Guilty Pleasures: MARS continued
Jan. 23rd, 2006 02:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dangermousieFair warning: this LJ is likely to become a largely MARS-related zone for a week or so (or however long it will take me to finish the Taiwanese show). I think it has 18 eps and I am on ep 5, so a decent chunk of my posts will be on it :) I can’t watch too much of it at once though, like eating candy. Too much gets too sweet and cloying. But in smaller dozes, so much fun! It continues to be trashy and good, and hey, I can analyze anything and so I will. Oh, and I am going to refer to characters by the show names.
The theme song is severely stuck in my head, not the least because they keep randomly playing it during the episodes as well. This is the first sample of Taiwanese pop I’ve ever heard and I must say it sounds just as sweet and candyish as most pop from anywhere. I am also rather bemused by the fact that during the credits they show clips overlaid with the theme song, but somehow they left the sounds of the punches in (btw, Bollywood stunt coordinators must have been busy at work on this. Heee). Also, the heroes seem to compete for alpha status by the floppiness of their hair. Ling definitely wins as his hair is longer and floppier than mine has been for most of my life, and I keep my hair long.
*is ded from the cute*
But mocking aside, I really do like it. Maybe because while on one level, this is the most cliché of stories: shy girl and bad boy hook up, on another, it strikes me as something I haven’t seen before as much. Maybe because of the heroine. Qi-Luo is not just shy, or even painfully shy. Mrs. de Winter was shy. Qi-Luo, as an aftermath of her rape is not able to function in the world, really.
Qi-Luo looking nicer than I have yet seen so far:
She wears no make-up and her hair severely pulled back. Her clothes are long and shapeless and of dark, unobtrusive colors. She walks with her head hunched into her shoulders and her eyes on the ground. She really looks like a person who wants to disappear. And she doesn’t talk, not really. Normally, watching something like this, if I were Qi-Luo’s mother or friend or whatever, I’d tell her to stay far, far away from Ling, who really does have severe problems. Unlike Shane West’s bad-boy in “A Walk To Remember” (OMG! They jumped off a water tower. Shock), Ling is genuinely bad news, what with violence problems, time spent in a mental institution (and continuing mental issues), and a course of acting-out that might land him in jail if he keeps on going the way he does. Normally, I’d be wishing for the heroine to fall for Da Ye, the hero’s best friend, a sweet nice guy who’s liked Qi Luo for ages and never mentioned it, who is caring and nice and normal. But not in this case.
Because Ling is the only one who managed to bring Qi-Luo out of her shell, because she needed someone who would push and prod and keep talking to her and at her even if she doesn’t respond. She needs someone not easily deterred. And in fact, I think part of the reason she gets more comfortable with him is because of his acting out. She sees all the bad boy stuff he does and in a way she is reassured because his oddness and problems are out there, visible. She knows what she is getting into as there is no subterfuge. Her past experience makes her really cautious of normal, well-adjusted people because it was her normal “nice” stepfather who raped her. And to someone who is as trapped by internal limits as she is, the fact that Ling seems not to care about anything at all is really appealing.
As we watch, she undergoes a gradual transformation. Her clothes, while still loose, become not quite so hideously shapeless and there are even hints of color in them (and from looking at later pictures, her clothes get even ‘better’ though they are never going to be on a sexy or revealing side of the spectrum). She starts raising her eyes and not burrowing her head in. And she starts talking to Ling but then also to Da Ye and a few other people even, sometimes (rarely) even contradicting, or arguing. She will never be Miss Popularity but now she just comes across as a very shy and conservative person, rather than a dysfunctional wreck. And that is why I really buy her being with Ling, the walking trouble incarnation. Because with the nice, sweet Da Ye who liked her for years without saying “hi” to her, she’d still be hiding in shadows (see how their date goes. Nowhere). Also, because no matter how south things go with Ling, she won’t be more unhappy and messed up than she was before him. (Actually, since I read the manga, and this seems to stick pretty close to it, it’s kinda fun to watch. As in ‘don’t ask him about how his twin died. He’ll go into convulsions and that would cut your date rather short.’) I do like that this is what Da Ye tells the freaking-out Ling. “Even if it’s disaster, it’s her choice.” Yay, for lack of Bollywood mutual self-sacrificing of SO competition.
And of course, what does Ling get out of this? Other than the bunch of really cool paintings which he can sell for a tidy sum when she gets famous? I think he likes her because she sees him as brave and good and intelligent, and despite his façade, he doesn’t see himself as any of these things. He clearly shares in the opinion of the others that he is a dummy, and has doubts about bravery, what with the fits and episodes, and as to his goodness? It’s pretty clear he thinks he’s horrible. So her reiterated, steadfast belief in his goodness etc, even though she’s seen some of his episodes (as when he almost choked someone, or when he had a fit, or whatever) is something he needs desperately. He always looks simultaneously ready to bolt and desperately needing more when she goes off on one of those tangents about his worthiness (of being loved). In fact, he pushes her away in the beginning as a defense mechanism because this whole thing freaks him out so much, opening himself to emotional vulnerability. He is actually just as dysfunctional as she is.
But I do think they work together, and that’s what I need in an OTP. He makes her have a spine. My favorite scene so far is when she actually tells him she likes him when he is outside her house (he tells her he is bad news and she says she tells herself that too, and every time she does, she wants him more. Heeee, bad boy appeal). She is the one making the first move and it’s such a huge deal if you consider her background and I love that. She always brings out these emotions in the beginning in very tight bursts as if fighting against all her inner suppression (just as when she tells Da Ye she likes Ling). And of course then he leans in for a kiss and gives her his good-luck charm (and later tries to back pedal, if not for long, heeee). And she goes to bed and pulls the blankets over her head and you can see her look at her hand with the charm. (The second scene I really loved is at the end of ep 5 when they say goodnight after their day together and she says she wants to watch him leave until he turns the corner because every time he goes away she thinks she won’t see him again and after a stunned pause he just envelops her in a hug and says he’ll be there. Sappy, yes. And I love sappy.)
And it’s a huge break through for her. From then on, she is able to interact with the world a bit better. Sort of as if she took the first step and now it’s a bit easier. She even argues a little. When they have their day together, it’s great to see her laugh. She laughs like someone not used to it. Of course, she still has her issues (not to mention her clothes are still on the baggy side, and her shyness is still strong). When he leans in to kiss her on a bed she freaks, of course.
I foresee much soapy goodness ahead.
Poster:
You can tell what kind of show it is, when I tell you and am not joking, that I have no idea if that is our hero or his twin:
Our hero and his best friend. One’s a mess, one’s wonderful. Guess who the heroine prefers. Of course:
Wangst? Yes, please.
More wangst? Yes, always:
Awww. Even if I am nowhere near this point in the show:
I also saw The White Countess yesterday. A really good movie set in 1930s Shanghai with Ralph Fiennes and Natasha Richardson. I especially loved RF’s character’s weary and defeated yet innate gentleness. I really recommend it.
Also, sign seen in an elevator: “Impeach Zorro!” Heh.
The theme song is severely stuck in my head, not the least because they keep randomly playing it during the episodes as well. This is the first sample of Taiwanese pop I’ve ever heard and I must say it sounds just as sweet and candyish as most pop from anywhere. I am also rather bemused by the fact that during the credits they show clips overlaid with the theme song, but somehow they left the sounds of the punches in (btw, Bollywood stunt coordinators must have been busy at work on this. Heee). Also, the heroes seem to compete for alpha status by the floppiness of their hair. Ling definitely wins as his hair is longer and floppier than mine has been for most of my life, and I keep my hair long.
*is ded from the cute*
But mocking aside, I really do like it. Maybe because while on one level, this is the most cliché of stories: shy girl and bad boy hook up, on another, it strikes me as something I haven’t seen before as much. Maybe because of the heroine. Qi-Luo is not just shy, or even painfully shy. Mrs. de Winter was shy. Qi-Luo, as an aftermath of her rape is not able to function in the world, really.
Qi-Luo looking nicer than I have yet seen so far:
She wears no make-up and her hair severely pulled back. Her clothes are long and shapeless and of dark, unobtrusive colors. She walks with her head hunched into her shoulders and her eyes on the ground. She really looks like a person who wants to disappear. And she doesn’t talk, not really. Normally, watching something like this, if I were Qi-Luo’s mother or friend or whatever, I’d tell her to stay far, far away from Ling, who really does have severe problems. Unlike Shane West’s bad-boy in “A Walk To Remember” (OMG! They jumped off a water tower. Shock), Ling is genuinely bad news, what with violence problems, time spent in a mental institution (and continuing mental issues), and a course of acting-out that might land him in jail if he keeps on going the way he does. Normally, I’d be wishing for the heroine to fall for Da Ye, the hero’s best friend, a sweet nice guy who’s liked Qi Luo for ages and never mentioned it, who is caring and nice and normal. But not in this case.
Because Ling is the only one who managed to bring Qi-Luo out of her shell, because she needed someone who would push and prod and keep talking to her and at her even if she doesn’t respond. She needs someone not easily deterred. And in fact, I think part of the reason she gets more comfortable with him is because of his acting out. She sees all the bad boy stuff he does and in a way she is reassured because his oddness and problems are out there, visible. She knows what she is getting into as there is no subterfuge. Her past experience makes her really cautious of normal, well-adjusted people because it was her normal “nice” stepfather who raped her. And to someone who is as trapped by internal limits as she is, the fact that Ling seems not to care about anything at all is really appealing.
As we watch, she undergoes a gradual transformation. Her clothes, while still loose, become not quite so hideously shapeless and there are even hints of color in them (and from looking at later pictures, her clothes get even ‘better’ though they are never going to be on a sexy or revealing side of the spectrum). She starts raising her eyes and not burrowing her head in. And she starts talking to Ling but then also to Da Ye and a few other people even, sometimes (rarely) even contradicting, or arguing. She will never be Miss Popularity but now she just comes across as a very shy and conservative person, rather than a dysfunctional wreck. And that is why I really buy her being with Ling, the walking trouble incarnation. Because with the nice, sweet Da Ye who liked her for years without saying “hi” to her, she’d still be hiding in shadows (see how their date goes. Nowhere). Also, because no matter how south things go with Ling, she won’t be more unhappy and messed up than she was before him. (Actually, since I read the manga, and this seems to stick pretty close to it, it’s kinda fun to watch. As in ‘don’t ask him about how his twin died. He’ll go into convulsions and that would cut your date rather short.’) I do like that this is what Da Ye tells the freaking-out Ling. “Even if it’s disaster, it’s her choice.” Yay, for lack of Bollywood mutual self-sacrificing of SO competition.
And of course, what does Ling get out of this? Other than the bunch of really cool paintings which he can sell for a tidy sum when she gets famous? I think he likes her because she sees him as brave and good and intelligent, and despite his façade, he doesn’t see himself as any of these things. He clearly shares in the opinion of the others that he is a dummy, and has doubts about bravery, what with the fits and episodes, and as to his goodness? It’s pretty clear he thinks he’s horrible. So her reiterated, steadfast belief in his goodness etc, even though she’s seen some of his episodes (as when he almost choked someone, or when he had a fit, or whatever) is something he needs desperately. He always looks simultaneously ready to bolt and desperately needing more when she goes off on one of those tangents about his worthiness (of being loved). In fact, he pushes her away in the beginning as a defense mechanism because this whole thing freaks him out so much, opening himself to emotional vulnerability. He is actually just as dysfunctional as she is.
But I do think they work together, and that’s what I need in an OTP. He makes her have a spine. My favorite scene so far is when she actually tells him she likes him when he is outside her house (he tells her he is bad news and she says she tells herself that too, and every time she does, she wants him more. Heeee, bad boy appeal). She is the one making the first move and it’s such a huge deal if you consider her background and I love that. She always brings out these emotions in the beginning in very tight bursts as if fighting against all her inner suppression (just as when she tells Da Ye she likes Ling). And of course then he leans in for a kiss and gives her his good-luck charm (and later tries to back pedal, if not for long, heeee). And she goes to bed and pulls the blankets over her head and you can see her look at her hand with the charm. (The second scene I really loved is at the end of ep 5 when they say goodnight after their day together and she says she wants to watch him leave until he turns the corner because every time he goes away she thinks she won’t see him again and after a stunned pause he just envelops her in a hug and says he’ll be there. Sappy, yes. And I love sappy.)
And it’s a huge break through for her. From then on, she is able to interact with the world a bit better. Sort of as if she took the first step and now it’s a bit easier. She even argues a little. When they have their day together, it’s great to see her laugh. She laughs like someone not used to it. Of course, she still has her issues (not to mention her clothes are still on the baggy side, and her shyness is still strong). When he leans in to kiss her on a bed she freaks, of course.
I foresee much soapy goodness ahead.
Poster:
You can tell what kind of show it is, when I tell you and am not joking, that I have no idea if that is our hero or his twin:
Our hero and his best friend. One’s a mess, one’s wonderful. Guess who the heroine prefers. Of course:
Wangst? Yes, please.
More wangst? Yes, always:
Awww. Even if I am nowhere near this point in the show:
I also saw The White Countess yesterday. A really good movie set in 1930s Shanghai with Ralph Fiennes and Natasha Richardson. I especially loved RF’s character’s weary and defeated yet innate gentleness. I really recommend it.
Also, sign seen in an elevator: “Impeach Zorro!” Heh.
