I find it funny that people are complaining about the plot, or wanting more character development or fleshing out. It's based on real events. The plot was decided by history. The characters had whatever relationships they had. Those involved didn't have the time to stop and learn about each other's histories. You can't force them to be more involved with each other than they were. It's not a piece of a fiction where a writer is crafting all the details to suit a story aesthetic or theme.
For me, that's what makes the story so chilling. Real people. Some who are just trying to survive. Some who would do anything to make money. People crossed paths at this particular junction in life and, for those who survived, they simply had to keep going on with their lives. People who weren't connected before, had no reason to stay connected. There weren't any big personality changes or dramatic life re-directs. That's pretty much how it is in real life.
Cute... Agreed.But TWOE is a classic, its hard to reach that level.
also, this is based on a true story.
and, that's the thing with real life evil. it's not as "interesting" as fiction, because a fiction writer sets out to tell a story for a particular reason. They have a theme or message in mind. Or they want to highlight a particular kind of relationship. So, the story is written to enhance what they want us to feel or perceive. Real life just happens. Often without any meaning.
To me, that's what makes it so much more chilling. This was a real life depiction of what people are capable of, simply for the sake of money. None of them had any big agenda beyond their personal gains or losses.
"Rot in prison" is just how justice should work. In reality that approach fails very often - mainly when applied…
Is it morally wrong? A little friendly thought challenge:
That man was a sociopath and had already caused so many deaths. With all of his money and connections, he probably would have, at minimum, been able to flee the country and do more harm elsewhere.
He needed to die, for the sake of others. Gilho is more realistic than the cop, the prosecutor and the daughter, because he knows exactly what happens and that, with certain people, the only thing that will stop them is death. He's lived his entire life around the devastation of these people. Only those who have had a sheltered life and are somewhat distanced from it, have the luxury of citing "morality." He's willing to be the anti-hero in order to protect others.
If it doesn't costs the lives of people you know, its a bit easier to moralize and feel that its the high ground. Gilho doesn't have that distance. He's been dragged through the mire of their death cult for as long as he can remember.
This is more entertaining than I thought it would be.
But, what's with all these dramas where the plot involves invested members (family or partners or shareholders, etc) sabotaging their own business in the name of taking it over? Sure. Run it into the ground and take over a failed business. That makes sense.
Also, how many times can the same characters pull the same BS and their authoritative characters a) keep believing their stories and b) don't ever punish them or remove them from any position where they could keep doing that shit?
This is satire, so I'm kinda going with it. But, even here it just seems so implausible. Why are writers so into these scenarios?
ZYC's isn't human any more and he survives. Wen Xiao is a goddess. Only PSJ is actually a full, normal human.
Wen Xiao is only ever seen punishing demons. The power of the Baize Token is used to trap them. Did we ever see the Baize Goddess punish humans? The so-called peace that she maintains is kept by keeping demons in check. She has now power over humans at all. That she's a peacekeeper is the propaganda. A very thinly-veiled metaphor.
Its a point made in the story a couple of times. I'm not just pulling my perception out of thin air.
I suppose I could alter my original statement to say "those who were originally human." No matter what setup the plot gives for why some die and some don't, when you step back, you see the pattern.
ZYC's isn't human any more and he survives. Wen Xiao is a goddess. Only PSJ is actually a full, normal human.
I understand the plot steps. Still, in the end the humans (those who were originally human) are the only ones who survive, even though its the humans who caused all the misery in the first place. Why does the story have the victims of humans sacrificing themselves?
ZYC's isn't human any more and he survives. Wen Xiao is a goddess. Only PSJ is actually a full, normal human.
ZYC gives all his demon power away. So, he's back to human. (All his markings are gone.) Wen Xiao is human, she just has the Baize Token which gives her power. She's not an actual god, like the mountain gods. And, she's tasked with punishing demons, so that would be the only reason she would be exempted.
The message here is pretty awful: while we may tell ourselves that we'll stop othering you, we still expect that everyone who is not us, even if they've been oppressed by us, will sacrifice themselves to solve a crisis that we created. You'll always be second-class and expendable, while being expected to be the better person.
Noting that they pulled a Buffy: spent an entire series teaching us that the beings who aren't human aren't the problem, then killed off everyone on the team who wasn't human.
Didn't know what to expect and i'm thoroughly enjoying this. The humor works well, the actors are all good and the writing is, so far, ok - I haven't noticed any big plot holes or any characters that are just too ridiculous.
I'm learning that these ancient detective stories are nice, easy genre, (In face Ancient Detective is one of my favs.)
Also noting that I don't often pay attention to the music. I tend to skip opening and closing credits, because, too often, there are spoilers. Here, though, I like all the music. The closing song is particularly sweet, with beautiful running harmonies.
Overall, an easy, enjoyable watch, thus far. (episode 7)
enjoying this. the pace is good. its light comedy, so easy to watch. the story is interesting enough to want to know how it turns out.
a couple of weaknesses: the writing of the first visible antagonist character (Ling) seems really weak. He's supposed to a government official, vying for the Prime Minister position. But, we don't see him being stately at all, Not even once. He doesn't seem to to do anything except plot to kill the ML. And he's pretty lame at it. He doesn't even really plan things. He just sends if "guy" to go kill or go kidnap. And they always fail. Why is this character so shallow? (I'm only on ep 13, so maybe more depth is coming?)
the FL voice. it drive me to distraction. Its so nasal and whiny. why would they use that voice for a lead character? She's supposed to a smart business woman, but she comes off as child. Plus, she's just far too oblivious to danger. She lost her memory, not her intuition. She runs out into the dark when there is an assassination attempt? To help? How? Some of her behaviors defy suspension of disbelief. I wish it were written better.
Still, the actors are all fun to watch and the story is interesting enough. I simply find myself FF'ing through some of her scenes, since the voice grates on me. (Maybe they're going to have her mature and get a grown up voice later?)
heavy makeup is not due to age. it's in many dramas intended to create dramatic lookshttps://x.com/HANYI_778/status/1839228552786436176/photo/1
It would help if people understood the history of theater in China and the super heavy makeup that has been used on stage since, well, forever. They don't expect characters to look realistic. Often the makeup is symbolic or overdone for emphasis on something on purpose.
It may even seem strange to them (though they've been exposed to other styles for a while now and are somewhat adapting) that people complain about characters not looking real.
For me, that's what makes the story so chilling. Real people. Some who are just trying to survive. Some who would do anything to make money. People crossed paths at this particular junction in life and, for those who survived, they simply had to keep going on with their lives. People who weren't connected before, had no reason to stay connected. There weren't any big personality changes or dramatic life re-directs. That's pretty much how it is in real life.
This was some brutal realism.
and, that's the thing with real life evil. it's not as "interesting" as fiction, because a fiction writer sets out to tell a story for a particular reason. They have a theme or message in mind. Or they want to highlight a particular kind of relationship. So, the story is written to enhance what they want us to feel or perceive. Real life just happens. Often without any meaning.
To me, that's what makes it so much more chilling. This was a real life depiction of what people are capable of, simply for the sake of money. None of them had any big agenda beyond their personal gains or losses.
That man was a sociopath and had already caused so many deaths. With all of his money and connections, he probably would have, at minimum, been able to flee the country and do more harm elsewhere.
He needed to die, for the sake of others. Gilho is more realistic than the cop, the prosecutor and the daughter, because he knows exactly what happens and that, with certain people, the only thing that will stop them is death. He's lived his entire life around the devastation of these people. Only those who have had a sheltered life and are somewhat distanced from it, have the luxury of citing "morality." He's willing to be the anti-hero in order to protect others.
If it doesn't costs the lives of people you know, its a bit easier to moralize and feel that its the high ground. Gilho doesn't have that distance. He's been dragged through the mire of their death cult for as long as he can remember.
But, what's with all these dramas where the plot involves invested members (family or partners or shareholders, etc) sabotaging their own business in the name of taking it over? Sure. Run it into the ground and take over a failed business. That makes sense.
Also, how many times can the same characters pull the same BS and their authoritative characters a) keep believing their stories and b) don't ever punish them or remove them from any position where they could keep doing that shit?
This is satire, so I'm kinda going with it. But, even here it just seems so implausible. Why are writers so into these scenarios?
that's not humorous and I don't get why its so often portrayed that way. find another way to get comic relief from the heavy content.
The observation/critique of the message that sends remains the same.
Its a point made in the story a couple of times. I'm not just pulling my perception out of thin air.
I suppose I could alter my original statement to say "those who were originally human." No matter what setup the plot gives for why some die and some don't, when you step back, you see the pattern.
The message here is pretty awful: while we may tell ourselves that we'll stop othering you, we still expect that everyone who is not us, even if they've been oppressed by us, will sacrifice themselves to solve a crisis that we created. You'll always be second-class and expendable, while being expected to be the better person.
its pretty gross.
Half demon/half human? dead. Half god/half demon? dead. Great demon? dead.
Only humans survive. Why?
I'm learning that these ancient detective stories are nice, easy genre, (In face Ancient Detective is one of my favs.)
Also noting that I don't often pay attention to the music. I tend to skip opening and closing credits, because, too often, there are spoilers. Here, though, I like all the music. The closing song is particularly sweet, with beautiful running harmonies.
Overall, an easy, enjoyable watch, thus far. (episode 7)
a couple of weaknesses:
the writing of the first visible antagonist character (Ling) seems really weak. He's supposed to a government official, vying for the Prime Minister position. But, we don't see him being stately at all, Not even once. He doesn't seem to to do anything except plot to kill the ML. And he's pretty lame at it. He doesn't even really plan things. He just sends if "guy" to go kill or go kidnap. And they always fail. Why is this character so shallow? (I'm only on ep 13, so maybe more depth is coming?)
the FL voice. it drive me to distraction. Its so nasal and whiny. why would they use that voice for a lead character? She's supposed to a smart business woman, but she comes off as child. Plus, she's just far too oblivious to danger. She lost her memory, not her intuition. She runs out into the dark when there is an assassination attempt? To help? How? Some of her behaviors defy suspension of disbelief. I wish it were written better.
Still, the actors are all fun to watch and the story is interesting enough. I simply find myself FF'ing through some of her scenes, since the voice grates on me. (Maybe they're going to have her mature and get a grown up voice later?)
It may even seem strange to them (though they've been exposed to other styles for a while now and are somewhat adapting) that people complain about characters not looking real.