C-drama Royal Betrothal with Wu Jin Yan and Chen Zhe Yuan Wraps Dismal Run with Super Low 4.9 Douban Ratings
Another day another disappointing outing for a C-drama. Hunan TV and Mango produced period politics and romance C-drama Royal Betrothal wrapped its run recently and got really slammed on Douban with an opening rating of 4.9. Dipping below 5 is a real zinger and sign that this isn’t just a bad drama it’s got people who watched it mad enough to go low rated rather than indifferently letting it just sit. Starring Wu Jin Yan and Chen Zhe Yuan, the general criticism is the low production value, her looking too old for the young and especially paired up with him, and him being his usual not very good actor. It’s weird how after The Double for her and Hidden Love for him neither has been able to produce another well received performance or project.
She looked constipated and her big eyed look just did not work and his fierceness combined with her made it so odd. I will say the flow or maybe editing of the story felt a little disjointed so the ending felt rushed and lame. I know people loved the novel and I tried both but felt the novels smut was a bit much and I could tell the awkwardness of trying to translate that into drama format. So whenever the actors are being in romantic scenes it was awkward and I know it is not just the actors fault but more so how it seemed directed. Their moments felt forced I guess is what I’m getting at. Other than that the story seemed interesting but overall it was messy towards second half. The second couple that seemed more interesting even fizzled out. Like this odd pro women theme ending that did not flow well with the intrigue of the plot. Man it had potential though. Like how do they always manage to wreck things at the end though? lol I just don’t get it.
At some point, hopefully soon, he stops getting lead roles because he is an atrocious “actor”.
The main lead is the face powder.
The plot seemed promising, but the poor production quality let it down. WJY’s usual formula of playing a feisty character didn’t work for me this time. Since this is a female-centric drama, the weight was heavily on her to carry, so I don’t have much criticism for the male lead. Ultimately, I dropped the show after getting bored with the storyline. On the bright side, I’ve watched two of Neo Hou’s dramas since then and have really started to appreciate him as a male lead! lol
I completely agree that the production quality falls short, and word is they’re already running into money trouble while filming.
It’s ridiculous how little screen time the ML gets when his scenes are literally the only reason I’m watching. Without him carrying the series, I would have bailed in the first few episodes. 😅
The costume was good, especially the emperor garb were very nice.
I think 90% of the problem was the terrible writing – it was cringe-worthy or outright idiotic some of the things the actors had to do and say!
But a few things made it worth my time watching it (with many fastfowards) till the end:
1) Wu Jinyan is still top of her very specific game (plucky FL) and she’s a joy to watch even when the plot has her doing irrational things
2) Chen Zheyuan is very dashing and the camera milked his visuals for all it was worth! 🙂
3) Contrary to opinions here, I liked how both lead characters held deep reservations about the other till nearly the end. Their romance was always beautifully bitter-sweet.
Kudos also to the other MLs, all looking really fine! And as extra fun, Liang Yongqi (who played Wu Jinyan’s utterly dastardly ex-husband in Double) was a goofy, comic side-kick here (well, for most of the story)!
It’s a mangled storyline (maybe that’s the book’s fault? I haven’t read the source novel) but I was in the mood to suffer through the cringe for the angst and visuals.
Why couldn’t they give us the happy ending? I’m mystified why they have to rewrite and such horrid revisions. I live in fear of what they might have done (or already done) to my beloved Malicious Empress. Sigh.
CZY is definitely a solid actor. He has his flaws, but he delivers whenever it counts. Compared to most ’95-liner male actors, he actually shows real potential. I don’t really follow any Chinese actors, so this is just an objective take.
CZY is definitely a solid actor. He has his flaws, but he delivers whenever it counts. Compared to most ’95-liner male actors, he usually shows real potential. I don’t really follow or I’m a fan of any Chinese actors, so this is just an objective take.
Ouch. I was expecting this to be in the mid-5s so not that big a difference. Halfway through and paused indefinitely. Watchable in some respects, but had to suspend my disbelief more often than usual. Overall, this felt like the kind of production I’d expect from those 24-episode, 20-minute rom-coms featuring actors who’d normally play third leads/assistants/random disciple in a full-length drama. Weird for a WJY and CZY drama.
As mentioned above, the writing was terrible.
1. The writing tried to use “We women will show them!” energy as a launching pad only to abandon most of them and write them in two-dimensional ways. The other successful female test-taker was rarely shown in official robes. She gets to be naive assistant.
2. Also they let some random guy from the street be the other assistant and then rise up to be a judge without taking the imperial exam? Same rank as the young woman who passed the exam?
3. I normally enjoy a brash Mary Sue, but the FL was ridiculous. She could do whatever the plot needed, including carrying out an extrajudicial execution in the middle of the street where people go shopping. The guy deserved it, but she’s an official and wanted to be an official since she was a preteen. If you want to do that stuff, don’t be an official. Lazy writing.
4. CZY was terrible in this and I don’t think he’s that terrible usually. But I think it’s mainly due to the directing. So many flat, face-on shots (probably ran out of money and had to get their shots that way). Very few actors can survive that full-on shot.
5. The 2FL/bestie was screechy AF. Her styling aged her (she’s only 27!) while her voice and behavior made her seem like an immature teenager. Unfortunately, that’s her real voice.
5. LOL that zombie drug scene. Bad guy shoved like a dozen marble-sized drug balls down 2FL’s throat in 1 minute (or maybe editor included too many shots of the scene?) and she didn’t choke or die. But plebians who had one were goners.
I do like the ensemble aspect where characters do seem to enjoy each other’s company. WJY is good at giving that vibe and makes it watchable. I loved Liang Yongqi’s character until the crap hit the fan. He was adorable and would give Ao Rui Peng and Joseph Zeng a run for their money on golden retriever energy. And the 2ML/best friend/cousin looks like Park Hyung-shik.
Watched it up to half way then put it on hold due to sheer inertia. Not particularly because of the drama, which I thought was fine and had planned to finish, but because life got busy. Then I saw the ratings continually dip on Viki until it reached 8.9. Not sure why as the parts I saw was entertaining and well acted. Maybe the second half was disappointing, I can’t say. But the ratings speak of people who genuinely disliked the drama for any reason, (some may be antifans of the main actor)and took the trouble to vote it down, rather than let it go. Do I feel it needed to be rated so badly? Not really. I’ve watched worse dramas with higher ratings, but to each his own.
When I think they halted production for a certain time only because he want 1st billing statut