(If you'd like to read my super long essay about the drama where I write more on the things I loved and hated about the drama, you can find it at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1czlgKAZpBndsV3JcIyNFm8fdqKBuccFz/)

Dear Show,

I posted the same review for part 1 because to be fair, the drama is one whole story to me.

Gosh, this was one hell of a review to write because of the plethora of emotions I feel. I think it’s probably more fitting to call it a Love-Hate Letter to the drama. Part One (episodes 1-27) is a solid, top-notch 10 for me. 10/10 would recommend as a truly splendid drama. Part Two (episodes 28-56 or 1-29) is an 8.5 from me, which is bias because I think that’s a generous score given all the issues I have with it. This does round the entire drama to be a 9 though. It was soo close to a perfect 10, and that makes me sad that we were so close!

The last time I loved a drama like this was in 2015 with LANG YA BANG/NIRVANA IN FIRE. Seven years later with LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY (LLTG), I was ready to tie it to the brilliance of NIRVANA IN FIRE (NIF). For consolation, I guess it’s the romance version in terms of almost phenomenal execution like NIF, but I’ve pegged it down a few notches because of the drama’s ending. I’ll explain my issues with part 2 much later if you’re curious enough or care to read more.

First, I would also like to point out how significant the two dramas, NIF and LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY (LLTG) tie in for me. Wu Lei played Fei Lu in NIF, an ever loyal and martial arts genius bodyguard to the titular character of Mei Changsu. Mei Changsu was a brilliant strategist and military general whose goal was to exact justice for the wrongs that annihilated his family. Here, Wu Lei comes full circle in being the lead as a revered and intelligent general whose goal is to exact revenge for the demise of his maternal family clan.

If you’ve read this far, thank you. Before I dive into details for the rest of my review and ramblings, here’s my non-spoiler review:

As a whole, this is a spectacular, powerhouse of a historical drama with a wonderful romance story. If this is your cup of tea, then I would in this case, 9/10 recommend with a caveat. Historical dramas in my opinion, tend to have little romance, and are often paved with slow burn romances if a love line is there. If you’re just in it for the romance, it may or may not work, depending on your cup of tea or coffee. After all, we all know dramas are so subjective, as such is the case with most things in life.

Zhao Lusi blew me away with her performance. I never really watched any of her previous works only because the story never appealed enough to me. This girl though! She has a knack for delivering the comedic punch from the flicker of her eyes and the expression she is able to capture. We can feel everything on her face even from the tiniest of movements. Yet when she cries, you feel the pure anguish and heartbreak in the way she conveys those. As for Wu Lei, I didn’t care about him before either. I thought he looked good in THE LONG BALLAD, but that was it. In LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY, he didn’t really get comfortable in his role for me until much later, and at times he came off awkward. This kind of worked in his favor though, granted his character was socially awkward at times. The second part of the drama was where I could see his growth as a professional actor in displaying more of his capabilities by bringing a facet of emotions forward through his eyes and lips. A cool tidbit that I also appreciated was the cast dubbed their own voices! That isn’t quite common in Chinese dramas from my understanding, so it was especially great to be able to hear the real voices of Zhao Lusi and Wu Lei as they breathed their characters to life onto the screen.

LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY is the story about our protagonist, Cheng Shaoshang, left behind by her parents who go off to war, only for her to be raised by her awful grandma and 2nd aunt-in-law. Shaoshang grows up resilient, intelligent, with a love of building and understanding mechanisms, and is fiercely independent in having had to survive childhood under awful circumstances. When her parents return home from war, she’s thrust into society and once again, is forced to use her wits to navigate the waters of social and familial norms, etiquette, being filial, and growing into her potential of who she is without losing the essence of what she values and stands for. In the process, she catches the attention of a prominent general, a man named Ling Buyi, who carries with him a deep secret. Having almost lost the chance to pursue Cheng Shaoshang once to her engagement with another man, General Ling Buyi seizes a rare moment and strategizes his way to win her love before she slips from him once more. Their slow-burn romance with the various encounters that build up to show how our male lead falls for our heroine is beautiful.

Look, your girl here has never loved an OTP (one true pairing) as much from a Chinese drama until now. Their chemistry together was simply mesmerizing. Upon finishing the drama now, the hill I will choose to die on is the one where no one else can play the respective roles of Cheng Shaoshang and Ling Buyi the way Zhao Lusi and Wu Lei perfected them.

56 episodes is a major commitment. For some people, time is of the essence where you don’t have enough time in the days or weeks to give to watching dramas, so maybe you’re like me, and you have to choose wisely where you’ll exert your energy. Or if you’re like me, highly judgmental of shows and can drop them like hot potatoes…don’t drop the gem of this one! These dramas are like unicorns, spotted only once every blue moon. Am I right or am I right?

The show picks up momentum at the 6th episode. If after 6 episodes and you find yourself struggling, it might not be for you. However, I truly recommend coming in with an abundance of patience if you’re curious as to why the drama soared to such popularity and buzz in the time it was broadcasted, as I humbly believe the payoff is worth it. I absolutely adored the pacing of the drama, because at the core, it is a story woven by complicated family dynamics backed by an equally compelling cast of supporting characters, a slice-of-life, a well-constructed historical but immersive world, found family, surviving in the face of trauma and loss, finding and understanding different forms of love, and a coming-of-age in wisdom, resiliency, and healing. Almost every single character was tailored for their role. Actually, it’s probably the other way around, that the actors and actresses created their roles to be so memorable, I don’t think anyone else could have fit into the shoes of any of these characters. There is phenomenal chemistry not just between our OTP, but throughout the relationships of each character towards one another. If you ever take a step back, you realize that many of these characters would be compelling enough to be the protagonist in their own story.

I loved so many things about the drama. There are wonderful, but heartbreaking narratives of how one can never feel like they’re enough for their parents, no matter what they do or don’t. The complex family dynamics is such a telling story in many Asian households. The protagonist’s view throughout the story of relying on only yourself to get through, because it’s how she’s survived, to the evolution in understanding of finding a way to live a well-meaningful life, even if one didn’t get married, is possible. Yes, it’s against the grain, but the touch on this was nice, and I wish this idealism was something they showed in part 2 of the series. I am all for female empowerment, and how lovely it would have been to see if one chooses to get married, it’s because they want to, not because it’s the expectation to do so. Despite many issues in the later part of the series, one major thing I loved about the drama is the love story between our leads that started off beautifully and will stay with me for the most part. There was something so magical in the way that slow-burn romance had unfolded. It’s a trope that I carry close to my heart.

Part 2 was a turbulent ride, with higher stakes and greater danger at play, and yet it missed the mark on multiple occasions in comparison to part 1. We really be treading rough waters out here in the final stretch of the drama.

Currently, I have a love-hate relationship with this drama. It is the first time I feel so sad and bitter about what could have been, otherwise I wouldn’t have spent such an invested amount of time writing out something so long that encompasses my emotions. I am still scarred from the later parts that I’ve not gone back to rewatch scenes the way I constantly did for part 1 and a huge chunk of part 2 from episodes 28-41.

There are major character inconsistencies throughout and plot holes, GALORE. Shaoshang is shown throughout part 1 to be bold but stands up for herself and is intelligent. Under pressure or on the spot, she flourishes and is quick on her feet. Part 2 was as if there were two different teams writing her character, the A-Team, and the draft-zero team. They dumbed her down, when there was never a need to in the first place. I don’t even want to count through the number of times she needed rescuing and was held at knifepoint. She went from someone so intelligent to regressing here and there in part 2. Not to mention, the sheer number of villains the drama shoved onto our screens near the end of the drama. Characters just seem to be popping out of nowhere. Some scenes dragged on for no reason in trying to gain sympathy, but I felt it was already a botched job. Then other scenes where they should have fleshed things out were sloppily shoved down our throats in an attempt for us to care. It was too little, too late.

Something about the romance and magic of the love story was also lost towards the end of the drama for me. I understand the situations the characters had to go through, but seeing that it was how their love was tested, the way the characters lacked growth from the experience was such a let-down. The show could have done some deep dive into important relationships like friendships between the characters and their growth and healing from trauma. The drama had so much they could have worked with, but instead relied heavily on cheap tropes at the end. There was no set up so the payoff meant nothing. I fast forwarded through a chunk of the ending at times. All the buildup only for this to fizzle out. It hurts, I tell ya!

Let’s go back to the other wonderful things about this drama, so I can momentarily forget the aftertaste of sand still lingering. The production crew and backers of this drama is grand on all fronts. Whoever is also behind the editing of the weekly trailers has also outdone themselves too. Each of the trailers released gives just enough to anticipate and have the audience guessing wildly as they await the release, only to still save all the best moments for within the story itself. There is a talented ensemble cast, show-stopping action sequences, synced musical scores in the first half, flawless comedic timing, and extensive, sweeping cinematography from costume, set to the world around them of what appears to be inspiration from the Han Dynasty. They really rolled out the big-guns with production on all fronts for this drama. If we believe in drama gods, this production crew from the staff, director, screenwriter, to the cast members, hit the jackpot. The universe conspired to put this team together, and because the drama gods smiled down on this one, we’re so blessed.

I remember even within the first shot where they introduced Ling Buyi, you knew he was a revered and great general...and without a doubt, the male lead of the show. The way the production team filmed the magnitude of the soldiers under General Ling Buyi’s command and the sweeping camera angle as he put on a black and red cape gifted to him for his accomplishment by the emperor, it gives one an inkling of how splendid this story could be. From the costumes to the set, to the cinematography with the perfect camera angles of its inhabitants, to the landscapes and architecture used, I knew we would be in for a rare treat.

That’s it for my spoiler-free review.