Contrary to popular opinion, I honestly believed that General and I was the drama to watch but ensuing developments had me at wit’s end and I’ve dropped the show altogether. The lure of Wallace Chung remains strong but then again, I’d rather not see him bleeding and keeling over a girl whose motivations I cannot understand.
Guardian of Beauty is a drama that I hadn’t heard about until today, yet it surprisingly holds its own despite minimal publicity. It tells the story of a rich girl meeting a poor guy after she falls into dire circumstances.
I would have expected more hype given Li Xiao Lu’s attachment to the project though it doesn’t seem to have hindered the show from vying for the top spot and going head to head with General and I throughout the course of its run.
I can barely find anything on Love & Life & Lie though I read somewhere that it garnered a ratings of 0.54. It’s a low grade especially after Zhou Dongyu won the Golden Horse Award for Best Actress and Chen Xiao being a well-liked actor in general though it’s not all bad since the show ranks number 4 on Vlinkage.
After being taken down from Dragon TV, Candle in the Tomb never had a chance to fight for TV ratings but its web presence stays strong at number 5.
Legend of the Condor Heroes may not be kicking butt at a measly 0.675 but I hear really good things about the show. If you are a fan of wuxia and sick of remakes falling apart, this may be the one you are waiting for. It is doing a lot better online as well at number 6.
1. General and I
2. Pretty Li Hui Zhen
3. Guardian of Beauty
4. Love & Life & Lie
5. Candle in the Tomb
6. Legend of the Condor Heroes 2017
7. Don’t be Arrogant 2
8. Just One Smile is Very Alluring
9. Magic Star
10. War and Beauty
Top Celebrities (Jan 25, 2017)
1. Zanilia Zhao
2. Wallace Chung
3. Angelababy
4. Tiffany Tang
5. Dilraba Dilmurat
6. Yang Yang
7. Joe Chen
8. Jin Dong
9. Li Yi Feng
10. Sheng Yi Lun
* View count is based on the nine streaming sites (Youku, Tudou, iQiyi, QQ Tencent, LeTV, PPTV, Xunlei, Sohu, Mango)
** Star popularity is based on view count, weibo, douban, tieba, search results, etc.
Previous <- Ratings and Top Ten -> Next
Source: AHTV, Vlinkage
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Lady Jaye
Hmm, after which episode did you drop General and I? Strangely enough, I find myself still watching it because Wallace Chung is so pretty to look at, and I like the costumes. Just about everything else doesn't work for me though. Angelababy can't act, Yaotian is too silly, and I *still* don't like the dialog up… I could go on and on. I also don't understand why he's so hell bent on her either. But here I still am.
Anne J
i made it to the part where they went to a cave after she stabbed him which is quite early on T.T Not sure if the version i watched was cut but I feel like parts of the story didn't flow or even make sense… surprised to here you're still going strong after your initial thoughts on the show, should i try watching it again? lol
Lady Jaye
Lol there's a bit of a ways to go before she changes her mind (this is before ep 10,right?), but once you clear that hurdle, it gets much easier to watch. There's a lot of filler, IMO, but there's also an interesting and poignant love story in there, which would be more touching if there were fewer episodes and tighter editing, as well as a lead actress who could act better (facial expressions are really important for converting emotions, and Angelababy has 3,from what I've seen). You might fast forward a bit, but on the whole it's just alright. Plus Wallace Chung and Sun Yizhou in pretty costumes are fun to look at 🙂 all this is to say, give it another try, it might sort of redeem itself.
Anne J
Okay I'm sold, I just need to find time for it now since it's usually hard to get back into something after stopping for a while. I am allotting time to watch the upcoming premieres starting tonight (crossing fingers that it's gonna be good).
Anonymous
I can't read Chinese, but do watch Chinese dramas. I'm finding these stats r really helpful. Keep up the good work!!
Anne J
Yay always good to hear more c-drama love. Thanks for your support:)
Lady Jaye
OK, so I'm back again with another disclaimer now that I've watched this…. This… Drama to the end.
I still think they didn't need 62 episodes to tell their story, that there was a lot of unnecessary filler. I *still* think there was a simple, touching, and interesting love story underneath all the filler. I still think Angelababy's acting wasn't very good, and that took something away from the show, the same way it added something in the scenes where she was able to act.
The ending though, is a complete travesty. Rushed, focusing on useless things…. arrrrrggggghhhhh. For 62 episodes, there should've been a better ending. I *did* enjoy the ride (with all the above-mentioned caveats), but that ending is so disappointing.
Anne J
aw i still can't relate coz I haven't gotten back to the drama. For what it's worth, I hear violent reactions left and right when it comes to the ending. I am still on the fence whether to give it go but I have to admit the bad ending is a turnoff.