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The Legend of Shen Li 与凤行 (2024) | Episode 3

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The Legend of Shen Li 与凤行, episode 01, 2024.

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Watched in 2023 and finished in 2024.

乐游原 I honestly cannot believe how good this script is??? Rhythm-wise you can really see Fei wo si cun’s novel experience in how many of the plot shifts and cut scenes are reminiscent of novel plot progression, and on screen the effect is a much quicker pace than is the norm in guzhuang drama these days (case in point: if a character states their plans, the next scene simply shows the action progressing accordingly, instead of a different group of characters finding out about the plan and thus essentially repeating the same info at the audience).

The other point I’m really pleasantly surprised by is the care taken with cultural and historical background. Even though this drama is technically ahistorical 架空 and changes all dynastic & place names, it’s very clearly an early Tang crossed with Three Kingdoms inspiration. And the script shows very adequate research to support that worldbuilding—all the titles of officials, organization of military circuits vs regional civil governments, dynamic of non-Han generals vis-a-vis the imperial clan, it’s all!!! Correct!!! The poems they quote and the classical references they make, while not especially erudite, are all appropriate and correct (including the title, which comes from one of three poems by Li Shangyin titled 乐游原 about ephemerality & the passage of time). Even the simplified Classical Chinese is mostly grammatically correct and natural sounding!!! I’m about to cry at that alone given how utterly inane and frankly offensive most classical usage is in idol costume dramas.

Also a huge shoutout to the supporting cast; while I love both leads very much, I absolutely cannot overstate how much the seasoned supporting actors add to the atmosphere and worldbuilding of the show. The leads are whip-smart youngsters in an adventure rom-com, but the old guys like 老鲍、孙靖、and 符元儿 make the show feel like a rom-com taking place in ‘94 CCTV Three Kingdoms.

In terms of worldbuilding and verisimilitude in its own genre (idol guzhuang), the last shows to do it this well were 琅琊榜 and 周生如故.

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The thing that I find the most fascinating about the story is actually is that it’s the first one I’ve seen that tackles what’s it like to have the “mortal experience” and then it’s done but you still have feelings after it and then what.

The closest I’ve seen a drama come to it was with Dong Hua and Feng Jiu in Three Lives where he went to mortal world ostensibly to experience a tribulation with her but in reality because however miserably it would end it was the only way he could experience love with her. But that was different because it dealt with preexisting feelings on both their parts and added stuff on top. Here, this is so different because the thing is - neither of them had any interest in the other as their divine entities (yes yes fat hints they were couple unknown to present them but I am talking insofar as they are aware.) And the amazing thing is she falls in love despite knowing it’s all an elaborate play only with amnesia, an elaborate Truman Show where she’s the only one aware this is not her reality.

And what is even more amazing she does not fall in love with immortal Chu Kong who she still barely knows, she falls in love with the very very mortal Lu Changkong and the thing is, I cannot imagine the mind trip it is to fall for someone who you know is not really real, who is at best a memoryless sliver of the actual person, who will cease to exist forever soon. I find it so telling that even as she’s dying, this js her concern:

And just in case we weren’t clear what she means:

And he does not get it at all, of course:

And then she comes back and the immortals are all “mortal affairs stay in the mortal world don’t be sad” the way you talk to a kid who got a little wound up about a make believe play. But the thing is, it’s not make believe to her, the feelings were real. And so she desperately wants to know how LCK has been since she dies, and actually keeps begging to see him again and again (though of course he cannot see her - the scene where by her grave he says he kept his promise and didn’t kill himself so please to give a sign and her tear falls into his palm is poetry!)

And she keeps seeing them as separate entities entirely - when she’s worried if LCK is still alive she reassures herself that Chu Kong is not back and that means LCK is alive. This is such an interesting take and rings so true - because what makes us be us are personality, memory, experiences etc etc - I mean nobody would argue identical twins are literally the same person tho they have identical DNA.

Ooof! Oooooof

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Watched this in 2023.

LOVE YOU SEVEN TIMES 七时吉祥 dir. Li Nan (2023)

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Watched this in 2023. It was surprisingly good.

Destined l 长风渡 (2023) ep. 01

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WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH 莲花楼 MYSTERIOUS LOTUS CASEBOOK

Guess I’m back for another rec, you know I’m there when I get minimum two bromance dudes and historical and OOMPH if you liked The Blood of Youth this might be up your lane!! Slightly similar main character premise but super good, the trope never gets old!!

TL;DR

- Stupid disciple + his (unknowing) shifu - Enemy bros “where is my shixiong’s remains?!” + “defeat me and find out” vibes who have to work together and form their deep friendship and get past misunderstanding and mystery blah blah love it - All-powerful legendary swordsman losing all his powers and becoming a legendary physician - Everything is about dead shixiong we don’t even know how the man looks like - Investigations and jianghu shenanigans, cases!!!  - Uwu puppy dog and good in martial arts disciple and his sickly, ex-legendary and still cool shifu who doesn’t know he’s a shifu LMAO - Yes uwu bromance, especially cuz shifu is DYING and he is WEAK and he gonna spit out blood and faint everywhere as they find cure for him 

———–

AIRING DEETS

Total episodes: 40

Premiered on: July 23

VIP ends: August 18

Can be watched from iQiyi

Airing schedule: 6 episodes on the first day, 2 episodes everyday after for 6 days, then 8 episodes a week except for the last week, that has 6 episodes with finale

SUMMARY

Ten years ago, Li Xiangyi who was master of Sigu Sect, challenged Di Feisheng, master of the Jinyuan Alliance, to a fight on the seas, where they both end up critically hurt as Li Xiangyi tries to find out where his shixiong’s (Shan Gu Dao) corpse and bones went - his sect was attacked on the same day, and when he returns to the sect, critically injured, he sees some of his deputies blaming him for the attack, and instead of going in, he disappears after that.

Ten years later, Li Xiangyi is now Li Lianhua (Lotus Li LMAO) and he’s an eccentric but skilled doctor who has his eyes on earning money. By chance, he meets Fang Duobing (Fang Many Illness LMAO), a young, aspiring detective who’s super skilled in martial arts, but he’s been unable to enrol in Bai Chuan Yuan (the past Sigu Sect), a sort-of sect that plays an enforcer role in the pugilistic world and helps to solve cases, arrest wrongdoers, and the like. Fang Duobing’s dream is to get in, but as he’s the only son of two powerful people who’ve been refusing to let him be part of Bai Chuan Yuan, he’s failed the test 3 times despite being the most-skilled one there. On his third try, however, he tells the four masters of Bai Chuan Yuan that his shifu is Li Xiangyi, a Li Xiangyi who used to be a part of Bai Chuan Yuan and is still greatly missed by the four masters. They agree to it, but only if FDB solve three cases with arrests.

His first case leads him to meet LXY who’s now known as Li Lianhua, and their meeting doesn’t go off to a great start; FDB is idealistic and a rich, wealthy young master at heart who’s never suffered much hardship, and LLH drugs him after and scolds him for being too trusting of people and being too obvious, going around with two servants. LLH leaves him with parting words, only to meet him again later at the scene of the crime.

They solve cases together from there; LLH is still looking for his shixiong’s body ten years later, and decides to solve cases with FDB as a guise to get closer to the truth, making use of FDB slightly. Later, Di Feisheng recognises him, and the three of them are forced to become allies/friends to uncover a greater conspiracy. The clock is ticking for them as well, as Li Xiangyi was poisoned and injured ten years ago, and was given only ten more years to live. The story begins in the year that he’s meant to die.

*Fang Duobing met Li Xiangyi when he was young and still sickly, and Li Xiangyi encouraged him, and Fang Duobing held onto his every word and suffered a lot to become healthy again and as skilled as he is today, all because Li Xiangyi said those words to him that year ;-;

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH

(1) Fight scenes are GREAT 

- Water water water

- All female sect?!

(2) Bromance, subtle for now, but greater later I assume - ZENG SHUNXI’S FACE HE SO PUPPY BLURBLUR AND SMILING?! AND CHENG YI SMIRKING?! Like Fang Duobing is just wagging his tail and running after a person he doesn’t know is truly his shifu as he claims LOL

(3) Shifu Li Xiangyi not knowing he was shifu to Fang Duobing

(4) Li Xiangyi being the reason for Fang Duobing to EXIST but Li Xiangyi ain’t around anymore (not) and he sad and Li Xiangyi can’t tell him who he is UWUUUU

(5) Familiar faces hehe if you are a SNGX/The Blood of Youth and SHL fan 

(6) CASES ARE INTERESTING!!!

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Till the End of the Moon 长月烬明 (2023) | Final Trailer Before Premiere Tonight at 6PM (GMT+8)

“I was born 500 years ago in the country of Jing. I had a wife — she protected me, saved me, and taught me how to love. Who is that? Always, it was and is you. You changed me. I learnt how to like someone, to anticipate, to ache, and so many other good things. I only ask that I am able to grow old with Ye Xiwu, for eternity.”

Brief Summary: To stop the devil Tantai Jin from destroying the world, Li Susu is sent back 500 years ago when he had not yet been corroded by his demonic ways — she becomes Ye Xiwu, and slowly falls in love Tantai Jin, who is still a prince hostage. In the end, Ye Xiwu dies to change his fate, and Tantai Jin suffers in grief and anguish at losing the love of his life for the next 500 years. At the brink of destruction and death, he’s saved by a sect and decides to devote himself to good, and meets her other self, Li Susu, but before they can work on their happy-ever-after, the cultivation world turns their back on him due to him being born to be the devil that is meant to destroy the world as they know it. Through multiple betrayals, misunderstandings and entanglement through several lives and reincarnations, they finally realize their feelings for each other and saves the world — one as a god, and another as a devil.

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My exact thoughts at the last few episodes!

susu: why are you evil again?

tantai jin, with watery eyes and lowkey looking like he's about to cry: because i hate you or whatever

cgi demon army who is just kind of subjected to this open-air couple's therapy session: 😶‍🌫️👀

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Keep reading

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This world isn’t as pleasurable as music and wine.

且试天下 WHO RULES THE WORLD China, 2022, dir. 尹涛 Yin Tao.

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My Review of The Long Ballad

In some ways, this is the story of a traditional hero’s journey. But it’s also unique because Li Chang Ge is shown with a level of depth and growth throughout the story that is almost never shown in female leads.

We first see her as a brave princess with an ideal life. When tragedy strikes, she’s forced to learn survival, but she also learns what really matters to her. She pursues revenge out of love for her family. She abandons that path out of love for her country. She then comes to understand and love a world beyond the borders of the Tang Dynasty. At every step, she fights for what she believes in and learns from her mistakes.

The male lead, Ashile Sun, knocks all other male leads out of the game. Like Chang Ge, he faces conflicting desires and obligations. Life does not give him easy choices but he remains clear-minded and true to what he cares about. These two characters are insanely compatible and understand each other deeply.

The supporting characters are amazing too. Every character feels alive and has reasons for doing what they do. My favourites include Li Shimin, A’Dou, Ashile She’er, and Mimi Guli.

Dilraba and Wu Lei are truly the perfect Li Chang Ge and A’Sun. We all questioned the casting, and then the drama hit us like a punch to the gut. Chang Ge and A’Sun are so vivid and believable, and feel like completely different people from any of the actors’ previous roles. I have another post here about how they transformed for TLB.

The cinematography is so good. Every story arc is shot with a distinct vibe. There are quite a few shots done with drones or cameramen on wires. It also seems like all the sets were on-location and nothing was shot in a studio.

The action choreography is also top notch. The fight scenes are really good, especially A’Sun’s fight scenes.

This is absolutely one of the best cdrama soundtracks. What really stands out is the variety and placement. The tracks are not used as background filler to move the pace. No track is overused. The different tracks have distinct characters and they add something to our understanding of the story, whether it’s highlighting hope in a moment of tragic sacrifice, or the stillness of unspoken love in the midst of a raucous crowd.

In fact, the whole 2-hour soundtrack is actually pretty incredible. Several different tracks signal danger, but different types of danger including “Yin” at 29:39, “Cuju” at 31:48, and “Hunt Down” at 01:14:19. Meanwhile in “Ask Heaven” at 2:02:12, the theme that enters in the cello is so beautifully sad and could easily be a centrepiece in any other drama, yet in TLB it’s reserved for a specific use.

Somewhat uniquely, this story is not confined by tropes about the sanctity of bloodlines or patriotism. Nor are the lead characters confined by symbolic traditions or societal expectations. These are brave characters who truly think for themselves.

I’ll conclude by saying that this drama opened up my emotional floodgates, but in a good way. As a “veteran” cdrama watcher, I can be quite a cold audience. But TLB felt like rediscovering a feeling I had forgotten.

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《短歌行》 --李白-- 白日何短短，百年苦易满。 苍穹浩茫茫，万劫太极长。 麻姑垂两鬓，���半已成霜。 天公见玉女，大笑亿千场。 吾欲揽六龙，回车挂扶桑。 北斗酌美酒，劝龙各一觞。 富贵非所愿，与人驻颜光。

For the meaning of the poem, read this. (It’s in Chinese.)

Meaning in English is here.

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I loved this scene. He’s so gentle with her, and pets her hair so sweetly. He’s dating you because he likes you! Not because he needs anything from you.

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Source: https://mydramalist.com/photos/Qm8r2

Love Lasts Forever / Koi wa Tsuzuku yo Doko Made mo (Japanese drama)

Genre: Comedy, Romance, Medical

Synopsis: (https://mydramalist.com/51965-koi-wa-tsuzuku-yo-doko-made-mo) Nanase Sakura is a 23-year-old rookie nurse. She met Doctor Kairi Tendo several years ago and fell in love with him. To meet him again, she studied hard and became a nurse. After 5 years, she finally meets Kairi Tendo again, but he has a totally different personality than what she imagined. Kairi Tendo, who is 31-years-old, is commonly referred to as the "Devil" at work. He is a level-headed perfectionist and often makes biting remarks to doctors and nurses. Nanase Sakura works hard to receive recognition from Kairi Tendo and she also expresses her feelings honestly to him. Due to her persistence, Nanase Sakura becomes well known at the hospital and she picks up the nickname of the "Warrior. Chick" Meanwhile, Kairi Tendo becomes attracted to Nanase Sakura.

My thoughts: My guilty pleasure is fluffy romantic comedy and this one ticked all the boxes. It’s only 10 episodes so that’s really short and sweet. The male lead is Satoh Takerah of the Ruroni Kenshin (Samurai X) fame and I’ve never seen him act outside of the series so it was a surprise that he really acted quite well. The female lead is not too irritating and I read that the script writer tried to give her more initiative. She finds meaning and purpose in a nursing career, beyond just to get close to her crush. While I am generally tolerant of the helpless female for the sake of a fun rom-com, I really appreciated this difference from other similar stories with such tropes (cold guy, warm-hearted girl who’s a klutz). 

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Source: http://asianwiki.com/Dr._Romantic_2

Dr. Romantic 2 (Korean drama)

Genre: Medical, Romance

Synopsis (Source: Soompi, KOCOWA): “Romantic Doctor Kim” is a “real doctor” story set in a small, humble hospital called Doldam Hospital. It is a story about people who meet Kim Sa Bu, a genius doctor, and discover “real romance.” Kim Sa Bu once gained fame as a top surgeon at a huge hospital. One day, he disappeared from the eyes of the public, quietly becoming the chief surgeon at Doldam Hospital in the countryside. After he conducted a successful operation on Chairman Shin, he gets to improve the hospital under reliable support. But then Chairman Shin passes away, and an old foe returns. New people appear and his students had to leave the hospital. Furthermore, his wrist, which was injured three years ago, starts to act weird. Kim Sa Bu decides to go to a huge hospital himself to solve the manpower shortage at Doldam, where he finds two people who resemble his former students but who seem much more lacking. Seo Woo Jin would do anything for money, and Cha Eun Jae gets nauseous every time she tries to perform surgery. Will Kim Sa Bu be able to run Doldam Hospital with these two? 

My thoughts: It’s my first medical Korean drama and I enjoyed the pacing. There’s always some emergency, but then of course they are an ER/Trauma hospital. The characters are nicely balanced out, with fun side characters and bad guys. Character growth takes place in almost every episode for the main actor and actress, and even for the title character, who’s here for the second season. I’m on episode 12 and eagerly awaiting the last 4 episodes. 

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