language" is trying to stuff the heroine with food or forcing himself for physical intimacy and kisses. heroine pouts nicely on cue and turns up the "cute girl" act to high. The entire cast is used very poorly. No one is even trying to act, Each episode of this braindead nonsense is 45 min long.

By episode 20 both me and my wife unanimously felt like we have lost enough time of our lives to this torture and abandoned it. No regrets. Shame on people falling for some blatant simpfest and giving this cr*p high ratings.

Watch anything else over this nonsense.

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