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well, that was a surprise!

I've never written a review before so you know there has got to be a reason. why then? because this is actually good. really good. and as someone who doesn't watch minidramas, this is big praise.

the story is obviously fast-paced but still manages to introduce a large number of characters in a believable manner and in a way that you actually care about them.

the two main leads were solid in their acting, I wasn't sold on yifu and a couple of minor actors but overall it surpassed my expectations many times over.

the costumes were good and sometimes spectacular, again a massive and delightful surprise given the budget of this type of drama. special call out to Shenzhi's gothic style outfit with the train, the man is a certified drama queen.

the only things that I found distracting were the really heavy filter (negative) and Shenzhi's eyebrows (positive).

overall, the director, writer, cast and crew deserve a full-length drama next time. I'd totally watch that.

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the cliff took the wrong victims, it should have been the writers of the second half

it's rare that a show appears to give such clear insight into behind-the-scenes drama but if you told me the same writers wrote the story before and after both character and show fell off a cliff halfway through, I wouldn't believe you.

first half was a moderately entertaining, somewhat formulaic historical drama with all the lost child, palace abuse, ridiculous CGI wolves, and contrived finding oneself in bed with the enemy tropes that your heart desires.

second half was like one of those meals made with leftovers from the fridge, only the chef has no sense of smell or taste and their glasses are steamed up so they don't see too well either. it's a mess, with things that might have been edible if they hadn't been cooked all together with stuff with a best-before date of 2016.

highlights were the flawless Liu Lingzi, whose tightly controlled Meng Zhenzhen deserves far more praise and a far better drama for her skills; Liu Xueyi's peerless cheekbones and always solid grasp of his characters; Gao Han's crying; many of the sidekicks; Meng Huaijin and the weird cousin relationship; and being amused by how many viewers thought the 3rd and 4th prince were the same person. the OST is delicious by itself and Reno Wang's outro track has found a permanent place in my Cdramas playlist.

the lowlights are too numerous to mention and ultimately all of these efforts were overshadowed by a storyline lacking any type of integrity.

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this one has stayed with me for a while

so from the outset, full disclosure, I am a fan of Chinese crime dramas and consider MDL ratings to be an underappreciation. this is no exception.

in general, these dramas tend to have a similar darkness to the typical scandinoir which some may be more familiar with. they lean towards a grittier visual appearance, however, and frequently make full artistic use of their location, whether it is an impersonal or derelict urban setting or the open spaces of the central plains.

this review has taken a while to formulate, mostly because I was genuinely touched by this series and had to sort out my emotions about the drama itself and whether it is possible for people who commit certain types of crimes to be redeemable, or whether misplaced sympathy means that I too am morally flawed. this veteran consumer of noirs has in fact not watched a single episode of any other crime drama yet since completing this because of deep and painful feelings about this tragic tale.

we find ourselves in what is, essentially, a dying town. it's set up from the start that many of the characters we meet are looking for a way out, and the pool of people they can attach themselves to to achieve this aim is small. as can be predicted, almost every relationship is thus dysfunctional, including the ones that set the initial crime in motion and further propagated it.

in the acting department, this is a solid cast and they play to their strengths. special callout to Wang Qiang, who manages one of the most careful balancing acts here, and whose characterisation was the source of much of the angst described above.

visually, this oscillates between darkly beautiful, expansive shots of a broken town, cramped interiors, and a hell of a lot of sand, with the occasionally injudicious use of a too-heavy filter that I wish had been toned down a touch, especially early on, as it was a little distracting. however, it is a testament to how immersive it is that I can't actually comment on whether that issue persisted beyond the first few episodes. the OST is surprisingly apt.

don't come here for an easy weekend watch but do come for the stories of these flawed characters, some of whom manage to be both deeply sympathetic and unforgivably criminal. the sheer weight of the tragedy of this story will slowly unfold and quite possibly leave you somewhat breathless and flailing for your own personal moral compass.

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vast in scope and audacious in ambition

set in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, this drama is a rare epic and gives many of us, particularly international viewers, some fairly deep insight into an era that we may be unfamiliar with. if you can survive the first few episodes, much like the people of that time, you may find your endurance adequately rewarded by the end – the citizens with a unified, relatively peaceful state; the viewers with a wealth of historical factoids and a solid cinematic journey.

the first three episodes are a dizzying introduction to hundreds of characters, most of whom are narrative cannon fodder, and a nauseating introduction to the horrors of the never-ending wars. by the sixth episode, it has fully settled as characters are fleshed out and from then on, it develops into a layered and engrossing story as history is made human. the final arc demands that we accept something that is antithetical to many people’s worldview: that surrender is not necessarily failure. to this day, the economic legacy of this era where the leadership was focused on trade and uplifting the state, and a series of conscious choices to submit to more powerful allies rather than suffer damages from war, is reflected in the continued success of that little southeast corner of the nation.

one thing that is both appealing and intimidating about our main lead Qian Hongchu is the speed at which he makes massive decisions from a young age. he is a rare species, reactive but with impeccable moral logic, and he is fearless in delivering rapid-fire consequences when warranted. as he ages, you can actually see the tension increasing, with each decision weighing heavier, even though he knows it is the correct course of action. this progression culminates in his final decision, painstakingly made, and the heaviness of his steps as he makes his final journey out of Wuyue, tragically alone despite being surrounded by his clan.

Bai Yu’s portrayal of the middle-aged Qian Hongchu is where I found him most striking. he creates a strange tension which at first I questioned. compared with his usual more natural-feeling characterisations, he seemed to be visibly working hard, which is not a style that I favour personally. but with time, I came to realise that this was actually impressive work. that tension is within Qian Hongchu, himself playing a character playing a character. he is visibly suppressing his more natural fisherman prince persona in favour of the king he’s now required to be. his entire life has become a high-stakes bit.

in terms of some other members of the cast, Zhu Yawen is, as always, a study in charisma. his Zhao Kuangyin is magnetic, and not once did I question how he managed to garner support in any of his endeavours, even that most defining one. Zhou Yutong as Sun Taizhen is a light and somewhat odd-feeling presence early in the drama but comes into her own in her unfailing, mature, supportive role through the years despite her lean screen time.

the supporting characters were no less solid. a flawless performance by the evergreen Ni Dahong as Hu Jinsi, a man who does not shut up about how he is 90 years old and whose tenuous hold on patience is eventually broken. and Edward Zhang was a surprising winner for me, particularly in the later years where he thoroughly embodied the older version of Li Yuanqing, a grifting black hole of morality. criticism of the ageing makeup is justified. there are distracting discrepancies at both ends of the timeline. this performance, however, is not one of them.

there was one particular incident that I found jarring in how it was handled: the infamous 燭影斧聲 (candle and axe) scene. it reminded me of watching Empire of the Sun as a young teen after reading the book in literature class – astounded that the screen could bear so little resemblance to the vision I had created in my head. I feel like I would have preferred it to be a little more oblique instead of giving us a fictionalised version of what transpired inside the room.

there was a consistent and obvious attempt to humanise the characters which deserves praise. any habitual watcher of Chinese dramas likely knows to distrust joy, but space was made for people to be fully human and capable of joyful interaction, particularly within their families, which of course provided both occasional light relief as well as heightened emotional response to their fates.

the last few episodes could have done with a little more breathing space. the narrative was forced to coalesce very rapidly at this point and it felt like we lost touch with Qian Chu's world, both his internal world in terms of his decision-making but also externally, in terms of his relationship with his children particularly. in some ways though, it was entirely appropriate. his decisions had become slower, heavier, more loaded, and he found himself more isolated. it is unsurprising that we as viewers begin to lose our grip on his character at the same time but the sense of emptiness is hard to shake.

the occasional voiceovers were probably necessary but felt like a basic history lecture inserted because no one had any bandwidth left to show and not tell. working on this type of production must have been exhausting and even viewers might find themselves mentally overextended at times; nevertheless, it still feels like a suboptimal choice for storytelling.

the score is award-worthy. for me, this is Chen Xueran's master work. everything is well-calibrated, and it's rare to watch something with this level of care in the variations, which are then deployed with such meticulousness. throughout, the music was additive rather than intrusive.

with all that said, I am torn on how to rate this series. in pure enjoyment terms, I would probably give it 8.5/10. it is a monster of a drama, a multigenerational historical epic, and does occasionally falter of course. the core things that one would normally use to make a judgment – narrative, acting, pacing, special effects, direction – are solid. but it also deserves extra credit for sheer ambition. It’s a breathtakingly ambitious production.

I eventually settled on a very creditable 9/10. strongly recommended for fans of this type of series but probably a hard avoid for anyone who watches dramas purely for light entertainment and would balk at reading the Wikipedia entries of twenty different emperors.

[TW: graphic scenes of war and other violence, executions, sexual violence, cannibalism. don’t eat while watching if you are squeamish or unaccustomed to this type of historical drama.]

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a love letter to the genre

this is a mid-length psychological dark comedy thriller crime drama (no, really, what exactly is it?) that reads like a film student's graduation project in the form of a love letter to film noir and its German expressionist roots. at times, the cinematography is thoroughly distracting, especially when the framing of characters is so obvious as to lean towards the ridiculous or the low-key lighting tips over into what looks like a stage spotlight with erratic wiring.

but this distraction is actually an asset. in a series which focuses on flawed individuals and a system designed to exclude them if they can't buy their way in, every inappropriate line, peculiar frame or flickering light reminds us just how broken and messed up this universe, and our own, is.

the cast plays into this vision incredibly well. Maggie Huang, who I'd previously only seen in a production I consider subpar, proved to be a revelation in a more thoughtful work. she is restrained while retaining an underlying edge which piques interest and curiosity. Wang Duo was less of a surprise given his previous roles, and there were moments when he almost seemed to enjoy himself too much, but he truly showed why this type of role is firmly in his remit.

Qin Junjie, paradoxically, felt somewhat underutilised but his performance can't be faulted. his Da Huihui is the show’s real enigma. plenty of screentime and his mannerisms signal openness, but his emotional world is still largely closed to us as viewers. he’s performative in the investigations for his social media channel, and while the logic of his actions is sound, he exists almost in a parallel universe where he is operating under the same systemic pressures but as more of an observer than a participant.

so while I know there isn't much to go on in this review if you are deciding whether to watch this, and this is deliberate in order not to spoil plot points in what is a fairly intricate setup, here is my recommendation. if you like slowburn thrillers, slightly absurd dark humour, damaged psychology, arthouse cinema, this is well worth the time. it's likely not for everyone but where it works, it really does. I have no regrets.

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a dark but well-balanced drama that surprised to the upside

if you think about crime dramas, we've seen it all, from specialist fraud units, SVUs, forensics and pathology, major divisions investigating serial murderers, lone-wolf detectives pursuing crime syndicates. in this series, we are introduced to the thoroughly unsexy railway police, whose job it is to deal with pickpockets at the station and thefts on trains. this is not a procedural but a pursuit story starring an ill-favoured demoted detective. it's dark and dirty and features an overlapping network of career crime and petty misdemeanour. generally well-directed and features some tidy editing towards the end when a lot of karmic vengeance is delivered all over the map.

Guo Jingfei particularly delivers a great performance, no notes.

(bonus point if you can spot the actor perhaps best-known as the most un-Lan Lan, grown up and engaging in petty crime, he does credit to what must have been quite a difficult role)

overall thoughts: a slow train ride with veteran actors leading you through a gritty urban landscape.

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just some guy’s cultivation journey yet thoroughly entertaining

this is a story that starts with tropes so recognisable, they are almost as trite as “once upon a time.” our lead, Han Li (played by Yang Yang, who really seems to have found his niche in this character), is introduced as a basic teenager from a family so poor that for him and his friend, joining a cultivation sect means eating actual food every day instead of arguing over flatbreads with siblings.

as we initially follow our teenager (for indeed he is no hero, as we learn relatively quickly), his journey begins to diverge from the tried and true cultivation narrative. he certainly has talents but they are not flashy or impressive to others; in fact, they appear invisible to almost everyone except the most crafty of mentors. but Han Li is cool-headed and thoughtful and has mastered, if we are polite about it, conflict avoidance and strategic retreat. if we were less charitable and more into legendary saving-the-world stories, we might be inclined to call him cowardly.

our not-quite-hero does, however, understand how to work both smart and hard, which is quite fortunate because his path is not destined to be an easy one. the focus of the sects on collecting items and on growing their cultivation base with pills and potions is slightly unusual, but this jarringly materialistic subculture holds space for Han Li’s peculiar personality to thrive and gives a sense of this being not just a story but a game.

the pace overall is fairly unrelenting if somewhat uneven. for those of us who have not read the novel on which this is based, which is very long, the information overload and rapid cycling between sects and characters may be a little disorienting and it does feel as if there is insufficient time for character development. Han Li does plenty of gardening and gardening-adjacent chores, which is when you should probably catch your breath, but often these moments arrive too late and you have already processed the previous rapid-fire events. this inconsistency would probably be my only major criticism of the series as a whole.

while there is not really time for explicit comedy, it is still quite humorous at times, which also provides some relief from weeding and fighting demonized creatures. one of the oddest and possibly unintentional sources of humour is the way that almost every character at some time points out how ordinary, plain and unattractive our main character is. meanwhile, Yang Yang’s Han Li gets an obvious glow-up every time he levels up. by two-thirds of the way through, he looks like he has a personal spa in his cave. if they keep on polishing the visuals as his cultivation improves, there will be nothing but blinding light to see for the rest of the story. perhaps the next installment should just be an audio drama.

the CGI has a bit of a late 2000s feel, which sometimes feels slightly anachronistic but does comfortably feed the gamified nature of the series. the fight scenes, however, are impeccably designed and provide a counterpoint to the more mundane aspects of cultivation life.

while large-scale conflict provides the backdrop to the narrative, overall the series still manages to feel low-conflict, in large part because of Han Li’s avoidant personality and distinct lack of interest in interpersonal drama. as an example, when he finds a deceased person, he will inevitably just search them for artifacts then insta-cremate them with very little hassle, whether he killed them himself or they died from non-Han Li-related misadventure. always the pragmatist.

at its core then, The Immortal Ascension is a low-angst series about how people work their way up the cultivation food chain, but it has no pretensions about developing side characters or insisting that you hold feelings for them. the inherent sadness in the narrative is quiet, philosophical and with hidden depth, much like our protagonist himself. Han Li simply has his own path to tread.

though he finds (and by extension, we also find) very few people to care about, there are plenty of people who follow him around, from an entire hopeful harem of women, most of whom he deliberately avoids but still treats with a detached type of respect, to his archenemy, the flamboyant demon lord Wang Chan (Wang Duo with one of his most overtly camp performances), who doesn’t seem to realise that his obsessive relationship with Han Li is unrequited.

the music felt slightly limited in scope but well-deployed. the individual tracks are very strong, particularly Shi Yan’s 蜉蝣志 (Mayfly Will), a raw, rasping emotional journey reminiscent of some of Chen Xueran’s best work. months after finishing The Immortal Ascension, I listen to this OST occasionally and it’s still just as impactful.

all in all, this was an enjoyable and memorable journey, particularly considering the fact that I started this on a whim with zero expectations. the end credits signal a second season and I will definitely be seated!

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behold my #1 drama of 2025

this historical gem is based on Ma Boyong’s 2021 novel Lychees of Chang'an and, in an unusual twist, had both a film and drama adaptation released in the same year.

the basic premise is familiar: a ticking clock, with the protagonist having to deliver fresh litchis from Lingnan to Chang’an, a journey of over 1,000 miles, for the birthday of the emperor’s favourite concubine. the details of this story are largely unfamiliar but as each new character and landscape is introduced, they settle comfortably into the narrative framework so that by the end, it feels that we have known them for a long time.

the cast is led by Lei Jiayin as Li Shande, a socially awkward official who is conned by his colleagues into taking on a task that every department knows is impossible and an effective death sentence for whoever ends up with it. Lei Jiayin brings us a neurodivergent-coded, gently obsessive person with occasional flashes of frustration that were deeply human and believable.

I’d also call out veteran Feng Jiayi for his portrayal of a conniving, transactional rural official who does not balk at discarding even his closest associates when they are no longer of use; and Nashi, with vivid and colourful visuals which contrast with the restrained exterior and emotional core of Amita, the leader of the Lingnan trader branch. I cannot praise these actors and the rest of the cast enough for bringing their characters so solidly to life and allowing us to truly appreciate how this journey unfolds without distraction.

the costumes, cinematography and art direction were bold and colourful and although some critics have some negative commentary on this, personally I have nothing but compliments. the overall look of the series is beautiful, and the choices appear intentional and designed with care even if at first glance they may appear wild. I was enthralled and more than once found myself hitting rewind either to admire or screenshot a particular frame.

a particular moment of outré comedy in episode 7 was the catalyst to take this unfolding story from likeable to something I was unashamed to admit that I loved. there were a few other bizarre moments sprinkled throughout, with enough restraint so as not to become tiresome. the closing credits contained various songs in an eclectic rotation, including Liu Yuning’s thoroughly entertaining 逍遥仙 (Carefree Immortal).

the last few episodes suffered from some slipshod editing, which appears to be the result of last-minute changes after the drama had started airing. while this was noticeable, the drama had built up so much credit with me that I was hesitant to downgrade its rating. taking a leaf from Li Shande’s logical brain, I simply reallocate the bonus point accrued from the first three-quarters to that last section, and give it full marks.

in short, this is a drama about ordinary people and how they survive within systems designed for rulers and wealth. it's a deeply human story and a strong recommend for anyone interested in non-idol historical C-dramas or the many stories of Ma Boyong.

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a shiny, glittering, enjoyable mess

I genuinely did not know how to rate this series so here is my rambling review. it's objectively not that great but I have thoroughly enjoyed it and not sure I've ever run into quite this issue before.

I want to give it 3/10 for being trash on a lot of levels. some of that seems to be a lack of commitment on the direction side. take the antagonists for example, they are literally parodies of themselves. but instead of fully leaning into that, Joker-style, we are expected to understand them as serious characters? meanwhile that Empress Dowager and her creepily obsessed sidekick will forever be jokes. technically it could have been better. fight choreography seems a little messy. you can see the intent and it's not unattractive to watch but a lot of that is on Cheng Lei and the costume people.

yet I want to rate it 9/10 for vibes. it's rare that I have this much fun watching anything. the storyline was surprisingly solid and although I couldn't care less about any of the side characters, the leads were entertaining and gave enough that I could fool myself into accepting some really odd behaviour and even odder superpowers.

so overall, a comfortable 7.5/10. not an average of the extremes because the enjoyment exceeded the criticisms. watch it if you want something pretty and fun and you're able to or want to turn off most of your non-lizard brain cells. also if topless Leizi is a thing that might please you enough to counter anything negative. don't bother if you're in drama spaces looking for intellectually or emotionally deep works. also be aware that while there is a perception that it's an enemies-to-lovers story, enemies is a mere ant compared to the great pear tree of lovers so don't be disappointed at that balance.

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a republican era drama that sweeps like a brand-new broom

it's a little difficult to define this drama. in all honesty. it should be a mess, given the variety of actors, storylines, and politics, but it is a great watch, with engaging, well-developed characters and an approach to history that is surprisingly deft through most of its run.

so in this beautifully shot Republican era drama, we have a mismatched bunch of actors from liuliang all the way through to well-regarded veterans and character actors. there's little to criticise about any of them. even where the direction may feel a little heavy-handed or the exposition a little too obvious, the ship is steadied by Wang Yang at the core, as stubborn but sympathetic official Shen Tunan.

the story is initially simple. exceedingly intelligent country boy, played with great sensitivity by Wang Yibo, comes to the big city to make his fortune in finance and finds a family, a job, a mentor and a purpose. of course, this isn't how it plays out. one by one, circumstances and individuals knock out each of the underpinnings of Wei Ruolai's faith in the system and in himself.

there will be times that everything feels entirely too unrealistic. there will be characters that are altogether too much. there will be politics that is far too unsubtle. but these things feel irrelevant given the feisty pace, the solidity of the overarching plot, grounded by the history and political imperatives of then and now, and the exquisite charm and pathos of the many and varied cast.

overall thoughts: a worthwhile story that deserves all of its accolades.

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a dizzying carousel I wouldn't ride again even if it came with a free lunch

I kind of see what the writers are trying to do here but the wild swings between watching one million hours of humanised abandoned dogs (but not cats, disappointingly, seems like a missed opportunity) and an entire episode of nauseating but also kind of funny hell tortures was already too much.

I hatewatched to the end only for the pastor, a relatively unknown actor to most of us, because despite having four literal behemoths of Kdramas in there (husband and wife, random third wheel whose presence is eventually explained and it doesn't help, and the twin bosses of heaven and hell), their performances and the underlying message were overshadowed by the heavyhandedness with which everything was handled.

however, if you like maximalist dramas with a side of evangelism, this might well be appealing.

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episode 1 rugby team > writing team

I should have left this the second that the rules of the game were steamrolled over for vibes. referees ignoring dangerous tackles and everyone treating the victim as if they're at fault rather than sending off a player who should know better than launch into a neck-breaking tackle? leaving a player with a potential concussion or spinal injury on the floor and letting the game continue while they're unattended? schoolboy rugby is an inherently dangerous sport and the complete disregard for the most basic precautions was laughable and decades out of date.

then we have our superstar, the noble idiot. his idiocy is also decades behind. does he not have insurance? did he not read anything on the internet about his own sport and players from other nations? are the sport administrators completely divorced from reality? with that fundamental issue on which the story is based making no sense, the rest of the plot is very much the roof of a very shaky house of cards.

this is a story that should have been great. an underdog coach in an underdog sport takes on a bunch of underdog high schoolers to take over the world. but the flaws in the storytelling are just too huge to overlook.

I detested every single adult character. the kids were there doing their job, being kids, and every single adult was either a lying sack of trash, weak, incompetent, violent, or psychologically abusive. and at the core was the principal, a person who was so weak that her pending retirement surely also was decades behind.

worse, almost none of their motivations even made much sense. by halfway through, most of them were just doing evil by numbers. the plot demanded a movement in a certain direction so fetch the magenta crayon of evil for that.

if I have a good thing to say it's that the team was entertaining, well-characterised and, along with Seo Ujin, contained the only actors to come out of this with merit. there are moments where the sun just peeked through the clouds of tropes, unintentional parody and plot devices, but they were simply too rare to make this more than mediocre.

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a light comedic drama not entirely to be taken at face value

at first glance this is a very usual costume drama, somewhat indeterminate point in time, attractive actors, light and bright colours. it starts with comedic scenes, not entirely unusual. what is unusual is that it retains this tone overall even though it gets quite deep into what is a set of very dark topics, many juxtaposing ancient practices and modern feminism - domestic violence, women's economic rights, arranged marriages. a particularly positive aspect is the way that most of the women in this drama support each other, a far cry from the usual divide-and-rule harem politics.

overall thoughts: occasionally silly but a delight.

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a disturbing story with an interesting aesthetic

(TW: domestic violence, bullying, sexual assault, misogyny and more) there is so much awful behaviour in this, it's not an easy watch. it's also shot in an overly arty, almost try-hard way that adds to the vertiginous sensation as you claw your way through this drama. yet these are not negatives. they are the reason this is a compelling watch. although the series occasionally loses a little of its early impetus, it has enough to carry it through its fairly short, but very much not neat, run.

overall thoughts: this is like looking at art photos of an accident scene, it will probably leave you feeling dirty but there's an acid gloss to it that is perversely attractive.

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