#final review

[xiaoshengnu]

𝕰𝖒𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖘 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝕻𝖆𝖑𝖆𝖈𝖊 - final review

overview : episode no - 76 episodes, genre - historical (gongdou)

a timeless classic, the slay to end all slays (and I mean literally and figuratively) empresses in the palace follows the story of zhen huan as she experiences life in the palace, hardening her from a sweet young girl to a stony empress dowager. 

l⃣e⃣ t⃣’ s⃣    b⃣e⃣g⃣i⃣n⃣

when I say you will never find a more iconic show ever in the whole of cdramaland, I mean never. empresses in the palace is an absolute juggernaut of a drama, it is absolutely insane, the writing, the drama, the characters, the absolute minute little details and its respect of the viewer’s intelligence- an A* and beyond. and it's internet and cultural presence in china? IN. SANE. 

o⃣u⃣t⃣     o⃣ f⃣     t⃣ e⃣ n⃣

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 9/10

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 10/10

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 10/10

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10/10

𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕖 - 9.8

o⃣u⃣t⃣    o⃣ f⃣    f⃣ i⃣v⃣ e⃣

𝖍𝖎𝖉𝖉𝖊𝖓 𝖌𝖊𝖒 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - 💎💎💎💎💎

[ I know that when the drama first came out, it was considered pretty unique for how brutally it presented harem life, but even years later and amongst so many newer dramas which have borrowed tropes and ideas from it, I don’t think you’ll be able to find such an incredibly solid drama. a five gem.  ]

𝖗𝖊𝖜𝖆𝖙𝖈𝖍 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - ✨✨✨✨✨

[ it is so incredibly long and a pretty emotionally tolling drama - even longer than legend of haolan but it is just incredible, a full five star rewatch value ]

‘keep reading’ for detailed review

oh my god this drama.

oh my god.

where do I even begin? I remember watching my parents watch this drama when was I was still really young so I didn’t know what the show was called and what it was about, and although I didn’t remember the whole of this drama I could still remember some hazy snapshots pretty iconic scenes- like at the end where she does to sleep, or when she gets sent to the island- so when I finally decided to watch empresses in the palace a light bulb went off and I suddenly realised that THIS was the show that I'd remembered from my childhood. THIS was it. so it is quite nostalgic for me. 

it is honestly such a timeless classic, there’s nothing that will ever beat it. nothing. every fucking second of this thing has a purpose, and everything the characters say and do- and even the background of scenes have minute details which relate to the overall plot and trajectory of these characters. like the amount of YouTube videos analysing this one drama is insane. when critics praise a piece of visual art as a “living breathing organism”, “a masterpiece”- they mean this. 

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 9

just. amazing. what can I say. there’s absolutely nothing that can beat this drama with how it wrote the plotting, the intrigue and the absolute cunning the women had to possess to stay alive in the palace. the ending of the drama is literally perfect. SO perfect. younger me thought legend of haolan was good- but compared to this? this is really truly another level. there’s so many instances in the drama where the drama never really tells you what exactly happened, but at the same time gives you just enough information to just guess what had gone on. equally, there are some times where there really doesn’t appear to be any scheming but with close analysis (and with the help of trusty youtubers) suddenly things become thrown into light. 

however, I had to knock down a few points because every plot has flaws and for this drama, I think it was mostly the use of tropes and the ‘female lead syndrome’ that sometimes quite clearly shows in the drama. There are also some areas in the drama where the plot does get shaky, but there is never not a reason why a scene is included in the drama. its just such a watertight drama. if you ever need to learn the art of show but don’t tell, this drama has it all. I love that sometimes it leaves it up to the viewer to work the plot out, which mirrors the way in which the concubines had to guess and predict in order to survive- which wasn’t always for certain or always accurate, almost literally pulling the viewer into the world of harem life.

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 10

I LOVE THE CHARACTERS UGH. I love them. they’re slays to end all slays. from zhen huan (the original girl boss, gatekeep, gaslight- FIGHT ME) to su peisheng- honestly so iconic. every single major character was well written, well developed and multi-dimensional, and no-one was evil purely for the sake of earning the drama cash. everyone in the drama gives you a reason to root for them, I found myself even feeling for the emperor in the end. 

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10

the production was beautiful- the lighting, costuming and makeup were literally so perfect it's unreal. so many iconic scenes came out of this drama- like the yimeiyuan (plum blossom garden) scene with it's beautiful moonlit set and plum blossom decked in snow.

 I love the designated colour palettes of the various concubines everything seemed very thought out to fit their personalities. consort hua was decked in bold colours and extravagant patterns, consort jing being calm and gentle was consistently dressed in soft blues and greens, while shen meizhuang is seen wearing mostly purples and pinks. one particular costume that lives in my mind rent free is zhen huan’s blue outfit with the white plum blossom embroidery in the episode 28- absolutely stunning.

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 10

honestly, if you took a shot for every time I've described this drama as perfect, you would definitely be on the floor by this point. The acting was absolutely now flawless. at no point in the drama did I ever feel drawn out of the story by the acting- sun li is jaw-dropping as zhen huan, her duality is absolutely insane and her crying scenes- ugh omg so good. 

.

.

𝖇𝖔𝖓𝖚𝖘!!

favourite character(s) :

zhen huan ( if your favourite character in this drama isn’t zhen huan, what are you doing???? she is an absolute icon in her own right. it’s literally impossible to not root for such a wonderful character- team zhen huan all the way )

consort hua / nian shilan ( ik ik, ik now she’s evil and everything, but I love her- she has a baseline which she will not cross and she does have a loyal heart. she loves the emperor almost unconditionally and while she would kill a concubine, she would never harm an unborn child. she seems to care for her servants, who are loyal in turn and I would argue that her being willing to employ a crippled eunuch is a sign of her more softer and caring side. and do I need even mention her snarky one liners?? slay. anyway that’s my essay in defence of consort hua )

ye lanyi ( a queen fr, she takes no-one’s shit )

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𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖜 (source mydramalist)

lead actors : sun li, chen jianbin, cha silfun

director : zheng xiaolong 

screenwriter : wu xuelan

[romchat]

Drama Rec: I Am Married...But!

Every time I watch Taiwanese dramas I always kick myself that I don't watch more. Netflix's latest I Am Married...But! is such a gem. A romcom with an edge, the drama asks the age-old question of is there really a happily ever when the fairy tale ends.

The story follows I Ling, a married woman who contemplates divorce everyday. After falling in love with her husband Xue You in a classic meet-cute, I Ling soon becomes disenchanted with married life and having to manage her in-laws and her sweet but man-child of a husband. The story takes a turn when a work client forces I Ling to sign up for and play with a dating app they've designed, and suddenly she connects with someone who seems to represent everything good and different from her everyday life.

Straddling the line between fantasy (hello, our FL has hotties played by Tseng Ching Hua, Fu Meng Po, AND Jasper Liu chasing after her???) and hilariously painful realism, I Am Married...But! is a great example of the zippy and heartfelt storytelling Taiwan is so good at. Apparently, the production team did surveys with real married couples to understand the challenges they experienced post-wedding and it shows with so many moments reminding me of stories from my own IRL married (and newly divorced) friends. And what I especially appreciated is that drama doesn't let I Ling off the hook--she too realizes how she has had a hand in her own misery and that Xue You isn't necessarily the loser she thinks he is. It's not a perfectly crafted drama but it manages to touch upon a lot of taboo topics most romances skip over with equal parts humor and empathy.

Also, special shoutout to actress Alice Ko who plays I Ling's exasperation with such naturalism and charm. She and all her leading men have crackling chemistry that makes you want to root for the best possible outcome for all of them.

Final Verdict: Would definitely recommend for anyone wanting a light watch that still manages to pull at the heartstrings. It's 12 episodes but the total runtime is around 6.5 hours so perfect for a weekend binge.

Bonus: I can't emphasize enough the eye candy on display in this drama. The casting director deserves a raise.

[cococassey]

Kdrama: Lovely Runner (2024)

My Rating: 10/10

Final Review:

Guys, how to say goodbye to Sun Jae and Im Sol, who I fell so hard for these past weeks. It's like the writer and PD said, how do we make the most fun hopelessly romantic kdrama and drive our viewers crazy with giddiness and agony each episode?

Name another drama where the OTP's faces are always a few inches, staring longingly at each other. This might be too much on another show, but in Lovely Runner, we craaave for it lol. Where umbrella holding for the other, is not some trite cheap kdrama move, but signifies how Sun Jae/Sol will just do anything to shield the other from pain and harm.

Let's admit, the biggest pull of this show is how dreamy (and a doofus) Ryu Sun Jae is as a whole (equipped with Byeon Woo Seok's outrageously good looks). That cast and their chemistry are gold! It's so easy to make this another typical high school drama where the girl chases the arrogant popular guy who will slowly fall for the girl. But he is such a dork, charming our socks off with his awkward confession mishaps, and all that selfless pining! And his devotion to Sol, omg, like can we clone him for the better of mankind?

Sol, is no slouch too, traversing time and space to save him. As he has always saved her, she sacrificed so much for him too. Some are getting annoyed by all the noble idiocy, but the weighty circumstances in the show warrant it, and makes such good angst!

Spoilers:

Others are maybe bothered about the latest time reset, erasing all what has happened before. But him getting intrigued by her again as strangers, tearing up from unknowingly reading his OWN tragic love story, reading the lost love song he wrote for her, falling for her again and again despite the odds. Choosing her again and again in spite of the morbid consequences. OMG, simply swoony romance at its finest.

The conclusion did feel like there was a lot of drama magic for them to get together again, but I can't complain when it gives these two the happy ending they earned, darn it. The time capsule watch does feels like a deus ex machina, but at the same time it's kind of fitting too.

Undoubtedly one of the best epic romances, kdrama has to offer. THIS is why regardless of the language barrier, we love kdramas, they know how to do romance right. How I wish I can borrow Sun Jae's time travel watch and experience this for the first time all over again. Falling for these two yet again and again.

[ginnymoonbeam]

Okay so I will ADMIT that A Boss and a Babe was kind of a mess in the back half, plot-wise. What's most frustrating is that with a few fairly minor changes it could have all flowed together fine and not required this sad little disclaimer in front of what's about to be a post full of praise.

BECAUSE

I don't know what to tell y'all, I still love this show very very much. Looking back at my notes from the GMMTV 2023 showcase, this is one I wasn't even planning to watch, because it looked super cutesy and I'm bored by the "cold-hearted boss meets sunshine employee, learns how to smile" trope. I don't remember what got me to try it after all, but I can tell you the exact moment I really sat up and took notice: it was near the end of ep 1, when they do a classic "bump into you at the door and you half-fall into my arms" bit. Cher's eyes in that moment are doing SO much - there's the comic shock you expect, but underneath there's this startled vulnerability and a bit of awareness that falls just shy of arousal. I was intrigued.

Book as Cher was giving a layered performance from the beginning, making it clear that there's a lot more going on than just a chipper intern, and as the series progresses we get to see how much darkness he's covering with that upbeat energy. The script wobbles but his performance, and the full sense of Cher as a person, stays on point and rock-solid throughout. He's one of my favorite characters to come out of this year so far, and that's a highly competitive field.

Gun balances Cher perfectly. He was never cold-hearted, just sad and lonely and resigned to staying that way. It's Cher's relentless optimism that wakes him up to the possibility of happiness, but once he's awake it's his steady certainty that becomes an anchor against all Cher's anxieties. He's older, he's experienced, he knows himself and what he wants, and that enables him to make space for Cher to run in circles until he can finally settle down by Gun's side. I've talked before about how their dynamic feels like dancing, and I stand by that, even if the writing of the final third took them through some unnecessarily convoluted steps.

Some BLs are just romances that happen to be about two boys, and some feel distinctly queer, and ABAAB is the latter. Gun and Cher are both recognizable types: the older sadder gay man who holds himself back from life because he's learned to expect loss, and the staunch "ally" who hasn't yet clocked his own bisexuality. And then there are the side characters: Three and Zo, a longterm happy couple who act as a model for what Gun and Cher can hope for, and Porsche, the ex-turned-best-friend. When I talk about recognizable types... the ex to bestie pipeline is SO REAL in queer circles and you never see it in dramas. Porsche's whole introductory scene had me crowing with delight. (I also loved the implication that Porsche and his new boyfriend have some kind of open situation, and that his and Gun's different feelings on exclusivity were one reason they broke up. Again, SUCH a real dynamic.)

What can I say? My love for the characters and relationships is big enough to overshadow most of the plot problems: I really loved this show. It made me happy (almost) every week, and it's going on my rewatch rotation for any time I want to smile.

[fake-married-my-dead-fiance]

Review: The Red Sleeve

I felt like it was so unbalanced. The ML and his struggles and journey were so well written and well acted (and King Grandpa), but the FL was flat and boring and confusing and it drove me insane.

She keeps saying that she wants "freedom/choices" but the drama never makes it clear what she would be losing or gaining as a concubine. And please don't explain to me, because my problem is the drama should have explained. They did explain for the Crown Prince, I totally knew and understood his sacrifices and his state of mind, but not hers. And then even in the latter half of Ep 16 when she is a concubine, sure she can't leave the palace, but she still sees her friends a lot. She has to wait for the king, but she also used to stand around waiting for hours to give him his medicine, so... Every so often the female characters would say something about their lives sucking, but they never really got into it in a meaningful way. And just saying, "We're stuck here", I mean wasn't the FL basically stuck there as a maid? Wasn't society in general pretty restrictive for women? Just telling me every so often that life sucks isn't enough!

Even the other female characters seemed to be less well-written than the male ones. Princess Hwawan was delusional, The Evil Concubine of Evil was cruel to the FL before she even had a reason to be jealous, the King's mother was just kind of flat, The Evil Head Court Lady had a great motivation for her plots and then they ruined it by making her motivation jealousy, and then the Queen Dowager, my beautiful Queen Dowager got character assassinated in the second last episode!

I think the Queen Dowager was trying to gain some influence over the king but I hated this because it made her look petty and she was such a rational character for the whole show:

Even her fight with Princess Hwawan wasn't petty, it was about establishing her power. What was this? So dumb. Why do you keep destroying your female characters drama?

And to go on about how dumb this was, the FL could have taken this out! She had no reason to refuse to work for the Queen Dowager the second time. Her options were, explicitly:

The king will rape you

The Evil Concubine will Keep Evil-ing

Work as a Court Maid for the Queen Dowager

And she takes none of the above? I don't tell me she gave into love, she looking like someone was stabbing her the whole time she was being prepared to sleep with the king.

Uhhh.... and then her wonderful "defiance" at the end is to never tell the man she loves that she loves him? Am I supposed to find that strong of her? I mean it's a messed up relationship all around but what?

The drama also never gets into the happy parts of her life with the king, they basically skipped the whole part with her kid. Having a kid is pretty cool since her only other option was virgin. And I wouldn't bring this up, except her friend died to have a relationship, so the drama brought this up. There are clearly things the FL has gained.

I wish I liked it, I respect the people who recommended it, but it didn't work at all for me.

Minor things: loved the relationship between the senior Court Lady (Seo?) and the Chief Guard. I didn't think the group of four friends with the FL had good friend chemistry. I wish they had dwelt more on the tragedy of 12 year old concubine Hong and her shitty, shitty brother trying to be the uncle of a prince. I hated that the FL forgave him, her death was totally his fault because of his ambition.

The 30 year time jump was hilarious because no one looked 30 years older, they just gave the ML a lil beard and called it a day.

Also, after the king banished the FL and she was living with the princess, she should have just avoided the king that day. You think it would be simple enough to tell her very nice employer, "The king ordered me to stay out of his sight I need a day off." That's a royal command, her employer likes her, it shouldn't have been a problem. It just felt contrived.

And is she allowed to say no when she was recalled by the king's mother? That wasn't clear.

[arimarureviewsya]

Final review: Raya and the Last Dragon

Yeahhh, the impact of the good scenery and few good character moments didn't stick with me very long, and I think the lasting taste in my mouth for this movie is just not good.

Mostly, the themes of "trust everyone all the time", even if not intended, are just bad. And how much it was harped on made large parts of the movie fully unenjoyable to watch. I stand by that this movie would have benefitted greatly from a longer format, be it a serial show or an extra movie. BUT, without a major adjustment to the theming it would have still been severely lackluster.

If you want a fun story about a "chosen one" and their ragtag team of misfits going on an epic adventure to unite nations and save the world, just watch ATLA.

3/10

[romchat]

I'm definitely one of those people who thinks Fangs of Fortune is a hot mess but what a glorious hot mess with real depth and so many moments that hint at what could have been one of The Greats. It's like a recipe with the steps out of order and ratios off balanced--the ingredients are all there but it just needed a bit more testing before being published.

The show is textured, contemplative, and experimental, and really feels like high fantasy in tv form. However, as a viewing experience, I did find FoF equal parts frustrating and enthralling because it didn't always have the foundational structure that is needed to support such a dreamy story. I'm not a plot girlie so I rarely care about consistency or tightness, but I do care when an extreme tonal change or a lazy plot device or erratic sequencing detract me from truly feeling the weight of a story's themes and emotions. The amount of mental gymnastics the writing forced me through meant I couldn't let myself get lost in the wonder of the rest of the storytelling.

I think that's why I've been so drawn to the incredible meta and stories being produced within the fandom more than the show itself--the fandom is weaving the threads that were left dangling in the original.

I've seen a few posts critical of the plot of Fangs of Fortune, and other comments elsewhere about it being style over substance.

On some other post, I commented that if you're looking for a tightly constructed, linear plot, you'll be disappointed. The plot is fine, but a large part of the story is told through what people too easily dismiss as "style" instead of witty dialogue or whatever.

You can tell a story through different mediums, and in this show, visual storytelling reigns. The music does a lot of heavy lifting, too. We shouldn't shortchange the writing: there is some amazing dialogue that is skillfully deployed to develop characters.

But it's true that plot devices sometimes appear from out of nowhere and there is one thing that, to me, is borderline ridiculous. But by the time it happens I was so emotionally invested, I chose to just roll with it.

But this is the difference between telling a story in straightforward narrative style, and telling a story using the language of dreams or myth. We've all had dreams that affect us profoundly, that convey a message even if they sound nonsensical when we try to explain them. And myths frequently involve characters having sudden knowledge or being sent on a task or quest that doesn't make sense as a way to solve a problem.

The point of both dreams and myths is to make sense of contradictions and dilemmas in our personal lives and in our cultures. This is why dreams have emotional resonance even when they don't make sense, and why myths sometimes resonate over centuries or even millennia.

Fangs of Fortune is based on ancient Chinese lore about mythical creatures, and it would have been a shame to shoehorn them into a narrative limited to human motivations, goals, and abilities. I hate media that tries to rationalize mythical beings, and love Fangs of Fortune because it refuses to do this. It takes the viewer on a gripping emotional journey through the lives of characters whose motivations are partly relatable and human, and partly in the less knowable realm of gods and demons that humans have always used when pondering the great mysteries of life, like the nature of love and sacrifice, and how we should behave in the face of loss and injustice.

A lot of people try to make "dreamlike" shows and movies and few succeed. Fangs of Fortune, for me, sets a new standard in how it can be done.

[blockbustercatalog]

Lessons in Chemistry

This is a review of Lessons in Chemistry (2023)

Beware spoilers below.

Final rating: 3/5

Pre-viewing Assumptions

(In the interest of honesty, this is written after viewing, I am attempting to remember my Pre-Viewing assumptions)

I saw a single clip on tiktok, and added it to my viewing list. It was the scene of the (assumed) main character (Brie Larson) speaking to a love studio audience. A woman compared something permeable membrain something to a skin condition and Potential Main Character (Brie Larson) encourages her to pursue medical school.

I thought the show was about a TV star (Brie Larson) building up woman and subverting misogynistic men. Also I thought it would be very science based. Perhaps Potential Main Charcter (Brie Larson) would be a rich fancy lady was large and in charge.

I was a little worried Main Character (Brie Larson) would be dismissive of 'typical' women, who preferred fashion and childbearing over the pursuit of knowledge.

Post-Viewing

(I did watch most of this before deciding to do a review blog, same with the next few posts. Once I catch up with reviews:media the format will change.)

The show has one (1) season and eight (8) episodes. I watched it all in about 3 sessions.

I absolutely finished it. I was interested in the show, but not 'awake til 2am' interested. I didn't expect that the show would be mostly pre-show, but it didn't bother me.

I immediately identified with Elizabeth Zott. I was very much a young girl uninterested in 'usual' girl interests. Love that she didn't change in that aspect as she fell in love and became a mother.

As soon as Elizabeth and Calvin Evans interacted I knew they would have at least some sort of romance. I worried it would be Calvin trying to 'encourage' her to be more feminine, both in appearance and behavior.

Needless to say I fell in love with Calvin. The scene where he tries to teach Elizabeth to swim. She looked so goofy in her swim gear.

He, unsurprisingly, died. The few scenes from the 'future' showed no evidence he was still around. I did think early on that he would turn out to be a dick and they'd broke up, but no, he was incredible.

I did NOT predict the baby. Mad wasn't hinted at in the future scenes, but as soon as she threw up in the middle of the night, 💡.

What a weird choice to fake us out about Mad. Why pretend it was one little girl, and then go 'sike' it's this other child?

I liked the episode from 6:30s point of view, but what a WEIRD choice from a show about chemistry. Very jarring switch between episodes. On no, Calvin got hit by a bus, anyway, here, listen to the dog's feelings about it.

Lots of religion talk, but makes sense with the time period. Calvin and Wakely's friendship was amazing. I loved that episode, being able to see Calvin's life and feelings change as he accepted Elizabeth into his life.

From Elizabeth's POV it really seemed like he took everything in stride. I'm really happy we got see how he struggled, not with Elizabeth specifically, but having to open his life, and caring and thinking about other people.

HATE that priest from the boys home, what a dick. Calvin was so close to gaining a home. But, then, Calvin's entire life would be different, he might never have met Elizabeth.

I think Harriet Sloane is an incredible character, her storyline is amazing. Unfortunantly it very much seems like her arc was mostly used for a character growth for Elizabeth. And while I love Elizabeth's character growth, learning to see the effect she has on other people, she never really did anything for Harriet.

Harriet and Elizabeth absolutely care about each other, but the relationship feels so onesided. Harriet gave her support/advice in raising Mad and was a stepping stone in Mad finding out more about her father.

Elizabeth did show up at Harriet's protest, and used her show to advertise said protest, both actions which seemed to have... no real effect. Harriet still lost the case against the freeway.

Speaking of, Elizabeth's brother, John Zott was also just used for character growth. I will admit, he was the catalyst for her turning to chemistry, but other than that? I guess there was the 'living a lie' moment that turned Elizabeth to being true to her beliefs, but other than that he was there to die and further personal growth.

It just feels a little cheap that both of the character's stories that were minorities (Harriet being African-American and John being gay) were just used for character growth. Elizabeth did more for Laurel Moore (literally got her a job) than Harriet. Plus John legit dies (bury your gays, much?), via shooting himself.

Im not saying Elizabeth didnt do anything for Harriet, they just didnt have any scenes to suggest she did. I think John's story could have ended with him running away or dying in a much more natural/accidental way, and worked just as well.

Production wise, it was good. Nothing super special or stand out, and it fit well with the themes. I did really like that in the 6:30 episode (still a weird choice) that the people were muffled/silent. Good way of portraying the unrealness that comes after a loss like that. Still, would have been better if the POV was a person, not a dog.

Nothing special about soundtrack, other than fitting very well with the time period.

Um,,, I think thats it tbh.

3/5 stars

[claudeleine]

thanks cliff!!

[thedas-elf-lover]

A slightly deranged review from a long time Dragon Age fan.

What this game promised to be in terms of a Dragon Age game: - Most romantic - Offer a few key world state choices that would have great plot impact, which emphasis on wanting to give players choices that have a visual impact, not just codex. - The most complex, deep companions yet. - Choices that matter.

What I got: [SPOILERS] - The shortest, chastest romances I've ever seen, where the end goal is quite literally sex. The final romance scene is the sex scene, after you've been locked in for some time. No sex before marriage, lol. Even the shortest romance in DAI is longer than the longest romance in this game. It's probably the least sex positive game out of them all. - The only choice that has visual impact is the Solas option, and even that doesn't really give anything major. Solas has maybe one unique line? Otherwise, there is no major change. The other two choices (Did you disband the Inquisition? Did you vow to save or stop Solas?) have no difference, either. It's a matter of do you want your Inquisitor to say "comrade" or "friend." The Inquisition doesn't matter. The South gets nuked off-screen anyway. In codex. So two of the three world state choices we get are mostly represented in codexes anyway. - I have nothing against the companions in Veilguard, but to call them the most complex is somewhat... false. Solas is a complex character. Thom Ranier is complex. Vivienne de Fer is complex. Fenris, Anders, Merrill, Isabela, Morrigan, and Sten are complex characters. They are characters who contain complexities that are not easily swept away. ALL the Veilguard companions are your next door neighbors. They're normal. There's nothing wrong about that, but they don't challenge you. There's nothing to think about. Lucanis isn't going to make you seriously consider your morality, despite being the "prince" of the Crows - hired killers. Neve's standing and possible privilege as a human mage in a magocracy is never commented on. These are just two examples, but the same applies for the rest of the companions. None of them are HIDING anything. I will reiterate that there's not anything necessarily WRONG with that, but it does mean they lack the flare of drama that previous companions had that made them brain-scratchers. - Choices don't matter. No matter what Rook does or says, you're railroaded into a scrappy, heroic person who is always right. The worst thing you can do in this game is just NOT do the companion quests. - Despite being a RPG, there is no roleplaying. It's more action/adventure. But it gets a little slow in places for an action/adventure. And it doesn't have enough roleplay value to be a satisfying RPG. - Pretty much the only reason I can see replaying this game is to see the opposite city routes. You don't have to finish the game to get the full romance, either. - No lore continuity. Elves, qunari, dwarves, and humans just living in peace in Tevinter. Some fantasy where poor communities aren't racist doesn't explain this away. - Orientalism in Rivain? - Reducing what was originally a story about slave liberation and rebellion to "love and murder" over Solas' ex situationship. - The game can understand gender that exists outside a binary but somehow can't understand multiculturalism. - Why does Bellara, a Dalish elf, have white guilt?

Some disorganized additions:

- Tonal whiplash. You go from losing a supposedly beloved companion to the final romance scene (the sex scene) in the space of 5 second. - You can't speak to your companions outside cutscenes. However, you can go around the Lighthouse snooping on your companions having nice conversations amongst themselves. - Not a SINGLE companion bothers to check in on the PC even once. You played as a Grey Warden who lost Weisshaupt? No one cares. Emmrich will check in on Davrin but not you. The only point in the game where they show even a smidgeon of care for you is after the Regret Prison, but they don't actually show it. You're pulled out and it immediately cuts to a war table scene. No emotional reunions. - This is Found Family - but only for the companions. Bellara has the opportunity to see Neve as a sister figure, but not you. This could roll into the lack of roleplay value in this game, but it really adds to the lonely element of this game. - "Okay guys, we lost the big game. Let's all take a step back and do some self-care exercises." But the game is Weisshaupt and the South is getting nuked. - Characters often feel like caricatures of themselves. Oftentimes this game feels like a fanfiction of the story and characters it's representing. Some of the things the characters say are not things that normal people would say. Because Rook never builds more than an entirely superficial relationship with their coworkers, it's entirely believable that the most moving thing Rook can think to say, whenever the obligatory Sad Moment happens to a companion, is "[Insert Name Here], I'm so sorry." - You could replace the Inquisitior with a cardboard cut out and it would have more life. - We already had a story about a disapproving parent who is hurtful to their queer child with Dorian. There was a missed opportunity with Shathann to explore the Qunari's view on gender, but only the Tevinter characters are allowed to talk to Taash about different gender identities. When Shathann talks about qunari gender identity, it's oppression. This game's handle on cultural identity is awful. And then they fridged Shathann. - Did you know Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain, the ancient elven gods (we won't say Evanuris even though that's shorter and more believable to Andrastians who might balk at the idea of ELVEN gods), have escaped from their prison and are blighting the world? The elven gods escaped and they're blighting the world, because they're blighted and escaped prison and are elven gods and are blighting the world, Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain, those gods, who are elven, and escaped and are blighting the world. - This game is Young Adult. This game is YA with all the darker, grittier elements from the previous game filed away, presented as "politically correct" with "ethical piracy" with no continuity in characterization because Isabela Dragon Age 2 would NOT say any of that. It's if Genshin Impact was a Dragon Age game, complete with the canned body language (cross arms). - The villains are one-dimensional. Aelia's "Minrathous dark truth" AKA Batman villain, Butcher dies after 1 moment of glory, the Dragon King is nothing sauce, if Elgar'nan was just a little bit more intelligent he'd have just smashed that moon into Thedas and called it a day, Illario's speech is ripped right from the Lion King. Gone are the days where antagonists had complex reasons for their actions. Gone are the days where characters were put into situations were there was NO good choice for them to make and we could judge them with the nuance they deserved. - Also did you know: Whatever it takes?

On the bright side, the CC is great.

[xiaoshengnu]

𝕸𝖞 𝕵𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖓𝖊𝖞 𝖙𝖔 𝖄𝖔𝖚 (2023)

overview : episode no - 24 | genre - wuxia

yun weishan has only ever known darkness. brought up and honed from a young age to become a spy under the mysterious sect wufeng, she longs for freedom. the drama begins as she is sent on a mission into the gong family, the enemy sect of wufeng. if she succeeds, freedom she gets. surrounded by schemes and treachery with possible death looming on both sides, yun weishan must navigate the dangerous waters of the gong family and her own turbulent emotions towards her target, gong ziyu.

l⃣e⃣ t⃣’ s⃣    b⃣e⃣g⃣i⃣n⃣

YALL THIS DRAMA. THIS DRAMA. this drama was simultaneously the worst and best thing I have experienced in a long time. however, if I could only use one word to describe this drama, it would 100% be stunning. the drama is absolutely stunning. from the music to the costuming to the makeup to the actors- this drama's visuals is quite frankly something never seen before in chinese dramaland- its so dark and brooding and so cool. the plot on the other hand...? let's get into it.

o⃣u⃣t⃣     o⃣ f⃣     t⃣ e⃣ n⃣

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3/10

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7/10

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7/10

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10/10

𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕖 - 6.7

o⃣u⃣t⃣    o⃣ f⃣    f⃣ i⃣v⃣ e⃣

𝖍𝖎𝖉𝖉𝖊𝖓 𝖌𝖊𝖒 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - 💎💎💎💎💎

[ honestly, this drama is pretty unique I have to give it that much. in every way. the characters? the premise? and the style? I think the visuals alone grants it it's five gem value. ] 

𝖗𝖊𝖜𝖆𝖙𝖈𝖍 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - ✨✨✨

[ despite the plot that is quite literally held up by like two stitches, I would probably rewatch it for the characters, but probably not think too deeply about the drama's construction as a whole because honestly- it would frustrate me to no end. ]

‘keep reading’ for detailed review

 𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3

okay- hear me out y'all. I know people absolutely LOVE this drama and I am one of them, but I have to admit the logic in this plot sucks ass. like it really sucks ass. recently i heard a youtuber describe the characters as people who thought they were zhen huan but in reality were just a bunch of xia dongchuns and it really made me laugh- and guys... unfortunately, its true. some of the methods that the characters use to scheme and idk "verbally spar" honestly were just so- sigh. so ridiculous.

generally speaking, I felt that the drama didn't really have a "thread" or a central purpose, which I think is mainly a result of the build up to the ending. it failed to answer so many questions and instead made it worse by creating even more. overall, the plot kind of just felt like wading through a gigantic mud marsh with pointless confrontations and plot points popping up everywhere. the scriptwriters gave the drama a super complex framing that they just weren't able to do justice. two powerful sects and two people from completely opposing sides. one is an assassin-spy that initially (?) yearns for freedom and one is the leader of the sect that she is trying to destroy. add to that all the scheming that goes on the gong family. and a lot of childhood trauma. that's a shit-tonne of emotion and plotting to deal with which you can't realistically develop to a good quality within just 24 episodes.

I also got the vibe that the scriptwriters were scared to pin point any of their characters down for the sake of mystery, which honestly instead of making the drama better, really just made it worse. so many characters' motives were constantly doing 180s and big revelations were thrown in without any evidence of it being interlaced with the rest of the drama (I'm looking at you Big Plot Twist At End of Drama). like, the general concept was amazing, show-stopping, fantastic, never seen before, but then came the execution and it all just sort of fell apart.though I did enjoy the plot and watched the show until the end, ultimately I felt that there was honestly just too many frustrating flaws to justify it getting anything higher than 3. I loved the drama all the same though, the concept, the music and cinematography was just insane.

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7

ugh all the characters in this show where literally sO COOOLLL. they all had such distinctive characters, styles and personalities, it was amazing. honestly, literally never seen before. their tragic backstories were so so heartbreaking. while plot wasn't fantastic, the drama was pretty good at establishing and handling the characters and their emotional attachments to each other. its kinda funny to me that for a drama which marketed romance as it's main thing, the non-romantic relationships were so much better written. I loved yun weishan and yun que's relationship to their master han yasi and the relationship between xue chongzi and xue gongzi. and omg, gong ziyu's relationship to lady wuji? brought me to tears.

speaking of the romance department; I found it really hard to invest in the ships. while I approved of all the pairings and thought a romantic dynamic between them would be very interesting, it did feel like the storytelling was yet again lacking. I couldn't be sure wether I could really invest and ship the romance between shangguang qian and gong shangjue bcs both their motives were so unclear, and neither of their feelings towards one another were never really explored properly? and while I definitely understood yun weishan's attraction to gong ziyu, I didn't really get why gong ziyu loved her and risked so much for her which made some of his actions seem really silly and hard to stand by. overall, for the romance, i think I liked what it had the potential to be than what we actually got.

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10

Y'ALLL. time to talk about my absolute FAVOURITE part of this drama. THE PRODUCTION. the colouring, the lighting, the sets, the cinematography?? the makeup? the music? the costume design?? THE COSTUME DESIGN?? its quite obvious that a huge amount of the budget for this drama has simply been poured into the design, like I've seriously never seen a drama shot like this ever before and it was absolutely insane (though they definitely had to cut down on the cast and extras, the whole drama has this weird kind of empty feeling for a manor that is so rich and famous and so tightly guarded, like yun weishan didn't even get a personal handmaiden) I remember seeing the trailers for this show and literally screaming- the drama itself did not disappoint. I would even go as far to say that I would watch this drama completely just for the aesthetics.

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7

in my personal opinion, no complaints about the acting, it was pretty great. although it's pretty dramatic at times and everyone speaks at the volume of a whisper, at no point in the drama did I get taken out of the show by the acting. esther yu really slayed in her new assassin role which was so fun to watch especially since most of her roles thus far have been rather cutesy and light- and her marital arts scenes ate- in fact all the martial arts scenes ate in my opinion. I think even the side characters did fairly well, it was all very nice. no complaints.

.

.

𝖇𝖔𝖓𝖚𝖘!!

favourite character(s) : 

yue gongzi ( who doesn't love an angsty angsty man? he's literally the definition of that teary wet cat meme and I love that for him ) 

xue chongzi (yet another angsty man- you can see a pattern forming lmao- his arc at the end was literally so heartbreaking. one of my favourite characters from this show fr. )

.

𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖜 (source mydramalist)

lead actors : esther yu, zhang linghe, lu yuxiao, cheng lei

director : guo jingming, luo luo

screenwriter : guo jingming

[romchat]

Love Scout: Final Thoughts

What's the German word for losing out on something that never existed?

Oh, Love Scout. On a technical level, there were so many things I enjoyed about this Kdrama. The cinematography choices were smart and impactful, working harmoniously with the production design to deliver insight into its characters' lives. Han Ji-min's performance as the complicated FL, Kang Ji-yun, felt nuanced and lived-in. The supporting characters and their interactions were charming. (Mi-ae's exasperated loyalty, Jung-hoon and Su-hyeon's refreshingly mature reactions to being rejected, Ji-yun and Byeol's deep connection 💙 were the standouts for me). Oh, and the show gave us quite a few sexy moments made even sexier by the fact that they played with popular gendered tropes. Taken all together, there was a lovely grounded quality to the show without it getting bogged down with the messiness of real life.

And yet...

Ultimately, Love Scout didn't work for me as a whole because it is the perfect example of a show that has a great concept but doesn't do anything with it.

There are so many themes the show could have explored with the unusual set-up of a female boss/male assistant (who also happens to be a single father). For example, it could have touched on:

Workplace taboos and gender-mediated power dynamics

Gender norms and the pressures of care work

Fatherhood and the loss of one's sense of self

Etc.

So when the show didn't surface any of these as natural sources of conflict between the two main characters, it felt like the show both didn't have a true sense of emotional stakes and that it was sweeping its ethical questions under the rug. (Side Note: It didn't help that as hot as the ML's character was, the script didn't really give Eun-ho a sense of interiority until after the couple gets together. He was like a reversed heterosexual fantasy of a man who completely devotes himself to his partner and child with no character needs or wants of his own. Even in the last episode, it's Ji-yun that sets Eun-ho up for the next stage in his career--it's a sweet moment yes but it would have had more resonance if the drama had shown Eun-ho trying to balance his concern about taking care of his daughter, advancing his career, and being loyal to Ji-yun with any depth.)

Final Verdict: I could have been so feral about this show but the writing kept denying me what I need to see in a romance: equally fleshed out characters whose attraction to and love for one another pushes them to undergo friction, self-reflection, and transformation.

Maybe next time, Kdramaland.

[applebuttercringe]

Jayce's speech to Viktor was bad.

IMO

So, the final speech Jayce gave to Viktor about finding beauty in imperfection, and how our flaws make us human, that’s a fine sentiment but the specific examples he used ruined it. He used Viktors disease as an example.

Viktor was dying from a disease caused by Piltover mining in the fissures polluting the air. It was a preventable disease forced onto him by a corrupt system. He was slowly and painfully falling apart. “I can feel myself rotting” type stuff. Was he supposed to have appreciated that?

Jayce wants him to have appreciated the simple beauty of dying a slow painful death while your best friend is too busy being a councilman to be with you and your mentor is roadblocking your only possible cure. That was the imperfection that he was misguided to want to solve? The show is really saying Viktor was misguided, or not appreciative enough of being human, to not want to die young. He was giving up his humanity when he fought to live.

Viktor should not have just accepted it, that isn’t just part of being human. It isn’t a beautiful flaw you learn to love. He did nothing wrong by taking his life into his own hands and taking every possible chance to live. Even when no one believed in him.

I’m sure there are more charitable interpretations but that line really rubbed me the wrong way.

[xnyu09]

[trashyshrew]

[peonypyxels]

maggie & rei🌟