The Rise of Phoenixes 天盛长歌 has been on air for two nights in a row, but both tv and online viewership have fallen below expectations. Upon its premiere, the show garnered CSM52 ratings of 0.558% and CSMNationwide ratings of 0.732%. Day 2 pulled in CSM52 ratings of 0.539% and CSMNationwide ratings of 0.688%.
For comparison’s sake, current primetime leader Heavy Sweetness Ash-like Frost has CSM52 ratings around 1.3%, but perhaps more surprising is that The Rise of Phoenixes also lost the lead in CSMNationwide, a ranking that has generally been favorable to primetime dramas on Hunan TV.
The dismal numbers haven’t gone unnoticed as the show released a statement to say that within the past two days, The Rise of Phoenixes has accumulated 7.7 on Douban and 8.8 in Maoyan, the highest for a historical drama produced in China this year. The show also did a poll via weibo that had an 84% approval rating from viewers.
However, viewership seems to be reflecting the opposite which leads the three production companies of the drama to speak up and conclude that the current ratings and ranking are not what the show deserves. The statement goes on to share that inflating viewership ratings is a predominant problem in the television industry. Advertising revenue, a show’s performance, the production team and the cast’s market value are all hostage to fake views.
The Rise of Phoenixes will not participate in inflating viewership no matter the pressure. Instead, they hope that everyone can see their sincerity in making a drama that has real performances, real voices, real sets and real emotions.
Source: 1
Anonymous
After watching the first 4 eps, I conclude that you need alot of brain capacity and attention span to watch this drama. There is information overload because they go right into the political stuff. I think I'm gonna drop this for now until I hear good reviews about it like Nirvana in Fire. For now, the plot is abit too slow for me to enjoy it fully.
Anyway, I'm surprised it has such low ratings; losing even to late-night dramas like Meteor Garden, Fuyao and The Drug Hunter (which is on its second round of broadcast). I hope Hunan doesn't start cutting the eps.
Btw I think Ashes of Love's ratings are around 1.3 for CSM 52.
Anonymous
It's good if they dont intend to inflate the viewership. I think I'm gonna check this drama someday, just to appreciate them
Anonymous
" real performances, real voices, real sets and real emotions. " …
yet they neglect the responsibility of hiring real scriptwriters.
kiwilove
The difference between value.
HSALF has a subpar production value when compared to ROF. But what makes them stand out above ROF is that the storyline doesn't deviate away from the book which kept their original fanbases. And through that they just build up the hype. ?
Anne J
oops, thanks for catching that, I knew that too, but copied the wrong number. I have the same opinions as you regarding Phoenix, planning to stay for a couple more episodes though.
Anonymous
Excuse? The drama got high Douban rating because of great reviews on the story. Political historical drama has always had low rating. People still prefer to watch romance. Romance centered dramas eventhough some of them may be mediocre, will somehow get high rating. For example, Negotiator that has bad storyline get high tv rating but very low Douban score. Douban is good indication to know whether the drama is quality or not because reviewer on Douban has always been so critical.
Anonymous
I disagree about Douban scores being reliable as an indicator of quality. For some dramas it can be indicative of feedback but I have seen good shows targeted by haters that really lower the Douban ratings etc etc
Anonymous
Indeed, well said!
Anonymous
The most important part of the drama is the script writer the failure of the plot of the story will always goes back to the writer. Even though Douban indicate the the quality of a drama they should always look at the front view of the power of the viewers because people wont love or like the drama if its bad drama.
hohliu
I feel I need a degree in Chinese Language to follow this drama. There is so much dialogue and political terms. It is not easy watching. In fact, I need to keep referring to the Wiki cast list so I can keep up with each new characters. I do enjoy it but I will likely hold off for now till it reaches closer to the end to watch again.
Anonymous
What are you on? Drama with low TV rating doesnt automatically mean bad drama. And high tv rating doesnt mean it's a good drama. Meteor Garden is trash but still got decent TV rating but their Douban score is very low. Douban can be reliable for most of the time cause most of critically acclaimed shows got high Douban scores and great reviews like Nirvana In Fire series. At least Douban isnt like Mydramalist who is full of biased reviewers with bare minimum taste. Douban is used by a LOT of people and their judgement is pretty fair. It can be a good indicator to know which drama is high quality and which is low quality.
Anonymous
Douban can be a fairly good indicator most of the time but sometimes users will brigade and assign a low rating if they have a vendetta against the actors involved. For example, after Chen Xiang's scandal, they were extremely harsh on his next drama, same with Guo Xiaotong who they seem to dislike. They're also extremely harsh to dramas if they aren't faithful adaptations. A drama can still be good even if it's not faithful to the original source material but any little change and people will react harsher than necessary.
Unknown
can probably monitor subscene com to look for subs.
Anonymous
I couldn't find where to watch it, will it be on Youtube any time soon? I was waiting for this show but I'm still too hooked on Yanxi Gong lue. And I know many people are hooked on Sweet Ashes Like Frost. This year's shows are much better than what I've seen in the past 3-4 years.
While people are still already having a show they really like and not finishing it yet, and others are saying the new show isn't too good, I guess…base on the reviews above I have a feeling it's going to be a bad one and I don't really plan to watch it anytime soon anymore. It's so common these days to see boring draggy dramas. Like Yang Mi's Fu Yao, she is so famous but Fu Yao is extremely boring. So it won't be surprising at all when people say a show is boring, most of the time those are really true and correct reviews. People are not lying at all. But, I mostly find people lie when they keep saying a show is so good, that's when I don't believe it (most shows are only bad today).
Sunny
High viewership numbers are not an indicator of quality. Plenty of trash dramas get high ratings and plenty of great dramas get low ratings.
Hope the viewing figures for The Rise of Phoenixes improves. The team obviously worked hard on this to deliver a high quality production.
Anonymous
Uh okay…so people lie when they say they like a show but don’t lie when they say they find a show boring?!? So transparent lol Again, ratings like Douban are scored by opinions. Quality is subjective depending on one’s standard and criteria etc.
Anonymous
An adaptation is of course has to follow the real source. Even if it deviates, it should follow the escence of the original. I agree with Douban reviewers. If an adaptation is too different, then it should get lower score. Making adjustments is fine, though
Anonymous
Yep! Because of idols, fans have to support shows their idols are in. Some of the lousiest dramas will get crazy good ratings because of the actors only.
Anonymous
Girl please. Yang Yang and Li Yi Feng are popular and have large fanbase but not even their fans can save their douban score. Most of his works got low rating due to actinf issie and subpar storyline. China is big and theres a lot more non-fans that use Douban
Anonymous
Dramas and novels are different mediums, things don't always translate well between the two mediums. Just because it's the original source material, it doesn't mean the original source material is great or can't be improved upon. Why should a drama can rated lower if the changes actually improve on the source material? The drama should be judged on its own merits.
Anonymous
The show is actually not too bad so far, but not great either. The lower ratings could be due to the reasoning that prior to airing, the show had already been set at a much higher standard compared to other dramas due to the cast and production. My problem with the show is aligned with many other viewers, where I agreed that the pacing is way too slow with too many subplots. Currently on Douban, the show actually dropped from its initial ratings of 7.8 to 7.6; which should really signify to their production/marketing team. And this statement that they put out seems rather as an excuse for lower viewership ratings. I mean Bloody Romance, which also have similar or less ratings, also put out a phenomenal movie-like drama with "real performances, real voices, real acting, real sets" but it didn't try to justify its less than stellar viewership ratings. I'm sure Rise of Phoenixes team worked hard, and so did other production and cast teams as well. Hopefully, the show will continue to improve, since there is a total of 70 eps.
Anonymous
The statement made by them wasn't an excuse for lower viewership ratings. It was due to the show not doing much publicity when they began airing, so a lot of people didn't even know about it, even people who were waiting for it to air. Not to mention they changed the name not long before airing so a lot of people didn't know it aired already. These contributed to low viewership the firs few days. Thus some fans of the show kept requesting under the shows weibo that they buy publicity and viewership etc… The statement put out by the show was aimed toward such fans, telling them that the show refuses to do what they deem unethical to get higher viewership and ratings.
Anonymous
Regarding the statement they put out about not inflating viewership ratings, it's not an excuse. A few days ago, a director for another series came forward with information about the inflation of viewership ratings. Like Rise of the Phoenixes, this director also refused to buy/inflate the ratings, unlike most other dramas. He recounts how he was threatened at first with refusal to air his drama, then how they faked the Douban ratings with low scores, and even falsely deflating the viewership ratings when they would go up. Now that he's come forward with the information friends are fearing for his life. In his statement, he mentioned that Rise of the Phoenixes would not get good ratings because they refused to buy inflated viewership ratings. In the end, it resulted in 14 episodes being cut from the series and Hunan tv refusing to pay. The buying/inflation of viewership ratings is a very real and prominent problem, and needs to be dealt with. Thus the statment made by Rise of the Phoenixes is no excuse, but rather a brave declaration of their choice to remain true to themselves and to the audience. Based on this alone, I think this drama is worthy of watching.
Anonymous
I have to say, I am 21 episodes in (DVD version). I'm still failing to understand why some people dislike it so much.
Some above have mentioned that it's hard to follow due to all the politics. It's actually what I love about this drama. The politics, the scheming and the character development – it's all so intricate and so many layers that really pulls me in. I suppose having grown up watching Chinese historical drama, I actually didn't find it that hard to follow – if at all.
I actually felt sorry for the antagonists as well and this is what makes me think this is great show – when you start to understand each and every character as the show progresses.
Some people also complained how they don't explain things properly. Again, it's another reason why I like this show. If I'm looking for some easy to watch, easy to follow, no brains involved drama, there's a dime a dozen out there. You discover along the way with each episode each characters' motivations and back story. It's subtle – and there are also tiny details between scenes that foreshadows the plot further down the line.
I went back and re-watched first few episodes after the latest episode came out and I realised there was quite a couple of details I've missed at the beginning.
I'm wondering whether the TV ratings is due to the TV version. I've been following the DVD version. I noticed the TV version edits it fairly weirdly to the point that the story doesn't flow right.
Regardless, I'm loving the show. I hope they don't cut it.
Anonymous
I'm on my third time through. I'm so hooked on this show and its characters, I'll keep rewatching it until I find something else as good. Everytime I watch it I catch more details I missed before. It is a fascinating, densely-woven tale. I yearn for season 2…
Anonymous
I'm with you on this one!
The show needs to be slow, it works better for the tone and the story. I'm watching the Tv version where they edit out lots of scenes and you can feel that it's missing something.
As a reader and a watcher of this story – I believe the script changed the story for the better. It will be too unrealistic to have a heroine who is hungry for revenge and is too smart/pretty/calculative right from the get go with no motives other than revenge to carry the story in this medium through 70 eps.
Hopefully the ratings will bump up soon. Starting this drama is like finding a gem in the dark and hopefully the drama can live up to its title and rise up like phoenixes 🙂
Anonymous
The Douban ratings for this show have really been skewed by people with ulterior motives. Reading the one star and two star ratings it's obvious a lot of these people didn't even watch the show or just watch for a few minutes as they do not/ can not state any real acceptable reasons for the bad ratings. Looking at these users' ratings history it's obvious many of them are fans of other series being aired at the same time, thus intentionally trying to lower the ratings of this show so it doesn't detract from the viewership or ratings of the show they love. Then there are the people who are used to watching no-brainer shows so they dislike this show as it requires the use of a brain. There's also quite a few of those impatient souls who give a rating of 1 star merely based on the fact that the show has 70 episodes. I don't have a problem with low ratings as long as the person really watched the show, but those intentional low ratings by non-viewers is what irks me. Luckily, there are still people who are willing to give it a try and like it. Thus the Douban rating have gone up gradually to 7.9. This is a well produced show and really deserves better. Hope more audiences will discover it.
Anonymous
This drama is so good to be missed, i read the article first and i was in doubt but as soon i watch it, it was just excellent, chen kun acting is just perfect and so real, you just have a patient because it only gets better, i watched 30 episodes and waiting for the rest…. If you loved NIF you will love this millon times more, a must seen drama
Ruth Hills
I LOVE this drama.It has a deeply engrossing storyline, complex characters and relationships. The Superb actors who bring those characters to life with sincerity,passion,yet subtlety (especially the humour). I adored them all Chen Kun and Nini were incredible – even the support actors were worth watching, believable and in their own way,endearing. As I don't know mandarin I have to watch it subtitled on Netflix (thanks Netflix) but it is well worth the effort.I even rewind so I can read the subtitles then re-watch how the actors are communicating through tone,facials and gestures.I don't care about ratings.I just watch and decide if I want to continue based on my response. Well done to the whole cast and production crew of this fascinating drama. You have made a convert out of this New Zealand viewer.So addicted!!!
Anonymous
This is an amazing drama, however…
Whatever you do just DO NOT watch the last few episodes. If you want to retain your sanity, listen to me!
Anonymous
I loved loved this drama!!! I was really sadden by the ending but over all enjoyed watching all 70 episodes. I also will be rewatching for a while too.
Anonymous
I watched both Meteor Garden and Rise of Phoenixes and the two just can’t compare. Two totally different genres for different types of audience.
If people continue to abuse the ratings system, then no one will trust them. I saw both these dramas on Netflix and viewers tend to be generous with shows they like. MG was addicting garbage, but it’s target audience loved it. Rise of the Phoenixes was well received by those who watched it, myself included. The last episodes killed me but I know enough about Chinese dramas never to expect happy endings in historical fiction. I loved the production, performances, design, music, writing. It all came together beautifully. I was very impressed and look forward to more productions of this caliber.
Unknown
Same here! Everything is good except for the ending!Chen Kun and Ni Ni deserve to have a best actor and best actress award
Anonymous
Just a wishful thinking; maybe the last episode was made unclear because they would like to have a base story for the second season? I mean, it was not shown that our heroine has actually died. It could be that Gu Nanyi might come and save her and take her somewhere into hiding to plot a revenge for Ning Yi…? And then probably this time the story can have the same ending as the novel. Maybe more people will watch it then LOL
Anonymous
Loved this drama a lot. I like how each plot unfolded and all the characters were very well developed. Though many complain about the ending, I thought it made sense and was fitting. Such incredible attention to detail, I was mesmerised by the sets and costumes. I think this drama deserves much more credit for its quality.
Zoe Dillard
The Rise of Phoenixes is one of the best historical dramas I've ever seen — right up there with The Tudors, The Borgias, The Medicis and other highly respected, production rich and amazingly acted shows. I would love a second season that is more true to the actual ending in the book, as well as more shows on Netflix starring these wonderful actors. Absolutely loved this show! I'd love to know more about this director and the actor training program in China that prepared the performers to be so compelling.
Sokakuning
I love this drama from the beginning! I usually check out 1st and 2nd to decide whether I’d continue watching. For example Eternal Love 2 is too comedic on the 1st and 2nd, dropped. Rise of the Phoenix is very much good in the plot. The character that Chen Kun plays really charismatic, almost theatrical, which I like. Ni Ni pays very fresh and liberated, playful. The most I like is the story plot. The emperor is somewhat boring, even though he is supposed to very smart in the story. It seems typical nowadays with the new generation of Wu Xia drama (I am fans of “old generation” Wu Xia too from Gu Lung, Jin Yong, Liang Yu Shen, …) how they end the drama with… I wrote this comment in September 2020 for which I had already watched Princess Agent, Love in-between, Sword Dynasty (I’d think that this is based on 1970s novel though), Untamed…