2023 Cdrama rankings

It's been a long while since a drama fascinated me like this one did. I was obssessed with it all along its run and have been thinking about it for the rest of the year. I would kill for a bonus epilogue, will we ever get one ?

Stolen by a concubine and raised far from home, Jiang Xuening always dreamed of entering the palace. After much power struggle to become the empress by stepping over people who trusted her, she meets a tragic fate. She gets a second chance and wakes up at 19, determined to right wrongs and prevent the past from repeating itself. But fate is more complicated to twist than she thought and she might need the help of the man she fears the most, the traitor Xei Wei.

My second favorite 2023 drama after TTEOTM and would you know it, it's another dark, sexy and twisted angst-fest with Bai Lu as its lead. It took forever to air, the hype was sky-high, and it did not diasppoint. It is by no means a perfect drama, the story can feel rushed, the palace politics are hard to follow, and the production is of average quality with some weird choices, but the plot is gripping. Bai Lu has chemistry with every characters, and her (incredibly hot) slow-burn romance with Zhang Ling He's scheming and secretly unhinged teacher is long, intense, and pays off wonderfully. It's sort of a harem, Jiang Xuening has three suitors who are based on classic tropes (childhood friend, incorruptible lawman and mysterious teacher) and after trying to convince herself that she wants the most righteous one that she missed in her previous life, she ends up falling for the most dangerous instead. Xei Wei is fascinating, and I kept rooting for him despite his ruthlessness and controlling tendencies. This is how you write a flawed character ! Yan Lin was also great, only Zhang Zhe was a letdown, and I don't know if I should fault the script or the actor (maybe both). I also really like how the politics are cleverly intertwined with the romances and destinies of all characters, it made it all the more gripping, and the rythm was impecable. This is the kind of show that hooks you right away and never let go. I was sad to see it end, 38 episodes went by like nothing.

My third pick for best drama of the year. Production quality and directing are incredible, on par with big cinema. Esther Yu's character is too much of a riddle until the end and the story is not completely finished but it gives some closure. I will never forget Zhang Ling He and Ryan Cheng's introductory scenes, it took my breath away.

Sweet and fun. I wish Love You Seven Times and Back From the Brink were half as good as this one. 

Everybody needs a good palate-cleanser between meatier stuff and for me this was the perfect pick, just silly enough, sad but not too sad, and romantic but in a fluffy, youthful way. Sometimes you just need to watch a young god raise a baby pheonix and the hijinks that ensue.

Fun and fluffy retelling of Beauty and the Beast  that I will forget in a few months. It's too long, 20 episodes would have been more than enough, the bad guys are terribly written and the transition between light comedy and violence is not always well done, but it works thanks to the lead actors' talent, chemistry and charisma. They also did a really good job with the fantasy aspect with a very limited budget. Watching Go Princess Go is not necessary to understand the story, it's just a spin-off about the heroes' daughter in another world.

Based on the first twenty or so episodes, I thought I was in for a delicious slow-burn romance between a fiery princess and a wounded prince who longs for love, but instead I got endless, boring conspiracies between kingdoms I did not care about and a tedious, cringy love rival who refused to go away. And not enough skinship to make up for it. Why was this so tame ???  The show's writers seem to believe that we should care about the extended universe of the novels, but this is not Novoland and they should have focused first on writing a good story around their main characters ! Such a waste of good actors and a strong premise.

A basic xianxia that starts pleasant enough, and turns sour very fast. Skip it.