Le Sigh Part 2 - The Power of Love

Rated= 4.5~ 21.5/50 ~ 4.3
RPG Scene // Troll stalking me through the Mountain Pass. Not sure the short sword is enough.

My original review 27th April 24 -

Le Sigh

I really, really wanted to like this but I just couldn't get into it. I tried 3 times but my brain just won't let me accept a romantic relationship with a lead who basically acts like a child. If it was meant to be friendship I'd be fine but I'm expecting romance from a character who is basically a 5 year old in an adult body and I just can't move past that. Also, the harem of fairies. Oh please. My first, 2 months now as of writing this, adventure into chinese dramas, I'm starting to see a pattern of shows that just aren't for me.

Visually, this show is stunning. A lot of green screen LOL The sets are glorious. It even just looks like a chinese fantasy. Palaces floating in the sky. Ornate head pieces etc The opening credits were actually my favourite thing LOL the artwork had my mouth open and I think that's why I just really wanted to like this.

It's one of those shows, I think this is my 3rd one now, where everything looks so grand but I just don't like the characters. This time I at least liked the ML but that was it. You can't force yourself to watch a show that you're just bored to tears watching. It's like a christmas cookie. All visual, no flavour.

My updated review on 15th June 24

I wrote the above review after I had initially dropped the show but because I can't write two reviews, and people had like the previous review, I just had to delete and write this instead.

At the time, I was fairly new to c-dramas in general so I was just going on instinct at the time. I have now, thanks to Immortal Samsara, have learned that Xianxia's spend a lot of time laying out groundwork for the world building and characters before they give you the plot, which seems to be happening around episode 7 or 8. I dropped this show in the first minute or 2 of episode 8 and realised that I had probably dropped this minutes before the plot arrived. So out of curiosity, I went back to it, and if I had kept watching for another 5 or 10 minutes, I'd have seen the FL's bully get a glorious smackdown LOL
And I was right. The plot arrived with that event.

So I said, ok, I will give this one more chance. For the most part, my original review still stands. It was like Harry Potter all over again. The logical part of my brain can see why this is popular. It looks good, the characters, most of them redeem themselves, really love that Danyin's conclusion, that's awesome. It's a pretty cohesive plot through out, no major plot holes, all the characters had legit reasons, even if it was just obsession and had a really sweet message under it all.

But I just didn't like it. There was a cog in brain refusing to move and unfortunately, there's nothing I can do about that. I just didn't like. It was boring. I think it was around episode 20 when I really started to skipped scenes. I just wanted it to end.

Like I said in my first review, the ML made this show for me. He was the only one I was interested in. I love an anti-hero and to be honest, even as a villain, I loved him, he was hilarious. Everyone else who might have had a reason to stand out to me just faded into the background as the plot hooked them up in a side pairing I didn't care about.
That dragon. My man. How they wronged you by dampening down your potential.
And once again with Xianxia Immortals, the Emperor is the biggest A*hole and everyone is so self righteous without logic they make me support the villains.

My original rating was -
story -3 moved to a 7. I don't think the writing was too bad. It flowed well, it was understandable, the characters had their reasons and the narrative was very plain and simple - the power of love and obsession, and what it does to us.

Acting- went from 2- 6, this all because of Dylan Wang's portrayal of the ML. That's literally, he was the only reason I managed to finish the show. This was the Moon Supreme show for me. He gave good passionate kisses. I appreciate that for a chinese show that seemed to be scared of showing any lip movement whatsoever.

Music- 2-3 -Not much change to the music, I didn't really care for it and found it a little intrusive and loud over romantic scenes.

My rewatch remains the same though, at 1. I am unlikely to watch this again.

Overall, I can only give this one extra point simply because I loved the ML character. Everyone else, meh. I just didn't care.

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"When they carry out the punishment, look away, don't be afraid"

Rated= 9 ~ 41.5/50 ~ 8.3
RPG Scene // Elf Prince breaking hearts in Sky City. Sword a swinging and a gleaming

Karma waltz in and laughed HAHAHA Puny Mortal. BOW TO ME!
LITERALLY in my last review, for Ashes of Love, I had a whole damn rant being like, yeah, no, Xianxia and me aren't going to me friends, we dont jam, we're different elements, blah blah blah, unless Cheng Yi is involved I'm not interested.

Karma came for my ass so damn hard in this show, I'm going to be reborn bruised. I am speechless at how much I enjoyed this show and I can see from the reviews, that it's a show with a lot of criticism, especially with loss of plot and drag so of course me being me, my soul got sucked into this show and I binged it all weekend. My eyes are red, my head hurts but damn, what a ride LOL

I dropped this at episode 2 a few weeks back thinking, eh, I'll probably hate it but decided I had to be a good wife and watch Cheng Yi's parts. It was around episode 5 when I started to get interested so, yeah, it took a while to get going but I feel like that's very common with Xianxia. At ep 7, during a big battle, I knew stuff was going down. You don't introduce a big battle at episode 7 without it being a big plot device. From then, I was absolutely hooked.

Keeping this as short as I can, character wise, I loved most of the characters, and that rarely happens and that the fact that this is a xianxia, this was the Immortals sucker punching me into Monday with bloodshot eyes and getting drunk at my misery.

Cheng Yi - my man. This is why you are my bias. He has mastered how to speak with his eyes. Definitely prefer this to Love and Redemption, all though L&R is growing on me. He's a lot more 'fluid' in his acting here. I felt like perhaps it was just just how he was directed in L& R but he seems so much more comfortable here, so much so that he plays 3 different characters. Our 'original' ML, the Heavenly Emperor, Ying Yaun who is very tight lipped, straight collared and by the book. His mortal incarnation for his mortal realm trials, Tang Zhou who is much more playful and ambitious, and Ying Yaun's father, who pretty much starts everything with his ambition to rule all 3 realms, which by the way, Cheng Yi needs to play a villain. Like. I NEEED the man to play a villain because holy hell, I was not prepared for crazy eyed and silver wigged Cheng Yi.

Our FL, although played by the same actress, thankfully was not as dense as her Ashes of Love character. I actually fell in love with Yan Dan myself. She's pretty bright and playful and honest. And there were times when her reactions made me laugh or I said 'ohh cute' out verbally. So this is a first for me so far in all c-dramas I've watched, I usually never love the FL. Yan Dan I loved. I don't mind if the FL is a little weak. I prefer brains over brawn and as she's a lotus spirit who cuts out her own heart to save Ying Yaun, twice, it's perfectly reasonable that she's going to need some physical protection. And when you like the FL, I can walk her highs and lows with her rather than just watching for Cheng Yi.

I always feel that chemistry between leads is up to the viewer and personally, I felt the love and the heartache. Xianxia strikes me as a genre that you either love or hate and one of the most common criticisms is jumping between worlds. I understand that can break the flow for the viewer but this didn't for me. I followed the whole way. It is a little slow to start, the plot hits us in episode 7 and then the love actually starts to build afterwards. When everything reaches a pressure cooker pain, I was jumping off the cliff with Yan Dan. It's around episode 16 when we go to the mortal realm and we stay there for a good 30 episodes but I didn't feel disjointed. It felt very natural. Yan Dan was turned into a demon and just drops out of the sky having had her memories erased by a traumatised Ying Yaun and returns to her playful and spirited self. Ying Yaun inflicts the mortal trials on himself and as his childhood is mentioned, I believe he was actually reborn as human.
The relationship then repeats it's self but only this time, there's lessons learned. Yan Dan learns more about what it means to be in love and Ying Yaun, as Zhou, chooses his heart over his responsibilities. So when we get back to the Immortals, those lessons are pretty engraved in the characters as their love cements in the middle of the actual plot.

I understand how a lot of people can find this boring or draggy as the mortal realm and most of it's characters have very little do with the actual plot. There are villains but only temporary. They are easily dealt with and yet I was never bored. I was invested the whole way through and I have no idea why. I liked the little side quests and characters. I liked the relationship building between the leads. My only defence is Cheng Yi's eyes hypnotised me through the screen and I plead innocence because, I should have lost interest but I didnt. I couldn't stop watching.

Yumo was a very a satisfactory character to watch. He started off almost like a teenage boy who develops feelings for Yan Dan but it never embitters him. It's this love that pushes him to the mortal realm where he travels for 800 years looking for Yan Dan, unaware that she's stuck in the limbo river because she can't let go of her memories. So he has all that time to travel and cultivate so when we see him again, he's a very experienced and mature man and honestly, he was a little sexy to me. What was really lovely was although his feelings for Yan Dan were strong, and there was a little back and forth with Zhou, he never left Yan Dan's side. He was never cunning or deceitful. He was a true friend. And accepted in the end that he wasn't for her but chose to protect her nonetheless. That was very mature and sweet and appreciated the groundedness of the character.

Another character I want to add briefly is Fairy Ying Deng. She was set up to be the usual, obsessed with the ML bully but she gets shot down very early. Beautifully might I add, by YY, and instead of lashing out in the ridiculous way that these characters always do, by blaming it all on Yan Dan, she lashed out at Yan Dan and Ying Yaun equally. There's a nice cathartic downfall before she returns in the mortal realm and I'll be damned, I felt sorry for the girl. Again. I shouldn't have but I did. She just seemed so pathetic, I couldn't help it. She also made a gorgeous demon and I wish she had always been a demon. She looked way better with messy hair and red eyes than in all the pearled garbed of the heavenly realm.

Part one is 38 eps. Part two is 21 - 59 eps. Thankfully, I watched it on viki, so I seen early that there were 2 specials. If I had felt that 59 was the end, I might have been physically sick. How dare they. But I'm learning how common this seems to be with c dramas. Almost like a sneaky way of keeping people paying for a subscription. But keeping the 2 specials in mind, I found the true ending to be very fulfilling and satisfactory. Both YD and YY get the life they wanted together, the son they had dreamed off and YD gets to be a writer. Meeting up with her friends, taking in demons to build a theatre group and getting to see the reborn friend she lost earlier in the mortal realm arc. Whether or not they are mortal isn't answered but it doesnt seem like they were physically reborn as they live in the house they meet up in after their deaths but I honestly dont mind it so much, I was just happy to see them together and getting to live out the dreams they wanted.

One massive plot hole though was Lu Ming not recognising Ying Deng in the mortal realm, and felt that he was kind of brushed aside a little too easily having been killed off screen. I honestly didnt believe he was dead. But as he didn't play a huge role, I can forgive this and appreciate that it's mentioned at the end that he's in the mortal realm growing his favourite watermelon.

As for the music. That flute did not have to come for my heart the way it did every time it started to play. The instrumental music in this show for me was a 'where can I buy this' kind of background music.

Overall, I'd give this show a very solid 8.5 but I boosted it to 9 because the sister's death pulled a tear out of me. I can be critical but I always give credit where it's due. Watching the sister be defeated by her pride, get revenge for YD, redeem herself and then give her heart, and then her life for the love of her sister, really pulled on my heart strings.

I am in actual shock that I enjoyed this as much as I did and it has to go on my favourites list now. It's a long one but I do feel I could rewatch it again and still enjoy the romance as much.

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"When they carry out the punishment, look away, don't be afraid"

Rated= 9 ~ 41.5/50 ~ 8.3
RPG Scene // Elf Prince breaking hearts in Sky City. Sword a swinging and a gleaming

Karma waltz in and laughed HAHAHA Puny Mortal. BOW TO ME!
LITERALLY in my last review, for Ashes of Love, I had a whole damn rant being like, yeah, no, Xianxia and me aren't going to me friends, we dont jam, we're different elements, blah blah blah, unless Cheng Yi is involved I'm not interested.

Karma came for my ass so damn hard in this show, I'm going to be reborn bruised. I am speechless at how much I enjoyed this show and I can see from the reviews, that it's a show with a lot of criticism, especially with loss of plot and drag so of course me being me, my soul got sucked into this show and I binged it all weekend. My eyes are red, my head hurts but damn, what a ride LOL

I dropped this at episode 2 a few weeks back thinking, eh, I'll probably hate it but decided I had to be a good wife and watch Cheng Yi's parts. It was around episode 5 when I started to get interested so, yeah, it took a while to get going but I feel like that's very common with Xianxia. At ep 7, during a big battle, I knew stuff was going down. You don't introduce a big battle at episode 7 without it being a big plot device. From then, I was absolutely hooked.

Keeping this as short as I can, character wise, I loved most of the characters, and that rarely happens and that the fact that this is a xianxia, this was the Immortals sucker punching me into Monday with bloodshot eyes and getting drunk at my misery.

Cheng Yi - my man. This is why you are my bias. He has mastered how to speak with his eyes. Definitely prefer this to Love and Redemption, all though L&R is growing on me. He's a lot more 'fluid' in his acting here. I felt like perhaps it was just just how he was directed in L& R but he seems so much more comfortable here, so much so that he plays 3 different characters. Our 'original' ML, the Heavenly Emperor, Ying Yaun who is very tight lipped, straight collared and by the book. His mortal incarnation for his mortal realm trials, Tang Zhou who is much more playful and ambitious, and Ying Yaun's father, who pretty much starts everything with his ambition to rule all 3 realms, which by the way, Cheng Yi needs to play a villain. Like. I NEEED the man to play a villain because holy hell, I was not prepared for crazy eyed and silver wigged Cheng Yi.

Our FL, although played by the same actress, thankfully was not as dense as her Ashes of Love character. I actually fell in love with Yan Dan myself. She's pretty bright and playful and honest. And there were times when her reactions made me laugh or I said 'ohh cute' out verbally. So this is a first for me so far in all c-dramas I've watched, I usually never love the FL. Yan Dan I loved. I don't mind if the FL is a little weak. I prefer brains over brawn and as she's a lotus spirit who cuts out her own heart to save Ying Yaun, twice, it's perfectly reasonable that she's going to need some physical protection. And when you like the FL, I can walk her highs and lows with her rather than just watching for Cheng Yi.

I always feel that chemistry between leads is up to the viewer and personally, I felt the love and the heartache. Xianxia strikes me as a genre that you either love or hate and one of the most common criticisms is jumping between worlds. I understand that can break the flow for the viewer but this didn't for me. I followed the whole way. It is a little slow to start, the plot hits us in episode 7 and then the love actually starts to build afterwards. When everything reaches a pressure cooker pain, I was jumping off the cliff with Yan Dan. It's around episode 16 when we go to the mortal realm and we stay there for a good 30 episodes but I didn't feel disjointed. It felt very natural. Yan Dan was turned into a demon and just drops out of the sky having had her memories erased by a traumatised Ying Yaun and returns to her playful and spirited self. Ying Yaun inflicts the mortal trials on himself and as his childhood is mentioned, I believe he was actually reborn as human.
The relationship then repeats it's self but only this time, there's lessons learned. Yan Dan learns more about what it means to be in love and Ying Yaun, as Zhou, chooses his heart over his responsibilities. So when we get back to the Immortals, those lessons are pretty engraved in the characters as their love cements in the middle of the actual plot.

I understand how a lot of people can find this boring or draggy as the mortal realm and most of it's characters have very little do with the actual plot. There are villains but only temporary. They are easily dealt with and yet I was never bored. I was invested the whole way through and I have no idea why. I liked the little side quests and characters. I liked the relationship building between the leads. My only defence is Cheng Yi's eyes hypnotised me through the screen and I plead innocence because, I should have lost interest but I didnt. I couldn't stop watching.

Yumo was a very a satisfactory character to watch. He started off almost like a teenage boy who develops feelings for Yan Dan but it never embitters him. It's this love that pushes him to the mortal realm where he travels for 800 years looking for Yan Dan, unaware that she's stuck in the limbo river because she can't let go of her memories. So he has all that time to travel and cultivate so when we see him again, he's a very experienced and mature man and honestly, he was a little sexy to me. What was really lovely was although his feelings for Yan Dan were strong, and there was a little back and forth with Zhou, he never left Yan Dan's side. He was never cunning or deceitful. He was a true friend. And accepted in the end that he wasn't for her but chose to protect her nonetheless. That was very mature and sweet and appreciated the groundedness of the character.

Another character I want to add briefly is Fairy Ying Deng. She was set up to be the usual, obsessed with the ML bully but she gets shot down very early. Beautifully might I add, by YY, and instead of lashing out in the ridiculous way that these characters always do, by blaming it all on Yan Dan, she lashed out at Yan Dan and Ying Yaun equally. There's a nice cathartic downfall before she returns in the mortal realm and I'll be damned, I felt sorry for the girl. Again. I shouldn't have but I did. She just seemed so pathetic, I couldn't help it. She also made a gorgeous demon and I wish she had always been a demon. She looked way better with messy hair and red eyes than in all the pearled garbed of the heavenly realm.

Part one is 38 eps. Part two is 21 - 59 eps. Thankfully, I watched it on viki, so I seen early that there were 2 specials. If I had felt that 59 was the end, I might have been physically sick. How dare they. But I'm learning how common this seems to be with c dramas. Almost like a sneaky way of keeping people paying for a subscription. But keeping the 2 specials in mind, I found the true ending to be very fulfilling and satisfactory. Both YD and YY get the life they wanted together, the son they had dreamed off and YD gets to be a writer. Meeting up with her friends, taking in demons to build a theatre group and getting to see the reborn friend she lost earlier in the mortal realm arc. Whether or not they are mortal isn't answered but it doesnt seem like they were physically reborn as they live in the house they meet up in after their deaths but I honestly dont mind it so much, I was just happy to see them together and getting to live out the dreams they wanted.

One massive plot hole though was Lu Ming not recognising Ying Deng in the mortal realm, and felt that he was kind of brushed aside a little too easily having been killed off screen. I honestly didnt believe he was dead. But as he didn't play a huge role, I can forgive this and appreciate that it's mentioned at the end that he's in the mortal realm growing his favourite watermelon.

As for the music. That flute did not have to come for my heart the way it did every time it started to play. The instrumental music in this show for me was a 'where can I buy this' kind of background music.

Overall, I'd give this show a very solid 8.5 but I boosted it to 9 because the sister's death pulled a tear out of me. I can be critical but I always give credit where it's due. Watching the sister be defeated by her pride, get revenge for YD, redeem herself and then give her heart, and then her life for the love of her sister, really pulled on my heart strings.

I am in actual shock that I enjoyed this as much as I did and it has to go on my favourites list now. It's a long one but I do feel I could rewatch it again and still enjoy the romance as much.

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Thank You Cheng Yi.

Rated= 7 ~ 37/50 ~ 7.4
RPG Scene // Mages falling in love in the Enchanted Forest. Staffs summoning cherry blossoms

*edit*
Rewatch Value Rating has changed from a 1 to a 7
I am now such a kiwi that not only did Cheng Yi get me to watch this show for him, I have now found myself rewatching it because of him as I understand that a lot of his characters are tragic with sad endings, whereas this one is a satisfying conclusion. People are more than their face. This was his breakthrough role and I can see why 💕
***

I was told that Cheng Yi is still alive at the end of the series so I made it to the end alive with him but feeling just as comatose.

I am starting to pick up on cues in the first few episodes that tell me whether or not I'm going to like a show. This is one of those shows. I initially dropped this at episode 3 but Mysterious Lotus Casebook is defeating every other C-drama as my favourite C-drama right now and I'm a little in love with Cheng Yi and I wanted more of him so I picked it up again just for him. I was honestly not interested in any one else. I was skipping the sister (I found her very annoying) and 6th senior scenes loads of times before I was interested in them. I skipped a lot of side stories. It was around episode 21 when Cheng Yi starts getting tortured was when I finally stopped skipping and paying attention.

The FL not having her 6th senses didn't make a lot of sense to me because she could still see and hear and smell etc so she technically still had them but a minor thing I could overlook. The one thing I had a big problem with was the cheesey battle moments. I found this very cringey at times when Xuangi would unleash her powers and you would get this Power rangers style level up. I would burst out laughing when I was supposed to be cheering her on. She starts off as the typical FL in too many asian dramas. Naive, childish and a little stupid passed off as innocent. Listen, I get that she doesn't have her senses and doesnt feel the same way as others but she falls face first into Cheng Yi's lap while he's sitting in a bath and just continues like, oh, wait, I dropped something and just smiles happily while she gropes around the tub, and my sweet boy is just sitting there, cupping his manhood, speechless. I mean, I laughed but really? That's not innocence, that's just dense.

This pretty much continues until she realises that she's the reincarnated God of War. After that, we lose the naivety, and we get a deeply manipulated and emotional FL instead. Again. This is where Cheng Yi saved me because I would give up with this kind of character and would make jokes about taking a shot every time you hear 'Si Feng'.

But Cheng Yi. I like his work. I like his face. I like his voice. He calms me and I was able to find my grounded centre every time he appeared. He did the best with the character he had been given. He does seem a little bit more stiff in this series but that may be how he's was told to play the character, who's whole purpose is to get beaten and abused through out most of the series. His whole purpose is to love and redeem and the FL which can feel a little flat after a while. But again, my bias saved me here. If it had been anyone else or if I didn't know Cheng Yi, I'd have dropped this series really quickly.

Another notable mention is Liu Xue Yi. This is the 3rd series I've seen with him and he's creeping up beside Cheng Yi in my favouritism. If I didn't know this actor, I would have been wanting to rip his eyes out but I actually enjoyed watching him play an incredibly hateable villain, which makes it easier when you are faced with a character like Hao. He's the worst kind of villain because he's obsessed with his own self righteousness and he's a little psychotic, that I honestly found it a little strange at the end that everyone felt sorry for him while he just faded into dust to be reborn as a mortal, WHILE MY BOY is lying fricking bleeding and dead for the 100th time.

The Jade Emperor is probably the most useless, all powerful character I think I've ever seen.

By episode 40, I was back to skipping again. It lost it's momentum for me and as per trend, the last stretch of episodes just went off the wall crazy that I was rolling my eyes at just how ridiculous and off the wall the plot got. It wasn't enough for Xaungi to be the God of War, she's the Devil Star as well. And was a man. So I can imagine a lot of people just being like huh? by the time they get to those episodes. The ending was also ridiculous but at least it was a happy conclusion. Cheng Yi was Momma while Xuangi ran around drinking and enjoying her mortal life, seeming to have reverted back to her old clueless self. AKA. Si Feng continues to get walked over but this time it's in the name of having fun.

I really loved the characters Teng She and Liu. If I had seen more of them earlier on in the series, I'd paid attention quicker. They were great to watch.

An unexpected big hit of this show is the soundtrack. I am absolute Si Feng in love with the song Love like Coloured Glass. It was ep 28, with a scene on the bridge when I suddenly clicked on the song. If it played before I hadn't noticed but that's what happens when you're not fully invested in a show. You miss things. I immediately stopped the video to look up that song and it's been played ever since.

So again, thank you Cheng Yi. I enjoyed watching you and I got introduced me to a new favourite song.

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Tries to be deep but fails

Rated= 8 ~ 27/50 ~ 5.4
RPG Scene // Mermaid stranded in the Crumbling Castle. Axe is blunt.

This is my 3rd series with Li Hong Yi where I feel like he's played the same character. I definitely feel like he's been type casted now as this silent and brooding mystery guy, and if it's a romance, he'll utterly adore you type of character. Whether this is a deliberate play on his good looks or he just likes these characters, who knows, but I hope he gets a different kind of character next time. I feel it's a shame as a viewer to see an actor just play the same character over and over, just in a different story so I can't imagine how frustrated the actor must feel at not being allowed to stretch their wings and see what they can do in their craft.

This story starts of on a very unusual note and then it just kind of forgets about it. We start off in the future with our FL telling 'the system' what she wants in her partner, then getting into the machine and waking up in her new reality as a girl with amnesia and in the middle of a crime scene. Since we never go back to this future life, there's no mention of her life there, family friends, there's nothing, so I can't help but feel like it was a little unnecessary. I understand it's the opening to the show and the reason why this girl is dropped into a mid-plot story, but I feel like there could of been other ways of conveying that without giving you visuals of a future reality and then dropping you back into ancient China because I then spent the rest of the series thinking all the other characters were other people within the system and everyone was just hooked up to a machine like a sleep project. It was very disjointing for me but that may just be me.

FL is in this reality because she gave up her immortality to find her idealistic version of true love, hence the title but funny enough, the whole basis of the plot is a supposed 'fruit of immortality' that we spend the whole series watching all the righteous sect leaders massacre each other in search of.

In the midst of this we have our FL, and 2 ML. I opened this review stating that I hope Li Hong Yi gets a different character next time but in this show, I feel like he carried most of the weight here. If it wasn't for his character, I would rate this show more around a 5 or 6. But I've given it an 8 simply because I love anti heroes like the one he plays and he kept me watching.

Qui Yue is scheming, suave, very powerful and a little unpredictable. I really hated his main wig. They have it brushed back and tight to his head which kind of gave him a slimy, creepy vibe. I much preferred it parted in the middle that we see for a while later on. He also was very bent over in this series as well. I don't know if is bad posture for Li Hong Yi because this was 2019 but it was giving Severus Snape LOL Hard to see Li Hong Yi's beauty kind of spoiled a little by bad styling.
From the get go, we know that Qui's wants our FL, badly, and apparently has already had a love affair with the owner of her body. This, much to my disappointment was never really explored and really wish they had, to give some sort of weight to the drama that Hua wakes up in. But it was left open and just kind of brushed away, only brought up when it was convenient. He's clearly seen her body but it's later, with one sentence, Qui says that she took her clothes off in front of him. She liked him but he didn't like her but from the start was clearly a little obsessed. That was very confusing for me which is why I wish the 'affair' had been explored more because it was almost like baiting you with complicated entanglements and then the writers chickened out and focused on everyone killing each other instead. Qui's character is the reason I finished this series because he's my favourite kind of character and I kept waiting to get more about his background and the complications that have made him the way he is, but I only got crumbs. So as much as I loved the character, I really hate the writers for not giving me what I wanted.

Our other ML is Xiao Bai and he's your typical lawful good character. He was another character that the writers tried to be deep with and then they just kind of give up. Once we get to the what I call 'breaking the ego' scene that you get with very stoic characters, he becomes possessed randomly and then once the star item is returned, he goes back to normal. Once again, a plot device that just kind of falls away. The writers were trying to do something here and it never works out. Why did that happen? Was he being poisoned or was this a type of curse from the ice star thing? I was a little confused because they never really explained it.
I did feel kind of sorry for XB though because he was guarded from the start against Hua, who just throws herself at him and between his friends, eventually develops feelings and then is left to look like the villain because he stuck to his values when his values have always been apparent. At least to me, this not a choose his lover type of man. He's the son of the head of chief of all the clans, he's going to pick his responsibilities first and expecting anything else is a kind of unfair.

Poor CaiCai gets cast aside as a love rival but quickly shows herself to be very compassionate and emotional mature, in comparison to Hua, and I'm disappointed that there was no real ending for her. We got baited again that perhaps XB would recognise her feelings but it's made out that it's because he's possessed, he's rebounding and she's just kind left at the end with no real closure on anything. I wish there had been some sort of understanding between them in the end rather than just leaving her with the knowledge that her father was a crook. We don't know what happens to her after that and for such a supportive character, who doesn't act vindictively towards the FL, which is highly unusual for c-drama romances, I'm kind of angry on her behalf that she wasn't given a conclusion.

Our secondary couple are a sweet breath of air amidst all this confusion. They are sweet and funny and for me personally, both give off a little BI vibes and perfectly OK with that LOL And we get a brief conclusion for them thanks to the chopping editing, which becomes increasingly more choppy half way through. It's very apparent at times, that a lot of scenes are being cut to fit into the time frame. Which is sad from a story telling pov. The audience is not meant to see that. It breaks the flow of the narrative.

The music and sets are pretty regular for these types of shows and honestly, my favourite set was the flower field.
As the styling, OH. MY. GOSH, was it a failure like I have never seen before.
I could see the wig lining to every single male character's forehead, just caked with makeup. And at times, Li Hong Yi's eye make up looked smeared. I don't know what happened there but what on earth was hair and make up doing?

Li Hong Yi is a gorgeous young man to look at and I've never been so distracted from a beautiful face, with cakey flour make up, smeared and sometimes uneven eye liner with a wig line in full view. It would seem all the men had the same problem yet the women looked nearly flawless. I don't understand what happened there.

As for the ending, I'm satisfied with it. It was an emotionally mature approach to the series of events and I guess for our FL who starts off like a love-struck pre teen with a very idealistic expectation of love and romance and ends much humbler and confident in her choices.

Overall, my full rating should be a 6 but I'm giving it an 8 simply because I also include how I feel watching a show as well as the logical breakdowns. And I was pretty invested and at point, did feel emotional. If I wasn't so interested in Qui's character, and for that one scene that had me misty eyed, this absolutely deserves a lower rating. I probably won't be watching it again but I enjoyed it for what it was.

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Accidental Hilarious Fluff

Rated= 8 ~ 33/50 ~ 6.6
RPG Scene // Mermaid making flower crowns in the Flower Meadow. Sword used as dart practice

After a long deep dive into more serious 40+ ep c-dramas, I honestly think I enjoyed this more than I would have because it reminded of the kind of manga's I enjoyed as a teenager and it was only 22 episodes.

Plot - The overall story is of a Ginseng fairy who keeps finding herself believing in the wrong men while her 'true love' is standing on the outskirts protecting her in secret. We go back and forth, back and forth uncovering the mystery of the past for the first half of the series before moving forward towards a conclusion.
I personally, don't like this method of story telling. I prefer one long flashback and then move on, whereas this one flashes back a few times. That can be a bit disjointing for me as a viewer but I kept watching because, and here's the kicker, I found the whole concept accidentally hilarious. The whole idea of dying and resurrecting without your memories to find a few men who are full blown yandere for you kind of funny. I shouldn't have and I'm pretty sure that wasn't the idea but I'm me, and I did.
Another aspect of the plot is the yearning. There is a fine line for me between unnecessary angst and understandable silent yearning, and I feel like that's really up to the viewer to decide which side they're on. For me, I understood Bai Lu's silence this time. It made sense to me and it was pitiful so for me, it's a silent yearning. I didn't feel stressed or annoyed with characters while watching. The bad guys did bad guy things, and the good guys did good guy things.
As for the ending, if it had been 40 episodes, that last little dilemma would have been a whole new arc LOL The big problem is quickly solved and it's Happy ever after manga ending. I would have liked to have seen Bai Lu's promise to Xi but maybe it has to be skipped now? I wonder how this reality deals with that final reveal which is not really a final reveal. If anything it just cemented that shoujo ending that the clueless, innocent lead had to be told LOL

Characters - The FL might be a character who could easily annoy you though. I viewed her almost like a perpetual 15 year old. Flighty, impulsive and in love with life. The only character she actually falls in love with is our ML. The other characters she's just trying to be a good person to in accordance with her beliefs. However, I didnt feel like she was childish. Just free spirited. She had her own morals and held to them in however she was treated.
Our ML is the glorious Li Hong Yi. I stated in my Blood of Youth review, I would be happy to look at him all day and I didn't lie. That man is Fine. He held a similar vibe as his character in Blood of Youth though. I don't know enough about him or have watched enough shows to say if he feels a little type casted but it kind of suited his character Bai Lu. Just brooding in the background added to his 'tortured prince' sort of character. If that's a character he gets a lot of or is something his good looks plays on, I felt it in this one.
As for the side couple, I'm not normally interested in the side couples because they often feel forced but because this one developed off screen, by the time we get back to them, they're just being cute, so I didnt mind them so much.

Music and Set - The music and set were nothing to stand out to me. I feel like we were outside a lot for this one, but I did love the set pieces for the Valley, Bai Lu's house. It looked very spacious and zen. I think it was the high ceilings. So far, a lot of chinese interior for these types of show tend to be more horizontal and low. Whereas Bai Lu's house seemed to have a lot of open space and breathing room. It looked like something I would live in, here in Europe, only with chinese furniture and decor.

Overall, I think it's one of those shows you'll either enjoy the cuteness or will just feel annoyed. I might be a little biased with this one because it really did feel like a fluffy, romantic pining for you forever kind of story that I used to love as a kid. I didn't feel like there was unnecessary drama which these kind of shows often use. There were a few guys after our FL but it's pretty clear she has no romantic interest, and she stands her ground when she does make up her mind, and the other female character is friendly without any jealous plotting. She's pretty supportive of our FL. There was nothing that created an annoying love triangle arc. Just the usual randomly obsessive characters you get with this sort type of FL character.

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Hint - It's only an hour & 20 minutes LOL

Rated= 2~ 9/50 ~ 1.8
Robbed and Held Hostage by a Vampire in the Cavern Tunnels.

Do you know those really random and bizarre dreams you have after a late night curry that has you waking up at 3am in a haze wondering what happened? That's what this movie feels like.
It goes off with a bang. No warning. No introduction. No reasoning. Just bam. Demon wife. Random General clearly in love and fought for her hand but she hates him and wants the prince. Cue the shortest quest for a cure I've ever seen ending in an anti climatic big reveal that's not really reveal if you any kind of foresight. And then it just kind of ends.

I guess it's meant to follow one of those folklore style stories that always seems to have a randomly depressing ending but hey, it was Friday night and I wasn't doing anything LOL But hey, it made me laugh so sure. 10/10 LOL

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Don't think about it

Rated= 7~ 31.5/50 ~ 6.3
RPG Scene // Mage collecting flowers in the Flower Meadow. Swords lying somewhere.

The whole premise of this is pretty goofy in a comic book way but I like that. I watched this show a few times last year before netflix took it down.
The first several episodes were pretty entertaining in a fun sort of way then it tried to get into the bigger part of the plot and it floundered a bit. I was a little disappointed in the ML's back story because it was set up to be a bit more exciting. He was too brutal of a fighter to be what he was. I was expecting something more political, even underground, which is what the plot tried to do eventually, and I kind of wish it was but that's when I learn that this is a 'don't think about it' kind of show because that's how it ends. It has a pretty ridiculous ending, a complete ending for the actual plot used but one that left me feeling a little, meh, you could have done more with that. It was also left open a little in the case of a season 2 and trying to force a romance between the leads.

I did not care for the brother's scenes. I skipped him. His pitches were meant to be seen as humour filling in the gaps but it didn't appeal to me.

As for the villains, one seems sort of legitimate and the other was melodrama. Both at least had a part to play in the ML's past so there's that.
The side characters were the usual random, cartoonish side characters I'm used to by now so they are what they are. I don't really have much of an opinion on them.
The other ML was also just sad to watch honestly and the FL was the usual ditzy but will get the job done sort of lead.

I remember only rewatching the first half of the show for fun because I just enjoyed the idea of a zombie trying to exist in the real world without getting caught. I was more entertained by the lead up to the actual plot than the actual plot.

I also really enjoyed the visuals. The opening scene with the yellow and red looked awesome, with the Moonlight sonata playing, and I wish they had kept that gritty, comic look through out to go with the mad scientist but they eventually drop it as they try to get more emotional.

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For the Fans

Rated= 6 ~ 27/50 ~ 5.4
RPG Scene // Fairies playing tricks in a Crumbling Castle. Battle Axe lodged in a stone.

I went in knowing this was going to be more for fans of the show but I was about 45 minutes in when I realised that this whole film, 1hr 20 mins, is going to take place in a tomb LOL Damn, I was so excited hearing the Untamed theme song play as they marched off on their horses LOL.

Consider this film being more like 2 cut episodes of the Untamed rather than a stand alone movie. It pretty much just gives a little bit more insight into why Huasung does what he does in the Untamed series. I imagine most people get the point anyway but this just gives a little extra information, with a ton of computer game cgi. The brothers were close and the elder brother wasn't such a tough guy, he genuinely cared about people, which is why he kept sparing Yao. And we all know that Hua trusted Yao, so the hurt runs deep.

Alas, again, I was robbed of the Ghosts. The film opened with some promises of giving me what I didn't get in the Untamed and then just resorted to this cgi fight.

Since it's depicted as an extra episode, I would have loved to have had it end with some sort of throw back to the original series like Hua meeting Mo or lingering outside the Mo Manor while the sacrifice ritual begins, or even how he came up with his revenge plot to start with, but it just sort of ends with Hua realising he was tricked by Yao. Revisiting the sets might have been difficult but I would have liked something like that.
Overall, it's really just something for the fans to enjoy esp with they loved the Nie brothers.

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True to the Hype

Rated= 8.5~ 42.5/50 ~ 8.5
RPG Scene // Playing with Mermaids in Sky City. Excalibur has human form.

Untamed and it's corresponding animes were all over the internet in 2019 and I deliberately ignored it. I don't usually trust anything with that much hype because it's usually fans of the actors just getting really excited. I've also never watched a wuxia before and wasn't sure what to expect.
Having said that, I got bored one day and decided to watch it. I was pleasantly surprised.

Plot Pacing - Possibly one of the best ways to open a series I think I've ever seen. I was instantly hooked. The pacing for the first 30 episodes is perfect as we find out what actually happened to get the starting scene, which from a visual story telling pov, I really loved that. When we get back to the current time line, it does however slow and takes on a shorter chapter pacing to reach the end. The big finale fight is more of a reveal than a fight. These last 20 episodes are the reason I marked this down a little. After the onslaught that is the first 30 eps, I honestly got a little bored from 34 - 42. There were also a few things I feel weren't explained very well or were just left out entirely. It never mentions what exactly the true plot was and what was being searched for.

Ending - Surprisingly didn't mind the ending as much as I'm pretty tolerable of open ended endings especially since this is a BL in China. I summarized that it was Wei Wuxian who returned to Lan Zahn. Lan did enough running after him and also feel he's too noble and loyal to run off into the sunset. His 'ice' melted and gushed like the waterfall behind him in those last scenes. He had gotten the resolution he wanted, and his emotions were set free. I like to think even physically, he got to love his lover finally, and knew his love was returned, and so was contented to allow Wuxian to go be himself while he sorts the mess out. The conversation that happens at the mid way point to me is almost like 'the after glow' conversation where both know they are parting ways for a while, represented by the parting of the water.
I also clocked that each of the clans is represented by an element, with the Lan clan being air and the Jiang clan being water, however the guys represent each other's element. Lan Zahn is water, or in his case, ice, trapped emotion, whereas Wuxian is like air, and he's tied down with rules, so the ending scene taking place at the top of the Cloud Recess's waterfall, where air and water meet is very poetic to me. The emotions now run free and the wind has willingly come home.
When I came to that conclusion, I find myself really loving the ending.

Visually, absolutely stunning. I have never watched a chinese fantasy before but I've always been aware that a lot of effort goes into the set and costuming and I wasn't disappointed. It is a beautiful visually. The make up department for the enemies did well, however I did find the lava people a little corny. That whole set up felt a bit like power rangers. I do wish they had used more ghosts as that one ghost scene was awesome and I really loved her entrance.
There is some homo-erotic imagery in the last episodes to slip through the censors that can also be read as a physical relationship 'behind the scenes' of the characters or can just be left as they are. I honestly kind of liked that. I feel like chemistry between the actors is a very a subjective thing and I didn't feel like there was a lot of 'heat' between the leads but there was definitely a deep bond feeling between them which, like the ending, allows the viewer to create their own opinion about what's happening without the censors.

I do wish Wei Wuxian had been a little bit more vengeful though, I cant lie. There were times when he could have legitimately been more brutal and it would have been justified as a viewer, but, at least for the show, his 'big bad, evil dark lord' turned out to be all rumour which did leave feeling a little cheated. Another reason I've marked this down. I do genuinely wish they had gone deeper into the plot morality of what is right and wrong. The scene opens with this broken man being painted as an absolute monster and I was genuinely expecting a brutal anti-hero character and it turned out to just be people talking crap. I was a little disappointed with that.

Overall, still did really enjoy it and is definitely on my rewatch list.

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Cute

Rated= 7 ~ 27/50 ~ 5.4
RPG Scene // Mages resting in a Crumbling Castle. Battle Axe not needed

A pretty cute BL I binge watched one Sunday.

It's pretty standard material but I like that the show started with the start of the relationship rather than the progression, so it was more about about trying to navigate how to be with each other, as opposed to wanting to be with each other.
The drama was up and down, every other episode but I've come to expect that so it doesn't take a lot of thinking, just let it unravel and it's sorted out by the next episode.

I did appreciate the attempts at communicating each other's desires for one another, allowing a natural progression of sexuality within the relationship rather than just jumping each other's bones immediately.

I did find Fiat slightly annoying as a character, a babyish kind of character, pouting and seemingly unable to do regular activities because he's so rich and never had to, or because Leo indulges him. This dynamic is a matter of preference, not really my thing but I can see how indulging in a rich guy pampering your every whim is a bit of desire for many people and can be enjoyed as such.
Both actors are fairly easy on the eyes and seem to work well with each other. Fiat has very beautiful eyes and Leo makes me think he would do well in as a prince in a costume drama. The chemistry between them seemed pretty good and not too forced.

The plot was predictable with the usual melodrama for me but I admittedly enjoyed Fiat's sass to every 3rd party attempt at his man. I do like a bit of sass and it did make me smirk slightly.

Fiat's mother was a strange case but they handled the delicate scenes with child Fiat well. I did feel more for the character after that and makes his own behaviour slightly more understandable.

I would have liked to have seen more of the lesbian friends because they seemed like an adorable couple but as with most friends in BL's they were left to the side to explain the obvious to the viewers.
I also would have loved to have seen more of a punishment for one curly haired character at the end. What he did to Fiat was not ok and there was only a hint of justice at the end. I would have liked to have seen the police cart this slimeball off in handcuffs because that's what he truly deserved.

Visually, they couldn't get enough of the 'really wealthy family' backgrounds. I think we seen a few different mansions in this series and the rest of the time is around the university. The emotional scenes were little overdone and at times somewhat cheesy but sweet nonetheless.

I really didnt care for the sub couple, even skipping them at times but again, that's a matter of preference and I did find them a little awkward with each other. As characters, they didn't seem to fit too well together either and it did seem like a very random, why are you together? kind of couple.

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Wibbly wobbly timey wimey plus Karma and a Marvel amount of CGI

Rated= 5 ~ 24.5/50 ~ 4.9
RPG Scene // Zombies wandering through Mountain Pass. Swing the short sword.

I initially dropped this at episode 2 after reading the reviews. I felt like this was going be a 'bully him until he snaps and then we'll congratulate ourselves on being right' sort of thing but reconsidered and started watching again. At episode 20, I've dropped it for good.
I think it's best to decide for yourself if you like something or not and if you, like me, decide that it's not your sort of thing, it wasn't time wasted. You tried something new and made a decision on it. That's just life.

This whole plot really could have been something. It's main focus was on karma. Every action, every laugh and tear caused, will come back to you. There are 4 timelines to this story. The original that we open with, the 'past life', the 'ancient past life' and the altered timeline.
When reading the reviews, it would seem a lot of people didn't like the first time line of the Ancient past life arc, which we see second, between eps11. and 18.
Going back to what I just typed about trying things out for yourself, this was my favourite part of the 20 eps I watch LOL I wish that had been a series by it's self, I loved that concept and I actually really loved the set and designs. It felt like a fantasy fever dream and the drama kid in me is ok with that. It's also the basis of the entire plot. The whole story starts with what happens in this arc so it was meant to be there. It's the foundations of everyone else's karma. The past is paid for and the future is written with every choice we make, even if we're think we're doing a good thing.
Unfortunately when we came back, I could already sense that the writing would start to dissolve. When I start to feel that way, I watch the last episode and decide if it's worth it and have ultimately decided that it's not.
I probably would loved this kind of show as a teenager but I'm now well into my adulthood and this sort just doesn't entertain me anymore.

So I join the ranks of the more critical reviews where I feel like, there was a masterpiece in here somewhere, the general idea, the costumes, the superhero movie cgi fight scenes, but the execution was dissolving into something quite childish and some sort of lack of understanding of how to properly communicate with people. Emotional maturity will teach you that nothing ever good comes from lie. There is no such thing as a good lie. When I got to the 'he keeps his distance because he likes you, lets seduce him' story line in 19, I can feel the annoyance coming in the following episodes as though I was going to start schooling my teenage nieces. When I skipped to the end, I can see that that attitude doesn't change and when you are world weary, regardless of age, that isn't entertaining.

It's definitely has it's audience as with everything but I feel like I've long outgrown this kind of show.

Leaving on a brighter note, I actually really enjoyed the music in this one. I'm in shock. I genuinely loved the background sad music that was happening. There's a genuine ache to the pieces I was hearing along with just enjoying the emotion in the instrumentals. So silver lining perhaps? To my surprise I found some chinese songs to add my playlist. So you see?
Nothing is ever futile.

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Game Of Thrones-ing the Past with the Food Network

Rated= 4 ~ 17/50 ~ 3.4
RPG Scene // Troll hunting me through a Haunted House. About to beat me to death with my own club.

I prefer to go into show blind as I find it better to reach my own conclusion and/or opinion on a show.
I normally like detective style shows but this is one of those ones that I dropped simply because I didn't like the characters.

This show uses some pretty heavy material for it's mysteries which if you are anything like me, will put the anxiety through the roof as your watching. This show was not good for my heart in that aspect. So if you are sensitive to very violent source material, be warned here. When I meet material as dark as this, I need to have something to counteract that kind of information. I need deeply heroic people and compassionate people. I am fully aware this stuff happens in life and the people responsible get to walk. I do not find it entertaining to watch it in a show. I am a viewer who doesn't need step by step reality in my shows.

Having said that, the characters fail me in this. The leads are the only truly likeable people, at the start. Everyone else is a truly an evil person. There are no excuses here. It's a kill or be killed kind of reality. I get it. The past sucked.

Our 3 main leads are a stoic and solemn guy with a violent past, the effeminate baby girl genius guy with a sad past and the hard nosed palace eunuch that you're not sure whether or not to trust, and I couldn't be bothered to find out his past.
I can understand this set up in the beginning but they were still the same by episode 20. I knew nothing more about them other than Stoic guy is kind, everyone hates the eunuch and the effeminate ML is as annoying as all hell.
I don't do tsunderes. I don't find them cute or endearing or even funny. They just annoy me. 20 episodes in and our ML is supposed to be exceptionally intelligent. He is the 'sleuth' in the main title and yet he will pout and stomp is his feet like a baby, rush into a situation on emotion and will straight up tell the Emperor to go away because no one is above the law and I just don't want to. I'm sick, I'm getting married, I'm dead. Seriously? This is our Genuis ML? The Emperor could have you and your friends gutted on the spot. Is a bit of tact too much to ask for from our supposedly competent genius? Am I supposed to cheer this on?
The surrounding characters aren't very fleshed out by episode 20 either. We've got the super genius adopted sister who remains in the background eating sweets until she's useful and two foreign characters that are just kind of there. They fell into the plot randomly and now there's a romance trying to be pushed between foreign girl and the ML.

Also, the food p@rn. I really don't care for. Am I supposed to feel something? Was this to counteract the absolute devastation of the mysteries? It does nothing for me.

First time in my life, I also found the cinematography annoying as well but perhaps that's just the mood I had when watching. Someone really loved getting picture-esque shots between doors and at side angles with lots of props in view. After a while, this started to give me a slight headache as I tilt my head with the camera. Yes, the surroundings are beautiful but every other angle doesnt need to be up and down and side to side.

Overall, I can see the appeal if detective shows are your thing. Not alot of action. It's all sleuth or at least until 20 but it is an exhausting show to watch. From the annoying lead, the camera angles, the dark material and deep web of lies and deceit in the royal court, there was just too much going on for me to be able to enjoy it properly.

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My Aesthetic Dream

Rated ~ 47.5/50 - Actual 9.5

My new No.1 BL.

Grunge fashion, art, vigilantes, motorbikes, tattoos, truth to power, twins, parkour ~ this was my aesthetic dream and even if I didn't enjoy the plot, this a visually euphoric for me.

Thankfully, I enjoyed the hell out of the plot. I was addicted from the first episode, I couldn't stop. And I love when that happens.

White and Black are identical twins who can feel the other's pain. When their parent's divorce, they are separated and White is moved to Russia, with his diplomat father where he loses his connection to Black.
As a young adult, he moves back to Thailand to start a political career. One evening during a dinner with his father and his friends, he experiences what Black is feeling for the first time since childhood, and we see that Black is running for his life and being beaten up by a group of men in suits. When White is in the hospital after collapsing, he gets a call from his childhood friend to tell him that Black is in a coma and near death.
To find the truth for this brother, he disguises himself as Black and takes his identity in order to join the motorcycle vigilante gang that Black was a part of, to discover who it was that attacked him whilst developing feelings for one member of the group, Sean.

Thus begins the identity swap to unravel the secrets of Black's gang and his attackers. A plot that will get me every time. I can't help it.


Some criticisms though ~
First - The twins have really crappy parents. Who separates siblings to begin with. I mean, parents separate but for them to decide, hey, I'll take this kid, and you take that one, and we'll never see each other again, boggles my mind. Then when White walks out on his father, we never see him again. At least Black fell out with his mother. White's dad was just like, sigh. And that's it LOL OK?

2 ~ After the attack on the garage, did White and Sean just live in a tent? lol We never see them in a building or what they're doing with their lives afterwards. How are they surviving? We are told via news outlet that boys are out on probation, which will give them a record. We see one boy continues his art project so, he was able to go back to Uni. But I feel like the relationships took a little more precedence over how the boys are living. I mean, just a scene of them being back in their room at the garage, or living in Black's old place would have been fine for me. Just a small missing detail that had me questioning.

3 ~ Black was absolutely my favourite character and I would have loved to have gotten more info on him. I understand that he goes off to do his own thing but I would like to have known what that thing was. Like White, he deserved to be happy esp since he had the harder road to walk. I assume he didn't go back to Uni or White would have known where he was. He kind of becomes a symbol at the end of White's alter ego rather than being a separate character that just hides in the background. I feel like he deserved more understanding than he got.
Todd also gave off a slight homo erotic vibe towards Black as well but we never see Black's perspective. He clearly loved Eugene so obviously Todd wasnt going to be at the forefront but I would have liked to have seen a little more inside his head.

4 ~ The relationship between Eugene and Gram was kind of awkward and I actually found it a little sad for Black. Cant lie. His childhood friend uses him and then tries to kill him. And his other bestie is lusting over his girlfriend, whom he breaks up with to protect, and he moves in like a vulture. eww.


The music in this was awesome. I dont think I've ever given a show's bgm a 10. It fit with the story and my own tastes, without being intrusive or wrongly placed, which I find can happen in Thai bls.

Overall, I'm a little addicted to this one, and I know it will be on repeat. No questions.

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The Cop and His Semi Competent Thief?

Rated= 7.5 ~ 21.5/50 ~ 4.3
RPG Scene // Mages passing over Mountain Pass. Only a basic sword. Newbies.

At one point as a viewer, do we say, ok, this character is a little too good. Are we too used to leads who can just do everything?

I found myself at times wondering why the FL Rong, who is supposed to be this famous, elite thief, seems pretty average throughout the show. At first I thought, ok, this is just plot device now because that's what creates drama. Then I realised that the ML is very competent at his job and is often one step ahead of the FL. So I considered, hey, maybe she just can't be better than the ML because masculinity and all that. And then I realised, you know what? Perhaps I'm asking too much here. She's not bad. She knows what she's doing. She can fight her way out of situations. Heck the opening scene, she's taking on a several squads of police to escape. And escapes/out runs the ML 3 times. So I wonder am I being a little harsh? Thieves get caught. Ninjas and assassins eventually meet their doom because that's the nature of their job. And when you have 2 separate groups of people, lead by very intelligent and ambitious men, constantly on your tail, you're going to run into some problems.

I think it's one of those things that is really up to the viewer. For me personally, I think it's a little of everything I've mentioned. She has to be good enough for you to believe she's the best, but not too good in order to create problems and tension throughout the plot. This is not meant to be a super intelligent cat and mouse show ( which would have been awesome) but it's not. It's just a fun and fluffy show about a police detective from a ruined family, the ML, at first on the trail of the famous silver willow thief, our FL.

The set up is that our ML's father was accused of embellishment of funds for flood relief, and I assume executed, and the family has since been disgraced. It is mentioned later that the Emperor showed leniency which is why the rest of the family weren't hanging from the walls as well. They were reduced to the status of commoner although have kept their house and a few servants. Our ML is under the constant watch of his career rival who leads the Ministry of Justice, who from start, is ready and willing to have any reason to get him sacked out of sheer spite.

Our FL is a waifish little rogue belonging to a secret sect who's original purpose is never mentioned or I missed it.
The story begins with the ML getting an edict of an engagement to a Lady Su, the daughter of the Duke who over saw his father's trial. Yeaah. He's delighted. He immediately goes to the Duke's house in order to break the engagement only to be led to our FL by some sort of golden bug, who covers for the real Lady Su, hiding in the wardrobe.

As the marriage was ordered by the Emperor and the leads had seen each other, this is what leads to their forced marriage. Our FL is told to steal a jade pendent and once everything had settled, the Duke, who is the secret sect's benefactor, would see to a divorce. And thus the plot begins of unravelling what actually happened to the ML's father and the event that disgraced the family.

Overall, it's really nothing complicated. It's pretty A to B. Trauma and underhanded deeds went down, ruined a family, and is slowly resolved throughout the plot.
We never find out who the FL parents are. We're just told she was orphaned and begging on the streets before being caught in the flood and hauled out our drowning ML.

It's a pretty average but enjoyable drama of resolving a scandal while falling in love. I didn't feel overly tense or waiting to see the FL identity uncovered. It just slowly happens.

One annoyance I will mention was the maid. How embarrassing for two adults who are being pressured into making as many babies as possible only to have a maid walking, merrily, in and out of their room at will. I guess that was the writer's attempt at humour but I just found it annoying and silly.

On the bright side, when the leads eventually kiss, it is an actual lip pulling kiss, or at least for the ML because that's what I seen. So there's that. The FL wasn't too annoying. She was quite passive aggressive at times which, again, I guess was meant to be funny but it just seemed childish because she was forced to marry some random guy who offended her at first sight.
The ML seemed genuinely decent though and I did feel sorry for him at times.

I didn't find the sets or music too stand outish. The sets and clothing were pretty much what you see in these period shows and the music wasn't anything I'd listen to again.

Overall, I found it an enjoyable and short watch, if you're just looking for something cute to fill the time.

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