Like millions of cdrama viewers, I waited for this drama to air with bated breath. But after watching 14 episodes, I still couldn't feel its soul.
I loved Bai Lu in One and Only as well as in Forever and Ever. However, in TTEOTM, the inconsistency of her performance gave me whiplash. Granted, she's playing several roles, but even in just one role, she would switch personalities, such as portraying a sudden burst of perkiness that felt forced. It's like she couldn't remember which character she was playing. And was she supposed to be smart? When Tan Tai Jin attacked Prince Lin's wedding with the crows, how could she not figure out or at least suspect that TTJ was behind it? She knew TTJ had affinity with animals and the attack involved crows and he survived the attack unscathed. But nope, she was totally clueless. This is just one example where logic gets thrown out the window in this drama. The corny, unnuanced acting Bai Lu exhibited every now and then didn't help alleviate my increasing disappointment with this drama.
I admired Luo Yunxi in My Sunshine and Ashes of Love, but no matter how much I tried to ignore it since his acting is not bad, I couldn't help feeling dismayed at how skeletal he looks here. So much so that his head looks abnormally long and thin, and sometimes big for his body. It may be appropriate when he's playing the bullied Tan Tai Jin, but not as war god Ming Ye. I hope this is not something encouraged in the Chinese Entertainment industry; I noticed other Chinese actors and actresses looking alarmingly anorexic too.
Misunderstandings are among my most hated tropes. It's bad enough when a misunderstanding is caused by a third party, which happens here, but worse when a lead character instigates it against his love interest, which also happens here. It's especially exasperating when a character denies his true feelings to hurt his loved one for no better reason than jealousy or to stoke his ego and does not even give her a chance to say her piece. Really, hiding behind a wall? That scene reminds me of a little boy hiding behind his mom's skirt.
Still, I continued watching, hoping to find something that would make up for the disappointing parts. After all, some of my favorite dramas also have inconsistent acting and misunderstandings. However, I instead encountered the deal breaker - when Sang Jiu, one of the roles Bai Lu plays, told Ming Ye, one of Luo Yunxi's roles, "You owe me wedding night sex". I could never root for a female lead who could utter such nonsense. A woman who would want to be intimate with a husband who has to be told he owes her that is just too low for me. Such a tacky line that seems meant to titillate sex-starved viewers could only belong in my Dropped bin.
I loved Bai Lu in One and Only as well as in Forever and Ever. However, in TTEOTM, the inconsistency of her performance gave me whiplash. Granted, she's playing several roles, but even in just one role, she would switch personalities, such as portraying a sudden burst of perkiness that felt forced. It's like she couldn't remember which character she was playing. And was she supposed to be smart? When Tan Tai Jin attacked Prince Lin's wedding with the crows, how could she not figure out or at least suspect that TTJ was behind it? She knew TTJ had affinity with animals and the attack involved crows and he survived the attack unscathed. But nope, she was totally clueless. This is just one example where logic gets thrown out the window in this drama. The corny, unnuanced acting Bai Lu exhibited every now and then didn't help alleviate my increasing disappointment with this drama.
I admired Luo Yunxi in My Sunshine and Ashes of Love, but no matter how much I tried to ignore it since his acting is not bad, I couldn't help feeling dismayed at how skeletal he looks here. So much so that his head looks abnormally long and thin, and sometimes big for his body. It may be appropriate when he's playing the bullied Tan Tai Jin, but not as war god Ming Ye. I hope this is not something encouraged in the Chinese Entertainment industry; I noticed other Chinese actors and actresses looking alarmingly anorexic too.
Misunderstandings are among my most hated tropes. It's bad enough when a misunderstanding is caused by a third party, which happens here, but worse when a lead character instigates it against his love interest, which also happens here. It's especially exasperating when a character denies his true feelings to hurt his loved one for no better reason than jealousy or to stoke his ego and does not even give her a chance to say her piece. Really, hiding behind a wall? That scene reminds me of a little boy hiding behind his mom's skirt.
Still, I continued watching, hoping to find something that would make up for the disappointing parts. After all, some of my favorite dramas also have inconsistent acting and misunderstandings. However, I instead encountered the deal breaker - when Sang Jiu, one of the roles Bai Lu plays, told Ming Ye, one of Luo Yunxi's roles, "You owe me wedding night sex". I could never root for a female lead who could utter such nonsense. A woman who would want to be intimate with a husband who has to be told he owes her that is just too low for me. Such a tacky line that seems meant to titillate sex-starved viewers could only belong in my Dropped bin.