I decided to drop this show after episode 6, with the r*pe. I did check reviews and comments afterwards to see how the show handles it, and it's exactly the way I would not want to watch. I'm quite surprised because the previous History series have been pretty good. This, though--what the hell were they thinking? I think if there had ever been the possibility of a History series without a happy ending, this should have been it.

Having watched a ton of LGBT+ media (especially the older ones lol) and BL shows, I'm no stranger to darker themes. But the stories we tell and consume are evolving along with our society. This feels like a wasted opportunity, and a pity since I actually thought the main actors were well-cast with the exception of Yong Jie.