I usually embrace change readily but one thing I remain adamantly old school about are wuxia dramas. I don’t do fantasy wuxia or RPG wuxia because it’s like some weird hybrid of silliness without the epic depth. I’ve watched a few of Tangren’s takes such as Chinese Paladin, Chinese Paladin 3, and Xuan Yuan Sword and none of them were my cup of tea other than watching for the actors or actresses I like. The just announced big-budget fantasy wuxia drama Gu Jian Qi Tan (Ancient Sword Fantasy Tale) is based on the best selling role playing game (RPG) of the same name and the cast from top down has me guaranteed to tune in. Starring Li Yi Feng, Yang Mi, Jia Nai Liang, Zheng Shuang, and Ma Tian Yu, among others, this is a sprawling cast of pretty young things in what sounds like a pretty entertaining romp. Speculation has been rampant for the last few years since the game was released as to the cast for a live-action version and when news of this casting was first announced a few days ago, it wasn’t clear who was playing who. Then the character leaks came down and when I read that my baby boy Feng Feng was playing guy1 Bai Li Tu Su I toppled off my chair in shock. He’s definitely perfect for the role and I was worried Jia Nai Liang was getting the headlining role since he’s a relatively bigger name in the industry, but this time he’s playing the good guy-turned-bad second male lead Ouyang Shao Gong. Yang Mi continues to work non-stop and returns to the wuxia RPG world as leading lady Feng Qing Xue, a good 4 years since she did CP3. Read on for the story synopsis and a look at the cast opposite their RPG counterpart from the game. The official casting confirmation will come on July 2nd when filming begins but if my Feng Feng is NOT the reported Bai Li Tu Su imma making voodoo dolls to curse the myopic production company. Continue reading →