The Double (2024)

Best Asian Drama I've ever seen and superior to any Western Revenge Movie or TV Show

This is the first time I give a 10 to any drama and with good reason.

While slow at times it never becomes tiresome keeping me on the edge of my seat for it's entirety, with it's gripping story, Oscar worth acting - specially from Wu Jin Yan (FL) - and then there is the OST, god how good can a OST be???

While the story is heavy and grounded, there are some wuxia-esce and humorous moments that could have broken the pace or my interest in what was happening but even those moments were perfectly made and weaved through the story allowing us to breath between heavy drama moments.

Then there is the chemestry between both ML and FL that allowed them to act on a realistic and slow burn romance, never over the top realistcally built through their struggles that contributed to the first drama that I consider to be perfect...

They even gave us a happy ending in the special episode but I would not be sad if they kept it as it ends in episode 40...

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Satisfying story of revenge

Who else loves a great, satisfying revenge story? I sure do! I've watched revenge dramas before and this one hits all the marks--great story telling, wonderful plot twist that keep you on your toes, and an intelligent FL who seem to be playing 4D chess using with the characters as pawns. The ML is also smart and together they compliment each other well. I love seeing how the FL's schemes play out--it's SO satisfying seeing how she used her wits to make a mess of her enemies and also coming out on top each time. I love smart FL who is not only witty, but is a brilliant strategist. The only slight disappointment is the ending... no spoilers, but I only wish they had ended it differently. I also would've loved to see more romance between FL and ML especially with how much chemistry they had.

Overall, this drama was one of the best I've watched in awhile. I was hooked since episode one and literally binged watched it on in a few days. It's SO good, leaving you feeling so satisfied--revenge is best served cold!!! Love a good revenge story.

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Could not stop watching

I'm a sucker for revenge plots but most fall short in pacing, storyline and execution towards the ending arc of the story. Not this one. At all.

The beginning of this drama shows Xue Li being held against her will in a setup by her mother-in-law. Later, her husband walks in and carries her away to finish the deed of killing her under the guise of "I'm forced to do it". From that point on, the female protagonist takes on another identity and, step by step, rights the wrongs of the parties involved.

Where other revenge plots fall short in pacing and character identity, "The Double" fleshes out each persona in a believable way and shows the good characters as imperfect, and the bad ones with reasoned motives. A special mention goes to actress Li Meng for her portrayal of Princess Wan Ning and actor Liang Yong Qi as the ex-husband Shen Yu Rong. I have never despised a princess as much as Wan Ning, and the mindset of Shen Yu Rong is displayed with such subtle eye emotions that I actually found myself trying to figure out if he had any good qualities left in his soul or if his cruel actions had snuffed out all of the qualities that had once believed in justice.

The main actors Wu Jin Yan and Wang Xing Yue deserve the top award for blazing chemistry and nuanced portrayals. In American TV dramas, they spend ten minutes on character development and then WHAM, here comes the bed scene. What these actors, writers, and directors created was cinema magic. The characters were paced at a slow and believable burn, which led me to a believable definition of what a love story consisted of.

To the rest of the cast, there were notable and affluent actors in small parts throughout and this added a rich texture to the story. I cannot say enough about how interesting the narrative was, the plot twists, and how satisfying and believable the justified demise of those who committed wrongs. My one (and very small) pet peeve was the makeup. I love natural skin tones and the whitening in the makeup took me a minute to get used to. I know there is a beauty standard for pale in some Asian cultures, but the exceedingly beautiful actress looked off with the cosmetics used.

Definitely, definitely, check this drama out. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

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What was that ending???

For starters, this was a great watch. The production value was outstanding, the clothing design beautiful and the performances exactly what you want from this kind of revenge story, which is subtle and over the top at the same time, somehow. The music and editing could be better but they didn't stop me from enjoying this drama.

The main characters are smart, deadly and flirty. Their friends and family members a perfect fold for their cunning ways.

Wu Jin Yan and Wang Xingyue have an explosive chemistry. It's unreal. Every scene they had together got me giddy with excitement.

The villains were not your typical and I found myself equally invested in the part they had to play in this story. Their ending was befitting to their respective arcs and retribution sweet.

It's my first time watching a drama where Li Meng stars in but I am damn impressed by her. She's a powerhouse and I will be looking forward to her future projects.

This is also the kind of drama where nobody is safe and I commend the scriptwriter for going there when so many other don't. That said, if you are going to kill a major character, you can't have a lukewarm resolution.

I have spent the better part of the last hour reading and watching every interview the director, cast and crew gave about this drama because when I finished it watching I was pissed.

This might be controversial because I know this is a well loved drama, hell, I loved watching this drama but what was the director thinking changing the script of the final episode and leaving the story as an open ending? Viewers spent 40 episodes, invested in this characters, hoping for them to have a happy ending, only to be met with a final scene that can be interpreted as reality or wishful thinking. Leaning more on the latter.

A revenge story it's not something you leave open ended. And, yes, I know there's an epilogue and I think it should be part of the final episode not something you release just in case fans might be angry at what you did. This is so unserious, I am lacking words.

This drama was a solid 8 for entertainment and production value until that ghastly final scene, forcing me to drop a full number. They should have known better... and they did. Why release an epilogue if they didn't?

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Can't believe the ML is just 22 and giving us so many top cdramas

From Story of Kunning Palace, Admist a Snowstorm of Love to The Double my guy is winning in life this year. Truly both the ML and FL have done such a fabulous job in this drama. Good plotline, intricate politics and revenge story and Yurong being the villain you just gotta hate, everything was awesome? ?

Mind you this is NOT a romance drama, oh no, this is a nice revenge drama with sweet moments dropped in between at the correct time and story arcs. We don't even get to see a kiss between the MCs, the stupid candle stole the limelight lol. I also liked that all the deaths of the characters were meaningful and sort of triggers points to push the FL to make decisions. And one scene which really won my heart, was the one with the ML waiting at the gate, and the FL joining him on horseback, showing she hadn’t abandoned him. That was a great shot. If you know you know ?

I'm so glad we got additional scenes of Ali and Xiao Heng married life and their daughter. It was so cute. So glad it had a happy ending ☺️

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I liked it, despite its issues

Things I liked:
- Pacing was overall well done, I didn't feel like any part dragged particularly or got too rushed (except the ending but what is new in cdramas)
- The fight scenes were *chef's kiss*, choreography was on point and it was really exciting to watch
- I thought the acting was really consistent and everyone casted was giving it their all... Everyone cries so prettily in this haha
- I personally thought it had some artistic shots that were really beautiful
- It got a few laughs out of me, and I didn't find the comedy too intrusive... Though it could kinda goofy, it didn't detract from serious scenes.
- The original soundtrack is sung beautifully, though I thought they sometimes cycled too much too fast through the songs... Yes, I understand it's an emotional scene.
- I quite enjoyed the ending as it was filmed... Reading the book's ending, I think it was rather more dramatic and it would've extended the series too far if they hand't changed it. Though I'd hoped for more lovey-dovey married couple stuff :(

Things I didn't like:
- Chinese screenwriters have a vendetta against ending TV series... This was rather on point with it, with the last couple episodes feeling like an overstuffed burrito just spilling pseudo character development everywhere. No, I don't care about the Jiang family. No, I don't care about Consort Li and the Emperor's relationship. Etc,etc.
- The narration was lame. It reminded me of those lifetime movies based on real events... It was telling not showing. Literally.
- When it wasn't artistic, there was a real feeling of being hit on the head with everything they wanted me to pay attention to, and yes the CGI guqin competition was the pinnacle of this. I think they could've done it better and with more subtlety. Specially compared to a similar scene - XFF playing a song to rattle SYR during the princess' birthday. Beautiful, emotional... NO CGI.
- There was a lot of standing around gaping whenever XFF began her monologues.
- I cringe hard everytime I remember XH's laughter and goofy grin in the last episode... It seemed wildely out of character to me

Honorary mentions to:
- Xiao Heng's fan, which I'm convinced is the root of every dramatic thought he has ever had (he's very dramatic)
- The forever full moon MC that appears every single night, really auspicious
- The rain is also an important MC that appears often, especially whenever the scene has to have dramatic or artistic value
- The absolutely unhinged porn BG music that plays sometimes in XFF and XH romantic scenes, most unfortunately
- The main couple's double power to destroy any and all side characters... RIP everyone!

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Scheming all the way

Finished and not sure how I felt about this program. Let’s start with what I thought was amazing.
The FM and ML were amazing and I thought all the actors were brilliant too. With a special shout out to the princess, she played her part fantastically. So evil but so good, and we learned about her past and start to understand why she was the way that she was.
The cinematic where breathtaking and through out it as all very convincing. And really enjoyed the OST.


But, I struggle with the storyline and the constant scheming. I loved the rise of the phoenixes and the scheming that went on there but with this one I struggled to keep watching towards the end as I started to loose a bit interest.
Also the ending was left quite open to interpretation, did ML made it back or was it FL dream/ wishful thinking?

Would I watch it again, properly not.

Despite that I feel the high score is still justified as if there was a little bit less scheming around the 3/4 through the series it would have been 10*

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When the leads match each other's freak on an intellectual level ??

Xue Fang Fei taking her revenge was so important to me and reminded me so much of Kang Ji Won from “Marry My Husband” – I rooted for these characters so, so much?. I think this show offers really great characterization; the mains are all very complex and compelling, and you can interpret so many interesting things.

Wan Ning and Fang Fei were literally two sides from the same coin. Both experienced traumatic events because of men/a man, however, the way they dealt with those experiences was very different. Fang Fei said it best: she never targeted innocents. But can we really blame Wan Ning? She was not a very kind character whatsoever, but was she treated kindly? Her actions cannot be excused, but her backstory made it easier to understand her and her pain. She was used and abused, humiliated and treated like trash. Her retaliating and using men/people however she wanted was her way to assert back dominance over the very same sex that had oppressed her.
Fang Fei was such a smart character yet so sensible, Wu Jin Yan’s performance reminded me a lot of Wei Ying Luo from “Story of Yanxi Palace” (which I am currently rewatching??), she just knows how to do revenge. Her acting in this was so, so good. I cried when she cried, I was mad and happy with her – she delivered a nuanced performance, I really enjoyed it.
Shen Yu Rong… drowned in an inferiority complex and a river of self-pity. There’s more to say about him, but I don’t want to waste energy typing about this loser. I share Duke Su’s disgust about this man.?????
The overall acting in this was really good, there was so acting hole, everyone pulled their weight and added something to the scenes.

The styling, sets, OST (!!) were also so stunning (the flowy dresses!!)!

The revenge was great too. First half was to reclaim Jiang Li’s tarnished reputation, the second half was to use that reputation to advance Fang Fei’s own revenge. I really liked it even though we had to be a little patient, I wasn’t bored. The romance with Duke Su? was also so good. The subtlety, their word plays… just ahh??! The chemistry between them was so good, the tension they created was crazy to be honest (the rain scene…????). Their reunion at the end felt a little underwhelming though… We didn’t even get to see his face??But at least everyone got their revenge and our main couple got happily together??

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