TV Show Review: Why Romantic Fantasy Readers will be Obsessed with ‘The Double’, the CDrama With a Male Lead Who Will Rival All Your Book Boyfriends
image courtesy of Netflix
I could just say, The Double will put you into that can’t eat, can’t sleep, can’t stop watching, can’t stop thinking about these characters mode. But there’s so much more to this 40 episode Chinese Drama on Netflix. I’m new to the world of Cdramas and Kdramas, but I’m rapidly becoming addicted. And if you’re an avid Romantasy reader, you will be too. If you’re a romantic fantasy reader who loved and devoured book series like Throne of Glass, Divine Rivals, Mistborn (yes, this does have a romantic subplot), let me introduce you to your new obsession: The Double. We’ll call it book adjacent, as I did find out it’s an adaptation of a web novel, which is still being translated into English (you can bet I will be reading it!). If you’ve ever wanted to feel like you’re stepping into the pages of your favorite historical fiction novel, with enemies-to-lovers tension, palace intrigue, secret identities, and the slowest, I mean slowest of slow-burn romances that will have you kicking your feet at 3am, The Double is for you. It truly is the perfect binge-worthy drama you didn’t know you needed, and I can’t stop thinking about it. I had to start another CDrama just to get it out of my head, and I’m coming to understand these show just cause major emotional damage. Now a couple things: This is a super clean show—there’s no spice, but SO much great banter, tension, and yearning. I’ll keep any spoilers to a minimum below, but you MUST watch the 40.5 episode after you finish the show. It’s a super short special episode they filmed that’s not on Netflix. I had to hunt for it, and trust me, you will be feral if you don’t watch it. You can find it here after you finish the main series.
Maybe I’ve already convinced you, but if you need more convincing, wait until you meet the new LOML that is seriously going to rival all your book boyfriends. Bold claim, I know. Let’s get into it…
Things to Know:
Chinese Historical Fiction
Revenge plots (yes, multiple!)
Political Intrigue
Evil Stepmother
Touch her and die
Romantic subplot
Amazing Costuming
Slowburn
Trigger: violence and gore
What Is The Double About?
At its heart, The Double is a story of identity, betrayal, and love against the backdrop of political intrigue, scheming palace officials, and siblings vying for the throne in ancient China. Our main character, Xue Fang Fei lives a beautiful life as the wife of an official, and she loves her husband. But she’s framed as having an affair, and ends up being buried alive with no understanding of why this has happened to her. She survives, and vows revenge on everyone responsible. She takes on a new identity inside the imperial city, and becomes entangled in dangerous secrets, rivalries, and unexpected alliances. Enter Duke Su—the Emperor’s bestie, an intelligent, sharp-tongued strategist and investigator whose every glance carries weight and whose banter with the FMC sparks immediate tension. Oh, and did I mention his preferred weapon of choice is a metal fan?! He’s grumpy, sometimes emotionless, and plans to use the FMC as a pawn for his plans to root out corruption in the capitol. Then there’s the family dynamics within the new identity she’s taken on, and wow the evil Stepmother has some competition.
Think of it as a mash-up between:
The palace politics of books like Crown of Midnight and The Hero of Ages
The hidden-identity twists of The Shadows Between Us and Red Rising
The swoony slow-burn romance of Daughter of No Worlds and Divine Rivals
Oh, and how rude of my not to introduce you to your new favorite fictional love interest:
images courtesy of The Double on Netflix
Some men say, “I love you.” But would they trade an entire army to his enemies for you? *Sigh
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention that the side characters are some of my favorites. They provided so much comic relief, but were also serious when needed. Duke Su’s two personal guards were especially my favorite.
Why Romantasy Readers Will Love this Show
1. Enemies-to-Lovers Energy
That delicious dynamic we romantasy readers can’t get enough of? The Double delivers it in spades. The amount of clever verbal sparring, the mistrust that slowly melts into understanding, and the stolen moments of vulnerability and developing trust play out exactly like a romantasy novel.
2. A Strong, Clever Heroine
Don’t we all adore a heroine who’s more than just a pretty face? Xue Fang Fei is cunning, brave, and resourceful. She wants her revenge, but she also wants to help the people. And it’s so satisfying to see her outsmarting her rivals while protecting her secret. And yes, Duke Su comes to the rescue quite a bit, but it’s not because she’s weak.
3. Court Intrigue and High Stakes
The palace setting is dripping with tension: whispered alliances, betrayals galore, and characters whose motives are never what they seem. The villains in this show are truly loathsome, but also complex. We find out a lot more of their motivations towards the end, and I have to say, I did feel sorry for some of them. And the stakes could not be higher. If you love the high-stakes drama of royal courts in fantasy books, this show will be your catnip.
4. Cinematic Romance
From lingering glances across a crowded courtyard to heated confrontations that end with hearts racing, to humorous moments, The Double nails the slow-burn Romance vibe. You love the hand flex in Pride and Prejudice? Just wait…there’s about a million of those kinds of moments in this series. “Who did this to you?” moments. Yep. I’ll burn the world down for you? That too.
How to Watch
The Double is currently streaming now on Netflix. With 40 episodes, it’s the perfect series to binge—or savor slowly, like you would a new fantasy release. And don’t forget the extra episode after you finish.
Where to Find the Novel
Now, this I had to hunt around for. The Double is based on the Chinese book, Marriage of Di Daughter by Qian Shan Cha Ke, and it doesn’t seem like it’s been officially translated into English yet? I could be wrong. There seems to be an English version on Web Novel here that has good reviews for the translation, but I’m not sure how legit it is. Can anyone else confirm?
Now if I had to nitpick, there are some things I would have changed:
I’m just going to pretend the last 10 minutes of this series never happened. Don’t try to be artsy, just give the people what they want! I don’t want to give any spoilers, but I’ll just say I’m not ok, I’ll never recover, and thank God they filmed that special 40.5 episode. Also, I only noticed this because I did start rewatching episode 1 again, and Xue Fang Fei is wearing the same outfit in the opening sequence as she’s wearing in the final scene of the series. Again, I’m not ok.
Her ‘fake’ father drove me nuts with how dumb he was sometimes, and I just wanted to shake him. I also feel like the stepmother got off a bit easy IMO.
I LOVED the slowburn romance. However, I could have had a couple more kisses thrown in…I mean, there were so many times, where I just yelling at the screen, “Just kiss her, you fool!” We’re talking 30 episodes in before your patience will be rewarded. But it was worth it.
The final episode felt rushed. I wish they would have done a few less cinematic music sequences, which were quite abundant and artsy, and instead use that run time to tell more of the story and wrap up a few more characters. We really just needed one more episode.
Overall though, The Double is going to be a story and series that stays with me for a long, long time. I’m so tempted to rewatch it immediately, because the ‘story hangover’ from this one is brutal. It completely satisfies that craving of romance, danger,
Let me know if you end up watching it and if you have any amazing CDramas you’d recommend I watch next, drop them in the comments!
Favorite Quotes:
“She’s just a pawn. Why are you getting so concerned?”
“She stopped being a pawn a long time ago.”
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“I don’t do romance.”
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“Look grandson, I’ve brought your wife!”
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