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dangermousie · 3 years

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Is there some kind of primer on the Novoland series's? I've been thinking about dipping my toe into the pool, but there's so much info online that I'm not sure where to start or what I need to know before starting lol it's a bit intimidating...

Why would you need a primer when you have me, your friendly neighborhood obsessive?!

Basically, not sure how much you know about it, but Novoland is basically a shared world a bunch of authors play it. So shared species, georgraphy etc but you don’t need to have seen any other dramas to watch any further ones, sort of like you don’t need to watch any other dramas set in the Ming Dynasty to watch a particular drama set in that dynasty.

There have been four dramas and a movie released so far. From my most fave to least tho I like all of them.

Novoland Eagle Flag - loosely based on a series of novels by one of the two founders of the Novoland universe. It’s basically a drama perfectly tailored to my fictional preferences, which means it’s gorgeous, grim, and full of noble, conflicted and angsty characters. It’s smart and fierce and emotional and has a crazy attention to detail in things like battles and costumes. It’s high fantasy-ish (it’s not fully high fantasy imo). 56 eps (cut down from original cut of 68 that I would kill to get my hands on.) Some people didn’t like it because of its grimness/angst (so it would depend on whether you are an angst junkie or not; it’s not Royal Nirvana level of relentless pain, but it’s often tragic) and had fits about the ending but I thought the ending was fitting and liked it. (But I often like endings fandom has fits about; if you need spoilers, pm me.)

Trailer: https://youtu.be/M-ATw-s-zc8

Tribes and Empires Storm of Prophecy - taking place in a different part of the world/different time than Eagle Flag, with no character overlap. Based on a novel by the other founder of the Novoland universe. It is also the most visually stunning drama you are likely to see, unless you watch The Longest Day in Chang’an from the same director in which case they are neck and neck (side note - Chang’an is not part of Novoland in any way; but I still highly recommend it.) It follows a huge cast of characters but its mains are three men - a despised half-spirit prince, a warrior thrown out by his noble family because they believe he’s cursed to end the dynasty, and a barbarian warlord seeking retribution against the bloated empire. It is AMAZING. It’s 75 eps so if you want fast paced, probably not the drama for you, but I find it so dense and resonant and rich that I don’t mind it. Fandom had fits about the ending (it ends in medias res) but I didn’t mind because it was so so so good.

Trailer: https://youtu.be/NzyNqyACPg0

Novoland Castle In the Sky - if the other two are grim epic fantasies this one is basically a shoujo manga come to life. A young girl with a destiny; a powerless winged emperor. Unlike the other two, this clocks in at a slim 28 episodes. It’s much better than your run of the mill web romance/fantasy however for two reasons - the visuals are gorgeous and Zhang Ruo Yun who plays the male lead. He has since become a sensation thanks to Joy of Life, but he’s always been a complete scene stealer and he does it here. The script, while no masterpiece, is surprisingly solid for this type of drama. This one has two released endings - one tragic that had all the fandom lose its mind. The other one happy. Pick your own adventure. I will say that in light of Castle in the Sky 2, the happy one is the one that is the “real” one.

Have a MV: https://youtu.be/xWmX6mzkW6M

Novoland Castle in the Sky 2 - you do not need to have watched Castle 1, but it follows the adventures of the daughter of the OTP from it. She is the new empress, is in love with a magician, etc. It’s cute and Jeremy Tsui is a treat for the eyes, but I haven’t finished it yet. Everything I’ve read indicates the angst ratchets in the second half and I can’t wait.

MV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJAS2iVne4M

The movie is Novoland The Castle In the Sky Time Reversal. I haven’t seen it yet (I am not as big on movies as dramas) but it does look pretty. It’s the most tied to another entry in the series out of the bunch because it’s the story of the hot uncle from Castle in the Sky 1.

MV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQfzUrdRiT4

The two upcoming Novoland dramas are:

Novoland Pearl Eclipse, starring Yang Mi and William Chan, two of my huge faves, and rumored to come out in the summer. Trailer looks epic:

https://youtu.be/CfJ43yn3Flw

Novoland Princess from Plateau, starring Peng Xiao Ran and Feng Shao Feng, no trailer yet, but she marries him for revenge and he for schemes but they fall for each other for real, tragedy ensues.

Happy watching whichever one you choose! And if you choose none, happy watching whatever it is you do choose to watch!

#asks #cdrama

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