This is probably going to be one of my shorter reviews honestly. I really wanted to like this one- I really did. I feel like there was a lot of wasted potential here and I cannot stand the female lead 80% of the time.

STORY
Objectively, the story wasn't bad- I just feel like it was dragged out unnecessarily long and started to embody a lot of cliches that it could have skipped over. There was also the unneeded "I love you but we can't be together" in the second half and the spiraling of choices that made me kind of hate the thought of ChunYu and JiaYao together. A lot of people complained about the two arcs and everyone dying in the first half- but I think it was technically two seasons? So it was chill. I think the girl was a really unique case in terms of traveling to the past- she wasn't exactly weak nor was she strong- she dealt with the time travel actually really realistically. For me, besides how the female character was written, the other characters were actually pretty complex. Everyone had very good growth- everyone except the female lead. She did get a little less annoying and naive towards the end where she fooled even the audience in this really well thought out ruse. I commended her for that, but it took way too long, and she was written fairly inconsistently. The male lead I liked- not just because he was hot (I admit that made him VERY easy on the eyes) but his struggles were real and he dealt with them the best that he could. He wasn't the "perfect" man but he also owned up to everything he did. The central romance really pissed me off though. I think he could have done well without her, however, the pining for each other and the growth he goes through because of her was really good to watch. Still, I cannot get over how annoyed I am at the female lead, and I admit I just kept watching because of ChunYu. Chong Ye really made me cry- especially at his son's death. He's not an innocent character, nor is he evil, and he really got to my heartstrings.

ACTING
I really liked the acting of the bandits, and the leads. Bie embodied ChunYu very well and filled in all the empty spaces in his character. I don't think I would have been able to see a more perfect actor for the role of ChuYu. Zhong Dan Yi played a really good JiaYao, and as much as her character made me want to hit my head against a wall, she embodied her to every little annoying expression, and for that I gotta give it to her. All the bandits really hit the mark, especially Zhao Jian as Bai Chong Ye and I really felt that absence for the whole second half. Chun Yu and Chong Ye bromance is one thing I'll wholeheartedly miss.

MUSIC
The music was okay, but nothing really stood out to me.

OTHER
THE COSTUMING OF THE FEMALE LEAD. It came out of complete left field and I know that she likes to "change up" the fashion but how was she not murdered by the people for the "scandalousness" of her clothing. Like I get it's her fashion but the peoples' reaction to her clothing should have been much different- and those ridiculous heeled boots- like where in the world did they come from??

REWATCH VALUE
Yeah, it's a five for me. I wouldn't mind rewatching select episodes in the first half in the background as I do things, and some select episodes from the second half. Besides that, there's not much value to it to me.

CONCLUSION
A series with so much wasted potential. I wanted to love it but my suspension of disbelief can only go far, and there's only so much I can like with a very annoying female lead who sounds like a broken record towards the end. The side characters made up for the confusing female lead writing.