Originally Posted by
PrinceKrillo
An Yi Xuan does not get appear very much at all. Her character, and practically the entire Bai Gu Jing storyline, starts at the very end of Episode 16 and covers all of Episode 17. The story is short, much like in the novel itself.
However, it should be noted that after watching that episode, I can definitely say that this adaptation of the storyline is the absolute best compared to any past version's. Primarily because ZJZ adds a layer of philosophical depth to the storyline. It makes every past adaptation of the Bai Gu Jing story (the exception being the Zhejiang adaptation's take on it) seem shallow and thin. There is also quite a bit of drama in this storyline. Based on the two or three *random* episodes I've sampled so far, this adaptation has been quite admirable, for the most part.
I haven't really watched any of Yang Jian's scenes in the series ... but the only times when he appears in the novel are when he kicks Sun Wu Kong's *** and hands him to Lao Zi ... and then later on when he helps the gang take down the Nine-Headed Hydra, Jiu Tou Chong. Not sure which episodes those are, but I'm sure he appears in those stories.
Who knows how long the series actually is at this point.
The series has really rushed through some of the past several storylines, spending less time on them than I had anticipated and who have liked.
The Spider Demons storyline only took under an episode and a half ... the Zhejiang version spent nearly four episodes on that story and really fleshed out the story and the characters. Han Dong and Peng Dan were fantastic in that version.
But I guess that's what happens when you adapt directly from the novel, without changing almost anything. The Zhejiang version added a lot depth, emotion, and philosophy to many of the storylines from the novel, changing them up quite a bit ... ZJZ obviously didn't want to do that, but the result is that some of the stories are bland, just like in the novel itself.
There are still eight storylines left, and they've now reached Episode 50 on YouTube. So I guess it could end with just 60 episodes, which, to put it frankly, would really SUCK ***.
The problem here is the ZJZ is rushing through many of the stories. There's "drawn-out" and then there's "rushing." What he should have done was find the right balance between the two, which the Zhejiang adaptation had. Those storylines were well-developed and did not feel "too long" whatsoever. ZJZ COULD have done the same thing.