One great thing about this drama is the fact that most of the characters are brilliantly smart. Even the female characters are smart too. (I die hard for smart character). The villain as well, you can even relate and took pity on them. It's not like the villain are born to be a villain. But sometimes circumstances made them do what they do. In the end, this drama has become one of my most fav drama ever.
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Perfectly watchable as a standalone series with great casting and story.
Just finished it today and although it feel slow some time in the second halft, the overall story and plot feel interesting enough with good acting of both the old actors and the young ones especially Liuhaoran.'s. There's a balance of palace drama, wonderful fighting scenes and some grand war act here and there. The old emperor and his brother relationship make up for a very strong first half while the young actors took of the second half pretty well.Story:
Less intrict then the first one but well developed and not feel rushed anymore.
Acting:
There is Huangxiaoming being Huangxiaoming most of the time but thankfully other actors doing really good though some of the female cast pretty much being one dimensioned.
Also fighting scenes is really good.
Music:
Nothing memorable but it feel soothing and just aligned with scenes.
Costume and Setting:
One of the most important thing of chinese palace drama is of course the costume and setting and everything look perfect here. It definitely showing the budget you can't find in 99% of the palace drama out there.
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This review may contain spoilers
I think it was most beautiful visually than NIF1, the only thing I didn't like it was Ping Zing romance. My god the girl cried,crier and hit up pans. Nothing elseI don't believe women from families could walk "looking for herbs" without being raped.
I would delete the whole romance of the show if I could.
My favourite scene was when the father died. The shaking of his clothes calling him back. I cried.
I cried when First or Senior brother died.
I was in love with the First Prince. He was truly a prince....
Between the father and him I can't pick the best person in the show.
Great acting... After you take away the crying nun.
I don't believe the ending. He won't be happy being a hippy
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This review may contain spoilers
It's not as good as the first season but it's not bad either
I've watched this drama just after finishing the first season that made me obsessed over the story and the characters ,,, I just watched it because my friends said it's good and has family bonding story the kind I like mostThe Chang Ling family are amazing all of them I felt their pain ,,, their love for each other ,, their love for their country ,, they are the best all of them ,, I cried a lot in this season I loved their story so much but
As a lot of reviews stated this drama is split in half to two stories ... they aren't really attached to each other as they killed off the main character then his father then the first main lead went into sanctuary grieving without being part of the second story most of the time
I didn't like the second story at all ,, it seemed forced and slow paced ,, i felt bored mostly in the second half but it picked up the pace in the finale episodes again when the main lead returned to save the young king
this drama is worth watching but don't expect much from it ,, it's not even remotely as good as the first season
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Even though it's related to the 1st installment but it surely delivers a consistent story line and beautiful characters with a nod here and there to the old characters and how they're all connected together. I loved how a young capricious man turned great leader the strict father who in fact loves his sons unconditionally even though one of them isn't of his flesh and blood. The brotherly love the wife and husband completing each other nicely strong female characters to some extent also how each villain wasn't totally black and white classically evil because they're just evil but because of their humanity they're weaknesses. Except some hiccups it's a really highly acclaimed and recommended drama it's smart, witty and will certainly engage you in its lush lore.
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Just love it! Good story line, great acting, twisted plot - love it!
Don't compare it to Nirvana in fire 1. It is a different story with loose references. It is a great drama. I already watch it more than 5 times and still enjoy it. The story is not boring. There are great actors and their acting are great. I love the love and bonding between the two brothers - Ping chang and Ping Jing. There is subtle romance, loyalty, friendship and political intrigue and ambition. I come to watch it every now and again. This is one of a few Chinese drama that I really love. I like this version more than the first one.Was this review helpful to you?
Beautiful and Encouraging Drama!
Equally great and engaging to the original Nirvana in Fire, but this sequel I actually liked it more than the original. This focuses on Family and how your elder generations actions and decisions influence current generations. I am more invested on this because it’s comforting and more personal.All the actors did a great job portraying their characters but I just have to make a special mention of Liu Hao Ran. A phenomenal actor in the making! He was only 19 or 20 when he did this drama and he was able to portray a very convincing multiple stages of emotions and character development.
I highly recommend this drama!
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Is this supporting democratic govt ??
The message was v clr but given in a wrong wayShould king be selescted as per his ability or just cause he is son of the king
Ny way story is about the Xiao family father an dhis two son , they r loyal to the kingdom , brave strategic but in palace teher are peole who are jelaous and scared and they think that this family can revolt and take the kingdom so tehy plot against them all the time
Story till episodes 36 is awesome acting of Huang xing and Turbo liu is awesome they both made me cry so much
But my hert was taken by father Sun Chen such a great actor , his acting his body language will make u believe in him
there are v few female character but three main females are strong independent Meng xiao is beautiful and act well her charcter is well written but director didnt use her after he husband died she was just left to be on her own
I read lots of criticism about Lin xi but I liked her character she is different she is not in sword fight she is a dedicated healer and she is strong she doesnt want to change for any one as her passion is to heal people actress was v beautiful and one regret she got v less screen time with the main lead they did had chemistry and when they r talking to each other u can see the trust and love for each otehr
third female is the empress I know she is the negative character but her acting is good she over power every scenes she is in , she is helpless mother she was always scared for her son's life and she does all these foolish thing for her
but the only disappointment was Yuan qi actor was good but his character was given too much of screen time which was not needed we wanted to see Turbo but what i see his story if that would have cut down the series would have got 9.5 from me. specially even in the last scene director gave him more dialogues to explain why he did what he did. It was not shown that he knew his mother was killed by the same person whom he takes as master and learn all tricks so that scene at the end is really doesnt explain his character as he said he knew it .
ny watch it , its really good it kept me hook for three dyas I binged watched will look forward to this director and Turbo drama
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Messy and underwhelming
The writers had no idea how to start or end the story or any of the different arcs throughout the series. What this show provides are some good acting from the main characters aside from the female lead, sometimes poignant quotable dialogue and a piece of story after its predecessor if you really, really want more of that world.Most of the show is really boring, slow dialogue from the heroes to the villains. The villains aren't intriguing and the protagonists are wholesome but don't have plot to shine. They are always betrayed by poor writing.
The worst offense however is the female lead's acting. Her acting can be compared to a very bad robot. Hope she has improved on her works that followed this one.
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This series doesn't go down as easy as the first (for me).
The first season was more entertaining [Fei Liu!]. It had many scenes with levity. It was also loaded with bonds of friendship and loyalty. And the star was the center of the plot -- he drove it and circumvented all the subplots.I tried hard not to compare. But midway through episode 15, I needed to go back to the first season to refresh my memory of the lineage. Too funny, I re-binged the entire series. That's how much I enjoyed it.
In season two, after a year and a half, I just reached episode 22 and realized several of the reasons I don't like it as much. #1. No Fei Liu! And it's all drab and misery. Exception: Brief scenes with PingJing and The Crown Prince (3?). The stars, the heroes, are kind of passive. Plus they're the victims just reacting to things happening to them and around them. Yet the bad people in this season aren't greedy and have no real aim; they're just out for revenge for sick twisted reasons. I suppose the following could be considered spoilers:
• "I was married to the wrong man and the emperor didn't favor me, I'll kill all of the royal family"!
• "My mother was a murderer. Because she killed herself, I must avenge her"!
• "My city was plagued and quarantined. I'll kill the whole country slowly and painfully'!
• "The emperor doesn't give the 12 year old crown prince any meaningful duties. He delegates them to his brother's family. I must kill them all to protect my son"!
Until I find something I enjoy more,... LOL
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Living up to the expectations set by a highly sucessful first series is a big challenge. This sequel did well. However, I am still emotionally attached to the first series. But by itself, this sequel deserves all the thumbs up. The writer did very well with stirring up emotions in both series. Her literary poetic style is very appealing.
However to nitpick: imaginative medical and toxicological conditions take the shine away and made the script sound like children fairy tale - need something more realistic for future stories. Generally I do not like the old school Chinese music style of loud coarse and harsh tone - the second ending theme song would be perfect if that part can be smoothened over. Also the dances look awkward, not sure how much really reflect the style of that age.
The romance between Lin Xi and Pingjing paled in comparison to the tragic setting of Lin Shu and Nihuang, and the strong emotional display by Hu Ge and Liu Tao. But the happy ending is great.
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