wow when i first started watching this show the bar was literally on the ground!!! like literally nothing could convince me that this was republican era... the costuming, the sets, the technology, the language??? all felt incredibly modern, like youyi literally was wearing a modern prom dress in like ep 1?? i was ready for this to be absolute garbage w terrible senseless writing and barely any romance.

but actually... once the plot gets going, the setting and costuming is no longer a distraction and im able to be fully immersed in the show! is the writing the best i've ever seen? certainly not, especially not for the fraught w political tension/societal upheaval republican era dramas, but it's at least compelling enough to get me invested in the story and the characters.

i really do like both of our girls, yan wei is absolutely a hot girl for us sapphics and i really appreciated that, they just delivered on a lot of things - little character moments, relationship dynamics, super cute chemistry etc. that really sold them and their relationship. it all just made me very happy, and it was all things i wanted to see. sure there isnt nearly much money in gl as there is in all the bl dramas that have come out the past several years (where they can basically push censorship laws as far as possible because they know they can count on the fujo coin) but!!! anyway!!! it still made me very happy!!!! of course i wish it couldve been pushed a little more, or we could get a nice long series where the feelings develop slowly over time, but oh well. hoping that if this did well then there will be more gl adaptations to come.

generally character stuff is fine and nice. youyi is a very fun main character and it's a joy to see her many sides, the parts that are more sly and manipulative, as well as her pouty 撒娇 and teasing side that only come out around yan wei. like they just made it work and it was convincing that this is the only person who gets to see this side of her!! similarly w yan wei's coldness... all her little smiles when it comes to youyi.... just gets me.................

i liked zhou heng as a villain too! he was well written enough to be a compelling villain who was also fun to watch. i didn't really care for detective jiang who's only character trait is being a good cop but i am also allergic to any positive portrayal of cops in any media.

the plot absolutely goes off the rails by the end and stops making sense and it's one crazy thing after funny cutesy moment after crazy moment while not giving us time to process anything (although still not as bad as word of honor) but like whatever, it was always fun, even if not well written or not believable. and as i understand they are setting up for another season so??

anyway they show is cool and for the gays.