A great drama!

I am really glad that Mao Ni’s work are being adapted into dramas. Hoping to see more of those in the near future, he has many great novels.

Novel vs Drama: if you plan to read or have already read the novel, then be warned that this is an adaptation. There are a mixture and altercations of events/characters. Sometimes events happens ahead of one another, sometimes the characters are merged into one. Due to this fact, some scene felt a bit forced to me, as there are some minor details missing . An example is when the Emperor calls Fan Xian into the Palace, from their interaction, it gives you the feeling that Fan Xian was comfortable with the Emperor,and in return the Emperor paid no heed to his naughtiness. However that shouldn’t happen casually as there are multiple build up events that should be leading their relationship.

Story:
Although the director incorporated different elements into the drama vs the novel, it still does not take away the great story of this drama. If you like political scheming, some elements of Wuxia, witty and humorous MC, great acting, and what I love about this novel/drama is the many twists and turns that will leave you in awed; whether that's due to conspiracy or great scheming, it is all worth it. This drama a must watch! Additionally, I love the opening and ending OST themes with it dramatic effects. They do not show many scenes that would spoil the drama for you.

Characters/Acting:
I could spend all day talking about how great each actors/actresses are, but I will try to keep this short. It honestly brings me great joy when I realized how perfect of a cast these characters are! From the main to the supporting cast, it is amazing talent. Veteran actors/actresses like Chen Ping Ping, Qing's Emperor, Li Yunrui, Fan Jian etc, are all so immersed into their role that it is impossible to see anyone else portraying them.

Chen Ping Ping love for Fan Xian is only second to Fan Jian. If Fan Xian dies, you can be dang sure that Qing as a Kingdom will fall into chaos. CPP love is a bit different. I called it rough love. He wants the best for Fan Xian, and at the same time, nurture and discipline him about the world's evil. Fan Jian only want Fan Xian to stay out of politics and live a normal life, as tragedy befall his mother back then. He did not want to see Fan Xian falling into the same footstep. Qing's Emperor is kind of narcissistic and scheming. He care for Fan Xian, sure, but more in the line of using Fan Xian to sharping his other Princes. Li Yunrui is an evil scheming demoness. She only wants the best for Qing's Kingdom, no matter the costs or the actions. Although Fei Jie does not have that many screen time in novel/drama, I would place him in as slightly below Fan Jian in terms of endearment for Fan Xian.

Zhang Ruo Yun did a fantastic job portraying Fan Xian. His facial expression are quite likable. It's ironic that in the novel, everyone of Fan Xian love interests has got more chemistry with him than Wan'er (IMO). And it seems like even in the drama, you can feel their chemistry: Xin Zhi Lei as Haitang Duo Duo, what a lovable character, what a lovable actress. I really liked her in the novel and was hoping that Fan Xian swoop her up. Hopefully drama might be different? Finger crossed!! Frida Li as Si Lili, what a captivating woman, extremely soft spoken and got no one in her eyes besides Fan Xian. At one point, I was even hoping for Song Yi as Fan Ruo Ruo to be Fan Xian's love interests because they got so much chemistry together, both in drama and novel (don't worry, they're not related at all). If Si Lili told me “I need to kill you for it is my mission”, I’ll happily extends my neck and say “Please strike here”, same goes for Eldest Princess.

Moving on to Wang Qinian, very sly, very comedic like the novel. Gao Da, I thought he would of look more boorish and mature, but he was slim and comical in the drama, caught me by surprise. First and Second price, great casting, their eyes are very scheming and sly. Uncle Wu Zhu: pretty boy. Yan Bingyun is how I imagined he would look and sounds like. Very patriot towards Qing and go by the books.

Since this is a 3 seasons drama, I would love for the actors/actresses to reprise their roles, because they are just perfectly mirroring their counterpart from the novel. And this part is what worries me. Since season 1 is left on a cliff hanger and we have to wait basically another year or two for season 2, I am not sure if the audience can still love this drama as much given the off-time of it. I'd rather they shoot everything and release it all within 2 years instead. But I know it is impossible with all the actors/actresses upcoming projects.

If you have read all of this thus far, thank you!!! It is a lengthy review. I have read the novel so if you have any questions, please feel free to ask! I'll try to answer!

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“You cannot do this alone”.

Con; A lot of talking, politics, might bore you to death if that’s not your cup of tea. Old men converse in riddles that you won't understand if you don't pay attention.

Pro; 1) Acting, production, story, intriguing if you like politics, deep scheming. 2) The twists are just so good, even if I had read the novel, the acting really played it all out for me. 3) Old men converse in riddles that when you pay attention, it rewards you with the wittiness of the conversations. It’s a great drama honestly. Even side characters had great performances. Other reviewers will have better adjectives than I do lol.

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I liked season 2, although it did contain much more politics than season 1. It would be the same versus the novel. They did change and modify some events and people, but I guess in the grand scheme of things, it made sense for the drama adaptation. Many viewers indicated that the new season is more like a detective/crime solving cases and corruptions, which they didn’t like. That part is correct. It seems like the drama combined some events here and there. In order for Fan Xian to consolidate his power, he uprooted all corruptions and went head to head with most officials in Jingdu, which made them either fear him or hate him. It follows the novel in this aspect. While doing so, he gained a lot of respect and allies, whom would then join his rank for the later part of the novel. These cases are important to build the story and allies, because they play a major role in the third season.

If season 1 was introducing us to Fan Xian and the story, then season 2 provide us with insights on how Fan Xian is establishing and consolidating his powers, all the while dealing with Palace politics and hidden enemies. Just like Chen Ping Ping said “You cannot do this alone”. Season 3 should be much darker, because there will be alot of killing involved, I hope that is one thing they do not change.

Some things I wish they kept throughout the drama; 1) the subtle darker tone from the novel. 2) Some of Fan Xian’s arrogance and ruthlessness. I think in the novel besides the Emperor, there aren't any enemies that Fan Xian wouldn’t dare beat the hell out of lol. He basically fought with everyone, physically or mentally to establish himself in Jingdu. 3) Fan Xian had operatives under him that were fearless and ruthless, abiding his commands and orders. They were especially scary during the night because you don’t know when they’ll come for you. It is the unknown fear that Jingdu is so afraid of Fan Xian, and afraid of the Bureau. I guess hiring a bunch of people dressed as assassins just to follow him around might be too much ($$) lol. But that's the beauty and fame of the Overwatch Council and how they operate, unpredictable, powerful, and inducting fear.

Several things I did like: 1) they made Yan Bingyun to have more character/flavor to him. The nature of Yan Bingyun is the same as the novel, unyielding, goes by the book and only for the goodness of the Qing empire. No one likes Qing more than Yan Bingyun. A true patriot. In the drama, they made him likable and had comedy bits. I like that change, it humanized him. 2) the drama does a good job at giving viewers subtle hints or foreshadows via character expression, POV frames, and etc. You really don’t get that perspective from reading novels unless it is specifically written out.

Example spoiler: Emperor having a conversation with Fan Jian and Chen Ping Ping about Fan Xian not registering his name within the Fan family, and he commented “Good, good, etc”. The camera then pans to Fan Jian and Chen Ping Ping expressions, which hide hints of mystery/slyness. It’s these little moments that the POV, Camera works, allow the audience to maybe speculate “Why is the Emperor saying that..?” and “what does the expression of those two really mean?” If viewers hadn’t read the novel and hadn’t read spoilers yet, it’s a great hint. There are many subtle hints and foreshadowing throughout the drama, Season1 as well as Season2.

And 3) the antics from the 2nd prince, crown prince, and Fan Xian were great. It is like they are acting out a play, very comedic. Other characters were great too.

If you don’t enjoy politics then I wouldn’t recommend this show for you. However, IMO even with the politics it was still entertaining. The Characters are sly and scheming, even with the ‘little’ (side characters) guy. So it made it that more interesting. For those novel readers out there, just remember that this should be an adaptation, so change is unavoidable. Enjoy the drama and acting!

I love Haitang in the novel, and fell in love with her again due to actress Xin Zhi Lei portrayal. Mao Ni isn’t good at romance, that is the only downside from his novels. Damn you Mao Ni!!!!

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Infinite Heat < Infinite Slo-mo action sequences

Lots of beautiful looking people. Choreography is amazing. Sets and costumes are all well designed. Lu Yu Xiao (2FL) did amazingly well, my first time seeing her. I really hope she pops off and gets a more main role, because she deserved it.

The sets remind me of Song of Glory and Jade Dynasty, it is so artificially looking, it looks funky. Albeit beautiful, but cannot be immersed in, as it looks too fake. Story seems like it could be a 3 hours movie that expanded to 24 episodes. Usually the 2ML is written to make the ML look good, but it seems like this is the reverse in this drama. Honestly disappointed in how they wrote the ML. 2ML is intelligent, ambitious, and scheming. While ML is more of: Yun Wei Shan, Yun Wei Shan, Oh- Father and Brother died, Yun Wei Shan, Yun Wei Shan, Yun Wei Shan, Oh wait, I'm supposed to be the Sword Wielder, Yun Wei Shan, Yun Wei Shan. The definition of a simp. Honestly comical. 2ML is more towards the family, and its responsibilities. He’s like a general, he’s rough and tough, but his loyalty is to the house. As far as the ML goes, he’s just really infatuated with the FL, really doesn’t deserve the position. Idk what the writer was thinking when writing the character. I think after 10-15 episodes, we can see some smartness in him, after like half the series. But honestly, it's really dull to me.

The dynamic with ML couples and 2ML couples is that the ML couples are ‘soft’, have a soft spot for personal relationships and don’t want to involve the innocent. While the 2ML couples are ‘hard’; use whatever means necessary to achieve what is needed. Who said the Gong’s mansion was hard to infiltrate? Just send 2 beautiful and smart women in and TA-DA. If it wasn’t for 2ML, Gong’s family would have been destroyed in under 10 episodes, but then again, we wouldn't have a drama to watch :D.

As for the actors/actresses, they all did well for their role. I had high hopes going in, with a rating of 8.7. But the rating is probably inflated due to how well it was filmed, the actors and actresses, and how beautiful everything looks.

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Fan of wuxia genre? A must watch!

One of the best wuxia dramas in recent years. If you are a fan of wuxia, this is legit! It has many of the wuxia tropes; sects, court politics, secret arts, assassin's guide, youths who dream of justice and adventures, and especially; ranking and ranking of swords!! You can sing the national anthem of ‘Dugu Qiubai’ here lol. They certainly did not cheap out on the production nor the choreography, because it was just simply so beautiful. You can tell they spent ALOT of time on it. I saw the directors and checked some of their past works, now I understand why the choreography and sequences are so well filmed, I love some of their past works!

The sword names, fighting, and even the details for all of it…hollyyyy crappp, this is wuxia’s fan wetdream. I'm really glad I didn’t watch it when it first came out, because I woulda gone crazy waiting for it. But now, I can binge it. You have to trust me, if you really love wuxia and appreciate great fight choreography and sequences, this show is a must!

Also, Li Hong Yi should really try out for ventriloquist, because for the whole freaking drama the biggest I see his mouth move is to this extent *o* it is like he talks in all lower cases I swear. If you take a shot for any time you can see his set of upper teeth, you can only be drunk after rewatching the whole drama 3 times. Lmaoo

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Li Chungang Secret Arts of Nose Pickin'

Novel vs Drama; Dama is very different from the novel. It is an adaptation after all. The core aspect, which is the storyline, is somewhat the same. So if you're wondering what happens with the characters in the novel, just know that it might not get translated over to the drama. That is fine. Watch the drama as a standalone, it fairs well on its own anyway.

I was super hyped like everyone else when this was announced. Finally, a deserving Wuxia, and it was even written by Wang Juan starring ZRY and Hu Jun! You cannot get more hyped than that. Unfortunately, it was a bit different than what I expected. Good or bad, depending on your taste. There are better reviewers on MDL with deeper understanding, and so, I will rant instead.

Story:
Storyline is the slow-burn type, if you're not used to it you will get bored easily. It is well paced, political, and very easy to digest. Due to the sheer size of the novel, it is well expected for this drama to have multiple seasons, and because of that reason they need to introduce the basis of the story and its characters. However, due to how long it'll take to produce each season, newcomers might shy away from it as they do not want to be left on a cliffhanger. Additionally, some parts are left for questions, like characters, as it will probably be revealed in later seasons, which IMO, might conflict with the flow of the whole story since we have to wait. The script and storyline make sense to the writer and director because they got the whole script to read, as for us audience, we only get part 1 and so we're left yearning for more.

Acting:
Actors did a great job based on what they were given. This must have been the easiest drama that some actors did, because most of the time, they are just standing around without dialogues lol. Terresa Li’s acting is not bad per se, she just needs more time to polish her acting. It's difficult not to compare when your counterpart is ZRY and other veterans.

Romance:
Not the main focus, barely any, however there’s some hints here and there. I do not mind.

Action:
The Wachowskis sisters definitely directed this drama based on how much slow motion they used. ZRY is the chosen one, he just doesn’t know it yet. Usually people skip scenes where there’s dialogue and go directly to the fight. Well, I was very eager to (but I didn’t) skip the fights and go directly to dialogue. I'm not sure if the director wanted to be poetic and filmed it in such a way that everyone becomes Neo or oftentimes, we don’t even see the fight scene and it was cut to the bad guys already being defeated, laying on the floor. If this is him wanting to experiment new things, I’d pray to the wuxia-god that he doesn't continue it for the remainder of the seasons. I am fine if the whole drama is political and no fight, I am fine if they talk all day, but if you have to include martial art scenes, please please do not cheap out. There are multiple times where they showcase that they were capable of filming a proper fight, but that sadly did not translate often enough. You can film an artistic scene and still have a proper fight.

FYI, wuxia doesn’t always mean great fight scenes, we have been spoiled for decades that every time we see wuxia tags, we think of awesome martial arts (I'm guilty). The essence of wuxia is the adventure that a hero takes, the sect he visited, enemies he encountered, the martial art manuals he collected, and other heroes he meets on the way. That is wuxia and this drama has it. However, because the wuxia fight scene is a part of the whole story, and what the audience looked forward to the most, this drama fails to deliver that aspect IMO. And that may deter viewers.

Cinematography:
I love that they used real structures, real environment. It made it that more authentic. I also love that they did not cheap out on background extras. Making it look like a real bustling place, rather than empty streets. Costumes, sets, and equipment are well made, no concerns there. The style of filming reminds me of older days wuxia, training under waterfall, deep pan looking at camera, one slap cut scene and bad guys rolling on the floor, ah.. nostalgia. Sometimes I even wonder why a scene was filmed the way it was, one scene all I saw was the butt of God of Sword. I feel as if the effort to make scenes artistic or poetic or cinematic has resulted in some becoming awkward.

Music:
Ending theme made me melancholic. Ah.. how much more will Feng Nian suffer? Such an ill fated destiny.

Overall:
The trailer got me hyped, but it’s one of those things where your expectation does not meet. If you like slow-burn type drama, ZRY, and some great story telling, give this a try. It’s easy to digest, fun, interesting and shrouded in mystery. Just ignore the action scene, weird in a wuxia theme drama I know, but less disappointment that way. It should of been a 45-50 episodes drama ;_;

I don’t often write reviews so it is extremely lengthy because that’s how much I appreciate the drama(s), thanks for reading!

Yang Mi and Zhang Ruo Yun were both born to play costume period dramas.

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A mature slice of life drama. Bring some tissues.

A mature (writing) show with character growth. Drama like these aren't my cup of tea because Im more into wuxia: you fly here, you fly there, find martial art manuals kind of drama lol. However, I am glad I gave this a chance because it deserved the rating.

Don't think of this as a romance, revenge, or scheming type of drama, but think of it as a slice of life that is set in older days China with servants, masters, rulers and subjects, etc. The Hua's family went through tribulations and each members had character growth. Knowing their short coming, their greed, having family disputes, hierarchy's, betrayal and much more. No true villain or deep scheming, but really just everyone tries to live the best life that they possibly can with what they have.

I thought the supporting cast were all fantastic. They did what they could with the material and made it an amazing show. Lu Yu Xiao, first saw her in My Journey to You, thought she was amazing. She nailed this role too. First time seeing Zhang Jing Yi project, great actress, she's also very very pretty. The male lead, I am not sure but maybe they miscast the role as I don't see a general who went through countless battles in the North to keep the borders clean, or a ruthless Commander. as he looks kind of naive, kind or harsher way to put it -a blank face-, it was not convincing.

The show is different from what I am used to, maybe that's why I liked it. I think everyone definitely should give this a try.

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Hwang Inyoup finally gets the girl~

I watched this series unbiasedly, without thinking there was an original and I liked it alot. I feel that many who are comparing with the OG might not be enjoying it as much, which is a real pity. Why must you torture yourself and take out the enjoyment upon yourself? lol

Given the length of the series the writers and actors/actresses did their best to showcase the story. 3 kids who had similar issues with abandonment, raised by single fathers, grew up with trauma and still tried their best to be ‘happy’. Their fathers did their utmost best to make it feel like a family, and the 3 siblings also contributed. Individually, each kid is not able to express their concerns openly given the fact that other siblings are also going through rough times. They bottled up everything and burdened themselves. On the surface, they feel like a family, but deep down, everyone has their demons. I think they did a great job showcasing that throughout the show. And whenever shit hits the fan, they were always there for each other, and that’s what matters.

This series isn’t a masterpiece or a 10/10, however it was satisfying enough to watch. I do think the finale episode was rushed, jammed in a lot of situations to make a happy ending. On an overall scale of the series- it was a good 8/10. It would have been great if they extended the show for 4 more episodes, just to flesh out some things. My man Hwang Inyoup finally is the lead and gets the girl, so it’s a 8.5/10 for me (:.

Overall, I advise anyone watching this series to not think of the original story. But to view this as its own version, a kdrama version, and really take in the story, the struggle, and the bonds that these 3 kids and their family shared. Just follow the story and enjoy the moment. I liked it.

Also, bring some tissues.

===Spoilers=== a longer ranting

I don’t think Sanha and Juwon relationship is rushed in an overall sense. Sanha has liked Juwon since their childhood days and the drama gave us many subtle hints regarding it. She relies on him more than she knows. When she’s in trouble, she’s more afraid that Sanha will get upset than Haejun. When he confessed in episode 10, her reaction was perfectly normal. It’s sudden, and also ‘what comes after this?’. She really didn’t want to lose him. She was nonchalant when Haejun said they should get married because that idea was far fetched. However, it was different when Sanha did it. She only realized later that she truly liked him as a man rather than ‘brother’.

Haejun and Dal relationship is perfectly where it should have been. In the phase of ‘I didn’t know your feelings 10 years ago, however now that I know, I would like to really know you. So let’s start dating’- and that’s what dating is, to know more about the person. The only regret is that I think there should be more screen time for Dal and Haejun, more butterfly moments. But I guess they did not write that in because it would conflict with Haejun’s personality- he’s oblivious to these kinds of things. More moments will give him hints.

I understand Juwon’s father when he hesitates for approval. Sanha held alot of responsibilities, some even he shouldn’t be responsible for. Of all their years together, he never voiced it out or asked for support. Juwon’s father lives with them but he truly never knew of the internal struggles of Sanha, since he does not open up. So if Juwon and Sanha have a fight, Sanha won’t likely be open up to Juwon’s father- in that sense, it seems like he had lost a son.

Haejun loves both of his siblings and he always wanted a place to belong to, as being abandoned by his father AND mother since young. I understand his need to be within the family, similarly with Juwon, but the difference is- he doesn’t wish to be abandoned again. That’s why he felt so angry and sad when Juwon and Sanha dated. He felt left out. When his mom came back, he was truly overjoyed because if his Dad and Mom got married, it would finally fulfill his wish. It was a happy occasion, but indeed a rush to the finale.

I think if this series had 4 more episodes, some of these issues could be ironed out and be digestible throughout each episode, making more sense. However with 16 episodes compared to 40 episodes of the original, they did well for the story itself.

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