This series took me all but 30 episodes to really get into, fortunately it was worth it!
I mean when it was released last year (2019) it generated 400 million views in just three days....
The first few episodes were muddled. I just didn't know who's story we were following; Minglan, Gu Tingye or Qi Heng? Either the title is misleading or the scriptwriter didn't do a good enough job of establishing the connection between all the characters in the beginning. We desperately needed it, because it would have helped convince us(mainly me) that the main characters background and 'build up' stories are worth watching. I was strictly watching for Minglan.... and that was wrong.
I spent the early episodes wondering why I needed to follow Gu's story. Why should I feel sorry for a man who stubbornly refuses to fight for himself? I even skipped important parts and only to run back and re-watch them once his significance became clear.
Was it because the producers and the director were lazily depending on the fact that their core audience would have read the book? But what about the rest of us who were drawn to this series by the lovely black hole that is the You Tube algorithm?
Story of Minglan grew on me like an arranged marriage or a blind date. The look and feel... the costumes and conversations seemed very realistic. I could believe that this was how things must have looked waaaaaaaaaay back then. Even the Emperor's palace and crowns were not over done....all very convincing.
In this series we fall for our adorable pigtailed protagonist easily.
It's clear that at such a young age, she has a good sense of justice.
She fights for the people she loves most, her mother Wei Shuyi and her mother's servant Xiaodie.
Her mother is the third concubine of a middle class government official, in the first scene the wives' servants are passively aggressively fighting over allocations of charcoal. Naturally Minglan's mother is the most disrespected, gaining barely any despite being heavily pregnant during the winter season.
Apart from all but two characters which I'll talk about later, the rest of the Sheng household are trash! Sorry not sorry to say...
There is a strange family dynamic that lasts through all the episodes. The father, Sheng Hong (Liu Jun), who is clearly the head of the family in a traditional sense has no backbone and is so easily manipulated by all the women around him. There is no love or friendship between him and his first wife, Wang Ruofu. Theirs seems to have been purely a marriage that was convenient for both families. As for his second wife/ Concubine Lin(Gao Lu) theirs is a relationship full of lust, despite him getting along best with her. There is no depth to their conversations. She simply uses her persuasiveness to get from him what she needs for herself and for her two children Molan (Kira Shi) and Changfeng (Zhang Xiao Qian). The whole household depends on Hong, yet truly deep down not one person cares about him, they just care about pushing their agendas ahead.
Hong's relationship with his six children is soooo lacking. He pretend dotes on them but never spends any time with any of them and is always surprised at their talents. I feel like the writers spent more time developing the wives' characters and their relationships with their children. Never the less it is still an interesting household to watch.
Most comical scenes involve Wang Ruofu (Liu Lin), calling her fellow co-wives 'whore' every chance she gets, and looking for opportunities to punish Concubine Lin.
Grandmother, Old Mrs Sheng ( Cao Cui Shen) and Sixth sister, Rulan (Karlina Zhang),
are the only characters that stick up for Minglan because no one else will.
A clever and very observant learner, Minglan grows up
being afraid to stand out amongst her siblings,
least it get her in trouble.
She is only her real self in front of these two and her personal servants.
They are the only characters in the family that I consider not trash...
Things to look forward too....the evil character's meltdown in episode 60 is a classic!
Lady Qin (Wang Yi Nan) was magnificent.... shouting at her marital ancestors,
calling for death and only death to satisfy her!!
Honorable mention goes to Manniang(Li Yi Xiao), Gu Tingye's illegal mistress that's put under the care of his former nanny Granny Chang. Manninag is the quintessential 'Crazy-Ex' , with a capital C and E. Just when you think there is no where else her character can take the story, she will prove you wrong every time!
Now let's briefly discuss the handsome male leads.... As I said earlier, Gu Tingye grows on you, once you realize his purpose in the story. My favorite scenes with him come towards the end of the series. I feel like I finally understood his character, and when I did he became one of my favorites.
Then there's Minglan's first crush Qi Heng( Zhu Yi Long), who does his best to purse the doomed relationship, until his royal-blood-palace-raised-duchess-mother firmly shuts down all possibilities.
Then he does the whole brooding and pining of lost love for the rest of the series till the very last ten minutes of the final episode where he finally falls in love with his chosen wife...lol...perfect....just perfect.
Second honorable mention goes to Emperor, Zhao Zongquan (Feng Hui), who likes to farm in his palace. He has a rice farm which he cultivates to help him relax.... very endearing.
There is A LOT of eating, tea making and ink stirring scenes.
Important things happen.
Gossip is shared, poison is made etc....
In one episode we learn that the best food is cooked in brothels...lol....speechless!
A groom even leaves the house on his wedding night to collect food from one for his hungry wife.
Here's a really interesting explanation behind the ancient art of tea making by You Tuber, AvenueX.
BIG SPOILER ALERT!
BIG SPOILER ALERT!
The great love story!
I really didn't see it coming but once it arrived, I whole heartedly agreed with it. They are perfect for each other. There is nothing you can say to change my mind. He is exactly what Minglan needed and vice versa. I want a season two for no other reason than to see what happens to them afterwards!
You can watch the full series here
Can we please say a novena for a well written series two? Pretty please.....
P.S: 'Story of Minglan' stars Zhao Liying and Feng Shaofeng, a real life couple... no wonder the chemistry was sooooo evident! That poor Qi character never had a chance...
Photo Credit: Drama Mlky, BBC, DramaPanda, Dramapearls, JasmineDramaBlog, OneTrueDramaBlog, Viki, You Tube,
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