Court Lady (2021)

Watch for the costumes

I watched shortly after this came out and my recollections now are: it started very strong, with lots of fun moments between the two leads, action, and beautiful costumes. Around episode 18 I despaired that there were still 37 to go. It was much too long.
After the initial plot arc, it became apparent that it was very much an ensemble palace/historical drama with tons of secondary characters - some interesting, some hate-able, some well-realized, some cookie-cutter. It was not a romance between the two 'leads' one of whom you only see in the beginning and end. I enjoyed Xu Kai's character at the beginning, very much his usually cheeky role, but at the end found his character stiff and uninteresting. Li Yitong did ok, but her character was almost Forrest Gump-like in that she was somehow magically present anytime something of historical import was happening. As the titular Court Lady she was so competent at everything as to be unbelievable, which definitely took me out of the story and annoyed me.
Struggled through the middle, just wanting to know how the drama was going to choose to depict Guifei, and was unsurprised and slightly let down. Based on my scant knowledge of Tang history the plot was very loosely based on actual events with lots of literary license taken.

Stuck with it until the end mostly for the aesthetics - the costumes are ridiculously beautiful and historically accurate. The entire palette of the drama - costumes, sets, color grading, etc. is like an amazing collection of san cai pottery.

I really wish My Drama List had more Ratings categories - I don't watch dramas for the music??? (I don't enjoy all the cheesy drama ballads and pop OSTs. y'all can have them.) Why isn't there a category for visuals??

Read More

Finally finish

Sometimes a little lazy to watch costume drama due to complicated & cruelty plot. This is no exception. I have to stop few times because i can't bear to see the pull thread between Chu Mu (CH) & Fu Rou (FR), but my love for Xu Kai make me hang on till the last ep. Hohoho :D.

I decided to give drama a break from the moment FR back to palace with Prince Zhou (ZW) after they ran away together. Really want to scratch FR face because she keep playing with CM feeling. Yeah i know she has her own consideration & i also know how mischievous ZW is.

The funny think the moment i think to myself very unsual to see all the prince get along with each other (it's in the few first ep where ZW, Prince Han (HW) and Crown Prince (CP) drinking tea together), not long after that we can see how messed up ZW & CP relationship actually are.

In this drama we can see how important is it that people close to us can shape us. We can become like CP or little Prince Qin or CM. CP is not blessed with good people by his side, that can actually help him. Like HW who supposed to be his best support is become enemy in his eyes. If only CP choose Lu Ying Ying (YY) to be his Crown Princess maybe all of his story will be a little different, because i quite believe YY actually can really help him by giving him the right direction.

I really like YY. Even though her dad & brother is bad people, YY is really good woman. But if she married to CP its just pitty for Yan Zifang.

I also really like the king. He is one good king & good father actually.

Actually this drama sometimes quite confusing me, which direction will it be taken to. At first this still surround FR as the Court lady. But later on this is also about cout d'etat & by all means one of the most uncelar reason in the drama world. Why...? Who the responsible one...? Is it really Fu Shui? How can they actually supress Consort Yan...? See so many unanswered question.

After watch 2 drama of Xu Kai where he has pretty much stilt face (Ancient Love Poetry & Falling Into Your Smile) I'm quite happy to see that curling naughty eyes & smiling in CM face, especially when he is teasing FR.

Overall i just really glad i can finished this drama.

Read More

The next big historical drama after Scarlet Hearts: Court lady

For a long time I have been constantly obsessed with historical dramas and its plot lines some of which often fails me. But as of today I finally completed the 55 episode long drama : Court lady. You are bound to be enthralled by the genius story line and apt cast. I would hate giving spoilers but rest assure all your favourite characters will go through a rigorous character building procedure which finally will make sense in the end of the story. The ending will be everything you will hope for and pray for and it might not always be happy for most but it's not over dramatic either, it's rather so well written that one will be lost in their story. So go watch it if you have time to spare it will not disappoint you. And please don't hate on Yan Zifang.

Read More

Stunningly beautiful production! Fantastic!

It’s remarkable production and cinematography! Tremendous cast and acting; and interesting distinctive plots have got me hooked! I can say that this one is one of the most enjoyable distinctive historical/political drama spiced up with a perfect amount of comedy. Fantastic!

I do like watching this drama so much. Everything and everyone in it are so gorgeous and stunning. Plots is complex as typical palace C-drama so it's good, some people dislike but I have no complaint! I love the adorably irresistible Sheng Chumu and Fu Rou; and Sheng Chun Lin and Princess Xinnan! Mostly the comedy, this is something that did me, enjoy watching some of comedy and romance scenes over and over as those did make me happy! :-) Court Lady is one of the best production C-drama since a long time! Cast and acting are superb; and both opening and ending themes are mesmerising. Li Yi tong was really a stunning bride here! It's a shamed some didn't appreciate it and gave rating which ridiculously low for such a beautiful cinematography works. I agree with ones who gave it 10 :-)

Read More

A Celebration of Tang Dynasty Fashion

Court Lady (Chinese title: 大唐女儿行) outdoes just about every other Tang dynasty drama out there in terms of costumes. When I say this, I mean that it seems as if this drama literally brought its characters’ wardrobes to life from the pages of antique paintings. If I were a historian, I might go into a detailed analysis about how good of a job the production team did. Alas, I am merely a casual enjoyer of Chinese period dramas, so you’ll just have to trust me—or watch it for yourselves, because it’s a solid story too.

Fu Ruo’s Love Interests Are the Absolute Worst
Fu Ruo is your typical new-age female protagonist in the vein of leads like Yanxi Palace’s Wei Yingluo and The Story of Minglan’s titular Sheng Minglan. She’s quick-witted, compassionate, considerate, and a stickler for laws and principles. Her one failing, however, is her utter lack of conviction when it comes to her three love interests. She has no problem taking on and talking back to people in positions of authority—the Emperor, the Empress, Consort Yan—but against the drama’s male leads, she’s useless. I’ve lost count of the number of times I wish she would snap and rip into them, but the most she does is give them stern lectures, which doesn’t work because they don’t listen to her. It’s incredibly unsatisfying to watch her just endure their disrespect again and again.

(I secretly wish Court Lady was a lesbian drama about Fu Ruo and Li-baolin instead. That’s how much all of her existing romantic options suck.)

Sheng Chumu
Let’s start with Sheng Chumu, the primary male lead and a giant man-baby. To be fair to him, he’s an amazing character in every other aspect. He starts out as a womanizing liar who makes a shockingly quick turn for the better the moment he falls in love with Fu Ruo. The character growth he goes through, from a buffoon who can barely write, to a well-learned tactician and fighter, then to a respectable man devoted to his country, is nothing short of a miracle—even a little unbelievable if you choose to think too hard about it. That’s about where it ends.

Although Sheng Chumu claims he’ll stop lying to Fu Ruo, he has no qualms about manipulating her into situations she doesn’t want to be in. Case in point, him talking her into faking her death and eloping with him, despite her protest upfront and her continuous hints of unease throughout. After she’s coerced to return to the imperial palace by the Prince of Zhou (another dickhead), Chumu doesn’t even give her the chance to explain, choosing to believe that she’s chosen someone else over him despite her multiple attempts to tell him the truth.

His lack of respect for what she wants and his lack of trust in her are mind-bogglingly frustrating. I could not find myself giving a fuck when she eventually reconciles with and marries him.

The Prince of Zhou
Although not by a wide margin, the Prince of Zhou is objectively a worse love interest. Like Sheng Chumu, he has no respect for Fu Ruo’s wishes. He also has no respect for her job, which I count as a graver offense considering she works in the fucking imperial palace where she’s undoubtedly subjected to long hours and stressful responsibilities, all with the threat of death hanging over her head should she screw up or offend the wrong person. His inconsiderate monopolization of her time and mental bandwidth caused me so much anxiety as a viewer. What’s more, despite saying he won’t use his position of power to make Fu Ruo marry him, he uses his power to pretty much force her to do everything else.

This isn’t even getting into the underhanded ways he sows discord between Fu Ruo and the man she picks. As a character, he’s just all right. He doesn’t go through any amazing character development, serving primarily as an adversary for the Crown Prince.

Yan Zifang
Where do I even begin with Yan Zifang? Do I talk about the fact that he kidnaps Fu Ruo twice or Lu Yingying twice? Or how he decides to hold Fu Ruo to a promise their parents made, and becomes an unreasonable jackass when she refuses to take responsibility for his preconceived notions of her? Or his sense of entitlement to think that Lu Yingying’s affection comes and goes at his beck and call? Seriously, fuck this dude. He’s a terrible human being. His only redeeming qualities are his regards for his men and that he flip-flops enough to end up on the winning side. He deserves neither Fu Ruo nor Lu Yingying, and I’m pissed that his second kidnapping of Yingying gets played off as a happy ending.

A Great Take on Emperor Taizong’s Reign
Where the romances fall short, the political storylines thrive. Despite the different character names, it’s obvious that Court Lady modeled the reign of its fictional emperor after Emperor Taizong of Tang, who’s best known for the following: usurping the throne from his own father; his long and prosperous reign; the infighting between his three eldest sons; and being the origin story for Wu Zetian. All four we see in this drama to varying degrees of significance.
We see the threads of the Emperor’s past with his father, the Retired Emperor, carried into the present with the Prince of Liang and some of the Retired Emperor’s interactions with the Empress. The drama made excellent choices in making these forgone events matter in a way that doesn’t overshadow, but rather enhances, its current story.

I also love the little hints of Wu Zetian through both Fu Ruo, who serves as Wu Zetian’s infamous background as a daughter of a merchant, and Xiao Lu, whose budding friendship with the young Prince of Qin spells trouble for the future. The way Court Lady splits a historical figure into two is an interesting choice (and one that almost had me fearful that Fu Ruo might get taken as a concubine sometime down the line LOL).

But the lion’s share of the story lies in the rivalry between the older princes…

Like I said before, the Prince of Zhou functions more like a passive adversary to the sons of the Empress than an active rival for the throne. The majority of his time on screen is dedicated to annoying Fu Ruo, so much so that I find his participation in the political conflicts utterly forgettable.

The changing relationship between the Crown Prince and the Prince of Han is the one that still amazes me weeks after I finished the drama. To be honest, it took some ten episodes for me to catch on to the fact that Court Lady’s based on the events of Emperor Taizong’s reign precisely because the two brothers get on so well. The fact that they’d eventually come to hate each other seemed like an impossibility to me early on. The way they slowly turn on each other, and their outright enmity for one another after the Princess Consort of Han’s death are masterfully done.

A Rushed Ending
I have a million things I want to say about Chen Ji/Fu Shui and his whole… thing with the crown prince, but a lot of it doesn’t matter given how badly the drama botched the last ten episodes. I’ve seen some talks of constraints regarding the number of episodes the production had to work with, which explains why the editing is as horrendous as it is. It completely fucks up the pace of the plot, and at times, left me wondering if I’d skipped entire episodes.

Fu Shui, his cohorts, and Consort Yan’s whole machination also unravels quite nonsensically in the last handful of episodes. First, Consort Yan seems to be one of the masterminds behind the takeover of the palace. But then it turns out she’s being threatened by her personal eunuch of many years? Fu Shui is supposed to slowly kill the crown prince via poisoning, but gains a conscience at the eleventh hour and… chooses to give him the antidote instead? Meanwhile, the Lu father-and-son pair, whom I originally thought to be the main villains, are… rebelling? Not rebelling? Marching on the capital? But then they surrender the instant they have a heart-and-heart talk from Sheng Chumu’s father? What?

The actual wrap up is nice: The villains all get the fates they deserve. Fu Ruo and Sheng Chumu make up and get married. More excitingly, Princess Xinnan marries Sheng Chumu’s brother. Li-baolin moves up in rank. The Prince of Liang saves Lu Yingying from death before his own execution. The Prince of Qin gets crowned heir, as per his historical counterpart. It’s a decent conclusion with a lot of convoluted crap you have to sit through.

Other Thoughts
- Lu Yingying is a treasure. I wish the Prince of Liang isn’t such a gross and irredeemable bastard because she honestly deserves a man who loves her as much as he does near the end
- While it’s stupid that Fu Ying falls in love with her mother’s murderer knowing that he’s somehow connected to her death, I can’t help but love her and Lu Qi together
- The production made a mistake going with background music so similar to Yanxi Palace. It was not a good part of that drama and it still isn’t in this one

Final Rating and Recommendations
While Court Lady’s romantic plots leave much to be desired, the drama itself stands as an excellent interpretation of the events of Emperor Taizong’s reign, even though it skirts the responsibility of having to be an accurate historical retelling by changing people’s names. What’s more, it is a marvelous celebration of classic Tang dynasty fashion. It’s fifty-five episodes of beautiful costumes and adequate storytelling, and an interesting “knock-off” of one of the most fascinating times in Chinese history.

My Rating: 7.5/10

Read More

Psychotic

I am wondering who in they right mind gave this drama a 10. What started as beautiful witty drama turned into a never ending psychotic drama. Everything went downhill. The editing was ramdom , scenes cut and you don't know what happened and just try to push on cause you have invested so much time in it. A total trainwreck. A total waste of time. Tragic. Not in the good way,.. The female lead at some point starts to be irritating , the main lead just fades into the background. The main villains just disappear without you even knowing what happened and randomly appear . Regret watching it

Read More

Errors that don't show

It was one of the worst TV series I've watched lately, in terms of handling, narration, and scenario. It is a series with such good actors, and qualified in terms of management and gameplay, but the subject, the narration, the characters of the people in it, the reflection of the characters have been a complete disaster. I couldn't find any decent prince. One is a womanizer, the other a bad friend, one is a fetishist, one is hungry, and the last one is a small child, who is brought to the fore by the lady of the palace and eventually becomes the crown prince. They always dug each other's wells. Can't there be someone who is smart, well-behaved, truthful, honest, understanding, and loves his country? Unfortunately not. The man has become a prince, he treats all the servants like roosters of the coop. There isn't a woman he hasn't abused. He also behaves badly. Always being forgiven. The Crown Prince is also constantly making mistakes, making mistakes, doing evil, constantly being forgiven. A noble general is constantly robbing the state, kidnapping, making decisions against the country, trying to kill another general in the war. Even if proven, he is released and pardoned. Not once, but several times. Those who make mistakes, wrongdoers, evildoers, tricksters and scammers are constantly forgiven. The righteous are persecuted. I watched a TV show where doing something good was considered bad. I watched a series that constantly gave credit to mistakes. Not an example. It's not a show to watch. Yes, I felt it in several places. Comedy elements were also used a few times. The Sheng Brothers laughed. The princess laughed. But even the Princess ignored the benefactors who had taken care of her for her own benefit. Their accusations remained silent. So there was a righteous queen and Palace Mistress Fu in the show. The Queen deliberately made some wrong decisions, supposedly unintentionally. In other words, there is no tangible recommended part of the series. And the emperor, mashallah, turned out well. I was surprised. He also destroyed confidence in himself by constantly forgiving the crown prince and that thief general. After all, the man did evil all the time. He was killed. What about chen ji, who came to befriend the crown prince? Complained. They chased the man, eventually killing him. Instead, with the same face but supposedly different, the same actor played it. This is Fu Shui. This approached the crown prince. He ate all kinds of crap. Nobody said what he is doing next to this crown prince. He even gives orders to the soldiers. He gives orders to the servants. He directs everyone. The crown prince too. He kills anyone who gets in his way. He killed the crown princess's brother without even blinking an eye. He also had the maid killed. No one noticed this person. No one complained. No one said what's going on. Although the Crown Prince was also injured, he did not put a dust on the man. Even everything happened. This lasted until the end of the series. The man died in a fight. However, it had to be divided into a hundred parts. Nobody kills. It doesn't say what are you doing. It doesn't hinder. He was taking revenge. The man almost overthrew the emperor. With three or five marauders, but he deceived everyone. He also wanted to take revenge. We understood from here that the empire is a story. Emperor story. So lie. Princes lie. The guards lie. Armies lie. Generals lie. Everything is a lie. Put one asshole. Eliminate everyone. Dynamite the country. No one can hear the soul. It didn't happen. The screenwriter is gone. So it shook. He ruined the show. Outside of CAST, outside of management, that is, it sucks in terms of subject, terrible in terms of handling. Of course, you fit the mandatory scenario, but it could have been more beautiful, smarter, more logical, more realistic, plausible. That was his choice. I have no respect. I do not like. I found this scenario wrong and the way it was handled. The screenwriter should respect the audience. Mercy.

Read More

what happen between ep 46 to 47?

it's very upsetting to watch episode 47. looks like it didn't continue from the end of 46. there is a big missing part to the show. probably typical of chinese production. lack of professionalism in the craft.

I started to lose interests at episode 47 since i lost a huge chunk of storyline. i search endless on the net to find if there is a correct version. everyone uploaded the messed up episode 47.

yeah i have nothing else to say other than to complain about this mess up.

dictating 500 words for review is like asking me to wear mask. some write a lot some don't

Read More

COURT LADY should be renamed 101 Misunderstanding, are you stupid enough to love me?

Really? 55 episodes in all? Should have been told in 10 episodes. The longer you drag the storyline the deeper the grave you are going to bury yourself in. The writers ought to be banned from ever working in the industry again! What a load of crappy storyline and plots! Oh My God talking about the plots? How many misunderstandings can one go through? It seems like to drag the series to 55 episodes to make more money, you squeezed in as many misunderstandings as possible and ruined the entire audience's attention and attachment to the series. Anyone alive have to put up that much angst has got to be damaged and dead of suicide, and believe me no one will survive after that physically or mentally! What are the directors and the writers takes their audience for? The stayed-home housewives with zero life and intelligence are very thin on the ground I am sure. This far into the series from what I read the rant from others, the reconciliation of the two lead character will be the laughing stock of Kingdom. Perhaps may be I am not foolishly romantic enough or that I am not a woman, but being gay certainly entitle me to have some femininity in me, but sorry these kind of scripted storyline just turns me either cold or enrage! Can someone pushed the lead female character under a bus please, no, they don't have buses in those days, a runway horse carriage then.

Read More

GET SOUR AS EPISODE PROGRESS

I always love Li YiTong, she's one of the most talented one, there is her sparkly eyes and mischievous smiles that give her a trade mark. Pairing her with Xu Kai is apparently a great pair, Xu Kai has that look that compliment both of them together.
I am in ep 18 and found the drama progress to the side direction. Xu Kai is great in his character, as a spoil-rotten playboy good-for-nothing son of a famous General in Tang Dynasty, a care-free playboy that got knock off with love at the first sight.
His mom has wish that her 3 sons to enjoy life as much as possible for the reason of witnessing their dad has sacrificed for the country - the mom spoil them. Lots of garment for the ladies, big and complicated hairdos, beautiful costumes.

Li YiTong is a kind intelligent business-minded sweet 19 years old girl who hates playboys. She's fallen into Sheng ChuMu (Xu Kai) the guy that woo her tirelessly, the cuteness and tricks to get her, excitement of young love. To prove to her love, ChuMu trains himself to be a better and responsible man, went to war and promise to come back for a marriage proposal. As a court lady at the court, she's introduced the life of politic and intrigues in the palace while also trying to connect love interest.

The King's third son King Zhou who's fallen in love with Fu Ruo while Sheng ChuMu went for war. Pretty hard for me to which side am I on? Because I love these two ML and want them to be happy with Fu Ruo. The intrigues in the palace was depressing but I think everyone gave smooth sailing to guide Fu Ruo as imperial seamstress embroidery. Especially King Zhou is in always a step ahead of her..picked her up when she depress..guide her the life and maneuver politics in palace . The queen is a very strict one, the once a beautiful nice good-girl crown princess became so conceited, jealous, mean spirited, deceitful just to be on top of her game (her husbands heart, fullfill Empress expectation). As the episode progress...the story line is more in to palace politics than Sheng ChuMu and Fu Rao love story. Focus on Crown Prince character; he forgot he had a wife as he continue to had relationship with an actor that was forbidden by the law, he's so sad losing him - he became a different man. It soured me and still pending indefinitely watching the next episodes....55 episodes is a long way to go for me...I dropped it.

Read More

it's not that good that it needs 55 episodes

story:
this is the only reason i watched. the story is quite different and it has several side stories that's more interesting than the main leads' story.
it didnt even need 10 eps for the ship to sail. it's too rush that they forgot to bring the chemistry on board. that's a shame.
the story of crown prince and the entertainer guy is really something else.

casts and acting:
- xukai
his acting is not much different than the last time i watched him in arsenal military academy. he needs to improve. give him something different, something more challanging. he only has this playboy face that suits the character but his acting was plain.
though everyone is praising him, i dont think i like him here.
his chemestry with the female lead is nowhere to be found. i waited for 16 eps and still didnt get their chemistry. i couldnt anymore, so decided to drop the drama. i didnt wanna waste my time on a drama that doesnt get me the feeling.

-li yi tong
she's actually a good actress. however she failed to deliver the feeling in this drama. i like her in "royal nirvana". probably because she's paired with xukai, suddenly her acting feel so stiff. their interactions are lack of chemistry, so much that i had to admit her chemistry with 2nd lead (prince zhou) is much better.
i shipped her with prince zhou.
everyone thinks he's annoying. but let's be honest. if it was the main male that do what prince zhou does with the female lead (they say he uses his power and privilllage to tease the female lead) i'm sure everyone would think it's sweet or cute. why not him?? this thing happens alot in a drama and no one complains because it is the leading male who do it. but when it come to the 2nd male, everyone is annoyed by him.
double standard much?

- other casts are good. i recognize quite many faces.

overall:
i really dont think this drama needs more than 40 episodes. 36 is better. a little bit draggy her and there somtimes. not too much but enough to bored me.

would i recommend this drama?
well.. if you like xukai or li yi tong you'd probably enjoy it.
but for me no. i lost my appetite juat watching the leads lack of chemistry.
the story itself is not bad if you can handle the 54 episodes of lost chemistry. i couldnt.

Read More