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Zhan Zhao Adventures – A Flawed but Watchable Old-School Wuxia
This is the first Yang Yang's drama I've managed to finish, and here's my take on what works and what doesn't. It's a flawed but watchable old-school wuxia that gets the action right but stumbles on pacing, character depth, and narrative discipline—especially when compared to its closest structural cousin, The Vigilantes in Masks.
First, a note on what I mean by "structural cousin" This drama shares its structural skeleton with several others in the genre: a squad of protagonists, a group of villains, episodic or semi-episodic cases, and a political conspiracy backdrop. You can see this in The Vigilantes in Masks, Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty, Riverside Code at Qingming Festival, and others. So it doesn't offer anything structurally new. The drama it resembles most is The Vigilantes in Masks, so I'll use that as my benchmark for what ZZA executes well and what it doesn't.
WHAT WORKS
- Action. The fight scenes are some of the better ones these days. Thanks to Yang Yang's background in dance, the moves are performed smoothly and convincingly. This aspect is probably what kept me watching and stopped me from dropping the drama. There's a lot of action, and that makes sense since it's about Zhan Zhao, who's known for being superior in martial arts.
- Acting. The cast is mostly good enough. Yang Yang did okay as Zhan Zhao, particularly because Zhan Zhao himself isn't a multi-layered character, so there's not much to explore. I especially liked the chemistry between Zhan Zhao and his servant Ming Zhu Er—their emotional bond is very convincing. Zhang Ming'en did exceptionally well; he managed to pull off the villainous side of Shao Jizu.
- Production. The costumes and setting are nicely done. The lighting creates the right atmosphere for mystery, sadness, happiness, and so on.
- Plot discipline. As a case-breaking drama, ZZA tries its best to minimize plot holes, which I appreciate. They explain how or why something happened through flashbacks, which is quite effective. For international viewers unfamiliar with the Zhan Zhao legend, the drama also does a decent job of making the core mystery understandable without requiring prior knowledge of the source material.
- No unnecessary romantic subplot. I really commend this drama for daring not to include romance at all when the actors are known for having acted in various idol dramas.
WHAT DOESN'T WORK
- Pacing and structure. With only three cases across 37 episodes, the drama is awfully too long. They opted for a howcatchem structure instead of a whodunit, and with howcatchem—where the audience already knows who the culprit is—the unit needs to be short, perhaps three to four episodes, or five at most, to pay off. The first case alone took about 18 episodes to conclude. I understand they needed that long to give context and explain who's who, but I think that could have been done with a narrator explaining things at the start of episode one, as other dramas do. Since each case takes so many episodes, it sometimes got boring—if it hadn't been saved by the well-choreographed fight scenes. If they chose howcatchem, they should have had more cases or reduced the episode count to 24 instead of 37. By comparison, The Vigilantes in Masks has more than five cases across 30 episodes.
- Boring procedures. Even if the case had been shorter, the procedures themselves—interrogations, evidence-gathering, deduction—were not engaging enough to carry a howcatchem. When you choose this structure, you must make sure those procedures are compelling. It's not easy, but The Vigilantes in Masks manages it, and so do the Justice Bao series.
- Faction overload. The first case's length was partly justified by the need to explain the context and who's who—but there are too many who's who. I noted Hanshui Palace, Tang Sect, Chang Ho Bi, Shengyun Stronghold, Huo Mansion, Yiluo Cult, Ding Family, and so on. Throwing out so many names doesn't guarantee a good plot. This is a habit I've noticed in current wuxia dramas: they seem to believe that more names, more roles, and more complications automatically make the story better. What makes The Vigilantes in Masks work is that not that many martial factions appear. Its antagonists are politicians and bureaucrats, not jianghu figures, so it doesn't need a lot of wuxia factions. This makes the plot clearer and more solid. Since ZZA's villains are also politicians, there's no need for so many wuxia factions—just a few with very close relationships to the villains.
- Weak squad dynamics. As I mentioned above, the chemistry between Zhan Zhao and his servant worked really well—ironically, his chemistry with Bai Yutang and Huo Linglong feels flat. I'm not sure whether this is because of the script or the acting. But I found that Huo Linglong (played by Zhang Ruo Nan) is the weakest character among the three leads. I didn't get her character at all.
- Uninteresting main trio. Beyond the lack of chemistry, the characters themselves lack distinctive personalities. None of the three main characters in the squad are interesting. They're by no means boring, but they have no specific or unique traits. In comparison, the four members of the Plum Blossom squad in The Vigilantes in Masks each have unique personalities and depth. Their fighting styles are also different, which makes them more distinctive. Zhan Zhao, Bai Yutang, and Linglong in ZZA each have almost the same fighting style.
- Rushed ending. The ending is too rushed. How the villains end up made me scratch my head. I was hoping for a head-to-head confrontation between the protagonists and antagonists, but I didn't get that. After all the drama and build-up, it feels like they suddenly realized the drama had gotten too long and decided to end it.
- Bland reveals. The revealing of secrets is bland. Nothing is surprising or shocking—for example, what Ling Long's eye is. There's no jaw-dropping moment when that was revealed.
- Missed opportunities. Two missed opportunities stand out. First, Zhan Zhao's past life before becoming an imperial guard wasn't explored deeply enough. They did it in very few flashbacks toward the end, but it should have been done early on—it failed to make an impact. Second, the relationship between Shao Jizu and Lord Xiangyang wasn't explored deeply enough, which is a pity. They should have shown the humanity of these antagonists. From an international perspective, this is the drama's biggest barrier: it leans heavily on Chinese audiences' prior familiarity with Zhan Zhao as a cultural icon such as his backstory, but never explains why this backstory has shaped him for who he is now. Domestic viewers know what his ideals cost him; international viewers are told he has ideals, but rarely shown why they carry such weight. The result is that his moral struggles may feel abstract rather than urgent to viewers outside China.
The Benchmark: Why The Vigilantes in Masks Works Better
The gap between ZZA and The Vigilantes in Masks isn't about budget or cast. It's about narrative discipline. VIM had fewer factions, clearer stakes, more cases, and characters with distinct personalities and fighting styles. ZZA has good action sequences and a more complex villain dynamic, but it lacks the structural coherence that made VIM work. ZZA is not a bad wuxia drama, but because it aimed too high and didn't fully stick the landing.
Final Thoughts
I give this drama an 8.0 because of the action, Yang Yang's performance, and the Shao Jizu arc were strong enough to outweigh the structural problems. I'm not particularly eager for a sequel, but if they make one, I'll watch it—and I hope they fix the many problems I've mentioned.
First, a note on what I mean by "structural cousin" This drama shares its structural skeleton with several others in the genre: a squad of protagonists, a group of villains, episodic or semi-episodic cases, and a political conspiracy backdrop. You can see this in The Vigilantes in Masks, Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty, Riverside Code at Qingming Festival, and others. So it doesn't offer anything structurally new. The drama it resembles most is The Vigilantes in Masks, so I'll use that as my benchmark for what ZZA executes well and what it doesn't.
WHAT WORKS
- Action. The fight scenes are some of the better ones these days. Thanks to Yang Yang's background in dance, the moves are performed smoothly and convincingly. This aspect is probably what kept me watching and stopped me from dropping the drama. There's a lot of action, and that makes sense since it's about Zhan Zhao, who's known for being superior in martial arts.
- Acting. The cast is mostly good enough. Yang Yang did okay as Zhan Zhao, particularly because Zhan Zhao himself isn't a multi-layered character, so there's not much to explore. I especially liked the chemistry between Zhan Zhao and his servant Ming Zhu Er—their emotional bond is very convincing. Zhang Ming'en did exceptionally well; he managed to pull off the villainous side of Shao Jizu.
- Production. The costumes and setting are nicely done. The lighting creates the right atmosphere for mystery, sadness, happiness, and so on.
- Plot discipline. As a case-breaking drama, ZZA tries its best to minimize plot holes, which I appreciate. They explain how or why something happened through flashbacks, which is quite effective. For international viewers unfamiliar with the Zhan Zhao legend, the drama also does a decent job of making the core mystery understandable without requiring prior knowledge of the source material.
- No unnecessary romantic subplot. I really commend this drama for daring not to include romance at all when the actors are known for having acted in various idol dramas.
WHAT DOESN'T WORK
- Pacing and structure. With only three cases across 37 episodes, the drama is awfully too long. They opted for a howcatchem structure instead of a whodunit, and with howcatchem—where the audience already knows who the culprit is—the unit needs to be short, perhaps three to four episodes, or five at most, to pay off. The first case alone took about 18 episodes to conclude. I understand they needed that long to give context and explain who's who, but I think that could have been done with a narrator explaining things at the start of episode one, as other dramas do. Since each case takes so many episodes, it sometimes got boring—if it hadn't been saved by the well-choreographed fight scenes. If they chose howcatchem, they should have had more cases or reduced the episode count to 24 instead of 37. By comparison, The Vigilantes in Masks has more than five cases across 30 episodes.
- Boring procedures. Even if the case had been shorter, the procedures themselves—interrogations, evidence-gathering, deduction—were not engaging enough to carry a howcatchem. When you choose this structure, you must make sure those procedures are compelling. It's not easy, but The Vigilantes in Masks manages it, and so do the Justice Bao series.
- Faction overload. The first case's length was partly justified by the need to explain the context and who's who—but there are too many who's who. I noted Hanshui Palace, Tang Sect, Chang Ho Bi, Shengyun Stronghold, Huo Mansion, Yiluo Cult, Ding Family, and so on. Throwing out so many names doesn't guarantee a good plot. This is a habit I've noticed in current wuxia dramas: they seem to believe that more names, more roles, and more complications automatically make the story better. What makes The Vigilantes in Masks work is that not that many martial factions appear. Its antagonists are politicians and bureaucrats, not jianghu figures, so it doesn't need a lot of wuxia factions. This makes the plot clearer and more solid. Since ZZA's villains are also politicians, there's no need for so many wuxia factions—just a few with very close relationships to the villains.
- Weak squad dynamics. As I mentioned above, the chemistry between Zhan Zhao and his servant worked really well—ironically, his chemistry with Bai Yutang and Huo Linglong feels flat. I'm not sure whether this is because of the script or the acting. But I found that Huo Linglong (played by Zhang Ruo Nan) is the weakest character among the three leads. I didn't get her character at all.
- Uninteresting main trio. Beyond the lack of chemistry, the characters themselves lack distinctive personalities. None of the three main characters in the squad are interesting. They're by no means boring, but they have no specific or unique traits. In comparison, the four members of the Plum Blossom squad in The Vigilantes in Masks each have unique personalities and depth. Their fighting styles are also different, which makes them more distinctive. Zhan Zhao, Bai Yutang, and Linglong in ZZA each have almost the same fighting style.
- Rushed ending. The ending is too rushed. How the villains end up made me scratch my head. I was hoping for a head-to-head confrontation between the protagonists and antagonists, but I didn't get that. After all the drama and build-up, it feels like they suddenly realized the drama had gotten too long and decided to end it.
- Bland reveals. The revealing of secrets is bland. Nothing is surprising or shocking—for example, what Ling Long's eye is. There's no jaw-dropping moment when that was revealed.
- Missed opportunities. Two missed opportunities stand out. First, Zhan Zhao's past life before becoming an imperial guard wasn't explored deeply enough. They did it in very few flashbacks toward the end, but it should have been done early on—it failed to make an impact. Second, the relationship between Shao Jizu and Lord Xiangyang wasn't explored deeply enough, which is a pity. They should have shown the humanity of these antagonists. From an international perspective, this is the drama's biggest barrier: it leans heavily on Chinese audiences' prior familiarity with Zhan Zhao as a cultural icon such as his backstory, but never explains why this backstory has shaped him for who he is now. Domestic viewers know what his ideals cost him; international viewers are told he has ideals, but rarely shown why they carry such weight. The result is that his moral struggles may feel abstract rather than urgent to viewers outside China.
The Benchmark: Why The Vigilantes in Masks Works Better
The gap between ZZA and The Vigilantes in Masks isn't about budget or cast. It's about narrative discipline. VIM had fewer factions, clearer stakes, more cases, and characters with distinct personalities and fighting styles. ZZA has good action sequences and a more complex villain dynamic, but it lacks the structural coherence that made VIM work. ZZA is not a bad wuxia drama, but because it aimed too high and didn't fully stick the landing.
Final Thoughts
I give this drama an 8.0 because of the action, Yang Yang's performance, and the Shao Jizu arc were strong enough to outweigh the structural problems. I'm not particularly eager for a sequel, but if they make one, I'll watch it—and I hope they fix the many problems I've mentioned.
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