Rebirth (2026) Flawed but Fascinating

Rebirth, the so-called much belated sequel to Princess Agents is best thought of as an alternate universe or fanfiction. Sequels, contrary to what production houses think, are a gamble. It helps with marketing but not much else especially if the quality or storyline doesn’t meet audience expectations. Considering how poorly this has been received, I should have given this a hard pass. Still curiosity got the better of me especially because Li Yunrui took on the challenge of playing the standoffish Zhuge Yue and of course I just had to have a look.

And in all honesty, I’m glad I did. Not because it is great television but because it gets some things right. And the things it gets right matter to me because not that many C dramas do them in such unrelenting force. Consider this muted praise coming from someone who followed Princess Agents religiously while it was airing and hated how it ended. The flaws are many here but Princess Agents had its own too. It may also be better if you’ve never seen Princess Agents or read the novel before taking the plunge.

Now that Chu Qiao is out of Yong and roaming the world out there she’s a persistent advocate for freedom and the abolition of slavery. She’s a very lonely voice in the wilderness of corruption and often feels out of place as she faces off monarchs, generals and chieftains. In these early days Huangyang Tiantian’s inexperience with stoicism shows. On some level I can see why she was picked — she bears a passing resemblance to Zhao Liying and has a dance background — but her age poses all kinds of problems for the production team. Further to that, I routinely wonder about the wisdom of giving such a demanding role to a young actress who has to romance a considerably older and more experienced actor. Li Yunrui carries a lot of the show on his capable shoulders and his Zhuge Yue is warmer than Lin Gengxin’s Yuwen Yue. It makes sense in that Zhuge Yue post-ice lake is a changed man. The weight of being the scion of the Zhuge family and the head of Qingshan Yuan is no longer foremost in his mind. He can let loose and spend those bitter winters in Ximeng snuggling up with his beloved Xing’er. Also now that he’s a had a near death experience and has come back from it, he’s made it his mission to protect his beloved Xing’er and help her build a brave new world she’s envisaging. Fortunately for everyone on the right side of history, he’s usually the smartest man in the room.

I’m not a fan of how characters are shot here. The way the director uses closeups is distracting in a way that wasn’t in The Double. At least I don’t really remember thinking about it once. Frontal half shots and closeups I suppose are meant to create that immersive experience of being in the moment. Instead one comes away feeling that a fourth wall has been broken.

So the leads are reborn. Chu Qiao may have escaped the horrors of Yong but there are more horrors to come. She goes to Yanbei with Yan Xun, her comrade-in-arm. He wants to make her his empress but even with a bout of temporary amnesia, she knows that something’s not right. She eventually escapes Yan Xun’s obsessive clutches and heads to Biantang with another admirer Li Ce, the crown prince with problems of his own.

Wherever she goes the former slave, garners attention. Her reputation precedes her. On the other hand her adventures into various territories provide insight into the geopolitics of that world. This is where my interest in the show is at its height. Every country featured — Yong, Yanbei, Biantang, Ximeng, Lingyue — is distinct geographically and culturally. In this regard the show does a decent job with the world building. The first stop, Yanbei, is home to inter-tribal politics. To consolidate his position, Yan Xun, the former hostage prince and only survivor among his illustrious father’s offspring, must gain the support of the various chiefs. They cast a leery eye at him and the former slave he’s brought back from Yong. Inevitably she becomes a point of contention despite his rigid stance on making her his empress It is up to his most loyal lieutenant to take matter into his own hands. Chu Qiao then hitches a ride with Li Ce who has his hands full once he’s back in the capital navigating a dissolute apparently indifferent emperor-father and a resentful empress -mother who is obviously plotting to seize power.

The political setting provides insight into the themes of the show. Despite the differences, each territory is beset by the same kind of corrupt degenerate leadership that cares little for its subjects. The usual kinds of power struggles and machinations run amok with no regard for those caught in the crossfire. Princess Chun’er who follows Chu Qiao also serves as a contrast to the show’s female lead. She personifies a kind of relentless evil born out of privilege, resentment and entitlement. Chun’er sees herself as a victim while leaving death and destruction in her wake. She blames Yan Xun and Chu Qiao for destroying her life. From a certain perspective, they could be said to be responsible for creating the monster but not everyone who has suffered betrayal or loss feels the need to see the world burn. What can be seen in Chun’er’s arc is a pattern of self-sabotage and never taking responsibility for her own terrible decisions. She’s not the only one. The empress of Biantang, Li Ce’s birth mother, is a similarly loathsome character who whines about what others have done to her. It’s laughable when people of status lay claim to victimhood with one side of their mouths and abuse their power without batting an eyelash.

Evil is pervasive in this climate. It often starts with greed and ambition. The abuse of power then becomes the breeding ground for lawlessness. Evil then spawns its offspring of enslavement and manipulation. If the law only applies to those who cannot fight back, then it’s the rule of might all the way.

Internal issues, whether man-made or natural, inevitably lead to resource and/or border disputes among the nations. It’s easier just to take than to buy or negotiate a deal. However it is also the case that Zhuge Yue and Chu Qiao cannot escape their respective pasts even if they try to create their own slave-free utopia. Soon Grandpa Zhuge comes knocking. Yong’s military might lays siege to their brave new world. Not a lot has changed. A web of competing motivations constantly leading to accommodation and recalibration — shifting alliances, table turning and all manner of backstabbing.

In this kind of world, a depowered, ordinary Chu Qiao shines brightly. She’s the much needed contrast to the entitled Chun’er, who born into privilege falls into deep despair in the face of betrayal. Chu Qiao, a slave for as long as she can remember — a fact that her opponents never fail to remind her — rises up as a champion for the oppressed and the vulnerable by putting her money where her mouth lies. Despite bearing witness to all the evil have done to the lowest of he low, her compassion never fails even for her enemies. She is the Christ-like saviour born out of suffering. She is loved by many and despite the odds, her determination to reshape her world never falters. Chu Qiao is the anomaly of that cruel world and the catalyst for change. Because power corrupts, whoever wields it will succumb to its charms. As long power animates everything, nothing changes. Only a contrary self-sacrificing compassion can make a genuine difference.

The ending though controversial is really quite straightforward. Utopia is achieved though not without bloodshed. Unfortunately the multiple time jumps don’t help with the tying up of loose ends and this recent preoccupation by C dramas to chuck in “what could have been” alternate endings continues to be mind-bogglingly jarring.

Trying to cram stuff into 40 episodes seems par for the course in most C dramas these days. More and more it seems like no one can tell a selectively focused balanced story with time limits. Sadly Rebirth falls prey to the sin of trying doing too much. Still, there’s a streak of ruthless political realism that a viewer like myself applauds and appreciates.

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