Magnolia
🇨🇦
This review may contain spoilers
Strong FL and ML with a Happy Ending story
Read carefully before you start watching:
- If you don’t like a strong FL, then don’t watch. The FL is capable and can stand alongside the ML. If a strong, independent FL who refuses to be bound by society’s rules triggers or threatens you, it’s best to skip this one.
- If you like Mary Sue characters, then don’t watch. The FL is capable but not flawless- she still has her moments of vulnerability and powerlessness.
- If you’re not into political intrigue, then don’t watch because the main plot revolves around it.
- If you like instant karma and want to see the FL and ML take out villains immediately or always want them to die, then don’t watch. In this drama, the FL and ML's main goal is to bring the villains to justice, expose their crimes, and make sure their wrongdoings are recorded in history. Whether they die or not in the end isn’t very important for them.
- If you prefer harmonious family dynamics, then don’t watch, as it could trigger past traumas for you.
- If you’re looking for an ideal, wise emperor, then don’t watch. The emperor in this drama is portrayed more realistically, just like actual historical Chinese emperors, none of them were perfect.
- If you’re only watching for lovey-dovey moments or hot kissing scenes, this drama might not be for you, as not every episode focuses on romance.
- If you’re a die-hard fan of the novel and can’t handle changes to the storyline, then don’t watch, as there are significant changes.
- If you hate the FL and ML or find them to look ugly, then don't watch.
It's not worth forcing yourself to watch something you're not into just to leave a low rating or trashy comments on this page.
But if none of the above apply to you, then you’ve found a great drama for 2024!
This is an A-grade project with an S+ result.
- The storytelling is captivating, even though some parts could have been executed better. But overall, it keeps you hooked and curious about what will happen next.
This drama tells you that:
- You can always try to change your life for the better.
- Don’t waste your time trying to change a rotten person - it’s not worth it, and you might end up paying with your life.
- As long as you have a moral sense and want to have a better life, you will get a second chance.
- Karma doesn't always hit instantly. Living with guilt and atoning for your sins can be more painful than death itself.
- Sometimes, there's always another story of the villains.
- The visuals and camera direction are excellent. No weird lighting, odd camera movement or scene transition, fake CGI and jarring backgrounds. The makeup and filters are not overdone (except for Miao Ansu’s character, whose makeup is a bit too white for me).
- The costumes are so beautiful, and the craftsmanship is beyond the project level. Kudos to the costume designer!
- The fight scenes are awesome, and they’re done without using stunts or too many slow-mo effects. It really convinced me that the ML (Li Yun Rui) knows martial arts, though he indeed did train for six months for his role in Fengshen. Kudos to the art director!
- They also use real horses, and I could say a drama will be good if they put in the effort to use real props. A lot of dramas these days try to show the leads are great at riding but end up using fake horses with obvious, poorly done editing.
- No fake princess hugs from the ML here.
It really annoys me when a perfectly romantic princess hug in some dramas turns out to be using a prop, leading to awkward moments for the FL, who might constantly worry that she’s too heavy for the ML to lift, even though most of them weigh less than 50kg.
But in this drama, our strong ML lifts the FL with ease.
- The chemistry between the leads feels very natural and real. Even a small eye movement or just the two of them standing together is enough to show their chemistry.
- Lastly, the drama ends with a Happy Ending, the kind everyone wants but often gets betrayed by the scriptwriters.
- Of course, like any drama, it’s not totally perfect. There are some small details that are missed, and a few scenes could have been cut better. But given the budget, this drama truly deserves the attention it’s getting.
During a live broadcast, the actors also mentioned that they filmed late into the night, often until 2-3 a.m., while co-director Guo Feng worked until 5 a.m. and still managed to smile happily. Can’t add the co-director to the list of the crew, but I hope people will recognize his work in the future.
This is a drama created by a dedicated team focused on providing the best viewing experience for the audience, not on selling the director’s big name or the lead actors. They just worked hard to make it happen. A big applause for them!
- If you don’t like a strong FL, then don’t watch. The FL is capable and can stand alongside the ML. If a strong, independent FL who refuses to be bound by society’s rules triggers or threatens you, it’s best to skip this one.
- If you like Mary Sue characters, then don’t watch. The FL is capable but not flawless- she still has her moments of vulnerability and powerlessness.
- If you’re not into political intrigue, then don’t watch because the main plot revolves around it.
- If you like instant karma and want to see the FL and ML take out villains immediately or always want them to die, then don’t watch. In this drama, the FL and ML's main goal is to bring the villains to justice, expose their crimes, and make sure their wrongdoings are recorded in history. Whether they die or not in the end isn’t very important for them.
- If you prefer harmonious family dynamics, then don’t watch, as it could trigger past traumas for you.
- If you’re looking for an ideal, wise emperor, then don’t watch. The emperor in this drama is portrayed more realistically, just like actual historical Chinese emperors, none of them were perfect.
- If you’re only watching for lovey-dovey moments or hot kissing scenes, this drama might not be for you, as not every episode focuses on romance.
- If you’re a die-hard fan of the novel and can’t handle changes to the storyline, then don’t watch, as there are significant changes.
- If you hate the FL and ML or find them to look ugly, then don't watch.
It's not worth forcing yourself to watch something you're not into just to leave a low rating or trashy comments on this page.
But if none of the above apply to you, then you’ve found a great drama for 2024!
This is an A-grade project with an S+ result.
- The storytelling is captivating, even though some parts could have been executed better. But overall, it keeps you hooked and curious about what will happen next.
This drama tells you that:
- You can always try to change your life for the better.
- Don’t waste your time trying to change a rotten person - it’s not worth it, and you might end up paying with your life.
- As long as you have a moral sense and want to have a better life, you will get a second chance.
- Karma doesn't always hit instantly. Living with guilt and atoning for your sins can be more painful than death itself.
- Sometimes, there's always another story of the villains.
- The visuals and camera direction are excellent. No weird lighting, odd camera movement or scene transition, fake CGI and jarring backgrounds. The makeup and filters are not overdone (except for Miao Ansu’s character, whose makeup is a bit too white for me).
- The costumes are so beautiful, and the craftsmanship is beyond the project level. Kudos to the costume designer!
- The fight scenes are awesome, and they’re done without using stunts or too many slow-mo effects. It really convinced me that the ML (Li Yun Rui) knows martial arts, though he indeed did train for six months for his role in Fengshen. Kudos to the art director!
- They also use real horses, and I could say a drama will be good if they put in the effort to use real props. A lot of dramas these days try to show the leads are great at riding but end up using fake horses with obvious, poorly done editing.
- No fake princess hugs from the ML here.
It really annoys me when a perfectly romantic princess hug in some dramas turns out to be using a prop, leading to awkward moments for the FL, who might constantly worry that she’s too heavy for the ML to lift, even though most of them weigh less than 50kg.
But in this drama, our strong ML lifts the FL with ease.
- The chemistry between the leads feels very natural and real. Even a small eye movement or just the two of them standing together is enough to show their chemistry.
- Lastly, the drama ends with a Happy Ending, the kind everyone wants but often gets betrayed by the scriptwriters.
- Of course, like any drama, it’s not totally perfect. There are some small details that are missed, and a few scenes could have been cut better. But given the budget, this drama truly deserves the attention it’s getting.
During a live broadcast, the actors also mentioned that they filmed late into the night, often until 2-3 a.m., while co-director Guo Feng worked until 5 a.m. and still managed to smile happily. Can’t add the co-director to the list of the crew, but I hope people will recognize his work in the future.
This is a drama created by a dedicated team focused on providing the best viewing experience for the audience, not on selling the director’s big name or the lead actors. They just worked hard to make it happen. A big applause for them!
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