Wu Shan Wu Xing (2020)

Without spoiling to much or going into to much detail, this is my first time posting something here but I'll keep it short and direct.

I'll start with the big elephant in the room... *this is not an anime* this series is in actuality Chinese Animation. So call it what you will, Chanime or whatever now to the actual info you might wanna read.

This series might give some people Avatar: the Last Airbender vibes but only with god tier animation to rival some of the best animated series out there. The fights are insanely well choreographed and extremely well done. The ducks (yeah I kid you ... not) are bloody f*cking amazing and hilarious.
The characters and backgrounds are insanely pleasant to look at.
This show from the first episode already does not hold back at all with anything.

If you like godlike animation and spectacular awesome fights I definetly recommend to give this a go.

But no matter what you will read here... Just give the first episode a chance so you can judge for yourself.

Now thank you for those that read this and have a nice day.

This show Is NOT finished, there will be a continuation later!

When I came across the trailer by accident and saw the fighting scenes, I knew I had to watch It, and a boy, It was great.

This show drains your energy and uses It all up In the fighting scenes. The choreography Is great and the animation Is top notch.
The fights literally make you tired.

With only 3 episodes, I already like some of the characters, my favorite would be the duck, yeah, there's a duck In this show.

The story Is okay, It has some avatar vibes because of the elements.
It's nothing special but I honestly ... don't care since you should watch this for the fighting scenes.

Everyone who likes Action and good animation/fighting scenes, should watch this, It's a must.

I’ll try to keep this short, since I never cared about donghua in general and this title is the first I completed and man did it make me want to watch more of it or something similar. I first knew about it some years ago where a tech demo of sorts was revealed showing an amazing fight between two men that controlled fire and ice. Then these three episodes came out this year and sadly that scene is not present in them.

If you are like me and thus are accostumed to japanese anime, the artwork will feel different and refreshing, yet very polished, there are ... some intances where the character figures don’t exactly match the backgrounds but they are a few and not very noticeable. The character designs resemble traditional stories a lot, and most characters are tall and muscular manly men and without any facial repetition amongst them, giving it a more than welcomed retro feel to it. The backgrounds are beautiful to look at.

The most important and well known aspect of the show in this regard is obviously the actual animation, which is very weak when the character talk, walk or do simple movements in general, the mouth and eyes movements are kinda sloppy and the same applies to every other bit of body language. On the other hand, during the action scenes, when the show needs to have good and fluent motions, it’s simply spectacular, every single motion is practically perfectly made, and what do you want me to say about the special effects? They reminded me of those used during the most impactful scenes in Demon Slayer, which is always a plus.

There’s also very good camera work, following every fast paced action scene perfectly, unlike, let’s say, Dragon Super Broly, where the camera becomes really crazy at times and don’t let you keep track of some action sequences.

So, great and distinctive artwork, great character designs, mostly good animation and superb special effects which constitute a perfect mix of awesome martial arts with epic super powers. There are some things that could be more polished but as a whole the visuals are an impressive job, especially with very few people working on them.

The sound design is not as good, the music is ok, a generic traditional chinese soundtrack which fits the story and setting well and when it comes to the voice acting, well, I have to admit that I’m not familiar at all with chinese voices and voice acting, but what I heard here felt just right, every character had a fitting voice and good interpretation behind in every scene, from the comical to the tragic ones. The sound effects on the other hand are pretty weak in both the relaxing moments as well as those when there are fights and they make those scenes lack quite the impact.

Even when the show cares mostly about the action, there’s a serviceable plot with serviceable characters behind, nothing groundbreaking of course, it’s just some guardians that can use the elements as their powers that fight against demons that threatens humanity, so it’s basically a combination of The Last Airbender with Demon Slayer, only with manliness and epic fights taken from Asura’s Wrath.

The first episode really lowers your expectations because is mostly silly comedy with wacky facial expressions, which reminded me a lot of Golden Kamuy, but then the second and third became a lot more tragic and serious without ever losing that tone. The power scaling in the show seems to be pretty high as the first demon alone was able to fight toe to toe against the protagonist, and he was incapable of saving most of the people from the village.

And the many deaths shown here weren’t just for showing the horrible powers of the demons, as there are enough scenes with the villagers to make the audience somewhat care about them when they die, although obviously not the point of getting emotionally attached to them, for they lack lot of screen time for that, and the way they die is genuinely tragic and almost heartbreaking.

The demons seem to be evil and kill humans just because at first, but as the last episode reveals, is actually a revenge against them for a horrible thing they did in the past, which in turn was not something done for sadistic pleasure, there’s a very good cause regarding a mortal decease behind that course of action. Very good conflict and very well presented with an appropiate tone.

Now for the negatives which prevent me to rate the show a little higher at least for now, the characters are serviceable as plot devices but none of them have much information revealed about them to let you get emotionally invested, and the plot, on top of simple and straightforward, is just a prologue, a kind of demo for more episodes to come if the small group of people working on it decides it’s worth it to keep going. That’s why it has no actual ending despite hyping you with the different agendas everyone has and the invasion of, I have to say, way less interesting demons, seemingly about to happen.

Besides that, it was a very serviceable promotion that did its job way better than, let’s say, Burn the Witch, for presenting an actually interesting conflict, with a serious tone, and mostly amazing visuals. I really want to see how the story continues, if it does, and if you happened to read this and know more about chinese series that you think are equal or better, please feel free to come to my profile and reccomend them to me, especially if they are similar to it.

Average story and characters but the artwork and fight scenes are refreshing. Worth watching.

The strokes used in Wu Shan Wu Xing is way different from any animes that I have seen. I see similarities with traditional Chinese / Japanese arts/paintings. Tasteful and aesthetically satisfying.

They need to work on the the story. I might be a bit picky here. A fair way of putting it will be that, this is definitely a reasonably good story if the target audience is the same as the target audience of most shonen mangas/animes, however most of this type of audience might not find it natural to appreciate the artwork ... in it.

I already knew from a video on YouTube that the animation studio had a lot of potential. When I found out by chance that the studio had released a short series with three episodes, I was very excited and my expectations were high but after watching it my expectations have definitely been met.

Animation:10
Let's start right away with the category where this series shines most and why I had such high expectations for these three episodes: the animation. Although I had high expectations and was a little afraid that I was hoping for too much, the opposite was the case. My expectations were even exceeded. What ... stands out the most are the fights, which are equipped with incredible choreography, great special effects and insane tracking shots. In some scenes, I really almost ejaculated. For such fight scenes, I would even close PornHub as this is where I climax faster. I don't think we should digress ... the background was also beautifully designed. This is mainly caused by the special art style. This gives the world a nice atmosphere and makes it look more alive. I do have a small point of criticism about the otherwise more than perfect animation. The character animation was a little strange in some places. But that doesn't change the fact that I'll be awarding a 10 here, the fights were simply too well animated for that

Story:7
Now we come to the story. Of course, you have to consider that there were only three episodes and these were probably more of a teaser for the upcoming projects. Nonetheless, I have to say that the story didn't disappoint either. You get to know the interesting world, which reminds a little of Avatar the Last Airbender, mainly because of the elements, and also had an interesting narrative style. But you noticed that the main focus was not on that.

Character: 6
Now to the characters. In my opinion this is Fog Hill's weakest category, but that doesn't mean they were bad. Again, of course, it's difficult to build up interesting characters in three episodes. Except for the probably protagonist of the story, I didn't find anyone I found particularly interesting. Above all, you don't really know who will be important for the later story. As with the story, I would say that there is a lot of teaser here and the desire for more, because especially in the last episode many characters were shown who could promise a lot.

Sound: 8.5
The music and sound effects were produced with a very high quality. The series had nice atmospheric and equally good combat soundtracks at the same time, which really supported the scenes well. Especially with the already great fights, the soundtrack takes them to another level and not only the soundtrack, the sound effects were really "noice" for some attacks.

Enjoyment: 9

Overall: 8
Even if the story doesn't blow you away or the characters don't seem so interesting at first, the three episodes definitely made you want more. This is of course mainly due to the incredibly lavishly animated fights and the appealing world building.

I'm going to keep it short
This pretty much has some of the most outstanding animation out there,and when I say that I DO mean it,seriously it has some jawdropping action scenes
The story is good compared to most chinese cultivation Donghuas,and it doesn't even have that so far,it's simple and to the point and that is something that make it stand out from a lot of other Donghuas(Chinese anime)
The characters are still basic but in 3 episodes it managed to introduce a moderatly sized cast and that is thanks to the unique character designs
I didn't pay much attention to the sound but despite I don't ... like chinese VA it wasn't bad,and I can call it decent.Also the op is kinda catchy
Overall this is a show for the sakuga lovers and it's just a fiest to the eye

I made an account only to review this title. I must confess I love animes that put on a good fight scene (animation, sound wise etc.). This show blew my mind, it is incredible. The only thing that I regret is that I can't seem to find a good English translation for the episodes. The art is an absolute masterpiece, I see some people here don't like the story but not for me, I enjoy it. Put the episodes for my little brother and he won't stop talking about when can we see episode 4. I wanted to send an email to the animation studio ... that made this to say thank you for this beast of a show.

Watch it, you won't regret.

I just found out about this animation from China and since watching the first couple of seconds, I loved it.

It is different from most of the animes you've seen around in these past years and it truly refreshing.

The fight scenes are incredible and dynamic.

The story is average but I cannot really give it a proper review, just because it is a 3 episode long series.

Overall, if you'd like something new to watch, full of amazing fighting scenes and stimulating animations, this is the show for you.

I really hope they will continue with this project in the future!!

when I saw it was so underrated, I couldn't help but make an account rate it what it deserves, a hard 10, I hope the production team and the animation studios read this .
It is awesome, more than awesome..... extra gorgeous show, animation and character expressions are top notch, the environment is so well lit and drawn, gorgeous colors,
The fight scenes ,everybody is a fan of. They show a little snippet of how they sketched hand drawn environments, thanks for that.

I just wish they can keep creating art work like this in today's life of 3d, keep on rocking the 2d art, its ... much appreciated and enjoyed more than 3d.

This is the Start of another Masterpiece.

I really don't understand why this anime is so underrated. If this was Japanese anime it would have blown out in popularity and would have gotten endless praises. This anime literally shows how other forms of animation are underrated compared to Japanese.

This is the story of the powerful five Elements and the world where humans and Demons exist. The Skeleton of this anime from the above may seem generic but when you reach deep Under the Skeleton things changes and you will see the beauty.

The real Appeal of this anime comes from the animation and the choreography of the ... fights. Each fight feels like a fight between martial artist. This anime puts lots of modern day anime to shame when it comes to choreography. Compared to this anime most modern day anime fight scenes seem like a fight between savages.

This is my first Chinese anime and I did not expected this to blow me like this. I was never into Chinese animation and for some reason I never took them seriously. Thank god I tried this anime, it really opens a completely New Horizons for me.

Reviews if you don't have time.
*SPOILER-FREE*

As a person who didn’t really get in on the Chinese animation rabbit hole, I confess I was a bit sceptic when I saw an amazing fight, on the internet, from the Chinese original show “Fog Hill of Five Elements” animated by Nice Boat Animation and Samsara Animation Studio.

Well, the animation is as good as one might as for a show that made the fights the highlight and enticing part overall. The fights were absolutely top tier to the point I can say they were one of the best I’ve seen in recent time. The sequences are fluid and dynamic, ... the usage of powers, weapons or terrains that surrounds the characters was really well executed and the climaxes and big moments were exciting and awesome to watch. It was done also in a refreshing art style which was very nice to see. Only thing I can think that was not on point was the speed that sometimes the action went that prevented the viewer to enjoy every little movement.

Unfortunately, shows are not only about animation and fights, and in this case that was pretty much all there was to it. Plot wise, it was way too short to be able to create a plot and was not that good. The characters were interesting but nothing out of the ordinary and maybe it was the bad translation, the dialogue and development of the characters and plot made no sense a lot of times.

However, for a 3 episode show to have such amazing and memorable fights and animation sequences, I think it is fair to forgive some lack of plot or world and character writing.

(TLDR Review at the bottom, as usual, thanks for reading in advance)

In 2019 (more precisely, 10th Aug 2019), an anime by the name of Demon Slayer took the anime world by storm, it shook everything in its presence so much so that it garnered the title of Crunchyroll's Anime of the Year and Best Fight Scene (of that year) awards. Surely this must mean it is good? And you'd be right, but it doesn't take into the whole picture. As most anime fans acknowledge is that visual quality will indeed have a lot of say as to whether or not an anime is good or ... bad, and, well… this title... changes… nothing. Yeah it's still true, not even this donghua could change that, and most good donghua get praise amongst the likes never really seen as consistently as it does. Mostly because of the dedicated audience, yes, but the same exists here in the anime community.

Wu Shan Wu Xing (will abbreviate to Fog Hill 5) is kinda like a Chinese Demon Slayer, just not Demon Slayer by the narrative (it is close though). As since pretty much forever, the only thing that holds up this title is the vibrant action-packed stage combat present. That's not to say that there was nothing of worth elsewhere, however, it is minuscule in comparison to the visual spectacle.

I will focus a little on the narrative for one to get an understanding of what is actually being told. It has that ancient tale plot, you know, the ones you get in those American produced Chinese martial arts movies with the whole legend of the ancient dragon, the elemental dude who vanished when the world needed him the most, those kinds of stories. It isn't exactly original, though this is comparing it to various other mediums outside animation. It isn't exactly intriguing either, originality and engagement are independent, though Fog Hill 5 doesn't wish to expand on its story and simply leaves everything as is. There was only really once did the story expand, however, it more so dwelled into particular characters who had little importance to the grand scheme, which aside from it lacking any means to engage, is also wasteful. In the 3 episodes in its duration, the story overall didn't have any means to expel ideas that would consequently manage to get someone attention. By the end of it, you would have noticed you reached the end of a ripped-apart book, only curiosity and patience demands that you go forward if you wish to view a satisfying story. The characters fall in the same boat of them just being pieces in this seemingly grand narrative, nothing to really praise them on as this is clearly not the end, with more (hopefully) awaiting. Independent to the future of the story here, the only thing I can go on about that differs from the story is their personality. I suppose it ties into the prior originality statement with what I am about to say. Nothing here that seems full of idea, hell, looking back on it, the characters were dry, but they suffice for the story's sake. They won't be enough for anyone to be fully immersed in them, but it isn't like they make the story insufferable. They just, exist. And do stuff.

Now the part that actually matters and is really the only reason to watch the donghua in the first place.

The Animation. (Capitalised to show the importance).

This is probably one of the best-animated works I've seen in a long while. Literal water behaviour motion fluidity in the animation, absolutely zero signs of any cheap cuts here and there, it is basically the rival to ufotable. Maybe I am exaggerating, sure, not everything is modern zenith with each individual frame having several thousands of blood, sweat, and tears behind them sculpted to make even Van Goh's skeleton reach some orgasmic reaction strong enough to make the bones explode. Though, this is good. Very good. Amazing. It slaps. Hard enough to use as WiFi for the week, because the connection is that strong. It isn't just the animation that is insanely good, I quite liked the unique design of the characters, being able to switch up to and from different variations of art when the writing demanded it with ease, it's almost like polymerisation between calligraphy and standard essentials. Simply perfect for a donghua of its kind.

Now the sounds here aren't exactly the strongest thing this has to offer, if anything, the voice acting was better in a relative sense. The OST was basic fighting stuff that lacked a good punch to it, sure, some themes are better than others, but I wouldn't think anyone would leave here with a great reaction to them. It was fine for how and what it was used for, otherwise, it could have done way better. Speaking of the voicing as I have just done so before. I'd love to point out the great attention to detail and slides of that extra oomph that really pushed this to a more respectable level. With onomatopoeic sounds being handled way better than what I know of, as well as enthusiasm to the roles assumed by the actors. Maybe there is something about Chinese voices, I wouldn't know, but I just know this was pretty damn good.

I quite enjoyed Fog Hill 5, without question. Sure, the story wasn't particularly interesting, but for what took up most of the screen, the fighting, anyone would admit that it was made pretty damn well, and is indeed, probably one of the most well made choreographed and animated pieces of works that have touched the name of donghua, maybe as far as fighting animation. Considering how battle orientated this is, one should let such dictate most of the overall quality of the show, also considering how I do believe, as of this review, that a second season/part will exist in the future. Assuming nothing gets cancelled or commits a "[popular anime] season 2 when????". So complaining about narrative aspects is futile in some manner. I would just try to enjoy such for the obvious things it brings forward at the end of the day.
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TLDR Review:

Story - 6: Basic story, doesn't go into much, and seems to be part of a larger story. This is just the setup with nothing to it so far.
Visuals - 10: Peak visuals. Seriously amazing stuff. Actual class animation and synergy with character designs too.
Audio - 7.5: Voicing is better than the actual OST by a good bit, due to more emphasis and detail. OST is fine by itself though.
Characters - 6: Same with story, nothing really special yet.
Enjoyment - 9: Great action donghua, pretty damn hype battles.
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Anyways, I would recommend this one to most general watchers and fans of anime, specifically battle shounen anime, who wish to tread on unknown territory, it's a new experience, with a new language and culture behind it. It isn't hard to understand, however, and quite frankly, something suitable to all despite diverging qualities.

I've been meaning to watch this donghua for some while. I am reviewing this later than I should have initially, but hey, I got there in the end. Apparently, only 7 people worked on this show which is nothing short of incredible. Though I would advise you to do your own research since I saw a contradicting 100 people worked on it on the YT comments section lol. So do you to discover more info on this. A second season should come out, there was an official preview to such, I just have no clue when it will come out, probably way the hell later.

Anyhow, that is it for Chinese Demon Slayer, so, of course, I must bring forward the well-awaited answer to the demanding question.

Is this overrated?

No. Just because there is a ton of action, doesn't mean it is overrated. It is just a really good *action* donghua because it is vivid and well-crafted, smh.


Overall - 8.27 (8)

Wow. Coming into an anime with a rating in the mid 7s i didn't expect much. This is due mainly in part to me finding a lot of the aggregated scores higher than they should be. Having watching this short 3 episodes season, i can confidently say this is one of the most beautifully animated shows that is literally bursting with soul.

The animation here unquestionably gorgeous. The fight sequences are incredibly well done with attention to detail rarely seen anywhere else. The watercolour landscapes are to die for and oozes the artists care and attention. Every single hit you feel and ... they hit HARD. I watched most of this show aghast at the magnificence i was witnessing. Coming back down to earth now....ill be honest, I'm a little biased. I'm a sucker for anything hand drawn and I love watercolour. So maybe the gushing above is a little over the top but i don't care. The character art is also phenomenal and every character looks amazing in both story progression and fighting. There are just so so many things to talk about in relation to the animation. Its beauty is mind blowingly stunning. The animation is simply fantastic and with this alone, the show is top tier for me. Easily a 10/10, I would give it more if I could. However, the animation is not the only area which carries such quality.

Music and sound fits hand in hand with the super animation. It elevates everything it pairs with. Firstly, the sound effects add so much weight to the fights. There were so many times something happened in the fights and I said under my breath 'oooph' Along with the perfect sound effects is the brilliant score. Its not filled with the usual cliche EDM/techno tunes which try and force excitement. Rather than this, you get beautifully placed strings that build or add perfect levels of tension and release. Its a properly scored anime, and once that exists subtly in the background, not over baring, sometimes leaving silence within the score during fight sequences which allows to action and sound effects to speak for themselves, to then return wonderfully balanced to bring the action down or build it up to the next amazing set piece. For music and sound, its another 10/10.

Story wise, its only 3 episodes, yet it manages to tell more than enough. short and sweet. There isn't any character development, but there doesn't need to be. We have 3 episodes of the characters shining. I wont talk much more about the story, ill let you enjoy this part of the short tale for yourselves. 9/10.

This anime is simply outstanding and more people need to see this show. Its gorgeous, its exciting and will leave you wanting more and more of this incredible piece of art.

WOW! I had never expected 3 episodes of a Chinese anime to be the best anime I've seen in 2020.

First of all, the animation is probably the best I've ever seen. Every fight is a barrage of dynamic visuals, the characters move effortlessly and will intention. It feels nothing like the repetitive fights we are used to seeing in popular shonen. It's not like animes with amazing sakuga that's put in just to make the fights better- the animation flows like water EVERY fight is completely sakuga, there is rarely any style changes that make scenes feel out of place, and when characters become ... more stylized, there's always a reason. The animation is natural and fluid, yet also explosive and dynamic. (I know that sounds weird, but once you watch it you will understand.)

The story is also very interesting, but because the 3 episodes are only the start of the story, there's hardly anything to judge. However, I can say this, it's inspired by Chinese folklore and myth, and even though it has many elements similar to other animes, its setting, characters and art make it feel distinct and unique.

Overall, this might be the best 3 episodes you can ever watch, and I highly recommend it to anyone who has working vision.

This show is straight-up Sakuga Fetishism and I love it.
This is my first ever "Chinese Anime" or what's called "Donghua. The presentation of this show is incredibly neoteric regarding its animation and presentation but features incredibly beautiful oil brushed paintings of an ancient china that really puts you in the time period.

There is really only one thing to talk about this show and that is its SAKUGA holy shit ball soup, this show is like 40% Sakuga and it's freaking incredible. The studio seemingly uses every form of animation short of stop motion and produces jaw-droppingly satisfying animation inspired by the likes of Dragonball, Mob ... Pyscho, Bleach, naruto and more.

The fight scenes featured boast a broad scope of fighting styles, grounded styles like Kendo and Taijutsu while also featuring crazy superhuman-Esque esper style fighting as well as over the top fantasy magical abilities. The only issue with fight scenes like this that there is no emotional weight because there is not enough time to set up any empathy for any of the characters.

The only problems with this show is that you cant watch it anywhere "officially" which makes finding the right sources that arent compressed and look poo poo, because the only reason anyone should watch this is its marvel of animation. Also the translation from chinese to English is poo poo.


I know its a Donghua but an entity like Funimation, or Crunchyroll should pick it up instead of shit like "Only Equinox"

Wu Shan Wu Xing is really cool and the calligraphic-estampe art make it wonderful. the general animation (except the fights) is a bit strange but not bad.
Nothing incredible about the story, a shonen like anime. I hope they will work really hard on it.
And the fights scene..ho my god, they're so great ! And the soundd are really good...music and sound effects.
Don't underestimate this chinese anime that could be better that AAA japan anime in the future. I hope the small studio that created it will make us love these five elements !!

Here you can see a mix of the fights in the anime (spoil ... inside) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3uY-C879yY&t=

Story & Plot: 5/10
It is kinda jumbled in a mess, but it is not bad that it ruined anything.

World Building: 6/10
The world was very unique although it was left unexplored from the glimpse of it it looks very vast and beautiful.

Characters: 4/10
I guess the weakest thing about this are characters, i hardly felt anything when it comes to the charcters, they are inconsistent and one dimensional. everyone have their 1 main emotion and only on different ocassion does they suddenly become another character completely. The mc is just a tryhard to be cool.

Art: 6/10
The art is unique but i dont really enjoy it that much, ... but thats just my bias as a veteren anime watcher, the art is not that bad its just it takes time to appreciate it, but art is also subjective, some would love this art, some like me just have a hard time to process it, others would hate it outrightly. For me, the art is fine.

Animation: 10/10
Now this is the main selling point of this donghua, it is unfortunate that i know people will never find this donghua because not enough people are talking about it. but the animation and the fight choreography are up there with top anime studio.

Sound effect, Music & score: 5/10
I'm not going to talk much about music since its subjective, for musical score i also dont have any capacity to judge it since i rarely pay attention to it during my first watch, but for sound effect it is good and bad for me, the fight scene sound effect is fine but for the rest of the sound effect it is just plain or sometime none existent.

Enjoyability: 10/10
This is the kind of "shut your brain off and enjoy the epic fights the story has to offer" kind of show if you can just ignore all of its shortcomings, this is very enjoyable.

Overall: 6.6/10
All score aboved totalled and the average is taken as the overall value.
total score [5+6+4+6+10+5+10=46]
total average [46(total score) / 70(maximum score)=0.66]
convert into out of ten score [0.66=6.6/10]

I tend to forget how rocked my pants can get when that animation hits.

My hatred for “age-old” stories like this one painted my judgement way before I pressed play. They tend to focus on the world-building to a detriment. It's usually focused on explaining the dynasty, the rules, the relationships, how everything works, but “Fog Hill of Five Elements” lets you understand by yourself. No time wasted, show don't tell, that's how that dad talks to his daughter, that's how royalty talks to the ones below, that's how things work just by virtue of the dialogue. A good story that knows how to establish characters ... and their missions, their stakes, and their necessities. Not everybody is good, but instead of blatantly portraying them as evil, they're just desperate.

However, yes, short story, it doesn't have that much time to establish a story. I wholeheartedly respect a story that contains that kind of animation, and tries to give me an emotional response with it.

With that out of the way, DUDE, THAT ANIMATION IS F*CKING INSANE. A colossal display of skill by the characters, consistent in escalation, subtle in changes of the dynamic, even if it boils down to “I can now hit harder”. Weighty, brutal, gigantic, with give and take of damage, and clear showings of how much a punch damages the other even in the air. It's not just “hit hard, nothing happens until we get to the floor”. Fights are choreographed to end as soon as possible, since characters can't take such mass punishments. A fast, intense show of movement that climaxes with rapid moments that don't need much focus. It happened, we're not here to think about it.

As an action extravaganza, with SOME emotional drama, it sets up a great context for the next season. I'm excited to see where it goes, I like the characters, I love the animation, the acting, and the conflicts set work for me. The drama isn't perfect, but hell, it could work with the next season if possible. I'm amazed at what this context can allow, but with complete honesty, if the animation wasn't as good, I wouldn't care that much.

7.8/10. Eye heroin.

The first thing I have to say about this Donghua is that it is criminally underrated. I personally think that it doesn’t get enough attention and here is why.

Story: When you hear the English title “Fog Hill of five Elements” it sound like a basic story about the elements. But this story has much more to offer that you might think. This Donghua has only three episodes but still has an really amazing stetting. The way the first episode starts (I won’t spoil it) is just so interesting that you get hooked and want to see more. Those three episodes have a lot of potential.

Art: ... This Art is beyond my understanding. For me it’s the best animation I’ve ever witnessed. Demon Slayer had gorgeous animation but this is something different. The art is something else. (That doesn’t mean Demon Slayers animation is bad because it totally isn’t) There’s literally nothing I can say to express how well done the animation is. When you are a fan of awesome fights. You will absolutely not be disappointed or dissatisfied.

Characters: I can only say this again. Even though it only has 3 Episodes there’s already more to the characters than just blank pages. Every character has some depth what makes them great. Again, lots of potential for upcoming episodes.

So overall I don’t have any criticism. I think more people should watch it and look how gorgeous animation can be. Again I don’t say that all other animations are bad. I’m just thinking that it has such a different art style that everyone should experience it.

To say that I was thrilled when a fully fledged series came out of the original Fog Hill of Five Elements short I stumbled across years ago would be an understatement. Wu Shan Wu Xing is incredible.

Story- 8

A very strong start to what will, hopefully, become something remarkable. Unfortunately, the only version I could access had subpar subs, and I'm far from fluent in Chinese, but it speaks to the strength of this story's direction through both dialogue and visual direction that the plot was still not only understandable, but engaging. The surface has been scratched to reveal the scope of the story to ... come, so it qualifies as a solid foundation.

Art- 10

I would score it higher if I could. The sheer visual appeal is the main reason I watched Fog Hill, and for good reason! The skilled animation makes every movement mesmerizing, the unique style catches the eye even in small scenes, scenery is absolutely gorgeous, and the fight scenes are, dare I say, God Tier.

Sound- 10

The opening theme is a banger. The voice actors are all obviously skilled. The use of background music is exquisite, building suspense and tension through important battle scenes as it gets gradually louder. I also greatly appreciated that they refrained from using any music at times, something I've seen anime like Naruto do to add a sharper edge to fights.

Character- 9

For a 3 episode miniseries, there are many well rounded characters. Granted, most of the main cast hasn't been introduced yet, but the main, who has been, is outstanding. There are many distinct side characters, and well developed enough that I became emotionally attached. The character design is also absolutely spot on. Everyone with a role to play has a distinct appearance, memorable and pleasing (I'm trying very hard not to outright call them cool, but that's what they are).

Enjoyment- 10

I am such, such a fan of good animation. Not only does it have that, it really does almost everything right, and exceptionally well at that. I watched this all the way through and watched it again in one afternoon. It's just that good, I really can't say much else.

Overall- 10

Like I said before, I would give it 100/10 if I could based on animation alone, but all of it is just *chef's kiss*