asmitha chandini
INDIA
Best chinese fantasy drama
The idea was fresh, and the drama had its cute moments, and I appreciate it that for once a Chinese fantasy drama 1) didn't drag for 30+ episodes and 2) did not have a needlessly sad or open ending. I also liked the main actress. Her acting was conventional, but felt spontaneous and she really gave life and a specific personality to her character.
This said, the script had many holes. The parents appear or disappear from the story, they don't seem fazed by many inappropriate or unusual things but accept everything lightly. At the end, they and we don't even know what their son will be doing, where will he staying and how will he be earning his living. The female villain of the beginning suddenly reflects on herself and changes from black to white. Many "rules" of the fantasy world were not explained properly, and some new ones were added at the last moment when it was convenient just to solve a plot problem. What the orbs could and couldn't do, in which circumstances the creature gets inside or can get out of the orb, what are their healing powers and their space travel powers, how long had some of the characters been out of their orbs, how did they find the suitable body and so on and so forth. It was very confusing, not well-explained (I've watched about 300 dramas so far, and I don't consider myself stupid).
The cherry on the cake was the finale, which provided a solution which didn't come organically from the plot, and from what we'd been told so far, but by introducing yet another "new" property /rule we had been told nothing about, like a Deus ex Machina. Just like in "About Time", in "Angel's Last Mission: Love", "Mew, The Secret Boy". Lazy, lazy writers.
Not to mention the tired tropes we were served towards the end.
Moreover, the acting - with the exception of the FL - was really, really bad. This time it isn't overacting but rather underacting. The male lead most of the time had a poker face (yeah, he was trying to be cold and indifferent and cool, I get it, but it gets old real quick) and he never studied the mannerisms of a cat. Even the hiss was just a "hu" sound. His little licks were good, to be fair.
The second lead was placid and impassible like a Buddha, and so was the other second lead (the sidekick). Generally these men wore such serene expressions that made me want to go to sleep. Is that a thing for Chinese male actors? The girls are very lively to the point of being annoying and the men are like statues. I was reminded of the "acting" of Edward Lai, the equally Buddha-like but much prettier ML of "A Little Thing Called First Love".
All in all, as Chinese dramas go, it wasn't that bad. I've seen worse. I was able to watch it to the end without too many problems. Which is a rare occurrence for me. So if you want something super-light which doesn't engage your brain cells too much, for when you're tired or before going to bed, it can deliver. But it could have been much, much better.
This said, the script had many holes. The parents appear or disappear from the story, they don't seem fazed by many inappropriate or unusual things but accept everything lightly. At the end, they and we don't even know what their son will be doing, where will he staying and how will he be earning his living. The female villain of the beginning suddenly reflects on herself and changes from black to white. Many "rules" of the fantasy world were not explained properly, and some new ones were added at the last moment when it was convenient just to solve a plot problem. What the orbs could and couldn't do, in which circumstances the creature gets inside or can get out of the orb, what are their healing powers and their space travel powers, how long had some of the characters been out of their orbs, how did they find the suitable body and so on and so forth. It was very confusing, not well-explained (I've watched about 300 dramas so far, and I don't consider myself stupid).
The cherry on the cake was the finale, which provided a solution which didn't come organically from the plot, and from what we'd been told so far, but by introducing yet another "new" property /rule we had been told nothing about, like a Deus ex Machina. Just like in "About Time", in "Angel's Last Mission: Love", "Mew, The Secret Boy". Lazy, lazy writers.
Not to mention the tired tropes we were served towards the end.
Moreover, the acting - with the exception of the FL - was really, really bad. This time it isn't overacting but rather underacting. The male lead most of the time had a poker face (yeah, he was trying to be cold and indifferent and cool, I get it, but it gets old real quick) and he never studied the mannerisms of a cat. Even the hiss was just a "hu" sound. His little licks were good, to be fair.
The second lead was placid and impassible like a Buddha, and so was the other second lead (the sidekick). Generally these men wore such serene expressions that made me want to go to sleep. Is that a thing for Chinese male actors? The girls are very lively to the point of being annoying and the men are like statues. I was reminded of the "acting" of Edward Lai, the equally Buddha-like but much prettier ML of "A Little Thing Called First Love".
All in all, as Chinese dramas go, it wasn't that bad. I've seen worse. I was able to watch it to the end without too many problems. Which is a rare occurrence for me. So if you want something super-light which doesn't engage your brain cells too much, for when you're tired or before going to bed, it can deliver. But it could have been much, much better.
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