cw: mentions of sexual assault

the premise of this show is exactly the kind of transmigration trash i look for- screenwriter transmigrates into her own tv show, but it's the body of the domineering evil slut who dies in episode 3??? YES PLS. the meta commentary!! references to all the stupid tropes and characters and plot holes in c drama!! having to figure out ways to make the plot work despite unexpected developments!! give it all to me!!! an example of where the show really shines is when qianqian has to get back han shuo's trust and also give a reasonable explanation for the loss of her kung fu, so she has to stage this overdramatic death scene. it's genuinely SO fun and funny! that said, there's not nearly enough fun meta moments like this, it's pretty few and far in between, and is mostly regular plot problems that keep arising.

i love the two main leads, this drama has definitely turned me into a fan of zhao lusi, she's absolutely adorable and charming. she plays the modern girl stuck in ancient times so well, with a refreshing and realistic air. a lot of her specific speech patterns and slurring of words are so funny and when she smiles w her whole face..... so cute. ding yuxi also..... i am not usually got by these idol pretty boys so idk why but... he has me by the throat.... wtf!!! he is so cute!!!?? why am i got by this?? the way that he is a cutesy lovesick puppy..... didn't think it would get me but it did. these two leads have excellent chemistry and their cute scenes are some of the sweetest i have seen in a good and not overbearing way.

that said..... the writing for their relationship truly falls into the gutter after they get together. none of the characters are like, well written, but thats okay because i'm watching trashy c drama for a reason. the problem is when the quality falls past a point of no return with the lying and hiding and misunderstandings. han shuo falls into absolute irredeemable territory when he goes evil, takes over huayuan, imprisons qianqian, threatens the lives of qianqian's entire family and the citizens of her city, and literally attempts to sexually assault her???? it's a horrifying scene and is not treated with any level of care. none of this is even a longterm plan of huan shuo's to take down chuchu. it's just him punishing qianqian for hurting him (even tho she did it for his own good which is just more stupid bad writing)and being like oh well im not ACTUALLY physically hurting her im just mentally tormenting and terrorizing her... threat of sexual assault is ALSO terrible and not okay in any circumstance??? we even saw earlier signs of it when she was trying to set him up w chuchu and he scared her by saying the mountain bandits were gonna rape her. like i'm all for bad main characters but like u don't easily come back from the attempted sexual assault as punishment. i'm sorry this is absolutely unforgivable, and they dont even like, talk about all of the bad stuff between them, they just have sex in the prison cell and then they're on the same side again?? it's a mess, the writing is an absolute mess, and maybe it can be explained as qianqian is the bad writer who made han shuo and chuchu like this- so EASILY falling down the slippery slope to evil but like.... also isnt the point of the show that qianqian doesnt actually have full control over the fate of her characters and that they make choices for themselves?? idk anyway, truly 乱成一锅粥了。。。

chuchu is actually not a horribly written character and shes still p sympathetic by the end imo, but it's still really really hamfisted, and i wish there was more nuance in her character arc. pei heng on the other hand is just an eyesore i fuckin hate that guy get him off screen, i watch all his scenes at 2x the speed. yuanyuan and su mu's relationship is also... okay..... i... find it questionable for sure. as an able bodied person im not entiiirely equipped to discuss their depiction of her disability, but i'm gonna go ahead and say that it was quite lacking and fell into some negative stereotypes for sure, although i am endeared to her as a character.

final notes.... the feminism....... oh my god......... it's just absolutely beyond clear that the screenwriters are completely ill equipped to talk about gender dynamics, but they think they are?? so much so that the entire setting is based around the subject of gender equality. like there is only a vague vision that everyone should be equal, but no understanding of the history of the feminist movement within China, and how gender dynamics historically and systemically work. frankly, it's just not the place to talk about gender equality if they can't do it well, instead it's just a poorly written distraction from everything. like qianqian wrote the story in the first place because she was interested in the issues between men and women, and wanted representation of women in power by setting it in a matriarchy. if the show is meant to be about gender equality then do that, it needs to fully be the focus and qianqian needs to seriously learn what systemic gender oppression looks like, it's not, 'oh shit it's bad if boys cant go to school either.' but most of the show just isn't about the rules of the setting, its about all the transmigration hijinks, regular plotting.... like ok so then just make the show that!!! dont bother w the gender equality stuff!!! if you want to ACTUALLY watch a show about patriarchy, gender equality and feminism, then watch zhen huan, ju zi hong le, or for something more casual- even the first half of yanxi palace where the issues are woven into the main cast and their character arcs.... this show is crap at it.

ANYWAY, all in all, fun transmigration show w charming leads that gets quite disappointing and is ultimately rough to get through by the end.