Great Drama
I have never seen any of the actors in a drama before, so I'm not watching this as a fan.I watched it because the FL character seemed cool.
The best thing about this drama is how the director made each shot look pretty. The fight scenes are like dancing. I've taken so many screenshots here, because it's just so pretty. The music goes with the scenes and I thought the production was the best thing about this drama.
The story was interesting. It slowed a bit between ep. 12-16 and I thought I saw a lot of plot holes but they might have been purposely placed there. lol.
The logic wasn't too hard to follow and I didn't have to wrack my brains to follow any of the intrigue.
I was most drawn to the Gong Shang Jue/Shanghuan Qian and Gong Yuan Zhi story.
I found them way more interesting than the main leads. The story tries to develop the other characters besides the main characters (which is great) and I just kept getting interested in Gong Shang Jue/Shanghuan Qian and Gong Yuan Zhi. Their story, I found was more touching/interesting.
I don't think the story was perfect but this drama kept getting me hooked.
The weakness is the romance. I just don't buy it, because it's all based on lies. However, I watch dramas for entertainment and not necessary the romance, and I thought this drama has a more interesting story than other dramas. The romance isn't the main feature of this drama, so it was ok. They didn't focus on it.
If you're looking for something interesting, check this out.
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stunning visuals, great acting, very poor story
The production value of this series is absolutely amazing, costumes, sets, scenes are truly amazing. There's a host of very likeable side characters and complicated back stories.however the story itself, while has the potential of amazing spy drama, is extremely weak. The production decided that instead of shooting the story to at least indicate the plots that are happening, they jsut shot a story of a mildly intelligent guy stumbling along, then at the end within one episode showed us a host of scenes that directly contradict everything we watched for 23 episodes to tell us that the main lead is truly smartest of the smartest schemers! it's a cheap way to tell the story, it means that there's no value in analyzing any of the scenes as they are all going to be contradicted at the end.
that was a huge disappointment of the movie. the way characters choices and motivations are often just stupid or made obviously for dramatic effect instead of any gain for them.
Last 5 minutes of the show are rage inducingly stupid I have to say. there's absolutely no reason for that scene, no logical explanation at all.
All in all amazing visuals but no rewatch value other than in gifsets.
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THE 2ND LEADS HAD THE BEST CHEMISTRY
Overall, the plot, storyline, music, characters were CHEF KISS. I liked the fl and sfl, however the ml was kinda bland for me. Personally I enjoyed the story between the sml and his didi and the 2nd lead couple more than the main couple. Usually, when this happens, I drop the drama if screen time is done no justice to the second leads, however in this drama, all characters really shined and got their screen time.I honestly was not expecting to like the 2nd lead couple more but man, was their chemistry on FIRE. Like they could literally just be looking at each other and it would still give me butterflies. The way they protrayed the 2nd ml to be absolutely stone cold on the outside but every once in a while will break off his mask and show slight affection towards the 2nd fl literally got me blushing screaming kicking my feet fr. And SGQ was an absolute icon, fav character fr, her actor did an AMAZING job at portraying her. The way I could never tell what she was thinking and planning until the end, you will legitimately sit there thinking if her last monologue in the show was lie or not.
Anyways I swear they need to film another season cause girl what was that ending- especially GSJ SGQ we need them together ASAP
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Good wuxia drama
I'm not sure why this drama rates so highly. I like that it's a wuxia rather than xianxia as I prefer the former genre. The story was very fast moving and interesting initially. There was mystery and a whodunnit (or rather who's the real assassin) in the first 10 episodes However, it became really slow moving and draggy in the middle when they were expounding the love stories and back stories of each character.Since I was already halfway through, I gritted my teeth to finish it. The fact that the show only has 24 episodes in total is the reason that I gave it a better rating - at least I didn't feel that I was (overly) wasting my life watching this! All the main characters were also eye candy - that certainly helped.
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Worth watchiing!
especially for Ryan Cheng’s acting. He’s fierce and intense (and very handsome). He and the 2nd FL have good chemistry and make the story interesting. The ML and FL didn’t have much chemistry but at least Esther Yu changed her annoying baby girlish voice to a whispering voice.I love that the sister had a completely different personality than female characters in most dramas. She was shamelessly pursuing Jin Fan. I found her character was quite refreshing.
Overall, I recommend this drama. It wasn’t perfect in any way but still worth watching.
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You must not fall in love
Omg this drama was so dark it almost tainted my heart. First of all i think you really need to like dark psychology or you should have to be intelligent to grip the plots of this drama. Everyone in this drama is smarter then other. Its like an endless war of how to act and react in every single situation. Everyone is very cunning but at the end of the day everyone had a heart. It showed the endless battle for freedom.Alot of us actually missed some key points regarding the ending Because noway from the start i was expecting a happy ending. The drama was meant to left incomplete. As we all know ziyu always wished to have a life outside of the gong residence. Meanwhile it was already revealed that there are only 4 wangs and 2 Liang leaders so obviously wushang is not completely shut.
The purpose of drama was to never show an unrealistic ending where there is forever peace. Instead to show the understanding for wushang people that they can choose to be happy. And gong people that not everyone in wushang deserves to die. It also showed how every single character came out of their dilemma and fight to achieve what they wanted. It really showed how all of them can go though sunset and wait for our sun rise. It also showed no matter how cruel and cold blooded you are, you are still a human and it still hurts to be a human.
I am eager to see season 2.
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Amazing cinematography
This drama has amazing aesthetic and cinematography. Every scene is a cinematic masterpiece. The set is beautiful, unique and the approach taken to add the set in the scene was very thoughtful. Amazing styling. All the actors had particular costumes and accessories that was unique to their character. Very good performance by all the actors - leads as well as supporting actors. Despite this I feel the story is a bit disjointed at times. I wish they could have improved on the story and built up the climax. And that ending...... not a fan of open endings.Was this review helpful to you?
actually watched the whole thing
this is the first wuxia drama where i actually watched everything with barely any skips & understood what was going on LOLso much is happening but at the same time nothing is , have to give points to the production bc it kept me wanting to know what happens next. the plot could have been better, yes! but it is good enough
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What a twist!!!
I feel like i'm a clown while watching this drama because they got me EVERY SINGLE DAMN TIME WITH THEIR TWISTS. I love everything about this drama EXCEPT WHATEVER THAT ENDING WAS, like i need to know what happen to yun weishan and what is the meaning of gong ziyu face expression? I NEED TO KNOW. But overall ut was a fun ride and i enjoy it soo much.(+) honorable mention to the director because his directing was amaaaazing, i will definitely watch dramas that he direct in the future.
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Captivating start but…
it ended not just without an ending but with a feeling of sadness. A double whammy of dislikes for me.Had the beginning episodes not been so engaging, my rating for this drama would have been lower. The story starts off very strong at episode 1 and I was hooked especially with the dark feel of this drama. So much intrigue and seeing the assassins smartly make their moves kept me glued to my screen. My rating at this point was a 9.
When the ML had his 3 trials, I was fascinated as the storyline on this trials was not what I was expecting as I thought the trials would be more physically related. The chemistry between the leads was nice enough and I enjoyed watching the FL being so dark and serious unlike in her previous drama where she was naive and chirpy.
While having touches of humour are a good idea, I did not appreciate the extreme and absurd way one of the female characters was written. Her over exaggerated movements and lustfulness was too much of a jarring contrast to the overall tone of this drama.
Quite a lot of the story is told in flashback style to give us lots of aha moments so you’ll have to be patient as certain parts of the story are left hanging and makes you wonder if it will be answered later on or become a plot hole. Lots of death and this drama seems to focus on making it as sad and drawn out as possible so it got a bit tiring when it overdid it.
The reveal at the end was good and seeing the whole family come together and that they had each other’s back was one of the highlights. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of how the drama went a step further and made the ending open ended and sad.
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Why... Oh why...
This drama I can say one of the best wuxia this year. The complexity of the story, the beautiful character played by all the actor & of course the chemistry between the cast, make this drama so beautiful. But unfortunately, the ending make me want to cry.... & that's why I decided to lower the score a little bit.This drama by far, one of the most interesting characters that Esther Yu ever played that I've ever watch. In this drama, we didn't meet the happy go lucky or cheerful usual character played by Esther Yu. Her character here quite gloom & serious & have layered. And I don't think that annoying voice that everyone bother about her voice can be heard here, i don't know if that's dubbed or not tho....
This drama tells story about 2 big powers in martial art, good (Gong family) & bad (Wufeng). Our ML, Gong Zi Yu (ZY) comes from Gong family while our FL, Yun Wei Shan (WS), comes from Wufeng. The story started with the chance Wufeng had to infiltrate Gong family when they open their door for bride selection for their young master who already come of age.
When the plot run, we got to know that Wufeng not only send one of their spies, but 2, with each have their own mission to be completed. And as the story goes, we got to know the character more & their own stories. But this drama not only about the spies of Wufeng & their own mission inside the Gong family. But the messy drama inside the Gong family itself.
The story began with the dead of the head family, ZY's dad & ZY's oldest brother, or you can say the heir. Without the lead & the heir, the elders in the family must decide to pick the next leader, and by all the luck it falls to our ML, ZY. ZY himself at first only one of the sons in the family that, you can say, the most spoiled young master in the family that no one expect him to be the lead. But all the sudden circumstances make all the elders have no choice but to pick him. That's why at first ZY must prove himself worthy to be the lead, especially to his second brother, Gong Shang Jue (SJ). But in the end ZY still our ML right, not only he proves himself worthy to be the leader, but he also proves his own true quality.
I really like the story & how the layered of the story peeled itself when the drama progress. The chemistry between the lead, WS & ZY, SJ & Shang Guan Qian, and also the funny Gong Zi Shang (ZS) & Jin Fan. ZS herself maybe the most interesting character here,Ii really like her shameless yet bitter attitude.
Overall, this really good WuXia drama this year. Without such ending I'll gonna give this drama much higher score....
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Mysteries, puzzles, slow-burn romance, exhilarating action
It's a beautiful drama . The actors all have eye candy faces. Watching this drama feels more like watching a high budget hollywood fantasy movie (even though there aren't that many fantastical elements in this one).
This is one of the few Chinese dramas that I watched where some of the characters make impressive entry scenes at crucial moments to protect the ones they love.
This is also one of the few dramas where I see the way the main female lead shields the main male lead (from hair-breadth-danger )being presented in a glamorous, epic manner. All the shots are excellent because the director has got the timing right while taking shots of all crucial moments.
All the actors and actresses, especially the main male lead looks breathtakingly, ethereally elegant, mesmerising. In the very first shot of the main male lead itself, he looks so handsome that I was at a loss for words. The makeup artists and visual effects editing teams etc must have put in a lot of efforts to make everyone even the most ordinary -looking supporting character look remarkably special. 😍 In this drama, all main characters look like walking gods and goddesses. I had to check again to ensure that this is a wuxia, not a xianxia. 😅
Now, coming back to the main topic, plot revolves around one big prominent sect , 'the Gongs' who calls the shots in everything concerning the martial world, and an equally powerful rival sect, 'the Wufeng' who mainly specialize in factory-production of spies. The spies are all trained and sent with missions to harm the powerful Gongs in one way or the other. The story begins that way...
I was just dissatisfied with three things:
1) the death of female lead's raven: this wasn't necessary. They should've made him live --- not killed that character.
I especially loved the dialogue, "You are the Yun Weishan in my heart! "
Omg that monologue is it's so deep!
2) the death of lady Wuji: really not necessary. They could at least written a more merciful death scene for her(if the director wants a death scene for her that much!)
3) the ending: everything in episode 24 was being perfectly wrapped up. They even showed how the villianous elder brother ended up.
They could've just wrapped up the ending nicely instead of producing a fresh mystery to solve.
Thankfully, Yun Weishan told Gong Ziyu that she has a twin before leaving... So that's some relief. Even if as some viewers say, if it's her twin who takes her place, he'll find out if something is amiss( considering the point that he's observant & smart).
Still, in my opinion, the whole story could've been wrapped up, sealed and ended in this season 1 itself.
Why kill viewers like me with anticipation?
But if I overlook the three points I specified above, everything about this drama is good & unique.
This drama really stands out as a good drama but with an extremely unsatisfactory ending.
There are also too many rules and clan obsession in the story which won't even allow the main lead to venture out --- travel in the outside world.
Too many rigid rules restrain the lead as well main supporting characters.
Would like to watch a season 2 or watch special episodes were the main leads as well as main supporting characters figure out solutions to bend the rigid rules, especially to evade the main problem that prevents the main male lead from travelling to the outside world.
Because it's really impractical if the main lead shuts himself in like that just because the other half of the blueprint in tattoed onto his back.
The progression of the plot including the ending is written out in such a way that it'll be hard for the main male lead as sword weilder to sustain the tradition of never venturing into the outside world forever.
Watched the trailers before watching this drama. From the trailer, understood that this is a wuxia story, so didn't expect much romance.
Still, it'd would have been nice if they could've given more depth for the love felt by both main female leads in the story... The second female lead (shangguan Qian) was really a disappointment in that aspect.
The biggest surprise could be as an audience member, you might feel resentful towards one of the second main male leads, Gong Shang Jue.
But that very character will turn out to be someone you admire the most in the end because he turns out to be almost as gentle and kind as the main male lead, Ziyu. Gong Shang Jue just happens to be a severe, strict character, but who in the end, is like a lighthouse for the some of the important characters in the story, especially the main male lead. He also turns out to unexpectedly have a gentle, kind side which he doesn't like revealing to the world.
And of course, when it comes to the main male lead, Gong Ziyu is the best among all characters in this drama(and this is biased opinion from my side).
He just knows how to handle everything well. He is so well balanced in personality, character.
I was just disappointed with the way he handled the execution news of his foster mom. His inaction there really knocked my breath away, but that aside, the male lead is perfect in every other aspect.
This drama could've have ended with a satisfactory happy ending. Bur at the last moment, the director had to throw the spanner in the works.
Hope there will be special episodes or a season 2 to wrap up the mysterious ending nicely.
By the time you finish watching this drama, you'll be left in suspense... "So, what happened in the end? "
Why does the male lead have that flabbergasted expression? 😅
The osts of this drama are real good, especially one of the theme songs, "Bestow dreams". The duet version of that song is even more beautiful.
This is one of the few Chinese dramas where I like some of the osts sung by male singers because all of them sound good.
All in all, each episode of the drama is engaging, filled with mysteries to solve, and the last episode ending with a big suspense (Which is the only flaw of this drama in my pov) .
Regarding the romance and love aspects, the main male lead seem to be the only one fighting for love as a one man army, but by second last episode, the female lead seems to be warming up to the male lead with almost the same intensity...
This makes the ending even more dissatisfactory to watch because you could get concerned about the ending oc the main couple's love story...
When it comes to cinematography, this is one of the best dramas. This drama has beautiful, elegant, powerful action scenes. Watch out for all intense action scenes in episode 22! It's one of the best episodes of this drama with all the important characters coming together in one episode itself to participate in fierce battles.
What you'll love most about this drama is the huge amount of suspense, mysteries. Every episode leaves you wondering about something (and that includes the ending too). 😄
By the time you reach the second last episode, you'll end up admiring the smartness of the main male lead and the big, brotherly heart of the second main male lead.
This is also one of the few Chinese dramas where you will enjoy watching the romance of a 'guard' character which is absolutely unique, comical at the same time romantic and full of tenderness.
To sum up, this drama can be summed up in four words: action, mystery, suspense, romance.
Even when the drama ends, viewers will be left with some half answered questions in their heads regarding the female lead's identity, how she acquired her skills etc.
Must give this drama a try if you don't mind watching an unfinished ending.
This drama definitely makes you think as you watch each episode...
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