Personally, the Qing dynasty is the most intriguing in that it spanned nearly three centuries and had not one but two long-reigning Emperors who innovated and reformed the arts, religion, cultural, and political spheres. The dynasty officially ended in 1912 so it's not that farfetched to say there may be a few living centenarians who witnessed its demise. All that to say it's one of my favorite dynastical dramas to watch and I've seen a few good ones such as Yanxi Palace and Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace. This, on the other hand, is abysmal, especially the cinematography which looks dated as if film stock was used instead of digital; adding to that, the color saturation made every hue bleed at its edges. It was like watching a b & w movie that had been badly colorized.

Similarly, the plot was weak. A watered-down, palace drama with terrible characters that strayed so far from history that it's neither a true historical retelling nor a fictionalized version. What tf did I just watch?

Another review said much of what went through my mind so I won't regurgitate the same, however, I can't stress enough just how terrible this series is. Even Yang Mi couldn't save it.