This is a brilliant show. The gaming-world Pangu is so thoroughly made and it feels like being in a fantasy world as good and interesting as the Harry Potter universe. It’s that good. I loved the degree of imagination that the writer(s) had while creating this story. It comes close to how some of the games I’ve played are constructed. It’s like the writers combine World of Warcraft, Diablo and Avatar. What a wonderful idea.
In game-themed shows we normally get a story that is mainly situated in a historical setting and a FL who meets a prince and falls in love. This is so much better. What I love most in this show is the alternation between RL and VR. It’s kind of like logging - using the interface of Avatar - in and out of a game like “World of Warcraft” or “Diablo” - getting and completing quests/missions, doing battles and receiving rewards like items and skills. We also get a story about “body-swapping” - but at a whole different level than most shows with this theme.
The level of imagination is awesome. The cloaking device was awesome and the scenes so well constructed that I was swept into the story biting my nails in excitement. Brilliant.
Are there any plot holes? Of course there is but none that ruins the show.
I hesitated starting this show because there are 36 episodes and I feared that there would be draggy scenes and a lot of fillers - but there really isn’t. I ended up thinking that we could really use a season two of this.
Only a few things bothered me but one thing that baffles me is since this has a lot of animations and extensive graphics there is still a scene where ML and 2ML are on horsebacks in RL that is so bad that you can see it’s made with a screen and edited as a kind of close up shot (from waist up). How did that get through the quality check?
Character wise:
I loved that all the characters were realistic and no one is only good or bad. As in real life we are all flawed and sometimes take the wrong path. I personally don’t believe that our life is predestined. I believe that we all have the ability to choose which way to go - sometimes we get lost but there is always a way to find the right path again.
A character that did annoy me pretty much from the start was Zhang Yun Er (girl in love with Lin Feng). Her pouting irritated me and made her look (and act) like a spoiled teenager - not a pretty sight. But I have to admit that I changed my view of her and the things that happened to her made her one of the biggest victims in this show. No one should be treated like that. Luckily she came out alright on the other side, finally grown up.
Acting wise:
This show is filled with great actors not only the main couple but all the primary cast. More than one of these actors play two versions of themselves - and they really nail it. Xiao Yan (FL) especially manages to show us which person she is by using body language and micro expressions. What fun she is to watch.
Only thing I didn’t like that much was that despite the really good chemistry between the leads, their kisses seemed a little awkward and a bit forced? Maybe it’s just me but they were little more than pecks on the lips. Maybe they had to be like that since the show is lighthearted and would have to be rated out of the main (young) viewer-group if they were too hot.
Anyway, if you love the gaming theme and are a sucker for love, this is a definite “Must Watch”.