[Mainland Chinese Drama 2018] The Rise of Phoenixes 凰权·弈天下

[staygold]

Such interesting sets this series has!! The screengarb below is from episode 3. Any takes on what they mean?

 

It seems like all 4 princes are pretending to be cordial and masking their true intentions. But then there should have been 4 masks! Maybe Ning Yi is the one who is seeing them from behind his own mask we can't see.

 

[skibbies]

@staygold I think it's just set designer's aesthetics. It sure creeped me out a lot though. I love a lot of the sets and costumes but sometimes I also have lot of questions...like Princess' mickey mouse hair and bangs.

[artbox]

On 9/18/2018 at 9:19 AM, tendrilsofwind said:

Do you have any other drama recommendations? I need something to cheer me up after this ordeal, but all the good Chinese dramas are horrifically depressing. 

 

Consort Meng is really funny (and underrated). There's a few episodes subbed on YouTube but the rest is in Mandarin.

[tendrilsofwind]

3 hours ago, artbox said:

 

Consort Meng is really funny (and underrated). There's a few episodes subbed on YouTube but the rest is in Mandarin.

 

I watched it before this one! I did like it because it was funny and didn't take itself seriously.  I've also really liked the actress ever since seeing her on Wuxin.

[tendrilsofwind]

5 hours ago, staygold said:

Such interesting sets this series has!! The screengarb below is from episode 3. Any takes on what they mean?

 

It seems like all 4 princes are pretending to be cordial and masking their true intentions. But then there should have been 4 masks! Maybe Ning Yi is the one who is seeing them from behind his own mask we can't see.

 

 

The set designer really put in so much work. All the palaces are distinctive. I think in a lot of dramas they are more or less variations on a theme, but here everyone's palace reflects the owner's personality. Like the crown prince's decor is over the top and vaguely japanese, kind of emphasizing the alienation between him and Ning Yi, but the emperor's is traditional and stately. The Crown prince's costumes look kind of japanese as well. 

[skibbies]

The costumes are Tang-inspired iirc.

[maplinh]

3 hours ago, skibbies said:

The costumes are Tang-inspired iirc.

I don’t know about the men’s costumes but the women ones are definitely Tang-inspired, with the open chest and the drapey blouses(?)

[tendrilsofwind]

23 minutes ago, maplinh said:

I don’t know about the men’s costumes but the women ones are definitely Tang-inspired, with the open chest and the drapey blouses(?)

 

4 hours ago, skibbies said:

The costumes are Tang-inspired iirc.

 

Both the men and women's costumes are Tang inspired but I thought the print of the crown prince's costumes were very Japanese looking, especially since Japanese men's attire are Tang inspired to begin with. 

 

 

Like this print is kind of jarring. 

[raziela]

On 9/18/2018 at 8:19 AM, pristineqi said:

http://www.dramapanda.com/2018/09/chinas-nrta-looks-into-tv-ratings.html

 

 TROP's poor rating may be due to the production team & management refused to pay to secure good rating. @#$%

 

Yes, I read that article.  The Chinese entertainment industry is very shady.  It's pretty dispiriting as it makes you realise how little you can trust all the ratings news 

[GiaGia]

Is the drama worth watching? 

[staygold]

5 minutes ago, rosierosie said:

Is the drama worth watching? 

 

I am on episode 8, and it has been good so far. The visuals are rich, the acting is on point. Since the characters are still being introduced it is an exciting phase in the story. This series is more about the struggle for the crown rather than the romance I feel. 

 

I feel I am watching a movie and not a TV series.

 

Spoiler

 

 

[yunmo19]

Netflix has up to episode 30.

 

Spoiler

As expected, we didn't get the uncensored version of what transpired at Chengming Palace. Oh well. At least on second watching, with the uncut version, the censor and editing do not look as jarring to me as they did on my first viewing. 

 

[GiaGia]

@staygold thanks!! I'll watch it for the main actors and storyline. Is it me or does it seems like new Chinese drama these days have high anticipation when it is about to come out, and then when it does comes out, it is not as good as it show? I feel this way with Fuyao, and Ruyi's Love in The Palace????

[yunmo19]

43 minutes ago, rosierosie said:

@staygold thanks!! I'll watch it for the main actors and storyline. Is it me or does it seems like new Chinese drama these days have high anticipation when it is about to come out, and then when it does comes out, it is not as good as it show? I feel this way with Fuyao, and Ruyi's Love in The Palace????

 

Don't know about Fuyao and Ruyi's LiTP, but this show exceeded my expectation. I read a bit of the novel, which was Mary Sue-ish as far as I can tell (and couldn't get past the first few chapters), and even though they said they changed the story, I had no confidence that it would be good. In the end TRoP is not perfect, but the production quality, script, characterisation and story are still some of the best  I've seen these past years, period. 

[MikiRei]

On 9/14/2018 at 12:45 PM, tendrilsofwind said:

One of my favorite parts is also the complexity of the characters. I have to commend the scriptwriter and the actors on that. A lot of people seem to be saying the script is the weak point, but I think this is one of the best scripts I've seen in Chinese dramas these past ten years (for some reason the overall quality was higher ten years ago). Writing such sophisticated dialogue for an originally 100 episode drama is a monumental task and they managed to elevate the source material by injecting some more literary elegance. The weak point is the Min Hai arc but I do believe that is partly due to the cuts and censorship. 

 

You might want to know that your review got featured on a Weibo article as one of the "overseas viewers' opinion" example......

 

https://media.weibo.cn/article?object_id=1022%3A2309634286452056874201&luicode=10000011&lfid=231522type%3D1%26q%3D%23电视剧天盛长歌%23%26t%3D10&id=2309634286452056874201&sudaref=m.weibo.cn&display=0&retcode=6102

[skibbies]

That really depends what sort of expectations you had with the dramas? All three are pretty different genre and productions-wise. I haven't seen Ruyi since it's not my kind of drama but if expectations were due to Zhen Huan, that's pretty hard to top. Fuyao's adaptation was okay-ish from what I saw, the OTP were definitely not who they were from the book but I knew that from its cast. That's fine tbh, and I like the characters well enough in drama, there's definitely issues with the adaptation, as there often is.

 

I have issues with tRoP's pacing and scripting but its acting and production quality are definitely top notch. Still debating on that characterisation. For all the novel's fault of being web novel-y and having overpowered protag, it had more positive female characterisations. I know they toned down Zhi Wei and everyone surrounding her to make her more realistic. I agree with that intent but its execution is pretty wonky though, fusing novel scenes with original plot made it super jarring. For some reason, the drama's politics are for the more part without plot holes, anything that involves Zhi Wei, they start popping up (and they aren't from the novel. The novel can be over the top and unrealistic but it's pretty consistent within itself). I digress.

 

I think it could have been a must rec cdrama of all time, but now it's more I recommend it, with caveats. As far as subbed historical dramas goes though, it'd still hit top 10, and top 5 if considering accessibility, since much more serious political dramas have a much smaller audience.

[tendrilsofwind]

2 hours ago, MikiRei said:

 

You might want to know that your review got featured on a Weibo article as one of the "overseas viewers' opinion" example......

 

https://media.weibo.cn/article?object_id=1022%3A2309634286452056874201&luicode=10000011&lfid=231522type%3D1%26q%3D%23电视剧天盛长歌%23%26t%3D10&id=2309634286452056874201&sudaref=m.weibo.cn&display=0&retcode=6102

 

Oh wow thanks for letting me know. They should have translated my long review loool.

Props to whoever spent all that time on this. 

[skibbies]

1 hour ago, tendrilsofwind said:

 

Oh wow thanks for letting me know. They should have translated my long review loool.

Props to whoever spent all that time on this. 

Looks like the production company actually, which is pretty cool! I thought it was a fan gathering up oversea fans reactions (I've seen them for NiF before).

 

EDIT:

@staygold someone on douban translated your musing/question about Ning Yi's mask room XD People were like wow omg. Some agreed that's what it means. Someone else indicated that in the making of documentaries, the mask were apparently to signify Ning Yi's multifaceted personality? I haven't got around to them yet so I can't confirm.

 

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/26761328/discussion/615787959/ 

[pristineqi]

5 hours ago, skibbies said:

Looks like the production company actually, which is pretty cool! I thought it was a fan gathering up oversea fans reactions (I've seen them for NiF before).

 

EDIT:

@staygold someone on douban translated your musing/question about Ning Yi's mask room XD People were like wow omg. Some agreed that's what it means. Someone else indicated that in the making of documentaries, the mask were apparently to signify Ning Yi's multifaceted personality? I haven't got around to them yet so I can't confirm.

 

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/26761328/discussion/615787959/ 

 

WOW!!! They read this thread here in Soompi ??!!

[tendrilsofwind]

6 hours ago, skibbies said:

Looks like the production company actually, which is pretty cool! I thought it was a fan gathering up oversea fans reactions (I've seen them for NiF before).

 

EDIT:

@staygold someone on douban translated your musing/question about Ning Yi's mask room XD People were like wow omg. Some agreed that's what it means. Someone else indicated that in the making of documentaries, the mask were apparently to signify Ning Yi's multifaceted personality? I haven't got around to them yet so I can't confirm.

 

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/26761328/discussion/615787959/ 

 

I kind of want to see those NiF threads now too!

 

55 minutes ago, pristineqi said:

 

WOW!!! They read this thread here in Soompi ??!!

 

How did they even find Soompi? I had such a hard time even finding a forum where tRoP was even discussed.