Word Of Honor Review

Word Of Honor (山河令) has seen surging popularity since it started airing on the Youku channel. It has elements of boy-love (BL) in its story but I guess such tendencies are no longer a taboo for TV dramas in these modern times. For me, they offer a different feel and a departure from the usual romance dramas. At least, they are not recycling the same old cliches. But apart from the novelty BL storyline, is there anything more to justify the drama’s high rating? My thoughts are in my Word Of Honor review below.

My rating: 8/10
Episodes: 36 + 1
Type: Wuxia
Aired: February 2021
Images Credit: Youku

The Cast Of Word Of Honor

• Zhang Zhe Han as Zhou Zi Shu / Zhou Xu / Ah Xu
• Simon Gong Jun as Wen Ke Xing
• Sun Xi Lun as Zhang Cheng Ling
• Zhou Ye as Gu Xiang
• Asher Ma Wen Yuan as Cao Wei Ning
• Wang Ruo Lin as Zhao Jing
• Li Dai Kun as Scorpion King
• Hei Zi as Gao Chong
• Jin Le as Gao Xiao Lian
• Guo Jia Hao as Shen Shen
• Huang You Ming as Ye Bai Yi
• Wang Dong as Prince Jin
• Chen Zi Han as Luo Fu Meng / Tragicomic Ghost
• Ke Nai Yu as Liu Qian Qiao / Beauty Ghost
• Wei Zhe Ming as Prince Qi / Jing Bei Yuan
• Fan Jin Wei as Wu Xi / Da Wu
• Wang Rong as Han Ying

Main Characters

Zhou Zi Shu / Zhou Xu / Ah Xu

Zi Shu is the leader of an assassin outfit called Window Of Heaven which is under the control of Prince Jin. He takes orders from the prince and has been involved in many killings. Zi Shu is a highly skilled martial artist and belongs to the Four Seasons Manor sect which has since crumbled after his master’s death. His master was the renowned Qin Huai Zhang.

Wen Ke Xing

Ke Xing claims to be a philanthropist and a good man. He has a mysterious background and great martial arts skills. He appears righteous and courteous but likes to tease Zi Shu.

Zhang Cheng Ling

Cheng Ling is a teenager and the youngest son of Zhang Yu Sen who is the Chief of Mirror Lake Sect. The sect is one of the members of the Five Lakes Alliance with Zhang Yu Sen being the 4th brother. Cheng Ling has had an easy life with no strong martial arts foundation. He is very trusting of Zi Shu as well as Ke Xing. He wishes to be Zi Shu’s disciple.

Gu Xiang

Gu Xiang is Ke Xing’s maid. They share a unique bond as master and servant as Ke Xing treats her like a younger sister. She is also loyal to Ke Xing. Gu Xiang can be assertive and loud. She also has some martial arts skills.

Supporting Characters

Cao Wei Ning

Wei Ning belongs to the Gentle Wind Sword Sect. His master is Chief Mo Huai Yang who is also the sect’s leader while Fan Huai Kong is his disciple uncle. Wei Ning can be a little foolish but is a principled man. He has deep feelings for Gu Xiang.

Zhao Jing

Zhao Jing is the Chief of Tai Lake Sect. He is the 2nd brother in the Five Lakes Alliance. Zhao Jing is rich but appears weak and timid among the 5 sworn brothers in the alliance.

Scorpion King

The Scorpion King is a young man who leads an assassin organization called The Scorpion which has its base in the South. He is a ruthless man who also dabbles in witchcraft to take down his opponents.

Gao Chong & Gao Xiao Lian

Gao Chong is the Chief of Yue Yang Sect and leader of the Five Lakes Alliance. He is a cautious man with his own agenda which arouses suspicion in others. Xiao Lian is his only child and he plans to betrothed her to Cheng Ling.

Shen Shen

Shen Shen is the Chief of Mount Da Gu Sect. He is the 3rd brother in the Five Lakes Alliance. Shen Shen can be fierce and impatient. He doesn’t like backing down when challenged.

Ye Bai Yi

Ye Bai Yi is the Mount Chang Ming Sword Immortal. He is an elder of the martial arts world with great skills. Ye Bai Yi has made a promise to help to wipe out the Ghost Valley when required.

Prince Jin

Prince Jin is an ambitious man who is planning to revolt. He controls the Window Of Heaven which he uses to kill off opponents.

Luo Fu Meng / Tragicomic Ghost & Liu Qian Qiao / Beauty Ghost

Tragicomic Ghost is one of the Top 10 Devils of Ghost Valley. Together with Qian Qiao who is her subordinate, they have something against unfaithful men due to their past experience.

Prince Qi / Jing Bei Yuan & Wu Xi / Da Wu

Both Prince Qi and Da Wu are Zi Shu’s old friends. Prince Qi owes his life to Zi Shu while Da Wu is an experienced healer.

Han Ying

Han Ying is the Commander of the Window Of Heaven and loyal to Zi Shu.

Synopsis

Zi Shu has just opted out of Window Of Heaven as its leader due to severe guilt. It is an assassin organization serving under Prince Jin who wants to ascend the throne. To get out, Zi Shu has to punish himself by embedding the 7 Nails Of Torment into his body. As a result, his body will gradually weaken before he dies in 3 years. While wandering as a drunkard after his departure from Window Of Heaven, he meets Ke Xing and Cheng Ling. Cheng Ling is an innocent teenager who takes pity on him and invites him back to his Mirror Lake Sect.

Ke Xing is also a wanderer with a mysterious background. He is curious about Zi Shu and tails him when Zi Shu decides to make his way to Mirror Lake Sect. Both of them end up having to protect Cheng Ling when his whole family and sect are wiped out overnight when the Ghost Valley Sect attacks them. They are after one of the pieces of the Glazed Armor which is needed to unlock an armory left behind by the evil Rong Xuan who died 20 years ago after a fierce battle with the Five Lakes Alliance and other sects.

Thus, Zi Shu is pulled into the schemes by the different sects as he is worried for Cheng Ling. Ke Xing is drawn to Zi Shu and inevitably gets involved in Cheng Ling’s life as well. As they work together to protect Cheng Ling, they uncover plots related to the Glazed Armor and schemes of the various sects leaders. This is also related to Ke Xing’s past which he hides from everyone including Zi Shu.

Word Of Honor Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

If you stop at Episode 36, Word Of Honor has a sad ending. Ke Xing sacrifices himself to save Zi Shu who is dying. Zi Shu has removed the nails inside his body to obtain temporary strength to counter Zhao Ying. But doing so causes him to die soon. So, Ke Xing uses a method that Ye Bai Yi taught him to save Zi Shu without the latter’s knowledge. Ke Xing’s hair turn white and he dies after transferring his qi to Zi Shu.

In the last scene, Cheng Ling is now an adult. He is telling his disciples the story of Zi Shu and Ke Xing. He also has a little daughter whom he has named after Gu Xiang. Wei Ning and Gu Xiang have died on their wedding day. They were killed by Wei Ning’s master who was then killed by Ke Xing to exact revenge over Gu Xiang’s death.

In the alternate ending in the special episode, both Zi Shu and Ke Xing are still alive. They are seen giving pointers to a boy who is practicing his martial art moves up on a snowy mountain before bickering as usual.

What Is The Glazed Armor?

The Glazed Armor is the lock and key needed to open an armory which contains manuals of the various sects. It is also rumored that it holds secrets that could make someone invincible. The armory was started by Rong Xuan and the 5 sworn brothers of the Five Lakes Alliance. Rong Xuan convinced them that they should steal manuals of other sects and start a collection. He believed martial arts should be open for an exchange of ideas.

The armory was built with the help of Long Que who specializes in mechanisms and traps. The Glazed Armor is needed to open it together with the key and it is broken into 5 pieces. Each of the sworn brother of the Five Lakes Alliance keeps a piece while Rong Xuan held the key. After Rong Xuan’s death, the key went missing. It was hidden by Ke Xing’s father who subsequently gave it to Ke Xing before he was killed. Ke Xing’s father had disguised the key as a hairpin.

In the last episode, Prince Qi reveals the story of a treasure vault which supposedly contains the secret to a long lasting country. The story is only known to his clan and it bears uncanny resemblance to the Glazed Armor and the armory. In the end, Zi Shu and Ke Xing find that the armory’s so-called secret is merely farming tools and methods to make the clan self-sufficient and this will naturally lead to a stable country. It also explains why Zi Shu’s master gave the vault to Rong Xuan who then used it as his armory as it is nothing more than a farming warehouse then.

Who Was Rong Xuan?

Rong Xuan was Ye Bai Yi’s disciple. That is why Ye Bai Yi feels responsible over Rong Xuan’s wrongdoings. He was also a good friend with the sworn brothers of the Five Lakes Alliance. His wife was Yue Feng Er from the Healer Valley Sect.

Rong Xuan died 20 years ago after a fierce fight with members of the various sects. He had gone insane and committed atrocities. His insanity was the result of being poisoned during a friendly fight with the sworn brothers of the Five Lakes Alliance. A minor cut from Gao Chong’s poisoned blade forced Feng Er to resort to using a forbidden technique to save Rong Xuan’s life. But the technique caused Rong Xuan to go crazy. He even killed his wife in a moment of insanity which aggravated his condition. The Five Lakes Alliance then rallied the other sects to kill the powerful Rong Xuan in the name of eradicating evil.

Who Poisoned Rong Xuan?

The person who poisoned Rong Xuan was Zhao Jing rather than Gao Chong. Zhao Jing pretends to be weak and timid to escape scrutiny so that he could quietly carries out his plan to be the leader of the martial arts world. He also frames Gao Chong by working with a few members of the Ghost Valley Sect and The Scorpion assassins which causes Gao Chong to kill himself.

Zhao Jing has always felt being looked down upon due to his poor background. Hence, he has a hatred towards his sworn brothers as well as Rong Xuan for dragging him into stealing martial arts manuals. In the end, his pretense and evil deeds are exposed by Ke Xing as he is betrayed by his own foster son, the Scorpion King, and his other associates. Ke Xing incapacitated him during a fight while the Scorpion King feeds him a pill thereafter to make him mute. The Scorpion King betrays him because he knows he is dispensable and his foster father is only using him to achieve his own selfish agenda.

Ke Xing’s Background

Ke Xing is actually Zhen Ru Yu’s son. Ru Yu is the adopted son of the Chief of Healer Valley. When Rong Xuan was poisoned, his wife handed over the armory key to Ru Yu. Ru Yu was further dragged into the plot when he tried to stop the sects from killing Rong Xuan and pleaded with them to allow him to heal the man’s insanity. But Rong Xuan knocked him unconscious instead.

After Rong Xuan was killed, they could not find the key on him and trained their guns on Ru Yu instead. The sects chased Ru Yu to Healer Valley. The Chief had to cripple him and evict his family to save Healer Valley from being destroyed. Ke Xing witnessed the cruelty done to his parents because they all wanted the armory key. They were hunted by both the righteous and Ghost Valley sects until they were saved by Zi Shu’s master. That is why Ke Xing is drawn to Zi Shu in the initial episodes because they have met when they were kids.

However, before Zi Shu’s master could bring them back to Four Seasons Manor, tragedy struck. Ke Xing’s parents were killed by the Ghost Valley Sect. Tragicomic Ghost suggested to her Chief to take in Ke Xing to save him from being killed as well. Hence, Ke Xing grew up in the Ghost Valley Sect and eventually becomes its leader by overthrowing the old Chief. His ultimate aim is revenge against all the people who have wronged his father.

Does Zi Shu Know Ke Xing’s Identity?

No, Zi Shu is not aware of Ke Xing’s background initially. But as they try to protect Cheng Ling and get involved in the various plots surrounding the Glazed Armor, Zi Shu begins to suspect that Ke Xing is the Chief of Ghost Valley Sect. Even when he is sure of Ke Xing’s identity, he didn’t confront him as he knows Ke Xing is reluctant to reveal his past. Zi Shu is forced to admit his knowledge of Ke Xing’s identity in Episode 27 when he is confronted by Ye Bai Yi.

Zi Shu also remembers that Ke Xing had acknowledged Qin Huai Zhang as his master when the latter saved him and his parents. But Ke Xing is reluctant to admit the fact because he doesn’t want to soil the Four Seasons Manor’s reputation due to his association with the Ghost Valley Sect.

Word Of Honor Review – Enough Excitement

In a way, Word Of Honor reminds me of Legend Of Fei. Both are about looking for keys to open a vault that houses some valuable items. But Word Of Honor has a more structured and fast-paced storyline. Viewers are told clearly what the sects are fighting for by the middle of the drama unlike the ambiguities in Legend Of Fei. The excitement is heightened by the mysterious Ke Xing and the whodunnit nature of the tragedy befalling Rong Xuan. Of course, the bromance between the 2 male leads also takes the drama up a notch which is a refreshing change from the usual romances.

A Well-Presented Plot

Basically, the plot is about revenge and the fighting for keys to an armory. It is nothing new in that sense as these are common themes for wuxia dramas. What sets it apart is the way the story is told. The start can be confusing but once you get an idea on what the story is about, it is easy to get hooked. You will get drawn to both the male leads as their different backgrounds have a melancholic aura and their past links are gradually peeled off as the drama progresses. Thus, there is that chase factor to make you want to know more about what happened in the past and how things will be resolved in the present.

I think the screenwriters struck the right balance in maximizing the mysteriousness of the characters while minimizing the ambiguities to avoid causing viewers too much confusion. There are also a few twists and turns to keep things interesting. So, overall, it is a well-executed drama that successfully uses a bromance to flush out the meaty part of the story which leads me to the next point.

Acting And Chemistry

Personally, I prefer this BL pair than the one in The Untamed. This is because Ke Xing is a very flirty character while Zi Shu has his way of responding to all the teases which is cute to watch at times. The way Simon Gong and Zhang Zhe Han played their roles as soul mates are very easy on the eyes. Even if you are not a fan of BL dramas, their interactions are merely suggestive of what it could be rather being plainly overdone. This is made possible with the great chemistry between the 2 actors who show a lot of depths in displaying their characters. While Zhang Zhe Han’s chemistry with Ju Jing Yi in The Blooms Of Ruyi Pavilion and Legend Of Yun Xi has caught a lot of people’s attention, his cooperation with Simon Gong is just as good, if not better.

In Word Of Honor, both Ke Xing and Zi Shu are tormented souls. Both the actors successfully projected the pain needed in some scenes to make viewers feel for these 2 antagonists. You can also see Simon Gong’s intense expressions in his eyes as he projects the anger in Ke Xing’s character. In short, there is nothing to complain about regarding the 2 lead actors’ performance.

A Small Weakness

For me, a small weakness of this drama is the swift introduction of various characters which has the potential to be confusing for some viewers. Things are pretty vague in the initial episodes as these different characters belong to different sects and you will be at a loss of how they are linked to each other. It takes about 10 to 15 episodes for me to gradually understand the bigger picture.

Therefore, Word Of Honor is not exactly a straightforward historical drama such as A Girl Like Me or even The Wolf. Certain things are kept hidden to heighten the anticipation. Hence, you need to have some patience to wait for the reveal. But the upside is the episodes are easy to sit through because the story moves pretty fast and the bromance between the 2 male leads will make you want to follow their adventure.

My Verdict – What Else But Watch!

Word Of Honor is indeed worth watching. If you are tired of the usual historical romance dramas of generals and princesses, this would be a welcome change. Just like The Untamed, the BL element is obvious but with a soft tone. In the drama, the men are projected as soul mates which is apt as both of them are tormented by their past. So, don’t let that BL label scare you away if you are not into same sex pairings.

Furthermore, there is depth of character in Word Of Honor. Rather than a totally good or bad guy in the usual dramas, Ke Xing and Zi Shu have layers to their personalities. Hence, they are not so one-dimensional. They have committed sins and suffer from guilt and remorse. Ke Xing is also an angry and revengeful man. All taken together, the characters are well-developed which makes them interesting to watch as you get to see both their good and evil sides especially Ke Xing. But ironically, you will still root for them mainly because of the great storytelling and well-planned character development which will beguile you as you watch on. It reminds me of the Night Immortal in Ashes Of Love whereby you could easily relate to the evil side of the character.

Overall, I will give a score of 8/10 for this Word Of Honor review. It is hard not to love this drama given the well-executed plot and characters. The fact that you have 2 handsome guys having a bromance is the icing on the cake here. You won’t miss the typical fluff and sweetness that come with the usual romance dramas. The 2 men simply have enough chemistry between them to generate the necessary sizzles for a change.

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