“Qin Dynasty Epic,” a historical drama on the life of first Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang, is the latest period television series to send the country into a frenzy. But the series has been widely lambasted for whitewashing history and championing the reunification of China in a move to brainwash the audience and exalt President Xi Jinping.

Debuted in December with a total of 78 episodes, “Qin Dynasty Epic” follows the journey of Qin as he became the first emperor to unify China. The show, scheduled by the official Publicity Department to air as the last TV series of the year, is considered a metaphor for current affairs and indicates the authorities’ determination to reunify with Taiwan, even by force.

The director Yi Yan said the purpose of the show is to inspire patriotism, in particular the willingness to die for your country.

Though a ruthless ruler and controversial figure in history, in a recent review of the TV series, the publicity department said the image of the emperor changes when viewed from the modern perspective. Set against the background of the warring states, the show focuses on the young, diligent emperor’s road to success, eventually restoring peace to the country. The work promotes a spirit of perseverance and conscientiousness, it wrote.

Veteran commentator Johnny Lau said the Chinese Communist Party is reframing history to serve its purpose. As overt political propaganda may not be as convincing, the CCP is sending its message and influencing ideologies through entertainment.

However, this type of ideological propaganda only works on part of the younger generations and those with independent thinking will be able to think for themselves, Lau added.

Likewise, Yuan Tengfei, a Chinese history teacher and blogger, said the show is intended to brainwash the audience and whitewash the history of Qin Shi Huang. He criticized the director and film writers for distorting historical facts to serve political purposes. He noted that Qin’s empire was built on countless deaths and sacrifices, and the emperor was known to have tortured the people. “What is there to praise about a dynasty, where a person late to his military duty would be killed?” he questioned.

The ratings of the show on China’s movie review website Douban have fallen from 8.9 to around 6, alongside mixed reviews from netizens.

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