Engaging Storyline, Strong Performances, Subtle Bromance, Cliffhanger Finale
"Towards the Truth" is a captivating thriller drama filled with mysteries and twists that keep viewers on the edge of their seats. Unfortunately, this hidden gem seems to have flown under the radar, with fewer than 500 viewers on kisskh at the time of this review and even fewer ratings. It's no surprise that the overall score remains low, but that does not reflect the drama's true quality. With its solid acting, compelling storyline, and well-crafted scripts, it certainly deserves more recognition.One possible reason for its low viewership and score could be the poor subtitle quality, as noted by some viewers. Given the complexity of the plot, accurate and coherent translations are crucial to understanding and enjoying the drama.
Storyline
Set during the Song Dynasty, the drama explores themes of injustice and corruption, focusing on the crimes of the wealthy and powerful who evade punishment through influence and nepotism. At its heart is Shen Song (played by Wang You Shuo), an exceptionally intelligent scholar who passes the imperial examination but clashes with the emperor, leading to his dismissal from court.
Struggling and downcast, Shen Song finds refuge with a kind constable who introduces him to his uncle, a restaurant owner. Shen Song then transitions into a skilled cook. However, his unique ability—a double iris in his left eye that allows him to peer into the past and uncover the truth—brings him back into the world of crime-solving. Though initially reluctant, he is forced to use his "gift" to investigate a gruesome crime involving over 60 corpses.
During this investigation, Shen Song meets Gong Sun Li (Zhang Chen Xiao), the son of a high-ranking treasury official. Gong Sun Li, despite his privileged background, is earnest, compassionate, and driven by a desire to fight injustice. Together, the two form a formidable team, joined by others, to crack cold cases and challenge the corrupt officials who enable societal inequality.
What I Liked
֎ Shen Song and Gong Sun Li: These two characters are the soul of the drama. Shen Song’s intelligence and moral compass, paired with Gong Sun Li’s unpretentious charm and unwavering integrity, make them incredibly relatable and inspiring. Their dynamic and camaraderie are highlights of the show, portraying mutual respect, care, and occasional humor.
֎ Character Depth: The drama does an excellent job of delving into the multi-faceted personalities of Shen Song and Gong Sun Li. Shen Song’s unique eye ability is used creatively to reveal his past, while Gong Sun Li’s relationship with his father showcases his complexity and personal growth.
֎ Themes of Justice: The exploration of systemic corruption and the struggle of upstanding individuals against societal rot is both thought-provoking and relevant.
֎ Humor and Pacing: Despite its serious themes, the drama incorporates moments of humor, particularly through its portrayal of government officials reluctant to challenge the status quo. Its fast-paced narrative ensures there’s never a dull moment.
֎ Brevity: At just 16 episodes, the drama packs a lot into its runtime without feeling rushed.
Areas for Improvement
While the central characters are well-developed, many of the supporting characters, including Qin Er (a supposed main character), feel one-dimensional. By the end of the story, her backstory and motivations remain largely unexplored, which is a missed opportunity to enrich the narrative.
Additionally, the sheer number of plots, subplots, and twists may overwhelm some viewers, particularly with subpar subtitles making it harder to follow.
Final Thoughts
"Towards the Truth" is a well-crafted drama with compelling characters, a gripping plot, and a strong message about justice and integrity. Its nuanced storytelling and fast pacing make it a thoroughly enjoyable watch. Despite its shortcomings, particularly in subtitle quality and character development for the supporting cast, it remains a highly underrated gem.
The enigmatic character who compels Shen Song to use his unique eye to uncover the past and solve cases remains shrouded in mystery throughout the drama. His/her true identity is only unveiled at the very end, leaving viewers with a tantalizing cliffhanger that sets the stage for further intrigue.
For fans of historical mysteries and thrillers, this drama is definitely worth your time. It’s a pity that it hasn’t reached a wider audience, but those who give it a chance will likely find themselves engrossed in its story and rooting for its upstanding protagonists.
Was this review helpful to you?
Hidden gem of Bromance detective themed drama
It literally dropped out of nowhere with not much promotion for it on IQIYI but it was a pleasant surprise because we were in a very bad mood after the Outrageous Censoring that happened to Youku's bromance drama (The Way Home ) after it already aired.I wasn't expecting much as I know China comes heavy on Bromance dramas by Censoring them and How I Was Wrong with this one ,,
IQIYI platform released half of the drama's episodes on the first day of its release,, 8 Episodes on the first day for VIP members, and the second day Three episode ,,, the drama was complete in only four days LOL
And the Bromance was Bromancing so strong
For example, the second male lead kept finding excuses to become the male lead's best friend and when the male lead went into a Coma, the second male lead literally broke down sitting on his bed and didn't leave him for one second and the female lead was standing there watching their bromance Blooming LOL
The second male lead kept hugging the male lead catching him every time he fell ill and sometimes faced danger for the male lead and tried to help him despite his lack of smartness or fighting skills
The female lead was there for Censorship's sake only
She was literally standing watching the male lead as she likes him getting all the care and love from his best friend
This drama also has a good detective story and the cases were really weird and complicated,, it wasn't Cliche detective drama or just bromance for the bromance's sake No, it was deep and meaningful
The Only downside of that Haste release of the drama like it was Hot Nuclear Weapon is its Subtitles which were AI-generated translations and it wasn't very good
Another thing, sometimes I felt the acting skills of the second male lead weren't as good as the male lead's acting skills
I really Thank IQIYI for its full release of the drama before BL fans make edits that attract Censoring police to come down on it
I hope to see sa econd season of this drama as it was hinted in the finale that there is a second season and I really hope that IQIYI takes all the Bromance dramas of China on its platform
Was this review helpful to you?
A little gem
I am giving this one a 10 because I think it deserves way higher rating than it got so far!!!After the debacle of many promising costume c-dramas ending in disappointment, and most of them focusing on romance this one is a rare gem.
Note for those who only like dramas which focus on appearance, loads of make up, glitter, childish females and heap of romance - this won’t be one for you. (See reason 2 below)
A few of my reasons to give this one a try:
1) It will thoroughly refresh your palate before embarking on yet another heroic romance.
2) the flavour of the drama and filming style is in line with superb series like Faithful, Judge Dee Mystery, Wind blows from Longxi, Side Story of Fox Volant etc… scenes are dark, the hint of monochromatic colouring adds to the suspense, characters are not overly made up nor glittery, OST is unremarkable, yet perfectly supports the story and moods. Dialog is also similar - kind of flat speaking but not in a boring way, it is intelligent and creates that certain mood which makes you immerse. And yet, despite the dark style, it is undepressing and doesn’t leave you feeling heavy.. so, if you enjoy this type of drama, definitely go for it!!
3) MYS - I always found him cute and watched a few dramas just for him, to see his development as an actor. And oh my gosh, was I rewarded - this is by far his best performance. In this one he is unable to make up for any shortcomings with hot sexy scenes, and he delivers a seamless performance!! I hope he will now be cast in more and more serious dramas and his skills duly recognised.
4) Perfectly cast supporting characters, both the lead supports and the villains. The FL super intelligent yet holding something back, SFL bubbly but not OTT, SML doing a good job of rebellious boy finally finding purpose and yet maintaining the boyishness and generous openness - perfectly balancing the ML and FL’s seriousness and their hiding the dark secrets / traumas. The villains are dark as hell, the main adversary such a far gone psycho, it actually gave me shivers 😅
5) Fun and refreshing plot incorporating a bit of weird sorcery, with twists and turns keeping you occupied. At least I found myself immersed and not skipping through bad ring bits by scrolling Insta 😆
6) no screeching female leads or support characters who sound like they have learning difficulties / mental age of a baby trying to somehow sell themselves as adults independent strong women (my huge gripe with Love game in E.F., Go East etc…. It’s so nice to see yet another drama with women who actually exude intelligence and strength
7) fight scenes - not too many , yet enough to compliment the mystery, the 3rd ML and 2FL deliver nice moves and look pretty authentic, the fight scenes are pro and don’t look too artificial.
8) ending - superb! No tragic end (soz if this is a spoiler), it ties up all the loose ends and yet introduces more twists, leaving the drama complete but also open to second season!!! Love it.
All in all I am surprised at the quality, considering this is short series (16 eps) one would have expected production to be on cheap side, instead this has the equal clout of any 30+ episode star studded dramas!
I hope as more people watch this, the ratings will improve as we need more quality like this, not just to support the budding actors but also the screenwriters, producers and directors who are able to deviate from the mass produced recipes of storylines / cinematography / candy make up and predictable story progression and endings. So please do give it a chance and be generous. Xxx
Was this review helpful to you?
Subtle (or NOT so subtle) and lovely detective bromance
What does it say about this drama that I gave it a 9 even though I understood like…75% of what they were saying because the subtitles were horrendous (AI I asume) . Yes, it’s THAT good. For me the best part is the chemistry and the warm BL vibe bromance between the male leads . There was a female lead too(not a romantic interest though) and her character was pretty badass but I think she served as a cover for the guy’s bromance. There’s a lot of touching, hugging, hand holding and protecting between the guys and it was delicious to watch 😍Excellent acting (especially Wang You Shuo , he was absolutely brilliant) , gorgeous leads, great costumes and setting , interesting mystery and crimes, and some quite tender and lovely moments between the male leads( some of them were totally swoony, I kid you not) . I don’t understand why the platform didn’t give it a proper translation and a better promotion. Big..huge mistake because it’s really really good.Was this review helpful to you?
A brilliant drama with horrible subtitles
Through no fault of the production company, iQIYI machine-translated the subtitles. The result is that, among other things, the pronouns "i, you, he she, they" are all mixed up :-(Despite all that is lost in translation, I bingr-watched it in 2 days. This drama is worth discovering because of the actors, the storyline and the general atmosphere. The low budget was a godsend here: the production couldn't indulge in easy, spectacular moneyshots. They focussed on the story & the characters.
If you're looking for "Gone with the Wind" in ancient China, this is not it. But if you're willing to discover one of the best bromance stories (coupled with a brain-twister to understand what the subtitles really mean) Go for it!
Was this review helpful to you?
