Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Rise Of Phoenixes’ On Netflix, Where Two Unlikely Leaders Rule A Chinese Empire

We’re not going to mince words here: The Rise of Phoenixes is a huge commitment for a binge-watcher. Sixty episodes aired on Chinese TV — and debuted weekly on Netflix. It’s an epic look at the elevation of two unlikely figures in an ancient dynasty. Is there enough in the pilot to help viewers hang on for so many episodes?

THE RISE OF PHOENIXES: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: A montage of events that led to the fall of the Dacheng Empire and the rise of the Tiansheng Empire, led by Ning Shizheng (Ni Dahong).

The Gist: Shizheng’s empire is on solid ground, but he knows that people are out to get him, namely his oldest son and the crown prince, Ning Chuan (Hai Yitian), who has blood ties to the rival Cheng family and is already enlisting two of his brothers to plan on a takeover. There is also discord because another of Shizheng’s offspring, Ning Yi (Chen Kun) is being released from prison; he spent 8 years there on a trumped up charge after protecting his brother Ning Qiao (Liu Zhehui), who was framed for high treason and executed.

Shizheng looks favorably on Yi, pardoning him after Yi made and sold some silk brocade that helped fund a clinic that staved off an outbreak of the plague. Yi’s brothers don’t like that he’s doing essentially “women’s work,” but Yi finds a purpose in his embroidery, and asks to keep doing that work, instead of working at the military academy with headmaster Xin Ziyan (Zhao Lixin), who appears to be loyal to the emperor but is really a conduit of info to Yi.

The emperor tries to keep Yi safe from Chuan and the Cheng family by marrying him off to the Qui family, who also has ties to the Chengs. But Yi has other plans. So does Qiu Shangqi (Lu Yong), who wants to marry off his banished Feng Zhiwei (Ni Ni) to Yi, with Zhiwei impersonating his daughter Qiu Yuluo (Xu Ge). She won’t do it, despite her mother’s desire to go along.

Our Take: We have to admit, our knowledge of Chinese history is pretty surface-level, so we have no idea about the accuracy of The Rise of Phoenixes. It is loosely based on the novel Huang Quan, which is considered historical fiction, so some liberties were likely taken for dramatic purposes. So the first episode can really only be judged like a regular fictional series; on performances and entertainment value.

Chinese and Taiwanese television, especially with Netflix’s funding behind them, has taken leaps in quality over the past decade, coming close in quality to what we see in American Peak TV. Performances are more subtle and realistic, and the writing has gotten just as complex as shows from the U.S., the U.K. and other more traditional TV powers. Phoenixes is definitely in that category.

The first episode mostly concentrates on Ning Yi, though we’ll also see how Feng Zhiwei infiltrates the dynasty as the season goes along. But despite the oppressive formality of the dialogue — necessary in the environment where speaking to the Emperor or Crown Prince requires a certain degree of decorum — there’s a palpable pain in Chen Kun’s performance that shows that he’s not the simple silk weaver he wants everyone to think he is. The first episode only scratches the surface of how Yi is going to take over, but we do know it’s coming. And though we’re just introduced to Zhiwei at the end of the episode, we were taken in by Ni Ni’s sly smile and want to see more of her, too.

Sex and Skin: Nothing.

Parting Shot: Zhiwei’s mother says “It’s a dangerous move, but only dangerous moves can prevent an impasse.” Zhiwei wonders what her mother is keeping from her.

Sleeper Star: Hai Yitian does a good job showing the Crown Prince as the weak weasel he is.

Most Pilot-y Line: The opening montage is a bit confusing, and it feels like the introduction of Zhiwei gets short shrift, especially to people were were watching this on Netflix on its original weekly release schedule.

Our Call: STREAM IT. It’s a heavy commitment — 60 episodes! — but if you’re interested in the political intrigue and family dynamics involved in ancient Chinese dynasties, then The Rise of Phoenixes will be time well-spent.

Joel Keller ( @joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, VanityFair.com, Playboy.com, Fast Company’s Co.Create and elsewhere.

Watch The Rise Of Phoenixes on Netflix