Some time ago, I shared with you what I consider the “Top 10 Domestic Dramas in the First Half of 2024”.
In the process of preparing that manuscript, I looked back at my drama viewing records since the beginning of the new year. While I recognized the Chinese drama, I could not hide my disappointment.
Because, in the past half year, there have been far more mediocre works that have disappointed people than classic masterpieces.
Next, let’s take stock of the “10 disappointing Chinese dramas” in the first half of 2024, and rank them by the way.
Let’s take a look at what dramas there are. Before the show started, it had high expectations of being a “king bomb”, but after it started, it blatantly deceived the audience’s feelings and was scolded for it.
As for the judging criteria, we take the comprehensive consideration of the publicity before the broadcast, the audience's reputation after the broadcast, and my personal audience.
Without further ado, let’s start with the tenth place:
The tenth place: "Dark Fire"
My personal acceptance of suspense dramas is quite high, but to be honest, since " The Long After "Season ", there are really few domestic dramas that can produce suspense masterpieces.
Especially this year, suspense dramas are coming one after another.
Therefore, although "Dark Fire" was promoted in the early stage, it has been directing the audience's attention to the classic old film " The Beautiful Legend of Sicily ".
But I always feel that it is asking for trouble.
Sure enough, after the series started airing, I patiently watched a few episodes, but the quality is really unacceptable.
However, considering that my original expectations for it were not high, and netizens’ evaluation of it was not too bad, I left it the tenth place.
The problems of "Dark Fire" mainly appear in the mysterious plot and the thin and blunt emotional line.
In the first episode alone, it led to many clues such as Zhou Luochu's return to Qingshui Town in 1999, the "husband murder case" in Nanya in 2000, and the "bridge collapse case".
This form of multiple story lines unfolding simultaneously increases the complexity of the plot, but the narrative method of one hammer in the east and one stick in the west will inevitably make the audience confused.
In addition, in order to set up suspense, the drama always forcibly heightens the atmosphere. The secret behind Zhou Luo dropping out of school and the truth about Nanya’s murder of her husband have whetted the audience’s appetite.
But the problem is that there is no reasonable enough explanation behind every suspense, which will inevitably weaken the audience's experience of watching the drama.
What makes people even more speechless is that the nursery rhyme and Zhang Xincheng’s sense of CP both in and out of the play are almost non-existent.
This makes the crucial emotional line in this drama that bills itself as an "emotional suspense drama" completely unable to withstand scrutiny.
Anyway, I still don’t understand why Zhou Luo, who is both good in character and academics, has such deep feelings for Nanya and is willing to perjury for her.
Ninth place: " Jin Yong's Martial Arts World: Iron-Blooded Heart "
As an adaptation of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes", "Jin Yong's Martial Arts World: Iron-Blooded Heart" can be regarded as a clear example of the "star effect".
I believe that most viewers will not be able to hide their expectations after seeing its starring lineup.
After all, this Sha, who became famous with "Fengshen", Bao Shangen, who rose to prominence in "The Pretender Revelation", and Meng Ziyi, who has infinitely displayed his charisma in variety shows, are all among them.
These celebrities seem to be new, but in fact they all have huge fan groups, which adds a lot to the work.
However, judging from the reputation after the broadcast, the casting of this work is obviously not successful enough.
Take for example this Sha who plays Guo Jing. He is more than handsome but not silly enough. His sharp eyebrows and starry eyes reveal a shrewdness that is visible to the naked eye, but he does not have Guo Jing's honesty and honesty at all.
Huang Rong, who is portrayed by En, is not much better.
If you don’t pay attention, your mouth will become crooked, and your cheeks will be chubby. She looks very cute, but just not quirky enough.
Meng Ziyi’s portrayal of Mei Chaofeng has received a lot of praise.
However, the mysterious operation of the show to stop broadcasting immediately after airing the "Iron Heart" chapter caused Sister Meng's fans to come forward to complain. They opened a membership specifically for her, but in the end they only watched a supporting role.
It seems that this kind of behavior of consuming star power can easily lead to self-inflicted fire if it is overplayed.
In addition, the special effects of this seemingly "expensive" series do not stand up to scrutiny at all. The first episode of
opened with a "full-screen sandstorm". It felt like the sand was about to blow into your eyes through the screen. It did not restore the vastness and majesty of the desert at all.
In addition, the adaptation of the plot is also full of flaws.
From the very beginning, it talks about the cultivation of Guo Jing by the Jiangnan Seven Monsters in the desert. It is very mechanical and boring, as if it is just going through the motions. The other plots have also been simplified to the point where the scenes in Niujia Village have almost been deleted.
If it were not supported by the emotions of the audience, it is estimated that the reputation of this drama would be even worse.
Eighth place: "The Boy Who Can't See a Shadow"
As the second work launched by "Mist Theater" this year, the lineup of "The Boy Who Can't See a Shadow" is very eye-catching.
This is Rong Zishan's third collaboration with Zhang Songwen after "Xixiaohe Summer" and "The Hidden Corner".
is also the second reunion between Li Xiang and "Crazy Donkey" and Zhang Songwen after "Hurry".
With so many old partners in the lineup, as well as golden supporting roles such as Cheng Taishen, Guo Keyu, and Cao Lei, this drama Before broadcast, Just riding on the popularity of the actors, it is known as the "Secret Crazy".
But after watching it, my first feeling is that it is really a waste of such a good group of actors.
This is a family suspense drama. It mainly tells the story of an old detective who lost his orphan, and an orphan who pretended to be someone else and returned to his family. They work together to investigate the truth of two missing cases and redeem each other.
The series does not involve many characters, and the clues are not complicated. It is reasonable to say that it is easy to narrate.
But the dramas always try to make things up, and are not willing to tell stories honestly, so that the narrative pace is very slow and the plot seems lengthy and messy.
The two things that impressed me the most are that it always jumps around to change the year, and it always deliberately shapes everyone into a very scheming person, eager to make everyone carry a secret behind their backs.
But in the end, the truth was simply unconvincing.
In short, my feeling when watching this drama is that emotions and IQ have been played with, and only the acting skills of a few leading actors are worthy of the time I spent.
Seventh place: "City in the City"
The theme of "City in the City" has its own popularity. It touches on the financial profession and satisfies everyone's usual curiosity about financial knowledge.
I believe that many viewers will inevitably have this mentality when they first watch this drama.
After watching the whole series, it touches the financial common sense so far, without any popularization or educational significance.
Moreover, compared to the "struggles and choices of two generations of financial professionals" promoted in the series, the audience saw more business wars and romantic encounters.
At the beginning of the series, a highly respected bank president died of inner pressure because of his good deeds. Later, he asked his four students to pretend to be harmonious even though they knew the truth.
As the plot progresses, this drama with the theme of struggle and choice is full of all kinds of things that touch the bottom line.
So, after watching the whole drama, what I saw was not a down-to-earth workplace drama, but an extremely suspended drama.
Especially, Yu Hewei and Long Ni are 22 years apart and still have to force a cp setting, which is really hilarious.
I really don’t understand why a vice president of a bank would throw himself into the beauty trap set by his opponent without hesitation even though he knew it was a fraud.
Sixth place: " and Feng Xing "
If "With Feng Xing" had not intervened, "Happiness to Ten Thousands of Houses", "Wind Blowing Pinellia" and " Article 20" would have exploded one after another. Fire is enough for Zhao Liying to break away from the audience's inherent perception of her.
But after her transformation was successful, she returned to act in such an ancient puppet show of worrying quality.
This behavior is tantamount to reminding everyone that ancient puppets are her main track. As for other acting areas, without the appreciation of well-known directors, it is difficult for her to be independent.
Unfortunately, as she grows older, Zhao Liying, who is 36 years old this year, although her acting skills are good, her appearance will never return to the 28-year-old she was when she starred in "A Thousand Bones".
Therefore, when the script, special effects, and moralization are all mediocre, no matter how strong the sense of camaraderie between her and Lin Gengxin is, it will be difficult for the audience to calm down and appreciate the two middle-aged men and women talking passionately. In love.
What's more, the story of "Traveling with the Phoenix" is still so cliche, the special effects are so awkward, and the persuasion is so cookie-cutter.
So, after calming down and watching a few episodes, I can only sigh from the bottom of my heart: Zhao Liying, who has turned back, is really confused!
Fifth place: " Celebrating More Than Years 2"
"Celebrating More Than Years 2" has made the audience wait for 5 years, which is really disappointing.
In addition to casually fooling Fan Xian into faking his death at the beginning of the episode, the subsequent progression of the plot is also full of many flaws.
Many foreshadowings and clues are handled very roughly and completely unconvincing to the audience.
Fan Xian, who was known for his intelligence in the first season, started to fight openly and openly in the second season, fighting against all forces without any careful thinking at all.
If it weren’t for the protection of his fathers, he would have been manipulated by the two princes by himself.
Moreover, many characters do not have enough scenes to develop their personalities, so that their changes and motivations are somewhat suspended and abrupt.
Even the heroine Li Qin’s scenes are pitiful.
As for the supporting roles such as Fan Sizhe, the eldest princess, and Begonia Duoduo, which should be outstanding, needless to say, they are often forgotten by the screenwriters, and when they appear, they mostly play the role of tool people.
In addition, many scenes that are funny for the sake of being funny often make people watch it inexplicably.
Not to mention Wang Qinian, who has his own sense of humor. The Qing Emperor played by Chen Daoming is obviously very sinister, but he always wants to force the audience to laugh.
As a result, the look of running like crazy and being blown up like briquettes is not only unmistakable as a character, but also very easy to make people laugh.
Fourth place: "The Case of Di Gong of the Tang Dynasty"
There were many gimmicks before the broadcast of "The Case of Di Gong of the Tang Dynasty".
The identity of the original author Gao Luopei, a Dutch diplomat and Sinologist, a strong cast, sophisticated production visible to the naked eye, and Detective Dee’s suspenseful real-life IP, etc.
These highlights make it highly anticipated.
Unfortunately, as soon as the series started airing, the audience continued to curse.
Detective Dee, played by Zhou Yiwei, was widely promoted as a handsome and heroic young talent before the show started, trying to distance himself from the older Dee Renjie in the past.
However, in the drama, his inherent greasiness and the aura of the protagonist that the drama forcibly added to him all invisibly affected the perception.
Moreover, his martial arts skills in the play are very inconsistent with the civil servant status that the audience is familiar with, and it also makes the plot lose a certain degree of authenticity.
Anyway, after watching the entire episode, I still can’t like this self-important young man Di Renjie.
In addition, the slow pace, confusing suspense, and insufficient narrative logic also very dissuaded the audience.
Take the "Feng Yin Case" in the first unit as an example. It leads to many other clues that have nothing to do with the main case.
will talk about Di Renjie’s life experience for a while, and talk about the relationship network of Chang’an City and the crisis under the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.
is arranged in this way, and it seems that the narrative concentration is very high. In fact, the continuous insertion of fragmented clues will only make people confused and constantly feel confused.
What's more, many times, the suspense is clearly heightened to the extreme, and it gives an unsatisfactory answer.
A lot of evidence and clues are almost automatically delivered to the door, which seems very far-fetched and does not conform to the logic of reasoning at all.
Therefore, even if it looks "expensive" and the picture quality is good, its quality is still not worthy of praise.
Third place: "Fox Fairy Matchmaker: Moon Red Chapter"
This drama is adapted from the popular anime. The original work itself has a huge fan base and wide influence.
Coupled with the fantasy background setting and starring Yang Mi and Gong Jun, it will undoubtedly attract high market attention.
Judging from the record-breaking popularity set by the series premiere, it is indeed highly anticipated, but the insufficient playback volume also shows that it has indeed consumed the audience's enthusiasm.
This drama will be a hit, mainly because it brings a strong sense of discomfort to the audience.
Yang Mi’s robot-like cold-faced performance, as well as her rough voice dubbing, which is completely unrelated to her, are really hard to get into.
In addition, Tu Shan Honghong raised Dongfang Yue for 16 years, and their relationship developed from a mother-like relationship to a cross-race and cross-age lover's relationship.
This kind of cultivation system setting is also somewhat unethical and can easily make people feel uncomfortable.
In addition, the complicated background settings, thin character creation, and shoddy special effects also greatly diminished the look and feel of this drama.
Why do monsters fight, why is Tushan Honghong resented for doing good deeds, what is Eastern spiritual blood, and why does the demon world rely on money to survive.
These complex and slightly weird settings really dissuade the audience.
What’s even more unbelievable is that the leader of the Fox clan, who was originally intimidating, was actually shaped into the image of a “loving wife” who relied on love to survive, which is far from the strong female charm in the original work.
It was a bit jarring to see Tu Shan Honghong and Dongfang Yue Yue, who are very different in age, falling in love in a scene with extremely fake special effects.
Second place: "Harbin 1944"
Because Zhang Li, the "godfather of domestic historical dramas", is the director and has Qin Hao and Yang Mi as the starring roles, before "Harbin 1944" was broadcast, it was considered This is a bet for all David TV stations. After
was aired, this drama became really popular. However, the popularity and reputation did not last for a few days, and its shortcomings were quickly exposed.
There are a lot of problems in the plot alone.
First of all, the plot setting is unreasonable.
For example, at the beginning of the episode, Lao Duan recognized Guan Xue’s identity, but instead of choosing to fight, he took the other person to his home where he had hidden information, and then locked him out.
I was confused. Doesn’t he know that doing this is tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house?
Secondly, the story line is confusing.
In my impression, whenever Guan Xue thinks about the past, that black and white flashback shot will appear.
Because the camera was too shaken and their dialogue was inconsistent, I watched it for a long time before I knew what was going on between Guan Xue and Song Zhuowu.
There are too many emotional lines.
As a spy war drama, the emotional line has become the main clue, which will inevitably weaken the spy war color.
Moreover, the premise of this drama is that Guan Xue has such deep feelings for Song Zhuowu that he and Song Zhuowen are confused as the same person.
Just imagine, for such a smart chief of the Secret Service, knowing that the person he likes has a twin brother, he still doesn’t know whether his identity is true or false earlier. Is this reasonable?
In addition to the flaws in the plot, Yang Mi, as the heroine, also exposed a lot of shortcomings in her acting skills.
She carries too much idol baggage. Most of the time she focuses on beauty, and her behavior is very routine.
In idol dramas, her performance can coax the audience, but in spy dramas, her performance really cannot withstand scrutiny.
No. 1: " New Year After Year "
The reason why I put "New Year After Year" at the first place on this list is mainly because I personally really like the old version of "New Year After Year". is followed by year after year.
This tribute drama shows the 21-year development process of reform and opening up in 21 episodes. I will read it out from time to time. The customs, people, and marks of the times in it always help me recall the past.
Maybe because I like it so much, I ignored the curse of "remakes destroy classics".
When I learned that "New Year After Year" would extend the timeline to 2018 and use a longer historical period to tell the life changes of three families, my expectations were almost over the top.
After watching a few episodes with great joy, my eyes almost rolled to the sky. A 100-point paper turned into a negative score.
Forget about the inconsistent casting and lack of sense of the times. Let’s just say that the most brilliant narrative rhythm in the original work was also ruined by it.
It not only changed the way the original story was told in one episode over a year, but also mixed up the events of many years to tell the story. It doesn’t even have normal narrative capabilities.
Take the plot of the heroine Lin Pingping failing the college entrance examination as an example. The characters' experiences and emotions are dealt with in an extremely lengthy and vulgar way.
Comparison with the original work. From the beginning, this incident was used to show the character and family background of the heroine, as well as the relationship between the male and female protagonists.
In this drama, there is an examination room, a class reunion, and a date under the tree. Apart from delaying the show, it has no other function at all.
is a good classic. It is so annoying that it has been remade into something like this. The first place on this list belongs to it.
advises everyone not to watch it just out of curiosity, as it will really make you angry and hurt yourself.
These dramas mentioned above are what I think are the 10 most disappointing dramas in the first half of 2024.
Even before these dramas were aired, they were hyped up and attracted the audience's attention, but after the airing, their true colors were inevitably revealed.
Some of them failed due to bloody plots, some failed due to exaggerated performances, and some failed due to poor persuasion and lack of depth in character creation.
In short, good Chinese dramas are often similar, but bad Chinese dramas have many reasons that are hard to describe.
If you have also seen domestic dramas that deeply disappointed you this year, please leave a message in the comment area and let us have a friendly discussion together.(Written by: Ste Buwei)
