This is a political intrigue period drama series written for the current jaded, modern audience.
Finally, a period drama that has expansive political intrigue as its main story rather than being window dressing for a romantic relationship. Phoenix Hearts strips off the worst excesses of the idol drama - bloated, patched together story, repetitive boring tropes, actors cosplaying in MV style shoots. What it delivered is a return to basics of good visual storytelling - tightly written plot, fleshed out characters, good acting (by everyone!), and a story that leaves you guessing every single episode.
Why Key to Phoenix Heart fits the current audience:
- PACING : the era of long winded, indulgent long stories is over, the modern audience does not have the patience to sit through long story telling or bloated fluff, as evidenced by the prevalent use of the fast forward button. If you don't capture the audience on the first episode or even the first 10-15 minutes, you will lose them. Phoenix Heart delivers a fiery start right from the first 10 minutes of ep 1 (figuratively and literally), took off running and does NOT stop. 3-4 EPs tell a story that any other drama will take 30+ EPs to tell. Every few EPs feel like a finale. But it does not sacrifice coherence, clarity, or character development. It is simply very concise and effective in telling its story.
- TROPES: the current audience has seen everything, all tropes that you can name and variations of them. Phoenix tricked you into expecting one and then it whipped off sideways and left you spinning in the dust. Unlike other series, the audience here does not have omniscient viewpoint, so we're left scrambling to keep up while the multiple chest players' plots crashed on top of each other and the final winner is never quite who you expect. Every episode brings a bombshell reveal that upsets the status quo, and you're left guessing what is going to happen next. And that's how we like it.
- WOMEN'S PORTRAYAL: this series never advertise itself as feminist. And yet all the women in the series, from the women in power, concubines, down to the female guard and maidservant has their own purpose in life that does not revolve around men. They do not do petty power struggle within the household, they are not invisible or two dimensional dolls whose sole purpose is to advance the plot. They have their own strength and abilities, pursue their own career, with or without a man in their life. When they do have a partner, it is because they choose to do so. While there is no lack of arranged marriages here (in fact the two leads are in an arranged marriage), they do not lose their autonomy or ambition after or become a fixture of their husband. There isn't any deliberate focus on the matter, they simply and matter-of-factly show you what competent, confident women look like, and it's more powerful than any feminist slogans.
Phoenix Key does not have a lot of budget, and in some areas it shows. Some sections are 'told' rather than 'shown', some plots can benefit from further fleshing out and a few scenes that require more people can look a bit sparse. However it does not detract from what it delivers - a fully cohesive story that grips you to the end, a diverse range of characters that you will fall in love with, and an impression that stays with you long after the final scene is aired.
Why Key to Phoenix Heart fits the current audience:
- PACING : the era of long winded, indulgent long stories is over, the modern audience does not have the patience to sit through long story telling or bloated fluff, as evidenced by the prevalent use of the fast forward button. If you don't capture the audience on the first episode or even the first 10-15 minutes, you will lose them. Phoenix Heart delivers a fiery start right from the first 10 minutes of ep 1 (figuratively and literally), took off running and does NOT stop. 3-4 EPs tell a story that any other drama will take 30+ EPs to tell. Every few EPs feel like a finale. But it does not sacrifice coherence, clarity, or character development. It is simply very concise and effective in telling its story.
- TROPES: the current audience has seen everything, all tropes that you can name and variations of them. Phoenix tricked you into expecting one and then it whipped off sideways and left you spinning in the dust. Unlike other series, the audience here does not have omniscient viewpoint, so we're left scrambling to keep up while the multiple chest players' plots crashed on top of each other and the final winner is never quite who you expect. Every episode brings a bombshell reveal that upsets the status quo, and you're left guessing what is going to happen next. And that's how we like it.
- WOMEN'S PORTRAYAL: this series never advertise itself as feminist. And yet all the women in the series, from the women in power, concubines, down to the female guard and maidservant has their own purpose in life that does not revolve around men. They do not do petty power struggle within the household, they are not invisible or two dimensional dolls whose sole purpose is to advance the plot. They have their own strength and abilities, pursue their own career, with or without a man in their life. When they do have a partner, it is because they choose to do so. While there is no lack of arranged marriages here (in fact the two leads are in an arranged marriage), they do not lose their autonomy or ambition after or become a fixture of their husband. There isn't any deliberate focus on the matter, they simply and matter-of-factly show you what competent, confident women look like, and it's more powerful than any feminist slogans.
Phoenix Key does not have a lot of budget, and in some areas it shows. Some sections are 'told' rather than 'shown', some plots can benefit from further fleshing out and a few scenes that require more people can look a bit sparse. However it does not detract from what it delivers - a fully cohesive story that grips you to the end, a diverse range of characters that you will fall in love with, and an impression that stays with you long after the final scene is aired.
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