1This review may contain spoilers
Some comparisons between the drama and the novel
At the time of writing this I have watched 28 out of 30 of the episodes of the drama. Some none spoilery thoughts :- I love the main leads. The acting is great and both are very good looking. (I am a big Jeremy fan)
- The drama within a drama about the love between Grand Tutor and the Princess is filmed so well, I would totally watch this if it was a real movie!
- The amnesia part went on for ages and I wish they spent more time on developing the love story between the leads once the anmesia resolves.
I ended up reading the novel because I felt the last episodes were rushed. Here are some differences that I found interesting.
Warning : Super spoilers of the drama and the book so don't read on unless you want to be spoiled!
The novel is 108 chapters and is the love story of Ting Zhou and Ming Wei, the Award Winning “King of Film” and the rookie actress. They act in 3 dramas/movies together which provide the background setting of the novel :
1) “Grand Chief Cabinet Minister” (iQiyi translation!), a tragic story of the Grand Tutor and the young Princess Ming Wah – Ting Zhou becomes so entrenched in his character that he goes into a psychosis where he believes he is the Grand Tutor and Ming Wei is the Princess, as in the drama. By chapter 42 we are out of the amnesia but in the drama this took up 2/3 of the episodes.
2) “Dragon King” – a sci fi story set in the future where Ming Wei is part of a space exploration team trying to "conquer" a new inhabitable planet and he is a Mythical creature that is some sort of Dragon Snake that inhabits and protects the sea on this planet. It’s described in detail just like the Grand Tutor Princess story and is actually quite engrossing (but also another tragic ending – under team command she “seduces” the Dragon King and betrays him and he is captured. He is angry and hurt but she thought it was better that he be captured than killed. She was trying to think of a way to free him but dies trying to protect him) Outside of the filming the romance is driven by him who is obviously developing feelings for her as Ting Zhou, but she is resistant because she doesn't want to confuse her feelings for the Grand Tutor with her developing feelings for Ting Zhou. There is a lot of push and pull in their relationship in this part but both the readers and the characters are clear that Ting Zhou is not Grand Tutor, and Ming Wei loves Grand Tutor but he has left, like an ex-boyfriend.
3) “White Snake” – based on a famous Chinese Legend (it’s been remade numerous times in real life). Ming Wei plays the White Snake that cultivated 1000 years to become human and falls in love with a human. In this version he dies and she thinks he reincarnates into another man so she marries him, only to find that in fact he reincarnated into the monk that was sent along to capture her. Ting Zhou plays both the human character and the monk in this movie. The movie is directed by Ting Zhou’s father. Outside of the filming Ting Zhou and Ming Wei are dating but in secret, they want to see each other (especially Ting Zhou who is head over heels) but to stay in character they stay apart. It's really steamy whenever they are together though!
After the amnesia ends in chapter 42, you essentially get 60+ chapters of Ting Zhou falling in love, wooing Ming Wei, and then being a crazy in love boyfriend! Once Ming Wei agrees to go out with him, he is like a sex crazed schoolboy and can’t stop kissing her. (He is 30 years old and never had a girlfriend before) I can’t even count how times they kissed, each time described in detail by the author. He is cold on the exterior throughout but with Ming Wei he is caring, thoughtful, madly in love and gets jealous of himself as the Grand Tutor.
Ming Qiao is quite different in the novel. She just graduated high school and goes to college to study Automobile Engineering, and is only a very small part in the novel. She is a cool, quiet girl with few words but loves her sister. She only interacted with Zhao Xiao a few times and it’s only hinted in the last chapter that he had shown some interest her and realises how pretty she is 3 years later at the Wedding. The drama elevated her into a whole second couple story line with Zhao Xiao that wasn’t in the novel.
Ming Wei’s biological father Xu Xiu took advantage of Ming Wei’s mother after she was drugged by some old rich CEO at a function where she was playing the Guzheng. She marries Ming Qiang, who is a motor mechanic but loved her and accepted that she was pregnant from the assault. Xu Xiu approached Ming Wei after his father commented that her smile was like Xu Xiu’s mother’s and Zhao Xiao gets DNA sample from her hair.
Zhao Xiao’s family is a lot better fleshed out in the book. The patriarch is actually Zhao Xiao’s grandfather. He has 2 sons, the first is Xu Xiu who has 2 sons, Zhao Xiao and his older brother. They all adore Ming Wei once they find out who she is but she keeps her distance from them all. Grandpa has a second son who is the father of Lin Lin and another brother who is the boyfriend of Wong Ying Ying. The brother’s character is merged with Ming Wei’s ex boyfriend in the drama. Therefore Lin Lin is Zhao Xiao’s cousin. She is a spoilt brat but only has a small role in the book. She comes back to pester Ting Zhou whilst he still has amnesia, and triggers Ming Wei to leave she is petrified that when he is no longer the Grand Tutor he would leave her. Lin Lin comes back later when Ming Wei and Ting Zhou are dating and tries to spill a drink on Ming Wei but the whole Xu family pretty much blocks her from interfering because they know they are dating in secret and the whole family loves Ming Wei. But she never calls Zhao Xiao her brother like in the drama.
In the novel we know the name of Ming Wei’s biological father by chapter 21. She only reluctantly acknowledges him because he gets into a near fatal accident on his way to visit her in hospital when she breaks her wrist filming another movie after White Snake.
Ting Zhou’s family always liked Ming Wei and was encouraging their son to pursue her. They never even interact with Lin Lin, so no scene where Ting Zhou’s mum gets pushed over by Ming Qiang. No Lin Lin slapping Ming Wei or Ming Qiao slapping Lin Lin.
Was there a proposal up to Episode 28? In the novel Ting Zhou was the presenter of the Best New Actress award at one of the big award nights, which Ming Wei won. After he presents her the award, he gets on one knee and says “I am changing career to become a Director. Miss Ming, I want to use the rest of my life to make a movie, will you be my female lead?” *swoon*
Finally, Ting Zhou never says whether he regains his memory as the Grand Tutor. In the wedding night scene just like in the drama he gets on his knees and says “your servant Mu Ting Zhou thank the Princess for marrying him” At that moment Ming Wei realises that Ting Zhou gets on one knee, but only the Grand Tutor gets on both knees, and concludes that he must remember, but still won’t call himself the Grand Tutor because he is still jealous of him/himself. End of novel.
So essentially the drama is based on the first 40 chapters and then is only very loosely based on the rest of the novel. Whoever adapted the drama must just have loved Grand Tutor a lot! I wonder what is in episode 29+30? Hope you found this interesting!
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When the drama becomes your reality
Be my princess is a contemporary rom-com starring Jeremy Tsui and Zhou Jie Qiong. Mu Tingzhou is regarded as the best actor in the industry while Ming Wei is a rookie. She gets the chance to act with the best actor in her debut drama but things complicate when Mu Tingzhou gets in an accident.
As Mu Tingzhou was a very dedicated actor, he researches too deeply for his character and gets attached to him, so he ends up remembering only that character's life after the accident. He starts taking himself as the "Grand Tutor" and Ming Wei as the "Princess Wei" in real, as it was in the drama. So this is how the story starts…
My thoughts —
✧ 50% main center is "Amnesia" so how is it? At the starting, it's all nonsensical thing but I still laughed at some points. It's like a trip ~ first its stupid so its funny, next it starts getting draggy and that's where you feel like "Ah! This is too much now" they should have shortened the amnesia's length. the extent of repetition is horrible
✧ The other 50% goes to romance. The main leads were Ming Wei (Zhou Jie Qiong) and Mu Tingzhou (Jeremy Tsui)… I had quite a love-hate relationship with these two characters. Did I felt their chemistry? Yes but No… for this moment I like them but for this part I hate them… I liked their historical parts more…
✧ for acting – Zhou jieqiong is better than my expectations and Jeremy Tsui went downhill this time… or maybe because I just saw him in the Autumn ballad last month where his character was far more better so that good impression of him is clouding my judgement now…
✧ The supporting roles has - Xiao Zhao (Hu Yun Hao) and Ming Qiao (Wu Jia Yi) who add some good comedy and they have their own story going on too which is often more interesting than the main couple. Infact I was loving them until…… they made it all awkward for me. Uff these unnecessary plot twists!
✧ the costumes and the setup. every angle looks so fairytale like, it's all designed to give you princess vibes especially Mu Tingzhou's house, like a royal mansion and this has a very lovely frame overall. They did well with the historical setup also
✧ And rant time… just when will they get tired of adding extra love triangles to the story. God! stop this stuff please!
I would say, this is a very mood dependent drama. If you're in the mood for particularly amnesia related thing or rom-coms with good faces, you will enjoy it. Just a heavy dose of cliche, sugar coated with strange elements. A story that starts with amnesia and ends on romance.
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Take a interesting character give his amnesia then make him with most boring persona. Voila!
I waited for this one... for a long time, ever since iqiyi released that special, and when it came out, I watched the first episodes, I thought it was worth it. Even though it starts with pretty much shitty CGI the overall look, story, pace, characters, acting... acting in acting was very good in the start.I was fully enjoying both the historical-modern parts, the traditions between then almost perfect.. and of course Jeremy's antiques, reasonable characters, budding romance, their interactions, chemistry, relationship dynamics everything was going so well, I was immersed and impressed just till it went boom to bluff.
Somewhat reasonable characters become unreasonable, chemistry almost non-existing, bombarding of cliches and annoying characters (I mean who likes bitchy sfl thrown in the mess in the middle of the drama who's supposed fashion designer with horrible fashion sense).. and the story eventually turned up boring and draggy... it could easily become 24 episodes drama than stretching it to 30 episodes.
As I was aware of amnesia having a large chunk of drama from the synopsis but was disappointed as MLs original persona came as much more interesting than his amnestic persona who was very typical 2-d character almost bland for my taste, Ming Wei's character isn't much of fun either that's why their pair was one of the most boring things that's why their tons of cute moments weren't heart-fluttering to me... and I mean if I can't even feel the main cp what's the point of the whole thing.
Though the acting in acting part was well done... but damn two prominent actors in the industry falling for the newbie female lead in her debut drama while starring with her isn't a bit.. or a lot lacking professionalism lol but then course FL should be the most beautiful and interesting person in the world as everyone ends up liking her. I adore the second couple... they were cute with a kinda typical but interesting and entertaining buildup.
I like Jeremy.. especially after the autumn ballad, he has his charm, his unique expression, and the eccentricity he adds to the character he plays.. but sometimes he outdid himself to the extent that it felt like overacting with repetition of the same expressions again and again, but excluding that overall, it was a good performance. But I missed his voice... production team did dirty by dubbing him. Zhou Jie Qiong did better than I expected but then Ming Wei wasn't a very complex character to play.
The production quality is very good, the sets, styling/costumes, and cinematography are well done, I liked the osts too not brilliant but pleasing.
It's well-produced but poorly executed... it had a lot of potential but lost due to repetitiveness... first episodes are good but don't raise expectations based on just that coz you'll end up getting disappointed as me. But if you like female lead getting treatment as princess throughout with many shinning armors saving her grace this it for you.
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Grand Tutor is in the house.
Dearest lovers,How does one become a princess? Find yourself a man who calls you his princess, and you will be one!
The drama ‘Be My Princess’ tells such a tale. What a lucky girl.
He is a famous actor with fame, awards, and money, while she is a part-time actress with none of those things. Jeremy Tsui and Zhou Jie Qiong (Kulkyung) are well-matched in this older man/younger woman drama. It has been mentioned that JT tends to overshadow his female leads. Not here. ZJQ holds her own with those expressive and dramatic eyes.
Anyway, where was I? Ah yes, back to the drama. He casts her to be his female lead in his latest work, ‘Grand Chief Cabinet Minister’, despite her lack of experience. Once the filming completes, he has an accident. It caused him to retain his memories as the character of ‘Grand Tutor’. Amnesia, I tell you dear one, is still in vogue in dramaland.
And this is where the fun begins. As part of his treatment plan, all the other characters must accept him as the Grand Tutor from the Ming Dynasty. We get to see him adapting to 21st-century life, finding his role in society, and taking care of his princess. The other fun bit was watching those around him, adjusting to the new normal – his manager/best friend, the princess, his caretaker and so forth.
I do note dear one, our 21st century Grand Tutor is one sharp dresser with impeccable manners. Oh, how I wish I meet such a man.
A few grumbles from yours truly. The drama could reduce the number of amnesia episodes and a little bit more time as himself in the final quarter. I would love to see him piecing together his “lost memories” as Grand Tutor and winning back his princess. Secondly, atrocious sound effects. The feet sounds are sore to my delicate ears. They were abnormally louder and mismatched. Third, damsel-in-distress. Someone is always saving our princess. Why dear writers? Let her be worthy of that crown. Finally, is the “evil stepsister”. She is so basic, that she simply whines, screams, and stomps her feet. My drama soul just yawns. Oh? Did you know she is meant to be a university student in her early 20s? They dress her up like a total old auntie. Fire that costume person!
Should you watch this drama? For a romance lover, it is a yes. Your eyes will feast at the beauty of the leads, your feelings will get cute warm fuzziness and your brain will have a rest.
Oh, be aware dear heart, episodes 1-28 are the actual story, with episodes 29-30 seen as “bonus” where they stitched the drama our leads were filming ‘Grand Chief Cabinet Minister’.
Signing off and I’m going back to watch my favourite bits,
Lady Ajumma.
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This is a unique C-drama that you can enjoy both modern and costume settings
I am a big fan of Jeremy so I must give perfect 10 ! I read few negative comments but I really enjoyed this drama due to unique set up. I always watch BTS after I finish the drama. BTS shows how hard they all worked together to make this drama and they made efforts to let us enjoy it. There are few hiccup but they were okay. Story lines were good and actings were good. Main CP and second CP had quite a age gap but it’s okay since there are variety of age differences in real couples.So if you like romance with lots of fast hart beating, you must watch this. And of course if you are fan of Jeremy, you must watch it. Story is not typical C-drama,and there aren’t not too many confusions except Ep 29&30. You can consider these last two episodes are total extra & bonus episodes and you can make your decision how last two episode meant.
The only thing I wished was, I wanted Jeremy’s real voice instead of dubbing. Jeremy has most sexy and low voice. So if you want to see his real voice drama, don’t miss ‘The Autumn Ballad’. It was sooooo good!
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The show that began my Jeremy obsession.
I am a sucker for love/hate relationships so when I saw this one - guy gets amnesia, falls in love with girl while he thinks he is a character he last played - I knew I had to give it a shot.Jeremy Tsui is perhaps one of the overlooked gems of Chinese dramas. He has the ability to play a serious role or a comedic role. He is perfect for the role of a rude, broody, handsome leading actor. When he spies the object of his desire - or the muse for his next drama in a hanfu on the side of the road - he knows he must have her. However, he is shy and his demeanor around women is somewhat cold. When he parts ways with her after they finish filming, you see the first of Jeremy's ability to 'cry' or show emotion. Then the car accident and you see the comedy bits, all while keeping a straight face he does ridiculous things as if he was from the past in the modern world. He has a brilliant voice and sadly his voice was dubbed for this one. But, his acting overall is top notch.
His actress, the one who plays the inexperienced but adorable co-star in his historical drama fits alongside him perfectly. I was able to enjoy her moments of shyness, growth, and frustration that translated into love for her co-star and the role he assumed after the accident.
There are gorgeous, steamy moments that have to do with glances, touches, and then finally kisses by Jeremy. One of the best kisses comes when she is shaving his face and she legit straddles him. The music is sensual, sexy and he makes his leading lady look like she has hooked a winner of a guy.
The overall story is spread into the following:
- First 7 episodes is meeting one another, followed by filming
- Next 7 are the car-accident and obsessing over his 'princess'
- Next 7 are him falling in love and what they do
- Next 7 are regaining his memories, figuring out what to do with his 'love' and if he remembers his memories
- Next two are the show finale
- Final two is the movie they filmed together and you see it in its entirety complete with the ending
I really recommend this because you go on a roller-coaster of emotions all thanks to Jeremy's acting and what our leading lady goes through.
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This review may contain spoilers
Something to laugh (a lot!) and cry with great acting
This is quite a unique and very funny comedy which manages to combine a modern setting with historical sequences without resorting to any of the overused time-travel or transmigration tropes.
In this drama a method actor who gets a bit too immersed in his roles has amnesia due to an accident just after completing his latest historical drama. His only memories are those of his role as The Grand Tutor and the elaborate backstory that he has created for himself and the other characters of the filmed drama (all written down in his little notebook).
Watching the first few episodes I was wondering how much of the lead actor’s behaviour is actually a parody of himself. It felt very tongue-in-cheek.
Sequences in the historical setting continue throughout the drama, either as flashback memories of the ML or as dream sequences of either the FL or the ML.
The FL manages to perfectly bring across the cute and innocent side of a rookie actress without being the cliched silly and overly bubbly female that haunts so many c-dramas. She has to learn a lot about the movie business but at the same time she is very clear about what she wants and what she doesn’t want. Over the course of the drama we see her mature quite a lot.
The amnesia of the ML provides some good comedy as he discovers the “strange new world”. The scene with the rolling chair had me in stitches. Jeremy Tsui comic timing is absolutely perfect. Whenever he acts as The Grand Tutor in the modern world it feels like a parody of his film-persona. I’ve seen in some comments people saying that he is overacting, but I think it is done intentionally.
As they say, “comedy is repetition and repetition is comedy”. In the later episodes whenever the ML assumes that stiff facial expression of his historical character and says “your highness” I was already laughing!
There were a few very sad episodes, despite this being a comedy. The heartbreak of both leads was palpable even if they expressed it very differently.
Inevitably for a C-drama, there is some added adversity for the main couple in the form of love rivals (none of them too serious or annoying) and family pressure.
Also noteworthy is the critical view of the drama on Chinese fandom culture where everyone is permanently glued to their news-feeds, fans are like harpies (that hunt in packs) and the smallest event in their private life can destroy an actor’s career. In an era where everyone talks so much about respect this lack of respect for the private life of celebrities is quite a contradiction. It was nice to see this issue of toxic fan-culture addressed in a drama.
The ending was decent (and happy) but felt a little bit rushed. The idea to put all the snippets from the first historical drama that brought them together in sequence to gift us a mini-version of this drama in the last two episodes was a very nice bonus.
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Jeremy Tsui very good acting
I started to know more about the actor Jeremy Tsui not long ago when watching one of his drama named Novoland Castle in the sky 2 and wasn't impressed by the story or the actors in it except for the good look of the male lead. But then i saw Autumn Ballad and was instently hooked to the plot, the actors and then i saw how Jeremy could shine like a star. His deep voice make me like him even more. In Be my princess, his voice his dubbed and can't enjoy it's richness but it made me discover and enjoy his acting even more. I'm at episode 28 and still not even bit tired of watching every minutes of this drama. For me, it's like candy. I like the story line and all the actors in it. The female an male support leads are as fun to watch as the 2 first protagnists. I like seeing all the mimics and facials expression Jeremy can make in this drama to portait The Grand Tutor and then himself. I like to see the little bit of the insight part at the beginning of each episode that let you interrogate yourself and understand to what's to come next and i like very much the song at the end of each episode "I will find a way". Finally, i recommend this drama to anyone who's craving for good, comic, romantic drama like me.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
I've never connected so much with any other C-drama
I didn’t think it was possible, but this C-drama rivals anything I’ve seen in a K-drama, and I almost missed this gem! I wasn’t going to watch because the storyline revolved around an actor/actress, and I’m not crazy about celebrities, in fiction or real life. However, on whim, I started watching, and I was quickly hooked. Although the plot is based on ML getting amnesia after a car accident (an overused plot device) and thinking he’s the character he just played, it was fresh, interesting and an absolute delight to watch. It’s more like a split personality rather than true amnesia, and like FL, I dreaded the day that ML returned to his true self. The Grand Tutor was…I don’t know how to describe it…he was unbelievably perfect and absolutely adorable. It’s like every woman’s dream – her favorite fictional character coming to life and falling in love with her! The romance was heart-squeezingly good (brought tears to my eyes), and it didn’t rely on the usual, worn-out, predictable tropes/cliches to do so. The chemistry between these two leads was palpable. Now to the characters themselves.Since I started watching Asian dramas, my all-time favorite ML was Ah Min Hyuk in ‘Strong Woman Do Bong Soon’ played by Park Hyung-Sik. No other character/actor have come close to dislodging him from #1 position and certainly not any Chinese ML, although Gu Yanzhen in Arsenal Military Academy and Zhou Chuan in Moonlight came darn close. Now, however, Min Min has to move over and share his #1 rating with the Grand Tutor/Mu Ting Zhou played by Jeremy Tsui. I absolutely loved this ML, and I don’t say that about a lot of Chinese MLs. The actor did an outstanding job bringing this character to life. This character was quirky and eccentric, making him a delight to watch! I loved how when acting as FL’s assistant, he carried around an umbrella as though it were a sword and wore his sunglasses on the back on his neck like a modern-day fella. He was always so respectful and caring toward his ‘princess’, and he shared some pretty hot kisses with her around episode 15 (sorry, can’t remember the exact episode). He brought so much dry humor to the series as both the Grand Tutor and Mu Ting Zhou. Really, he was the ‘COM’ portion of this Rom-Com since he was the only one providing any humor. Yes, he did break FL’s heart when he regained his senses (make sure you have a tissue box handy for eps. 21-22), and briefly became a cold-hearted bastard (worse than when we first met him), but by episode 23, he's had time to process what occurred and starts to feel curious about it. As a result, we start seeing his 'cuteness' again, especially at the start of ep. 24. Although it was painful to watch, from Ming Wei's perspective, could the real guy ever compete with the Grand Tutor at this point? Did she really want to remain in the relationship when the Grand Tutor was essentially dead? Mu Ting Zhou had some big shoes to fill.
As for FL (Ming Wei), at first, I didn’t care for her because I didn’t like how she looked with the dynasty hair style, but as the drama progressed, I warmed up to her. I liked her quiet, calm and mature nature, especially for a 23 year old. She wasn't childish or cutesy like a lot of C-drama FLs. Never once did she dissolved into baby talk, pout or 'hmpf'. She was nice, but unlike a lot of C-dramas, she wasn’t bullied by the other characters because of her niceness. Yeah, we had a couple of bitchy side characters, but she didn't take their crap (even told Xu Lin she'd kick her butt), and their harassment wasn't overdone like in other dramas. Ming Wei was sweet and kind, the perfect stereotypical fairytale princess. She maintained this sweet, honest, kind and mature air throughout, and I really connected with her dilemma and heartache. I wept with her at the Grand Tutor's departure.
I even liked and was interested in the second couple (Xiao Zhao & Ming Qiao). FL’s sister was spunky but not loud or annoying like a lot of C-drama besties. I liked her encouragement to FL to be brave and seek happiness while it’s there. I agree. You’re inevitably going to be hurt when Mu Ting Zhou recovers his memory so does it matter if it’s now or later? Just enjoy the Grand Tutor’s love while he’s with you. That’s essentially her sister’s advice. Carpe Diem!!! The drama didn’t focus too heavy on the second couple (until the 2nd half) so I didn’t fast forward through their screen time. Their romance and MC's were well balanced. I also liked the support these two provided to ML & FL. And three cheers for Xiao Zhao hammering home a few truths MTZ needed to hear about his responsibility in regards to Ming Wei's heartbreak.
Being a C-drama, we couldn't quite escape the perquisite drama devices, but they were toned down unlike other dramas that overdo the angst. Be prepared for the following:
1) Xu Lin - the childhood friend who's obsessed with MTZ. This chick is apparently older than both FL and her sister yet she's the one acting like a childish, spoiled brat. The men in her life apparently doted on her too much, and she's pissed when Ming Wei threatens her queen bee status. All Xu Lin brought to the drama was, well, a bunch of drama. The storyline didn’t need her, in my opinion, but Chinese scriptwriters seem to think we always have to have an obsessed female love rival to annoy the viewer. I was not at all upset when dad slapped her at one point; she needed some sense knocked into her.
2) Parental opposition on ML’s side to marriage while he was still the Grand Tutor, but in this case, I can understand their concern. What happens when MTZ wakes up and finds that he’s married to FL? It’s a valid concern, but the parents could have voiced their complaint in nicer terms instead of going bat crap crazy. Second couple also experienced parental opposition bc of parents backstory. I believe FL's mom and Xiao Zhao's dad's connection was added purely to cause angst for 2nd couple.
3) A scandal. Ming Wei suffers the fallout of MTZ regaining his senses, which affects her career until friends and an unlikely ally rescue her. Honestly, if I were a fan, I would be more upset that they broke up since they were a storybook couple that you love seeing together. I'd be ragging on MTZ, not Ming Wei, but in these dramas, it's always the female that suffers the most in these media scandals.
My favorite scene was when ML/FL were getting married in episode 28. I loved the traditional dynasty procession down the street with FL/ML family and friends watching and waving while that wonderful song 'By Your Side' played. It was as if their characters (the princess and Grand Tutor) were finally getting a happy ending as well. (FYI - if Grand Chief Cabinet Minister was an actual drama, I wouldn't have watched it. I hate tragic endings. The last two episodes appear to be that story told in its entirety - all the clips you see in other episodes come together into a short drama.)
Finally, the music was fabulous! It really boosted the emotional connection between characters and viewer.
If I could give this drama 20 stars, I would. Yes, it could have been shorter, but for once, I didn’t get fatigued midway, and I was sorry to say goodbye to the Grand Tutor and his princess. Just wish we'd been able to see the birth of Mu Ming and his sister.
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This review may contain spoilers
Jeremy Xu looking so fine! Light romcom w/amnesia plot that’s refreshing…
I started this drama for Jeremy Xu coz i luv luv him in TAB… this drama however isn’t as good as TAB, but it has its moments that overall i still enjoyed it…What i like:
- Jeremy Xu… he is a good actor n he suited this character… i like his comedic style, he is very funny as long as he doesn’t overdo it… n visually he is just so goodlooking, he looks so dashing in his modern clothes…
- The FL is a perfect princess, she looks gorgeous n i like her outfits in this (though it’s kinda questionable how a newbie actress can afford all of those?) acting wise she is ok, her character isn’t that complicated, so IMO she suits as MingWei/Princess n i liked her in this…
- The chemistry is ok, i enjoyed their moments… n ofcourse visually they look so good together… there r some funny cute romantic scenes n even some skinships+hot kisses…
- I’m not a big fan of amnesia plot, but they do it ok in this drama… maybe coz ML is totally dedicated to FL… i hate in a drama where the ML has amnesia n can be manipulated by other people, but not here, at least not the most part… there are maybe 2super angsty eps somewhere in the last third part of the drama where ML finally got his memories back n totally forgot FL, but it didn’t take that long b4 he fell for her again, in reality this time…
- Not that angsty luv triangle… SML is a good guy, he likes FL a lot but no dirty tricks, so when she rejects her coz she only sees him as a friend, he just accepts that, no drama… SFL is a bit annoying, she is ML’s childhood friend, so she tries hard when he has amnesia n tries to make people think that there’s something between them when he only sees her a sister, but it never works anyway…
- I really like the relationship between FL & her sis and ML & his agent/best friend… we all need that kind of loyal people in our lives that’s always there, stand up for us n support us in every way… n those 2 people r also the sidecouple, so an extra romance side story with a HE…
What i don’t really like:
- Jeremy Xu was dubbed! Like why? His real voice is so good!
- I wish they didn’t use the amnesia plot too long… honestly i prefer to see them together in reality instead of when he still thinks her as a princess… i know everyone wants to be treated as princess in a way so maybe that’s why they wanna treat us with this part, but hearing him call her “Princess” in reality for so many times somehow annoys me…
- The last 2eps of the historical drama, the drama they shoot inside this drama, were a bit of a waste for me… coz there’s almost nothing new in it, just that they compile the scenes they shoot n make it those 2eps… at least they give us an extra scene of their HE in that, but i think they could give us a bit of their real life after the wedding, like how they as famous celebs being together in front of people n what r people’s reactions to it… n also how FL got ML’s parents to approve her, we only saw how much his parents not exactly liking her in their interactions… just some montages in the end would’ve been nice…
- SFL is supposed to be a fashion designer, but she looks so bad… her style n her hair like what?
Overal i enjoyed it… if they had given us more time of them in the scenes together b4 the amnesia, it would’ve been much much better… the amnesia part was just too long n it kinda weird to think that in a way FL fell in luv with a character instead of the real ML (eventhough in the end it’s kinda explained that actually the character is just the real side of ML that nobody actually knows, so she actually luv both sides of ML)… anyway, if u r looking for a light romantic drama with some cute romantic scenes between really goodlooking leads, then u can try this out… i like it…
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This review may contain spoilers
Unique Plot, Great Production, Very Good Actors - Watch out for Ep.14-16!
I've seen a lot of dramas already but this is the only drama that made love the production, bad CGI but very good production. Imagine having to prepare for the historical and urban setting, the costumes, make-up and places. They're repetitive but still they were able to make it look really good. Not to mention seeing 3 dramas in one! I'm just so glad they let us see the Grand Chief Cabinet Minister and Butterfly Lovers as the drama itself, and the dramas are of good quality, the stories of each are great too! I would love to see them in an independent series.Jeremy Tsui release two dramas this year, The Autumn Ballad and Be My Princess. I waited for a long time for romance to happen in TAB but in BMP, they served it right away. Mu Yun/ Mu Tingzhou's love and dedication is superb, kind of hard to find a special someone after seeing that. His acting and expressions were great for both drama, but he did better in TAB, no complains though. As for Zhou Jieqiong, she is really beautiful in the drama, her acting was also great though there's nothing really special about it.
For secondary characters, I like how 2nd ML carried himself, not a fan of the 2nd FL and I appreciated Xu Lin's acting when her father told her the big news.
My takeaway is the annoying ex-boyfriend and family plot twist. I just find in unnecessary. The amnesia is too long since they still have that family plot twist at the near end, but if they had omitted that part and gave way to discovering again his love for Ming Wei after he regained his memory, it would be okay.
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A fresh intake at love in three lifetimes... sans reincarnation or time travel
Not your usual amnesia C-drama...Amnesia may still be vogue in drama-land, but this one may be the best I have seen so far... thanks to a slightly different concept and superb acting!
I chanced upon this drama after watching Miss Truth only recently and was looking for another drama by the same actress (I love her expressive eyes). To find her paired up with Jeremy Xu from The Autumn Ballad was such a delight! In this drama, we got to see the many faces of Jeremy, and it is quite amazing.
The combination of a historical drama within a modern drama reminded me of One & Only + Forever and Ever... without having to go through reincarnation... The love story between the ML & FL all happens in one lifetime... but it may have felt like 3 different lives... due to the ML losing part of his memory in each arc...
I love all the characters including Aunt Zhao, she was like the fairy godmother (appearing when needed) with her unwavering support to the couple from the very first day ... I guess everyone will hate Xu Lin, the fashion designer with the worst dress sense... one of her outfit (black with super big white collars) make her looks like a vampire!
It may not be a perfect storyline for everyone... but I find it enjoyable... I binged watched it in 3 days, it makes me laugh and cry... exactly the thing I need after four stressful weeks...
The trailer may look rather cheesy... but there is depth to the story... imagine if this truly happens to you or someone you know...
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