Finally got around to reading this mecha battle futuristic Sci-Fi piece rooted in Chinese history. The mechas are piloted by a man, with a concubine whose life force is essentially used as a battery. The women, sold by their families to the military, don’t survive long. Wu Zetian volunteers to serve as a concubine to the pilot who killed her sister, intending to murder him in bed before the fight. But when she is drawn into battle early, she turns the tables on him in a more unexpected way.

I’m not usually a fan of the mecha thing, but this takes an interesting line on it. The feminist line of the story is cathartic but doesn’t say anything particularly new - it feels a bit entry-level. Yet the positive poly relationship is very welcome and it is quite enjoyable despite some pacing issues in the second half and an ending that didn't seem very satisfying. It also seems to open and then miss opportunities to approach the topic of race amongst these celebs. However, my critiques are probably coloured by it being overhyped a fair bit so my expectations were unfairly high.

But if you want to scream at the top of your lungs at systemic misogyny and see sexists squashed beneath Wu’s rage, this definitely scratches that itch.