A very good Xianxia, but with some lengths.
An excellent Xianxia with Cheng Yi (ML) and Crystal Yuan (FL)PLOT: 9th life (tribulation) of 2 immortals (FL = Heavenly General and ML = Golden-winged Phoenix), who love each other in each mortal life, but are always separated, notably due to the stubbornness of Lord Bailin (Heavenly Lord ).
In this 9th life, everyone is part of a sect. Sifeng (the ML), from the Palais de Lize, wears a mask and is not allowed to be in love. The FL, heiress to the Shao Yang clan, is "deprived" of her senses. The FL will make the mask fall and trigger the lovers’ curse for the ML. Little by little, they discover their common past, and try to thwart the tragic plans of destiny that the heavens have traced for them.
PROS:
+ great casting.
+ High quality special effects and action scenes
+ well-developed and endearing 2ndary characters (some bring a touch of humor, wich is welcome to balance out the drama).
+ cute side romances
+ Very good OST
CONS:
- The narration is a little slow at times and the story is complex, with multiple narrative arcs (some of which are a little too long) => Impossible to binge watch all 59 episodes!!
- I find unbearable the final repentance of super stubborn villains, who plot dirty tricks for thousands of years, but suddenly realize their mistakes (it doesn't work like that in real life :) :)
=> It was a pleasure to watch, but I don't think that I will rewatch it (bcz 59 episodes !!)
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Excellent Xianxia avec Cheng Yi (ML) et Crystal Yuan (FL)
PLOT : 9e vie de 2 immortels (FL = Général céleste et ML= Phoenix aux ailes dorées), qui s'aiment dans chaque vie chez les mortels, mais sont toujours séparés, notamment en raison de l'entêtement du Seigneur Baihou (Seigneur céleste).
Dans cette 9e vie, chacun fait partie d'une secte. Sifeng (le ML), du Palais de Lize, porte un masque et n'a pas le droit d'être amoureux. La FL, héritière du clan Shao Yang, est privée de ses sens. La FL va faire tomber le masque et déclencher la malédiction des amoureux. Peu à peu, ils découvrent leur passé commun, et tentent de déjouer les twists du destin que les cieux leur ont tracé.
PROS:
+ super casting.
+ effets spéciaux et scènes d'action de qualité
+ personnages 2aires bien développés et attachants (certains apportent une touche d'humour, bienvenue pour équilibrer tout le drame).
+ romances secondaires mignonnes
+ Très bonnes OST
CONS:
- narration un peu lente par moments et story complexe avec multiples arcs narratifs (dont certains sont un peu trop longs) => Impossible de binge watcher les 59 épisodes !!
- je suis agacée par la repentance finale des villains super entêtés, qui mijotent de sales coups pendant des milliers d'années, mais prennent conscience subitement de leurs erreurs (ça ne fonctionne pas comme ça dans la vraie vie :) :)
=> Un très bon Xianxia, mais avec quelques longueurs.
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This review may contain spoilers
A Beautiful Tale ? Let's find out!! Keep on reading..
So this is my first time writing a review, please correct me if I'm wrong somewhere.So, let's get to the drama.
**Before reading my review, kindly notice that it may contain some minor spoilers.**
Getting to the drama~
Story: 9.0
The story was abnormally amazing, I have watched many wuxia dramas but I feel like this one is the best one I've watched till date. The story has many twists and turns and you can't predict what's going to happen next unlike many other wuxia dramas. It's to some extent somewhat like a detective series I would say, although I'm sure many wouldn't agree with me. Just the way Yu Sifeng needs to figure things out about what's going on and Chu Xuanji misunderstands him again and again. Their both personalities are not a mystery, it's quite understandable what's going on. ❣
What was really good with the story:-
The constant misunderstandings are what it makes a drama although sometimes, it was quite emotional which is a good twist, I hoped it would have a little less misunderstandings, it was really nice though. I don't want to give any major spoiler so I'll leave it here. But most of all it had a happy ending. (for those little cute people who don't like dramas with sad ending like me.)
What I think should be improved :-
It would be better if it's a little bit more mysterious that's to say I don't like the way we know what's going on in the demon sect and what they're going to do next, what Yu Sifeng is doing while trying to protect Xuanji which also hurts her and all. The way nobody knows who really is Rahu Ketu till the mid was quite exciting although we just got the suspense over too soon, I would say that was a better part. It would have been better if just like in some detective series, we saw it as from the view of one person and then flashback. Like, we see what's going on from Xuanji's view or Sifeng's view then at some episode, they show us the back story. That would make it a little more inviting.
The story was pretty beautiful anyways. Lots of romance. So just go ahead and watch this blissful drama.
Acting/Cast : 9.0
So we have,
⨠Cheng Yi as Yu Sifeng, talking about his acting I would say it's really nice. He truly fits the character, the pain, the happiness is very properly portrayed.
⨠Yuan Bingyan or Crystal Yuan as Chu Xuanji, she totally fits the 16 year old her, the innocence she portrays at the starting is so realistic and so is the dominance she shows as the War God later on. She fits really properly into the two-faced character.
⨠Zhang Yuxi as Chu Linglong, from the dominating character on Little Six to the little puppet of Wu Tong, so beautifully done.
The acting was very satisfying overall.
What I didn't like was the editing in some scenes.
I would like to especially appreciate the acting of two of the support actresses:
⨠Yang Xi Zi as Lu Yan Ran or Little Silver Flower, the headstrong personality was strongly and perfectly portrayed, so was the sadness. Wicked!
⨠Liu Meng Rui as Yu'er or Liu Yu Huan's daughter, the stubborness to kindess and love was portrayed so beautifully.
** Please do tell me which of you like the acting of which particular support actor/actress and what exactly made you like it.**
Music: 10.0
I just can't describe it, I truly loved it. It was very related to the story and the scenes. My favourite one was the starting the song.
Rewatch Value : 8.5
The misunderstandings are too much, watching them again and again makes it boring so the rewatch value is only for the sweet scenes.
Overall: 9.5
Suggestions are welcomed.
Do comment and tell me where you agree and disagree with me.
Hope it wasn't boring.
Lots of Love <3
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Our Sifeng and Xuanji <3
Gotta leave some review because this is my first xianxia!As someone who can lose focus easily this amount of episodes is too much for me, that's why when it's 35+ drama I watch it on-going so I'll feel the anticipating and hype but anyways let's get into the point. From ep 1-10 the story really attracted me with the amount of sweetness we get from the lead, the building of friendship and more. But when they get separated and Hao chen appeared I can't help to feel like it gets draggy for some reason because I want my cp in the same place tgt as fast as possible. Idc what will happen but I just wanna them to be tgt. After that, the story got more and more interesting until the part when linglong get abducted. Everyone gone insane at this point. The only person who you'll not hate was the lead. One thing, the 9th life story was too short for me that I couldn't get emotional instead feel confused. They should make it longer. I can say the story didn't have much filler but more to draggy. I mean linglong's abducted was so long that if not mention we watchers might completely forgot about it? but around episode 35+ the eps got more interesting though, I feel like strangling hao chen every time he talk? If I need to talk about the lead, they own one same characteristics; stubborn af!
Yu Sifeng. He is such a sad boy who's hurt everytime. I thought he will be a cold character but he is a mix of soft, calm, and strict man. What I love about him is, the way he is teaching and explaining everything to xuan ji in his own way while others only know how to take advantage of her. The way he never hurt her make him remarkable and sure, I know sacrifices = loves but *sigh* he got hurt and spit blood so many timess that if he die in the end it's not that weird? I mean he is lize's palace head disciple, why make him dying so many times?☠️ but no, don't let him die, I want him to get all the happiness he deserves?
Chu Xuan Ji, she doesn't have 6 senses. I almost thought she is blind? Without that 6 senses she is still clever to me. She know exactly what she want. She just doesn't know how to decided but when she know it will cause misunderstanding to sifeng she will hold it upright. My girl I know she changed later part but I'll still love her? though, hao chen try many things to separated them she's still going strong trusting her own feelings! (yeah I will put all the blame on haochen brainwashing and using her)
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This drama broke my heart and put back together so many times
This drama was always on my to watch list for a while now and I finally got to watching it and it was a lot better than my heart can take.There is literally so much to say about this drama because there was so many good things.
Si Feng's love for Xuan Ji is the type of love anyone would wish for. It's good that Xuan Ji finally was able to fully reciprocate her love for him in this lifetime- their 10th lol.
The only two things I annoyed me was Xuan Ji's trust for Si Feng and the abuse Si Feng got. I understand Xuan Ji finally understood after going into the river but they let that misunderstanding go on for so long and it was frustrating to watch Xuan Ji listen to others compared to fully trusting Si Feng. And when all the other Sects were abusing Si Feng was really upsetting :(
I also wish they explored more of Si Feng's storyline- like his moral parents and his role in heaven- cause apparently he was the son of the heavenly emperor; honestly must of missed that detail.
Overall, I love the moments between Si Feng and Xuan Ji; they have great chemistry. I love Cheng Yi as an actor and I will definitely watch more of his dramas but later in the future because my heart can't take him in another drama with a female lead yet lol especially when it's Xuan Ji's sister in this drama.
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Top 3 in my list for wuxia drama
One of the best wuxia drama i come across with. The plot, acting and most importantly the chemistry are superb. The main leads really gave their best. This is the kind of performance that should inspire future actors specially the leads. At times despite the cliche it is really how well actors show emotions . Sifeng delivered well u can tell how strong his feelings for her all througout. It was something splendid and heartwarming to watch. The FL is one of the best actresses in china. She has natural talent. Her charisma is very strong. The chemistry of both is something u would love to rewatch over and over again. I wish them both and the rest of the cast to do just as well in their future dramas. It would be really nice and lovely and rewarding to have them both on screen again.Was this review helpful to you?
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Wow
Love and redemption One of the best historical dramas I've seen in 2020 and probably won't be surpassed by any other.Crystal Yuan and Cheng Yi have shown how good their acting skills are in this drama. Cheng Yi in the role of Si Feng was nothing short of outstanding. I've never seen the male lead endure so much in a drama.
I really like the bond between the two of them despite the constant struggle. The supporting roles in this drama were excellent. Most of all I liked '' Flying Snake ''. The actor who played him really has talent. I just like the way he was portrayed with the hissing and moving head.
Another point why the drama is so good are the costumes. You can usually see directly in dramas whether the traditional costumes are well made and high quality or cheap. In this case the costumes were overwhelming. I've never seen such beautiful costumes, just the clothes of Xuan JI / Crystal Yuan with the color gradient or Si Feng's whole clothes cupboard in general.
I really liked the many different places where the story took place. By and large, it was a very high quality and expensive production. Especially the last few episodes have pushed the level of the drama up. I am very happy that the drama has a happy ending. I couldn't have expected anything else.
One point of criticism for me was simply the length of the drama In my opinion, there could have been fewer episodes, but otherwise nothing really bothered me .
Let yourself lead into the world of Xuan Ji and Si Feng, you will not regret it.
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A Beautiful Journey. One of my Top 10.
This drama was one of the first that I watched in early 2021 when I was just venturing into dramaland. I have seen a few others prior, not xianxia though, so it was the first in that aspect. I had been trying to get my mom to watch dramas with me for weeks and we just kept fighting about it because she didn't want to read subtitles. But...she came in while I was watching this and got hooked. Now she watches more dramas than me.Things that I still remember liking to this day:
- Cheng Yi. This was the first drama I saw him in and his performance cemented him in my heart. It was beautiful.
- The acting. Everyone worked really well together and the chemistry reflected that. I couldn't spot any on screen awkwardness. It is one of the best acting teams I've seen thus far. (I say team because there are quite a few characters who tend to appear in various dramas together so it's always a treasure hunt. LOL. You'll see.)
- The story. It was a beautiful rollercoaster. It scared me a couple times and I thought this would shred my heart to pieces, but thankfully, it had a happy ending. ^_^
- Bai Shu's character Teng She. He is hands-down the best part of this show. I've haven't seen a character quite like him before and it was a highlight for sure. I think he's part of what captured my mom's attention. LOL. From this role alone, Bai Shu needs more main acting roles. I also enjoyed the bond and tension between him and the Green Dragon. <3
- The cinematography and CGI. While not perfect and it can't stand up to more modern ones like Ancient Love Poetry. It's still really great and was probably considered an advancement when it first came out.
- Oooh. I almost forgot. The villain, Yuan Lang, in this is my favorite drama villain to date. Love him.
- The music is stunning. I listen to it all the time.
Things I remember un-fondly:
- Crystal Yuan's hairstyle. It was horrible to me. When she was in god form though, it looked alright.
- Little things didn't always align. For example, in the beginning, the FL had no emotions, but was able to clearly express all of the emotions...yeah. Like a sociopath? No. Not really. I think it's more like they forced her to be that cute and dumb combo despite the fact that it made no sense with the character's profile. Thankfully, it didn't last too long. ^_^
Overall, this is one of my top ten dramas. <3
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breathtaking xianxia drama with a hint of youthfulness
Please don't let the 59 episodes dissuade you from watching this masterpiece. I tend to avoid watching xianxia dramas because I don't like that they revolve around deities and heaven, but this show completely changed my perception of the genre. The plot revolves mainly around the lead couple, not much screentime given to the side couples in my opinion. It is 59 episodes long but fast-paced since it is based on a long novel.Love and Redemption focuses on the growth of the lead couple. The first part of the show focuses on their teenage years. It is extremely sweet and perfectly showcases teenagers crushing on each other. If you're looking for a heart-fluttering show, Love and Redemption is for you. In the later half of the show, the main conflict begins, and the selflessness of the sifeng really shows. There are a lot of misunderstandings and backstabbing side characters but characters like tengshe appear to liven the mood. There is so much character growth in this show that towards the end, I almost find it hard to believe that these two characters had such an innocent past.
Another good part about this show is its strong female lead. After watching too many dramas that claim to have strong female leads but end up needing the rescue of the male leads, I can say that this show is not like the rest. The female lead starts off weak but as the plot progresses she realizes her powers and eventually becomes one of the strongest characters in the show.
If you are looking for unwavering love between the lead couple, this show has it. I can say it is one of the best chinese historical dramas I've watched and the first drama I followed since the start till the end. It has a good plot, attractive leads, and a high budget. The wait for this show was long but totally worth it, seeing how the CGI was also well done (graphics were done by a gaming company). I will definitely rewatch this show when the subtitles are all done up :)
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What a dreadful story
Okay so first of all i i watched all of the 59 eps so i will be having ALOTTT to say.The beginning of the drama started off pretty decently i actually really liked the leads in the beginning their relationship seemed cutesy and fun. but then towards like episode 30ish is when everything turn to complete BS from the male lead sacrificing himself over and over again when the female lead clearly couldn’t give two shits was really it for me. also when he would hide things from the female lead in the means of “protecting her” and that everything will be fine once she knows what he did for her even if it means he has to die, it quickly became such a laughable drama their whole relationship didn’t even seem genuine anymore it seemed rather forced like he was just a offering chip to suffer for all of the female leads foolish actions.
Moving on also i really liked his spirit beast i wished that they focused more on her relationship with rou yu instead of forcing her to be in a one sided relationship with the idiotic male lead. she was also like a offering chip for the male lead anyways when she died i cried it was pitiful that she only loved a man who kept offering himself up for a foolish woman.
Anyways moving on to the sect leader why were they so weak ?? like almost off the demons could take them down aren’t they supposed to be strong or whatever, also the female lead was literally throwing them like rag dolls any chance she got that was pathetic.
The villains in this drama were pretty laughable it’s like they would survive over and over again to wreak the same havoc then mysteriously leave but anyways moving on..
Finally the female lead omgg she was my favorite in the beginning but then she slowly became my least favorite her and the ML. she had little to no trust in the male lead even though she would say she believed in him she would double back whenever one of the sect members sparked a bit of doubt in her and do all of her tortures acts to the ML. then the male lead would go through the same cycle of suffering for her over and over again . Their relationship was toxic and was built of the fact that they went through tribulations together so they have to stay together because she hurt him in his past 9 lives.
Also linglong storyline was so unnecessary like literally her trauma made no sense because why is the flower demon memories trigger you and the fact that she “overcame “ her depression when sixth senior finally decided to marry her is pitful.
Overall the storytelling was decent the storyline was also pretty decent but the romance part of this drama for me ill pass thank you.
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The Most Lovable Xianxia / Fantasy Drama of our Lives!
Words are not enough to rate this drama. This is the First, the Best, and the Most Lovable Chinese Xianxia/Fantasy/Romance Drama that we have watched in our Lifetime!-- Perfect storyline, perfect casts; the best of Crystal Yuan and Cheng Yi!
-- We all loved everything about this drama . . .
We're so happy to discover this drama; each episode contains the basic elements of its beautiful concept of life and how it is to be human, and immortal at the same time.
-- Crystal Yuan and Cheng Yi are both on their best for their roles. I don't think that any Chinese actor or actress can perform this role except the two.
We're all satisfied and happy with this beautiful drama.
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STORY:
Typical xianxia drama but done differently. The drama focuses less on Heavenly Realm and more on the Mortal realm which was different. The main plot is the love story as everything else is built on it. The camaraderie of Si Feng, Xuan Ji, Liu Da Ge, Ling Long, 6th Senior, Teng She Zihu and Wu Zi Qi was one of the best I've ever come across. This drama can be described as Untamed + Ashes of Love. There are plenty of battles, hunting demons, a dense heroine, an awe-spiring male lead, trials and tribulations and romance. This drama exceeded my expectations in terms of the intensity of love a male character can have for a female. I also loved the ending and it wasn't open or bittersweet - but fit perfectly with the story. With TMOPB and Ashes of Love the endings were only doable but here it is worth the long wait and suffering. And OMG - it is full of suffering, hatred, love and anger. Never have I seen such a pitiful pair of characters.
CHARACTERS :
I don't think I need to describe Si Feng. He's the all-round perfect dreamy boy. He loves the heroine to no depths and is always ready to be there for her. Xuan Ji isn't the perfect heroine but she comes around and was less frustrating than some other leads I've seen before. I loved all the characters minus Ling Long. I couldn't feel enough sorry for her and was frankly bored of her whining. I freaking hated Teng She in the beginning but he grows wonderfully by the end. He's one of the best characters in the drama!
CASTING:
Cheng Yi steals the show here. I'm going to be looking out for his future projects. I was a bit unsure on Crystal Yuan but she did her crying scenes better than her innocent side. However, she was quite convincing as innocent and then a badass heroine. Rest of the casting was also done well - the families, friends and the villains. We have some interesting, complex villains and see them more up close than some other dramas like to focus on.
ROMANCE:
The plot is focused on the love story, but I felt like we were deprived of more content. The longing was extreme but the scenes were sparse. I wanted more love scenes between the leads and sadly got lesser than I wanted. There was a lot of focus on other subplots and more on the demons which could have been less.
OST:
The soundtrack is quite nice. It has a few ballads and an upbeat theme song which sets the mood for the drama.
OVERALL:
Love and Redemption is a very fitting title. I think anyone can enjoy this drama regardless of whether they know the actors or not. The story is quite a ride and comes full circle - very satisfyingly so. I am not sure of the rewatch value since I cannot bear the repeated sufferings our leads went through but come out a fan of Cheng Yi out of this. This is definitely making me rethink the quality of Ashes of Love because I always considered that my top xianxia. This is well worth a watch. Don't hesitate to dive into it.
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Sifeng, Xuanji is your demon, are you fated to be a cursed, painful and pitiful lover ? Wake up !
"Love and redemption" is definitely a drama worth to be watched, especially for those who love fated masochist love stories and xianxia dramas with happy ending.How nice to reunite in this drama some of the actors of Noble aspirations : especially Cheng Yi and Liu Xueyi. They have matured and give their best in Love and Redemption. I was quite surprised to see how Cheng Yi is terrific in love scenes, high in emotion and sincerity. Liu Xueyi is just gorgeous, so elegant, schemeful and manipulative in such a glamourous way, he doesnt act as a Dijun, he is Dijun ! Just want to add that Peer Zhu is awesome too. I didn't know this actor before but I must say that he plays demon Yuan Lang in a perfect and appealing way !
Many reviewers have already said that this drama is awesome with very good and handsome actors, nice sceneries, costumes, OST and filming. I agree. Others think that this drama can be compared to Ashes of love and TMOPB for its quality and even for some similarities in the storylines. Is it just a pure coincidence if Xuanji parents are played by the same actors who were Jin Mi's parents in Ashes of love ? There are also some common points with Noble aspirations and the unforgetable Guili/Xiaofan.
But once you have said this, you have said nothing ! What is really interesting to underline in Love and Redemption is that the God of War is a woman who has to reincarnate to overcome tribulations in the mortal realm in order to save herself from becoming a demon and being expelled for ever from the heavenly realm. When the story begins, it is her last mortal life and her last chance to succeed her trial (overcoming her murdering pulsions and share real love).
In her last mortal life will she manage to love and trust Yu Sifeng who is so deeply in love with her ? This is what we are expecting and longing for but things get more bad in the drama when Sifeng's real identity is discovered on episode 37.
It was so entertaining to see, in the first episode, how Sifeng meets Xuanji, the very first girl he ever met cause in his sect no women were allowed in. He was so confused that he stuttered for the whole episode ! And of course fell for Xuanji who is naive and natural, lacking 6 of the commun's senses ( including love), not minding touching him with no reserve making him turn on... But those charming moments won't last in the drama and soon enough Sifeng will go through too many painful situations, risking his life and bearing so many sufferings in order to protect Xianji and helping her to recover the senses she never had... maybe all this is too much for us and we just feel bored watching Sifeng repeating the same tortured scenes, nearly dying, or crying being so pitiful in masochist hurting scenes and idealised romantic love ( ie episode 20 Sifeng suffers to death because of the cursed love mask effects; ep 27 Sifeng comes to watch his 9 human lives tribulations and we have to bear this with him). To me, if love brings you more pain than happiness, it's not worth it or at least you can't call it love but rather submission to obsession.
Though, this drama has so many beautiful and touching love scenes so well performed and staged. Sifeng and Xuanji are so sincere in expressing love feelings. Sifeng shows so much tenderness and love that you can only be moved by the actor's skills. I have to admit that you have in this drama some of the best love scenes and sweet moments of chinese drama ( for intance episode 15 when Xuanji takes off Sifeng's cursed love mask; ep 28 when Xuanji confesses her love, she knows now what love feelings are and is aware that Sifeng is the one she loves ; ep 30 tremendous episode with high, intense and deep emotions; ep 52 so passionate with a french kiss, so unusual in chinese dramas).
Unusual too the happy ending, well done Sifeng !
I will definitely rewatch this drama not only for Sifeng and Xuanji beautiful interactions but also for those others very interesting characters who bring so much to the drama : Hao Chen, Yuan Lang, Wu Tong, Liu Yihuan and Teng She. No female character ? Come on ! Ok, let's say Sifeng's spiritual pet !
Sure you will enjoy this drama ! I hope you will love most of the actors too !
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