This is my honest review.

I'm going to start by saying this series gets a 7/10 from me and it's 100% on the screenwriter. Maybe it's because I'm used to American blockbusters, maybe it's because I have friends that are screenwriters in Hollywood whose work I've read and given critique on, maybe it's because I'm a professional writer/editor myself and have written scripts and novels over the years, or maybe it's all of the above. Fact remains, this screenwriter bit off more then he could chew and it fell short and I'm just a drama/lead actor fan; never read the novel nor am I into donghua. Though it's not even close to a comparison, Lord of the Rings: first film alone had 3 screenwriters. Maybe it was the arrogance of the screenwriter but he or the director or the production company should have brought more people to help him. There was simply no way for him to be able to take this project and do it justice himself. It is impossible given its size. I know there are people scoring full 10s and more power to them but with all of my experience in this and as mentioned above, this is an honest review that will get constructive criticism.

Under no circumstances can or should DC be compared to his other works simply because it's completely different. With the amount of CGI and other visual effects, it lands in a category of its own. Let me make myself clear, DC is not a bad series, especially for those of us that don't know its history; it's just not a powerful transition from 2D to 3D live action. One thing that is a faux pas for writers and screenwriters; it should not take 13 plus episodes/chapters to introduce main or supporting characters. If there is a concrete lead, that lead should always be around enough to remind the audience of who the individual is.

We were working with 40 episodes, 35 minutes long each (not counting credits) for part 1. I get it, you want to introduce everyone and set up their backstories. Very feasible but you're neglecting the reason the story exists; lead character must grow and evolve too. Between episodes 6-13 there was almost no plot cohesion. It was a roller coaster ride of let's randomly bring more people into the mix while running around doing tasks that don't have a meaning.

Furthermore, those episodes and some additional ones should have been called "The boring nonsense of OuSiKe and Rong Rong." Out of the 7 devils the screenwriter/director/producer made him look like Betty Crocker and his constant artsy fartsy monologues of Mr. Motor Mouth were enough to give most a splitting headache. Personally if he had signed with Prince ugly Eyebrows, left ShiLanKe and opened a theatre academy, I would have been thrilled. Again, I'm not blaming the actor for this as he was acting out the script. His character was the most lackluster and worthless out of the entire bunch. When he and Rong Rong would whine, it sounded like '90s dial up internet gone haywire. I fast forwarded a lot of their scenes as they added no value to the story.

It felt sad that so much good material was wasted. The battles lasted maximum 5 minutes while the conversations and needless explanations took the rest of the time. Growth of characters requires them doing things; just like the saying goes "actions speak louder then words", just dialogue will not evolve a character. Even without the background of the novel, I could tell the evolution of some characters and total standstills of others.

So many anticlimactic scenes and music. The OST's were gorgeous but towards the end were chucked randomly into parts of the episodes that didn't require them. The entire time the 7devils were in MSH towards the end didn't even seem like part of this series. Most were out playing Sherlock Holmes on separate mysteries trying to solve puzzles and save the ultimate villain who already knew everything that was going on. It seemed that the screenwriter ran out of material (shocking) and had to stretch to make it 40 episodes with a lot of nonsense. For 5 episodes, I felt like I was in the game of "Clue". It was a shoddy patchwork job that deserved way better; the actors taking on these roles and the audience deserved better.

I've mentioned some actors above and I'll continue speaking about them in their character sense again (I'll speak about the actual actors later if necessary). Mu Bai who started out as bossy and a total turn off, evolved into a mature and well prepared captain. Same goes for Zhu Zhu Qing, though from the 7 devils other then Tang San, she was my 2nd favorite because of her fierceness and I liked her character's growth. Master and Headmaster along with Ma Hong Jun were also heavily favored because of their comedic reprieve and growth.

I must say episode 40 left me scratching my head but not at the cliffhanger which was expected and yet even that fell flat. There was no great battle for the championship nor a fight between Papa Tang and the Pope. The finale battle was really one dude spouting arrogant nonsense who still got his butt kicked, and the way too obvious revelation of XW being a soul beastie with a side order of Papa Tang smacking the Pope around with his hammer, twice. Tang San trying to protect XW per usual was obvious but his serious lack of surprise about her identity and his proclamation (if the subs were on point) that she was his love or lover were misplaced because it was never shown before. Even in the most dense of moments he never uttered anything save she was his younger sister. Another point off from the script, massive disconnect. I can point out many points of disconnect within the script and this show but then I'd be writing this for days.

There were many people who didn't like XW's character; personally I felt very neutral towards her. She had her good attributes (she always had TS' back, could kick some serious butt in a fight, never backed down, was willing to do whatever it took to get stronger) and she had her weaknesses (sometimes too clingy, didn't understand the simplest things, a bit too bouncy for my taste). Again most of her lackluster traits are attributed to the script because what she read, she did. Episode 39 where she and TS are in the soul beast dungeon and she basically all but said who she was and Tang San was still somewhat clueless babbling theories; really that's like scriptwriting 101 and our pal screenwriter failed. Why wait? Especially when you're not going to make it into like an abracadabra super reveal anyways? Defies logical writing and progression.

Lastly for characters and actors, I want to speak on Tang San and Xiao Zhan. It's because of Xiao Zhan (not a solo fan; multi here) that I watched this. Is his performance Oscar worthy? No. But it was the only thing with a few other characters that kept me coming back every evening for my VIP. I loved his character. Even when it was at a standstill due to the introduction of others. He put everything he knew into it and I give him praise for that. The stunts, both on wires and without were wonderful. For him, I will absolutely watch part 2 (though hopefully it won't take multiple years to get there).

I also hope--because they took such a long time to introduce the other characters--they won't throw them away in part 2. And that they follow the novel a lot closer into the second part. Nothing will ever be 100% adaptable anywhere but it should at least come to some version of close.

Lastly, I want to thank the visual effects department and CGI crew for their hard work because they truly did a fantastic job on all of their parts. My favorite part will forever be the dreamscape or interspace that TS' mother created for him. It was truly beautiful and magical. I know this international team worked hard on all of their scenes and they should not be forgotten as neither should the crew who worked in lord knows what kind of conditions and how many hours. So hats off to them. Thank you Douluo Continent for the teamwork because it does make the dream work and I'll see you all again hopefully in Part 2!

P.S. Please add at least 2 more experienced screenwriters. Much appreciated!