I will try to review this as a standalone drama first of all. (Rant about adaptation at the end)
The story line is nothing that we haven't seen before . There are some interesting developing here and there but it is kind of your typical weak to strong protagonist fighting against evil. The romantic develop between the character was good especially between Lin Dong and Ying Huan Huan. It would good to see how everything plays out in the second part (I wish they didn't split it up).
All the actor were serviceable and all the main leads did a good enough job. Sometime the dubbing is very noticeable but apart from that there are no major complaints.
One thing i noticed was the productions put a lot of effort into the set production. You can tell they probably spent a lot of money on set pieces and they tried to build a fairly realistic world. Of course there was still a fair amount of CGI.
The beginning of the show was very slow and I really struggled. However I still continued and I feel that the second half of the series is a better than the first half, the second half things were actually happening. Another thing I felt that was off through the series was the editing, i feel that sometime story arc seems to be rush or there is no proper conclusion.
Overall this was a very average drama.

Here is my rant about this being an adaption of the novel. Being someone who has read the book, I believe this is a failure of an adaptation. The book is very much centered around Lin Dong and I know this is a drama so they have to change things but the most important aspects should at least be kept but the drama does away with all of this. I personally believe that what make people root for Lin Dong was his drive and willpower to improve himself and get his revenge but the drama basically ignores this. For the most part of the series he either has character A or B helping Lin Dong and they have to encourage all the way. If you are a like the novel I do not believe many of you will like the drama so I will recommend that you do not think of this as an adaption but just a standalone drama that has similar character names and settings.

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The story seems to be your typical cliche story of a young person who suffers from tragedy and you follow him as he grows and matures and develops. I like how they got both Zhang Xiao Fan and Lin Jin Yu to suffer from the same tragedy and you can see how the two people develop differently giving you a comparison giving you a feel of the main antagonist. Through out the whole series you can see how Zhang Xiao Fan changes and become more mature throughout many life and death situation. Flash backs are used very well to show us the trouble all the different characters has face and how we could empathise with them.

I feel all the actors did a good job portraying their role but i want to especially mention the 2 females leads. Zanila who play Bi Yao did an amazing job as always. She must be one of the most sort after actress in China at the moment. She seems to be every other drama and always does a splendid job. Yang Zi who protray Lu Xue Qi, I feel is really underrated. She has good chemistry with Li Yi Feng and the rest of the cast. She protays a believable character who seems to hide all her trouble and with a cold attitude but is in fact very caring. There is a very big cast and all the members seem to make themselves stand out one way or another.

The music was done very well. The use of music during emotional scenes was just right and not too over the top. The music didn't over shadow anyone's dialogue and added enough dramatic effect for it to work. Both the OST were good to listen to and enjoyable.

I generally dont judge a show on re-watch value as sometimes a good show doesn't necessary have much re-watch value. I can say the Legend of Chusen is one of those shows as there are not many surprises and you can guess how most of the story pans out anyway.

Overall I enjoyed this drama a lot. It exceeded my expectations and I would recommend people to watch it if you are into this genre. It is your typical 'chosen one' storyline with a Romeo and Juliet romance. I am looking forward to season 2 even if it is not as long and I hope it gives us a complete conclusion.

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The storytelling was very good as you are not given much of a backstory of the main characters and you find out through out the drama. There were a couple surprises that I didn't expect but overall it was interesting enough to keep me entertained. However the last few episodes you can tell it was very rushed and they cut out a lot of scenes making leaving you very confused at certain parts and scratching your head. I felt a lot of characters were underutilised especially the other members of the Mystic Nine as they aren't even in most of the drama.

All the actors did a good job especially some of the small supporting characters. Our main leads William and Zanilia have some very good chemistry maybe because it isn't the first time these two are paired together. I could see Lay and William acting has improved a lot over the year. Zanilia plays her character well as always but i feel that she played a 'flower vase' in this drama because the plot line would have still carried on pretty much the same without her. The multiple antagonist did a good job but sometime i feel like that the things they do don't

There was nothing to complain about the music. The opening theme was good and i liked how they changed the images used in the opening theme several times rather than having the same images for 48 episodes. The music through out the drama was used very well especially during the emotional scenes especially with Lay's character and her wife.

There isn't much re-watch value in this show because one you know the storyline there isn't much you are looking forward to. The things worth re-watching are probably some of the outstanding action scenes and the interaction and chemistry between our characters.

Overall I enjoyed this drama a lot. It exceeded my expectations and I would recommend people to watch it if you are into action and mystery genre. There isn't that much romance but enough to get you intrigued. When you finished this and are thirsty for more there is always The Lost Tomb you can watch.

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