ShortCircuit

Finished ep 18...

I didn't consider the Beauty and the Beast angle, hmm, there might be something there (that wasn't there before :D)

So it's aesthetics and tastes after all... but I still love Ji Chong's outfits and so far none of Bo Wang's. I'm still of two minds of what to think (and do) of/with their costume designer.

STILL. I guess we can all agree that Bao Na's over-the-top jewelry is top class, almost on the same level with Tae Al Ha's jewelry in Arthdal Chronicles. (I still got my heart set on that body-chain of TAH's that looked so awesomely pagan. Sadly, I don't have her figure, and it would cost a lot of money anyway, if it were made from gold. Or so I tell myself on lonely nights when the cravings hit lol).

I like those bracelets-with-chains-and-rings Bao Na was wearing when playing at coming to be Bo Wang's bride. They looked somewhat Indian but more complex. Very cute. Those, I could probably afford. I guess. I hope...

I think there's a backstory with those villagers - there were women and kids only, no men that I could see. Maybe he did something that makes him feel guilty and that caused all the men to disappear, so he's trying to atone for it. I love that he's not one-dimensionally gorgeous-for-the-sake-of-it but will probably have a good storyline. I'd be disappointed with just a teensy bit of plot to follow him around. Xiao Zhan deserves more than that.

Though by now, after ep 15, it's clear money is NOT everything to him (as if we couldn't have guessed - I mean, he's the SML, he can't be amoral. Right?)

Which reminds me - so Xing'er might have a crush on Bo Wang because he reminds her of Lang Zhai (for which she has unexplained feelings for, maybe it was an teen hormone crisis or something), but after what he does to her, it's still HER apologizing?! Still HER trying to appease him?!

If electronics prices hadn't exploded this autumn, I would've thrown my laptop as far as I could have. GAH! Good thing there's Ji Chong to patch SOME things up. Still I'm pretty disappointed on Xing'er. I thought she had more backbone than that.

I mean, right?? It's so bad. Everybody else has a neckline, so it's not that they didn't know how to do it. But IMHO they tried making him even bulkier, and gave those coats raised or stuffed shoulder pieces, and that made him into Hulk.

If it's true that there was a werewolf storyline that got censored out, maybe that would have made sense. But if we're stuck with humans-only, it doesn't look good at all on him.

Dammit, his three underlings look better than him. *quits in rage*

I knew he's 1.83m tall, lol, it's in his wiki bio. I just didn't realize the rest of the TU cast is in a close-enough range. I mean, Marius Wang/Jiang Cheng never seemed to be very much shorter. ((Google tells me he's 1.83m too, lol. It figures. ))

I even knew about the tall hair-piece for LZ so that he seemed a bit taller, and it's obvious Wang Yibo is a little shorter than Xiao Zhan.

But none of the others seemed to be MUCH shorter - not Lan Xichen, not Xue Yang, maybe Nie Huaisang and Meng Yao, but it never seemed to matter lol. Even Xuan Lu (YangLi) didn't seem that much shorter next to him, though obviously she was not in the same range.

In The Wolf, I keep getting spooked by the difference - Ji Chong next to Bo Wang looks down on him, lol, next to Xing'er, looks down on her, next to Second Prince - looks down on him, too. I just love the height difference.

And by now I've seen him next to Bao Na, she looks like a kid playing with her dad, lol.

Must be the costumes, lol.

Edit: re: Shangri-La. So that's where they filmed those scenes. I followed some details on how it was filmed, but I have no reference to where that is, exactly. It looked like alpine scenery, no wonder it's so awesome.

I get altitude headaches, ouch. So no travel plans for me right now, after all... But does it look amazing... I am torn.

By episode 14, these are a few things that should be mentioned:

1. Xiao Zhan is freaking tall. I thought (from spoiling myself to the last few eps) that it was mostly a difference in height between him and the actress playing Bao Na, but he's taller than Wang Dalu, lol. And Li Qin. And basically everybody else in the main cast that I compared him to.

Which begs the question - how tall were the main cast of The Untamed, if he didn't stand out so much, there? Did they pick them by height, lol?

Not that I'm complaining, mind. And if we're there, I have to say I really, really NOTICED those long legs. I've only seen him before in robes, when he's playing in period dramas, and never noticed those legs. He looks awesome, like a long. tall, cool drink of water. I want more.

2. The actress playing Bao Na (Guo Shu Yao) is great at being a brat. That said, she looks really adult, despite the pint size. If you watched those eps, you know what I mean. In comparison, Li Qin seems rather unendowed, lol. I get confused - she looks like a child and then you see the curves and it's kind of strange. I hope she's supposed to be grown adult and only playing at being childish because everybody doted on her. Otherwise, her being a well-developed for her age girl-child would not play well, at least for me. ((Quick add, OMG she's 30 now. I mean. I'm looking in the mirror and I am dispirited. right now.))

3. Whoever made their garderobes should be taken out and shot for what he did to Wang Dalu, then brought back to life and given an award for what he did for Xiao Zhan. Bo Wang looks like he doesn't have a neck, dammit, and all his muscle pack is lost on me because he looks stuffed in his costumes all the time. On the other hand, did I mention those long legs on XZ? Yup. That kind of outfit, I approve.

4. Why the heck does Xing'er love Lang Zhai for, anyway? They supposedly were kids together, but - unless it ended up cut in editing - their relationship was pretty uneven. He was basically a stray kid raised in the wilderness, barely talking, and she was always a noble, meant-for-better-things, princess. They never had a future together. Watching her pine after Lang Zhai years after he supposedly died makes no sense.

Also, I actually LOL-ed when Xing'er and Ji Chong discussed things by the side of that gorgeous mountain lake. She was practically sparkling when talking to him. Poor Bo Wang! :D

5. Which reminds me: those backgrounds... OMG those backgrounds. I want to move there, wherever they filmed (that mountainside in ep 11-12). That lake. Those clouds. That greenery. Tell me the place and I'll look for a ticket there right NOW.

Beautiful cinematography (more so when in nature, but the in-house decors aren't bad either, I suppose. )

6. And finally, I love, love, LOVE, that Head-Eunuch (played by Ma Jie). He is always spot-on, light-voiced, prim and proper. I just love his un-important scenes. I hope he makes it to the end of the series.

As for the rest of it - well, the episodes seem short, which is a good sign. Now, if the translations would be as fast as I can watch them, I'd be in 7th heaven. But I am grateful they're as fast as they are now. Good job, translator teams!

I am not that invested in the main romance, so that's sad, but then it bodes well for the ending. (Because whoever I want to see living, lives, and whoever I don't really get that invested in... well, I don't really-really mind.)

Yup, while Lang Zhai / Bo Wang gets to be the all broody and self-sacrificing idiot, Ji Chong gets to be the plotty, drop-dead-gorgeous, devil-may-care rogue that we'll all be rooting for.

I guess it's fate *throws up hands in defeat*. We'll have to play along with it :D

Episode 11. And then it all gets waaaay better, lol.

In this week's episodes: a Gollum meets Smeagol moment, people walking on toward obvious danger while other people fall down left and right (the "Supernatural" Death entrance look-alike was cool the first time it happened, not so cool any more...), lots of INSANE, and I do mean, obviously insane, PPL, repetitions of undying love, finding-parents-isn't-so-important-anymore etc etc.

I still love the foxes (inclining toward liking Lee Rang a bit more than anyone else, by now, TBH), but I wish they either had more material to make up a good story or had the courage to make a shorter series.

Also, I kind of have this inkling that Rang will take Yeon's place and swallow the dragon's scale for him. And I do NOT want that to happen.

I spoiled myself to the last few eps because how could I NOT?!

Re: Ji Chong pushing Xing'er on Wolfie and her NOT taking it, I mean, have you SEEN Xiao Zhan? :DDD (JK, I know you're a fan, while I was stalking this drama waiting for its release it was your updates keeping the hope alive, so thank you!)

I kept looking at him and trying to find WWX inside, and while they're very similar (same person, duh!), they're also so different that I can only praise XZ's acting skills. I am so happy Ji Chong (can't shorten it to JC :D) got his happy end, and I really like that little feisty girl lol. The height difference is huge, lol, but they play so well together, it's extremely cute.

Sadly, watching it raw I still can't get over my initial dislike of Wolfie as a character, I guess I'll have to see what gives with some context.

Also, the ending reminds me very much of "Hero" the 2002 movie with Jet Li, with a pretty similar ending, and I love that movie. This drama's ending is okay with me. As long as Ji Chong's okay lol.

No Xiao Zhan / Ji Chong yet by the end of ep. 4. But I'm quite relieved this won't be a bust, because the first 4 eps are good together and have a good flow. I'm pretty sure they won't do him bad.

There are plenty of mysteries to unfold - like how did the emperor "train" Wolfie? He looks to me like he got a full-on education in the 8 years the emperor had him. And I want to know more about his underlings. Please don't be killing them off, show!

Is Zhou You Gui the guy who logicked out the butterflies-in-the-box thing? Because he's so cool. I hope he has a good part to play in this. Loved how he came in and the servant girl lied to his face about the princess being undisposed when he could see her right there in front of him playing with the flowers, lol. There are quite a few comedic moments that aren't forced in just these few eps that were translated. I'm hoping for more to come.

I had a great moment recognizing Hu Xiao Ting, who played Jin Zixuan's mother in The Untamed - instant recognition, lol. She's here playing Xing'er's step-mom (not for long). She does have that kind of caring-mom face, lol, and so far her sons were so-so hahaha.

So, from the 4 episodes eng-subbed on YT (MZTV), I can tell that I'm going to like this drama.

I can guess where cuts were made (basically anywhere there's narration, I think), but the CGI isn't that bad, plus the music (especially the atonal BGM music) is awesome so far (minus the ending song, I really don't like that song.). I also don't like Wang Talu's character, but that leaves room for improvement. I absolutely LOVE the way this is filmed, there's a lot to praise in the cinematography. I would have loved it for that alone, there must have been something in the water in 2018 and 2019, for costume dramas to get such great cinematography in the dramas I've watched that were filmed then.

I didn't expect to like Li Qin's character quite so much, so far she's carrying it.

TL;DR: I have a very good feeling about this drama.

Spoilers follow.

WAIT WHAT THIS IS OUT?!!!!!!

Hang on for a second, I'll go die in a corner for a few minutes.

Where is it available? I can't believe this, I've been waiting for so long, with so many postponements, I can't believe it's really airing, lol.

I see comments that people finished watching it - WHAT?! Did they air it all at once?... It's so confusing...

Oh-Aew is the bravest kid to ever be in love in a series (that I've watched so far). He had the guts to confess first, to cut ties first, to make the first moves to become involved again.

All hail to him. And I'm going to follow up on PP's career - he has all it takes, the looks, the emotions, the charisma, to make it big. Wishing him all the best!

Will wait for the second season in March. Hopefully they have time to plan it well and give us another masterpiece. Go, team!

LOL, the SML syndrome is so real :D

I put Start-Up on hold because of it - I couldn't care less about the leads and their probably love affair, because I can totally empathize with the SML and he probably will end up thrashed by the plot. So I'm sparing myself the pain, ha.

BTW, I had no idea who Leo Wu was, so I couldn't place him. But Crossfire was on my Plan-To-Watch list and I started it last night, after finishing some of my other dramas, lol, and it turns out he's one of the leads. I can't say if I'm impressed or not yet by his acting, but he definitely wouldn't be my first choice for Mo Ran, based on looks alone. I much more prefer CFY (he looks the part, but based on his performance in Ever Night too). As you said, better someone who actively wanted to get involved than someone who would take such a role reluctantly.

The Heiress was going to go on my PTW list, lol, but some initial reviews weren't great, and there are so many other dramas to watch, I guess it'll take a back seat for a bit.

Yup, diving in C-dramas through the TU/CQL portal wasn't great for all the following dramas, lol, because it really did set a high standard, but I don't care - I'd rather the awesome entry than a longer exposure that might have turned me off a bit. I was lucky in that part :D

I got your message, I need to think a bit on it. Thank you for all the interesting background info and the detailed POV on JMY's path :)

Not really... But they are sometimes visited for advice if they have been senior officers or had tons of experience in a particular field. No classified information is disclosed to them, usually.

WHAT!? You mean to tell me that if there's a retired Special Forces agent somewhere there they DON'T usually let her join in on searches, or have her interfere with ongoing ops? LOL

Must happen only in SKorea... And only in the DMZ obviously, whenever some presidential candidate wants to send in some mercenary troop LOL *wink*

But, everybody but the villain and their original victim - plus two, and the rest of the baddies - makes it out, so that's okay. And the doggie is fine and retired so that's okay too.

The little girl is cured and soon to grow in order to pester JDY in other dramas, lol.

Though, even if I really liked the way those uniforms fit those people (I didn't mean to let that be known, oops) I sure hope that is NOT the way the military acts. I mean, disobedience, crass idiocy (what was LJS hoping to achieve by going in that building basically butt-naked?!, Also, LH shoots at JMG who is already NOT THERE ANYMORE and two unthinking idiots - two, not just one - get in the way of the bullet. How stu... Okay, I'm going to leave it at that.) And then a president-wishful brings in a whole MERCENARY troop and the army is okay with that, in the freaking DMZ?

But all that aside, it's was a nice, fast-moving, idiot-plot-hole-too-many-coincidences-plus-deus-ex-machina ending drama, that still managed to entertain. And after all that's the main thing with a drama.

My favourite characters (other than the dogs) in this drama: Capt. Song (at least HE was consistent) and the NK defector who became the second mutant (he really sold it in the mid-drama).

My least favourite characters (other than the villains): LJS (be a USEFUL idiot, instead of a necessary victim one, why not?) and SYR (if she were anyone else, even the ex-elite female soldier, it wouldn't have had any impact on the drama).

Cons: too many coincidences, no actual fullfilling resolution, useless love interest (why was it there?) and too many suspension of disbelief moments.

Pros: still entertaining, the good guys get a win, beautiful cinematography (particularly in the first few eps; come to think of it, the first ep is still the best one), great opening sequence (promised me more than I got, but I still really like it) and JDY in military uniforms. Over and over and over. Yes please. I'd have loved a more serious tone and plot with it but eh.

Things I've learned from this (and other) show(s):

- the military everywhere really, REALLY likes their greens and blues (particularly in lighting). Well, so do I.
- the civilians who once were in the army are allowed to interfere with military operations because of reasons.
- army stuff is complicated, so there's no reason to try and understand it.
- also, army stuff is complicated so if there's any SNAFU, it gets shoved under the carpet faster than you'd say WHAT?!
- even if there are mutant zombie werewolves around, nobody bats an eye. I guess they've already seen things worse than that. Can't wait to watch THOSE series, lol.

Haha, I've "caught" a few Mandarin words here and there, and I've already started recognizing some actors (other than leads, obviously), so I can say that watching a drama raw wouldn't be so bad NOW, that some time has passed. But TU was my first Chinese drama (that I remember), so I would have been lost in the raws. And it's not even the raws (because I would watch it for all the pretty, lol) but the waiting. The waiting is killing me. I've learned the hard way, through Korean dramas, that it's better to wait for it to be finished in order to binge it - more so if it's one of the most fan-favourites drama of the time. Not the I had ANY idea what TU/CQL was at the time, or even that it was a huge success, lol. One FMV on YT was all it took.

But I've learned, well, SOME, lol. I plan on waiting for Immortality to be over, too, when it starts airing, just in case. But I'll probably be unable to stop myself, if it turns out to be good. I just hope it's a success, too, and that they make the best of it while keeping it safe enough for passing censors. Even if there's no open romance, I can take it - as long as there's something THERE, as in CQL.

I haven't watched Love of Siam yet, I might, in the future, thanks for the rec! I've been trying to catch up on dramas from actors that caught my eye - like LYX, Xu Kai (loved The Legends, and Bai Lu is among my favourite actresses right now, lol), XZ and WYB, obviously, and so on. There are so many new (to me anyway) actors, dramas and stories, I feel like a glutton in a patisserie, lol, trying hard not to get a sugar rush :D

There are a few subtle and not so subtle BL-tinted Korean dramas lately, - among my favourites is "The Boy Next Door" (which is NOT tagged as BL-interest, lol, but it definitely IS), and a great comedy to boot:
https://mydramalist.com/22187-the-boy-next-door
So they are trying, lol.

But I highly recommend - if you haven't watched it yet - that Thai drama I already mentioned, "I told the Sunset About You":
https://mydramalist.com/55651-bkpp
It's ending this week, hopefully with a happy ending, or at least on a hopeful note... Can't wait to see it. It's incredible, so far.

Re: WYB - I watched him in Gank Your Heart (made me look up gaming wording and whatnot, lol), he's good with comedic timing, and while GYH was filmed before CQL, I think, he already grew a lot. So LOF might show his skills even better :) Waiting for LOF, DuoLuo Continent, Immortality, Oath of Love... So many dramas to look forward to!

To be honest, I didn't despise JMY from the beginning, since he was so pitiful. I could totally see how he would try to better his standing in life, particularly as he's of no importance in the cultivation world, his father is at best indiferent toward his bastard sons and daughters. and his (JMY's) cultivation is so low, since he started pretty late in life.

But then all the scheming and plotting really did get to me, probably as intended. I mean, not a lot of people would just decide to pick a target and make him into everyone's hated person, just so his own actions would seem to be justified. And while his hatred of his father is very much deserved, what JMY did was no better - toward his own wife, his own (legitimate, even if incestuous) son, toward Nie MingJue, who hadn't done much bad to him. Seriously, what was his problem with NMJ? Was he afraid NMJ's straightforward attitude, power and suspicious nature would cause his downfall?

... In which case, they totally did, though indirectly, through NHS. I love NHS - he's just as much a snake as JMY, but his actions are calculated to get revenge, not blame innocent bystanders. He bests the schemiest schemer of the TU 'verse, and still manages to get away with it, as WWX and LZ would not do anything to change it.

The one really innocent victim in this whole mess was LXC, though. Even in the novel, where there's absolutely no hint of romantic interest, learning that he's taken up seclusion from time to time, in order to make sense of having killed his best friend, hurt. It's what his father did, in order to deal with their mother's unspecified crimes, but to see LXC reduced to it, when he doesn't have much of a support system... *sigh*

So no, I don't mind the drama made them more than friends, but that friendship only highlighted how lucky LZ was in picking the one honest and true-hearted scoundrel of the whole bunch to set his heart on. WWX is no angel, but his conscience is clear and that makes it all worth it.

I want to re-watch this drama with erased memories of it, lol, I could enjoy it all over again with no idea what comes next. I envy newcomers their lack of info, lol, it's going to take a long time to get over it, if ever.