First Episode 85: 孔雀翎

[renzhe]

A part of the Grand First Episode Project -- See this thread for more info.

Many links to online videos can be found on baidu

youtube (720p HD)

youku

tudou

cntv.cn

Language Difficulty Level: Intermediate (standard Wuxia jargon, but conversations are easy)

Wuxia series based on a Gu Long novel, which is a part of a 5-book series on 5 great weapons of Wulin.

This is not too great, but we haven't had a look at any Gu Long's stuff, so it will be a bit of a change. The main actors are not convincing so far and CGI is terrible as always, but there is quite a bit of stuff going on and the story might be interesting, so I'll give it a go for a while.

--- PLOT SUMMARY ---

In the beginning, we see a young 刘星 witnessing her father duelling many wulin fighters using a mythical weapon called 孔雀翎, after which he disappears. Years later, she is working for an organisation called 青龙会七月十五分舵. Also working for them is the 西门 escort agency, who are eliminating all their competitors in the search of the weapon. She kills a group from the south together with a mysterious person referred to as 西门玉, but one victim manages to escape, stealing the horse of 周大娘, owner of a local inn.

In the city, we meet 小武 who has a run-in with 刘星 and embarrasses her in the following fight. He also meets 高立, and helps him haggle over a jade bracelet.

刘星 reports her progress to her boss, a chained multi-headed dragon (this part is a bit daft). He is after the weapon because he is afraid that the competing escort agencies might unite and get their hands on it. She managed to find 秋凤梧, the misguided heir to 孔雀山庄, the mansion where the weapon is kept, and who is romantically involved with her childhood friend 邓玉如. They are hiding this from her strict father 邓定候, the head of the 镇远镖局 agency. In reality, he is called 麻锋 and is working for 西门玉. On the day 秋凤梧 marries, he will be shown the secret room and given the 孔雀翎, so 刘星 arranges for the two to meet and watch her performance as a way to get to the weapon.

The escaped horseman arrives to town and is killed by 西门玉. As he is dying, he tells 小武 to tell 邓定候 that 6 great escort agencies from the south have been destroyed. 西门玉 reports to the dragon: the northern agencies are about to join forces, and he suggests to kill 邓定候. 小武 follows 西门玉 and poisons him, taking the money for the horse which 周老娘 is demanding from him, and he gets offered a job, if he passes a test. We find out that 西门玉 is also working for 青龙会. 秋凤梧 doesn't go to 刘星's performance, and 刘星 kills 邓玉如 and takes her place instead, planning to marry 秋凤梧 as a way to get to the weapon.

小武 meets 高立 at the inn where he is working now. The next morning he fights 秋凤梧 and the episode ends.

--- PLOT SUMMARY END ---

The summary is based on seeing the episode once, I haven't done any research, so errors are possible.

The following few episodes are full of intrigue and fake identities, and we get to see something of a romance developing between 小武 and 刘星.

[Gleaves]

Just watched episode 1. It was pretty entertaining. There was plenty of stuff going on and some surprises, even. I think I might stick with this for a while, fill my 武侠 quota. I'm avoiding the 金庸 shows because in case i want to read those books at some point.

I was wondering why the heck those guys were running and throwing the 轿子。 I'm not sure I got my answer, but it certainly results in a fun scene.

What the heck is with the hat visor thing?

[renzhe]

TBH, it is not one of the better Wuxia shows I've seen, it's more like an average youth show with an Wuxia backdrop. I think it mostly comes down to the budget -- the actors are average and the director lacks the vision of, say, 张级中. You don't get to feel the cool literary style of Gu Long and you're left with a complex story told in a confusing way.

That said, I'm 7 episodes into it and it's entertaining enough, if you like Wuxia shows. Having 720p HD version on youtube is a great motivation too! I was hoping to watch without subtitles, but it's tricky because there is so much character confusion going on that I'd lose track without them. If you have any questions, do ask. So I'll keep watching it until I get bored.

The throwing of the 轿子 probably had to do with 西门玉's 轻功 -- he can basically fly around.

[renzhe]

It's a bit meh for a while, but starting with episode 8, it suddenly gets interesting! It's quite enjoyable at the moment.

EDIT: youtube only has 10 episodes at the time of writing this. The cntv link is complete and works reliable outside of China too.

[renzhe]

OK, finished this. It was pretty average overall. The first third is quite poor, but it gets more interesting. Still, it suffers from bad CGI and some poor acting.

It's watchable for fans of the genre, others should look into some of the other wuxia shows we've covered.

[Gleaves]

Good call about episode 8. I just watched it and was pleasantly surprised by the introduction of a few more plot lines. Much needed too, as 西门玉 and his band of bandits are pretty lame. Also, I hope someone kills 麻锋 soon, as I can't stand that guy. But I have a feeling that's not going to happen. Since this one is only 21 episodes, I'll probably try to tackle the whole thing. I feel like many 30 episode Chinese shows would be better off with a shorter season like this.

[Gleaves]

I finished this one up last night. It's decent enough. It was just good enough for me to continue watching.

Some thoughts on the ending -

I can't believe I had to wait until the last epsiode to see someone kill 麻锋. I was so happy when he fell off that cliff, only to have him live for 12 more episodes. I figured 刘星 would die, but it was still disappointing. Not because I liked her, but just because the show asks that you to believe 邓定候 would let her go, only to not let her go later.