#jun wu nation

[diluviocarmwsi]

Hola soy el webon ese de ao3 pásense por ahí capaz actualizo en veinte años más o subo un chitpost

[lazycranberrydoodles]

Can I see hualesbians. Please. They are everything to me I’ve read every fic in the tag and if they lose I need some consolation

so i cheated on these and did them in procreate !!!! cause!!

[foxfeast]

after jun wu is defeated and the surviving gods are all trying to figure out who should be the next heavenly emperor they do the whole “yeah xie lian should do it, he defeated white no face” but xie lian pulls an uno reverse and elects lang qianqiu. after all lang qianqiu is the only god present who actually has experience being a king and ruling over a nation

[clandestine-poet]

I was ironically reading the part of the english translation book 7 where Mei Nianqing reveals Jun Wu is Bai Wuxiang.

Homie doesn't even try to LIE. Or ACT.

Xie Lian looks into the sword and sees Jun Wu's face is covered in human faces and Jun Wu just goes "LOL guess the jig is up" and just switches. Like a weird creepy switch.

I guess that perform might be a slang term that I am too young/old to get (also very goofy) but STILL.

He is no ACTOR.

No more AUs where Jun Wu is a director or actor or Idol or ANYTHING because he sucks.

He's like Keanu Reeves if Keanu Reeves wasn't a super sweet and super nice person.

Day 12 hating jun wu

He must have performance anxiety because I've never seen him perform

[allpiesforourown]

Finished Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know in a weekend and. Yeah that Yin Hanjiang sure can [REDACTED]!

Okay I know people hate when you compare two characters from different series but I just find the contrast between jun wu and Yin hanjiang so funny like

Jun wu: I tried my hardest to defy fate and save my people but in the end they began to worship other gods, the heavens turned their back on me, my plans to save everyone guaranteed our downfall, my nation is dead, I can't trust anyone, seeing a happier prince who is so similar to me made me snap after all these centuries and I put on the mask to ruin his life

Yin Hanjiang: VENERABLE ISNT HERE TO TELL ME TO BE NICE ANYMORE. TIME TO PUT ON A MASK, PSYCHOLOGICALLY TORTURE HIS CRUSH, THEN BRUTALLY MURDER HER 🔥🔥that's what you get for taking him away from me !!

Like.. he's just INSANE LMAOOO I love him

[budd-ie]

I always see people talking about Mu Qing and how he did bad things and how some of those things we’re moving on from, how his thought possess is justified, etc. and this is all true. But something that I think gets overlooked is that yes Mu Qing is not a perfect person, but his main argument is neither is anyone else.

Mu Qing grew up HOUNDED by people trying to nitpick every single little thing he does and antagonize him just because they don’t like him. Every good thing he does gets ignored, every bad thing he does gets amplified tenfold. And, Mu Qing KNOWS that he is not a perfect person and he KNOWS that he has done bad things and he acknowledges his major mistakes and he apologizes.

But his whole Deal is not that he’s trying to convince anyone he’s a good person, but that he wants people (like feng xin) to understand how hypocritical they are for criticizing him when they too have done bad things, have had bad thoughts, have hurt people, are not perfect. It’s a clear double standard and he’s sick of it! One major theme of tgcf is that not a single one of us, even gods, are perfect, real “perfection” is an unattainable thing, and that what matters is accepting this and choosing to live in spite of this. I think Mu Qing and Xie Lian represent this point best, and this is also one of many reasons why I think Mu Qing is a bit of a foil to Xie Lian (among other reasons, have we all seen their parallels?). And that’s why he’s so fixated on Xie Lian’s suffering. He isn’t happy that he’s suffering, he’s happy because he feels vindicated. It’s proof that Xie Lian isn’t the perfect little godling prince who can do anything and is loved by everyone that everyone (feng xin, from mu qing’s perspective) seems to act like he is. It’s proof that Mu Qing is right, and that nobody has any right to criticize him. It’s a shitty thing for him to think given the circumstances, of course, but I also think it’s an important distinction to make.

(Some plot spoilers under the cut)

So Mu Qing clearly isn’t a saint, but he’s not a demon either. People who Specifically give Mu Qing a hard time for being a bad friend, for leaving, for being a dick, etc. forget that Feng Xin left too (and also criticized him unjustly). As if someone like Pei Ming didn’t cheat on every woman he’s ever seen. As if Yin Yu didn’t tell Quan Yizhen to go die. As if Jun Wu, Heavenly Emperor, the god of gods, didn’t help destroy a nation in the most painful way possible, physically and psychologically torture a kid, commit a TON of murder, inflict biological warfare at LEAST twice…..etc……..out of all the characters who have done bad things Mu Qing is one of the normal ones.

Not better, not worse.

It’s not that what he did wasn’t bad, it’s that everyone else has done horrible things too, and it’s unfair to call him out specifically when everyone else has just as much if not more baggage to check first.

[shaxxophone]

!!! TGCF SPOILERS !!!

Can we talk for a second about how Jun Wu kept trying to save the people of Wuyong even after they stabbed him to death? Even after he was banished? Even after his friends abandoned him and his followers cursed the very mention of his name?

He was hurt, broken, and traumatized. He had been murdered by the very people he had tried to save. And yet.... He still kept trying to save them.

Is sacrificing people to a volcano to keep it from erupting morally bleak? Yes, but that is not the point I am getting at. He had every reason to hate the citizens of his nation. He had every reason to turn his back on them entirely. Why didn't he? Why, even if for a brief period of time, did he still try to save people?

Xie Lian had already given up on everyone by the time he had gotten through his night of a hundred deaths. And we know for a fact that Jun Wu in the future views every life (aside from a precious few) as entirely expendable.

But in the past, this Jun Wu, in spite of all of his hate and pain still didn't see things that way. He still kept sacrificing people to the volcano. He still kept trying to stave off the destruction of his nation. When his friends confronted him and tried to make him stop, he threw them in too-- they were trying to get in his way of saving his nation.

What he was doing was wrong, but... He was still trying to help. Still trying to avoid utter calamity.

When Mei Nianqing left, he finally gave up. Probably let himself fall fully into the abyss that had been trying to claim him since the day he died.

But sometimes, I just imagine that broken prince, desperately trying to save the nation that had already taken his life during his efforts to protect it.

[jayktoralldaylong]

Thinking again about Lang Qianqiu's and Xie Lian's relationship because it is under-discussed (especially with the new Donghua episodes).

Watching the Donghua after reading the book is like re-reading the book and then you see all these fresh new things that you overlooked before. Things that were misinterpreted because of circumstance but now hit with a whole new meaning!

First of all, how proud Xie Lian is of Lang Qianqiu when he's first introduced.

TGCF BOOK SPOILERS.

It's clear that Jun Wu introduced them just for the stake of stirring the pot with their past, but Xie Lian held no animosity or hate towards Lang Qianqiu, prince of the enemy kingdom. If anything, he was so very fond of the boy that reminded him of his younger self. They have a student/teacher relationship but I see them sometimes as child and parent because of how proud Xie Lian is and how far he goes sometimes to protect Lang Qianqiu. In the book he said a line that summarised could basically mean that he'd take all the blame, punishment and pain, he would endure any suffering if it meant that Lang Qianqiu could keep living innocently and pure, believing in good people and kindness. More than anything, Xie Lian wanted to protect that boy's heart.

Poor Lang Qianqiu who he'd raised to believe in kindness and peaceful coexistence, who had come in late for his birthday party which was the only reason he hadn't ended up dead. He'd just been a little late. He was excited, looking forward to seeing his father and mother. A young lad of seventeen. I bet Xie Lian was also looking forward to Qianqiu's birthday, might have even prepared a gift for him. Yet what happened? He discovered a terrible plot much too late, everyone had already been killed. Foolish people who lived in the present and believed that Xianle would rather die than dine with their enemy. The poor people didn't want that, the people dependent on Yong An's kindness and generosity would surely perish. Yong'An's mercy was the closest Xie Lian had come of saving the people of Xianle since his fall. For the people he'd failed to protect, he just wanted them to have a safe house with the kindest prince of all ruling over them.

Those selfish rebels wanted to start what would have been a terrible civil was that would have ended tragically for all the people of Xianle, they would have been stamped out like ants until they were no more. To make things worse, just as Xianle had chased away the last of the rebels, he discovered that the King was still alive. The dying King of Yong'An had just one request. He wanted the people of Xianle to pay. In that moment, what decision could the prince of a failed nation possibly do? The King wanted revenge, one couldn't fault him of that, but innocent people would suffer. The rebels were a small group, they'd taken decisions on their own. The King wouldn't care about that, people would die, children would die. To crown it all, just after Xie Lian had made a decision. Just after he'd sunk his sword into the King to silence his vengeance....who would walk in but the student he was proud of the most, seventeen year old Lang Qianqiu who'd finally made it to his birthday party.

The whole thing....was a mess.

That poor child. Imagine seeing the person you admire the most yanking their weapon from the lifeless body of your parent, and surrounding him are all of your relatives and nobles of the kingdom covered in blood. Of course such a thing is traumatising. Of course he buried Xie Lian in a hole. When a person feels that much pain, their only desire is to make the one who hurt them understand how much it hurt.

Of course Xie Lian took the blame. A a nameless and faceless Guoshi, they wouldn't be able to connect him with the people of Xianle. The people would be free of blame, and he would suffer alone. Lang Qianqiu would just have to do with his pain and his pain alone.

The way Xie Lian looks upset when Lang Qianqiu gets hurt. The way he'd rather lie over and over again, than let Lang Qianqiu believe that he was wrong for being kind.

Xie Lian remembers what it was like to be like Lang Qianqiu. He also knows how trauma twisted him into a monster that he's regretted for all of his years. He couldn't bear to imagine Lang Qianqiu going through the same. For as long as he can help it, he will mindlessly shield the boy from the ugliness of politics.....because Xie Lian loves him so much. (⁠T⁠T⁠)(⁠T⁠T⁠)(⁠T⁠T⁠)(⁠T⁠T⁠)(⁠T⁠T⁠)

That's basically his son. He's so proud of him.

I love what Xie Lian said to Lang Qianqiu, I'll love it round the world and back. I can't quote it but basically "You're not the one who did wrong, the people of Xianle are not wrong too, the wrong people are the evil doers. It is not your fault that wicked people took advantage of your kindness. You're not to blame....for being kind."

Felt like he was talking to himself for real. (⁠T⁠T⁠)

[compneuropapers]

Interesting Papers for Week 2, 2025

A geometrical solution underlies general neural principle for serial ordering. Di Antonio, G., Raglio, S., & Mattia, M. (2024). Nature Communications, 15, 8238.

Beyond Neyman–Pearson: E-values enable hypothesis testing with a data-driven alpha. Grünwald, P. D. (2024). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 121(39), e2302098121.

Prefrontal and lateral entorhinal neurons co-dependently learn item–outcome rules. Jun, H., Lee, J. Y., Bleza, N. R., Ichii, A., Donohue, J. D., & Igarashi, K. M. (2024). Nature, 633(8031), 864–871.

Human brain state dynamics are highly reproducible and associated with neural and behavioral features. Lee, K., Ji, J. L., Fonteneau, C., Berkovitch, L., Rahmati, M., Pan, L., … Anticevic, A. (2024). PLOS Biology, 22(9), e3002808.

Distinct ventral hippocampal inhibitory microcircuits regulating anxiety and fear behaviors. Li, K., Koukoutselos, K., Sakaguchi, M., & Ciocchi, S. (2024). Nature Communications, 15, 8228.

Characterizing the dynamics, reactivity and controllability of moods in depression with a Kalman filter. Malamud, J., Guloksuz, S., van Winkel, R., Delespaul, P., De Hert, M. A. F., Derom, C., … Huys, Q. J. M. (2024). PLOS Computational Biology, 20(9), e1012457.

The homogenous hippocampus: How hippocampal cells process available and potential goals. McNaughton, N., & Bannerman, D. (2024). Progress in Neurobiology, 240, 102653.

Decision uncertainty as a context for motor memory. Ogasa, K., Yokoi, A., Okazawa, G., Nishigaki, M., Hirashima, M., & Hagura, N. (2024). Nature Human Behaviour, 8(9), 1738–1751.

Maintenance and transformation of representational formats during working memory prioritization. Pacheco-Estefan, D., Fellner, M.-C., Kunz, L., Zhang, H., Reinacher, P., Roy, C., … Axmacher, N. (2024). Nature Communications, 15, 8234.

Dense and Persistent Odor Representations in the Olfactory Bulb of Awake Mice. Pirhayati, D., Smith, C. L., Kroeger, R., Navlakha, S., Pfaffinger, P., Reimer, J., … Moss, E. H. (2024). Journal of Neuroscience, 44(39), e0116242024.

Contrastive learning explains the emergence and function of visual category-selective regions. Prince, J. S., Alvarez, G. A., & Konkle, T. (2024). Science Advances, 10(39).

Independent operations of appetitive and aversive conditioning systems lead to simultaneous production of conflicting memories in an insect. Rahman, S., Terao, K., Hashimoto, K., & Mizunami, M. (2024). Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 291(2031).

Effects of visual diet on colour discrimination and preference. Skelton, A. E., Maule, J., Floyd, S., Wozniak, B., Majid, A., Bosten, J. M., & Franklin, A. (2024). Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 291(2031).

Neural network architecture of a mammalian brain. Swanson, L. W., Hahn, J. D., & Sporns, O. (2024). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 121(39), e2413422121.

Saccadic “inhibition” unveils the late influence of image content on oculomotor programming. Taylor, R., Buonocore, A., & Fracasso, A. (2024). Experimental Brain Research, 242(10), 2281–2294.

Mental programming of spatial sequences in working memory in the macaque frontal cortex. Tian, Z., Chen, J., Zhang, C., Min, B., Xu, B., & Wang, L. (2024). Science, 385(6716).

Humans flexibly integrate social information despite interindividual differences in reward. Witt, A., Toyokawa, W., Lala, K. N., Gaissmaier, W., & Wu, C. M. (2024). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 121(39), e2404928121.

Different Sensory Information Is Used for State Estimation when Stationary or Moving. Wong, A. L., Eyssalenne, A. N., Carter, L., & Therrien, A. S. (2024). eNeuro, 11(9), ENEURO.0357-23.2024.

A shared model-based linguistic space for transmitting our thoughts from brain to brain in natural conversations. Zada, Z., Goldstein, A., Michelmann, S., Simony, E., Price, A., Hasenfratz, L., … Hasson, U. (2024). Neuron, 112(18), 3211-3222.e5.

Geometric Scaling Law in Real Neuronal Networks. Zhang, X.-Y., Moore, J. M., Ru, X., & Yan, G. (2024). Physical Review Letters, 133(13), 138401.

[burnatnight]

Personal Info

Name: 何梓萱

English Name: Carrie Ho

Korean Name: 하재훤/Ha Jae Hwon

Sex: Female

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Pronounce: She/Her

Day of Birth: November 20

Blood Type: A+

Birthplace: Kowloon, Hong Kong

Nationally: American

Native Language: English and HK Cantonese

Other Language: Chinese, Korean and Japanese(writing only)

Appearance

Height: 170cm(5'7'')

Body Type: Lean

Hair Color: Black(the native is dark brown)

Skin Color: Fair

Eyes Color: Amber brown

Relationship

Grandfather: Felix Richter (Now missing)

Grandmother: Alisa Loomis/Anna Choi

Father: Unknown

Mother: Beth Choi (Deceased)

Uncle: Hadley Choi

Pet: Manto (a British Shorthair White Cat)

Classmates: Choi Nam Ra, Nam On Jo, Lee Cheong San, Lee Su Hyeok, Han Gyeong Su(love interest), Oh Joog Yeong, Yang Dae Su, Jang Wu Jin, Lee Na Yeon, Kim Ji Min and Seo Hyo Ryeong etc.

Others: Park Mi Jun, Jang Ha Ri, Yoon Gwi Nam and Min Eun Ji

f/o: Han Gyeong Su

Personally

MBTI: INFJ

Sign: Scorpio♏️

Favorite Song:

Aesthetic

[skipblebee]

HELLOOOO TGCF NATION!!! TODAY I BRING YOU AN AU IDEA‼️🫵

So I've been watching this show called Monk lately and MY GOSH I love it- so very normal about it that my brain went "Skip!! What if we made an au inspired by this!!"

And so I present to you:

A tgcf detective au!

------

Where Xie Lian is the best detective there- who can figure out every single case no matter how impossible it seems, but his luck is so terrible that something always goes wrong (like his evidence suddenly missing) and eventually, he gets laid off the force.

Hua Cheng on the other hand, has looked up to Xie Lian ever since they were at the academy and Xie Lian defended him in a case where he was wrongfully accused (also the case that made Xie Lian popular)

Hua Cheng now, is said to be a "good luck charm" because whoever has him on their team ALWAYS ends up solving their cases!! Like wherever he goes evidence will just pop up so he's seen as someone super lucky

On hearing about what happened to Xie Lian, he offers to work with him to solve cases and prove that xl is capable and can get back in the force.

They'd balance each other out and although people think they're an unusual duo, they seem to work pretty well together!!

-----

I haven't thought much about the side characters but so far I'm thinking they work for a detective agency headed by Jun Wu, who has the public persona of an angel but he's secretly into some pretty shady stuff,,,,

Let's just say Xie Lian's cases where evidence went missing,,, most of them might've been from cases Jun Wu would've been involved in.

Y'all know I am an AVID fengqing enjoyer so ofc we have those two, always bickering but being the best duo, always able to bounce off of each other, always getting paired to go on missions together‼️‼️

Yin Yu and Yizhen?? Maybe Yin Yu landed the role of a secratary even though he always wanted to be a detective. Yizhen is someone who kinda just tagged along with him but ended up getting the detective job instead of him. Which is messy but he buys him coffee every break they have cuz he has a massive crush on him. Don't tell him I told you that tho. Not that he's trying hard to hide it.

I came up with this au pretty recently so I haven't fully figured it out yet!! But I do like the idea a lot :D

[mxtxfanatic]

I’m kinda curious so I’ll come send you asks for the other books too.

Are there things you wish you had or hadn’t known before you started reading mxtx’s books? Are there twists you would have preferred to experience blind or details you wish you’d known ahead of time?

To give an example, I wish I’d known about the giant mecha statue fight in TGCF before I read the book because when I got there, I ended up laughing my way through the fight because I just couldn’t take it seriously, knowing it was coming would have given me both a better expectation for tgcf and meant that I was prepared for some of the silliness I was told to not expect, because it was supposedly a more serious book.

I wish I had never been spoiled to Jun Wu being the villain of tgcf. The absolute rage I would have felt without that knowledge would have been enough to power a small nation through the winter. I can't say that I'm upset at being spoiled about mdzs before I read it, because it's absolutely the type of story I needed to know the details of before I read it, but I wish that I hadn't known about the golden core exchange. As for svsss, honestly I don't think I got any spoilers for that one that I can remember. The fandom was mostly just shitposts at that point, and nobody I followed was talking about it besides, so it was probably the least spoiled novel for me.

The only thing I wish I knew beforehand was that Zhuzhi-lang dies and one of the extras drops the t-slur. Also wish people quoted the Villainous Extras more from mdzs cause wtf do you mean I've been spending all this time talking about the differences between what Wei Wuxian does and what Xue Yang does and Xue Yang just flat-out says that they don't do the same thing? I could've just been using one quote this whole time, straight from the psycho's mouth!

[kotoryba]

#I have an idea but no time: TGCF as online game (inspired by The King's Avatar, but it matches with any similar)

World, where you can realise your dreams. Where two powerful leagues - Heavens and Ghosts - divide the believers between themselves and fight fiercely in numerous battles. Magnificent graphics, millions of quests, powerful artifacts and skills, creative world-building system, expensive rewards in tournamens for the best of the bestes - the TGCF really is the top online strategy of all time!

And meet Xie Lian - once a prominent top fighter in national Heaven league (nickname - The Martial god in the flower crown) with his rich father as a sponsor; however, he tried to help some minor players with a quest and as turned out it was the fatal ambush🫣. He died, lost some levels, XPs and precious artifacts and was kicked from the dominant clan, Heaven Capital, because he couldn't keep the pace in the important tournaments. At the same time Xie Lian left online gaming for several years, because his father became bankrupt and died, took any jobs (because he didn't finish university due to constant cybersport tournaments), and lived in shelters - he didn't even have a smartphone!

Finally he found a more than less permanent place in the small internet cafe as an office manager (administrator and cleaner all-in-one). He curiously looks at beginning gamers and tries to give advice, however mostly are outdated in the modern versions of the games. His colleague (Ling Wen) encourages him to create an account there using one of the communal computers if he wants to enjoy the game in his free time. XL tried, but he messed up the stats (zero luck maybe), which is very dumb and hard for beginners single players. But luckily he receives a minor quest from Heaven league (The ghost groom) and the story begins again.

Meanwhile Hua Cheng, who is the mysterious informal ruler of the Ghost league (he uses clones and changes skins very often, so no one knows what his avatar really looks like), desperately searches XL in both online and offline worlds. During the years (he was that minor player, whom XL helped in the ambush), he mastered unique skills - Silver Butterfly Storm, Dice Teleportation and some other perks (self-made legendary-leveled artefact E-ming of course) in the hidden and nightmare level quests. But all those years he loved XL deeply, kept all his game posters and photos from the media in his mansion (HC became a very rich guy, he's lucky in gambling), and humbly expected to see his beloved again.

Meet Jun Wu, the righteous and mighty ruler leader of Heaven league, who is also the head game administrator… that's how he cheated and created Bai Wuxian, the powerful Ghost King, and played dirty on both sides, keeping a self-imagined balance of good and evil.

Meet Mu Qing and Feng Xin, the excellent fighters of the Heaven league, ex-university friends of XL. They are colleagues (and rivals) in the real life, and… if both of them want someday to invite their rival in his home on cup of coffee, that's impossible because of the huge posters and merch collections (General Nang Yang in MQ's home, general Xuan Zheng - in FX’s). Yes, they adore each other's avatars (and not only avatars😏). Yes, they think that the other doesn't know who the other is (not true🙄). Both blame himself for XL falling.

And the others: 

brothers Shi (older collaborate with JW in the grace of his brother place in League; younger is a popular game blogger); 

He Xuan, a powerful summoner of Ghost league and HC ally; once was kicked out from Heaven league. Learned the clone technique from HC and began to spy in Heaven league as a middle level player. For that, he befriends Shi Qixuan (but now he's not so sure that it was a good idea🤔).

Heaven league commander Pei Ming, who loves fighting and flirting (on-line mostly, but baby, if you is so pretty in real life, I'm all yours 😘)

Mei Nianqing, ex-game administrator (knows all JW deeds, but still in love with his ex-husband🙄); works as a hidden agent of cybercrime and tries to gather ANOTHER evidences (not his own, he just can't betray his love) of JW’s crimes.

Challenging tournaments, powerful monsters and level-bosses, intrigues on the both sides of screen - are you in the game? 😜

(please 🥺)

[admelioremvitam]

Overdo 这一秒过火 from 🐧 Tencent and 🥝 iQIYI officially announced its cast. Starring Zhang Linghe and Wang Churan.

About 6 hours ago, the production team officially announced its main cast, Zhang Linghe and Wang Churan, and released a few character posters and clips.

The drama had its booting ceremony yesterday on June 25. The team should be releasing official booting ceremony photos in the next day or so. I will update the post if/when they are available.

Update: Booting ceremony clip and photos by Zhang Linghe's team.

Cast:

Leading actors:

* Zhang Linghe as Murong Qingyi

* Wang Churan as Ren Susu/Fang Mulan

Leading actors:

* Fu Xinbo as Murong Qingyu

* Xu Zhenxuan as Li Baize

Leading actors:

* He Qiu as Ye Zhihong

* Wang Zisu as Haitangqing

Special guest actors:

* Myolie Wu as Cheng Jinzhi

* Sha Baoliang as Li Rongzhang

Special appearances:

* Mao Hai as Huo Shaoxiong

* Wu Mochou as Murong Jinrui

* Lu Qi as Zhang Mingshu

Special appearances:

* Wei Qing as Sun Rongci

* Liu Lingzi as Fang Mulan

* Kang Keren as Huo Minxian

Supporting actors:

* Chen Jinyu as Huo Zongqi

* Huang Boyuan as Lai Yi

* Episodes: 36

* Streaming platform: Tencent 🐧, iQIYI 🥝

* Official announcement and booting ceremony: June 25, 2025

* 🎬 Director: Yi Jun (Rookie Agent Rouge, Burning Iron, The Princess‘s Gambit, Lost Track of Time, Bloody Romance)

* ✍️ Original creator: Fei Wo Si Cun (Siege in Fog; Sealed with a Kiss; Too Late to Say I Love You; Good Bye, My Princess; Because of Love)

* 📖 Novel: [Wo Mei Yu Jian Ni 如果这一秒, 我没遇见你 - can be translated as “If I hadn’t met you at this moment.”

The drama title, 这一秒过火, can be translated as “it went too far in this second” or “things went overboard in this moment.”

Synopsis from MDL:

In Shanghai during the Republic of China, Murong Qing Yi, the youngest son of a warlord, was abused by his adoptive father because he was taken away by mistake. When he escaped as a teenager, he was saved by Ren Su Su, but his family suffered a catastrophe. After years of reunion, the two secretly fell in love, but Ren Su Su resolutely faked her death and fled to save others, leaving Murong Qing Yi to sink into the pain of losing love.

Three years later, Ren Su Su returned and became Murong Qing Yi's prospective sister-in-law. Now, one is full of resentment at being betrayed, and the other hides unspeakable pain, with love and hate intertwined between temptation and pulling. When misunderstandings are gradually resolved and deep affection is rekindled, a national disaster comes. Murong Qing Yi and Ren Su Su are determined to fight against powerful enemies. Where will their fate lead them?

(Source: Chinese = Douban || Translation = MyDramaList)

~~ Adapted from the web novel "Ru Guo Zhe Yi Miao, Wo Mei Yu Jian Ni" (如果这一秒, 我没遇见你) by Fei Wo Si Cun (匪我思存).

Baidu Link | Douban Link

[atamascolily]

TBF Theory: Human and Demons Have A Common Origin

The War of Fading Dusk happened 200 years before the start of Thunderbolt Fantasy, but it overshadows everything that happens in the present. The reason so many magic swords exist is so humanity could fight the demons invading their world. They succeeded, but at a cost--the country of Wan Yu was separated by a vast wasteland full of monsters and divided into Xi You and Dong Li, with no interactions until Shang Bu Huan hacked his way through.

We don't know why exactly the demons invaded, or why exactly they stopped, only that it was a unilateral decision from the Demon King to order a retreat and forbid contact with the human world. The exceptions are holdouts like Xing Hai, Zhao Jun Lin, and Azibelpher who said "fuck that" and kept on doing their thing for various reasons of their own. But given all of the established themes, I'm going to hazard a guess that a major twist in S4 will be the reveal that humans and demons have a common origin, and/or the human world and demon world were originally one and the same, just like Xi You and Dong Li were once one nation.

Humans and demons are different, but they're not that different--while demons come in a wide variety of shapes, at least some of them are humanoid, and we know the two races can interbreed with each other. In real life, that usually implies some degree of relation or common ancestor, but this is a fantasy world where magic exists, so all bets are off. Nevertheless, Lang Wu Yao's existence demonstrates that it is in fact possible for humans and demons to produce viable offspring, so I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they aren't as different from each other as we've been led to believe.

And I think Azibelpher knows this, because why else would he fuck around with Ling Mo Yan in the first place, and why is he so interested in his son? Why did he defy the demon king's orders and interact with the human world--sure, it was for the lulz, but I doubt that's the only reason. We may not know the full extent of his plans, but Azibelpher has an agenda, and unfortunately for poor Lang, he's right in the middle of it. (Like every Urobuchi villain, Azibelpher has an obsession with fate, destiny, and chessmastery; he may or may not be winging it, but he's got something particular in mind.)

This would also explain something that's puzzled me about S3 on rewatch, which is to say that it sure seems like Azibelpher deliberately sends Shang Bu Huan back in time to the Wars of Fading Dusk to meet Bai Lian and learn the secret behind the magic swords: they were either ordinary swords carried over from another world that gained unexpected abilities as a result of the transfer, OR were forged specifically for that purpose in a location that transferred from another world (Bai Lian's estate). They weren't divine gifts from the gods, they were just one poor confused guy from another world making the best of a bad situation. You know, the sort of thing anybody would do in that position.

(But why does Azibelpher want Shang to know this? What purpose does it serve? And it can't possibly be a coincidence, not when Juan Can Yun, who was right there when Azibelpher interrupted the three of them, gets left behind. What is he planning?? TBD.)

Given the theme of duality as well as the theme that things that are of both worlds have special powers, it's not hard to imagine this information being used in some fashion in future installments. There's already a few hints of it--the "blade whose existence is beyond reality" that Huo Shi Ming Huang claims is the only thing that can kill him, and there's Lang himself, a child of both worlds--and probably more we don't yet know about. Certainly, the trailer and promotional materials for S4 seem to imply that Lang's voice is somehow the key to everything.

Perhaps once upon a time, humans and demons and/or their worlds were the same, and perhaps there are those who would like to see that again, even as there are plenty who would prefer to keep them separate. (Can you imagine Xing Hai's reaction when she finds out??) If that's not as least some of the politicking going on in the demon world in S4, I'll be shocked.

Just as I think Xi You and Dong Li will be reunited before the end, I think the same will be true on a much larger scale for humans and demons as well, though whether that means a literal merger or a metaphorical one is not yet clear.

[catch-me-hello]

Debut’s Plan – Episode 6:  New Characters Emerge

It’s a good thing I don’t work in K-pop.  My picks rarely make it into the final group.  My favorites on this show aren’t doing well.  A survival show run by me would have to be called Debut Duds, and the band name would be No Future.  I’d probably have to fit an ampersand in there somewhere, but you get the point.

So with that cheerful intro, welcome to Episode Six!  Our trainees will be doing Plan 4 today, which will be Expression.  We’re going to see a lot of acting in this episode.  Let’s do this.

We start with our trainees gathering at the main dome, where they find a classroom setup. 

Our Starnouncer appears on the dome to greet them.  It welcomes back Park Seong Hyeon, who missed Plans 2 and 3 due to illness.  He’s recovered and says he is determined to be in the Top 7 this time.

Our trainees learn that Plan 4 is about Expression, and they are now in acting school.  One of my picks, Park Won Bin, is actually an art major in college who studies acting, so he’s got an advantage.  He’s not the only one.  Baek Jun Hyuk was a child actor.  And an incredibly adorable one at that.

Our acting teacher for today is popular Korean actor Eum Moon Seok.  Right away, I’m enjoying this class.  Our teacher makes the point that K-pop idols are at a disadvantage, having to express emotion in a 3-minute song that K-drama actors have several onscreen hours to express.  Plus, actors don’t also have to concentrate on singing and dancing.

Our trainees watch clips from famous Korean movies and K-dramas.  These are the clips they will be performing.  I’m fascinated with Eum Moon Seok’s teaching techniques.  He shows them how to unleash the full power of their voices, find the context of each scene, and get into the characters’ heads.  I would pay to take acting classes from this guy.

The trainees start performing their scenes.  Jang Yong Hoon, Wu Hao, and Lee Woo Ju give impressive monologues.  I may not understand the language or know the original scenes, but I can feel the emotion through the computer screen.

They also do a great improvisation exercise when a prop phone doesn’t ring when it’s supposed to, so our trainees have to keep their monologue going until it finally rings.  As there survival shows for aspiring K-drama actors?  I’d love to watch one of those.

I’d be fine with the class going on for the rest of the episode, but Eum Moon Seok has a gift for the trainees before he leaves.  It’s a script for a K-drama written for this show.  It’s called Imperfect Game.  The trainees are going to audition for the roles and film it.

The synopsis is this: 

Once aiming to win the national high school baseball tournament, the Woojoo High Baseball Team dreamed of winning the Phoenix Flag.  But after a scandal scattered its members, the team is on the brink of disbanding.  A new transfer student appears, hoping to restore the glory of Woojoo High, and begins gathering the team members again.  What will be the fate of the Woojoo High Baseball Team?

If this show came up on my Netflix suggestion list, I would totally watch it.

Seven of the 21 trainees will be cast in lead roles.  The others will be supporting role characters and extras.  The trainees will have five days to rehearse for the lead role auditions.  This will be especially hard for the Japanese and Chinese members, who will have to read, memorize, and deliver lines in Korean. 

Let’s pause for a quick tangent.  Park Won Bin is wearing an eye patch in this episode. 

I’ve seen trainees wearing eye patches in almost all of these survival shows, and I thought it must be a popular fashion statement in Korea, because not all of them could be getting that many eye injuries.  But then I did some checking.  Yes, sometimes it is a fashion statement.  But most of the time, they really are getting eye infections.  Idols wear makeup and colored contacts so often, their eyes are prone to irritation and infections.  Idols may also wear eye patches when recovering from double eyelid surgery.  Ah, the perils of staying beautiful.

Back to our show.  The scene that everyone wants to do is one with a fight scene in it, and the trainees doing that one really seem to enjoy rehearsals.  A lot of aggression is being worked out here.  I hope no one gets hurt.  Park Jun Hwan, the trainee who originally wanted to be a baseball player, is really connecting with his character.  The whole rehearsal process is mesmerizing to watch. 

Meanwhile, the foreign trainees struggle to read their lines.  We get a great moment when 14 year-old Lee Woo Ju has to explain the Korean word for “agony” to his Japanese scene partner Haru.  He says, “Imagine you got eliminated from this show.”  That’s all he needs to say.  Haru immediately gets it.  Lee Woo Ju turns out to be a great acting coach for both his non-Korean scene partners and should probably try that as a career if K-pop doesn’t work out for him.

During rehearsal week, the Starnouncer calls them back to the main dome.  Another acting coach is coming in to help.  He strolls in, casually dressed in sandals and shorts, which throws everyone off a bit.  This is acting coach Kim Si Hoon.

The only person I can find online with that name is a Korean baseball player with the NC Dinos, so I don’t think this Mr. Kim is a celebrity, other than being on this show.  Still, he has an impressive resume.  He has a Master’s in Acting from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.  And this man is not fooling around.  “You need to think of yourselves as actors, and I will treat you like actors,” he tells our trainees.  “Not being good at acting isn’t the issue.  But doing it half-heartedly is a problem.”  The trainees all stand up a bit straighter and look more alert.

Our trainees are told to remove their socks and go barefoot.  I really hope that floor has been scrubbed.  We already have one trainee with an eye infection.

The trainees walk around barefoot and are told to pay attention to their feelings.  “What are you feeling?” Kim Si Hoon demands in a booming voice.  “My feet hurt,” mutters Lee Woo Ju. 

This acting coach is like a drill instructor, clapping a specific number of times for each instruction.  He has them do exercises like pairing up, standing close together, and not breaking eye contact for several minutes.  As an introvert, this looks like total hell to me.  But then something very interesting happens.  After having them stare into each other’s eyes, Kim Si Hoon claps three times and tells them to start saying their lines.  When they do, they are fully immersed in their characters in a way they weren’t before.  They’ve been transformed.

They go on to do exercises in movement, voice work, and imagination, and I am really enjoying this.  I’m getting acting classes from experts for just the cost of my Viki subscription.

Before we know it, D-Day is here.  It’s Audition Day for the lead roles in Imperfect Game.  Our board members and judges gather to watch them through a video feed.  The choreographers are not with them this time.  Instead, Kim Si Hoon is joining them.

One by one, the teams take the stage and perform their scenes.  First up is the fight scene, which takes place in a classroom.

I am so caught up in these performances and don’t want to pause to take notes.  The trainees are immersed in their characters, and I’m immersed in the performances.

I am curious about one thing.  This classroom scene begins with a student walking in to see another student asleep at his desk.  The light is shining on the sleeping student’s face, so the first student sits in front of him and uses his hand to block the light.  This is a scene I remember vividly from TAN’s “Walking on the Moon” video.  Taehoon is the student asleep at his desk, and Jooan walks in, sees the light on his face, and closes the curtains to block the light.

When I first saw the TAN video, I just thought this was just a romantic scene.  But now I’m wondering if it’s based on a famous scene in a Korean movie or K-drama.  This scene, used in this music video and again on this survival show, is way too specific to just be a coincidence.  If any of my readers know, please speak up in the comments.  If it is a trope, I’d love to see the original source.

Next up is another confrontation/argument scene, where we learn that one of the baseball players had suffered an injury that may be related to the scandal that pulled the team apart.

Jang Yong Hoon’s performance brings me to tears.  He has trouble with expression when he sings, but as an actor, he shines.  Same with Seok June, who gives a powerful, believable performance.

I’ve been waiting anxiously for Hanu’s turn.  He’s been working so hard with the Korean language and trying to sound like a native Korean speaker while at the same time giving the scene the emotion it demands. 

He’s amazing.  The coaches love it.  They ask him to do it again in his native language, and it’s fascinating to see how he physically relaxes into the role when he’s more comfortable with the language.  When he’s done, one of the coaches asks, “Should we change the script to Japanese?”  Something tells me Haru just won a lead role.

Fellow Japanese trainee Kaira is up next, and he faces the same challenges.  He’s always shown great expression in his performances, so I’m really looking forward to this.

It’s a small part, but the coaches say he speaks like a native Korean.  He overcomes the language barrier to impress the coaches with just a few lines.

Park Won Bin has the hindrance of the eye patch, but he shows so much passion in his monologue.  The coaches can’t take their eyes off him.

Now we come crashing down with a very uncomfortable sequence of events, which we get in a flashback.  Trainee Kim Min Jae has a real struggle with Plan 4.  He’s just not good at acting, and since he’s a perfectionist, he wants to give up since he can’t do it perfectly.   Remember when we first met our acting coach Kim Si Hoon, and he said, “Not being good at acting isn’t the issue.  But doing it half-heartedly is a problem”?  Well, Kim Min Jae’s rehearsal in front of the class is worse than half-hearted.  He’s barely trying.  And Kim Si Hoon is NOT happy about it.

In front of the entire class, the teacher makes Kim Min Jae bend over, stick his tongue out, and say his lines loudly enough for everyone to hear.  I’m dying a million deaths for him.

As horrifying as this is to watch, it does seem to work.  When Kim Min Jae stands back up, he looks completely broken, but he’s able to say the lines with expression.

Then he breaks down in tears in front of everyone.  For several agonizing minutes, everyone just watches him sob.  This is so hard to watch.  Finally, everyone gets up to hug him, and I think we’re supposed to see this as a healing and heartwarming ending.  I’m emotionally exhausted at this point.  This has been an intense episode.

The flashback ends, and we see him do his final audition on D-Day.  He looks drained  The coaches applaud his effort but say he was too low-energy.  All I can think is, leave him alone.  Lord knows how many hours he’s going to spend in therapy because of this.

The auditions are over.  Now the board and the coaches need to assign the Top 7 roles so we can film this thing and see who makes up our new Top 7.  They are:

Park Won Bin, Chu Yoo Chan, Jang Yong Hoon

Baek Jun Hyuk, Haru

(A special note about Haru:  He did so well that his character, who is supposed to be from America, is changed to Japanese instead.  The coaches loved his performance that much.)

And finally,

Jang Jyu Hyun and Seok June

We end with some clips from the resulting K-drama.  The clips are not translated, so I don’t know what’s going on.  But thankfully, Park Won Bin’s eye seems to have healed.

We get a reminder to vote for our two favorite NewKids (I really don’t like that name) at newkids.co.kr.  Can we write in a vote to change the name?  Starship, you came up with badass group names like Monsta X and Cravity, and now you show up limping to the party with the name NewKids?  I can come up with better names using the online K-pop Group Name Generator.  Even The Eye Patch Crew would be a better name.

Whatever.  I need sleep.  From the previews, it looks like next week, we’re going on a road trip.  See you then!

Road Trippers.  Even THAT would be a better name than NewKids.  Geez.