#Top chinese wuxia drama
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BLs with Strong Historical Elements
Costume dramas, historical BLs, and BLs with time travel or flashbacks to historical locations & times.
These are in order of my personal preference, best at the top.
I Feel You Linger in the Air
2023 Thailand
IFYLITA is an exquisite BL, from filming techniques to narrative framework (much like Until We Meet Again). It's about a gay man from our time who falls into the past, becomes a servant to a noble house, and falls in love with the heir. It turns out this has all happened several times before. Steeped in history and family drama it edges into lakorn (but not as much as To Sir With Love and with way less scenery chewing). This is an elegant and classy soulmates BL... from Thailand which normally doesn't even try for classy. The main couple (both as a pair and as individuals) were excellent, particularly Bright (Yai) whose eye-work acting style is a personal favorite of mine. Pity about the ending. Oh it wasn’t that sad but it wasn’t good either. This show could easily have earned a 10/10 from me except that it fumbled the… erm… balls in the final quarter. Argh. Whatever.
Nobleman Ryu's Wedding
2021 Korea - WeTV
A boy cross-dresses to take his runaway sister's place as a bride to a shy scholar, turns out they like being married. A historical setting allowed this BL to use some seriously old fashioned romance tropes (arranged marriage, evil step-sisters, Cinderfella) but also modern BL stylings like fake relationship & secret identity (drag) plus some cute gay panic. It reminded me of 12th Night more than anything else which just happens to be my favorite Shakespeare play. For all these reasons, I adored it.
(the ghat kiss!)
Tinted With You
2022 Korea - Viki
Fun stylish time travel meets portal fantasy with a likable cast, historical setting, and two actual kisses that mitigate the rough plot and issues around anachronisms.
Word of Honor
2021 China (censored) - Viki/YouTube?
I don’t rec Chinese stuff often, because I believe in censoring the censors, but this show is one of my favorites of the post 2016 censored bromances. It’s two murder-gay assassins (pining sunshine/tsundere), and they are so insanely gay for two boys who will never be allowed to kiss. Tropes include: wuxia, soulmates, paranormal, historical, and fantasy elements.
To Sir, With Love AKA Khun Chai
2022 Thailand - YouTube?
This is a true lakorn (basically Thai tellenovella or soap opera) with scenery chewing performances, especially from the mother characters. Gone With the Wind + Days of Our Lives but gay. That said? I loved it: A glorious central brother relationship (the best, made me cry), het romances, class divide + gay *gasp* main romance - oh my word, the campy drama of it all! Arranged marriage, rebellion, cut sleeves, over-the-top death with curses and regrets, beautiful if inaccurate costumes, secrets unraveling, cover ups, sparkle murder, sex herbs, coils within coils including snakes and murderous green metallic sequins (is anything gayer on this earth?). It’s a WILD ride but it does end happy for our gay boys. A man cries when he finds DEATH GLITTER. Come on! You haffa watch it. That said, like Manner of Death I struggle to rate something on a BL scale when it patently isn’t a BL. So I ended up giving this exactly what I gave that show, 7/10 I enjoyed it a whole lot, but not as a BL.
The Untamed (Special BL Edition)
2020 China (censored) - YouTube
Censored wuxia bromance, amorphous ending. Probubly the best known BL of its kind out of China and responsible for bring many fans to the BL side.
Our Skyy 2: Never Let Me Go
2023 Thailand - YouTube
I was nervous to watch this PondPhuwin vehicle but I liked it a lot! Doomed soulmates + paranormal time travel to fix the past. I’m happy for the outfits and the dancing (if not the singing). It’s not a bad premise and it’s nice to see GMMTV lean into its high production values for a change. I'd adore a full historical starring these two and this was definitely the best of the second series of Our Skyy. I don't think you have to have watched the original Never Let Me Go to enjoy this.
Legend of Long Yang: Rebirth
2017 China
Gaga
Whipping boy trope... literally, servant character takes the strap for the prince, who then makes him his bodyguard and lover when he becomes king. Low budget historical, comes off as kind of cosplay wuxia version of Irresistible Love, but we get (in the credits) an actual kiss, and they both live. So yay for small mercies.
The Director Who Buys Me Dinner
2023 Korea (historical flash backs)
iQIYI
A new employee at a film company encounters a director who claims to have lived 300 years and insists that they have to date (eat, hug & kiss) if baby doesn't want to die. It has a lot of Japanese elements, not the least of which are: an office setting, the fact that every character in this show is unhinged, and a killing of the gays. Featuring a gorgeous & stellar cast, TDWBMD should have utilized them less for melodrama and more for chemistry. This BL surprised me by going there with a lipstick mark AND an actually gay idol. But (you knew there was a but) while it's a unique twist on an office romance it is NOT a unique twist on the doomed red thread trope, resulting in it feeling less than the sum of its parts and ultimately unsatisfying. This might have also had to do with the fact that this was one of those KBLs where I felt how very short it was the whole time I was watching, like I was missing something constantly, in every episode. Worth watching for some but seriously flawed.
First Love Again
2022 Korea (historical flash backs) - Viki
A popular novelist who remembers his past lives meets his soulmate for the third time, only to find she has been reincarnated into the body of a man. This one started out a touch mean-spirited, but we eventually got a good kiss. The confession/rejection scene was justified and the reconciliation and ending was... fine. All in all, the pacing felt rushed and the romantic arc was underdeveloped. They go from like to love to boyfriends in a red hot minute. But that’s par for the course with Korea’s short form. If you don’t mind a heavy does of melodrama in your BL this one has a solid story with a strong concept that’s well acted and produced, making it a classic KBL with better than average chemistry but ultimately a touch forgettable.
Love in Spring AKA Spring of Crush
2022 Korea
This show was all over the place with uneven acting, narrative, and focus (sometimes it wanted to be a slapstick comedy, sometimes a depressing melodrama) which meant no one, actors or viewers, took anyone or anything seriously.... AND it’s a bromance. I was left wondering if SalHyung is now code for “they were roommates” in Kdrama historicals but otherwise largely apathetic and unimpressed. Korea, I now know you can do better. Do better.
Mermaid's Jade
2019 China (censored-esk) - Gaga
Kills the gay.
The Male Queen: Han Zi Gao
2016 China - Gaga
Kills the gay. Schrodinger's BL, both a BL and entirely not one at the same time.
Diary of Heong Yeong Dang
2014 Korea
Kills the Gay
I was gonna do a top 10 list, but there aren't enough by my metrics, so many end sadly.
This post at the behest of @verymuchof thank you for the idea!
Dated April 2023, includes only BLs that had finished their run by that date. Not responsible for cool costume flix that come after that. But you should check the comments to see if any have been added by others!
I might have missed a few that only have time historical elements since I don't always track those.
Also I would like to point out a decided lack of Japan on this list. My ninja yaoi consuming tiny past self is VERY upset about this void.
WHERE ARE MY GAY NINJAS??!!!
(source)
#historical bls#time travel bls#bls with historical elements#korean bl#chinese bl#thai bl#I Feel You Linger in the Air#Nobleman Ryu's Wedding#Scholar Ryu's Wedding#Tinted With You#Word of Honor#Khun Chai#to sir with love#The Untamed#Never let me go#Legend of Long Yang#The Director Who Buys Me Dinner#First Love Again#Love in Spring#Spring of Crush
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Luo Yunxi Appreciation Master Post: How can someone be so multi-talented?!
In case you did not already know, here are LYX's many talents. It's insane how many different things he can do at a near-professional level beyond acting!
1. Dance/Ballet
LYX graduated from the Shanghai Theatre Academy majoring in ballet with over 11 years of professional experience.
This is him doing 13+ pirouettes in a performance of Tchaikovsky Rhapsody (full video, he's on the right)
Interpret dance solo (燃烧的火苗) where he won the first gold ever for STA (video, news)
Swan Lake solo at the Taoli Cup Dance Competition in high school (video)
Modern dancing solo (黑白影画) at his graduation performance (video, he's the only guy in white)
He also taught at the Macao Conservatory for a year and danced in front of national leaders in Flying to the Moon (奔月) at the Macao 10th Handover Anniversary (video)
He's super flexible and has a strong core (despite being naturally thin)
In response to request from fans, he performed the Black Moonlight dance in a now viral video on Douyin.
2. Wuxia / Posture
LYX is known as one of the best actors working today for wire work - you can see him here doing 3 consecutive jumps 2-3 stories above ground (compilation videos 1, 2)
He does a lot of his own stunts and is often better (i.e. more graceful) than his stunt double, even though it's really risky and he's sustained some serious injuries from being dropped accidentally (And the Winner is Love: B roll video, actual scene, other BTS, other fight scenes)
He moves with elegance, not just in action sequences (Ashes of Love fight compilation 1,��2), but people have made video compilations of how he walks, kneels, works his sleeves and train
Of course, it's thanks to his dance foundation, but he also puts a lot of hard work into stunt training. Not something a lot of actors do because it eats up time to make more TV or go on variety shows (Ashes of Love stunt training, BTS)
3. Diving
He played a diver once in Flip in Summer (夏日心跳) and actually learned to dive... I mean he's no Tom Daley but this looks pretty good for an amateur... (full video)
4. Voice Acting
He’s always dubbed himself since circa 2018 (with the exception of And the Winner is Love due to Covid logistics issues), which is not the norm in Chinese drama (Ashes of Love dubbing BTS). In fact, he is sometimes the only person in the cast to use his original voice (e.g. in Princess Silver)
He also lends his voice to animations - he was the voice of Viktor in Arcane (BTS video), which received positive feedback (most people didn't realize he was not a professional voice actor)
He appears as a judge and live dubbing performer in Voice Monster alongside the top voice actors in China, Bian Jiang (aka voice of Yehua in Eternal Love, Nan Wangj in the Untamed) and Zhang Jie (aka voice of Donghua in Eternal Love, Sifeng in Love & Redemption). He has so much respect to those working behind the scenes, and it really shows (full video)
5. Singing
Some of you may know that he started out in a boy band called JL with Fu Longfei - these videos didn't age well, but here you go: JL (MV), 我们 (MV)
He has released a number of solo singles, including 缘起 (MV), 星星之火 (live), 不是我 (MV), 等风停 (MV). and 勇 (soundtrack), which he composed and wrote the lyrics himself (these are all mando-pop ballads if that's your jam)
He performed Big Fish 大鱼 at Tmall's 11/11 Festival (live video) - while his rendition is not as powerful as the original, he can hit really high notes with an impressive falsetto - I think it goes up to G5 (one octave above middle C)
He performed Pipa Xing (琵琶行) at the Douyin Festival (live video) - the notable part is his Peking Opera style singing at the end
He occasionally releases covers of songs on Chinese karaoke app Changba or Douyin: 要不然我们就这样一万年 (youtube), 黑月光 (youtube), 不染 (youtube), 山水又一程 (youtube)
He can also sing in other languages, including 喜欢你 in Cantonese (recording) - it's actually a very good cover and his Cantonese pronunciation is >95% accurate - there are parts where you can't tell he's not a native speaker.
6. Musical Instruments
He's an accomplished classically-trained pianist, which you can see in...
JL MV (video, starting around 3:30 mark) - don't mind the makeup, it's from ages ago
Mr Mossie season 2 (video)
Love is Sweet (BTS video) - impromptu jazz, he was deciding which song to play
Fan thank you recording (video)
He also plays the guitar, though probably at an amateur level
7. Music Gaming
During college he was obsessed with this music game called O2Jam (劲乐团) to the point where he created new tracks (i.e. arrange/compose the music) for the company under the username Dinoroy (explained by himself here, videos of him playing).
He became well-known within the fan community as the legendary D神 (D God). There are a lot of funny comments from old players saying that they thought D God is a bitter middle-aged recluse trying to screw them over with difficult tracks (read comments here).
D God was so prolific and reliable that gaming company accepted his submissions without review. Here are some of his best tracks - game arrangement only (Lydia, Croatian Rhapsody, Digital Emotions), music & game arrangement (黑暗魅影), original composition (光之乐章)
8. League of Legends
He's an LOL super fan, commentator, and player since season 2, went to see worlds in person twice, and was a cast member in a gaming show called Beyond It! Hero (episodes here)
He played the 2018 All-Star Event in Las Vegas teaming with reigning world champion Rookie and delivered the final blow that beat the other team 2:1 (video)
He got a quadra kill at a celebrity mobile game even though his team was crap (video clip)
He co-invested 1M RMB in a team led by Misaya 若风 - you can see them playing together in a live broadcast of the mobile game (video)
Update: Our longtime fan boy has become spokesperson of League of Legends and official commentator at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou! The love is reciprocated!
9. Calligraphy/Drawing/Culture
LYX is known for his Chinese handwriting (he practices regularly) - there's even a font based on his handwriting called 汉仪罗云熙体 (download here)
He does all his own handwriting for marketing materials (e.g. Immortality below) and doesn't need a hand double for scenes where his character is practicing ancient Chinese calligraphy
He's also got amazing drawing skills - check out the Queen of the Night 昙花 he drew as Runyu while waiting around on set in between takes (video)
While he doesn't go on a lot of variety shows, he's often a guest on cultural programs, like the beauty of Chinese Calligraphy 书法之美 (video), Chinese Fans in 指尖上的非遗 (video)
His self-produced Mr. Mossie covers a lot of cultural topics (seasons 1, 2, 3), the segment on Hanfu was featured in the UNESCO Chinese Language Video Festival (video)
10. Photography
Luo Yunxi is often seen taking photos on set with his top-of-the-line Leica camera. Here are some of the photos he has shared:
#luo yunxi#cdrama#till the end of the moon#chang yue jin ming#chinese drama#c ent#ashes of love#2ha#immortality
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Hi! I have a question. Im not entirely sure if these belong to chinese fashion because I only ever saw them in uncredited pictures. Theyre very intricate "eye patches", seemingly made from like gold or metal? they cover only one eye and I was wondering if they have a name or if its something made up? thank you for all your work!
Hi, thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply! (x)
The intricate gold/metal "eye patches" covering only one eye that you see are most likely based on "半面妆/Ban Mian Zhuang" ("Half Face Makeup"), a popular Chinese novel written by 萧十一狼/Xiao Shi Yi Lang and published in 2015. Well-known Chinese gufeng-style illustrator 古戈力/Gu Ge Li provided beautiful artwork for the novel, as seen below (1, 2):
Gu Ge Li's artwork inspired many hanfu photoshoots with ornate eyemasks (1, 2, 3, 4, 5):
These eyemasks are essentially made-up fantasy masks with Chinese elements incorporated into the design. They are not based on historical Chinese masks, which look very different. Thus you can just call them 面具/mianju, which is the general Chinese term for masks.
On a related note, similar types of fantasy masks also appear frequently in Chinese guzhuang (period costume) films & dramas, especially in the wuxia and xianxia genres. As @audreydoeskaren touched on in this post, these masks are typically not historically accurate, but are included for aesthetic effect (like many other elements in guzhuang media).
Below - fantasy masks in Chinese film/dramas. Clockwise from top left: women - Painted Skin: The Resurrection, Legend of Nine Tails Fox, The Empress of China, The Blue Whisper; men - Love and Redemption, Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky, The Untamed, Battle Through the Heavens:
Deriving inspiration from art and television, fantasy masks have become a popular accessory for hanfu photoshoots.
For more examples of Chinese masks (both historical & fantasy), please see my masks and eyemask tags.
Hope this helps! ^^
#eyemask#masks#hanfu accessories#hanfu#半面妆#banmianzhuang#古戈力#gugeli#art#gufeng#cosplay#recreation#guzhuang#drama costumes#drama#>100#reference#ask#reply#chinese fashion#chinese clothing#china
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Dramas I watched in 2023
[Chinese Dramas]
My Journey to You - Wuxia. Spy games, badass ladies, subtextually homoerotic cousins. Gentle & sweet ML who melts the cold & calculated heart of FL assassin. Gorgeous setting and cinematography. Left me with a burning desire to see Zhang Ling He play more gentle babygirl MLs and Esther Yu to play more anti-heroes. Absolutely perfect to me.., if we just pretend the director didn't add a pointless cliffhanger in the last 5 min. Which is how I choose to live my life.
Story of Kunning Palace - 'rebirth' costume drama that I waited to air for like 2 years or something and then it... actually didn't disappoint? And was almost everything I wanted? 😳😲 This is THE couple for that post about the pair that need to be stuck in a neverending monogamous relationship with each other as a quarantine measure to protect everyone else.
A Journey to Love - wuxia perfection. The stand-out drama that I wasn't expecting. Murder mommy & murder daddy became an otp for the ages and all of the supporting characters were interesting and dynamic. I cared about so many more characters than I expected and never fast fowarded. Just immensely satisfying.
The Ingenious One - wuxia with a weak, scheming scholar protagonist on a revenge quest (yes, we've all heard that before!) who puts together a group to execute his cons, Leverage style. I love me a martial artist x weak scholar couple 👌. Some exciting twists & turns in this one. Both A Journey to Love and The Ingenious One are best enjoyed coming in with little to no information. Hell, skip the trailers and simply dive in!
Hidden Love - Modern drama. Top tier romance-novel-on-screen writing and acting. It felt honest and real. The coming of age arc for the FL was well done. Great brother & sister relationship that feels authentic. The ML's backstory was so heart breaking because it was never overplayed for melodramatics. Just a quiet pain, a distance and a burden he carried with him.
Road Home - Modern. "Do you remember who I am?" / "Yes. If I were to turn to ashes, I would still remember you." I am very weak for the "reunited exes", "second time around" trope when the actors are capable and the breakup wasn't a narratively convenient 'misunderstanding'. As a career woman who works very long hours, I also tend to appreciate modern drama relationships where the couple manages to stay functional & supportive while not having a lot of free time for each other. That's my version of wish fulfillment 😂. I felt like this narrative made me fully understand why they couldn't make a long distance relationship work as young adults but now they're ready and have experienced enough of the world to know that they are happier with their lives joined together than apart.
Love You Seven Times - xanxia. I wrote a whole review post (love letter) on this one, since it seems rather underrated. I feel like this one may actually end up one of my fav examples of the genre. I just sincerely bought into the couple and their mutual devotion.
The Last Immortal - xanxia. Terrible trailer but turns out to be a decent show. I'm a fan of the genre, so I'm enjoying it. (I think you do need to be, to enjoy it - it doesn't transcend or really subvert..just a solid representation of xanxia) I like both lead actors and they do a good job with the material. It's working better for me than Ancient Love Poetry and Ashes of Love. After being eager for Song of the Moon in 2022 but then being let down (I dropped that one quick), I'm very happy 2023 brought me 2 xanxia I liked.
Three Body - modern sci-fi. Book 1 of my fav sci-fi trilogy of recent years. As a novel fan first, I was pleased to see it on screen with talented actors. Eager for book 2.
Love Me, Love My Voice - modern drama with an unusual couple (2 introverts) and dubbing fandom hyper fixation. A laid back relaxation drama, to de-stress with. Minimal plot, no conflict. Just sweet slow burn relationship building, singing & audio performances. Supportive friendships.
Here We Meet Again - modern drama that suffered from sloppy editing. I mean almost incoherent editing in a couple places, like when they are counting down the days until getting married and then.. It's not mentioned again? 🙃 But I very much enjoyed the couple's chemistry. I can't say it was objectively good but it sure was compulsively watchable for some reason.
Royal Rumors - Costume drama that was so aggressively mediocre that I don't have any real explanation for not dropping it. Except I find the lead actress unspeakably alluring. Blame my hormones.
Dropped
Back to the Brink - xanxia. Great concepts but the execution didn't work for me. I'm not a fan of slapstick and wacky humor within serious subject matter. (It's the reason kdramas can be very hit or miss with me.) The amount of humor layered into AJourney to Love is basically my limit for tragicomedies. (Note: I did go read the book and it was very entertaining - the tone was much more to my taste.)
My Lethal Man - modern. Embarassing english name, but they had me in the first half, not gonna lie. Then after her identity was exposed, I wasn't feeling it idk. Sometimes it's just not that complicated.
Destined/Chang Feng Du - costume drama. idk really why I dropped. I watched about a 3rd of it and then was distracted by other shiny objects. I plan to come back to this one in 2024 and finish.
Romance of the Twin Flower - costume drama; unholy abomination of a great novel. I hope somehow, someday, the culprits pay for their crime. Need I say more?
[Korean Dramas]
Perfect Revenge Marriage - a modern rebirth tale. For the 90% of it, I was high on the love of a drama that is just what you didn't know you wanted. The camp, the dedication, the scenery chewing, the glorious evil step mother. It was magical. And then the last 2 episodes I found underwhelming. I can't really explain it, the climax just didn't hit for me. But that's very much a personal taste issue and I'd definitely recommend to all drama lovers who enjoy the genre. Seriously, the performance of evil step mommy was a master class.
King the Land - modern workplace romance. I've heard complaints that there wasn't much of plot. But tbh that was fine with me, because some dramas are simply character pieces. This was all about the personal growth of the FL and ML. I ended up invested and rooting for the ML to become a decent guy who isn't a gross classist like his dad.
Destined with You - modern reincarnation drama. I blame my lingering kdrama good feelings about King the Land for convincing me to keep powering thru this one. Such a strong start but then half-way in I began to realize it simply wasn't going to go into the direction I wanted it to. I still have no idea what they intended to communicate with that love potion subplot.
Vincenzo - modern crime drama. I was late to the party on this one. But after I got around to watching the delightful Kinnporsche, this was rec'd to me as another drama that embraced the bigger than life unreality of Fantasy Mafia™ and provides a rollicking good time. Absolutely ridiculous and compulsively watchable. 10/10.
[American]
House of the Dragon - Awful people doing awful things to each other, as a 1st act before everything goes straight to hell. Plus freaky dragon-riding fantasy incest. What's there not to like?
Fall of the House of Usher (YES i DO watch every horror drama by Mike Flanagan thx) - Was it as good as the first 3..? No. Did I still breathlessly binge it in 2 days? Yes. Awful things happening to awful people, poetically. 👌 👌
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Sometimes I wish Zhongli at least wore a distinctively wuxia/xianxia*-style (default) outfit instead of what is basically a suit from waist up, even with Genshin’s typical outfit stylizations (lots of of ribbons/flowing clothes, metallic details, and visible layers). In terms of genre, Liyue’s Archon Quest is… basically a xianxia plot huh
If he’s all about Liyue traditions… I mean it’d be nice if Zhongli wears something closer to Jin Guangshan’s outfit (from the web series The Untamed) but brown with silver/bronze/gold accents. Doesn’t necessarily need the long loose sleeves as it’s not uncommon for wuxia outfits to have tighter sleeves fit for combat.
If it’s his outfit in the 2023 Lantern Rite… I mean it seems like it’s supposed to be a qipao with a caplet on top, but it’s so stylized the golden lines make it feel strangely… futuristic? (I’ve no context for Lantern Rite so I don’t know if it’s got a lore reason or anything)
*wuxia = Chinese martial arts drama genre. Loyalty, betrayal, family, politics, combat, CHIVALRY (e.g. helping the weak, self-governing), etc. xianxia = Chinese spiritual cultivation drama genre. Similar but maybe more mortals vs supernatural spirits/gods, and less mortal vs mortal. Costume-wise there’s not a very striking difference between the two (in my experience)
#arguably. GI has lots of xianxia tropes#(narratively)#at the same time. my wuxia definition#is BASCIALLY Diluc’s backstory in a nutshell. so…#dusk rambles#dusk analysis#Zhongli#genshin redesign#(not really)#character design#wuxia#Genshin impact#design analysis
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Do you mind if I ask your top 5 (or top 7) favorite BL and your top 3 (or top 5) favorite GL? And why do you love them? It can be from any media : books, manga, anime, manhwa, tv series or movies.....
Hard question again! I'm going to do 7 for GL and 7 for BL, again under the cut!
In no particular order:
GL:
Revolutionary Girl Utena - is including it on this list cheating since it's not primarily GL? I don't care, it's too good to not recommend. A teenage tomboy fencer gets 'engaged' to a mysterious girl by winning a duel, many more duels happen alongside symbolism, feminist messages and a really mature handling of topics like depression and abuse. REALLY dark though, but worth it! Deserves its place as one of the classic anime.
Bloom into you - incredible handling of internalised homophobia, first love, high school relationships both in the platonic and romantic sense and golden child syndrome. A heartwarming but occasionally heartwrenching story that felt very real. Bonus points for the author actually being a sapphic woman.
The Handmaiden - sapphic thriller from Korea set in the early 1900's! Dark but incredibly engaging, surprisingly happy and hopeful despite how much the girls have to suffer to get their happily ever after. The book it's based on, The Fingersmith, was also great!
GAP - Thailand's first GL series and got so popular there are now multiple other projects coming this & next year! The protagonist is a uni graduate hired in her idol's company only to discover the lady is both meaner and hotter than she thought. Lesbian crisis and full-on romcom shenanigans follow, though the series also comments on traditional family values in Thailand acting as an excuse for homophobia (the idol, Sam, is in an arranged engagement to a man as ordered by her grandma). Don't worry though, the show is mostly very fun and light & ends very very happily for the ladies.
Whisper Me a Love Song - look, as a former band kid I can't not mention the band lesbians manga. It's a highschool romance full of miscommunication and funny/cute shenanigans with occasional sadness to balance it all out. Very relaxing. It's getting an anime adaptation next year so looking forward to that!
Riddle Story of Devil - as an action series fan this was pretty incredible. A school full of assasins, everyone is sapphic and they're all badasses? High school me was obsessed and I still am. The manga is much better though, the anime is both way less gay and develops the characters much less due to the story being compressed into 12 episodes.
Legend of Yunqian - short fantasy drama from a small Chinese studio, it's about a regular young lady going back in time via a magic fan and falling for a magical warrior woman. Lovely and available on Youtube for free!
Honorary mentions: Flip Flappers (anime), Clear and muddy loss of love (novel), She likes to cook and she likes to eat (manga & TV series)
BL:
Heaven Official's Blessing - come on, it's incredible. Dark fantasy with immortal love that breaks even the most powerful curses, a complex and deeply human protagonist, a lot of emotional moments and incredible use of flashbacks to slowly reveal his backstory to the readers- what's not to love? Just a warning, when I say it's dark fantasy I'm not kidding. The series has funny and light moments but when shit gets real, it gets REAL.
No.6 - just like RGU isn't technically GL, this isn't technically BL but I am gonna talk about anyway, it's incredible. It's a dystopian sci-fi story about Shion, a teenager who discovers a government conspiracy and works to stop it alongside his new friend/love interest Nezumi. It treats the gay relationship super casually, there's no sexuality angst or anything, it was super refreshing! Read the novels though, the anime compressed the story a lot.
The Untamed/Mo Dao Zu Shi - love the intrigue, love the main romance, love the fantasy elements! My first Chinese series and one I hold dear for introducing me to the wuxia (Chinese fantasy) genre. Any version of the story is great but I'd recommend to start with the series and then read the books.
Kinnporsche - it's deeply insane and I love it for that. Everyone is gay, everyone commits crimes (they're in the mafia, so. Yeah) and it makes for a really entertaining show even if its darker elements aren't always super well handled.
Not me the series - Motorcycle gang of young anarchists against corruption! Very radical and critical of capitalism and the police system, engaging and fast paced. The director/showrunner is a trans activist/filmmaker so it's not like she doesn't know what she's talking about. It's very universal so I'd recommend it even to people who normally don't watch BL. One minus point for minor queerbaiting with 2 side characters, nothing major but it did bother me a bit + felt unnecessary in a series full of queer characters.
Cherry magic - queer office romance + mind reading! If that combination sounds interesting please do check it out, it was super cute. Bonus for very realistically human protags and an explicitly aroace side character.
Semantic error - opposites attract-type romance between an introverted, collected STEM prodigy and an extroverted art student partnered together for a project. The protagonist is autistic and written pretty well so I latched onto the show immediately, bonus points for side queer representation (bi character who's a super cool and pretty lady, love her).
Honorary mentions: Word of Honor (series), Yuri on ice (anime, only homoerotic sports anime to make the gay explicit, iconic), Nobleman Ryu's wedding (series, short but v heartwarming!)
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Heyo! So it seems like you've watched a bunch of K-dramas and I was wondering if you have any recommendations for a first one to watch for someone who's never watched any Korean shows, let alone many dramas either? I know this is vague and of course tastes vary, but does anything come to mind? Not sure if it's a common sub-genre, but bonus if they aren't super dark and grim. Thanks so much, love your writing!
i love foreign dramas! most of what i watch is from korea and china, but i've watched a few really good ones from thailand and japan too
some of these exist multiple places, but if it's possible to watch it on viki, that's my recommendation. their translations tend to be the best
business proposal (korea, netflix) is a really good intro to kdramas and covers a lot of common tropes, plus the main and secondary couples have FANTASTIC chemistry, which can be rare. a woman pretends to be her rich friend on a blind date, but it ends up being with the ceo of her company and identity shenanigans and hijinks ensue. if you like this one, you'll also really like what's wrong with secretary kim? (korea, viki) but i'd watch this one first because it's a little bit less wacky
the romance of tiger and rose (china, viki) is extremely cute and stars zhao lusi, who i love. a scriptwriter gets trapped in her own alternate historical drama script as a character that she kills off in episode three and has to try and change the story to ensure her own survival and falls in love along the way. it's meta enough that it gives you a good sense for the vibe of historical/fantasy chinese dramas. the acting can be a little meh from some characters in this one, but the leads are all great and respective emotional support characters for the male and female lead are hysterical
word of honor (china, viki) is i think a digestible-ish intro to the wuxia genre, but honestly you just kind of have to jump into wuxia and trust you'll figure out the tropes and world basics as you go. a dying former leader of an assassination organization gets stalked by an unhinged serial killer who's also an excellent cook. they fall in love an adopt a son. the ending here isn't fully happy as some beloved characters die
mr. queen (korea, viki) is one of my absolute favorites and straightforward enough that i don't think the politics are too confusing for someone going in with no background in historical korean culture and politics. a male chef drowns and ends up in the body of queen cheorin, the main wife of the king from the late 1800s, and is determined to return home and NOT fall in love with the king. it's unintentionally very queer and the acting and plot is really a plus here.
bad buddy (thailand, youtube) is a bl drama that is about the sons of neighbors who hate each other going from eternal rivals to boyfriends. it's cute and the chemistry pops off. thai dramas are top tier for non censored queer content, but be prepared for some awkward dialogue and a lot of product placement. the chemistry of the leads tends to make up for this. a tale of 1000 stars (thailand, youtube) is one of the worst offenders of this, but the leads carried that show on the power of their vibes and sexual tension alone. kinnporsche (thailand, dramacool) is the best thai drama i've watched, but i would not describe it as light.
crash landing on you (korea, netflix) is another favorite, but you do need to just disassociate a bit from the fact that it takes place in north korea. a successful girlboss ceo is paragliding, gets caught in a storm, and ends up north korea. a military official finds her and after some light threatening agrees to try and get her back to korea instead of turning her in or killing her, but to pull this off she has to pose as his fiance. the relationships in this one are so good, and it's a happy ending for our main, but it takes some trials and our secondary couple does NOT end happily ever after.
i'm currently going feral over love like the galaxy (china, viki), but i think it's better appreciated after consuming another historical chinese dramas so you have socio-political-trope context for what's happening
goblin (korea, viki), untamed (china, viki), and nirvana in fire (china, viki) are some of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE shows but i think opening with them would be a mistake and you'll miss a lot nuance going in cold
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2023 was the year I disappeared down the Asian Drama Sinkhole. This year I found myself struggling with persistent fatigue that made it hard to read books, and absolutely vital to spend large amounts of time just resting and recuperating. Before 2023, in my whole life, I'd watched 3 dramas from start to end. In 2023 I consumed over 25. And I had so much fun that I've found it very difficult to interest myself in watching anything else.
I'm content with this use of my time because it's been a wonderful way to work on my long-form storytelling skills - time spent watching stuff as an author is never totally wasted. But the West makes television too, and I've spent my whole life being completely indifferent to it. All year I've been asking myself why I find Asian drama SO addictive and SO much fun compared with Western TV, which so often feels disappointing or a chore. After some thought, I've boiled it down to five basic reasons.
Structure. Asian dramas may vary in length anywhere from 10 to 70 episodes, but the vast majority of them have a discrete, self-contained story to tell. You get one season of a show, and once it's over, the story is complete. My biggest peeve with Western TV has always been the insistence on dragging a story out over multiple seasons of declining quality. The story never wraps up in a satisfying way; it just gets flogged to death. In recent years Western TV has compounded the problem by cancelling shows before their original story arc is even complete. With Asian drama, you don't have to worry about that. At least you always know you'll be getting a complete story.
Standalones. Related is the fact that Asian drama has resisted the urge to create vast IP story worlds like Star Wars or Marvel. This doesn't mean their storytelling isn't derivative - just that instead of trying to tell new stories with old characters, they're more likely to tell the same stories with new characters, which I honestly think is a more natural and creative way to do it. In an age of endless IPs, reboots, remakes, and retellings, Asian drama is making hundreds of new and unconnected stories. While many of these are adaptations of webtoons and novels, of course, to a Western newcomer the sense of novelty and variety is absolutely intoxicating.
Settings. Asian drama focuses on Asian affairs, history, and folklore. Western TV focuses on American affairs and sometimes English history; whenever it ventures beyond these limited interests it usually stereotypes them. It's not that Asian drama doesn't also have these pitfalls, but the part of me that wants to learn about the world beyond the English-speaking bits goes brrrr when it sees an Asian drama. I've long adored some limited examples of the wuxia genre in Chinese film, but now on top of that, I'm also getting Chinese xianxia and Korean sageuk and Thai romantic comedies and all the happy learning parts of my brain are lit up like a Christmas tree.
Relationships and Characters. Asian drama has a big, swoony, unapologetic focus on romance. Not all kdrama/cdrama relationships work for me, of course - wanting to stab the male lead is an occupational hazard - but Asian drama is interested in romance at a level that simply doesn't seem to exist anymore in Western media. Related to this is an emphasis on relationships of every sort - romantic, familial, platonic - and detailed, lovable character work to support them. My best guess for why Western media falls short in this area is that for decades it has been sacrificed on the altar of Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, which sees romance and relationships as an obstacle to the hero which must be shed in order for him to achieve his goal. I'm deeply happy to have found a whole part of the world that chose to disregard this fatheaded notion.
Content. Naturally I must preface this by saying that many Asian countries do contain content that is VERY BAD and potentially triggering. Ageism, classism, lookism and sexism are all deeply engrained into Asian drama to the point that if one day I conceive a violent disgust for them this will probably be why. But that's a topic for another day. Where this benefits me, personally, is that Asian dramas don't usually push the envelope when it comes to explicit content. While the presence of such content doesn't rule out a watch for me, it does make it stressful. I just want to relax when I'm watching TV, and I don't find pervasive language, sex, or gore to be relaxing. When Western shows get an MA15+ rating, they usually go all in with that stuff, but Asian drama doesn't seem to have that urge. Explicit violence HAS kept me from watching some highly acclaimed dramas (MOVING is one example) but the vast majority of them, even when they do contain limited amounts of gore or language that get them higher ratings on Western platforms, usually keep such things brief. They are generally demure sexually, and you'll almost always find sexuality being expressed within the context of marriage (even when it's premarital) which is something that as a Christian I do find restful. Again: this is all happening within a cultural framework that ALSO contains disgusting and triggering stuff, even in the better dramas. Personally, I can stomach the insidious stuff a lot better than I can take the in-your-face explicitness of Western TV, and I'm particularly grateful for the blend of demure sexuality with a strong focus on romance: it's taught me a huge amount about creating romantic tension that goes beyond sexual tension.
So there are my five completely honest and personal reasons why I've found Asian dramas to be so fun and restorative this year! One day I might write a post on the things I DON'T like about Asian dramas - but I am lazy, and I am still having fun and finding out what I do or don't like, so maybe that can wait for next year. In the meantime, feel free to hit me up for recs!
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Cultural Notes for Alchemy of Souls Episode 1
So the whole thing is that people who haven’t watched enough Korean fusion dramas are crying, “But so much like Xian Xia“ while ignoring the actual history of East Asia, and East Asian relations, history of K-dramas, and also have 100% ignorance about the Hong Sisters. I am Korean, BTW, I do make Hanbok, (I also make hanfu before so I could figure out influences on Hanbok) but I hate cultural fetishists.
Oh yay, more Koreaboo nonsense.
Look, I don’t hate ignorance, but I do hate willful ignorance while acting like you actually know something, when you never put in the effort. So let’s get into it.
The aesthetics of the drama aren't Wuxia or Xianxia, since the majority of Xianxia tend to be based around the aesthetics of the Han, Tang and Song dynasty clothes. (And believe me, I studied my butt off about it.) But the majority of the clothes in Xianxia are ahistorical and are made out of chiffon and organza, rather than historically accurate cloth. And as Avenue X often says (Chinese BTW), bland as anything.
(For that reference:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pclx90lcxoQ
)
Here are actual (Chinese) Han dynasty clothes:
Here are Xianxia Clothes:
(Pillow Book)
The clothes from the Alchemy of Souls are from Joseon, (though scattered from various times in Joseon) that's equivalent to "Ming" and "Qing" So if you think the clothes are "exactly the same as Xian Xia and Wuxia--Oh man, you've just shown your ignorance about China and Korea in one go. (And Chinese have a right to breathe on you just the same as I'm about to).
But for Alchemy of Souls, the aesthetics are from the Joseon era:
For China, this is equivalent to Ming-Qing Dynasties, which is a different aesthetic. (Korea held onto Ming and modified them later on, but getting into the whole thing takes a history lesson and a half.)
Joseon==1392-1897 CE
Han Dynasty==202 BCE – 9 CE, 25–220 CE
So equating them is being totally ignorant of Chinese and Korean history and the reason Asiophiles are problematic. Love the art, have none of the knowledge about history, wider culture and then make false assessments on that ignorance.
They bent the aesthetics in several ways:
- the windows aren't from any specific historical era and are ahistorical.
- The patterns used on the clothing are ahistorical and would have gotten them killed during Joseon. (There was color coding on clothes during Joseon)
- The clothes are spread across several eras, for example, the lower class is dress like early Joseon, but the gisaeng are dressed Late Joseon.
You can tell which is which by the length of the jeogori (or the top of the hanbok). REALLLY short and it's 19th century. And longer is early Joseon. Since this is supposed to be a fictional country, etc (not found on any map) and the whole thing is ahistorical on purpose. This explains the mishmash.
- some is simply ahistorical, such as on Mudeok's yellow/orange hanbok--the pleating at the side of the hanbok is 100% ahistorical. Explaining why is a whole chore though (I would have to go into a whole historical thing about geography that would take up way too much word count). So trust me, that Joseon people would have recoiled in horror seeing a detail like that.
Also taking out the 동정 Dong Jeong (paper collar) (boo~~) The paper collar is important. Did they actually use interfacing (double boo). TT Breaks my hanbok-making heart. The reason for the Dong Jeong was because the collar would often get dirty without it and it would add stiffness. Since Korea wasn't rich with cloth (with a large percentage of the richer cloth was historically imported) having a collar like that was important for fabric conservation. (This also explain a section of why pleating at the sides is ahistorical)
Some of the fabric is clearly synthetic (made of plastic) TT But I suppose common watchers won't get that. I mean there is synthetic--like the brocade and Jacquard often used in K-dramas, but then there is ahistorically synthetic *with* shine that's synthetic plastic.
- The mirrors are actual mirrors and not made out of bronze. This is not historically accurate for Joseon.
- The book they have is 100% in hangeul, which isn't possible until much later in history. Even after Sejong (et al) invented Hangeul, pure hangeul texts were rare. Often official texts were in Hanja (or Chinese characters)
-The hairstyle on Mu-Deok is ahistorical as well.
This means it was done on purpose to create “Joseon-eque” fantasy feel.
For those who are saying, BUT THE SPECIAL EFFECTS are like Xian Xia.--you haven't watched many fusion Korean dramas, have you? I also have to point out that often between Japan, Korea and China they share Special effects artists. Sometimes China exports to Korea, sometimes Korea exports to China (depending on political relationships, granted.) But yeah, they share. And also, Hong sisters have watched Chinese dramas, like Chinese have watched Korean dramas. It's part of the whole system of East Asia, if people weren't paying attention. (You can read about it in detail here:
http://cup.columbia.edu/book/chinas-hegemony/9780231179744
Though note that the term “Hegemony” is an approximation of the original term.)
Fusion Korean Dramas, BTW:
- Arang and the Magistrate--this mixes Mugyo (religion) with imported Chinese religion about the Jade Emperor, which attested is probably around late Goryeo to Early Joseon--honestly in Korean lore not used that much.)
- The Moon that Embraces the Sun- This is an Alt history drama based on a book which uses Mugyo as the center.
- Kingdom is also a Korean fantasy Historical drama
I should note that Scarlet Heart Ryeo was a remake and not loved in Korea that much for that reason. (It’s a remake of Bu Bu Xin, but I should also make clear that China and Japan have also imported and remade Korean dramas) Japan imported not to much success, “You’re Beautiful” (which was from the Hong Sisters. China did a few knock-offs of “Coffee Prince”, but have also officially imported other dramas from Korea.)-- As I said, The East Asian system of cultural trade is still ongoing.
And so on. The Hong sisters themselves also did fantasy and Historical dramas in the past but combined their skills for this one:
- Hong Gil Dong was a historical drama they did, which bordered on Fantasy at times. (Referenced Chinese ghosts, BTW--Hong Sisters like international influences)
- My Girlfriend is a Gumiho
- Hotel Del Luna
- Master’s Sun
Each time they tackled the occult they mainly used Korean native religions. Mago, for example is a native Korean Goddess. And Master’s Sun uses Mugyo.
For this one, they used a kinda of mishmash of various religions. For example, the concepts of souls is very loosely taken from Mugyo. The “Other continent” parallel, is loosely taken from the imported version of the Jade Emperor mythology, etc. It’s a whole fantasy world that’s made up.
Explaining Mugyo is a chore because it’s so complicated, especially on the concept of souls. So you’ll have to trust me on this one. But a portion of the soul swapping is Mugyo in feel.
To be clear, for those who are totally ignorant of Chinese Xianxia, the *majority* of the mythology of Xianxia has a backbone in Taoism. For the entirely ignorant, this is where you get the idea of “Balance” “Yin-yang” etc. And also where the hatred towards women with curly hair, freckles, and dark skin comes from. The second backbone of Xianxia in mythology is Buddhism, which you can see in the usage of monks, prayer beads, often the *objects* in the dramas (such as lotus, etc) and the concepts of reincarnation, demons, levels of hell, etc. The last backbone is the Jade Emperor Mythos, which is natively Chinese. Sometimes, very rarely Xianxia will also include parts of Wu Jiao, which is the native Shamanistic religion, which was forced underground because of suppression and varies, much like other shamanistic religions by region and throughout time. This is sometimes seen in the belief of spirits/evil spirits, etc, and was somewhat supplanted by Taoism later in history, but pure Wu Jiao is a lot more rare in Xianxia dramas.
The last thing you should know is how the martial arts are used in K-dramas (because of the accusation about Wuxia) is different. I know this isn’t very accurate, but a lot of Xianxia and Wuxia tend to defy gravity more, and I tend to think about it more like “Wind”. House of Flying Daggers, for example, exemplifies this a lot. Of course Stephen Chow set in modern times in “Kung Fu Hustle” tends not to have this as much, but Xianxia and Wuxia doesn’t tend to take from him. TT (I don’t get why not).
Korean martial arts tends to be more “gravity bound” so the jumps aren’t as high, there’s more dust thrown around and the element I tend to think of is “Earth”. You can particularly see this in the movie “Arahan” dust flying everywhere and “Superhero landings” (one knee with fist to the ground) as called in the US is something Korean love aesthetically.
I know this is weird, but I tend to think of the element of “Water” for Japanese Martial Arts. “Ice” and “fluidity” and the whole concept of Jo-Ha-Kyu somehow strikes more more like water. The quickness, the Kurosawa pause-sword fall, and how one has to move. (Also much more Earth bound, but the bounding over rooftops is a running affair of invisible legs often like water, whereas China it’s mostly like running and then tons of aerials, rather than parallel jumping.)
Not saying “Superiority” here, but if you pay attention, the martial arts is different in feel and the wire work is different. (in general, not specifically, because ya know, exceptions and parodies, etc)
Mu Deok is using a Jeolla accent.
lol My Maternal side is from Jeolla. It's not a very good one, but I think that's the point... (My nitpicks are on the inflection which is terrible and she should be holding the vowels longer on some word)- Short hair for men wasn't possible until late Joseon.
If you want to pick it out: Yuuuu (lower in tone and held) and the Keundi are indications.
The inflection is usually like a rolling hill (with words like Keundi at the bottom of the hill), but the acting of the inflection makes it really flat. (Oddly flatter than Seoulmal... which is why it feels like a put on.)
TT Netflix over translating lines is the bane of my life. I caught two already. They turned a negative statement into a positive. And they took out "pabo" out of one of the translated lines. They messed up a few lines so changed "Why are you using banmal with me" into "Use formal speech (Jeondaemal) with me" doesn't have the same bite. And you might think it doesn't matter, but it does. It does. And I don't care what native Koreans say. It does matter because the meaning shifts significantly. Screw English-speaker’s accessibility, care more about being true to what it means to increase cultural competency and disability access.
If you would like to continue to Episode 2, it is here:
https://www.asian-fiction.com/post/693059732535132160/cultural-notes-for-alchemy-of-souls-episode-2
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Fandom Fic Rec: Throwback Edition
Tagged by @blackestglass
Choose 5 fandoms you are no longer active in (as in actively participating/creating in), and then choose 1 fic for each fandom that's stuck with you. Tag 5 people when you're done!
1. The End of the World by FernWithy and sequels (Hunger Games, Haymitch/Effie)
I don’t consider myself a Hunger Games fan. I consider myself a The End of the World by FernWithy fan, and that it incidentally happens to take place in the same universe as The Hunger Games is incidental. I came to these fics having not read anything in The Hunger Games, having only watched the first Hunger Games movie to give me any familiarity with the characters and the stories, and absolutely fell in love. FernWithy has written six full novels and three interstitial novellas clocking in at nearly a million words to tell the story of Haymitch Abernathy (and Effie Trinket) from age 16 to adulthood and they are masterful. Her worldbuilding and plotting are top notch and her ability to mimic the styles of other authors is superb. (I came to know FernWithy through her Harry Potter fanfiction, which is about as stylistically different as it is possible to be.) I come back to reread these once ever few years.
2. Yggdrasil Dreaming by Barkour (MCU, Sif/Loki)
Ah, Sif/Loki, my beloved ship of yester year. This was the fic that really got me shipping them and I never looked back. It goes so hard with the dream imagery and the mythic storyline that draws a lot from Norse myths. The characterization is absolutely top notch, and Barkour has the most gorgeous lyrical prose I’ve ever read. This provides an alternate (ie, written pre-Avengers) take on Loki’s storyline post Thor (2011) and is absolutely beautiful.
3. Cowboys and Indians by Minisinoo (Twilight, Gen Fic Jasper & Leah)
Taking a page out of Trish’s book and rec’ing a fic by Minisinoo. This is what I think of when I consider a fanfics power to be transformative. Obviously the big glaring problem (of many big glaring problems) at the center of the Twilight series is the treatment of the Quileute Tribe. This takes that premise and turns it on its head and creates a deeply poignant metaphor for the relationship between white people and Natives in the offering. Minisinoo is Native (though not Quileute) and the perspective offered in this bit of fanfic is fascinating as it explores an unlikely friendship between a former Confederate soldier turned vampire and a 21st century Native woman turned werewolf.
4. Cutting Water by NessieGG(Naruto, Neji/Tenten & Sasuke/Sakura)
This is basically a wuxia AU and... what a knockout premise for an alternate universe, frankly? This reads like a Chinese fantasy drama in all of the best ways. Technically it’s a Naruto fic, but also I don’t know that you need to know a thing about Naruto to enjoy this. This is high drama, with lots of adventure and action and factional politics with no side necessarily being completely wrong. I love the worldbuilding, and I love the two romances which both are quite distinct and interesting!
5. Baiting the Beauty by @glamaphonic (Game of Thrones/ASOIAF, Jaime/Brienne)
Technically it’s unfinished, but only by a few chapters and still absolutely worth a read. Jaime/Brienne Regency AU in the style of the Regency Romance Novel. This is pure romance novel tropes in the best ways. Brienne makes such an excellent unconventional heroine, a wallflower through and through, and Jaime absolutely fits the role of the rake. The rest is all enemies to lovers and sexual tension and uncovering one anothers hidden hurts and furtive misunderstandings. As befits George RR Martin’s reversal of the Beauty and the Beast trope, they fit the roles of hero and heroine of a romance novel perfectly, and yet they are still recognizably Jaime and Brienne.
6. Mass Effect: Discovery by @pigeontheoneandonly (Mass Effect, Shepard/Kaidan Alenko)
Bonus sixth rec because while I still consider myself in the Mass Effect fandom this fic rearranged my entire brain and I still think about it constantly since I read it. This is a narrative retelling of Mass Effect 1 (with a WIP sequel telling the story of Mass Effect 2) with Shepard/Kaidan as the main pairing. And the characterizations in this are absolutely fantastic. There is a tendency in Mass Effect fanfic to idealize Commander Shepard a bit (owing both to the game idealizing them and their placement as player proxy) that this fic elides. Nathaly Shepard is a fully formed and deeply flawed character from moment one, and Pigeon manages that neat writerly trick of making all of Shepard’s flaws her strongest traits as well. That same level of incisive characterization is applied to everyone else, all woven together with some of the most interesting and tense action scenes I’ve read.
Tagging
@rogueimperator @blindvogel @siderealsandman @wheremermaidsdwell @deliriumsdelight7 and honestly anyone else who wants to do this give me fanfic recs.
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R u the one who posted about nirvana in fire? Top danmei, donghua, wuxia and xianxia tv series recommendations plssss
Sorry, I don't really watch these genres. Back then I watched NiF because it's not purely romance or wuxia/xianxia, and because people on Tumblr were posting about it, which was a pretty rare thing for Chinese dramas at the time. Same for CQL. My interest is historical/historical fiction dramas, most of which are not known outside of China.
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I posted 5,832 times in 2022
That's 1,413 more posts than 2021!
30 posts created (1%)
5,802 posts reblogged (99%)
Blogs I reblogged the most:
@fouryearsofshades
@rongzhi
@hanfugallery
@fuckyeahchinesefashion
I tagged 5,828 of my posts in 2022
#r - 5,765 posts
#hanfu - 3,786 posts
#art - 1,187 posts
#tang dynasty - 810 posts
#audio - 791 posts
#ming dynasty - 738 posts
#video - 734 posts
#mens hanfu - 576 posts
#drama - 572 posts
#art by op - 558 posts
Longest Tag: 96 characters
#i'll always associate this song with the giant dancing ginseng from that one chunwan performance
My Top Posts in 2022:
#5
In wuxia I see that they have half their hair up and the other half down. Is there a certain period where this hairstyle directs from?
Hi, thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply!
The half-up, half-down hairstyle that you often see on both male & female characters in Chinese guzhuang (period costume) dramas is not based on historical hairstyles. Rather, it is a fairly recent styling convention, most likely originating from late 20th century wuxia TV shows from Hong Kong (x). Over time the hairstyle has become normalized and commonplace in Chinese costume dramas, especially in the wuxia and xianxia genres (because these genres are not necessarily aiming for historical accuracy in the first place).
Below, from left to right: Wang Hedi in Love Between Fairy and Devil, Deng Wei in Miss the Dragon, Xiao Zhan in The Untamed, Gong Jun in Word of Honor:
As @niteshade925 explains in this post, for male characters, the main idea of the hairstyle is to make the character look attractive, and also in some shows/context, to hint at the character’s personality, as in maybe they do not adhere to traditional customs and are free-spirited/spontaneous. For female characters, it is usually just a regular hairstyle without deeper meaning :P
For more information on this half-up half-down hairstyle, and historical hairstyles in general, please see the following posts:
The historical accuracy of half-up half-down hairstyles
The historical accuracy of ponytails
Historical hairstyles for men
Hope this helps!
528 notes - Posted October 7, 2022
#4
Dior Mamianqun Controversy
I received the following message via chat from a follower, that I would like to share here:
Hi, 小紫, do you know that Dior appropriates the modernized mamianqun designed by some hanfu brands in china? link of discussion about Dior 2022 A/W show on weibo: https://weibo.com/6323095999/LChcJyPTa?refer_flag=1001030103_&type=repost#_rnd1657858224778 , I think Dior indeed directly referenced the structure of how it's pleated and inner cutouts of mamianqun which has a long history dated back to ming dynasty and influenced the shape of qing dynasty skirts as well, it is sussy, look how the DIOR model turned around when the skirt spread to reveal the split style, this is indeed the unique inner structure of mamianqun, a more rigorous examination requires DIOR to show the flat design, but Dior is not responding, it claims on the official website that this is their exclusive style launched this year, yet the same style of mamianqun has been prevalent among young people in China for several years, there are several taobao stores making exactly this kind of modernized mamianqun since 2018 or even early (metal leather buckle belt + fabric suitable for autumn and winter + long skirts), such as 四时景, 你好美荔, etc., I don't know how to make it an anonymous ask for you to post my question but I would like to listen to your and other followers' comments on this, thank you 小紫(also feel totally free not to post this one, it's your blog and you make the call ❤️
See the full post
1,167 notes - Posted July 15, 2022
#3
See the full post
1,262 notes - Posted January 9, 2022
#2
Hi! I'm really fond of researching about hanfu and its history, and I found a lot of interesting information on this blog. But I can't help it and keep wondering about the reason for qipao/cheongsang not be considered a hanfu? When I researched about it the most common argument is the Manchu influence on it. However, there are a plenty of hanfu styles that were influenced by other cultures. Is there a more especific reason for not consider the qipao?
Hi, thanks for the question, and glad you like my blog! (x)
I want to start off with an important disclaimer:
The term “hanfu” as we use it today (defined as “traditional Han Chinese clothing”) does not have the exact same meaning as when it was used historically. As @audreydoeskaren explains in this post, “while it is true that the term “hanfu” was used in some historical texts, they were often used in opposition to clothing worn by foreign peoples...and not as a standalone term”. Today, there is no central organizing body or law that states exactly what is & what is not considered hanfu. Rather, such categorization is done by the members of the hanfu community - and the hanfu community is not a monolith. Ever since its inception in 2003, the hanfu revival movement has been a grassroots, bottom-up movement with members of various backgrounds, ideologies, and opinions. It is a movement that is built upon, and driven forward by, constant dialogue and debate among its members. Thus the question of what garments are considered hanfu is under continuous discussion, and is subject to the hanfu community’s views and ideas on culture, clothing, and history.
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2,167 notes - Posted March 6, 2022
My #1 post of 2022
What exactly does Dunhuang style mean?
Hi, thanks for the question! (x)
Dunhuang/敦煌 style refers to the art, fashion, and culture depicted in the Dunhuang Murals/敦煌壁画 of China, which are located in the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, Gansu Province. From the 4th to 14th century, the caves were constructed by Buddhist monks to serve as shrines with funds from donors. These caves were elaborately painted, the cave paintings and architecture serving as aids to meditation, visual representations of the quest for enlightenment, and teaching tools for Buddhist beliefs and stories. The major caves were sponsored by patrons such as important clergy, local ruling elite, foreign dignitaries, as well as Chinese emperors (x). Below - painting from the Dunhuang Murals (x):
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3,306 notes - Posted January 1, 2022
Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →
#tumblr2022#year in review#ziseviolet#personal#2022#hanfu#qipao#my 2022 tumblr year in review#your tumblr year in review#chinese fashion#chinese culture#china#s
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My Top 10 BL Series of All Time
1. We Best Love: No. 1 for You
a. The chemistry between Sam and Yu is absolutely out of this world.
b. I ranked this as my number one show immediately after watching it week-by-week so it is entirely possible I am biased but…their chemistry!!
c. I like the plot of enemies to lovers anyway and this version of it with added reluctance just floats my boat.
2. Word of Honor
a. Not technically a BL. This wuxia drama is based on a BL novel but was censored for Chinese television which has banned any BL content.
b. Any show about a “bromance” that can convince me the leads are in love is a win.
c. This show also made me feel feelings about many of the side characters, which is a big thing that very rarely happens when I watch shows. And given just how many side characters this show had is a particularly impressive feat.
3. Bad Buddy the Series
a. Ohm and Nanon flexed their acting chops and showed off why they are both such in demand actors.
b. Like WBL I watched this week-to-week and then immediately put it on my list so my bias may once again be showing, however I loved this series. With the exception of two weird time jumps I thought it was incredibly well paced. By that I mean each episode had enough action to warrant the decisions that were made and to not get bored waiting for the next exciting part of the show.
4. History 3: Trapped
a. I love the non-traditional BL setting of a Mafioso and the cop out trying to get him and bring him in, only to fall for him in the process.
b. I also appreciate that there is a mystery being unraveled throughout the course of the show. It means that if I ever lost interest in the main couple’s dynamic (which I never did, but others might) there was an actual plot catching my attention as well.
5. Seven Days
a. Not technically a series, more like a movie divided into two, but my god, it’s wonderful.
b. I watched this due to AbsoluteBL recommending it at every chance they got and I regret absolutely nothing about that decision.
c. These boys have chemistry up the wazoo, they have a heartwarming naivety in completely different ways, and their story just makes me smile.
6. Cherry Magic
a. I love this series. I love that you get demi-romantic representation, I love that you get asexual representation, I love that you get fantasy sequences about what the main couple could be but those fantasies are like “I wanna see this person eating a dinner I made for him”.
b. Adachi is too good for this world, even as he flails about in distress at every turn, and Kurosawa absolutely wants to win the “world’s number one gentleman” award.
7. Light on Me
a. I hate love triangles because I think they are too obvious- most of the time you can tell who will end up with the lead by the end of the second or third episode. Light on Me, however? That absolutely was not the case. They used BL tropes in a way that gave equal weight to each potential love interest and gave both characters reasonably well developed back stories.
b. I love all of the male characters on this show and want to give all of them hugs because they are doing their best. So yeah, love this show.
8. I Told Sunset About You
a. This one. Oh ITSAY. I have never felt more seen as a queer person than watching this show. The way the director and actors were able to capture how awkward teenage romance is? The way they were able to capture identity crises that come from realizing you like someone of the same gender?
b. It hurts so good.
9. Until We Meet Again
a. I don’t cry at television very easily, and everyone talking about how much they cried at this series made me roll my eyes. But the ending of the penultimate episode and beginning of the finale had me weeping. Fluke Natouch did an absolutely fantastic job in those scenes in particular and shot to the top of my favourite Thai actors list as a result.
b. The plot itself is incredibly unique to television (but not fanfiction, lol) and I thought the script writer did a good job balancing the time between the past and the present to make you invested in both couples even when you knew exactly what happened in the past.
10. Long Time No See/Gaya Sa Pelikula
a. Yes I cheated and picked two, but some of my options above might not qualify to your standards so, sue me.
LTNS
i. The plot of this show is so interesting. I love that the leads were interested in each other before even really knowing each other and yet that interest never waned as their secrets unfolded. Give me a lover who will fight for me!
ii. I also love the awkward realness of the intimate scenes in this show.
Gaya Sa Pelikula
i. Had me on the edge of my seat to see where the couple was going
ii. I loved that this series addressed being gay as normal. No [metaphors]. Loved that the two female characters were likeable.
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Your Novel in Martial Arts
One of many top three Chinese fighting methods fiction copy writers, Gu Lengthy (1937-1985) wrote sixty-nine books in a job spanning mph years. Lots of copies in his catalogs have been bought, and many of them have been frequently adapted intended for TV or perhaps cinema. His other essential novels have the Compassionate Swordsman and the Merciless Sword (1970), The Orchid at Midnight (1979) and Search Hawk, Casino Game (1984). At the age of forty-eight, he past away of liver disease caused by high alcohol alcohol consumption. Rebecca Nasiums. Tai received her masters degree out of University of California, Los Angeles. She really likes reading excursion fiction and watching martial arts training drama.
One of his missions, Xiao (the Eleventh Son, referred to as Great Bandit) meets Shen, the fairest woman inside martial universe. By the are going to of destiny, he protects Shen repeatedly, which crops the seed of love through both of them. Nevertheless , Shen can be married to your rich son who is likewise an outstanding martial artist. Almost like things are not complicated more than enough, Xiao features his unique secret baver, Feng, a beautiful swordswoman along with a quick state of mind. Xiao is definitely drawn into a messy guard a popular saber, the Deer Carver, and is suspect of stealing it. Xiao finds out the fact that the person who has set him up is mostly a mysterious child with a great angel's experience and a fabulous devil's center. Before he can pursue any more, Shen's nanna is murdered, and Xiao is named the killer. It would appear that things are rotating out of control?
The following are some reviews made by a variety of foreign readers.
This book certainly is the only official translated wuxia novel in by the Delayed Gu Extended (Ku Extended, Ku lung) available in English language to date. Gu Long is among the three very best wuxia copy writers ever, therefore having a person his works of fiction finally being recognized is indeed wonderful. Whilst comparing that to additional translated wuxia novels happen to be rather unfair, because Gu Long provides his private distinct posting style, nevertheless in technical aspect of understanding, Becky Tai, the übersetzungsprogramm, exceeded the rest, mainly when compared John Minfor and Graham Earnshaw. Becky Tai preserved the writer's original posting style and mood, set up words and sentences have become in English tongue. Additionally , Becky kept the names and significant terms for Chinese pinyin and outlined them to her readers, a lot better approach as opposed to changing character's name inside English as well as ignorantly using the term "Karate" for Chinese language martial arts, like Minford did in his snel of The Deer and the Cauldron. Overall, this guide worths just about every penny and should be accumulated by anyone that love the "wuxia" (Chinese knight-errand) genre but unable to examine neither Far east characters nor any other Asian kitchenware language whereby many wuxia novels have already been translated.
In terms of I know, this is Gu Long's second world wide published in the West. The earliest was Christine Courniot's France translation of "Les Quatre Brigands du Huabei" obtainable from the amazon website. fr. This is the first professional and complete English language translation created by Rebecca Tai. Those of us, who have an interest through martial arts hype, seek out novels like this one however you do not have to be a martial arts admirateur to appreciate this excellent novel. Gu Long, much more than Louis Cha, has a poetic style of composing that is exceptional to the genre of Asian martial arts misinformation. I find the controls of his novels inviting and gorgeous which leaves a lot to the imagination. Gu Long has acute mental insight into human nature combined with the real human relational perception of honor and shame. The characters will be fascinating, the situations the particular characters result in are at moments fantastic nonetheless that is regular of literary works that involves history and fantasy. I extensively enjoyed that novel. It turned out a new and refreshing experience.
This is one of the first translated books from the credited Chinese martial arts training fiction compose Gu Prolonged. It's good translated and takes you back in its history to a mythological China thousands of years ago, the moment martial art and Chinese glimmering gems went in conjunction. The world Gu Long produces is romanticized with varied characters the two good and evil, all the things well versed inside martial arts. With https://cnovelholic.com/ , Xiao, Feng, and Shen are very believable and frequently humorous. This is exactly like a literary version from Crouching Tiger Hidden Monster, Hero, or maybe House from Flying Daggers. Kudos to Rebecca Tai for converting and Homa for providing a great Asian literary gemstone to the areas!
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DO YOU HAVE SHOW RECCS!!! ANY SHOW RECCS!! noticed you rb/post a lot of Chinese shows/media and i would like to fall down that rabbit hole :3
hi!! sorry for the late response!! this is such a good question for someone as crazy about cmedia as me haha, it really depends on what genre you like! here are some of my top dramas!
XIANXIA:
love between fairy and devil
back from the brink
the untamed
the legends
eternal love of dream
the blue whisper
the legend of shen li
WUXIA:
who rules the world
word of honor
a journey to love
HISTORICAL:
destined
the romance of tiger and rose
love like the galaxy
royal rumours
the letter from the cloud
OTHERS:
couple of mirrors
guardian
the spirealm
i hope this helps!! if you're into a specific genre/trope/theme, i can also recommend based on those!
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Hong Kong Action Cinema Blog 3
Last blog I took a closer look at the way John Woo directs his films, using Hard Boiled as the main example. This movie is one of his more known ones so I thought it would be the perfect movie to dive into his style of directing. Now for this blog, I am going to look at how John Woo and his filmmaking style has influenced other directors and films, in years to follow.
John Woo has a very unique style of filmmaking and directing. With action, he never makes it too over the top, and wants to make everything as realistic-looking as possible. With the use of slow-motion and the rapid switching of angles with different speeds during a fight, he is able to capture all the action while making everything seem very real. Every scene is very chaotic because he goes all out. Lots of bullets flying, weapons being tossed around, explosions, and a lot of blood. People coined the term "gun-fu" from his action scenes to describe the rapid gunfire between two people fighting head-to-head. John Woo influenced a lot of movies to come in later years of action cinema, and influenced directors and filmmakers that came after him too.
A filmmaker I'd like to discuss is Quentin Tarantino. He directs action films filled with drama. John Woo's films are mainly action but also involved some drama as well. He has had major influence from John Woo and his films and directing style of stylized violence, and he has said it himself but also it is evident through the way he directs his own movies too. Quentin Tarantino during an interview had said "John Woo was a big major hero to me at the time, I was just so influenced by Hong Kong cinema" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAck19uYAv0). What Quentin took away from John Woo is just the beauty of directing action cinema. You can film it in so many ways, but the way John Woo does it keeps everything fresh and intense. He uses intense dialogue, similar to a Hong Kong action film, and unexpected but thrilling action.
Certain ways John Woo has directed has had an influence on today's action films too. In Hard Boiled there is an action scene through the hospital that lasts two minutes and 42 seconds with no cut, it is an extremely long take from John Woo. In this scene, "the usual Woo hallmarks are on display: a hero wielding twin automatic pistols, slow motion, as well as the use of a technique rarely seen in his movies – filming the majority of the set piece in one take. The use of an unbroken shot...allowed the unseen set designers to alter the location to fit the requirements of the sequence while also enhancing the audience’s enjoyment of the action" (AllTheRightMovies).
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Later action movies utilized this, such as Prachya Pinkaew’s Protector. In this movie he "has a memorable set piece that’s a perfect example of how a one take action scene can showcase both a lead character’s martial arts prowess and the imposing location he must traverse in order to confront the bad guys" (AllTheRightMovies). Prachya took inspiration from John Woo and utilized a great technique for action films to make the scene more effective.
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Quentin Tarintino filmed the Kill Bill movies, which was seen as "his own take on 70s Japanese, Chinese, and Hong Kong martial arts movies including legendary actors from the era like Sonny Chiba and Gordon Liu" (Harvey Gough).
The Wachowski sisters directed The Matrix movies, which dove more into their "wuxia influence with increasingly extreme displays of martial arts" (Gough). Other notable films like Underworld, Blade 2 and Equilibrium "embraced the Hong Kong action sub genres gun fu (martial arts involving superhuman skill with guns) and heroic bloodshed (violent melodrama), which were popularized by directors John Woo and Ringo Lam in the late 80s and 90s" (Gough).
The director I mainly focused on today is John Woo, who has had a major influence on the genre of action cinema today. With his unique directing styles, it is clear why so many people use parts of his style in today's films, because it is so great and refreshing.
Sources:
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