The best Chinese TV series
The top 3 according to 4 votes from people: My Own Swordsman · Drawing Sword · Yongzheng Dynasty. (Updated Jul 17, 2026.)
Chosen from the highest-rated Chinese TV dramas on Douban (with Dream of the Red Chamber, Ming Dynasty 1566 and Maopian usually at the top), mixing old classics and acclaimed recent shows.
Automatically translated (original in 简体中文). See the original
Top 20
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1
My Own Swordsman
2006. A period sitcom written by Ning Caishen and directed by Shang Jing, set in the Tongfu Inn.
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2
Drawing Sword
2005. Li Youbin as Li Yunlong; 8.9 on Douban.
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3
Yongzheng Dynasty
1999. Tang Guoqiang as the Yongzheng Emperor, from Eryue He's novel; 8.8 on Douban.
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4
Soldiers Sortie
2006. Wang Baoqiang as Xu Sanduo, from raw recruit to special forces.
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5
Dream of the Red Chamber
CCTV, 1987. Wang Fulin's classic adaptation of the great novel; 9.5 on Douban.
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6
Ming Dynasty in 1566
2007. Directed by Zhang Li; court intrigue in the Jiajing era, tied with Dream of the Red Chamber at the top of the ratings.
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7
Maopian
2010–2015. A web series about a gang of young con artists; its final season rose to 9.7 on Douban.
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8
Journey to the West
CCTV, 1986. Directed by Yang Jie, with Liu Xiao Ling Tong as the Monkey King; rerun countless times.
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9
Teahouse
2010. Starring Chen Baoguo, from Lao She's famous play; 9.6 on Douban.
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10
I Love My Family
1993. Ying Da's pioneering sitcom about the Jia family's life in Beijing.
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11
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
CCTV, 1994. An 84-episode adaptation of the classic novel.
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12
Palace of Desire
2000. Directed by Li Shaohong; the life of Princess Taiping in ornate dialogue; 8.9 on Douban.
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13
Peace in Peking
2014. Written by Liu Heping; economics and espionage in Peking in 1948; 8.8 on Douban.
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14
Romance of Our Parents
2014. Guo Tao and Mei Ting as a naval officer and a capitalist's daughter over half a lifetime of marriage; 8.8 on Douban.
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15
Nirvana in Fire
2015. Hu Ge as Mei Changsu, seeking justice for the Chiyan Army.
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16
The Long Season
2023. Directed by Xin Shuang, starring Fan Wei; a north-eastern mystery rated over 9 on Douban.
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17
The Bad Kids
2020. From a Zijin Chen novel; three children accidentally film a murder.
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18
Lurk
2009. Sun Honglei as Yu Zecheng, a mole inside the Nationalist intelligence station in Tianjin.
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19
Empresses in the Palace
2011. Sun Li as Zhen Huan rising through the Yongzheng Emperor's harem; still rewatched more than a decade later.
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20
Blossoms Shanghai
2023. Wong Kar-wai's first TV series, with Hu Ge in 1990s Shanghai.
Candidates
They don't make it into the top 20… yet. Vote for them to move them up.
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21
Towards the Republic
2003. A historical epic from the First Sino-Japanese War to the early Republic.
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22
Editorial story
A 1991 Beijing sitcom starring Ge You and Lu Liping, and written by Wang Shuo and others.
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23
Kangxi Dynasty
The 2001 historical drama, starring Chen Daoming as Kangxi, was adapted from Er Yuehe's novel.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (2)
红楼梦87版无法超越，陈晓旭就是林黛玉。
大明王朝1566是最好看的历史剧，没有之一。