Naomi Necro
United States
Cerebral, exciting, and easily one of the best Cdramas out there.
I don't think I can properly convey how incredible this series was.
It was intense, cerebral, stunningly gorgeous in set and costume design, and viscerally moving.
The OST and strongly emotive ensemble acting catapulted every scene into an experience that made me feel physically there with them. I'm at a loss for words. This series introduced me to a few actors I'd seen but wasn't very familiar with, namely Jackson Yee, Zhou Yi Wei, Zhao Wei, and Lei Jia Yin. All incredible actors with high expectations to meet such masterfully crafted and painstakingly intricate costumes and set pieces. How heartbreaking would it have been to have such a visually beautiful series with flatlining actors? They all met their benchmarks and then some. I want to place extra praise on Zhou Yi Wei, whose charismatic and deeply complex character made me struggle with whether I wanted to root for him or condemn him, despite his crime being so wholeheartedly evil in its scheming. Jackson Yee is so young, yet I felt every emotion behind his nuanced portrayal as Chief Li Bi. I especially liked the last 15 episodes as he tried to hold onto every last thread, even as the world around him continued to unravel. His convictions were steadfast and admirable. I also like the historical backstory between him and the Crown Prince. It was very interesting (and pretty obvious) once you watched the show while aware of how "close" they were. Even the colors that are worn between them (red and green) had symbolic meaning.
I don't think I exhaled for the first 20 episodes. The action, strategy, and choreography between each chase within Chang'an were something I've never seen before. I literally had to stop my husband as he walked by to rewind the scene where Commander Zhang chased the Wolven Squad member riding on horseback with the watchtower's aid so he could watch *how fricken cool* that whole sequence went down. The codes, the foot messengers, the smoke bombs and smoke arrows, the watchtower drums - It was all *so* intimidating and *so* cool to watch unfold. I'm so impressed.
This was easily one of the best CDRAMAS I've ever watched. I watched from start to finish, without skipping through and with bated breath. I can't recommend it enough.
It was intense, cerebral, stunningly gorgeous in set and costume design, and viscerally moving.
The OST and strongly emotive ensemble acting catapulted every scene into an experience that made me feel physically there with them. I'm at a loss for words. This series introduced me to a few actors I'd seen but wasn't very familiar with, namely Jackson Yee, Zhou Yi Wei, Zhao Wei, and Lei Jia Yin. All incredible actors with high expectations to meet such masterfully crafted and painstakingly intricate costumes and set pieces. How heartbreaking would it have been to have such a visually beautiful series with flatlining actors? They all met their benchmarks and then some. I want to place extra praise on Zhou Yi Wei, whose charismatic and deeply complex character made me struggle with whether I wanted to root for him or condemn him, despite his crime being so wholeheartedly evil in its scheming. Jackson Yee is so young, yet I felt every emotion behind his nuanced portrayal as Chief Li Bi. I especially liked the last 15 episodes as he tried to hold onto every last thread, even as the world around him continued to unravel. His convictions were steadfast and admirable. I also like the historical backstory between him and the Crown Prince. It was very interesting (and pretty obvious) once you watched the show while aware of how "close" they were. Even the colors that are worn between them (red and green) had symbolic meaning.
I don't think I exhaled for the first 20 episodes. The action, strategy, and choreography between each chase within Chang'an were something I've never seen before. I literally had to stop my husband as he walked by to rewind the scene where Commander Zhang chased the Wolven Squad member riding on horseback with the watchtower's aid so he could watch *how fricken cool* that whole sequence went down. The codes, the foot messengers, the smoke bombs and smoke arrows, the watchtower drums - It was all *so* intimidating and *so* cool to watch unfold. I'm so impressed.
This was easily one of the best CDRAMAS I've ever watched. I watched from start to finish, without skipping through and with bated breath. I can't recommend it enough.
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