Chen Shen may be a talented spy to survive under the nose of his superior, enemy and sworn brother, but he is ultimately still human. Even at the risk of exposure and undoing everything he has done in the past three years, he desperately tries to save his sister-in-law from a certain death. It is our first glimpse of his idealism, and it explains a lot of what we know, and don’t know, about his relationship with Bi Zhong Liang.
Happy to have another slick spy drama to grace my screen. It’s a familiar Chinese-versus-Japanese plot, but this time it stars two sworn brothers who looks like they are willing to betray each other at the drop of the hat (as cute as the bromance is). This ought to be interesting.
Xiao Nai really doesn’t fool around when it comes to work and dating. He is actually really sly here, courting Wei Wei in-game and then delivering the final kill in real life. Da Shen is Da Shen indeed.
A lot of things happen in these episodes, yet nothing… really happens? So many meetings, so many conversations, yet I feel like there is zero progress story-wise. Instead we climb back into the gloomy mine. Even our OTP is just rehashing their conflict.
This first episode is a delight to watch and to recap. I think the show nailed the execution and improved the plot. The characters feel alive instead of caricatures of themselves, which the show owed it to the original writer Gu Man also being the scriptwriter. If you like the book, I think you will enjoy this adaptation.
Already, the show is out for the hero’s blood using the tried-and-true method of killing off the protagonist’s loved ones and leaving him in a strange and hostile environment. But our underdog is foolishly kind and like attract like. Pretty good for a first episode.
The fiercely loyal and devoted wife of Er Ye finally succumbs to her illness, leaving a wake of destruction and despair in her death. In this lifetime, she bids farewell to her husband but makes sure he doesn’t try to follow her. Meanwhile, our OTP ship is all set to sail.
Xin Yue may not be Qi Shan’s idea of a perfect bride but the whole world seem to agree they make a pretty pair. Thanks to our fearless heroine breaking down walls and ruffling feathers, we get to see a more human side of Qi Shan. With her, he is a lot of emotions: intrigued, confused, bewildered, annoyed — sometimes all at once.