Miss S (2020)

Miss Sassy

Miss S is headlined by the effervescent Ma Yi Li in what has been her passion project from the get go. She certainly said as much during her interview in Singapore late last year when promoting this drama, which draws many parallels to her real life persona. Being a Shanghai native, the setting of this production albeit in a much different era, she is able to draw upon her many years of experience portraying strong willed, independent and feminist roles in playing the highly vivacious titular character.

Billed as the remake of the Australian series, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries which in turn is based on author Kerry Greenwood's historical mystery novels. Miss S probably feels more like an inspired loose adaptation of the screenplay to cater for Chinese audiences rather than an outright faithful retelling of the original version, although the intricacies of the plotlines and cases do feel awfully similar. The flavour, atmospherics and light-hearted humour are very much “Shanghai-nese” in comparison to the gritty outback setting of the original series.

For the uninitiated, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries is about the female lead character setting up shop as a private investigator with a penchant for, you’ve guessed it, solving murder mysteries. While she solves a number of seemingly unrelated cases, there is an underlying conspiracy surrounding the death of her younger sister. In Miss S, the main character is the flamboyant, stylish and wealthy socialite, Su Wen Li (hence Miss “S”). For the most part, the murder cases are quite straighforward and nothing too “heavy” or thought provoking. This is more Murder She Wrote than How to Get Away With Murder.

No effort was spared as far as the quality of the production is concerned. Filmed entirely at the magnificently constructed Dream Bund Film Park which is part of Hengdian World Studios, the art direction and costumes are the two major defining technical aspects very much worthy of high praise. The mansions, automobiles (including that outrageous red convertible), in addition to the countless props, are reflective of the opulence and grandeur of 1930s Shanghai. The translation of the Mandarin title 旗袍美探, Cheongsam Beauty Detective, is most appropriate as it features exquisite cheongsams (qipao) worn by Su Wen Li and the female characters that reflect the beauty of the iconic dress. Likewise the tailored suits and uniforms make the men appear extremely dapper indeed. Shanghai’s French Concession is always depicted as the epicentre for glamour and style back in the day, and it is no different in this drama.

The award-winning Ma Yi Li, playing the lead role of Su Wen Li, injects a lot of fun and sassiness in her somewhat OTT characterisation. She has invited a whole host of well-known and very capable supporting and guest cast to this project. Vengo Gao plays her “love interest” and investigation partner, Inspector Luo. Perhaps it’s the experience and maturity of these two actors plus the fact that they are friends off the set, because the chemistry between them really does sizzle. His character is one that exudes wit and charm in equal measure.

Michelle Dong is involved as Su Wen Li’s bff, Dr Liu. Being the complete opposite, her character is down-to-earth and much more subdued but no less intriguing. Her portrayal here is reminiscent of her role in another Republican drama, The Case Solver. Yao An Lian has a prominent role but with much less screen time as the antagonist, Ding Ru Shan. Having seen him in The Long Ballad and The Rebel recently, this actor showcases much versatility and range in his varied roles.

Every featured case involves countless notable guest stars. Look out for appearances by Zhang Jing Tong, Zhang Yu Qi, Ren Luo Min, Xu Rong Zhen, Zhang Rui Jia, Zhang Xiao Qian, Xie Xin Tong, Chen Li Na, Huang Yi Lin, Huang Xiao Ge, Liu Yu Qi, and Cai Wen Jing, among many others.

The original score composed by renowned music director, Xie Nan for this production certainly captures the vibes of the era. Meanwhile, the emotional connection between Su Wen Li and Inspector Luo is fittingly expressed through the sentimental ballad by Saji, Peep. Track listing as follows:
Peep 窥望 by Saji 萨吉
Confusion 迷惑 by Ye Xuanqing 叶炫清
You Know 高嘉朗 by Gao Jia Lang 高嘉朗

Miss S is a light and easy watch that is infused with enough wit and humour to make it a worthwhile experience. It isn’t a groundbreaking, compelling procedural or overly complicated to make sense of, nor does it take itself too seriously. I had as much fun and enjoyment watching all 15 murder cases spread over 34 episodes as the entire cast did performing for this production.

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Lighthearted, Witty Republican Era Detective Drama (with beautiful costumes)

Overall, great drama - characters, acting, and cases are all very interesting. It's a fun, light-hearted detective drama set in Shanghai during the Republican Era. Highly recommend if you're looking for a drama with a good story and acting that's not too serious. What I really like about this drama is that it has a more mature undertone against the overall lighthearted, fun vibes - the director did a nice job here. I often find that lighthearted dramas sometimes end up being too childish or immature. I just want to smack some reality into those characters. Here, the characters are more mature. Though the Miss S (FL) is flirtatious and witty, she has her life together. Detective Tan (ML) is also a smart, serious, and hardworking professional. Though there is romance, FL and ML are not running around like teenagers obsessed with love. Note - romance is not the main focus of this drama. There are cute scenes, but this is primarily a detective drama. See below for more details and a brief comparison with other detective dramas.

Acting
Ma Yi Li (FL) and Gao Wei Guang (ML) are terrific. It's so fun watching their interactions. Ma Yi Li plays the witty, flirtatious, and beautiful Miss S. It took me a few episodes to get used to this character because of her lasting impression as Zi Jun in First Half of My Life. Gao Wei Guang's acting has improved a lot since Ten Miles Peach Blossom, and his more serious personality is a nice contrast to FL's. Second leads are also great. They are cute, less mature, but fun. I'm impressed by the number of extras that they have for this drama.

Costumes
AMAZING. FL's outfits are stunning - she has beautiful qi paos (traditional attire) and Western formal wear. Ma Yi Li's outfits are amazing. I don't think I realized how beautiful she is until this drama. ML has sleek attire as well. I would say there not as eye catching as FL's, but then again, Gao Wei Guang looks good in anything.

Story
Interesting overarching story with romance. You learn very early on what the overarching story is and get fed bits and pieces as the drama progresses. The last episode wraps everything up, and I think they did relatively good pacing towards the end. It's a little rushed at the end, but not that bad. Ending is plausible. I wonder if there's a season 2...Regarding the romance mentioned earlier - romance is nicely incorporated but not overpowering either. FL and ML are so fun to watch. I would say that don't watch this drama just for romance. At the end of the day, this is a detective/ crime drama.

Opportunities ("Cons")
- Case complexity: I thought the cases overall tend to be a bit too complex. There was one case that completely did not make sense to me (granted I'm watching raw and Chinese is a 2nd language...). The positive side of complex cases, is that you can't really figure out who the actual criminal is early on. This keeps the case interesting. However, sometimes I find they are unnecessarily overcomplex. It doesn't necessarily give the vibe of 'draggy' but more of unnecessary.
- Music: I found this a bit weird, but most the memorable songs are in English...not sure why this bothers me a little. I give them kudos for finding English singers without an accent. My biggest pet peeve is when they find people to sing English songs but have heavy accents - might as well just use Chinese lyrics instead.

Detective Drama Comparisons (also recommendations if you liked Miss S)
1. My Roommate is a Detective (MRIAD): both are Republic era dramas set in Shanghai. I prefer Miss S 100xs over MRIAD - the only reason I didn't drop MRIAD is because I got really bored during quarantine. Leon Zhang was the saving grace of that drama. FL drove me nuts - she's so immature, noisy, and unreasonable. I almost dropped it because I couldn't stand her bickering. Also, the cases there were too simple. Once you figure out the pattern, you can easily figure out who the criminal is early on. The ending was also too rushed in my opinion.
2. When a Snail Falls in Love (WASFIL): both are detective stories and I think the balance of detective/ crime story vs romance is similar. Romance in both isn't overpowering but a secondary theme. I like both Miss S and WASFIL - hard to choose with is better. WASFIL is more mature than Miss S - I feel like it's a bit heavier, probably because of the types of cases they deal with.
3. Love Me If You Dare (LMIYD): Miss S is much more lighthearted and fun that LMIYD. Don't get me wrong, LMIYD is a really good drama (Wallace Huo is fantastic!). However, it's a bit heavy and has elements of a thriller drama. There are a few parts that are a little disturbing - not to the extend of Criminal Minds, but it's not lighthearted stuff either. Would recommend LMIYD if you're looking for a good detective drama and you know what you're getting yourself into (aka watch the trailer first).

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Young Jessica Fletcher meets Dick Tracey in a Shanghai Chicago

FINALLY! I got a chance to watch this series. I was quite upset when it first came out and didn't have English subtitles anywhere on any site legal or otherwise. This was my very first Republican Era drama so I wasn't sure what to expect but wanted to watch it because I follow Vengo Gao. It definitely didn't disappoint; quite the opposite and if it wasn't for parts of the very last episode, I would have given it a perfect score which for me is very rare.

Pros: Everything was exquisitely beautiful; from the sets to the costumes, the makeup. Su Wenli was like the epitome of what a modern day woman of even today acts like (she took the initiative to kiss Qiuheng first). Clothing on her looked like she should have been a model. Just about everything in this series was absolutely stunning. The music, OSTs, not a single stitch was out of place.

Both of the leads acting and chemistry was on point from the very beginning. As older actors then the 20 somethings you see in most of their dramas, here the experience and the understanding of both actors was visible. All of the support cast were there for as long as they were needed. The story flowed seamlessly from one murder investigation to another. It really was like a young Jessica Fletcher (from Murder, She Wrote) met Dick Tracey and they added a Chicago (the Musical) flair.

Su Wenli and Luo Qiuheng started off on a bickering note which was absolutely hysterical; as he tried in a lot of vain to prevent her from entering various crime scenes only for her to find a back door. Since every case took up two episodes, they would just about always have someone Su Wenli knew either asking for help or being the victim. With the two SLs Taozi and Xiao'an to add to the hilarity, made each investigation even more interesting.

Su Wenli had a superb eye for detail that helped each investigation. Many people she met from the first episode ended up becoming a part of her extended family; from the two random cab drivers (Tong and San) at the pier that took her home, to Taozi (a maid of family friend's) in the very first murder case who became her assistant and a younger sister and the orphan (Suyun) she adopted after the homage to "Murder on the Orient Express" episode. She had inherited a huge mansion and massive property from her grandmother and her gaggle rag-tag family lived there.

Luo Qiuheng played by the very handsome Vengo Gao was a wonderful, caring, yet upright investigator who took each case seriously no matter who the victims were. We never knew much about his past (other then his ex-gf was the daughter of his mentor) or where he even lived, but his character in no way played second fiddle to Wenli. Both were equals. I have until this drama not seen Vengo in something non-costume but feel he needs more of these kinds of dramas.

It was very funny how the crime busting duo was always bickering or betting on information and yet still ending up solving each case together. Their chemistry even in those most funniest of moments was palpable. It amused me to no end how Wenli would always find a way to go undercover in any situation with just a pretty dress and the power of persuasion; everyone opened up to her without fear.

I loved and was actually quite surprised by just how much made it past censorship; a gay couple was shown in photographs holding hands and being really close as well as the topic of homosexuality was discussed openly without issue. Small amounts of nudity was allowed as well. A mentally disabled boy was involved in 2 episodes towards the end and related to Wenli and he wasn't treated as some freak but with respect and love; usually none of these would be able to get anywhere near one of their dramas, so it makes me wonder if the requirements for Republican era dramas are different then the other genres.

Cons: The biggest reason I couldn't give this series a full score was because almost the entire last episode was screwed up pretty badly and it was the pivotal case. The biggest mystery of the series was that of Wenli's kidnapped and long thought to be murdered younger sister, Wenfei. Though this fact and the man responsible were sparsely spread through many episodes, it wasn't until about the last 6 that that case started to take shape. Ding Rushan was jailed for 10 years on suspicion of kidnapping and murder but escaped.

In the last episode, they turned Wenli into this hysterical, unhinged, crazy woman who goes to rescue Suyun and Qiuheng alone while locking a few officers in a jail cell. It absolutely made no sense, though I understand her being distraught when she came home to find practically everyone drugged and Suyun missing, she knew it was the work of Ding Rushan but then she goes off to the police station and when Qiuheng tells her to stay put she starts acting a plum fool causing him to go alone without backup because someone has to watch her.

For 33 episodes even if she was in grave danger, she always kept a level head and found ways to get out of the situation and always asked for backup from the police or Tong and San or the combination of the two. Here she takes her little gold pistol like a one woman army to go after the most dangerous man in the entire series who's essentially a crazed serial killer. It was ridiculous; what made it even more so was that said serial killer was a nutcase who wanted to sacrifice women to bring his own daughter back from the dead in some twisted "The Mummy Returns" scenario which absolutely made no sense in this very progressive drama.

Of course Wenli was captured and though she retained some of her old characteristics, much of her acting until she was rescued was like some completely different person. It felt like for a solid half hour I was watching a totally different show. There was also a huge inconsistency, in the second to last episode where Ding Rushan had come into their home and cut the phone cord so no one could call, yet in that last episode when Taozi tried calling home to warn Wenli, the phone rang like the line was never cut. Another minor inconsistency was that Wenli was filthy rich but would wear a lot of the same clothing over and over again, even though she had a massive walk-in closet with racks of clothing. It didn't make sense for her to wear the same outfit 2 or even 3 times.

This pivotal point when Wenli finds out where the body of her sister is and the entire mystery is finally solved, the gravitas is completely lost because of this completely out of character and off topic scenario and it makes me sad because it should have been so much stronger than that. It lost its humor, quality, and any actual logic. Thankfully afterwards it regained its previous momentum to be able to finish the last 25 minutes in the same style as what got me hooked to it in the first place.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely. That one portion of the very last episode doesn't drown out the rest of this aesthetically pleasing and truly remarkable series that will have you rolling around laughing at the absurd situations, subtle yet very obvious flirting and romance of our leads, jealous and chivalrous moments of Qiuheng, and just fall in love with this bunch of people who, though not blood, are truly a family in the best sense of the word.

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For those who love a mature and good detective drama (without much CP)

There have been quite alot of detective cdramas released recently, although I have not watched them all, yet this should be my favorite for 2020 ^_^ The main reason that I love it:-- it focuses more on the FL's life and murder cases, and less on the romance. The script and pacing are even throughout the drama, unlike some other detective cdramas where it ends in a cliffhanger (Detective L.... for hinting at a master villain throughout but nothing happen) or plot turns ridiculous at the end (When a Snail Falls in Love). The comedy is done well too, not too much, just at the appropriate moments. My fav comedy is in the 2nd last episode ;) which was quite unexpected as the story was very tensed at that point, yet the comedy was actually logical and required in order for the plot to move on.

My highest praise is for the sets and costumes!! The production team has put alot of thought into making this as believable and realistic as possible. The cars, costumes and setting of every room and hall are so 1940s Shanghai-style and GORGEOUS. Ironically though, ML looks better in the pink convertible than FL ;p You will love the murder at the dressmaker: for the beautiful dresses and designs. Although I do not like the murder of the painter case, that painting of the sleeping beauty is so artistic and beautiful, I have to agree it is "to kill for".

The cast put up an excellent performance. I especially love the FL: the way she walks and talks is so sophisticated and charming. True, Ma Yili does not look 'drop-dead gorgeous' here... as this is modeled after Miss Fisher, who is someone described as so beautiful and flirtatious. But in real life, attractive women might not always be the best looking. Miss Su's charm is in the way she carries herself (confidence), her world view and knowledge, and knowing what dresses suit her figure. I'm sure you know of at least 1 or 2 such friends, who are quite average looking but attracts opp sex like honey to bees because of her charisma.... Ma Yili / Miss Su is such. If this is not attractive to you, there is the ML, Gao Weiguang in 1940s coat and suit.

The negative point about the drama is the murder cases.... not all of the cases are good. Especially a few of the cases in the 1st half. After the great start (the first case), there are a few duds. You know the kind, over complicated murder plan with very unbelievable killer motivation. Thankfully there are some really good cases. I especially like the murder at the factory, and murder at the dressmaker. The killers' motivations in both cases were unexpected yet logical ;)

The other negative point of the drama, it lacks the X factor. In spite of the amazing cast, good script and beautiful cinematography, I actually pause a few days in between episodes in the first half (between ep 5 to 15). I have started on this drama after it was completed. I could have binge it, but it did not have that pull factor for me. Which is quite strange... considering I do rate this drama very highly. If you have watched this drama, and feel the same way, could you explain why? It is like drinking champagne: you enjoy it when drinking, but do not feel the desire to order it every time.

Finally if anyone is haunted by the ending theme song, I found it at youtube:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-65emeeFJZ4 窥望 by Sa Ji. And https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsihvx2KQT0 迷惑 by Ye Xuanqing If you understand Chinese, the lyrics in the songs describe the drama well.

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Miss S - Sparking, Sensational & Spectacular!

Miss S is truly such a wonderful series. The attention to detail in the set, costumes and even jewellery bring Miss S and her Republican era Shanghai to life - with much pizzazz. Who could not like murder-she-wrote set in the International Concession during 1920s Shanghai?

I am a big fan of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and this Chinese adaptation really did the series (and books) justice - I dare say it's even better.

The storylines were interesting although they did kind of lose the plot (pun intented) towards the end, I was in it for the characters, the Shanghai immersion and the simmering chemistry between the two leads. Honestly, Ma Yi Li and Gao Wei Guang did SUCH a great job in their roles. Even the supporting staff were not less sparkling. And the cheong sams! The cheong sams that Ma Yi Li wore (and she wore them so well) deserve an award of their own.

An altogether fabulous series.

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Female detective meets male policeman, solving crimes together in Shanghai

I like the genre of mystery/crime but only watch American shows.Decided to give this a try and this was a great watch! It was definitely really interesting and the cases: some i can remember, on a train, in a club, in a clothing store, in a circus, in a magazine company, radio station, in a factory.

Cast: Female lead actress Ma Yali. She played the character so well! She is so extravagant, flirty, daring, brave and very observing, she is over the top , but thats why I love her. Her character is also so funny. Her dresses and qi pao are so pretty! They suit her so well. Also she has minimal eye makeup, but still looked so good.
Male lead actor Vengo Gao. tall, Handsome, cool, police. I also like his outfit too, really tailored for him.

Second female lead aka the maid/assistant- helps with figuring/solving of the crimes.She is good at cooking and sewing
Second male lead - He's the police under the Male lead. He is cute, dorky and awkward but lovable. The relationship between the second leads is super cute too, a very simple, puppy love hehe.

Each story was 2-3 episodes longs and they were all very interesting. Takes me back to the old days :) I really liked how many of them they pretend to be spies and tried to get into the place to get more information about the murders.

Romance- hardly any, but definitely its ambiguous, aka ai mei between the two main leads. lol she is trying to always butt into the cases and the male lead always tries to stop her. The second pair, is a simple puppy love. They like each other ;) In the last ep, the female and male lead finally kissed !!!

I recently watched Miss gu who is silent! I prefer this drama Miss S over that one! This one was more fun and light hearted. Miss Gu the end didnt make sense and it was just one mystery drama.

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Miss S is a World Class Tele-Series

Gao Weiguang is a truly wonderful and a very versatile actor as Police Superintendent Law Enforcer as an instinctively savvy gentleman. Ma Yi Li as a very worldly, avant garde and equally instinctively sophisticated socialite, whose young life was marred by tragedy portraying the title lead heroine of the of the episodic drama was top-notch. The immense chemistry infused with that intense camaraderie in the portrayals of the entire cast is testament that talent and adaptive skills on characters is an ingredient, which makes an on-screen masterpiece. The murder mystery series has a very modern vibe albeit set in the Republican Era. A must watch now on HBO. We are keeping our fingers crossed for another season.

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Great Chemistry between Leads & Exciting Mini Plots

I chanced upon this drama while looking for something worthwhile to watch and I’m so thrilled that I chanced upon this and that I watched it!! This drama is definitely a great watch and I highly recommend it to everyone!

This drama is super awesome and I want to shout it out to everyone! It seems that this drama is fairly under the radar and I want to make it known to all drama lovers!!!

Must watch because:
- Miss S is adorable in this show. Personally, I found her very likable.
- Detective (the male lead) is very tall and impressive. He is extremely manly. Wow!!
- Chemistry between the leads is sizzling. I liked that their relationship seemed to evolve very organically in the show. Their relationship seemed natural and mature. It was a hot relationship despite it being chaste. I loved watching them both on the screen.
- The different mini stories are exciting and suspenseful. I couldn’t wait to watch the next episode and then, the next episode! The plot lines are interesting and engaging. They keep you guessing as to whodunit!!
- I liked that the gore and gruesomeness was kept to a minimum. I’m a timid person and steer clear of horror shows. This show has scary elements but it’s not out to terrify viewers. It’s out to thrill, tease and tantalize. This show is super exciting!
- The other supporting characters on Miss S’ team are also very likable.
- Everything is well-linked and nicely explained.
- The cast acted very well.

On the whole, I love this show. I love the couple! I highly recommend this drama to all drama lovers! Please watch! It’s wonderful!

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A light, fun watch that never tries to be anything more than it is

I just watched this drama on HBO Max, and I *thoroughly* enjoyed it!

PROS:
-Everyone's already said this, but the costuming and set design are phenomenal! Su Wenli looks gorgeous in her period dresses, while Vengo looks mighty fine in his tailored suits. The design crew did an amazing job of taking the viewer into the era-- there's hardly a moment in the series that doesn't feel like 1930's-ish Shanghai.
-The mysteries are well-written and interesting. I guessed the murderer in a few of the episodes, but not all of them. I think that's a healthy balance. The plotlines aren't necessarily unique if you've seen other detective shows before, but the setting of Republican-era Shanghai and the focus on the unique culture of the time makes them refreshing and interesting. I think the only mystery that I didn't enjoy was the dressmaker mystery-- they gave a very obvious hint early on in the first part of the mystery who the perpetrator was and then ignored it, so I was disappointed that a) no one ever brought it up again, and b) that I knew who the murderer was from twenty minutes into the first part :(
-The romance is SO well done! I love how Su Wenli and Inspector Luo flirt with each other XD I also really appreciated the buildup of the romance-- they start with light flirting, then they slowly become more vulnerable with each other, then the flirting escalates, then they get more "couple-y" with each other. It felt very natural. Vengo Gao and Ma Yi Li also have awesome chemistry together.
-Ma Yi Li's character is really well-written. She is a strong, intelligent, capable woman who is also capable of being vulnerable. She saves herself a lot, but she can't always save herself. I appreciated the message that she's not a damsel in distress, but she knows her own limits and will ask for help when she reaches them. I feel like this was epitomized in the final episode (BIG SPOILER AHEAD):


she actually saved herself from Ding Rushan. She got in his head so he and his partner turned on each other. She was already safe from them by the time Luo escaped from his cell. Then he helped by finishing the job and trying to find a way out. Then they were saved by the police.

Asking and utilizing the help available makes Su Wenli a stronger heroine. One of my biggest pet peeves are "feminist" FLs who are actually just hypermasculine-- they beat up all the bad guys, are never emotionally vulnerable for one second, won't accept anyone's help ever, etc. These traits are mostly fine on their own, but are unrealistic all together. Su Wenli is a much more realistic "strong, independent woman".
-All the characters are likable and normal. They're intelligent and capable at their respective jobs. Even though Su Wenli is usually the one to solve the case, we see that Inspector Luo is also very capable and professional at his job.
-The music is super fun :)

CONS:
-If you're watching this for the romance, you might be disappointed. The romance is really an afterthought to the rest of the plotlines-- it is a detective drama and not a romance, after all.
-Some of the cases were really predictable. I'd say the majority were fresh and interesting, but some of them had annoying characters and predictable endings.
-SPOILER ALERT: I felt like the finale tied things up nicely, but I wasn't a fan of the archaeology/resurrection spell/an entire freaking TOMB underneath the university that apparently nobody noticed parts of it. The plotline was starkly different from the feel of the entire rest of the drama. It felt out of place to me. It was too supernatural for my taste.
The tomb really bothered me. It was SO unrealistic that someone could build an entire secret tomb with toxic gas that somehow NOBODY noticed??? Like what?

Overall, I highly recommend this drama. It's got good writing, great leads, an interesting story, great acting, Vengo Gao wearing tailored suits and coats (starts to drool XD), and it doesn't take itself too seriously.

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extremely fun show with mature, realistic romance that is held back by weak writing

a very light mystery show that does not demand very much from its audience and places an emphasis on character development. if you're looking for a logical, clinical mystery thriller, don't watch this haha (instead maybe watch the bad kids!).

i first watched this for gao weiguang and expected to skip through it until i saw his parts (the way i had for fuyao...i skipped 12 whole episodes at one point lol), but i actually ended up loving the entire cast and i look forward to following their work in the future.

the writing itself isn't terrible. i think the main and supporting characters had interesting developments.
ma yili as su wenli really carried the show on her shoulders. ppl say she overacts as su wenli but i personally don't think so. she was so much fun, and her character was so likable. she doesn't fall into the tropes many leading women fall under--the tragic, the airhead, the mary sue with 0 personality... she feels so real. if you don't like her at first sight then you should drop the show haha. because it's really all about her! her hopes and dreams and happiness and flamboyance and of course the people she loves.

her relationship with gao weiguang's character luo-tanzhang was very mature. there aren't cliche misunderstandings or maudlin arguments that devolve into cry screaming or excessive drama. they are both older people, and luo-tanzhang is a subdued character to balance out su wenli's radiant energy. they are simply two capable, ambitious people who love each other. what i love about this show is that you can't exactly pinpoint when they start seriously dating. nothing is ever said outright. but suddenly they're being vulnerable to each other and other characters start expecting to see them together whenever there's a crime...it's so refreshing. i really would recommend this show to someone who really wants a breath of fresh air romance-wise or if they can't vibe with trope-filled and dramatic romances.

support characters are given their own developments as well. i believe taozi is an incredible example of this. she was one of my favorite support roles! she's beautiful first off, and her character changes so dramatically from a shy and timid girl to a confident and capable young woman. it's so subtle but it's so amazing!

above all neither su wenli or taozi experience traumatic gendered violence that often happens in dramas with women leads. there is a pretty annoying case regarding an ex-lover on su wenli's side that i think was written lazily and made su wenli uncharacteristically frail for two episodes but that's the only thing i can think of. the writing often veers from such poignant character development and careful treatment of certain subjects (the arc that dealt with sex work handled it with such grace that it caught me off-guard; i was ready for the worst!) to absolute ass. the ex-lover arc is one example of this as i said before, as well as the treatment of a nonbinary character in a later arc (referred to as a 'hermaphrodite' in my eng subs -__-) and the writing of someone with mental disabilities (this was especially egregious...what'd they say to the actor? 'act like you have developmental issues'????) really made me wonder if the show fired their writers and rehired them or something. those setbacks are one of the main reasons why i wouldn't wholeheartedly recommend this show to anyone.

for me, however, the acting, the characters, and the overall production (which was kind of cheap LOL but it wasn't too bad!) outweighed the fairly large flaws for me. i don't know if this will be the same thing for others. but i really do urge you to check this out if you're looking for something different. do keep in mind that some cases involve child abuse and sexual assault and may heavily imply these instances through flashbacks onscreen.

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This is one thoroughly enjoyable series. Watch this if you’re mystery buff. Watch it even if you’re not a mystery buff. It’s not quite polished, but still a good step towards bringing more of the whodunnit subgenre to Asian viewers.

The murder cases themselves aren’t exactly mind blowing, mainly because the source material (Kerry Greenwood’s Miss Fisher) isn’t the best. The way the screenwriters work the clues into the dialogue is clumsy and very obvious. If you are truly a mystery buff, you will correctly guess the murderer every time. There are flaws in the logic, but the story moves along so fast you'll hardly have time to dwell on them. The show wants viewers to think, but not overthink.

A lot of effort goes into the sets and costumes. I just can’t get used to this Candyland version of Shanghai. The colors are oversaturated and downright fake. The sets look too busy, especially the inside of Miss Su’s mansion (that portrait in the main hall scares me). Instead of appearing classy, it comes off as cheap. The same goes for the clothing. If the designers would tone it down just a tad, the dresses would have been perfect.

The acting is mostly competent, if not a little unnatural at times. What makes this show a must-see is the sexual tension between the main leads, Ma Yi Li and Vengo Gao. As Miss Su and Detective Luo, they are a rare gem of a couple. Neither is the other one’s first love. They never say “I love you” outright. They don’t even declare their feelings. Their relationship builds slowly from case to case, culminating in the moment where Detective Luo pummels the bad guy, definitively saying “How dare you hit my woman!” And there’s nothing more intimate than a woman tenderly shaving a man who clearly does not need shaving. These two don’t need to lock lips to show that they are hot.

I love the series’ catchy theme song. It’s a jazzy instrumental that pays homage to the original Miss Fisher series.

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