Is the script written so poorly at times that it is just corny? Yes.
Does many of the elements in the story make sense most of the time? No.
Does the special effects look super low-budget at times? Yes.
However, I surprisingly found myself continuing on to the next episode and the next without the thought of dropping it. Because despite having to shrug off the major flaws, it was still an enjoyable watch. I laughed at times, teared up ever so slightly at times, and rooted for the camaraderie within the team.
The bromance was sweet, using the undeniable formula of pairing opposite personalities. This was one of the obvious draws from the series but the rest of our "superhero" team was fun to watch as well, each one with their own supernatural or intelligence skill set. It should be noted however that although I still enjoyed Zhu Yi Long's acting here (more in The Story of Ming Lan), he really should have learned how to swing a prop sword better.
The mini-plots within the underlying one can feel a bit blotchy but the overall one still wraps up well enough. There was also just enough intrigue for me to follow through to the end. So if you're one who can overlook some of these issues and not ask too many questions, it was a fun one to sit through without having to use much brain power.
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If anyone is pondering over watching this drama or not, you should definitely give it a try, because it's actually worth watching it. however if you are looking for a BL drama, this might or might not be what you are looking for lol: I mean, if you are looking for an actual BL where the leads confess to each other and are open about their love, then no; however, even if they are all subtle and implicit, the love the lead characters have for each other is very much real, powerful and it literally ascends ages!!! It's actually one of the purest and deepest forms of love that I have ever watched in any drama. and THIS is why you should definitely give it a try, regardless of how implicit or explicit their love is.
Lastly, I want to do a special mention to the OSTs of this drama because they are LOVE and I am literally obsessed, I listen to them and cry during my train journeys to uni :((
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What I liked about this drama: the main leads are so very gorgeous and I love the bromance and brotherhood. The charm and charisma of Zhu Yilong and Bai Yu are what I look forward to every minute. If only the drama didn’t censor scenes from the web novel... ????
What I didn’t like about this drama: it’s sad and disheartening seeing black robe losing his powers and awesomeness as the episodes progresses. If only he’d not reveal his identity and continue to appear as the ever so awesome and much feared godlike black robe envoy or ghost slayer.
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This broke me but like in a good way
This broke me but like in a good way, I loved every second of pain. The acting was amazing, the leads really embodied the essence of the characters despite the changes to the storyline. It's best to view it as separate to the novel because whilst it does make a lot of changes it's still worth watching for what it brings to it's own story. Bai Yu and Zhu Yi Long did such a great job carrying this drama and brought so much to their roles.I cried when I got to the end before wondering how soon is too soon to start rewatching it because it's something I'll be rewatching again and again.
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Great Show!
Ran into it randomly, and figured I'd give it a try - very glad I did. This was a great show, and I really enjoyed it.First, the two main actors do a wonderful job with their characters. I am actually watching more with these two actors, and enjoying their other shows as well! That said, Guardian was enjoyable. It was amusing to watch these two very different personalities work together to solve everything going on. The Supporting cast is very good as well, and made the show a fun watch! Sometimes the special effects aren't the greatest (but hearing what happened with the funding, it makes sense), but I feel the acting and story make up for this.
I'm rewatching it a 2nd time now, that is how much I enjoyed this title. If you have been interested in watching or thinking of watching, I would recommend giving it a go!
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Especially, Shen Wei's character is played beautifully by Zhu Yi Long! He perfectly resonates with the description in the book! *APPLAUSE*!
The special effects are decent and the Title Track music is fantastic! (Though reminds me of the Game of Thrones Title track). Also, considering the storyline in the book and such amazing casting, I feel 40 episodes were too less and kept on wanting more!
Overall, great drama. Must watch atleast once, and then read the book as well if possible.
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First let’s talk about the music. I honestly have more than half the soundtrack downloaded simply because of how beautiful the music is. The opening soundtrack is very fantasitical and with heavy emphasis on the orchestra and English vocals. I could actually enjoy the opening theme without hardly any urge to skip through it. The same for the ending theme, it is a melancholy ballad type song that I thoroughly enjoy. Even the rest of the soundtrack lives up to par to both the themes and has a mix of suspenseful, beautiful, and amazing music.
Next is the storyline. Now for the storyline, it’s pretty much what the summary says it is. My only irritation with it is near the end of the series, where the story completely diverges from the web novel in order to keep it under the censors because of how gay the original storyline was. As a result, the ending is a bit rushed and left with a bunch of holes in the story. Not to mention that the actual ending was a bit disappointing compared to the content that was given to us earlier in the series.
The acting, from actors not main leads, was pretty cartoonish and cardboard, but that could be overlooked because of the superb acting done by the main leads. Bai Yu and Zhu Yi Long really went above and beyond in delivering the lines and acting through their bodies. The looks of longing and frustration and adoration were delivered perfectly and subtly. Their on screen and off screen chemistry is so good that it’s almost unreal. Even the acting of the secondary “couple” ( Guo and Chu) was excellently carried out and was arguably as beautiful as the storyline from Shen Wei/ Zhao Yunlan. I can’t fully come up with the words to describe how amazing the acting from these main leads were but it was incredible enough to make me want to rewatch it for the second time-which I am actually currently doing.
With all these factors put together, I can confidently say that I strongly liked the series.
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This review may contain spoilers
Watch for the two main lead’s intense chemistry and top acting
Took me a few days to process and get my head around everything that happened, needed time to let everything sink in before I could write this (especially the emotional ending). First off, I have to say the only reason to watch this drama is to watch our two leads, their dynamic, exchanges, emotions and intense relationship/soul mates/brotherhood vibe. What a pairing, such intense chemistry and solid acting that really carry this whole drama and are the only reason the rating for this drama is so high. The plot, story, production all fall flat and the acting is the only thing that can make up for it.Story
The story itself and premise is interesting, though poorly executed. Largely attributed to the cheap visual effects, lack of production quality, comical CGI effects and the fantasy animations. I appreciate the multi facets of genres this brings including supernatural, fantasy, crime, science combined together along with light comedy and brilliantly crafted character interaction. The story started strong for the first 20 episodes, we got to know all the characters, a good look into the SID and solving small crimes and also see our two main lead’s friendship flourish and develop from their initial meeting. We went through two main antagonists that propelled the story, but by the time we got to around 29 and our major villain appeared, it really dropped off and went askew. Full of plot holes, scenes that occurred with no explanations, others poorly explained, messy random scenes, and characters running to and fro with no purpose. And the ending episodes, though filled with drama lacked finesse. In terms of the ending (that everyone keeps saying is tragic), I agree is sad. But there was a sense of finality to the whole drama and to the characters which I really liked. But in addition to that finality, of case solved the world is safe, they also added this element of a continued story. Our two main lead’s story is not over and though we won’t be able to see it, we know that it will be there and they will find a way back to each other again. They have an undeniable affinity toward each other. So though sad, I appreciated it and understood why the ending was done like that. But overall I would have liked a tighter and better executed storyline. I also think the cheap production made the story comical, almost laughable and unrealistic at times which didn’t help. Also notions of hatred and revenge appeared too frequently and were characterised by all the villains, they became so two dimensional with no real motivations or complexity to their character. And this whole thing of misunderstanding as the resolution to a lot of the problems was used way too much e.g. evil guy being evil because he thought A happened, but then it’s revealed actually B happened. Used so many times it got old. I also really like the ideal of suppressing evil and spreading virtue, which was a clear strong message, unfortunately only really delved into nearing the ending. They should have really delved into that early on and have it play throughout.
Acting/Cast
I cannot imagine a better casting of our two main leads. Their chemistry was off the charts, their banter funny and cute, their emotions intense. Though censored, I could feel how deep their relationship was. Hands down some amazing acting. Props to ZYL who did an amazing job at portraying three characters, good and bad. Loved their every moment and honestly the way they looked at each other, gosh so much emotion, love, devotion and care. So much intensity and power in their expressions, I literally teared up just by looking at them look at each other. Every expression from Shen Wei hit me straight in the stomach and left an ache in my heart. His feelings were so clear to me. I was always craving more from Yun Lan’s side, just wanted more in his response to Shen Wei. Their characterisation was done so well, they emobodied these two to perfection. Loved the lollipop motif throughout, also the glasses/black mask. I enjoyed the supporting cast as well and thought they each did a great job at being distinct yet complimenting our leads.
OST
Amazing and so emotional. Listening to it while I write this review. Loved the intro song, felt it tells the whole drama in the one tune.
Rewatch value
I felt so emotional coming off this drama and feel like I’ll need to take a breather before I can go back to it. But I’d definitely rewatch our two main leads and their interaction with each other. As for the oddly paced and muddled plot, I’ll have to take a pass on that and skip over that.
Don’t be put off by the ‘sad’ ending and loose story/plot. If you enjoy top acting, then this is for you. Watch it for the two leads and their interactions as they face the trials and tribulations together. Watch them grow from friends to something so much deeper, past your typical cutesy superficial relationship to a well crafted nuanced and highly emotional charged duo. I’m really glad I picked this one up (because I am in no way a fantasy fan) and saw it through to the end, well worth my time. Keen to hear your thoughts!! xx
My fav scenes (Commending ZYL’s performance)
- When SW says you’re worth it (god I could watch that over and over again)
- When SW gets the lollipop stuffed into his mouth (such an adorable expression)
- When SW’s kneeling in the rain
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Okay so, From the Trailer it resemble a bit of Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments, an American supernatural drama television series, to me.. (bty tht series of 3 seasons of shadowhunters has a very strong impression on us.. ) so can't ignore it at first..
but then those episodes of this Asian drama 're worth waiting n watching.. n eventually can't stop after 2-3 eps.
Indeed it has some similarities to the American supernatural drama, with those different superpowers n underground people n all but at the same time far much different from it.. This one is just somehow more pleasing n appealing ...
the way they deliver those humors n quotes r definitely worth watching ...( It's all about Suppress n Spread guys... )
guess i'm gonna remember those quotes for quite sometimes... no actually i want to remember those ... specially tht..
ABSOLUTE RIGHT n WRONG thing...
so first, The concept, of tht thin very thin gap between GOOD n EVIL, is really deep...
then The characters, the way they build up .. act .. took their places .. then getting into chaos ..fighting .. desperately searching for something , someone.. in-short always engaging are the quality part of the series.
i mean ... when it comes to childish, funny, or something foolish they 're in the front row
- situation turns up gravely important & their maturity is unbeatable
- comes to term ally , they 're the dudes one could die for
- if foe , definitely fighting until the last breath
n those romance... uwaahh ... don't even ask..
N of course , the actors in it, they just nailed it.. a full crew of charming n charming faces with their super acting skills
awesome leads ... (even couldn't hate that ye zun/white prince/d main villain from the beginning to the very end...i just can't)
& last but not the least, wht a peaceful conclusion... not sour n bitter also not so sugary ...(though craving for the sequel) really liked it..
i think the best part of this drama is the concept of 'Unity in Diversity' .. N the message tht 'PEACE is worth fighting for'
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The acting is well... there were some hit and miss... however, generally speaking, there is still room for improvement.
The music is ok, I like the opening tho... the opening, for me, represents the whole drama, as in the vibe of the music, if that even makes sense... but yeah...
Overall, I do recommend this drama for anyone interested but a tip of advice, just don't expect too much.
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This review may contain spoilers
Highly Recommended, high Re-Watch Value. Hot.
-The series that catapulted two relatively unknown actors into the Chinese stardom stratosphere.-Zhu Yilong and Bai Yu put their hearts, and soul, and creativity, and passion, and improvisation, and their dedication into this series despite many production setbacks.
-The result is INSANE CHEMISTRY, WeiLan, ZhuBai, many swoon-worthy, superbly acted memorable scenes (and many more future well-deserved quality acting opportunities for both Zhu Yilong and Baiyu).
-Guardian sets the stage for later "BL - bromance" type series like Untamed and Word of Honor.
-It's undeniably a romance though Chinese censorship forbids the explicit interpretation of the original novel in those terms. However, the romance or bromance (whatever) is a mature, complex, controlled relationship. The feelings between the two leads never descend into mushy, sappy, melodramatic tropes. There's no sentimental declaration of love/feelings, but the undying, unwavering love between soul mates is always palpable. I love that they are their own strong person, with their own firm convictions, and they take no bullshit from each other. There's always the push and pull in their interactions, whether in bantering, calling each other out, working together. They are in sync mentally and physically.
-You will cry. I cried, copiously.
-If you loved this, as I did, you will re-watch scenes many many times, as I did.
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Too drawn out
I thought the 2 leads, Zhu Yi Long and Bai Yu, were so good ~ their acting portrayed the characters' attraction to one another really well; the eyes can say it all.Lots of very diverse characters, action, emotion and different worlds, making for entertaining viewing.
I did have trouble sticking with it though, as it just went on too long for me. The last few episodes were amongst the best of all and saved the drama, to my mind. The emotion from the leads was heart felt and definitely confirmed that Shen Wei and Yunlan loved each other, and there was nothing 'brotherly' about it.
It is a great shame that China feels any sexuality other than straight, is abhorrent. Lines don't need to be crossed, but as with straight romance dramas, they aught to portray love as love. Just what are they so scared of?
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