The Princess Wei Young (2016)

OMG...PWY is both annoying and wonderful. I wasn't sure how to rate it so I gave it a middle score. Some of it was so monotonous that I almost quit watching it. The characters are good though...well, good at the beginning. The main female lead is smart and for once not so righteous as to not take revenge against her enemies. Her character stayed mostly true except some points of weakness that I thought were out of character. The love stories of even the secondary characters are nice. Also, there was plenty of great martial arts action. The problem is that the same scenario with slight variations was used over and over. Oh, and the fact that they constantly blamed everything on Wei Young as a reason to be hateful bitches. It was just too much sometimes. But as all Chinese historical dramas, the costumes, sets and cinematography was excellent. I might have given it a higher score if the ending had been different. No spoilers...so if you wanna know what i'm talking about, then pm me.

I don't know much about Chinese actors, but I have seen Tiffany Tang in several dramas now and she doesn't disappoint as Wei Young. Luo Jin is also excellent as Tuo Ba Jun with the right mix of strength and vulnerability. I enjoyed his character very much. I also thought they had great chemistry together. Vanness Wu played the villainous Tuo Ba Yu with gusto. I liked him in this better than anything else I have seen him in. The other actors ranged from great to blah.

The music is good.

i will never rewatch this.

As Chinese historical dramas go, this one is just so so. There are better ones out there.

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This is my first time writing a review so bare with me..

I started watching this drama because I liked the plot..It's more my style..and well Tiffany Tang is the leading actress what more can you ask for..

Well everything that you need to know about the drama you can see on my rating..
For me it was amazing.
The clothes and costumes were on point I really liked it.
the chemistry between actors and actresses were prominent and you can feel it through the screen.

The villains acting were superb they really make you hate them strait to the bone. If they were bad at acting I think you wont feel hatred towards them just pity them.

The script writer and the director for me were geniuses..They created a drama that cant easily be flawed..every hardship and conflict of the characters were well thought of..

I REALLY RECOMMEND IT..

Bonus for everyone who will love this drama..THE MAIN ACTORS ARE DATING IN REAL LIFE ^__^

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Nothing special

This is a very "by the numbers drama". It uses a lot of the storytelling devices, plot points and cliches that are typical of the genre, and does them fairly well, but it never exceeds them. I have seen all the individual components of this drama done better elsewhere. I think the appeal of Weiyoung is that it is consistently decent throughout and in all aspects, so it doesn't have the sharp drop-off in the second half you often see with Chinese dramas.

Of course it's not perfect. There are sketchy plot holes, some weak acting, and a repetitive and bland perfection from our leading lady. I also think the makeup is weird (the male lead looks like a corpse sometimes, lol) and the costuming as well, but that's a fairly minor quibble. Overall, it's simply not very memorable, but perfectly fine.

I would recommend this to new drama watchers and people that are trying their hand at historical Chinese dramas. Big, tragic, exceptional, dense dramas may be overwhelming or disappointing. Something like Weiyoung, which is straightforward, simple, uses classic tropes and does it well, is a good choice. Because of it solidness it's also good for a rewatch down the road!

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STORY:

Whenever you have anything related to women and ancient Chinese royalty, it's almost always going to be a story about scheming, plotting, and manipulation. I would say Princess Wei Young excels in that area but it's also one of its major drawbacks. While watching this drama, from start to finish the plot is essentially just people trying to frame/kill Wei Young because she's so clever and witty and outsmarts them. It gets a little annoying because it feels like nonstop plotting against her. On the positive end, compared to other dramas, where the girl in trouble gets help from other people and seems helpless at times, Wei Young's character really shines in these points because she almost always solves the issue herself (using skill and cunning and not just sheer luck).

The bad guys for the most part are obviously bad. On their first introduction you're just like "Yup, these are the evil ones." Again, it's an Asian drama, so there's always that need to link everything back to the main character. So of course, all of the people who dislike Wei Young find every reason to hate her and blame everything on her. By the middle to end of the show though, there are a few good twists with the villains of the show which you might be able to pick up on at the beginning, or it'll come as a relatively big shock when the show starts hinting towards the twists.

The relationship between Wei Young and Tuo Ba Jun is one of the highlights of the show. Tang Yan and Luo Jin have been in 4-5 dramas/films together and are now together in real life, so you can tell that the chemistry between them is fire. They have that somewhat standard "Hero who saves her again and again and they fall in love" relationship, but the personalities and chemistry of the two leads makes you really fall for this power couple.

ACTING:

Tang Yan - As popular as she is, I feel like some people just don't like her as an actress. I disagree.  I've seen a good few of her shows by now and I've yet to dislike her or think she did a bad job in any of them. She portrays emotions very well. All of the characters she plays are very distinct from one another, so you can tell she is a very versatile actress. She is just as good in this show. Tang Yan balances out the different aspects of her character very well. She is very smart and cunning but  she is still fragile and weak at times. She is another actress who isn't afraid to be ugly and doesn't restrict her emotions and whatnot to keep a beautiful, composed face.

Luo Jin - In the few dramas I had seen him in, he was always the second male lead, so coming into this drama (not knowing that he and Tang Yan were together), I was weary about watching this because I didn't know how good he'd be. Definitely a good surprise. He was a good actor in the other shows I had watched as well, but I wasn't sure if he had that leading male energy that you need to carry the show. Normally I feel like the lead actress outshines the male (especially in a show like this where Wei Young is CLEARLY the main character), but Luo Jin and Tang Yan's chemistry really showed in this drama and Luo Jin did a great job keeping his character in the spotlight and expressing his emotions very well.

Vanness Wu - This was the first mainland drama I'd seen him in. As an Taiwanese actor, I had only seen him in TW dramas (the most recent in memory of him was Autumn's Concerto), and TW dramas and epic ancient mainland dramas like Wei Young are very very different. I wouldn't say he had a groundbreaking performance (there were times when I questioned his character), and I couldn't take him seriously at any point with the braids hairstyle. But I think he did a good job for the most part.

Mao Xiao Tong - I had first seen her in Love O2O and she played a very bubbly character. Her character in this one had a similar feel, but definitely not as bright and happy (due to everything her character goes through). She did a pretty good job imo and you could definitely feel the development with her.

REWATCH VALUE:

I've seen this 2 times now, so definitely not a hard drama to rewatch. It's not the best thing I've ever seen (again, the endless plotting gets a little repetitive at times) but the chemistry between the two leads and the strong personality of Wei Young make it definitely worth at least one view.

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Not worth stretching it out to 54 episodes. If it was shorter, it would have been a great series.
The ending sucks. Good people gets tortured, slapped around, became maid... got just a little taste of happiness in the end, then got taken away by death. Bad people do countless of evil things, then just get locked in a huge house and given a poison wine to die peacefully. BULLSHIT! That woman should have gotten her face burned and cast down to be a maid for other people to torture her so she can taste her own meds. Since she is so proud of her beauty this would be a better ending for her.

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A fantastic drama of revenge and family

The Princess Weiyoung was one of the first Chinese dramas that I watched, and now after seeing many more I had to come back and write a review because this still stands out. The plot draws you in from the very beginning, managing the not so easy task of making you like Weiyoung and take her side immediately as she assumes a new identity to seek revenge.

Weiyoung is a fantastic female lead, with well developed motivations and character strengths. Tiffany Tang is absolutely phenomenal in every scene! The male lead, Prince Tuoba Jun, is also well characterised, with a sweet personality that I wasn't expecting. I really enjoyed the dilemma of choosing between love and revenge.

The rest of the (not so) secondary cast is all properly fleshed out, you'll grow attached to many of them as the plot throws them challenge after challenge, even the villains! Many secondary characters have arcs and evolve, even those you wouldn't expect, and this creates the possibility for many twists that will catch you off-guard. A special mention in my opinion goes to Li Changru (one of my favourite characters in the entire show) and the Princess Tuoba Di, whose actress was on her very first role yet manages to steal the scene in many occasions!

I can see how having so many characters to keep track of might seem like a negative thing, but after the very beginning, where I was struggling to link everyone's places in the big family, I had no problem placing everyone, as they are all given the proper time to become memorable and unique.

The length of this drama is just a touch on the "too long" side, and my one complaint is that as it often happens, the second third of the story tends to drag a little, as the novelties of the beginning is fading but the quick-paced twists of the final arcs aren't in place yet. Without giving any spoilers, I can see why some people might not be entirely satisfied with the conclusion of the story, but I personally found it fitting, and there are very few things I would change overall.

In conclusion, The Princess Weiyoung is a standout period drama for me, with one of the best leads I've seen from the genre, and a tight-knit plot that offers a good rewatch value to catch all the foreshadowing and early character development you miss on the first watch.

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i stumbled across this drama on Netflix and immediately fell in love with it. it is binge worthy and i fell in love with it after one episode wich led to tears

Everything in this drama is beautiful. from the scenery to the music and clothing is just so beautiful

the acting to me was ok .. it wasn't the best but it was good.

THE ROMANCE HOWEVER WAS AMAZING ... and not to mention how they actually got married in real life which adds so much more to the drama

the villains of this drama did a good job in making you hate them

the Princess Wei Young is definitely a drama for the record books.

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Handsome Prince falls in love

This was an epic drama, in storyline and length. All the actors gave memorable acting performances. The costume designs were beautiful.



Poor Wei Young was targeted by every villain, who underestimated her survival skills. The Touba Jun/Wei Young romance was charming, until Tuoba Jun married Wei Young's arch-enemy #1, Changle. Arch-enemy #2, Changru, was even more dangerous and mad. Midway, the plot slowed down, and it was a great effort to keep watching Wei Young constantly being ridiculed, harrassed or tortured. My primary motivation was to see the end of the drama.



What made this epic drama effective, was the fact that 54 episodes were broadcast over a span of four weeks.

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Plot: Cliched but interesting enough to get you started. It later becomes really repetitive in terms of the main character getting framed and framing others.

Characters: Some of the characters were well developed - others not so much. I liked that the main character was smart but there were also times where I got infuriated at how slow she was. The eldest sister Chang Le had no redeeming qualities and fell in the category of the cliched evil love rival. The second sister's development on the other hand was pretty impressive.

Acting: Quite average - Once again the second sister had some pretty nice acting skills.

Rewatch: It was a long and tedious 54 episodes with a few spots of happy scenes void of misunderstandings. I don't think I could do it again.

Overall, not my cup of tea. I completed it - kinda. But there were many areas where I just started tuning it out as it moved way to slowly and was full of annoying misunderstandings. If you are a romance fan, it may be worth a try. If you don't want angst and melodrama, stay away...

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Too long to be enjoyable, unless you're a fan of Mary and Gary Sue characters.

Oh my, where should I start?

PROS
The actors playing ML and FL are really good looking, I was glad to find out they are husband and wife in real life! They’re also overall good - considering the material they’re given - along with a few others. Costumes and makeup are gorgeous, as well as the set locations and the score.

CONS
This show is unbelievable, and not in a positive way.
54 episodes are waaaaay too much for a story that could be told in… 10/15 episodes? The others are just very little variations of the same storyline over and over again.
Screenplay is ridiculous and dumb, saying that it’s repetitive is an understatement.
The lovely FL (but the ML is not different) is written as the epitome of the Mary Sue: she can do no wrong. She is the most beautiful, the most brilliant, the smartest, funniest… but also capable of healing just with her breath and her tears (I kid you not… that’s how she heals Jun’er once, and also by massaging his fingers, something she’s “very experienced with” according to the Royal Doctor… of course! :D) she’s the greatest detective ever, she can foresee every little detail, she’s “the only one who can make the Emperor laugh” (I guess she’s a comedian as well), she’s also some kind of an immortal - she easily survives literally EVERYTHING - and either everyone is in love with her or hate her and blame her for anything… for no real reason. ^^'
On Mondays, she’s usually framed for something, on Tuesdays, someone attempts to kill her, on Wednesdays, she and her love interest fight because someone else got in the middle, on Thursdays, she’s sentenced to death… the list can go on! o_O
Villains have no dimension, they’re villain because screenplay says so, not because there’s an actual reason (they tried to give some background only to the Nan’an Prince character, which is probably the most interesting one). Also, whenever something bad happens, you should know that is Li Wei Yang’s fault. Bad weather? Someone mutters: “Li Wei Yang!” You had a bad night sleep? Yes, that’s probably Li Wei Yang’s fault too. :D
Generally speaking, characters are not well written, and honestly even acting is disappointing with very few exceptions.

However, for some reasons, you’ll find yourselves watching till the end. Probably just because you’re curious to count how many times Li Wei Yang is framed (not sure, but I think more than 20 times o_O) but you’ll watch. I know I did, just to feel finally relieved it ended! :D

Also, skip opening and closing credits: they’re VERY spoilerish!

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I don’t know where to start, but I watched this a long time ago and the impact of it still remains as I continue to be an Asian drama addict ;)

While going through Netflix, I saw the cover of the show and clicked on it out of curiosity. I read the description and though “ok, why not?” Not gonna lie, I clicked off in the first episode because I found that it was really weird and fake (the flying and the fact that adding on a tiny moustache means they’re boys even though they clearly look like girls are to blame for that). I left it for days until for some reason I decided to give it another try. I forced myself to watch the first two episodes and then got hooked. I was addicted to it! I did find it super cheesy at times and the editing was a bit off and looked fake sometimes, but I weirdly couldn’t get myself to dislike it or stop. Keep in mind that this is my first Asian show experience.

The storyline overall was pretty good and keeps the viewer engaged. It was very creative and at times unpredictable. That being said, it was my favourite part! A lot of c or k-dramas are very predictable, but this one was great. The acting was on point and the chemistry was outstanding. If I keep talking I’ll spoil it, but overall the plot was good and I completely recommend it. The end is what made me very sad. If you don’t know yet, the ending of many Chinese dramas are sad (I was expecting a happy ending as it was my first Chinese drama), but it weirdly didn’t leave me completely disappointed. Although it was sad, I was satisfied to see that there were no cliffhangers. It did take me a while to accept the ending, that’s for sure.

Although I was very sad, I got curious of who the actors were (as I usually do) and I was so happy to know that the leads are married in reality. I found that so cute and it weirdly gave me the feel of a happy ending for the show. After this show, I got hooked on Asian dramas and until now, I’m addicted to them! This show was the opener for my cheesy Asian drama obsession and I’m grateful to it. Worth the watch!

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