(2021-4-16) Hmm... SO far it's ABSOLUTELY superb! The women are all TRULY strong, Mei Changsu's character weak but determined, and the way the plot unravels is simply superior to any other drama of 'kingmaker' and 'revenge' I've ever seen. Only on episode 6, I'll be back with a more detailed review.

I'm back, and in pain. I will be honest, I knew that this drama was going to pull at me. Unlike some other viewers, I am not a crier. Rather than sad, I get very angry, irritable, and uncomfortable while I watch a series. Whether the story is bad or the plot just enrages me, I usually am not able to feel true, unadulterated sadness.

But this show got me.

I'll be honest, I did not shed many tears. Instead, I had to gasp for air whenever my throat burned or my chest tightened. Fei Lu's adorable personality paired with his tiger-like martial arts, Mei Changsu's friendships with Tong Liu, Commander Meng etc., the character growth and tragedy befalling Jingrui, the upstanding righteousness that is Marquis Yan, and the star-crossed love between Nihuang. Prince Jing. and Mei Changsu, all made me emotionally invested and torn. The women in this show are the best I've seen. TRULY strong. Contemplative, elegant, and poised. And even when they weren't, their performances as victims in a corrupt empire and patriarchal world made their actions all the more believable. The stereotypically 'masculine' and tomboyish women such as Princess Nihuang and Dong are not overdone. They are militaristic but still can carry themselves with an air of femininity. And CONSORT JING OH MY GOSH. SHE RAN THIS DRAMA, CONSORT JING SUPREMACY!!!

Ai, do not get me started on the steady rise of Prince Jing!
Psalm 118:22 "The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone."

Robbed of his brother-in-arms and the leaders he respected to corruption and chaos, it is only his steadfastness and longing for justice (much like Marquis Yan) that stops him from going insane. I'm also glad the series went the route of making this his only flaw before the Emperor. Prince Jing was a character thoroughly well done. While he's the stereotypical straight arrow, he is portrayed as a correctly flawed human. He constantly is suspicious of Su Zhe's morality, is rash and impulsive in his quest for righteousness, and is obsessed with the Chiyan case to the point of self-destruction. This drove him and Mei Changsu apart vehemently when it came to saving one of the last Chiyan Army survivors. It was to the point I wanted to fling my laptop. You can be frustrated with him, you can berate him, but you can UNDERSTAND him. It's not the "good-just-to-be-good-can-do-no-wrong bullshit." On the topic of Prince Jing...

One of the cons I have with the series is this: The secret of Mei Changsu's identity being kept from Prince Jing.
I'll be honest. The reveal was anticlimactic, and upsetting.

There were many better moments throughout the show where it could be revealed to Prince Jing.
WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS. THE ABOVE REVIEW IS ENOUGH. FIRST-TIME VIEWERS, STOP HERE!

1.) When Fei Lu said Su Zhe refers to Prince Jing as 'water buffaloo' 2.) When Su Zhe's manners and phrases slipped, becoming more Lin Shu-like (WHICH WAS SO ADORABLE WHENEVER THEY'D MEET THROUGH THE TUNNEL AH) 3.) When Consort Jing flipped out about Su Zhe's health in front of Prince Jing...then ordered him to leave...{This actually may have been the best moment. If he stayed outside the tent and heard her cry while holding Mei Changsu..oh man...} and 4.)The moment where Su Zhe was horribly sick and rambled in the night, (and Prince Jing stayed the night with him... eheheehhehe) Sorry. In any case, the scene where Prince Jing left the Emperor's interrogation and realized while walking and piecing everything together was...boring. It was sad of course, And many heaved an exclamation of "Finally!" It was not a cathartic release. And then after the reveal... their playful banter was far and in between! WHERE'S THE TEARS AND HUGGING AND ANGST?! I FEEL RAGE! The final showdown with that hard-hearted Emperor- The climax- it was so too good for words. The pain held in for years was unleashed in a court-led demand for justice. Watching the Emperor fall to the ground in guilt and horror after being force-fed his sins was bittersweet. All in all...the series was amazing. I don't know how I held out for so long :')