The Blue Whisper: Part 2

Visually, musically, emotionally - in Part 2, this show still hit all the right spots!

Like part 1, the audience also had much to enjoy in part 2, but unlike part 1, the lead-up to the ending was not as satisfying.

Echoing my review of part 1, TBW continued to deliver an engaging storyline. Add to that, the most touching song tracks and AMAZING acting from almost every cast member, this drama pulled me in so thoroughly, keeping me on an intense emotional rollercoaster. I was so emotionally invested, rooting for many, including the main couple, and cursing at the antagonists. Yet, I cannot help but feel sympathy for the villains. The story did well in making the audience understand what the characters, including the villains have gone through, the reasons for their actions, and their circumstances.

The story maintained a good pacing and flowed nicely, with each episode never losing its momentum. Having read the novel, a couple of changes in part 2 were for the better, some took away poignant moments for me, and my reaction to other changes was "WTH"?!! Still, I never felt tempted to skip, and I know I will rewatch the entire show once it is properly subbed in English because it was that good.

Also, I have to highlight the beautiful costume designs with their intricate and thoughtful details.

I have nothing but praises for the acting delivered by Dilraba, Ren Jia Lun, Xiao Shun Yao, Christy Guo, Wang Zi Teng, Hu Yi Xuan, Fan Zhen, Ci Sha, and many others. As the show progressed, these talented actors have proven that they have the acting chops to pull off a complex story.

Just when I thought I could not admire Dilraba further, it turned out that I could go up another level. Additionally, I am now a fan of Ren Jia Lun and Xiao Shun Yao. RJL's visuals are not my usual preference, but in this show, in that persona, he's gorgeous and captivated me. As for XSY whose character Lin Hao Qing was so well-written and well-acted, I suffered a strong case of second lead syndrome. Naturally, him exuding sexy manliness the whole time was also a factor.

For me, Wang Zi Teng as Kong Ming who received undeserved criticism for not being good-looking enough, was a great match for Hu Yi Xuan They did have a quirky, adorable chemistry between them. Also, a huge shout-out to Christy Guo who managed to make my blood boil so much, by staying maniacally in character to the very end!

Unfortunately, after building the momentum up so much, the final scenes were choppy and a letdown. The ending led a few to question whether it was an open or happy ending. I think it was clearly and definitely a happy ending.

Perhaps the director, who is known to have produced shows with controversial endings, was hoping to encourage and engage the audience's imagination by going for a conscious artistic act of intentional omission and suggestion. However, after reading the spoilers, I am more convinced that the director made a mistake in cutting out a crucial scene. To me, it was a result of bad editing.

On the whole, though, I highly recommend TBW. The storyline, the settings, the costumes, the choreography, the music, the acting…if I were to consider the show as a whole, it is really one that is worth watching.

Perhaps one day, the director will release a version with an alternate ending, including the cut-out scene. At that time, I will give the show a perfect 10 since it truly deserves that.

For posterity, I have recorded the main tracks here. I hope that they will release the entire album, including the instrumental background pieces.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpzFy3Rzd74
Song: 留白是表白 (More Than Blanks)
Artist: 金志文 (Jin Zhi Wen)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExRgy5Ry3C8
Song: 鮫人之歌 (The Song of the Merman)
Artist: 周深 (Zhou Shen)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_pzD0itRfo
Song：#如你所想 (As You Wish)
Artist：#毛不易 (Buyi Mao)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtKnVuUxCN4
Song: 魚躍而上 (Leaping Fish)
Artist: 薩頂頂 (Sa Dingding)

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They died, they didn't die... they died, they didn't die. Did they die or not??

Completed - 5/5/2022

In Part 1, I praised the drama for its beautiful and colorful cinematography and costumes. Part 2 made a 180-degree turn due to its primary setting in the wintery North. We see snowy trees and mountains, frozen lakes and a beautiful house with unique blue lanterns. The wintery scenes are definitely beautiful. However, after a while, I crave colors instead of bright, shining, white backgrounds and black costumes. How I miss the colors in Part 1!

If I base my review solely on the first ⅓ of the drama, I might have given it a 7 or 7.5 rating. The pacing is so slow. After 4 episodes of seeing our FL being so sickly, and talking like she’s half-dead, I became very bored. This lasted for about 8 episodes (too long). I did not like Dilraba’s acting and/or her character in these episodes at all, and I also became annoyed with the voice actress. Of course, this is all very subjective and you might think this is Dilraba’s best acting, as she’s not cute and innocent, like her usual roles.

If Part 1 is all about misunderstandings, then Part 2 is about who can die sacrificing themselves the most. Let’s take turns doing that! Also, did they die or not? How many times did a character die and then not die?

Our leads are not that interesting in Part 2 and I am not really feeling their chemistry. This might be due to the fact that most of the romance happened towards the end of the drama. I am actually liking the other romances. I like the weird and adorable odd couple, and the opposite-attracts couple. I think both couples are more fun to watch and have better chemistry than our main leads. Additionally, there really aren't any annoying characters. There are no evil second leads due to unrequited love not returned! How rare is that in a xianxia drama! I think my favorite character is Shunde Fairy. She’s an interesting and complicated character, and I enjoy Cristy Guo’s acting.

Costumes and accessories continue to shine. Allen Ren and Dilraba continue to look handsome and stunning. Actually, every single actress looks beautiful in this drama. Props to the make-up artists and costume designers. I love the wedding gowns with the ocean theme - scales designs and mermaid tails. Also love the sea animal sky lanterns.

The songs are the same ones as in Part 1. The more I listen to the songs, the more I like them. I think my favorite song in Part 2 is Mao Buyi’s version of 如你所想 (As you thought). The male version, to me, sounds better than the female version.

The CGI in Part 2 seems inconsistent. There are scenes when the graphics are good. But others, such as the fight in the desert between the Head Immortal Master and the Jade Phoenix was very bad. It seems like they run out of money towards the end of the drama for special effects.

Lastly, without going into spoilers, the editing on the ending could have been a lot better. At first glance, the director seems to want viewers to come up with their own explanation. However, are scenes cut due to censorship? Is that intentional? Something seems to be missing. Thanks to MDLers in the comment section, I read the article with the explanation.

It is a pity that English subtitles are not readily available yet. Although this is not my favorite xianxia drama, I think many would enjoy it.

Other Observations:
1. For someone who until recently hasn’t had that many kiss scenes in dramas, Allen Ren surely has many fish kisses here. He's a fish afterall. 😍
2. The secret room with the painting doesn’t seem to be that secretive, since so many got in.
3. Leaders in this drama like to keep plans hidden from others, and then others keep on messing up their plans.
4. Tian Jun (Heavenly Emperor) only has 2 gods to keep him company? Where are the others?

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