You may get confused at the beginning of the drama : two stories are crossed and don't follow any chronological time. The two stories main characters are also played on purpose by the same actors. You do need clues in order to follow the plot. As soon as you think you understand the 2 stories connections, next episode events may change it all and you really have to put all the different pieces you've been given at the right place to get the puzzle completed ! You willl finally really understand this extraordinary love story only on last episode.
Mistery and suspense give a big value to this drama and the storyline is rather very well handled. The director does a real great job making us hanging to the plot and getting involved with the characters and thrilling events. Traveling through time has to do with both an evil music tape player and Wu Bai's song "Last dance".
To me, the story key point is Chen Yun Ru, a 17 years old student whose life is not what she is expecting to be. She is lonely and depressed because nobody seems to care about her, nor even her family. She thinks that her existence is unnoticed. She has no friends and hates the whole world but hide her real feelings. Only Wu Bai's song Last dance makes her feel less uneasy in her life and can comfort her. She doesn't take any chance in getting to know her classroom mates and wears earphones whenever she can. Actually, a senior student, Mo Jun Jie, has noticed her and is interested in her. Mo Jun Jie is shy and his friend Li Zi Wei helps him to meet the girl. Those 3 become friends. One day, Chen Yun Ru wakes up in hospital because of a car accident. From that moment, things will definitely change for her and her two friends. She pretends now to her friends to be Huang Yu Xuan a 27 years old, mature, self-confident and communicative girl. The important point is that Huang Yu Xuan does exist and lives in 2019 while Chen Yun Ru lives in 1998. Here begins traveling through times loops that will eventually end when things turn back to what they were originally supposed to be.
If you don't like watching love stories this drama is not for you. If you like mystery, solving enigma through space and time you may find this drama quite thrilling and addictive. Actors are cute and good performers, a very good drama indeed.
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There are 2 parts in this drama which are quite unequal. Personnaly, I did find the first part really brilliant, original and catchy in getting to know the characters and their story. The main characters are so good and so many things happen to them. There are different clans with different aims and values, good ones and bad ones. You really get involved in the story, loving or disliking the different characters, feeling sorry, moved or angry with some of them.
I really appreciated interactions between Wei Wu Xian and his sister and brother. Alghough, Wei Wu Xian is an adopted child, his sister Jiang Shi ( Xuan Lu) is really the only one who fully understands him, trusts him and supports him whatever happens. Xuan Lu and Xiao Zhan have great chemestry and their scenes are one of the best of this drama. Jiang Shi is more than a sister, more than a mother to him, she really loves him and the feeling is shared, they are so protective to each other. This makes her sibling brother Jiang Cheng (Wang Zhou Cheng) a bit jealous because he would like to be the only one Wei Wu Xian would truely care for. So of course when Wei Wu Xian and Lan Zhan (Wang Yi Bo) become sworn brothers, Jiang Cheng will feel bad and cheated. Wei Wu Xian's character is sensitive, honest, caring but untamed. He wants to think out things by himself and mainly listen to its heart. He will sacrifice a lot for his brother (without this one knowing it) and this is the clue point that will lead Wei Wu Xian becoming Li Ying Demonic Patriarche, leaving his sword for the flute.
The first part of this drama really moves you and it's all terrific. Alghough you have plenty of nice and funny scenes, you also have terrible ones and finally it's quite sad in the end. Then comes the second part of the drama, with new characters and lots of good looking boys ! You won't find female leads aymore and this is bad because female characters brought so much to the first part of the drama. I was less interested by this part, still I was eager to know how the drama would end.
The important point in the second part of the drama is that Wei Wu Xian and Lan Zhan are now sharing a real brotherhood bond mainly because Lan Zhan is feeling guilty for not having supported him before and for mistrusting Wei Wu Xian's personnality and judgement. Also because Wei Wu Xian is now alone and hides his true identity : only Lan Zhan recognized him at fist glance no matter he was wearing a mask. They are now following the same path fighting together hand in hand to solve puppets mystery, evil doings and bring back peace among the clans. Lan Zhan has changed, he is now supportive, caring and protective. Are those 2 in love ? Bromance or what else ? You will have to make your own point of view.
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I was very interested in the main love triangle with all the misunderstandings, hurtings, evil thoughts and wrong doings while progressing. I skipped the support roles love stories, because I couldn't get interested in those.
This drama is emotional with pleasant happy moments and upsetting ones. Somehow, it really moves you and your inner own is touched. In this drama, no one is complety right nor completely wrong, and you will hate the ones you loved and vice versa. I rewatched plenty of scenes of this drama, the lovely ones, the terrible ones and the awkward ones ! The sound track is really amazing and fits perfectly to this drama. Great director, great actors.
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Do you want to watch a fashion show ? You'll get it !
This Drama is quite disappointing unless you watch it for the actors, the settings and the costumes.UI is nothing less than a Top model, so beautifully dressed.... I swear you would like to wear every dress, shoes and hats she is in ! You will envy her slim silhouette and beautiful hair styles.
About the story ? Nothing interesting indeed, not even the main love story. I admit that there are some good moments but nothing that will make you think that this drama is a must watch one.
The OST is really good, very sentimental : I loved it.
If you love fashion shows and top models, this drama should make you happy... unless you can't stand ghosts and evil spirits...
You won't miss a lot if you don't watch this drama, every actor was very good though.
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This review may contain spoilers
Thrilling, convincing storyline and characters
This drama is quite unique from the very start !We are not used to watch a costume drama where a Scholar buries his wife alive at the very beginning of the plot ! Yet, she survives ! This first episode is quite impressive and striking. I watched the first 5 episodes in a row. Sure you get to think that this drama is something else… Thrilling till the end, good to watch for the plots and the actors.
You dive into a story where greed, revenge, change of identity, manipulations of all kinds are mixed with the eternal notions of status and power, love and hate, righteousness and madness. But above all, you have here a female strategist who fights for justice, she is an avenger!
Yes, women can be as clever as men, as evil as men. Yes, whoever you are and however you act, there is always an explanation for inappropriate or evil behaviors. Still, can everything be forgiven just because you have a good reason to act the way you do ? FL will win it all, redemption is on its way…NOTHING CAN STOP AN AVENGER ! Nothing can stop a psychopath either…
ML is the emperor’s strategist and military general. He investigates attempts to overthrow the emperor and at first will use FL as a pawn. From the very beginning he understands that she is not an ordinary woman. He knows her real identity and admires her way of thinking which is just as his. They have the same « destination » as he says. He is also quite impressed by FL. Of course, they fell in love and get married on last episode... It’s heart warming watching the two together. They have good chemistry. Their love is not passionate, they are rather soul mates. They do understand each other and have the same values.
This drama also grants us with many moving scenes. Wu Jin Yan is really good in moving us very deeply. She is a very talented actress. Wang Qing Yue is very well filmed, XIAO Heng’s character fits him very well. He is quite appealing in here. This may be his best drama so far.
Some people think this drama has a happy ending... Maybe because of the extra episode ? I haven't watched it nor intend to watch it.
On episode 40, Xiao Heng dies on batllefield with his trusty right-hand men (it is so sad). He won’t come back even though FL hopes to see him back and awaits for him under the tree they planted together. He should be back, riding a white horse as a true hero of war but this is her hopeless wish.
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Good always triumphs over evil, it's a matter of time. Do you buy this ?
Based on a novel, this drama is one of the most interesting c-drama I have ever watched.Directors and actors are brilliant ! The production gave it all to offer a high quality drama with wonderfull soundtrack, beautiful scenery and costumes and a very clever storyline.
We are in a chess game. We are not only watchers, we are part of the drama and are with the characters we choose to support. Are you moved by the emperor ? The beautiful piece taker ? The mad eunuch Qiu Ziliang ? The willful Sword Holder ? Any other character ? What are their real story ? Are they the ones we think they are at first ? There are hidden identities, there are secrets, there are plots, there are nice sword fights, there are struggles for power, there are human affections shared or not, there are mentally ill people.. There is amnesia, there is love, there is revenge.
There is no time for getting bored. There is action and emotion. We do understand everyone's point of view and intentions. That's what makes this drama so valuable.
Actors are at their best : they fit so well with their characters ! At first, I was not quite happy with ZhangYuxi's way of acting, but finally she was just astonishing ! Cheng Yi, Xuan Lu and Mickey He were as usual terrific. Michey He gives his all to incarnate a paranoid eunuch with bloodthirsty power. Thumbs up !
I enjoyed watching this show, I really didn't waste my time !
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This review may contain spoilers
Is this drama worth watching ? Definitely nof if you like deep thrilling love stories or real good martial arts fights and values. Still, it's worth watching if you are Arthur Chen or Dylan Xiong's fan or if you go for brotherhood stories with Wuxia background.What is really disappointing in this drama is wuxia itself. We have in here something that is quite opposite to wuxia and martial arts world's values. Aren't martial artists cultivating all life through to become masters and wise people with good intentions and aims (when they don't follow an evil path) ? Has cultivation anything to do with blood specificity ? We are in this story in a confused storyline where the hero (Lu Ping, the awakening guy) is born with 6 inner QI. Only every 1000 years you will have such a prodigal child ! So you have a baby developping innate martial strength ... but such a power is meant to kill him. So what do you think his parents, who are astonishing martial heroes themselves are going to do ? They will seal his powers... in order to keep him safe ?...instead of helping him to cultivate, develop and master his innate gifted powers. With such a fate, Lu Ping will have his parents killed, no childhood, noone to protect him. When baby, this genius is kidnapped by an evil sect (Shanhai) that is just interested in his blood to make experiments in order to grow powerful soldiers and rule the world ! In Shanhai, Lu Ping is imprisoned in a cage and he is nothing else but a suffering laboratoy rat ! Is that a wuxia hero ? A Marvel hero? Everything but a hero ?
The story begins three years after Lu Ping and Su Tang escaped from Shanhai sect. They are training in an institute to become martial artists. Su Tang is considered as Lu Ping's sister, but she is not and we won't know anything about her background and why she was imprisoned in a cage just like Lu Ping. They shared the same childhood and their relationship is just like siblings who are keeping a secret... How funny they won't develop love feelings, or at least Lu Ping won't allow this to happen. Are we in a chinese drama ?
What is great in the storyline is how we get interested in these two characters. We want to know who they are and what is Lu Ping's secret ? Who is he ? We'll get the answer (quite disappointing) Who is she ? We will never know. Who cares ? She is not the hero in here !!! Very bad point, really, and this shows how the whole story has been built.
Now, we have brotherhood, 3 love couples, martial arts academy competitions, revenge that is not real revenge, revenge that will fail (bad luck for the vilain Prince of Dan/Shanhai Master) and later war plot for kingdom, blood transfusions, puppets, sacrifice and much more !
Honestly, the love storylines are rather rubbish or clichés. Lu Ping falls for Qin Sang and it's just ridiculous : how can a man who has suffered all his life and has no aristocratic values fall for an arrogant noble young lady ? Just because she is a martial artist ? Or because young noble girls are supposed to be very attractive even when they aren't ? We don't believe in this faked romance and there is too poor chemestry between the two actors ... We are granted
with the most awkward faked kiss in all c-drama history (ep #45) ! Great laughable moment ! The only couple who is interesting is Su Tang with Mo Lin, because Mo Lin is really in love and do his best to make Su Tang love and marry him. This couple is here to bring some comedy to the show and we like it. Both actors Ancy Deng and Jerry Yu are quite good, maybe this drama best actors with Hong-Konger Gwan Ho. I won't say anything about the third couple who is a real nonsens. By the way, who understands what this maid Ling Zyhan brings to the story ? Honestly, Xifan alone with no lover would have been so much better... authors could have enhenced his friendship and bromance with Lu Ping.
I'd better stop criticizing this drama, I have watched all of it. Surprisingly, never felt bored with the story progression, just annoyed with the storyline flaws and lack of chemestry between actors...
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Gods as stupid as commoners, ridiculous storyline
I've tried my best to watch this drama but I really can't go on ! Those Gods who are supposed to be GODS are just stupid or childish, what a nonsense ! Sorry, I can't take it. Characters are just cliché and I can't see any interest in the story which seems very stereotypal to me.Further more, I had great expectations with the lead actors but there is no chemistry between Xu Kai and Zhou Dong Yu whose characters are meant to be in love.
Xu Kai's acting is terrible in here, no great acting at all ! Being handsome isn't enough.... Storyline and characters are just ridiculous. Zhou Dong Yu is doing a good job though, how can we explain this ?!
Settings and outfits are rather nice, the OST is not bad : those are the onlly positive points I can see.
This drama is really overrated !
Forget about it !
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