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monday_sunday 's review for:
地球上線 The Earth Is Online
by Mo Chen Huan, 莫晨歡
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Other than The Earth is Online, the only other unlimited flow novel I read so far was Global Examination, and truly, despite all their differences, these two just made me want to read more and more of the genre.
I wouldn't say I am completely used to the style of Chinese webnovels just yet, but so far, my experiences have been great and feel like most people who only read traditional western books should give them a try (though maybe this specifically wouldn't be the best start...)
The Earth is Online is a somewhat long (~780k words if I am correct) and slow-paced webnovel, again, compared to most English books I myself have read, but I personally didn't feel too bothered by it, it is the charm of similar webnovels.
I took a long break of nearly half a year after reaching maybe the first quarter of the story, partially because I felt it was a bit too slow, and was also rading other stuff. But then, once I picked it up and decided to continue, I could hardly put it down.
The instances/games are fun and after a while, I think you can understand what's going on more and more easily as the story progresses. Neither the games and solutions, nor the enemies and themes ever felt repetitive.
Despite the book being about survival games, the apocalypse basically and death everywhere, the author has a peculiar sense of humour, especially if you pair it with the way the dialogues and descriptions are translated from Chinese to English. Sometimes, they really are just there as normal jokes, perhaps the earthworms in general or half of the MC's abilities and props being a good example, but there are a shit ton of the most random gags thrown in during or after tense moments, for example, during the seventh floor tower attack, when Wang Xiaotian tells everyone Tang Mo's biggest secret. Even random lines like "Snow White was so angry she wanted to smoke" made me chuckle.
But what really got me the most is the characters, not just the main couple or even main cast. Excluding most mini-antagonists that appeared for a couple chapters, there is barely any reoccurring character that I didn't adore. The black tower bosses are just amazing, my personal favourites being the strange circus leader, Shrodinger and Mosaic, and the main cast has the coolest characters like Bai Ruoyao and Mu Huixue too, both of whom I was pleasantly surprised by,and also had to put down the story at both of their deaths because I just felt utterly empty inside(^-^)
About the main couple, the MC Tang Mo and the ML Fu Wenduo, I don't have much to say. They are fun, have a lot of great moments and chemistry, and I like both of them as separate characters too. The way they understand each other with glances, how they stand and move together and how much they trust and complement each other, it is a big part of the story and there wasn't a dull moment between these two. I feel like there could have been a bit more shown about Fu Wenduo especially, like in one of the extras, but it's not that big of a problem, and I guess it sort of fits him image.
However, beware that The Earth is Online isn't a BL romance with survival games in it, it is survival games with occasional romance in it. Despite the main couple technically knowing and even liking each other even before the story begins, their relationship has a slow and steady development, and even that is more as companions than a couple. If I remember correctly, the very first kiss scene is in the 207th chapter, around ~80% of the book, so yeah, all of their romantic scenes as a couple are in the last quarter of the novel.
The ending, so basically everything from the sixth floor onwards, was a very tense and exciting experience, after the ending, I was speechless and laid in my bed at 4 in the morning, unable to fall asleep (then went to Pinterest for fanarts ofc). Maybe it isn't anything big for those who are more experienced in the genre of apocalypse, but as basically a first time reader of it, I can't explain how much I loved it.I think the story and the problem of the black towers had a perfectly fine resolution. It was explained well, and it gains plus points for not being just some alien technology. I loved that despite confirming the existence of alien civilisations, the story didn't diverged from the theme of humanity and its evolution.
In short, if you want to read a long book about the apocalypse through bizarre survival games, or about a wide cast of amazing characters, I can't recommend this book enough. It has a 4.6 rating on NovelUpdates for a reason. However, if you want something purely or mostly about romance, this won't be it. If you prefer fast or middle paced stories, this won't be it. And if you are interested after bumping into this title somehow, but never read a Chinese webnovel in your life, I would personally recommend to start with something both shorter and more popular (and with a proper English translation). Though they are vastly different from The Earth is Online in any and every aspect, a good start might be Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's books, namely, Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation and Heaven Official's Blessing.
I wouldn't say I am completely used to the style of Chinese webnovels just yet, but so far, my experiences have been great and feel like most people who only read traditional western books should give them a try (though maybe this specifically wouldn't be the best start...)
The Earth is Online is a somewhat long (~780k words if I am correct) and slow-paced webnovel, again, compared to most English books I myself have read, but I personally didn't feel too bothered by it, it is the charm of similar webnovels.
I took a long break of nearly half a year after reaching maybe the first quarter of the story, partially because I felt it was a bit too slow, and was also rading other stuff. But then, once I picked it up and decided to continue, I could hardly put it down.
The instances/games are fun and after a while, I think you can understand what's going on more and more easily as the story progresses. Neither the games and solutions, nor the enemies and themes ever felt repetitive.
Despite the book being about survival games, the apocalypse basically and death everywhere, the author has a peculiar sense of humour, especially if you pair it with the way the dialogues and descriptions are translated from Chinese to English. Sometimes, they really are just there as normal jokes, perhaps the earthworms in general or half of the MC's abilities and props being a good example, but there are a shit ton of the most random gags thrown in during or after tense moments, for example, during the seventh floor tower attack, when Wang Xiaotian tells everyone Tang Mo's biggest secret. Even random lines like "Snow White was so angry she wanted to smoke" made me chuckle.
But what really got me the most is the characters, not just the main couple or even main cast. Excluding most mini-antagonists that appeared for a couple chapters, there is barely any reoccurring character that I didn't adore. The black tower bosses are just amazing, my personal favourites being the strange circus leader, Shrodinger and Mosaic, and the main cast has the coolest characters like Bai Ruoyao and Mu Huixue too, both of whom I was pleasantly surprised by,
About the main couple, the MC Tang Mo and the ML Fu Wenduo, I don't have much to say. They are fun, have a lot of great moments and chemistry, and I like both of them as separate characters too. The way they understand each other with glances, how they stand and move together and how much they trust and complement each other, it is a big part of the story and there wasn't a dull moment between these two. I feel like there could have been a bit more shown about Fu Wenduo especially, like in one of the extras, but it's not that big of a problem, and I guess it sort of fits him image.
However, beware that The Earth is Online isn't a BL romance with survival games in it, it is survival games with occasional romance in it. Despite the main couple technically knowing and even liking each other even before the story begins, their relationship has a slow and steady development, and even that is more as companions than a couple. If I remember correctly, the very first kiss scene is in the 207th chapter, around ~80% of the book, so yeah, all of their romantic scenes as a couple are in the last quarter of the novel.
The ending, so basically everything from the sixth floor onwards, was a very tense and exciting experience, after the ending, I was speechless and laid in my bed at 4 in the morning, unable to fall asleep (then went to Pinterest for fanarts ofc). Maybe it isn't anything big for those who are more experienced in the genre of apocalypse, but as basically a first time reader of it, I can't explain how much I loved it.
In short, if you want to read a long book about the apocalypse through bizarre survival games, or about a wide cast of amazing characters, I can't recommend this book enough. It has a 4.6 rating on NovelUpdates for a reason. However, if you want something purely or mostly about romance, this won't be it. If you prefer fast or middle paced stories, this won't be it. And if you are interested after bumping into this title somehow, but never read a Chinese webnovel in your life, I would personally recommend to start with something both shorter and more popular (and with a proper English translation). Though they are vastly different from The Earth is Online in any and every aspect, a good start might be Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's books, namely, Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation and Heaven Official's Blessing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Medical content, Death of parent