WK1

About Princess Shunde

So, this is another adaptation? Interesting. So, they later marry, Ji Yunhe will be a princess, another time she is playing a royalty in a historical drama.

I understand. It is very adorable in Chinese.

Re-watch all the aired episodes? You've read the novel. You can spend time analysing all the many differences between the novel and the drama. Note all the differences and see how the adaptations has made the drama version more pleasing to viewers.

I don't think you will be disappointed. He is already getting more and more air time, as the series progresses.

Big Tailed fish. That phrase started as a nickname that Ji Yunhe gave to Changyi. It sounds even a bit insulting, like if there is a guy with a big nose, we would call him, 'Big Nose', as if he does not have a proper name. We do that in our younger days, our childhood days, perhaps.

By E16, it has become a term of endearment, each time Ji Yunhe uttered Big Tailed Fish, a term of yearning for his safety, and after knowing that he is well, looking forward to their reunion. Among other things, this yearning has kept her alive, gave her hope that one day, she will be free from those who are keeping her imprisoned. And, one day, when she becomes more and more powerful, she will get her revenge.

The German philospher Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” Here, it is clearly shown in Ji Yunhe. Each round of torture, each new stroke of the whip, another poison, whatever. She is now indestructible.

Here, they used that beautiful OST to create the emotional bond between the two. Among the many beautiful OSTs in TBW, this is perhaps the most touching. We know it, they know it, and they kept using it time and time, Whether just a few stanzas here and there or a few bars as the BGM, against flashbacks of their happy times together, it works like magic in creating chemistry between the two.

I look forward to see their amazing chemistry. This drama has already produced amazing chemistry between two side couples. The third could be coming up.

Try to focus on his acting, not his make up.

On the page of YAMG, a few commented about Dilraba's make up. Said it made her face look really pale and overly-white. I did not look at those, only her acting and her chemistry with Yang Yang.

Here, Allen's acting is great. And his chemistry with Dilraba is excellent. No question in my mind that viewers in China will feel their chemistry and flock to watch TBW.

Interesting. It keeps falling down the ladder.

Wonderful descriptions! I love reading this!

Just a short word to encourage those who are waiting for the official sub, please wait. Even though I did not read the novel, and could only undertand about 50% of the dialogue and Chinese substitles, I could understand what is going on, using their actions and facial expressions to understand another 30%. It is very well directed, not difficult to understand at all, once the subs are out. I am waiting for the subs to furnish me with the remaining 20%.

And I have no regrets not reading the novel beforehand. It was fun to watch it clueless, to let each episode bring me suprise after surprise.

It is a great story. A moving story of romance. If romance if your cup of tea, it is worth the wait and worth to pay. But, if you have never intended to pay to watch those good Eng subs, that is a different story.

Thanks so much! Lovely episodes to look forward to.

Her reaction is hilarious

We really do not know. Anything is possible. Best advice, we just wait. Once they announce it in Weibo, others will pick up the news and spread it in Twitter.

I taught business strategy and management for nearly 30 years before my retirement a few years ago. When my students do not understand, I repeat. So, yes, I do not mind being a broken record.

Indeed I am like a broken record, because there are simple things that people do not seem to understand.

Who and what decides whether a drama is successful? If you are the producer, of course you look at viewership. Higher viewership mean more people have watched it, bringing in more revenues either in terms of subscription fees or advertising dollars.

If you are a product owner who placed ads in a drama, you obviously want higher viewership, as it will mean more people have watched your ads, higher chances that more people will buy your products.

If you are actors/actresses you want higher viewership, as it means more people have watch your dramas, you have wider exposure.

The above would be indicators of commercial success. But there are also indicators of artistic success like winner awards for the various actors/actresses. Some hollywood movies may not be big commercial success, but have won awards for actos/actresses who acted in them.

But investors (e.g., the producers) will always view commercial success as the most important. It reflects their returns on capital. If they put $ X, they want to see returns in multiple Xss. The more the better. In a movie, that means more ticket sales, meaning more people who go to cinema to watch a movie. In a drama, it means higher viewership, the bigger the hit. When Tencent ranks its drama at the end of each year, they would always use viewership, because of the reasons I mentioned above (more fees from viewers, more money from product owners who placed ads). Modern dramas tend to 'better' because they allow for more product placements compared to historical dramas.

Even ratings in Douban are not all that important. Some dramas do not have high Douban ratings, but have very higher viewership and are considered success. YAMG, for instance, the Douban score is only 6.8. But the viewership was really high. More than 4B views. Meaning lots and lots of money for Tencent. Many articles that I have read said it is Tencent's most profitable drama of 2021, even though Duolou Continent had higher views. YAMG is a modern drama. Reba was a walking advertising agent for so many product owners (e.g., Mikimoto) who must have paid Tencent lots of money to place ads in that drama.

So, whether for Hollywood movies or Chinese movies, it is always ticket sales, which is a function of the number of movie goers. And dramas, it is always viewership. In general, the higher the better.

Producers do not make movies/dramas to make the stars famous. They make movies/dramas to make money. It is a business venture for them, not a charity cause to promote the careers of the stars.

Indeed! She is younger than our older kids. We look at her differently from her younger fans.

Part 2, am I right?

You mean Shunde's face reminds him of his former lover? So, Shunde was just a replacement? So sad.