janec

Thank you for your kind words :) I won't be here regularly, because in our universe I can't afford it. Well, according to the multiverse theory, there is a universe somewhere where XZ is a businessman instead of an actor. I feel sorry for those people who will never know his acting. We can be happy that we are lucky to live in such a universe and not another :)

I'm halfway through the first episode and sharing my observations. If you are a fan of this series or any of the actors, this comment may not be pleasant for you. You read at your own risk.
For starters, the music is good. It really adds to the atmosphere of the scenes. It's not perfect, but pretty good. The other good thing is LYN. I've heard a lot of criticism about his acting, but in this drama he plays nice. I have the impression that his character is a completely normal guy, so realistic, who for his duties assumes the mask of an emotionless official. Third - Dilireba looks nice.
Only so many good things, the rest is not so good. And while I'm at Dilireba, please don't explain to me how a woman who was in water for several minutes and even diving, is dry in literally a second and does idiotic acrobatics, defying the laws of any physics, skipping about five ships. Literally, this scene makes no sense. Visually it's terrible. And someone really should point out to actor GJ that when his character is trying not to drown, he should be doing some kind of swimming or floating motion.
Another "why is this episode so stupid". When you do a "save the cat" scene, let your ML save the cat with his own hands, and don't tell the servant to get in trouble on his behalf, because that completely misses the spirit of this scene, which was supposed to show ML's nobility and selflessness. If someone does not know what I am talking about, I explain - sending a servant to give a woman with children an umbrella. In this scene, ML didn't come off as noble, just an asshole who uses his servants.
Visually embarrassing, plot bland, error on error rushes error.

The final episode suggests a closure to the story. It was a good ending. So I don't think a second season is planned. Theoretically, there is a place where they could come out, but I don't think they will because it's been 5 years. If there is any news about it, I don't know, but I don't follow such topics.

You're welcome :) Four years in the subject are doing their job :)

The contract was signed, if I'm not mistaken, for 10 years. Sometimes it's hard to get good information due to language differences, but 10 years is the standard. The only question is in which year he signed this contract. According to my calculations, the contract will end in 2026, so it's only 3 years. Just a reminder that after they settled, the terms of his contract may have changed and some of what XZ gives to Wajijwa may go to support XZ Studio. But yes, he pays them even if he gets a job for himself. Sometimes I think that's why he goes into music less and less, so that Wajijiwa doesn't get a share of his single sales. However, I think XZ is still in a better position than most actors/actresses. Yang Zi, Dilireba and many others were forced by agencies to play roles they didn't want. Therefore, often when an actor leaves the agency after 10 years, he plays less, but is more satisfied with the roles. XZ plays relatively average in quantity, but at least he goes to the castings he wants, although he doesn't necessarily get the roles he wants :) (I will point out right away that there have been a few cases where he got bigger, more important roles than the ones he applied for.)

Of course. The Wajijwa does not deal with actors. Exclusively the music industry and talent survival programs that were blocked last year by the government. It may not seem like it, because the guys from XNine starred in several series together, but it was a mutual courtesy between the agencies - we give you c-pop stars almost for free, and you give us advertising. XZ started to have a normal relationship with the movie agency when people from Xinli came to Wajijwa looking for a cast for The Wolf because they needed someone cheap and famous. They liked Xiao Zhan a lot because he had talent and potential. He asked Dragon Lady if he could do more dramas and got the answer like, “do what you want, but on your own, because we don't do actors. Just remember, you pay us a percentage for every job you find”. Xiao Zhan's first agent was related to Xinli, but he didn't have a contract with them like with Wajijwa, because he would have to work practically for free. You know, after deducting tax and paying both agencies, he wouldn't be able to live on. Therefore, Xiao Zhan only has an agent and XZ Studio. The only thing that connects him with the Wajijwa is the contract, the fact that he has to pay them interest on the money he earns, and bureaucracy. As far as I remember from December 2018, when XNine went on hiatus, Wajijiwa didn't give him any work. He also got the role in The Untamed only thanks to his and his agent's efforts, although he didn't have to try hard, because the producer immediately saw his photo and decided to give him a job :)
Anyway, Wajijwa is a music agency, not an acting agency.

Yeah, he has a knack for business. After all, he finished his studies, which taught him that, and worked for several years as a designer. He designed logos and even the decor of the cafe. He won the poster contest. He is very resourceful, he knows how business works and he learned how show business works, although it wasn't easy because XZ was raised with strong morals and show business is a quagmire. He paid a very high price for his honesty. Therefore, when you claim that XZ uses dishonest marketing methods, his fans will not carry you on their hands.

I think we see differently what is behind the concept of "love". My definition of love is wanting to get to know someone, unconditionally supporting that person's happiness, regardless of whether you get something in return. If you don't know basic information about someone, is it love for that person or just the image of that person you have in your head?

Do you know what Xiao Zhan's path looked like to where he is now? Have you ever heard of the "red sea"? (I don't mean geographically). Have you heard of 227 and really delved into it?

As I said before, Xiao Zhan's agency that he signed with in 2015 or 16 never cared about him. It was so bad that in May 2019, Xiao Zhan filed a lawsuit against Wajijwa in an attempt to get free, and Wjjw threatened a company that wanted to hire XZ as its ambassador. After the success of The Untamed, XZ reached a settlement with Wjjw that allowed him to become very independent and founded XZ Studio, which is supported by his income and he employs his own staff. He was temporarily tied to Xinli and Tencent, but not on a permanent contract. When XZ was in serious trouble in 2020, no agency acknowledged or defended him. He was alone, almost completely abandoned by the business as only two companies dared to have an official connection with him. Only his fans could not accept the injustice, and it was the fans who, with their own money and good hearts, did everything they could to save Xiao Zhan's career. In 2020, fans said they would wait for Xiao Zhan's return as long as he needed. They pledged that the day he came back, he would be on top. That's exactly what happened. December 2020, "red sea". The loyalty of the fans was proof of XZ's worth and capital immediately came to his side.

The fans supported him so much that Xiao Zhan had to admonish them to stop spending money unnecessarily and forced several companies to run limited sales. But he has so many fans that even with limited sales per person, the merchandise sold out in no time.

In China, everyone knows that Xiao Zhan is his fans, not an agency. He has no agency other than the Wajijiwa, with whom he remains in a cold war. But you have to admit XZ Studio that they actually care about him as person. But XZ Studio is not an agency. These are a few friendly people. Xiao Zhan is a freelancer and he negotiates all contracts himself (in the fan’s eyes of XZ and XZ Studio, it's the same thing).

So if someone tells you that XZ doesn't have an agency and you say you love him and are glad that the agency is faking his popularity in the world, then with all due respect, you're either being grossly ignorant or you're just trying to piss off a bunch of people by pretending own innocence, which has always been a favorite method of troublemakers. So please don't be surprised if people don't trust you because your words don't inspire confidence.

Of course, I'm not speaking on behalf of Xiao Zhan's fans because, as I said before, I'm not a fan. I'm just like him and I'm interested in his topic.

When SY finally couldn't stand ZY's stupidity, impertinence and selfishness and treated her exactly as she deserved. When he turned around and tore a page out of the book, I was proud of him :)

Finally, I lived to see a scene that was very satisfying to me. :)

And it gets worse with each episode. I'm relieved that I'm not the only one who would prefer this drama to be less generic :) Thank you for your comment :)

If I may, I will tell you a story. Maybe you will believe it is true, maybe not. In 2019, after a very long and serious illness, my mother passed away. During the last two years of her illness, I had to give up my job and my studies just to take care of her. I cut myself off from friends, because I had neither the health, strength nor time for them. After my mother died, I actually didn't know what to do with myself. I found myself in some kind of emotional limbo. I had to find a job, but I couldn't even begin to look. I watched TV series to somehow kill time. Then I watched The Untamed, and in the first minutes of the movie, when WWX gets kicked by Master Mo, something broke in my heart. Suddenly, I could feel the emotion. Xiao Zhan had something amazing about him, something that made me believe in his pain. Within a month, I watched everything that was available featuring him. I especially liked his vlogs, where even though he was a man I had never met, I knew he loved me. No, it wasn't any illusion of an emotionally ill woman, it was the magic of Xiao Zhan, who had so much warmth and gratitude for every person who liked him. Those who remember those days know, those who don't - their loss. Thanks to Xiao Zhan, I believed in myself. I returned to writing books. During 227 I made some friends with xiao fei xia and one of them told me to try publishing books on something like wattpad. I chose one of the platforms owned by Tencent. I won my first contract and it was one of the happiest days of my life. Influenced by Xiao Zhan and his steadfastness, I started my studies again. I am pursuing a career in science and writing books for fun. Long BL. My life, which was at a standstill, has turned around really well and I have achieved my dreams. I'm not the only one. Many people have told me their own inspiring stories, where for cultural reasons, family reasons, or simple shyness and lack of confidence, they couldn't dare to do something for years. Xiao Zhan, the boy who gave up his office job to make his dreams come true was an inspiration to us, and many people have achieved their dream success. How can we not be grateful to him?

I am not a fan. I don't have the mentality of a fan in me. I don't buy him flowers. I don't inflate the ratings of his series. If I like something, I rate it highly, if I think something is a bad production, I do not spare harsh words. That's me. However, I understand people who want to show the world in any way that they love him. After all, he's not the only one receiving flowers on MDL.

If you knew anything about Xiao Zhan and his career you would know that he is one of the most outspoken people who has no back, who was completely ignored by his agency and hired acting teachers out of his own pocket. People loved him sincerely and faithfully precisely because of his sincerity. As a singer he wages a cold war with his agency (Wajijiwa), as an actor he has no agency. His current popularity is not bought votes, no automatons, but real people supporting him out of the need of the heart. Because although he has no idea that on some MDL people are buying him flowers, fans believe they are helping to promote him to the world. By accusing them of being paid, you insult their sincerity. Are you also insulting the sincerity of fans of other actors buying them flowers? You don't know what is in the hearts of others, what drives them. Don't judge them with your measure.

I think it is not a question of money. Wu Lei is much older and is now working on a more serious career. Li Qin is also already playing bigger roles. ML's teammates were part of a boy band that practically no longer exists and probably Gu Jiachang and Peng Chuye could return, Wu Jiachang seems to have given up acting and Xiao Zhan, well, he doesn't play supporting characters anymore. It's more than 5 years since season 1 was filmed, so the actors' careers have moved on and they don't want to play idol drama anymore. It's sad, but true.

It is not known when the first episode will be. This is China, after all. Here the drama may appear unannounced. The premiere may be canceled on the day of release. We can only guess.
My guess is late July or autumn 2023. Now Tencent has The Longest Promises, so they are unlikely to make competition. TLP is due out on July 20. FBS 2 is a big ML IP, so it supposedly doesn't go in conflict with TLP, but I think it will take off when that ends, maybe some low-grade costume romance will appear in between.
FBS 2 is on my "must watch" list, so I'm waiting with gleeful excitement.

It could also be a matter of the fact that no serious costume projects are currently being shot in China, or at least I haven't heard of any. Two are in the pipeline, but if they are in the early stages of pre-production, it could take years before they start shooting. If Xiao Zhan is currently only getting props to play pretty generic characters, he may feel discouraged and wait for something interesting. Anyway, I remembered how after The Untamed he complained that he wasn't going to take dramas where he had to wear wigs because it hurt his hairline, and we've had two such dramas since then :).
Xiao Zhan is a sincere man. His interviews usually reflect his current mood. If he was hot in a costume and wig, he could say "never again." It's not that he can't change his mind when he thinks the project is interesting. I guess each of us has had a "never again" moment at some point, and it turned out that the temptation was too great after all (for example, never again ice cream after six in the evening ;) ).

Hello! Thank you for the warm welcome :)

I will definitely watch. Season one was my second c-drama I watched. I don't mind the cast change. I'm curious to see how HLL will perform as an actor. I've seen the trailer and I'm pleased.

Gosh, I really like this drama.

Yes, it's been a while.
If XZ didn't want to do costume/historical, it wouldn't have gone to Condor Heroes.
People talk, they gossip, they have their ideas and their fantasies, and so do I, he, he. None of us know what the future will bring, so I guess there's no point in worrying about rumors.
I know one thing - there is no working man who is not subject to certain pressures from his surroundings. XZ is beautiful in historical costumes, and I'm sure he and the producers know how much viewers love him in such costumes. Many fans say that XZ still wants to measure himself with new roles, but in that doesn't mean that he will completely come out of period drama. He can be a prince, a thief, a beggar, a general, an ordinary soldier, a doctor, a farmer, a merchant, a dignitary, a scholar.... XZ probably has a good 30 years ahead of him on the big and small screen, so rest assured, he will definitely appear in something historical :)

Totally understand you. However, it has been said for years that China needs a successor to Jackie Chan, that is, someone who will be China's face to the world. For a long time, XZ has been the most serious candidate because of his current international popularity and talent. The only thing he lacked was a good cinema project. At the moment, China is trying to reactivate good quality wuxia, which died some 30 years ago, and they chose XZ to do it.
I think there may be another "problem". I heard about it somewhere a year or two ago. If Xiao Zhan becomes a cinema star, producers of smaller, even interesting series, may be afraid to approach him with a proposal. They will expect that he will demand a huge fee, beyond their means. And with a queue of film producers, XZ may not even have time for drama.
Of course, there are also big TV series projects in China. At the moment, I have three in mind for XZ, in which he would be happy to participate. One is a serious historical, no cast yet, another is in a similar vein and is also in the early stages of preparation, and the third is a Tencent production, a really good quality science fiction. Like you I think XZ will not give up dramas completely, but we may have a longer break.