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This review may contain spoilers
ADWAD; Historical World, Real World...Both FAKE! The Bar Has Been Set!
I started watching this show for LYN; was very interested in how he would handle this character since he essentially was playing 3 of them and this supposedly regular transmigration story into a book. I knew many of the actors including the FL and support so it was fine; they all did a wonderful job for the most part. What I completely didn't expect was that this was totally not a regular story but that both historical and modern worlds were fake! Ep. 1 and 40 show things as well in the story itself that not all is what it seems especially when what I call the "glitch in the matrix" starts happening. The ending itself is an LSD trip of epic proportions and both as it ends and after the credits so don't forget to watch that. The bar has definitely been set for future both regular historical ones and transmigration dramas.
Pros: LYN nailed his performance as both NH and Zorro as I called him or LSL. This was such an unconventional role and series for him that he just literally seemed to be rolling with the punches. His crying scenes were so spot on. It's like LYN both put himself and at the same time totally disappeared when he embodied those roles. I remember reading an interview that he gave where he said when he first got the script and read his character, he wasn't sure he would be able to portray him properly given the fact there's literally two fake worlds and understand everything, but after much thought and contemplation, he decided to give it a go, and I'm very glad that he did because I don't think any other actor would have been able to portray this role the way he did. His ability for ruthlessness is already known well as is the softer side of him but being able to show his silly and romantic side was also awesome. Playing a figure at first who's "an A-List celebrity" but in the transmigrated world a man wronged and blamed by the world for things he never did (death of the Empress and not coming to the aid of his so called childhood friend at the cost of that person's father and 20,000 soldiers; called the God of Death trying to have himself vindicated as he's being set up continuously. Imprisoned in the cold palace since childhood, then sent off to the border to fight as the emperor in his blind and sadistic hatred towards him wanted to control and take away his power and if he died at the border, all the better for everyone who didn't know the truth.
The FL or SYM/SYX played by LYT who did very well playing her parts; both of them. Who would have thought that both she in her real world and the historical one as well as the ML were both fake characters and in the mind of the scriptwriter not that we later meet in the historical but the writer of the show we are watching and is a woman. That part was brilliant. Anyways, in episode 1 the FL was a lazy Z-List actress that was the last on a list to be chosen to play the FL plus for some reason the ML had specifically chosen her. So when she transmigrates, she's in fear for her life based on what she little read from the fake script & of the ML so she tries desperately to get out of that marriage & run to SML to get married however, every single time she tries, she ends up hysterically dying only to get resurrected to try time & time again & it being put into this humorous montage, she is just trying to save her family & avoid ML at all costs, which also does not work at least avoiding the ML. But she does save her family. Plus, there are certain tropes in the fake script that say things like when FL is in danger, ML must save her so she tries very hard to avoid those but unfortunately they still happen whether the ML is the one trying to kill her from the original script for whatever reason he still ends up saving her & even he doesn't understand what's going on because a lot of the times it's his intention to kill her because he's still going by that old script & if he kills her, then he may get the support of her family which is written in that old script but then because everyone hears typing sounds; so he ends up basically harming himself when trying to harm her because he saves her.
Then comes the creation of LSL and the Crescent River Nightwalkers who weren't in the original script but obviously there because the real scriptwriter wrote them in to counteract FL's hate and fear of the ML to someone who wears a mask and so obviously him to everyone except FL and SFL (who later also falls for him but thankfully that is worked out and quickly). Now FL quickly without fail falls for LSL or Zorro as I call him but that's the real NH. I love Zorro and his nightwalkers. They are great characters all of them, especially SGH who falls for SYM's sister SYT; they are a couple number two. And I have to say SYT is ridiculously smart in this series fake script not the original story but in this one she reads SYM to rights in regards to treating NH the way she does after the whole he's tried to kill me thing is over. And even after the leads have gotten together, she still tells her what she has done wrong; she's just smart in general. She's very feisty and knows what's going on, doesn't drag stuff out, knows what she wants. She's a great character.
I am very proud of WYS who plays the main antagonist or CGH who I called Darth Vader. This is the actor's first real role playing a villain and he did so well; his psychopathy was evident from childhood making me think he was born with it. As the series progressed, we started to understand that he wouldn't just snap out of it when the truth came out but that you could write the truth in giant letters in the sky and he would still find fault with it and the way his face contorted with almost orgasmic pleasure when torturing one of our Nightwalker guys who he falsely imprisoned told me everything I needed to know about him. He almost reminded me of Richard Ramirez the serial killer who always displayed the same sick smile. Glad he was dead. The actor who played the Emperor was awesome in the way he played him going from sadistic emperor (who I still do not give the redemption arc to) to basically a pussycat simp was kind of strange and kind of funny. The way he treated NH and through most of it until he found out the truth of who killed the Empress and what really happened in that battle was so despicable and disgusting. He literally seemed to enjoy NH's pain and suffering that sometimes he himself inflicted. The definition of a true sadist. When they were changing their own fates in the script (going through the two reincarnation phases) did he finally basically in his own weird way apologize to NH for everything. It was too much for too long. Uncle villain was responsible for the death of the empress and the whole battle fiasco among many other things framing NH because in his words, he wanted to make his nephew ruthless, so he basically killed innocent people, and tried to kill and harm those that NH loved to create that; it was basically an excuse because he wanted to seize power himself.
Fake Scriptwriter who wanted everyone to get back and do the iconic scenes just so he could return to the fake modern world was a villain in himself, though no one listened to him even when he created havoc with ML's health. We started getting more glitches in the matrix that we noticed as well as a moth or a butterfly that had started to appear early on in the series and I personally was wondering about it, but later on figured out that that was the actual real scriptwriter of both worlds. In the end, the fake scriptwriter finally joined the good guys to defeat Darth Vader (that final battle with Darth Vader was so awesome because when the townspeople as well as FL's family and ministers who also helped out came running in, they called themselves like passerby F or folk D or passerby A, passerby B; they didn't have real names because they were NPC's lol and that was so funny but at the same time, it was so great when they were all coming together to fight this one major villain, and the rock music going on was chef's kiss).
Other great characters Nightwalkers along with SGH (only he knew NH was LSL), Yun Long & Shan He, who were both great brothers & arms to Zorro; he created them as Zorro because he didn't want them to know who he really was until eventually, he had to tell them, but they still backed his play, Fugui who was the hilarious assistant to NH but couldn't read the room for shit as well, but he sometimes said a simple sentences that in a complex world & mind of NH just made all the sense. Donkey for brains a.k.a. 18th Prince, became a little wiser mending his grudge with NH & always had a good heart. Jixiang, FL's father the sly fox; and the rest of her family. Finally, because we know that the series had a decent budget so the costumes, sets, OSTs, CGI and comedy was top notch.
Cons: The biggest problem I had was the FL or SYM in the second arc. My biggest problem with her was the way she treated ML after the first arc was over. He's no longer trying to kill her. He has changed. Everything has changed; the original script is no longer what it was even the iconic scenes that she's so terrified of are no longer what they were. Everyone around her has changed except her. She is so ingrained with the original script that she cannot go beyond it and her vile verbal abuse goes too far, she makes him cry with all of the God-awful stuff she says to him and it was because the arc was stretched for too long too many episodes. And she's always bringing up a script (that's already changed that she hasn't noticed) that he has no knowledge of like it's the damn gospel. Yes, they both had miscommunication because he kept stuff from her later on too, so he had his own faults 100%; but she goes way too far with everything else.
Would I recommend this? I totally 100% would. It is totally worth it. Not to mention that LSD trip at the end! So give it a chance!
Pros: LYN nailed his performance as both NH and Zorro as I called him or LSL. This was such an unconventional role and series for him that he just literally seemed to be rolling with the punches. His crying scenes were so spot on. It's like LYN both put himself and at the same time totally disappeared when he embodied those roles. I remember reading an interview that he gave where he said when he first got the script and read his character, he wasn't sure he would be able to portray him properly given the fact there's literally two fake worlds and understand everything, but after much thought and contemplation, he decided to give it a go, and I'm very glad that he did because I don't think any other actor would have been able to portray this role the way he did. His ability for ruthlessness is already known well as is the softer side of him but being able to show his silly and romantic side was also awesome. Playing a figure at first who's "an A-List celebrity" but in the transmigrated world a man wronged and blamed by the world for things he never did (death of the Empress and not coming to the aid of his so called childhood friend at the cost of that person's father and 20,000 soldiers; called the God of Death trying to have himself vindicated as he's being set up continuously. Imprisoned in the cold palace since childhood, then sent off to the border to fight as the emperor in his blind and sadistic hatred towards him wanted to control and take away his power and if he died at the border, all the better for everyone who didn't know the truth.
The FL or SYM/SYX played by LYT who did very well playing her parts; both of them. Who would have thought that both she in her real world and the historical one as well as the ML were both fake characters and in the mind of the scriptwriter not that we later meet in the historical but the writer of the show we are watching and is a woman. That part was brilliant. Anyways, in episode 1 the FL was a lazy Z-List actress that was the last on a list to be chosen to play the FL plus for some reason the ML had specifically chosen her. So when she transmigrates, she's in fear for her life based on what she little read from the fake script & of the ML so she tries desperately to get out of that marriage & run to SML to get married however, every single time she tries, she ends up hysterically dying only to get resurrected to try time & time again & it being put into this humorous montage, she is just trying to save her family & avoid ML at all costs, which also does not work at least avoiding the ML. But she does save her family. Plus, there are certain tropes in the fake script that say things like when FL is in danger, ML must save her so she tries very hard to avoid those but unfortunately they still happen whether the ML is the one trying to kill her from the original script for whatever reason he still ends up saving her & even he doesn't understand what's going on because a lot of the times it's his intention to kill her because he's still going by that old script & if he kills her, then he may get the support of her family which is written in that old script but then because everyone hears typing sounds; so he ends up basically harming himself when trying to harm her because he saves her.
Then comes the creation of LSL and the Crescent River Nightwalkers who weren't in the original script but obviously there because the real scriptwriter wrote them in to counteract FL's hate and fear of the ML to someone who wears a mask and so obviously him to everyone except FL and SFL (who later also falls for him but thankfully that is worked out and quickly). Now FL quickly without fail falls for LSL or Zorro as I call him but that's the real NH. I love Zorro and his nightwalkers. They are great characters all of them, especially SGH who falls for SYM's sister SYT; they are a couple number two. And I have to say SYT is ridiculously smart in this series fake script not the original story but in this one she reads SYM to rights in regards to treating NH the way she does after the whole he's tried to kill me thing is over. And even after the leads have gotten together, she still tells her what she has done wrong; she's just smart in general. She's very feisty and knows what's going on, doesn't drag stuff out, knows what she wants. She's a great character.
I am very proud of WYS who plays the main antagonist or CGH who I called Darth Vader. This is the actor's first real role playing a villain and he did so well; his psychopathy was evident from childhood making me think he was born with it. As the series progressed, we started to understand that he wouldn't just snap out of it when the truth came out but that you could write the truth in giant letters in the sky and he would still find fault with it and the way his face contorted with almost orgasmic pleasure when torturing one of our Nightwalker guys who he falsely imprisoned told me everything I needed to know about him. He almost reminded me of Richard Ramirez the serial killer who always displayed the same sick smile. Glad he was dead. The actor who played the Emperor was awesome in the way he played him going from sadistic emperor (who I still do not give the redemption arc to) to basically a pussycat simp was kind of strange and kind of funny. The way he treated NH and through most of it until he found out the truth of who killed the Empress and what really happened in that battle was so despicable and disgusting. He literally seemed to enjoy NH's pain and suffering that sometimes he himself inflicted. The definition of a true sadist. When they were changing their own fates in the script (going through the two reincarnation phases) did he finally basically in his own weird way apologize to NH for everything. It was too much for too long. Uncle villain was responsible for the death of the empress and the whole battle fiasco among many other things framing NH because in his words, he wanted to make his nephew ruthless, so he basically killed innocent people, and tried to kill and harm those that NH loved to create that; it was basically an excuse because he wanted to seize power himself.
Fake Scriptwriter who wanted everyone to get back and do the iconic scenes just so he could return to the fake modern world was a villain in himself, though no one listened to him even when he created havoc with ML's health. We started getting more glitches in the matrix that we noticed as well as a moth or a butterfly that had started to appear early on in the series and I personally was wondering about it, but later on figured out that that was the actual real scriptwriter of both worlds. In the end, the fake scriptwriter finally joined the good guys to defeat Darth Vader (that final battle with Darth Vader was so awesome because when the townspeople as well as FL's family and ministers who also helped out came running in, they called themselves like passerby F or folk D or passerby A, passerby B; they didn't have real names because they were NPC's lol and that was so funny but at the same time, it was so great when they were all coming together to fight this one major villain, and the rock music going on was chef's kiss).
Other great characters Nightwalkers along with SGH (only he knew NH was LSL), Yun Long & Shan He, who were both great brothers & arms to Zorro; he created them as Zorro because he didn't want them to know who he really was until eventually, he had to tell them, but they still backed his play, Fugui who was the hilarious assistant to NH but couldn't read the room for shit as well, but he sometimes said a simple sentences that in a complex world & mind of NH just made all the sense. Donkey for brains a.k.a. 18th Prince, became a little wiser mending his grudge with NH & always had a good heart. Jixiang, FL's father the sly fox; and the rest of her family. Finally, because we know that the series had a decent budget so the costumes, sets, OSTs, CGI and comedy was top notch.
Cons: The biggest problem I had was the FL or SYM in the second arc. My biggest problem with her was the way she treated ML after the first arc was over. He's no longer trying to kill her. He has changed. Everything has changed; the original script is no longer what it was even the iconic scenes that she's so terrified of are no longer what they were. Everyone around her has changed except her. She is so ingrained with the original script that she cannot go beyond it and her vile verbal abuse goes too far, she makes him cry with all of the God-awful stuff she says to him and it was because the arc was stretched for too long too many episodes. And she's always bringing up a script (that's already changed that she hasn't noticed) that he has no knowledge of like it's the damn gospel. Yes, they both had miscommunication because he kept stuff from her later on too, so he had his own faults 100%; but she goes way too far with everything else.
Would I recommend this? I totally 100% would. It is totally worth it. Not to mention that LSD trip at the end! So give it a chance!
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