hmm where shall i start? honestly,,,,, this was the perfect drama for me. when i look for a drama, i always look for a hate to love kind of relationship. gu yan zheng and xie xiang definitely gave me that :)

STORY:
ookie. well for one, the romance was definitely not a big focus here. we did not get a single kiss ): however, i do feel like gu yan zheng's antics: his jealousy, protectiveness, possessiveness, and love for xie xiang compensated for the lack of "romance." it was present in almost every episode that i didn't even realize we never got a kiss until i read a comment. still, i think xi kai and bai lu's chemistry was so perfect that it was unnoticeable. i love that they enrolled in the same academy, shared a room together, participated in missions together, and there's so much more. everything about them was loveable. gu yan zheng's protective scenes were my favorite scenes <'3 also, huang song, li wen zhong, and sergeant guo's death kind of got to me :( although i knew huang song was going to die (accidentally read a spoiler), his death scene was so saddening. especially since he was always selfless and sweet to others. li wen zhong's death hit me like a truck. i think his character development was one of the best. he went from a spoiled little childe to a true soldier. i'm just sad him and an wen couldn't become a thing at the end. (i was screaming "please don't forget about him!" the whole time during the tomb scene). on a good note, i really loved qu man ting! she was so badass and didn't let anyone bully her. (the scene when she slapped the girl that kept splashing water on her when they were filming was iconic). i tried so hard to hate her at the beginning because i thought she was going to be evil and manipulate the male lead like every second female lead. however, she's completely different. i'm so glad she ended up with shen ting bai.

ACTING:
applause to the whole cast. especially to xu kai and bai lu.

MUSIC:
the beginning ost is so hype :). i have mixed feelings about the ost that always comes up when something sad happens, however, i really enjoyed the ending ost.

REWATCH VALUE:
definitely going to rewatch this a million times when i miss the cast. this drama is not my second favorite drama (after ashes of love). i already have post drama depression :(. i feel like the ending was bit rushed but that could be just me not wanting it to be over. and to be honest, i already want to go back and watch it again. however, i spent my whole saturday (literally all day and night) finishing this up. i remember when i started it on the whim on tuesday night, i couldn't put it down. i kept watching till it was 4 am, and i had school in two hours. after the end of every episode, i kept going, “hmm, another one..." finished “wait wait on more” finished “nahnah one more” finished "ok last one" finished, and the cycle repeats. every episode was intriguing, and bai lu and xu kai's constant bickering made it even better.

this review is kind of rushed due to the fact that it's almost 12 am, and i'm tired (even though all i did was binge watch this drama). if you need more information, message me. i'd be glad to talk to you about this drama x)