Heaven Official's Blessing
Review by Dennis D. McDonald
The heavenly gods in this animated Chinese fantasy have some things in common with the Olympian gods of Greek mythology. They squabble amongst themselves and for one reason or another seem unable to resist engaging with the human world in ways that don’t always turn out well either for them or for the humans.
Our story in this 12-episode series concerns one particular god, Xie Lian, who is banished from heaven for the third time in 800 years. Upon returning to earth he finds himself not only bereft of worshippers but also engaged in a series of adventures that gradually reveal not only how warlike and dysfunctional life on earth is but also the details of his prior lives.
Most of the stories take place on earth and display how gods, humans, and demons interact. There are heavenly magical powers on display but not enough to push the drama into the realm of purest fantasy. There are real terrors and horrors here on earth with some of the animated imagery being downright scary. At other times the subtlety and complexity of the animation, whether focused on heavenly or earthly matters, are simply beautiful. I have rarely seen such nuanced and delicate characterization combined with such occasional evil and even brutality.
We have grown accustomed to animation being used to represent foibled superheroes with godlike powers. Sometimes such animation offers pure escapism and sometimes reflections on societal challenges. As fantastic as Heavenly Official’s Blessing is, I can’t help but think that it offers a dramatically satisfying view of how good and evil play off each other in the real world. Even the gods themselves suffer when this happens and we humans often get caught in the crossfire.
Review copyright © 2021 by Dennis D. McDonald
