This review may contain spoilers
Peyton place of a Porcelain town
For those who are old enough to remember the TV series, Peyton Place, this drama reminds me of that soap opera. - the toxic relationships, family secrets, shady business deals. scandals, greed, love, loss. This story is set in a famous porcelain producing town in China and the female protaganist is an orphan from a famous family of ceramic makers. She was almost cheated out of her family legacy by a domineering and self serving aunt and a good intentioned but weak willed and tradition bound uncle who is the creative force of the family business. The male protagonist is a wiz investor who was double crossed by a trusted friend and business partner and almost realized too late that there is more to life than making money. The story is not just about the romance and the trials and tribulations that the 2 protagonists experienced but is also about how people with centuries old Chinese traditions and mindsets are pulled unwillingly and painfully into the 21st century business environment and what happens if you trust the wrong people and are too naive in business dealings.Those who enjoy learning more about porcelain and porcelain manufacture will enjoy this drama as I did. I was very interested when they showed and talked, though on a very basic level, about how famille rose porcelain is made. I have a new appreciation of how much sweat and tears goes into the making of good hand painted porcelain. The countryside backdrop is very scenic and the cinematography is excellent. I find myself looking forward to every episode and visiting Jingdezhen (Porcelain Capital of China) in the future.
Those who do not like business/financial dramas may find this drama slow because there is a lot of it especially in the first several episodes. Part of the theme is also about the revitalization and modernization of ancient towns in China and how these endeavors are financed - probably a big concern in many parts of China.
I think Victoria Song and Vic Chou played the leads convincingly and the chemistry between the 2 was good though both their hair styles (especially Vic’s disheveled countryside hair style)could be better at times ：） Victoria Song is so beautiful and young looking, she could easily pass for a woman in her mid or late 20’s.
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Disappointing Reblooming ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´(00)`ﾟ)ﾟ｡
So disappointing Reblooming ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´(00)`ﾟ)ﾟ｡PLOT: The ML is a (promising) investor manager and the FL, his subordinate. When the ML creates his company, and the FL follows him. But he is betrayed by his assistant. The FL, unemployed, returns to her hometown, specializing in porcelain. Her uncle operates the family factory ("vampirized" by the aunt). The ML, not wanting to abandon the Great City Development Project that it set up, is also coming there. They will collaborate, set up the FL ceramics workshop, and try to solve problems.
+++ If you like ceramics, the theme is interesting.
+++ OST OK
+++ Beautiful landscapes, country life
### Slow, slow pace. (Speed X 1.5 or it's unbearable)
### I liked the 2 leads (Victoria Song & Vic Zhou), but, in this series, the frozen/disillusioned face of Vic Zhou and the "duckbill" lips (visibly too much cosmetic surgery) of Victoria Song prevented me from connecting with the characters. CL with no chemistry (event they kissed a lot)
### The character of the sneaky aunt is very well played: we hate her!
=> You really have to hang on to get to the end of the story!
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PLOT: Le ML est un investisseur manager (prometteur) et la FL, sa subordonnée. Qd le ML créée sa Sté et la FL le suit. Mais il est trahi par on assistant. La FL, au chômage, retourne dans sa ville natale, spécialisée dans la porcelaine. Son oncle fait fonctionner l'ent. familiale ("vampirisée" par la tante). Le ML ne voulant pas abandonner le Gd Projet de développement de la ville qu'il a monté, y vient également. Ils vont collaborer, monter l'atelier de céramique de la FL, et essayer de résoudre les problèmes.
+++ Si on aime la céramique, le thème est intéressant.
+++ OST OK
+++ Beaux paysages, vie à la campagne
### Rythme lent, lent.
### J'aimais bien les 2 leads (Victoria Song & Vic Zhou), mais, dans cette série, le visage figé/désabusé de Vic Zhou et les lèvres "bec de canard" (visiblement trop de chirurgie esthétique) de Victoria Song m'ont empêché d'adhérer aux personnages. CL sans alchimie.
### Le personnage de la tante sournoise est très bien jouée : on la déteste !
=> Il faut vraiment s'accrocher pour aller au bout de l'histoire !
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This review may contain spoilers
A Drama for the Serious Minded
This is my very first review. I am compelled to do it because the other reviews have done absolutely no justice to this gem of a drama. It is not a show for quick gratification and it eschews almost all of the tropes associated with the typical Chinese romance. What you will find here is an intricate tale of the Chinese porcelain industry and its attempts to weather the winds of change brought about by capitalist modernization. The fragility of the Chinese porcelain becomes a very apt metaphor for the fragility of trust that has to be the basis of any human relationship. The series begins in the middle with the female lead rightly lashing out at the male lead for betraying her trust and breaking up with him. The first two thirds of this drama then tell us how they arrived at this tragic point. We are taken back about six months and we see everything from the female lead’s perspective. She comes from a family of porcelain artists, with her father having been one of the most prominent porcelain painters of his time. Her family business is now run by her uncle and aunt. When circumstances force her to return to her home town which is the heart of the porcelain industry in China along with the male lead, who is trying to gain a foothold in this untapped market, his competitive zeal and his single-minded pursuit of profit leads to him suffocating the life out of his budding romance with her. The last one third of the show is about repairing his relationship with the female lead and allowing their romance to reach its blissful culmination.The heavy research the show has made into the porcelain industry is at the level of a fine documentary. The patient viewer will be enthralled by this. We are shown that this industry, which was initially comprised of state-owned enterprises, is transformed, by the shutting down of these enterprises, into a rough conglomerate of family-owned companies founded by the workers of those very same state-run factories, of which the female lead’s father’s company is most prominent and a de-facto leader of all the others. This conglomerate preserves the ancient production techniques which cannot be mapped on to a capitalist time-line of investment and return and it bars the entry of capital into this industry altogether. Capital is attracted to this ancient industry because it sees it as a reservoir of untapped demand to be transformed into huge profits. However, unfettered capital will simply destroy the porcelain industry for it lacks the patience necessary to produce a fine piece of China. On the other hand, the porcelain industry left to itself will produce nothing but lifeless imitations of ancient artifacts, artifacts which even if they are perfect illustrations of peerless technique have stopped speaking to contemporary times in any meaningful way. This will only hasten its extinction. What is thus needed is a revitalized porcelain industry that is able to meld ancient technique with modern sensibility. This is where the title of the show “Reblooming Blue” comes from: the revitalization of the blue, which stands for porcelain. Capital is necessary for this process of revitalization but in a manner and the degree that does not destroy the very object being revitalized. The show can be seen as meditation on this topic.
This tense relationship between an ancient industry that confirms to an unhurried temporality and capital that confirms to a frantic temporality is the backbone of this show and it mirrors the relationship between the male lead, who is the embodiment of capital and the female lead, who is the embodiment of this ancient industry. In the first two thirds of the drama, the confidence and swagger of capital is embodied in the confidence and swagger of this male lead, who is absolutely certain that he knows better than the practitioners and stewards of the ancient craft what is good for craft, that he can somehow satisfy the insatiable demands of the capitalist and maintain the sanctity and the quality of the artifacts produced. He therefore plans to use the female lead to wrest control of her family’s enterprise and win her heart at the same time. But this confidence is shattered when the head of the family, her uncle finds out about his scheme and shuts the door on him. The female lead is also devasted to see that she was being used by one she loved. Thus ends the first attempt at a relationship between the male and the female lead and between capital and porcelain, which the two respectively symbolize. The last third of the drama then shows us the restoration of their romance, which also symbolizes the restoration of the relationship between capital and porcelain on the basis of a new sensibility that combines the organizational capacity of capital, the rigour and patience of ancient technique and the aesthetic ideas that speak to the contemporary masses.
This is slow-paced drama, which is very well-acted out. Each of lead characters well-drawn out and utterly convincing. If you are willing to enter into an interesting and intricate set of relationships, which develop and transform through tragedy and setbacks then this is the show for you. If you looking a simpler reason to watch this show, watch it for the mesmerizing beauty of porcelain artifacts.
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This review may contain spoilers
Heat death of a drama
I’d normally drop a show because it is bad and unwatchable. In this case, it is due to apathy and the need to ration my time. After 6 eps, I feel like I've seen it all before and in much better productions.For instance, I gather this show follows Will Love in Spring in the schedule. Ouch, that must have hurt because while WLiS has enough chemistry to warm your house in the dead of winter, there is no chemistry here. We get the meaningful glances, but I get more feels looking at a slice of chocolate cake.
Ditto, the topic of disappearing traditional Chinese craftsmanship is well documented. Several shows have highlighted this and one prime example is Meet Yourself. MY is far superior in every way. Not only is the story and acting better but their predicament is woven into the plot in a humanistic way. You feel for the old masters and respect them for their dedication. In this series, all we get are buyouts, shady deals and naked greed. I will quit too if I have to put up with those shenanigans.
The opening scene of this series is so confusing. It literally dropped our leads in front of us with no preamble and then immediately does a flashback. Did that scene gave half the story away?!
Backstabbing, underhanded deals, and betrayal is the only way Chinese knows how to do business, according to this show. We are 5, 6 eps in and there is no way I would do business with any of them. This extends to the FL's family. Her family is willing to renege on their promise to sell the FL shares in the family business. All in the name of keeping the investors happy and benefiting their useless son. To paraphrase an adage, who needs enemies when you have family like that.
Speaking of friends and family, while a lot of series have quirky and interesting supporting characters, so far, I have seen none. They are all either nasty, scheming, useless and/or parasites. I suppose it means our leads have nobody to rely on except themselves . . I shall just refer back to my point on zero chemistry. Touché.
Let's talk a little about our leads now. Vic Zhou has been absent from the small screen for many moons. He is still dapper and quite stoic in this drama, but he is a little stiff as well. Need to loosen up those acting muscles.
Speaking of acting muscles, Victoria Song is quite lively and animated this time around. This is a departure from her usual stilted and pouting way. She is also playing a woman somewhat younger than her real age. Picture Zhao Lusi in that role and you'll get the picture. It is a bit of hit and miss though. I see it as a welcome change but is it too little, too late? I don't know and probably will never find out.
In the end, too many tropes, poor chemistry and dodgy characters rules this series. There is no good reason for me to keep watching. It might come good, or it might get worse. Regardless, with Joy of Life 2 going live, conservation of viewing hours is a no brainer.
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It is a slow burn and boring drama. I can't continuing with it after 9 episodes.
Reblooming Blue is a melodrama about the relationship between Chen Xiao Man and her boss. They dated, and due to a misunderstanding, they broke up and got back together.Synopsis: Chen Xiao Man has been working hard in the city to save enough for her to invest shares in the family's porcelain business. However, she becomes unemployed and has no choice but to return to her hometown. At this time, Chen Xiao Man's superior, Ke Yan, also encounters an unprecedented setback. Hoping to turn things around, he came to Chen Xiao Man's hometown to seek the help of a legendary figure in the investment community who had been living in seclusion. This leads to a reunion between Chen Xiao Man and Ke Yan. Under his guidance and encouragement, she decided to embark on the road of entrepreneurship.
My Reviews:
1. The On-screen chemistry between the main CP is dull and non-existent.
2. The story could be faster and smoother. I am dropping this drama.
3. I lost interest in continuing after 9 episodes.
I give it a 5.0 rating because it is a typical genre that Victoria Song has played over the years since I embarked on Cdrama. The drama was nothing special; she always played a headstrong, career-oriented woman with conflicts with her lover. They broke up and got back together—the same old thing.
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