Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre (2019)

The ending was okay but I wish Zhang Wuji married Zhou Zhi Ruo instead of the Mongolian princess Zhao Min. All in all, it was a pretty good tv show. Seems like there will be a follow up cause the ending seems they will talk about the Ming jiao. I hope they make another one to follow it up cause it was a really good show! :P i will be watching the new remake of the return of the condor heroes when it comes out. .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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The ups and downs of life

Cast:
The child actors that play Wuji in this series are talented and very cute. They executed their role like a boss! Love it!
The child actress also did a good job with their characters.

Joseph Zeng plays Zhang Wuji and he does an awesome job!

Yukee Chen Plays Zhao Min and she handles the character with style and confidence.
The other actors and actress do a good job with portraying their character.

Story:
The story is very twisted in that fate will take you where you need to go regardless of where you want to go. A few real life themes are illustrated in this series: a person will not reach or achieve unless it is meant for you and when it is meant for you; people will always try to judge and deceive you to achieve their gains or to make themselves look better or both. And mistakes matter because the cost a great deal!

We see how each character’s mistake is a domino effect that happens in the series. The journey shows how wuji’s grandfather was envied and betrayed brutally by his teacher. And he, committed so many sins in the name of taking revenge on his teacher and failed to think of future consequences. His actions cost Wuji’s parents their lives, they gave their life up to protect Wuji’s grandfather’s location. Many sects wanted to take revenge on him for the brutal killings he committed. We also get to see how loving and caring he is to Wuji and his parents. And we also get to see his atonement for the sins that he committed.

Going further on this journey we see how Zhao Min’s entitlement attitude and deceptive behavior costs her to be misunderstood and hated by the sects. She invites Wuji and his friends to lunch and then she poisons them. She then kidnapped and physically abuse the sect members using Wuji’s Sect name. These deceptive actions along with other deceptive behaviors leads Wuji’s sect and other sect members to hate her and want to kill her. We also get to see the enlightened side of Zhao Min. She falls in love with Wuji and him with her. She stands up against her family for Wuji and she travels many different places with Wuji and we learn that she knows him better than anyone else.

In contrast, along this journey we see how Wuji’s childhood friend and love, Zhou Zhi Ruo, seems quiet and obedient and sweet in the beginning. She pretends to be Wuji’s friend yet stabs him in a fight that wounds him, and he got hurt because he does not fight back. Wuji continues to blindly love and forgive her. She later kills his cousin and attempt to drown Zhao Min. She also manages to convince Wuji’s grandfather and Wuji that Zhao Min is the one that killed his cousin. We later see how she practices black magic and yet, she continues to play somewhat helpless. Until their wedding day, when Zhao Min barges in and asks Wuji to full fill one of the two remaining wishes he gave her. Zhou’s claws and literally her poisonous claws come out and she injures Zhao Min and Wuji. And Wuji forgives her yet again. We later see how she confronts him at the challenge and Wuji lets her win. She later goes back to being good.

Wuji’s Cousin fell truly madly in love with him upon their first encounter at a tender age. Wuji was in Butterfly Valley trying to cure his cold illness he got from his kidnapper. Wuji practice medicine with the doctor their and help the doctor and his wife escape Granny. She wanted to take Wuji with her and Granny, but Wuji did not want to go with her and bit her want. Not knowing that the boy was her cousin and not knowing whether he survived his cold illness, she wondered aimlessly looking for Wuji, the man of her heart. Fate brought them together, only to tear them apart. She did not die and was able to dig herself out of the grave but was not mentally okay. Wuji got to know that she was his cousin.

Wuji is smart, kind, and easy going. Wuji was educated by his parents and grandfather and they each taught his martials arts and he himself learned various styles. Wuji managed to handle many complicated situations from a young age and he did a magnificent job. His easy-going nature made way for people in his own sect to act according to their own accord. They did not always respect his wishes and Zhao Min warned him of this. He eventually learns all of this the hard way and he restores justice and goes with his lady love, Zhao Min.

Unfortunately, the story bumps when one of the Wudang Brothers marries his dead lovers’ daughter from another man. It also slides downward because of Wuji’s constant forgiveness, lending a blind eye to Zhou constant deceptions. To drag the story further down is Wuji’s state of depression when he hears that Zhao Min was murdered by her father. This occurred during the time that they were at war and many of the Ming soldiers die due to Wuji not showing up. Although Wuji’s cousin got her memory back, she did not let anyone know, except Zhao Min by accident.

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Ok...

Heaven Sword Dragon Sabre is an all time classic. Before the start of rise of Asian drama, this story was one of the most classics along with may of Jin Yong's work especially during the time when Hong Kong was the top dog of the asian entertainment industry during the 80s-90s. Who has never heard of Heaven sword and Dragon sabre? Like many of the classics, this story is one where it has been adapted many many times before and it stands just. The intricate story, world building and complex relationships has made this one of the most classic tales to come out of modern Asian literature. Heaven Sword Dragon Sabre is the third installment of the late Jin Yong's Condor Triology. Although it is a triology, each story can entirely be a stand alone and one does not need to necessarily understand what happens in each story to understand this drama. With that said, although this live action did take creative action to change some minor details or add some minor plots, I would say it did a good job of trying to stay true to the story.
I would say in this live action adaption, for casting, I think they did a good job. The leads were all refreshing new faces who brought something new to the classic characters they played. Yuki Chen who played Zhao min I would say was one who surprised me the most. Her interpretation of Zhao min( although I would say isnt the best) was very good. The charisma she brought with the character made her outshine most of her new cast memebers. The only thing i did not like for her was that she became really whiny at the ends and was always " wuji" this and " Wuji" that and it was totally kind of out of character for Zhao Min. Like she became such a suck up to Wuji that it was just kinda stupid Also something I did not like was that I felt no chemistry between the leads. They did not write enough in to the script to help flesh the relationships out more so that they were better define. At least Wuji and ZHao min relationship should have had more of a spark. This is literally why they were an intriguing couple. There was a spark there that wasn't there with other other 3 girls in Wuji life. The actors and the script apparently did not deliver( cause-plus that kiss scene was atrocious).
THe choreography was crap. Sorry to say, but this is wuxia. Although I love the aesthetics and costumes, I felt like the fight scenes were boring and seriously, the slow mo were not needed at all. This was the thing I most hated in this series. The fights were stiff with horrible sound editing and it totally takes you out of the story when you can tell none of theses "Martial Artist" can fight. There were some action scenes where it did look good but then again I think it was the slow mo that ruined it.
Finally The ending felt rushed and made no fucking sense. I like how they went with the " lets tear the lovers apart" as this was an aspect that they never really wanted to explore in the other adaptions but like they did such a poor job. All characters felt out of character and suddenly I felt like a toddler took over the script. Even though the ending in the original novel was a little ambiguous, The ending of this particular adaption is one where I think it definitely was a fanfic. Although I did enjoy the little ending in the Mongolian planes, that slightly made up for the bad conclusion. Like they totally skipped out the final scene where Zhirou kidnaps Zhao Min and makes Wuji really confront his feelings. Like shit that was a pivotal plot point, how the heck are you just gonna glaze over it.

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One of my favorites

I enjoyed this drama very much though I thought the 1st eposide had bad cinematography and wondered if this was just a heavy Wuxia story as I had never read any of the author’s novels nor seen any of the prequels or older regions of this drama. Once I got through the first episode, which actually sets the stage for the rest of the story, I was hooked. This drama has Wuxia, romance, intrigue, politics, and fantasy. It helps to know that the drama took place at the end of the Yuan dynasty.

Spoiler:
I was particularly excited when Yukee Chen, as Zhao Min, literally bust onto the scene wearing red. Wow. She appears only in the middle but what a strong female character with good fighting skills, ruthless with her enemies but kind to the down trodden and willing to sacrifice for love. Yukee has grown much as an actress since Princess Weiyoung. Joseph Zheng is so handsome. He did a great job as the lead but I though his character was too kind and compassionate to the point of waffling and indecisiveness but I guess that’s how his character was written.

There are a couple of songs in the drama that I liked - beautiful with a touch of melancholy . I liked the drama so much I decided to watch older versions because some reviewers said they were good but the cinematography of the two I tried watching was so bad I dropped them. Yes, the CGI here could be better but overall, it’s not bad at all compared to poor cinematography and poor acting.

I will rewatch after a while when I have nothing else to watch using the fast forward button 😁

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Outstanding

***** I will start without any spoiler here *****
As someone who was born in the 2000s I never read any of the condor trilogy novel and only watched the newer version of the condor trilogy which are Legend of condor heroes (2008 and 2017) and Return of condor heroes (2006) and I would like to say that this HSDS is the best compare to the other. and You don't need to watch any of those before watching this.

The strongest point in this show is their casting. Chen Yuqi really did an outstanding job portraying Zhao Min, I who never cried for watching movies/tv cried quite a few times because of her. Chen Yuqi might be my favorite actress in the world because of this series.

Visual wise, they also did a great job. It's not too colorful like 2014 Roch which was very annoying, that's one of the reason i didn't watch it till the end. But here, you just have that right amount of color and beautiful scenery. The costumes also fit perfectly dominantly by white color. It really made me feels like living in the medieval China.

There are some dragging in the plot presumably to fulfill the 50 episodes, also the fighting scene and choreograph isn't the best compare to the previous installment. I feel that action or martial arts isn't really the focus point in this adaptation. they are more like a side-dish.

Other people told me that this adaptation really differ from the novel or that the 1986 version was so much better. But if you never read HSDS or watch any other adaptations before, I don't think you would mind some alterations here and there. Besides, 1980s Chinese tv series really had a bad quality camera and Cantonese language that I'm not used to.

Anyway I'm just crazy for Zhao Min hehe.

****** Spoilers ahead *********

First of all Chen Yuqi is a goddess dang. Finished this series at 10pm and the next day I woke up, I still can't move on from her and feel really sad. This series has turn me into Yuqi's fan lol.

The story starts of pretty lame. It took me a whole day to finish episode 1, but Yang Xiao's appearance brought new wind to the series. I really like those calm but almighty characters and Yang Xiao is just that. But, the pacing still feels little bit too slow until ZWJ went to butterfly valley. Now, that's where things got interesting for me because he finally learn something amazing.

But yeah, zwj feels like using a cheatcode here. he's already become the best in the world after mastering heaven and earth great shift. this is why I think that HSDS is more about romance rather than martial arts unlike 2 previous installment. Also, poison is so overused in this series. After Fan Yao appear, suddenly Yang Xiao is nowhere to be seen. Even in Ming's sect meeting he's not there anymore, also after ZWJ got matured, it feels that YX got nerfed. YX from the early episodes was a badass but he turns to be pretty useless.

Then Zhao Min came, and she really blows my mind with her personality and great acting from Chen Yuqi. If i were wuji, i would definitely fell in love when minmin asked him to a first date in Wan'an pagoda.
Some people keep complaining that after eps 40, her personality changed and keep relying on wuji. but i found that to be okay and that's called falling in love. in fact I had watery eyes several times after eps 40, and rewatch some specific moments after eps 50. although it's a happy ending , it still made me quite sad. because her last real dialogue was a hot-headed argument, I really hope that at least there would be a marriage scene or some romantic moments. Really want to see a happy zhao min, she really makes me feel like i'm in the story and experiencing things with her.

After searching through the wiki, i found out that actually beyond eps 40++ are differ from the original work but that's fine. I also noticed that most people who has watched 1986 adaptations or read the novel said that this show isn't that good but people who are new to HSDS give really positive feedback toward this show. So, i would say that this show is really good if you didn't compare it to other adpt or the novel

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Could've been so much more

This is one of those title that will for sure get some kind of spin off or remake every decade. I love that they used the same classic song in the intro. The stunts, wire works, fight scenes were great! Feels high budget. If you like classic wuxia this is a great watch at least for the fighting scenes. The series started out strong with a cutest child actor for WuJi. (same child actor in joy of life). The supporting cast had some great veterans, solid cast however the eye candies they picked out had some acting challenges. Pretty faces and ..... that's it. Lead Actor Wu Ji did a ok...job but did not do its character justice. 1. he didn't have any chemistry w/ any of the FLs. 2. He's supposed to be smart but it didn't translate 50% of the time in fact keep getting lied to by various females.
40 ep later writing got sloppy and made no sense. Sadly yet another drama started out great and fizzled.

Favorite supporting characters:
Yang Xiao. I hated his character in dating in the kitchen but he's got wuxia swag in this one.

Sadly I watched this for the story and the supporting cast and not so much for the leads.

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Movie :The kung fu cult master + Drama: The Romance of the Condor Heroes 2014

The production is quite good. Multiple location worthwhile CGI's etc but the story seems to be a light, long version of return of condors.

I love the drama Return of Condor Heroes. Being a huge fan I was biased even before I started this series. So I cannot be a good judge of the drama and say it was good. It's good but not better or worse. The story is culmination of the jet li movie and 'The Romance of the Condor Heroes 2014'.

The cast were amazing & fight scenes were okay but what really stood out was that they matched the huge casting done in its predecessor. Nothing is lost in quantity or quality except the ML character felt like too 'goodie' (Not a spoiler).

At the beginning of the series they went really huge on different sets and loved the vastness of the series but later on that became a mild factor as the whole story was kind-of-draggy. None the less worth watching one time.

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Great Story Ruined by Un-likeable Characters.

Don't bother. Save your binge time on something else.

I have not read the novel this is based on. The only other adaption i have watched was the incomplete Jet Li movie - "Kung Fu Cult Master". Which was lots of fun. Sad there was no sequel with same cast.

Everyone likes an underdog story. It what makes shonen manga so popular. You have a weak character who goes through hardship, grows, powers up to become strong. You can't help but feel, relate and cheer on these characters.

This one however, by the halfway mark, felt like punching the ML in the face. lol. He is SOOOO very un-likeable.

He becomes powerful through lucky encounters only to show no growth or character development. In some cases, forgetting he was that powerful. Naive to the end of days, never learning a lesson or listening to his supposed trusted companions or parents. Only listening to the antagonist who happens to be a pretty girl. Before you can you blink, she has him eating out of her palms. Proper whipped. Out of nowhere lol. It's not even a fun time, as they are unlikeable.

There are other un-reasonably frustrating characters and developments, (omg head nun) but we won't go into them.

Be it, the original story, adaption, acting, cast or a combination of all, this is a wuxia story that i imagine inspired countless others, that just disappoints with un-likeable characters.

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Best DS HS so far.
1. Too be honest first mainpoint is Actor and Actress are handsome and almost all are pretty
2. Angle of taking scene are good, drone etc
3. Good depth of focus
4. contains good poems and chinese moral lessons
5. small Zhang Wu ji played superb! by the small actors,
6. Storyline was made fluently
7. Good kungfu battle scene. not just visual effects of flying palms
8. Actors and actress played beautifully , like ZhangWuJi is kind and virtuous,
ZhiRuo is kind but too obedient
Zhao Min is playfull and smart
YangXiao is silent , and wise
9. Ending Song is great ( like any other chinese series should )
10. Great option of movie set, like inside the cave, the snowy mountains, Lake, etc

The only downside i see is how ZhangWuJi get his Nine Yang Manuals :D

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INCONSISTENT

Saw a fight scene on youtube and got in to binge watching. Show was ok while the main lead was a kid, i say just ok because even then there was some huge nonsense logic, writing. Like the kid he's son of a hero, grandson of annother wealthy man, but he just wanders all his childhood alone, like a beggar, for whatever reason,and every one thinks it's normal. And it's just one plot hole, cause there are a lot. But the childs acting was great, so i got through.
Now. He grew up. The DUMBEST MF on the planet. The most annoying character in this drama is the main lead. I don't even want to go in the plot, writing, cause the plot its not even stupid, but on a verry high level stupid. It doesn't make any sense, like literally no sense. I'm at ep 19,and just can't bear anymore with this. I don't understand how those precedent reviews are positive, must be fake reviews like for other bs dramas.
Chinese have a HUGE potential for those kind of semi-wuxia drama, with amazing decors, huge ressources, all those ancient manors, beautiful actors, compared to kdramas they have ten times moore ressources. But the writers, directors etc, don't have a fkin clue what to do with it. A lot of the shows start ok, even verry well, and then... THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH IT. They choke. I create this acount just to tell my opinion after seeing the positive reviews, i said no way i'm letting this pass this time, too many fake reviews.
Conclusion, don't wadte your time on this drzma like i did, it's really crap.

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This is the best adaptation ive watched so far. i have watched HSDS 2009 numerous times but this version is better. it presents better story and a clear timeline. the story exceeds my expectation.
Story: i thought the story will be all the same with the previous versions or worse(like the other adaptation of JY novel like Return of the condor heroes 2006 and 2014, Legend of condor heroes 2008 and 2017) but this one present slightly different story and more logical. The beginning doesnt take too much episode before the main story. The ending is great! the war scene and the struggle that Wuji and Zhao Min face potrayed beautifully(not like HSDS 2009 which seems rather forced to end so the ending quite confusing). I also love how the director tells the love story between Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu.
Acting: at first i was rather suprised to see the older Zhang Wuji(Joseph Zeng). i thought he cant play Zhang wuji that is innocent and naive but im wrong. Joseph Zeng did a great job playing Zhang wuji and i like it a lot. Bambi Zhu playing Zhou Zhiruo was kind of expected seeing how she did a great job playing 'xuan nu' in Ten Miles of Peach Blossom which has two faced character. I like how Chen Yuqi potrayed a naughty, bossy and 'bitch attitude' Zhao Min. Her charm doesnt lose with Bambi Zhu strong character. but i'm not satisfied with how the love story between Zhang Wuji and Zhao Min went. i think i could be better. I love how the romance between Zhang Wuji and Zhao Min potrayed in HSDS 2009 by (Deng Chao playing ZhangWuji and Ady An playing Zhao Min) it was really sweet(This is what makes me watch HSDS numerous time haha). The fighting scene in this version is great but i think it was better in 2009 versions. Zhang Wuji in 2009 seems more badass by taking down all other sects' master
But overall, this version is the best so far and i would love to watch it again some other time

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