MySiFeng

Love/Hate with this drama

Finally able to sort out my thought about this drama.

This drama is one of those "What could have been" with a better screenwriter (I know Tong Hua is in charge) and more experienced director.

What I love:
Qingshui Town. Amongst all the scenes throughout the 39 episodes, those in Qingshui Town were the best ones. Real and the character interactions were good although pacing here was quite slow.

Not gonna touch on the CP but scenes between XL/XY & XY/CX were aesthetically amazing.

What I hate:
When WXL became Xiao Yao.
Her growth graph suddenly plummet and it stayed constant till the end had me baffled. What Tong Hua wanted me to understand here? She stated her 3 things in earlier show, but later on, she looked like a love brain kid. Vague and fragmented.

How can she love normally when her childhood experiences affected her psychologically?

CX arc
This supposed to be the main arc, apart from the emotional arc from other male leads. This storyline should be tight and interesting enough to pull the emotions but the overall arc is just weak. Having watched shows like NiF, i'm expecting something from this but it's just disappointing.

Downplay of characters
In short, i just wish the writer retain most of them because this is my main source of frustration amongst all the points above.

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except for XL, everything else meh

well, my s1 comment still stands. with better director and screenwriter, this show can go down to be one of the memorable ones in recent years. shucks.

things I don’t like were many compared to those I like.

even for XL, why they think it’s good idea to turn him into this mopey mess? TJC saved this OOC with his acting thank goodness.

illusion scene? what? they trying to be twilight 2.0? epic fail.

I’m even surprised Jing felt nonexistent in most part of the show given that he’s 2ML. but even so, his scenes were dull.

we might have a better storytelling if eps weren’t cut to 23. but who knows.

just how many times XY need to wait and burst out like a mad woman? in s1, the mum scene was really good and effective. in s2, we have her crying scene with mum AGAIN, then yelling with CX, burst out during Jing….then we have the “underwhelming” cry for XL. Too much, no matter how you tell me oh that was good. it’s repetitive, and no nuance.

my problem with this show in overall, the growth of female lead was nonexistent. while in book, the ending was the start of her real growth, in here, she’s just love brained. that very person who said she’s lonely and don’t mind temporary companionship/lifelong to someone who needs a man or else she can’t survive. must it be a man? lol. I rather she don’t end up with anyone.

I won’t say anything about the CP here because S2 successfully destroyed all the ships.

lastly, all the actors here suffered from bad editing and inefficient production team. so, don’t blame the actors. the director, screenwriter and the production team are solely responsible. doesn’t mean Tonghua is a good novel writer means she’s good screenwriter.

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one of those xianxia that’s consistent till the end

it’s hard to find xianxia that’s good and consistent till the end as many suffers from pacing or storyline issues midway.

I went in without expectations and as episodes went by, the first thing I noticed was the blood of youth cast, literally everyone was here except the main leads. lol.

starting with the storyline.
it was interesting, and not a moment of boredom. pacing was good, no characters suffered from it. what are I like here, there are presence of multiple villains with different shades to them. they added weight to the story.

Acting
Deng Wei, here he has proven that, his previous drama, his character suffered due to writing issue. he proved that he’s able to carry a complex character like Su yushui. he’s such a complex and awesome character and Deng Wei did bring in his acting chops.

my favorite scene from him - the scene he saw the lanterns lighted up as qingge welcome him back. his subtle expressions teared me up.

for the FL, it’s my first time seeing her and she’s not bad but after I completed 3/4 of the show, there’s something lacking in her acting. I think the blend of Mu Qingge and XRR. she’s done alright but because these two people has their own distinct character.

My favorite character?
Wei Jiu. lol. adorbs villian. I’m not sure if I should call him that, because I see him like a kid who’s trying to prove himself. still a child and his chemistry with Jiuyuan was my favorite until the end, I would say surpassed the mains.

the villains here are painted by jealousy, greed, betrayal, regrets, envy. in ranwu, Su Yu, dun tian, we see that once these traits planted in them, there’s no turning back. yes ranwu is annoying. Su Yu too altho ending I was a little choke up at his final scene.

all supporting characters good too, not one of them were boring. this is rare, when I say rare I mean it. it’s rare to have equal excitement when watching scenes from the supporting roles.

Production
as I expected from Yin Tao. this show gave me L&R vibes. the CGI also improved heaps and bounds. it was amazing! and it’s rare to have a nice wedding scene (best one from L&R)

this show easily score with best director, good storyline and acting from all the cast. this show deserves two thumbs up.

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now I know why AJTL is loved

just ended show today.
I never cried this much since one and only.

where should I start? indeed living up to the title a journey to love. initially I was kind of weirded out with Ruyi’s philosophy of having child without loving her partner, then I realised it was actually her journey to learn how to love and since then it was beautiful.

starting from the leads. I love both of them truly. balanced, equals. one thing that stood out for me is while ruyi wield the sword fiercely, yuanzhou, being talented as well, felt protected by her and these gender swapping features are just amazing. their understanding towards each other goes deep and they respected each other decisions.

coming from ADWAD, I found his acting here stable, definitely need improvements for e.g. his grief towards the end. other than that, he’s fine and his character definitely goes to be one of my fav.

for Liu Shishi, damn, she just rocked. her cold side assassin, her expressions just cold, icy stare. but as she spend time with NYZ and the others, her warm side started to show. and acted like a girl by his side. her laugh broke that cold side of her. one thing I loved between them was the hugs. I always noticed her expressions, everything about Ruyi towards him, was expressed.

moving on towards our brothers. they have my heart. Yu shisan, Qian Zhao, yuan Lu, Sun lang. friends, comrades, family. they reunited at the beginning only to part for eternity in the end.

they brought me so much laughter, heartwarming smiles and eventually heartbreaking tears. I teared so much towards the end, for each of them.

story and music production was top notch. acting, mostly were good. I did notice towards the end how scenes didn’t flow as well as earlier episodes.

best standout characters: Yu Shisan & Yang Ying

one regret that the show should expand more (instead of Li Tongguang) is Yu shisan and his love arc with Chu Yue. I honestly didn’t expect when that happened and expected more!

Li tongguang character growth was so uneven and it bothered me till the end when he want to stay away from Ruyi then snatched her to be his bride, then somehow his arc with NYZ just closed off like that? nah, not believable.

Yang Ying is GOAT.
her character development was just amazing. cried for her.

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one of the best slow burn romance I’ve seen

I’m not a modern cdrama fan but I was intrigued many are watching this show. so I tried.

finished 4 episodes in one sitting. by then, everything, from storytelling, production to acting, it was considered good.

as episodes passed, it became amazing. especially both leads. to the point the actors are the characters themselves.

I don’t mind the lack of plots because the emotional development of the main leads are far more important and interesting. also using non linear storytelling without confusing audience, was really really good.

the slow burn in this drama is just like simmering broth, the longer it takes, more savoury and every single scenes between Yifan and Sang Yan are just chef kiss.

show while showing the romance, never shy to portray the trauma of SA victims, how it shapes their character, the actions they take…

many dislike the HK arc but imo, it’s integral. from yifan pov, we get to see how she deal with things when it goes wrong. this time when sang Yan already involved in her life. and those two years, sang Yan began to figure out what kind of life she lived during those days. because yifan is the type that don’t share such things even with her best friends, what more to sang Yan. this is her personal trauma. she has difficulty letting in people and let them know her struggles. she know running away won’t solve problems but that’s the only way she knows. until she decided that she has to put this to a stop, by herself. not anyone else but her own.

wen yifan struggles and her growth, throughout the show was so amazing. to a point there are aspects that I truly relate with her, and wish to have someone like Sang Yan in my life, as a support, for me to build my own self confidence and fly, soar in the sky.

one thing if show ought to do was to spare some time to expand on Sang Yan’s growth. it’s only through sangzhi’s pov we got to know how he changed, after he lost Yifan.

as for supporting leads, amazing. just the grandpa arc a little bit redundant. I understand that his family is about communication issue after a traumatic event. I’m surprised grandma just went off to travel and assumed grandpa love other woman. backstory only came from Su haoan’s mouth. but I guess they don’t want to do much on their storyline since main story already heavy.

watching this show had me yearn for my own sang Yan. even how fictional this character seems to be, praying for one, at least that’s the best we can hope for.

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One of the best wuxia in a while

I went into this show without any expectations and came out amazed by the whole production of this drama. Started out as solving mystery cases and ended with probably one of the most amazing drama I’ve ever watched in a while.

there weren’t any parts that felt slow (except for palace scenes because honestly I personally have qualms when a story takes place in palace, with its boring political plots BUT MLC managed to keep it short, thankfully)

Story was amazing, acting was superb. Cheng Yi was exceptional, his best to date character. my first time watching Joseph & Aero and I felt they did very well and do justice to their roles. supporting casts too did well.

Music is important element while watching a drama and MLC served it very well. *Cue Li Xiangyi BGM (*cries)

Now, im on my 3rd rewatch. so even you don’t plan to rewatch whole thing, this drama have a LOT of amazing scenes that’s worth rewatching, especially the fight scenes.

For those who haven’t watch it, give it a try!

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One of the best Xianxia drama out there

Good points:
- No misunderstandings
- Straightforward main leads
- good share of humours and heartbreaks
- Mature main leads (sometime just lol-ed at Xingzhi)
- One of the shows with better CGI (except for the chicken phoenix lol)

Not so good points:
- one dimensional villains? (not so into their mission)
- some parts are draggy (e.g. heavenly lord scenes, sometimes Furong & Mofang)
- revelations of certain scenes (e.g. where she knew Xingyun is Xingzhi, i geddit that she's smart, but i guess from Xingzhi's childish behavior, lol, she sort of get it. Another one is, Shen li's parents reveal, this part was SOOOOO underwhelming.)
- it wasn't mentioned what is the purpose of Xingzhi's task, was it destroying of Tianwai Tian (i can't remember the english word lol) ?

Regarding ZLY & LGX:
- Initially i was quite bothered by LGX (not because he's old whatsoever), this is my first time his drama, and LGX look so mature for this. ZLY too. since both already transit to mature acting/dramas now. But eventually i got used to him, and his funny scenes were so naturally good but the scene at ep38 (iykyk), was the killer. Both display their capabilities as actors, that scene was sooooooo heartfelt and immersive.

The show has its merits and not. However, i do enjoy. Especially it gave 1 whole ep of FLUFF at the end.

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while it’s a good show, something was lacking.

honestly don’t know what to expect after watching first 10 episodes of the show.

the plot is like moving from one “zhou” to another “zhou”. then there’s plot about the great imperial grandson which was there till mid way then it was forgotten until it popped up again after 3/4 of the show. then the rebellion between the sons, to be honest for them to come to this point, who started all this? if Cui Lin wasn’t so insistent of wanting Shiqi to be the CP, and wrote that request to the imperial court, these won’t escalate into such big tragedy.

shiqi’s life is hanging by the thread even if he didn’t become CP. and the worries he told Pei Yuan if he become one, it made sense. for Cui Lin, he’s the only one who can correct the weight from wrong and ensure peace. if she wants to be his Crown Princess, she jolly well know that her reputation can’t be as strong as Li family. and Cui Army’s disbandment is inevitable. this part could carry more emotional plot for both of them. but it just went off poof fast, and they reconciled. maybe I’m expecting too much.

I’m hoping for less angst for I started this show and while the show did less angst, overall, the show is not giving that punch.

I honestly don’t know what’s lacking in this show that prevented me enjoy it fully. I dozed off at some parts but I enjoy some parts too.

both main leads showcase their wits and intelligence, proving them to be equal. I’m glad that here their chemistry was quite strong. (having both equal characters can have issue showing chemistry)

ep30 was chaotic and escalated down fast and I broke down. it was one of best downfall scenes I’ve watched.

villains in this show aren’t worth mentioning.

acting wise, Jing tian was okay. Xu Kai was good. his crying scenes are good too. their banterings were entertaining.

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don’t know what went wrong

dropped this after ep17.

a show with very good start. the sisters arc, I wish they delve more on the ML arc too and him sending her to school, writer, you can expand all this, make her grow in terms of gaining manners and powers.

while the sister flourishes as a physician, the other one have to endure the loss of her future husband and go and find his shards when they arent yet showing affection towards each other? bridge of fate? yeah, whatever. or chemistry issue btw both leads? I don’t know.

the shards arc was where I decided to drop the show entirely because this arc is too early and I’m not feeling the FL. does she have feelings for him? the stares ain’t making it up.

I appreciate the humor the show portrayed. but as each episode passed, the story flow got worst.

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Not bad but not that great either

I hardly watch modern cdramas for their fillers and unnecessary scenes. because of “one and only” I came here with open mind that the modern version have to omit the reincarnation theme due to censorship. thus, I watched without much expectations.

there are few things that bugged me throughout the show.

1) story of junior nanchen which was changed into a story instead of her real past life memories. how that tie to the ending when ZSC read what she wrote in the book and when she woke up, narrated what she dreamt. it’s disjointed, knowing in the show, it’s based on “story” so it felt like she had this fantasy or fetish (lol) towards ZSC.

2) supporting characters. honestly, some are fine but characters like Wenchuan is questionable. he seems like a lingering emo guy who don’t appear much then suddenly he’s going full bad guy. those good ones are Mei Xing, Uncle Lin and the stepmother. but still I just feel it’s not enough?

3) acting. I know the leads shot this first before “one and Only” the chemistry for both dramas were on fire but I guess due to the plot that’s not driving them anywhere, they seemed to shine lesser here. also, abit of personal opinion about RJL’s line delivery. as episodes goes by, hearing him sigh at every sentences made me tired too lol. Bailu here is just okay.

even though the pacing is much slower than the other drama, I managed to finish it means it’s quite a nice show to give a try but won’t be something I’ll rewatch.

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2024 unexpected gem

saw snippets on tiktok and decided to give a try. only to finish it within 2 days, enjoyed every single episode.

a solid story accompanied by stunning visual cinematography. some might think it’s choppy because some scenes doesn’t seem to add up but I didnt feel anything out of place, in fact, the consistency the drama delivered from ep1-10.

do Hwan mentioned that this drama is like a road trip. in fact from the start, the drama brought us along on their journey, wandering without destination (sailing without a map <- rmbr Start Up, anyone?). this is more about their journey rather than focus on each character and their backstory, which is why throughout the whole drama, I didn’t mind when they didn’t focus too much on their past and history because it’s all about living in the present.

some mentioned that this drama is like uncontrollably fond v2.0. that drama was pure depression. lol.

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not bad but there’s room for improvement

I’ve waited for this show since last year.

because two reasons. one is Ren Jialun and another it’s about demon hunter and fantasy element. I had high expectations.

I was quite disappointed tbh. it was here and there. I expect more gritty and compact storyline and each arc.

my fav arc from this story definitely was the painting arc. it was the best out of all.

bring a fan of fighting scenes, this show fell short. terribly. RJL had a lot of still cuts after stunts and I thought that was a lazy editing. come on, show real fight. there’s not one memorable fight in here. even the choreography is slow at some parts.

being a demon hunter, I expect his character to be more fleshed out. in terms of his capabilities and personality. I know RJL’s strength and weaknesses, having watched his drama since Under the Power, this time he used his own voice, it was much better than his voice in burning flame BUT he still need to improve on his line delivery. there are times, he needs to work on his expression.

the problem of having a much fleshed out male character than the FL, is the FL stop growing and became stagnant. yes they love each other and such but I’m not feeling it deep. I have to thank Song Zuer’s acting that saved her character. this girl nailed it.

the problem of doing fantasy drama, the elements to play around is huge, yet I’m just seeing 30-40% in here. this is my 2nd time watching the director’s work (1st was eternal love and yes I skipped a lot at some scenes).

who was the standout character for me in this story?
Zi Kong.
every time he appeared on screen, it was magnetic. and his fighting scenes were solid.

this guy was a child actor whom i watched his some of his shows when i was a kid. and yes, he does practice martial arts irl so his fighting scene looked real.

while there’s lot of flaws and unpolished elements, this show wasn’t a total lost cause and there’s a room for improvement. I have to commend RJL for taking a DIFFERENT role rather than a Prince or king (he was the carefree Lin Jing and no nonsense Nalan Yue in A lifetime of love). it was a fresh air for me.

all in all not bad but can be better.

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one of the best underrated xianxia.

honestly, years ago I did try went into this show but it was boring. and, heard about people said it was boring and also the criticisms about the actress’ looks.

went into it again few days ago, and by ep3 I was already quite interested to proceed. as episodes went by, I was quite amazed by how I didn’t even fast forward any single scenes until the end. compared to other xianxia I’ve watched, many were unnecessary filler scenes or misunderstandings that keeps piling up just to torture the viewing experience.

story
while many think first arc was boring, it was the base to understand the characters and while they solidify the main characters, the supporting characters were good too. then second arc, my fav arc, my fav couple. and those side couples didn’t disappoint too. I love Qingmu & Houchi. their love was much deeper compared to BJ&SG. things they do for each other and things they went through together. and that’s why the scene she stabbed him, it was really heartbreaking and sad. all those feelings, both side carried. ugh, my tears.
one thing I wish to praise is the villain. it was not those one dimensional villain. but a villain that stem from somewhere relatable in human nature. Wu Huan reminded me so much of Jin Guangyao from untamed. and to show how she grew from being a maid, to the ultimate villain and her downfall. it was just amazing journey.

acting
this is my 2nd XK’s drama. he’s good here as usual. sad boy is his forte tbh.

Zhou Dongyu. can I say this girl is amazing? like really. apart from some scenes where she smiled too much until I thought she did bloopers or something. her acting is damn solid. her smiles were really sweet, her crying scenes were heartbreaking.

OST
Ugh, this drama has one of best range of OST. Mao buyi, Ah Lin… just wonderful.

CGI
my previous drama was Shenli. while it was good, ALP was one level higher. it’s much big scale. see those dragons, qiongqi, Kylin etc it shows a lot.

ALP is one of the best xianxia I’ve seen. while following tropes here and there, what I appreciate here was the storytelling and believable characters. they don’t waste on any scenes and that is already one of contributing factor of a good production.

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interesting start but later part it just okay

I was fully invested in first 5 episodes. how first love theme played and somehow lost each other only to find each other back but fate came in between us.

back then I tried this show because of the writer (she wrote my fav I’m sorry I love you, nice guy and uncontrollably fond), but I found it slow and boring.

however this time I watched 5 episodes at 1 sitting and I was hooked. it wasn’t until the hospice arc started I felt everything started to get diluted.

I don’t really feel much attracted to characters in the hospice. perhaps except for the director’s ex wife. the rest just seems plain? the only one that teared me up was Jiyong.

also the hospital and the family scenes honestly was unnecessary. really.

I felt many things weren’t satisfying. for example towards the end, ML got to know the woman in the rubbles was his mother. I felt that arc was put in too late. Cha young’s mother reappeared and then Cha young decided to disappear for a while, like why?

when Cha young said she’s going to tell a story. it gave me an impression that what if ML self blame himself because all this while she didn’t love Min Seong but him? and he was the reason Min Seong and her broke up? doesn’t she think of this? and ML said let’s pretend there’s no Min Seong and just two of them. hey what?????

now, the characters.
Lee Kang, I feel his character has been consistent. from a cheerful, kind boy, the family transformed him into unhappy, serious, no smile, but he still kind inside. I can feel he’s surviving not living his life. it was until at the hospice he gradually begun to change. soft, subtle but obvious. I’m new to yoon kye sang and I felt he has this natural delivery. I like his depiction of Lee Kang. not too much.

Cha Young.
she’s gullible, easily tricked. kind. high empathy. one thing I don’t like about her was she’s just too kind that her own brother and mother took advantage of her. what I wish is for her to get out of this and live her own life. honestly her brother was annoying but (show not good at painting he’s also suffering). and in the show she got hurt so many times for weird and nonsense reason. go up to up the hill to pick up raspberries, come on. just buy! this is plot convenience. she paid for her mum’s meals at that homestay, I just cannot brain Cha Young. does she hates or yearn her mother?

Lee Jun.
I swear this guy has always feel conflicted since he’s a kid. pitting against Kang. his parents and grandma put him through these. I like his development and when he got to know about his father’s birth origin and how he himself was treated as a tool to agitate Kang, the change in him was not sudden but understandable. Seung Jo has electrifying eyes. whenever something happened, looking at his eyes doesn’t tell only single emotion but many.

overall not a bad show but can be much better, improving on the healing aspect.

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a hero to people that matters

I just finished ep40, cried so badly.

I think this show has quite a good balance of political and the slow burn romance. in addition, the political setup was not boring and flows very consistently.

i felt this has to be one of RJL’s best works in recent years after One and Only. he’s just brilliant in historical dramas.

I love Wei Zhao. his character is layered and complex. from a villain, to a hero (to Yueluo and his close comrades), he went through A LOT. he went through physical and emotional hurdles, had to face his enemy everyday, always be alert, help the Yueluo slaves, this guy didn’t rest at all. like Yu Lian said, he’s someone who doesn’t feel pain at all. he’s numb to it. it’s saddening to see a young promising guy like him endured such a life.

I thought his death served the purpose. because he fought all his life for one thing - to free Yueluo from all the slavery and policies put on them. he learnt from his father that ultimately it’s protecting the lives of people in Yueluo that matters the most.

Ci is the light to his darkness. a light that shines on the path he took so he wouldn’t be lonely. she’s always there for him. never left. Ci is smart and independent, and she’s also emotionally strong. she lost people in her life yet she’s resilient living her life.

Pei Yan is such a interesting character BUT why the show wasted on him being love brain most of the time? him working together with Wei Zhao was one of his best highlights and him siding with Yueluo, is just so amazing!

overall it was a really nice show.

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