YMMV tropes that apply to either Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi as a whole or the other adaptations of the novel go here.
- Actor Shipping: The protagonists' actors Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo have their fair share of shippers due to their chemistry on and off-screen. For similar reasons, the second most popular actor pair after them is Song Jiyang and Wang Haoxuan (Xiao Xingchen and Xie Yang), followed by Liu Haikuan and Zhu Zanjin (Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao).
- Adaptation Displacement: While the original novel is already a massive hit in China, you'd be surprised to learn that there are still many fans who don't know that The Untamed is only but one of the many existing adaptations of the novel.
- Alternative Character Interpretation:
- Jin Guangyao. Was he a Manipulative Bastard from the beginning? Was he sincere about anything he said in the temple? Did he ever care for Lan Xichen at all? Opinions vary wildly.
- Nie Huaisang. Some people think he's a basically decent man who was forced by circumstances to become a Manipulative Bastard. Others think he's another Jin Guangyao.
- The scene where Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli visit Wei Wuxian in Yiling plays out almost exactly like it does in the novel, but there are subtle additions and changes that add a different context to the scene. Did the two visit Wei Wuxian with the ulterior motive of convincing him to leave the Wens and return to Lotus Pier, hoping that showing him Jiang Yanli in her wedding robes and giving him the honor of choosing Jin Ling's courtesy name — which, even though they also did out of their love for Wei Wuxian — would make it easier for them to sway him? Or did they have no such intentions but are nevertheless sad to say goodbye to him again once they have to go back home?
- Aluminum Christmas Trees: Wei Wuxian being able to play music with a mere leaf may seem absurd to some audiences. However, leaf-blowing is an actual thing in Real Life, although it wouldn't produce flute-like sounds.
- And You Thought It Would Fail: While many fans were definitely curious about how the series would fare long before it aired whether it's in an optimistic or morbid way, nobody expected it to become the widespread multinational hit that it became in the span of less than two months.
- Awesome Music:
- The opening theme song perfectly sets the tone for the entire series, transitioning and shifting from calm to intense.
- The ending song "Wuji" (无羁), sung by the lead actors of the show (Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo), is The Untamed's version of "WangXian", and is just as memorable as the donghua and the audio drama's rendition of the song. The instrumental versions of it that underscore the show are equally beautiful, from the achingly yearning string version to the soft, romantic piano and dizi version.
- "Inappeasable" (意难平)
is possibly the most bittersweet character song in the soundtrack. On one hand, it evokes the sweet, gentle feeling that you'd likely to get when you watch Wei Wuxian's interactions with both Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli. On the other hand, it also leaves you with a sense of loneliness since the fate of their siblinghood is already a Foregone Conclusion. - "Salvation from the Desolate City" (荒城渡) is a surprisingly emotional song about one of the villains of the story, since it shows that while he's a murderer who committed several crimes that he can't even begin to repent for, deep down he's still a human being that can feel sorrow and love, even when he realizes it too late. All this is complemented by Zhou Shen's angelic voice.
- "Separation at Qinghe" (清河诀) is an emotional and powerful theme that tells Nie Huaisang's story about how he grieves his brother's death and how determined he is to avenge him. What adds an extra layer of bittersweet to the song is its singer, since Ayanga lost his parents at a young age before losing his older brother by the time he was in college.
- Broken Base: Inevitable, given how it's the most popular adaptation. The changes necessitated by Chinese Censorship caused a huge divide between the fans who started with the novel and those starting with the live-action:
- There is a vicious discourse about whether The Untamed is a well-done adaptation that's better than the source material in spite, or even because, of the censorship hurdles, or a messy story that added unnecessary story plots (like the yin iron storyline), changed characterizations so much that they are In Name Only, and the removal of the Gray-and-Gray Morality that makes the novel compelling.
- The relationship between the two protagonists. Novel fans are dismayed upon learning that all romantic moments between the leads are removed, turning many of their scenes inconsistent or even contradictory to the narrative. Meanwhile, many fans who watched The Untamed first praise the drama for portraying drama Wangxian as "pure love" while deriding the novel's version as "disgusting", with some going so far as to accuse the novel as a fanfiction glorifying yaoi stereotypes for the sexually explicit scenesnote , which would usually start heated fights between the two factions. That said, the only thing these fans can agree on is the subtext between the two leads is well done.
- Ensemble Dark Horse: Nie Zonghui is Nie Mingjue's right-hand man who appears only in the second film of the series, yet is quite popular.
- Epileptic Trees: Some speculate that due to the canon-divergent plot, the series is essentially one giant fanfic that Wei Wuxian had written.
- Fandom-Enraging Misconception: The Untamed is not the original story to which the novel and the donghua are adaptations of. This is especially egregious since simple research would prove that the novel was published in 2015, the donghua began in 2018, and the live-action drama aired in 2019. For extra good measure, the manhua was released in late 2017, while the audio drama was released around a month before the donghua aired. Heck, the final episode of the live-action series even credits Mo Xiang Tong Xiu as the original creator of the characters and setting.
- Friendly Fandoms: Because the earliest fans of the The Untamed were Chinese entertainment consumers, they were also fond of the Korean pop group, EXO which had a strong Chinese fanbase due to its old Mandarin subunit, EXO-M. Much of the cast for The Untamed are also EXO fans with lead actor Xiao Zhan citing Sehun as his favorite EXO member. The Chinese fanbase for The Untamed also gets along very well with the EXO fanbase.
- Gateway Series: Just like the donghua, the live-action is very successful in introducing many non-Chinese audiences to discovering danmei and Spirit Cultivation Genre. While both genres have existed for a long time, it isn't until The Untamed premiered that it was finally successful in attracting Westerners into trying out xianxia or even other types of Chinese dramas.
- Genius Bonus: In ancient China, clothes were always fastened left over right. The only clothing fastened right over left was burial clothes for the deceased. In Episode 19, Wei Wuxian wears his robe fastened right over left, foreshadowing that he has suffered a fate worse than death: losing his golden core.
- Germans Love David Hasselhoff: The series is really popular in Thailand, so much so that it became a trending Twitter topic in Thailand. Even a fan-meeting with the actors was held in Thailand.
- He Really Can Act: Months before The Untamed had aired, many were skeptical on whether Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo (best known for their idol work at the time) would do the protagonists justice, especially as they only had one other major acting role beforehand. After the series aired, everyone agreed that they are the quintessential choices for Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji, respectively, in spite of the many changes done to the plot and the cast's overall characterizations. Xiao Zhan was able to encapsulate every aspect of Wei Wuxian in both facial expression and physical movement, and Wang Yibo perfectly captured Lan Wangji's duality of cold stoicism and passionate emotion. The fact that both won awards for their performances just hammers in this trope.
- It's the Same, Now It Sucks!: Fans' main gripe with the The Living Dead is how it basically recycled the plot of the Yi City arc but with a completely different set of characters who aren't even from the novel — to the point of stating that it would have been better if the production crew had just made it into a half-recap, half-expansion movie about the Yi City storyline.
- Memetic Mutation: Mermaid Xue Yang. explanation
- Narm:
- While it's standard fare for Chinese drams, expect some moments of overly melodramatic acting every now and then, whether it's from the background characters, the supporting cast, and on the rare occasion even the main cast.
- The frequent T-posing that the characters do when they fight or jump from long distances looks too silly and memetic to take seriously.
- If there's anything most fans can agree on, it's that a lot of the action scenes can be funny to watch, especially the battle in the Nightless City.
- It's difficult to deny that the official English subtitles (whether from WeTV or Viki) often contain very cringe-worthy translations. One of the most infamous examples is translating the word gongzi to "childe" instead of "young master" or "master" note .
- Wei Wuxian being thrown into the Burial Mounds is just bound to make the viewer laugh rather than scream in fear. For starters, the green-screen effects are blatantly obvious; and there's how he was dropped from at least an airplane's height.
- The scene where Qin Su confronts Jin Guangyao over the lies he's told her doesn't really leave the proper impact on the audience, mostly because Jin Luying (who plays Qin Su) is notably stiff in her acting, barely emoting in a moment where Qin Su is canonically described to act hysterical.
- The fact that almost every character almost always hold their swords even when they're not fighting, instead of attaching their swords to their waists or carrying them behind their backs, can be off-putting mainly because of how inconvenient it is.
- Narm Charm: The commercials (i.e. Coke, Olay). It's jarringly hilarious but remains fun to watch because it reminds many fans of how Cornetto is often advertised in the donghua.
- Older Than They Think: Many who are introduced to Chinese dramas through The Untamed typically express surprise that the entire drama is actually dubbed, with all the dialogue spoken by voice actors instead of the original actors. However, this is actually a common trend in C-dramas, partly to get rid of any issues of differing dialects. But the main reason is because plenty of dramas are being shot at around the same time in the same filming studio, hence the dubbing is necessary.
- One-Scene Wonder: The red-clothed female ghost that Wei Wuxian summons to scare Wen Chao and fight Wen Zhuliu made herself extremely memorable to fans, even though she appears for only one minute in the entire show.
- Periphery Demographic: While a danmei series the series has attracted a lot of fans even straight men who like the story, the complex characters, and world. In addition the series, along with MXTX's other works are popular among the Chinese diaspora in the west due to it being a modern popular franchise coming from China whereas most popular culture from Asia comes from Korea or Japan
- Platonic Writing, Romantic Reading: Jin Guangyao and Lan Xichen are sworn brothers and one is canonically married, but MXTX was surprised when questioned in an interview if she also intended Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao to be a romantic pair in the novel, which she denied. There are a few good reasons for this; and most of it came from the actors playing Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao, aware of the shipping between their characters, intentionally played up their interactions with lingering touches in the show and even behind-the-scenes that many viewers, even non-shippers, raised an eyebrow if they are merely just friends.
- Retroactive Recognition:
- It would take a while for fans of both Mo Xiang Tong Xiu and Priest to realize that the female ghost in Episode 20 is played by the same actress who would go on to play Chen Qingxu in the Live-Action Adaptation of Sha Po Lang.
- While his appearance in The Untamed is short, fans become surprised when they learn that Wen Xu is played by the same actor who later portrayed Han Ying in Word of Honor.
- Special Effect Failure: It's a Chinese drama, so sub-par CGI effects are par for the course.
- While this series is generally rife with Scenery Porn, it's obvious at times that the characters are standing in front of a green screen.
- The Tortoise of Slaughter looks even worse than how it was rendered in the donghua, especially since it looks unconvincing when other characters are trying to attack it.
- Anyone can see that the eyeballs planted in Wang Lingjiao's treasure stash are a pair of completely fake googly eyes.
- The dog in the dungeon looks menacing at first, but when it reappears it's clearly fake. Especially obvious in how slowly its eyes close and how long it takes to collapse after the needles hit it.
- Squick: The makeup team does a good job in making cracked skin (a sign of zombification in the series) look appropriately unsettling. There's also what they did with Wen Chao's wounds, and then there's the Hundred Holes Curse. Brrrr.
- Surprisingly Improved Sequel: Fans are quick to say that Fatal Journey is the superior web movie compared to The Living Dead, as it actually focuses on the canon-original characters (specifically, the well-beloved Nie brothers) and provides them with more screentime and character depth. Even the one Canon Foreigner introduced in the film immediately became an Ensemble Dark Horse in his own right, in contrast to the three Canon Foreigners in the first film who are mostly forgettable, especially since their story is almost a rehash of the plot of the Yi City arc.
- Tainted by the Preview: Fans were unpleased when they heard prior to the broadcast that The Untamed wouldn't be adapting the romance between Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. However, after the first six episodes aired this opinion died down since even without the romance, there's still a ton of subtext (and that's still an understatement) in the live-action drama coupled with the great chemistry between both the actors and their dub-over actors.
- They Changed It, Now It Sucks!:
- If there's one thing the fans can agree on, it's that while the Yi City arc isn't adapted poorly, per se, it is undoubtedly rushed — which comes as a disappointment due to the entire story being one of the standouts of the novel.
- A lot of fans who had already read the novel prior to watching The Untamed aren't happy about how the Grey-and-Gray Morality theme is heavily toned down, such as making Wei Wuxian entirely blameless and making some of the villains even more evil than they were in the novel. This change is a result of Chinese censorship laws that target not only the portrayal of any blatant (or even subtle) homoromanticism but also morally grey characters and storylines.
- Values Dissonance: While it aired there were various misconceptions that many viewers had over the plot and core relationships of The Untamed, all of which are alarmingly erroneous — such as Lan Wangji ending up as Wei Wuxian's enemy or Jiang Yanli being Wei Wuxian's love interest. To anyone who's already read the novel, the theories definitely seem completely silly and far-fetched. However, Chinese viewers have different perspectives from Western viewers — for example found family and adoption/non-blood-related family figures are not as much of a thing for them, which is why there are misconceptions about Wei Wuxian and Jiang Yanli being love interests.
- Visual Effects of Awesome:
- Majority of the CGI effects in the series are subpar, to say the least, but you'd be surprised to learn that the scene where the characters release sky lanterns doesn't involve any lanterns in the actual shooting.
- While it's not exactly up to the standards of Hollywood blockbusters, it can't be denied that the quality of the special effects of the spinoff movies are a huge step up from that of the series itself.
- WTH, Costuming Department?:
- While it depends on the viewer's sense of fashion, many do share the opinion that most of Lan Xichen's wardrobe looks like he's wearing curtains for robes.
- There are some fans who don't like how the crew decided to give both Nie Mingjue and Wen Ruohan a mustache, pointing out that they look more silly than intimidating and would actually come across as more properly imposing if they didn't have the facial hair.
