I'm Finished Watching Princess Weiyoung

I remembered times in high school and college when there were some literature assignments required. One thing I could remember was the need for book reports. I could remember this one - if the story is so good I can't put the book down! If the book was so good - I wrote a very wholehearted summary and got a high grade. If the book was so bad - I would write a haphazard report and my performance suffered a lot. There was no Internet yet to help me get recommended readings so I had to take the risk! Princess Weiyoung itself (or should I call it WeiYANG because Yang is the Mandarin version of the Chinese surname Young or Yu) turned out to that kind of show. If I was reading an English version of the novel called The Poisonous Daughter (which it's based from) then I would certainly not be able to put it down! 

Watching it - I've decided to marathon it like I would read more than three chapters a day if the novel is pretty good. So, there are some weird plots like poisoning. The Chiyun Family (which has a treacherous alliance with Prime Minister Li via marriage) has some interesting villains. Chiyin Rou did die mid-series so her death wasn't too satisfying. However, her witchling daughter Li Changle has been more interesting due to her obsessive attraction to Gaoyang seeking power. Chiyun Nan is really one vicious villain who sides with the main antagonist Tuoba Yu for convenience. Yu is one scheming bastard who knows how to play his cards right. There's a lot of good stuff. 

Warning... some spoilers ahead but read if you're a spoiler addict like me!

For a bit of the finale. I always felt that I've had mixed feelings. I haven't read the novel yet so I don't know the differences between the TV series and the novel. Yu himself always plays the victim card due to his lowly status as the emperor's child by a lower concubine. It's unknown how many years older he is than his half-nephew Tuoba Jun. However, it seems both of them are just siblings even if he's one generation higher than his half-nephew Jun. Regardless, I always thought that his motive is power. Others rise from tragedy to heroism so it's no excuse to be villainous. I'm reminded of Jafar from Aladdin (that is, the remake) and Scar from The Lion King. Both villains were tragic yet it doesn't excuse all the atrocities they did as they throw their anger out on innocent people. Heck, he even SHOT Nan so evidence can't be pointed out to him.

Is it me or is there the hype of Vanness Wu as the villain instead of his usual heroic roles? For me, I'm actually glad to see him act as a villain even if I wanted Jerry Yan to play the part. Jerry though has had stronger emotions to portray the royal brat. Yu's part as a villain is always him getting mad at his lowly status and wanting to grab power by EVERY. MEANS. NECESSARY. Then he's got that crazy "I must f*** Weiyang!" obsession going on though he's somewhat subtle about it. I still find it funny he says, "But you must be willing to marry me." to Weiyang even if it's obvious blackmail. Like he's an evil overlord later on - what he says goes! Thankfully, he didn't rape Weiyang though he's got one scene he attempted to do so.

Though I would he be like Scar too. Like Scar, he wants the throne and would harm his own (half) nephew to do so. Weiyang seems to be like Nala in a way except she's the titular character. If you've heard of the musical version of The Lion King then I suggest listening to the song "The Madness of King Scar". Scar tries to woo Nala into becoming his queen even if the age gap is pretty huge. Thankfully, that plot wasn't put in the bland live remake and instead was replaced with a Mufasa/Scar/Sarabi love triangle. Both of them really just care about power. Though I think Yu would have been a little more competent than Scar in handling resources.

I think the way Yu died isn't too poetic. We've had unexpected traitor Changru betray Weiyang already a couple of episodes ago. Heck, Yu banged Changru while he was drunk and she would later give birth - though the fate of the child is unknown. Changru later ends her life after she accidentally stabbed Yu. I do find the scene to be not so satisfying since I thought Changru should've suffered more. Also, I thought that Weiyang should've been the one to kill Yu herself like a rape victim killing her rapist. Technically, Yu is Weiyang's rapist. Instead, it ended up with Yu dying to protect Weiyang. Was it meant to suggest there was still something good left in him or what? Regardless, I thought that Changru should've died after delivering the child. I think it could've been interesting if Yu tries to rape Weiyang but ends up dead. Like, I think Weiyang the titular heroine should've done it considering he also poisoned Jun just to have his power. He did somehow have a victory in the end as Jun died but he's too busy suffering in Hell to savor it, right? Though I wonder did Vanness attend Tiffany Tang's real-life wedding to the actor Luo Jin (who was Jun)?

So I thought about Changle's role as a villain who seems to be more interesting than her witch mother. Her spoiled brat attitude isn't entirely the focus. Okay, she does have her "Must f*** Jun!" obsession which becomes her driving point for hating Weiyang. Changle is domineering and evil. Her hatred for Weiyang has her attempting to poison the latter when Yu illegally became the Emperor of Wei. What was she really thinking about it? Did she plan to become empress herself by usurpation or what? Her selfishness is so intense such as that, "If I can't have Jun then nobody will!" which leads to her irrational actions.

What's predictable (maybe at least, for me) is that she killed the Crown Princess. Granted, this is a fictionalized account of the Tuoba family so stuff like a perfect disguise would work. She somehow made herself look like Weiyang and she KILLED the woman she wanted to be her mother-in-law. I don't know how screwed up she can get but she's screwed up. Perhaps raised too much in privilege made her like that or what? I did laugh when she was forced to become a country maid and made to drink foot water. Though killing her midseason would make it less satisfying because she's a really good villain. Her older brother and mother can die early on but not her. I feel her death is worthy of a finale death.

Her later banishment for me is too mild. I really wish she got kidnapped by barbarians and gang-raped to her death if you ask me! I thought death by poison was too mild. I think Jun should've just left her to rot and not care anymore. Either way, she's already done for and justice was served for all the people who died in her hands. 

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Overall, I think this series is really a must-watch. I suggest watch it if you haven't. Then again, I really wish there was an English paperback book of the novel of the same name. I'd love to go back to reading novels again if you ask me!