The thing that I love about this drama is the superb cast. The actress who played Banshu is not a very popular actress but I must say, she exceeded by expectations! Banshu is a very rash and cheerful girl, and the actress played the character really well. Really love it. The actor who played Wei Ying is also not a popular actor but I am charmed but him. He has the looks, the charisma...and his daily outfit in the drama is a white robe (prince charming), I am not surprise that his character managed to charm so many female characters in the show coz I am here being separated by a screen and could still get charmed. His acting skills are just bonuses.
Banshu's character can be a little rash at times and her actions are often exaggerated but I love her so much! She doesn't really know the palace etiquette and doesn't act like the normal gentle female teacher (????teacher who tutors the female students), but this is what make her special. She often does not care abt her image and behaves how she wants to behave. But what makes her so likeable is that she is so selfless. She cares a lot abt Wei Ying although he always reprimand her, places people before herself, saves her students' lives more than once despite them not liking her, and so on. Although she is very strict with her students and punishes them even though they are all daughters of high ranking officials, she is actually doing them good. For example, she makes them run around the court yard after seeing them all skinny and frail and she even gave the child emperor a good beating after the males students from ?? (an imperial all boys school)played a prank on her. It's very heartening to see her managing to earn the utmost respect of all students in the end.
The empress dowager in the story is not your typical evil old lady. She is actually quite young. She's the one who instructed Banshu to tutor the female students and gave her the permission to change the way the girls behave. After that, she ordered Banshu to teach the males form ?? coz she's disappointed that only 2 students signed up for the imperial exams and that all professors in charge of teaching the male students are all on sick leave (including Wei Ying) because of the palace fire. She sent Banshu coz she knows that Banshu fears nothing, not even high ranking officials' sons or daughters, and Banshu's duty is not only to teach poems blabla, but also instill the students of both schools good moral values.
Wei Ying is a ??? teaching the students of ??? He is very loyal to Liu Xuan (??, his lover whom he could not save. Hence, he is always stuck in the past and could not forget abt Liu Xuan. He even waters the plants that Liu Xuan had planted for 3 years straight without fail. In the end, he realizes that his love for Xuan has reduced to friendship and the one he loves is actually Banshu.
There are some characters who are there for some comedic effect, such as Huo Heng and Yao Juan. Yao Juan is another female teacher who is always taken advantage of by the students coz she is short-sighted and timid. She often walks into things because of her bad eyesight but that's okay, she's also very loveable.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
After watching for 42 episodes, what I gained at last is pure frustrations. I was hoping a better romantic plot but my wish didn’t come true. I had waited quite a long time for english subs, so that I completed this relatively old drama just now(2020).But there are still some points that I find it fun to watch, Here are some of my opinions on this drama;Good points;
1.Colourful casts
Well, I am surprised by the supporting casts which seem like a collection of soon-to-become famous casts; Dilraba Dilmurat, Sun Yi, Vengo Gao, Sophie Zhang, and Merxat Yalkun, Guan Xiao Tong in one drama. This is just wonderful.
2.Character of female lead
Female lead(played by Jing Tian) is joyful and easy going girl.She is strong and has quite amazing problem solving skills.It is quite fun to watch this kind of strong female lead character.
3.Love Triangle & multiple side couples
I am not a fan of love triangle but I must admit that I like this one. Deng Zhi( played by Li Jiaheng) is captivating, personally I find him more interesting than male lead.
Other side couples are even better than the main couple too.
Bad Points
1.Romance
Romantic entanglement is poorly written.ML spent most of the early episodes by missing his old lover.Even after he is together with FL, he is still missing his old lover.Besides, I find ML pretty useless and indecisive. His time with FL is mostly spent by scolding and lecturing FL.
Then at the later episodes, his old flame suddenly appeared, and his decision making skill is pretty useless.
I am quite frustrated with the portrayal of the male lead after all.
2.Poor Chemistry between the two leads
Though I like Zhang Zhe Han in Legend of Yun Xi, I find that his acting is stiff and have poor chemistry with Female lead. I can’t find the couple’s sweet moments either.This is probably my first time that I don’t want FL to be together with ML.
3. Plot holes
I think several points in plot don’t make sense. For example, FL wasn’t well-versed in literature at first, but after learning for one or two months, she suddenly became a very good teacher.
Her reunion with her brother is also poorly directed, it can be made much better.
Overall
First few episodes were quite good. Though I don’t like the romance part, I still like how FL survived in the palace and many supporting casts.
It can be made much more better but what’s done is relatively an average drama.
This is just my opinion, if you have free time, you can try it.
Was this review helpful to you?
Her first meeting with her 'brother-in-law' (husband of her cousin), Wei Ying, starts them both off on bad footing. Due to the way that she was raised, Wei Ying (played by Zhang Zhe Han, who also portrayed the young Lin Shu in 'Nirvana in Fire'), has ill feelings towards her culture due to his belief that they left his wife to die.
Over time, their feelings of mistrust and disdain turn to friendship...and maybe even something more. However, instances arise that make this road a bumpy journey.
The drama is full of comedic misunderstandings, mainly caused by Ban Shu, as well as emotional rollercoasters of love, life and family.
The love aspect of this drama is clearly present, but isn't so overpowering in the sense that there is constant love rivalry. Everything works itself out in a timely manner, and audiences can be assured that they won't spend most of their watching time wanting to pull their hair out.
Ban Shu Legend has been toted as the younger sibling (but I believe more like cousin) to The Legend of Lu Zhen. In terms of the period setting and strong female heroines. I can see the similarities, but I wouldn't recommend watching this drama if you're hoping for another Lu Zhen.
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Very refreshing show
I just finished watching it and I really loved it. The story is well written and I found it very refreshing thanks to the female main lead. Ban Shu is so fresh, young, naive in some ways but so true. I found the characters well played, I love Wei Ying (Zhang Zhehan who I discovered watching Yunxi legend) and the chemistry they have together is quite deep. I like to see how the students grow up and change in a good way thanks to their teachers Ben Shu and Yao Jun, a perfect duet. The funny character of Yao Jun added to Huo Heng gives some really funny moments much appreciated. I also like Deng Zhi who is a kind person too despite his rude way of saying things. I also like the way the emperor grows and changes as well, more mature and responsible, soon ready to run his country! The whole story is a real entertainment! I would rewatch again but after a year I guess.Was this review helpful to you?
Good story
This drama doesn't really dwell on the romance between the leads, but more on the FL overcoming the challenges of being a teacher to spoiled kids from the royal/affluent families. It was good to watch the students change to responsible individuals. The SML was funny. The hairstyles are a little weird though, and the makeup/styling of the FL is unflattering. The ML's acting is too stiff for my taste, and his character was too bland imo.If you are looking for a feel good drama, this is a good one to watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
I consider the lead couple as the only real flaw
This drama is actually really, really good… a strong and smart female lead who has quite a temper, a lot of attaching characters (even the villains eventually grow on the viewer), each having a personal and interesting story. I especially like the fact that none of them is all black or white, but even when they start off as bad people, they reveal some qualities. Also, the intrigue never stops : we always have some new event, something going, which gives a good pace to the plotI’d say my favorite point is how the female lead slowly but surely wins over everyone around her, especially her students with her wits and character. She may first appear as the usual brainless tomboy but the viewer quickly realizes she’s far from being ordinary.
Unfortunately, the story has a big flaw that stops it from being as good as it should be : the lead couple. The male lead, played by Zhang Zhe Han, could be very annoying : cold, insensitive, narrow-minded, he doesn’t start off as very likeable. But that could be brushed off once he blinds with Ban Shu, if it wasn’t for what I call his indecisiveness. his remaining attachment (sometimes close from obsession) to his dead lover first appeared as romantic but eventually became annoying and frustrating as it lingered through the whole drama, eventually making the female lead suffer and making the viewer feel that Ban Shu was just a substitute/consolation prize. This became even worse when his dead lover was actually revealed not to be dead : I could totally understand why he felt a duty towards her, especially after everything she’s been through, but it was especially annoying how this subplot lingered almost until the last episode, made us feel that he wasn’t really sure who, between the ex and the new lover, he now loved. The fact that he seemed to realize how much he loved Ban Shu only when he was about to lose her made this all the more frustrating. I also find it quite insatisfying that it was due to the ex-lover retrieving her memory that they were finally together. Moreover, this happened only towards the last episodes and I feel that if they had done sooner, and made the male lead clearer about his feelings would have felt better. What didn’t help is that just like a lot of other viewers, I had a big preference for the second male lead (even though I was happy about who he ended with the end and how he ended with her).
I feel obliged to specify : I do not blame the actor Zhang Zhe Han. In the rare scenes where his character had to express big emotions (his character was after all supposed to be poker face), he did a very good job.
So, in other words, I feel like if they had handled the lead couple in another way, this drama could have been really perfect (or almost).
Nevertheless, it’s still REALLY a good watch.
Another good point is that this drama had a lot of actors who weren’t much known back then but who would eventually famous actors, even stars and it’s interesting to see them when they were at their beginnings and some of them were actually still kids (ex : Zhang Zhe Han, Gavin Gao, Dilraba, Zhang Xue Ying, Guan Xiao Tong, Merxat, Jiang Yi Yi, Sun Yi, Wang Shuang, Zhang Yi Jie…)
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
An Emotional Roller Coaster, But a Nice Ride!
At first, I didn't think I would enjoy this drama, but I did (for the most part). The characters were likeable, hateable, cute, funny. The acting was pretty good (I am a big fan of Zhang Zhehan so would have stayed throughout just to watch him) and I was pleasantly surprised to see some old and new faces of actors I have seen in other dramas, and who I liked a lot.The storyline was ok - I had a few lingering questions, and I think there could have been a little more to the story between the Dowager Empress and her love interest. However, the other couples were good together and I liked their chemistry. Since there were 42 episodes, perhaps a little time could have been spent on each couple rather than scattering bits and pieces all over the place, but again, I was fine with (most of) the resolutions.
I have to mention my favorite characters (and how they were played by the actors). Despite my love for the ML, the most entertaining character was General Deng. I saw him in The Bond and loved him in that too, but he was so endearing in this drama that I couldn't help but enjoy his roguish, charming ways. The Hou brothers also, were endearing to me. The Dowager Empress - one minute she was heartless and cruel, the next my heart was breaking for her impossible situation. All that being said, however, I tried to like the FL but just couldn't. Her character was annoying and brash and there was just something about her that I couldn't warm to at all. Still, I enjoyed the series a lot. Rewatch? Maybe.
Was this review helpful to you?
Pride & Prejudice against women and people from 'foreign land'
I watched this drama in mid 2022... the synopsis didn't sound so exciting... but I'm truly glad that I gave it a try... after feeling disappointed with some of the newer dramaThis is a story about women... and their fight for equal footing in society.... You will meet Banshu, a very smart & cheerful girl grown up in the prairie and thus have very different upbringing as compared with the 'polished' Han ladies. In the beginning you will hate Lanzhi, the finest lady in Han, who on appearance always follow societal etiquette. But later on you will learn about how she always have to follow the rules set by her parents and suffered. And then you will respect the Empress Dowager, young, pretty, wise and ... lonely.... Luckily she has Lady Ming who is also very wise, and in her quiet way, always support the Empress Dowager and remind her when necessary. There is also Banshu's aunt (acted by Tien Niu) who is very wise and well respected., though you don't see much of her.
I think the males in this drama are only supporting characters... to the point of comedic, especially General Deng. I lose count how many times he proposed to Banshu, one was even done in the jail! For me, the most eye-catching male was Suri, the head of bandit who first propose to Banshu in episode 1!
The costumes are beautiful! I especially like the layered embroidered kimono-style hanfu with beautiful sashes. The triple embroidery on the hem are very nice. Initially I didn't pay much attention to the set, but my little nephew pointed to me that the Empress Dowager throne look like a dragon face. And I notice some of the supposedly gilded sculpture has sparkling blue gemstones for their eyes. I also love the dance between the Empress Dowager and her lover, it was like the crane courting dance, very elegant.
This drama featured a superb cast... most of them are famous actors/actresses now... but are still very young when they filmed this drama.... The round-face young emperor is so cute! He was likely only around 11 or 12 when they filmed this drama.
I love the ending... All's Well that ends well!
Was this review helpful to you?
I love the character of the female lead the most,its fun to watch how she solve every problem that comes in her way and how she surprised and make difference to everyone. For the male lead, of course from the beginning im already into him as i love Zhang Zhehan and his acting skills is already good. Also, you will also love the second lead love team here. As the story continues,i cannot help to have a second lead syndrome. I love the second male lead here which is Deng Zhi.I love watching him and Ban Shu together.
So much for the few reveals,overall this drama is a much and i highly recommend it to those who love historical drama that does not mind the` dressing style and hair style of the women here.
Was this review helpful to you?
