The Starry Love (2023)

A Xianxia filled with love, friendship, disaster, and most importantly, comedy.

If you, like me, did not have your eye on this drama but decided to watch it on a whim, you will be pleasantly surprised by The Starry Love. And understandably so, because the past few years of Xianxias have exposed us to the ‘overuse’ of familiar Xianxia tropes. Fortunately, director Chu Yuibun (朱锐斌) seems to have realized this and decided to add a unique comedic spice to The Starry Love that significantly differentiates this drama from the rest of the modern Xianxia genre. Overall, The Starry Drama is a story of the love between two main couples as well as their adventures with friends, and what it means for the world to love or hate you.

The Starry Love (星落凝成糖) is adapted from the Xianxia novel of the same name by Yi Du Jun Hua (一度君华), and is the last installment of the Honey Trilogy, three romance dramas directed by Chu Yuibun. Therefore, you might notice the vast similarities between color selection, setting appearance, and costume design between The Starry Love and Ashes of Love. The Starry Love also has several actors that also played major roles in Skate Into Love, and its catchy OSTs are once again sung by the talented Sa Dingding and Mao Buyi, as well as Liu Yuning and Shuang Sheng. Here's another thing that may motivate you to watch The Starry Love: the leads voice their own characters, with the exception of Chao Feng. (no need to be worried about the high FL voice this round!)

Once again, the story is established with many of the usual Xianxia tropes. The world is composed of Four Realms, the Immortal, Demon, Mortal, and Beast. However, the Mortal Realm is fully aware of the other realms and works with the other leaders to maintain world peace. The Immortal Realm is again the ‘good’ realm, the Demon Realm is the ‘bad’, the Mortal is the ‘weak’, and the Beast is basically the ‘extra’. The main female leads, Ye Tan and Qing Kui are twins with a sealed fate, which they don’t learn about until later in their lives. Qing Kui is the hailed princess, the girl living everyone else’s dream. She is the destined Heavenly Consort, the future wife of Heavenly Deity Shao Dian You Qin. On the other hand, younger sister Ye Tan is not as fortunate. She was deemed a ‘bad luck star’ from birth, never having experienced the warmth and love from her father and servants. Destined to marry the future king of the Demon Realm, she vows to be a powerful evil being to defeat those who have always down on her. However, the sisters’ wedding carriages are swapped, and they end up in the wrong realms.

As you can see, we’re presented with a pretty unoriginal premise, so what makes this drama so interesting and keeps us on our toes? Well, to say this in the simplest way possible, it’s the way comedic scenes are inserted into the drama at the most surprising of times that makes The Starry Love such a fresh breath of air. One minute, you might be sad or even crying because of a certain scene, and a few seconds later, you are laughing so hard you might even be clenching your stomach. I personally really enjoy this unique addition, as I’ve certainly never seen this before in Xianxias and loved the comedic aspect.

The Starry Love is 40 episodes long, as with many of the new dramas after the maximum 40 episode rule. (in which some dramas divided the series in two parts to bypass this new Chinese law) The drama is well-paced, without many, or perhaps even any, filler scenes, unlike a few of the long dramas. I really enjoyed how there was understandable time spent on each You Qin arc, and how each couple was given enough time per episode to bond and give us the sugar we deserve.

Onto the acting. The acting here was PHENOMENAL, especially when it comes to Chen Xingxu. This man here had to act five totally different personalities. In the usual Xianxias we may get one or two reincarnations, but Shao Dian You Qin here went on a total personality-changing spree. From the cold You Qin, he was also the cute and heartwarming La Mu, greedy but caring Mei You Qing, elegant womanizer Wen Ren, and of course, the You Qin at the end, all of his previous personalities melded into one. Chen Xingxu pulled off his roles perfectly, effectively showing the great contrasts between each personality and making them seem like totally different people. (fun fact: (Mei You Qin) 没有情 means Emotionless)

As I was watching a drama with Li Landi for the first time, I loved her acting and her role as Li Guang Ye Tan. The changes her character experienced were phenomenal, and Landi displayed this through her acting, especially in the eyes. Not only is The Starry Love about the strong love between lovers, but between friends and family as well. Ye Tan and Qing Kui’s sisterly love is a strong relationship that not many others can compete with. The contrast between the two sisters’ personalities was also a sweet treat. Although Qing Kui always received the love that Ye Tan never had in her first 18 years, Ye Tan never blamed her older sister for it. Instead, they were always worrying about the other. While Ye Tan is a girl afraid of nothing, Qing Kui’s pure kindness guided her younger sister to the path of happiness.

The chemistry between both couples was just right. You will be gushing for not one, but two extremely compatible couples. As I was rooting for the Heavenly Couple, I was also squealing for the love story that was blossoming in the Demon Realm. As they say, you’ll always find each other if you’re destined to be together. It’s amazing how each of the characters influenced others to change and become better versions of themselves.

Of course, a Xianxia drama would not be complete without both loveable and hateable characters. Ye Tan, who had never received much care and love in her life, felt so fortunate to have become friends with not only Man Man and Di Lan Jue, but with Qing Heng, Zi Wu, the three senior immortals, and even with her future brother-in-law, Chao Feng. It was so heartwarming to see everyone warm up to this princess, who had always longed for a happy life. On the other hand, we have the power-hungry Immortal and Demon Emperors who put their own power before their family’s happiness. The Heavenly Empress demonstrated her true love for her children before any noble title or riches, while the Demon Empress’s power-hungry eyes not only showed her pure-evil heart but her universal love for her only son. The side couples were all very cute and fun to watch.

Production-wise, The Starry Love did a phenomenal job. The special effects for magical spells in all realms complimented their respective backgrounds and were all natural to the look. Like previous Xianxias, the Immortal Realm is given an almost-whitewashed look, while the Demon Realm is a land of darkness. However, the fireworks and magical trees were gorgeous to look at, to name a few magical elements of the drama.

Like Ashes of Love, the OST for The Starry Love includes songs sung by Mao Buyi and Sa Dingding, as well as Liu Yuning and Shuang Sheng, and were epic as always. Sa Dingding once again awes us with her amazingly high vocals managed with immaculate precision, while Mao Buyi and Liu Yuning sing with longing emotion. Shuang Sheng once again displays her lovely voice with a sweet tone. The soundtrack is as follows:

[Theme Song] “The Starry Love” (星落凝成糖) - Sa Dingding
[Opening Song] “Speak with You” (与子成说) - Liu Yuning
[Ending Song] “Flawless World” (天地无瑕) - Mao Buyi (with another version sung by Sa Dingding)
[Additional Song] “Twin Flowers” (双花儿) - Shuang Sheng

If The Starry Love is not THE Xianxia drama 2023, it is one of the best. Although it includes many Xianxia elements used in previous Xianxia dramas, the comedic aspect of this series differentiates it from the rest of the group and will certainly brighten up your day. The emphasis on strong sisterly love is also something that is not to be missed. (there’s eye candy too!)

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When Mr Wrong Turned Out To Be Mr Right!

I was anticipating this drama not only because of Chen Xing Xu as the male lead but also because of the director, Chu Yui Bun, whose works included "The Long Ballad" and “The Blue Whisper”. He also directed the other two dramas that made up the “Honey Trilogy” - “Ashes of Love”, “Skate into Love” and now “The Starry Love”.

Well, I was not disappointed. The Starry Love has beautifully captured the twists and turns of destined love based on the theme of marrying the wrong man who turns out to be the right one.

The plot centered around a pair of twin sisters, the older sister Qing Kui, favored by the human race, and was betrothed to the Heavenly Empyrean. The younger sister, Ye Tan was considered a jinx and was bullied all her life.She was promised to the Voidwalkers (demon world) as the consort to the Crown Prince. On their wedding day, the brides were switched, setting off a series of trials, tribulations, rescues and romance.

This high-budget xianxia delivered what is expected of its genre, an engaging ride that takes the viewers through a journey filled with a myriad of emotions. Well-paced, the show swung from romantic to dramatic to funny quickly and smoothly, and it keeps the entertainment level high throughout the show.  The ending was not what I had hoped for but I cannot lower my rating because the drama on the whole, was so well-executed.

The story never lost its momentum, and just got better and better. I like that the tropes that can take up to several episodes in other dramas, did not get dragged out and instead were resolved quickly. I never felt tempted to skip, and there were many scenes that I would rewatch just so I could appreciate the gestures, effects, and dialogue again.

The production was undoubtedly high-quality, and a lot of attention paid to the details. The cinematography, costumes and sets provided a striking visual impact, and the special effects/CGI were well-done, immediately evoking feelings of wonder and fantasy. Furthermore, the choreography for the fights, flying, and other action shots were done so superbly.

Overall, the script scores points with dynamic characters who struggled with their actions, who were not always clear if they were doing the right thing or what the right thing even was. Most good characters had flaws, and the villains had backstories that made them relatable and their actions justifiable. Viewers will come to understand what the characters went through, the reasons for their emotions, and their circumstances. I find myself connecting with the characters and rooting for many of them.

I have nothing but praises for the cast. Chen Xing Xu proves his acting chops again as Youjin, the ML. He did so well not only in the intense emotional scenes but also in simple scenes where the audience only needed to watch his face and feel the love that he had for YeTan, the FL. In the drama, CXX had to play 5 different characters of the same person which he pulled off wonderfully.

Landi Li’s acting as the FL left a firm impression, and I was blown away by her superb performance. I did not like her character, Ye Tan at first but I warmed up to her quickly especially after finding out more about her tragic childhood. I came to respect Ye Tan, someone whom I would describe as resilient and resourceful.

Still, Qing Kui, Ye Tan’s sister remained my favorite as she was the epitome of the strong FL. She was truly the iron fist in a velvet glove. Brought up refined and elegant, Qing Kui was the opposite of Ye Tan, but she was also intelligent and tough when necessary. She was brave and unafraid to love. To be honest, I shedded the most tears for her as for me, her sacrifice was the greatest. I also enjoyed Luke Cheng’s portrayal of Chao Feng who displayed conflicting motivations as he strove to protect his loved ones.

The entire ensemble did so well, and the supporting characters helped to carry this show. There was such good rapport among them, like the endearing sismance and bromance among the various characters.

Not surprisingly, the OSTs were on another level featuring Sa Dingding, Liu Yuning and Mao Buyi. The songs were very fitting and set a dramatic and emotional tone that is infused throughout the show. Interestingly, just like The Blue Whisper, there is a male and a female version of the same song. For posterity, I have listed the main tracks below.

Soundtrack list (I will add the Spotify links once available):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-PBZ8ZbSCM
1. 星落凝成糖 (The Starry Love) - 萨顶顶 (Sa Dingding)
2. 与子成说 (Speak With You) - 刘宇宁 (Liu Yuning)
3. 双花儿 (Flower Pair) - 双笙 (Shuang Sheng)
4. 天地无瑕 (Flawless World) - 萨顶顶 (Sa Dingding)
5. 天地无瑕 (Flawless World) - 毛不易 (Mao Buyi)

My verdict: I do recommend this drama! I love a good love story, and this was definitely that along with the angsty melodrama that is typical of a xianxia drama. Those looking for a complete story will likely be left wanting for more by the lackluster ending. However for me, I enjoyed the complex yet enduring love among the 2 main couples and prefer to imagine a bright future ahead of them.

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