Early Access: Love Like The Galaxy E1-2

E1-2. The reason that I've been wanting to check out this show, and soon, is because it feels like almost everyone has been raving about this, lately.

When Show had first premiered, there had been some rumblings of dissatisfaction, along the lines of Wu Lei being too skinny, and Zhao Lu Si not having good enough diction for a period drama.

Since then, though, all the rumblings and grumblings have turned into murmurs of satisfaction and praise, which, YAY.

I've heard that Wu Lei's character in this is wonderfully written and delivered, and I've seen some of the swoony scenes, and heard the squees.

So that's definitely one of my reasons for checking this out; I certainly don't want to miss watching Wu Lei being a swoony, smoldery male lead.

On top of that, I've also heard that Zhao Lu Si's character is likable, which is always a plus. I mostly do need to like my characters, in order to want to watch them.

Additionally, I've heard people compare this show to The Story Of Minglan, for the family drama part of the story. And since I did enjoy The Story Of Minglan quite nicely, I count that a plus as well.

So far, two episodes in, it's still early days yet, to say definitively that this is excellent and that I love it.

But, I will say that I like what I see, so far.

First of all, right away, I like the production values, and the sense of space and scale. It definitely doesn't feel like we're on some dinky production set.

Everything looks real, and it feels like there's an entire world in front of our characters. On top of that, the costuming looks believable and authentic to the times, ie, none of that modern nylon fabric that cheaper productions tend to favor.

In terms of characters, even though we only catch a few glimpses of Wu Lei's character Buyi so far, I like him.

He really does have a regal air about him, from the way he carries himself. And he's got a stoic, intense sort of vibe that befits a general of his stature. Like, I can believe that this man successfully led thousands of soldiers to victory in war.

On top of that, I like that he's smart, and quick on the uptake.

When Shaoshang (family pet name Niaoniao) gives him clues, this set of episodes, he's able to understand her hidden meaning, and act accordingly.

I was most impressed with how he deciphered her cryptic gift of a small bundle of straw, with a few scraps of fabric, to indicate that the fabric store was involved in her uncle's crime.

I'd had no idea what the gift had meant, but Buyi figures it out right away. I do like a smart leading man. And I also really like the idea that Buyi and Shaoshang are able to get on the same wavelength so naturally.

It's the flip side of the same coin, when Buyi pronounces a few barbed praises about Shaoshang to her father. Shaoshang is quick to decipher the potential underlying meaning of those words of praise, and gets peeved right away.

We don't see them really interact a great deal, in this initial set of episodes, but the way they are so swift to understand each other, bodes well for future communication, yes?

As for Shaoshang herself, I like that she's quick-witted and scrappy, because that makes her interesting to watch.

At the same time, I haven't made up my mind in terms of how right she is, in the various situations we see her in, this set of episodes.

While my sympathies are quick to go out to her, for being locked up in that house in the village and apparently starved to some degree, I don't discount the possibility that she really has been aggravating to her grandmother and aunt, with her less than traditional sensibilities and way of looking at the world.

The thing that really brings me to see things from this more balanced perspective, is how Show portrays Shaoshang's mother, Yuanyi.

For a start, I have to say that I really like Yuanyi, on sight.

I love that she's a woman of arms; isn't that just so badass?? Certainly, she's not the first female warrior that I've come across in a Chinese drama, but it's still pretty cool, that the Mom in this story, is a strong warrior type.

And, in line with that strong warrior characterization, I find it fascinating to watch Yuanyi make sense of the world around her, when she comes back to the family home after having spent 15 years away at war.

(On a side note, my subs keep saying 10 years, but the literal dialogue says "10 plus years" and since it is mentioned that they haven't seen Shaoshang for 15 years, I'm going with 15 years.)

The way Yuanyi is so quick to be quietly observant of her surroundings, without making an immediate judgment, makes me like her right away. I like how she basically spends time collecting data for her analyses, before arriving at a hypothesis or conclusion.

She strikes me as a wise woman already.

That said, I do think that she's a little impatient, when it comes to straightening out her daughter.

I get her sense of urgency, because in her estimation, with Shaoshang being of marriageable age, if she doesn't get Shaoshang sorted out in terms of her manners and discipline, it would be too late, once she is married, and then she would end up being a burden to her husband.

However, she really could use some of her husband's goodwill and patience, when it comes to dealing with Shaoshang.

They have been apart from their daughter for basically all of her life, so to come on strong on the discipline front, so soon after their long-awaited return, is surely not going to go down well.

But perhaps that's why Mom and Dad are such a good match? They do complement each other very well, from what we've seen so far.

And I do love the detail, that Dad isn't judgmental of Mom's past (that this is her second marriage), and he's unabashed about wanting her and no one else. Aw. That's really sweet.

On the family front, it does get a bit much this set of episodes, with Gran putting on a big ol' wailing show at the drop of a hat, but the silver lining is that Show treats it with a comic sort of touch, so we know that Show isn't taking it too seriously, and doesn't expect us to treat it too seriously either.

And, happily, by the end of episode 2, Gran seems to have come around to the error of her ways, and is tearfully repentant at how she hadn't realized how much her son has suffered, all these years, while out on the battlefield.

That's a good start, yes? I'm almost certain that Gran will find something else to wail about soon enough, but for now, I'm glad that this first bone of contention seems to have been sorted out.

What I'm curious to see more of, is how Buyi and Shaoshang are going to cross paths again (of course), since that's the Main Event of this show, based on the title and the trailer.

On top of that, I'd also like to see how this estrangement between her and her parents gets healed, with time and patience. That should be heartening to witness too, I'm sure.

All in all, this was a pretty solid pair of opening episodes, and I'm looking forward to more, mostly because I'm pretty sure that things are going to get even better, from here on out.

Next episode notes will be out on: Wednesday, 3 August 2022!

*This show will be covered on the Early Access (US$5) Tier*