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What I Love About Wuxia Series and Movies

I'll admit the only Wuxia series I've seen are Chinese Paladin, Demigods and Semidevils (which is a VERY complex mess), Red Buddha Lady, Return of Condor Heroes, Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber and I am yet t see Love of Condor Heroes and I want to watch more of Chinese Ghost Story.  So what do I love about Wuxia series?  Here's what I love about them:


Interesting love stories between the hero and the heroine.  For example, Yang Guo's story with Xiao Longnu is faced with the "forbidden love" where Yang Guo is the student and she used to be his teacher.  Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber faced the issues of a Manchurian princess falling for a commoner.  These love stories are faced with the woman getting stronger for the sake of love, the man throwing away sexist views and other irrational views that society holds for the sake of love.


Impossible love stories between humans and the supernatural written in such a good way.  Okay I know it's usually not a happy ending... I mean in Chinese Ghost Story movies, Xiaoqian never landed with her beloved Chixia. I know it's not a happy ending but selfless love stories always help tragedies better to accept.  So I think about it, I really love the selfless love themes.


Love polygons exist most of the time.  Return of Condor Heroes had a some love polygons.  Demigods and Semidevils had lots of them.  The love polygons aren't limited to just the leading lady, the leading guy and the secondary guy.  You should expect a lot of love polygons when you are watching Wuxia films or series.  There's a lot of romances involved and I'm a sucker for romance plots.  I love all the romantic rivalries that are involved.  So there's a love triangle, check.  But then the the other guy also has a lover?  Check.  It does get even more complicated when villains and heroes are in the whole love polygon.


The villains in Wuxia are well-written like they are vengeful for a reason, they know how to troll the good guys until their downfall, they know how to make the heroes suffer which makes their downfall more satisfying to see than an incompetent one.  In Stom Riders, the main villain created by Chinese comic artist Ma Wing Xing is one of the most depraved villains in Wuxia series in movies.  In Love of Condor Heroes, you have Yang Guo's father Yang Kang who is the infamous antagonist of that novel.  In Return of Condor Heroes, you have the vengeful Li Mochou who holds grudges for prolonged periods of time (I wish she were acted by Liu Xuehua).  These villains are never easy to beat and it's fun to see how they love to make the heroes' lives miserable only to be defeated in the end in such a karmic manner.


All the well-written drama and mysteries that unfold before them.  Writers like Jin Yong, Qiong Yao and Ma Wing Xing one way or another create a dramatic atmosphere.  Most of tem usually exist in a serious way, dark, edgy and with lots of mysteries being unfolded.


Not to mention lots and lots of sword work, wire work, fist work, etc. done in such a way you can really say, "Woah that's impossible!"  Like a good stage magician knows how to hide the obvious and amaze the audience with his skill, these directors know how to make special effects look so real you will be amazed.  Plus, one martial arts scene after the other are so preposterously powerful I really love watching them!

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