1
5
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ChineseDramaFan
USA
青出于蓝 (Qīngchūyúlán) – Gaming The Teacher
I have mixed feelings about this drama. I enjoy the scheming parts, where everything is “shi, ye bu shi”(是,也不是), a phrase constantly used by the ingenious one. Anything can be true or not true, leaving an ambiguous connotation where the line is not clear cut. However, at times, I find his schemes not so brilliant but rather frustrating as they defy logic. I also find the romance taking up too much screen time, rushing the unfolding of the supposedly epic events that led up to the finale; many of those scenes are just by-passing in conversations.
For me, The Ingenious One is probably more appropriately called the King of Deception. Unlike the Mei Changsu character in “Nirvana in Fire” who is genuinely the ingenious one, Yun Xiang (Chen Xiao) schemes and deceives with no bottom line; he is more like an antagonist. Like Mei Changsu, Yun Xiang cannot fight but is brilliant in escaping, which is really funny to watch especially when he manages to run away from those great martial arts antagonists, causing them to scratch their heads. Both (Yun Xiang and Mei Changsu) have talented martial art friends/followers to hang around and protect them.
Similar sequence structure as most wuxia stories, Yun Xiang leaves his mountain where he has lived for 15 years and learned his craft, and then goes for a mission set down by his master. He takes the opportunity for an adventure in search of the ones responsible for the massacre of his entire village. He meets interesting people and makes friends that could be trusted and help him in his plots. He even falls quickly in love with a girl who is a brilliant martial art fighter but with a background he cannot find. While his newfound friends treat him sincerely, he uses them to achieve his own goals, usually causing huge damages to his friends only to be mitigated later through the completion of his schemes. He is the one who digs the hole, leads the plot and fills the hole later. He can stoop as low as he needs to achieve his goals.
The whole cast is well selected. Every character is being performed optimally and convincingly. Chen Xiao’s performance is great but he looks tired, and at times, his expressions confuse me. This is probably due to the Yun Xiang character being a complex one who is ambiguous, as he says, “shi, ye bu shi” (yes, or no).
Many viewers criticize Mao Xiaotong (plays Shu Yanan) mainly on how her face looks, puffy, bread face etc, which I feel totally irrelevant. She exudes a sharp charisma with good acting, and her chemistry with Chen Xiao appropriate. As a talented martial art fighter, she is believable with beautiful fight choreography, and her emotional turmoil shows clearly on her body language when she finds herself falling for a man she can’t love.
The other side characters and side couples are lovely. I regret the deaths of a couple of my favorite characters and wish they have not been written off just like that as their deaths are unnecessary. I have also enjoyed the official soundtracks. The ballads are melodious and memorable.
My Verdict
I love the subtle color palette of the drama with toned down garments and accessories. Though started as a wuxia in Jianghu story, it eventually leads to palace politics and power struggle. From the beginning until towards the end when such politics become apparent, viewers are only shown Yun Xiang’s mysterious master as an invisible character which is almost like that of the Wizard of Oz. The prolonged lovelorn suffered by Yun Xiang is rather boring because romance should not have been the focus in the first place. I also find the missed opportunity in the development of a potentially great character, Qian Rong (Huang Haibing), the housekeeper of the Su Family. The second half of the drama is less compelling and lacks luster compared to the first half as the logic becomes uncalled for. Imagine the mastermind spends 30 years scheming and controlling two powerful century-old organizations, 15 years cultivating his best disciple, only to have all these crumble within the last 30 minutes of the story. I am speechless. And by the way, where is the antagonist Nan Gong Fang (Ran Xu)?
Nonetheless, a rather fun watch for wuxia lovers! Recommended!
For me, The Ingenious One is probably more appropriately called the King of Deception. Unlike the Mei Changsu character in “Nirvana in Fire” who is genuinely the ingenious one, Yun Xiang (Chen Xiao) schemes and deceives with no bottom line; he is more like an antagonist. Like Mei Changsu, Yun Xiang cannot fight but is brilliant in escaping, which is really funny to watch especially when he manages to run away from those great martial arts antagonists, causing them to scratch their heads. Both (Yun Xiang and Mei Changsu) have talented martial art friends/followers to hang around and protect them.
Similar sequence structure as most wuxia stories, Yun Xiang leaves his mountain where he has lived for 15 years and learned his craft, and then goes for a mission set down by his master. He takes the opportunity for an adventure in search of the ones responsible for the massacre of his entire village. He meets interesting people and makes friends that could be trusted and help him in his plots. He even falls quickly in love with a girl who is a brilliant martial art fighter but with a background he cannot find. While his newfound friends treat him sincerely, he uses them to achieve his own goals, usually causing huge damages to his friends only to be mitigated later through the completion of his schemes. He is the one who digs the hole, leads the plot and fills the hole later. He can stoop as low as he needs to achieve his goals.
The whole cast is well selected. Every character is being performed optimally and convincingly. Chen Xiao’s performance is great but he looks tired, and at times, his expressions confuse me. This is probably due to the Yun Xiang character being a complex one who is ambiguous, as he says, “shi, ye bu shi” (yes, or no).
Many viewers criticize Mao Xiaotong (plays Shu Yanan) mainly on how her face looks, puffy, bread face etc, which I feel totally irrelevant. She exudes a sharp charisma with good acting, and her chemistry with Chen Xiao appropriate. As a talented martial art fighter, she is believable with beautiful fight choreography, and her emotional turmoil shows clearly on her body language when she finds herself falling for a man she can’t love.
The other side characters and side couples are lovely. I regret the deaths of a couple of my favorite characters and wish they have not been written off just like that as their deaths are unnecessary. I have also enjoyed the official soundtracks. The ballads are melodious and memorable.
My Verdict
I love the subtle color palette of the drama with toned down garments and accessories. Though started as a wuxia in Jianghu story, it eventually leads to palace politics and power struggle. From the beginning until towards the end when such politics become apparent, viewers are only shown Yun Xiang’s mysterious master as an invisible character which is almost like that of the Wizard of Oz. The prolonged lovelorn suffered by Yun Xiang is rather boring because romance should not have been the focus in the first place. I also find the missed opportunity in the development of a potentially great character, Qian Rong (Huang Haibing), the housekeeper of the Su Family. The second half of the drama is less compelling and lacks luster compared to the first half as the logic becomes uncalled for. Imagine the mastermind spends 30 years scheming and controlling two powerful century-old organizations, 15 years cultivating his best disciple, only to have all these crumble within the last 30 minutes of the story. I am speechless. And by the way, where is the antagonist Nan Gong Fang (Ran Xu)?
Nonetheless, a rather fun watch for wuxia lovers! Recommended!
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