Fangs of Fortune

If you want Romance drama and romantic scenes between casts,then skip this.No romance here

I have watched a lot of fantasy cdramas before.
And let me say FOF is really beautifully different from every other dramas.The story, the visuals,the casts,the vibe they give,the instrumental background sounds and music,the friendship,the CGI effects (i don't know if i'm correct with the usage), even the way they speak and the tone of their voices.....Even we don't see a lot of romance scenes,we're still satisfied.Their unity and their bond of friendship help us forget the love scenes.Every single thing in this drama is beautiful.I watch this separately because i don't want it to end so quick.I'm stuck with these episodes.I really love FOF......

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Fangs of Fortune – A Mythic Tale of Love, Redemption, and Immortal Bonds

Fangs of Fortune is an unforgettable journey of myth, sacrifice, and love. From Zhu Yan’s tortured soul to Wen Xiao’s rise as a quiet goddess, this drama left me in awe. It isn't just a tale of demons and gods—it’s a heartbreaking ode to love, loss, and the devastating beauty of holding on too tightly. The story lingers like a half-remembered dream, haunting, healing, and wholly unforgettable. It teaches us that power without compassion corrupts, that even gods can grieve, and that sometimes, the hardest battles are not against monsters, but against our longing.
Full review here:
https://veiled-echium-730.notion.site/Fangs-of-Fortune-Heartfelt-Review-20fa1fcfae738059b073f8da6d0e08a7

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Too many fine characters

Since last year, I have been seeing YouTube recommend FOF, so I decided to hop on the train. At first, episode 1 seemed intriguing, but I was starting to lose interest. I managed to survive three more episodes when things started to get interesting, and before I knew it, I was done.
Pros
1. Fine characters. The characters were all visually appealing, including the villains (Li Lun especially). This made watching the drama a lot easier as I got to see fine faces on my screen all the time, minus the middle-aged villain
2. Dialogue. I found the dialogue between the group quite entertaining, bringing smiles to my face from time to time. The dialogue aided in setting the fact that there was a great friendship among the group
3. Stunts. I must give the director kudos because the fighting scenes were on point. Pei especially always blew my mind whenever she fought, as the stunts were quite impressive, just like the other leads. I love how strong her character was in this drama.

Cons
1. Weak female lead. It still makes no sense how the fl was weak from the beginning till the end, even when she had the title of a goddess. At least a simple martial art would have sufficed. Even after obtaining the baize token, her ability didn't seem to improve, as 80% of the time she was either crying or looking helpless on the floor, compared to the other female lead, who was stronger and not a liability to the group.
2. Too many tears. I could feel the emotions from the character as the plot progressed, and I love how well each character expressed their feelings. But the director abused it so much that I almost didn't feel much when it mattered.

Overall
It is a great watch with a few twists. I love the friendship, but the drama could have been shorter.

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Recommendation Challenge feb 2025

Watch this 2 times. 1st because of Neo & all the CGI & cast, but drop it cause I don’t feel this is my vibe. 2nd because of the Recommendation Challenge from Hanshu. And since it’s a Challenge, of course that means I need to get this done… Haha… But till the end I still stand with my first impression; Great drama, amazing CGI, amazing cast, but still not for me. Haha…

As usual, story first…

Story about a great demon, Zhao Yuan Zhou (YZ), who visits & was captured at the demon-hunting bureau. At the same time, the demon-hunting bureau suddenly received the task to unravel the mystery regarding the water demon. And with the Chong Wu Camp order, they formed a team; Wen Xiao (WX), Zhuo Yi Chen (YC), Pei Si Jing (SJ), Bai Jiu (BJ) & lastly YZ.

YC started the journey with a huge grudge against YZ, cause YZ is the one that killed YC’s family, YC & YZ also had a pack that YZ will die in the hands of YC. But with this journey their feelings toward each other also changed.

SJ started the journey with a huge scar regarding her younger brother. BJ started the journey with a mission on his own & problem with his dad at home.

WX turns out has a special status. After searching, they find out she is the reincarnation Bai Ze goddess. But with the revealing of this fact, their journey just began to a whole new level…

Together they embark the journey to bring peace for humans & punish the demon that made the chaos in the world. Before the journey started, each of them had a burden on each of their shoulders. But this journey finally teaches them how to hold it together, how to share their burden to each other & not only think it as their own burden, cause now they have each other.

That's pretty much the story without giving any more spoilers. Now what I like and don't.

What I like:
+ Great CGI, great fighting choreography, great acting, good story
+ Great friendship between all our lead
+ Good nasty old villain. The villain is one of the most evil in the Xian Xia story.
+ The ending... Where the cast dancing... Oh yeah that's quite a show to watch...

What I don't like:
- I don’t know what, but it just doesn't really click with me.

Overall this is quite an interesting story to watch.

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Beware of the Over Indulgence

PROS: The actors were all fabulous. Even the kid with his cracking voice and annoying scream. Neo Huo and Tian Jia Rui was the bromance I didn’t know I needed. The sets, costumes, makeup and hair were all gorgeous. With the same production team from MY JOURNEY TO YOU, I couldn’t expect anything else. And last but not least, the OST was beautiful. It invoked a lot of emotions for each scene and even listening it after watching, it brought back a lot of pent of feelings.

CONS: Unfortunately, the main theme for this cdrama was Over Indulgence. It went overboard with every scene, every look, every dialogue. It dragged things out to death. Literally. The beautiful music was overplayed that it got on my nerves. The comedy clips towards the beginning were excessive and awkward with sound clips to match. The director and editor might have had a quota of episodes to meet, so a drama that could’ve only had 16eps was doubled.
The death scenes for the two younger characters were so agonizing and heart wrenching. But the ML’s death was glossed over practically. Thankfully there was the 23min Bonus scene that gave semi closure.
I would still recommend the series though. It’s a unique vibe with a unique production team that gave a unique experience with the storytelling.

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Not all laughs.

April 2026
I so enjoyed this fantasy/Xanxia C-drama. It has humour, sarcasm, action and subtle romance.

There is also tragedy, and I cried on more than one occasion.

Demons come in all forms, and this story proves that, as is so often the case, it's the human looking ones that need worrying about the most!

Expect signature beautiful sets, costumes and actors (m&f).

A great band of characters (who don't all want to be together at all, and don't all get on), with varying abilities and very different personalities, are tasked with catching demons that have escaped the Demon Realm. They also have to fix the 'leak'!

A few eps dragged a bit, but for me, not unbearably.

One particular scene also gets revisited a bit too often, and whilst it's an important one, it did irk me a bit.

A couple of irritating support characters (again, not massively so, as covered by others), and I found Wen Xiao a bit 'wet' at times.

Still, overall it's another that's recommended and one I really enjoyed.

Note: Not that strong on romance, incase it's your thing.

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Fangs of Fortune: A Surprising Hit with Stunning Cast and Intense Villains

I was originally really apprehensive about watching Fangs of Fortune, but I'm really glad I did, as it turned out to be quite a good drama. The entire cast is full of really good-looking people, so there’s eye candy in almost every episode. I really liked how the villains weren’t push-overs and definitely put up a decent fight against the main team. They brought many tactics and well-thought-out plans to the table, and I'm glad the leads didn’t just defeat them in one move. ZYZ and ZYC had a really interesting relationship to me, kind of a borderline love-hate dynamic, but they both need each other for their own interests and benefits. The male leads had really great acting, and so did WX, but when it comes to PSJ, portrayed by Cheng Xiao, it felt a little too stiff. I understand the character isn’t the most expressive, but it seemed like a bit of an overkill with the straight face. The cinematography is absolutely phenomenal, and I really enjoyed the OST for this drama. It matches well and sets the mood, especially during the fight scenes. LL is, unsurprisingly, my favorite character. I actually didn’t realize it was Yan An until I read something about it; he certainly has better acting skills than most K-pop artists transitioning into acting. Overall, this is one of the best shows released this year, and I definitely recommend watching it. I’d rate it 7.5/10!

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When Kindness Meets Darkness: A Demon’s Battle Within

I went back for a second watch—and ended up rewriting my entire review. That alone should tell you something. What begins as a stylish, slightly eerie drama with striking costumes and a mysterious opening quickly unfolds into a layered ride: serial crimes, hidden masterminds, and just enough chaos to keep things lively.

At the centre of it all is Zhu Yan (also known as Zhao Yuan Zhou), a powerful demon cursed by a build-up of malicious energy. Left to himself, he is almost disarmingly gentle and kind. But when that darkness takes over, he becomes something else entirely—a ruthless killing machine. It is that tension, between who he is and what he can become, that gives the story its edge.

He joins an unlikely team led by Demon Hunting Bureau chief Zhuo Yuan Zhou, which includes the seemingly powerless Baize goddess Wen Xiao, sharp-shooting archer Pei Si Jing, and the ever-anxious teenage doctor Bai Jiu. Together, they chase down a string of bizarre cases— the chilling murders of brides, puppet conspiracies, the lost Baize relics, and a plague sweeping through Sinan Town. Each case peels back another layer, revealing villains who are not just evil for the sake of it, but driven by their own warped sense of justice.

Trust does not come easily within the group. Zhu Yan carries the weight of having once killed Zhou’s father and brother while under demonic control. Pei Si Jing has her own complicated past with rival factions. Loyalties are fragile, and as it turns out, betrayal comes not from the shadows—but from the least expected places.

Despite its dark premise, the drama refuses to take itself too seriously. Some of its best moments come from Zhu Yan’s cheeky, flirtatious antics, often at the expense of poor Bai Jiu, whose exaggerated panic reactions are comedy gold.

For most of its run, the pacing is tight and addictive—especially across the first 30 episodes. Then comes the final stretch… and it stumbles. The last four episodes drag noticeably, weighed down by excessive flashbacks, drawn-out emotional pauses, and fights that seem to go on forever. The villain’s refusal to simply stay dead does not help. I found myself reaching for the “skip 10 seconds” button more times than I care to admit.

Still, there is plenty to applaud:

- Lin Ziye is a standout as Bai Jiu, balancing comic relief with a surprisingly convincing darker turn when possessed. At just 14, he shows serious promise.
- The cast pulls double duty impressively—not only acting, but performing their own soundtrack pieces with real competence. - The final ensemble song-and-dance is especially well executed.
- Hou Ming Hao shines as Zhu Yan—charismatic and expressive; on top of that musically talented. After A Girl Like Me, and strong performances in Glory and Love in the Clouds, this role only cements his appeal.

In the end, I would still recommend this drama without hesitation. I have even bumped my rating from 8.5 to a solid 9. It could have reached 9.5 or 10—if only those final episodes had not tested my patience quite so thoroughly.

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Tears of Fortune

At one point, we shifted from a lot of action to a lot of crying, but still a better story than “Pursuit of Jade”.

My algorithm is messed up from Pursuit of Jade OSTs marathons, and when fan edits say “Fangs of Fortune” is a must-watch—I listened. Tian Jia Rui didn’t impress me in “Pursuit of Jade,” but he shone in FOF in every amazing way. This review includes details of the show, so spoiler alert! Though I hope anyone reading this is here because he/she’s seen the show.

Pros:
- Why the show isn’t called “Mr. Zhou’s Journey” is beyond me. Mr. Zhou isn’t just the glue that holds the group together; he’s the first to act when danger arises. Zhou Yichen is one of the most lovable characters I’ve seen in a minute, from his softness to his intelligence. He’s naturally a gentle and kind human, so his dynamic and relationship with every character is heartwarming. If Mr. Zhou were a female, he’d be chosen as the Goddess because he’s the purest soul the show saw.
- Ying Lei. Our moodmaker, half god, half demon, joined the group last and left first. His death wrecked me. He was always so fearless, yet his last words were “I’m scared”. It’s been a while since I bawled my eyes out for a character. And Pei Siheng. In my opinion, Heng (Pei Sijing’s younger brother) had the saddest story yet. From being ill since childhood, ignored by his family, killed by his own sister, and used by demons to no end—Heng had it worst. Every time he showed up to protect Sijing, I’d be so happy. Then I’d get mad when Sijing watches him get beaten up. For some reason, whenever Heng shows up, Sijing takes a backseat.
- Bai Jiu’s admiration, loyalty, and relationship with Mr. Zhou and Ying Lei were the best thing about this show. Every time this trio is together, I rewatch their moments at least thrice. They’re never not funny, chaotic, and sweet.
- If you’re a sucker for bromance and strong friendship stories, then Fang of Fortune delivered to the max. The bantering, bickering, and roasting each other were super funny and cute.
- The music. 100/10. There was not one bad song. I now have a playlist just for FOF’s OSTs. First show ever with all good OSTs.
- The ending credits. Whoever’s idea it was to make the cast dance needs a raise.
- The CGI was satisfactory. Wasn’t impressive but wasn’t ridiculous either.
- Storywise, since it's fantasy and based on folklore, it's hard to tell what's going to happen. A lot of the plot twists (though not all original or very interesting) kept the show moving at an enjoyable pace. The callbacks to certain words and/or moments were nice. The show is easily watchable. I binged it in 3 days.

Cons (in no particular order):
- The action was great in the first half, then they became sloppy, and there were a lot of errors and hiccups to detail. Like characters suddenly standing too close together after jumping and flying around. Certain moves defy gravity. Some cuts ruin the realness and smoothness of the fights. I noticed the show can’t or won’t handle more than two characters fighting the enemy; when a character or characters are inhibited, other characters capable of fighting stand around rather than interfering. The show had an opportunity to showcase Yichen, Yuanzhou, and Lilun working together simultaneously to take down the bad guy, turning it into an epic fight, but it didn’t.
- There’s a lot of standing around, glaring at the enemy, and talking during later fight scenes.
- The last big fight was a huge letdown. Except for Lilun showing up to redeem himself, it was draggy and boring. Since Zhou Yichen is a water dragon demon and Wen Zongyu a phoenix, I thought we’d get some water dragon on phoenix’s action, but we didn’t. For two episodes, Wen Zongyu was just launching fireballs at Yichen, Yuanzhou, and Lilun. I’m surprised Zongyu never tried to attack them from behind, especially when Lilun made his ultimate sacrifice. Since Lilun is a tree demon and a small amount of Zongyu’s fire can burn him to ashes, I’m both surprised and not surprised that Zongyu wasted a lot of his demonic energy to burn Lilun quicker. Zongyu is obviously a desperate and impatient guy, so he didn’t make a fun last boss fight.
- The romance is nonexistent and never should have been a thing in the first place. Yuanzhou and Wen Xiao had little to no romantic chemistry. Most of the time, Wen Xiao treats Yuanzhou as a pet or something she talks to. The characters are only in love because their roles said they are. Yichen and Yuanzhou had more meaningful moments.
- Wen Xiao was not the female lead that the show deserved. From manipulation to hollering names, she didn’t possess the pure soul and abilities to protect the wilderness and mortal world. Wen Xiao was poorly designed, written, and executed. She’s completely useless in battles, and the worst part is she wants to be part of these battles. Instead of staying behind to help someone or ensure their safety, she’d run off to face bigger challenges that she cannot win against. In the opening episode, Wen Xiao expressed disappointment in herself for being too weak to protect a demon. She also got angry and sad that she wasn’t strong enough to help Yichen at Bingyi’s Cave, yet she never worked on improving herself and simply relied on her goddess power, which she also doesn’t use a lot. They had a chance to highlight Wen Xiao’s selflessness when she spent 300 boring years in the sundial, but it was fast-forwarded, and we didn’t see her do much. Would have been nice if she had also had to defend the divine tree from other creatures, but nah, the worst thing in the sundial is solitude.
- As stated before, the music was 100/10. However, the show started relying on music towards the latter half to do most of the emotional weight-lifting. At times, the music didn’t work for the scene (Ying Lei’s death, especially), and/or was spammed. Otherwise, the audio work worked for the most part.
- Ying Lei and Bai Jiu’s deaths were sped through. Both times, only Yichen mourned AND cared. Wen Xiao asked Sijing if she was sad about Ying Lei’s death, instead of expressing any. It was odd. The whole group didn’t deserve Ying Lei’s sacrifices.
- Thousands of years old demons are dropping like flies. Also, age doesn’t determine strength. Hundred-year-old demons can easily defeat thousand-year-old demons. It’s hard to gauge how strong anyone really is.
- Yuanzhou was called “evil” a few times, but his actions and words weren’t malicious, so I don’t see how he’s evil. They’re usually hard truths, but I guess it was a good way to showcase how sensitive and emotional humans can be.
- Acting was great but sometimes Xu Zhenxuan, who played Ying Lei, is seriously trying to hold back laughter. Lester Lin who played Bai Jiu did amazing! He also did Lilun justice.
- Whenever something sad happens, Yichen has a habit of making it about himself.
- The characters were practicing social distancing at times. Why couldn’t someone catch Heng? Or Yuanzhou? Why did Yichen have to take Jiu from Ying Lei?
- There are very few people except the cast. We saw people at the Demon Hunting Bureau and Chongwu Camp, but they all vanished later on. Towns are pretty empty.
- The idea of demonized humans was very interesting. Sadly, it wasn't explored more, though we did get a taste of it, and it was delish!
- Here are other glaring issues and plot holes:
Yuanzhou said Lilun wouldn’t do anything to Ying Lei because of his friendship with Ying Lei’s grandfather. Fun fact: Lilun kills Ying Lei without an explanation.
Lilun knows that Yichen, or someone with Bingyi’s blood and chosen by the sword, can slay Yuanzhou. Instead of killing Yichen and letting someone else kill Yuanzhou, why did Liliu break the sword?
Sijing said she burned her demon-turned brother because that’s protocol, but so far, all demons and gods have turned into ashes after death.
The Baize Token was split in half and jointly managed by a Baize Goddess and Great Demon, but which Great Demon managed it with Wen Xiao’s master? If the Goddess or Great Demon dies, what happens?
In episode 7, Yuanzhou wanted to use Ying Lei’s Shanhai Portal and said it needed a Mountain God to cast the spell, but throughout the show, other characters used it without Ying Lei.
Demons' ages are a constant contradiction. They’re said to be immortals but also have a lifespan, and the older they get, the weaker they become?

Still, I’d recommend this show to anyone and everyone. If I were to rewatch it, it wouldn’t be the whole thing but parts of it.

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Crappie and illogical storyline

I'm giving this drama 7 star 🌟
First of all let me highlight what I love about this drama.

1) The OST: I'm in awe with the amazing OST which left me mesmerizing, I can say that this drama has the best OST this 2024

2)The Visuals: I love the visual effects of this drama which makes each an every character extremely beautiful and gave them a wonderful visual on the screen. I applaud it for that. And all the characters did a great job.

Here are my dislike and dissatisfaction of this drama.

1) The ml: I feel like the way the ml who was portrayed of being the most powerful celestial creature in this show was overly over hyped.

Reason being because i couldn't feel the aura of a supreme being in him in the screen.
His fight potential as a powerful demon was totally inferior compared to other characters in the show. Like I was rooting to see him unleash that powerful force as he was portrayed to be but was disappointed. Some may come and justify it with many backstory reasons but that doesn't change the fact. We just didn't feel his majestic power in the screen.

Secondly, the ml efforts to cracks jokes when things are getting serious Offs me, like that will just make me lose my appetite of watching for a while or just fast-forward such ridiculous parts.

Thirdly, the ml who is obviously a demon lord being portrayed as a benevolent like Devine-God isn't my cup of tea,
like I'm not into such type of a demon character unless he was portrayed as a devine God.
I only accept a gray demon character and not some sort of God-like character who will be a sacrificial lamb to save the world.
Even if he wants to do so is fine but his character should always maintain gray vibe and not always act all time Holy like a Catholic priest hahaha.

2) The storyline: I think the storyline fails to differentiate the difference between mortal and immortal being. Like I will just get confused when a lowly humans can easily subdue demons who has a supernatural power.

This drama Over hyped humans abilities and limitations against a celestial being.

Secondary the parallel world in this drama sucks, I was expecting the Wilderness to be a distinct realm of demons which is different from human realm and also a place where living human can't go while still alive.

Overall, this drama fails to separate the difference between men and immortal being by giving a mare mortal the ability to subdue and precide over immortal being which is totally ridiculous and illogical to me.

I know I should accept the plot as it is but such an illogical stories are meant to entertain kids and insult Adult IQ and I'm not passive about that.

In this drama, human and demon were just mixed that you will now wonder which is immortal being lol.

I know this is xianxia genre drama but the drama direction was obviously defining Xuanhuan genre which is why everything was contradicted.

In most xianxia genre, only human who was possessed by celestial power can come in contact or challenge demon. And most type of demon in xianxia are human who are possessed by demon. Or some sort demonic Godly weapons and sword.

Unlike in Xuanhuan that portrays direct demon or god.

This whole theory was why this drama fail woefully in this aspect.

Chinese dramas in category of "Wuxia, xianxia or Xuanhuan" revolves around chinese culture and traditions and if any Director or writers who change this definition to something scientifical theories and logic with morden norms, then is no longer a Chinese drama but a Western style drama.

That's my take I hope that helps.

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