Love Between Fairy and Devil – Final Review

Love Between Fairy and Devil is a pleasant surprise in the world of Chinese fantasy dramaland in 2022. Having finished the drama, my opinion on it is mixed. It is no doubt a recommendable drama, but it might not be for everyone.

So here is a list of the good and bad things about it per my observation.

(If you don’t want spoilers, skip to the Conclusion.)

*Spoilers ahead

THE GOOD THINGS

ORCHID

Or Xiaolanhua. She is not very different from the typical bubbly-eyed, innocent female lead. What sets her apart, however, is how the drama often lets her have ideas and logical thinking. She is not an active female lead and mainly responds to whatever happens around her, but she is also not a burden.

Orchid transforms from a carefree fairy who only wants good food and sleep into a more mature woman who can confront her mistakes and put others above her own happiness. The development is abrupt, but they did try.

She is also a lot more emotionally mature than Dongfang despite her young age and, in all honesty, smarter. And if there is one thing we need more in fantasy dramas, it is characters who are willing to think.

A WELL THOUGHT-OUT PLOT

Everything in this drama happens for a reason. No character is just there for petty jealousy or nonsense revenge. They have goals, they make mistakes, they move on. Even the hypocritical king of the heaven clan also serves a point. No one is annoying.

Well, except for the evil voice that keeps ambushing everyone everywhere. He… he needs to talk less.

BLACK DRAGON ASSISTANT, DAYIN, CHANGHENG, “LITTLE BROTHER”

Want to know who makes the most sense in this drama? Not Dongfang. It is the secondary characters, namely the four mentioned above. They all have their initial obsessions with one thing or another (except Black Dragon), but they evolve fast and become the voices of reason around the main characters.

Dongfang’s little brother has a full character arc where he hates his brother’s guts at first, then turns into a reliable servant of his lord and clan.

At the core, he is still a snob who probably spends more time grooming his hair than working, but he is a snob whom you can count on to speak the truth no matter how unpleasant it is.

THE TRANSPARENCY BETWEEN THE MAIN CHARACTERS

Both Orchid and Dongfang are quite slow when it comes to their own emotions, so they explain every single thing to each other. While that leaves no room for interpretation on the viewers’ part, it also means there are no unnecessary misunderstandings.

WELL-MADE PROPS

Except for Changheng’s water-inspired crown, that is.

The Heaven King’s golden crown is no less questionable, but it does look like real gold.

THE MORTAL REALM ARC

This drama decides that the best way to carry out a “mortal trial” is not to have your main characters actually be involved in the trial, but to have them mess up other people’s trials. More fun and less draggy.

THE BAD THINGS

ORCHID’S SECRET IDENTITY

To be great, you just have to be born great. There is no other way. Nearing the end of the drama, Orchid’s kindness and unique view of the world are no longer the focus of her character. It is her identity, the secret power she was born with that drives the plot now. This happens in almost every fantasy drama out there.

Is it lazy writing or is it that romance fantasy writers in this industry just don’t believe ordinary girls who learn their way to the top deserve to be female leads? I’m still trying to decide, really.

THE LAST ARC

Along with this Secret Identity thing, the whole “who should die for the world” in the last few episodes could have been removed and the drama would not have been affected at all. It would in fact be better.

This story could have just been about Orchid being swept away from her uneventful home and growing up from the naïve, innocent fairy that she is; and Dongfang learning emotions and the cruelty of war, something he is initially excited about.

Instead, the drama turns toward the same old trope of “we have to sacrifice our happiness to save humanity”. They spend a great deal of time with cuddling scenes and then jump straight into the last arc while neglecting more important things, such as: Orchid’s reflection on her transformation, or Dongfang’s bonding with his people.

*Potentially unpopular opinion ahead.

Halfway through Fairy and Devil, it became clear that this leading couple was not my cup of tea, therefore, I have a highly critical view of them. If Dongfang and Orchid are your type of romance, however, you probably aren’t bothered by the problems I’m about to mention.

WELL, THE ROMANCE…

Out of all the things I like about this drama, the romance, unfortunately, is not one of them. Here are a few of the many reasons as to why that is:

It’s unsubtle. And not in a good way.

The drama just cannot stop reminding you whom you should root for. The characters explain everything out loud, not just for themselves, but also for the audience. What the drama doesn’t consider is that maybe the audience is waiting for the characters to catch up on what we already know.

We can grab any random episode and easily find an example of this flaw. Below is a quick one.

In one episode, Changheng asks Orchid for a few minutes to clear things up between them. So they talk. During their conversation, the camera constantly switches to Dongfang so we can see how anxious he is about Orchid standing close to her old crush.

Yes… yes, I know that Orchid and Dongfang are meant to be. But Changheng and Orchid also have a unique connection, and I would like to watch their farewell convo without being constantly reminded who Orchid’s destiny is.

That’s only the tip of the iceberg.

Dongfang and Orchid each would recite again and again how the other person has changed each of their lives and how they intend to continue to do so, repeatedly emphasizing that they are destined to be, urging the audience to agree with them

And then there’s the background music. Every. Single. Time. No matter if it is during an epic battle or a simple walk around town, romantic songs are played to let you know that THIS is where their feelings develop. THIS, is where you, the audience should feel something. And THIS, is what you should feel.

In addition, they throw in every little trope they can think of to create obstacles for Dongfang and Orchid.

First, it’s the fact that they have different moral standards, which is already a good enough plot device. But there is also a love triangle, which I condone because Changheng is reasonable. And I guess we need that initial mistake for Orchid to grow up from.

Then, it’s how they are from opposing tribes. Then, there are unwelcoming relatives.

And for all those obstacles, they have one ultimate solution: pain.

At one point, they say that if an outsider wants to marry into the Moon clan, she/he has to spend a few days in a confined wooden box and endure some extreme magic attacks. If you come out alive, you can marry the Moon monarch.

Orchid goes in there, of course. And then we get a long scene of her and Dongfang both suffering bodily pain (because their spirits are connected). She makes it out, and it is now “my queen” everywhere she goes.

I… really cannot think of any reason why the drama needs to insert this chapter except to showcase how pretty Dylan Wang and Esther Yu look when they wince in pain.

Why can’t the Moon tribe’s challenge to the outsider be: learn our ways, learn our history, learn to be a servant to our people?

The drama cares so much to demonstrate how Dongfang and Orchid are willing to suffer for each other, yet they don’t care enough to explore that connection beyond physical pain.

And just a side note here: What does this test prove? The whole reason the Moon tribe wants to test Orchid is because they don’t trust people from the Heaven clan. But by simply enduring their assault, she has now earned their trust?

What if she’s a spy who just happens to be really powerful? Shouldn’t they be more suspicious of her now?

And then…

The drama often makes their characters inconsistent to prove a point about the romance. Especially Dongfang.

He is a powerful lord, a warrior with both combat and tactical experience, yet in the mortal realm, he refuses to fake a wedding night in order to move a bigger plan forward. The drama’s reason? He has fallen for Orchid at this point and doesn’t like the idea of having a wedding, even a fake one, with another woman.

In these cases, shouldn’t Dongfang be the first one to eagerly execute the plan, given how goal-driven he is and how well-aware he is of what’s at stake?

I know the drama wants to make him a faithful swoon-worthy male lead for wish-fulfillment, but did they have to go that far?

Then, upon seeing Orchid with mortal-Changheng, Dongfang swoops in like a pro and acts as Orchid’s caring husband without fault. Hmm, I thought he was bad with emotions and generally awkward when confronted by human nature, how could he so excellently put on an act here and be exactly what he needs to be without a trace of his true self?

We all know why this scene needs to happen – so that Dongfang and Orchid can play husband and wife for a little. It’s a very familiar trope. But again, do we have to have it at the expense of character consistency?

And while we’re on the subject, let’s talk about…

THE MALE LEAD

Because he is also one of the things that can be improved about this drama.

He starts out strong — a different kind of male lead who doesn’t shy away from dark magic, not your typical oh-so-noble God of War who shoulders the entire world. But, as the drama proceeds, his character turns out to be not so different at all. He is that misunderstood boy with a heart of gold who just needs some coaching with emotions, who will do everything in his power to protect both his girl and his people, and his power being… not brains, but cool CG magic spells.

It is not Dongfang The Man that I have issues with, but Dongfang The Character. He is written to be, yet again, another male lead who has to choose between love and duty, which is – by itself — not a problem. But his solution to this dilemma? It is the same in every drama: he uses his considerable physical strength to endure it all and hopes that things will work out.

On top of it, the drama wants him to be too many things at once. A ruthless leader, a smart schemer, an awkward man in love for the first time, a suave lover who swoons ladies, a world saviour, a cute puppy, etc.

They want it all. And in attempting to achieve it all, they sacrifice what truly makes his character unique in the beginning: which is the solid struggle between who he is and who he wants to become.

Dongfang, just like Orchid, is pulled on a journey to find his identity. In Dongfang’s case, he wants to find the version of himself that is without the zero-emotion curse. He wants to know how that Dongfang would live and view the world. He wants to learn to balance the values he was raised with and the ones he understands after meeting Orchid.

But instead of diving deeper into these inner conflicts, the plot throws at him an end-of-the-world scenario, forcing him to take the old route every other fantasy male lead takes, which is to rush into danger alone to save everyone – and calling that sacrifice development.

Yes, on the surface, it is development; since he goes from wanting to kill the whole world to wanting to save it. But the threat of an explosion is not exactly a creative way to deliver character growth because the solution is predictable; and since dying-to-save-the-world in this case means a CG explosion, a lot of yelling and playing dead, it depends almost entirely on a particular actor’s charm to work.

So, have this drama and its leading actor succeeded in making it us see how Dongfang’s entire journey has led to this moment of sacrifice? Not quite, especially when we all know he would come back five minutes later.

IN CONCLUSION

Love Between Fairy and Devil is, first and foremost, a comedy. No matter how serious a situation gets, they always find a way to sneak comedy into it. Then, it is a romance. The politics and warfare are there to be in the background, not to be explored.

If you want a quick, fluffy fantasy watch with a decent plot and acting, good pacing, nice costumes, and a happy ending, or if you just love the dynamic between the two main characters, I recommend Fairy and Devil.

However, if you are looking for a drama with a serious take on the philosophical side of the question of “love or duty” or a deep exploration of “Beauty and the Beast”, this drama is neither.