Saffy88

Watch ZZH going more in-depth about the ZZS and WKX in this interview - it really matches what we're saying about ZZS in this post: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNbQ8z5r1ig

Try messaging Youku - they may fix the issue if enough people send requests. I think that they’ve had to quickly pivot and develop payment portal for non-China residents etc., so they may still be ironing out the kinks. And you could also try and see if issue can be solved using a VPN. Considering that Youku is owned by Alibaba they really shouldn’t be taking this long to cater to interfans.

ZZS/ZZH was the more engaging one for me from the start - his character is just that much more complex and interesting - like a fine wine that gets better all the time.

Youku have just released subbed episodes up to 24 under VIP access. You have to use Apple Pay to pay so use iPhone or iPad to access. The promo package is not expensive.

Youku has released up to ep 24 with subs for VIP access - it currently only accepts apple pay for international subscribers so use ipad or iphone to sign up. See threads above for more details. Sign up for the new subscriber promo package.

Yippeekiyay!!!!! It also works on Ipad - use the Youku HD app and sign up for the promotional package. Quality is full HD up to 1080p - just screen mirror it onto your TV. I guess they finally figured they better cash in on this while it's hot and before Immortality starts...............

12 episodes have already been subbed and are available on youku youtube channel. They will release an episode a day from monday to wednesday.

Like you said, ZZS is something else - as ZZH says about playing him - "he's so complicated, like someone with 2000 layers". Definitely the more fascinating character. Ep 6 is also my favourite episode to date.

I made my friends watch episodes of WOH during a dinner party yesterday and then we split into ZZS and WKX camps -LOL - haven’t been thru anything so obsessive in a very long while.

Continuing shout-out to ZZH. See interview where he talks about how ZZS is a complicated, multi-layered - "under 2000 layers of ash" - character : https://youtu.be/eZB-HkLeTZM

IKR - I too got the girl vibes from him........and indeed what's with the OTT makeup in chinese period dramas for both men and women? They really need to stop using red eyeshadow - the effect is too ghastly on asian skin tones...........

Ummm what's one got to do with the other? Scratch head emoji.............

It was ZZH from the start for me too..........hope he gets more great wuxia roles like these where he can show more of his acting range and can literally let his hair down rather than imposing, cold, arrogant, stoic prince types.

Totally agree - a shoutout to ZZH/ZZS is definitely in order. I too find his character much more interesting and as have said in earlier comments, with his flowing hair and flowing costume, he is totally hot on screen. ZZS' arc shows him letting go of his previous self-imposed restraints due to his job as secret service/praetorian guard chief, and it's wonderful when he realises (as he says in the novel) that he just wants to be a bastard after all :) The fart line improv by ZZH at the end of the first fight with WKX was totally on point - LOL - too bad they glossed over that in the subbing. At the same time, there's also a more commanding aura about him and he is for me, just the more compelling character to watch.
GJ is great as an actor in this too, but the character WKX is just a little too showy and his "psychoness" if one can call it that, lurks not far from the surface. Kudos to GJ for being able to turn that on and off in an instant.
Interestingly ZZH actually wanted to play WKX but the idea was turned down. All's well that ends well - can't imagine a ZZS not played by him.

Thanks to the clips analysed by Chinese Star News I've become aware of the many poetic references used. WKX for eg is constantly spouting classical poetry in his flirting with ZZS, weaving it in very naturally, so I'm learning quite a bit about classical Chinese poetry. (Even funnier in the novel, the side couple is constantly misquoting poetry to each other which is probably why they find themselves on the same wavelength, to the amusement/bemusement of the other characters in the novel.) Am also learning quite a bit about gay cultural references in Chinese culture through the Easter eggs in the episodes. The series is really making my ancestral culture that much more interesting and accessible - LOL.
I also love the fighting scenes and don't mind the slow-motion bits at all (which have been criticised) - anyone who has watched The Matrix would also have been subject to this kind of slowing down of action bits to emphasize particular moves - who can forget Trinity's pas de chat for eg. I think the choreography of the fight scenes esp the flirt-fight scenes is really well done and beautiful - just like a ballet. Lots of mirroring and bantering/rebuttal in the moves which mirror their spoken/unspoken feelings and hints at their intertwined fates. One could also talk about the scene where WKX catches ZZS' sword - you'll have to watch it to appreciate the moment :) Suffice to say this will definitely rank as an all-time wuxia favourite for me.

Can’t believe that the 2 were apparently not the original actors slated for the roles. Having seen them now cannot imagine ZZS and WKX played by anybody else.

ZZH is also my favourite in this drama although am awed by GJ’s versatility as an actor. ZZH’s character is so much more unrestrained than his previous roles as the cold, aloof prince etc. It’s a revelation and sheer pleasure to watch. The looser hairstyle and costume are also adding to his hotness on screen.

Yes, painful slow excruciating death......LOL. Feel like have gone back in time to the days of TV dramas when you had to wait for one episode a day at 7pm.

Another great episode - now facing a desert till next Monday.......can’t believe this will drag on till May at the rate of current release. Talk about slow torture!

Sleuth of Ming Dynasty is also not bad - a kinda cop drama set in Ming Dynasty done by Jackie Chan. There're actually 3 MLs in that and their interactions are hilarious.