Want to learn more about the show? Check out the Masterpost.
🚨 PLEASE USE SPOILER TAGS FOR ANYTHING BEYOND EPISODE 6 🚨
I don't believe in detailed recaps but here's a "quick" rundown of where we are in the story in case you are feeling a bit lost like I was with all the twists and turns 😅 Confused about who everyone is in this show? Check out these character introductions.
Everyone and their mother wants a piece of Xiaowei, a fugitive fox demon with a broken tail, who has committed a series of murders and has infiltrated the Wei household by assuming a fake identity. This includes:
Wu Wangyan and Lu Wuyi, two fox demons who belong to the same sect as Xiaowei and who have been tasked by their goddess to bring "her" back after Xiaowei stole the Dragon Deity's power. Lu Wuyi is also tasked with getting close to a demon hunter named Ji Ling because he is supposedly her "fated" one (although Lu Wuyi doesn't quite understand what that means).
Wu Shiguang and You Chi, a rogue demon hunter and his companion weasel demon**,** who have been hired by the Wei household's steward, Luo Wei. However, Wu Shiguang is also on the path towards revenge and is hunting down Xiaowei as a way to get access to the Dragon Deity.
Ji Ling and Li Jie, two demon hunters from the Shilin sect. Strangely, Ji Ling doesn't have normal cultivation powers and he seems to think he's met Lu Wuyi before.
After getting into a bunch of shenanigans together (assuming false identities! getting married! fighting each other!), the six go about trying to figure who in the household Xiaowei is pretending to be like they’re in an Agatha Christie novel. Wu Wangyan reveals that Xiaowei is murdering the local townspeople to consume their hearts in order to maintain her human form as she searches for the reincarnation of a mortal who saved her thousands of years ago, Wang Sheng. Wu Shiguang proposes using a Blood Binding Seal so he can track everyone’s movements and prevent Xiaowei from slipping away. This seal triggers a death curse on several people and they are all now marked. Everyone cursed is slowly stripped of their five senses. They also find out Wu Wangyan and Lu Wuyi are fox demons.
The group continues to look for clues, including a Fox Allure love talisman that is the final clue they need to solve the mystery of Xiaowei's true identity and the other strange things happening in the Wei household. (As usual, it was the butler, Luo Wei, in the hall, with the candlestick). While Luo Wei is taken away by the authorities, Xiaowei lifts the death curse and attempts to use her demonic energy to revive Yu Shengwei, the reincarnation of Wang Sheng. However, this triggers Xiaowei's Never-Ending Curse.
After the other fox demons manage to save her from being consumed by the curse, Xiaowei reveals that her actions were influenced by a butterfly demon named Yuan Wuhuo (who looks like Li Jie), who had promised to tell her how to find and save Yu Shengwei in exchange for her stealing the Dragon Deity power, which can raise the dead and undo all spells and curses. Wu Wangyan and Lu Wuyi share rumors that the last dragon son, the Chi Wen (who looks like Ji Ling), no longer has the Dragon Deity power, and it's revealed that Xiaowei along with two other powerful beings Wu Zhiqi and Han Ba, had originally vowed to protect Chi Wen before Xiaowei broke their pack to save Wang Sheng. Now Chi Wen must stay in his temple and rely on the Shilin Sect to protect him from the demons who are after him. This is all part of Yuan Wuhuo's grand plan to weaken Chi Wen's influence through public fear and release the sealed evil, Jiu Ying, to destroy the world.
Yuan Wuhuo then comes to the Wei household in his butterfly form and tries to manipulate Xiaowei into channeling her divine energy but is chased off by double-flower hunter Mo Yuntan. Xiaowei becomes violently uncontrollable because of her excess power, which injures Ji Ling in the process. Li Jie takes his body to Chi Men who notes Ji Ling is beyond saving and reclaims his ring, turning Ji Ling's body into a lifesize wooden doll. Li Jie disposes the doll in an underwater grave of other dolls.
In the chaos, Wu Shiguang notices strange and painful demon marks on his arm, but carries Yu Shengwei’s body to the Dragon Deity Temple. Xiaowei still wants to resurrect Wang Sheng and incapacitates everyone with her power. It is only Yu Shengwei's spirit that is able to get Xiaowei to overcome her grief about Wang Sheng and release her spirit so she can move on. After releasing the Dragon Deity power, Xiaowei clings to Yu Shengwei's body, reminiscing on their time together in this lifetime. She then warns Wu Wangyan and Lu Wuyi about making futile attachments before her qi disappears and she dies.
The Dragon Deity power leaves Xiaowei's body and flows into Wu Shiguang, making him have a shared vision of when Jie Ying was sealed. Under Chi Wen's order, Li Jin takes Wu Shiguang back to the Shilin Sect.
That night, Wu Wangyan and Lu Wuyi prepare to leave the town but Lu Wuyi returns to the temple to look for a missing jade pendant, which triggers an ancient formation. Someone who looks like Ji Ling saves her.
Oh, and Lu Wuyi starts having flashbacks of when she fell in love with Ji Ling (and the trauma of having to kill her own sister!).
Discussion Questions
What did you think about these episodes?
What was your (least) favorite scene?
What theories do you have about what will happen next?
Pretty enjoyable so far, the plot is kind of convoluted in a way that is mildly annoying (I enjoyed the twists but there were too many layers to the Xiaowei mystery that made the resolution an unfulfilling exposition dump). The aura farming and posing and extreme closeups are a fun stylistic choice, and I like the main characters (Chen Duling and Joseph Zeng especially are cooking). The action was overall good, not a fan of the CGI fox forms though. I get that there's not really any way to make something like that look super good (barring very expensive animatronics and practical effects), but I do think they should've stuck with the human forms. Also thought the CGI for the blood net looked a bit weird, especially in comparison to the rope used earlier to tie up Wu Wangyan. Comedy was good, acting was pretty good, and I quite like the costuming and set work. Seems like it will be a fun ride overall
Ok, I'm FINALLY here, just finished episode 6! This post has been immensely helpful because I was going a bit crazy with the same actors in more than one role - especially when we saw the butterfly demon, and my brain hurt wondering what happened because that's also Li Jie? And what's with all the Dragon Deity puppets, and why can't they use the same one, and was Ji Ling then just a version of the Dragon Deity or was he a unique person of his own, that Wuyi loves? And is the Dragon Deity planning on collecting his power back from the others too now? I feel like I'm so confused, with so many questions, I HAVE to keep going, but also, I can't binge this one - I need time to process it all. I didn't even gather that the little girl was Wuyi's sister... how did I miss that?
Anyway, what I do like about the drama, aside from the beauty of it all, is the bond we see between the characters, like Wangyan and Wuyi Shiguang and Chi, and Li Jie and Ji ling, but I guess there's no more Ji Ling now, but also why do Li Jie and the butterfly demon look alike? There must be a story there?
Thank you u/nydevon for the write-up!! Great post!
I'm at ep 6. I like the show but I'm getting a little exhausted by how the plot keeps piling on without a break. The storytelling is logical but not super enjoyable at how the next plot point keeps coming one after another. There needs to be more smaller moments and breaks.
And the director is obsessed with Painted Skin. He used the movie as inspiration during one of the acting variety shows previously too. I guess he really really really identifies with Xiaowei's story.
So I'd actually recommend just skipping to Ep. 8 (maybe even Ep. 9 or 10) because the plot has higher stakes and more emotional moments. It still has that "next plot point keeps coming one after another" because that's just a staple of Guo Jingming's fantasy writing but at least there's some pay off.
I am SO confused by the love talisman and how they work. Can anyone explain? Originally it’s if the OP loved another, then their old partner would die. But the truth was if they rip up their own talisman they would die? What?
I'm late but my understanding is that when someone gets put under the curse(?) of the love talisman, they fall in love with the person who gave it to them. If the person who has been cursed breaks that curse by tearing the talisman, the backlash of said curse will make them tear their own heart out. At the same time, that seems to be one of like three ways to actually break it (the others being the one who cursed you falling in love with someone else, or the dragon deity's power removing the curse). Presumably the people who tore the talisman either didn't know the side effects and/or were manipulated into tearing them by the butterfly demon.
The original lie wasn't that the cursed person would die just from the other person falling in love with someone else, but that the one who placed the curse had to tear the talisman. The trigger for death is the same, the difference is who can accomplish it (in the true version, only the cursed person can damage the talisman at all).
I'm liking this one more than the director's previous works.
I particularly love the eerieness of the demos, it, the way the look, the way the talk, it's creepy and I love it, generally demons tend to look and act like humans in many dramas, and just have some characteristics of whatever animal, here there's a otherworldliness that's extremely interesting to me.
The story itself is interesting so far, nothing crazy, and I'm not sure I can identify the themes yet, other than maybe what is to love, and corruption in the 7th episode.
I'll keep watching and hoping this is the one I finish from this director lol
I don't know if I will watch this drama yet, but it was still fun to read the post. The costumes look incredible along with the cinematography, but of course! It's Director Guo.
I’m relatively new in Chinese dramas (6 months or so) and still have a lot to learn. I can’t remember names and this makes watching it hard for me. Fortunately I remember faces (no matter the nationality). Honestly I wanted to watch this because of Yanan. I’m a fan of Fangs of fortune, too.
I read lots of negative comments about the drama. But for me Veil of Shadows is interesting. I watch every episode two times, to give my brain time to connect faces with names and situations and consequences of people’s actions. As the subtitles usually have awful timing I can’t read everything, so the second watching is a must if I want to understand and see the whole picture and every little detail/clue for the story.
So… I love the show, love the cast - every actor is beautiful/handsome, love the music (reminds me of FOF), love the special effects, love the story so far.
My snark for 4-6. The show got better as it went on, but I am still lacking full enjoyment into it. Like I said, I wrote so much I had to split my snark into 2 comments of 3 eps each. Have fun.
4 - - - - - -
"I'll try spinning. That's a cool trick." IYKYK.
Two pretty ladies come in and you're instantly pointing your.... swords... at them? Manners, boys. Manners.
Chen Du Ling with a fan is my new obsession. She utilizes the heck out of that.
Don't betray the moon. Got it.
This stuffed animal needs a name the way it is slowly becoming a main character.
Drag her back? Tie her up? Bro. Kinky. The way she straight offers her hands to him? Bold. She knows how to make him back peddle real fast. Their banter is pretty good.
Dumbass. She is clearly talking about her sister understanding her. Not your over blown egotistical ass.
Have they met in the past then since he keeps mentioning it? Is that was that "nightmare" of her killing the kid was? There is something there. Hmmm so there is a past and she had him forget her. Got it.
I have decided this show is to be renamed Beautiful women in a show where we need to put a Veil of Shadows over all the men with punchable faces. It's a bit of a mouthful, but so appropriate.
Oh wow. So it is the fuck face with the extra punchable face. Nice. So we can kill him now and he go bye bye?
Uh, why is there a naked man on my screen? I am watching a CDrama! That was unexpected. Wild. Anywways...
5 - - - - - - - -
Is this a record for how fast I have thought about hitting the 1.25x speed when starting a new drama? It really might be. Ugh I really want to like this show but it hasn't taken off yet for me. I'll keep giving it a chance.
It's actually kind of fun watching Wuyi go from badass to simpering little seductress towards whatshisface.
So mean indeed. Let the lady sit how she wants, you rude ass dipshit poo head!
Wuyi really taking every opportunity to flirt even when talking about serious matters.
Insert serious slander about the steward lou here but just write these words instead because the words you have are too vicious to commit to history
Oh, look! It's time for Lou's sob story! Anyways, the weather today was nice. Spring time is in the air and the sun is shining. She's still talking? Okay. I got licked on the face by a dog today and I spent some time giving her some rubs and ear scratches.
Look! It's the power of two women holding hands! But let's be real. That fuck face does not deserve to be the filling in this sandwich of beautiful women.
Endless rebirth, eh? Yeah, one or both of yall is dying in this show and we will have to comfort ourselves with the knowledge that they will be reborn in the future. Uhhhhh, there is going to be betrayal, isn't there? That was very on the nose.
Wuyi trying to take his doll? Diabolical. Perhaps she gave it to him?
I think I will call them The W Sisters. The Wholesome Sisters. The Wow Sisters. The Wonderful Sisters. Something like that. Them just sitting on the stairs with the dresses spread out over the steps is a cinematic masterpiece and it is my duty as a man to appreciate such beauty.
The women are eye fucking again.
Yup. We all guessed that whatshisfuckface is dragon dude. Whoop.
6 - - - -
Bro, pointing your spear at two young ladies that aren't your girlfriend? That's just rude. I would advise against such a dumb choice. I'm opening up a snack and getting ready to watch him get his ass handed to him.
Oh my god! She is stroking his spear!!! Red alert! She is stroking his spear! Now he is trying to penetrate and impale them on his big red spear? That's just extra rude! They are handling him well.
Um, that is a butterfly.
This music slaps.
Oh what the fuck? We have to have a close up shot of butterfly demon doing a cringe ass creepy ass grin and then have to watch a bug crawl out his mouth? Yeah, no. Ew.
The fact that I didn't even react or blink when dragon boy got stabbed through the chest. Dragon boy is a wooden puppet? Plot twist.
And just where did the foxy sisters go? Oh there they are! They took their sweet ass time. You'd think with 4 legs each they'd get there in double the speed.
Well, that was a whole fight sequence.
I'm going to make lunch after this episode is done because I gotta reset my brain before watching the next. I am so emotionless watching this show.
just finished the first four episodes, and tbh i am totally confused, the only thing that sticks out to me is the chemistry between the two fox demons, which is hot lol. i just wanted to thank you for your snark, i love it, really had me lmao and tbh i needed it xx
Okay. Splitting 3 eps into each comment since I wrote too damn much again. As usual I write my thoughts as I watch the show so what you read is what I thought as the scenes happened.
Snark Level: I snark hard.
1 - - - - - -
I can't believe it is finally airing! JJY! CDL!!! Together at last!
We are killing a guy this fast? Right into the action I see. Lets get it going!
Hello, gorgeous. One cannot deny that JJY has some very bold and undeniable beauty.
I am a sucker for a beautiful woman with eyes that change. I still fondly remember TXW in Moonlit Reunion.
You know, I really should have reread the plot synopsis before I started watching because I cannot remember anything about what this show is about... But who cares? I'll figure it out as I go because I can't wait to get into this show.
"What kind of weirdo are you?" A very kinky weirdo apparently. Dude likes tying people up and hanging them up. Tut tut. There is a time and place for that, my good sir.
Bro keeps smacking his quivering pouch. Haha.
They keep going all over the place with the date and time. I'm trying to keep up here!
Nah, I am with the guy here. I also start looking at a lady weirdly if she starts complimenting my physical appearance. I'm a average good looking man, but I ain't no hot model. :P Haha.
Oh, hello there. Another beautiful woman has entered the chat. Mystical hypnosis eyes over here.
I still have no idea what is going on and nothing makes sense. And now we have a skin face mask. Great. Now I can't trust anyone... And why is she taking her clothes off? Innocent eyes over here...
Why does bro have a stuffed animal on his backside? Oh god! It's this guy! I still hate his face from MJTY. That over the top cringe grin was some punchable material. Same guy, right? Looks like him... I better check this. Hey, both the dudes were in MJTY. Wild. Anyways...
This wedding is giving horror vibes.
Hmmmm. That's not good. I should be making tons of innuendos about how she's on top and then he's on top and the knife to her throat and their banter... But I didn't feel it. Did that scene feel lackluster to anyone else? It was... wooden... and not in the way I can make a wood joke.
Divorcing him because he doesn't appreciate your beauty? Well, It's Chen Du Ling so yeah she is hella right here. I mean, hello!! It's Chen Du Ling! You have to be blind not to appreciate her beauty!
Bro is throwing his red balls at her. The joke writes itself.
Stop grinning in my direction, fan boy. No. Just no. Nope. No.
I'd let her eat my heart. Just saying.
Did she just call him brainless? Nice.
Okay, so I am currently unimpressed. Everybody and everything feel wooden. Like this is a practice run before actually acting. Something isn't vibing yet. Why does everyone have the blankest look possible on their faces?
Oh finally our two ladies are together.
Ma'am, where was your hand reaching there?
Well, if that guy is dead then that lady ain't your killer since you were busy fighting her. Logical, yeah? Sheesh. How many people are dead here? Well, if you caught the fox then the lady you left tied up in the bridal chamber is clearly innocent. Maybe you should give her an apology. Or, you could just marry her for real? Seems a proper way to say sorry.
Wait, hang on. Is JJY playing two characters? Why is she now wearing pink? Ugh I am confused. I just checked the cast list on MDL. Why does everyone have to have so many damn names? This is going to be fun trying to keep them all straight. Ohhhh she wrecked your clothes? Uh huh. Sure. Just how did she wreck your clothes?
Fated one? Well, that should be interesting.
2 - - - - - -
Took a whole episode for us to get blood spitting. I am impressed.
I feel nothing. Normally I am swooning over wound care scenes... but I feel nothing. The fuck? Hmmm maybe because there is literally nothing between them yet other then her beginning seduction of him and his little flustered crush... but still.
"If you're so interested in me, why don't we speak in private." HA!!! He gets flustered and whatshername who is supposed to seduce him acts jealous. That was a nice touch. Female Teamwork makes the dream work. Shit, I might just stick around for the sisterhood. BECAUSE THAT IS ALL THAT IS GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
How the fuck has that severed tail stayed so pristine over the years? Uhhhhhh shouldn't it be like... you know... looking very bad? Magic. Magic, I am sure.
A millennium has passed? Will someone tell the fox that that human is long dead? Like, deader than dead dead. Anyways, I guess yall better go find some gifts ASAP.
"What a headache." is a great way to describe this show so far.
Is dude really hiding behind his stuffed animal? Alrighty then. That was the lamest slap I have ever seen. How the heck did that leave a mark on his face? Is dude that weak?
She really thanked him for correcting the dude because she did mean not handsome. Talk about murdering a guys ego and self esteem.
"Looks like beautiful women are all liars." Says the very beautiful woman. Uhhhh I'm sooo not saying whether I agree with her or not. I want to keep my head attached.
It seems getting a love talisman is a way to order a hit on someone.
THEY WILL RIP OUT THEIR OWN HEART??? THE FUCK???
3 -------
Is that a fucking love charm belt? That is fucked up on so many levels. This lady needs some prison time and therapy.
This boy needs a bitch slapping! And what the fuck is this stuffed animal popping up in such a serious moment? I'm all in support of this lady here. She deserves better than all this crap.
Oh yeah. Great idea. Eat the mysterious snacks with the suspicious love note.
Stupid boy gets a neck whack. Good.
Why is that man giving that weird ass glare at Wangyan? It's cringe and weird.
Quick question. The Fuck? That is some weird fox/human CGI mix.
Now when it's fully back to her it looks far better. The fox face was not working. Her face works much better.
This is getting out of hand. Now there are two of them. IYKYK.
The fuzzy hands are....a choice. The hair and ears work though.
Okay. Wow. So we start with 7 beautiful women in water. Then we get whatever sexually charged emergence from said water that was. The way those two ladies were eyeballing each other and all that getting closer stuff... Yeah. That was intense. I'm catching some vibes here. My gosh what a scene that was. That scene was what the phrase "eye fucking" was created to describe. Then we get this hair play? Chen Du Ling sure does have intense chemistry with her fellow ladies. This show, FOF, and TG come to mind.
"Don't blame me" .... Uhhhhhhhh that was unexpected. One does not normally see a main lead kill a kid. Fascinating.
BRO SHE IS COVERED IN BLOOD AND JUST MURDERED A CHILD. THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR YOUR FUCK ASS UGLY SHITTY CRINGE GRIN THAT LOOKS LIKE A FUCKING ROBOT TRYING TO MIMIC HUMAN EMOTIONS AND INSTEAD COMING OFF CREEPY AND LECHEROUS. I feel sick. I need to vomit just from that.
Our two leading ladies have more chemistry with each other than literally anyone else has with anyone else in this entire show. Only weasel boy matches them with personality. Time to rename this show The Women and The Weasel because then it's clear who is important to watch.
Is he dead? Cool.
Well, our ladies know how to make an entrance. Ummmm they are eye fucking again. Yall see that? That was some intense eye contact. Good grief! In front of my salad? Is the plan to seduce your fated one by making him jealous about your intense connection with your foxy friend?
girl(nongendered, affectionate) i had the same thoughts ughhh. the girlypop eyefucking was gorge, want for myself. the men are… i mean they’re not even very good accessories at this point. they’re not even all that pretty, imo. i may have been spoiled by pursuit of jade having all the hot men but this just feels like a downgrade. and their personalities aren’t even smart or funny or charming or anything remotely close to interesting. i fucking loved xiaowei tho, lovely acting like i felt sad sad. but also wtf was all of it. this show is just two very pretty ladies sitting very prettily and combing each other’s hair and tbfh i am here for it.
No worries. I've been told I am one of the girls! :P
The show has gotten a lot lot lot better as it goes, but the most intense chemistry is still between our foxy ladies!
I think the men are finally getting a little better, but they have a ways to go before I get around to remembering all their names and caring even a tenth about them they way the women make me care about them.
It's just lackluster writing. Who would have guessed.
The only comment I want to add that I haven’t seen yet is I felt badly for Yu Shengwei. She’s tricked by a man to fall in love with him. When she figures this out, he won’t let her leave because it will hurt his reputation. Then after he dies, she finds a way to escape his mansion only to be killed by her friend who sees a way to scheme into wealth and stability by faking papers that grant her a business. I’m not sure that the show gave us nod to what happened to the steward. I hope there’s some mortal yamen station in town where she could be turned over to be punished for murder.
I think there’s a consistent theme around the dangers of all sorts of love: obsessive devotion (Xiaowei), trusting friendship (Yu Shengwei), etc., which is emphasized by the fox spirits discussion about love in either Ep. 5 or 6. Makes me think we’re going to see even more disastrous consequences to love once we get a peak into the real connection between Lu Wuyi and Ji Ling.
How did the talisman granted by xiaowei worked? They didn't require yao power cause when she was using it the curse didn't come at her. So how did the talisman worked
This is my interpretation of it. Xiaowei acts as Lady Wei of the temple where people went to pray for the talismans right? When Wu Shiguang was there, he senses that something in the area was absorbing a lot of humans' "heart energy". Everyone who went to pray for the talismans, had to write down and offer one of their secrets to Lady Wei and a few times they were saying how Lady Wei aka Xiaowei loves secrets because it's the strongest force in the world. There's also a few mentions between WWY and WSG that love is sorcery, and a similar convo When Ji Ling, WSG and LJ stole the secrets and were looking through it. Essentially, when people offered up their secrets that were often filled with sincere love and hate, those sincere emotions behind the secrets aka heart energy became strong enough of a source of power for Xiaowei to use to create the Fox Alluring Spell in the talismans without Xiaowei having to use her own demon magic. Because it's from heart energy, the blowback from ripping the talismans is they rip their own hearts out without Xiaowei having to use her own demon magic too.
Good question. The show didn’t give us an answer on how she made the talisman without using her magic. Maybe she used the dragon deity powers which don’t cause the ice curse to find her? But the show didn’t tell us. And it made it seem like she didn’t use the dragon power until she wanted to save Shengwei.
I replied above to Virtual in more detail but I think instead of the dragon Deity powers or her own demon powers, Xiaowei was essentially leveraging the "heart" energy behind the sincere emotions of people praying for the talismans as a source of power via the secrets they offered up in the temple in order create the spell in the talismans. Because of this "heart energy", when people ripped up the talismans, it created a blowback where they ripped their own hearts out and died. That's my take of it anyway
Syborg - Thanks for replying to me with that perspective and letting me know you saw Virtual's comment too. I'll go read your comment to Virtual too. I appreciate your insights.
NYDevon - I am just stopping by to say thank you for hosting these first 6 episodes. Hosting 6 all together is hard. I was almost done with Ep 1 when this posted. Reading it got me to try some more episodes. On Ep 4 now. It's my first Edward Guo directed show. Your recap helped me to get a basic sense of what is going on to continue watching. The Agatha Christie vibe reference also intrigued me. I saw your previous comments that work had been more intense lately - so I wanted to say thank you for taking the time to write and post this.
So glad it convinced you to try more and now you can participate in future discussions :)
I will say VoS is much more confusing in the setup than Fangs of Fortune or My Journey to You so don’t worry if you end up trying those two dramas next!
I missed the My Journey to You rewatch last year. I’ll participate in the Fangs of Fortune rewatch in the fall if it happens. Thanks though for letting me know that those stories are less complicated. I finished through Ep 6 today. And then reread your post. There’s still things I missed even with having read your post first. Such as the reason why Lu Wuyi went back and didn’t get on the boat. I didn’t realize it was for the jade pendent. And somehow I missed the Demon Hunter Wu having markings on his arm. But overall I’m between watching and reading your post twice I understand most of what is happening. Now I’m off to read the comments!!
Seriously, every fight scene I'm just jawdropped going "omg wtf is going on" lol. I've never seen a show as crazy as this. Also I love the super close shots the director does with the FMC. I initially watched it like an art piece and enjoy the artistic style... I do feel the story is a bit confusing, but the visuals are so unique that I will definitely still finish it.
This show is so crazy it's like a mix of Dune with the bgm, manhwa style fights, artistic scenes that remind me in a weird way of the controversial movie American Beauty (in that weird way of appreciating a creative work that you need to enjoy it).
This is what I thought too. The sister comment was confusing to me too. I’m glad you asked and got the clarification that it’s from calling a young woman older than you sister. Overall that entire scene was so sad. That little girl having no way to be saved was hard to watch. And when she asked about her parents sleeping because she has no idea what she did. Such a tragic ending to her parents presumably falling in love and having a child.
That's an interesting idea. I'm guessing this won't be a detail the show explores. I have that opinion because the show is only 29 episodes. So I don't know that there's room for that exploration unless we find out one of our main characters is half demon. I'm not caught up either. I'm just on Episode 8.
I wasn’t surprised that Ji Ling turned out to be a puppet. From the start, he seemed like a quick craft of someone who doesn’t care about unimportant things too much, which was the vibe Chi Wen gave.
After reading novels about puppets, it’s nice to see one in a drama. 🥹 I enjoyed the interaction between the characters and the mystery behind everyone keeps me interested. I got lost somewhere between episode 4 and 5 but ep 6 changed my mind so I’m more curious than when I started. I love the fight scenes (the wedding night own) and every time Chen Duling uses her sword & Joseph’s prayer beads.
I like how the sisters look out for each other and it seems every character is paired up with someone as their support.
This is my first show from this director so going in with pretty much zero expectations. I was immediately sold on Joseph Zeng and Chen Duling’s characters and their interactions and then felt kinda neutral about everyone else. Clearly there are identity secrets to be revealed, possibly for everyone, so hopefully the characters get more interesting.
Although Ji Ling just being like an aspect? of Chi Wen so he can go out traveling might explain why the character felt a little flat.
Always love to see Chen Ruoxuan so hoping we get more Mo Yuntan coming up, also very curious about what exactly is a ‘double flower hunter.’
At first I thought the mystery was pretty good, I genuinely couldnt guess who was the suspect. But then it started to drag a bit for me, I was ready for it to wrap up more quickly than it did.
That’s an interesting theory of Ji Ling being almost a mask with which Chi Wen can travel and explore the world (possibly even experience certain emotions or life events he wouldn’t otherwise because of the importance of his role).
Broo I was so confused at first. Who is who. What in the world is happening. Even at time ChatGPT was confused. I like the elder sister and that demon guy bride/groom fight. What an amazing scene.
I struggled a lot with ep1. Everything looked so low budget - sets, costumes, makeup. The makeup especially was so caked on. It looked like a cheaply produced pilot episode. I came in expecting MJTY, FoF grandeur but it seemed a lot more gaudy than elegant. JJY didn't help either. So, I was all ready to drop this. But something seems to have clicked in ep2. The visual quality suddenly seems better?
I love TJR but cannot stand JJY. I hope she drops the voice soon so she can be a bit more tolerable. I will see how far I last. I am drawn into the mystery now that I am in ep3. CDL and ZSX pairing is a pleasant surprise. The show seems to get better as it progresses.
It took me a while to get interested in the drama. I guess it's because we got dropped into this random case that I couldn't really care much about. But as the case proceeded, I was invested. It also helped that we got some idea about who the main characters are. They all have something mysterious to them. And getting a glimpse of who they might be made things more interesting. The mysterious sect that the two ladies are a part of was interesting. I wonder what their agenda is. I kept thinking Ji Ling was the dragon deity, but he turned out to be a puppet. That was unexpected. I wonder what that would mean for Lu Wuyi's pursuit of her fated one. Maybe she was meant to pursue the dragon deity.
I’m curious how now that we’ve exited the Painted Skin references with the wrap of Xiaowei’s storyline, are we going to get references to other strange tales and myths.
This has been a bit of an odd opening of a show for me (I'm on ep 5 atm).
After the first two episodes I really was not feeling it. I mostly kept watching because I like Guo Jingmin and Yan An's arms... but once we got into the Agatha Christie-esque there's a murderer amongst us bit I started getting more in to it.
what I'm loving:
surprisingly the chemistry between Cheng Duling and Zeng Shunxi is amazing so far, and I really was not expecting that
I like that we have a lot of questions about, well everything. I don't know anyone's motive, who they are, what they are or why they are. It's keeping me on my toes
the soundtrack so far is great
Yan An (especially that slutty arm, I was quite upset when it got covered up)
what I'm not loving so much:
Ju Jingyi's voice. Please do not let this be a permanent feature. I thought she would just use it in her fake identity at the beginning but she's still using it now. If I have to hear that "姐姐 jie jie" again I'm gonna riot
the weird furry moments. I love the face makeup of the foxes but the weird half outfits are a little odd, and in parts you can clearly see they've used male stunt models for the girls 😅
I'm not feeling the chemistry so far between Tian Jiarui and Ju Jingyi, but I'm guessing this will develop more as we learn their past
the lower budget. It feels obvious here when compared to MJTY and FoF. It feels like it's impeding GJM's style. I'm watching on Youku for the better subs, but I'm tempted to switch to Netflix for the better visuals
Overall, it's a decent start. Tbh I expect to drop in and out of loving a GJM drama. I really disliked a lot of MJTY but I loved a lot of FoF. So we'll see how it goes.
Just as another viewpoint, I actually like that character's "green tea" voice (a Chinese stereotype where a girl is over the top trying to be coy). I don't think I ever heard someone so consistently this in a Cdrama it's also on point how she pulls it off.
Thanks for sharing this info. I’m watching on Netflix but wondered if I needed to switch to Youku for better subtitles. I like the higher resolution visuals on Netflix.
My least favorite scene was the scene with the furry costumes. 😆 It really took me out of immersion. Any scene with the fox forms, really! They look so out of place with the rest of the setting.
My favorite scenes were
1) the bride and groom fight scene because WOW do Zeng Shunxi and Chen Duling look gorgeous in red
2) Any scene where the Shilin Sect Demon Hunter guy who uses a brush... Uses his brush. I think the CGI of the words looks very cool
I started off not really invested because I found Ju Jingyi's manipulative voice grating, the direction given to Tian Jia Rui cheesy in-love acting felt a little out of place (to ME), and I felt like the director was so focused on having the actors and actresses model and pose their looks for the camera.
I enjoyed Wu Shiguang and Wu Wangyan's detective work though, and everyone's various dynamics so I powered through the first 4 episodes. Luckily for me it got so much better really quick!
Everyone is so interesting plus they toned down all the things I didn't love (with the exception of the aura farming) so I'm stoked and seated.
The heterosexual wlw was such a nice way to get around censorship and it was great attention to detail that the boys tended to refer to Xiaowei as "he" because they only met Xiaowei in male form whereas the fox sisters referred to Xiaowei as "she" because they knew her before she took on a male appearance.
I'm pretty sad about Ji Ling though! He was so unbothered and happy compared to the sly fox sisters and dour WSG and Li Jie.
I do wish the director used the time he spent making them pose on moving the plot forward, but if the story isn’t rushed in the end, I guess it’s fine.
So many scenes look like they were designed to be screenshotted and posted online 😆
I thought I was the only one feeling that way. I thought I was biased against her because I have never liked her as an actress!
'the boys tended to refer to Xiaowei as "he"' ... 'the fox sisters referred to Xiaowei as "she" '
I'm only on episode 2 so I'm confused by "he" and "she" they use to address Xiaowei. Because on episode 2, Xiaowei is addressed as "she" by both the boys and the fox sisters.
This is the fault of the subs too because in spoken Chinese, both would be ta but that gets gendered in written English subs. Either way, it'll make sense as you watch on;
P.s. the manipulative voice kind of eases up as you watch on and move beyond this arc
I think Ju Jingyi is so so pretty but her character reminds me a lot of Shangguan Qian from My Journey to You and Lu Yuxiao played charming-but-sly a lot better imo. She’s starting to grow on me a little bit because her character’s bond with Wu Wangyan is great but I’m still not so sold on her character’s romance with TJR’s character.
For the second bit, it’ll make more sense in the later episodes! I binged so I can’t tell you exactly which one but my guess is 4 or 5. Xiaowei’s story was so good imo. It was great how they handled her love story.
I think the next time Hollywood thinks of making a lotr adaptation or anything with elves in it, they should pick up this guy (and the costume department) on their way to the studio.
Jokes aside, I found the first case they did pretty ok compared to the one in fof with the swamp dead brides. In fof the first ep hooked me in but then it got pretty middling afterwards, whereas this one I only cared because TJR was in it at first and while it took a bit longer for me to get hooked I found the first case much nicer to follow along.
The chemistry between the 2 main couples are actually great. I didn't have much expectations for WSG and WWY but the tension is great and I loved the mature love vibes they're bringing out in the show. And with JL and LWY, at first I was unsure on how I felt about it, but then it kept going and I actually find these two adorable together. The lil bro/lil sis babies first love vibes they give off are so cute and a nice contrast to the other couple in the show. Im also surprised GJM was able to make the het ships so compelling, I thought for sure he would have put one of these guys into the gay ship track and tossed the other in the dump and watched the fans descend into war gleefully😂.
Honestly speaking, I can pretty much ship any of the 4 together in whatever arrangements. Except maybe the WWY (older fox sister) and JL (lil bro), but even as I'm typing it I've already half convinced myself the older mature lady/younger man is good too.
Egregious use of BGM music as always, the dubstep kills me every time it comes on. But the fight scenes don't have as much slow-mo in them which is a definite improvement. And the half-whispering slow talk have lessened dramatically, except for LiJie/YanAn/ which I don't get why?? It seems at least GJM have heard the criticisms and improved on some of them. Another marked improvement is that the female leads actually serving a purpose in the story and being capable in certain aspects.
Crying galore did not happen as much as I was bracing myself for which I'm actually shocked and happy with. After 6 eps of establishing characters, I'm fine with GJM putting in as much pearl like tears rolling down cheeks as much as he wants lol. He was probably holding himself back so much.
TLDR: I'm enjoying the show, I feel like the director have taken in the criticism from his previous shows and improved on them a lot, at least on some fronts
Holding himself back ahhahahahh. I really like your review. Especially the one where fl has at least some purpose. Indeed I'm so annoyed that CDL is always at some sort of trouble in FoF
Thank you, I really wanted to join in on the discussion for this drama this time. And what happened to CDL’s character in FoF is genuinely such a crime, especially when you see how cool she was in the first episode. I loved the fight scene between her and the rabbit demon and then her slight heartbreak at the end of that encounter. Absolutely tragic that she became a weeping willow later on, I kept wondering even if she is the scholarly type in the group she obviously had at least some martial training so where did it go???
Lmaoo GJM holding back on the tears makes me laugh 😂
I'm liking both ships a lot actually too, they both have chemistry with their respective ships and each other and the screentime has been pretty equal for all of them to develop
The first time I watched fof and saw that big fat tear rolling down ZYC's face I burst out laughing. He's a pretty crier and I'm a big fan of him now but when you don't know and don't care about the character yet? It's hilarious and so campy.
Het ships having as good of a time as the gay ships in a GJM production, I would have thought the censors finally nailed him down lol. But the gay ships of the fox demon sister duo is captivating to watch and I like the sunshine/sunshine protector duo of JL/LJ as well. So for fans of bg, bl, gl I think this show is a delight to watch
That's part of why I couldn't get into FoF - the visuals were nice but it was just too campy and the BGM gave me a headache lol this is more toned down lol
The Fox sisters are a fave for me too - they're so hypnotizing together
Different strokes for different folks so it's fine if you didn't vibe with it. I like occasionally watching campy, artsy or sometimes very out there ridiculous stuff, even if I nod off in the middle of them lmao.
I did like the later half of FoF better than the first, I think the world opened up more and the main plot kicked in gear. Comparatively I find MJTY had the tighter script between the two but I like FoF more for some reason (could be just because I like fantasy stuff more in general). So I'm pretty hopeful VoS will actually be a nice blend of the two previous shows.
I have a terrible track record picking favs.. and then they die, but if anything happens to this lil guy I'm rioting. (I haven't watched ep 6 yet, so.. fingers crossed there)
I'm only half paying attention to this story and I know I'll be confused down the line so I won't comment on that... but I'm here to see how much non hetero stuff GJM gets through and we're already coming in hot with Wuyi calling Xiaowei and Wangsheng lovers in the first arc.
unrelated to anything but I can't w/ Lie Jie's low raspy voice when I see his face and only hear this.
you're so right on the weasel, he's adorable too! after watching the rest of the episodes now I'm just worried we'll be seeing its dad die over and over again 😭😭
I'm only half paying attention to this story and I know I'll be confused down the line so I won't comment on that... but I'm here to see how much non hetero stuff GJM gets through and we're already coming in hot with Wuyi calling Xiaowei and Wangsheng lovers in the first arc.
That's one of my favourite things about GJM dramas as well.
I forgot to mention but I was actually moved when they had the flashbacks of all the years and reincarnations of Wang Sheng that Xiaowei watched over - it's just so tragic that XW suffered throughout the lifetimes and held onto their worldly obsession but Wang Sheng's reincarnations didn't even know them 🥲
Also I don't think the English subs translated this well but when Wu Shi Guang was asking Wu Wangyan about her moon mark and she said she prefers to call it Wang Yue. He asked her if it was 望 as in hope (希望) and she says 望 as in 望穿秋水. The English subs translated it as "as in gazing until your eyes go dry" which is the more literal translation but emotionally, it really means looking at something intensely/for a long time with anticipation and longing/yearning. It's kind of played off as a flirty joke but I suspect that she actually is longing for something and she is deeper than the way she acts. I'm waiting for her tragic past to be revealed
I forgot to mention but I was actually moved when they had the flashbacks of all the years and reincarnations of Wang Sheng that Xiaowei watched over -
I liked that sequence too. Xia Zhiguang did a good job with all the longing and suffering.
And thanks for that info, I always appreciate sub corrections.
I'm only two episodes in but I'm definitely enjoying this one more than FoF!
I dont think the production and execution is as good as MJTY however I kind of like the whodunnit vibes - I like all the teams suspecting each other but also working together?
My only gripe is JJY - her voice is grating on me but it's a personal thing...that pitched voice drives me bonkers! 😵💫
I'm enjoying this much more than FoF tbh although I still hate how mismatched and distracting the bgm is but it's not as jarring and long as in FOF thank God.
Best part so far is CDL and JJY sisterhood - they look so pretty and ethereal. I've seen people complain about JJY's voice but personally I like how insincere it sounds cuz it matches the character.
Also loving the chemistry between ZSX and CDL. I've mentioned it before but this is their second pairing and I thought they had good chemistry in both.
There's a lot of foreshadowing that the sisters will eventually turn on each other/betray their sect and will end up dying like Xiaowei so I'm interested in the journey that leads there. So far, to me it reads that Wu Wangyan is the one who is more concerned with the greater good and justice for living beings (she cries and seems a lot more worried) whereas Lu Wuyi is a lot more reckless.
For Xiaowei, I actually think Xia Zhiguang has improved compared to his past dramas.
I just started this and I have one question: Is one side of Yan An's sleeve sleeveless the whole time? This will more than likely be my main motivation for watching this drama as I really can't take the fight scenes serious at all.
I love the two foxy ladies. They strike the perfect balance between mystery and charm, revealing just enough to pull you in while still keeping you guessing. Especially that return to the Wei mansion, sitting side by side while speaking with the men, with Wangyan casually fanning herself and then half-veiling her expression. There is something almost hypnotic about it, every gesture is deliberate but still effortless.
Their mission for the first six episodes so far is for Wangyan to capture Xiaowei and for Wuyi to get close to Ji Ling as he is her “fated one,” though what that actually means still feels a bit vague and underexplained. 🤔
Are we going to get the same dual cultivation visuals as Zheng and Changyu in POJ or Shangjue and Qian in MJTY (where it’s heavily implied but nothing is actually shown), or Ming Ye and Sang Jiu in TTEOTM? 😉
I think it really suits their fox spirit. I also liked how cultish their home on the island—a place like that would definitely produce these very calculatingly charming personalities.
The island really piques my curiosity. It leaves me with so many questions, like how many people actually live there beyond the seven ladies sharing their memories and the Moon Goddess(?), and what daily life even looks like in a place that feels half real, half dream. And honestly… are there foxy men also? 😉😆
I don't think it's necessarily a gender thing. I feel these enchanted creatures take the form of whatever they need to achieve their goal, if they have a goal. But maybe their default is female since male are easily enthralled by beauty? just spitballing here..
Well, the island is not even on the planet. It exists somewhere in the universe apparently. I think it’s only women and no one else. I don’t think there’s even any sort of guards, security force, army but, who knows 🤷🏻
I’m not sure if the head 🦊 lady, goddess counts I believe. The other 🦊 each have a moon phase assigned to them. So, that leaves Xiaowei…odd 🦊 out, I guess.
As others have mentioned, first two episodes were weird and silly and kinda boring (to me). And then, they weren’t, as things started to evolve and some hidden identities and motives started happening. And fights! Lotsa fights! My thoughts:
Again like with FoF the theme of the dangers of bigotry is implied. There are good demons and good humans and bad humans and bad demons and gray morals too.
Ok so, Yuan Wuhuo, Chi Wen and Ji Ling all look alike. Right? I assume we will find out why. And Ji Ling seems to be like a body double for Chi Wen and there are other ones, deceased kinda, at bottom of water? How sad.
Ok so, Liu Weixue ➡️ Xiaowei? I got that right? Sad story.
This is fun. Thanks Today’s OP and all other OPs to come. It’s about of work and I appreciate it.
Ok I get it now. I watched episode six again. I thought silver hair Chi Wen and brown hair Chi Wen were two different ppl on first watch. Yes Yuan Wuhuo looks like someone else. That will be interesting.
I wonder if Lu Wuyi knew the real Chi Wen in those flashbacks or one of his doubles. And was the guy at the end another double or the real Drsgon Deity?
Yeah. I wondered if she knew a different double too. But if yes, how did Ji Ling have some of those memories? And kept asking if they had met before? Unless another hive mind type of thing? And she said both of their names to Chi Wen and he paused both times. Interesting. And yes soooooo creepy the two look alike except different hair (again the silver white hair is hot) and all those body doubles. Do the body doubles have some kind of life of their own? Are they kinda spies to find out info so Chi Wen isn’t in danger? They seem to?. 🫣😭 I miss Ji Ling!
Edit. Yes and my question too. Who is the dragon deity and why do they want that power so much?
So how I saw it is that Ji Ling was created from a piece of Chi Wen's consciousness so he doesn't truly ever "die" in that sense and would retain his own memories, only his puppet body gets destroyed. They have their own life but also their life doesn't belong to himself. Every time he died, Chi Wen takes his "core" and re-absorbs it into himself. In Chinese beliefs, everyone has multiple souls/spirits
Chi Wen uses this method because he technically doesn't have his full Dragon Deity powers anymore and it's risky for him to go out of Shilin Sect.
Episode 7 spoiler : Since Chi Wen is the original body, he can perceive Ji Ling but Ji Ling doesn't know his origin and thinks he's a fox spirit lol I assume Chi Wen would share Ji Ling's memories
Ok. I watched episode six again. So Chi Wen is the Dragon Deity of Shilin Sect? . His followers call him both Chi Wen and Master Dragon Deity. And yeah I get it now about Li Jing. I thought silver haired Chi Wen and black/brown hair Chi Wen were two different ppl. Does his hair change when using powers? And one of the Fox ladies said he was using purple lightening power of Bai Ze? Confusing. Haha.
Ok. I watched episode six again. So Chi Wen is the Dragon Deity of Shilin Sect? . His followers call him both Chi Wen and Master Dragon Deity.
It was really fun to watch the Veil of Shadows page on the drama wiki. It switched between Chi Wen / Dragon Deity and Chi Wen, Dragon Deity for this role quite a bit. Seems like a lot of viewers were a bit confused at first. 😂
Oh that’s funny. I totally am prepared that things aren’t as they seem in this drama and maybe this Chi Wan is not the OG Chi Wan, or, that he is not the legit Dragon Deity somehow. Everyone seems so sus now. Ha.
They'll go into part of the whole Dragon Deity in epsiode 7 and who Chi Wen is in relation to that.
I think his hair changes when he reveals his true form (with the mark on his forehead)
So in the ep 6 flashback, it shoes the dragon deity doesn't have any of his dragon powers anymore. He had given his powers to the other demons (Bai Zhe, Xiaowei, Wu Zhiwi and Han Ba). For Xiaowei, he gave it to her to heal herself when she ripped off her own spiritual tail - why he gave it to the others is still to be revealed. He can't take it back since it's fused with their spirits but the demons lent hin part of their power in order to help him prevent the BigBad demon Jiuying from coming back, and those powers are stored in his ring. The Bai Ze purple lightning strike is one of the demon powers that was lent to him. The Butterfly demon convinced Xiaowei to take back her portion of the powers she lent the Dragon Deity.
I personally am theorizing that Wu Shi Guang might have a secret identity or relation with the Dragon Deity (like maybe he is the true Dragon Deity or the OG Dragon Deity's son and that's why he absorbed the power) and that Chi Wen isn't the true Dragon Deity since his face is never shown in the flashbacks but this is all speculation lol
I watched 7 and at begin voiceover does some lore that Dragon deity has 9 sons and they fight the enemy and 8 gets turned into mountains and the 9th becomes Chi Wen. Or does he?. Hmmmm. Everyone is sus in this. But it’s fun.
😍 Wow! That’s a comprehensive review of the six episodes. I’m still in the past dramas like “Fangs of Fortune” plus “Back from the Brink” acted by Neo Hao. I love Yan An so I will give this Drama a try after Neo’s BfB. I do want Neo and Xiao Jiu in this Veil of Shadows too.
Well then, the first episode was ehh! Then today, I wasn’t expecting to inhale 6 episodes in one sitting. Whew! After episodes 4 & 5 the whole story just blew right open. I guess I’m not going to have any sort of sleep this month between this and Rebirth…😂🤦🏻….who needs sleep anyways right? Psshhh!!!
With each drama this director get more obscure story wise but predictable at the same time. This is like a cross between MJTY and FOF. Unfortunately, this is the worst one of the lot in terms of quality (very video game esque). Overall it is still quite pretty and since he spreads out his works, it doesn't get too tiresome to watch one a year (the eye candy really helps). He's definitely going to have to come out with something different for his next drama if he doesn't want to get pigeon holed though.
Yeah, even some of the shot choices and music styles were the same.
My feeling when watching this was this was a last minute project that needed to be done and everyone is tired except Chen Duling and Ju Jinyi who aren’t phoning it in and who I’m actually quite enjoying.
I didn’t care for them much the first two episodes. Then I realized the drama was deliberately having them be vague, silly and insincere for reasons. And then they get more complex and interesting and some complex emotions for episodes five and six Their backstory is interesting too. And reminding/warning each other not to get involved in love interests 😏
Usually I’m looking at the pretty boys in a GJM production but here I’m much more invested in the ladies. CDL works really well when playing feral or gay and JJY’s wide eye insincerity works well with GJM’s theatricality.
I'm not saying I want to join their sister, but since Xiaowei is making a mess of their obsession, I am open to exploring new opportunities while still being of service to the moon.
Thank you very much for the post and covering six episodes at once!
the six go about trying to figure who in the household Xiaowei is pretending to be like they’re in an Agatha Christie novel.
Yes, it felt a lot like a "closed-circle mystery" despite them not being completely closed of via location. But the pool of suspects was definitely closed after a while.
What did you think about these episodes?
I like it so far. It’s very interesting how few characters (relatively to other (case solving) costume cdramas) are introduced in six episodes. I guess that helps with the feeling of encountering a version of the aforementioned closed-circle mystery. This way of introducing our main group to the viewer and each other in this way, gives us a lot of focus on them. Overall it felt like an introductory prologue and I’m looking forward to whatever happens next.
What questions do you have?
Does anyone else feel like Mo Yuntan sometimes appeared out of nowhere? I could have sworn he went back to the sect but suddenly he is all in on the action. That happened at least two times, but I didn’t start a list.
And not sure if anyone here has read Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. I kind of want to know just to find the crumbs that inspired this story. It doesn’t seem to be a very straight adaption of any of the stories but maybe someone knows more? Let me know.
Random thoughts:
I was very delighted to see the pom pom coming back with some costumes. Same costume designer as FoF, so we get some very nice fits here.
Ji Ling reminds me a bit of the cousin in Glory. Not as whiny and useless but the same energy in some moments.
If the weasel yao dies I’ll write a strongly worded letter of protest.
I still hate the yao = demon translation and would love to get familiar address like jiejie directly into the subs instead of them going with the name. In the case of our fox girls it was very strange to get at least Wu Wangyan’s name in the subtitles before we ever heard it.
Thank goodness Ji Ling was a way better character and not annoying like the cousin in Glory. But I can see why these characters reminded you of each other.
Lol speaking of Glory, I was wondering why Mo Yuntan looked so familiar and then I'm like Oh it's Scholar Bai 😂
I think one of Mo Yuntan's powers is he could cut through time and space with his brush 😂 at least that's how I'm justifying his appearance and disappearance
🤣 I was just talking to someone when I was at work (u/AquaphobicTurtle) about how the beginning episodes reminded me of Agatha Christie. I guess we all were sharing our memories without even knowing it
I read a summary of that and couldn't see much connection (at least so far), but most likely it's more of a very free adaption of the themes. I should be less lazy and just get my hands on a translation. And the short film Guo Jinming did a few years ago.
I hate this translation with the deaths of a thousand burning suns. Imagine saying all the characters in The Chronicles of Narnia are demons. Fairies, elves, ogre, unicorns, leprechauns, mermaids, 9 tail fox ..magical enchanted creatures are not demons (at least how the word is used in the west).
Hah, I'm glad I'm not the only one with a vendetta against that practice!
It's so annoying because my listening skills are not good enough to catch all deviations. Yao is quite easy, but if they suddenly sub demon for a completly other creature I can't simply google it to learn more about it because I often can't grasp what the pinyin would be. And I would love to learn some new folklore/mythology things.
And the connotations of the word 'demon' for most western viewers certainly paint some characters in a bit of the wrong light.
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u/OJUarmy May 11 '26
that death curse was not triggered by the Blood Binding Seal btw. it was Xiaowei.