Classic xianxia with some great humor and pathos
Legend of Shenli has been described as a classic xianxia, full of tropes. I guess I haven’t watched enough xianxias (<10) because I didn’t really notice.
First of all, I thought the humor for this show was pretty great (at least, right up my alley). Xingzhi, and Shenli’s interactions with him, are lowkey hilarious. There is a lot of random funny stuff. And that chicken is so cute!
Of course, there are also some really sad parts. And this show has an underlying pathos and nostalgic sadness that hits in a gnawing, existential way. But for the most part, I still think of it as a light-hearted show with great humor.
The two main characters dominate this show. For Shenli, the eponymous FL, I liked some things about her and not others, which I guess makes her realistic! I like that her head is screwed on straight and she’s sensible- no chasing after the ML after getting rejected, for example. I like less that she’s so hotheaded. She’s quick to fight and kill; she saves people, but doesn’t seem to have much kindness or compassion. So I wouldn’t say she’s always likeable, but I did really feel for her at times.
As for the ML, Xingzhi… ok, I loved him. It’s not that he doesn’t care about the world… he does. But he is also so full of crap. He is so bored and so cheeky and I found him hilarious. He’s kind of a troll sometimes, but it’s always harmless; he still takes care of things when push comes to shove.
Actually, underneath it all, Xingzhi’s situation is quite sad. But he holds his head high and has accepted it all long ago. It makes for a lovable and sympathetic character you want to root for, and I’m glad he met Shenli.
The show spends some time building up their relationship, which is cute to watch, although the plot pattern of Shenli getting hurt and Xingzhi saving her does repeat one too many times. They end up having a sweet and supportive relationship- mainly him supporting her. Classic, but it’s done well here, with proper character development and buildup.
There are several side characters, some of whom are quite loveable. However, none of them got enough development for me to really be invested in them. I wanted to see more of them, but it didn’t happen. Even the villain is a bit lame- although they do throw a (slightly predictable) wrench in there to make you feel more sad. The main conflict doesn’t win points for originality or interest. In this show, I was most invested in the relationship between the main leads.
In terms of acting, Zhao Liying as Shenli does the action scenes remarkably well. Her fight scenes are fast, crisp, and clean. They are a mix of CGI and choreography (I saw in the BTS that even her spear is CGI!), but still, some of the best I’ve seen. I saw her before in Legend of Fei and wasn’t too impressed (stopped watching, actually), but here she really stood out, even among all the other shows I’ve watched.
I was less enamored with her acting. I thought she was a bit stiff and wooden, which is great for the fight scenes but less great for everything else. After I read the book, I realized that sometimes she really is supposed to look blank. Still, I think she could rely less on looking cool and try to be more natural.
For Lin Gengxin as Xingzhi, I really liked his calm, casual delivery of all those hilarious lines. And once in awhile, a hint of a deeper sadness- I thought he did a good job. Unfortunately I wasn’t a huge fan of his styling… he looks better as himself than as Xingzhi. Many of the side characters looked great (both male and female) so I don’t think it’s general about the show, they just could have done a better job with him.
In terms of world-building, this is an imaginative xianxia world that, as typical, you can’t think too hard about lest you start uncovering holes. There is some beautiful CGI and imagery, highlighted by high-contrast vivid colors. The mortal world from the first arc in particular is so lovely, both Shenli and I look back nostalgically on her time spent there.
I do wish this world had more gender balance. Shenli is a woman in a man’s role, a total anomaly (which nobody seems to find odd); I would have liked better a world where women are just empowered, but I guess this is the author’s choice. There are a few other strong female characters (demon lord, the awesome snake serpent) but in general, despite the strong female lead, this is not quite a show for championing feminism.
Somebody’s critical analysis on reddit thought this show has a focus on gender and sexuality. I think this is because there are some bisexual characters in the book, but they were toned down for the show (censorship, I guess) so it’s harder to see. Actually in the book, Furong (the divine lord fiancée) kisses Mofang and has a thing for him, so in that context some things make more sense. In general this show sticks remarkably close to the book, and I think does an excellent job at adapting it to screen; of the changes I saw, the vast majority were improvements.
Finally, I liked the music… songs were great, really help to build the nostalgia for this beautiful world, and I really liked their fight BGMs too.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS
There is a lot of sad stuff at the end- I saw a BTS where they said it was an entire day of crying- but it all turns around for an ultimate happy ending (minus some sacrifices).
In fact, this show has one of THE best endings, because they devote an *entire episode* to an epilogue from the book! Epilogue = watching them happily living their life after the main conflict is over. I don’t know why more Cdramas don’t do this; look how happy all the fans are. It is so great to get this kind of closure for the characters you get so attached to.
First of all, I thought the humor for this show was pretty great (at least, right up my alley). Xingzhi, and Shenli’s interactions with him, are lowkey hilarious. There is a lot of random funny stuff. And that chicken is so cute!
Of course, there are also some really sad parts. And this show has an underlying pathos and nostalgic sadness that hits in a gnawing, existential way. But for the most part, I still think of it as a light-hearted show with great humor.
The two main characters dominate this show. For Shenli, the eponymous FL, I liked some things about her and not others, which I guess makes her realistic! I like that her head is screwed on straight and she’s sensible- no chasing after the ML after getting rejected, for example. I like less that she’s so hotheaded. She’s quick to fight and kill; she saves people, but doesn’t seem to have much kindness or compassion. So I wouldn’t say she’s always likeable, but I did really feel for her at times.
As for the ML, Xingzhi… ok, I loved him. It’s not that he doesn’t care about the world… he does. But he is also so full of crap. He is so bored and so cheeky and I found him hilarious. He’s kind of a troll sometimes, but it’s always harmless; he still takes care of things when push comes to shove.
Actually, underneath it all, Xingzhi’s situation is quite sad. But he holds his head high and has accepted it all long ago. It makes for a lovable and sympathetic character you want to root for, and I’m glad he met Shenli.
The show spends some time building up their relationship, which is cute to watch, although the plot pattern of Shenli getting hurt and Xingzhi saving her does repeat one too many times. They end up having a sweet and supportive relationship- mainly him supporting her. Classic, but it’s done well here, with proper character development and buildup.
There are several side characters, some of whom are quite loveable. However, none of them got enough development for me to really be invested in them. I wanted to see more of them, but it didn’t happen. Even the villain is a bit lame- although they do throw a (slightly predictable) wrench in there to make you feel more sad. The main conflict doesn’t win points for originality or interest. In this show, I was most invested in the relationship between the main leads.
In terms of acting, Zhao Liying as Shenli does the action scenes remarkably well. Her fight scenes are fast, crisp, and clean. They are a mix of CGI and choreography (I saw in the BTS that even her spear is CGI!), but still, some of the best I’ve seen. I saw her before in Legend of Fei and wasn’t too impressed (stopped watching, actually), but here she really stood out, even among all the other shows I’ve watched.
I was less enamored with her acting. I thought she was a bit stiff and wooden, which is great for the fight scenes but less great for everything else. After I read the book, I realized that sometimes she really is supposed to look blank. Still, I think she could rely less on looking cool and try to be more natural.
For Lin Gengxin as Xingzhi, I really liked his calm, casual delivery of all those hilarious lines. And once in awhile, a hint of a deeper sadness- I thought he did a good job. Unfortunately I wasn’t a huge fan of his styling… he looks better as himself than as Xingzhi. Many of the side characters looked great (both male and female) so I don’t think it’s general about the show, they just could have done a better job with him.
In terms of world-building, this is an imaginative xianxia world that, as typical, you can’t think too hard about lest you start uncovering holes. There is some beautiful CGI and imagery, highlighted by high-contrast vivid colors. The mortal world from the first arc in particular is so lovely, both Shenli and I look back nostalgically on her time spent there.
I do wish this world had more gender balance. Shenli is a woman in a man’s role, a total anomaly (which nobody seems to find odd); I would have liked better a world where women are just empowered, but I guess this is the author’s choice. There are a few other strong female characters (demon lord, the awesome snake serpent) but in general, despite the strong female lead, this is not quite a show for championing feminism.
Somebody’s critical analysis on reddit thought this show has a focus on gender and sexuality. I think this is because there are some bisexual characters in the book, but they were toned down for the show (censorship, I guess) so it’s harder to see. Actually in the book, Furong (the divine lord fiancée) kisses Mofang and has a thing for him, so in that context some things make more sense. In general this show sticks remarkably close to the book, and I think does an excellent job at adapting it to screen; of the changes I saw, the vast majority were improvements.
Finally, I liked the music… songs were great, really help to build the nostalgia for this beautiful world, and I really liked their fight BGMs too.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS
There is a lot of sad stuff at the end- I saw a BTS where they said it was an entire day of crying- but it all turns around for an ultimate happy ending (minus some sacrifices).
In fact, this show has one of THE best endings, because they devote an *entire episode* to an epilogue from the book! Epilogue = watching them happily living their life after the main conflict is over. I don’t know why more Cdramas don’t do this; look how happy all the fans are. It is so great to get this kind of closure for the characters you get so attached to.
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