Guardians of the Dafeng

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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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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What was that ending!!! I need Season 2 ASAP!!

An absolute delight to watch. It hit all the right notes of comedy, drama, suspense, thriller, and romance.

Story:
Above all, this show is a comedy, and shouldn't be taken too seriously. XXA is a simple guy in the beginning of the story, who slowly turns into a leader and great warrior. I love that initially, it is clear that while he is a good fighter, he is not the best by a mile, and gets beaten up a lot. But over time, his skill improves, and his character is usually what sets him apart from the rest.

The story doesn't shy away from drama either, or rather, trauma, and I love how they explored those arcs and how they impacted each character.

Characters:

Each character is important and has their own arc. While there are a lot of characters so some are just written off only to reappear ten episodes later, their arcs are still explained and explored.

Acting:

Amazing. DW's best show to date and the rest of the cast did an amazing job. Every character was played with so much depth and emotion. No one was stiff, everyone felt natural and it is clear they all had amazing chemistry with each other. It is just so apparent that this was a cast that got along and truly enjoyed the project because they put so much effort and care in their characters.

Production:

The cinematography was great, the sets were beautiful, the costumes were stunning, the CGI was very good. Everything brought together made this a perfect watch.

Overall:

I plan on reading the novel now because I'm dying for season 2 so I hope that the novel went beyond the show. 🫶

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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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very different from other cdramas

ok wtf someone actually kill me now help!!?!!?! just finished watching guardians of the dafeng and am absolutely shooketh. If you maybe have read any of my other reviews, you should know that I despise open endings/cliffhangers. Despise. So WTF WAS THAT ENDING?? NO SEASON 2 IN SIGHT, NO CLARIFICATION OF WHATS TO COME, EVERYONE FORGOT HIM, EVIL SMOKY DUDE WAS HIS DAD, POOR PRINCESS LIN AN, HELP ME ACTUALLY WTF. Ok, back to a more calm mindset, this was fantastic. Many episodes were so hilarious, haven't watched a cdrama that could make me laugh out loud ever (except for Exclusive Fairytale) so that was refreshing. Everything was amazing, the Guardians, the plot, the cast, the actors did really well in portraying their characters. If you know me you should know an ending is extremely important in a drama to me, and this ending was not it. Nobody remembered him. He was wiped from history. His story with Lin An (Tian Xiwei) is not concluded, his family, his role in the Guardians, his role in the Realm Sect, his role everywhere. There is no more Xu Qi An (Wang Hedi/Dylan) in the world. Then it leaves us on a gigantic cliffhanger. REALLY NOW. THIS IS THE BEST YOU COULD GIVE. Am literally pleading for a season 2 just like I am for My Journey to You but knowing cdramas this plea is probably going to go unnoticed. I have yet to watch a cdrama with more than one season, albeit some colossal open endings and cliffhangers. YOU BROUGHT US THIS FAR AND JUST DROPPED US ON THE EDGE OF A CLIFF LITERALLY. ANYWAYS, apart from that ending, everything is great. I really recommend watching, it's very good and it gives you a nice laugh. 100% great (EXCEPT FOR THAT STUPID ENDING) but if you are ok with that you should go watch it immediately right this moment.

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A Drama That Has It All~

If you haven’t watched it yet, you’re definitely missing out on a true gem!

■ Story & Pacing
Guardians of the Dafeng is a wildly entertaining drama that pulls you in right from the start. It’s got everything—comedy, adventure, romance, political intrigue—and it all unfolds in a way that keeps you hooked. The pacing is spot-on, never dragging but never feeling rushed either. There’s a perfect mix of comedy, action, witty/emotional family moments, and swoon-worthy romance, making it an easy show to binge watch.

■ Main Cast
Wang Hedi absolutely shines as Xu Qian. He’s got that perfect mix of intelligence, charm, and confidence that makes him impossible not to root for. Tian Xiwei is delightful as Princess Lin An—her beauty and playful personality make her so fun to watch. And their chemistry, Off the charts! Whether they’re teasing each other or having sweet, intimate moments, they feel so natural together.

■ Supporting Cast & Character Dynamics
The supporting cast is just as strong. ♡Yan Zidong is hilarious and effortlessly charming, stealing every scene he’s in. ♡Fan Shiqi has that cool, effortless charisma, while Mao Xiaohui is breathtaking and brings so much depth to her role. And Liu Yijun aka Wei Gong! He commands the screen with every appearance, adding layers to the story that make it even more compelling.
The relationships in this show feel so real. Xu Qian’s bond with his family is witty, heartfelt and genuine, adding an emotional core to the drama that makes you care even more about his journey. His interactions with his subordinates also bring a great mix of respect, camaraderie, and humor—there’s always that perfect balance of serious and lighthearted moments. And of course, we can’t forget Xu Qian and Princess Lin An! Their dynamic is adorable, full of fun, witty banter, and romantic tension that keeps you rooting for them.

■ Production & Cinematography
Visually, this drama is stunning. The set designs, costumes, and overall production quality are top-tier. Every scene looks gorgeous, from the grand palace settings to the action-packed fight sequences. The cinematography captures everything beautifully, making it easy to get lost in the world of Guardians of the Dafeng. And let’s talk about the action—the fight scenes are so well done, adding just the right amount of intensity to the story.

■ Final Thoughts
If you love historical dramas with a perfect mix of action, romance, and humor, Guardians of the Dafeng is a must-watch. The story keeps you engaged, the main couple is incredibly lovable, and the supporting cast adds so much personality to every scene. With breathtaking visuals and a well-paced plot, this drama has something for everyone. Whether you’re here for the adventure, the romance, or just some great character interactions, you won’t be disappointed.

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Drama ini mengikuti perjalanan Xu Qian dalam memecahkan berbagai kasus misterius di ibu kota, sambil mengungkap konspirasi yang lebih besar.
Penampilan Dylan Wang sebagai Xu Qian patut diacungi jempol. Ia berhasil membawakan karakter yang cerdas, humoris, dan penuh teka-teki. Chemistry-nya dengan para pemain lain juga sangat baik, terutama dengan Tian Xiwei yang berperan sebagai Lin'an, putri kerajaan yang ceria.
Alur cerita drama ini cukup kompleks dan penuh kejutan. Setiap episode menghadirkan kasus baru yang menarik untuk diikuti. Selain itu, drama ini juga menyuguhkan visual yang memukau dan efek khusus yang berkualitas.
Secara keseluruhan, "Guardians of the Dafeng" adalah drama yang menghibur dan layak untuk ditonton. Drama ini cocok bagi Anda yang menyukai drama dengan cerita yang seru, karakter yang menarik, dan sentuhan komedi.

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absolute masterpiece in the realm of CDrama!

"Guardians of the Dafeng" is an absolute masterpiece in the realm of CDrama! From start to finish, it delivers an exhilarating blend of stunning visuals, compelling storytelling, and unforgettable characters. The production quality is top-notch, with breathtaking cinematography that immerses viewers into the rich, fantastical world of Dafeng.

The plot is intricately crafted, weaving elements of adventure, mystery, and emotional depth that keep you hooked every step of the way. The character development is exceptional—each guardian has a unique backstory and personality, making their journeys both relatable and inspiring. The acting is superb, with the cast bringing genuine authenticity and charisma to their roles.

What truly sets "Guardians of the Dafeng" apart is its perfect balance of action and heartfelt moments, complemented by a compelling soundtrack that elevates every scene. It’s a series that not only entertains but also leaves you pondering about themes of loyalty, sacrifice, and the importance of unity.

Overall, "Guardians of the Dafeng" is a must-watch for any fan of fantasy and adventure dramas. It deserves a solid 10/10 for its excellence in storytelling, production, and emotional impact. A true gem in the world of Chinese dramas!

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