any good TV series recently?

[Onshore]

So far, decreed by fate production drama is refreshing. Exposing some of male beauty or muscles but no butt or full nudity. The female lead is funny and ke ai beautiful enough. 

 

When I compared beautiful female leads of this drama and others, I think there are many sexier or or more beautiful artists but for male leads this one is by far is the one with most beautiful male leads played by Li Jiu Lin and Wu Chong Cuan, regardless they are natural or plastic. I have compared how the male and female leads without the ancient costume han fu and I think they are more beautiful, atractive and suitable in hanfu costume. Especially, Wu Chong Xuan is on another level and so attractive sensual in hanfu and long hair han chinese style. 

 

All male leads has shaped few packs stomach but the female lead's body is only exposed a bit on the shoulder. That is it.

 

Yang yang is probably dubbed as the most beautiful man in China but not sure if he is able to beat the beauty of the male leads here including characters' suitability and other factors.

 

Same goes with the female lead, yes Dilraba, Tang Yan, etc may be more beautiful but may not be suitable for the role, characters, etc for the role played by Chen Fang Tong here.

 

I expect this drama to give more exposure to female beauty in a nice / decent way.

It should be Wu Chong Xuan

[TaxiAsh]

I've just started this series (about the pandemic) 在一起 (with you) English name

https://youtu.be/8bWxRp4XGFY

 

It's excellent / sad / moving / very fast speaking. In fact, a lot of the time,  I can't even keep up with the English subtitles (which on this version are optional, so you don't have to have them on). 

 

If you are studying medical vocab/terms, it's also very useful as there is a lot of it. 

[amytheorangutan]

I think some people mentioned it before but almost 3 years later I finally started watching Someday or One Day 《想見你》reason why I waited so long was because my friend told me it’s pretty sad and I have to be in the right mood for a sob fest. Up to episode 5 now and I love it so far bring back so much nostalgia of being young etc. I can’t wait to do a pilgrimage to the filming locations at some point.

[MadmaxxxMaSiDe]

Does anyone use the subscription service of Iqiyi? Seems to have a lot of TV-Shows on it, and not terribly expensive. Is it worth it though or are the shows more like the less popular ones? (Quickly browsed through it, and didn´t find too many well-known series, but I could be totally wrong). I found 想见你though. 

 

Planning to watch My Superhero 欢迎光临, as it was recommended in the blog of my former language school.

 

[amytheorangutan]

I paid for one month I think a while back to watch 隱秘的角落. Also 沈默的真相 is on there as well. I reckon if you watch 2-3 dramas in one month that you can’t watch with the free account then it’s worth it to pay one month and then pay again if you have 2-3 more that you want to watch. I don’t know if I would pay monthly subscription as there are not that many dramas I want to watch every month. 

[MTH123]

On 8/13/2022 at 3:07 PM, amytheorangutan said:

I think some people mentioned it before but almost 3 years later I finally started watching Someday or One Day 《想見你》reason why I waited so long was because my friend told me it’s pretty sad and I have to be in the right mood for a sob fest. Up to episode 5 now and I love it so far bring back so much nostalgia of being young etc. I can’t wait to do a pilgrimage to the filming locations at some point.

 

I finally got around to watching it too a couple of weeks ago. I thought the time-travel part was particularly cool. It was different than other time-travel dramas I've watched, in what I found to be an especially cool way. Everything I've seen Alice Ke (Ko Chia Yen; 柯佳嬿) in has been good. So, I'm a fan of hers.

 

Having said that, I prefer Chinese dramas. I like over 90% of the Chinese dramas I've watched. I don't post my opinion about them, because I wouldn't add much more to any discussion than "I like it," lol. I'm much pickier about Taiwanese dramas. Someday or One Day is one of the few that I like.

 

[MTH123]

On 8/16/2022 at 3:10 AM, MadmaxxxMaSiDe said:

Does anyone use the subscription service of Iqiyi? Seems to have a lot of TV-Shows on it, and not terribly expensive. Is it worth it though or are the shows more like the less popular ones? (Quickly browsed through it, and didn´t find too many well-known series, but I could be totally wrong).

 

I subscribe to iQiyi, because 1) my husband can’t stand commercials and 2) a subscription provides access to content that is behind a paywall.

 

But, let me back up for a moment. I watch Viki the most. This includes Someday or One Day. I subscribe to it, mainly because my husband can’t stand commercials. Viki makes money from commercials. An individual can choose to have the commercials or get rid of them by subscribing to Viki for $5 a month. (An annual subscription is cheaper. So, that’s what I do.) I view the $5 as the money Viki would have made off me from commercials, if I didn’t subscribe.

 

An added benefit is access to content that is behind the paywall. Another added benefit is that Viki has the best English subtitles.

 

Going back to iQiyi, I watch it the second most and far less than I watch Viki. A standard subscription is $7 a month. (An annual subscription is cheaper. So, that’s what I do.) So, in my mind, I pay $5 to get rid of commercials and an extra $2 or so. It isn’t as good a deal as Viki. But, I would say that it’s worth it, if you watch enough shows on it, which I do.

 

iQiyi has a lot of great content, including a lot of very popular shows. I don’t know if it’s me or iQiyi’s user interface, but I find it to be much easier to look up stuff on MyDramaList.com. Then, I search for the show on iQiyi. If I didn’t do it this way, then I would miss out on a lot of great content on iQiyi.

 

I also subscribe to WeTV (Tencent) and MGTV (MangoTV) at times. Um, yes, can you tell that watching Chinese and Taiwanese dramas is one of my biggest hobbies, lol? I watch WeTV far less than iQiyi, and I watch MGTV far less than WeTV. WeTV has a lot of great content. I don’t think MGTV has a lot of great content.

 

I don’t subscribe to WeTV or MGTV year round. I pick and choose months to subscribe. WeTV is $6 a month. MGTV is $2 a month, if I remember correctly. It’s $1 a month for the first three months, if I remember correctly.

 

I’m also looking into subscribing to Youku on and off. But, it isn’t a simple process for someone in the U. S. If anyone knows how to do this, please share it! And, please share it in a step-by-step way.

[MTH123]

On 5/8/2022 at 6:16 PM, TaxiAsh said:

I've just started this series (about the pandemic) 在一起 (with you) English name

https://youtu.be/8bWxRp4XGFY

 

It's excellent / sad / moving / very fast speaking. In fact, a lot of the time,  I can't even keep up with the English subtitles (which on this version are optional, so you don't have to have them on). 

 

This is just an FYI, in case it makes a difference in anyone's choice of series to watch. Almost no matter how fast Chinese is spoken, there isn't much good reason for English subtitles to be too fast to read. It should be rare for English subtitles to be too fast to read. But, unfortunately, it isn't rare. The problem is in the scheme a given company uses for the timing of subtitles. All big Chinese TV companies and their YouTube channels use timing based on spoken Chinese. The timing starts when the spoken Chinese starts, and it stops when the spoken Chinese stops.

 

But, many great studies have shown that the vast majority of English subtitles should be left on the screen for quite a bit longer to be comfortable to read. English tends to use more syllables and words in a statement than Chinese. So, the great studies concluded that English characters per second should be used to determine the timing for English subtitles. Ideally, it's no more than, say, 20 English characters per second. For example, to accomplish much of this metric, but not all of it, Viki simply adds 1 second per subtitle. It's quick and easy to do, especially with the software that Viki uses (the free and very-popular software Subtitle Edit). Every big company should do at least this.

 

Viki and Netflix are the only two big companies that use timing for English words, not spoken Chinese. They are both fundamentally based on the concept of English characters per second. Viki has the most accurate English translations too, which is a big added bonus. Netflix makes English subtitles more concise than the Chinese is. All the big Chinese TV companies and their YouTube channels make English subtitles even more concise. So, talk about something being lost in the translation. Plenty is lost in the translation by design, an unnecessary design! By the way, Viki makes both better timing and more accurate translations work. There isn't much good reason to cut corners on either of these.

 

So, Viki is the best. Netflix is the second best. For every other big company, if I or my "Western" husband want to catch every word, then we plan on using the rewind and pause buttons. Of course, this can get old quickly. So, we often just let subtitles go flying by us, but not for series that we really, really like.

 

Having said all this, regardless of how fast English subtitles go by and how concise the English subtitles are, Chinese TV dramas are still my and my husband's favorite entertainment. We just prefer Viki, Netflix, iQiyi, WeTV (Tencent), and MGTV (MangoTV) in that order. Youku fits in there somewhere too, probably closer to WeTV. A bit of good news is that big Chinese TV companies have been improving their English subtitles through the years, especially iQiyi.

 

[TaxiAsh]

On 8/20/2022 at 11:51 PM, MTH123 said:

This is just an FYI, in case it makes a difference in anyone's choice of series to watch. Almost no matter how fast Chinese is spoken, there isn't much good reason for English subtitles to be too fast to read. It should be rare for English subtitles to be too fast to read. But, unfortunately, it isn't rare. The problem is in the scheme a given company uses for the timing of subtitles. All big Chinese TV companies and their YouTube channels use timing based on spoken Chinese. The timing starts when the spoken Chinese starts, and it stops when the spoken Chinese stops.

 

But, many great studies have shown that the vast majority of English subtitles should be left on the screen for quite a bit longer to be comfortable to read. English tends to use more syllables and words in a statement than Chinese. So, the great studies concluded that English characters per second should be used to determine the timing for English subtitles. Ideally, it's no more than, say, 20 English characters per second. For example, to accomplish much of this metric, but not all of it, Viki simply adds 1 second per subtitle. It's quick and easy to do, especially with the software that Viki uses (the free and very-popular software Subtitle Edit). Every big company should do at least this.

 

Viki and Netflix are the only two big companies that use timing for English words, not spoken Chinese. They are both fundamentally based on the concept of English characters per second. Viki has the most accurate English translations too, which is a big added bonus. Netflix makes English subtitles more concise than the Chinese is. All the big Chinese TV companies and their YouTube channels make English subtitles even more concise. So, talk about something being lost in the translation. Plenty is lost in the translation by design, an unnecessary design! By the way, Viki makes both better timing and more accurate translations work. There isn't much good reason to cut corners on either of these.

 

So, Viki is the best. Netflix is the second best. For every other big company, if I or my "Western" husband want to catch every word, then we plan on using the rewind and pause buttons. Of course, this can get old quickly. So, we often just let subtitles go flying by us, but not for series that we really, really like.

 

Having said all this, regardless of how fast English subtitles go by and how concise the English subtitles are, Chinese TV dramas are still my and my husband's favorite entertainment. We just prefer Viki, Netflix, iQiyi, WeTV (Tencent), and MGTV (MangoTV) in that order. Youku fits in there somewhere too, probably closer to WeTV. A bit of good news is that big Chinese TV companies have been improving their English subtitles through the years, especially iQiyi.

Yes, one of my Chinese friends edits other people' subtitles. He knows this

[Qarl]

I've recently watched 隐秘的角落 (crime/drama), 小喜欢 (comedy/drama) and 小敏家 (drama). All were pretty good, would definitely recommend.

 

I've recently started watching 庭外, partly because of Jin Luo who is a great actor. This show does, however, feel a bit more difficult to follow than previous shows I've watched. A lot of specific terms that make the plot a bit difficult to follow in detail. But very exciting so far, nonetheless.

[StChris]

A lot of people here recommended 《开端》and I finally got around to watching it (it became my gym/treadmill show). I'm glad I did, as it was an intelligently written show and without too much filler at just 15 episodes.

 

Spoiler

The most unrealistic thing about the show wasn't the time loop but a whole bus of people struggling so much to subdue a skinny middle-aged woman!

 

 

 

Once I finish watching Extraordinary Attorney Woo (not exactly beneficial to my Chinese, but still recommended all the same!) I'll be ready for another one. Any recommendations?

 

Looking at the highest rated shows on 豆瓣 for this year, I think I might give the first episode of each of these a try:

大山的女儿 (9.3)

警察荣誉 (8.5)

毛头的深夜理发店 (8.4)

人世间 (8.1 - but 58 episodes at 40 minutes each!)

被遗忘的时光 (8.0)

[amytheorangutan]

Thanks @StChris I think I will give 開端 a go. I also love Extraordinary Attorney Woo. I just finished watching 想見妳 took me sometime to finish it but I love it! I might be a bit biased because I have a crush on 許光漢 but it's such a great drama... kept me guessing till the end and I also like the ending.

[StChris]

On 9/19/2022 at 8:34 PM, amytheorangutan said:

I just finished watching 想見妳 took me sometime to finish it but I love it! I might be a bit biased because I have a crush on 許光漢 but it's such a great drama

 

Poor 莫俊傑, that guy can never catch a break, always overshadowed by 李子維, haha. I have a bit of a crush on 柯佳嬿, so I'm probably biased towards to the show too.

[amytheorangutan]

On 9/21/2022 at 11:26 PM, StChris said:

Poor 莫俊傑, that guy can never catch a break, always overshadowed by 李子維, haha. I have a bit of a crush on 柯佳嬿, so I'm probably biased towards to the show too.

haha yes! That’s why I’m quite happy the way they wrote the ending 給莫俊傑和陳韻如沒有那麼殘忍的結局 It gives all the characters open endings. She is really good! I also like her a lot. 

[amytheorangutan]

I just finished《以家人之名》love it so much! Cried so much haha family drama always gets me. I can’t take it when it’s too depressing but 《以家人之名》just have the right amount of funny and uplifting moments. Love the father daughter duo 李尖尖 and her dad. 
 

[MadmaxxxMaSiDe]

Funny, uplifting moments and willing to shed some tears? I might have the perfect suggestion: My Superhero 欢迎光临. I mentioned it above, in the meantime I´ve finished it, and would strongly recommend it, even though it´s Douban rating isn´t too high.

 

The story is about a guy falling in love with a girl. Once realizing her mother is dancing in 广场舞 group (right below his apartment), he decides to join them. 

 

It´s really entertaining, but as so often the case with Chinese tv shows: It´s 37 episodes (each 45 minutes).

[EnergyReaper]

I'm watching a high school comedy of 24 eps on iQiyi.com, 东北插班生. It's a lot of fun, and there are several Chinese dialects or special region styles of Mandarin.

[EnergyReaper]

If you like 开端 or 我的刺猬女孩, maybe you'll like another time-travel series of 24 eps, 一闪一闪亮星星(Shining For One Thing)

[imron]

Well, if you're in to time travel, this show is an oldie, but a goodie

[EnergyReaper]

I am watching a funny mini series 夫君请自重. It's about an author suddenly got into her novel and the male lead of the novel is an ancient prince. After she kissed the ml once, he unexpectedly gained the ability to hear her thoughts. In ep5, he wrote down some words he heard from her, of course they are wrong but easily being able to guess except two. I'll post the picture below.