This review may contain spoilers
Are you bored of watching boring storylines, actors that can’t act, bad cgi, not that great of a costume/design, and most importantly no chemistry, well no need to look anywhere else this show is it, it has none of the factors above, Yay! (:Plot: You know how most shows are pretty boring in the beginning and only gets interesting around ep15 or more, well HSALF it’s amazing it’ll hook you in right from the 1st ep. it’s very comical but then you have to get your tissues ready since ALL of your emotions will be brought out you’ll get happy, sad/heartbroken, frustrated, anxious and last of all it’ll make you crave for more on what’s happening next. I love how they developed all charcters from how they were in the beginning to their personality towards the end, everyone changed significantly for the better or worse. Also the cgi and costumes were so well done that I’m just so amazed by it especially on ep61 the war scene just blew me away. Okay adding one last thing after finishing the show was I thought we were free from the demon princess but no she still got to appear for the last 2eps. Other than the demons princess thing it ended really well and was so emotional as JM vanished into air.
Acting: Hmmm what’s the word... ahhh it’s phenomenally amazing! If you watch it like seriously the acting will blow you away. I was skeptical if the casts in here can bring the charcters to life since it ain’t a easy task to do all the facial expressions and feelings in here. The leads had such an out of the world chemistry they’re literally the Perfect couple YZxDL. The acting here is so natural nothing felt forced or off.
YZ just stole my heart in this show she perfected her role so well and I’m glad that she was the one who played JM I don’t think anyone else can perfect the naiveness and pain the way she did. She’s the most pitiful charcter out of all like seriously she is, watch it and you’ll know. The cast was just perfect I’m sure some people will say that others can do better but like seriously who can other than this amazing cast from this amazing show?
Music: it’s gooood, especially Sa Ding Ding’s version it was just so emotional to just listen to it. Oh boy when it was played in the show I literally got goosebumps. All the other ost were so good that I had to search them all up and added it to my playlist. Also it’s so cool that one of the version the song were sung by the leads Yang Zi and Deng Lun.
Heck yea I’m definitely rewatching this amazingly true masterpiece many times. I don’t even know what am I suppose to do after it ends like it’s so so so hard to find a show that’s this perfect and I’m just going to say that this show is the best show ever to me it tops anything and it’s my #1 show. Totally, totally recommend everyone and anyone to watch this if they can but don’t feel pressured to watch it bc of my crazy little review.
Also if you’re in a withdrawal like me then I encourage you to watch the bts(behind the scenes) of this it’s so funny and I love how all the casts were so natural towards each other there were no awkwardness. You guys are so going to love the leads YZ, DL, and LYX after watching the bts they have such great chemistry together. To me this show can’t be rated it’s like infinite/10, that’s how good it is. I have never seen any show that tops this and let me tell you guys I’ve watched so many top rated/popular show where its not just as satisfying if compared to this. I’m sad cause after this show like everything other show will seem so bland, not up to par, and Ik for sure I will not be able to stop myself from comparing how well done this was. I don’t even know what I was doing before this show like what have I been watching? All the other shows really cannot be compared to HSALF. Also just to put this out I’m a big fan of the novel and I got to say that the show is better a lot better it went so much more in-depth and we got to know how or why a certain event or certain way someone did somethings.
So yes, overall I do recommend it, definitely do yourself a favor and try out this true masterpiece called Heavy Sweetness Ash Like Frost. 100+/10
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At 60 (or 63, depending on which version you're watching) episodes, this is quite a lengthy ride but I wasn't bored one single second. It had never happened to me before, especially when watching longer dramas. C-dramas tend to lose steam in the middle, have a couple of uninteresting side-plots and rush to the finish line, leaving you somewhat dissatisfied. Not so here.
The middle portion of the drama which took place in the mortal realm was just as interesting as the main plot, something the very popular Eternal Love, 10 Miles of Peach Blossoms didn't manage to do. The side plots and side quests also kept me interested because the drama made me care about every single character. Everything ended up enhancing the main plot.
I've read a lot of complaints regarding the huge amount of screen time given to secondary characters in the second part of the story. I think that some scenes could certainly have been shorter but on the whole, these additions made the drama a much better piece of work than the book it is based on. It's much more epic and ambitious, with layers upon layers.
The characters are intelligent and whether we agree with their actions or not, we always understand the motives behind what they choose to do. They're all very consistently written and there is no true villain in this piece. No one is just black or white. This is truly an achievement.
STORY:
Don't be fooled by the somewhat fluffy beginning. This is one angsty ride that will have your emotions all over the place. This is primarily a romance drama which depicts a love so strong that it can defy fate and overcome everything but only after a heavy price has been paid by all the parties involved. The romance is nicely balanced with friendship, family bonds, loyalty, power struggles, slices of life and epic battles. It has everything you could wish for. I loved that every single plot line was thoroughly thought-out and contributed to the overall story. The writing was top-notch and it showed at the end of the drama which did not feel rushed at all. Quite a feat for a C-Drama.
9.5/10 (Took 0.5 point away because they could have slightly shortened certain storylines).
CAST:
Ashes of Love has a stellar cast. All the actors shone in their roles whether they played a main character or a minor part. Every role was lovingly crafted and acted and every single character has depth. To focus on the main trio though, Deng Lun, Yang Zi and Luo Yunxi acted their heart out and made me want to watch every single drama they've appeared in. Deng Lun brought a rawness and touching sincerity to the character of Xu Feng. Yang Zi was able to use her broad acting range to successfully portray Jin Mi's journey from a sheltered and naive fairy to a young deity wounded by mistakes and betrayals. Luo Yunxi was able to masterfully convey all the shades of grey of Run Yu's character.
10/10
MUSIC:
The music is gorgeous. No other word for it. It's one of the only dramas where I always watched the opening and end credits. Epic. The only problem is that although what music we do have is superb, we don't have a lot of it. So the same songs and background music are played over and over again. Luckily for us, they're so good that you don't really mind.
9.5/10 (Took 0.5 away because I would have loved a few more songs)
REWATCH VALUE:
Through the roof. This is a timeless story. Love, betrayal, revenge, redemption, acceptance, regrets. It has everything a classic should have.
10/10
OVERALL:
Watch it. You won't be disappointed. It has everything: a great story, great acting, great music, splendid cinematography and great CGI. You will be totally immersed in the world of Ashes of Love.
9.5/10 Perfection.
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STORY (No spoilers)
For the C-novel readers:
To manage expectations, I'd like to take a short section to address those who've read the C-novel on which this drama is based and are thinking of watching this show. Firstly and most importantly, please kindly put aside your preconceptions because while this show does follow the novel, it does it in very broad strokes. Key events and key character actions are retained but the journey/ route to those events and actions can be very different. This might disappoint some of you if you're going into the show thinking that it will be a completely faithful reproduction of the novel. In order to help you enjoy this show, I'd like to encourage you to watch it with an open mind. If it helps, I personally found that by doing so and by following the story the drama itself is trying to tell, the plot-threads and character portrayals all hold together very well and this show becomes a more substantial adaptation and, I'd even venture to say, a more glorious homage to its original source material.
For non-novel readers & newcomers:
This show is more than just a pure xianxia romance. I was pleasantly surprised with how meaty and more substantial this show was, and how multi-faceted it can be. It will surprise you with its twists and turns, and with the evolution of our main characters as it progresses. Love (particularly star-crossed love or ill-fated love) and obsession are key themes but they are not the only ones. Themes of filial piety, integrity, loyalty, ambition, vengeance/ revenge, sacrifice, atonement and redemption are also wonderfully built into this show. This is a dish of many flavours. It's not pure sugar though it may start off on the sweet side. It will surprise you with its turns of fiery spice, bitterness and sweet-and-sour, with a touch of savoury thrown in.
Also, to help you understand a bit of what the show is like so that you're prepared, here's a broad outline:
The first half is full of sweetness and comedy, light-hearted and fluffy with some small build-up of plot threads. The romance development here is eminently ML-focused (he falls in love first and fast) and it runs the gamut of playful to moving as it progresses.
The 2nd half will start to bring together several plot threads introduced in the 1st half and so side characters have more screen-time as the show fleshes their story arcs and motivations. The main couple will also encounter love trials along the line of star-crossed love/ ill-fated love (hence the Romeo & Juliet premise). The trials have sound basis and foundation though, so it's not stupid misunderstandings and noble idiocy type issues. But the trials eventually prove and confirm their love and in the end, they overcome them for a suitable end.
I'd really like to encourage you to watch this show as it is quite amazingly crafted and if you like romance shows with a bit more complexity to it and to have more substance to it, this will suit you very well.
ACTING/ CAST
With over 60 episodes, this show's cast is not small. Screen-time for our characters will fluctuate depending on the plot thread in focus at the time so please don't expect our main characters or main couple to continuously dominate the screen. The show takes some pains to explore and flesh out some of its key side characters too, which is really great because it makes the show less riddled with one-dimensional/ cardboard cut-out characters. Even our 'stock villains' are given realistic internal motivations and drivers, and the 'comic relief' characters surprisingly have a core of values in them too. I personally found myself growing fond of many side characters (e.g. Yuanji Immortal, Moon Immortal, Yan You, Water Immortal and Lian Yuan) which makes this show extra enjoyable/ watchable to me. Love them!
Spotlight on our main leads:
DENG LUN as Xu Feng (aka Phoenix), the Fire Immortal. C-novel readers will probably be a bit surprised at Deng Lun's portrayal and take as our God of War, but I liked this different characterisation of our main male lead in this drama. He's not your perfect male lead, not by any means, but he has a strongly loyal, warm and loving heart. This central and core aspect of his character is wonderfully and consistently portrayed throughout the show and Deng Lun's less imposing physic and his warm voice (I just loved the fact that he voice-dubbed his own character!) makes him a more approachable and less dominating character than his C-novel counterpart.
Acting-wise, I think Deng Lun did well in portraying Xu Feng's emotional and character development. I think he does his character justice and that's good enough for me.
YANG ZI as Jin Mi, our Little Grape and Flower Immortal. I personally think that this is not an easy role for any actress to portray as her character undergoes a lot of ups-and-downs, internal conflicts and changes in this show, but kudos to Yang Zi for being able to make her a naively cheerful Little Grape at the start, and to showcase her evolution as the show progresses. She had me invested in her character and in her character's story and progress throughout the show.
LEO LUO YUNXI as Run Yu, the Night Immortal. Like Jin Mi, his character also undergoes a lot of ups-and-downs, internal conflicts and changes in this show and I have to also hand it to this actor, he rose to the occasion in this drama. As one of the 3 main leads in this show, he certainly has not been overshadowed by his fellow co-stars on the acting-front and some of his key scenes really brought the emotions out through the screen.
I personally think that our 3 main leads were well-balanced on the acting-front. No one consistently overshadowed or out-acted the other, everyone was on more or less equal footing in terms of screen-presence and screen-impact, to me. The well-balanced nature of it made the show good, because there is nothing worse than to have a co-star consistently overshadowing or out-acting you in front of the screen, making the scene imbalanced and making the actor and character being overshadowed to be out of place.
MUSIC
There appears to be 3 theme songs for this show (male and female version of the opening, and the ending theme song), and while they are lovely and beautiful in their own right, and when well-employed in a scene they really elevate the moment, I personally felt that the limitation of songs later on became a bit of liability to the show as, with over 60 episodes, there is going to be inevitable song-fatigue. I personally think that this is one area in the show which could really do with additional work and improvement to make it truly great, but well, it is what it is.
RE-WATCH VALUE
I personally loved the first half of the show to bits and can see myself re-playing a lot of it in future. The second half where the real business end of the show starts picking up steam is compelling and addicting to watch for the first time because of the breathless anticipation of wanting to know what happens next. I am not sure how re-watchable this section will be in future once the suspense and excitement is over but it doesn't make this show any less impressive on its own merits.
EDIT: Since writing this review, I've re-watched almost the entire show twice more so clearly my fears about the watchability of the 2nd half was unfounded. In fact, a lot of the emotional scenes in the 2nd half were some of the best scenes in this show.
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This review may contain spoilers
Run Yu Steals the Show
The closest contender so far to top Peach Blossoms. Except the intended demographic felt more targeted towards teens than adults and the pacing sags significantly in the middle. Too much screen time given to uninteresting side stories. The Demon Princess's love being the worst offender.Still, there is a lot to take-away from Ashes of Love. For one, the overall story is very compelling with sweeping world-building located in a fantasy realm to set it up. Costumes are gorgeous, as most dramas will not lack in this category and the music was not only very suitable, but lovely. You'll be happy to know this drama also does come with a happy ending, complete with a mounting emotional climax between three main characters which eventually spills over into thrilling CGI battle/grudge match, loaded with emotion.
Now, I'm told compared to the book, the two main male leads Xu Feng and Run Yu, were reversed in the drama, in terms of temperament. I haven't read the book, so it's not for me to proclaim, but after finishing I did realize something very interesting. The antagonist love rival, Run Yu/Night Immortal, was, dare I say it... more sympathetic and likable then the leading man, Xu Feng. Now this is usually very detrimental to a story, as you want to root for the hero, not the villain. In the case of Ashes of Love, I would say this fact keeps it from being 10/10.
I don't want to dump on Deng Lung's acting because this may not have been his fault, but Xu Feng's character delivery came across as mopey and inexpressive. This was probably a conscious choice to make Xu Feng more likable compared to the book, which seems to have been frosty but still proactive (a lot like his dad in the drama). By being mopey, he is less threatening than is book counterpart. The problem with this approach is any emotional acting in comparison will stand-out. And that is exactly what Leo did, as Run Yu. He was sympathetic because he emoted so much more. I cared about his plight, because he convinced me of it. Xu Feng, was like the spoiled rich kid where as Run Yu was the orphaned poor kid going through all the suffering. Who am I naturally inclined to be more sympathetic towards?
Now since this drama falls under the romance genre, I'm also most critical of it's delivery. Jin Mi and Xu Feng are a couple much like Romeo and Juliet. The romance is not compellingly deep. It's a young love, filled with passion and a little superficial. It takes a lot of time before I am convinced their love goes beyond surface level. It's also a story about learning to love, mostly from Jin Mi's perspective. Yet, from the very beginning I could never shake the notion that between Run Yu and Xu Feng, it was a first come first serve basis. Jin Mi only fell for Xu Feng because he met her first and her decision to choose him was as immovable and permanent as the gender you're born as. Poor Run Yu. Though, I can't say I think him getting Jin Mi would have been ideal either. Run Yu started with a pure heart but became increasingly more dangerous as he grew obsessive.
It's nice that this drama does end happily, with all three sharing a mutual understanding of where eachother stands. I wanted a happier ending for Run Yu but at least this drama introduced me to the wonderful actor that is, Leo Yun Xi. I would go as far as to state Ashes of Love is worth the watch, for him alone.
One last thought. It might not be worth mentioning but... was it really fair to give Sui He / Peacock Immortal the ending she got? I get it, she was the bad guy. She tries to get between Xu Feng and Jing Mi and commits many foul deeds fueled by muddled obsession to achieve that. She deserves a comeuppance. Still, as the drama is wrapping up and the overall feel is happy, out of nowhere were treated with a scene of Sui He stumbling into a den of crazy cannibalistic brothers. She was already ostracized for her actions, left to die lonely and crazy. Why was our happy ending interrupted by more kicking of her when shes down? It felt wrong. The scene was unnecessary, gross and went too far.
It's been about a year since I gave this drama a try and so much of what I'm writing about is all that stayed with me since finishing. It's not the freshest review, but it's potent with the memories that stuck out the most.
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This review may contain spoilers
First tkme writing a review but this drama is definitely worth a watch.I admit it might but slightly slow at the start especially the first episode when introducing JinMi, but the story is full of creativity and new ideas each episode onwards.
I find it very interesting especially at the beginning of the episode (at start of OP), they used different colours to represent each main leads’ nature, (spoilers!) for example, JinMi is pink; XuFeng became the Demon God in the end, he is black; LiuYing is the princess of the Demon World, she has purple; RunYu is Night God from Heaven World, theres bit of black mixed with his white colour; SuiHe is the princess of the Bird Kingdom, he colour is red with bit of yellow.
I’ve also watched a few videos about their production, I respect this dramas a lot because they literally built the scenes out in the tents, also mention that it was summer when they filmed this, and the temperature inside the tents could be up to 60 degrees, it is definitely hard work!
A word from the director: he wanted to present the same feeling and emotions from the original novel, to have that “torturing romance” as the main element. He aims to let the audience sense the feel of getting their hearts broken and twisted.
The animation is also top rated, especially the pet deer, they captured the very detail of its facial expressions, giving it life in the screen.
I understand that most people don’t like watching dramas with so many episodes, same with me tbh, but I reckon this one is a dramas that brings Historical Fantasy Romance dramas into another era, hard to say any of the dramas I’ve watched could top this in terms of story, cast, animation, and music.
Lastly, if anyone wants to talk about the drama with me, don’t hesitate! ^_^
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This review may contain spoilers
I was excited to watch this drama at first based on all the reviews and the high rating, but as I got into it I realized how boring it was and I skipped through most of it. I got to about episode 32 and was thinking to drop it, but didn't because others reviewers said it would pick up around episode 46. I still thought it was boring and kept skipping. 63 episodes was not needed. A lot of the episodes, especially the first 46 episodes could have been concised into 10 episodes. I don't have a problem watching dramas with a lot of episodes, I sat through Princess Wei Young just fine, but when there are so many episodes that aren't moving the story along then I have a problem.What I liked:
-Most of the women (Liu Ying, Su Hei, Great Floral Fairy, Heavenly Empress, Wind Immortal, Su Li) in the drama were able to hold their own. Now they had their faults and could be annoying at times, but they weren't weak. I loved their fight scenes.
-Run Yu- he had the most interesting story line and the show would have been more interesting if it was centered around him.
-The clothes and landscapes- I started watching this because I wanted to watch something pretty (corny, I know).
What I didn't like:
-It was predictable.
-Jin Mi always needed saving. Whether it was by Xu Feng, Run Yu or Pu Chi or anyone for that matter. She rarely was able to defend herself. The other women in the drama needed saving at times too (Mu Ci saving Liu Ying or Xu Feng saving his mother), but they didn't need it as much as Jin Mi. And Jin Mi was such an annoying and boring character. Her not being able to fall in love story line was held out for too long. Also, she was supposed to be a logical character, but used no type of logic during the wedding scene (of course viewers found out why later), but that scene really annoyed me.
-The kissing scenes- they were comical
-Run Yu- while I felt he was an interesting character, he was also a very self serving character. He cared about Jin Mi, but did not care about her happiness, her feelings, or how his choices would affect her. He was obsessed with her and always wanted her around in spite of the fact that that wasn't where she wanted to be. He knew she didn't love him in that way, but none of that mattered to him. I say he cared because he did not want her to get hurt and would do anything to save her, but he didn't love her because he never, not even once, put her interests or desires above his own.
-I still don't get why Xu Feng and Run Yu would start a war over Jin Mi. To bring in innocent people into your love triangle is the most stupidest thing ever.
I don't recommend this drama if you can't let go of all logic and common sense like me; you will be greatly annoyed.
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omgg it's been awhile since I watched such a good drama. I just finished watching it and I already want to rewatch it. This literally blew me away with just everything and omgg the emotions are so high with this drama.
Plot: I really dislike watching dramas where its just the same cycles over and over again of the main leads breaking up and getting back together constantly (like for example, every other episode), so I was super happy with what the writers for this show did with this drama because we none of that (yay!). There was so much creativity into writing this and there are SOOO many good plot twists. The plot is far from boring and invokes so many emotions. There are both really funny parts and really sad parts ANND those REALLY CUTE romantic scenes that most everyone lives for. The plot brings together fantasy elements and romance elements with a hint of wuxia here and there. ALSO the ending was everything you would ever want esp since nowadays so many drama endings are the absolute worst. This drama does a good job of closing out all (or most but I couldn't tell if they missed any) of the plot holes and tying everything together.
Characters: I was really happy with the character development in this drama. The changes in each character are so subtle yet if you compare two eps far apart from each other, you can tell the difference in most of the important characters (e.g. JM). They did such a good job of revealing the backstories, intentions, etc. of characters as well in a way that would be either 1. wow I didn't see this coming or 2. i wanna cry. I LOVED the way that JM and XF fell in love and gradually realized what they meant to each other. Also, some people have mentioned in the comments that they don't really like the amount of screen-time that the demon princess gets, but personally I kinda liked the storyline between her and MC as well as their characters, but that might just be me :P The demon princess (LY) is kind of that loyal badass sidekick character with a soft side and sometimes you can't help but cheer her on. Also shoutout to Moon Immortal character cuz he just made me laugh every time even if he was being serious. Of course, each character has those times when they're being annoying (esp the villainous/evil characters) but overall none of them stood out as being terribly written and I can say that I was even happy with how the evil characters were.
Costumes: Might seem weird to mention this but I just really enjoyed seeing how each realm had their own distinct style and how each were shown so beautifully. Little things like hairstyle, accessories, makeup, clothing composition, etc really add to the drama in a good way. (Example: bird realm's clothing [Sui He] compared to flower realm's clothing [JM/ Chief Zhang])
Acting: I haven't watched that many dramas with YZ in it and I didn't expect too much going into it but wow her acting was so great and the way she portrayed various emotions was crazy. The way she could make you want to cry is insanely amazing and her chemistry with DL is really really good. DL's acting is also really good, as expected, and the way he portrays pain and heartbreak is incredible. Aside from those two, I don't really have any complaints with any of the other actors/actresses. They all did a great job :)
Music: warning- the music is so perfectly inserted that you wanna cry like every time there's a sad moment LOL. No complaints with the music---I think all of the selections fit the drama really well.
Animations/CGI/Production: As with every fantasy drama especially, a lot of animating and cgi needs to go into the production since the setting includes places like Heaven, Hell, and various other "realms". The realms were all animated so well, and while there are TOMPB vibes going on (esp. the flower realm and the heaven realm), it stands distinctly on its own beautifully. The colors are amazing and I love the clouds loll xD The cgi just gives it the right magical feeling. Another commenter mentioned this as well, but the dream beast that stayed by RY's side throughout the drama was animated so well. You could see all the details and the colors and everything was just so real.
My Favorite Part: mini spoiler but I absolutely loved the part when JM and XF went to the mortal realm and lived like mortals for their "redemption" trial. Free from their immortal responsibilities and burdens, their characters were just so pure and raw. It made me laugh, smile a ridiculous amount, and bawl. When dramas bring out every type of emotion there is, you know it's a good drama.
Overall: MUST WATCH ; this was on my "to watch" list for the whole summer, and I'm so glad that I decided to start now and it was so good that I binge-watched for 3 days and finished it. This is the kind of drama I've been waiting for since watching TMOPB. Definitely rewatching in the future 10/10 recommend. Sorry for the excessive length of this review & if I repeated myself multiple times :P
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Ashes of annoyance(if you ask me)
This story is your epic example of greed and revenge. Its a story entirely based on the actions of a self serving emperor and an evil calculating woman who was not loved by her husband.Up until now i am still wondeing why most people kept on referring and comparing this story to ten miles of peach blossoms. The plots are completely unrelated and so different. The only minute similarity is both stories are fantasy stories and have a handful of realms only.
Now if you are looking for something thought provoking, refreshing and a bit different from the usual stories and typical drama logic then you might enjoy this.
I am however compelled to mention one downside to this drama. THE FEMALE LEAD was super annoying. Yes her character was pathetic throughout the drama but it does not end with the character alone. The female lead's acting leaves a lot to be desired. Her character was poorly written and developed through out the whole drama. Yes in the beginning i thought that is how it was meant to be but after major transformation i expectected her character to change and have a bit more depth but it remained shallow and underdeveloped. So if you can move past this hurdle then you might enjoy this drama indeed. To me she was a constant bother till i decided to focus entirely on the two brothers.
It is everything about her that made me give this drama a low rating. No matter how good the plot is or the acting of the rest of the cast is if one of the leads is a doofus be it character wise or the acting itself then it will bring the entire project down. This is how it was for me. If you can move past her then good for you you will enjoy the drama more.
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Came for the main leads, stayed for the second lead
This series started on fire for me. I put Eternal Love on hold to watch this. The first twenty episodes went by so quickly. I was entertained, to say the least.However halfway through, it became apparent to me that the lead characters have no flaws. Even Jin Mi’s lack of certain feelings are blameless because of her mother’s actions. Xu Feng exhibited all the same flaws as Run Yu however, he was celebrated for being “in love” and was willing to do anything to get his girl (Read: manipulative). On the other hand, Run Yu was portrayed as obsessive and selfish for similar actions.
Xu Feng was blind to all his parents’ flaws and cruelty. I’m not sure how a character who’s touted to be so sensitive and attuned to everyone’s well-being and feelings can lead such a bliss life, unaware of such things. Even when he was made aware of certain things his parents did, they seemed to explain themselves away.
Jin Mi’s lack of character development for such a long time was also frustrating. Another point of annoyance was how everyone pretty much ignored Run Yu and showered heaps of attention on Xu Feng only. This man could DO NO WRONG. I guess it wasn’t difficult for Deng Lun and Yang Zi to play these types of characters.
On the other hand, Run Yu’s character arc was excellent. Not going to lie, from around the halfway mark of this series, I pretty much gave up on everyone except Run Yu. His turn of character was done so well and that was what kept me going to finish the series. I don’t condone some things he did however much was couched by circumstances.
Suffice to say, around episode 30ish and onwards, I was rooting for Run Yu only, the main couple pretty much deserved each other.
The only thing I had no issue with in this series is the music, it’s excellent.
Will not rewatch this, I’d rather watch fan-made videos of Run Yu.
Acting rated for Luo Yunxi only.
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This review may contain spoilers
is this even love ?
Background story:XF the legitimate son of heavenly emperor and empress therefore is loved and cared by everyone. He can have anything and everything he wants, also he holds the military powers bcoz of his legitimacy basically he has Freedom to everything.
On the other side RY being an illegitimate son of emperor, he is not the favoured child and doesn’t have the right to even chose or express his wishes basically not privileged, not only that but if RY doesn't lay low he will be killed. Also, RY is engaged to the daughter of Water and Immortal 4000yrs back and is waiting for that person.
Both XF and RY encounter JM "the daughter of late floral immortal and water Immortal" (due to a pill she is incapable of falling in love with someone) in different circumstances though XF didn't fell for JM at first but helped her escape Floral realm, sheltered her in Heaven Realm and bullied her at the same time but later on fell for her Beauty (after she wore a pretty dress) unlike RY who liked her from their first meeting. After JM identity as the daughter of water immortal and RY's fiancé revealed, we can guess how it goes........
But after watching the entire drama i didn't felt the Love part between XF and JM, it felt more like an Infatuation and forcefully wanting to prove it as Love:
1. After that beauty transformation of JM, somehow XF started to see all of JM's actions in a romantic way that too when he is very well aware of the fact that she doesn't know gender differences neither socially well equipped.
I read so many comments claiming that JM isn't some consolation price which RY can have but she belongs to XF just bcoz he met her first, is JM an item for XF?. XF can kiss a drunk JM under the impression that she is his sister isn't sexual assault?
Not only that but XF bullied JM in the initial eps by trapping her in stools and make her do maid stuffs etc however all that is treated as comical but if the same thing is done by RY then what ??
2. If XF really wanted to redeem for what his parents did then he should have helped RY in getting the happiness he deserved rather he kept his own happiness first. XF can only pity RY but he will never do anything beyond his limits like he did for JM by threatening his own mother.
3. I still remember in one episode RY cleared that JM like means in a normal way not in a romantic way in front of Floral chiefs and XF but still after JM accepted the engagement XF did not stopped pursuing JM? Instead XF manipulated JM during Mortal trial with the help of Moon Immortal ( A fate deity who is responsible for the love and marriage of any mortal couple) however, in the end JM only thinks that RY manipulated her but what XF ??
4. If RY had followed JM in the mortal realm, will moon immortal would do the same? Tie him with her then ofc she will fall in love with RY since, Moon Immortal has the power to manipulate mortal couples. Also XF tampered with JM redemption but still pardoned why ??? As he is the legitimate son, bcoz I m damn sure RY wouldn’t have the same pleasure due to his birth.
XF could have protected JM without actually becoming a Mortal as our beloved XF doesn't follow rules or cares about it...... so. i believe XF just wanted to have some uninterrupted romance with JM....so much efforts... bcoz in the end it was RY who saved JM the very reason for which XF went to mortal realm ohhh i m sure he isn't interested in it. BTW if Muci had killed JM in her early teenage or before that then what was the use of following JM?
5. The basic foundation of love is trust and understanding, JM stayed so long with XF but still he doesn't know a thing about JM even when XF is aware of the fact that JM doesn't know gender differences or for her meaning of love doesn't mean in a romantic manner still he never tried to know why is that and considered each of her actions as a romantic gesture also, they both claimed to love each other but when the time required them to trust each other they choose the opposite. XF planned to have sex with JM after learning about the marriage date that's why he used Alcohol that too while RY was mourning for his mother, this is just about desiring someone intimately not loving....
6. JM was only unable to fall in love but wasn't mentally challenged but still acted like she doesn't get anything. If she is capable enough to trap empress in her own game then how come she doesn’t know what she is doing when it comes to XF's matter.
RY never confirmed XF being the killer it was JM who learned about Internal Alchemy and moon Immortal helped her understand it better but still in the end she pushed all the blame on RY. If RY was behind that then why she didn't take revenge the moment she learned about the dream being real but instead she waited for 3 yrs to kill XF ...
7. XF never stood up for RY when he is already aware of the fact how RY is being treated by Empress. You are actually making someone live like hell for thousands of years are u a monster and those who watched it what they are..? Parents does everything for the sake of their kids security and future so, if XF never agreed with what his Mother then why he never stopped her?? XF consent is irrelevant unless he is in his right conscience mind to stand up against the Injustice towards his own brother.
8. why JM only knows about her mother's death but not how the emperor raped his mother ???
Though the show did a lot in trying to depict that JM chose XF on own her own free will but it turned out to be a biggest lie bcoz she was manipulated by Moon Immortal and XF to make her fall in love.
Therefore I can’t really say whether it’s even a love story or not? Love and responsibility r equally important, otherwise why water immortal would will live after the death of floral immortal so, many things just doesn't makes sense. Anyways my complaints won’t end, very disappointed with this show. Somewhere it’s very easy for everyone to say that they understand someone’s pain and suffering but in reality they don’t understand at all, it’s just a notion to satisfy themselves. Highly overrated show, i guess it's bcoz the leads r famous unlike leo yunxi …I m sure if the roles r reversed then there reasons and logics would change along with the character they support.
Acting skills:
Deng lun : he is a good actor but in this show his character was quite dull bcoz it doesn’t have much growth.
Leo yunxi: for a new comer, he looked very natural and i m really impressed with his acting…..specially his voice.
HE OWN THIS DRAMA .
Yang zi : I really didn’t like her acting much except for 2/3 scenes and her character was quite annoying in most part of the show.
It’s my personal opinion, no one has to agree with it...(subject to editing )
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I have never hated MC like I did in this drama, the unconditional love between them feels illogical. This is the kind of trope where FL will end up with ML just because she met him first! What can I say abt Xu Feng, he is the most stupid, arrogant , spineless ML I have ever seen and the actor who played Xu feng didn't help the case either coz he just couldn't pull off the whole "God of war" aura look and it seemed like he was uninterested to play this role but was forced by his manger to do so.
Yin min: I understand why she had to be naive, airheaded brat but after she puked the pill which locked her emotions she became even more stupid. The chemistry between the leads wasn't convincing enough & for this I blame the direction, the script focused more on sub plots and just ended up rushing the main plot!
All the characters felt two dimensional for me except the night king, runyu was the only multidimensional character with many complex layers, I could never look at him as a villian when he was the REAL VICTIM of the story. His anger, revenge, hurt, betrayal, love and sadness were are justified and looked logical. But over all the story felt really dragged at times because of the unnecessary sub plots/side characters, I continued to watch this drama just for runyu and I'm glad I did that because the final arc (demon realm arc) managed to deliver the best segments of the series, it's the only arc where all the 3 leads match up to one another & story moves with the right pace.
Xu feng looked his part as a powerful Phoenix/king in demon realm than he did in the heaven realm (may be coz of the costume and the new hairstyle which suited the actor really well), Jin mi pain of killing the one she loved the most was beautiful potrayed in this arc and finally the tragedy of night king was heartbreaking.
Over all rating: 7.5/10
AOL has the best soundtracks, couple of songs have been sung by the actors as well!!
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