Scent of Time (2023) - Final Review
Final review/rating: Scent of Time (2023) - A suspense-laden reverie on regret, redress, and redemption
This is 8.5/10 stars ✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮ from Pandafan🐼
Overall rating: 8.5 Stars Plot: 8 Stars Acting/cast: 8 Stars Couple chemistry: 7 stars Music: 7 Stars Re-watch value: 8 Stars Enjoyment factor: 8.5 Stars |
Scent of Time (2023) poses the tantalising question of what, if anything, one can do to redress past wrongs and to change fate if given a second chance. I didn't realise it at first, but the twist in the tale is obliquely hinted at in the Chinese title of the drama, 《爲有暗香來》/Because of the Subtle Fragrance, which is derived from a poem by Song Dynasty poet and statesman Wang An Shi王安石. Elsewhere, the twist is also foreshadowed throughout the drama, which makes it difficult to miss.
Despite this, the way the drama unfolds skilfully dials up the suspense - it is almost impossible not to root for Zhou Ye's Hua Qian in her high stakes quest to atone for and rewrite the past. The hook is in what choices she makes, what actions she takes, and the unintended fallout of those decisions.
Viewers who are watching this drama for the romance may well be disappointed - it is protagonist rather than romance focused. Three potential love interests are presented, but Scent of Time (2023) is one of the rare dramas in which I truly did not care who, if anyone, the endgame would be. I just wanted Hua Qian to be living her best life. Although some of the scriptwriting in the later episodes was noticeably weaker, I stayed until the very end to find out how Hua Qian's story would conclude...
SPOILERS AHEADS
