This review may contain spoilers
I usually avoid watching dramas while they are still airing only because I HATE sad endings. But this just happens to be one of those dramas that I couldn’t resist. I started watching The Legends with no expectations at all since I was unfamiliar with the whole cast and didn’t do a lot of research on this drama before beginning. However, after completing the whole thing, this drama has now officially become one of my favorites of all time. It teaches a meaningful lesson - that demons don’t have to be “bad” and gods don’t have to be “good”. This is a very memorable moral to me since a lot of dramas out there generalize the value of these two different beings, but this adds a touch of originality which we may not usually encounter.Story: The Legends is a lighthearted, funny and sweet story that focuses on Lu Zhao Yao, the notorious She-Demon and her journey to fighting against the supposedly “good” and “righteous” sects, as well as her relationship with Li Chen Lan / Mo Qing, the Demon King’s son. I thought the plot was very well-paced and consistent that leaves you wanting for more. I never got bored or skipped any long scenes because they were all very engaging and relevant to the plot. Although most of the story revolves around a more positive and lively theme, but there were also certain scenes that took some tears out of me. I know the editing needs a lot of improvement, but that’s the least of my concerns. A lot of people actually enjoyed the first half more than the second half because they said that Lu Zhao Yao’s character became potentially weaker and the story dragged, but I enjoyed both halves equally. The first half pretty much centers around story and character development, while the second half of the drama shines light on the relationship between Zhao Yao and Mo Qing.
Acting/cast: I was very impressed with Bai Lu and Xu Kai’s acting. Both of them were able to portray their respective characters flawlessly, considering they’ve only been in a few projects before this one. I found their facial expressions to be very realistic and not forced. The main couple’s chemistry was phenomenal - probably one of the best I’ve seen out there - up to the point that I am now a loyal “YaoLan” shipper. They really made it look like they are truly in love. I also want to give some credit to Xiao Yan’s depiction of Qin Zhi Yan and Lu Zhao Yao (when she was still in possession of Zhi Yan’s), which was also remarkable - the fact that she could switch back and forth so effortlessly between this innocent, timid girl to this tough, badass character. Overall, the entire cast did a great job portaying the characters in the drama.
Music: I personally didn’t love love the OSTs (original soundtracks), but I think they fit in well with the scenes that they were featured in. I really liked the opening BGM and also the duet called Zhao Yao (招摇) sung by Chen Chu Sheng and Hu Sha Sha, which gave me some nostalgic vibes.
Rewatch value: I’d rewatch it as many times as I could, since it’s one of those rare dramas that makes you want to come back every once in a while to get a good retouch of the storyline.
I do think that the transitions between episodes in the DVD version is much better than the TV version because it just makes much more sense. The DVD version also provides clearer cuts, compared to the TV version. The ending, although was very rushed, is actually a happy ending. I thought the scene with the kids in the end was unnecessary since they had to use some of the old footage of Zhao Yao and Mo Qing’s scene in the beginning to satisfy us viewers (which didn’t actually do me any good). I would’ve preferred the drama to end with the scene prior to the kids’ scene, where our main couple was walking hand-in-hand on the streets, but that’s just my opinion. In conclusion, I would really recommend this drama to anyone who likes strong acting, a great storyline or even if you’re just looking for a refreshing, strong female lead.
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This review may contain spoilers
Disclaimer: Spoilers for the drama and novel ahead but I will try to minimise them as much as possible. I watched the cut version of the drama (56 episodes in total btw) but did watch some scenes from the DVD version that were cut; I also read the Chinese novel and I will be comparing both in one of the major points below.I felt so strongly about this drama that I specially created an account to review it. It had the potential to become one of my favourite dramas ever but ended up being an incredibly flawed drama even if Lu Zhao Yao and Li Chen Lan are one of my favourite couples ever. They honestly deserved better. Let me point out what is so flawed about this drama while listing a few good points:
1. The editing of the scenes and the transitions between scenes
This was really just a mess, where random important scenes were cut here and there [I am looking at you ep 19 and 21] and for the last 6 episodes it just felt like random scenes were tacked together (not in chronological order). Nevertheless, I did enjoy the prologue at the start of each episode as it felt like a foreshadowing of what was to come. Also, the rampant use of '5 years later' felt out of place and over-used. Honestly, it didn't seem realistic at all that Lu Zhao Yao established Wan Lu Men and sealed Jin Xian in only 5 years.
2. Random plot holes/bad CGI/random mistakes
The CGI was bad but was quite typical for a Chinese drama. However, I did notice various mistakes in the Chinese subtitles, as well as some mistakes in some of the lines delivered by the characters e.g. they referred to other characters by the wrong names. Some of the scenes didn't make sense too, for example in some scenes it felt like simply using teleporting will have resolved a major conflict in the drama, but the character in question chose not to do so for some unknown reason. The props moved about randomly as well probably due to poor editing.
3. Changes from the novel [major major spoilers in this section]
The drama decided to change the whole 'possession' aspect of the novel, which is acceptable if they had explained properly why Zhao Yao had the same face as Qin Zhi Yan and how she got her face back later. I don't see how cleansing herself in the pool to purge herself of everything she ate in Qi Zhi Di would have helped to get her face back.
They added a lot of scenes for other characters to lengthen the drama as the novel was not very long. This was done well sometimes, when some side couples were covered more and their relationships explored in greater depth. However, this felt rather pointless as none of the side couples ended up with each other; they even killed off one of the side characters when the guy totally survived in the novel. Sigh, why will you make us care about the couple and then kill that character off unexpectedly?
As for the antagonists, I immensely disliked how they got a lot more scenes. No one cares about the nth scene of Liu Su Ruo moping about Jin Xian or the nth scene of Lin Zhi Yu moping about Li Chen Lan or the nth scene of some random antagonistic character plotting. Although Jiang Wu was portrayed a lot more sympathetically towards the end, I didn't like how he was essentially just a gigantic lightbulb in the OTP's relationship.
Honestly, if you wanted to make the drama longer, you should have included some of the scenes that were cut from the novel of the OTP or just included the long epilogue from the novel. I did however like the proposal and wedding scenes for the OTP that were not inside the novel.
They also made the OTP much weaker both in personality and powers. Li Chen Lan was practically invincible in the novel and Zhao Yao was always a strong badass female character. In the last 20 episodes, they became so weak that it almost felt as though they were not the same characters anymore.
4. The ending [also major spoilers]
Like I mentioned earlier, the last 6 episodes were just a mess and totally not in chronological order. It was kind of a happy ending, but I was really confused about how they resolved the whole conflict and whether the scene where Zhao Yao 'killed' Li Chen Lan was a cop out or not. Also, I thought it was weird that they used the same actor and actress to portray their children because I had to imagine them as siblings instead of a couple??? It would have been much sweeter using child actors with the couple...
So then, you all may be wondering why this drama is rated a 7.0 despite all my criticisms above. It's basically because of Li Chen Lan and Zhao Yao in episodes 5-41, as well as the general good acting across the board. This couple was the best with such good chemistry that I really felt as though they were in love. They really deserved the ending in the novel instead. The comedy was also pretty good and was one of the few things consistent about this drama.
Sigh this was such a major disappointment in the end...
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A True Unpolished Gem
This review addresses both the original and fan re-edited versions of this drama. As I'm sitting through my second pass of The Legends, I started an account because of how compelled I am to write a review now. If you had gripes with the ending, hear me out. There is more to it than what you might know.The Legends, a.k.a Zhao Yao, is a beautifully touching story about how actions, not your birth status, determine true character. This is most prevalent when comparing Zhao Yao (the female lead) with Luo Ming Xuan (the male antagonist) but it's a recurring trait throughout almost all the characters found in The Legends.
There is no shortage of vast character growth, either. Many of the mains, such as Mo Qing, Zhao Yao, Luo Ming Xuan, Su Ruo, Zhi Yan and Cang Ling go through so much growth/change they are simply not the same people as who they start out as. This is good, because decent stories want you to witness progression. As a viewer, you are on this journey as much as they are and it's rewarding to perceive the slow changes. For other side characters, if they didn't completely change, many still underwent trials that grew them in little ways, such as the vigorous Shi Qi, Pavilion Master, Qin Qian Xian, wandering demon Jiang Wu and even Tower Master Shen Qian.
However, if you thought this drama's biggest strong point was character growth alone, you would be wrong. It's actually the chemistry. Hot dang!
The two leads and eventual lovers Zhao Yao and Mo Qing (Li Chen Lan) played by Bai Lu and Xu Kai pull off such a believable magnetism that it will draw you in, completely. Maybe it's two characters written as such perfect opposites they match like puzzle pieces, or maybe it's the natural and effortless chemistry the actors carry with each-other? Either way, Zhao Yao and Mo Qing are ever-endearing and lovable as heck. Which makes the drama's eventual ending so tragic. The more invested you are, the more that ending is going to hurt.
This brings me to my next point. If you read about or saw the last few episodes yourself then you might think everything concluded all happily. But you might also have been left scratching your head. Here's the deal.
The script was worked on by the same author as the web novel, Jiu Lu Fei Xiang. She originally envisioned a shorter drama, with a happy ending, not unlike the book. When asked for more episodes, she changed a bit of the plot for extension. This is why a lot of the filler, even though it was filler never felt out of place. But this new script was written, directed and acted with the aim for an ambiguously tragic ending instead. Then somewhere near the end the decision was made to switch it back to happy, but so late in production meant it would have to be at the expense of Episode 51-55 (or 56, depending), the climactic episodes, making any sense. These episodes were chopped up and re-arranged out of order to fabricate a "happy" ending. The result was more confusing then satisfying and at worst, now anti-climatic.
What do you do with such a drama? Well I was not willing to let that stand, especially when the episodes contained most of the needed events to uncover the true conclusion, they just needed to be put back in order.
So that is what I did, and after two weeks, I discovered that the original intended ending is far more touching and more beautiful than what actually aired. It turns out the author stated fact. It's indeed, 'ambiguously tragic' but that means it is left up to the audience to interpret the very last scene, and for all 'intensive porpoises" it's actually ambiguously hopeful, we just don't get to witness the aftermath.
I liked what I saw (after editing) a lot better. It was fulfilling and dare I say, a perfect fit for the tone of the drama. This is one of the few times I agree with the direction it planned on taking. I want a happy ending as much as the next shipper but I would never request it at the expense of the climax, nor simple comprehension for that matter.
Now that is out of the way, the whole ending fiasco should be a big indicator as to what this drama suffered from the most. It's the editing. It's actually more of a tragedy then the episode finale. It's such a shame because so much about The Legends knocked it out of the park.
Costumes were elegant and double-meaning. Music was impacting and emphasized key moments. Cinematography; gorgeous! Sets were very unique, especially Wan Lu Sect. As stated earlier, characters are likeable, well written, with plenty of growth and the chemistry between Xu Kai and Bai Lu was just exceptional. Props to the actors who brought them to life because it wouldn't have been this good without their skill.
And yet, oh that editing. Why?
Earlier on you'll notice small oddities, such as audio spikes. Then, each episode starts a pattern of teaser sequences; scenes taken out of the timeline and played before the intro. Most times, you'll never see that scene again so you have watch, even if it's a spoiler but you'll probably won't immediately guess where it fits either. You might also be perceptive of scenes where the night filter was forgotten. Like when Zhao Yao appears during the day despite only having the ability to appear at night. Music will also sometimes overlap and play over transitioning tracks and often fade out clumsily, with episodes themselves ending very awkwardly in the middle of conversations. On top of all that, there is multiple cuts of The Legends and depending on what version you watch, some will even have cut content. Episode 37.....
All in all, the editing could have been handled a lot better. This drama did not deserve it, but if you can forgive it that, then you might walk away having a experienced a truly, albeit unpolished, gem of a Chinese Drama.
I will confess, I loved it more then Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms. That might make me lose any credibility as a reviewer but it has to due with the important requirements I look for in every story I read or watch. Those three things being;
-a compelling story
-main characters I care about
-banging hot chemistry between the leading couple
Peach Blossoms is all three for most, but I found I loved the secondary couple of Dong Hua and Feng Jiu more then the main couple of Bai Qian and Ye Hua. That is why The Legends, funnily enough, became a bigger favorite. Though it has caused me a lot of grief to even reach that conclusion. Bai Lu and Xu Kai are a lot of what makes this drama work, and it seems they are some-what newbies to the acting business too. You can look forward to them again in Arsenal Military Academy!
If you are interested in the fan-edit cuts I made to episode 50-55 for The Legends, visit this drama's topic at Soompi forums and go to page 56.
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Demon in red.
Zhao Yao is a fun fantasy love xanxia drama where both leads belong to the dark or demon sect. The unconventional "good vs evil" plot challenges the idea of what is "good" and what is "evil" as the good guys are really the bad guys in this drama. The best thing about this drama is the sizzling chemistry between the two leads. What totally really drags it down is that it is littered with fillers - it should at best a 30-40 episode drama. That made me grumpy and is the main reason for the less high rating.Zhaoyao (Bai Lu) the female lead is an unapologetic bad-ass she devil who falls for the Demon King's son Moqing/Li Chenlan (Xu Kai). Li Chenlan is imprisoned by his father until he can free him from the powerful evil demon force within him. Zhaoyao is raised in solitude by her grandfather; it is their sacred duty to guard Chenlan until the Demon King returns. Led by the powerful immortal Luo Mingxuan, the righteous sects decide to preemptively kill Chenlan before he can wreak devastation on the world. Instead, they accidentally free Chenlan and an injured Mingxuan is rescued by Zhaoyao, who becomes infatuated by his chivalry and righteousness. She is outraged when she discovers his plans to kill Chenlan and boldly rescues him, earning his undying love in the process. She is captured and tortured by the thwarted Mingxuan and her freedom comes at a devastating personal price. Enraged and disillusioned, Zhaoyao forms and builds up her own formidable Wanlu Sect that wreaks havoc on Mingxuan and his "righteous" sects and protects those persecuted by them.
While recovering a legendary sword, Chenlan accidentally releases a deadly force that kills Zhaoyao. Boy is she pissed!!! She returns as an angry, vengeful but much weakened spirit that is hell bent on killing Chenlan dead. By then, Chenlan is practically invincible and it further incenses her to discover he has taken over as the leader of the Wanlu sect. This man enjoys living dangerously - he is so besotted with Zhaoyao that he is amused by and even welcomes her efforts to alternately kill and/or seduce him. The best moments are all centered around their occasionally funny and wholly adorable interactions. He is totally putty in her hands and cannot deny even her most dangerous requests. The sparks literally fly between them and their body language and obvious affection for each other is mesmerizing. All the early to middle episodes of them falling in love were the best and totally re-watchable. Bai Lu's Zhaoyao is just simply phenomenal - she is fiery, fearless, impetuous, occasionally wicked and completely bewitching. She also really brings out the best in all of her co-stars. However, outside of Bai Lu and Xu Kai, the cast is rather dull and didn't to engage me. Two of the other main female characters have a tendency to wail, which always has me scrambling for the fast forward/mute button. Sigh! When will they get it that wailing, whiny and noisy female characters are a nuisance?
The second female lead in this drama plays Qin Zhiyan (Yan Xiao), whose body Zhaoyao shares in the first half of the show while she tries to reclaim her own. The two are polar opposites yet form a strong and cute friendship. I wasn't wowed by Yan Xiao's overall performance, she got too much airtime in the first 20+ episodes that her cuteness turned into boring/whiny. The editing is sloppy - it jumps ahead, flashes back and in some cases explains what happens much later. I would rewind thinking I missed something that gets explained much later on - like how Mingxuan was out of the blue in a sealed state by Zhaoyao. I have FOMO so I hate fast forwarding but there were too many flashbacks and boring conversations between the righteous sects. Both the female and male love rivals were total cliches - they each sought to win Chenlan/Zhaoyao's love by killing off their rival. Wow -such a time tested losing and deranged strategy. The other main antagonist Jiangwu was an immature and swaggering pest until he redeemed himself slightly at the end. There are also a bunch of forgettable side love stories. The pace overall is painfully slow.
This drama went downhill toward the end. It didn't help that they randomly (and unnecessarily) killed off secondary characters. The ending was a bit rushed, garbled, messily executed and a bit wishy-washy when it could have and should have finished very strong. What is truly baffling is the countless wasted filler moments that could have been cut so that the ending could have been done properly.
I still recommend this but wouldn't bother to watch the whole thing. It wouldn't be a bad idea to drop it after Zhaoyao and Chenlan get together somewhere in the early 40s. Fast forward with impunity every time one of the two excellent main leads is not on. I will be looking out for more dramas with them (together would be great) and especially Bai Lu.
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1Which is why it's almost criminal how they reduced her kickass self to little more than the Male Lead's side kick in the latter half. So much so, that in some scenes the legendary Demoness is nothing more than a glorified damsel in distress whose sole purpose is to stand by the ML's side.
Speaking of the male lead, even with his cute face and pure love he was still pretty much boring, bland and quite one-dimensional. No match for the somewhat antagonist/second Male lead: Jiang Wu. Who was one of the most interesting characters in the show. Being a nasty sonovabitch demon with hilarious moments, he was easier to root for than the ML himself.
My biggest complaint is that the show gave so much screen-time to completely irrelevant characters. Screentime that should have been used to further develop the main leads and their journey. I could count about 4 to 5 story-lines which I didn't give a shit about and that were constantly forced on me.
So over-all, yes there are some pretty adrenaline rushing moments here and there and yes, there is good acting by all those involved but it is nearly not enough to counter the drag.
If you are planning to binge watch this, like I did. My advice is: Make the Fast Forward button your best friend.
Enjoy!
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9.5 for the first 30 episodes, 5 for the remaining
This is really a difficult review:If I would only rate the first half of the drama, I would give it a 9.5; the second half a 5; so altogether, it became a neither here nor there 7.
This drama, adapted from a popular internet novel, revolves around a notorious evil ex-sect leader Lu Zhao Yao and her story of revenge at the supposedly benevolent sects. But the story truly after she has died and wanders as half spirit half-human body, taken the shape of another girl, Qin Zhi Yan, whose personality is 180 degrees different than hers. The other great aspect is her romance with the new sect leader, Mo Qing, whom she saved in the past, but due to a misunderstanding she wanted to kill at the start but later hopelessly fell in love with.
What I love about this drama:
** The first half (up to about episode 30): except for the first 2-3 episodes at which the story was a bit confusing, the remaining episodes up to episode 30 were executed extremely well as the story and character development stick fairly close to the original work, which is original, light-hearted and funny. The episodes have a good pace, the progress logic but unexpected. There is a clear path towards a climax and an "ending" to it, that leaves the audience satisfied.
** The romance and chemistry between the main leads: the way how the relationship between LZY and MQ has developed is extremely natural and sweet. My emotion was going wild moving up and down together with the progress of how their misunderstanding got slowly resolved. There are a few really romantic moments in this drama, especially the kiss scenes are probably the best ones I have ever seen in a c-drama. Bai Lu is wicked, strong, and cunning on the outside, but righteous and caring on the inside. MQ is kind-hearted and caring but also easily jealous, strong and would do everything to protect LYZ.
** The acting of the main leads: Both Bai Lu and Xu Kai have done a fantastic job bringing LYZ and MQ to life. Through this drama, I have fallen helpless in love with Xu Kai. I have seen him in Once upon Time in Lingjian Mountain but did not think much of him at that time. But now I know why he is this popular. He can project this affectionate and kind gaze, the kind of gaze of being deeply in love with the female lead that is just heart-melting. His facial expressions showing sorrow, jealousy or anger are extremely to the point, I am in awe. The same can be said to Bai Lu. Her character is one of the most interesting female lead characters I have seen in a c-drama.
I also need to give big praise to the second main leads Shane Yan playing Qing Zhi Yan and Daixu playing Jiang Wu. Shane Yan had to play two opposite characters which she did excellently. Her character showed the most growth in the drama. Jiang Wu is bossy and malicious but developed a very loving side towards the end.
** The supporting characters. The Legends has a great set of supporting characters: Gu Han Guang, the doctor, and Zi You, the narcissistic sect lead are my favorites. Most supporting characters, even the evil ones, have a story that made them 3-D and the audience becomes empathetic with them. However, some of the stories were too long and often cut in at the wrong moment.
** The music: the title song Zhao Yao (same as the Chinese name of the drama) is extremely beautiful and I have been listening to it non-stop since the drama.
What I disliked about the drama:
** The second part of the drama starting from episode 30 onwards: The episodes start to fill with filler episodes with little involvement of the main leads. The characters of the main leads start to change to a state of none-recognizable. The audience can clearly see that there is less effort made to make the scenes look professional. Esp. the last few episodes are a disaster: the editing and story development are all over the place and nothing made sense anymore which left me feeling a little... WTF’ish. My train of thought during the early part of this drama went something like this:
“Oh no, how can this happen? Oh, good, nothing bad happened ... Wait, what are you doing...? Hm, isn't this the scene that supposed to come earlier...? But then where is this scene coming from?... Oh no, he is gone?! Oh, he is back again!... Is this a sad ending?... Should I cry?... Is this a happy ending? Should I smile? ... utter confusion.
I found out that the scriptwriter, the novel author herself, adapted the drama to fit a 28-episode long drama, which had a different ending than the original script. Later she was told to extend it to 40 episodes, which she barely made it. However, then she was asked to extend it to 56 episodes which forced her to completely rewrite everything last minute. Thus it completely derailed from its original story, including the personalities of the leads as well as the bad editing and the fillers in later part of the drama. The fans started to criticize this drama in the middle of its airing that the makers start to cut the final episodes so the direction of the final episodes changed completely to be closer to the original story to please the audience. Even the makers themselves had to issue an official apology after the final episodes have been aired.
After watching it, I felt so dissatisfied that I went back to read the original novel to reimagine how the drama would have been if it had stuck to the original story. So far, I like it very much. With what I can see, the drama had the potential to become a "second Untamed" but failed to do so due to the awful capitalism of Chinese drama land that made this drama a complete disaster at the end. (Yes, you heard it right, it is the same director as the Untamed! Now you know, next to the actors, the director, it's the scriptwriter who is the soul of every drama).
All in all, If you are a fan of Bai Lu or Xu Kai and have a good imagination you might want to watch it to the end. Otherwise, I would recommend you watch it to episode 30 and just take the interim climax as an ending which is satisfactory in itself.
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama was fantastic! Literally, might be one of my Top 10 favorites. Acting/ Cast- the chemistry between the actors/actresses is great, especially between Bai Lu and Xu Kai. The acting was good compared to other dramas out there, they did a great job portraying their characters.
Music- was great overall, the opening and ending theme songs are really nice.
Story- It caught my attention from the first few episodes, the story kept me on edge. It was totally worth it. I think that the story developed nicely throughout the episodes. It was paced evenly, there wasn't a boring or really overwhelming episode that either had too little or way too much, where you could have gotten confused or lost.
*****Spoiler*******
(Many people may have said this ending was sad. Don't believe what you hear. It may not be like that, so just watch the whole thing and find out for yourself!!) It really is worth it!
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STORY:
I think the foundation of the story was fine, but executed weakly. They had some ideas strung together and made it into an extended drama. I wouldn't say there was no content, but seems like it was an amalgamation of ideas from several writers. There is no consistency to the plot. There are some exciting moments, some random ones, leads who get lost again and again and some inconsistent as heck villains.
CHARACTERS:
This is where the drama suffers. Forget about the plot, it's like the writers themselves didn't know what they were aiming to show and tell. The only consistent thing I could find was the male lead's devotion to our female lead. There were some okay supporting characters but ultimately none of them ended up being memorable for me. The villains were gullible and not threatening enough. The lore was poor, the solutions to the problems were not satisfactory and we are just left with a confused plot and set of characters. The main leads are unrecognizable by the end and lose all spark and essence they had in the beginning.
ROMANCE / ACTING:
I'm only going to mention the awesome chemistry between Bai Lu and Xu Kai. Both don't need words because their stares are enough to fill up the screen and make me fluttery. Their kisses were nice and the devotion the male lead shows towards the female lead was commendable. The female lead grows but ends up becoming a damsel in distress and the male leads ends up becoming a doormat. There was no growth there, however the leads are AWESOME actors. They hard carried the entire mess of this drama and gave me a reason to devote my time and special hours.
OST:
The lead song is quite nice. I don't remember much of the other music in the drama.
REWATCH VALUE:
Yes to Bai Lu- Xu Kai and nah to everything else.
OVERALL:
I don't think I would recommend this drama unless you happen to love the leads like I do. I wouldn't say it was a horrible drama because there were moments I enjoyed the action. The idea was there but even after the drama is over, I feel like I want to know more and see more. I didn't get what I was hoping for and am not sure what should've been done properly because I can only think of so many things that DIDN'T go right.
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The romance in this drama kept me going.
Story: This storyline REALLY reminded me of Oriental Odyssey with the whole girl dominating guy concept and then later trying to kill him constantly but was unable to do it because of love. It's not exactly a unique plot at all. The plot was so-so and I really wouldn't say there was anything notable about it. The episodes were a bit slow paced but not super slow. It's bearable. The end episodes were slightly rushed but there is a happy ending. Also, this show had lots of editing and cutting problems. I had to jump around different sites to make sure I didn't miss any vital scenes or scenes with our main leads hehe.Acting: Can we just say the only reason I finished this drama was because of our main leads??? Bai Lu and Xu Kai have INCREDIBLE chemistry. Their acting is on point and you can literally feel that they are so in love with each other. Xu Kai's facial expressions are ON POINT and he just carries out the character of Li Chen Lan so well-- a cold, strict sect leader yet kind at heart, but is the most gentle, warming man around Zhao Yao. I will be checking out more of his dramas! Bai Lu was awesome as the big, bad, fierce demoness in the beginning but as the story carried along I did feel like her character weakened too drastically but nonetheless she was very good! I was PLEASANTLY surprised at the performance of these young, non-veteran leads. Oh, very few kissing scenes BUT they can kiss. Probably THE BEST kiss scenes I've ever watched in cdramas so far.
The supporting roles were also great. I was pleasantly surprised at the awesome acting carried out by all of these newer actors and actresses. Zhi Yan was amazing and so were the rest.
Music: It's alright if I had to be honest. I don't dig it.
Rewatch Value: Meh, only for my main lead's chemistry.
Overall: the suggested value was a 8 but I gave this a 8.5 because it really is one of my favorite dramas in terms of acting. I DO recommend it.
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Lovely Couple but Poor Editing
This is supposedly a very interesting and light-hearted drama. The plot is intriguing and the cast is fabulous, especially the two female leads Bai Lu and Xiao Yan. The romance between the major characters, Lu Zhao Yao and Li Chen Lan is simply adorable and sweet. I love the main theme song so much – the verses are meaningful and the tune is beautiful. But that’s all the positives I can say about this drama.Inconsistencies and holes are everywhere. There were “dead” and “undead” people. The cutting and editing are particularly bad; it’s simply confusing. There are various so-called versions of the drama, but in essence, the contents of each episode are the same, except, perhaps one version has a prologue and the other has a preview at the ending. Having said that, episodes 19 and 21, followed by the last 4 episodes, are utterly confusing unless one finds the better cut version.
The initial pace and flow were not great but acceptable. It can be draggy at times. People talk super slowly, walk super slowly. All their motion is super slow. I feel I age 10 years after watching this drama. But the final few episodes were a torture, with a lot of time wasted on people looking at each other blankly. I found myself holding my breath, trying to endure till the end without screaming and pulling out my hair.
I initially enjoyed watching this drama so much because it was a panacea for me after watching the heart-wrenching “Goodbye My Princess” – a drama airing at the same time. This drama (The Legends) provided the little relief I needed as it was funny with a straight face and the characters are adorable.
I particularly enjoyed watching Xiao Yan playing 2 roles - one as a timid Qin Zhi Yan and the other as the badass Lu Zhao Yao; she portrayed the characters so well, switching in and out. I also love the romance between Lu Zhao Yao and Li Chen Lan. I love the feeling of having a man, standing right next to or behind me, quietly protecting me and doting on me all the time. He is powerful and yet not overwhelming. He is a lion facing his enemy, but only a small sweet kitty when he’s with me. With one thrust of his hand, he is able to send one into oblivion; or he can arrive at his destination in a whiff. I particularly love the line he told Lu Zhao Yao, “You fight, I’m your sword. You retreat, I’m your shield.” This line truly melts my heart.
I also love the character of a badass female, controlling the world, feared by all and yet admired and loved by all her followers. Bai Lu has played this character convincingly. She is beautiful and delightful.
Xu Kai has a very good-looking baby face. Having a timid and quiet persona, he portrays the Li Chen Lan’s character effortlessly and effectively. And yet, he is powerful and lethal at a click of the fingers. One always feels safe with him around.
The underlying theme for this drama is, good can be bad and bad can be good. What looks good on the surface can be rotten inside, and what’s bad about a person, can be a kind and upstanding one. Hence in this drama, you will see the supposedly good people touting they are doing the righteous things, are in fact the despicable characters, whereas the labelled son of demon, is in fact the most upstanding kind-hearted person of all.
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This review may contain spoilers
I started this drama because of the synopsis. I really like powerful characters as the main lead especially female lead. I am so bored watching female lead always so damn weak getting save by the male lead 100/1000 times so i was instantly captured by the synopsis when it says the female lead is a powerful demon king. I don't know Bai Lu at first but now i am totally a super fan of hers. She is so pretty and despite only acted a few dramas previous to this, she is so good at her acting. I really like this Lu Zhao Yao character, she is so free spirited, not fake and do whatever she wants without giving shits on what people think. The way Bai Lu acted as her is so real and even makes me feel that this is her real personality lol I start to read the novel half way through the series because i saw many comments say that the drama changes from the novel and i was so curious on the original storyline. I must say that Bai Lu and Xu Kai really acted their characters well. I can easily imagine them while reading the novel. Just a side note, the novel is really awesome, at least not so confusing like the drama, more straightforward and more detailed in certain scenes. And also not so much of unnecessary plot or side characters story just to add more episodes *roll eyes*
Xu Kai also acted really well here, i have like him since Yanxi Palace and slight reason of why i started to watch this haha. I can feel he is hurt or sad just by his eyes or facial expression which is amazing because this is how i can invest my feelings in the story too. His slight smile of happiness when he is interacting with Zhao Yao is so cute that i keep smiling behind the screen (It sounds a bit creepy xD). His hurt expression when Zhao Yao leaves him makes my heart hurt too. He is such a cute puppy at first then so cool after he becomes the sect leader (but still cute and loving puppy in front of Zhao Yao).
I am slight frustrated with Zhe Yan at first because of her timid character but Xiao Yan acting is great especially when she need to act two characters during the beginning. I felt that her character has the most development throughout the series. *A little spoiler*Who would have imagine in the beginning that she will become what she became in the end. She changes a lot and i like it. Although like the second half of the series her character kinda feel like extra because she doesn't need to act as Zhao Yao anymore then she just comes out a bit here and there. I don't mind seeing her more than those annoying side characters tbh. Her love life too :(
Jiang Wu is quite a funny character. I like him throughout the show. Dai Xu acts well in separating his playful and serious side. His character also reminds me a lot of the legendary Sun WuKong. His comments and actions are so funny most of the times and i don't really feel like his is evil especially when you compare it with the real evil characters in the drama. So i feel sad for his ending. Drama version makes him more sympathetic than the novel. The few words he said to Zhao Yao during the ending still resonate in my heart urgh the feels~ Overall most of the cast acting are great and bad guys are really bad that you feel like killing them yourselves which shows that they are great actors and actress. Thus, 9/10.
As for the Music part, sometimes i feel like the bg sounds a bit inappropriate to the scene and the editing of the scene just cuts off the bg music feels a bit abrupt. Generally it is okay. I do like the OST. I especially love the theme song for Zhao Yao when she was walking through the woods after she became the sect leader and during the end when she needs to battle the last boss. I keep repeating it non stop till now. The lyrics are meaningful too.
Rewatch value is lower, i don't think i will waste my time watching it all over again but only on parts that i like specifically on the main couple. There are also a lot of funny moments between all the characters inside. Not to forget memorable dialogues in it whether it is funny, sweet or cool. I think i will watch clips of it in the future when i miss Zhao Yao.
The most crucial part, the STORY. The basic storyline is nice and entertaining. The characters and cast makes it even better. Everything follow quite closely to the novel until the second half then it just became less interesting. I lose interest in it around ep 43 but too waste to drop it. I felt that a lot of C-dramas always have this problem. They are really promising in the beginning or in the middle but always gone bad towards the end mainly 40+ eps forward. As they referred to "Water injection" drama, a lot of unnecessary plot + side characters story are added in just to make more episodes. Then a lot of plot holes appears. Example the Lin Zhi Yu character is so overly used in here. Why she did the things she did doesn't even make sense. Her actions and words are in conflict that i don't even know what her character should be. She keeps popping out here and there just to be the bad guy that help destroy the main couple or the Wan Lu Sect but the thing is it felt so forceful. It felt like the writer just like whatever she is going to be the bad one that does a lot of annoying little stuff no matter if it makes sense or not. I understand that she turns love to hate but this 2nd female lead story is not even believable (plus novel doesn't have this plot). Another part of the reason is that i don't like watching the main couple being so weak. However the biggest problem is the editing. The first 5 episodes is the prologue of the novel but the execution of it is so confusing. I almost drop it because i don't really know what is happening and so different from the synopsis i read lol Luckily i didn't and it becomes better after that. This drama is also a bit different because it shows parts of something else before the opening song and at first i was really confuse of the scene jumping here and there but after i understand how it goes then i kinda appreciate the difference the director try to made. However it does not justify the editing for the last few episodes. Random cuts are slot in then the scene abruptly cut to another scene without any proper explanation. One point they are battling each other, then suddenly they are at the room safe and sound with no explanation at all! Even the ending part where Zhao Yao is waiting for Mo Qing then suddenly they are together with very random scenes in the middle. In the end i just use all kind of imagination in my head to make it logical for me to accept. Not to mention the utterly annoying flashbacks. The same flashback keep repeating in almost every damn episodes.
Overall i do like this drama despite the terrible editing, unnecessary adding of side story, overuse of flashbacks and nonsense plot holes. The main reason is because of YaoLan couple. They are so sweet and the chemistry between those two is so amazing. I can feel they really love each other (in the drama). Plus it is quite funny at times, like really funny that makes you laugh not roll eyes or face in the palm kind. The story is interesting enough from Ep5-6 until Ep41-42. After that the drama doesn't do the novel justice. But anyhow this has also become one of my top dramas. As stated earlier, i really like strong female lead characters. I rarely can find one that is like this. Give it a try if you are like me.
If you are still here, thank you for reading lol i just want to spill out everything i feel about this drama to gives it a closure and move on to the next one. Never really thought people will actually finish this. Have a nice day to you and see you in another drama. ;)
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