#ryan cheng

Cheng Lei as Yu Changxuan in The Lament of Autumn is not just serving looks… he’s committing a full-scale aesthetic crime.

That slicked-back hair. Those sharp suits. The quiet intensity in every black-and-white frame.

This man walked out of a 1920s fever dream and decided to ruin the entire timeline.

The whole plot with Li Mountain Academy was quite foreseeable.

Spoilers ahead!!!

Third uncle completely vanished in the end without further notice. So did the rest of the Ye family.

The Canbei guys really seemed promising, I could have sworn that their general would be part of the whole later revolt but that did not happen either. Nor did they seem to mind that the murderer of their princess went missing.

I also waited for a good fight between Cheng Lei and some enemies later on the battlefield but that did not happen.

They really made such a big thing out of the Sister-in-laws' love for the former Prince Ding only to destroy that later on when she, for the plots' sake, told the new Prince Ding that she wanted a divorce back in the day.

They also made such a big fuzz out of Prince Ding never wanting to leave Princess Ding alone ever again but then it happened right again. It was logic that it happened cause Prince Ding was Great Chus only capable military leader but then they could just not have gone that way.

Marquis Murong also gave strong Prime Minister Wen from Pursuit of Jade vibes.

I really liked some side characters the most. Like Brother Feng, Han Ming Xi, third uncle, Li Fei Bai, A-Jin, Zhuang Wei, Qing Shuang and Qing Yu.

Also, like basically in nearly every C-Drama, the female lead was way too perfect.

The only thing I found really good was the feministic message which was e. g. embodied in Dowager Empress Guos character. Also that she was power hungry but not one dimensional. And also not unhinged. That made her character quite human. They made a good decision with her being okay with her son taking over the reigns and with her showing remorse in the end or with her missing Dowager Consort Qin. I also liked Marquis Murongs little storyline with his sons. That was among those things which really could have gotten more space or being left out completely. The drama wanted sometimes too much for its side characters so that it took side strolls which just stretched the whole thing too far.

Prince Li was somehow also thrown under the bus completely. Why he as the heir of the late crown-prince was even alive made no sense. Also not why he claimed that he had it bad while his father and the late emperor still lived.

And don't get me started on the whole Prince Ding turns grey over night but that is somehow so bad for his wife that she had nothing better to do than dyeing his hair at the evening before his departure black again and then it keeps being black. My theory is that his soldier look was not to be damashed but still. It was plain ridiculous.

Costumewise I really cherished the robes from the male Canbei people. They looked great and way more beautifull than the gowns of the males from Great Chu.

And Cheng Leis' acting was also great again.