It was just a production scheduling screw up that Chinese Paladin 4 adaptation Sword and Fairy 4 and Chinese Paladin 6 adaptation Sword and Fairy (just that, no 6 in the title) aired at the exact same time. Okay, one day apart in premiere but who’s quibbling, or perhaps that’s exactly the same difference in it’s reception. Industry pundits are calling both dramas flops in that neither are getting good reviews or the type of breakout views that would make it a hit. But between the two, the consensus is the CP6 with Xu Kai and Yu Shu Xin sucks just a little bit less than CP4 with Ju Jing Yi and Chen Zhe Yuan. CP6 has a bigger budget, better special effects, and stronger OTP chemistry and romance line, but again it’s just a little better at all these than CP4. I checked out CP4 and noped out after the first episode (so bad lol!) and CP6 I’m still watching solely on my affection for the two leads and the actually interesting backstory and romance between them. Bonus points for two Xu Kai characters for the price of one drama, and my bae is Jin Zhao over Shifu ofc. It’s still early in 2024 and there is still a long runway for C-dramas to deliver a good breakout this year.
I personally think the storyline for sword and fairy 6 is boring and confusing. Sword and fairy 4 has more interesting story that keeps you wondering what is to be next. I’m not even including the cp characters because both are pretty bland in the romance aspect. But character wise season four does not bore me as much.
agree
Agree too
I totally agree!!I’m lovin’ Sword & Fairy 4 that i keep on watching the previous episodes over and over again while waiting for the coming episodes. I really love the acting of CZY as Yun Tianhe! He is my favorite among the characters in SF4. Hoping the ending is not tragic..
Didn’t get through CP6 as cannot stand Esther’s baby voice. Prefer CP4 storyline and friendship and really liking Lingsha’s character being sharper and lively.
Esther’s voice seems way more annoying and out of place in the series. Super cheesy. She is still a good actress. And her styling just seems odd in the beginning. She can play cute at times but sometimes I wish they would give her a break from hamming the baby cutesy act. It’s just so cringe this time around.
Why won’t anyone tell her that the voice is annoying & for her to change? Clearly we’ve seen her talk normal before.
Unfortunately the people around her, and her fans, encourage it…
I agree
I cannot stand with ester voice
Very annoying
I am in the same chapter as the rest. Really cannot stand Esther voice. So annoying. I try the first epi, but stop instantly after hearing her still baby voice. Even she is pretty, but if she continues that voice, I would not watch. Compare tu CP4, Ju Jing Yi, I have watch her other drama, with Zhang Zhe Han, very good, her acting covers some of her drama’s flaws. At least she is worth watching. I prefer Xu Kai acting with Jing Tian. So lovely. 😍
Haha I’m on the same page as the first two commenters. Although I also dropped CP4, I think CP4 got everything better than CP6 except for obviously cheaper CGI. I dropped the drama just cos I’m personally a bit fed up with Cdramas after checking a slew of newly released products per online recommendations but found each one still relatively lacking compared with Kdrama. As to CP6, I dropped it after ep1 with a a lot of skipping. Even I like Xu Kai in Wonderland of Love and he doesn’t look over the top in CP6, the storyline and the directing of CP6 failed to appeal to me, let alone Esther Yu’s visuals + voice do not help at all. LMAO.
Not a fan of any CP. I’ve never watched the CP series besides CP4 & CP6. I don’t feel missing anything.
There are afew non idol dramas that is worth watching if goodd scripts are concern with good actors. One is 小城故事多 and other is 狗剩快跑. But 狗剩快跑 is about War thus you may not like that. To be honest, I feel China can still produce good dramas but their idol dramas are really bad. We have to sieve thru a a handful of not great ones to find watchable drama…
One other upcoming drama worth watching is 大唐狄公案 and 在暴雪时分 is a idol drama I am keen to watch too.
But we are lucky to have so many great dramas from different Countries…if you enever tried Thai lakorn, they have afew good ones. You can take a break from C-drama and watch others.
I’m looking forward to 在暴雪时分. I actually checked non idol dramas before. But usually slow pace and a lot of overacting are not to my taste.
I used to watch Thai dramas too, but like Taiwanese dramas, they’re declining for me. I still watch a lot Cdramas and less Kdramas.
@avarachika, I still watch more Cdramas because I dont need to read subs…reading subs can be so tiring and takes away the pleasure of watching the acting… But if a lakorn, kdrama interest, I will bear the annoyance..
I’ve watched CP3 before and while its a classic, I find the characters noisy and childish, and the plot to be nothing special. Still watchable though, and at least the old leads had great visuals. I think the whole CP series is geared toward young teens and children, as they are adapted from a game. So adults like us might find it abit immature.
This! Yes! I’ve seen CP 1, 3, and 5 and while it worked for the leads back then on CP 1 & CP 3, it was garnered towards younger audience. I felt like it was popular because of Hu Ge too. Plus, in all those 3 CPs I always felt the loveline for the second couple were better especially for CP 3 and CP 5. I didn’t even tune in for CP 4 & CP 6 because I felt like I’ve seen too much of CP and already have a grasp of what they are going to be about.
I watched CP6 and the pacing is really sloooow. I was very bored watching Xu Kai. Esther is supposed to be this naive, undergrown, childlike character, and IMO she nailed the character, but her charm can only do so much. Xu Kai was just boring as a character, and there were 2 of them! I thought he was reprising his role as Bai Jue for a sec (from Ancient Love Poetry.) But he’s serviceable – he can only do so much with a boring role. Though the storyline lacks momentum, I at least thought there was creativity in what’s happening in the plot. It’s currently watchable, but not the most entertaining watch.
Coralie, there is a Jackson Wang clip you should see…it is rather funny. I bet Jackson Wang gave the response only because he is being filled. Otherwise he would not have made that comment.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/FHiulzcE8Do
@HL apparently the girl who spoke to him in Korean is Chinese herself. I do enjoy his diehard patriotism which doesn’t feel fake, but this means he will only be popular with Asian countries and allies. He dropped off the radar since that scandal with Namewee, and apparently he cancelled his tour recently. I am wondering what’s going on with him
@Coralie, yes he cancelled his concert. I too wonder what is happening… He is just truly good looking and stylish….
Umm. The general consensus is opposite. Won’t waste my time on watching either dramas but almost every review I have heard/seen has said 4 is better than 6 although both dramas are a tragic waste of money & time. Major complains from 4 is that CZY’s acting regress & overacting & from 6 Ester’s voice is annoying as shit. Dropped by to see a short clip of 6 & I cannot bare Ester’s voice nor acting.
Dropped CP6 after the storyline was making no progress and focusing too much on the romance. Agree with the comments on Esther’s voice and visuals; the plot is just not good enough for me to ignore how grating she sounds.
CP4 barely has any romance and I enjoy it this way. Its refreshing seeing the four leads just being wholesome good friends and going through adventures / overcoming obstacles together.
I’m here for the Esther Yu baby voice comments!
I don’t know who these consensuses are but if you’ve watched both you could see that Sword and Fairy 4 has a far stronger storyline than Sword and Fairy 6. I love Xu Kai and Esther but Sword and Fairy 6 is just so juvenile in comparison.
I dropped both and could not continue for several reasons. I hope they stop making these types of CP adaptation.
Ooh I just learned that CP6 is actually considered the most accurate to the game so far, and a major reveal will happen at the end which will close off all plot holes (and is considered a VERY good twist). I do feel that the story so far hasn’t revealed too much (which is why I’m bored), and the pacing is slow, but now that I learned this… I’m more eager and excited to finish. Lots of fans of the game says this drama will be a cult classic by the time it finishes; let’s see if that’s true.
Oh, that is interesting…
I think so cp4 is better than cp 6
Cp 6 is kind of boaring it’s not that interested but cp 4 is very much interesting
I simply enjoy watching CP6 and rooting for the two Xu Kai, eagerly awaiting what happens next, how the two are related and what is their origin. Some people who knew the game attest to the fact that Xu Kai breathed real life to and portrayed well the game character. They say that the story line follows the game story as well. There’s awesome chemistry between the main leads and the other pairs too. So, if you’re a fan of Xu Kai or any of the cast and a true fan of the game, you will surely enjoy watching CP6. Don’t be discouraged by negative reviews. CP6 is definitely a good and an enjoyable watch.
Why are people saying CZY acting regressed. Don’t they know this was filmed a long time ago lol or are they comparing it to handsome siblings
That’s why the whole billing fiasco seems silly. A lot of dramas from china that have been held back for some time are slowly popping out. It does not surprise me if it is some what green, cheesy or corny. It sucks but that’s the price they pay for waiting and dragging stuff like that. It’s like what was trendy one year by one or two years May not be so trendy. Like if they fight over stuff like that and their rep in acting gets blown to pieces what is the point just embarrassing.
For me, CZY’s acting is superb! its very realistic according to the character he is portraying. I love the storyline of SF4 as well as the characters specially the two main leads!
I prefer CP4 to CP6 as well.
I’m currently watching both and though the beginning of CP4 was pretty underwhelming, it got so much better and more interesting later, especially once they finally reach the sect where it all began and become disciples themselves.
I also really love the friendship between the four main characters, though it took me a while to warm up to both Ziying and Mengli.
It’s not a drama I would watch again, but I’m genuinely interested in the story and how it will end. 🙂
I totally agree!!I’m lovin’ Sword & Fairy 4 that i keep on watching the previous episodes over and over again while waiting for the coming episodes. I really love the acting of CZY as Yun Tianhe! He is my favorite among the characters in SF4. Ep.33 is so heart breaking… Hoping the ending is not tragic..