Ashes Of Love Review

I’m only watching Ashes Of Love in 2020 when I should have done it 2 years ago. Well, it is better late than never… that is if the drama is good. I will give my opinion whether it is so in my Ashes Of Love review below. To cut to the chase if you are short of time, I would say that this drama is a bit draggy. After all, it is 63 episodes all together. It is quite daunting to start and that is the main reason why I have waited so long to dedicate some time to watch it. Even if I kind of like Allen Deng Lun, I hesitated for so long before I took the plunge. If you decide to give it a go now, I sincerely hope you will end up enjoying it!

My rating: 7.5/10
Episodes: 63
Type: Romance, Xianxia
Aired: August 2018
Images Credit: Tencent

The Cast Of Ashes Of Love

• Yang Zi as Jin Mi
• Allen Deng Lun as Xu Feng / Fire Immortal
• Leo Luo Yun Xi as Run Yu / Night Immortal
• Yukee Chen Yu Qi as Liu Ying
• Faye Wang Yi Fei as Sui He
• Zhou Ting Wei as Qi Yuan / Mu Ci
• He Zhong Hua as Emperor Tai Wei
• Kathy Chow Hoi Mei as Empress Tu Yao
• Liao Jing Feng as Pu Chi / Yan You
• Xia Zhi Yuan as Dan Zhu / Moon Immortal
• Wang Ren Jun as Luo Lin / Water Immortal
• Wang Yuan Ke as Lin Xiu / Wind Immortal
• Fan Jin Lin as Lord of Dong Ting Lake / Su Li
• Bella Du Yu chen as Kuang Lu
• Zhang Yan Yan as Flower Goddess / Zi Fen
• Yao Qing Ren as King Bian Cheng

The Main Characters

Jin Mi

Jin Mi is brought up as an innocent and naive grape sprite of the Floral Realm. She leads a very carefree and sheltered life as she is disallowed to leave the realm by Chief Peony who is the leader. Jin Mi has a very friendly and bubbly nature. Her mother is Zi Fen who was the Flower Goddess but this fact is kept a secret from her.

Xu Feng

Xu Feng is the second prince of the Heavenly Realm. He also holds the title of God of War and is a Fire Immortal. His true form is a fiery phoenix. Xu Feng is capable and respected but has no interest in dirty politics. He is not keen to fight for the throne despite pressure from his mother, Empress Tu Yao. Xu Feng has a half-brother in Run Yu. He also loves Jin Mi.

Run Yu

Run Yu is the eldest prince of the Heavenly Realm. He is a Night Immortal and his true form is a water dragon. He is gentle and soft-spoken with a kind demeanor. Run Yu appears harmless and has learned to stay in the background to avoid running foul of the Empress who is his step-mother. Compared to Xu Feng, he has a lower status being a concubine’s son although he doesn’t know who she might be. Run Yu also has feelings for Jin Mi.

Liu Ying

Liu Ying is a demon princess. Her father is King Bian Cheng, one of the demon lords. Liu Ying is an outspoken individual but upright and principled. She is also a loyal friend to Xu Feng. Although she can be impulsive, Liu Ying is also courageous and not afraid of offending her enemies.

Sui He

Sui He is a princess from the Bird Tribe. Her aunt is Empress Tu Yao and through her support, she could become the tribe’s leader. Sui He is a jealous and spiteful immortal. She loves Xu Feng but it is unrequited which causes her to develop hatred towards her love rival, Jin Mi.

Qi Yuan / Mu Ci

Qi Yuan is Empress Tu Yao’s secret subordinate who does her dirty deeds. He wears a mask as he has another identity in his past which is Mu Ci. Qi Yuan has his own reason for working for the cruel Empress.

Emperor Tai Wei

Emperor Tai Wei is the ruler of the Heavenly Realm. He is a father to Run Yu and Xu Feng. Tai Wei’s true form is a fiery dragon. He is a cunning and ambitious man who would not hesitate to resort to unethical and evil means to attain power. He rules by pitting one party against another to achieve a balance of power that would not threaten his position.

Empress Tu Yao

Empress Tu Yao is cruel and suspicious. She is Tai Wei’s wife and mother to Xu Feng. Tu Yao is also the Bird Tribe’s ruler. Her greatest wish is for Xu Feng to succeed his father. She also loves power and extremely jealous of Tai Wei’s other women. Hence, Tu Yao will stop at nothing to eliminate rivals whom she thinks are standing in her way.

Pu Chi / Yan You

Pu Chi is also known as Yan You. He is a Snake Immortal and good friend of Jin Mi after saving her life from a demonic beast called Qiong Qi. Pu Chi is a very playful immortal who likes to joke around. But underneath all the playfulness, he does have his own agenda as the Lord of Dong Ting Lake’s foster son. Together with the Rat Immortal, he will carry out his foster mother’s instructions.

Dan Zhu / Moon Immortal

Dan Zhu is the Moon Immortal who oversees love and marriages of mortal beings. He is a youthful-looking immortal who likes matchmaking others. He is always trying to get Xu Feng and Jin Mi to end up as a pair. Dan Zhu is a funny and cheerful character who provides lighthearted moments in the drama. He is the younger brother of Tai Wei and Lian Chao which makes him an uncle to Xu Feng and Run Yu.

Luo Lin / Water Immortal

Luo Lin is the Water Immortal and an old friend of Tai Wei. He is a powerful immortal but prefers to keep out of political affairs to lead a quiet life. Luo Lin is upright but also practical in letting go of the past despite the misgivings and injustice. He married Lin Xiu but used to be Zi Fen’s lover.

Lin Xiu / Wind Immortal

Lin Xiu is the Wind Immortal. Her husband is Luo Lin and the marriage was decreed by Tai Wei. Lin Xiu’s relationship with Luo Lin is more like friends than actual husband and wife. Hence, they have no children of their own. Lin Xiu is gentle and kind.

Lord Of Dong Ting Lake / Su Li

Su Li is the Lord of Dong Ting Lake. She is a princess of the Dragonfish Tribe. Su Li saved Pu Chi when he was a kid and he becomes her foster son. Su Li is obsessed with revenge but has a tragic background that pushes her down that path.

Kuang Lu

Kuang Lu is the daughter of Immortal Tai Ji and willingly serve under Run Yu as his personal assistant. She loves him but it is a one-sided affair. Nevertheless, Kuang Lu chooses to remain with Run Yu and unwilling to marry another.

Flower Goddess / Zi Fen

Zi Fen was the Flower Goddess and ruler of the Floral Realm. She was a beautiful immortal who died after giving birth to Jin Mi. Zi Fen had an ill-fated love affair which destroyed her life and wanted Jin Mi to avoid the same experience.

King Bian Cheng

King Bian Cheng is one of the Demon Lords and father to Liu Ying. He is an upright demon who prefers peace over war with the Heavenly Realm. His main enemy is another Demon Lord, King Gu Cheng, who coverts the throne and wants to replace the current Demon Ruler, King Yan Cheng, with himself.

Synopsis

Jin Mi is the daughter of the Flower Goddess Zi Fen who died after giving birth to her. When she was born, Zi Fen fed her the Yun Elixir which caused Jin Mi to be detached from love. She foresaw that Jin Mi would face a love trial in 10,000 years’ time and didn’t want her to face the same fate as her. Zi Fen also ordered the Floral Realm Chiefs to hide Jin Mi’s real identity so that she can grow up to be carefree. As such, Jin Mi is raised as a grape sprite. She is not told that she is Zi Fen’s daughter and is confined in the Floral Realm.

Xu Feng is the second Prince of the Heavenly Realm and falls into the Floral Realm while escaping from an attacker. Jin Mi saves him. Meeting Xu Feng gives her the opportunity to get out of the Floral Realm. Xu Feng brings her back to the Heavenly Realm and makes her his reading assistant. He gradually falls in love with her. At the same time, his half-brother, Run Yu, also develops feelings for Jin Mi. But Jin Mi is ignorant about love and romance due to the Yun Elixir. Xu Feng’s mother is also against his relationship with Jin Mi and suspicious of Run Yu whom she thinks is after the throne. This causes Xu Feng and Run Yu to have a fall out as they fight over Jin Mi.

Ashes Of Love Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

Does Ashes Of Love have a happy ending? Yes, it does and it is far from being a tragedy. But the happy ending for Xu Feng and Jin Mi only comes after 500 years. After her death, Xu Feng continues to look for her primordial spirit. It takes him 500 years before he finds her in the Mortal Realm. She is now reborn as a shopkeeper’s daughter and to be married off. Xu Feng snatches her away from her wedding procession to live happily in the Mortal Realm. They have a son a year later. You can check out my Ashes Of Love drama recap for more details of what happened at the end as well as throughout the whole drama.

Did Jin Mi Die?

Jin Mi chooses to stop the war between the immortals and demons. She feels that if her one life could save thousands, then it is something that she should do. The war between Xu Feng and Run Yu also started because of her. Hence, she flies up and places herself between Xu Feng and Run Yu as they cast their powers. It is a suicide mission and both of their powers kill her.

After she dies, her primordial spirit is hidden in Xu Feng’s eyes. For 3 years, she quietly absorbs the coldness in Xu Feng’s body which was the effect of the tampered Reviving Elixir. She eventually turns into a tear. When Xu Feng cries, Jin Mi appears for one last time from a fallen tear and then dies moments later just like a tear drying up. He spends the next 500 years looking for her again.

Did Jin Mi Marry Run Yu?

Jin Mi didn’t marry Run Yu although she agreed to a wedding when Xu Feng and Sui He’s marriage is announced. She also knows that Run Yu has sacrificed a lot for her. But Jin Mi backs out when she overhears Run Yu’s conversation with Sui He. She is horrified that Run Yu has resorted to devious means to break up her relationship with Xu Feng and harm him. These include tampering with the Reviving Elixir and hiding her father’s real murderer from her and framing Xu Feng for it.

So, who did Jin Mi marry in the end? Xu Feng, of course! But it is not a marriage that they have planned themselves. Dan Zhu, Pu Chi, and Liu Ying take advantage of a unique situation and force Jin Mi to become Xu Feng’s bride during a planned wedding ceremony by using the puppet curse on her. The wedding ceremony is actually a plan to expose Sui He’s lies. The plan is for Liu Ying to take Sui He’s place as the bride to anger her. But the unexpected arrival of Dan Zhu, Pu Chi, and Jin Mi results in a last minute change which even Xu Feng is unaware of. Instead of Liu Ying, they force Jin Mi to be the bride.

Who Killed Jin Mi’s Father?

The real killer of Jin Mi’s father is Sui He. She takes on Xu Feng’s persona to kill the Water and Wind Immortals because of her deep hatred for Jin Mi. Sui He is extremely jealous of her because she occupies Xu Feng’s heart. Sui He’s ultimate wish is to marry Xu Feng and to be with him. Hence, she will do whatever it takes to have Xu Feng.

In the end, Sui He’s lies are exposed. Xu Feng didn’t kill her as she is his savior after all. But he did take back her glass fire spell which Tu Yao transferred to her. Liu Ying banishes Sui He to the wasteland and forbids her from leaving the Demon Realm. Sui He eventually becomes insane and a victim of King Yang Cheng’s crazy sons whom she once spitefully banished to a cavern.

Why Did Jin Mi Kill Xu Feng?

Jin Mi kills Xu Feng because she thought that he murdered her father and Aunt Lin Xiu. She is also being manipulated by Run Yu who repaired the crack in her Yun Elixir to stop her from loving Xu Feng. Run Yu takes a gamble during their wedding ceremony to usurp the throne. His excuse is filial piety. He is avenging the death of his mother and the extermination of her tribe. The world spins and Jin Mi becomes confused. She stabs Xu Feng in the back in her confusion and kills him.

However, Xu Feng didn’t die because his father uses all his powers to collect his spirit in his phoenix feather hairpin. He gives the hairpin to Sui He before he dies from the effort. Sui He uses her powers to keep Xu Feng’s body intact. But he still needs the Reviving Elixir to be resurrected which Jin Mi sacrifices much to get.

Did Run Yu End Up With Kuang Lu?

The short answer is no. Nothing happened between them although Kuang Lu loves Run Yu and has remained with him through the good times and bad. She still stays on as his subordinate. But Run Yu’s only love is Jin Mi and he can only have a distant relationship with her. In the end, Run Yu remains as the Emperor of the Heavenly Realm. It is a case of he has everything but also nothing. While he repents, his life has also become empty as he can’t have the love that he wants.

Liu Ying And Mu Ci

Their love has a tragic ending as Mu Ci dies. With the silkworms ravaging his body, Mu Ci decides to asks Xu Feng to kill them for him with his fire spell. But the side effects of that is his body will gradually weaken and he will end up like a mortal. He would also live for 10 years only. His death is sped up when he is captured by King Gu Cheng and forced to craft the Immortality Destructing Arrow to kill Xu Feng. This severely weakens him and he dies right after marrying Liu Ying.

By then, Liu Ying is already pregnant with their child and ends up with a daughter. Liu Ying also becomes the Demon Ruler later on when Xu Feng gives up the position to go and look for Jin Mi after her death.

Empress Tu Yao’s Death

After Run Yu succeeded in grabbing the throne, he locks up Tu Yao at Lin Yuan Terrace. It is the same place that Tu Yao once forced Zi Fen to jump down from which caused the latter’s death later. Tu Yao ends up with much disappointment. Her son and husband have died then. Run Yu is now the Emperor. She has lost everything. Finally, she also jumps down from the terrace. The last straw is a gift from Lian Chao whom he had promised her years earlier. Lian Chao and Tu Yao used to be lovers. But she married Tai Wei when Lian Chao was thought to have died during the war with the demons.

Ashes Of Love Review – Watchable But Draggy!

Ashes Of Love has lots of fans worldwide and many think that it is a top rated drama. I concur that the plot is intriguing. A female who is incapable of love because of an elixir lodged in her heart being fought over by 2 powerful immortals who are half-siblings do make a compelling story. There is a lot of depth to the tale apart from the typical jealousy angle. It is also well-told unlike Love Of Thousand Years which wasted a good storyline.

Furthermore, the main characters grow as the drama progresses. This means they are not so one-dimensional to me but develop as they go through heartaches and bitter experiences. Run Yu is the most interesting one to me although you may have your own favorite Ashes Of Love character. The production team did a good job to make viewers understand and sympathize with Run Yu. It is not easy to make viewers love a villain but I think they managed to do it pretty well in this drama. You can kind of feel his pain.

Acting And Chemistry

I’m fine with the acting and chemistry of the main leads. They did a good job with the casting. Leo Luo shines in his Run Yu role. He personifies the ‘still water runs deep’ kind of character really well. He can appear gentle and kind but also quietly sinister with just his facial expression. I also like his portrayal of Rong Qi in Princess Silver. Leo Luo seems to be very adept at portraying this kind of tragic role. It would be interesting to see him in And The Winner Is Love next.

Allen Deng Lun and Yang Zi are also able to create the right chemistry as a couple. Their interactions with each other flow naturally on-screen especially during their trials in the Mortal Realm. At least, I can root for them despite their character flaws. I have no complaints about Yang Zi’s acting although her character can be kind of annoying in the beginning. Perhaps it is a little overdone by the actress but I’m prepared to fault the character that she is given rather than her acting ability. As for Allen Deng, I think he lacks the dark side aura on-screen to be a convincing demon. He certainly could have done a better job with it in my opinion.

I guess the character everyone hates the most must be Empress Tu Yao. Kathy Chow must have done a good job playing that role if everyone ends up hating her! She is a veteran actress and I guess there is nothing much that she can’t handle. She emits so much hatred and evilness just by her glare which she typically uses for this kind of role. Kathy Chow is also in Heaven Sword And Dragon Sabre 2019 and the same expressive glare is present there as well.

What I Don’t Like About Ashes Of Love

Having mentioned what I like about this drama, I should also add what I dislike about it. I don’t like that it is 63 episodes in length. It is too long that the pacing is a little slow to my liking at times. They could have easily reduced it by 5 episodes, if not more, especially in the first half of the story. Jin Mi’s naivete seems to go on endlessly when they have already made a point from the very beginning that she has been fed the Yun Elixir. So, I can understand why some viewers find Jin Mi to be highly irritating. Perhaps the producers have overstretched the fact that she is ignorant.

The other drama that is slightly longer than Ashes Of Love is Legend Of Fuyao with 66 episodes. The difference is Legend Of Fuyao is more than just romance. There is also a lot of palace intrigues and power struggles in that drama. On the other hand, most of the happenings in Ashes Of Love revolve around Jin Mi. So, if you prefer more sub-plots for this kind of epic tales, Ashes Of Love could end up feeling very draggy. The story keeps getting bogged down by Jin Mi’s ignorance.

As for the romance which is what this drama is all about, it still lags behind Eternal Love Ten Miles Of Peach Blossoms for me. The love story of the main couple in Eternal Love is more straightforward. In Ashes Of Love, you have 2 immortals fighting for Jin Mi and going to war over her which is kind of over the top. Add in the fact that Jin Mi was having an affair with Xu Feng while still betrothed to Run Yu also stains the romance in a way.

My Verdict

So, is Ashes Of Love worth watching after all? Well, I would still recommend it if you can put up with a very innocent female character for about 20 episodes or so. Some people like to watch decisive and intelligent heroines like the one in Legend Of Yun Xi. You don’t find it in Jin Mi who is more on the cute and innocent end of the scale. But the plot itself is interesting and unique which is why I still recommend a watch for this Ashes Of Love review.

Overall, I would give this drama a rating of 7.5/10. Be prepared for it to be draggy or even irritated by the female character. But it picks up gradually and Jin Mi also becomes more matured as the drama progresses. You just need to sit through it until you get there! Watch it for the story and Run Yu’s transformation but skip it if you really can’t stand naive heroines.

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