Chen Xiang Ru Xie (2022)

The fragrant Agarwood already turned into Crumbs. Sacrifices were all for naught.

"In a lonely and empty courtyard, there’s a burning agarwood like crumbs. A blind man stood there, raising his head slightly so that the sweet smell gently brushed his cheeks. Immediately, the corners of his lips lifted into a smile. —

: The man casually asked, “What did you light up?"
: “It’s … just normal agarwood.”
: “What kind of agarwood?”, he added.
: “It wilts as it provides Fragrance and New agarwood will sprout as it dies.” The woman replied, and now, without a single bit of hesitancy.


The serialization of Immortal Samsara initially called “Agarwood Like Crumbs”, not only pulled in Novel readers and Xian Xia genre fans alike. It also attracted loyal fans of Director Guo Hu whose recognized for directing some of the legendary dramas we all know, “One and Only (2021)”, “Love and Destiny (2019)” and “TMOPB(2017). Intense discussions skyrocketed even more after, Cheng Yi & the Yang Zi were paired in one drama. And In no time, the news raised the spirits and expectations of each and every fans.

However, the ride was all but smooth sailing. Some rumors appeared, heated debates circulated and, even fan wars on social media sites spread like wildfire. Many fans, including me thought that this may also turn the tables for the worse for the drama.

Yet, Immortal Samsara astoundingly flourished like a lotus in mud. Despite the setbacks, there still remained fans who patiently followed its arduous journey from the promotions, filming, trailers, wrapping up, and even till the licensing. And at last after great efforts, fans finally witnessed the long awaited surprise— the release of the first episode at the peak of July 2022. It was a really vigorous almost 20 Months of a roller coaster waiting ride.


Story:

The story itself is independent if we compare it on the main leads and ending of its Parent Novel "Agarwood Like Crumbs" (沉香如屑) Authored by Su Mo (苏寞) . The main focus of Immortal Samsara, which translates to "Cycles of Death & Rebirth" is the agonising love story between the burden-ridden Ying Yuan, a Supreme Lord of the Nine Heavens and, an eloquent and witty Four-Leaf Ancient Lotus, Yan Dan. Sandwiched by a Realm that forbids the birth of feelings, the two will experience the struggles of avoiding the distraction of Love. But side by side, they’ll embark on the journey not just to discover secrets but also to fix the broken, and finally mend the scars. It do sound cliche but, this couple is truly worthy of the attention it is getting.

With Yan Dan always writing stories on her book, the viewers are hinted to ponder, “Will the main couple also have their very own page of a happy ending written in that book?” .


Main Characters:

Yan Dan, an independent writer and a loyal companion, was perfectly portrayed by Yang Zi. Yan Dan is a faulty-selfless person but she is definitely someone that stands out from the crowd. All throughout, Yan Dan stayed true to her own beliefs, never feared to love confidently, and embraced responsibilities like its her own life. And like Yang Zi, Yan Dan will always surprise you with her great acting and humor. Yang Zi did really well in portraying Yan Dan’s character development especially when she gradually prioritized self-care at the course of the drama. With Ying Yuan's (handsomeness joke) thoughtfulness, she fell first and loved him with all her heart. But Yan Dan isnt entirely just a simp for the guy. You will also see her having this innate talent in speaking and intelligence (which I love), since it is what makes her really cool. Her talent, also made her ascend from being a witty attendant into a famous playwright slash company of the bully and vile, Ying Yuan. I found no single flaw or plot hole seeing how the character develops and I appreciated this fact so you’ll really have fun watching Yan Dan through Yang Zi.

Then there's Ying Yuan, someone with a very high position whose obsession in life is Wei Qi or "the Go/encircling game" apart from his goal of ultimately maintaining peace to his jurisdiction, the Nine Heavens. While carrying this role, he was then burdened by an overthinking personality, scheming tendencies, and a boring slash busy schedule. I think I can compare Ying Yuan more with Emperor Qi Yan from “Stand By Me (2021)” who is always harsh towards himself. Ying Yuan is literally like a robot who does things with no flaw all because he thinks it is his obligation to be different from his parents. But his miserable life with only Wei Qi as a hobby only lasted until, he found Yan Dan who switched all of his perceptions in life and made him happier. With Ying Yuan being represented by Cheng Yi, he also got cursed with blood spitting moments. What made his character so interesting, was that he is not entirely harsh and cold hearted. He cares not only for his beloved but also for every single one of his people, his soldiers, and his best friends. His flaw stems in the fact that he always remained firm in being responsible (especially in his job) so he totally refused distractions (like love). But despite his imperfections & jerk-like-boyfriend choices, his love remained unchanged.

Next, Ray Chang as Yu Mo, was the love interest of Yan Dan in the novel. Here, he’s now the second male lead whose main conflict is his one-sided love for Yan Dan & his obsession to her egg scrambles…lol. Yu Mo, was introduced as an heir to the Nine-Fins Clan, The Four Seas, and Yelan Mountain and as someone who only longs for a peaceful and carefree life. However, as you can see, he also holds big responsibilities but sadly, he couldn’t compare to the person holding Yan Dan’s heart. He then only ended as the best friend that stayed in life but never in the heart. Yu Mo is honestly a refreshing take to the stereotypes of overly crazy and ruthless second male leads of Xian Xia. And although not entirely a scene-stealer, Yu Mo successfully captured the hearts of fans through his loyalty and pure love.

The trio throughout their journey, will be susceptible to face never-ending sacrifices, challenges, and heavy secrets independently. But during this chaos, there are also parts that will be your comfort place. Like the cute pairing of Zi Lin, a silly Celestial Turtle and the shy Lin Lang, a Three-tailed Snow Fox. And together with the bickering couple, Taoist Tang Zhou and Beautiful Bai, you’ll also be fed with what seems to be never-ending servings of candies and laughter. They’ll eventually become you’re source of therapy session amidst the angsts. ♡


Music:

I was ecstatic when I heard both Cheng Yi and Yang Zi covered and blessed us fans with their voices here. And as always, I am in love with their songs and played them in loop daily. I hold on very high regard the soundtracks from Xian Xia Dramas ‘cause they always have those touching and beautiful expressions in their lyrics which in turn, helps watchers like me connect easily to the characters of the drama even more. Immortal Samsara OSTs are one of those I sincerely am thankful for. Luckily, we can listen to these OSTs on Youtube!

Although I love all soundtracks, I am more bias towards “Never Forget” Wú Wàng 无忘 by 张磊 “Zhang Lei” . It’s the only OST I downloaded on my phone haha. Here’s my favourite quote from this song:

“ I wasted thousands of years, how can I solve my thousand thoughts about love? ”
“ Forget the time limit, and only then, can love be fulfilled. ”


Overall: ♡

I can see how dramas in which the main characters suffer and make sacrifices for love may really be seen as repetitive. Especially since angsts, misunderstandings, villainous side characters and the betrayal tropes are still present BUT, these are literally part of Xian Xia slash Romance genre that creates the foundation for beautiful love stories like this to be adapted. Immortal Samsara stand out so much for me because of the mature relationship that the main couple have. Other than the interesting fact that Yan Dan and Ying Yuan almost have the same hobbies and personality, both also have fully integrated personalities and separate life dreams & goals. Yet, they still continued to grow and be prosperous when engaging or communicating with each other, even while bickering. And nomatter where they both are, they're literally still both awe-inspiring in their careers and are still ‘The Best’ companions of each other. I am also truly glad that it was mainly thanks to their already compatible personalities and like-mindedness, and not just fate, that made them always successfully attracted to one another. I’m truly a sucker for this kind of relationship and so I just had to see for myself how their relationship will conclude . ♡

Oh yes, before I forget, let me also give a thousand praises to the production team. The camera works, the film sights, creation of the venues, the costumes ( especially Cheng Yi’s wardrobe and wigs…!), and CGI were SO BREATHTAKING! The production team for this drama were really meticulous in designing every corridor , every pathways, the rooftops, the rocks, the courtyards, and the big and beautiful trees!! Even the petals falling were apple to my eyes, lmao. I especially love the Night Forgetting River and The Land of the Horizon venues. Literally, even the screen wall where Ying Yuan and Yan Dan placed their lips on one scene, were sewed with a Lotus design! It indirectly told us viewers that Ying Yuan hypothetically, ‘physically kissed’ Yan Dan ‘cause in literal, Yan Dan is a lotus! I sometimes even ignore Chang Yi and Yan Dan’s visuals just to appreciate these beautiful details! Everything about Immortal Samsara is so phenomenal. For me, its really a drama worth checking out. ♡

I hope that you all had fun reading! I’m so sorry that I’m bad at english and that this was too long. Thank you so much for visiting this review!
Like what a wise Yan Dan said, “The censer has finished burning but there’s still lingering warmth. So once the fire burns again, we shall meet!” See you all on Part 2, my fellow Gou Dan babies! ♡

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Almost Dropped It at First Episodes, but...

yes, i almost dropped IS after watching episode 1-2, but thanks God i choosed to skip a bunch of episodes and went directly to watch ep 15, the river of forgetfulness scenes, and i got hooked ever since, and now it turns out to be THE BEST XianXia Drama i'have ever seen.

*ofcourse then i back to early episodes that i skipped at first, to get some foundation of the stories, haha.

well, we should admit it didnt start right.
first episodes were not appealing, especially episode-1 which was bad and slapped our high expectation for this drama. the plot was nothing new, flat, I didnt like to see Yan Dan because she seemed to me just the same as JinMi from Ashes of love, and the worst is the CGI, weird and cheap.

I was not a fan of Yangzi or Chengyi, so i couldnt stand it and almost dropped it. because i am in waiting of LLTG new episodes and nothing to watch in between, then i tried to skipped and went right away to ep 15, and unexpectedly got surprised by the beautiful scenes, interesting plot and especially the main lead's feeling portrayed by the actors was so real that i can only say WOW.

and then the rest is the history, because the plot become more interesting, and i am fascinating with ChengYi's skill of acting (eventhough i watched Love and Redemption before, and it was good), but i never thought that i would felt so moved by an actor's acting like now.

He indeed not just has a great acting skill, but an acting that ensoul the character to become truly alive, and we watchers could realy feel the pain etc.

And for the plot, what i could say is if we analyze it honestly, its better than classic popular xianxia TMOPB and AOL. If people watch IS first, they will agree with this. Lots of people may say IS has the common xianxia plot, yes because it launched after all the classic popular ones.

But actually after watching more episodes, most of the plot is different from previous xianxia's drama.

Here in IS, the character development happens slowly and clear, that in some way may make some people complaint about it as slow paced. i dont think so, since its better to know the process of falling in love and how the deep love rooted than just a short meeting and little foundation of love just like in most other dramas.

The ML falling in love with the FL not because of her appearance nor just lust, there were no scenes where the ML amazed with her look. They fall in love each other because spending time and knowing more each other's character, which make the cause of deep feeling they are having and the sacrifice acts more valid, comparing to sudden fall in love, out of nowhere.

Acted by ChengYi, this deep feeling of love, expressed ten fold. The way he kissed Yan Dan in ep 10 was so beautiful, i have never seen deep longing emotion kiss like that before in any dramas.

Kudos to the hairstyler, this is the first time i watch ML in white/grey hair become much more handsome than in black hair version, haha. You have raised the standard and i dont think it would be easy for future dramas to surpass this look of Ying Yuan and Xuan Ye. YY and XY is the most handsome and charismatic look ever in xianxia dramas.

About ChengYi, after watching IS, i browsed and watched all his live interviews, variety shows etc on youtube, i truly appreciate such sincere, humble, and very polite actor like him. He is a hardworker. Its a rare for introvert person like him to standout in film industry, everyone let him down and scloded him before, and it took 9 years for him to be widely recognized as he is now. His personal character and struggle, has inspired a lot of people including me, and he indeed deserve to be supported by all of us more than any other high profile actors.

He knows what he loves to do (acting) and go all out for it as we can watch his dedication on his marvellous acting. In IS he plays 3 different characters, YY, TZ, and Xuan Ye. Cheng Yi’s acting as Xuan Ye really surprised all of us, because usually he plays suffering protagonist roles. Xuan Ye is a scumbag and devilish asura king, and Cheng Yi make this character literaly become the hottest devil king ever alive in any dramas, hahaha..

I sincerely would like to give thanks to the scriptwriter, director and the whole casts and crews, you all have brought a little joy in our chaotic life.

So, if you love to watch a xianxia genre, if you only have to pick one xianxia drama in your life time, this is the one. period.

*if you feel the plot on first episodes are flat, boring, the cgi is bad, etc... just hang on, or just skip them to ep 9, it started to get more and more interesting from this episode and so on.

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