Bery good story and cast
I will be completely honest when I say I dropped this drama mid-episode 2 because of the really cheesy childish antics. But something told me to return to it and listening to my instincts and asking some people who kept watching, I did just that. And I'm very glad I did because this is one of those very few cdramas that actually got better with each episode especially after 5 or 6. So I'm very glad I trusted my instincts to finish watching. It was friendships formed through intertwined meow-stries. See what I did there? ;)Pros: At first it seemed each of the cases were separate but as you continued to watch, you understood they were all connected to the original case and story from three years back and LB losing his father to some unknown organization of mask wearing assassins and being turned into a cat. The story revolves around him and his group of subordinates (SB, WQ, CB, and Alibaba) in the CJR with an extra kid (CS) who becomes LB's little brother of sorts plus QQZ who used to be LB's childhood best friend but due to a misunderstanding those 3 years ago that is only really resolved in the second to last episode they appear on opposite sides. In reality QQZ infiltrated the organization that's trying to gain immortality through murder and to overthrow the Empress. Favorite character is hard because the main gang is great plus QQZ who I wish appeared in more episodes so they could have properly fleshed out his and LB's friendship. CS knew of LB being a cat first (not counting QQZ of course though he didn't know or ask for that to be done) and it didn't bother him and then towards the end when the others found out about it, they still stood by him calling him a "Cat Hero", which was so awesome.
The old fart society, though they were the main villains, you also had YZH who though started out just as helpless as anyone was fed to some demon cat but got the upper hand and became a demon cat himself, morphed into a sociopathic loony that killed people, turned LB into a cat, caused the domino effect that got LB's father murdered, and ultimately killed QQZ just for a stupid game in his own mind. Same went for CS's brother CJ aka Black Rakhasa who was the actual murderer of LB's father as he was hired by the old fart society because though he cared for his brother, after being bullied in Shendu, instead of helping others, he chose to be a predator. LZS got karma not once but twice; got killed once, brought back by the old fart society, used until he no longer was needed and killed by them for his blood. Whoopsie; now thats seriously cold karma.
This show had many layers that you had to peel back like an onion to understand. People did come back to life but none were immortal save for YZH and LB; though LB gave the only antidote to YZH as a deal for his testimony at the old fart society's trial which was before his own. QQZ wanted the antidote for LB and he essentially died for it. I did tear up because the way LB keened over QQZ as they finally made amends officially--though LB had long suspected that QQZ didn't really turn bad--just before he passed was only seen when he lost his father. When finding out just how much evidence QQZ had found out on his own even before LB's father was killed and his father knew QQZ had successfully infiltrated but didn't tell LB. Maybe if he did, then their misunderstanding wouldn't have happened upon his murder; LB was very smart even back then and he would have left him alone.
But in the end it was CS who saved LB and the gang; the kid that started out illiterate and very naive, brought the city folk together to save his best friends through the haunting final words of the now gone QQZ copied hundreds of times and distributed to the people of the city.
Wow, I feel like I've fallen back into the story. Let's move on. The costumes (save maybe the Walmart wigs and beards of the foreigners from Alibaba's country), OSTs, scenery, fight scenes were really great, plus appropriate comedy was all very nice and fit everything.
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What I like-
1. Ryan Ding is the only actor who could portray Li Bing for me. He brought an adorable charm to the part. His subtle cat gestures showed great attention to detail. I could see all the efforts he had put into this drama.
2. Their friendships were the highlight of the drama. Their trust and support for each other were so beautifully portrayed. I never knew this type of drama could make me cry!
3. Loved that they didn't force any romance because that would have been weird.
4. The comedic timing was always great especially Alibaba’s.
5. The twist with all the cases connecting to the major one and with Li Bing’s secret was amazing. The pacing of the drama started slow but picked up when all the cases connected.
6. All the them calling Li Bing “Cat Hero” after learning his identity was so funny. A lot better than Chen Shi’s reaction.
What I didn't like-
1. Chen Shi’s character was so poorly written. He was naive and trusted people too easily even after going through so many deadly situations. His character was only written for the brother part. They only showed his character development in the very last few episodes.
2. Shangguan Qin was a strong female lead in this drama but her screen time became less and less and by episode twenty or something she was completely moved out of the story. I wanted a better ending for her.
3. Qui Qing Zhi was shown as a negative character from the start then we came to know that he was doing all that to protect Li Bing. Does it make sense? He had so many choices but he chose the worst one and ruined his friendship with Li Bing. If he could've told him sooner about his plans, Li Bing would've understood. And if that wasn't enough they had to kill him in front of Li Bing.
I would definitely recommend this drama even after all the flaws because it has a bit of everything. Comedy, Mystery, Strong Characters, Friendships and Action.
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What a wild, clever, and hilarious ride!
Li Bing (played by Ding Yu Xi) returns to the capital just as a series of bizarre murders grips the city—each blamed on a so-called "demon cat." Once a renowned young detective under the guidance of his late father, the former head of the Capital Investigation Bureau, Li Bing steps back into action and cracks the case—earning himself the title of Deputy Minister, personally appointed by the Empress Regnant.But there is more to Li Bing than meets the eye: he is half cat—literally. He can shift between feline and human form, a transformation shrouded in mystery. How did this happen? And is it connected to his father's assassination? These questions haunt him as much as the strange cases he investigates.
As if that were not complicated enough, his former best friend Cui Bei (the ever-handsome Miles Wei), now a General of the Imperial Guards, has seemingly turned against him—frequently blocking his investigations and adding layers of tension and rivalry.
This drama thrives on contrasts: it is a detective story wrapped in comedy, fantasy, and occult intrigue. Li Bing’s team, though full of heart, is hilariously underqualified. Characters like Li Ba Ba (Kudousi) and Wang Qi (Feng Man) constantly trip over themselves, delivering laugh-out-loud moments with their well-meaning blunders.
The closing theme by Liu YuNing is a standout—his powerful, refined voice and flawless breath control are truly impressive. Though the song is not in the style I usually like, I appreciate the lively percussion rhythm and how beautifully Liu delivers the song.
“Youth Journey,” arguably the most melodious track in the entire OST, was so good it felt like it should have been the opening theme instead!
All major mysteries are resolved by the end—except one: Did the Empress really reverse her age and become a little girl? How and why?👀
It also left me wondering: has the rule against distorting historical facts been quietly shelved? The story clearly hints at the Tang dynasty, with the Empress resembling Empress Wu Zetian, China's only female ruler. But make no mistake—this drama is pure fantasy, with no ties to historical reality, and that is part of what makes it so fun.
A must-watch if you enjoy a mix of laughs, mystery, fantasy, and a talking cat-detective. 🐾🕵️♂️
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This review may contain spoilers
Mingjing Hall Team is so fun to watch!
Finally finished this drama after a year. I really love the brotherhood and friendship of the Mingjing Hall members – Li Bing, Chen Shi, Wang Qi, Cui Bei, Sun Bao, Alibaba. I’m touched and entertained by their individual and group stories. Their comedic scenes are also so funny I laughed so many times hahaha!The story and case investigations are okay but it becomes draggy sometimes. Maybe it's because of the script and/or direction style but the cases are not gripping and interesting enough (at least for me), but it does add more clues to the main case (the origin of the demon cat and the war, the death of Li Bing’s father). I only enjoyed watching the interactions of the Mingjing Hall members while they solve the cases.
I really like Li Bing and Qiu Qingzhi's story. I’m just devastated by Qingzhi's ending, what's the point of him dying??? He could have watched those fireworks with Li Bing and others in the end.
Xiao Ding really have variety of expressions and he did well in performing as a cat-like human. He's so entertaining to watch and I like his eye expressions too! Zhou Qi looks adorable and innocent as Chen Shi, and ruthless as assassin Black Rakshasa. He did well in portraying contrasting double roles.
I like the OST, it's so fun to listen to the ending song by the Mingjing Hall members. The opening song is also exciting because it's Liu Yuning's OST! I especially like Zhou Keyu's "Unknown Star" OST. I’m touched when I listen to the soulful vocals and melodies played during emotional scenes in the drama.
Overall, it's a drama that I can watch without overthinking and staying glued to the screen. I can play it in the background and still follow the story. It's for light watching so if there's a lull in watching dramas, this is a nice drama to pass the time and be entertained by the interactions of the characters especially the Mingjing Hall members.
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The Best Friendship and Bond
I want to tell those who watched the first episode and felt it wasn't for them: keep watching until episode 5; it gets much more interesting. I also paused after two episodes, thinking it might be a cheap, childish story. However, it really picks up in the second half. After episode 25, the pace quickens to the point where you can't stop watching. The earlier events and mysteries start to get resolved beautifully. It was truly fascinating. Cheers to the best drama and their friendship!What makes this drama great is how everyone overcomes their pasts and traumas and grows together. Without unnecessary romance, the friendship and comedic interactions at Dali Temple are heartwarming. The characters are unique and lovable, supporting each other and deepening their bonds, which touched me deeply. Especially the bromance between Libin and the General was incredibly wonderful. The lead actor, Ding Yuxi, was truly fantastic and charming! It was the best!
Here's a spoiler for the ending!
The General's death at the end shattered my heart. I had a feeling he might die as the story progressed, which is common in Chinese dramas, but I couldn't help hoping otherwise. My wish didn't come true. I cried out loud, it was so sad. I want him to be brought back to life. If there's a second season, please use the cat's power to revive him.
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Not the best, but also not that bad.
I have been watching this for almost a month now, and that explains how the series went for me. Its a good one. It started so strong, like the way Li Bing's character was being introduced and the introduction of Li Bing and Qingzhi's past friendship was good. But gradually getting a bit boring at the middle part to the near end, it feels like a lot is happening but nothing is happening all at the same time. Yes, its cases after cases, but tbh, some cases they solved wasn't even solved clearly and got me so confused. Tbh, the last 2 episodes caught me back liking this.One thing that is commendable in this series was the cast. Casts is so good, the way their chemistry worked and seeing myself rooting for their journey is just amazing, esp Yuxi and Miles, love them.
Will definitely miss the gang. Overall, this is somehow still a good watch. Not the best but also, not a bad one.
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An attempt to break free from cliches.
The show starts off with a very cheerful soundtrack and then introduces us to our clumsy, silly and naive mc, Chen Shi. We are then introduced to the other members of the Court of Judicial Review, who each have their own quirks that distinguish them from each other. The ending brings in the main protagonist, Li Bing who has a secret- he can transform into a cat.The plot starts off strong, with interesting cases and each character was equally important in solving them. But, the plot is also what let down the entire drama.
Firstly, lets discuss the pros-
The cast- Couldn't have asked for a better cast. They were all so good! Great chemistry and expressions. I was surprised to learn that Chen Shi's actor is actually rather young. The level of maturity in his style is rare in actor of this age group. Yi Zhi Hua's actor also managed to bring out the perverse insanity of his role.
Then we have Ding Yuxi. I have heard that there are often animal imitation classes in acting schools. I think we know who was top of the class when the subject was cats. I am convinced that he is a cat in a human's body. His acting is filled with details, even in scenes that don't explicitly show his feline nature, he still adds those quirks that remind you he is actually a cat.
The OST- Most of the tracks are refreshing and filled with energy. I have no complaints with the soundtrack.
The characters- I have already talked about the characters, but I'll praise them as many times is required. The characters were well modelled, each had their own story and characteristics unique to them. The only thing is, Qiu Qingzhi's character didn't have enough screen time. The writers attempted to make him a very complex character and even succeeded to some extent. But, we didn't get to see much of his sides before the last few episodes. Any time before that was utterly confusing and I get that it was for the big reveal later on. So, I guess this counts as an open door.
The anecdotes in credits of the last episode were hilarious. I have rewatched them twice already.
Now, the only con here was the Plot- While the cases were interesting and so was the idea of someone intentionally leading them, the plot stopped functioning properly in the last quarter. Negative characters kept popping up like they were the final villain and then died and then suddenly revived only to be killed again. Like what was going on??? It felt like the writers couldn't decide who should be the main villain. While everything made sense in the last two episodes, it was simply too late. It could not compensate for the confusion created by the previous episodes. Especially when it brought back more confusion itself in the form of Lai Zhongshu.
Lai Zhongshu was an extremely annoying character, not because he was a negative one, but because I didn't see the point in killing him so soon after he transitioned into a potential villain from just a side character and then reviving him when the dust finally settled on his corpse.
The Yong An Pavilion was the final boss, of whom we were given a glimpse of in the first half and then poof! They disappeared for god knows how many episodes. Then the Empress, she was said to be involved with the Pavilion as inferred from what an elder said to QQZ when he asked to become a part of the Pavilion. She was also said to be suffering from an illness which made her look younger as grew older. This was also never addressed properly. She was a major plot hole.
Another plot hole was the lack of boundaries that distinguished the duties of the Court of Judicial Review, Jinwu guards and the Ministry of Justice. The three fought for every second case.
The cases were although, all tied together to the underlying case of Yi Zhi Hua. But, the screenplay simply lacked coherence.
The first half built high expectations. The third quarter struggled to maintain them and the last completely failed. It could have been one of the best shows this year, but it just lacked some sense of direction in the overall and especially in the last few episodes. A good show, but it just failed to hit the mark.
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Fantastic friendship!!
I liked this drama particularly for its focus on friendship.Court of judicial review and it's six detectives and the bond between them is the main highlight of this drama.I liked how Chen shi,Wang Qi,Alibaba,Cui Bei and Sun Bao always stood in support for Li Bing even in his weakest and hardest times.
Also,I liked how each of the six members had an incident which was related to the main plot.
Each and every one of them had their own story.In particular,i liked the total episode of Cui Bei.
The plot was intriguing and though was confusing at some times,but still had a good ,warm ending.
All the cast were excellent in their acting.
Overall,it's a worth watching drama, especially for its friendship theme.
Go for it👍
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If you like shounen manga like Naruto and jujutsu kaisen you’ll like this show
The drama is really good but I think it’s really good at what it set out to do. I don’t think it’s a traditional Chinese drama in a way. At least for me from the start it felt like I was watching a live action of a shounen manga/anime. From episode 1 the way the setting was established and characters were introduced it had a anime/manga quality about it. So from the get go I had to re-adjust my watching standards and enjoy it the way it was intended . I’m not watching a drama but a live action shounen anime like Naruto. It kinda brings be back to when I was a kid and I enjoyed the shounen genre of anime. I liked it and enjoyed it a lot. I think the music really matches the drama. Loved the opening and the ending. I played the ending song on repeat when I get out of work. It’s fun and it really brings me back to when I was a kid when I had a lot energy and childlike optimism (esp towards friendship). It’s definitely really good but for those who didn’t grew up watching anime they might have a hard time accepting this type of genre. It might seem like there’s a lot of instances of childishness, stupidity, goofiness and it’s not for them. I think people should give it a try. I really liked the gang Chen shi, wang qi, and alibaba. lol 😂 I laughed so hard when alibaba said his name was alibaba. I wasn’t expecting it at all. For those who reads reviews before they watch they’re going to miss out on that part of the comedy. I enjoyed it a lot and I hope others do too. It’s my first time watching ding yuxi. From the moment I laid eyes on his expressive big eyes I feel like he’s a different league of actors. He’s got a lot of potential. I can tell from the way he portrays his characters he’s a serious actor and he loves acting. There’s something really contagious about his performance. Sometimes I think he might be a little exaggerated but most times his expressions are so good and on point. I used to see him as a neo hou-look-a-like. I knew about him because he acted with a lot of other rising stars who I watched before, but I never watched anything that has him in it. So I used to see him as another idol actor, but no I was so wrong he’s got a lot of potential. Performance is embedded in this guys dna. He’s going to be really good when he finally gets a role that establishes him as real actor. For me, he’s like zhang ruo yun, who loves acting/performance and it’s embedded in these type of people’s dna. They type of people who has a lot of raw talent in acting. He should get better roles that hones this guys performance like serious dramas and not idol dramas. I never get bored watching his performance. He’s so interesting to watch. He doesn’t use bland, common, and predictable expressions. He has his own acting style if that makes sense.Was this review helpful to you?
Except for the superb fighting scenes, the rest were a boring dupe of a crime investigative genre
It will always be a challenge for any writer and director in the production of the same genre to be favored by the eyes of the onscreen viewers. Very few succeeded in crossing the comparison and they truly are gifted in their crafts.Forgive me for saying this because this drama was a failure of those efforts. Among the elements I appreciated the less are the following:
1. The crime cases and the investigation process were predictable. It was not doing the effect of cracking my impression.
2. The funny scenes were not funny at all. Something was off with the timing and dialogue.
3. The characterization of the six main members of the Judicial Review Office was jeopardized by the poor story execution. It was a total waste for such a unique balanced composition of roles.
And so there, boredom strikes me here and dropped it all the way. Didn't bother myself anymore finding out the mystery of Li Bing's character turning into a white cat.
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Suprisingly good drama
Watching this drama without any expectation but surprisingly got me hooked at 1st episode . It is my first time to watch Ryan Ding drama.I really love how the cases that their solves is connected to each other. I really adore their friendship in this one. Hence, i really love all the characters especially the Judicial Team (Minjing Hall). Alibaba is such funny character :D . Loved how each character have their own storyline background.
I do pity to the villain Yi Zhi Hua although he is such a bad person because he killed to many innocent person but...... yeah sometimes people around you that can makes you a bad person. While watching this it makes you wonder why this person act suspicious especially The Empress. I thought the Empress is bad person? I do wonder why they didn't show her face. Good plot, storyline, CGI , acting.
Love the OST sung by Liu Yuning (King of OST) and the casts really suits the drama.
Overall, this is such a good drama for someone who looked crime, investigation , friendship, funny genre.
ps: sorry for my bad english
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One of the best detective series!
I loved the plot of this story, it is so interesting seeing how the mysteries unfold while there are some that haven't fully been revealed even after the ending (possibly a season 2?). Ding Yuxi's acting is as good as always, it is interesting to see him act a role without any romantic partners. I also loved how they added some of the animated scenes. It is such a good watch and I will definitely be rewatching this again.Was this review helpful to you?
