YMMV / The Legend of Zhen Huan

• Alas, Poor Villain:
  • Consort Hua upon learning how much the Emperor has hurt her commits suicide out of grief, even Zhen Huan who arranged her death feels pity for her.
  • Even the Empress evokes pity in her last scene with the Emperor,
  • The Emperor himself, he dies hearing Zhen Huan's hateful words and knowing he is completely alone
• Alternative Character Interpretation: Given the setting of deception and secrecy this is inevitable. The titular character for one, does she fall completely out of love with the Emperor or does she still have some feelings for him despite Him forcing her to kill Duke Guo who she loved and finding out he only chose her because of her resemblance to the late Empress Chunyuan? Her tears after his death suggest she didn't hate him entirely despite claiming to do so.
• Germans Love David Hasselhoff: The series was especially popular in Japan thanks to a subtitled version broadcast during afternoons, setting viewing records for foreign drama, and led to more imports of more Chinese shows such as Nirvana in Fire.
• Tear Jerker: Due to the depth and development of the characters it's difficult not to feel sympathy for them when they suffer, yes even the villainous ones. The death of Consort Hua is especially sad when she realises how deeply the Emperor deceived her and kills herself out of grief.
  • The death of Shen Meizhuang. Seeing Zhen Huan's reaction from shock, to sobbing is heartbreaking
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Empresses in the Palace, the Compressed Adaptation by Netflix, was not well received by fans due to its cuts and changes.
• The Woobie: As she spends more time in the palace, Shen Meizhuang becomes this and before she becomes pregnant becomes an alcoholic.

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