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An Abysmal Disjointed Mess of a Beloved Classic

I am still in utter disbelief of what I just watched on screen for this beloved classic. The movie was a complete disjointed mess. If you are familiar w/ the story and other adaptions you will be incredibly disappointed, bored and even frustratingly annoyed. If you are not familiar with this story you will be utterly lost and confused. For a 2 hour movie, I skipped thru a lot. It was so boring an unengaging.

THE GOOD (its hard to even pull out anything good)
- The they kept the iconic theme song from the 1980s adaption
- Hua Jun (Mongolian Princess) this was a more complex, strong, interesting version of this character compared to previous adaptations of her being a whiny wimp

THE BAD (soooo many to list)
- Storyline and pacing was so rushed and disjointed. Left so many plot holes as to why certain characters are important or related.
- Zero character development, resulting in lack of emotional connection to any one character, even the main lead couple.
- Both ML and FL were utterly miscast. Zero chemistry. Neither one of them could truly portray the iconic characters of the slow-witted, adorable, loyal and freakishly strong Guo Jin or the cute, charismatic, cunning and witty Huang Rong.
- They just boiled it down to Ouyang Feng (West Poison) being the lead antagonist, whereas other adaptions had so many nuanced antagonists. And they made Ouyang Feng out to be some odd comic book character - his look, his acting, etc.

Overall an atrocious adaptation of a beloved class. What a complete waste of time.

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Low budget indecisive comedy or period piece

I only watched this for the ML after seeing him in "Love Me If You Dare". This was not his best performance. I skipped thru so much of this series.

There really aren't that many good things about this series at all other than I like the ML - Wallace Huo is just pure eye candy

The Cons (so many):
- FL Tiffany Tang is hit or miss, I like some of her work but this was not one of them.
- None of the support characters were worthy of screen time, acting was so one dimensional across the board
- Terrible production quality - not sure if it's cuz this is a really old series and they didn't have all technology/special effects like they do nowadays, but this was so bad. For example the lighting was inconsistent, often times the lighting behind the characters makes their ears glow like bright light bulbs, and you always saw mist of their spit coming out of their mouths when they spoke. The scene w/ the emperor in the imperial palace hall - the decor was laughable, looked like an amateur theater stage set up.
- The wigs were SO BAD, especially for the ML - literally it was his normal haircut slicked back w/ highlighted bangs and the wig bun you can see where the line is wrapped around the base of his head, with his real hair jutting out. The FL's bangs were just so unflattering and fake looking.
- The costumes were poor quality, and especially for the ML, his clothes did not seem to fit him properly
- Inconsistencies in the storyline details - in the beginning the FL is portrayed as a tough fighters/martial artist compared to the ML and she always had to come to his rescue, but halfway thru she's a damsel in distress and allows the men to grab her and push her around w/out even try to fight back. ML supposedly did not know martial arts...but some scenes he does, and some he doesn't?
- Very tropey toxic love dynamics - ML verbally, physically, emotionally abuses the female lead...over and over again...but she still keeps forgiving and coming back....cuz he did it in the name of love for her own good.
- The ending was a WTF type of ending. Made no damn sense. Utterly ridiculous.

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Not the romantic comedy I expected, but overall good series

This was not the typical romantic comedy I was expecting, but it was an good series overall. I am huge Kenny Lin (Lin Gengxin) fan so I want to watch all his work.

Storyline:
- Overall it was good. Interesting view into the world of investing in China's market. Good pacing and I'm glad they kept it at 30 episodes rather than dragging it out. But all the hype build up to the main male and female leads...seemed extremely rushed and wrapped into the very last episode. It was very interesting how the story intersected w/ the FL as lowly assistant rose to success as the ML godlike success came crashing down. While both the ML and FL did an outstanding job w/ their acting - they as a couple lacked chemistry. There was more chemistry between them as boss/employee and co-dependency in each other lives, rather than romantic chemistry.

Acting / Characters:
- Kenny Lin as the ML Lu Ji Ming was great. He was able to portray a very powerful rich, arrogant, chauvinistic jerk on the exterior while deep down being a very ethical, loyal and caring person at heart. And later he was able to portray the despondent, humble person who fell far from his pedestal. With every character development / arc in the series, you are just drawn to his charisma.
- Tan Son Yin as the FL Nin Meng - this was the first time I've seen this actress in any series. She did a great job playing the nerdy, lowly assistant. And her gradual growth into success was well done. Her happy go lucky, can-do attitude was so charming w/out over doing it w/ the cutesiness. And her quiet sadness scenes broke your heart. She's not the typical tall, eye-catching beauty that they usually cast in these types of roles so it was a bit 'off' casting alongside Kenny Lin who is really tall and good looking.
- Supporting actors that all did great and great chemistry: Ceng Yu Hang - ML's best friend. He was not good looking but he played his charming, funny, down to earth rich kid role well. Xu Si Tian who started out as the villainess was so hateful and petty and became adorably charming as part of the friend group. And one of my favorite support characters was Shi Ying, the FL's mentor and boss. Her calm, empathetic yet powerfulness was portrayed so well by the actress.

Music:
- not bad, but nothing memorable. But one of the instrumental songs seems like it was the same song in another recent Kenny Lin series (To Love).

Overall:
- Good series, but I don't think I would re-watch it

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Way too long, horrible ending

Pretty upset that I spent so many days/hours/late nights invested in this highly rated show. I did watch until the last episode but skipped over so many parts as it dragged on way too long. This was a very violent and bloody drama compared to what I'm used to seeing. The opening scene alone that lasted almost the entire episode was so disturbing.

PROS:
- ML and FL had strong chemistry
- Great acting for most of the cast overall
- Fight scenes choreography is well done, you can tell this is a high budget production

CONS:
- Way too long and draggy at times
- Messy sub plots w/ so many random characters w/ too much screen time
- Too many loose ends without any resolution. Characters that had a ton of screen time in first 2/3 of the series, suddenly just stopped appearing in the rest of the series but it's never explained what happened to them
- The ending was the worst. Felt cheated after investing so much time in anticipation of some sort of saving grace w/ the ending. NOPE. That's why I took off so many points overall.

Storyline:
Not very unique, similar to many storylines with these types of historical dramas. It was a decent storyline but somewhat predictable...except the ENDING! I did like that most of the main women (except Princess Yuan Chun) were tough martial artists rather than weak damsels in distress. Way too many sub plots and characters that really didn't need be there. Made it very messy and very long.

Music:
Just ok. Nothing memorable. Watched it on Viki so not sure if they swapped out the OST.

Acting:
All the actors did a great job, even supporting actors did well. It's just the characters & storylines they were given sometimes fell flat or were downright annoying.

Characters:
Yu Wen Yue (ML) - typical stoic hero. But I still LOVED his character. I anticipated to see him in scenes w/ the FL (Chu Qiao/Xing'er). He embodied nobility, badass strength, and moral character. And when it came to his love...he was so sweet and relentlessly selfless. So much that it was tragic and heartbreaking. This is the first time I've seen this actor in a series...I am a fan!
Chu Qiao (FM) - I don't understand the appeal w/ her. She seemed a bit one dimensional only able to portray the cold-hearted badass. When the scene required her to come across as soft-hearted, tender, or sweet/funny - she couldn't pull that off very well, it seemed forced. But she was able to convey a strong chemistry w/ Yu Wen Yue.
Yan Xan (other ML) - I love Shawn Dou in many of his works. This one I'm on the fence. He was so good in the first half of the series as the good hearted, happy go lucky hostage prince. The traumatic experience he endured, he nailed that performance. But once his soul turned dark I could not stand seeing him on screen. And the voice over dubbing was distracting because it was such a noticeable departure from his normal real voice in other shows.
Lin Qin - she was great as the spoiled, innocent, air headed princess. And when her innocence was shattered, her performance breaks your heart.

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I don't understand the hype

I've heard so much hype about this Nirvana in Fire and the sequel Nirvana Fire 2. I watched both. Unimpressed. Overall this series dragged on way too long. I found myself skipping so many parts and sometimes entire episodes. I only sat thru the entire series just to find out what happens to see if the show redeems itself at the end. It did not.

Characters: While the acting wasn't bad, I was never truly invested in any of the characters, including the ML. The lead couple had zero chemistry. The only character I rooted for was Concubine Jing (wonderful actress, saw her in Rise of the Phoenixes).

Music: The OST wasn't bad but nothing memorable.

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Strong start and fizzled out

This series had such great potential. It started out really strong then fizzled out even before the half way mark. It became a chore to finish the series. It's watchable w/ a lot of skipping.

The Good:
- Cinematography, production quality
- Started out strong and engaging from episode 1, no slow build up which is usually the case w/ drama series
- Good storyline
- 2nd male lead was very likeable
- Cui Shi Jiu started off extremely annoying w/ her over-acting like a man, felt so forced and contrived, but her character went thru the most growth & development in a very interesting way

The Bad:
- Main couple lacked chemistry. They could not recreate the strong chemistry that they had as the 2nd lead couple in The Long Ballad. I felt no emotional reactions to their coupling, reunions, or separations.
- Plot became too repetitive w/ the FL Duan Wu/Su Muzhe overcoming business venture obstacles. The ML Yan Zijing became almost like a support character to the FL Su Muzhe's storyline.
- They swapped out the support characters midway. As another reviewer stated - we were invested in the initial support characters, you felt the sense of loyalty, love and humor with their connections to the lead couple. But after the arc of the tragic massacre in desert region, the writers wanted you to re-invest in a whole new set of support characters for the FL, it just flopped.

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Boring and Zero Chemistry

Based on the storyline, this had potential to be a good series. It's main downfall is that it's extremely boring and slow, and the main couple had zero chemistry.

Pros:
- Good storyline
- Acting was not terrible

Cons:
- Lead couple had zero chemistry. I did not care whether they ended up together or not. None of their interactions invoked any emotions from me. Their relationship came across more like siblings, with the FL being the older sister
- Male lead - this is the 2nd series I saw this actor in (from She and Her Perfect Husband). I just don't understand why he keeps getting lead roles. His acting is very mediocre.
- Female lead - this is the 2nd series I saw this actress (Ashes of Love). Her acting is not bad, but her portrayal of this character was very bland. And the character's perfect Pollyanna image was a bit tiring.
- I did not feel anything or sympathize with any of the characters, except for the FL's father. He came across very genuine and likable
- The FL's mom seemed to be the star of the show, but my god was she unbearable to watch. Her well-meaning intentions just became an excuse for her over-bearing disastrous actions in EVERY episode.
- It was very slow and boring. I skipped through a lot of it. Each episode I kept telling myself to drop it, but I rarely drop series...I want to see if it redeems itself or not, and to find out what happened in the end.

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Hidden Gem - LOVED this series!

This series didn't seem to gain popularity, and in my opinion it is underrated. I really enjoyed it, overall a well-rounded series with romance, comedy, historical relevance, action, mystery and intrigue.

PROS:
- Lead couple had strong chemistry; mutual affection, respect, strength, devotion and comedy. It was refreshing to see a FL that isn't weak, helpless or gullible.
- Pacing was good, was not draggy. I found myself skipping because of the suspense, I was eager to find out what happens next.
- The ending was so good - perfect ending to the build up throughout the series. And they ended it appropriately without trying to drag it out for several more episodes
- No unnecessary characters or subplots to fill up screen time

CONS:
- There was definitely an underlying theme of communist propaganda

Characters/Acting:
- ML - he is one of my favorite actors, and he nailed this role as well. He was believable with the different dimensions that his character entailed: bravery, honor, loyalty, tenderness, coldness, heartache, poker face, etc.
- FL - this is the first time I've seen this actress in a series. She's adorable, and definitely looked the part. While her acting wasn't bad, she lacked the depth to invoke utter sadness and heart ache. At certain gut wrenching scenes - the male actors had more tears and facial expressions than she did.
- The 2nd ML who played Xu Guang Yao was actually very likable. Usually those characters are made out to be the antagonist that gets in the way of the lead couple. But you really empathize with his character and I found him endearing and so respectable. The only thing that bugged me was his hairstyle - the weird bangs being held back by a stiff strand of hair.
- All the support characters did an amazing job, their acting was on par with the main characters. Except the ML's little sister. She was kind of annoying and her wig was terrible.

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Great potential but terrible miscast of FL

This was a good series, pretty engaging. It had great potential to score an 8 or 9 (I rarely give those scores). But I took points off mainly because of the terrible miscasting of the female lead. This was not the role for this actress. She just could not not pull off the comedy, emotional range or screen presence. This if the first time I've seen this actress in a lead role, and I don't think she's ready to be the main lead in a series and is better suited for 2nd lead or supporting role. She did fine in her 2nd lead in Ashes of Love, but this was not the role for her.

Two actresses come to mind whom this Bu Yin Lou role was written for: 1) Song Zu Er from Legally Romance, Cupid's Kitchen, The Bond; or 2) Zhao Lu Si from Romance of Tiger & Rose, and Love Like the Galaxy. If either of these actresses played the FL role this series would've been one of my top favorites.

Pros:
- The ML (Dylan Wang) was perfect in this role. I watched this series after seeing how great he was in Love Between Fairy & Devil. His facial expressions and body language are perfectly conveyed for every emotion. You want to smile when he's happy, your heart breaks for him when he's sad.
- The 2nd ML / Villain Emperor (Peter Ho) - he was totally believable in how he evolved from of a kind hearted, cowardly prince to a sadistic, egomaniac tyrant. I pitied him when he was trampled on as the kind and gullible prince, but then my skin crawled anticipating what he would do next when he became the villainous emperor.
- Overall the support characters were good, nothing terrible or too annoying about them.

Cons:
- Terrible miscast of the FL. He facial expressions were over-the-top but could not quite convey true emotions - her eyes mainly just bulged widely with eyebrows furrowed. Her comedic abilities did not come natural at all, very forced.
- Some plot holes, but none too major that you can't overlook.

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Amazing acting and storyline - but so boring

I was really looking forward to this series being such a fan of Chen Kun (ML). He's such an amazing actor with unparalleled range, The entire cast also acted very well. The production quality and storyline were great. The reason I gave it such a low score was due to the slowness, it was very boring. I found it hard to stay focused and engaged. Majority of the film was scenes with dark lighting and men talking in low whispers. It was also very difficult to follow along w/ so many characters, and many of them had multiple names which made it even more difficult to decipher who's who and who they were referring to.

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Good Series but Male Lead Fell Flat

This is a good series, I enjoyed it. A story of injustice from those in power, family relationships, personal growth, redemption, and karma. My main complaint is that the male lead fell flat. His acting was bland and stiff which impacts the chemistry w/ the female lead.

The Good:
- FL did an amazing job. This is the 3rd series I've seen this actress in, and she gets better and better with each role. She's adorable, charismatic, and played this part so well. Fearless, clever, loyal, and righteous but without being over the top saint-like. It's refreshing to see such a strong well-rounded female character.
- The relationship between the main couple was refreshingly open & honest with mutual respect and understanding. No illogical, sociopathic love triangle where people try to break up the couple w/ vicious jealousy and manipulation (except for the Emperor, but that was for a whole different reason).
- The emperor - that actor is type-casted for the villain roles. He nailed it with this role. He kept me guessing: are all his sinister moves for the greater good, and did he genuinely feel love & devotion for his family or was everyone expendable to maintain devout obedience to him?
- Supporting cast was really good as well. Even 2nd, 3rd, 4th supporting characters had natural & believable character development. They way the women and children fell from grace, went through hardships and evolved was really well written and acted. There wasn't anyone who was particularly annoying. Except for the annoying paternal aunt who caused the Grandmother's death - but justice prevailed there.
- Pacing was good, not draggy. I actually did not skip much like I typically do.

The Bad:
- ML fell flat. This is the first time I've seen this actor in a series. His acting was stiff and did not evoke much emotion for me. It wasn't just him playing the typical stoic, heroic tough guy act either - his acting was just bland. His facial expressions were limited to just serious or a wide-eyed deer in headlights. And his wig was distracting - they made his hairline so low that his forehead looked tiny. A role like this would have been better suited for an actor like Leo Wu (Love Like the Galaxy) or Dylan Wang (Love Between Fairy & Devil).
- Lead couple chemistry was just ok. Wasn't terrible but wasn't great either. This type of storyline requires major chemistry.
- The music could've been a lot better for this type of series. It's not memorable at all, and the song that kept playing was children singing like a nursery rhyme just lowered the quality of the OST.

Overall this is potentially a re-watch if I'm really bored w/ nothing else to watch.

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Cute Romantic Comedy with a Good Cast Ensemble

This is a cute light-hearted romantic comedy with a great ensemble cast where the support characters really shined. Yes, a bit cliche tropey storyline with the alpha male boss who falls in love with his newbie female assistant/colleague. But I can overlook that and just watch this at face value as a cute romantic comedy.

Pros:
- Adorable main couple, great chemistry. ML and FL did a great job. This the first role I've seen the ML (Chen Xing Xu) since the fan favorite Goodbye My Princess. The FL is a new actress that can really play the adorable, charismatic role. But she still lacks complex/emotional depth - but that's not really required for this light-hearted drama.
- The pacing was good, not draggy at all - for once I did not skip thru much.
- A realistic modern script without a bunch of over the top ridiculous scenes/plot lines that make your blood boil. There is the typical unrequited love that makes someone do unethical things to damage their love-rival's reputation - but this drama addresses this quickly and serves up justice, rather than letting it be the main plot for the whole series.
- The support characters were so good. This is one of the very very few dramas (modern or costume) that I actually enjoyed watching the support characters on screen. None of them were annoying, over-the-top, or boring scree-fillers. The character Bao Rui was my favorite, he had such subtle comedic timing, he actually made me laugh out loud.

Cons:
- The entire series was so good, but the last 2-3 episodes just seemed to lose steam, and the last episode was rather lackluster. I would've given this series a 10, but took 1 pt off for this reason.

Re-watch: I'd likely rewatch this.

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Dragged way too long

Plot:
The storyline is a good concept - the harsh realities of a struggling actor trying to succeed in the entertainment world. But it dragged on so slow and for way too long. I considered dropping it so many times, but still watched it to the end to see if it redeems itself...skipping thru most parts of each episodes. It finally started to get better by episode 30! What stood out in this series was all the shouting. EVERY episodes, so many characters are always shouting, excessively shouting even if they're having normal conversations...its shouting at one another. I had to turn down the volume often. It centers around a team of 3 kind, generous but feisty family/friends that rally around to support the male lead to realize his dream as an actor. But it's really illogical how these people literally devoted their time, money and their life to him unconditionally.

Acting/Cast:
- Male Lead (Hao Ze Yu) - I mainly watched this because of the ML Allen Deng because I loved him in Ashes of Love. But I must say I'm disappointed w/ him in this series (and honestly all the other series he's been in besides Ashes of Love). His acting wasn't necessarily bad, but as the male lead, his character was just so unlikeable from beginning to end. He was supposed to be the humble underdog that you empathize with and root for, but he just came across as an aggressive, whiny, unhinged victim that lashes out at everyone who tries to help him.
- Female Lead (Fu Zi ) - this is the first time I've seen this actress in any series, and she's quite good. She was one of only two characters that I really liked in this series. Her acting was sincere and heartfelt. Her innocence and kindness really shined through for this character.
- Fu Shang Fu, the female lead's father. He played the part well, the character was very endearing as a father and as a trusted/loyal friend. Tough on the outside, but funny, sweet, caring, and generous on the inside. His relationship w/ his daughter was so touching.
- Niu Mei Li, the male lead's agent - she really got on my nerves the whole series, up until maybe episode 25 or so when her motherly, nurturing side came out. The last maybe 10 episodes, she was able to pull at my heart strings.

I would not recommend this series. The plot could have been good, but they missed the mark...pacing was too slow and dragged on way too long.

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One of the best Cdramas I've seen so far

This is the very first time I've given a 10 rating for any c-drama. I mainly watch historical/costume/wuxi series, but I will occasionally watch modern dramas if there's a ML or FL that I loved in a historical. I finally watched Princess Agents and fell in love w/ the ML Lin Geng Xin (Kenny Lin) so I watched this series. He did not disappoint!

Story:
Action packed, not super predictable. Threw some unexpected curve balls. Almost every episode was a suspenseful cliffhanger.

Pacing:
Good pacing, this is the ONLY show that I did not skip through much. Even some of my most favorite series I did a lot of skipping during draggy parts. This series was not draggy at all. I found myself skipping some parts mainly because I couldn't stand the suspense and needed to know what happens next.

Music:
Good, but not particularly memorable where I would listen to the soundtrack later.

Acting:
- Kenny Lin (ML - Yan Jin) - He is probably my most favorite ML actor at this point, on the heals of watching him in Princess Agents then this show. I think he has surpassed my other ML favorites: Ken Chun (Rise of the Phoenixes), Mark Chao (Eternal Love/TMPB) and Allen Deng (Ashes of Love). Every single scene with Yan Jin was engaging, entertaining, funny or heart breaking. He was incredibly believable with all facets of his character: the handsome rich playboy, the silly brother/friend, the loving boyfriend and the badass tough guy cop. His chemistry w/ the FL was off the charts, extremely endearing, funny and saddening all at once. I can't wait to watch him in his next show.
- FL (Ji Xiou-ou) - first time seeing this actress. She did a good job.
- Support cast was awesome as well. Among my favorite were: Yan Shen (Yan Jin's twin sister), Cheng Rui Min (Yan Jin's best friend)

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Good series with some flaws

This is my first modern dram - I usually only watch historical/wuxia/costume type dramas. I waited for this drama to come out solely because of Ethan Juan (who was amazing in Legend of Fuyao). He did not disappoint in this series. Swoon worthy with sex appeal and great acting skills. That in combination w/ the FL (this is the first time I've seen her in any show) who is simply adorable. Her ability to come across as an innocent naïve hopeless romantic was spot on. She didn't do the over-the-top annoying cutesiness. Her genuine kindness and pure heart was balanced out w/ some reactive outbursts to injustice, rather than portraying her as a total Mary Sue type. She balanced out the character w/ some flaws.

Pros:
- ML and FL carried the show w/ their great acting and sizzling chemistry; you just yearn for their scenes together whether it was mentor/apprentice; platonic friendship or romance
- the cinematography, visual and audio of the food preparation was amazing; from high end restaurant scenes to mom and pop restaurants to street vendors; it left me salivating
- support characters - some of them were endearing (Uncle Lin, Kesong's parents, Nina and Da Mai), but most seemed like filler characters to add sub plots

Cons:
- the worst and most obvious was Elise's (and other foreign actors/characters) dubbing, it was painful and awkward, like watching old Bruce Lee movies where the mouth movements don't match the dubbing/scenes
- the antagonists never get their justified karma; its like the last 3 episodes the writers/producers got lazy and rushed it to tie everything up in a nice little bow and everyone lives happily ever after
- unnecessary sprinkling of broken English lines into the scenes - like why was that even necessary? The characters would be speaking Chinese...but then 1 or 2 lines for emphasis was done in English? Very awkward

Overall: I really enjoyed the series, but likely won't re-watch it.

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