Starts Strong, Devolves into Madness
The main story is about one woman's quest for marriage. Then there are two seperate revenge stories interwoven around that, yielding a long list of secondary characters.The FL wasn't a push-over, immature, or an idiot, though truth be told, she needed constant saving from those around her.
Some of the side character story archs were far more interesting than the main plot. The ML, was a philandering jackass in the beginning (Hey, I caught that homage to 1962 Tom Jones!) , but gradually became a loyal friend and then a lover to the FL. That transition was nice to see. The FL had no character developement at all. She simply used her maturity and diplomatic skills to survive court life as best she could.
The FL's story arch was one of pure survival, as she really didn't have the lifestyle to do anything but try to keep her head attached to her body. She was smart, but I couldn't understand why three men were running after her, except for the fact that she was the FL. I mean, are survival instincts that rare and attractive to so many men? She looked rather average, if I may be so bold (besides her beautiful skin, that is). The actress playing the FL either had absolutely no emotional range, or the director decided she must be stoic and emotionless for the whole drama. Are emotionless Hanfu humanoids smarter looking by default? I don't know, but I hated that she couldn't emote through her facial expressions at all, this really bothered me a lot. To me, acting is reacting, and reacting means facial expressions. She also had a really bland personality.
Prince Zhou managed to survive court life, and was a very serious character without being a completely expressionless icicle. Likewise, the crown prince was largely stoic, but still managed to emote through his facial expressions. Only the FL remained annoyingly icy throughout. Also, incredibly stubborn, since at some point she has the ability to escape court life (which she voluntarily committed to, and knew what she was getting into, so I didn't feel any empathy for her at all). She decides to go back to court, without knowing whether this will literally kill her or not, for no damn reason!!!! I mean, come on!!
That just made her unbearable and I didn't watch the last few episodes because of this. Xu Kai was excellent here, but he didn't outshine the Crown Prince and the other prince.... whose name I will look up.... Prince Zhou. Prince Zhou had more chemistry and interests in common with the FL (FL had no personality, so that wasn't even an option), so it made no sense why she would choose the ML instead, since she was such an icicle of a character that I don't believe she knew where her heart was located, and if she followed her head, she would pick the man who is most suited to her, which was Prince Zhou.
Most storylines apart from the two princes and the princess, were so melodramatic that I couldn't stand them. I mean, two of these side stories were about tricking men into gaining sexual power over them, and in both these storylines, the female character, who had shown a certain level of intelligence, at least, devolved into a perpetual victim, making one bad choice after another. This one trope of a female tricking a male character into sex with her by pretending to be someone else is nothing short of rape. Imagine if a male character did that!!! This trope needs to stop immediately!
And lastly, the love stories of the ML's brothers were super cute, and relatively simple, and less is more when you have 7-8 seperate character stories in one drama. Overall, the cinematography was excellent, the storylines were a mixed bag, but there were two cute side ones, and one at least interesting one with the Crown Prince, even though the Crown Princess didn't deserve to be pardoned ever, and I don't even care if she felt slightly guilty after what she did.
Oh, there was the best romance story of all with the ML's sister and her prince husband. But my heart was with the best character in the whole drama, which was Prince Zhou, and he was the saddest victim of circumstance of all, and deserved better than he got. Also, my god he had a low and sexy voice, completely wasted on the FL, who was supposed to be smart, but evidently wasn't smart enough to recognize a diamond when one falls in her lap, so to speak.
There were some intolerable melodramatic side character stories as well, but I don't want to waste my time writing about those. It's a tolerable series, if you skip over large chunks and entire storylines from it. It did start off really well, besides the FL having no personality whatsoever, and only in the mid-later episodes did it devolve into unrealistic melodrama. I would watch it just for Prince Zhou.
Ahhhh... Prince Zhou.... a manly man character with the sexiest baritone voice in Chinese dramaland. It was worth it just to meet you, my friend. I would give you my real phone number. Call me.
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Acting and characteristic of cast not bad, but BAD EDITING ALL JUMPING SCENEE!
Omg, frustrated!How i can rate this drama?
What a fucking shit editing? All the scene is jumping sceme and cutting scene, i start watching this drama because i see the duration is above 45 minute, but what the fucking editing? ,,they jump and skip the important scene, when they discussing some plan, then they skip to the others scene, so that the plan? ,, and didnt know the reason for that they do?,,, and something and some accident can happen very shuddenly without any opening, no scene showing that scene, just happen like that,, what fucking they showing? The one that can see is the chemistry between couples,,
Multiple couples but! BUT! just 2 couple can be happy! ,, and they start the relationship between THE LEAD very soon but they just can be together in the end of story! ,, the reason is still tolerable at first but THEY SEPARATED AGAIN BECAUSE A SIMPLE MISURANDING IS VERY STUPID REASON!,,when they not very close they trust each other ,,but when they get very close can be separate with a simple misuranding is very stupid, very annoying!
The acting and the characters of the cast is good not bad, but the story line,, and the EDITING IS VERY BAD!,, many unknown purpose actions
### I have a lot of question, but i just ask some###
1. What happen with zhao prince? ,queen is begging the king to forgive him, and he glad to listen that, but why?! What the next happen? And what letter is the Eunuch deliberately put and lure the guard to see?
2. until the end I don't understand what is the purpose of yan zi fang? He just wants to take revenge on Luyunji, there's no point in cooperating with Fushui until the end
3. and who is fu shui asking yan zi fang for seach? Shu li yan?
And what the motive of yu he for working with fushui? Ep54 ,39:09 ,he said "Give us father and son glory and wealth" ,so i think he is a fathe r of fushui and have relationship with yan consort, but! Not clear,, even google wiki not write anything about this,,
4. So lian yan er is who spy? ,,she said to yanzifang that shengchujun know the letter from crownprince to zhaoprince is from her, but all of this is sheng brothers plan!
Conclusions!
##negative part ##
1. Bad editing
2. jumping scene
3. bad sound dubbing, unstable
4. scene change editing is not good, sometimes it looks like a cut without motion
5. unclear timing,, all thing happen very fast and shuddenly (opening ep 47not match with ep 46) and absurd from the beginning,, can learn kungfu very fast,,all strategies ,, chess,,
6. unshowing scene,, all thing happen shuddenly, and some can happen or not,, not clear
7. kill an important cast very quick
8. very chaotic plot
##positive part##
1. Satisfy scene ep 13,, 32:08
2. acting and characteristic of the cast not bad
3. the story is actually not bad, it just tells the story which is not good
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Fantastic plot, shame about the rushed ending
I was enjoying this drama so much in the first half, all the stories within the palace was well thought out, fu Rou and chumo makes great leads. I feel like there was barely any scenes where chumo makes any attempt to help or save fu rou (which is fine cos our smart girl saves herself) but it just feels like he was barely in it in the second half, and had barely anythjng to do with her anymore despite him not being able to let her go and their misunderstanding lasted a lot longer than it should.Worst of all, the last 8 episodes was a total mess, it was gripping but they cut out so many scenes some of it didn’t even make sense as to how it linked to the next scene, I also feel like a lot more was filmed about chumo and furou when they made up that they didn’t bother showing!
I feel like huanyu dramas has such a rep for doing this, it’s so annoying. I hope they release those deleted scenes
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A review on this series
!!There Are No Spoilers Here!!Review on the story:
Court Lady is a really good series and its worth watching all 55 episodes of it.
The story does not only focus on the romance but it teaches you with life as well. The story was played out like Charades. (If you dont knoe it, you can search it up) or like Chess that requires some people to be sacrificed even if they are innocent, a villain or a bad person that had changed and became a good person.
If you have watched the first episode and dropped the series from watching because it looked too boring, i suggest you continue to watch.
Review on the Actors/Actresses
As for the Actors that played the roles, i have no complaints. But for the actress, i only have a problem wth Li Yitong as Fu Rou. Yes i still think that she is nice becaude Fu Rou is an embroider and Li Yitong have Slender and beautiful hands. but some of the scenes, she looks old and didn't fit with Xu Kai. But that is the only problem i have with the actors and actresses. Also i thought that Lusi Zhao or Chen Yuqi or maybe even Zhang Yuxi who played a role on Intense Love would fit the role of Fu Rou. But every actresses have a certain personality that fits the characters based on their looks
As for the Music:
Drama with music like this one gives me big impacts most. It is like the classic dramas i have watched like; "Ashes of Love" and "The Winner is Love".
Overall;
I dont rewatch dramas because ut ruins the quality of it in my opinion but if you do like to rewatch dramas that gives big impacts, this one would be a good reccommendation for you
Thank you for taking your time in reading this♡!!
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Just excellent !
Excellent rom-historical series, with in CL, Xu Kai ❤❤❤ & Li Yi Tong, set in the 5th-6th century (Tang Empire) essentially describing life at court, in the inner court and fratricidal succession plots & struggles.Great cast, good pacing, well written and smart story, epic OST.
The actors are at the TOP and the chemistry between the 2 leads is electric.
In short, the kind of drama that we watch in one go despite the 55 episodes!!
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Excellente série rom-historique avec en CL, Xu Kai !! & Li Yi Tong, située au 5-6 siècle (empire Tang) décrivant essentiellement la vie à la cour, dans la cour intérieure et les complots & luttes de succession fratricides. Super cast, bon rythme, story bien écrite et intelligente, OST épiques.
Les acteurs sont au TOP et l'alchimie entre les 2 leads est électrique.
Bref, le genre de drama qu'on regarde d'une traite malgré les 55 épisodes !!
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This isn't a drama to rewatch whenever!
Finally!! I endured so much to watch this... I honestly stay away from dramas like this but Soso tempted me. I watched it all and I liked the end they gave everyone, except for Queen Han she literally was just there, she only wanted a child with her loving husband!!I wished I saw Crown Princess' death, I wanted to understand her obsession with the Crown Prince and why she had such a vicious way of thinking in her ending because she was lovely and innocent and even if the palace is a toxic place she can't just turn... oh well...
Yan Zifan had a suitable ending as a sea lover being in the city changed i'm in a very cruel way, I'm not actually mad that he forcefully took Yingying, she's like Fou Rou and would want to stick to her belief even if it meant breaking her heart or just put her in danger (although I'm mot even sure if she still likes him, but 1st love is hard too forget 🤷🏾♀️).
Anyway the double marriage was a perfect decision, I cried when she FINALLY asked to leave the palace (I waited soo long 😩) and the fact that the Emperor granted both her leave and the marriage in front of the Hall of Joy (the Empress' Palace) 😭.
Now to add my grain of salt I would've like a better view of that kiss ugh!!! 😡 Why teases till the very end???
I liked this drama, it was very entertaining but I will NEVER watch this again. It was torture for me, who empathizes a lot with fictional characters. I cried many rivers 😭😭😭
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This is a very good historical fantasy with well choreograph action scenes and a nice, but often frustrating, romance plot between the leading couple Sheng Chu Mu and Fu Rou, that spend most of the drama’s duration breaking up and then making up, only to break up again. Even though their romance is not the main plot of this drama, it is quite frustrating to the viewer since the male lead is not present for too many episodes and repeatedly only shows up to save the day and the leading lady! The drama is, after all, about Fu Rou and how she navigates through palace intrigues and backstabbing antics to become an essential and pivotal person protecting the emperor and his family. The cast did a great job portraying their characters and the drama is quite good but not without flaws. Still, the drama is entertaining! Was this review helpful to you?
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Review about Court Lady
This review may contain spoilers!!This drama is about the love life about the daughter of a merchant and the son of a duke. Not only is it about their love life but also about politics and saving the Tang Dynasty from traitors.
This drama really got me going wild, it was a rollercoaster of emotions. From loving the two main couples, to frustration (caused by irratating characters) to getting bored and wanting to drop the drama, and then to the end where I was really satisfied.
At the start of the drama, it went pretty well. I was intrigued and wanted to watch on. However, midway through the drama I got really bored of it and it just seemed to be dragging on a lot. 55 episodes just about the couples quarrelling or loving. So frustrating as they both were misunderstanding each other!!! But it was worth it!! Nearer to the end I was really confused and worried that the evil would take over but I was wrong! Big plot twist.
Overall, I really enjoyed this drama and will recommend this to anyone who loves a bit of a romance drama but also a bit of politics and saving the country. However, if you really don't like long, dragging dramas then you can skip most of it and enjoy the love lives of many couples :))
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The main male lead acted by Xu Kai was somewhat silly and stupid but ironically he became very outstanding in military strategies and martial arts. The emperor Li Shi Min was the least likeable portrayal of this character of the 3 dramas I watched including The Empress of China, The Long Ballad. He was not as brilliant as history recorded him to be. The lead female character acted by Li YiTong was pretty and intelligent but was always bureaucratic and stony - her character was incredulous - always perfect. The empress was deemed a virtuous empress but she had a vicious side and was obviously protecting her son, the crown prince and his position. She even killed her fourth daughter-in-law because of the setup from the jealous and petty crown princess. The crown prince was like his consort - petty and not quite bright.
There were a lot of comical scenes but yet it was not quite a comedy - there were intense political rivalry, deceit, and deaths. I would say it is a mix genre.
There were an obvious discontinuity in the drama - it seemed some parts were clumsily cut and trimmed.
The costumes were a little lacking compared to the top Chinese dramas and looked like a low budget production. The head wear for the guys were terrible. Overall, I would not rate it as a tiptop drama. But regardless, it is entertaining. So if you are locked down in this pandemic looking for something to do, watching this drama could be it.
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Great writing, lots of intricate plot lines
This is by far one of the best historical dramas out there, especially if you're looking for something a bit more upbeat than the usual (and a bit less on the catty harem fights.) The story was great, with plenty of twists and turns, but the plot wasn't so complicated that it was hard to follow. The cast did a great job, the sets and costumes were beautiful, just everything about this drama was awesome. I originally started watching for Xu Kai, and while at first I was dismayed he wasn't getting as much screen time, the story was just so good with all the elevated story lines of the "secondary" characters, that I wound up not really minding.Was this review helpful to you?
wild ride
Merchant's daughter & general's son climb the social ranks into the Imperial Palace. Crazy amazing Tang dynasty costuming with the most impressive wedding dress I've ever seen (ep 34). Starts light & silly but then turns into a dark & sordid speeding train with a full buffet of back stabbing politics, debauchery & revenge, peppered with moments of pure LOL camp, only to run over the cliff with half the characters being killed off. Main reason to slog through the last 10 eps is finding the answer to the question: will the ML/FL end up together? I like Xu Kai but he doesn't get much screen time in the 2nd half.Was this review helpful to you?
