Till the End of the Moon

SCAPEGOATING & BETRAYAL STUDY OR… MANUAL?

“Once you fall for someone, you are no longer indestructible” (Jing Lan An)

Below is an evaluative analysis of some themes detected. As I have no evil bone, my appraisals revolve around the creators’ intentions, to a lesser extent around content or methods. Art is expected to elevate those ready to fly & leave the flightless in peace till they can take wing. It should not reinforce or initiate anti-ethical traits.

MDL does not provide a scale “Ethical value,” so I use the “Rewatch value” to subtract points for any anti-ethical potential, even unintentional. After all, only morally robust works deserve (re-)watching. Technically, the story, acting & music are on a very high level, little to subtract, but the general impression is laden with moral reservations.

TOUCHSTONE OF TRUTH
Main topic is the struggle to the last drop of hope, strength & free will to remain decent in face of the greatest adversity – betrayal. While Tan Tai Jin passes the trial with surplus, yielding more trust & honesty than his environment has earned, it is Ye Xi Wu & her sect (except Zhao You & Qu Xuan Zi) to fail at this touchstone.

WILL WITHIN FATE OR FATE WITHIN WILL
“The Devil God wasn’t born to be evil. His past is his only weakness” – hears Li Su Su in the void. Then it gets contradicted.

If the community had not been vexing Tan Tai Jin out of his mind, would the evil bone get activated nevertheless to complete his radicalisation, or would it remain dormant, like the spleen? The plot might have used its complexity not just to travel back & forth in time but to present multiple alternative plots, like in “The Deliberations of Love” (2023) or “Love Game in Eastern Fantasy” (2024). It need be said that China discourages multiple reincarnation & time travel in fiction, esp. of ‘gods,’ historical persons or couples; dream convention is used to circumvent this taboo.

Though the evil objects operate autonomously, the ‘devil fetus’ has a free will. He can try to prevent absorbing these weapons, as they get activated only when all three enter his body. Thus, a lot of guilt for the final scene must be attributed to Ye Xi Wu, who would not set aside her prejudice, take time to think about the invalidity of her father’s instructions, analyse Tan Tai Jin’s mindset (readiness to cooperate, worthiness of trust), advise him on his participation in keeping the weapons away. Paradoxically, what was required of the couple to save the world was mere passive resistance.

However, do not let the modern dictate of perfectionism force you to judge Ye Xi Wu too strictly. Her time-travel was imposed hastily, with scanty erroneous instructions. She was neither prepared nor impartial. Mortal, unaided, in concealed mourning, in one room with future ‘devil,’ burdened with the mess left by the former inhabitant of her body.

Unfortunately, the heroine later missed countless opportunities to trust & communicate – till the All-in-Distress Way got ignited. To defend her once more: her paralysis of trust is a defence mechanism in face of cruelty, a primordial survival mechanism, instinct stronger than the will. Sadly, Ye Xi Wu felt real love as late as the last episode. Extremely postponed, in comparison with other C-dramas employing the motive of a woman faking affection to get revenge.

VIOLENCE STUDY… OR MANUAL?
She did try… but the scriptwriters encouraged her by circumstances to raise the whip. When external actions still proved insufficient to corrupt her internally, they submerged her in the dream where she was shown as a radicalised demon able to kill & rape. She refused to get mentally engaged in violence till the last episode, but imagine how many viewers would not! Moral/Rewatch value – 5 pt.

HATRED AS ENCROACHMENT UPON UNIVERSAL BALANCE
Tan Tai Jin’s extreme case proves that the experience of unearned hatred is the strongest determinant of all aspects of future life, even seemingly unrelated or dependent on sheer probability. Therefore, persons deliberately indulging in injustice should be perceived as white-gloved, slow murderers. Hatred is virally accumulative, so in a broader context haters should be viewed as trespassers upon collective fate too.

I cannot fully relate to Tan Tai Jin as victim. My experience in receiving unearned hatred is impressive, so I can acutely feel the intensity of his rage & helplessness. In Tan Tai Jin’s world, hostility is a by-product of the justifiable defence mode of the society, misdirected due to superstition. Where I subsist, hostility aims at dissolving society bottom-up. There, the target is each person trying to be evil (or accidentally accused). Here, they hit the decent. There, the promoted values are ethical responsibility, intellectual depth & cultivation of talents. Here, these are grounds for ostracism. There, the way out of violence is to show willingness to do better. Here, you can only either degenerate down to your oppressors’ level, or pretend so.

Notice the awful, anti-intellectual quality of the prejudice shown: e.g. stigmatising a person for what happened before birth. Moreover, when people driven by natural anxiety corner Tan Tai Jin, the next surge of violence comes from common sadists (incl. children, servants), using that opportunity to discharge their atrocity on an easy prey. Some oppressors even go as far as to tamper with evidence, e.g. the magical ‘video recording’ is trimmed & zoomed in to erase the context of pushing Cen Mi by Cang Jiu Min. The blind society also has different measures for malice – no prevention, punishment or reflection on Ye Bing Chang’s cruelty stemming from mere discontent with being second (while Tan Tai Jin deals so much better with being the lastest of the last).

DIGNITY VS SURVIVAL
Where violence is omnipresent, victim’s dignity is traded for survival. If Tan Tai Jin had not chosen to bark like a dog on his oppressors’ command, he would not have reached adolescence. The raven affair shows that he knows how to claim bloody restitution, but he opts for just a nominal amount.

PREJUDICE AS QUICKSAND
Tan Tai Jin understands that prejudice feeds on the responsiveness of the victim. Tossing & struggling is counter-effective, as it reinforces the swamp suction. This is also why his response to the first awkward reconciliatory gestures by Ye Xi Wu is cautious interest rather than relief.

The rapid shift from despised victim to the glorified king is very unlikely in real life. The quicksand keeps the mind in state of paralysis; faith in humanity is impaired, even if one changes one’s environment & social role. The target of prejudice starts off with very little cogency, a factor indispensable for gaining subjects’ respect (not the reasoning, not the victories, not even the free soup).

EMBRACING THE IMPAIRMENT
Tan Tai Jin is born without an ability to feel & understand emotions, lacking a love thread. This is an inborn impairment, yet crucial to the specific metamorphoses prior to the final purgatory procedure. Learning to feel from scratch is an impressive achievement.

Love thread is also absent in Pian Ran’s heart, but not from birth. The woman knows its value & remembers her life with it. Having lost it, she adjusts her life accordingly, & her environment seems to accept it. Torn between the urge to live on & the desire to cling to the dwindling hope for reunion with her soldier, she stays calm, as her act of giving the thread was her choice. It is only on learning that it was misappropriated that she grows furious.

Instead of being perceived as a crippled nine-tailed fox, she has managed to create a brand for herself: a seven-tailed fox is viewed as complete & legitimate, no less than a nine-tailed one.

MUTUAL CONDESCENSION
Ye Xi Wu’s attempt to fulfil her mission at the moment her elders had imagined to be right (the spikes) only brought suffering, frustration & distrust. But when both sides of the sword understood their inevitable role & got prepared, not even an interference from beyond could stop it. Fate also gratified their postponed ordeal with a child.

EUTHANASIA, SELF-SACRIFICE & DEADLY PHOBIAS
Last episodes show Cang Jiu Min’s deliberate preparation for self-sacrifice. To get Ye Xi Wu involved in assisted suicide, he artificially evokes repulsion, fear & pain.

During this preparation Zhao You, with soul intercepted by evil force, urgently implores his apprentice to end his life mercifully. Thus, Cang Jiu Min gets a foretaste of what Ye Xi Wu will feel as his suicidal accomplice.

Ye Ze Yu’s variant of self-sacrifice is the voluntary participation in battle with imminent death. More valuable yet underrated is Ye Qing Yu’s self-sacrifice reflected not in dying or moaning, but in hiding his suffering & taking up abandoned down-to-earth responsibilities.

Pay attention to phobias reflected in the way villains die (rats+burns, poisoned porridge).

EPIC ETHIC FALL
Xiao Lin, role-model for Tan Tai Jin, is a Faustian hero-to-antihero. Driven by an impulse to yoke prohibited lore, the idol’s reincarnation ends up disempowered, reprimanded, discarded by his follower. Taught a moral lesson by the ‘Devil God.’

Xiao Lin wields refined intuition (switched off in every contact with Ye Bing Chang). He guesses the soul swap from Ye Xi Wu’s change in behaviour (unlike Tan Tai Jin, who lives close to her).

Deng Wei’s role gave him little space to unfurl. Few minutes for us to bask in his mild, feline half-blinks. His ‘going awry’ is oddly satisfying to watch, reminiscent of Liu Xueyi in his best fallen angel roles.

WARPED MEMORIES
We witness a deep misunderstanding among Tan Tai siblings as to their shared past (the guilt for face burn is misattributed).

For survival aims, human brain remembers injustice stronger than its lack. When Tan Tai Jin chooses to recollect the questionable crumbles of experienced goodness or neutrality, it shows his exceptionally resilient unrewarding faith in the obscure humanity.

OBJECTIFICATION OF MEN
The prolonged & exaggerated scenes of male suffering & female initiation to violence are so disturbing as to raise a serious question about the authors’ intention. They are also the ones culpable for the plot prolixity. Even if the new Ye Shi Wu has to be careful not to evince abrupt changes in behaviour, there are faster ways to discreetly back off from the barbarism. Down with the glorification of abuse!

Ye Xi Wu’s forced compliments & favours are to artificially evoke emotion in Tan Tai Jin. This man is in need for genuine, patient, therapeutic love. Acquiring his feeling through deep insincerity – even if meant for a ‘greater good’ & even though he is not a saint – is as condemnable as Sang Jiu’s act of raping.

The problem is not that atrocities are shown but that we are evidently expected to accept them.

Pian Ran’s propensity for fleeting affairs also borders on the objectification of men. However, she is sincere towards Ye Qing Yu, explains her state of mind & her limitations, gives him a choice. If only Tan Tai Jin could have enjoyed this level of subjectivity in his relationship, the world might have been saved earlier.

GLITCHES & FAILS

Too many acts are technical actions for the plot, not characters’ free, wise or consistent choices.

Introduction & abandonment of characters, e.g. Sang brothers, Fu Yu.

Ep21: Ye Xi Wu’s lipstick gets paler.

Ep29: two bruises on Ye Qing Yu’s face disappear & reappear.

Ep39: Li Su Su has no marks on her throat, though held up & burnt.

Make-up is exaggerated, face & neck mismatch. Evil characters are too Halloweenish. Abundant haemorrhages distract from the plot.

OST: “Not Over” borrows far too much from “A Fleeting Blossom with Timely Rain” from “Love of a Thousand Years” (2020). Almost identical harmonious structure, speed, instruments, crucial clusters of notes, duet structure, interlude. Coincidence excepted; similarity beyond the limits of inspiration! For the sake of the other, potentially authentic pieces with nice mellow mat quality, I only subtract 5 pt from Moral/Rewatch value.

OST: In the refrain of “Silent Moon” a minor note intrudes upon the major structure within the mediant: a crude dissonance, strangely frequent in many OSTs. If I were Hu Yanbin, I would sing the required E instead of Es; let them fire me if they will. I subtract 1 pt from OST scale.

APPEAL
Let me here again plead with all persons involved in C-dramas to discourage harmful interference in actors' & actresses’ faces: plastic surgery, tweakments, toxic substances in make-up. This will even reflect the recent (2026) demand of China’s main video platforms to promote Xi Jinping thought, to show beauty through nature, simplicity & meaningful content, to promote consistency of appearance with China’s history & tradition, to avoid excess or distortion.

Written by a nationless spirit confined in the decaying Mid-Europe.

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Draggy and a bit corny but...

The series started off at a good pace, where I found myself binging the first 10 or so episodes until the romance scenes began to drag on and then all of the scenes slowly disintegrated into long drags. The remaining episodes were completed through a heavy-hand of time skipping. But there is something to be said for the effort of even making it through to the last episode rather than just dropping it completely and it'll be easier to just highlight the negatives into a list:

- While the acting was average, there was enough chemistry with the ML and FL that the trials and tribulations of their romance will tug at your heart.
- The action scenes/CG effects started off okay and slowly deteriorated (even on the sound effects). And the number of times people will bleed from their mouths in the series has got to be record-breaking.
- They increasingly incorporated way too many flashback moments that only contributed to the drag.
- The plot also increasingly deteriorated with each time skip era.
- The characters started off well and then would bounce around between being out of character and then back into character for no naturally good reason.

However, despite all of the above, there was enough suspense of wanting to know how things end. Unfortunately, the ending was lackluster. The concept of the plot is really interesting and it's a shame they didn't do a better job with the series. It started off with so much potential. If they didn't spend so much time on the drags and focused on diving into the supporting characters and their character evolution, or if they put a little more effort into the details of the events unfolding instead of just jumping into it, or if the cut down on the repetitive romance scenes, it would have produced a far more well-rounded effect.

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grab your tissues bc this is a tragic love story (with 3 arcs!)

First impressions: Tbh I initially watched this bc of Cheng Duling haha. Intro is actually hella fire holy and the costuming is amazing as well. This show has the most cgi and special effects I've seen.

TLDR; The shows’s strongest trait is def the costuming/makeup and special visual effects. Everyone is rocking the eyeliner, even the masc characters which is fire imo. I wasn't expecting much based on synopsis, but it was not a letdown (for the romcom). There's no option for set design, but I see you set designers and your work was amazing. Also costuming and makeup hello?? Why does everyone look good esp in black 😭. Everything is so on-theme--music, set, costuming and makeup--during the dream arc I was actually stunned at how well it was I had to write abt it haha. In terms of romance (which is what I watch for), there are misunderstandings (which I hate) as a result of poor communication, but the characters aren't dumb or try to get back at the other bc of an argument, which does redeem it a little bit. And the side romances are also really sweet. Hot take but, the story isn't as strong as the romance, as there's some logic that just doesn't quite sit right with me/makes sense to me, but it was still enjoyable. Everyone says ep 36 is the true ending, and that’s bc it's def not for the faint of heart. If you want a happy ending that should be the last ep. Acting is amazing, and there are a lot of subtle facial expressions in the slight twitches of the eyebrow/mouth that make it seem natural. There is a wide variety of songs and bg pieces. The lyrics are also quite fitting to the story and have callbacks to what happens. I initially did have more reason to rewatch it but after the ending, it kinda broke me a bit.

Story: The "evil" character is truly nuanced. The writers did an amazing job fleshing out this character. It really drives the impact of perspective in determining who's really evil or not. It was more like he was pushed to act the way he did rather than just bc he's "evil." Okay, the one thing I hated was the misunderstandings esp from the dream arc and you know I hate that type of shit where they're pushing the other away bc they don't want them to get hurt even though what you're doing is HURTING THEM ANYWAY like?? urgghh surely there’s a better way to create conflict? There are mushy parts, but instead of being cringy, they're rather sweet. There's a part after the Bo're dream arc that I didn't like, but in hindsight, it does set up some things that make sense later. And the last arc does redeem p much everything that happened. Some of the logic seems flawed and kinda just written in there just bc it creates conflict, which is more prominent near the end starting on ep 37. I also got lost w/ the lore at that point and was confused on where the plot was going. All things considered, the ending isn't all that bad, it's just bittersweet and not the happily ever after everyone wants, but it def gave me lots of feels. There’s also some loose endings not addressed that are probably addressed in the book, but they’re not that major.

Acting/Cast: I love the fl's facial expressions esp during the awkward moments. The fl lead is actually the one taunting (in a playful way) the ml, which I quite enjoy. Pian Ran is the best right-wing woman--spirit(?) I've seen so far like she's literally her bestie fr. Extra props to main leads bc even tho they play diff characters, there are subtle differences that distinguish from their different roles. There's def lots of chemistry between the main leads (apparently the same main actors costar in Love Is Sweet haha). Tan Taijin's behavior after a certain point in the story really makes me guess what's real and what's just faking, but ig that's just good acting.

Music: I haven't really paid attention to the bg music, but I noticed when they went into the serpent's dreams the music changes esp in the underwater area. And it actually sounds water-y if that makes sense, which is super cool.

Rewatch value: Def worth a rewatch for the romance, although it is certainly a committment since each ep is the length of a short film, and some are more than an hour long. If I did rewatch it would probs be for the romance and costuming/makeup, but unlikely since a lot happens that I don't know if I want to go thru all that again.

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Bittersweet personified

I've been wanting to watch this drama since I saw the recommendation for it in any articles that I searched for C-dramas to watch and heard some things about it like it didn't really hv a typical happy ending. I don't regret watching this at all. I just... relieved that it was not heartbreaking, much. Yes I wld recommend to please do watch it once. This drama was about kindness, love, loyalty, how selfless our main leads were and the sacrifices they made for the peace of the world.

ML, Tantai Jin or known as Cang Jiumin, Mingye and the Devil God. First as Tantai Jin, he was born with cold nature (bcs he was destined to be the Devil God) so he felt nothing but there was goodness in him. His life was very very hard coz he was the hostage prince at Sheng Kingdom so ppl there treated him like a dirt until he had enough of it. I think there was very important point from that drama that it is essential to be kind to others. When Prince Lin helped TTJ from his bullies as a kid, he took notice of Prince Lin and strived to copy his manners in hope that ppl wld like him. He was always hounded by the devil god spirit when he was feeling very low and cornered then at one point that spirit made him sucked a demon power to initiate him toward being evil. So far he only used that power to seek revenge against those devious people that treated him cruelly. Then somehow he succeeded to ascend the throne against his evil elder brother. Living the life he had, he was bound to be ruthless. As a king, even though he had demonic powers at his disposal, he was clever, perceptive, hard working and benevolent towards the citizen of Jing Kingdom. Next, Tantai Jin went back to a lifetime where he was Mingye, God Of The War, a totally different kind of man, he was very serious about his role to protect the realm. He got back and changed a bit hvg his tribulation in that life. Then, the next phase was him as Cang Jiumin. His temperament at this life was amazing, he was calm and became wise after experiencing so many things. Talking about his love life, all Tantai Jin ever wanted was someone to love him just as he was, loyal, to treat him kindly and to not betray him. So here came the new Ye Xiwu(Li Susu). She was there for him time after time and that melted his heart but there was still conflicts btwn two of them. He really really loves her that he was willing to forgive her big BIG mistake(it was a misunderstanding caused by others but he was also in the wrong). I really love that period of his love life when he was god of war where he was nursed back to health by Sangjiu(Li Susu) and the life at the cottage was so peaceful. I also love how he changed for the better as Cang Jiumin, he was so serious about winning her back bcs he really loves her and wanted to be with her forever T^T

FL, Li Susu or in other lifetimes known as Ye Xiwu and Sangjiu. She had a bit of a temper but she was passionate and determined to save the world. Tbh there were moments that she annoyed me so much.

Honorable mentions to the loyal assistant Nian Baiyu, the very kind and precious Prince Xiao Lin (never gongye jiwu coz he was annoying), the very dear Qingyu with his badass lady love Pian Ran. Ofc the unserious guy Pang Yizhi. The wise and kind sect leaders, Zhaoyou and Chief Qu.

Cons: the flow of the drama at some parts were a bit confusing, the editing too. I really don't like how they always wrote for Tantai Jin to fight the worse battles and made Li Susu came into the scene very late!

240813 0058
-This review is still not finished-

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A good drama worth watching

The fantasy romance drama that completely pulled me in with its heartbreaking love story and beautiful world. It follows Li Susu, who travels back in time to stop Tantai Jin from becoming an evil god but ends up falling in love with him instead.
Watching their relationship grow through pain, sacrifice, and fate was both emotional and unforgettable. Tantai Jin isn’t your typical villain, he’s someone who has suffered deeply since he was young and that made me feel so much sympathy for him. The way their love developed across lifetimes really hit me hard and stayed with me even after the drama ended.
The acting, especially from Luo Yunxi was a major highlight.
His expressions were so detailed that I could feel everything Tantai Jin was going through even without words. Bai Lu also gave a solid performance especially in the emotional scenes.
Their chemistry was strong and full of tension and sorrow.
On top of that, the production was absolutely beautiful from the costumes to the music to the fantasy setting. I also really loved the OST, it matched the tone of the story perfectly and added even more feeling to key moments.
I did feel that some parts of the drama could have been better. Some emotional scenes, especially the important ones, felt rushed and didn’t have enough build-up.
I wanted more time to feel the weight of those moments. Also, a few plot points were confusing or left unexplained, especially the rules of the fantasy world and how some things worked. The editing between scenes could be a little jarring too, it sometimes broke the mood. I found the romance a bit repetitive in the later episodes, even though I was still emotionally invested. Anyway, this drama gave me a powerful experience. If you like tragic love stories with beautiful visuals and a deep storyline, Till the End of the Moon is worth watching.

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Fantastic acting and production wasted by poor script.

The actors -- especially the two leads -- and the overall production were fantastic in this show. The costumes, effects, visuals -- all were stunning and beautiful. The only real flaw was, well, the script. The script leans heavily on several cliche drama tropes that just made this a real painful chore to grind through at times. The two scripting flaws that really bothered me were (a) a massive over-reliance on 'misconceptions' plot trope (where people jump to conclusions based on only partial information) and (b) plot-induced stupidity where on 3 distinct occasions they made Li SuSu suddenly act very, very stupid and out of character, forgetting her mission. They also tended to 'take her out of the story' for long stretches, either asleep, in a coma or just plain absent for whatever reason. I got very tired of these blatant writer-hacks and had to force myself to not give up watching at several points. And I'm not sure the pay-off at the end is worth it. While I liked a lot about this show - in particular the performances of both Bai Lu and Luo Yun Xi - I don't know if I'd recommend it to anyone who values a strong, well-written script over spectacle. Here's a test: If you preferred Good Will Hunting over Titanic, then this is not the series for you.

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Somebody love him please!

Started great..got slow, then I just wanted resolution. **Spoilers** My gosh I love a tortured character but crap sometimes it was hard to watch how callous they all were to him. I never hated everyone else in a show from how they treat one person. He never did anything wrong. Sweet, nice, caring, loving, protective, not overbearing, self-sacrificing..I could go one. And she ignored it all cuz he "may" become the devil lord???? Even his master had better faith and insight later in the show. Great main male character, but I hated her most of it. I couldn't hate him for loving her tho...poor guy had no one. Also omg he is so beautiful in every version. She also never told him she loved him...sincerely. He was perfect, I loved his master, I loved all the make up, oh and the enlightened life was the best part.

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Till the End of the Moon … When Fantasy Becomes an Endless Suffering

I read The Lord of the Rings when I was 14, so fantasy has always been part of my imagination. Give me nine hours of Tolkien’s Middle-earth and I’ll happily sit through every minute. But Chinese xianxia dramas? That’s where I struggle. It’s not the fantasy itself, but the fluidity of the storytelling. CGI spectacles, magical battles, and cartoonish creatures do very little for me. Even the miniature models of the original Star Wars had more charm and felt more believable. Perhaps that’s why I’ve always preferred wuxia, where even the most impossible sword fights are grounded in human emotions, ambition, loyalty, and revenge.

Halfway through Till the End of the Moon, I’ve already skipped more episodes than I care to admit. I feel like I’m watching a tennis match, constantly turning my head left and right as the characters bounce between love and hatred, life and death, suffering and even more suffering. How many times can someone die without actually dying? And how much misery must these characters endure before the writers decide they’ve suffered enough? When death becomes another temporary inconvenience, sacrifice begins to lose its meaning. Instead of building tension, the endless twists simply wear me down.

And here’s what disappoints me most. I’m a fan of Luo Yunxi and Bai Lu. I wanted to love their characters, feel their pain, and lose myself in their romance. But I just couldn’t connect. Maybe it’s me, or maybe the script simply wasn’t compelling enough. The performances are certainly there, the costumes are beautiful, and the production is ambitious. But all that visual grandeur means little when the story fails to touch me. Watching people suffer endlessly doesn’t automatically make their story more emotional. Sometimes it just makes it unbearable.

Tolkien understood something that I feel this drama has forgotten. Fantasy doesn’t need to be realistic, but its characters need to feel real. Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, and even Gollum lived in a world of impossible creatures and magic, yet their fears, sacrifices, and struggles were deeply human. I could understand them, sympathize with them, and care about what happened to them. That’s what makes a fantasy memorable, not how many times the heavens explode or how many lives the characters must endure.

So I’m dropping this halfway through. Not because I dislike the actors or the genre, but because I’ve simply lost the desire to find out what happens next. There’s only so much suffering I can watch before tragedy becomes repetitive and romance becomes exhausting. Perhaps the second half is brilliant, and perhaps I’m missing something extraordinary. But a story shouldn’t require me to endure twenty episodes of frustration just to discover why I should care.

For me, the greatest tragedy of Till the End of the Moon isn’t what happens to its characters … it’s that I eventually stopped caring what happens to them.

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There is a small line betweeen god and devil...

Very well made drama. The story really has potential. Impressive acting, impressive portrayal of humiliation, lack of pride and the true hearts of common people. What is portrayed as ultimate evil is actually the most sincere, strong, loving and rational between heaven and hell. The strength of character and greatness, beyond all limits, of this god, this devil god, far surpasses all other gods. His love is purer than any other. All others are indeed ants in comparison, stupid, cruel and weak in character. Even Susu pales in the face of his greatness. In fact, she has always lacked sincerity and discernment. And in the end, he even destroyed himself, needlessly. Sin will always exist. Better to have someone to watch over it and transmute it if necessary. What a loss...

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This series had me WRECKED!!! ?

TTEOTM is heartbreaking...No...Heartwrenching to watch! The ending killed me! I should have just stopped at episode 35 and had my happy ending 😭 I felt so bad for Luo Xunxi (especially spitting up SO much blood in this series! God, he must be sick of whatever that blood liquid is made out of 🤮). The three arcs of each character's lifetimes was enough to sustain my interest but it really got frustrating when you realize how much some of the situations could have been avoided if they just talked to each other 😑

I loved the growth of maturity of Bai Lu's character Li Susu from being naive to a wise immortal in the end. The suffering and happiness of Tantai Jin is a full roller coaster ride that can drive you nuts! I hate to admit this, but he is so convincing and hot 🔥 as the Devil God and sometimes I just preferred him as that character because at least it was straightforward. 🤭 There is no redemption for Tantai Jin and that really made me feel like the story failed and was truly more about the enlightenment of Li Susu than anything. I had to hand it to Chen Lu Ding though! 🥰 I loved to hate her and she did exceptional in her supporting role! (Loved her in Ashes to Crown- The Best!). Great acting for the most part on the supporting roles. Shu Zhen Ni as Pian Ran had me rooting for her and Ye Qing Yu's side story. The costumes and special effects as well as the sets were excellent and really created worlds that transported you to the realms of the underworld Barren Abyss, the Mohe River, the various immortal realms of Heaven and Earth.

I can't help it but Luo and Lu's chemistry is undeniable and they make it very believable but it's still heartwrenching 💔 (I miss their chemistry in Love is Sweet-honestly, I had to rewatch it because it was the only thing that helped me get over the sadness of this series) 😢

Overall, I gave this series an 8 out of 10 not so much for the story but for the acting, costumes and effects. The story could have been better.

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At the end it happened as it was predicted

Drama is so cool...

Videography, CGI, fights, songs are way too good... Trust me its a piece of art in the world of CGI....

The story was very predictable but it was refined and it pretty much have alot of things explained. The way they explained everything in full circle is very good.

It also have philosophical touch like both male and female lead were always not thinking straight but at some point they finally started to see the full reality and accept that they were both are loved specially the male lead changed alot. His acting was on point. And his smirk was very attractive. Fl also showed anger so well like her acting is something.

2nd male lead sacrifice in both lifes were so precious but in the end he messed up a little but still understandable but 2nd fl was so evil but she also become good at the end.

3rd leads were so pretty so cute and so innocent i can't believe they will perform this good.

But china is above and beyond with CGI. I have seen good dramas with bad CGI so it was a refreshment.

Btw ML not only got tortured but also got sedated and Ra**ed by FL. And u can't change my mind 😂.

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Similar to Love Between a Fairy and a Devil but falls short of matching its greatness

Luo Yunxi was compelling as Tantai Jin/Devil God, cold, cunning and aloof, yet deep down having a desire to feel and understand emotions. He went through hell “killing” his mother during child birth, being hated and abandoned by his father, only to be betrayed by those whom he thought cared for him most, then cruelly bullied throughout his childhood and early adult years. It could be understood why he embraced the darkness within and chose to destroy the world considering the viciousness he’d experienced within it. Then he met the *new* Ye Xiwu. She defended and protected him. She showed him kindness and taught him love. She challenged and angered him, but she always came back to him - ultimately changing him for the better.

Though the show explored an interesting journey of war, politics, love and layers of past/future lives/identifies of our leads and the supporting characters, the show fell short with the love story which was ultimately driving the overall arc on the show. It was clear that Tantai deeply loved Ye Xiwu. Not only did he tell her, he showed her in his actions. Ironically though Ye Xiwu did many things that would be deemed as loving for Tantai, her feelings were always questionable because her actions were direct by her mission. In the end I did believe she truly cared for him but the show took too long to make this clear.

The past/future/present lives of the characters gave wonderful insight, especially the past, into why these people became who they were. However, I found I enjoyed the present storyline the most when they were in the Kingdom of Sheng, especially when it came to the love story. There was a sexy flintiness between the leads that worked so well and I could see the cold walls crumbling within Tantai. I liked seeing the connection building between them string by string. The special effects were outstanding but the show never used that grandness to create epic and unforgettable moments, which I think it should’ve had considering the content. The only moment that came close to being epic was when Tantai killed Yue Yingxin and jumped off the boat into the river. It was such an unexpected moment that was well acted and written.

One thing that annoyed me about the show was the FL going to bed in gowns she’s worn all day, dangling earrings and elaborate head dresses. No way was she getting sleep with all that stuff on. lol.

The acting was great in this. The leads had really good chemistry. When their character got serious and close there was a heat between them that II wish we’d seen more of. The story was good, not great. The ending hurt and the very last scene was bizarre, but overall this was worth watching.

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