As I read MDZS by MXTX, I am struck by how grateful I am for the way The Untamed decided to handle the story. They looked at the homophobia and said “you know what? No. No thank you.” They altered Wei Wuxian’s character a little - not to change who he fundamentally is as a person - but they improved him, made him more like-able. MDZS Wei Wuxian makes me feel quite a bit of secondhand embarrassment on multiple occasions, but CQL Wei Wuxian? We owe it to the scriptwriters, director and of course Xiao Zhan for creating a character you cannot help but feel an enormous amount of affection for.
Furthermore, MXTX handled the romance in some instances like a straight woman’s fantasy of an MLM couple. MDZS Lan Wangj’s demeanor feels like he wants to own Wei Wuxian at times, with a possessive streak that is in no way something to be romanticised. CQL Lan Wangji? Wang Yibo, thank you endlessly for the soft, deeply emotional and loving character you created. Wang Yibo somehow managed to convey a repressed gay teenager who’s experiencing those new, terrifying feelings of a first love. The yearning is palpable; the longing and self-restraint, all portrayed effortlessly with minuscule facial expressions. Xiao Zhan’s Wei Wuxian’s love for Lan Wangji is similarly restrained for other reasons.
The show took censorship and made it work for them. Novel WangXian’s confession is not only absurd, but also highlights much of what is so off about the novel’s portrayal of their romance. It might seem odd to criticise the original source material in this way: the story is MXTX’s creation after all.
To summarise, I think that CQL is the most valid adaptation that has and will ever exist.
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