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razberryyum · 4 years ago

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TGCF donghua Episode 9 Thoughts (SPOILERS! for episode and novel)

I've heard of the words Sinner's Pit a while back, probably when I first heard of TGCF, but it wasn't until a couple weeks ago when I started reading the book that I finally understood what they meant, and why it was an event in the saga of HuaLian. Even though I've only been acquainted with it for such a short period of time, I still teared up when watching the scene, so I can only imagine how much more emotional this moment was for fellow fans who have been waiting years to see it. I really hope it lived up to everyone's expectations cuz it kinda blew my mind.

When the episode was delayed in its broadcast I actually felt dread, since I immediately assumed that the HuaLian Sinner's Pit scenes didn't pass the restrictions and it was going to be edited to death or worse yet, completely cut out. Thank God that was not the case. I was looking forward to much groppage of Hua Cheng from Dianxia, and that's exactly what I got...with an extra large dose of romance too thanks to the amazing score. If anything was left out in the scene I sure couldn't tell nor did I feel anything was missing.

I've watched countless fall and rescue scenes in cdramas, to the degree that sometimes it feels like it's a required element in romance cdramas, and of course it's usually the woman in the couple falling from somewhere and the man coming to her rescue and catching her. And they're usually so poorly done that I either eyeroll so hard my eyes feel like they're gonna pop out of their sockets or I feel almost nauseated from the cheesiness.

But the donghua did it PERFECTLY. Those stupidass cdramas should learn from them. HuaLian's fall and catch scene was paced just right, scored just right, shot just right...simple PERFECTION. Not at all cheesy or cringey, utterly sublime...and everything that followed between them was utterly sublime as well.

Talk about another perfectly captured scene. I loved this line. So sweet and wonderful. No wonder Hua Cheng's in love with this man.

Btw, I know it says friendship, but just in case anyone's worried the donghua is trying to friendzone HuaLian, those Chinese characters can just be a general way of saying getting along, usually in a friendly way, but it's not as friend zone-y as it sounds. Although, I doubt anyone actually watching the show and paying attention to it would even think Hua Cheng only wants to be bro-friends with Xie Lian.

I mean, I guessss bros can be touchy feely and eyefuck eyelove each other all the time, but I would personally like to meet them bros like that.

Also, not fair of the donghua team to cuteify these boys even more. My poor heart almost couldn't take it. Too adorable!!

Honestly, after that HuaLian-ful sequence, my brain was barely able to register anything else. Doesn't help that I already know how things will resolve in terms of this mystery. I am mostly looking forward to how the "new" characters whom are being introduced to looks and how they will bring to life certain non-HuaLian related events that sounded dramatic or even epic in writing.

For example the Banyue Guoshi...was totally not expecting her to look this adorable. She looks so innocent and pretty, who in their right mind would bully such a beautiful little girl??

Although, when she is on the attack, she definitely does feel like a wraith bringing instant death upon her victims. This was so beautifully animated: it looked both terrifying and truly impressive.

Lastly:

Hiiii puppyyyyy!!!! Nice to finally meet you!! Who's a good boy?? 😂 E-Ming's a total cutie pie and his first appearance was cool AF too. I freaked out a little.

OMG I almost forgot!! I LOVE the new ED theme!!! I hope they release an official MV for it soon!

NOVEL SPOILERS

Current Reading Progress: finished book 1, currently in book 2, knee-deep in Yong'an famine crisis. Every HuaLian interaction is a treasure, I know I didn't mention them at all last week but pretty much every time they meet up again I scream a bit. The temple scene, when Dianxia told chibi HC to live for him, got me so emotional (I also really want to hug little HC and protect him forever). Seriously felt like I finally reached some kind of important milestone since I read that line somewhere even before I even knew who or what HuaLian was. I don't know how many seasons of the donghua we'll be blessed with, but if we don't get as far as Dianxia's past, then I do hope we at least get to see Ghost City, Gambler's Den, Paradise Manor,and Qi Rong's cave. I can imagine getting into some of that next season but unless it's a long one, I doubt we'd be able to see all of it in one season.

And also, I don't think I love Qi Rong anymore. He really is a bad, bad boy...and not in the sexy way, but more in the holy shit you really are fucked up way.

Finally, the Yong'an thing... I'm already bracing myself. I could be wrong but I already see how that could lead to Xianle's downfall. The knives are probably coming, huh?

TGCF novel translation can be found at: https://tgcfmxtx.carrd.co/

#Tian Guan Ci Fu #TGCF #Heaven Official's Blessing #HuaLian #SanLian #TGCF donghua

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akatsuki-shin · 4 years ago

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Review: 天官赐福 Tiān Guān Cì Fú (Heaven Official's Blessing)

Notes:

(Very) long post ahead

Contains spoiler

This is my personal review and does not represent the entire audience, you are free to agree or not agree with what I’ve written here

Feel free to reply/send me a message if there are things you want to discuss

Summary:

The most beloved Crown Prince, pride of the Kingdom of Xianle with abundance of talents and achievements, Xie Lian, ascended to Heaven and became a martial god at the young age of 17 on the path to fulfill his dream "to save the common people".

Three years after his ascension, he saw his kingdom beginning to decline and in order to save his beloved country, Xie Lian defied the rules of Heaven and descended back to the mortal realm. Nevertheless, instead of saving them, his interference ended up accelerating the fall of Xianle, annihilating the once prosperous nation under the war of rebellion and a mysterious, horrifying plague.

The people who once praised and worshipped him day and night now condemned him, his devotees left him, they burnt his temples and divine statues, and Xie Lian himself was ultimately banished from the Heaven.

He ascended for the second time a short while later, but was banished once more very soon after. Since then, he lived among the mortals - surviving by collecting junks as he was now branded as the "God of Misfortune", the "Scrap Collecting Immortal".

800 years later, Xie Lian ascended again for the third time. Though having neither temples nor devotees, he accepted his responsibility as a martial god and carried on with his duties until one day, there came a certain, incidental encounter with a mysterious youth clad in red.

STORY: 7/10

TGCF overall is an (almost) complete, satisfying read with well-written twists and development.

Unlike the two previous MXTX's novels, the main pairing here (HuaLian) did not have to go through complicated misunderstandings and is a beautiful representation of love and devotion. Of course, this means there is a lack of conflict between them, but considering all the trials and tribulations the characters have gone through, this lack of conflict feels like a relieving fresh spring amidst the painful and exhausting journey throughout the entire five books.

The best and my most favorite plot twist is the Earth Master Ming Yi having been dead for a while, and the "Ming Yi" we know turns out to be the Black Water Submerging Boats, He Xuan. I'm the kind of person who always suspects characters, but even my furthest suspicion was "only" him being the Reverend of Empty Words, not He Xuan.

Truthfully, prior to reading this novel, I've seen Shi Qingxuan's "MING-XIONG, I'M SORRY x9999" post before without context, and I thought Ming Yi was going to die a tragic death because of Shi Qingxuan. Turns out it's kind of the opposite, huh? Nice one, really.

I also like how each character's "end" feels satisfying. Especially for the villains, they didn't necessarily have to die some tragic, vengeful death, but was provided with an ending that perfectly fits their background story and deeds. For example, in most stories, a character like Xuan Ji would be most likely be given some well-deserved punishment as her death, given everything she's done. But no, in the end she was given a reality check and was finally able to let go of her hundreds of years grudge. And then Qi Rong - I will talk more about him later on in the "Character" section.

One part I really love is the Extra Chapter about the Cave of Ten Thousand Gods. The chapter itself overall is mostly nonsensical and chaotic, but it was just so touching when HuaLian created a "Little Hua Cheng" statue to accompany Xie Lian's "Crown Prince who Pleased the Gods" statue, especially when this Little Hua Cheng statue gave Crown Prince Xie Lian statue a flower, and then Crown Prince Xie Lian received it, lifted him up and carried him in his arms. This one was maybe a bit biased because as much as I love the current HuaLian, I have a special soft spot for the young Xie Lian carrying, cradling the little Hua Cheng back then in the past. ;v;

Though, with all due respect, I must say that TGCF is actually below my expectation.

The biggest issue I have with TGCF is... What is Xie Lian's motivation? What drives him to move forward in the story? What is even the whole story's purpose?

I'm not quite sure how to word this properly, but let me give some examples.

When you read Harry Potter, you know immediately that Voldemort is the bad guy and he must be defeated.

When you read the Lord of the Rings, you know immediately that the One Ring must be destroyed to prevent Sauron from regaining his power.

Or, in MXTX previous works...

In SVSSS, it was clear since the beginning that Shen Yuan's mission is to fix the "Proud Immortal Demon Way" if he wants to survive.

In MDZS, it was clear that Wei Wuxian, together with Lan Wangji's, needs to unravel the mystery behind that fierce left arm. All of their past stories and WangXian getting together in the end are just something they discovered along the way, not the initial "motivation" that drives the character to move forward.

What about TGCF? The Xie Lian who ascended for the third time actually looks like he just wants to go along with the flow, carrying out his duties day by day with responsibility. When Bai Wuxiang later, later, later on appeared to haunt him again, it didn't seem like Xie Lian has any ambition to hunt him down or exact a revenge, just that he wanted to forget about Bai Wuxiang and never recall anything about him ever again. The main character looks like he's not being driven by anything, just...carrying on where the plot takes him? It's just missions after missions and whatever huge things happening in between is just something they accidentally passed by along the way.

At this point, the only purpose of the story I can think of is bringing Hua Cheng and Xie Lian together. The romance is great, I have no complain. But if it's just that, no need to jammed-pack 250+ chapters just to make two people getting together?

Speaking of which, I also think that the way new characters keep being introduced all the way to almost the final showdown of the story feels info dump-ish, because the background story needs to be dropped there along with the characters, but then most of these characters fade away immediately after.

For example, the previous Civil God before Ling Wen, who looks like he’s going to pose some real trouble, but then was easily defeated and was never mentioned again afterwards. And this is especially true for He Xuan; after such a huge arc where he committed such extreme things, after that he was barely mentioned again, even having his “strong impression” leveled down by the joke about him being the poorest Calamity and owing lots of debts to Hua Cheng.

Basically what makes TGCF a long story is because there are too many stories about the side characters in addition to the main characters that are dumped out of the blue instead of slowly being revealed along the way.

Though, I love how the story gradually unravels the "Four Famous Tales" because initially, I thought it wasn't something crucial, and I wished they could've done this for other characters, too.

There is a little bit of plot holes here and there, as in who actually cut open Jian Lan/Lan Chang's baby and made it a ghost, and for what? Even if it turned out that she just met a bad guy or nobody important, at least provide an explanation in one paragraph? Especially because important side characters like Feng Xin and Mu Qing are involved here, so I'm pretty sure us readers need some explanation.

And more importantly, how can Jun Wu become the Emperor martial god? There's no mention about him ascending, only that he annihilated a dynasty of gods before sitting on the throne of the Great Martial Hall. But how can he, like, emitted god-like aura and not some evil aura? Is it because he used to be a god? But he's a ghost? Explanation where???

The gags and comedies are pretty fun, but honestly, the more I read, the more they ruin the atmosphere and suspense, added with the uncalled PDA between Hua Cheng and Xie Lian even during the most important moments. Honestly, I was bored the fuck out of my life from the moment they start fighting Jun Wu with those divine gundams, and only start gaining interest again much later on when Hua Cheng dissipated into butterflies.

Not saying the story's bad. Just... It's not up to my expectation... Characters being inserted here and there with a bunch of background story, gags and a show of PDA being flaunted during crucial moments. And when Mei Nianqing started telling the truth about the Kingdom of Wuyong, that's just plain info dump right there, seriously...

CHARACTERS: 7/10

Interesting characters, but only a few bore a lasting impression on me. Other than the main characters, which are Xie Lian and Hua Cheng, the only side characters (minus Bai Wuxiang as the main villain) who left quite some impression on me were probably just Feng Xin and Mu Qing.

Pei Ming is okay, at least he is still memorable until the end, and his character improved, too.

He Xuan, after having been introduced with such extreme, after his arc is over, was easily forgotten just like that.

Mei Nianqing, is borderline Deus Ex-Machina with a huge chunk of info dump that could solve everything, then he stopped being useful for the rest of the story.

Shi Qingxuan... Honestly, he's almost annoying, too noisy. I don’t hate him (and I kind of like him initially), but the way his character was being handled and presented post-Black Water arc feels disappointingly lazy and he was just there to make the party more merry.

Xie Lian himself, as the protagonist, how do I say this... This is maybe due to the translator's writing style (not MXTX’s fault), but whenever he screams in all capslock, it feels too extreme and borderline OOC? Of course, the original novel written in hanzi couldn't have included capslock.

What's great about him, though, is that despite all he'd gone through, he can still retain a pure heart and could not be swayed to be evil, just as he himself said "Body in the abyss, heart in paradise".

Now Hua Cheng, he is overall a super interesting character and I personally love this type of male characters. But he seriously is way too OP, almost like the original Luo Binghe (Bing-ge) a.k.a. too ideal, too perfect, no flaws, always capable of easily finding a way out in every single peril. I only forgive him for being like this because he dissipated into butterflies at the end of the battle with Jun Wu, making me think "oh, finally he's actually not invincible".

Still, his devotion to Xie Lian is very well written, very well presented, and his "I am forever your most devoted believer" is just downright the most powerful line in the whole story.

Now I promised to talk about Qi Rong, yeah? I haven't the slightest idea why it is even necessary to have Qi Rong as the Night-touring Green Lantern. I mean, yes he is there to make up the number of the Four Great Calamities, but that was for the characters who live in that world. As the novel's reader, I don't see any particularly important roles there for Qi Rong other than being an annoying meme fodder despite his actually pretty-cool first foreshadowing and appearance? Even his issue with Lang Qianqiu does not seem to give that much impact on the overall story, it could've just passed simply being explained in several pages.

Though I'd say he's got the best character development compared to others. Instead of dying as some hateful villain, the way he ended up deciding to protect Guzi at the cost of his own life can already be expected from miles away, but still bittersweet and touching nonetheless - how this crazed, mental person could still love when being presented with such pure, innocent feelings to the point that he acknowledged Guzi as a his own son.

By the way, E Ming and Ruoye are cute, I take no criticism.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS: 8/10

I can't really describe this with words, but MXTX's overall writing technique has greatly improved since MDZS.

It feels more "solid" to read instead of scattered here and there.

The info distribution has improved (fewer info dump compared to before), the story's no longer switching between past and present all of a sudden.

Description of characters and environment are sufficient, the plot is progressing steadily.

Several issues I have with this aspect though, the Prologue being ten pages is just way too long, I don't think I need that much information being stuffed right to my face right from the beginning.

There are excessive use of "Turns out..." every single time an explanation is going to come.

"Xie Lian didn't know whether he should cry or laugh" is honestly has been used probably more than 50 times just in the last two books. Although I'm reading a translation, I'm pretty sure the original Chinese version is being repetitive with this phrase, as well, because the translators couldn't just whip up any other phrase from thin air and put it in someone else's novel.

Almost half of scene transition is always caused by some sudden, external disturbance like "All of a sudden they heard someone's coming", "All of a sudden X visits their room", etc.

OVERALL SCORE: 7.3/10

Worth to read, satisfying overall. The main pairing's love story is just so well written and sweet. As long as you can withstand the violence and gore, though. 😂

TGCF highlights perhaps one of the ugliest natures of mankind: Being nice to someone as long as they're beneficial, and immediately throwing them away once the benefit was no more.

Once that person does not seem to be beneficial anymore, everyone would leave them instantly, even turning on them and start spitting on them without even trying to understand the reason why said person "stopped being beneficial".

Both as a Crown Prince and a martial god, Xie Lian and the Crown Prince of Wuyong were praised, revered, worshipped by the citizens of Xianle and Wuyong respectively. Because they were always helping, always fulfilling the people's wishes. But how easily it was for those very same people to turn on Xie Lian and the Crown Prince of Wuyong when they encountered misfortunes, completely turning a blind eye to the laborious effort both characters have been putting to save them from annihilation, even if it was visible in broad daylight.

It is also worth to note another trait of mankind that this story underlines: To always find a scapegoat or blame others for one's own misfortune and failure - be it another human being, another group of people, the government, even the gods - after having taking their generosity for granted.

Which is why I think the true villain of the story is not Bai Wuxiang, but those citizens of the ancient Wuyong who were now nothing more than resentful spirits eternally burning within the lava of Tonglu Mountain - a well deserved punishment after what they did to their Crown Prince.

#Tian Guan Ci Fu #TGCF #Heaven Officials Blessing #HuaLian #Xie Lian #Hua Cheng #Review #Danmei #MXTX #Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

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tytangfei · 4 years ago

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a;sldkfjdsa im going crazy. ian yi was in the romance of hua rong which my sisters are currently watching and the voice actor for jiang yuelou dubs the ML qing shang cheng in this drama too, so I’m having killer and healer feels while watching this drama lmao.

#jina watches cdramas #i knew that one guy looke familiar it's ian!!!#;A;

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for-dramas-sake · 5 years ago

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Currently Watching...

Three dramas I am in love with at the moment.

1. The Romance of Hua Rong

Hua Rong is the daughter of a general who wants to be a valiant warrior and upholds justice. She ends up in the hands of Qin Shang Cheng, a pirate king, who takes an interest in her right away. After multiple attempts at escaping his island, she agrees to marry him. But on their wedding night she disappears and he vows to get her back.

It’s a silly historical rom-com that I didn’t expect to get hooked on. But I love this! She is a smart cookie with a hatred for any injustice in the world and he’s this domineering pirate who can’t see that she is NOT interested in him at all. I quite enjoy their bantering and his zany attempts at winning her.

Episodes are available on Youtube with English subs! Updates on Fridays.

2. Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty

Three words: TIME TRAVEL DRAMA!

Yes yes yes yes!

Modern girl Xiao Wei has a passion for architecture of the Qing Dynasty. After receiving a lamp from a strange woman, the 13th prince of Emperor Kang Xi starts to appear in her apartment. They fall for each other, but soon he stops showing up and she goes to look for him. She time travels back 300 years and meets the 14th Prince, 4th Prince, and the 13th Prince, but there’s a catch...

I’ve seen the first two eps and I want the whole series right now gosh darnnit! It’s mostly modern with a few historical scenes, but it’s slowly leading up to Xiao Wei traveling back. I really like Yin Xiang (13th). He’s like a puppy, adorable and very excited.

If you’re a Scarlet Heart fan (the Chinese version), then I would recommend this drama.

It’s available on Youtube with English subs! Updates on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

3. Love in the Imperial Palace/ The Flowers Filled the Palace and Missed the Time

Another Qing Dynasty drama, also fixated on the same family as Scarlet Heart and Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty... This one focuses mostly on the Crown Prince and his love interest Nian Shu Yuan. He becomes interested obsessed with her after her sword dance performance and tries to woo her, but she wants nothing to do with him. He is very simple minded and has a huge ego, but over time he wins her over, but loses his chance for the throne. Then it’s game on for the rest of the princes to try to become the next crown prince.

After starting ‘Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty’, I miss my Qing Dynasty dramas so I restarting this one. I tried to watch it ages ago, but never finished it. Here’s hoping I can finish this round.

Episodes available on Youtube with English subs

#chinese drama #Cdrama #love in the imperial palace #Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty #Romance of Hua Rong #花落宫廷错流年 #梦回 #一夜新娘

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minitwin · 5 years ago

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Yearly drama recap

Drama breakdown: 14 kdramas 12 chinese/taiwanese dramas 12 Japanese dramas Since the mid year one I’ve watched 15 more dramas so I guess I slowed down lol but I spent a lot of time watching short dramas on youtube that I refuse to count in this list if you look at the second half breakdown it becomes 8 Jdramas 4 cdramas 5 (really 4 because I was almost done w/ angel’s last love) kdramas where # of jdramas > # of cdramas == # of kdramas (although I definitely spent more time watching cdramas due to their insane number of episodes and the fact that I made it 20+ episodes into multiple dramas before dropping/taking a break *cough* Kings Avatar, Love is Deep *cough*) Currently watching

Love the way you are, Melting Me Softly, Nee Sensei Shiranai no?, The King’s Avatar, The Romance of Hua Rong

Will probably end up dropping love the way you are but we’ll see. I don’t know what it is but I haven’t been able to to actually watch an airing kdrama since the end of the summer (thank you to my roommates for making me watch extraordinary you) so I’ve been filling the time they would take by rewatching Mad Dog, A Poem A Day, Come and Hug Me and a bunch of others from last year. A lot of my dramas watched this year are not from 2019 which makes sense because overall I think last year’s dramas were much better than this year’s oof

watched in 2019:

Top Star Yoo Baek Die Now The Village God’s Quiz Season 5 About Is Love Chugakusei Nikki Sm:)e Romance is a Bonus Book Well Intentioned Love The Light In Your Eyes HajiKoi My First First Love While We’re Still Young/In Youth With You Put Your Head on My Shoulder I Hear You (Er Dou) Just Between Lovers Her Private Life Le Coup de Foudre The Secret Life of My Secretary Kekkon Aite wa Chusen de Kakegurui Level Up Aquarium Girl Www Go go squid Kakegurui s2 Angel’s Last Mission Love Dakara Watashi wa Oshimashita Watatei (Watashi Teiji de Kaerimasu) One Page Love Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung Lucky’s First Love Hello Again suki na hito ga iru koto Onzoshi Boys Extraordinary you All I want for love is you You and I on the G-String Movies/Short Dramas: Chihayafuru 1,2, and 3 Our Times Fall in Love At First Kiss Drunk in Good Taste Yuube wa Otanoshimi Deshita ne How To Hate You Ano ko no, Toriko Marmalade Boy More Than Blue Everyday A Good Day The Travelling Cat Chronicles Juror 8 Fortuna’s Eye My Best Summer Waiting For Spring FLY! BOYS, FLY! Bokutachi, CA Until I find September’s love On your wedding day 4 kinds of house want more 19 refeel i have a secret kakegurui movie aku no hadou miss in kiss

#dramas #dramas 2019 #kdramas #cdramas #jdramas

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swordsandparasols · 8 years ago

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January talking meme: cdramas

January 23 - talk to me about cdramas you think I'd like! (@daughtersofthedragon)

Unless I’m misremembering, you’ve already watched some or all of Love020, all of The Princess Weiyoung, and some of The Legend of Hua Mulan, or I’d rec those. These aren’t necessarily the absolute best cdramas ever, but they’re accessible (both in terms of content and ease in finding with English subtitles), dramas I liked, and have good actors and characters and no bad writing/terrible endings. So, in order of release (and with years because some of these are based on stories that have multiple adaptations): Return of the Condor Heroes (2006): This was hugely popular at the time and remains a favorite of many. Some of the special effects (such as the naked kung fu scene) kind of inspire secondhand embarrassment now. ROCH is the grand romance of wuxias, and I’ve seen it called the wuxia Romeo and Juliet. No feuding families (in the forbidden romance aspect) but definitely a superforbidden romance. This is a good intro wuxia series in general to get a feel for the tropes because it’s a more straightforward romance and lighter of subplots and politics, but still covers most of the tropes. The Young Warriors/Young Warriors of the Yang Clan(2006): So, this is based on a famous story about a Song Dynasty family, this part of the story largely being known for the fact that the father and most of his sons (7 in this version, but the number varies in different version) dying in a ingle battle, and their wives later replacing them as warriors, so you know going in to expect a fair bit of character death. This focuses on the romances of the 4 youngest sons and the parents and does a good job of switching between different storylines and characters. It’s just well made and a good drama in general Legend of the Condor Heroes (2008): A prequel to ROCH but you honestly don’t really need one to enjoy the other. The leads of LOCH are supporting characters in ROCH, and the male lead of ROCH is the son of a villain in LOCH. While you don’t need one to enjoy the other, you really should experience both stories. ROCH has a more complex plot than LOCH, and Huang Rong is one of the best wuxia heroines. This version apparently takes a lot of liberties, and people who have read the book say that the 2003 version is much more faithful. I haven’t seen that version yet, but I’ve only ever heard good things about it, and the version currently airing is apparently pretty good ,but it doesn’t have English subtitles (hopefully with a “yet” attached to it. Detective TangLang (2010): To take a break from the ancient dramas, this is a mystery series set in the 1920s with a former police officer turned private eye and a female lawyer clashing and working together on various cases. It starts mostly focused on him, but by the end the mysteries surrounding the lawyer’s past largely take over, and he’s more in the position of a glorified and devoted bodyguard. It isn’t a comedy, but it’s definitely lighter fare than the rest of the list. Vigilantes in Masks/Strange Hero Yi Zhi Mei (2011): This one is pretty much Wuxia Leverage, with a former police officer turned drunken street fighter working with a team of several criminals to fight government corruption, and rich people who get away with things by buying off officials. There were some things in the last third that made my like it less than the rest, though others didn’t have the same problem I did with that, and it remains a good show. It does, unfortunately suffer from There Can Be Only One syndrome as far as major female characters, great as she is, unless we count the Tragically Dead (and Virtuous) wife in flashbacks. Sound of the Desert/Ballad of the Desert(2014): This is actually somewhat my default rec for people looking into checking out cdramas lately. It’s very female centric and has multiple good interactions with women (both allies and enemies, and some in between) in most episodes, and the main villain is a former friend of the heroine’s, and she’s a very worthy villainess. It’s a little less prone to being overdramatic than many cdramas (though they do play up the literal “raised by wolves” aspect of the heroine’s character) and sometimes the feel is a little more in line with Sageuks than most ancient cdramas. It’s one of the series that’s basically a romance novel in TV form, but less prone to soap opera elements than some others. Green Hill Fox Legend (2016): I debated this one because it could be a bit draggy, but overall it’s a pretty good fantasy series. It’s an anthology series about members of an ancient fox clan (fox clan=immortal fox demons who take human form) trying to find a sacred treasure that was stolen from them before the goddess who assigned the to safeguard it punishes them for losing it. Most of the stories needed to be an episode or two shorter, but I liked all but one of them, and it has a good array of the types of folktales and stories and romances that show up in xianxia and fantasy series. Two series that I like a lot and would recommend but not as a first wuxia are Sword Stained With Royal Blood (2007) and Paladins in Troubled Times(2008). Over the last year or so, several people I know who hadn’t watched cdramas before watched and loved Nirvana in Fire (2015), and it’s also very well liked and highly recommended by longtime cdrama fen, so it’s probably a pretty safe bet. I haven’t watched it yet, but I plan to. I have been very (but largely a bit quietly) into The Legend of Chusen for a few months now. I’ve been taking it slowly because it’s actually 3 seasons long, with the 3rd season not having aired yet, or even started filming. Hu Ge, Wallace Huo, Liu Shi Shi, Yuan Hong and Eddie Peng each appear as major characters in two or more dramas each usually with more than one of them in a drama-Young Warriors wins there for featuring all of them except Wallace Huo)-with Liu Shi Shi ahead of the pack with 4 dramas in the list, though Hu Ge ties with her if I count Nirvana in Fire. This isn’t deliberate, they just tend to choose projects that I like, and often work together.

#january talking meme #Legend of the Condor Heroes #return of the condor heroes #strange hero yi zhi mei #detective tang lang #sound of the desert #Ballad of the desert #green hill fox legend

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