#Wang yibo crouching

[anotherdescentintomadness]

Wang YiBo and that cute crouching thing he does

The fingers too… in fact, he does it so much that it’s on the new poster for One And Only.

See the fingers?

[jiangwanyinscatmom]

What are your opinions on The Untamed? I got into MDZS by stumbling upon the donghua whilst the first season was premiering and devoured fan translations of the novel and kept up religiously with the manhua. I found out I think a year and a half ago that a live action existed and tbh, I'm not that interested. I think it's because of all the changes I've heard were made to the story and the themes and tbh, I'm not very into the graphics 😅 But my primary gripe is it supposedly not being a faithful adaption and instead a very loose one. Since on Ao3 it's somehow impossible to escape the grasp of The Untamed and I've seen so many silly fanons floating around accepted as canon due to the influence of CQL, my feelings towards it are even less generous. So many fans take CQL as the canon story instead of the novel, and its like we've read two different stories, because in many ways, we have. Still, Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan look gorgeous, and so do the rest of the cast so I'm a bit torn.

I LOVE the Untamed! (I say as I write up essays on why it's dumb and ruined themes and STUPID)

I only recommend it as a VERY loose retelling of what Mo Dao Zu Shi is. The Disney Ariel to the Hans Christen Anderson unrequited gay love letter to the world. So to speak. My one glowing compliment to it is that thankfully after fan pushback, the director, Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo were able to give us the scenes that stood out finally. And probably why we get the whole "Uncut" version of it that is solely focused on their scenes alone.

I don't recommend it as the first foray into the MDZS universe as it changes about all points of importance for a sanitized story. Themes and arcs are vastly lacking in the Live Action that the novel closes very neatly. Don't get me started how pairing Jiang Cheng with Wen Qing makes him EVEN MORE of an asshole regarding the entire Wen massacre and him letting her be burned to death. And somehow despite being an equal love story to the canon on screen Jiang Yanli/Jin Zixuan and the implied Wangxian, that just gets dropped from relevance??? BAD WRITING YANG XIA.

A lot of people of course came to fandom from the Untamed as of 2019, the book was very niche since it originally finished in 2016 and was issued physically and officially by Pinsin in 2018. A year before the Untamed aired. It was culturally a HUGE DEAL... due to it being danmei and so known as being such for it to be such a cashcow. But not for the West. For the West it was one of the biggest things since probably Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon for the genre of Xianxia and Wuxia to be renewed as an interest, or spotlighted once more. But a lot of its initial spark was because it was such an inversion of the usual standard xianxia and wuxia tropes. It places emphasis on the human of the genre over the fantasy.

CQL, tried to make it more in line with typical xianxia and wuxia out there. Doesn't quiet work as well when you have the original source turning all of these tropes and character arc expectations around and the Live Action drops those essentially for on air compliance.

The good the bad, can't be taken as the same between either because the intentions were different. Thematics cannot be scrubbed out from the original and the adaptation claimed to be the true source. The book is what the original intention was for, and worked. Sometimes adaptations lose out the canonical intention of the original but it is not the be end of it when it was reproducing what is already there.

[stellahibernis]

Lan Wangji: Armored in Silk and Lace

AKA Lan Wangji’s costumes in the Untamed, part 3/9

Today it’s time to discuss the outfit that’s definitely in contention for the title of Most Extra™. As usual, I’ll talk of the costume both in terms of what it consists of and how it ties to what’s going on in the plot.

Lan Wangji wears this outfit during the evil summer school in episodes 11 to 14, and is furious for about 90 % of the time. He also confesses his love, only for Wei Wuxian to pass out without actually hearing it, so things are going just great for him all in all.

The Costume

This was a fun one to analyze, because it looks fairly simple at a first glance, the silhouette is much like his first outfit, but when you start to really look at it, you’ll spot a lot of detail going on. Also for some reason getting good screencaps of this one was a nightmare, but I think you’ll get the gist even with what I got.

This outfit is notable for a couple of reasons; it’s his first completely white outfit (excluding the forehead ribbon and waist ornament, those are the same as always), his other fully white outfit is the next one. It’s also the first time there’s no cloud embroidery anywhere, the other time is the outfit he wears when they go to the temple in the end. I’ll talk of the in-universe reasons in the context section, but the fully white look is a very wise choice also from the costuming perspective.

As you can see above, the silhouette is once more a formal one, with the wide sleeves and the robe falling freely over sash. The color is pure white, as opposed to Nie Huaisang’s off-white in comparison, but you might go back and look at the first outfit for example, and notice the white here seems warmer than in any of his other white outfits. Usually, while the white fabric in LWJ’s costumes is always pure white rather than a tint of any kind, it takes a little of the blue hue from the inner robes. It obviously doesn’t happen here, and the fabrics used are also somewhat less shiny than in his other costumes, which helps it reflect the warm tones back (as opposed to the next, also all white outfit, which is made of shinier fabrics).

From costuming perspective the choice makes sense, because this outfit is worn outdoors under sunlight, in Qishan with its reddish light, and in the cave in firelight, all of which are environments where the full white works at least as well (natural sunlight) or better (Qishan and the cave) than with the blue underlayer. The textures of the fabric also look great especially in the dim light of the cave.

Now let’s get to the details! The most obvious thing is of course the lace overlay on the outer robe which is not only gorgeous, but a relevant factor in consideration whether this is the Most Extra™ outfit. I also love the texture of the fabric on the lapels and sleeve ends, with the same fabric also used in the layer below. In the title I called this outfit his armor, and it is so for him psychologically, which I’ll talk about later, but it’s also reflected in the very structured cut of the second robe, which has much starker pleating than his outfits usually do. There’s also a bit of lace in the panel on the front, and the sash is similarly criss-crossed as it was with his previous blue outfit.

I had to settle for a screencap of him crouching to get even a half decent look of the bottom of his robes, because mostly you can’t see half of the detailing. First, there is the panel of lace that continues all the way down in front, and you can also see the pressed pleating. Also, if you look at his right knee (resting on the ground), you can see yet another fabric that has a sort of circular texture going on (may have to zoom in on this one), again something that you’re likely to miss on the screen, but must have been great for Wang Yibo to know that every bit of the costume was as elaborate as LWJ’s should be.

And finally, my favorite detail and the one that in my book yields the title Most Extra™ for this outfit, the boots! Sorry about the awkward cropping, I didn’t want to have the leg wound visible, since that’s potentially a less than great surprise in a costume post, and this was pretty much the only scene where you could get a good look at the boots.

I mentioned in part 1 that it's a hell of a power move from the Lan Sect to have white boots in general, but look at these. Boots made of white brocade? Truly incredible, and obviously used here since we get a good look at them by virtue of LWJ’s leg wound. Once again I applaud the costuming department for commitment.

The Context

LWJ is back in white, which broadly means that he feels drawn to his duty to his sect more keenly, and in this case I’d argue it’s mixed with mourning for the burned Cloud Recesses and the loss of his home, hence the all white outfit. He’s also terribly vulnerable and alone when we first see him in Qishan, he’s escorted in by the Wens rather than arriving with an entourage like the others, he’s been questioned and beaten for who knows how long by that point, he’s injured and has to use his spiritual energy just to walk upright, and he’s worried about his family. Of course, he’s not going to let the Wens see it’s getting to him, and his outfit is one of the few things he can control, so he does, to a degree at least.

The lack of cloud embroidery might in-universe be because he was not allowed to have it, considering the embroidery acts as a talisman that can protect the wearer from some forms of harm (remember how in episode one the puppets didn’t like them).

They may be made of silk and lace, but his robes are his armor right then, the very formality and how impeccable they are despite everything is giving out the signal that even in these circumstances he’s still the Second Jade of Lan. It’s costing him though, and he again has drawn a wall around himself and doesn’t spare a glance at the others, including WWX, he’s laser focused on Wen Chao with all the fury he has. Of course, the day ends absolutely miserably with them having to relinquish their swords just to add insult to injury, and giving him even less things he has control over. (This is not a weapon design post, but Bichen is really pretty.)

There is a huge difference in the way he now interacts with WWX compared to where they left off in Qinghe, even taking into account that LWJ didn’t actually let WWX see quite how much he’d softened toward him, but now the barrier is fully up again, and WWX is doing his best to batter it down once more. He can of course see it’s different compared to how their early interactions were, now LWJ isn’t annoyed at him but just ignores him, likely at least partly out of necessity because he has no energy for anything else, but also because he’s so aware of representing his sect in this dangerous time, and he can’t afford to be distracted. WWX of course finds out only later what has happened since their parting, and then understands better why LWJ behaved as he did.

Of course, LWJ might be on his last legs and tied by his duty, but the fact he cares about WWX hasn’t changed, and while he can ignore both the questioning and the antics, he won’t just stand by and let him be hurt. This, of course, is a mutual feeling for the two of them, as we see later during the walk toward the cave. In fact, they’re on something of a mirrored journey right here, having to think of their duties toward their sects, but when push comes to shove, they will always help each other.

When they're left behind in the cave there is a brief lull in the push and pull conflict going on in both their hearts, and for a bit they can just focus on surviving together. WWX pulling LWJ’s ribbon off is a neat symbol for it, as if removing the duty for a bit, and the conversation following is fully personal even though their worry for their families is there at the back of their minds at all times.

There’s also the only moment of peace for LWJ while wearing this outfit; when he falls asleep and WWX gently covers him with his robes, and later in the morning puts his ribbon back on. LWJ really had no defence against falling in love with WWX, when assaulted both by the fact WWX isn’t at all bothered by the icy aloofness he portrays, and the casual caring acts.

After the relatively calm night it’s back to no fun times to be had, with WWX nearly dying in the aftermath of the battle. Here we get perhaps the most pointed example of how LWJ is at this point in his life pulled into two directions. He sings the song he composed and named after the two of them to WWX, even saying the name aloud and practically confessing to his feelings, and then leaving without waiting for WWX to wake up when they’re saved, because he knows that since he can, he needs to return to his family and see what they can salvage of their home. A “fun” thing for him to contemplate, by the way, is whether things would have gone differently when they reunited in episode 20 if he’d stayed at least to see WWX back awake. Who knows.

Next time we’ll have another fully white outfit and LWJ not having a particularly good time wearing it. Hopefully there’ll be plenty of scenes from which to get good screencaps, it feels like struggling with both the angst and difficulty of capturing should be too much to ask. 😅

(You can find the rest of this series via “lwj costume series” tag below, or through my blog contents page. I’d link for ease of access but the links make it disappear from tags, so. 😒)

[rkwooyoung]

⟶ WINTER SINGER CONTEST

                                                … performing SANTA TELL ME by ARIANGE GRANDE

                                                                  ❄️

there’s still a biting chill in the air, winter going full throttle on the streets of seoul. yibo’s rather fond of it; the hot chocolate and tea so readily available at stalls in the market areas, the abundance of thick sweaters he’s very quickly growing a far too large collection of, and the snow. he loves the snow, and as a boy from shenzhen, where winter usually isn’t too cold, he’s not experienced a white winter before. this is his first complete winter in south korea, since he’d arrived as winter was trickling into spring last year, so he’s been trying to make the most of it. 

he built his first snowman after the first heavy snowfall last year, though the friends he excitedly told about it afterwards didn’t seem as excited about the achievement as yibo did - he sincerely hopes he never gets that bored by the snow. it’d been one of the most exciting days of his life when he’d awoken to the brightness of the world outside, the white blanket covering the street outside reflecting light through his window almost more beautiful than when the sun bathed his room in warm orange light during the early mornings of the summer months. 

if anyone’s filled with winter cheer, it’s yibo. so, when he spots a flyer for the winter singer contest while on his way home from work one evening, he decides to take it with him, and consider entering. he’s not the best singer, he thinks, but he isn’t bad. he probably wouldn’t win, but he’d have fun, that’s for sure, and his fans would probably like it too, if it’s recorded and put online. 

somehow, he finds himself signing up, despite not knowing what he’s going to sing, or why he’s even taking part in a singing contest when he’s in no way a singer. he knows how to sing mostly for musical theatre reasons, but that doesn’t mean he’s got the voice that would suit pop songs, especially christmas ones. 

even so, he can’t stop himself from putting his name down for what will surely be a hilarious affair.

he prepares a song rather quickly, simply picking a song he likes, then changing the key to suit his voice, and then making sure he knows all the words (he doesn’t want to forget them while performing - that’s his worst nightmare, right after the turning up to school in his underwear one). no sooner had he prepared, practised, and picked out a nice winter outfit, ugly christmas sweater and all, than the day had arrived to perform. 

yibo heads out to where the contests being held, headphones in playing the song over and over again just to make absolutely sure he doesn’t forget anything or get any verses mixed up, on the morning of the competition. at least yibo’s not got stage fright, or the prospect of performing in a busy public place, where anybody passing by can stop and watch, would have crippled him, he’s sure. he’s known people with stage fright before, even some trying to make it on the stage, like him, and it wasn’t something he could really understand. he’d always loved performing, and gotten a buzz from being in stage, acting for an audience. he assumed singing would feel no different, even if he felt a little more vulnerable, since his skills were sort of lacking. 

while he waits for his turn to perform he grabs a drink from a nearby cafe and enjoys the other performances, trying not to let them make him nervous - this is for fun, for him at least. he’s not playing to win, he’s simply doing it for the experience, and he’s not pursuing singing, like some of the other people performing probably are. in a city like seoul, with a booming entertainment industry, every competition could be a possible place for the eyes and ears of those companies that hopefuls so dearly hope to be picked up by. yibo’s not trying to steal anyones place in the spotlight, and he’s not worried that he will. 

he’s just finishing his drink when his name’s called out from the side of the small stage, and he hurries on over, throwing his now empty cup into a trashcan as he passes. slapping a sticker with his name on it to his breast that a woman hands him, he heads on up the stairs, gripping a microphone someone had handed him in a hurry, and hands his usb with the music on to the sound guy waiting on his way up them. 

                                                                 ❄️

before he really can register what’s happening he’s standing centre stage with his eyes on the crowd, hands clasped around the microphone which he’s holding in front of him. he’s a little blinded by the quick process, and the lights shining on him, but he adapts within seconds and throws on a bright smile. 

“hello, my name’s wang yibo, and i’ll be singing santa tell me by ariana grande.”

there’s a muffled murmuring from the audience, obviously somewhat surprised by his song choice, but he’d sort of hoped to surprise them - it’s more fun that way. 

with a nod to the sound guy the music starts and yibo takes the first few intro seconds to slowly stroll his way to one side of the stage, bringing the mic up to his lips as he looks out towards the audience, and begins to sing. 

santa tell me if you're really there don't make me fall in love again if he won't be here next year santa tell me if he really cares 'cause i can give it all away if he won't be here next year

he hadn’t bothered changing the pronouns or anything because only cowards do that. he’d tried to think of someone to sing to, but the only person other than per_se’s hugo that came to mind was the poor guy he’d ‘accidentally’ spilt his coffee all over. he’s just pretty, yibo simply can’t help himself. of course, this feels more like a love song that a ‘him hot. me hulk smash’ song, so neither really fit. 

feeling christmas all around and I'm trying to play it cool but it's hard to focus when I see you walking around the room let it snow, it's blasting now but I won't get in the mood i'm avoiding every mistletoe until I know it's true love that he thinks of so next christmas i'm not all alone, boy

most of his movement is simply walking from one side of the stage to the other, stopping in the centre sometimes or crouching down to sing to one audience member in particular with a cheeky wink thrown into the mix, so he doesn’t have to think all that much as he sings. he’s just having fun, really. 

the chorus comes round again and yibo prances about the stage happily, wiggling his hips and just having an altogether good time. 

i've been down this road before fell in love on christmas night but on new year's day i woke up and he wasn't by my side now i need someone to hold be my fire in the cold but it's hard to tell if this is just a fling or if it's true love that he thinks of so next Christmas i'm not all alone, babe

yibo had never fallen in love before, but he can imagine it would be beautiful. fireworks and butterflies and romantic dates. he can’t wait for the day he falls in love. maybe he’ll meet someone and fall immediately, or maybe it’ll be a beautiful friendship that blossoms into sweet love. however it happens he just knows it’ll be wonderful. 

as yibo sings his way through the rest of the song, playfully interacting with the audience closest to the stage, he thinks about his future love-life, wondering what his future love will be like. a boy or a girl? tall or short? introverted or extroverted? as long as they’re his love he doesn’t mind who or what they are. 

the song soon comes to an end and with a bright smile on his face yibo finishes centre stage, arms crossed over his chest. winter seems like the perfect time for love. maybe yibo will get lucky next year. 

[anotherdescentintomadness]

Wang YiBo Posts

Vibes, aesthetics, themes, red carpets, and events — Posts I’ve put together

Wang Yibo Photo Shoots and Aesthetics

Rainbow Wang YiBos (the most beautiful thing I’ve ever made)

Harper’s Bazaar x FPU

WYB Cyberpunk Post-Apocalypse Aesthetic (GQ SS2020 shoot)

WYB Neverending B&W Aesthetic

WYB Blue Mullet Aesthetic

WYB’s WuGan Announcement Space Aesthetic

WYB x VogueME: Rose Red Aesthetic

WYB Brides Magazine Aesthetic

WYB x GQ: A Rainbow Sunflower Aesthetic

WYB x Chanel: Red Camellia Aesthetic

26th Birthday Photo Shoot

WYB X HangZhou Asian Games Shoots

Retro Curio Aesthetic (Young Chic 2019)

Countdown to Chanel Cruise Shenzhen

Tracer85 x Bazaar 190810

Tracer85 x Bazaar part 2

Chanel Cruise Shenzhen 2023

Gank Your Heart OST photoshoot

WYB x Leon Young (2018)

Wang YiBo Themed Posts

Wang YiBo and his Tiny Handbags

Photographer Era Wang YiBo

Photographer Era WYB Part 2

WYB in Pink 💖

WYB in Long Coats

WYB with Dogs to Heal your Existential Dread

WYB with Cats to Further Heal your Existential Dread

WYB and that Cute Crouching Thing He Does

WYB sitting THAT WAY

WYB and the City (urban DD)

WYB’s Softest Selfies

Mirror-Selfie Era WYB

The Selfie Gremlin

WYB with flowers

Our Peace and Love Cool Guy (Bixin WYB)

14 Times WYB Came to Slay in Black and Grey in 2023

TikTok Era random DD

Stage Performances

YueHua Nian 2023 // YueHua Nian Cont.

Like the Sunshine 2023

Versace on the Floor 2020

Characters

My Strange Friend — Wei YiChen

A Chinese Odyssey: Part 3 — Hong Hai’Er

Love Actually — Zhai ZhiWei

Gank Your Heart — Ji XiangKong

When We Were Young — Lin JiaYi

Gif Sets

Perish Fashion Week — The King Slays

Our star WYB (SIFF)

White Suit (TTXS)

Suspiciously Cheerful (Happy Camp)

Sleepy WYB x Cow Onesie

Shirtless Fluffy-Haired Tracer85

One & Only Promo

All the One&Only movie posters // Movie posters cont

Roadshows: ChangSha // Hangzhou // Beijing // YueYang // Bangkok

Premiere // Universal Studios // SIFF // Li Jiaqi Live Stream //

Chen Shuo’s Family // Chen Shuo’s Family (part 2)

Events

Perish Fashion Week (Chanel cap) // YueHua Family Concert // YueHua Family Dinner // Shu Uemura // Greater Bay Area Film Concert // Moncler Shanghai Flagship Grand Opening // 20th Movie Channel Media Focus Unit // Weibo Movie Night 2023 // Evisu Racing at ZIC // Douyin Movie Wonder Night // Chanel Métiers d’Art Show 2023 // Huabiao Awards // Chanel Cruise 2023 (LA, CA) // Weibo Night 220814 // Weibo Night 210228

Wang YiBo and Xiao Zhan

[ao3feedbjyx]

by wintercqling (winterling)

Yibo is transfixed at the sight of Xiao Zhan’s wide smile and sweetly upturned eyes. The little scrunch of his nose as he laughs. It makes the edges of his lip twitch too, and he huffs softly to relieve the bubbling feeling in his chest.

  “Ah, sorry. I was a bit surprised there.” Xiao Zhan lifts himself up, walking closer before crouching down and taking both of Yibo’s roughened hands in his, surprisingly smaller ones. “Yibo, isn’t it? You can call me Zhan-ge.”

“Zhan-ge,” he replies dumbly, and gets another brilliant smile in return.

 ***

Xiao Zhan is twenty when he meets his little friend Yibo. Yibo is fourteen when he meets his future bride-to-be Zhan-ge.

A story of seven years, and a lifetime thereafter.

Words: 22094, Chapters: 5/5, Language: English

Fandoms: 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) RPF

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Wang Yi Bo, Xiao Zhan, Peng Chuyue

Relationships: Wang Yi Bo/Xiao Zhan

Additional Tags: Ancient China, Temporarily Unrequited Love, Alternate Universe - Historical, Top Wang Yi Bo/Bottom Xiao Zhan, Happy Ending, UNIQ Members, mentions of war and war-related violence, Artist Xiao Zhan