i think i have to preface this with the fact that i was and still am very much attached to the original from two years ago & when i found out about this at first i felt .. extremely indifferent towards it especially bc of the extended length of the drama but nevertheless i still ended up watching it .... and finishing it today! & i have some thoughts!
starting with the negative and ending it with the positive
one change they made that i strongly disliked is that they turned the girl who in the original was mostly just in the background and kept her crush on huainan a secret into a literal menace .. in the 2019 drama her story even though seemingly insignificant added a nice layer towards the end which i really appreciated but in the remake .. to be frank i wanted to strangle her and i’m honestly glad they completely discarded her at some point bc again ... menace to society but also with that said in general i think they did a lot of the female side characters extremely dirty ... aside from the fact that yes some people are just .. bad people and have no desire to redeem themselves some of it just wasn’t necessary at all especially when it comes to riqing i wish they hadn’t made her embarrass herself over and over again during the first half bc it would’ve been sm easier for me to like her which i really wanted to and actually do now that i’ve finished the drama but thinking back on how she used to be .. it’s just sad that she also had to be the one to make a complete fool of herself bc of huainan .. and speaking of huainan it will forever be a mystery to me how he managed to wrap all of these people around his finger like .. he’s kind of smart well read and good looking ..... ok ..... and .....??????? makes no sense but thats the universe the drama is set in and also kind of the world we live in i guess *shudders* .. one more thing: the treatment of mingrui by huainan especially towards the end really got on my nerves .. again i don’t get why he would do so much for someone who hasn’t rly given him anything in return you’d think mingrui is also in love with huainan (pls watch waiting for you in the future) but i digress ... on that note: MINGRUI
mingrui is ... and i rly don’t believe this can be argued .. The best character and one of if not my favorite part of the drama bc as much as i love luozhi and baili .. mingrui rly has my heart and i wish he had gotten a better more fulfilling ending to his story and growth like the other three (luozhi, baili & huainan) did actually this entire review could’ve just been one sentence “mingrui deserved better” but where’s the fun in that! anyway i think he’s perfect and i love love Love that they didn’t make him fall for luozhi like he did in the original .. i was so sure they would go the same route but they didn’t and for that i’m so grateful bc i genuinely appreciate his and luozhi’s friendship so so much and i really didn’t want it to end .. also speaking of friendships luozhi’s friendship with baili and with mingrui are probably my favorite parts about the drama next to just mingrui’s existence i really really love how through everything luozhi and baili kept supporting each other and never stopped caring for each other i love those two together so much and i’m so glad that they used the added time to explore their relationship and show instances of them being close and being there for each other which is also why in the end i really can’t say my concerns about the additional episodes were confirmed ... i enjoyed most of it ..... like the predatory old guy turning out to be mohan’s uncle who she used to get revenge on baili ????!!!!! talk about a plot twist (i’m so glad they didn’t end up together thank you jesus) and just in general like i already mentioned i really appreciated them exploring luozhi’s relationships with baili and mingrui and not just huainan!
so lastly i have to speak on my girl .. the one and only !! luozhi ... tbh i see a lot of people who give her shit for the way she handles things throughout the drama and i just .. don’t agree i think her character is so refreshing and intriguing she’s smart witty caring NOT a pushover knows what she wants aware of the world around her ... frankly i have no reason to dislike her and neither should you. case closed.
as for my final conclusion .. despite its faults and errors i think it was a good drama and remake and i’m glad i watched it bc it introduced me to similar yet different versions of my favorite characters so if you’re someone who’s seen the original and isn’t sure about watching the 2021 version i’d say definitely give it a chance bc i think you might appreciate the new and different aspects to it and if you’re completely new to the luozhiverse hii and welcome the original is on netflix pls do check it out and once you’re done wait a few weeks maybe even months and give this one a try as well!