shanzhujun
Deserves the praise but definitely has room to improve
Note: I watched this back in early 2020 but am only writing the review now. Excuse me for any mistakes I might make about story elements as I might have remembered incorrectly.
The Untamed is one of the more ambitious Chinese dramas I've watched. It pushes the boundaries of what is accepted in broadcast and, I think, does it in a way that has broken barriers for dramas coming after it. For that alone it deserves high praises, but I will talk a bit about what I think makes The Untamed fall short from being one of the best dramas I've seen.
Story:
It's strong and character-driven, and explores a lot of interesting themes such as the distinction between good and evil, personal responsiblity, and self-sacrifice, in considerable depth. A qualm I had with it, though, would be its pacing. Certain scenes lasted entirely too long, and things only pick up at around episode 20. For an already 50 epsiode-long drama, a slow start could turn away a lot of audiences.
Acting/Cast:
I would have been harsher here if not for the fact that most of the cast were rookies, and for their experience did relatively well. The performances that stood out most to me were Xiao Zhan as Wei Wuxian (of course) and Song Jiyang as Xiao Xingchen. They both have a lot of potential and I'm looking forward to their upcoming works (hoping Song Jiyang gets a lead role someday)! Wang Yibo's performance sort of fluctuated but there is definitely significant improvement towards the end. Wang Zhuocheng and Wang Haoxuan's scenes were difficult to watch... which is a little bit painful considering Jiang Cheng is my favourite character, but again, they're rookies, so I'll cut them some slack.
The casting was done fairly well. I can't speak for the novel fanbase who have their own opinions but I do think Xiao Zhan as Wei Wuxian and Wang Yibo as Lan Wangji had a solid amount of chemistry and fit their roles fairly well. I appreciate that they cast rookies, too, as rocky as some scenes were.
Music:
I didn't pay too much attention to the music but it's definitely memorable. I can hear the main soundtracks in my head on cue, so I suppose they've done their job there. It set the mood fairly well, and considering both leads play instruments it's probably more important than I've given it credit for.
Overall, The Untamed is worth a watch but definitely not perfect. There's some slowness, amateur acting, and low-budget CGI you'd have to sit through, but the story is rich and the characters sympathetic, so ultimately I would say it's worth a try!
The Untamed is one of the more ambitious Chinese dramas I've watched. It pushes the boundaries of what is accepted in broadcast and, I think, does it in a way that has broken barriers for dramas coming after it. For that alone it deserves high praises, but I will talk a bit about what I think makes The Untamed fall short from being one of the best dramas I've seen.
Story:
It's strong and character-driven, and explores a lot of interesting themes such as the distinction between good and evil, personal responsiblity, and self-sacrifice, in considerable depth. A qualm I had with it, though, would be its pacing. Certain scenes lasted entirely too long, and things only pick up at around episode 20. For an already 50 epsiode-long drama, a slow start could turn away a lot of audiences.
Acting/Cast:
I would have been harsher here if not for the fact that most of the cast were rookies, and for their experience did relatively well. The performances that stood out most to me were Xiao Zhan as Wei Wuxian (of course) and Song Jiyang as Xiao Xingchen. They both have a lot of potential and I'm looking forward to their upcoming works (hoping Song Jiyang gets a lead role someday)! Wang Yibo's performance sort of fluctuated but there is definitely significant improvement towards the end. Wang Zhuocheng and Wang Haoxuan's scenes were difficult to watch... which is a little bit painful considering Jiang Cheng is my favourite character, but again, they're rookies, so I'll cut them some slack.
The casting was done fairly well. I can't speak for the novel fanbase who have their own opinions but I do think Xiao Zhan as Wei Wuxian and Wang Yibo as Lan Wangji had a solid amount of chemistry and fit their roles fairly well. I appreciate that they cast rookies, too, as rocky as some scenes were.
Music:
I didn't pay too much attention to the music but it's definitely memorable. I can hear the main soundtracks in my head on cue, so I suppose they've done their job there. It set the mood fairly well, and considering both leads play instruments it's probably more important than I've given it credit for.
Overall, The Untamed is worth a watch but definitely not perfect. There's some slowness, amateur acting, and low-budget CGI you'd have to sit through, but the story is rich and the characters sympathetic, so ultimately I would say it's worth a try!
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