Great Adventure, Chemistry, both Roosters were the MVPs!

What first drew me to the drama was its tomb-raidery vibe and MZY. I knew two other actors from previous series, granted it had been nearly 4 years since seeing Jin Han in my first ever cdrama, so it was good to have him on screen again. This had great adventure, awesome chemistry between the leads (normal, adult kissing! Rare find in a cdrama nowadays), and those roosters were the real MVPs!

Pros: This will probably be the first drama ever where the livestock comes in line one of the pros if anywhere at all; but those roosters were great for both comedic purposes as well as being ridiculously smart and helpful. Loved how the first several episodes were built around creating the characters and building their world. The chemistry between the two leads was from the moment they met and it felt real as you'd expect between two adults regardless if this had supernatural or other elements. Their conversation in the closet about cooking one of the roosters when it spied on them and then ran was hysterical.

Ni Ni is absolutely gorgeous and you obviously have to get over that but it quickly becomes apparent that she's also one hell of an actress. BY is also quite good as the traumatized yet exceptionally intelligent desert guide. When they combine, this power couple of brains and brawn in reverse, they can outsmart just about everyone. Their 3 sidekicks who go with them into the desert and then later the two that they meet in the pass all do their part and are quite convincing; my least favorite was Fei Tang in the beginning but I liked his maturity evolution. I'm glad they all lived at the end though Gao Shen's life was forever changed and our FL was the bionic woman scorpion queen.

I have to talk about the gorgeous scenery inside the pass especially the many moons in the sky. This is a particularly favorite aesthetic of mine so I was always pleased when they spent time outside in the desert there. But everything from the CGI to the OSTs were on point in this drama. The stories told within the pass were so great too.

Even though I had originally wanted to watch this drama for MZY, not knowing what her role would be, her character falls in both the pros and cons for me. She started off as being what an antagonist should be; ruthless, though her motive was yet unclear, the beginning was good. She was a good spy and her initial start was good. Also liked how she had several plans going at once to win (the Chang Dong heartstring thing, the fake Gao Shen plant). The rest I'll talk about in the cons.

The real tragic character here was Jiang Zhan played by Jin Han. At first he was thought to be an antagonist because he was on Long Zhi's side trying to kill FL. But when it was revealed that she had cast a spell on him and the pain he had to go through when the memories came flooding back, he chose to take his own life, but the witch didn't allow that, then he was forced to live like a dog as her hostage. Finally with YLX's win, when he was finally free, he realized the cost of that freedom and he went out on his own terms because as he said, they couldn't go back to the past. He always felt he was weak and now he'd (though not by choice) betrayed the only woman he'd ever loved, there was no real way out for him. It was acted really well and you felt for him.

Cons: Quite a few things bugged me here; for starters the randomness of the old man storyteller and painter characters. The way they were flung into the series broke the already unsteady pace of the show due to its bizarre schedule. Yes, it was done supposedly due to censorship but it was unnecessary because no one in their right mind would go running to the desert to try to open a dimension. Even if people were to believe in that, at the beginning of each episode it specifically says the show is pure fiction.

Where the character of Long Zhi went downhill was her actual motive which though was about power and jealousy, it seemed quite childish and unbelievable. The character after the initial peak constantly sported a 15 year old 'tude. During the stand off between her and YLX with Scorpion Eye and the giant scorpion, it seemed like LZ herself lost all of her ruthlessness and kept clutching at her clothing as she was trying to order the gang to kill YLX. If you looked at the differences between her and YLX, you could almost switch their characters. YLX was unyielding and her stare could grind one into bits. I feel that maybe this role was a bit too hard for MZY. Personally, first time seeing her in an antagonist role. She lost all of LZ's ruthlessness in the second part of the end.

Also what played against her was the fact that the ending was super anticlimactic. Great build up to a fight or war that never happened. All the big fights were either in flashbacks or somewhere in the middle. It was basically send all of the exotic creatures away with the big snake giving the orders, and then have Scorpion Eye just blow some Feathered Guards up and capture them without much muss or fuss. Then they all sit at the negotiation table to save Chang Dong and go for a life of peace and prosperity for the next 3 years. Everyone lives and reunites but we get the couples in the painter's mind's eye with Gao Shen actually becoming a puppet to save his life and DL as cartoon forms together being the new transporters in and out of the pass. They couldn't even get a normal ending. These are the reasons this otherwise great drama got an 8.5/10.

Would I recommend it? Yes, if only for the leads chemistry, the smart as hell roosters, and the story itself. This is a very different kind of drama than what I've seen and despite the cons, I enjoyed it a lot.

Read More

It Was Nifty

Really had no idea what I was getting myself into because other than BWJ, I've never seen any of the other actors. Plus I've never seen nor heard of the comics or donghua this was based on. So was completely flying blind going into it. Another thing that was keeping me from starting it, was that zombies were mentioned and that's a genre I take a hard pass on. Thankfully the zombies--if you can call them that--were far from The Walking Dead or Resident Evil. They were there for maybe 2 to 3 episodes and looked more like something out of MJ's Thriller with too much makeup. They were comedic and not too bright.

Pros: What I really liked was the unraveling of the mysteries, the growth of friendships, having each others backs, the fight scenes, and the really awesome CGI; had to be my favorite part. It was nifty. The ending fight scene was probably the best because everyone that mattered even those that turned over a new leaf were part of it. Chief Taoist was like the granddaddy of awesomeness when he added icing on the cake. Over all, I hope season 2 explains more and has characters not just disappear and reappear randomly, but are given justifiable entrances and exits. FBB is my new favorite robot girl. From the protagonists, I think everyone was pretty great.

Cons: The ML annoyed me a lot; I won't lie. His goofiness was too much at times while other times he'd just walk around pouting like a 5 year old kid who didn't get any candy. I did ffw a lot because much of that comedy wasn't for me. I preferred when he acted and spoke intelligently. I feel the writing was stilted at times. Plus, each time character was charged with something, the mandarin writing on the screen and subbing overlapped and you couldn't understand what was written.

Would I recommend it? Sure, why not? Especially if you know the donghua it's based on and really like awesome looking CGI and unraveling fantastical mysteries plus group dynamics.

Read More

Great Acting But w/a Too Busy Script & Unnecessary Characters

Watched this for XZ and yet a new storyline that was in the slice of life section. I've only seen two other actors before in different series and genres as support; otherwise I'm new to most of these people. I strongly feel that after reading the article the screenwriter wrote about the characters, she meant well, but it just didn't translate on screen as it was way too busy though the acting was for the most part appropriate and the situations were somewhat realistic.

Pros: I like slice of life stories and favorite characters included the ML or SY and FL or JB. I liked his stubbornness and bright attitude. I also liked how XZ could use his previous life experiences in design as well as film in his hometown. JB was mature but she was able to evolve out of her divorce to accept SY into her heart. The only thing I would change about her is that, I would have loved to see her actually take a stand for herself and not just listen while people spoke condescendingly to her and about her. Other awesome characters were dad and mom (though there was a moment there where I thought mom was a bit harsh, but she came around), SC and PR, who made the right kind of sense together and apart and I liked that they got together at the end. LSS was great but where the heck did she go for most of the second half of the series? The OSTs were nice and the fact that they essentially filmed in a city made sense too.

Cons: Busy script, way too busy. Three plus unnecessary characters were the hockey twins aka JB's sister and her crush/later boyfriend and his obnoxious uncle. I fast-forwarded them for most of the show. What was their purpose? JB's sister; I couldn't take at all. She was a college student but couldn't speak normally to save her life. She was either irritated or yelling or just acting like a 12 year old constantly. Then throw in their father in the last like 5 episodes just to show why they're so dysfunctional when it could have been explained in maybe a 10 minute scene and it still didn't explain why the sister was so ridiculous. JB's ex hubby deserved to be hit with a brick for his possessive, condescending attitude but though I can understand he was in there, his then disappearance and reappearance much like LSS was disjointed and jarring.

While I understand there were life lessons in there, if you got rid of at least three of those characters, this show would have had been better flushed out and given the main characters a more realistic portrayal and screen time.

Would I recommend it? If you like slice of life dramas, then yes I would. Overall it was a good watch, just make sure you know how to use the ffw button.

Read More

An Absolute Fantastic Rollercoaster Though without An End

I haven't had a show suck me in like this in a very long time. I'm still in somewhat of a stupor. I've never seen any of these actors before save for some in the older generation and SFL so absolutely blown away by their talent and believability. Every episode had me and pretty much everyone else trying to come up with theories of who was really good or bad. It's like my mind was taken away and placed elsewhere. This drama was a fantastic rollercoaster though sadly with no real ending.

Pros: I will try to not write a novel because this had everything one wants in a mystery wuxia; great martial arts, theories, not everything is as it seems, stunning costumes, scenery, cinematography, OSTs, heartbreak and love. Every single character for the most part was multifaceted and layered. The 2 main gray characters and then learning their stories and understanding where they came from. I'm not even sure I have a favorite character here. The actors absolutely just annihilated it! So amazing; the truth, the lies, the scheming, the understanding, love, hate, insanity. Good vs evil plus good that was evil from episode one. The gradual building of feelings. So ML (ZY) and FL (YWS) together and separately were great, SML (SJ) and have to give props to the newbie who played his little brother; how someone so young can play a convincing obnoxious creep with a smile that sends chills down your spine, is beyond me. TJR or YZ is the standout in this cast of amazing performers for sure. I personally called him Junior poison or little shit depending on how he acted. YQ, Raven papa HYS (who was on the dark side but ultimately had a good heart), JF and our seal diving elder sis plus all the young masters from the back mountain were refreshing and sometimes you were left in stitches from elder sis because she added the sunlight to this predominantly dark drama. All the dynamics were great as were relationships between people. Though I only saw real romantic connections between the leads and later on the odd couple, the second leads were in a game of cat and mouse and though he did ultimately fall for her, I didn't feel what many others felt. Theirs was like two vipers circling each other.

Trying to get everyone and everything is impossible because some assassins are real and others actually have hearts and want their freedom. The fact that in the final episode it is revealed that only 3 months passed since the start of this journey, your mind is blown because you feel it's been years. Each episode is an hour long and leaves a cliffhanger with lots of theories for you to discuss with fellow watchers. WuFeng or assassins creed as I called them are an organization led by fear and though most were absolutely ruthless, they had/have many weaknesses. They were the main antagonists but they weren't alone. Actually many of us figured out who the other ones already in the mansion were and it was just a matter of time before that was confirmed.

It was also mind blowing when the reveals started happening, just how much was actually done. And so funny to some of the commenters in this section that kept saying ZY didn't deserve to be SW, but SJ did because ZY was somehow either cheating or being helped, come to find out that SJ was secretly helping him too. Felt good for those of us defending ZY lol.

Cons: Ok, this section will be smaller but there are a few reasons why this drama didn't get a perfect score. As many before me, the ending or lack thereof was just ridiculous. You had such a captivating story and then to make the literal 4 minutes a cliffhanger that looked like it belonged in a different drama looked lazy. Yes it could be hinting at the potential of a season 2 but it could have done it way better. I've written my share of cliffhangers and regular endings and though I'm no maestro writer/director, I would have just ended it without a cliffhanger because one can still leave an air of mystery and end something satisfactory. It made both leads do things completely out of character with what we've seen. So that was a huge point buster.

SGQ got away way too easy. It didn't seem to me that she suffered much if at all with her constant crocodile tears and lies. She was a pathological liar that was also a narcissistic sociopath. Her raven was right that she only loves herself. But though the dynamic with SML in scheming against each other worked, I felt unlike everyone else that was consistently there--good or bad--evolved in some way except her. Would have been good for her to also have growth.

Last detail is the smallest but it was a personal peeve and reminded me of another drama I watched this year where they had each special skill a character made pop up on screen in massive white letters even though it was verbalized; very unnecessary. Looked 90s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Plus it was subbed twice so all that lettering on the screen was very busy and hard to understand.

Would I recommend it? 100% would! Despite those last 4 minutes of the last episode, this was fantastic. So much so, that I think it has its own force field that doesn't let you leave even once you finished it. Really, really good especially if you like the wuxia genre.

Read More

20 Episodes 10 Minutes Each w/1 Smart & 1 Dumb Lead Each

First time watching this type of drama where the episodes are 10 minutes each. Wanted to check it out because the ML I've previously seen in antagonist roles, so to see him play a protagonist was too good to resist. If you're a TBOY fan, you'll understand. I love Republican Era dramas as they're beautiful when it comes to costumes and sets. This review will be short. Again thank you @Lian for providing subtitles on Kisskh; couldn't have watched without your phenomenal work!

Pros: ML or FGY is very good at being a hard ass and a stubborn one at that and here it played to his advantage very well. You got to see the character's vulnerability, trying to save his childhood friend at all costs even when said childhood friend was a total moron. If I hadn't seen him play ruthless asshats in TBOY and Destined, I would have thought he was just really good at being deceitful while trying to save everyone that mattered to him. Though SML or HWJ finally grew a brain cell in the last episode and I really liked the church shootout sequence plus the actor played him well, I can't really find much else in the pros with him. LTT was a good addition for as long as she needed to be. Costumes (when they weren't oversized), sets, OSTs were beautiful. The comedy was good for the most part.

Cons: The storyline though understandable was edited very roughly. It went from as serious as a heart attack to comedy club funny in 2.5 seconds and it just made things very shaky. I wish we knew who the other characters were played by like the antagonist, the traitor, the girl who helped them out. Plot hole of HWJ being basically brainless to all of a sudden possessing extraordinary martial art skills and being able to fire a gun in the last few episodes was very questionable. For a good portion of it, you wanted to hit him with a desk for just being so stupid, it hurt your own head.

Would I recommend it? This series is really one of those in between ones that you watch when you're bored; it's short and sweet. But I am glad though short and small, I was able to see DK in a protagonist role for a change. He needs more of those and I hope he gets them in normal length series in the future.

Read More

Section 8 Overshadowed Section 7

I originally watched part 1 this year so it wasn't a 4 year wait for me like many others. Going from 40 episodes and mostly comedy with intelligence to 27 and a much darker tone, set part 2 apart greatly from part 1. That and the fact that we met 3 members of section 8 that were destined to die and to me at least, they completely took over the series in terms of both action and caring about them from our beloved 6 heroes.

Pros: I really liked section 8's 3 members and felt that when they were on screen, they were much more important to this part than our main leads. Though they still managed to grow and mature while away plus the really random three year time leap that was stuck in there for whatever reason. I'm very glad that Pei Jing grew up as her character was the deer in the headlights always, hiding behind Wang Kuan. The drama made me feel the saddest when section 8's members were killed because even in their small amount of screen time, they made us really care about them and their martial arts skills were pretty awesome; on par if not better then Xue Ying's. Also when WK lost his arm, he being my favorite character, was really a sad and hurtful time but at the same time, it was good to see that even the best and brightest were only human. We got one smooch finally from our second couple but both couples had a few sweet moments here and there. Wasn't sure how I'd feel about the new actor replacing Bruce He to play Ya Nei but he fit the part really well. I'd seen the actor before in a modern, so he impressed me with going from doofus with the facial expressions to serious and realistic.

Big man YH was a great antagonist; he was ruthless, a great strategist, and just freaking huge. It took a lot to put him down but I'm glad they finally did. Was really the only real antagonist that made sense, the others were just dumb ants between his feet. Other good characters were PJ's brother, the dude who thought PJ was a dragon God but was there for comic relief more then anything else, YN's dad, the girl leading the military who had a thing for XY but she disappeared from the scene without an explanation. Costumes were great as were some of the sets, though not all. OSTs were nice too.

Cons: More plot holes than you knew what to do with. What started out as a rescue mission for ZJ's father ended up being an assassination plot just to help NL? In reality, they just wanted to prevent a war. But to understand all that took many episodes then necessary. Why so many stupid characters; Ding'er or Ning Ling, his mom, the son of sections' Chief; that character was bipolar....he's evil but he's also there for comic relief? It didn't make sense and threw the scenes off. Glad when he was off'd, just a waste of time and space.

What was up with all of these fathers? Obviously there was a time jump in the beginning but the way it was shown and expressed made zero sense. One faked treason but we never saw what information he delivered, the other appeared out of nowhere to cripple his own son for 3 years that he didn't even consider a son? That guy was a bastard. He didn't even go after YH in the end but let S7 do it and then just left. Like what was his point? You have insane martial arts skills that you prance around for a few episodes here and there but when it really counted, you just took on a few guards? Useless!

Lord, those horse scenes. I have no words. Them faux horseback riding and it going on and on and on was like watching a 1940s Western with color. Yes, this had a larger budget than season 1 but where did it go? Because that's like sticking a human on a mechanical prop that you don't even show but they're making riding motions et voila!

The ending was so underwhelming plus the misplaced ending credits. The only way S7 brought down mountain man was because they had help from a solar eclipse and a sandstorm which was apparently calculated by the ML and told to us in the second to last scene but it was truly a ??‍♀️ finale fight sequence, can't even call it a battle. I only gave it an 8 because of the acting and music and the fact that it finished out a cliffhanger storyline, so watchable.

Would I recommend it? To finish out part one yes. But I definitely liked part one more because it made sense and was better written.

Read More

3 Amigos in Moving Lotus Tower Solve Mysteries & Bring Justice to Jianghu

10 years can change a person completely or it can keep someone exactly the same. This series was very well written and I'm very glad to have watched it. So much so, that it's hard to move on from honestly. I don't follow any of the actors from this one though I have previously seen both Joseph and XSY in other series, first time watching Cheng Yi. This show came very close to getting a perfect score if it wasn't for a few things that I couldn't get over. Overall, the 3 Amigos in the moving lotus tower that solve mysteries and bring justice to Jianghu were impossible to resist.

Pros: The storyline and you're always wondering whodunnit. Favorite characters were the 3 amigos (with FDB only once he grew up and matured). When the three of them were together especially during DFS's memory loss, had to be the best both because of the comedy and their interactions; who could forget the constant calls for "Ah Fei".

Let's talk about how the plot went from LLH trying to find his senior's body as it was his only reason for living to finding out that said senior was still alive and the biggest antagonist of them all with only the Saintess as number two. The heartbreak LLH faced each time something new about the past came out and how as LXY he had missed understanding the fundamentals as he was still very young. The agony of suffering from the Bicha poison each time he over used his inner power. For 10 years he used it very little and therefore was able to control it but in that last year when finally on the path to the truth, brought him agonizing pain. Cheng Yi did a fantastic job as both the suffering man and one that could lie through his teeth with a straight face that had the audience laughing and shaking their heads each time dumbass young FDB would fall for it; while DFS would just walk away basically saying "you're full of shit." He was whip smart and often steps ahead of everyone, being able to tell who the murderer of a particular case was as they got closer to the real truths as each case was tied with the next one. He was able to unveil that the supposed spy amongst the Segu sect, really was working behind enemy lines for over 10 years. He made peace with his impending demise and wanted everyone around him to do the same.

DFS was a great morally gray character; because of his upbringing his first instinct was to kill but overall he ran by the Jianghu code of ethics. He didn't kill women except Saintess at the end but she deserved it. He wanted to fight LXY fair and square but neither got that 10 years ago because of all the people pulling the strings behind the scenes. When he had that Rama Vessel thing, first thing he did was cure himself of mind control, then return to Di fortress, destroy his childhood captor/Shifu and free the current kids under that freak's control.

FDB lands both in the pros and cons for me. I like the older him way better. Because of his caring nature towards LLH and his ability to be the detective everyone wanted to see and being able to explain things and speak like an adult and the funny relationship with Ah Fei. The older FDB was a much better version that Joseph did well. No matter what, he was the one that always had LLH's back and he was a very quick study of anything martial arts or technique related; dude was like a sponge.

The two antagonists or Saintess and SGD were very ruthless and both of everything they did was exactly what you wanted to see in antagonists up until the end and that will be explained below. Still, SGD had to be more ruthless as he killed a child 10 years before just to get his hands on some armor.

Most of the support especially the MVP of the show or Foxy Spirit, LLH's dog were for the most part well placed and really did a good job for as long as they needed to be there. The Sigu sect was a bit behind mentally on a lot of things and it was full of spies; it's like it got stuck 10 years ago and never went anywhere. If I had to choose the next sect leader, it would definitely be Shi Shu as she was always on top of things and didn't jump to conclusions like everyone else.

The martial arts scenes were top notch. Starting from the first episode, onwards, whether actual battles or just LLH dancing with his sword to express whatever emotions he was feeling were very well choreographed and done. You could tell each actor put his everything into it. When martial arts scenes were very well executed, it just elevated a wuxia for me. I'm also very glad they sidestepped romance in this one; there were undertones and we all braced for them but thankfully in every case it was quickly let go of. These types of dramas just don't need that in the slightest.

I like the open ending but wish the extra part one was actually added to 40 as it would have made a lot more sense because otherwise the ending of actual 40 seemed rushed and incomplete. But it's a lot better than them all finding him dead on a road somewhere or floating in a river. OSTs, costumes, sets, CGI were all on point.

Cons: Not very many of these but I'd have to say FDB got on my ever loving nerves in the beginning and it took quite a while before he grew up. Acting like a brat and throwing adult sized tantrums at LLH and in general actually made me happy when LLH just left him at the side of the road multiple times. He was insufferable. I really wished they matured him a lot faster.

Also many of the Segu sect members basically had no voices they just stood there like statues to make up space and said maybe 5 lines the entire time. The character of Zijin and his jealousy was so extra and unnecessary; he didn't understand anything even until the end. Every time he opened his mouth, you just rolled your eyes and prayed he'd get off screen faster. Ah Mian--while I understand her necessity as LXY's old flame and all that and her taking charge of the sect towards the end away from the jealous and unnecessary Zijin--why was she always in tears? She reminded me of the cartoon character Droopy as her eyes were always swollen, red, and teary even when she was fighting at the end. The fact that none of them could tell that LLH was LXY though they knew him best even with half a mask or no mask was laughable. His face hadn't changed, just his hairstyle and clothing. Same went for DFS, his own people couldn't tell it was him with half a mask? Really unbelievable. Plus knowing how deadly LXY's poison was, they believed him when he said he could cure it? Like how? Those were the first plot holes I noticed.

The other plot hole was during that last showdown, where did LXY and SGD's Master's wife come from? If she knew the secret of LXY's origins this entire time, why not tell him? How did she know where to find them? And it had to happen when both sides were stumped. It was way too obvious and put a bit of a damper in a great momentum building episode. Now though I liked both SGD and Saintess as the main antagonists; their ruthlessness took a plummet when they both started to get overly delusional towards the end and let out that nails on chalkboard Halloween store witch prop cackle. It absolutely ruins every antagonist it touches; laughing evilly doesn't have to sound like that. Both did it numerous times and that's another reason this drama just couldn't have that perfect score.

Would I recommend it? I absolutely would. I'm notoriously picky with dramas, so what I view as cons, may be nonsensical for others. The show itself is really great and I enjoyed it very much. I think if you like wuxia and mysteries, this is the drama for you.

Read More

80K Di Troops + 30K Naval Forces + "You're the Crown Prince" = Messy Script w/Plot Holes

I go into each drama I watch without any expectations and that makes for shows like this to be a wise decision because then I'm not surprised or disappointed when things go south. In this case the people I watched for were Reba and LYN both of whom did good jobs in their roles as well as some of the side characters which I'll list below. But the storyline was just a mess in a dress; this series is best watched for entertainment purposes only and to suspend all logic possible. Because it's literally 80K Di Troops + 30K Naval Forces + "You're the Crown Prince" on constant repeat.

Pros: The revenge plot made the most sense and they should have just stuck with that. As mentioned up top FL and SML were convincing in their characters and as were a few of the side characters like LL, An Ning, and WS. But even with them, this wasn't their strongest drama. I really feel the script failed everyone. Both the empress dowager and the emperor were the best villains given their circumstances with this script. Costumes, sets, OSTs were beautiful. CGI was ok, could have been better.

Cons: The script was just ridiculous, you had the FL for about a dozen episodes act like fake gorilla glue towards ML. People surviving things they could only do in Xianxias; like being pierced with a ton of arrows and sail off a cliff. Cliff diving seemed to be a favorite sport of a lot of the characters because 3 did it after being mortally wounded and survived, ML did it twice. The show dragged a lot for only being 39 episodes and many scenes were very anticlimactic. You were just watching going "that's it?"

This was the first time I had ever seen GJ act in anything and I have to say that HY seemed to have facial paralysis. He said his lines but there was no emotion even when it came to sarcasm or announcing something. I don't know if that's how he always acts or they edited him that way because BTS and interviews, it was like a totally different person. I understand playing aloof characters but you need to be able to emote with your eyes at least and I didn't see any of that. It came off as largely robotic to me. Hopefully it's just because of this drama as even those that I listed in the pros, their characters weren't the strongest they've played or were edited weirdly and if I see him in the future, it'll be different and better. There are extra little clips on Youku of the ML and FL's life together that wasn't shown in the show that seems like a different drama. Their interactions there are way better than in the show. They could have put those clips into the last episode instead of keeping the ML on the mountain for 1.5 episodes refusing to go down without any rhyme or real reason.

MB or LB whatever his name was who also played an antagonist was so much of an afterthought that the character went from loyal to who he really was plus they made him randomly weirdly stalkerish when he revealed his "real self" just made no sense. It felt like that whole war plot was created just to kill off AN and send ML off the cliff going blind. What was the purpose of fake DZY and all of her bathing scenes? To make us roll our eyes more? The revenge plot and war/aftermath plots seemed like they belonged to different shows. And how did DZY's hair turn black again? I can't even count the amount of plot holes; I know I forgot most of them. I'll just say, it had a lot of potential considering what novel readers said, but came up ridiculously short.

Would I recommend it? I'll divide this one; if you're looking at this from a good storyline perspective, then no. But if you're just wanting to be entertained and not think, then sure go for it. Anyways, the choice is yours.

Read More

Watered Down Sex & The City w/Lukewarm Romance Centered Around a TV Station & Some Debt

Watched only for LYN's first foray into an ML role in a modern drama and he made me proud. The story itself was a bit trying too hard to fit a lot of things into itself at once. It worked in the parts of being female centric and cultivating the friendship between the three women but I felt it could have easily been a 30 episode series and covered everything as with even 40, it still left many unanswered questions. It was pretty much a watered down Sex & The City w/lukewarm romance centered around a TV station & some debt.

Pros: Though he was the ML and did a great job at it, his role wasn't as substantial as the three women whose plot this really was and their lives. That said I'm still incredibly proud of LYN for tackling this new challenge and his slow but steady growth as a leading character.

I liked the fact that all 3 women were very flawed in their characters and even stabbed each other in the back at work before realizing it really wasn't worth it. Their evolutions came from both the necessity and the fact that they had no other choice like in the case of HH and her runaway husband. In the first episodes she took hit after hit; the disappearing hubby, the mountain of debt, her show's cancellation, her mom's illness and becoming a single mom. Many of us wondered how she would handle it as it was just insane. But out of the three despite all of that, she was the first one to realize how quickly she had to change her outlook and mindset in order to survive and though they weren't yet as close as they became, the other two were very encouraging of her. The tv station was the main base for the entire series.

Looking at it from another perspective, JJH was like a male version of her, starting with being in so much debt thanks to her husband and owning nothing, to slowly building himself and her up as well. HH's new business became very successful because of him. I also liked how they incorporated LYN's real qualities and both former and current jobs as a chef, livestreamer, and singer into the show. It made his character more realistic.

BY and YY both were extreme opposites of each other; one would do anything to get what she wanted even if it was quite shady, while the other was the epitome of Joan of Arc with her righteousness and stubbornness. They butted heads often but only when they really started to stand in each others shoes did they understand where the evolution must happen.

Other great characters were Zimo, the two directors of the tv station, plus main boss, RJ, LL, and HH's parents. The antagonists, I believe there were 4 of them grand total, honestly were an after thought to the rest of the plot. Costumes, OSTs, locations, were on point.

Cons: The show could have just been 30 episodes because there were so many things that weren't properly done or finished. Like did the 3 doofuses who lost money to OKG ever get that money back? Yes HH and him got divorced and the 4 buffoons were arrested for whatever insane illegal activities they did but even that wasn't properly explained. I've got a business background and all of my degrees are in that and I have absolutely no idea what exactly they did, why OKG had to run, why he blackmailed them for 100 million RMB, why he swindled those poor folks out of whatever he owed them. It had to do with stocks and finance but it was so muddled and rushed, that I still don't know. That could have been explained so much better and written into the series.

Also some characters were shoved into the spotlight to make things really uncomfortable for our female leads which I felt quite unnecessary like that Zhang Ke guy who was a borderline stalker of YY and was willing to do whatever it took (like ruining her reputation and nearly getting her fired) for her to date him when it was obvious she didn't like him. And the chick who looked up to HH but did some shady things herself and acted about 12. These were just two of several characters that really just didn't make sense of why they required so much screen time.

The character of OKG wasted a solid 2 episodes trying to get HH to go on the run with him. They could have used those same episodes to fortify her relationship with JJH and the other two couples. The romance portion of this drama was almost like an afterthought. I felt like HH turned robotic towards JJH once she found he had developed feelings for her. She treated him better when they were "enemies". And the sudden turnaround when he'd done so much to grow her business and helped with her mom's health and death, could have been a lot smoother. It felt like a whiplash. There definitely were a few plot holes in this series that could have been better explained. It was also quite obvious that many scenes were cut because they appeared in the opening or closing credits but never in the show itself.

Would I recommend it? I would for the female bonding primarily. If you're able to look past the cons, you will enjoy this show.

Read More

Rollercoaster of Emotions w/a Wicked Witch

Watched this for Yang Yang and the first responder/natural disaster aspect it. I followed this drama as it was filmed last year and was very much looking forward to it. For the most part, it didn't disappoint. It was a rollercoaster ride of emotions and even had a list compiled for the most hated character.

Pros: Favorite character was SY or ML; his bark was worse than his bite. As a captain at a fire station, he had to be cool and aloof but he was kind and caring to those whom he cared about the most. When it came to FL that was the only time when he could forgo the world. In the beginning, she chased after him and he didn't want to give in because it meant she might find out the truth. The chemistry between the two of them was very believable. Loved the fire station gang, the other doctors and nurses, and was extremely sad when they lost DP closer to the end. That scene really did require tissues. All of the characters were very well evolved throughout. FL's adoptive brother was creepy as heck for his obsession but I am glad he was given that out towards the end so they could remain family. SJ was very important to the series and to the audience and ZBB played him very well. When he left and was replaced by someone else, all those emotions and changes really made it real.

Who could forget the wicked witch of the west aka the adoptive mom of FL as the main antagonist. I have to give the actress props for acting as well as she did; none of us could stand her. Furthermore, she's only 59 in real life but makeup made her look 70. We all hated her so much, I created "The Kill List" in the comments and the other watchers were very creative in how to kill her. We got to 17 ways and as promised I'll post it here:
"The list is back ONE LAST TIME! We need to kill the wicked witch. So, let’s see how many more ways we can kill her! Our end list looks like this:

1. Drowning in her own pool
2. Melting her with high pressure water
3. Throwing her in the river
4. Leaving her broke and desolate without any power.
5. Leaving her to suffocate when her office building goes up in flames.
6. Broke, desolate, without power in a sewer line.
7. Leave her in the mountains with lots of poisonous snakes and things.
8. Skin her alive.
9. Alpaca pushes the bookcase on her head in a smelly apartment and runs away while WW starves to death and loses her dignity because no one saves her.
10. Gets accused of treason and tortured then executed.
11. Death by 1,000 tarantulas.
12. Tie her to a chair and drill holes into her ever so slowly until a vital organ is hit.
13. Glue her barefoot to a chair and the floor, let the sprinkler system douse her with gasoline and chuck a lighter at her.
14. Suffocation by firefighter foam.
15. Drink snake venom while being whipped.
16. Send the picture and frame into the wicked witch’s head instead of the floor like a missile.
17. Leave her trapped in the tunnel during the typhoon; rescue everyone else."

The comedy was also good and the FL finding out the truth was much needed. I'm happy I got spoilers from the novel readers on when the series would deviate or not, but though not the same issues as in the novel, SY did suffer extremely at the hands of the wicked witch and her connections and I'm proud of FL for growing a backbone and standing up to that crazy old bat! I do wish ZM made her kneel all the way though. Sorry not sorry.

The rescues for the most part were very realistic though I wish they used stunt doubles for many of those scenes instead of doing it themselves. I remember seeing the explosion balcony scene when it was leaked online last year after filming and it was nuts. Both natural disasters were alright, though I wish they used more expensive CGI for them. OSTs, costumes, sets and locations were all on point.

Cons: Though the wicked witch was a great antagonist, giving her a redemption arc unlike the novel was garbage. I felt it was just bad and the drama took a hit for that; because there was no way anyone who's done that much damage to other people should just be forgiven without any jail time that we saw. So in my head, I pictured after the last episode, she'll be found guilty and sent to prison.

The ridiculous propaganda and where they put it was really bad. Like who carries their brigade's flag to the scene of an earthquake? This ain't the Olympics. You're there to rescue people not parade around. And considering how often the speechifying occurred in the middle of really random conversations, you'd think they'd be a bit more knowledgeable in first aid like CPR. How is it that in a fire and rescue house, there're no paramedics or EMT's? Yet the fire department is responsible for crowd control which is the police's job. It was all very confusing. You have two different numbers for police and for the fire department. But when you need all three, then what happens?

Also very obvious that the aftershocks many times were done by the actual actors shaking themselves and the surgical equipment plus table. The typhoon seemed to just be like a bad flood instead of what really happens inside a typhoon/hurricane. It was like they could just drive when they wanted and the wind and rain would stop periodically. Like I mentioned above, CGI needs to be better. So that also bumped the score down.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely. The story is for the most part well done other than those cons which you can more or less overlook. The cast did a great job, so get ready for a rollercoaster ride of emotion with a wicked witch in the center.

Read More

Big Beautiful Mess w/Fantastic Acting

Xianxias are my least favorite genre so made myself watch for XZ and hoped that the storyline would hold. Other actors were familiar to me as well and did very well however the plot was a bust. Every actor was commendable in doing their part just wished for a good story.

Pros: Favorite character was hard because there were several that did very well for different reasons. SY as ML had to go through the myriad of emotions and evolutions and he did so very convincingly. XZ didn't disappoint in this role; it was far different than what he'd done before and I like that he doesn't have a box he sticks himself in but tries different characters and styles. Of course, however, it being a costume drama, a flute made an appearance which brought a smile to my face. CM as the 7,000 year old mystical bird was hysterical, sometimes you wanted to smack him, other times hug him. I've never seen the actor before but he did a good job. Alan Feng as ZY, was also very versatile but I did feel his was a tragic character; that said, he did play good and possessed pretty convincingly. Lastly, I have to give it up for Han Dong or High Priest who was our biggest morally gray character in the entire thing. Usually this actor plays crazy antagonists but here he actually cared about someone other than himself and sacrificed himself for that person.

All of the other characters for the most part were there as needed and played their roles well. This was a big budget production so obviously CGI, costumes, sets were stunning as were the OSTs.

Cons: This storyline absolutely threw me; hence the low score. I know the standard operating procedure for xianxias with the baby voiced, talking to yourself, gorilla glue FLs, the misunderstandings, deaths and multiple resurrections, so on and so forth. But this had to have so many subplots and boring portions that didn't make sense that I legit had to skip episodes. Honestly, you had the merfolk/dragon plot, the palace politics nonsense, cultivators and their lives, and if that wasn't enough throw in a Sauron looking character who wanted to possess two rings not one and an ice clan that left midway and returned out of nowhere. Plus the Sauron thing could possess people by jumping them. Only thing missing was Frodo and the fellowship. Those two last episodes looked like they belonged in a totally different series; like something out of a Marvel film; very sci-fi. It was a very big beautiful mess with fantastic acting.

What was up with that ending though? When I saw "BE" trending on Weibo, I wasn't sure what to think but then when I saw it for myself, I understood. So our ML dies yet again, and a year later is resurrected when FL just randomly chucks the petal into the tree where they first met as kids from said petal. But is he real or a ghost because they stand like 10 feet apart just smiling at each other before credits role. Couldn't they at least show them hugging? And couldn't she have sent that petal into the tree earlier so he could come back? It really defies logic.

Would I recommend it? Only if you like xianxias and are a fan of any actors. Otherwise, the story is not worth it though like I said the actors did a fantastic job. I wish better scripts for the actors; with all of their skill and talent, they deserve that.

Read More

Smart Demons + Stupid Humans = Extraordinary Mess

Watched this to see Xu Kai act but just like in a previous series of his; his and everyone else's acting was great but the story itself was a hot mess. Wish he or whomever chooses for him, chose better. The only reason this even got a 6.5 and not lower was because of the literally only 3 pros. Otherwise, it was like the mighty morphin power rangers and mortal kombat took LSD and spit this out.

Pros: Leads chemistry, the actors hard work which included great fight scenes, and costumes (except for the Halloween store costume lion for Uncle Tang), and good OSTs. No other pros.

Cons: Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for smart antagonists but not when the protagonists are so ridiculously idiotic. Just about everyone was led by the nose by the demons the ENTIRE show. Even when our ML told them otherwise, the Elders still chose to believe evil people. The amount of times the good guys failed to understand something very simple made you want to run your face into the wall. The entire series made a ton of no sense because the bad guys were running the show while the good guys were just walking around like zombies and talking in circles.

Did just about everyone really deserve to die; KYY's death in the last episode was pointless and meaningless. Some really did die as heroes but what made much of it senseless is that if they put two and two together sooner and made it 4 instead of 7, they could have made things happen sooner and survived. It made me feel like whoever the writer was, had no clue how to write a novel or one that's understandable or cohesive. Ji Rong staying alive and even her death at the hands of probably the show’s stupidest character, made me feel like I lost brain cells. DXY warned his brother and the two elders something was fishy about her from nearly the beginning and yet both uncles died because of her.

The sets and CGI looked very cheap. The words chucked up on the screen each time a new magic trick was used was eye roll worthy. Welcome to the 90s and not in a good way! Situ Hong's ruthlessness was completely ignored and his death and that of the weird random cultivator that at first clung to XY was completely pathetic. Both were sucked dry for big bad demon God that most of the time sounded like an alien cat that sucked in a helium balloon. We were all expecting a fight between him and XY but yeah, why bother?

Demon Ao Lan turned himself into a psychedelic Venus flytrap to try and kill XY in the last episode and it had me laughing. Little Shop of Horrors that was filmed in the 1970s had better CGI than this mess. I shed a tear for Shifu sacrificing himself at the end as out of all the guardians, he was the only one that infiltrated the demon clan and didn't do too poorly. Yes, happy ending for leads and the maybe 3 other living people but what did I watch for 40 episodes?

Would I recommend? No way. Even if you are a fan of the leads or anyone else, please find something else. Leads chemistry is not enough to hold this thing together.

Read More

Those Destined Will Go Far

This drama was on my anticipated dramas of the year list and for the most part it didn't disappoint. I wanted to see BJT in another costume drama and recognized many actors from the TBOY cast here. This must have been a great reunion for them. Those destined will indeed go far.

Pros: The first two story arcs were the most promising and held my attention as both leads and those that became their friends went through literal hell in order to survive. I really liked both leads evolution as they came together due to a misunderstanding that gradually turned into very deep love. BJT can play a lazy rich kid just as well as a military strategist. I loved the fight scenes though there were few of them. Going from one home, then to starting from scratch in a second and yet a third, it was a process we looked forward to. All characters I felt were necessary though I think for being such a ruthless antagonist, LZS didn't get that much screen time. I loved the sworn brotherhoods and sisterhoods around the leads. So it was very sad that in the final 3 episodes, QWZ was killed. Even though that was as many said, in the novel, after so much loss and destruction, this was absolutely heartbreaking and unnecessary. They could have changed that.

Sets, costumes, OSTs were perfect everywhere though I wish they didn't sub them over the lines because it made it nearly impossible to understand.

Cons: The entire palace arc being put into the last dozen episodes seemed like production was galloping to the finish line and I found much of to be too much. So much so, I skipped a few episodes. FY becoming LZS' puppet was obvious and obnoxious but him getting a semi-redemption arc when he was acting like a 12 year old with people's lives made me sick. LZS' demise also didn't seem satisfactory as this nut job killed so many people because of a total misunderstanding was pretty ridiculous. Another one with daddy issues that didn't know the truth. I just feel that these antagonists need more satisfying endings given their brutality.

Would I recommend it? Yes, I would. For 40 episodes, it had a little bit of everything so give it a go.

Read More

Realistic Cuteness Overload; A Breath of Fresh Air

Never expected this drama to be so realistic and light. I watched primarily for CZY because I wanted to see him develop into a mature male actor. I've seen several actors previously so I knew it would be a good cast. It really was cuteness overload but probably one of the least toxic c-dramas I've ever seen. It was a real breath of fresh air.

Pros: Favorite character was ML and I'm very proud of how he's grown from playing younger roles to a mature male who let me tell you, when he turned on those eyes of his, he'd melt women of all ages into a puddle. Other than that, he was also probably one of the most caring individuals on earth. Life dealt him a very cruel hand with what his father did and that stalker chick, but instead of curling into a ball and giving up, he just strove to be a better person worthy of the love of everyone around him especially the only one who truly loved every piece of him, our FL SZ.

Most of the story was very well developed. And honestly, other than the stalker chick, there wasn't a single character I didn't like. She was the main antagonist I guess you could say. FL, her parents, bro and all of their friends were just wonderful. I do have to say that I don't know about China but in the US, if you live as a resident in a quad in college, it's beyond rare that everyone gets along so well. I was never a resident but a commuter but my resident friends told me all sorts of stories back in the day. The fact that SZ lived with and got along so well with her roommates just adds to the loveliness of this story.

This story had you mostly laughing at the antics of our leads and everyone else. But it was also very inspirational and sometimes it even made you tear up. SZ was more mature in some aspects then people gave her credit for. Though I do wish many of her inner monologues came out of her mouth instead, she was endearing, kind, respectful, caring, loving, and fiercely protective of those she loved the most.

Everything had its rightful progression to a point. I have nothing to complain about the settings, OSTs, etc. Their moments together once they start coming together were the best and of course the comedy. But there is a con section though it won't be that long.

Cons: While I understand the misunderstandings as people have that makes them imagine or overthink when they're young; but it shouldn't happen when they're adults in a relationship or even by 12th grade in high school. Miscommunication is a known relationship killer. SZ never asks DJX what he's thinking but goes full steam ahead on her own assumptions which are usually worse case scenarios and completely false. DJX also doesn't open up to her and then they end up finding out through other means and how foolish it looks. But instead of learning and not doing it again, they keep repeating it. Even by episode 24, she still thought he was considering breaking up with her.

Then DJX's not dealing with the stalker as soon as he paid off the debt. Why? Her harassing him just complicated things for him both literally and psychologically. If he didn't find out she went after SZ, would he ever have dealt with her? What if she flew to Nanwu to find him?

The thing I wish there was less of were the flashbacks of SZ's childhood. Like once she became an adult, end those. We know what's going on. It wasn't until episode 3 that this drama picked up for me. But I'm very glad I stuck around.

Would I recommend it? Definitely. From all the ones I'm watching it was the only one that made me laugh and love little moments that I would rewind just to get a little bit more. I'm very glad I watched this drama and you should give it a chance too.

Read More

Great Acting, Hot Mess in a Dress Script

Watched this to see Dilraba taking on a new type of role and recognized 2 other actors from previous series. Also read the article on this as since this was supposed to be based on a true story of an international cybercrime syndicate. So was hoping for something substantial, what I got was great acting from basically everyone but an absolutely lousy hot mess in a dress script.

Pros: Reba should definitely take on more of these types of roles as she was awesome as An Ni. Very convincing be it in her personal or professional life. As I mentioned in the comments, Han Dong is great at playing an antagonist who makes your skin crawl. From the moment he stepped onscreen, you knew something was off about him. The cast couldn't be better and more professional. That however is where the pros end.

Cons: Fire all directors and screenwriters. What happened here? This had so much promise as a based on a true story series and instead it was turned into an alphabet soup of countries where every European looking actor could speak Mandarin and even the courts looked alike, the costumes were either not fitting or too big and the extras couldn't even hold their props. The story took a nose dive in the single digit episodes. I don't even remember how much went wrong but a lot did.

It ended up being about a genius who was abused and abandoned by his mom with massive daddy issues getting revenge on his father while creating a massive cybercrime network that treated its employees like slaves. He himself was the last person one thought would be the one behind it all; but he did show as a narcissistic sociopath who saw nothing wrong with his crimes and whose manipulative behavior made him fall for FL the prosecutor.

The entire thing was like a bad docuseries that should have been made for Chinese law students because whole episodes consisted of speeches about their law system. Just fast forward because no one outside their country understood how it worked. I have a background in law though in the US and the stuff and the speed they spit things out, you couldn't follow. Also their absolute lack of knowledge of other countries laws that seemed to be important to the main case was laughable. Example: to say that a Chinese attorney who got a J.D. and passed the bar exam in California automatically got onto the US Supreme Court was dumb. Firstly he had to be a federal prosecutor, then go through a boat load of nominations from governor, senators to even have a chance. Also had to be nominated/chosen by a sitting president and pass through the senate or congress. It's a huge, complicated process and they made it seem like by passing a bar exam one can get there.

They remembered it was a drama in the last maybe 6 episodes and started just writing lord knows what in. I literally had no words and wasn't even sure I was going to write a review. Some characters that were constant, just up and disappeared and were never seen again with zilch explanation. Even the ending was like someone drunk wrote it. Frankenstein's monster was better put together than this.

Would I recommend it? No way. If it wasn't for Dilraba and wanting to know who A was and the outcome, I would have dropped it long ago. All of these actors deserve better scripts on these topics.

Read More