Weapon & Soul: Season 2 (2017)

Season 2 of Weapon & Soul finally moved pass the juvenile theme of engaging in battles to improve one's ranking (fighting ability?) and delved more into the mythology of how human lives were sacrificed (mostly innocent virgin girls) to create weapons in the ancient time and how it has bearing in the present time. The show expanded the mythos to not only allow Qi Ling (weapons with souls) to choose their spirit agent/owner and materialize into human form to engage in battles, their destructive power now has the potential to increase exponentially if they and their agent can become one  (it is one of the most enduring theme in every wuxia novel: to become one with your weapon...) The path to 100% compatibility is fraught with many obstacles, such as  personality, temperament, family history... Number one on the list is:  "To never make a lover out of your Qi Ling." When an agent and his Qi  Ling truly understand and able to relate to one another, they become  battle soulmates.  That deep, intense bond between them can,  sometimes, cross the line into romantic love, which is a big no-no  because their love actually makes them incompatible fighting partners. That delicate balance between soulmates and lovers makes Mo Ming and Yan Qiang Chong Li's relationship whole lot more interesting to watch than in Season 1. We can see the growing attraction between them and we want them to be together. But at the same time, we are aware of the stakes involved and that they shouldn't be together because they need to improve their compatibility to fight the evil big boss.

This season also introduced a government agency with the sole  mission of protecting the public against Qi Ling. We know from Season 1 that Qi Ling can accidentally hurt its owner, to say nothing of bystanders who stand too close to the action. As the spirit agent of one of the most dangerous Qi Ling in history, as well as, a victim of her backlash, Mo Ming has first hand  experience on the catastrophe Qi Ling can unwittingly cause. While he agrees that they should be contained, he balks at the idea of destroying them. To him, Qi Ling are innocent human souls trapped in weapons by powerful men who greedily wanted more power, and destroying Qi Ling is akin to killing them again. He will never do that to Chong Li. Then he faces a moral dilemma. To repair Chong Li's injury, he must find the lost scroll of Qi Ling, which gives instruction on creating, repairing and destroying Qi Ling. But finding it would mean that the government will have the necessary tool to destroy them.  And Jiu Qing, the "evil" spirit agent group would have the means to create new ones (more human sacrifice). While he hasn't struggle too much with this decision, it does pose an interesting question, is he selfish for wanting to repair Chong Li at the expense of everyone else? Would we make the same choice if we were in his shoes?
 
The special effect is great. I can watch Qi Ling turning back to weapons on loop. The coolest transformation is Ming Chui Ling Xi to an awe-inspiring hammer. Yan Qiang Chong Li's is alright too. Her transformation is most impressive when she materializes right into Mo Ming's hand as a spear.

No awkward acting in this drama, at least not by the main characters.  The scene where Feng Mu Ning Yu looked back for the last time and imagined Mo Ming coming to her was absolutely heartbreaking. I see in her smile the sadness and the resolve of what she was about to do.  And my heart just goes out to her.  

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