Xiang83

The richly-coloured art poster utilising at least one traditional artistic technique for SLY (Whispers of Fate) on this page contains many elements and details about Tang Lici's character and traits, including a literary reference which also helps with understanding of the drama ending drawing on multiple implications.

RBF made this forum post in November 2023, which I share here: https://kisskh.at/discussions/shui-long-yin/121095-sly-art-poster-analysis-slight-spoilers?pid=2851189&page=1#p2851189

Azure recently translated a large segment of this Douban article about Tang Lici's thinking and behaviour (which is spoiler-free if you have finished watching this drama): https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-24608278

Mizuhira-san started the ball rolling, when she translated the segments on Zhong Chunji and Liu Yan: https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-24450266

I quote DramFun29212 from more than a month ago, who shared their experiences from watching WoF three times: https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-24521460

[ 2nd watch - be amazed with the foreshadowing that starts right upfront. Realise that the scriptwriters have woven a masterful connected story where there is no spurious scene or dialogue. There will be lots of "Aha" moments when it dawns on you that there's a reason why this or that action is taken/ event happens. Elegant meaningful conversation steeped in philosophy and cultural references (that many excellent reviewers on MDL like Xiang83, Taraverde and others have expounded in detail).

3rd watch - Fully immerse and appreciate the masterful acting by the main cast (especially LYX), artistic cinematography/ camera language (almost every frame is a worthy wallpaper :) ), detailed world-building brought to life in the CGI and excellent set designs, gorgeous costumes, innovative exciting fight sequences (those who appreciate animes and martial will find delight in seeing these brought to live-action dramas), and the absolutely on-point OSTs throughout. ]

Enjoy watching and/or rewatching! :D

If it's any consolation, he broke the cycle of rebirth for himself and was reincarnated as a white fox. And the ending is also about understanding a certain literary reference.

RBF posted this in 2023 about the details of the poster plus the ending (which I totally recommend checking out): https://kisskh.at/discussions/shui-long-yin/121095-sly-art-poster-analysis-slight-spoilers

The novel ending has Puzhu becoming the King of Insects and Tang Lici by himself mourning those who have died. A happy ending is not on the cards for many of the characters.

Drama-Tang Lici lived a full life, and he wanted others to have his happiness including his dragon goddess mother who tragically sacrificed herself knowing she would die so he could be born. Novel-Tang Lici most wanted to know his mother's love, which novel-Wanyu Yuedan pointed out.

It is sad for Tang Lici not to be remembered, but he was content with his choice for everyone else. Multiple reviews covering the Buddhism aspects of the ending and his journey touch on different aspects, where karma is not the biggest factor here.

Episodes 36 and 37 gave my heart quite a ride.

Episodes 38 and 39 are truly AT LAST, and it looks like Oshima-taichō is about to view episode 40 with some very extreme feelings about what he cannot change.

I only just realised Casper Van Dien is the actor in this drama as honorary aviator Jimmy Doolittle (most decorated pilot in WWI). He's quite unlike what I remembered in "Starship Troopers" XD

He labels his role in this drama as "Role of a lifetime" on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10156356708292899&id=90285817898&set=a.396424422898

With acclaimed film and television director Shaun Paul Piccinino (two of his six Netflix features topped Netflix's global charts) responsible for directing the American subplot covering the process leading to the Doolittle Raid in this drama, no wonder this segment has been outstandingly shot and acted across multiple episodes!

By this point, I'm invested in the character developments of 2ML and 2FL. I am disappointed that the Shanghai architectural angle wasn't more deeply explored and showcased, and the potential of the VR game was also not fully utilised.

Filial piety doesn't seem to be something international non-mandarin-speaking viewers grasp, so attempts at character analysis of ML versus 2ML come across as pretty weak to me.

I finally inserted my own take on the dynamics of ML, 2ML and 2ML's toxic father relative to filial piety: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24904120

For a moment, I thought that was our ML doing Matrix-style fighting with Republican-era flair XD

TV ratings according to CVB (from 10 January to 16 January): https://m.weibo.cn/status/5257213381708476

Iqiyi (as of 17 January): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5256195529250152

Tencent heat index hits 21000 today (less than 3 hours ago): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5257271147761590

I'm going to point out something that isn't obvious to non-mandarin speakers who also don't understand Confucian traditions that strongly applies to this C-drama for the dynamics of ML with 2ML and 2ML's father, which is something my uncles followed with my now-deceased grandfather regardless of their ages and status:

If a father disciplines you for being disrespectful (such as whacking you across the face, which Pei Zhen repeatedly received from his father), retaliating is a gigantic breach of filial piety. "打是疼，骂是爱" and "黄金条下出孝子" are some proverbs typically used to justify corporal punishment and discipline among the older generations. Doesn't mean the parent doing it is in the right. Those of my generation might choose not to follow this. I definitely don't.

if you're going to watch this drama without understanding the cultural mindset, ML is going to look super-awesome while 2ML might come across to you as weak and pathetic. That's definitely one of the biggest perception differences between international non-mandarin speaking viewers versus mandarin-speaking viewers in East Asian or Southeast Asian countries. 2ML is definitely strong in his own manner, because one can see how he is trying to balance everything he's supposed to traditionally adhere to while being a modern man and in such a situation, he also looks like a traditional filial son who didn't run away and hence isn't a romance-addled weakling but a professional underhanded emotionally-abused adult. On the professional front if he is doing a stellar job leading the company, Pei Zhen deserves the respect of his employees.

ML had a hard life after leaving them all to make his own way, but he can be seen as abandoning the traditional family unit for selfish freedom to attain his goals. ML is not selfish, but he can come across that way depending on the viewer.

Pei Zhen trending on weibo and douyin isn't solely because Dai Xu looks hot in glasses. Dai Xu as Pei Zhen is doing a balancing act which isn't obvious to viewers who don't get the culture and language. If he prioritises a woman and romance before family priorities including his father's wishes, then the unmarried oldest son will look like an unfilial weakling who failed his upbringing and disgraces his father as the man of the house responsible for his upbringing. ML lost his biological father early and he isn't the oldest son nor a biological son in these new household dynamics when his mother remarried, so he doesn't have to be assessed as harshly as 2ML on these conditions and easily gets more leeway.

This filial piety perception isn't up to you, but those in the larger community who hold Confucian beliefs.

Going on about whether ML or 2ML is more suited for Hu Xiu as the key priority of how to assess the character of ML or 2ML is usually the typical primary perspective of an international viewer who ignores everything about filial piety being a key theme and necessity to the dynamics between ML, 2ML and 2ML's biological father who is also ML's stepfather due to marriage with ML's mother.

A fellow viewer shared her views about Pei Zhen's repellant behaviour that can be deemed childish and manipulative: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24890416

I added my views of why Pei Zhen clearly exhibits emotional abuse inflicted on him since childhood by his father: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24891090

Pei Zhen's father is clearly a nasty manipulative piece of work whose ideas of grooming a son for leadership should definitely be as lousy as his parenting style. Don't put it past him to insert lies to whatever he says to ML and 2ML when they were growing up. In this case, will need Hu Xiu and reality to wake 2ML up, I reckon.

It's not uncommon in terms of thinking for the likes of my uncles that if the man of the house who is their father hits them in private even when something similar happened less than 10 years ago (just like what you see with Pei Zhen here, and these are grown men with families of their own while also heads of their own households), they are not supposed to retaliate even if the father is in the wrong.

I massively disagree with that traditional POV but I can see where they are coming from.

We'll see what the end results bring. I want 2ML and 2FL to have good endings that showcase their acting range and chops, not romance. At this point, I am interested in these characters as individuals triumphing over their personal obstacles and/or faults.

I believe our FL will survive, but I don't think our ML is going to survive this drama D:

If one has to lie massively to hide the presence and/or significance of another female (who isn't a relative) from your wife, then yes, Wang Guang Ming is definitely cheating massively. Somebody already listed all the ways he lied to his wife and hence 2FL divorced him, rightfully so: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24876842

Whether or not he pulled away from a kiss he didn't expect isn't the issue. That is missing the tree for the forest of lies spun to deceive someone you're married to about someone you're not married to. If one puts themselves in 2FL's shoes and suffered all those lies, would they be comforted to know that strangers are justifying many lies from your spouse?

He's lied so compulsively and often about presence and/or significance of another female that 2FL should divorce him. And I wouldn't want her to wind up with someone else by the end of this drama. I'd like to see her take the next step in her career (the cafe becomes something bigger?) and become emotionally whole again after the trauma WGM put her through.

The best ending isn't always a romance. For 2FL, I reckon the actress should be given something to showcase her range of acting, and romance definitely isn't it. The best acting and most memorable work I have seen doesn't come from acting out a romantic role but something else. That's also matched by what people remember of hits and roles such as This Thriving Land, The Knockout, Nirvana in Fire, Whispers of Fate, Joy Of Life and Story of Yanxi Palace.

When I'm wondering about ML and 2ML having a best buddy right from episode 1, I'm referring to the kind that you can confide anything in (including if someone had an affair without hiding the negative to only shape what you want a friend to think of you).

Keeping everyone at arms-length distance despite being on good terms with people is not emotionally healthy, and I thought that was also unhealthy about ML understandably so because of what he suffered as a kid. I'm glad for Hu Xiu being in his life, helping him with trust issues and fully becoming the man that I'm sure he will want his father to see.

Narcissists can shape a child into a narcissist, and it has nothing to do with monetary background or lack of. In Pei Zhen's case, I'm grateful he had a feminine adult influence and secondary adult example of behaviour to lessen the impact of insufficient emotional gratification from his father as a child (that was crucial to preventing him from becoming like his father). He's done wrong, he needs to be accountable and learn to completely rectify what needs correcting.

A decent person who sees the traits of emotional abuse in an adult will typically wish for them to get the help they need, and become the person they really want to be. I find it hard to gloat or wish them ill, because that comes across as immature and spiteful. You don't have to like someone to wish them well. I'm sure people who later reflect on what they didn't realise about their mistakes are always grateful that someone cared enough to see what they were versus what they needed to be and where changes had to happen plus why through firm compassion.

Here's to the ending I'm hoping for, of ML and 2ML becoming true brothers and good friends after Hu Xiu has taught each of them necessary lessons including friendship!

No worries, young padawan. I'm probably a good bit older than you :p

What's interesting about 2ML is nothing to do with his romantic possibilities, which is why he trends on weibo and douyin. Dai Xu has taken a mediocre 2ML role (nothing outstanding or unique about the writing for his character in this drama) in a mostly well-produced drama and made it solely his own.

That is what I call a masterful performance. My analysis of Pei Zhen here takes that into account: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24891090

What I have been seeing (after returning to this comment section today) is that there are clearly fans of the actor for ML on this drama page who cannot stand the actor as 2ML being positively lauded for his acting and getting positive attention on this page, hence constantly making snide remarks on a daily basis about anyone who praises 2ML or spotlights him positively on this page.

This has been ongoing for the past ten days, even before you made your post that upset one of the ML fans because they decided to take your post personally. Getting upset over a fictional character to indirectly attack an actor and fellow viewer is pathetic and really needs a reality check.

If we could all positively encourage actors and actresses and dramas and not reward bad behaviour, everyone benefits. If you are curious about what C-Ent was like 20 years ago and what has changed today (for the worse), this will be helpful: https://kisskh.at/486-chinese-paladin#comment-16908031

ML and 2ML each strike me as being emotionally unhealthy ever since episode 1 and from my POV, they are each undatable as of episode 1.

I find it lovely that Hu Xiu winds up teaching ML about the flaws of his emotional character across 18 episodes, and the directing brings out the scriptwriting wonderfully for this.

I would like Hu Xiu to teach Pei Zhen the same thing. Be a good person first, so you can be a good friend that others trust. An interesting thing about this drama is the FL teaching ML and 2ML emotional healing simply by her principles shining through and demonstrating them. I would like ML and 2ML to be emotionally healthy and good friends one day being true brothers by the end of this drama.

I also gave a take on Pei Zhen's character: https://kisskh.at/760693-ya-xi#comment-24891090

I have a different take.

I'd say a large part of Pei Zhen's emotional insecurity has to do primarily with Pei Zhen's father. Pei Zhen's father is clearly a nasty piece of work. He has done shady things re that supplier company no longer in the list of companies supplying parts that terminated working with Zhuling, threatens Pei Zhen that if Pei Zhen allows Zhuling to be exposed than Pei Zhen will go down too, has no qualms hitting his own biological son in the face and when it came to Pei Zhen having to bring flowers to the grave of Xiao Zhiyu's father, Pei Zhen's father couldn't care about the outcome or the process or the ties between both non-biological stepbrothers as long as the deed had been done as he wanted.

The fact that he is touched by such small kindness from Hu Xiu re the plaster makes me wonder what he grew up with from his father. At least his stepmother is kind to him. Boys typically grow up wanting to win the approval and respect of their biological fathers. And if a father emotionally abuses and manipulates them by also withholding affection, one outcome can be a son's character being warped and the other outcome also affects the emotional outlook from the son when it comes to relationships. Narcissistic parents produce narcissistic children.

Pei Zhen is not a narcissist, but he is exhibiting all the symptoms of emotional abuse from a father figure, in how he behaves towards Xiao Zhiyu.

He constantly criticises or belittles Zhiyu (partially due to how Xiao Zhiyu treats his own biological mother), tries to manipulate dynamics eg declaring to the family over a meal that he has found a girl he loves at work and why (and he hasn't even checked in with said woman about this before making such a claim)- Does he have any close friends he can confide in? If he doesn't, that speaks clearly and loudly about trust issues.

I'm not for Pei Zhen winding up with anyone because I want to see how he develops as a character. If anything, he should protect Zhuling from his father.

I would like Pei Zhen to learn from Hu Xiu what it means to have a good friend, so he can learn healthy emotional responses from her, and overcome the likely rubbish of years that his father has fed him against Xiao Zhiyu.

Hu Xiu clearly told off Zhiyu in episode 19 about unacceptable behaviour from Zhiyu. Zhiyu had to quickly wise up and change his behaviour, or lose Hu Xiu permanently. Zhiyu has chips on his shoulder, and I'm glad he gets help to become emotionally healthy. Meeting Hu Xiu is good for him.

Xiao Zhiyu and Pei Zhen don't strike me as emotionally healthy before Hu Xiu became a fixture in their lives. At the start of the drama and over the first 15 episodes, I was questioning if each of these brothers had a good friend or friends to confide in akin to Hu Xiu with Xiaorou. I hope their brotherhood is finally repaired because of the lessons Hu Xiu teaches each of them as individuals and about being good friends, first and foremost.

if Xiao Zhiyu didn't change further by episode 19, I would have said Xiao Zhiyu is still undatable. Pei Zhen even after episode 19 is still undatable.

Dai Xu is doing such a good job with making a typical 2ML role interesting (when it's not an unusual characterisation) that I literally don't want him paired with anyone for this drama. He didn't have to stretch his acting chops here. He only demonstrated how he made a non-interesting 2ML characterisation interesting, and it does not even appear to be stretching him in the acting department.

Any pairings can wait when Dai Xu gets a ML role.

Are you going to be stressed for tonight's episodes? I was ok with the suspense which was well-plotted and doable for me, until the previews for episodes 32 and 33.

You have answered nothing of what I insisted upon, which was started by you claiming EVERY ASPECT must be analysed.

Cite a specific scene, tell me how the eye acting between Zhang Zi Feng and IU is different to back your claims about one being able to eye act and the other cannot. Saying Zhang Zifeng can do micro-expressions while claiming IU has fish eyes is not an analysis of eye acting. IF you are still unable to address this issue with specifics I mentioned in your next reply to me, then I will definitely be 10000% certain in my preliminary conclusion that YOU DEFINITELY DID NOT WATCH MY MISTER :D

[ You mentioned what everyone thinks is the best historical thriller, Strange Tales of Tang dynasty, and sorry to say korea stopped with historical dramas since 2012 almost, and never did an historical one without romance. ] - I only said, "Some dramas thankfully don't do so eg Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty." pertaining to not having over-usage of BGM versus Fated Hearts. I never said anything else about SToTD.

[ The scene you mention is at the very end of episode 1 and it simply shows the struggles of human being, which is totally washed away in the original. ] - IU was also pushing the gurney bed of her grandmother in "My Mister". Explain how the scene of IU taking her grandmother out of the hospital in the same manner and/or pushing her grandmother in said bed on the road is washed away in the original versus here. I expect specifics.

Why do you insist on twisting people's words to create arguments that were never made? Why do you like to dumb down and be condescending to viewers who can appreciate both dramas, when you have not watched the original drama? Why do you insult k-drama fans?

In fact, I don't like some parts of the first season primarily due to the screenwriting, which is why I recommend new viewers to SToTD wondering if they can finish SToTD to watch Season 4 first. Short drama style, better emotional dynamics to connect the audience into becoming interested in the backstory and enhance the weaknesses of Season 1, preserves the mystery-solving and not with political intrigues of Season 3 which some viewers did not like. Season 2 is usually the preferred season of all 4 seasons of SToTD. I am not a fan of SToTD. You've made too many statements proving you only know how to blast people with your beliefs, your reading comprehension is poor in English, and you don't know much about C-dramas or drama analysis for any genre or country.

Vomiting out chunks of opinions without specifics proves my points about you not knowing how to analyse dramas in-depth:

https://kisskh.at/748667-wo-de-da-shu#comment-24889234

https://kisskh.at/748667-wo-de-da-shu#comment-24889264

Please answer my question about your claims and stop parkouring to avoid specifics: When did you watch more than 5000 Korean dramas, as you claim? What year to what year?

You're coming across as consistently xenophobic and racist about Koreans and Westerners. Try again.

[ I watched more than 5K cdramas and i have never found such a superficial and shallow public as kdrama fans. ] - From what year to what year did you watch more than 5000 Korean dramas?
This is a very interesting claim. How many kdrama fans did you speak to?

You've insisted repeatedly to different viewers on this page that everything in every aspect has to be compared. Here's what I expect from you, since you are the one who started all this days ago and insists on this approach while ramming your opinion down anyone's throat who remotely praised the original:

For example, I would say I very much like the OP song whereby the lyrics and vocals are very fitting for the drama and the scenes of OP song. However, I reckon over-usage of music weakens certain scenes, a specific example being 41:26 of episode 1 when I felt that our FL pushing her grandmother up the hill was spoilt by music coming in at 41:29. This would have been an intensely powerful scene at its maximum, to hear her laboured breathing in contrast with her grandmother's silent flailing or sign language. The original K-drama knew when not to OD on BGM.

It diluted the rawness of Zhang Zifeng's efforts for me and to also have silence leading in to the preview scenes for episode 2 would terrifically cement the impression of rawness and hardship and desperation she is trying to overcome, as someone overlooked and despised as dregs of humanity. This is not a good decision in post-production. Zifeng's performance will draw in people as I expect, given I've supported her in her movie efforts including watching her previous 2 movies.

C-dramas have this tendency to overuse music and BGMs (another example is the OP song by Sa Ding Ding in Fated Hearts also inserted for many scenes of the drama, but since she was music director... Too bad the other directors didn't rein her in). I enjoyed that drama immensely despite its flaws, some of which were individual traits minimised by the directors. Some dramas thankfully don't do so eg Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty.

You don't need to hide your comments bashing IU's acting under a spoiler tag. What you need to do is compare both their acting differences. I have given you an apt example in this comment. f you claim one can act with their eyes and the other cannot act with their eyes, I cannot take you seriously. That's a superficial opinion. You've made so many claims about this remake being superior and IU's acting being terrible that I expect details. I therefore expect you to cite a specific scene, specific timing and explain differences in the eye acting of ZZF versus IU.

Until you can go beyond superficial statements, I remain convinced you never watched the original K-drama "My Mister".

Throughout this entire drama page until today 19 January 2026, you are unable to post an analysis the way I have presented my thoughts for just one example. You only make blanket statements about the K-drama original you are insulting. Telling people what happens scene by scene for the remake and how it makes you feel or what emotion it conveys is not an analysis.

I posted a commercial feature segment from tvn Asia when explaining what I perceived to be an unusual love story, and the viewer you are talking to decided to try to school me about "My Mister" ( I found myself wondering if they watched "My Mister" and if they understood the script, because they have only made blanket statements). This is in spite of me stating I was enjoying the cultural differences between the original and this remake. Of course, I didn't realise at that point I was talking to someone whose profile states:

"Jdramas and Cdramas are life, the only real drama in this world" (bold and underlined).

I think you'll find the entire short thread helpfully conclusive, parkouring also a feature being present there.

https://kisskh.at/748667-wo-de-da-shu#comment-24805186

And in a comment to Bill Dew four days ago, the viewer also stated:

[ I like IU as actress in the original too, but her characters was too shallow and bad i did not like it. This remake is far more realistic, intense, depressing because it's the real tone of the drama.]

https://kisskh.at/748667-wo-de-da-shu#comment-24840054

People can like an original and a remake, and it doesn't have to be a competition.

More than 5 days ago, Chinese Empress disagreed with me quoting the commercial feature from tvn Asia for "My Mister", since I decided to answer the question of whether there is romance in "My Mister" while explaining specific context of what I perceive to be an unusual love story: https://kisskh.at/748667-wo-de-da-shu#comment-24805186

That thread should help you with your question.

IMHO, you have to watch this remake and assess it solely on its own merits. It is not a competition of one drama winning or one drama losing, but anyone who likes the original may have significant difficulties adjusting to this one. I'd say go in with an open mind and if you think you're fine after watching four or five episodes, continue enjoying this remake :)

if you decide to drop it, that's understandable too. At the end of the day, enjoy what you watch.