This review may contain spoilers
good story and romance!
I liked this! I was craving anything remotely similar to Alchemy of Souls, and I found this. I think this is the first CDrama I’ve ever watched lol. But what a great introduction!The first thing that really drew me in was the production and visual aesthetics of the set. The imagery is so so beautiful. I also reallly enjoyed the acting here! Especially Esther Yu and Dylan Wang. Their chemistry was amazing and I loved orchid and dongfang qiangcang together.
The plot felt somewhat predictable, but there were still a few twists and turns that made things enjoyable to watch. Like I did not expect Jieli’s betrayal lol. But I think the way characters acted made sense and there weren’t any glaring loose threads that still needed to be tied up by the end.
I also enjoyed Danyin’s character/the actress’s performance— at first was giving mean girl but I liked her arc overall. I wish her being half moon tribe half fairy tribe and being sisters with Jieli would’ve been explored more but ig after the truce and also wrapping up the story in 36 eps it makes sense they didn’t do that.
I went into this thinking 36 episodes was so long but once I started I literally could not stop and now I wish there were more episodes lol.
But yeah back to Orchid/DFQC their progression and love story is one I won’t forget. It lived up to the hype for sure
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"hero will sacrifice their lover to save world but villain will sacrifice world to save their lover"
This series was highly anticipated, but it didn’t fully deliver for me. Xiao Lan Hua’s character grew on me, and I appreciated seeing her develop beyond her childish antics, but her transformation into a stoic, mature goddess felt sudden and somewhat forced. DongFang Qing Cang was compelling, with a complex, morally grey character arc. The supporting cast was excellent, and their stories—including the villain’s—often felt more engaging than the main OTP imo. It was refreshing to see characters who were multi-dimensional, and I’m glad the supporting cast wasn’t unnecessarily killed off.The special effects were impressive and wonderfully done! However, the plot was fairly predictable and relied on familiar tropes, albeit used reasonably to advance the story. Overall, I enjoyed the series, but I don’t see myself rewatching it. I would have liked to see a mature, self-aware, and cunning female lead paired with the typical xianxia male lead.
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This review may contain spoilers
que final foi esse???
Na minha visão, a série começou bem, apesar da protagonista feminina ser MUITO burra e fofa de forma extremamente exagerada.De verdade eu achei o romance extremamente lento, eu não sabia qual era a relação deles o tempo todo, e não senti avanço nenhum mesmo quando eles estavam quase se casando, e esse problema do avanço da relação não foi só com o casal protagonista, mas senti isso com o casal secundario também, de verdade eu não pude dizer quando que eles começaram a amar um ao outro.
O final foi extremamente decepcionante e acho que para todos, o que diabos fez o donfang qincang ressuscitar? Ele simplesmente apareceu das cinzas DO NADA e disse "voltei", como diabos eles voltou? O casal secundario também não foi lá muito diferente, no final mais parece que eles só aparecem de enfeite para ocupar tempo de tela.
De verdade, todos o cdramas que eu vi eu posso falar quando que os protas começaram a se amar, e quando que eles ressuscitaram, exceto essa.
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It was an interesting foray into the world of Wuxia
I don't remember watching any series of this kind before, but thanks to a user who loves this genre, and also Dylan Wang, I started watching Chinese series, especially those with actor Dylan Wang.It took me a while to understand the "language" of this type of series, but I have to admit that it caught me and I unexpectedly enjoyed it a lot.
I hope what I write doesn't interfere with what others have written, as I haven't read any other reviews.
What I particularly liked were the metaphors used and actually transposed into fantastical things, such as the fact that he could sense when she was depressed, happy, or afraid, which led him to do everything possible to improve her condition, by all possible means and to protect her. Her changing emotions, which he could feel just as she did, were something that particularly disturbed him. When she cried, his tears flowed too. I really liked the idea.
Now I think I'll be able to watch Wuxia series with one of my favorite actors, Deng Lun.
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Movies that are on the list of recommendations for re-watching
I really like this drama, especially in the music section, but I don't really like it when too many scenes are played with music, there are some scenes that don't need music,and the whole of this drama in my opinion is almost perfect, one of the best dramas I've ever watched, but I'm still looking for the title of the flute played by Runghao hahaha, thank you so much for making this drama,If you know the title of the flute played by Runghao, please tell me, I really want to listen to it and include it in my music collection, I think the strains make me feel calm when I hear itWas this review helpful to you?
I really didn't expect this drama to be THIS good! I'm totally amazed.
I don't even know where to start. This is the drama that actually made me sing up to MyDramalist.I'd been postponing to watch this drama for so long, and oh I don't even know why! When I've seen clips of it before, the CGI held me back, because let's face it, none of the Chinese dramas have top-notch CGI. Although, the rating of this drama really made me think: maybe it's actually good? So, I took a deep breath, and decided to finally watch it. (And Zhang LingHe is in it anyways, so that's already a reason for me to give it a go) And oh boy, what a ride it was!!! I was literally hooked from ep 1. Yes, the CGI is not Hollywood production, but I have to say, it's better than in many of other c-dramas, and the backgrounds are really freaking beautiful at times! The world is amazing, and I loved most of the costumes, especially the ones Dong Fang Qing Cang was wearing. Now let's move to the more in-depth review.
» The Story
I wasn't expecting such a complex story at all. I don't think there were any plot holes either, which is rare. I just loved it overall, it wasn't so predictable - even if there is a tree that showed us some future events and we knew that it all should happen. But oh it did not at all happen in a way I expected to. The whole story kept me thinking and guessing all the time, it was so cleverly-written. I know it's a book adaptation, and it was so well done, that I would love to read the novel in the future if it gets translated to English, or I'll finally be able to read it in Chinese.
» The Characters & Acting
Dong Fang Qing Cang: I LOVED his character!! And Dylan Wang did an absolutely amazing job!!! This was my first time seeing him in a drama, and he did not disappoint me at all. It was like he was made for this role and he understood the character so much. AND also the way he perfectly and hilariously acted as Orchid. I am in love with his acting skills. But yeah, so back to Dong Fang Qing Cang as a character. He had such a beautiful character development. I already really liked him in the beginning and it could be clearly seen that he has a long way to go, but the development happened at a perfect pace and gradually, that it was totally believable. He made me cry and also laugh many times, and I loved him for it.
Xiao LanHua: I didn't expect to like her this much. She's kind of this carefree, cheerful girl at the beginning, and basically turns into a badass by the end and it was just amazing to see. I love that she kept up her positivity throughout the whole story and that even if she played dumb sometimes, she wasn't dumb at all! She was actually quite smart. And to be honest, I've seen some people complaining that Esther Yu wasn't the best choice to play her, and that she had no chemistry with Dylan Wang, but honestly I'm not entirely sure we were watching the same thing then. 😅 She did magnificently as Orchid, I can't even imagine someone else playing her, she portrayed her perfectly, AND their chemistry with Dylan Wang was sooo so good!!
Chang Heng: played by the one and only Zhang LingHe, who is one of my favorite actors. Before I started the series, one of my friends told me that she hated his character, so I was really nervous to see who is he, and what does he do and what's his role in the story. Then I was so relieved to see that he's such a well-mannered, beautiful man, who always wants to do what is right, and even teams up with those who he despises to DO GOOD. I loved him so much, I had second ML syndrome. He deserves the world, yet he was treated so badly throughout the whole story - he had to go through betrayal, and so many other things that break one's heart, yet he's never given into resentment and pure hatred. And on top of that, he's so handsome and his smile is everything, but I'm obviously biased because of Zhang LingHe. I've also realized that ZLH is so perfect to play these kind of prince charming roles, and I love him for that. (But having seen another one of his drama 'Maiden Holmes' I've gotta say I LOVE it when he's a cheeky prince charming, that's what he does the best!) OH and I have to mention that he literally had to play 3 roles throughout the series. One I'm not saying because that'd be a spoiler, but him as Xiao Rui, ahh, it was so delightful to watch, while it was also kind of heartbreaking at times. He played him perfectly as well.
Dan Yin: I don't want to say too much about her, but I have to mention her here. I really liked her character. She's going through quite much during the series and her character development is really good, I've grown to love her by the end!
Rong Hao and Chidi: writing about them together, because I don't want to write too much about them. Rong Hao's actor is a beautiful man, and I liked him at the beginning, BUT I definitely didn't at the and. I also didn't care much for him by the end, I just wanted to got over their scenes with Chidi. Chidi, while she was portrayed as a good person, it felt like she was just a small part of the story, even though she was literally there every episode, even if it was mostly for mentions. And honestly, I wasn't really a fan of her.
Xun Feng: Oh boy, this boy. I wasn't really fond of him at the beginning, but he's just so precious. 🥺 He had gone through so much and I loved his character development. I feel like that besides Dong Fang Qing Cang, he had the most character development of them all. And Zhang ChenXiao's portrayal - flawless.
And laaastly Shang Que and Jie Li: Ohhh, first off - the one and only Shang Que, my dear Black Dragon, 黑龙大哥, he was the biggest surprise for me in this show. Firstly, I didn't expect him to have this much screen time, but THANK GOD he did. I am in love with him, he's just so perfect, caring, loyal, cute, funny at times, handsome, and everything you can ask for. His character didn't go through a huuuuge development but I just couldn't help but love him. I had a huuuge smile on my face every single time he was included in a scene. Also, this is my first time seeing Lin BoRui in a drama, and I can't imagine anyone else playing Shang Que. He understood the assignment, he has the looks, you look at him, and he's just the perfect little Black Dragon. And now then, Jie Li. I really liked her character, and Hong Xiao did an awesome job playing her. Her character has become very interesting by the end of the drama, and I really liked the plot twist with her character.
Oh, and honorary mention - Si Ming: !!! I adoooored her! She had soo so little screen time, but I think she's such a loveable character, and the actress playing her really fits the role!
» The Music
IT'S ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. I got addicted to so many of the OSTs, even before I started watching the drama because they are just so good, and the instrumental versions which we can hear playing in the background just give so insanely much depth to scenes, that it brought tears to my eyes so many times. And also, we have Liu Yuning singing one of the OSTs, and we all know he's the best, you can never go wrong with him. Music is very important to me when it comes to any kind of TV show, and this show delivered on that front. I loved it. ( Especially the piano version of "The Other Shore" lives rent free in a special place in my heart because it's just heartbreakingly beautiful)
» Overall
I truly believe that this is one of the best dramas I've ever seen, and it's gonna be hard for other dramas to surpass this. The story, the characters, the music, everything was just so good. I didn't at all feel like the ending was rushed - as I've seen many criticizing it, I'd rather say that I probably would have made a couple of scenes shorter in the last 4-5 episodes (for example... Rong Hao's scenes, I'm sorry but I really just wanted to be over that storyline). And the only reason I didn't give it 10 stars is because it's just gotten a liiiiittle too dramatic by the end for my taste, and some of the scenes felt like they are going on forever. ALTHOUGH, it's a Chinese drama, so what was I expecting tho. 😂 But yeah, that's the only reason it's not a 10/10. Otherwise, don't hesitate to watch it y'all, because it's a beautiful and surprisingly complex story, which is very cleverly-written, without plot holes, amazing characters and a satisfying ending!
» Content Warnings
I feel like many Chinese dramas have some triggering content, and it's not emphasized enough, so I decided to include a little content warning session.
This drama includes:
- A lot of deaths (but a moderate amount of blood), losing a loved one, and a couple of suicides, so BE WARNED, because it's been talked about quite much in the story, and honestly my little heart needs some processing because a lot of it is happening at the end, all at once which can be emotionally challenging to watch.
- It has a character who's getting possessed by another "character" and she acts kind of like a schizophrenic with bloodlust, who looses her mind and has little control over her actions from time to time, and it's presented in a very disturbing way - this was also a bit too much for me for example, but just keep this in mind and be wary about it, it's not like a horror movie or something, but it can be triggering.
- It also has child abuse, and toxic family relationships, manipulation and emotional abuse.
- And it overall does have a lot of emotional scenes, we can see a certain characters dealing with past traumas and trying to navigate through them, but to be fair, that is presented more like in an inspiring way, but it can still be triggering for some.
I feel like that I have to add that these content warnings, taken out of context might sound scarier than they actually are in context! So please please please, don't get discouraged by it, just simply keep these in mind! It's overall a very beautiful story which is soooo worth watching!
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SURPRISINGLY GOOD - Worth watching!
I didn’t expect to enjoy this drama as much as I did. While it is entertaining and fluffy/light for the most part, it also has parts that reveal deeper themes. The entire cast is quite nice. I am not Dylan Wang’s biggest fan, but he definitely shined in this drama; it was surprising to see he can show a bit more depth and acting versatility than his previous roles. The only criticism I have is that as a viewer, I needed some time to get used to the female lead, as she is whiny, childish, and the quintessential damsel in distress. The actors had great chemistry, however, and played their roles really well (including the secondary characters).The setting and costumes are great, and so is the soundtrack. Worth watching!
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decent love story
TLDR: decent watch if you keep at it. positive point: great kiss chemistry (everything else is ok/decent) and a HE (albeit way too short), negative point: I still don’t like jieli.Review:
while I can follow the story easily enough, and I can see the merits of it, at time, it was rather boring and I fell asleep a few times. the first 4 episodes do take a bit to start (i.e. if you are not a fan of either Dylan or Esther, and not in the mood for xianxia, you might find it hard to get pass the first 2 eps). the pace at time is slow, there are boring parts (talking with the ultimate bad guy to explain stuffs, interactions between the supports) and there are annoying parts (95% of jieli’s time), the sweet moments between the two leads are far few in between those moments that it’s barely holding me on. this series is lucky because my view of WHD has improved and my iqiyi subscription is about to run out, so I was determined to finish this. luckily, the OST (while not amazing, there are like 2 good songs, Thats good enough to put you in the mood but not good enough to re-listen outside the drama) works well with the emotions the scenes needed to convey and hold the audience’s attentions. the leads’ kiss on first watch does pull your attentions and feeling, however, I can’t say it does on rewatch 🤷♀️the acting: WHD’s acting here is quite good, I heard ppl say because of his dub voice, his acting was a lot better, but I watched with dub, and I like his acting. his coldness are demonstrated with complexity, it’s not all the same, I’d call it 50 shades of coldness. meanwhile, I disliked it when Esther took over his soul, her coldness is just that of a dead fish, it doesnt match with DFQC’s usual coldness, you can tell it’s not gel well. meanwhile when WHD become orchid, you believe it’s orchid, maybe because orchid is rather simple to portray but his face, acting, legs n hands all point to orchid. Esther, this is the second drama I watched of her, first was LGIEF, and while she looks pretty in certain shots, her acting does not move me in either dramas so far. the guy has always shine better. does she act badly? no, not really. on the first watch, where I did abandon the series because her voice was a bit grating to the ears and I was not in the mood for it, on second watch, because it was dub over, her voice isn’t as noticeable, but I can still hear it, so her acting is fine, it just doesn’t touch me 🤷♀️maybe because of that, the love story of orchid n DFQC doesn’t leave any emotional fixation for me, and this is why this series is only an 8. not a bad watch but it doesn’t hold any place special for me. at time, I stop watching and didn’t have a desire to come back, but I thought since this series was so famous, I should really finish it n see what’s the huha about! I wouldn’t mind giving this a 9, as there are parts Thats quite good, like DFQC’s confession on the love bridge, and some of their kissing scenes, as it does portray well the emotions it try to convey, but these are so little that I feel it’ll be injustice to other better, more rounded series.
the complexity of the story: we wasted a lot of time on this past god of war story, n it was not used effectively! if you get to see how Rong Hao had to witness each of his master’s life time ended, in the end, this series will be their story lol, because it’s emotional impact is far greater than anything on the show. but they had to tone it down, added a bunch of boring dialogues, how it was told and so the potential was wasted. Orchid and DFQC love story while nice, it was just ok for me. we get to see character growth for DFQC, not so much for orchid, her character is rather meh, not bad, but nothing to ride home about either. they take turn to be punished/tortured so they can be together also somehow bored me 🤷♀️with DFQC - great! with orchid, not bad but only happen once so it wasn’t as strong 🤷♀️their seperation also did not have enough time to stew/brew lol. Orchid grew back so fast, n she barely acknowledged his efforts 😒 mood killer lol. and the end came so fast, we don’t see her suffer/yearning for him either. in this sort of idol story, a bit of brewing goes a long way.
In the end, the character I love the most was DanYin lol, she’s the usual spoiled brat become good, she didn’t have that much screen time (even less than jieli 🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️), but none of it was filler or wasted. and her unwavering desire to protect the one she loves, be it her dad or her crush, while knowing what’s right and what’s wrong, is admirable, especially when you know she ain’t special in anyway lol. all in all, her character progression is easily the best in the show. sadly, her twin was indeed her polar opposite, for as much as I love DanYin, I hated Jieli, she can die, n she annoyed me and almost made me drop the series. you know when I have to skip her parts even though I’m watching this as dubs (meaning if I want to, I just ignore it n let it run on the background!). idc for her or her love story, if this is the second lead couple 🙄🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️
Do I recommend it? yes, I guess so. would it be the top of my recommendations: not really, but it’s still pretty high on my list, better than LGIEF (which I haven’t bothered to complete the last 2 eps 🙄😒🤦♀️).
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Body swap done perfectly
Normally I find body-swap to be incredibly cringe but I found myself enjoying it for the first time since watching Freaky Friday as a kid. Yu Shuxin and Dylan Wang really show off their acting skills. Because they do this very early on in the series, I was pulled in by the comedic element and kept watching from there.The romance is sweet and although the FL/ML chemistry was strong, I never fully bought it. The support characters are fun albeit predictable.
But the real downfall for me was the plotline. I felt we were just starting to get somewhere in the storyline when the drama ended – similar to how I felt Princess Agents was cut short although at least this time it was a lot less jarring.
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Unconditional love
Love between fairy and devil is a story about a love that should not happen because one is considered to be evil and the other a fairy.What i liked about this drama the most was the pure love between the ML and FL, there was nothing like this one is a devil i cant be with him or this one is a weak fairy i cant love her. There loved each regardless of their background.
Though the ending was a happy one it would have been nice to see them living a happy life instead of just ending after a few seconds after reunion, otherwise it ended well considering 2022 come with a lot of sad ending
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Love saves the 3 realms
Just after Little Orchid transformed from a plant into a fairy, she saved the God of War ChangHeng of ShuiYunTian (the immortal realm) when he was injured, returning from a war and fell in love with him. Although ChangHeng reciprocated her love, he kept away from her as he was betrothed to the Goddess of Xishan, arranged by the Heavenly Emperor who might harm Orchid if he knew of the romance. In the immortal realm, Orchid was bullied as her master was away and she was only a lowly fairy, especially by other fairies who were also in love with ChangHeng.In a twist of fate, Orchid fell into the HaoTian Tower, restored the primordial spirit of Dongfang QinCang , the powerful king of the Moon Tribe of Cangyan Sea and freed him. He was imprisoned in the Tower after the previous Goddess of War ChiDi sacrificed herself to seal him in the Tower. It was said that the resurrection of QinCang would bring great danger to the three realms and only the Goddess of Xishan could prevent this catastrophe. But the Goddess had been missing from the three realms for 30,000 years.
While in the HaoTian Tower, Orchid was accidentally bonded to QinCang by the heart curse. With this curse, QinCang could feel the feelings of Orchid and experienced any harm that happened to her, but not the other way around. Although deprived of feelings because of his training for the Hellfire power and ruthless, he could not kill Orchid without harming himself even when she was extremely annoying.
Meantime heavenly lord RongHao was trying to revive the Goddess of War, ChiDi with the help of a dark power as powerful as QinCang.
Was ChangHeng able to save his beloved Orchid? Where had the Goddess of Xishan gone? Was RongHao courting a dark power that was more dangerous than QinCang?
What I like about this drama?
- Chemistry between the lead actor Dylan Wang (QinCang) and Yu ShuXin (Orchid) was immense.
- Dylan was an excellent actor - playing the stern ruthless QinCang, then a naive playful Orchid as their spirit and body was interchanged, and an evil supreme lord as he merged with the dark power. His expressions were all different for each.
- The cast and acting were great.
- The story was interesting - there was creativity and the story was not quite the run-of-the-mill Chinese fantasy story giving a more refreshed feeling.
- Humourous moments when love rivals faced each other, and when Orchid would tease QinCang, as she wished under the heart curse.
- The rest of the hygiene factors were all there: good looking cast, special effects, computer graphics, beautiful costumes.
What I do not like about this drama?
- Odd and unnatural moments - why the three could not work together as a team to overcome the dark power instead of facing him individually? Obviously, this was to create opportunities for someone to die to stir the dramatic emotions among the audience. Feels very fabricated and did not flow very well.
- The hero died but you could guess what happened next. To pacify the wrath of the audience of a tragic end, the writer had to turn the situation around. But while trying to create a dramatic ending, it had the opposite effect - it became very predictable. The hero was resurrected just by hanging his ring below a flower and simply re-appeared without any explanation of how. Writers really need to work more on the ending of dramas.
- The beginning and ending trailers gave the story away a bit too much on who eventually Orchid would choose - avoid watching them until after the middle of the drama. Again, it takes a lot of skills to create trailers that do not give away too much and yet arouse the interest of the viewers.
- The ending theme song, although melodious, was a little too modern for a drama that had a period setting.
Overall, I say this drama is interesting and certainly worth your time. Also, it is short - only 36 episodes and covered a lot.
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This review may contain spoilers
Enemies To Lovers, Hilarious Body Swaps Occasions, & Great Outfits
Loved watching it. The lead couple were good together and there were only a few times that I had to curse at them for being idiots. But the drama was interesting. Having seen the ML in other modern shows, I didn't actually think much of his acting skills, but this show changed my mind. He along with the FL did a fantastic job. I did find Orchid's character annoying the beginning, but eventually got used to it.The supporting characters were decent. Shang Que was adorable. You also can't help but like both Fairy Dan Yin & Jie Li. Other characters didn't' leave much of an impression.
The characters are great, but lets also talk about the beautiful outfits worn by Dongfang Qing Cang! He had some great headdress! The stylist did a wonderful job on all his outfits as well as look.
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