Guardians of the Dafeng (2024)

A Must Watch!

Guardians Of Dafeng definitely has to be one of the best Action/Dramas I've ever watched.. From the acting to the fighting scenes to the many friendships formed in this drama... I think it's well worth the watch.. It had me laughing alot as well.. I love Martial Arts/Swordsmanship Dramas and I feel like this had a little of everything.. It does have some fantasy aspects to it as well.. This drama is not highly focused on romance however the male lead (Dylan Wang) does have a love interest in this drama and they do have atleast two full blown kiss scenes that are very spicy to look forward too... Its definitely worth watching atleast once...
Dylans Dramas are usually pretty good, he's one of my favorite Chinese actors and he definitely didn't disappoint me with this one... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 STARS
Thoroughly Enjoyed Watching This... 🤍

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The peony is mightier than the sword

I'd often start a review with "this show starts promisingly". It is not so straightforward here.

The issue with this series is multifaceted. Firstly, I can't escape a comparison with the Joy of Life series. The cocky ML and his modus operandi are uncanny. There are differences but the subplots regarding famous poems, and the spy master mentor are too close to ignore.

Secondly, the tone of this show is inconsistent. It starts off light and breezy. It even lean towards slapsticks at time. This makes it harder to change things up. For instance, the ML is sentenced to death in ep.15 but within minutes, the tone shifted again. How serious is serious? We are always expecting a get-out-of-jail card.

Thirdly, the ML's sudden appearance in ancient time was never explained (at least by ep.20). He has no problem assimilating into his new life and gains new skills in the blink of an eye. Granted, he is charismatic and a smooth operator. Everyone is fawning over him. It just feels contrived.

We are told he is a police academy graduate, so he is presented as some kind of Chinese Sherlock. The problem is that we don't see much real police work at all. He would "review" a case and just pronounce "the butler did it!". To tell you the truth, that was one aspect that I was most looking forward to. I was hoping to see some scientific approach to crime solving but alas, it was not to be.

Needless to say, the writer is holding all the cards and we are drip-fed information. It is all designed to show the ML in the best light, but at the cost of narrative logic.

Fourthly, we are sold a strong romantic line regarding our leads. Unfortunately, the chemistry is weak (up to EP.20). It is obvious from the start that they are the OTP but I don't get the feels. This is partly due to the way the FL role's is written. The FL plays a ditzy princess who is constantly competing with her royal siblings but not in the deadly game of thrones way, more like petty squabbles. Her schemes are borderline childish. It really throws shades on her intelligence. I'm sure the writer will right that ship in due course but at this juncture, she is just another tropey character. This drama is well populated with such standard characters.

Lastly (for now), there is no rhyme or reason why the ML should suddenly wake up in ancient Dafeng after a staff dinner (see next paragraph). The show goes hard on its own lore but we are none the wiser unless you have read the web novel.

It is full-on xianxia. Monsters, wizards, warlocks, flying heroes, the works. Everyone is cultivating, just not peonies. ;) This means we are running to catch up with who’s who and what’s what. Sects and agencies, both official and secret, are everywhere. They all slot in somehow but there doesn't seem to be a prime directive other than lore, petty jealousy and powerplay.

Of course, all that pales when they played the Ancient Evil card. Yes, it spices things up and pushes a lot of the filler subplots aside. May be there will be some clarity at long last. My money is on the ML being the Chosen One™. Old tropes but good tropes, I suppose.

None of what I listed are deal breaking but when you add them up, I am foundering and losing heart.

This is where the scheduling god played a cruel joke. In the middle of its run, Flourished Peony starts airing. This shines a harsh light on our Guardians. Once I sampled FP, it became an one-horse race. I'm shelving this series until I finish FP. I'll give it another go then. Peace.

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My take

**may contain spoilers**

First of all, I am so confused, let me preface that I have no idea about the origin of the story (books, novels, etc).

In the first 20 episodes, I was so hooked, I like how the story progresses, with so many intricate web surrounding Xu Qi An’s cases. I love DW's portrayal although sometimes he can be stiff and there are some cringe moments however it doesn’t bother me much because overall I like it. The fl is ok but not too much exposure except for the latter part but I'll delve into that later.
The thing that surprises me is the comedic part, I love it, especially the one involving Xu Xin Nian, also his acting chef’s kiss, always in point!

About the story, like I said, I'm so confused! After episode 28 onwards the story suddenly becomes confusing, there are elements that I cannot follow especially involving the Duchess Zhenbei to Chuzou, it’s like there’s no time anymore and they have to finish the story, for me, there’s no rhyme and felt force. I was left confused since no explanation leading to that moment. I guess there’s part 2 since the ending is a cliffhanger with his father, the supervisor, the resurrection of Wei Yuan, Witcher’s sect, Shen Shu, the reason to erase all memories, and many more!

With all the disappointments I experienced in the latter part, would I recommend it, still yes. The actors especially XQA and his family are too endearing and most episodes are really solid! I would love the 2nd season and hope that it can clarify all the confusing part.

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Xu Qi An Show

The fantasy elements are used very well and very harmoniously in this series. There is no excess, it is also blended with comedy, very nice. I especially liked the family atmosphere comedy. Personally, the knowledgeable attitudes of the scholars, their arrogance and thirst for knowledge are reflected in a funny way. The Imperial Guard Corps in a serious institution and a cocky guard in this unit, a funny, sarcastic but intelligent, secret person who knows what he doesn't know because he came from the future. He fascinates everyone. This adds a mysteriousness to the event, as I said, it is blended well. Only too much information is placed. A man who creates miracles on his own and breaks all the rules of that period, challenges everyone in high places and destroys the powerful with a single blow. It can be criticized a little that he is shown as having such incredible intelligence and power. In other words, the over-inflated Xu Qi An character was very harmonious in my opinion. The actors were also very good. I liked it very much. I watched it with pleasure. We understand that there will be a second season by looking at the end. Because it was such an ending. A shocking ending. I personally did not expect such an ending. I recommend it to those who haven't watched it.

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A perfect blend of comedy, drama, investigation and mystery.

Guardian of the Dafeng is a male-centric drama about Xu Qi'An, originally known as Yang Ling in the modern world, who transmigrated into the Dafeng world via a murder mystery game. He had to use his knowledge and wit from the modern world to navigate successfully, solve cases, gain connections, family and loyal friends -- though, of course, there were some enemies.

PROS:
- Good acting chops : Wang Hedi gave his all to the show and I was thoroughly impressed. It felt like a walk in the park for him and while watching this, I could feel he was relaxed and I couldn't imagine a better person to pull off Xu Qi'An. These kinds of male leads in male-centric dramas can be a hit or miss, especially as the character has everything going well for them, but Dylan was able to make the audience connect with and like the character. His performance shined even more with the last two episodes, you just had to watch it to see! I hope he gets more comedy drama as well, cause he is so good at delivering the lines. Tian Xiwei is an emotional powerhouse, so I was not surprised she nailed the role, from a spoiled, naive Princess to a well developed character. I must commend her crying scene, it really tugs at your heart and it was one of the my fav performances in the show. The rest of the cast were also excellent, they all embodied their role, even new characters would pull you into their story.
- THE COMEDY!! Yes its in capital letter cause this was my favourite thing about the show, it was sooo funny and relatable. I can't count how many times I burst out laughing in almost every episode. Every supporting cast nailed it, cause they had good comedic timing. The family dynamics (my best) is something I can't describe,  you just have to watch it! 😂 I might be a bit biased here but I love shows which can give me a blend of comedy and drama, and GOTD delivered. Good comedy embedded in such drama, is the kind of dynamic that really makes a show entertaining.
- Same pacing to the end: It didn't get boring at any point. Even the latter half matched the first half in momentum
- The chemistry: Xu Qi'An had chemistry with literally everyone in the cast list. Even though romance is barely part of the show, Dylan and Xiwei had good chemistry in the latter part of the drama. Then, his chemistry with every member of his family, Wei Yuan, his friends, the Sect, literally everyone.
- Supporting characters were interesting: This is one of the few drama that you will find yourself not skipping scenes of side characters cause they were all entertaining and well written. You literally can't pick a favourite cause there are very strong interesting characters such as Princess Huaiqing, Caiwei, Yang Yan, Wei Yuan, his family (each member is crazy and funny), his buddies, Simu etc .. I really can't name them all, and I commend the writers for this 👏

CONS:
- Transmigration is not done right : The way Qi'An forgot the modern world and easily adapted to the world of dafeng within a few episodes, was unrealistic. There could have been more inner push and pull, even if he didn't enjoy his life in the modern world, or at least they could have shown us his past life much earlier so we could understand why he almost immediately decided to settle down in an entirely novel place. It would have also been interesting see more of his struggle in adapting to life in the historical era, as that transition shouldn't have been easy. Maybe due to censorship, they didn't want to dwell much and hint that it was transmigration. The only exciting part was seeing him bring in modern elements to Dafeng such as the poems, earbuds, bar etc
- Few action/fight scenes : I was craving more fight scenes, however, they were very minimal and when it occurred, it was so short that it leaves you feeling unsatisfied and almost like an appetiser that you have to go rewatch the scene again to feel full.
- Romance : I expected this to be a con cause normally in male-centric dramas, the romance is watered down as it's not supposed to be a major part of the story, which is fine. However, the path they took with the romance starting with a misunderstanding almost turned people away from it, especially as the misunderstanding lasted for quite a long time and they also had few scenes. Luckily, Tian Xiwei and Dylan had good chemistry and were able to save the romance; thus, when the misunderstanding was cleared, their connection became cute and endearing.

In general, GOTD is an interesting drama that I enjoyed to the end and I'm glad [SPOILER ALERT]... there will be a season 2. I hope it doesn't take years before it comes though.

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I loved the first half but then the second half kinda dragged on…

I really loved the first half. It was really funny! It was light hearted! It was filled and adventure and comaderie. I liked all the comedy relief the dynamic of the characters brings! Thennnn I felt like they made his character too powerful that it peaked and couldnt help him properly develop. I was having trouble getting into watching the end, but that’s just me….so I stopped at 35/40 (tho more honestly lost my attention at 31/40).

I put the rewatch as 5 because it’s a neutral answer maybe in the future I hope to pick it up again with a fresher perspective.

Am I the only one that shipped Caiwei and Xu Qi-An LOL

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It's okay.

First thing to note here is Wang Hedi's voice does not sound great. It deters from his character being in a set of historical time. His acting was okay but nothing special that attributes to his character that he is playing, as he is simply just playing himself. His eyes, though beautiful, it doesn't say much to his expression, still stiff.

The story is mid. Nothing new. Relies heavily on comedic dialogues and scenes. However, the fighting choreography is epic.

Tian Xi Wie's character is not my favourite, I would've preferred had she had been the grand princess instead, since that role seems to be more interesting.

Oddly it felt like the story wanted to take the direction of Joy of Life at some capacity.

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Perfect

I loved every episode, the only downside was that for me it kind of dragged a bit and it was quite obvious that they want to make a season 2 although it might never see the light of day lol…we all know how China is like with season 2s’;they either take forever to come out with a different cast of course or they never come out.

I’m proud of Dylan he has matured over the years and his acting is amazing. I just hate the fact that Lord Wei died and in his death he forgot Xu Qian 😭😭 they had a great bond ( father-son) vibes but at least slowly everyone kind of started feeling like they forgot someone important. I sincerely hope we will have the same cast in season 2… above all it was a great drama.. well done to the team 👏👏👏

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Boring

Personal View:

After watching the first three episodes, I started to lose interest as the story became boring. There were a few moments where the drama attempted to add comedy, but I didn’t find them funny at all. I was most excited to see the chemistry between the main leads, but there were hardly any meaningful scenes between them, which was quite disappointing.

After their first kiss, I was eager to see more romantic moments between them, but aside from that one scene, there was barely anything. Throughout the drama, the male lead was too focused on accomplishing his task, making it feel like his love wasn’t a priority. It seemed as if he took his feelings lightly—there was no depth in their relationship, even though both were supposedly in love.

Moreover, the ending felt incomplete, leaving me unsatisfied. It lacked the emotional closure I was hoping for.

Overall, I didn’t enjoy the story much. The lack of romance, the weak emotional connection between the leads, and the dull progress

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FAIR PLAY DYLAN WANG?

Oh my word, this was clean. It’s the surprise cast for me that was unveiled step by step with perfect timming. The cast, by the way, all played their role to a tee. The storyline kept me invested with all the mysterious identities and just the sheer performance of the cast in general, everyone played a part, a very big part in their own.
This one might be a nitpick but the way cultivation and magic was seamlessly incorporated without really making it all about magic was perfect, same goes for the romance side of things. All the power-play was well calculated and well-written, the mystery part really kept me invested and I don’t really know who the credit goes to but fairs, I’m satisfied.
Now to the ML and FLs. I was never a Dylan Wang die-hard and was really on that bandwagon train of purely glaing him like nearly 80% of the C-drama watcher I see commenting on various forums however, he’s really convinced me is this drama. He acted the hell out of that role. I always found his performances, sort of like trying too much and cringe to an extent but this has shut me up.
Don’t expect me to go on and credit everyone as they’ve all done their job so well, I was mesmerised by that Dylan Wang perfomance that I had to get certain things off my chest.

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