Weiyu is a top author in Jinjiang Literature City, and her series of IPs belong to the category that can be sold for the highest price. Weiyu's works are popular not only for their good literary quality, but also because it is difficult to find a meal replacement that can compete with her in female videos. A large number of female novels are inevitably "fat and pink", and the protagonist's main energy is devoted to falling in love. Although there are romance elements in Weiyu's works, fantasy, adventure, suspense, and thriller are her A more eye-catching label for the novel.

"Westward from the Jade Gate" poster

Unfortunately, the adaptation of Weiyu IP is not a good one. Her first novel to be adapted into a film and television, "Resentful Ringing the Bell", became "The Bell Record" with a score of 3.2 on Douban. Later, the first season of "Yu Zhaoling" adapted from "Kaifeng Zhiguai" only scored 4.2 and the second The second season has been airing for two years and can't even be picked up. The 2021 "Si Teng" adapted from Wei Yu's "Half Demon Si Teng" finally got a passing score, and Jing Tian's version of Si Teng finally performed the characteristics of the big heroine in Wei Yu's works. Also in this year, Tencent Video bought the IP of five novels of Weiyu in one fell swoop, and used the strategies used to create the IP of "Ghost Blowing the Lantern" to create a "Weiyu Universe".

The currently popular "Jade Gate" starring Ni Ni and Bai Yu has officially taken its first step.

The story tells the story of Ye Liuxi (played by Ni Ni), a "desert rose" whose life experience is unknown, and Changdong (played by Bai Yu), a "sand dog" who is responsible for eighteen lives. One is trying to solve the mystery of his life experience, and the other is trying to solve the mystery. The truth about the murder case and the story of teaming up to explore the fantasy world.

Ye Liuxi (played by Ni Ni)

Changdong (played by Bai Yu)

For a long time in the past, large-scale fantasy adventure web dramas have been basically monopolized by "Tomb Raiders", "Ghost Blowing the Lamp", and perhaps Ma Boyong's "Antique Game", as if adventure is for men. Exclusive label. Weiyu's works have expanded the territory of female videos, and adventure themes can also be dominated by women. Women are not just there as foils.

"Jade Gate to the West" is a well-deserved heroine work. When Ye Liuxi appears on the stage, in addition to making people feel her mystery and beauty, what is more highlighted is her tenacity and wisdom. In the sparsely populated desert, she was hung under a withered poplar tree, and the rope was cut. When she woke up, she had lost her memory. It was a huge loneliness like never seeing the ancients before and never seeing the newcomers again, but she did not cry, make trouble, or shout. Not afraid, relying on instinct to survive.

She soon discovered that her life experience was not simple, and someone wanted to kill her. The objects around her when she woke up were just "props" to lure her into a trap. Therefore, she chose to stop quietly. For a year, she worked leisurely and leisurely, just to see if those people would lose their temper and take action. As a result, no clues were found after a year. Only then did she find Changdong, and asked Changdong to be her guide in the desert, taking the initiative to find the answer.

Ye Liuxi IQ Online

Ye Liuxi is sassy, free and fearless. She looks down on life and death, "I'm just watching the scenery with my borrowed life." She also has a very soft and cute side - not because of her delicateness, but because of her sharp teeth, her self-confidence, and her innocence. Every one of her boasts is so natural that you can't refute it. "(I) have advantages all over my body. I like them all in my own opinion." "I am like a mystery, very interesting." "He's arrogant", and he's so confident that it makes you look smaller in aura, "He eats more than me, and I don't think he's any prettier than me"...

Confident and cute

All in all, this character is very interesting. Some original writers pointed out some differences between Ni Ni and the characters in the novel, but many viewers agreed that Ni Ni's version of Ye Liuxi is very charming. She is the most domineering heroine in female videos, and she is also unique in her sassy and tsundere style.

Although the male protagonists in Weiyu IP are sometimes called "pendant male protagonists" by some readers, their characters often do not have much breakthrough, and sometimes they exist to highlight the heroine. But in "Jade Gate", the interaction between Bai Yu's version of Changdong and Ye Liuxi is quite tense. Bai Yu's unique sense of "husband" is brought to the extreme in the play. He is often unable to do anything to Ye Liuxi. Ye Liuxi handles him like "teasing a cat" and makes the cat anxious if he is not careful. But after petting the cat, he returned to his docile and obedient state.

Ye Liuxi "funny cat"

"Westward from the Jade Gate" is not so much about a strong woman and a weak man, but rather a setting of two strong men. Changdong has an online IQ, is gentle, thoughtful and attentive, which perfectly complements Ye Liuxi, who is unconsciously derailed. The emotional development of the two people is not like industrial saccharine, and they fall in love naturally. The audience who was fascinated by it shouted "together together" countless times in their hearts.

Returning to the main story line of "Westward from the Jade Gate", the adventures of Ye Liuxi, Changdong and others dominate the plot.

The fantasy settings in Weiyu novels are often an extension of Chinese myths and legends, official histories, and folk tales, and then combined with the adventures of contemporary protagonists, expanding the worldview of Nvfan works. Obviously, the imagination of "Jade Gate to the West" is based on the famous "Yumen Pass" in ancient Chinese history and literary history.

The Yumen Pass that we are familiar with is not only an important pass on the Silk Road, but also a concrete and abstract poem that has been passed down through the ages such as "Yellow River is far above the white clouds, an isolated city is Wanren Mountain. Why should the Qiang flute blame the willows, the spring breeze does not reach Yumen Pass" and other poems that have been passed down through the ages. sentimental symbol. What Weiyu thinks about is that the inside and outside of the pass are not necessarily specific internal and external spaces. Is it possible that "inside and outside" exist in parallel time and space? Is there a "Guan Nei" world similar to the "Second World"? So she had the imaginary setting that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty would use all the power of the dynasty to seal the demons and ghosts in Yumen Pass forever. Thousands of years have passed. Once the balance "inside the customs" is broken, how will it affect "outside the customs"? All the adventures of the novel begin from here.

In the drama version, Yumen Pass is changed to "Yumen Pass", and the rest of the plot is basically a replica of the novel, which can avoid the criticism of "magic reform". In addition to the "matching" of the characters, I can't say that the adventurous temperament of the series is "right" with the novel, but at least it is achieved - there is no "off", no such glaring and outrageous deviations.

On the one hand, "Westward from the Jade Gate" can be said to be a domestic "western film". Previous adventure themes were based on tomb robbing stories, which took place between the south and the sea. The story of "Westward from the Jade Gate" takes place in the west. As far as the eye can see are deserts, strong winds, Gobi, scorching sun, and storms. The visual effect is lonely, vast, and vast. , tragic and majestic. This is a majestic beauty, but when the yellow sand is flying all over the sky and the sky is dark, it is also a dangerous and terrifying place. The series was shot in real locations to ensure the basic sense of belief in the adventure.

Real-life shooting has a blockbuster feel

On the other hand, the series faithfully restores the strange ideas, strange landscapes, and strange battles on the adventure in the novel. Although there is ridicule in the public that "it is not allowed to become a spirit after the founding of the People's Republic of China", "Westward from the Jade Gate" still retains as much as possible the "weird and chaotic" parts of the novel within the scope allowed by the censorship. For example, the shadow puppet walking on the tent, the mysterious power of dragging Fat Tang (played by Zhao Da) away, the coffin in the earth platform, the sudden ghost song, like a giant killer maracas with one eye, traveling through " "Guan Nei" tunnels, weird deserted villages, sand people turned into sand by falling gold ants, terrifying beasts called "Yan Zhong", gleaming red flower trees...

As soon as the filter is changed in the desert, the smell of danger comes to your face.

Of course, for some original writers, the special effects of the series still have room for improvement, and they are much inferior to the novel in terms of creating a thrilling and terrifying atmosphere. However, a large part of the audience of the series is not part of the original work. Although the imagination of the image language is not as good as the text itself, in terms of adventure-themed works on the market, "Westward from the Jade Gate" currently remains on the standard. What's more, the adventure of "Jade Gate to the West" in the "Guan Nei" has just begun, and the game of interests among several parties in the "Guan Nei" has just begun, and the fun may be yet to come.

For the "Tailfish Universe", the success or failure of the adaptation of "Westward from the Jade Gate" is crucial. "Westward from the Jade Gate" better reflects the horror and supernatural features of Weiyu's works, and the broadcast platform purchased multiple IPs of Weiyu at once. If successfully developed, it may set off a IP-based IP similar to "Ghost Blowing the Lantern" Sensational effect. Weiyu’s IP deserves such a buzz, and I hope “Westward from the Jade Gate” can light the fuse.