I don’t watch any republican era c-drama, never, and I dropped this c-drama after 5mins. But I am glad a snippet in youtube shows that it is actually a modern drama, and the first 5 mins was just flashback. I revisited and got hooked on “Rattan” after just two episodes. Mind you, this supernatural series is very addictive and the release of new episodes could not have come in fast enough. Another masterful creation from the director of Good bye My Princess – Li Mu Ge and “Rattan” like his previous work will be a hit as well.

Sally Jing is not your typical leading lady in Chinese dramaland. She is an international superstar having starred in three (3) Hollywood blockbusters. She was Gen Mae Lin in The Great Wall, a China-US co-production of science fantasy action film alongside Matt Damon. She also starred in Kong – Skull Island and Pacific Rim – Uprising. Her acting pedigree is unquestionable, and she does not disappoint in “Rattan”. She looks extremely gorgeous and elegant in striking colour, body hugging cut of her outfit/costume, without being overly sexy or too revealing. Her costume and appearance is just perfect. Her co-star Zhang Binbin, is a great actor. He was very domineering in King’s Woman, but as soft as butter in this drama. He was a forlorn lover in “Ten Miles of Peach Blossom”, basically a sad character pining for his ex-lover until his tragic death at the hand of his father. But “Rattan” presents a totally new challenge to the ML. This is a new role and character for Zhang Binbin. His servile and submissive attitude towards Si Teng which slowly transforms into caring, protective and eventually loving feeling is a joy to watch. It takes a great actor to be able to convey a range of emotions effectively to the audience and Qin Fang did not disappoint in this regard.

Yan Furui’s acting was overboard at times, but his off-cuff and comedic behavior was entertaining. He is your instant noodle guy who could finish 3 big-cups in a row. His train ride to Dana with Si Teng was a great scene, prompting Si Teng to quip never to travel with Yan Furui in the future. A lovable character who sells kebab for a living, talks big, but could not kill an ant. Highly emotional yet very faithful to Si Teng and Qin Fang. Then his disciple, the young Wafang, who was quite mischievous but in a funny way. These two (2) supporting cast complements the two main leads beautifully and adds comic relief to the whole series.

The plot was refreshing, although not entirely original. Then again with so many c-drama being released every year, there is hardly any room for creative ingenuity with the story lines. At least it is not the same boring storyline of a poor female lead getting in love with a handsome rich male lead, and live happily ever after. Rattan’s plot is about a domineering female lead and a submissive male lead who had no choice but to be so because of circumstances. Perfect chemistry between the two lead characters. And what makes their interaction beautiful is that it is not love at first sight, and we don’t have to bear watching 2 lovebirds pining and going at it for 30 episodes. It took Si Teng 16 episodes to declare “He is mine” before beating Qin Fang’s kidnapper (Wan Dong) to a pulp.

The production was set in a beautiful and breath-taking location with dreamy landscape. Rolling mountains, lakes, valleys, forest and roads cutting across the mountains and lakes dominate the scenes. Not sure whether it is the product of CGI or the scenes were shot in a real town/city of Dana in China. But serene atmosphere, stunning scenery and sublime lake and mountain view scenes enhances the viewing enjoyment of this c-drama. All the hallmarks of quality production from Li Mu Ge and the team.

The CGI (computer generated imagery) and VFX (visual effects) here are first class and impressive. Since this is a supernatural c-drama, there were quite a few scenes where CGI was involved. There are people and inanimate object like car in Episode 1 hanging from the rope which need VFX to get rid of the rope; or CGI of rattan coming out of Bai Ying/Si Teng’s hand; or when Zhi Gang fought Si Teng at the farm. Plenty of impressive CGI and VFX that were used to create these special effects, and the final result was beautifully choreographed scenes which adds further interest and much excitement to the storyline.

No spoilers on the ending of this drama. If you have managed to cover 20+ episodes, you will kill me for giving out the ending. The best plot is thinking that you know how the story ends, and get blind-sided by a very good screenwriter. The biggest weakness of any c-drama is the crappy writing, and you could telegraph the ending 20 episodes from the end. Mind you, this is not your typical c-drama – expect the unexpected from the director who gave you “Good-bye My Princess”. Will be a heart-break ending like the previous masterpiece work of Li Mu Ge, or everyone clocks out and lives their lives happily ever after???? Personally, I like the ending.

Highly entertaining drama and so far the best of 2021. This is from a fan of historical costume c-drama who could only count with 1 hand the list of completed modern contemporary c-dramas to-date. My score is 9.0/10.0. Sally Jing in her portrayal of Si Teng is the epitome of charm, elegance, grace and beauty - in short, she is a joy to watch. Together with Qin Fang (Vin Zhang) and Yan Furui (Zhang Yichi), this trio is the heart of soul of this c-drama.