The Gray Area
Crime Crackdown (扫黑风暴) is a crime drama, where the narrative revolves around Li Chengyang (Sun Honglei). Li Chengyang was a policeman, however, he was accused of taking bribes, therefore his reputation was ruined and he was expelled from the police force. After being expelled from the police force, he then becomes involved in the mafia group. The drama then continues on with a group of officials who were sent to Lv Teng to clean up the mess in Lv Teng (crimes that have been in Lv Teng for years - such as illegal gambling, high loans, and so forth). Then cold cases started to get cracked and so on, which will lead to the big ultimate case.What made this drama particularly appealing is the stellar cast and the directing. The cast of this drama is outstanding! For people who have been watching Chinese drama for a long time, I'm sure that you'll be familiar with the faces in this drama. With all the amazing casts, the acting is perfect!! From the main role to the supporting role, every character is portrayed very well done. And Lay did a really outstanding job in this drama, he had a huge improvement in his acting! Secondly, this drama is directed by Wu Bai, I loved his directing in Evil Minds, therefore, I was particularly looking forward to this drama.
The crime cases in this drama are okay. Some were interesting as several cases shown in this drama are based on real-life cases that happened in China. This drama is kinda draggy and it's a slow burn drama - it hints at you about the main goal from the smaller achievements they achieved. However, the small details are not attractive enough to keep you watch it and you might get kinda exhausted in the middle of watching it. In the middle of the drama, you might feel that you are not going anywhere, the story is stagnant. Therefore, it might be kinda taxing to watch it.
This drama production is not the best, but not the worst too. I really enjoyed the colour scheme and grading, with it's prominent shadows and textures. However, the cinematography, directing and editing is just average, there is nothing new and appealing.
As a crime drama, Crime Crackdown is a very good drama in terms of its acting and production. However, the weak and slow-burning narrative makes this drama fall short.
Was this review helpful to you?
Interesting–crime mystery
At first i was interested in watching this drama (not gonna lie) because there was zyx. Crime is my favourite genre and i see most of the actors who played in this drama are veteran actors and i said "oh this drama will be so great".This is my first time reviewing a drama, sorry if i can't review this drama well.
Not gonna lie again at first, i feel confused with the conflict in the earlier episode, like what the fvck does this mean?
I understand that maybe most people are bored of watching this drama. It's okay if that's not ur cup of tea, then there is no need to continue this drama. No need to force it, just watch the drama u want to watch/like.
Or saying 4 billion views because only for watching zyx visuals. Zyx is not the main role, he rarely appears in this drama though.
Like, if i watch just before watching his visuals, then for what i watched this drama until the end and give 9/10?
It's a crime drama, it's not an action drama with a lot of fighting scenes.
I thought Ep. 4 would be stuck and would be boring, but i was wrong! and Li Chengyang made this drama more interesting and more complicated. His acting was so great, his expression–gestures really showed 'everything'.
The more episodes there are in this drama, the more exciting it is.
The more new characters that appear in this drama make this drama more complicated and make all the conflicts in this drama relate to each other.
When i was watching ep. 18 (if i'm not mistaken) i saw on twitter that this drama got a rating of 8.0 on douban and i was like "ah really? ?" but after watching episode 20, i got it why this drama got a rating until it hits that number.
I didn't think this drama would have lots of twists. Interesting indeed.
Of course, the plot of this drama is really good.
While watching this drama, i as a viewer, feel 'invited' to think about solving the complicated problems that are interconnected in this drama and while watching this i have mixed feelings, sometimes angry–sometimes sad.
Maybe some people will say this to me "you rated this drama at a high rate because of zyx" idc lol, cuz i rlly rlly enjoyed this drama.
Worth a watch for sure:DD
Was this review helpful to you?
Exciting and will keep you on your toes
This drama was one of the most popular dramas in China of 2021. I believe that it has deserved it.The plot of Crime Crackdown is not unheard of before, however, the fact that it is a real adaptation of real crimes is terrifying. This drama wasn't really scary in a *jump scares* way, but gave me goosebumps all the way through. Throughout the show, you will cry out in anger at the villains, cheer for the main characters and sit there in despair as you watch these terrible events happen, and be reminded that cases like rape and murder happen in real life. It definitely brings out your emotions! Not kidding, but I swear I wanted to reach into the screen and punch some characters' faces off at some point :(
The acting is literally amazing. Don't be scared for cringy acting because all the actors did so well! They are all experienced actors so you won't be put off. I know a lot of people are concerned if Yixing's acting is watchable but I can confidently say that he fit right in! (I especially enjoyed his fighting scenes!)
The plot was done pretty nicely overall, apart from some characters which I thought could've been developed more. However, some scenes might have been cut off so I do understand.
There are also lots of lighthearted moments in the show! The humor is there and the characters are very loveable. I feel like Lin Hao's character was a nice distraction from the heavier scenes and brought some lightness.
Also, at the end of every episode there are montages paying tribute to policement which I thought was so heartwarming :) ! So thank you to all of our hardworking police! The light will always win!
Overall I would HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this drama if you're looking for some action and mystery, good plot, and fantastic acting! I think that this is a must watch even based off some of the cases in this drama as you really learn a lot!
Thanks for reading this review (and help like it pls!)
Was this review helpful to you?
It was slow
It was drawing, and literally passed out watching the 3rd episode.Not for me.
I think they were trying to be edgy, but sadly with all the censorships and limitations for these crime thriller dramas. It would never come into fruitarian. They can show tough but it has no teeth to it, just nibbling along the lines and backing away if it gets too close to the line.
Also each episode seemed slow and dragging of having the ML trying to get his revenge in the slowest way. All talk and barely any action to invoke fury.
I came to watch cause of Lay, and even he couldnt save this series for me to dropping this drama pretty early.
Was this review helpful to you?
