Moshi Juexing: Ruqin

This donghua was reviewed after watching all 3 currently released parts (season 1 part 1, part 2 and season 2). So I will review this from that perspective. Note for entire series: I don't know who did the directing and cutting, but this donghua should have been split into: Season 1 - 28 episodes, Season 2 - 24 episodes. This is because Season 1 cuts off randomly in the middle of an event with no real conclusion. Onto the review: Plot Summary: We open to a post-apocolyptic scene where several different groups are approaching the same area, looking to head towards the extraction zone for transport to the"Safe Area". The groups go through gunfights with zombies, with some members lost during the conflict, only to eventually fail the identification and all get killed. (3 episode prologue) Then our main MC wakes up, and describes how he has recently been repeatedly having the same dream, how he has been living in the "Rabid Dog Slum". But as time passes, he starts to have visions of the future, and some old man starts appearing from thin air and speaking to him. So were those dreams really just dreams? There is a bit of a lore dump in at the beginning of the first episode. This lore dump is important because it establishes establishes events that happen before the plot in the donghua, so if you watch this with translations, make sure you watch one that has this part translated. After that, the story telling and plot progression of this donghua is quite interesting. It starts with intense action in a post-apocolyptic environment, where everyone seems to be scrambling for a spot to enter the "Safe Area" in the prologue, only for the MC, Mason, to wake up and tell the viewers this is a dream he has been having repeatedly recently. While the plot doesn't seem to make sense at all in the beginning, everthing somehow wierdly starts to fall into place once you get deeper into the donghua. The story telling/plot progression method is also quite unique; they mix visions with reality, and constantly make you question what is actually happening. The story also has an interesting use of the butterfly effect woven into the story. This part also leaves off where the prologue started, so we at least have some closure (unlike the end of part 2). The prologue episodes (first 3) basically show off all you need to know about the true main characters of the story. In this post-apocolyptic era-ish setting, there are a variety of personality types. There are characters who are easily bullied, those who fight back, those who manipulate and try to obtain power, those who look down on others. The characters aren't too well developed given the number of characters important to the plot, but they do well in fleshing out the world and making the society feel real. The core focus of this donghua is not the characters, but the society in which the characters live in and how it influences them, so it makes sense they are not the focus. The animation for the gun battles, normal movements (like walking) and vehicles are pretty good. They feel realistic and fluid. The character models are good as well, I like the style of them. However, any of the hand-to-hand/close combat animations are a bit stiff and aren't that good. Overall, this part was quite an enjoyable watch, the mystery behind the visions, and the slow realization that Mason's dream is actually a future he will be forced to live had a wierd attraction that kept me hooked to this donghua. This first half of the season has a weird story telling format, but everything does come full circle for a good cliffhanger into part 2. I recommend this for anyone who likes dystopian, postapocolyptic setting shows with some sci-fi and "seeing the future" elements.