Daomu Biji Zhi Qinling Shen Shu

As far as Daomu Biji adaptations go, this wasn't the worst, but it definitely wasn't the best either. When I started this, I basically knew everything that would happen since I've seen every live action of this series so far.

I gotta say that there were many differences between what happened in the live action and in this one. I found this really lacking the emotional impact that The Lost Tomb 2 had and it made this very underwhelming.

Some of the more noticeable differences were the lack of Wang Pangzi and Ah Ning, along with Zhang Qiling’s short screen time.

Overall, the animation was good and it ... made this more enjoyable.

I was curious why there's not many reviews yet despite hearing that the novel being a beloved works by many. So i tried watching it and ended up making my first review to support this animation. 10/10 recommended to watch even if you haven't read the novel like me.

It has great pacing and engaging eps that sometimes end with sitting-on-the-edge-of-a-chair-cliffhanger. I especially like that the plot connects all the mysterious things at the end of it all. The characters personality is showed well with their expression and interaction, in fact they have their own twist if you can see the hints showed in each ... eps. I love that this works aside from thrilling adventure and action you expected from the synopsis, also can show a moment filled with complicated emotions like sadness, despair, and kindness when you didn't expect it.

As a stand alone animation it already did a fantastic job of showing the characters and a glimpse of the massive universe Daomu Biji series can be. If the goal is to attract new fans to be interested in the novel then i must say it's a success for me. As this animation is adapted from the third book of the novel, it surprisingly did a great job despite skipping two books. In fact I somewhat understand why it choose the third book to be adapted because it can focus on introducing Wu Xie and Daomu Biji universe without compressing too much materials in one season. Even if you don't read the novel you can still understand the story and be impressed in it. It makes me definitely interested for book one and two to be adapted well.

If I must said what I dont like is that sometimes the subtitles can be confusing but it not that bad that i can't understand it. Its just doesn't flow that well i guess? The characters, visuals, sounds and expression offset that problem. Other than that its that some detail might seems forgotten in the grand scheme of things, but if I think back the plot holes is actually "explained" tough not explicitly stated by the characters, it just means you need to watch it carefully. And I think that the one that's still a mystery is probably explained more in the novel.

Note that as of this review, this show has not had any subtitles yet. I'll remove this note once there are. Also, I probably really need to edit this review since... well, you will see. Now, onto the review.

Overall, this show is about treasure hunting. Not the One Piece type, but more like the Indiana Jones, Lara Croft, or Tintin type minus all that international traveling. If you like this genre, you’ll like this show, and if not you probably won’t and will go on searching for other ones in the vast sea of animation.

So basically if you're into mainstream anime and not this stuff ... you can skip this. If you're actually interested, keep on reading.

To all you skeptics out there, this show might appear boring. To this user, though, it’s actually a breath of fresh air since hardcore treasure hunting is rare within animation and the spring 2021 season that this came in is especially ridden with the type of work that gives off an air of thematic profoundness.

This statement sounds vague and confusing, right? Okay, so basically Qinling Shenshu (the Tree of Qinling) is simple, like really simple, in its story. Some guys explore a tomb. But that’s good because it just gets down to what it wants to show, does it with a surprising consistency of plot, and leaves without any distracting flavor. Many stories used to be and still are like this, but recently there has been a tendency for shows to add on supplements such as a philosophical bent. This transition is arguably prevalent within animation, since the medium’s defining animated quality allows it to take on more very, very imaginative stories which are often convenient for showcasing how intelligent the writers are. Now, this isn't a bad thing in itself since there are some shows that do this well, but most do miss the mark.

Okay, after typing the above I somehow don’t know what I’m going to say anymore. I think I’m trying to say that Qinling Shenshu’s straightforwardness happens to be its main merit. Oh, and together with this quality the show also well integrates a particular human quality grounded in reality, ultimately culminating in a final revelation that I not only was shocked about but could also really think and ponder about for a long time. Okay, I think I’ve said what I’ve wanted to say now. Oh, and I haven’t actually read the source material.

Wait, I haven’t explained what the ‘consistency of plot’ means. In short, consistency is when stuff in the story, especially stuff that appears later on in the story, confirms the existence and truth of other stuff. This is important so that plots don’t have those big gaping holes that everyone talks about when discussing why a show is bad, and if present this secret ingredient of sorts can really make a story better. Consistency can be applied to anything from the most important of events to the smallest detail. In Qinling Shenshu, not only is this consistency prevalent, but the show also doesn’t rub it in your face with insane unnecessary flashbacks (though it does have other flashbacks when a character is thinking). Evidently, this show has mastered this aspect even though it’s ‘just’ about the trope of robbing ancient sites as opposed to being some ambitious philosophical project.

Nevertheless, there are some minor details that are not explained. Not really the mystery behind the tomb and tree since they're just part of the outer framework of the story, but things like the meaning behind Wu's hallucination of people pointing at him and the weird voices on the walkie-talkie. It appears that the show may have simply forgot to explain them, given its meticulousness with other events.

The art is detailed, especially for a donghua. Motion is conveyed realistically, and the fact that the animators thought about the paths of objects really shows. On the other hand, animation frame rates are inconsistent from time to time, and there is some average CGI.

Now, the score. I’m wavering between a 6 or 7 out of 10, so a 6.5 is probably more accurate, but since I’m harsh (or at least I like to think that I am) I’ll give it a 6. Yes. Regardless of all this nonsense about scores, Qinling Shenshu has become an unexpected favorite of this user. (Why do I say 'this user'? Don’t ask me.)

Thanks for perusing this review, by the way. I think I’m done. Be sure to hit that Helpful button below, even if you didn't understand what I was saying!