Aileen T.

Not sure I can finish this one and I’m on Episode 12. This female protagonist is the worst. She’s either beaten, berated or protected by the male and female characters. She is either crying or standing around with a blank expression. And she walks into dangerous situations like an idiot. The male lead is the only good thing about the series. And that hairstyle… it actually looks better after her beating?

As with most dramas, halfway through I felt this could have been the end. It would have been well filmed and interesting to that point. However, midway, the female lead had only one expression and the choices she made didn’t make sense. With her flat acting, and lack of interesting personality, I fast forwarded through a lot just to see it through to the end. Also, I didn’t realize this was supposed to be historically accurate, thus, there are very sad parts and *spoiler* not a happy ending. If you’re looking for a sweet historical romance, it doesn’t quite hit that mark. I really hoped the writing and acting could reflect a smart, strong heroine. But, alas, the FL was boring. The male lead did a great job, though.

After watching the Dong Hua/Bai Feng Jiu love story in Eternal Love, I was so disappointed that I really didn't feel like giving this story a shot. BFJ's character was so immature and annoying in Eternal Love that I really had to fast forward through much of their story line. Then I read reviews that Pillow Book is their original love and much more developed and thoughtful than what they portrayed in Eternal Love. I am SO GLAD I gave this one a shot. It was such a great romance and love story. Both characters have more depth and personality. The story is less intense and tragic than Eternal Love, so it makes for a funnier, happier watch where you're not so drained by the end. There are so many SQUUEEE moments in this that you'll have to go back and rewatch your favorite episodes. Vengo an Dilraba have the perfect chemistry and really meant for these roles. I even enjoyed A-Li's character and the references to Bai Qian and Ye Hua...although man we're all dying for a Mark Chao cameo right?! All in all, I'm hoping they will film another series following this love story.

Up until episode 30, this series was so good. The quality of costumes, set, hair, makeup, etc. were so stunning. And the love story and development of the relationship between the leads was really interesting. Then it just dragged and dragged for the next 23 episodes. The plot felt so redundant and lazy with the same villains scheming and getting convicted then let free to continue doing the same thing over and over. It became so predictable and tedious. I started fast forwarding through most of the episodes for the second half in hopes that there would be a good ending. And wow, the last episode should have been skipped entirely! What a let down and disappointment. It’s like they ran out of material and still had one more episode to go, so they threw a last minute bomb in there. Overall, I really enjoyed the first half of the series and would have rated that 5 stars alone. Just brace yourself for it to dragggg at the end and that you’ll be rolling your eyes at the villains and the ludicrous court politics.