This review may contain spoilers
90% Business + 10% Romance = Unmet Expectations
Despite the chemistry and some great moments between our leads, Yang Mi and Xu Kai's wonderful performances couldn't hide this drama's subpar storyline which veered off into a rushed and poorly executed conclusion. However, I cannot fault the writing entirely. This drama did get delayed for censorship review on multiple occasions up to the very last moments before it finally aired, meaning we were likely robbed of many scenes that might've made the story and relationships more cohesive and satisfying to watch. But overall, I couldn't help feeling greatly misled by how this show was advertised and how little it gave back despite having 40 episodes and a great cast.
It turns out, the romantic scenes in the promos and teasers were pretty much the only scenes we were getting in terms of any romance between Yang Hua and Qin Shi. This show was heavily centered around business, mainly the struggles/pressures women face in the business world and the glass ceiling that suppresses them from rising higher despite their talent. The majority of episodes covered various legal cases Qin Shi dealt with and the drama in her workplace environment at the law firm, meanwhile the romance that everyone anticipated between our two popular main leads was placed on the backburner 90% of the time. If you came for the romance and dislike business-centric dramas, this is not the drama for you. If you enjoy business plots with minimal romance, then you will be fine.
The final episodes left many unresolved conflicts/unanswered questions for almost everyone and included many out-of-character actions/behaviors, all for the sake of adding unnecessary drama. Yang Hua and Qin Shi who have always communicated and understood each other the entire drama and knew each other's feelings, suddenly didn't anymore? A divorce and separation time gap had to be thrown in at the very last minute? They even threw in a fake ruse by Yang Hua and his ex to get Qin Shi to confess her feelings [which still didn't happen at the end, but somehow everything's ok now? So... what was the point of all that again?]. Then to finish off these questionable decisions, they threw in one short romantic scene after their reunion--and I mean short--at the very end of the final episode to wrap it up. Nothing important was ever addressed, it was the same for the supporting characters as well. So much time was wasted and for what? Overall, just very lackluster and disappointing.
This show had great potential and anticipation was very high given they had such a high-caliber cast, but sadly came up short. I definitely have some favorite scenes of Yang Hua and Qin Shi, but I personally wouldn't sit through this entire drama again to watch them, I'd rather just watch those short cutscenes.
It turns out, the romantic scenes in the promos and teasers were pretty much the only scenes we were getting in terms of any romance between Yang Hua and Qin Shi. This show was heavily centered around business, mainly the struggles/pressures women face in the business world and the glass ceiling that suppresses them from rising higher despite their talent. The majority of episodes covered various legal cases Qin Shi dealt with and the drama in her workplace environment at the law firm, meanwhile the romance that everyone anticipated between our two popular main leads was placed on the backburner 90% of the time. If you came for the romance and dislike business-centric dramas, this is not the drama for you. If you enjoy business plots with minimal romance, then you will be fine.
The final episodes left many unresolved conflicts/unanswered questions for almost everyone and included many out-of-character actions/behaviors, all for the sake of adding unnecessary drama. Yang Hua and Qin Shi who have always communicated and understood each other the entire drama and knew each other's feelings, suddenly didn't anymore? A divorce and separation time gap had to be thrown in at the very last minute? They even threw in a fake ruse by Yang Hua and his ex to get Qin Shi to confess her feelings [which still didn't happen at the end, but somehow everything's ok now? So... what was the point of all that again?]. Then to finish off these questionable decisions, they threw in one short romantic scene after their reunion--and I mean short--at the very end of the final episode to wrap it up. Nothing important was ever addressed, it was the same for the supporting characters as well. So much time was wasted and for what? Overall, just very lackluster and disappointing.
This show had great potential and anticipation was very high given they had such a high-caliber cast, but sadly came up short. I definitely have some favorite scenes of Yang Hua and Qin Shi, but I personally wouldn't sit through this entire drama again to watch them, I'd rather just watch those short cutscenes.
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