Early episodes, Jing Bo Ran’s character Lan Jui, is sublimely beautiful in movement and expression. His performance interchangeable, from calm and serene, to chaotically maniacal,…
At episode 17 now,… storyline has become draggy at times… still tolerable so far.
Beautiful stages and costumes, lovely backdrops and scenery (albeit, appropriately eerie at times)
Up to ep 22~ storyline is slowly moving along, a new character has been introduced! Wang Duo aka Shulin, plays him well! His long ago connection with ML Lan Jui, belies a weird feeling…it’s eerie.
Now at ep 25 ~ Shulin strikes me as a Very sly individual… hmmm…
Just completed the series… As Shulin, Mr Wang Duo’s multilayered performance was awesome!
Sweet ending … complete as is,.. with soft opening for a potential S2. Lovely OST! Shoutout to cast and crew!
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Okay I just finished it and here is my take.
So good!!!
I think a lot of people are trying to get that “the untamed” feeling again. And don’t get me wrong the untamed is superior and I’d give anything to rewatch it for the first time again. However, if you drop the idea that nothing will come close the the untamed? then this drama is really good! A lot of people say the ending is horrible or rushed but I think it was a normal ending and a good one for the story. I don’t feel like there was too many loose ends that you couldn’t tie together your self and I found the ending quit cute. People also had trouble with the characters, I did to at the start, but I actually think the actors did a really good job and the acting (to me) is beautiful! The characters all develop beautifully and you will grow to fall in love with each in different ways! Definitely worth the watch, but again don’t be expecting something great like the untamed cause it’s just one of the shows you watch to know and not to become obsessed with. Alright that’s all, 8.5/10 overall for me. P.S. Zhang Ping is amazing and I don’t care what anyone says.
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I loved the unraveling of intricate plots and unsolved mysteries as deciphered by Zhang Ping despite some inconsistencies. In some instances, I was amazed how easily a commoner can obtain access to the Empress, and how fast the higher ranking officials believed Zhang Ping's explanations. But if I overlook some of the loopholes, I find this drama entertaining to watch.
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I'm usually lazy so I avoid writing reviews but this one is an exception
Just finished watching the series and godd@mn I'm gonna be hungover from this one for a long time.It was a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings for real and I wouldn't have it any other way.
I'm so glad I watched this beautiful drama and I'm so sad that it had to end. I'm gonna miss it terribly. I'm not giving any spoilers because it will truly ruin the fun. There were a few little flaws but those could definitely be ignored cause nothing's really perfect in this imperfect world.
I'm absolutely thankful to the team who decided to make this incredible series ❤️ All I can do is hope that this one will have a season 2.. I'm eagerly waiting for the good news ❤️?
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Amazing Drama. Totally Recommend it.
Zhang Ping character is autistic. He has difficulty in talking and socializing with people thus he will take him sometime to get close to Mr. Lan but eventually he will find away to get close to Lan thanks to his cooking skills (yes he's a great cook). Both of the characters are very smart specially Zhang Ping. The drama is more of a thriller than romance but all the characters have great chemistry and its worth it. Zhang Ping is young inspiring detective and he will eventually help Lan in finding the murders in the country. Zhang Ping is from poor background due to him being poor and not being from high society it will be nearly impossible for him to find his dream job but when he meets Mr Lan he will be able to work his dream job thanks to Mr Lan recommendation. Mr Lan is a minister of rites, he's also the son of former Traitor Grand General. Lan become a minister inorder to clear his father's name.Vond je deze recentie nuttig?
Ancient Detective Once More!
Ever since The Sleuth of Ming Dynasty (2020) I've been loving ancient detective dramas. Most however are not big budget production. Although this does not beat Sleuth of Ming Dynasty on every level, its a solid pick.If you enjoy dramas like:
Sleuth of Ming Dynasty
Ancient Detective
The Imperial coroner
Miss Truth
Then you'll enjoy this one as well
Positives
Quality production
Great casting from MLs to supporting cast
Interesting cases if you like crime dramas
Good pace - not to fast in solving each case
There's a bigger mystery to be solved as well as short cases to keep the audience engaged
Could've been better
Drama is overly serious with only hints of humor
Bromance was only decent, not sure if the pairing really worked for me although both are very good actors
Rather short drama, each episode is ~34min x 29 episodes. I definitely could use more cases or wouldn't mind a S2!
I am still waiting for the next drama that can match up to Sleuth of Ming Dynasty
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An inference to current affairs in guise of an investigation drama?
Was this an ingenious view by the writer on world affairs? A cover-up with a cover-up.The title and initials LON are the same as League of Nations, an old name of the UN.
Spoilers Alert!
This hypothesis was mainly because the story had masks, man-made biological weapons, man-made balloon missiles, and man-made weather changes and mutated decoy empress.
The plot was simple a case of deception where the empress substituted her ill son to a healthy boy to safeguard her status.
There were 5 main characters:
The Bad Guys: FL, empress dowager and her son, Shulin, the 2ML. They started with deception and ended in extermination.
The Good Guys: 2ML ,Zhang Pin and Lan Yue and 1 2ML, the emperor. They were interlinked to their machinations.
In that supposition that the 5 main characters represented nations or aptly their leaders.
Zhang Pin: can compromise principles for the common good.
Lan Jue: fence sitter who can be influence to align to a side.
Shulin : seemly free on the surface but underneath is tyranny.
Empress Dowager: powerful and will do everything and anything, even sacrificing own countrymen to main status quo.
Emperor: rising power and bent on regaining lost prestige and lost territories.
The ending episode has a jerking, pulling the rug from under your feet effect. It was to highlight that the 2ML were abandoning their principle and goal.
The theme of the story was Justice. Was justice served? Yes, the criminals died. Was justice seen to be served? No, the criminals and their crimes were not exposed. What is abhorrence to justice is a cover-up. It’s a prime prerequisite and no abatement to the victims and the survivors of a crime if abetments were done. Otherwise it’s a pretentious and preposterous play.
The cast were exceptional good. 2 outstanding ones were Jing Bo Ran who played Lan Jue , the graceful, cool and elegant finesse official with panache for manipulative manoeuvres. Shi Yue Ling, who captured convincingly the imposing cold, menacing majestically empress dowager who spoke in a deliberately slow frost biting tone and a pair of sharp piercing eyes that can sent shivers down the spine.
The cinematography promotes a soporific, sinister, creepy atmosphere more potent in the hypnotic water vessels scenes. Fostered also by dancers covering their faces in masks or grotesque paints in primal ritualistic like dancing as though releasing inner demons into the air. At times the drama felt like a horror drama rather than an investigative one.
Re watch? Yes, control your inner demon. Don’t grade yourself to a lower
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Chinese Holmes, hehe
A fantastic story with maximum potential (BL/Mystery/Drama-Affiliated)Story - So far amazing, from start of episode 1 all the way through to 10, story will keep you on your toes and pacing is well done. There are some minor sections where it can be explained further however really good so far. The twists and plots and outwitting the enemy is amazing to see, legit reminds me of Sherlock Holmes but an eastern olden version hehe.
Acting: MLs have great chemistry, from facial expressions to dialogue really well done. Love how Lan Jue seems to have all things planned out only for Zhang Ping to either change his plans or see through them. The acting between the who is done superbly well.
Music: For me this was poor, no main theme for opening and no catchy tones. Sequence music in certain scenes are okay but other than this very dull (Subjective)
Rewatch Value: If you are into BL/Male leads and Brotherhood than this one is well worth rewatch. If this is not your cup of tea I highly recommend at least watch it the whole way through once, you won't be disappointed
Overall: So far so good, excited to see more episodes past 10.
Cheers all,
Shing
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Justice not served!! Ending plot is complete bs!
Have a couple of comments regarding this but will just list a few. (Note: I even subscribe just to watch diz )*Intro OST suits well for the thriller and added it to my playlist
*Acting- ngl, SWL acting was wooden and emotionless!! He's not up as the ML in diz one.. everyone did better than him!
On the other hand, Wang Duo, oh dear! Such phenomenal acting as expected from him. 6666!!
*Bromance - not much since the drama suffered heavy cuts due to censorship. But, i enjoyed more of Lan Jue's friendship w/ Hong Yao and Shulin.
*Plot- it started rly good and got me hooked up w/ it's mysterious twist and turn plots. But in the last 5episodes, things just got worse(imo). Shulin was a 'good guy' gone bad due to the Dowager! I feel rly bad and sour for Shulin-- they shud'v done justice for him!
What a worst revenge-plot!
Zhang Ping actually told lies for the Dowager is pure bs! I'm so disappointed and can only give this an 7-rate w/c is still considered high.
*Rewatch Value- low as I have trouble finishing this. When I've known Shulin's injustice ending, I'm so disappointed and mad. So, altho I kinda like this, but I WONT REWATCH as other great dramas still waiting.
(LOL, got carried away and had to express some dissatisfaction. It doesn't help that i'm vry fond of Wang Duo! Call me bias but the plot ending is bs!)
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Good but not stimulating
This series is a bit difficult to describe because the acting and character chemistry were pretty good. The plot (with exception of the ending) flowed relatively well. But for a 29-episode series, it was lacking that "entertaining" factor and the entire series felt like it was playing to a single note. The drama wasn't dramatized enough and the humor wasn't humorous enough. The cases and mysteries that revolve solely around the protagonists were interesting in the beginning but started to falter when they began to poorly insert new characters. And the ending is really where it begins to crack because there wasn't great character development for the aforementioned new characters and some existing ones. They made attempts to do so with some flashbacks but unsuccessfully. However, as with other average series, this one was still entertaining enough to complete with some time skips. Not much actions scenes and no romance (which I usually prefer).Vond je deze recentie nuttig?
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I wanted to love this
Another completely biased review from me to youJing Bo Ran as the ML is mesmerizing, and I could listen to him recite the phone directory and I would be enthralled. However, this series never really clicked for me.
The character Lan Jue was not a good guy, definitely on the darker shade of grey. ?I'm all for morally grey characters who are tormented because of something something in their past, but you know that the actions they are taking are all for the greater good. Here the character seemed to be doing bad things for expediency sake. His friend whose name escapes me but was the army dude(? ) had super good chemistry with him. Half the time I felt like saying guys, get a room already!? I did like their interactions.
The Zhang Ping character was, let's face it, just fucking irritating. In a real-world environment he never would have survived the first encounter with the empress. There is such a thing as a innocent, naive hero doing the right thing but this character was just dumb as dirt and would have deserved to be offed in the first episode. ? His little noodle friend I guess was taking the place of what would ordinarily be the high-pitched voice toddler female in these shows whose purpose is to screech a lot and to fall down?
The empress was the typical evil queen. ?What else can I say, nothing new here.
A long time friend of the grey guy, Shulin, showed up and it turns out that grey dude and him had quite a past together, including living together on an island in the middle of a lake, which was pretty cool. Seemed like they had a very special relationship happening, but grey dude hosed it up and they parted.
The ending sucked imho. Shulin, it turns out, was (maybe?) the empress's real son who was abandoned as an infant, so he planned to take down the empress. Which is what dumb noodle guy and grey dude wanted to do all along. But instead of working with Shulin to overthrow the evil empress they turned their backs on him and betrayed him, which in turn made him go batshit crazy ?and try to destroy the world. Cause, stuff.
Anyhow, it seems like more people liked this than not, so don't let me review stop you from watching it. You may enjoy it too.
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handsome actors and beautiful cinematography!
The costumes and accessories look pretty good quality (idk if it matches the era) and the directing was amazing. I liked the color scheme which seemed to match the vibe of the drama. I love Jing Boran's character LJ. He's so good looking and his role is actually reasonable and smart. On the other hand, Song Weilong's character ZP who's supposed to be a smart detective is so naive who just wants to expose the truth with no fear of death and in historical times especially because he's a commoner, that attitude is dumb and will get him targeted and will get people around him killed. I just found Song Weilong's character and acting to not match the drama. I preferred the bromance between Lan Jue (Jing Boran) to be with Mowen and Zhang Ping (Song Weilong) to be with Chen Chou. Zhang Ping's status and aura just doesn't match with Lan Jue who has a dignified and elegant aura. I loved the colors and the deep meaning and symbolism everywhere. The music was also elegant and had a mysterious vibe which I thought was very fitting. Overall, I thought it was a good drama except for 2 main parts that I felt fustrated at because they were being hypocritical.SPOILER ALERT!
1. The first situation was with Lady Yuzhen, where she was punished for taking revenge on someone who hired men to sexually harass her. The revenge didn't harm anyone except the initial person who sent the men. Zhang Ping went to her and victim blamed Yuzhen, showing absolute no sympathy.
2. The second is with the real prince. The prince was literally killed by his own mother, the Empress Dowager when he was a kid and got replaced. He grew up hateful which is definitely reasonable!! His rescuer's whole village was also massacred because they saved his life. Then he wants revenge for himself and his rescuers and claim his royal status back only for the 2 people he trusted to betray him also (ZP and LJ) for "the greater good" even though the Empress Dowager literally framed both their families and killed them. Like I thought y'all wanted the truth no matter what! Like I agree the real prince was causing chaos to the world but the world betrayed him first. I agree that the real prince shouldn't be the emperor but I didn't like how they invalidated his experiences
also I was so shocked at the end when Lan Jue said he had a kid!
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