The story is about a long war between two kingdoms, the South and the North, and how it destroys two men who love each other. Xiao Shu He is the Sixth Prince of the South. He is kind, smart, and gentle, and he never wanted power. He dreams of a free life where he can travel, make music, and create art. Duan Ziang comes from the North. He is clever but cold, driven by anger and revenge. When they meet again as adults, Duan Ziang pretends to protect Shu He so he can get close enough to kill the South’s Crown Prince. As they spend more time together, their friendship turns into real love. Shu He wants peace and freedom, while Duan Ziang wants to stay by his side no matter the cost. Their relationship breaks when Duan Ziang kills the Crown Prince to save Shu He. Even though he does it out of love, Shu He cannot accept the betrayal or forgive the death of his brother. Five years later, Duan Ziang becomes emperor after conquering many kingdoms. He fights these wars only to be with Shu He. He rules through fear and violence, while Shu He believes in kindness and mercy. When the North defeats the South, Shu He is captured and kept as Duan Ziang’s prisoner. Duan Ziang never stops loving Shu He and rebuilds the home they once shared, holding onto their past. Shu He still loves him but cannot forgive what he has done. Now standing on opposite sides of the war, they are trapped by duty, guilt, and love. Their story is a tragic one: they are tied together by fate, but in this life, they can never truly be happy.
The characterization and grown of them some of the characters in ‘Kill to Love’ were uneven. Zi Ang remains relatively straightforward in his arc, while Shu He is far more complex, confusing, and often frustrating. One minute they are fighting and scheming and the very next minute there are tender moments. The first half of the show focuses on the budding romance between the main characters and the second half plunges you into heartbreak.I tell you I was so confused. And then I guess because the introduction itself put me off, however hard I tried to get into the show, I just wasn't able to connect. Except visuals of a period drama and memories of some other shows I have seen, overall this just di don't work for me. I wonder if I am the only one. The show is in Chinese but distributed via Singapore (I guess to dodge censorship in China, which we have seen happen plenty of times by now). The leads are good looking , seemed to have good chemistry but in shows like these I always feel they cram up too much stuff in a single episode and my short attention span personally cannot handle that. My ratings for this series is going to be low, but please make your own judgement because this show is unanimously being praised online. (2/10)
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