【Editor's note】
The "First Episode" series to help you watch the drama is here. Is the recently launched drama worth getting into? Good-looking and weird, let’s play together on the weekends.
Maybe some dramas will get better gradually, and some dramas may start high but then slow down, so this article only represents the author's opinion on the first few episodes and is for reference only. If there is any subsequent slap in the face, we will inform you at any time.
"The Storm Chaser"
Broadcasting platform: CCTV 8, iQiyi
Premiere date: March 21
This type of drama series with top-notch actors has always received mixed reviews online, with a large number of one and five stars.
"Storm Chaser" poster
Let’s talk about the episode itself first. The production exceeds the current average level of spy war dramas in the Republic of China. It can be seen that all departments are working hard to produce high-quality dramas. The first two episodes explain the story background of the main characters through a series of events such as assassinations, rescues, and stock market games. In the third and fourth episodes, the male protagonist Wei Ruolai officially enters the "battlefield."
After Wei Ruolai joined the Central Bank, the pace accelerated and the content became more attractive. On the one hand, many other characters have been added, such as Shen Tunan, played by Wang Yang, who leads the central bank's acquisition of private banks' stock wars, which captures the excitement of financial wars in special times. On the other hand, Wei Ruolai has gradually integrated into the financial espionage department more smoothly.
The heroine Shen Jinzhen played by Li Qin is somewhat similar to Zhu Yizhen's setting in "Rebel". She is a wealthy daughter who joins the revolution, but Shen Jinzhen is more like the female agent who will appear in "Mission: Impossible" and is very skilled. However, there is some controversy about the plot of Shen Jinzhen's "betraying" his family without hesitation. She seemed to be a spy lurking in under the guise of the Shen family's daughter. It's okay to sacrifice yourself for your beliefs, but betraying your relatives and friends who are good to you for your beliefs will make such a character appear flat.
"Walking with the Phoenix"
Broadcasting platform: Tencent Video/Mango TV
Premiere date: March 18
Fantasy ancient puppets are a type of drama that has reached its bottleneck. Although "Traveling with the Phoenix" is not low in popularity, there is nothing surprising in terms of plot and other aspects.
"Walking with the Phoenix" poster
With Zhao Liying's current status in the world, there seems to be no need to take on this type of drama. She doesn't have the charming charm in "The Wind Blowing Pinellia", and she doesn't have the professional acting skills in "Article 20". All I can say about Lin Gengxin is that the industry’s requirements for male actors are too low. Why is no one asking him to do a good job in image management for this drama?
"Guess who I am"
Broadcast platform: Youku
Premiere date: March 22
Wang Ziqi is really a magical actor. Originally this was a brainless sweet drama. You don’t need to think about logic when watching it. You just need to see whether the pink bubbles that pop up are what you want. However, Wang Ziqi insisted on making me feel that the part that captured him was real. He is filming a serious suspense drama. His quest for power and revenge is not just for fun in an idol drama, but he is really working hard.
The setting of the series is not too novel. The heroine has special powers after "traveling through the book" and can become the person she wants to see most when looking at each other. Originally, she and her friends used this function to solve other people's problems and make money, but it didn't work for the male protagonist. She also misunderstood that the male protagonist was the villain in the current case. The misunderstandings and intersections caused the two to develop feelings for each other. .
Stills from "Guess Who I Am"
But fortunately, Wang Ziqi is very good at acting and has a strong sense of abstinence, rather than pretending to be abstinent. Zhang Yuxi is also beautiful and smart enough, not an actor pretending to be stupid. The plot is light-hearted and funny, mindless but interesting, just like the short skit above, and the various horse-catching incidents are purely for emotional value.
As an idol drama, its main function is to provide emotional value, so this drama does a good job and can be used to eat and laugh.
"write"
Broadcast platform: Tencent
Premiere date: March 20
Horizontal short dramas lasting more than ten minutes each episode have gradually become more sophisticated and developed to this day, and their replacement for long dramas is just around the corner. This does not mean that the level of short dramas has improved qualitatively, but that the long dramas themselves are standing still, while the short dramas are growing rapidly and brutally, and the gap between the two is constantly narrowing. This show is a great example.
Stills from "Writing"
The male and female actors Li Muchen and Ye Shengjia have worked in many long dramas.
Both in terms of persuasion and script logic, they are no worse than today's long dramas. Useless shots, lines, and cutscenes are removed, leaving only the parts that promote the plot. It is very worry-free to watch and does not require fast forwarding. The acting skills of the actors are good. Although it feels like facial makeup and horse-grabbing, the basic tasks are completed and they can convey the character's emotions and show the character's heart. Some of the scenes are very thoughtful, such as the scene where the heroine burns a book, which is a bit interesting.
If I have to choose ancient puppet dramas to watch, compared to long and boring dramas, I would rather watch short dramas with high plot efficiency and basically up to standard service scenes.
Netflix version of "The Three-Body Problem"
Broadcast platform: Netflix
Premiere date: March 21
Comparison is inevitable, and the Tencent version has its own merits.
The character design of the Netflix version has been greatly changed, the plot folding has been accelerated, it is closer to a commercial drama, and the industrial level is very online. If you haven't read the original work, you can enjoy it as an ordinary science fiction series.
Stills from the Netflix version of "The Three-Body Problem"
The Tencent version of the adaptation is more faithful to the original work, retaining to a certain extent the subtlety, restraint, and slowness of Eastern culture, and also retains more of Liu’s own “essence of thought.”
I personally recommend everyone to try this version of "The Three-Body Problem". Whether you are an industry creator or an ordinary audience, you can get your own complex feelings.
