Guardian re-watch: episode 1
Aug. 7th, 2020 03:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenaySo, I may not actually rewatch all the way through because the final couple of episodes broke me, but I decided I was ready to revisit happier times and thus a rewatch of at least the first thirty-five episodes has begun.
I'm not going to try to keep these free from spoilers for later episodes, simply because rewatching is giving me thoughts and insights I wouldn't have if I was fresh to it.
Gosh, I wish I'd done episode posts as I watched. Past!me had no idea.
When I watched this episode the first time, I knew a few things going in from watching fanvids:
- Shen Wei was going to be the guy in the black cloak
- He and Zhao Yunlan at some point met each other in the past, although at the time I started this I didn't know how, only that Zhao Yunlan did not know this. I assumed it was a reincarnation thing, I don't know why
- It was an epic love story that couldn't mention it was a love story due to censorship
- Everyone who had watched it before me was sad
To be honest, a lot of my first time through this episode I was still adjusting to watching something with subtitles, so there were a lot of things I missed or that I didn't put together because reading subtitles wasn't natural yet. It made this episode a bit confusing the first time, but I was hooked by the end and had to immediately watch episode two, so clearly the confusion wasn't that bad!
This time I noticed so many new things. SO MANY.
The opening montage of the history of Haixing and Dixing is gorgeous. A friend pointed out it's the best CGI they got for the entire series because they lost their budget and couldn't afford any more good stuff and I'd agree. It's beautiful and makes a big point of the whole "this show is definitely about aliens, ALIENS EVERYONE" thing that was promptly forgotten for the next thirty episodes.
Ahem.
They tried?
The introduction to Shen Wei is really interesting. There's the "something is wrong" music and the camera angles, all hinting to us that he's not to be trusted but at the same time he's deep in his innocent Professor Shen mode. If they'd chosen different background music, the feel of that scene would have been very different. He's not a bad guy, but he's not what he seems on the surface and the show established that right up front. Possibly so we'd suspect he might be a bad guy for a while? It took me twenty episodes to realise that his turning down the professor's research invitation was significant. Has anyone written the fic where he didn't turn it down and everything went differently?
*files plot bunny away*
The scene introducing the SID is also interesting. The opening of that, with Guo Changcheng arriving and being terrified by the man on the bike (why did we never see Shen Wei on that bike? How can I work that into a fic?), is so tense...and then we get inside the SID and it's all comedy. It's a jarring transition, but it does get through the introductions very quickly. Poor Xiao Guo, two faints in as many scenes. Things will not get better for you, honey, I'm so sorry.
Li Qiang getting chased through the darkness was a great red herring because I was sure she would be the murder victim until we saw the actual victim. Good work, show, you had me fooled on my first watch.
The first meeting between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan is...wow. On my first watch, it was pretty intense. Shen Wei just staring at Zhao Yunlan, looking thunderstruck, and barely keeping it together. On a rewatch, knowing everything that's happened and is about to happen, it's even more powerful. I completely understand why he didn't want to release Zhao Yunlan's hand.
And ZYL is completely oblivious because he's never met Shen Wei before. It's more heart-breaking the second time. Particularly the whole "great name!" comment.
But it's also good to remember how quickly their chemistry kicks in. I still can't decide whether ZYL's decision to keep an eye on Shen Wei is entirely because he's suspicious or whether it's that plus other things. I've concluded ZYL doesn't know either.
As I watched this episode, it occurred to me that in addition to all the other things we were quickly introduced to, they threw "ZYL never sitting if he can drape himself on something" at us at every opportunity. Who knew you could drape yourself that thoroughly on a motorbike?
Every scene between Shen Wei and ZYL is gorgeous. The one after Shen Wei helps Li Qiang, where ZYL pushes Shen Wei to admit he knows about Dixing, is so filled with loaded looks and double meanings. The actors 100% knew what they were doing with this. I'm so glad.
That rooftop scene with Shen Wei, Li Qiang, and the shadow monster read so differently the second time. On my first viewing, I noticed how quickly Shen Wei got himself knocked off the roof and out of the action, but I didn't notice what happened in the lead-up to that. For a few seconds, he switches into Black Robe Envoy mode and is about to unleash everything on the shadow monster. It's all there in the expression on his face, the way he stands, and then he spots something (team SID on their way) and it's like he turns all of that off in an instant. Professor Shen is back and off the roof he goes.
The Black Cloaked Envoy's arrival in this episode is the flashiest one we ever see. Time stops, clouds roll in, thunder crashes, and the Envoy arrives ready for battle. Okay, so Chu has already captured the shadow creature and no battle is actually needed, but he's ready for it.
ZYL quickly confirms he's never met the Envoy and this is the first time the Envoy has shown up in person since he took up his role with the SID. Gee, I wonder why the Envoy has suddenly appeared just after Shen Wei met ZYL for the first time. I CANNOT IMAGINE.
Heh.
Side note: if the SID has no jurisdiction to do more than arrest rogue Dixingren, does that mean Chu always carted their suspects off to the Envoy somewhere else? Because that's the only way I can think of for that to work and Shen Wei not to have found ZYL any earlier.
I kind of love the way that ZYL, despite never having met the Envoy before, is instantly irreverent, flirtatious, and everything that makes Chu look like he's bitten a lemon. It's amazing. I think this was when I knew I'd fallen for this show.
Or maybe it was when Shen Wei first saw ZYL. I really can't decide. I know I was hooked by the end of the first episode because I needed to immediately watch episode 2 EVEN THOUGH I KNEW SHEN WEI COULDN'T HAVE HURT HIMSELF FALLING OFF THE ROOF.
Yes, dear readers, I was that gone that I was worried about Shen Wei despite knowing he was the Envoy *headdesk*
And now that I've given myself two plot bunnies in the space of one review, I'm going to wander off and find a cool place to hide from today's heat wave.
I'm not going to try to keep these free from spoilers for later episodes, simply because rewatching is giving me thoughts and insights I wouldn't have if I was fresh to it.
Gosh, I wish I'd done episode posts as I watched. Past!me had no idea.
When I watched this episode the first time, I knew a few things going in from watching fanvids:
- Shen Wei was going to be the guy in the black cloak
- He and Zhao Yunlan at some point met each other in the past, although at the time I started this I didn't know how, only that Zhao Yunlan did not know this. I assumed it was a reincarnation thing, I don't know why
- It was an epic love story that couldn't mention it was a love story due to censorship
- Everyone who had watched it before me was sad
To be honest, a lot of my first time through this episode I was still adjusting to watching something with subtitles, so there were a lot of things I missed or that I didn't put together because reading subtitles wasn't natural yet. It made this episode a bit confusing the first time, but I was hooked by the end and had to immediately watch episode two, so clearly the confusion wasn't that bad!
This time I noticed so many new things. SO MANY.
The opening montage of the history of Haixing and Dixing is gorgeous. A friend pointed out it's the best CGI they got for the entire series because they lost their budget and couldn't afford any more good stuff and I'd agree. It's beautiful and makes a big point of the whole "this show is definitely about aliens, ALIENS EVERYONE" thing that was promptly forgotten for the next thirty episodes.
Ahem.
They tried?
The introduction to Shen Wei is really interesting. There's the "something is wrong" music and the camera angles, all hinting to us that he's not to be trusted but at the same time he's deep in his innocent Professor Shen mode. If they'd chosen different background music, the feel of that scene would have been very different. He's not a bad guy, but he's not what he seems on the surface and the show established that right up front. Possibly so we'd suspect he might be a bad guy for a while? It took me twenty episodes to realise that his turning down the professor's research invitation was significant. Has anyone written the fic where he didn't turn it down and everything went differently?
*files plot bunny away*
The scene introducing the SID is also interesting. The opening of that, with Guo Changcheng arriving and being terrified by the man on the bike (why did we never see Shen Wei on that bike? How can I work that into a fic?), is so tense...and then we get inside the SID and it's all comedy. It's a jarring transition, but it does get through the introductions very quickly. Poor Xiao Guo, two faints in as many scenes. Things will not get better for you, honey, I'm so sorry.
Li Qiang getting chased through the darkness was a great red herring because I was sure she would be the murder victim until we saw the actual victim. Good work, show, you had me fooled on my first watch.
The first meeting between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan is...wow. On my first watch, it was pretty intense. Shen Wei just staring at Zhao Yunlan, looking thunderstruck, and barely keeping it together. On a rewatch, knowing everything that's happened and is about to happen, it's even more powerful. I completely understand why he didn't want to release Zhao Yunlan's hand.
And ZYL is completely oblivious because he's never met Shen Wei before. It's more heart-breaking the second time. Particularly the whole "great name!" comment.
But it's also good to remember how quickly their chemistry kicks in. I still can't decide whether ZYL's decision to keep an eye on Shen Wei is entirely because he's suspicious or whether it's that plus other things. I've concluded ZYL doesn't know either.
As I watched this episode, it occurred to me that in addition to all the other things we were quickly introduced to, they threw "ZYL never sitting if he can drape himself on something" at us at every opportunity. Who knew you could drape yourself that thoroughly on a motorbike?
Every scene between Shen Wei and ZYL is gorgeous. The one after Shen Wei helps Li Qiang, where ZYL pushes Shen Wei to admit he knows about Dixing, is so filled with loaded looks and double meanings. The actors 100% knew what they were doing with this. I'm so glad.
That rooftop scene with Shen Wei, Li Qiang, and the shadow monster read so differently the second time. On my first viewing, I noticed how quickly Shen Wei got himself knocked off the roof and out of the action, but I didn't notice what happened in the lead-up to that. For a few seconds, he switches into Black Robe Envoy mode and is about to unleash everything on the shadow monster. It's all there in the expression on his face, the way he stands, and then he spots something (team SID on their way) and it's like he turns all of that off in an instant. Professor Shen is back and off the roof he goes.
The Black Cloaked Envoy's arrival in this episode is the flashiest one we ever see. Time stops, clouds roll in, thunder crashes, and the Envoy arrives ready for battle. Okay, so Chu has already captured the shadow creature and no battle is actually needed, but he's ready for it.
ZYL quickly confirms he's never met the Envoy and this is the first time the Envoy has shown up in person since he took up his role with the SID. Gee, I wonder why the Envoy has suddenly appeared just after Shen Wei met ZYL for the first time. I CANNOT IMAGINE.
Heh.
Side note: if the SID has no jurisdiction to do more than arrest rogue Dixingren, does that mean Chu always carted their suspects off to the Envoy somewhere else? Because that's the only way I can think of for that to work and Shen Wei not to have found ZYL any earlier.
I kind of love the way that ZYL, despite never having met the Envoy before, is instantly irreverent, flirtatious, and everything that makes Chu look like he's bitten a lemon. It's amazing. I think this was when I knew I'd fallen for this show.
Or maybe it was when Shen Wei first saw ZYL. I really can't decide. I know I was hooked by the end of the first episode because I needed to immediately watch episode 2 EVEN THOUGH I KNEW SHEN WEI COULDN'T HAVE HURT HIMSELF FALLING OFF THE ROOF.
Yes, dear readers, I was that gone that I was worried about Shen Wei despite knowing he was the Envoy *headdesk*
And now that I've given myself two plot bunnies in the space of one review, I'm going to wander off and find a cool place to hide from today's heat wave.
no subject
Date: 2020-08-07 03:44 pm (UTC)I assumed this too! I think it's because the novel is about reincarnation so I assumed the show would be the same? I legit had no idea time travel was involved.
I should really go back and watch at least the first few episodes again. I suspect I missed a lot because I was trying to figure out who everyone was. I totally missed that being the first time ZYL met the Envoy.
Oh, Shen Wei.
no subject
Date: 2020-08-07 04:11 pm (UTC)I think this was what happened to me, too. I knew a few bits about the novel but I also knew they'd changed a lot for the drama so I don't know why I expected the reincarnation to be a part they kept.
Oh, Shen Wei.
Universal statement for every episode, I figure.
I totally missed that being the first time ZYL met the Envoy.
It was only around when I was watching the time travel episodes that it occurred to me to go and check and that's when I realised. But the way Shen Wei looks at YZL in their first meeting can only be explained if the BCE hadn't met him before either. I think there was just so much to take in on first watch that this was a detail my brain skipped until much later.
no subject
Date: 2020-08-07 04:51 pm (UTC)The way Shen Wei's face falls as he realizes Zhao Yunlan doesn't know him...! ;_;
does that mean Chu always carted their suspects off to the Envoy somewhere else?
That's my best guess too.
no subject
Date: 2020-08-08 08:59 am (UTC)It's so much worse the second time, when we're right there with Shen Wei because we *know* :(