Try the World (2022)

politics and finance

2021 Chinese drama that explores the dynamics of power, politics, and family in modern-day China. The drama tells the story of a powerful family, the Gu family, who own a successful business and have immense influence in the world of politics and finance.
The drama explores the struggles and challenges that come with being part of a wealthy and powerful family, including the pressure to conform, the temptation of corruption, and the burden of responsibility. It also touches upon themes of betrayal, loyalty, and the importance of standing up for what is right.

The drama also features stunning cinematography, with beautiful shots of Shanghai's skyline and the opulent lifestyle of the Gu family.

Overall, "Who Rules the World" is a well-crafted drama that offers an intriguing look into the world of power, politics, and wealth in modern-day China. The strong performances, engaging storyline, and insightful commentary on Chinese society make it a must-watch

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Worlds Collide

"Who Rules the World" is a captivating Chinese drama that offers a perfect blend of romance, action, and political intrigue. Yang Yang and Zhao Lusi deliver standout performances as Hei Fengxi and Bai Fengxi, bringing depth and chemistry to their roles. The plot is engaging, intertwining political maneuverings with heartfelt romance, and the visuals are stunning, featuring elaborate costumes and well-choreographed action scenes.

However, the drama isn’t without its flaws. Some plot points can feel a bit predictable, and certain character arcs may seem underdeveloped or rushed. Additionally, the pacing occasionally slows down, which might test the patience of some viewers.

Despite these shortcomings, "Who Rules the World" remains a compelling watch for fans of epic tales with a romantic twist. Its strong performances and impressive production values make it worth checking out.

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Beautiful mature story, so much I had more hopes for the FL

Beautiful story! Wish there were more episodes…
I watched it initially because of the great and believable FL.
As the show progressed, I held that character among the top FL characters I’ve ever seen until her relationship with the ML evolved, where I felt she wasn’t given enough space even if their relationship feels mature !
The story is well paced in the beginning, and feels rushed in the end. I did love the story and the characters. Action, friendship, love, character development and elegance included.

One of my fav historical dramas so far!

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Great idea- disappointing execution

Who rules the world in my mind will always remain as a drama that failed to live up to expectations and the potential it had. the foundation of the story was solid: two famous martial artists in the jianghu world that are actually secretly royalty bond as they engage in a game of thrones in a bid to see who will rule the world
unfortunately the writers failed to match up and deliver a coherent script. i will discuss the cons first and then talk about what i liked about the show

cons:
1. false marketing. i doubt its just me but this show was very much promoted as a wuxia show and the initial eps had all the makings of one as it was featuring two wuxia heroes one from a cultivating sect. however it quickly abandoned its classic wuxia settings for a palace political storyline. it went against expectations and jarred a lot of people including me.

2. the writers are obv not familiar with writing intriguing political conflict coz literally all of the politics in this is incoherent. random alliances, random wars, random resolutions. ofc there were a few fun but not necessarily well written political games like when heifengbaixi went undercover or feng ju's coup but the moments were few and far between

3. the latter half was just a mess of weird pacing, editing, ooc behavior of supporting characters, plot holes after plot holes. just a whole mess. langhua almost killing bai fengxi for no reason, huang chao's unnecessary proposal to bfx, how the trio finally managed to break into imperial capital even tho huang chao failed coz yu wuyuan was using innocent people as buffer to hold him at bay. ywy randomly finding out bai fengxi is feng xiyun. they elevated the scenes that didnt require an elevation and suppressed the reveals that required an elevation. so many logical fails throughout this show that even a watcher like me that likes to switch off my brain for entertainment couldn't stop noticing the plot holes

pros:
1. heifengbaixi: this ties in to the cons. the writers were unable to recognize their strengths ie, romance. since they are incapable of producing a thrilling political drama they should have done what theyre best at and given more space to romantic relationship between the two leads. cdramas rarely have this kinda couple that have no stupid misunderstandings, no third act breakup. this is one of the best heterosexual cps ever coz they're twin flames, equal in every way with a relationship built on mutual respect, tacit understanding and deep friendship.

2. yang yang and zhao lusi have great chemistry and work well off each other. with the script being a snooze, the main attraction of the show remains these two people. they fit their roles and theyre engaging to watch. i doubt anyone would continue this show past ep 20 if these two werent the leads

3. the budget was proved via set design and cinematography. everything looked really royal and the shots were really pretty

4. since i have lambasted the writers this entire review, i want to end it on a positive note and give them kudos for the one thing they did right: foreshadowing. right from the chess game with old taiyin the script already insinuated that feng lanxi would never be the ruler of the world. in the chess game machination when faced with the question of what all he can sacrifice he cut all the strings surrounding his life except one: bai fengxi. once again in the chess game with huang chao, he lost to him on purpose coz his priority will always be bai fengxi. this is what makes the love story at the core of wrtw such an admirable one coz as ambitious as feng lanxi is, his greatest ambition will always be to be by his lady love's side. so even tho the ending is a bittersweet one as he hands over his whole life's work and dreams and ambitions to huang chao and retires to spend what little time he has left with his wife, it is an understandable choice as he has always been telling us in very unsubtle subtext that his greatest dream is not the world, it is bai fengxi.

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The Actors saved the day!

The story itself was crappy. The direction, screen writing, production was shoddy. I don't know what the original novel was like, but if it was anything like this, I wouldn't have read it either. That being said, what carried this drama for me and what made me watch it to the end (albeit fast-forwarding through a lot of the fight and political arguing scenes) was definitely Yang Yang, and then in addition, Zhou Lusi, and a fine cast of actors who did a phenomenal job. You liked the good ones, and you detested the bad ones. The interactions were believable and well done.

Some of the reviews made me take a look at the chemistry between the ML & FL - and I am glad I gave it my own chance and didn't follow those opinions. I like how their relationship evolved and there was such an ease of progression in the development of their bond. Without saying a word, they could relay their emotions and feelings for each other. The subtle changes in expression for each of them said so much (if one was paying attention). Some complained about the way the main villain died, but I thought it was pretty well done. Not overdone.

I can't say enough how Yang Yang made this drama work for me. I will watch him in anything (historical romance preferred). In fact, I'd probably watch him simply standing still!

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What attracted me to this drama was the ending song. I so in love with it. Then I decided to see the drama which thankfully I don't regret at all. I really loved the story however there were many parts I believe required elaboration to add flavour to the story. What can I say about my favourite main actors, their acting was beautiful. Never felt bored watching every detail of the story except the ending felt a bit "rushy" and was missing something but no problem it didn't effect the main story. The music is so beautiful too. The ending is not what I was actually expecting it to be, however I enjoyed the drama in general. It is worth watching.

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it's a masterpiece

it's not the typical romance story, of course it contains struggles of the lead characters in order to achieve their goals in life. Their character is literally so sweet to each other, they have no score nor label but they knew what their hearts shouts. The end didn't dissapoint me but it feels like it lacks. and lusi's crying scene I honestly didn't feel it. Maybe that's because she is portraying a very different character than her past dramas before or everything happened so fast?. still it was a masterpiece the chemistry between the two of them is unexpected. I feel like the whole story ended so fast?

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Great Production, Decent Storyline, Max Enjoyability

I had high hopes coming into this drama. I usually don't start watching dramas until they're completed, but I took a chance on this and yep, I have no regrets.

First of all, the production value of this drama was top notch. Everything looked great - loved all the different costumes and the sets, and it really helped set the mood throughout the whole series.

Second of all, I absolutely loved the FL. Honestly, if you're a fan of strong FLs, I would give this drama a chance because this definitely fits the bill. FL isn't the type of "strong" FL where they claim she's strong and then somehow somewhere down the line, 10 episodes in, you have the ML having to save her every other episode (an exaggeration, but you get my point). Nope, this FL holds her own throughout the whole drama, and is on par with the ML every step of the way, whether it's physically or intellectually. There were times where I thought, oh no, they're going to have her fall into the trap or oh, she's going to get saved by someone, but NOPE, she actually fucking figures it out and gets the job done herself.

This has now become my favourite drama of Yang Yang and Lusi so far. Yang Yang especially, stood out for me in this show and now I need him to do 500 other wuxia/xianxia because he is perfect in these types of roles. Chemistry between him and Lusi was great, so much so that I could deal with some Very Questionable Plot Points just because I was so invested in the two of them lol.

Also, bonus points for NO LOVE TRIANGLE. Hell yeah. There was a point where I thought they were headed to one with Feng Xiwu, but she became best friends with FL instead and was actually so genuinely supportive and kind to FL. A miracle!

All in all, it's a fantastic drama for me, highly enjoyable with engaging characters that I loved. Worth my time, and worth the watch.

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