Historical / Costume C-Dramas

wuxia/xianxia/historical fiction dramas all mixed in this list, in the order in which i've watched them.

always on the hunt for shows with smart/strong characters, happy endings, found family tropes

jia ern Aug 2, 2023

40 Titles 1 Love

0% Watched

Report

Sort By: Author's Order

jia ern's Rating

Your Rating

1. Who Rules the World

Chinese Drama - 2022, 40 episodes

8.5
- both smart & strong leads, mature relationship, cool action scenes
- after my rewatch : it's an ambitious show weaving in the martial art world, inner court politics / fight for the crown AND tension between kingdoms -- in that quest for impressive world-building, in terms of characters, some antagonists became boring because they were repetitive / flat. BUT the dynamics and skills of the leads still made me enjoy this!
2. The Untamed

Chinese Drama - 2019, 50 episodes

8.0
- appreciated the costumes, action scenes, showcase of erhu & guqin
- had skipped/fast-forwarded a few subplots
3. Legend of Fei

Chinese Drama - 2020, 51 episodes

7.5
- strong FL, funny ML, mature relationship, cool action scenes
- found family, happy ending
- it got draggy at some parts, which I skipped/fast-forwarded through
4. Maiden Holmes

Chinese Drama - 2020, 32 episodes

8.5
- another one of my favourites, with smart & strong leads, mature relationship
- conflicts (e.g identity reveals) only last a short while, which is fair enough
- found family, happy ending
5. The Imperial Coroner

Chinese Drama - 2021, 36 episodes

7.5
- smart leads, FL gives scientific autopsy reports -- well done to scriptwriters
- didn't like the huge difference in power dynamics the leads had though, even with the mature communication
- found family, happy ending
6. A Girl Like Me

Chinese Drama - 2021, 40 episodes

8.0
- smart ML, strong FL -- just wished FL was less impulsive
- cool action scenes, supportive family
- watched for Neo Hou -- couldn't take him seriously after WWWY cuz of the voice dubbing in this one, but I understand audiences prefer deep voices for serious characters
7. The Killer Is Also Romantic

Chinese Drama - 2022, 18 episodes

8.0
- strong leads, cool action scenes, not too complex of a plot
- some acting was a bit stiff but overall decent for a mini drama
- happy ending
8. Love Like the Galaxy: Part 1

Chinese Drama - 2022, 27 episodes

7.5
- interesting dynamic between the leads -- despite the status difference, I did not feel like the ML was too high up like the one in Imperial Coroner
- can see the FL's growth/maturity
- fast forwarded the heavy palace politics as usual
9. Love Like the Galaxy: Part 2

Chinese Drama - 2022, 29 episodes

8.0
- shows even more of the morally grey characters
- brilliant acting
- satisfying/happy ending
10. Back from the Brink

Chinese Drama - 2023, 40 episodes

8.5
- strong & smart FL, righteous
- ML also strong
- humour throughout series made it less hard to finish
- happy ending
11. A Dream of Splendor

Chinese Drama - 2022, 40 episodes

8.0
- smart & strong leads, challenge social hierarchy
- pretty sceneries & costumes
- pacing was good until misunderstandings (between friend group & leads) which dragged for a bit which caused me to skip like 5 episodes
12. The Blood of Youth

Chinese Drama - 2022, 40 episodes

9.0
- interesting characters w/ diverse personalities & missions!
- 'soul land' vibes with the martial arts/ cultivation (powers etc), as well as found family/camaraderie
- pacing of plot was so well done, i could also follow the politics with no problems, didn't skip any episodes
- surprising, entertaining comedy relief moments
13. Mysterious Lotus Casebook

Chinese Drama - 2023, 40 episodes

7.5
- love watching chengyi act but he do be always acting in angsty roles. pls is there a happier drama he's in yet
- melancholic vibes throughout the show cuz lead is a dying man :') ofc it's not all sad, more bittersweet/ retiree vibes AHAHA
- the case solving started to get repetitive/ drag a bit at the halfway mark
14. Joy of Life

Chinese Drama - 2019, 46 episodes

8.5
- good balance of humour & seriousness, politics not overly complicated
- righteous ML. Though playful sometimes, he's still smart
- season 2 where are u
15. A Familiar Stranger

Chinese Drama - 2022, 18 episodes

8.5
- pretty good mini-drama, i liked the pacing (1 ep is only 10-15 mins)
- i'm sure there's plotholes but i didn't think too much of it, was a good lighter watch & the acting/visuals was better than expected
- love the relationship & trust between the leads
16. Sword Snow Stride

Chinese Drama - 2021, 38 episodes

7.5
- once again enjoyed zhang ruo yun's character -- clever, fun, multidimensional
- has a mix of humour/ comedy relief moments in it
- started strong BUT middle episodes onwards started to drag a lot :(
17. Lost You Forever

Chinese Drama - 2023, 39 episodes

8.0
- started watching this for the cinematography / actors (which was the best part of this drama i would say)
- i hate multiple love interest plots so skipped a lot of jing's scenes haha, but i would say each love interest were quite fleshed out
- i do wish there was more time spent in world building e.g. the scenes where chishui feng long is explaining the tribes / clans etc cuz i'm a bit confused about that part of the plot
- not as tragic as i expected (side eye for u, til the end of the moon)
18. Wuliang

Chinese Movie - 2020

8.5
- pretty solid acting from both leads, concise storyline with interesting twists
- wished it was a BIT longer though with more power/fight scenes
- happy ending
19. My Decoy Bride

Chinese Drama - 2023, 24 episodes

7.5
- strong/smart leads
- pretty good acting, videography, action scenes, for a minidrama
- politics wasn't too complicated
20. Zhang Gong Zhu Zai Shang

Chinese Drama - 2022, 27 episodes

8.0
- FL is both beauty & brains
- pretty decent acting, fight choreo, videography + nice costuming for a project that was meant for a platform like tiktok
- the skips between scenes are a bit fast though. obviously not for any big plots, the plot is the leads' relationship
- so it's a good quick lighter binge
21. Dong Lan Xue

Chinese Drama - 2023, 30 episodes

7.5
- once again, pretty good costumes/props/action scenes for a tiktok-esque platform
- leads' chemistry was better in ZGZZS
- plot was more intense than i expected
22. Story of Kunning Palace

Chinese Drama - 2023, 38 episodes

8.5
- 90% of plot is politics, but for some reason, i found this one really interesting. Balance of action scenes, pacing was done well, didn't focus too much on leads bickering back & forth (side eye @ Wonderland of Love)
- reminded me of Love like the Galaxy, but with even smarter / more mature leads
- also had Lost You Forever type of multiple love interests... BUT I REALLY LIKED ALL OF THEM HERE UGH
- I especially liked how this FL here picked herself up setback after setback, showing her strength through actions, rather than the Lost You Forever FL who mostly just spoke about her hardships but then became weak after not succeeding with Jing
23. What's Wrong with My Princess

Chinese Drama - 2023, 32 episodes

8.0
- acting was meh but the costumes/cinematography was good
- smart FL, wished we saw more of her fighting skills too though
- decently done enemies-to-lovers & short drama
24. The Deliberations of Love

Chinese Drama - 2023, 24 episodes

8.0
- another decent short drama to pass time. FL wasn't too annoying
- definitely relationship focused rather than on big plots
25. The Legend of Shen Li

Chinese Drama - 2024, 39 episodes

8.5
- i usually avoid xianxia BUT here are the reasons why i still gave this a chance AND ENDED UP ENJOYING IT:
- there's a lean towards the mortal world like Lost You Forever, less ridiculous yapping amongst immature ancient deities
- SLOW BURN AHHH with strong, smart, mature characters !!!
- no angsty numerous lifetime arcs thank goodness
- no serious multiple love interests HAHA
- decent cgi, fight scenes
- happy ending!
26. Secrets of the Shadow Sect

Chinese Drama - 2024, 24 episodes

8.0
- surprisingly good acting! (not just by short drama standards -- these actors could be in those standard ones for sure)
- good quality fight scenes, costumes, sceneries etc too
- has the ZGZZS dynamic but the plot is a lil more complex
- satisfying binge
27. Thousands of Years of Love

Chinese Drama - 2024, 22 episodes

7.5
- bite-sized xianxia with the magic, diff lifetime plot (human realm) etc, but minimal angst with happy ending!
- although the plot did give me whiplash AHAHA, I appreciated the chemistry of the leads and their characters not being too annoying
- so overall it was a satisfying binge
28. Blossoms in Adversity

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.5
- i prefer action/fantasy over just business/family type of historical dramas cuz the frustrations/conflicts are too close to home for me lol like i can do 'the world is collapsing' but can't do family bickering AHAHA
- but this was not bad, really liked the leads' communication
- also this cast is full of eye candies XD
29. Joy of Life Season 2

Chinese Drama - 2024, 36 episodes

8.0
- i do miss xiao zhan but hot take - Wu Xingjian did his character justice
- interesting, realistic, complex characters. enjoyed the imperial examination episodes the most
- of course was very happy to see Wu Zhu again ehe
- much more long term scheming, court politics type of plot. Excited for the action packed plot of season 3
- colour grading improved!
30. The Double

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.0
- enjoyed watching Wang Xing Yue take on a scheming role!
- stakes were pretty high & intense in this one - poor female lead could not catch a break AT ALL
- so this was less bingeable + the subplots (especially the jiang family drama) reminded me of how Mysterious Lotus Casebook dragged at some parts
- also, the director's close up zooming / camera angles were a bit dizzying lol
31. The Princess Royal

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.5
- appreciated how the leads eventually communicated + the slow burn was done well! though i think the su rong qing didn't need so many redemption points / excuses repeated over and over
- loveeee smart characters + the side characters were fleshed out too!
- court politics weren't overly complicated - easy to follow
- Zhang Ling He was such an eye candy in this - also his character here is my fave following the one he acted in Maiden Holmes
32. Dashing Youth

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.5
- really loved the scenes of the 8 martial brothers together, loved the camaraderie in the academy setting -- the found family trope will forever be my fave. Wished they had more scenes together :(
- appreciated the lightheartedness of this show, just like the Blood of Youth -- I know some people complain about it being 'childish' or 'just filled with eye candies' in certain episodes, but I already knew the style coming into this -- the cliché tropes like the 'chosen one' / hero's arc etc didn't bother me
- also this is CGI done well, so I didn't mind the high fantasy aspect rather than proper fight choreography. Sometimes I just want to watch superpowers XD
- BUT the time jump in ep 33 was jarring ngl, wished there was more transition
- did have to refer back to Blood of Youth cast & characters etc to keep track -- sooo may characters
33. Melody of Golden Age

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.0
- smart leads! A bit too much of info dump at the beginning (case solving, side characters, court politics) but it gets less confusing later on
- pacing is a bit slow + characters have a slow burn, so I did watch this drama on faster speed haha & skipped the relationship conflicts (ep 37)/ subplots cuz i have no more patience to deal with those LOL (side eye @ Love like the Galaxy)
- overall, quite decent besides the ODD CHOPPY SCENE JUMPING CUTS from ep 27 onwards
34. Fateful Love

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

7.5
- LOVE strong & smart leads - really liked both their personalities
- didn't really know the cast, but the acting was decent!
- fun watch - appreciated the balance of action with politics (those dramas that just focus on investigation are a bit heavy for me sometimes)
- did skip many episodes tho oops - this would've been better paced as a mini drama
35. The Rise of Ning

Chinese Drama - 2024, 40 episodes

8.5
- family politics isn't my fave historical genre but SMART LEADS made it interesting
- i knew the leads weren't actually real siblings so was not worried about the whole potential incest AHAHHA but yeah it's still tricky to transition love interests from fake siblings to lovers
- watched for Zhang Wan Yi (a bit stiff in my opinion), was a bit meh with Ren Min at first but her character was actually not annoying in this one (though her voice took a while getting used to)
- the scenes of FL @ the Wei home with the Duke were so sweet :') made me tear up
36. New Life Begins

Chinese Drama - 2022, 40 episodes

8.0
- watched for Bai Jing Ting
- i prefer smarter, more confident female leads so this FL wasn't my fave but at least she wasn't completely a bimbo
- some episodes were a bit draggy though
- overall, i liked how there was a mix of female friendship, court politics, action, humour
37. Destined

Chinese Drama - 2023, 40 episodes

8.0
- hello again Bai Jing Ting! Slaying comedy, angst, action scenes. Also him and Liu Xue Yi in one show??? AHHH
- i hate couples bickering so the first ~6 episodes were slow/annoying for me but it picked up after
- this show's ambition in incorporating comedy, business, war, court politics, starting a new dynasty, reminded me of the complexity of Who Rules the World -- it's hard to pull off. The court politics was especially frustratingly stupid and unnecessary
- they should have ended around Ep 28 after the war
- at least there's my fave trope -- THE COUPLE STAYING TOGETHER FACING WHATEVER LIFE THREW AT THEM
38. Wrong Carriage, Right Groom

Chinese Drama - 2023, 24 episodes

8.0
- finally Tian Xi Wei's character had skills (martial arts) to backup her straightforward nature here. LOVE FLs who can fight!
- also love capable leads who are both brains & brawn
- the romance of both couples happened really quickly but i didn't mind it after watching several slow burn shows
- though there were several plot holes, it was a quick, fun watch
39. Love Game in Eastern Fantasy

Chinese Drama - 2024, 32 episodes

8.0
- LOVE these type of well done cgi, magic powers & fight scenes, yet not neglecting a solid plot & multidimensional characters type of wuxia!!!
- Ding Yu Xi looked so good here
- was a bit skeptical of the FL cuz i could not continue with Love Between Fairy & Devil... a bit less annoying here, and definitely more tolerable than the FL in Romance of Tiger and Rose
- skipped ep 18 & 19 cuz unnecessary conflicts, also the whole identity arc ep 26-30 was a bit boring too
40. Fangs of Fortune

Chinese Drama - 2024, 34 episodes

8.0
- knew this was going to be a heavier show but upon knowing the special episode ending isn't 100% sad (more like The Starry Love, open hopeful ending), i decided to give this a try just for the cast!
- In saying that, DO NOT get attached to any character (I searched up spoilers beforehand so I could mentally prepare myself LOL)
- the styling for everyone was so good - this show definitely is more visually stunning than anything though cuz there's several plot holes
- i can see why people say the pacing is slow, cuz there's WAYYY TOO MUCH dialogue. Wished they had more action but were they saving on CGI costs haha (if so, they should've had fewer episodes)
- sometimes background music also too loud
- overall it's decent time filler that does the job if you want an eye candy, magic power feast