Joy of Life: Season 2 (2024)

Tone & pace maintained from S1, engaging story & well acted

It's nice to see the tone & pace are largely the same as from S1, same superb performances from the veteran actors. Love the patient, close examination of finer details in both scene & conversation. I've read that there are many jokes which don't translate well. Although my Chinese is limited, I can tell that the dialogue is sharp & fast and, even from what is translated, some scenes can still be very funny to a Western trained eye simply because the acting is that good. The CGI is not up to Western standard, but the natural sets were stunning.

Once again, Fan Xian schemes & this time makes a choice of who to align with, and characters continue to surprise, making the viewer guess what their next move might be. The crown prince became more cunning & surprisingly likeable. In fact, many characters now show a lighter, more casual side to themselves than in S1. Even Shadow is given not only a personality, but also aspirations, & presents more as a human being. Wu Zhu experiences self-doubt since he's been freed & on his own, & my suspicions of his identity from S1 were confirmed. Many characters returned from S1, although some were given very little screen time in S2.

S2, however, is less broad in scope as the story mainly centers on Fan Xian consolidating his influence within the capital, under his declared goal of weeding out government corruption. The romance takes a back seat to the political intrigue. Lin Wan'Er, who should be the most important person to Fan Xian, isn't even mentioned until Ep5. However, the development of their relationship was gripping as they reach new levels of understanding with each other. Wu Zhu doesn't show up until past the half-way mark at Ep26, but is involved in a drastic new development as he continues to be an important key to the mystery of FanXian'smother. FanXian's mission takes the story through the conventional settings of the imperial examinations, and the highly anticipated wedding with Wan'Er.

The season ends with Fan Xian one step further into taking control of his mother's assets, & without an agonizing cliff hanger as in S1. However, hopefully the wait won't be long for S3. The story remains highly engaging & I'm ready for S3.

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Superb acting, nicely developed characters and their growth, Not as good OST, a lot of intrigue...

I have attempted to complete the JoL novel 3 times and only on the 4th attempt, I managed to wrap it up. I find the novel of average quality, but it may be the translation I run into. But regardless of the translation and cultural differences, in my opinion, the novel suffers from genre focus: Is it court/palace, Wuxia, or Xianxia? I prefer all of it, but well balanced.

Season one, in my opinion, was by far the best drama produced in the last 15 years. Everything, from music, cast, acting, and choreography was perfect in every sense of the word, perfect. The icing on the cake was the fact that all aspects were perfectly balanced. Palace intrigue and Wuxia/Xianxia were perfectly balanced.

Season two followed the most boring parts of the novel, palace intrigue and I'm not a fan of it. But! Almost all actresses and actors are back, and once again they have proven they are masters of their craft.
I was hoping Xin Zhilei (Norternt Qi Senintess DouDou) would get more screen time. Sadly This was not the case, but she did have a few appearances, following the slow and annoying novel's storytelling.

Music was changed and it's not nearly as good as in season one, but some songs were kept.
Is it worth your time to watch this drama? A clear and loud YES!
I hope we don't have to wait another 5 years for the final season. If all cast and behind-the-scenes team members stay the same, Season 3 should be just as good as Season One, if not better.

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Seamless continuation from Season 1 but over does it...

I still think it keeps what makes JOL great in the new season. However, I don't have a scene to point to in this season that will be the masterpiece. It doesn't have a '100 poems in one night' legendary scene. I think the scene between Fan Xian and Zi Ye was compelling though, and the scene at court when FX is accused of bribery or when the Censorate makes a complaint about the emperor. I feel like they went a little over the top with the humor and keeps trying to make the second prince a crass villain when I'm not convinced. All of his schemes fail, and yet he tries a new one. The second prince was almost cartoonish in this season. The CP's character also drastically changes from S1, in which I'm not sure whether he's a good guy or the show is trying to make him a good guy because of FX's influence, but then he burned a whole town, and callously tells his mother to forget about the slaughter of her entire clan. I'm actually not sure why the CP was made the CP, when compared with the emperor who is hard to read and whose plans reveal themselves when the deed is done, it's hard to see how a guy who is an open book can lead the country. I keep thinking that the emperor wants FX to be CP instead, what with making him a 'lone subject'. Others have complained about Ye Ling Er so I won't add on to it. I just don't get why she is making eyes at the 2nd prince whom she knows has no regard for human lives and keeps falling for his lies. Then again, this show has a problem with writing female characters, especially our female lead who is on all the posters yet I can count on two hands how many times I saw her in the whole show. The source material is a male fantasy so there's not much to improve on. I totally forgot that the whole point of the show was the Divine Temple and all this futuristic stuff, which seems to me like it was cut down to avoid censorship. It was so out of place in the latter half of the show. Despite my complaints, I'll watch season 3, I think we won't see Fan Si Zhe in the next season since his send off was made such a big thing.

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Boy they sure took too much time producing this season 2, i almost forgotten the storyline from s1 and i didnt even watch the show the same year it was aired!

Anyway, This s2 moved at a much slower pace than s1, cant say much about that because even in the novel, the arc after Fan Xian’s return from Northern Qi until before his wedding was indeed pretty boring. I love the fight at Xuankong Temple though.

I really loved the book, i think its one of the best that ive read so far. And the fact that its a sci fi in a wuxia premise made it a thousand times better cuz i definitely did not expect this plot twist when i was reading the novel. As i was reading, i tried to imagine how would it look if it were made into a tv show it wouldve been so gooood. The action in this book is aplenty and very satisfying. Cant wait to see them materialize on screen in s3. Thats where all the heartpounding actions are. Special Kudos to the screenwriters for smoothing out the Fanxian character into a loyal lover. I love everything about novel fanxian except how he constantly cheats on Wan er. Glad the fanxian on screen is nothing like the novel’s in the love relationship department.

So far the production has done a tremendously well done job on this show. The actors have given their top notch performance. A must see for a court politics/wuxia fan. U wont regret it.

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As good as season one but different style

LIKE

The hilarious Li Cheng Zhe

That moment when Xie Bi An visited Fan Wu Jiu - very sad

Convo between Guo You Zhi and Guo Bao Kun on Bei Qi - lol

When the scholars were checking their exam results - cries

When Qing Yu Tang family paid their respect at Ye Qing Mei

When Fan Xian asked Madam Fan to witness his wedding ceremony

When Wan Er and Da Bao kowtow-ed at Lin Ruo Fu before he left

DISLIKE

I seriously cannot wait again.. just let me know already

The mysterious Emperor of Qing

The unpredictable Chen Ping Ping

MUSIC

Not to my liking

REWATCH VALUE

Yes

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Perf but i wish for more fight scenes and less wan er

Loved it! If there’s anything I wish it could have had more is fight scenes. There were less in S2 but very exciting none the less . Given that there were level 8/9 martial artists and grandmasters an FX is a martial artis too, I just wish there were more. Also, I don’t know if it’s the character or the acting but I noticed since S1, there’s just no chemistry between Fan Xian and Wan Er. Their scenes were my least favorite in both seasons. I found FX’s interaction with each characters very entertaining except theirs. there was more chemistry between FX and Si Lili in S1. You can sense the intensity even with just the eye contact.

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Highly recommend

I have watched the first and second season of Joy of Life cdrama in a row. It has been a long long while since the last time I truly enjoyed every single little of a series. No matter how good they are, they always lack in a thing or two. The story was perfect i was mesmerized by how things could fall in their exact right place you couldn't stop guessing what will come next and the series would surely never disappoint you, i love how the king would twist everything for his own sake, it was brilliant. A great mixture of action, drama, and comedy. The drama's cast played fantastically. I enjoyed every little detail every face expression, everything i mean it. The ost was perfectly fine. I could feel the ending in particular with every bone. A masterpiece indeed. Can't wait for the third season. I hope it doesn't take another 5 years.

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NOT A PERFECT 10 LIKE THE 1ST SEASON

The 2nd season of JOL is good but not the best in my opinion. Time goes, people change and my higher expectation with long-waited anticipation doesn't pay off. The actors changed; 5 years older, some are chubbier and Fan Xian (Zhao Ruo Yun) depleted than looking back of himself in previous season. Fan Xian, a Nepo baby has 5 father/mentor figures and heavenly mother that increase his chances of best life not to mention his good look and intelligent. Emperor Qing (Biological father), Fan Jian (Adopted father), Fei Jie (Teacher/Mentor), Lin Ru Fu (Father-in-law), Wu Zhu (Teacher/Mentor) all outstanding and powerful men that give Fan Xian capability to achieve endless ambition in the world. Money, power, support, advise, love, knowledge, name it he got all. Not to mention he has a wife that come from a powerful family, friendship and love Hai Tang Duo Duo a beautiful independent a master, adoration from Emperor of Northern Qi, Fan Xian a perfect kind of young man who got everything going on in his life. He has top position, power, beautiful dutiful wife, girlfriends, money, friendship, support, who doesn't want to be Fan Xian? ZRY has great portrayal of Fan Xian, great fighting choreography, good dialog, setting is awesome. The actresses are beautiful; I love Li Xiao Ran (Li Yun Rui), Xin Zhi Lei (Hai Tang Duo Duo), Wang Chu Ran (Sang Wen), Wang Xiao Chen (Yuan Meng), Faye Yu (Empress) and great with their acting - just too bad their have limited air time. Let me breakdown why I don't give this popular drama JOL a 10 score:

Li Qin (Lin Wan'Er)
She has tepid chemistry with ZRY, her acting is appropriate according to the script but she doesn't bring her endgame. Lin Wan'Er is the weakest character in Fan Xian life. Her family is basically demoted/casted out because of Fan Xian, yet her devotion and love hasn't changed, her lack of principles and weak character is her best asset to FX. If she has a strong will and independent as Hai Tang or even Ruo Ruo, Wan'Er won't marry FX because it's just too much of bad blood between them. Basically, ZRY & Li Qin has cold-warm relationship especially after the marriage, they both didn't express their deep love to mostly a newly-wed couple.

Tian Yu (Wang Qi Nian) & Missing favorite characters from S1?
I love Wang Qi Nian, he's a loyal sidekick that trust FX v.v but in 2nd season he's kissing a** too much. He flattered FX too many times, cringe like overly sweeten the deals. Where is Gao Da (Li Jun Xian) he's one of my favorite but he barely has screen time. Limited appearance of Hai Tang, Fei Jie, Yan Bin Yun, Wu Zhu all important characters that isn't develop in Season 2. Especially Yan Bin Yun, he is the most important man who execute Fan Xian's strategies/action in Overwatch Council.

Costumes/hair piece & Background music
Shiny fabric, bad choice of hair piece but I like Yuan Meng/Sang Wen flowery head piece. Yodeling as part of background music isn't good, they should use any playful tone of Chinese music.

Ending
3 last episodes concentration in Ming Family before ending the drama in last quarter of ep 36. The director should have make 2-4 more episodes to elaborate the story but they're on and on about Ming Family. The screen writer should have developed the reunion between Hai Tang & Fan Xian that fans looking forward to. In the book though there're lots of people involve in FX open chest self-operating so he's declared not only God of Poetry but earned new title as Medical genius. Anyway, last scene is great, a promise 'Iam back' to next Season 3 which will have to wait again for 2-3 years before premier.

My prediction in Season 3 (base on novel)
Hai Tang Duo Duo will have more screen time. Hai Tang love journey will start on S3 with no happy ending. Wu Zhu will have more part as Fan Xian defender. Ruo Ruo will study medicine in Northern Qi and become a doctor (she'll break the engagement), Li Cheng Heng will try to win her heart and compete with despicable He Zong Wei. Country will be in turmoil, change in leadership, dead of Princes, family break up & Fan Xian as a family man.

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Where did the mystery and exiting events go?

Being halfway through the season, I cannot rate this series higher than “average”. While the costumes, set design, and visual are excellent, there are clear shortcomings in the story but perhaps most importantly in the running of the story. My primary complaint is that the drama is purely “talking heads”. Interesting events are not shown on screen, we learn about them when someone reports on them to someone else. As if that wasn't enough, we hear about the same events several times. This is really a money-saving way, but also unfortunately boring. Before someone accuses me that I don't seem to understand that this series is about plotting, not action, I'll reply, “are you kidding me?”

References to the first season are inevitable since we have a continuation, and in my opinion there was more plotting, intrigue and mystery there, but they were shown in an interesting, dynamic way and the viewer had time to think about how the situation would be resolved. This is what is simply missing in season two. We don't get the pieces of the puzzle that we can solve, the series gives us everything one by one and completes it with something obvious.
Now let's move on to the stakes. Seemingly, these stakes are important and the fate of the characters and the nation count, but are they really? Doesn't the viewer know from beginning to end that no price will be paid in this season by Fan Xien? That no one important will pay it? Even if someone dies, these are characters who have not managed to win the viewer's sympathy, so the viewer does not care about their fate.

In conclusion, in my opinion, in JoL 2 we have a clear excess of form over substance. The drama is shot very well technically, and I can even forgive it for the intrusive yogurt advertising. Unfortunately, in terms of plot, all the solutions are presented in a boring way. There are no exciting events. There are no unexpected twists and turns. There are walking heads who talk for hours about morality and state repair. And I would really like to watch a fun, adventure drama, just like season one, and not moral treatises. Sorry, 5/10 and only because the drama looks good visually.

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season 3 when??

Season 2 of Joy of Life had a lot to live up to, and while the first season is still better, this season really really good. The pacing was a little slower and the story less focused than the first season, but at this point I didn't care because a) it was still good and b) I just wanted to see Fan Xian worm his way out of all his problems.

It was so much fun to see all of the characters/actors back this season (with some changes). I will say some characters seemed to have a bit of a personality makeover (the Crown Prince). Something else I noticed was that it seemed like Fan Xian was a bit less morally grey this season. He was very much For the PEOPLE this season. Don't get me wrong I actually do buy his journey from "I just want to live comfortably" to wanting to help the common people. It's just that he seemed less ruthless this season and I wanted that aspect of him back in full force.

All of the acting was still excellent (shoutout to the Second Prince. He's my favorite Barefoot Psycho) but once again Zhang Ruoyun was beyond practically everyone else. Fan Xian has become one of my absolute favorite characters and it's really due to Zhang Ruoyun. That boy is acting with his ENTIRE chest and I love him for it.

Lastly! We've been teased with that damn gun for TWO seasons now. Fan Xian better blast someone with it next season.

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Waited for to long but....Not feeling attached to the story

I dont write reviews generally but I invested too much time in it therefore felt to do it. I watched first season 3 rd time before watching the second season even after that i felt connection to the story of first season but i fell totally detached in second season . In the first season male lead dealing with different things like family ,love ,the king ,chen ping ping,different bullies, discovering about his mom and in second half of first season with enemy state but in second season half way through and he is only bickering with second prince not much to do with other side character. One of the major disappointment I fell their is no major movement in second season which make you feel alive,full of emotions like in first season when he kill the bigger enemy in front of every one, writing greatest poem, then writing more than 100 poem and also raising his flag while entering enemy state.
I always thought why people write so much in reviews and now I get it.
I also want to say people should read comments and review but if ratings are decent they should definitely try it by themselves because people see and feel differently so it can be your cup of tea.
Finally if any one disagree they can message me or can comment ....we can discuss it

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THEY FORGOT SEASON 1…

They basically rebooted the series. The whole intrigue at the end of season 1 was the post ice age world, divine realm, futuristic mystery left behind by Fan Xian’s mother. They do not continue any of this and turned it into a generic corruption drama. It’s not even a mystery drama anymore, just corruption. They go through cases like dismantling brothels and ensuring ethical exams. New characters introduced are boring, while Uncle Wu, Eunuch Martial arts masters have all been forgotten thus far. Without a doubt, one of the biggest let downs of the year. Considering fans waited 5 years for this. The soul of the drama is lost.

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