There is something intensely satisfying with stories in which the underdog overcomes unimaginable adversity to succeed against all expectations. Throw in well-paced story arcs, an incredibly smart, sensible, progressive, and courageous protagonist, supported by a cast of flawed but loyal and caring friends and family members, and we have a recipe I can’t resist.

Blossoms in Adversity is a wonderful historical drama that celebrates the strength and resilience of women by putting a spotlight on their incredibly oppressive lives in ancient China through the fall and rise of the once-illustrious Hua Family. I was willing to suspend disbelief and enjoy this magical and joyous fairy tale in wishful thinking, where the value of truth and the power of good will always prevails.

The Hua family patriarch is a high ranking court official of unimpeachable integrity who refuses to speak dishonestly simply to curry favour with the Emperor. Enraged by his subject’s impudence, the Emperor exiles the Hua men to the northern borders to do hard penal labour and confiscates the family’s wealth and home. The remaining family members -- the many wives and concubines of the four Hua sons and their children (boys under the age of 13 and all the daughters) -- are left to fend for themselves. Were it not for a rustic cottage outside the city bestowed many years ago by the Dowager Empress to the family matriarch -- best friends in their youth -- the women and children would have nowhere to go.

With the exception of our heroine, the eldest granddaughter Hua Zhi, who had travelled the realm with her grandfather as a child, the remaining family members are spoiled and pampered and at a complete loss over their reversal of fortune and the harsh realities that come with it.

I was brought to tears more than once by the heartfelt joys and heartaches of this imperfect, but delightful family and their servants. I have never been so moved by the funeral of a secondary character, especially with the arrival of an unexpected, yet pivotal guest. But I spent much of the 40 episodes grinning and cheering in satisfaction and joy over the family’s remarkable successes. Despite grim family circumstances, Blossoms In Adversity is about hope. It also deftly showcases the many ways “hope” is defined for different women: independence, divorce, marriage, love -- even when they are far from ideal.

I have no illusions that the premise is filled with impossibilities. Hua Zhi, played by the lovely Zhang Jingyi (张婧仪), manages to pretty much single-handedly bring the Hua family back to prosperity -- twice -- within the short span of (but generously estimated) three to five years. I can’t describe it any better than MyDramaList reviewer PeachBlossomGoddess who wrote in her excellent review:

“...no feat is beyond Hua Zhi! She parleys a candied hawthorn business into a pastry and restaurant empire, picks up stray royal children, foils a few palace plots, build schools and a canal, rescues the Hua family men and even manages to find time to fall in love!”

That’s all!

Hua Zhi is a heroine for the ages, a role model in perseverance, unwavering integrity, hard work, with a sharp mind for solving difficult problems and a sharp eye for spotting potential threats and reading her adversaries. There is almost a Mary Sue-like quality about her achievements and seeming perfection. Unlike the ensemble cast of spoiled aunties, sisters, cousins, servants, and friends (such as the endearing Shen Huan) who experience great character development as they learn to adjust to a vastly different quality of life and social status, Hua Zhi undergoes the least amount of growth. Yet if she were so perfect, she would not be so stupid as to speak defiantly to the Emperor, having already previously witnessed the grievous consequences of doing so -- not only with her grandfather, but with the man she loves -- Gu Yanxi, stoically played by Hu Yitian (胡一天).

Under the Emperor’s command, it is Gu Yanxi -- as the commander of the much-feared Security Bureau -- who confiscates Hua Zhi’s home and takes away the men. But it is under his own free will that he becomes Hua Zhi’s protector, confident, and love. But this free will rankles and offends the cruel and controlling Emperor, who does not hesitate to demonstrate the lengths to which he will go to wield his absolute power and force his nephew to kowtow to his will. Gu Yanxi’s strength yet helplessness in the face of his uncle, who raised him like a son, makes him a complex and fascinating hero, but one we never get to know as intimately as we do the women in the Hua family.

A LIKABLE ENSEMBLE CAST

This was my first drama with Hu Yitian, and his depiction of a stoic prince really worked for me. I’ve seen some comments criticizing his unflattering period styling and that he can be a bit flat and expressionless in his acting, so perhaps his portrayal would have landed differently and felt more stale had I been more familiar with his previous roles. In any case, Hu Yitian did an especially fantastic job demonstrating his strength as a fighter during climactic fight scenes and evoked a certain presence in this drama. It did not take long for his character to grow on me.

At first glance, Caesar Wu’s (吴希泽) Shen Qi is so honorable and immensely likable that I worried I might develop “second male lead syndrome”. Despite his high billing, however, his character actually disappears for a good chunk of Blossoms. Much of Shen Qi’s character development was done early, so by the time he reappears later in the drama, he is relegated to a likable, but somewhat flat, supporting character. It is his brother, Shen Huan, who takes a surprising turn with the more interesting and very sweet story arc with Gu Yanxi’s sister. Bian Cheng (边程), who has been acting since he was six or seven, is just 19 years old and shined in the role of the earnest but spoiled and lazy rich second son with the kind heart.

Actor Hai Yitian (海一天) delivered an effective performance as the Emperor who ruled with Machiavellian cruelty without turning him into just another two-dimensional evil character. He trusted no one, had no tolerance for soft emotions or having his authority and judgment questioned, and yet he appeared to long for his nephew’s company and unwavering trust.

Among the wonderful ensemble cast of women, Lu Yuxiao (卢昱晓) perhaps stood out a little more as Gu Yanxi’s sister, while Fu Bohan (傅铂涵) stood out the most among the cast of children as the Sixth Prince.

I derived enormous joy and absolute satisfaction witnessing Hua Zhi's preposterous achievements. It didn’t matter if it was realistic or not. (In the real world, would the men of the Hua family have truly accepted their new role as passive husbands and allowed the women to continue to handle the family decision-making? I have my doubts.) Despite these flaws -- or perhaps *because* of them -- I can’t help but give Blossoms in Adversity a high rating as one of the best dramas of the year.

NIT-PICKS AND STRAY THOUGHTS

* My biggest production beef was the unnecessary dramatic echo sound effect whenever a character said something impactful. It was too cheesy even for me and very distracting.
* Similarly, during particularly climactic scenes they would momentarily freeze the frame like a photograph on multiple characters’ faces for dramatic effect, that also felt a bit cheesy.
* The Emperor knows all, yet we never see him actually conducting any court business! How did he have time for everything and still expend so much effort on his poor nephew?
* Given how little the Emperor trusted even those closest to him, it’s a marvel his closest eunuch managed to survive his leadership!
* Was Yanxi stupid for charging into the palace? It seemed too reckless even under the circumstances.
* Pretty sure there were several consistency errors, including one where the sister was shown sitting outside her second floor sanctuary -- after it had already burned down and they moved back to the Hua Mansion.
* Large fires can take a long time to extinguish even with modern firefighting equipment, but the family’s rented city home was already a pile of smoky burnt ashes the very same day and cool enough to walk through.
* The Hua women’s flawless skin and untanned face despite labouring under the hot sun for a year building the canal was hilarious.