The Blue Whisper: Part 2 (2022)

Visually, musically, emotionally - in Part 2, this show still hit all the right spots!

Like part 1, the audience also had much to enjoy in part 2, but unlike part 1, the lead-up to the ending was not as satisfying.

Echoing my review of part 1, TBW continued to deliver an engaging storyline. Add to that, the most touching song tracks and AMAZING acting from almost every cast member, this drama pulled me in so thoroughly, keeping me on an intense emotional rollercoaster. I was so emotionally invested, rooting for many, including the main couple, and cursing at the antagonists. Yet, I cannot help but feel sympathy for the villains. The story did well in making the audience understand what the characters, including the villains have gone through, the reasons for their actions, and their circumstances.

The story maintained a good pacing and flowed nicely, with each episode never losing its momentum. Having read the novel, a couple of changes in part 2 were for the better, some took away poignant moments for me, and my reaction to other changes was "WTH"?!! Still, I never felt tempted to skip, and I know I will rewatch the entire show once it is properly subbed in English because it was that good.

Also, I have to highlight the beautiful costume designs with their intricate and thoughtful details.

I have nothing but praises for the acting delivered by Dilraba, Ren Jia Lun, Xiao Shun Yao, Christy Guo, Wang Zi Teng, Hu Yi Xuan, Fan Zhen, Ci Sha, and many others. As the show progressed, these talented actors have proven that they have the acting chops to pull off a complex story.

Just when I thought I could not admire Dilraba further, it turned out that I could go up another level. Additionally, I am now a fan of Ren Jia Lun and Xiao Shun Yao. RJL's visuals are not my usual preference, but in this show, in that persona, he's gorgeous and captivated me. As for XSY whose character Lin Hao Qing was so well-written and well-acted, I suffered a strong case of second lead syndrome. Naturally, him exuding sexy manliness the whole time was also a factor.

For me, Wang Zi Teng as Kong Ming who received undeserved criticism for not being good-looking enough, was a great match for Hu Yi Xuan They did have a quirky, adorable chemistry between them. Also, a huge shout-out to Christy Guo who managed to make my blood boil so much, by staying maniacally in character to the very end!

Unfortunately, after building the momentum up so much, the final scenes were choppy and a letdown. The ending led a few to question whether it was an open or happy ending. I think it was clearly and definitely a happy ending.

Perhaps the director, who is known to have produced shows with controversial endings, was hoping to encourage and engage the audience's imagination by going for a conscious artistic act of intentional omission and suggestion. However, after reading the spoilers, I am more convinced that the director made a mistake in cutting out a crucial scene. To me, it was a result of bad editing.

On the whole, though, I highly recommend TBW. The storyline, the settings, the costumes, the choreography, the music, the acting…if I were to consider the show as a whole, it is really one that is worth watching.

Perhaps one day, the director will release a version with an alternate ending, including the cut-out scene. At that time, I will give the show a perfect 10 since it truly deserves that.

For posterity, I have recorded the main tracks here. I hope that they will release the entire album, including the instrumental background pieces.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpzFy3Rzd74
Song: 留白是表白 (More Than Blanks)
Artist: 金志文 (Jin Zhi Wen)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExRgy5Ry3C8
Song: 鮫人之歌 (The Song of the Merman)
Artist: 周深 (Zhou Shen)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_pzD0itRfo
Song：#如你所想 (As You Wish)
Artist：#毛不易 (Buyi Mao)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtKnVuUxCN4
Song: 魚躍而上 (Leaping Fish)
Artist: 薩頂頂 (Sa Dingding)

Read More

This is better than MTC (Mirror a Tale of Twin Cities) at least

This was a nice story, and a fun watch. It is separated into two parts though, so I am going to review this in Part 2 instead of Part 1, my review consists of both part 1 and 2.

While both Mirror: 'A Tale of Twin Cities' and 'The Blue Whisper' have the ML being Merman, I personally love/enjoyed The Blue Whisper story, characters in the overall better. And thanks to 'The Blue Whisper', I am enlightened about Merman LOL, since before all this, I thought Mermaid are all one gender being 'female'. So watching the Blue Whisper is very insigntful.

Also, this is the first time I would say that in terms of drama adaptations, they did a good job following through the plots in the novel, although there are definitely changes between the two, Novel vs Drama, some changes are for the better, some for the worst.

The positive change in the Drama (when compared to the Novel) for me:
- The love between Yunhe and Chang Yi, I love their love better in the drama, where they have Yunhe and Chang Yi shared mutual love/feelings for each other earlier than the novel, because in the novel, Yunhe and Chang Yi didn't get together that early on in the story. I also love the added date between them just before Yunhe "betrayed" Chang Yi to protect him from being captured.

- Li Shu and San Yue love, oh man, I love their love in the drama!! Their story made me fall in love with them!!! In the novel, I didn't feel anything for them the way I did in the drama, so when Li Shu "died" in the novel, it was pretty much 'meh' to me, but in the drama, I actually felt sad and cried, where I didn't want Li Shu to die, and when he came back in the drama; I wanted him to have a happy ending with San Yue, because they deserves that happiness in the end. I consider that a happy ending for them at least in the drama, even when Li Shu forgets, but there's still hope, unlike the novel...

- Kong Ming and Luo Luo - I read that the actor to Kong Ming had a lot of complaints about his look to playing the character? Well, while I do agree he's not handsome, but he's actually better looking than how I imagine his character to be in the novel as I was reading, and in terms of their relationship/love, I prefer and love it better in the drama for sure, and I was like "wow, when they had that intimate kiss" o///o [they had one before Chang Yi and Yunhe LOL, the main pair needs to catch up LOL]

- Jade Pheonix and her lover (sorry I forgot their name) - I actually love Jade Pheonix character, so I was sad with what happened to her in the novel, so I definitely didn't like/support what happened to her in the novel. I hated Shunde so much because of this, so I am thankful this didn't happen in the drama, as a matter of fact, I consider this to be her happy ending with her lover in the drama, which I am glad for.

What I don't like about the change in the drama (when compared to the novel) for me:

- I didn't like in the beginning of the drama, Yunhe character was portrayed to be manipulative, and she have the intention to use Chang Yi to gain San Yue's trust in her help of escape, and when Chang Yi asked Yunhe why she's so nice to him, she replied "It's because I love you", when at that time, she only said it to gain San Yue's trust, so she was using Chang Yi then. I didn't like that in the drama, the novel her was more sincere, where she never thought of wanting to use Chang Yi and make use of Chang Yi's trust there.

- I don't like how they changed Hao Qing's character in the drama, that is definitely a minus appeal to me, in the novel, he sees her like a sister, and I especially didn't like how he was manipulated and controlled by Shunde in the drama like that, especially when in the novel, he wasn't controlled... So yeah, sorry, not my cup of tea for this change...

- I didn't like the added Fox girl (whatever her name was, don't remember), to be added to the LT, it's like we don't already have enough misunderstandings, but at least she became a reasonable character later where she just accepted and wish them happiness.

- I personally didn't like how Yunhe (before she "dies") she chose to go with Hao Qing, because that have hurted Chang Yi, and made him misunderstood her further, and her recklessness had push Chang Yi in a difficult situation later, when she rebounded the fox king's powers and ended in his death... Since they have a war happening, and because of what happened, Chang Yi gave back his powers to that Fox Girl so he doesn't owe her anything, so yeah, I didn't like Yunhe's decisions where she goes with Hao Qing. It's like in Chang Yi's eyes, se chose Hao Qing over Chang Yi. Understanding =/= to liking how that scene was played out.

For the main pairing Yunhe and Chang Yi, I do think they have good chemistry, but if I am going to be honest here, their kisses didn't really make me fangirl for them. Ironically I actually felt more on Kong Ming and Luo Luo intimate kiss and San Yue and Li Shu kiss than compared to Yunhe and Chang Yi. The only time I felt something (like a 'good effort') was (1) the scene when Chang Yi gave Yunhe his spiritual powers so she can survive longer and (2) their wedding night. But I think Allen needs more practice with the kissing scenes since he's good at acting emotional scenes, but not so much on the kissing scenes (don't hate me for saying this, just being honest here), ignoring this though, I do love Chang Yi and Yunhe as a pairing.

I think in the overall, the pairings, I like it better portrayed in the drama when compared to the novel, even when the novel have it's nice moments, but yeah, like I said some changes were for the better, some for the worst, and I have just listed some examples above. I like all the pairings (Li Shu and San Yue ; Kong Ming and Luo Luo ; Jade Pheonix and her lover) ending in the drama better, with the exception to Yunhe and Chang Yi, honestly, to me, I don't mind in a pairing when one side have to wait for the other, I usually find that touching/romantic, however, in The Blue Whisper, I find it just so unnecessary, and just make me go 'What the f*ck' at it. They could have done it so differently, and save all this 'waiting' like in the novel, so in terms of the transition to the ending for Chang Yi and Yunhe, the novel ending tops the drama ending for me. I mean, why oh why did they have to make it the 'tragic route' where Chang Yi have to wait 300 years for Yunhe!!!!! In the novel it was her clone that sacrifice, so Yunhe and Chang Yi can get their happy ending right away, but this???? Omg... And yeah, I mark it down to 9/10 because some changes I didn't like in the drama, and that ending where Yunhe decides to be sealed in with Shunde was one of them, like, are you serious?! You did that much to follow the novel , why can't you just have her clone instead?? And that scene, how she fall down, it felt like a contrast to when Chang Yi fell down the cliff there. The script writers sure is cruel to make Chang Yi wait for her like that...Still, I didn't like how the script writers have Yunhe go down that volcanic pit and Chang Yi sealed her inside with Shunde because imo, it was really, really stupid... They really should have followed the novel instead, I like that part in the novel better... I mean, why do you have to add more pain for Chang Yi/this pairing, and have Chang Yi wait for her for all those long, endless nights?! Haven't Chang Yi (this pairing) suffered enough?! To add onto this, I didn't like it because their ending felt so vague, i.e. they didn't even show us a moment, when Yunhe came back to Chang Yi (came out of that place), and HOW did Yunhe got her mermaid tail, when she's a nine-tail fox??? That wasn't explained, and I am like "HUH??!"

Rewatch Value: This drama, doesn't have the same magical/magnetic pull to make me want to watch the whole thing again after the drama ended, like some dramas do, and to name a few that made me want to rewatch again because I have withdrawal symptoms is: Ancient Love Poetry, Ten Miles Peach Blossom, Eternal Love of Dream, And the Winner is Love, and Love and Redemption.

So for The Blue Whisper, I will say that it's worth rewatching but right now, I'm good, I probably will rewatch this one day, but on the scenes I love, when I have time. Just not now, now, I am watching Who rules the world.

Read More

They died, they didn't die... they died, they didn't die. Did they die or not??

Completed - 5/5/2022

In Part 1, I praised the drama for its beautiful and colorful cinematography and costumes. Part 2 made a 180-degree turn due to its primary setting in the wintery North. We see snowy trees and mountains, frozen lakes and a beautiful house with unique blue lanterns. The wintery scenes are definitely beautiful. However, after a while, I crave colors instead of bright, shining, white backgrounds and black costumes. How I miss the colors in Part 1!

If I base my review solely on the first ⅓ of the drama, I might have given it a 7 or 7.5 rating. The pacing is so slow. After 4 episodes of seeing our FL being so sickly, and talking like she’s half-dead, I became very bored. This lasted for about 8 episodes (too long). I did not like Dilraba’s acting and/or her character in these episodes at all, and I also became annoyed with the voice actress. Of course, this is all very subjective and you might think this is Dilraba’s best acting, as she’s not cute and innocent, like her usual roles.

If Part 1 is all about misunderstandings, then Part 2 is about who can die sacrificing themselves the most. Let’s take turns doing that! Also, did they die or not? How many times did a character die and then not die?

Our leads are not that interesting in Part 2 and I am not really feeling their chemistry. This might be due to the fact that most of the romance happened towards the end of the drama. I am actually liking the other romances. I like the weird and adorable odd couple, and the opposite-attracts couple. I think both couples are more fun to watch and have better chemistry than our main leads. Additionally, there really aren't any annoying characters. There are no evil second leads due to unrequited love not returned! How rare is that in a xianxia drama! I think my favorite character is Shunde Fairy. She’s an interesting and complicated character, and I enjoy Cristy Guo’s acting.

Costumes and accessories continue to shine. Allen Ren and Dilraba continue to look handsome and stunning. Actually, every single actress looks beautiful in this drama. Props to the make-up artists and costume designers. I love the wedding gowns with the ocean theme - scales designs and mermaid tails. Also love the sea animal sky lanterns.

The songs are the same ones as in Part 1. The more I listen to the songs, the more I like them. I think my favorite song in Part 2 is Mao Buyi’s version of 如你所想 (As you thought). The male version, to me, sounds better than the female version.

The CGI in Part 2 seems inconsistent. There are scenes when the graphics are good. But others, such as the fight in the desert between the Head Immortal Master and the Jade Phoenix was very bad. It seems like they run out of money towards the end of the drama for special effects.

Lastly, without going into spoilers, the editing on the ending could have been a lot better. At first glance, the director seems to want viewers to come up with their own explanation. However, are scenes cut due to censorship? Is that intentional? Something seems to be missing. Thanks to MDLers in the comment section, I read the article with the explanation.

It is a pity that English subtitles are not readily available yet. Although this is not my favorite xianxia drama, I think many would enjoy it.

Other Observations:
1. For someone who until recently hasn’t had that many kiss scenes in dramas, Allen Ren surely has many fish kisses here. He's a fish afterall. 😍
2. The secret room with the painting doesn’t seem to be that secretive, since so many got in.
3. Leaders in this drama like to keep plans hidden from others, and then others keep on messing up their plans.
4. Tian Jun (Heavenly Emperor) only has 2 gods to keep him company? Where are the others?

Read More

It pulls you in, but doesn't always keep you there

This is my review of part 1 and 2 in its entirety, not the individual parts.

While I enjoyed the beginning and the show kept me hooked til the end, I do think it missed on a few points.

First, the things I liked: I loved that Yun He was smart and powerful. Many of these shows make the female lead a person that gets herself into trouble but needs help getting out of it, normally by the male lead. Her intelligence, wisdom, and strength made her a fascinating and interesting character.

I also really liked Chang Yi. I felt that his character was very realistically portrayed and he, too, was a powerful, intelligent being. It's rare to find a show that is willing to make the male lead naive and sweet, and it was nice to watch.

Many reviews state the lack of chemistry between the main leads, but I would disagree. I actually felt it to be pretty solid. Not mind-blowing, but good.

As for Hao Qing, it was interesting to see him basically similar to his father (minus the manipulation) towards the end. He was also in a wheelchair, and his attendant was also in love with him. Not sure if I liked his somewhat bittersweet ending, but it wasn't too bad.

The world-building was well done, and while the CGI wasn't always great, I've seen worse!

Our main leads' ending was left open ended, but I felt satisfied.

Now onto the things I didn't like as much.

I honestly disliked how this show treated Shunde. I'm not saying what Shunde was good, in fact I very much hated her, but compared to the other bad guys she felt more two-dimensional. While the other big bad guys got redemption arcs (Lin Cang Lan not being truly evil, he just so happened to be forced into the situation; Ning Qing ultimately sacrificing himself to atone for his sins), she did not. And yes, while we did get some other powerful, good women in this show, the fact that the only evil woman was treated differently than the two other (significant) male antagonists was a bit questionable.

I also really disliked Luo Luo. A lot. I am not a fan of the ditzy, silly best friend who means well but because she can't read the room ends up causing the main leads more trouble. Shows always want to portray this type of character as cute but I just find it immensely annoying. Not to mention the really frustrating "pretty-fication". At the start, she was supposed to be not very attractive (she has freckles and slightly darker skin; apparently this is considered unattractive) but then she finds love and magically loses her freckles and gets lighter skin. Not only am I so tired of the casual racism this trope implies, but also the message that you can't be average-looking to find love.

Overall, a fun watch, but I did occasionally have to use the fast forward button to get past drawn-out parts (or parts featuring Luo Luo).

Read More

meh. fl acting is mid and theres no chemistry

story:
honestly the beginning was decent. storyline was clean and interesting, the romance was cute. and then it got complicated... and like the part where the fl was literally sick for like ten episodes was so boring because that's the only thing that they would show. the end was ok... kinda annoying tbh. also, when i watched the trailer it was giving me be vibes, but this drama barely made me shed a tear. the only times i actually cried was during some situations with the support roles. the main leads don't have chemistry so it's not sad..?
SPOILER:


i hate the fact that literally almost every single relevant person died and they some how came alive again? like sure happy endings yay whatever but it's so unrealistic. the main leads probably "died" like three times each.

acting/cast;
can't go wrong with 任嘉伦, his historical dramas are always good
however i don't rly like 迪丽热巴, her acting isn't that good in my opinion lol... her crying scenes don't really hit the spot, she has no chemistry with the ml... and it's not like this was the first drama i've watched with her in it. i've watched multiple others bcs of the rest of the cast, and her acting has always been kinda disappointing esp cause so many people like her. again this is my opinion, you might love her but that's not how i feel.

music:
毛不易 and 周深!! can't go wrong with any of them., the only reason i gave this a 9 and not a 10 is just because the quality of the drama made the music seem "worse" than other ost's, but the songs are still good, it's just the drama.

rewatch value:
nah i'm good

overall:
i know this drama has been pretty popular recently because of the cast, but it's giving like walmart 琉璃 (love and redemption). although i don't like both this fl and the fl in 琉璃, at least that one was actually sad. the only reason i ended up finishing this one is bc i have nothing else to watch rn LOL, i binged all of 且试天下's aired episodes in one day as well as some other dramas. this one is the only one where i'm like "eh i can stop here it's not that interesting anyways".
do what you will with this information.

Read More

The blue wishper

Don't listen to the haters' reviews, this drama is top 1 as long as the broadcast is clear the quality is also top 1
let achievements show the right path
achievement means being recognized by many people based on data not based on few hater reviews .
Jiyunhe so far the best dilraba character i've ever seen. Her black and white character her acting is on point. allen is also very cool playing two different characters, even the glances in his eyes can make my heart skip a beat, his voice is so beautiful.
and all supporting characters such as sanyue, lishu, kongming, haiqing, shunde, luoluo, often enter the top 15 rankings. show this drama is more than just good

Read More

Beautiful Pain Love Story

Love each other too much but to protect, they even 'the so called torture' each other... hurting the loved feeling for biggest sake, but at the end of the day Yunhe and Changyi pay multiple price for a peace of the whole world, especially Yunhe, even Changyi acknowledged that Yunhe deserve the title more than him as Master.

As a reader of the novel and fans of both Dilireba and Jialun (I could tell truthfully I will never liked a drama because of actor solely bcs I admit I dropped or halted many drama from my fav because of the storyline)

Every character including the side role have potray well by the actor and actress, as expected a good drama would be success when it's about the whole cast that bring every potential in the screen. I'm glad they choose to make use every character in the novel with own function - I mean o+all of them hve own purpose such as the young emperor, in the drama at least he really have good purpose.

For our main CP Yunhe and Changyi, actually to me they have more communication than in the novel, here Changyi show his feeling more than he should. The true meaning of 'Shunde must be very regret to put the rules - make a merman to speak' because Changyi speak too well ahaha especially in second part which is his growth and character development in the highest level. While, nothing more I love Yunhe so much but as in the drama, she protect the whole world thats why she sacrifice so much whilst Changyi protect his loved Yunhe.

I'm happy every CP have happy ending even though the pheonix is die, she still tgt with her loved at the end... and KongMing character is much better in the drama bcs in the novel I shipped Jinsang and XiaoXing and I cant like much of KongMing character in the novel, KongMing in the drama ofc is better and good, he's more cute and less irritate. Jinsang is the best supporter ever!!! Thank you for expand Jinsang character so much in this version~ I wish to mention every character but it' ok.

For our true villain Shunde, no wonder she enter the ranking as well, she's great as villain at the same as pitiful sister too. The last battle of Changyi and Yunhe VS Shunde is the best fighting scene in the whole drama. Changyi and Yunhe both are powerful and willing to chose the world than their own happiness, so glad hero n heroine fight together fair and just... Shunde is indeed crazyyy. Extra, she's beautiful villain xD

anyway, although Chengyu is still bindly loyal until the end of the story, how I wish he could have better ending but it's same, he still die in novel and drama alt in different ways. I quite like his character since in the beginning he still help Yunhe alt he know what kind of ending he will face.

Lin Hao Qing is the most unfortunate character ever although he never die in this drama (as u know many of them hve die several times especially Yunhe and bobcat king LiShu.) Also, no words to say, he's ruthless, he's the best brother (ofc he love Yunhe more than that), he's great leader of Valley Flower, and at least he still have someone by his side. He also sacrifice so much for his valley, awww luckily he's survive right?

lastly, at first I thought fox clan is useless as fans say before, when we international fans only rely from raw when this drama aired first in China. I changed my mind after watched until the end, fox clan isn't useless add on no matter how unsatisfy I am as reader, because they hve own reason. At least, QingYao became mature and lead the north abbys after Changyi left while I understand why KongMing be a new leader for immortal house instead.

and abt the ending it's difficult to shoot so aft the explanation I could accept it. Actually we shouldn't think too much, my own understanding is simple. Why Yunhe growth her tail than be a fox? After she became true Nine tail fox without her power as demon master, when she seal off Shunde inside that larva, she survive under protection of the lamp and don't forget Changyi give her his 'lindan' - if not mistaken again, 300 years... his lindan save Yunhe again so it's not impossible for change to mermaid, she may exhausted her power alr as fox. Of course I still wished they hve more scene for the ending bcs it's too short... but at the same the ending of the novel is the best!

Cry so much but smiling like an idiots whenever watch Yunhe and Changyi scene together in the scene (I dont get why ppl complained? it's only me think Dilireba and Jialun have great chemistry? Not easy to act Yunhe (complex) and Changyi (innocent and kindest to be firm when he need as Master) character.

Changyi Changyi, you're still the kindest hero I ever seen! Yunhe, you must protect his heart xD

Read More

The Long Journey to A More Cohesive Plot

Pros: I'm just going to delve right into this. It was slightly better then part 1, emphases on the slightly. The script was more cohesive and there were less unneeded characters. The plot was actually finally going somewhere. My favorite portion by far was when Yunhe regains her memories in the volcano in episode 15. It was the only part of the entire thing, I kept rewatching many times.

Definitely favorite character out of the entire thing was LHQ or Lin junior as I called him; complicated and tragic man. No matter what, he could never get who he really wanted no matter how much effort he put into it and how much it cost him. But he never gave up trying for what he truly believed in and though not with whom he wanted to be, he was able to live freely in the end. Even though I didn't really like Yunhe (I still liked Yunhe's character in general and evolution in this part) as Ah-Ji because her constant talking to herself and inner monologues gave me a headache, she still had way more chemistry with Lin Junior than with Chang Yi.

Li Shu, San Yue, and the emperor kid evolved nicely and were given their own paths in this story and though Li Shu sacrificed himself for the umpteenth time, he was also able to return to his lady love. Emperor kid really grew both as an emperor and someone decisive and forthright. For those who watched TLB, he was the same actor who played Reba's character's annoying nephew. It was great seeing him in this way better capacity that could showcase his acting skills.

I don't remember all of their names but the ruler chick of North Abyss who had a yen for CY also did way better here then in Part 1. Kong Ming, Bird Deity, Yunhe's guard friend skinny dude as well as Lin junior's aid all were good and/or passable. As mentioned in part 1, immortal master was the best antagonist and I actually liked the actress who played Shunde's other identity as it was more natural then Shunde and felt right for the actress.

The plot though not entirely on the straight and narrow, was a more functional and understandable one as there was finally one set goal with many parts and places to go step by step before accomplishing it. As in Part 1, costumes, CGI, scenery, etc were breathtakingly beautiful. That was the one thing that remained consistent.

Cons: Even with a more cohesive plot, there were many plot holes that just didn't add up. Like how could an already dead Chen Yu resurrect and become part of Shunde's zombie army? The poor man essentially died twice; he was really pitiful but his tunnel vision loyalty to immortal master was his undoing, so though I did like the character, he really didn't change much. How in the world did most of the supposed dead come back to life at the very end? Very weak explanations if any to all of this. Or how were Li Shu and San Yue able to leave the mountain they were trapped in with the Emperor and his masters but the latter three couldn't?

Shunde, Shunde, Shunde....lord almighty what an atrocious villain. Even after she sucked all of that voodoo mask turned terminator with Freddy Krueger's claws' energy, she didn't become a believable villain. She was still a vicious, self-righteous, drama queen, with a massive superiority complex and the "evil" crazy laugh she had didn't help matters. After the loss of the Immortal Master to repentance, there was no way she could replace him. And they did zilch to evolve her.

Chang Yi didn't change in the slightest save for a few moments he smiled in later episodes. The conflicted block of ice who imprisons Yunhe to "torture" her in the beginning, had only two facial features during the entire series; constipated or stoned. I really thought it would be better but not until episode 15 or beginning of 16 did he slightly defrost and not for long periods of time either.

The continuation of the lies, cover ups, deception to protect kept up with just about everyone until literally the last episode of the show and it really messed up the equilibrium of the show. Why couldn't people just be straight forward as that in the end was what ended up being needed? The leads and other solid couples had about 5 to 10 minutes of happiness before something would go wrong. But though the show was supposed to be angsty, you very rarely felt any of that. Yes, when Yunhe sacrificed herself for North Abyss and then later died in CY's arms; but I felt sadder when Lin junior brought her back and she started to drift from him. Such a huge contrast between robot CY and raw Lin junior.

The largest mess up was the ending. As I waited for part 2 to come out, I read the translated chapters/episodes from a site and the ending could have been way better for Yunhe and CY if the directors hadn't cut a very important scene. Though while I feel if just about everyone else came back, Yunhe did too, a lot more could have been relayed had that ending been properly in place. Everyone else got their version of a proper happy ending but the ones who were toughing out this journey from day one were just brushed aside and it was a great injustice to them. Would have been way better had they just killed Shunde (make a big blast of it for emphasis), left North Abyss together and lived in the world with the freedom they both craved since episode 1 and that piece would have come full circle. Scrap the volcano sacrifice and all the other stuff. It would have been much more fulfilling and proper for them both to end like that.

Would I recommend it? If you watched Part 1, then you need to watch this in order to get an understanding of what was going on there, where it went and how it ended. Also better plot and if you're an actor fan of anyone. For me personally, the entire series was disappointing; could have been done way better. The actors deserved that much and so did the audience.

Read More

Disappointing

After watching the disappointing first part, I didn't expect much from the second part, but initially the drama showed signs of recovery. The story remained weak and full of holes, but the dubbing doesn't have as many mistakes as in the first part and the direction managed to get some good scenes, but it sinned horribly in the editing and ended abruptly without any scene that explained the final outcome.
I always really like director Chu Yui Bun's work and look forward to the dramas he directs, but this time he wasn't enlightened. The same happened with the cast, as the performances left a lot to be desired. Ren Jia Lun is responsible for the best scenes in the drama, however, those good scenes are the ones he acts alone. His interaction with the protagonist was very distant and unconvincing, as only the actor showed the emotion of the scene in his eyes.
A drama in which there are three couples in love and none of them feel connected, something has gone wrong.
The CGI of the first part was better than the second part. The costumes in both parts are very beautiful and the soundtrack warms the heart.

Read More

What lol

I’m not even sure where to start… ok well here goes. It may contain spoilers so

(Also this should be renamed to no one works together everyone just sacrifices themselves for the greater good and no one learns from it)
Same issues as part 1 (why are there 2 parts…. ) I felt that the screen writer and director really didn’t communicate well on this. This show could have been great great actors,cgi etc. But instead it’s full of hypocrisy between the storyline and each characters lines and situations. I’m not even sure why they show them “dying “ and why there’s emotions since it seems like they all come back to life to their original self…. Then I’m kinda like well why not sacrifice yourself to save whatever when you know you’re gonna pop right back up.

There’s too many unnecessary side stories , characters and plots. The fox tribe is a waste and annoying. Not even sure why they’re just shown randomly and in so many episodes. Majority of the characters (except yun he )have bipolar since they become the opposite of what they were and trying to achieve in such a short time. Man mental illness is tough without proper medication. The show keeps jumping from one side story to another too. But because there’s so many it takes awhile to get back to one of the earlier side stories. I forgot who these characters were. For example. Zhu Ling lol I was like wait we are not done with him?? Uh still not done ??? Wtf still??? Didn’t he get his bones crushed and received an execution. And zi (I can’t remember but the cousin fox) feng again with the fox tribe. Wtf??! Stop just stop.

The two men says they wants YH to be free and wants to help her yet they just keep her locked up. Even after she “died” and transformed to the fox. LHQ is like alright I want to make sure this time she lives free so let me just put this barrier around her old place. They both seems to want control over her instead of actually giving her what she wants.

In conclusion this should have been Prologue(part 1 to explain all the backstories and flashbacks) then last part mixed with the first with 22 episodes. That’s all you needed.

I basically read the detailed recaps on soompi.com and skipped through a lot of the episodes. Really not necessary to watch it ALL

Don’t even get me started on the rushed no sense ending when they wasted so much time on useless characters

Read More

More episodes please

Dilraba and Ren Jia Lun did not disappoint again. This drama might be my favourite of this year. All the characters, from the lead characters, supporting characters to the villains are so well played, I honestly couldn't ask for a better cast. But of course, like any other dramas, there are some good and bad points.

What I love:
1) The chemistry between the characters, not just the lead characters. Of course, Dilraba and Ren Jia Lun being the amazing actors they are, there is no doubt that their chemistry would be explosive. They acted so well, you would honestly feel every single feeling they are trying to express as their characters in the drama. The one character I feel for the most would be Lin Hao Qing played by Shun Yao. You'd hate him in the beginning, and then you'd forgive him a couple of episodes later. Afterwards, you'll start feeling sad for him and end up just falling in love with him. Friendships, comrades, romance, enemies, they are all played out so well, there's nothing to complain really.

2) Just Dilraba. Not sure if you realized, typically the female lead in a drama would usually be this weak female who needs protection or this tough character who bulldozes her way through all the time. It's rare to see a character like Yun He who is strong headed but not annoying, weak but not pathetic. Sad, yes, but I do love the scenes when she was dying in the first part. She was weak but she wasn't the kind who needed protection at every turn. Dilraba managed to strike a good balance which is why I had nothing to hate about Yun He as a character.

3) The storyline. This is a romance drama, yes, but it's not the typical kind of romance when all you think about is when the couple would get together and what kind of misunderstanding would drive them apart, then getting back together again. I like how the whole story also focus on what started off as a quest to regain freedom to saving the world from evil. The plot and character progression throughout the whole drama were carried out really well.


What I don't love:
1) The gazillion of times one could escape from death. I know, I just said I love how the story progressed but logically speaking, there is just that many times a person can die. Put the characters through torture, sure, but declaring the person dead and having that person resurrect or somewhat "escaped" death that many times cannot be right. Luck played too much role in a lot of these encounters, too much for my liking.

2) CGI can be better. I know this drama is within the fantasy genre but there must be a way to make the CGI look a little bit realistic. Sometimes, it does seem like they are trying too hard. Maybe toning it down a little would be great.

3) The abrupt ending. This leads to my headline - more episodes please. I kind of saw it coming because I knew they won't be able to wrap up properly with so much to cover in merely 2 episodes. It seems like there are a lot of scenes that were cut off at the end. Would definitely prefer more explanation as to when Yun He got out of the volcano, leading to the reunion with Chang Yi.

-----------

Overall, I love the drama. This is one of those dramas which you'd feel some kind of withdrawal after finish watching. Would highly recommend everybody to watch. Just remember to prep a lot of tissues.

Read More