Second cp stole the show
Love my toxic couple, Gong Shangjue and Shangguang Qian. I need more of them!!!! Every scene between them was peak tension and drama. Also this is the first drama that made me change my mind about Esther Yu (couldn't stand her character in LBFAD) but in this drama she was really good as quiet but sharp Yun Weishan. I love the scenes between Yun Weishan and Shangguang Qian, I wish there was more of their tense, 'keeping each other on your toes' dynamic and scenes.The pacing is super uneven - starts off slow, drags like crazy in the middle with the boring back hill/three tests arc, and intense and heart stopping in the last big battle arc. That ending hurts me, S2 please ? did my girl SGQ lie about her pregnancy like she lied about almost everything else or was she telling the truth?!
This is also one of the most visually beautiful shows! Almost on par with the films I used to analyze for film class.
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Curiosity is the biggest bait
[this is more of an after thought than a full review]This drama has Guo Jing Ming (director/screenwriter) written all over it making it a double edged sword from start to finish.
As someone who only found out about the existence of c-drama during the Pandemic, his work had a sense of exciting familiarity from the get go. The way he uses visual story telling and symbolism reminded me of some of my favorite movies/shows growing up. I have yet to find another Chinese Director or writer who is able to evoke that feeling in me.
Visually this drama really is impressive. I have a massive soft spot for dark, goth-vibe movies and shows. Combine that with the bad-ass BGM when the characters were introduced and the carefully crafted visual storytelling ... ah I love it!
The more dramas I watch, the more drama-fatigue I get and it's hard to watch anything from start to finish because everything becomes so predictable. But for the first time in a long time I watched episode after episode being excited about what happens next. I could not have guessed it and that made it a really good watch for me.
Instead of thinking of it as FL, ML, SFL, SML, TML,... It was quite clear (to me) that this drama has multiple mains and every story is equally as important. Although it begins quite ambiguous, it becomes more and more evident that among all the leading characters there's no one who is really a villain. Everyone's ambitions are justifiable and not born out of greed. This solidified my initial impression that this is a story of many, not of just two.
But unfortunately the story of first CP dragged along after having a very good start. Any sense of chemistry that was there eventually fell into a slumber as their story became more and more lukewarm. The intense stares and slow mo walking past-each-other scenes early on quickly ceased to exist and in my opinion this is what gave the second CP the chance to shine even brighter because they kept the intensity up. ZY was introduced as the spoiled son that spends a lot of time hanging out at the dance house (brothel?), likes to drink and pretends to be weaker than he actually is. He often rebelled against his father and did not hesitate to yell that he will leave. Everything about his introduction had me believed he would at some point reveal his true character and show every one his wits especially after the tattoo scene, however he and YS were gradually reduced to being the safe option in order for the more complex characters to go about their story. After all you cannot have your bread buttered on both sides.
GSJ and GZY had such epic introductions, with epic instrumental that is not commonly used by c-dramas and their styling was also much better than that of the ML, who sometimes looked like his make up was wet paint.
The brothers reminded me of a duo of wolves, so calculated but also deeply complex and their dynamic was amazing. In comparison ZY fell short on so many levels and became the SW although GSJ was much more qualified and long term would have been more respected and feared by outsiders. Thinking about ZY ten years down the line... I cannot help but to suspect that the reputation of Gong will become less and less feared. Selfishly though I must admit this provides GSJ with a tiny chance of freedom, that he unlikely is to take willingly but if the circumstances are right I believe he could have his own drama about how he leaves the Gong family, despite having an undying sense of loyalty towards them. I have no doubts was the situation flipped YZ would not hesitate and leave to be with YSS... but doesn't it sound more interesting if it was the so-sure-about-his-place character that ended up leaving the mountain? - Wishful thinking I know.
Not being able to have multiple deeper, darker main characters is something I have noticed in every c-drama that attempted this so far - guess this is where Censorship comes into play. At this point I don't think I'll ever get see a 10/10 drama from China because only the most dark and twisted (love) stories can get such a rating from me.
GSJ, GZY and SSQ were the most interesting part of this drama. She was thrown into a lion's den and of the two assassins, her mission was much trickier and therefore so much more exciting. We only got glimpses but I believe these three could have their own drama, making it a push-and-pull game of wits and raw feelings. I would not want it to be ruined by idol romance but rather make it a dark romance. I'm kinda fed up with healthy or realistic relationships in dramas, it's fictional so give me all the borderline toxicity. I wasn't walking around in a "Mrs. Salvatore" hoodie for years because I liked Matt, lol. (vampire diaries).
The story of these 3 had an even flow and from all the characters I found theirs could be the perfect background story for a season 2. Yet I did wish we had gotten more scenes of them taking a (dangerous) liking to each other.
But I really didn't like how they schemed against her near the end. It wasn't until then, that SSQ was singled out as the only antagonist of the four/five. YZ did not tell her about the fortnight flies and she also ratted her out to the others, which totally took away the element of surprise and potential for a great reveal scene. I was actually looking forward to that a lot and I'd almost say while watching it was one of my biggest disappointments.
My favorite scenes were early on when GSJ was riding a horse in the dark and the camera films from above and then through an open gate as he rides past.. and a little earlier GZY being on the roof to stop ZY - just EPIC. You already get the clear feeling that these two are very different from your usual drama characters and they delivered 100%.
--BIG SPOILER--
I read up on the final scene and it's interesting how on Chinese internet the interpretation is that SSQ's life ended since he saw her standing on water. Previously only for-sure dead characters were 'seen' by the leads, so the fact that he imagined seeing her could hint at that she is no longer alive. On the contrary on mdl, reddit, etc everyone is certain she is alive since she was seen in a garden tending to the flowers.
-- CONCLUSION--
In the beginning it all felt like one epic production and I could envision it continuing in so many ways. Even now I still think if they were ever to make this a multi-season show, they could really pull the wheel around and make it amazing. Somehow I can't shake the feeling that it felt like the backstory of something greater. Knowing how this is most likely a stand alone drama, I do feel let down but in my mind there is no doubt that the story continues and the best is yet to come. (small hope is that the screenwriter/director has multiple works that have more than one part)
As I said, it truly feels a prologue. In a perfect world (or literally just a country without TV censorship) this could turn into a complex game of survival and love that could de-throne any drama I ever watched. As small as the world of Wufeng & Gong was, it was just the perfect amount to get immersed into the story without feeling like you need to care about the rest of the world. I really loved that aspect.
One of SSQ's lines early on was "curiosity is the biggest bait" and they really took that and went with it for the entire drama. I was really curious after the very intriguing start and was baited into watching till the end. I don't regret as it stands out a lot to me and is not comparable to other dramas in my opinion but I also kept waiting and waiting for big things to happen and from to time things did happen but the entire 3 trials thing was such a big plot of the drama which I really didn't like it at all. I only fast forwarded twice during this drama, both times were during the second trial. I really wanted the leads to have a more intense story. Also I feel like for some of the symbolism I know too little about chinese language, culture/history to really get it. I felt like there was a lot of hidden meaning behind things shown and spoken.
In all of the drama, there is only one thing visually that bothered me. The transitions... some of them were just like the ones you use for a fancy power point.
Also there are so many single tear drops running down the characters face… I was about to make a drinking game out of it, lol
Full circle moment back to the beginning of this after thought that turned into an endless thought: Guo Jing Ming's work is always like that. I watched his movie "The End of Endless Love" a few days ago and had the exact same feeling afterwards. Some real glimpses of gold, that just hit so right and feel totally unique but he's never able to make a full stream of light from the few glimpses. Makes me wonder, does he just have really great ideas but doesn't have what it takes to turn them into reality... he needs to pair up with a superb screenwriter and maybe then it will turn into a masterpiece.
Another drama watched that was on my "not interested" list and ended up leaving a big impression. Maybe I should listen more to what people are hyping up?
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Everyone is a suspect in this spy thriller of a drama. The twists and turns keep it engaging. As with many dramas, it starts slowing down in the last 1/3, and gets too complicated for its own good. But, it's genuinely unique and striking and worth the watch despite this.
The romances and character development are a weak point. Love is declared not shown, plus the good guys being mostly men and the spies being mostly women is a weird decision that makes all the romances feel a bit similar. Because there is so much action, also the characters are fairly thin and not fully fleshed out.
The writers leave space for there to be a Season 2/Part 2 to this drama, but I don't know if I will stick around for it. I really like character and theme driven dramas. This is beautiful, with a lot of suspense, but ultimately does not say much . .
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Unique drama worth watching!
I really enjoyed My Journey to You. It is not like your run of the mill wuxia. It is highly stylized and the plot is unique. The pacing is good and its only 24 episodes which meant theres never any boring parts! Yu shuxin really surprised me and was quite good as a female assassin completely different from any of her previous roles or what you see of her on variety shows. She really showed her range here and she wont be type-cast into cutesy roles. Even her actions scenes looked realistic! Zhang Linghei was good as the seemingly soft hearted heir (major golden retriever vibes lol). The SFL and SML were amazing with their acting and had smoldering chemistry!Definitely give this dark wuxia a watch!
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Great Drama
I have never seen any of the actors in a drama before, so I'm not watching this as a fan.I watched it because the FL character seemed cool.
The best thing about this drama is how the director made each shot look pretty. The fight scenes are like dancing. I've taken so many screenshots here, because it's just so pretty. The music goes with the scenes and I thought the production was the best thing about this drama.
The story was interesting. It slowed a bit between ep. 12-16 and I thought I saw a lot of plot holes but they might have been purposely placed there. lol.
The logic wasn't too hard to follow and I didn't have to wrack my brains to follow any of the intrigue.
I was most drawn to the Gong Shang Jue/Shanghuan Qian and Gong Yuan Zhi story.
I found them way more interesting than the main leads. The story tries to develop the other characters besides the main characters (which is great) and I just kept getting interested in Gong Shang Jue/Shanghuan Qian and Gong Yuan Zhi. Their story, I found was more touching/interesting.
I don't think the story was perfect but this drama kept getting me hooked.
The weakness is the romance. I just don't buy it, because it's all based on lies. However, I watch dramas for entertainment and not necessary the romance, and I thought this drama has a more interesting story than other dramas. The romance isn't the main feature of this drama, so it was ok. They didn't focus on it.
If you're looking for something interesting, check this out.
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stunning visuals, great acting, very poor story
The production value of this series is absolutely amazing, costumes, sets, scenes are truly amazing. There's a host of very likeable side characters and complicated back stories.however the story itself, while has the potential of amazing spy drama, is extremely weak. The production decided that instead of shooting the story to at least indicate the plots that are happening, they jsut shot a story of a mildly intelligent guy stumbling along, then at the end within one episode showed us a host of scenes that directly contradict everything we watched for 23 episodes to tell us that the main lead is truly smartest of the smartest schemers! it's a cheap way to tell the story, it means that there's no value in analyzing any of the scenes as they are all going to be contradicted at the end.
that was a huge disappointment of the movie. the way characters choices and motivations are often just stupid or made obviously for dramatic effect instead of any gain for them.
Last 5 minutes of the show are rage inducingly stupid I have to say. there's absolutely no reason for that scene, no logical explanation at all.
All in all amazing visuals but no rewatch value other than in gifsets.
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THE 2ND LEADS HAD THE BEST CHEMISTRY
Overall, the plot, storyline, music, characters were CHEF KISS. I liked the fl and sfl, however the ml was kinda bland for me. Personally I enjoyed the story between the sml and his didi and the 2nd lead couple more than the main couple. Usually, when this happens, I drop the drama if screen time is done no justice to the second leads, however in this drama, all characters really shined and got their screen time.I honestly was not expecting to like the 2nd lead couple more but man, was their chemistry on FIRE. Like they could literally just be looking at each other and it would still give me butterflies. The way they protrayed the 2nd ml to be absolutely stone cold on the outside but every once in a while will break off his mask and show slight affection towards the 2nd fl literally got me blushing screaming kicking my feet fr. And SGQ was an absolute icon, fav character fr, her actor did an AMAZING job at portraying her. The way I could never tell what she was thinking and planning until the end, you will legitimately sit there thinking if her last monologue in the show was lie or not.
Anyways I swear they need to film another season cause girl what was that ending- especially GSJ SGQ we need them together ASAP
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Good wuxia drama
I'm not sure why this drama rates so highly. I like that it's a wuxia rather than xianxia as I prefer the former genre. The story was very fast moving and interesting initially. There was mystery and a whodunnit (or rather who's the real assassin) in the first 10 episodes However, it became really slow moving and draggy in the middle when they were expounding the love stories and back stories of each character.Since I was already halfway through, I gritted my teeth to finish it. The fact that the show only has 24 episodes in total is the reason that I gave it a better rating - at least I didn't feel that I was (overly) wasting my life watching this! All the main characters were also eye candy - that certainly helped.
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Amazing cinematography
This drama has amazing aesthetic and cinematography. Every scene is a cinematic masterpiece. The set is beautiful, unique and the approach taken to add the set in the scene was very thoughtful. Amazing styling. All the actors had particular costumes and accessories that was unique to their character. Very good performance by all the actors - leads as well as supporting actors. Despite this I feel the story is a bit disjointed at times. I wish they could have improved on the story and built up the climax. And that ending...... not a fan of open endings.Was this review helpful to you?
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Captivating start but…
it ended not just without an ending but with a feeling of sadness. A double whammy of dislikes for me.Had the beginning episodes not been so engaging, my rating for this drama would have been lower. The story starts off very strong at episode 1 and I was hooked especially with the dark feel of this drama. So much intrigue and seeing the assassins smartly make their moves kept me glued to my screen. My rating at this point was a 9.
When the ML had his 3 trials, I was fascinated as the storyline on this trials was not what I was expecting as I thought the trials would be more physically related. The chemistry between the leads was nice enough and I enjoyed watching the FL being so dark and serious unlike in her previous drama where she was naive and chirpy.
While having touches of humour are a good idea, I did not appreciate the extreme and absurd way one of the female characters was written. Her over exaggerated movements and lustfulness was too much of a jarring contrast to the overall tone of this drama.
Quite a lot of the story is told in flashback style to give us lots of aha moments so you’ll have to be patient as certain parts of the story are left hanging and makes you wonder if it will be answered later on or become a plot hole. Lots of death and this drama seems to focus on making it as sad and drawn out as possible so it got a bit tiring when it overdid it.
The reveal at the end was good and seeing the whole family come together and that they had each other’s back was one of the highlights. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of how the drama went a step further and made the ending open ended and sad.
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Why... Oh why...
This drama I can say one of the best wuxia this year. The complexity of the story, the beautiful character played by all the actor & of course the chemistry between the cast, make this drama so beautiful. But unfortunately, the ending make me want to cry.... & that's why I decided to lower the score a little bit.This drama by far, one of the most interesting characters that Esther Yu ever played that I've ever watch. In this drama, we didn't meet the happy go lucky or cheerful usual character played by Esther Yu. Her character here quite gloom & serious & have layered. And I don't think that annoying voice that everyone bother about her voice can be heard here, i don't know if that's dubbed or not tho....
This drama tells story about 2 big powers in martial art, good (Gong family) & bad (Wufeng). Our ML, Gong Zi Yu (ZY) comes from Gong family while our FL, Yun Wei Shan (WS), comes from Wufeng. The story started with the chance Wufeng had to infiltrate Gong family when they open their door for bride selection for their young master who already come of age.
When the plot run, we got to know that Wufeng not only send one of their spies, but 2, with each have their own mission to be completed. And as the story goes, we got to know the character more & their own stories. But this drama not only about the spies of Wufeng & their own mission inside the Gong family. But the messy drama inside the Gong family itself.
The story began with the dead of the head family, ZY's dad & ZY's oldest brother, or you can say the heir. Without the lead & the heir, the elders in the family must decide to pick the next leader, and by all the luck it falls to our ML, ZY. ZY himself at first only one of the sons in the family that, you can say, the most spoiled young master in the family that no one expect him to be the lead. But all the sudden circumstances make all the elders have no choice but to pick him. That's why at first ZY must prove himself worthy to be the lead, especially to his second brother, Gong Shang Jue (SJ). But in the end ZY still our ML right, not only he proves himself worthy to be the leader, but he also proves his own true quality.
I really like the story & how the layered of the story peeled itself when the drama progress. The chemistry between the lead, WS & ZY, SJ & Shang Guan Qian, and also the funny Gong Zi Shang (ZS) & Jin Fan. ZS herself maybe the most interesting character here,Ii really like her shameless yet bitter attitude.
Overall, this really good WuXia drama this year. Without such ending I'll gonna give this drama much higher score....
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