I watched Joy of Life S2 (庆余年 第二季) just after I had completed the first season. So, it is a continuous story for me which makes it a pretty long saga thus far. The worry for sequels has always been about living up to the fans’ expectations especially when the previous season is a brilliant production. I did enjoy S1 and hence, I was eager to continue where it left off when I started S2. Basically, both seasons carry the same vibes but there are also a few downsides which I will try to expand on in my Joy Of Life S2 review below.
My rating: 8.5/10
Episodes: 36
Type: Palace
Aired: May 2024
Images Credit: Douban Movie
The Cast Of Joy Of Life S2
- Zhang Ruo Yun as Fan Xian
- Li Qin as Lin Wan Er
- Chen Dao Ming as Emperor of Qing
- Zhang Hao Wei as Li Cheng Qian
- Faye Yu as Empress of Qing
- Liu Duan Duan as Li Cheng Ze
- Fu Xin Bo as Li Cheng Ru
- Guo Zi Fan as Li Cheng Ping
- Li Xiao Ran as Li Yun Rui
- Du Yu Ming as Hong Si Xiang
- Li Zi Feng as Yan Xiao Yi
- Liu Run Nan as Li Hong Cheng
- Gina Jin as Ye Ling Er
- Yu Yang as Lin Ruo Fu
- Dong Ke Fei as Lin Da Bao
- Gao Shu Guang as Fan Jian
- Karina Zhao as Liu Ru Yu
- Song Yi as Fan Ruo Ruo
- Guo Qi Lin as Fan Si Zhe
- Wu Gang as Chen Ping Ping
- Tian Yu as Wang Qi Nian
- Liu Hua as Fei Jie
- Li Qiang as Yan Ruo Hai
- Wu Xing Jian as Yan Bing Yun
- Ailei Yu as Deng Zi Yue
- Tong Meng Shi as Wu Zhu
Characters
The core characters of S2 remained unchanged from Joy Of Life S1. However, there are a few additions to the characters as the story progresses in the second season.
The Fan Family
The Fan family members remain the same with Fan Jian being the head of the family and Minister of Revenue. He is married to Liu Ru Yu who is the cousin of Noble Consort Yi. Fan Jian has 2 sons, Fan Xian and Fan Si Zhe as well as a daughter, Fan Ruo Ruo. Fan Si Zhe is Liu Ru Yu’s biological son. The Fan family is a close knit and happy family.
The Imperial Family
The imperial family is headed by the Emperor of Qing kingdom. 4 sons appear in S2, namely Li Cheng Qian (Crown Prince), Li Cheng Ru (Eldest Prince), Li Cheng Ze (2nd Prince), and Li Cheng Ping (3rd Prince). The power struggle occurs mainly between the Crown Prince and the 2nd Prince. The Crown Prince’s mother is the Empress of Qing and wants her son to succeed the throne. The 2nd Prince is allied with the Royal Princess who has been sent back to her fief in Xinyang by the Emperor.
The Eldest Prince is a general who is often at the border defending the state. He is betrothed to the Eldest Princess of Beiqi in a marriage alliance. The 3rd Prince is a young man who is still naive and immature. His mother is Noble Consort Yi who is the cousin sister of Fan Xian’s stepmother, Liu Ru Yu.
Lin Wan Er is the daughter of the Royal Princess which makes her a cousin of the princes. Li Hong Cheng is the son of Prince Jing who is the Emperor’s brother. He is the 2nd Prince’s follower.
The Lin Family
The Lin family members comprise of Lin Ruo Fu as the patriarch, Lin Da Bao and Lin Wan Er. Lin Ruo Fu is also the Prime Minister of Qing with deep roots in the government administration. Lin Da Bao is his eldest son but suffers from mental retardation. Hence, Lin Da Bao only has the mental capacity of a young child. Lin Wan Er is his illegitimate daughter with the Royal Princes. Prime Minister Lin also had another son, Lin Gong, but the latter was killed in S1.
The Ye Family
The Ye family is headed by Ye Liu Yun who is one of the 4 grandmasters. His son, Ye Zhong, is chief of the capital’s garrison while Gong Dian is Ye Zhong’s subordinate. Ye Ling Er is Ye Zhong’s daughter and Lin Wan Er’s best friend.
The Investigator’s Office
The powerful Investigator’s Office continues to be headed by Chen Ping Ping. Yan Ruo Hai and Fei Jie remain his subordinates. Yan Ruo Hai’s son, Yan Bing Yun, resumes his position in the 4th Division of the Investigator’s Office after his return to Qing. A new character, Deng Zi Yue, is introduced as Fan Xian’s subordinate in the 1st Division of the organization while Wang Qi Nian continues to serve Fan Xian as his righthand man.
Ministers & Assistants
- Xie Bi An and Fan Wu Jiu – 2nd Prince’s guards
- Lai Ming Cheng – Chief Censor of Qing
- Guo Zheng – Minister of Rites
- Guo You Zhi – jailed ex-Minister of Rites
- Guo Bao Kun – Guo You Zhi’s son
- Xin Qi Wu – Deputy Chief of State Ceremonials
- Yuan Hong Dao – Prime Minister Lin’s advisor
- Shi Chan Li – scholar and Fan Xian’s retainer
- General Qin – old respected general of Qing
- Qin Heng – General Qin’s son
- Eunuch Hou – Emperor’s attendant
- Eunuch Dai – Head of Vegetables and Food Supplies for the palace
- Eunuch Hong – Eunuch Dai’s subordinate
Synopsis
The story continues from Season 1. Fan Xian returns to Qing with the knowledge that the 2nd Prince has been involved in smuggling activities in the neighboring state. With Fan Xian’s refusal to be the 2nd Prince’s ally, they end up plotting and counter-plotting against each other as Fan Xian tries to expose the prince’s crimes. In the meantime, the Crown Prince also wants Fan Xian on his side as he fights with the 2nd Prince to strengthen his position.
Amidst all these political battles, the Emperor is closely observing and taking advantage of the situation to achieve his own agenda. As Fan Xian’s resolve to expose the 2nd Prince and seek justice for the oppressed gets stronger and stronger, he finds himself being caught in the Emperor’s game plan.
The Joy Of Life S2 Ending & Recap (Spoilers Alert!)
The Joy Of Life S2 ends with Fan Xian recovering back his internal energy force which he lost following an injury. He is also in the midst of taking over the royal treasury and business in Jiangnan. The business called the Three Great Workshops is being overseen by the Ming family who reports to the Royal Princess and 2nd Prince. The Royal Princess intends to stop Fan Xian from taking over and has arranged for a grandmaster from the Ye family to kill him. However, Fan Xian successfully gambles that Ye Liu Yun wouldn’t do so because if he does, the Ye family would just incur the Emperor’s wrath.
However, Ye Liu Yun did put his message across that he is unhappy with the Emperor’s treatment of his family. The Qing Emperor is displeased with Ye Liu Yun who has continuously ignored his order to return to the capital that the Ye family became his target. An assassination attempt is set up in Episode 29 so that the Emperor can use it as an excuse to banish Ye Liu Yun’s son, Ye Zhong, to the border in Episode 30. This is because Ye Zhong is in charged of the capital’s defense and security. In fact, all the grandmasters have no fear of the royalties and this doesn’t sit well with the Emperor.
Qing Emperor’s Power Plays
Chief Censor Lai Ming Cheng is flogged to death in Episode 15 and Fan Xian is ordered to oversee the punishment. This is supposedly because the Chief Censor was critical of the Emperor for allowing the Investigator’s Office to have such vast powers. But Chen Ping Ping tells Fan Xian that the punishment is because the Chief Censor had seek Fan Xian’s help and overreached into the Investigator’s Office. For the Emperor, Fan Xian is not supposed to be close to other officials and departments. With the Chief Censor’s death, the Censor Department officials will end up hating Fan Xian.
Similarly, Prime Minister Lin is forced to request for retirement in Episode 22. This is after his advisor attempted to kill a woman who is accusing the Prime Minister for murdering her husband. The whole episode is a set up whereby the Emperor has taken advantage of the 2nd Prince’s plot to bring down Fan Xian. He slot in an opportunity to disgrace Prime Minister Lin in the plot since he deems the latter as being too influential. With Prime Minister Lin’s retirement, Fan Xian will lose a strong support in the capital. In Episode 23, Prime Minister Lin realizes that the Emperor not only wants to replace him but to abolish the position altogether.
2nd Prince’s Mindset
The 2nd Prince tells Ye Ling Er in Episode 16 that he was forced deeper and deeper into the abyss by his father. He is the tool that is being used to train up the Crown Prince. He was made a court official from a young age and naturally became the Crown Prince’s rival. Deep down in his heart, the 2nd Prince admires Fan Xian and feels that what is happening between them is just a misunderstanding. However, he cannot withdraw from the political games that everyone is playing. This is because nobody would believe that he has no interest in the throne. He will just end up dead by being passive.
Fan Xian & Wan Er
The 2nd Prince finds out from Ye Ling Er that Fan Xian had a motive to kill Lin Gong in Episode 24. This is because Lin Gong was involved in an assassination attempt on Fan Xian’s life which resulted in his guard’s death in S1. Wu Zhu subsequently killed Lin Gong on Fan Xian’s behalf.
The 2nd Prince kept his promise to Ye Ling Er not to use the information to disrupt Fan Xian and Wan Er’s wedding which is decreed by the Emperor. The couple got married in Episode 25. The 2nd Prince finally tells Wan Er about Fan Xian’s involvement in Lin Gong’s death in Episode 31 after rumors surfaced that Fan Xian is the Emperor’s son with Ye Qing Mei and is on track to take over the royal treasury.
This pushes Wan Er to ask Fan Xian about it in Episode 32. Fan Xian is forced to tell her that it was Wu Zhu who killed her brother. Wan Er wants to avenge Lin Gong’s death but stops herself from killing an injured Wu Zhu in Episode 33. This is because she still needs Wu Zhu to protect Fan Xian from the Royal Princess who wants her husband dead. Wu Zhu also promises her that she could take his life after his duty is done.
Fan Xian’s Paternity
Rumors surfaced that Fan Xian is the Emperor’s son in Episode 31. This is after Fan Xian nearly lost his life in Episode 30 after fighting off an assassination attempt on the Emperor in Episode 29. The rumors are spread with the Emperor’s consent through Chen Ping Ping. The Emperor then brings Fan Xian to see his mother’s portrait in Episode 32 and admits that he is his father in Episode 33. He does have feelings for Ye Qing Mei and misses her.
However, the revelation leaves Fan Xian wondering about the Emperor’s sincerity. Fan Xian is unsure if he is the Emperor’s son or pawn as the latter always has a mask on. His value as a son also seems to depend on his performance in the various tests set up for him. Furthermore, he has no interest to be a prince. Hence, he makes his stand clear that he is a Fan family member in front of the princes to deter suspicion about his intention in Episode 33.
Fan Xian’s Royal Enemies
After Fan Xian’s identity becomes public knowledge, the Royal Princess is more determined to have him killed in Episode 31. This is because she is resentful of the fact that she has been doing all the dirty deeds for the Emperor and being his dagger but he ends up snatching away her control of the royal treasury to be given to Ye Qing Mei’s son.
At the same time, the Empress also wants Fan Xian dead. Her clansmen killed Ye Qing Mei and the Emperor massacred her whole clan in return. She saw all her kin being killed that left her with deep-seated trauma and resentment. However, the Crown Prince wants her mother to apologize to Fan Xian instead and let bygones be bygones because of his selfish intention to get Fan Xian on his side against the 2nd Prince. He convinces his mother to endure until the time is right to kill Fan Xian. Hence, the Empress requests the Emperor’s permission to meet Fan Xian in Episode 32 but is turned down.
Wu Zhu’s Background
In Episode 28, Wu Zhu tells Fan Xian that he remembers Ye Qing Mei had kept some items that she brought from the Divine Temple. Those items were supposed to be destroyed as they don’t belong in the current world but they have been left behind for some reason. The items could help Fan Xian to change his fate when used but it could have an impact on the future. Moreover, those items need to be fixed before they can be used and that can only be done by the Three Great Workshops in Jiangnan which was started by his mother.
In Episode 32, it is revealed that Wu Zhu is actually from the Divine Temple. He has memory lapses and flashbacks of the past that come and go. An envoy from the Divine Temple has been sent to capture him as well as Fan Xian to bring them back to their world. The envoy has been involved in some killings that Fei Jie has been trying to track down until he is stopped by Chen Ping Ping from meddling into the affair. The Emperor’s plan is to have both Wu Zhu and the envoy fight and hurt each other and then kill them both at the same time. But Wu Zhu manages to escape from the royal archers after killing the envoy although he is heavily injured after the fight.
Joy Of Life S2 Review – The Story Continues…
Basically, Joy Of Life S2 carries on from where S1 ends. So, if you have not watched the first season, you will need to go back and watch that first unlike the Sword And Fairy series which have standalone stories for each drama. Otherwise, you won’t be able to understand what is happening at all. And like S1, it can be frustrating having to wait for another season for the completion of the story. It is going to be a long wait and it is partly why I was kind of reluctant to watch this in the beginning. But the temptation was too great given the high ratings and here I’m with a review!
From what I have seen, S2 tries to follow as closely as possible to the success formula that defines S1. It has the same comedic elements and the main characters emit the same vibes that make them stand out in the prequel. So, you don’t feel that much has changed although there is a 5-year gap between the 2 seasons. Of course, some things can’t be helped as the actors become older and this is obvious for a few supporting characters especially if you watch the 2 seasons back-to-back like I did.
The other is the minor change in the cast. Well, it will be a tall order to get Xiao Zhan to continue to play such a small role for 2 seasons. Hence, certain characters will have different actors from S1. But the good thing is the main characters remain the same and let’s hope it is kept that way in S3. Otherwise, I think the series will lose some of its flavor given that the actors have left a deep impression on the viewers for the roles they play.
Not As Suspenseful As S1
To me, there is more suspense in S1. This is because the characters’ motives and their alliances are still vague then. Hence, I was left guessing who is truly for and against the male protagonist for the most part of the first season. By the time S2 comes along, the characters and the story have become more developed. This provides a clearer picture of what each of them is up to and hence, most of the suspense is gone.
However, the layered storytelling is still there and this is where the drama continues to shine. With each character’s personality and motive being more evident, they are then used to create more plotting and counter-plotting in the story which is just as, if not more, interesting than the last season. This is what you will be watching. It is like one big chess game with a few hidden players making secret moves behind the scenes.
The Emperor’s end goal is still unconfirmed though and the same goes for the chief of the Investigator’s Office. But their actions are both hateful and intelligent. Hence, the drama does not need to rely on suspense anymore but a clever way of presenting the characters’ mind games.
Excellent Scriptwriting
Joy Of Life is not an easy story to tell. With a plot within a plot kind of tale, viewers could easily get confused or the plot becomes too dragged out. But this did not happen in both S1 and S2. In fact, S2 begins to see more of the Emperor’s hidden hands. His mind is hard to read and his actions are shrewd and calculated. He gets what he wants without having any fingers pointing back at him because he has the brains to take advantage of others to achieve his aims. And the brilliance is these people may not even know that he had made use of them.
Therefore, what makes Joy Of Life interesting is that both the hero and villains are sly and brainy people. It is an equal battle of wits. It is an intelligent script that does not lay everything upfront in black and white. Instead, it teases viewers with hints, subtleties, and mind games. Some scenes will require you to decipher the meaning behind certain words and actions especially those scenes involving the Emperor.
Thus, attention is needed when you watch Joy Of Life. It is not straightforward like a typical historical drama such as Blossoms In Adversity and Wonderland Of Love. You have to listen to the dialogues and understand them before you can get the significance of the characters’ actions. But they will leave you marveling at the plot and counterplot that is written into the story.
Well-Developed Characters
The other thing that I enjoyed when I watched Joy Of Life S2 is the well-written characters. They are more well-developed in this drama compared to the prequel. This is because their motivations are better fleshed out as the story unfolds. Hence, you are able to see what impels the characters to continue with their power play.
Furthermore, you can’t really hate the villains because they have their own hardship and point of view. So, the villains are not one-dimensional but complex characters. For instance, the 2nd Prince may have done a lot of bad deeds but he is not totally heartless. I think this is partly why the drama is engaging. The characters do not appear as superficial but leave a deep impression on the viewers instead.
My Verdict – Watch!
If you have watched S1 and like the story, it only makes sense for you to watch S2. Both seasons have comparable quality and storytelling style. Hence, the continuity is there and you won’t feel things are too different despite the long gap between the first and second season. The costumes, cinematography, storyline and plot execution are all top notch. It is definitely one of the best productions this year.
Like the first season, it doesn’t have much romance in it and the female lead’s presence is limited throughout the drama. It is great for those who like palace politics and power games. It also goes beyond that with layers of ambiguity and hidden agendas. The whole story is an intricate one but told in a way that leaves you awed at the mind games that go on underneath the surface. if you prefer direct and in-your-face type of storytelling, then this drama will feel laborious as you need to follow the dialogues and understand the artful schemings that form the core of the drama.
For this review of the Joy Of Life S2, I would rate it 8.5/10. I enjoyed it as much as S1. I’m also looking forward to S3. Unfortunately, we will have to wait for all the answers to be revealed in the third season. S2 still fails to tell us more about the time travel and the protagonist’s late mother’s life. The end goal of certain characters and what they have in mind for the protagonist are still vague although we could probably guess. Again, this means waiting for confirmation of all the answers which isn’t a nice feeling. But at the very least, the ending isn’t as dramatic as the first season and for that, it is one annoyance less!
Leave a Reply