Eternal Brotherhood (2024)

To Ningdom Come.

Eternal Brotherhood or The Three Heroes of Light/光明三杰/Guāngmíng Sān Jié is the first instalment of the live action adaptation of popular fantasy novel Purple River/紫川/Zǐchuān. The narrative opens in the thick of a gripping battle scene in a complex fantasy world and never stops to explain itself. The world building, political dynamics, power structures and character backstories all have to be pieced from the dialogue. It does not help that the plot is heavy with political intrigue and many opaque Machiavelli characters scheme against one another. Casual viewers out for light entertainment will find this storytelling approach frustrating and confusing.

Zichuan is a loose coalition of different warlords, noble families and clans in a war torn continent. Yuanzhou is the battlefront, the critical buffer province that stands between Zichuan and their arch enemy Beizu or the North Clan. Food is the scarcest commodity in that strategic battle-torn province that is rich in resources. Power in Zichuan is divided as the Chieftain Zichuan Canxing of the ruling Zichuan family must answer to the Elders Council. The family's grip on power is underpinned by a sworn brotherhood between the previous Chieftain and two powerful commanders; Yang Minghua who secures the capital and Ge Yingxing who secures Yuanzhou. This alliance frays as Yang Minghua is widely expected to rebel. This is the back drop that Zichuan Xiu, foster son of the late Chieftain returns to after a seven year exile in Yuanzhou. The time is ripe for a changing of the guard as the next generation's three heroes Di Lin, Si Yilin and Zichuan Xiu emerge. There is a subtly ominous foreshadowing as they are clearly parallel characters with their predecessors.

One of the keys to understanding this story is that actions speak louder than words and no one says what they really mean; not even when their interests are aligned. This is clearly conveyed in the secret bathhouse scene; the only safe place in the capital for Di Lin, Si Yilin and Zichuan Xiu to speak freely with one another. Of the brothers, Si Yilin is the most reliable and almost blindly loyal one. Di Lin is also quite easy to understand; a ruthless, vehement and dangerous character who cares for very few people. Zhichuan Xiu is a cunning and complex character that hides behind an indifferent and flippant facade. The first arc (~12 episodes) that introduces the three heroes is strong as they work together to put down a rebellion. It is nice to see Yang Xuwen, Liu Yuning and Zhang Mingen work so well together in their first collaboration. Their rapport and humorous banter lightens the portentous, politics heavy tone of the story.

The second arc explores Zichuan Xiu's relationship with the Chieftain Zichuan Canxing and his niece Zichuan Ning. It is anchored by masterful portrayals of two Machiavelli mirror characters who are not quite yet opponents; warily circling and assessing each other. Yang Xuwen holds his own well in this match up against a veteran like Ma Shaohua. Their dialogue is quietly menacing with doublespeak, layers of hidden meaning and traces of irony, and dark humor. This is a rare drama where I feel real genuine fear that the protagonists may be up against a more powerful and possibly smarter antagonist.

I was so busy wishing Ning to Ningdom Come that it took me a long time to realise she is quite an important character. Not only is she next in-line to be Chieftain but Xiu actually cares deeply for her. This role is not well acted to begin with and made worse by the choice of a terrible voice actor. Consequently Ning comes across as little more than an annoying, childish, spoiled and shallow princess that gets too much airtime. In reality, scheming is in Ning's blood and she has an innate shrewdness and strong survival instincts. She fears Canxing and wears the persona he expects as a silly princess only capable of learning the cartoon version of history and nowhere near ready to assume power to allay his paranoia. In their opening scene together, both Ning and Xiu are role playing the pampered princess and her foolish swain. Unlike Yang Xuwen however, the actress is not able to convey any hidden depth to Ning or that there are layers underneath her words. But if you watch her carefully, she is quite clever in how she helps Ka Dan and Si Yilin and she has a far better grasp of the power structures of Zichuan than she lets on. If they had cast an actress better versed at complex roles, her arc would be more enjoyable and how Xiu grew apart from her would be seen as a sad development rather than a cause for widespread rejoicing.

Considering the limited budget they had to work with, the cinematography, camera angles and overall visuals are really nice and it is quite clear that this drama was made with care. Even though the dialogue is extremely well written, it is too unbalanced and too much plot movement happens via exposition; making battlefront developments hard to follow. The too few action scenes that occur mostly at the beginning and at the end are exciting and very well choreographed. Even the CGI is not heavy handed and is actually really nice.

I find it really difficult to rate this drama at this point because it actually ends in the middle of an arc and is thus unfinished. Even though it ends with a superb line, it does not change the fact that this is not only unfinished but also sloppy enough to not even close the Lei Hong arc. The production's two fatal flaws are not making the world building accessible and in mis-casting Ning. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this drama and am going to temporarily rate it 8.0/10.0. I will revise up my overall rating for the Zichuan series if the second instalment The King of Light/之光明王/Zhī Guāngmíng Wáng wraps everything up well. I think a strong case can be made to wait to watch this in its entirety when the second instalment airs.

Read More

Chinese Game of Thrones with a Great Brotherhood

I've been anticipating this one for a long time; now not saying I had high expectations especially since it sat on a shelf for nearly three years. Now that part one is over, I feel something is missing. Watched primarily for LYN and I knew a few other of the supporting casts though not the other leads. But the vibe of this was the Chinese GoT with a great Brotherhood.

Pros: I loved the brotherhood; them three together on screen or when they could know what the others were thinking when they were so far apart. The comedy in the beginning was nice. LYN played ruthless DiLin very well and yet had a soft spot only for his two sworn brothers, his precious wife and unborn child. The rest of the world be damned. Pretty proud of him as the role was done early on in his career. SYL was the sexy hero of the trio and the woman he fell for molded him to a T. Their sexy time was very well played and left my iPad smoking. ML was the goofball with the secret ninja powers not even his brothers apparently knew about. He comes off as a playboy but has a great strategic mindset; so he's their hidden weapon.

Part 1 revolved around the GoT like power struggle and rebellion of one of the older keepers of the country. As well as the invasion of North Clan who are barbaric in nature. The one in control however was the one who pitted people against each and was the real mastermind to keep power for himself. Even ML's Shifu who never planned on rebelling was made a pawn of just so the old fart could stay in power. The old fart chief who looked feeble and sickly was really hellbent to keep everything to himself; doesn't matter who he destroyed and how. He had DiLin kill one of his "most trusted" spy's entire family just so they wouldn't form an alliance later against him. The actor played a very conniving and scheming antagonist pretending to be a protagonist very well. But all of that scheming, has made him more enemies than I'm sure he's aware of. His main phrase was "I trust you the most." That's how you knew he didn't trust you at all. Thankfully two out of three brothers have figured out that he is not who he appears and are very wary of him.

The budget was definitely on the lower side with major edits done plus a title change but the GoT low lighting atmosphere and that kind of world setting was only missing a few dragons and looked really cool. OSTs, costumes, scenery otherwise were all on point. I really hope they release part two soon.

Cons: One word: Ning! Her character though as completely unimportant as it was took up so many episodes, we feared instead of it being about the brotherhood, it'll be about this royal poodle gorilla glue and her childish crush on ML. While I understand this story had to show her childish behavior but not for 15 episodes. Oftentimes, only one brother would make it into an episode and it grated on everyone. The 12 year old tantrums she would throw thinking the entire planet—especially the nails on chalkboard "Xiu gege" she would whine—revolved around her and her needs was mind boggling. Her country was at war where people died left and right but all she could think of was the pretty dresses she hasn't worn etc. She ran away from home just to whine to the ML about how he had to cater to her like she was on some vacation while the man was trying to keep people alive. It was disgusting and she had way too much screen time where for a while, the story hiccuped a lot. Instead of wasting time on her, they could have told more about the brothers upbringing and how they became sworn brothers in the first place. Would have been far more interesting. Or even on the story of North Clan and why they couldn't keep still in their own territory. Anything but her. I hope in part 2 she takes a very serious seat in the back row.

The fact that there was more talk than action other than the very beginning and ending, we can attribute to the low budget as I would have preferred more fighting scenes then just the aftermath with explanations. Or after DiLin massacred an entire battalion, he just stands there, covered in blood. Would have preferred to see that actually play out as opposed to what we saw, same with SYL's battles.

Would I recommend it? Despite the lord awful Ning and lots of talking, it's actually a pretty decent watch and does grab your attention. It is an OE as there's a part 2 that's apparently already been filmed and needs to be released; so hopefully soon. I say give it a go.

Read More

An Intriguing Tale of Brotherhood

This show ended at an odd note; the open ending was rather innocuous, because we don’t know if there is a sequel in works (and if it is, when will the show premiere?). Adapted from the novel “Purple River” (紫川) by Lao Zhu (老猪), the storyline is set in the fictional world of Zichaun and is centered around the brotherhood of the three male protagonists. Di Lin, the oldest of them is ruthless, scheming and cynical, Si Yilin is an eternal loyalist and highly disciplined individual, while their youngest, Zichaun Xiu is a shrewd strategist, pretending to be a wannabe playboy. All three of them are set in their own ways, have no familial connection, and yet they would die for each other. That’s the extent of their brotherhood; it is an unwritten rule, inscribed in stone. The political turmoil coupled with the unending plotting and scheming is entertaining and gives a slight edge to the story line. You never know who the antagonist is, simply because everyone seems to have their own agenda. Let’s dive into the story line and learn more about the characters.

Read the complete article here-

https://kcdramamusings.wordpress.com/2024/03/15/eternal-brotherhood-series-review/#more-671

Read More

Pretty promising

First impression: BANGERS from the get go.
From costume to set design plus war scenes everything is top notch. It reminded me a lot of 'Nirvana in fire' and Game of thrones maybe because of the cinematography, costume and complex political plot. I did not read the synopsis of this drama before starting it and had no idea I was gonna see Liu Yunning in this one. (He is pretty much in every show that I watch these days. So busy!) Man!! he looked really intimidating here especially his entry scene. ( Did he just put on some wait for this one? Not that I am complaining. He is definitely giving proper warrior vibes). There are many familiar faces in this one. Overall a solid cast. The first episode shows the intriguing politics that was brewing behind all the sinister smiles. The cuts in between are really adding to the suspense factor. This show is not simply a political drama. It has many elements in it. I am sucker for supernatural stuff in this genre. I am loving the way they showed the conflict between the characters yet added humours factor in it to tone down the seriousness. ML(Zichuan) reminds me of Liu Yunnings character from his last drama. I think they could have tone down his character a little bit and some characters could have given extra screen time. Bromance was worth watching atleast. You might get irritated by one of the female characters but I guess that was how it was written in the novel. Overall a very good impression. Waiting for season 2.

Read More

Brotherhood

The first season ended in a way reminiscent of the second season. So it seems like there must be a sequel. I think the series is an old production and has been put on hold until 2024. While describing the inter-clan wars, the internal events of the Zichuan clan they are in are described. The Clan Chief Lord and his niece, the princess, rule the clan, but a rebellion occurs within the clan, but it is not successful. The Chief, whom we thought to be very passive, old, inefficient and weak, turns out to be cunning and competent. He saves his clan. However, while saving him, he also commits ruthless massacres, especially those committed by generals like Di Lin. In any case, the rebellious Minister of War was also ruthless. Di Lin was also his cultivation. His death occurred because he was not with her. Yang Xu Wen, who appears as the primary protagonist here, stands out with his cunning and skillful strategy that does not show itself outwardly. But in the distribution of roles, it is as if three brothers shared three roles. The leading roles were shared. There doesn't seem to be anyone who appears primary. I saw Li Yu Ning in another leading role. Yang Xu is given a bit of awkwardness, making him seem unqualified as a fun personality. I think he does his role well, but it seems fake to me. It didn't happen. The female lead who accompanied him, Li Mo Zhi., also seemed passive to me. It's like they were forced to be a couple. It's like they were forced to accept acting in this series. Our third lead, Zhang Ming En, did his part, but he didn't have the consistency I wanted either. So they did their part. They have no excess. I think the best one is Liu Yu Ning. Let me say that he neither exaggerated nor underplayed his game, and in my opinion, this passivity was the best. He didn't have any excess either. I think the supporting roles were more successful. Supporting actors such as Ma Shao Hua, Zhang Fan, Benjamin Zhang, Xiu Qing were more successful. They added value to their roles. I like. I liked the action and battle scenes. I loved the excitement. I liked the production and direction. I'm waiting for the second season too.

Read More

Made by 3 directors, and it shows that there's 3 directions in every aspect of the drama.

This is an adaption of a novel that already has a fanbase, hence you'll see many good things about this but objectively it's not a good drama.

It tells you they have a star studded cast, and 3 famous directors however it seems like none of the directors actually worked together and instead just shot their own parts on their own, and used glue to stick it together.

The result is a very confusing show and makes no sense unless you watch it repeatedly and force yourself to make sense of it. you might even want to bring a notebook along to take notes.

If you enjoy doing this while watching a show, you might like this but the majority of people, watching a drama is about kicking back and relax, letting it bring you into it's world.

This show does none of that, and the show airtime was speedrun too. 24 episodes released quickly and they moved on unlike burning flames, which took a break and released lesser episodes a week to get more viewers.

This being a small slice of the novel too, means that most people wont be able to enjoy the drama unless they've read it in it's other forms (novel,manga,anime..ect)

Read More

Good but could be better, waiting for Season 2

Storyline is nice and the 3 brothers casting is picked well and seemed strong protagonists. Di Lin (1st brother) is played well and I really liked that dark aura which also gave him the title, "The Executioner". As the 1st brother, he does a lot more of decision making. His wife is also strong and acting is good, I hope they were given more screen time. 2nd bother, Si Yi Lin is my favorite of these 3 because of his charm. To be honest, his chemistry with Princess Ka Dan is one of the reasons why I managed to watch the 1st season. I replayed every minute, every second of their screen time. And there's the 3rd brother, Zichuan who did a great job the drama, Strange Tales of the Tang Dynasty but unfortunately the chemistry with the annoying princess Ning is big blow to Eternal Brotherhood. He's more suitable for serious roles. He can be funny when he's with the other 2 brothers but the comedy scenes with princes Ning is like a sandpaper scapping my tongue - it was horrible! Lucky there was Si Yi Lin and Ka Dan's scenes that made me forget Ning ning bulshit.

Read More

Uma promessa ainda engavetada

Infelizmente a trama seguiu caminhos inesperados, morosos e muito à quem do que prometeu no primeiro episódio.
Já perdemos um vilão importante e um herói admirável. Zichuan Xiu está longe de atingir expectativas cativantes como protagonista. E Di Lin, cujo propósito pareceu ter sido apenas roubar as cenas desde o início, também seguiu um caminho obscuro.
Lamentei profundamente pela produção, visivelmente dedicada por um bom trabalho. Uma cinematografia muito bem elaborada, figurino bonito e , por que não, um grande elenco. Sem dúvida, muito bons.
Infelizmente a trama foi fraca, desarticulada, arrastada, com personagens centrais pouco ou nada cativantes, como a princesa Ning. Personagem cansativa.
Sigo na esperança de uma grande virada, embora muito do que pareceu ser um clímax, foi decepcionante.

Considerações finais :
Dos 24 episódios, os 4 finais foram bem melhores. O drama nos foi apresentado como história única, mesmo porquê, segundo algumas informações, o drama foi engavetado por algum tempo e, só agora, em 2024, fora liberado para exibição.
Observarmos que não houve conclusão da trama, o que sugere uma segunda temporada. Não sei se isto me agrada muito, visto considerar o tempo de tela apenas parcialmente compensatório.
Ainda considero Si Yilin meu personagem predileto, assim como, sua história com a linda princesa do norte, a mais interessante. Ambos mereciam uma história à parte, pois possuem uma química encantadora.
Di Lin, ainda que um personagem interessante, seu lado obscuro confunde o espectador , embora sua Irmandade seja admirável em relação a seus parceiros, deixa dúvidas quanto ou até onde irá sua índole ruim.
Já nosso herói destrambelhado, Zichuan Xiu, mostrou ser um bom estrategista. Continuo não apreciando o modo como seu personagem foi apresentado, assim como, seu relacionamento amoroso com a princesa Ning. Um amor pouco convincente e nada atraente. Melhor se nem existisse.
Espero que a segunda temporada não permaneça engavetada por muito tempo, já que a trama pode ser facilmente substituída. Mas, apesar dos entraves, conseguiu melhorar relativamente as primeiras considerações.

Read More