This review may contain spoilers
A plot like Swiss cheese - full of holes
Where to start? I watched to the end, with a lot of fast-forwarding through scenes: fight scenes, plotting & meeting scenes, and ANY scene with the character Li Yan! (We'll get to her later). The story was choppy and had a lot of loose ends. Random characters kept getting thrown in here and there for no good reason, and a lot of scenes were drawn out and pointless. A lot of wandering through forests and paths, with hooded villains coming out of the trees. We were left wondering what happened to some characters (Chuchu's little brother), what the point of some characters really was (Third Prince - so naive and dumb). For a series with so many episodes, the writing and directing needs to be of a much higher and more efficient caliber, or else - fast forward!There wasn't enough character development - they lumped couples together (which is fine if you tell their stories effectively) and the relationships were cute and believable but shallow. The ML & FL had some chemistry, but their facial expressions were the same throughout - and although they had some cute and touching moments together (when he takes the medicine and lays next to her waiting on the result...) they were just ok.
I just have to vent about one character in particular - because I was screaming at her throughout the entire series and feel that she got far too much screentime! Li Yan! What an ass! To say she was a moron would be a step up for her character (I know the actress is only playing the role) but D-U-M-B as a box of rocks! I am becoming acutely aware that writers tend to portray some of the secondary roles as totally inept and brainless. Either that, or they are obsessive and delusional about a perceived love-interest. This trend is particularly disturbing to me since there is usually a badass FL who they want to seem as smart and strong. However, making the other females be idiots isn't the way to go. I've seen a few dramas - and there are always those kinds of characters in the bunch, but this one took the cake - she definitely was the worst one written.
Would I rewatch it? No. They told their story, but it was forgettable. The writers couldn't even end the story well, and that says a lot because the characters all got 'happy endings' but very underwhelmingly so.
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This review may contain spoilers
I know 50% of people liked this drama and 50% didn't. I also know there were a few things that could have been improved but for me the pros outweigh the cons. Plus I am a big big fan of the Wang Yi Bo and Zhao Li Ying so I give this drama full ratings. This is just my opinion. Legend of Fei was a drama that had me waiting every week for the episodes to come out and once they were released, it had me fangirling every second.
I loved the main couple. A lot of people might think Wang Yi Bo and Zhao Li Ying don't suit each other but I think they were a perfect couple for the role. Their funny, cute and even the sad moments had me loving them soooo much. Xie Yun's love for Zhou Fei was the best. Her way of loving him was so fierce (and funny) but she protected him all the time. Something new we got to see.
I am glad that there were no heart breaking break ups or any misunderstanding between the main couple. Although Xie Yun's illness made a lot of scenes upsetting but the fact that A'Fei was with him made everything better. They got together so naturally and were together throughout the whole drama. Their love was touching.
The trio of the physician was soo funny, especially towards the end of the drama. Their characters grew so well. I had no idea Yang Jin's character would develop so much. I am so glad that no main or my favourite characters died.
I have loved this drama more than I can describe in words.
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An honest Review
This series had its pros and cons for me but I was happy to watch it and the ending was quite satisfying for our leads and other couples. So let's get into this review, shall we? I never read the novel but knew from fans who had that production deviated heavily from it but am not surprised as many series and films do on an international scale. Let's get the bad news out of the way first.Cons: As a writer and published author myself, plot and character development are essential especially when creating a character or making a written one into a 3D version of itself. There were so many useless or underdeveloped characters that it was honestly confusing to follow the storyline sometimes. For starters, why so many villains? A proper series needs maybe maximum 4 antagonists but they need a base and development where you could see them progress with the series, not just laugh evilly, narrow beady eyes during conversations, and disappear without a trace somewhere towards the end with a soft explanation (ex. Yu WenZhi). I legit lost track of the bad guys and had to ask someone. Some were turned into bad guys but the attempts were lackluster at best. The two real proponents of evil in this series were Shen TianShu and Pathetic Clam. The two of them would have been enough. And of course Yin Pei's transformation but his entire storyline was very short lived and wishy-washy. Perhaps add the Eunuch but for more then a few episodes that killed Xie Yun's father as an extra.
So many great or interesting characters were never really explored or were given fast deaths like Phoenix, the lady in red as I called her who fell for ZF's grandfather or Old man Chonquio while useless characters like the 3rd prince and I don't recall his name weak kid who had a crush on Ah Fei but his family was massacred and he joined Yin Pei's cult of crazy were created to confuse. There are probably other characters too but they were so underdeveloped that I forgot all about them.
It was also sad that even though Xie Yun was the ML his backstory was barely explained in tiny flashbacks. I wanted to know; how did he get poisoned? Where was he? Why? Who gave that order? Why the worst poison on earth? He was just a kid. This was a fascinating arc which was never properly explored. Where did he learn his footwork from? How did Yu WenZhi know him and vice versa? Not to mention the whole mystery of The Color of Ocean and Heaven; no one knew what it was, but ppl got killed for it and I felt like I was in a game of "Clue".
Continuing on to costumes and scenery. This was probably one of the saddest parts; this production had such a huge budget and I wonder what it was used on? The forest surrounding the fortress and every other location was so fake it was cringeworthy. They were filming in Hengdian where there's great terrain all over the place; why not use that? There are trees and bamboo and forests that were perfect for every outdoor scene. Rocks and hills could always be built in. The leads ever changing costumes made me dizzy. Why so many? Pick a few really well made ones and stay in them. The fake facial hair was atrocious at best. I can now understand Zhao Liying's post on Weibo last year after filming wrapped showing two hamburgers; one was the real deal and one was half the size of the original with discoloration. The first was of the expectation for the series and the second was the reality.
Ok, now that I have everyone depressed, let's get onto the good news.
Pros: The primary reason I watched this in the first place was because I'm a fan of Zhao Liying and Wang Yibo. She was the first actor I saw in c-ent that I really liked in Princess Agents and she pulled me into this rabbit hole. Wang Yibo I first saw as many did in CQL a month later and so started following him as well. Knowing that this was ZLY's first wuxia drama since PA and since her pregnancy, I was very excited and she didn't disappoint. I wanted to see Yibo in a totally different character to the ones I've seen him play, now as a chatterbox with martial arts and sweet talk; he too pulled it off.
I loved their playful banter, their bond before love set in. Though he was the flirt, there was a difference between that and when he really started to have serious feelings for her. The same thing happened with Ah Fei, she was stiff at first always smacking him or pulling her sword on him which made for very comedic scenes, but it was obvious with her too when just liking him as a friend or traveling companion turned into love. There wasn't a hot and heavy romance but it was still obvious and most importantly they formed the bond of trust and friendship before love. Both actors gave their all and it showed. Does this mean they stop growing in their profession? No. Yibo still has a long way to go but with time and different roles, I believe he will be a wonderful actor; at 23 he's already accomplished so much that he's really a prodigy in many ways. Liying has done many different roles and I appreciate all the hard work she puts in, I look forward to more things from her and already added both of their upcoming works to my watchlist here amongst others. The other actors that impressed me were named above but sadly weren't given enough screen time to have their stories flushed out. The second leads held their own but Ah Fei's female cousin I wanted to strangle. She acted 12 and her voice was like nails on chalkboard; if it wasn't for Bonehead and the doctor dude with the snakes for some comedic relief, I probably would have skipped more if not all of her scenes.
To tally it up;
The winners were Ah Fei, Xie Yun, Shen TianShu, Pathetic Clam, Yin Pei, Madam Nichang, and Xie Yun's masters on Penglai Island.
Ok characters: Li Sheng, ChuChu, Bonehead, Poisoner snake dude, Grandpa Li, parents of Ah Fei, Mr. Bai, General Wen.
Sadly not developed: Phoenix, Lady in Red, Old Man from Qi School, Eunuch killer.
Everyone else had massive character flaws, were unimportant so didn't need to speak about them or they didn't belong and should have been cut. Not the best series I have seen but certainly not the worst and there were very cute scenes between our leads to rewatch.
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Mediocre show that could have been better
There are 2 things that bother me in dramas ... stupid characters that would not survive a day in reality and the silly misunderstandings between the couples. This drama did not have the second issue, but the first one was prominent,I would give a recap of the story, but it was all over the place and a mess. Just when you thought there was a plan or goal in site it would change and then drag out to the point I really didn't care. The story basically revolves around a female swords person, Zhou Fei, and the "emperor" from the previous dynasty. Xie Yun. There are bad people not sure where they came from or why they are bad, it doesn't have to do with the current dynasty as far as I can tell. I mean I am not sure why there is an army from the previous dynasty and who exactly they are fighting, is it the current dynasty (seems like not) or the bad people (then why do they just not part of the current dynasty). The story is a mess, I do not now the source material so I cannot say if this is what the story is supposed to be like. As for the other characters - they come and go and I forget they were even there (Chuchu's brother just disappeared, the useless young guy that had no skills meets the female lead for a few episodes and then sacrifices himself for her?), and there are so many with little to no purpose . There is little growth or development from any characters except for the female leads cousin Li Sheng. The most annoying character is a toss up between Li Yan (female leads cousin) who has to be one of the dumbest and most annoying people to ever be in a show (I was hoping they would kill her when she was captured to end my misery) and also the 3rd prince (like "adopted" brother of the Male Lead but he's from the current dynasty which means there is no hope if he becomes emperor). I really cannot decide which was more annoying. I guess the third prince was like a fly, while Li Yan was like a swarm gnats (I guess she wins the most annoying award). It was nice to see a string female lead, and the two main characters were fine. I even liked the second couple (Li Sheng and Chuchu) and the country bumpkin was fine (although he was generally with the annoying female). I found the older generation more interesting - Li Zheng (Female leads grandfather), Ji Yin Chen, the Taoist, the monks that took care of Xie Yun, Yin Wen Lan, and the palm fighting lady. I would rather of seen them more. Also, in the middle of rescue missions or fights, they would stand around and talk for like 10 minutes, who does that? I mean when Chuchu is leaving the medicine valley it's like a 15 minute scene to say goodbye, ironically she finds the general in like a minute to make upper how long it took to leave the little valley!
As for acting, I thought the Zhao Li Ying was fine as the female lead. I know that she was a little old to be playing the young girl, but that didn't bother me. The attempts to make her look younger with heavy makeup actually made it harder to see her as young. Wang Yibo was good as the male lead. I know others have reviewed that he was better as Lan Wangji in The Untamed or that Wei Wuxian was the same character but better, but I think those are unfair. It's a different role and story so you cannot really compare them. Do I think he is a great actor, not at all, but he is pleasant and I think he played the carefree ML role fine even if lacking depth. With that said, I never really saw any chemistry between the two. They were just OK together. The rest of the acting was adequate, nothing remarkable. The main villain was fine and the "older" generation was fine. I enjoyed Frankie Guo's over the top portrayal of Mu Xiao Qiao (he wasn't;t in the story enough).
The soundtrack was fine. I liked the songs but there were episodes where all that seems to happen was the song playing. So towards the end they seemed stale to me.
Basically if you like the actress and actor then you can enjoy the show for them. For me that wasn't enough to make up for the failings. I would call this a mediocre show - there are worse ones to watch and also way better ones to watch.
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Must watch! Story of great character develoment
It has a very great start! Character development and variety of background of the main characters (fei, yun, mom, dad, grand dad, etc..) always raise very strong curiosity. Not to mention new characters that may or may not last lots of episodes (as I watched thru #12 yet, not sure how they will last) are each given their own short story, it is just like short stories that are developing within the grand plan of the legend to give backgrounds as well as to raise curiosity! This reminds me of how the legendary writers Gu Long, Liang Yushen, and Jin Yong present their stories. Zhao Liying usually plays her characters on Princess Agent, Rookie Agent, and Journey of Flower, is expected to be played very great as Zhou Fei, very similar character development, attitude and plays. She, as always, plays very consistent (or coz the writers wrote the character to play consistently). Xie Yun character is a little bit different that how Wang Yibo plays his character Lan Zhan in the Untamed, but I like it more in this series. Xie Yun character as of these 12 episodes is not played very consistent as Zhou Fei is , but well we'd see how this goes. This could also be part of the writer's plan...Was this review helpful to you?
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The best romantic comedi and the best wuxia 2020 and 2021
If you birth in years 1980/1990, this drama will bring back your memori with classic wuxia or old wuxia style like drama the legend condor of heroes. So many supporting caracter with their story. New caracter appear in the adventure time. For me as long as the story of new caracter interesting, i will watch. Maybe you feel difficult to memorize the name of every new caracter but you will memorize their face because their caracter are uniq and their story will touch your heart. It's like as spiderman movie or detectiv conan drama. Always any new caracter every new episod but also any the stronggest one villain that the heroes must face that. it's so uniq and interesting. And also alot of martial arts can make you enjoying this drama.This drama also a lot of funy scene and funy dialog that make you laugh so hard and feel happy if you watch this. Xieyun caracter so funy, misteriuos, smart, and cheerfull. Afei caracter so badass, strong female lead and can get angry easyly, cold face too. Xieyun and afei like ice and fire,but their chemistry are very cute,lovable and funy. Their interaction so sweet with their little fight scene like a child couple or like as tom and jery couple but finally fall in love with each other. Its seem like hate become love relationship. Li yan, yang heiitan and yang hecong also cute and funy. Yinpei caracter is tragic but good, it seem like first time he is a villain but finally he is heroes. Wu chuchu so amazaing, very elegan and patient. Mu ziaoqu also uniq caracter and funy, duan juinang story with li zheng very touch my heart. Every cast give the best. They acting so potrayed their caracter and make the caracter like live come out the novel. Finally i'm not the fans of the actor/actres legend of fei but i fall in love with their caracter in this drama.
This drama also like a mistery drama, you will always want to know every secret in this drama. Also any romance story that will make you smile and cry, so touching and so sad.
The backsound/BGM very beautiful and touching. Its fit always with scene. Ending original Soundtrack also good. The coustume afei maybe seem ugly for the first time but its better and pretier after 30eps.
The dubber also good make the caracter more live. I just will complain with some flower or plant that sometime seem fake or unreal. And stuntman of afei sometime look so clearly but overall its ok, because the story is very entertaining and make me always anticipate the new episode. This is wuxia clasic style that can make bring you with old memory. Very uniq and fresh different from a lot of chinadrama that recently always give story of fantasy/xianxia drama. It's real martial arts drama with romantic comedi. And also great adventure and full of mistery plot.
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A Drama To Watch
Acting is good with this drama, I like the fighting scenes and the chemistry of the leads.The CGI might be imperfect but I wish they could have have made it more realistic, if they have done that, it could have been perfect.
The soundtrack? I fell in love with the song's, I can listen to it whole day with a loop.
For the fighting scenes, its great but its too close that I cannot see the executions well.
WY and ZLY, they have chemistry, its there but wanted more but its understandable cause this is Wuxia drama after all. And they had bring out the sweet scenes and act as the real age of the characters. Not too daring like how adult acts and just a little bit sweet like young ones still a bit disconnected due to their young age.
Overall, I will love to re-watch this and spend money cause its all worth it.
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Xie Yun: The beauty is still gorgeous. Whenever I see her, I fall for her.
Xie Yun: 美人风采动人 吾见之 甚为心折 (The beauty is still gorgeous. Whenever I see her, I fall for her.) Cr: owner(s) for translationStory (10/10):
Legend of Fei is based on wuxia with a lot of martial arts skills and footwork. The development of the story will take place as Zhou Fei confronts with missions and she will eventually become stronger by learning some new skills from some of the Qian Bei (seniors) with some side stories. During these adventures, there will be interactions of some cute and sweet moments between Xie Yun and Zhou Fei.
Xie Yun is a mysterious person who you will want to know and discover more about him in the later episodes. Despite his background and identity, he still dares to wander around the merciless Jiang Hu with his smart ideas and ways to rescue Zhou Fei and the others from some scenarios which truly shows us that Xie Yun is a smart and clever character. I love those Qing Gong (footwork) moments of Xie Yun along with Zhou Fei’s cool and talented sword skills (we have a very strong female lead here). The combination of Xie Yun and Zhou Fei are always so amazing, like how Xie Yun knows how to put his footwork skills into action along with Zhou Fei.
The chemistry between Xie Yun and Zhou Fei remain sweet throughout the entire episodes, YunFei <3 Another thing I love about Legend of Fei is the strong bond and love between YunFei (Xie Yun and Zhou Fei), they really trust each other to the extend that we do not see any misunderstandings between them. Not only Xie Yun and Zhou Fei, but also the process of how Chu Chu gets to trust Zhou Fei and Li Sheng is what makes Legend of Fei a wuxia with strong friendship. On the other side, I love how Xie Yun and Zhou Fei are always willing to stand by each other no matter how tough their journey is going to be, like those moments they stand side by side is so cool :') They also care for each other deeply that there's always this sentence from either of them, 'I'm willing to do anything for Xie Yun/A Fei as long as it can save him/her'.
I love the development of Li Sheng’s character as well; he became such a smart and reliable person protecting those important to him, putting those skills in helping the Jiang Hu world at the same time. Li Sheng and Chu Chu makes a cute ship too ;)
We have team trio too which consists of Li Yan, Yang Jin and Ying He Cong. Yang Jin is such a cool gentleman who always tries his best to protect Li Yan, along with Ying He Cong. I absolutely love these three uwu
The remaining side stories like Yin Pei, Mu Xiao Qiao, Duan Jiu Niang, Li Zheng etc are worth watching too. It will bring you closer to the mystery of Hai Tian Yi Se.
Acting/Cast (10/10):
All the actors/actresses played their roles very well especially Yibo (Xie Yun), Li Ying (Zhou Fei) and Oscar Sun (Yin Pei). They really put their roles into action as if you can see the actual characters in them which is really a great job, had to applaud them for those hard work. I have watched previous works of Yibo and Li Ying; congrats to them, their acting improved a lot :D As Yibo’s fan, Yibo portrayed Xie Yun impressively. I love the way Yibo smiles as Xie Yun. Furthermore, Yibo managed to play Xie Yun as a fearless character, the way Xie Yun smiles to face those difficulties and obstacles positively is something I actually admire about Xie Yun. He truly knows when and how to react to each situation even though it might cause danger. This is a huge mark added to the overall ratings of Legend of Fei.
Music (10/10):
I have never skipped the opening (Zhu Lang) and ending songs (Wu Hua) of Legend of Fei throughout the entire 51 episodes. Zhu Lang is one of the coolest opening songs I have ever listened, it really brought the wuxia atmosphere in Legend of Fei while Wu Hua is an ending song which focus more on how Zhou Fei and Xie Yun want to return their feelings to each other, this further strengthen the love between YunFei. I love Xi Wei sang by Yibo too, Xi Wei shows how much Xie Yun loves Zhou Fei <3 The remaining ost are fantastic too, I am listening to all the ost of Legend of Fei sometimes.
Rewatch value (10/10):
I had rewatched some episodes again like those YunFei moments and even some other cute, cool funny moments. I screenshot lots of Legend of Fei pictures, so I know when I want to rewatch which scenes again or I also would not mind rewatching some full episodes XD
Overall (10/10):
For those people who read my review, I hope it helped you give a try to watch Legend of Fei uwu If you like wuxia and Legend of Fei suits your type of genre(s), I would highly recommend you to watch and also recommend to your family and friends too, it’s a decent wuxia. I'm hoping we can spread more love for Legend of Fei together hehe :D
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Not into Wuxia dramas? This drama will change your mind.
Honestly, I started watching this because of Wang Yibo. As I’ve always tried watching costume dramas but I tend to not finish it or just drop it because of personal taste.BUT THIS DRAMA Y’ALL. Every episode was exciting, with lots of fight and action scenes with amazing martial arts skills paired with a “ride or die” romantic relationship where both of them would risk their life for each other.
LEAD WOMAN WASN’T A DAMSEL, INSTEAD SHE WAS AN ALPHA. This is why I loved this even more. Fei’s character would always stand up for what she thinks is right and Xie Yun was always there to support her.
There wasn’t much kissing scenes BUT GIRL DID THE ROMANCE BLEW UP? YES IT DID. The characters didn’t have to be clingy to each other to show romance on screen, because their relationship in the drama was too deep. It wasn’t just a fluffy romance thing, it was a die for you kind of relationship and they would do ANYTHING to protect each other. Their skills both grew as they fought a lot of sectors.
THIS DRAMA GAVE ACTION, ROMANCE, ANGST, and EXCITEMENT in each ep.
If you were to ask me before, it would be impossible for me to finish a 51 ep drama coming from a 10 ep jdrama watcher BUT I WAS ABLE TO FINISH THIS IN A FEW DAYS. THAT’S HOW GOOD IT WAS.
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Good story but if you came after watching The Untamed and expect the same energy, get back.!
The story's momentum does not pause and that is what makes it interesting to watch. Unlike in any other Cdramas, here you'll find a very cheerful male lead (but for a certain period of time). The revealing/ discovering of secrets and new things are well portrayed. I'll give it 7/10 for story and screenplay.But, nothing in this universe is perfect. That being said, let me tell you beforehand that female lead looks wayyyy older than the male lead. I think they should've casted someone who looks younger or equals to Yibo. I said this because most of the audience are very much used to seeing matching couples on Asian dramas. Female lead, to me, sometime feels like Yibo's elder sister. The chemistry how much ever tried, looks dry because of the visible age gap.
So if you are looking for chemistry, there is a very rare chance for it to be in your liking.
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disappointing drama with famous actors
This is a film that was talked about in the social media and overly praised by media because of the two main leads. I love Zhao Li Ying in Princess Agents and have high hopes before watching this drama. I was so disappointed in this drama because I could not feel any chemistry between ZLY and WYB as a couple but more like older sister and brother. ZLY is not believable as a 16 year old girl and matching her with Yibo who is 10 years younger than her is very apparent. I was so disappointed as I am a great fan of ZLY. I also didn't like the whole setting as it looks so unnatural (fake). The pace is so slow and lost interest so many times. I dropped this drama so many times and watched other show and then come back to this later on. This was a highly anticipated drama so I was really disappointed that it didn't turn out what I expected. Hope ZLY will get better offers to appear in the drama that suited her. Yibo 's acting is OK but not convincing nor natural since he is pretty new in the acting community and has not attended any drama/acting school like others so I am sure he will get better in the coming year.Was this review helpful to you?
