sbester
London, ON
Exactly what I was hoping for!
I'm a huge Tomb Raider fan. Yes, the Lara Croft one. I've been looking for a show that can capture the sense of awe and creepy atmosphere of the early games for quite some time, and this series actually fits the bill.
This review comes with a bit of a warning though, and that's that the first 4 episodes aren't very good. Something really cheesy happens at the beginning that just doesn't sit right, and it will likely turn a lot of "would be" viewers away. And that's a shame, because the series gets GREAT after this. The fantastical elements become a little more subtle, and the special effects are surprisingly good, so they accompany it very well.
I want to make special mention of the set pieces, which are all fantastic. A good tomb raiding adventure is only as good as its atmosphere, and the sets do not disappoint in accomplishing what is needed. I also appreciated that we get some major variety as well, from frozen caves to underground lost cities.
The plot moves along nicely throughout, we have interesting leads to follow, and as far as I can tell, the acting was at the very least serviceable. At only 21 episodes, as opposed to the much higher count Chinese dramas are known for, I felt this was a perfectly bingeable show and I ended up going through it fairly quickly. I was also left hungry for more, so I'm glad they're still making more of these.
Aside from the already mentioned major complaint, I only have a few small ones I ran into otherwise. The side characters were much less interesting overall, for one thing. And another, I did feel that Fatty's antics become a little too predictable and ridiculous as the story progresses. I can't think of anything else that really bothered me, aside from the animal cruelty issue (you'll see it talked about in other comments and reviews here). The CGI was good enough that they didn't have to resort to that, in my opinion, and it was disturbing to see.
All in all, I'm hooked and ready for more very soon!
This review comes with a bit of a warning though, and that's that the first 4 episodes aren't very good. Something really cheesy happens at the beginning that just doesn't sit right, and it will likely turn a lot of "would be" viewers away. And that's a shame, because the series gets GREAT after this. The fantastical elements become a little more subtle, and the special effects are surprisingly good, so they accompany it very well.
I want to make special mention of the set pieces, which are all fantastic. A good tomb raiding adventure is only as good as its atmosphere, and the sets do not disappoint in accomplishing what is needed. I also appreciated that we get some major variety as well, from frozen caves to underground lost cities.
The plot moves along nicely throughout, we have interesting leads to follow, and as far as I can tell, the acting was at the very least serviceable. At only 21 episodes, as opposed to the much higher count Chinese dramas are known for, I felt this was a perfectly bingeable show and I ended up going through it fairly quickly. I was also left hungry for more, so I'm glad they're still making more of these.
Aside from the already mentioned major complaint, I only have a few small ones I ran into otherwise. The side characters were much less interesting overall, for one thing. And another, I did feel that Fatty's antics become a little too predictable and ridiculous as the story progresses. I can't think of anything else that really bothered me, aside from the animal cruelty issue (you'll see it talked about in other comments and reviews here). The CGI was good enough that they didn't have to resort to that, in my opinion, and it was disturbing to see.
All in all, I'm hooked and ready for more very soon!
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