1Great drama to rewatch
It is an awesome production. I rarely rewatch a drama, but this one just cant leave me alone after one time watch. I kept watching and watching... No end. This story line is unique and I have enjoyed every bit of it. The eposide 1, I have found relatively weak start but it just gets its speed up at the end and kept me enchanted to finish the whole series at once. Awesome character development as story progress. I am not very fan about the acting skill of actors. Cant really judge if other actors would have suited this drama better or worse. But at the end, these main actors just seem to be perfect for the whole plot. All credit goes to storyline, if I be honest.Was this review helpful to you?
The best CDrama and the best BL Drama of 2021! Period!
The best surprise in terms of CDrama and KDrama was definitely "Word of Honor". I remember when I first saw the poster and just thought "Mmmh looks a lot like the one from "The Untamed" - Dunno." But then, I saw more and more people going on and on about the show and I just had to see what it was about. It was the best decision I could have made because no show has surprised me as positively as "Word of Honor"."Word of Honor" clearly had a much lower budget, the scriptwriter was a complete newbie, almost all the actors fell under the heading of obscure, unknown, new or of little importance. Youku didn't bother to advertise much, just served up the show without much fanfare. In that respect, I can't help but compare the show to the BBC version of " North and South" with Richard Armitage, which was similar. A small show, based on a not very good book with two main leads that no one knew at the time. What led to "North and South" and now "Word of Honor" becoming a huge success? Many ingredients.
1. For one thing, there's the script. Xiao Chu may be a greenhorn, but she made the most out of a fairly unknown little book by priest. Her love for BL and the Chinese language are undeniable. The script is not perfect, as the show does suffer from certain lengths in the last third of the show, but it's pretty darn good.
2. The cast: as I said, the cast is not exactly made up of well-known A-listers, but it is a cast that gives its best and is completely committed. Zhan Zhe Han (Zhou Zishou) and Simon Gong (Wen Kexing) in particular cannot be praised enough. As we all know, censorship in China regarding LGBTQ content is just nasty, but both actors have managed (despite all restrictions) to give us the most obvious Bl couple ever, easily surpassing Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan (sorry guys - I still love you both dearly). The looks, gestures, absolutely everything leaves no other conclusion than that we are dealing with two men who love each other deeply.
3. The direction and back crew in general: All this wouldn't be possible if the rest of the crew weren't also on board, but they are. The camera settings, the cuts, everything helps.
4. The music: The music is also surprisingly good!
So is the show a straight case for a 10.0? Not really. In all honesty, the show is probably more like an 8.5, because of the lengths in the script and also because the look is really a bit on the cheap sometimes, but I have zero problems in overlooking that.
The only real reason for point deduction is the ending. Anyone who doesn't know better will think that the show really ends with the 36th episode, but that's not the case. The real conclusion of the show has been put behind a paywall by Youku (only available to Youku Ultimate Fan Pass holders, or people who have a Viki Standard Pass). The reason? I don't know. Possibly censorship in China, or just a way of Youku trying to make some more money, but since the series is so damn good, I pulled out my wallet without batting an eyelid. To tell the truth, it's definitely well worth it.
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I LOVE THIS SO MUCH!!
I'm extremely impressed on how much I liked this drama.PROS
1. The plot kept making me want to know what happens nexts and it was a good pace for me. 2. The acting was impressive, especially Gong Jun's! He perfectly portrayed the multiple sides of Wen Kexing (innocent and adorable vs ruthless and a straight up maniac).
3. One of the things I enjoyed in this drama was how well-rounded the characters were. No one was completely good, evil, or innocent. Each character had his or her own flaws which made it interesting and not one dimensional. 4. This show made me cry, smile, and become furious at times. I personally feel that this is a well-rounded show.
5. I also enjoyed the starting ost so I often didn't skip the intro.
6. Has good character growth - I could see how much the characters evolved by the end of the show.
RECOMMENDATION - The production cleverly managed to wiggle through some of the ban by having secret lines throughout the show. I would recommend international viewers to watch some of avenueX's videos on woh because she shows and explains the hidden lines which are dubbed over due to the ban, through lip reading. You'll be surprised to find how many there are. She also talks about the meaning of Kexing's poetry which can help with understanding the drama.
CONS
Terrible graphics - I shouldn't be surprised since this is a low budget drama but the graphics made me cringe when I initially started watching it.
Over-dramatic moments - There are a quite a bit of these in the drama. I was personally not bothered by it but, some people might find it quite cheesy.
I would definitely recommend people to give this show a try. This show is something I won't forget and I'm definitely going to rewatch this again to catch all the details of this story. I'm really glad to have chosen this as my first wuxia drama!
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The story
The story is good and also the actors chemistryis ✨undeniable✨. They are so perfect to be casted as Zhou Zishu and Wen Kexing. Their might be some scenes that might be boring for you but overall their scenes are perfectly good, if you focus on their actions they literally did what should the lead actors should do. The drama screams "censorship who"😩❤. At first I don't have a strength to watch this since I watched "TU" but after I watch this drama I became a fan of the actors bc of their chemistry. They're so good that I want them to be in the same drama again, a modern drama. I literally rewatched this multiple times because I couldn't move on and also the ost's is so good, im not even chinese but I literally memorized the lyrics.
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Following the footstep of 'The Untamed'
This drama follows very much in the footsteps of 'The Untamed' - a bromance, a cheeky 'fallen' hero, 2 gorgeous male leads, theme songs co-performed by the male leads, and the list goes on. And in a lot of pre-broadcast reviews, it has been marketed as its parallel. So I cannot help but make the comparison.Although I enjoyed this drama, I still think 'The Untamed' is much better produced - who could beat a combination of Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan? Also, the dark scenes were a lot better crafted - the death valley Wei Ying (Xiao Zhan) fell into was eerie. The entire production was much better edited with the mystery and suspense very well built up. Wei Ying's fall off the cliff was dramatic - the Wei Ying's heartbreak at the death of his 'sister' and Lan Zhan's desperate attempt to save him. I must also say the theme song was very well sang.
In some of the early episodes in Word of Honor, I was about to write it off as just another average wuxia drama. But it got better. There were some humor in the drama, and some of the plots actually got me really mad. And the story was interesting.
Gong Jun's (Simon) acting was really good. One of the greatest skills of an outstanding actor is in his facial expression and Gong Jun is excellent in this. Mischief, anger, evil, caring, flirting - he did all of these remarkably.
Although I am not homophobic, I really do not appreciate romantic scene between same genders in dramas or movies - do not work up any sentiments in me. I respect the rainbow community but I do not share their romances. This drama was a little bolder in this regard but it did nothing for me. Any production of such dramas must make up for this lack of empathy with the general audience (other than the rainbow community) with good story, cast, scenery, cinematography and editing.
Considering all of these, I rated it a 9 overall.
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This review may contain spoilers
If I could insert a gif it would be one of me sprawled on the floor with a gun to my head because this stupid drama done got on my last nerve. I have nothing but a distaste for the story which btw gets its popularity by riding the BL train of The Untamed (a series I hated). Both ML characters are evil people in pretty packages and despite the writer's attempt to repurpose and repackage them as having turned over new leaves, the havoc and damage they perpetuated were too deep for me to suddenly forgive and forget. They neither deserved my sympathy nor my admiration. The story itself was rather lackluster as in I didn’t care if the armory was ever found nor did I care if our leads got their happy ever after. In fact, I rooted for them to die....the more painful the better.
The acting left much to be desired and their chemistry was absent. There was also a lot of miscommunication.
The supporting characters were caricatures that we’ve seen multiple times in C dramas. Just the same old evil people who must rule the world come hell or high water.
In all, I gave up at episode 24 and immediately felt happier that I wouldn’t have to see Wen Ke Xing’s (Gong Jun) smug, smirking face.
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This review may contain spoilers
100%! you should watch it! There's a bit of spoilers but yeah!
Okay, when I watched a fmv of this and i thought it as AMAZING! I literally went to watch the episodes on YouTube. Back then it was just 4 episodes. The way Wen Ke Xing stared/firted with Ah Xu is cute and wholesome. <3 I loved both main actors!! I really recommend this if you finished The Untamed and want more. There's 21 episodes out on YouTube right now! Watch the first episode before you say its trash, once you get more into it it'll be interesting and you'll probably get obsessed with it!Okay onto the ACTUAL review!
We'll start off with actors!
Wen Ke Xing, also known as Simon Gong! His acting is perfect, everything is perfect. In the drama he's flirty with Ah Xu! The best ghost chief <3 The way he acts quite wholesome and cute makes my heart melt. 🥰 His face of shock when he found out Zhou Zi Shu's wound/nails was everything I could wish for. The way he cried in the rain. When he said if he knew,he wouldn't follow him around, but he still sticked with him. <3
Zhou Zi Shu, also known as Zhang Zhe Han (If im sure lmao)! His acting is also amazingly perfect! In the drama hes like a stubborn stressed mom! Although he had put the seven nails in, he's gonna die (I'm only at 21 episodes and I'm not willing to use websites!). He's like a stubborn tusandere mother! He kinda flirts with him but its cute! <3 They're perfect for each other!
Music:
3 words: I LOVE IT! <3
Story:
It's confusing a bit but you'll understand more and more in!
Overall, I would watch it again! <3 I 100% recommend it, sorry if I gave a bit too much spoilers. 😞 Try it out and you'll probably like it! ☺
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This review may contain spoilers
The are outdoing BL wu xia again!!
If you had watched The Untamed, this is even better! You just need to watch the first 2 episodes to get all the feels!! As the casts are all actors to start with, not idol-turned-actors, the feelings of the characters are really portrayed inside the series. Not even the dubbing and censorship can cover the affection between the leads and the side characters.Let me start with the story. It is not exactly similar to the novel, they made some changes to it. However it was a good adaption. The lead's story followed through well. As any xian xia dramas, it is about the greed of mankind which resulted in the fight of power of the different clans, in search of key to unlock some secrets of martial art and long life, and we need 2 heroes to stop this disastrous leading event.
The OST really complements the series well. The lyrics makes me tear at times (I'm not kidding).
Next, the acting. It was superb. You do not need to judge the actors. IMO, they are really good at it to a point I suspect that both really love each other. From the playful look from Gong Jun to Zhe Han, to his sacrifice at the end of the episode, I felt that no love can be stronger than Gong Jun's to Zhe Han. Toward Gong Jun's advances, Zhe Han responded really well. From slowly warming up to Gong Jun's playful advances, you can see when he starts to change his mind about Gong Jun and accepted his love. Especially at episode 6 when he revealed his true face. Omg they are the perfect pair, I need them to be together in real life too.
Lastly the details. Not only the acting (the smirks, actions)... But can I say the references to Chinese culture really stands out to me as a Chinese! For example the sleeve cutting action, it is a reference of homosexuality in ancient china. And how many times have the leads cut each other's sleeve??! Also the part where ah xiang has her wedding, the single "喜" is really inauspicious and it leads to a real tragedy. (I knew instantly something bad will happen as it should be 喜喜 for any chinese wedding) The poems they read for each other, if you read into the details, it is actually an excerpt of love poems. I love the meaning of it as well.
I had watched twice before commenting, because I think everyone needs to know how good it is! If you think The Untamed was good, this is better with the acting and chinese culture references. Even the censorship is strong, if you uncover the meanings, you will know what it means!!
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This review may contain spoilers
I am going down the mountain. I wrote this as my goodbye. But I will come here again sometimes.
#CONTAIN SPOILER, BUT NOT MUCH#Word of Honor is a drama focused on two main lead's story.
The drama started with someone who want to end his life three years wandering the world, changed to someone who want to live a long life after meet his other half.
And his other half, which is someone who want to ruin the world and himself in the end, changed to be someone who want to enjoy his life in the world he live after he meet his soulmate.
The point interest of this drama for me :
#Flirty character that teased an indifferent character. This is universal, and this is a BL version. It's a new for me.
#A different show where ML is not searching for a reason to life, not a ML where he want to change the world, not a ML who desire in treasure nor looking for it. But a ML where he gave up his life and meet someone that make him want to treasure it. It's unique and I want to experience watching it.
#THE MLs cried so beautiful. Especially on late eps.
#IS an angsty drama with a happy ending
#Has much classic scene where mostly a BG drama doing it. Watch the first three eps, you will know how and why.
Watch it fams! Don't judge a book by its cover.
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The storyline and The chemistry between the actors are so good!
When I first watched episode 1 I immediately fell in love with the storyline and the cast. This film managed to make me cry in the middle of the first episode. The storyline, the conflict, the chemistry between the actors are so good!!I'm happy that I discovered this drama.
To be honest, I accidentally watched this drama after I got a recommendation from YouTube. I'm not that familiar with Chinese dramas, but I didn't expect this drama to be so good!
Even though they said that the budget was not very much, but I know they gave everything in the making of this drama. I hope the whole team and the players will be more successful in the future
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Great Series !
I must said, i was surprised after watching the 2nd episode. Here, you can see performances by Simon Gong is quite superb. Compared to his other shows (Simon Gong), he really nailed it and very comfortable with this role. But Zhe Han is a bit stiff , only after few episodes, his character start to warming to Simon Gong 's character. Simon Gong's character flirtations is very bold and interesting, very pleasant to see such interactions between 2 male leads.The pace of the show indeed thrilling and splendid, not a moment bore. The choreography was extremely slow at times but still captivating overall, i must say. Though heard this is low budget productions but still background decorations plus costumes are interesting to look especially colorful clothes. I don't feels is a low budget productions, more like well spent budget series. I don't mind to re-watch this series again, i hope you would love this show too. It is worth for your leisure time. Enjoy! and give a good ratings or review if you could, thanks
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