Review: The Longest Day in Chang'an

Every so often you come across a good series that's just too long. I suppose I should have expected it, considering the title. But seriously, forty-eight episodes (mostly) covering a single day?!

The Longest Day in Chang'an is a 2019 Chinese drama based on the novel of the same name by Bo Yong Ma. Unlike most Chinese period dramas, the setting is apparently very historically accurate. (The plot, on the other hand, is fiction. Though many of the characters were real people.)

I only recognised one actor, and he's one of the last people I expected to see in a Chinese drama:

Djimon Hounsou (Korath in Guardians of the Galaxy) as Ge Lao

On the surface the plot seems simple enough. A group of terrorists sneak into Chang'an, capital of the Tang dynasty, a day before the Lantern Festival. Their goal is to blow up the Lantern Tower and kill the emperor -- and hundreds of other people. Li Bi, head of the Peacekeeper Corps, recruits Zhang Xiao Jing, a condemned criminal, to help him find the terrorists.

Li Bi

Zhang Xiao Jing

Of course, it's a lot more complicated than that. A story that could have been told in about thirty episodes is stretched out to fill forty-eight. Unfortunately the result is that it frequently drags. I had to keep reminding myself that most of the events were happening in a single day. It felt more like the series covered at least a week. Until approximately the last ten episodes there was very little sense of urgency because everything was happening so darn slowly.

What's even worse is the placement of the flashbacks. They interrupt the story right when events are starting to speed up. Picture this: Long Bo and his cronies have placed explosives in the Lantern Tower. Li Bi is held hostage there. Zhang Xiao Jing is still trying to find the terrorists. Then the next episode leaves them hanging (literally, in Li Bi's case) and is almost entirely a flashback. My response was incoherent rage. Seriously?! They end an episode with a cliffhanger and then don't resolve it in the next episode? 😠

The series is unexpectedly dark and gory, especially for a C-drama. When I started it I never thought it would include nightmarish things like Tan Qi being buried alive or Yu Chang cutting off her own arm 😱

Overall it's a fairly good series. All the actors do an excellent job, and the cinematography is incredible. I enjoyed it a lot. I just would have enjoyed it more if it was shorter, and if they'd handled the flashbacks better.

Is it available online?: The first three episodes are on YouTube. The whole series is on Viki, and apparently also on Amazon Prime. (Currently only the first six episodes are available to the general public on Viki. You need to be a paying member to watch the rest of it.)

Rating: 6/10.