The Legend of the Condor Heroes (2008)

There, I've done it! I never give 10/10 to the best of romance dramas but when it comes to wuxia, this one is my favourite (next only to the 2003 Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils aka Tian Long Ba Bu). I guess this means that despite how varied my love of drama is, I am inadvertably and irreversibly a die-hard wuxia fan first and foremost!

This is the best adaptation of the Legend of the Condor Heroes. Many may disagree because the storyline did not follow exactly as what was written by Louis in his novels. However, this is a modern interpretation of his novels with depth added into it.

I like it that more focus is given to the evil character and explains why he became evil. I like it that more depth was given to the main character's struggles. I am a personal fan of Hu Ge. Anyone who is a lover of wuxia knows Hu Ge. In this drama, he fully and successfully depicted the character and feelings of the often honest and naive Guo Jing. I am also a fan of Yuan Hong who did a brilliant job playing the evil character. Traditionally, viewers and readers will curse Yang Kang (the evil character) for his betrayal but in this version, it actually shows why Yang Kang betrayed his family and friends and you actually will get to sympathise with him. At the end when he dies, you will feel sorry for him. In this aspect, Legend of the Condor Heroes 2003 has successfully engaged the viewers.


I love the OSTs and the meaning of the words in the OSTs. Life is full of struggles and you are often pushed to make decisions you do not want to make. Both Guo Jing and Yang Kang experience this but the difference between both is the choice they make and the strength/integrity of their characters. Who would have thought that wuxia will not only provide you action, entertainment and romance, but life's lessons as well?? Watch this. You will not be disappointed!

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I finally watched this long but amazing drama , my main motivation was seeing Ariel Lin in another historical drama I won't hide it she's my favorite actress , she did not fail to prove it once again that she can do great job and for that I'm so glad I had the courage to start ''Legend of the Condor Heroes", it's was worth the Watch ;D . The cast was also really tempting : Ariel Lin , Hu Ge , Yuan Justin that I absolutely loved in Bu Bu Jing Xin the same goes with Liu Shi Shi whom I truly respect as an actress ! So to be able to watch this drama there's no secret : you have to be patient and if you can't handle long drama , you can watch it little by little and never forget that in this kind of drama there are a lot of fabulous characters that make the show more enjoyable .

I personnaly enjoyed the drama of course it's not perfect and I was not expecting some masterpiece just to be entertained and appreciate the story and all the actors' effort because here they all did an awesome job and I'm so thankful for that , I loved them all , the evil , the good and also the naive ones ! There's also a good thing in this drama , it tells us not to avenge our precious friends/family's death because it will always lead to never ending deaths , yeah what Hong Qi Gong said really touched me because he was so right but at the same time it's really not easy not to kill the ones who made us suffer. I think that anyone can enjoy in this long journey , there are everything in this drama , some good romance ( the second couple) , good wuxia , friendship , amazing interactions and discussions between Masters and their disciples , revenge , love and also hatred ! 50 eps is not so long when there are all those things put altogether well , believe me !

The cast :
I'm pretty satisfied with the actors chosen for this show , they were definitely all great , some were innocent and nice but very skillful , others smart and also skillful but at the same time a bit calculative (but in a good way) , vicious and evil etc .

So now I will talk about the characters :
Hong'er : this girl is so skillful , smart, fearing nothing and nobody , also calculative not in a pejorative way just that when she wanted to obtain something she always knew how to take action ( using some tactics and deceive the enemy ) I also like how she speaks to elders she respects them of course but they don't intimidate her .
Jing'er: was a brave innocent skillful guy , always helping others when they were in difficult situations maybe that's what I like the most about him , I was always hoping to see some changes in him because he was so brainless and if Rong'er was not here to help him he would not have been so powerful in martial arts , so I think He became what he is thanks to her also I was a little bit surprised seeing him more like a real man near the end I thought he would never change , good point but it was too late .
Furthermore I just want to say that Rong'er & Jing'er's personalities complemented each other , the first one is smart and calculative and the other is really gentle and skillful , good combo ;D
Ouyang Ke : I sincerely love this guy he was so charismatic , skillful , calculative ( that's why at some point I wanted him to be with Hong'er because even if their personalities are really different they could have made a great couple since they are both intelligent ) . He was always scheming behind other's back but I did not care I simply loved him .
Hong Qi Gong : the first time I saw this guy I was so amazed , so gentle guy , I loved the way he deals with others ''give me food and I will teach you martial arts'' of course he could help them without getting food but that was his way of dealing , I love his first encounter with Hong'er & Jing'er it was so funny . He's always willing to help people and he has not something in his mind , he does not want to harm others or to steal their riches to get more power. For me he is the best in the pugilistic world .
Kang'er , first of all I really liked him in the beginning , such a good guy , intelligent but not as much as Hong'er & Ouyang Ke but he has brain , and then he lost his mind and became evil , there was time I truly wanted to kill him , he got more and more evil and Nianci his lover could not help him, talking about Nianci Most of the time, we only see her when she is with Yang Kang and I think there's no really depth in her character , that's a waste of talent . And I just wanted to say , their first encounter was so electric and right away I felt chemistry between them and wanted them to be together .
I did not forget Zhou Botong who was the craziest character here !
The villains are good too , but not so hateful beside Ouyang Feng who was so obsessed with martial arts , a crazy and heartless Man .
If I have to choose only 3 favorites characters my vote will go for : Hong'er , Hong Qi Gong and Ouyang Ke .

The music :
I think all the songs here fitted perfectly with the atmosphere of the drama , I particularly liked the ending theme , the opening was good too but I won't listen to it as it was just fine for the show . There is another song I loved but I can't identify the title .

I won't rewatch this drama , just probably some scenes with Rong'er , Hong Qi Gong, Ouyang Ke and Zhou Botong, that's all !

And to finish with this review I'll just say that If you're a big fan of Wuxia , and of some of the actors you must definitely give it a try and I'm pretty sure you won't regret it , maybe the special effects that are awful but at least I prefered to laugh hihi .
PS : If you're a big big fan of Ariel Lin you must watch it because she's such a badass a smart girl in this drama , without her it wouldn't have been the same .

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