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extrapenguinI finished it. Nonspoilery rec: WATCH IT. Spoilers below.
I loved the continuation to the end of ep 52 – Minister Cai being all just and pointing out that it's the logical thing to do, Yan using his family reputation, and then Jing. MCS brings up the past, points out that Lin Xie saved the Emperor's life repeatedly and is this how the Emperor repays him, first a wrongful death and now not even a re-trial. And the Emperor goes berserk and tries to stab MCS with his sword and Jingyan just. STEPS IN FRONT OF THE SWORD. "Once you have killed everyone, are you still the all-powerful Emperor?" Jingyan my heart. And then the Emperor just ... breaks down and retreats and Jing-fei with her hardest role goes to the Emperor who realizes he's been played and she just. "There's one important reason the Chiyan case is bound to be reopened – the truth." Now we know where Jingyan got all his speech-giving skills from. Jing-fei even gets angry, the only time in the entire series we see her do so. (And speaking truth to power is one of my favorite happenings ever, along with villains being their own downfall. Thank you for delivering on this, show!)
Once again, MCS walks into the lion's den and wins. (The Emperor may protest his innocence, but he was willing to cut off the hand that had a power base with little enough investigation.) The Emperor admits defeat. And when he starts doing his "I doted on you" spiel, MCS just ... leaves.
And, offscreen, MCS wins. The persona of Mei Changsu has completed its mission and can be put back on the shelf. Lin Chen's holiday planning is hilarious, even if it is made obsolete by MCS becoming Lin Shu once again. Introducing a new opponent in the very final episode was brave, even if it was foreshadowed by the series description... I suppose the concentrated attack on Da Liang is the Hua Zu agents' work. Princess Xuanji seems to have been really good at what she did!
Nie Feng leading troops to battle is. Um. Well, being attacked by a yeti may give the enemy pause? WTF. And MCS essentially just goes "Let me die as Lin Shu!" at Lin Chen, and Lin Chen, too, has to face the "my friend is not who I thought he was" realization.
Nihuang loves him enough to let him go. Based on their conversation about fate lasting three lives, I think she already knew he wasn't coming back. Jingyan ... is left with the realization that as the Crown Prince and then Emperor, he will always be left watching people go. And he watches MCS go, sadness in his heart. Maybe he, too, knew MCS wasn't coming back. And thus, he goes to pay his respects in the Lin Mausoleum, to his best friend who isn't coming back ever again. The dialogue-less set of scenes with the music with a new version of lyrics was very sad. I cried. Why does this show insist on breaking my heart.
The final scenes, with the little Prince playing with Tingsheng, were adorable. And Emperor Jingyan naming the new army after his best friend's family! I cannot. I ... cannot. Words cannot describe.
I loved the continuation to the end of ep 52 – Minister Cai being all just and pointing out that it's the logical thing to do, Yan using his family reputation, and then Jing. MCS brings up the past, points out that Lin Xie saved the Emperor's life repeatedly and is this how the Emperor repays him, first a wrongful death and now not even a re-trial. And the Emperor goes berserk and tries to stab MCS with his sword and Jingyan just. STEPS IN FRONT OF THE SWORD. "Once you have killed everyone, are you still the all-powerful Emperor?" Jingyan my heart. And then the Emperor just ... breaks down and retreats and Jing-fei with her hardest role goes to the Emperor who realizes he's been played and she just. "There's one important reason the Chiyan case is bound to be reopened – the truth." Now we know where Jingyan got all his speech-giving skills from. Jing-fei even gets angry, the only time in the entire series we see her do so. (And speaking truth to power is one of my favorite happenings ever, along with villains being their own downfall. Thank you for delivering on this, show!)
Once again, MCS walks into the lion's den and wins. (The Emperor may protest his innocence, but he was willing to cut off the hand that had a power base with little enough investigation.) The Emperor admits defeat. And when he starts doing his "I doted on you" spiel, MCS just ... leaves.
And, offscreen, MCS wins. The persona of Mei Changsu has completed its mission and can be put back on the shelf. Lin Chen's holiday planning is hilarious, even if it is made obsolete by MCS becoming Lin Shu once again. Introducing a new opponent in the very final episode was brave, even if it was foreshadowed by the series description... I suppose the concentrated attack on Da Liang is the Hua Zu agents' work. Princess Xuanji seems to have been really good at what she did!
Nie Feng leading troops to battle is. Um. Well, being attacked by a yeti may give the enemy pause? WTF. And MCS essentially just goes "Let me die as Lin Shu!" at Lin Chen, and Lin Chen, too, has to face the "my friend is not who I thought he was" realization.
Nihuang loves him enough to let him go. Based on their conversation about fate lasting three lives, I think she already knew he wasn't coming back. Jingyan ... is left with the realization that as the Crown Prince and then Emperor, he will always be left watching people go. And he watches MCS go, sadness in his heart. Maybe he, too, knew MCS wasn't coming back. And thus, he goes to pay his respects in the Lin Mausoleum, to his best friend who isn't coming back ever again. The dialogue-less set of scenes with the music with a new version of lyrics was very sad. I cried. Why does this show insist on breaking my heart.
The final scenes, with the little Prince playing with Tingsheng, were adorable. And Emperor Jingyan naming the new army after his best friend's family! I cannot. I ... cannot. Words cannot describe.
no subject
Date: 2017-11-22 22:42 (UTC)I'm very happy you too liked it so much :) It's so great. And heart-breaking. But great. There are so many great scenes near the end, I can't pick my favorites. The ending with the song is so beautiful.
Not long until season two starts! In the meantime, what kind of fic are you in the mood for? I recced some of my favorite post-canon fics here.
no subject
Date: 2017-11-23 13:02 (UTC)It ended exactly the way it should've ended. Now, it was really fucking heartbreaking, but any other ending would've been either too cheap or just plain less good.
My current mood is ... nothing pre-canon with Lin Shu, during-canon I'd like some MCS/Jingyan or MCS/Meng Zhi, and post-canon can be about idk MCS returning from the dead or being secretly saved or w/e. I like minor characters, like Magistrate whatshisname with the No Good Very Bad Terrible days, I like "casefic"/more-of-the-same with plot and intrigue, I like Prince Yu's downfall, and I like Xia Dong but not Xia Dong/Nie Feng.
Also, I have the worst fic idea, where instead of requiring ten people to give up their life, it's actually "ten people fuck the patient". Lots of emotionally significant and awkward sex! Too bad I have no idea what MCS's internal narrative would sound like. Or how he'd refer to himself...
no subject
Date: 2017-11-23 23:06 (UTC)You could start with the stories in the rec post I linked you. If you sort by Kudos on AO3 the first fic is In Time, Once Again, a long Jingyan time-travel fic translated from Chinese, it is full of angst and I love it a lot.
no subject
Date: 2017-11-24 07:38 (UTC)