anhsn

At this point, the screenwriter needs to run a workshop for other cdrama writers 🫡❤️ because wow this was a story that delivered for 20 episodes straight! Even if they end the drama weirdly, I won’t be upset lol. At first, I wished there was more representation for the female actresses,than what we got, but honestly this drama is so wild that it’s okay my favourite actors don’t need to be victims here 😬😂. It’s such a scary world in this drama.
Anyway I can’t wait for the rest of the drama.

MIND GAMES ARE CRAZY!!

Santo Dios, ¿en este drama no quedará vivo nadie? Vaya dos capítulos de hoy. Hace mucho tiempo que no veía un drama tan bien realizado. Qué buen drama en todos los aspectos; da miedo pensar qué ocurrirá mañana; parece que en cada capítulo alguien importante debe morir, unos duelen más que otros.
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Good heavens, will no one survive this drama? Wow, two episodes today! It's been a long time since I've seen such a well-made drama. What a great drama in every aspect; it's scary to think what will happen tomorrow; it seems like someone important has to die in every episode, some deaths are more painful than others.

This is a chess game, and XHA and YFS are the players. When you play chess to win, you don’t defeat your opponent in a single move. You advance step by step, using your pieces against theirs, sacrificing and capturing until the endgame. The side characters represent the pieces on the board one by one, they are eliminated on both sides as the game progresses.This was only the second time XHA and YFS met , yet on both occasions, XHA walked away alive. Like in chess, the real confrontation is delayed while the board is slowly cleared. This drama will either end with one player standing as the winner, or with a draw where both sides fall and no one truly wins.

Is it Choice/FreeWill or Destiny/Fate?
every death on the righteous side, like HXA burying and burning the huben army person, is answered equally by the villain side , like WP killing the soldier in same way..there are many such parallels throughout..as if Fate is keeping scores..yet all characters be it YZL, Aunt Xin and her son, WP, BW all seem to also be choosing to work for HXA or YFS..and all their choices directly or indirectly aiding/thwarting the whole "game"...
so how much is fate? how much is Free will?
I know this is work of fiction but the scriptwriter has done a great job of making it as realistic to real life as possible with the synchroniciies, premonitions, defeats, betrayal, loyalty, wins, escapes, deaths..
One of the best dramas of this year..after Kill My Sins I didnt expect something as intellectual but VOA has been really amazing so far and even surpassed KMS for me..

I appreciate your insights here. I guess in the beginning, Xiao Wen Jing felt like a cornered mouse where he lost all his power and freedom, hitting rock bottom. I can see how he was triggered even more hearing the real Zhang Mo was happy and free. It was a spur of the moment that led to something tragic.

I will say, Huai An and Ye Zheng have a lot of grace. Ofc we know they kept him alive at first because they needed Xiao Wen Jing alive to track down YFS. But over time, I'm sure they were moved by Xiao Wen Jing's sincerity.

I love how this drama really cuts to the chase. They avoid recapping what happened in the last episode and just get straight to the next scene. They do not drag on plots and the death of the supporting characters. This is probably one of the few dramas where they just kill off the character when their purpose/mission is done, no bs. And the way they integrated Huai An's past is neatly done too. The cliffhangers get me every time but I love it

There is one thing I also want to point out that I find refreshing - Many of XHA's plot involved putting himself in danger... he does not have a strong force behind him - not his own army or even a large number of allies. Hence, many times he had to be the one facing these people, seeing all of his enemies, meeting them face to face, convincing (more like threatening) or playing a part to the plan. Every single time, he could have died, he is risking his life over and over again because this is his revenge, he have to be part of it which makes it even more convincing. Why would anyone risk their own life to help him? He have to be the one doing most of the work.

At this point, this is no longer a sweet revenge plot as if the male lead can predict/plot against its enemy and they keep falling into his plan - what we see is the lead and his side are not without flaws but we still root for them and we see the human side of the bad and they are not all evil, just different positions/side of the chessboard.

man Cheng Yi's acting is truly remarkable..he hasnt raised his voice ever and yet subtle change in expressions and tone conveys the kindness and comfort he feels wround his own people and the chill look he gives YFS and the cold way he said to YFS 's aid "you must die too" and he also looks deranged around Yang and YFS now..all of this portrayed subtly with microexpressions but not so subtle that it'll get missed..a treat to watch ❤️❤️
every death in this drama (there are many) has been mourned and drama does show the implications it has on people close to them, be it villan or hero..1st C-drama I am watching where every death has had a meaning and consequence..

The last scene in ep 18 really emphasized the opening of each episode of a chess game in Chang An - Huai An and YFS are like two chess masters, playing a game of chess with you destroying my pieces and another counter attacking his strategies. All the people involved are chess pieces and both side have pieces destroyed. Now we are waiting to see how this game is going to play out.

At first it seems like HuaiAn have the upper hand, halfway YFS attacked and throw the whole game in his advantage, now I feel like every piece on the chessboard is not safe as these two continuously try to beat the other... so intriguing...

Episode 17
Wumei to Ye Zheng (after watching the master of the plan being dragged away): is this also part of the plan?
Ye Zheng looked as confused as the viewers 😂😂🤣😭

This drama is so satisfying to watch and somehow make my brain cells work trying to solve the plots and twists 🤭

Ep 15 was like a great chess match with both sides playing so smart and scheming. In the end Huai'an succeeded by having Yan Fengshan watched Wang Pu died in front of him. I was surprised that Wang Pu, being as smart as he is, would walk into Huai'an's trap knowing that it was a trap and not leave himself a way out. But after losing to Huai'an previously he became obsessed with trying to beat Huai'an and stopped seeing the horizon. Once Wang Pu stepped into Huai'an's trap, his fate was sealed and only death awaits him. As evil was he was, there's a human side to him as well and I actually felt a little sorry for this character. What a poetic episode.

The way to perfect revenge is to have anyone you care for - gone. Else your enemies can leverage your love for them to manipulate you or those around you. When one no longer has anyone to live for, that's the frame of mind to be in - you can risk whatever to kill when your own heart has already died.

i just binges the first 14 episodes, and wow. I don't think I've seen a revenge cdrama where revenge is the main plot. we need more shows like this. plus it's more on the darker side because a lot of times revenge dramas are toned down by other sub plots but here revenge seems to be the only thing being served.

On another note, that entire interaction between Cheng Yi and Han Tongsheng is a lesson in acting! An acting clinic! Acting 101! Get moving! Sometimes actors forget to move and just stand all still and motionless while delivering their lines, or while their on-screen partners are delivering their lines, and it makes the entire character unbelievable. Movement, when done right, builds your character, and it builds the scene! Use your your props around you! Carry your bowl of soup! Then bring it back down! Eat your food if possible! Dust off your clothes! Observe your surroundings! That was a masterful scene by both actors. They both understood the importance of good movement and the result is a tense connection between Xie Huai An and Yang Chuhao. Truly bravo. I can't get over it.

Han Tongsheng is an uncle whose acting I have come to love in The Knockout, and his very believable look of fear in his scenes with Cheng Yi sold the idea that Yang Chuhao still cowered under Xie Huai An. He sold the personality of a man who is caught in between two forces locking heads, and who doesn't want to die in either of their hands. Just let him make money in peace! Lol.

Cheng Yi's eyes though.....I first knew that he could have sharp eyes in MLC when Li Lianhua talked to Shan Gudao for the first time. Those three "I've been looking for you for 10 years" were what made me sure that he CAN act, and those sharp eyes were fully in display in his scenes with Han Tongsheng. He completely embodied the emotions of a man who is disdainful of a......familiar acquaintance who jumped ship. His playfully condescending smile when XHA met YCH again for the first time, when he dared YCH to try him, when he laughed mockingly bc YCH thought he was in a place where he could bargain.....wonderful, beautiful, amazing, brilliant! He truly deserves an award for his performance in this drama! Xie Huai An is arguably his best performance yet but Li Lianhua is still making his own case (mostly bc of LLH's characterization in general) so we will see once the series ends where he stands lol.