The Untamed (2019)

A Complete Drama

Story ~ This drama may not be a bl contrary to the novel it is from but the chemistry between Wei Ying and Lan Zhan is honestly very heart warming and beautiful.
The story is really well, I watched it when it came out while the rating were really low from fans of the novel but watching this show really is a good decision. The number of episodes seem like a lot but it is needed, the plot can be complex to understand and it helps settings backgrounds and introducing the characters well. This show will take you on an adventure between action, battles with powers with friendships and love.
-> The storyline is well-paced, exciting and balanced, setting a solid foundation for the show to build upon.

Acting ~ I really have to applause both Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo for their incredible acting. Zhan is bringing Wei Wuxian's joyful, playful and lively personality to life, he is easy to like and understand. Yibo had a more complex characters to play, Lan Zhan shows less emotion, and tougher personality but the way he succeed to convey with his eyes is amazing
I could talk about Yu Bin who played Wen Ning, who needed to act two personality, a very lovely and weak sweet boy but also a strong and though man who is loyal in both aspect.

Music ~As a musician I have to say, I deeply fell in love with Wuxian, this melody is beautiful and means so much for both Lan Zhan and Wei Ying

Rewatch Value ~ As I writing this, it is the end of December 2021. Years after the drama was released and when i first watched it. I have watched this drama so many times I have count; I really enjoyed the story, the characters and all the details and efforts the Directors put into this drama.

Overall is a 10/10 - this drama will touch you.

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This series is my happiness.

Having read Mo Dao Zu Shi, I knew the series would have to adapt to the censorship that comes with Chinese media. But, to be honest the series was more than i could have ever expected. In my opinion, there is a certain harshness to the book series. The gentle tone of the series really added to its beauty for me. The show is truly beautiful. The scenery, the costumes, the music were all just stunning.
The two males leads were stunning as well both visiually and talent wise.
Xiao Zhan was charming and funny as Wei Wuxian(Wei Ying), he was pretty spot on. His emotional scenes were heartbreaking. A wonderful actor to play a wonderful character.
Wang Yibo really took the prize for me though (I may be biased as a huge fan of Lan Wangji) with his portrayal of Lan Wangji (Lan Zhan). Lan Wangji was the silent inner turmoil type in the novels, so i knew it would be a challenge. Yibo expressed that inner pain, love, loss, longing, ect with only glances perfectly. I was really impressed and captivated by his ability to express so much with so little dialogue.
The whole cast was a treat really, i have zero complaints.
Its a beautiful heart-wrenching story.
The novel was wonderful, the series was such a nice surprise. It took the limitations put on it and created a incandescently beautiful story of true soulmates. It almost made me appreciate the story more and fall more in love with it. 💜💜

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BEAUTIFUL STORY AND CHARACTERS

I don't normally rate dramas I watched but this drama really took my heart by storm! No words can really describe how beautiful the story was portrayed in this drama. I watch it 2 years later than the date it was released, and I regret jumping onto the drama late. But I can see myself always coming back to relive this drama multiple times. It's that good!

Plotline:
I think this is a Chinese drama for those that are new to the Chinese traditional outfits/wuxia dramas. The first 10 episodes really started slow and I remember when I first watch it out of curiosity, I wasn't really hooked on it yet. BUT! It started to pick up the pace really well from episodes 13-14. So for those that are maybe having second thoughts watching the first few episodes, hang in there!! It will be worth all your time later on.

Characters:
As for the main leads, I can never praise them enough for their portrayal of the characters in the story. They really chose well for the casts this time. The emotions that Xiao Zhan (Wei Wu Xian) and Wang Yibo (Wang Ji) showed throughout the episodes touched my heart greatly. And yes, some might be wondering if there is BL? From my personal perspective and coming from a Chinese background, I can say it only shows the minimum for a BL show (due to censorship from China as well). But you can't miss it because they have the typical long staring scenes between the main leads and what everyone likes to call bromance moments (which can also be seen as lover moments HAHA). But really, I like the BL but the story is the one that made me stayed and cheered for all the characters in this drama.

Rewatch Value:
10 out of 10 is rewatchable! For those that love wuxia dramas and in the findings of a good story, this is the one for you! I rewatched the first few episodes and so many things now made more sense to me given I have finished the drama.

This has been a really long review and for those that do read it, thank you! Hope you will enjoy it as much as I have!

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Good Drama, Good Acting, All Good!!!

I love this Drama so much!! This drama is really very Good. I Watched this More than 2x, I like the acting of all the cast. I really like the main character who wears black clothes. I hope this drama will have a season 2.
All the artists played their roles very well, I'm grateful and happy for that. The chemistry between the players is absolutely perfect. From episode 1 to episode 50 I think it's perfect, this drama is not boring so I can watch it again and again. Ahh I really like the male lead, I also really like the relationship he has with his older sister. I hope he and his older sister can meet again in another drama. The Untamed, you really are my favorite drama!

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YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT !! BEST DRAMA EVER

The Untamed is a live action adaption of Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's book, Mo Dao Zu Shi (Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation- most loosely but commonly translated. And I will say, I'm biased to the live action adaption as I came upon that first, but it did not disappoint as many reviews said. I found it on Netflix, and the only thing I'd say is not 10/10 about it is plot. There are quite a few loose ends and plot-holes, and sometimes it's kinda draggy or doesn't entirely make sense, but the story is still so engaging and well-portrayed! It's a must rewatch because the first time around, I'll admit, I was very confused. But the second time, everything was so worth it. All the amazing little details in The Untamed are endless, and the only thing I regret is not finding it sooner.

ACTING AND CAST. OH MY GOODNESS. My review on this part will be kinda biased now because I have become such a big Xiao Fei Xia (Xiao Zhan's fanbase). Xiao Zhan as an actor who only really started in 2016 after being a graphic designer for so long, I literally have no words to embody his talent with. The emotions are so raw, on-point, spectacular, GROUNDBREAKING, Oscar-Award winning,, I could go on and on. You really feel so close to Wei Wuxian and his relations, and the sadder of the scenes are so tear-jerking, and I give a big credit of that to Xiao Zhan's legendary acting. This goes the same for Wang Yibo! Yibo's emotions are portrayed so well in this much colder character that is Lan Wangji, the micro-facial expressions, the little smiles, it's all so perfect. This cast overall is on the newer side of the acting industry, yet everything is pulled off so flawlessly. Lines are delivered beautifully, there's no sense of that beginner awkwardness, and ITS JUST AMAZING.

And now, the second-best to the cast and acting, THE SOUNDTRACK. Lin Hai and his music production is just so- *chef's kiss*. The chinoiserie music album of character songs, as well as Wuji, sung by cast members (YES XIAO ZHAN AND YIBO SANG WUJI), and other talented singers, is also so tear-jerking and heart-warming all at the same time. It's a shame the character songs of separate characters (except for Yi Nan Ping, Jiang Yanli/Shijie's character song) were not played in the drama, but the orchestral traditional music composed by Lin Hai just wraps the whole drama together perfectly, and adds a whole other layer of emotion to it.

Overall, 1000/10! Only gave a 9/10 on story for those few reasons I mentioned, but if I could give higher on the other things I would lmao. Totally worth watching 10 times or more, as you discover new things and meanings each time. Also, the angst. Both comforting and cry worthy. Please watch it!!

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A Masterpiece

Story
The storyline was well written and executed perfectly though if it's your first time you may not understand the first two episodes. Every storyline by different clans was so intriguing and I like the fact that all the supporting actors were able to own their storylines well.
I will rate the story a 9/10. The only reason I did not give 10/10 is because of the first two episodes as it was difficult to grasp the storyline at first.

Acting
Wow, the two main leads were superb, not to mention just too handsome. What I like the most is that all the supporting cast were so great that you can't even skip any episode.
I will rate the acting 10/10

Music
All I can say is the main music theme brings all the emotions and resonates deep inside your heart. I could sing the Wuji song every word without ever speaking a Chinese word.
This is a 10/10

Re-watch Value
Since last year I keep on re-watching especially those first episodes where you wouldn't have thought much of but when rewatching you just get so emotions. It's actually hard to watch other dramas after this because the benchmark will be so high. The only drama that gave me this feeling in my book of Chinese drama was Eternal Love but still, it never got me to this obsession.
I will rate it 10/10

Overall
Overall I will rate it a 9.5/10

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Perfection

This show deserves all the hype and then some, it is fantastic. The fact that they adapted it so well even though they had to cut out the overt homosexuality of it is incredible. Now, here is the review.
Story:
This has one of the most interesting storylines in a drama that I've ever watched. Like there are 50 fudging episodes all about an hour long and I was not bored once. It is important to note that this is based on a book, a gay romance book in particular, so of course it would be totally interesting but this elevated it. This is a drama you cannot watch in a single day, even if you binge, but it is worth the hours.

Acting/Charecter:
Phenomenal acting by all parties but my faves are Wei Wuxian and his sister. I sobbed like a baby in some of the scenes in this show, the actors were really able to get me emotional with their performances. As for charecters, my favourites were Wei Wuxian, his sister, and the brother sister duo. My least favourite, villains excluded, was Wei Wuxian's brother. Specifically in the second half of the show. He just annoyed me a few too many times.

Soundtrack:
Gorgeous, beautiful, stunning. It is one of the best tv show OST's ever.

Rewatch ability:
While it is a phenomenal show, it is not rewatchable. It is simply too long and has too many twists for, in my opinion, it to be enjoyable a second time. However, don't let this discourage you from watching it the first time.

Overall:
One of the best Cdramas I've ever seen and, even though it came out a few years ago, it is truly a must watch if you are into Asian media. Please watch this, I promise you that you will like it.

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I just know that there won't be another drama as good as this one, I watched a lot of dramas and I know this one will stay number one for me

The whole thing made me laugh so many times, made me nervous/on edge cause I had no idea what's about to happen, and it made me cry a few times. It has everything we could ask for in one drama, it's simply beautiful! The actors... Oh God they did an AMAZING job here! I just wanna thank EVERYONE who worked on this masterpiece! Actors, director, producers, staff, translation team, etc. thank you all for allowing us to watch this beautiful piece of art!

So that is actually a review I left in comment section on Viki when I finished watching this drama last year, and let me tell you something. I still stand by what I said, this drama actually has so many hidden stories behind each scene, you'll understand if you re-watch it (yes I re-watched it 3 times so far) it's been a year and I'm still not over this drama. This drama is that type of a drama, the one that will always stay somewhere in your mind, and always stay in your heard.

Oh and one more thing, when you're done with The Untamed, you'll try looking for a similar drama, and it would be hard to find one that can match with The Untamed! So good luck guys :D

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I honestly initially watched this drama because I heard it was based on BL novel but didn't necessarily have the "gay" be explicitly shown, and so I, being the curious fujoshi/BL Fan I am, decided to watch it. And for starters, I have never watched a Chinese drama, let alone a wuxia one. (I'm more of a Kdrama person) and after finishing this drama, I fell hard.

At first, I was skeptical, because I'd be lying if I said I didn't watch it for the BL aspect of it. But as I progressed through the whole drama, I learned that the untamed was so much more than that.

The story mostly revolved around so many more aspects like friendship, family, and betrayal and I found myself getting pulled into the story further and further. It focused more on the building of characters, how their past and the way they lived affected how they turn out to be. The characters all had different complexities and personalities that tied in very cleverly to the story. I also like how you can clearly see the development of characters, especially the main protagonist, Wei Wuxian by the end of the drama. The plot is also very creative, and it also (very tiny spoiler) had a few plot twists here and there, which in my opinion, were very interesting.

On the BL side of things, this drama has gone way beyond my expectations.

Being that this drama was censored (supposedly devoid of all things gay because of China's TV laws), it cleverly managed to BRING OUT the BL through subtle, but not so subtle, things in the drama! The chemistry between the two leads was crazy good, you could actually see their feelings through their eye contacts and expressions! Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo did such good jobs in capturing Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. As A BL fan, it was so fun to see and spot these small things that indicated the two leads' relationship, and I really admire the makers of this drama for capturing their relationship just enough to make it pass the censorship.

Although, the only thing that bothered me was the CGI. Ok honestly, the CGI was really bad hahaha, but really the story totally makes up for that! The production could have been way better.

The acting was also pretty good, (this drama has turned me into a Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan fangirl, but that really isn't something important), there were a few times where the acting was just off slightly.

The music definitely is one of the highlights of the drama, especially the song that plays whenever Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji have a "moment". It really just hits you right.

Overall, I would DEFINITELY recommend this drama, even to a person who doesn't like BL. This drama has stuck to me, and has caused me to dive in deep and read the novel it was based on which is "The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation", and I highly recommend BL fans who watch this drama to read the novel because the novel is SPICY (winwink). Now I'm stuck in The Untamed fandom.

This drama truly is one of the best dramas I've watched so far. There are no sappy love triangles, no damsels in distress, and no usual tropes. It's simply, a good ass story.

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A ONE OF A KIND DRAMA

Okay to start with this drama is totally one of a kind and rare to find drama. From the storyline to the acting to the OSTs....
For the people who doesn't want to watch BL but still enjoy some Bromance this is totally the right kind of series.
And for the people who like mistery, dark and full of actions series this is the right one as well.
At first I thought like " 50 episodes??? That's so long oh my god I don't think I'll finish it " and now I just wish it gets more episodes and it will never end because everything about is so perfect 🥺🥺🥺
The story itself makes you wish you were born in that period of life, all the characters are good to love - even the evil ones - except Wen Ruhao and Jin 😂😂 that MFer tricked me I'd kill him 😂
I am trying so hard to not include spoilers in here so Imma just talk about the actors :
Even if I read the novel before finishing the drama I can't see anyone doing Wei WUXIAN except Xiao Zhao he pulled the character perfectly in every way possible. Wang Yibo also portraied Lang Wanji the way it should be done his facial expressions and the way of talking made it a 100% win.
The other actors as well did a very great job I am going to watch their other dramas too.
* One funny thing:
IF YOU WON'T FALL IN LOVE WITH WANG HAO XUAN ( XUE YANG ) YOU GOTTA RE WATCH THE SERIE .
I am really really really really really head over heels for him. He isn't a lead but definitely the best support role among them all!!
Talking about Wang Haoxuan before Xue yang: he really did a very great job in pulling the best out of the character , his expressions, the way of talking and acting made me fall for Xue yang even thought he is the villain ❤️
I would like to see wang Haoxuan in a lead role with a very good storyline because he will rock for sure !!!!
Finally, I don't usually score a drama with 10 , but absolutely this one deserves it and it even deserves more! I hope we'll get the untamed crew in an other work together 🙏💜

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Worth it!

I got everything i expected. (Never watched the anime version nor read novel) open ending, action, lowkey romance and lowkey bl. Everyone involved did a perfectly amazing job. Fully recommend it. Also i wish the cast could do another drama.

Ps: (not like a spoiler or something but) xiao zhan and wang yibo did a wonderful job in being able to play the roles. Like the cast literally lived the characters. If you watch the concert video of the cast, it's visible that it's was a bit hard for them to say goodbye. The story and action everything was amazing. It made me emotional. And there are some few lines like wei wuxian says 'i would walk in the single dark log till the end' or something like plus the question 'who is black and who is white?' Makes me really mad coz it shows this judgmental hypocritical society to some extent.

Anyways, I've watched it twice and can't get over it idk how. Also the main ost, wu ji is so mesmerizing like it has some effect that makes my heart ache and me smile at the same time.

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WOW - worth the hype

I was really worried about watching this one with all of the hype I had heard. If you are worried like I was then trust me this is the one show that lives up to the hype. It is one of the best dramas that I have ever watched.

The story that has been reviewed in other posts, plus I do not like spoilers, is primarily about Wei Wuxian and his "friendship" with Lan Wangji. Wei Wuxian is a free spirit who after a series of events becomes the Yiling Patriarch despised by the clans with the exception of the stoic and strait-laced Lan Wangji. After Wei Wuxian's death, this is not a spoiler it happens in the first minutes of the show, and return, the two discover the secrets and conspiracies that lead to the earlier events,

The story was fantastic. I was interested in every episode and actively looked forward to the next episode. If there were slow parts I did not really notice and it never made me lose interest. Even better the story really focuses on the main characters. their are secondary characters but their storylines and growth never interfere with the progress of the main characters. I would compare this to Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms where the show could drag when it was on secondary characters. Just a great story. I really liked that the "good" people were not all that good and the villain was really understandable and you understood why he did the things he did, even if you still do not like him.

As for acting, for a primarily young cast, the acting was fantastic. The two main leads were great, although especially Xiao Zhan as Wei Wuxian. He captured the free spirit and playfulness of the character, the character's driving need to help and protect others even if it was not popular, and the character's devastation when everything falls apart. At the end of the flashback during the battle his acting is amazing and you feel everything along with him. I was also very impressed with Zheng Fanxing as Lan Sizhui, he was one of my favorites in the show.

Music was again outstanding. I was actually very glad that they had music and not songs during most of the shows. I find some shows become a music video during flashbacks or recaps, or the modern music is jarring to the drama. In this case the music was haunting and beautiful and perfectly fit the scenes. and the story The ending song was great, the theme of the two main leads was beautiful, but mostly listen and watch the death of Wei Wuxian. That is beautiful music.

This was the first drama I can remember actually being sad that it was over. Up until this show, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms was my favorite with rewatching, although fast forwarding through the slow parts, but The Untamed is my new favorite. I have already re-watched it, with no fast forwarding, and I still laugh out loud and cry along, and even when re-watching I can still hardly wait for the next episode. If you are worried about the hype, don't be. This is the show that really lived up to the hype and really deserves to be called a masterpiece.

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