Past Life and Life (2020)

I decided to write this review because I greatly disagree with the criticism exposed until now. This drama is one of the first one I watch and it took me time to decide to post a review but here I am

I won't say back what everybody wrote but there's some things where I disagree, especially concerning the male lead acting skills. First of all, he plays a character who is described as cold and emotionless by the other characters so if you agree with them, it means that the actor did his job well. You like his character or not, it's your choice but it is not the fault of the actor. I even think that you can see the emotions in his eyes if you try. His face is expressive, just not openly since his character can't. He is the son of an emperor, with a failing health he behaves the way he was taught to and the way he needs to protect himself. He also fears that his death will be too much for the girl he loves so he hopes she can find love in someone else. He also has to find who is trying to assassinate him.
Secondly, we now know that Yu Menglong was seriously injured while shooting and became blind in one eye though he continued shooting the drama. From what I gathered from the Chinese source (I don't speak Chinese well), he uses to wear contact lenses but could not due to his injury so he shooed the scene while not being able to see afar. I actually think it is quite incredible he was able to perform that well while injured and I would love to see all who criticized him try to do the same.
As for him being camera shy, you don't need to fix your glare on the caerma while shooting.

Fot the rest of the cast, I agree with the reviews. They were great. I still get annoyed with the main female mead because I think she is way too stupid sometimes and I skipped a lot of the scenes with the second male lead because he was way too carefree at the beginning. It took him his father's death in order to mature. That's probably why I prefer the male lead and wasn't bothered by his acting. I thought the female leads mother quite annoying, blaming the male lead for his mother's mistake when he was able to overcome the past. Actually, a lot of characters annoyed me.

It may seem weird that even though I skipped several part and hated so many characters, my rating is still so high. Actually, I think that the second part compensated for the introduction (which lasted several episodes) and the first part. I love how it became darker and deeper, how the characters evolved. Which is why my rating is so high.

Lastly, the songs are really great as is the whole ost.

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Pretty Romantic Dark Comedy

The series so far has me laughing out loud. While it's pretty and funny, it's actually somewhat complex, and the action moves fast, which is why it's shorter than most dramas.

It's funny because of the moments where Feng Mian/Qing Li try to hit on Jing Ci/Jing Zhi Wan while dressed as a man. It's super cute. But dark, too. Imagine how he must feel. Before, she was angry enough at him to cut his hamstrings, so in return or in mercy, he makes her drink a medicine that has her forget about him entirely. The medicine worked, but physical attraction in this context isn't defined by conscious memories, so she's still like wow, he's so handsome, and she's following him. Meanwhile, he hurts walking because of his hamstring injury, but also his heartstrings are being plucked, because he's seeing her happy, without the baggage of the bitter memories. Like his legs hurt and it's a reminder of the hurt she's endured at the hands of his family, but also he's happy because she's finally happy. What high standards! Imagine applying this standard to real men: True love is continuing to protect her even after she tried to kill you.

Even though I've seen the reviews that criticize Yu Menglong's acting, the character is supposed to be stoic. Also, knowing that his family would hurt Feng Mian when he expresses affection, of course he would hide it quite a bit. His relationship with his foster father is all about politics as well, and what's most important in games of Go and politics? A poker face, of course.

I know it's a comedy because she doesn't seem afraid of being beheaded after being accused of a murder. The police chief seems comically incompetent too, very exaggeratedly so. The tone also remains light, because of the witty interactions between Qing Li and her maid, Xiao Lu. I've never seen such a good dynamic between lady and maid! It made me happy because they're best friends. The second male lead is more conventionally attractive, and even though the character is not that smart, he tries. He still likes her even after she beat him up 3x! He's just a good bro.

Maybe I'll add more later, but these are my thoughts for now.

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If you like sweetness then I’d say this is it!!! I actually got into it later in the episodes so to me it’s fine. I’m warming up to it but I gotta say the cameraman has bad angle so it does not help their acting skills. If camera angle was better I’d say will be better :) but overall I love it not just because I’m a fan of Yukee. Alan was alright his acting I find it hard to watch him act but it’s probably how he really is. I wish he would have a different personality from his previous dramas though... he is really pretty though his back needs to loosen up. At this point whoever acted with him cannot do it any better than Yukee

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