Yani
Okay so, it's a journey, bear with me - take the good with you and leave the bad behind
I'll be quick and to the point in giving my opinions. I've already said almost everything I had to say in the comments bellow while watching the episodes. Here, I'll try and keep it short. (P.S - I lied so hard, sorry, arrest me ahahaha)
*minnie tiny wheeny spoilers in this review, if you're really scared of knowing something or even hate hints, maybe don't read but if you aren't I'll be glad*
THE GOOD:
This is what kept me watching the series. The "support cast":
Ji Chong. This is how you make and develop a character, let him be the example, he's certainly mine. I can see how much care was put into creating the character of Ji Chong and how beautiful and graceful he turned out to be. Kudos to Xiao Zhan too, for breathing life to this wonderful role! I can't call him a second lead. He's one of the main leads, fully deserving of his place there. I wasn't a fan before because, well, I haven't watched him in anything before, and when he appered I was like "Hey, handsome" and then I was like "Okay, now it's starting to become interesting.." From the start he was shown as a free spirited, larger than life type of a person, then to the same guy but with different reasons and a good backstory and then revealing the honor, the grace, the beauty and the very realistic personal tragedy of someone experiencing unrequited love. *SPOILER* --> But after all he went through he managed to break free of the prison of love in dramas and walked out as the coolest dude there can be with some bomb-ass lines like "There are many things in life that are more important than romance and love affairs." DID I HEAR WHAT I JUST HEARD? A character from a romance drama is saying that? Excuse me while I stand up and clap for Ji Chong - the greatest man from a drama, The Coolest Man. PERIOD. FULL STOP. HATS OFF. "I let her go, wasn't I so cool for doing that?" "You're the coolest man I've ever seen."Who migh be saying that? hmmm ;) *end of SPOILER*
They wrote him to have so much spirit, sass, charm and in the same time maturity so that he can be more than just an aesthetic, if I may say so . Every time he showed up the pacing of the drama got faster, he was there both to bring action and to teach some characters and the audience lessons of humanity. He was also given a good backstory that gave reasons for his choices and showed clearly his personality. And they casted exactly the actor for him to better portray this specific type of a character that is not often seen in dramas because I think the free-spirited people are often written to not be mature and it was a very good artistic choice to bring these characteristics in the story of one person. It served the overall plot and the story of Ji Chong very well!
Another good: Yao Ji, Bao Na. Yao Ji (played by Xin Zhi Lei). Yao Ji had a pretty great character development. I can't tell you much but expect to have the feels and enjoy the amazing acting from Xin Zhi Lei!
Bao Na - started from the "bottom" and look where we are! I wish I could spill the tea and tell you more but I will spoil all the good things. Normally, I find the "cute"characters in cdramas to be plain annoying and girly and nowhere near cute at all. But here we are presented with the Cute itself and its loyal friends - the Ferocious, the Brave , the Kind and the Sassy. Just forget her first episodes, everyone wants to choke her there, it;s alright, it;s gonna pass xD. It's a good coming of age story that has still not come fully of age and maybe never will, hopefully, because I strongly believe people should guard their kids' spirit to the end of their life ^^
other good: The cinematography! The grand production! The aesthetics! The soundtrack! The editing! - this was a master editing work. It was technically freaking amazing! Well done to the operators and the editos, it's a work made on another scale and that's what draws you in from the start. Inner decor, outer shots...One time I was so amazed by a scene just because of how it looked and the accompanying track that I almost teared up and there was nothing much happening on the screen between actors then. It's just well done and I was pleasently suprised! I will cherish all the beautiful scenes in the future when I rewatch my favourite parts!
What I didn't like and thought was wack: The main two leads and their story which is theoretically the whole plot and if there weren't other characters with their own individual stories to keep things interesting, I would have dropped the series. Just, their thing...was not my thing. It was supposed to be epic, deeply felt, grand, to make me feel the power of love...but it was badly done. Bo Wang and Ma Zhai Xing had young love, infatuation, appreciaion..okay, maybe, but a relationship needs communication and growing up as people together as a result of the SHARED fortunes and misfortunes in life. They shared...almost nothing since the time they parted in the woods. They had a great and sweet friendship as the wolf boy and Xing'er and then they were different people that never got to to have a real conversation together. All they did they did in secret, their most important moments that shaped who they were happened while apart. For their ending and the emotions the screenwriters wanted to portray to be deserved, they needed better written characters and more time for a relationship to form. Theoretically, what they had should have been great but the time to show it was wasted for scenes I see in many other dramas *the cold man/warm woman trope* and when they parted the show became more interesting for me. Seeing as they didn't contribute so much to forming a relastic bond, in my opinion, I wish we focused more on the other characters at the times when the angst was too much. For Bo Wang - it would have been nice to see more of his personal story and path and not so much focus on their relationship (a strong word for that in most episodes). If we saw the transformation, his past and more interactions with the people that were important for Lord Bo I think he really would have grown on me. For Ma Zhai Xing - that girl was written with all logic thrown to the wind. She was promising in the beginning and then she was no one and without certain two characters (Ji Chong and the king of Jin)- she wouldn't even have a spec of character development. Even when she had a better moment it didn't lead to anything pretty good, she made a step forward and two backwards. She was basically a plot tool for the ML to use and tell his story that wasn't even told fully. If her character was written off and her role in the plot was given to circumstances and other people, everything would still be the same.
And I didn't like that Bo was not given a true inner fighting spirit. I really didn't! He was shown to be holding up just for the sake of another person who, ironically, he kept making miserable in certain episodes. That was so...demeaning and senseless - for her and for him. It's a story of an innocent person coming under the control of the wicked and presumably fighting his way out while keeping his humanity but all he ever wanted was to die. For sure, a peron's life has a greater meaning than that. What's te point to show such a journey of someone enduring all this and finding friends and ways to stand against his captor if the only "coping" mechanism he got from all these years is the memory of a girl and mind you when he meets the girl he is is being a total jerk to her. But it should be "okay" because he later reveals he never hated her, he did everything in the name of love and the audience should appreciate his inner struggles even though we didn't really see what he went through and he was not given good inner convinctions. He could've told a good story about humanity and the battle to keep it - if he thinks such a battle is a lost cause, then, why? It should've been shown and developed. The drama took the "romance" route but I don't think it was well done, it was a poor excuse for a reason to live and die. It;s 2020 - characters should have more to them than romantic fantasies, I prefer them to have their own life and then their relatioships with other people will be so much more beautiful and meaningful.
OVERALL: I stayed for the not so main characters that I think were favourites of the screenwriters. They were really given the time to grow and the actors the freedom to show their journey and emotions. For me, they were the true main leads that lead the show from a certain point in the plot. That was new to me and I enjoyed it so much! I like to see lively people that can take you on a ride of emotions and teach good lessons. When I watch a drama I look for the shining ones in it, for the people with that X factor in them, the different and the original that make your time worthy. My rating of 9 is 80% because of Ji Chong and other good characters and 20% because of the cinematography. I have never given such a high rating for a drama with so many things that weren;t to my taste and I found boring...but here I am, appreciating the other things that were done so well! Watch and see for yourself how you feel about the show. It;s 50/50 - there are many annoying cliches and also a lot of originality. Take the good with you and leave the bad behind if you think like me.
*minnie tiny wheeny spoilers in this review, if you're really scared of knowing something or even hate hints, maybe don't read but if you aren't I'll be glad*
THE GOOD:
This is what kept me watching the series. The "support cast":
Ji Chong. This is how you make and develop a character, let him be the example, he's certainly mine. I can see how much care was put into creating the character of Ji Chong and how beautiful and graceful he turned out to be. Kudos to Xiao Zhan too, for breathing life to this wonderful role! I can't call him a second lead. He's one of the main leads, fully deserving of his place there. I wasn't a fan before because, well, I haven't watched him in anything before, and when he appered I was like "Hey, handsome" and then I was like "Okay, now it's starting to become interesting.." From the start he was shown as a free spirited, larger than life type of a person, then to the same guy but with different reasons and a good backstory and then revealing the honor, the grace, the beauty and the very realistic personal tragedy of someone experiencing unrequited love. *SPOILER* --> But after all he went through he managed to break free of the prison of love in dramas and walked out as the coolest dude there can be with some bomb-ass lines like "There are many things in life that are more important than romance and love affairs." DID I HEAR WHAT I JUST HEARD? A character from a romance drama is saying that? Excuse me while I stand up and clap for Ji Chong - the greatest man from a drama, The Coolest Man. PERIOD. FULL STOP. HATS OFF. "I let her go, wasn't I so cool for doing that?" "You're the coolest man I've ever seen."Who migh be saying that? hmmm ;) *end of SPOILER*
They wrote him to have so much spirit, sass, charm and in the same time maturity so that he can be more than just an aesthetic, if I may say so . Every time he showed up the pacing of the drama got faster, he was there both to bring action and to teach some characters and the audience lessons of humanity. He was also given a good backstory that gave reasons for his choices and showed clearly his personality. And they casted exactly the actor for him to better portray this specific type of a character that is not often seen in dramas because I think the free-spirited people are often written to not be mature and it was a very good artistic choice to bring these characteristics in the story of one person. It served the overall plot and the story of Ji Chong very well!
Another good: Yao Ji, Bao Na. Yao Ji (played by Xin Zhi Lei). Yao Ji had a pretty great character development. I can't tell you much but expect to have the feels and enjoy the amazing acting from Xin Zhi Lei!
Bao Na - started from the "bottom" and look where we are! I wish I could spill the tea and tell you more but I will spoil all the good things. Normally, I find the "cute"characters in cdramas to be plain annoying and girly and nowhere near cute at all. But here we are presented with the Cute itself and its loyal friends - the Ferocious, the Brave , the Kind and the Sassy. Just forget her first episodes, everyone wants to choke her there, it;s alright, it;s gonna pass xD. It's a good coming of age story that has still not come fully of age and maybe never will, hopefully, because I strongly believe people should guard their kids' spirit to the end of their life ^^
other good: The cinematography! The grand production! The aesthetics! The soundtrack! The editing! - this was a master editing work. It was technically freaking amazing! Well done to the operators and the editos, it's a work made on another scale and that's what draws you in from the start. Inner decor, outer shots...One time I was so amazed by a scene just because of how it looked and the accompanying track that I almost teared up and there was nothing much happening on the screen between actors then. It's just well done and I was pleasently suprised! I will cherish all the beautiful scenes in the future when I rewatch my favourite parts!
What I didn't like and thought was wack: The main two leads and their story which is theoretically the whole plot and if there weren't other characters with their own individual stories to keep things interesting, I would have dropped the series. Just, their thing...was not my thing. It was supposed to be epic, deeply felt, grand, to make me feel the power of love...but it was badly done. Bo Wang and Ma Zhai Xing had young love, infatuation, appreciaion..okay, maybe, but a relationship needs communication and growing up as people together as a result of the SHARED fortunes and misfortunes in life. They shared...almost nothing since the time they parted in the woods. They had a great and sweet friendship as the wolf boy and Xing'er and then they were different people that never got to to have a real conversation together. All they did they did in secret, their most important moments that shaped who they were happened while apart. For their ending and the emotions the screenwriters wanted to portray to be deserved, they needed better written characters and more time for a relationship to form. Theoretically, what they had should have been great but the time to show it was wasted for scenes I see in many other dramas *the cold man/warm woman trope* and when they parted the show became more interesting for me. Seeing as they didn't contribute so much to forming a relastic bond, in my opinion, I wish we focused more on the other characters at the times when the angst was too much. For Bo Wang - it would have been nice to see more of his personal story and path and not so much focus on their relationship (a strong word for that in most episodes). If we saw the transformation, his past and more interactions with the people that were important for Lord Bo I think he really would have grown on me. For Ma Zhai Xing - that girl was written with all logic thrown to the wind. She was promising in the beginning and then she was no one and without certain two characters (Ji Chong and the king of Jin)- she wouldn't even have a spec of character development. Even when she had a better moment it didn't lead to anything pretty good, she made a step forward and two backwards. She was basically a plot tool for the ML to use and tell his story that wasn't even told fully. If her character was written off and her role in the plot was given to circumstances and other people, everything would still be the same.
And I didn't like that Bo was not given a true inner fighting spirit. I really didn't! He was shown to be holding up just for the sake of another person who, ironically, he kept making miserable in certain episodes. That was so...demeaning and senseless - for her and for him. It's a story of an innocent person coming under the control of the wicked and presumably fighting his way out while keeping his humanity but all he ever wanted was to die. For sure, a peron's life has a greater meaning than that. What's te point to show such a journey of someone enduring all this and finding friends and ways to stand against his captor if the only "coping" mechanism he got from all these years is the memory of a girl and mind you when he meets the girl he is is being a total jerk to her. But it should be "okay" because he later reveals he never hated her, he did everything in the name of love and the audience should appreciate his inner struggles even though we didn't really see what he went through and he was not given good inner convinctions. He could've told a good story about humanity and the battle to keep it - if he thinks such a battle is a lost cause, then, why? It should've been shown and developed. The drama took the "romance" route but I don't think it was well done, it was a poor excuse for a reason to live and die. It;s 2020 - characters should have more to them than romantic fantasies, I prefer them to have their own life and then their relatioships with other people will be so much more beautiful and meaningful.
OVERALL: I stayed for the not so main characters that I think were favourites of the screenwriters. They were really given the time to grow and the actors the freedom to show their journey and emotions. For me, they were the true main leads that lead the show from a certain point in the plot. That was new to me and I enjoyed it so much! I like to see lively people that can take you on a ride of emotions and teach good lessons. When I watch a drama I look for the shining ones in it, for the people with that X factor in them, the different and the original that make your time worthy. My rating of 9 is 80% because of Ji Chong and other good characters and 20% because of the cinematography. I have never given such a high rating for a drama with so many things that weren;t to my taste and I found boring...but here I am, appreciating the other things that were done so well! Watch and see for yourself how you feel about the show. It;s 50/50 - there are many annoying cliches and also a lot of originality. Take the good with you and leave the bad behind if you think like me.
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