This series turned out to be a lot better than I originally expected. The acting was all-around quite commendable. Hu Jun's acting and chemistry with all his co-stars was palpable and hit the notes just right, whether it was a comedic scene or a suspenseful one. The deviations from the novel were not disruptive, but helped to enhance the characters' development and the emotional drama. *Pros* - acting; - production quality; - fight scenes where CGI was used to illustrate the how cultivation power works (not to be confused with traditional martial arts); - the dialogue; - characters; *Cons* - storylines - often times they just dragged on and on; - the villains - not convincing enough whether in terms of their motivations or the complexity of their schemes. *Overall* Enjoyed it and will be watching for the second season.
2 Reviews
XFN's Journey
ENIGMA0515 April 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I was actually very surprised that I liked this series. Many people I usually chat with, dropped it without looking. But it had many good qualities. XFN is officially more cunning then his father. That finale was something else; truly hope seasons 2 and 3 don't take 10 years to make.
Pros: Most of the characters were there for as long as they needed to be and greatly evolved. The main lead was the most obvious. His father was the 706 steps ahead thinking man planning everything in his son's path to both help him and test him. But as the series wore on he too became very much like his father; from a stubborn teenager who refused to learn martial arts until his closest friend and master martial artist died, did he realize he can still live his own way but be great at something.
It was great to see 3 actors from DC in this thing; old man booger aka Sword God, Ning Emei, and the death guard Qing. I totally saw the latter two as becoming a couple. The fantastical aspects were great but not overdone. Every loose end was one way or another always tied and not left along for too long. The ending episode was cool except for ZK talking for far too long after Xu big sister stabbed him. I particularly liked when XFN used the martial arts he learned to fight the bad guys.
The story in itself progressed well, with XFN growing, maturing, learning and ultimately embracing his destiny in his own way. The comical aspects were also a nice touch and progressing the story along. You never knew who was working for dad or by the end of it XFN himself and that was always comical when the audience learned along with other parts.
Cons: Many inconsistencies and really unneeded characters like the lady with the cat. I'll take the cat over the chick. Just the sheer number of people who wanted to kill XFN for reasons most of the time not well explained or if explained, didn't make sense. It reminded me a lot of Luoyang and the plethora of unneeded assassins. Ms. Hehe's sudden appearances, her lackluster explanation for why she was there and then final appearance, equally bizarre other explanation and disappearance. Her entire presence was like a whiplash each time.
I didn't see any point in the FL until she literally left. She didn't have (imo) any chemistry with the ML aside from wanting to kill him for reasons unknown. I know that readers of the book liked her and understood her purpose and perhaps she'll be given better development in the upcoming seasons but in this one, she just whined and repeated the same thing over and over; kill XFN, death and buying herself a coffin.
Each episode in someways felt like its own plot story or rather multiple episodes until yet another failed attempt at assassination happened and perps were revealed. Then we move on to the next plot and next bunch of assassins. It was very push and pull often and I wished other aspects of the series were brought. It needed smoother writing and overall transitions.
Would I recommend it? Sure. It's got great growth moments, funny moments, if you like fantastical stories and trying to figure out who's good and who's really not. It like everything else, has lackluster moments and errors, but overall it was fun to watch.
Pros: Most of the characters were there for as long as they needed to be and greatly evolved. The main lead was the most obvious. His father was the 706 steps ahead thinking man planning everything in his son's path to both help him and test him. But as the series wore on he too became very much like his father; from a stubborn teenager who refused to learn martial arts until his closest friend and master martial artist died, did he realize he can still live his own way but be great at something.
It was great to see 3 actors from DC in this thing; old man booger aka Sword God, Ning Emei, and the death guard Qing. I totally saw the latter two as becoming a couple. The fantastical aspects were great but not overdone. Every loose end was one way or another always tied and not left along for too long. The ending episode was cool except for ZK talking for far too long after Xu big sister stabbed him. I particularly liked when XFN used the martial arts he learned to fight the bad guys.
The story in itself progressed well, with XFN growing, maturing, learning and ultimately embracing his destiny in his own way. The comical aspects were also a nice touch and progressing the story along. You never knew who was working for dad or by the end of it XFN himself and that was always comical when the audience learned along with other parts.
Cons: Many inconsistencies and really unneeded characters like the lady with the cat. I'll take the cat over the chick. Just the sheer number of people who wanted to kill XFN for reasons most of the time not well explained or if explained, didn't make sense. It reminded me a lot of Luoyang and the plethora of unneeded assassins. Ms. Hehe's sudden appearances, her lackluster explanation for why she was there and then final appearance, equally bizarre other explanation and disappearance. Her entire presence was like a whiplash each time.
I didn't see any point in the FL until she literally left. She didn't have (imo) any chemistry with the ML aside from wanting to kill him for reasons unknown. I know that readers of the book liked her and understood her purpose and perhaps she'll be given better development in the upcoming seasons but in this one, she just whined and repeated the same thing over and over; kill XFN, death and buying herself a coffin.
Each episode in someways felt like its own plot story or rather multiple episodes until yet another failed attempt at assassination happened and perps were revealed. Then we move on to the next plot and next bunch of assassins. It was very push and pull often and I wished other aspects of the series were brought. It needed smoother writing and overall transitions.
Would I recommend it? Sure. It's got great growth moments, funny moments, if you like fantastical stories and trying to figure out who's good and who's really not. It like everything else, has lackluster moments and errors, but overall it was fun to watch.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
