Ashes of Love (2018)

Montanha russa de emoções

Dorama incrível, surtei demais assistindo. Uma reviravolta atrás da outra, sempre me surpreendendo. E claro, uma montanha russa de emoções, quando algo bom acontecia, logo vinha uma tragédia. O casal principal não tinha um minuto de paz. Atores maravilhosos, que entregaram tudo!
Amei a Jimi, tão divertida, fofa e inocente, foi lindo ver o crescimento dela. Xufeng, sempre encantador de todas as formas, inclusive quando vira rei demônio. Runyu, ah esse homem, eu gostei demais dele, então me entristeci pelo que ele tinha se tornado, de uma forma ou de outra ele é um personagem incrível. Os imperadores, todos os males que ocorreram foi culpa deles, é isso. O casal secundário, Linying e Muci foi o casal mais fofo e lindo que existe. Linying lendária nunca errou. Yanyou é um personagem maravilhoso, ri demais em todas as cenas que ele aparecia, como também o Tio casamenteiro, os melhores personagens!
Acho que poderiam ter feito em menos episódios, 30 seria o suficiente, pois houve cenas enroladas e coisas desnecessárias. Apesar do final feliz, queria que tivessem enfatizado mais, foram só os 5 últimos minutos de paz e alegria, poderiam ter dado um episódio inteiro assim, mostrando cada personagem de sua maneira.

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Out of the many dramas that exist in Asian cinema, there are only two that I have given a full star rating - this drama, Heavy Sweetness Ash-like Frost, and Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms. If you are a fan of Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms, this drama will surely capture you even more.

PLOT: 10/10
ACTING: 10/10
CINEMATOGRAPHY: 10/10
WITHDRAWAL AFTER WATCHING: 100000000/10 :'(

Being Chinese myself, I am often critical of Chinese dramas as they can be long, draggy, and leave one feeling rather unsatisfied with the outcome. Moreover, the Xianxia theme is difficult to master successfully. Throughout all 63 episodes, I never felt bored. Character development is excellent and flows well, and while there may be a few plot holes, they are minor and are easily overlooked (I've forgotten them already, if there were any!). Deng Lun's acting took my breath away - heartfelt, cute, and tear-jerking at the right moments, you become so hooked on his character and his love for the heroine. Yang Zi also portrayed the heroine innocently enough while not being annoying. Moreover, Luo Yunxi played his role with excellence - you love him, hate him, and feel sorry for him all at the same time. There's some antagonists that will make you mad, but only a little, and they all eventually meet their retribution. Plenty of sweet scenes are scattered throughout the drama, making a viewer feel fulfilled.

If you are seeking a Chinese drama that is truly worth watching despite it's length, this (and Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms) is the perfect place to start. Only thing I have to warn you is that I entered severe withdrawal after completing this drama, I had to read the novel this drama was based on, AND I kept re-watching sweet scenes on YouTube. Truly a beautiful story, with amazing actors, and magnificent acting!

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The day has come when this great drama finally comes to an end!

Overall, I find this a great drama. It is definitely one of the best c-dramas I have watched so far and I really recommend you to watch this ASAP!

Story - Comparing to Ten Miles Of Peach Blossom (3Lives3Worlds), I would say Ashes of Love trumps it. The story is more intriguing than TMOPB, there are more character development (though some might not like it) and I love how both leads died for each other.

Of course there are some unsatisfying parts. I feel there isnt enough romance scene. We barely had any kisses in the immortal realm, I did not really like the ending (it was a happy ending though) and we didnt get an explanation for why Kuang Lu loved Run Yu so much. I would also love to have a few more love line between some side characters but it is nothing major

Acting - I really must say I am impressed ALOT by Yang ZI, she did AMAZING in this drama and I think I have became a fan. Deng Lun did awesome too but I must say he is overshadowed by Yang Zi's acting. I also really enjoyed the acting of Run Yu and Kuang Lu. Most of the other main characters and side characters also had really good acting skills and I am really impressed by them

Song - I did not like the OST, but it did not really ruin the atmosphere, it is just not my taste.

Rewatch value - I will definitely rewatch most of the drama. It being a 63 episode drama definitely brings down its rewatch value though

Overall - 9.5

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The most touching true love story

I already watch this more than 5 times consecutively!!!
This drama is the best Xian Xia i ever watch!!
I always search about another story with same genre but i cant find any drama were much interesting than this one!!
Because of this too, i became a fans of the Female Lead (Yang Zi) who i found really sincere, bright and good person.
This drama story is fun, touching, memorable and interesting!
I find it never bored me even a second every each episode.

The story hit the climax with reasonable cause too, and every emotion was delivered perfectly.
For everyone who want to search World Best Cian Xia, i highly recommend “Ashes of Love” 💕

This include for everyone who just learn to watch drama ❤️😊🥳

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Worth to watch

This is my first chinese costume drama. At first i almost cancel to watch this because of the numbers of the episodes so many 63 eps
But after read the reviews i decided to watch this drama. ML and FL chemistry is so natural and make audience feel comfy to watch.
The story also very dynamic and many surprises scene that unpredictable ones.
Already rewatch it once but still very happy watching it. The virtual background are so nice and the setting of location and props of the drama are really well prepared by the team, thumbs up for them, i believe they put so much effort in this drama making, so audience can enjoy beautiful scene and make every scene look so real

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For those of you who've watched the Netflix series Eternal Love and need another C-drama to deal with the withdrawal, or just want a good fantasy romance, this is a good pick. It comes out a year after Eternal Love so there are many similarities, but has enough of its own merits to make it worth watching.

I will be honest. It took 20 episodes for me to decide whether to drop it or not. I am glad I didn't. The first 20 episodes were campy and since I like dramas, wasn't sure this would be my cup of tea. But that all got settled as the pace quickened and things started to move along.

Jinmi is the daughter of the great Floral Fairy goddess who passes away from lovesickness and giving birth. Before she passes, she gives her infant daughter an elixir to swallow which keeps her from falling in love. This impediment is the root cause of all Jinmi's troubles as they keep her from forming love attachments. Growing up thinking she is a grape elf and without a care in the world, her life is soon turned upside down when a great phoenix bird accidentally lands in the floral realm during rebirth. He is actually a prince from the Heavenly realm who befriends Jinmi after she saves his life.

This show was surprisingly good and even though it isn't as good as Eternal Love, it has enough twists and turns that I never saw coming. I like a show that surprises me. The performances were rock-solid. I love the beautiful actress who plays Jinmi and the actor who portrays Runyu, her fiance. For a young actor, he does a solid job of making you love and despise him all at once. He was the most interesting character of all. I felt like the show doesn't reveal anything before it´s time and when Jinmi finds out the truth about people, you find out right along with her.

Great love story, though the chemistry isn't as good between the main characters as in Eternal Love. But I chalk this up the the actors being slightly younger and less experienced with the love scenes. Another great C-drama top put on your to-watch list.

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First of, I started watching this because I am a huge Deng L’un fan. It gives me Ten miles of Peach Blossoms vibes and I loved it. I am on the 13th épisode and also decided to read the book.

Let me say the entire cast is great!! Nobody is lacking in any way. Can we talk about the CGI and cinematography? Purely phenomenal. I am looking forward to more episodes of this. The FL is not the typical weak looking for the ML to save me kind of type even as she is naive and she played her role so well. Well, I am bias when it comes to Deng Lun so don’t ask lol. The storyline is awesome!!I basically cannot do anything when I watch this. Great shows this 2018. I am thrilled!

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Xianxia and I aren't going to be friends

Rated= 4 ~ 15/50 ~ 3
RPG Scene // Trolls wading through the Murky Swamp. My club is splitting.

I promised myself that if I can't make it through to the end, I'm crossing off Xianxia's in the future, unless Cheng Yi is involved. I only made it to the end of L&R through bias alone 😂 It's a genre I feel the culture clash in, really hard, and when you already have a belief system in place and notions of what a 'deity/immortal/God' is, it can be very difficult to watch a very human, politically motivated soap opera happen with divinities as the characters. And that's just the concept standing by it's self.

This follows the trend of every Xianxia, I've tried to watch before it. Visually, gorgeous. Everyone is fantastically dolled up in plastic head gear and fabulous costuming and I usually enjoy the lore. This time round there was a lot of emphasis on the elements and how that creates the true form of the Immortal and the elemental power they can wield. That's a fun idea. It also ties back to the title and the 'water and fire dont mix' mantra. Jinme is a frost flower, water, Xu Feng is a Phoenix, fire, and Run yu is a Water dragon. She is engaged to Run yu, water with water, but is supposed to fall in love with Xu Feng. The fire will burn her.

Likewise, her mother also shared a similar fate. She was a Lotus, in love with Jin Me's father, the Water deity, and had a tragic affair with the Heavenly Emperor, who is fire.

The costuming and the lore. That's what I love about the Xianxia genre. It's incredibility creative and I enjoy that. But that's where the love ends. Just like the characters, the Xianxia genre and I are different elements. I don't know which one, but we clash a lot.

This is not a case of 'go watch disney' kind of mentally. Without drama, there wouldn't be a story. That's the point of fiction, to be entertained, to be inspired, to find something within the story to hold dear to your heart as you travel through your own trials in life. But when the drama doesn't make sense or is clashing with your own outlook in life, you're not going to like the story for it has nothing to offer you.

One of my favourite characters, is the anti-hero. I like watching the underdog win. In this story, it's very clear from the start who the underdog is, so I'm going to adopt him very quickly and cheer for him, and that is our second ML, Runyu, played by the very elegant Luo Yun Xi, who I must say, I've only seen him in Till the End of the Moon, which I also dropped, and I've already got a little soft spot for him.

(I really hope he's not getting the Cheng Yi treatment and just forced to play the abused Prince all the time)

So when the plot eventually arrives around episode 8, I know that things are going to get really messy.

Our FL is our standard, so innocent but is really just the usual village idiot that these genres seem to like having. Massive LOL to her guardians, who are told she is to have a love trial and protect her from pain and they basically bubble wrap her so she has no emotional intelligence to protect her from foretold pain. The seal is meant to stop her from feeling romantic love not stop her from using her brain. She clearly has one, as she's bargaining for spiritual energy to help her friend, who sacrificed herself to save her. Understandable. She's not unfeeling, just blinded to romantic love. And she has to stay in the flower realm for 10 thousand years so that she doesn't experience her love trial. So of course that's not happening.
As the plot unravels, we see that Jinme is going to have a similar situation to her mother, only this time, has not one clue how to navigate it because she's been emotionally and spiritually suppressed by magically seals and her Guardians. Ahh, yes, the Immortal's Wisdom at play here.....huh?

Our ML is our typical self righteous, golden child who is pretty aloof at first but somehow falls in love with Jin me like he's never seen another woman before. Was it her talking about putting on weight on her chest? The feeding you kiss? Trying to eat his testicles when they first met? Was he seduced as opposed to love? A lot of sexual build up with these two, but no emotional. We as the viewer know that he's feeling something very intense. Jin me is completely oblivious but I was going with it. Let it unravel.

Back to Runyu, it is shown that he is also feeling something but the big thing for me here is that he's distant despite his affection. And it's a gentle affection, like a crush almost but he has an emotional wall up because he's engaged. I understand by ep 19 that he's clearly been neglected and abused and the Heavenly Empress is trying to find a reason to execute him because he's a threat to the throne. And I'm guessing 'her' throne, not the ML.
Why are we using the word 'deity' for a very, very human situation? I clash with this narrative.

My interpretation here is that, this promise of a wife, has been what he's held onto and has been embarrassed repeatedly that this promised wife wasn't even born yet. So when he discovers that it's the girl he's been crushing on, he is naturally over the moon that he finally won't be alone. It was a cold move the way he made sure to secure that promise but I understood it. That's not drama for dramas sake. That was a clever move. I applauded. Not even a few episodes later, in comes the ML with his manipulation because he's 'in love' and it's meant to be justified.

I know where this is going and the other low rated reviews just confirm it.

I'm going to be on Run yu's side no matter how far he falls later because I understand him. When he finally breaks, it will be him I will be crying for and not the so called 'good guys' who pushed him to that point. And this is where I realise that me and Xianxia aren't going to be friends, because here we are again. The relationship between the audience and the characters is what creates the support for a show and the emotional drive of the audience. I can't support an eternally dense FL who is that way because it's supposed to be cute and it drives the narrative. Or a ML who so far, is just determined to get what he wants. I have no other reason to feel empathic for him. I haven't been shown any, other than he's randomly obsessed with the FL for some reason. Much like his father.
Nor an Uncle who is also determined to get the ML the girl he wants. While ignoring the feelings of his other nephew simply because he said so. That's also very painful favouritism to the golden child that everyone loves. To hell with Run yu right?

I'm going to cheer for the character trying to keep his or her head above the water and for some reason, in Xianxia's that's always the so called 'Villain'. I've danced this dance before, I can already sense how the writing is going to go and I know I'm going to hate it because that's not what I'm looking for in a story.

I don't even want to say this is for a 'younger audience' even though it's a knee jerk reaction to do so because it 'feels' immature, and that's not fair to the younger generation. Life makes the person regardless of age.
The narrative is to support the main couple but all I see is sexual tension and that's not love.
I see the potential for an emotional bond with Run yu because that's where my emotional connection is. I don't care about the leads because I have no reason to and at episode 20, that's a bad sign. To know that the writing is just going to make a villain out of him, then I'm going to be a villain too and hate everyone with him, and be left disappointed with him.

Jin me's father, mother and the Wind deity is what you are looking for. That is real love, loyalty and friendship. Unless it changes later lol

Damn, this is long 😂

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So bad that even though I only used this as background noise while I worked, I dropped it.

Storyline: I cannot comment much on the plot because I dropped the title.

Acting: Bad, so bad. Firstly, I want you to imagine pornstar level acting sort of bad, then there is Yang Zi which is an entirely new level. Her acting was so bad, I think she crafted her own level and unlocked the Bad Acting Endgame boss. Of course, if it was only her, I could have given it another shot. Deng Lun (having seen him in other roles) was only marginally better at this role. He was at par with his FL counterpart. The only salvation was Yun Xi, but even his charms couldn't save this show. I'm not even going to talk about the supporting cast cause what's the point?

Note: I even gave Yang Zi a second chance; I opened a clip of her as Madame White, in less than 10 seconds, I had to shut it. I was worried my eyes would stay permanently glued to the back of my skull with the intensity of my eyeroll. Holy fuck, she is incredibly annoying.

Music: Fine, I'll give you a 10, because I am feeling generous, only because of 不染, Sa Dingding and Mao Bu Yi.

Conclusion: Can we please hire proper actors? What happened to people who could act?

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A Song of Fire & Flower ♧ Ode to the Toxic Mother & the Emptiness Within °6.4° °good & bad°

AOL opens to a goddess giving birth & this is one angry goddess. Wronged by the baby-daddy, she commands everyone to keep the birth of her dtr, Jimni/JM a secret. Auguring a disaster in JM's first 10,000 years, she forbids her successors to allow JM o leave the flower realm and also gives JM an elixir that blocks love: Love will only give her daughter pain. Zifen, the goddess, passes away on the birthing bed leaving a rift between the flower realm & the heavenly one. The flowers have disappeared from heaven & relations have faded. Raised as an orphan w/ lots of supervision but no family, the loquacious JM is lackluster in her cultivation & unmotivated in her studies. JM wants °escape°. She also wants to help her lost friend, who was murdered, revive. JM has preserved her spirit in a small potted plant, believing a supreme being in the heavenly realm can restore her fallen loved one. These are her wishes on a meteor JM sees shooting through the sky one night. Wait. That meteor is headed right at her! A partially roasted bird, that she takes for a crow, is all that JM finds at the sight of the crash. It's actually the emperor 's son, Xufeng/XF, who is a phoenix. JM renders him assistance (of sorts) & finagles a ride w/ him back to the heavenly realm where she's an instant hit.

Don't judge JM too harshly. She's actually weak b/c her spirit has been blocked. No matter how much she practices, she can't get ahead. Over time this has corraded her resolve & she's given up a bit. The Heavenly Realm is a new setting that injects fresh hope into JM. People there are exceedingly wealthy when it comes to spiritual prowess, & some of that begins to trickle her way. She begins leveling up by doing favors in exchange for power. She's totally cheating. Bully for her!

AOL is a 2018 release that is rated 8.2 on IMDB. It is 1 season consisting of 63 45-minute eps. Based on the novel, Heavy Sweetness Ash-like Frost (2009) by Dian Xian, AOL & the book it's based on seem to provide inspiration for 2 novels that were also made into shows: Ancient Love Poetry(8.6), & Love & Redemption(10). For that, I'm eternally thankful. As the latter two seem to be standing on AOL's shoulders, comparison isn't entirely fair. In the realm of personal taste, L&R currently holds 1st place as the best thing I've ever seen - despite the often clunky special effects. ALP takes the viewer on a painful journey & flirts w/ being over the top, but they pull it off. It's magnificent. Director Chu Yui Bun also has Who Rules the World & Under The Power(8.6) to his credit, along w/ other popular shows that are all on my watchlist. I want to see everything he's done - his work is of the highest caliber. His shows are technically outstanding but even moreso, they touch the heart. He may or may not have been involved w/ AOL. On most sites Cheng Feng is credited as the director; consistently 1 or 2 steps behind, he hasn't caught up to Chu Yui Bun yet, but he is successful nonetheless.

AOL is a great story, but not perfect. It has pacing issues, it lacks crispness & actually drags. It takes a loooong time to pick up steam; eps1-9 are mostly set up that tickled the interest but failed to grab it. It floats on the surface & does not delve into the depths. That's fine - not every show has to, but one reason Shakespearean tragedies are so popular is that they are cathartically satisfying. Real-life is heartbreaking enough. I don't want to watch something that's going to grab my heart, stomp on it, and leave it to bleed out. I'll be straightforward & say that I didn't like AOL very much. Some parts I loved, but overall the show pales next to other fantasy pieces. I'm already spoiled. Seeing how popular AOL is, I feel quite out of place. I want to like it. I tried to like it. However, AOL is not congealed well. It languishes & drags, the plot isn't tight, the characters aren't engaging enough so it fails to pull in the viewer fully from an emotional standpoint and it doesn't sell the romance. Furthermore, what occurs is heartbreaking, yet my emotions remained 70%... detached? Suspended?. It began to feel like a pile of compost. It kept accumulating and nothing cleared it away. That's how AOL became a weight on top of me that provided no release. It ironically does to the viewer what Zifen did to JM!

When JM has to "do time" in the mortal realm, north of ep20, things get more interesting. Typically, earth is where all the fun is in a fantasy Cdrama. Quite often they mention the bland food in heaven & how Earth's food is much more savory. {For those of you who have faith only in yourselves & not a higher power, please skip this; no offense intended. This is reminiscent of how in the west we think of Heaven as sitting on a cloud w/ a harp. We just can't imagine it. I'll say to people of faith that if you believe God made this world w/ all the beauty, love & laughter in it (despite all the evil - that's another topic) you should be able to believe that if God says Heaven is better, it is better.} Anyway, in the human realm, XF is a king & JM is a healer. Since the king has never taken a wife nor a consort she believes him to be impotent. He takes special exception to that rumor and he lets her know what's what. As he's falling for her and tries to win her over, he and his general liken the process to war, which leads to countless amusing analogies. Around halfway they provide fascinating backstory.

Back in heaven, though, it starts to drag again. I believed it would come together & be wonderful based on what I had read. It didn't. I ended up forcing myself to watch the final 20 eps 1-at-a-sitting to complete the deed. This is not to criticize anyone who loves AOL. Emotional connections are based on a myriad of factors, none of which have to do w/ technical excellence. There's plenty of awful stuff that I love to watch. Everyone is entitled to h/h own form of mindless entertainment. Technically, though, AOL is not at the level of Ancient Love Poetry, Love & Redemption, Love Between Fairy & Devil, The Romance of Tiger & Rose, The Sleepless Princess, Eternal Love, its sequel - Eternal Love of Dream, the action thrillers Handsome Siblings, Duoluo Continent, or Heavenly Sword & Dragon Slaying Saber, & it's not on the level of the period dramas The Rebel Princess, Under the Power, The Sword & the Brocade, The Rise of the Phoenixes, or even Overlord. I'll go out on a limb & say that even Once Upon a Time in Linglian Mountain is better. With the benefit of hindsight, I would not choose to watch AOL for the first time, while I would watch any of the above shows again, & some I already have.

The characters are as likable as generic vanilla ice cream. The viewer cares about them, but those feelings are limited & the emotional investment tops out at mid-range. Many of these characters are irritating & I'm not very irritable. They're either too weak, too blind to the faults of those they love, too forgiving of evil when it suits them, too naive, or too quick to accept false choices. We see this in every drama, & the last two are common tropes in Cdramas, but there's a delicate balance between what one is able to brush aside & what starts obstructing enjoyment. Yang Zi is JM. She's got a dry quality that shows up in The Oath Of Love, one of the better modern-day Chinese shows. (China leads the world in imaginative fantasy, but their modern-day stuff is almost as bad as their fantasy & historical features are good). Simply likable, Yang Zi carries OOL. Going into AOL w/ such positive feelings about her carried me through many eps before I realized that I don't like her character very much. She isn't cute, she's not smart, she's not diligent, she's only marginally brave, & she's mostly bland. Just don't blame it on the actress.

Now for some Mosts: Wang Yi Fei plays Sui He, the empress's niece & the woman who feels that she's most entitled to marry the soon to be Crown Prince, XF. She has the most beautiful eyes. She's an iceberg & adept at playing a loathsome character. Speaking of loathsome, Kathy Chow is queen b!+ch, Tu Yao / the Heavenly Empress. She's perfect for these roles. In Heavenly Sword & Dragon Slaying Saber, she plays a most domineering martial arts sect leader & she kicks butt! Most of her work was in the 80s & 90s. Chen Yu Qi is the most likable character as Liu Ying, the Bian Princess. You should see her in Heavenly Sword & Dragon Slaying Saber - She's fantastic. The character that tugged at my heart the most is Runyu/ RY, the Night Deity (Luo Yun Xi). His story is tragic; he never gets a fair shake. He becomes more and more like his father. It's understandable that RY gives up, but he certainly pulls an Anakin Skywalker: Once steeped in bitterness, he goes real bad real quick (that's a mini spoiler, but one can see it coming eps ahead of time. They painstakingly build his resentment. The dam cracks here & there, then it breaks. Does he stay that way? Not telling…). He Zhong Hua is Tai Wei, the Heavenly Emperor. He plays a completely different character, though also a ruler, in Love &Redemption. He looks quite a bit different (older) as well. Talk about most in-demand, since 2011 he's appeared in 3-6 shows/yr, and he's usually in a movie or two as well. How is that even possible? Cloning program?

Deng Lun is XF/Phoenix/Fire Deity. He mostly looks like an Italian kid from South Philly. No complaints about his looks or his acting; he's solid. His character runs out of the baselines, however. The way XF hangs on seems deranged. He pursues JM as if he's entitled to her w/o regard for his brother. While he's not wrong (JM does not love RY) his sense of entitlement & lack of perspective or empathy for RY is icky. RY's Descent into a bitter quest for revenge is heartbreaking. If a story is going to break my heart, I need something back in exchange. AOL creates an unpaid debt to the viewer. The way XF defends his mother is off the righthand path. We should be true to family, friends, & most of all our parents, but we should be most true to what is right. Otherwise, it's selfish indulgence. The emperor lived for selfish indulgence and, later, his sons did the same in their own ways. XF acts like he owns JM and he expects his toxic, downright evil parents to be respected regardless of the heinous things they've done, while RY wants to kill everyone that crosses him, as is the case w/ most that obtain power. Being wronged doesn't make a person right. Wallowing in victimhood leads to the bad 7: discontent, ingratitude, anger, unforgiveness, hate, bitterness, & misery. They will turn the victim into the victimizer. Emotions are much stronger than logic, but if we don't check them w/ a humble perspective they will create chaos & misery. Pretending a person's dirty is clean is just existing in lies. It all leads to XF 's regret. He and his father drove his mother to act out. She is still fully responsible for her own stuff, but he contributed. Is there such a thing as loss w/o regret? Doubtful. It's very tricky: Taking on ALL the fault would be overstating his own importance which is another form of self-absorption.

Narcissistic mothers & toxic women drive the plot of AOL. The ambitions of the Heavenly empress for XF have everything to do w/ what she wants & nothing to do w/ her son. They taint her outlook like mud smeared glasses. All she can see are things related to her, for her, & against her. Her niece, Suihe, is her disciple & follows suit. RY's birth-mother is near sadistic as she plots her devastating revenge. Zifen, JM's mother, utilized extreme measures to exert control as she left the world. Even the floral realm has a harshness to it, though their motives are mostly pure. One way people pass down trauma to their children is by overreacting to it & exerting hyper-vigilance. Not only does that hand a knife to the children (if they want to hurt their parents, they know exactly what to do) but it keeps a family enslaved to the ongoing pain. Women & men are equal - they are equally guilty of toxic self-absorption. In AOL, the emperor is ultimately to blame. He married for power & pursued what he wanted every step of the way. He speaks of love, but he only loves himself. He never checked the empress b/c he couldn't be bothered. He created the incubator for the disease that spread later.

Narcissists tend to develop from imbalance - from spoiled or neglected children. Narcissistic behavior is handed down generationally & only results in bitter misery. It's a trap, & those who fall into it are enslaved and, in turn, enslave those in their sphere. Self-involvement is like a whirlpool: It's hard to escape once we get spinning inward. It creates appetites that can never be satisfied, leading to the bad 7. We don't need to love ourselves: We need to accept ourselves (imperfection is reality) & always strive to improve. Suihe is a good example. She wastes her life wanting something that clearly won't be hers. At the same time, instead of focusing on self-improvement which will lead to the right mate & true happiness, she works towards what she wants. One thing getting older has taught me is that people don't want the right things. I never wanted the right things. All I want now is to help others avoid some of the regrets that I have. A simple life of love & contentment w/ enough - but not too much - is the best we can hope for. Don't let wanting the wrong things rob you of love, peace & joy.

Aol is a visual banquet. Some of the sets are excessively busy; Flowerworld is almost too colorful, but there's no denying that they labored on the art of the show. What is fascinating is what looks like 1930's streamline design in the heavenly realm. Streamline is simplified Art Deco. The Russian designer, Vladimir Yourkevitch, birthed this look when he crafted the design for the SS Normandie. I don't know if the AOL set designers relied on traditional Chinese motifs or if they incorporated western elements, but there are objects of stunning and familiar detail in the show. Even traditional Greek block scrolling design lines many heavenly structures. (Evidence of a common human origin?). The mosaic lights at the bird realm are my favs. In one masterfully innovative shot, faces are reflected off of a drop of wine. They mention that something is made from ancient mithril - That's from JRR Tolkien's works! That connection gave me a thrill. The big battle scene is impressive. The soundtrack, particularly Sa Ding Ding’s song, is beautiful.

The viewer will smile here & there. He's a phoenix, son of the emperor & the most popular boy in the heavenly realm, but she calls him a magpie. That's once she generously stops calling him a crow. Unfortunately, there aren't many laughs. What goes on in AOL is very bitter. It gets dysfunctional, and we aren't provided with any elixir to help us manage it.


QUOTES
You judge me from a villain's perspective.

{She} involves her preconceived ideas in her words, which is a bit biased.

You know yourself least.

《《IMHO》》
Directing 68
Writing 68
Acting 75
Romance 67
Flutters 71
Warmth 49
Art 65
Action 60
Sound & music 68
Laughs 35
Tears 55
Fright 40
Tension 40
Gore 35
Thought provocation 44
Snores 48
Ending 73



Age 12+ Language: hell &darnn; violence; references to sex & abusive situations; we see the start of a sexual assault - the woman is dragged away from the camera as she grabs at the ground.

Re-watch? No

In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

Historical/Period:
The Romance of Tiger & Rose 9.8,
Overlord 8.4,
The Sleepless Princess 9.1,
Under the Power 8.6,
The Rebel Princess 9.1


Fantasy:
Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Love & Redemption 10;
Heavenly Sword 9.

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