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we-pay-for-everything · 1 year

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I'm only an episode away from finishing season 1 of Kung Fu (don't get the title tbh), but I really have to vent about it, even though I'm very sleepy and should be going to bed... Soooo, a few things:

The show is obviously very cheesy sometimes. What bothers me the most is that it tries to tackle real life issues such as sinophobia, BLM, sexual abuse, etc. but offers fairytale-like solutions that don't do those issues justice and even undermine them to some extent. For example, Nicky prevented Joe from getting arrested at a BLM protest by standing up to the cops, prompting everyone else to do the same. So, you're telling me the police just backed off because a bunch of black and Asian-American protesters stood up to them? How about when she saved a girl and her mother from an abuser by, again, standing up to the guy (and kicking ass)? The show even made mention of programs to help women like them. Counting on the American government to help anyone is pretty risky, especially the most vulnerable. The show is obviously not pro-police, but it also isn't as anti-police/authority/capitalism as it should be. If the goal is to educate people and bring attention to such huge issues in society, you can't offer up bullshit, Disney-like solutions - that's just misleading your audience. The writing is completely on the nose and cliché when it comes to this.

Actually, the writing is pretty inelegant overall and lacks direction. The writers want to avoid falling into certain clichés and attempt to put a twist on some tropes, but the delivery is so predictable. For example, the "love triangle", it was obvious from the beginning that they were going to work that in, but it was equally obvious how it was going to unfold. Love triangles are so overdone and the writers seemingly wanted to stay clear of that kind of drama, so why make it a thing to begin with? If you don't want a love triangle and aren't willing to explore both relationships, just don't add the character of the ex - it was so unnecessary and unsatisfying. I prefer Evan so that annoyed me, but I don't care about Nicky and Henry for a lot of reasons. They're cute, but they were pretty much a couple from day 1. Their story unfolded in a rather predictable manner and the power couple angle imo only works if you actually care about the couple. Was I supposed to care about how badass they were only two episodes into the show, when I didn't care about any of the characters yet?

What the show does best imo, and quite well at that, is the lore and mythology of it all. It's fun when Nicky goes on an adventures and any time Zhilan shows up.

Zhilan, to me, is the most nuanced and interesting character on the show alongside Mei-Li (they're also the best actresses imo, especially the actress who plays Nicky's mom). I like it when the show explores these characters and their strengths, vulnerabilities, and how their fears and desires drive their actions and lead them to make the wrong choices. I could say a lot about Zhilan. I think she's the most fleshed-out character. It's very easy to understand where she comes from and to relate to her... That leads me to the reason I had to write this post:

Zhilan and Kerwin... Stop killing my ships! I knew from the moment Kerwin killed someone for Zhilan that he was either going to be killed/die in front of her - forcing her to grow even more cruel and determined to reach her goals - or she was going to choose power over him and let him die or kill him herself. This was so obviously going to happen that it was even more upsetting and disappointing when it did. The writers hit gold with those two. They had great chemistry, they were similar, they were fun. They were an actual power couple that was fun and exciting to watch because it felt earned. We saw them falling for each other and overcoming their fears to be together - in Zhilan's case it was trusting someone, and in Kerwin's it was loving someone more than he feared his family. I absolutely understand that Zhilan loved Kerwin but was scared for herself - she was scared of losing sight of her goals, scared to fully trust Kerwin, scared of the changes she saw in herself. All she had was herself and the thought of losing that was terrifying. Loving someone changes you and she was scared of becoming someone she didn't fully control or understand. She was scared of trusting someone completely too, especially a Tan, but I think the fact that Kerwin was a Tan didn't even matter as much as it was a reminder of everything she'd lost. From her perspective, she lived alone for decades so she wasn't scared of being without him - it was actually the opposite. So yeah, I get why she killed him, but wouldn't it have been better if she hadn't? What if she trusted him instead? What if they were a power couple? Loving someone wouldn't have made her any less evil. It's boring that Nicky is good so she trusted Henry but Zhilan is bad so she couldn't trust Kerwin. She still could've..? That would've been funner and opened up many exciting avenues for her character. How do you write a villain with trust issues who's in love and wants to have it all - revenge and romance - but the guy is kind of the enemy? He wants all of her and is willing to accept he can't have it, but can she change and do better? Can she change and grow while remaining the villain and not being redeemed? We could've had it all: a good villain with a compelling backstory and an exciting romance!!

TL;DR: I loved that couple a lot and their scenes were the ones I actually 100% paid attention to. Now that Kerwin is gone, I guess I don't have to worry about being invested in the show. I can go back to only half-watching it. I had my romance and now it's over. I like Zhilian less too. I know a strong, evil woman like herself can't have a boyfriend so they're going to pretend like she was never in love.

Also, I don't know if this will happen, but from the beginning I also had the feeling Evan wasn't going to last long. When Nicky figured out who she wanted, he would be kicked to the curb and leave the show. Still feel like that might happen...

Anyway, the show is good and has (had) a lot of potential, but some of the writers' ideas need a better execution or follow-up

#kung fu cw #zhilan zhang #kerwin tan #etc.

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fillingthescrapbook · 3 years

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Rewriting The CW's Kung Fu, Part 6: Act II

We're nearly to the end, but if you're somehow seeing this before any of the previous posts, you can find them here:

Part 1: The Characters

Part 2: The Pilot

Part 3: The Mythology

Part 4: The Story Map

Part 5: Act I

If you've read all that, I am hoping that you've gotten to know Nicky enough that you're willing to ride along for the next part of her journey. Because we're going to the territory that the show actually covered (with a few rewrites, of course): the hunt for the mystical weapons.

Episode 6: Bond

We start this episode with Nicky reeling over two revelations: one, that Althea is a survivor of sexual harassment, and two, that Zhi-Lan is her dead mentor's sister. But she's going to focus first on what's more important: her own family. Nicky tells Althea that she will be there to support her whatever Althea decides to do. Althea admits that she doesn't know yet--

When Dennis tells Althea that his family's been invited to a gala at the museum for a loaned Chinese exhibit, Althea also finds out that her former boss at Cloudrush Capital will be in attendance--as a donor. Althea asks Nicky and Ryan to come with her for support--but Ryan has hospital duties. So Nicky asks Henry to accompany them instead.

At the house, Ryan can feel that there's tension between him and Mei-Li. He thinks it's because he's gay--until he realizes that his parents don't actually know that he had come out when he stood with Joe (in the last episode). Ryan explains to Jin and Mei-Li that the reason he only had one girlfriend, who quickly dumped him, is because he is gay. Jin and Mei-Li are speechless. Mei-Li walks out, uncertain of how to act. Jin, trying and failing to be supportive, just taps Ryan on the shoulder.

At the museum, Henry recognizes one of the weapons on display. It's one of the eight mystical weapons. But when he is about to point it out to Nicky, the latter had already left him. Because Nicky spotted Zhi-Lan at the gala. She is about to follow Zhi-Lan when she sees Althea having a panic attack upon seeing her former boss. Nicky weighs her options, but chooses to stay with Althea instead.

With Althea calmed down, Nicky tells Henry that Zhi-Lan is at the gala. Henry figures out that Zhi-Lan is there for the weapon, explaining to Nicky that one of the eight fabled weapons that he mentioned to her before is part of the loaned exhibit. He takes her to the still-closed exhibit--and they catch two crooks trying to steal the weapon. They get into a fight with the crooks. They win. But when they turn to the display case, the weapon is gone.

Nicky sees Zhi-Lan making her way out of the museum. In a hurry. Nicky chases after her. The get into a fight and Nicky is holding her own against Zhi-Lan, thanks to her different training with Henry. But something is holding her back: her need to understand how Zhi-Lan could kill Pei-Ling. Which she asks Zhi-Lan point blank during a stand-off. Zhi-Lan is taken aback for a second before quickly recovering, saying she lost her sister when she was a kid. That the woman she killed at the monastery was of no relation to her. Zhi-Lan manages to knock Nicky down before getting away. Henry and Althea find Nicky and get her home.

Althea and Henry bring Nicky to the community center where Ryan is cleaning her wounds. Nicky explains that the woman she fought with was the woman who killed her mentor at the monastery. Henry explains that the woman, Zhi-Lan, is probably collecting the eight mystical weapons from folklore. According to legend, bringing the eight together and taking them back to where they were forged would grant the collector untold power. Nicky whispers, "Bian-Ge." Althea frowns. "Change?" Ryan is concerned. "Transformation." But Nicky doubts that that Zhi-Lan can find all eight weapons soon. It took her three years before she found the longsword, and she probably only lucked out with her second weapon because it was included in the exhibit advertisement. Nicky is more worried about Althea.

Nicky remembers a memory of her time at the monastery, when Pei-Ling told her about important decisions having a lot of weight. How she lost people she loved because she chose to honor what she believed is right. In the memory, Pei-Ling tells Nicky that time has a way of giving them clarity on what they should've done. But during a moment of crisis, all they can do is trust that their heart is in the right place.

In the present time, Althea tells Nicky that she doesn't think she has the courage to speak up. Not yet. Nicky understands. They all have their own pace when it comes to dealing with problems. She ran away for three years. Althea notes that Nicky is back now, that she's facing her problems now. Nicky hugs her sister, saying: "and you will face your problems too. When you're ready."

Nicky and Henry are targeted by the goons they fought at the museum. They think the two have the weapon that was stolen from the museum. Nicky and Henry get into another fight with the goons. This time, when they defeat the goons, Nicky calls Evan for police help.

Althea talks to her former colleague who wants to speak up against their ex-boss. Althea apologizes and says she cannot come out. Not right now. But she is willing to talk to whoever she needs to talk to. Under anonymity. To save those they can still save. The woman thanks Althea.

At the house, Ryan tells Nicky that he's moving out of the house. Nicky apologizes for not being there when he came out to their parents. Ryan tells Nicky that he didn't need her there after all. But he will need her moving forward. To watch over their parents with him out of the house, to keep him updated, and to still be there for him when he calls. Nicky promises. They hug. Ryan leaves.

Jin sees Mei-Li pulling out an old shoe box. Something he hasn't seen in years. It contains an old photo of Mei-Li...with her sister Mei-Xue. She tells Jin that she swore she wouldn't be like her mother. But why does it feel like she's doing what her mother had done too? Pushing her own children away?

Evan visits Nicky at Happy Dumplings to talk about the goons she and Henry stopped at the museum. Nicky tells Evan that she knows who the goons are working for "Zhang Zhi-Lan." Nicky reminds Evan that he was the one with the info on her connection with the Triad. Evan shakes his head, telling Nicky that they were bailed out by a business owned by a Raymond Tan. This makes Nicky think. Is there another party interested in the weapons?

We will have a mini-reveal here of Henry's apartment. It has a map of the world with markings. Photos of the eight weapons that have strings tying them to locations where they have been sighted. It seems that Henry is keeping a secret from Nicky.

Episode 7: Rage

In this episode, Nicky and Henry work together when one of Henry's students at the community center ask for their help. A friend of his has gotten involved with a dojo that cons their trainees into taking part in an underground fight club. The student shows them footage of the fight, which is a bloody affair, and Henry spots a pair of deer-horn knives in the decor that he tells Nicky later are among the mystical weapons.

Henry's first course of action is to go straight for the source--only to get injured by the guy in charge of the dojo. This leaves Nicky as their only viable way to get into the fight club.

Throughout the course of the story, Nicky remembers moments from the monastery where Pei-Ling teaches her how to use an opponent's emotions against them. Even sharing a story where a loved one got the better of her because she felt overwhelming concern while they were sparring. This is what Nicky will use to win the fight.

To get into the fight club, Nicky borrows money from Althea--which Dennis finds out about. When Nicky explains what's going on, Dennis is all in with helping out, saying he believes in helping the helpless--even when they look like they can take him down. Which gives Althea the idea that Dennis might be okay knowing her secret too. Ryan's in charge of putting first aid on Nicky afterwards, to keep her crime-fighting life a secret from their parents.

Meanwhile, Evan tries to investigate Raymond Tan, wanting to know why a business of his is employing thugs and goons. He gets caught by Raymond's son, Kerwin, who becomes curious about his father's non-business affairs.

Jin tries to reach out to Ryan, apologizing for his and Mei-Li's non-reactions to his coming out. While Ryan is appreciative, he doesn't want to move back in. He's better now, living with Joe.

At Althea's apartment, Ryan and Dennis have set up a laptop to find out what's going on at the fight club. They root for Nicky to go through a tournament so she could face off with the underground operation's main boss.

While Nicky is fighting, Henry goes about a second operation--to take the deer-horn knives from the dojo. In the ring, Nicky imagines Pei-Ling beside her. Cheering her on while she faces different people with different strengths. Telling her that the strengths and weaknesses are both important--because one person's weakness can also be used as their own strength, like how Nicky's small build can allow her to hit lower or drive more power in her hits.

At Althea's apartment, Mei-Li visits wanting her daughter to help with getting Ryan to move back in. Only to catch the livestream of Nicky's fight. Seeing Nicky in action. This makes Mei-Li back away and run. Althea and Ryan become worried.

When Althea and Dennis are left alone, Althea decides to tell Dennis about her experience at Cloudrush. At first Dennis is angry, he wants to strangle Althea's ex-boss himself. But after calming down, Dennis tells Althea that her secret doesn't change the way he feels about her.

The episode ends with Nicky winning the tournament. Henry getting the knives--and evidence that would help shut down the dojo front of the fight ring, preventing them from recruiting more fighters. But when Nicky gets home, Mei-Li is waiting for her. "I saw what you did. At that martial arts tournament." Nicky is perturbed. "That's not the life I wanted for you. But I feel like I pushed you into doing that. Like I pushed your brother into leaving our house. I don't want to push my children away, Nicky. So I'm no longer going to meddle in your lives. Go back to who you wanted to be before I sent you on that arranged-marriage trip three years ago. Get back together with Evan. Go back to law school. Just, please: stop fighting." This leaves Nicky speechless.

Episode 8: Silence

Happy Dumplings is in trouble. A lawsuit has been filed against the restaurant for discriminating against disabled people. Nicky is immediately able to prove that it's a fraudulent lawsuit designed to shakedown store owners who can't speak in English fluently--but unlike Happy Dumplings, other Chinese businesses in the neighborhood don't have former law school students under their roofs.

Mei-Li encourages Nicky to work with Evan to find out out what's going on with the fraudulent lawsuits, hoping that it will keep Nicky out of the warrior way. Jin confronts his wife with regards to her pushing Nicky towards Evan, when Henry is already helping their daughter move on. Mei-Li tells Jin the truth: she saw Nicky fighting people to save someone. She's scared for their daughter. Jin is confused. What's wrong with having a daughter who knows and is willing to defend others? Mei-Li decides to tell Jin the truth. (Off-screen, because there's a revelation--and it helps story-wise if we find out about it with the main character.)

While Nicky and Evan are busy canvassing the businesses in Chinatown that have received a lawsuit, they get assistance from Ryan and Joe--the latter of whom is working with the San Francisco Disability and Aging Services. None of the lawsuits can stand in court, but some of the business owners have already paid up, wanting to keep their head down and not rock the boat. Nicky and Evan trace the lawsuits back to Triad connections. Evan tells Nicky they need to get the police involved. Nicky, angry at Asians knocking down other Asians, thinks it's time to take measures into their own hands.

With Nicky busy with the fraudulent lawsuits, Henry heads back to Professor Chau's office to find out why he hasn't heard back. He learns that the professor still hasn't returned--so he breaks into the office to take a manuscript that was on loan to the professor. While inside the office, he finds a puzzle box that has a connection to the mystical weapons. He takes it too.

Meanwhile, Althea is roped into a family dinner night with Dennis's family. The dinner gets awkward when Dennis's father brings up the news about Althea's co-worker speaking up about sexual harassment in Cloudrush. Dennis is about to stand up for Althea's co-worker when his mother says the woman is probably just trying to shakedown the boss into giving her money or a higher position. Althea defends her co-worker. Dennis and his sister Chloe sides with Althea. But Mr and Mrs Soong tell them that they're just idealistic. They've had experience with people who use social justice just to get a leg up in the business. That not every victim is a real victim. This forces Althea to speak her truth. That she was a victim too. She just didn't want to say anything because she feared people won't believe her. And she feared right. She walks out. Dennis follows her against his parents' wishes.

Nicky almost gets in trouble with the Triad, but Evan is there to back her up. He tells her that he will lose his job if they find out what he's doing, and Nicky says that they're helping people--what's wrong with that? They discover that the Triad is now being run by the former boss's son, with the previous head still being in prison. Nicky wants to know why they're shaking down the Asian business owners. The new boss reasons that those business owners benefited from his father's protection for many years--and they turn their back on him when he needed them the most. Nicky tells him that his dad is a jerk who took advantage of people. "And you're worse because you're using important fights to your own gains--which makes it harder for people who are legitimately fighting for their rights to be heard." Nicky lays the smack down on the new boss of the Triad and his men. Evan points to Nicky everything the police will need to shut down the new Triad operations because he has to leave before the cavalry arrives.

Nicky, Althea, and Ryan get together to compare their days. Althea tells her siblings that Dennis's family now knows about her secret. And Dennis is standing by her. But she doesn't know if she has the courage to actually go public with the truth. Ryan breaks the news that he's going to be living on his own for the first time ever, as Joe has accepted a gig that would take him out of San Francisco for a month, because of the work they had done against the fraudulent lawsuits. And Nicky tells them how easy it was for her and Evan to return to their groove. Which makes her a little torn now, because she thinks she has feelings for Henry...but she still has feelings for Evan too.

At the district attorney's office, Evan gets a visit from Sabine. She shows him CCTV footage of Henry breaking into Professor Chau's office. She tells Evan that she's worried that Nicky might have fallen in with the wrong crowd.

And at the end of the episode, Henry brings the puzzle box he stole to Nicky. Nicky recognizes it as having the same puzzle as Pei-Ling's safe at the monastery. She opens the box. There's a jade key inside. And this is when Mei-Li and Jin arrive. Jin tells Nicky that Mei-Li has something important to tell her. Mei-Li sees the jade key in Henry's hand and tells him that he might as well hear what she has to say too. Their family comes from a lineage believed to be descended from a great warrior called Liang Dai-Yu. Mei-Li turns to Nicky: this belief already cost her a sister. She doesn't want to lose a daughter too. She pleads with Nicky; "you can build the life you want, and I won't argue. But please don't follow in my sister's footsteps. Please don't follow the warrior's destiny."

Episode 9: Isolation

In the last episode of this arc, Nicky wants to find out what happened to the aunt she never knew about. Mei-Li gives her all of Mei-Xue's letters and postcards, and notes that the last postcard came twenty-one years ago. Looking at the postcard, Nicky sees an odd red panda mascot. She searches for it on the internet with Althea's help, and they find out that it's in Canada. In a small town near Vancouver. Nicky invites Henry to go with her to look for Mei-Xue. Mei-Li wants to stop Nicky, but Jin tells her that they have to let Nicky see this through. Maybe meeting Mei-Xue will give her the clarity she needs.

Evan meets with Ryan at the community center, looking for Nicky. Ryan tells him that Nicky and Henry went on a road trip to Canada. Evan is alarmed. Ryan asks if Evan's jealous of Henry. Evan says it's more than that. He believes that Nicky is in jeopardy with Henry. This worries Ryan, so he calls in favors to cover his hospital shifts--as well as his shifts at the community center. He and Evan leave to follow Nicky to Canada.

While on the road, Henry takes Nicky to an old friend--who turns out to be a very sketchy person. Nicky begins to see Henry in a new light, and not a good one. When the old friend sells them out to someone who has it in for Henry, he and Nicky have to fight to get out of there. Henry apologizes to Nicky, and he starts to open up about his past.

Meanwhile, Althea gets targeted by the lawyers of Cloudrush Capital. They want her to sign a non-disclosure agreement for everything that happened to her at the company. Althea refuses. They threaten her career. Althea refuses to sign. This makes her want to stand up against her former boss even more. But first she needs to talk to her parents.

In Vancouver, Evan and Ryan are searching for Nicky. Mei-Li tells them that Nicky was looking for a small town with a red racoon mascot. Evan and Ryan drive towards the only town they could find on Google with red panda mascot and sees that Nicky and Henry have just arrived. Evan is about to accost Henry when Nicky sees the red panda statue from her aunt's last postcard.

After a bit of asking around, Nicky finds Duke--the artist who sculpted the Red Panda--and finds out that he knows Mei-Xue. Duke invites Nicky and Ryan out back to talk about Mei-Xue, leaving Evan and Henry alone. Evan quickly accuses Henry of not being true to Nicky. He shows Henry photos from the cctv footage that caught Henry stealing from Professor Chau's office. Henry tells Evan he can explain. When Nicky returns. But when they realize that they can't hear Nicky, Ryan, or Duke anymore, the two quickly head to the back of the Duke's house--but there's no one there.

Nicky and Ryan are following Duke on a trail. When they reach a certain area, Duke turns against them. He says that Mei-Xue told him that there would be people after her. Duke promised Mei-Xue that he will keep her safe. Nicky and Ryan explain that they really are Mei-Xue's niece and nephew. Nicky even shows the postcard. But Duke doesn't want to believe them. Until Nicky calls Mei-Li, to asks her to talk to Duke. Which finally makes Duke believe. He tells Nicky that he's no longer welcome at Mei-Xue's house, but if they follows his map--they will find what they're looking for.

At home, Althea has already told her parents about what she had gone through Cloudrush Capital. Mei-Li wants to know what Althea wants them to do. She tells them that there's nothing they can do, that they have already done everything she could ever want or need: because they love her and believe her. She just wanted them to know what she had gone through before she goes public. Jin and Mei-Li hug their daughter.

Nicky and Ryan reach Mei-Xue's house, but it's abandoned. There are clear signs of someone recently fleeing the scene though. Nicky finds journals in the house. She takes photos of the pages. She is about to leave when Ryan finds a photo of Mei-Xue and Mei-Li with their own parents. Ryan recognizes their Wai-gong and Wai-po. Nicky hears something from the back and exits through the kitchen--to find that there's a grave in the yard. A grave with Mei-Xue's face. Nicky calls Mei-Li. "Mom, I've got bad news." Inside the house, Ryan finds a long box that has inscription. "Duke, send this to Mei-Li if something happens to me."

At the end of the episode, Nicky and Ryan reunite with Evan and Henry, apologizing for setting off on their own. Evan then tells them that Henry has something important to say. Henry sighs and comes clean to Nicky: His father was a guardian of one of the eight weapons. He's been helping Nicky because it is his duty to keep the weapons, at least the one that his family was supposed to keep safe, separate from the others.

#Kung Fu CW #tv talk #my words

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