Lilly1008

Well, in history, Liu Song wasn't able to successfully conquer Northern Wei...:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Wei#War_with_Liu_Song

Yes, it's quite a challenge to bring Dongfang Bubai to life.
I really like how they did it in "Swordsman" (2018).
Ding Yuxi is excellent and he brings with him exactly those androgynous looks the character needs.
They did some changes to the original storyline, but, personally, I think, they are well done and give the expanded space created for the character a reason and a justification to be there.
I would not have ranted so much about Dongfang Bubai being turned into a woman in "Swordsman" (2013) if it would have been done more cleverly and not by just creating an idiot love triangle (*yawn*). And Joe Chen would better have not tried to copy Brigitte Lin - that was supposed to end in a disaster from the beginning on.

In Louis Cha's novel, Dongfang Bubai is a man and also just a side character, but the way he gets portrayed always made writers and directors for movies and series expand his character.
You might find this article interesting, dealing with him (it might also help to explain, why he often gets played by women):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dongfang_Bubai

It got re-released on Sunday, July, 19th and can be found on YouTube: Idol & Romance and on Mango TV:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wc2bOSkasA

https://www.mgtv.com/b/341459/9387329.html

"The Longest Day in Chang'an" is an oustanding, if not stand-alone masterpiece. Totally agree! Sadly, this kind of show is rarer than than the rarest jewels on this planet.

Li Qin and Li Yitong are definitely two of my faves, at the moment. Beautiful, intelligent, devoted, passionate women who perform on a very high level. We need more of them, but I fear, we lack good writers and directors able to give them the demanding roles their talents need.

When I saw her RAW recording of the scene from Princess Agents where she begs Yan Xun not to leave, dressed up in that beautiful blue wedding dress, using her own voice and not the dubbing, I knew what potential she had.
It was clear: there was slumbering a character actress inside and not one of the dumb idol barbies we get fed on a daily base at the moment.
Li Qin developed excellently in everything: appearance, acting and performance, personaility...I'm sure, we get to see more performances like this, in future...

He's such a likeable guy. I saw him in an interview, once, when his little daughter was with him. The two were so cute.

He's an excellent actor. I'm not sure, anymore, when I developed a crush on him, but I think it was while watching "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate".

It is underrated, totally agree. It's on my re-watch list, which says a lot about it. Although, I confess, Nie Yuan is definitely the reason why I watched it the first time, back then.

Nie Yuan is one of the leads, one of the main characters.
So, why care about something so completly unimportant like 'lead' or 'second lead'?
If you like him and if you like his chemistry with his female partner from the time when they worked together, before, just watch and enjoy that they play together again.
I will never understand the drama about lead and second lead.
Who, the heck, cares?
Nie Yuan is one of the stars of this show, one of the main characters, not a cameo.
If that's not enough, Idon't know what else to say about his role in this drama.

Imagine how boring the world would be, if we'd all be, think, act the same. It's the discussions and the exchange of thoughts which spice up life.

I couldn't agree more. Let's keep our fingers crossed that those with brains and reason will be those we can discuss with in future. Constructive criticism and discussions are way more fun than bashing and bullying.

Yep! I'm all with you in this.
Sadly, a lot of people think, their opinion is the only one acceptable and they start to insult, bully and bash others, telling them they are the ones who hate everything, who should go elsewhere, who dislike everything.
I truly pity this kind of people, because:
How much must they hate themselves and how low must be their self-esteem, if someone elses point of view makes them feel personally attacked and makes them then attack others with aggressive hatespeach?
My late father used to say: Never waste your time on hating something or someone. Criticise, discuss, even dislike - it's your right to do so. But never start hating something or someone, because if you do it will make you adopt their negativity and that's not worth it.

Indeed!
I can't stand when people forget their manners and when they forget to respect others just because of something so unimportant like ratings or which idol is more handsome etc...
These people really need to get themselves a life.

One can only wonder.

Yep! I think, her fans are level-headed enough to know what a great progress she made in acting and performance. She grew into a character actress, so, no need to push her forward artificially.

8,8 is still a better rating here on MDL than on Douban where it's rated 6,2 as of today.

Why do people always assume that being critical about something is the same like hating a thing?

And why do people always assume that being critical means one does not enjoy a thing?

I love to watch things from a critical point of view, because I think, adding or changing small details can make something good even better.

And if one doesn't focus on love-scenes and happy endings, it doesn't mean that this person dislikes a story, it simply says that this person focusses on other things like historical facts, costumes, make-up, settings, performance, martial arts and so on.

Both ways of watching a drama can be satisfying.

If you'd have read and understood the comment properly, you'd have possibly noticed that I find Li Qin excellent in this role.
What I said is that I find the balance between her strong character and the boring portrait of her antagonist to not be existant.
He is no match in acting for Li Qin, so, I'd have wished for someone able to deliver an antagonist as strong as the female lead to make the balance work...