#and the good thing is i’ve never watched the cdrama version so i won’t be plagued with comparison

[thedeathdeelers]

first ep of family by choice really said

[fficaway]

untamed rant

because i have been obsessed with this show for the past week and need to release my feelings lolll

so far i’ve read the fantranslation of the novel and watched (kind of... i’ve been picking and choosing scenes to watch and skipping through a lot) to ep 37 of cql and also watching BTS footage and interviews and dipping my toes into fanfiction (wangxian obvs and jin ling/lan sizhui lmaoo) and so... i have THOUGHTS

CQL IS SUPER HOMO i’m kinda impressed! just to back up, i first learned of this show via gifsets and people talking about these two characters being head over heels for each other but i never assumed that they were a canon couple so when i learned that it was a censored adaptation of a BL novel i was like “oh that makes sense” but the degree to which they preserved the romantical VIBE between wwx and lwj is thus far like,, a lot! i would go so far as to say that it’s easier to digest the romance between them in cql because wwx’s inner monologue in the flashbacks of mdzs is just like... “hahahahaha that lan zhan is such a fuddy duddy it’s too fun to tease him hahaha” and the way that he’s portrayed on screen is much more clearly fond and warm

as for which version i prefer, at this point, it’s hard to say... they both have aesthetic aspects that are not really to my taste. i really wish there were an official english translation of mdzs because the translation style of the version i read was sometimes not to my preference, and there are also just some small things about the novel that i find a bit icky. cql, while the acting is for the most part not cringey at all, still kinda rings of cdrama cheesiness at parts, and i just felt bored watching some parts, which is why i skipped through a lot. (however some of that boredom definitely came from having JUST read mdzs and plot points being really fresh on my mind.)

and they both have positive points that i really like. for example i’m really into the temporal fuckiness of mdzs where the reader has to sorta be on their toes to keep track of all the events in the two timelines. it works really well with wwx being the narrator and having a bad memory; also i’m a sucker for reveals lol. so there are some big reveals in mdzs that only exist because of that storytelling structure, which i’m really into. also i’m obviously really into the romance aspect of it, and the final extra chapter of wangxian at lotus pier is just!!!! so!!!!! very good!!!!!!!

also i think some moments in mdzs are more comical than their drama portrayals. like it was still funny in cql, but the moment in mdzs when jin zixuan runs away from yanli on phoenix mountain was like my favorite thing he’s ever done lmao

and of course the novel is muuuuch more graphic and creepy and gory. 

cql is more fun and exciting to consume though. i mean, it’s a visual medium and so much more dynamic, and we get to see wwx come to life in SUCH a compelling way. he is much more sympathetic in cql, as are a lot of the characters. i think it’s nice that the past is delivered in one long cohesive linear chunk, and a lot of the characters are beefed up and given more scenes. and,,, as previously mentioned.... the wangxian has very much been delivered, the way they look at each other is..... exquisite... i know i’m going to be robbed of the confession scene at the end but the phoenix mountain scene... and all of the longing filled gazes.... and the amount of flirtatious dialogue that was preserved..... i’m happy like this lol

in conclusion i like both and i won’t choose haha. 

ONTO TALKING ABOUT FANFICTION 

so far, i have just one question, i’d like to know WHY DO ALL THESE JIANG CHENG SHIPS EXIST WHAT AM I MISSING 

i assume in the remaining 15ish eps i have ahead of me he’s going to have a shit ton of interaction with zewu-jun and lan jingyi lmaooo because every other fic i see on ao3 has him shacking up with them when in all of mdzs he seems to have zero romantic inclinations towards anyone and so far in the show he has only had any kind of vibe with wen qing. so... i dunno i look forward to him talking to lan xichen i guess because i love zewu-jun he’s the love of my life

speaking of jiang cheng i’m a huge jiang cheng apologist and also i’m a jin ling apologist and a nie huaisang apologist..... i fucking love nie huaisang i don’t know maybe it’s the fact that i’m weak for things that are weak but i love him

and as for jin ling literally GO OFF [spoilers real quick] wwx really deserved to be stabbed by him and also he really was asking for a lot of other things that happened to him, but mostly jin ling i feel earned the right to stab him and on a similar note i feel for jiang cheng a lot... all of the characters have done some morally questionable things, but i guess the ones i’ll really defend to my grave are jin ling and jiang cheng and nie huaisang, everyone else must be held accountable for their actions but not these 3 lmao

oh, correction. not everyone has done questionable things. lan sizhui is perfect. mianmian is perfect. these two only are beyond reproach i won’t be taking questions at this time