Beyond the Realm of Conscience- the review

Cast:

Main Characters:
Charmaine She- Lau Sam Ho
Tavia Yeung- Yiu Kam Leng
Susanna Kwan- Yuen Cui Wan
Michelle Yim- Chung Suet Ha
Moses Chan- the emperor
Kevin Cheng- Ko Hin Yeung

Supporting Characters: (many many!)
Lee Kwok Lun- Ma Yuen Tze
Selena Lee- Man Bo Yin
Susanna Tse- empress kwok
Ram Tseung- Bou Gung Gung
Mary Hon- Empress Cheng
and many more


What, When, Where & Who (from http://main.tvbsquare.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=224&Itemid=35) Inside the palace, within the walls, there are wars between beauty and power. In order to survive, people uses different strategies to gain control. The story mainly focus on the Imperial Household Bureau, which is responsible for Embroidery, Jewelry, Food & Beverages, and Furnishings. It's a story about power struggles, and a group of girls who needed the power to survive...(and a group of guys we can ignore)

The main character, Charmaine Sheh, who always uses "Speak good words, do good deeds, show good will" as her motto, her motto also helps her survived inside the palace, and she was able to make good friends with almost everyone. Well, almost everyone admires her motto, but her evil best friend Tavia Yeung, who can care less about the motto, instead, Tavia uses many harmful ways to get what she wanted... The story not only focus on Charmaine and Tavia's struggles, it also focus on the power struggles between Michelle Yim, the head of Embroidery and Susanna Kwan, the head of Jewelry. Their arguments, acting skills and misunderstandings shine the entire series. Without the two of them argue with each other, the whole series will be awfully boring.

Comments

Charmaine She vs Tavia Yeung
Lau Sam Ho is the perfect saint. She does all the right things. On the other hand, Yiu Kam Ling is the ultimate villain. She does all the wrong things. In fact, almost every good thing that happened in this series has something to do with Charmaine, and every bad thing has something to do with Tavia. Charmaine and Tavia are great actresses. They have brilliant chemistry when they were best friends and when they were arch rivals. Unfortunately, I think the script writers did not do the best job crafting their characters.

On one hand, Charmaine's 'goodness' in the series is seriously overemphasized. She also gives off a 'weak helpless girl' image, often bitten by a snake, hurt by an animal trap or knocked down by evil people. She lacks the special factor like Dai Cheung Gam, which make the audience want to remember her character.

On the other hand, Tavia's character is rather intriguing at first, when she was still good, but has many different values from Charmaine. I loved the scene when she was crying and laughing at the same time when Charmaine got promoted over her. Tavia may not be a living goddess like Charmaine, but she was real, and made the audience empathize. BUT, all of a sudden, Tavia becomes really wicked. She no longer do things to defend herself. She becomes a sadist who wants everyone dead except for herself. She is already a concubine with only ONE rival, Selena Lee. Don't other emperors have 3000 concubines? Yet, she's never happy with what she has, and she becomes extremely petty. She kills people like drinking water. I was wondering throughout the series, what made Tavia so evil?

I would also like to comment on their outfits. All the outfits and accessories are nicely and intricately designed, you can't deny the efforts. But, sad to say, I think Tavia looks ridiculous. Her make up is way too thick, her hair is in a funny shape, and her eyes look scary. Wouldn't it be more interesting if the producers made Tavia the concubine look more gorgeous, and Charmaine the servant more plain-looking? I thought the message is that goodness lies in the heart and looks are not as important. But this series is totally trying to prove otherwise.



Susanna Kwan vs Michelle Yim
Like Charmaine and Tavia, Susanna and Michelle were also best friends turned enemies. But unlike Charmaine and Tavia, their misunderstandings are cleared at the end. Both Susanna and Michelle are great actresses. They can argue really well. I especially liked Susanna's character. She's the more forgiving and understanding one, with a secret romantic history which she keeps to herself. Michelle, on the other hand, misunderstands her good friend easily. As a result, their misunderstandings never end. It keeps the story going, but it's also tiring to watch. For some reason, I feel a bit uncomfortable watching Michelle's performances in some scenes maybe because of the exaggerated expressions and movements. But all in all I think they both did great jobs


Moses Chan and Kevin Cheng
You can say that the male characters in this series are rather forgettable. I liked neither Moses nor Kevin, but Moses' character is more interesting of course. He starts off as a prince, and has to pretend to be stupid for (is it 20?) years to protect the lives of his mother and himself. Lee Kwok Lun wanted to make use of Moses' character to be his 'puppet emperor'. On the day Moses becomes the emperor, he surprises everyone with his intelligence, making all the evil people very angry. For the rest of the episodes, Moses struggles to overthrow evil Lee Kwok Lun's powers. It is an intense and interesting fight. In terms of love, Moses knew Charmaine way before Kevin. It is Charmaine who helped him survive his toughest years. However, Charmaine loves Kevin and only Kevin. Moses forgivingly hides his love and only tells charmaine at the very end. Unfortunately, Charmaine did not accept the emperor's love. I love the last scene in the last episode, when Charmaine walks out of the palace, and Moses looks at her from behind, and his eyes were red. What a bittersweet scene...


Yet another stupid villain- Lee Kwok Lun
Basically there are only 2 villains in these series doing all the bad things, Tavia and Lee Kwok Lun. I simply can't stand watching Lee Kwok Lun's character! He's and arrogant man who thinks he can have anything he wants in the world and he is convinced that anyone against him deserves to die. He also likes to humiliate people to show his power. I just hate watching this character because he is ridiculously evil. The scene I liked the most is at the end when Tavia kills Lee Kwok Lun. It's absurd that the emperor could not kill this guy for 32 episodes, but Tavia does it in 1 second. But, I still love that scene because of Tavia's crazy performance. She insults him as a 'castrated man', and tells him, "Not only did you lose to the emperior, you even lose to a woman like me!". He totally deserves to die in humiliation, for all the sins he has committed, but I still think it's not painful enough. Just a stab? Way too easy!


The ending- too fast, too easy
Many things were happening, everything had to be settled fast. The thing which I really can't accept is Tavia's ending. I don't understand why the emperor cannot kill her. Tavia killed SO MANY people. And of all the people, she killed Selena, who is the emperor's wife, Selena's unborn baby, who is the empror's child, and even the emperor's mother who has always treated her so well! Tavia killed 3 very important people in Moses' life, but Moses spares her life for a stupid reason. Before Charmaine leaves, Charmaine even asks Moses to be lenient on her, and Moses agrees! Lucky Tavia, she just turns crazy and live in her own happy world, to me that is way too easy for her. Now that is driving me crazy. This has happened many times to TVB villains. I really don't know what's the message they are trying to drive at.


The Series vs Sales Presentation
As we can see, there were some differences in the story in the sales presentation clip and the series itself. I obviously prefer the story in the sales presentation. In the sales presentation, charmaine and Tavia were junior servants at first. The seniors had their own fight and caused Charmaine and Tavia to suffer a lot. Tavia, having suffered so much, wants to rise to power and have her revenge. Charmaine, on the otherhand maintains her goodheartedness. In the series, Tavia did not have to suffer THAT much. She abruptly became another person, incredibly selfish and greedy. She lacks the 'human factor' and inner struggles which i was looking forward to. In the 2nd half of teh series when Tavia was bad, she lacked the depths and layers which she had at the beginning. It was rather disappointing, no matter how awesome Tavia's performances were.


Overall comments:
I do not have the energy to comment on the other characters because there are so many of them. In short, this series has many plus points. The great ensemble cast, the novel villain performances from Tavia, the carefully crafted dialogues, the grandness, the beautiful decorations costumes and accessories, all these efforts are highly commendable, and impressive. On the other hand, this series also has many ways to improve, I just cannot bring myself to call it a 'classic'.

The Building Blocks of Life

I first started watching this series almost 2 years ago. I loved it at first, then slowly got tired, put it aside, and couldn't find the time and motivation to continue. It is surprising that 2 years later I picked up this series again and started watching from where I left off, and in the end, I love it so much! It is difficult to find a love story in TVB series that tug my heartstrings so much, so read on to find out more.



The story:
13 years ago, Chung Kwok Keung (Alex Fong Chung Sun) was a highly talented and ambitious architect, who had lots of dreams, who believed architecture can change the world. He also has very high expectations and a bad temper. One day, because of a small argument, he quit his job and left his teacher, Kong Shing Yu (Chung King Fai).

Alex settled down as a designer in his sister's construction company. Over the years his temper changed, and got more and more comfortable with his unchallenging life. He also had a girlfriend for many years, Wai Yee (Christine Ng), and were going to get married. For 13 years, Alex never thought of going back into architecture despite his talent, until he met Cheung Man Jing Freeda (Tavia Yeung), a young and passionate architect, who reignited his passion. Alex finally decides to make a comeback, and become colleagues with Tavia.

Meanwhile, Tavia and Alex help each other through many struggles, and as expected, they are in love. It is difficult for them not to fall in love, because the get along so well, from the moment they met. Both of them know that there is no way Alex can abandon his girlfriend. They try really hard to suppress their feelings, but fail sometimes. As the audience, we know it is almost impossible for them to be together, but the way they love just touches your heart. All these develop into a bittersweet love story, which is surprising, and difficult to forget.


Love Factor

Tavia Yeung
What a great actress! Tavia's performance in this series is totally awesome and I just can't think of a second person who can portray ah Da like her. In this series, Tavia's character has to go through many struggles from the start to the end. From the first episode Tavia already starts liking Alex. When she realises that Alex has a girlfriend, she is so disappointed, but has to keep everything to herself. Next, she had struggles with her family and her grandmother's death, in which Alex helped her a lot. And then, her relationship with Alex starts to get complicated, and Tavia gets torn between guilt and confusion. Tavia portrays her internal struggles of being the 'third party' so well, you can totally feel for her, and can't bear to blame here. And then finally, Tavia runs into a car accident, and becomes a new person. She doesn't want anything except for peace and health. You get to see her less and less, and miss her more and more. But you know, Tavia's heart has never left Alex all this while. Tavia's performances (which include lots of tears) are memorable. Her outfits (and herself) are gorgeous (except for the last scene). Without Tavia's performance to pull off the script, this series will not even be close to good.

Alex Fong Chung Sun and his chemistry with Tavia
I've never expected myself to put Alex Fong on a 'love factor' list, because I never found much connection with him, but now I finally did. Alex's character goes through some changes throughout this series, both in career and relationships. At first, he is laidback, he likes to eat, but he is a responsible and good man. You will not expect him to fall for another girl, including Tavia, much less cheat on his girlfriend. As soon as Alex got back to architecture, things started to change. He found his 'fire' back, even though his temper is much better than before. Meanwhile, he starts to like Tavia without himself realizing. This is when I start to like his character, and how he is always there to help Tavia when she is in trouble. I like the way Alex talks. It sounds funny, yet it makes a lot of sense. Without him, Tavia will not find her kinship back so easily, neither will she get over her grandmother's death. I love the scene where Tavia was hiding at the bay/beach, and Alex found her and told her not to cry and wiped off her tears. Tavia said 'why do you always care for me'. Alex said 'because you are very troublesome'. I love that line so much! Contrary to many people who find them a mismatch, I think the two of them match very well and have great chemistry. The age gap is not a problem, it is somewhat intentional and even value-adding

honourable mention- Christine Ng
Christine is a great actress, no doubt. It is difficult to deny her efforts in acting, especially in the scenes when she was being crazily jealous and paranoid. Her character is simple and nice. Her only fault is to love Alex too much. I'm happy for her that she could find her own happy ending eventually.

Don't care factors- certain parts of the story and some supporting characters
Beware that some parts of the story are rather boring at times, and I have fast forwarded certain scenes. For example, I don't care about the office politics and power struggle in the firm. I don't care about Chung King Fai's struggles because it is not even well developed and his performance was unimpressive. I don't care about Power Chan's villain character because I don't see the point in his existance, though his performances were great. And of course, I don't care about Natalie Tong's messed up relationships.

Power Chan and Natalie Tong- what kind of relationship is that?
Natalie dates Sam Chen at first. He did many things for her. They even have a baby, but she doesn't care. Meanwhile, Power Chan snatches Natalie over using lies and more lies. All of a sudden, they are together, they are getting married, and all of a sudden, Natalie loves Power like crazy. I don't understand how she can forgive him for all the bad things he had done. But TVB just wants Power to turn good in 5 minutes and Natalie and Power Chan to end up together, and there is nothing I can do. Hence, like I mentioned above, it is better to put this part of the story under the 'don't care' factor.

The ending including Tavia's ugly outfit
The ending was rushed as usual. Though acceptable, it did not do the story all the justice it should. The concept of Tavia slowly losing her memory and recording everything down on a CD is nice, but it is way too rushed! The CD was way too short. And then, in the last scene, when Tavia and Alex met again at the beach, Tavia's outfit and hair was so awful! Why did she have to look so awful? And Tavia was acting more like she has become stupid, than she has lost her memory. The ending is not horrible. But it could have been better to give the audience a better sense of completion...

The Performances
For the best actress, I have to choose Tavia over Christine even though they are both great. Tavia's performance really touched my heart. Alex is a great actor, and I did not realise this last time. His character is both old-fashioned and charming, and Alex captured the balance very well. His emotions are subtle, but can definitely be felt. Anne Heung plays a small role, simply and convincingly. Timmy Hung, this may be the best of him I have seen. As for the other supporting characters, I don't really want to mention them much. Power Chan deserves best supporting actor, but I really don't care about his character.

Concluding remarks
To sum up, TBBOL may have low ratings, n some negative comments, but for me was totally worth watching. There are boring scenes I don't care about, but there are even more touching scenes I remember. It is a different kind of chemistry, and different kind of story. The characters dialogues are always interesting to hear. Most importantly, the 2 leads, Alex and Tavia, gave a performance which is stemmed from their hearts. Last but not least, it has a great sound track and themesong! ;)

D.I.E. (Death Investigation Extention)

Cast:
Roger Kwok
Sonija Kwok
Derek Kwok
Kenneth Ma
Margie Tsang

Story:
After being hit by lightning, Roger, a policeman, found himself with an unusual ability. He can communicate with the dead! If someone is murdered and has grievance, he or she is able to send certain signals to Roger. However, these signals are usually very brief and vague. Hence Roger has to use his detective skills to find the real murderer…

Meanwhile, a new department D.I.E. is formed. The department, which comprise Roger and Sonija, is made up of rather capable people. But due to various reasons, they cannot work well with people, and got ‘exiled’ to D.I.E. All unclosed cases are sent to the D.I.E. Roger then uses his special ability to solve all these cases, making D.I.E. more and more famous…

Love Factors:

Sonija Kwok
I thought Sonija can only play the ‘beauty’ character. In the end she plays the boyish character very well. Some of her funny expressions are great. Her action stunts are also nicely done. I’m starting to respect Sonija more and more as an actress. Ever since Land of Wealth and On the First Beat, and now D.I.E, I’m liking Sonija more and more.

Derek Kwok (Righteous)
What a cute character! Derek’s name is ‘righteous’ in this series, and indeed, he lives up to his name. His idol is bruce lee. He dresses and fights like him. Righteous is one of the best supporting characters of the year!

Mimi Lo
Mimi plays a very vain character who only cares about her looks and marrying a rich guy. I have no idea how she managed to become a policeman. But I soon realized that she is actually quite smart! Mimi’s comedy performance is wonderful. Her expressions are hilarious. Every time she appears, it brightens up the screen.

The entire D.I.E.
Every person in the department is very funny. They are so cute together. Their chemistry is sparkling.

Can’t help but notice Stephen Hyunh
Stephen plays a pathologist. He is very cool, very professional, but also very cute. It is just a small character, but I can’t help noticing Stephen. His acting improved, and he is really cute in this series!

The Story
I think the story is great! Sure enough, there are ridiculous and unbelievable parts, but in all the story was highly entertaining. The cases are refreshing and exciting, just that sometimes it is too complicated, I get a little lost…

Dislike factors

The ending…
A rushed marriage, an abrupt death, a surprise baby… all these happened way too fast!


How Come factor
The producers did not explain, how come Roger’s powers failed in the very last case? What happened?

The little ghost Siu Yee, why does she look the way she looks? Isn’t she supposed to look younger?

Funny Factor
‘Big Mouth Ying’
There is this guy Sonija is chasing from episode 1 to episode 25, but he still hasn’t gotten caught. This guy is very lucky! It’s funny how Sonija chased him SO MANY times but failed. It’s also annoying seeing Sonija rushing to chase him without even thinking!


The Performance
Roger shines in any performance as usual. He looks so young and handsome it amazes me. Kenneth Ma is not bad, first time seeing him play such a high-ranking role. But tje high ranking policeman is weak in love, unfortunately. Derek Kwok is the best supporting actor. Sonija Kwok… she is not the best, but for some reason I just enjoy watching her so much, I am going to become her fan soon. Mimi Lo is the best supporting actress. It is great to see Margie Tsang come back. Her performance was unnatural at first, but got warmed up soon enough. She is very pretty!

Worth Watching?
This is a very original story, with unique settings and characters. I think this series is totally worth watching. It is a very refreshing change from the usual TVB cop series. The style is SLIGHTLY similar to To Catch the Uncatchables.

The Drive Of Life- Review

Cast:
Damian Lau- Hua Wen Han
Liao Jing Sheng- Hua Wen Hong
Michael Miu- Hua Wen Shuo
Joe Ma- Wei Yong Biao
Raymond Lam- Hua Zhen Bang
Feng Shao Feng- Hua Zhen Min
Ng Wai Kwok- Wei Tian Xing
Ron Ng- Xi Jie Qiang

Charmaine She- Rong Xiu Feng
Sheren Tang- Wang Shao Fen
Jessica Hsuan- Hua Qing Yu
Myolie Wu- Fang Bing Yi
Toby Leung- Hua Qing Lin
Gigi Wong-
Chan Mei Kei- Wei Chang Ping
Chiu Ngor- Qian Qian

Note:

This review is really hard to write as it is simply too long and there are too many characters!Please note i'll miss out on many details...

Story:
This is a story that spans from 1994 to 2007, about a family’s dream, national pride, and the China car making industry. The Hua family has dreamt about creating local motor cars, that are safe, durable and affordable for the Chinese. It is about taking the future into your own hands, it is about pride, it is about driving on your own path with your own car. For many years, there wasn’t much breakthrough, until the generation of Damian Lau and his two brothers. The 3 of them, with the help of many other members of the family, set up ‘Hua Zhe’ to realize this dream. While embarking on this long journey, they inspired many people around them to make a contribution. Meanwhile, there are the good people, the bad people, and those struggling between good and bad. There are relationship problems, misunderstandings, and tragic events. The characters learn from these challenges. They grow up as a person, and their relationships only become stronger.

The Characters/Performance:

Actors
Damian is definitely the best actor of this series. His performance is so solid! He is an amazing father and leader, and his air and expressions totally show the power he has. At the beginning, he is also very stubborn. He assumes everyone should live the way he thinks is right. Of course, all that changed later on. All in all, it was a stellar performance. Liao Jing Sheng has a very gentle and refined disposition. I liked his performance very much. Michael Miu is such a charming and handsome actor. His portrayal as the young and fun ‘small uncle’ was charismatic. I don’t like his mad or emotional scenes though. Raymond Lam and Michael Miu’s characters are a little similar. Sometimes he is a man, sometimes he is a little boy. I think Raymond did a wonderful job. The tears he shed are heartbreaking, and I find Raymond specially handsome in this series. Joe Ma is the character to hate. Before Joe Ma killed Ng Wai Kwok, Ng made a very insightful description of Joe Ma’s character: He is a petty and stupid man. Someone (Damian) treats you a bit well, you become so loyal to him. Someone (Damian) rejects you, you bear such a heavy grudge. This statement made me understand Joe Ma’s character a lot better. Besides being petty and stupid, Joe Ma is very evil, and he only cares about himself. He doesn’t know how to love at all. He can even risk the life of his own wife and child! Such a man does not deserve to be forgiven, but he was, and there is nothing I can do. Feng Shao Feng is cute, not much comments. Ron Ng’s character is small, but he is very cool(when driving) and likeable (he is a very good person). Ng Wai Kwok’s villain performance also stood out a lot. It is great having him back. Look forward to more great performance from him!

The Actresses
Jessica Hsuan is always likeable, but I still feel slightly disappointed that Jessica’s character is stupid. Jessica suits the smart image much better. Charmaine She stood out the most among the female leads. Her character was full of spice and excitement. Her eyes are full of spirit. Her chemistry with Raymond is sparkling. Myolie Wu is likeable once again. I like her gentle and caring character, and subtle facial expression. Her usual characters are too active, it makes me a bit tired watching. Sheren Teng is another one who stand out. Her character matured so much from the beginning to the end! I love watching the changes. And I love her character at towards the end. Gigi Wong is the number 1 disappointment. Her character is petty and stupid, her hairstyles (all of them) are bad, and her performances were mediocre. Her performance in ‘Golden Faith’ was much better. I totally do not understand why Damian chose Gigi over Chan Mei Kei. Toby Leung is the number 2 disappointment. Firstly, I do not understand why Toby must act so emotional over her parents quarrel. She is already a grown-up girl. Secondly, I find it very hard to find any enjoyment in watching Toby act. Chan Mei Kei Charmaine’s mother, Damien’s old lover, a very refined, beautiful woman with a dark past. Her death was the turning point of the whole series. I really love her character, but I also pity her a lot. I like how she loves Damien so wholeheartedly, and is willing to sacrifice anything for him. I also like how she is so refined, so kind, and so forgiving. Unfortunately, she does not have a good life, and she had to suicide. Her past is very pitiful. No wonder Charmaine took so long forgive the Wah family… I liked Chiu Ngor’s innocent, eager-to-learn character at first, but soon she becomes an annoying girl who is weak in love and easily cheats on her boyfriend. Her character adds very little to the series.

Chemistry Factor

The Chemistry of the Hua Family
Very close-knitted family. Very sweet to watch. I see the most chemistry among the 2 kids and their father Damian. I especially like the father and son relationship between Raymond and Damian. It stood out a lot to me.

Michael Miu and Sheren Teng
I am surprised to be putting them in the love factor list. Before watching this series, I didn’t really pay much attention to this couple. At the beginning, I even hated their scenes together, because their marriage was very screwed up. But I didn’t know that a great story was unfolding. Michael and Sheren learned from their failed marriage. They started afresh from friends. They learned to improve on their own weakness and accept the weakness of each other. They learned to understand and care about each other. Finally, Michael is trying to win back the heart of Sheren. The process is so sweet. In the end, Michael and Sheren became one of my favourite couples in this series.

Charmaine She and Raymond Lam
What awesome chemistry! At the beginning, Raymond and Charmaine like to challenge each other on their wits, then they became partners and think of ways to earn money together. Soon they became attracted to each other, because they found each other smart and charming. However, because of 1 recession, Raymond disappointed Charmaine and they separated. After some time, Raymond changed from a playboy to a responsible man. He tried to convince Charmaine that he truly loved her and can give her happiness. From then their relationship became built on love. After that, Charmaine’s hatred for Raymond’s family and the loss of their baby drove them apart. Raymond was shattered. When he finally picked up the shattered pieces of his heart, Charmaine came back to cause more trouble, and they started going against each other. That was so painful to watch. Finally, it was selfless Myolie who made them realize that they still love each other very deeply, and brought them back together. From then on, you know nothing can separate the two of them anymore.

Myolie Wu and Feng Shao Feng
What a refreshing chemistry! This couple only started developing towards the end, but it was a pleasant surprise. Myolie and Feng were both withdrew from their relationships because their partners love someone else. They confided and sought each other for comfort. They became the perfect company for each other. Finally, they fell in love and found happiness in each other. How wonderful!

Joe Ma and Jessica Hsuan
I don’t enjoy their chemistry. 1 is selfish, 1 is blind, I don’t want to say more

Ron Ng and Toby Leung
Ron’s character is very cool and nice. Sometimes he is cute with Toby. Sometimes I don’t really care because of Toby’s poor performance.

Damian Lau, Chan Mei Kei, Liao Jing Sheng
A beautiful love triangle, which lasted many years. I hate Damian Lau the most in this love triangle. He is so cruel to Mei Kei! Mei Kei loves Damian so deeply, even after so many years, until she decided to marry Liao Jing Sheng, until the moment she died, she only loves Damian. Liao Jing Sheng loves Mei Kei in the same unconditional way. He forgave Damian eventually. I admire his broad heart.

Raymond Lam, Ellesmere Choi, Myoli Wu

The 3 of them are very cute together. Ellesmere's character is surprisingly cute! Myolie is a great girl for Raymond, unfortunately, Raymond's heart has no room for a second girl other than Charmaine...

The Story

Despite its length, the story of TDOL was barely boring. This is because there are many characters and relationship, so we need more time to develop each part properly. From the beginning till the end, we can feel the changes and growth of the characters. The story has its emotional, funny, and exciting moments. It is a wonderful mix. All in all, thumbs up!

The Performance

Besides Gigi Wong and Toby Leung, I have no complaints on the acting. All the performance was great! I just hate Joe Ma's character too much, I don't even care about his performance anymore

Worth Watching?

YES! One of the best series of the year!

The Seventh Day- Review

Cast:
Kevin Cheng Ka Wing- Yau Chi Wing
Niki Chow Lai Kei- Leng Ka Yan
Bosco Wong Chung Zak- Don
Natalie Tong Sze Wing- Sasa


Story:
This is the story about 2 men, Kevin and Bosco, who are born on the same day, 7th of August. They have completely different characters, and lead totally different lives. Kevin appears aloof and indifferent, while Bosco is witty and sweet-tongued. Kevin does not care about wealth and prestige, while Bosco is a money-hungry man. However deep down, both have very warm hearts. Kevin and Bosco met their loved ones, Niki and Natalie respectively, on the same day. Each couple has a very different destiny, yet at many points of time, their experiences are aligned. Both couples go through many ups and downs, putting their faiths into test. At the end, both love stories turn out beautiful. Like the narrator said, as long as we know how to treasure the people around us, life naturally becomes very beautiful…


Comments

Kevin and Niki
Before watching this series, I was having reservations against this couple, because many reviewers found them boring. To my surprise, I love this couple so much! Kevin and Niki are simply awesome together. From Hard Fate (2004), Under the Canopy of Love(2006), and to this series(2008), their acting improves, and their chemistry rocks more and more. True enough, some parts of their story are tiring to watch, but as a whole, it was a beautiful love story, and a sparkling chemistry.

Chemistry aside, I actually liked the love story between Kevin and Niki. At first glance, the story looks too typical. Parental objections, third wheels, deadly disease… but this is okay, because the script for the story is appealing. The producers put a lot of heart into the dialogues and other little details, to bring the best out of a typical story. They managed to convince me that Kevin and Niki seriously love each other, and their strong faith in the relationship really touched me. It’s hard for me to describe, you must feel it for yourself. Basically, this is a really moving love story.

Favourite parts:
- somewhere at the beginning, Kevin never expresses his thoughts, yet he expects Niki to understand him, never caring about Niki’s feelings. It was great to see Niki get mad. I love it when Niki scolded Kevin, because everything she says makes sense. But their faith is strong. At the end of episode 5, they finally got together under the wishing tree J
- When Kevin’s father took Niki’s money… Kevin was very angry and scolded Niki. There was one scene, Kevin borrowed money from all his friends to return to Niki (even though it was obviously not enough). Niki was very upset that Kevin was so concerned about the money, and she started crying, so did I. But Kevin merely does not want Niki to be harmed, he is protective of Niki, but does not know how to express it, and ends up losing his temper. At the end of a confrontation, they hugged and Kevin told Niki not to cry. That was such a sweet scene!
- When Niki learned about Kevin’s past from Kevin’s grandmother. Niki thought to herself, ‘Kevin is a filial man. My mum once told me, a man who loves his mother will definitely love his wife as well.’ I love that quote, and I suspect it is true!
- Most of the time when Niki writes on her online diary… I enjoy reading what she writes
- The whole part when Niki tried to break up with Kevin because of her disease. It is very tiring watching her do that. But it was also very touching to watch Kevin refuse to give up. His faith is very strong, he simply cannot believe that Niki does not love him anymore, because that is impossible!
- Kevin sends Niki an email with the blue print of their ‘dream house’. The email was so touching that I cried with Niki. Kevin loves Niki so much!
- Niki finally accept Kevin back again, that is in episode 18. Kevin’s crying broke my heart. I love that scene, it was my favourite scene in this entire series. 1 line I remember the most, was when Kevin said, ‘Don’t keep thinking about your disease. We cure it once, we’ll take it as passing 1 obstacle. Then, I’ll bring you to a beautiful place, eat something really nice, do something we have never done before’. I can’t forget that scene!


Bosco and Natalie
I hated their relationship at the beginning. It was ridiculous! Their ‘motives’ of dating each other is unbelievable. I mean, Bosco is young and capable and clean, why would he even think about getting close to a rich girl to get rich? Isn’t that what jerks do? But Bosco doesn’t look like such a jerk! And Natalie… She wants to date someone to get inspiration for her comics because she ‘ran out of ideas’. But she was the one who came up with all the weird ideas to make a fool of Bosco. Why can’t she just draw the stories out directly? It is so unnecessary to play all the tricks on Bosco! Both of them indeed go to the extreme to attain their goals, it is so unbelievable!

Thankfully, Bosco and Natalie’s chemistry did improve, ironically that happened after they ‘broke up’. I started seeing the ‘human’ and ‘sane’ side of both characters. They started realizing their feelings for each other, and started missing each other. I wonder HOW those feelings got developed but they did anyway. It was nice seeing the emotional side of Bosco and Natalie. BUT I hated how Bosco dealt with his relationship with Natalie and Charmaine. He ended up hurting them both. In the end, they got back together because of a baby, what a stupid reason…

The 3rd Wheels
For Kevin and Niki, we have Selena. I have nothing against Selena. Her life is too tragic. She loves Kevin as deeply as Niki does, but it will never be reciprocated…

For Bosco and Natalie, the third wheel is Charmaine Lee. Charmaine was a very sweet girl at first. I do not know what she sees in Bosco. She ended up doing many stupid, selfish and degrading things for Bosco, it changed my impression of her character completely… The writers just had to make her do all these stupid things, otherwise Bosco and Natalie’s story cannot continue to episode 20. Haha…


The Supporting characters
The family members of the four leads are all nice to watch. Niki’s father is annoying, but he does love Niki a lot. In this series, Bosco and Natalie also each have a clique of friends. Their chemistry is okay…

The Story
There are stupid scenes, stupid events you don’t care about. But generally I still like the story. It is artsy and charming in its own way.


The Performance
I did not like Kevin’s character at first because he is so cold and has a bad temper. But very soon I saw his warm heart and I can ignore those flaws. Kevin is the best actor of the series. His crying took me by surprise. It improved so much, especially at the scene where he got back together with Niki. Niki did her trademark lovable character, it is hard to not like her. But sometimes I don’t really like her crying. She whines instead of cries. Bosco’s performance is forgettable, and I do not like his hair at all! Natalie is the most improved actress. She was never bad to begin with, but this is her first leading role. It is the first time she gets to showcase her ‘inside emotions’.

Worth Watching?
Kevin and Niki fans can NOT miss this series. If you’re not a fan to begin with (like me), I still think this series is worth watching. For me, I enjoyed it very much, and I will remember Kevin and Niki’s story for some time.. If you are not a sentimental person or not very much into romantic films, then this series is not for you, and you will be extremely bored…

the master of tai chi- 1st thoughts

Tai Chi was my most anticiapted series of 2006 and 2007, yet it did not get aired in both years. Finally 2008 came and the series was released, but I only got to watch it today. I do not care about the reviews. The cast looks great, the trailer looks awesome, and the scenery is breathtaking. I have watched 9 episodes. So far, I'm sad to say that this series is NOT living up to my expectations.

Love Factors

Fighting scenes

This is the number 1 selling point of the series. Real fighting- no computer effects. I am impressed by the fighting. Every character (who knows how to fight) in this series is convincing because they really know Kungfu (some know more than the others). They look like martial artists inside out. The fighting scenes are so fast, and so beautifully done. This is 1 aspect Tai Chi did not let us down on.

Vincent Zhao - Wu Ma, Melissa Ng- Sang Qing, Guan Shan Yue

Wu Ma is such an interesting character. From a cynical and violent man whom everyone shuns, Wu Ma slowly changes to become peaceful and more understanding. He learns to love and care for people around him. All thanks to 2 people, Wu Ma's teacher Guan Shan Yue and Melissa Ng's character Sang Qing. At first Wu Ma looks very violent. But in front of his teacher and Sang Qing, he shows his innocence, just like a little boy. His teacher wants to help him attain the highest level of Tai Chi, and to do that , he must help Wu Ma let go of his hatred and attain peace. His love for Wu Ma is so unconditional and touching. Wu ma and his teacher have a very unique relationship.

Sang Qing is Wu Ma's confidant and soulmate. She cooks for him and helps him in his practice. She works together with the master to help Wu Ma succeed. Sang Qing is such a selfless and kind girl. I love her character and her chemistry with Wu Ma.

Basically the life these 3 people live is very nice. In a secluded, peaceful and beautiful place. Everyday Wu Ma and his teacher practise Tai Chi, while Sang Qing cooks great food for them. The idea is very appealing. :) I love watching the 3 of them together.

Dislike Factors

Myolie Wu- Yan Zi Gui

I don't know whether to blame the director, the writer, or Myolie herself. Myolie's character is very frustrating to watch. Her expressions are too exagerrated. Sometimes they look unreal, sometimes they are simply unappealing. She yells and screams most of the time. Her costume and hair are not pretty at all. Basically, I do not enjoy watching Myolie's character and acting at all.

The weak story

Up till now there is nothing in the story that captures me. The pace is too slow and the story is typical. The only reason why i'm continuing to watch is to see if it gets better.

Useless Factor

Beautiful Scenery, Great cast.

Tai Chi reminds me a little of Land of Wealth. Beautiful scenery, great cast... but all these cannot save a weak story. I really hope the story of Tai Chi improves!

credit: pictures from http://tvb.windy-goddess.net/

每当变幻时 (Hooked On You)

This story, spanning 10 years, describes the life journey of a rather average hongkong girl, Ah Miu. Ah Miu was born and bred in the wet market. She reluctantly works there for many years to clear her father’s gambling debts. Deep down, she believes that she is meant for a higher station of life. She has 2 wishes, to leave the wet market by the age of 30, and to find a ‘good’ man.

Miu meets “Yu Lo” (Eason Chan), another fishmonger, whom she became soulmates with. Miu and Yu went through many ups and downs together, getting conned, ‘upgrading’ the wet market so that it won’t lose its edge over the supermarket etc. They came a long way.

Yu starts to pursue Miu. Miu realizes she is falling for him, but she sees a future she doesn’t want with Yu. On the last day of 1999, Miu finally left the wet market, and broke all ties with Yu and everyone else in the wet market. (Her father has died by then) On the same day, the wet market was shut down by the state, leaving Yu totally shattered.

After 6 years, Miu has become a renowned make-up artist. She has found a good career, but has yet to find a good man. At this time, she recalled Yu, and realized, Yu is her key to real happiness. Miu and Yu finally reunited after the long parting. Nothing seemed to have changed. Their chemistry was still sparkling like it used to be. Just when Miu was about to express her feelings, she realized Yu is already married with a family. Yu was just a simple man who wants a stable job and a caring wife. Miu was simply gone for too long…

Oblivious to Miu’s feelings, Yu walks away with his wife and daughter, while Miu stares at their backs, with a tinge of regret and emptiness. Like how she has always been trying to find her ideal wallet, ‘a Gucci which looks like Prada’, she spent 10 years searching for the wrong ‘happiness’, which may not even have existed, and simply let the best slip by.

This story makes you hooked on it, thinking, where does your happiness lie? What are you looking for in your lifelong partner? It is not only the journey of Ah Miu, but the changes of the other supporting characters as well. Using the history of hongkong as a backdrop, it also tugs the heartstrings of many hongkongers.

With a strong sentimental script and a perfect cast, (leading and supporting), Hooked has come to become my favourite movie of 2007 and in fact, one of my all-time favourites. It is one of the most underrated movies of 2007. The Hongkong film industry needs to produce more films like that rather than slapslick comedies or war epics that are merely empty spectacles.

Finally...

After months of Hiatus, I've finally decided to do a little TVB update today. My don't know how many readers I have left after all these months of disappearance, but rah, I'll still blog.

What I have watched... (very short comments)

The Price Of Greed

If there is 1 series I have to recommend from year 2006, then TPOG is definitely it. Because of all the bad reviews, I am surprised by how grappling and exciting and charming this series turned out to be. Performance wise, Bosco and Sammul are perfect for their roles. Kate is not as unbearable as in Brink of Law and On The First Beat, Shirley is okay. Story wise, I enjoy every moment of it, especially after Sammul comes back in episode 8. Basically, in comparison with all recent TVB productions, POG is an original and successful master piece. I still don't understand why is POG warehoused, and why crappier series are being aired...

Best Bet

Due to lack of time/interest, I skipped quite a few episodes of this series while it was airing on tv. To tell you the truth, that is extremely fine because BB doesn't really have a story for us to follow. Nevertheless, I always came back to watch BB whenever I had enough time/interest because it is pretty good entertainment. The 'no gambling' message is cheesily and cornily espoused for countless times throughout the series. But it is cute. The jokes are so silly that I can describe them as 'retarded', but I still laughed nevertheless. BB is a series for stressed up individuals like me to enjoy (= (Skip the first few episodes though, they were quite boring)

Dicey Business

I was so in love with DB for the first 20 episodes or so. Bobby is the number 1 love factor of DB. His character is so cute, so strong, and his unconditional love for Bosco his brother is so poignant, and moving. If this series was aired a little earlier, Bobby should have just taken home the 2006 best actor award. The Bobby and Jessica chemistry also shines. Now i'm on episode 27. Though this series is still good, it is getting a little tedious, looking at Michael being evil, and looking at Bosco's sheer apathy towards his brother's feelings. Nevertheless, DB is still a good series to watch. Perhaps 30 episodes instead of 35 will suffice...

The Building Blocks of Life

For Tavia's sake, I had to watch this series regardless of what reviews I hear. After watching the first episode, I thought 'I am so going to love this series'. The architectural theme, and the refreshing chemistry between Tavia and Alex is very captivating. I am at episode 6 now and holding on. This series is becoming relegated to some random office drama and Alex's performance is going downhill. He is simply not pulling off the 'passionate architect' role well enough. I will press on to continue enjoying Tavia's performance. She's such a great actress!