sassybluee
A pleasant surprise
I went into watching this drama with very few expectations. I had tried to watch it when it first aired, but I found the first couple episodes not very engaging and a bit cheesy. I decided to finally give it an honest try this year and loved it. After the third episode, things picked up for me and I found myself getting swept into the story.
I really enjoyed the messy relationship between the two leads. I found them very fascinating, even when their dynamic was quite toxic. There's a lot of the trope where the characters (the ML especially) lie and hurt the other in order to "protect" them. If you really dislike this trope, this might not be the drama for you. For me, I've never been especially fond of the trope but I thought they did it in a really engaging way. I was glued to the screen.
There was one point towards the end of the drama where this trope felt over-used and tired, but it was luckily a brief arc.
What really makes the drama shine to me is the ensemble cast. All the side characters were interesting and I enjoyed the dynamics formed between the side chars and the leads. I really liked Bao Na and Ma Zhaixing's friendship especially and I also really enjoyed the family dynamic of the Night Fiends. Ji Chong was also a really fun character and I liked the friendship between himself and Ma Zhaixing, and even later his dynamic with Prince Bo. Chu Kui was a pretty interesting villain as well, there were times I forgot he was the bad guy!
There were a few moments that could be triggering to viewers that I want to point out. There were two instances of attempted sexual assault. In both cases, the ML does it to make the FL stop loving him, and they're not treated as romantic, but they're very uncomfortable to watch. A scene in Ep 15 especially is very uncomfortable. There is also a miscarriage scene in EP 16.
Overall, I really liked the drama and I'm glad I gave it another shot. If you struggle through the first couple episodes, be reassured the third is where it picks up, and by the fifth I was hooked. 49 episodes just flew right by, and I really had a lot of fun with it.
I really enjoyed the messy relationship between the two leads. I found them very fascinating, even when their dynamic was quite toxic. There's a lot of the trope where the characters (the ML especially) lie and hurt the other in order to "protect" them. If you really dislike this trope, this might not be the drama for you. For me, I've never been especially fond of the trope but I thought they did it in a really engaging way. I was glued to the screen.
There was one point towards the end of the drama where this trope felt over-used and tired, but it was luckily a brief arc.
What really makes the drama shine to me is the ensemble cast. All the side characters were interesting and I enjoyed the dynamics formed between the side chars and the leads. I really liked Bao Na and Ma Zhaixing's friendship especially and I also really enjoyed the family dynamic of the Night Fiends. Ji Chong was also a really fun character and I liked the friendship between himself and Ma Zhaixing, and even later his dynamic with Prince Bo. Chu Kui was a pretty interesting villain as well, there were times I forgot he was the bad guy!
There were a few moments that could be triggering to viewers that I want to point out. There were two instances of attempted sexual assault. In both cases, the ML does it to make the FL stop loving him, and they're not treated as romantic, but they're very uncomfortable to watch. A scene in Ep 15 especially is very uncomfortable. There is also a miscarriage scene in EP 16.
Overall, I really liked the drama and I'm glad I gave it another shot. If you struggle through the first couple episodes, be reassured the third is where it picks up, and by the fifth I was hooked. 49 episodes just flew right by, and I really had a lot of fun with it.
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