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Post by reinafu on Sept 27, 2014 20:52:41 GMT
I will post in this thread some comments/reviews of the series I already watched with Adam Cheng. The names will be written in pinyin as I heard them and, as I already mentioned in a post, as I understand only a very few sentences /characters in Mandarin, I apologize in advance for any mistake I may have comitted in my descriptions of the series, and if someone who has already seen them and understand Chinese wants to correct me, he (she ) will be welcome.
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Post by reinafu on Sept 27, 2014 20:54:02 GMT
Lord of imprisonment 1999
List of the characters/actors with the parts in which they appear :
Tong Lin, constable, played by Adam Cheng (4 parts) Yu Han Tong (often called Han Lao), constable, played by Chen Hung Lieh (4 parts) Lei Ta Li, constable, I don’t know the actor Chen Yao (often called Yao Ye), constable, I don’t know the actor (4 parts) Mai (often called Mai Fu Ze), doctor, I don’t know the actor (it’s the same who plays Jade Leung’s father in Legend of Yung Ching) (4 parts) Mai Yu Zhe the doctor’s daughter, a jade sculptor, I don’t know the actress (4 parts) Tang Ta Niang, the innkeeper played by Cheng Pei Pei (4 parts) Hai Tang, her daughter , I don’t know the actress (4 parts) Yu San Shao, a rich jade collector I don’t know the actor (part 2) San Shao Ne, his wife, I don’t know the actress (part 2) Lao Lu Tong, a farmer I don’t know the actor (part 1 to 3) A constable from Beijing, played by Goo Goon Chung (part 1) Shi Zhu, another constable, played by Norman Tsui (part 4) Pan Mei Niang aka Lin Yen Er aka Xiao San Lan, Cheng Pei Pei’s real daughter, I don’t know the actress (part 4) Wang Ye, a royal prince I don’t know the actor (part 4) Ye San Lan, undercover officer I don’t know the actor, but it’s the same who played the faithful eunuch in Legend of Yung Ching (4 parts)
The whole story takes in a small town called Ku Bei Kou and the properties around the town
Part 1
The story begins with Adam Cheng who is looking for his missing wife. As she was supposed to go to Ku Bei Kou, he is on his way to the town and is very anxious because he finds clues leading to a woman’s body without head. As he is on his way, he saves Mai Yu Zhe, her father, Ye San Lan (who plays a hawker), the cook of the inn and his daughter and the forensic pathologist who return to the town in a kind of stage-coach driven by Lao Lu Tong because they are attacked by some bandits. Later, he takes a room in the inn and becomes friend with Hai Tang and her mother, and with Yu Zhe and her father, and Yu Zhe helps him in his searches of clues in order to find his wife when he finds a burnt house where she could have lived in when she came to the town. He also becomes friend with Han Lao, Lei Ta Li and Yao Ye (with this latter, it takes more time, because Yao Ye has lost his sword near the dead woman’s corpse and, as Tong Lin has found it, he wants to kill him because he is afraid to be accused of the murder).
Earlier, the same woman who has been found dead had come to the inn and had given a precious jade fan to Hai Tang, who gives it to Yu Zhe.
Later, Goo Goon Chung arrives in the town and he immediately becomes Tong Lin’s enemy (I didn’t hear clearly, but perhaps it’s because they had a grudge years later, but I’m not sure). He absolutely wants to find the jade fan, which is later stolen by Ye San Lan, who is actually an officer under Zhao Wu Ji’s order and we discover that the jade fan has secrets sculpted on it. Hai Tang and Ye San Lan fall in love, and Yu Zhe falls in love with Tong Lin, but he only thinks of his missing wife. Zhao Wu Ji is lead to the town to be judged (I don’t know why…What a pity to not understand Chinese !!) and Goo Goon Chung sends assassins to kill him, but he is saved by Ye San Lan and when the troup arrives in Ku Bei Kou, we discover that Tang Ta Niang knows him, that he is Hai Tang’s father and that Ta Niang is only her adoptive mother. We also learn in this episode that Ta Niang’s husband has been executed and she is an expert in martial arts. Tong Lin is imprisoned by Goo Goon Chung and is almost killed, but finally, with Ye San Lan’s help, he succeeds in getting rid of Goo Goon Chung, Ye San Lan keeps the fan and escorts Zhao Wu Ji to his country. Tong Lin is about to leave the town when someone gives him a jade pendant which has been found in the burnt house and when he recognizes his wife’s pendant, he finally accepts to stay in Ku Bei Kou and he becomes a high rank constable in the city.
Part 2
Yu San Shao comes to Yu Zhe’s house in order to take a piece of jade she has sculpted. Later, his house is attacked by a group of bandits and, with his men’s help and with Tong Lin and the other constables’ help, he succeeds in getting rid of them, but the chief of the bandits swear that he will get revenge. Meanwhile, several women are found dead with traces of acupuncture needles on their feet. As the forensic pathologist is jealous of Mai, he accuses him of the murder and Yu Zhe’s father is imprisoned. Then, Yu San Shao asks Yu Zhe to come to his house and he gives her a big piece of jade in order that she sculpts a statue of Guan Yin. Tong Lin doesn’t agree with that, but she doesn’t want to listen to him and she goes. She becomes frien with Yu San Shao, while he falls for her. There, she discovers that San Shao Ne is a little bit strange, that she is jealous of her and that San Shao’s daughter is a little bit medium. She also discovers that Tong Lin’s wife has been in Yu San Shao’s house and she tells Tong Lin about that. Tong Lin and San Shao are simultaneously friends and enemies due to the mystery about Tong Lin’s missing wife and to the fact that Tong Lin has saved the little girl from the bandits, with the help of Ta Niang and the clan of beggars of Ku Bei Kou.
Finally, Mai is found innocent and it’s Yu San Shao who is imprisoned, but Tong Lin and Yu Zhe are not convinced, though San Shao tells Tong Lin that it’s him who has killed his wife and has burnt her alive. Later, Tong Lin goes to San Shao’s house and wants to talk with San Shao Ne, but she first tries to seduce him and then, she poisons him with acupuncture needles. He is found in the forest by Yu Zhe and her father and, while her father tries to save him, she goes to the house in order to ask for water, and San Shao Ne tries to kill her with an axe. Fortunately, Tong Lin arrives to save her and, though he is still weak, he fights with her. Yu San Shao escapes from prison and arrives at home and fights Tong Lin in order to save his wife. Of course, he had understood that it was her who killed the women he had known, and that’s why he has accused himself, but Yu Zhe tells Tong Lin that it’s San Shao Ne who has killed his wife and the other women and San Shao Ne kills her husband before killing herself.
Part 3
As the forensic pathologist of Ku Bei Kou asks Mai for money (I didn’t understand why), Yu Zhe comes to his house in order to give him a jade statue as payment, but he tries to rape her ; he almost strangles her and her jade pendant falls while she faints. Fortunately, he is interrupted by a man wearing a mask and shaolin’s clothes with bells around his waist and he is killed. During the murder, Yu Zhe has recovered and she is totally upset and she escapes. She is found by Lao Lu Tong who leads her home. When they find the corpse, Tong Lin and his men find the jade statue and Tong Lin hides Yu Zhe’s pendant, but Yao Ye has seen him. They go to the Mai’s house and they find them trying to leave, but Tong Lin convinces them to stay and Yu Zhe explains him what happened. A new judge and constables from Beijing arrive in town and he tries to get rid of Tong Lin (I didn’t understand why). Among the constables, there are two ferocious ones who were Goo Goon Chung’s friends and want to get revenge on Tong Lin, so, Tong Lin resigns and stay in his house, in which he sets traps in order to protect himself. Earlier, he has taken Lao Lu Tong under his protection and he teaches him martial arts. In this episode, Hai Tang suddenly decides that she is in love with Tong Lin and she tries to seduce him, but when she discovers that Yu Zhe has come to Tong Lin’s house (after Lao Lu Tong’s son departure), she becomes mad because Yu Zhe tells her that she is Tong Lin’s girl. Then, Ta Niang fights Tong Lin because she believes that he has seduced her daughter, and Yu Zhe has to tell her that it’s her that Tong Lin loves (even if he has never confessed his feelings as yet) and then it’s Mai who is angry with him.
The two ferocious constables are killed by the masked man, and while they are trying to escape the new judge men, Tong Lin and Yu Zhe finally confess their love to each other.
Then, Hai Tang begins to be friend with Lao Lu Tong and to drink a lot with him. Finally, Tong Lin understands that it’s Lao Lu Tong who kills people under his shaolin’s clothes and he finds a secret cave under Lao Lu Tong’s wife tomb, but he is enclosed in it and he would have died if Yu Zhe and the waiters of the inn hadn’t opened the tomb.
Lao Lu tong kidnaps Hai Tang and makes her to suicide, but she is saved by her mother and the beggars.
Finally, Tong Lin and Lao Lu Tong fight in the tomb and Lao Lu Tong kills himself.
Part 4
The story begins with a mysterious masked girl in red who tries to steal the royal seal and Tong Lin succeeds in avoiding this. Then, a lame girl called Pan Mei Niang arrives at the inn and she is immediately pitied by Ta Niang, who gradually takes her as her own daughter. Shi Zhou also arrives in town ; he is looking for a woman and is persuaded that the woman he looks for is Pan Mei Niang.
Then, a royal prince who is called Wang Ye by everybody, his two ferocious lieutenants and his own constables arrive in Ku Bei Kou and they settle in the yamen, making the judge and the other constables to go to another place. As his men are bullying the villagers and trying to rape women, Tong Lin fight with them and he finally fights with Wang Ye when he tries to take advantage of Pan Mei Niang, and he is poisoned by the two ferocious guards.
While he is almost dying in the Mai’s house, we discover that Pan Mei Niang isn’t a lame person at all and that she is an expert in martial arts, who offers her services to Wang Ye in order to get rid of Tong Lin and help him to get Yu Zhe. Shi Zhu helps Tong Lin to recover , but he isn’t totally well and when he fight once again, he faints. Meanwhile, Mei Niang, who is actually Lin Yen Er, has discovered that Tang Ta Niang is actually the woman who has killed Wang Ye’s father years ago in order to get revenge for her husband. When Wang Ye came for the first time in the inn, Ta Niang has recognized her husband’s sword in one of Wang Ye’s lieutenant’s hands and that’s how we discover that she actually is Hong Yin’s wife and that she has killed the prince who has ordered her husband’s execution. Yen Er then plots with Wang Ye in order to trap Ta Niang and she is sent to prison, just in order that Ta Niang comes to save her, and then, it’s Ta Niang who is imprisoned. When she is about to be executed, it’s Ye San Lan who tries to save her, but he is also imprisoned and they are both in prison, later joined by Shi Zhu. However, Yen Er has remorse when she thinks of how Ta Niang gave her all her affection but she doesn’t understand why and she goes on on her mission to obey Wang Ye. She finally gives Yu Zhe the antidote of the poison and Yu Zhe’s father saves Tong Lin just in time to allow him to get rid of the killers sent by Wang Ye. It’s finally revealed that Yen Er is actually Ta Niang’s daughter, who had been saved by Shi Zhu when she was a litllte girl and who had been kidnapped by the judge. When she realized that she is Ta Niang’s daughter and she almost killed her own mother, she is totally desperate and she decides to kill Wang Ye, but her mother doesn’t want her to do that. So, as they have proofs that Wang Ye isn’t a righteous prince, Tong Lin and Shi Zhu go to see the king and he gives them a seal to allow them to arrest Wang Ye. Finally, Wang Ye is poisoned and Ta Niang and Ye San Lan are free.
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Post by reinafu on Sept 27, 2014 20:57:23 GMT
One sword TVB 1978
I bought this series because I recognized Adam Cheng on the cover, but among all the series I watched until now, I think that it's in this one that Adam has the shortest role I ever seen !!!!
He has only one fight (but what a superb fight !!) with Cheng Hung Lieh ; he wins and they decide to fight again 7 years later, but Adam dies a few days later form internal injuries !!!
Then, the story continues with Fung Bo Bo playing the male role of Nan Gong Yi, who is in love with his cousin but is also loved by Adam's daughter and Cecilia Wong. FBB is Stanley Fung's daughter, who has been wounded by Chen Hung Lieh and appears only in 3 or 4 scenes in the series, and she is the student of her uncle, played by Kwan Hoi San. Kwan Hoi San decides to accept as student the son of the Ling's family, played by Wong Wan Choi, who wants to improve his martial arts in order to get revenge for his family.
Then, there are a lot of plots and twists among the clans in order to win several contests in martial arts, with Shih Kien playing an evil guy (but he disappears from the episodes and we don't know why and what he becomes...) and with an even more evil guy who is invincible, but is finally killed by FBB and Cecilia Wong.
Then, Chen Hung Lieh reappears in the last episode, just to fight with Adam's daughter, kill her, and then, fight with FBB and be killed by her.
The fights are good, the songs are superb.
There are surely cut scenes, because Kwan Hoi San becomes mad after his daughter's death and we don't know what he becomes, as well as Wong Wan Choi who suddenly turns against his master and his family and begins to kill everybody, and then, when he sees that he can't beat FBB, he disappears and we don't see him again until the end...
So, this series is good, but a little bit obscure for me who don't understand Chinese...
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Post by reinafu on Sept 27, 2014 20:59:08 GMT
Chu Liu Xiang 1979
As there are so many characters, plots and subplots in this series and as either the sound wasn't very good, either the Mandarin dubbers didn't speak clearly enough for me, I couldn't understand enough sentences in order to describe the plot properly, sorry.
However, it's a very good series, full of mysteries, twists and with very good fights. Adam Cheng is excellent, as usual.
It's clear that he IS Chu Liu Xiang, he has known how to show the essence of Gu Long's character and I don't think that anyone else is able to replace him in this role.
As I wrote previously, Cecilia Wong is a real evil in this series...
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Post by reinafu on Sept 27, 2014 21:01:34 GMT
Meteor Butterfly sword 2002
The gambling house of the town is ruled by a woman called Kao Lao Ta. When she was young, she took care of 4 boys who are now assassins under her orders. At the beginning of the series, there are only three of them with her : the elder, called Meng (if I'm not mistaken), the second one and the younger one.
Someone asks Kao Lao Ta to kill Adam Cheng, who is a very popular guy in the town and Meng is sent to do the job, but he becomes friend with him. He falls in love with Adam's daughter who has been chased from the house because she was pregnant and she didn't want to tell her father who was the father, but he does'nt know that she is his daughter. He also becomes friend with Norman Tsui's daughter, and he provokes a quarrel between Norman and Adam in order to accomplish his mission.
Later, he finally discovers that the woman he loves is Adam's daughter and they try to escape, but he suffers from amnesia and disappears.
Everybody wants to kill Adam for some reason and he has to suspect eveybody, including his faithful lieutenant.
After a lots of twists and plots, it's finally discovered that it was Adam and Norman's lieutenants who had plot to get rid of both of them and with the help of Meng, the third assassin, his daughter and Norman's daughter, Adam finally succeed in getting rid of all who wanted to kill him.
Of course, my review isn't complete and the fact that there are no subtitles does'nt help, but I think that it's a really very good series, with a lots of good and inventive fights, a superb plot and Adam is excellent in it, though he doesn't have enough scenes and fights in my opinion. The actors who play Meng and the third assassin are very good too. The two girls aren't good enough in my opinion...
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Post by reinafu on Sept 28, 2014 13:38:01 GMT
The legend of the book and the sword TVB 1976
The leader of the Red Flower society discovers that he is Emperor Qian Long's brother and that this latter is a Han.
As there are a lot of reviews of this series on the internet, I don't write a full synopsis...
Superb series, excellent theme song, excellent songs, excellent Adam Cheng in three roles (the chief of the sect, Qian Long and Qian Long's son). it's just too bad that the series doesn't show all the 95 episodes...
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Post by reinafu on Sept 28, 2014 13:41:36 GMT
Luk Siu Fung part 2 : Before and after the duel TVB 1977
Adam plays Ye Gu Cheng, a famous swordsman who claims that he is a lonely man and does'nt have any friend and who wants to have a duel with Xi Men Chui Xue, another very famous swordsman in Jiang Hu. This latter is Lu Xiao Feng's friend and he is not very fond of having this duel.
There are some twists in the plot, the main one being that one discover that there is a plot to kill the King and that the assassin paid by the Eunuch and by the one who wants the throne is nobody else than Ye Gu Cheng, but instead of killing the King, he kills the ones who wanted the throne. Then, Ye Gu Cheng go to the duel with Xi Men Chui Xue and, before the duel, he admits that Lu Xiao Feng is also his friend, and then, he is killed by Xi Men Chui Xue.
I was a little bit disappointed by the wholes series, and this part particularly : not only Adam Cheng doesn't appear very much in the episodes, but he has only about 3 mini fights in addition to the famous duel, and all the fights (in the whole series too) are filmed in slow motion, which was very annoying in my opinion. One or two fights in slow motion were enough for me and the rest should have been normally filmed.
Also, I found that there is not enough action in this series : the characters mainly talk, eat, drink, talk...and fight rarely...
However, Adam Cheng is still very good in his role of the lonely and apparently cold blooded swordsman and the songs are good too. We could say that Adam is a synonyme of Elegance.
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Post by reinafu on Sept 28, 2014 13:43:00 GMT
The legend of Chu Liu Xiang 1985
There is a short synopsis for all four parts of this series in the page Chu Liu Xiang of the English wikipedia, so, I won't write one here.
All the four parts are interesting and I was surprised to discovered that Ching Li (yes, the Shaw Brothers' actress) played in one of them.
The series is very good, the song (not sung by Adam Cheng, from what is mentioned in the above mentioned page) is very good too and Adam Cheng is excellent in portraying Chu Liu Xiang. Eddy Ko Hung plays Hu Tieh Hua in two parts of the series.
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Post by reinafu on Sept 28, 2014 13:45:04 GMT
The legend of Wong Tai Sin TVB 1986
Adam Cheng plays the god of rain. As he is kind hearted, he stops punishing the people on earth (as he was ordered to) by making the rain to provoke floods and he is punished by the God of gods and sent on Earth, where he is born to a rich family, but he is only the " bastard" son of the rich guy as his mother is a poor one and he is raised together with the own son of the rich guy. He becomes a shepard and one day, he saves the life of a rich man played by Tse Yin, who is a Prince. They become friends and Tse Yin takes him with him, so, he becomes rich and he falls in love with a girl who is promised to Tse Yin. They fight and the girl dies and Adam is left as he was dead because he doesn't know how to fight.
He is saved by four deities who pity him and they give him some powers. He then becomes a famous doctor with good fighting skills and he saves a rich girl.
He also becomes friend with another rich girl who plays the poor ones and he reunites with his half-brother and together, they try to stop Tse Yin who is plotting in order to become the king.
Adam finally succeed in stopping Tse Yin and he returns to Heaven, but almost immediately, he returns on Earth in order to help the poor people.
Very good series, good fights and Tse Yin is hatable in the role of the bad guy ! (As an information which have nothing to do with Adam Cheng's series, Tse Yin is even more hatable in the superb series The fallen family !!!).
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Post by reinafu on Sept 28, 2014 13:47:46 GMT
The legend of Yung Ching 1997
Cheng Hung Lieh plays Emperor Kangxi, who loves his 4th son Ying Zhen (Adam Cheng) but also uses him as a spy in order to know which one of all his sons he should choose to be his successor.
Ying Zhen befriends the Lu family (he travels incognito) and he falls in love with the daughter Lu Siniang.
14th son wants to be the next emperor and he plots in order to succeed, even using black magic in order to frighten his father.
Kangxi finally dies and it's revealed that it's Ying Zhen who will be the emperor, under the name of Yung Ching.
There are a lot of plots and twists and at the end, it seems that Lu Siniang kills Yung Ching, but the last images let believe that actually he lives in the mountain with her and their son, while his own son Hong Li has become emperor under the name of Qian Long. If you buy the taiseng version of this series, don't pay attention to the synopsis written on the box, it's full of mistakes !
Superb series, with very good and impressive fights. Adam, Jade Leung, the other girl, Goo Goon Chung and all the actors are excellent.
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Post by reinafu on Oct 19, 2014 21:56:55 GMT
Xi Shuo Qian Long part I aka Legendary Chien Lung I aka Chronicles of Emperor Qian Long 1991
Main characters : Emperor Qian Long/Huang Siye : Adam Cheng Chunxi : his personal maid Baozhu : his bodyguard Jialiu : his eunuch Minister Cao : his most trustful minister
First story
While he is travelling incognito in the country in order to see if the rules of the government are properly followed by his ministers, Qian Long meets two group of traders : the salt traders, lead by Chen Huaixiu (Angie Chiu), and the water traders lead by Mister Cao, who owns the ferries. The two gangs are oppressed by the government taxes and they struggle against each other. Li Jin, the head assistant of the salt traders is in love with Chen Huaixiu since she took the lead of the gang after her father’s death, but she rapidly falls for Qian Long and he becomes jealous and want to kill him, especially when she decides to make him her head assistant after he has helped her against the Cao group. Later, they all discovered that actually, the two groups were lead to struggle against each other by a corrupted officer called Suo Lawang, who uses Lama monks to kill Li Jin and make the two groups to destroy each other. When he recognizes Qian Long when he was about to destroy both gangs, everybody discover that Huang Siye is actually the emperor and he fights with Qian Long and tries to kill him, but the soldiers finally arrive and Qian Long has to separate from his new friends. He asks Chen Huaixiu to come with him to the Palace, but she doesn’t want too because she doesn’t want to leave her men and her salt business.
Later, she comes to the palace, but she finally refuses to become Qian Long’s concubine because she feels that she is only a common woman who cannot live with such a great person as the emperor and Qian Long is left totally desperate.
Second story
While he is on his way to go to Chengde in order to spend summer in his property, Qian Long meets in Mongolia a young woman called Shen Fang (Angie Chiu) and they sympathize. Later, he learns that she is on her way to collect a blood debt and they fall for each other. Shen Fang is actually the daughter of a minister who was ordered to poison himself by the emperor because he had helped a lettered person (if I understood well). His wife has committed suicide and their daughter was sent as slave in another country. When she escaped, she was rescued by a couple and became their daughter. When he discover that Shen Fang wants to kill him, Qian Long returns to the palace in order to get informations on the case of the Shen family. Before leaving, he has been attacked by two men and a woman who wanted to kill him and he has been helped by Shen Fang. The three killers poison themselves and though they are still alive, they cannot speak not move anymore and one of them only said two words before becoming like a tree : Sui Tan.
Later, Baozhu is almost killed by the internal kung fu of an old man living in the Shen’s house while he was investigating it with Jialiu and Qian Long discovers later that this old man is actually an old servant of the Shens who wasn’t at home when the father was ordered to drink the poison and the mother hang herself. He also discovers that Sui Tan is an evil monk who exploit and rob the poor people in another country with his group of monks and Qian Long goes there with his four assistants. He meet again with Shen Fang and later, she is kidnapped by the monks and that’s Sui Tan who tells her that the one she believ to be a horse seller is actually the emperor. He uses her as a bait in order to lead Qian Long to a hill on which he placed a lot of bombs sold to him by an English man and Qian Long almost dies on the hill just in order to set Shen Fang free. When he succeed in setting her free, she attacks him and he blocks her sword with his hands and tells her that if she wants to kill him he won’t fight back. When she sees the blood on his hands, she is distressed and it’s only because her old servant asks her to not kill the emperor that she gives up her revenge and she leaves with the old servant, while Qian Long returns to the palace once again totally desperate.
Third story
An officer who had been sent to Taihang mountains in order to ask the bandit Shen Jiu to surrender is killed and Qian Long is furious against Minister Di, who had sent the officer alone to the mountain. Meanwhile, a beautiful piece of silk is sent to Concubine Qing because she wants to offer it to QIan Long for his birthday, but he neglects her and she is so furious that she tears the clothe. She is jealous because of Chen Huaixiu and Shen Fang and she sends her maid, who is an expert in martial arts, to spy on the emperor, in order to know if he has a mistress, but he is only taking care of the affairs of the country. Later, Shen Jiu robs the clothes made for the emperor in order to offer them to the woman who has embroidered the clothe torn by Concubine Qing because he has fallen for her and she wanted to study the art of the embroidery from the workshop which supplies the palace. Chunxi discovers that the robbed clothes are in this woman workshop and she tells Qian Long, who sends soldiers to arrest the woman, called Jin Wu Zhen. When he visits her in prison, he is surprised to discover that she looks like both Chen Huaixiu and Shen Fang, and that she doesn’t want to tell him who robbed the palace clothes, telling him that she is the only one to be held responsible for the robbery. When Shen Jiu discovers that she is in prison, he tries to set her free, but she doesn’t want to follow him and tells him to return to Taihang mountains because, as he robs the rich to give to the poor, many people depend on him. Finally, Qian Long discovers that it’s Shen Jiu who robbed the palace clothes, but meanwhile, one of Shen Jiu’s men has kidnapped Chunxi and he is upset because he worries a lot for her. He finally decides to set Jin Wu Zhen free and he install her in his favourite pavilions and they fall for each other, but Wu Zhen is a complicated woman who seems to love both Qian Long and Shen Jiu, though she pretends that this latter is only a good friend. When he discovers that Wu Zhen is about to become another Qian Long’s concubine, Shen Jiu decides to give himself up and Qian Long, who has understood that it’s him that Jin Wu Zhen actually loves, let Chunxi and his three assistants organize their escape. Later, we see Wu Zhen living happy with Shen Jiu in the mountain and we discover that they have a little boy, but from what Wu Zhen reminds of, we understand that the boy is actually Qian Long’s son, and she sends him some embroidery on which she has portrayed the boy and herself.
Very good series. The fights are excellent, as well as Adam Cheng, who is superb in the role of Qian Long.
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Post by Admin on Oct 22, 2014 14:58:56 GMT
Wow...thanks a lot Reinafu You must be a big fan of Adam Cheng I met Adam Cheng in 2010. He's a charming old man
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Post by reinafu on Oct 22, 2014 17:36:04 GMT
Yes, I am !! As I wrote previously, regarding Adam Cheng, I'm a relentless huntress and I'm tracking down all what I can find among his series and movies and I'm currently watching all what I bought since a year or two when I began to collect his works, including dramas, comedies, songs, stage plays, Chinese folklore...
By the way, can I post here the list of titles I'm still looking for ? There aren't all wuxia, but maybe someone has a few of them and would like to get rid of them ?
And I'm very jealous that you met him (big smiles) !! If only I could have been you !!!!!!
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Post by reinafu on Oct 27, 2014 22:46:59 GMT
The book and the sword 2008
Emperor Kangxi’s 9th son has been demoted with the 8th prince years ago by Emperor Yong Zhen and the story begins when 9th Prince aka Prince Yuntang comes to visit Yong Zhen at night in order to kill him in order to take revenge, but when he arrives, Yong Zhen is already dying and he leaves the palace with anger. Yong Zhen’s son Hong Li is then crowned as the new emperor, according to his father’s willing and he takes the name of Qian Long. His elder brother is already dead, his second elder brother is imprisoned because he had ploted against his father with his two uncles and his younger brother is only interested in Buddhism, flowers and birds, so, everybody thinks he is the best one to be the Emperor, but he is often lectured by his mother, who doesn’t allow him to do what he wants in order to rule the country. When he becomes the Emperor, the Empress Dowager gives a secret letter from her husband to an officer and the same night, a noble Han named Chen is killed by the flying guillotines of a group of assassins and his wife is saved by 9th prince, who promises her that he will take back her son Chen Jialuo to her.
Actually, 9th prince saved her on purpose because he knows that she is the real mother of Qian Long, who is a Han. As his wife had given birth to a girl, Yong Zhen had exchanged the girl with the Chens' elder son who was born the same day and the proofs of the exchange are hidden in the Shaolin temple.
Qian Long comes to visit his elder brother and promises him that he will set him free very soon, but just after his visit, 9th prince comes and kills him because he doesn’t want to help him to get rid of Qian Long. 9th Prince decides to form a group of experts in martial arts and calls it the Red Flower Society and he trains them in order to restore the Hans on the throne. He visits Qian Long (who is surprised to see him, since he was supposed to be dead ten years ago) and asks him to help him to regain his title and properties. Later, 9th Prince brings Chen Jialuo to his mother and promises her that he will consider him as his own son and he takes him to MountTianshan, where he asks Master Yuan Shixiao to instruct him. First, Jialuo is reluctant, but he finally learns a lot from his master. Before leaving Beijing, he has met Wen Tailai and his wife Lu Bing and has helped them to escape from the soldiers, and he has also saved Master Lu Feiqing, who is Li Yuanzhi’s teacher (she is the daughter of an officer called Li).
Among the members of the Red Flower Society (RFS), there are Wen Tailai and his wife (4th brother and 4th sister), Tian Hong (7th brother), the Taoist one-armed priest Wuchen, the hunchback Zhan Jin, The Golden Flute (14th brother), the Chang Brothers , Chunhua and Shuangying. These four latter are actually totally devoted to 9th prince and Chunhua and Shuangying (9th and 10th brothers) have been his followers for years.
When he is in Mount Tianshan, Chen Jialuo meets one of the Seven Tribes, lead by Mu Zhuolun and his daughter Huo Qingtong, and he falls in love with Qingtong, who is the disciple of The Twin Eagles of Mount Tianshan. It’s a couple and the woman, Mei, was loved by Yuan Shixiao, who is always quarelling with her husband because he married the woman he loved.
Later, 9th Prince tries to take the proofs of Qian Long’s identity in Shaolin temple with the help of 4th brother, but he is wounded and he is supposed to be dead. He asks 4th brother to tell Chen Jialuo that he is now the new chief, but Jialuo is reluctant to do so, but his brothers insist and he has to take the charge.
While he is trying to escape the soldiers with his wife and 14th brother, 4th brother takes refuge in Master Zhou’s house, but this latter’s young son betrays them by mistake and 4th brother is imprisoned by a renegade from the WuDang sect, Zhang Zhaozhong, who is a fellow brother of Lu Feiqing and Master Ma Zhen, and the RFS tries to set him free by all means.
During one of their try, 7th brother is hurt and he is saved by Zhou’s daughter, Qi, who is “ sworn brother “ with Chen Jialuo and they fall in love. 4th sister is hurt and 14th brother takes care of her and confess that he loves her and he decides to save 4th brother even if it means the death for him. He is also imprisoned and discovers that Zhang Zhaozhong is his master’s fellow brother.
Chen Jialuo meet Qian Long on his parents tomb and they make an oath to never hurt each other (but Jialuo still doesn’t know that Qian Long is his elder brother).
Later, the RFS finally succeed in saving 4th brother, but 14th brother is badly burnt. Li’s daughter Yuanzhi has fallen in love with him and she helps him, but he doesn’t want her because he is still in love with Lu Bing.
9th prince uses the RFS as a tool to hurt Qian Long, but they don’t realize that, since they don’t know that he is still alive. The princess of Yue Country comes to pay tribute to Qian Long and he discovers that her bodyguard is a girl who was raised with him and 9th prince, Bu Qianjia. He asks her to come back to the palace because she understands him, but 9th prince is in love with her and he keeps her for a while in his Yongle castle. There, she discovers that actually, he plots against both Qian Long and the RFS and that he uses one of the prince of the Yue Country in order to succeed and she fights with the prince and he is killed by one the Changs brothers, who suspect Qianjia to spy on their boss. She fights with them and kills one of them and the second one badly hurts her and he is killed by 9th prince, who is totally devastated by her death. When he was trying to save 4th brother, Chen Jialuo learns by this latter that Qian Long is a Han and that he is his elder brother.
Later, Chen Jialuo manages to kidnap the Emperor and he informs him that he knows that they are brothers and they make an oath that Qian Long will restore the Hans. As Qian Long is as crafty as his uncle, he has finally understood that it’s this latter who is behind the RFS and he asks Jialuo to be careful. Qian Long decides to allow the Han people to wear Han’s clothes and he often wears this kind of clothes himself, but his mother scolds him and reminds him that when he became Emperor, he swore before his father’s funeral tablet that if he betrays the Manchus, he will be dethroned and tortured to death, so, he has to give up his decisions. Later, though he had promised to not start a war with the Seven Tribes, Qian Long send troops there and, in order to help Qingtong, Chen Jialuo goes there and meets Qingtong’s younger sister, Ka Sili aka Princess Fragrance and he falls for her, though he says that he still loves Qingtong. While they go to General Zhaohui’s tent (this latter is under the orders of 9th prince, who knows some of his secrets), they discover Fu Kangan, who is a bastard son of Qian Long, who looks exactly like Chen Jialuo and they have to escape because Zhang Zahozhong is also here and wants to kill Jialuo.
14th brother, who has decided to become a monk, learns by Yuanzhi (who has witnessed it) that his master has been killed by Zhang Zhaozhong and he decides to take revenge and he joins all the brothers of the RFS who are helping Jialuo and Ka Sili. Later, Qian Long asks his brother to get the proofs of his identity from Shaolin and he lures his brother, making him believe that he won’t attack again the Seven tribes.
Later, Qian Long and his uncle decide that if 9th prince takes the proofs from Chen Jialuo and destroy the RFS, then Qian Long will give him his status back and each of them is very satisfied, believing that he has cheated the other.
Finally, Qian Long gives back his status to his uncle and this latter is ordered to destroy the RFS (he has already asked Chunhua and Suangying to kill at least 3 or 4 members and they are suspected by 3rd brother and 7th brother, as well as Chen Jialuo, and they set a trap against them and they are killed by 9th prince, who believes that they have betrayed him), but when he is about to order his soldiers to kill them all, an Emperor decree is read in which it is said that the quarrel between him and the RFS is an internal quarrel and that the soldiers shouldn’t be involved in it and he is alone against the 7 remaining members of his RFS. He fights with them, and then with Jialuo, and he finally commits suicide, thinking of his love Bu Qianjia.
Later, Chen Jialuo learns that the Emperor has destroyed the Seven Tribes and he is so furious that he decides to speak with him once again and there, he discovers that Ka Sili is prisoned in the Palace and that Qian Long is in love with her. He decides to take her away, but Qian Long tells him that if she stays in the palace, he promises to not invade again the Seven Tribes and that he will finally help the Han and that he won’t destroy the RFS and will offer to each of his members a good status. Jialuo accepts and takes Ka Sili away just to talk with her, but she decides to return to the palace in order to save her people. When she understands that Qian Long won’t keep his promise, she decides to kill herself and Qian Long is devastated.
When they learn about Ka Sili’s death, all the remaining members of the RFS decide to follow their chief and Huo QIngtong in order to kill Qian Long, but Fu Kangan has planed to kill them all (ordered by Qian Long), but as they are clever, they don’t fall in the trap and they kidnap him.
Qian Long comes to meet them and he asks for his son in exchange of 14th brother and his wife. First, the RFS want to kill him, but when he says that is he dies, the Empress Dowager will press the next emperor to oppress the Han much more than under Qian Long’s reign, they realize that he is right and they accept the exchange and leave, after Qian Long has promised that he will do his best to instore a better equality between the Hans and the Manchus.
Of course, I didn’t write all the details of the plot, and maybe that what I wrote doesn’t follow precisely the order of the episodes…
The good point of this series is that it has English subtitles, so, it allowed me to better understand what I had seen when I had watched the TVB series from 1976. However, there are some difference between the two series. In the TVB one, there is no mention of the 9th prince and the RFS is already established , while in the 2008 series, we see how each member is chosen and that it’s 9th prince who was the founder of the RFS. Also, in the TVB series, there is no mention of the episode with the Yue Princess and Bu Qianjia. As I read somewhere that the TVB series has 95 episodes and as the vcds and dvds of this series have less than 95 episodes, perhaps that actually there is no difference in the plots between the two series. Does anyone have had the luck to see the whole 95 episodes of the TVB series and can tell if the plot is exactly the same as the one of the 2008 series ?
Also, which one of the two series is the closest to the novel ?
I’m not really fond of the fight scenes filmed in slow motion or with freezing images during the action scenes or with such special effects that the fights become totally unrealistic, but I still enjoyed the 2008 series, even if Adam Cheng has only two training fights and no action scenes during the 40 episodes. He portrays very well this emperor who is restrained by his mother and the Manchus’ rules and who is really very cunning, which has allowed him to escape his uncle’s plot .
However, the TVB’s series is my favourite one among the two series.
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Post by reinafu on Nov 16, 2014 9:14:16 GMT
Shen Yi Da Dao Gong aka God of Medicine aka Doctor Miracle Tao 2010
Adam Cheng plays the god of medicine Bo Shen Da Di (he is often called Wu Tao) and he has a maid called San Hong, who is very clever and is fond of him. One day, a magistrate comes to chase them from the temple where Wu Tao cures poor people and he is very arrogant and argue with San Hong. While they are arguing, they are attacked by a dragon calle Hei Lung and by a white tigress, called Bai Hu (often called Hu Mei during the series) and Wu Tao uses San Hong hairpins to hurt them in order to force them to go away, while the magistrate has fainted. Then, San Hong understands that her boss is actually the God whose statue is in the temple. They cure the magistrate, who is called Er Zhü, and he finally becomes Wu Tao’s disciple. Hei Lung and Hu Mei have been sent to attack him by his enemy Wen Jue. As they are hurt, he chases them with the mission to kill Wu Tao, but this latter cures them instead of fighting with them, and they become his disciples and the three of them try to get rid of Wen Jue, but this one is very clever and escapes them. In Heaven, as Hei Lung and Hu Mei were Wen Jue’s disciples, the God of gods wants to severely punish them, but Wu Tao doesn’t want to and he prefers to become a mortal than letting them being killed, so, he returns on Earth as a mortal who has lost all his powers, but not his intelligence and he has some gadgets which help him to avoid Wen Jue doing bad deeds.
During one of their adventures, Wu Tao, Hei Lung, Er Zhü, San Hong and Hu Mei helps a young woman, who has a red birth mark on her face and who has been promised by her father to the Prince (or the Emperor, I don’t know, but he wears the yellow clothes of the Imperial persons). She is in love with her father’s servant who tastes the dishes in order to see if they are poisoned (he is called Tong Ming) and it happens that while Wu Tao is there, Tong Ming is really poisoned by a dish. He cures him and discovers the truth regarding the two young people’s love. Unfortunately, Wen Jue has decided to help the father to give his daughter to the Prince and he switches the young woman’s face with the one of her servant, and it’s this one who is sent to the palace, but Tong Ming discovers the truth and the two lovers fly away, while WU Tao and his disciples are in the palace. Then in order to get more and more power using the servant to cheat the emperor and help her to become the empress, Wen Jue poisons Wu Tao who becomes paralyzed. Thanks to San Hong, Hei Lung and Hu Mei, he finally recovers, Wen Jue is prisoner in the Heaven and the young woman and her servant recover their own faces and the young woman can live peacefully with Tong Ming. In the next adventure, as Wu Tao is now in Heaven (or in a kind of Purgatory, on a cloud, from where he observes what happens to his disciples with an old god and a soldier-god who holds a pagoda), San Hong and Er Zhü take care of the temple with Hei Lung and Hu Mei and there’s another doctor in the temple, who cures the poor people. However, Wu Tao’s three disciples discover that there is something strange with this doctor and they finally find that he has poisoned the well in order to get more patients to cure (if I’m not mistaken…). And later, San Hong discover that Er Zhü’s father is an accomplice of this bad doctor. When she tells Er Zhü about this, he doesn’t believe her and his father tries to kill her or to take her to justice. San Hong discover a hidden book which proves that she is right, but when she gives it to the judge, Er Zhü’s father threaten the judge and this latter imprisons San Hong, because Er Zhü’s father has blackmailed him regarding his two sons. Finally, Er Zhü discovers that San Hong was true and, as he has become a judge too (in addition to be a doctor thanks to Wu Tao’s teaching) thanks to the Emperor,he imprisons his father and, as he has promised his mother that he won’t kill his father with his own hands, he brings poison wine to his father in order that he commits suicide and they both cry and Er Zhü is desperate. In their cloud, Wu Tao and the old god argue with the god with the pagoda because it’s too hard for Er Zhü, but he doesn’t want to change things. Later, Er Zhü is totally desperate and Wu Tao becomes a God again because his student has succeeded in being loyal to his duty and not to his evil father. When he sees that his master is back, Er Zhü wants to leave because he feels guilty about his father’s death, and then, Wu Tao tells him that his father is still alive and Er Zhü then meets the old god and he becomes a deity too. During this adventure, Hu Mei has fellen for Er Zhü and Hei Lung is so jealous that he falls into Wen Jue’s trap and this latter succeeds in escaping jail in Heaven. He then takes Hei Lung as his disciple again and he sends him to kill both Er Zhü et Wu Tao. Wu Tao, Wen Jue and Hei Lung fight on the clouds and Hei Lung can’t escape a weapon and he explodes in myriads of molecules. Wen Jue take them all and he revives gim, but Hei Lung’s heart has disappeared and he gives him someone’s else heart, which leads Hei Lung to be more evil that Wen Jue ! Meanwhile, Hu Mei has found Hei Lung’s heart and she asks Wu tao for his help in order to save Hei Lung. They finally find him and Wu Tao cures him, but Wen Jue is stronger and he succeeds in keeping Hei Lung on his side, but Wu tao is more clever and finally Wen Jue is once again imprisoned in Heaven. Later,Wen Jue is sent on Earth as a mortal and the God who holds a pagoda forces Wu Tao to take him as a student. Hei Lung has disappeared and Hu Mei is desperate and Wu Tao has taken two other disciples : a young man very good in martial arts, and the girl this young man has saved from a forced marriage. Everybody is suspicious towards Wen Jue and Hu Mei and the young man (I don’t remember the name of his character) discover a cave in which there are two things : a kind of key and a white life-jacket. The young man discovers that this life-jacket can tell him the future and help him to do different things. Hu Mei and Wu Tao go to the cave and Wu Tao is trapped in it because the key which opened it doesn't work anymore and Hu Mei is desperate. Then, Wu Tao imitates Hu Mei and Er Zhü's voices in order to lure Hei Lung to the cave and he succeeds in making Hei Lung so angry that it's him who opens the cave and Wu Tao then escapes and take Wen Jue as a prisoner again. As San Hong and Wu Tao have left the temple in order to see someone who could help Wu Tao to get rid of Wen Jue and help Hei Lung to become as he was before he became Wen Jue’s disciple once again, the young man and his lover are in charge of the temple with Wen Jue and Hu Mei. Actually, Wen Jue is still a god and he has planned to use Wu Tao’s new student in order to get more power and he succeed in becoming a real god again thanks to the life-jacket. He chases San Hong and Wu Tao and he finds them thanks to Er Zhü, who has become a butterfly due to Wen Jue’s bad deeds and who hadn’t seen that he was followed by Wen Jue. Fortunately, Wu Tao succeeds in avoiding to be killed by Wen Jue and he kills him in Heaven, where Wen Jue has taken the place of the God of gods due to his new powers.
Meanwhile, Hei Lung has definitely been cured and he has helped Wu Tao and Hu Mei to get rid of Wen Jue, and Wu Tao returns to the temple, where he goes on curing poor people with his 6 disciples (Hei Lung, Hu Mei, Er Zhü, the young man, this latter’s love and San Hong).
This is a very good fantasy series, with a little bit of everything : laughs, fights, morale, twists, a bad evil, a good guy, good songs, beautiful costumes and of course, a lot of fantasy…. Very enjoyable and worth watching.
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