This could totally have a sequel! But since it's been 5 years it seems unlikely, right? I'm new to Japanese dramas so I don't know that the sequel scene looks like.
I'm re-watching this, and it looks like iqiyi (I'm in US) has switched the order the beginning eps to the new…
Whaat? I started re-watching it a few weeks ago so I missed the re-organization. I like the way I first saw it, so I'll need to re-watch later to see the new changes.
This drama has skyrocketed to be one of the only xianxia dramas I could enjoy, joining Lost You Forever (which isn't really a cultivation story like this), and the Untamed (which has no match in terms of genre I could find). The thing with xianxia/cultivation that WORKS in this story is that the worldbuilding and magic rules are explained--you can see how someone has power, what the limitations are, how to use it against enemies, and how all the magic rules work. It even explores the idea of how deathly boring "ascension" would be as an immortal.
Watching this drama for the first time explained to me some of the rules of cultivation/power in The Untamed, which was the first C-drama I'd ever watched and captivated me despite not understanding most of the magic rules.
Of course the best thing about Love of the Divine Tree are the actors, Deng Wei and Julia Xiang, as well as all the supporting cast, which kept me engaged from the beginning. But all the things I listed above that succeeded in this drama helped me to enjoy it despite, and even because of, its xianxia genre.
Yeah, I'm wondering if this is even real. I really liked the main actress and Richards Wang, I can't get parts of this story out of my head, so I'd be happy to see a meaningful movie side-story (meaningful, not extraneous).
Episode 2 was so good! Soohyuk is so striking and mesmerizing that everyone feels the same way. It's nice that he's showing a little more of himself on this show.
Okay guys, I've seen it in theatres! Amazing to see it in the US. This is my first real exposure to the Condor Heros' stories, though I did watch half of the 2017 series. I'm wondering which adaption tells this particular story since it made me want to learn more about it in depth. My tiny knowledge from the beginning of the 2017 series did help fill in some backstory to this movie. The actors were great, especially Xiao Zhan and Sabrina Zhuang.
if it will give you any comfort, she ends up with the SML in the novel ;D
No way, that is amazing! I wish they'd done it officially in the drama but it's totally in my head canon that she did go off and encounter Chang in a non-battlefield setting and might be able to fall in love with him.
This was probably the most unexpected dramas I've seen so far. Even up to episode 36 I wasn't sure what the ending…
The big surprise is, of course, that the ML becomes a villain toward the end. In my mind he definitely did cross the line into villain territory, and wiz! There went any shipping hopes between them. But the drama set this up very well because I never was very attached to him or their relationship the whole time. I thought Richards Wang's character was WAY more interesting, even as the antagonist. But to have the drama actually follow through with that weak relationship between the FL and ML, by failing, was incredible. And even though the story didn't turn around and have her end up with the intriguing Chang Yuching, I was intensely shipping them by the end. In fact, the end with the FL lead going off into the wilds by herself, to enjoy life for a bit, gives me the most hope that she could "encounter" Chang Yuching again, this time not on the battlefield, and develop actual feelings for him. At least in my head-canon that is exactly what happens, and their relationship is able to seal peace between the two nations for a long time to come.
This was probably the most unexpected dramas I've seen so far. Even up to episode 36 I wasn't sure what the ending would be. Richards Wang absolutely stole every scene he was in. If only he'd been in it twice as much! There were parts that were too long, like the military training, and parts that skipped plot elements--and especially a ten-episode stretch with no Richards Wang appearing that really tested my patience. However the story surprisingly gave me a lot of twists that I wanted to see. I won't spoil anything here but will put some spoiler comments below. Over all, it really kept me on my toes and I was invested to the end, partially because of some of the twists, and I really like the female lead character.
Watching this drama for the first time explained to me some of the rules of cultivation/power in The Untamed, which was the first C-drama I'd ever watched and captivated me despite not understanding most of the magic rules.
Of course the best thing about Love of the Divine Tree are the actors, Deng Wei and Julia Xiang, as well as all the supporting cast, which kept me engaged from the beginning. But all the things I listed above that succeeded in this drama helped me to enjoy it despite, and even because of, its xianxia genre.