Noble Aspirations (2016)

I was craving for a wuxia series when I started watching it. Maybe that's why I could tolerate a typical storyline and dragging pace of this series.
Nonetheless, it is one of the decent ones in recent wuxia/xianxia genre. It has good action/battle scenes. Even though it follows a typical wuxia storyline of a young naive boy becoming a hero, it is still enjoyable. The story is, however, quite dragging, sometimes it takes three or more episodes to go through a sub-plot.
As for acting wise, I am not that impressed with Li Yi Feng and most of the casts but I have always liked Zhao Li Ying since her older works.

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The story seems to be your typical cliche story of a young person who suffers from tragedy and you follow him as he grows and matures and develops. I like how they got both Zhang Xiao Fan and Lin Jin Yu to suffer from the same tragedy and you can see how the two people develop differently giving you a comparison giving you a feel of the main antagonist. Through out the whole series you can see how Zhang Xiao Fan changes and become more mature throughout many life and death situation. Flash backs are used very well to show us the trouble all the different characters has face and how we could empathise with them.

I feel all the actors did a good job portraying their role but i want to especially mention the 2 females leads. Zanila who play Bi Yao did an amazing job as always. She must be one of the most sort after actress in China at the moment. She seems to be every other drama and always does a splendid job. Yang Zi who protray Lu Xue Qi, I feel is really underrated. She has good chemistry with Li Yi Feng and the rest of the cast. She protays a believable character who seems to hide all her trouble and with a cold attitude but is in fact very caring. There is a very big cast and all the members seem to make themselves stand out one way or another.

The music was done very well. The use of music during emotional scenes was just right and not too over the top. The music didn't over shadow anyone's dialogue and added enough dramatic effect for it to work. Both the OST were good to listen to and enjoyable.

I generally dont judge a show on re-watch value as sometimes a good show doesn't necessary have much re-watch value. I can say the Legend of Chusen is one of those shows as there are not many surprises and you can guess how most of the story pans out anyway.

Overall I enjoyed this drama a lot. It exceeded my expectations and I would recommend people to watch it if you are into this genre. It is your typical 'chosen one' storyline with a Romeo and Juliet romance. I am looking forward to season 2 even if it is not as long and I hope it gives us a complete conclusion.

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I'm not a big fan of wuxia dramas but this one.. I watched this from the moment I woke up to 3-4am. I JUST COULDN'T STOP WATCHING IT
At first I was discouraged to watch this beacause the reviews were kinda bad.. And to be honest, I started watching it by mistake on youtube while searching for a dramas and since the name of the episode wasn't 'legend of chusen' or 'noble aspirations' I thought it's a different drama. ANYWAYS.. I want to thank the person who named the first episode differently on youtube for letting me start this amazing series. I have no idea what others disliked to give a rating of below 8/9. Definitely a must-watch!

This drama is so addicting! I haven't seen a drama that obsessed me like this for a long time.. I had to watch season 2 immediately after finishing the first season and I can't wait for the 3rd season.

The teachings in this drama makes you think a bit about the choices you make daily, about future and happiness as well as confidence in oneself.
The story is beautiful, it has strong characters both physically and mentally; the love story is beautiful and pure; the teachings are amazing and the special effects are good.

I couldn't feel bored for even a second. I can't wait for the 3rd season!
I totally recommend this drama to everyone, even if you aren't a fan of wuxia tales. 10/10

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The Legend of Chusen is definitely a must-watch if you like Wuxia. It has great fight scenes, it has great special effects, and it has some pretty decent mystery (it's probably not going to completely surprise you, but they do it well). The soundtrack for it though is absolutely amazing. The songs they chose are awesome, soulful, and placed at pretty perfect places throughout the scenes, although I love the rest of the show choices, such as good actors for their roles and good characters, the Soundtrack was the most powerful piece of it all, since it was so well done.


I do not include Re-Watch value in the over-all grade of the series, since Re-Watch value is a divided issue on how important it is to determining how good a show is.

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On the whole, it is an interesting and entertaining drama, and is still worth the watch if you can afford the time.

As with a lot of Chinese dramas, it does well on the hygiene factors: beautiful scenery and computer graphics, strong cast (with both Yang Zi and LiYing Zhao in it), good looking actors and actresses, lovely costumes, lovely music. But the story is somewhat lacklustre - it is just a regular story of guy from good sect and girl from demon sect falling in love and faced a rough journey to be together.

There are a lot of frustrating moments/elements:

1. The first: too long. Series 2 is a continuation and the total of the 2 series is 73 episodes. As expected, when a drama is that long, there are a lot of draggy moments and flashbacks, to fill the time.

2. The evil always survived and lived to create further havoc. It was not until the second series that they were killed off one by one.

3. The main lead was always doing good but the top sector leaders failed to see it, busy with their adherence to rules and rather questionable principles. But instead trusted all the traitors. A bit like the bureaucracy of a large organisation.

4. It is all the cliche stuff - save the damsel in distress or the guy in distress. Not all that well executed for it to feel romantic.

5. The 2 lead characters were all ready to die for each other, and so are the 2 wolf demons. But really, life is that romantic? And Xiao Fen did not even turn his head at the beautiful Lu except for a short brief moment when he met her at the gathering for briefing at the competition?

6. It is all about loyalty. Again, really? Loyalty, adhering to promises and gratitude are good values but should not blind anyone to right or wrong. Xiao Fen's stubborn silence about his weapon and martial art was a the verge of stupidity.

7. Very judgemental and self-righteous: expecting the other person to act as they wanted them to and believing they knew what was best for them, regardless of the wish of the individual. When they refused, they are labelled stubborn. Jing Yu went as far as to sabotage his bro and leaked his seeking the resurrection stone to the enemies because he did not want him to save Bi Yao, indirectly causing his turning away from Qing Yun.

6 and 7 could be about the Chinese culture but 7 is definitely not pretty.

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The Legend of Chusen (also Noble Aspirations) is one of the very first true wuixa drama series I've watched since a 17 odd year hiatus away from Asian dramas. I have to say that I am totally impressed after watching 55 episodes of Season 1 and all 18 episodes of Season 2. No regrets whatsoever. I am pretty fresh returning to watch dramas so I didn't find the series draggy at all. Perhaps because I was fully invested in all the characters. I also skimmed through bits of the novel as well. I found my love for Yang Zi in this series. Oh my god, so beautiful!! So cold and unwavering. Her costume was also very fitting. I loved both Yang Zi and her character of Lu Xueqi the most. Both actress and the character kept me going in the series. I also didn't mind Li Yi Feng as Zhang Xiao Fan. It was the first time seeing him in a drama as with the rest of the cast, I found him to be pretty good. I love the bond between the characters of Zhang Xiao Fan, Lu Xueqi, Lin Jing Yu and Ceng Zhu Zhu after the martial arts tournament. Zanilla Zhao played Bi Yao and seemed to have good chemistry with Li Yi Feng. But I wasn't cheering for Bi Yao in this drama, LOL. The cast and characters I found to be very interesting from Jin Ping Er to Qin Wu Man. The theme throughout is what is good and what is evil. A traditional wuxia theme and many characters discussed this in depth during the drama. I was actually shocked by the ending at episode 55 to be honest. But it's something new I guess. I loved the costumes which looking more traditional wuxia. My gripe against some dramas is they make cartoon or anime looking costumes. I then marched onto Season 2 which also had an interesting ending... Despite being incomplete I'd still recommend the series as one to watch. I can't see Season 3 happening with the same cast though. Which will be unfortunate. Like I said before, Yang Zi as Lu Xueqi really made this series interesting for me. I'd be really upset if she didn't return for Season 3 to complete the drama.

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Continued watching for the story

Dropped the series at Episode 30, didn't like the poor CGI. Jumped back on after a spell, wanting wuxia. Cast is good. The plot involves the older generation and the veteran actors really did well supporting the young actors. The love chemistry between the main roles didn't strike much emotions for me. Loving chemistry between Xiao Fan's faction parents, yes. Chemistry between Xiao Fan and Bi Yao, no. Didn't feel the chemistry, no tears shed, no heart strings pulled. Unfortunate. I thought the storyline was good. All the mini plots giving significance to the main plot of the story. Story was solid to the end. Screechy music selection. Why. For the emotional scenes, for the excited scene, for suspense, for all the scene, even the ending song. Had they been limited to the song choices with smaller budget as they had with the production? Or is the the direction? Music failing the drama. The cast kept the story interesting though.

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This is one of my top list dramas. The story is not very original but the way it is screenplayed and filmed was just very interesting. Very beautiful scenes come out from this show that mainly deals with the eternal questions of knowing who is right and who is wrong. Different clans struggle for power and promote their own beliefs and values. Evil clans, rightousness clans, neutral ones. Can friendship grow among people from different clans ? Can love survive to forbidden rules and social pressure ? This is what a young simple mind and nearly idiot boy ( Xiao Fan/Li Yi Feng) is meant to learn. You don't expect this one to be a hero but fate will work for him. I was very much impressed with Li Yi Feng acting : I kept on asking myself for nearly half of the show if this guy was really a good actor or an idiot in real life because of his expressions and eyes ! Well, well... he is a genious ! As the drama goes on, Xiao Fan becomes a hero with suspicious inner power and forbidden love feelings for Demon Arch Lord's daughter... How can you deal with this when you are supposed to follow your clan's rightnouss rules and path ? How can you be sure that your heart isn't evil ? A pure heart and simple mind knows it. Evil comes from the one who wants to act evil. Demonic weapons can be used for achieving fine and noble purposes, everything dipends on your aspirations and your will to act bad or right. This is not only a wuxia fantasy romance it is also about friendship, power, bromance and learning about life while facing your own choises. The Untamed before the Untamed ! Very good show with great visual effects as well.

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The worst drama we have to love

We all have that one drama we know is terrible, but will love it regardless. That's Noble Aspirations for me. It's hard to find a campier drama that attempts to take itself so seriously, with such self-important imponent villains, a main couple with negative chemistry, and side characters who don't so much as shine but rather dull your senses until the only thing you have left is... Xiao Fan. Xiao Fan, my most favorite useless main leads ever, I would die for you! Perhaps it's a testament to Li Yi Feng's (lackluster?) acting, but somehow he comes off as the sweetest best boy ever, and that was all I needed? He is simple and adorable, and his smile brings healing. Sometimes you don't need a complicated hero, you just need a hero you want to hug.

Unfortunately, the rest of this drama is trash. Only half the arcs are worth watching once, the rest can be fast-forwarded if you really dare. Bad CGI I can handle, but combine that with ridiculous storytelling, flat villains, and serious misdirection of the rest of the characters (Shu Shu - you are the drama's only other exception) and it's nearly unwatchable. For real, I can't see Mao Zi Jun as anything other than Mr. Poison. This one character has ruined the actor for me forever.

Bonus: If you can actually make it through Noble Aspirations 1, honestly, the sequel is better. Go figure. It's shorter too.

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Above-Average fight scenes + Good acting by Young Cast (before they're famous!)

10/19/2021 - 8.25 rounding up to 8.5

I have not read the novel so this review is solely my take on the drama itself. I am pleasantly surprised that I enjoy this drama more than I thought I would. Being an 55-episode drama, I am prepared to experience a long and draggy storyline. I am actually engaged through about the first 30 or so episodes. At the time of writing this review, I've watched the first 6 episodes of season 2, and I strongly believe that they should have combined both seasons into one, and then cut down an episode or two from each of season 1's arcs. It's quite pointless to split this into 2 seasons, and then have a third season planned.

Acting: It's quite interesting to see all these big stars before they were famous. All of their acting is quite good. This is my first Li Ying Feng drama and he did a pretty good job as the male lead. I really enjoy seeing his character development from a young, innocent, and kind-hearted teenager, to become a loyal, stubborn and noble hero. The only criticism I have is that I don't quite see love in his eyes when he's looking at FL. Other than that, his portrayal of other emotions is good. I've seen quite a couple Zanilia Zhao dramas (Rookie Agent Rouge and Story of Ming Lan). I am not a big fan of hers, but I do think she did a good job in this drama as well. She looked so young and with such a baby face. Similarly, I've also seen a couple Yang Zi's dramas (Ashes of Love and Go Go Squid) and I do not like her characters in these dramas. However, I finally found her likable here and can see why she has so many fans. She looked beautiful and I like her portrayal of this calm, serious and level-headed character, yet still showing her very reserved admiration for ML. For the other two male leads, Cheng Yi and Qin Jun Jie, I am definitely a fan of them and their other works. I already know they can act and they don't disappoint here. Oh, I think Qin Jun Jie ages like fine wine :)

Martial Arts/Fight scenes: A big reason for me wanting to watch this drama is because of the fight scenes. I continue to search for dramas who will give me great fights with no slow-motion, spinning/twirling, and actors who couldn't hold a sword steadily. I would say I am quite satisfied with the fight scenes in the first half of the drama, esp. when the leads are still students. Even though there are quite a few zoomed out fight scenes and you know those were body doubles and stunt(wo)men, the overall visuals and choreography are good. However, in the second half, the use of magic and CGI increases and the actual fight scenes diminish. We got a few more good fighting towards the end of the drama. Overall, I personally think this drama has above-average fight scenes and it's a big reason I bumped my rating from an 8.0 to 8.5.

Plot/Characters: I enjoy the general plot of the drama and the different storylines. I do think that some of the arcs could be shortened. But there are enough action and events going on to keep be engaged through the first 30 episodes. I do feel that the drama slows down around episodes 30-40. I am also happy to see that our male leads, Xiao Fan and Jing Yu, continue to have this great friendship throughout the drama. Often times, you have one brother turns into an evil character. I am relieved to see them both continue to be the persons that they were as kids, and the bromance/friendship continues on when they are adults. I am also happy to see strong female characters who could fight and might be better fighters than the male characters. There's enough self-sacrifice and saving each other in this drama that I wouldn't characterize the female characters as damsels in distress. They do seem to be strong and intelligent throughout the drama.

Romance: Our main leads have a Romeo & Juliet-type romance. Even though I enjoy their scenes together and all the hardships that they go through, I only find their chemistry OK for the majority of the drama. As mentioned earlier, I am not feeling the love from Li Ying Feng. I expect more emotions if you are Romeo. I would say the turning point would be in ep. 52 when Xiao Fan heartbreakingly confesses to Bi Yao. That scene is when I can feel that chemistry. However, in the last 10 episodes, the romance seems to be running in circles - ML not wanting to see FL, FL went to see him and asked him to leave with her, ML said no - repeat a few times. The secondary romance between Jing Yu and Jin Ping Er is even weaker. There aren't enough scenes between them, and they don't have that many alone time together. I don't find it believable that Jin Ping Er would fall in love with Jing Yu. There's not enough buildup and it's not a love at first sight. There are also quite a few unrequited loves in this drama and they are decently portrayed.

CGI/Music - I have very low expectations coming into this drama regarding CGI and special effects. For a 2016 C-drama, it's decent. I laughed out loud at the appearance of a weird and slippery-looking snake though. This also might be the first drama that I've enjoyed the background music more than the songs themselves. The songs aren't that memorable but the BGM complements the different scenes appropriately.

Other observations:
1) The guy with the dice as a magical weapon is quite funny, esp. in fight scenes
2) A grown-up Jackson Yee is more handsome than a teenage Jackson Yee :)
3) What is up with the medicine product placement?!?
4) Weird directing where actors just stand there and stare at each other for 5 seconds before speaking - forcing the viewers to feel the attraction?

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