As someone who watched and loved Ancient Love Poetry shortly after its release in 2021, as soon as I heard that a sequel was in the works, I was already excited. A little nervous, perhaps, since ALP delivered so much that I wondered if the next in the series would be able to follow or build upon the existing material in a satisfying way. Yet I needn't have feared.

If anything, The Last Immortal not only builds upon what Ancient Love Poetry established, it gives such an extension of growth to its universe that, truly, I ended up loving the sequel even more. Which is high praise indeed, considering ALP is very much one of my favourite c-dramas' from the last few years.

The Last Immortal follows the story of Shang Gu and Bai Jue's only child, Gu Jin (Yuan Qi) during his time throughout the Heavenly Realm. His True God powers have been sealed, and after an accidental event that causes the Phoneix Immortal's essence to shatter and scatter across the three realms, Gu Jin and the little water divine beast he hatches, A'Yin, work together to gather the pieces of her immortal essence.

I never once found myself bored watching this show. The pacing felt natural and engaging, with enough development with the different plots that were going on to keep me wanting to watch the next episode and find out more. There are so many interesting and fun characters too, a few of my favourites being the fox demon Hong Yi, the ghost realm's brother's Xiuyan and Aoge, and the Eagle Princess Yan Shuang. Truthfully however, there is no one in this show that I felt was annoying - even the Phoneix clan's father and daughter duo were compelling to watch.

One strength this show has is that everything feels as if it has a purpose. There are side plots that are introduced early on that seem as if they have nothing to do with the larger story, yet it isn't until later on that you realise they are incredibly important to the plot and have been included for a reason. A perfect example of this is the Ghost realm. One of my favourite realms in the show and perhaps the most interesting, it felt so satisfying to see certain characters within it return later on down the line and to know that they were always supposed to be a part of the story. That they weren't just added in to aid the main characters in their own goals, but they had their own story and purpose for being there.

I will warn any future viewers that are coming from Ancient Love Poetry however that The Last Immortal can be a bit confusing, and this is simply down to the way that the drama chooses to change the names of mentioned characters that appear in ALP. Shang Gu and Bai Jue are installed called Yi He and Di Juan. Xuan Yi is called Ming Qi. Thankfully, there is a thread on this site that explains the names of the characters that are featured in both shows, so do take a look if you find yourself confused or just wanting to know whose who (https://mydramalist.com/discussions/shen-yin/121769-shen-yin-the-last-immortal-novel-content-and-its-connection-with-ancient-love-poetry).

All in all, if you are a fan of xianxia, The Last Immortal is definitely something you should check out. A fantastic story that is well acted with a talented cast of actors, and with features some beautiful visuals and a great soundtrack. Do give this show a chance - you may just find yourself leaving a new favourite!