This review may contain spoilers
A beautifully captured fantasy romance
Okay, they did this one really well. The acting and the chemistry between the ML and FL are top-notch. There is great character development for both of them, and it’s unforced, natural, and makes sense within the story. The story is slow-paced at times and sometimes more focused on romance than the plot, but I personally didn’t mind. There are lots of kissing and heated scenes (which is not very common in C-dramas), and as I said before, the chemistry works really well, so it’s beautiful to watch.They did a great job with the cast. It was my first time seeing Wang Ying Lu, and because of her excellent acting, the FL is relatable and someone to cheer for. Even though she starts out somewhat like a damsel in distress, she isn’t hopeless or annoying. As for Arthur Chen, I liked this actor before thanks to Ever Night and Princess and Lighter (both of which I can recommend, though it’s a pity that in Ever Night 2 the ML wasn’t played by him but by Dylan Wang—even though I like the actor, I think Arthur Chen captured the role better). So I already knew his acting, and this role was clearly tailored for him. He makes you believe that he falls for the girl—in fact you believe every emotion he shows.
There are, let’s say, two main antagonists. The first one is really great; I disliked him very much (which is exactly what you want from a villain). The second one, however, didn’t have the same effect on me—maybe the evil wasn’t personal enough.
The scenery was beautiful. Yes, in some parts the CGI wasn’t terrific, but most of the time it was quite good. The music also works fantastically with the story and its themes.
And I’ll definitely watch it again!
Spoilers!
Where they could have done better is that there were a few scenes which I assume were meant to be heartbreaking and bring you to tears, but that didn’t happen for me. I think there wasn’t enough desperation in those moments to really push me over the edge. I don’t think this was because of the acting, but rather the script, where they could have prolonged those scenes a little longer before giving the audience hope.
The ending is little bit predictible and they also could have made the ending a bit longer. It’s somewhat ambiguous whether it’s just her recognizing him or if he recognizes her as well—but I choose to believe that he did recognize her too.
So even with these few setbacks, overall this has become one of my favorite fantasy/wuxia C-dramas. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did! =)
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