I have no idea why, whenever I hear the opening as the BGM in some episodes, I just love it, it sounds powerful.
I totally miss this drama. The drama broke my heart, especially Zhang Yunlong as Wangquan Hongye. This drama has very beautiful songs, in two different albums. There is an album of songs comprising the OST (also with instrumental versions), and an album comprising BGM songs.
By this point, I believe the directors and screenwriters listed down the various defining characteristics of each…
Xia Jingshi already told Xiyang he would never love her, and he is steadfast about that plus his love for Fu Yixiao (this steadfastness is also in the novel). Xiyang and her father never gave Xia Jingshi any choice in this marriage. Xiyang also makes a very fatal blunder of wrongly badmouthing the woman who protected Xia Jingshi for years to the point of risking her life, while dressing up like Fu Yixiao and with the same hairstyle to try to make Xia Jingshi love her (this is in the drama, but not in the novel). Yixiao would never do that.
With such behaviour, Xiyang just confirmed for Xia Jingshi why he can never love her. He saves her once in a not-unique way, and she decides he must love her and only her. This is exactly the selfishness and naivety that enables her stupid decisions in the novel, and it looks like she'll die too (only via a different incident and by a different person).
Just as people in Susha Kingdom are aware that Feng Suige protects them with his military achievements, the people of Jinxiu Kingdom are aware that Xia Jingshi keeps them safe from enemies such as Susha Kingdom. XJS seizing the throne would only be celebrated by his citizens who wouldn't know that once upon a time, he was willing to sacrifice too many of them to kill Feng Suige.
If XJS took the throne of Jinxiu Kingdom, is he worse than Xia Jingyan, who takes any official's wife he wants for his bed and has no issues having a maid beaten to death simply to show his brother who is boss? At least XJS has a record for protecting his kingdom. Xia Jingyan has basically been leeching off XJS all these years and wants to kill XJS at some point.
Novel-Xiyang's desperation to get the love of XJS and irrationally persistent jealousy of Fu Yixiao resulted in her making decisions to preserve what she wanted to believe until she couldn't, and that is what eventually led to her death after she realises the wrong she has done and wants to make up for it.
Be it the drama or novel, the reason why men like Feng Suige and Xia Jingshi fall in love with Fu Yixiao is because they want a woman who can stand alongside them, fight with them, and protect them. That is why Xiyang doesn't get it, because she has never considered what love truly is. If she allies herself with Xia Jingyan (as per what is shown for the next two episodes in previews), Xia Jingshi will be justified in killing her.
In her naivety, Xiyang has never actually considered her husband's intellect, as to why he can command so many troops and successfully fend off Susha Kingdom's attacks.
I don't see how Xiyang is going to avoid getting herself killed by Xia Jingshi who is stealthily and steadily building his trap for destroying Xia Jingyan.
I don't know if Ning Fei is going to tell Yixiao about what Xia Jingshi has been through, when she most likely goes to the Storm Alliance to try to save Feng Suige's life. But I hope Xia Jingshi will listen to Yixiao if she tells him to agree to a truce between both countries, based on certain conditions. Being pregnant by then with Feng Suige's son might be helpful (and if Yixiao becomes pregnant, it will align with the novel).
By this point, I believe the directors and screenwriters listed down the various defining characteristics of each character in the novel, and then they improved the plot significantly for a drama while altering events or incidents. Xiyang maintains the same characteristics from the novel, including her beliefs about Fu Yixiao, which is why she doesn't understand certain things and makes certain choices:
give these 3 directors and the 5 screenwriters their awards immediately! That last scene of ep 24 was painstakingly…
They have done a fantastic job, considering how tricky the novel was to adapt, plus keeping everyone interesting and giving us various characters to disagree about and unite over! The pacing is well-maintained.
I also appreciate that the main leads have open communication as well as tacit understanding. No unnecessary angst…
Sorry, I forgot to mention I was referring to historical costume dramas, so I didn't think of "This Thriving Land". I haven't watched "The Demon Hunters' Romance".
This is from more than 5 hours ago, with several different stats. Yunhe single-day views has reached 26.56 million and Maoyan's effective views exceeded 100 million. Let's see what happens tomorrow onwards.
Yay~ 🥳🎉Also Fu Yi Xiao character is topping all charts!!
Somebody was kind enough to screenshot various sources pertaining to statistics of Li Qin topping the charts as Fu Yixiao and posting it yesterday on Weibo, for vlink + Maoyan + Weibo and more:
This drama is layered with multiple themes, plus the villains are complex and realistic. They are not perfect…
A very good to great drama will elevate the characters of the cast, and not leave loose ends hanging. Part of the engagement is also because many viewers want to know whether each character (big or small) can overcome their origins to chart their destiny for the happiest (or worst) ending possible for each of them. A well-plotted romance moves the plot while helping to show character development alongside an evolving relationship.
Everyone that Fu Yuxiao interacts with gets rude true awakenings XD
I am so happy & at peace watching this drama as there is no usual annoying love triangle like other drama.…
This drama is layered with multiple themes, plus the villains are complex and realistic. They are not perfect nor one-dimensional villains but realistic, and they make the audience feel a mixture of emotions. Hero, heroine, villain- There are many incidents or details for everyone to enjoy and think about and discuss.
For me I wish FSG is more alert about FYX warning on Murong Yao. We know FSG is a suspicious & careful person,…
I'll go take a look. Why do you think FSG was too soft in interrogating Ruyan, as in what would you have wanted to see him say or do in a different manner?
The novel is a mess in some parts, and I had difficulty liking the ML and FL in the novel but in theisdrama, they are very well-written and portrayed and hence memorable and endearing. This novel has to be massively rewritten during adaptation for a drama, to be successful. The novel was interesting for me, to see what XJS and Xiyang would do.
1) Xia Jingshi has shot Li Qin, and she's falling off the cliff. Cue look of shock on her face. Camera pans back…
Even if novel-XJS has XJS being inscrutable with a faint smile on his face at times, I believe the directors for drama-XJS needed to give him specific directions and tips on micro-expressions for some scenes. That is why I brought up those two scenes as examples, also because they give an impression of the limitations of Chen Heyi's acting range. I also gave my suggestions of how to improve the scenes while taking into account the differences in acting experience of Li Qin (significantly more and quite nuanced) versus Chen Heyi (significantly more limited).
For example, if XJS cannot reciprocate love but has respect or pity for Xiyang, there's got to be some indication that we can detect. I have seen joint criticisms elsewhere about Li Qin acting opposite a block of wood (as an indirect reference to Chen Heyi) while praising the rest of Fated Hearts, and they are not referring to Chen Zheyuan.
Novel-XJS actually requires good micro-emoting for drama-XJS. So visually, Chen Heyi looks the part perfectly. Emoting-wise, I'm not sure what's happening on this front.
Sooo, I have been wanting to watch this, but the trailers give me mixed signals so I haven't yet. Is this horribly…
If you do not want to see Cheng Yi's character suffer from losing valued people and humiliation and serious injuries which happens at times during the first 14 episodes, you might want to watch this drama later, at a different point of time if/when your mental state is fine with this.
For me I wish FSG is more alert about FYX warning on Murong Yao. We know FSG is a suspicious & careful person,…
That is a good point. If FYX with her limited resources in this enemy city can find out about the girls being assassins, why can't FSG discover this with all his spies? When Murong Yao pointed his sword at Feng Suige, shouldn't there have been an epiphany of sorts from our ML, given his history of being constantly betrayed by many people as you have also pointed out?
As to FSG interrogating Ruyan, I can't remember that scene. Which episode was it?
I believe I'm a bit biased for XJS partially because I am hyper-fixated on novel-Xia Jingshi, but then drama-Feng Suige's veering between convincing mush and awesome protective brutality has me somewhat distracted XD
The Storm Alliance was founded by Feng Suige's mother. At one point in one of the pre-release trailers, we see…
Firstly for someone who wants to be a capable badass villain, Murong Yao talks too much when questioned by Yixiao or Feng Suige. And he cannot anticipate in advance what should have been obvious, such as when he answered Yixiao kin a certain manner. His ability to evaluate opponents is not awesome.
XJS is deadly in comparison to Murong Yao because he is a wall of silence and wants to be underestimated. He doesn't play his cards. He's stacking them up for when he completely decimates the card stack of a foe. One has to appreciate that in all these episodes this far, he mostly doesn't reveal anything to anyone including Xiyang.
XJS learned this because he understands what Xia Jingyan is like. Xia Jingyan behaves like a buffoon but is more shrewd than he appears.
Prime Minister Zhuang is smooth and most deadly, because he plays the same game and has decades more experience than XJS.
I'm curious about how individual viewers think, about how to improve certain scenes if you remember a scene that…
1) Xia Jingshi has shot Li Qin, and she's falling off the cliff. Cue look of shock on her face. Camera pans back to Chen Heyi's face, which has him wide-eyed and mouth open in an "O".
This is where I wish the Directors had this scene follow through in a different manner, after XJS closed his eyes while shooting Yixiao. That shot of Chen Heyi disrupted the emotional intensity from Li Qin for me. I would have preferred if Xia Jingshi had not been looking at Yixiao, gaze deflected downwards and teeth set in a grimace because not only was it cowardly to shoot her with eyes closed, this scene shot in this different manner could also convey how much he was emotionally disturbed to shoot someone he claimed to love.
And then as the camera pans to him looking over the cliff, seeing him collapse to his knees and grasp the edge of the cliff looking down would have been a very evocative back shot from the drone.
2) The other scene is where Yixiao has just confronted XJS about shooting her and asks about the masked man. He grabs her by the shoulders and speaks very fast, about what he wants while claiming he will do anything so they can be like before. I would have preferred if he had audibly swallowed while staring at her, then enunciates emotionally with two pauses, "Yixiao... I...", and goes into his spiel of rapidfire statements.
It's the emotional intensity and variety of scenes that is gripping, be it the sweetness of Feng Suige with Yixiao, or Feng Suige trying to control himself before dislocating Wu Ying's lower jaw. When matching Li Qin's intensity, I believe it would have better catered to these two interactions between Xia Jingshi and Yixiao.
I'm curious about how individual viewers think, about how to improve certain scenes if you remember a scene that you think could be improved, and how/why. This comment section has a large variety of viewers, and it's been very smooth and funny and sweet, which is amazing. I'm glad all of you are here, and it's wonderful to learn from different viewpoints.
In order for such a discussion not to become emotionally misunderstood, I believe we should be able to voice our thoughts in a constructive manner and discuss/disagree, while keeping this section spoiler-free (as much as possible) for the new viewers coming in. Much of the cast has been styled well for most of it, especially the male characters (although I'm sure there are valid quibbles about certain details there. Wind machine working overtime, even in prison cells XD).
Feel free to input your own ideas. For example, I appreciate that visually, Xia Jingshi matches what I envision in the novel, but there are two scenes that I wish had been shot differently with Chen Heyi (see next comment for details):
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Here is the OST also with instrumental versions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjMBpX6nhgQ
Tracklist is what I C-and-Ped below:
《淮水竹亭》影视原声大碟
00:00 张碧晨 - 如烟 (主题曲/片尾曲)
04:18 周身 - 曼陀 (主题曲/片尾曲)
08:07 杨丞琳 - 焚爱 (主题曲/片头曲)
11:19 徐佳莹/胡夏 - 入骨相思知不知 (插曲)
15:44 TIA袁娅维 - 不问 (片尾曲/插曲)
18:51 王天阳 - 所赴 (插曲)
22:47 李琦 - 一刻天光 (插曲)
26:24 刘诗诗 - 半命题之爱 (插曲)
29:33 张云龙 - 竹夜 (插曲)
34:08 呦猫UNEKO - 人间白首 (插曲)
38:20 杨秉音/周梓琦 - 神火 (主题配乐)
——【伴奏Ins.】——
42:00 张碧晨 - 如烟 (伴奏)
46:18 周身 - 曼陀 (伴奏)
50:06 杨丞琳 - 焚爱 (伴奏)
53:19 徐佳莹/胡夏 - 入骨相思知不知 (伴奏)
57:43 TIA袁娅维 - 不问 (伴奏)
01:00:50 王天阳 - 所赴 (伴奏)
01:04:47 李琦 - 一刻天光 (伴奏)
01:08:23 刘诗诗 - 半命题之爱 (伴奏)
01:11:33 张云龙 - 竹夜 (伴奏)
01:16:07 呦猫UNEKO - 人间白首 (伴奏)
01:20:19 张碧晨 - 如烟 (和声伴奏)
01:24:38 周身 - 曼陀 (和声伴奏)
01:28:26 杨丞琳 - 焚爱 (和声伴奏)
01:31:39 徐佳莹/胡夏 - 入骨相思知不知 (和声伴奏)
01:36:03 TIA袁娅维 - 不问 (和声伴奏)
01:39:10 王天阳 - 所赴 (和声伴奏)
01:43:07 李琦 - 一刻天光 (和声伴奏)
01:46:43 刘诗诗 - 半命题之爱 (和声伴奏)
01:49:53 张云龙 - 竹夜 (和声伴奏)
With such behaviour, Xiyang just confirmed for Xia Jingshi why he can never love her. He saves her once in a not-unique way, and she decides he must love her and only her. This is exactly the selfishness and naivety that enables her stupid decisions in the novel, and it looks like she'll die too (only via a different incident and by a different person).
Just as people in Susha Kingdom are aware that Feng Suige protects them with his military achievements, the people of Jinxiu Kingdom are aware that Xia Jingshi keeps them safe from enemies such as Susha Kingdom. XJS seizing the throne would only be celebrated by his citizens who wouldn't know that once upon a time, he was willing to sacrifice too many of them to kill Feng Suige.
If XJS took the throne of Jinxiu Kingdom, is he worse than Xia Jingyan, who takes any official's wife he wants for his bed and has no issues having a maid beaten to death simply to show his brother who is boss? At least XJS has a record for protecting his kingdom. Xia Jingyan has basically been leeching off XJS all these years and wants to kill XJS at some point.
Novel-Xiyang's desperation to get the love of XJS and irrationally persistent jealousy of Fu Yixiao resulted in her making decisions to preserve what she wanted to believe until she couldn't, and that is what eventually led to her death after she realises the wrong she has done and wants to make up for it.
Be it the drama or novel, the reason why men like Feng Suige and Xia Jingshi fall in love with Fu Yixiao is because they want a woman who can stand alongside them, fight with them, and protect them. That is why Xiyang doesn't get it, because she has never considered what love truly is. If she allies herself with Xia Jingyan (as per what is shown for the next two episodes in previews), Xia Jingshi will be justified in killing her.
In her naivety, Xiyang has never actually considered her husband's intellect, as to why he can command so many troops and successfully fend off Susha Kingdom's attacks.
I don't see how Xiyang is going to avoid getting herself killed by Xia Jingshi who is stealthily and steadily building his trap for destroying Xia Jingyan.
I don't know if Ning Fei is going to tell Yixiao about what Xia Jingshi has been through, when she most likely goes to the Storm Alliance to try to save Feng Suige's life. But I hope Xia Jingshi will listen to Yixiao if she tells him to agree to a truce between both countries, based on certain conditions. Being pregnant by then with Feng Suige's son might be helpful (and if Yixiao becomes pregnant, it will align with the novel).
This is from more than 5 hours ago, with several different stats. Yunhe single-day views has reached 26.56 million and Maoyan's effective views exceeded 100 million. Let's see what happens tomorrow onwards.
https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5220167786957644
Tracklist which I c-and-ped is as follows:
《许我耀眼》影视原声带
00:00 单依纯 - 像烟火爱过 (主题曲)
04:17 郑沐晴 - 一切都好 (片头曲)
08:18 Eric周兴哲 - Take My Time (片尾曲)
12:04 A-Lin 黄丽玲 - 最好的我 (插曲)
15:35 Eric周兴哲 - Me and You(Remastered) (插曲)
19:37 姚晓棠 - 光芒为我存在 (插曲)
22:57 伊斯玛哈撒嗯·达嗨 - 假如再重来 (插曲)
26:59 张耀生 - 想去哪儿都可以 (插曲)
——【伴奏Ins.】——
30:12 单依纯 - 像烟火爱过 (伴奏)
34:34 郑沐晴 - 一切都好 (伴奏)
38:36 Eric周兴哲 - Take My Time (伴奏)
42:20 A-Lin 黄丽玲 - 最好的我 (伴奏)
45:52 Eric周兴哲 - Me and You(Remastered) (伴奏)
49:54 姚晓棠 - 光芒为我存在 (伴奏)
53:13 伊斯玛哈撒嗯·达嗨 - 假如再重来 (伴奏)
57:15 张耀生 - 想去哪儿都可以 (伴奏)
Everyone that Fu Yuxiao interacts with gets rude true awakenings XD
The novel is a mess in some parts, and I had difficulty liking the ML and FL in the novel but in theisdrama, they are very well-written and portrayed and hence memorable and endearing. This novel has to be massively rewritten during adaptation for a drama, to be successful. The novel was interesting for me, to see what XJS and Xiyang would do.
For example, if XJS cannot reciprocate love but has respect or pity for Xiyang, there's got to be some indication that we can detect. I have seen joint criticisms elsewhere about Li Qin acting opposite a block of wood (as an indirect reference to Chen Heyi) while praising the rest of Fated Hearts, and they are not referring to Chen Zheyuan.
Novel-XJS actually requires good micro-emoting for drama-XJS. So visually, Chen Heyi looks the part perfectly. Emoting-wise, I'm not sure what's happening on this front.
As to FSG interrogating Ruyan, I can't remember that scene. Which episode was it?
I believe I'm a bit biased for XJS partially because I am hyper-fixated on novel-Xia Jingshi, but then drama-Feng Suige's veering between convincing mush and awesome protective brutality has me somewhat distracted XD
XJS is deadly in comparison to Murong Yao because he is a wall of silence and wants to be underestimated. He doesn't play his cards. He's stacking them up for when he completely decimates the card stack of a foe. One has to appreciate that in all these episodes this far, he mostly doesn't reveal anything to anyone including Xiyang.
XJS learned this because he understands what Xia Jingyan is like. Xia Jingyan behaves like a buffoon but is more shrewd than he appears.
Prime Minister Zhuang is smooth and most deadly, because he plays the same game and has decades more experience than XJS.
Go enjoy your weekend! XD
This is where I wish the Directors had this scene follow through in a different manner, after XJS closed his eyes while shooting Yixiao. That shot of Chen Heyi disrupted the emotional intensity from Li Qin for me. I would have preferred if Xia Jingshi had not been looking at Yixiao, gaze deflected downwards and teeth set in a grimace because not only was it cowardly to shoot her with eyes closed, this scene shot in this different manner could also convey how much he was emotionally disturbed to shoot someone he claimed to love.
And then as the camera pans to him looking over the cliff, seeing him collapse to his knees and grasp the edge of the cliff looking down would have been a very evocative back shot from the drone.
2) The other scene is where Yixiao has just confronted XJS about shooting her and asks about the masked man. He grabs her by the shoulders and speaks very fast, about what he wants while claiming he will do anything so they can be like before. I would have preferred if he had audibly swallowed while staring at her, then enunciates emotionally with two pauses, "Yixiao... I...", and goes into his spiel of rapidfire statements.
It's the emotional intensity and variety of scenes that is gripping, be it the sweetness of Feng Suige with Yixiao, or Feng Suige trying to control himself before dislocating Wu Ying's lower jaw. When matching Li Qin's intensity, I believe it would have better catered to these two interactions between Xia Jingshi and Yixiao.
In order for such a discussion not to become emotionally misunderstood, I believe we should be able to voice our thoughts in a constructive manner and discuss/disagree, while keeping this section spoiler-free (as much as possible) for the new viewers coming in. Much of the cast has been styled well for most of it, especially the male characters (although I'm sure there are valid quibbles about certain details there. Wind machine working overtime, even in prison cells XD).
Feel free to input your own ideas. For example, I appreciate that visually, Xia Jingshi matches what I envision in the novel, but there are two scenes that I wish had been shot differently with Chen Heyi (see next comment for details):