#donghua vs novel

[minsarasarahair]

You Yao donghua actually treat the characters more kinder and respect their wishes hence why I do think most characters get their happy ending. If its not happy. Its more hopeful than the novel version. The novel is sadistic and depressing.

Lou Zhu

Novel: Lou Zhu is a scheming two-faced hedonist antihero but secretly has conscience somehow. In the novel, only ZYQ know about Lou Zhu's 8th floor (secret basement). At the end of the main story, he stated that he will meet ZYQ again in the future and it ended with them parting ways. After the mainstory's war. LZ who become more rich focus in sealing singularity and eliminating Tuo Huang remnants but can't fix that transmigrator soul replacing problem. In the extra, he mentioned that he want to visit Pangmen one day to visit ZYQ but the novel equivalent of Pangmen is like Tian Ya Ke's ghost valley so going there is dangerous so he can't do it because of his current situation. ZYQ also don't want to endanger Lou Zhu's life for him so they are stuck in long distance relationship. In that reunion extra, they reunited because LZ asked for a poison's antidote from ZYQ. As the leader of Pangmen, he's knowledgeable with different types of poison.

Donghua: He reunited with ZYQ after years of being separated similar to novel extra but situation are different. He finally visit the peaceful version of Pangmen and probably considering it as his retirement home because of the beautiful mountains and clear water around it that fits his ideal home requirement. LZ will probably consult ZYQ for a medicine because ZYQ became a nutritionist. LZ probably suppress the transmigrator soul replacing problem information from others to avoid chaos but he gave them a choice to try the singularity to return home because in the novel, Long Daxia is the one who tell them about it. In the donghua, the people present when Jiao Jiaoran revealed that are Tuo Huang transmigrators, Lou Zhu, Lin Kai, and Long Daxia.

Zuo Yunqi

Novel: He's more like a tenant of Best Tower and Lou Zhu's errand boy in the novel. He's a prideful stubborn guy who prefer the role to be the one who earn money and protect Lou Zhu. The reason why he's separated from Lou Zhu is he want to be in equal grounds with Lou Zhu. He don't like the idea of Lou Zhu protecting him. Protecting LZ is his way of courting him. If he didn't became a leader of Pangmen sect, he has no way of helping Lou Zhu because not only his body is too weak after almost dying but he can't cultivate his martial arts anymore. He will definitely become useless if he stayed by Lou Zhu's side.

Donghua: ZYQ experienced becoming Lou Zhu's bodyguard as his temporary job while staying in Best Tower and eventually became a successful healthy business man/nutritionist so they are now in equal grounds. The ending gives you a hopeful feeling that they will definitely be together because ZYQ's conditions in the novel are all fulfilled.

Li Ke & Zhou Rongqi (Angst ending)

Novel: Both Li Ke and Zhou Rongqi experienced living their life alone after their loved one died. In the novel, Li Ke killed himself first in their first arc so Zhou Rongqi did experienced surviving alone. In the end, Li Ke travelled around Da Liang while knowing that the Chunfeng ci bi dagger he carried has Prince Yu's soul in it after Tao Zhongchi mentioned it. He wish to meet Prince Yu again in his next life.

Donghua: ZYQ told Li Ke that the dagger possibly has Prince Yu's soul so Li Ke was overjoyed knowing that Prince Yu is not gone gone and tried to find a way to reunite with Prince Yu. He entered a singularity with the dagger to transmigrate together. If you have read the reverse isekai au extra, its really possible that they manage to meet again in 21st century and live happily. Its a hopeful ending. Watch Cheng He Ti Tong (How Dare You) donghua episode 1, they really transmigrated to 21st century!!!

Lin Kai & Tao Zhongchi

Novel: Lin Kai and Tao Zhongchi's connection in work terms was mentioned but didn't dive deeper about it. Lin Kai didn't even tried to save Tao Zhongchi by himself when she was kidnapped. He sent Xie Liang to save her. So Lin Kai suddenly asking Tao Zhongchi if she's fine to be his wife in the ending look like it came out of nowhere. Tao Zhongchi rejected him and then replied to him honestly that she's not interested for now but she might consider it in the future.

Donghua: The donghua build their romance well. It showed Lin Kai being saved by her, falling in love with her, getting rejected by her, respecting the girl's career-oriented mindset, saving her in time of trouble and finally getting the yes from Tao Zhongchi. They are a very cute straight pair.

Tan Qinghuan

Novel: Wulin alliance treat her more harshly. Lou Zhu not only lies he has amnesia and pretend he's the guy Tan Qinghuan looking for. He also don't take seriously his promise to Tan Qinghuan that he will make sure if he ever found her loved one, that person will live in a peaceful world. Novel version of Da Liang is not peaceful at all after the ending lol Its a very twisted world.

Donghua: Everyone in Wulin alliance tried to talk with her and genuinely listen to her sad ABC story. Lou Zhu treated him more kindly like a friend and promised sincerely that he will try his best to make a peaceful place for everyone like Tan Qinghuan's special someone. She's thankful that Lou Zhu is a good person. Then they buried her. Da Liang is more peaceful in the donghua.

Lin Kai's friendship

Novel: Lou Zhu and Lin Kai is an insufferable scheming duo who love playing as neutral bystanders. Lou Zhu and Long Daxia is in bad terms who often see being sarcastic to each other. Lou Zhu mock Long Daxia's recklessness while Long Daxia mock his cowardice. Somehow Lin Kai is more ambitious with hidden agenda and don't like it whenever Lou Zhu show conscience in the novel.

Donghua: Donghua explore more the healthy friendship of Lin Kai with Long Daxia and Lou Zhu. Despite their differences, Long Daxia and Lou Zhu have decent relationship. Lin Kai is a good friend and likable character.

Zhou Jingyi, the emperor

Novel: He's straight up a bad person who blame transmigrators once bad things happened and mistreated Prince Yu's family. His son is a bad child who also want to kill.

Donghua: Still a bad person but his insecurities and anxiety was showed in the beginning. Then gradually lose his trust to transmigrators thanks to Jiao Jiaoran's wrongdoings. He's not downright evil and even entrusted his crown prince to Xiao Xue to teach his son about transmigrators' knowledge. He didn't killed her. It resulted the crown prince developing a good mindset with who don't want to hurt people under Xiao Xue's teachings.

Zuo Dao

Novel: ZYQ threatened his dad Zuo Dao to give him the Liruo so that he can manipulate the transmigrators to not leave and fix Lou Zhu's problem. Leaving him with no choice, ZYQ gave him a poison that killed him resulting ZYQ somehow becoming the next Zuo Dao that can't run away from using poison to survive in Jianghu. Zuo Dao tell ZYQ that ZYQ will never escape his fate to become a bad person similar to his dad in his last breath so ZYQ starts to doubt himself if he can actually became a good person. Sadly, ZYQ really do evil actions in extra and no longer consider himself as good person.

Donghua: ZYQ tried to find a better alternative medicine to cure his dad but failed. ZYQ told him though that he don't want to be like his father sincerely and will definitely show him that genuine goodness exist in this world. Zuo Dao has more peaceful death and gives his son a good luck to whatever he want to achieve.

Xiao Xue

Novel: She barely have a role in the story and disappeared after the first arc. Lou Zhu originally has two main maids in the novel, Xiao Xue and Xiao Yu.

Donghua: Alive and she became a hostage to teach the crown prince about transmigrators' knowledge. Later, she became the new emperor's trusted advisor just like what the former emperor wanted.

Charlie Norman and the Miss who own the pastry shop

Novel: Long Daxia and Qian Zhenduo kinda used Charlie to get info about Jiao Jiaoran and the factory. The Miss was mentioned possibly being interested to the foreigner secretly but when Charlie was asked if he's going to marry. He said no because he's going to leave to find his homeland. In the Fuyang incident, she embraced someone's dead body in the same spot where Charlie lose consciousness and then got hit by explosion. She gave him the armor she's wearing so Charlie can survive. She died and Charlie manage to survive alone but lose his hearing. He didn't know who gave him the armor. Nevertheless, he continue searching for his homeland if it exist in this new world.

Donghua: Charlie is the one interested in her and tried to propose to her many times. They both died together while embracing each other in the middle of Fuyang massacre after the Miss accepted Charlie's Marry Me if she will come to him find his homeland together. At least they are together lol and Charlie returned her feelings? They both like each other! Well, the home concept in You Yao is you can find your home in someone and not a place so Charlie finding his homeland came true as he fall in love with the Miss. In the ending, Long Daxia and Qian Zhenduo formed a genuine friendship with Charlie so they rode a ship to try to find their dead friend's homeland.

Xie Liang & Fan Aiguo

Novel: In the final arc, Fan Aiguo and Xie Liang actually saved Long Daxia before he fell to where Jiao Jiaoran fell into like true noble heroes. Before that, they also tried to save Lou Zhu when emperor tried to kill him but they are used as scapegoats. Lou Zhu also ordered Fan Aiguo to plagiarize a story and Xie Liang is the one who saved Tao Zhongchi. In the ending, Fan Aiguo decided to stay in this world to explore more being a writer so Xie Liang invited him to his Xiaoxiang villa to stay there.

Donghua: Sadly, they didn't saved any important characters but they do help in simple matters like making sure Tuo Huang members will not fall to their death, the delivery men for the weapons and they are the one who breaks free the snake to destroy Lou Zhu's best tower. Xie Liang has confirmation too from Fan Aiguo that he will also not leave their world.

Long Daxia & Qian Zhenduo

Novel: Travelling couple LongQian is already together way before the Fuyang incident. They met earlier. Long Daxia actually love earning money for Xiao Qian as his love language so Xiao Qian will stop swindling anyone to earn and survive. In the novel, they don't have designated places to go while travelling because their home was destroyed already as result of the war. The public misunderstood their relationship as just master-disciple who live in seclusion somewhere.

Donghua: LongQian met later. In the donghua, they travelled together because Long Daxia wish to see the world from ordinary person's perspective through Xiao Qian's eyes and to try their luck searching for Charlie's homeland as tribute for their deceased friends.

Jiao Jiaoran

Novel: Straight up crazy bad person raised in bad environment who's also one of the leaders of a syndicate and interested in studying Singularities. She actually watched when Lou Zhu was hit by a car and died in his first life. She assumed she killed him because she predicted that there's a singularity to where Lou Zhu died.

Donghua: Her origin story is never revealed. Still a bad person but her motive is different. The reason why she's against the natives is because of discrimination and she look down on them because of her advanced modern knowledge unlike Lou Zhu who tried to bridge the gap between natives and transmigrators. She only met Lou Zhu in the donghua but they are aware of each other's existence in the novel.

[tonyglowheart]

I wish there was qq fic I liked on ao3 cuz I finished rereading qq so once again I'm like, "so now what...."

[luobingmeis]

so for the past like idk 30 minutes i’ve been thinking a lot abt like guanyin temple and the overall public scorn of jgy at that time and nightless city vs. guanyin temple and jgy as “the big bad” but his death being anything but vindicating but rn i’m thinking the most abt. if the cultivation world killed wwx but kept his inventions. how would that translate to the watchtowers.

[fleetwood-cheese]

The change in shen jiu’s fate at binghe’s hands in the donghua was almost definitely done for censorship/rating reasons (can’t blame them, the novel version is… grisly, to say the least) but the pickle jar really is such a clever idea. The concept of peerless cucumber vs pickled shen jiu, that shen yuan is a version of sqq without the bitterness and envy the original had been stewing in for years, the implication that shen yuan’s sqq is the sort of teacher shen jiu might have been if his life had been different, really is so subtle and delicious from a character exploration standpoint. Plus it means the donghua team didnt have to figure out how to animate the limbless stick corpse with their terrible budget and limited technical skills thank god

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group E Round 4: Are You Ok vs Moriarty the Patriot

#E1: Are You Ok (You Yao)

Transmigrators modernize ancient China. Chaos ensues.

#E4: Moriarty the Patriot (Yuukoku no Moriarty)

Gay found family criminals versus corrupt nobility

#E1: Are You Ok (You Yao)

Summary:

People from the modern world transmigrating into the ancient Chinese fantasy world has become a common and everyday occurrence that the royal court in the latter has decided to moderate them. If you’re a transmigrator, you must report your existence to Lou Zhu, the master of Best Tower. Once you pass his test and prove that you are indeed a modern person, you can then be assigned to work in different areas of the government and be given a high salary.

Because of this promised benefit, many impostors have showed up before Lou Zhu. And one day, Zuo Yunqi takes this test as well. Is he an impostor, or is he an actual modern person?

But some transmigrators also choose to hide their existence out of distrust in the government. Where are they? And with their advanced knowledge on science and technology, what are they planning in the dark?

Elsewhere, other transmigrators find themselves in all sorts of situations—an art student is detained and forced to come up with a recipe for a poisonous meal, while another is stuck sharing a body with the original soul and fighting for its control. Meanwhile, unrest rises in the Jianghu and a storm brews in the palace. Can our transmigrators’ modern knowledge save the day? Or will their lack of understanding in the current world lead to their downfall?

Propaganda:

As someone who is in the You Yao and YuuMori fandoms and adores both for being very gay while still having a good plot, I’d say these two stories are tied in terms of quality. They both execute their respective genres well and really shouldn’t be pitted against each other. But since I absolutely have to choose, then I’m siding with You Yao for this round. The YuuMori anime is a bit lacking compared to its manga, whereas the You Yao donghua elevates the original novel and breathes new life into it.

I started both shows as an anime-only. While watching YuuMori, there was always this nagging feeling at the back of my mind that I was missing out on something. There were so many instances that seemed odd or abrupt. The “found family” gang felt forced, and Sherlock’s attachment and dedication to William seemed excessive in the episodes leading to the climax and even at the climax. It turns out the anime had cut out a chapter in the manga where Sherlock visited William at the college where he teaches. This was such a let-down for me because that chapter showed how the two interact outside of a crime scene and still be friends.

In contrast, the You Yao donghua was able to stand on its own. You don’t even have to read the novel anymore, which is surprising coming from someone like me who always advocates on experiencing the source material.

In the novel, arcs seem disconnected from each other that, while reading, you don’t get the feeling that there’s an overarching plot. It is only later in the story that everything starts slowly coming together.

Somehow, the You Yao donghua was able to take the scattered puzzle pieces of the novel and connect them all together to deliver a coherent story all the while still keeping the spirit of the original—a suckerpunching emotional rollercoaster ride masquerading as yet another comedy. Characters were also given more emotional depth, which is a plus because the novel only portrayed it subtly. Even the donghua-original characters were so likable that I had to double-check if they were canon.

The YuuMori anime has its good parts of course, but overall I think it could’ve done a lot better in terms of character relationships and pacing.

So yeah, both stories are equally good in each of their own genres. But on being an animated adaptation? You Yao takes the win. Vote You Yao.

Trigger warnings: Guns, kidnapping, and imprisonment. Nothing too dark, though.

#E4: Moriarty the Patriot (Yuukoku no Moriarty)

Summary:

During the late 19th century, Great Britain has become the greatest empire the world has ever known. Hidden within its success, the nation's rigid economic hierarchy dictates the value of one's life solely on status and wealth. To no surprise, the system favors the aristocracy at the top and renders it impossible for the working class to ascend the ranks.

William James Moriarty, the second son of the Moriarty household, lives as a regular noble while also being a consultant for the common folk to give them a hand and solve their problems. However, deep inside him lies a desire to destroy the current structure that dominates British society and those who benefit from it.

Alongside his brothers Albert and Louis, William will do anything it takes to change the filthy world he lives in—even if blood must be spilled.

Propaganda:

The story isn’t quite on par with the manga (solely due to there being not enough episodes to cover full character arcs), but the ‘eat the rich’ vibes are immaculate, the plot is complex and interesting, the queercoding and subtext are both wonderfully done, AND there is a CANON TRANS CHARACTER !!!!

Trigger Warnings: Child Abuse, Gender Identity/Sexuality Discrimination, Graphic Depictions of Cruelty/Violence/Gore, Rape/Non-Con, Self-Harm, Suicide

When reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.

If you want to criticize one of the shows above to give the one you’re rooting for an advantage, then do so constructively. I do not tolerate groundless hate or slander on this blog. If I catch you doing such a thing in the notes, be it in the tags or reblogs, I will block you.

Know one of the shows above and not satisfied with how it’s presented in this tournament? Just fill up this form with your revisions, and I’ll consider adapting those changes.

New: Starting round 5, screenshots will be included in the poll post. You can submit screenshots through the form linked above, or through here, via ask or dm.

Guidelines in submitting screenshots:

No NSFW or spoilery images.

Pick some good images please. Don’t send any blurry or pixelated ones.

You may send up to 9 screenshots, but not all may be used.

[talk-danmei-to-me]

The vastly different time line in the novels vs the donghua gets me so hyped.

Like I'm only on book 2 and already Lan Zhan has been drunk twice and now Jing Guangyao's wife is finding out some gruesome news. Probably from my boy Nie Huaisang. Wild.

[hualianisms]

Xie Lian "calling Xiao Ying ugly"

There is a common misinterpretation among international fans that Xie Lian was mean to Xiao Ying, calling her ugly, or that XL is very mean and sarcastic/critical in general. However, this is a misinterpretation for a few reasons, including mistaking the 3rd Person Narrator's voice for Xie Lian's voice.

1. 3rd Person Omniscient Narration in TGCF

The TGCF novel is written in the 3rd Person Omniscient Perspective, not the 3rd Person Limited Perspective. This means that some parts of the novel are a separate narrator speaking, not XL.

See this post by @baiwu-jinji about how MXTX often inserts her own thoughts & opinions into the narration, even sometimes in the middle of XL's POV, which gets mistaken for XL's own thoughts.

CN fans also do not perceive XL as mean at all, instead separating the narrator's opinions from XL's. See this tweet from a CN fan that I have translated:

Here is also a good thread by luoreos with examples of when it's the 3rd person narrator speaking, or other characters' thoughts, not XL.

2. MXTX's own style seeping through into the narration

As mentioned in baiwu-jinji's post, MXTX often inserts her own thoughts & opinions into the narration, even sometimes in the middle of XL's POV.

MXTX has a distinctive writing style that shines through in all her novels' narrations. This is distinct from XL's voice as a character. In SVSSS and MDZS too you can see how MXTX's writing can have an ironic/sarcastic sense of humor, sometimes exaggerated for comedic effect or coming off harsh in English, but it's not meant to be literal.

See also this post written by @baiwu-jinji about the "吐槽" style of humour that MXTX uses, which is exaggerated and not meant to be taken seriously as the protagonist's actual thoughts.

3. Xiao Ying's character arc

Although the donghua did not portray Xiao Ying as "ugly", in the novel it is clear even in the English translation that Xiao Ying's character was deliberately written by MXTX as objectively having facial features considered very unpleasant by many people, hence being unfairly bullied for it - which is meant to highlight certain themes of the novel regarding injustice & show that XL treats people with kindness instead of being judgmental.

(continued below)

Many characters had strong, extreme reactions to Xiao Ying upon seeing her face, which shows that the novel deliberately wanted to portray her as someone who happens to have facial features that people consider extremely off-putting. She is hence unfairly bullied & ostracized by others for this. (This is a common theme in the novel - being misjudged & mistreated by the masses, or being born into unlucky circumstances, causing one to endure unjust suffering.)

However, while the other characters call Xiao Ying "ugly freak" & ostracize her, XL, unlike them, treats her with kindness, sympathizes with her & considers her a strong, good-hearted person who did not deserve the bullying she got, nor to die. He even honours her dying wish (for Lang Ying to be taken care of), long after her death.

In fact, the first time XL ever saw Xiao Ying, he didn't even notice or care whether she was ugly or pretty, but instead was only concerned with how her skirt had been ripped and how he didn't want her to be humiliated by others for it, hence he covered the tear in her skirt with his own robes. (See this thread by luoreos about how XL actually treats Xiao Ying, VS how other characters treat Xiao Ying.)

XL treating Xiao Ying with kindness even though she was bullied for her appearance that was deemed hideous by others, is also a direct parallel to XL treating Hong Hong-er with kindness even though HHR was bullied and ostracized for his appearance by others. Hence, in the novel, Xiao Ying was deliberately written to have an appearance (that the narrator described harshly, not XL) that others ostracized her for, to highlight certain themes and characterization points.

[morethanwonderful]

Okay this topic has been haunting me for a while, because I feel like I have a wildly different perception of the Yin Tiger Tally's effects on Wei Wuxian than some other MDZS fans. Specifically, I've seen some takes that include the idea of the Yin Tiger Tally as some degree of corrupting force and/or supernatural drain on Wei Wuxian's mental health within the canon of the novel.

I really wonder if the different understandings stem from being influenced by which version of the story first sticks in your head. So! Indulge my curiosity:

Reblogs are helpful here, as I figure the answers from within my personal circle vs from the fandom as a whole will be pretty different :)

[svsss-fanon-exposed]

Hi there! Love what you're doing here. I have a question. What about things that are supported by the donghua but not the novel? I don't think they could simply be categorized as fanon but they're definitely not canon either. So I was wondering how those facts would fit in the classification? Or things that outright contradict themselves between sources, like how the washerwoman came to be lbh's mum.

Hi! This is a good question (and one I actually planned to make a post about, so here it is).

My posts here are specifically referencing novel canon, and when I refer to canon, it is always to the novel. The donghua, as an adaptation, would be a kind of secondary canon, and my view is as follows-- where it conflicts with the novel, then novel canon takes precedence. Where something is supported by the donghua and not the novel, then I will be classifying it as fanon-neutral.

There are quite a lot of differences between the two, including significant changes to the characterization portrayal of SQQ in the donghua vs the novel. Perhaps someday I'll make more posts specifically on the topic-- but even though the donghua is an official adaptation, I personally hold it on the same level as fan interpretations.

I will, however, try to point out donghua-only details wherever I can remember (I certainly don't watch as religiously as I read!) any time something like that is relevant to one of my posts. If anyone knows any donghua-only facts that I've missed, definitely feel free to add them onto my posts! I'll reblog that, and add it to the original post with credit as well!

[waitineedaname]

One thing that I think muddies the water re: SQQ acting like a buffoon is that he’s much more physically expressive in the donghua? In a very comical and memorable way, like chugging the medicine he tries to give Luo Binghe when the system is about to doc him points, noticing it’s for external use only, and then visibly fainting in front of Ming Fan and Luo Binghe. He’s much more of a clown, and it’s mostly in good fun, even if it’s not accurate to the book. Thinking about it more, my ideal adaptation would have SQQ properly maintaining his immortal facade at all times, but also include an expressive chibi version of himself acting out his inner thoughts and yelling at the system constantly. Only the audience would see his flailing, and also probably SQH when he’s introduced. Also! Showing him get more expressive with Binghe as book 3 goes on and he lets out more of his real personality around him.

that's a really good point about the donghua! I'm charmed by how SQQ is in the donghua because he's such a fucking loser (affectionate) but it definitely isn't very accurate to the novel. tbh the difference between SQQ's inner monologue vs outward appearance/actions is one of the things that makes it hard to adapt from a written form! having a little chibi SQQ to express his inner thoughts is an option, or hiding his expressions behind his fan or waiting until he's alone to scream into a pillow or something lsdkjflksdjf it's tough! it's really one of those things that works best as a book, which is such a shame because GOD i want to see so much of it visually

also him being more expressive with Binghe as their relationship develops is really good :') especially post-canon! Binghe complains that SQQ smiles more at other people, can you imagine what it'll be like once SQQ starts letting more of those walls down and fully grins at him while teasing him? I think Binghe would just straight up short circuit for a second

[web-novel-polls]

MXTX Side Characters Lower Bracket

[Image ID - two images. The first is a cropped image of Shang Qinghua from the cover of the English Scum Villain novel. He has brown hair tied up in a loose bun. He is wearing a light blue-gray ribbon in his hair the same color as his robes as he glances over his shoulder at the viewer.

The second image shows Liu Qingge from the Scum Villain donghua. Liu Qingge has long dark hair tied back in a high bun and is wearing three layers of white and blue robes with gray detailing. /End ID]

Shang Qinghua / Airplane from SVSSS

Submission: He's a sidekick and he's so sidelined that despite creating the universe he's treated as an afterthought - doubly a side character! But also? So relateable. He would absolutely have been on tumblr in his first life, he gets so excited about his blorbo who treats him terribly (until they finally get a happy ending in the extras - also! he has to wait for the extras to get his happy ending! very side-character of him). He holds the fascinating position of being mostly irrelevant to the story and yet without him the themes would totally fail. He deserves a win on something for once, okay?

Liu Qingge from SVSSS

#great sect brother! Dependable reliable and most of the time sorta sane #Great big brother to his younger sister #Stablest person around by a lot (still pretty off the rails) #Fought someone better than him every day for five years to get his best friend's body back for a burial #Got rescued from the plot for the specific purpose of saving someone back #and then had to watch that someone repeatedly not let him save them (via @rights-for-redshirts)

["Anti-Propaganda" that attacks other characters is NOT allowed. Please only give reasons to vote FOR a character.]

[nabaath-areng]

People I want to get to know better

(Was tagged by @semper-miles and @sealrock, thank you! ♡)

Last Song: 'Fat Fetishism' with The Piass (don't look up without lowering your volume first just in case LOL) (Random tangent but seeing them live will forever be one of the best things I've ever experienced... I need to frame the stickers I put together on my old calendar cover. Honestly I'd love it if I ever got another chance to watch them perform, seeing that they've only done lives since the one I went to back in... oh my god 2012 what IS time—)

Favorite Color: Pinks, preferably light and pastel though I do love hot/neon pink too. Other people usually expect it to be black considering the way I've always dressed IRL (which is to various extents reflected in my OCs), and I do like black! But what I like to put on myself vs what I like to surround myself with (like my room, personal belongings, everyday items etc) differs and therefore I'm overwhelmingly surrounded by pink lol

Currently Watching: ... Honestly I tried to start multiple things many months ago but my ADHD makes watching anything an actual nightmare and if I finish a whole series, especially if it's long? You can bet that I'll barely remember anything orz So I guess in order for me to answer the question should be "what's the last thing you tried to watch" which would be Heavenly Delusion (hoping to finish it but I can only watch things properly in my gf's direct presence and we're long distance sooo...) (Though last year something possessed me and I watched the entire SVSSS donghua start to finish several episodes in a row without losing focus even once and I'm still riding that high. I suppose it helped that I'd already read the whole novel lol)

Last Movie: Movies are a bit easier for me (due to them having a very clear cut run time for me to mentally prepare for beforehand) but they're still subject to the same problems as the previous question... and I think the last one I watched was Ghibli's Castle in the Sky about a year ago or so (my favorite movie also)

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: Love all three, could never pick just one!!!! And for that matter, LOVE sour.

Relationship Status: In a relationship with @amberwound !!!!

Current Obsessions: My new desktop and the fact that I can have more than one game installed at a time on it. I've also been stuck in HSR cause something about the combat just scratches my brain in a way I can't explain...

Last Thing in my Search History: 'Svenskt lejon' to show friend lmao

Tagging: @fourfoldfires @amberwound @captainqster @ahollowgrave @mythandral @witcherbatard @apheliondusk @yloiseconeillants @tsupertsundere @draculas-husband @neoma-eltanin @ffxivtribehydrae @tinolqa @magicalyams @unfotp @cytherae-rubin (I bet more than half of these won't actually get properly tagged with no way to correct it cause this always happens when I tag people and this website might just hate me--)

+ anyone else who wants to! Consider yourself tagged by me!

[hamliet]

at its core what makes something a good adaptation vs bad? chabhes will be made from one medium to another but like what is the most important thing to keep in mind?

Honestly, I think it's very specific to a specific work, and there aren't hard and fast rules or a checklist.

Generally, I consider it to be one of two things:

Is it faithful to the spirit of the work?

Is it telling a good story?

I also think there are two other items to talk about that aren't as directly connected but still matter:

Cultural context

Did you enjoy it?

Spirit of the Work

I generally think The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy is one of the best adaptations, because while it reworks order of events and cuts certain parts, it gets the main themes and character arcs across. The spirit of the work holds firm even when they're adding battles. In fact, as someone who likes alchemical literature, I find it really cool how the films used alchemy too--but used different markers than the books.

Contrast this with Game of Thrones. The problem was there in the earlier seasons but didn't become as apparent until the ending. They kept the characters for the most part and combined some characters, namely characters fans generally don't care a ton about (Arianne, f!Aegon). However, in doing so they neglected to think of the purpose of Arianne and f!Aegon in the story, and by combining them with the characters whose arcs A&A literally exist to comment on (Dany and Jon), they created a disaster thematically. Plus, they took the likely events of the ending, but completely altered the order and thereby the framing, changing it from a romantic tragedy that gives hope to a confusing mess that lives in infamy.

A Good Story

Is it telling a good story? Is it well done, or when watching/reading an adaptation, are you left with people saying "well that doesn't make sense here, but it did make sense in the manga/book"?

House of the Dragon is kind of failing here, and the cracks are starting to show more and more... but this was the case with GoT too, and it honestly does revert to "spirit of the work" in a lot of ways, too. Someone, anyone, who loves Romanticism and is well-versed in it, please adapt GRRM's stories so that the poor man doesn't have to write things like this which he did about a month ago:

"Everywhere you look, there are more screenwriters and producers eager to take great stories and “make them their own.” It does not seem to matter whether the source material was written by Stan Lee ... Ian Fleming, Roald Dahl, Ursula K. Le Guin, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain ... Jane Austen, or… well, anyone.  No matter how major a writer it is, no matter how great the book, there always seems to be someone on hand who thinks he can do better, eager to take the story and “improve” on it.   “The book is the book, the film is the film,” they will tell you, as if they were saying something profound. Then they make the story their own. They never make it better, though. Nine hundred ninety-nine times out of a thousand, they make it worse."

Yeah.

Works that I think have great adaptations (a non-exhaustive list):

The Lord of the Rings

Banana Fish

Attack on Titan

Oshi no Ko (so far)

Hunter x Hunter

Pride & Prejudice (many times)

Les Miserables (book to musical)

MDZS*

Context

This is where the asterisk comes in for MDZS. I'm actually talking about The Untamed, not the donghua. And The Untamed fails a bit at a sensical story at times, and does change aspects of the novel that directly negate the main themes (and made fandom unbearable).

However, given the fact that it was made in China, where they can't show queer characters directly and cannot promote gray morality (central to the story) they did the best they could. They kept all the characters human, and even expanded on some of their roles in ways that felt very faithful to the spirit of the novel.

And? That is partially based on the next question.

Did you enjoy it?

Something doesn't have to be a good adaptation for you to enjoy it. You can really like something while acknowledging it's strong on its own, but is a different beast than the original work.

[southernwolf16]

After coming across SVSSS-related stuff on the blogs I follow/stalk, I finally gave in to my curiosity and checked the donghua.

I tried reading the novel a while back, but it didn't entice me that much so I didn't finish it. I think seeing the donghua helped spark my interest again.

Then I held back from watching Ep 10 for the past week and started reading the novel. I'm almost finished with it.

It's so different from MDZS. I find myself laughing most of the time. Luo Binghe and Shen Qingqiu (Shen Yuan edition) are such disasters. I'm sure the more senior fans have already written eloquent posts about how codependent they are, Shen Jiu and Yue Qingyuan's relationship, why Cucumber Bro and Airplane Bro transmigrated to the novel they read/wrote, why the System exists in the first place, writing what you're passionate about vs writing what'll bring in money, and who is Jiang Cheng's counterpart in SVSSS, among other things. I think I read a post suggesting it's Liu Qingge? Or is it Shen Jiu?

Anyway, back to the donghua. I hope I'm not alone in saying I like the character design. At first it was a little jarring---maybe because I'm not used to watching CGI---and the donghua isn't actually 100% polished a la FFVII remake (on a side note, someone joked that Yue Qingyuan seems to be from the PS2 era). Regardless, I appreciate the design since it gave me an idea how the characters look like.

Which is why I'm a bit surprised when I started trawling the SVSSS tags here at Tumblr and saw art depicting Luo Binghe as a curly-haired, big-muscled mountain of a man. Perhaps this is influenced by Western taste? I'm not an expert in Chinese literature or culture, but in some pics I've seen from Cdramas those of demon blood who play major roles don't have the physique of someone who can crack walnuts with their biceps. Think Wang Yue (Wang Zhuocheng) from Legend of Chongzi and that actor from Love Between Fairy and Devil. Furthermore, Luo Binghe is described as a pretty boy in the novel so at this point, I'm of the humble opinion that the donghua got his body type right. And I subscribe to the standards of beauty from the source culture.

Okay, going back to the donghua Ep 10. As we say here in my country, papunta na tayo sa exciting part---I'm going to see Luo Binghe get pushed down the Endless Abyss by his beloved Shizun. Oh, the angst, the drama.

Nope. Nothing of the sort happened.

Oh, so they saved it for Season 2 [Tries to find Season 2]

[Season 2 not yet released] 😨

What. The. Hell.

I held off finishing Season 1 because I thought Season 2's already available. The site where I watched the donghua said Season 2's release is 2022.

Dude, we're two months' shy of closing 2023. 😱

Season 2, where art thou? 😭

[minsarasarahair]

End of Medicine chapter from AD episode 2/Medicine part 2

Scene: Lou Zhu is already so done with this youth so he's saying his farewell after being betrayed but Zuo Yunqi insisted to stay in Lou Zhu's Best Tower explaining they already have close relationship anyway. Lou Zhu gives in after Zuo Yunqi bribe him with a card game.)

(I made this for myself and a MTL so take it with a grain of salt. I love this scene and made me ship LouZuo hard. I really like how the ad theme song build up in the background.)

CAST:

Zuo Yunqi voiced by Deng Youxi (Xie Lian from Tian Guan Ci Fu s2 donghua)

Lou Zhu voiced by Zhao Yi (Xiao Se from Shao Nian Ge Xing donghua)

You can listen to the first 4 chapters/arcs (Medicine, Poison, Illness, Tuo Huang HQ infiltration) of the audio drama for free as sample in Missevan which is a good deal because usually AD only have 2 first episodes free. Then pay for the whole story if you enjoyed it or interested. Its a funny but angsty transmigration short story but worth it.

Difference of this scene in AD/novel vs donghua

Zuo Yunqi is the one who persuaded Lou Zhu who already wish to cut their ties with the youth after the betrayal so that Zuo Yunqi can stay as a tenant in Lou Zhu's Best Tower while in the donghua, Lou Zhu and Xiao Xue are the one who persuaded ZYQ to stay as their security guard because they feel bad and its dangerous for him to be out there after Zuo Dao stating he'll kill his own son in the next time he see him.

Zuo Yunqi is a Best Tower's tenant in the AD/book but he tend to volunteer himself to do the investigation like an errand boy to help Lou Zhu while Zuo Yunqi is Lou Zhu's bodyguard in the donghua.

Zuo Yunqi gave Naihe incense as a gift and his pay rent to Lou Zhu in the AD/book while in the donghua, its more like a compensation after what happened in Lou Zhu's Best Tower (Lying to Lou Zhu, Destroying Lou Zhu's office during the chaos).

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group E Round 1: #E8 vs #E1

#E8: Lesbian vampire & human go on road trip to escape the horrors

In a bleak world where music is banned and Vampires have emerged at the top of the food chain, a girl named Momo breaks past the barrier and connects with Fine, queen of the Vampires, and the two journey to find a safe haven where their races can co-exist.

#E1: Modern people transmigrate* to ancient Chinese fantasy world (BL)

People from the modern world transmigrating into the ancient fantasy world has become a common and everyday occurrence that the royal court in the latter has decided to moderate them. If you’re a transmigrator, you must report your existence to Lou Zhu, the master of Best Tower. Once you pass his test and prove that you are indeed a modern person, you can then be assigned to work in different areas of the government and be given a high salary.

Because of this promised benefit, many impostors have showed up before Lou Zhu. And one day, Zuo Yunqi shows up for this test. Is he an impostor, or is he an actual modern person?

But some transmigrators also choose to hide their existence out of distrust in the government. Where are they? And with their knowledge of science and technology, what are they planning in the dark?

*Transmigration = similar to isekai, but the world where the characters get isekai’d to is not always a western fantasy type.

Titles, propagandas, trailers, and poll under the cut!

#E8: Vampire in the Garden

Propaganda:

This anime came out a year ago, but I literally never heard of it until earlier this summer because Netflix had it. You guys are SLEEPING on such a good series—it’s 6 episodes so it’s short, but it feels like a whole single film. The voice acting is so fun, the music slaps, the animation goes HARD during fight scenes, and it’s just so so good. The art style is pretty, and the scenery makes me lose my mind, it’s SO pretty. I need to write an essay one day about how VitG uses music to carry the story because wow that is 🛐🛐🛐 Also there’s a goofy looking dog named Connie that continuously appears and serves no purpose in the plot. Love that

Trigger Warnings: Child Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Graphic Depictions of Cruelty/Violence/Gore, Racism, Self-Harm.

Child abuse & emotional abuse for Momo’s complicated relationship with her mother. Also emotional abuse for Fine’s past traumas and current strained relationship with other vampires.

This is a vampire anime, so there’s a lot of blood and fighting. There’s also a drug introduced in ep1 that mutates a vampire horribly.

Racism is human-versus-vampire shenanigans.

Self-harm for a scene where a human attempts to feed a vampire and for drug usage as mentioned above.

#E1: Are You Ok (You Yao)

[Admin: I could not find a single trailer of season 1 w/ English subs, and its OP seems to have been taken down on YouTube since Iqiyi, its producer (?), started their own channel. As such, I’ve cut a small portion of S1E01 instead, featuring the test the transmigrators have to take.]

Propaganda:

This donghua (Chinese anime) is based on a comedy novel with the same title, and the adaptation is just stellar. Instead of showing each character’s story separately like in the novel, the donghua combined everything. Because of this, there’s more focus on the plotty and political mystery aspect—but without losing the heart of the original. The entire show is still just as hilarious.

And for an adaptation with several original characters, for once I actually don’t mind it. I usually find such additions annoying, but in this show they really serve a purpose and also add to the enjoyment.

I also like the choice of animating it in 3D, like the one in video games. It fits the “transmigrate into a fantasy world” setting well. The donghua also plays around a lot. In one episode, they had one character sing and dance like in a musical, with the beginning of the song sounding like “Do you wanna build a snowman?” from Frozen 😂

Moreover, this is a Boys Love story, and with more than one couple, too! The secondary couple (Zhou Rongqi and Li Ke) even gets a very gay ending song that’s all about them. But since this show is from China, where censorship rules are strict, don’t expect anything explicit. Just think of it as another shounen with homoerotic undertones, except the homo is actually canon.

All in all, it’s a very fun show that doesn’t lack in depth. If you’re in the mood for something light but don’t want to miss out on plot, you should definitely watch this. And if you’ve never watched a donghua before, then you’ll definitely find this fresh and intriguing.

Trigger Warnings: None.

If you’re reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.