A feast for the eyes, epic tale not without flaws but worth it for the journey it will take you on
I was expecting a lot from this Chinese Wuxia drama : the fact that Tian Jia Rui had one of the main role in a series directed and written by the very talented director Edward Guo really hyped me. Overall, it successfully managed to keep up with my high expectations and likely set the bar super high for any other future Chinese wuxia drama I would watch.I loved the story thematic with the narration focusing a lot on the concept of dream and reality, it was truly an epic tale supported by an impressive production value. In the middle of a lot of action, mystery and investigation, the heart of the story is foremost about companionship and found family, as well as different kind of love. The evolution of the relationships between the characters (especially between the two main male leads but also with some of the secondary roles) was probably my favorite part of the show.
The costumes and the cinematography were impeccable. A real feast for the eyes, with a lot of details and superbly impactful. Every set felt so real, rich and purposeful with a minutiae that I rarely encountered. You can really feel the director vision and specific touch when watching the drama and that's something that completely fascinated me.
The acting was another strong point : the cast was pretty good with a great dynamic with each other. This for that matter can be witnessed in the ending generic of episodes which consists of them dancing together on a choreography on one of the main song of the drama. I was once again super impressed by Tian Jia Rui : he got even better than in "My Journey To You" despite the challenges inherent to his role, from "Didi to Gege", very different from his debut one. I got very attached to the main characters (and even some of the more minor ones) and it is a proof of the overall good performances of the ensemble cast. In addition to Tian Jia Rui, I will keep an eye on the future work of Neo Hou and Yan An. The acting of this trio was on point, together or separately in addition to be such eye-candy.
Of course, the series is not without flaws. I wish the lore and powers were more consistent and that there had been less magical objects conveniently appearing for the sake of the plot. I also found the shift in tones a bit jarring: especially in the introduction arc, there is some over-the-top humor that felt a bit flat and strange in the middle of the angsty parts. It fortunately got smoother and more balanced as the story unfolded. The script also took time to set up the stakes, with some situations and storylines being a bit repetitive in the first part of the series.
Other than that, some of the fight sequences lacked of rhythm and dynamism: they were all beautiful but sometimes to the detriment of the pacing (or even the logic) of the conflicts. Editing could also have been better regarding transition between scenes or even between episodes. The OST was quite good (with maybe one of the song being overused) but music was a bit abruptly inserted into some sequences. I'm pointing it out because all the remaining of the production was so flawless that those minor flaws were even more striking.
I would recommend this to people looking for a Chinese Wuxia drama with a super strong cinematographic vision and high production value, good acting and gripping story featuring different kind of love. Shift in tone was a bit unbalanced at first and introduction arc could have been better paced, but once the set up of the relationships between the characters is done, you are in for a captivating journey that will tug at your heartstrings.
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most well written drama I've seen this year
this the first time I've watched the wuxia genre and this show did not disappoint,things i liked:
1. world building
because this is the first time watching this genre i was afraid i wouldn't understand anything but even though this show didn't have an opening explaining all the lore the characters explained the world to other characters that didn't know ,which informed us the viewer which i really appreciated which really showed the effort the writers put into the world building of this show and also how much they respected the viewer to let us figure it out and by the end of the show i was really emersed into the world they build over the period the show aired.
2. cohesiveness
everything in this show fit together really well, the costuming fit every character really well and showed their personality without seeming out of place. something that i also liked is that the outfits repeated, in some dramas they would be changing the characters clothes every scene but the repeating of outfits further shows that there is a bit of realism in this unrealistic world. another thing that made the show a masterpiece is the Ost and score these were so well done the show wouldn't feel whole without them, in some dramas the music doesn't fit the emotion or scene but in this show they put so much effort into the score making it the Ost's instrumental and also it fit every important and even the insignificant beats of the story. the ost also brought out all the emotional parts of the story and amplified them making me go back and rewatch some scenes.
3. direction/cinematography
this show is so beautiful to look at i was speechless the scenes in the wilderness where breath taking and the way the show was directed is so well-done the crew did such a good job and it shows through out the entire body of work.( I'm trying to keep this review spoiler free so i wont go into too much details on this).
4. the characters/ the story
every character was well thought out and all the motives of every character were clear and most important thing for me when watching a drama is the character development because i hate it when a character remains stagnant throughout the whole show and then suddenly they change in the last ep, to do it well the growth has to be slow but apparent. i saw this in the second leads the way pei si jing developed throughout the show was so well written. and imo the best written character is zhou yi chen if you watch the show you see how much he changes and develops and a person, moreover the motives of the villains where clear and you as the viewer understand them its not like they were doing evil because the show needed and antagonist we knew the reason why they were doing these evil acts and we could anticipate them too which i liked, also on the topic of villains i liked that not everything was black and white and there where some grey characters like li lun who i understood why he did what he did and his character development throughout the show was so well-done you can see the confliction in him every time he did anything to zhao yuan zhuo. the supporting/background characters were also well written every time they showed a story the writers wrote them so well that you could even cry over them and also under stand their motives too and it the show all connected in the end in a way where every thing showed contributed to the ending so nothing was unimportant to the story.
5. the pacing
even though i saw many people say that the pacing of this story was slow paced, i think that was the right decision because i think that the pacing fit the story, because if it was any faster i think that i would have trouble following it and the pacing made the important beats of the story more impactful.
6. consistency
the biggest problem when watching comedy genres in dramas is that they always are super funny at first but when the climax of the story comes they become super melancholy and lose the shows initial charm but in this show they didn't the comedy remained throughout the show even after the sad parts and i very much liked that. and the found family and the dynamics between the characters were also consistent nothing happed that was out of character for them which i also really liked.
things i didn't like:
1. the female lead's character was a little neglected i could tell in the beginning of the show and i thought i should give the show more time and they did try to flesh her out a little more but i think they could have done a better job with her because in felt that the supporting characters were written better than her which is sad because she is the main lead.
2. the romance was lacking
i know some people would disagree with me but the main leads didn't have enough screen time together i felt the love between them but we didn't have enough time with them. and something else is that every body has so much chemistry with everybody i was getting confused at times like if you watched the show you could see it.
overall this may be the best drama I've seen this year the way it was created felt so well thought out and some people may not have liked the ending but I'm pretty content with it.
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This review may contain spoilers
FONGS OF FORTUNE
Really an amazing cdrama.Demons and Humans are not afraid of death but they are afraid of losing Loved ones.Each actors acting is really so good ♥️.Love ,romance and innocence between Demon and Goddess is really lovely------>♥️.Director is a well script writer, but Love between Demon and Goddess is okay but Romance between them is less.He should have brought much more romance between them.Whatever happens we don't care but at the end Demon and Goddess should be together . Because so many dramas upset the viewers and fans at the end and they will give worst reviews and ratings.So please make us happy and we will never disappoint you until you disappoint us.Please I have given 10/10 Ratings and reviews.( ˘ ³˘)♥
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I'll always remember fof, what a great way to close up the year 2024 🩶........................................................................................................
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Where is the platonicness?
I started to this for the found family, sismance and bromance, but good god the bromance has me on a choke hold. This show has kept me up at night like nobody's business. I LOST SLEEP OVER THESE CHARACTERS. Zhuo Yichen and Zhao Yuanzhou genuinely had no right to have as much chemistry as they do, and my delulu mind could not see anything platonic.This was a beautiful story about loss, letting go, forgiveness, giving family in the most unlikely of people, finding one's place in the world. The ost, cinematography and visuals were absolutely out of this world. The actors were absolutely fantastic in their jobs, and I couldn't get enough.
But that being said, the start of this show was lowkey slow, and it took me a while to get into it. But the moment I did? I WAS HOOKED. OBSESSED. CHOCK-HOLD. But my girlie Wen Xiao? Nah, what they do to her. I don't even care that she was weak, I care how they butchered her character. The way the writer utilised her character was ridiculous and stupid. Like Ying Lei was weak, but damn, boy was a side character and he was utilised so much better. They actually did her so dirty in this show. I love Pei Sijing. That's my girl. And Li Lun had no right to be that hot. If villain why hot? If evil why sexy?
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Too much crying and flashbacks
The amount of crying and flashbacks killed this for me. The second male leads facial expression was the same the whole drama with al lot of tears🙄 The female lead was just as bad same facial expression and a very weak goddess. The Male lead carried this show, loved the character with al the joking and banter. The kids character in the beginning was very anoying, with all the screaming. The special affects was amazing with fighting scenes. I was disappointed after looking so forward to watch this after all the hype.Was this review helpful to you?
loved it
I started this one three times and kept dropping it. then someone on a fb page told me to keep going because it will be really good.i’m so glad I did! it was amazing. I wasn’t really a fan of the goddess but that was mostly the role she was playing. the actress is better as a evil character than something like this. i just couldn’t go past her powder throwing nonsense. then in another scene everyone fights for their life. everyone is bleeding and almoat dead and she pulls out the recorder and bam she wins. wth was that?! but justifies learning that instrument in elementary school.
the demons….omg! one more handsome than the other. Neo Hou…. he was perfect! he was everything and without him I don’t think the drama would have been this remarkable! Yan An… first time I saw him in a drama and I thought daaaaamn I do have a type and it’s that one right there! he was fabulous! he was seriously hot and evil and you couldn’t decide if you want to murder or smooch him. the music was amazing. especially Liu Yunings part of the ost. but he can’t do anything wrong. the martial art was captivating and the dialogue interesting and entertaining! this is a 10/10 from me and I will definitely rewatch it. i just wish they would make another special episode to see this amazing demon reborn and reunited with everyone! the bromance was almost better then the romance in this one. a real masterpiece
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Bromance with Added Sismance, Truly Perfect!
Guo Jing Ming’s projects are always fraught with homoerotic tones; starting from Painted Skin: The Guo Jingming Edition, Wuliang, L.O.R.D 1, L.O.R.D 2, The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity and the recently concluded Fangs of Fortune, all stand testament to his amazing prowess to pass Chinese censorship.Some stories leave you exasperated whilst others leave you with a ray of hope and earnest longing; that someday, you might be able to meet these characters again. “Fangs of Fortune” was one such drama for me. It taught me valuable life lessons- you can redeem yourself once you accept you were in wrong; love should set you free, not imprison you. Also, you can love someone despite hating them in the past. Adapted from the classic text and the mythology and geography collection “Classic of Mountains and Seas” (山海经), the show has the most endearing characters that slowly become a family. The best part is that they aren’t all human- we have a makeshift family made of a Great Demon, two powerful Demon Hunters, a Half God and a Mountain God. The only thing that connects them is their yearning for familial ties and bonds. They become each other’s solace and peace of mind; they evolve and mature together, drawing inspiration and courage from one another. Another important aspect of Guo Jing Ming’s shows is the magnanimity of the settings and the mesmerizing locales. The costumes are posh, keeping in line with the stature/position of the characters. We bring you the evergreen queer romance that is characteristic of most Guo Jing Ming’s stories.
Read the complete article here-
https://the-bl-xpress.com/2024/11/20/fangs-of-fortune-series-review-ep-1-to-32/
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A Promise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Story - The story is something which is common but it showcases a different emotion and I really Liked it .Cast - I need not to say anything , The cast is amazing . They are linked to each other and They really did amazing Job by delivering and I literally cried a lot of times
Although the story in the mid was ok but it's worth watching , We have another Lovable squad here .
Each person have each motive but they come together to solve it but at the end they al become one protect each other .
I really Liked this drama and It should be in your watch list if you didn't see it .
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What a masterpiece
So many actors coming together in a show is rare.Solely watched it because of HOU MINGHAO and what a watch truly fell in love with it.
The story starts off strong, well paced and with all it’s twists and turns it keep us engaged.
The costumes, cinematography and music are much appreciated.
The short stories in between adds layers and depths in understanding of each character well.
Also the comic timing was perfect.
The growth of each one of them is worth watching. How Zhao and Zhuo became best friends from enemies, How Zhao wish he could be with the goddess but dares not to dream and try for a happy life.
All of them have great bond with each other and the way it transforms from just few ppl grouping up together to such meaningful relations was mesmerising and so genuine.
Just wish that they could have explored zhao and li lun story more, zhao past life could have been shown more.
And no it’s not a BL or GL.
NOT every relation is that of lovers..they could be soul mates, best friends, bros and sis…..loved how well they portrayed that!!
It’s gonna be a fun ride…i promise you will fall in love with them all and it will break your heart to say goodbye.
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Wow this is so good!
LIKETouching bromance between Yi Chen, Yuan Zhou and Li Lun
So hilarious especially when Yi Chen was tricked by everyone - that conversation where Ying Lei commented on fishes... I died
Lots of sacrifices, love and friendship
DISLIKE
Probably Wen Xiao who doesn't contribute much
MUSIC - personal fav
Yuan Zhou De Shao Nian 远舟的少年 - Hou Ming Hao 侯明昊
Wu Xin Sheng Da Meng 无心生大梦 - Liu Yu Ning 刘宇宁
Bu Nian Bu Xiang 不念不响 - Tian Jia Rui 田嘉瑞
Chun Feng Bu Wen 春风不问 - Guo Cai Jie 郭采洁
Duan Wei Niao 断尾鸟 - Tian Jia Rui 田嘉瑞
Xiao Shi Ju 小诗句 - everyone
REWATCH VAUE
Definitely
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A Gripping Tale of Friendship. Fate, Power, and Redemption
It's visually stunning with gorgeous costumes and beautiful cinematography. The OST is moving and memorable. The fight scenes are elegant and well executed. But above all else, we have a team of endearing and interesting main characters we can root for to overcome all obstacles thrown their way.You will either love or dislike this drama, because like all dramas out there it has its flaws. Whether you can ignore the flaws and enjoy the drama is subjective.The biggest flaws in this drama for me were the lack of explanation regarding some important details as well as some illogical choices regarding the plot.Did those flaws ruin the drama for me? No, not at all. It left me with questions and a head shake here and there, but overall I still enjoyed this drama immensely.
"Meeting you all was like a wonderful dream... but dreams must end"
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