Easy to see why it’s a classic!
This is my first experience watching a Yin Jong/Louis Cha-inspired drama. I have to say, it’s easy to see why his works have become classics and been adapted multiple times. I can’t compare my experience with the previous iterations of Legend of Condor Heroes, but I thoroughly enjoyed my watch.The main cast is extremely engaging. William Yang is a very likeable, earnest Guo Jing. I adore Li Yi Tong’s Huang Rong: she’s smart as a whip, impish, and endearing in all the right ways. You believed in the character’s wits and charm. I was also a big fan of Michal Miu’s Huang Yaoshi and Zhao Li Xin’s Hong Qigong.
The CGI and production aren’t always top, but they do the job. It’s a show you want to watch for the contrived plot twists, the epic fights, the endless quidproquos, the complex conflicts within the Jianghu, the romance, the dramatic reveals... The story has it all! I found that I’d watch it in increments of 2-3 episodes because so many things happen in a short arc. The over-the-topness is what makes the show so enjoyable.
If you want an entrypoint into Jin Yong, this definitely got me hooked and made me want to watch more dramas based on his novels.
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AHHHH! If anyone has seen my IG account spamming, you guys know I’m LOVING this SO MUCH.
At the same time, I’m definitely biased cuz I love and am especially fanatical about Legend of the Condor Heroes.
As the story goes on, I fell under William Yang Xu Wen’s undeniable charm and charisma and skill (I had to check his name cuz I still only know him as Jing GeGe), I started anticipating more and more, and so far, it does not disappoint!
The music is REALLY good and REALLY on point. And I’m not just talking about the classic themesong. I mean, the background music just like : Jiang Hu Tianxia and Jian Hu, also the sound effects of the fighting, it’s all so on point and REALLY helps set the mood and feel for the scenes.
Everything just feels very true to the Jin Yong wuxia classics style. So far, the kungfu has been pretty awesome for me, cuz the moves are recognizable to me (which is important cuz Jin Yong gets very specific with his moves and styles of kungfu and their untouchably classic), and there’s minimal CGI.
The only thing they really do to make things “prettier” is use slo-mo. But otherwise, I really love that part of it so far too.
And the hairstyles! I really love William Yang Xuwen's cute bangs. And he has a handsome face too. Right now for me, he is the most handsome and cute Guo Jing ever.
I have NO problem thinking of him as Guo Jing. He really gives the Guo Jing feels, which can be hard to describe cuz while slow and comes off as dumb, it’s really not just acting a dumb dude.
Guo Jing has his only layers, and while not too complex, he definitely not 2D (I mean, he IS the only one really to reign Huang Rong in and get her to listen — not really the carpet people talk about him as).
In fact, Yang Xu Wen reminds me of a cuter, livelier, more energetic version of Julian Cheung’s Guo Jing in the 1994 version.
So as of now, I’m really loving this adaptation, and I would give it 10 stars for everything.
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The Best Remake Since The 1983 HK Version
This is the best remake I've seen closest to the 1983 HK version. That's because they use the same themed music, followed the 1983 version storyline religiously. Great casting. Some characters not done too well (Zhou Botong, Sha gu, Nianci, Huang Yaoshi even though I really do like Michael Miu who is a great actor but I felt Huang Yaoshi is an eccentric character. Kenneth Tsang played him better in the 1983 version) but overall excellent. It was good seeing Michael Miu & Ray Liu (HK actors) in this one. It was enjoyable.What made the 1983 version so outstanding was everything: great casting: every character was played just so well, character chemistry, outstanding choreography, and the music. This 2017 version, keeping it close to the original novel storyline and 1983 version is smart. The leads here are quite good looking. William Yang did a great job as Guo Jing. Li Yi Tong was ok but no one has ever exceeded the outstanding performance of the late Barbara Yung in the role of Huang Rong.
Now, I can't wait to see if the 2020 ROCH lives up to the 1983 HK version as well. Andy Lau & Idy Chan in the 1983 ROCH did an exceptional job as Yeung Gor & Xiao Long Nu. I haven't seen any actors in any remake that has out performed them.
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Decent version of LoCH
I like the Guo Jing's character. Straightforward, innocent, and sincere. William Yang Xu Wen portrayed him so well. I like Li Yi Tong's acting too. She is so lovely as Huang Rong. The reason I stopped by to watch this series actually because of Ping Hui Tay. I like every his characters he played. Sha Lang in Heroes (Fearless), Yan Nan Tian (Handsome Siblings) and finally I watched him as Temujin recently.Some minor issues are: 1) visual effects is still not clean enough in few episodes. 2) the Old Beggar's (Hong Qi Gong) make up is not old enough (he still have flawless skin, compare to Ke Zhen E (Guo Jing's grand shifu). 3). Somehow I didn't get the feeling in touching moments. Maybe because the story is often jumping from one scene to another.
Overall, it's nice to watch Legend of Condor Heroes in different version (although the main story is the same, but I find new angles of view in many details).
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Li Yitong is the best Huang Rong to date!
To be honest, I watched this because Li Yitong was in it. As expected, she is indeed the picture perfect of Huang Rong! Cheeful, Smart and Fierce! She’s adorably cute!!! I enjoy watching this 2017 version of the Legend of the Condor Heroes. As it’s new, perhaps this is one of the best. Moreover, leading casts were both very good looking and cinematography were commendable. But why I sensed that this wasn't Li Yitong’s real voice? Anyway, whoever voice was it, she’s still beautifully cute :-) As always, her acting is great ?Was this review helpful to you?
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The most gorgeous looking version of LOCH
At the moment I'm reading the novel. Finally. After having watched 5 versions of LOCH, I get to read its source material since the novel has been officially translated into English. LOCH is my number 1 wuxia story so I don't mind that it gets remade many times. I find it interesting that each production has tried a different approach. The 1983 version is undoubtedly my most favorite version and is followed by the 2017.The 2017 is the 4th version that I've watched. The production is really really good. I can tell that they put a lot of effort into the costumes, locations, visual effects, and so on. This is probably the most gorgeous looking LOCH to date. The costumes and make-up are not over the top but not sloppy, either. Except for costumes worn by Huang Rong, Guo Jing and Mei Chaofeng.. But I'm being nit-picky here. The locales are stunningly beautiful. The cinematography is simply breathtaking. This version is certainly a feast for the eyes! And the music goes well with the visuals. Love it.
I haven't finished reading the novel but I can say that the story line follows pretty closely to the book, which is very nice. It's good that the creative team didn't try to make the story deviate grossly from the book.
The acting is overall decent. Not as brilliant as the cast of 1983 version but it's OK. I personally think that the one that stands out is Michael Miu as Huang Yaoshi, Huang Yaoshi is one of my favorite characters in wuxia stories. In the beginning I was a bit worried that he wouldn't do as good as Kenneth Tsang in 1983 version. But I was wrong. Michael exceeded my expectation. He did so well that now as I'm reading the book, it describes Huang Yaoshi and I immediately imagine Michael Miu's Huang Yaoshi. His presence is awe-inspiring and daunting. When I was watching the series, his appearance was the one I was always looking forward to!
After all the praise for the production I mentioned above, I still can't bring myself to give this version 9.0 for some reasons that I think significant. First of all, LOCH is after all a wuxia story which means the combat choreography must be the priority. The combat scenes are not bad, but not great, either. I think it's a shame. They seemed to have focused too much on making the visuals beautiful including the fighting scenes making them look artificial and weird. To much slo-mo makes the combat less visually appealing. Like I'm always curious how each maker interpret 18 Dragon Subduing Palms. I wish they had created something more phenomenal. They should have made the fighting scenes slightly raw. Guo Jing is the main character here but as far as I'm concerned his combat scenes are just OK. Ironically Huang Yaoshi has much better fighting scenes.
A note about the actors who played the main characters. Guo Jing is said to be burly or heavily built in the book. The actor looked thin and more like a pop star rather than a hero. They put on so many layers of costume on him to make him look a bit bulky but the costume makes me think, "How on earth a hero could fight in so many layers of clothes? Wouldn't he trip over at some point?" His acting is OK. I still think Felix Wong is the best Guo Jing. Huang Rong here is also too sweet. She doesn't have enough sassiness and ruthlessness that Barbara Yung's has. Another disappointment is the actor who played Hong Qigong. Hong Qigong is like my number 1 character in all wuxia stories. He looks too young. His make-up wasn't able to make him look older. Lau Dan is still the best Hong Qigong to me. Mei Chaofeng here is not bad actually. I like her portrayal. I wish her kung fu were slightly more badass and her appearance should have been kind of disarray. I think she's the most fashionable Mei Chaofeng of all versions that I've seen, which it's kind of silly. Mei spends most of her life in hiding, how could she afford hair jewelry? Liu Ying looks insanely spotlessly beautiful that her face looks like wax statue! Again I suppose in an attempt to make the drama look gorgeous, the makers focused too much on the visuals.
And one last thing, I feel that 52 episodes is a tad too short. They should have added 2 more episodes. They seemed to rush the last 2 or 3 episodes. I like when Huang Rong played hard to get when she's hiding in Mongolia. They made this part slightly longer in 1983. Here it seems within just a short time Guo Jing managed to figure out who has been helping him in the war. I have read that the makers had to make do with tight budget and time constraints that they had to reduce the use of special effects and hire less well-known actors and actresses. That's quite understandable. It's too bad though. I feel it could have been better. So yeah, to me this version gets a 8.5.
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Overall it's pretty good!
REVIEW OF EPISODES 1-7I was really enjoying this drama up until episode 6 (sigh). What happens in episode 6? A new character is introduced, and it's the trope of a teen female dressed like a male. I dislike damsel in distress female characters, and characters who do aegyo/sājiāo. In episode 7, you will see the female character doing sājiāo. When I was watching episodes 1-5 I thought to myself, wow this drama is really good. How come it doesn't have an average rating of a 9? Just from watching episodes 1-5, you'll think it wouldn't have filler episodes which consist of commonly seen tropes in Chinese historical/period dramas (see link below). Although I am disappointed by the female lead character in episodes 6 & 7 (I assumed this drama would go in a different direction), since I really enjoyed episodes 1-5, I am going to continue to watch this drama. I will update my review as I watch more episodes.
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REVIEW OF EPISODES 8-20
After watching episodes 8-20, I start to like the female lead because either her character develops, or I understand her character better. The female lead unlike the male lead character is very sensible and smart (she don't take no crap). What I dislike about episodes 8-20 is how the scriptwriter obsessively wrote how dumb/slow the male lead. Get ready to hear it about 40 times within the 12 episodes, I kid you not.
I can honestly say from episode 1-20 (thus far) this drama is full of action, and I am enjoying it. I did notice however, that they are reusing some of the characters and putting beards or mask on them so that they can look different. It doesn't bother me, but just be aware so that you will not think that that one actor represents the same character.
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REVIEW OF EPISODES 21-52
Episode 21 at the 4 minute 50 second mark is not cool. Her dad said he slapped her for her good, because she wasn't focused on her writing skills. People, using physical abuse except for self defense is not okay. I hope Asian dramas do away with justifying toxic behavior and physical abuse in dramas (it is not love).
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To learn more about tropes visit the following link (it's safe and virus free): https://www.solarina.ca/dramaddicts/dramaddicts-blog/2020/10/11/nosebleeds-mission-impossible-masks-in-ancient-china-and-the-cold-executive-a-crash-course-in-asian-drama-tropes
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Touching Devotion and Tests of Character
The Legend of the Condor Heroes begins with the friendship between two legendary fighters and their wives. Pregnant at the same time, they covenant that their children will either marry or become sworn brothers, depending on their sex at birth. A dark conspiracy strikes and the fathers are attacked and the wives are separated.One boy grows up in the plains of Mongolia. He is slightly dim-witted, but he makes up for it in moral steadfastness and courage. The other boy is adopted into the palace of a tyrannical king and becomes corrupted by that lifestyle.
Time and time again, each character meets difficult value conflicts. Which is more important - protecting your wife, or protecting your friends wife after he makes a great sacrifice to save you? Which is more important - honoring the wishes of your parents, or honoring the wishes of the tribe leader, to whom you are indebted? Which is more important - honoring the wishes of your teachers who invested time and care into your development over decades, or honoring love by disregarding your teacher's desire to separate you from the love of your life? Which is more important - honoring moral rules like "thou shalt not steal", or having compassion on beggars? Which is more important - enjoying the wealth of the palace, or being with the only person who sincerely loves you? Only time will tell which things are truly more valuable.
More reviews: https://transcendentphilos.wixsite.com/website/post/the-philosophy-of-chinese-dramas
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I love this show. Action-packed, great story, great character development, good acting and music!
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