Wrenne

I'd probably dislike the character even more if Xiao Zhan was playing him the way he is portrayed in the drama. The character is certainly badly written as a careless liar but if it is supposed to be due to his 'ace card' sad back story, then it may be due in a large part to the actor who can only make him seem selfish and untrustworthy, and even possibly unstable. Because at this stage he's lied about just about everything so how can we even trust his back story?

I think the character is supposed to be charming and disarming and sympathetic but he's not, and added it to the fact that he steals a uniform, impersonates an officer, instigates a brawl and cannot answer any question truthfully in the first 10 minutes of the first episode, he starts out as he plans to continue.

He's also a stalker, pursuing a girl who keeps telling him to back off, but he pays no attention and then actively sets out to ruin the interaction between her and the character who is supposedly his friend. Except he doesn't have friends, he has people who take pity on him for his back story because he's almost incapable of showing empathy for other people.

And the way the drama has been structured and edited seems to be intended to tell that audience that as long as we pity him, then his behaviour can be excused. And I'm totally surprised that such a character is in a drama in China as some kind of shining example for the army because the only consequences for his actions are that he gains favouritism from the officers.

However, I think you need to watch the drama before making assumptions about Xiao Zhan fans. And you're certainly welcome to wax lyrical about what you love about Gao Liang as he injures a member of his own troop because he thinks the guy told the truth which might have exposed one of his self serving lies.

And this is the hero of the story and the ideal soldier?

They gave the credit for her death to the intelligence/interior guard services (even though we know it wasn't) and he was in charge of both, so he aimed to take down the top guy. He had no interest at all in the clan or that she was an assassin, he was just stuck in his teenage fantasy and entitlement and needed someone to blame.

That seemed to be the whole point of their confrontation in the street, to set up the fact that he had someone to blame. It unfortunately seemed like that was his main role in the drama - apart from bringing a major clue with his camel.

It was pretty clear that the closer GBZ and WSY got the more likely it was that one of them was not going to make it. The question only remained as to which one of them would throw themselves in front of the other to save them. And when. the sacrifice was for the villain I totally understand how unsatisfying it was for people.

Thanks for taking the time for such a detailed reply.

Thanks for the reply. I'm watching with a friend and we've agreed to do the same thing, though iqiyi only gives us 2x speed.

I know what you mean and it would have made sense for him to just have his watch back. But that whole big scene out of nowhere? Followed by GYY fainting while sitting down with no explanation? Does he have an illness cos I keep seeing shots of him in hospital in a later episode too? I guess maybe later we find out he has some terrible disease that Chinese army medicine could not diagnose because because they were still operating with equipment, technology and medical facilities that were decades out of date.

You're right it could be a soap opera because we only get to speculate about what terrible things are happening to him off screen.

And all that bed sniffing at the end of the episode - I still can't work out if this is supposed to a comedy or a farce.

I have some questions about episode 5 - if someone can answer them

1. what happened between GYY saying 'let's get your watch back' and then some big ceremony giving back the watch - there's a missing scene right where GYY went and petitioned for the watch?

2. what happened to GYY that he had a bandage on his hand, was all sweaty and then passed out? I gather there's also a missing scene depicting how he injured his hand and gave him an infection?

3. why was he just in the bunk room and not getting medical attention? Why did no one else in his troop seem to care?

4. what is wrong with him?

5. why does it feel like they've edited out most of GYY's scenes if they don't support the plot of GL? And this is only episode 5.

Also, I really can't get behind the fact that GL lies so much to deflect from trouble he caused himself. Hopefully he will grow up eventually but so far you'd be a fool to trust him with your lunch let alone your life.

All the carry on, the false credit about the exercise - the guy even getting promoted for something he didn't do, the guy from their bunk room admitting he threw them under the bus because he was saving his own skin, the fact they were supposedly under supervision but no one was responsible for anything that went on etc

And maybe they're not at war, but they certainly wouldn't be ready for one if it came along. I know they can't be decent soldiers when they are lead (well, they're aren't being lead are they?) by such incompetence.

I know they're supposed to be hopeless so we can be amazed when they turn into 'ace troops' - I just don't need too much more of their pubescent antics - it's a fraternity movie (and I hate that sort of stuff so I guess this is pressing buttons - when are they doing the panty raid on the girls barracks and hanging bras over their bunks?)

So at this point I'm not sure I can believe some miracle that turns them around unless half their troop gets blown to smithereens and they start to take things seriously. Maybe they don't, like you said, normal people, and plenty of young men never develop past the fraternity mindset.

I'm convinced already of how bad they are, how bad and useless the army is. I'm so convinced that I will be surprised if they can convince me they've changed. Though how many more episodes of fraternity antics do we have to get through before then.

I guess the problem is that they've lured me in with Xiao Zhan and I probably just dislike dramas with this sort of tone and approach (not because it's military), and I can't shake the feeling that he was 'advised strongly' to do this because it was filmed during some of the darkest days of all that scandal that surrounded him and it was going to be screened by CCTV for the big CCP anniversary. He's doing his best, because he always will, but it just may not be enough.

Grrrr.

The first four episodes. It goes from ludicrous to ponderous to annoying, horny teenagers on a school camp governed by the most incompetent teachers. I don't know if the point is to make a joke out of how it's the 1980s but China is still in the 1940s, and that there are no requirements to join up other than pass a medical and a good communist test?

It's more cringey than funny between overly annoying guy, who I guess is supposed to be charming (but isn't - I can see why he had no friends), and overly serious nerdy guy who seems to be in a whole different story to the keystone cops activities going on a round him.

Like I said earlier, the tonal balance of the drama, acting and direction is somehow contradictory. It's not a dramatic piece with humour, and it's not a military comedy like say, Stripes (which is a classic - though China would never spoof it's military -or so I thought.)

He didn't, he was just obsessed with avenging his dead girlfriend. He didn't care about any of the rest of it, only that she was dead and he blamed him.

Thanks, I hope so, maybe after they finish their summer camp?

I know the point of these early episodes is to show how hopeless the Chinese army is but I'm just not enjoying how ludicrous it all is and how that makes the characters look stupid, deceitful, selfish and disloyal. There has to be a tonal shift at some point doesn't there? Has that happened yet? I've watched four episodes at 1.5x speed and even then it drags.

I'm feeling sad and frustrated that maybe even Xiao Zhan won't be enough to keep me watching.

I really like an ending where you can imagine that life goes on for the characters even though we don't get to see it.

And he always seemed to just thwart things too conveniently like transferring prisoners so they be killed, and that happened to too many people supposedly under guard in prison.

LOL - of course it's too patriotic, it's a propaganda drama for the 100th anniversary of the CCP. And while I know it's the evolution of the Chinese army - starting from how they were still in the 1940s when it was the 1980's - it's interesting to see that they're showing just how terrible their army was in the past and how it had no discipline and would pretty much accept anyone who walked in off the street. Maybe that's why CCTV decided against screening it at all.

Wow I found him unbearable in the first episode.

Thanks for the update. I have to admit that I'm hoping it isn't too heavy on the propaganda since this drama was supposed to be part of the 100th anniversary of the CCP - and then CCTV dropped it for some reason. But I hope it settles down cos I know Xiao Zhan won't disappoint.

Me too. I struggled through the first episode but I will press on in hopes that the actual drama will get better.

no one did - LOL!

I think she's probably got her own ideas about what is going on, cos there's no way she's just believing what people tell her at face value, surely. I'm generally not a fan of court intrigue dramas because every character is basically a two faced liar, so I much more prefer the mystery and investigation side of this one.

I'm watching on VIP but it's still free because they're offering a free month. So I haven't paid anything.