TVB Reflections

The truth is I am unsure how to “dispose” of this blog. My initial plan was to write one awesome post for the first time ever, pack my databases, and then dance merrily off into the graveyard of misunderstood bloggers. However, I don’t even have enough interest in TVB now to follow these steps. This is not a case of writer’s block – the writer chooses to protect herself from the material. Yes, there is a difference. Studying to earn a PhD degree already eats up most of my time, and I wish to continue using leftover hours to indulge in real-life activities such as eating, drinking plenty of fluids, using the restroom, working, and playing Final Fantasy XIII and chasing fatties on Fat Princess all that good stuff.

Thank you very much to the readers and fellow bloggers who have supported me and left kind messages. You all are still here, right? I don’t want to come off as delusional in what could be my very last entry. Whew, what a relief. I may return one day to torture you all with broken humor and puzzling comics, so be on guard or just not visit. You know, whichever is easier.

Previews of 2010 Jade Dramas

Below are high-quality trailers of series to be released/filmed/proposed next year. Please be patient as the videos may take some time to load/buffer depending on your connection.

Righteous Sea of Heroic Love (巾幗梟雄之義海豪情)
Cast: Wayne Lai, Sheren Tang, Susan Tse, Ngo Ka Nin, Raymond Wong, Fala Chen, etc.

Epic trailer! I’m so relieved to see that the sequel to Rosy Business is not a comedy. Set during World War II in Guangzhou, China, the spin-off drama deals with internal struggles to suppress the trade of opium and invasion by Japanese soldiers. I believe this has huge potential to surpass its predecessor.

The Legend of Pu Songling (蒲松齡)
Cast: Steven Ma, Linda Chung, Sunny Chan, Fala Chen, etc.

Pu Songling is the author of Strange Tales of Liaozhai, a collection of stories about ghosts and spirits written in the Qing dynasty. Many have been adapted into live-action form, particularly in TVB’s Dark Tales. It is said that Pu Songling opened a tea house and offered free drinks to travelers in exchange for their stories. I’m intrigued with this new take on his life, but the last mythical series released were complete duds. Please don’t disappoint this time!

Mysteries of Love (談情說案)
Cast: Raymond Lam, Tavia Yeung, Kenneth Ma, Bernice Liu, etc.

I love series with scientific themes, and it’s refreshing to see Raymond Lam and Tavia Yeung in new roles. However, there are some bits of cheesy dialogue. I’m still going to give this one a chance.

Read the rest of this entry »

Farewell Mr. Chan Hung Lit

The awards ceremony appropriately began with a segment honoring Chan Hung Lit, a veteran actor who died of a heart attack on November 24, 2009. Clips of his past performances were displayed, including one as Sun Ching Wah that earned him the Best Supporting Actor award. TV audiences saw him happily dancing with Shek Sau and Kiki Sheung shortly before his death on the Anniversary Gala show. He is survived by his wife and children.

Following the departures of Lydia Shum, Shek Kin, and a few others in recent memory, this is yet another blow to the TVB community and a reminder of how precious, short, and unpredictable life is.

Wayne Lai Wins TVB.com Popularity Award

I have little idea how an artiste’s popularity on TVB.com is calculated apart from the number of hits an official blog receives. Do results of online polls factor in? That would make more sense because Yoyo Mung’s blog is always positioned at the top of the list when I happen to stop by. I’ve never even seen Wayne’s on the front page. Ah, the influence of intangible players.

Aimee Chan Wins Most Improved Actress Award

With Selena Li completely out of the running (what happened?), my next pick was Koni Lui. However, to be fair the most deserving qualifier this year was definitely Sharon Chan, who has much more experience than the others and indeed shown improvement. After seeing how grateful and moved Aimee Chan was, I should probably be somewhat happy for her. Hopefully, she continues to work on both her acting skills and Cantonese pronunciation, and doesn’t get pigeonholed into playing “tomboy” roles.

Ngo Ka Nin Wins Most Improved Actor Award

A deserving win for Ngo Ka Nin! With 10 years of experience already under his belt, he broke through this time with a well-received performance as eldest son Chiang Bit Man in Rosy Business.

Tavia Yeung Wins My Most Favorite Female Character Award

Appointing Wong Yat Wah as presenter proved to be a good decision. His role as Kwok Jing in the classic 1982 The Legend of the Condor Heroes remains a favorite among many TVB fans. Lest we forget, he flexes his acting chops pretending to be upset after seeing Tavia Yeung and Charmaine Sheh exchange pecks on the cheeks.

With members of the Rosy Business cast being heavy favorites, I expected Sheren Tang’s Hong Po Kei to win as she was more likable than Yiu Gam Ling. To pair up with Dayo Wong’s Mak Tai Song of You’re Hired, however, Charmaine’s Lam Miu Miu was required. For the first time since her breakthrough role in 2001’s Country Spirit, she impressed me – that’s a big plus in my book. I’ve warmed up to her quite a bit this year.

It’s interesting to observe the high affinity TVB viewers have for certain villainous roles. Is the attraction based purely on the level of performance? That often humans with strong flaws are sympathized? Or the probability that villains leave deeper impressions on their audiences in comparison to righteous characters? I believe it to be a combination of all three when TVB plays fairly. Nonetheless, congratulations to Tavia. She humbly repeated the same two lines from last year’s acceptance speech.

Wayne Lai Wins My Most Favorite Male Character Award

Watching Mak Tai Song painfully struggle to devise a breakup plan with Lam Miu Miu again caused me to laugh. Poor girl, she fell for his plans each time. I really love characters with wit and a good sense of humor, so he was my personal favorite, but unsurprisingly, Chai Kau was a powerful force to be reckoned with even beyond the grave.

As you prepare to move your eyes vertically down, I would like to waste 20 seconds now to state an irrelevant opinion: Moses Chan’s ridiculously annoying Terrence Ho in The Gem of Life was by far my least favorite character of the year. Thank you.

Susan Tse Wins Best Supporting Actress Award

Susan Tse may be a new addition to the TVB family, but no rookie actress as she is famous outside for her participation in Chinese operas. Possessing an aura that breeds authority and the ability to pull at heartstrings, Susan was perfect as Empress Dowager Kwok in Beyond the Realm of Conscience and Yan Fung Yee in Rosy Business. I can’t even imagine her in modern dramas now, but I shall look forward to her upcoming productions.

Michael Tse Wins Best Supporting Actor Award

My heart goes out to Lee Kwok Lun, who excels in his supporting roles. Missing out on such a rare opportunity this year, I doubt we’ll see him again in the Top 5. What a shame. And how could Derek Kwok not be a finalist? D.I.E. Again was seriously overrated, but he was solid as Cheung Ching Yee. The man is likely aching for a big break.

Although Michael Tse is not a disappointing actor, his performance as Laughing Gor has already earned him a leading part in the spin-off film Turning Point. Perhaps TVB should have given the Popularity award to him and left this one open to the other two actors.

Tavia Yeung Wins Best Performance of the Year Award

“Best Performance of the Year” is a new category created in 2009 to reward hardworking artistes. The winner is not decided by public votes, but rather a panel of professional judges. Four main criteria are:

• Success in surpassing his/her peers
• Leaves a strong impression on viewers
• Strong work ethic
• Positive attitude

Wait a minute, those sound like the same considerations for choosing Best Actress. The new title even sounds more prestigious – it’s unisex. As much as Tavia deserves to be rewarded for her superb performance as Yiu Gam Ling, handing out this award nearly defeats the purpose of presenting the next two trophies. I blame TVB, but am happy the company cherishes Tavia enough to do this.

Sheren Tang Wins Best Actress Award

Prior to the announcement of Best Actress, a clip of Tavia’s character crying, “In the end, the winner is I, Yiu Gam Ling! Ahahahah!” was shown, generating much laughter. Now that was comedic timing.

Bravo! The true winner was no other than Sheren Tang, who was snubbed five years ago playing Yue Fei in War and Beauty and two years later as Hilda Hoi in La Femme Desperado. Third time’s the charm, however. Sheren was simply incredible as Hong Po Kei, the strong fourth wife of rice merchant Chiang Kiu (Ngok Wah). She was sincerely honest when speaking about the significance of awards and contract extensions. I loved her “one for all and all for one” attitude!

Wayne Lai Wins Best Actor Award

It was great to see classy actress Angie Chiu again. Her comment regarding the treatment of non-biological sons was spot-on.

The ever-dependable Wayne Lai was finally crowned Best Actor! I was so proud he captured the title with his first leading performance. Chai Kau is his most complex role to date, and he portrayed the dynamic character flawlessly.

Rosy Business is 2009′s Best Series

Congratulations to the entire cast and crew of Rosy Business! My jaw actually dropped when it was declared the winner. TVB repairing what’s left of its reputation by ignoring ratings and records? Was this a way to lull us into a false sense of security only to attack with more surprises next year? We’ll see, we’ll see. As much as I enjoyed watching weak melodrama and old ladies being pushed down the stairs, folks, the wrath of Lau Ka Ho had to cease; peace was restored – literally.

On a more serious note, I couldn’t be happier with this outcome. Although Beyond the Realm of Conscience managed to tie for 50 points with Jewel in the Palace, popularity and ratings are not always accurate indicators of excellence. For example, 2007’s Phoenix Rising and 2008’s Last One Standing deserved more recognition than Heart of Greed and Moonlight Resonance, respectively. The Beyond actresses should be applauded for sustaining neck pain during filming, and Tavia Yeung and Susan Tse were convincing. However, Rosy Business is technically superior with a well-crafted script, proper pacing, and an engaging plot.

Lee Tim Sing Wins Lifetime Achievement Award

The mystery behind Lee Tim Sing’s suit as Ngo Ka Nin pointed out earlier is solved! Tim Gor is my favorite TVB director and producer. His works include 1976’s Hotel starring Chow Yun Fat and Shek Kin, 1977’s A House Is Not a Home starring Liza Wang, and 1979’s The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly starring Chow again and Carol Cheng – those two were sizzling as a couple! These three series are masterpieces and some of my all-time favorites. I highly encourage those who haven’t seen them to raid their parents’ VHS collections for unedited copies. Divert your eyes away from the heavy make-up, large hairdos, long flairs, and thick glasses.

As a fan of mainly his productions, I did not remember that he played the hilarious Sweeping Streets Ah Mao in Enjoy Yourself Tonight. Seeing him walking down the street brought back memories. “Are you rushing to reincarnate?”

Overall, I’m quite satisfied with this year’s results. Congratulations to all winners and nominees!