1
JojoOnDatBeat
River of Oblivion
This is a collective review of both seasons of 'The Journey', since I cannot for the life of me understand why it was split into two separate seasons like that.
I'm a huge time travel/fantasy/history buff what with shows like Doctor Who and Timeless providing endless entertainment, therefore I had always been interested to see how Asia dealt with this genre, and I continued to be disappointed one way or the other.
Then while scouring MDL for interesting titles to watch (which has become a favorite pastime of mine) I came across this drama and the synopsis seemed very inviting, hence began my 2 day marathon. This is the first Chinese drama I have completed and in such a short time too. Not because of the low episode count but because I was pulled in headfirst into this roller coaster ride of a story, the ending of which gave me whiplash.
Going back to the question, in light of this drama it should have been "SHOULD you do it?" in lieu of would. And the answer is a big fat NO! "The fruit of the future is a result of the past." was a little quote thrown at the audience left, right and center throughout the drama, but in the grand scheme of things had little to no value.
~THE CONTINUATION OF THIS REVIEW MAY BE A TEENY TINY BIT SPOILERISH~
STORY:
For someone who spends hours on MDL scouring through the database for gems, this story was as new as it could get albeit with a hefty sprinkling of cliches here and there. It was a dream come true for me to see a new era of Chinese History every few episodes, when the norm is to set the entire story into one particular period. Season One (or the first 12 episodes) get a 9.5 from me in terms of story and *sighs* Season 2 (or the final 12 episodes) get an 8 solely because of the existence of those final 3 episodes.
The drama was heavily influenced from the West, and as I learned from the review above mine, that may be due to the author's plagiarism. But the story still managed to be unique despite those final 3 episodes which I've lovingly dubbed 'The Unholy Trinity'. It acted outside of the usual conventions of good and evil which was refreshing to see. Fantastical elements and creatures galore, it was heaven. I did not mind the lackluster visual effects as much as most people.
CAST (THEIR CHARACTERS AND ACTING):
(Fair Warning: This is where my beef with the drama resides and it'll come across as extremely biased.)
Zhou Yu Tong (AKA not your oh so typical female lead... Or so you thought!): Her character as Ye Yin was fun to watch especially in the first 12 episodes because of her ability to find humor in the most atrocious and life-threatening situations (a trait that would have you dead in minutes IRL) and her astute (well for the most of it) brain. She's not afraid to speak her mind and yet her character completely blows off her steam in the second half, transforming into this frustrating, dumber than usual, cookie cutter character that makes you want to pull your hair out. I've lost count of how many times I yelled at my laptop screen, urging her to say her feelings which she never did.
Fu Xin Bo (AKA I'd rather not say much for fear I'll curse him to hell and back): Kudos to his acting for garnering sympathy while simultaneously making me hate him with a fiery passion. This guy can act! In moments he can shift from kind, to adorkable, to a jerk to a plain SPOILER.... incestuous creep.
Saving the best for last, my newfound love...
Ma Ke (AKA he'll make you cry a river, oh who am I kidding an entire sea!): I've seen a fair amount of vampire stories in asian dramas but none of them and even the Western ones, come even close to this God of a man, whose looks can put the most beautiful to shame, whose character made me cry almost every other episode with his devotion to the woman he loves, (there's a term in my language Urdu pronounced Wa-Lay-Ha-Na, which is the most accurate description of the eternal and beautifully intense love of his) and his path to redemption which was heartbreaking to watch. I'm forever biased towards his character, and I doubt I'll love any other character in a Chinese drama as much again.
MUSIC:
Since I was so engrossed in the drama and Ma Ke specifically, I wasn't paying as much attention to the soundtrack as was deserved. However, it was a nice accompaniment in each scene and never felt constricting or out of place.
REWATCH VALUE:
I had a headache after bawling my eyes out, so I won't be rewatching this anytime soon or probably ever, but I'll forever be on the lookout for clips and videos of my OTP. Watch this if you enjoy crying every once in a while.
OVERALL:
I have developed a love hate relationship with this drama where I loved it at its golden moments, yet hate the ending to no end. I used to dislike love triangles but will now be avoiding them like the plague (for the time being at least).
I'm a huge time travel/fantasy/history buff what with shows like Doctor Who and Timeless providing endless entertainment, therefore I had always been interested to see how Asia dealt with this genre, and I continued to be disappointed one way or the other.
Then while scouring MDL for interesting titles to watch (which has become a favorite pastime of mine) I came across this drama and the synopsis seemed very inviting, hence began my 2 day marathon. This is the first Chinese drama I have completed and in such a short time too. Not because of the low episode count but because I was pulled in headfirst into this roller coaster ride of a story, the ending of which gave me whiplash.
Going back to the question, in light of this drama it should have been "SHOULD you do it?" in lieu of would. And the answer is a big fat NO! "The fruit of the future is a result of the past." was a little quote thrown at the audience left, right and center throughout the drama, but in the grand scheme of things had little to no value.
~THE CONTINUATION OF THIS REVIEW MAY BE A TEENY TINY BIT SPOILERISH~
STORY:
For someone who spends hours on MDL scouring through the database for gems, this story was as new as it could get albeit with a hefty sprinkling of cliches here and there. It was a dream come true for me to see a new era of Chinese History every few episodes, when the norm is to set the entire story into one particular period. Season One (or the first 12 episodes) get a 9.5 from me in terms of story and *sighs* Season 2 (or the final 12 episodes) get an 8 solely because of the existence of those final 3 episodes.
The drama was heavily influenced from the West, and as I learned from the review above mine, that may be due to the author's plagiarism. But the story still managed to be unique despite those final 3 episodes which I've lovingly dubbed 'The Unholy Trinity'. It acted outside of the usual conventions of good and evil which was refreshing to see. Fantastical elements and creatures galore, it was heaven. I did not mind the lackluster visual effects as much as most people.
CAST (THEIR CHARACTERS AND ACTING):
(Fair Warning: This is where my beef with the drama resides and it'll come across as extremely biased.)
Zhou Yu Tong (AKA not your oh so typical female lead... Or so you thought!): Her character as Ye Yin was fun to watch especially in the first 12 episodes because of her ability to find humor in the most atrocious and life-threatening situations (a trait that would have you dead in minutes IRL) and her astute (well for the most of it) brain. She's not afraid to speak her mind and yet her character completely blows off her steam in the second half, transforming into this frustrating, dumber than usual, cookie cutter character that makes you want to pull your hair out. I've lost count of how many times I yelled at my laptop screen, urging her to say her feelings which she never did.
Fu Xin Bo (AKA I'd rather not say much for fear I'll curse him to hell and back): Kudos to his acting for garnering sympathy while simultaneously making me hate him with a fiery passion. This guy can act! In moments he can shift from kind, to adorkable, to a jerk to a plain SPOILER.... incestuous creep.
Saving the best for last, my newfound love...
Ma Ke (AKA he'll make you cry a river, oh who am I kidding an entire sea!): I've seen a fair amount of vampire stories in asian dramas but none of them and even the Western ones, come even close to this God of a man, whose looks can put the most beautiful to shame, whose character made me cry almost every other episode with his devotion to the woman he loves, (there's a term in my language Urdu pronounced Wa-Lay-Ha-Na, which is the most accurate description of the eternal and beautifully intense love of his) and his path to redemption which was heartbreaking to watch. I'm forever biased towards his character, and I doubt I'll love any other character in a Chinese drama as much again.
MUSIC:
Since I was so engrossed in the drama and Ma Ke specifically, I wasn't paying as much attention to the soundtrack as was deserved. However, it was a nice accompaniment in each scene and never felt constricting or out of place.
REWATCH VALUE:
I had a headache after bawling my eyes out, so I won't be rewatching this anytime soon or probably ever, but I'll forever be on the lookout for clips and videos of my OTP. Watch this if you enjoy crying every once in a while.
OVERALL:
I have developed a love hate relationship with this drama where I loved it at its golden moments, yet hate the ending to no end. I used to dislike love triangles but will now be avoiding them like the plague (for the time being at least).
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