I was re-watching "At the Threshold of an Era" the other day (when it came on tv) and it brought back an age-old debate regarding TVB and it's "long" series.

From my many years watching TVB series, I've noticed one thing that they keep doing over and over again -- they make "long" series (meaning anything over 40 episodes), put the best actors/actresses in it, give it a sucky plot, then are disappointed when the ratings are low (and sometimes end up blaming the cast for bad acting).

Hasn't TVB learned by now that a human being's attention span is not that great and that when you have a series that drags out a plot unnecessaily (like over several episodes) that audiences will get bored and stop watching? Haven't they learned by now that "longer is not necessarily better?"

Apparently not, as TVB continues to make these types of series and follow the same pattern again (most recent example: Gem of Life, which was over 80 episodes).

I think that TVB needs to do some serious self-reflection and stop wasting money (as well as talented actors/actresses) on so-called "elaborate" productions that have nothing "elaborate" about them except that they are exceedingly (and annoyingly) long.

I can't think of a "long" series (and I'm thinking back to the 80's and 90's - regular series with more than 40 episodes, not including sitcoms) that had good ratings (or even good plots for that matter)...the ones that come to mind are "At the Threshold of an Era" (1999/2000), "Drive of Life" (2007), and Gem of Life (2008)...seems like all TVB did in these series was put the most popular and talented actors/actresses together in a series and let them run amok (no script, no plot)...maybe tvb was banking on audiences just wanting to see their idols on tv and not caring what they were doing. Well, I'm sorry, but we're smarter than that (hopefully speaking for most of us).

Your thoughts?

hmm, Secret of the Heart and Cold Blood Warm Heart have more than 60 episodes and did get high rating when they were aired.
and do you think all long series which have more than 60 episodes are produced by Chik Kei Yee , except TDOL

True, but even though I liked both series, I have to admit that there were some scenes in both series that were boring -- like it was obvious they were just trying to stretch the plot to fit the number of episodes....plus it's hard to maintain consistently high ratings when the series is so long (and some parts of the plot don't make sense)...

As for Chik Kei Yee, maybe he's part of the problem. I think either he (or TVB, or both) have been trying too hard to mimic the success of War and Beauty, but has not been successful up to this point...

yeah, SOTH and CBWH have some draggy scenes but overall they are much better than those three you said.

i dont know what s wrong with Chik, but since WAB, his series have been bad and boring. and why does he or TVB film long series (only waste money for useless scenes) and use same cast over and over again?

That's exactly the reason....they are trying to re-create the success of WAB...

In my opinion, 40 episodes is enough for a really good, successful series....there are way too many examples of this (dating all the way back from the 80's to the present)...why doesn't TVB learn from these "tried and true" examples (certainly the majority) rather than the less common examples?

I don't know how many times I've said this in different threads but Gem of Life sucked!! I couldn't bear to watch more of it after about 10 episodes, even though one of my favorite actors is in it! (Wong Hei) and I didn't get to see Bosco in it! (yes, I like him too!) So what I'm trying to say is even if a series have some of the artistes I like in it, it doesn't neccessary mean I will watch and enjoy it! I'm a very impatient person so I tend to watch funny series so even if it has loads of episodes in it like Virtues of Harmony I & II it doesn't seem that long cos I'm too busy laughing to notice!

The only long series that I love and its also my favorite series of all time is CBWH. Yes, it has draggy plots but which long series haven't? It has great artistes, comedy, action, family issues and murders that keeps me entertained so time fly by for me when I'm watching it! I also like SOTH but not as much as I like CBWH!!

Yup, I agree...I actually haven't watched Gem of Life yet (I saw 5 episodes or so when I was in Hong Kong last year), but based on what I saw and what I've heard of the series so far, I really have no intention of watching it, especially if it's going to be anything like TDOL (which I thought was extremely boring, even though it had one of my favorite veteran actors Damian Lau)....

Out of the "long" series that were mentioned here so far, CBWH is definitely the best -- the story was intriguing and I loved Julian and Nnadia's pairing in the series (I really didn't like his pairing with Jessica though). SOTH wasn't bad, but some of the storylines were sort of weird (l totally hated the whole Felix Wong/Amy Kwok/Kathy Chow relationship -- it was sort of dumb that Amy and her family started "hating" Felix because they felt he caused Kathy's death in the series).

personally, i can't bear to watch anything that has more than 30 eps, even if my fave actors/actresses are in it. it took me forever to finish Golden Faith, & i'm a huge fan of Jessica & Gallen. The Gem of Life...forget it. i knew i wouldn't even start watching it (although i like Ada & Bosco). i did enjoy Secret of the Heart though, but can't remember many details cos i was really young then.

with that said, how do you guys think the upcoming Born Rich will fare? if i'm not wrong, it has 40 eps...& an all-star cast. Gallen, Ray, Anita, Jamie, Nancy (Sit), Kenix...i'm looking forward to it, but at the same time i really hope it doesn't drag. :\

^BR does sound tempting with the Older generation making a comeback and I'm sure the ratings will be good due to the popular artistes in it! It will probably drag to some extent but I'm sure the twisted plots of the bizarre family will astonish me and will get me hooked!

One reassuring thing -- it only has 40 episodes, so that's a good sign. I'm actually looking forward to Born Rich because of all the veterans making a comeback in it....I just hope TVB doesn't follow the same pattern and make the script / plot suck...even if it drags a little, as long as the overall plot is good, then it should be ok...we'll wait and see...

think TVB and Chik will never learn their lesson, new series Heaven and Earth which will film next month has 60 eps.
i dont like to say about series before watching it, and now even it hasnt been filmed yet, but have feeling that HAE will like another TGOL.
BR imo will be ok or better because it s only 40 eps and most important roles are played by skill artists

^Heaven and Earth doesn't impress me that much cos the cast just reminds me of Dance of Passion with the only exception of Maggie Cheung (that is if shes taking part, not sure atm) Without Nick Cheung and Louis Koo in it, I probably treat it as TGOL and give up watching it after about 10 episodes unless it really is good....

isn't Heaven and Earth about cannibalism? maybe that new material will get the audience hooked? or will it just gross them out? lol. i hope they put a stronger focus on moral/social issues than romance, but knowing TVB...

yeah, i'm strangely looking forward to BR, even though the material isn't fresh (business/family...like any other grand production). i think seeing Gallen/Anita's kiss in the trailer got me interested. ^^

^LOL, cannibalism? eh? Think of the complaints they will get if that was true!!

Great...another "long" Chik production...don't tell me it's going to have the WAB cast again...I think Chik (and TVB to some extent) is disillusioned -- year after year, they try to re-create the success of WAB by putting the same or similar cast in a series and giving it some elaborate plot in the hopes of captivating the audience, but it's actually having the opposite effect. People are already tired of seeing the same cast over and over again and now you add the element of too many episodes...both Chik and TVB need a serious dose of reality.

same casts again, so you will know how the story will be like


i think they used cannibalism in sale presentation only. agree a wave of complaints if it s true

oh i didn't know they changed the plot completely. looked up the new series description: "[Moses] Chan said the drama series, produced by K.Y. Chik, would touch base with viewers as it evolves around Hong Kong’s underworld of triads and gambling, stock markets, politics, love and relationship entanglements." big YAWN! plus the cast sounds so familiar...Moses, Charmaine, Maggie Siu. with Nick pulling out & the plot changed i don't see the appeal at ALL.



so besides Born Rich we don't have any grand/long productions to look forward to eh? i guess Beyond the Realm of Conscience is a grand production, but it's only 30 eps...which may be a good thing...

Looks like they may have changed their minds...just saw in today's update that Heaven and Earth is slated for 40 eps only, though this could definitely change. Also, the cast looks almost exactly the same as Dance of Passion (except for Maggie Cheung) or War and Beauty (except for Maggie Siu)....either way, since HAE is listed as a modern series, I agree that based on the cast and plot summary, sounds like it's going to "look and feel" like TGOL...if that's the case, they better not add any more eps -- we definitely don't need another 80 episode TGOL again this year...

I'm not a huge fan of The Gem of Life either (only watched parts of it), and it wasn't my cup of tea, but it was a serie that was different from other TVB family drama series. In a way, we should applaud TVB for experimenting with different plots. It may not be a ratings-success, but I'm sure there are people out there who enjoyed GOL.

On the other hand, I quite enjoyed The Drive of Life, it had a good balance with plot and relationships. Some people thought it was dragging, but I appreciate the growth of the characters and their journey through the serie. I felt that the characters were inspiring - never give up attitude - and the relationships were touching to watch.

TVB is a business though, so totally understand that what drives profits are always a factor, but there should be some variety on the side to at least keep some creativity burning. Otherwise, watching the same genre and storylines will get boring also.

What I do agree with is using the same cast over and over again. I am so tired of seeing Bowie, Moses, Maggie, and Ada altogether onscreen? How many series have these people been in together?? These are all great actors and actresses, but seeing them altogether so many times doesn't bring out the freshness appeal. Oh and Kenny Wong too...ai yah....

Heart of Greed proved that a big budget drama can be great even at 40 episodes.

Yes, Moonlight Resonance is another great example. In fact, I can think of alot of great series from the 80's and 90's that fall into this category. Who says that the series has to be long in order to be "good" or have high ratings?

Yea totally agree with you

The Gem of Life OMG so SUCK
their are so much famous actor and actress in it but the story line are so crappy that i didnt even watch the 1 ep done yet LOL

That's typical TVB, unfortunately. They ruined the series by making it so long....if they had made it shorter (40 episodes), it probably would have worked out....what a waste of talent....