Side Story of Fox Volant (2022)

You can't bring a sword to a gun fight.

Like many wuxia fans, I consider Jin Yong / Gum Yoong (Cantonese) the greatest wuxia writer of all time. Side Story of Fox Volant 飛狐外傳 is one of his early works. It was written shortly after The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain 雪山飞狐, which is both a prequel and a sequel. Unlike many versions that combine both novels, Side Story of Fox Volant is adapted as a stand-alone story. Despite some meaningful changes, this adaptation captures the essence of the original story, the spirit of martial heroes or daxia/大侠 and the vagaries of jianghu/江湖.

The drama is action packed with fast paced, intense, starkly violent and brilliantly choreographed combat sequences that will satisfy any hard core wuxia buff. Slow motion is used sparingly for maximum brutal impact. No one has magic qigong or special powers. The main fighters - Hu Yidao, Miao Renfeng, Hu Fei and Tian Guinong are swordsman with distinct combat styles and battle advantages. When they clash it is very muscular and lethally up close. The nimble Yuan Ziyi's weapon of choice is a whip, which minimizes close encounters to compensate for the physical disadvantage of being a woman. With each episode I think the action has to be as good as it gets but to my surprise and delight, the production keeps delivering into the final wulin arc. The wulin arc in terms of both plot design and action is the best I have seen. While Miao Renfeng and Hu Fei's martial teamwork in episode 22 may be the best of the best, the ending battle encounters are inventive, exhilarating and savagely satisfying. The action scenes are this drama's strongest point and are worthy of multiple thrilling re-watches.

I am not a fan of the trend of whitewashing characters, especially Jin Yong's characters. Jin Yong is the master of multi-faceted characters. His heroes are flawed. His villains have redeeming features. Nobody is perfect in the Jin Yong universe. So when writers have the audacity to tweak his characters, they usually muck it up. When it comes to earlier, less refined works like this, I don't mind so much as there is room for improvement. While this version does a good job with Yuan Ziyi, Hu Fei is disappointingly adapted beyond recognition. The attempt to make Tian Guinong and Nan Lan empathetic is nauseating and boring. This is one of the four don'ts Jin Yong specifically warned against in the preface to the latest edition of the novel.

This is one of the author's darker, more cynical works. Most of the characters love too well but not wisely - Hu Fei, Miao Renfeng, Cheng Lingsu, Ma Chunhua, and Nan Lan. The heart wants what the heart wants, consequences be damned. Nan Lan and Ma Chunhua are selfish and don't care who they hurt in the process while Cheng Lingsu, Hu Fei and Miao Renfeng are noble idiots. They all pay a terrible price for following their hearts. Yuan Ziyi is the only exception; she dares only to hate but not to love.

Yuan Ziyi is one of Jin Yong's most under appreciated and saddest heroines. She is the only heroine who is not an extension of the hero; she is on her own independent path to salvation. Born from an act of violence, she is consumed by self loathing; doomed by unkind karma to seek justice and then live a life of atonement for the sins of her father. In the context of her beliefs, if she breaks her solemn oath she will only prolong her bad karma. In the novel, she acts out and does very controversial things. These actions drown out her piteous backstory and make her a widely disliked character. This adaptation deftly writes out those events, enabling us to see her in a more empathetic light. Her shifu should have been left offscreen as her pressure obscures Ziyi's own resolve to keep her vow. I always feel terribly sorry for Ziyi; she never had free will. She is alive but she does not live. I am not sure that chanting sutras into oblivion is a better fate than death, which is final liberation from all suffering. I don't love Liang Jie's acting but her Ziyi impressed me. The slightest shadow of regret in her eyes in a stone cold face and her ability to convey so much beyond her words moved me to tears several times.

Even though Cheng Lingsu is a clever character, I never found her relatable because her entire reason for existence is Hu Fei. But to my surprise, I like Xing Fei's warm and personable rendition of Lingsu. Her Lingsu is devoted to Hu Fei without coming across as a doormat and she gets him out of many tight spots with her quick thinking. The complex entanglement between the three of them is well portrayed. Hu Fei's chemistry with Ziyi is tangibly different from his dynamics with Lingsu, making it immediately obvious who he loves and who loves him. He is much more of one heart with Ziyi and they instinctively act in unison with little need for communication or explanation. Whereas Lingsu is constantly reining Hu Fei in and giving him instructions that are at odds with his natural instincts. When he can't help disobeying, he appears reckless and unintelligent. This character flaw arguably contributes to what happens to Lingsu at the end. There are better ways to show that Hu Fei is less in sync with Lingsu without throwing his character under the bus.

Lin Yushen's Miao Renfeng steals the show in this drama. Criticism that his Miao Renfeng is too much like his Yang Xiao in Heaven Sword is fair but he is so cool and he pulls off the character's inner conflicts and emotions so well that I don't mind. This performance anchors the drama for he is the martial hero of this story, His code of honor demands that he does the right thing even when it is the wrong thing for himself and those he loves. I wouldn't object if they call this the Legend of Miao Renfeng because of this compelling portrayal of what it means to be a daxia. Even though he is movingly handsome when he is suffering, the story wallows in Miao Renfeng's betrayal and loss for too long. The tawdry Nan Lan/Tian Guinong arc is a boring extended digression. The opportunity missed is that Hu Fei and Miao Renfeng do not get enough scenes together. They have remarkable combined chemistry and their joint fight scene is the one of the drama's best.

As for the titular character Hu Fei 胡斐, (which is a homonym for fox volant or flying fox), I always loved his character design. Far from being infallible, he is a work in progress - young and smart with tons of potential but a bit hot headed and too idealistic. He is the people's hero; the guy who demands justice for the underdog regardless of the cost to himself. His best traits, this strong sense of righteousneous and his willingness to fight the unfair fight is dumbed down to recklessness and even stupidity in this adaptation. He is written off as a bull in the China shop whose hot headedness could wreck the Red Flower Society's mission to save wulin. He doesn't accomplish much on his own and without Ziyi and Lingsu, he'd have died many times. It does not help that despite his phenomenal acting, Qin Junjie looks a bit too mature to play an 18 year old.

Despite good pacing, the plot digresses into too many dull sub-plots and arcs. This is an issue with the original work, which this adaptation already cleans up considerably. The Nan Lan and Poison Valley disciple arcs are the least interesting and Hu Fei deserves to be less peripheral in the reveal of the conspiracy behind Hu Yidao's death. The wulin arc brings the story to a climax, one that exceeds that of the novel on some fronts but is a let down in other aspects. Good characters die in wuxias, it is par for the course. But their deaths must be worthy and not gratuitous. What I dislike most about the ending is that it unnecessarily sacrifices a knight errant after they capture the king. It is a futile sacrifice because you can't bring a sword to a gun fight. Sadly, the advent of guns heralds the demise of jianghu and martial heroes.

This is a good adaptation overall that is limited by original works that lack the finesse of Jin Yong's subsequent masterpieces. The novel is already too dark and unbalanced. It is not necessary to outdo Jin Yong in how incredibly cruel he is to Hu Fei. Despite its darkness, the novel still ends on a note of optimism because Hu Fei's journey continues. But in the drama Hu Fei seems to be left to live largely in the past with two women, one too old and too icky for him and another so young it would be too icky. Thus to me this is at best an 8.0 in terms of storytelling that I bump up to an 8.5 for the not to be missed fight scenes. Nonetheless, this wuxia takes you on a stirring and addictive journey that is well worth it - as long as you do not need a Disney ending.

Read More

Welcome to Thunderdome - Challenge Accepted!

Wuxia, wuxia, wuxia! Score! To be honest, I wasn't even going to pick it up originally because other then Xing Fei a bit, I didn't know anyone in the cast. But the fact that recommended sources told me that if I wanted a real wuxia that was written by someone well known for the genre, this was it. And I'm so glad I did. This was close to absolutely everything I had hoped this genre would be. Welcome to Thunderdome - challenge accepted!

Pros: Though I usually start this section with outlining my favorite characters, I have to begin by praising my favorite portion of the series; the martial arts! Absolutely fantastic and in just about every single episode or every other one. Every character performed very well when it came to those scenes, it made you just want to cheer for our heroes when they bagged another slime ball. I can't say enough about how much I personally loved the physicality of each sequence, each fight, each battle. I'd give those scenes 10s easily.

Favorite character was MRF; he was beautifully written and executed to perfection by his actor. This man was essentially living or existing in self-loathing and torture over the death of his sworn brother and wife. Running all over the world trying to find the truth of who the real killer was, was evident with every slump of his shoulders, every fruitless trip he made; seemed that with every betrayal, his eyes got gloomier and more despair filled. Only when he had his daughter did that ease a little bit but even until his dying breath he was protecting the ones he cared for and swore to protect and executing his revenge on the villain who sadly was right in front of him the entire time. A real man of honor. Didn't hurt that he looked like D'Artagnon from The 3 Musketeers with the long hair and goatee.

HF, our ML was also great especially as they showed him growing and maturing. Do wish he was less gullible sooner but those are small fries. As he traveled around and met more martial artists and just soaked up the knowledge and won each time he was put to the test, it was a cheerful moment, kind of like a goal at a soccer match. Probably the most touching moment for me in the entire series was when MRF knelt down and put his hand on HF's neck before he went to finish off TGN in episode 39. That real connection between sworn uncle and nephew, I wish it lasted forever. HF by that time knew MRF was innocent of his parents' deaths and MRF was finishing his vengeance and honoring the oath he made to HF's mother, to protect him. MRF's ultimate sacrifice to save HF and the others, I felt was a bit unnecessary as they could have escaped together as is. Though perhaps to him, death was actually more suitable to release him from all of the agony he'd lived with mentally and psychologically through the years knowing his daughter had her mother to take care of her. He could literally rest in eternal peace. So that one is a catch 22; what's better for the audience or the character.

Both of the female leads did very well. I really liked that though there were romantic feelings whirling around, romance wasn't forced into this series. It was a sad ending for all in that capacity but it did serve a purpose. I do wish things were written differently and that will be discussed below. If I had to choose, I do wish HF ended up with ZY as they had the most chemistry and there was no need to show sparks and whatnot; subtle love is fine too. Both women had their own strengths and helped HF grow while they were with him. Just like other people he met along the way, he became a hero in his own right because of the experiences ZY and CLS gave him.

Other favorite characters included official Zhou and his brothers; they were very smart when it came to their own self interests and when it was time to come and go; they were quite comical at times. The other sect leaders and brothers HF met along the way who taught him stuff and backed him up. I did like MCH but she really wasn't a smart person. In the absolute plethora of villains, the most convincing ones were vampire poison and TGN, though I do wish TGN had way less screen time.

Production was beautiful; from costumes, weapons, styling, sets and some of the OSTs. Very little to pick apart in this section.

Cons: This series nearly became the second costume drama to get a perfect score if it wasn't for the final episodes. This is where the really awesome pacing of the entire series became a runaway horse of we need to tie up every loose end somehow even if it looks completely bizarre. How did MCH know what was happening that she appeared on the gate tower to keep the gates open only to jump down and get shot with an arrow? They were so determined to kill her that this completely in-cohesive situation was created. Did she grow wings, learn telepathy, manifest a sword? It was so out of left field, one had no words. Also the swords vs rifles scenes just seemed very weird; bullets will kill a lot faster then a sword will unless you're a master martial artist or sacrificing yourself to protect others like MRF did.

Let's backtrack a bit to the idiot father-son duo whose arc took forever to end, the nun who essentially manipulated her disciple aka ZY into following her into becoming a nun too, instead of letting her follow her heart and be with HF. I hope the nun doesn't turn MCH's kids into monks but lets them choose their own paths as was decided by both their father and HF. There seemed too much heavy-handed approaches to situations that didn't need them. TGN and NL had way too much screen time and that was really the only time the drama got slightly boring; though she learned the truth in the end and chose the right path, she was too dumb for too long. Though TGN was one of the biggest villains, he was so annoying and childish, you wanted to shove him off a cliff the minute you met him. You knew immediately he was not a good person and that just snowballed from there.

Returning to the last episode, why couldn't CLS's death be written better? They literally waited until then to have her face off against vampire poison and his puny disciples; then when she starts to save HF who of course intervened to save her, she paralyzes him leaving him struggling, gaping like a fish out of water while she does her final monologue? It was all very inconsistent and haphazard. I think she deserved a better end since they decided on that. Killing vampire poison in a flashback HF has in the final maybe 5 minutes of the show was also very lackluster and unsatisfactory considering who he was and what he had done. Literally the last 1.5 episodes of this entire series botched what would have been a perfect score but otherwise the show was/is really great!

Would I recommend it? Absolutely, 100%! The last 1.5 episodes notwithstanding and a few parts in the middle, this series hit every aspect of a terrific wuxia. As far as I'm concerned, the challenge was met, accepted, and won!

Read More

A Martial Arts Lover's Dream Drama

Completed: 10/8/2022 - 8.25

I have not read the novel and don’t recall the HK adaptations that I watched when I was young. So this review is strictly based on how I feel when watching “Side Story of Snow Volant” as if it’s my very first time. This drama is a martial arts/wuxia lovers’ dream.

What I Like:

Martial Arts/Fight Choreography - It’s so rare to find a wuxia drama these days that reminds you of those back in the 80s and 90s. This drama is full of creative fight choreography and extended fast-paced fighting scenes (with minimal slow motion). We are treated to fight scenes with an array of weapons - swords, darts, whips, poison powder, spears, staff, shield, etc. But I am personally most excited to see many hand-to-hand combat and fist fights. Those are the best and the most exciting, and difficult for an actor to do well. Both Qin Jun Jie and Lin Yu Shen are believable martial arts experts, wielding their swords and kicking everyone’s butts. Although Liang Jie’s fight scenes are not as impactful strength-wise, she does not look weak and is quite a badass when swinging her whip. Moreover, this is one of the few dramas where you see exciting fight scenes frequently and throughout the whole drama from start to finish.

Acting - I am a fan of Qin Jun Jie and he doesn't disappoint. He plays the role of Hu Fei really well (though he does look a little old for an 18-year old). I enjoy seeing him play the inexperienced teenager in the initial episodes and follow his growth to be a more mature and smarter hero. Lin Yu Shen’s Miao Ren Feng might have stolen some thunder from Qin Jun Jie. Miao Ren Feng is a cool but pitiful character. It does remind me of Lin Yu Shen’s role in “Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre”, which he is also a fan favorite. I personally like the character in HSADSS more than in SSOFV. However, I think it requires more out of Lin Yu Shen to act with his eyes and facial expressions. He really doesn’t have too many lines in this drama. Our two female leads met my expectations. I have always been lukewarm towards Liang Jie and Xing Fei in their previous dramas, and I like them fine here.

Original voice - I am so happy that all of the actors use their own voices and there seems to be live recording on set as well. This is such a rare experience for wuxia dramas, as most of them are dubbed, and even more rare when none of them is dubbed!

Badass female leads - We have two smart, strong, and independent women in this drama. Not only are they not damsels in distress, they are actually the ones that bail Hu Fei out most of the time. There’s no jealousy between them and it’s refreshing to see a healthy love triangle where the male lead can’t go wrong with either one of them.


What I have Mixed Feelings about:

Pacing/Side Plots - I feel that the drama focuses too much on some of the side plots. The pacing is uneven for me, and I often lose my focus when there is no fight scene. There aren't any plot twists to keep me on the edge of my seat.
* Too much time is spent on the relationship between Tian Gui Nong and Nan Lan. They have no chemistry and their arc keeps on going in circles.
* Instead, I wanted more romance or scenes with Ma Chun Hua and Fu Kang An. Even with limited screen time, I can feel their chemistry so much more than the romance between Tian Gui Non and Nan Lan.
* Feng Tian Nan + Hu Fei cat-and-mouse chase lasts too long. I keep on waiting for Feng Tian Nan to die.
* I want more scenes between Hu Fei and Miao Ren Feng. They are the most popular characters but Miao Ren Feng disappears in the second half of the drama.
* I also wanted more scenes between Hu Fei and Yuan Zi Yi. I am on Team Zi Yi!

Romance - I read about the ending and knew coming in who Hu Fei will or will not end up with. I am on Team Zi Yi because I think she’s a better match with Hu Fei. They are both great martial artists and have a strong sense of justice. The first few episodes of them causing havoc are so much fun to watch. However, I would not say they have sizzling chemistry even though I am a fan of longing looks. I believe she is Hu Fei’s one true love till the end. On the other hand, Cheng Ling Su has always felt more like a close friend or little sister. I feel for her and how much she’s done for Hu Fei, but something is also missing. I am sure Hu Fei loves her too, but not the same type of love that he has for Zi Yi. This love triangle is really not a focus of this drama and it shows.

Political talk - There’s too much political talk in this drama. I was hoping the focus is more on the pugilistic world and the different sects. Too much time is spent on the court officials and how corrupted they are.


Because I love the fight scenes so much, and also how frequent they are, I am giving this drama a generous rounded up 8.5. Surprisingly, this is only an OK watch for me and it did not prompt me to hit the “next episode” button enthusiastically. I thought I would like this a lot more.

Read More

Old Style Wuxia, Best Martial Arts Fighting Scenes

I have always thought Jin Yong’s novels are better read than watched. That's because many of the elements, such as nei gong (內功), qi gong (气功) and qing gong (轻功), are better described in the written form than acted in the visual form, as these could not be shown on screen convincingly without good special effects. Though I love Jin Yong novels, so far, I have not fully enjoyed any of the drama adaptations. The Side Story of Fox Volant (The Young Flying Fox) is totally out of my expectation as the wuxia elements are excellently captured with no CGIs nor apparent camera tricks.

Over the years, this novel has been made into various movies and dramas. As with all Jin Yong stories, there is a lot of Jianghu martial arts fighting of various styles. In most today’s wuxia dramas, fighting is normally not the main focus, hence not given much screen time. But here in The Story of Fox Volant, martial arts are the essence. Most of the fighting styles are captured in details with great martial artists executing outstanding fighting choreography. These are some very impressive real fighting skills without too many camera effects as in other dramas. The fight choreography is authentic and stunning.

The story is set in China during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–1796) of the Qing dynasty. I normally don't like pigtail stories but this drama is exceptional. The actor who portrays Hu Fei the hero, is not your usual young idol with beautiful ethereal looking face. Qin Junjie looks rugged and common, and fits in realistically as the Hu Fei character who is upstanding and carries the noble “xiayi” (chivalry) motto of "路见不平拔刀相助" - drawing the sword to helping those unjustly treated. Unlike Donnie Yen Chi-tan or Bruce Lee, Qin Junjie is not known as a martial artist, but here, his body double (if any) seamlessly weaves into his fighting posture, making the overall fighting scenes very believable. Indeed, all fighting scenes, including the fighting scenes executed by the female characters, are so good and believable.

Apart from Hu Fei, Miao Renfeng (Lin Yusheng) is perhaps the most loved character. Holding his beloved daughter in a bundle in one arm, and wielding a sword in the other hand fending off assassins while the baby is sound asleep, this is perhaps the most iconic image of old time wuxia. His ending may tear many fans, but I say, "Fear not!", for a hero doesn't go down in silence.

Yuan Ziyi is Hu Fei's love interest and a very good martial art fighter with a whip. Together with Hu Fei, they set out to punish the bad and help the mistreated. I love the Yuan Ziyi (Liang Jie) character, but not so much Liang Jie's portrayal because the actor is rather stiff and lack the charisma for the role though she is very beautiful. The way she speaks is also quite unnatural.

Cheng Lingsu is a poison genius master who uses poison to heal and for defense. She is in love with Hu Fei but her love is not being reciprocated and she magnanimously accepts the outcome of their relationship. I find Xing Fei’s portrayal of Cheng Lingsu very good and convincing.

My Verdict

This drama takes a very different style and vibe. It may not appeal so much to the young viewers who may prefer watching their idols, nor appeal to romance buffs who prefer more romance as romance here is very subtle. However, if you are a martial arts buff, you’ll love this drama. As with all wuxia stories, this has a great wuxia philosophy of sacrificing self in upholding justice and righteousness, and that has also become the ending of some of the main beloved characters, to the dismay of many viewers. Most, if not all, of Jin Yong’s stories are very political, this one is no exception. Some of his novels were banned at one time or another (not banned anymore) in China and in Taiwan for political reasons. This story shows the hypocrisy of the government, its tyranny and its atrocities. Many of the depictions still ring true in today’s world. As the three brothers in the Qing guards dodging their duties say, “We don’t try to win, but we also don’t want to mess up”. In other words, "Let's just be mediocre and keep our heads", a satire of the current bureaucratic system.

Great watch! Recommended for martial arts buffs!

TWO THUMBS UP! BRAVO!

Read More

This is a good quality wuxia with awesome fighting scenes!

There are good and bad points but I would recommend for traditional wuxia buffs

What I like:
- Fighting scenes choreography
-Overall production value including soundtrack, cinematography, real scene location, minimal use of CGI etc
-great acting by most of the cast, I especially like XF and LYS
-likeable main roles especially CLS and MRF. Honorable mention to LXM, HF, YZY
-story never went off track and romance are restrained

What I dislike:
-TGN and NL love making sessions, and they are very whitewashed in this drama compared to novel
-ending is rushed esp in ep 39
-some important role was forced to die under unimaginable circumstances, and the body or death scene was not shown at all???
-why spend so much time for the bad poison junkies in ep 40?

Overall it's a decent quality wuxia despite the not fairytale hea ending. I would recommend for wuxia buffs who love beautifully choreographed fight scenes 👍🏻

Read More

Amazing Martial arts drama , Second male and second female leads were spectacular

I started watching this drama without much expectations rather than ,, I liked the leads from previous dramas and the trailer was amazing ,, I fell in love with the second male lead and his story ,,, he made me cry so hard for him and his sad journey
but he stole the screen every time he shows up ,, WOW!!
I can't say enough about how amazing the second male lead is in this and the fight scenes were the best
no fantastical elements just old school classic Wuxia martial arts drama
the first male lead was okey but kind of naive at first annoying sometimes
the female lead was a badass at first ,, I loved her fight scenes so much but then the plot became slower and kind of draggy
the second male lead disappeared for about eight episodes and I kept looking for him
the side stories were some what boring but not too boring to drop the drama ,, the villains were many but they were defeated one by one ,, overall this drama is very good drama with a lot of thrilling situations and amazing fight scenes
the chirography of the fight scenes and how the leads play their roles fighting was so much more than any other martial arts wuxia drama
My highlight episodes were ep 22 , 23 also the last few episodes were amazing
you won't regret it watching it if you are into Wuxia fight dramas but if you watching for the romance you won't be happy

Read More

If you love wuxia aka martial arts, you'll love this :)

I enjoyed watching this drama so much. The plot was good, the acting was great, and the characters were likable and unlikable to watch. This drama is about the MC, HuFei, who is on a journey to find out who murdered his parents.

The support casts were great too, especially MuRoFen; I like how the actor portray MRF and all the facial expressions were so good. The fight scenes were all done so well and amazingly. I love MRF's fight scenes the most, he really steals the show for all his fight scenes. (I don't know anything about wuxia or kungfu, but it was so captivating to watch MRF fight scenes) :).

HF thought that MRF's killed his parents, but later he found out it was this Tian guy. MRF and HF team up and eventually reveal the truth about the palace martial art tournament and revenge for HF's parents.

HF also has an unrequited crush on purple dress girl, but she promised to beocme a nun so their ship never progress :(. Although he did revenge for her because her "dad" is a POS.

HF also is a good friend of flower poison girl and she likes him, but HF only treats her as a sister :(.

That's about it.

Read More

Authentic wuxia, Underrated drama is better than expectation and Xing Fei shines as Cheng Lingsu

I came in without expectation only to watch Xing Fei but pretty pleased at the authentic wuxia and like many others said the awesome fighting scenes. The script get quite messy sometimes though but the action scenes always become the saviour.

While I'm not pleased the drama's fxxcked up ending I'm pleased at Xing Fei's acting and how her character is written. Cheng Lingsu is sooo loveable and it shows Xing Fei is not just an idol drama heroine. Her one sided love and sacrifice for ML is touching and moving. I'm also pleased at other her other costars acting Liang Jie, Lin Yushen, Qin Junjie, Maggie Huang, Ye Xiangming, little Xiao Mei all did a good job. I just don't like Peter Ho's OTT acting. Other than Cheng Lingsu I also like MRF character, he is the soul of jianghu in the drama and I think his ending was written badly. Lingsu's arch nemesis Shi Wanchen baldy was a bad guy but he was entertaining too, I wished there are more cool poison wars.

Read More

A Jin Yong Adaptation with Strong Advantages and Disadvantages

Positives:
-Choreography is excellent. There are some dizzying camera movements at times but it should be among the best in chinese drama of the last decade. Among recommended fighting episodes are 4, 9, 17, 18, 21, 22, 37, 38, 39 and many more. The choreographer deserves recognition, I only know that the action group is led by Director Cao Hua.
-Nice cinematography and clever use of light and shadows at certain scenes to produce a beautiful picture.
-Thoughtful costumes and art direction. It does look like Qing dynasty(except some anti Qing characters)
-Carefully applied BGM, the music are nicely done. OST are decent.
-All actors can act, and credit goes to where its due it's so hard to film an martial arts action drama in the hot Hengdian summer
-Most of the main actors are using their original voice

Negatives:
-Script. The main line is nicely written and follow the basis of novel but it is flat to me and did not arouse much emotion. The sub lines are either too modified to be irritating or too extended and boring.
-Too many characters and sub lines making the story moves slowly and disjointed, some sub lines such as Nan Lan and Tian Gui Nong and Fu Kangan and Ma Chunhua could be made more compact without those slow flirting scenes or too much emphasis on those palace characters.
-This drama has no promotion, all the budget are said to be spend on production that they can't hire a good marketing team. What a waste for a rare recent wuxia with proper fighting sequence.

Others:
Despite my complains about their script, other than the wuxia, I especially enjoyed characters such Miao Renfeng and Cheng Lingsu that is brought to life by Lin Yushen and Xing Fei.
-Miao Renfeng - This Miao Renfeng is a bit different from the novel and has been met with some criticisms from novel fans because of this, but he stands out in every scene despite having limited air time. Lin Yushen should make more wuxia, all his fighting scenes look neat and agile, and he excels at subtle emotional scenes. He can be charismatic in a modern character such as Dating in The Kitchen, but when he's in a wuxia drama as a tragic hero with a sword, the charisma is multiplied by 10.
-Cheng Lingsu - Xing Fei managed to grab a very good character this time and she executes it in a lovely way. I can't find anything to dislike about Cheng Lingsu, and her crying and emotional scenes are effortlessly natural. That's it, she's playing Cheng Lingsu very naturally. She's growing on me as an actress for sure.

All in all, it's a rare decently produced wuxia drama in the past decade, but its not without obvious disadvantages.

Read More

JIN YONG NOVEL SERIES

First 4th episodes were so great, amazing fighting choreography, great setting, realistic personas, minimum make up, reminded me so much of Hongkong Cinematography. But then Female lead came out and she's so roboty and plainly blah, I dropped it. Liang Ji (FL) was so bad, she needs to take up more acting classes; expressionless, aunty face, iron posture, weird hairdo. As recommended from a friend, decided to continue watch it again. Glad I did, it turned out this drama worth to watch. Like other Jin Yong's books, all full of action and dynamic from martial art world. Some Kungfu masters who had strong characters,
ambition to win the world of truest hero(s), reproachable unconditional love. I love JIn Yong, I grew up reading his novels, proficient with his style of background and characteristic of his characters and story. I can feel his style was being manifested visually into an action drama but pretty sure the girls didn't hold up the candle.

There are many veteran actors supporting this drama, setting on early Qing Dynasty on 18th century (about 1776) backdrops - the costume and hairstyle were very distinguished which in my opinion is the worst costume in Chinese dynasties, Imperial strategy to weaken the Martial Art world by manipulating heroes to kill each other, planting misunderstanding and hatred to their amidst, promoting fighting competition to be named number 1 hero in the world as the imperialism strive to becoming stronger. The story line was based on overly ambitious men of power, fame and greed. The complication of love interest that were not reciprocal for reasons...

For I think this one is one of the best fighting choreography. Realistic setting, costumes and make up, great soundtracks. Although there wasn't a happy ending, no expectation of marriage or kissing scene - it just straight men's competition of Martial Art World with so many coincident, luck, sorrow, greed, ambition, manipulation, or even downfall. Plain ending..

Read More

Surprisingly good to watch!

When I first read the summary I thought this was going to be the usual cliché revenge story, which is was, but there was an extra "humph" that I didn't expect and I ended up enjoying this drama more than I expected it to. If you're looking for a good wuxia fighting drama, this is gold rating and you definitely cannot skip any episode!! Because every episode have an action packed fighting scene. All the fighting scenes were wonderfully choreographed. It was so refreshing to see people using only fist and weapons. Yes! There's no flying beams, or thrown energy balls (xanxia's CGI of superpowers just don't make sense sometimes). Just good old fashion fist with your choice of weapon.
As for the acting, I absolutely love watching all the main characters on screen. Qin Junjie really brings life to the simple Hu Fei. No matter who or what Lin Shen plays, I just can't stop watching him. He really pour all the acting into his facial expressions when playing Miao Renfang. Our two female leads played their parts so well, I had no complaints. I liked that they are both written and acted as strong women who can stand alone and even better with our male lead. Actually, I liked all the side characters. Even baby Roulan was enjoyable to watch .^_^. I think my favorite side characters were the three officials who's not entirely bad, nor entirely good. They pick their side whenever the situation fits them and strangely enough it always helps Hu Fei out. We also cannot forget our "villains". Although they weren't written as well as our main characters, they were nicely acted out.
The storyline have a lot going on. I mean it basically followed Hu Fei before he was born all the way to his adulthood. So 40 episodes does not allow you to include every sweet little detail, but it was a pace that I can follow and accept. Romance has a light touch, excluding Hu Fei and Ziyi's story. But I feel it didn't impact the story as much. The story line was still able to progress regardless if you give attention to the romance. I actually kind of like that they don't get hung up on it. How Miao Renfang and Nan Lan fell in love was a 15 minute scene where he basically saves her from the bad guy and the story moved along. I like it simple like that. Each arch moved along smoothly and was not hung up for any longer than 2 or 3 episodes.
I thoroughly enjoyed all the songs. Since I'm done with the drama now, I have it on repeat just to get it out of my system .>_<.
Will I re-watch it? Definitely! How can I say no to those awesome fight scenes with Qin Junjie and Lin Shen!

Read More

Sensuality and Death

It was a very good series. I got pretty emotional while watching it. There was a lot of action, a lot of fight scenes. There were too many hit-and-miss scenes and too many deaths. As such, the feelings that spread to those left behind, of course, passed on to me while watching. My only reservation from the drama was Qin Jun Jie. I love her very much. I watch your shows. Nice, fun player. He's into comedy. There are plenty of action and fight scenes in this series as well. Of course he wins them all. But the actress is already tall but thin. She doesn't have a flamboyant body. Not athletic. Also, it is recommended because they don't dress according to him. He looks both very thin and frail in those clothes. So, you say, what kind of hero is this? So that was not taken into account. When did it come to mind, in the last scenes. If only they had remade the clothes there. The actor would have displayed a more imposing, more tidy stance. I put a minus here. Otherwise, I really liked the cast. Valuable players. Liang Jie, Xing Fei, Lin Yu Shen, Ye Xian Ming, and others were very, very good. They fit well in their roles. Our supporting players were also excellent. The effects of the series on being so beautiful and watchable are huge. Of course, there are many mistakes, redundancies, things that should not be, fantastic events. There may be people who didn't like it, but I watched it with passion. I like. It was the kind of show I loved. And when there are famous actors and strong players, the pleasure of watching increases even more. I congratulate our director for this. He's been very busy. God bless your hands. It is an ideal series for those who like action and fight scenes, who enjoy emotionality, a little love and romance, friendship events. I advise.

Read More