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This review may contain spoilers
I knew I was going to love this drama because after TMOPB, I literally binged watched all of Dilireba's costume dramas! So I was immediately excited when they announced they were doing a sequel with our favorite leads. Just to preface, I have never read the novels for this story. But overall, I enjoyed this drama. I enjoyed the song that Dilireba sang too! There are three arcs for our leads. BFJ as a fox lingering in Early Dawn palace following around DH. BFJ and DH goes to the mortal realm (I thought that part was SOOO long), and lastly BFJ and DH end up in a A'lanrou's dream. Each one tests their relationships and you watch as their relationship blossoms. In TMOPB you only see parts of the first two arcs, but this one dives more into details and shows more (of course). I did think that the last two episodes were VERY rushed, as it was their wedding date and of course DH had to go save the world. FJ misunderstands and leaves and goes lives in the mortal realm with their kid for three years. She comes back to Nine Heavens because Ye Qingti is about to be revived and magically they make up. Although, I was feeling MEH ending, I did love the acting and chemistry between Dilireba and Vengo. I'm sure because they were part of Jaywalk studios they have acted with each other before, their chemistry was sizzling. I was so excited with DJ finally falls for FJ, and he just loves on her. Apparently, there's rumors that they're even dating.
A lot of people have mentioned that Angel Liu (Ji Heng) bought the rights to this drama, and wanted to be FJ but faced backlash so they kind of re-wrote the drama for her as Ji Heng and gave her more screen time (we didn't ask for that). Her character was annoying, but she wasn't the psycho lover like Su Jin. It seemed like they wanted to make her villainous, but kind of watered it down or got bored w/ it. This drama actually lacks a Su Jin if it makes you feel better. No one really plotted heavily against our FJ, or took her eyes.
They did mix up our cast a little. We got one Yang Mi cameo (it was meh!). Zhe Yan and our 4th Uncle have transformed into beautiful young male leads - although it was different, I liked it! I liked that they brought back some of the original characters such as 3rd Prince Song Lian, Si Ming and the Bai Family. I wish they showed more of the other realms, as in TMOBP they showed other realms like the Eastern Sea family and more gods and goddesses. Another thing was was funny was Wayne Liu's character, as he did have a role in TMOPB. He was re-casted as a demon lord, Yan Chiwu. Yan Chiwu was probably one of my favorite side characters, and makes references to his "twin" brother who was Mo Yuan's 16th disciple. It would have been funny if he bumped into his twin XD --- But did anyone remember that in TMOPB the demon princess's name was also YAN Zhi, so they share the same surname. Anyways.....
Overall, this drama was good. It wasn't as good in terms of drama and seeing the love build up as TMOPB. The trials that DJ and FJ went through didn't really hit me as hard as TMOPB. I just thought that BQ and YH went through way more compared to DJ and FJ. And maybe it falls on FJ's personality, she was always naive and kiddy-like. I felt even when she had her kid, she didn't truly mature. And maybe if they didn't white-wash the roles, it would have been more "drama." I mean, they could have done more with Zhi He's character (did they forget she was evil b*tch in Ashes of Love)? But, I understand they did re-write this script to give more screen time to Angel Liu. Maybe there's an original script out there, that could have done 100% better and give us angsty/heartbreak drama that we all wanted.
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I probably will have to rewatch because the story was boring for me in the first few episodes but it picked up when Dong Hua went to the mortal world which makes up for the first few episodes. The visual fantasy was amazing. It seemed real to me. More action in this one than the first season. The ending was terrific! I could write more about this but I won't. This is a great watch.
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Thoroughly enjoyed this...
This drama is not a continuation to Ten Mile Peach Blossom although many of the key characters in the former series are either mentioned or re-featured. You can watch this series on its own without watching the former. It is more of a romantic comedy and more light-hearted compared to the Ten Mile Peach Blossom. There are more romantic and comical scenes while Ten Mile has more intense battle and gut-wrenching scenes. The witty verbal exchanges are hilarious. And the scenes when DiJun is teasing and flirting with FengJiu are amusing. However, you probably need to have a good command of Mandarin to appreciate it - from the English subtitles, I suspect much is lost.It has its own moment of suspense, making you wonder what is going to happen next and it did keep me glued to YouTube and myasiantv.io especially towards the second half. If you are a romantic, you will enjoy this. Dil and Gao had 'come out of age' to convincingly play the lead roles in this drama with only a short awkward appearance by Yang Mi and none by Mark Chao.
The initial 10 scenes are a little slow but comical, and almost look like a repeat of Ten Mile Peach Blossom with FengJiu's attempt to make it to DiJun's palace to serve him and the rivalry between FengJiu and ZhiHe was boring. It would be better if the duration of an episode or two were trimmed from the initial 10 episodes - they feel like time fillers. However, the story deviates. Once you get past these, you will start to enjoy it.
Like most dramas, it has its weaknesses in the story - a lot of the plot was based on FengJiu's distrust of DiJun - almost to the extend she looked like a self-pitying fool. For a plucky and mischievous girl, she suddenly became a fool when it came to matters of the heart. A lot of the gut-wrenching scenes become unconvincing and comical as they are more of self-pitying based on some imagination she was unloved and that DiJun loved someone else.
Dil is ravishingly beautiful as FengJiu and Gao is dashingly handsome as DiJun with the white hair and purple/white robes. Good looking leads are often key success factors for a drama or movie.
We all like a happy ending - I certainly do - I watch drama to enjoy it not sadden by it and I avoid tragedies. I always check that before I start any drama these days after suffering a few sad days with some other tragedies.
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Migraine-Inducing
OVERALLThis drama can be enjoyable if you're good at suspending your disbelief...and your values. Watch it if 1) you like the fantasy genre, 2) you like stories that take you on a journey, going through a gazillion plot changes, 3) you'll be happy with a few sweet love scenes. If 1) immature female leads make your skin crawl, 2) you get confused easily, and 3) you can't stand rushed endings, then skip.
THE STORY
I need to start by saying two things: 1) I know this drama is linked to another one, but I didn't see it, so I'm the new, fresh viewer (not the fan of Eternal Love), and 2) I don't usually watch xanxia, it's not my go-to genre. For anyone not like me, then the following review may not be very useful, but if you identify, read on!
I decided to try the drama out because I saw some clips on YouTube that looked fun and cute. From episode 1, I could tell it'd be a rough ride. Let me start with the good stuff. First, there really are fun and cute scenes between the leads. Not too many, not the ULTIMATE best (see Love Designer for that!), but still good enough to keep you going until the very end. Secondly, not going to give much away, but a part of the drama takes place in the mortal world. That part was definitely the best of the drama. It's more realistic, the characters are more down-to-earth, the plot is more coherent, and it makes you really emotional. And...that's it.
Now for the bad. The absolute worst of this drama is the FL. She acts like a five year old 95% of the time (the 5% she doesn't is when she's in the mortal world). I have a lot of difficulty understanding how she's supposed to be attractive to the ML...which leads me to ML, who's too expressionless for my taste. That makes everything worse because he's like a statue and the FL is like...a prepubescent child. It just felt so weird to root for them. And then there's the issue of the FL being dehumanized a few times in the drama, which really brings that weirdness to a whole new level because not only is she demoted to an immature child, but also to an animal and an object. And then there's the fact that the plot jumps from one problem/world to the next and they don't seem to be connected at all, which is confusing. And then there's the fantasy elements that aren't explained well. And then there's the rushed ending. And then there's the flashy surreal visual effects... There's just too many issues that were hard to digest, I couldn't fully enjoy it.
THE ACTING
Despite hating her character, I still liked Dilraba's acting the best, just because she makes it seem so natural. I was not too impressed by Vengo, though it could also be the role. He definitely seemed better in the mortal world part. I need to see him in something else to confirm. I can't say much about their chemistry because, like I said, the romance made me feel kind of awkward at times, given how they depicted the FL. I don't have much to say about second leads either. They weren't particularly endearing, except maybe the demon lord.
THE MUSIC
...yeah...
REWATCH VALUE
Low. I can just watch YouTube clips to jump straight to the worthwhile scenes.
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Because of this drama i started watching fantasy dramas
First I watched Eternal love but drop it, but wanted to know more about Dong hua and Bai Feng Jiu.Let me tell you it was good decision.
If you watched eternal love you have to forget about their story there.
What I liked?
- Chemistry between Ml and Fl (Fireee!), even tho he is an old man and age gap is pretty big. Love their scenes together
- FL was cute and stupid but we can see her development, also she is not weak, she has powers and she is good at fighting
- I love dong hua and his face expressions (not only because my weakness are men in their 40s)
- cinematography
- Ruler of the Green Demon Clan, his relationship with FL
What I didn't like?
- I can't remember all because I watched it a while ago,
- I think that this Big Woman demon with which ML was fighitng etc. was not evil enough if you know what I mean
Anyway i highly recomend this dramas and I think it will become one of my favorite chinese dramas
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I've watched this series until the end, actually ㅡforce myself to watch this series until the end.
Good job for Feng Jiu for not giving up even though Dong Hua seems like he doesn't really give a fuck about you. You're the definition of loyalty and I'm so proud of you. I like a cold male lead that only warm to his love interest, but this Dong Hua... idk I just dislike his attitude so much to the point that I want to smack his face.
Cheng Yu, I feel you and you're right, at least for me. Let's smack his face a couple of times, idk I just want revenge I think.
I like the visual of it, it is a good drama but I'm the picky one here. I hope I didn't offend anyone.
The song is really good too, I actually adored the CGI and the magical effects ♡♡
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Beautiful actors and amazing story.
This drama is so beautiful and but actors is so beautiful, this is the second story. The first one was as beautiful and heart wreaking but don’t worry both have happy ending.I love both actors, the scene is beautiful and sweet and best action and best fantasy and best hardcore scene and best love story and best. Because it’s just too beautiful to not said it beautiful.
I’m looking forward to more drama from both of them and I’m currently watching miss S and I’m obsessed watching it! Waiting for it to update everyday.
I wish the male lead have many more drama. It’s so rare to see mix asian being the main actors but I think the girl is became popular in China now. Can’t wait for more!
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I Can't Move On!
Never have I been so obsessed with a drama couple that brought me to a point of searching and looking for video clips about them. Story wise, this drama's plot is okay for me. If it had different actors and actress to portray the characters of this drama, I don't think it would have been as fascinating. They did a good job in choosing the artists, specially the leads. The ML and FL gave justice to the characters they portrayed. I tried watching TMOPB before but dropped it early because it never really aroused my interest, this one even took me too long to watch given the fact that it is a historical fantasy, and these genres are not my cup of tea. But watching their clips on my facebook video feed caught my attention. As I was finishing the whole series, it broke my heart that its about to end. The couple got me so obsessed I pray they will be together for real. I don't intend to spoil, but I really acknowledge the fact that they made me feel the emotions this drama would like to invoke from the viewers, the heartaches of one sided love, being loved and the sacrifices you have to endure for that someone you love. That it did not matter whichever time or world they are in, their love will be eternal.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Observations about the drama:A) Xiao Yan is THE GOODEST OF BOIS! He is made of starlight and all that is good in the world. I love him.
B) Pretty much the emotional arcs can be divided into 4 which makes for great character development
1. Fengjiu falls in love and we see it mature from adolescent hero worship, to real enduring love (to the point that she was prepared to not have him as long as he is happy and fulfilled
2. Dong Hua falls in love and we see it mature from curiosity to deep (Possessive - but then again he is a known conqueror, what do we really expect?) love. We see the consequence of him loosing her (Chen Ye anyone?) and despite threats to the contrary he never kills anyone out of jealousy in the end so I count that as real growth.
3. They test the boundaries and roles of their relationship. He treats her like a kid (despite the handy 'weak fate' excuse, he does!) and she runs away from her problems (guys it's really not about Jiheng)
4. They find an equilibrium. He starts treating her like a partner, she faces the problem head on. And they live happily ever after.
C) I like that the drama went linear with the timeline. Judging by Viki comments, people were confused enough as is!
D) Speaking of Aranya's dream. I actually like that she knew the Xize was Donghua early on. Neatly avoided the whole 'icky consent' thing from the book. I personally didn't like that part.
E) Kudos to Vengo Gao, his acting is amazing. I honestly found it difficult to reconcile Donghua and Chen Ye together. I found it super hard to even look at Chen Ye. He constantly felt like he was in the very edge of madness. He literally exuded crazy and it was painful to even look him in the eyes.
F) The Biyinao queen (in the dream) is cruel but she was shaped by her experiences. She had a large capacity to love but an even larger capacity to hate. The king is an asshole. He wanted the kingdom and the queen so he rebelled committed fratricide and took what he wanted. Neither of them would win any Parenting trophies.
G) Probably obvious, but only occurred to me on the 2nd watch that Aranya is a child borne from rape. And this is why the queen hated her so much that she threw her in a snake pit and why the king, after her reinstatement keeps 'indulging' her (Highness Qing etc)
H) The queen loved her 1st husband and this transferred to Ju'nuo, the only child they had together. She hated the fact that Donghua's version of Xize is suddenly close to Fenjiu/Aranya because she knew that Xize had enough power and influence to challenge her claimant to the throne. No matter how inappropriate her other daughters were with Xize she turned a blind eye because it suited her. She probably hated the fact that the king even got Xize and Aranya together (I suspect the king gave Aranya to a powerful but disinterested husband so she has the backing and the freedom to do what she wants; his warped way of caring for her)
I) Su Moye loves Aranya, but he is NOT in love with her, I'm convinced. He loves her like a father/teacher/brother but not as a man. He found her love misplaced with Chen Ye, felt sorry for her and I think he went away from her all those years to sort out his feelings, to see if he can give her that romantic love that was missing. In the book he cultivated a reputation of being a charmer, probably testing the waters, and by the time he had convinced himself he could love her romantically it was too late. After all that effort, of course he would be obsessed with what happened.
J) All you Furries out there probably liked the baby fox part early on, but I literally could not stand the juxtaposition of overwrought romantic music and scenes with Donghua and babyfox!Fengjiu. That part was a bit cringe to me.
K) In fact if I had to rate the 'arcs'
1. Biyiniao/training/competition arc
2. Aranya's Dream
3. Pre-wedding arc
4. Human Trial Arc
6. Bai Qian's wedding arc
5. Maid/Baby fox arc
L) I really like eternal wingman Liansong. I loved him in TMoPB and I love him here. His interactions with Donghua is hilarious.
M) People kept comparing the actor for Ah-Li, but come on, this Ah-Li is super adorable, people just have to get used to it.
N) I love Fengjiu's character a lot more here than in TMoPB. Here she's whimsical but mature, feisty but soft, clever and capable (not as much as Donghua but who is in this world) beautiful and brave and I literally had no issues with this pairing despite the age-gap. She is what he needs, and he is what she needs. They balance each other out.
O) Donghua is too good looking. He is unbelievably easy on the eyes. Rewatching is easy just for him alone.
P)I laughed so hard every single time someone fell into the hole trap. The comedy in this drama is ON POINT. In fact kudos to all who worked on this; the cinematography and editing, costume, sets, choreography. Amazingly well done. This is a beautifully made drama.
Q) People complaining about the ending, this it LITERALLY HOW IT ENDS IN THE BOOK! That's what fanfiction is for!
This got a bit long, but I really just wrote it for myself because it's the end and I am still obsessed ?❤️?❤️?
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Better Dong Hua
This drama is very faithful to the Pillow Book, from the characters and the story. Dont refer to TMOPB because they didn't have the pillow book copyright so they had to alter Dong Hua & Feng Jiu love story but they end up ruining it. Vengo Gao's acting as Dong Hua in TMOPB was a little bit over the top because he frowned a lot like he easily get annoyed by every little things and I think Dong Hua was supposed to be an ice face & bored because he had everything figured out. Even so, I still like DH&FJ couple a lot more than than the main couple in TMOPB.In ELOD, his acting is on point. You really need to pay attention to some of his scenes to notice his subtle change of expressions. So rewatching it is very recommended.
Storywise, ELOD is a bittersweet love story. Bitter at the start, sweet at the end. No plot twist but there are a lot of sweet & funny moments between the couple. It will cure your broken heart caused by TMOPB.
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This review may contain spoilers
Long awaited Dong Hua and Feng Jiu's love story
Just finish this drama and I am a bit disappointed with the last 10 ep, especially the ending. Maybe they don't have to make such a complicated plot such as Demon Elder's freedom will bring chaos to the world. From my observation, I don't think Miao Luo is a bad person because she never really wanted to fight Dong Hua, I can see it from the way she talk to him and she always says 'do you really want to fight me Dong Hua?' and one moment when the Bi Yi Bird Tribe try to use magical tool to reseal her, she said 'you really give me no choice'. And the last battle inside the Sanskrit Valley, she said 'don't forget who made me into a demon'. I can't help but to always remember Love and Redemption, and The Legend case (LOL).Actually, I can't stand the first part of the drama especially the mortal arc and the romance blooms a bit late because of the draggy plot. Even after the romance already there, there are still tons of misunderstanding ahead of them. I really loathe the misunderstanding on the last 5 ep. They should've just proceed with the wedding and make the final battle happen after the wedding, not before, let alone on the day of the wedding.
The thing that I like the most about this drama is the feeling this drama gave me, the familiarity. There are some character that is not the same with the Eternal Love cast. At first, I can't accept it but after a while, naturally I get used to them. Another thing that I love is the chemistry and the love story between Dong Hua and Feng Jiu and the way they portrait the characters, I never see them as Dilraba Dilmurat and Vengo Gao but they are indeed Dong Hua and Feng Jiu (if you know what I mean).
I won't be mad if the writer decided to make 56 episode only about the love story of Dong Hua and Feng Jiu. Just throw some conflict and I'll be happy just fine. Actually, because there are tons of xianxia drama that focus on Heavenly Realm and Demon Tribe (and the conflict about Demon King being the downfall of all living beings). it would've been better if the focus in Eternal Love of Dream is more on their love story. In other words, They should've only show us Dong Hua and Feng Jiu story from how they met, fell in love, build a family, and the ordinary conflict in a relationship (without cliché conflict such as doomsday for the living beings).
I'm a bit confused because in Eternal Love, Ye Hua and Mo Yuan seems to be on par with Dong Hua, but here in Eternal Love of Dream, it seems Ye Hua and Mo Yuan is useless. They never there on a big battle or problems. Seems like the only reliable person in Heavenly Realm is only Dong Hua. He never received help from other immortal, except Feng Jiu.
Anyway, what I don't like about this drama is the Mortal Arc and the Aranya's Dream Arc because the story of them two was too draggy, but I can stand Aranya's Dream Arc better than the Mortal Arc because of the happy moment and lovey dovey part of Dong Hua and Feng Jiu as Dijun and Imperial Princess of Qing Qiu not as a mortal who will not remember a thing after their trial on the Mortal Realm. Also, I don't like the unnecessary story of Ji heng, especially on the last ep when her part is really not necessary. Rather than giving us the closure of how Dong Hua and Feng Jiu were saved, the longer moment of Dong Hua and Gun Gun, and their happy family together, the writer waste almost 10 minutes on Ji Heng and Xiao Yan and only gave us the last 5 minutes to give an explanation about the continuation of Dong Hua family with Feng Jiu and Gun Gun. I really hate that. They should've made it into another episode of Dong Hua reunited with his family, give him his well deserved happiness, show us more of his happiness. The ending seems a bit rushed because of it. Such a shame..
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