Homecoming.

Billed as a suspense drama, 2021's highly anticipated Mist Theatre debut is really a family drama about how guilt and regret fractures a family after their youngest, best loved child Xuan Zhen is murdered nineteen years ago. Xuan Liang, who neglected to pick up his sister that fatal day is a stifling, over protective and paranoid father who is slowly but surely alienating his eighteen year old daughter Nianmei, who bears an uncanny resemblance to her long dead aunt. Another seemingly related murder finally presents a potential break in this cold case for long suffering detective Yuan Fei, whose wife Xuan Min also cannot let go of her sister's murder. The homecoming of Xuan Zhu, Xuan Zhen's fraternal twin sister is the catalyst that finally connects disparate threads between the past and present.

The best part of this drama is the exceptional veteran cast who deliver performances that exceed the quality of the dialogue and the logic of the storytelling. Their compelling acting reinforces how they, the survivors are the true victims of this crime as they are each tormented by the knowledge that Xuan Zhen would still be alive if only they had done something differently. The problem is that amongst such nuanced and immersive portrayals, the young actress playing both Xuan Zhen and Nianmei is completely out-classed and her portrayal by comparison seems a lot less compelling than it really is. It does not help that neither character is written to be that empathetic.

Where this drama fails spectacularly is on the suspense thriller aspects. Despite decent camera work and a very dark and mysterious ambience, there is no sense of imminent danger or looming evil. As always Duan Yihong is so enjoyable to watch and between his Yuan Fei and his rookie sidekick Liu Xinli, the investigative aspects are logical and well presented. However, all of the credible suspects are eliminated very early and by the 6th episode, the who and the why is quite obvious. To meander through another 6 episodes of digressions into family drama to get to the how takes too long; what little suspense is built up fizzles out. The antagonist is also not interesting or sympathetic and their motive is not well fleshed out. It ends on a strong note as we are made to see and feel how important closure is for the Xuan family.

Even though this is a pretty forgettable suspense thriller, it is difficult to rate it too badly considering its strength as a family drama and the strong performances of the all-star cast. I give it a 7.0 overall as a decent watch if you need to pass time.

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The Devil Inside.

This is an excellent psychological thriller that can give any of the recent hits in the crime/thriller genre a run for their money. This drama grippingly explores criminal profilers - those who get into the minds of monsters - those who gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you. It is a dark story about how we all struggle with our inner demons and how the devil inside can be unleashed and insidiously take over. It is another excellent thriller with an unreliable narrator that sneaks up upon you.

Fang Mu is a graduate student in criminal psychology who consults with the local police department to solve difficult and gruesome serial cases. He is considered a gifted profiler who is able to build an identifiable profile of the murderer from seemingly random and opaque clues. I am quite surprised at how some graphic and gruesome details of the rape/murder cases made it through the Chinese censors. That said, the introductory or peripheral cases fail to convincingly establish Fang Mu's credentials as some kind of profiling wunderkind although the shock or gore value is quite high. The two "real" cases however are meticulously mapped out and articulated.

After a traumatic case, Fang Mu struggles to matriculate and his police collaborators exhort his professor, another gifted profiler salvage their protégé by helping him battle his inner demons and complete his thesis. Another series of baffling murders compels Fang Mu to work together with the police department again. This awakens memories of the shattering case from three years ago that destroyed his confidence and left him a shadow of his former self. The story brilliantly weaves the destruction and subsequent salvation of Fang Mu's character into the two defining cases, one in the past and one in the present. Unlike some of the overrated the 2020 vintage that morph into character dramas (Horizon Tower, The Long Night), Fang Mu's character evolution an integral part of the plot and is not a digression from the plot.

There are enough clues throughout that it is possible (but not easy) to partly solve both of the main cases before the big reveals. At the very least, a very shadowy outline of the truth is visible in a way that made me want to keep watching; to find out if my suspicions were correct. This achieves that perfect balance between the element of surprise and anticipation or validation of the viewer's working thesis and I can't be more impressed. The acting and chemistry between the cast is excellent with the villains in particular being very subtle but still planting the smallest seed of suspicion. This really hit my mystery, psychological thriller, dark gore sweet spot. At the same time, in so many ways it is also a very human, very sad story. You will feel a ton of empathy for many characters and how the vagaries of fate and chance conspire to steal their dreams without completely killing them. Chen Xi and Fang Mu's story broke my heart - even though I was on to them from the second episode, I never wanted more badly to be wrong.

While there are some flaws and maybe some holes, this is an excellent watch - I rate it 8.5. It is very under appreciated but dark and complex.

If you are going to watch it on iQiyi be warned that the last two episodes are incomplete. Episode 23 seems edited to end the show with some of the most important threads left open. And Episode 24 is missing. iQiyi has ignored my many messages to complete the season so like me, you will have to watch the last two episodes somewhere else (Dramacool).

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A River Runs Through It

The illusory peace of a sleepy riverside town is shattered by a murder that recalls a twenty year old cold case. Shan Feng, who was just a boy then, partially witnessed the murder of his crush Xiao Baige (little white dove) returns to his hometown to investigate these possibly connected cases. His inquiries reopens old wounds and reveals the festering impact the lack of closure Xiao Baige's senseless murder has on her friends, family and the town.

The premise and darkly intriguing ambience and suspenseful tension of this drama really drew me in at the beginning. And I can't fault the execution from the pacing; to the top notch acting; to how the disparate threads gradually converge into the river that runs through these quietly spooky remote towns. Where the drama falls down is the story is excessively melodramatic and the motivators of many of the key protagonists and antagonists rings hollow. Many characters in this drama are driven towards doing terrible, terrible things but their actions and trauma they suffer seems out of proportion to the events that catalize these extreme reactions. Too many of the characters are deeply dysfunctional and are driven towards tragic outcomes simply for the sake of inflicting pain on the surrounding characters.

The strongest point of the story is how the main villain hides in plain sight and is revealed gradually as everything comes together and how the story illustrates that in these small rural towns there are really only two degrees of separation between people. But just like I felt the first victim was just not interesting enough to have inspired such profound reactions from so many people, the triggers for the villain's derangement are unconvincing. The role however, is brilliantly acted and the character comes across as both lugubrious and menacing.

Bottom line this looks like a crime thriller, it tries very hard to be one and it almost feels like one but at its core, something rings hollow. It is not terrible, a lot of effort obviously went into it and it is a decent quick watch for some cheap thrills. I give it a 6.5.

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My name is Nalan Yue, you killed my father, prepare to lose your daughter!

Once upon a dark and scary time, jianghu was controlled by Rong Jingfeng, master of the sinister Dragon Roar city. His favorite daughter Rong Hua (Zhang Huiwen) is rescued by Nalan Yue (Ren Jialun) and they fall in love. They uncover the secrets of JIngfeng's dark power over the sects and a continuing blood fued between their families. Evil jianghu dictator, revenge plot, Romeo and Juliet romance... yups, those are pretty much the most overused wuxia tropes out there. And yet this drama takes a very different and often enjoyable approach to these common cliches which is what kept me watching. I won't lie however, the editing is terrible and while there are some really fun parts, the whole thing does not come together that well.

The story itself is a simple one that isn't that difficult to follow despite the annoying, often discontinuous editing. The action scenes are exciting and generally well done and is one of the drama's highlights. While it is at times hit or miss, they make a decent attempt at dark comedy, which I love. Unfortunately, as much as I respect Ren Jialun's attempt at taking on more versatile roles, his portrayal of Nalan Yue is not memorable. He takes the character's transition from a lighthearted and chatty young man to a darker, more mature and more burdened character well enough but fails to convey who Nalan Yue is at the core. His comedic timing is just not good and trying to grin while he is talking at high speed is a fatal error that must be as uncomfortable as it looks. That said, I respect and support actors who take on different roles and try to test their limits so I am pleased he didn't try to pull another Lu Yi here. I was wary of Zhang Huiwen because I really dislike her performance in NIF2, one of my all-time favorite dramas. But while not perfect, I definitely saw improvement in her acting and she is surprisingly good at dark comedy, which requires much more subtlety than silly rom-com humor. Her best moments in this show is when she vindictively has a beloved tree chopped down and her hilarious initial interactions with Bai Su.

Where this drama falls down is the two main romances were not properly developed. Both lead couples fell in love so quickly I had to rewind to make sure I didn't miss their courtship. As such, there is no buy in as to how as a couple, they would overcome the dreaded Romeo and Juliet trope - one of the hardest tropes to convincingly pull off a happily ever after with. And Ren Jialun's wife (just kidding, don't start rumors) must run the censorship bureau because there is no lip locking and not much in terms of eyeballing each other either. They just jump right into a mature, trusting and intelligent relationship with limited misunderstandings and only mild noble idiocy at the end. But it is still great to see the romance avoid a bunch of cliches and it is particularly refreshing the way the Xueman triangle is so smartly resolved. I also love how both brothers fall for such different sisters and oddly enough, it is quite clear why Rong Su and Liu Yizhou "click" but less so Rong Hua and Nalan Yue. Despite a lot of screen time together, Rong Hua and Nalan Yue have zero sizzling, squeal worthy moments together. For me, Xuanye and Liuli's romance is the most convincing and endearing one.

There are many very cool and properly dimensioned characters in this show. Even dark characters like Mohuan and Jingfeng have shades of grey and likable sides, no one is just simply black or white. They are all capable of love and doing good but tragically chose to do evil instead. Outside of Meiying, who to me is the most despicable character, I am moved to pity for the vain, lonely and ultimately futile quest for power and dominance that drove our main villains. I also like how the drama explores revenge not as an eye for an eye and is willing to free the next generation from the past generations greivances. I think if this drama went went down the route of "My name is Nalan Yue, you killed my father, prepare to die!", I would certainly have dropped it early on. It is differentiated in new ideas and interesting approaches to cliche tropes and a decent attempt at dark humor. It is a shame it doesn't hang together as well as it should have but I still enjoyed it. To me this feels like a 7.5 or possibly an 8.0 for not boring me with stale ideas.

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Only the good die young.

The second instalment of Sima Yi's story opens with his uncomfortable return to the capital to serve under the most unworthy Cao Rui, the ingrate he saved as a boy and put on the throne. Cao Rui grew up to be a monster and what he did to Empress Gao was a great historical injustice. The symbolism of Cao Rui being carried by Sima Yi is strong, suggesting their dynasty was held up by Sima Yi and most of this drama makes the case that the treacherous Cao family was unworthy and deserved to be toppled. I usually like Liu Han but did not enjoy how he portrayed Cao Rui. I was unmoved by his childhood trauma over being the product of an indifferent father who executed his mother and just drummed my fingers impatiently through his theatrics and unseemly antics with his vile eunuch. I did appreciate some aspects of his acting - he seemed cunning and slightly unhinged in the most dangerous of ways that made me feel fear for the Sima family.

The highlight of the second season is without doubt Sima Yi's rivalry with Zhuge Liang, the greatest strategist of Three Kingdoms lore. It was heart wrenching to see two soulmates with such profound mutual understanding, respect and admiration locked in a ferocious life and death battle. Both bound by oathes they swore to dead emperors, one is handicapped by a strong master and the other by a weak one. It was just war brutal and simple; there was no right, or wrong, or good or evil; just opposite sides. The writer does a commendable job making the sophisticated military strategies exciting and accessible to viewers. This version of Zhuge Liang's famous Empty City Ruse/Kōngchéngjì/ 空城计 suggests Sima Yi was not really fooled, he just had a very strong sense of self preservation. Their encounters capture the essence of a resting dragon/wò lóng/ 卧龙 reclaiming the central plains from a hidden tiger 冢虎 (zhǒng hǔ), a rising talent. Alas, time was not on Zhuge Liang's side or history may have been different. Nonetheless, his trick from the grave on Wuzhang Plains left no doubt in peoples minds that " a dead Zhuge scares away a living Zhongda". It is remarkable that till this day, Zhuge Liang is the most revered strategist of Three Kingdoms lore and it remains almost a footnote in history that Sima Yi actually "won" Three Kingdoms. This arc broke my heart; I couldn't bear how Sima Yi exhausted Zhuge Liang and how unworthy both their emperors were.

The narrative inevitably peaks at the Zhuge Liang arc; their battles were the pinnacle of Sima Yi's accomplishments. After that, the drama really dragged. It wasn't necessary to dive into so much detail into the Cao Shuang arc. We really didn't need another long and boring example of what imbeciles Cao Cao's descendants turned out to be. The arc was incredibly predictable with repetitive ploys to try to indict the much older Sima Yi only to see him deftly turn the tables on his enemies yet again. The only highlight of that arc was the wild speculation around Sima Zhao's role in the death of Sima Shi's wife's death but that sub-plot didn't get wrapped up in a satisfying way. The only thing that kept me watching was Tan Jianci and Xiao Shunyao's excellent portrayals of the Sima brothers. I also found it quite cool that they cast an actress to play the treacherous and effeminate He Yan.

After the Zhuge Liang arc, it struck me that even though I was fascinated by Sima Yi and often empathised with him, I just didn't liked him. I was not surprised that he became darker in his later years; this is foreshadowed from the beginning and was an insidious process throughout. The second half of this drama seemed to go on for an eternity. That ruthless, cowardly, cunning, wicked old tortoise Sima Yi just would not die! It offends my sense of justice that he lived to such a ripe old age. I guess it must be true that only the good die young.

This drama had at least 10-12 episodes too many. We really didn't need such a detailed the blow by blow of Sima Yi's much less interesting later years. Up to the Zhuge Liang arc, I rate this 8.0/8.5 but after that it's a 6.0/7.0 so overall this a 7.5 for me.

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The hunt for a serial killer.

Who is He is an intensely gripping police procedural that narrates the hunt for a serial killer that evaded justice for decades. It draws inspiration from two well known, real life cases - the 1988 Gansu serial killer case and the 1996 Nanjing University dismemberment case. These investigations were hampered by a lack of access to modern forensic technology, especially DNA evidence. The brutality and horror of these cases instilled national shock and outrage. For those following the heinous Abby Choi case in Hong Kong, the dismemberment case invokes chilling parallels.

During the hunt for a serial killer in 1988, Wei Guoping comes within a hairsbreadth of capturing him. In a close encounter, Guoping saves the intended victim Nie Xiaoyi but loses his partner. He has survivor's remorse and the case continues to cast a shadow over his existence long after it goes cold. Eight years later, he is convinced that the 1988 killer has resurfaced in the shocking Nanjing University dismemberment case.. His peers and superiors however are concerned that his rushed conclusion could steer the investigation down the wrong path. The drama dives into the inner workings of the department and how they collaborate and resolve internal conflict. It shows us that there are many ways to skin a cat and internal debate is healthy and produces a more rigorous process with defensible chain of evidence, and effective witness and suspect testimony.

This drama does a fantastic job zooming in on the procedural aspects of an investigation from the thankless, painstaking and smelly task of collecting and analyzing evidence to effective (and not so effective) methods of interviewing persons of interest. Without modern forensic technology, it is like looking for a needle in a haystack and can span decades. The show's meticulous attention to detail and commitment to vivid realism makes it stand out in the genre. The uncanny simillarity in the dumpster dive scenes to real footage from the recent Abby Choi case adds another layer of intrigue and sense of real life horror. There is an everpresent sense of urgency and suspense that is captured by highlighting the terror of the witnesses, survivors and the afflicted communities. The audience is also kept invested by dramatising the character aspects of the investigative teams and how unsolved cases can haunt key members of the investigative team.

The character writing and portrayals are among the drama's strongest aspects. Zhang Yi delivers yet another exceptional performance as a hard core detective single-mindedly focused on hunting down the 1988 killer. His Wei Guoping is a much less perfect character than An Xin (from The Knockout), which makes him more interesting and relatable. I loved how Gu Kaiyan calmly puts him in his place, asserts her authority and earns his grudging respect. The rapier-like way she breaks down and corners a suspect in interrogation is insanely awesome. Xu Fangyi steals the show with this riveting portrayal of a cooly logical and formidable female cop. The unique mixture of camaraderie, conflict and attraction between Wei Guoping, Song Zhe and Gu Kaiyan really made the team dynamics fun to watch.

Where the drama falters is in plot. This is somewhat unavoidable as the underlying cases are true crimes where major breakthroughs were only achieved with the help of DNA, which is ultimately anti-climatic. Maybe it would have been better if they went with something similar to Netflix's wildly successful serial killer docu-drama format rather than to try to dramatise it. The less interesting crime syndicate arc with the overused "forbidden" romance with a gangster's sister trope grew bigger than itself in the final third of the drama. Logic holes emerged and there were simply too many coincidences to force disparate cases to converge. The antagonists' motives in particular were contrived and in the Gansu case, deviates too markedly from the profile of the real serial killer. This may have been one of the reasons it was so harshly criticised by Chinese audiences. Because of well written protagonists and all around strong acting, I don't think this was that bad of a drama although it did not live up to its early promise. As a fan of the genre, I still enjoyed this well enough and rate it 7.5/10.0

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At a snail's pace.

Sometimes all you need to know about a drama is in the name - this one is aptly titled because it unfolds at a snail's pace. This is about a talented young criminal profiler Xuxu's quest to gain the approval and acceptance of her boss Ji Fai; who wants to boot her out of the department for flunking the physical fitness test.

The cases in this crime thriller drama are linked and have a personal connection to Ji Fai. While quite well written, the clues and conclusions are either obvious or they are not at all and unfold like a police procedural. A very slow paced police procedural. That simply doesn't work - if its gonna unfold slowly then it must be littered with enough clues that the viewer gets hooked into playing armchair detective. If its gonna be a police procedural, then its got to be fast paced and action oriented. This was the worst combination of both. I lost interest in the case after about 13 episodes but kept watching hoping (wrongly) for some romance.

It goes without saying that Wang Kai looked yummy in this drama and his acting was very good. I really enjoyed all of the fast moving action scenes he was in. But I just couldn't see the chemistry or romance. First of all, Wang Xiwen's Xuxu did not come across as a criminal profiling genius; just a rookie cop who thinks VERY SLOWLY. Watching someone think very slowly is VERY BORING. The character is also inconsistently written: someone supposedly so perceptive she can draw inferences from human nature not obvious to others but yet lacking in social skills and EQ??? Both characters wore such solemn expressions I started to hope they would just glower each other to death.

There are some good things about this drama that actually starts out quite well. The second ML and FL are quite adorable and really lift the mood and team dynamic. But it simply just wasn't enough. If you really want to watch Wang Kai, then you can consider this a 7.0 but if not, it really is a 6.5. Bottom line, if you are looking to be intrigued and thrilled, look elsewhere. If you need a sleeping aid, this is a total snooze fest.

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Thief of hearts.

Five Kings of Thieves is a fast paced Republican period wuxia. Zhang Siye puts a mysterious artefact up for auction. This object is said to lead to the whereabouts of the first emperor's mythical cauldron. This draws many opposing interests out of the woodworks; including historic guardians of the treasure, the Five Elements Families. Revolutionary students determined to protect China's national treasures from Japan's Black Dragon Association also jump into the fray.

Huo Xiaoxie is just a scrappy orphan and the only treasure he is after is just some nice dim sum to celebrate his shifu's birthday. He sneaks into the Zhang mansion to steal some and bumps into Shui Yao'er, who is after a far more valuable object. They fight into love as they are caught up this high stakes treasure hunt with devastating and life changing consequences. Zheng Zedao a constable with an unknown agenda recognises his resourcefulness and bails him out of a few tight spots. As their enemies encircle them, this thief of hearts races to unlock his own hidden powers to secure the treasure and win the girl.

This is a low budget action packed adventure with many twists that weaves in many brave and colorful jianghu characters with their own side stories. I enjoyed both Ren Min and Darren Chen's slightly exaggerated acting and cute chemistry in this. Its a bit rushed at the end and I could see some of the twists coming early on but still enjoyed watching them play out. The slightly slapstick sequences and the look and feel of this entire production is nostalgic of the old HK TVB Republican era action adventures. Its quite campy and the editing is not the best but with only 12 episodes its a nice, quick watch. My rating 7.0/10.0

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Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned.

Let me come clean from the get go - this kind of drama is not my cup of tea. I watch dramas to escape, not to get embroiled in messy social themes around the aftermath of the disintegration of marriage and terminally sick children, But Left Right is written and shot by Hu Jin of The Bad Kids Fame, one of my favorite suspense dramas. I just love his visual composition style and how mercilessly his camera eye lays bare the multitude complexity of human emotions. And in that aspect, Left Right hits the ball out of the park and that is without doubt this drama's best feature.

The drama opens well with Fang Yinuo and Xiao Lu compatibly anticipating their first child with a mixture of happiness and small trepidation. They companionably joke about giving up spicy noodles, which Yinuo especially loves, for the duration of "their" pregnancy. Except Xiao Lu already wolfed down a bowl of spicy noodles before going home. Such a simple scene so brilliantly illustrates the manifold cracks in their relationship. She is overly controlling and demands that they suffer together. He is passive aggressive and rather than confront her, he goes around her. This dynamic is prevalent throughout their interactions. The dissolution of their marriage is inevitable and they both move on to become better partners in their next relationships. The drama peaks at that point and once the child gets sick, the narrative succumbs to melodramatic and increasingly unrealistic subplots with improbable twists and digresses into uninteresting and dislikable side characters. This would have been a much better drama with half the episodes. Towards the end all the excessive gouxue狗血(dog's blood) turned into goupi 狗屁(crap) to the point that I even stopped caring about the kid's fate.

This intense character drama with a melodramatic plot takes on too many heavy themes - the pressure of a newborn child, extended family conflicts, postpartum depression, the stigma of divorce, archaic child custody laws, inadequacies of the healthcare system, financial struggles, deadbeat dads and last but not least, women stripped down to their worst, meanest selves.

Ren Suxi's portrayal of Fang Yinuo is so evocative it pulls me into the scenes where I wrestle with the sweet temptation of punching her in the face. This woman is a nutcracker; there is no other way to put it. This cold fish with impossible standards is judgmental, selfish and unforgiving. She wallows in postpartum depression while enslaving her own mother and mother-in-law with her high standards and demands. But I have no sympathy when Yinuo lashes out at them because they are not likeable characters either. In fact, not likeable is the nicest way to describe practically all of the characters in this drama (besides the kid). Even though Yinuo meets her match in her new sister-in-law, I feel no sense of cosmic justice. By then my head hurt from the cacophony of high pitched, shrill and nasty bitching. Unyielding to the bitter end, Yinuo experiences very little growth and never quite owns up to her part in her failed marriage.

As for the men, beginning with Xiao Lu, they are all weak and useless characters. Xiao Lu is a people pleaser that lies to avoid conflict, which often exacerbates conflict. He enables his brother's weaknesses and his mother's vices because it is just too hard to fix them. Xiao Lu is as selfish as Yinuo in his own way and it is manifestly obvious that two such self absorbed people would never work out. They both become almost likeable when they are with other people but all too quickly it becomes obvious that Xie Tianhua and Dong Fan are so unrealistically written they'd be booted out of a Disney fairytale script. Nobody is that nice or understanding or tolerant. Tianhua in particular must be the doormat character of the century. Nie Yuan's acting in particular is clearly not on par with the rest of the main cast but I think the problem is poor character design more than anything else. Although Qin Hao's character is not as intense or as central as Ren Suxi's, I find his portrayal more believable and nuanced enough to make his Xiao Lu empathetic whereas Ren Suxi's portrayal is not empathetic to the bitter end. A small bit of humor could have humanised these characters and made them much more relatable. As for Su Jinwei and Lei Wen, their boring characterizations, uninspired portrayals and long winded filler sub-plots are the drama's weakest link.

This drama's message of atonement and redemption is drowned out by the deafening impression that heaven has no rage like love turned to hatred. In fact, just never piss off a woman. Whether she is your wife, your mother, your sister or your child, she will for sure make you suffer. Up to the point of Xiao Lu's mae culpa, the poor guy gets figuratively castrated by a vindictive, unforgiving woman that hates him to the bone even more than she loves her child. It made me so angry at Yinuo and angry at the drama for making me feel that way. Because in these matters, I am always, always biased towards the women. So how did I end up sympathizing with the men and not even caring about the child? I feel like I was tricked into watching a scorching indictment of women's worst traits. Despite this being such a technically and visually stunning and immersive production, this drama made me more angry than sad. I can only rate this 7.5/8.0

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Time after time.

Zhang Haifeng is a cop that will not rest even after he is caught in a deadly explosion with his daughter's alleged murderer. In a bizzare twist, time after time he has a close shave with death, he wakes up in the past but while each time the events, the people and their actions rhyme, they are not exactly the same. Yet gradually shadowy outlines of the truth emerge as he pulls at the different threads and uncovers hidden relationships and causality. The first ten episodes are full of suspense and the cat and mouse encounters between Haifeng and the antagonists brim with powerful undercurrents and inuendo. I was really hooked and this was the show I looked forward to and watched first. The encounters between Wang Qianyuan and Lu Han were superb - both actors really got it just right. Qiao Xin's subtly suggestive portrayal of Sun Xiaomeng also deserves special mention.

And then I watched a murder take place right in front of my eyes. It is unambiguous. The censors did it. They massacred the last two episodes of what could have been an awesome thriller. It is really hard to tell what really happened with this. In any whodunit, we need to know who, when, how and why. It is quite clear who and even why but the full motive is not revealed or is not convincing. The when and the how really depends on which version of three different accounts of the events as they played out actually took place. It doesn't really qualify as an interpretation ending because there are too many open questions no matter what you think actually happened. I have an idea of what I think most likely happened but I am left with a deeply dissatisfying and unfinished feeling. So watch this at your own risk. I rate the first 10 episodes 8.5/9.0 and the last 2 a 4.5/5.0 for a 7.0 overall.

There is a brief spoiler in the comment section of this review with what I think happened.

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It was a dark and starry night.

This movie opens with Hitchcockian flair as a man frantically begs indifferent local authorities on an exotic island getaway to find his missing wife. It was a dark and starry night the last time He Fei saw his wife Li Muzi. And his recollections seem fragmented, distorted by drugs and alcohol. The plot thickens as a seductive lady in red charmingly asserts she is his wife Li Muzi and can prove it. He Fei enlists Chen Mai, a high powered lawyer in a race against time to expose the imposter and find his wife. It is quite clear there is an elaborate grift at play but it is not clear who is pulling the strings.

Despite the strong and intriguing start, the plot reveals itself too early. The sense of mystery collapses abruptly as too many too obvious clues are dropped that point to a very predictable and done before whodunit plot. The drama's tone swiftly switches into dark comedy that ventures too far into the realm of the outlandish and absurd as the perpetrator is trapped into telling all. At that point it becomes a tragicomic story of addiction, deceit, greed, and revenge.

Zhu Yilong steals the show with his riveting portrayal of the many facets of He Fei. He made me feel scared, angry and sad. The high point in terms of tension, chemistry and suspense is the cat and mouse between He Fei and Janice Man's imposter. I could feel the air sizzle with between them as they taunt each other. Unfortunately even though Ni Ni's portrayal is on par with Zhu Yilong's in terms of charisma and nuance, there is simply no chemistry or tension of any sort between them. Their moments of confrontation and conflict are flawlessly executed on both parts but somehow there is no feeling of intense connection or conflict between them. This is not incompatible with their respective characters and what they are about but with no shade on either actor, I think this is just not a great pairing. I also find the supporting cast a bit lacking and think they should have minimized the use of English in the movie.

Despite its flaws, this is a highly entertaining movie. As a big suspense watcher, it falls short of my expectations in the latter half but I still enjoyed it well enough overall. This is China's 2023 summer hit that makes for a very fun watch. My rating 7/10.

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A few good men.

I always love all kinds of female empowerment, dark revenge thrillers along the lines of Kill Bill, Why Women Kill, Gone Girl etc. Like many similar themed stories, this one explores how when pushed too far, women can be a little bit dangerous. The success of these kinds of plots always depends on how ingeniously the "revenge" is set up and a few good twists along the way. This hidden gem of a short drama definitely achieves that and is worth watching for that alone.

At surface, the main protagonist Qiao Wei has it all - she is a beautiful socialite with a handsome, successful and adoring husband (Lu Zicong) and a young son. Her facade of a perfect life starts unraveling after a wild school reunion at a hotel reconnects her with her old flame Qi Kai and an old frenemy struggling journalist Su Yao. The hotel chef An Xin's friend Nicole saves the inebriated Qiao Wei and shields her from her Zicong's unreasonable jealousy and possessiveness. As it turns out, all three women have had unhappy experiences or axes to grind with Zicong or Qi Kai. Brought together on that fateful night, they come up with some gripping, badass schemes to free Qiao Wei from her unhappy marriage and serve up a Michelin star-worthy dish of revenge on these nasty men.

The only issue I have with this drama is that the tone and writing style of the first half of it is markedly different from the much better second half. I found the backstories of these women to err on the melodramatic side and it took me a long time to empathize with Qiao Wei. I just kept shaking my head at her appalling taste in men. But I found the friendship and rapport between the women to be very enjoyable and even though she is a bit annoying in the beginning, Su Yao is my favorite of the four. The writing in the second half of the drama really hit all the right tones for me - between darkly humorous yet psychologically thrilling, witty and subtle with a a nice dose of silent communication. It is like another writer took over and I really wish the backstories and some of the difficult issues in the first half were written in the same language.

The other thing I really like about this drama is that while they are not rescued by men, they certainly got a lot of help from men friends. As much as I love girl power, it is important to be reminded that there are a few good men out there. The ending is also realistic in that it shows us that nobody has everything and its ok. The plotting is diabolical and the twist at the end that leaves a lingering shiver of fear is the perfect final touch.

This is a very enjoyable 8.0 for me. Also a shout out to @Skibbies for the recommendation.

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Growing Pains.

The Young Ones is an unexpectedly addictive crime thriller. After missteps in a case, Lei Xu gets appointed as the Director of the Juvenile Prosecution Department, a new department responsible for prosecuting juvenile cases. It is an effective demotion that sees him back in his hometown, leading an all-female team. It is an awkward transition for Lei Xu, who is more accustomed to dealing with hard core criminals than with sensitive, angsty, hormonal and mendacious teenagers. He also finds himself stepping on all kinds of toes dealing with some of the more prickly members of his team. Fortunately for him he has an interesting history with his high school classmate Du Ziyu, who smooths the way for him.

The plot is not special and the villains are not smart and are known early on. By pulling together threads of a few seemingly unrelated juvenile cases, Lei Xu stumbles onto an old nemesis that enables them to bring down a much larger criminal network. What makes this drama riveting, horrifying and addictive are the teen stories. Their growing pains, their vulnerability and the way they respond to trauma is scary and moving at the same time. I am not a binger but I couldn't stop watching just one more episode well past my bedtime. The teen actors absolutely stole the show, notably Jia Xiaohan's portrayal of the layer upon layer that peels away to reveal what happened to Jiang Xiaojie. The way Jiang Xiaojie, Zhang Yunyun and Zhou Qiao, lie over and over again so convincingly and ingeniously to protect each other moved me more than anything else. These kids only have and trust each other; they really don't have any faith in adults and they are too smart; they ran circles around the prosecutors! Bravo to all the child actors, they were truly phenomenal!

The rest of the cast is solid overall. It is anchored by Zhang Yi, who is in his element in this kind of slightly flawed but dedicated good guy, slightly awkward around women cop. I enjoyed the hint of romance and how the team comes to work together seamlessly. The only thing that surprised me is Qin Lan's lines; they were simply dreadful and she seemed uncomfortable in her role. Overall this is just another one of many decent police procedurals that is elevated by outstanding teen related sub-plots and performances. Its a good watch to pass time during a drama drought. I rate it 7/10.

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Lie like a dog.

This is a very solid police procedural about a female-led investigative team that employs polygraph technology to solve crimes. Haunted by a 12-year old and very personal cold case, Ling Ran is a workaholic truth seeker who is after justice for both the victims and the survivors of violent crimes. This is a very driven character that fuses her own instincts and observations with signals from the lie detector to sniff out and drill down on suspects who lie like a dog.

The cases are based on real life cases that occur when common human fallings collide with social pressure and a spate of bad luck. They are quite simple with straightforward with often predictable solutions and some plot holes. But they are curiously addictive nonetheless and this is what sets this otherwise unexceptional police procedural apart. While at surface it looks like Lie to Me, it is actually a lot more like CBS's Cold Case, one of my all time favorite crime series. The stories are dark and sad and they feel very real. The magic of the narrative is that it brings the victims back to life - they have secrets, hopes, dreams, strengths, weaknesses; they all love and are loved. Regardless of how ordinary and humble their existence is, they are missed and their loss is a devastating blow to someone. All but the last case moved me to tears.
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The team dynamics are well written, well portrayed and enjoyable but overshadowed by the victims' and their survivors' haunting stories. I think Mo Xiaojie and his connection with the homeless orphan stole the show and gave this character the kind of growth and dimension that is missing in team leader and titular truth seeker Ling Ran's characterization.

Ling Ran is scarred by a 12 year old cold serial case that makes her the way she is but unfortunately this is not explored until the final case. As such, I find aspects of Ling Ran perplexing and never quite connected with her. This ends the drama on a final case that just doesn't resonate as hard as the earlier cases. I would prefer they opened with the final case and ended with the first case. This would have better established Ling Ran's backstory and made her more understandable and relatable. The first case is also one of the best cases and the one with the least dark ending that asks the question whether one ought to lie to protect the innocent, which would be a fitting note to end this drama on.

I only rate this a 7.0 because it really isn't the best, most intriguing and thrilling crime series out there. But it is quite well made and there is a lot of heart in the cases that will touch you in a lingering way so it is definitely worth watching.

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Saved by the long haired devil in Prada.

This is one of those dramas with many, many flaws but somehow still manages to be so very enjoyable to watch that it commands higher ratings than it deserves. It is also one where for me, a secondary lead playing a dark character completely steals the show and wins my heart.

This is the story of Hua Qiangu (Zhao Liyang), a cursed orphan who has a tendency to attract demons. She is rescued from angry and fearful villagers by a powerful immortal Bai Zihua (Wallace Huo) who after many trials, reluctantly accepts her as his disciple. Of course they can't help falling in love but if the master disciple relationship is not obstacle enough, she is also fated to be his calamity and it is his duty to suppress the demon goddess within her by killing her. They come regularly in conflict with factions of the Demon Sect, who are out to steal a number of magical artifacts that when put together unleashes the demon forces. When her master Bai Zihua is mortally injured, Hua Qian Gu goes on a quest to recover all of the artifacts regardless of the consequences. This is a result of the machinations of a mysterious antagonist that results in a good surprise plot- twist.

As a couple Qiangu and Zihua would have worked better if Wallace Huo had not appeared to be icy-faced practically all of the time. He is a good enough actor that he must have just been a bit lazy in this role. As a result, his Bai Zihua came dangerously close to crossing the line of being cruel and indifferent to Hua Qiangu. I was still rooting for them as a couple but there were many moments where he really angered me. This made Hua Qiangu seem a bit silly for being so devoted to such a cold fish when she was surrounded by so many other more worthy suitors. Huo's rather flat performance left the door open for the secondary leads to steal the show and indeed they did. Andy Zhang was really very convincing as Dong Fang but it is Kyle Ma's Sha Qian Mo that shocked and awed.

I would probably have given this show a 7 or 7.5 without Ma's Sha Qian Mo. He was equally compelling as the fearsome and deadly Demon Lord as he was as Hua Qiangu's tender and protective Sha Jiejie. He is a total fashion diva that embraces his feminine side, pulls off these colorful, exotic and unambiguously female outfits and hilariously exchanges beauty tips with Qiangu. He would sadly advice her not to love her callous sifu so much despite sagely knowing she wouldn't be able to help herself. This was one of the characters from the show that really resonated with me and saved the drama. I'd like to see this actor again in some better roles!

The overall story-line is very interesting it moves at a nice pace for the most part and then at the end the story gets garbled, a bit confusing and then it ends abruptly. It is as if they ran out of time or something. This is really absurd because they wasted hours and hours on this super annoying, whiny CGI caterpillar character that turns into a noisy, talkative and thoroughly irritating girl. The directors and scriptwriters really deserve to be spanked for wasting time they did not have on this now hopefully unemployed actress. This could have and should have been a much better show. Still while rushed, the ending was not as terrible as some have described as the two leads did manage to click well in the finale. Its is still overall enjoyable and worth watching.

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