gussie_fink_nottle

I’ll make sure to reread and think more carefully about Cheng Yichen’s (the older brother’s) actions. I may have been blinded by how furious I was with Lu Feng.

From the book, incestuous desires from the younger brother was blatant. I think there was one very short line in first drama adaptation where the younger brother
said when Cheng Yichen (the older brother) was in the hospital with him after his paralysis and massaging his leg, “Ge, I’m having or I’ll have a reaction.”

Younger brother Cheng Yichen was messed up for sure. So far only four of the six or seven books featuring Fengcheng have been fan translated to English, so I’ll need to read those in their untranslated format in the near future.

Thank you for saying all of the above. I also will not allow myself, at the grand old age of 41, to be shamed and dragged for my reading preferences. I think we’ve earned the right to read as we please.

You are right about the author being quite young when she wrote this novel. It is hard for me to tell exactly when it was first published, but it was back in the days of old school toxic danmei. My guess is the early 2000s. The author was born in 1983, which is actually one year before me (so I am elderly in this space). It is likely she was in her late teens or very early twenties when she wrote this novel. The unbelievable toxicity was pretty popular back then. Black flags all around. I love black flags in fiction and cannot get enough of them.

Every time I say this, I write a disclaimer lest I be crucified by people significantly younger than myself. They may be unaware of when these types of novels were written. I hate black flags in real life and want to personally put them under the jail. But I find them fascinating in fiction.

If Lu Feng defenders read the novel, they would be horrified. He is a demon, and I absolutely love to hate him. That said, I am enjoying this adaptation. But they really softened Lu Feng a lot and made him sympathetic, even though he still sexually assaulted Cheng Yicheng twice. Cheng Yichen was given way more agency here. Lu Feng is shown giving up everything for Cheng Yichen in this adaptation. Cheng Yichen is shown to be heartless and the villain of the story. But in the novel, he takes everything from Cheng Yichen.

That was my impression too. I need to reread the fan translation.

https://megajivetranslations.wordpress.com/

I will definitely reread the novel now and compare it to this adaptation. I am enjoying the heck out of both. The original adaptation was what brought me to danmei in the first place. In my opinion and based on my reading of the novel almost five years ago, Lu Feng was an absolute sexual terrorist and kidnapping monster who is all powerful in the novel. I thought he was the absolute worst when his actions paralyzed the younger Yichen. He did awful things in other books which make up a 31 novel universe. That said, I fell in love with the scum gong 渣男 from that point. I enjoyed how terrifying they could be. Note that I am an adult who can enjoy fiction and understand it is not reality.

That said, I think this current Lu Feng in this adaptation has been updated to be more human. He shows emotions beyond darkness and rage. He cries, is a lot gentler, and shows remorse. He is still guilty of at least two sexual assaults and paralyzing his future brother in law. I will never forgive him for that. He will always be the scumbag I love to hate.

Anyone else want to share their thoughts on how this version of Lu Feng and this current adaptation differ?

Anyone read up until the last translated chapters of the novel? I wanted to briefly share my thoughts on something. I'll put a spoiler tag below.

The panda pajamas are doing a lot of heavy lifting in this show. I think they should be in the cast and credits.

Shout out to Colin Duan as Crown Prince Yin Zhou. He is a very convincing villain. He legit terrifies me, but I am captivated. I am seated. I cannot look away!

Thanks for addressing this. If the bland kiss was meant to show a transition between lust and genuine feelings, then I completely retract my initial disappointment.

Great start to a promising series! It's quiet, soulful, and features mature people who've been through stuff. I haven't been hooked on a Japanese BL since Old Fashioned Cupcake. Looking forward to next week's episode :)

I can relate to this. I just let the episodes run in the background mostly because of the second CP. Hopefully my views on Gaga will count for something 🙏🏾

⚠️ WARNING for 'Love after Addiction' Episode 5 (English subs) from Gagaoolala ⚠️

Around the 3:35 mark, a character complains about manual work. The subtitle uses the word "coolie."

Important context: The Chinese word is 苦力 (kǔlì), meaning "hard labor." The character is simply complaining about physical work.

The problem: "Coolie" is not a neutral translation. In English, it is a racial slur. It was used against Chinese laborers historically, and in places like Jamaica and the Caribbean where I'm from, it was used specifically against Indian indentured laborers and their descendants. IMHO this is a significant translation error, not an intentional slur in the original script, but it's still very disturbing to see.

Just a heads-up for anyone who might be sensitive to that language.
******

I can tell a lot of effort went into this production. It’s been a while since I watched Thai BLs. Nice to see the production value. Peat is doing great as a villain. He looks like a porcelain god. As a fan of red and black flags in fiction, I’ll do my best to support the show. That said, I also enjoyed the original novel 昨天 by Feng Nong and will be listening to the audio drama for a different flavor.

I was so excited about this show that I rewatched all of OG Addicted. I found the first episode of this series really charming, and You Qi’s scandal feels true to life. I’m also curious how Yang Meng got his village position. I’ve now watched episodes 2–4 and am debating whether to wait for a few more to build up for better continuity.

It is available on the Manbo App (漫播). The app is built for an audience that can read Chinese and understand Mandarin. The audio dramas are high-end, professional productions. You buy each audio drama series individually as a one-time purchase. For something as big as 《四面佛》, you buy the whole season to access all episodes. The big hurdle for those who don't read Chinese or understand Mandarin is that there's no English support within the app itself.

Thank you! You're an absolute gem 💎

Also a 188 series fan and die hard 渣男 hater/enjoyer, so I'm glad to see I've found my people with this adaptation. Do you recall which chapter corresponds to the end of Episode 10? I'm planning to read the novel and listen to the Manbo audio drama.

I'm interested in reading the novel. Where should I end my reading to be caught up to Episode 10?