#zhanzhaoadventures — Public Fediverse posts

Zhan Zhao Adventures

The “Southern hero” Zhan Zhao is carrying vital evidence from an old friend about an unsolved case, intent on delivering it safely to the capital. But his foes are equally driven to stop him. Fortunately, he meets Huo Ling Long, the daughter of Linglong Villa, and Bai Yu Tang, an eccentric wandering hero nicknamed the “Golden-Haired Rat”. Together, they battle the powerful forces determined to overthrow the kingdom.

Characters

• Zhan Zhao (played by Yang Yang): A fourth-rank imperial guard and Justice Bao’s right-hand man, he is a righteous swordsman who seeks legal justice while unraveling a massive court conspiracy.
• Huo Ling Long (played by Zhang Ruo Nan): The independent and perceptive daughter of Linglong Villa who flees an arranged marriage to find adventure in the Jianghu.
• Bai Yu Tang (played by Alen Fang): A passionate, headstrong, and free-spirited martial artist known as the “Golden-Haired Rat”.
• Ding Yue Hua / Zhang Yue Shi (played by Zhang Yu Xi): A supporting character who forms part of the heroic ensemble navigating the dangerous factions of the martial arts world.
• Si Ming / Qiu Han (played by Yue Yang): A supporting figure tied into the complex web of influence spun across the imperial court and the underworld.
• Jing Yi Ming / He Bo (played by Xiu Qing): The master of the Shangqing sect who is entangled in the drama’s central mystery and conspiracy.

What I liked

• There were many classic wuxia moments, such as the lone warrior confronting a team of assassins in the rain or the blind wuxia matriarch who can kill you with just a flick of her sash. This fed my Wuxia soul. 
• Yang Yang is okay as Zhan Zhao, but then again, the Zhan Zhao I remember—maybe I’m looking through rose-colored glasses—honestly didn’t have much character development. Here, he gets the great character development treatment, and it’s really nice to watch.
• Yang Yang is quite suitable as Zhan Zhao, especially in the fighting scenes. He is exceptionally stellar in them, except that the camera crew seems to undermine that consistently (more on that later).
• It has good camerawork, one of the better ones I’ve seen lately.
• Great wuxia choreography for once! (A lot of dramas actually skimp on that)

What I didn’t like

• The pacing is pretty atrocious. Some cases take too long to solve and linger too much. 
• Some people say Zhan Zhao gets wounded and poisoned too often, to the point that it became a joke. I didn’t mind that because it is part of his character development.
• Bai Yutang, Zhan Zhao, and Ling Long’s characters are supposed to be a tight unit, but I don’t sense any team building, so to speak. Their team dynamics just aren’t good enough.
• Bai Yutang, a playful, gregarious, chaotic character, has been toned down so much. Fang Yilun 100% could’ve played him, but for some reason they didn’t let him play Bai Yutang to his full capacity.
• The fighting scenes are really good, but the camerawork undermines a lot of the beautiful choreography. I feel that with Yang Yang’s skills, you really shouldn’t have to do too many cut scenes. In the beginning, there were so many that I actually got nauseous due to the spins, quick cuts, and more. 
• The mystery and conspiracies are just bland and very predictable. I could see every twist coming my way, including the identity of a particular villain.
• Zhang Ruo Nan who plays Ling Long is so misplaced. I do not know why she’s there most of the time; she’s like a third wheel. Honestly, if you removed her character from the story, nothing different would have happened. That’s how poorly Ling Long is written. I also think Ruo Nan does not portray a wuxia warrior very well. She’s supposed to be highly skilled, but her fighting choreography is lacking.

Conclusion

Frankly, this show should have been a banger. It had all the right ingredients: my favourite wuxia characters, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, from the legendary Justice Bao series.

Yet, I I literally crawled towards the finish line because I found it so boring.

I just feel it’s a sad thing because this drama actually had all the right ingredients, but in the end, Zhan Zhao Adventures is just okay. Mid. Ordinary. Unexciting.

This is a disappointment due to the fact that there were so many expectations for this drama because of the IP. Granted, the IP is centuries old, and expectations are through the rooof. (Zhan Zhao has been played by over 80 actors, for one in decades!) It is very tough to beat classic interpretations like Kenny Ho’s Zhan Zhao, for example.

Final rating: 3

2.5 for the story; the wuxia fight scenes gave it a bump up to 3.

A good watch on a very slow Sunday when you just have nothing to do. Yang Yang is also pretty to look at, so 😉

Perhaps I shall join in on the #ZhanZhaoAdventures watching! #wuxia