After "Under the Stranger" ended, the Douban score dropped to 8.1, which is a very good result among domestic comic dramas. Coupled with the good broadcast data, it is a great comfort for this drama that had some twists and turns at the beginning - it was suspended for a month due to media reasons after broadcasting 4 episodes.

"Under the Stranger" poster

There are indeed barriers between the two dimensions and the three dimensions. Comics, a visual art, an imaginary art and a "simplistic" art, can easily go out of shape when they are transformed into real-life plots. But sometimes, we may also exaggerate the difficulty of comic-book dramas, so that our attitude towards comic-book dramas is too conservative and strict. In fact, in recent years, Japanese and Korean comic-book adaptations have become spectacular, including the recently concluded Korean drama "Supernatural" (which, like "Under the Stranger" happens to be about "aliens"), is also the same This is a comic-to-drama adaptation, because we generally have not read the original Japanese and Korean comics in advance, so we can accept the plot with a relatively pure mentality. This may also be our attitude towards domestic comic dramas: there is no need to be overly obsessed with plots that must be reproduced one-to-one with the comics. As long as the comic dramas maintain the same spiritual connotation as the comics and roughly restore the temperament of the comics, it is acceptable. The comic adaptation.

"Under the Stranger" needs to face the powerful "anxiety of influence" of the original work. The series is adapted from the comic "Under One Person" (originally titled "The Stranger") created by cartoonist Mi Er in 2015. The comic has a huge influence on the Internet and is still being updated. It is a serialized comic platform best-selling works. The comic has had a Sino-Japanese animated version since 2016, and has gained a good reputation. The average score of the five volumes on Douban is about 8.5 points. The film and television versions of "Under a Stranger" have also been developed. Wu Ershan has filmed the movie version, and the web drama version of "Under a Stranger" has been directed by Xu Hongyu.

The comic "Under One Person" is surprisingly popular

The plot tells the story of Zhang Chulan (played by Peng Yuchang), an ordinary college student who has hidden the power of aliens for many years, and is involved in the strange "aliens" due to the mysterious disappearance of his grandfather's body and the sudden intrusion of the mysterious girl Feng Baobao (played by Wang Yinglu). "In the world, a showdown between light and darkness is ready to begin...

Zhang Chulan (played by Peng Yuchang)

What is a "stranger"? We need to start with "Qi", which is the source of alien energy. The uncommon word "Qi" is the ancient word for "Qi" and has the same pronunciation as "Qi". It is a concept in ancient Chinese philosophy and refers to the origin of all living things. Laozi wrote in the Tao Te Ching, "The five treasures give rise to the five qi." In the world view of "Below the Stranger", everyone has "Qi", and Qi is constantly disappearing. When Qi is exhausted, people will die; and most people in the world are not aware of the existence of Qi, let alone grasp it. Tips for using Qi.

Strangers can use "Qi"

Different people are different. They may have majestic innate Qi, or they may be able to sense the existence of Qi through acquired training and use it accordingly. This also gives them "superpowers" that ordinary people don't have. . In particular, the "Eight Wonderful Skills" that some of the strangers have realized, including the Qimen after the Wind, the Origin of Qi Ti, the Spiritual Dispatch, the Magic Machine, the Double Hand, etc., are even more powerful.

"Under the Stranger" not only constructs the world of aliens, it also successfully constructs what Tolkien (the author of "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings") called a "second world", which is relative to the one we are in. This "first world" is the real world. The second world "imagines things that do not exist in the real world, but gives them 'intrinsic authenticity'". It has its own world view, theory, logic, system, law, and rules.

For example, in the first world, there is no "magic" and "strangers", but in the self-contained "second world", we are willing to believe in the existence of "magic" and "strangers". In the world of aliens, there is also an organization called "Natudong". On the surface, it is a courier company, but in fact it is an organization that restrains aliens. What this organization advocates is that the more abilities the aliens have, the more responsibilities they have. Therefore, they must restrain the aliens to prevent them from misbehaving in the real world, prevent aliens from affecting ordinary people's lives, and prevent aliens from overriding others. Stand above ordinary people, eradicate those aliens who commit crimes, and protect the world of ordinary people.

"Organization accessible everywhere"

If "Everywhere Access" represents the decent people in the alien world, then Quanxingjiao in the alien world is the big villain in the alien world. They have "no organization and no principles" and do whatever they want for their own benefit. They had previously robbed Zhang Chulan's grandfather's body in order to steal his memory and obtain the Qi in him, with the ultimate goal of obtaining the "Eight Wonderful Skills". The male protagonist of this drama, Zhang Chulan, as the heir to the Qi Ti Origin Style, one of the most powerful "Eight Magic Skills", will eventually be involved in this battle.

Completeness without rules and principles

The second world of "Under the Stranger" will make us feel some familiar shadows. Such as martial arts. The series of struggles between sects in the play to compete for the "Eight Wonderful Skills" is a replica of the martial arts template of competing for martial arts secrets; the more than 10 episodes of the Yiren Martial Arts Competition are somewhat similar to the martial arts competition; Zhang Chulan Growing from a somewhat cowardly ordinary boy to a "young hero" in the alien world is also the growth path of young knights in martial arts.

"Eight Wonderful Skills" is somewhat similar to martial arts secrets

The relationship between ordinary people and strangers also reminds us of JK Rowling's magical universe: people with magical abilities are called "wizards" or "magicians", and people without magical abilities are called "Muggles" or "Muggles". chicken". There are also two factions in the magic world. One faction requires magicians to hide their identities and not let Muggles see them using magic or use magic on Muggles to avoid conflicts with Muggles. The other faction advocates that magicians are superior to Muggles and that magicians There should be a war with Muggles, and magicians should rule the world openly.

In JK Rowling's magical universe, the "International Statute of Secrecy" passed by the wizarding world has similar provisions.

This sense of similarity reflects the challenges of contemporary fantasy themes in the construction of the second world. We often can only write according to the routines of our predecessors, which leads to the fact that the second world should be full of imagination, but it inevitably makes people feel Deja vu.

The rare thing about "Under the Stranger" is that its second world construction has familiar routines and localized innovations.

Different from the Hollywood superhero theme of saving the world, and different from the use of northern and southern elements in "Superpowers", the world view of "Under the Strangers" is based on some systems of Taoism. Although "Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism" are always juxtaposed, there are very few film and television works that systematically use Taoism as the cultural foundation. "Under the Stranger" is a good attempt.

The use of traditional culture in "Under the Stranger"

On the other hand, there are not many fantasy works in China, but almost all of them are set in ancient times, which allows for greater creative space and reduces the pressure on review. But the "isolation" between fantasy and contemporary urban life will also bring regrets. As Tolkien said, excellent creators will hope that "some characteristics of the second world originate from the first world or can return to the first world." "What it records is history without losing anything." The mystery and allegory contained in it, then we will definitely feel excited and joyful... Such joy allows people to appreciate the fundamental truth."

In other words, if the second world can be more closely related to the first world, so that the second world can not only record the present, but also give the ordinary present "mystery and allegory", then the first world will not only become It’s interesting, we also get a different perspective on the first world.

This means that we must try to plant fantasy in contemporary urban life, especially in the present. This is exactly what domestic fantasy film and television themes are very lacking.

"Under the Stranger" is very adventurous, bold, and innovative in that it is a story that takes place in urban life at this moment. We can see a lot of trendy, technological and up-to-date content in the drama, such as Taoist priests scanning QR codes on their mobile phones to pay, Taoist priests waiting on the subway, Taoist priests playing games, Taoist priests wearing fashionable shoes, and even strangers performing martial arts. You can scan the QR code to download the official APP to watch the results... This contrast not only brings a funny and humorous effect, but also demonstrates the efforts to integrate fantasy and reality.

This is a fantasy story that takes place in contemporary urban life

What is the significance of constructing a fantasy second world in contemporary life? One is the "consolation" that Tolkien talked about. Fantasy "fundamentally does not focus on the possibility of things, but on the satisfaction of wishes... In addition to the imaginary satisfaction of ancient wishes, it is more important to provide a happy ending so that people can obtain psychological relief." "People You should always have the optimistic belief in realizing your wishes and getting things in your heart.”

"Under the Stranger" generally retains the characteristics of the original comic's hot-blooded boy comic. Zhang Chulan has transformed from a seemingly ordinary boy who is a little cowardly and withdrawn because of his hidden clumsiness. He is ignored, isolated and looked down upon by others. Slowly recognizing, accepting, and releasing the energy within himself, shouldering the grand mission he has been given without hesitation, and risking his own life to protect the people and things he cherishes. This is a very burning and passionate process in theory - although The presentation is somewhat "slogan-like".

It is inevitable that there will be some passionate "golden sentences" in the form of slogans

Another function of fantasy embedded in contemporary urban life is "recovery", that is, after experiencing fantasy drift, the audience can gain a "clear vision" to re-examine reality and understand the nature of things more clearly. In the real world, we often get confused by the authorities, lose our true feelings, and develop biases or wrong perceptions of reality due to various stereotypes. As Tolkien said, “In real life, everything becomes blurred because people are blind to the things around them.” And “creative fantasy, because it tries to create something new and different, It can open up the treasure house of your thoughts and let all the things that have been sealed for a long time break out of their cages like trapped birds." The "Second World" allows us to get out of "Lushan", regain our keen eyes and clear hearts, and re-understand those hidden realities.

The story of "Under the Stranger" takes place in our lives at this time, allowing us to "restore" a new perspective on looking at the "strangers" around us - they may have different personalities, unconventional preferences, and conventions The gender label does not match, or he is always too sharp, or he always lives in his own world... Although he has no special powers, he is a "different person".

Just like Zhang Chulan's grandfather said: "If you are too bad, they will destroy you; if you are too cowardly, they will step on you; if you are too good or too strong, they will not trust you. You will only be similar to them, and they will Only then can I accept you with peace of mind." This is what Zhang Chulan and Feng Baobao have experienced along the way. Looking back at reality, many people have experienced or experienced this? These experiences, whether long-term or momentary, remind us to restrain ourselves, keep a low profile, disguise ourselves, and become the average and ordinary majority.

The Difficulty of "Aliens" in this World

Whether it's "Superpowers" or "Under the Stranger", East Asian society, which is deeply influenced by the Confucian "golden mean" thought, will inevitably cast a strange look at "strangers". How to appear "not weird" among the crowd , is a required course for many East Asian children. But what about being an "other"? How should we treat "strangers"? The second world of "Under the Stranger" may help some viewers "find a clear vision."