The Love Knot: His Excellency’s First Love (2018)

The first half of this drama was obsession worthy. I loved the somewhat unique take on the supernatural-romance genre. Plus, Johnny *swoons* I enjoyed the lovely monologues and there are some scenes that were just so damn perfect (writing, directing, music, etc…) that they gave me goosebumps.

However, going into the second half of the show it slowly fell apart. The last two episodes in particular were messy and poorly executed. So much time was wasted on unimportant things while we never got answers for others and the writing chose to not delve into areas I would have found more fascinating than the plot we were given. Such a shame.

There are scenes from this I will probably re-watch but I will not bother re-visiting it as a whole. Oh, what could have been. Le sigh.

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The story could have been better if it was all set in the historical set up I believe.

Also, I dont know if its just me but I think the drama isn't a grand scale drama, like most chinese dramas starring a well known star, you can see it has a very limited budget from the set up and the very simple back drops and castings. I dont know why Victoria hops on in this kind of drama but well, good thing is it has made her a hot search actress even made it to top 3 search in Vlinkage.
I really cant get the "LOW, SEEMINGLY MONOCHROMATIC TONE" of the drama. Victoria;s very low tone acting, even if she is angry, surprise, sad, happy, its all LOOWWW TONE and her voice is SOO SMALL like I dont know how to describe it. Johnny Huang is the same, his acting is really weird, not really in a bad way but his acting is really of LOW TONE, buahaha I dont know how to put in the rights. His facial expressions, even if he is angry, jealous, surprise, mad, theres very minimal reaction and acting you can see from him.
I dont like the way the voice acting and tone of Victoria and Johonny Huangs acting lol. The drama is low budgeted but they lucked out.
The story is good but dull at the same time. It lacks life, yes thats it. The story lacks life coming from their main stars. Sigh, next time if there is season 2, cant they have it filmed in China? or maybe they could choose a better location, better costumes, and more settings?

My rating is 7.

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This reincarnation plot was interesting and fresh...and the series hooks you in the beginning. The story line started off unique and it helped because it became obvious the production value of this series was low. Somewhere in the middle of this series the pacing started to slow and the writing could no longer build up momentum. The reason I stuck with this show was to see something interesting out of the first male lead...but NOPE! I was sorely disappointed in his character even more so than the leading female who was not even one dimensional.
I do not blame the actor ( I seen Addicted and he was awesome in it)...this was all because of the horrible writing which had no rhyme or reason.
There were more holes in this plot than the streets of New York City. There were some redeeming moments and characters, but come on....the last episodes were unnecessary and most of the story told in the beginning was contradicted! If a season 2 were to come out I would not watch it.

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Honestly, I think this is one of the best Chinese drama I've watched. It is still lacking in many ways and many areas but compared to some of the mainstream ones out there, this is gold. IF you are tired of watching dramas with typical storylines and back stories, or melodramas where the main characters are petty and jealous, or typical rich boy/poor girl romance, then this is for you. I know this review is 2 years overdue but I still have to write it. Let's start!

1) Casting

So for casting, I liked it. One aspect that I liked the most was the maturity of the actors and actresses. They seemed to be older men and women and therefore gives the show an all-around mature vibe. Even the actions and the body language of the actors/actresses seem to be more mature. They also casted the right people for the role. The visuals of the actors/actresses fit the role that they were playing. For example, the female lead has a visual that is quite normal but upon closer look, she actually looks really pretty. Her visuals fit well in the traditional era as well. Qianhua was also really pretty and fit her role well as well. Perhaps it is the camera work or something, but the casting overall just gave the right angles

2) Storyline/Plotline/Backstory

I liked the plotline and especially the backstory. The backstory was interesting and it was nice how they slowly reveal the past at the start of each episode, so you are growing along with the characters and understand the characters more each episode. Although I know other Chinese dramas have done this, I liked the simplicity and the straightforwardness of the start of each episode. For me, I feel like there was no 'dumb' starting scene; no scene that was unnecessary. If compared to another drama, maybe the backstory can be compared to 'My Love from Another Star', but the execution is definitely better than the Korean version. This one has more 'feel' I guess and it is a tribe and not a single alien coming by himself. At least I liked this backstory better than the My Love from Another Star (korean edition).
The ending as written by other reviewers was very lacking. They rushed the ending plot and then gave viewers something they don't want. It didn't turn out well for the '3 musketeers' (Xiaoju, Kuanyong and Xiuxian) which I was thoroughly disappointed, perhaps even more disappointed than how the main characters turned out. They also obviously didn't give the main characters a good ending. (Spoiler) If it was a sad ending, I would have accepted it, but the ending was dumb, where he supposedly lost his memories but still remember his own name. Like, we could all have done without that information and still lived on with our lives. The Zhao Song character could've been written a little better. He actually is nice but for some reason just has to be the super bad guy, no character development, could've done a lot more with this character as well as with the Wang Xuan character. But although the ending was thoroughly disappointing, I would honestly watch the whole thing again because from Episodes 1-24, it was all gold. Even how they spun the story with the ex-boyfriend. It was realistic and there was no melodrama. I also like how the female lead handled it.

3) Overall Production

I liked the overall production. The budget seemed to be well spent. The clothes were fitting (i.e. the rich looked rich and the not-as-rich looked mediocre/not special). They made good distinction between the Fox people and humans, at least in the feel of the character (perhaps thanks to the casting), at least for the main characters. Each character had their own unique wardrobe which was really nice and showed off the personalities of the characters. The locations were well chosen and I didn't even notice any really major CGI flaws or really fake CGIs, if there were even any. The house was nice and showcased the wealth of Helan since it was by the water (which means super expensive) and the size of the house in general. The only thing was at the start of the show when the girl was picked up in an old BMW (2000's) and I was like what the heck? No way this guy is uber rich but drives an old BMW. The house for the female lead was fitting too. It showcased her family background well and what sort of family she comes from. I also liked the female lead's house as it has a very old, 90's vintage vibe and I liked it.

4) Final comments:
The overall plotline was realistic. This was a nice breathe of fresh air from the typical, sometimes non-artistic Chinese dramas (despite their big budgets). It was simple and more mature I guess, is the vibe I generally got from it.

I really hope you guys will enjoy the drama as I did!

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J’ai aimé mais à des moments je me disais que c’était du grand n’importe quoi. J’ai beaucoup aimé le personnage de He Lan alors que celui de Pi Pi un peu moins au vu de son caractère à des moments et justement ses actions. Je trouve que Xiao Ju était trop bien, elle sait accepter les différences et montre que justement il n’y a pas que les humains normaux dans ce monde et c’est même elle qui a montrée à Pi Pi que les renards ne sont pas dangereux. J’ai tout autant aimée les personnages de Kuan Yong, Xiu Xian et Qian Hua. Ce qui m’a plu aussi est le fait qu’à presque chaque fin d’épisodes il y a une sorte de morale. L’histoire est très intéressante mais je pense que j’attendais légèrement un petit peu plus de développement. De plus il y avait des moments très droles que je n’oublierais pas. Par contre je peux vous dire que la fin m’a légèrement déçue car je m’attendais à autre chose et on peut dire que j’ai vraiment pleurée à la fin mais pas pour Pi Pi mais pour le trio (vous comprendrez si vous regardez) et He Lan. De plus je trouve que tous les acteurs ont très bien joués même si leur rôle était d’être méchant.

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Bad Ending

The series overall was a good length – I mostly enjoyed the storyline, characters and pacing. Everything seemed to fit together well in the bigger scheme of things. Except.. The ending. I was let down, and at times the FL was a bit naïve for me, I espcially found her friend (coffee shop owner) way more interesting, and her interactions with the other two ML was a bit more fun to watch then the ML and FL.

The ending. Felt like they completely ignored everything that happened and did a 180 on what viewer's wanted and expected. Awkward time jump. There were times the acting was very off, especially with FL, she seemed to only express sadness and the ML could barely show any emotion on his face. The writing was sloppy, with too many unnecessary moments, so much time was wasted on the ex-friends Except episode 24 - was done to much needed extra screen time, and a total waste as far as I am concerned.

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A cake missing strawberries on top

ONE OF THE BEST CHINESE PRODUCTIONS EVER.

This was such a unique drama, the poster didn't justify how it would turn out to be.
I was looking for a supernatural element and this popped up.
Whenever you start C dramas, you expect the same typical plot with cringe characters , the mary sue plot but this was so unique.

Every character in this drama had an almost equal screenplay, it's rare.
The chemistry b/w the leads was subtle and mesmerizing.

If you're looking for a drama that's all supernatural and includes intense scenes and fights, then this is not for you

Our expectations rise thinking this is supernatural, so it must involve powers, drama, and fights
But we forget the script is simple, and the execution is what matters.
The intention of the writer and director was to simplify the aspect of two clans and their co-existence, that's it .

It reminds me of ' Bride Of Habaek '
Similar theme, subtly executed, but this drama is a bit better than it.

This drama is insightful in every aspect, the plot progression is about relationships and psychology about them.
A subtle romance combined with a supernatural sense, but nothing more than that.

We've multiple couples involved, each being under unique circumstances.

I couldn't have asked for anything more.

Now if you ask what disappointed me?
It's the ending.
The writer and the director rushed it abruptly, it made absolutely no sense to culminate to that point with such an approach. It leaves a bitter taste at the end.
It's like a strawberry cake you look forward to each without a cherry on top.

TIP : You need to give this drama a stretch, it's meant to be watched slowly, and can't be just binged.


A MUST WATCH

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Honestly speaking, I do not write reviews of the shows that I watch. This show is the exception because I feel that the other comments have been a little unfair. I do not write for a living and I do not possess the ability to dissect every single detail of the plot, climax or ending. What I can comment on is how this show made me feel as a viewer, which I feel is the most important aspect of any review. I loved absolutely everything about this drama. The ending was rushed and left with a bit of question, but could have been an open door for a second season. I welcome a second season because I really want to see these actors again. I have never seen either of them in any other drama, but immediately started researching their careers afterward. I felt the chemistry was off the charts and honestly, I have watched episode 21 many times. I cried many times and felt the pain that they were feeling. The support roles were good and just a necessary factor. The cheating couple probably should've had less screen time, mostly because I wanted to see more Johnny/Victoria time. One thing I really enjoyed was the lighting and cinematography. In a nutshell, I will follow these actors and continue to see how they play different roles and maybe act again in other projects together. This show is good binge worthy drama.

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i really love the story plot and the chemistry between the main leads. However, i was really upset with the ending and the lack of scenes dedicated to the main leads. I read somewhere online that because the female lead was replaced at the last minute (it wasnt victoria initially), there was a lack of time to film the drama. Also, the main leads didnt have time to film the remaining scenes, after a certain number of episodes... Hence, the flow of the ending was too abrupt. Many unanswered questions and a really upsetting ending. Sigh, it could have been a good drama, but all ruined because of the ending.

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WTHDIJW

WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST WATCH.

For those of you who made it to episode 17 and continued watching, you are strong and I am NOT.

ಠ_ಠ

I have this ( ಠ_ಠ ) permanently on my face and until I watch something cheerful or even scary or just anything to change my mood, it won't be going away.

I am currently watching Victoria Song in Find Yourself and I hadn't decided of I liked her acting or not. I thought if I watched something else she had been it, I could gauge how I feel. Unfortunately, I picked the worst possible drama to do so.

Some cons I would like to address:
• Helan Jingting is a stalker. I mean, most male leads in rich-man/poor-woman dramas are stalkers, but he gave off really creepy stalker vibes. Especially in that club scene. Every time there were together, I couldn't wait for her to get away from him ಠ﹏ಠ Maybe it was Johnny Huang's choice of acting style or the way the character was written, I did not find Helan Jingting romantic in the slightest.
• Guan Pipi was such a boring female lead. SOOOOOO boring. I thought she wanted to be an environmental journalist, but that didn't pan out and she went back to the gossip magazine because the plot demanded it. That's all I can think of. IDK what to say. There wasn't anything speci about her. She didn't stand out at all. All I'll ever remember from this is Victoria Song's one or two facial expressions.
• Left Priest, Zhao Song....... You bastard.
• Qianhua....... You really deserved so much better. It shouldn't have ended like that for you. I am so sorry.

And the pros:
I put the cons first 'cause I had to get them out of my system.
• Xiaoju, Kuanyong and Xiu Xian, you never failed to make me smile, but it isn't enough to continue this train wreck of a drama.

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