Princesa Changge (2021)

Beautiful Masterpiece

I have to say this is one of the most well-made drama I have watched in a long time. The script was exceptionally written--wonderful story with very thought-out character arcs as well as all the nice character developments for all of the main characters (and side characters). You can truly see the characters grow, change, and mature with each episode. You will find yourself falling in love with all of the characters; some characters you initially hate, but grow to love; some characters you couldn't care less about, but end up growing fond of them. You will feel all the emotions with this drama-- a rollercoaster of happiness and tears. It was heart wrenching at times, but so heartwarming as well.

The each and everyone of the cast nailed their characters perfectly. They brought their characters to life and together created a beautiful production that will leave a lasting memory after you're done watching. This drama is beautiful because it has a more realistic vibe to it. Life is not all happy and things will not always go the way you want. I am glad this drama did not sugarcoat anything. It felt real and relatable as a viewer.

The cinematography is top-notch. All the scenes were so beautifully filmed--great angles, perfect lighting, and added music appropriately. The songs were all so lovely as well (props to the singer! she has a beautiful voice).

If you love a drama is serious/good story and includes deep character developments, lots of "feelings" and emotions, and high-quality scenes/cinematography then you should give this drama a try. Get the tissues ready and watch this with an open-mind. You have to try and understand the story for all the character's perspectives, for there is not exact right or wrong--just a realistic story about love, life, and revenge versus forgiveness.

Leia Mais

I Don't Want it to End!

After The Sword & the Brocade and The Rebel Princess I didn't think I would find another drama I loved as much. But I did. I love the closing theme 'Cocoon' the most. The story has a few holes (which ones don't) but I can live with that. I love the characters so much, well-acted and so endearing. The story arcs draw you in. The villains are believable but not over-the-top.
The chemistry between the players is great, however the director must be Victorian, because the silliness they did with the kissing scenes really spoiled the moments and the atmosphere for me. That misdirection bordered on ridiculous.
That being said, however, the real star of this piece for me is Leo Wu. Just WOW! As popular as she is, the FL was just ok - and the second couple were so darling. ML took the whole show. I will re-watch just to look at him, his expressions - his fighting - and of course, that shirtless scene. GREAT drama, worth the watch. I'm taking it slowly for the last few episodes because I just don't want it to end.

Leia Mais

Should you watch The Long Ballad?

*My review contains a minor spoiler within the third paragraph, indicated with "**[]"

I really enjoyed what "The Long Ballad" had to give. I originally started watching this drama out of my interest in seeing Dilraba on the screen again, and it didn't disappoint.

The story is what I felt, well-thought out. We see Li Changge as a strong female lead but she believes that she has the right idea about everything until she later finds out she has much to learn and much to see. I really liked seeing the female lead progress from the beginning until the end. You can clearly see Changge's mindset change from being bent on revenge to wanting to defend her country with a strong sense of justice despite the wrongs she felt. I enjoyed watching her build bonds and allies with so many different people around her. We are used to seeing men at the roundtable where war is concerned, but this time there are so many people who put their trust and faith in Changge. It was refreshing to experience.

One of the characters that I have to speak about out of admiration is Li Le Yan (Zhao Lu Si). I loved seeing her character progress from a weak and timid princess into a brave and caring princess that's willing to go out on a limb for her people. She also managed to impress me because I loved that despite her father's admiration of Changge and despite her **[crushes' feelings for Changge], she never let it get in the way of the sisterhood she had with Changge. Usually we see characters with these bent up emotions of envy for their family but we never see that with Li Le Yan, which I was very thankful for.

The chemistry between Li Changge and Ashile Sun, I felt within my soul lol. I really enjoyed seeing them on screen together. The only thing I wish is that the show would've had more romantic/affectionate scenes between the two. When I watch historicals with tags of romance, I'm always looking forward to the romance, so I was disappointed that there wasn't much of that in this drama as far as the main leads were concerned. However, if you are like me and you love romance but also like historicals, there is enough action and plot to keep you interested in other things. There's so much so that sometimes I didn't even mind if our main leads weren't on the screen. So trust me when I say that this drama is well worth the watch and it has become one of my personal favorite historicals.

Another thing that I must mention is that I wasn't too impressed or interested in the random scenes of the manhua that would frequently pop up within the drama. Thankfully there wasn't so much scenes with manhua backdrops behind our actors, but I could've done without it altogether. It made me laugh in moments that I'm sure were meant to be serious because of how there'd be an actor yelling out commands during a pivotal screen but then a cartoonish manhua panel behind him.

The music I also enjoyed listening to. I knew once I heard the song playing in the opening of the drama in episode one that I was going to thoroughly enjoy watching this, and I did. <3

The long ballad is what it's titled, long. However, I didn't feel like there were filler episodes or unnecessary scenes that were dragging the story along. I didn't skip around when watching this drama because I was interested in what the characters were going to do. This drama strategically adds new characters, it doesn't do so for no reason, so I would keep that in mind when watching through this drama.

I'm a person that doesn't really like sad dramas if I can help it and although there are many heartbreaking scenes in the Long Ballad, I will never regret watching this drama. It made me laugh, it made me cry but more importantly it made me smile. I highly recommend.

Leia Mais

There is such an extraordinary girl in the world

I think the thing that kept me captivated the most was watching the characters grow. Li Chang Ge and Ashile Sun were already strong characters, but watching them grow to express their feelings and care, not just for each other and friends, but for all the people, not just their countries was just a pleasure to watch. Not just the main characters, but the support characters were brilliantly executed (especially Li L Yan and Hao Du), and they were all multifaceted and complex. Each person has their own story and own hardships, but they all work through it to become stronger, more understanding, so that they do not hate the person that they become. So in many ways, you can see a little redemption in all of the characters.

The music was also really good, and not just the soundtrack songs, but I loved the little sound clip of when a bad guy enters the scene. It really sets the mood and pace of what's to happen. Although I would like for more action/battle scenes, I'm a bit torn on this subject. Sometimes I would fast forward action scenes because it's just too much, and I would like to get back to the main story. However, I liked how they used animation to depict certain action scenes and used juxtaposition to combine these elements; I thought it was expertly done. While I can nitpick on small things that I think they could've done better at, I think that all in all, it was a really good drama and I can't really find much fault with it.

There are so many reviews on this drama, and I really didn't want to write another one that no one will read, but I just had to write about what I loved so much about this drama. My headline, "There is such an extraordinary girl in the world." is my favorite line in the whole drama (assuming the translation is right). I love strong female leads, and finally someone gives a woman the recognition she deserves. This is a MUST WATCH drama, so what are you waiting for?

Leia Mais

The OST will haunt me ^^


Aaaahhh I LOVE THIS SO MUUUUCH

TRULY BADASS CHICKS LOL bromances are okay but the SISMANCEEEEE BRUH
I have never shipped anyone more than I shipped Leyan and Changga and Mimi *heart eyes forever * but I have to say halfway through I was pretty much EXCLUSIVELY on Changga-Mimi

THE HEART WANTS WHAT IT WANTS OKAY ^^

I shipped these two so much that it was super hard to go back to the reality and ship Changga - Sun lol

And omo how GORGEOUS AND GREAT ACTORS ARE ALL THE FEMALE CAST! Diraba, Rosy and Cao Xi Yue took my breath away!

IM IN AWE AND TEARSSSSS

And I love that it's a melodrama but the WRITING FUUUUUUGE.

Everything is just perfection! !!

And okay my Second top ship after Changga Mimi was Hao Du - Leyan because Freaking Hao Du was like this following orders soldier who had a great character arc when he finds himself questioning things because of Leyan. But the truth is that ship took so damn long I feel like they could have easily put those scenes a little earlier at least at half way I'd even be happy with that. But it's all minor gripe.

But okay look, I LOVE STORIES INVOLVING GRASSLANDS XD I mean the BADASS armor and the gorgeous long hair and the fur what's not to love! Seriously Leo Wu looked like something out of a fantasy when he was all God of War, I LOVED IT SO MUCH.

But I fell in love with a character that I feel like even the writers didn't do justice ㅜㅜ

Sh er.

In fact not just him, but Lei Meng too. I mean I was even crying for the Khatun because you can see that her life under those men with having NO VOICE except if a MAN approved it, imagine living that way for decades!

Even Changga had to pretend to be a man to be taken seriously. But at least she had an uncle who trained her in the martial arts and all that. And even Leyan mostly got her voice heard because the Tang King was supportive.

But the Khans, the lot of them treated women like furniture mostly using the prettier slaves as concubines and however terrible Yi Cheng was not one of the Khans was respectful toward her. I mean ffs Yanli's idea of 'fatherly love' was pitting his adopted-but-formerly-slave son against his now wife and dead brother's son by KILLING SH ERS WOLF AND BLAMING IT ON SUN!

So yes. I really can't imagine a man like this being good to his wife. He wouldn't even let Sher visit his own mother.

Anyway the point is I was rooting for Sher to GET SOMETHING. Either his brothers affection, because clearly he wasn't going to get any from his father. So, yes it broke my heart. I honestly got on the mujin Mimi ship pretty late even though I knew Sher wasn't going to get her, I know how Chinese historical work lol

But I would have gladly watched a hundred episodes if Sun had at least spent some quality time with Sher, or he'd gotten SOMETHING other than DUTY FOR YOUR TRIBE ASHILE WOLF DIVISION

Same for Lei Meng jeez I'm still crying over what he said when he was making Sher go to safety - "go! Leave and let me do the evil things so you can be innocent young Khan."

Just.. think about that for a second.

That's what I mean, when I say the writing is so good.


Well that's all for now, have a great day x

Leia Mais

First of all, the journey was exhilirating. If I should say, it's a really good one plot-wise. No episode is boring at all. The story can sometimes be a bit farfetch and unrealistic, but we're in a drama here and if they want to glorify women so much why not right? We have scheming princesses that are gentle at heart, and victimized princesses that poison their husbands and control his people. This drama -- in general, is one that has a lot of alternatives for every character.

Like for how Chang'ge and Leyan are each other's alternatives. Changge showing the decisiveness, hostility and cunningness a woman is capable of. Why Leyan is good-natured, and represents that gentility can be a strength too.

Princess Yicheng being an alternative to Leyan's fate, had she been married off against her will. And she might have harbored strong emotions, leading to malintent and a dark heart. Likwise, her guard also counters Hao Du -- a bodyguard that cares and thinks for himself, and will not blindly follow the princess but thinks what is best for her.

Sher and Sun. The coward and the brave. The one who chases glory, and the one that is so responsible and capable success chases him. In their relationship, we can see how nurture precedes nature. For they were both raised by the same man, and they were apart from their mothers. Hence despite the expectations their mothers put on them, it's their brotherhood that withstood all that.

Next, I'm tackling character development. Sher, Hao Du, Leyan and Changge have the most impressive character developments.

Since Sher was partly at fault with the death of Sun's mother, he has started to think about the consequences of his actions since then. And Mimi is a huge part of his development too. It has gotten to the point where Sher is no longer blinded by filial love and was mature enough to think that he has to mitigate his mother's sins, and even pay for them. Yes, he makes dumb choices, but he's a whiny lad since the beginning too we should give him some leeway.

Then, Hao Du. Where do I begin... His character is very interesting. From a hunter, to a devoted guard, a man that harbors a secret admiration towards someone he thought he does not deserve. It's undoubtedly Leyan's slap that woke him up. Ceased from being a pawn, and began to think what's for the greater good. Liu Yuning fits the formidable soldier, but when he started acting all whipped and began smiling, it became sort of weird? Hahaha. He needs improvement on his acting on the more emotionally investing scenes, but with the stoic-faced Hao Du, he delivered it really well.

Leyan. I really like Leyan's character. She's gentle, she's pretty. Then she got thrown into the harshness of the world, witnessed hunger, death and injustices. I am loving how the docile princess turned into someone that vows to protect her people. She's amazing. I would have loved her more if I dont know about Zhao Lusi's shady actions, but still, she gave justice to the character. She fits the role so well.

Changge... How she had started to let go of her plans for revenge, when she started to act to protect her people. She is just so strategic and wise. She would've made a great Queen.

Now let's talk about the acting.

The guy that plays Mu Jin... He's the winner. The character has been through so much and he delivered jt really well. He cries when it's necessary. He's quite good. I think, aside from the more experienced, older actors like Princess Yichen, this guy was the best. Yes, that includes Dilireba and Wu Lei. There were still times the leads were kind awkward with their characters, but for Mu Jin -- he is Mu Jin through and through.

There was little chemistry between Dilireba and Wu Lei, forgive me for saying. Despite them having a bunch of scenes together, they werent as captivating as a CP as Hao Du and Leyan. Perhaps it's because the characters they play are both very capable people, hence there aren't a lot of moments where they can idle away and flirt. Their conversations are about strategies and politics too. Or maybe because Wu Lei is still a kid in my eyes. I don't know, but something feels off on their sweet scenes.

There's a lot that can improve on this drama.

First, the graphics. The manhwa transitions ruin it. It's risky to mix them together because it takes a lot of adjustment in the eyes, but the plot has so much potential they could've do away with the manhwa excerpts.

And then the camera angling... It pains me when there are such good scenes with good lines, but the camera work ruins it.

The casting all in all. Wu Lei have done well, but I think there are a lot more actors that are fitting for this role. I dunno maybe they wanted someone with a less daunting appearance because this is a female-centric drama and there's a lot of scenes where Changge saves so getting a manlier actor could've ruined the dynamics. I have an actor in mind that also suit Sun and I think would also do a really good job .

Dilireba is reaally good. I love her. She's very pretty. Not the best at acting, but I am looking forward to her improvement in future projects.

Anyway, that's all for now. There's a lot of good and bad, but all in all, I enjoyed it.

Leia Mais

One of my favorite dramas of all time

I really fell in love with the Long Ballad...the music, the characters, the cast, the production...and when it was over, I went right back to the beginning and rewatched the whole thing again because I did not want to leave its world or its characters. I think it's such a great drama because it has something to offer for just about everyone: battles/wars, betrayals/revenges, emotional and mental struggles, love for one's people/country vs one's personal needs, hate and forgiveness, and all kinds of relationships(romance, brotherhoods, sisterhoods, family, enemies to allies, etc, etc)....and lots 'n lots of character growth. There are tragedies but, at the end of the day, there are also a lot of positive messages and all kinds of good morals that the story offers to its viewers. The Long Ballad doesn't drag for me. It starts off with a bang and continues at a relatively good pace the rest of the way. By no means is it a flawless drama, but it does so many things well, and is simply so enjoyable, that the little things that aren't all that believable(e.g., we're supposed to believe the main female lead can pass as a male) can be overlooked.

The two leads are Li Changge(Dilraba Dilmurat) and Ashile/Ashina Sun(Wu Lei). Li Changge becomes an exiled princess of Tang when her entire family is massacred by her uncle during a coup for the throne, so she hardens her emotions, and seeks to gain an army so that she can come back to take revenge against her uncle. Her journey isn't so much about revenge, however, as it is about character growth. Along the way, she runs into Ashile Sun, a general of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate and the foster son of the Great Khan of Ashile tribe whose grassland people are in the process of invading Tang.

Dilraba and Wu Lei are fantastic in their roles, and their two characters are the ones who move the main plot. For me, they're also the two most interesting characters. I love that both are so mature, wise, courageous, selfless, and capable of impacting the world around them. They're powerful individuals in their own rights but, together, they make a great duo and powerful allies. I think an enjoyable love story starts with a great relationship, and Ashile Sun and Li Changge have one of the best(most mature, understanding, non-toxic) relationships I've seen in a while. That isn't to say that their relationship isn't without any conflicts(far from that), but the mature way in which they handle their conflicts is remarkable. There really aren't any of the usual drawn-out misunderstandings or any blaming/grudge-holding between them. All of that despite being enemies! The two of them truly have a strong foundation for a good relationship...and I really like that what they share has dynamics that go beyond just two people who have romantic interests in each other. They admire, respect, trust, believe in, and view one another as equals...something akin to that of a "brotherhood"(Changge is disguised as a male for a good part of the drama).
The rest of the cast also did really great in each of their roles, even if I did not care so much for the 2nd leads as some others did. I didn't find them very interesting characters or their love story all that compelling or properly set up, and they were a bit disjointed from the main plot of the story. That really wasn't enough to detract from my enjoyment of the overall story though, as they didn't actually have all that much screen time anyway. For anyone who hasn't watched The Long Ballad yet, I will definitely recommend it.

Leia Mais

Excellent Cast and Wonderful Story

This was a great drama, I love my Cdrama for historical and xianxia, this one was really great. At first i was hesitant to watch it, i thought it would have too much fighting and scheming and not enough romance and balance for the plot, but i was wrong and I'm happy I give it a chance.

Pros
The cast was wonderful, every person fit there role and delivered respectively, Reba came out and did her stuff, truly and amazing and talented actress, Leo this is my first drama with him and tbh I'm impressed, especially knowing that he's only 21 my goodness he did an excellent job, definitely gained a fan here. I'm also very impressed with my girl rosy, she came through, i could not believe it was her, this is such a different role that she took on, and my goodness, she did an excellent job with this role, she was so much into her emotions, I'm so happy she choose this role and did something different from her usual.

The story was great, the flow and everything was pretty good, I also love the different arc, i love that it wasn't done in just one place like the usual palace historical drama, but they went to so many different places and encounter so many different people, friends, and so on. it was great, perfect balance. The plot was great, it had a really good balance with everything that was going on, enough suspense, romance, war/fighting. I don't think i found any annoyance in the plot itself at all. There were some very very sad scenes that i probably would have cried about but did get teary eyed for, got my emotions worked up, the story was well put together and balance

The ost, it's my first to give a 10 for a Cdrama ost, the beginning song was amazing, and the ending song, definitely adding that to my playlist, i already went to YouTube to listen to it while on my spare time, that's how catchy, emotional and good it is.

The relationship, well every relationship in this drama lets just say whether family, friend, foe... the cast and writers did an excellent job, you can feel all the emotions between each person. The romantic relationships, i shipped everybody lool, I love all the relationships that was form, the main couple had excellent chemistry, i loved there stranger to friend to lovers =, it was great being on that journey and seeing how they developed their relationship. The second couple, at first i didn't really care for it, but then i felt soo happy for them and i loved there relationship. Both couple had some amazing romantic growth and i loved that.

This part is my favorite part, character development, the MFL Reba/Changge had amazing character development in this, seeing how she was from the beginning to the end it was great seeing how much she matured, even with her relationship with the MML Leo, they never had any foolish misunderstanding, and they were so genuine. Rosy/Leyan she had amazing growth as well, from being a timid girl to being so brave, going through what she did really changed her for the better. The MML Leo/ Ashile Sun I'm not sure if i should say he had character development, he was pretty awesome and remain awesome, loyal and sweet from beginning to the end, i guess the only change would be what he did and then what he wanted to do if that makes sense. SML he had great growth too, i liked his growth it was weird but cute lool.

The Costumes were all fantastic, my favorite were Ashile Sun war outfit, hmm hmm hmm... hahaha, and the Ashile Tribe long hair with braids, it looked soo good, didn't look out of place or too rugged, it worked 100% hahahaha

Cons?! Preference
There is only two cons personally, one is that they blurred the kissing scenes, not a deal breaker or a big deal, so that's why i probably shouldn't even say its a con because with or without it i loved the couples.

The other thing was i kind of wish some scenes that were animated weren't some of them worked and bended in with the real scenes perfectly, but other times there were just a few i wish weren't, but again not a deal breaker or anything just personal preference.


So that's it, i know it's long but it is my honest review after watching this drama, the story, acting, plot, ost i loved them all and have no regrets watching this, Gonna miss Ashile Sun with his tribal hair and clothes... ohhh sooooo cute hahaha

Leia Mais

Almost perfect with story, acting, cinematography, OST, costumes & sets

It's been a while since I've been this invested in a drama of this length and high quality production and I was initially reluctant since I heard that this drama was based on an ongoing comic--and so I feared that the drama would not end satisfactorily since it didn't have the source material to rely on. However, I was pleasantly pleased that this ended up being one of my top dramas (so far) of 2021! And it even made me interested in the comic too.

This drama is an epic journey of Li Changge who seeks revenge for her family but, in the course of her perilous journey of survival and gathering strength, has to decide between personal enmity or national security. It's full of tragic deaths, heartbreaking scenes worthy of many awards, well paid-off reunions, and is a grand dramatic complex story weaving in politics, war, deceit, secrets, and romance.

There's (sometimes brief but) great action, perfect OST (especially haunting vocals accompanying instrumental tracks), strong acting from the famous "mainstream" actors (Dilreba, Leo Wu, Zhao Lusi, etc.) but especially the supporting (and older) characters who play the roles of fathers, mothers, uncles, masters, etc. They were also fantastic and deserve much praise. What ties this altogether is the great cinematography--reminding me of the great cinematography from Goodbye My Princess--as it is imbued with a lot of artistic and metaphor and there are several scenes that left a lasting impression.

I feel like this story and production was almost at the level of Goodbye My Princess--one of my absolute favorite dramas of all time--just that it's not a tragedy. It's hopeful and delivers, I think, a pretty good ending.

There were just a couple things that felt like it was at 98% and not 100% like the way I feel about Goodbye My Princess.

1) Dilraba: I can see that she's an experienced actress and performs everything with technical precision. She is indeed very good and I enjoyed her performance as our main FL. However, perhaps an unpopular opinion, I think the drama would've been at 100% quality if a different actress had embodied the aesthetic and physical look of Li Changge. This has been mentioned before I think but the signature long bangs of Li Changge, on Dilraba's face, made her naturally long face looked even longer and wasn't as pleasing to the eye. At a couple points they even felt annoying as they were just so, ugh. On the other hand, when the bangs were a bit shorter, she looked so much better. So, in my dreams, Dilraba's Li Changge would have shorter bangs for the entire drama or a different experienced actress with a shorter face would play Li Changge.

2) Mimi, Mu Jin--characters and their relationship: I understood their purposes in the story but I have to be honest that I skipped over a lot of their relationship arc. Nothing about their characters nor actors pulled me to care enough. Maybe different actors or if the characters were written a bit differently--I heard that Mimi in the comic is a lot better.

3) There are some emotional lines that didn't draw through to the very end or did not feel organic enough. Ashile Sun and his brother Ashile She'Er. Enjoyed the shift in their dynamic toward the latter half of the series but would've wanted a stronger emotional set-up.

4) The comic scenes: I wonder if this was just due to budget? But I doubt it since they had all these actors and production and sets. I think the comic scenes were intentional to pay homage to the original comic--but it was a bit off-putting because it was not consistent about when it would show up. It just showed up whenever it wanted and then disappear for a while. For the most part, it seemed to cover the war battles that might've cost the production too much or felt unnecessary to drag out. For that, I'm a bit grateful.

Overall, I enjoyed this drama so much, I unhealthily watched it for like three days straight as each episode's cliffhanger had me searching for the next one. I don't regret watching this drama and followed along the suspense each episode and also immensely enjoyed the main couple and second couple's romantic storylines. I hope these actors and production get to reunite again in another historical drama. If not, I definitely know that I've been impressed and will be watching out for their future projects.

Leia Mais

Amazing Drama

I never expected this drama to impress me but it really did. It's more like a political/power struggle/revenge kind of drama with a strong female lead. If you are looking for a lot of romantic scenes and butterflies, you won't find it in this drama but still i ended up loving Li Changge and Ashile Sun. From the very first episode I really liked the plot. The other characters were also really good. Acting was good. Talking about music, i really like the song by zhou shen.


I may not rewatch this drama but it has made it's mark on my mind and it will be on my top 5 drama list for sure.

Leia Mais

Recommended for those who like action drama

Overall, this drama has an interesting story. Each character has their own character development. Actors, and actresses also work hard to bring the characters to life. But even so, I'm sure everyone has their own opinion about the characters they like. Li Chang Ge is someone strong, and seriously, maybe she will be less liked by those who like the main character who is able to act funny. And in my opinion, the character that the audience will hate the most is not Li Shi Min or Gengis Khan but Khatun. Because Khatun is always cunning, and a hypocrite. The music is well done. I love the ending of the drama.

Leia Mais