This is my second BL c-drama after “The Untamed” but in the latter, I could not get past the third episode. Simply put, I am not a BL lover, and could never enjoy such genre. The idea of handsome men cozying up to one another - despite the lack of physical intimacies - is rather disconcerting and impeding my enjoyment of the drama. I would rather watch gorgeous leading ladies strutting their stuff on screen; looking cute and lovely when needed or crying their heart out at the slightest of tragedy. So it was with trepidation that I watched “Word of Honor” as it premiered just as I completed watching “Weaving a Tale of Love” and “Douluo Continent”. Suffice to say that I have not been disappointed with this choice, and “Word of Honor” exceeds my expectation of BL c-drama .

The storyline is nothing to get excited about. Once you get past the ogling and amorous look from Simon Gong towards Zhang Zhe Han, and flirtatious behavior from the two male leads, this is just a normal wuxia-theme costume c-drama by a popular web writer, Priest. It details out the adventures of two (2) soul mates in jiang-hu where both of them goes through various trials and tribulations. Nothing special in the storyline to be honest. Had it not been for the BL genre, and you take away either of the MLs and replace him with a leading actress, this would be an average costume c-drama. But with two handsome MLs in this series, you have a storyline that caught the eyes and attention of nearly all female c-drama fans. That is the secret formula pioneered by “The Untamed” and it has become a trend among drama producers. “Word of Honor” is no different. The strength of this low-budget production is the chemistry and flirtatious behavior between two extremely good looking males. It might turn off some male fans, but it is a sure magnet for female fans. The douban rating of 8.6 from over 280K reviewers means that this is a highly popular and acclaimed historical costume drama of 2021.

Gu Xiang/Zhou Ye’s introduction as a maid gives me the creep. It is her 1st historical c-drama . She reminds me of Li Yan character (Zhou Jie Qiong) in “Legend of Fei” but with slightly better martial arts skill. She looks like Zhang Ziyi in her younger days, at least to me. But as the series progresses, I am beginning to warm up to Gu Xiang character. In fact at the very end, I wish they could have more scenes featuring Gu Xiang. She is a fresh face in this industry, just like Wu Juanyi in the “Douluo Continent”. Sometimes you get bored looking at Yang Mi, Yang Zi, Tiffany Tang, Zhao Liying, etc reprising the same roles repeatedly. The chemistry between the two (2) MLs is evident for everyone to see. Simon Gong’s lustful and lecherous look at Zhang Zheyan takes a bit of getting used to, but it is cute and funny at the same time.

I am a few episodes from completing this series, but the ending will not change my mind about this series. Because of “Word of Honor”, I will give “The Untamed” a second look. Overall 8.5/10.0 score and that is purely down to Simon Gong/Zhang Zhehan chemistry.