According to Sina, the drama Rebirth (often referred to as Princess Agents 2) has wrapped up its 40-episode run, but instead of praise, it left viewers furious over its extremely poor finale. As a result, its Douban rating dropped from 3.2 to 3.0, making it the lowest-rated drama in the past two years and reflecting widespread audience disappointment.

Beyond its ratings, the drama also recorded dismal achievements. It reportedly ran all 40 episodes without any advertisements, while the cast faced constant criticism for weak performances. The storyline drew controversy for deviating heavily from the original novel, with characters being poorly adapted and the overall quality falling far below that of the first installment.

Most notably, the ending of Rebirth triggered massive backlash on Weibo due to its confusing and inconsistent narrative choices.

The finale was rushed and presented in three different versions. In one version, nearly all characters die, leaving only Zhuge Yue (played by Li Yunrui) and Yan Xun (played by Zhang Kang Le). The female lead Chu Qiao (played by Huang Yang Tiantian) dies in Zhuge Yue’s arms, sparking outrage since she is the central character in the original novel.

In another version, the story shifts into a dreamlike timeline where Zhuge Yue and Chu Qiao live happily ever after with two children. However, viewers found this unconvincing, as Huang Yang Tiantian’s youthful appearance—she was only 17–18 during filming—made it hard to accept her portrayal as a mother of children who were already 7-8 years old.

The drama then takes yet another bizarre turn, showing Zhuge Yue and Yan Xun as elderly men with white hair, standing on a frozen lake in a scene many viewers described as “ghost-like.” Audiences criticized the poor aging makeup, noting that while older people typically have dull, time-worn eyes, the actors’ bright and sharp gazes made the prosthetics look fake and unconvincing.

Angry viewers flooded social media with harsh comments:

“The ending is as bad as the plot, and the plot is as bad as the acting. There’s nothing worth praising from start to finish.”
“What were the writers even doing? Were they paid to ruin beloved characters?”
“Even longtime fans like me are disappointed. The story and character development are a mess.”
“Everyone dies randomly like they ate hallucination mushrooms—it’s impossible to tell what’s real.”
“After this drama, Huang Yang Tiantian has become a target of criticism. Her youthful face doesn’t fit a general role, and her acting is questionable.”
“Li Yunrui should rethink his script choices—this role is damaging his image.”
“This drama successfully ruined its entire main cast.”
“I’ve never seen anything this bad in my life.”
“Even in 1,000 years, no one will make something this terrible again.”

With overwhelming criticism targeting everything from its script to performances, Rebirth has become a prime example of how high expectations can collapse into one of the most heavily criticized dramas in recent memory.

Sources: kenh14