After Untamed, this became a series I would watch over and over again. It was wonderful in every way: the layered structure of the story, the production, the music, the sets, the costumes, the cinematography... I especially want to highlight the sets. In costume dramas, what usually catches my attention and gets me hooked are the swords—the ones that sway when they fall to the ground, or bend and twist when a character tries to get up using the sword for support. None of that was present in this series. All the swords were heavy and sturdy. This was especially evident in the perfect one-on-one fight scene between the general and his son. I was completely captivated. Additionally, there were no unnecessary scenes or characters; everyone was exactly as they should be. I believe that the story could have been just as rich without the "seal of the gui" element, transforming it into a more realistic revenge story. That detail felt a bit unnecessary. I thought that Minister Zhao had a different motivation until the very end, that he wasn't just doing it for power, but something else, but it turned out he was indeed just after power. Here we see the power of how the story is told. Instead of simply showing the villain, we reach the finale by following the character development, which made me expect much more, but when you think about it, the desire for power is a sufficient reason. There's one point here that doesn't sit right with me. Maybe I missed something while watching, but Gao Ming knew from the beginning that Minister Zhao was the third enemy. Enemy from the start, and the other master knew it too. They proceeded as if they had only learned about the third enemy later on, but if they knew about the third enemy from the beginning, they must have also known that Zanghai would be left with only two options in the end, and that he would likely die. We only saw his guilt in the final episodes. I would have liked to see that character's thoughts reflected a little more on his face. For example, Minister Zang and Zanghai made me feel that what they said and what they were thinking were different through their micro-expressions. This caused confusion and made me watch more closely, drawing me further into the story. Apart from that, I think Xiao Zhan is definitely a drama actor. The romantic scenes don't resonate with me, don't have butterflies in my stomach, but when the character starts to suffer, even the slightest expression on his face brings tears to my eyes. Whether it's physical pain, anger, or sadness, he conveys these emotions so well that the character, driven by a thirst for revenge, fits Xiao Zhan perfectly. It was a perfect casting choice. These are the thoughts that come to mind right now, but they're not meant as criticism—just alternative perspectives. This is definitely a contender for the best series of the year. Thanks to everyone who put in the effort.
I want more!!! Its not enough.. I felt so relieve while im watching this serie and i didnt want to finish but.. Im not enough with this ... Its perfect, the cinematography just mindblowing and the story too but i want to watch more about batay and :''')
ahh i felt that the ending will hit me.. but i really didnt think that i feel that much pain... xiao zhan really a great actor. he is one of the best. Im not dissapoint about story and acting. But something is missing, i dont know what it is. Anyway there is a lot of amazing ost in this drama. And i probably gonna rewatch later for osts and acting and story development
yoo seung ho.. what did you do to me... i'm gonna rewatch this again.. 4th time i guess i dont remember but.. i cried a lot.. and i wanna cry again so lets do this..
This is definitely a contender for the best series of the year. Thanks to everyone who put in the effort.
it has everything.. one of the best of this year