A Moment but Forever

Philosophical, thoughtful, and funny... but warning, not fluffy

My favorite thing about this show is probably its philosophical / existential bent. Xianxias like to treat human lives as quick and fleeting, trivial compared to a god. So you can see how a show might use this to make us think about things like the arc of a human life, and what we want out of our brief existences.

These ideas are expressed through some well-written dialogue. So many times the characters say things that are thoughtful and on point, going right to the heart of the matter. The dialogue is both easy to understand and insightful. I could see where the characters are coming from, even e.g. on both sides of an argument.

Another thing I really love about this show is the FL. Ji Tanyin is a goddess, which means she’s powerful- she certainly holds her own in a fight- but she can’t use too many powers in the mortal world. Luckily, as the Goddess of Craft, she’s also an amazing engineer. Honestly, after watching so many xianxias featuring only powerful male gods, it made me so happy to see the more powerful, in control figure of the two leads be female.

But maybe what I like most about Ji Tanyin is that she is compassionate and sincere. It feels very genuine, not pretentious at all. Maybe because she also makes such a bumbling human; after watching so many scheming leads in other shows with their carefully chosen, manipulative words, her lack of guile is really refreshing and kind of hilarious.

The ML Yuanzhong, on the other hand, is a darker character. He’s been through a lot. I didn’t dislike him at any point, though, and I found his complicated emotions and reactions to be understandable and relatable. I empathized with this complex character.

For awhile, Ji Tanyin’s unwavering belief and selfless support for Yuanzhong actually reminded me of a parent-child relationship. He of course doesn’t know the full story, and I like being able to see and relate to both sides. Their relationship morphs slowly into a romance; its development is nice, though I like it better before they get together.

There is also a second couple with a poignant story. Zhi Dai’s younger self sounds exactly like an annoying Cdrama character; but uniquely, here we instead get her retrospective on that experience. Her story ties well into the more global theme of what we want out of our lives, which Yuanzhong also struggles with.

People seem divided on whether they want more or less of the second couple. For me, Zhi Dai’s story resonates with my own existential crisis, so I found it meaningful and touching. I was happy with the amount of screentime it got.

There are some other lovable side characters that get fleshed out to various extents. The show is pretty clear on who to hate and who to like, so at least you’re not feeling angsty about that.

Actually, a good chunk of this show has some great humor and a fairly lighthearted tone. I was regularly laughing through maybe 2/3 of it. My favorite story arc is when they are essentially raising a child together (she’s the working parent). It is cute, sweet, and funny.

Just don’t make the same mistake I did and get fooled into thinking this is a fluffy xianxia where everything will magically work out in the end. Be prepared for some very bittersweet developments.

I do feel this show gets worse in the last 10 episodes or so. I don’t know if it’s because the leads finally get together, or just the plot, but it starts to feel slow and draggy. Dialogue gets repetitive, scenes go on for too long, people spend too much time staring at each other while music I don’t particularly like plays, that sort of thing. I used 1.5X speed liberally.

Plus, the show gets more sloppy. Examples: I really liked the weapon spirits and I don’t know why they mostly disappear. Previous story arcs do not get tied back in and some characters are not seen again. The leads’ transition to a sticky sweet couple is rather abrupt, and her oath against it is apparently totally glossed over until the storyline needs it again. And while I was previously happy with the worldbuilding and the level to which it was explained, the show does not continue to build and explain as it should.

In addition, the final villain is not done well; the motivation that is finally revealed is quite weak. From what I read online, it seems the book’s version is similar but more fleshed out, thus making a lot more sense. The drama just doesn’t present it well. I wish they focused on this instead of all the drawn out "artistic" scenes.

Acting-wise, Liu Xueyi does a phenomenal job. I think he won an award for it. This role requires a lot of range and a lot of nuance, and he portrays it all so well. For Tiffany, at first I thought she looks a bit old, but I got over that quickly; both of the characters are more mature anyways. Her voice, whether hers or not, is a bit shrill sometimes, but it’s fine. Overall I think she does a good job. The side characters also do a good job.

The styling is... uh, not the greatest. They especially messed up on Liu Xueyi with hair, makeup, and clothes that somehow make a good-looking guy look less good. But it’s ok, it helped me focus more on his acting and expressions.

The CGI is not the greatest (but not the worst). Fighting is not a focus but what’s there is decently done. I like that Tiffany maintains her frame instead of hyperextending, and some of the actors seem pretty athletic. It’s cool how the goddess of embroidery uses threads and embroidery as her weapons.

For music, there is one song I love that keeps playing at all the right moments to make me cry. Unfortunately it seems underused compared to the excess of slow love ballads that I didn’t particularly care for. The background music is pretty good for setting the mood, though not my personal favorite.

All of this production-level stuff is not masterpiece level, but it’s not bad enough to truly detract from the experience. Overall I give this show a high score for its thoughtful, philosophical tone; characters I love; good humor; good acting; and some truly poignant moments. I fault it mainly for being sluggish and sloppy towards the end. Well, that's kind of an understatement- ¼ of the show is not trivial, and it legit gets pretty bad. Objectively I should probably give it a lower score. But the rest of the show was so meaningful for me that I'm willing to overlook a lot.

I also fault it for not having the happy, cheerful ending that I totally expected, but I won’t subtract points for that because it’s probably better writing this way.

ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS





I would consider this ending to be bittersweet and beautiful. It’s actually very fitting, both from a narrative perspective and a logic perspective. But I’m still annoyed because I preferred, and thought I would get, an illogical happy ending.

It’s not just the main leads, where at least they throw us a bone (she might come back- apparently in an epilogue of the book, she comes back after 600 years). The second couple story, which seemed like it would work out for a lot of the show, also goes bittersweet (more bitter than sweet, imho). I don’t know what happens to a lot of the other characters, like Mei Shan and the weapon spirits (and what about that lamp? -- update, I have learned that the lamp is essentially a shoutout to Love of Thousand Years which is set in the same universe), and I dislike that they pretty much just left it open. Qian Lin seems to turn out ok, but we don’t get much view of his life.

I charged through so much of this show thinking all would end well. I remember crying at the end of the Pei Jiu / Lu Chen arc, but figuring he’d come back to his girl in the end... now at the end, I don’t even know if he’s alive.

It’s the kind of ending that leaves me scouring forums about the show and rambling in my own review, in a vague attempt to mend this gaping emotional hole it opened.

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An awesome Xian Xia drama

I love this Xianxia genre drama although I am not really a fan of Xianxia.

Liu Xueyi and Tiffany Tang's pairing is proven to be a success in my opinion which led me to continue watching this drama.

Although the rating on MDL is rather low, I find it deserves more than 8.5. I'd give a 9-rating because it is better than some other recent XianXia dramas.

Liu as the Demon Lord? His females will scream with delight when they see him acting the baddie role. He is probably the most handsome Demon Lord in the Xian Xia dramas.

Watch this drama if you wish to enjoy a good Xian Xia drama. I certainly did njoy the drama. I can't wait for Liu Xueyi's next C-costume drama, Against the Current.

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Fabulous story with great humour but ending was just too meh

The cast, acting, costumes, production values and fight scenes were excellent in this well written and often very funny gem of a drama.

I loved watching Liu Xue Yi as the male lead Yuan Zhong and Tiffany Tang as the female lead, Ji Tan Yin. They played their parts brilliantly and brought lots of humour to the first 3/4 of the drama. From the get go, they had chemistry as their relationship developed from High Priest and pesky handmaiden who won’t leave him alone to two people very much in love. The other actors were also very well cast and I really enjoyed them all as they added humour. After all, who doesn’t love a very unpredictable, gold guzzling 4 year old Spirit Warrior or an artist who hits on the FL much to the disgust of the very jealous ML?
Unfortunately though I thought the ending was too bitty so I marked the drama down because of it - my understanding is that the fault lies with IQIYI who cut the last few episodes. Did Mei Shan really only get to be a God for one day, if so why not just let him become part of the tapestry? Why didn’t the Thunder Gods get involved at the end of the conflict and reward the heroes and rescue the fallen? Did Yuan Zhong take up the invite to become a God? Was the ladder permanently fixed?
All in all a lovely watch but I’m not sure I want to watch anything else that Liu Xue Yi has been in as this isn’t the first time his love interest dies and makes me blub like a complete saddo.
Would I watch it again? If I wanted a light hearted, feel good drama (ok, the ending left a lot to be desired) then absolutely

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Good vs bad and other moral dilemmas

When I started watching I throught I wouldn't like this one too much. Let's be honest, the visuals in this drama are awful. The customes are simple going on ugly and the wigs (specially the one on the ML when is not tied up) are hideous.

But they deliver a very interesting story: More philosophical than other dramas I watched, it talks about the good and bad in this world. There is a clear parallel between our hero and the villain, both living the same experiences but reacting to it in a different way.

Youngzhong wanted to be good and Jin Tanjin help him to see that good. Hannv, the villain, didn't really wanted to do good and not even Taihe, a God, could get through her.

I really like the idea of the five sins described in the drama: Hypocrisy, obsession, cruelty, jealousy and ignorance.

No one in this world could really avoid all this sins so we are left trying to do our best. Youngzhong keeps trying even when at points I feel he was right in his idea of destroying the world (everyone is so awful to him, they really don't deserve him)

the fights in the last episodes were pretty good and the end was very appropriate also. They avoid the happy ending just for the sake of it and we got a more realistic one.

But there is also a lack of balance. Tanghua and Quin Lin barely have any development but, the little we saw, gave us a hint of pretty interesting stories (specially Quin Lin and his brother, there was so much you could say there).

The spirit weapons that were so important during basically all the drama were completely discarded at the end. I guess this makes sense because they weren't actually human beings but still, after everything, you get attached to them and is a complicated change of pace. I also don't particularly like that the only spirit weapon that we didn't get to meet at all was the female one 🙄🙄🙄🙄.

would I recommend it? I don't know 😅😅😅. The story is good but is lacking something.

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A heavy story and narration, good acting

It was a series that I liked in general. I watched it until the end. Although the story was not perfect, it was a good story but it had a slow rhythm. I got bored sometimes while watching. The long conversations were especially boring. It confused the story. The beautiful series sometimes fell to the ground. However, the savior was the actors. Get rid of the actors, the story remains below zero. The series stopped being a series. The actors saved the series.

It does not suit the series to give everything away just because we are watching a fantasy series. Even gods die, some so-called gods even eliminate their superiors. They play tricks on them, they deceive them. A deity who is an ceremonial god rules the entire world, no one hears his soul. A god packages a city and sends it 250 km to the other side. The person next to him cannot understand who he is. Who has the power to do such a thing? He learns at the end of the series. After that, there are angers, resentments, etc. The man cuts his hand and throws it away. They wake him up. He returns to the world with his healthy hand. What happened to that cut hand? You will say, the man is dead and you are asking about his hand? It is really such a situation. I gave examples to explain the seriousness of the series. They even hit the bottom of fantasy. It didn't happen. What a shame for these beautiful actors. If it weren't for them, it wouldn't have been watched anyway. They should pray for the actors, I gave the score for the effort. Liu Xiue Yi is a very good actor. His face goes well with every game. He has a pale and calm facial feature, but I should call it an actor' face. He looks older than he is. He looks mature. He goes well with every role. He is a successful actor. I appreciate it. I last watched Tiffany Tang in "The Legend of Xiao Chuo". She was much better. She is a good actress anyway. I liked her acting in this series too. Sometimes there can be a good or bad distinction between actors. The male actor may be more dominant, but I think Tiffany, who got married and had children, showed her acting again and did what was required for her role. The other supporting actors were also perfect. Especially in the 30th episode, master actor Tang Jian Chang made an acting debut, her performance in her short role was applaudable. I applaud her too. Cristy Guo, Wang Hong Yi, Daniel Zhoi, Zhang Li, Jiang Kai are the prominent actors. I liked the entire cast but I thought I'd write some of them again. No offense to those I didn't write. The acting was good and the action was good.

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Drama with deep dialogues

I finished watching the show and enjoyed it. Many of the dialogues in this drama were deeper than typical dramas, pondering philosophical, moral and ethical elements that blurred the lines between righteousness and evil or right and wrong. LXY's monologues were especially mesmerizing, and his mad speech when he was demon lord was equally captivating to watch.

However, the open ending is painful and not satisfying to me. Another miss is that they did not show the last 6 months when YZ and JTY travelling to see the places as happy couple before JTY disintegrated.

Overall, it is a great show, a beautiful love story that goes beyond romantic love and attractions, showing a lot about being understanding and forgiving, communicating, and valuable friendships.

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Not your typical Xianxia romance dramas

Not much action in the first few episodes and I was hoping there would be since it was a fight between the D3mon clan and them. 
I dropped it at episode 19 and after 2 weeks lol I picked it up back. I still think there was something missing and I couldn’t put a pin on it. 
Slowly things just started getting drag after they all left the mountain and then things picked up back a little and we got more actions.
No doubt that the leads had chemistry and I feel like we didn’t get much of their love journey. I also hopes that the ending would have been better but I understand the concept.
For me, it was a great drama but I have watched better Xianxia romance dramas.

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Great Humor and great acting

Such a great series with lots of humor and for once in world logic and world building in a drama that makes sense. The only thing that's a real shame is the set design, costume design and overall look. Even though the actos are objectively beautiful they are sadly made to look really weird several times by lighting.
The ending looses excitement because it gets predictable. Otherwise really good!
Female lead is refreshing in her character concept. Love how intelligent she is and genuinely nice and caring.
Male lead characterisation makes total sense. You really understand why he acts the way he acts.
Together they manage to bring out such good humor.
I tend to skip a lot if I get bored and up until episode 29 I hardly skipped any scenes.

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Enjoyable + Tang Yan is back <3

I think they drag the story a bit but at the same time there's something that is lacking, as if they cut so much to pack the drama into 36 episodes. However, it's still a pretty good series. It hooks you once you go through the episodes. It's decent and enjoyable. Both Tang Yan & Liu Xueyi delivered their performances well, they're doomed from the start and i knew it very well but it still sting when you watch them. At the end, they leave you a bittersweet feeling (':

As for the second leads, I couldn't get into them at the end. They had potential and they were interesting at first but then it just dies out. Also I wish they actually show the elders (Gods of Thunder division) point of view when they realized Hannu was abusing her power as a goddess and her colliding with the demon lord. I feel like they're being cutted out. It would've been better if they show them so it doesnt become somekind of a plothole.

Most importantly, Mother Tang Yan is back to Xianxia after a long time and look how pretty she is in hanfu 🥹 I'd love to see Tang Yan starred in a dark historical/Wuxia/Xianxia/Xuanhuan movie or series. Hopefully we get to see her more in these genres in the future.

I'mma fight anyone saying Tang Yan is too old for this drama, TF are you on? what does her age have anything to do with the series? Sick of these kind of people, if you don't like it don't watch it. Go watch your younger fav actor/actresses if you want "young face" instead of going in the comments saying she's too old and she should've played as a mother instead 🙄

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A unique xianxia story waiting to be uncovered!

A Moment but Forever is a drama that transcends conventional storytelling, offering a rich tapestry of meaningful messages, commendable acting, and a thoughtfully crafted script. It is not a show for those seeking pure romantic thrills but rather a layered narrative that thrives on subtle details and profound philosophical dialogue. The pacing might feel slow for viewers accustomed to typical Xianxia tropes, but it is precisely this depth and intricacy that make it stand out. What particularly captivated me was its attention to detail, the incorporation of engineering feats as humanity’s defiance against the Celeste race, and its departure from the stereotypical Xianxia formula.

Liu Xieyi’s portrayal of Yuan Zhong was both precise and deeply impactful, leaving a lasting impression. His remarkable acting versatility breathed life into the character, skillfully capturing the complex and conflicted emotions that Yuan Zhong grappled with. Liu adeptly conveyed the layers of snobbishness, aloofness, and the constant undercurrent of destructive thoughts that defined Yuan Zhong, making him a compelling yet challenging figure. It was through Liu’s meticulous attention to subtle details that I was drawn into Yuan Zhong’s turbulent world, preventing the character from being misunderstood or outright disliked. From moments of torment and heartache to the depths of lovesickness and self-destruction, Liu navigated the multifaceted aspects of Yuan Zhong with finesse. His performance not only showcased his range as an actor but serves as a testament to his talent and suggests that transitioning to deeper, more complex characters could pave the way for even greater success in his career.

On the other hand, Tang Yan, who played the female lead, faced criticism primarily due to her age, which I found unjustified. Her character, Ji Tian Yin, is a thousand-year-old, strong-willed Celeste being, and Tang Yan portrayed her with a quiet strength and unwavering support for Yuan Zhong. While her performance was commendable, there were moments where her emotional expression felt inconsistent, occasionally coming across as emotionless in certain scenes. Despite this, she effectively captured the essence of a character who stood firm in her convictions and provided a steady anchor for Yuan Zhong’s struggles.

The drama’s narrative extends beyond romance, exploring themes of devotion to one’s craft and the dignity of every being. The relationships between the weapon spirits and the bond between the female lead and her teacher were particularly touching, adding layers of emotional depth to the story. The OST complemented the narrative beautifully, enhancing the overall experience. However, I felt that the costume design, makeup, and prop design could have been more refined to elevate the visual appeal of the show.

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I love AMBF even more now that I’m spotting new details on re-watching it. There are so many subtle cues that deepen the characters. Wow, the leads (the entire cast in fact) played their roles superbly. I get emotional even watching clips of their performances.

The fight scenes are well-choreographed and executed with clean movements from the actors and actresses. The CGI is applied with precision, enhancing the actions without overwhelming them. And every single song on the OST sticks with me.

It’s a pity how Ji Tan Yin broke her vows in such a mediocre way. I wish the screenwriters had made that less cliché so it’d match the high standard of the rest of the script.

Nonetheless, this is a gem I think will stay with me for a long time. I’m thankful to have come across Avenuex’s recommendation. Or, I would have missed this treasure!

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Torn Between Duty and Love

I first saw Liu Xueyi on Kill Me Love Me and i liked him there, though not so much when he turned into a lovesick puppy (unlike the novel), so I am expecting he would do well here. I was right. He convinced me as Yuan Zhong, the immortal youth who conquered the Divine Hand forged by Goddess Wu Shuang, later used by his clan to kill the enemy - the expelled divine clan, War Demon - and subsequently suppressed by these elders he held in high regard afterwards cuz they were afraid of his power. Wielding a divine power at a young age, the teenager was eager to please his elders’ and obey all their commands, ending up being imprisoned for 40 years in the name of secluded cultivation. He was released later but not not before the divine hand’s power sealed by a necklace the elders made him wear. He lived as the High Priest of Youhu immortal clan for 20 years, patiently scheming his way out of his elders’ clasp. And having been subjected to 60 years of suppression that left his body frail and sickly, resentment began to form and tainted his pure heart, but one being believed he was a good person - Diety of Craftsmen, Wu Shuang.

I think Tiffany Tang did a terrific job as Diety Wu Shuang. After the great war, primordial Diety Taihe was injured and went into slumber, his divine hand severed and thrown into mortal world, and the ascension ladder was broken, restricting any dieties from descending into the mortal world in their physical form. The only way out of the divine realm was through the sea of oblivion that would rot away divine powers. Of all of them, only Wu Shuang was willing to go through this sea to retrieve the divine hand she created, as she could rely on her creations instead of her divine power to get through it. Initially tasked to kill Yuan Zhong and retrieve the hand so Diety Taihe’s primordial spirit can be restored, she later changed her mind as she deemed Yuan Zhong a good person and cannot be killed. She promised the elder dieties that she would accompany Yuan Zhong til he dies naturally before retrieving the hand. And one of the promises include her not to have any emotional attachment with him and reveal her identity as a diety.

Although i did not have high hope when i started watching this drama, i found that the story really engaging, especially when the ML’s continuous suspicion of FL didnt annoy me, even after her mortal body died for him twice. I usually hated prolonged misunderstanding, but this show managed to get me hooked. I especially love FL’s resilience and strength, she would not waver under any circumstances at all. They both did not turn into hopelessly lovesick puppies, which intrigued me even more.

It is also one of the rare shows where the ML needs constant saving by the FL (well she’s supposed to be the superior being anyway) and i enjoy them very much.

It is the first time i saw Tiffany Tang and in some scenes i couldnt help myself from seeing Liu Shishi in her. Dont you think they have an uncanny resemblance?

The sparseness of the divine realm weirded me out though, was it due to budget constraint? Or was it something that could only be understood with the novel? There were less than 10 individuals in the divine realm so it is definitely weird compared to other xianxia i’ve watched. And i wonder why their ‘supposedly’ dieties are all with unimaginable flaws like humans? Whats the point of being god then? If a god can succumb to human flaws then theyre not god at all. It’s weird that some people would worship these flawed beings, on screen or off screen.

The songs are good too and gave quite an impression on me.

Edited: I decided to read the novel, and found that the storyline in the novel is quite different than the adaptation. But i like the changes the adaptation made to FL’s character though, especially the ‘saving ML’ every time. 😆 in the novel, ML wasnt quite a don-in-distress, he actually saved FL quite a number of times cuz he couldnt accept a mere mortal woman would protect him. And the reason she proposed to the diety elders to wait for ML to exhaust his natural life before reclaiming the hand was also different than the novel’s. In the novel, the waiting was due to the consequence of taking the hand forcefully (by killing ML prematurely) cuz that would mean messing with the hand’s fate (it’s with ML now so it’s fate is tied to him instead of Taihe) of which doing so would cause Taihe’s remnant primodial spirit to completely disappear. It was not because she believed ML was a good person that shouldnt be killed. They kinda romanticized the connection between ML and FL a bit here by having her standing her ground because she believed he was good, when in the novel, her sole motivation to venture into the mortal world to retrieve the hand was due to her thousands years old love for Taihe and she insisted to wait because she didnt want Taihe to disappear.

All in all, the novel was fun, and although the changes of the adaptation was acceptable, i honestly prefer the novel’s ending than the adaptation’s.

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