So in a nutshell, you don't want female generals centric dramas, ironic coming from the Country that created Mulan.
This babe should watch some Chinese crime/thrillers instead. The captain or the main detective is always a woman, very capable and smarter than her peers. Overall, great characters in their own right. No emasculation of her counterparts needed. But oh well, not what most people wish to watch đ€·đ»ââïž
So in a nutshell, you don't want female generals centric dramas, ironic coming from the Country that created Mulan.
Let this one be. The replies are pretty incensed and not quite constructive to the point youâre trying to make. Canât say I havenât missed this kind of interaction here on MDL đ
So in a nutshell, you don't want female generals centric dramas, ironic coming from the Country that created Mulan.
Lmao! That's not even my argument. đ„Ž Try again.
My critique isnât against female-led stories or generalsâitâs about how POJ handled the characters and the script. Xie Zheng, and the story overall, were reduced to eye candy and fan service instead of being developed with depth and narrative purpose. You can have strong female or male leads, but they still need to be written and portrayed in a way that respects the story, the characters, and the context theyâre in.
There are several things happening here. When POJ first aired, it showed so much promise and genuinely beautiful filmmaking. Then it all went downhill. Anyone with a brain and a pair of eyes can see that the script and characters were butchered (pun unintended) to cater to face value and CP fans. So the call for more script- and character-driven storytelling is very welcome.
China is also in a position where it needs to bolster its military image, and POJ sidelining Xie Zheng became problematic in that context. If it had aired several years earlier, it probably wouldnât have been an issue. But in todayâs environment, it simply didnât pass the âvibe checkâ with military officials. Itâs not even about the makeup. If Xie Zheng had been portrayed on the battlefield the way the novel originally wrote him, or if the script had given him more combat scenes, this wouldnât have been a problem.
And while China has made progress in its feminist movement, it is still fundamentally a patriarchal society. Iâve seen plenty of arguments saying itâs not about the beautiful faces, but about the portrayalâand thatâs exactly the issue. Xie Zheng was reduced to little more than eye candy instead of a fully realized military figure. You could also argue that the character lost narrative authority; instead of driving the story, he was repositioned to support visual appeal and romantic dynamics, which undercuts how male leads are typically framed in more traditional, state-aligned storytelling. In that sense, POJ pushing against those normsâintentionally or notâended up clashing with that structure.
In conclusion, the pushback POJ is a cautionary example: no matter how beautiful the filmmaking or actors, undermining character integrity and narrative purpose, especially in politically or culturally sensitive contexts, will ultimately alienate audiences and officials alike. Story and character must come first, or everything else falls apart.
Maybe its the sentence framing or may be its his picture on the front page, but I read it as - China tells C-dramas to end idolization of looks and apply Xi Jinping "LOOKS".
Wouldn't it be funny if they make all the Cdrama actors wear make-up to emulate his looks. Like some bizarre cosplay. lol
A lot of women AREN'T GULLIBLE like the writers think we are. We are capable of critical thinking. She wasn't supposed to be general...or a person who gets successful multiple times using brute force with minimal application of mind. He wasn't supposed to be sidelined. This is not how you write a strong Female. Its not supposed be performative. It should acknowledge our physical restraints and powerful minds.
If it is an official account then the point is not to target Zhang Linghe, but to curtail the 'female general' plot popularity in future, and probably put a damper on the female-centric plots as well. The govt has been consistent in condemning the 'feminization' of Chinese men for years. It is creepy and bizarre but it isnt about the actor. . The comments of the public are directed at the actor's image before and after the filming; ZLH is also a model and is consistently underweight, like many actors. ZLH gained weight and transformed his stance and posture for the role of the Marquis, and in the show Pursuit of Jade looks very much like what he is, a man nearing 30 years old.
It is a pity that such an elegant and popular show should have been chosen for this sort of official criticism. "It got too big" say some, or, it is big enough not to suffer too much from the official and indirect criticisms.
However, 0dds are ZLH will soon be doing those obligatory movies with plots involving the battles of the Chinese military. And NO WOMEN ALLOWED!
This Article is too funny btw, thanks Lily Alice.i havenât laughed this hard for a long while. "foundation-wearing general" "the fans hurriedly deleted their comments and issued apologies. Some accounts even changed their usernames or their runners got them deactivated entirely" China & Cnetz will never fail to amuse me lol
In his previous dramas, All of his Co-star Female leads got so much hates and backlashes during and after the dramas & he used to get safe-exits from all the blames and his fans would play the victim cards bcz of "lesser screentimes/unfair screentimes " etc etc. It's this one time I'm seeing ZLH getting a bit of hate instead, but It's more towards the production team tbh,Actors have nothing to do with how Their characters would be portrayed on screen. This drama was commercialized overbearingly, It's no wonder some suspensions of disbelief is necessary for the watchers.It's not for the quality audiences, even more not for People's Liberation Army to Watch lol.
that's silly lmao but I agree that the whole posing and being pretty is not only innacurate but also becomes old and annoying quite fast. bring back generals that look like generals, not that well-kept, hurt in more places than the nose, with clithing that looks like is being taken care of during a war!! you can appeal to a young audience while keeping it realistic
This statement is a true observation of the political environment of China though. So TRY AGAIN ...
My critique isnât against female-led stories or generalsâitâs about how POJ handled the characters and the script. Xie Zheng, and the story overall, were reduced to eye candy and fan service instead of being developed with depth and narrative purpose. You can have strong female or male leads, but they still need to be written and portrayed in a way that respects the story, the characters, and the context theyâre in.
China is also in a position where it needs to bolster its military image, and POJ sidelining Xie Zheng became problematic in that context. If it had aired several years earlier, it probably wouldnât have been an issue. But in todayâs environment, it simply didnât pass the âvibe checkâ with military officials. Itâs not even about the makeup. If Xie Zheng had been portrayed on the battlefield the way the novel originally wrote him, or if the script had given him more combat scenes, this wouldnât have been a problem.
And while China has made progress in its feminist movement, it is still fundamentally a patriarchal society. Iâve seen plenty of arguments saying itâs not about the beautiful faces, but about the portrayalâand thatâs exactly the issue. Xie Zheng was reduced to little more than eye candy instead of a fully realized military figure. You could also argue that the character lost narrative authority; instead of driving the story, he was repositioned to support visual appeal and romantic dynamics, which undercuts how male leads are typically framed in more traditional, state-aligned storytelling. In that sense, POJ pushing against those normsâintentionally or notâended up clashing with that structure.
In conclusion, the pushback POJ is a cautionary example: no matter how beautiful the filmmaking or actors, undermining character integrity and narrative purpose, especially in politically or culturally sensitive contexts, will ultimately alienate audiences and officials alike. Story and character must come first, or everything else falls apart.
Wouldn't it be funny if they make all the Cdrama actors wear make-up to emulate his looks. Like some bizarre cosplay. lol
He wasn't supposed to be sidelined. This is not how you write a strong Female. Its not supposed be performative. It should acknowledge our physical restraints and powerful minds.
.
The comments of the public are directed at the actor's image before and after the filming; ZLH is also a model and is consistently underweight, like many actors. ZLH gained weight and transformed his stance and posture for the role of the Marquis, and in the show Pursuit of Jade looks very much like what he is, a man nearing 30 years old.
It is a pity that such an elegant and popular show should have been chosen for this sort of official criticism. "It got too big" say some, or, it is big enough not to suffer too much from the official and indirect criticisms.
However, 0dds are ZLH will soon be doing those obligatory movies with plots involving the battles of the Chinese military. And NO WOMEN ALLOWED!
"foundation-wearing general"
"the fans hurriedly deleted their comments and issued apologies. Some accounts even changed their usernames or their runners got them deactivated entirely"
China & Cnetz will never fail to amuse me lol
In his previous dramas, All of his Co-star Female leads got so much hates and backlashes during and after the dramas & he used to get safe-exits from all the blames and his fans would play the victim cards bcz of "lesser screentimes/unfair screentimes " etc etc. It's this one time I'm seeing ZLH getting a bit of hate instead, but It's more towards the production team tbh,Actors have nothing to do with how Their characters would be portrayed on screen. This drama was commercialized overbearingly, It's no wonder some suspensions of disbelief is necessary for the watchers.It's not for the quality audiences, even more not for People's Liberation Army to Watch lol.