Overlord Chinese Drama Review

I was attracted to Overlord (九流霸主) or Jiu Liu Overlord because of the female lead in Bai Lu. But I was also thinking that this historical drama could probably offer something new as the main male character is not the typical prince or general but a merchant. So, the storyline should be different than the usual. Well, that was what I thought anyway. My Overlord review below will have more details on the plot and ending if you are interested to find out more before you watch.

My rating: 6.5/10
Episodes: 36
Type: Romance
Aired: October 2020
Images Credit: Tencent

The Cast Of Overlord

• Bai Lu as Long Ao Yi
• Leon Lai Yi as Li Qing Liu
• Alen Fang Yi Lun as Li Zhao
• Zhai Zi Lu as Yan Bin
• Hou Pei Shan as Xiao Qin
• Xu Mu Chan as Du Xiao Xian
• Qiao Xin Feng as Du Chang Feng / Commissioner Du
• Zheng Xiao Ning as Yuan Zai / Lord Yuan
• Li Zhuo Ning as Concubine De
• Huang Xiao Lei as Feng Jie
• Sun Yi Fan as Qi Yan
• Gao Tian as Second Master Lyu
• Yang Qing as Grand Dowager Consort
• Justin Sheng Jian as Emperor Dai Zong

Main Characters

Long Ao Yi

Ao Yi is the head of Longzhu sect in the southern part of Silver City. She is an orphan brought up by Feng Jie who is also her master. Ao Yi is a witty and rugged young lady who cares a lot for the poor. She has guts although averse to the use of weapons.

Li Qing Liu

Qing Liu is a silk tycoon with his own store called Xinsilu which is the biggest in Silver City. He has earned a reputation for his superior silk dresses and is the only merchant in the city who holds the Custom Seal which enables him to trade with foreigners. Qing Liu is a stoic man with a cold demeanor. He has an aversion towards the opposite sex as their close proximity could make him dizzy.

Li Zhao

Li Zhao is a prince who is not particularly ambitious. He longs for more freedom but is a filial son who tries to fulfill his mother’s wishes. He is fun and easy-going and has a huge crush on Ao Yi. Wu Lin is his loyal personal guard while Concubine De is his mother.

Supporting Characters

Yan Bin

Yan Bin is Qing Liu’s personal assistant. They grew up together and share a close bond.

Xiao Qin

Xiao Qin is a member of the Longzhu sect and Ao Yi’s loyal assistant as well as good friend.

Du Xiao Xian

Xiao Xian is Qing Liu’s business partner and deputy at Xinsilu. They started Xinsilu together and have known each other since they were kids. Xiao Xian loves Qing Liu but it is a one-sided affair.

Du Chang Feng / Commissioner Du

Commissioner Du is Xiao Xian’s father. He is also the government official in charge of Silver City. Commissioner Du is a greedy and ambitious man. He is a corrupt official who would readily break the law to achieve him aims.

Yuan Zai / Lord Yuan

Lord Yuan is the Prime Minister of the country. He is a powerful man and seen as fair and upright with no scandals behind him.

Concubine De

Concubine De is Li Zhao’s mother. She is from the Pang family and Minister Pang of the Revenue Ministry is her brother and Li Zhao’s uncle. Concubine De is an evil woman whose aim is to make her son the future Emperor.

Feng Jie

Feng Jie is Ao Yi’s master. She runs a brothel called Wu Yun Pavilion in Silver City.

Qi Yan

Qi Yan is the head of the Snake sect and Ao Yi’s bitter rival as the 2 sects seek control of the various trades in Silver City. He is a greedy and ruthless man who doesn’t care for the poor.

Second Master Lyu

Second Master Lyu is the second-in-command of the Longzhu sect after Ao Yi. He is an unassuming man but has his own secret agenda.

Grand Dowager Consort

Grand Dowager Consort is the Emperor’s mother. She is an open-minded woman who is willing to overlook protocol breaches and likes new things and ideas.

Emperor Dai Zong

Emperor Dai Zong is a responsible ruler who cares for the people. His Empress was the late Noble Consort Dugu who died 2 years back. He loves her dearly.

Synopsis

Qing Liu was brought to Silver City by his nanny when he was just a baby and adopted by a childless couple. Silver City is divided between the upper class who occupies the northern side and the lower class who resides on the southern end. Both classes rarely mix with each other as they belong to different worlds. Qing Liu is a rich merchant who controls the silk clothing business due to the high demand for his offerings which are deemed to be of superior quality.

Ao Yi has a lowly upbringing which makes her uncouth but streetwise and gutsy. She is an orphan who was brought up by her master, Feng Jie, who is a brothel owner. Ao Yi is the new leader of the Longzhu sect which is in disagreement with the Snake sect over the division of trades in Silver City. In the meantime, Li Zhao is also in the city to inspect the city’s tax collection. He is a prince masquerading as a commoner to get around the city.

Ao Yi and Qing Liu’s worlds collide when Qing Liu needs to get back the stolen gold threads that he desperately needs to fulfill an important order. Gradually, they develop feelings for each other. Li Zhao wants to pressure Qing Liu to succumb to government control of his business. He also falls in love with Ao Yi who only treats him as a brother. Their lives become intertwined as a result of official matters and personal feelings. The complications worsen as power plays and love rivalry take hold.

Overlord Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

Liu Liu Overlord has a happily ever after ending. Ao Yi and Qing Liu are back in Silver City. They have a son and a daughter after being given permission to leave the palace by Emperor Dai Zong 5 years back. The permission was granted after Ao Yi agreed to hand over the water routes map belonging to Qinglong Firm. Qing Liu was also thought to have died after having consumed Xiao Xian’s poisoned tea. But Li Zhao had got the antidote from Lord Yuan and hidden it in Ao Yi’s gift for him. So, Qing Liu was saved and they left the palace to lead a carefree life.The Overlord drama recap will have more details from Episode 1 to 36.

Qing Liu’s Real Identity

Qing Liu is actually Emperor’s Dai Zong’s son. His mother was Concubine Cui who died during an ambush while escaping from the palace with her baby son and maid. Her maid took QIng Liu to safety and became his nanny. Qing Liu was subsequently adopted by the childless Li couple and grew up in Silver City.

Who Is The Ultimate Bad Guy?

The mastermind behind all the shenanigans and corruption is Lord Yuan. He used Concubine De and the Pang family to carry out his dirty deeds in exchange for helping them to elevate Li Zhao to the throne. The Emperor had long known about Lord Yuan’s crimes but had no evidence. So, he pretended to be sick to lower down Lord Yuan’s guard to aid in his capture. In the end, Ao Yi and Qing Liu caught up with Lord Yuan in his treasure cave when his plan to have them killed failed. Qing Liu slashed him to death in the last episode.

Why Was Feng Jie Killed?

Feng Jie and Lord Yuan were disciples of the same master. Their master gave Feng Jie and Lord Yuan a white and black carp pendant respectively. He predicted that Lord Yuan will rise to power and cause havoc to the country. Lord Yuan overheard their master telling Feng Jie that only she could stop him as the owner of the white carp pendant.

As Lord Yuan became more and more powerful, he was anxious about his master’s prediction and wanted Feng Jie killed. Feng Jie laid low for years to avoid him but was eventually found when he was looking for QIng Liu and noticed Ao Yi. Lord Yuan then ordered Feng Jie to be assassinated.

Concubine De’s Crimes

Concubine De wanted Li Zhao to be the Emperor. So, she had been slowly poisoning the Crown Prince through his stationery which caused him to be sickly. Concubine De had also poisoned Qing Liu’s mother and wanted her dead which caused her to flee with her baby. This is because Concubine Cui was one of the Emperor’s favorite women. Similarly, Concubine De poisoned the Empress and the latter’s daughter to death due to jealousy.

Concubine De suffered hardship in the past as her father was framed by a minister. So, she believed that only through power can she exact revenge and colluded with Lord Yuan and Commissioner Du with the hope of elevating her son to the throne. When Qing Liu figured out how she had been poisoning the Crown Prince, she made Li Zhao report her crimes to the Emperor. This will ensure Li Zhao will remain untainted.

Lord Yuan then forced Concubine De to kill herself by drinking poisoned wine to ensure his crimes remained hidden in exchange for his continued support for Li Zhao.

Li Zhao’s And Xiao Xian’s Fate

Li Zhao was killed by Lord Yuan. He tricked Lord Yuan into thinking that he wanted to work with him to kill Ao Yi and Qing Liu. Li Zhao knew Lord Yuan was the evil mastermind when his mother took all the blame for the crimes. But his attempt to stab Lord Yuan failed and he was killed in response together with his personal guard. Although Li Zhao was working against Qing Liu at one point because he wanted Ao Yi, his love for her prevailed in the end when he sacrificed himself.

Xiao Xian became insane and lost her memory after Qing Liu abandoned their wedding ceremony halfway through and her father was killed on the spot by Lord Yuan. They had planned to poison the Crown Prince during the wedding tea ceremony. When the plan was exposed, Lord Yuan quickly slashed Commissioner Du to death to let him take the sole blame.

Jiu Liu Overlord Review

After watching all the 36 episodes, I can understand why Overlord has its fair share of negative reviews. I think it starts off well with a refreshing storyline but the screenwriters failed to carry that through to the end. So, from Episode 21 onwards, the plot moves back to the usual palace power plays and jealous third parties. Whether that could retain your interest would really depend on your appetite for evil schemes of palace officials, concubines, and love rivals.

Plot Lost Its Shine (Spoilers Alert!)

Personally, the second half of the drama is a letdown as it reverts back to being the usual fare. There is some surprise in the unmasking of the real mastermind behind all the bad deeds but apart from that, there is nothing inspiring in the later plot. Certain things are also not properly explained such as Qing Liu’s dizzy spells with the opposite sex and Ao Yi’s father’s death.

I think the revelation that Qing Liu is a prince is where the whole plot starts to lose its shine. The drama starts off with him being a merchant and to suddenly transform him into a prince just leads viewers down a predictable path of palace politics. Furthermore, with only half of the story left to be told, the palace power plays doesn’t have a strong plot development to give it more depth. Hence, viewers are given a superficial tale of the royal court affairs compared to dramas with a focus on palace intrigues.

The ending itself is acceptable but it doesn’t leave me with a truly satisfying feeling either. The way the bad guy is defeated feels like an anti-climax. The time jump towards the very end just seems like a lazy way to finish up the drama. It feels forced as they wrap things up for the required happy ending. Well, the good thing is, at least, there is no ambiguity whatsoever unlike the ending in Dance Of The Phoenix and Love Of Thousand Years.

Slow Burn Romance

Overlord is not a romance-heavy drama which means it could be really boring for those who want more skinship and romantic moments. By the time they are sure of their feelings for each other and express them, they already have to separate due to unforeseen circumstances. Well, the love is there and the viewers know it. But the couple also tends to bicker especially in the initial stages of the relationship. It takes a while for them to acknowledge their feelings for each other which is very different from dramas like General’s Lady whereby the love is recognized early.

I guess whether you would enjoy Qing Liu and Ao Yi’s love story would depend on your liking for slow burn type of romance with under the surface feelings. So, if you expect a more expressive male lead and an intense romance, Overlord is not the right drama to watch.

Can’t Feel The Chemistry

To be honest, I can’t feel the lover’s vibe between the two leads. Perhaps I’m spoilt after watching Bai Lu with Leo Luo in Love Is Sweet whereby their chemistry is off-the-charts. It is not that Bai Lu’s and Leon Lai’s acting is bad in Overlord as they do fit their roles well enough. Bai Lu gives Ao Yi a thuggish look with the right amount of swag as a gang leader. Leon Lai’s portrayal of Qing Liu is also right on the dot for me as a reserved and stoic man.

I think where the 2 leads fail in the romance department is that their chemistry remains stuck in the bickering stage and they couldn’t raise the bar as their relationship progresses. It has nothing to do with the lack of smooches although some viewers might think more skinship will give off better chemistry between the leads. It is not necessarily so as Allen Ren and Seven Tan pulled it off very well in Under The Power which is a 55-episode drama with hardly any kisses. In Overlord, something is just missing in the couple that I can’t feel the sizzles.

In fact, some viewers think Alen Fang should have been the male lead instead. But Alen Fang has such a warm and pretty boy look that makes him more suited to rom-coms like the role he played in The Love By Hypnotic. It will indeed be interesting to see how he will stack up if he is told to portray a cold and emotionless Qing Liu.

My Verdict – Is It Really That Bad?

Well, Overlord is not really unwatchable despite the weaknesses that I have highlighted above. Perhaps 36 episodes is too short for a historical drama that wants to feature a slow burn romance, palace politics, and investigations all rolled into one. The result is a drama that couldn’t make me feel totally invested in the story. But the positive side to it is it doesn’t get dragged out and that should please viewers who prefer a shorter drama. There are no complicated subplots here. While the royal court facet doesn’t have a strong story development, it should delight those who hate long drawn out evil schemes that tend to exist in palace dramas.

Watchable But Forgettable

Furthermore, the cast did a good job in portraying their roles. At the very least, you don’t have to cringe at their acting. Although I feel that the chemistry between the leads is lacking as a romantic couple, the upside is Overlord is not meant to be a heavy romance drama just like The Blooms At Ruyi Pavilion. In other words, a sizzling chemistry would be a bonus but the lack of it would not really take away much from the story that also focuses on the investigation and corruption aspects. This is very different from a modern rom-com like Perfect And Casual whereby the chemistry is what drives the drama.

For this Jiu Liu Overlord review, I wouldn’t say it is unwatchable but neither would you miss much if you skip it. If you are a diehard Bai Lu or Leon Lai fan, then go ahead and watch it. Their acting shouldn’t disappoint you. Also watch it if you like a gutsy and unconventional female character and an uncomplicated plot. Other than that, it is a forgettable drama that wouldn’t linger on your mind once you are done.