A Journey to Love (2023)

Life is unpredictable, live it to the fullest, die without any regrets

My favourite drama of 2023....if anyone wants to know whether to watch it or not then here are my thoughts on this:
This drama has healthy relationship between main leads and other characters and heartwarming,funny, emotional,cute love stories.
It's about the characters journey to living their life to the fullest in the time of war and chaos.
It's about never giving up no matter how worse the situation is, it's about designing ur destiny with ur hands .
Spoilers ahead:
The ending gave me a real bad heartache though.... but it's understandable as the given situation of war...not much we can do about it.
My poor sweet boy shisan ❤️❤️
He was the sweetest....i hope he get more memorable roles like this I don't want to see him as a SML with a sad storyline and have a poker face always...he has so much potential.
Each and every character was fabulous
The female lead and her character is always gonna be my favourite one forever...the strongest female lead I ever watched and it didn't feel unrealistic...
I was little mad at qian Zhao and jiu'er that crazy guy 😒
They both were stupid as hell so many time obviously I m talking about the character not the actors.
Few things I felt were unnecessary but it doesn't really hold back this drama from being a wonderful one.
It was about their journey and we all viewers had this journey together with them we laughed with them we cried with them.....each and every character had growth and development...it was enjoyable to see them grow.
And the love story of chu Yue and shisan was my favourite part of this drama they got so little screen time together in this drama yet their chemistry was outstanding they made me wish for them to be together...and made me cry with them.
Each and every actor played their role very well...even the character of empress zhajie was so heartwarming even tho it was just for few minutes in the drama.
Tbh i wasn't expecting much from this drama but surprisingly it became one of my favourite drama of this year.
Really great work put by everyone ❤️❤️

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The journey is all that matters

This drama is a truly a treat before the year ends. It has all the great things that you need in the drama. The cinematography, great characters, wonderful acting, amazing character growth, fabulous fighting scene, lovely romance, badass leads, np damsel in distress, intelligent characters. What more can you as for?

I gave it a perfect 10 because this one has a really great plot. Despite of the create your own ending part, every episodes is a joyful to watch...I never get bored or fast forward because it was pure entertaining. The best part of this drama is the brotherhood. Gosh!! Our diplomatic team went to a journey in a rush, without much planning ,but because everyone is capable enough. they got through in all the obstacles. But more importantly your will LAUGH!!!

I just want to highlight my best Chief.. Ning Yuan Zhou played by Liu Yuning. My guy really improved a lot! And NYZ is the leader that was needed with full of people that was chaotic and got different personalities. He stand firm like a true boss. He was intelligent and strong. A true leader that you can count on. But when he was with his lover Ruyi, gosh! He was like a new person, sweet and know how to handle a strong woman. They truly are a power couple. They are really made for each other. No one can handle a strong, intelligent and reserve NYZ and the same with Ruyi which was independent and strong.

Such a wonderful drama and I can rewatch this without hesitation despite of the angst at the end because the acting is so touching and moving that I can watch them again and again while I'm sobbing in my pillow.

Do not hesitate.. It's a magnificent drama.

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Stop watching after ep 34

One of the best Chinese drama of 2023.... but like most of the cdrama the ending was worse.. means like why do all the 5 men if L hall has to die and at last ruyi also dies.. why can't all of them life happily... and at the last what does the that ning shisan maens...

re-watch value is high .. if i am going to re-watch it, i will watch till ep 34 only...

Its mainly the character development of ying and Li tonguang... like how both of them get matured...

*if anyone going to watch it for the first time then only watch till ep 34, otherwise you are going to 😭😭 to see your loved characters dying one after another*

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What a drama!

It's been a long time since i last encountered a drama that won't let me move on. Acting is on point, scenery is amazing, a high-budget drama indeed. The martial art scenes left me in awe wow, especially the scenes with the diplomatic team members. Liu shishi, liu yuning, fang yilun, and all the other supporting characters did a very good job executing those scenes. Also, the development of each character can be seen throughout the drama with the most noticable one is princess yang ying. I have never seen her in any other dramas, and she totally got me surprised with her acting skill! If only they had twisted the ending a little bit, i would have given this a full ten. Anyway, i won't say much more about the plot, just give it a watch. Just a reminder, prepare some tissues.

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wasn’t expecting this

I have to say I wasn’t expecting this drama to be so touching. I was astonished with the play of the main leads. It is indeed a journey for everyone- not only in real name of it but in growing up and discovering the meaning of true base of love, friendship and duty between characters. I guess like most of the viewers after staying in continuous pain from episode 35, arriving to the end was a challenge. I knew it already coming- unclear ending- our wish for the success of happy ending for main leads but actually happened to be only a dream fantasy. Life is cruel but we should stay grateful and make our journey the most valuable and meaningful. I love all the leading actors that could bring the best of them in this show to be memorable for me. thank you.

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This deserves a PREQUEL!!

It's about the Journey and it was worth my time! I cried and laughed with them which i haven't experienced much with cdramas.
I loved the cast. LYN and LSS are very well matched and their chemistry is amazing. Their portrayals of the characters are on point and it looked like they are born for the roles. I will forever remember LYN as chief ning, ever supreme and honorable while LSS always will be my favorite cdrama assassin, exuding elegance and grace. Ying is a character to watch. Her development is my favorite part of the series and the actress portrayed it perfectly. LTG is a pain but a needed one. The actor also did a fabulous job.
My FOREVER SQUAD is worth the watch. The brotherhood relationship did not look forced and the actors blended well with each other.
The OST is amazing. I don't understand chinese language but the emotions from the songs are felt in the heart. LYN has 2 songs here and i hope he wins awards for them.
The production did not disappoint. The explosions, the setting, especially the war scenes did not look easy to film and i hope no one got injured.
I am an international fan and I truly enjoyed the series. I have been rewatching it and i still get teary eyed. I expected the ending because they are warriors. Their individual endings are glorious for me. The writer made it a point that the characters will choose their own endings and i really appreciated that.
Kudos to everyone. It was a great series and what way to end 2023 👏👏👏👏👏

I think this deserves a PREQUEL!!!!!!!!

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Excellent acting and dilogues

The ML, is my favorite, for he is the best in this drama , I like the way he canexpress feelings ... because I don't see many lead actors having a wide range of facial expressions, they are often only "pretty faces". Anyway I think he is also handsome beside being a very good actor.
All the actors of this drama are good or very good, the main characters or the less ones!
Lu Yu Ning and Liu Shishi are very realistic ML , He Lan Du is so credible at any time, her performance is remarkable.
The only thing I would have changed is that sometimes things were too slow and others too fast, it was not the pace I would have chosen. But even this way I really enjoyed this excellent drama.

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Must watch!

Just finished this drama and wow i was impressed! Great cast with good acting all around! Usually when theres a huge cast like this, i have a hard time remembering who is who, but the characters are all memorable here and have depth! They each have their own stories and so not exist just to move the plot along. The directing, cinematography and pace were all excellent. No boring parts at all but still had enough moments between the characters to flesh out relationships. Loved that this wasn't solely focused on romance (the title is a bit misleading). The fight scenes were amazing. Liu shishi is perfectly cast here as a cold assassin and Liu yuning is the perfect match here as her equal.

This drama sprinkled just the right amount of comedy in the perfect spots. The first half had me laughing to myself almost every episode. I didnt know Alen Fang had comedic chops!

The ending gutted me but i was prepared from all the spoilers online. I do feel this was the "right" ending for the characters and i appreciate the directors not forcing a happy ending just to please viewers. A tragic ending is sometimes more impactful and it made sense the core group died as heroes.

Anyway, this is a must watch! Have tissues ready for the last few episodes though.

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Friendship and sacrifice

It was a very good series. I watched it with love, curiosity and excitement. I laughed at some parts. I felt sad in some parts. I got emotional. Especially in the last chapters and the deaths of the heroes. Of course, there were places where I got angry. Places I don't like. There were also places where I thought it wouldn't happen. By the way, let me say; Especially Yuan Lu, who has a heart disease, fights and swings his sword in a very healthy way. On top of that, he traveled 480 kilometers on horseback and on foot, trying to report news. It wasn't believable at all. If a person with heart disease had waved a sword, held a shield, shot an arrow, fought, or killed a man for 5-10 minutes, let alone the hour, he too would have to die in that hour. I'm not a doctor, but he can't do this level of action. He cannot travel for hours on horseback. He cannot run the remaining 80 kilometers. Such a thing is not possible. I've surpassed reality, you can't even do it in your dreams. To that degree. I find the scriptwriter very wrong here. I still gave it a very good grade. I gave it to the whole series. Elements such as friendship, patriotism and self-sacrifice are emphasized, and it is underlined that those who wrote heroic epics should not be forgotten. It was explained that commanders and rulers should strive to keep those under their command alive instead of killing them, and that therefore even wars should be aimed at peace. I get it in that way. I understood from the descriptions of people feeling sorry for those who died and angry at those who caused them to be killed. Of course, in addition to their sacrifices, warriors and fighters, their private lives, loves, sorrows, joys and jokes are also reflected. I found it good. Especially the actors were very good. Direction and visuals were great. The activation scenes were near perfect. It was worked very meticulously. Attentive. Congratulations. One mistake was that all the heroes died. There was no happy ending. It ended sadly.
Our leads were very good. Liu Shi Shi is an actor who is especially suitable for roles such as assassin and undercover officer, this role suits him very well. I like. Likewise, Liu Yu Ning filled the role with her tall physique. I tell him to be careful, he is very overweight despite his paint pulp. If he gets more, he will be in fat roles. Alen Fang also got used to these humorous boy roles well. It made us smile. It was great. In He Lan Dou, he turned out to be an actor with the ability to add a role to his role. I liked this girl very much. I've watched a few more TV series. A different understanding of roles in each series. Mastering the role and doing what is required. He has made great progress. Chen You Wei was also humorous and lively. He fit the role very well. He was a hero with heart disease. He did his role very well. He added value to his role. Congratulations. I also liked Chang Hua Sen. I'm watching it for the first time. It will be better. I liked the actor who played the King of Moment with his different playing style. He added value to his role. I like this type of players more. I recommend it to those who haven't watched it. Watch. You will be satisfied.

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Prepare the tissues

This drama has to be one of my favorites this year. The action, the story and the characters I love it all. Just when you think you know what will happen you don’t, and all the characters grow exponentially from when we first meet them.

Everyone has a reason for why they do what they did. I haven’t been this invested in ALL the characters of a drama for a long time. You become very attached to them, even some characters you wouldn’t expect to like.

Don’t let reviews about the ending put you off this drama.

Yes the ending is sad but it honestly makes sense why things happen the way they did. At the end of the day the main cast were assassins and spies, their endings were very befitting of them.

The music truly brings the mood together, the sound effects are perfect. Especially the funny ones.

The acting was amazing, I can’t see anyone else play these characters and give them justice . The actors were perfect for their respective roles.

I honestly recommend this drama even though i’m not personally a fan of sad endings this is worth it.

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sad ending but worth the ride

The first half of the story was fantastic. The focus on the characters coming to care for each other, the Liudao brothers' easy camaraderie, the warm and affectionate relationship between the main leads, the feminist themes and the mentorship between Ruyi and the Princess were all so enjoyable to watch.

Sadly I feel that the story lost steam halfway. The group took way too long getting to the An Empire, and once there, the introduction of LTG and Chu Yue (though I enjoyed their performances) weakened the plot and made it draggy. The script is best when focusing on the characters, their relationships and their growth. For some reason the scriptwriter or director lost sight of that and began focusing on politicking in the second half, making it a rather tedious watch.

Then there is the ending. There is a lot of debate about whether the ending was 'good' or not. I think it was a poor ending. The characters made decisions inconsistent with their previously very consistent characterizations, and some died in rather unsatisfying ways. I fast forwarded from episode 28ish onwards as the show felt very draggy and a bit of a mess.

Still, for the fun I had in the first half, I'm giving this an 8.5. IMO this show is very rewatchable before the sad ending for the funny shenanigans and the heartwarming bonds between all the characters.

Side note but LTG reminds me of every obsessed yandere abandonment issue disciple in every cnovel bl ever lol. He has Luo Binghe vibes.

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Really great story with some amazing characters but a rushed ending - still worth watching 100%

I love this drama so much that I created an account *just* to review it.

*This review contains some mild spoilers but I've done my best to be as vague as possible*

I want to start by saying this is one of my best Chinese dramas ever for several reasons (and I've been watching dramas for the past 5 years)
First, the FL here is a truly strong, badass, amazing character. I loved her so much, and sometimes, I would just pause the drama to squeal, "She's so cool!" The other major female characters were also super cool. Yang Ying for example, started off as a really weak girl who would always cry and run away. Her character development was magnificent to witness (tbh, I watched AvenueX's first impressions video and she's 80% of the reason I watched this drama, and I'm so happy I didn't regret it!) Chu Yue and Mei Niang had smaller scenes but they were also really cool-headed, strong and ambitious women. I really appreciate the writer for creating these awesome characters and actually sticking to it. None of that, they start off strong and become weak nonsense. No, these women grow stronger and stronger every day. Amazing stuff!! Here and there, they also included some feminist statements I truly appreciated (although they did fall short around the ending, like calling someone so-and-so's wife instead of her title, even though they kept mentioning that women are strong with/without husbands sigh..)

The ML was also super cool, and I really enjoyed watching the relationships between him and his group. Their brotherhood was a main highlight of this drama, and each of the 5 had their distinct attributes and characteristics. My favorite was Qian Zhao cos he just looked super cool! He's the quiet brooding type lol. But all the main characters were awesome! Even the stupid and wicked Emperors embodied their roles so well. Only exception was Li Tong Guang. I see people commenting that the writers did him dirty and while I can sort of, kind of agree to this, based on the info given to us by the writers, he should have died very early on. He was the most ridiculous, stupid, obsessive person ever. They kept trying to make it seem like he was just a child but he wasn't! He was in his 20s drugging someone to have a wedding with him. I wanted him DEAD at that point and I wish they had killed him off; such an annoying character. And he was soo mean to the 2 women he was connected with, at different points. So malicious and vindictive eww. I didn't even hate the war-mongering Emperor as much as I hated him.

*And now to the story:* it starts off really really really good. The politics, the fights, the plotting and the chemistry between all the characters just hits so well. Some bits were quite slow around the middle and I wouldn't have minded if they had cut out some of the FL/ML's scenes and given the other couples some screen time. I mean there's an entire 5-min sequence (or so) where we just watch the FL watching the ML make a sword for her, with some background music, like come on... Cut it short and let's move on! And a couple of smaller scenes weren't very sensible -- like the ML getting into a bath filled with ice and then holding the FL to transfer the cold temperature cos she had a fever? Just reduce the ice, put in more water, wait a while and put her in lmaoo?? But anyway, my rating was like 10000/10 till episode 35. Up until that point, I had decided this was my absolute best c-drama ever.

But then episode 35 came. The first death hit *hard* but it was expected, to me anyway. Usually when someone's actions are so out of character, they're probably going to die. I think the Chinese call this "不識好歹 bù shí hǎo dǎi -- not knowing what's good for oneself." Anyway, the second death happened IN THE SAME EPISODE (!!!!!!!) and broke me, but still I accepted it, it made sense. But then, the third death really pissed me off, it was soo ridiculous and annoying. The character basically ran 2 horses and himself to death without taking a rest for 300 miles (their words not mine) just to get across knowledge of the impending war. And after that, the people that were warned still had a coronation and marriage?? And then the 4th death was even more annoying. If you're hurt in a battle and you have the chance to escape, you fu**king escape not fight more?!?! By the 5th and 6th deaths, I was already numb and just wanted to get the drama over with. I'm not sure if it was an editing issue or censorship issue regulating number of episodes, but I hope there was a f**king good reason for killing off 6 people in the last 6 episodes. I have never seen this before. AND AND the last 4 deaths were soo unnecessary. 2 of them were caused indirectly by the LTG mentioned earlier (somehow, he still didn't die, they were still trying to comfort the asshole smh).

The final 5 minutes of the show were truly unwanted, unasked for and just plain ridiculous. Like another reviewer mentioned, if you have the guts to kill off nearly everyone, then stick to it! Why include a child and his sister whose names are made of the dead leads' names? Is it to make us discuss over and over whether or not they died? For a drama that had such high ideals, the ending felt cheap and unnecessary.

To conclude, I really liked this drama. I'm not happy with how it ended but I would still recommend it to anyone anytime.

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