Island Drama

Glee 2.08 Special Education

2010-12-03T15:11:00.001-05:00

gI'm sorry. I didn't have time to post a review for last week's episode, Furt, just yet. Thanksgiving week was quite hectic. But since this episode came out already, I decided to do this one first. Hopefully, last week's episode will be up soon!

Next to Never Been Kissed (Episode 6), this is my second favorite episode of the season. Not to say that recent episodes were not good but I really feel that this episode did a good job of providing good story for all of the characters.

spoilers under the cut…

As much as I love hearing Lea Michele sing, I’m glad that that this episode for sectionals changing things up. Though I still stand by the fact that the Glee club really needs to find a new way to make their entrance. Granted, the judges for these competitions change often (as evidenced by the poor state paid cynic) but as an avid follower of this episode, I have to wonder how they have yet to figure out a way to make an entrance without coming down the stairs. It was good the first time, acceptable the second time they did it at Regionals, but now it’s gotten kinda stale. That said, I still enjoyed watching Sam and Quinn perform their song. It was so adorable.

Dalton Academy strikes me as a type of Utopia for Kurt. It looks very pink and shiny at the first glance, but at a closer inspection, some flaws come to light. While I applaud the no-harassment attitude they have adopted, their lack of individuality is alarming. In fact, they remind me of male versions of the 50s Stepford Wives stereotype with an elitist air. Of course, this uniformity rule seems to be suspended for Blaine, who appears to be the only soloist in the Warblers. Not that I’m complaining of course. Blaine is a welcome addition to Glee because you can see how much fun he has singing and dancing in a way that doesn’t seem staged. Anyway, back to my original point. The lack of individuality at Dalton seems to be a way to set up Kurt’s return to McKinley. Kurt is a highly individualistic character and as much as I love the Dalton academy blazers, it doesn’t seem right to see Kurt outside of his fashionable wardrobe. After all, one of his first lines was “This is from the Marc Jacobs new collection!”

While I was hesitant to see how true Brittany and Artie’s relationship is going be given how it started, but I think that this episode did a good job of establishing their relationship in a very positive light. Their story around the magic comb is absolutely adorable and I really think it showed how well Artie understood Brittany and Brittany really had a chance to shine. I find Brittany hilarious when she spouts random one-liners that make absolutely no sense but she is at her best when she’s sincere.

The best part of this episode, in my opinion, is the budding friendship between Kurt and Rachel. They have always had so much potential as friends and it’s completely understandable that it never happened till now. As Rachel said, they were too busy competing against each other. And as lovely as their duet is, I really think that Kurt should have chosen a different song for his solo audition. If he were to truly take Rachel’s advice to heart, choosing a song that reflected his individuality, then he should have chosen a song that meant something to him, not singing the song that Rachel uses to fantasize about her own funeral. That said, I thought the two of them did an amazing job with the song.

As for Rachel herself, I’m glad she finally got some more character development. Her character is most enjoyable when she manages to balance sincerity for helping others with her inherent self-centeredness. Hopefully, her newfound awareness of her selfishness will stick. And while it was wrong of her to cheat with Puck, I personally did not find it as surprising as Finn did that she would turn to someone else when feeling vulnerable. She is dramatic and her self-confidence only extends to her talent and future career. She is constantly seeking assurance from others. Of course the fact that she felt the need to find this comfort from Puck was not a wise move AT ALL. Poor Finn is probably developing a complex.

As for Puck, watching Mr. Shue convince him to be the new Glee club recruiter really cracked me up. “Because you love the Glee club” line really seemed like Mr. Shue is brainwashing him instead of convincing him. Of course is bad-ass-ness seems to have taken a beating (literally and figuratively) but in typical Puck fashion, he’s more concerned about his face. Though a part of me felt bad that he got trapped in a Porta-Pottie for a day, the other part of me really enjoyed the poetic justice of it all, kind of like when he got Slushied in the first season.

Some other things:

The Hipsters! I totally cracked up when I saw the canes and wheelchairs. It really emphasized how old this glee club was. They did sound great.

The Warblers: Well, I’ve said it before, I love Blaine. They looked so adorable with their little dance. Along with the costumes, their performance had a really great old-school charm, even if the song isn’t. And watching the support The New Directions gave for this performance is really heart-warming.

The New Directions: This episode did a good job of getting the team to pull together like they did the first season but still keeping it fresh at the same time. I got to say that the new dance routines are a lot of fun. It is a big step up from all the swaying from last year. It gives their performance even a better energy.

Comments would be greatly appreciated!

Glee 2.07 The Substitute Review

2010-11-22T14:28:00.000-05:00

(spoilers under the cut)

I loved Gwyneth Paltrow as Holly Holliday. Her character is so blunt that it’s wonderful. She says exactly what everyone thinks of the other characters (Rachel’s uptightness, Terry’s bitchiness) in a matter-of-fact way, which makes it hard to not like her. Though I’ve got to say, she has to be the most knowledgeable substitute teacher I have ever seen. One of my favorite Holly teaching moments (aside from the singing cause well, it’s the singing) has to be her getting into a period costume to teach history. Just think about how many different costumes she must have in her closet. Not only that, but she’s awesome that she knows all their tricks. Watching her sliding over the buttered floor was one of my favorite moments in the episode. Near the end of the episode I realized that the awesomeness of this character is oddly similar to the awesomeness of April Rhodes. They’re both blonde, they come in, sing a number in the choir room and win over most of the Glee members, and in the end, the character is still somewhat damaged but came away learning something.

Ah. The return of the outrageously large Cheerios trophy as well as a Sue determined to take over the school through careful, nefarious planning. How I have missed the evil snarky Sue. It’s when she has the best lines. Still, the slow motion shot of Principal Figgins getting sprayed with spit made me cringe. The poor guy. You don’t show up for a couple episodes, you get sneezed on and get super sick. What I don’t get is why this girl isn’t in quarantine. She’s just spreading her disease all over school. And I am surprised that Sue didn’t try harder to get rid of the Bieste. After all, if she fired the Bieste, then the school can keep the football team and she can get what she wants. But I suppose that Sue can only go after one teacher at a time and this episode is all about attacking Will.

Oh poor Mr. Shue. You can see the doom written all over his face after getting sneezed on. But you gotta say, the mini-Glee clubbers are a wonderful result of his illness. They were all so damned cute. I particularly loved mini-Mercedes. Though I do have to say that the initial portrayal of Mr. Shue in this episode is kind of unfair. While he does do a lot of the older songs in the series, one of the first songs he ever does in the series is Gold Digger, which shows that he is aware of and appreciates popular music. So I don’t think that Mr. Shue would be so unaware of current music that he needs to go to Holly Holliday for help to make “Singing in the Rain” hip and modern.

There is a reason that I haven’t missed Terry. I don’t know how but she never ceases to amaze me with how deranged she is. All her baby talk made me want to cringe, and that was BEFORE she tried to take Mr. Shue’s temperature from behind. I was so proud of Mr. Shue for not getting pulled into all her crazy, until he didn’t. But thankfully, he only dipped a toe in all that crazy before coming back out of it.

As for Rachel, she is really becoming a one-dimensional character this season. While she has always been a rather self-centered person, she had these other qualities about her that made her likeable enough despite that self-centeredness. This season, I found that most of the time, I just wanted her to shut up whenever she talked because everything that comes out of her mouth is “Me, me, me.” And this episode just went and confirmed that. AGAIN. Which is why I was so glad that Holly Holliday called her on being so uptight.

One last thing that I don’t really get: If Karofsky is so scared about other people finding out that he is gay, why is he throwing flirtatious winks at Kurt at lunch where anyone can witness it?

Musical Sequences:

“Forget You”: This is a pretty Glee musical moment, jammin’ in the choir room. While the musical number had a very fun energy to it and Gwyneth Paltrow is amazing, the visuals are pretty much what you get in every other episode.

“Make ‘Em Laugh”: This is actually my second favorite musical number in this episode. I’ve never actually seen Singing in the Rain so I have nothing to compare it to but it is rather hilarious. You could tell right away that it’s going to be a dream sequence because the scene is set up to start so abruptly. I love watching Matt Morrison and Henry Shum dance and they do comedy dance sequences so well that you can’t help but laugh.

“Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag”: I don’t know what it is about this number that puts me off. I wanted to like it but I felt like it was missing this spark. I can’t quite say what it is about it though. The costumes were ok. The dancing, while not the best compared to some of the other cast members, was decent; and the vocals were enjoyable but it was definitely missing something. (Amendment: After watching the Hot Honey Rag number from the Chicago movie again, I realize now that this dance sequence lacks the sauciness of the original. View here for comparison: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEzlqrPsRvA)

“Singing in the Rain/Umbrella”: This was really my favorite musical number. The choreography, the costumes, and the music all fit together really well. In fact, this is one of the better mashups so far in this season. And really, who doesn’t like the idea of splashing around in the rain?

Endless Love (TW): Episode 4

2010-11-22T00:43:00.002-05:00

Endless Love Episode 4 Review:

Haha. I found the whole “You’re in my class?” incident to be hilarious because it’s happened to me before. Though I think the writers really misnamed the class since the concept explained in class (the eyes cannot see what the brain doesn’t recognize) seems like it’s more of a philosophy question than it is a quantum physics question. And really? Was it necessary to use this as yet another opportunity to pound the true-love-ness between these two, complete with a pleasant-voiced professor narrating? Is the red thread story not enough? That said, I did like this episode.

Watching Rui En torture No-Q with his misconceptions was so entertaining! She plays the part of the smug manipulative girl so well, No-Q is just so gullible and sullen in those scenes, and Jing Hao is so oblivious. Poor Jing Hao looked so lost when No-Q finally lost his cool. That much headshaking can’t be good for someone recovering from a head injury. But I loved how No-Q and Rui En used this incident to form the basis of their friendship.

Rui En has officially won me over. And I say this even before she admitted her feelings for Jing Hao at the end of the episode. I realize that my previous posts have obviously made me out to be much more sympathetic towards Jing Hao. Her speech about how the human heart is a complex thing, made up of hundreds of different types of hearts, was delivered exceptionally well. It was completely honest and heartfelt, communicating how helpless and confused she is in the face of her feelings for Min Shuo. She was also really wonderful when she yelled at Jing Hao to snap him out of his self-condemnation and when she confronted him about completely ignoring her for days.

Will Pan has really embraced his role as the dark tortured hero of the story and I’m liking it. When his father is admitted to the hospital, his quiet admittance to his fear of facing his father condemnation was completely heart wrenching. I think he has definitely improved a lot, even compared to the last episode. His scenes are much more natural compared to the first episode. Though I don’t completely understand why Jing Hao decided that he must stay away from Rui En, to a degree that others may consider cruel, it is completely in character for him to make that decision. The reason the writers provided was very weak and poorly explained. He wants to stay away from her because he can’t do anything for her but at this point, they are simply friends. I don’t know what kind of friends Jing Hao’s had before but friends help each other when they need it, without asking for retribution. So maybe he’s influenced by the fact that he likes her but even then, his character is polite enough that he should at the very least have told her that his father is fine before shutting her out of his life. If a complete stranger did for him what she did, it would still be common courtesy to say thank you, I’m grateful, here’s an update.

I’m really enjoying the complexity and humanity of the parental figures in this drama. They are just as flawed and haunted as you and I. Though Jing Hao’s father comes across as a particularly naïve old man with Alzheimer’s, the audience is also introduced to his dark, destructive side when he is plied with alcohol. And though Rui En’s father initially presented as a kind, sagely character that his daughter looks up to, we later find out that his advice and generosity actually stems from a deep profound guilt that continues to haunt him. Sadly enough, Min Shuo’s mother, the only mother figure in the drama so far, is very one-dimensional and not motherly at all. She is flighty and callous, often coming across as a middle-aged woman with all the cares and concerns of a teenage girl, albeit with a much larger shopping budget.

Min Shuo is a rather pitiful character. He appears to be this successful doctor with a flock of girls clamoring to date him. But then you come to realize that his mother is rather narcissistic, all the girls he dates are beyond shallow, and the one girl who shows interest in him who isn’t shallow (Rui En) moves on by the time he realizes how wonderful she is. Of course, some of this is his fault but the mere fact that he hasn’t become aware of this at an earlier point in his life is rather sad.

Oh and I just found out that the story originated from Korean writers so all this melodrama in an idol drama makes so much more sense now.

Endless Love (TW): Episode 3

2010-11-21T22:25:00.001-05:00

Endless Love Episode 3 Review:

This episode is kind of like watching a baby learning how to walk. It’s starting to find its legs and making a tentative foray into the world of walking. Thankfully the pacing has finally started to pick up. One thing that’s really helped is that the characters are finally starting to be honest with each other. Rather than hiding everything and not talking about it, they are finally communicating, and coming to understand each other. It’s quite a relief to find that there is a solid bridge that is being built between all the characters after 2 episodes.

One of the biggest differences about this particular episode is that Rui En has finally started to grow up. She decided to give up on her unrequited love for Min Shuo, and as a result, learn how to become her own person in his presence. In deciding that she wants to be treated as an adult, she also begins to act more like an adult. I liked how Sandrinne balanced this new budding maturity with her character’s playful nature.

Rui En’s budding friendship with Jing Hao is wonderful to watch. Of course, there are the requisite moments of meaningful gazes between the two of them in order to hint a future romantic relationship, which can get a little clichéd. But other than that, their playful banter so adorable. Their relationship reminds me of two children who can’t resist poking fun at each other. It’s like a breath of fresh air to watch Jing Hao enjoy himself since Jing Hao’s character has been so melancholic for so long. That is not to say that this episode is without melancholy but their relationship makes that sadness more bearable.

No-Q remains one of the most entertaining characters in the drama. Watching him leap to his friend’s defense was endearing but at the same time, watching him talk himself to tears with a self-drawn conclusion of what went on is adorable. The whole time I was watching this scene, part of me wished Rui En would just clap a hand over his mouth so he can get the truth of what’s going on but a bigger part of me just wanted to see where he would go with his tirade. And also, his face when the cops invaded their illegal street vending block is hilarious. You know you’ve been doing this for too long when the sight of cops inflicts feelings of exasperation rather than panic.

The more that is revealed of Jing Hao’s family situation, the more I feel for him. Watching him get torn apart by his drunk father is utterly heartbreaking. It’s bad enough for a child when your mother dies trying to save you, but to hear the words come out of your father’s mouth repeatedly like that must inflict some pretty deep psychological scars. It’s easy to see now why his character acts as if he has the weight of the world on his back, and why he takes responsibility for every fault. The writers offer a good explanation for his budding martyr complex. I think that Will Pan’s acting has shown a lot of improvement since the first episode. The first scene he had with his father in Episode 1 didn’t really make me feel much even though the audience was supposed to feel his pain. But this crying scene with his father’s yelling actually made me tear a little.

And of course, the huge plot device of Rui En’s father being the one who killed Jing Hao’s mother is introduced in this episode, even before the two title characters get together. This of course means that their relationship is doomed even before it begins. I’m interested in how this ends up playing out, since both Rui En and Jing Hao’s mothers died on the same day (still not sure if it’s the same year yet).

Mod Announcement

2010-11-21T22:06:00.000-05:00

Due to time constraints of being a full time student, I will be doing more reviews from now on rather than recaps. I may decide to go back and do more recaps in the future but I think I like doing reviews more. I may also occasionally review an episode from US TV series but since those tend to air with breaks, their updates may be more sporadic.

Feel free to leave a comment.

Endless Love (TW): Episode 2

2010-11-14T22:23:00.002-05:00

Jing Hao and No-Q are back on the streets peddling goods. Jing Hao has apparently since given up the bootleg handbag selling as he is no longer pressed for money. No-Q tries to get Jing Hao to go home and nurse his wounds but Jing Hao is adamant in staying. Time is money after all. Rui En shows up to give him medication for his bruises (many hours later if we’re to assume that this is the same medication she picked up at school). While Jing Hao initially turns away her first aid supplies, she tells him to shut up
and applies the ointment for him in an amusing altercation. After realizing how intimate her actions are, she embarrassedly shoves the medication at him and runs off, slipping and falling in the process, as Jing Hao and No-Q watch on. Jing Hao gives a small smile as Rui En makes her way back to her car and berates herself for such an embarrassing feat. Meanwhile, No-Q teases Jing Hao about making a new “friend,” implying that there is more to their relationship than Jing Hao is willing to admit to.

In the meantime, Rui En makes her way to Jing Hao’s house with a fruit basket. She gets in easily as the front gate is once again secured by a spoon and chain. Mr. Liang (Jing Hao’s father) finds her and is initially suspicious, but quickly warms to her once she presents him with the fruit basket. Mr. Liang starts to complain of hunger like a child so Rui En, at a loss as to what to do, makes him dinner. The caretaker lady comes back to find the front gate open and runs alarmed into the house. Mr. Liang introduces Rui En as his friend while he happily continues eating. Back at Jing Hao’s street stall, he notes that the bruise ointment is working quite well.

We quickly jump back to Jing Hao’s house where Rui En is trying to explain to the caretaker that she is trying to make up for a wrong she did Jing Hao without telling him. The caretaker is delighted but mistakenly believes that Rui En has a crush on him. Rui En tries fervently to explain but loses track of what she was going to say when she sees the scorch marks on the walls. When Jing Hao gets home later that night, Mr. Liang tells him, half-asleep, that Zhi Shu came by today. Jing Hao is surprised but puts it off to his father’s illness.

The next morning, a bunch of students are gathered around a bulletin posting for teaching internships, Jing Hao amongst them. When he spots his name on the list, he smiles happily. In the meantime, Rui En shows up at Jing Hao’s house with a few construction workers to repaint the walls. She ends up taking Mr. Liang out for the day while the renovators work under the supervision of the caretaker, taking care of not only the walls but also redecorating.

When Jing Hao calls home to talk to his father after the construction workers leave, the caretaker, who is clearly very bad at lying, tries to fib he has yet to come back. However, they are almost immediately interrupted by Rui En as she announces their return. Jing Hao is confused as to why there is another person his house but the caretaker quickly claims that it is simply another neighbor come over to gossip. Rui En, it seems, does not want Jing Hao to know that she has been helping him out. The caretaker agrees to keep her secret since it is for a good cause. Mr. Liang confuses Rui En for Zhi Shu yet again, leading Rui En to ask the caretaker who that is. As it turns out, Mr. Liang calls all young ladies Zhi Shu. Zhi Shu, as we had learned earlier, is Jing Hao’s mother, and had passed away when he was very young. Later that day, Rui En is home and talking to a photo of her own mother, who had also passed away when she was a young girl.

Jing Hao returns home and is surprised to see it newly renovated. When he questions the caretaker, she explains that a friend of hers heard about his situation and wanted to help. Her friend, however, does not want to make himself/herself known so Jing Hao asks that the caretaker pass on his thanks. The caretaker, clearly uncomfortable in lying, hurries off before Jing Hao could ask any more questions. Jing Hao enters his father’s room to tell him that he finally landed an internship. He hopes that once he becomes a gym teacher, he will be able to offer a better life for his father.

The next day is the day of Rui En’s art gallery opening. Mrs. Li (Li Min Shuo’s mom) is there bright and early, oohing and aahing over Rui En’s paintings. Mrs. Li is like a teenage girl, fishing for details about Rui En’s father. Rui En puts up with it fairly well, showing no signs of discomfort, before Mrs. Li leaves for a lecture. Meanwhile, No-Q drags Jing Hao to a boutique to buy Jing Hao a suit in celebration of his internship. Jing Hao is uncomfortable and points out that he doesn’t need a suit as a gym teacher but No-Q pulls the friendship card and they begin to look around. No-Q selects an outfit but after hearing the price from the saleslady, Jing Hao gives him an out and they quickly leave. Later on in the streets, No-Q spots the red skirt Jing Hao ruined on a mannequin and can’t help but exclaim at the price. Jing Hao’s story finally comes out and No-Q is outraged on behalf of his friend. They bicker, No-Q wanting to call her and yell at her, Jing Hao just wanting to let the past be the past. Jing Hao spots a poster for Rui En’s art showing, reminding him that it starts that day. He is pulled out of his thoughts, however, when No-Q starts to tease him for having a crush on Rui En.

Later in the day, Jing Hao shows up at the art showing right before they are about to close for the day. Rui En is inside, waiting for Min Shuo to show up. She is ready to give up hope when Jing Hao walks in. The coordinator mistakes him for the person that Rui En is waiting for while the two stand in awkward silence. In her disappointment, Rui En comes across as somewhat belligerent as she asks him if he’s here to see the paintings, prompting Jing Hao to immediately turn away from her and stare intently at the closest painting. Rui En, amused by his actions, walks over and teasingly asks him what he thinks about her paintings. Jing Hao immediately answers “Not bad,” but when prompted to explain what he means by “Not bad,” he confesses that he doesn’t understand too much about art. Rui En teases him for being dishonest, leading to a discussion of their classmate status. It turns out that Jing Hao had noticed her taking pictures of him practicing taekwondo the other day. They have their first tentative heart-to-heart as Jing Hao explains that he had to save up for two years before starting college. Rui En replies that though she doesn’t have to worry about money, she, like many of her peers, has yet to find meaning in her life. When she grabs his hand, it is shown to the audience that their hands are linked by a red thread, but invisible to the characters themselves. Rui En guides him around the gallery, voicing her faith in the story of the red thread. The paintings all have a line of red running through them, showing just how much this story means to her.

As their tour comes to an end, Min Shuo shows up with a girl, causing Rui En to immediately let go of Jing Hao’s hand. Min Shuo mistakes Jing Hao for Rui En’s boyfriend. Though Rui En tries to deny it, Min Shuo doesn’t seem to believe her. Min Shuo also makes his relationship official with the girl he brings right there in the art gallery and invites both Rui En and Jing Hao to dinner. Rui En voices her disappointment that Min Shuo is not even planning on looking at the paintings before leaving. Min Shuo brushes it off, promising to come back another day since his girlfriend is hungry.

At the restaurant, Min Shuo regales the table with inappropriate embarrassing stories about Rui En as a child, apparently unable to read the sullen expressions on Rui En and Jing Hao’s faces. When asked to clarify their relationship once again, Jing Hao claims to be her boyfriend while Rui En denies it. Jing Hao, unable to stand for the way that Min Shuo has been treating Rui En, tells Min Shuo off from his position as her “boyfriend.”

After dinner, Min Shuo leaves with his girlfriend. As soon as the couple has driven off, Rui En starts in on Jing Hao for pretending to be her boyfriend. Jing Hao explains that he didn’t want Min Shuo to treat her as a diversion. Rui En is quick to defend him but Jing Hao cuts her off. The reason she is so angry, according to Jing Hao, is because she believes that Min Shuo is the person she is connected to by a red string. When Rui En heard the story from her mother as a child, she had gone to visit Min Shuo at the hospital, tied a red string around their wrists, and made him promise to marry her when they grew up. When Rui En comes back to herself from the memories, Jing Hao is still in the middle of berating her for letting Min Shuo treat her poorly and for not confessing her feelings. After all, he claims, how is Min Shuo supposed to know her feelings for him if she doesn’t tell him? Rui En tries to get him to stop, but Jing Hao barrels on, derisively dismissing her naïve belief in story of the red thread.

Meanwhile, Min Shuo voices unhappiness in his car but is unsure of the reason. Rui En, on the other hand, wanders the streets tearfully lamenting the fact that she is the only one who remembers the promise that had been made when she was a child. At home, Jing Hao recalls how he met Rui En but begins to feel badly for how harsh he was that night.

The next day, Jing Hao returns home to see his father unraveling Rui En’s ruined skirt and tries to wrestle it form them. When the caretaker shows up, Jing Hao is still playfully trying to get the skirt from his father, wrapped in a tangle of red yarn. Rui En, on the other hand, is at the art gallery with her newspaper friend, talking about the showing and fantasizing about their future. She suddenly gets a call from Mr. Liang’s caretaker because Mr. Liang has been throwing a tantrum all day, asking to see Rui En and complaining of hunger.

We cut to Jing Hao, who is teaching at the taekwondo studio. Guan Zhang is on the phone with those in charge of the underground fighting, who want Jing Hao back again, even going as far as raising the compensation for participation. No-Q points out that if Jing Hao is discovered for participating in the fights, he would be disqualified from his internship. Guan Zhang understands but the underground fighting people are putting pressure on him as well.

Next, we see that Rui En is at Jing Hao’s house, watching as Mr. Liang eats. She invites the caretaker to eat as well but the caretaker is too busy bemoaning the fact that all this good food is going to ruin Mr. Liang for her own cooking. Rui En apologizes but, with their argument still fresh in mind, she voices doubts about visiting again soon. At the same time, Jing Hao arrives outside the art gallery and calls Rui En to apologize for going too far the other night, wishing her the best with Min Shuo. While Rui En is on the phone, Mr. Liang extracts one of the posters for Rui En’s art showing from her bag, no doubt so Jing Hao can see it later and realize what is going on.

When Mr. Song (Rui En’s father) returns home later that night, Rui En is ready to greet him with a dramatic reading from the newspaper about his charity work. She proudly tells him about her successful attempts to make up for the wrong she did. Mr. Song, knowing his daughter, realizes that all this sucking up is because she needs money.

In the meantime, Jing Hao is once again peddling his wares on the streets but tonight, he is distracted by a couple admiring cute little stuffed owls. With a distracted smile on his face indicating that he isn’t completely there, Jing Hao starts to wonder if maybe he should engage in a relationship. Afte rall, life is kind of boring right now and a relationship should make things more interesting. When No-Q first hears these mutterings, he is surprised. Clearly, he must be mishearing things because Jing Hao has long since made it clear that relationships are out of the question until he became a teacher and had saved up money for a house. When No-Q realizes that Jing Hao is serious, he is quick to jump on board and help him find someone in his own outrageous manner.

The next morning on campus, Jing Hao comes across Rui En painting in the studio. He stares at her for a few moments until she sees him. He waves to her like a five year old, still half entranced, and promptly runs into the door as he turns to leave. When Rui En shows up at the gallery, she is happily surprised to see that both her father and Min Shuo are there.

They go for dinner, where Mr. Song brings up the fact that Min Shuo has once again gotten in trouble for bringing in a homeless child off the streets and treating him at the hospital. Mr. Song explains that he is planning on setting up a hospital for low income patients, and hopes to draw doctors like Min Shuo in. Using this opportunity, Mr. Song tries to get Min Shuo and Rui En engaged. Min Shuo is at a loss for words. When they are alone after Mr. Song leaves, Rui En tries to give Min Shuo an out, while trying and failing to hide a smile of happiness. Min Shuo shoots her down pretty quickly, not only stating that he thinks of her as a sister, but also that he doesn’t even consider her a woman. Rui En is devastated and orders a bottle of hard liquor after Min Shuo leaves.

Meanwhile, No-Q is hard at work trying to find his friend a match. Jing Hao, however, has no interest in any of them since he is clearly taken with Rui En. He is saved by the phone when Rui En drunk dials him, mistaking him for Min Shuo and tearfully confesses all her feelings. Anxious about her safety, Jing Hao asks for her location and runs off to find her, abandoning is vendor. On his way to find her, Jing Hao realizes that this is the first time that he has ever been this worried for someone other than his father. When he gets to where Rui En has passed out in front of the art gallery, he gathers her up in his arms.

After getting her in a cab, Jing Hao calls Min Shuo for her home address. In their conversation, Min Shuo lets it slip that Mr. Song tried to get the two of them engaged that night. It is clear that there is no lost love between Min Shuo and Jing Hao. Not wanting to take her home passed out, Jing Hao stops at a café nearby. When Rui En wakes up, Jing Hao explains what happens and begins to lecture her once again for liking someone like Li Min Shuo. Rui En, still somewhat drunk, mortified that Min Shuo learned of how she got drunk and is once again misinterpreting her relationship with Jing Hao, and still hurting, lashes out at Jing Hao, accusing him of falling for her just because she took pity on him. Jing Hao only watches numbly as Rui En teeters off, losing her balance and falling before continuing on her way.

Later that night, Jing Hao nurses his broken heart, drinking bottled beer on the curb, trying to laugh it off but unable to stop the tears. The next morning, he skips his milk deliveries and finds a fully stocked fridge. He tries to express his gratitude for the caretaker’s apparent generosity until he sees Rui En’s poster his father placed on the table. The secret out, the caretaker confesses everything. Recalling what Rui En had said the night before, Jing Hao angrily yells at the caretaker for lying to him.

Later in the evening, Rui En gets a call from the gallery, saying that someone wants to buy one of her paintings. She walks into the gallery elated, but is greeted with the sight of Jing Hao breathing raggedly. When she sees his face, it is once again bruised and scraped, clearly having participated in another underground fight. Jing Hao demands to buy a painting but Rui En is quick to dismiss him, saying that he doesn’t have the money. Realizing how harsh that sounds and the look on his face, she mutters an apology as Jing Hao’s anger mounts. Throwing the cash into the air, Jing Hao angrily demands a painting, any painting, of equivalent value, trying to hurt and humiliate her the same way she did him. He clearly hits his mark. Unwilling to take anymore degradation, she slaps him. Jing Hao, his body already beaten and exhausted from the fight earlier that night, collapses onto the floor.

My Comments:

This episode has a lot more light-hearted moments, which I enjoyed. The love story portion seems to be moving along fairly quickly, as the two main characters seem to be on the precipice of something more. Their relationship appears to be much more solid by the end of the next episode.

I am glad to see a bit more development for other characters, especially No-Q. While I didn’t pay much attention to him at first, this episode has made him a wonderful supporting character. Though he makes wonderful comic relief, he is also clearly capable of handling the more serious moments, showing himself to be a wonderful friend when he was trying to buy Jing Hao a suit and in his outrage on behalf of his friend.

Another relationship that I am quickly beginning to like is the dynamic between Rui En and Jing Hao’s father. She seems to have a deep affection for this naïve old man almost immediately. Surprisingly, I actually enjoy their dynamic more than the dynamic between father and son. Perhaps this is because most of the interactions between Jing Hao and his father are weighed down by guilt, regrets, and responsibility. Furthermore, most of their screen time together consists of Jing Hao talking to his sleeping father. Of course, this is more due to circumstance, since Jing Hao spends most of his time earning money. This is one of the reasons that I was so happy to see Jing Hao trying to wrestle the red skirt from his father.

As for the character of Min Shuo, I still can’t get a clear reading on him. The writers are clearly trying to make him into some sort of a hero, with the story of how he provided medical attention to a homeless child despite knowing how much trouble he would get into for it. But at the same time, he appears to be so terribly bad at reading people. For example, in the scene where he is having dinner with Jing Hao and Rui En, he just tells all these truly embarrassing stories of his times together with Rui En when they were children, completely failing to see or simply ignoring the unhappy expressions on Rui En and Jing Hao’s faces. He just comes across as so completely callous in his insensitivity.

Another character that I am rather unsure of is Rui En’s father. With his daughter, he plays the part of the doting father very well. However, he appears to be rather manipulative. The way that he steered the conversation during dinner with Min Shuo and Rui En clearly implied that the hospital he is planning on building is to lure Min Shuo in, to bribe him into marrying his daughter. Or maybe that’s just me being paranoid.

As for Rui En, while she has grown on me some, I cannot completely embrace her character just yet simply because she is so harsh on Jing Hao, who is clearly the most sympathetic character in the story. To me, she is still a spoiled little rich girl with a good heart that is often eclipsed by her rashness. Of course, this gives her plenty of room for growth and I hope that the writers take advantage of it.

Endless Love (TW): Episode 1

2010-11-08T01:23:00.028-05:00

I've been putting off watching Endless Love until more episodes came out. I didn't know too much about it beforehand except for this scene right here, which I caught in a trailer back before the series started. And while the first episode hasn't really hooked me yet, I'm told it gets better. And surprisingly, a lot more melodramatic than I expected from a Taiwanese idol drama. More on that later.

Episode 1 Recap

We start off with an introduction to the average day of Liang Jing Hao: he delivers goat milk early in the morning, teaches children taekwondo in between classes, and spends his evenings selling clothes as a street vendor. After making a successful sale on a pair of jeans, Jing Hao makes a call to his friend No-Q. No-Q, as it turns out, is coming down the street hefting a huge suitcase of really good knockoff handbags. He excitedly shows them to Jing Hao, ruminating about how much money they can earn off of them. Jing Hao, on the other hand, admonishes him in hushed voices since selling knockoff is illegal. However, No-Q is quick to remind Jing Hao that street vending is also illegal. After some pleading, Jing Hao agrees to No-Q selling his bags but is determined to stay out of it. Any further discussion is then interrupted by the arrival of the police and everyone scatters with their wares.

As Jing Hao is making his getaway with his clothing rack, he almost runs into our heroine, Song Rui En, who is busy chattering away on her phone. After narrowly missing her, part of her skirt gets caught on his clothing rack. As he keeps running, the yarn starts to unravel and Rui En is alarmed to find that her skirt is progressively getting shorter. She turns around and shouts for Jing Hao to stop and wait but Jing Hao is still too focused on getting away from the police to heed her cries. After a particularly loud yell on Rui En’s part, Jing Hao finally stops running as she angrily points out that he has caught onto her skirt. It is interesting to note that the yarn of Rui En’s skirt is red. According to Chinese legends, the matchmaker god ties an invisible red thread around the ankles of a man and a woman who are destined to be together. This legend is somewhat similar the idea of soulmates. And if the implications of this particular scene aren’t obvious enough, the string of yarn is given a glow right before we cut to the opening sequence.

While Rui En continues to berate him for not listening to her cries for him to stop, Jing Hao sheepishly apologizes but can’t hold in a smile when he realizes he situation. This incenses Rui En even more and she continues yelling at him in embarrassment. While Rui En changes into jeans taken from his rack of clothes, Jing Hao retrieves a shoe that Rui En had lost in her race to catch him. After she finishes getting dressed, Rui En demands that Jing Hao pay for her damaged skirt. Upon hearing the price (25,000 TWD or a bit over $800 USD), Jing Hao’s face falls but he promises to pay her back. Satisfied, she hobbles over to where he stands to retrieve her shoe and prepares to leave. After a couple of steps, however, she starts limping and, loses her balance just as she passes Jing Hao. Jing Hao catches her and after they have a moment, Rui En starts berating him again. Jing Hao, finally fed up with her, wordlessly picks her up and carries her to the curb despite her protests. Upon inspecting her foot, it becomes clear that it was scraped somewhere along the way and Jing Hao quickly dashes off to the pharmacy for first aid supplies. Rui En watches, appearing to be pleased by the attention.

We cut to the next scene and Jing Hao is back, tending to her foot. As he finishes up, Rui En accuses Jing Hao be an experienced player, using his attentiveness to draw girls in. Jing Hao initially confused but quickly becomes amused the further Rui En gets in her rant. Unimpressed by his jovial attitude, Rui En continues on to demand proof that Jing Hao will indeed pay her back, especially since he doesn’t look particularly well off. Having clearly hit a sore spot, Jing Hao’s face becomes serious and agrees to whatever proof that she demands of him.

Jing Hao escorts Rui En back to her car. Before driving off Rui En once again reminds him to transfer money to her bank account the next morning. Jing Hao acknowledges her reminder and drops his bag of first aid supplies into the passenger’s seat through the window before walking off with his clothing rack. It turns out that Jing Hao had picked a lollipop while he was at the pharmacy. Rui En can’t help but soften in light of his thoughtfulness. She begins to feel bad about how harsh her words were but quickly shakes them off since he had indeed ruined her skirt.

We jump to No-Q trying to convince a taekwondo studio owner, Guan Zhang (not his actual name; it simply means studio owner but since he is not actually named, this is how I will reference this character from now on) to let him participate in an underground fight. Guan Zhang refuses since No-Q obviously lacks the skills to win the fight, unlike Jing Hao. And as if his name has magically summoned him, Jing Hao arrives. No-Q and Guan Zhang try to butter Jing Hao up to convince him to participate in the underground fights, ultimately throwing the fight in favor of another participant. Jing Hao, who has his own ethics, admonishes the two for trying to earn fast money in the underground fights and adamantly refuses to participate.

Now we go back to Rui En as she is trying to sneak into the house but is caught by her father. Rui En tries to get out of any intense scolding by acting innocent and cute, even resorting to pointing out her foot injury. Momentarily distracted over her foot, Rui En’s father starts fussing but after she denies needing medical attention, he goes back to his lecture. Halfway through, it becomes clear that his admonishments are only half-hearted and moments later, he is telling her to go off to bed. In her room, we learn that Rui En had asked for Jing Hao’s student ID card as insurance for her skirt money. Upon realizing that they are students at the same university, she groans and wishes she hadn’t been so harsh with Jing Hao. Picking up her phone, Rui En begins to write a text to thank Jing Hao for taking care of her tonight but still convinced that he is a player, she decides to write something else instead so he wouldn’t think she is attracted to him.

As Rui En is composing her new message, we catch a glimpse of Jing Hao’s father as he stares off into the distance as a woman watches the road anxiously from behind him. We cut back to Jing Hao as he gets the text from Rui En, now once again reminding him to wire her money the next day in exchange for his ID card. Despondent, he continues around the corner and we see that the lady from earlier is his father’s caretaker. She rushes up to him and scolds him for coming back so late. It is revealed that the caretaker is looking after Jing Hao’s father for a reduced fee because Jing Hao is a good person. However, her generosity is limited as they are both from poor backgrounds. She asks for her wages but with Rui En’s reminder still fresh in mind, he awkwardly asks if he could pay her a couple days later. While she is initially opposed to the idea, she relents after seeing his face. She gives Jing Hao two more days to come up with the money or else she’s quitting.

After the caretaker leavers, Jing Hao approaches his father, who has not moved or shown any indication of having heard the exchange. Noticing that the ring his father wears around his neck is hanging out, Jing Hao reaches over to help him tuck it back in but his father catches his hand halfway there and angrily throws it away. He tucks it back into his shirt himself, watching Jing Hao warily the whole time. Jing Hao pacifies him and asks cautiously, “What’s wrong?” Jing Hao’s father replies that he is waiting for Zhi Shu. Jing Hao tries to tell his father that Zhi Shu has gone to heaven and will not be coming back, but his father, not understanding, asks where Heaven is. As Jing Hao escorts his father back into the house, his father turns to him to invite him in for dinner, not realizing that this is his son. Jing Hao, trying to cover up his emotions, leans over to hug his father tightly and agrees to dinner.

Later on in the night, Jing Hao grabs a picture frame from the nightstand as his father sleeps. After a few moments of simply staring at the photo of his family, we learn that Zhi Shu is actually Jing Hao’s mother.

The next morning, Jing Hao is up bright and early once again to make his milk deliveries. Along the way, his mind drifts off to Rui En’s skirt again. Not knowing what else to do, he asks his milk delivery boss for advanced salary. His boss refuses, as this is not the first time that Jing Hao has asked for an advance. The other employees are complaining that the boss only allows Jing Hao advances and the company is also facing financial difficulty.

We cut to Rui En, who is helping out a friend by standing in as a photographer for the school paper’s special edition on the taekwondo team. When they get to the practice are, she notices that Jing Hao is already there, practicing with the punching bag. Intrigued, she starts taking lots of pictures of him. When Rui En is going through the pictures with her friend later, the friend can’t help but comment on how many pictures she took of Jing Hao. Rui En quickly defends herself, claiming that Jing Hao had the best form. Her friend agrees enthusiastically. It turns out Jing Hao is quite well known amongst his peers for having superior athletic aptitude and rumor has it, many girls are crushing on him.

Jing Hao, who is still trying to figure out what to do about his financial troubles, checks his bank account. He texts Rui En asking for an extension, and Rui En cynically comments on his inability to pay to herself. Later that night, Jing Hao watches as No-Q easily sells his knockoff handbags for a huge profit from his street vendor. Motivated by his need for money, Jing Hao pushes his ethics aside and starts peddling the handbags. Not long after, however, the police raid once again. Jing Hao hooks the handbag he is holding onto to his clothing rack and runs. After turning the corner onto another street, he sees into Rui En once again. When Rui En catches sight of him, she approaches him and begins to tell him off for not following through on his promise to pay her back. Confused as to why she was there, he asks her if she was waiting for him to get her money back. Rui En finds this idea absurd and proudly points to a sign at the end of the street. This is where she will have an art exhibition for a week, a rarity for a student. Seeing her so happy, Jing Hao can’t help but comment on how cute she looks when she smiles. Rui En, ever the cynic when it comes to Jing Hao, believes that his compliment is meant to make her forget his debt to her. Though Jing Hao denies it, Rui En bulldozes on. Seeing the knockoff hanging from his clothing rack, she questions his trustworthiness when he is capable of selling knockoffs. Jing Hao’s pride is clearly hurt so he flatly tells her that she will get her money tomorrow.

Home again, Jing Hao grabs Rui En’s ruined skirt, which he had kept, and throws it into the garbage can in anger. But feeling that his acts were petty, he quickly removed it. The next morning, Jing Hao goes to the bank to transfer the money to Rui En and sends her a text confirming it. Rui En receives the text at a restaurant just as Li Min Shuo greets her. Min Shuo jokingly teases her for having received a text from a secret boyfriend, which Rui En is quick to deny. Min Shuo doesn’t quite believe her denial and the more that he doesn’t believe it, the more upset Rui En seems to get.

Now we move back to Jing Hao, who is trying to convince his father’s caretaker to stay. She refuses, as she has her own family and troubles to consider, as they both come from poor backgrounds. Frustrated by the helplessness of his situation, Jing Hao punches his fist into the metal grating of the door. Jing Hao’s father offers him his candy in an attempt to cheer Jing Hao up. Brought back to reality by his father’s actions, Jing Hao calms down just as his father asks for Zhi Shu again.

Cutting back to Rui En, she is now seated at a table for lunch with her father, Min Shuo, and Min Shuo’s mother. While Min Shuo’s mother tries to flirt with Rui En’s father, the conversation quickly steers to Rui En’s art exhibition. Rui En excitedly asks if Min Shuo will be going. After securing his confirmation, she realizes that the adults are both looking at her so Rui En asks Min Shuo’s mother if she will be going to her art exhibit. Min Shuo’s mom also agrees but when Rui En’s father makes it known that he will be busy on the agreed upon date, her resulting disappointment is palpable. Min Shuo, taking pity on his mother, points out her disappointment and tries to hook up the parents. This is met by awkward silence by the Song family as Min Shuo’s mother tries to cover up the awkwardness and embarrassment through offerings of food.

After lunch, the parents split up from the children. On the way to dropping Rui En off at school, Min Shuo tells Rui En that he likes her. Rui En becomes ecstatic after hearing this until he adds the addendum of “like a younger sister.” It turns out Min Shuo is trying to get her to help him hook their parents up. Rui En gets out of the car rather downcast but feigns upbeat when Min Shuo calls her to confirm the date of her art opening.

Back at Jing Hao’s house, he is getting ready to leave his father home alone, having left him food and drink. Jing Hao explains that he must go to school to avoid getting in trouble with his professors. His father, in a moment of clarity, refers to Jing Hao as his son when he tells Jing Hao to get going. Jing Hao smiles and leaves the house, stopping to slip a chain around the gate and securing it with a spoon on his way out.

While Jing Hao is in class, Rui En tries to come to terms with Min Shuo thinking of her as a sister in the art studio. After knocking her bag to the floor, Jing Hao’s ID card falls out so she decides to find him and return it. She sees him in the hallway but he is too engrossed in his thoughts to hear her yells, especially since it takes her quite a while to remember to call out his name instead of the ambiguous yells of “Wei!” Jing Hao takes his ID back from her and says that since their business is finished, he doesn’t think that they will need to see each other again. Of course, in the world of dramas, it never works out like that.

As Jing Hao continues on his way, Rui En turns to walk in the opposite direction while muttering grumpily to herself. It takes her a couple moments to realize that she was originally headed the same way Jing Hao was heading. She purposely walks past him, pretending not to see her. Of course, as soon as she is steps ahead of him, Jing Hao gets a phone call telling him that his house is on fire. Panicked about the well-being of his father, he starts running. Hearing how alarm in his voice, Rui En offers to drive him. Jing Hao, however, demands to drive instead.

After frantically weaving through traffic, Jing Hao gets home and quickly pushes his way through the crowd while Rui En follows. A firefighter stops him before he can make his way into the burning house. He apprehensively asks for his father but the firefighter points out Jing Hao’s father standing in the corner. Relieved, Jing Hao makes his way to his father and hugs him tearfully as Rui En watches. Nosy bystanders reveal to Rui En the situation with Jing Hao’s father: his dementia and how the lack of funds had led to the quitting of the caretaker. Rui En pieces the puzzle together, remembering how Jing Hao had asked if he could return the money for her skirt at a later time.

After the fire is put out, No-Q and Jing Hao start cleaning the place up, as they cannot afford anything new. Jing Hao’s father starts to play with the soapy water, incensing Jing Hao to run off, having made up his mind about something.

Back at Rui En’s house, she is sitting in the living room with her father, lost in thought thinking of Jing Hao’s situation. Mistaking the reason for her unhappiness, Rui En’s father assures her that he has no feelings for Min Shuo’s mother, especially because he has always thought of Min Shuo as a son-in-law. She denies it and instead talks about having wronged someone accidentally. Her father tells her that everyone makes mistakes, as long as it’s not on purpose, the other person will understand. Despite this assurance, she still feels guilty so her father suggests that she try to do something from the heart for this other person. After some thought, Rui En drives over Jing Hao’s house with money in an envelope but she appears to still be unsure as to what to do.

In the meantime, Jing Hao is getting ready to participate in the underground fighting. It turns out this is what he was running off to do. Guan Zhang is standing next to him, reminding him to last till the 5^th round before throwing the fight. After entering the “ring,” Jing Hao quickly advances to the 5^th round, and after putting up and impressive fight, loses. As he is laying on the ground after defeat, a canvas painting falls the ground at Rui En’s art exhibit as she watches, signaling some sort of ominous future.

Sometime later, Jing Hao pays the caretaker her wages plus interest and asks that she continue taking care of his father. Parts of his face are still yellow from healing bruises. Back at his house, Jing Hao is drinking with No-Q, upset with himself for participating in the fight. While his father is sleeping, Jing Hao once again gazes at his family photo and tells his mom how much he misses her.

The next morning, Rui En greets Jing Hao as he is about to enter campus. She is alarmed to see his face so bruised and asks him what happened but he ignores her and continues on his way. Rui En makes her way to the nurse’s room to get supplies for Jing Hao. Whether she actually gets these supplies to him is not revealed.

Sometime later, Jing Hao is approached by a girl who confesses her feelings for him, armed with homemade chocolate. Onlookers encourage Jing Hao to start going out with her but Jing Hao remains expressionless. We also see Rui En watching from the stairs. Gathering himself, Jing Hao agrees but starts to describe how difficult it would be to be his girlfriend: he doesn’t have a time to go on dates, he is too poor to give her presents, and he has a father with dementia, who requires constant care. So suffice to say, when Jing Hao asks her if she would still be willing to be his girlfriend under those circumstances, she refused. Jing Hao watches her walk off with a small self-deprecating smile on his face. As the crowd disperses, Rui En approaches him and gently admonishes him for being too harsh with the girl. Jing Hao replies with a humorless laugh. He was only telling the truth after all. Not understanding what he did, Rui En offers other ways for him to turn the girl down that wouldn’t hurt as much. But when he heard the word hurt, Jing Hao snapped. He laughs because life is too painful and it is the only way he knows how to cope.

My Comments:

I can already feel all the melodrama that's gonna pop up in the drama. And if the way the story's going doesn't clue you in, the opening sequence certainly does.Most Taiwanese dramas I have watched recently usually start off lighthearted, or have some degree of comic relief. This drama is rather light in that respect. Since angsty, serious dramas are relatively rare in the Taiwan idol dramas (as compared to the Koreans, who thrive on angst), I am concerned as to whether they can actually pull this off. Given the fact that the only actor I am remotely familiar with out of the core four is Wilber Pan, who I had seen in Miss No Good with Rainie Yang, I am uncertain as to whether the cast is up to the task of such an emotionally heavy drama.

Based on what happened in the first episode, I am reserving judgment for Wilber Pan. As I had discussed with one of my friends, Wilber is good with the angry scenes. You can’t help but be blown away by the force of his anger. But when it comes to the angsty scenes (ie: the first scene with Jing Hao’s father when Jing Hao realizes that his father doesn’t recognize him again), I can’t help but feel that he falls a little short. I can see that he is sad and hurting, but it doesn’t make me ache for his sadness. However, I do give him props for the scene of the fire at his house. His fear and worry was overwhelming.

As for Sandrinne Pinna, there wasn’t too much material for her to shine in this first episode. Her character spent most of the first episode playing the spoiled rich kid and berating Jing Hao, though that is more the fault of the writer than the actor. I guess that this leaves plenty of room for character growth. However, she does a pretty good job of conveying the duality of the softie she is and the cynicism she wears to protect herself. I look forward to seeing better opportunities for her to display her acting skills as my friend tells me she does angst very well.

Welcome!

2010-10-31T23:51:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone!

I am starting this blog as a school project. I have been watching Taiwanese dramas for many years now and have always enjoyed them. Now I will try my hand at recapping and commenting on them on an episode basis. I actually got the idea from dramabeans.com, which recaps kdramas. I figured that since I am slightly more fluent in Chinese that it would be more appropriate for me to do recaps on Taiwanese dramas instead. The firstseries I'm planning on recapping is Endless Love, starring Wilber Pan and Sandrine Pinna. The first recap will be up in a little bit. I know I'm a little behind at this moment but I hope to catch up soon! Stay tuned.