Final Thoughts [mild spoilers ahead]

There were glimmers of greatness in this drama particularly in the first half but after Judge Dee left to go to Lan Fang, the drama started losing momentum. This drama aired to only average viewership ratings despite high hopes when it first started airing and also lost many sponsors as the days went on which means that interest wasn’t too high. Popularity from some of the guest stars brought about some buzz but it was not enough to maintain a strong following. 

What could have been better

• Second half muddled cases: In the beginning of the drama, the cases had both the intrigue of the mystery details itself as well as a more varied high level theme. One was about unspoken love. One was about greed in regaining power at court. Another was seeking fame though unjust means. But later on in the drama, the cases became more simple and not as distinct since it felt like the overall conflict revolved on Judge Dee’s focus on upholding Tang dynasty law and order. He arrives in Lan Fang where it became a lawless place run by various gangs after the downfall of the Black Flame organization leaving a power vacuum. The Black Flame or Hei Yan organization was a prevailing theme throughout the drama that became more prevalent in the second half. The cases felt more forgettable than the first half because the Black Flame was more important. 
• Forced lessons: While yes, the drama does emphasize how hard it is to be a “good” person who has upstanding values and morals, the conflicts in Lan Fang felt almost like I was hit over the head with the message that we should obey the law. Judge Dee touts Tang Dynasty law constantly and we know that the drama/gov’t will only allow that kind of message to endure. Perhaps it was also Zhou Yi Wei’s delivery which felt overly “preachy” so the show didn’t feel as interesting later on.

• Romantic plotline: I did enjoy the romantic plotline between Cao An and Judge Dee, partly because I think Wang Li Kun is absolutely stunning. But I don’t know if this drama really needed the romance nor did the writers know how to write it. There’s a level of immaturity, particularly on Judge Dee’s part with regards to this relationship that is at odds with his work ability. His inability to voice many things is frustrating and while I understand perhaps the writers were trying to show a more complicated Judge Dee, to me it diminished him some what.
• Ma Rong’s ineptitude: Throughout most of this drama, Ma Rong was bringing about problems left and right to the main cast. This character existed in the original book the drama was based on but the way she was portrayed in the drama felt like she was more of a hindrance than a help. She may be used as a vehicle for Judge Dee to impart certain lessons but the character and the actress were more irritating than entertaining. 

• Cliffhanger: I am not fully confident a second season will air but there are many unresolved issues with the drama. Fair warning for those who don’t like unfinished storylines.

What I enjoyed

• Guest appearances: There were many familiar faces in the various cases and I thoroughly enjoyed them as it felt like these different characters allowed actors/actresses to have fun. Zhang Ruo Yun’s Diao Xiao Guan was a master archer but also a little manic. Li Chen‘s Hou Yu had a natural friendliness on screen. Chen Du Ling got to show me she had better acting abilities that I previously had seen. Many on screen appearances subverted prior expectations so I feel like having the ability to play someone unique for a short period of time was just entertaining for the cast.  These were truly the highlights of the show and added a lot of color to it. 
• High production value: I do have to praise this show from a production standpoint. The martial arts was actually quite decent and more realistic than many other recent dramas.  The sets were beautiful, intricate and often times scary. This was a show where you could tell that a lot of money was spent in creating the world and while it doesn’t live up to exactly the splendor of the Longest Day in Chang’An, it is still decent quality.  Plus, the main cast was actually riding on horseback in many scenes! 

Let me know what you think!

Karen