Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao’s Story and Romance

 herazuli:

Honestly, I wish there was a whole vol (even a chapter) dedicated to show XL's perspective of when he's with XY dhdjsksk I just want to know his POV even if it's bound to hurt ;;w;;

Same ;;w;; but this is giving the sequel of Phantom of The Opera (Love Never Dies) where Christine has a night of passion with the Phantom but she still marries Raoul because although she would've chosen Erik (Phantom), he was gone as soon as the daylight hit DHSHJSSJ

You described it perfectly! I wrote an essay on Viki explaining some similarities with the Phantom of the Opera. I'll find my comment and post it here

I found my comment (more like a thesis hahah).

Okay, so about our number one green flag Jing. We should all be rooting for him unconditionally, yet this is not what's happening for a big portion of the LYF fans. I haven't read the book (only plenty of excerpts), but the way his character is being presented on screen probably isn't achieving the intended purpose of garnering unequivocal sympathy and unanimous support. Though it should be, considering he is the ideal choice.

In terms of storytelling, this type of character could be considered flat. Basically, as it’s been pointed out several times, he’s the ultimate Good Guy™. Good at the beginning, has the purest love of all, and remains the super Good Guy™ at the end. No evil intentions, no hidden motives, not a smudge on his résumé, just the ideal guy doing what ideal guys usually do. This means a straight line, instead of an arch, which means no character development. Not saying he is 2-dimensional, it's just that the way he’s constructed and the execution so far doesn’t really allow space for any growth. How can the super good guy be an even better good guy?

Remember, I’m talking in terms of storytelling and fiction, not real life. Sure, we should all stay away from the red flags and stop wanting to fix the bad guys, yes. Especially the ones who bite your neck (eh, I’m gonna stop here). But in fiction, this doesn’t always apply.

Let’s reverse things. In Breaking Bad (which is a show I adore and it’s not for nothing that it’s considered one of the best shows of all time, bravo Vince!), the fascinating thing to see is Walt’s descent into a Bad Guy™. No one would watch a show about how the good high-school chemistry teacher just stays good for five seasons. Heisenberg is what people wanted to see. Another example in the same vein is Better Call Saul. I love Jimmy McGill, his antics, his tricks, and I got so nervous every time he did something that would eventually bring him one step closer to being Saul Goodman. I was so terrified that he would end up killing Kim with his shenanigans. But what I wanted the most was to see him become Saul and witness every event in his life that pushed him to become the character we fell in love with during his very few appearances on BB. Fun fact: villains are always more realistic and closer to actual human beings than heroes.

Another one of my favorites: The Phantom of the Opera. Sure, Raul is the Good Guy™. A childhood friend of Christine. Perfect in every way. He doesn’t go around killing people on stage nor terrorizing the girl he loves, yet I could say 99% of the PotO lovers are intrigued and fascinated by the Phantom, not good boi Raul. Even Andrew Lloyd Webber himself wrote Love Never Dies to “adjust” the ending of his masterpiece because he realised his good boi Raul was actually so boring. The Phantom and Christine even had a kid (but when was Gustave conceived, though, that’s the million dollar question heheh) because that’s how much of a shipper ALW is. 

So, what I’m saying is that while in real life Jing is the ideal everything, in film, TV shows, books, musicals, podcasts, or whatever piece of media you can come up with, his kind of character is not inherently interesting to audiences. There’s usually zero character development, which means zero space to grow or, as is the case with villains, no descent into evil. He's just there, being a good guy and hoping that’s more than enough to have people flock to his side. One of the purposes of storytelling is to arouse and engage the audience, but characters like him don't usually do that.

In the end, even though most people already know how things will go and they sort of made their peace with it, the feeling of frustration can't be helped. Sure, that's the way the story was written, but the bittersweetness starts to verge on the side of trolling the audience. That was too long, sorry!

 Xiao Meiren:

Can I say I Love Tan Jianci's character as Xiang Liu. 

Not only can you say, it is strongly encouraged in this thread! :)

@nathsketch

Oh that was a good read hahhaa not too long, it explains a lot of why we just can't help rooting for the characters. Though I wouldn't say TSJ is portrayed as the greenest of flags in the drama and book and he does feel human with his choices (chasing after XY before breaking his engagement to FFYY or not holding his end of the deals with XY). I think subconsciously we root for XL because the human side he shows us what he values as a character. One example is that he knows killing FFYY and her unborn child would solve XY's problem and even suggests it to her, but he'd never do it because ultimately, that wouldn't make XY completely happy (but this is just me personally speaking I honestly don't know what the others think). 

Just like Phantom letting go of Christine in the end because he wished her happiness after experiencing genuine love for the first time (both in novel and broadway musical), Xiang Liu letting Xiao Yao end up with Jing because that's what's right and will make her happy is what has most of us at a chokehold. If the situation was reversed (if TSJ was in XL's place where their bloodline has decided they cannot be together), I don't think TSJ would be willing to let go of XY, even if it wouldn't make her happy. Idk if I'm making sense or if anyone will understand what I'm talking about rn tho apologies if it's confusing hdjdjdksks

 Xiao Meiren:

Can I say I Love Tan Jianci's character as Xiang Liu. 

Absolutely! He stole this show in my very humble opinion, so feel free to join us in our collective love ♥️

 chase_kayden:

We've been praising him since day one ~

And you'd be happy to know that TJC has always been the only choice for Xiang Liu, according to the director (:

I think all of them, the FL and MLs contributed a lot in building up each character in the novel and/or drama. XL wouldn’t be that attractive personality without his hate for CX or jealousy of Jing,…and vice versa for other characters. YZ, without a doubt, is the first winner in the drama to show all XY's emotions, flaws, and strength (single, duet, and ensemble performances) Not always using her beauty, wittiness, or sweetness to capture viewers' hearts. I give the three MLs almost the same credit on their performance, but personally, I’m confused about my best ML character between XL ( suicide bomber who rather ruin the world and build it up from scratch) and Jing ( My gentleman/moralist who wants to peacefully kill all the foes with kindness and make big changes in the status quo.)

Yet, I agree that the most charismatic actor in the drama is TJC. He made us love the bloodsucker devel with 9 heads:)))

TJC has become my only choice for everything, to be honest. Hahahah I'll be single foreverrrr 😹😭

 Cora:

I can't remember the last time I rooted for a relationship as hard as I'm rooting for Xiao Yao and Xiang Liu. It's actually how crazy I'm invested in every one of their scenes together. I know they're not endgame, but each one of their interactions makes it seem like they're painfully in love, but neither are brave enough to act on that love. 

Xiao Yao cried when he wasn't there to greet her after taking care of her for 37 years. And every skill she learns in the show is a skill taught to her by Xiang Liu. Archery, swimming - he's really only ever wanted the best for her, despite his own inability to choose love over his duty. Every time Xiao Yao is feeling sad, he manages to show up and lift her spirits.

If they don't have a consensual kiss once in this show, I might put my head through the drywall out of sheer misery.

Exactly how I feel! 

But sadly, I feel my drywall is going to suffer an accident.