The First Order

This donghua is an adaptation of a novel, and has a manhua adaptation as well. While I have not read the novel, I did a quick skim of the manhua adaptation to get a feel of the story. I will make some comments on what I felt were the most obvious changes in the donghua adaptation. Plot Summary: Ren XiaoXu, our MC, is a refugee class person, living outside the walled enclaves in a post-apocalyptic dystopian society. The harsh lives that he and his brother lead causes him to strive to enter the city as an actual citizen. Toward this goal, he works hard to earnmoney and master his supernatural power/system to strengthen himself while protecting himself and his family. Follow Ren XiaoSu as he navigates this world and slowly strengthens himself with his supernatural power/system. The First Order is set in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian world, where around 200 years have passed since the fall of the greater civilization. We follow Ren XiaoSu, our MC, in his journey to navigate the world while protecting his family and friends and learning about his "superpower". Yes, there are a small percentage of people who have awakened a kind of supernatural power that cannot be explained with "science". The story in this first season depicts Ren XiaoSu as he starts to navigate his superpower; his superpower resembles the classic system or game quest system, which is used to great or comedic effect. We as viewers are much like the MC in that we know very little about the world, so we learn about the world through him as well. The plot presentation is great this way, as the info dumping that we usually see in cultivation donghua is not here; this makes the story easy to follow and understand. Starting episode 4, there are some ending segments that "talk" to the viewers, kind of like a Q&A that helps flesh out the world a bit without being too much of an info dump; it is a nice touch to help out the world/history building in this donghua. Each of the important characters are unique in their own way. The MC is a survivalist and displays the necessary skills and knowledge that is consistent with what his background suggests. The others have their own quirks or characteristics that define them, making them easy to identify and/or relate to. I think most of the important mainstay characters have been introduced in this season, though that remains to be seen, given the ending. The characters give much life to this donghua. The animation for The First Order is actually pretty high quality. The choreography of fights is good, the fluidity of the normal character movements is high, and the facial expressions are nice. The character models are also detailed and realistic and the environments and beasts look great. The animation quality for this work so far is top notch. This donghua is highly enjoyable, it blends many different things together that may not seem compatible in a way that feels natural and not cliche. The comedy is great, though may not be as good if you don't understand Chinese, the characters are fun and quirky, the environments/animation and world are lively and interesting. While I am not a fan of "system" stories, the "system" in this story doesn't feel out of place or like plot armor. If you like post-apocalyptic setting type stories where there is a mix of intrigue and comedy, this is a highly recommended watch. Score: 8/10 Adaptation Remarks: The First Order is set in a post-apocalyptic, post-modern "Earth" so we can recognize some of the "lost" technologies and aesthetic. However, since it is set in a post-apocolyptic setting, there are some rather "unclean" or themes and displays. In the manhua, and likely the novel as well, we get to see some of the more degenerate aspects of the post-apocalyptic era. These things have been cleaned up for this donghua, likely to make it more age-appropriate for the younger target audiences. The comedy that I saw in the donghua is mostly consistent with what I saw in the manhua adaptation. I enjoyed the comedy, as it has gags, plays on common idioms, and In regards to more specific and obvious changes, depiction of age of the characters and their behaviors/world have been changed. The most obvious one is regarding XiaoYu, who is depicted as much older than her model suggests. In the manhua, Ren XiaoSu, the MC is 15-16 years old, and XiaoYu is supposedly early to mid-20's which is why she just "considers him a little brother" during that comedic moment in the first or second episode. Xiao Yu is also an smoker and she is implied have engaged in some questionable activities to get by, considering she is a single woman in a harsh post-apocalyptic society who lives alone. This clean up of her image makes the show more age-appropriate for younger audiences and promotes her to potential romantic interest, despite what the show depicts for now, which could win over some fans. It also causes some of the dissonance that happened when originally discussing the recruitment of XiaoYu into their "family". Overall though, I'd say this is a great adaptation so far of this work. It is fun, quirky, and delivers this story well.