Nelly
Canada
Unapologetically a comedy, but a good one!
OVERALL
Although clearly targeted at a relatively young audience, this drama has fresh elements and a nice buildup that will keep you wanting more, whether you consider yourself young or not! Watch it if 1) extra comical dramas are what you live for, 2) you prefer your dramas short (24 episodes is short in Cdramaland!), and 3) you like it when the ML likes the FL first. If 1) you are looking for lots of (or smexy) couple scenes, 2) you hate discussions of gender, or 3) plot holes drive you crazy, then maybe skip.
THE STORY
I started this drama sometime ago and dropped it 15 minutes into the first episode because I thought it had everything I hate in a drama, especially blatant incoherence (eg. main girl dresses inappropriately for the setting at first) and bad humor (I absolutely feel too old for slapstick, in-your-face jokes). But I decided to give it another go last week and guess what? Binged it all in 2 days!
The Strengths: The best thing about this drama is the setting - the FL lands in a city ruled by women, but the city where the ML comes from is ruled by men. At first, you don't think much of it, but the idea is absolute genius. It allows for a whole commentary on gender relations and the meaning of equality that is efficient but also fun because the drama can play around with the usual clichés. Another positive point is that the romance, which is pretty central to the story, starts quite fast and doesn't stagnate. A final but important strength is that although this is definitely meant to be a fluff comedy, the drama has several scenes that truly get you emotional; the love triangle isn't all that bad and the political intrigue, while not deep, is still gripping.
The Weaknesses: Strangely, they're all linked to the strengths. First, the drama leaves the setting hanging. There is no conclusion to the discussion on gender or to anything happening in the fictional world, actually - which is a HUGE plot hole (unless a season 2 is confirmed, but not sure it is). Also, while teasing some deeper themes like character agency (versus writer's decision), the drama never really dives into them and FL can be a bit incoherent at times. It feels like the writing could have been a bit tighter. Secondly, while the romance has a nice pace, there isn't much that happens between the leads; I'm not just talking skinship, even just normal "spending time as a couple in love" scenes barely take place. It almost feels like Romeo & Juliet: the ML and FL are ready to die for one another but barely do anything together. The last thing is the comedy. I'm not a fan of the recent "youthful" comedies that kind of feel a bit...immature? And this drama has LOADS of it (especially at the beginning, it settles down a bit later). It does have fun scenes though, and the comedy being extra didn't stop me from watching until the end, so it's not THAT bad, but still. The drama would have been 100 times better without it, in my opinion.
THE ACTING
In general, I would say it was fine. I first saw Zhao Lusi in The Long Ballad, and I found that I liked her more in this one (probably because her character has more spark). It was my first time seeing the ML so can't say much about him. I particularly liked the 2nd ML's acting. Although I loved the OTP he made me feel bad for him 85% of the time. About chemistry... It's hard for me to feel sizzles in the OTP when the overall mood of the drama is kind of childish, but there are a few scenes in which I felt that the lead actors had good chemistry. The only downside is that some characters felt too much like cartoon characters - not sure if it's acting or directorial choice.
THE MUSIC
Oh My General vibes, 100%. Too much background music, all the time. The actual songs weren't bad though.
REWATCH VALUE
I think I might rewatch this, because it was a fun ride overall. Definitely a good way to pass time. But with some dramas I get the urge as soon as they end, it was not the case with this one.
Although clearly targeted at a relatively young audience, this drama has fresh elements and a nice buildup that will keep you wanting more, whether you consider yourself young or not! Watch it if 1) extra comical dramas are what you live for, 2) you prefer your dramas short (24 episodes is short in Cdramaland!), and 3) you like it when the ML likes the FL first. If 1) you are looking for lots of (or smexy) couple scenes, 2) you hate discussions of gender, or 3) plot holes drive you crazy, then maybe skip.
THE STORY
I started this drama sometime ago and dropped it 15 minutes into the first episode because I thought it had everything I hate in a drama, especially blatant incoherence (eg. main girl dresses inappropriately for the setting at first) and bad humor (I absolutely feel too old for slapstick, in-your-face jokes). But I decided to give it another go last week and guess what? Binged it all in 2 days!
The Strengths: The best thing about this drama is the setting - the FL lands in a city ruled by women, but the city where the ML comes from is ruled by men. At first, you don't think much of it, but the idea is absolute genius. It allows for a whole commentary on gender relations and the meaning of equality that is efficient but also fun because the drama can play around with the usual clichés. Another positive point is that the romance, which is pretty central to the story, starts quite fast and doesn't stagnate. A final but important strength is that although this is definitely meant to be a fluff comedy, the drama has several scenes that truly get you emotional; the love triangle isn't all that bad and the political intrigue, while not deep, is still gripping.
The Weaknesses: Strangely, they're all linked to the strengths. First, the drama leaves the setting hanging. There is no conclusion to the discussion on gender or to anything happening in the fictional world, actually - which is a HUGE plot hole (unless a season 2 is confirmed, but not sure it is). Also, while teasing some deeper themes like character agency (versus writer's decision), the drama never really dives into them and FL can be a bit incoherent at times. It feels like the writing could have been a bit tighter. Secondly, while the romance has a nice pace, there isn't much that happens between the leads; I'm not just talking skinship, even just normal "spending time as a couple in love" scenes barely take place. It almost feels like Romeo & Juliet: the ML and FL are ready to die for one another but barely do anything together. The last thing is the comedy. I'm not a fan of the recent "youthful" comedies that kind of feel a bit...immature? And this drama has LOADS of it (especially at the beginning, it settles down a bit later). It does have fun scenes though, and the comedy being extra didn't stop me from watching until the end, so it's not THAT bad, but still. The drama would have been 100 times better without it, in my opinion.
THE ACTING
In general, I would say it was fine. I first saw Zhao Lusi in The Long Ballad, and I found that I liked her more in this one (probably because her character has more spark). It was my first time seeing the ML so can't say much about him. I particularly liked the 2nd ML's acting. Although I loved the OTP he made me feel bad for him 85% of the time. About chemistry... It's hard for me to feel sizzles in the OTP when the overall mood of the drama is kind of childish, but there are a few scenes in which I felt that the lead actors had good chemistry. The only downside is that some characters felt too much like cartoon characters - not sure if it's acting or directorial choice.
THE MUSIC
Oh My General vibes, 100%. Too much background music, all the time. The actual songs weren't bad though.
REWATCH VALUE
I think I might rewatch this, because it was a fun ride overall. Definitely a good way to pass time. But with some dramas I get the urge as soon as they end, it was not the case with this one.
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