#or i would have the ost playing like i was living in the show

[manzaza]

perirep with airpods promoting mY WHOLE REVIEW OF THE NEW WISH SOUNDTRACK BECAUSE OHHHHH MY GOD IT GOES SO SO SO HARD (under cut feel free to listen here (also on apple music + yt do in fact give it a listen please yay) !!)

theme song (all the singing songs)

— although i can never truly let go of the og the new theme song will always be a bop

— so upbeat, so happy !!!

new yorkity york

— hazel’s va is such an amazing singer PLEASE if there’s a season 2 give them a musical episode there are not enough musicl numbers

party possum’s friendship song

— better than the chuck e cheese one i heard in the theater earlier lollllllll

— the live band version ate i liked the difference

— unhinged version was so fun the nickelodeon drummer ate up

lovely love song

— still haven’t watched this episode (i was shopping when it aired oops)

— hazel was so silly idk what happens i just remember cupid being there (idk if he was in this at the end that might’ve been hazel’s dad)

i love fries

— HAZEL’S VA SLAYING AGAIN !!!!!

— banger song so real live laugh love fries

— cosmo + wanda contributed yay let them sing

time loops

— addiction,,,,, brainrot even,,,,,,,,,

— cosmo and wanda singing yayyy !!!

— the actual little yay at the end was so silly got a good chuckle

proud of my son — dubstep remix

— this was actually the funniest thing to watch i had this episode pulled up in a panera’s and i was just staring at it like “bro just took over the world for THIS”

— dev is ten so it does make sense

— almost

a new wish (yay background music !!)

— i love all the jazz in the ost just soooo so good

— reminds me of a sam and max kinda intro

— listening to this + the rest just makes me want a video game for ANW so so bad it would genuinely be so much fun to play (will genuinely plot out a tumblr post for this idea)

fly hazel

— banger warmup vibes in the intro

— love how some of the insteuments give like a fly-feeling gimmick (cause she’s a fly)

— little intro chord at the very end eats up

teacher’s pal

— might be one of my fav tracks

— nickeloxeon pianist and saxophonist are eating uppp

— 1:15 was so good

— nickelodeon symphony when

fearless

— somewhat out of place but still fits in with the show vibes

— very lurking

— fnaf 3 am jumpscare (idk i see more poppy playtime in this despite never watching or knowing anything about poppy playtime

— very cheerful kinda scary at the end (yay jasmine!!!)

wellingston hotel

— i rlly like hotel music play this at a marriott hotel NOW

— still haven’t seen this episode (i’m dying to watch it i need to see winn’s introoooo)

— sudden rich person music change

— love you nickelodeon saxophonist !!!!

dev dimmadome

— classic dev intro

— 0:54 is so cruel just label this project h whyyyyyyyy

— just sheer pain in the middle but then they remebered at the end “oh yeah he’s ten”

— it gets so intense at 1:30 broooooo

fairy heist

— i love spy music

— little dev-ness in the middle with the certain gimmick in his track (i might be crazy for this one but idk the “waeahwow” reminded me of something from his track + i think this was in the breaking into school scene idk)

prime meridian love

— literal anime ost

— eats with the dramatic intro

— it faintly reminds me of an ok ko track but just slightly at the beginning of some of the melodies idk might be crazy for this one too

peri and irep

— no way.

— actually no way.

— ship interacts once and they get their own song.

— the twist at the beginning of the track was so hype like the beat is just constantly at odds during this song (and because i’m just like that i have the track times put down too when they swap)

— to not make this any longer the noticeable parts after their intros are like 0:50–1:02 is peri-sounding and then 1:03–1:18 is irep-sounding and from then on their themes are always at a clash with more differences spotted at the end

— will say i love irep’s part at 0:32 and 1:03 that’s so funnnn ahh

— the little villainous laugh at like 1:50 was silly

— the little theme at 3:00 ahhh !!!!!

— might be another fav……. yeah def another fav my airbuds says so

viozalea

— feels so medieval at first and i love it

— quick just like viozalea’s appearance (rip)

rattlleconda

— fire western theme

— still in character with the show the beat was firee

— the soft violin gahhh sheer joy

— intense pressure put on at the end ate

love and games

— rock paper scissors core

— me when rock paper scissors

— wait i actually never watched the valentines episode

— uhhhhhhh second half might be rock paper scissors

— BANGS

— love u Nickelodeon drummer

battle of wands (FINALE)

— shut up this is too glorious of a melody

— ok intense

— oh might’ve just hit one million wishes idk how this song is following the episode

— the chaos in the rhythm eats

— littlt theme at 2:30 aghhhh won

— peri lying dead right after again idk how the episode paces through songs i can spot little scenes here and there

— banged

— little clock beat ahh the happiness

— can’t even tell what happened but good finale

OVERALL i really enjoyed the soundtrack i love how it tries and takes you through the course of the episode and it’s so so fun!! almost feels like video game music sometimes which is so so good for them like YES drop a new wish video game it would be so good !!!!

[gofrenchie]

honestly scared about heartstopper coming back bc s1 gave me the most intense brainrot i have ever had for a show in my life. i've never watched a single season of anything that many times or listened to an original soundtrack that much.

[starshadyy]

what your favorite splatoon character says about YOU!

obligatory “this is a joke” disclaimer, please don’t take offense i’m only being silly👉👈

☆ ★ ☆

callie: you are a diehard squid sisters fan. you have an intrinsic sense for design and are probably super creative. you hate it when people misinterpret her. others wouldn’t assume it, but you actually need therapy more than most others on this list…😔

marie: you’re really intimidating but probably super nice. you’re actually good at the game and are well-versed in the meta. you may not be the best at communication, but you have a strong intuition and are good at reading people

pearl: an absolute feral crackhead who needs to be kept on a leash. definitely queer. nasty majesty is your national anthem. you breathe life and energy into every situation you enter, and others appreciate you for it. you are pearlina’s strongest soldier! 🩷🩵

marina: you are a massive nerd /affectionate. you either wanna be her friend or you have a fat crush on her. you listen to splatoon ost all the time. your room is packed with stuff from the media you like, including mountains of plushies

shiver: you join her team during splatfests even when you don’t necessarily agree with the platform. you’re likely very sarcastic and always speak your mind. oh yeah, and you’re a weeb

frye: you loved her from the start and defended her honor back when everyone was clowning on her design. you’re very talented but humble about your accomplishments. you would bite someone if allowed

big man: you act laid back but are probably filled with anxiety. i get the vibe that you would own an unconventional pet of some kind [turtle, frog, ferret, etc.]. you’re for sure the mom friend. you know nothing about splatoon lore

captain 3: you are the BACKBONE of this fandom and i have nothing but respect for you. you’re probably ranked pretty high in competitive and are likely a completionist

agent 4: you grew up on splatoon 2 and were sure that they would show up in side order only to be… uh, half right? i’m so sorry sweet prince /gn. don’t you worry, your day [splatoon 4] is fast approaching…

eight: you’re very analytical and derive great joy from the story aspects of splatoon. you either write or read fanfiction and maybe cosplay too. you LIVE for the found family trope, and also probably ship them with captain 3. you have amazing taste :]

neo agent 3: you think lil buddy is the most adorable creature to walk the planet. you wish their initial outfit was actually accessible in the game. you’ve probably only played splatoon 3

cap’n cuttlefish: you’re an og who’s been around since splatoon 1 but still know next to nothing about the lore. you don’t main a weapon, and instead prefer to bounce around. you are… an inscrutable crackhead who i want to study

dj octavio: you’re willing to die on the hill that he is not a villain and only did what he did to support his people [you’re right btw]. you’re actually really chill and fun and i have a lot of respect for you. also, i’m liable to believe that you ship him with cuttlefish, don’t you? DON’T YOU?!?

commander tartar: you’re… ME??? villainous characters are always your favorites. you think octo expansion is a masterpiece [and you’re entirely right]. you’re a splatoon scholar and scour every obscure twitter post and artbook note to satiate your hunger for that sweet sweet lore. there’s something deeply wrong in your head.

mr. grizz: you play a lot of salmon run but are actually kinda bad at it [shhh i won’t tell]. you suffered through after alterna just for his backstory log and the bear ears. i’m going to go out on a limb here and say… you have daddy issues

smollusk: you LOVE the idea that marina and pearl are its adoptive moms. you’ve beaten side order with every palette. you overuse the “🥺” emoji. you miiight be a little annoying, but your heart is in the right place… probably

acht: either the chillest person you’ll ever meet or the most insane. probably both. you’re 100% queer and probably neurodivergent too. i bet you listen to will wood and / or tally hall. i wanna be your friend

harmony: you know every chirpy chips song by heart. you’re probably really sweet and i know you make banger fanart. you have an affinity for cute things and i bet your favorite pokémon type is fairy. DEFINITELY neurodivergent.

cq cumber: ???you both confuse and frighten me!!! what can i even say? you’re a cryptid! but honestly, you’re kinda iconic. i salute you, you freak of nature🫡

iso padre: I LOVE YOU. you’re accepting of all people and are just an absolute saint in general. daddy issues, but you’re coping way better than the grizz fans. also, i’m betting that you’re neurodivergent

sheldon: i didn’t think you existed, but turns out that you do? you actually listen to his rambles. splatoon 2 is your favorite game in the series. you’re able to see the value in things that others tear down and y'know what? i respect that [not saying i approve of your character choice though]

judd: wait, why him? ohh wait, i know! you probably just don’t care about splatoon’s story at all and / or love cats. there, that’s totally it, right?

lil judd: you either DON’T know his lore and just like the cute little kitten, or you DO know his lore and you’re unhinged. i’m scared of you

spyke: you’d bark for him without hesitation and DON’T pretend you wouldn’t. you clown. you absolute freak. i know what you are. /j

murch: if i had to bet, you’re probably the shy type who prefers to let others do the talking for them. you might secretly be a little freaky though, and i think you should embrace that side of yourself. you’re safe here. be free.

[us-the-voices-and-more-voices-2]

My headcannons for what type of music the Batfam likes lol

Bruce: 40s love songs, mostly because Thomas and Martha are lovers of old music and art it’s a call back to Batman being such an old.. old character.

He also loves really, REALLY sad songs. Just straight depressing songs, like he knows all the lyrics to like the most downright suicidal songs ever.

Dick: he listens to very upbeat music, but like EDM and rap, he also loves circus music and really ridiculously old songs he knows all the words to “the flying trapeze” by heart ❤️

Jason: unironically his favourite album is Neil Cicirega's "mouth sounds" series of albums, he also would never admit it but he listens to Kikuo constantly. he's not a "fan" of vocaloid he just likes some songs. he also constantly listens to 80s and 70s hits as a call back to his character being popular in the 80s.

Tim: worst taste in music ever, he does NOT get the aux. it's all the most popular hits of the last 4 decades, for better or worse.

he also gets all the WE jingles stuck in his head, it's so bad.

it's mostly now video game OST's he got into FNAF lore at one point and actually solved it, and then got super into the music. he relates a bit too much, he calls Jason sometimes mike because they are both undead guys hellbent on keeping kids safe from the evils of this world, and Ra's afton because the bastard always comes back. he will BLARE "I hope you die in a fire" when working a Ra's case.

Damian: despite what he holds himself to he really likes the same fandom sorta music, video game lore was the only thing that Damien and Tim talk about, they have usually ZERO free time to watch or play games they just extrapolate wtf the game is about from their friends WITH free time. that being wally and bart.

so damien has a bunch of the living tombstones, classic Chinese and arabic music but mainly Pakistani, some 80s hits. 40s love songs because bruce is right they are really good, and some mislabeled cassette tapes\CD's Damien picks up on patrol that he likes.

Steph: she didn't really get a chance to listen to much music, since Cluemaster was a dick. but she did bond and learn to love Ballet music ever since Cassandra introduced it to her, she gets whole records and albums and buys one time releases on Ebay for herself and Cassandra. otherwise she just listens to audiobooks or podcasts when working.

Cassandra: TONS of ballet music along with classic Oprah music and theatre music, she goes to plays and pirates them, she listens to every single play or theatre music she can get her hands on. she listens to "rocky horror picture show" "the guy who didn't like musicals" "Coppélia" "Jesus Christ superstar" "The Mousetrap" any and everything. she adores it all, she and Steph are constantly looking for more records and plays to watch and pirate.

Barbara: weirdly enough 60s music, Jim rubbed off on her and she honestly just listens to all sorts of 60s sounding music, she had a Elvis phase where she just was constantly listening to Elvis, eventually she found out there was a TON of other 60s and 70s black artists who were ripped off by Elvis and started listening to them, she then eventually got into punk rock and rock and roll.

Harper: she is fully into the Gotham punk music scene, she literally is one of the biggest supporters of the Gotham punk scene. only random punk song CD's, videos she converted into CD's, old gothamite punk songs on vinyl, digital releases, she just has so much merch half she made herself and half she bought, she is the epitome of Gotham punk fan. she actually has a whole ass internet archive account dedicated to JUST Gotham punk.

Duke: weirdly he loves very ethereal and bright peppy music, only instrumentals though, listens to the weirdcore playlists on YouTube listens to corecore, he just has very strange music tastes.

sometimes he forgets his entire playlist is filled with weirdly ethereal music and the rest of the batfam get so confused, and think Jean-paul is blaring church music again.

Jean-Paul: only church music, he has the most bland music tastes, he sometimes listens to catholic metal or something when he's working but other than that he just blares organ music and mass and church music, everyone tries to tell him that he CAN LISTEN TO ANYTHING ELSE. PLEASE. but he just doesn't lol.

Thomas: he listens to 40s love songs and old Sicilian and Italian songs, he's a old fart, he loves old movie soundtracks.

William Cobb: circus music only circus music, late 1880s and 1950s circus music. it sounds like a clown house and it triggers the shit out of bruce.

Jarro: he's a baby, he has no actual opinions the batfam put on nursery rhymes andcoco melon

and the rest (carrie, Bernard, huntress and the other ones)

I have 0 idea I have not read enough comics to figure it out lol

[everythingispirates]

I *do* wanna ask you dmtnt questions so bad please tell me everything about how you would make it a good movie

like in general? I think it should have leaned more into the horror vibes they were gunning for in the trailer like at the very least make an attempt to have it stick out somewhat against the other movies. you could even have it end on them failing to get the trident or whatever if you wanna go for a darker tone like yeah it would render everything kind of pointless but it'd at least be interesting + you could hammer in that theme of destiny that's present in awe wrt will like he is doomed to be on that ship that will never change etc. have also said this before but will should have gotten to go full monster I think ideally at the beginning of the movie when henry takes his dive or whatever he should have fully died and will taking him back to shore should have counted as a breach of contract so he gets to be fish now. that could give henry a lot more angst as well like if he's not just trying to find the trident but also on some level like. running away from home so he won't have to face elizabeth after he basically caused will to get extra cursed. I also think they could have done a lot more with carina than just smartgirl like me personally I like to characterise her as kind of ruthless like not necessarily actively causing harm but willing to step over a lot of ppl to get what she wants. like she's grown up completely isolated and ostracised to me it would make sense if she's not great with people. could also have some tension between her and henry with carina being abandoned and henry just sort of throwing his perfectly good family away (at least in carina's eyes). as for jack, disregarding the fucking elephant in the room, in terms of scripting you could really hammer home the idea that he's totally given up like on life on everything etc. like him giving away the compass is fucking stupid but if you play it less as just plot go forward and more as jack letting go of the thing that's always been his main tool for getting what he wants, showing his complete loss of drive and whatever you could at least get something out of that plotline. could also get some dark comedy out of him being like. not actively suicidal but kind of just ready to die. if you played your cards right you could point to how he knows the afterlife is in more capable hands with will to the reason why, beyond him just being miserable on land. also like I said dark comedy you could have him literally doing gallows humour etc

n ee way these are just like ideas from my twisted mind tbh I also think for dmtnt to truly work you'd have to have laid better groundwork for it with ost like I think a cool thing to do in general would be to have like. the og trilogy and the new era of potc be really distinct thematically like og trilogy focuses a lot on class and ost has this wonderful potential core of religious struggles and like in a perfect world we'd have some thematic throughline to dmtnt but alas we live on hell planet so we have fucking. that instead 👍

[my-rose-tinted-glasses]

Rose Recaps 2023 - Thailand

Ok. Let me just get this out of the way. If there were awards for "started of great but forgot what it was about by the end" Thailand would win them all. No other country can touch them. So when I was going through my list of watched Thai Bls there weren't all that many to choose as favourites. but I'll try to be kind.

The one about family

Moonlight Chicken

First and foremost this show is stunning. This really cannot be overstated. I really enjoyed all the different relationships represented here and that the idea of family is what you want it to be. I love all of them, and Wen did absolutely nothing wrong.

Favourite Moment This conversation left me in tears.

The one hated by so many but not me

Dangerous Romance

This was me whenever there was a new episode.

I'm not gonna say people were wrong. Everybody has the right to their own opinions. But I never expected anything else.

This show gave me exactly what I expected of it. They made a romantic version of the trailer for christ sake. The ost video that came out the day before the premiere was a love fest with the softest song sang by Chimon. I agree that the first 2 episodes were different and for some, misleading about the direction of the show.

Not for me though. I got what I wanted. Chimon and Perth on my screen being boyfriends with some drama sprinkled in for good measure. And with the amazing bonus that was Marc and Pawin together again and the character of Auto that I just adored. I actually enjoyed all the characters in this one.

Favourite Moment

The one that is beautiful

I Feel You Linger In The Air

The amount of screenshots I took while watching this would fill a hard drive. It's just gorgeous. The way they played with the spaces was just such a treat.

This show was almost perfect. I had a couple of issues with it midway through and I felt that they dragged the goodbye a tiny bit much but overall I really liked it. These two are very special but overall there were a lot of characters to root for and enough of them to hate, which I appreciate.

But also WHERE IS THE SPECIAL??? I need to watch it!

Favourite Moment

The one that was I was ready to hate and then didn't

Be My Favourite

Confession time. I didn't like Krist. Watching SOTUS was something I endured but didn't enjoy for the most part. I know I'm not alone in this. But also. I didn't like Fluke. In anything. He was the only thing I didn't like in Not Me, and I skipped most scenes of his couple during Dark Blue Kiss. No particular reason tho. I just didn't enjoy watching him. So the bar was set pretty low on this one for me.

And then what happened? I loved Kawi. Like immediately. And surprise surprise, I liked Fluke. Immediately. It's like I was on an alternate universe and I couldn't believe my eyes.

With that said, it was not even close to a perfect show. It started off really strong, I enjoy the way the relationship grew, I loved that the characters were being honest with each other and being mostly kind to one another. Some moments felt really grounded. And then it kinda fell apart for me. But this is a positive post so I'm not going there.

Favourite Moment: The whole montage.

The one with the redemption of Mame

Wedding Plan

I already explained what I went through with this show here prompted by this episode of @the-conversation-pod. You should all go listen to this and all the other episodes because both @bengiyo and @shortpplfedup are brilliant and funny in convenient audio format.

Anyway, in the end I loved this show so much and took me a minute to come to terms that it was actually that good. The characters are actually multidimensional and the woman have depth. Groundbreaking stuff.

Favourite Moment

The one with all the cuteness

My School President

Not gonna lie, not a huge fan of singing in my bl. But this was great. From the beginning the fact that it made constantly remember my beloved Love Sick was an unexpected and delightfull bonus. I was living for Tinn's expressions, Tiw just being delightfully loyal and the epitome of sharing one brain cell group of friends. Not to forget the parental relationships that were some of the best of the year. I even liked the singing.

Favourite Moment

The extra one

Our Skyy 2 - A Tale of a Thousand Stars

This happened. It was perfect. That's it.

I watched more than 40 thai shows that came out this year, I'm not counting the ones that are still on, and these were my favourites. Mostly because some of them were the ones that I had the least to complain about.

That's it for my recaps. I still wanna gif some stuff today and it's late so I can't review this post again so if there are mistakes, don't tell me. It'll haunt me.

Have a good night💜

[junnylunny]

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐈 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 ˚ ✿ ｡*₊

! pairing- ex lee heeseung x male reader

! synopsis: y/n's ex, heeseung, shows up to y/n's fan meeting and ends up rekindling his relationship with y/n.

! word count: 720

! now playing: "I WISH" by lee dongwon: ost of "happy merry ending"

"let's break up."

"what?" he asked, confused.

"i'm tired of our relationship. you deserve someone better than me."

"no. we're not breaking up right now y/n," heeseung said shaking, grabbing y/n's wrist, wanting y/n to take back what he had just said.

"i'm serious. let's break up, heeseung," y/n said, clenching his jaw. he gently let go of heeseung's grip.

tears began to stroll down heeseung's face. he never thought this day would come. but not for y/n. he knew all along this day would come. he began to walk away from heeseung.

"no... don't do this to me, y/n," heeseung begged while y/n walked away.

= = = = = = =

a year passed and y/n had always regretted breaking up with heeseung. but his insecurity got the best of him. he didn't want to be the one getting hurt if heeseung left him, so he left first instead. in reality, that made y/n hurt more than anything. heeseung didn't deserve to be treated like that, but the decision was already made. would heeseung still want y/n after he left him like that?

"alright. that's perfect. we're done recording," the producer said through the small communicator.

"thank you," y/n said, smiling, taking off his headset.

"you did great," his manager said.

"thanks, i couldn't have done it without you hyung," y/n replied.

"no way, i can feel this song is going to be a hit," he said, patting y/n's back.

= = = = = = =

"please welcome mr. y/n!" the mc yelled, welcoming y/n to the stage. everyone in the audience began to clap loudly, excited to hear the new song y/n would release.

"the fans and i have heard that this new song is from your experience," the mc said, beginning to start the show.

"yes, it is," y/n replied.

"could you explain in detail?"

"this song is dedicated to someone i haven't met in a while. they have a special place in my heart," y/n said.

"that's so beautiful. i hope you're able to meet with them again. please give it up for mr. y/n as we start listening to his new song live."

y/n grabbed his mic and began to sing...

"i call your name gently with my lips... before i knew it, my empty day was filled with memories with you...," y/n sang.

"when I close my eyes, when the wind blows, it feels like you're in front of me..."

as y/n continued to sing, he saw a familiar face in the crowd. it was heeseung. y/n couldn't help but to keep making eye contact, expressing how much the song meant to him- how much heeseung meant to him. soon, the fan meet ended and everyone had left. it was just heeseung and y/n left together.

"did you miss me?" heeseung asked y/n, walking towards him with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

"i did...," y/n said, embarrassed at the same time.

"i got you flowers. congrats on your new song," heeseung said handing them to y/n.

"thanks... that means a lot to me," y/n said, sorrowfully smiling while looking at the flowers.

"you have something to explain to me, right?" heeseung said, slanting his inner eyebrows.

y/n made eye contact with heeseung again.

"i'm sorry i left you like that... i shouldn't have. i was afraid you'd leave me...," y/n said, his voice shaking and tears forming.

"why would i leave you, y/n?" heeseung said, grabbing y/n's hand.

"i don't know..." y/n said, his nose getting puffy and red.

"i could never," heeseung comfortingly said, hugging y/n and soothing him.

"i'm sorry i couldn't reach out to you sooner," heeseung said.

"why would you be sorry for that," y/n asked, pulling back from the hug to look at heeseung's face.

"because i hated you afterwards. i was frustrated and angry with why you broke up with me. your words... "you deserve someone better than me" made me think. why couldn't you be that person?"

"i'm sorry i said that," y/n said, smiling at heeseung with comfort.

"it's okay..." heeseung replied, looking at y/n's eyes deeply.

"i love you," he said.

"i love you too," y/n answered.

[heymeowmao]

2024.04.08 - https://weibo.com/l/wblive/p/show/1022:2321325020940722634974

bgm: 世世 (Lifetime) - The Legend of Shen Li OST

LYN: Hallo everybody, long time no see! Long time no see. Hold on a sec. It’s been so long that the equipment feels unfamiliar. I know it’s been, truly, a long time since I streamed last. Um... my apologies. C: The equipment turned rusty? LYN: It’s not to that extent. My equipment’s the best.

C: I climbed the wall (left the fandom), da-ge. LYN: What does that mean…? You don’t need to climb walls to watch my stream. You can just watch on your bed or on a chair- sitting, lying down- it’s all good. Sit on your sofa. You don’t need to climb walls to watch. LYN: I can’t believe you would climb the wall. Here in my circle, if you want to climb the wall, you can just climb silently. Okay? You can climb the walls silently- you don’t need to tell me. I have a lot of fans, and many of whom have stayed with me for a long time. If one day you tell me, “Ning-ge, I don’t want to be your fan anymore. I’ll go be a fan of someone else.” Let’s arrange this in advance- you don’t need to tell me. That’s the first thing. The second thing is: you don’t need to tell other fans, either. Ok? Can you do that? What we want is a genial coming and a genial separation. You can do that right, friends? You don’t need to tell me and you don’t need to tell other fans. You don’t need to make it clear, then leave. There’s no need. LYN: There’s a song that goes, “Break up with decency, and no one has to say sorry.” (体面 (Decency) by Kelly Yu) -- 体面 (Decency) LYN: I really forgot how to sing this song. Excuse me. But you get the point. If one day you decide to climb the wall or window, it doesn’t matter. Maintain some decency. Thank you.

bgm: 撞地球 (Earth Collision) by Yu Er Qi C: How come you suddenly came to stream? LYN: I just got back to Hengdian and I think it’s only right that the first thing I do is come meet you. I know we haven’t met up in a while and you all miss me. 

C: Have you eaten? LYN: Today I sort of started in my new crew and I’ve been training in martial arts. Before training I had two pieces of toast, so I’m good. C: Do you have a lot of fight scenes? LYN: It’s not a little, in any case. It’s a guzhuang drama. I’ve had few roles in guzhuang dramas where I didn’t have a fight scene. For the most part, I always have to fight. But my previous drama (ZLYM) has less- not too many scenes, maybe two or three. But this drama has a fair amount more fight scenes. I’ve also played a role where I didn’t have any fight scenes - Luo Mingxi. He was a civilian court official. He just talked to people all day, and didn’t have to fight. I didn’t have to fight or ride horses. So I dodged the bullet there, but little did I know that the next drama after that- TXJ- was nothing BUT fight scenes. Life is just like that: the amount of work you have to do is fixed. If you’re lazy to begin with, you have to make it all up later. It’s okay, though. I think the more fight scenes is considered as a challenge for me. Why am I training before officially entering the crew? Because I feel like my skills have regressed. I didn’t have many fight scenes in my previous drama so I want to train again and regain some coordination. Since I’m so tall and all. My coordination is not the greatest so I wanted to acclimate first. It’ll save me from holding the drama back. 

C: Then, Ning-ge, do you live in this drama? LYN: /laughs/ /sighs/ LYN: It’s undecided whether I die or not in this drama. No- not “undecided”, I just can’t tell you. Of the dramas I’ve landed roles in, my death rate is really… Except for the modern dramas, my death rate in guzhuang dramas has reached 80%. I don’t know what it is. Just coincidence? But in this one, I probably don’t. I’m not sure. LYN: I think it’s fine to come to your end when the right time comes. From one perspective, it’s a goodbye to the character. From another, it will make the viewers remember the character. Of all the dramas I’ve done there was never any intention to shoot a sequel, so it doesn’t really matter if I died or not. C: Ning-ge, if you die you’ll get a red envelope. LYN: Usually there’s only 5-10rmb in there. When you’re shooting a drama and your character dies the crew will prepare a red envelope for you. To ward off the negative energy. Because even if you’re just shooting a drama, if you’re playing a character who dies, it’s not very auspicious. So they will prepare a red envelope for you to wash away the negative energy and let you walk away “clean”.

C: When will you stop streaming? LYN: It’s hard to say. I’ll just stream a while and when I’m tired, I’ll leave. Ok?

C: I’m in class. LYN: It’s ok- take your class. There’s always the stream playback and you can watch it when you’re done learning in class.There’s nowhere for me to run, anyway. C: How could you ask him when he’s leaving when it’s only just started?? LYN: Yeah! If you don’t want to watch the playback, then turn the notifications on and next time when I stream you won’t miss it. Also in the early stages when I’m preparing to join the drama- that includes script readings and etc- during this time I have a higher probability of streaming. So in the next few days I probably won’t stream just this once. I’ll do a few more so, you can subscribe to my weibo. When I start streaming you won’t miss it. Watching the livestream is better (than playback) though, because there’s this sense of cooperation. I think that’s one of the charms of a livestream- I can see all the comments that you’re typing.

C: What a large pie. LYN: That’s enough. I’m here now, aren’t I? It’s not like I’m not streaming AT ALL. If it went a bit longer without me streaming, you can say that about me. But I’m here today! I’m very conscientious! As soon as I have time- GA!- I start streaming. 

bgm: 热辣滚烫 (YOLO) - YOLO movie OST

C: Are you wearing a hat because you didn’t wash your hair? LYN: No, it’s because I’m balding. I don’t have any hair up here and what you see now is a hair piece. I bought fake bangs. If I take this off it’ll look like a Qing dynasty drama. You know what that is, right? The front top is all bald and starting from here (back) they leave a braid. I look like that. Another thing is- even if I WERE to act in a Qing drama, they’d think my hair is too little. They’d have take off a little more- my hairline is right here. So it’s not that I haven’t washed my hair. C: You shampoo spokesmanship has ended, right? LYN: … Oh, yeah! I’m still L’Oreal’s brand spokesman. I have their hair and makeup products. Friends- that part just now was just a joke. It’s because I haven’t used L’Oreal’s product to wash my hair today. So my hair is a bit oily. I’m wearing a hat to cover it up. C: Oh no, Ning-ge. You’re going to lose your spokesmanship. LYN: Don’t speak nonsense!! Are you cursing me?

----- ground rules for new fans

C: Ning-ge, can you hit me? LYN: !! Come here, come here. /grabs a water bottle and smacks it across the “mouth”/ Shut up! LYN: Don’t you dare try to provoke me in my own stream. LYN: Let me tell you friends, it’s like this. I always joke about this. I say- It’s been about six years since I’ve debuted and I don’t have many new fans. I always say that I don’t have new fans. But now, after a few of my dramas have aired, I realize that there IS a group of new fans out there. There are, and I can feel it now. How can I feel it? When? It’s because my old fans and I have this feeling of mutual respect between us. We respect each other. I respect them, and they respect me. They would never come to provoke me. Very rarely, at least. There are very few of them who would call me “husband.” A lot of fans like to call their idols “husband” and the like, but we don’t do that here. If sometimes they shout a few times, it’s only them testing it out but otherwise they maintain decency. We’re returning to that word again, “decent.”

LYN: But I found out that there are a group of new fans- it was at the ZLYM drama wrap fan support event. I went to greet you all, right? I discovered a problem. There were a few of you who would reach out and grab my hands. Usually I just wave at you. They reached directly for my hands, to touch me. In that moment I was a bit stunned. It’s been a really long time since I experienced that- I was touched. Someone took advantage of me! No, not to that extent, because it’s not as if I am very expensive, but- what happened to the boundary between us? At the last fan support there were at least two or three people, if I remember correctly, who grabbed my hand. Here, anything is fine as long as you don’t start getting handsy. Ok? I’m sure that there are many new fans watching my stream. We have rules here, and one of them is: Don’t touch. Don’t get handsy, ok? I can out my trust in you and come closer to you, but don’t touch. Remember that. That’s the first thing. 

LYN: The second thing is- a lot of my old fans know- I’ve said this before. If you’re greeting me, it doesn’t matter if you’re at the airport or on the street, if you say something like, “Oh, Hello Ning-ge! What a coincidence!” or something of the like, that’s okay. But don’t grab your phone. The thing I hate the most is when people are like this: /brandishing their phone, watching him THROUGH IT, and talking at him trying to get a good shot./ You think you’re a reporter?? Sometimes I even suspect that the next thing you’ll say is, “Ning-ge, what is your most favorite out of the roles you’ve played?” I feel like you’re trying to INTERVIEW me. There’s no need. If you want to say “Hi” to me, then do it. If you want to record me, then don’t say anything. Ok? When you call me usually I’ll turn back to look. But when I turn back to see that you’re recording me, I just feel like… a tool. My purpose is so that you can get a shot of  me “turning back and crying.” It feels like that. I don’t really like it. If you want to record me, then don’t call out for me. If you call out for me, then greet me properly- like how friends on equal footing would communicate. Ok?

LYN: Another thing is, in public settings, please don’t call me “husband.” It’s really shallow! Is our relationship really that shallow? I don’t want it to be! Let’s not play that game. We’re just good friends, here. Right, ‘fam? Don’t call me that. If you do and some passerby hears/sees, what are they going to think of us?? Let’s not be like that. What are you doing shouting that on the street? What if someone records it and sends it to your mother?? Someone gets a video of you and uploads it online, where your mother comes across it and then thinks, “My daughter is out here doing WHAT??” See if she’ll smack you when you get home or not. C: Post it. My mother would be so happy she could die. LYN: /laughs/ I’ll send it to your father! Let him hit you!

LYN: I know I said this in a joking manner, but despite that, if we get a chance to meet in the future, don’t touch. Don’t grab me. Thank you. I… I mind these things. It’s not that don’t like you all, I just... don’t think there’s a need. C: (No hands?) Then, lips. LYN: … LYN: It’s like this. I’m pretty tall. When I’m wearing shoes I’m probably taller than 1.9m. The average woman’s height is around 1.65m. My leg, if I lift it, can reach up to around 1.65m. And then, if you come over with your lips, and I happen to lift my leg… My legs are around 1.13m long. If I lift then kick out- like this- If I kick you on the mouth, I think you can get sent flying around 1.75m out. It’s possible that your head hits the floor first. So, please be aware of your safety. Try not to come at me with your lips. You’d get sent flying to around 1.75m-1.85m away. Let’s not struggle with the exact distance. Keep that in mind. Thank you.

-----

C: Ning-ge, your legs are 122cm long. LYN: No, they’re not that long. We don’t need to embellish ourselves like that. They’re not that long- it’s just because I’m wearing shoes. It’s the angle of that picture- I know which one you’re talking about. There was a 1.22m tall divider, right- it makes it look like I’m very tall but it’s just because my shoes were thick to begin with. Also, honestly, I don’t see the need to fight for height. There’s no way I can be considered short or get any shorter, so there’s no need for me to go around boasting about how long my legs are. That’s not something we market. I don’t want to create that image- that I’m full of myself. “Wow, Ning-ge’s legs are 1.22m~!” I’m only 1.9m tall- is my upper body only .7m in length?? Not even .7, is it more .6? What am I?? Am I the top of a millstone?? Just like with the beads, my upper body must of be of the short variety. Like a pumpkin seed? There’s no way it’s that short. There’s no need to fight about it, because it’s true that I am quite tall but as long as it’s proportionate, that’s enough. We don’t need to go out and advertise that my legs are 1.22m long. That’s terrifying. Let’s not market me like that. I can’t stand that type of image.

bgm: 穿越回忆奔向你 (Run Through Memories Towards You) - Sword and Fairy 1 OST

C: /asks about the photos at Disney/ LYN: They were photoshopped. You think we wouldn’t need to edit them, a little? It’s necessary. Otherwise I wouldn’t be presentable. 

--- The Truth S2

C: When does The Truth start? LYN: Probably around… the end of April? I’m not exactly sure. I heard that it would air at the end of April. I hope it can happen, in any case. I know they’re already editing. We’ve shot two episodes already. Wait- how many is it? /thinks/ It should be four episodes. 

C: Do you still think it’s scary? // I thought you said it wasn’t? LYN: I know I’m up in age, but I am still very innocent/naive. Not to say that I maintain any sense of childish innocence, but I was truly too naive. /jokingly/ I wet myself. LYN: I hope that- because there’s this thing that wraps around your waist and there’s a stick that holds the camera up, facing you. Like a GoPro, recording your reactions. I hope the resolution on that is pretty low, otherwise you’ll realise that I’m close to tears. I couldn’t stop my saliva, so it came out through my eyes. It feels like that. LYN: When we were recording the first episode, I think the crew was trying to test what our limits were. I know you’ve seen online- we were holding lanterns. That’s not something in the actual episode itself. I think the crew was using that to test our courage and see how much we could take. From level 1-5. Then for example, if you already can’t take Level 1, or me- when I got to Level 5 and I passed out. I was scared out of my wits. If the crew thinks that at that level the later recordings won’t go smoothly, they might choose to replace you with someone else. They’ll ask another guest to come play. The first episode is five levels of terror, as a test. If you happen to pass out during the test, they’ll switch you out with someone else. They’ll ask another artist to go. Or, if you get so scared you start spitting white foam and are sent to the emergency room, they’ll ask someone to step in. If you pass out in the middle of recording, then it’s difficult to continue the episode. That would be a production error, so they tested us first. LYN: It’s a good thing that I made it through. I only cried.

C: Ning-ge, are you also Liu Xialai (留下来; to stay/remain) this time around? LYN: No. I’m called “Liu Yanlei” (流眼泪; to shed tears) now. /laughs/

LYN: I’ve already worked with The Truth production crew once before, right? So my expectation from them is that they cut out the parts of the episode where I was so scared I cursed out loud. I don’t care if they show me crying- they can air that. It’s not shameful. That’s a real reaction. But all they need to do for me is to cut out my cursing. 

---

C: Ning-ge, is your nose is okay? LYN: It’s okay. I bumped it a little when I went to record for Hello Saturday, but it’s okay. It’s all good.

C: Why the sudden stream? LYN: I came back (to Hengdian) today, so I decided I would stream a while. It’s been a long time since we’ve met, so I came to see you. 

LYN: I’m going to stream more in the coming days, for sure. Don’t worry. I am not creating more pies. I will definitely stream more, and why? Because I still want to have the honor of receiving Weibo’s “2024 Livestream King” award. I need it, so don’t worry. For my career, I will stream more. To me, the Weibo Livestream King award is truly precious. 

C: Is the album finished? LYN: When I went to Beijing this time, I recorded one. Now I’m just missing a couple more. /laughs/ Why am I always missing some?? Songs are just so hard to find! I’m not a songwriter, so it’s hard for me to come across a song that I like. It’s not because I have high standards! High or low doesn’t matter, what matters is that I have to like the song. I have to like it, or there has to be something about it that speaks to me. If I can’t find something that I think works, then I don’t see a need to release the song. It’s rare for me to release an album, so at the very least I want to release songs that I like on it. I don’t care if the songs are popular or not- that’s not my priority. I just want to like the songs, and think they sound nice. That’s all I want. But there’s always something… LYN: The other day I picked a song that I liked. When you listen to it, it makes you happy. C: You were missing two the last time. LYN: Yeah, I’m still missing two now. I chose another song the other day and the lyrics are being written for it, since the original demo was in English.

C: I’ve liked you for 155 days now. If you don’t “flip” (respond) to me… LYN: /unbothered/ What are you going to do about it? What if I don’t respond to you?

LYN: Everyone, you’ve been watching The Legend of Shen Li, right? The song I played earlier, too, is from Sword and Fairy 1 (YJXY) which is another drama that’s been airing lately. If you have time you can watch the drama. It’s from Sword and Fairy/Chinese Paladin, which I really like. I used to play the game when I was younger; I play it now, too. Sword and Fairy 1 through 7. I’ve played it all. When you have time you can check out YJXY  as well as YFX. It’s a drama worth watching, for sure. When they were still shooting, I even went to visit the set. LYN: I went to visit friends, but it was a nice opportunity for me to check out the set. Mainly I was there to chat with the director (Deng Ke). While we were chatting he played a bit of the drama for me and I thought it was really good. So friends, if you don’t have any dramas to watch, you can check out YFX. 

C: So were you there to see ZLY, or the director? LYN: Originally- I was originally there... to see ZLY. Because we’d long made plans for me to go see her, since we’re all in Hengdian. It’s not actually a whole big ordeal to go visit other sets like you might be thinking. There’s not a lot of preparation involved. We’re really just wandering around. If you have some time, you just go visit. We’re “visiting the set” in name, but honestly we’re just there to be an onlooker. There’s not much of an etiquette to it, like buying milk tea or some beverages for the crew. Honestly, it’s not as if they’re not hurting for a drink. You’re really just wandering around. “Visitng the set” is making it sound bigger than it is. We’re just sticking our heads through the door and taking a look around, really. C: So you went to see the director? LYN: No, I’d met the director already. I don’t remember if I told you this already or not? When YFX was shooting ZLY had recommended me for a role in it. Since she did that, I had met with Director Deng Ke in Beijing long before. They were having a meal and she asked me if I was available to stop by. So I’d met the director before. So visiting the set of YFX this time also counts as seeing friends. We also talked a little about the next project that was lined up (ZY).

LYN: Later, when I was shooting the drama with him- because we have a few directors, right?- and one of them is Director Wang, who is female. When there was a more emotional scene that I needed to shoot, she took the one of the kiss scenes in YFX to show me. Like, “Look how good this is.” It was teaching material, and she wanted me to learn from it. So I watched it and thought it was quite nice, and yes, I should learn something from it. 

C: Lao-da, don’t watch! You’ll learn bad things. LYN: You must be crazy. For example, if we’re watching a drama and there’s a kiss scene in it, you’d tell me not to watch it because it would make me learn bad things? That’s like something your mother told you when you were little and now you’re telling it to me. When you were little, did you sit between your mom and dad on the sofa watching a movie, and then when the leads started kissing your mother told you, “Don’t look. You’ll learn bad things.’? Kiss scenes on television are like this, friends. Those 18 years and older can watch. If you’re not an adult yet, you shouldn’t watch because you might actually learn bad things. Okay? If you’re over 18 you can start watching normally. 

C: Lao-da, are you entering a new crew? LYN: Yeah, I have to shoot more dramas. So I’ll be joining a new crew soon. Well, actually I count as already having joined it, since I’ve started training. 

C: Lao-da, can you see me? I’m going to test for my MD! LYN: You’re going to be a doctor? Jiayou. That’s amazing. Do well. 

C: Did you buy the cup at Disney? LYN: I didn’t buy it. I was just looking, and didn’t buy anything. I bought Daimi a small hat for pets, though. Other than that, I didn’t buy anything. I go to Disney once every year, to walk and look around. It’s alright. Because I don’t go on many of the rides at all. The main reason I go is to take some photos and relax. 

---------- break #1 (the neighbors are fighting)

LYN: It was a misunderstanding. They weren’t fighting, but watching YFX. The sound of the tv was turned on a little too high. It just so happened that they were sparring in YFX. So, I... misunderstood. It was all just a misunderstanding. 

C: Have you even watched it?? LYN: Uh… Um… I have. 

C: Lao-da, sing a song! LYN: /clicks his tongue/ You really want to hear my music so much? There are a lot of people who like to watch my dramas and my streams, but other than them there are still a group of music fans. This group of music fans are now looking forward to whether I will sing a little something for them. LYN: Let’s do it! What should I sing? How about… 这世界有那么多人 (Empty World)? I really like this song because it has a sort of… light, like I’m talking to you feeling. Like I’m trying to tell you something. But exactly what, is not important. LYN: /setting up/ /sigh/ Oop. My stomach gurgled. LYN: As soon as the first notes sound, it really feels like a story. Let’s listen. LYN: /singing goofily/ Oh, my stomach gurgled again. I should drink more water. We’ll be starting to shoot soon, so I’m not eating much while time allows. That’s better than getting taken a picture of by paparazzi and then having a bunch of ugly pictures floating around. I already don’t look great, I don’t need to add looking chubby on top of that. LYN: Let me find a special effect… This dazed one. LYN: /testing the mic/ IS ANYONE THERE? SOMEONE COME QUICK, SAVE ME! IS ANYONE THERE?? -- 这世界有那么多人 (Empty World)

C: Lao-da, you were a born singer. LYN: :) Thank you. C: So skillful! LYN: You don’t need to make a forced compliment. LYN: That’s really not necessary.

C: Why don’t you make your own songs? LYN: There are certain people for certain things, and I am not that type of creative. If you ask me whether I’ve written songs before, I definitely have. But they were really crude. I didn’t even like listening or singing them myself. They weren’t meaningful. So now I- I don’t try to write for myself anymore. I don’t feel like there’s a need to. 

C: Tang Ren (唐人) is getting popular now. LYN: That’s because the song is good. It has nothing to do with me. I’ve covered it once during my stream, and maybe lately someone’s heard it again? But the original singer and song itself is already very good. I only just used my own way to express the song. Of course I’m not better than the original. 

LYN: I had a plan, which was to make another album right after I release my next one. It seems like another pie in the sky, but that’s what I was thinking at least. After I finish making my second album I want to make a cover album. Find some songs that I like and cover them. When the time comes I’ll think about some nice songs or songs that I like or have covered before and properly rearrange and record them. To make an album of cover songs. 

LYN: I used to be against covers, because in the early days when I had just debuted people only knew me as “internet famous.” People still do now, of course, but that’s not important. The problem was that people would say, “As a singer, how could you not have any of your own songs? You merely relied on covering other people’s songs to get famous.” But it was true. I had been discovered because of my cover of 讲真的 (Tell the Truth). I relied a lot on covering songs, and didn’t have any of my own. At that time I made a plan and started to avoid covers, started learning to try to make my own songs, including having OSTs and my own album. People nowadays probably won’t say that covers are the only thing I can do. After five years of experience I’ve lost the “can only do covers” label and now, rather, I CAN do covers again.

----- magic & scriptwriting

C: Can you wish me success on my exams in your heart? LYN: You want me to pray for you, in my heart? I have to do it in my heart?? If I say it out loud, will it not come true? bgm: 求佛 (Pray to Buddha) LYN: Okay. It’s guaranteed.

C: Ning-ge, oh no! They’re going to say you’re doing magic on stream again. LYN: I know this joke! People say that I’m doing magic in my streams. /grabs the kazoobie/ This is my magic tool. I’m not trying to promote mysticism, but this is my magical instrument. People say that I’m doing magic in my streams. You think I’m just streaming but really I’m doing magic. I’m praying to Buddha. This is a magical instrument. /taps on the kazoobie/ LYN: Let me grab the- /tries to make a singing bowl out of the kazoobie and a mic but it doesn’t work/ Oops. I can’t make the sound, sorry. LYN: Outrageous. But since you have this strong of an imagination I think you could go become a scriptwriter. I’m not kidding. This industry is lacking in good scriptwriters. Your extraordinary thought just then proves that you have enough brain power for the job. I advise you- it doesn’t matter if you like me or not- to focus your efforts on being a scriptwriter. You can write a small story or something. You probably can’t do something big to start, but something small first. Write it in parts. For example, you already have the male lead outlined. He’s a big boy who’s 1.89m tall. He likes to stream and interact with his friends. But actually, he’s a magician. It may look like he’s streaming, but in reality he’s doing magic. Through the eyes of the audience and with the help of his instruments, he can absorb power. But since he’s the male lead, of course he can’t be a villain. Maybe he gained something at the start, but he came to the realization that doing things in this way was working against nature. So he smashed his instrument and started cultivating the correct path. You can call this story “The Streamer’s Path to Immortal Cultivation.” LYN: One day he’s streaming and someone comes to bang on his door. He thinks that maybe he was too loud and it has disturbed his neighbors, but it turns out to be a girl who has come to borrow his bathroom. From the moment the door opens, we cue the close up on the girl, then the guy, and they look into each other’s eyes for three seconds and the fireworks start. In that moment, they fell in love. While practicing his magic he can easily turn demonic, but it turns out he fell in love with this girl and so begins their love story. LYN: You can focus your efforts on being a scriptwriter. Actually, they can make a lot of money. When you eventually turn into a big name, you can make a lot of money. Try writing something. Don’t waste your efforts on making small comments. It’s no use. God gave you the ability to create stories and spew nonsense- /laughs/- and so that’s the talent you were given. Everyone is born with a talent, and this is yours. Your ability to create stories and your strong imagination is your talent. Make use of it and turn it into your path to success. Good luck. C: In the end the girl comes in to use the restroom and he discovered that her shit stinks. LYN: … /sigh/. C: So that means that the girl came to the guy’s house and borrowed his restroom, then he discovered that it couldn’t be used for three days after she had left. LYN: Three days… Friends, you’re playing a little dirty. Did she shit on the ceiling or the walls?? How is that possible?? It’s not possible. She probably didn’t need to use the restroom to resolve whatever situation is going on with her stomach, but to reapply her makeup! How could you- After she’s done touching up she opens her purse and sprays some perfume. Then after the girl leaves the male lead walks into his restroom and discovers that it used to stink but now smells nice. LYN: You’re just… outrageous.

C: Ning-ge, I brought perfume. Let me in. LYN: If there really came a girl who wanted to borrow my restroom I would tell her two words: no entry. I’ll tell her my toilet’s backed up. Try someone else.

bgm: 晒Share - Da Zhangwei

C: I’m here to fix the restroom. Let me in. LYN: I won’t let you use it because it’s backed up, but it’s okay because you’ve come to fix it? Alright, then.

----- drama blood

LYN: Someone came to ask the same question I answered before, which is “What flavor is the blood packet when you’re shooting dramas?” LYN: What flavor…? Just sugar syrup. Sometimes it’s honey. It’s not a definite thing. In general, it’s sweet. LYN: How about this- next time I go shoot my drama I’ll go taste some for you. I’ll secretly take some blood syrup away with me and then raffle it off during one of my streams. I’ll consult with the makeup-laoshi, in a scene where I have to spit blood and ask them to pour me a small cup. I’ll keep it then raffle it off in my stream to let you try it out. Take a sip. Is that good?

C: After you mail it, it would have changed in taste. LYN: No, it won’t. Because this blood is prepared in advance, too. Maybe a month in advance. They don’t make it as you need it, and it’s not like going to a restaurant and asking them to fry you up some blood syrup. They don’t mix it up right there for you, just so you can spit it back out. It’s not like that. It’s made way in advance. It wouldn’t even matter if it were expired. Not that it would be. 

C: Have you drunk any before? LYN: Yes, but not on purpose. When you’re shooting dramas it doesn’t matter if you’re a master martial artist or not a master at all, you’re going to spit blood eventually. Usually- this is a common trope- the male lead spits blood so that the audience can feel sorry for him. Right? The male lead is all about the “pretty”, “strong”, but “miserable.” “Pretty” because the lead’s got to look good. “Strong” because their skills are very high. The best thing is if they’re not only good-looking and strong, but they can’t not have faults. That would be boring. So they must be “miserable” and how that’s achieved is usually by poison. You can go think about all the “pretty”, “strong”, and “miserable” male leads. They’re good-looking, have incomparable fighting prowess, but they always have a weakness or an incurable disease. They either won’t live for much longer, are incurable, or they’re poisoned but all in all they have to die eventually. During this process, they also need to be tortured by someone: hit until they spit blood, or are captured and strung up while being whipped. Those types of characters will make the audience feel for them. In these scenarios it is inevitable that you’d need to spit blood. LYN: One time I had to and I took some of the blood into my mouth and was holding it there. The director goes, “3, 2, 1!” and then /spits/. You spit it. But then there was still some more in my mouth and I’ve have to spit it out. Usually in these scenes after you spit the blood someone comes to hold you up, and they ask, “Are you alright?” That’s the normal reaction. Normally at this time I would say, “I’m ok. You leave first!” It usually follows this logic, right? But that day after I spit I realized I still had half a mouthful and I couldn’t spit AGAIN. Not like when you’re brushing your teeth and you gargle and spit twice. Spitting twice is the habit. But with blood, spitting twice would be: /blood spray/ - /ptooey/. It will make the audience jump out of the story. /demonstrates/ But that day after the first spit I realized I had more in my mouth! So the other person came to ask me if I was okay, and I: /swallows the blood/ “I’m ok.” I had to swallow it. It was so cloying.

C: Is it safe to swallow? LYN: It’s fine. Just some food dye. It’s edible. But there are two types of blood syrup, too. The type you swallow is usually prepared by the makeup-laoshi. They’ll prepare something better. But you can’t drink the blood from the props department. That’s usually detergent and coloring. Like the dish washing liquid you’d use to wash your plates. The props blood is used to pour on the floor. In a guzhuang drama when someones been killed- /mimes cutting his neck/- they’ll be on the floor and there’s a pool of blood under them. That blood is usually detergent because it has the consistency. C: No bubbles? LYN: As long as you don’t mix it with water, there aren’t bubbles. Without water, it’s fine. With water there’s a chemical reaction. You can’t drink that one, of course. You’d be poisoned if you did. C: If you drink it would you spit bubbles.

LYN: It’d be best not to. You can’t drink that one. It’s for the floor. C: What about rain scenes? LYN: You mean if the floor is covered in blood and it starts raining? /thinking/ Hey, I didn’t really think of that before! I’ll ask next time. It’s possible that the method I’ve told you about is only one of many. Next time I’ll ask the props-laoshi, “For the blood syrup, other than using detergent, what else can you make it with?” I’ll report back to you in the next stream. LYN: /laughs/ The bad guy dies and they’re lying in a pool of blood when suddenly rain starts to pour and now there are bubbles. It’s like taking a bubble bath. 

-----

C: Are you still going to Disney in June? LYN: Are you asking me that because you’re going to be there? You want to “accidentally” meet me in June, is that it? But not, I won’t be going. By June I’ll be shooting my drama. I’ll be in the new crew already.

C: Can you chat about Zi Chuan? LYN: I can! Why can’t we? We can talk about it.

LYN: I shot Zi Chuan a long time ago and… at that time- even though my acting is still pretty bad now- at that time it was a little more lacking. But I think that I’ve learned something with every drama that I’ve acted in. Zi Chuan let me act as… someone who is cruel. It made me think about how to maintain that cruelty, and what I needed to reinforce that character. I feel like every one of my roles was made to prepare me for the ones that come after. Each one of my characters has the shadow or feeling of a previous role I’ve played. The role of Di Lin helped and made me think more about how to play a character who is more dignified. It helped me to know the state of a character in an authoritative role. Even though there are differences between characters, I know which part I should keep a grasp of. LYN: When I look back I Di Lin I know that there are many parts where I was lacking. But it’s okay. Of course, I have to thank every role that I’ve had because all have allowed me to mature. If you look back from my very first drama until now you will see that there was growth with every passing drama. I’m thankful for all my roles. 

C: Does Di Lin stay alive in part 2? LYN: There’s an original novel for ZC. In the story, he probably (definitely)… dies. But we’ve only shot 48 episodes and it’s only the first half. Di Lin doesn’t really have many scenes. The producers were very good, and gave me the second male lead role. It’s 2ML in name, but the scene count is very low, comparatively. In 48 episodes I only have around 200 scenes. My main scenes would be in the second half, but we didn’t film that. The main bulk of this character’s story and his highlights are in the second half of the story, which we didn’t shoot. In the latter 24 episodes- since the first 24 are already out- I don’t die. I can tell you that. But we haven’t even been called for voiceover yet, so it might air next year. 

C: Ning-ge, “flip” me and I’ll go transcribe: Ning Yuanzhou [....].. LYN: You don’t need to transcribe anything. If you want to practice your writing, you can just do it. You don’t have to use me as an excuse. Practicing your writing is a good thing!

LYN: Hold on, I drank too much water and I need to use the restroom. Wait for me a sec.

---------- break #2

bgm: 내 마음 들리나요 (Can You Hear My Heart) - Epik High ft. Lee Hi, Moon Lovers OST bgm: 向死而生 (Live to Die) - Burning Flames OST

LYN: This song is from the drama Burning Flames, which is Wu Geng Ji (Journey of Wu Geng), but after the name change. This song is one of the ones this year- including the ones I’ve recorded but haven’t been released yet- that is in the Top 5. Not ranked #5, but in my Top 5. Of course, the previous two I mentioned (for YJXY & YFX) are also in the Top 5. LYN: /to himself/ Why did I have to rank them…? LYN: The other two songs are also definitely in the Top 5, plus this one. These three songs, together. No- that doesn’t work because there was something before these… IN ANY CASE! This insert song from BF is called “Live to Die” and I really like it. There’s no problem with me saying that, right?

C: I want to hear the Top 2. LYN: This one is part of the Top 2. LYN: When I was recording it, I felt like it would send me (to death). I was so tired. But later when the track was released I really enjoyed it. The difficult thing about this song was: /sings the line/. That one lungful was hard. I can try to sing it, but I haven’t eaten much today and I don’t know if I have the strength to pull it off. Let me try. C: I want to hear the Top 1 song. LYN: Shut up! Why are you everywhere.

- /warming up/ LYN: Let me adjust the settings. /turns on the ~radio~ filter/ ~To my listeners in front of the radio today, good evening.~ Let’s use this effect and see if it can add any ~flavor~. C: Hurry and sing! I’m looking forward to it! LYN: Now you’re giving me pressure. I didn’t have any before, but now that I know you’re looking forward to it I do. -- 向死而生 (Live to Die) - /cracks at the difficult line/

LYN: Was there a problem with the mic, just now? Let me test it again. I think there was a problem with it just then. It’s okay. Let me start again. -- /continues/ & /finishes the verse/

LYN: I kind of... don’t have enough strength for this. I don’t have enough stamina (底气, di qi). How about I sing this for you next time? I feel like I can’t get enough air and I’m gonna pass out. In this case, let’s respect the original singer and listen to them sing it. I can’t surpass the original, today. - /downs some soda/ LYN: I don’t have enough qi (气), so I’m giving myself more (in the form of CO2 bubbles).

C: It’s okay, just don’t air the part where you cracked. LYN: My streams always have playback. So, the part where the mic broke a little bit- even though it has nothing to do with me! It was a problem with the mic- I’m sure that part will become hate material against me. 

-----

C: Ning-ge, are there any tricks to losing weight? LYN: Are there any tricks? I’m not an expert at losing weight, but the way I do it is rationing. Your life, your work, your exercise will all exhaust your body’s energy. It’s like spending money. No- I shouldn’t say that. Let’s say your body has 1000 power. If you exhaust 1200 power every day, then you will naturally become thinner. Let’s say for example that you don’t move- you don’t exercise and you don’t go anywhere. You’re just sitting or lying there. Then you should eat less. If your intake is low, then you won’t get fat. But if you exercise daily, you can consume your normal amount of food. You’ll just need to exercise enough that you don’t consume more than you burn and you’ll start to lose weight. Another thing to do is eat less sugar, and that will help to reduce weight. That’s what I do. LYN: For example if I’ve expended a lot of energy today- if I went to practice wushu, then I can eat like normal. But normally I don’t really like to move, so I will eat less. C: What happens if you get low blood sugar? LYN: It shouldn’t happen. If you’re exercising you could eat normally. Even if you’re not excessively exercising you shouldn’t normally experience low blood sugar. Maybe if you expend too much, you would have low blood sugar? I don’t know. Just: if I’m not moving, I eat less; if I move, then I’ll eat normally.

LYN: My hair- I wanted to go for the wet-hair look but I realize that once it’s dried it looks bad. - /messing up his hair/ LYN: Okay, that’s good enough.

C: What about if you can’t control your mouth? LYN: I don’t know, because I can’t do it either. I always get hungry in the middle of the night and I don’t know why. It’s always the middle of the night. I get hungry and I can’t take it so I always have to eat a little something. 

C: How do I become more pale? LYN: Wear proper sunscreen. And… use skin brightening products. That’s the only two things. Use some skin brightening products before you sleep and… supplement your vitamin c or something. 

C: Ning-ge, how do I grow shorter? LYN: …??? How do you grow shorter??? Everyone wants to grow tall, why do you want to grow short? That’s bold of you. LYN: To make yourself shorter… I don’t know your age, but… if you want to grow shorter during puberty you should do strength training. Work out and do some heavy-lifting so that your muscles become stronger and wrap around/protect your bones more. It’ll help you to grow slower. Secondly, after you increase your bone density you might also grow more slowly. Look at martial artists and weightlifters- they have high bone density and it’s slowed/impeded their growth in height. At least that’s what I think. C: Then why didn’t you train? LYN: I wanted to grow tall. LYN: A lot of my old fans know this but my mom’s younger brother(s)- so my uncle(s)- I had two uncles, who were pretty short. When I was little my grandma would tell me, “Don’t grow to be like your uncles.” Of course, I am not saying this to diss my uncles at all. But my grandma would always tell me not to grow to their height. Then before we knew it, I was this tall. I would tell my grandma, “Don’t worry. I’ll grow super tall. I’ll be 2.3m tall and I’ll live (?) in the zoo. I’ll be locked in a cage and when people come to see me like watching a monkey, I can even collect viewing fees from them.” When I was really little I liked to tell my grandma that. LYN: Who would have thought that the 2.3m tall part didn’t come true, but the “watch me and collect fees” part seems to have at least partial success. For example, I collect fees for you to watch me in concert. 

C: Ning-ge, will you still have a concert this year then? LYN: I’m not sure. There could be, and there could not. I’ll tell you now- if I’m not able to hold it this year then it will be at the beginning of next year. I was in discussions about this the other day, too. But it’s not determined.

C: Ning-ge, how do I get bigger eyes? LYN: … LYN: Don’t provoke me. You’re asking ME how to get bigger eyes?? It’s like going to get treatment for baldness and the doctor has less hair than you. How do you get bigger eyes?? Go get double-eyelid surgery! Your eyes will become a little bigger. Technology hsa improved so much, I’m sure it can help you. The second thing is when you’re taking photos, turn on the beauty filters. Turn the “big eyes” feature on a little higher. 

C: Is this LYN’s stream? LYN: It is I. You’re not in the wrong place. Liu Yuning is streaming right now, and Liu Yuning is me. I am streaming. Do you feel like I don’t look like him? 

C: I don’t believe I actually made it to a live one. LYN: What’s not to believe?? I’m not some big celebrity. It’s not difficult for us to meet. That’s a nonexistent problem. We can meet any time. It could be hard to meet with other artists, but if you want to see me you an just come to my weibo and leave a message saying, “LYN, I want to see you.” I’ll come and stream. I’m that easy. C: Give us a welcome. LYN: I’d like to welcome all my good friends to my stream tonight. If this is your first time watching and you have not already, please subscribe to my weibo. Thank you! C: Liar. I’ve waited for you for 45 days. LYN: I was working! When I was shooting dramas before, I could stream on days where I had less scenes to shoot. But now I’m accepting roles with more scenes so there are times where after a day of shooting I’m not in the right state to stream. I have to remember the script and rest up for the next day. I have to make sure I can continue to film. So… please understand. C: You don’t stream even on wrap day. LYN: On wrap day I still had work to do. Because during filming there weren’t many days I could take off, so on wrap day I took care of a bunch of miscellaneous tasks left over. Also, I’m not a robot who can work all the time, I need to rest too. Continuous filming gives me too much pressure. I’m stressed when shooting the drama, and there are all these outside pressures… can’t you let me rest a little? I’m not a robot, even though I don’t rest much regularly anyway.

C: Can you talk about The Truth? LYN: I can, but what do you want me to say? It’s fun and a good time. I got to know some new friends, too. Well- I guess they’re not considered “new”. We’ve all met before… except Zhang Linghe. This will count as our first meeting, I guess. First ~official~ meeting. I’d bumped into him before, but we never greeted each other. We got to know each other this time. Xun-ge, we had done a variety show together before. Wang Xun. Bai Yu, we shot the previous season together so we’re quite close. That counts for Zhou Keyu, too. And Reba… this is our third partnership now. CGX, ALZ, and now this variety show. C: Is ZLH handsome? LYN: He is, very handsome. Very good-looking. When I see these young kids I get jealous. Not only are they good-looking and tall, but the key factor is that they’re also still young. If he can reach this level at his age, then his future is unlimited. Right? That goes for Keyu, too. Anyway, he’s handsome. They all are.

bgm: Truthfully - A1 TRIP/Dobi

C: Is LYN handsome? LYN: Me? Of course, I am just average. Just average. LYN: I know that there are a lot of you fans out there, and in your eyes I’m the best. It’s like looking at your own child. Some parents know that they have really ugly children but still consider them as their treasure nevertheless. You see me in the same way. When you’re looking at me it’s like looking at your kid. You think anything I do is good.

LYN: I learned of a term the other day, “ru zhui”? A “ru zhui” fan. The “ru” in “insult/humiliate” (wu ru, 侮辱) and the “zhui” for “chase” (追). 辱追fan. I was confused- what does that mean??? So I went to take a lesson, since I’m curious about these new terms. I didn’t understand, but I think I know approximately what it means. That is: using an insulting way to pursue their idol. I think that’s what it means? I’m not sure if I’m interpreting that correctly. But what it means is to describe, for example, how a person is your fan but they just scold you all the time. EX: “LYN, how shameless can you be? Look at how fat you are! And you think you can be an artist?? Shameless! As a fan I find you disgracing. Look at your business capability. Look at your lines. What are other people doing, and what are you?? You’re not even streaming like you COULD be.” LYN: People like that. “I’ve followed you for five years, and you show no signs of improvement?!?” Fans who employ this method of “Humiliating Pursuit”. Are they really fans? Yes. But I don’t have a lot of those types, here. You can’t say I don’t have any, I still do. Just the one or two. But I hope that you aren’t this way. There’s no need. If you really think that I’m not good enough, then please forget me. If I were to self-describe me, I would say that I am very easily hated on. There are always people who- I’m not trying to say I’m so amazing, I’m not, but there are a lot of people who want to magnify my unexceptionalities and use them to undermine me or get a quick laugh out of it. It doesn’t matter. The problem is that there are already a group of people who truly hate me, so I don’t need my own fans doing it too. LYN: We practice a supportive way of chasing stars, here. You can say, “LYN, you’re the best!” Okay? Thank you, everyone. Otherwise one day I’ll be looked down upon and try to retreat into my fandom space to regain some positive energy, but instead discover that I have fans yelling at me in this space, too. I would have a total mental breakdown. C: That’s called a “gu zhui” fan. (gu as in “to encourage’ 鼓励) LYN: An “Encouraging Pursuit”-type fan? Ah. Okay, then.

LYN: I’m doing well for now because relatively speaking- even though I haven’t streamed much lately- I often stream and chat with you. I can see all the comments you type into the chat and this way I can respond to your encouragements and requests in a timely fashion. It’s instant feedback, which is good. We communicate. If there’s ever something I wish you wouldn’t do, I can tell you directly. If there’s something you want me to work harder on, you can also type it into the chat and tell me. 

C: Ning-ge, don’t lose weight. You’re already very skinny. LYN: Don’t PUA* me. I’m someone who clearly knows what he should and should not be doing. I should lose some. Because you can relax now, but when the drama airs and you’re being dogpiled- excuse me, I should mind my words. When you’re being “told the truth”, you’re going to regret it. So I’d like to be a little thinner, to look a little more lively, which is better than looking fat. The part I lose out on is that my eyes are on the small side. Since they’re so small, my face looks bigger and it LOOKS like I’m fat but in reality I’m not really, since I have the height. The problem is they can’t always take full-body shots. When you’re shooting the overall height, it looks fine. You don’t look like you have a big face or are fat. But as soon as they’re taking half-body or close-up shots- because you only have one face, and people can’t see your whole proportions. I know I don’t look elegant or refined. So… at least I try. I need to be thinner so I look more polished. *mentally control someone and make them lose self-confidence

C: Di Lin was pretty chubby. LYN: When I was playing Di Lin... honestly another part of it is that I learned that acting really requires experience. All sorts of experience. Because I didn’t attend a professional school for acting- I didn’t learn how to sing, either- but for a lot of things there’s a right way to do it: learn by experience. When you do one thing ten thousand times, it’s going to have results. After shooting so many dramas now, I’ve definitely made some… improvements. I feel like I’ve understood something about acting as I was doing it. There’s no good way to give it form or describe it, so I can’t tell you that much about it. I don’t even want to trying sharing what I think about it because people would think I’m being fake. So I won’t share with you what I’ve understood. LYN: At the time I was acting as Di Lin, I truly didn’t understand how to act. But during the filming process, you start to understand. First off- wardrobe, makeup, and props- you start to get a better of understanding of what is “good” and what is not “good.” Or, what was there to fool you and what shows sincerity. The wigs, too, that you have on for guzhuang dramas. You learn what style suits you, and in what way it’s combed that suits your face. How high or low to apply the wig, whether to have sideburns or not and are they short or long?, how long or short is the length of the hair in the back?, where exactly should it be tied- up higher? or more back? All of these are things you’ll learn while you film and gain more experience. You’ll start to know what looks good on you, or what feels/looks more comfortable. 

-----

C: Director Ke is here. LYN: We all call him Director Deng. Or Director Deng Ke. You call him Director Ke?? Do you use it to describe the fact that you can “ke” (get addicted to) the dramas he’s shot? LYN: Welcome, Director! LYN: /laughs/ Some of you really know how to pander to someone. At least we know how decency. Usually when a director comes you would: 1. welcome them and 2. acknowledge their works. I’m seeing people spam: “YXF is awesome!!” Let’s maintain this tradition. Whenever a director comes to my stream you all should start looking up which dramas they’ve made, then start complimenting them on which of them you’ve watched. LYN: This is pure “ways of the people and the world.” Usually when I’m working with someone or I’ve met someone who I don’t really know, I’ll go online and do some homework beforehand. For example, if I’m meeting with an actor tomorrow, I’ll look up which dramas they’ve been in. If I’m shooting a variety show with them I’ll look at what they’ve been in and what the general consensus was. I can say, “I’ve been watching your drama lately! Your acting is great!” or “I saw the one you were in three years ago, too. I know the reviews weren’t the best but I thought you acted well. You were so handsome!” But in actuality I really… haven’t watched their dramas at all. If you want to be friends with someone you have to do some homework. 

bgm: 夜泊秦淮 (Ye Po Qin Huai) - Ice Paper

LYN: Director Deng hasn’t typed anything, has he?? My comments are moving a little too quickly today so I can’t see very clearly. Director Deng, if you have something to tell me, message me on WeChat. If you don’t have anything to say and you’re just passing through then nevermind! 

LYN: I’ve already finished promoting YFX, even though I know it doesn’t need my help. I just said in passing, if you had time, that you could go watch YFX. Of course, I- Oh, he left? Ok, then. He was probably just passing through and saw that I was streaming, so he came to take a look. We were in brief contact when I went to Beijing too. C: YFX is a really good watch! LYN: He’s already left. You’re too late. You have to remember this for next time, you’ve got to spam it immediately after you realize they’re in the stream. If its a director or a producer, you’d want to leave a good impression of LYN’s fans on them. That way if they have work they might think of me. It’s difficult to survive in any industry- whether that’s in a company, in entertainment, or in any environment- so you really have to learn these things.

LYN: I know a lot of people comment about me, saying that I know a lot about ways of the people and the world, but I honestly don’t know much, and I actually kind of hate it. When I was younger I really hated this type of thing. I didn’t think it would ever be worth it to learn or that I would ever need it. Or if I go somewhere and meet someone who is better than me, I would never try to talk to them. If they don’t talk to me, I would never acknowledge their existence. I didn’t ever think there was a need. So they’re amazing. What did that have to do with me? I used to think that way, and assumed that would make me have a personality. “I”m just this type of person. If you’re willing to communicate with me, you can. If you don’t want to, then we will never become friends.” That’s the type of identity I was pursuing at first.  - [t/n: I, too, hate schmoozing and networking.]

LYN: But as your life continues you’ll discover that if you DO know these skills, your life will be a little smoother. I don’t know if you’ll know, but when you were in school did you have that one student who- I’m not sure if this is the right way to describe them- are really… “tian bai”? They brown-nose the teacher. It’s like… ingratiating or self-deprecating oneself. For example, “Teacher, the clothes you’re wearing today are so pretty!” “We love taking your classes!” Kind of like excessive flattery. The people who know how to do this all tend to do well among peers. Many of you might be in school now so you don’t know, but at work it’s the same. I don’t want you to make yourself lesser than, but it would let you develop better. Who doesn’t like to hear nice things, right? For example, you meet up with a friend and you tell them, “You’ve gotten prettier!” or “You’ve gotten thinner!” If they’re someone who is conflicted about their own body, by telling them “You look thinner” or “You look to be in good spirits”- something like that won’t really affect your character or anything- you can give them warmth and receive warmth in return. I just feel like you can/should learn to do these things, in order to allow your path or survival to go a little smoother. Everyone likes to hear praise; we’re all the same. LYN: We’re not doing it hypocritically/facetiously. I just think it’s worth trying, to change yourself and to give others compassion, or make them laugh, or give them support. By doing these things you can become a positive person in return. 

LYN: Sometimes people will ask me, “Ning-ge, I have social anxiety. What should I do? I hate interacting with other people.” I’m not trying to compare, but I have social anxiety, too! I really disklike having to interact with people. But this is something that you need to force yourself to do. That way you’ll gain opportunities, or a better future, or whatever is it that you want. If the desire for what you want is greater than your fear of interaction, then you’ll do it. If you don’t think it’s worth it, then you can stay socially anxious. That’s fine, too. LYN: You’re born with many things, but you can also learn them with practice and effort. My diction used to be really terrible. Due to how I grew up, I didn’t like communicating with people and I was closed off. I wasn’t confident, and was cowardly. I never fought anyone for anything. My home conditions weren’t the greatest, either. As a result I was timid- no matter what I did. Now you might think that I’m really boisterous but it’s all because I trained myself to be this way. I forced myself. C: Try it first. LYN: Absolutely right. First try to communicate with people. When you receive a good reaction in response, you’re going to gain more confidence. The reason why I don’t need to force it when I’m streaming is because there’s no one in front of me. I know you’re all brandishing your phones and writing to me, you’re watching me, but none of you are IN FRONT of me. I’ll pretend- I’ll pretend that you are. I’m not imagining you as a field of cabbage, either. I imagine you as people. But these people are 1. All here for me and 2. My friends. When you’re in front of friends you won’t feel out of place. Maybe there are a lot of passersby or antis watching, waiting for me to slip up so that they can take it out of context and ridicule me. Those people exist, too. But the reason I’m so relaxed right now is because I pretend. Even if you are an anti, I pretend that you are someone who likes me. Or even if you don’t like me, at the least you don’t hate me. So that’s why I’m relaxed when streaming.

-----

C: My mom says you talk a lot. LYN: With a stream, I have to force myself to keep talking. Not CONSTANTLY, but the worst thing for a livestream is if it goes cold. It’s alright if there are pauses but as long as the mood doesn’t fall flat, it’s okay. If there is a lull in conversation, you should use the next topic to smooth it over. That’s how you make a stream feel compact. It’s a little like acting. You have to understand the rhythm. A stream has rhythm, and your speech has rhythm. If I haven’t thought through what I’m about to say, I’ll save it. But then I have to figure out how to bring up the topic without disrupting the flow. It’s not because I talk a lot- I talk very little, actually. But I’m always talking in the stream because I don’t want it to fall flat. I need to grab your attention so that you stay focused on the stream. 

C: How about sing a gentle song? LYN: I saw someone earlier say, “Are you going to sing or not? You’ve talked enough.” Um... if you don’t like to watch, then get out. I’m talking to you. /points at the camera/ If you don’t like what you see then get out. (joking!)

LYN: I’ll sing something. :) LYN: What should I sing? Something gentle? I don’t have much energy, since I didn’t eat much today. Let’s find something gentle… C: Tang Ren (唐人). LYN: I can’t sing it because…befrore, my band- Da Fei and A-Zhuo- were here and could play the arrangement for me. - /finds an instrumental track/ LYN: I don’t know if I can do it, but I’ll give it a try. // I’ve forgotten how to sing it, but you can listen for fun! -- Tang Ren (唐人) C: It lagged. For real, this time. LYN: What are you talking about?? This time was “for real”, so you mean that the last time was fake? What do you mean??? I guess it lagged a little? It’s alright. It’s normal, for something like the internet. It can be a little unstable. C: It really lagged. LYN: But it’s fine, now!! Stop spamming. It’s fine.

C: You came to stream again. LYN: Yeah. I was already planning to, but in addition to that my fans are all over the platforms shouting for me. So I had to stream. If I hadn’t the pot would have exploded. My fans would become “humiliating pursuit” fans. C: We wouldn’t! // No way. LYN: I know. I was joking with you. 

C: When will the Disney VLOG be released? LYN: It needs to be edited! No rush.

bgm: 奉上 (Offer) - A Journey to Love OST LYN: Someone told me to play “Offer” so I am. 

C: Do you know how hard these past 45 days were? LYN: That’s okay, isn’t it? I’ve-  C: We were going to ignore you for five minutes. LYN: I saw that. There was a screenshot that said, “The next time Ning-ge streams, let’s ignore him. We won’t talk to him for five minutes and make him believe that the stream has lagged. Make him believe it’s lagged so he spends the time trying to fix his equipment, only to find out that we were fooling him.” Someone thought of this method to get revenge on me! LYN: You know, if you did that I would have thought that my internet was broken and I’d have stopped streaming. I know that’s not a threat to you. It was a good sentiment but if you really think about it, I don’t think you would have been able to control the situation given that there are so many people here.

C: I thought I’d have to go 100 days without seeing you. LYN: No way. I know I’ve gone quite a while without streaming this time but it’s because I had a lot to do. I had to make sure I was in the right condition, because the next drama is giving me a lot of pressure. I need to prepare myself for going into the new crew. I can’t just jump from one to the next because I’d feel worn out. So I had to quickly adjust my condition, as I’m guessing I’ll have a tough time in the next one. Not that I’m afraid of the hard work. I just think that the next one will be difficult to shoot. I want to be in top condition for it. 

-

C: It’s lagging. LYN: If you’re really lagging then leave the stream and come back in. That should fix it. But if you leave, you have to remember to come back! Don’t just leave and then go to sleep or go to bed then pass out.

-

C: Will it be more work than YNGS? LYN: …. Let me think about how to answer this. As an actor, what’s the big deal if you end up tired and crying a little? What do you have to complain about?? Shouldn’t you be tired, after receiving all the spotlight? What’s wrong with being a little tired? What right do you have to complain that you are? It’s “hard work”? Who doesn’t work hard! Think about all the delivery people who are out on the streets right now. Who doesn’t have hard work? It’s hard on them, too! Some of them are out there in the middle of the night! You’re already very fortunate. What right do you have to complain? LYN: It won’t be hard work, friends. The next drama won’t be hard at all. Also… /never finishes the thought/

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C: Ning-ge, did you deliver that from an anti’s point of view? LYN: No, no. LYN: Sometimes when people interview me they’ll ask, “How do you feel when you see people online being negative towards you?” I always get asked this type of question in interviews. “If you see that no one likes the character  you’ve played, how do you feel?” I see those questions often. It’s like this… um… let me first respond with the most standard answer. The best answer to give, as an artist. LYN1: I saw the comments, yes. When I see that they don’t acknowledge me, I think it’s right for them to do so. LYN: The first thing to do is to assure the viewers. LYN1: People are right to critique me, as I am not a professional actor. I will always consider the concerns that they are voicing and I’ll take note of their advice so that I know that’s the direction I need to work harder in. LYN: The second thing is to acknowledge them, and the third is to imagine a better future. LYN1: In the future no matter what role I am challenging, I am sure that I will take it even more seriously than the previous role and I know that there are many places I am lacking- LYN: The fourth is to self-deprecate. LYN1: - and I have huge room for improvement. But being able to work with so many amazing teachers this time around, I have definitely been able to learn a lot from them. LYN: That’s number five: thank the people you’ve worked with. LYN1: Working together with all these amazing actors, I’m sure that there is a lot I can learn from them, and I’ll do my best to learn. I’m not certain I can successfully learn even 1% of what they know, but I’ll work hard. I’ll portray every character I meet in the future to the best of my ability. I hope people can continue to supervise me and I hope that one day you will see my growth. Thank you, everyone. 

LYN: That’s the standard answer. USUALLY, it’s an answer that people can’t find a problem with. If you ask me if I know how to answer properly, I definitely do. I can even make it fancier. I can give you three more angles, to make it seem like I am humble, serious, and eager to learn. Someone who is self-disciplined and knows where they should work harder. 

LYN: But I knew that was the common answer, so it’s not how I used to reply. Whenever I met with an interviewer, I wanted to give them a different answer. I would definitely reply from an angle they’ve never thought of. When I was asked a question I would think a mile a minute and come up with something they didn’t expect. I couldn’t let them think I was your average artist, otherwise they wouldn’t remember me. I needed to make them remember who I was within three questions. Make them think, “Hey. This Liu Yuning is different from other artists.” That’s the direction I was going in. I wanted the unexpected.

C: Then, what’s your real (truthful) response? LYN: … C: Let’s have a non-standard answer. LYN: The non-standard answer… you can go look up how I used to answer these questions, and that’s the non-standard reply. 

C: I’m laughing to death. What are you doing all the time? LYN: :| I’m thinking. LYN: You need to learn. I really do learn from other talented artists, and how they speak. I’m not trying to imitate them, but this industry does have its standards/rules. C: Ning-ge, next time answer like this when someone asks you for a non-standard answer. You should say, “What business is it of yours??” LYN: /laughs/ It’s unwarranted. That would be okay if we were joking but you can’t expect me to seriously say “What’s business is it of yours??” For example, “LYN, how do you feel when you see people online making hateful comments about you?” Should I answer the reporter by saying, “What business is it of yours”?? Do you think I don’t want to survive in this industry anymore?? Of course, an answer like that could definitely make the reporter/program remember you. As the first such ill-mannered artist they’ve ever seen. LYN: Let’s say the reporter asks me, “LYN, please introduce your role so that we may remember you.” I could turn and walk away, saying “I’m not recording anymore.” I’m sure they would remember me, then. But that’s not something I can do. 

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C: /commenting about what he’s drinking/ LYN: I’m drinking the sugarless one. It’s fine.

C: Take of your hat. It doesn’t look good. LYN: What business is it of yours?? LYN: Look at that, I used it immediately. :) LYN: What business is it of yours? Be happy you have something to look at. I already told you multiple times that I haven’t washed my hair. 

C: I knew it. LYN: You knew I would respond that way?

bgm: 万物盛开法则 (The Law of Everything in Bloom) - Da Zhangwei bgm: 隆里电丝 (Lonely Dance) - DamnShine

C: You’re the best at talking back to fans. LYN: /sigh/ When I’m talking back at fans in my stream, you all know it’s as a joke. I’m more relaxed here, and you should all know that I don’t mean it in a malicious way.  

C: /asking him about the rollercoaster at Disney/ LYN: I wasn’t afraid at all. I know that when people are playing fast-paced games they need to close their eyes, but I tell myself that I can’t close them. I need to keep my eyes wide open so I can experience all of the turns and the speed. Then I realized that the wind made my eyes hurt and I teared up instead. So during the process I had to keep my eyes open, but they were tearing up because of the wind, so I had to wipe away the tears too. It’s rare for me to ride it once, so I had to make the most of it. I didn’t want to miss anything that was speeding by so I kept my eyes open. 

C: You really kept your eyes open? LYN: Forcefully. Riding while wiping my tears away.  C: Good thing your eyes are small.

LYN: /sigh/ /going through all seven stages of grief/ LYN: Good thing my eyes are small, so the area that gets hit with the wind is relatively little, is that it? If my eyes were normal sized… I would shed even more tears, right? Ah… okay. /thumbs up/ Ok. LYN: /still sad about it/ LYN: Wait for me a sec, I’ll use the restroom. LYN: /under his breath/ qswl

LYN: Someone asked me if I would sing Long Yin. I won’t sing it, but I’ll play it instead. You can watch the video while I use the restroom.

---------- break #3

LYN: I went to the restroom and cried. Someone said my eyes are small and I’m actually really sad about it. I couldn’t hold it. Honestly, I didn’t go to use the restroom, but I went to cry a little. I got that out and adjusted my mental state so I can come back with a smile. I just couldn’t hold it anymore. These words are so hurtful. C: Your eyes are even smaller after you’ve cried. LYN: I’ve been cyberbullied. You all are so mean.

C: Is the background real? LYN: It’s real. LYN: Also, I’ve been attending a lot of small events lately, right? And I’ve been running into these- I think they must be new fans. Honestly the new fans and I haven’t really had a proper talk yet. There are a lot of new fans who probably haven’t even seen many of my streams. We have a small… rule, here. That is, if I attend some variety show or event- I stay at a hotel. Many of you like to squat at the hotel to block me. It’s like you’re planning to ambush me. A sneak attack! I don’t know why. It’s okay- that’s your freedom. If the hotel management is not going to do anything about you, I have no right to say anything. But the thing is- your cellphones. Please try not to shove them in my mouth. Okay? I get the feeling that when you’re trying to take pictures of me you’re almost shoving the thing straight into my mouth, as if to give me a laryngoscopy. Please try not to do that. Also, for those of you walking sideways- you’re about to shove it in my ear. Like you’re going to clean my earwax. I feel like you’re trying to record whether I have earwax or not. The phones are right here. /picks up his phone to demonstrate/ When I get on the car I have to think back- “When I was washing my face, did I get my ears?” I don’t want you to have got on video that I have earwax, like “Why are LYN’s ears so dirty?!?” Another thing is- because I’m pretty tall, so the height difference between me and most of you is relatively large. So when you’re getting video of me it’s from this angle- /under the chin, bottom-up/ That’s a super dead angle. You just record me like that. I feel like you’re trying to see if I have boogers. LYN: So I just want to say- when you’re taking photo/video of me, please try to maintain some distance. Okay? Maintain some distance. And also, please try to control your emotions. Don’t put the camera so close to me. It’s a little TOO close. It’s too close for my self-confidence. There are already a lot of ugly photos of me online. There are so many; and you’re still trying to create more?? Control yourselves, please.

LYN: I know that in your hearts when you look at me it’s like a tortoise seeing a mung bean- I suit your eyes- and you think that I am handsome or good-looking. I don’t blame you for that- it’s normal. But the thing is when you share photos online can you adjust the angle a little bit, please? Sometimes I see that photos that you share and I think, “This must be an anti.” You don’t even give me any nice filters and you upload a photo from such a bad angle? While praising me?? It’s like.. reverse marketing. How could you put that online?! Aren’t you just giving people (who hate him) more material to work with? LYN: I’m not like other people, who can be seen from 365° and have no dead angles. For me all 365° are ALL dead angles. I’m full of dead angles. Truly dead. So please try to pick some not-so-dead angles of me to upload. Okay? 

C: How could you say I’m a tortoise? I’m no longer a fan. LYN: It’s an expression. Tortoise looking at a mung bean. You can choose to be the tortoise or the bean, it doesn’t matter. It’s just an expression. I’m not calling you an actual tortoise, but even it I were it wouldn’t matter. Because it would mean I wish you a long life. Thousand year old tortoise and hundred year old turtle. 

C: Are there any benefits for new fans? LYN: Um… benefits for new fans?? /thinking/ Are there any benefits for new fans? LYN: … LYN: Let me think of how to answer this. - /starts rolling his eyes like the buffering symbol/ LYN:You’re a new fan and you have enough gall to ask for benefits? What type of benefits did you want? Why did it take you so long to become my fan? What were you doing earlier?? Amusing. I’m not even nitpicking you, but here you are nitpicking me? Even asking for benefits?? C: Because you weren’t the male lead before! LYN: Why are you so snobby?!? I wasn’t the male lead before so you never took notice of me, is that it? You can’t be like that. A drama’s success does not rely solely on the male and female leads. There’s also the efforts of the supporting cast and background actors. Even the huge efforts of the production crew. There’s setting, lights, wardrobe, makeup, props, art. All the work of the people behind the scenes that comes together to make what you see. How could you blame liking me late on the fact that I wasn’t the male lead before??

C: So if new fans don’t have benefits, do your old fans get any? LYN: … LYN: We’re already so close with each other, what benefits could you possibly need? Haven’t you ever heard of that saying- why am I streaming here today, friends? - /changes the bgm to 黑夜一束光 (Praying)/ LYN: Because I think that companionship is the best confession. At this moment I am keeping you company, just as you are keeping me company. Like this, everything is the most precious. It’s also our greatest mutual benefit. 

C: You’re not even willing to perfunctorily offer a jug of soybean oil anymore? LYN: So you also know that’s just perfunctory. LYN: I’ve said this before, though. There will come a time one day when I will give you all that I owe you. When you hit 1000 consecutive days checking in to my SuperTopic I’ll give a jug of soybean oil or a bag of rice. There are reward ranks to checking in. There’s soybean oil, rice, and also laundry detergent, shampoo. Your basic daily necessities. As long as you check in to the Modern Brothers Super Topic, it’ll be no problem for you to claim them. C: Toilet paper. LYN: Yes. Also toilet paper, laundry detergent, hand cream, soap, eggs. All sorts of things you can get if you check in any number of days on the SuperTopic.

C: Toilet plunger. LYN: There’s no need for that.

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C: Ning-ge, can I go act as your body-double? LYN: Act as my body-double? First, tell me how tall you are. For lighting doubles the height needs to be similar, because when they’re fixing the lighting you’ll need to stand in my spot so they can get it right. The lights need to be fixed at a height that’s good for me. So if you’re 1.7m tall and they set it for that much, when I got to stand there at 1.89m the lighting’s going to be wrong. So the height needs to be similar. If you’re 2m then that’s too tall. 1.88, 1.89, or 1.90 are all okay. Otherwise, you can’t be my lighting double. It’s mainly for fixing the position of the lighting and camera. C: Don’t you shoot scenes with legs spread wider apart? (to make himself shorter) LYN: It depends on the scene. But most of the time I don’t, because that will affect my focus.

C: I can stand a day on stilts. LYN: You’re thinking too much. It’s very hard work to be a lighting double. Lighting doubles aren’t just for the leads either, but for the whole main cast. Their jobs are for the whole day. Let’s say for example I’ve finished a scene and now I’d like to take a break, so I go to the side to sit and look over the script. During this time we’re setting up for the next scene so the lighting and cameras need to be adjusted and that’s when they will stand where you will be performing later. If you’re in a room and there’s no one to mark positions, you wouldn’t now where exactly to shoot. They need to think about the background and what’s within the frame, so need someone to stand in position so the lighting and camera is set up properly. When that’s done, you can start scene rehearsals. That’s pretty much the content of their work.

LYN: But many of them- actually, I’ve asked them before: why did they become lighting doubles? I’ll chat with mine sometimes and they’ll tell me. “I’m a student. I’m on break now so I came to experience life and see what it’s like to be part of a drama crew.” “I’m a student and later at night I’ll return to class.” They’ve come for work while they’re on break- for four months- before returning to school. They’ll do that. LYN: Others are professional lighting doubles- they’ll move from crew to crew as needed. Of course, they have a salary so they’re making money and it’s work. Some doubles I think are really amazing. What I mean by that is- because they also receive the drama notices- so they will take the time to not only be a lighting double but also memorize all the lines for the role they’re doubling in. When they’re standing there for the lighting crew to fix the set-up, they and the other double will stand there going over the whole scene. They’re pretty much acting already, going over the lines together. I’ve met few people like this, but they are out there. I’m sure they also dream to one day become an actor, so during this time they’re practicing and it’s a great opportunity. I’ve met doubles like this, and when they’re on camera I think they’re amazing. They’ll remember the lines and really act out the scene, to get the feeling of it. Later they can watch the actors and learn from them. It’s a process that helps you learn extremely quickly. Being a double for any position in any drama means they’ve acted in that drama. I think that’s really ambitious.  

C: They created the opportunity for themselves.  LYN: It’s not that they created it, rather you’ll discover that “opportunity” is a really vague thing but it’s also right by your side. It just depends on what you do with it. There’s always opportunity. For example, they’re a lighting double. If their dream is to be an actor and they take their job as double seriously, it’s possible that the director might just give them an actual role. They’ll give them a role for them to act in for real. Even if that role is very small or unimportant, it’s still an opportunity. You originally came for one job- lighting double- but might end up acting. It could be fun. LYN: When I was shooting YNGS, there was one scene one of the officers pretended to be NYZ, because I had gone to the pagoda. (E29) The person pretending to be NYZ is actually my lighting double. After the mask is on, I’m the one acting. But before the mask went on, that was my double. So he got a role. :-) LYN: Sometimes the director will think this lighting double is not bad. They’re good-looking and a good person, so they’ll find a role for them to play. That’s okay, too. As long as your effort or earnesty is seen by others during this process, opportunity is something that will be given to you.    

C: It’s all a load of nonsense. LYN: There’s nothing nonsense about this. It’s all real. Sometimes I don’t like telling you about this stuff, because it’s seems like I’m preaching but I’m not. I’m just trying to share. I share what I see because I need to observe my surroundings, whether that’s the people in the crew or around me. When I watch them I think. For example, why do people who do well, do well? There are lots of opinions. LYN: Let me tell you a story- I know a chef friend. I won’t name who they are, because you know I only have so many friends who are chefs. Up until now he’s done very well for himself, and he’s very professional. How did he get so lucky? When he was first starting out and apprenticing, he got lucky and was looked well upon by an senior in the kitchen who told him to stick with him and be his helper. At that time he hadn’t even graduated yet- it was just a part-time job, to hang out and learn the work in the kitchens. When he saw this da-ge, he really wanted to follow him. But a lot of times in these circumstances the job might not come to you, especially as someone who is called in last minute. So he followed this da-ge and learned what the guy liked- for example, he likes drinking tea everyday. This “da-ge” isn’t only called that in name- he was also head of the kitchen. So he would come to the kitchen early to prepare tea, and use a fan to cool it until it was around 30C, then cap it and leave it there for him. He knew the guy liked to look at magazines- this da-ge would bet on horses- so he’d turn the pages and leave it open on the horse betting. So he could just pick it up and look at it instead of having to flip through the pages first. He’d take care of these small details, because he wanted to work with this person so much. He would take care of all the small details like this, and after a month when he needed to go back to school, he left. This lao-da needed to switch a xiao-di, right? But he discovered that he couldn’t do without him. Because when the other people worked for example, if they made his tea, he would open the cap and burn himself. It was too hot. He felt like nothing was in the right place. So he told someone to go fetch my friend back, and they did. Ever since then they’ve been working together, advancing step by step. Getting better and better with each passing day. Until today, when he is very successful himself. LYN: I don’t like to say that success if for those who are prepared for it. I you want to succeed, there’s something you have to give, to think about, to do. You can’t just sit there and wait for opportunity to fall into your lap. Many times opportunities are something you strive for yourself. You have to be thorough. I’m just telling you the story of something that happened to someone around me. I don’t mean anything else by it. 

C: Ning-ge, isn’t this just being a lackey? LYN: What nonsense are you spouting?! You can’t say it like that. It has nothing to do with that. It’s just that if you are able to do something, you will gain something in return. I’m sure that you think this person is petty and low but they’re doing better than you are. Everyone who’s doing well for themselves now has a story that people don’t know about.

C: Learn the basics. LYN: Yes. In order to learn the basics, it’s what you have to do. Once you’ve got the foundation, work will come to you. 

C: Ning-ge, are there only physical requirements to being a lighting double?  LYN: It’s not just about the physical match. You have to look at least a little similar, and the skin tone plays a role in that. The whole purpose is to set the lighting, so the skin tone has to be similar. They also go through the whole hair and makeup process, too, so that they can stand there to be the double. They still need to be similar, or as close as possible, to the lead actor. C: Then, I’m out. I’m a “black egg.” LYN: What is that?? I’ve never heard that term before. You’re so dark you… look like an egg? I don’t know. What does that mean? C: A century egg, is a “black egg.” LYN: Oh~ C: A tea egg. LYN: Oh, ok.

bgm: 我只愿朝着光 (I Only Wish to Face the Light) - Be Your Own Light OST

C: Are doubles paid by the production company? LYN: Well, yeah. The production pays them because they’re production staff. We’re all the same. Even actors get paid by the production company. 

C: Are there mouth doubles? - [t/n: can also mean “lip”] LYN: /licks his lips/ LYN: What do you mean “mouth double”? That is- when you need to kiss, someone else comes and does it for you? A kiss double, or? What are you referring to? What does “mouth double” mean? LYN: Does a “mouth” double speak on your behalf? There’s nothing like that because you have to act it out yourself. C: Kiss double. LYN: I don’t know… I have yet to encounter a kiss double. For example, there’s a scene that requires me to kiss someone, and the FL says, “Sorry. Not me. You come over here and kiss him.”? I haven’t heard of this before. C: Ning-ge, I’m willing to replace the FL. LYN: I have heard that some dramas DO use kiss doubles, though. Some dramas. I’ve heard about before. I’m not quite sure how they do it, but one time they showed me a scene and told me it was a kiss double. I was surprised. It’s great. Amazing. I don’t think they’re needed anymore? I don’t think people do it much anymore, because honestly this entertainment circle is pretty fierce. Who would dare to ask for one? There were a lot before- I’m hearing this from the stories my actor friends have told me. But nowadays, what young person would dare? They’d be plagued by antis until death. No one dares. 

LYN: The other day I was shooting a scene with another actor, and there was a line that was extremely long. It was an inexplicable poem. It was ridiculously long. Not like the ones we’ve learned before. It was so difficult to memorize and we needed to shoot it in a rush, but there wasn’t a lot of time and the pressure was on. We got halfway through the lines before we got stuck because it was just too long and strange. Later when we were rehearsing they told me, jokingly, “If I forget my lines I’m just going to say, “1, 2, 3, 4, 5.” “A, B, C, D, E.”” and I replied, “You wouldn’t dare!” They were joking, of course, and I was also joking back. I said, “You can’t do that because there’s one problem. Not only are we shooting the drama right now and there are crew members around, but there are also paparazzi. They’re all around us. Even if you were joking, if you were caught on video and it was shared online it’s going to affect your career for the rest of your life. You cant joke with this.” We’re really doing it as a joke, but the people around us don’t know that. If someone catches video of that and sells it at a high price and it’s shared online? You’ll be ridiculed until death. No amount of explanation will get you out. LYN: People always talk about “number actors” but really no one dares to try that anymore. At latest I haven’t met anyone. I’ve heard some different ridiculous things, but I won’t tell you about them now. I’ll tell you when I’m sixty. Some really ridiculous moves.

LYN: With my current identity as a rookie actor I have no right to comment on other people’s reasonings and also it’s not good for me to be talking about other people. That’s why when I’m sixty I’ll do a “倚老卖老” (an older person relying on their age to despise others). I’ll share with you, then. That’s why we have to maintain a healthy body! So that when I’m sixty I can do a livestream and tell you a no holds barred account of all my years in this industry. Everything I’ve experienced and things that are outrageous. C: Will you still remember everything when you’re sixty? LYN: I’ll write down every outrageous thing on a little note and put it in a box. Even if I don’t remember, I could just open the box, look at the note and I will know. Alright? C: Will you write a diary? LYN: No.

---------- 

C: Why has your voice changed? LYN: Has my voice changed? Do you think it has? No, right? This is just the way it is. LYN: Why would someone say my voice has changed? At this age, have I just entered puberty and my voice is changing? Huh? It hasn’t changed, right? LYN: ~No way. I think I’ve always sounded like this. It’s never changed. Maybe you just didn’t know me well enough before. You might think that I can only speak with a Northeastern dialect.~ C: Your voice sounds more thrilling. LYN: ~I don’t think so. In order to do that all I need to do is find a common topic, so it seems more thrilling. It will give my voice some highlights.~ C: It’s more gentle. LYN: ~ If it’s gentle you want then I need to add more breath into it. Am I gentle enough now? ~ C: Today is my birthday, can you wish me a “Happy Birthday”? LYN: ~ Alright. Happy Birthday. ~ LYN: ~ Someone told me that if I continue to be this gentle, their dreams tonight will all be of me. /sigh/ You don’t need to do that. ~

LYN: ! I think for the rest of the night I should use this sort of fake style to chat with you all. What do you think?

C: Lao-da, when they’re doing acupuncture are they really pricking you? LYN: Of course not. Because honestly it does hurt. It’s not worth it.

C: Thanks to you I have less homework tonight and I can watch your stream. LYN: ?? Thanks to me?? What does you having less homework have to do with me? Did I abduct your teacher or something? Why is it thanks to me? How strange! 

C: Lao-da, you gained 5k fans. LYN: /laughs/ That just means these 5k people have some sort of small interest in me. Even if they don’t like me, at least they don’t hate me, right? I’d like to thank all the friends who are already following me. If you are not yet subscribed, please do so. The next time I stream you won’t miss it. Thank you, everyone. It’s my honor. 

C: Are you wearing a wig? LYN: I already told you- I don’t really have many faults, but the one I do have is that I’m balding. From here (middle of head) to here (front of head)- /shrugs/ my hair’s flown away. At this moment I am using the hat to cover it and in the front is fake bangs that I bought online for 18rmb. Just so that you can see a slightly more normal person. Please don’t mind it, okay? Don’t look down on people. 

C: My kid is six and they watch your stream and laugh. LYN: They have good taste. Children are the most honest. So the fact that they are happy when they see me means… they like me. They like this uncle. 

bgm: 黑夜一束光 (Praying)

C: Speak properly. LYN: Am I not speaking properly now? I’m only using Standard Mandarin. You really don’t like it? Are you really so against me speaking the standard dialect? /sigh/ I really don’t know what I’ve done wrong. I’ve only just started to speak Standard Mandarin, and you’re holding it against me??  C: Super not accustomed to it. LYN: Is it that bad?!? I only spoke a few words in the standard dialect, why are you being like this to me?? /cackles/ C: I’m finally awake from this illusion. LYN: Yes, I’ll stop messing around now. I’ll return to normal.

-----

C: Lao-da, can you use a villain’s tone to speak? LYN: Haven’t you ever heard that saying- is there any bad guy on earth who would call themselves a bad guy? Does a villain sound different from everyone else? There is no difference. As an actor playing a villain, would you consider yourself one and go around saying, “I’m a villain?” They would never. They’ll think that what they’re doing is the right thing. LYN: When I was acting as BCF I knew I was going to be the villain. But there were times when I was reciting my lines that I would think about what I was saying and I couldn’t understand, from my own worldview. I tried to find some way to convince myself  that would support BCF’s beliefs, because I felt like what I was saying was not humane. But there was nothing I could do. I had to find a way. So I stood from the character’s perspective and thought everything I was doing was in the right and I wasn’t wrong. Everything I did, I did with reason. I’ve played- I can’t say I always play the villain, but I’ve acted as them before. C: Da Bai wasn’t a villain, was he? LYN: He was, in the drama. But in his own world he was a hero. The first drama I acted in- Hot Blooded Youth- Wei Chengfeng was a villain through and through. - [t/n: call me a WCF apologist, because I understood where he was coming from. >.> ]

C: Lao-da, is the inner entertainment circle easy to mingle in? LYN: Let me tell you- when I see these questions, if it were me before, I would answer. But now I really don’t dare to. My streams used to be really self-contained, so whatever I was saying wouldn’t be spread around. But right now I really wouldn’t dare to answer this type of question. This type of question has the same logic as the problem of which came first: the chicken or the egg. No matter how you answer, it’s problematic. Do you get me? No matter how I answer, it’d be wrong. If I say it’s easy, that’s definitely wrong. If I say it’s hard, then people will tell me to get out of it. There’s no correct answer. No matter what you say, you’re going to be criticised for it. So I choose not to answer this question. LYN: There IS a way to answer it, and that’s by using a different type of logic, which is: “I don’t know if it’s easy or not, but if you want to know you can come and find out for yourself.” Everyone’s feelings are different. I have my feeligns and you have yours, so if you have the chance you should come and experience it for yourself. You may gain happiness or you may gain suffering. It’s not a sure thing, so you should try it for yourself.    C: Tell us when you’re sixty. LYN: There’s nothing to tell you! For anything you do there’s a sweet side and a bitter side. Using my work as an example, there’s nothing that ever goes smoothly from start to finish. Likewise, there’s nothing that you will suffer through from start to finish. Everything is relative.

C: Ning-ge, are crying scenes difficult for you? LYN: They are. They’re extremely difficult. Because ever since I was little I was someone who didn’t like to cry. I was always very brave. So crying scenes for me are extremely difficult. Whenever there’s a scene I need to cry in I will have so much pressure and suffering. Because ever since I was little, I didn’t like to cry. - /laughs at himself, starts a thought and doesn’t end up finishing it/ - /starts singing 勇敢勇敢 by Huang Yong instead/ C: Where did the “crybaby” nickname come from, then? LYN: I don’t like to cry that much. I’m not someone who really likes to cry. If I do it in a drama that because I need to for work and other times it’s because zqsg. It’s possible. When acting it’s all about the zqsg. That’s normal, but in my daily life I don’t like to cry much. - [t/n: zqsg = 真情实感 (zhēnqíng shígǎn) = true feelings]

C: Didn’t you say you were scared into crying on The Truth? LYN: Scared tears and normal tears are two different things. Being scared to tears is passive. It’s not something you can control. It’s a psychological reaction. Well, acting also counts as a psychological reaction. LYN: It was actually really scary though! C: You were scared to tears when riding the horse, though? LYN: I wasn’t scared to tears when riding the horse, it was because of the wind. The horse was a little too fast and the wind blew into my eyes. But... good thing my eyes are small! I’ll say it myself first. If the wind blows them too open, I can also start to tear up. The tears were because of the wind. 

C: Ning-ge, how can you cry to have a tear fall from only one eye? LYN: I really can’t teach you! Are you an actor? If you are then go find a professional teacher to learn from, what are you learning from me for? What do you mean tears from only one eye?? I- the next time you cry, you can try to feel it for yourself. Of your two eyes there’s a high probability that the tears will fall from one eye first. One will fill with tears faster than the other. They usually don’t fall at the same time. That only happens when both are full. When you cry normally, one falls first. LYN: I know an actor friend that can control whether the tear falls from their left eye or their right. At the time I thought, “Wow. That’s so amazing!” When we were filming one of the scenes together and it was their turn- because when I cry, I’m just doing it instinctually. I’m just naturally crying. I won’t get into the details, but the result it the same- I cry. I can’t determine which eye the tears fall from first. Sometimes it’s the left and sometimes it’s the right. But I found out that they can control it, so I asked, “How do you control which eye the tear falls from?” So they taught me. It’s something that you feel is very amazing, it sounds amazing, but once you know how it’s done you’ll think, “Oh, it was actually so simple!” The method is very simple, but whether you can pull it off or not is a different matter. After they told me how, I realized it was very simple.  C: Tear drops. LYN: No, not that. What actor would dare to use tear drops nowadays?

C: Ning-ge, why don’t you demonstrate? // Is it top secret? LYN: It’s not a secret. Actually, I can- how about this. If you want to know then send me 50rmb in WeChat and I’ll teach you the method. You think you’re watching me stream, but in reality I am also selling classes. The classes don’t have any content, rather I’m just telling you a ridiculous- no, it’s not ridiculous… It looks like I’m streaming for free, but now I’m starting to reap my harvest. If you want to know the secret  I was talking about you need to send me 50rmb. C: I don’t want to know. Bye. LYN: … LYN: You already know that I’m joking. I know that you are too, but can’t you just indulge me? Can’t you open your heart a little bigger and just indulge me?? I’m feeling a little arrogant, so you need to follow my flow a little bit. You can’t just leave me hanging! Right?! You need to make it out like you’re very interested in the answer or want to haggle the price, and that way we get a story out of it. 1. You could beg me to tell you. 2. You’re desperate to know but you created a characterization of yourself- which is that you’re very stingy- so you want to haggle the price with me, and in the end I make a deal with you at 35rmb. That’s the way a story can develop. You need to create the process. You can’t just cut if off like that. For example, in this case I said “send me 50rmb” and you just turned me down and left. In that case the story ends. That’s no good. Can’t you just work with me a little?? D: C: 5rmb. LYN: Actually, 5rmb would be ok too. With all of you here, you could negotiate a group offer. XD

C: 1rmb. Teach me, friend. LYN: /laughs/ LYN: I really did learn this ability, though. They taught me how and I tried, and it worked! It looked like a difficult thing to do but was accomplished simply. If you don’t learn how though, you really can’t do it. It’s like going to a restaurant to eat a dish but they have a secret recipe. When you’re looking at the recipe you think it’s difficult to make but after you’ve made it you think it was easy. If no one tells you how to do it, though- C: Show us. LYN: Am… Am I crazy? First of all, I’m streaming so there’s no need for me to sit here crying for no reason, is there? Secondly, if it were to get out that I’m crying in my stream wouldn’t that be grounds for people to ridicule me until I die? Anti-LYN: LYN thinks he’s all that, acting in his streams and telling his fans that “this is what acting is”? We all know how his acting is, and he’s demonstrationg on stream how to cry?? They’re requesting crying scenes from him??? I don’t know what’s wrong with this industry, can just anyone and everyone act now? Who is it exactly, that’s backing him? Who indulges him? Even someone like him can go into acting- that’s too unfair. LYN: I have predicted your prediction. Excuse me, I have predicted your prediction to my prediction. (uno-reverse)

C: Is this a real person? LYN: AI. I’m an AI image, right now. I’ve actually snuck away and am soaking my feet. I’m getting ready to sleep, but my AI is sitting here streaming for you. 

C: Ning-ge, if you see me, then breathe. LYN: /laughs/ 

----- Cicada Girls

C: Ning-ge, can we talk about Xiao Bei (Cicada Girls)? LYN: Yeah, we can. Why not? What do you want to talk about? C: When can I meet him? LYN: I don’t know. I really don’t know. I haven’t received any news, but they did send me some OSTs. As for the other stuff I don’t know. 

C: Does Xiao Bei have a BE? LYN: I don’t know. I can’t spoil it. You can watch it when the time comes. LYN: When I was acting as XB, since it was a modern drama, now that I think about it I didn’t control what I was eating. I was eating lots every day. I was happy just to eat. Eating every day~ We were shooting in Chongqing, so I didn’t care. I ate and relaxed. C: Weren’t you working out then? LYN: It wasn’t then. It was before XB, when I was in Beijing for a period of time. I was working out constantly, then. I found a trainer and everything. Because last year I know I had promised to show you abs by the end of the year. But once I starting shooting the drama it was really tiring and I wasn’t in the mood to work out anymore. 

C: Is XB the 1ML or 2ML? LYN: It’s not important. Xiao Bei is Xiao Bei, and he is just one of my many roles. (His rank) is not important. Whether 1ML or 2ML, I still get paid. I still get the same amount of scenes. So it’s not important.

C: Is Gao Weiguang taller than you are? LYN: He is! He seriously is. It’s been two- three consecutive dramas where I’ve met someone taller than me. Yuan Lu is taller than I am. Chen Youwei. When I first went to shoot the drama, we were in Dunhuang on the first day and we went out to eat, to get to know each other. I saw him and thought, “Wow, CYW’s so tall??!” He’s taller than I am, but he’s acting as my little brother. “My little brother is taller than I am! His development is too good, isn’t it??” I guess I can’t say that he’s taller than I am, but that we are around the same height. The difference does not exceed 1cm. But GWG really is taller than I am, for sure. C: What about Zhang Linghe? LYN: I think we’re around the same height? We haven’t measured, but I don’t think the difference between us would be more than 1cm. It’s not like the first thing I did when I saw him was go, “Come here, kid, Let’s compare heights.” It’s not necessary. If we hang out we’ll get a general idea of what the difference is. It’s not like we’re competitive about it, and there’s no need to be! ZKY, too. When the three of us are together we’re all pretty tall. One look and you can see that we’re all similar in height. The difference won’t be more than 2cm. C: I’d like to see you work on a drama together. LYN: If there’s an opportunity. 

bgm: 狂風襲來 (Fierce Wind Raid) - West Out of Yumen/Parallel World OST LYN: When I was recording for the program BY had told me that he sang this too. I replied, “Oh? You sang it?” and he told me that he went to some event and sang this song. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lw4kBfY94XE]

C: Ning-ge, did you change your studio team? LYN: I haven’t. You’ve noticed that the studio contents seem to have gone through a change, right? I went to Disney the other day and people got photos of my staff and they commented, “Oh. No wonder the posts the studio is making suits our tastes. He added some after-‘00 liners. The studio added new members, and they’re born after the 2000’s.” C: Is your studio still recruiting? LYN: Our team is full at the moment. We’re not recruiting. I have enough people. So, we’re no longer recruiting at this moment. Go find work elsewhere.

C: So are they new? LYN: They’re not new. I’ve told you before, that I didn’t used to like taking photos or videos. For example when I had to attend events- like most recently the one for DragonTV. Most of the time artists have to take setting off pictures- you’ve seen them for things like Weibo Night. “Setting off” pictures. What that means is that when they’re ready to go, they’ll post photos so that everyone who is paying attention to them that day can see what they’re wearing and how they’re styled and with what makeup. Is it tasteful? Does it look good? Are they handsome or not? Pretty or not? That’s standard operation for an artist- no matter what you’re doing, you have to post photos first. To let people know, “I’m heading out to an event. What do you think of my outfit? I got it from Taobao.” They need to tell people who they’re wearing. It’s something all artists will do. LYN: But I- honestly, I don’t think I am good-looking. So I really hate taking photos and shooting promo ads. I really don’t like those two things. I don’t like making poses because even when I do the picture doesn’t come out nice. No matter what I do, it looks strange. So I really didn’t like taking photos or videos, and would tell my staff not to take photos of me. Another thing is that when I’m attending these events I’m usually there to sing. At an actor’s event, I’m singing. At a singer’s event, I’m also singing. I always have a performance when I’m at an event. They’ll say, “Since you’re coming, why don’t we add you to the program?” So in my mind I’m there to perform, not to make myself pretty and walk the carpet, get on stage to accept an award, say a speech, and leave. Usually I have a performance, and I’m singing a song. I’m under a lot of pressure- it’s self-given. I want to make sure I do well and don’t mess up because I’m a singer after all, even though I’ve been acting lately. So when my studio would tell me, “Boss, let’s take some photos. 🙏” I’d get really annoyed at them and say, “I don’t want to!” Then I found out that everyone else was taking these photos, so I’d say, “Take some, take some. Hurry. That’s enough. Ok. Ok. You’re only posting 6 or 7, that’s enough.” My staff are actually pretty helpless to do anything. Of course, I don’t speak to them that way. I was just exaggerating. I don’t actually treat my staff that way. LYN: I’d say, “~ Can we stop taking photos now? I’m a little… annoyed. :) I still have a performance later, can we move along? They said we only need six photos, right? We have about enough. Trust me. We have enough. :) It won’t be a problem. You’re already doing great.👍~” “~I think you’ve all worked hard today. Why don’t you take a break and fix up the photos we got and just post them? Alright? Then, I will go prepare.~” LYN: Do you believe the former way more, or the latter way? /laughs/ C: I believe the former one more. LYN: Ok, yeah. It leans more towards the former, but not as arrogant. They won’t force me, though. But at that time I was conflicted about it. I didn’t want to take pictures. I just wanted to pull off my performance successfully, and participate in the event a little but otherwise be done with it.

LYN: But I would get yelled at by my own fans. Anti LYN: “It’s so late already, why haven’t you posted any photos when all the other artists have?? Where are they? Why aren’t there any? What does your studio even DO??” LYN: Isn’t that… them yelling at me? It just felt like they were saying, “LYN. You say you’re an artist but you don’t even post photos, so what type of artist are you?? You should be coming out to do business. Your fans support you so much, so what’s wrong with taking a few photos for them? What are you being so stuck-up for? Do you think you’re too good for us?” I feel like that’s what they’re saying. That’s why later, I adjusted. When I need to post photos, I will. But if they try to take too many, I can’t take it. But I heard that a lot of artists are really intense and they’ll arrive a day early! I don’t mean anything else by it- I’m just describing a situation I’ve seen, and something that makes me think they’re really amazing. If the event is on the 8th, they’ll arrive on the 6th. They’ll start makeup and when that’s done they’ll wear their outfit for the day and take photos. On the 7th they’ll pick and edit photos. On the 8th, the actual day of the event, they’ll post the photos. LYN: I just thought they were really intense and also really amazing. But I can’t be like them. If you had me do something a day in advance I would find it really tiring. But many artists do, and it’s something I respect and admire about them. I’ve gotten better now, though. My studio will post a few things about my daily life or make a video about an event I’ve attended. I need to change, and it’s better for everyone’s development. C: Your staff complained? LYN: They didn’t. I just like to look at things myself. I realized that I probably needed to start making the change. For a lot of things no amount of advising will work. I need to realize it myself in order to make a change. Sometimes now I’ll actively tell them to call pr so we can shoot some content to post, because you all seem to enjoy it. At least this way I have an excuse for not streaming. So since I’m not streaming, at least you have something to look at. LYN: Today my staff told me that they’ve collected a bunch of material, and asked if they should post it. I told them not to post yet, because I was going to stream tonight. In a few days when I haven’t streamed and I think that my fans miss me too much, I’ll post something. To appease them. But I’m streaming today so we’re saving it. 

C: Objectively comment on the ceremony’s fan support. LYN: Your… your voices are pretty loud. You sure can shout. It’s not bad. I’ve said before, that a lot of my fans are actually kettles that have become human. C: Do you like it? Tell the truth. LYN: You could just ask the first three words, why did you add the next three? What’s there for you to be proud of? Did you also shout? Were you a part of the kettle boiling? Of the 12 major scales, were you in charge of one of them? And you’re asking me, /coyly/ “Did you like it? Tell the truth.” Even I can imagine what type of face you’re making! LYN: ~Did you like it? Tell the truth~ :) ~ LYN: It was quite nice, I just didn’t expect it. Because there are rarely daytime events, and the tickets were limited. So there were a few friends who relied on some connections to get in. Someone’s relative, or some acquaintance, that were able to get you tickets and get you in. I didn’t expect there to be so many of you. It was unexpected. I can’t say you made me look good, but at least knowing that you were there to support me made me happy. C: I bought the ticket myself. LYN: Very good. In any case, you were all quite loud. There were so many people including seniors and rookies*, but I was glad to have you there. You’ve worked hard. - [t/n: *meaning they weren’t drowned out by the groups of other fans.]

C: Chat about the fan support in Changsha. LYN: I was happy to see the Changsha fan-support as well. Every time I go to Changsha to record for variety shows, many of you go to see me. I’m really thankful for you to make the trip to see me, and to shout for me and support me. You’re really saving me face. You’ve come from a long way, too. I know that’s not easy. Knowing that you did that, I think that the least I could do is come out to greet you all. I know that I’m very safe with you. No one is going to try to rush at me or make a mess of things. Sometimes you may look rowdy, but I know that’s because other people’s fans  or paparazzi are trying to squeeze over to look at a monkey. My fans are very polite, and stand their ground even when I come out to see you. It’s nice, and you’re always like that. LYN: But this time around, because… that other person (SZE?) is afraid of anything happening when they attend events. If there’s any problem, then it will turn into a major thing. This time, I didn’t go over to greet them and I had told them about it. But I’m still thankful that you came to support me. I really appreciate it. Thank you. LYN: It was raining that day, too. So I really am very grateful.  C: You broke the bank on milk teas. LYN: It was fine. Those things are for a purpose. It’s nothing. 

-----

C: Talk about The Truth. LYN: There’s nothing really to say about it? I’ve already said all I could. I’m close with the cast this year, except for the one new friend. But we had a fun time recording and quickly became friends. BY, ZKY, and I count as the more experienced players, as we’re carried over from last season. It’s not that we’re guiding the new players, but that we have more of an insight due to the experience. We’ll tell the new players about what happened to us last season and how the crew will attempt to mess with us. Or, from a reasoning perspective, what way we can look at things in order to solve the riddles. We’ll share what we know, even if what we’re saying is mostly nonsense. LYN: We’ll tell them, “If the production set it up this way, then that means this will happen next” and the thing doesn’t happen at all. “This problem is so simple! It’s this, plus this. Divided by this. Then that means the answer is this-” and we don’t solve it at all. We thought there’d be an advantage to being an experienced player but in the end it doesn’t help at all. And we’re over here trying to teach them??? Later when I looked back on it I was wondering, “Do they find me really annoying?” I thought I was being smart, but in the end I’m all wrong. 

LYN: In the first episode BY, ZKY, and I would be more proactive in sharing what we think and how to solve the problems. We’re doing it with good intentions, because we want to show the new players how to play. But they play better than we do. That’s the most embarrassing part! I thought I’d be able to guide them through it, but they know the game better than I do! Later it got better, and we played all together. It was fun. At the very least, we blended well. LYN: When you’re recording a show, one part of it is the show itself and the second part is the relationships between people. People who always watch variety shows will know, actually you’re watching for the relationships. You want to see if this group of people work well together or not. Are they fun to watch? Do you like seeing them get together and chat? Even if it’s something silly as reasoning, it’s the matter of whether you like to see it or not. The atmosphere they create is very important. This season is really not bad at all- we’re great together, because we all know each other and we’re good people.

C: Is it all recorded before it’s aired? LYN: No. It should air before we finish recording all the episodes. We’ll record and broadcast at the same time. There’s still editing and getting clearance from censors- the process is actually a lot like that of a drama’s. After it passes censors, they’ll cut and fix before putting the episodes together. It’s the same as with a drama. It won’t be too long. I’m sure you’ll see it before the month is up. I hope so, at least. It’s not a sure thing.

- /fixing his hair/ LYN: It’s a little long. But I’ve just had it trimmed. :\

LYN: When I was recording for this program I felt like… I’ve changed so much so that it doesn’t feel like me. Before when I used to attend events or variety shows I would be more relaxed. I thought, “As long as I’m having fun!” Because for variety shows you need to be 1) invested in the story and 2) be active. But now I guess I’ve experienced some… slight cyber bullying. Maybe not “cyber bullying” but some... setbacks. Now I have worries. I kept thinking- let me share with you. LYN: I’m actually nervous for this season. I went to record for the show, and this season there are some musical elements involved. I won’t go into details, but you’ll hear us sing. At the time I was in a group with ZLH- we’re all singing the same song. Then, after we sang… /pause/ We’re singing the same part of the song! Because it’s particularly difficult to memorize. So when we sang it, it was maybe slightly easier for me, since I am still considered a professional singer, right? I could approach it normally. But for him, he is not… the best… at singing. When he was singing I- /looked at ZLH like “?!”/ I thought he was really amusing! What an interesting person! So when he was singing I thought it was pretty fun. I don’t know. In any case, during the process I understood the charm of his singing. There’s nothing wrong with me phrasing it like that, right? I understood the charm of his singing. That’s why in the show I kept cueing him, saying, “I don’t want to hear anyone else sing. I want to hear ZLH.” “Sing something. Come on, let’s do it together!” Actually- it’s because he’s a new player, so I wanted to break the ice with some playful ribbing. He didn’t sing, and it’s not like I would have FORCED him! But it ended up becoming a small inside joke. I said to him, “I just want to hear you sing. I’m begging you. Please!” But through the process of the show, we continued joking like this. And he can take a joke, too. He’d say, “I won’t sing!” so I replied, “If I send you 100rmb, will you sing? I’m begging.” We’ll make these types of jokes. LYN: But after we finished recording and I got home and was lying on my bed, I started thinking: “Was that problematic?” When the show airs, would people think, “LYN, why are you such a terrible person? Are you making fun of him?? What do you mean by that? You’re a singer, so you sound nice and that makes you think you can make fun of others?” I was lying on my bed, thinking of this problem. “You’re forcing him! You’re-” /cuts himself off/ “-bullying new players!” I was thinking of this problem, tossing and turning, and couldn’t sleep for a long time. I was thinking to myself, “It’s fine, right? People will know I was joking?” “I don’t need to bring him down just to prove how great of a singer I am, there’s no need for that! I’m not going to benefit in any way from doing that.” I just kept thinking about it. After a few days of mulling it over I decided it wasn’t a big deal. If we’re all getting along well then no one would think in that direction. Anyway, I just want to share that I’m a little 前怕狼后怕虎 (qián pà láng hòu pà hǔ; lit. fear the wolf in front and the tiger behind; needless fears)

LYN: I’ll think too much now, and I think that makes me unhappy. LYN: But I just need some time to adjust and regain my previous mental state. I need to move forward, but without losing myself and my own personality. I think that’s very important. 

bgm: 就在江湖之上 (Above the Jianghu) - Mysterious Lotus Casebook OST

LYN: I’ve been streaming for more than four hours already?? I’ve streamed for more than four hours, already. LYN: /to the melody of 我的滑板鞋 (My Skate Shoes)/ ~Time is moving so swiftly. Night has fallen. I believe I must take my leave. I’ve forgotten many things, but I still remember in my imagination there are a pair of skate shoes. When I wear them, I am sure to dance well!~ LYN: How about this, friends? Today, I will- what time is it now? 9:59p. I’ll stream until 10:30p. Okay? I’ll stream another half-hour. We’ll go until 10:30p. I’ll chat with you some more, since I haven’t in a long time. We’ll chat. But wait for me a sec. I’ll use the restroom. 

---------- break #4

LYN: Good evening, my friends! LYN: Oh? Really? Fifty million (people watching the stream). I don’t believe this is possible! 

C: Quick, get off of LYN. [a ghost?] LYN: You mean, “I don’t care who you are, I order you to get off LYN?” LYN: Why are you saying it so terrifyingly?

C: LYN, just be yourself. This is just the way the world is. LYN: I- never complain. Because it doesn’t do me any good. I have my own rhythm and I’ll just have to slowly adjust, because my environment isn’t the same as it was before. 

C: Are there any new dramas? LYN: I’m working hard to film them quickly! It’s difficult for me to come across a drama and script that I like. But I’m doing my best to shoot them, so I hope you can be less restless and less impatient. 

C: Ge, are you not singing today? LYN: You must have just come in. You just came in, so what gives you the right to start making demands? You don’t know that you’re late?! I already sang, but I haven’t eaten much today so I don’t have enough strength. I won’t be singing. I can hum a little but not properly sing.

C: /telling him to comment on other people/ LYN: What gives me the right to? Who am I to judge other people? Do you think I’m like those content creators who rate this and rate that? I don’t rely on my videos to gain ad revenue. I don't need to judge people. Don’t scare me. I wouldn’t dare to comment on anyone. Even with my close friends, I have to be careful. I have to be careful when I mention their names, even when joking. So I just won’t mention them anymore. Because when you’re in this industry your job is to bring people happiness or entertainment, so I used to think that mentioning my friends and seeing how close we were to each other would have the same effect. But now everything is criticized (as a matter of principle), so I don’t mention them anymore. If everything is going to be criticized I might as well not say anything. Not making trouble is better than having trouble. LYN: So I’ll try my best not to mention anyone if there’s no need to bring them up.

bgm: 遥远的相似 (Distant Resemblance) - South Wind Knows OST

C: Are you still going to be on Mao Xue Woof? LYN: When I went to record for Hello Saturday, Xueqin asked me what I was doing in May. But I’d be shooting my drama, then. I think she said that it would start recording in May, so if I had time I could go do an episode. But I’d already be in my new crew by then so I don’t think I can go. I’m going to miss it again. How regretful!

C: My mom says that you look very cultured/refined. LYN: … It’s not followed by “degenerate” is it? She said “refined” and it wasn’t followed by anything, like “This kid looks like a refined d-d…” /can’t bring himself to say it/. Right? /puts on some shades/ Oh~ LYN: Auntie, I’m just faking it. Jie, I’m faking it. I’m just a hoodlum of society. I’m not very refined or a refined person. 

C: Ning-ge, my roommate says you’re very handsome. LYN: /pleased/ It’s been a long time since I’ve heard someone call me handsome. Friends, this is a secondary account I’ve created. It makes posts automatically. When you say the keyword it will post the comment automatically, “LYN you’re very handsome. Really.” C: My husband says you’re very handsome. LYN: That’s not necessary. I’m sure that your husband is the most handsome person in your heart. I’m just average. - cue You Are My Destiny~~ LYN: I need to change the bgm for this!

C: My mom and dad have seen your journey and think you’re really impressive. LYN: I’m not impressive. But I think… Sometimes I will think back on what I’ve experienced and what I’ve been through on this road. I think it’s pretty magical. When I went back to Dandong for a bit, I especially felt this. This whole journey has been magical. I don’t think I am all that amazing, but more of that I got lucky in my choices. When I first started out, after I went viral, I was really popular. Even I think so- I was popular, and there was a lot of interest in me. But at that time I didn’t choose to continue to be a streamer. I chose to become a celebrity. I didn’t choose to take business deals to go around to various events and sing for money. I did something that didn’t make me money instead. I started acting. At that time I had never acted before, but jumped right in. Of course, it’s because of this that I was able to meet someone I’m indebted to. They gave me a hand and an opportunity. LYN: I think it’s all about choice. At every juncture, I didn’t make too bad of a choice. It’s been that way up until today. When I look back and try to think of a choice I made incorrectly, I can’t come up with one. Of course, there’s no turning back in life. /thinks/ I did make some wrong choices. But I’ll use them as experience and consider it a training. If your whole life was smoothly paved, you won’t learn anything. LYN: I can’t say that my life was smooth, but I also don’t want to play the sympathy card and tell you exactly how difficult the process was. Some things I can’t say. 1) It’s something I can’t tell you viewers, and 2) If I tell you only my fans would feel sorry for me. The greater community won’t care. Passersby or people who don’t like me won’t feel sorry for me, so there’s no need to voice all the things I thought were hard or tiring. There’s no need to. LYN: I remember there’s a song from Wang Yuan called “世界上没有真正的感同身受” (There’s No True Empathy In This World). I think I’ve heard it before. I think it’s really right. It’s hard to feel true empathy. So even if you were to tell about your hardships there wouldn’t be any meaning to doing it. 

LYN: I’ve told you, right? I shot a drama once. I think I told you. That’s when I decided I wanted to be an actor, and I liked doing it. But after shooting for that drama for one week I got back to my hotel room and I stood there in front of the mirror looking at myself- still in wig and makeup. I looked into the mirror and told myself, “LYN, you’re a singer. You could have just sung your songs and made enough to feed yourself, so why did you start acting? Why do you want to be an actor? Why??” LYN: There were times when I would interrogate myself like this. Back then I almost gave myself a mental illness. You might think that’s something you only see on tv- after all how many people in real life would talk to themselves in the mirror? Very few. At that time I was already at that stage. C: Were you mezmerized by your own good looks in the mirror? LYN: /defeated/ LYN: You’ve probably seen less of me than I have. I’ve been looking at myself for 30+ years. I’m just glad I don’t want to throw up. How could I be surprised by my own good looks? No way. I just wanted to say that on the road to becoming an actor you’ll make decisions you might consider a regret at the time, but become a gain later on. It helps me to adjust my way of thinking. For example if I encounter something I don’t think is good enough I will be conflicted over it. “This won’t do. What is this? I can’t do this.” But later when I thought about it I was limiting my possibilities. Throughout this whole process I’m learning to convince myself, open myself to feeling more and experiencing more. In the end I hope I can convey that to you.

C: Ning-ge, the script where you’re a dominating CEO… LYN: First of all, I’m not as popular as you think I am- I don’t have a lot of work which allows me to pick and choose whatever drama I want. I’m happy to have work in the first place. I’m grateful that a drama would even consider me. I’m just cruising along looking for some way to fill my stomach. That’s the first thing- a dominating CEO is not something I can act as just because I want to. Secondly,- ~ Woman, you’re playing with fire, but you’ve successfully gained my attention. If there’s an opportunity I might… actually consider accepting a role. ~ Just kidding. :) LYN: Honestly a lot of times I discovered this problem- that is, some roles I’ve accepted are already that of a dominating CEO, only it’s a guzhuang version. It’s the same sort of character. ~ Woman, I told you to shut your mouth. Within three minutes, collect your belongings and get out. ~ Isn’t that a dominating CEO? It’s all the same lines but just in a different era. - /comparing lines in guzhuang vs modern dramas/ LYN: So if you’re saying that you want to see me act as a dominating CEO, probably some of my guzhuang roles can also fulfill that wish. 

C: I want to see Daimi. LYN: Maybe later.

C: Ning-ge, can you play a villain that doesn’t die? LYN: A villain that survives in the end? I can. I’ll try, at least. If one such roles comes to me, I’d accept it. C: A villain who turns good in the end. LYN: That’s difficult. Because the problem of the logic- from what I’ve heard- is that as long as you’ve done bad things… You can shout all you want, “I’m going to kill AAA. I’m going to do BBB. I’ll destroy the three realms!” But as long as you don’t actually DO anything, it’s fine. Maybe you can be redeemed. But the moment you actually DO those things, I don’t think there’s any redemption. 

C: Ning-ge, if you have time why not become a voice actor? LYN: I know a lot of people have suggested it, but I need to tell you something: I’m not worthy. I like voice acting, so sometimes I’ll listen to the works of the really amazing professional voice actors. There’s really a difference. Their voices not only sound good, but their control is far superior. I’m not worthy to be a voice actor. They’re much more amazing than I am. It’s just something some people can do but others can’t. You can’t bring the same feeling/emotion to it. Some lines, like saying the name of the moves or even something like, “Bring me your life!”- it doesn’t have the same feeling. There’s still a difference. I can’t be a voice actor. If there are opportunities for me to try, I would definitely try though.

C: Go voice act for Disney. LYN: I don’t think I qualify for that either. /Minnie Mouse in the elevator/ “You’ve reached the third floor!” “The lobby is on the first floor.” “Oh~ My friend! Welcome to Shanghai Disney!” 

----- Daimi Time

LYN: Daimi-ah. Daimi. Come here, please. LYN: Come. Come on. LYN: She’s gotten her immunizations lately, so we haven’t given her a bath. She looks kind of dirty, but please don’t mind it. She can’t get wet because of the shots so she’s… scrunkly. She’s not fat, though. We’ve been regulating her diet. She was sleeping, and I woke her up. - /Daimi looks up at him/ LYN: Don’t move. Go away. How annoying. - /puts his glasses on her head, and they fall off/ LYN: You’re going to break my glasses! -- Neon Sweetheart LYN: She’s getting annoyed.

LYN: Alright, that’s about it. I’ve streamed for kind of long today. If I have time lately I’ll try to come stream more. Thank you for keeping me company and for your support. /pauses/ I forgot my closing lines. /buffering/ I hope you had a relaxing, happy, and wonderful night. It was great to have you and I hope you had fun. Let’s meet again in the next stream~ Bye bye, everyone!

[e-glyde]

Why do people think adhering to lore will make a good story?

Why do you rely on "respecting the lore" to be your reason for disliking something? Maybe the lore needs to be disrespected. Perhaps what you respected from the original set of writer's had PROBLEMS. Could be the new writer's want to do something different in this world of rehashes or something.

It could also go wrong, and even kill the reason you love the story. So let's look at two different examples of adaptations of video games. Sonic and Halo…not perfect I know but stick with me.

I should also mention I enjoy the Halo show and the Sonic movies irritate me with it's changes.

STICK WITH ME HERE.

Let's take a look at the similarities of the both:

Produced by Paramount

Major Changes from it's source material

It's own timeline separate from their games and extended lore

Live Action when it probably shouldn't be

More likely to use/keep intact deep cuts from the source lore

More likely to change up key aspects most everyone knows

Let's take a look at the differences now:

The Sonic movies are beloved by many of it's fans

The Halo show is just discourse town and hated by many of it's fans (The tide of this is turning. I might come back to this.)

The Sonic movie's demographic is children

The Halo show's demographic is adults

The Sonic movie is allergic to the game's music

The Halo show has used several themes and music styles from the games

Halo is military sci-fi

Sonic is shonen

We can ignore those last two. I'm just salty the Sonic movies don't really use any of the game's AMAZING music or hire any of those composers to help out or EVEN JUST, HOVER AROUND THE VIBE OF THOSE OSTs! Actually let's not ignore it, because that's a good point to start with. Despite such an annoyance in my eyes, the Sonic fanbase hasn't made much a stink about it. And we take a look at Halo and throw many different fires that the show doesn't use the OST. Now how could that be? Didn't I just mention they actually use themes from the games?

Oh yes, the Halo show even uses THE Halo Theme in several key moments. So why are the complaints brought up? Well so I can go to sleep at a decent time I'll get to the point, or a point. I've noticed many different aspects going for and against each franchise adaptation into live action. One being the audience each genre brings, military sci-fi usually brings in those wiki types who act all high and mighty like they've read the extended lore but all they've done is quote a wiki. Or worse, a youtube video. Shonen can run quite hard on cool factor, and less on lore trappings. Even if people fixate on power levels, a story can move in and out of an establish power scale and still keep an audience…if it's fucking cool.

Halo by and large, has a pretty consistent quality. With an aged fanbase who from day 1 hates anything new.

Sonic I've noticed has changed a LOT, and has varying quality and all the fanbase begs for is something good.

That point isn't too good. Let's go back to Halo :3 The point from before was speaking to how despite the consistent quality the fans would have you believe the current company has killed Halo and never made a good game ever. Then you play them and see that even it's worse is still a fine game. And then you wonder, "Why do y'all act like these games are the worst thing ever? Do you not know worse games or can you not see your bias and act accordingly?"

The same goes with the show, while, not perfect…is fine even at it's worse. But they'll have you believe it's literal unwatchable dogshit. You look at any popular tweet about the show and it's probably going to be something changed from the lore and people acting like the sky is falling.

I see the Sonic movie show up and people are just enjoying the goober. Or quoting Idris Elba's knuckles. rip Tails Or Jim Carrey's eggman chewing the fuck out of the scene. Despite ALL OF THIS, being different. Because this audience isn't lore heavy sci-fi fans, they're shonen fans. It's cool factor, it's Knuckles stopping Sonic and taunting him. It's Super Sonic wiping the floor with a giant mech, it's Eggman being a charismatic confident jerk. Who cares i-oh wait, I'm getting a phone in…Sonic fans do not enjoy the human subplot….yea…yea. Okay. Makes sense, if you came from epic anime hedgehog moments, the comedic human subplot would probably do that. But it's not enough to make every Sonic movie tweet inevitably show up going, "Erm, but the movies suck though!"

Yes the Halo show has that. It's very annoying. But honestly sci-fi especially military sci-fi just has the problem. I don't know why, but it is annoying as hell. The mass demands lore, no not that one, no not that one; yanno the good lore. The one the audience liked as a child. The original one. The never changing lore; except the one that changed things but it was good!

Getting side tracked. There was a point here. Eh who cares, but I'll leave you with some wild shit I've seen.

"The Halo show is a Mass Effect show in disguise."

Evidence:

A Commander Shepard cameo in the dialouge in one scene referring to a Commander Shepard.

The show has Romance.

That's it. From what I've heard from Mass Effect fans, this take is even worse because you'd have to be media illiterate to relate the both. Or it's self admittance you know nothing of Mass Effect except it has romance.

"The Halo show disregards the games. The writers said so!"

The very first episode had several references to Halo CE. And the actual quote was more like, "We looked beyond the games." Which is extremely true because the more books I read, the more I noticed the inspirations for their choices.

For example in the first book the Main Director for the Spartan 2 Super Soldier program mentioned that she rejected the advice of wiping the Spartans memory. (or something to that effect). Her reasoning being that if they were to find out they were stolen from their parents, it won't bold well for their caretakers. So she went with just indoctrination. The show doesn't listen to this advice and guess what happens. A Spartan finds out about his past and doesn't take it well. This is used as evidence the show doesn't know the lore.

Taking a "what if" moment and exploring it. It's annoying. One can critique the pure indoctrination angle is a more psychologically interesting one but well, that's not what this post is about. This is more about how people act like the lack of KNOWLEDGE of lore is the fault.

And with Season 2 taking a different direction and even more characters more in-line with the extended lore depictions of themselves….this still happens. "The alien ship looks bad because they don't know the LORE man. Do they not know the lore???"

"I will act like choices I don't like are because of ignorance or arrogance from the writers, and not a creative decision I disagree with."

-Sci-Fi fans or something.

Patch Notes: Captain Shepard has been change to Commander Shepard Added a "Keep Reading" Marker

[atiny-for-life]

Creative Spotlight #8: Choi Jongho

Masterlist

Intro: With so many new Atinys coming in, I figured now would be a good time to shed some light on all the boys' creative solo projects over the years, big and small.

JongST

Jongho's a singer through and through, and launched his own cover series in 2020 where he traveled to the filming sets of his favorite dramas to cover the songs in his usual powerful and emotional fashion, proving over and over again how much he deserves all the praise he gets showered with:

The fourth episode is a special one, featuring Jung Seung Hwan, the original singer of the OST, and a little interview section in the second half of the video. It's very cute and Seung Hwan shares a little anecdote of Jongho approaching him in the past to give him one of their albums and being all sweet and shy about it.

The most recent JongST was released in 2022.

Other Cover Songs

In mid 2022, Jongho was invited to Leemujin Service, where he performed an acoustic cover of Turbulence and the most gut wrenching version of Don't Go Today (seriously, it's so gorgeous I've streamed it more than some actual comebacks):

Through his participation in Masked Singer, Jongho performed Swing Baby a year ago while (to my delight, Jinyoung and Hyunsuk from CIX were there) - it's a really fun and dynamic performance and you can tell the audience had a blast:

And while Ateez as a group have participated (and won) Immortal Songs on multiple occasions, Jongho also performed a solo there last year - So You. At the beginning of the last third of the song, there's a section where the instrumental just falls away and we're left with nothing but Jongho's voice and it's so damn powerful:

8 months ago, Jongho's cover of Park Hyo Shin's Wild Flower was uploaded, featuring Jongho in a unique setting: a circular room with a single spotlight shining down from above, illuminating just him and a pianist sitting at a grand black piano.

It's a stunning performance with a gorgeous explosive section in the second half:

Imitation Soundtrack

Like Seonghwa, Yunho, and San, Jongho was also a part of the Imitation cast but, unlike the other three, he was a member of the fictional group Shax, which most of us agree made better music in the show-verse. While they had multiple performances (all of them iconic), here are the two most famous ones:

Pentatonix Collab

In 2022, Yunho, San, and Jongho were invited to collab with Pentatonix on a song called A Little Space (featuring a Korean verse):

Original OSTs

About a year ago, Jongho performed his first OST live, Gravity for the show Reborn Rich - it's absolutely stunning and powerful with an explosive chorus and soft verses and I wish I could've heard it live when they were last on tour:

1 month ago, A Day was released for the show Lovely Runner which is, for now, his most recent OST release and (unlike Gravity), this song actually gets used well by the show and is played during many pivotal scenes (especially in the latter half of the show):

[deltastra]

My Thoughts on Tower of God Season 2 Episode 7

BAM VS EMILY (Urek lol) LETS GOOOOOO

WEBTOON SPOILERS WAS TEASED BUT NOT OUTRIGHT STATED

Rating: 7/10

Summary: Ohhh boy I had to read the chapters againt to make sure they weren't pulling my leg but man...I have mixed feelings. First half was ehhh okay? Second half I liked!

He's such a fanboy, so adorable!

And with that, we can see why he's an Irregular lol. His ideal was honestly the most unique out of anyone's when it comes to the tower. Climb to the top? NAH I WANNA GET OUT OF HERE.

AND THAT'S MY FAVOURITE VIOLE QUOTE!

Okay so here's my take. I read the webtoon again and saw that they really did follow it as much as possible, Viole and Urek barely fought. But I still feel like they could have gotten away with animating an actual fight? Heck, add more dynamic camera movements like in episode 1?! Sigh. (I did see a bit more shaking and impact in this fight though so it isn't that bad)

A very important scene! While people can be annoyed over Minseng getting in the way of the fight. This shows that while Viole cares a lot about passing the tests for the sake of his friends, he will not disregard the safety of his CURRENT team and will even risk his own life to protect them. I love Bam so much.

Now I try not to nitpick over slight dialogue changes or cut content but...sigh.......PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHY THEY CUT OUT THIS OTHER PART OF THE DIALOGUE?! Please tell me he said it in japanese and the subs got it wrong ;-;. It's very important because it shows that Urek isn't as "awful" as a person he portrayed himself to be. He let them live because Viole literally prioritised his teammate during their fight. From that, he saw that not only is Viole pretty strong, but also that he isn't like those Rankers who send people to their deaths. In the Tower, someone as kind as Bam is very rare.

By removing this last piece of dialogue, Urek comes off as cocky (which yea, he can be. But he's also a somewhat good person). Now an arguement can be made that the original dialogue was not that subtle, so they omitted it and let the scene speak for itself. I would agree, but with all the stiff characters and facial expressions, it's hard to tell when they are trying to be 'subtle'. I'm getting a bit off-topic, moving on!

YES THEY'RE PLAYING 'BUBBLE IN THE WINE GLASS'. LETS GOOOO I ALWAYS ASSOCIATED THIS OST WITH UREK!

I always loved the reveal that Urek wasn't actually there to mess around or assert his authority. He was there to help preserve wildlife! I remember my jaw dropping over this reveal because it was all the proof I needed that Urek is actually a pretty good guy!

Haha. Love the casual reveal that he's working with Yuri too lol.

No seriously what the hell is that. I swear I didnt see that in the webtoon.

OKAY JINSUNG'S FACE LOOKS BETTER HERE

THAT WAS NOT IN THE WEBTOON. SIR WHAT IS THAT. WHY ARE THEY ANIMATING THIS. Music went hard tho.

YES. HERE. JINSUNG'S FACE IS PERFECT HERE (for anime standards).

I loved this scene because it shows that after what Viole did. Team Sweet and Sour no longer fears Viole. To them, Viole isn't a FUG slayer candidate, but a fellow teammate. It's a nice way of showing that now, Wagnan will not be the only one who's comfortable around Viole. Everyone will support Viole as a teammate.

It's amazing how one act of kindness can resonate so much in someone. And that kindness wasn't even towards Arkraptor himself, but the girl he lowkey sees as a daughter.

People make fun of Yihwa for not being able to do basic household chores and that Hwaryun was "roasting" her for it. But like Horyang said, this encounter with Urek and the lies of Yihwa's family being exposed is testing Team S&S's resolve. They will face worse as they climb higher (*cries*), if they can't handle what they saw in this episode, they can never climb the Tower. Yihwa was sulking in her room because she didn't want to face reality. But Hwaryun's "insults" were said in a way to motivate someone as proud as her to get up and start doing something about it!

I LOVE HER! Okay but in all seriousness, this is an anime-only scene that I actually like. In the webtoon, she just declared she would cook and we don't know if she actually did it, it was implied that she was about to, but was stopped.

Here? SHE STARTED COOKING RIGHT AWAY. WHO CARES IF THE FOOD WAS HORRIBLE. THIS ANIME-ONLY SCENE SHOWED THAT SHE ACTUALLY TOOK THE INITIATIVE TO DO SOMETHING NEW AND GROW!

Like I said, anime-only scenes are not bad as long as it enriches the main story! This is a prime example of that! (Apron cute too!)

And I love how they took the time to actually animate this part of the webtoon instead of just taking the easy way out and just adding voiceovers while Wagnan goes out to see Jinsung (like what happened in the webtoon). Also the way all the tension between the guys was cut by Yihwa's silliness?! Love it! I miss Team S&S so much!!!!!!

Haha. Don't know why they made Wagnan give one lollipop instead of three. But to be honest, I genuinely forgot that this was where Jinsung's lollipop obsession started.

AND FINALLY KARAKA IS HERE! OKAY TIME FOR MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS ON HIS ANIME COUNTERPART!

I'm not too nitpicky about his design because I get that it's very complicated to animate it consistently, so they had to smooth him out. Shame, but hey I get it!

His voice surprised me, I never pictured him with THAT voice. Not a fan for now, but maybe it'll grow on me?

Oof. Even I felt that jab.

WAIT SO UNLESS HORYANG STRETCHED THE FABRIC. DID THEY BUY THE SAME APRON BUT A DIFFERENT SIZE JUST FOR HORYANG?! THAT IS SO CUTE.

This was in the webtoon too but I love Yihwa. She really dresses the part for whatever responsibility she's given lol! She's locked in!

Oh..this shot was beautiful. I like it.

Alright so sadly, Viole vs Urek was not as great as I hoped, even if I was cautiously optimistic. But I'll acknowledge that they followed the events within the chapter almost perfectly. I still think a few extra scenes showing Urek's power would've been better, or at least more camera angles and movements to show his intensity.

I did love the second half of the episode more though! I appreciated the extra scenes! Karaka was revealed and I may need more time to get used to him.

Now I also want to talk about Crunchyroll's treatment of the Tower of God anime. Not a fan. This was the same issue in season 1 but now it's somehow worse? Like come on they literally messed up the subtitles and played the NEXT EPISODE's subtitles instead. They also took 4 years to announce season 2, which led people to believe that it took 4 years to work on this anime, when really, that may not have been the case. I'll avoid making baseless speculations but it's sad to see Tower of God treated this way while manhwa like Solo Levelling get the A+ treatment from them.

Part of me is just happy we got a season 2 to begin with, but I also wish a bit more effort was put in, the first episode of season 2 genuinely gave me hope. But now it feels like the episode was just used so that it can look good in the trailers. Workshop arc will have more fights, I hope the studio has more time and resources by then. (I want to state the fact that I am not claiming that the studio doesn't care about Tower of God. I believe they do care, but lack the time and resources. If they didn't care, episode 1 of season 2 would not have been THAT good!)

Sorry this post took so long, I watched the episode when it first came out (that's why I knew of the Urek = Emily joke). However, I just didn't know what I wanted to say about this episode, did I like it or not? I feel more on the neutral side.

Well, next episode is in a few hours! See you in a few days lol.

(Funny how I said that I didn't know what to say about this episode, and yet, this post ended up being one of the longest for my ToG anime reaction posts.)

[bengiyo]

Our Skyy 2 x Bad Buddy x A Tale of Thousand Stars Ep 2 Stray Thoughts

Congratulations to Bad Buddy and A Tale of Thousand Stars for getting the longest name I think I’ve done since a Japanese show.

Yesterday, we finally got to see Pat and Pran again, and I didn’t realize how much I had missed them. We entered their lives between episodes 11 and 12 to see how they’re handling keeping their relationship secret. We had some funny hijinks, but a deep melancholy rose up within me about how much being in the closet actually hurts. Pran accidentally punched Pat in the face and Pat accidentally hurt Pran’s feelings because of this façade. Still, Pat and Pran have such a physically comfortable dynamic that you have no doubt that these two are enjoying a long-term physically intimate relationship. Also, Ink and Pa are clearly a power couple now.

As for the plot, Pran needs to get permission to put on a play from the owners of the personal story, so we’re now in a crossover with A Tale of Thousand Stars. Pran is dying from being outdoors, and is also worried about leaving Pat behind. Phupha has passed out, and Tian is about to stab Pran. Also, Pran and Tian look way too much alike, and this feels very intentional.

I do like that the school was unwilling to sign off on Pran’s play without permission from the owners of the story.

Tian and Phupha are fighting about whether Tian will stay in the village!! Call Celine! Call Whitney! We need to fix this!

I like that Mix is able to hold his jaw the saw way Tian does again.

Yes, children! Let chaos reign!!

Oh, Pran says he has OCD. It’s not surprising, but now it’s something explicit.

Excellent, the gays are bonding over taking care of the kids. I was worried Tian would be beefing with Pran for the next two episodes.

Really, just Ohm, Nanon, Mix, and Earth are just way too attractive. It’s legitimately distracting.

So Tian and Phupha have been together for years at this point, just like Pat and Pran.

Pran is like all of us, reading his gay little stories on his laptop. He’s fangirling hard over every detail about Tian.

Pat made it! These two instantly started flirting. Tian noticed right away.

The eye game at this dinner is incredible. The talent Aof gets to work with these days, I swear.

Instant tears as Phupha read their story with the OST playing in the background.

Losing it over Phupha and Tian arguing instantly about who fell for who first, and Phupha claiming misrepresentation.

I like seeing Pat and Pran wrestle/cuddle, but I hope they actually used the mosquito net.

On the real, though, there’s no way Pran can help Phupha and Tian reconcile while he’s creating distance with Pat.

Oh, I’m here for Pat pointing out that he and Pran also fought about who fell first. There’s some potential here.

This water looks legitimately cold. I don’t think Nanon is acting there.

Yes, boys. Let’s revisit their steps. Cosplay as the couple you just met.

I love Pat Jindapat so much. He’s so cheesy and so in love with Pran.

This man really said he wants to make this house shake! I love that these two have an active sex life.

Not Oishii getting in on the tea bag scene!

I love Kampung. Let this troublesome child meddle.

That’s right! Lie! We need to get these two gays in the same room!

Oh good. Only Nanon sang.

Now we’re getting cockblocked by letters. I’m into this conflict though. Phupha is rather rigid, and I can see him being afraid to appear before Tian’s parents.

Extremely excited about more Pat and Phupha interactions.

Yes, please let the troublesome child lead their drunk teacher up the mountain to recover a buried diary in the middle of the night.

“I think we’ve had enough, youngster.” I AM SCREAMING.

“I’m not your wife!” I am going to die.

Look at these gays saving each other.

A cliffhanger!! In Our Skyy??

I am having so much fun with this! I am feeling so much about the Tian conversation where he laments that Phupha never compromises or bends for him. I know that had to sit with Pran, who came here alone to prove he didn’t need Pat. Very excited about us getting a four-part BB x ATOTS story. I thought the crossover was going to be a lot smaller than this. Instead, we’re getting something really compelling out of both stories.

[thatscarletflycatcher]

Hey! I hope this isn't weird but I thought you might be a good person to ask. Are there any good movie adaptations of Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights? I've never seen any movies based off of them and don't want to dive into one that isn't half-decent. Thank you!

Hi!!! Not weird, not weird at all, very welcome!

Problem, though. What "good" means in this case is contentious XD

Related problem: I did start a series of reviews of Jane Eyre adaptations... two years ago? Did 83' and 96' and got stuck on 97' (the plan was to do 73, 2006 and 2011 afterwards, then do Wuthering Heights 78-92-98-09).

The thing is that they are all different, and counted the exceptions I DNFed or just outright disliked, I have enjoyed them all in their own ways, even ones that the fandom at large thinks are bad. My recommendation in terms of my value judgement of the things is probably not to be trusted XD But I'll give you a summary of what I think are the strengths and weaknesses of each, and maybe that helps?

Jane Eyre

Movies:

1943: it is acclaimed for its visuals, which are really interesting and Gothic. Did not care at all for the writing or the casting or the acting.

1970: DNFed, but I wish I could have finished it. I think the most fitting description of the core of this adaptation is how someone in a podcast characterized the main couple as "a cute middle aged couple". The budget is low. "that woman is wearing a reject Sound of Music costume" low. George C. Scott and Susannah York in the leading roles are... a choice. Even the John Williams (yes, THAT John Williams) score is kind of underwhelming.

1996: If you have watched the 1996 Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow, this is kinda sorta the same thing for Jane Eyre. But it has more substance. It is transformative in a very intentional, commentary way, there's an interesting play with the imagery of portraits-true character and mirrors-anxiety, it focuses on the concept of tenderness for the romantic plot, and highlights more than any of the others the themes of providence and compassion/mercy. But... well, because of all that, it is very... ungothic. So if you love Jane Eyre because of the gothicness and the Rochester shenanigans then you'll probably hate this one.

Check out the OST, though. It's wonderful. I'd say it's the best Jane Eyre score so far, and it's at the very least severely underrated.

Charlotte Gainsbourg is probably my favorite Jane. She embodies really well the "nunnish on the outside, a storm of passions underneath" thing, even if she's tall (and yay for a non-supermodel in the role!), and I also really like the expanded role for Adele.

1997: the Cinderella of Jane Eyre adaptations. Yes, Ciaran Hinds has the mustache of horrors, and for some reason his Rochester here is so much more exaggerated and cartoonish than the one he did in the 1994 radio drama. Yes the modernized dialogue is painful at times. It deserves some of its bad reputation. But I cannot hate it because it has some fine things that I think are often downplayed:

-It's the movie adaptation that manages to cram in the most plot, even if it sometimes does it in a kind of ridiculous way (the worst offender is Jane leaving Thornfield for Gateshead and returning on the very next scene.): it has the rendering of the veil and the trip to Milcotte, for example.

-It has a really great Adele. You can tell how someone like Charlotte Brontë would see this girl as a mini-slut in the making because FRENCH, but she's actually just a lively, charming little girl.

-the sunrise scene after Mason is attacked is not noticed enough. The work of filming and editing a sunrise scene so that the continuity of it works... is definitely more than the writing of this one deserves.

-The portrayal of Bertha. Curiously enough, this is the Rochester that shows the most compassion and understanding for Bertha, and in general it is done so that the audience also feels the same.

-The reunion scene is good. "I am reminded that Ciaran Hinds and Samantha Morton are great actors" good. The way Hinds delivers "My heart will burst for want to see your face" almost makes up for the rest of his acting in the movie XD

-I honestly think that "St John Rivers but with the vibes of a manic crazy cult leader" is kind of inspired translation??

The score on this one is really pretty too.

2011: What can I say about this one, on Tumblr dot com of all places? it's really atmospheric and moody and pensive. If you are a Gothic vibes girlie, this one is for you. It is a movie I like the most when it's been a long time since I have watched it XD It's weird, but it is what it is. The whole thing plays with this concept of sleep and the sleep of death, and of being in love as being awake, so that both Rochester and Jane are asleep until they fall in love with each other, and they feel so alive once they become engaged, but it is the "alive" inside a strange, twilight dream, unlike the very end when they are both alive and awake with the freshness of an early morning, and it ending with the exchange "-I Dream! -Awaken, then." muaaah, *chef kiss*

It is a dem' vibes movie. If you are not a dem' vibes person, I don't think it will be for you. Fassbender makes for a rather dour Rochester, and many pieces of dialogue and plot are sacrificed to this dreamlike concept (which I'm not mad about it. There's so many adaptations it is good that there's the room to play with that).

The series:

1973: Listen, I love 1973. It is the most complete adaptation (some people will contend 83 is more complete, but 83 omits the whole of Helen Burns' death and that's such a huge omission in my eyes I cannot concede). It takes its time to do Lowood and do it well, with a really good Helen and a really good Miss Temple. But the crown of the thing is Michael Jayston's Rochester. He just embodies Rochester's pathetic, unhinged, impish and at the same time dead seriously emotional character SO WELL. I know people love Toby Stephens, and who doesn't, but he's helped by being a very athletic and handsome man who looked younger than he was. Jayston has none of that going for him, and he still manages to deliver a fascinating and touching performance.

What can be a stumbling block with this adaptation is... Jane. She's not a bad actress, not at all, and she has the most delicious chemistry with Rochester, they are very much on the same wavelength and play off each other really well. But this Jane is a happy go lucky creature, and it cannot be helped XD woman goes through life experiencing the horrors and most of the time reacting to them with a smile and a "LOL", and I get how that could be disappointing for some people.

But in the end, I feel the combination of "really good Lowood" "Really good Rochester" "fidelity to the novel language" and "thoroughness with the plot" is a rare one and puts this adaptation on the top.

1983: This one has many, many fans. I'm ambivalent about it. It is a pretty complete series, and I know a lot of people find Timothy Dalton really good as Rochester. I personally feel that this is the one adaptation where Rochester and Jane are being directed and portrayed in such a way as to never really connect or play off each other. Even 1997 with it's mustachioed shouting, personal effects throwing, arm grabbing Rochester is matched by a Jane who is never afraid of him and who swears she will POUND DOWN A DOOR if he throws her out, and then proceeds to grab his jaw tight to deliver the rest of her line. Truly crazy x crazy in that one. 73 is fun x fun, 96 is tired x tired, 11 is depressed x depressed... in 83 Dalton is larger than life, and Zelah is at turns confused, apparently hurt, or straight out bewildered at him.

And it isn't the actress fault! Because here is the thing I love in this adaptation: the Rivers plot. The Rivers plot is excellent. The way Jane and St. John's actors play off each other is so so so so good. How she starts by being very free and independent and contestatarian, and how his influence creeps on her and subjugates her bit by bit. It's wonderful. So well done.

So, hm, overall, it goes pretty low on my list but be fully aware this is an unpopular opinion XD

2006: What to say about 2006? It is beloved for a reason. I'd characterize it as the romance novel of Jane Eyre; it cares very little for anything that isn't the Jane-Rochester romance, and it does a lot to sand down the less likeable aspects of it in the original story (for example, Rochester is characterized as younger and Jane as older).

It is somewhere halfway between Emma (2009) and North and South (2004) in the Sandy Welch screenplay scale in terms of the bold choices that sometimes pay off and sometimes don't. They addition of contexts in natural science, the fascination with phrenology and heredity, those are well done. The twin metaphor is not. The modernization of the language works really well, and Welch has always been really good at that (I mean, she sneaks a star wars reference in a st. John line, and then there's the literal red flag, how does she do it).

It is a very enjoyable period drama, and has all the touching bits, but personally I sometimes feel like I am cheating the novel when I watch it XD Well, and of course it has the advantage of modern filming techniques against both 73 and 83.

Wuthering Heights! This one is trickier Because the adaptations are fuzzier in my mind, so it will be shorter, but something is something (?)

1970: It's only the first half, and I. Did. Not. Like. It. Someone would maliciously say that it is because I hate Timothy Dalton, but that's not true, he's a riot in Hot Fuzz, and I have even considered watching his James Bond movies because of him. It just... IDK. Didn't care for it. I remember it has a very long, very uncomfortable kiss scene that makes the one at the almost-end of Persuasion 2007 feel quick and breezy.

1978: This one has the advantage of being a miniseries. For the BBC in the 70s, they really splurged on this one for sets, cast, and it even has some interesting camera work in it, which wasn't common. I do have the idea that it is, of the filmed adaptations, the one that seems to be overall most liked. I remember I really liked the kid actors, but didn't jive with the older actors at all.

1992: This one is kinda sorta similar to Jane Eyre 1996 in that it is a very softened, stylized, "prettied" adaptation of the story. I remember Cathy I being kind of a manic pixie girl but with a bit of a temper? And Binoche played Cathy II as well, which was A ChoiceTM?

But I cannot say I disliked it overall, because it IS pretty (and if you are a costume person then it is for you). The score was gorgeous, and I like Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes a lot. But definitely get why if you are a big Wuthering Heights fan it wouldn't be your cup of tea.

1998: I remember really liking this one, specially in terms of the atmosphere. It departs from the novel in some significant ways that don't always land, it gets a bit silly several times, but I felt it was dynamic and grim enough without being unbearable, and I really liked the cast too, specially Orla Brady's Cathy, and think Robert Cavanaugh would have done really well with less flanderized characterization.

2009: This one... this one is... not good XD It cannot agree with itself which is the time setting, the opening in media res is a very confusing choice, and the recourse to adding some sex scenes to make it hip (it has that "made for high school classes" vibe to it) is *something* as well. The poorly modernized language doesn't help.

BUT

Tom Hardy as Heathcliff. He may not look the part, but he plays it deliciously well in every part of the story. It is truly inspired and mesmerizing to watch, and that alone would make it worth watching. And there's also Andrew Lincoln as Edgar, and who can resist Andrew Lincoln?

2011: I DNFed this one. It has a very Terrence Malick sort of style going for it, minimal dialogue and lots of long moody shots, and I cannot explain enough how I don't have the patience for that.

Now, Unlike Jane Eyre, for which I haven't found a radio drama that I like, the 1995 BBC radio drama for Wuthering Heights is just excellent, one of the best they have ever made, IMO. So while I know when someone asks me for an adaptation they mean an audiovisual one, I cannot help but recommend this one as the best I know, just in case.

[eternallyblight]

Highlights from Appetite for Distortion Podcast with Brendon Small

Listen to the podcast here

The tour, movie, and album being released around the same time was a deliberate decision. When Brendon started getting this project together around three years ago, he knew he's be putting together a record, a soundtrack, a movie, and a tour all within the same week.

How Brendon approaches writing the Dethalbum IV and creating Army of the Doomstar:

It's not him working. It's Dethklok literally telling him what to do. He's just a jerk with a guitar doing what Skwisgaar tells him to do. For vocals, he's doing what Nathan's telling him to do. When he's voicing them in the movie, those characters are taking over. He'll do the dialogue but they'll surprise him with improve.

Since Brendon's the scriptwriter and director, he's like an Angry God. He'll be like throwing them into ceiling fans or into a fire to see how they get out.

About Guns n'Roses and Snakes n'Barrels.

Slash has been on the show. Twice. (Birthdayface and Tributeklok) He's one of Brendon's favorite guitar players of all time.

Learning about heavy metal happens at an important age. For Brendon, he was around 13/14. He bought two distinct albums. Def Leppard's Hysteria and Guns N'Roses Appetite for Destruction. He was blown away to the astral plane of the music and aggressive guitar playing. It's still one of his favorite albums to this day. He'll take long walks listening to album front to back, top to bottom.

He thought that Pickles was like Dave Grohl. Like in a band like Guns n'Roses and Aerosmith like rock band before he was in Dethklok. There would be songs where Brendon used a top box to play.

One day, Slash was working on an animation at the same company Brendon worked at. There was a package that came with pedals from MXR Dunlop. Slash was there when that box came and they opened the box together and went through all these pedals. Slash looked at the pedals and pointed to Brendon which was one cool, which one he has and uses. Brendon even shows Slash's wall pedal that he also used on the record.

Now some fan questions.

Will Brendon ever release a studio version of Water Horsey Blues from Snakes n'Barrels I?

Brendon was surprised to hear the question. He's glad that people still listen to it all these years later. He wishes he had the time and resources to make music for these kinds of bands in the Metalocalypse universe. Like a Snakes n'Barrels record, a Dr. Rockzo record, even Toki's whimsical dream songs. But there's no plan as of yet.

Will Brendon ever plan on releasing the songs from Metalocalypse that didn't make it to the Dethklok albums. (please Brendon I'm on my knees.) Same answer. :,) He has no plan as of yet.

About the movie under the cut. Not spoiler heavy and mainly about the music.

Brendon does have a lot on his plate at the moment. He's got not one but two albums: Dethalbum IV and Army of the Doomstar Soundtrack.

To Brendon, the soundtrack album is really such an important storytelling part of the movie. As you watch the movie you'll hear the orchestra and synthesizer. (He got the Budapest Orchestra to play this score).

The movie, the narrative, the characters is one thing.

The Dethalbum IV, that's the brutality and the mystical.

Army of the Doomstar Soundtrack, the score, is the emotional center of the movie.

All three go together. If you plan on getting one, Brendon thinks you should get them all (the movie, ost, and album). They all do something completely different but they all come from the same central DNA.

Brendon is thankful to be able to complete the story. He's basically living the dream as the interviewer puts it.

Brendon's last words: It's fun to be creative on your own and make music for yourself to listen to. But the fact that this [Metalocalypse and Dethklok] came together in the way that it did, is because there's a fanbase out there. Without them, none of this would have happened. Thanks [for] everyone for being so vocal over the years and I'm excited for you to check it out.

[dayscapism]

K-Dramas recommendations & short reviews

Because I've watched way too many to not make a list. Warning: I like romance and fantasy a bit too much.

These shows made me cry. 10/10. Five stars. Recommend to anyone. They live in my mind rent-free:

Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022) - Attorney Woo is such a wonderful person, I love her character. I can't say much about the representation, but I like that it opens up the conversation around autism & neurodivergence, discrimination and prejudice, particularly in work environments. I rarely like shows about law or lawyers but I was surprisingly engaged with the cases and the story. It deserves a second season. (The only thing I don't like about this show is they're pushing for a MinWoo and Choi Su-Yeon ship. Which huh--disrespectful.)

Hotel Del Luna (2019) - A great place to start with k-dramas if you like paranormal fantasy. This show has such a special place in my heart. I wanted a different ending but I am okay with it because it was a tight narrative. The main character is iconic (Man-Wol please step on me). The show has amazing sets, AMAZING costumes, an amazing OST, amazing and heartbreaking performance by Yeo Jin Goo. The main couple is so soft; like they're such good friends and coworkers and gentle with each other (eventually). It's enemies to reluctant friends to lovers. It's perfect for asexual viewers who want more than physicality in their romance shows. Cons: the secondary characters' goodbyes and backstories left a little to be desired. A few other nitpicks like Chang-Seong is the one to suggest the main character a new hobby instead of her just discovering it by herself.

It's Okay to Not Be Okay (2020) - Also a good place to start with k-dramas. This show is a lesson in good narrative; this has perfect writing & storytelling. The cast is so good. The female lead is an icon. The character work I excellent. The mental health issues are so well addressed and it taught me a lot about mental health I wasn't aware of. Each small minor character plays a very important thematic role. (The villain isn't the best thing ever but she serves her role in the themes and plot.) The production and the storytelling with the children's book animations are just *heart eyes*. The OST is so good too. You need to watch this to understand how good a k-dramas can be. A must-watch.

Goblin: The Lonely and Great God (2016) - This is the most iconic fantasy/paranormal k-drama ever. A lot of current tropes were started here I think (including the weird k drama last-episode time jump separation of the main couple). This show broke me. You will cry. The bromance and comedy are amazing here too. Gong Yoo and Dong Wook Lee have great chemistry. Main female lead is so cute and her character is so heartwarming. The ending felt a bit rushed. The death, existential related stuff with the grim reapers and such is so good tho.

Business Proposal (2022) - Best rom-com ever! (Well, it could be gayer tbh.) It's my new comfort show. I already watched it twice. It's campy, hilarious, chaotic, iconic and messy in a way that feels like real life (but obviously played up for drama and comedy). Excellent character work. The love interest is definitely written by a woman. Gorgeous cast (Sejeon omg I have a crush, but also the others). It was too short! I would have loved another episode, and more of Grandpa and Ha-Ri. Warning: this has the weird kdrama last-episode time jump couple separation.

W: Two Worlds (2016) - A young resident medic accidentally finds her way inside the webcomic her father created. Like, that premise is killer. We have Lee Jong Suk at his finest here; the character fits him so well. He was born to play a lead. This show has amazing meta-commentary on writing, authorship, and existential crisis. The confrontation between the webcomic character Kang Cheol and the author is insane! The main couple is an epic pair. Would rewatch. High wump value. Cons: The second part could have been more swoony with the romance, Kang Cheol kind of became a bit cold. (A warning: this show also has the k drama weird last-episode time jump couple separation.)

Would recommend with popcorn, I rate them 8/10:

Crash Landing on You (2019) - Really good. The main couple has the best chemistry I've ever seen. It's not that much of a personal fave show, but still pretty awesome and will tug at your heart. It got a bit overly dramatic in the last episodes and again, has that k-drama last episode weird time jump couple separation, but here it actually makes sense. And sort of mirrors the separation and eventual unification of the Korean Peninsula. It was very interesting to see the contrast between North and South Korea.

Shooting Stars (2022) - Aside from the terrible, horrible, insulting Africa storyline (where the male lead goes to 'help' African kids with water scarcity, not even a country name is called, he just goes to *gestures vaguely* Africa to help goddammit he's such a beautiful soul! /s) There's a weird creepy sugar mommy wannabe side storyline and it's weird and out of nowhere. But the rest of it is good and campy and the main characters are so cute. All the couples are cute. The male lead is a cute disaster. Female lead is also a capable cutey but a disaster when it comes to romance. It's hilarious. I love all characters. It's fun. It's great. It shows a very interesting side of the entertainment industry.

While You Were Sleeping (2017) - A man and a woman who don't know each other have precognition powers and after they meet, they use them to take down a corrupt lawyer. The show isn't very heavy on the romance, tough the pair work pretty well together. I liked the main actress. Lee Jong Suk has chemistry with anyone. The male role was not exactly a good fit for Jong Suk. He's so much more naturally charming than the character. It's a fun show to pass the time. The found family is nice and all the characters work great together. The mom is great.

The King's Affection (2021) - I'm going to be honest, I didn't finish watching this. Ups. I got bored after episode 15. It's a very slow show but what I watched was quite good. It was just not a show for me. Having a bisexual male lead was awesome, I appreciate that he falls for the main character while he thinks she's a man. (Could be gayer tho, just saying.) Pretty good discussions and reversals of gender cliches. It has complicated parent-child relationships that are very well written which gives a lot of heart and heartbreak to this story. The political stuff gets very convoluted. I really wish the queer part was bigger though, and not limited to the main couple. We could even have poly representation! I still have half a mind to finish this but I don't know There are so many other shows I'd rather watch instead. (Boy, I really need to get into the actually queer side of k-dramas because the side I'm currently on is giving me crumbs.)

Lovers of the Red Sky (2021) - The premise was so cool. This has so much lore I like and the setting is beautiful and rich, but it also has so much lost potential. The plot is very weak in the second half and could be restructured. I loved the atmosphere, costumes and the actors and their characters: the blind cursed scholar nobleman, the female genius cheeky painter and her friend trio and the prince are all great characters. Ahn Hyo Seop is pretty good in it and looks very pretty indeed in historical costume (but the design of the villain creature he's possessed/cursed with is so, so bad omg). Great premise failed execution. Good first half but it went over the rails quickly. Still entertaining if you like historical fantasy.

Romance is a Bonus Book (2019) - It's a bit slow and could have done so much more with the female lead and her child. She's a bit underwhelming and her daughter is barely in the story. The second female character played by Jeong Eu-Gene was awesome, I love this actress now. Lee Jung Suk is always looking hot and being an excellent actor with what he's given; he's very charming here. He could have chemistry with a piece of wood and yet I wasn't that fan of the romance. Maybe it's just because friends to lovers isn't my cup of tea. There's a weird out-of-nowhere backstory between the male leads. The commentary of ageism in the workplace is a bit surface level (it's not that big of a deal for the company if you're overqualified for a job, the point should be that is an issue for you and your career, who is too good for the company). You can tell the writers really care about books; it's definitely a love letter to editors and an interesting window into the world of book publishing; you can feel the love editors put into making books. Bonus: the founding members of the publishing company have very funny moments.

Do no recommend:

King: Eternal Monarch - Couldn't even finish this. I was so, so confused. The dialogue, narrative and backstory make no sense! Everything is so unnecessarily confusing. There's no chemistry between the main couple. The king and the bodyguard had more chemistry. Lee Jung-Jin (playing the villain Lee Lim) & Woo Do-Hwan (the bodyguard) carried this show and are pretty much the only thing good about it. The female lead is sidelined. It had an intriguing premise but failed execution.

What's Wrong With Secretary Kim - Skimmed most of the second half. It's a mess. The love interest CEO is such a narcissist and asshole he wouldn't be able to keep a working, healthy relationship with his partner without some serious therapy first. The female lead seems to be repulsed by him most of the time even when together and even looks scared when they get intimate. There's an unnecessarily convoluted plotline about the main lead's brother and a kidnapping in their past. It has tonal issues and it's cringy rather than funny. The secondary characters are just a lot of useless filler. The female lead sacrifices her independence and dreams to be with the main guy. Just go watch Business Proposal instead.

Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo - The only pro of this show is IU. The romance went the undeveloped route. Cheap-looking production, with too many episodes, melodramatic, characters pivot in place instead of naturally developing; it's definitely a telenovela. The point that the female lead is from the future doesn't even matter for the story (should have made her a Goryeo historian instead of a random cosmetologist). Pass!

Tomorrow - Could not finish watching. Please, please don't watch it if you're dealing with depression, bullying or suicidal thoughts. Please don't. By episode 2 I was just screaming at the screen. Problematic? This show invented the word problematic. The supernatural task force that's supposed to save people with suicide risk is terrible at therapy and suicide prevention. They tell the person trying to commit suicide, literally on the edge of a building about to jump, that they should do it, that they're weak, they should just jump, go ahead! Like ... what????

Mystic Pop Up Bar - Didn't capture me by episode 2. Got bored. Some say this is better than Hotel Del Luna but I don't agree.

Abyss - It's a weird tonal mix. Would have preferred if it leaned further into the absurd (go all in with the humour or don't at all), the sci-fi or the murder mystery. Instead of just revealing by episode 3 who the murderer is, quickly changing the plot into a chase after the villain, even though he's so lame. But also he is keeps killing people and it gets dark. And then we cut to the main couple being silly and cute. It's so jarring. The leads have a great dynamic and Ahn Hyo Seop knows how to differentiate his characters really well, give them their own flavour., but in the end it's just a cool premise, failed execution. Very average.

Currently watching:

The Crowned Clown - Very interesting concept and gorgeous, gorgeous visuals. Plot drags a little. Has some tonal problems and oversimplification of politics. The best part is when Yeo Jin-Goo acts with himself haha. He's such a talented actor.

The Uncanny Counter - Get's a bit melodramatic sometimes but all four main actors are insanely good.

Tale of the Nine-Tailed - The main romantic relationship needs a lot more development, but the entire show is worth watching just for Dong Wook Lee and Kim Bum as brothers.

Alchemy of Souls - 6/10 so far. Currently watching season 2/part 2. Aside from the prince, I don't particularly care for any of the characters. Unpopular opinion but the main romantic pair have no chemistry. Mu-Deok has more chemistry with Yul and the prince, and the prince has more chemistry with Jang-Uk. The lore is confusing and inconsistent: it breaks its own rules. (Two souls in one body what?? when was this established as a thing?) There's not enough foreshadowing and setting up the rules of magic in this world (the Ice Stone comes up as a deux ex mahcina big plot point in the last second). It also drags; the episodes are too long. There's a lot of saying and ultimately the show doesn't deliver. The narrative structure is straight out of a fantasy Wattpad. The set and costumes are fun and cool for a fantasy world, and the first episode was great.  

[notafraidofredyellowandblue]

OOR 2002 - Nr 10 - Rammstein interview

Rammstein

Last December they played three sold-out converts in Amsterdam's HMH, this year they are one of the closing acts at Pinkpop. In June they will play again in the Netherlands, at the Gelredome in Arnhem, which will undoubtedly also be sold out. Rammstein is no longer a band just for sensation-seeking metal fans. The key to their success? The Germans are masters of calculated provocation. Although they will never admit it themselves.

by Danny Koks

In their own country, their records consistently number one on the album charts, they have played in Australia and Japan, and slowly but surely they have reached the U.S. conquered. There people have fallen en masse for Till Lindemann's captured lyrics, distasteful rolling 'r' and the Teutonic thundering cadence that drives the group. The band from the former GDR has now sold two million CDs there, their songs are played on the radio (unique, since not a single American understands German) and they were nominated for a Grammy. An honor that no German act has received since Milli Vanilli (!). The story of guitarist Richard Bernstein, bassist Olli Riedel, drummer Christoph Schneider, guitarist Paul Landers, singer Till Lindemann and keyboardist Flake Lorenz, all from East Berlin, has to be the most bizarre success story of the last fifteen years. be pop music. Perhaps that period is too short. Perhaps Rammstein's glittering international career is just as bizarre as the story of a dimwit from Flanders who, as Eddy Wally 1), scored a killer hit with Cherie as far away as Russia and China. Perhaps even more bizarre.

"The secret of our success is that we have always stayed true to our style. We have refined it here and there over the years, but our music has always remained typical Rammstein, and I think the audience would like to keep it that way. " That is the measured answer from drummer Christoph Schneider, who sits together with Flake Lorenz at the Rammstein management office in eastern Berlin. There is a reason why their answers during the interview are so short and concise. The band members do not like to give us a glimpse into the kitchen of Rammstein and the language barrier therefore serves as an excellent line of defense (they only do interviews in German).

Of course, the success of this band does not lie in the fact that they have remained true to their style. Thousands of bands all over the world remain true to their style and do not go further than the youth club of the neighboring village. Rammstein is so popular because it is a total concept, similar to the Gesamtkunstwerk as envisioned by German composer Richard Wagner. A multimedia total experience that feeds our subconscious fear and hatred for everything German and at the same time holds up a mirror to show us how ridiculous those gut feelings actually are. Who takes all the cliché images (Blut und Boden) that we have about Germans as true and at the same time makes fun of them in a grotesque way. Rammstein plays that game with a velvet technique and at all levels: music (punishment and martial), lyrics (dark and commanding), artwork (cold and distant) and live show (grand and imposing). The Gründlichkeit with which the six Ossies approach this results in a parody of Germans that can only be described in one way: typically German. Thought out from A to Z, Herr Schneider? Of course not: "Rammstein simply makes loud music. We play what we can play and it sounds the way it sounds."

During the day they all had jobs, after all, 'unemployed' did not exist in the dictionary of the German Democratic Republic. Olli was a plasterer, Christoph installed telephones, Paul was a heating engineer, Till woven baskets and Flake made tools. Just as Father State directed all facets of daily life (a well-known expression in Die Ost was 'every second is one of them', referring to the fact that your neighbor could be an informant for the feared secret service), it also had a strong involvement in the existence of amateur musicians. Since living expenses were cheap, they had it relatively easy: one or two performances at the weekend were enough to finance your hobby. Everyone knew everyone, the music circuit was small and well-organized. Oliver Riedel played in the folk band The Inchtabokatables, while Paul Landers and Flake Lorenz scored a premiere with their punk band Feeling B by being the first East German punk band to release an album. Richard Bernstein had a crossover band. In that capacity, the regime left them relatively alone, although they had to be careful not to come across as subversive and anti-totalitarian in their lyrics. When the Wall falls in 1989, the six's first encounter with the free West takes place in the form of West Germany superstar David Hasselhoff (Knight Rider, Baywatch), who stands on the ruins of the tightly drawn concrete border between East and West sing his hit Looking For Freedom. They have no idea who he is. Four years later, Christoph, Olli, Till and Richard decide to turn their backs on their old, moribund bands and start a new one.

"German bands always try to imitate their American and English colleagues," says Christoph Schneider. "We did that in the early days, by mixing hip-hop with hard guitars. You know, what every band on this planet does. That was mainly Richard's idea, we tried to build on his style. But hip-hop, that just had nothing to do with us. We didn't feel anything about it at all." Yet it is the same Richard Bernstein who said about those early days in the Berliner Morgenpost: "I had the opportunity to go to California and experience the bands we imitated up close. Only then did I realize that culture and climate determine what kind of music people make. I returned to Germany and started writing music that is characteristically German." According to Schneider, that picture requires some nuance. "Richard is the most stubborn of the bunch, we always have the most difficulty convincing him of our ideas, especially in the early days. If he had the sole say, the band would sound much softer and poppier. Only when Paul and Flake joined, our current, martial style was born. They had a punk past. That mentality appealed to us much more, as Germans we could at least get along with punk. Richard wants to take credit for the way we make music, but the fact that we sound so German is above all Paul's merit. In the other bands he played in, he also had highly developed ideas about how a band can distinguish itself. He always thinks a lot about that and is in that sense the theorist behind Rammstein. We owe it to him that we were able to muster the courage to take the risks we did then."

The band name was quickly chosen. A year before the fall of the Wall, on August 29, 1988 2), a terrible accident occurs during an air show at the Ramstein military air base, in which a stunt plane crashes into the audience while burning, resulting in seventy deaths. The enormous force of the explosion scorches people in front of the camera. Rammstein, that is. The name is a prime example of the sharpest tool with which the band has become so successful; Rammstein understands the art of calculated provocation like no other. Till Lindemann goes one step further by singing the song Rammstein wrapped in a burning coat. The lyrics ('Ein Mensch brennt/Fleischgeruch lieft in der Luft/ein Kind stirbt/die Sonne scheint') could still be seen as a factual summary of the images of the air disaster, but that coat suddenly puts the song in a completely different, lugubrious and sinister, daylight. Rammstein behaves like an elephant in a china shop, but does so as subtly as a butterfly!

That song in question comes from the debut Herzeleid, which was released in 1997. Artwork (see 'controversies'), lyrics, music and appearance of the band members immediately sparked a heated discussion in Germany about the band's image, which distrusters quickly labeled as 'fascist'. Drummer Christoph Schneider defended Rammstein's creative and musical choices at the time, saying that "we are indeed muscular, have short hair and sing in German, with a rolling 'r' (with which Lindemann, according to some German newspapers, imitates Hitler's way of speaking during speeches). But that does not mean that we are fascists." Later he said in OOR about this smear: "Germans of course struggle with that eternal feeling of guilt. They want to be everything, but please not German. It is very difficult to talk about that without immediately being called a Nazi. Who says: 'I am German', he is a Nazi." The Nazi ghost is persistent, because even during the release of their latest album, Mutter, a student of German literature claimed that the record title is a clear reference to the mother country Germany. Quatsch, says Schneider. "We play with the image people have of Germans. Rammstein comes across as a militaristic band that barks its orders at the audience. We embody how the rest of the world imagines Germany. That image is made up of clichés, many of which are directly related to the war. Yet I see it more like this: we embody everything that has made Germany famous, good and bad."

It may have been the naivety associated with growing up in the isolated GDR that prevented the band from properly sensing how sensitive the Nazi past still is. Yet even after that debut and the wave of criticism that album provoked, Rammstein likes to flirt with his 'right-wing' image, although they continue to claim that they do not do this consciously. Flake: "You can also turn a Britney Spears lyric into a Nazi lyric. Ooops I Did It Again, Hitler...do you see the connection?"

Nevertheless, they use images of Leni Riefenstahl for a video clip (see 'controversies'). And some of Lindemann's choruses show that the Germans can also express their calculated provocation in a more subtle way. Those of Heirate Mich ('Heirate Mich! Hei! Hei! Hei!'), Du Hast ('Du! Du hast! Du hast mich!') and Rein Raus ('Rein? Raus!') do show demagogic traits that are reminiscent of bad times. And when they feel it necessary to convince us of their political color, which they do on Mutter in the song Links 2 3 4, they do so to the sounds of a military march. It is typical of Rammstein to say that their heart beats on the left while the music conjures up images of endless rows of shiny, polished soldiers' boots marching in mechanical step across Unter Den Linden.

The great thing is that the band gets away with flirting with everything that is labeled as rightwing and wrong, and that it can leave people in the dark undisturbed as to whether the six Germans are all serious or not. Rammstein makes grateful use of Till Lindemann's texts. Not one of them (except for the aforementioned Links 2, 3, 4) has a political connotation, with which the singer defuses the situation. On the other hand, they are a perfect vehicle for the band to practice their favorite activity: calculated provocation. The surly, possibly or not genuinely tormented singer emerges in his lyrics as a lugubrious man who, especially on the first two CDs Herzeleid and the 1999 released Sehnsucht, hunts for sexual satisfaction like a predator. On two conditions: it has to be his way and he will not tolerate any objection. In Herzeleid's Weisses Fleisch he tries to find satisfaction in S.M.: 'Du auf dem Schulhof/ich zum Töten bereit/Und keiner hier weiss/von meiner Einsamkeit/Rote Striemen auf weisser Haut/ich tu dir weh/und du pity laut.' Pay particular attention to how one simple word ('Schulhof') gives the song a charge that makes you feel extremely uncomfortable. In Heirate Mich (from the same album) he does this again, by introducing the listener to the world of necrophilia. 'Mit meinen Händen grab ich tief/zu finden was ich so vermisst/ich nehm dich zärtlich in den Arm/doch deine Haut reisst wie Papier/Und Teile fallen von dir ab.' On Sehnsucht he once again explains in detail that he is purely interested in his own satisfaction ('Bück dich befehl ich dir/wende dein Antlitz ab von mir/dein Gesicht ist mir egal'). On the same album he also delves into incest, such as in the song Tier, in which a father sexually assaults his daughter: 'Was macht ein Mann/der zwischen Mensch und Tier niet unterscheiden kann/Er wird zu seiner Tochter gehen/sie ist schön und jung an Jahren/Und dann wird er wie ein Hund/mit eigen Fleisch und Blut sich paaren'. From Speil Mit Mir the following stanza: 'Wir teilen Zimmer und das Bett/Brüderlein komm und sei so nett/Brüderlein komm fass mich an/rutsch ganz ganz dense an mich heran.' Mutter deviates from his predecessors in that Lindemann seems to have moved on from his sexual perversions, except for the song Rein Raus: 'Tiefer tiefer/sag es sag es laut/tiefer tiefer/ich fühl mich wohl in deiner Haut.' The provocation is now found through other channels, such as in the song Ich Will, which, given the earlier accusations of fascist tendencies, has a strikingly popular character: 'Wir wollen dass ihr uns vertraut/wir wollen dass irh uns alles glaubt/Wir wollen eure Hand sehen/wir wollen in Beifall untergehen.' Of course, shivers run down your body when Lindemann cuts Snow White into a morbid fairy tale (Mein Herz Brennt): 'Nun liebe Kinder gebt fein eight/ich bin die Stimme aus dem Kissen/Ich hab euch etwas mitbracht/hab es aus meiner Brust geissen. '

"Pain, suffering and heartbreak have always been a source of inspiration for us," says Christoph Schneider about the lyrics. "When we started the band, we all had relationship problems, some of us even had to leave our children. At that time, music was an outlet for our frustrations for all of us. Ten years have passed and for me personally, suffering plays no role in my life anymore, but for Till it absolutely does. And there are a few band members who have to be in a constant state of pain and sadness in order to feel good. Although I do think that we will slowly have to break new ground if Rammstein is to continue to exist." So to think that the band has become more cautious is a wrong assumption? "Yes, we have always played with ambiguity. In the very beginning we just tried everything. Until we heard the public reactions: 'Can a band make something like that, isn't it all too German?' Should we explain everything or leave our image open without providing any text or explanation? We opted for the latter. This action-reaction dynamic is something we have been dealing with for years now, with public criticism serving as an indicator: If people think we are going too far, then we know we are doing the right thing. Furthermore, it is a matter of remaining brave and saying: Was die Leute finden ist mir scheiss egal. Still, I think we have closed a phase with Mutter. We can't continue to flirt with taboo themes, we have already pushed the boundaries of that."

The fact that Rammstein can cut so undisturbed with his sharpest knife (provocation) is due to their most blunt instrument: the live show, in which they perform a modern variant of Dante's inferno as post-apocalyptic half-zombies. During the Sehnsucht tour, the band members appeared as robots and machines. Their hair is dyed silver, with long coats full of nail studs and rubber and bright blue lenses. Cold and expressionless, they stared into the crowd. Till Lindemann descended onto a trapeze staircase, while jets of fire sparkled from beneath him. he carried flamethrowers shaped like Freddie Krueger fingers. His voice rolled over the audience like a Teutonic march: punishing and unrelenting. He punished himself with a whip, and a little later, using fire-breathing boots, he rolls over cartwheels across the stage. Deep red blood seeped from his silver hair. A woman in angelic robes descended into a rusted steel cage, while flames spouted meters high into the air around her.

The band manages to convey all this with so much seriousness that the few moments in which Rammstein allows you to think that you might also find it all very funny have an even more alienating effect. When the two guitarists and the bassist enter the stage during Wilder Wein with ridiculously large sombreros, for example. Or when Flake goes crowd surfing in a rubber boat. Or, indeed, when the same Flake gets liters of semen sprayed over him by Till (Bück Dich). The band continues to do so happily during their current world tour. For example, large glass jars containing children's corpses are placed on stage in strong water, while at one point Flake appears to be a surgeon under an operating lamp, complete with white coat and doctor's gloves. They themselves of course deny it, but associations with Doctor Mengele still pop into your head completely involuntarily. Don't worry, it's a completely innocent association, because Rammstein is fun. Isn't it? Well, it's not that simple. Compare it to schlager. Watch a schlager program on German TV (Schlagerparade Der Volksmusik is highly recommended) and you will see the similarities. The singers from Tyrol and Bavaria look terribly out of place in their lederhosen and dirndl dresses, with their undeniable Prodent 3) smile and blow-dried hair in front of plywood sets of snow-capped mountain peaks, alpine meadows full of flowers and log cabins. But damn, they still really like it. Flake: "There is humor in what we do, but it has crept in completely involuntarily. People see us as something comical, but that has never been our intention." Christoph: "What we are playing now sounds authentic to our ears, we can identify with this. What we make is what we feel inside, what we experience as real. We bring comedic subjects with complete seriousness, that is our craft. Till brings ridiculous topics into the spotlight with a deadly serious face and dramatically accented voice. We like that. It's good to keep people in the dark." Oh well, otherwise Rammstein can still use the excuse, entirely in German tradition: Es sei nur ein Scherz gewesen.

Five controversies surrounding Rammstein

1. Artwork Herzeleid

On their debut CD Herzeleid from 1997, the six band members are depicted bare-chested against a background of a gigantic orange-yellow sunflower. The taut and oiled chest muscles, the short, severely shaved haircuts, the separation of band members by hair color (brown on the right, blond on the left); everything indicated that, according to the Rammstein critics, the Berlin band presented itself here as a representative of a new, superior Men's race. With this, the six made a giant swing across the political spectrum: from ex-communists to neo-Nazis in the space of a month.

2. Arrest

On Saturday, June 5, 1999, singer Till Lindemanne and keyboardist Flake Lorenz were arrested immediately after a performance in Worcester, Massachusetts. The scene during Bück Dich in which Lindemann stood behind a bending Lorenz to simulate anal sex with a strap-on dildo, rubbed local law enforcement officers the wrong way. They handcuffed the two, who then had to spend the night in jail and were released after paying bail (25 dollars).

3. Wrong timing

At the moment Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda terror organization forced two hijacked passenger planes into the WTC buildings, Rammstein's members were also in the air. They set course for the United States to continue their world tour. All aircraft that were in the air at that time and flying towards America had to immediately turn around, including Rammstein's. However, all the necessary stage equipment had already been flown over, so a week after September 11, the Germans toured America with a show full of fireworks, meter-high flames and explosions.

4. Stripped

Rammstein recorded the song Stripped in 1998 for a Depeche Mode tribute CD (For The Masses) (later also on the Australian tour edition of Sehnsucht). For the accompanying video clip they used images from Leni Riefenstahl's Olympia documentary about the Berlin Olympic Games in 1936. Riefenstahl was Hitler's court filmmaker. Goldie and Asian Dub Foundation were the first musicians to publicly accuse Rammstein (MTV, NME) of having Nazi sympathies. Fellow Berliner Alec Empire (Atari Teenage Riot) had a more nuanced opinion but did say: "You can't use Riefenstahl's footage and then say it was just a joke. My grandfather died in a concentration camp, so forgive me if I here don't see the joke." Richard Bernstein subsequently stated that the band had used the images purely for aesthetic reasons. "We thought they were beautiful images. That's probably what people in the cinema thought at the time: beautiful images."

5. Columbine

Painfully topical given the terrible shooting at a gymnasium in Erfurt. Two years earlier, on April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold shot and killed twelve students and a teacher and then themselves at Columbine High School in Litteleton, Colorado. The perpetrators are said to have been incited to their actions by the music and lyrics of Rammstein and Marilyn Manson; right-wing and Christian groups immediately called for a ban on both bands. Christoph: "It was put that simply, but of course it is not that simple at all. Typical of American politics to point to one guilty party in their world where everything is black and white." Flake: "It's fortunate for us that Osama bin Laden is not a Rammstein fan."

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1) Eddy Wally was a Belgian singer who enjoyed some popularity among 'regular' folks, but to 'critical music journalist' made pretty much the epitomy of 'tacky' music. Being Belgian is for some Dutch a source for ridicule in itself.

2) Nitpicking but the airshow disaster in Ramstein took place on August 28 (not 29) 1988

3) Prodent is big brand of toothpaste in the Netherlands

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List of other Rammstein OOR interviews