General · EdgepediaOctober 3, 20265 min read

Mirror: A Tale of Twin Cities (镜·双城)

Mirror: A Tale of Twin Cities (镜·双城, also known as Mirror: Twin Cities) is a 2022 Chinese costume fantasy television series adapted from the novel of the same name by Cang Yue (沧月), the opening work of her Mirror (镜) series. Directed by Patrick Yau Tat-Chi (游达志) and led by Li Yifeng (李易峰), Chen Yuqi (陈钰琪), and Zheng Yecheng (郑业成), it ran 43 episodes of about 45 minutes each and premiered on 16 January 2022 on Tencent Video and Youku.¹^•²

Key fact	Detail
Original title	镜·双城; English titles Mirror: Twin Cities and Mirror: A Tale of Twin Cities¹
Source	Novel by Cang Yue, first published November 2008 by Wanjuan Publishing House; serialization began in 2005³
Broadcast	16 January 2022, Tencent Video and Youku; 43 episodes, about 45 minutes each¹^•²
Lead cast	Li Yifeng as Su Mo (苏摹), Chen Yuqi as Bai Ying (白璎), Zheng Yecheng as Prince Zhenlan (真岚)¹^•⁴
Production	Produced by Jucool Communication under Huace Keton together with Penguin Pictures; screenwriters Chu Zheng, Jiang Guangyu, Ou Sijia, Shao Hanli, Liu Xiaohan, and Pan Wei²
Reception	Douban score 3.6 from 56,937 users, with 51.4% one-star ratings¹
International streaming	Listed on Netflix (Singapore) and streaming on Viu⁵^•⁶

Spoilers

Story and setting

The series is set in the legendary land of Yunhuang (云荒), said in myth to have been created by the right hand of a god. The plot follows Na Sheng (那笙), a cheerful Miao girl who flees the chaos of war and journeys far in search of Yunhuang, the fabled home of her dreams. Rescued there by Su Mo, she finds that Yunhuang is far from a paradise. Three nations entangled in a thousand years of hatred, the sea kingdom, the Cangliu, and Kongsang, see the wheel of fate begin to turn with the rebirth of the Sea Emperor and the founding of the Kongsang-sea alliance.⁷

The underlying novel describes a longer conflict among three peoples: the Kongsang kingdom fell through internal decay and the invasion of the Ice tribe, its 100,000 survivors forced into sleep in the Colorless City, while the merfolk (鲛人) saw hope of returning to freedom with the emergence of the Sea Emperor Su Mo. Prince Zhenlan and Princess Consort Bai Ying intend to restore Kongsang.⁸ Netflix's synopsis frames the romance at the center: Su Mo, a prince of sea gods, and Bai Ying, a princess descended from a mighty sword deity, fall in love across enemy lines, and Su Mo is eventually expelled from the realm, after which Bai Ying attempts to end her life by jumping from a pagoda.⁶

Production and release

The drama was produced by Jucool Communication under Huace Keton and Penguin Pictures. Filming wrapped on 8 October after several months that included heat, hurricanes, and rainstorms; the cast also included Yang Zhiwen, Ye Shengjia, Liu Haikuan, Liu Chang, Tan Kai, and Wang Yuanko in supporting and guest roles.²^•⁴ The leads were announced with their character designs on 31 July 2020, stills followed on 9 October, and a teaser trailer on 27 October 2020.²

On release, members received two new episodes Sunday through Wednesday at 20:00 with eight episodes at launch, while non-members received one episode daily.² The series later appeared on Netflix in Singapore and streams on Viu in the Philippines.⁵^•⁶

Reception and criticism

Strong start, weak finish. The Wenhui Daily review records that the drama's premiere-day views exceeded 100 million, but that heat and online reputation fell steadily through the run to the finale.⁸ On Douban the series holds a 3.6 rating from 56,937 users, with 51.4% of votes at one star and 29.6% at two stars.¹ A later press survey called it the first S+ level costume idol drama of 2022 and noted a Douban score of only 3.9 despite the popularity of its two leads.⁹

Critics concentrated on the adaptation choices. The Wenhui review argued that cutting the novel's themes of nation and family, its hardship, conflict, and resistance, and keeping only the romance left the plot thin: Su Mo's motives for alliance became a favor to Bai Ying rather than strategy, Na Sheng helps the alliance because she loves the merman Yan Xi rather than out of compassion, and Zhenlan disregards his kingdom to tell Bai Ying she matters most. The adaptation also lightened the tone from mournful to sunny, changed Su Mo's characterization, and removed dark elements such as sacrifice, chariot dismemberment, puppetry, and sorcery.⁸ The Suihua Evening News criticized excessive plot alteration, slow pacing, and plastic-looking effects and sets, noting that fantasy elements of the novel such as the merfolk, Yunhuang, and the sea-soul pearl lost their luster on screen.² Fan reviews on Douban likewise objected to casting and to changing the protagonist's name from Su Mo (苏摩) to Su Muo (苏摹).¹

The wider Mirror franchise

The novel, begun in 2003 and first published in book form in November 2008, is the opening of the Mirror series and built an Eastern fantasy world centered on the Yunhuang continent.¹⁰ A 2020 animated series, the Fengqi (风起) arc, opened at 8.6 on Douban and finished with over 44 million plays, though its score later slipped to 8.2 amid criticism of character models and voice acting.¹¹^•¹² A 3D animated adaptation launched on Tencent Video on 15 November 2021 and concluded on 14 February 2022, earning praise from original fans and younger viewers; it used full-body motion capture, the Unreal 4 engine for environments, and film-grade color grading.³ A feature film adaptation was announced in 2015 by Ruyi Pictures with Canada's SYON company, with Hollywood screenwriter John Collee and producer Andrew Mason attached, but as of 2025 reporting no other Cang Yue IP adaptations had been officially announced and the Mirror film had no new progress.¹⁰^•¹³

References

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026