thang van Ung

the two most amusing characters are old huang and jiangNi. they're funny cause they are silly in the peak of their seriousness
everyone else is a real bore. all the scheming will be thwarted by ex machina. if fengNian becomes the ultimate martial artist isn't an ex machina i don't know what else would qualify.
if there isn't a real dilema and sacrifice, then it is rubbish

there are plenty of bad actors in c-dramas, and worse offenders are the popular ones, e.g., dirab, yangMi, yangZi, allenYu, etc.
i think new actors doing poorly are still bearable, and won't ruin the drama.... most of the time.

evidently bingZhu is the sole character w/ any competence. and no wonder why he's rogue.
the intelligence of all factions are at the same low bar. this is a nose dive on the serial.
baiLang the bootlegger has the best rate of success in getting his tasks completed.

that is one funny way to go about an ambush... each wave of attack has one assassin.
hongYi should rethink his security, cause his "muscle" loss to what would be a fodder-assassin, and a first round fodder to boot.

the injection of the dross of liuRan and hongYi is an albatross. is it supposed to be comedic relief?
if liuRan doesn't come out w/ some useful attributes (consistent to her character), then pairing is just a bore.
and it'll be worse with the trope of a "main lead" having an out of the blue, tangential contribution to justify a main role.

is the character xiaoBing supposed to be a hypocritical bellend?
xiaoBing should had been sacked, instead is protected and promoted, and yet clueless as ever. there isn't any narrative that xiaoBing made any redeeming achievements.

the drama and the novel are divergent.
the drama cliffhanger isn't there, neither is the anticipation of restored memory and powers.
there is no satisfaction in reading for continuity. it doesn't exist.
in my opinion, i wouldn't have had much interest in a drama of "transmigration" of ingenuity and tactical acumen from the 21st century into history. bore fest. and that is the novel.

yoaNiang casting is the worst. cringey that she has any allure of a beauty. early on, i thought she was a nutter, and now she is intelligent.
ruYi on the otherhand, is the prettiest of the cast.

glad that it has always about the two --or more-- ladies, hence "women"
as far as hubby is concerned, like a bad penny, i'm sure he'll turn up... but (hopefully) not before the women succeed.

that role does not deserve top billing.

ruFeng made a big turn around, as is the best of the lot.
big bruv and the three "elders" are waste of space.
net zero --not causing trouble-- is the (low) bar of "success" for the Ren men.

they must had busted the budget on the "low down Gao" arc...

this machination makes no sense.
the male lead is miscast, as he lacks the gravitas... to scheme such a moronic plan. when you're that idiotic, the minimum requirement is a facade that can hide your stupidity.

i either giggled, or baffled, through most of the "grandiosity"

xiaoFeng is a positive in the serial. still waiting for xuZhu to kick off.
that blood brother segment between duanYu and feng has zero chemistry. a real hero inexplicably decides to be blood brother w/ a 10 year old twit.

daunYu acting like a 10 year old is just as bad as when older actresses do over-the-top childish cutesy.
when will the character grow up already. if not, it would be the lead weight of this serial.

there are silly and smart dramas. this isn't one of them.
everyone is pointlessly stupid. main couple "connection" is a complete mystery to me. i can't even be bothered with the creepy second couple.

with her level of skill, she should had been able to dispatch her would be captors.
which bothers me more than the sudden lacking in savvy or smarts.

the weekly cliff hanger... well played
"miss truth" was weighed down by male rivalry, that made everything else secondary.
this drama, simplify the love interest and concentrate on the intrigue.

the male lead does a perfect fit of dumb as he looks. and when it is called for matured and coming of age, he still looks like a fool. the role required so much finesse and range. bugger.
fangLiang actually has a more gripping tale.

i get it... you think you're special. by all means revel in your cliquish mentality.
you're doing a grand job inclusion to viewers who may like this drama, but just have other priorities from your own.