The cast:
From the beginning the chemistry between everyone was amazing. You will find yourself torn between all of them as the story goes on.
Music:
The music was wonderful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv6M28aDJkI
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Visually rich, twisted fairytale. Best enjoyed if you let your imagination off the leash.
Once upon a time, there was a poor tender-hearted girl who got betrayed by her own father and sold to a brothel. Cruel fate then sent her to a hotbed of evil - a danger-filled city of assassins! There she encountered a handsome tortured prince in disguise. Oh wait, make that two! Sigh, if only it weren’t for the evil queen…:)Don’t watch this as wuxia, watch it as a collection of fairy tales tinged with the blood of many lovers. This drama has a distinct magical flavour, eerie and timeless, thanks to amazing art direction, imaginative use of animation and a vibrant palette of characters! Story wise, it’s wuxia meets gothic romance with a dash of mystery and horror. It's one of those dramas that you need to try before deciding if it's to your taste.
I have to applaud the creative team behind this drama for being able to build such a sinister, unnerving atmosphere even with all the mature elements toned down. There's no gore, no sex, not even a kiss on screen. Yet, this drama overflows with passion, allure, menace and dark morality.
Actually, it played with my imagination a little too well… There's a scene of three people eating soup. One is supposed to be blind, but isn't. The other two want to catch him out. Now, we never know exactly what’s in that bowl. Just that the other two are pretty horrified by it. It's all in the masterful acting and the tension building in that long scene. It created such vivid images in my head, I very nearly threw up… Ok, fun anecdote time over - back to review;)
Another thing that drew me in early on was , what I called earlier in a comment, bunch of nutty characters that I just couldn't help but adore. Starting with the sexually frustrated, ingenious torturer, cat mommy villain with a pastime of skinning people:)
The portrayals were just enough to give the characters an unconventional, eccentric feel, without crossing over into grotesque. As for the three leads, they were exceptional.
Wan Mei: My love for the heroine was of a tempestuous nature. A lot of the time I wanted to reach in and shake some sense into her. At other times, I felt like cuddling her to death. She was charming and clever, but also frustrating as all hell. I think her character suffered the most from the censoring of the original novel. She was a ridiculously unconvincing assassin. A big part of this drama is Wan Mei going on various missions. That arc was both too episodic in nature and brought a lot of inconsistency to the character. Generally, I felt her purpose wasn't written as clearly as the other two leads.
Gong Zi and Chang An: The two tortured princes! Complex and charismatic characters with very different understanding of what love is. They both have a classic wuxia thirst for revenge/hidden identity storyline in the background. I felt Chang An's story was underdeveloped. But it was pretty obvious they didn't have the budget.
Personally, I liked him best in their early scenes with Wan Mei. Qu Chuxiao infused the character with such a magnetic charisma I couldn't take my eyes off him.
If Chang An was irresistible, then Gong Zi was just striking! Wang Duo's stylish, melancholic portrayal of Gong Zi brought such a unique, unearthly feel to this series. One of the most memorable characters in the whole dramaland for me.
Now, on to negatives
Well, this is a medium-budget web drama from 2018. The CGI is better not mentioned:)
For wuxia, the fight scenes are nothing to speak of. The final battle between our heroine and the evil queen was extremely underwhelming. Li Yitong is a wonderful dancer. But a fighter? Not so much.
As I said earlier, the plot in the middle is meandering and episodic. I put it on hold for a few months because the story seemed to be going nowhere. Also, the whole Wan Mei being an unwilling assassin part is far too sentimental for my taste. It lacks any real sense of danger or thrill.
Even though the music is quite beautiful, I felt it was overused and oft-repeated. Seriously, I challenge anyone not to know the lyrics to the theme song by heart after 30 episodes.
Not enough attention to detail. For example, I got confused about who knew of Gong Zi's cured blindness at which stage. The actor seemed to randomly alternate between the two looks.
Can’t remember any more. Go watch the drama. Enjoy the magical spectacle, Wan Mei’s awesomeness, Chang An’s devotion and Gong Zi’s wily ways.
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Bloody Romance is a tale of life and death, love and loss, revenge and compassion. It is epic in every way possible. This is an intense drama, one I couldn't binge watch because every episode is packed with emotions. The cast is young but they manage to keep up with the intensity of the script. A real surprise for me was Puff Guo whom I could barely recognise.
I was really invested into the romance of Cha Ruo and Wan Mei. Without so much a kiss, their love story was absolutely beautiful and devastating. The woeful soundtrack matched this drama perfectly and intensified their scenes every time.
The antagonists in the drama were complicated characters, each had their reasons for why they turned out the way they did. They added to the plot rather than take away from it which I find is the case with a lot of Chinese dramas.
My favorite part of this drama is - WOMEN BADASSERY! The women are the ones fighting, kicking ass and protecting the ones they love. Of course, the men were heroes as well, but I loved that there were so many fight scenes featuring the women.
All in all, this is definitely a top 10 Chinese drama for me, ever. I think I would find it difficult to rewatch simply because it was so intense, I highly, highly recommend this drama - especially if you are looking for something directed at a more mature audience.
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A drama that makes people have mixed feelings about it
As a viewer of dramas, the first thing you read before you watch a drama is the synopsis. Basically telling you what the drama was about. The synopsis was the most misleading one I’ve read in my whole life.So the synopsis was this girl who went on to become a cold blooded assassin after some challenges. Also, she met some romance. This happened to be my most favourite type of genre. I really like to watch dramas where the FL becomes the most badass female assassin and it was a bonus because there was romance. So, I entered the drama with really high hopes. Like super high ones. But what I got was a lot of disappointment and mixed feelings towards it.
So, I started watching it and the first few episodes was really good and lived up to my expectations. Especially because I thought the ideas used inside were really fresh and new and who doesn’t really doesn’t appreciate that. It made me hopelessly in love with it after the umbrella with the blood flowers on it. It was just so cool! And umm..some things happen and hey she becomes an assassin.
From then on..it kinda just snowballed down. All my hopes crushed. She becomes the worst type of assassin I wanted to see. You see she becomes the type of assassin that feels so weak you know, she doesn’t want to kill anyone and is like Ah…I just don’t want to kill them. First, I don’t feel so bad about it. I mean who doesn’t feel guilty killing someone. However, it got to a point where it just became unbearable to watch how weak and how unsuitable to the description of an assassin was. The main thing got me riled up was the description. THEY SAID I COULD WATCH A COLD BOODED BADASS ASSASSIN but what I got in return was real bad. So, you see the drama progresses on and one talking about how she was reluctant kill people and then she finally kills someone and then feel so guilty about it…..you get the second male lead and all that so on and on drama with ML and second ML. Everyone gets it….
Then, she finally kills her last person which was the leader of the organisation and seriously I was feeling a bit weird. It was just so out of the place, I mean you didn’t want a single person and then suddenly you become strong and murder the leader who has been in the high position for so long. Girl, where does all the power come from? Sure…there was the motive that was super strong cos the leader killed everyone she loved. But, hey it doesn’t quite add up?
Finally, she becomes the leader of the organisation of the female assassins and that really irritated me. It was like hey, this is a female assassin organisation and everyone there killed people like the assassin they were supposed to be. But, you killed just two ppl！ TWO! And one was like so reluctant and the other person was purely full of hatred. I mean why her out of everyone? Finally, she says I have become so crazy and so cold blooded assassin, killing so much people. AND I WAS GIRL WHAT?????HUH???It didn’t add up.
The acting was good.
The music was not too bad.
Pity, the story really wasn’t good and the synopsis was missing plus the title.
~ Nerium oleander
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Intense drama - and an absolutely magnificent OST
Once I got past the blood and fantasy bits, I was completely engrossed in this drama. I didn't appreciate the holes in the story, too many loose ends, too many bits and pieces that were not fully explained or clear to the viewer - and most especially the ending. Tragic that he dies, or does he? We are left hanging. Those of us who hope he is still alive as some suggest, and those of us who accept his sacrifice and heroic death as his final act of love... but I prefer to have a clear ending and closure (unless of course, we will have a Season 2!)The acting was stellar. The music was hauntingly beautiful and evoked every bit of emotion that this drama deserved. I found the version of the theme song that Qu Chuxiao sings - and that is my favorite of all.
This drama might not everybody's cup of tea, but I couldn't stop watching once I got into it, and listened to the opening theme every single time.
Please let there be a Season 2! Same FL & ML - and whoever did the music!
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How can you not like it?
The first reason of liking this drama is Li Yi Tong, her role as assassin Wan Mei is played so well, multifaceted and convincing.In the beginning young, innocent but already full of hardship, she tries her best to bring some food home to her little brother and obviously good for nothing herbalist father.
Even after he sells her to a brothel for two bags of rice ( ( -how far sighted, how long can they live on that-), her will to live is stronger than giving in to her obvious destiny.
In the end desperate and wanting, she still finds a way of living on.
I love Li Yi Tong, I liked her in every drama, but in this one I liked her so far the most. She can display so many character traits in just one role.Really great. Although she is an assassin she never gives in to power and bloodthirst, she ist soft but strong, never killing anyone.Maybe not realistic for an assassin but she has two men by her side, one always manipulating and pushing her but also deeply in love for the first time, the other Chang An.
Chang An (Qu Chu Xiao), her shadow and his undying love and will to give everything for her impressed me so much. Who doesn't want to see a charactare like him in a drama.Torn between personal revenge and his love for Wan Mei, in the end he's always by her side, secretly helping her,pleading for her or sacrificing for her.
Though both, Chang An and Wan Mei, often make everything more complicated by giving in to their feelings, they won't stop loving each other.
Sometimes I had the feeling, that when one of them wouldn't have been there it would have made things a lot easier for the other.
Trying to sacrifice everything for each other but only maximizing the extend of damage that is done is not my ideal way of loving but yes, it's a
"bloody romance". Quite interesting.
Cha Luo as heartless and pain ridden crazy leader of the assassins is also greatly portrayed. You really get into hating her whole personality, even though you get to know how hard her life was. She is just selfish and doesn't want anyone in a similar situation having a better life than her. She clings to her power hungry self as so not to give in to her misery.
Great actress, her cruel laughter still sends shivers down my spine.
Xing Feng, Cha Luo's man,shadow and true love is also an interesting character.I really like the actor.He loves Cha Luo although she is so cruel.You can see how often he tries to pacify her but still wants to do everything for her.
Xing Feng and Cha Luo are the saddest couple I have ever seen in a drama.Him impotent and sad for not beeing able to give her what she wants and her needy and always aggressive for beeing an almighty leader but still a powerless person.
The best charactare displayed in this drama is King of Ning, really impressive. Blind in the beginning, with lots of heart illnesses but also with a powerful inner strenght, he uses everyone for his own ambitions. A lonely but manipulative guy whom you can't really see through.He is the secret puppetry master of everything.
All in all it was one of the dramas which left an imprint on me.
I highly recommend it to people who like to get
carried away by a drama.
I loved it.
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For once , a unique FL !
Now I have been watching chinese historical dramas for quite some time now , but I dont know why , to show that a female lead is strong or whatsoever , they make her loud , rude , judges things from what SHE sees without giving time to others (specially ML ) to explain ,and STILL after one , MAXIMUM two meetings , the ML falls for her , arghhh. But for ONCE ,I did not hate the FL at all , actually , I LOVED HER , she is posed , smart , compassionate and most importantly , truly loves the ML and I SEE it.The drama is a delight to watch . Yes, it is a bit dark , but you get past it because the actors are this good.
I would say it gets kinda slow towards the end (not a spoiler ), but I still really enjoyed it and it left a very good impression on me. The actors were really good but it was the FL and ML that gave stellar performances for me. Watch it , I promise you'll love it .
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Really good acting and music
Story: Especially at the beginning, some parts of the story are being thrown at you, but it does get better throughout. Honestly, some parts were confusing, mainly because they introduce characters by name before you see what the character looks like or their personality (but could also be translation errors). The dynamics between the characters are very well-written, and although some misunderstandings change the course of their relationship they end up working it out eventually. Also made me realize how psychologically torturing being an assassin is.Acting: Exceptional especially for the antagonist and protagonist but honestly every actor/actress did amazing, including the parts where the characters are desperate and suffering. You can feel the emotion in their voice. Even when there isn't anything verbal going on. In particular, the main characters' facial expressions and how they move still give the scene weight to it.
Music: A lot of the OST music I would listen to on repeat, particularly the intro song. And I know a lot of people love it for the same reasons I do. It fits the relationships between the characters in the story and the cadence of the singer really describes the emotion of the song. They do milk it a lot in the episodes but it is a moving song so, it's not as annoying as you would think..
Rewatch: I generally don't rewatch shows unless they are amazing shows/mystery genre. I feel like this show is a one-and-done situation, but I did enjoy it while it lasted.
TLDR; Story is a bit confusing at first but it flows throughout the show. Acting is phenomenal and is amazing a portraying emotion even when they aren't talking. Music is beautiful and melancholy. Most likely won't rewatch it, but it was an interesting experience.
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UNDERRATED GREAT DRAMA
The two male actors did a bang job. I love Wang Duo so much, I can go on write good things about him. The pain, loneliness, hate, determination, love, care, and deep thinking is in his eyes and smiles. When the door's closing at him during last scene, I can see the loneliness and abandonment he felt....losing everything he hold dear. So much so he overshadowed everyone else. Shawn Qu also remarkable too...as a submissive reserved man that would look at Wan Mei with such devotion - he loved Wan Mei tenderly and would do anything for her. Li YiTong is great, her character flipped flopped a lot depend on whether she successfully finished the mission or not. In the book Wen Mei slept with every men, kind of gross me, the adaption is more relatable and have better story line. So much memorable acting from Wang Duo and Shaw Qu, I put them on top of best performance and favorite.The best scene was when both Wan Mei and Chan'An went separately, thru the river Chan'An left....with hundred of bright firework lit the dark night sky - Wan Mei cried and run toward the river. Gong Zi run after her just to found out how heart broken she was, memorable was the significant of explosion of fireworks as representing how Chan'An felt about.
The drawing illustrations fit in to drama, adding more dramatic than spoiling the scenes because they put it together nicely between drawing and alive scenes - not come in at very important epic scenes (Note: Long Ballad needs to learn this). It broke my heart with the ending...I demand season 2!! This drama is one of my favorite...and I don't have very many of them...
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ABSOLUTELY AMAZING ALLURING, MYSTICAL DRAMA. One of the best fantasy wuxia's out there.
Absolutely loved this drama! This was a very unique and cleverly written drama, I've never watched anything like it before. I was hooked from start till end. It is an alluring, mystical drama which reeked of darkness, and the visual effects and OST in this are superb. I absolutely loved every OST in this drama and i am still hooked on it.The director selected casts that really suited the characters and managed to portray the characters well. I think that that is what really made it for me.
At times however, there were way too many flashbacks i.e. the FL always had this same flashback over and over again. I guess they were trying to portray her sadness but after the 3rd same flashback, I was over it.
I hope there is going to be Season 2 because there really would be potential for a season 2! Although, the ending was amazing.
Overall, highly highly recommend. High emotional impact. Great director and cinematography. One of my all time favourite dramas.
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one of my alltime favourites
As I have read the novel the drama is based on, I was very eager to watch it.I have to say, it is one of my favourite dramas!
Not only has it perfectly transferred the dark and mysterious scenery of the book onto the screen, but also have the actors done a beautiful job and the OST is remarkable.
As for the seemingly sad ending, I can only say one has to read the book to understand the hint given at the very end of the drama - or check the comments on Youtube or wherever the drama can be watched.
With only 36 episodes the drama can be considered relatively short for a chinese historical drama.
As the name suggests the drama is quite bloody and has a good deal of really evil characters, but what I like about the drama is the absence of a good character- bad character plot. All of the characters have reason for what they do and none of them is complety good nor completly bad.
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This review may contain spoilers
STORY: Overall I think it was somewhat a predictable story. Innocent young girl, joins a new world to escape her past, fights her way up the ranks, becomes the head of this new world. You knew who the enemies were. You knew who would end up with who. You could assume that essentially everyone would end up dead by the end of it.
Even with the predictability of it all, I think it was still a very enjoyable drama. It was somewhat weird for me though. I normally breeze through dramas pretty easily (hello binge watching) and this is a fairly short drama (on average for Chinese dramas at least), but for some reason it took me almost two weeks to watch just 36 episodes. Partially I was busy at work, but I think there were certain times I lost a little bit of interest honestly.
Pertaining to the actual story, I think honestly my biggest gripe about it was Wan Mei's personality. I think in this kind of setting it would have been the more obvious choice to just have her become a skilled assassin all in her own, but the constant moral turmoil she faced was honestly kind of off-putting for me. I get that she was supposed to be a loyal and morally righteous person, but honestly if this were real life (using that term lightly) it really would make ZERO sense that she survived in Gui Hua Cheng, let alone become the new leader. I get that in the end people showed her loyalty because she was not a sinister person, but really, a city of assassins and the leader refuses to kill anyone.
It just made little sense most of the time that she kept fighting to be a part of Gui Hua cheng, but was constantly thrown off by having to kill anyone. Again, I get that she was escaping a past life and this was her escape, but idk, it was just giving me very mixed emotions.
Romance wise, I wish that there could have been more skinship between the leads (or really anything aside from hugging and longing looks) A) because who doesn't love a good kiss here and there but B) for two people who were in such life and death situations with each other and constantly fighting for there lives, you'd think there would be more passion involved. Other than that, I do really like the relationship between Wan Mei and Chang An. I think they relied on each other well and I think the angst between them while she hated him was very strong.
I also appreciate that for the most part, the characters who disliked each other felt like logically reasonable to dislike another character. I get really tired of dramas where a bad person (typically a female) hates the female lead because of a boy but then EVERYTHING that happens is always blamed on the female lead/etc. I know that trope is never going to die, but it's just super overblown most of the time (my most recent memory is Pei Yuan from Legend of Fu Yao who literally every scene was her just hating on Fu Yao and blaming everything that went wrong on her even if it was someone else's fault. Just Bleh.)
ACTING:
Tong Li Ya - I think she was very good in this drama. She portrayed emotions very well and she did a very good job with the character she was given.
Qu Chu Xiao - Especially for a very young, very fresh actor, I think he did an exceptional job as Chang An. He powered through this role both as Chang an and as the lost heir, Xie Huan. Even though he knew his past life (for the most part) all along, I think there was a distinct difference in his personality when he was just the lowly shadow and when he comes to terms with his true identity. I know that QCX has also received nationwide recognition for this role, so it's no surprise to me.
Everyone else - Overall I liked all of the acting. The people who needed to be exaggerated were the right amount, whereas the more solemn characters hit those notes as well.
OVERALL:
Looking back at my review it feels like I had more problems with this drama than I enjoyed, but honestly I don't have a bad impression when I think back on this drama. Even with the things I mentioned I disliked, I overall still enjoyed watching and I'm hoping that there will be a second season coming out because the ending could definitely be a cliffhanger.
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