The Story of Mystics (2024)

Bestest drama ever ♥️♥️

I just finished watching the last few episodes, and I cried a lot because it felt really heartbreaking to watch. How can this drama be so good? I’m so proud of the entire cast for delivering such a phenomenal performance. Little Lester Lin was incredible, and kudos to Neo You he truly shined in this drama. He’s not just a visual treat; his acting was genuinely impressive.

Everyone, including TJR, really shined in their acting. While Chen Duling’s character may not have been the best written, I think she portrayed the role beautifully. Her character came across as matured and smart to me, which added a lot of depth in certain moments.

I loved all the characters in this group of demon bureau hunters. Neo had great chemistry with the female lead and both male characters, and honestly, the directing did a fantastic job of showcasing the chemistry between everyone in different moments.

This drama has officially become one of my top tens. While the storytelling had its flaws, it was still very engaging, and I hope the cast gets the recognition they deserve for their hard work. It truly deserves the rating it got here and even higher! I didn’t comment much here, but it’s been nice reading most of your opinions.

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This is an absolute masterpiece!

The only set of people who won't like this drama are those who aren't into this kind of dramas. It's an absolute masterpiece, though started slow but it was ignorable. Definitely a must watch!
Every characters managed to shine in their own way. And of course, Zhao Yuanzhou shone the brightest. The character managed to carry to show from the beginning till the very end. Truly remarkable ?. I love Wen Xiao's character too even though everyone hates her for being weak but that's the point of the ml being stronger. There's absolutely nothing wrong with her character.
Then there's Zhuo Yichen and Pei Sijing...the actors did so well with the roles. Our Baby Baijiu was a complete character but the actor did so well ...then Yinglei who didn't deserve to die ?..
There's Li Lun whom I still hate but his final scene managed to elevate some of my hatred for him.

The drama is highly recommended but if you aren't into this kind of drama, it's not for you.

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The story is written so beautifully, heartwarming & heartwrenching

What I can say is that the story is written so beautifully.

A tale of unattainable love, obstacles and challenges in seeking a peaceful life, obsession, regret, sacrifice, and the deepest desires of the heart—all conveyed so beautifully.

The ending is satisfying, hitting all the right notes without being rushed. Though there were flaws, it's safe to say the writer truly written this story amazingly.

Even though our main couple only shared an embrace until the very end, we could feel their emotions through their movements and actions. Think of them as a married couple—sacrificing for one another, protecting each other, trusting, communicating, and being there for each other.

With a story that began with a great demon desiring death, viewers were already bracing for the worst, but unexpectedly, a glimmer of hope appeared.

Fang of Fortune really set the bar too high for me. No work is without flaws, but Fang of Fortune truly surpassed the limits of perfection I could imagine. The cinematography, atmosphere, color grading, OST, dialogues, storytelling, settings, costume design, hairstyles, even the smallest details—all are outstanding.

The works of GJM, Yin Yang Master, My Journey to You, and Fang of Fortune never disappointed, expecting his next project.

As someone who watches Japanese, Korean, and Chinese dramas, I find that after watching his works, it's hard to find other dramas that match their level of quality.

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Tragically beautifully crafted; emotionally stirring most memorable dream the drama delivered!

It started with arousing curiosity of what the characters' lines and attitudes were heading to. Then, it became light, fun, family themed, filled with comedy, bromance, and romance every chance it can in every epi but gradually geared towards the tragically beautiful ending it was primarily written for.

I like how it was well casted, performed, and written and the suspense I got throughout the story.
It is one among the no skinskip, no kiss yet engrossing drama.
The unique bond of gods, goddesses, demons, half-gods, half-demons, and mortals living together as a "family" fighting for the greater good of and protecting all living beings
The have destinies they couldn't avoid, the promises they could either break or fulfill
I also like how it showed various types of love and bond formed. The nemesis to besties, strangers to brothers and sisters, re-strengthened sibling bond, father and child relationships, and the romantic love.
These are the varied forms of warmth I felt from the story that were strengthened but could either last long or short lived.
On the other hand, there is also the wrong way of loving others, causing them grief and sorrow which happened to the villain and to what and how he turned out to be. But his hate turned obsession doesn't validate his sins
I like the bromance and the bickering of my 'brople' Zhao Yuanzhou and Zhuo Yichen and the romance of my beautifully paired couple Zhao Yuanzhou and Wen Xiao, the great demon and baize goddess as well as the always screaming and funny little doctor Bai Jiu, the wannabe-mortal-chef mountain god Ying Lei, and the badass mortal relying on her well-trained combat skills and signature weapon bow and arrow (hello Katniss Everdeen)
I like how their own stories, their entanglements, connections, and wishes were gradually unfolded
The friendship and brotherhood, the strong male lead vibe was very well shown throughout the story
The writer however appears to be more male centric. The story had strong brotherhood theme that I think overshadowed a bit the romantic theme.
Nonetheless, the injection of comedy and bickering in the epis even after some much dramatic plots made this ride an unforgettable experience.
The parallels in the story enriched the overall plot too.
I like the backstory of Ying Long and Bing Yi, the dragon god and the dragon slayer and its connection with ZYZ and ZYC but hated what was coming.
I like how the story of Zhao Yuanzhou changed after his death and was recognized for what he's sacrificed for: his wide understanding and love for all beings, his love for his besties, most strikingly his love for Wen Xiao that in all places he would return to, was his 'home' with her
The most heartbreaking is when the prophecy couldn't be stopped. One last sacrifice is needed and it had to be ZYZ, he chose to be the one. It was the freedom he had long wished for; however, at that very moment, he struggled, reluctant and unable to leave
I hated how the malicious energy and the BG divine power has to do with the couple
It was tormenting hearing and seeing him wanting to be consciously delusional for a moment with WX by his side in the dream of indulgence which was similar to when he endured the pain in his heart due to breaking the contract of staying with her a s a colleague, only to enjoy his imagination of a future with his beloved.
I give credit to the inserted comedy and bickering because it helped balance my emotions in a way, acting as the pain killer or anesthesia
Most of which were from ZYZ and ZYC interactions: E.g. When WX didn't inform ZYC of her plan and he took it seriously firmly standing up for ZYZ; he couldn't move on from the embarrassment and was pouty all over; ZYC making ZYZ not look like the great demon, the most powerful, him seeing though his acts; ZYZ fake acts, his responses, and many more
ZYZ and WX: 'The sound of jealousy' scene which was both sweet and hilarious ; the beg epi with his fake act being caught by WX and affected by her little tricks and ZYC rushing to the scene and slightly misjudging the situation as WX was in danger; the eavesdropping scenes for WX and ZYZ's words of love and ZYZ holding her hands act, dying act, and more; WX's with other's reactions to the funny scenes such as ZYZ kissing the previous BG's puppet act to provoke the thousand-year-old demon Cheng Huang (Ryan Cheng's guest role)
The story wasn't all perfect, I had my own complaints
Some instances:
Ying Lei (Xu Xhen Xuan) endured Li Lun's attack to wake Jiu was being possessed by LL; Bai Jiu (Lester Lin), the youngest, gave his best to destroy ever burning wood to cut the villain's immortality; women power moment such as Pei Sijing (Cheng Xiao) defeating her most feared enemy that became a more fearful demonized human through her own 'mortal trained combat skills' whilst Wen Xiao was often put to a situation where she'd be subject to criticisms. Others made important sacrifices, given enough screen time for the dramatic effect but she wasn't given enough moment to showcase her being Baize Goddess and its divine power, didn't have her own shining moment except for 2 scenarios but with someone else's help and had less impact. I think it was better she was interrupted while giving her all as Baize Goddess to save the human race and had flashback memories of her and ZYZ to add to the heaviness and impact of the scene. The difference prolly will add to the character's growth. There were also some prolly minor inconsistencies that may be overlooked by their editing crew that in my perspective could add to her character's emphasis
The last fight scene with Li Lun (Yan An) in his redemtion arc joining Zhao Yuanzhou and Zhuo Yichen, the CGI, the winged ZYC, everything, with its drama and all was epic. It goes back to the drama being more male centered in my view. I have no issue with it but even ZYZ's death, the should be most heartbreaking couple moment came out less impressive
Nevertheless, it was harder to let go of this drama with all its potential to be a masterpiece
I was glad there was a hopeful extra epi
The extra individual bts is a plus to the cast specifically Chen Duling (Wen Xiao) acting improved a lot
The main ost auto plays in my head whenever I remember their group dance, their solo parts, their voice, the individual focus of the camera, their group hugs as well as the stage performance of Hou Minghao, Chen Duling, Tian Jiarui, Cheng Xiao, and Yan An where they all wore white, their promotional dance and all clips, Neo and Jiaru funny short singing promo, and their online meetings where funny hardow TJR is always eating
The OSTS, BGMs, the instrumentals (the sound of coming death and insertion of comedy) the ending BTS/Group dance have been part of my unforgettable viewing experience.
Jiarui's make up was very elven, insane face card that equalled Neo's. Bing Yi and his new look as Zhuo Yichen and him riding the horse were fairytale-ish very eye catching (hello Legolas, L.O.T.R.)
Neo's Ying Long to his curly silver haired Zhu Yan, cub days, to his 3 silver striped hair Zhao Yuanzhou look were all flawlessly done and carried by him, very attention grabbing. Not to forget he had a scene showing off his figure, insane body card
Their acting performances were on point, Neo's eye talking, delivering hilarious as well as dramatic scenes, the fight scenes and the cast' trainings for those
I don't want to wake up from this long beautiful dream and await the return of the great "white ape" demon, a reunion with his loved ones and a whole new adventure with them
All actors and actresses in this drama are part of its success.

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"I hope that life give you a lot of false alarms and fangs of fortune"

"But after he left, i finally understood. It was the base color of his soul, like a broken song, vast, distant and desolate. I used to be like him, looking at a small pool of water that only reflected a lamp, the moon and my shallow hatred. I always forgot that he lived for 30.000 years while i only live for 30 years. In his eyes, i must have look like a child, waving my fist angrily in the air. Zhao Yuanzhou, i'll definitely find the shred of your soul that i extracted myself. I'll search every mountain and sea both in the mortal world and the Wilderness"- Zhuo Yichen ended his journey looking all over the world for Zhao Yuanzhou's soul and that is how we also ended the drama (As Li Susu did trying to find Tantai Jin's soul in "Till the end of the moon").

There is so much i want to say about this drama. So i will start apologizing because this is going to be long lol.

I'm going to talk first about the three negative point i got for this drama. Very little because i really love it:

-It is true that the editing in some scenes was weird. There is this one scene where Wen Xiao was going to hug Zhuo Yichen that suddenly it got cut. But it was more evident when we got Bai Jui's back and we didn't see him greet any of them besides his mom, we see him already talking to them like days have passed which created some disconnect with the viewer in a very important close arc (Bai Jui no longer possed by Li Lun).

-Wen Xiao: This character was so very badly written. It is said a lot about how little she did in all the drama that she didn't appeared one single time in episode 33, the one before last. I was able to not be bothered a lot by it because all the other character were really well developed and i was caugh up in the rest of the relationships but it is always sad to see this kind of FL.

-I didn't found really any plot holes but i don't think i fully get what happened with the second Fei. It can not be him, because he died on episode 13 and he did it taking out his inner core so no chance to be back. So i guess this back a demonic human taking in his appereance but, hor it was his blood able to give the plague, like Fei's did? so i'm a little confused with this point but nothing too big.

Let's get on the good parts!!!:

-Ying Lei and Bei Jui: They started being the comedic relief and end up being the unseen heros. Ying Lei (Using his own free will, the main theme of this drama) decided to die yo save Bei Jui and Bei Jui did the same to save his own hero, Zhuo Yichen. We got also good backround stories from both of them, so both their deads were completely heartbreaking.

-Pei Si Jing: She is prove that this creator can make a good female character. She was fierce and badass and queen all the drama to end up being as the leader of the Hunting Demons Bureau. Her story was paintful, and all her interacctions with her brother get you to the soul, but she make her own choice too: She will keep fighting for the people, to help those who can't help themselves. She also give us one of the best fighting scene in the latest episiodes, holding more like her own against his former partner, Zhen Mei. ABSOLUTE QUEEN.

-Li Lun: I will say i consider him the character with the best development of all the drama. He was the villain (And a charismatic one at that) but, the more you know about his story, the more we could see he was not as bad as we though. He was someone broken, who saw how his partner in life choose humans before him and also lost his freedom. So, on his own free will, decide his rage to guide him. But, after all what said and done, he got the best redemption arc in the story of redemption arcs: He stop his much needed cultivation to protect Zhuo Yichen and Zhao Yuanzhou and fight with them side by side. When he saw they were all going to die, he decided to him all his demonic energy to them both (half/half) and make himself the target of Wen Zhongyou so Zhuo Yichen could kill him. When he gives the "truth eye" to Yichen and said "This was never mine in the first place. Now is yours" in my mind there was an echo of his voice saying "and him too".

-Zhou Yichen: What a fantastic character. Like i read long ago in another post he really is like Lan Zhan from "The untamed": Sheltered, unable to lie and hard to socialize with others but also a sword master and loyal to boot. His journey is probably the hardest one. Being able to understand the killer of his family, to change his black and white mindset and still being the hero the world needs. His change from human to demon give him a whole different view of things and he took it in stride with his soulmate by his side. I love, love, love him hard.

-Zhao Yuanzhou: Our dearest monkey ML demon. You know, he is probably the one that had less develoment between them. He already love humanity so much he was able to choose them before his partner in life. Even when he was blame and accused of things that happened out of his control, he still went to meet the people that hate him the most to be able to save the mortal world. He gives his all, fights tooth and nail and, in the journey, found friends and his soulmate. And he still give his life for the greater good. As a true hero will do. Fantastic ML.

-Zhou Yichen & Zhao Yuanzhou: Their relationship was the best point of the drama for me. Like a said before, a bond than trascent even the romantic meaning: Together by a blood feud that shape itself in friendships and doubts, that change completely with Yichen transformation and his completely loyalty to the great demon. The last fight was epic for a lot of reasons but the understanding between them was the most important one. That spell that give Yichen wings (This was so awesome, i can't), Yichen giving Zhao Yuanzhou all his demonic energy to kill the villain, that moment of anguish and doubt because he through he will kill him too. But, in the end, both did it. Both killed the other if that means to save the world even when their souls were breaking inside. What makes their story even greater is the parallels with the ancestors, Binyi and Ying Long. Ying Long end up being a star and Zhao Yuangzhou end up being rain. It is all amazing and beautiful and i'm grateful to have enjoy this.

So final throughts: The main theme of the drama it what moves it from episode 1 till episode 34: Free will. No matter what you are, human, demon, god, semi god, you have the right to choose your own path to get exactly to what you want to be (As our favorite ML demon will say). And we see this in all the Main leads stories but also in the supporting stories. Everything that happened is because we have free will and we used it and that is important. We can have regrets but we can fix those. There is always time (As our sword master will say).

I will recommend it? Yes. It is beautiful, it is funny, it is heartbreaking, it is exciting. It is so worth the watch.

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My Most Anticipated Drama of the Year & It Landed!

What a journey! My goodness! In the 5 years since I fell into the cdrama rabbit hole, this is the first and only drama that I followed since the very first day of filming (primarily for TJR but was glad that 60% of the MJTY cast was in here too), through the grueling 5 month shoot, every day watching many of the scenes we saw being shot because unlike every other drama, it was like fans were welcome to film whatever they wanted as it was free advertising and no one cared about leaks. The multitude of costumes and that the wrap on set at the end of February to see it come to our screens in late October. It nearly got a perfect score if it wasn't for some writing and editing issues I had. This was my most anticipated drama of the year and boy did it land!

Pros: Lord, I don't even know where to begin. The CGI was phenomenal and it never felt like a computer was doing the work instead of the actors. The gorgeous costumes and sets. I wonder if this was an S++ drama because of how expensive it looked and was. Favorite character was ZYC with ZYZ coming in close second. Both of them, be it their bickering or stronger than platinum bond were such dynamic characters. Both actors are still young and for one this is only his second series to air while the other has had several but both showed tremendous growth from what I had seen from them previously; the versatility was insane. The demon hunting bureau became a family stronger together than many you'd see in real life that had to go from case to case and from tragedy to tragedy as they were being set up by asswipe camp and ZYZ's former best friend who was ridiculously misguided but gained his redemption at the end. BJ was a riot though all the shrieking did kind of get annoying after a while; that said when he was possessed by LL until nearly the end, you missed the kid. PSJ and her puppet brother were also indispensable to the team as was cheesy mountain God YL; he and BJ made a great pair. I have never seen CX act before and felt she gave a strong performance here. WX had her strong moments, being the common sense voice in the group/family and scenes of sisterhood and encouragement with PSJ.

When this thing was filmed, none of us who followed the actors—day in and day out—knew that it would have any comedy in it (it was an original IP after all) so were totally caught off guard with the first episode and onwards. It wasn't a lot but it certainly made for some interesting situations especially when BJ yanked ZYC's hair repeatedly and the sound effects, that part we actually saw filmed as in real life TJR and Lester are really close since their MJTY days and Lester turning 13 on set plus going through puberty, it made for some really funny scenes both BTS and on screen because whether in real life or not Lester/BJ clung to TJR/ZYC like crazy gorilla glue lol! One of those yanks off screen nearly pulled TJR's wig off; it became a DY masterpiece. I'm personally extremely proud of TJR as new and green as he is to show business; with now only 2 series out, 3 filmed and currently working on a 4th. He couldn't play that character any different or better; it’s mind-boggling that he only debuted last year.

While filming, the entire cast including the guests had to perform a certain dance in various locations and we were puzzled about how it would be used; we counted over 30 by the time filming ended. They even filmed one in the snow which was followed by an epic snowball fight that had crew joining in and GJM being lambasted by everyone as he tried rather unsuccessfully to get away. It seemed the cast was giving him payback for the extreme dieting and hours of work. That was made into an MV but when this thing premiered we realized that the dances were edited in a way to become our ending credits that would change every few episodes. It was quite smart and resourceful; because the show was emotionally heavy and the credits added that light and warm touch. So it became a wonderful combination.

All of the supporting cast were great as were the guests. So many wonderful characters to show that not all demons were inherently evil; some were born with fates they didn't want like ZYZ and Fei. And that humans could be far worse like leader of asswipe camp. He became immortal and so many had to sacrifice so much to take him down especially BJ. Losing YL and BJ were the hardest for me; I legit cried. ZYZ, you were prepared, still hard though there's hope for him returning someday. Maybe one of the characters could go into the sundial and wait until he cultivates into human form again, like WX did with the tree.

All of the OSTs and BGMs were amazing but my number one liquid fire favorite was by LYN. It was his first time doing this genre of hip hop/rock and it absolutely blew my mind. I have it and a few others now in my Spotify OST list. Maybe it's because I followed this show from the beginning but I feel like when it ended (after the special episode), it took a part of me with it. Like I'm extremely satisfied but wish we were with our characters longer.

Cons: Though this section is small, unfortunately it still was there. I absolutely did not like how the majority of the character of WX was written; (this is no reflection on the actress at all; only about the writing of the character) I don't know why GJM decided to make her so one dimensional. She spent many of her scenes for 34 episodes crying and yelling either for ZYZ or ZYC. The writing of this character reminded me of her character in MLC due to the weepiness of it, though there she at least talked and acted tougher and carried a sword. Everyone else who cried which they did often given the amount of tragedy in this had a lot of depth and you felt the weight of their tears but with her it became almost a waiting game of when will she start per episode or numerous times per episode. Even in the end, it threw a heavily emotional scene off; like stop already, do and say something else, please! So the writing threw a monkey wrench into this whole character for an actress who could handle being complex and should have been allowed to showcase that. Also could have had the good guys not lose so much when it came to asswipe camp's strategies. Felt like they were given the upper hand way too much as opposed to the push and pull that would have felt more appropriate.

Editing was off as some scenes came together very suddenly and you didn't understand how this person was there or why. Or wait did she cough up blood? When did that happen? I felt like many scenes were cut altogether which was kind of weird since the episode count actually went up and there was an extra episode to boot. It being a fantasy drama, suspension of disbelief had to be deployed a bit especially when our group was so obviously spied on and they didn't realize it at all or some characters disappeared without a trace and we didn't know what happened to them. But that's it.

Would I recommend it? 100% would! This show delivered in so many ways. The cons were nothing in comparison to the pros; writing and editing but the richness of the story, music, locations, costumes, and the absolutely phenomenal performances by the actors should give you a very satisfactory experience.

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A Must Watch!

Brilliant! I have never liked a fantasy cdrama before. But this one changed my perspective on Chinese drama, its VFX and its production. I mean, even the makeup and costume are so meticulously well done that it left me in absolute awe! Masterpiece for sure.
I am super impressed with the actors who pulled off such great acting. I am in love with every character's gradual growth in finding their way.
I like ZYZ's confidence and his depth of understanding of every situation. The layers in his character are intriguing. Love every bit so far. His character is stuck between a rock and a hard place. The complexities are intense, but the relationship with his friends is so strong and fascinating that he may have some hope. The eventual realisation that he does not want to die, after all, is built perfectly in the story.

Overall, there are a few loopholes that I am not quite sure of, but it does not affect my 10/10 score. I just love understanding these well-written characters.

P.S.: In love with the end credits song and dance. Indeed, it is a breath of fresh air. Whoever thought of it is a genius!!!! This is the first time that I did not skip the end credits. Thank you for this

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A beautiful cinematography but lacks essence

Visually, it’s a gorgeous drama but there was just something missing. Like I started watching because of the premise; a great demon wanting to die but meet people who might convince him to live. It started that way but turned into a crying fest along the way. It’s like every episode someone has to cry. And maybe that’s the direction the directors wanted to go with the drama. Maybe they just wanted to tug at our heartstrings. From episode 29 even with tears in my eyes, the only thing I could do was laugh.
Firstly, Ying lei is supposed to be a mountain god; part demon and part god. How the hell did he die from those wounds? Like how!!! And please don’t say that li Lun roots went through his heart or something…. And then everyone just stood there watching. I mean fine, the poison acted on wen xiao so she couldn’t do anything. Why was pei sijing just there holding her instead of helping ying lei?? And xiao zhou was the next one…. I thought he’s good at fighting or holding his own…. He saw the roots coming towards him and just waited for ying lei to push him out of the way….. So you’re telling me that he hit the ground so hard that it took him so long to get back up?? Plus they had a sword and a knife and just stood there watching the roots coming towards them?? My gosh!!! And I’m sorry to say but I really had to laugh that whole scene of ying lei dying……
Secondly, it’s like going from a good fighting scene where the drama picks up back to a crying fest. At first I didn’t like li Lun because of his actions but his sacrifice redeemed himself in my eyes. I actually cried with his and bai jiu’s deaths. Like I can understand why Bai Jiu died and the circumstances under which he died but I still cannot understand how ying lei died. And why do people just disappear from each scene….. like pei sijing and bai jiu were both together but when bai jiu was dying, where was pei sijing?
FOF is beautifully made but that alone isn’t good enough. Some persons might enjoy it but I would have like things to make sense; at least to some degree. Like the last set of episodes had scenes that weren’t connecting. Like during the fighting scenes, zhou yi Chen had his sword pointing towards the doctor guy and in the next second, this sword isn’t being pointed at the guy. And this happened in multiple scenes.
I wasn’t expecting a happy ending but I continued to watch until the end although I had to fast forward sometimes.
But what I did like was the ost. Lui yuning once again delivered and it shows why he sings most of the ost for various dramas. I also liked that ZYC finally understand what ZYZ was going through and saw that he didn’t have a choice of what happens when he gets controlled by the malicious energy. But I would have liked to see the others apologize to ZYZ since they easily forgave Bai Jiu for his deception.
It’s been a rollercoaster and now I’m onto my next journey.

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visually gorgeous, but still missing something

Opening this review by saying that I love this director's works and My Journey To You is, to this day, one of my favourite c-dramas ever, so, needless to say, I waited for SO long for this show to finally air. My high expectations basically hit the sky.
The aesthetic, sceneries and cinematography of Fangs of Fortune don't come as a surprise: they are simply gorgeous and I really can't think of other dramas (during this or in the previous years) that are equal to it (except, of course, for this director's other works).
He always has a clear and fixed idea of how things should be shot and how they should look and, so far, it's always been consistent. Just one look at one scene and the viewers can immediately tell it's one of his works.
That's what hooked me with MJTY and I was just all too happy seeing it in this drama as well. C-dramas often tend to have “issues” with the cinematography, the lightning and colouring, the camera work (let alone the CGI), so when it comes to this area, Fangs of Fortune is already a level above the others and it looks so good and professional and eerie in the best possible way.
I admit, the ghostly white powder on the actors' faces always kind of takes me aback, because it's very VERY pale and in certain shots they either look like corpses or, thanks to skin smoothing as well, you can't really see their full expressions, but in this case it fits the tone of the drama and I think a different make-up would look weird and too much in contrast with the dark aesthetic.
Wigs and costumes are of very high quality and the texture, the details (ex. the fish scales in the fish demon's robes) the colours, EVERYTHING, really set them apart and a lot above others costume dramas... costumes.
Every character has its own styling and the outfits and hairstyles really help with making them all the more unique and alive. The stylist department really deserves all the appreciation and an award for their work.
If not for the plot and the characters themselves, I'd recommend this drama just for how good it looks.
(Little parenthesis for the soundtrack: it really works. I read comments where people were not happy with it, back when the show still had to air, but so far so good. Especially the modern song they use during fight scenes. Unexpectedly, it fits with the vibe and choreography of those sequences and it brings them out even more. When I think of the OST, that's the very first song that comes to mind, so it really left a good impression on me).
Now.
Onto the things that still don't sit quite right with me and the reason I scored this one a 7.5 (for now, will most likely change it as I watch more episodes – hopefully).
First of all, especially in the first couple of episodes, the scenes are way too jumpy and “messy”, so much so that I had to replay a couple of parts because I couldn't really understand certain things and the show just lost me. Was it a dream? A memory/flashback? The way it's edited and quickly jumps from A to B back to A is very confusing. They're not smooth cuts.
Granted, it got better in the last episode I watched (ep.5), so it's probably just a problem of the first part and it got fixed as it went on. Again, hopefully.
The second thing is the humour. Most of the times it actually gets a giggle out of me (the actors' comedic timing is always on point and their expressions alone are enough to make the joke work) and it's just in such contrast with the somber scene at play in that moment that it somehow works very well and I can only appreciate it. But some other times... they REALLY play into it, to the point that it feels kinda weird and out of place. Cringe, even. To make an example: the way the young boy, Bai Jiu, keeps screaming or fainting. After a while it gets repetitive, old, and his character doesn't feel real anymore. Hope he'll hit some character growth and won't shout as much. I really liked young master Xue's character in MJTY and, albeit so young, that actor really can play more serious roles.
Humour in this kind of dramas is a fine line to walk and I think, up to this moment, MJTY kept that balance a lot better.
Third thing, which is mainly what caused the 7.5, is something I cannot quite explain with words, but I can't help feeling whenever I'm watching this drama: a sense of emptiness. Of something missing, not being there.
It's really more of a personal feeling, but there are certain scenes where I really can't help but feel like I'm watching something empty, like something should be there, but isn't. Like I'm reading the draft of a book and some paragraphs are still missing or aren't finished yet. Where MJTY felt more organic and grounded, FoF is a lot more staged, a gorgeous cover wrapped around blank pages.
Sometimes it has to do with the scene in general, sometimes with the way it cuts from one shot to the other, the lack of music and overall sound or just the characters. I know they are interacting with each other, but it's as if there's this wall that divides them. One thing that really irks me is how often (especially the villains) they just... stand there and let the main leads finish their thing, whether it's talking among themselves or preparing for action.
It's still the very beginning, though, so it'll probably smooth out and feel more natural and complete with the episodes to come, but right now it all feels too disjointed, especially when the narration clearly slows down or stops altogether to focus on the appearance of the characters or the beauty of a certain shot.
(I know this criticism basically goes against my praises of the aesthetic and cinematography of this director's works, but I can't deny he can be VERY pretentious and all too often puts looks above substance).
I still don't have much to say about the characters themselves, because we still don't know them much yet, but some impressed me more than others and for others I hope they'll grow and get better with time.
I'm very curious about Zhuo Yichen, although Tian Jiarui's performance so far is a little... lukewarm, when compared with the work he did on Gong Yuanzhi in MJTY. I like how Yichen can be both fierce and shy/awkward, but he didn't give much aside for that (so far). I know he's a more than capable actor, so I'm sure the character will grow on me, but right now... not there yet. It probably also depends on the way the make-up and hairstyle always make his expression look very tight, as if he can't move his face much - or just got a face lift. But, aside from that, I'm curious to find out who he really is. I have this headcanon where he is, in fact, a demon, given his blue eyes and his whispery voice (I noticed only demons have it, which is a nice touch and detail) and the constant nightmare of becoming one. I want to see whether I'm right or wrong.
I was pleasantly surprised with two performances so far: Neo Hou and Chen Duling.
I always found Neo Hou's acting to be quite stiff and struggled a lot not to see the actor beneath the character, so I am impressed in the best of ways with this role. He is shining and brings Zhu Yan to life. And although at times the character himself isn't very consistent with the way he acts and reacts, he really works for me and got me hooked from the very beginning. Hope we'll get to see more of his layers, like his darker and more serious and dangerous side, but also his sensible and “sad” personality, because he really wishes to die and I really want to 1) know why and 2) see HOW the actor will showcase this part of the character.
For Chen Duling, I've only seen her in two other works, where she played either a minor role or a supporting role, but in both cases she was nothing but a woman who fell into sadness and depression because of her lost lover, so I was a bit worried about Wen Xiao. But I really love her so far and she's really growing on me. Right now I can easily say she's my favourite among the main roles.
Last but not least, I hope we'll get some proper world building this time around. This director's works always tend to lack a lot on this department and so far the world of FoF hasn't been fleshed out that much. Granted, I'm only at episode five as I'm writing this review, but I was really confused at the wheres and how much time it takes to move from place x to place y.
I wish they gave us an impression of space and moving spaces like, for example, Mysterious Lotus Casebook did. Its world building isn't much richer and extended, but it has some substance at least and the characters won't just appear back at a certain place (ex. the archives of the bureau) as if through sci-fi teleportation.

I think that's all for now. Might come back to this once the drama is complete.

- Mei

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