My Two Cents: Nirvana In Fire

Nirvana In Fire


Year: 2015
Episodes: 54
This drama is my newest obsession. Nirvana In Fire came out in 2015. It soon became a commercial and a critical success, with all of China raving about it. It was said to be one of the best, if not the best drama of 2015. I watched the trailer of this drama and it seemed very boring, but a couple of my friends who rarely watch Chinese dramas kept telling me how good this drama is. Hence, I gave it a try. Boy, was I surprised.
Synopsis:
During the Southern Liang Dynasty, Northern Wei sent the Chi Yan army to the south to protect the border under the command of General Lin Xie and his son, Lin Shu (Hu Ge). Lin Xie was framed by a political rival, and deemed a rebel. His political rivals attacked him and his army of seventy thousand soldiers. Only a couple of people had survived. One of the few is Lin Shu. With the help of Lang Ya Hall, Lin Shu was saved. However, due to the removal of the poison from his body, Lin Shu ended up looking nothing like before and became very weak. Despite not being able to fight, he still possessed great wit. He became the head of the Jiang Zuo Alliance under the alias Mei Chang Su. Twelve years later, he returns to the capital under yet another alias, Su Zhe. His goal is to prove his family and soldiers their innocence. Known to be one of the smartest people alive, the princes, Yu and Tai Zi, fight for his aid to win the throne. Despite Yu and Tai Zi being the most likely to become the next king, he secretly assists his friend Xiao Jing Yan, a powerless prince, and helps him rise in power. Slowly, one by one, Chang Su helps Jing Yan remove his enemies while trying to hide his identity. As his body gets weaker and weaker, will he ever be able to see the day his family and army are proven their innocence?

Characters:

Lin Shu (Hu Ge) is the son of the General Lin Xie and a princess. He is also a general and is well respected by fellow comrades. After the war at Mei Lin, he is poisoned by the world's strongest poison. His body is then covered with white hair and he cannot speak. He needs to look normal and be able to speak in order to one day prove his father and this army's innocence. In order to cure the disease, he has to use an antidote which will make his body become very weak and he can never perform martial arts again and his appearance will change. He then changed his name to Mei Chang Su and becomes the head of the Jiang Zuo Alliance. He is a kind leader and is friends with many intelligent and strong people. He is very weak and can only live until he is 30 years old. He decides that he will return to the capital to help prove his father's innocence before his body collapses. While doing that, he wants to replace the current ruler with someone more fit for the throne. He decides to help his childhood best friend, Jing Yan, become the next emperor. Lin Shu is an excellent general and strategist. He does not want revenge, he just wants to prove his father's and his friends' innocence. 

Prince Xiao Jing Yan (Wang Kai) is a prince with no power or wealth. He does all of the hard work but is never acknowledged for it. He is a great friend and stood his ground when they told him that his best friend is a rebel. He agrees to cooperate with Mei Chang Su, not knowing that his true identity is his best friend because he wants to end corruption in the kingdom. He is known to be very stubborn and is deeply rooted to his morals. 

Princess Mu Ni Huang (Liu Tao) was betrothed to Lin Shu when they were teenagers. However, after the Chiyan incident, she and many others believed that Lin Shu had died. She also refuses to believe that Lin Shu is a traitor and refuses to marry anyone else. Almost immediately after seeing him, she deduces that Mei Chang Su is Lin Shu. Though a female, Ni Huang is a general and possesses exceptional fighting skills.

Prince Xiao Jing Huan (Victor Huang) is described as a virtuous prince who is the most similar to the Emperor. However, he is actually corrupt and will do anything to become the heir to the throne. He competes with his brother, Crown Prince Xian, to be the next in line to the throne. He tries to get Mei Chang Su to be on his side after receiving an answer from the Lang Ya Hall saying that Mei can help anyone become the next ruler.

The Emperor of Liang (Ding Yong Dai) held a rebellion to take the throne by force, so his biggest fear that history will repeat itself and there is a rebellion against him. He is a sly fox that will never trust anyone except himself.

Review 

This is my favorite historical drama in recent years. My favorite historical drama of all time is Empress In the Palace. This is my second favorite Mainland Chinese historical drama. I feel like both dramas are very similar in the sense that every character is so incredibly clever; the acting is phenomenal; the dialogue is out of this world, so clever, so thought out; the plot is exciting and full of love, hate, revenge, jealousy, and envy; and the cinematography is amazing.

Here are just a couple of reasons why I love this drama.

1. The acting is amazing. I think that Hu Ge did an amazing job, literally his best work to date, in my opinion. However, the other leads and supporting characters are equally as good. I think the villains were very well portrayed. Did you know Xia Jiang and many of Hu Ge's subordinates in Jiang Zuo Alliances are actually directors? Three characters that I think did extremely well are Xia Jiang, Xie Yu, and Jing Yan. 

2. The plot. Anything with revenge basically gets super intense. However, this drama may seem like a revenge drama but Lin Shu only wanted to prove his friends' and families' innocence. The beginning is very confusing because they don't immediately give you all the pieces. They slowly reveal the truth and the past and Lin Shu's sufferings. The viewers went on a journey. A journey that made us understand the pain Lin Shu was feeling. You start to worry for Lin Shu and feel the pain of every character.

3. I love how many characters love. I don't just mean romantically, but they genuinely love each other. For example, Lin Shu and Ni Huang are attracted to each other and all, but in the end, it is their friendship, their similarities, and their ability to understand each other and to balance each others' personality, that make them truly soulmates. Jing Yan and Lin Shu's bromance is to die for. Despite over a decade has gone by, Jing Yan still treasurers their friendship. This is their love. They are willing to die for each other and only wish the best for each other. Unlike normal romance dramas where misunderstandings lead to disagreements between the leads, Jing Yan never lost faith in his friend because he knew him that well and was willing to trust him. 

4. The crazily developed characters. I want to shift the spotlight to the supporting characters right now. I think Xie Yu is an extremely developed character. He is evil and power-hungry. However, he loves his wife and is willing to do anything to protect her. He loves his family and doesn't dare to lay a finger on his own son. He is also a very pitiful character. Though he seems to be the manipulative one; he is actually the one being manipulated. Yan Que, in my opinion, is the most interesting character in this drama. He overthrew the last king but he secluded himself after losing a loved one. He loses all faith in life and people but he is not ignorant. He listens to what others have to say and only does what he thinks is right. He is a kind father who cares for his son despite not showing it. He is smart and will not let anyone push him around. He is understanding and is very loyal to who believes is good.

5. I never truly fell in love with the drama until I was around 30% into the drama. The scene that made me fall in love with this drama, which happened in Xie Yu's quarters, was so suspenseful. Everyone keeps on outsmarting each other and everyone gambles and goes all-in with no regrets. I was one the edge of my seat as they battle it out. Many characters have this mindset of "If I can't win, then no one can." This drama is like chess. Each player is extremely clever and each step is carefully planned and they try to predict the other player's next move.

6. The martial arts scenes are beautiful. There are extravagant, quick moves and amazing cinematography. I loved Fei Liu and General Meng's fights.

7. There are funny, adorable moments. I love Chang Su's interactions with his friends and subordinates. They joke around and know each other well. Fei Liu, Chang Su's bodyguard, is like a cute little puppy and is a breath of fresh air after you have watched 3 episodes of manipulative, clever characters. 

Please, everyone, give this drama a try. Many of my friends who only watch Korean dramas have a ton of excuses like "I'm not used to the language," "I don't know Chinese, there are no subtitles," the actors are not handsome," and so much more. 

This drama is available on so many sites. It is on Viki and Youtube and many other websites. You'll get used to the language after a while. Each country has its own standard of beauty so for people who only watch, for example, Korean soap operas, they are used to that specific country; however, as time passes by, you will see that Chinese actors are very good looking as well.