themarchioness

Hahahaha. Exactly. I watched their stint on Hello, Saturday! They were very cute. WXY seemed like one hyper, super excited kid to me. Haha!

It's not that the drama didn't seem formulaic to me from the beginning... rather... I don't know how familiar everyone is with the book, but it's broken into three volumes. The first volume is a lot of background (it covers her leaving her company, starting XingTech, and follows the breakdown of her relationship with Shao Yichen). From the minute I heard this book was going to be adapted to a drama, I knew that first volume would need to be changed because to adapt it at is, it's a SLOG - especially the parts where she's building her company; it's interesting, but it's very detailed and I'm sure many would find slow. The first volume is important, but really the book's most interesting parts are in its second and third volumes. That's why when the drama altered their background story to make it such that Han Ting and Ji Xing knew each other from college and separated unexpectedly with Han Ting harboring this long, unrequited crush on Ji Xing, , that's a formula in and of itself, but I could also see how that change could work to shorten the story in Volume 1 and make that part more compact. It's just by the third episode, it became clear the drama wasn't going to do anything more interesting with that new, altered background other than to continue following the formula that it had set for itself in the first and second episode -- and that is unfortunate. I still maintain this drama is an easy watch, and if you turn your brain off, it's not so terrible. And XK is such a treat to watch - he doesn't just suit his role, he looks good in his suits! Haha. Truly, if he weren't in this drama, I probably would've given up already. But he makes the time spent watching worth it. This is the part that I struggle with when watching and why I have to turn my brain off, because if I don't, I start to see all the holes. Particularly holes that are created because of the drama's deviations from the book. Honestly, I'm not very successful in turning off the brain, so I rant a lot to friends (especially those who've also read the book) and then we just sigh, thank XK for his presence in this drama, and go back to watching! Haha. As noted above, I always knew changes would have to be made and I'm okay with that. My problem is that the drama logic from the changes do not always then flow down - it's like they change some things and keep others, but then the parts that they keep don't always make sense anymore because of the things that were changed. Also, because of the changes they've made, the overall tone of the emotions and feelings in this drama are lost and less impactful. The characters are less interesting and complex. I miss the feels that the book provided. I would definitely recommend reading the book for a fuller experience.

As I keep saying to friends, I'm pretty sure after Duke Su killed off Lord Cheng, NONE of us thought, "Oh, but what happens to the borders now?! Will the followers of Lord Cheng revolt? Will the people from the Dai Kingdom use this an opportunity to invade???" No, of course we cared about none of that, we were just happy the ding dong and all the other baddies were dead!!! And from that moment on, we just wanted to see our lovely OTP get together, be happy, and sort out their family affairs. All of which they did show us, but I would've appreciated seeing more of that rather than the last 10-15 minutes. Truly, I think the only reason we got that final battle scene was JUST to show us a clip of the Duke battling while biting onto XFF's jade pendant necklace. Surely, they could've worked that in elsewhere??? And also, if they wanted us to believe that the Duke survived that final attack, it would've been more believable if his two sidekicks had survived and continued to fight alongside him. Three against an entire army is a lot more believable than one, and it's not even that much more believable.... Heh. But as fun as the drama was, it wasn't without its lapses in logic. That was just one of them. In my opinion, "The Double" was best watched at a fast pace, while marathoning through. If you let it sit for too long (which I'd sometimes have to do, as I waited for new eps to drop), you'd start to think about things and it didn't always make sense. The drama was definitely more about the emotions it produced in its viewers and the feelings it gave off. It was a great ride. @abs-oluteM, I absolutely agree with everything you said about AASL... I won't get into it because this is a thread not for that drama, but for "The Double," but to the extent there's overlap between the two dramas because of WXY, I wanted to also say that if I was invested about anything in that drama, it was definitely WXY and his storyline. Which is allll the more reason it was a bummer when ultimately, his romance line went nowhere! I'd totally watch a drama about the two of them. (AASL was otherwise so snoozy!) Interesting! I like ZYL, but now having seen "The Double" with WXY, I can't imagine anyone else playing Duke Su. Even the way he spoke with that lazy drawl, it was just so him.

Xiao Heng didn't die in the end although it was a bummer that his two sidekicks did. The end is portrayed in an ambiguous way but it was not supposed to be interpreted as a sad ending (i.e., she was not dreaming his return. He, in fact, returned). There was also a 5 minute special that was filmed last minute and shared to emphasize that it's a happy ending -- the special addresses that he lives, they're married, and have a child. The stuff about XK dying in the end, that was in the news recently, relates to the actor's studio releasing behind the scenes vids of an alternative ending that was shot. https://dramapanda.com/2024/07/wang-xingyue-backlash-be-clip-xiao-heng.html All that said, I didn't love the ending either... I thought the drama would've been better without the the last battle with the Dai Country.

Yes. I'm current with the drama. I really enjoyed the first two eps. Since then... it's settled into something rather formulaic, so, it's OK. But it's an easy watch so I'm sticking with it.

It started today! First 3 eps for VIPs and 2 eps for everyone else. @ssteph, you should give XK a try in Wonderland of Love and Arsenal Military Academy. Both are really good, but I especially liked Wonderland of Love - I felt like XK's acting really improved in that drama. Omg, @SilverMoonTea, we shouldn't even mention She and Her Perfect Husband. That drama should be renamed She and Who Shall Not Be Named! LOL. So bad. I just snuck in the first episode of As Beautiful As You in my lunch break, and I actually quite enjoyed it! I'm excited to watch the second episode after work tonight. I don't know who's read the book, but it's broken down into 3 volumes and the first volume was always going to be the hardest to adapt for a drama and I knew changes would have to be made because of it. So far I think the changes they've made to adapt the novel to screen are working, so I'm excited to see how everything else unfolds.

I'm both nervous and excited for this drama! I love the book it's based on. But I'm going to go in with low expectations so as to hopefully be pleasantly surprised versus disappointed. (Can you tell I've been burned one too many times? Haha.)

haha, yes!! The drama was seriously the best tourism ad for Yunnan. If only we could all visit and meet a boy next door like Xie Zhi Yao…

You are in for a treat!!!

Aw man, catching up on the comments here is making me reenergized to get back into Shen Li. I totally fell off the bandwagon after "War of Faith." Shen Li has felt soooo draggy in comparison, but maybe I just need to get through this middle part that I'm in as it sounds like a lot of excitement is yet to come!

Haha, you sound like me! That's what I normally say about me and xianxias. In fact, I've only been able to watch 2 other xianxias prior to this one, but I agree, even with my limited experience in the xianxia genre, Legend of Shen Li is done very well. The fact that it makes sense is probably what helps me to get over my "allergy" to watch this one!

@UnniSara & @abs-oluteM, I'm enjoying the drama quite a bit! I entered this drama with a bundle of nerves. I'd been feeling like it was set up to fail with all the expectations riding on it and with each round of promotional material released, it seemed like there was something for people to nitpick over - whether it was the color of the poster, concerns over CGI, or trailers themselves. But I have to say, now that I'm actually watching the drama, I'm relieved at how it's all come together. It's really quite well done! The acting is great, the story is interesting (and I've heard from book lovers that the drama is doing a good job of interpreting the book), and the production value is good. I was surprised by the amount of humor in the first few eps. I found myself laughing quite a bit! The CGI Phoenix (that everyone keeps calling a chicken, much to its indignation) is hilarious. I've never wanted to a lead character to remain as an animal as much as I have with, "Cluck. cluck," but that would also be a waste of ZLY's talents. Anyway, I say for anyone on the fence, to definitely give this drama a chance! From what I can tell skimming online comments it seems like the reception has been positive all around - phew! Here is also a first impressions review from Dramapanda: https://dramapanda.com/2024/03/first-impressions-legend-of-shen-li-ratings-princess-agents.html

And I bet South Wind Knows took care of that soon enough! Right?? Haha. Topic 10: What is a trope that should be banned? The one where it is belatedly revealed in a drama that the leads actually knew each other in childhood. It was cute enough the first time couple of times that trope was used, but then it became like a "thing" and suddenly it was en vogue to have a story where towards the end, it would somewhere be revealed - Surprise! You actually crossed paths much earlier than you thought. I actually still don't mind this trope when it is central to the plot, but a lot of times, these days, you'll have a drama where the leads meet in their adult life, go through a perfectly fine story to get to the end of the drama, and so when that end "twist" is added, it just feels extraneous. If it doesn't add anything to the story or their relationship, I think a drama is better off leaving it out. It doesn't make it any cuter, meaningful, or whatnot. If anything, it just joins a host of other dramas who've done the same. Another thing that makes my eyes twitch in dramas, those second leads who cannot get it through their thick heads that the leads are just not that into them and then feel soooooo offended when the other lead is chosen over them. This may not be a trope so much as a character type, but if possible, I would like to abolish these types of characters, lol! I get it. They're often serve a purpose to the storyline so we probably can't get rid of them all, but it is too painful listening to their whines and reasoning!!! It always makes me want to shake the screen and try and reason with them. For example, I hate the logic of, "But I've known him/her longer." Well, so what? Love isn't a first come, first served sort of thing! If anything, it just serves as further proof that you weren't meant to be if you couldn't have made the other person yours in all that time you've had together already. Similarly, the complaint, "But I love him/her!" Again, so what? Does that mean they have to love you back just because you have chosen to bestow your favors upon them? No! Love doesn't work like that. I want to tell these types of characters: Stop being childish, have more dignity and self-love! The only thing you're doing is making yourself look ridiculous!

Topic 7: What drama had the best family/squad? Urgh... so many! LOL. I really liked the squad of firemen in Fireworks of My Heart (and if y'all are going to ask a question about best bromance, I'll go ahead now and award that to Yang Yang and Zhang Bin Bin). There was such comradery and brotherhood, you could really tell how these men were each other's family as they lived and worked away from their own. I also felt a lot of appreciation towards the ML's aunt/uncle/cousin in Fireworks of My Heart, as they provided love and support for him and the FL, who otherwise had crappy nuclear families. I also really loved the group of friends in When I Fly Towards You and the entire village (especially the courtyard where the FL resided) in Meet Yourself - although most of the families in both those dramas were pretty great too (here's looking at you Zhang Lu Rang's parents... learn from the others!). Topic 8: A drama you wished you didn't watch I hope I don't offend anyone by naming Forbidden Flower, but nope! That was nonsensical drivel. It should've been named Ode to Jerry Yan instead. I also didn't love South Wind Knows My Mood (see reasons above) or Hidden Love (sorry, I know I am offending some with that one...) but at least the latter two, I was able to watch through to the end. I had to do quite a bit of fast forwarding to get through Forbidden Flower, and it wasn't even that long of a drama to begin with! Topic 9: A doomed romance that you were shipping anyway Of the 2023 dramas that I watched, I really can't think of any! So I'll cheat and name A Little Mood for Love, which is a 2021 drama that I watched in 2023 because of my newfound admiration for Zhou Yi Ran (as previously mentioned ;)). In this drama, the FL had a younger sister who was smart, kind, an absolutely lovely person... but with absolutely horrible taste in men! At the beginning of the drama, she divorced her husband who was a Momma's boy and a total slug - I'm not sure he even had a proper job, so good riddance to him. But then she allowed herself to be swept away by this younger guy who she found charming and attentive, but was really a walking red flag of obsessive and mean. Through all this, she had by her side her best friend from life who'd she known since college (and who was also the ML's best friend/coworker)... except she had no interest in him. Which was heartbreaking because he was SUCH a good guy and had been pining after her since college already. I'm still hoping given the way the drama ended their story line that maybe one day, once the sister has moved past her current heartbreak, she'll wake up to finally see the great guy she's always had standing before her and give him a chance. They would be really cute and sweet, and that's the ending I imagine for them.

I hear ya! Sigh... and this is why I normally stay away from xianxias because the likelihood of these kinds of ending is all too high.