This review may contain spoilers
Loved it but unnecessary tearjerker ?
So, this was the first drama I've watched in a while. I watched this without knowing much about the story, so I was really excited about the revenge assassin, enemies to lovers, type of show, but it fizzles out after the first few episodes. I LOVEDDD Mei Lin acting as an assassin and trying to seduce Murong Jing He, but that tension dies out quickly, and they're just partners working together to get revenge, which is okay, but all that tension they had in the first few episodes goes away and they're just like...coworkers.There were a couple of unsatisfying parts of the show, which include:
General Yin deeply falling in love with the crown prince. She loved Murong Jing He for so long yet quickly moves on to the crown prince after she sees the room he dedicated to her? Like okay, but bffr.
The crown prince dying--Mei Lin wanted to kill the real Qingzhou mass murderer or at least see him die, but instead of Mei Lin (the main character, mind you) getting what she wishes for, the crown prince gets a nice, comfy death as he's straddled in the arms of the one he loves. Like, he didn't even show remorse at the end, he said some bs like "Oh General Yin if only we were together earlier [I may not have turned out like this." LIKE?!?!?! That made me mad.
All of the side characters dying--I think another thing is, the side characters weren't developed enough for me to be really sad when they died. Also, I already knew Concubine Yan would die when they showed that slow mo shot of her in the first few episodes. I was really sad when Qingyan died though. Also A-Wei. The writers didn't need to do that to me.
Last, but not least--KILLING MEI LIN?!?!? Like I have dried up tears and snot on my face because the writers wanted to fuck around and kill her off WHEN IT DOESNT EVEN HAPPEN IN THE ORIGINAL NOVEL šš When Jing He and Mei Lin were finally together, it was really satisfying to see them come full circle in their journey together. But seeing them have such a short amount of time with each other really made me sob. But I sobbed in vain because the novel allegedly has a happy ending. w h a t
Here's some satisfying parts: the first few episodes
All in all, I spent a week pushing back assignments to watch this show, and...it ended up being okay.
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changed story
they changed the story to the point that it deviated from the novel. I wish they kept the story line and censored the R rated parts. they kept the essence of the story like her poisoning brother dying, him caring a corpse in town etc but in the novel she didnāt die the crown prince. She was infatuated with murong jinghe until the last moment. in all I want too impressed with this story. very disappointed actually. but all in all it was not too bad. At least the characters were mature and acted like it. No annoying FL. kisses were believable and so was their ā¤ļøWas this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Good until Ep24 :(
Spoiler review here:Started off really really well! We had a somewhat psychotic/ playing dumb ML, a desperate for revenge badass FL and an extremely interesting plot setting! The ML was then revealed to be mistakenly wronged- framed for crimes he did not commit. This I felt was revealed wayyy to early (ep 3 or 4). Could have played with this idea until prob ep8.
Lots of fighting scenes to keep you in suspense. The basic plot is nothing new, but conspiracies and maliciousness of the characters are enough to keep you on the edge of your seat. Somewhere in the middle, they get lost in and live in a small village for awhile. Here I felt the inconsistency of the ML character- he suddenly became such a puppy lol and to me didnāt suit his character.
Once the Crown Prince was found to be the ultimate mastermind behind everything, the drama started going downhill. Firstly, his punishment was WAYYY TOO EASY!! Should have at least dedicated one whole episode to torture him and make him pay heavily and publicly for his crimes. Then the whole story shifts to Xiyan, which I found so stupid with the witch doctor shaking her shoulders and hands to summon the gods lol. I understand the writers had to rebuild the town of Qingzhou, so that Murong Jinghe can atone for his guilt, but the Xiyan story was just unnecessary.
The whole romance storyline with The King of Great Yan and Concubine Yan was eeelch!! Disgusting- like grandfather 60s and young girl early 20s which I suppose was the norm in those days. But stillā¦ I just had to ff those scenes.
The ending - [SPOILER] is a sad one boooo. Sigh.. probably rightfully so. But I was glad they were there for each other till the end. The chemistry between leads was great, two very intense kiss scenes ;) The character I felt the most tragic was Qingyan- jingheās trustee bodyguard!! True and loyal till the end, saved his life numerous times.
They did try to add some humour and light heartedness to the whole drama, but didnāt find it that humorous. Should have just stuck to romance and thriller suspense. Anyhow, a good watch with an unfortunate last third not up to expectations.
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This review may contain spoilers
The plot is all over the place.
But I felt that, despite the sad ending, there was a lot of comfort offered as well. Qinzhou was saved. Jinghe and Mei Lin got married. The alternate reality moment was cute. In the end, Jinghe was a good emperor and got to rejoin Mei Lin. I would have liked more focus on the Crown Prince instead of the whole Mingju subplot but I just viewed it as a story with 3 arcs. The last arc was not the strongest. For comparison, The Double was stronger but I did like this one. I would not recommend it except to fans of the actors though.Was this review helpful to you?
This had so much potential!
This is one of my first reviews ever, but I felt the need to write about this so bad.The first couple of episodes were incredibly well done and enticing; however, it slowly starts the go down. The story started really interesting and the cinematography was incredible! The shots and the acting what really kept me going for this one. And I really liked that the story did not go in circles and issues were resolved as quickly (sometimes too quickly).
Yet the writing through the end was really upsetting. Resolving the issues that started the story was a great move but stretched far too long. It bored me so much. It was sad to see that such good drama was butchered with the writing at the end.
What really kept me on the show was the acting! It was truly a pleasure to watch the FL and ML (especially him) act so genuinely. Every time ML had blurry eyes, right on point, I had blurry eyes. I liked their acting, I would watch everything with them in it. I cannot praise this enough.
How I hope that one day I will be able to see not annoying acting with not annoying writing!
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A Waste of a Good Concept and a Great Cast of Actors
I had such high expectations for this drama and had hoped that it would be better than Liu Xueyi's previous project, In Blossom. But sadly, it's subjectively much worse. Even though he is paired with a more capable leading lady in this and has better chemistry with her, the writing just isn't up to snuff. The drama crashes and burns pretty much from the get-go. The first few episodes are kinda interesting. A romance between a domineering and borderline psychotic leading man and a badass female lead determined to end him is something I haven't quite seen in a C-drama before. Alas, the drama only plays with the concept but never fully realizes it as if afraid to explore a truly toxic romance.The story is a jumbled mess. I didn't know how to make of it and I got the feeling the writers didn't know what they wanted it to be either. It's like a patchwork of different subplots that don't seamlessly fit together. The transitions from one story arc to another are badly executed and the writing is filled with overused and melodramatic tropes that I wish would disappear from dramas altogether. The drama also runs a little too long. It should've ended by the 25th episode. But instead, they let it drag on even though there's practically nothing else to tell. I blame the writing for this, they should've gotten better writers to adapt the novel. The cast, in general, did what they could with the material given to them. Although I wish they had chosen other actors to play certain roles, I was satisfied with the cast for the most part. It's a shame because they could've made something far more engaging with this plot. The only thing that made this drama watchable for me is Liu Xueyi's acting that is always on point.
The production is pretty decent. Kudos to the costume and makeup department for the styling of the actors. The music is alright. The soundtrack and musical score don't really stand out to me but serviceable. But that's about it. I don't know what else to say about this drama. I had it to put it on hold after I finished watching the 23rd episode because I completely lost interest. It dragged so heavily by the last few episodes that completing it was agonizing. This is simply not my cup of tea. They wasted a good concept and a great cast of actors.
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It had potential but lost it
Mei lin lost her parents in a fire plotted by one of the royal family.Jinghe has been wrongly accused of causing the massacre of Qingzhou
Both decided to work together when Meilin found out who the real culprit is.
Honestly, the drama started very well! The back and forth schemes between the crown prince and Jinghe had me on the edge of my seat. Unfortunately, after the big bad wolf was taken down, the drama seemed to have fallen off for me. lol
A lot of the actors played their part well:
Liu Xue Yi became a psycho maniac guy to a loving husband. I've only watched one of his dramas thus far, but this drama definitely showcase the variety of techniques he's able to bring to the drama. His eyes has so much emotion in them, he didn't need to talk. LOL This is what I think is a really good actor who can move their facial muscles even as cold, stoic person. Not many actors can do this, Liu is an exception.
Wu Jin Yan also did quite well. i guess I watched too many of her dramas since Yanxi Palace and this drama just felt similar. Her acting is neither terrible nor pheneomal here. It didn't have much of a wow factor for me. I think her action scenes were beautiful though, I loved every action stunt she displayed.
One of the outstanding actors I would say in this dramas has to be Baron Chen who played Xuanliu, the crown prince.
Maybe I am biased as I've been a fan of his acting since Fated to Love You (classic) and damn... I must say he did a PHENOMENAL job as the villain. The variety of emotions he has displayed from innocence, anger, love, etc. His acting had me pausing during the climax of the drama because it was thrilling and NERVE-RACKING to see who would win. For once, I am satisfied with a villain's death.
The king and Princess Yan's relationship was cute - albeit I can't help but think in the back of my mind how wrong it is. I had to constantly remind myself ancient China had concubines as young as her.. and it was fine back then. Regardless, I did like the King in this drama because he seems to have emotion that no other kings would displayhe was quite gentle and caring.
Once again, this drama started off quite strong, it had purpose and when that purpose was done -there was about ...6 episodes left and I just skipped most of the scenes. I thought the drama should've ended at episode 26 instead of 32. However, I suppose the leads had to wrap up loose ends with Qingzhou, and their relationship.
Would I recommend it?
If you like action scenes, thrill, schemes, sure. But if you don't want to waste your time, I'd suggest stopping at episode 26 or so. LOL
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This review may contain spoilers
So much potential but did not live up to earlier part of the series.
This drama had so much potential to be a great one. Intriguing premise, strong female lead, dark and brooding male lead. I'm surprised I finished it but I was hoping it'll take a turn for the better. Ugh, it did not. Suggestions to new viewers, watch up to the point where they get rid of the prince and stop there. Do not waste your time to finish the rest, there really isn't a point.Was this review helpful to you?
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Kill meā¦āloveā meā¦bore me,ā¦completely lost me
This series was unique from other ārevenge/conspiracyā shows in that early on it revealed the villain. Thus the direction of the main plot was exposing his evil deeds. Sometimes it can be difficult for this type of story to work because the enemies of the leads is no longer a mystery which eliminates much of the intrigue in the plot. This was painfully apparent here.At times the story could be interesting, especially in the beginning but it started to drag due to nothing much happening half way through the series. Or something would happen and it would drag out too long.
The conspiracy plot just wasnāt that good and the revenge plot was non existent. The love story between the leads was good until it wasnāt. Going completely off the rails into angst for no other reason other than drama for dramaās sake. The 2nd āloveā story between the Crown Prince and the General was ridiculous at best. He was a horrible person whoād been obsessed with her since he was a teen while she was in love with the ML, Jinghe. She vehemently rejected the Crown Princeās marriage proposals then suddenly after one major event claimed he was her ābeloved.ā It made absolutely no sense as there was no built up whatsoever to her falling in love with the him. Literally one episode she was vehemently rejecting him. The next episode she was reluctantly accepting his proposal (mind you after he drugged and planned to r*pe her but changed his mind out of honor towards her RME), then the next episode she was claiming him as her beloved with whom she was deeply in love. It was ridiculous.
Moreover , she had to be the worst general Iād ever seen. Though she held herself to a high standard of goodness and integrity when she learned the Crown Prince killed thousands of innocents due to his personal vendetta against his bother she slapped him a couple of times then resumed the relationship. She continued to āloveā and comfort him, and allowed him to be by her side despite his monstrous behavior. She had much potential but unfortunately she was turned into a mindless pushover driven by āloveā instead of a smart badass who could love but be intolerant of evil and thus not hesitate to strike it down.
The show started to go south around episode 20 with some senseless twists in the story but nosedived into absurdity around episode 22 which is where I dropped this series.
The actors were really good in this. The leads had nice chemistry but the love stories and the conspiracies failed to live up to their potential.
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They promised darkness, we received.... Idk what even at this point
I saw a review saying that if you're not a hardcore fan of any lead, you probably won't finish this. Well, I am a huge fan of Liu Xueyi and Baron Chen and I can not finish this title. I really, really wanted to, but I can't bring myself to.The story. We were promised a deranged prince and a top assassin wanting a blood revenge on the deranged prince. I was expecting a back and forth, Mei Lin sneaking into Jinghe's closest guards, trying hard to kill him, Jinghe noticing her efforts, but deciding not to kill her just yet because she's useful and then starting feelings somewhere mid story. The derangement of Murong Jinghe faded within the first episodes and we got a wronged man desperate to avenge his buddies and clear his name. Which, I would not mind, I like seeing a smiley, fluffy Liu Xueyi on screen, but this is not what we were promised. I really wanted a deranged prince Liu Xueyi, darkness, ravens, no hope. After the first few episodes, this drama fades into court affairs and power struggle with the background of taking revenge on the true culprit. Again, not what we were promised.
The casting. I think the casting is as good as it gets. Seeing Baron Chen as a great scheming villain and Liu Xueyi as his brother - very fine choice. I personally dislike characters like General Yin - expressionless and just robotic, and the sweet summer children siblings duo. The Xiyan Prince learned at least something, but princess? Please.... Nonetheless, all the actors did great.
The soundtrack. Pretty basic, OSTs rarely stuck with me.
There were some pretty amazing and artistic scenes and frames but these also faded with the dark storyline. Especially when Murong Jinghe is parading through the city and the people are throwing stuff at him and he then takes a bite from the bun (I think it was a bun at least). And then in episode 8ish, when Mei Lin pulled Murong Jinghe below the fabrics being dried. Very beautiful.
Other than this.... It's hard to find more positives to this drama. Idk who to recommend this to, the reviews are split too. Those of us who expected darkness and ravens don't really like this drama plot, those who watched for enemies to lovers seem to love it. I think that's it.
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Kill Me Love Me
In my opinion, the Prince of Xiyan (Yue Xin) appears a great pretender, boring and cunning. Yue Xin is obsessed with the FL. Therefore, Yue Xi has been quietly planning to 'seize' the FL from Murong Jinghe, so I think he teams up with the Priest of Xiyan to manipulate the FL. In this regard, and in my opinion, the FL appears dumb. I hope the FL realises Yue Xin's requests are insincere in the next episode.However, the FL's relationship with Murong Jinghe is great.
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Amazing
What a Series. Loved it from start to finish. I will watch any series that Liu Xueyi stars in. He is so talented and he draws you in as soon as he speaks. Being paired with the FL Wu Jinyan was a match made in heaven.Their love story was beautiful and the acting showed it.
The script was well written and I didn't mind the tragic ending because that's life. It's not always happy. You have to take the good with the bad. The whole cast were brilliant.. the costumes were amazing and all the hard work from all involved bringing this series to our screens was well worth it. Would I watch it again.. Yes.
This is why I watch historical Chinese.. Korean dramas..
They are beautifully scripted.. the music adds a softness and the ML with their flowing locks add a sexiness to the mix.. Fab... ā¤ļø
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