Love Like the Galaxy

From the superb acting, captivating storyline and over-all great production, I was in awe with this series! What I love the most about this show is the how the characters and story were presented. The main leads' love story is very refreshing for me because we got to see how each of them grew individually with their experiences and how their relationship evolved through time. It is also my first time to watch a show which involves a ruling monarch who doesn't have a bad blood between the Emperor, the Empress and the Consort. It has a total of 56 episodes but I wish it was longer (but they stayed true for the most part from the novel). If you're looking to watch a show with political, romance, family, friendship, and comedy genres, then give this show a go.

Solid production about feisty Cheng Shaoshang (Zhao Lusi) who was left to the care of an unloving grandmother by her warrior parents for 10 years while they had been serving the country. She encounters young general Ling Buyi (Leo Wu) who had witnessed his clan being eradicated 15 years ago. The dream husband of every girl in the capital city, Ling Buyi sets his sights on uncouth and uneducated Shaoshang. Their love would be challenged by his thirst for revenge and her childhood scar of feeling abandoned by her parents.

The story is compelling and the acting, especially of Zhao Lusi, is remarkable. However, the pace in the last few episodes got so draggy I dozed off several times.

Another thing that dampened my initial enthusiasm for this drama was the female lead's irrational tendency to hold on to grudges. She had a hard time forgiving her parents for leaving her with her grandmother even after it was explained why they did so. She also had a hard time forgiving Ling Buyi for abandoning her even when he did it to protect her. I found it hard to fully warm up to such a spiteful female lead. This drama could have wrapped up sooner had she just learned to forgive but the writers seemed to have used that nasty trait of hers to keep dragging the drama out.

One more thing that took points off this drama was Lin Buyi's obsession for revenge. I'm so done with this trope. It was shocking how many people he had to kill just to finally get to his main target. By doing so, he just doomed his future. If any of those people he killed had relatives as obsessive as he was, he and Shaoshang wouldn't be as peaceful and happy in the future as the ending suggested.

Definitely, this costume drama is the best drama I have seen so far. The story is great! Director Fei did an amazing job. In addition, I would like to thank the people responsible for selecting the cast for this drama. Both the male and female lead (Wu Lei and Zhao Lusi) did a fantastic job and was able to deliver the best of the characters they portray. The supporting actors and actresses also contributed significantly - it did not even make me feel that they are just support roles. The soundtrack is also perfect - everything about this drama is just done so well. I highly recommend this drama - if you love costume drama, you will LOVE this one. Great story; prepare to laugh and cry. I have been rewatching this drama; I missed the characters and I hope that Wu Lei and Zhao Lusi will have another chance to have another drama. I became a fan after watching. I hope they win the awards for best actor and actress; even best director. They deserve it 😊

I compare all Chinese historical dramas to the Rise of Phoenixes, which I consider one of the best dramas ever done. This one actually competes well with Phoenixes!

The story, characters and casting are all great, and I shouldn't leave out the cinematography.

Zhao Lusi is spectacular as Shao Shang, the very outspoken heroine who holds her own in a male-centered universe. And Wu Lei as her main love interest is sometimes terrifyingly focused on revenge and killing. They do a believable job of convincing the viewers that their love is possible and real, but tragic in so many ways.

Other actors are well cast, too, and provide great performances.

All in all, a really good drama and well worth watching. I will say that the very last episodes dragged on a bit, but I was so involved in the story by then that I watched all.

Okay so first I have to say that this show is one of the best historical c dramas I have watched ( and I have watched a lot) Very Well made, costumes, photography, hair, details and fight choreography, everything looks quality.

But there's a clear difference between seasons.

The first season of the series is just SUPERB, so different that usually cliché storylines. Characters are rich and layered and they remain loyal to their personality throughout the whole show.

There's no unnecessary drama or miss understandings or miss communications, this is well written script and as realistic as it can be.

Everything feels genuine, natural and real. I love the fact that all women in this drama have so much strength, personality and development in all storylines, there's a lot of sexist remarks but not nearly as much as other shows ( China's dramas are catching up to the korean new standards of feminism on screen and I am all for it)

Males in this one are not overbearing, controlling, stupidly jealous or just alpha troglodytes. They genuinely are considerate of their female partners and family members, which they just have their own voice.

I also need to mention that he comedy style of the main actress is so organic and contagious, you won't be able to stop smiling. I am a big fan of Zhao Lu Si and I have enjoyed deeply her latest works, she is extremely chameleonic and I am in awe watching her to go from shy and naive, to fearless and confident.

It is a shame a lot of that comedy and utterly enjoyable silly and romantic moments almost disappeared completely in season 2. And the only reason for this is the length of the show, I mean SERIOUSLY this show has around 20/25 episodes that are completely unnecessary. It gets boring at times and so dragging . I have said this many times but Chinese producers and directors should stop doing this. Kdrama found the winning formula of 16 episodes per drama and that is just perfect.

I still watched it all because when things are happening the drama is damn good but all those uneventful episodes, I was yawning.

Regardless, you have to watch it, quality in a bottle, you will enjoy it.