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The Weakest Link in the Saga
From Eastern Heretic and Western Venom, Southern Emperor & Northern Beggar to The Five, the bar was high — and Nine Yin couldn’t reach it.
Weak script, poor character adaptation, and a lead performance that undermines the drama’s emotional weight.
I went into Duel on Mount Hua: Nine Yin True Sutra with high hopes, having enjoyed a lot other installments. Unfortunately, this one left me deeply disappointed, and much of that comes down to the performance of the actress portraying Mei Chaofeng.
I’ve seen her before in Princess Gambit, and here she delivers the exact same acting “face” — mostly widening her eyes — without any real emotional depth. In Nine Yin True Sutra, she fails to convey Mei Chaofeng’s inner turmoil or psychological complexity. Compared to the other actors, many of whom give layered and compelling performances, she feels totally out of place. I would give her a 2/10 for acting, but because the rest of the cast does raise the overall level, my overall score is slightly higher.
The script’s pacing is another problem. It drags in places, and with only eight episodes, it still manages to feel padded. Honestly, this could have been told in 5–6 episodes. I found myself skipping entire scenes.
The contrast with other anthology entries is stark. Nine Yin True Sutra, by comparison, feels like the weakest link in the series.
Weak script, poor character adaptation, and a lead performance that undermines the drama’s emotional weight.
I went into Duel on Mount Hua: Nine Yin True Sutra with high hopes, having enjoyed a lot other installments. Unfortunately, this one left me deeply disappointed, and much of that comes down to the performance of the actress portraying Mei Chaofeng.
I’ve seen her before in Princess Gambit, and here she delivers the exact same acting “face” — mostly widening her eyes — without any real emotional depth. In Nine Yin True Sutra, she fails to convey Mei Chaofeng’s inner turmoil or psychological complexity. Compared to the other actors, many of whom give layered and compelling performances, she feels totally out of place. I would give her a 2/10 for acting, but because the rest of the cast does raise the overall level, my overall score is slightly higher.
The script’s pacing is another problem. It drags in places, and with only eight episodes, it still manages to feel padded. Honestly, this could have been told in 5–6 episodes. I found myself skipping entire scenes.
The contrast with other anthology entries is stark. Nine Yin True Sutra, by comparison, feels like the weakest link in the series.
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