OneLuffy

Definitely Lay is the best teacher :D - he definitely knows what he is doing & how to relay that information to the other trainees to help them improve.

Yes I agree, I wished that the mentors would give real professional comments about each performance. Like their criticism just seemed too basic like something a regular person in the audience would say. It makes me feel like they don't know what they are doing - and just makes it seem they are too nice. Which is nice for the trainee but how are they going to improve if u don't give some constructive criticism & show them where they are lacking. The only way for someone to be great - is not by telling them what they are great at but what are they lacking in so they can concentrate on that & fix it.

Like I have seen the first episode of (part of it lol) Chuang 2020 & Tao & Luhan were actually giving harsh criticism - so I don't think its the format. But I could be wrong & maybe they are just trying a different method this year.

So, after I wrote this comment I checked on Chuang 2020 to see how the mentors critiqued the performance. And I could immediately tell the difference between the 2 groups of mentors. Luhan & Tao gave great analysis of the girls performances - by actually using terminology such as base, pitch, timbre, etc. but in this season I don't think any one of the mentors once even mentioned those terms. They gave lazy comments such as "it was good, I liked it" or "that wasn't good" - I mean they could at least go in more depth. There were international participants in the 2020 version - yes I only saw parts of the first episode but it is quite obvious that the mentors were more stict in the last episode compared to this one.

I think we can both agree that we both have different opinions - ur opinion of the mentors differ from mine. I am a bit more skeptical in the amount of contributions they are making. I mean that is perfectly fine - I respect ur opinion but I still stick to my assessment of the show which leads me to believe that the mentors aren't really partaking in the actual development of the trainees. It's just a difference of perception, nothing else. I mean u might have a point that the shows format is not showing me what I desire - but that then leads to how am I supposed to know they are doing something if they aren't showing it. I can only make an assessment from the information they give me - hence why I believe that the mentors aren't that great. Especially since 2 of the mentors just got into a girl/boy group. Zhou Zhen in 2019 and Nene was in last season of Chuang 2020 - they should not have made the cut of being a mentor. That isn't enough time to be able to judge someone else.

Idk the whole thing with Nine really rubbed me the wrong way - granted if u r right about the off key part, they could have at least mentioned some of the criticism at the end. Besides for telling him that u lost points or u didn't do it well - if ur already okay with saying ur not impressed then u should also be willing to tell the person why. Like the reason I bring up Yixing is because when he told the trainees why he believed their performance was weak - he would always tell them why. It would be simple & short but at least they know where they went wrong. Nine basically is standing there looking awkward because all the mentors just said "ur bad" - without going into it. And to top it off when he won MVP - they just continued with wow I don't think u deserved it - that is absolutely wrong in every aspect. Like 1. u don't give a reason for why his performance is bad & 2. u continue belittling his win of an MVP. Like it was so obvious they wanted Patrick to win & just were mad that Nine got it instead.

Of course this is just my personal opinion so it will differ from how u perceive it. So, u might think how I think is totally wrong - which is okay & completely understandable. And I don't think I was putting Riki on a high pedestal lol, but again I understand if u perceived the way I wrote it to give that kind of conclusion. I just believed his level of ability far exceeds the other trainees & I personally believe that he should be a mentor rather than a trainee. Mainly because I think he is a better mentor than some of the mentors on stage - again this is all just my opinion so please don't perceive it wrong like I am stating it as factual.

I heard that rumor a lot - do u have any speculation for why they are doing that? I mean it doesn't make any sense unless they are deliberately trying to ruin the drama or something.

Ughh I honestly hate Long Dani - she treats the people in her agency so poorly. If she is behind it - I wouldn't be surprised. Especially since she probably hates Xiao Zhan - since he proved her wrong that someone "old" couldn't be successful.

I want to go on a bit of a rant.

1. Rikimaru deseres to get PAID. This man literally spends his time learning the routine but then also helps his fellow trainees learn their routine as well. I have seen him teach more than the actual mentors have - which is completely sad because that is what they are getting paid to do.

2. Which leads me to #2 - the mentors of this show SUCK. I don't want to be mean or rude but I haven't seem any sign of them teaching the trainees. It literally feels like the kids are on their own to find ways to succeed without any help from the selected mentors. Like I haven't watched the season before this but looking at the MDL page for it - the mentors that were selected look like they have experience. There is Victoria Song & 2 guys that were from the same group as Zhang Yixing. Now, Zhang Yixing was a perfect mentor in Idol Producer - he knows what he is doing & was able to teach the trainees what their faults were & how to fix them. The mentors over here can't even give a detailed assessment of what the trainees are doing wrong or right - just give a casual comment that a normal audience member would give. Like excuse me, ur a professional mentor that should be able to give a better analysis than what ur giving - clearly shows that these people are not qualified to be mentors. I mean I understand they can't be as great as Yixing with teaching but these people haven't made any kind of contribution.

3. Mentors are way tooo BIAS in my opinion - which makes them unqualified to be judges/mentors. I think it was episode 1 or 2 when Patrick & Nine were performing. It was really obvious that the mentors had already formed a bias for Patrick - so when it came to the Bonus round they totally blew off Nine. I found it absolutely ridiculous that when Nine sang the song for his Bonus round most of the mentors said he LOST points for it - mind u he sang the sound beautifully. However, they never went into detail of why he lost points or why they believed the way he sang his song wasn't done well. They just said "oh sorry, u lost points - we don't think u did it well". LIKE WHAT? How about u give the kid a reason besides for saying he lost points. And I felt so bad for him because the rest of the trainees voted for him so he won MVP - and the mentors were all shocked like OMG I can't believe u won over Patrick. Like EXCUSE ME?! That was absolutely ridiculous & I felt so bad for him because he didn't know if he should be happy or not because the mentors were absolutely TRASH & kept saying he didn't deserve it. I am not saying Patrick is bad but comparing bonus rounds - Nine was definitely better & that is why the other trainees voted for him.

Again, going back to Yixing's Idol Producer - Jackson Wang had many friends that were performing for that show. But he never allowed it to cloud his judgment or favor them over the other idols - which is extremely respectable. Like if someone was better than someone else - he would clearly state it & give rankings according to how someone performed & not because he liked someone over another.

4. The only great thing about this show are the trainees. Some of them are great & very sweet - I just wished they had better mentors that would actually help them thrive. Hopefully the guest mentors are a lot better. Idk how this year the mentors are so bad while last year they seem to be great.

5. Rikimaru deserves to get paid. Yes I said this point already but he really needs to get paid. Dude works way too hard & is doing the mentors job.

Edit:
I feel like maybe some people might perceive this wrongly. Yes I believe the mentors "suck" - but that does not mean I think they are bad singers, dancers, etc. I just don't think they are great teachers - after all not everyone can teach. I have several professors who are very smart in their field but when it comes to teaching the class - I am better off studying alone lol. So, no knock on the mentors abilities - just don't think that they are capable teachers. This of course is my opinion - so others might think they are great teachers. It is all a difference of opinion and how others view it.

Now the rumors are saying it might release in August/Summer time. *Face Palm*

Tencent really got some nerves though lol. Back in December, they had Xiao Zhan & Yang Zi sing the OST's for this drama. But then literally went radio silence after that. Like WHY DO THAT TO US? They gave people hope - just to take it away lol. Messed up!

Wen Qing & Jiang Yan Li don't really have a relationship - they spoke to each other maybe a few times but nothing else. Unless u meant to ask about the relationship of Wen Qing & Jiang Cheng?

Yea I tried watching it again after 6 months but when I put the first episode on I could still remember each detail. So I was like yea maybe I need to hold out still lol. I really want to watch it but I want to be able to experience it like I did the first time - people who are watching this drama for the first time are definitely very lucky.

Idk how u can just watch 2 or 3 episodes lol. When I rewatched it I was like okay just 2 episodes but then hours later I had finished the 10th episode & just couldn't stop lol.

I didn't start WOH but have heard it's doing well. I just feel nothing will be able to replace the Untamed for me - like I have watched other dramas & none of them give the same captivating aura that this drama had. It has every element that someone could be looking for: mystery, romance, PAIN, comedy, etc. Like out of all the C-dramas I have seen this is still #1.

That is true - and the sad part is that sometimes the people who actually studied theater would be a supporting role while someone who is an "idol" would be main. But sadly that has to do with entertainment - the better looking u r the better chance u have of actually getting far. Well it does make sense for professional actors to not take big IPs since they are already famous & there work speaks for themself. And I also feel like big IP's tend to fall under more criticism especially if u get it wrong. I just wished they would at least make it so that the people acting in those big IP's took some acting lessons for a few months before doing the project. Like it starts to look very cringe worthy when some people do it.

Yea u r right about XZ being a bit of a perfectionist & he seems to be very loyal. So, if the director asked him to then maybe he would just come back. I kind of don't want him to because I feel like this drama needs him more than he needs the drama. Especially since his female lead is very lack luster & doesn't really help him - rather just hurts the scene. But I am also okay if he decides to retake the role but just hope that there is a female lead change lol. As u can tell - I really do not like the female lead lol.

I feel people should ignore minor flaws in general lol. Like when I watched the Untamed, I also noticed some faults but it was still a great drama that in the end I ignored it. I feel when people overanalyze dramas it tends to take away from the enjoyment of watching a drama. Of course if the faults are blatant & the story is also average than yes it will probably take points off from the ratings overall.

I feel in the case for the Guardian - they probably were hoping that the fans of the book might give them a pass because they know that censorship won't allow it. Like the thing they replaced it with was probably just a placeholder - but they were hoping people would still believe it was the reincarnation aspect & ancient gods so maybe that is why they didn't go into details. But who knows. I feel like sometimes with big IPs they tend to get lazy in general - and just hope that the drama will get by just because of the loyal fans. Which is why I never believe big IPs will do well when they get adapted because u do need a good director & scriptwriter still - but they ignore those criteria & just hope for the best.

Lol, u know that makes sense with censorship. Like sometimes I watch certain dramas & I am like how did this even pass censorship. But what u say makes sense. As long as what they are doing isn't written out in detail & just vague - the chances of it passing censorship is a lot greater. Whoever found a way to get the Untamed pass though was a damn genius - like they still had the BL elements in it as long as u paid attention to it but if ur an outsider than u probably would miss it. It was beautifully done & that person deserves a raise lol.

Anyone else waiting to rewatch because they watched it so many times the first go around that they can practically recite the entire drama?

So, now they have to wait & hope to get selective amnesia in order to experience this drama the same way they did the first go around.

Ahhh ur talking about that one. Out of those events I preferred the white blazer look lol. But the red & white one was also nice.

Douyin night still the best lol! The baggy look just suits him.

The red & white one from his New Years Eve look?

I don't think I love it super super short like for the army but like the length he has now is actually perfect. Gives him a very mature look.

Best look is still Douyin Night! But agree the short hair definitely gives off a different kind of charm - like I wasn't into it in the beginning but the more I see it, the more I wish he doesn't grow it back fully. Keep it at this length.

I mean some people have great work ethic that they can learn on the job & do it even better than people who have had years of experience. It kind of shows that he doesn't just rely on his good looks but wants his acting to speak for him. I mean I love eye candies (who doesn't lol?) but I think if the person has such bad acting no matter how good looking he is, he is just going to be forgettable.

Well the ones that cast idols probably have a low budget drama to begin with. So, at the end they probably still make some kind of profit because the fan base even it out & the passerbys will make the profit portion. It's kind of like horror movies lol - the budget is like 50 grand but when it hits box office they make like 5 million. So, its super profitable & why so many horror movies get made lol. But of course none of them are master pieces - & don't deserve to be lol.

Well, maybe u will stick to it or maybe u will find something else u will love lol. Hopefully u don't overdose too much - it's always good to have interests after all. I personally am too lazy to get too attached to anything lol. I feel the ones who go extreme - at least will be able to gain some kind of talent/experience from it because they wanted to learn about it. Like even if u fall out of it - at least u will have learned a new language.

I agree with you I think that for "better" plot development they decided to make Tang San selectively smart - but I think they do that in a lot of shows. Where the person is said to be smart - but then they will do something that is totally out of character. Yea I think directors are always very hands on - that is why in a lot of cases if a project has a bad director a lot of people will think it will suck & most of the time it does lol. But, ehhh to be honest the actress for Xiao Wu has gotten on the "idc list". Pretty much I think she isn't a good actress & I will do my best to avoid her like the plague lol. Like there are a lot of actresses I have seen that do the cute role - & I don't think they are annoying because they do it well. Even in this drama I feel Rong Rong did a better job than Xiao Wu. But oh wells.

Damn, ur making me want to kind of watch Guardian mainly because I want to see why u think it was so terrible lol. But I also don't want to waste my time on something bad lol. Okay, so from what you said about what the book entails - I can see why it turned out bad. It literally has so many things that would get hit with censorship lol. Surprised they even thought it was a good idea to adapt it in the first place. Like yes, Untamed was a BL novel but except for that there wasn't much else that needed to be censored. So, as long as they were very down low with the bromance they would have gotten pass the censorship board. But guardian had to deal with reincarnation, ancient gods & BL - yea I can guess they probably did a lot to fix the story. And the biggest ambigous moral - that is an automatic BAN. I know so many american movies had to be severelly edited because of the moral issue before it could air in China & some just were banned overall.

I don't think it has anything to do with connections lol. China banned Brokeback Mountain - which is about 2 men. But the director was Asian & won an award for it & China actually congratulated him for winning the award but still banned the movie LOL. Which I thought was funny - it's like "Congrats for winning the award BUT we still not showing it here" LOL.

I think it might be scheduling problems. Like they probably want them back but most voice actors probably do more than 1 drama so they probably don't have time to go back & fix whatever issue they have. That is why I don't know why they don't have the original actor just do the voice overs - it's weird they even dub it in the first place. And probably also money - like they don't want to spend so much money on getting them back so might as well use someone cheaper who is on hand. But could very well just be laziness as well lol - like I feel if they edited it properly then they could fix the issue to the point where it is passable. But sometimes the editing is so bad & obvious - ur just like ummm how did no one see this wasn't done properly. Like they must have watched it and realized that the editing was bad - no way they didn't review it before airing the whole thing. So, clearly there were some elements of pure laziness.

Yea like stated Sword of Brocade is #1 right now but WOH is also able to be competitive & very popular at the same time. Which shows more than 1 drama can be popular at the same time - so doubt Tencent is worried about the competition with other popular dramas.

Also, this drama has both Yang Zi & Xiao Zhan - with just the name of those 2 this drama will be quite popular. Yang Zi is a SUPER popular actress with years of experience & a huge fanbase of her own. So, no matter what the show will be popular regardless of what else will be aired at the same time.

I think it has more to do with Tencent wanting it to be broadcast on TV - & hoping it gets a good TV time slot. Like hoping it will be during prime time - like Douluo was on TV but it was broadcasted at 12 pm - which is a ehh time. I mean it still did great amongst TV dramas (obtaining #1 & getting a re-run) but I think they banking this drama will do amazing & want the best resources for it. That is just my speculation of course - I mean at the end of the day we don't know lol.

Yea u r right about that. I mean if anything it just means we get 2 different pictures of Xiao Zhan lol - not such a bad thing :D. Maybe we can have different pictures for each different project lol.

I did, still the same thing lol. See it on some pages but other pages I get the old picture.

This is definitely the best of all the Grave Robber's series!!!!
It was done absolutely perfectly! I honestly wished the same cast would be able to do the continuation (Volume 8) but I feel that won't be the case since it hasn't happened yet.

I wished at least the actor for Wu Xie & Poker Face would be able to reprise their role if nothing else. They are definitely the best actors for those 2 characters that I have seen thus far.

Tencent really out here testing people's patience lol.

That is very true. I feel idols in general have a success rate of maybe a max of 5 years - if they are lucky. After a while there will be someone newer to take their place. But I guess they make C-dramas just for a short term success & not really hoping it becomes a HIT. Like some people put idols in a drama who can't even act - & ur just sitting there grinding ur teeth like OMG why is this so bad. I know Xiao Zhan used to be an idol - but I think he is the exception & not the rule. Since, he actually put in time & his own money to learn acting. Not all idols would do that - they believe their fame will carry them through it.

I mean watching American TV shows we tend to have to wait a year before the next season - so the wait time isn't really that bad for me. However, I just feel Xiao Zhan won't be coming back for it - he probably wants to do other roles now that he has so many options that he used to not have. And there just so few dramas that actually get the entire cast back for a season 2 - like I watch the Wu Xie series. And each season has an entirely different cast - not a single person reprises their role lol.

I feel Tang San just trusted Xiao Wu too much - & believed she would tell him her secrets when she pleases. So, he never cared much for the hints if they were placed in front of him. But, XW definitely annoyed me because Tang San would tell her every single secret & she didn't once think it was important for her to tell him. She could have prevented so many problems if she just opened her mouth - and she is just soo dumb (ughh). Like she literally walked into the lion's den when she entered the tournament. She didn't think that the Martial Soul Hall people would realize she was a soul beast & try to kill her - she should have done her best to never enter that area.

I mean who knows what they were thinking for the fight scenes. Some of them were good while others did fall short. I am guessing the person who coordinated the fight scenes didn't know what to do or just was constrained. But I know the Untamed had very few fight scense as well - but the story was still absolutely wonderful. So, maybe they thought they didn't need too many fight scenes & relied on the screen writers story telling.

Yea, I totally agree with u on that. Like there are so many dramas I watched & dropped. And I would never rate them because 1. I feel it wouldn't be fair because I didn't watch the entire thing & 2. don't want to ruin the overall rating because I thought the 5 episodes I watched weren't good. However, I feel overall ratings aren't all that (lol) but I know some people do put a lot of consideration when it comes to rating so rather not rate things low when I haven't finished it.

Ahhh, well I am guessing they were hoping the additions to the Guardian might fix the plot overall - however, I feel like it never works out especially when ur doing adaptations. People never enjoy additions to an adaptation - they don't mind taking parts out because a lot of things that are in a book can't really be translated well into a drama/movie. At least I know not to watch Guardian - I was thinking about it because Zhu Yi Long is in it & I hear he is a good actor & I saw him in Reunion:Sound of the Providence. But, seems like ur saying the ending is bad so I might just stay away from it. I don't like watching 40+ episodes & then come to the end & find out its hot garbage - then I will definitely give it a low score.

The plot gaps due to censorship absolutely kill me. Like watching a drama & literally u see a huge gap within the plot & u think u missed something but realize that it is how they edited it. Totally ruins the entire thing - I feel so bad for these directors & drama producers because they have to practically kill their work just so it can pass censorship. But I do agree - if u know what the censorship rules are u should try ur best to avoid those things & never even put it in the script. Just do ur best with what u have & just have great characters with a good story. But I guess they are kind of gambling & hope that the censorship board give them a break & they can keep it as his. But seldom does that ever happen lol.