tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post7789500557264625799..comments2024-02-15T06:33:28.234-08:00Comments on LL's Musings 小賢角落: Review of HKTV series “To Be or Not To Be” (來生不做香港人)Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-53517705120381137902015-07-11T18:37:08.910-07:002015-07-11T18:37:08.910-07:00@Joshua: Thank you for commenting and welcome! :-...@Joshua: Thank you for commenting and welcome! :-)<br /><br />The scene you mentioned is definitely a great scene, though it's hard for me to pick a favorite since the entire series was so good.<br /><br />In terms of the scenes not matching from the trailer...no, the trailer was not done TVB sales preso style -- those scenes were truly edited out. The series was originally 30 episodes, but it was edited down to 25 episodes. All of HKTV's series were edited actually -- TBONTB is already one of the series considered having few edits...there are some HKTV series were more half the episodes were edited out! <br />llwy12https://www.blogger.com/profile/02401832364832078932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-73621410357922013822015-07-11T01:58:00.001-07:002015-07-11T01:58:00.001-07:00I finished watching all episodes within a week. Th...I finished watching all episodes within a week. The highlight of the series for me was the heart to heart talk between the two sisters nearing the end. The acting was phenomenal. Although I am a bit curious. Some (or even all) of the scenes in the trailer were not in the series. Would you know if those scenes were edited out or the trailer was done ala TVB sales presentation type?Joshuanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-55916677406977153092015-02-11T20:33:23.004-08:002015-02-11T20:33:23.004-08:00@Anonymous: Thanks for the info! I didn't bo...@Anonymous: Thanks for the info! I didn't bother looking up Queena Chan's information so didn't realize she was actually born and raised in HK. She definitely came across as a Mainlander to me, so from that perspective, yes she was very convincing with her fluent Mandarin and accented Cantonese. I think that if her character was less annoying, most of us would have been able to pay attention to her performance more.llwy12https://www.blogger.com/profile/02401832364832078932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-61002908228442863692015-02-11T19:25:13.018-08:002015-02-11T19:25:13.018-08:00I agree that Isabella is an annoying character in ...I agree that Isabella is an annoying character in the series, but don't forget that she was born and raised in HK (in real life). I applaud her effort in trying to speak Cantonese like a Mainlander, and Mandarin fluently.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-62796457074511429012015-02-09T20:49:14.221-08:002015-02-09T20:49:14.221-08:00@Kat M: Thanks for the comment.
Definitely agree...@Kat M: Thanks for the comment.<br /><br />Definitely agree about the character of Isabella. And I also hated how Hill was so nonchalant with his relationships. I remember one scene at that bar when he was venting to Roy about his relationship issues and Roy asked him he didn’t just get back together with Anson if he still loved her – Hill answered that even if he got back together with Anson, he would still have an affair with Isabella behind her back…he just couldn’t control himself. Hmmm….um, yes, the guy is charming, but with that kind of attitude toward relationships – thanks but no thanks...<br /><br />Also agree with your comments about the Jacky/Lana/Lennon storyline. llwy12https://www.blogger.com/profile/02401832364832078932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-62459826771086187212015-02-09T07:13:33.620-08:002015-02-09T07:13:33.620-08:00Wow, such a detailed review! Out of the 3 HKTV ser...Wow, such a detailed review! Out of the 3 HKTV series (Borderline, Election & TBONTB), this one is definitely my favourite because both sisters' storylines were interesting and great acting by all the main characters. Yes the story is not perfect (I wish they didn't make Isabella so 'crazy', she was an interesting character when she first appeared.) and I also thought Anson's storyline lost a lot of charm towards the end. Well, actually Hill lost me the minute he said 'I'm still in love with Anson' and then 2 minutes later started kissing Isabella... HRMMMMM.... just no. Not to mention them sneaking around... I guess Anson and Hill probably deserve each other.<br /><br />I have to say though, the Jacky/Lana/Lennon storyline annoyed me for most of this series (like 20 eps) but I started to appreciate it towards the end. Not the 'love triangle' of course, but I thought Jacky's struggle between what society expected of him and chasing his dreams is interesting and had potential... Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10677434250047296673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-39763559865496725432015-01-29T19:17:04.217-08:002015-01-29T19:17:04.217-08:00@Kathy: Thanks for commenting!
So true about H...@Kathy: Thanks for commenting! <br /><br />So true about Hill – the way the character was written could’ve easily gone the ‘most hated character’ route if not for Poon Chan Leung’s excellent portrayal. I’ve actually taken a liking to Poon Chan Leung now after TBONTB and look forward to seeing him in future series (though it will be very hard to get used to seeing him without the mustache/beard, that’s for sure!).<br /><br />As for Prudence’s Mei Tin – actually, I had thought the same thing as you in the beginning. I was so pissed during those scenes when Mei Tin got upset at her sister time and time again for trying to help her ‘leave’ Kwok Cheung – and yes, I also hated that scene where Mei Tin caves in to her in-laws and changes her mind about divorcing Kwok Cheung….I was so ticked off that I wanted to throw something at my computer…lol. But after watching the entire series, I changed my mind because I realized that doing what Mei Tin did wasn’t totally out of character for her because remember how filial she is. I mean, this is a woman who took care of her mother for 7 years when she fell ill, despite the injustice she suffered with her mother switching out her visa. Sure, it would have been ideal for her to divorce Kwok Cheung right then and there, but I could also understand her reasoning for not doing so for her in-laws’ sake. Plus, remember that even though she didn’t divorce Kwok Cheung, she also didn’t stay with him either – she moved out and started a new relationship with Bao Suen. And even when Kwok Cheung went running back to her, she didn’t take him back either. I feel if that part of the storyline had been written differently (meaning that if Mei Tin had decided to take Kwok Cheung back or sacrifice her relationship with Bao Suen because of it), then I probably would not have liked her character at all because at that point, she would be the typical ‘weak woman’ character that I see a lot in TVB series. Looking back after watching the entire series, I feel Mei Tin’s character is realistic and her actions are in-line with the way her character was written (though it may not seem like it at the time those particular scenes occurred).<br />llwy12https://www.blogger.com/profile/02401832364832078932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-44579958119077036122015-01-29T13:27:44.620-08:002015-01-29T13:27:44.620-08:00I enjoyed the series a lot. I definitely agreed wi...I enjoyed the series a lot. I definitely agreed with you on the character, Hill. Even though he was such a douche bag for treating Anson the way he did, but I cannot help routing for them throughout the whole series. There is something about him that is very charming, I like He does understand her pretty well, but Anson’s personality can be hard to deal with as she is very controlling. She is one tough cookie to be with. I especially agreed with you that this is not an easy role. Any bad acting would make his role most hated character. <br /><br />Totally agree on Isabella, the character and the actress…best word to describe: annoying. <br /><br />I beg differ on Prudence Liew’s character, Mei Tin. While she have good acting, but her character is unbelievable. She is in my annoying factor for most part of the series..haahaha I wanted to smash the TV at the scene where her in law beg her not to get a divorce. I hated her character for accepting her husband adultery, giving him chance after chance, and even willing to financially support his kid and mistress. The scene where she allow the mistress to take over her house was just insane. The only thing in my mind was – this lady is dumb…period. <br /><br />Bao Suen is in borderline of annoying too. The way how he love Maggie at first is pretty creepy. LOL <br />Kathynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-41895233105747946712015-01-28T22:12:23.529-08:002015-01-28T22:12:23.529-08:00@Anonymous: Thanks for your comment! Glad to hear...@Anonymous: Thanks for your comment! Glad to hear that you enjoyed reading the review -- I was actually very happy to do this particular review, as I enjoyed TBONTB immensely -- definitely makes things easier! :-)<br /><br />Hopefully you get to watch the series one day, as it is definitely worth the effort. Reading a review is one thing -- of course watching the actual series is an experience within itself!llwy12https://www.blogger.com/profile/02401832364832078932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5765116522593136045.post-15471083283281875402015-01-28T10:24:22.963-08:002015-01-28T10:24:22.963-08:00Thank you thank you so much for the review. The se...Thank you thank you so much for the review. The series from HKTV are like oasis in the middle of a desert. They offer and inject fresher topics into their dramas and give different viewing experience. Too bad I can't watch it since the drama is not available anywhere in my region. But once again, thank you for spending some time to work on this marvelous review and got into the depth on some charactersAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com