2020 drama underdog that I surprisingly looked forward to

Eternal Love Rain is possibly one of the most uncomplicated, easy to watch, romance drama with basic conflicts and villains for 2020.

Most might not like this because it’s a lot like junk food and sweets, but I am some of the few who actually liked and waited eagerly for all the episodes. I like it exactly because the episodes were short, the story was very uncomplicated and it was easy for me to relate and understand.

The actors are not as popular as those in other dramas but for small production like these, I think they did their part. I specially would like to commend the actor for Li Ji because he might be the oldest but he pulled it off being the crown prince. Overall, the main and supporting cast were ok.

On the romance part, it was very PG 13, which for other dramas I would be disappointed, but for Eternal Love Rain I think it actually works because it makes Xiu Rui/Wang Run Ze’s acting more acceptable like he’s really a pure/innocent dragon on his first romance/love. I am also some of the few that are not bothered by Yin yin/Camille Hua’s high pitched voice because I understand that some people do get high pitched when they are excited (like me) and her character is almost always happy/excited. Lol. I just found Wang Run Ze and Camille Hua’s scenes together to be so adorable/precious that I don’t mind the awkward kiss scenes. Lol.

Regarding the conflict and villain, this story has got to have the most uncomplicated villains and conflicts for any period drama. The show did try to humanize the villains (Mo Cheng Feng and the Xiu Ren) and gave them fitting ends. The conflicts are also easily resolved after 1 or 2 episodes.

Anyway give this show a shot if you’re lookingj for something light to watch. Just watch it at 1.5x speed so you won’t get as irritated.

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This new 2020 drama is another fantasy, wuxia romance that everybody needs to watch. Typical of IQiyi productions, My Fantastic Mrs. Right, is a light hearted, well written, fantasy/wuxia drama that delivers plot-wise, production-wise, and acting wise.

The plot is well written, problems and angst are not overdrawn and resolved at a satisfying rate. The leads have great chemistry and their love story doesn’t take a long time to develop (surprise in ep3) but is still believable. The writter and director was also very generous on the kiss scenes (>.<). The romantic scenes may not be as steamy as in Eternal Love but it’s still as sweet as it can get.

For everybody looking for fantasy wuxia series, watch this as this has probably THE BEST HAPPY ENDING you can hope for.

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As fleeting, sweet, and explosive as pop rocks

|Fleeting|
Hold on My Lady is the type of costume romcom drama that you get if you remove the filler episodes and the irritating villain scenes from most costume dramas. Most costume dramas now have 24 episodes at around 35mins runtime but HOML only has 12 eps 15mins or 4eps 50mins episodes which is just the perfect length. I hope more production crews follow this format so they’re not forced to lengthen the script with filler scenes.

|Sweet|
The relationship between the whole cast and the characters are so sweet. We have non-toxic supporting characters and they also have great chemistry and backstory.

I love the progressive General Dad, the supportive sister-in-law, the ice cold turned loving brother-in-law, the protective man/lady-in-waiting, and the good natured merchant friends. I also liked the side plot for the sister and brother-in-law where they learned to be more vocal about their feelings which is kind of funny because the brothers are advising each other how to fix each others love life and the sister-in-laws are doing the same. The drama definitely gave a sweet family drama on the side specially with how the general dad is so nice to the fl and he doesn’t judge her and her origins.

And seriously this is the only drama where the dad of the conniving villainess is not deluded by his spoiled daughter and actually encouraged her to face the truth.

|Explosive|
You have the sweetness between the leads, which I think have perfect chemistry and they really complement each other look and character wise. Typically I prefer the pixie like actress like Seven Tan or Jung Jiyi but somehow the female lead worked well with the male lead and I actually felt shy and giddy in their romantic/kiss scenes.

I also like that even though their characters are written as polar opposites, when it came to love they are both as innocent so we get to enjoy how they discovered their feelings for each other.

Finally, the chemistry they provided in this web drama is even more than what other long format costume dramas have. **IACOHO I’m talking about you. XD

PS. We also have to commend the screenwriter Cai Bi Hong because it’s his original script and he did make a good short format costume drama.

So if you have the time, do watch this drama because it’s really worth your time. You can even watch it in 1.5x speed if the 4 eps is too long for you.

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Misleading title: should be CSI in ancient china

This drama started out as a rom-com but ended up being more of a procedural drama. As a procedural drama, think CSI set in ancient China, it had great pacing and interesting subplots that connect to the bigger plot.

What I didn’t like was that the title of the drama and the promos are misleading as I was expecting to see more of the romance between the leads than the crime solving part. Here’s the breakdown of the drama:

90% solving crime/main plot
5% trying to save lead girl
5% romance.

The 2nd lead prince had more romantic scenes than the main lead but you are still lead to believe that the girl likes the male lead.

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Female lead that is equal with the male lead in brain and brawn

I must admit I didn’t start watching Under the Power until I finished all other Cdramas because Allen Ren (Lu Yi) and Seven Tan (Jinxia) doesn’t fit my preferred look for Cdrama leads who are candy cuties, with fairy faces, and winsome smiles (ex. Jung Jin yi, Zhao Lusi, Zhang Zehan, Jing Boran, etc.).

In terms of acting and chemistry, all I can say is that the actors gave their A game in this production. Though they might not win the most good looking award, Allen Ren and Seven Tan definitely deserve an award for their superb acting that made me fall in love with Lu Yi’s resting frowning face, and Jinxia’s impish character. The supporting actors also gave their best and I must commend Dong Han for giving us the sexiest, and most handsome villain (Yan Shifan) to date. He did a great job by giving us a villain that you love to hate with his smiling face while doing vile deeds that sometimes you get to question yourself if you’re a psycho for wanting to side with him.

For the plot and writing, I love that all the crime solving in the drama are just subplots to propel the story forward to resolve the overarching conspiracy plot. I also like that there are SEVERAL STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS in the story not just the main lead (ex. Ms Shengguan, Mrs. Qing, Zhai Lanye, etc). These female characters are just as strong, intelligent, cunning, and brave as the other male heroes in the story. I also felt that there were no filler scenes and that though this drama is 55 episodes long, it didn’t take 30+ episodes for the main romance to be established. Some dramas take the easy way out and give viewers a lot of kissing or sexy scenes, but the writer of this drama took the harder route by creating more logical scenes to establish the romance. Lu yi and Jinxia’s romance is not your cliched love at first sight or the martyr type romance. I fell in-love with Lu Yi and Jinxia’s romance, so much so that I didn’t care that they never had and never needed a full kiss to express their realistic love for each other. I also love the way the characters were written and that they remained consistent to their core until the end of the series. The main leads’ problems were never drawn out and was resolved in a satisfying manner that you don’t have to pray for their angst to end.

Lastly, only people who expect this drama to be either 100% crime solving or 100% rom com will be disappointed . Because this drama has the perfect blend of the elements for everyone. The breakdown of the drama elements are as follows:
40% crime solving
30% solving the main plot
30% romance between the leads

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Anti-hero ML with glutonous, naive FL

With the recent slew of anti-hero MLs for mini series, Wei Shangzhi (played by Li Qi Ge), is one of the most charismatic because of the way LQG played the character. If you’ve watched The Legendary Life of Queen Lau, Shangzhi is like the younger version of the Grand Chancellor Liu Xie if the story was centered around the anti-hero.

The FL Bai Zhi (played by Yang Xiaoting) was poorly written for me with the main character description as a glutunuos, naive lady. But at least YXT is very pretty and makes BAi Zhi’s character adorable and tolerable. Her chemistry with LQG is ok and there were some interesting and sweet scenes related to food that some might find off putting if you’re a germophobe but I like it.

What I don’t like is the mini series got confused if it was a romcom or a court intrigue drama because it introduced some problems that were poorly explained/resolved and the logic was so ???

I would recommend this as a filler to bide your time while waiting for the regular Cdrama to drop. Just play it in 1.5x speed.

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A sweet upper when you’re feeling down

My Fairy Doctor is the perfect short format drama if you’re feeling sad/depressed after your favorite standard drama *Love Between Fairy And Devil* just ended.

|Plot as sweet as your lozenge but has some kick in the end|
Plot has some cliche time traveling hijinks like the forced co-habitation but the story still delivers a decent amount of unique conflicts/surprises. Even though it’s a short format drama, the characters are well fleshed out even with the little dialogues that they have. The “real life” conflict are believable in real world perspective and the fantasy conflict provides us with just the right amount of angst to balance out all the sweet scenes.

|Cute chemistry but not that much skinship|
I’ve always liked the FL even when I saw her in My Neighbor Can’t sleep because she has that sunny/vibrant aura that fits most Cdrama heroine. She’s not the prettiest but she definitely has good chemistry with her MLs. I’ve seen the ML in Maiden Holmes but he didn’t shine as much because Zhang Linghe is just too good looking to notice anyone else. But here in My Fairy Doctor, he got to showcase his manly charms. He’s not your typical idol/boy toy ML but has a more serious, manly look like a young Feng Shao Feng. They didn’t have dramatic scenes but the OTP did deliver the right amount of angst, and romance that the scenes needed. I guess they are more comfortable with acting together because they only have a 1 year age gap

Finally, I would recommend watching My Fairy Doctor if you want something light but still has good special effects and set. Even though it’s a short format drama, yo7 can see that the production still invested in the effects and chose the right setting.

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Same review for season 1:

This new 2020 drama is another fantasy, wuxia romance that everybody needs to watch. Typical of IQiyi productions, My Fantastic Mrs. Right, is a light hearted, well written, fantasy/wuxia drama that delivers plot-wise, production-wise, and acting wise.

The plot is well written, problems and angst are not overdrawn and resolved at a satisfying rate. The leads have great chemistry and their love story doesn’t take a long time to develop (surprise in ep3) but is still believable. The writter and director was also very generous on the kiss scenes (>.<). The romantic scenes may not be as steamy as in Eternal Love but it’s still as sweet as it can get.

For everybody looking for fantasy wuxia series, watch this as this has probably THE BEST ENDING you can hope for.

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Legit Strong FL but the Men are not demonized

|Riddled w/ cliches but the KEY IS IN THE DETAILS|
My Uncanny Destiny’s main premise about a cross dressing monarch who falls for her enemy might not be new, but the way the producers directed and wrote the characters to be 4D without being too angsty is just so refreshing!

I don’t know who the writer is and their other work, but the way they decided to pace out the story by having subplots in each episode that contributes to the overall story arc made each episode exciting and relevant. We don’t see a lot of those useless, draggy scenes, repetitive misunderstanding between the leads, or side characters stealing the spotlight because most if not all of the episodes had a climax that had you wanting to watch the next episode. The writing was so on point that I don’t even mind that they teased about a 2nd season because the current season was tied up nicely.

|70% comedy and romance, 30% court intrigue|
Several costume dramas posing as rom-coms end up as being trying hard angsty, court intrigue dramas which is irritating. This is why I appreciate the fact that MUD never forgot it’s true rom com identity by giving us a lot of extremely cliche that it’s hilarious scenes, together with interesting romantic scenes throughout the episodes. That’s not to say that there’s no hardships in the story but rather that these obstacles are presented in a very matter of fact way and resolved in just 1 or 2 episodes. No need to drag the drama in several episodes. Likewise, we have to appreciate the directing because even with the limited budget, the team knew that for rom-com it’s more effective to concentrate on your characters than big sweeping battle scenes or boring repetitive court scenes.

I hope other writers/producers can learn from this team that even if they want to milk their stars, they should create stories that end properly and none of those misleading 24 episodes but are in fact 50 episodes but divided to 2 seasons so you’re left hanging in season 1. I’m looking at you drama with popular C starlet.

| Female characters are strong without being Mary Sues and demonizing the male characters|
I can recall several recent dramas define “strong” female leads as mary sues protected by plot armor — incredibly strong just because, doesn’t do or like feminine things, genius tactician, that doesn’t bow down to anyone (basically toxic traits in female form). What sets MUD female characters apart from the recent ones is that most if not all of them represent women in different shapes, form, and personalities and how they are strong in their own way.

We have the cross dressing FL, who proves she doesn’t only need to be good in kungfu to be a great heroine but she also needs to empathize with the people around her, and also use her brain to solve her problems. She’s not averse to asking help from the people around her (even the male characters) because she acknowledges everyone’s strengths.

We have several supporting female characters that are also strong in their own way. The spoiled princess that’s very witty and ingenious in her tricks that she was also able to use it to help her friend and change her man for the better. The initially irritating jealous girl that had a character arc turning her into the FLs friend. The doormat concubine that showed her loyalty and kindness that acknowledged her worth and fought for her own happiness. And the female villain/s that used her abuse to fuel her ambition making her a worthy opponent of the FL.

The male characters were not your typical aggressive, domineering type but more like the whole rainbow of male characters. The brawny, slightly dumb, ambitious, but patriotic general. The smart, suave, but playful 2ML. The bumbling adoptive family. And finally the smart, capable, confident, but also goofy ML that can plan as well as the FL but also knows when he needs to support the FL to do her thing.

|Ok chemistry, but not as addicting as LBFAD|
I thought I’d seen all kinds of romantic scenes, but MUD managed to show some interesting new take on kiss scenes. The ML and FL have ok chemistry which made their romantic scenes believable. If I were to compare the chemistry, it would be like Minglan’s chemistry with her ML — like soul mates turned lovers. Not as fiery but still as fun.

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Don’t judge a drama based on its Male Lead XD

I was super biased against this show and have been putting off watching it because, let’s be honest, the ML Ash Zhu (Emperor Yan Jin) is not that good looking as compared to Dylan Wang, Zhang Ze Han, Simon Gong, etc. Add to the fact that Ma Meng Wei is not your typical fairy female lead, so if you are looking for just visuals as hook then you will never touch this drama.

But maybe if you’re bored enough and finally decide to watch this just to see what’s it all about, you will binge watch this show until the last episode. After you get past episode 1 and just enjoy the show based on the plot and cinematography, you will see the unique charm of this show.

|GOOD PACING, UNCOMPLICATED, BUT STILL FULFILLING STORY|
This is probably the most well written period drama in 24 eps that balances romances, hijinks, court politics, and character development and relationships. The story is predictable but the way the director tried earnestly to use unconventional shots and editing to pack in as much emotion as position per scene is so refreshing. It may be a low budget drama with mostly controlled tight shots but the director did try to deliver shots filled with double meanings. Reminded me a lot of the beautiful shots of Tang Dynasty tour but with less budget and fewer episode counts. And I also want to commend that though the villains were not that scary, they did their part but not in an illogical way. Also even if w shed a few tears near the end, the show did give us 3x happiness for romance and nice ending for some of the supporting characters.

|GREAT CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THE CAST, OK ROMANCE|
Don’t expect the same level of chemistry as The Eternal Love or Love Better than Immortality, because the romance between Emperor Yan Jin and Sanbao is very PG13 with implied boat romance. Their romance is more like a warm bowl of congee rather than fireworks.
But what really works for me is that even though there are a lot of characters for this short drama, the writer was able to give proper connections and character development for the supporting cast. Even the most hopeless dad even got a redemption arc. Also I don’t think there’s any other 24ep period Cdrama that was able to give not one but 3 couples.

So to those who want a period drama that is short but still has substance, do watch Oops, The King is in Love and you will love it.

PS. Don’t expect The Eternal Love level of chemistry. It’s more like a warm congee feeling with some kiss scenes.

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Skip episode 17-23 for the collection of dumbest decisions by the characters

I would like to start this review and say that this is a gorgeous drama in terms of production design, cinematography, and special effects, but not much action scenes.

I marathoned the 36 &1 episodes in just 12hrs by skipping/fast forwarding the dumbest plot twist (ep17-23) in a drama ever. I will not spoil you on what happens but trust me when I say just skip these episodes to save yourself from the dumbest decision a group of characters can make in a drama that resulted in miscommunication and misunderstanding everywhere.

Acting wise, the ML wasn’t really my type in the modern world but in his ancient garb he looked 100% more good looking and he was believable as a time traveling hero. It also helped that he looked a lot like Taecyeon. In ep 1-16 the ML also had great chemistry with the FL and the bromance between the princes and noblemen were so entertaining.

I had high hopes for the ML & FL that they are intelligent individuals but it seemed like they changed the writer mid show because if the first 16eps was a beautiful rom com set in the ancient times with healthy family and brotherhood relationships, everything went to downhill ep 17 onwards by giving us stupid character decisions from all key characters. One key relationship issue between Yun Yue and Anyang was never discussed properly and was just glossed over by the characters as if it never happened. They just had to make it so makjang by giving the main leads problem after problem which could have been avoided or stopped if the good guys just sat down and discussed all their plans.

You can watch ep 1-36 on IQiyi app with english subs. But my ending advise to future viewers is to look for Eng Sub of the special Ep37 happy ending on youtube for the explanation of what happened in the Ep36 ending.

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70% punishing the bad guy, 30% romance

This is a light hearted romcom, that focuses on punishing the villain with a touch of romance. It is rare now to find mini dramas with this type of plot because most are centered on romance. You usually see this type of story for 24-36 episode dramas like maiden holmes and under the power.

I also have to give props to the writer for creating truly intelligent protagonists/supporting characters that are as cunning as the villain and can do the main con in the long run.

For the chemistry, the ML and FL have chemistry but very little skinship. But the chemistry of the protagonist group is very good.

Watch this if you want a bite sized procedural, romcom ala maiden holmes or under the power.

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Short version of Story of Minglan but better chemistry compared to my Heroic Husband

Finally finished this drama and I must say it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a wholesome drama, with relevant side characters, that is not too draggy, and has a good ending.

As my intro, TLitBH is similar to Story of Minglan where the main story revolves around the butcher Hu Jiao and her fiancé Qing Jia. Like in Story of Minglan, both the ML and FL are given almost the same amount of scenes to give life to their characters. The first half the focus is the FL but the ML is still in the episodes, while the latter focused on the ML while the FL is the supporting lead. Though this has a more similar plot to my Heroic husband, the focus is better in TLitBH because none of the couple disappears in an episode. Unlike in MHH, there was a story arc where the FL wasn’t even in the same location as the ML that you can almost forget that she exists.

In terms of chemistry, this drama reminded me of the older/more traditional Cdramas which are very chaste so you don’t get a lot of kiss scenes, so the actors have it harder to make the audience see their chemistry in their interactions. SoM will be in the forefront in terms of chemistry, followed by TLitBH, then last will be MHH.

In terms of plot, SoM with its 78eps definitely had more time to deliver a great plot. MHH and TLitBH both have 36 eps and though MHH showed us several story arcs with better plot developments and villains, I still like TLitBH more. It’s because it’s the right amount of serious and light at the same time. They don’t give us unnecessary angst, problems are resolved after 1 or 2 episodes, and we still get our happy ending.

PS. IMHO Qing Jia (Tong Meng Shi) is also better looking than Ning Yi (Guo Qi Lin).

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Everything else but Romance

**Court problems, Sisterhood, comedy… miles away from romance**

Good thing iQiyi classified this under comedy because if it was classified under romance IT WOULD BE A COMPLETE SCAM. 70% of the story revolves about court intrigue and how the women in the story always have a solution for it, 20% comedy, and 10% romance.

Bai Jin Ting and Tian Xi Wei got me to watch this but this should not even be called romance or them the main couple when the romantic scenes of all the other supporting couples are more than theirs! Their romantic scene is so little and few that even the romance of Prince Qi and Guan Jing and annoying stepsister is better. They are pulling another My Heroic Husband where the FL and the MLs scene together is so few that you’d think they’re strangers. In the MHH, the ML had more scenes with the 2FL in the second half while here the FL had more scenes with everyone else but the ML. Out of the romance only 30% of that is between the main OTP while the 70% is from all the other couple.

NLB had so much potential to be the younger version of Story of Minglan, but why did they have to take the same route as Tang Dynasty Tour?! Why? T.T I know it’s more than realistic for that time but why you gotta scar my Li Wei that way? AggH! I’m skipping the scenes now starting that episode and will just watch in normal speed if the leads are in the screen other wise NLB you are dead to me.

I don’t have a problem with the FL being a normal female using her own strengths and “street/food/farming smarts” but I have a big problem with weak ass MLs that couldn’t even do what they promised to the FL at the start. Which is why I like characters like Mo Liancheng in The Eternal Love and Dongfang Qincang in LBFAD, because they don’t let circumstances stop them from protecting their love. I would like to give plus points too to Prince Qi because even thoughe may be not be the most capable prince but he is honest about his feelings and doesn’t care if his actions will cause him a beating or two just as long as he’s protecting Guan Jing even though she’s more than capable of protecting herself physically.

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When love is strong enough, it can even cause fate to change its course

This quote by PC Cast definitely encapsulates the story of Love Between Fairy and Devil.
Overall the drama is well pace, have great chemistry, and gave us what we always wanted — happy ending for our Little Orchid and Dongfang Qingcang. This also has the best performance for Esther Yu and Dylan Wang, both of which have been accused of Over the top (Esther), and Wooden acting (Dylan). *lol* Xiao Lanhua’s nickname for Dongfang Qingcang is so fitting. LMAO

|Great chemistry and believable romantic development|
Recent dramas usually use the shortcut of love at first sight to establish the plot which is very unrealistic. I liked how LBFAD started Little Orchid and Dongfang Qingcang as reluctant partners with their prejudices, to friends, and eventually to lovers. But from the start, you can already feel the palpable chemistry between the FL and ML because of Esther Yu’s and Dylan Wang’s chemistry. This palpable chemistry is also the reason why we are eager to follow the story of the OTP because we can’t wait for them to be together. It’s also nice that the drama also showed that both the ML and FL both don’t know Love at the beginning — the FL confused gratefulness with love, and the ML removed love from his heart. In most dramas, it’s usually the FL teaching the ML to love but in LBFAD I think Little Orchid and Dongfang Qungcang taught each other to love.

|Well paced plot and no unnecessary court dramas|
Most xianxia are bogged down by unnecessary drama between the deities and never ending reincarnation plot from heavenly realm to mortal realm and back again. What I liked about LBFAD is that they limited the drama to scenes that are actually relevant to the development of FL and ML character and story arc. Their advantage was that they also retained their bodies/memories so they’re not pushed around in the mortal realm because of the limits of mortal bodies. Also we must give the team props for limiting themselves to 36 episodes, because D*ang those other xianxia’s have 40-60 episodes and they can’t even retain our interests in all the episodes.

|Great side characters that actually make the OTP shine|
Other Xianxia’s have so many top billed actors/actresses that they have so many “main characters” that you tend to loose track of who is who and what is happening. LBFAD, even though it’s a Xianxia, knew who the star of the drama is — Little Orchid and Dongfang Qingcang — so they gave just the right amount of characterization to characters that actually affect the story of the 2. I also liked that they gave an arc for Jieli and Shangque but it’s not so complicated that it takes time away from the OTP. I’m a bit torn if I like the arc for Rong Hao and Chidi woman but I guess it is still relevant to make the story move forward.

|DISTINCT key locations unique to LBFAD, beautiful cinematography, costume, and production design|
I only saw an episode of the LBFAD animation, and I can say that the drama did a great job in recreating the world of Heavenly Realm, Cangyan Sea, and Yunmeng Lake. Most xianxia’s maximize the use of Hengdian studio sets so they usually have similar looks/locations. For LBFAD, I like that they gave us the unique Artbiter Hall, they have special “court” and look for the heavenly realm, and the Moon Tribe realm also looks unique. The costumes are lovely and the accessories of the heavenly realm make them more ethereal and the moon tribe more exotic. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s on iQiyi, but I love the color palette they used which is mostly iridescent pastels in the heavenly realm and rich hues in Cangyan sea.

In the end, I think LBFAD is a one of the best xianxia of recent years in terms of chemistry, plot, visuals, and OST. Will I rewatch it as much a my other top dramas (7x for The Eternal Love 1/2/3 or 3x for Love Better Than Immortality) maybe but maybe not as much.

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