honestly in the beginning when i was around ep 20 i wanted to title my review are 'TALE OF FRIENDSHIP AND YOUTH' ...
then i wanted to change it to "A NARUTO TO EVERY HOPELESS AND LOST SASUKE" .. but in the end i chose the one i have written ?☝️ .. why ? cause i was beyond myself with rage after completing this drama. i mean even though the hypocrisy shown in this story was ironically real but why they wasted viewers time with heavy moral poetic dialogue commentary ...
anyways lets dive deep into the whole thing:

things about the drama that were good :

1) Immensely talented cast : say there were a lot of handsome faces and the cast of this show is huge .. for a fact that they introduced on an average 3-4 new characters in every new episode made it difficult for the viewers to keep a track of their names. but as far as the core cast is consider .. every actor is talented and good pick for their role, all of the delivered a REFINED performance.

2) breath taking VFX and cinematography : i was actually following this shows BTS on Hou MingHau's and other actors weibo account at the time of its shooting , there were videos of them performing action sequences using wires/ropes in front of the green screens .. now while watching the finished result .. i was shocked to see how realistic everything looked .. from dragon avatars to peach blossom petal dance ... everything was so clean and life like. funtastic editing .. camera placements and movements.

3) stunning outfits and impeccable styling : though the attire themed ancient but the detailing with embroidery and accessory gave them timeless look.

4) captivating background music : the OSt was the best .. there was a beautiful soft romantic song by Hou MH himself .overall the music of this drama was impressive.

5) friendship was the main theme while romance added depth to it.

6) chemistry between the leads was unique then the regular ones .. it wasnt passionate or born out of chaos , but peaceful and calmly understanding between the partners.

now lets talk about main character:

1) Baili dongjun: carefree (not careless) boy from family of duke/nobles wanted to become liquor expert (deity) but in his path of doing so he gets tangled in some affairs and end up becoming martial artist instead. this type of characters are liked by us all ... he is kind .. funny ..down to earth .. loyal friend .. loyal lover ... there for you whenever you need him kind of person. his character matures as the series flows to the climax he becomes more serious and responsible person keeping his principles,kindness and morals intact. Hou minghao did great justice to this role and why not ? his actually aura dissipates all these qualities.❤️❤️❤️❤️

2) yue yao: at first i found this character extremely boring but as she joins the academy entrance test she changes into a fun character ... and as her relationship with the ML depends we see her becoming more charming ..graceful .. and what can i say i slowly fall in love with her .. ~ in the last episode when she said she will support BDJ's decision of following yun Ye irrespective of the consequences ..oh my god !! chef's kiss .. thats how FL should be fearless and daring to take a stand with ML. the actress playing the role is cute .. her acting was also good❤️

3) Yun ye: the most unfortunate hero (another sasuke) .. THOUGH SASUKE NEVER GAVE TWO FUCKS ABOUT SAKURA ..but anyways ... this character teaches us the following lesson :
A) dont skip your exam for a woman specially when she is a prince's keep.
B) dont invite the prince consort inside your hut even if she comes to your door ..and definitely dont create babies with her.
C) dont start a war with the country when your own woman doesnt listen and leaves to her ex husband place behind your back.
D) definitely dont start a war for heartless woman who will go back to her another option after your death.

4) prince roufeng : this man was moving pile of horseshit ..viewers might have mixed opinion about this character but as for me i hated him to core ... there is this one thing to summarize " evil done for good cause is good ..but good done for evil cause is bigger EVIL" he was the main villain in my opinion cause he claimed to save the people's good while he cant even save a mere woman from his rapist brother ... the so called war that he thought he can ignore still fought a lot of blood was shed ..why because this human trash thought he is living buddha and whatever the hell he suggests is best for the humankind .. my ass .. the actor playing it did great job he delivered the hypocrisy realistically.

5) master li : all i feel for this character was 'respect' .. i actually thought i am one of his disciples❤️ ..both actor for the role were amazing

6) prince/king roujin : third class pathetic .. weak villain with cheap character ...and miraculously he was saved and the poor hero was killed ..

i dont like such third class stories which start like some Buddha manuscripts and end into somethings something more disgusting than a bangladeshi porn ... with all those musical poetic cringe worthy dialogue on righteousness and whatnot we get this crap- climax ... HUH! THANK YOU! NEXT ...

REWATCHING VALUE IS MINUS 10 (there were no star for that)