The plot seemed very intriguing and engaging right from the start and we follow Liu Xiu's and Lihua's journey through the whole drama, from the moment they find each other after long time through many fights together against the current Emperor and for the people till he finally became an Emperor himself and then with classic palace intrigues, we live the life in palace with them. I wanted to learn and find more about this part of Chinese history as I was interested to hear more about her, about that woman who was a true companion for her man and who became an Empress with humble and pure heart. And it did live up to my expectations.
Let me tell you something about the leads and characters they played. Honestly you don't get to see such fantastic leads often in some drama, who carried the heaviest roles, who acted so believable to the point I literally wanted to wipe off their tears, kiss their foreheads, hug them tightly and smile with them when they were happy, they really engraved in my heart for a lifetime. Lihua and Liu Xiu deserve the title of the best couple ever in whole historical dramaland. I simply couldn't take my eyes off of them. Their relationship that is built on ultimate trust and honesty above all, so strong that nothing could destroy it. I really appreciate that between the couples. I became to feel respect for Liu Xiu cause he treated Lihua with such love and care, with such relaxing and positive attitude, he didn't care when she pretended to be a guy as he didn't care when she stopped pretending because for him she was one and only Lihua who he loved since he was a kid, he loved his men all equally and he trusted them, he wasn't jealous when Lihua was alone with them, the only woman between men and still he had real trust in all of them. For me that was the biggest strength of this drama, one big comradeship, men who fight for one cause and who built such powerful friendship along the way. Really worth seeing and experiencing that.
Not to mention chemistry between our leads, it was electrifying, you could feel it in your bones from their every move and I came to wonder how it's possible that Ruby and Justin are only friends? Amazing actors indeed. Justin has been my favourite Chinese actor since Scarlet Heart but Ruby, I didn't think she was this good, the woman is outstanding actress, that's for sure. Her gracious figure when she was a Lady Yin in the palace, her coldness and calmness when it was needed, her passion and courage in battles, her endless love for her family, she was the actual hero of this drama and she carried all of it. I don't think I've seen till now female character like hers, that much educated, smart, brave, loyal, tomboyish yet feminine, strong yet fragile, lovable yet very strict and someone who was selfless when it came to her family and closest people she loved. The one woman I'll admire forever. Yes in some scenes she exaggerated, all of the sudden she acted weird and not like before, that's when I thought that this drama has some flaws but most of the time I could totally relate to her and understand her.
This drama is also very good cause of the females, you get to see many intelligent and strong women who were most of the times more brave and smart than men which is a rare thing to experience in dramaland. Hu Po, Ding Rou I completely loved, those two girls were such support to our heroine and the ones who were beside her all the time never abandoning her. They are supporting characters but they mean so much, without them this drama wouldn't be the same. I enjoyed in their love stories too, one with Lihua's brother who was such adorable and wonderful guy, and the other one with Gongsun, Liu Xiu's best friend and most loyal general.
What was one of the biggest strength of SaA is family. Bonding between members of a family, between Liu Xui and his brothers, sister and mother, between Lihua and her brothers and mother, between them and Deng's, it was such wonderful sight, watching so many family members being so close and taking care of each other. For me Lihua and her family were the ones that captured me, they gave me feelings of warmness, coziness, feeling of home, I really fell in love with them and their relationship, every one of them had important role and each one of them simply crawls under your skin. I cried so hard when some of them died, I felt like my heart was ripping apart when some events happened and the way they happened, I really think that my heart died a few times during this drama and that's when I knew that this drama will become one of my all time favourite.
Many scenes were so real, battles were done in very good way, effects pretty realistic, sceneries breathtaking with beautiful usage of colours-red, blue and green, astonishing costumes, I wanted so much to try at least one of those dresses, everything seemed really on high level with high budget. For that part I don't have complaints.
Also music, opening and ending songs are so beautiful, the lyrics are among the most powerful I've heard and they have such deep meaning, every time I listened to them I get goosebumps. They fit perfectly with the drama and its plot.
I think I said everything I wanted to say, I think SaA is definitely a drama worth watching cause you don't get to see lead characters like that every day. And you don't get to see relationship building like that every day nor such comradeship and brotherhood. Those things are for sure the ones that will win you and keep you interested to watch it till the end. Despite all the plot holes and some really stupid characters and happenings. I would love for more dramas like this one, please.
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Story -- The drama started out very interesting and probably the first 10 episodes I was sucked right in. It did start to get slow though, and at certain points I didn't even feel like watching anymore, but I pushed through! Later on it did get a lot better and I was super interested again, so you just have to be patient. In general, the plot is a bit like the typical periodical/historical Chinese dramas--there's always the kind-hearted female lead and the anti who wants to ruin everything and get revenge.
Acting/Cast -- I never doubt Ruby Lin's choice when she picks her own actors/actresses for the dramas. They always do a great job and bring the characters to life. Yuan Hong was a great choice for the main lead; I haven't really seen his previous works but this one was enough for me to recognize his great acting skills. Honestly, the only one I have to nitpick about is her eldest brother. His acting was really off-putting, like... I couldn't tell if his acting was just that bad or if his character was just so shitty?? (excuse my language).
Music -- there weren't really any OSTs in this one, I was surprised. There was really only the opening theme and ending theme, which were also used as insert songs. There were also variations of the song sang by other singers, but I prefer the original singers.
TLDR; This is a good watch overall, but the middle gets a bit slow and boring, just a warning! The acting is great, don't worry about it. Basically the drama just gets draggy in the middle and is a bit lengthy but it starts and ends great (which is a bonus because who likes to have terrible endings!!).
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What can I say about Singing Along that would do this drama justice, probably nothing. I had this drama on y plan to watch for the last 3 years and every year I kept starting episode one and then putting back on hold. But to quench my thirst of waiting for Legend of Fuyao I picked this drama up again. And man that was the best decision I ever had. I binge watch this drama from all of Friday to now without sleep. Why you may ask well because it had been a long time since I had been so invested in characters struggles and victories.
Yin Li Hua and Lui Wenshu truly deserved their titles of beloved pair. But the beauty of this drama doesn't simply lay in the romance that will surely make you wish you had something similar. But the love and camaderies between family and friends is one of the reason this drama stand so tall. Your heart will break at the reality of war that is portrayed here. I have nothing but praise for the all cast. The lead truly lead and the supporting cast truly supported. Like I say I just need needed to give my two cents on this drama. I going to go to try to collect myself back and mourn the end of this drama and all the tears that I shed then I will go to bed.
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Highly Underrated
SINGING ALL ALONG (Xiuli Jiangshan) was a fantastic historical show. It seems to be highly underrated as well. The opening credits, on the other hand, were less than great and I've heard people dropping this show for that reason alone. Please don't! Give this show a chance. It was so amazing and well-made, absolutely unforgettable. Although it took a few episodes to really pull me in, once I was hooked—I was really hooked. Such a great series. Once I had finished it, I am now looking to buy this for my personal C-drama dvd collection for another rewatch (& many more). Hopefully I can find it available in my location.I think I really love how complex and mature this show felt. The writing, story and overall plot were all so great and rarely relied on drama clichés to keep it interesting. But for a few brief times, rarely did it feel sappy or melodramatic for that matter. It was super immersive. I love that the focus primarily was on world politics, military strategies, warfare tactics, district relations, moral causes, etc. rather than merely relying on the romance too heavily. It gave the show a sense of realism. While there were definite themes of romance it never felt silly or immature.
The casting was amazing. I loved so many characters. The characters of Yin Li Hua and Lui Xui / Wen Shu were so great. I loved Ruby Lin and Yuan Hong in this, as they were perfectly casted for the two main leads. They were a true power couple in my opinion. The rest of cast was stellar as well. Overall I adored this series. It was unforgettable.
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Sometimes Li hua is just too forgiving & Wen shu keep on hurting her.... this drama has really good supporting actors & actresses. You know sometimes it’s really fun to watch the other supporting side stories. This drama also have really big boom here and there that can be unbelievable, you can take it if you love dramatic. Watched this for Ruby, not really regret, but better if the drama is only 25 episodes, lesser episodes. Not bad as ancient period drama but not Ruby best drama I watched so far.
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Not my kind of drama - 70% Wars/Battles + 30% Palace Politics & Scheming
Overall Rating: 7.0Subjective Rating: 5.0
Objective Rating 8.0
Instead of just looking at my rating, please read my reasoning first. This is a very difficult drama to rate because it’s not that “Singing All Along” is a horrible drama, instead it’s a solid one. It’s just that I am not in the mood and it’s not my cup of tea. Since I watched this as part of a challenge, I did not drop it.
Why did I not like it? My biggest criticism is that the drama spent 70% of its time in wars/deserts/battles, and then the other 30% in palace politics, scheming evilness and harem fights. Not that I don’t like any of this, as I expected them in a C-drama historical drama. My dislike is the uneven distribution of these elements. 70% of wars and battles is too much for my liking. After a while, everything feels repetitive. As a romance lover, sometimes romance can help me get through some of these more serious elements. Unfortunately, the romance does not move me, despite a solid and faithful relationship between the leads. I was never too sad, emotional, happy, or giggly. For someone who usually doesn’t skip scenes or increase the speed, I ended up watching most of the drama at 1.25-1.5x speed, and then 1.75x in the last episode so that I can finish this ASAP. I wasn’t even paying much attention. This drama has become background noise to me. And because of that, I am giving it a subjective rating of 5.0 - purely based on my viewing enjoyment.
However, that would not be a fair rating for a pretty good drama. If I have to rate this objectively, there are also many elements I enjoy.
-Strong female lead, mentally and physically. Yin Li Hua is a consistently strong female warrior from start to end. She was never the damsel in distress and she actually saved the day a few times.
-Other few strong female characters - those who are smart and can fight.
-Good acting all around - from those with minor roles to our leads.
-Beautiful costumes and accessories (when they are not in battle gear).
-Surprisingly decent dubbing even though this drama is from 2016. I’ve seen some 2024 dramas with worse dubbing.
-I got to see baby Mao Zi Jun and Qin Jun Jie
Unfortunately, this is not the drama for me. But this could be a drama for you if you enjoy wars/battles and palace politics.
Completed: 4/20/2024 - Review #429
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I enjoy the scenes that reveal their closeness in their actual love and loyalty to each other with her at home or on the battlefield. It was really cool to see a strong female lead with skills like hers. I enjoyed her brothers and her friends and how the female lead had such a kind heart. It was actually refreshing. Overall I enjoyed the series. Would I watch it again? Probably not.
What I did not like about the series was that it was nonsensical to me. What I mean by that is after a major event happened we as a viewers witness something that the average person would not tolerate. But what we see is a person that is motivated by love to except a circumstance that many would not except. For me it just seem to shout that love replaces dignity. I really didn’t enjoy that hard at all.
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This review may contain spoilers
Singing all along is a great historical romance wuxia drama. The drama is based on Li Xin's 2007–2009 romantic novel series Xiuli Jiangshan and it depicts the love story of Liu Xiu/Emperor Guangwu of Han (played by Yuan Hong) and Yin Li Hua/Empress Guanglie of Han (played by Ruby Lin). The drama is a fantastic production with beautiful customs; well choreograph actions scenes, magnificent cinematography, and splendid casting that did a great job bringing their characters to life. The drama does get draggy at certain stages and, if the viewer is not into war strategies, it could become a bit overwhelming trying to follow all the generals and the different factions that were either working together and/or fighting along the way as Liu Xu combats his way into becoming emperor. Yin Li Hua, even when they were separated by circumstances against her will, always loved and supported Liu Xiu as they both realized their common dream. Liu Xiu and Yin Li Hua loved and supported each other steadfastly, but not without enduring loss, heartbreak, and even betrayal. SPOILER ALERT: Although the love of his life was always Yin Li Hua, he betrays his vows to her of only having one wife when he marries another woman in order to get a strong ally that fortifies and secures his way to become Eastern Han Emperor. The chemistry among the lead couple and the strong familiar and friendship relationships come to life in a romanticized fantastical action and adventure tale of the bloody and successful resurgence of the Han dynasty. This drama, successfully and very artfully, condenses more than 35 years of history to bring out a beautiful and enduring love story. Even though the drama has some very draggy moments and incoherencies, it is still an excellent and very entertaining drama, enjoy it!Was this review helpful to you?
Don't watch it
I love Ruby Lin but I hate the male lead in the drama. I don't understand why so many male leads in historical Chinese drama end up betraying the female lead and marrying another woman. However, he doesn't love the other woman so it is ok and the female lead would forgive them. I find this plot really tiresome and annoying. I want a female lead that will call out the male lead and find a better guy. I do not recommend this drama if you are as tired as I am with this type of plot. I would stick to modern dramas for now until they can write better plots for historical chinese dramas.Was this review helpful to you?
