[Mainland Chinese Drama 2019] Gank Your Heart 陪你到世界之巅

[themarchioness]

1 hour ago, raziela said:

 - I really like YY and YX  as individual characters and best friends. But as for their romance I honestly have no investment or interest.  It just felt like filler and I wish the time was spent on the leads.

 

Aww, I actually like their romance.  I mean, you pretty much know from the first time she beat him up they were going to end up together.   Mostly, I like knowing that they, along with QY and XK, are going to be happy foursome for the rest of their lives and imagine their kids growing up together.  Hehehehe.

 

1 hour ago, raziela said:

This is random but I thought it was cute and funny when the team come in Xia Ling and Yixuan are having the time of their lives in the background riding along ON their suitcases.  

 

I thought that was so cute too!!!  And so typical of them.  Haha.

 

1 hour ago, raziela said:

 Your bracket ranting is all of us.

 

LOL.  And I agree, Qiao Xin and Qi Yue were "too convenient," that's a good way to put it.  I also liked Tony's character a lot too, to the point where I was actually kind of sad when (in the epilogue scenes) Miya decides to part ways with her company because that meant she and Tony would no longer work together.  If only he could go with her too!  Because I don't feel sad about her leaving her company.  Just the Tony part.    

 

1 hour ago, raziela said:

I know you didn't like the addition of the Luo Tian having feelings for QY but I loved it!  I liked that finally someone senior who XK respects and is also close to QY calls XK out on his behaviour and how shabbily he is treating QY.  I was also glad LT called XK to task for how QY has repeatedly been hurt and humiliated because of her association with XK ; AND it finally wakes XK up to the fact that QY has options and he will have competition now and in the future!  He seems to assume that QY will just be there ready and waiting for him once he sorts the Miya thing out (even though he still hasn't bothered to communicate anything to QY ) but LT falling for QY shows that isn't necessarily going to be the case.  

 

I have a soft spot for Luo Tian's character too (or maybe it's just Harry Hu's face).  There is something very sweet, awkward and lonely about his character like Summer said he is an "idiot about life".  At the beginning Summer Ge always talks about how unreliable he is because he is only cares about work, but once he gets to know QY he always makes time for her.  He is even willing to stake his career on QY when he is arguing with GDV's director.  I liked the slow burn as he opens up and falls for QY and doesn't even realise it's happening until the director mentions the gossip.  To be fair to Luo Tian even once he realises he has feelings for QY he never actively interferes in their relationship.  I's only once XK and QY break up and he sees how much XK has hurt her that he tries to clumsily make a move.  Anyway, I do hope LT does find someone because I think it's so sad he doesn't have anyone to even share his birthday with and he is so touched and surprised to receive a present 

 

I actually do like all those things that you mentioned as well.  I agree that it was great to finally see someone calling out XK on his actions and giving him a wake-up call, letting him know that he didn't have things as locked in as maybe he thought he did.  I just really don't like the awkwardness it creates between them in their relationship.  If only there had been another way to achieve what he set out to do without the other, is I suppose what I'm trying to say.  (And why I'd have been fine if he'd done the same but from the role of a protectorate of QY versus a love interest.)  But my other my complaint about it is, in the same way that you feel YY/YX's romance is a waste of screen time, I kind of feel that way about the Luo Tian liking QY storyline as well.  Since it was as harmless as it was (and thank goodness for that because I really don't think i could've handled it if it had turned into this whole other last hour issue ), it did make me kind of wonder what its point was then and maybe we could've reserved that screen time for seeing some actual resolution between the OTP.  But eh, it's fine.  Speaking for myself, it's my only complaint regarding the drama and if any drama can walk away with only one complaint I consider that a success.   

 

Also, I 100% agree with you regarding the growth of Luo Tian's character.  He was an adorable nerd and it was very nice to see him relax, open up, and shift perspectives as a result of his interactions and experience with QY and the others.  I, too, hope he finds someone perfect for him one day.

 

1 hour ago, raziela said:

Sorry but I thought the instant hotpots looked yucky and why were they so BIG?  I don't think the actors were keen either. They would kind of nibble halfheartedly on one piece of veg for the whole product placement scene 

 

Regarding the size of the instant hotpots, although they mostly portrayed it in the drama as an individual serving size, I assume in reality it's meant to be shared and that's why it's so big.  Some hotpot-serving restaurants will have tables set up for customers to have their own individual hotpots, but hotpot is traditionally a communal experience whether eaten at a restaurant or at home.  So, it kind of made sense to me that it would be that big if it was meant to be shared.  (And it may also be a brand specific thing because I've noticed other instant hotpot brands have smaller packaging.)

 

Regarding the actors and whether they were keen on it, I wouldn't read too much into the fact that they only nibbled at it.  i think that's more of a drama thing.  In any drama when there's a dining scene it's pretty common to see people poking at their food talking rather than eating it.  We saw that in GYH, in fact -- any time Sun Ge cooked an entire meal for the others, they tended to pick at that as well.  I'd say it's the rare drama where you get to actually see people digging in and enjoying the food in front of them.  And don't forget, with multiple takes and whatnot, I bet a lot of that food goes cold and is probably not tasty after sitting out for several hours while filming  

[themarchioness]

15 minutes ago, angelangie said:

they were big cause they have some self-heating system at the bottom that will keep the pot hot

 

That too. Although I think it’s just a little disc flat pack that gets activated to produce heat. This video, however, suggests that you add water to it and the big bowl before placing the other bowl inside it to cook. Kind of like a double boiler method, I suppose, but that would definitely explain why the bucket is so big.  Thank goodness for the Internet and all the product review videos on YouTube.   

 

Do report back if you try, though, @angelangie! Would def be interested to hear your thoughts!

 

 

 

P.S. Good job, GYH, on your product placement.... it’s clearly worked. Hahahahaha.

[raziela]

4 hours ago, themarchioness said:

I thought that was so cute too!!!  And so typical of them.  Haha.

Right?  It's just a tiny thing but it's just sooo typical of the kind of messing about young lads do when they are together.  This drama does such a good job of the camaraderie between characters.

 

4 hours ago, themarchioness said:

I actually do like all those things that you mentioned as well.  I agree that it was great to finally see someone calling out XK on his actions and giving him a wake-up call, letting him know that he didn't have things as locked in as maybe he thought he did.  I just really don't like the awkwardness it creates between them in their relationship.  If only there had been another way to achieve what he set out to do without the other, is I suppose what I'm trying to say.  (And why I'd have been fine if he'd done the same but from the role of a protectorate of QY versus a love interest.)  But my other my complaint about it is, in the same way that you feel YY/YX's romance is a waste of screen time, I kind of feel that way about the Luo Tian liking QY storyline as well.  Since it was as harmless as it was (and thank goodness for that because I really don't think i could've handled it if it had turned into this whole other last hour issue ), it did make me kind of wonder what its point was then and maybe we could've reserved that screen time for seeing some actual resolution between the OTP.  But eh, it's fine.  Speaking for myself, it's my only complaint regarding the drama and if any drama can walk away with only one complaint I consider that a success.   

 

Also, I 100% agree with you regarding the growth of Luo Tian's character.  He was an adorable nerd and it was very nice to see him relax, open up, and shift perspectives as a result of his interactions and experience with QY and the others.  I, too, hope he finds someone perfect for him one day.

I thought it was important because the realisation that he could have romantic competition seems to be the kick in the pants XK needed to finally make a move in the situation with QY.  It's only after he hears the co-workers gossiping about LT and QY relationship that he finally gets his phone out to call QY. I might be wrong but he has never actually said out loud to QY that he's in love with her but he does tell Luo Tian that he loves her and will always love her (if only he told QY...).

 

I also thought it was relevant because it was part of Luo Tian's character development throughout the whole drama from the workaholic who neglects everything and everyone to the Luo Tian who opens up, relaxes and even falls in love by the end of the drama.  Luo Tian in episode 7 who Summer calls an unreliable workaholic for choosing work over their little reunion after Gu Fang's retirement party would not have taken time away from working to attend the fun Team Phoenix and Team Pioneer training sessions in episode 32 (by the way I remember you mentioned in that scene that QY is running back and forth between the teams and LT is trying to stop her seeing.  I didn't pick up on that until you mentioned it so I went back and watched and it's so cute).

 

5 hours ago, themarchioness said:

Regarding the size of the instant hotpots, although they mostly portrayed it in the drama as an individual serving size, I assume in reality it's meant to be shared and that's why it's so big.

Ah OK!  That makes more sense that the product is supposed to be for multiple people because I could not understand how one person was supposed to empty that huge bucket.  Real hotpot looks so appealing and that instant hotpot definitely doesn't IMO

5 hours ago, themarchioness said:

Regarding the actors and whether they were keen on it, I wouldn't read too much into the fact that they only nibbled at it.  i think that's more of a drama thing.  In any drama when there's a dining scene it's pretty common to see people poking at their food talking rather than eating it.  We saw that in GYH, in fact -- any time Sun Ge cooked an entire meal for the others, they tended to pick at that as well.  I'd say it's the rare drama where you get to actually see people digging in and enjoying the food in front of them.  And don't forget, with multiple takes and whatnot, I bet a lot of that food goes cold and is probably not tasty after sitting out for several hours while filming  

I know actors don't really eat the food during scenes but the actors really struggled to seem enthused about them IMO. They were much better with the snacks from that snack store product placement and the face mask product placement 

[themarchioness]

33 minutes ago, raziela said:

 I might be wrong but he has never actually said out loud to QY that he's in love with her but he does tell Luo Tian that he loves her and will always love her (if only he told QY...).

 

You're not wrong.  That actually stood out to me as well when I was recapping that scene.  The closest XK had come to saying that to QY was when he tried to emphasize to her that he was interested in her and not Miya.  But in that scene, he used the words, "I like you" (喜欢) versus "love" (爱), which he used with Luo Tian. 

 

In fairness to XK, though, and I don't know how to explain this properly but I'm not sure I'd necessarily minimize the effect of his use of "like" in the earlier scene either.  (She also said "like" back to him in that scene.)  It's an overt expression of sincere interest  and a starting point for any relationship; "like" is a lot easier to say at that stage when "love" comes with much more responsibility.  It's kind of the whole point of dating, right?  Figure out if that person really is the one you love and want to be with for (hopefully) the rest of your lives?  Anyway, the other thing is Luo Tian point blanked asked XK who he loved, so of course he answered in those terms.  

 

And I'm sure XK will tell QY that he loves her.  We'll just never get to see it...

 

33 minutes ago, raziela said:

 (by the way I remember you mentioned in that scene that QY is running back and forth between the teams and LT is trying to stop her seeing.  I didn't pick up on that until you mentioned it so I went back and watched and it's so cute).

 

Right???  That took multiple rewatches of that scene before I noticed it as well.  And I was so glad when I did because it's adorable!  I mean, I knew she'd run back and forth but I just hadn't noticed his hand reaching out to block her.  The thing is a lot of times there are so many things happening on screen and the camera work is so fast, it's like my eyes don't know where to look!  And then if they blink, I will actually miss something.  This is why I have discovered the joys of watching some scenes in slow mo, haha.  I miss nothing then!    (I swear I'm not crazy.  I just have an ardent love for this drama.  Haha.)

[raziela]

1 hour ago, themarchioness said:

You're not wrong.  That actually stood out to me as well when I was recapping that scene.  The closest XK had come to saying that to QY was when he tried to emphasize to her that he was interested in her and not Miya.  But in that scene, he used the words, "I like you" (喜欢) versus "love" (爱), which he used with Luo Tian. 

 

In fairness to XK, though, and I don't know how to explain this properly but I'm not sure I'd necessarily minimize the effect of his use of "like" in the earlier scene either.  (She also said "like" back to him in that scene.)  It's an overt expression of sincere interest  and a starting point for any relationship; "like" is a lot easier to say at that stage when "love" comes with much more responsibility.  It's kind of the whole point of dating, right?  Figure out if that person really is the one you love and want to be with for (hopefully) the rest of your lives?  Anyway, the other thing is Luo Tian point blanked asked XK who he loved, so of course he answered in those terms.  

 

Thanks for explaining the difference between "love" and "like".  I've always been fascinated by the difference and why couples in Asian dramas (I've noticed the same thing in K- T- and J-dramas) say "like" rather than "love". 

 

I do think given the weight of the words and the situation he should have told QY he loved her to show he was serious about her and their relationship. ~sighing for the hundredth time at XK's poor communication skills~  Anyway, like you said:

1 hour ago, themarchioness said:

And I'm sure XK will tell QY that he loves her.  We'll just never get to see it...

 

1 hour ago, themarchioness said:

Right???  That took multiple rewatches of that scene before I noticed it as well.  And I was so glad when I did because it's adorable!  I mean, I knew she'd run back and forth but I just hadn't noticed his hand reaching out to block her.  The thing is a lot of times there are so many things happening on screen and the camera work is so fast, it's like my eyes don't know where to look!  And then if they blink, I will actually miss something.  This is why I have discovered the joys of watching some scenes in slow mo, haha.  I miss nothing then!    (I swear I'm not crazy.  I just have an ardent love for this drama.  Haha.)

This drama is really good at these types of gaming scenes where there is so much going on and you can just feel the energy onscreen.  It's interesting because I have started watching The King's Avatar and I find the group gaming scenes so sterile and quiet in comparison to Gank Your Heart.  I guess because GYH relies more on the actors for the gaming scenes and TKS relies more heavily on the game graphics.  I'm only on the early episodes of TKA so maybe this will change later on in the drama.

 

Haha!  I understand.  I''m the same with my fave dramas too!

[Lynne]

Huhuhuhu.... 1.5 episode till the end.... @themarchioness thank you <3 so much!!!!

We're finally at the last chapter on Phenix journey... which is Championship!!! I truly love and enjoy how everyone from the team support each other.. How everyone have a chance to shine... Pei xi's changes, Xia Lin's healing.. and also XK believing on Xia Lin when everyone else doubted Xia Lin.. I'm truly glad that they made it to the finals.. even tho QY weren't there as their manager anymore but She's always with them in spirit and in the end as their eternal supporter. 

 

Miya's blindness for me is a plot device to push QY back as commentator.. so I actually try not to think too much about it  LOLS.. because yeah.. it is a bit frustrating to watch esp because this happen at the last minute.. lols.. like do we really need it to be so dramatic screen writer? *rollseyes.jpg*

And also Luo Tian's infatuation with QY, it is not something I'm a fan off for different reason. One of the theme that I love from GYH is mentor-ship. We can see how Pioneers team.. one after another mentors their juniors [mostly XK], how XK mentors his friends at Legends, at VNG... that's why I always love Luo Tian's role as Qiu Ying's mentor... and personally I would prefer that Luo Tian shows concerns to Qiu Ying because he appreciate her hard work..[as we all can see on the drama] and likes her character not as a love interest.

But yes @raziela you do make a good point about Luo Tian's growth in the drama and what he forced XK to say the things he needed to say from the start..

 

IDK.. I feel like for everyone.. XK, QY, Miya and also Luo Tian and everyone else actually.. everything will always came down to choice.. and are you willing to move forward or not....

XK in the the novel has straightforwardly says that he has move on from Miya... he wishes Miya happiness.. but he never wavers....

Drama makes it harder for him with the sense of responsibility he has because of Miya' injury.. Qiu Ying understand that... but still... it is never easy for everyone...and realistically speaking there'll always be a chance that everything can go awry... 

~ Miya had a choice to let him go.. but she see this as a chance to win him back

~ QY choose to leave because she doesn't want to burden him to think about her while he's caught in the competition and Miya's injury... [While I think she wish XK tries to be more communicative with her, the considerate her.. never says anything too... ]

~ XK didn't want QY go.. but when QY left... [while he did say he understand why] he didn't went after her immediately... because of guilt... AND his inability to put her first.. [XK you're a good guy.. but you have to realized you can't do everything by yourself... pleasee share your burden] NOTHING IS EVER COMPLICATED UNLESS YOU CHOOSE TO MAKE IT SO.

 

And eventho I know how the story ends.. I was left with a question if Miya never regains her sight.. what will XK do? Will he not go after QY after the competition? Will Miya woke up and finally let XK go? 

I think XK despite caring for Miya, has clearly move on from her, he would eventually put his foot down and go after QY... his would always care for Miya, because she's part of his past.. the sad and the beautiful memories is part that made him who he is today.. and eventually Miya would understand.. she's currently in an emotional state.. but She was not an unreasonable person. She would eventually move forward too.. blind or not.. she will.. 

 

And now.. this leaves us to Qiu Ying... from how her story progress, she had issues with her father, thinking he never puts her and her mother as a priority when he remarried immediately after her mother passed away. And then with her career going nowhere, her life were a constant ups and downs.. It is with Yiyi and then XK that she finally got herself on a stabler path... Eventho eventually she choose to leave, She's not the kind of person that is easy to move on.. because she feel things deeply and she grieves so much [ex : for her mother]. Eventually I think XK and QY would find themselves back together.. because of the respect and understanding they had for each other... 

 

So does the separation necessary? Perhaps YES... This will be a lesson for them I guess.. I mean, they already have that understanding and respect between them.. but I think Miya situation will be a lesson for them that eventho they understand each other perfectly.. they still need to be more open and not shy away from sensitive issues..

In the eps before.. during the Team Phenix's creation.. XK and QY are already acting like an old married couple.. they talk their issues regarding Xia Lin,, the competition etc perfectly.. so why did they stumble because of Miya??? My only answer is that Good relationship needs hard work.. on both side.. and they need to realize they're both are flawed... compromises and sacrifices should only be done reasonably.. simply put, when they stop communicating.. that's when trouble starts. Let it be a lesson for them to communicate actively in the future.

 

[skibbies]

@themarchioness I totally forgot XK arrived on time lol. and I get the confusion with all the pinyin, too much pinyin actually makes my head hurts.

 

I can see them not wanting too much English, which is why non of the character's game ID ever showed up, they would have been easier to remember tbh. But it's kind of hilarious that Go Go Squid had game IDs (dt, all, one, grunt, gun, solo, I think only appledog wasn't used) said out loud, but the subs would just show their actual Chinese names (it was actually really confusing for awhile because I couldn't match them). That's a primetime TV show and this is a webdrama. you would think webdrama is less strict. Anyways, our favourites' game IDs: XK: Void, Gu Fang: Cris, Pei Xi: Summit, Lin Yixuan: Xuan, Sun Zeyi: zy, Xia Ling: Cloud

 

There's a LoL team called FPX (fun plus phoenix) and I did cursory search where phoenix are part of some other teams' names (idk how big they are though or if they are even pro teams), so I suppose they might want to avoid confusion. I really don't think Phenix avoids confusion though, it just teaches bad English XD. Hilariously enough, FPX actually employed one of phoenix's strategies, swapping Jungling (Xia Ling in GYH) and Mid Lane (Pei Xi) as needed earlier this year. This hasn't been done before (it has been done for other positions?), the book was published early 2017 lol.

 

@raziela I think VNG was doing okay before when they had Pei Xi. You are right she didn't have the smoothest exit though, so who knows if she has money. I was definitely surprised about the Pioneer team not being there, and agreed that they adapted it really well. 

- Miya was more of a typical second female lead in the book (how she comes off in earlier episodes she shows up), I liked how she handled things more in the drama, blind plot notwithstanding.

- I actually like Yiyi/Yixuan couple, they are pretty cute. If our otp didn't get together soon enough, I think they would have tried to help. Qiao Xin actually liking Qi Yue for real surprised me too, since that just didn't seem like her, but people have many sides.

- QY doesn't reconcile with her family. In fact, they never show up in the novel, her family is mostly offhandedly mentioned.

- Tangentish, I really liked Pei Xi eating lollipops, that's drama original, it's so so cute and contrast with his image so much.

- I totally forgot, but XK is actually flirtier and more playboy, especially towards the beginning in the book. As a result, QY crush on him earlier I think.

 

The drama is less romance centric, which I actually prefer. It's not that we don't get enough romance (although it wouldn't hurt to have more otp scenes), it's just they filled it out with friendship and family, and I like that, since those are pretty darn important in life too. The book is meant to introduce audience to esport, correct some misconception about the industry as well as streamers (especially female streamers), on top of chasing after your dreams and supporting each other through thin and thick, the drama adapted that pretty well, I think. Overall, I quite like the book, the drama's highs are better than the book's (music helps a lot, and atmosphere too, a lot of additions like Pioneer), but drama's lows is lower than the book too (the blindness arc, the beginning misunderstanding pileup).

 

Re: Like vs love. It's very rare to hear "love" said out loud in cdramas, usually even when love is mentioned, it's describing it "my love of so and so" rather than "I love you". I actually can't summon any cdramas from top of my head that has "I love you", but to be fair, I don't watch a lot of contemporary cdramas. It's definitely a cultural thing, "love" is a very heavy word, you don't hear the phrase that often irl either.

 

Re: 自嗨锅 (Zi Hai Guo), I think it's single serving actually. Just from the name, it's literally "having fun by yourself pot" XD They are popular with mostly students and young adults who's too lazy to cook (or literally can't in dorms in the case of students due to safety reasons). There's little reason for you to have this unless you are too lazy to go out though, you can have 麻辣烫/ma la tang, which where you pick what you want to eat, pay them by weight and they cook them for you hot pot style.

 

On 9/21/2019 at 5:49 AM, raziela said:

This is random but I thought it was cute and funny when the team come in Xia Ling and Yixuan are having the time of their lives in the background riding along ON their suitcases.  

The behind the scenes for it is hilarious XD Let me find it.

https://www.bilibili.com/video/av56896579/?p=62 It starts 01:33. The link have all behind the scenes/mini documentary. There's some trailers, full version of OP/ED/insert song and I think the epilogues too.

 

I finished the book with Pei Xi too hahaha. It follows a female esport player (FPS game) who's stuck with awful club where the women team is used as gimmick, forced to attend various events for money and increased visibility. The money are then use to fund the club's main team, and protag isn't allowed to try for the team because she's a woman, and she can't play on the same team as the guys! She meets Pei Xi at start of the book by chance at a photoshoot, and he helps her out because she reminds him of himself when he was younger.

She transfers to Phoenix close half of the book, and Pei Xi transfers to the new FPS section too, so they are teammates. It's a ragtag team of rich playboy who thinks too highly of himself, someone who's been accused of cheating, a softboi who was temporarily banned from compeition for language and our otp. There's all these concerns about female players causing additional conflict in the team, distracting from practice, inapproriate for male/female to share dorms and be in close proximity 24/7 (even though she gets her own room...), everyone keep promising that protag totally won't date her teammates lol.

There's actually not that much about games, more treatment/hardship + misconception of female esport players, and little bits of teammate's individual struggles. I liked this book bit less, since the relationship is bit less equal, protag does help Pei Xi to become a leader of the team (she helps her teammates when she can, she's basically the glue of the team), but the balance is still off. The female supporting characters are less one note, but I guess the theme kind of mean they should be. It's still mostly limited third person, but we see more of Pei Xi pov compared to XK's.

Super minor nitpick. I have no idea WHY, but literally the entire Phoenix Conquer team (including Pei Xi) all had their names changed. They are pronounced the same, but they all had one character that's written differently, it threw me off SO MUCH.

 

Anyways, XK and QY does appear as supporting characters. QY is sort of like Yiyi in the last book, a best friend-ish role, she's very suppportive and takes care of protag when she can. It's only been a year since the last book, even after Pei Xi transfer, Phoenix still dominates Conquer, as MOBA is traditionally China's strong suit. There's not much else, there's offhand mention that QY might return to the commentating stage now that Phoenix is pretty much settled, but that's about it.

 

Sort of interesting to note but not canon to drama IMO, Summer was part of VPG (drama's VNG), he was protecting Pei Xi from thugs or something and injured his hand, then forced to retire. As a result, Pei Xi started playing Conquer professionally to lead VPG into world championship again, even though he was originally more a FPS person (the FPS bit feels like a retcon tbh). Summer is highly regarded in the industry because he started an esport related empire, netcafe, his own brand of keyboard/mouse/headphones, invest in teams etc. He showed that there were more career choice? stream of revenue? for retired players besides streamer or commentator.

[Lynne]

@themarchioness I remember our talk about XK's bike collection.. lols..  look what I found when browsing the official weibo's album.

 

Big baby Blue 

Spoiler

 

And Blackie

Spoiler

 

[Lynne]

32 minutes ago, skibbies said:

The drama is less romance centric, which I actually prefer. It's not that we don't get enough romance (although it wouldn't hurt to have more otp scenes), it's just they filled it out with friendship and family, and I like that, since those are pretty darn important in life too. The book is meant to introduce audience to esport, correct some misconception about the industry as well as streamers (especially female streamers), on top of chasing after your dreams and supporting each other through thin and thick, the drama adapted that pretty well, I think. Overall, I quite like the book, the drama's highs are better than the book's (music helps a lot, and atmosphere too, a lot of additions like Pioneer), but drama's lows is lower than the book too (the blindness arc, the beginning misunderstanding pileup).

 

Totally agreed with you @skibbies. I really like how the drama took the best part of the book and then expand it further. Esp the addition of Pioneer team and Qiu Ying's family. Her family situation in the book breaks my heart, the emotional abuse she had from her family was sad, even with knowing that she had a supportive cute cousin, it still breaks my heart. I'm glad the drama took a different route and gave her a different backstory, but still able to maintain the overall theme of brotherhood, family and friendship within e-sport community... 

Anyway.. thank you for the summary of Pei Xi's book..  it sounds a bit harder to read.. hmm..  GYH's book left me feeling very melancholic due to the Leads struggles to get to where they are today.. so I think I can sense where PX's book are heading.. 

 

Diverging abit from GYH.... have you read this novel?

https://www.novelupdates.com/series/youre-beautiful-when-you-smile/

I really enjoy the first 120-130 chapter... the latter chapters feels a bit dry but it ended well. it talks about female gamer joining a professional team, and her struggles. This one is quite light hearted and fun..

The reason I'm recommending this one is because the gaming technique in this novel actually helps me understand GYH better lols. I notice you like gaming so..mayhaps you'll enjoy this novel. 

[skibbies]

34 minutes ago, lynne22 said:

Totally agreed with you @skibbies. I really like how the drama took the best part of the book and then expand it further. Esp the addition of Pioneer team and Qiu Ying's family. Her family situation in the book breaks my heart, the emotional abuse she had from her family was sad, even with knowing that she had a supportive cute cousin, it still breaks my heart. I'm glad the drama took a different route and gave her a different backstory, but still able to maintain the overall theme of brotherhood, family and friendship within e-sport community... 

Anyway.. thank you for the summary of Pei Xi's book..  it sounds a bit harder to read.. hmm..  GYH's book left me feeling very melancholic due to the Leads struggles to get to where they are today.. so I think I can sense where PX's book are heading.. 

 

Diverging abit from GYH.... have you read this novel?

https://www.novelupdates.com/series/youre-beautiful-when-you-smile/

I really enjoy the first 120-130 chapter... the latter chapters feels a bit dry but it ended well. it talks about female gamer joining a professional team, and her struggles. This one is quite light hearted and fun..

The reason I'm recommending this one is because the gaming technique in this novel actually helps me understand GYH better lols. I notice you like gaming so..mayhaps you'll enjoy this novel. 

QY in the book craved for attention and love due to her family background, I think it bordered on problematic level at some point. So I'm glad she managed to grow beyond it, and super glad that she had XK with her. Yeah, I think Pei Xi's book is even more depressing because the sexism is overt and real, it's pretty easy to correlate to difficulties we face in everyday life. It's not heavy, but it is definitely serious.

 

Ahhh, that book, it was really popular for awhile. No, I passed on it. It uses a lot of real life esport bits (players, teams, techniques, competitions) which is alright, but the author insisted she totally didn't, then had massive fights with esport fans, it was just really messy. I've read a few other esport ones and have some more piled up. GYH didn't really stump me since I understand basics of MOBA. I read one that was fully based on LoL, and it specify what hero they use and how they used it ("she Q'ed him, then used W to jump backwards and finished him with R" is how the fight scenes are written LMAO) that would have been too technical if you had no interest in gaming lol, I really liked the otp and the romance though! I do like gaming, I actually prefer mmo ones, I read a whole bunch of them when I started reading webnovels (I think like 50 of them.....), but nobody writes them anymore LOL.

[raziela]

@lynne22 Great post!  I definitely agree with how much I love Team Phoenix's journey and the growth of XL, growth of PX as individuals and their bond.  Also what you said about the characters choices.

10 hours ago, lynne22 said:

Miya's blindness for me is a plot device to push QY back as commentator.. so I actually try not to think too much about it  LOLS.. because yeah.. it is a bit frustrating to watch esp because this happen at the last minute.. lols.. like do we really need it to be so dramatic screen writer? *rollseyes.jpg*

Agreed. That's the only way I can tolerate this storyline as a plot device for QY to go back to commentating.

 

10 hours ago, lynne22 said:

And also Luo Tian's infatuation with QY, it is not something I'm a fan off for different reason. One of the theme that I love from GYH is mentor-ship. We can see how Pioneers team.. one after another mentors their juniors [mostly XK], how XK mentors his friends at Legends, at VNG... that's why I always love Luo Tian's role as Qiu Ying's mentor... and personally I would prefer that Luo Tian shows concerns to Qiu Ying because he appreciate her hard work..[as we all can see on the drama] and likes her character not as a love interest.

But yes @raziela you do make a good point about Luo Tian's growth in the drama and what he forced XK to say the things he needed to say from the start..

Well, i think it's a bit of both.  He definitely appreciates her hard work, talent and and passion for commentating first before he falls for her.  Those are the things that allow him to open up and give her a chance after he had initially dismissed her.  LT is very serious about commentating so even if he has feelings for QY I don't think he would support her if he didn't believe in her ability.

 

10 hours ago, lynne22 said:

And eventho I know how the story ends.. I was left with a question if Miya never regains her sight.. what will XK do? Will he not go after QY after the competition? Will Miya woke up and finally let XK go? 

I wondered the same thing too about how it might have turned out if Miya wasn't faking because things were looking pretty bleak.

 

9 hours ago, lynne22 said:

@themarchioness I remember our talk about XK's bike collection.. lols..  look what I found when browsing the official weibo's album.

Thanks for posting the pics.  I didn't notice they were different motorcycles  until me mentioned his bike collection.  He must have been making pretty good money in e-sports if he had a collection of motorbikes at 25.  

LMAO!  I just noticed in the second pic there is a tiny fangirl on the back of Big Baby Blue all like "Sorry Qiu Ying. There's no room for you!"

 

@skibbies Many thanks for sharing more of your thoughts on the novel in comparison to the drama.

- I loved PX and his lollipops in the drama too.  I just love how the character turns out to be so different from what we initially expected when he was first introduced..

- I am surprised XK is more of a playboy and flirt in the book.  I wonder if it's the writing or Wang Yibo's interpretation that made him colder.  In the drama I got the impression that he hadn't looked at another girl after Miya until Qiu Ying came along and unexpectedly stole his heart 

11 hours ago, skibbies said:

 

Re: Like vs love. It's very rare to hear "love" said out loud in cdramas, usually even when love is mentioned, it's describing it "my love of so and so" rather than "I love you". I actually can't summon any cdramas from top of my head that has "I love you", but to be fair, I don't watch a lot of contemporary cdramas. It's definitely a cultural thing, "love" is a very heavy word, you don't hear the phrase that often irl either.

- Really appreciate both yours and @themarchioness explanations about "like" versus "love" in C-dramas.  It has confused me for a long time why couples in dramas who appear to be very much in love use "like" rather than "love" because to my Western ears "like" seems to sound rather tame.

 

- about that instant hotpot.  That's pretty scary if it's supposed to be a single serving AND they are too lazy to go out.  With the size and additives it must be unhealthy in the long run especially if they are eating it as often as the characters in GYS

 

- Thank you for link with the behind the scenes videos.  Really enjoyed watching the videos even though I don't understand.  The BTS of the suitcase scene is so entertaining. I love that Shu Wen actress is like the older sister even BTS.  The boys were having a lot of fun! Looks like Wang Yibo is not as mature as Ji Xiangkong  Also I was thinking all through the drama that Sun Ge's actor barely looks older than the juniors and it's the same in this bts where just looks like one of the boys in the suitcase race!

 

- Thanks for telling us more about the sequel.  Sounds really interesting that it focuses on a female gamer and her experiences in a male-dominated field. Pretty timely now as I am watching The King's Avatar where there are quite a few female gamers so it stood out to me even more in GYS we only ever saw two professional female gamers: Shu Wen and the unnamed female gamer at Dream Journey Cafe.

 

- Summer in the book sounds different from Summer in the drama.  Also following on from our earlier conversation it sounds like Drama!Summer definitely has the money!

 

9 hours ago, skibbies said:

QY in the book craved for attention and love due to her family background, I think it bordered on problematic level at some point.

- sounds like QY in the book is a much more damaged character than the drama  

[owlstar]

Just popping in to say that I started watching this drama for the romance (ok ok fine for Wang Yibo ), but what's keeping me watching is the story and all the supporting characters!  I'm on ep .18 now and really curious to see how JXK will manage to pull off the eventual win I know he will.  Pei Xi also cracks me up with his weird one-sided bromance with JXK lol.  

 

I actually find the chemistry between the OTP a little underwhelming.  Maybe I'm biased knowing how savage WYB is with girls (for example, https://twitter.com/bonbonruru/status/1173350039789293569), but while I like their relationship in theory so far their scenes together have a slightly awkward feel (although they do have their moments).  At least I like their slow burn romance much better than Go Go Squid which I know a lot of people like but the whole love at first sight trope is so not for me.  

 

Thanks @themarchioness for posting your incredibly detailed recaps!  I enjoy reading them even enough subs are available because there are details/insights that I miss while casually watching.

 

 

[raziela]

12 hours ago, owlstar said:

Just popping in to say that I started watching this drama for the romance (ok ok fine for Wang Yibo ), but what's keeping me watching is the story and all the supporting characters!  I'm on ep .18 now and really curious to see how JXK will manage to pull off the eventual win I know he will.  Pei Xi also cracks me up with his weird one-sided bromance with JXK lol.  

 

I actually find the chemistry between the OTP a little underwhelming.  Maybe I'm biased knowing how savage WYB is with girls (for example, https://twitter.com/bonbonruru/status/1173350039789293569), but while I like their relationship in theory so far their scenes together have a slightly awkward feel (although they do have their moments).  At least I like their slow burn romance much better than Go Go Squid which I know a lot of people like but the whole love at first sight trope is so not for me.  

 

Thanks @themarchioness for posting your incredibly detailed recaps!  I enjoy reading them even enough subs are available because there are details/insights that I miss while casually watching.

 

 

Yay!  Welcome  to the thread.  Glad you are enjoying the drama. 

 

I agree the story is compelling and the characters and their relationships really make this drama.

 

Just like you I am not a fan of the love at first sight trope so I much prefer the slow burn of their relationship. I understand what you mean as the drama doesn't place that much emphasis on the romance which may be why it feels underwhelming at times.

 

@themarchioness excellent recaps are so detailed and helpful!

[themarchioness]

Aw, you're very welcome @owlstar and @raziela, I'm just glad you find the recaps worth reading and helpful!  I didn't have much time to work on the last episode this weekend, so I'll share instead a ficlet that I worked on earlier last week.  I've held onto wondering if I would add on to it, but I don't think so. I kind of like it as it is, short and sweet, and hope you will all feel the same.  I don't even have a title for it!  But as the next couple of things I write are going the way of this ficlet route, I think I'm going to keep things generic and just number them as I go, starting from Story #2 (because technically I already wrote one; it just has a title).   

 

Anyway, like I said, hope you all enjoy this next tale . . . it was borne out of an idea given to me by @lynne22! 

 

Story #2

Spoiler

 

 

Neither Shu Wen nor Sun Ze Yi were the type to stand on ceremony, so when they finally decided to marry it was only natural that they would decide to do so with as little fanfare as possible.  Originally, it was their intention to just visit the Marriage Registration Office of their local Bureau of Civil Affairs to get their hukou booklets stamped and then maybe have a celebratory meal afterwards with their closest friends, but when Summer somehow caught wind of this news, he insisted that would not do. 

 

“Just leave it to me and Pei Xi,” he told them.

 

“But –” Shu Wen started to say.

 

“We’ll handle everything,” Summer reassured.  “You won’t have to worry about a thing.”

 

“There’s really no need to go through all this trouble,” his Yi Ge told him.  “We just want to do things simply.”

 

“How is that okay?” Summer protested.  “Don’t be like that.  Are you going to deprive your bride of the honor of her biggest day?” 

 

Sun Ze Yi looked helplessly at Shu Wen, and she just shrugged her shoulders back. 

 

Knowing when they were defeated, they let Summer have his way.  Which was how, only a few days later, the Phoenix training base was turned into his wedding command center. 

 

As Xiang Kong walked past the bulletin boards where they always posted game data about their opponents, he couldn’t help but pause with his hands in his pockets and start to read over all the list of wedding to-dos that Summer had since hung up there instead.  From lists of possible venue sites to sample banquet menus and everything else in between, there was no detail Summer had left unattended. 

 

His Sun Ge walked past him at that moment and Xiang Kong pointed to the bulletin board behind him with his thumb and asked if he’d had a look at it recently.  “Don’t remind me,” Sun Ze Yi answered.  He’d already had to listen to Summer’s ramblings for an hour earlier that morning on the topic of what he should wear to the wedding.  Was one black suit really that different from the next?

 

It was Shu Wen who became Summer’s target later that afternoon.  “You need to pick out the flowers for your bouquet,” he told her.  “That way the florist will have time to order any flowers that they don’t already have in stock.”

 

“Can’t we just buy something on the day of?” Shu Wen asked.

 

Summer looked horrified.  “Shu Wen, how can you ask such a question?  The flowers will be the main focus of the décor.” 

 

Resigned, but not willing to suffer the torture alone, Shu Wen called Qiu Ying over to join her on the couch and handing her a stack of binders, she told her, “You should help me pick the flowers for the bouquet since, afterwards, I’m going to make sure to throw it to you.”

 

When Yi Xuan heard that, he immediately complained.  “Wen Jie, how can you show such favoritism? What about my Yi Yi?  She has just as much a chance at being the next one to get married.”

 

“What are you talking about?”  Yi Yi asked indignantly and started swatting at him.  “Who said anything about marrying you?  I’m not getting married to you.  How can you talk like that with everyone present?  Stop your crazy talk.”

 

“Lu Yi Yi, what do you mean you’re not getting married to me?  Just who do you think you’re going to marry instead?  You kissed me, so you’d better take responsibility.” 

 

“Why do you always have to bring that up?  And in front of everybody!”  As Yi Yi hopped up and down, frustrated and embarrassed, she continued to hit at Yi Xuan.

 

In the midst of this squabble, that nobody had even bothered to pay attention to since they were so used to it, Shu Wen stepped away to answer a phone call leaving Qiu Ying to flip through the binders on the living room couch by herself.  Seeing this as his opportunity, Pei Xi walked over a cup of coffee and took the seat next to her.  He then handed the coffee to Qiu Ying, and asked, “Are you thinking of marriage already?”

 

“Ah?”  Qiu Ying was so caught off guard she stared at him and didn’t know how to answer.

 

“Have you and Ji Xiang Kong discussed marriage?”

 

They’d only just settled matters between them, was all Qiu Ying could think, and the biggest decision they were currently facing was whether they were going to have dinner with her parents for Xiang Kong’s first official meeting as her boyfriend this coming weekend or the next. 

 

“It’s my hope that you won’t distract him,” Pei Xi continued.  “The new competitive season is just around the corner and, as the reigning world champions, the expectations and pressure for Phoenix next year are going to be that much greater.  Xiang Kong’s really going to need to focus if we want to have a chance of being China’s first back-to-back winners of the world championships.”

 

It was Qiu Ying’s turn to scramble to her feet as she tossed the binders aside like hot potatoes and asked, “What are you talking about?”  Flustered and flapping her arms, she continued, “Who’s distracting who?  I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she told him and stalked off.

 

After Qiu Ying left, Pei Xi picked up the cup of coffee she’d never touched and took a sip.  “Mm.  Tastes good.”

 

//-//

 

[owlstar]

 

12 hours ago, raziela said:

Yay!  Welcome  to the thread.  Glad you are enjoying the drama. 

 

Thank you!  I really want to binge watch so I can catch up with everyone's posts but unfortunately too much work this week so will have to take it slow.  At least the episodes are short & sweet.  Miya's finally shown up...  I hope it doesn't get too angsty. 

 

@themarchioness I'm looking forward to reading your fanfics once I finish watching!

 

 

A little random but I came across this clip, and I haven't seen this show but isn't that the actress that plays YY next to Wang Yibo??

 

[themarchioness]

1 hour ago, owlstar said:

 

A little random but I came across this clip, and I haven't seen this show but isn't that the actress that plays YY next to Wang Yibo??

 

 

Yup!  She was one of the PD 101 trainees.    And the actor playing PX was briefly an "intern" on Day Day Up back in 2016, and that's a variety show for which Yibo is one of the MCs.   

[raziela]

19 hours ago, themarchioness said:

Aw, you're very welcome @owlstar and @raziela, I'm just glad you find the recaps worth reading and helpful!  I didn't have much time to work on the last episode this weekend, so I'll share instead a ficlet that I worked on earlier last week.  I've held onto wondering if I would add on to it, but I don't think so. I kind of like it as it is, short and sweet, and hope you will all feel the same.  I don't even have a title for it!  But as the next couple of things I write are going the way of this ficlet route, I think I'm going to keep things generic and just number them as I go, starting from Story #2 (because technically I already wrote one; it just has a title).   

 

Anyway, like I said, hope you all enjoy this next tale . . . it was borne out of an idea given to me by @lynne22! 

 

Story #2

 

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

 

 

Neither Shu Wen nor Sun Ze Yi were the type to stand on ceremony, so when they finally decided to marry it was only natural that they would decide to do so with as little fanfare as possible.  Originally, it was their intention to just visit the Marriage Registration Office of their local Bureau of Civil Affairs to get their hukou booklets stamped and then maybe have a celebratory meal afterwards with their closest friends, but when Summer somehow caught wind of this news, he insisted that would not do. 

 

 

 

“Just leave it to me and Pei Xi,” he told them.

 

 

 

“But –” Shu Wen started to say.

 

 

 

“We’ll handle everything,” Summer reassured.  “You won’t have to worry about a thing.”

 

 

 

“There’s really no need to go through all this trouble,” his Yi Ge told him.  “We just want to do things simply.”

 

 

 

“How is that okay?” Summer protested.  “Don’t be like that.  Are you going to deprive your bride of the honor of her biggest day?” 

 

 

 

Sun Ze Yi looked helplessly at Shu Wen, and she just shrugged her shoulders back. 

 

 

 

Knowing when they were defeated, they let Summer have his way.  Which was how, only a few days later, the Phoenix training base was turned into his wedding command center. 

 

 

 

As Xiang Kong walked past the bulletin boards where they always posted game data about their opponents, he couldn’t help but pause with his hands in his pockets and start to read over all the list of wedding to-dos that Summer had since hung up there instead.  From lists of possible venue sites to sample banquet menus and everything else in between, there was no detail Summer had left unattended. 

 

 

 

His Sun Ge walked past him at that moment and Xiang Kong pointed to the bulletin board behind him with his thumb and asked if he’d had a look at it recently.  “Don’t remind me,” Sun Ze Yi answered.  He’d already had to listen to Summer’s ramblings for an hour earlier that morning on the topic of what he should wear to the wedding.  Was one black suit really that different from the next?

 

 

 

It was Shu Wen who became Summer’s target later that afternoon.  “You need to pick out the flowers for your bouquet,” he told her.  “That way the florist will have time to order any flowers that they don’t already have in stock.”

 

 

 

“Can’t we just buy something on the day of?” Shu Wen asked.

 

 

 

Summer looked horrified.  “Shu Wen, how can you ask such a question?  The flowers will be the main focus of the décor.” 

 

 

 

Resigned, but not willing to suffer the torture alone, Shu Wen called Qiu Ying over to join her on the couch and handing her a stack of binders, she told her, “You should help me pick the flowers for the bouquet since, afterwards, I’m going to make sure to throw it to you.”

 

 

 

When Yi Xuan heard that, he immediately complained.  “Wen Jie, how can you show such favoritism? What about my Yi Yi?  She has just as much a chance at being the next one to get married.”

 

 

 

“What are you talking about?”  Yi Yi asked indignantly and started swatting at him.  “Who said anything about marrying you?  I’m not getting married to you.  How can you talk like that with everyone present?  Stop your crazy talk.”

 

 

 

“Lu Yi Yi, what do you mean you’re not getting married to me?  Just who do you think you’re going to marry instead?  You kissed me, so you’d better take responsibility.” 

 

 

 

“Why do you always have to bring that up?  And in front of everybody!”  As Yi Yi hopped up and down, frustrated and embarrassed, she continued to hit at Yi Xuan.

 

 

 

In the midst of this squabble, that nobody had even bothered to pay attention to since they were so used to it, Shu Wen stepped away to answer a phone call leaving Qiu Ying to flip through the binders on the living room couch by herself.  Seeing this as his opportunity, Pei Xi walked over a cup of coffee and took the seat next to her.  He then handed the coffee to Qiu Ying, and asked, “Are you thinking of marriage already?”

 

 

 

“Ah?”  Qiu Ying was so caught off guard she stared at him and didn’t know how to answer.

 

 

 

“Have you and Ji Xiang Kong discussed marriage?”

 

 

 

They’d only just settled matters between them, was all Qiu Ying could think, and the biggest decision they were currently facing was whether they were going to have dinner with her parents for Xiang Kong’s first official meeting as her boyfriend this coming weekend or the next. 

 

 

 

“It’s my hope that you won’t distract him,” Pei Xi continued.  “The new competitive season is just around the corner and, as the reigning world champions, the expectations and pressure for Phoenix next year are going to be that much greater.  Xiang Kong’s really going to need to focus if we want to have a chance of being China’s first back-to-back winners of the world championships.”

 

 

 

It was Qiu Ying’s turn to scramble to her feet as she tossed the binders aside like hot potatoes and asked, “What are you talking about?”  Flustered and flapping her arms, she continued, “Who’s distracting who?  I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she told him and stalked off.

 

 

 

After Qiu Ying left, Pei Xi picked up the cup of coffee she’d never touched and took a sip.  “Mm.  Tastes good.”

 

 

 

//-//

 

 

 

 Thank you for sharing another wonderful fic!  I love how perfectly you capture all the characters and their personalities in this story: Shu Wen and Sun Ge just laidback about the wedding,  Summer taking over and meddling Yi Yi being in denial and argumentative and the piece de resistance, Pei Xi and his concern for XK's career.  Poor Qiu Ying! (also love that Shu Wen has already decided she will be tossing the bouquet to QY!)

 

9 hours ago, owlstar said:

A little random but I came across this clip, and I haven't seen this show but isn't that the actress that plays YY next to Wang Yibo??

I didn't know Yi Yi's actress was an idol! 

And I didn't know Wang Yibo was a judge or an idol!

 

Speaking of idols I thought the actress for Miya was great casting and styling as I think she definitely has a K-pop idol look.

[Lynne]

@themarchioness <3  You're welcome!!!! That fic ARE SO IN CHARACTER... HAHAHAHA.... LOVE IT!!! 

One more episode to go.................................... so I think this gif is pretty appropriate don't you think?   [AHH... EXCUSES.. EXCUSES...]

 

@owlstar Welcome! 

@raziela

3 hours ago, raziela said:

Speaking of idols I thought the actress for Miya was great casting and styling as I think she definitely has a K-pop idol look.

I think so too!  

[themarchioness]

@lynne22... you keep sharing that gif, and I’m going to be too distracted to recap... 

[Lynne]

hahaha.. should I share this instead??? 

Xiang Kong is asking you why haven't you gone to bed right now???