Yu Zhao Ling (2021)

Cutest Couple - Great Acting by Main Leads - Little Cliffhanger

Let's start : I was thinking that whether should I write the review about "No Boundary" or not! But (yeah) here I am. Sorry I won't beat around the bush and will get right back to review. Many of you people or there might be all of you prior to watching the drama may have went through the comment section well there was a time where I dropped some great dramas while going through the comment section. So, let's do it.
1. Story : (9.0)
As the descriptions say the drama is exactly the same. But elaborate more I would say the story is about love between {Zhang Yi Shang} God (heavenly maiden) who was once a general and {Darren Chen} a soldier who fights with demons to protect his city. I won't spoil to much but the story consists of too cute moments between them and some crime cases which they both solve together and there's another part of the story that has to be completed in the Season 2 which will be hopefully air in the future. So for me (9/10) for the story.
2. Acting/Cast: (10/10)
When I watched the trailer and I didn't know about Zhang Yi Shang and Darren Chem, I have never watched their single drama! That may sound confusing but I have really wasted my time in lots of drama till to date. That's 750+ dramas in total. The main cast acting was astonishing, there wasn't a single moment I regretted watching this drama besides the story only thing that kept me going and wants me to wait for the next season is Darren Chen's and Zhang Yi Shang's acting. That was flawless till the end. Well other cast also did well but the main lead was perfect. They are also my favourite couple right now. So (10/10) for acting.
3. Music : (9.5/10)
I am not big fan of Chinese Soundtracks but the intro of the drama is really thrilling and the violin instrument is mesmerising when the drama kicks off. In drama soundtracks also fit to the scenarios. So (9.5) :)
4. Rewatch Value : (9.0)
I would give it 9.0 cause I have just downloaded the drama up to Episode 18 from the site. I will download the rest of it in coming days.
In the end I would say if you are not a fan of Zhang Yi Shang and Darren Chen then I would say just give it a try if you don't like then simply check not interest in the rating section cause that will not effect the rating of the drama. For me it was also the first drama to watch of them but they both got me stick to screen till the last moment of the drama. They have less screen time together in Episode 29-31 so that really hurt me anyways that's all to my review.
Thanks for reading :) Give big love to this drama. Love Yourself. PEACE.

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It was good but the writing got messed up

First of all I was absolutely hooked during the first 20 eps, the acting was good, music and costumes were great as well. However the love triangle is such an old trope that got annoying after a while. It was good but the last 10 eps had lots of writing issues and pacing issues. I still think it was worth finishing, I didnt hate it, but it was a bit disappointing.

I'm very impressed with the Duanmu Cui's actress since I've never watched her other dramas before, but she impressed me. She was badass, funny and cool. Darren's character was alright, nothing memorable except for him bejng a nice guy the entire drama. CGI wasn't bad so at least the budget made everything look good.

THE TALKING BOWL/CUP WAS ADORABLE though.
Probably wouldn't watch again, but it was decent overall.

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Good start but then it went downhill

Completed - 4/8/2022

The first 1/3 of the drama feels like Ancient Detective + Love and Redemption. It was fun to see our leads bickering with each other while solving crimes. However, I wouldn't say the crimes are super interesting or well-thought out. But at least the leads were fun to watch and I enjoy their characters. The drama went downhill and the lead romance becomes too cringey. Our female lead deity tries to woo our cool-headed male lead with methods that are way too cringey for my taste. Our supposedly smart ML is too hard-headed to get what FL is trying to do. Once the leads got together, the drama force-feeds us with a large dose of sugary fluffiness in one big episode. I should have known that whenever a drama does that, it means the cute romance won't last long and viewers will have to wait for a long time to see them together again.

The second half of the drama becomes a totally different drama. It feels like Ashes of Love but worse and many plot holes. Love, hate and obsession become the central story line in the middle episodes. If I am not an experienced wuxia/xianxia watcher, I might enjoy typical cliches and tropes more. But unfortunately, I watch and shake my head in boredom and frustration. I really start to lose interest in the abyss arc. I feel that should be the start of season 2.

I would recommend this drama to beginner watchers of xian xia dramas, who understand a little bit about the 3 realms but not too familiar with the tropes to be bored.

Let's see if I can summarize the tropes in bullet points:
- Love Square and persistent unrequited love
- 2ML turned evil because FL does not reciprocate his feelings, even though he has sacrificed so much for her.
- 2ML continues to blame ML because he has loved FL longer, and has been there for her. You are a newcomer who doesn't deserve her. ML gotta wait in line!
- Secondary leads who won't take "no" for an answer no matter how many times they are rejected.
- Double dose of noble idiocy = I will leave you for your sake because I love you and this is what's best for you. Who cares what you really want.
- Multiple characters believing their way is the correct way and you must do what I say. I am doing this for your own good ,even though I don't care how you feel/think

Aside from all that, the writing is quite messy and there are many plot holes.
- FL is supposed to be smart but yet she can't figure out there are demons around her. I thought she can smell demons but fails to do that many times.
- If FL can't fall in love, why break up the couple when she has ALREADY fallen in love? Isn't it too late already and worse if she's heartbroken?
- Why are the demons fighting with weapons against humans? Don't they know magic and can kill with a snap of their fingers? There's no way humans could win!
- I know our ML is smart, but is he really so smart that he knows how to re-create war weapons all by himself? He's not even a soldier but a crime investigator.

Let's end this review on a more positive note. Here's what I do enjoy:
- I like Zhang Yi Shang's acting as our female lead. I might find her character in the beginning a little too much, but she grows on me. Zhang Yi Shang is able to portray the different personalities of Duan Mu Cui well. She gives off a very different vibe when she's the General Duan Mu, compared to the happy and innocent Duan Mu Cui and depressed Duan Mu Cui. She looks absolutely stunning as well.
- Darren Chen is very pretty/handsome to look at. I like him in the first 1/3 of the drama, but not as much when he's in love and in sacrifice mode.
- Both 2ML and 2FL look great in black and evil attire. 2ML looks especially handsome, and his acting improves as his character goes darker. He's pretty meh when he's the 'good' guy in white.
- I like the BGM and the songs are not overplayed. Actually, the songs are rarely played and because of that, they are much more noticeable. Nice songs.
- Although the CGI and fight scenes aren't great, I do like the costumes, hairstyles, set designs and props of this drama. It's obviously not a high budget production but still I don't find anything too "cheap".

At this moment, I am not sure if I want to watch Season 2 or not. I don't feel a sense of urgency to know how it ends. But I might just because I like to complete my dramas. That's why I didn't drop this in the middle but somewhat force myself to continue.

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Started off strong but....

The drama started off strong and I was looking forward to watching it when new episodes came out. But halfway thru I started to lose interest in the story. I thought Darren's character started to make irrational decisons when it came to Duanmu. Maybe it's just me but I expected more from a man in uniform. Duanmu's brother was a bit too overprotective and made excuses for his sister. Wengu was too obsessed with Duanmu and Hong Luan too obsessed with Wengu. It was just too much of those for me. I forced myself to finish Season 1 since I already invested so much time in this drama. I am not picking up Season 2.

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Come for the pretty actors, stay for the acting

I watched this on a whim not knowing who any of the actors were. I just came purely based on how pretty the main couple were. Hey, that's just how it is in dramaland. Sometimes the story and the acting are just an extra treat. Well in this case I was in for a huge surprise! The FL actor for Duanmu Cui is absolutely phenomenal. Perhaps it's because I'd never seen her in anything before so I didn't have any biased assumption of how she would act. The ML for Zhan Yan is definitely the weaker link but they have such amazing chemistry together that I think the FL's acting more than makes up for his deficiency.

The story is also different from anything I've watched. It's Xianxia but the core theme is completely based around Duanmu Cui's personal guilt and feelings of loss. At first you think it's the typical love trope that she can't let go of her past lover but it's much deeper. Once the drama turns everything on its head and the characters go back into the past we explore more of Duanmu Cui as a person. It's a female character study that I am shocked we are getting from a cdrama which is always disproportionately obsessed over male characters.

Anyway, the season does end on an awkward note. Literally it ends on a random episode. I can't wait for season 2. I know a lot of people will be turned off by the sudden change in focus with the shift to the past but I am loving it. I think they already ran out of ground to cover in the present and with there being so many allusions to events in the past it only made sense to take us there. We finally get to see those characters that have been haunting Duanmu Cui for a thousand years and can finally understand how the war took its toll on her.

This is a great drama so far with some interesting takes and a refreshing exploration of a female character in a Xianxia. Despite the usual cdrama tropes I think the acting, chemistry and portrayal of a healthy relationship between the main couple elevates it from its shortcomings. This is the FL I expected from Love and Redemption that I never got. Thank god for No Boundary and Zhang Yi Shang for restoring my faith that not all FL are idiots. Hopefully, this doesn't change in season 2.

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Great Start, Terrible End

No Boundary is a drama that forgets itself halfway through the runtime. From an easy-going and light-hearted drama, it makes a sharp turn into heavy drama land and loses all its charm. It doesn’t have the ability nor the material to make the second half engaging or even watchable, so it becomes a boring drag.

(There are slight spoilers in the review)

Characters: The main leads of this story are both phenomenal. If you’re looking for a sweet romance with lots of funny coincidences and charming moments, then you’ll fall in love with the main couple. Duanmu Cui is proud, but also quite childish and loyal, while Zhan Yan is steady, positive, and very supportive. The two of them make a cute pair. However, the main supporting characters pull the story down. A lot. Wengu is extremely obsessive and has no personality besides his obsession, while Hong Luan is crazy about him and also has no other concerns but him. The rest of the support cast is pretty good and likable.

Story: It should be separated into two parts. The first half (up to ep.20) is great for its genre. It’s light, fluffy, and cute. In other words, all that you can ask for. However, right after, the story becomes heavy on drama and all sense of logic is lost. People die, then come back to life without any explanation. Main leads make decisions that even a 5-year-old child would tell you are stupid. Hundreds of people are killed, yet everyone says that the murderer should be forgiven because the guy was once a friend. And there’s just no end to it. Every new episode brings another batch of illogical events that throw you out of the story.

CGI: The drama itself is done with a lot of love and care, so it only makes the terrible CGI stand out more. There’s a lot of magical effects due to the nature of the story, and many of them are cringe-worthy. They’re so bad that even someone with an untrained eye would wonder if they were done by a student still in the process of learning the ins and outs of making CGI.

I don’t really know how to judge this story, if being honest. I loved and binged the first half, but barely finished the second half on 1.5x speed with constant skipping of scenes. On top of that, there’s no satisfying end. The season ends in the middle of the story and just expects that you would continue onto the next season.

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So good, I actually want to read the book.

Notable characters:

- Zhan Yan (Darren Chen) is such a great male lead. He's so believably perfect. To love Duanmu Cui enough to risk his life and the possibility of her loving someone else *swoon*. (I man, sometimes he does seem absolutely reckless, but I know it's thought out just enough).

- Duanmu Cui (Zhang Yi Shang) is an excellent female lead. I haven't agreed with a character's actions as much as I do with hers. And them together create one of the ultimate costume drama couples.

- Then there's Yang Jian (Han Dong). I HAVE NEVER LOVED A HEAVENLY DIETY AS MUCH AS I LOVE Star Lord. *tripple swoon* He's an amazing brother; always on Duanmu's side, always defending her against those louzy, lazy Heavenly Deities, always giving her the opportunities to make her own choices and learn from her mistakes. Yes, he has done some questionable things, but not without valid reason or out of selfishness. Yang Jian is the greatest brother and Heavenly deity anyone drama could ask for.

Notable moments:

- Every moment. Watch the drama. Stop reading reviews. You won't regret it.

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So glad I didn't listen to other's reviews about this Drama. It was too good, and part two is even better. People have to realize it's two parts. It didn't take long for the second part to come out. I'm on episode 12 of Season 2. I love this Drama, it's worth the watch. Believe me it's worth the watch, both seasons. Season 1 The Storm of the World (No Boundary), Season 2 No Boundary. You won't be disappointed. Actors & Actresses all did a very good job. Glad the writer's put this Drama out, I think people complained, because part 2 wasn't out at first. Maybe they was upset about how the first part ended, and didn't know it was a part 2 coming out even better.

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It’s a fantasy drama, nonetheless..

It is a fantasy drama, not about martial arts. Knowing this from the first episode, I could have just dropped it, but I stayed on for the ‘new comer’ Zhang Yi Shang. She is charming and suits well for her role as the FL, Duanmu Cui. I got hooked up with the FL’s character, which is strong, determined, and shows confident on what she does. A good role model for many these days. The 10 rating is for her.

The problem for me comes from the ML, Zhan Yan. To me, his characters is too possessive, but weak. He sacrifices his main duty of protecting people for the sake of following his love interest? The FL should have been given more chance to resolve issues herself without having the ML always around. The storyline could have been developed much better without him having to be too protective and cheesy.

In all, the story is strong in the beginning but getting drifted away towards the end, plus a cliffhanger to lead to the season 2. There are not many wasteful characters, which is a good thing, even though I am not sure why we need a porcelain cup and jug who can walk and speak..

Not sure if I want to continue for Season 2.

Oh, am I the only person annoyed with the way the officers hold their swords from the side? I could not imagine how inconvenience that would be, to walk around the city holding a sword like that in real life! ;)

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Good Start - Cliffhanger

Okey, so I started this drama and I like the whole casting and acting, but somehow the story turn a little unclear at the end when the 3rd guy showed up in the story. I think they want to build the story for him for the Season Two but he's just so unnecessary for the 1st Season.

Both lead have good acting. Their chemistry is just perfect at first, but suddenly they have like too many old trope of misunderstanding and unnecessary sacrifice. It's actually pretty annoying, but I still manage to finish the story somehow. I will still continue because I like the both lead, they're nice to watch, and I like the Soundtrack, it's beautiful. And, regardless it's bit messy and unlear, I do still wonder how the story unfolds, so it will be interesting.

Here I am continue to season two~

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sorry for low rate but to much loophole and ridiculous things in this drama ,maybe if the story more logic and connected ,and the edit is more good can be 8 or 8.5

maybe this drama have a chance to be a good drama but ,the story ,plot ,scene edit is worst,ridiculous! a lot of unexplained scene

i like them when solving a mysterious case, in this drama maybe have 9- 11 case or problems ,but they didnt showing all the scene ,sometimes the flashback scene didnt know when its happen,, the clue, things ,and person can changes if they adds the others new scenes ,and the editing go worst and worst as the drama progresses, a shuddenly scenes

the story is not bad ,but i just think its very absurd ,, alot of thing that imposible to be connected they forcing to be connect and make it happen ,

weird if they go together and have some feeling just in eps 4 ,its to fast ,because they first meeting is from being annoying to each others i think eps 10 is enough start to know each others feeling ,, but from eps 10 they are not even sensitive to each other , and trying to being a stupid person, trying to stay away from each other ,, duanmu and zhanyan ,, they take turns doing it,
‎
Entanglement, but in the name of wanting to protect the each others, unintentionally hurt the others, to stay away from the others, causing damage to the heart or life threatening ,,that annoying me,

a lot of people dont want they go together! yangjian dont want they together because afraid she open abyss and ruins 3 realms ,but when she remember all things and i think her love for zhanyan can stop her to open abyss ceuase can ruins mortal world and ZY, but they still stop them together because can cause ZY harming by the death aura in xuanping village, its so annoying!

from episode 7-14 I thought I wanted to drop the drama for a several times. because, their relationship is very annoying, I just like when they work together to solve cases

and i feel the FL AND ML like have 偶像包袱 in 14 first eps，they seem to limit the use of fake blood in order to still look elegant and beautiful ,,but from eps 15 maybe? they become more dsre to use the fake blood ,but still lacking of effect editing ,, the effect and skill action not match ,the blood effect in their body not seeing when needed



@@ unexplained & Stup*d scene @@

#1. the son of bookstore owner ,from the first time they didnt show and telling about the bookstorevs owner have a child or what happen wi+ that child ,but when the mirror case they said that the child is the first missing victim from that book store,and that make me weird is ,how the child become the first victim? not her mother that contact directly with the miror demon? moreover, the child cannot be approached directly by the mirror demon, because the child is disabled and only live at home, even though he has obsession , butMost of the victims were women who went to buy rouge ,, no chronology showing how it happen

#2 . they know about penglai map ,and hoelw important it,, from the mirror cases, the mirror demon already tell them what the demon clan want ,until episode 19 they keep don't know about its and look nerd

#3. ep 4 zhanyan body get injury but no see the blood there ,but shangguan said he see the blood so why i said the effect and the scene not match ,even they very low budget,and cant get a blood props they can make effect from editing ,, 耍大牌？
ep 7 ,suck blood no blood stain in mouth ,drink blood no blood stain in mouth?! are you serious?!,just drink a fake blood ,the mosquito couple also do that why the lead cant do that?
the acting like this .... maybe their acting keep growing with the drama ,its go better from eps 15

#4. ep 11,, so who kill liqiongxiang father? zheng mom （silkwormg or demon envoy ? i still not understand what happen? 15 years ago zheng mom use her power to make lingxiao silk and make her weak ,, then 15 years later she make lingxiao silk again to "restore" her power? isnt lingxiao silk made by her demon power? ,
and how can the cocoon is the fragment of penglai map?
duanmu said silkworm weak at the night but why her daughter is stronger at the night?
if the cocoon is the importan things they searching for ,why they should use it to see zhanyan dream? for what? ridiculous!


#5. From the beginning they tried to prevent the opening of the abyss because it could threaten 3 realms but, the opening of the abyss was to finding the antidote for death aura, if so, from the beginning their efforts were in vain, only delaying, and prolonging the drama,, because even open the abyss, the story in the abyss cannot change their story 1000 years later , so its useless

#6.s2 ep 3, jiang (JWQ ) go to abyss and said to JY that his kindness can cause changes to the battle of chong city ,,, ,if opening the Penglai map is something that will definitely happen ,shouldn't this change will be in a good direction? not in a bad way? like gu chang, or duanmu doesn't have to be sacrificed, so jiangyi doesn't have to sacrifice his divinity for duanmu to live as a deity? , so jiangyi, duanmu, guchang,yue , yanjian ,everyone is a deity ,, jiangwenqing's opinion is unreasonable
If said the war was won because of the death of Guchang that made 哀兵必胜（sad soldier must win)， isn't winning because there are talented generals who live more useful for increasing soldier morale?, thats why so many soldiers retreat because the generals are killed first? that causing the soldier losing the morale


#7. s2 ep 12 ,i just dont understand, duanmu said abyss door open by her divinity ,,and the divinity recover her deity memories , i think she already get the divinity even not go to the altar?,,but why she still need to go to the altar to get her divinity and causing her losing her divinity? and i think she back to the altar naybe to get the divinity as the key to open the abyss door to go back to the real life, but two of that not valid?
if the divinity already back even she didnt go to the altar ,she can go to the abyss door(chongcity gate) to go back to the real life and didnt causing her losing her divinity,, no need to go to the altar just to seal jiangwenqing ,its a useless action ,because if she go back only with zhan yan ,automaticaly jiangwenqing is left in the abyss forever,of course without divinity


#8 isnt abyss just cant be open by the descendant of the heavenly maiden blood? how can be open by JWQ? even he absort the penglai map ,its cant causing the door of abyss open ,its a different problem because he never have heavenly maiden bloodline


#9.who buried duanmu and her mom? and why ? its not be telling in this story


#10. what happen with shangguan ce and zhanyan parents?


#11. and the last ! THE DEITY IN PENGLAI SO USELESS, how can they
not aware of the demonic aura of the heavenly envoy? and when annihilate him , they just stay in the mortal realm and order a human, and a deity without a deity power to annihilate him?

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What a love story!

A very interesting development of relationship between the two main leads (Zhan Yan and Duanmu Cui), but IMO an odd development of the relationship of the other main leads (Wengu and Hong Luan). Three main clans Demon, human, and high-immortal (gods) are entangled in a great story. I combined the part 1 and 2 in this review.

The story starts from a very fresh depiction of a high-immortal Duanmu Cui that is very proud of herself as the best, smartest and prettiest high-immortal but at many times are clumsy and meets Zhan Yan, a constable officer in Qifeng City . The series cleverly fills in background of each lead during select situations, for example how Duanmu Cui becomes high-immortal, how she is afraid of something, relations among high-immortals, how the "reincarnated" prime minister remember the past, how a demon becomes in such a pitiful state, and so on. As we expect that any pair will fall in love, and as as many other stories, the pair does not start with liking each other, the love developing bw the twos is the one I want to know, and what it is at the end! I like the stories mostly in the progress of the relationships in criminal case by case that they solve . As usually in many stories, there are always cases happening that support the relationship development. IMHO not all cases in this series are "logically" can happen, when it happens I just skipped them LOL. Overall 8.5 is my point for this series due to the super great acting of Duanmu Cui (Zhao Yi Shang), and the handsomeness of Zhan Yan (Darren Chen, playing Meteor Garden as Hua Ze Lei). Kudos to Zhao Yi Shang, hope to see her in other series!

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