At times riveting

Admittedly, I was on the fence about starting this series because the pairing of Dilraba and Leo Wu seemed odd to me, and I wasn't wild about yet another cliche princess-disguised-as-boy-grows-up story. Generally, this couple pairing works fine with overall cohesiveness in production, whole cast acting, and plot. As in, whatever reservations I have about the main pair chemistry didn't really matter to my enjoyment of the show because the rest of it more than made up for a quality viewing.

Had this show focused more on the FL/ML romance, it would have been less successful. More intimate and romantic scenes would only serve to highlight the lack of... intensity? Passion? Sparks? The romance is very one-sided, with Leo Wu's character Sun obviously in love with Dilraba's more reserved character LCG, though she is gradually falling for him too. It's hard to tell how exactly she's in love with him, like a low level attraction that hums along but never raised above tepid. The slow burn in itself isn't the problem, it's just that there isn't enough energy between them to make me feel invested in their relationship **. These scenes - Sun suddenly grabs her in a tight hug and asked her to stay alive, or Sun fighting Shen to win her (as the slave) and then grabbing "his woman" in front of the entire tribe to haul his prize away - hot hot hot. No doubt they are incredibly beautiful people, so every scene is a feast to the eyes. However, the chemistry is less between the characters but more like chemistry between Leo Wu & the viewer, Dilraba & the viewer. All the long eye looks and close encounters are supposed to elicit "feels" but sorry, I don't feel it. There are no kissing scenes for them, with their eventual coupling inferred and left to imagination. That works better than potentially lukewarm kisses. After they have this understanding about their relationship, the romance went into a deep dive from some tension to zero.

Some of the reviews noted that Sun's character didn't really develop over the series. I agree to an extent, but would argue that Sun is already developed as a person. He's already got a good sense of self and gets the big picture. He's not still trying to find himself or stubbornly following a one track mission (unless it's perpetually saving LCG). He's a steady solid rock for LCG. As an imposing, charismatic general, Leo Wu's portrayal is totally believable. Leo Wu's only other series I've watched is Love like the Galaxy, which is a great show, but I couldn't help noticing that he was also an imposing, charismatic general there, whose injury on shirtless muscled bod had to be treated by love interest, and who also rolled down the roof with love interest and catching her. I would love to see him break out of mold.

LCG's character, in the meantime, does develop. LCG is learning what vulnerability is like, figuring out the big picture, and changing her worldview as a result. I love female characters who are strong, smart and not silly/whiny but the disparity between what she is supposed to be (strategic, decisive, smart) and her actions (naive, idealistic, unguarded) makes it hard for me to buy into her character (so far). Add to that impulsiveness, tunnel vision, and terrible choices. Possibly, my bias is due to not seeing how emotions translate into Dilraba's expressions. She has very defined modes - gentle (with the women and the weak), or serious/reserved/determined (with everyone else), or sad (on deaths).

This is one area where Zhao Lusi as the character LLY, has blown it out of the water with all the nuanced, highly expressive emotions on her face and in acting. Whether it's just her alone, of her and LCG, or her and HD, she provides a good counter foil to the other person or to her surroundings. It looks very natural. She's my favorite character so far going from a place of meekness and vulnerability to strength of spirit and mind. The 2nd pairing between the Liu Yuning's character HD and Zhao Lusi's character LLY is only emerging as of mid-series. LYN hasn't gone beyond the stoic, conflicted, stony face body guard yet, so we'll see how he transforms later with increasing proximity to LLY.

[** For superlative chemistry, see Bai Lu/Luo Yunxi (LiS, TTEOTM), Bai Yu/Ni Ni (PW), for e.g. Even Leo Wu/Zhao Lu Si (LLTG) has more sparks)

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