This show was weak in acting and plot. How do you make an audience sympathize with a bloody, murderous tyrant? Give him a love interest. Unfortunately it doesn’t work. He is too arrogant, distrustful and cruel to be lovable. The love interest then comes off as a pushover. The MCs are young and not seasoned enough in their craft to truly pull off the depth and inner struggles needed to add weight to their performances. The supporting cast actually does a better job at this, Madame Chu being an excellent example. She even grows as a person and has a fabulous ending. She won my respect.

I found it difficult to sympathize with any of the characters in this drama They all do unrealistic things. Han Shen is the only exception, as the long suffering senior brother who sacrifices all happiness to protect the one he loves.

The costumes, design and on location departments get top ratings from me. They did a wonderful job making the show a feast for the eyes as usual. Unfortunately, it isn’t enough to help a show that lacked substance in plot. Nothing was really happening and the final 20 episodes tended to meander towards a predictable end.

My biggest pet peeve was the spoiler previews. What was up with that? I could have skipped whole episodes with all the storyline they gave away. Great soundtrack, weak drama that left me sad and disappointed.