Couldn't find: Xiao Lu He Xiao Lan

The first ten minutes are empty and I nearly quit there and then. Things improve a bit after that, but only up to "sort of okay". There's a good surprise at the end, but not enough to make me continue.

It's based on a Taiwanese RPG that's set in China, in the 8th century BC. This means that its setting, clothes, names, etc. are historical, but we also have magic swords, snake demons and an evil Taibai Empire with an army of cool-looking war machines. We also, unfortunately, have a script. This is like a slideshow of story elements, but without any character drama for them. Look, it's two sisters who do fighting shows to earn money! Look, there's an army! Look, people are fighting the army! Look, battle scenes! Ooooooh.

After a while, the villains come alive. They're looking for someone who might be hiding in a village. Should they search the village? No, that's too much hassle. Just burn it to the ground and don't let any villagers escape. They also threaten torture.

I quite liked Pu Zhao's friend, Long Cheng. However I'm unclear on who's a goodie and who's a baddie, or indeed why I should care. There's also some worryingly half-arsed animation, e.g. the reaction shot to the proposed snake demon dinner. If we're spotting shitty low-budget shots in ep.1, that's a bad omen. The episode ends with a decapitated head, though. That's always worth half a thumbs-up.