The Untamed (2019)

Amazing drama with amazing actors whose performances where flawless. The storyline was great and never had a dull moment from beginning to end, had me hooked within minutes of watching. This drama has filled the position of best drama for me which has never been filled before (I’ve been watching dramas every since I was a baby). The music is amazing too and Xiao Zhan is such an outstanding person with skills that are above and beyond anyone I’ve ever seen. He also takes the spot of favorite actor (also never been taken). I could go on and on about the show and the awesome cast but this is a review and not a book.

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Well how do I start. I watched the first Anime, I read the novel and the manga. Honestly I didn't know what to expect since China banned BL content but wow the feelings they have for each other even without a kiss or touching is so good acted that I felt speechless half of the time. I didn't want to watch it till the end now I am sad and want more...

Story: The story is pretty much the same as the novel and the manga which was suprising for me since most novel dramas always get changed up at most parts. Of course the bl aspect is not their but like I said they show it (like Lan Zhan waiting for Wei Ying to return after he died, they way they look at each other and so on). The only huge change from the novel/manga/anime was that in the drama Wei Ying personally knows Xingchen which isn't the case in the anime. In the anime lan zhan is telling him the story about him.

Acting/Cast: The Cast is brilliant every actor did such a good job but honestly I was so happy to see Wang Yibo here (I was such a big UNIQ trash) and his acting was top-tier. He didn't had as much lines as Xiao Zhan (the untamend behind the scenes) the character development was huge from a cold Lan sect kid who follows only the rules of his clan to someone who is only on Wei Yings side to protect him and uncover the truth.

Music: God the music is everything I even downloaded all of the osts but we all agree that the WangXian is the best ost ever I cried so much everytime the song played... Also Xiaos & Yibos solo songs are so good no need to say much the music is a masterpiece itself. Yibo's song is still my favorite you can feel how hurt he is for waiting for his love to return to him.

Rewatch value: Excuse me? Of course y'all can't believe how sad I was when I watched the last episode and realized that this is the end. I will rewatch this more than once.

Overall: Honestly a masterpiece. You have to watch it.

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I am a beginner to Chinese dramas as it seems hard to find good ones. But this was one hell of a ride. First 4/5 episodes bored me and I was so confused about the story and characters. I couldn't even figure out which person was who the story was messy. But as the episodes proceeded the story became clearer and fun to watch. I think both the lead actors did a great job. Although there were some parts where I though Xiao overacted his acting skills on most of the scenes were spectacular. My favorite is probably the starting of the war scene I will not tell more. Wang Yibo did an excellent job as well. I first thought he was very stiff but as the story became clearer his character made so much more sense. I even read the novel just to understand the story better. And the songs are just masterpiece. I think the osts are my favorite part of the drama. Overall the drama was worth watching. I have already rewatched it many times and more I watch I catch on the details I missed during last time.
And, yes thank you to untamed I got to know about Wang Yibo .........

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True to the Hype

Rated= 8.5~ 42.5/50 ~ 8.5
RPG Scene // Playing with Mermaids in Sky City. Excalibur has human form.

Untamed and it's corresponding animes were all over the internet in 2019 and I deliberately ignored it. I don't usually trust anything with that much hype because it's usually fans of the actors just getting really excited. I've also never watched a wuxia before and wasn't sure what to expect.
Having said that, I got bored one day and decided to watch it. I was pleasantly surprised.

Plot Pacing - Possibly one of the best ways to open a series I think I've ever seen. I was instantly hooked. The pacing for the first 30 episodes is perfect as we find out what actually happened to get the starting scene, which from a visual story telling pov, I really loved that. When we get back to the current time line, it does however slow and takes on a shorter chapter pacing to reach the end. The big finale fight is more of a reveal than a fight. These last 20 episodes are the reason I marked this down a little. After the onslaught that is the first 30 eps, I honestly got a little bored from 34 - 42. There were also a few things I feel weren't explained very well or were just left out entirely. It never mentions what exactly the true plot was and what was being searched for.

Ending - Surprisingly didn't mind the ending as much as I'm pretty tolerable of open ended endings especially since this is a BL in China. I summarized that it was Wei Wuxian who returned to Lan Zahn. Lan did enough running after him and also feel he's too noble and loyal to run off into the sunset. His 'ice' melted and gushed like the waterfall behind him in those last scenes. He had gotten the resolution he wanted, and his emotions were set free. I like to think even physically, he got to love his lover finally, and knew his love was returned, and so was contented to allow Wuxian to go be himself while he sorts the mess out. The conversation that happens at the mid way point to me is almost like 'the after glow' conversation where both know they are parting ways for a while, represented by the parting of the water.
I also clocked that each of the clans is represented by an element, with the Lan clan being air and the Jiang clan being water, however the guys represent each other's element. Lan Zahn is water, or in his case, ice, trapped emotion, whereas Wuxian is like air, and he's tied down with rules, so the ending scene taking place at the top of the Cloud Recess's waterfall, where air and water meet is very poetic to me. The emotions now run free and the wind has willingly come home.
When I came to that conclusion, I find myself really loving the ending.

Visually, absolutely stunning. I have never watched a chinese fantasy before but I've always been aware that a lot of effort goes into the set and costuming and I wasn't disappointed. It is a beautiful visually. The make up department for the enemies did well, however I did find the lava people a little corny. That whole set up felt a bit like power rangers. I do wish they had used more ghosts as that one ghost scene was awesome and I really loved her entrance.
There is some homo-erotic imagery in the last episodes to slip through the censors that can also be read as a physical relationship 'behind the scenes' of the characters or can just be left as they are. I honestly kind of liked that. I feel like chemistry between the actors is a very a subjective thing and I didn't feel like there was a lot of 'heat' between the leads but there was definitely a deep bond feeling between them which, like the ending, allows the viewer to create their own opinion about what's happening without the censors.

I do wish Wei Wuxian had been a little bit more vengeful though, I cant lie. There were times when he could have legitimately been more brutal and it would have been justified as a viewer, but, at least for the show, his 'big bad, evil dark lord' turned out to be all rumour which did leave feeling a little cheated. Another reason I've marked this down. I do genuinely wish they had gone deeper into the plot morality of what is right and wrong. The scene opens with this broken man being painted as an absolute monster and I was genuinely expecting a brutal anti-hero character and it turned out to just be people talking crap. I was a little disappointed with that.

Overall, still did really enjoy it and is definitely on my rewatch list.

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I love everything about this drama. It knew when to pull at my heartstrings and when to make me laugh. The casting was perfect. Wang Yibo played Lan Zhan so well and Xiao Zhan was a perfect fit for Wei Wuxian's mischevious personality. All of the characters had very good development and were interesting to watch. Even characters I didn't like would pull me in to learn more about them. Wang Hao Xuan specifically made me sympathize with such an awful character like Xue Yang. He was fun to watch and somehow still manages to make you hate him. I think my favourite secondary character has to go to Lan Sizhui. When he was first introduced I knew there was something about him that I loved. As we went through the past and A Yuan was introduced I loved him. It broke my heart when the remaining Wen clan was hung but I knew something was up. We are reintroduced to Sizhui back in the future and I had connected the dots. Sizhui was indeed A Yuan. His character was so soft and caring. The final episode where he tells Wei Wuxian that he is A Yuan and they reunite I sobbed for at least five minutes straight. Also on another note, the soundtrack of this show was amazing. I listen to the songs almost every day. Another one of my favourite characters was Xiao Xing Chen. He had such a sad plotline and I felt very sorry for him. All in all, i think this drama is wonderful and definitely worth watching the fifty episodes it has to offer.

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As someone who has been watching BL shows for years now, this is is the best one I have watched so far, and yet it isn’t even a BL. You don’t need kissing and 18+ scenes to make a good boys love story! The untamed is, of course, based on a BL novel. But thanks to chinese censorship, it has been altered to make a ‘bromance’ story. However, the love is definitely still there ans you can tell that the people who worked on this series are telling the story as a love story. I am going to be rating this drama as a drama, rather than comparing it to the novel. (However, I would definitely reccomend reading the novel!)

Story:
I think the story is told very well! It is a very long drama, with 50 episodes. I am used to watching much shorter series, so I was expecting each episode to be very dragged out. But every minute of the drama is part of the story, and no time is wasted! The story is captivating, and you grow an emotional attachment to the characters. Garunteed, by the time you finish this drama, you will have a favourite and a deep opinion on every single character.
My only complaint with the story telling is the first two episodes. The story is being told, and then it is put on hold for a long time. By the time you get back to that part of the story, you have most likely forgotten what has happened at the start of the story (if it is your first time watching it. unlike me, who has rewatched it countlessly haha). they could’ve avoided this, but i do understand why it was told like that. it adds dramatic effect and makes sense in a wag. you can always watch the first two episodes again if you forget haha.

Acting/Cast:
Amazing!!!!! Cannot stress this enough. I love all of the actors so so much. The cast have my heart. The actors did an incredible job playing their roles. A lot of story can be told just by the expressions of characters. I sometimes get that uncomfortable feeling when you can see past an actor’s character on screen. But they all did perfectly! Even the extras steal the show lol. I would particularly like to praise Wang Yibo, who plays Lan Zhan. A character who walks around with a blank face but has a lot of emotional complexity can’t be an easy role to fulfil. You can also see how much wei wuxian ans lan wangji care for each other. The love is THERE. Xiao Zhan ans Wang Yibo said screw censorship

Music:
Without spoiling anything, there are two specific songs that stand out in this drama’s soundtrack. One is the main theme, which you will figure out why, and the other is a big part of a certain scene that beings me to tears even THINKING about it. If you love it when a drama effects you emotionally like that, you have come to right drama.

Rewatch Value:
I have watches this drama 5 times during quarantine and I think that speaks for itself. Especially when there is a lot of ground to cover, you will discover things you missed the last time you watched it every time. There is a lot of symbolism and cute stuff hehe

Overall:
Definitely worth watching!! Even just as a casual watcher, you will enjoy this drama. If you end up being sucked into the fandom, don’t say I didn’t warn you. :)

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Completely worth watching for a beautiful plot

Don't get me wrong, just because my score isn't a perfect 10, doesn't mean I don't love this drama to bits.

The Untamed was my first exposure to this series. The characters have a lot of names and at the beginning, it was extremely convoluted and hard to follow. This struggle almost made me drop the drama, but I didn't. And I'm glad I didn't!

The story is beautiful. Everything eventually falls into place and all the questions are answered by writers. It's beautifully written and the subtle bromance and relationship between the two leads had me hooked. I usually hate subplots in dramas, but The Untamed made sure that the subplots of all the other characters were interesting and important to the main plot! Wen Ning's story and leading to how he became known as the Ghost General, Yanli's relationship with Jin Zixuan, everything was like a perfect puzzle, nothing out of place. I haven't watched a show this long with a plot written as finely and as perfect as The Untamed in a long time. The 50 episode count had me baffled at the beginning, but the episodes flew past me so quickly that by the end I realized that barely any episodes were wasted, unlike some dramas I have seen.

The points I've deducted are for a few things. They don't affect how much I love this show, but they did affect my quality of enjoyment while watching the show.
1) I had to skip through a lot of this drama. Especially the long few episodes spent by the Jiang clan just mourning over the death of their people. Yes, I know it's supposed to be sad and showcase the change in behaviour and emotions towards the Wen clan, but letting it take at least two episodes? For me, it was too much.
2) The beginning was just so confusing. Now I know it's probably because I have no prior knowledge of cultivation and the concept of having two or three names, but it made it very hard to follow, especially with the flashback that lasted 30 episodes. After finishing the drama I went on to watch the animated adaptation, just to get a better sense of what the original plot is about, and was very pleased by the structure of the show. It cut between present and past and made it very clear what was what. This structure made the story much easier to follow, and I wish the drama could've taken better steps to make things clear, especially for new audiences like me who weren't fans of the story prior to watching the drama.
3) The acting wasn't very good at some scenes. I usually get very emotional watching dramas, but for some reason, I barely cried during The Untamed. Only Yi City arc had me in tears. Of course, you don't need to cry to get invested in a show, but sometimes the acting or the awkwardness of some fight scenes or "emotional" scenes ruined the moment for me. (Like Jin Guangyao's sobfest at the end. I don't know why but I just couldn't feel sad at all because the crying was just funny to me)

Overall, I'd watch this again, because I feel like this is the type of show that just gets better the more you watch because you'll see more of those tiny details that you missed earlier. And of course, the best reason to watch this show is for the story. The story is amazing, though a little convoluted and dragging at times, it's perfectly written to the point that I was amazed when everything began to come together and make sense.

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You will not regret it. My heart feels full.

Give it a try and I promise you will not regret watching this show. I promise that you will definitely enjoy it.

I am definitely the type that is not the biggest fan of historical Chinese dramas. I’ve seen clips of them but could never fully commit to watching one because I felt fantasy type shows would be a waste of my time. However, I don’t know what came over me but I finally decided to give in and watch The Untamed.

I was hooked by ep 2/3. I couldn’t believe it myself but I kept clicking on the next episode and of course staying up really late and finishing all 50 episodes in 2.5 days.

Why did I love it so much?

Starting with the characters. The acting is very good. The actors in all the roles play their characters very well. Without delving too much, all characters have a wonderful development throughout the series. Honestly I’m not a very emotional individual, but when the characters feel sadness, you can really feel it too. It’s as if you are really on an adventure with Wei Ying and watch him face difficulties, make everlasting friendships and overcome obstacles.

Romance. Now I’ve heard that this is actually a BL and in all honestly it does not have any BL type scenes in this show. However, I think romance doesn’t just exist in the form of a lover. You can have romance between friends and the relationship of Wei Ying and Lan Zhan is very much that. It is a strong bromance that blossoms beautifully. While there were moments of romance with other characters, this show did not need love and typical rom-com moments to make you feel all happy and have butterflies inside. I mean Wei Ying and Lan Zhan are honestly fantastic, they make me feel as though I want to be loved/ find the type of relationship these two share.

Story. The plot is filled with twists. The story has so much flavour. Mystery, romance, comedy, friendship, trust, happiness, justice, anger and sadness. These are feelings I had when I was watching this show. It is beautifully written and the story makes sense, it feels realistic and relatable. There was never a moment I felt like something was missing or could have been done better. Especially with shows like these, 50 episodes is a lot but the story progresses really well. Down to the last second, till the end, you feel satisfied.

Visual effects are amazing in this show. I’m not surprised because Chinese dramas have always had very good visual effects. The scenery and the way the show has been filmed is beautiful. I hope to see places like these one day.

Fighting. Normally historical Chinese drams see people flying everywhere and I don’t know it can feel a bit unrealistic cause you don’t see people do that. In this show, while that does happen, the fight scenes are so so good and so interesting that you are left hooked and wanting more. I loved all the fight sequences in this show and didn’t skip any scenes.

Music. The subtlety of the music is fantastic. There is so many beautiful tunes, instrumentals that are played and only one proper OST throughout. The song is mesmerising and very fitting for the context of the characters and the show.

Finally, I want to say, with everything going on in this world, I had been feeling very down. As if I didn’t care or I won’t feel anything watching any type of tv show because I felt I had lost the magic. I’m not sure if that makes sense but I felt sort of dead inside in the sense (nothing too dark lol). It had been a while since I had watched a show that made me feel sad when it finished. Having literally just finished this show, I am here writing this review and I have to say, I feel so happy and sad at the same time that. Happy because I am so glad I got to watch a show like this. Sad because I worry that maybe it will be a while before I come across another show as good as this. I really hope to those reading this review will be convinced to watch this! Give it a try, you won’t regret it, I promise.

I really hope they make a season 2 one day!!

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Let me start with this, I am a BL fan, although I have not read the novel yet, I did watch the anime version before I start this series. As a BL fan who has been disappointed many times by all the censorship, I was a bit reluctant to start the series. But as I finished this series in 3 days, I can say that I have never watch any series as good as this. Although I heard that there are some censorship in the series, I did not feel it at all. As a BL fan, I am beyond satisfied with all the hints and bromances in the series. Although, my friend who isn’t a BL fan, watch this series and said its just normal friendship, so I think this series is watchable by normal fans too.

Story: 10
Plots are complex, interesting and not cliche. They went from innocent and happy to hellishly sad, and then turned into bitter sweet outcome very beautifully. A lot of characters got developments. Some a lot, some just a bit, but they all make sense. Characters are so layered that even the most corrupted villain in the series, Xia Yang, has got some turning point in him that made it very hard to just hate him wholeheartedly. Some character don’t have that much layers, but to be honest, their actions played major part in the story but they are just not important characters, so I don’t really care if they develop or not.

Acting/casts: 9
Xiao Zhan is the perfect Wei WuXian. I can never imagine someone else could have played him as good as XZ. Everything is just too perfect to describe in words. Very smooth and natural acting from ep.1, literally flawless. Actually one of my most feared thing in BL-based series, is that the “UKE” is too girly. XZ’s Wei WuXian is by no mean girly, very manly even, but still has that cute and lovable feelings going on.

YiBo as Lan WangJi is a good cast too. Although he was a bit awkward at first, he quickly adapt to the role. And to be honest, Lan WangJi is very difficult to play as human face don’t have the blushing effect or angry symbol like in the drawing. Everything must be convey through the eyes alone, and he did it impressively good. And he is the fastest to adapt to fighting scene, able to fly on the string and still look super cool.

Other casts are good, but not that impressive. Although their acting skills are good, maybe its the makeup or the clothing that made some male character looks too girly than they should be. And the acting in fighting scenes are just so bad that I can’t find enough bias in me to bring myself to give it a 10. Although, luckily all characters develop good fighting skills later on. (Really, the first 10 episode’s fight scenes are hideous)

Musics: 10
Well, I have been sleeping and waking up with this WuJi song in my head for a whole week, unable to shake it off, make me think about what I have watched all day until I can’t take it anymore and came here to write review. The songs are beautiful, and every songs are perfectly timed to raise more feelings in the scenes.

Rewatch: 9
I give it a 9 because I was so impressed I rewatch it immediately after I finished it, but find myself skipping through the hideous fight scene in the first 10 ep. I would say, the story is worth a rewatch, but probably not immediately. Because the story is that good I find myself unable to move on from it and keep thinking like I want to rewatch it, I really want to rewatch it.

Overall: 9.5
Definitely a series I would recommend. I am desperately trying to find a translated version of the novel to ease my thirst to rewatch the series (and probably going to rewatch it after I finished the novel). I just wish there would be a sequel that focus on Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi ASAP

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So, I had just caved to everyone's suggestions and fell into a spiral of obsession as I finished the novel Mo Dao Zu Shi. The plot and characters have a depth that you rarely find in any story, and a conspiracy that unfolds throughout the novel that is so compelling, I literally could not put it down. I am sad that they censored some of the content as there is actually very few chapters with any kind of skinship in the book, but it does not matter because even completely removed, the story is FLAWLESS. I was worried because the book is not told chronologically as it is in the drama, but it was a necessary decision. I mean I have never read a book and then watched an adaptation and felt no ounce of disappointment whatsoever before. It's perfect. The casting is perfect, the acting is perfect, the main characters are perfect (sans some character changes in Wei WuXian but it doesn't matter because Xiao Chen is my LOVE), everything is perfect. Any changes made to the story held value and did not at all take away from my enjoyment of the series. It will rip your heart out and put it back together leaving you wanting more. It was my gateway drug to all other asian dramas, and I have to actively fight the urge to rewatch it on a daily basis because there's so many other stories! Am I sad that the romance is removed for my personal enjoyment? Yes. But if doing that brings MXTX's brilliant writing to more viewers' faces than I wholeheartedly support that decision. GO WATCH IT NOW!!! You will not regret it.

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Lovely friend relationship

I've realy love it this series.
Very Good visual, special effect, story and acting.

The story is really good, completed with politic, comedy, bromance, love, family, tragedy, friendship, cultivation, zombie, black magic.

sincerity and sacrifice of family members and friends, looks beautiful in this drama.

For 1st time, I am not really understand with the story. I am began to understand the storyline in ep 6.

My favorite episodes are 33rd and 46th, I can't hold my tears, it's really hurt, but the relationship between lead male actors is very lovely. Too sweet but to hurt.

Actually this drama series based on comic. But I don't read the comic yet. And when I watch this series until finish, I don' t realized this story based on LGBT comic. Because this drama don't show it anything scene about that. Only show sweet , sincere, and lovely relationship between friend and family. And I love it.

Until now only this series that I don't get bored of watching over and over again. And every time I watch it even though you already know the story, I still feel various kinds of feelings of joy, sadness, pain, disappointment. Amazed by the story and acting of the cast

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Amazing

It has been awhile since I last watched anything in the Xianxia genre (I was crazy about it back in my teenage years), but I decided to watch The Untamed during the lockdown in early 2020 (I'm in the process of moving my reviews to MDL). Though I wasn’t familiar with the original material, I quickly looked it up because to be honest, I got confused and overwhelmed by so many things going on and so many characters appearing all at once in the first couple of episodes. Once I got that sorted and we got into the long flashback, I was basically hooked on the series before I even got into episode 5. The Untamed is complicated, massive, hilarious, as well as sweet and tear jerking at times, not to mention I’m so in love with their costumes, swords, sets, the beautiful scenery, and the music.

I also have massive appreciation for this series for the clever way they adapted to stay true to the original materials, while still adhering to the strict Chinese censorship regulations.

I love this drama, however, there are some really glaring issues that stood out for me, some of them are pretty much what happens in c-dramas in general though, such as the audio, I understand that c-dramas are dubbed, but I do find it bothersome when a big scene sounds "empty", things like footsteps don't match (they have the same sound for footsteps on concrete and footsteps on wooden floor for example), etc. Slow mo shots are also jaggy, which indicates that they didn't shoot it on a higher frame rate and just slow it down in post. Then there is the jumping the 180 line back and forth, which is very jarring and doesn't make a lot of sense. The other thing that I didn't quite like also was the treatment of the female characters, I get that it's what happened in the novel, but still, most of the female characters were killed off. In saying that, this is one of the best historical c-dramas I've watched in a long time, so I'm still quite happy for having watched it.

This series definitely re-ignited my love for the Xianxia genre. If you’re looking for intense dramas, complex storylines, beautiful costumes, and strong bonds, I’d definitely recommend this series. Also, aside from the original novel, there is also the manhua, donghua (the artwork for this is insane!!), audio drama, the 20 episode special edition, as well as 2 spin off movies to date (I love them too btw).

I know a lot of people have re-watched this so many times, but I'm really not someone who like to re-watch stuff, I couldn't even finish watching the special edition, because it was basically re-watching the drama to me.

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