The Untamed is wonderful and exciting. At times it's warm and at times it is so beautifully sad. We follow Wei Wu Xian over many years, particularly his exploits with Lan Wan Ji. They are the most promising youth - two of the best fighters and strongest opponents around.

Stick with it. It's confusing. We get a condensed intro in ep1 and then jump 16 years back to the beginning of the tale. The story meanders forward from there. TU has a couple of time jumps backward and forward. I went back later (approaching mid-show) and rewatched the first 20 minutes or so, which helped tremendously.

At the very beginning, Wu Xian(“WeiX”) is mischievous and ebullient, and always getting into trouble. Wan Ji (“LanZ” - Wei Wu Xian calls him “Lan Zahn”) and WeiX meet at Cloud Recesses. LanZ, as one of the Lan Clan, resides there and on site they have a finishing school, of sorts, for young men.

These two are complete opposites. WeiX keeps making friendly overtures to LanZ, which irritates the solitary LanZ greatly. WeiX is a fun, friendly joker and an overall class clown. LanZ rarely talks. Always drinking, WeiX has an easy affability about him. LanZ is serious, studious, never breaks the rules, and NEVER drinks, as prohibition is one of the Lan Clan's 3000 decrees. Yes, three-thousand. WeiX knows all about them. He's had to copy them 💯×💯s of times and he's often being punished. Never-a-hair-out-of-place LanZ was never punished, until he met WeiX.

A threat from the Wen Clan arises. All the other clans are concerned, resulting in WeiX and LanZ going on a quest together. One thing leads to another and they end up in many scrapes along the way. They eventually form a bond that's closer than brothers, though we have to wait until nearly the end to see the depths of the impassive LanZ's devotion to his friend. Still waters run deep, so frozen waters might have a torrent underneath their icy surface.

Tragedy occurs while the clans are fighting and WeiX is blamed. Thus starts his unraveling of the mystery surrounding events that lead up to the "current day."

{The show is based on author Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's novel, Mo Dao Zu Sho. The two protagonists become lovers in his book, but that was stripped from the TV series. (🇨🇳 isn't the only country with censorship 'issues,' btw. Most of the world is censored.) This, understandably, upset the gay community. Said "Oligarchy" is what it intends to be. They don't care a whiff about feelings or individual rights. We are hypocritical to be "ho-hum" about that ruling Party's steamrolling, censorship monolith when Google, or the NBA want to get in bed with them, or when Nike or Apple want to slice mfg costs by employing near-free manpower to compile their uber pricey items at the establishment's no-impromptu-inspection-allowed factories. That hierarchy controls everything - most of all information. This allows them free reign to eradicate human rights: It's well documented. They don't tolerate religions either, and the rumors of what happens to prisoners makes many horror pics look TAME. (If you're still with me, the reason I don't use the name of this country is because I will be censored.) Just sayin, if we are missing something the censorship machine took away, we should empathize with our fellow humans, stand up for the rights of all, and not tolerate any bully censors. It's all permanently interlocked, and not a pick-and-choose situation. Censorship will always be more damaging than freedom of expression. Let the (respectful) dialogue flow. Commercial over.}

There's a heavy fantasy element to the show. The swordsmen fly through the air. They cast magic spells, make talismans, and musical instruments are used for magic as well. Some of the fantasy elements are key to the story. It is much like Flying Tiger Crouching Dragon. The fantasy is cool, but the feel is of a sweeping saga, not simply a fantasy piece.

The characters are well developed. Their humanity, and otherwise, is the centerpiece of the story. Despite the changes enforced on the storyline, the union between the two protagonists and their respect for each other is what endures once the final episode's credits scroll by. It's easy to infer that their bond goes beyond mere friendship. Even the hetero relationships in UT are virtually platonic by Western standards. There is no closer relationship depicted in the show, and it is breathtaking.

Every element shines (except for a couple of the special effects. One monster was very poorly done). There's 50 episodes. It's alot; too much for me to binge watch. Eventually I went to watching a couple of episodes a week, which was perfect.

However you choose to watch, just choose to watch this stunning piece of art. It is truly magnificent.

IMHO...
🎬9 🤔7 🎭9 ⚡8 🌞 7

Age 13+
Written 9/2/21

ps. 5/28/24 ~>>
Asia remains extremely conservative when it comes to sexuality across the board. But, I've recently seen 5 or 6 🇨🇳shows that depict either a gay man, a gay romance, lighthearted “gay” joking between men, or other gay-related content that is evidence of a major attitude shift.

“Today, the 🇨🇳government's approach to LGBT rights has been described as "ambivalent", "fickle", and as being "no approval; no disapproval; no promotion". There is much resistance from conservative elements of the government, as various LGBT events have been banned in recent years. Since the late 2010s, authorities have avoided showing homosexual relationships on public television, as well as showing effeminate men in general.” Wiki. Their record on human rights, in general, is even worse.

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Eternal Love 8.3,
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Under the Power 8.6,
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The Sword and the Brocade 8.6 (in ancient Chinese opera style),
Love and Redemption 10,
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