So novelist Fresh Guo Guo is still best known for her novel and drama adaptation The Journey of Flower that leveled up Zhao Li Ying‘s career. A new drama adaptation of her other novel which is a prequel of sorts to The Journey of Flower is now casting and headed into production, the two leads will be Wang Xing Yue and Ren Min, with reportedly Wang Hong Yi and Meng Zi Yi as the supporting leads. The drama is titled 凤羽令 Feng Yu Ling translated as Phoenix Feather Order and it’s interesting to me that Ren Min is going back into xianxia and confronting her biggest criticism to date on her looks which is more girl next door and was dragged endlessly for being absolutely unsuited for the goddess xianxia look. I think either way styling will help her visuals and also the good acting and chemistry can also smooth over any lackings.
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My reaction is mixed, excited for WXY’s casting news but disappointed at RM being the FL at the same time. Regardless of how RM could act (that is debatable) or her visuals may be enhanced through smart styling, I still wish the FL could be someone else. I see RM’s acting range pretty limited in the way she is still best at exuding fiery temperament so far. Her acting in The Longest Promises fell short of nuance needed to carry that role in a female centric drama. She tried too hard and overacted sometimes to be cute and bubbly. In TLP, she also lost control of good timing for crying scenes.
If this new drama costarring with WXY is another female centric drama again like TLP, then I’ll keep my expectation low.
Always welcome WXY…. He has been consistent so far with his acting and versatility.
Meng Ziyi was the “beauty” in Immortal Samsara (Yang Xi and Cheng Yi) so will she end up stealing the scenes again or will critics start comparing?
Yes I am surprised with the casting as I thought Ren Min wanted to stay away from Wuxia and Xianxia roles. I hope the styling team is more competent than the previous one to do justice for Ren Min. Hopefully the script won’t call for silly acting…
Based upon how her team (on her behave) reacted to a slew of criticism of her visuals in TLP, RM appears to me someone with very strong personality (just like most of her drama characters) and would not be easily humbled by any critiques. For that reason, it’s not surprising she continued to take idol costume dramas that most fans don’t see her fit. On the positive side, she can be seen to have tenacity, not giving up. But one may also look at her recasting as a FL in Xianxia in a negative light, regarding her ignorant of her own limits.
Yea, for WXY’s sake, I’ll definitely check out this drama. Let’s see how makeup artist will do wonder on her visuals. LOL.
Seriously LOL The dude’s acting sucks so bad, RM is much better acting,his visual may not be a top but his voice and acting fill the gap as long as they dont give her “the girl” role
What is the standard to suit the look for xianxia drama?
Liu Yifei.
Ren Min suits modern dramas.
RM can’t act. Unless they can pull a plot like the story of Hua Zhi – blossom in adversity (Hu Yi Tian’s acting is like a piece of paper) I don’t think I will stick around.
IMO, the FL of BiA is way more beautiful than RM in costume.
I’m not feeling it, but maybe it’s because I’m biased against RM’s acting in her previous dramas. WXY needs someone who could push/challenge him to another level, like WJY did.
I hope to be proven wrong because I do want to see a good xianxia. But RM…sigh.
Lmfao she destroyed Wang Kai’s drama, Xiao Zhan’s and several others. Now it’s this guy’s turn lol
She has a very powerful agency behind her so though she isn’t popular at all and her acting is actually bad she keeps getting roles.
She’s the first actress I see so many Chinese netizens collectively agree that she is ugly. The criticism of her looks when TLP aired was so massive that it dragged the drama down. However yeah she has strong backing and would constantly pick the trendiest actors to star with; and they have no choice but to carry a deadweight like her. She already worked with Xiao Zhan, Li Xian, Gong Jun and Dylan Wang.
Ren Min is not a bad actress. She broke out in film and was seen as a possible successor to Zhong Dongyu (who also didn’t translate well to xianxia tv). RM suits serious, modern dramas more, not xianxia ones.
@Lmao, I noted your comments usually aren’t very kind. But I can’t help chuckling at this one. I can’t disagree with you though. LOL.
RM isn’t a bad actress but I still consider her very limited by far. Her getting a lot of projects to costar with first-tier and hot actors does amaze me. She’s not there yet! Another similar example is Zhang Wang Yi in the actor market.
@Somebody
I have nothing against her personally but she keeps being paired with actors I like then absolutely destroying their dramas. She simply isn’t meant for costumes. And now, another one! I am cursed.
All of this wouldn’t be possible if guang wasn’t behind her, trying to make her into a star. Which is never going to happen because she just doesn’t have what it takes. So here we go, another guy I like about to bite the dust thanks to her.
I’m not sure I want to see WXY play Sha Qianmo. I prefer him in more masculine roles. Maybe the origin story is different. I think RM should seriously decline this. I don’t see it doing any good for her. The criticism is already coming in like a tsunami.
Agree WXY shines more in masculine and authoritative roles
Second!
I like watching Wang Xing Yue…My new C-drama soft spot 😍… I like to watch him trying different roles.
I like WXY a lot too. Unfortunately, I wasn’t a huge fan of Journey of Flower, and have developed a strong aversion for xianxia. I might have to pass on this one unless there’s good word of mouth.
@Soph, fnny enough you said that…I am so off Xianxia now…even if it is one of my favourite actors in it…I will not be keen to watch.
You don’t need “goddess xianxia looks” for xianxia. Actresses with girl-next door-visuals like Yang Zi and Esther Yu have successful xianxia dramas. Its just that unlike those actresses, Ren Min has nothing else to offer. Her acting is mediocre, and she has no affinity with the audience. Whoever stars with her is going to suffer as the drama is going to be a dud.
I personally think that Wang Xing Yue is the biggest bubble on the Cdramaland right now when it comes to hyped male leads.
But, that is my personal view, of course.
Turning to the FL, well, I have only watched Ren Min in The Longest Promise and that was lackluster. It also doesn’t help if the second FL is Meng Ziyi, a much more pretty lady.
Also, it is a xianxia, not my cup of tea.
To cut a long story short … there’s no way I am watching this drama, unless you guys convince me it is good when it airs!
I read somewhere YuZheng denied it
Hmmm, that’s gonna be a challenge…I’ve watched WXY and Meng Zi yi in a variety and thay have chemistry ( they’re also on friendly terms in real life and have known each other for quite some time) and I believe she’s the better actress compared with the fl. I think it would’ve been better if MZY was the fl.
@Sirey oops sorry that wasn’t meant to be a reply to you.
I enjoy a number of Ren Min’s films and non period dramas.. She is a good solid actress but she needs to relax abit more to adapt to dramas. Wang Xing Yue is also a serious actor.. both artists have similar tempo off screen. But Ren Min need to find the balance it is needed for idol dramas. Wang Xing Yue has got have balance.
I am really looking forward to this pair…will their chemistry work or not?? I am really curious. I sincerely hope they get a good script…and a good editor.
I feel apart from acting cast, Good script writers, filming directors…a very good editor is important too. Many potential good dramas are badly butchered by bad editing. Likely due to Censorship restrictions.
Yeah agreed. I also think RM appeared too tense in ALL her dramas/films I’ve watched. She is not versatile so far. One comment above mentioned Yang Zi and Esther Yu in comparison cos these two actresses’ visuals are also criticized very often. But YZ and EY has never looked so rigid, obviously “playing” their characters as RM has done in her costume dramas. RM tried to reprise her skills for modern non-idol dramas in the costume idol dramas but failed to convince me.
Ren Min is a good actress for some characters…but she is hardworking…hope she will improve and shine in this new drama with Wang Xing Yue…I am really beginning to like this actor….
Yang Zi and Esther Yu is suitable for dramas…You will find their acting style suitable for Chinese Drama viewers. Both actress are relaxing to watch. I may not enjoy a number of their dramas but I can see why they are popular. I will not say both are top beauty either, that is a fact but both are easy on the eye.
I wish Wang Xing Yue and Rem Min good luck for this new project if they do decide to go ahead with it.
So many RM haters as usual. Im quite excited for this one I esp love watching her in costumes!
I agree, people forget that apart from acting , a good scripts, directing and editing could really go a long way of making a show watchable but because we see the actors, the are the first to receive blacklish when a show doesn’t do we and honestly chinese entertainment lacks meaty scripts in general regardless weather idol dramas or non idol dramas.
Ren is actually a good actress, it just custom drama are not her forte , just like cheng yi is good in custom but off in mordern dramas.she comes off has also being to bland in custom dramas, which is her limitation as an actresses. She needs to find a way to make it work if she want to be doing project in that genre, a good styling could really boost her too.
I had to go dig out with machine translator in the dark side of Weibo the reasons why RM gets so much hate and I found the three main reasons. RM gets all these hate because she worked with XZ who have an awful insanely sick fandom and also because she is dating a director so people assume he is a sugar daddy for her while in reality he is a very much a rookie and very young. The last reason is that her agency is one of the most powerful and rich agencies of actors in China.
Lmao no
She has been criticised ever since her Wang Kai drama where she managed to absolutely tank the ratings. The drama was doing really well until she took over the screen time and the ratings tanked.
It didn’t get any better after that.
What criticism? I read praises on her acting in Serenade of Peaceful Joy (unless you’re referring to other drama w/ Wang Kai, which I’m not aware of). If anything, it was Bian Cheng who got a lot of backlash after his treatment to her on their promotional livestream. And no, she was not the main reason for the drama’s performance, but rather the directing. Wang Kai’s character is also so unlikeable though he’s the main lead.
I am a little surprised RM is considered ugly in China. I think she’s pretty enough. Her nose may be big but it fits in with her other features which are pretty especially her wide set lively eyes. I am glad she didn’t get a plastic nose. I have watched only one drama of hers where she plays a princess forced into marriage. I thought she did a great job.
I also don’t understand why Ms K uses this terrible pic of WXY looking like a wax figure from Madame Tussaud’s.
LOL funny how all the comments here are collectivily trying to pretend that WXY is a better actor than RM , when the guy’s acting is so terrible that he depends on his FL to hold the drama while him playing the pretty vase role.
That’s a pass for me and I love Wang Xing Yue. Girl acting is just average at best and her rl personality is a major turn-off. I already feel bad for Tao whose personality is like the sun…thankfully there’s Meng Zin Yi, he got along quite well with her in Wonderland season 4.
You can’t possibly be serious with putting RM into another one of these dramas. The overly hyped “longest promise” was such a flop because of her. It hurt to see Xiao Zhan had to basically carry the drama by himself. Her visuals are no pleasing, her childish acting isn’t mature for the scenes she plays and her constant head tilts and movements each time she speaks is not cute what so ever. I hope they reconsider. I don’t want to have to grit my teeth just to watch this drama got the guys just because of her.
@Soph, fnny enough you said that…I am so off Xianxia now…even if it is one of my favourite actors in it…I will not be keen to watch.
Have you all recently seen Rise of Ning that has topped the charts and her visuals? You all give her a break and please take a look at her acting. She is a former magnolia and best supporting actress. She cries on demand and is in touch with emotions so authentically. It is no coincidence as she consistently placed first in the actors take your place acting contest by directors well before any role other than Cry Me A Sad River where she was casted still as a student. She is well credentialed and if you don’t like than don’t watch but please be kind in this cruel world and don’t slander her