crowning
loonatheworld
This review may contain spoilers
Cute
It's 2021 so I'm 2 years late with this review but I realised, upon reading the other reviews, that a lot of people had different thoughts than I did. I also needed to rant a little bit so they're quite a few spoilers.3
To get the good out the way:
I like this drama quite a lot! The main male lead and female lead really only like each other and the female lead is very cold to the male lead but once they're engaged (which is a few episodes in) he pursues her single-mindedly. Even when he loses his memory as a result of amnesia he only likes her and is not swayed by other women. I also loved Feng Ping's character. She was very smart and perceptive despite being a little too untrusting sometimes. This brings me to all the things I don't like about this drama.
What I didn't like:
Amnesia Arc
The amnesia arc lasted around 7 episodes (!! way too long for a 30 episode drama) but the problem is they didn't need it at all. The male main lead is still invested and interested in the female lead even without his memories of meeting her. Despite being a playboy before having met her he does not want any other women. He doesn't treat her coldly and the female lead doesn't change her standoffishness or coy attitude so they are the same as before. It just provided more ammunition for the annoying side characters (which we will get to). It further hithered the story because though the two had become slightly more playful with each other they had never kissed or anything of the sort so no real relationship progress had been lost. It just dragged on the slowness of their relationship even further. Then immediately after he got back his memories they started kisses and sleeping in the same room and though I was happy it felt a bit random. In the comments of the drama I saw a lot of people saying the main couple had no chemistry but I really think the issue was with how their relationship evolved. It grew very inconsistently and slowly.
The Pacing
Another reason I think people didn't enjoy the main couple was because of the pacing. The main couple barely got any time with each other compared to secondary couples, schemers and the generally annoying people. There were several episodes where the main couple would get 5 minutes of screen time and the secondary relationships would get almost the entirety of the episode. In fact, one of the secondary couples (who knew each other for just as long at the leads) got married in the last episode despite blatant issues and underlying toxicity in their relationship (which the drama never properly addressed). I would have much preferred to see the main couple get married than to see that problematic relationship further come into fruition.
Almost Every Character (Except the Main Leads & Their Friends) Was Extremely Annoying:
I understand villains are not supposed to be likable and that if I despise them that means the writer did a good job at making a nefarious character but rather than disliking the "villains" in this drama I found them annoying and pitiful. The female second lead, Lu Qiao, gets shot down by Jia Nan (male lead) numerous times but continues to pursue him and attempts to ruin the female lead's life despite liking Jia Nan's brother. Her actions are encouraged by the beyond irritating housekeeper. Jia Nan's brother is also incredibly selfish and obsessed with a woman whose true colours have been repeatedly shown to him.
The male second lead, An Yue Sheng, uses Her Nan (Ji Nan's sister) as fodder for the feelings he still has for the female leads(Feng Ping) and treats her terribly for the majority of the drama. Her Nan has no self respect where this man is concerned and proceeds to allow him to walk over her. She cries at home whenever she sees him with Feng Ping. Ahn Yue Sheng despite being so obsessed with Feng Ping he refuses to see that *he* was the problem with their relationship and treats her condescendingly.
With the exception of Jia Nan, A Jiu and Feng Ping's friends, everyone in this drama is unnecessarily critical of Feng Ping and has some sort of poorly reasoned problemed with her. It is excessive to say the least.
To summarise, though this drama had many flaws I thought it was pretty interesting. The mystery behind Feng Ping is handled well, the aforementioned annoying characters make you quite emotional and when Jia Nan and Feng Ping make even the slightest bit of relationship progress it is a time for celebration.
To get the good out the way:
I like this drama quite a lot! The main male lead and female lead really only like each other and the female lead is very cold to the male lead but once they're engaged (which is a few episodes in) he pursues her single-mindedly. Even when he loses his memory as a result of amnesia he only likes her and is not swayed by other women. I also loved Feng Ping's character. She was very smart and perceptive despite being a little too untrusting sometimes. This brings me to all the things I don't like about this drama.
What I didn't like:
Amnesia Arc
The amnesia arc lasted around 7 episodes (!! way too long for a 30 episode drama) but the problem is they didn't need it at all. The male main lead is still invested and interested in the female lead even without his memories of meeting her. Despite being a playboy before having met her he does not want any other women. He doesn't treat her coldly and the female lead doesn't change her standoffishness or coy attitude so they are the same as before. It just provided more ammunition for the annoying side characters (which we will get to). It further hithered the story because though the two had become slightly more playful with each other they had never kissed or anything of the sort so no real relationship progress had been lost. It just dragged on the slowness of their relationship even further. Then immediately after he got back his memories they started kisses and sleeping in the same room and though I was happy it felt a bit random. In the comments of the drama I saw a lot of people saying the main couple had no chemistry but I really think the issue was with how their relationship evolved. It grew very inconsistently and slowly.
The Pacing
Another reason I think people didn't enjoy the main couple was because of the pacing. The main couple barely got any time with each other compared to secondary couples, schemers and the generally annoying people. There were several episodes where the main couple would get 5 minutes of screen time and the secondary relationships would get almost the entirety of the episode. In fact, one of the secondary couples (who knew each other for just as long at the leads) got married in the last episode despite blatant issues and underlying toxicity in their relationship (which the drama never properly addressed). I would have much preferred to see the main couple get married than to see that problematic relationship further come into fruition.
Almost Every Character (Except the Main Leads & Their Friends) Was Extremely Annoying:
I understand villains are not supposed to be likable and that if I despise them that means the writer did a good job at making a nefarious character but rather than disliking the "villains" in this drama I found them annoying and pitiful. The female second lead, Lu Qiao, gets shot down by Jia Nan (male lead) numerous times but continues to pursue him and attempts to ruin the female lead's life despite liking Jia Nan's brother. Her actions are encouraged by the beyond irritating housekeeper. Jia Nan's brother is also incredibly selfish and obsessed with a woman whose true colours have been repeatedly shown to him.
The male second lead, An Yue Sheng, uses Her Nan (Ji Nan's sister) as fodder for the feelings he still has for the female leads(Feng Ping) and treats her terribly for the majority of the drama. Her Nan has no self respect where this man is concerned and proceeds to allow him to walk over her. She cries at home whenever she sees him with Feng Ping. Ahn Yue Sheng despite being so obsessed with Feng Ping he refuses to see that *he* was the problem with their relationship and treats her condescendingly.
With the exception of Jia Nan, A Jiu and Feng Ping's friends, everyone in this drama is unnecessarily critical of Feng Ping and has some sort of poorly reasoned problemed with her. It is excessive to say the least.
To summarise, though this drama had many flaws I thought it was pretty interesting. The mystery behind Feng Ping is handled well, the aforementioned annoying characters make you quite emotional and when Jia Nan and Feng Ping make even the slightest bit of relationship progress it is a time for celebration.
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