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| The Imperial Coroner 2 Starts Strong Yet Sparks Debate Among Chinese Viewers (Photo: Tencent Video) |
Five years after quietly becoming one of the most talked-about sleeper hits in historical C-drama circles, The Imperial Coroner Season 2 (御赐小仵作2) has officially returned. With the original cast reunited and a visibly upgraded production scale, the sequel arrives carrying both nostalgia and expectation. However, while early performance data looks steady, audience reactions across Chinese social platforms suggest that not everyone is fully convinced yet.
The new season opens on a darker, more layered note, beginning with a string of mysterious deaths that immediately set the tone for a broader and more ambitious narrative. Fragmented crime scenes, unfamiliar figures, and clues that refuse to line up neatly hint at a long-term conspiracy rather than a simple case-of-the-week structure.
The sudden appearance of an external power known as Nan Zhao shifts the story away from pure investigation and into a chessboard of political manoeuvring, turning each case into part of a much larger game.
From a numbers perspective, the launch can be described as solid rather than explosive. Within the first 20 minutes of airing, the drama’s internal popularity index on Tencent reportedly crossed 22,000.
Around 1.87 million viewers joined real-time “homecoming banquet” comment interactions, while Yunhe data estimates first-day views at roughly 4 million. These figures may not place the drama among the top performers of the season, but for a mid-scale sequel, they align with industry expectations.
The opening case, titled The Floating Skull at the Palace Banquet, brings the familiar “Three Judicial Offices” team back into action. Xiao Jinyu remains the strategic anchor, calmly reconstructing motives and timelines.
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Chu Chu continues to shine through forensic observation and skeletal analysis, while Jing Yi and Leng Yue handle evidence collection and field danger with efficiency. Many viewers agree that the team’s chemistry remains the strongest asset of the series, now layered with more mature character dynamics shaped by time and experience.
Production upgrades are also impossible to miss. Reports suggest the cost per episode has tripled compared to the first season, with over 80 percent of scenes filmed on real locations.
Costumes, props, and set details aim to reflect Tang Dynasty systems more precisely, giving the sequel a more polished and cinematic look. Still, higher investment has also raised audience expectations, and that’s where opinions begin to split.
Among fans and netizens, reactions fall into clear camps. Supporters praise the calmer pacing and broader world-building, arguing that the story is playing a long game rather than chasing instant thrills.
They also appreciate seeing Chu Chu and Xiao Jinyu’s married life portrayed with warmth and realism, viewing it as natural character progression. On the other hand, critics feel the first case unfolds too slowly, with less tension than the tightly structured mysteries that defined the original.
Some also argue that the increased focus on domestic moments distracts from the investigative core that made the first season stand out.
Back in 2021, The Imperial Coroner surprised audiences by proving that a low-budget drama could compete with major productions through sharp writing and well-balanced characters.
Now, with a bigger budget and a familiar cast, The Imperial Coroner 2 stands at a crossroads. Whether it can recreate the original’s reputation or establish a new identity of its own remains an open question.
What do you think so far? Are you enjoying the slower build and expanded politics, or do you miss the tighter cases of the first season?