DreamHi

Omg, no, Fan Xiao does not become poor😂

I came across someone in instagram saying that he thought the whole casting was a scam and refused to give it a chance before someone convinced him to give it a try. I came across it long back so I don't remember much🥲

I'm honestly baffled by your comparisons. I get and respect the fact that you cannot tolerate explicit scenes. But calling people who want to explore and enjoy various themes including sexual representations, kinks, non-con, aggression, violence, gore, manipulation and whatnot and relating them to porn-watchers and voyeurs is a touch too self-absorbed. You have stated your stand and done what you claimed others did to you- portrayed yourself better and pure like white lotus. Dramas and series are FICTION and can reach any level of intensity the writers, directors and actors wish to portray- this is called literary and artistic freedom.

To quote some of your own words-
"My question to them - why not go watch some porn somewhere else and leave dramas be dramas. No TMI and voyeuring here please. Seems like it will never work, BL audience likes ponr and they also like s.x mixed with violence. It is what it is, and speaks for what their "culture" is like"
"Esp since a straight romance is often more than just two ppl jumping on each other, there is a lot more subtlety and emotional work to be explored"
"More gay ppl means less kids and also less traditional families and culture".........

-Seems like you personally insulted others first claiming a higher moral ground with your paltry ignorance, homophobia and rigid moral compass with expectations that every series should cater to your views. Suprise suprise, there are billions alive in this planet excluding you. Also, us people here are standing up to our enjoyment of the show sincerely without needing to hide behind any person like you to elevate ourselves. Calling you a puritan does not make us pure white lillies, because who the hell claimed that- we are proud to enjoy and consume FICTION AS FICTION and rather than trying to police stories to fit our narrative, we actually invest that energy in the real world.

If you really wished to watch such "pure, emotionally deep, culturally rich" BL dramas, there indeed are tons of them available. And you'd find them if you so much as searched for them- but ofcourse you wouldn't because your intent is to villainize this community and its allies by portraying us as aliens and immoral while victimizing yourselves. You are what you claim others are.

Live and let others live.

They had months of training, in-depth analyzations and acting classes with Hao Yiran supporting him a lot as well. Nevertheless, Yunqi's dedication and talent is incredible, Fan Xiao's character being especially difficult to portray (p.s. he initially thought the whole scouting was a scam😂)

Throughout the series, I had mixed feelings about the way the story was told. I found myself confused, endeared, longing, and melancholic, every emotion and scene burying deeper into me and leaving me with more questions than answers. The story itself is hard to relate and integrate into, yet, the characters add so much depth, flaws, nuance and vibrance to what would otherwise hold no form.

One of the asterstrokes of the story was Sumiko and Ryu's mother, both abandoned by family that ought to catch you when you fall, yet refusing to stay within the grasp of its pain. Their kindness, strength, refusal to diminish themselves even when it comes to being a mother, a wife, and a friend, refusing to give up love for their own self in the name of sacrifice truly settled down something deep within me.

Ryu and Yohan's relationship was so sheer, raw, unexplained and unapologetic. The team took such a brave yet dangerous step in deciding to leave most of their genuinity, closeness and tenderness hidden behind the scenes. And this is exactly what pushed us audience into the role of the society around them. We know they live together, we know they belong to each other in ways we'll ever be left guessing, we know they share a home- and that's all we know. Oftentimes, we look at snippets of people living next to us and carve out their life deciding we know enough about them to do so. Just like that, within this story, we are left to project our ideologies into their relationship, forcing it to fit within frames that were never meant to hold them.

We yearn for a conclusion, a label, a status, an answer. But, the series remains stubborn in not giving one. It dares us to fill in the gaps left behind while silently moving forward on its own terms with no remorse. And that's where it perfectly captures life and love. It flawlessly denies conformity and definitions, truly existing free within a literary utopia where to live together and create a home, you owe no one any explanations.

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The special episode was more vibrant, free and soulful. Fan Xiao and You Shulang seemed to have become more liberated, yet still keenly attuned to each other, their love becoming sweeter, mellow and cozy. Fan Xiao's possessiveness and You Shulang's upright yet indulgent scoldings will never fail to make me swoon. And the wedding????? I was not ready for the barrage of butterflies and heartache I had watching the final monologue.
Following this series since last year, somewhere between the lines of the script and depth of the show, I feel like I've watched an entire lifetime of two souls finding their home, their shore. I believe very few stories will tear into the heart and rest there for eternity- For me, Fan Xiao and You Shulang will forever be etched in my mind, their love ever enduring and bright, never to be forgotten.

I second you, intensity paired with softness, obsession paired with sincerity, manipulation paired with self-sabotage is exactly my cup of tea. Glad you enjoyed it❤️

I understand where you're coming from and truly support your claims about the highly manipulative entertainment ecosystem, unrealistic beauty standards, CP building trap and toxic fan culture.

However, I won't fully tap into the "realistic" portrayal of characters. Yes, expecting generals going through war to look like models off the runway is utterly unrealistic and that's why it's only seen in dramas, more specifically dramas based off stories looking to portray the unrealistic aesthetics (I am not vouching for dramas that actively promote unrealistic standards and shame looks on screen). The real damage to viewers' psyche comes when they overlap such dramas onto their life and this is where marketing, product placements, ads hyper focusing on beauty products and casting actors in various over the top make-up products come in. I would blame and restrict such activities rather than dramas for the "distorted aestheics" if I wanted any real change. Also, if we now point out this predatory side of entertainment industry, then sponsorship, investment and cash flow has to brought in, and this becomes a vicious cycle where one aspect cannot be seperated from the other.

Also, now that the NRTA has addressed "distorted aestheics" largely based of certain male characters portrayed by actors, I wonder where this whole arguement was dozing off when all throughout the industry female characters have always been the "aesthetic" face of dramas, their appearance and appeal highly discussed and debated over character depth? A male general who wears makeup is so controversial, but trapped concubines, female warriors or tortured female characters showing up impeccably with heavy head-dresses, ornaments and long nails are acceptable?

If NRTA has to point out originality, committment to art, character depth, and dedication to bringing out soul of stories, they can't go behind the scenes to alter and audit what can and cannot be portrayed on screen, banning multiple genres and shelving dramas. Liberation cannot be talked about while dabbling and benefiting from the very oppression they seem to stand against.

I would also like to point out the toxicity of c-netizens and fans: while it is true that entertainemnt companies now sell emotions, CPs, manufactured lives of their artists, this also largely stems from the consumer demands present, with fans going as far as to stalk actors to get a glimpse into their lives. Such behaviour should be highly penalised and discouraged legally. I've been watching dramas since long and never once have I been consumed by the unrealistic aesthetics, forced CP contents or merchandise traps— fans should all take a step back and look at dramas and movies through the lens of reality, strictly seperating whats on-screen from their own life.

The acting industry has vastly changed in recent years from including fan meetings and merch for popular dramas, having fixed CPs that do multiple dramas together, host concerts, sell merchandises, and follow career paths together, etc. Now acting no longer just means taking part in roles designated to them in movies and dramas, it also includes singing, dancing, participating in shows, doing dance trends, starting tik-tok fads and so much more. This definitely makes it difficult for viewers to detach themselves from content which feels like living a life parallel to their stars. And so, drawing line between reality and screen is more so necessary is what I believe.

Historically, all art forms have tested and crossed lines between what's acceptable in reality and what's not— because that's exactly the freedom it posseses, because it's not real. If we begin to control and restrict everything portrayed by media (unless it actively promotes falsified ideology, violence and hate) rather than encouraging the audience to examine and dissect their media with careful precision, we will end up bringing into life a generation of audience who swallow spoon fed content without any introspection or thought.

It's not my intention to refute your claims. most of what you've stated are valid and very real problems that I'm not looking to minimize in any way. I just wanted to put forth my views on the whole situation you've brought up ^^

Says China while heavily restricting and regulating "acceptable" media representation and art forms.

"........television dramas has never been limited to visual "beauty"; it lies in stories that are compelling to watch, in works with ideological depth, emotional resonance, and cultural nourishment — entertaining people while also educating them. It is essential to resolutely discard distorted aesthetics and shift from a "star-centric" to a "script-centric" approach..."

Ideological depth, emotional resonance, cultural nourishment, educating people etc are just fancy words of wisdom when implied in the context of oppression and limitation of freeedom of expression. Promoting unhealthy habits on pernonal image and looks can be discouraged without bringing down the authenticity of make-up, costumes or character designs. Through my personal experience in watching major actors of chinese industry, most of them are well trained or talented in acting with a very few exceptions who might rely on popularity. Also, entertainment industry has always been cut-throat and unfair throughout history, if they really want to purge all the unfair promotion of "actors just based on looks" (such a dubious term), then who creates the terms and conditions of evaluation of actors, what kind of gradings and systems are they going to develop to rank such terms?

The moment a government starts to police what kind of media is superior and acceptable, and what kind of characters and stories are eligible to be freely portrayed, they no longer consider such media a form of art, but rather a propaganda for their own use and manipulation.

What's so wrong with dramas that focus more on aesthetics? What's so wrong with generals who wear makeup on screen? What's so wrong with elaborate costumes and ornaments? What's wrong with cliche plots? Every drama or movie is vastly different and unique, and so are the tastes of viewers who watch them. The responsibility of criticizing acting, characters, story, set designs, and what not falls on the audience who watch it and not the government or censor board. Promoting confidence over looks and appearance ironically does not equate to bullying anyone for their make-up either.

On a whole, the whole symposium on a very sheer level looks modern, healthy and appreciative. But, looking deeper- all I see is a government trying to police their citizens on what is acceptable to watch while profiting from the very "Art forms" they look down on. A load of supercilious bullsh't

If I'm not wrong He Chusan's name is Ho Cho Sam in cantonese, so they took Sam from his name and Yi from Xia Liu Yi's name and combined it to form Sammy- probably for ease of pronunciation for international watchers

I can understand the toning down of Liuyi's character, many watchers are sensitive to morally ambiguous main leads especially in BLs and the production took a financially and socially palatable stand which with the current BL scene in China is again a safer stand (I'd have liked the unhinged version more though)

I'm aware that most of them are Mandarin speaking actors and it'd be too much to expect them to have perfect synchronization with Cantonese speaking dubbing artists or vice versa. And I did notice the vast difference with the 2nd leads as you stated. Honestly, the language or dubbing perfection does not matter to me, but somehow my brain can't stop catching on to the inconsistencies with the lip movements for no reason T_T and it's such a pain in the ass especially during emotional or intimate scenes when my brain decides to give a passive monologue on the mismatch when I'm busy being emotionally invested🫠

As for your recs, they've been on my list for ages and I've still not been able to get to them, thankyou for the recommendation though.

Amazing episode, I'm loving the chemistry and dynamics between the main leads as well as the secondary leads. Though the lack of coordination between dubbing and lip movement throws me off sometimes, I believe it's my hyperfixation on synchronization and nothing more. Personally, I've not watched many Hong Kong based series or movies, but I'm minimally aware of the general vibe and I find this series very refreshing and interesting just taking the period it's based on.

As I've yet to read the book, I cannot comment on the pacing and similarity of the characters and story relative to the novel. But, if there's one thing I can point out, it's the toned down inner workings of the characters. Though half the series has aired, I am not confident enough to say I know He Chusan and Xia Liuyi- the working of their minds, the motives behind their actions and so on. I'm not sure if the series follows the pacing of the book and will hence take more time to get into the deeper aspects, or if the constraints of time and budget cut short the details of the book.

Otherwise, I love the series, the acting and the hard work the cast and crew has invested into this. Thanks to this series, I look forward to every friday with so much enthusiasm❤️

I came across new about live adaptation on instagram. If that source is to be trusted, they start filming this May

Sent it to you through dm❤️
I recently read it after realizing it was getting a live adaptation, and I quite liked it.

6 YEARS!!!! I've been freaking waiting for 6 YEARS! At this point, they might blow up the world before we get to see this🫠

Similar in positioning, but vastly different in vibes.
Revenged love has more of a cheeky, provoking tone and fun colour contrasts whereas To my shore has a dark, obsessive tone with hints of power-imbalance and a monochrome colour theme. Truly captivating how two similar looking cover photos capture entirely different stories😌

I would argue that 6 is a criminally low rating for this masterpiece, but to each their own. The characters are really complex and hard to understand and the cut-throat pacing does not make it any easier. The budget was very low- I would say this has a story worth 30 episodes which they condensed into 12 due to various reasons. Maybe a better pacing would have clearly explained the whole scenario for you, drawing you into their motives and thoughts.
This is a feast for people who live to delve into characters deeply and intimately, not a easy or stress free watch. But if we talk about simply watching it to enjoy a easy to digest series, then this is definitely not it😵

Out of the blue, I know someone by your name and I'm confused because even the way you type seems similar. I'm low key convinced you are the same person but I don't wanna trip and make a fool out of myself😂😂😂

I think it is an affectionte way of calling You Shulang- taking the Shu from his name and saying Shushu (which taken literally means uncle in chinese), like Lu Zhen is called Zhenzhen .