The Long Ballad

Worth your time and probably the best in 2021

Excellent drama in terms of story, cast, soundtrack, equally humourous and touching scenes. Lost 1 point because battle scenes and dance scene were erm unsatisfactorily in manga form and the lack of kissing scenes (aha, c’mon admit it … most of us here allocate 20% of our investment for these scenes in dramas..)

This show left me with a feel-good feeling. I get where most reviewers are coming from about the rushed ending but personally, I’ve had the closures I needed for the characters that mattered to me. I think it's also because I'm not a big GeSun shipper.

There were a bit of fillers and drag in between, but nothing more than 5 episodes I would say. Still a whole lot better than many of the c-dramas out there with their fillers and misunderstanding arcs.

Actors - Dilireba, Leo Wu, Zhao Lusi, Liu Yuning, Geng Le and the ministers were superb. They have such amazing chemistry all round. I have to say upfront that Dilireba and Leo Wu's romance is not the sweep-off-your-feet kind of romance that you've seen Dilireba in her previous shows. Zhao Lusi will cover that for you in this drama. Remember, Dilireba plays a heroine in this show so she's a bit more "boyish". In terms of age gap, I didn't really see it being so obvious between Leo and dlrb so no issues here.

Just want to end this review by saying this show has one of the best soundtracks imho. When you see Zhang Bi Chen do a track you know it’s gonna be a good drama. Love the ending theme just as much too. It fits the scenes between Chang Ge and Ah Sun sooooo well. <3

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Best historical drama

Just like the heading, this is THE best historical drama I’ve seen so far. It kept making me trying to grab for more. The story is the best part. The story had great potential and so does the acting. The acting was on point. Crying parts also did their part(crying and dabbing my eyes out on episodes even before 10). Although the age differences between the actors is quite ridiculous, the male lead looks older than his age and the female lead looks younger than her age. So all in all, the cast was amazing(I couldn’t have thought of a better cast to be honest). I didn’t really like the music but i didn’t hate it either. The rewatch value is a 10 for me. Like I said, best Chinese historical drama I’ve seen so far.

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Great drama, no boring moments

I've watched a lot of chinese wuxia/xianxia , historical dramas (e,g TMOPB, Tiger and Rose, Nirvana in fire, Ashes of Love, Minglan, Eternal night, Fight breaks sphere...) and modern dramas as well. However, lately it's been getting harder to find quality ones, as most of the new ones coming out have repetitive, oftentimes ridiculous storyline/script. This drama has enough novelty/twist in the plot that you don't feel like you've seen everything before, and has good logic to keep you interested . I rarely skipped scenes, and I enjoyed the performances of all the casts. I liked the ending as well.

I do wish there were more romantic scenes between the male leads, and less animation ( e.g. would have loved to see Li Changge and team perform the dance competition for real in Mobei). Kudos to the director, scriptwriter, actors and production team. Surprisingly, I looked up the other dramas by the same director on here, and found that I've seen a few of his work and have enjoyed them as well. Now, I check who the director/scriptwriter of upcoming/have not watched dramas first before investing my time in watching them.

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Riveting! Awesome Drama with a fitting ending

What a talented cast! Hands down, one of the best drama. Not sure why people said this is not as good as the Manuhua... I watched the movie and read the story... the movie was far superior in laying out the story from beginning.
The movie made me cry... once too many times... but it also made me smile... Boy-Girl relationship, heart break/ heart ache, Brotherhood and Loyalty... even at the end... it was hard to hate the bad guy because he lived to fulfill his duty and loyalty.

The OST is hauntingly beautiful.
Leo... hope to see you in these leading man role more often! So young, but so talented you are...

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A Thrilling Rollercoaster Filled with Twists And Turns

*Spoiler Alert*

Story-The story was filled with unexpected events and this story is very unique. The beginning of the drama starts off a bit slow, but the pace fastens. The story includes several very emotional scenes which to me as expected. But there were also several betrayals that heavily impact the storyline. In the beginning, the enemy of Chang Ge is her second uncle, but as the story progresses, he is somewhat hidden as Chang Ge deals with other smaller enemies from episode to episode.. Ashile Sun doesn't really have an enemy in the beginning since he is disguised and his true background isn't revealed. But as soon as Ashilie Sun returns to where he came from, there are several apparent enemies. In the last half-ish, the antagonist changes to Princess Yi Cheng or better yet known as the official wife of Great Khan. In the first half, there were some subtle signs that viewers may or may not pick up that Princess Yi Cheng wasn't as good as she looked from the outside. Princess Yi Cheng is the main antagonist in the overall story for reasons that will be later in this review. The protagonists are most of the characters including but not excluding Chang Ge, Ashilie Sun, Leyan, and some other smaller characters. Hao Du and Sher aren't in the list because they are part-antagonists and part-protagonist. There will be several unexpected twists that are nice. The reason the rating isn't a 10 is that there are some faults in the storyline or just things that don't make sense or are illogical, but that is somewhat excusable because this story isn't just historical, it focuses also on romance. The story is unique in the sense that it is not cliche. There are obviously cliche parts of the story and cliche scenes but there are also unique ones as too. This drama to me has one if not the most interesting plots. This isn't a drama where I was drawn in on the first episode but from around the 5th episode. The main reason I kept watching was the storyline.

Acting/Cast- To me, this cast was perfect. Each actor/actress fit their role well. Dilrabe as Chang Ge was such a great choice. After finishing the drama, I can not think of any other person who could and would portray the role of Li Chang Ge as well as she did. The same goes for Leo Wu, a perfect choice for Ashilie Sun, and the chemistry between the 2 was insane. Hao Du and Leyan were another great pair. Liu Yu Ning was great as Hao Du, an extremely obedient son and guard. Zhao Lu Si played the vulnerable and kind-hearted Leyan amazing as well. Leyan grows immensely in chatter throughout the course of her being lost and Zhao Lu Si fantastically showed it. Alen Fang was again amazing as the troubled Wei Shu Yu. Wei Shu Yu is an interesting character, he seemed uneasy a lot and Alen portrayed this internal-conflicting character well. The supporting cast as was amazing. The actor for Great Khan looked so much like what I think Khan would look like and looks very angry and unapproachable just by the look of the face. The acting for when he was bedridden was just done so well. You could feel his attitude towards every character that visited him and saw/interacted with him when he was awake.
The acting was really good. For the emotional scenes, I got emotional or was going to or shed some tears. There are also some cute scenes that as usual made my heart flutter.

Music- The music was better than what I thought it was going to be. The more I heard the music, the more I liked it. The Osts were so soothing and emotional. Zhou Shen's voice was so amazing and I could feel the emotion he projected.

Overall- A 10/10. This is an unforgettable love story of Chang Ge and Ashilie Sun's which involves war, betrayals, many dangers, enemies, misunderstandings. The story tells how Chang Ge and Ashilie meet over and over again and become friends. In the process, they both start falling in love and they understand each other to a point where their romance just flows with the story. There isn't really any confession because, by the time they both realize how much they love and care for each other, they are already so in love.

The 2nd's leads' love story quite an interesting one which is about a cold guard and a kindhearted princess. In the beginning of the story, they seem so distant but slowly they start falling in love. This is quite the slow burn. Hao Du changes into a more approachable and friendly dude while Leyan changes into a person who understands more of the world and its many problems the people face. The unlikely pair falls in love and it is super heartwarming.

The battling scenes were done extremely well. I didn't mind the comics during some of the battle scenes, although it may seem like they want to save money for production, which if that is even the truth, I still wouldn't;t mind. The comics were done quite well. The production of the drama was spectacular. I liked that there weren't that many if any green-screened backgrounds. If green screens were used, it was for short or the battle scenes which I thought was fine. The central plains had such nice scenery. And the palace and streets of the drama seemed pretty surreal too.

49 episodes might seem like a lot, but once you get hooked in, it seems like there are too few episodes.

The drama is a great drama which I will come back to or just watch clips of pretty regularly. This is also going on my list of one of the best dramas ever and one of my favorite dramas.

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A strong plot with impeccable performances from the leads make it worth the watch

Li Changge originally, or The Long Ballad was one drama I wasn't sure about upon watching the trailer the very first time. It seemed like battles and bloodshed and I wasn't too sure about wanting to watch something like that. I literally went in with 0 expectations and knowledge about the manhua and yet, it managed to impress me and keep me hooked. I have to say the credit mostly goes to Dilraba and Leo Wu for making this such an enjoyable ride.

PLOT:
Honestly, this drama was quite bloody and at times melodramatic for me. The story moved about very quickly and remained engaging for the most part. The revenge aspect and the slow burn romance were the best things about it. The main pull throughout the plot are the intelligent leads, especially Li Changge and Ashile Sun. I loved the battle talk, scheming until it became slightly dragged and dull towards the end. A lot of people called it a masterpiece, but I think it's just an amazing drama with flaws.

CHARACTERS:
Li Changge is a great heroine, but also a bit frustrating at times. She was cunning but also headstrong at times which let her make mistakes, which was okay for most part. Ashile Sun seemed conniving but he had a heart of gold. Le Yan's journey was also great as she falls and picks herself over and over. Hao Du was also fun for me as he we see his softer side over time- he made me go from hate to genuinely finding him cute (although flawed). I couldn't care that much about rest of the characters but there were a lot of cool supporting ones.

CAST & ROMANNCE:
No surprise here but of course Dilraba and Leo steal the show. The others did a good job as well but let's be honest that people loved this dram due to their visuals and acting. Both are extremely good-looking and had amazing chemistry. I really didn't know about their age gap at all but they played it very respectfully without any cringey skinship between the two. I personally wouldn't have minded it, but maybe the actors wanted it that way. The same goes for Zhao Lu Si and the guys who played her love interests. The chemistry was cute with long stares and warm hugs. For once I am not complaining due to the lack of kisses.

OTHER ASPECTS + ENDING :
After ep 30-something the focus on revenge sort of waned. There were some subplots with the Great Khan, his wife, Sher, the plague, etc. that I didn't care about and skipped a few scenes. I wanted more romance but it was mostly through dialogues. I'm glad we got what we got else they could have just made it a boring war drama too. The ending was sort of unsatisfactory and I thought that they could have had 2-3 more to wrap it up nicely. It's fine I guess as I heard the manhua itself isn't finished yet? Lot of people complained about the animated battle scenes and Dilraba's hair and none of that bothered me. Any more bloodshed and I would have been out.

OVERALL:
A very nice drama and definitely one of the best historical ones I've watched till now. It had its flaws but the journey was great and I will definitely consider the lead pairing as one of the best I've seen till date. It's amazing how Dilraba has great chemistry with all of her male co-stars and just improves every time. She was so convincing as a boy and looked like she worked very hard for this role.

Lowkey excited to check out You Are My Glory after this as I definitely want to watch more of Dilraba. She just improves and surprises me every time.

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THIS IS A MUST WATCH!!!

The Long Ballad is a really great drama. The story was great, the casts were great and the music was great everything was just perfect.

As for the casts this was my first time watching Dilireba and Liu Yuning but I've watched dramas of Zhao Lusi like The Romance of Tiger and Rose, I Hear You and Oh My Emperor and of Leo Wu like Nirvana in Fire and Whirlwind Girl. So, I know that Lusi is a good actress and Leo Wu too. I was looking forward to Leo Wu in a lead role and indeed he had done a marvellous job. He looked so mature and handsome. Dilraba had done such an impeccable job as Li Changge and I don't know why some people were hating on her saying she was very stiff in portraying her feelings and what else but TBH I think she was just awesome. Every time there was a crying scene with her I did not find anything lacking I even cried a few time though I'm not a senti type person but the feeling were so strong that I can't help but cry. Liu Yuning as Hao Du has done a good job as well. He was really into the role which I liked about him. All the other supporting characters were great as well.

Now for the couples, I didn't have expected that Dilireba and Leo Wu look so adorable and peautiful together. Their chemistry was just so perfect that I didn't even know that Dilireba is older than him. There were not many romantic scenes but they had such a magical chemistry between them that when they were just holding hands or talking I'd start blushing. I just hope they do more dramas together. And as for the HaoYan couple I just want to say they were so cute. There were lots of sweet moments that had me go crazy. And the other couples like Mu Jin and Mimi Gulli, Xu Feng And Luo Shiba they were all so great too. They did such a good job keeping us hyped.

The OSTs were so wonderful Zhou Shen's 'Cocoon' , Zhang Bichen's Song and Sa Dingding's song were all so great. They made the drama much more enjoyable and good. Every time the songs came I would feel like flying. The songs were so good, touching and emotional. The war scenes were also so realistic I was getting goosebumps whenever there were any fight scenes. And the story to comic cartoon transition idea was brilliant it was so unique. Some people think that was to maintain the budget but that's not the whole truth they were saving and using it somewhere else like they used it to train the actors some little techniques of horse riding. We can see that some scenes were done by the actors themselves not by their double. So we should respect the production quality.

Overall the drama is PERFECT!!! I highly recommend it.
(NOTE: This is my first time writing a review so if had made any mistake please forgive as an amateur. I'll try my best in the future :) )

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One of the Best Feminist Drama

Reasons why this will probably go into my rare 10/10 (I'm very picky):

1. I hate weak FLs and this one is by far one of the bravest if not strongest of them. Yes she had a few poor decisions but this will in the latter episodes be superceded by better actions.

2. We can clearly see how highly respected FL is by the ML and she him. They equate one another. Too often do we see male power trips and dominance in these dramas so LB really takes the cake as a feminist drama.

3. They have the best character development of all of the characters. Don't wanna go into detail as this may come as a spoiler but everyone of them is critical to the story and you can see them growing as a person by their actions.

4. Side characters are as important as the MLs. I liked that they were not just an addition to make the story longer, or to make it to 49 episodes. I see some dramas adding side characters just to make the drama longer. But in here they were critical to the story.

5. If you liked skinship, you probably won't like this. They didn't have a visible kissing scene here and only a silhouette was shown. However, you probably won't feel that it's less romanticized 'cause that's what made it special. All the forehead kisses and longing eyes were felt by the audience, at least for me. I was literally kicking my wall because I felt that they really loved each other on screen.

It's sad to see comments saying they didn't finish this masterpiece because of personal reasons but I respect that. I just hope more people see past the FX and understand the lessons and character development this series has shown.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

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Pretty promising...It's genuinely an ok show so far :] edit: This show is worth your time.

old review made as of ep 12:

I like it! After reading the reviews, I have been enlightened that since I don't typically watch "princess revenge" dramas, I'm not the most experienced to talk about this. But want a fresh opinion...? I like this show so far :]

1. Complaints were made that Dilraba looks like Leo's older sis next to him, and to that I say go off? To me they look fine, and honestly, I dont think making complaints about the actor's appearance is ever really a valid argument, especially the kind I saw...? such as "she seems to have gained weight" or "makeup makes her look old" Maybe it might bother you when you watch, but I didn't really find any issues with it! If anything, I think it just has to do with the fact that while Leo is handsome, he does still look a little boyish in the face department, and does still register as being like....young XD I have to cover my eyes for the shirtless scenes. he's older than me but it feels like I'm doing something wrong, lmao.

That aside, dilraba looking "old(???)" has literally never bothered me. That's way harsh, and im a little sus abt comments like that :eye: I kind of focus on the characters and what they ARE in their role, (because the actors have done a good job of portraying it so I forget) and less so on the actors themselves, but I guess not everyone is as good at giving the benefit of the doubt? Not that it really needs to be given, but help yourself? Dilraba looks fine *shrugs* Watch for yourself and see how you feel about it?

2. Good acting. The actors can only do so much as they're given with the role. As for Lu Si's role in this as Princess Yongan, I think the performance became a little one-note, but maybe that's the fault of the role, and also Lu Si needing to find the right footing? The overall cast is pretty good I would say, not STELLAR OMFG AWARDS ACROSS THE BOARD, but good :)

3. Idk bout yall but I like the score. Maybe it's the normal siren-like sounds that literally any drama has, but I think the music in this is very good, and sets the stakes very well. 10/10 for that (except I don't ever give 10s, lmao).

4. I'm kind of neutral to the constant use of manhua drawings at key points of the story. Many viewers seem to find it jarring, and I agree to some extent. I would like to see more intense scenes that aren't interrupted by comic drawings. But I can also accept that it's just what production decided, and there's no helping it. I can only hope as the series goes on we can get to see more scenes that are actually filmed and done with cgi. It does break immersion. whenever an animation scenes comes on im kinda just like "ah shit here we go again" TT but what can we do :/

tl;dr this is a good show so far, and I'm hoping it doesnt go downhill. Hopefully, I will come back and edit this once i've either finished it, or dropped it altogether.

If you don't see an edit from me, know what the latter happened 👀

[after finishing]:


Edit: I've watched all 49 episodes now. overall, the long ballad, as a standalone, and ignoring any external, real world factors that may have affected minor things like more romance scenes and a more satisfying ending, ignoring all of that which we cannot change now, is a good drama.

It's not flawless or a masterpiece, but, I would most definitely recommend it to others, because it is a GOOD DRAMA! It has its own short-comings, times when the drama seems to flatline, times it picks up tempo, times of absolutely amazing cinematography, a consistently amazing OST (omg its so good), and varying levels of satisfaction with the romance, times it drags, times its just regualr, times its a little dumb in the logic, but nothing that detracts greatly from the show, and nothing I want to deliberately fault it, or the actors for, either. (wu lei at the time of filming this, had just turned 19, i read from a comment, so stop complaining abt no kiss scenes lol)

i'm genuinely using the mere fact that i have completed all 49, episodes, all at around 42 minutes long, WHILE airing. That is a testament alone to how addicting this drama is, (especially in comparison to the dramas that have been airing rn).

the opening episodes for the long ballad are stellar, and while I can understand why not every single episode could have been held to the same quality (they very obviously went all out on those first 3 or so eps), the episodes that follow are well choreographed for fight scenes, (for the ones that are not left to aniimations- :side eyes:) and there are always stakes, even if sometimes things are predictable or drawn out.

this show overall has been a fun experience for me. I have definitely found actors to keep on my radar going forward, such as Liu Yu Ning, and im definitely gonna go watch Ultimate Note since it has him AND wu lei 😳:flushed:

Anyways, that's my two cents. This show isn;t perfect, it has faults, but it's worth your time. I hope you can enjoy it as i have.

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It will remind you of the people around you especially your friends, family and lover- Leo Wu

This show is essentially about the bonds you make throughout your life, the importance of it and certainly about peace with oneself and the world. The synopsis might tell you it's about Li Changge's journey on foot and in mind, but it does not tell you that the show also covers a similar journey for many other characters. The depiction of all the characters growing day by day is beautiful, clear through their words and your eyes. The two major characters, A'Sun and Li Changge meet amid the ugliest situation and how they stood by each other from then on is something you'll remember for life. The other two principal characters have their own growth journey as well. Each supporting and minor character only adds to the layer of the story, all of them are important. The show is complex, including the plot and the characters. Most of them are human closer to reality because the world does not exist in binaries but in the grey area between them. It's useless to bind things in simpler terms such as good-bad, black-white, right- wrong. Emotions are complex here. You have too many characters to root for here.


People learn from their circumstances and experiences but in degrees and it's clear here too. You might love a character or not but you definitely empathize with them, you understand where they are coming from. The plot is spine chilling with twists at every turn, it's gripping. Action and Romance are in an equal amount enough to hold you at your seats. It's hard to skip even a few seconds. The fights and the game are well-choreographed, they suck you in. The animated scenes in between is a great idea too as they are there to pay homage to the manhua writer. I certainly love them as they add another layer of beauty playing on my screen. The toxicity that usually exists in drama relationships and male characters are nowhere to be seen here. You have one of the healthiest relationships between leads making you soft for them. There are plenty of memorable characters. Female characters are well done and are strong with brains! Too intelligent and emphatic people all around. There are no loose ends either. The ending is perfectly apt.


ACTING

My first time with almost every actor except Zhao Lusi and I'm impressed! They have played their characters so well; I was scared for them, felt for them. More than words, this show depends on actions and they delivered. I'll be looking forward to more of their dramas in the future. They have impacted me, especially Leo Wu and Dilraba. This show has a stellar cast.


MUSIC

The soundtrack is beyond amazing, goosebumps all over you feel every time they play it in between the scenes. I'm glad they translated the lyrics too, they add another layer to the scene going on. You ought to add them all to your Spotify and feel the chills, sadness, warmth, goosebumps to the core. It's just not about the soundtracks, only the background score is so on point! I paid attention to bgm for the first time; they are hard to ignore. Your ears will bless you while watching TLB.


REWATCH VALUE

I'm already re-watching it and not skipping to my favourite scenes at all. A lot of first times happened with this show. How can you feel the same emotions when you are aware of everything? A lot is happening in every scene and re-watching makes you link things even better. You see details which shouldn't be missed.


To summarize,


PROS-

Strong FL and ML

Great supporting characters

Strong plot

gripping action scenes

Immense character growth

Healthy relationships

Music at its best

The show is pleasing to the eyes at every point



CONS-

None for me but some people think the ending is unsatisfactory which would not be the case if you have watched all 49 episodes with eyes. It's certainly a happy ending. There is a discussion below on ending read it once you are finished.


The review above does not capture the actual heart and soul of mine, words are just not enough. Try it so that your heart and soul can thank you. Indeed, family, friends and love are important, irreplaceable they are. These characters learnt it a hard way but you definitely can learn it softly by just watching it.

It's a GEM in every area!

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