tsutsuloo

That man bun is real which adds to the authenticity of his whole look. He sported a long mullet while filming THE LONGEST DAY IN CHANG'AN too. Like most of his female counterparts, he doesn't need to wear the full-on wig with the glued hairline. His half wig (or whatever it's called for the long bits below the man bun) looks more natural and rugged because we can see his real hairline. Such a handsome uncle!

Yes ... "stillness" is the word that came to mind. How does he project stillness when less skilled actors look wooden? How does he look like he's _thinking_ instead of just waiting to say his lines?

I'd rather leave it to others to write about this lest I slip into hagiography.

Tony Yang's mouth and jawline are ... stirring. I watched THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS (2013) because of those lips. It's a fluffy Taiwanese co-habitation/workplace rom-com where he gets the right girl (just not the one he originally wanted.)

Cyn lyn is one of my favorite c-drama recappers. She's up to Ep. 19 but might do the next few episodes as a batch. (How she manages to stay on top of so many shows is a marvel!) https://cyn-lynn.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-rebel-princess-recap-and-review.html

Yes, looking forward to hearing what he said as he comforted her.

Yes—that Ep. 11 scene where Xiao Qi applies the balm to her shoulder! (Would it be weird if I insist that all my future portraits are shot with me lying down on a bed of fur?) ZZY is ageless anyway—not in a looks-twenty way but in a goddess-for-the-ages way.

It's pretty much one of the worst days of her life. I've lost both my mom and a pregnancy—but it would have DESTROYED me to experience that on the same day, let alone same year! Heartbreaking.

which episode?

Any idea of the episode count?

I hear ya. I don't know if I'll be able to watch all 68 (!) episodes but it's engaging so far. Dramaland is generous—your next addiction is around the corner. ;D

Jaime Lannister! That's f*ing awesome.

Yes, the brutality of politics and the pursuit of power are central to the drama. These themes are explored through complex interpersonal relationships via the lens of the family, the clan, the tribe, gender and sex. Everyone is a little more than they appear to be. And the cherry on top is an enviable OTP—the ML alone is setting _many_ hearts aflame.

Agreed. ZYW is splendid and I can imagine how thrilled/relieved ZZY was to secure him. I also noticed Liu Yun competed that season; she plays Jin Er, the maid besotted with 3rd Prince.

AMUSING 2017 YOUTUBE TIDBITS RELATED TO THE ML/FL before REBEL PRINCESS

I don't speak/read Chinese so I use the GoogleTranslate browser extension to explore Chinese entertainment sites. I was poking around Douban to see what Chinese netizens thought of THE REBEL PRINCESS and saw two photos of Zhang Zi Yi and Zhou Yi Wei dressed in 1930's era costumes. https://www.douban.com/group/topic/208565556/ (scroll down to see the last two shots).

AvenueX (YouTube)'s mixed review today gave me context for those 30's-era photos. The two actors participated in "THE BIRTH OF THE ACTOR" 演员的诞生 (2017), a Chinese reality TV show AvenueX once called "Hunger Games for actors." Actors "compete" against one another performing scenes from film, TV and theater before live audiences. Actors seem to run the gamut of experience; participating can boost their careers.

In Season 1 of TBOTA, Zhang Zi Yi served as one of three judges and she mentored Zhou Yi Wei, who ended up winning the season. In AvenueX's Oct. 2018 critique of the reality show https://youtu.be/EY6yxq8wmxg, she alludes to some controversy about ZZY's possible bias since since Zhou Yi Wei may have already been cast as the ML in REBEL PRINCESS. (The show changed its name to I AM THE ACTOR 我就是演员 in the next season.)

THE BIRTH OF THE ACTOR (2017) Ep. 3
https://youtu.be/kRoCPSDCvts?list=PLmHvcli_9mkRqAfZCswkaI56FkhloZeZp&t=5793
This interaction leaves no doubt about Zhang Zi Yi's admiration for Zhou Yi Wei's acting prowess. After ZYW finishes his scene on stage with Zheng Yin, ZZY _lavishes_ praise on the actor. She tells him that she went to see BROTHERHOOD OF THE BLADES (2014) for Cheng Chen (CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON) and but was floored by ZYW.

THE BIRTH OF THE ACTOR (2017) Ep. 4
https://youtu.be/v6ieO1vn4c8
ZZY and ZYW perform the opium suicide scene (on film, not live on stage) from the 1987 Hong Kong romance "ROUGE" 胭脂扣. There's a little BTS stuff in the beginning before the scene begins at 1:32. Although it's not subtitled, you can still grasp essence of their tragic love.

(Synopsis of original film, which is set in 1930's Hong Kong: A man and woman fall in love but they can't be together because of class differences. They decide to commit suicide together but the man fakes it. She dies and after waiting for him the underworld for over 50 yrs, she comes back as a ghost to look for him.)

Also of note—ZZY wears _outrageous_ floral earrings during the following critique. Her princess character wouldn't be caught dead in such jewelry. :D

Ah. Helan Zhen's knobby-looking hand in the photo top of the schedule calendar might be a prosthetic: https://kisskh.at/photos/Ey6j5_3.

Looking forward to his return on screen. Praying to the drama gods HZ's arm is like Furiosa's (Mad Max) prosthetic.

Yes! I do give XQ credit for acknowledging how his fleeing after the wedding put A'wu in danger. I bet you're right about upcoming separations and sacrifices. It's a shame because the OTP is terrific when they share the screen.

Before she learned of her mother's "illness," the princess planned on joining the general on the front. I'm curious how that would actually work. At least in THE SONG OF GLORY (which I dumped after 20 episodes), the FL fought alongside her prince.

Aigooo—Ep. 18 has one of the most _intimate_ CP scenes I've ever seen in Chinese dramaland. The actors are brilliant, of course, but much credit must be shared with the director/editors for giving such scenes the TIME to allow characters to breath. Just beautiful!

Correction: The first translation is from Ep. 14, right? So good, thank you!

Thank you for translating!!!

*sigh* It's pillow-biting stuff, this. There must be millions of viewers clutching their hearts by now.