Just finished watching this series. What excellent story telling. Superior acting - the ML, FL, just about every actor in the production. The chemistry was great, the interactions so well-done. Every episode drew the audience deeper into the intrigue, and I couldn't wait for the next episode to air. One or two minor holes in the plot, but not enough to take away from the excellence of this drama. Started out a little slow, but I persisted and am glad I did.

Can I just say again how stellar the performances of the actors were? Every single actor made you believe their role - you loved the ones who were good, you hated the ones who were evil. The expressions on the ML were priceless and without saying a word, you knew what emotion he was feeling. That he did his own dialog too - love his voice. I wasn't as impressed with the FL, but have to say that her dialog had all the emotion that she needed for that role, and although at times she could be headstrong and almost arrogant, she came to be the perfect match for the ML and their romance was powerful and believable.

So why only an 8?
(SPOILER ALERT) 3 main reasons: First, and most important, killing off Song Jin. No matter how his demise supposedly contributed to the story (I couldn't see it), that was hurtful. Second, Yuan Lang got away with all his evil deeds and didn't get enough retribution for me. (Sorry doesn't make it right). Third, Qiu Min got a happy ending - and that one was the hardest to swallow (mean bitches don't deserve a handsome prince).