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Review: The Warring States Period (風雲戰國之列國) (2019)
This was a nice short and informative drama about the Warring States. I'd recommend it for those who want to learn a bit more about the back stories of the Warring States. The production value is not bad, as well-known actors were cast and the costumes were pretty decent.
Format
There were 7 episodes in total. Each episode covered one of the kingdoms, from their peak to their fall to the Qin Kingdom.
Production
For such a short drama, the production value was very good. Several recognizable and well-known actors were cast for characters who had more screen time. I tended to pay more attention to the actors I was familiar with, but really, all of the main and supporting actors were excellent.
The costumes were pretty decent. They were definitely above average. I thought that the film editing and music were pretty good. The presentation of the entire show was very good.
Contents
I found some episodes more engaging than others but that was based on the events that took place in the kingdoms, rather than the actual presentation of the show. I liked that the show tried to put a theme to each episode (trying to connect their rise and fall), but I think it fell a bit short, as many of these stories would last generations, and it would be unfair to paint an entire kingdom with one brush. I do also admit that I paid more attention to the episodes that had actors that I recognized, so those episodes left a deeper impression on me.
Having watched some Chinese dramas, some of these stories were familiar to me, especially the stories presented in the Qin Kingdom episodes (as this Kingdom is still the most notorious among all of them). However, several famous figures made their appearances, such as Qu Yuan, Huang Xie, the orphan of Zhao, etc.
Here are my impressions of the episodes:
Yan Kingdom: The Yan Kingdom was one of the smaller ones, so it had a more straightforward story about revenge. As well, I'm a big Wang Jinsong fan, so I quite liked his portrayal.
Zhao Kingdom: I thought it was interesting that this episode had more focus on the family as opposed to the court politicking.
Chu Kingdom: I think the Chu Kingdom had a rich story with lots of meddling officials. In addition, Chu Kingdom was one of the bigger kingdoms, so it had the resources to put up a fight against Qin.
Han Kingdom: The Han Kingdom was the first to be defeated. Like the Yan Kingdom, it was one of the smaller ones, so I think that was why it had a simpler story. Its internal politics stabilized, but brought up about some disunity among the civilians. In addition, we see that its struggle with the Qin started early on.
Wei Kingdom: The Wei Kingdom was supposed to be the oldest hegemon. Its country was born out of old schools of philosophy. I thought it was interesting how the episode showed that the kingdom stood stable despite encountering so much treachery, and survived despite driving away so many wise advisors.
Qi Kingdom: The Qi Kingdom was another large kingdom with lots of shenaniganery going on. Again, since it was a larger kingdom, I think it was harder to put a "theme" to Qi's rise and fall.
Qin Kingdom: As I mentioned, many of the Qin Kingdom's stories are familiar to most viewers, especially the further along it got. It was still fun to watch, to see if I had missed any knowledge.
I actually think this might be a good drama to go back and rewatch for the learning experience, and also because it's so short that rewatching it isn't a huge time sink anyway.
Overall
This was a great watch! I'd definitely recommend it. Its greatest strengths are its production quality and its short runtime XD
Format
There were 7 episodes in total. Each episode covered one of the kingdoms, from their peak to their fall to the Qin Kingdom.
Production
For such a short drama, the production value was very good. Several recognizable and well-known actors were cast for characters who had more screen time. I tended to pay more attention to the actors I was familiar with, but really, all of the main and supporting actors were excellent.
The costumes were pretty decent. They were definitely above average. I thought that the film editing and music were pretty good. The presentation of the entire show was very good.
Contents
I found some episodes more engaging than others but that was based on the events that took place in the kingdoms, rather than the actual presentation of the show. I liked that the show tried to put a theme to each episode (trying to connect their rise and fall), but I think it fell a bit short, as many of these stories would last generations, and it would be unfair to paint an entire kingdom with one brush. I do also admit that I paid more attention to the episodes that had actors that I recognized, so those episodes left a deeper impression on me.
Having watched some Chinese dramas, some of these stories were familiar to me, especially the stories presented in the Qin Kingdom episodes (as this Kingdom is still the most notorious among all of them). However, several famous figures made their appearances, such as Qu Yuan, Huang Xie, the orphan of Zhao, etc.
Here are my impressions of the episodes:
Yan Kingdom: The Yan Kingdom was one of the smaller ones, so it had a more straightforward story about revenge. As well, I'm a big Wang Jinsong fan, so I quite liked his portrayal.
Zhao Kingdom: I thought it was interesting that this episode had more focus on the family as opposed to the court politicking.
Chu Kingdom: I think the Chu Kingdom had a rich story with lots of meddling officials. In addition, Chu Kingdom was one of the bigger kingdoms, so it had the resources to put up a fight against Qin.
Han Kingdom: The Han Kingdom was the first to be defeated. Like the Yan Kingdom, it was one of the smaller ones, so I think that was why it had a simpler story. Its internal politics stabilized, but brought up about some disunity among the civilians. In addition, we see that its struggle with the Qin started early on.
Wei Kingdom: The Wei Kingdom was supposed to be the oldest hegemon. Its country was born out of old schools of philosophy. I thought it was interesting how the episode showed that the kingdom stood stable despite encountering so much treachery, and survived despite driving away so many wise advisors.
Qi Kingdom: The Qi Kingdom was another large kingdom with lots of shenaniganery going on. Again, since it was a larger kingdom, I think it was harder to put a "theme" to Qi's rise and fall.
Qin Kingdom: As I mentioned, many of the Qin Kingdom's stories are familiar to most viewers, especially the further along it got. It was still fun to watch, to see if I had missed any knowledge.
I actually think this might be a good drama to go back and rewatch for the learning experience, and also because it's so short that rewatching it isn't a huge time sink anyway.
Overall
This was a great watch! I'd definitely recommend it. Its greatest strengths are its production quality and its short runtime XD