Re "Snake" news is just a cheap publicity stunt by its producers; so read and disregard. In fact, the so called polls are taken from baidu 'snake' site. Most Steven fans didn't even know about those polls much less voted for him. Truth be told, his fans are not keen at all on him taking up a remake role, especially one that is such an old hat. But anyway, it's nice to know Steven has so many baidu supporters, although I personally disregard baidu polls because they are mostly 'vote brushing' by a small group of supporters or detractors.

Costumes clash
lots more on baidu tvb

Sweetness in the salt vs rosy business




sits vs Rosy business



WTLB vs Lost in the love of chamber

let us all pray for the Sichuan earthquakes victims. Sadly, Chengdu, Sichuan has confirmed China's 1st case of swine flu.






video clip from 5-12 tvb remembrance program

5-12 steven portion megaupload

5-12 tvb opening sendspace

good news, Sweetness In The Salt will air after Just Love II, 8:30 pm time slot

Out of Steven's upcoming series, I'm anticipating Pu Song Ling the most. Mainly because of the Pu Song Ling character and Steven's collaboration with Fala ^__^

Not so good news to most Steven fans, we would much rather watch Dogs than Re-Watch Sits. I'm so disappointed. I'd been so looking forward to seeing curly locks village head, Ah Gong. Sob!
What about Steven fans here? Dogs, or Sits?

But then it's good for sits cast, now they have the chance to have their hard work recognized and be nominated for some awards, but ..but I did have my heart set on Ah Gong already.

And had given up on sits airing on HK tv. Oh dear, this news needs some absorbing for me.

With Tavia's 'Beyond' series rumored to air in July, and Sits in June, does that mean SOL will not be aired anytime soon this years?

Maybe Astro will air Dogs? since Sits has alreay been broadcasted?

I second with Tamaya on this. I was looking forward for Dogs (maybe because i have watched Sits already) but on the other hand i wish to know if Sits could get good ratings in HK. I will check on Astro preview from time to time and if there's any news on Dogs will inform you guys here.

Dogs may be warehoused, premiering for overseas audience.
shao Bei @Steven-ma.org has already checked Astro and this is what it says:

Astro link: http://www.astro.com.my/premiumchannels/aod/order.asp

A Watchdog's Tale 老友狗狗 (20 episodes), 8th June - 12th July 2009
Dynasty Package Subscribers : RM 19.8
Non Dynasty Package Subscribers : RM 29.8



Hopefully, Astro just has not revised its series schedule. So unfair to Steven if another of his series is "hoi fa" (overseas premiere) again.

Keeping my fingers closed the Dogs has just been postphoned and not been exiled overseas.

Several buckets are being handed out to Steven fans to collect spouting blood. Haha! Qi shi wo le! gek sei wo la!

Steven fans have no high expectation for high ratings for sits at all because of 'hoi fa' stigma. More expectation for either 'dogs' or Sol

Gotto go now. Go throw my tantrums elsewhere!

Bye!

http://www.30fen.com/tvb-pusongling.html
pu songling news report almost 6 minutes long
The 4 cast members taking turns talking about their roles in their own brand of Mandarin.

if above link does not work then click on this.
Credit Linda chung's baidu
http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=578418678

Hey guys, sorry for not being here for a while, have been quite busy. Anyway, great to see many stuffs here, I missed so much that I don't know where I should start replying.



Steven's cantonese is not so good???



LOL, I like this pic. Since my beloved marries you, you shouldn't give shame to her by wearing crooked hat. Anyway, it shows that Steven is a very caring person and he is caring to both female and male, and animals, considering his recent news filming PSL with animals.

Although I'm happy for Steven that he is the top voted for remaking of White Snake Legend, I don't really hope he would take that role. I have watched the version by Angie Chiu and I find the role of her husband very boring. Maybe Steven can make it interesting but still I'm not so keen on him taking this role. There are more roles out there that need him.

Seems like Steven has changed style of costume for PSL. Even though they are reused costume, I actually prefer them than the shiny costumes. Costume reuse is too often in TVB. But it's interesting how Steven and Ron take turn in wearing each other used costume. I understand that TVB would like to save cost this way and it would be a waste if the costume only used once and abandoned after that. So as long as it can still look good, I'm okay with it.

As for SITS airing next in HK, I'm actually happy about that. Because warehoused series that gets to air in the same year has higher chance of nomination, or at least HK audience get a chance to watch it so we will know how it fares in HK. I used to have hopes for SITS rating because of SG's success and Rosy Business' rating is improving. But then seeing how you guys are not keen on rewatching it, I'm worried that HK audience may not rewatch it if they had watched it online and it may affect the rating. Anyway, although I also want to watch SOL very much, I'm willing to wait and let them air SITS first. It's better than the hardwork they put in never get to showcast in HK.

Is Dogs going to be an overseas-released first? Do they have to do that to Steven twice in a row? I thought they will air Dogs in HK since it has Linda. I hope they are not doing it for every Steven's series. What's wrong with TVB keep releasing overseas first? If they do that to Dogs, SOL better be released simultaneously in HK and overseas.

Hello Akazukin, welcome back! I hope TVB don't do this to Steven often coz it's not fair to treat a good actor like him in the series he acted this way.

Tamaya, how do you get to watch Dogs if Astro is airing it?

Just like how I watched Sits -- online or downloading from kind souls' uploads.

Welcome back Akazukin, missed you!


Guess he's being cheeky with the reporter. (rolleyes! )



If Sits did not preempted Dog but is scheduled for a different time slot this year, I'll be happy for the same reasons you mentioned but most of all because Steven loves Ji Yuen so very much. I'm all for the cast getting a nomination if not an award for their wonderful performances.




As far as I can tell, Steven fans including myself maybe disappointed by Sits usurping Dog's time slot but what upset us most is that Dog may be warehoused just so an 'old warehoused' series can be aired in its place - how flagrantly unfair is that to Steven? Imo, Sits’ rating will more likely be affected by the fact that it airs following RB rather than HK audience not tuning in because they have already watched it online. (I bet most HK audience who are not fans of the cast haven't watch it online) I can assure you that if Sits' ratings were low, they had nothing to do with Steven HK fans not tuning in whatsoever. Their tvs will be turned on to Sits even if they may not be watching the series.

Reasons being: 1)too much viewing of Director Lee’s Qing handiwork will induce the margin of diminishing returns in terms of excessiveness and sameness. Already in Baidu, posters are enthusiastically picking out the many similarities between RB and Safeguards. In short, too much of a good thing no matter how good it was originally, is not necessarily a good thing. On the contrary, a good thing just gets old, quicker; its good points usually overlooked and under-appreciated. 2)HK audience is not overly fond of period dramas, and that’s an understatement – two back-to-back heavy doses of Qing period series are just too much for them to swallow at one go, to Sits detriment. 3) Wayne and Sheren are the indisputable, pivotal main leads in RB; it truly breaks my heart to say this, but Steven’s male lead is not only of dubious but also contentious nature too, so pray tell, how is he going to compete with his pared down lead against Wayne’s bigger than life lead? True, Steven’s portrayal of Ji Yuen was superb, top-notched, brilliant and whatever superlatives that may apply, but in the end, his portrayal was greatly undermined by the storyline and his screentime.

I once wrote that I'll not rewatch Sits anytime soon in the near future; did a Jinx happen to read my post? Did I forget to touch wood when I wrote that? Will I eat my words come June 8th? After all I did to adjust my mind and steel my nerves to watch and accept Ah Gong, now he's being whisked away on a TVB's whim.
eta:
Here we go again, TVB management arbitrarily and capriciously changing the rules of the award game.
Allegedly to avoid unfairness, Stephen Chan said he is considering rescheduling this year TVB anniversary awards event to December so that anniversary series can contend for nominations.

Hidden Text:

今年台慶頒獎禮，志雲構思在12月底舉行，讓台慶劇也有機會角逐獎項，屆時亦會幫其他劇宣傳，避免不公平情況出現！

news reposted from Steven-ma.org



I too thought that Linda would save Dog from an oversea released fate. Anyway, there is no official confirmation or unofficial leak indicating that Dog will be released overseas; it is just fans’ speculation that it may be so given tvb schedule change.

About the costumes, understandable that tvb would reuse/recycle them among the characters, but what's hilarious is that the same costume may be worn by the same or different thespians for different dynasties or time periods.

eta:
The Baidu feud between Yuen fans and Hin fans has resumed where it stopped. Yuen is better, noooo, Hin is better and so it goes once again. Yesterday once more!

banner designed by 红黑冰淇淋@ steven-ma.org





unrelated Steven Vid below - for a good laugh do watch the video below. It's just too hilarious!
http://v.ent.163.com/video/2009/5/V/G/V57N41NVG.html
If link doesn't work then download Ziwei torture
Ron g Mo Mo torturing of Zi Wei spoof
容嬷嬷虐待紫薇搞笑升级版


eta: Since yesterday, Mainlaind fans cannot get on Steven's Yahoo blog. Suspect it's due to China govt censoring/blocking off Hong Kong and overseas sites.

Welcome back, Akazukin.

I think the airing of SITS in HK is a good thing. Issue is that it is displacing Dog but on the other hand, as long as there is a schedule or plan to air Dog later on in HK, I think it is acceptable. Of course, we do not want Dog to follow the foot step of SITS, ie aired overseas and then back in HK in view of the impact on its rating.

The points that Tamaya brought up about the broadcast of SITS right after RB as being detrimental to the rating of SITS are indeed valid. I suppose, unfortunately, there is just a lack of interest or capability by TVB to be meticulous about such factors which may affect the ratings of the series being aired.

It is a heartbreak to know deep down that Steven will not likely have much chance of an award for his portrayal of Ji Yuen in SITS this year, knowing his limited screen time in SITS (regardless of how excellent his acting of the role was). Perhaps, to be sarcastic, if it was a supporting role, Ji Yuen would likely give Steven a strong chance of grabbing the supporting actor award. But we, fans, of course are not looking forward for this.

Tamaya, why did you say that pushing out the award ceremony to Dec was a gimmick? Are they doing this to accomodate a certain series that is being filmed now?......

BTW, love the photos of Steven as Ji Yuen pasted above. He is too mesmerizing in Qing costumes...Raymond Wong did a good job as Hin in SITS (in fact, I hope he can be nominated for this year's support role award) but well, Steven still stole the show with his refined look and of course, excellent portrayal of Ji Yuen.

Just to add that I still cannot accepted Ah Gong's look....urghh...need more time. So airing it later is a blessing, at least to me. Actually, looking forward to seeing SOL and even more so, PSL. Just can't wait. It takes sooo long to release these.

Which is why I was so looking forward to Dog, hoping that maybe Ah Gong, the pervert, can clinch it for him. Since these days villains or retards seem to have a better chance of grabbing the top awards, so why not a pervert with a heart of gold?

.

Did I say gimmick? Something is best left unsaid. But to quote Mr. Chan, the award date is pushed back just so the anniversary series, which btw, Beyond is indeed one of them, will have to a chance to compete in it.


So say the Yuen supporters but highly contested by the Hin supporters. Did I mention that Yuen's and Hin's supporters have resumed their warfare again?

A blog entry from a PSL's maid to Katy reposted from Steven-ma.org

Since this is Katy’s first time filming a series, she is still green in reading the script and performing. Luckily, her very nice scene partner, Steven Ma was very patient in showing her the ropes of reading her script and acting her role, as did Fala and Director Ben too. Ma Zai even taught her how to analyze the script. This is my first time seeing an actor explaining on how he reads his script, how he analyzes it, and how he acts upon it. Even though he wasn’t teaching me I, however, got to attend a most enlightening class, which was a first for me. I’d never being coached before since I had only acted a bystander with one or two lines to deliver. I’ll keep these instructions in mind and look forward to getting more tips from my seniors.

TVB shelfed A Watchdog's Tale but air Sweetness In The Salt. Both happened to be Steven's series~
But I preferred AWT cos afterall, I watched SITS already

Me too!
---------------------------------



Continue: Steven seen through the eyes of his fans
by: lotus @ http://www.steven-ma.org/bbs/read.php?tid=845
date of essay posted on steven-ma.org : 2008-10-10
Impression of Steven based on his essays 1874, Landgull and caption in his book 图文并谬.
note: Just one of the many well written book analyses and reviews by Steven fans

图文并谬》之谬印象
一杯茶，一支笔，一张纸，凝思，落，1874。
A cup of tea, a pen, a sheet of paper, gathering thoughts, jot, 1874.

I was born of a wrong era, in a blink of an eye, 100 years had gone by. I, was late by a century; which is why to this day, I still have yet to find my soulmate.

The extreme solitariness, the persevering struggle, and the reverberation of the occasional lamenting; bemoaning heaven for having him born erroneously into this confusing era. Wandering irresolutely and self-disengaging from this world, he indefatigably searches for a yet unknown place of belonging. His heart is like an unearthed piece of jade, uncut and unpolished; its exquisite translucency, its brilliance and fragility concealed underneath.

He is a simple person, so simple that one can readily guess his thoughts from his words and deeds, and from his writings. He is quick with an often childlike smile, lacking guile.

Yet paradoxically, he is a man hard to fathom, his warm smiles concealing his thoughts, he is like a pool of calm spring water, seemingly an open book at a glance. Just when you thought you had penetrated deeply enough into its depth, almost reaching the bottom, he would unexpectedly confuse your eyes; a flick of a hand, a blink of an eye; in a split second, the pool of spring water muddies.

Take his writings; can write about situations or about people or about relationships as an allegory or as an anecdote or as an essay; sometimes lighthearted, sometimes profound; sometimes invoking the dynamism of action, other times the restrain of quietness …. He is like a magician unveiling his happiness and sadness through each and every unfolding word before your eyes; little by little provoking your being, little by little entrancing you into his world. However, when the dazzling camouflaging layers are peeled off one by one, it leaves only one feeling to me; loneliness.

I, too, became alone, like him.

He does not know how to find happiness now. He longs for merriment yet is afraid, feeling out of place in its hustle and bustle; he drinks, he dances, but after a night of indulgence, he is still all by himself. (re caption)

Written words, like silent cry out; each word, each sentence; accusatory.
He was born of a wrong era. He always feels that he belongs to a different time period, the period of zhong shang costumes.

He was willing to be by himself talking quietly to a bird perched upon the ship bow. He was willing to pay for its ship fare and wished it would stay with him because it was willing to quietly listen to him speak his inner thoughts, and it would not turn on him.

But the bird flew away. They were not of the same world.

I suddenly recall “The Little Prince” in which the little swallow willingly stays forever with the prince with no regrets or complaints. When will he find his own little swallow that will stay with him, one who even in death, will leave behind its heart with him.

He is so alone. Unable to snuff out the calling of his soul, he relentlessly searches, he relentlessly forges ahead, but he is like a person trapped inside a maze; turn after turn, bumping wall after wall, hitting dead end after dead end. However, he never gives up on himself or ceases his efforts, as he indefatigably and persistently searches for the right path that will lead him out of the maze.

translations on 1874 and Land Gull in post#739

1874 lyrics




translator: Tamaya
Revised translation
change utube vid.

Bad news -- youtube is on a rampage to delete all (seems like it) Steven's videos considering so many have already been deleted including both Miss you finally mvs that I have previously posted here. So sorry. I uploaded the song from my cd onto sendspace but when I downloaded it to make sure it plays in my computer it didn't, don't know why could be its cda ext. But it may work for you.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/01lgts

To save utube vidoes into your computer and to convert them to mp3 listed below are some sites to consider. Better save them before your favorite videos get deleted.


eta:
Hi insansity1903, see if the sendspace works for you.

Movie: To Where We Belong starring Steven, Simon Yan & Gigi Lai
themesong by Steven Ma
@ Steven baiduMv by Justthat girl

Steven as a hoodlum 'blondie' who drinks, smokes, cusses & fights complete with the dark shades, leather jacket, the attitude and the swagger.

Source: Oriental Daily
Translated by: aZnangel @ http://asianuniverse.net/forums/

TVB lays off 100+ Employees again, TVB Artistes expressed their sadness

Yesterday TVB laid off more than a 100 employees again, and has become another topic of discussion in the entertainment circle. Jessica Hsuan expressed: "Actually earlier TVB already lost a lot of employees, for example when we go out to the location for filming, when we get into the car, there is no one to lead us. Although the affect is not significant, but I only hope that everyone will have a job, but there is often rumors of employees being laid off, therefore during filming the atmosphere is often not very happy."

Steven Ma only said that he knew a bunch of the employees that goes out with them on location during filming for 10+ years. He is very sad to hear the news. As an artist, he also can't do anything about the decision, he only hopes that TVB could open up new positions and could make alternative considerations for the colleagues. Carol Cheng, Angela Tong and Sharon Chan also expressed the same feelings when they heard about the news, they felt unhappy. They hope that the employee lay off could stop soon, in TVB for 30 years, Carol described her feelings as "my heart does not feel good". But Sharon said that she has to respect TVB's decision because there is a reason to the decision.

MV, thank you for the above news.


Rosy Business Chiang Bit Mou Kelvin Leung 梁 証 嘉
20090521 @苹果日报
translation on Steven's portion only.

Thank Steven Ma for his pointers.
Kelvin Leung said: “I was so nervous over this scene that I couldn’t even eat my dinner the night before….”

Kelvin expressed he wants to specifically thank Steven Ma. (for his acting pointers) He said: “Xiu Hong Jie (Kara Hui) saw that I couldn’t eat my dinner; she saw Mazai and asked him to give me his opinion. After reading the script, he said the scene does pose some difficulty for me. Later, as if writing an attack strategy, he annotated specific parts of the script with notations and comments, such as: which words should be spoken loudly, which position will get the best focus on the eye expression. He even said he would return to the studio to watch me act. And later I found out he did indeed return to the studio to watch me performed that scene. He said it was a wrap; he was surprised I could really let myself go.”

On a side note, since the ratings on Director Lee’s Rosy Business are ideal, TVB decided to air another Director Lee’s series, Sweetness in the Salt, right after Just Love II on June 8th preempting the previously scheduled modern series by Director Leung Coi Yun, A Watchdog’s Tale.

reposted excerpt from:steven-ma.org

How about which one has the most chance of getting him a nomination, if not an award? Which one can garner higher ratings? Incidentally, Raymond Wong is the 2nd male-lead in both series. I prefer tvb to air Dog over Sits for all the reasons mentioned in my previous post.

Compilation of Ming Po Weekly and Tong Fang.
Date: 2009 May 22nd

李添勝讚馬仔揮灑自如
Producer Lee Tim Seng commends Mazai for being 挥洒自如 ([huīsǎzìrú] an idiom used to describe someone who is an expert at writing, painting, calligraphy or in this case, acting; and is capable of expressing himself to the fullest. )

Due to Rosy Business’ ideal ratings, there are rumors that TVB plans to broadcast Sweetness in the Salt in Hong Kong. Sits, another series by Lee Tim Seng, producer of Rosy Business, has also garnered excellent ratings when it was recently aired in US and Canada, Malaysia and Singapore. Starring Steven Ma and Tavia Yeung, Sits’ audiences were both moved and captivated by their bittersweet love story.

Mr. Lee seems inordinately appreciative of Sits' male lead, Steven Ma's performance. He praises Mazai for his work ethics and punctuality, and for his greatly improved acting skill. He says: “These days, Mazai’s performance is at the level whereby he can perform to the fullest what is required of his character, masterfully and naturally.” (挥洒自如) Steven was very happy to hear Mr. Lee’s commendation, in return, he thanked the latter for his guidance and mentoring.

reposted from: steven-ma.org

----------------------------------------------------------
《杨贵妃秘史》海选李白 焦恩俊马浚伟成黑马
The secret life of Yang Gui Fei (Concubine) polls: Vincent Jiao and Steven Ma as dark horse.

note:
A rally cry to all Steven's supporters:
Yes, another publicity stunt for another Mainland series. Actually the polls had been open for 2 months before Steven fans got wind of it on the 18th. At that time, Steven was not even included on the Li Bai candidate list then. But after one day of inundating the comments board with his name and writing in to the Sina supervisor, Steven’s name was belatedly added in. By then, the top 3 candidates had already garnered thousands of votes. Steven fans have no illusions that Steven can overcome such seemingly insurmountable numbers to come up on top, we only hope to promote his name to the viewing public and to the powers that be. Within a week of fans’ relentless voting, Steven went from being unlisted to #7 on the list but still a far cry for the top. Some of you may be unaware but Steven is strongly supported by China TVB viewing netizens. He usually came up strong in Mainland polls, dubious as they may be. Anyway, Li Bai is a character that Steven himself would very much like to portray. And sometimes, flagrant but positive publicity is good for boosting an artiste, and I think this is one of them. So do cast your votes for him here as often as possible. Thank you!

Scroll down to the 3rd poll entitled poll for Li Bai character
《杨贵妃秘史》甄选：小生李白组 and vote for 马浚伟 Ma Jun Wei , the last name, bottom right.

-----------------------------------
eta:
Fans are right now trying to ps Steven onto the Li Bai character sketch.

Li Bai character sketch in the new series

ps attempt at Li Bai

Steven Ma is praised by producer Li Tim Shing for his Outstanding Performance
Friday May 22, 2009 Hong Kong
Source: On.cc
Translated by: Matchbox @ http://mediachamber.net


Steven Ma and Tavia Yeung's warehoused TVB series "Sweetness in the Salt" has been airing in the United States, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia and other parts of the world in recent months with high ratings. Producer Li Tim Shing is also the producer for "Rosy Business" and has achieved great success in both series. It is rumored that "Sweetness in the Salt" will be airing in Hong Kong shortly. Li Tim Shing admires Steven's acting and said" Steven can totally get into the character he is playing, meeting the requirements needed. His performance is outstanding." Steven was very happy to hear the that he was praised by the producer and thanked him for his guidance.

Hum... hard to say. SIS is a serious series whereas Dogs is a comedy. Very likely SIS will get higher ratings right after Rosy Business.

Steven Ma almost had a nervous breakdown while filming

The rating report of "Rosy Business" by TVB executive director Lee Sing Tim has been going up. Lee directed another TV series, "Sweetness in the Salt", (by Tavia Yeung and Steven Ma) which is being shown in the US, Canada, Singapore and Malaysia, and is very popular too. TVB has arranged for "Sweetness in the Salt" to be shown in Hong Kong on 8th June.

Lee, who has worked with Steven, praised him by saying that he takes his work very seriously and his acting skills have improved a lot too. Lee said, "Steven acted as if he was really suffering from depression in his acting; he didn't talk a lot, and always keeping things to himself. It was a challenge for him and he did his role very well." Speaking about what Lee said about him, Steven was very excited and said, "I played the character of someone who has a "Depressive personality". I was not very happy during filming, and at one point, I thought I was heading for a nervous breakdown."

Source:MingPao
Translator:Hokkien @ http://www.asianvn.com

ps Li Bai using Sina character sketches.
Images to be posted on Lady Yang new series in sina site.

ps with Kang Xi image - how cute is that?


ps with Cao Zi image


sina Li Bai character sketch.


credited to loveyoyo11 @ steven baidu

eta reminder: please click on image to enlarge, only then can you get the full impact of the image.

Tamaya, I thought you were not supportive of such dubious polls but why are you promoting this one on Li Bai? What is so special about this one?

Usually I'm not. I didn't even bother posting the info on the Li Bai sina polls in here until the news report about Steven being a black horse for that role hit the newsstands and internet yesterday. I also didn't bother translating that 'news' report because obviously it is a 'chao' (publicity stunt) propaganda written to stir public interest on the series. Nevertheless, I support voting for it because Lady Yang series got:

1)Steven's (together with Vincent Jiao) name headlining the Mainland China printed and cyber papers, now that is good, isn't it? Apparently, Steven's name sells news in China. Artistes and media are like fish and water for obvious reasons. So long the generated publicity ('chao' it may be) is positive on Steven, why not keep his name afloat in news?

2) Sina is a very popular and influential entertainment forum in China. Sina readers who previously didn't know of Steven might be piqued by such news, hopefully their curiosity will get them to know Steven as an actor.

3) The series is a high profile, big-budget series which will cast big name actors and actresses; (although incredulously, China govt is rumored to ban future airing of ancient dramas on tv.)

4) Its director, Long Xiao Gang, is a reputable and well-known director in China. He has been told of the netizens votes and he said he will certainly look into their choice of thespians.

5) Li Bai is among Steven's favorite character to portray.

6) To show the force of Steven fans through voting. No batch voting involved but the actual mindless entering of votes. Btw, many including myself have apparently used up our voting limits because we can't vote anymore. Steven is now #6 still a long way to the top held by Wallace Chung.

7) As an encouragement to Steven that he has many supporters in China despite his mistreatment by tvb. His netizen fans got him his very 1st China entertainment award - the most favorite tvb male character from, incidentally, Sina itself.

So hopefully, the above reasons can persuade you..all to vote. Please do.

http://ent.sina.com.cn/f/v/ygf/index.shtml

Not to nitpick but Hokkien's translation on Mr. Lee's quote was slightly off, thus, misleading. Actually, Mr. Lee's comment was made on Steven's character, not on Steven himself.

I would translate it thus:
Lee said: “The portrayal of Mazai's character’s inner thoughts and feelings (內心戲) was intensive; doesn't talk much/(taciturn); melancholic personality; unstable emotions/mood swings; very challenging to act but he nailed it brilliantly; masterfully and naturally performed.” 李添勝說﹕「馬仔今次的角色內心戲很重，不多言，性格抑鬱，情绪跌宕不定, 非常考演技，但他掌握得好好，演來揮灑自如。」

Eta:
Expanded Steven's response from another news report:
When Mazai heard of Lee’s commendation he was very happy and said: “For ancient dramas, Tim Goh (Lee) was my very first teacher. (Mr. Lee produced Domd 1998) Nip Ji Yuen was truly very tough to portray; he is very human; and human nature is not perfect, there always exists some flaws deep within. To atone for his sins, he willingly relinquishes his beloved to another, willingly puts his life on the line for his beloved. “ As to the character being overly depressive, Mazai said: “I almost had a nervous breakdown, very depressed during the filming.”

Thanks for the warm welcome!

I am very happy for Steven to receive praises from Lee Tim Sing. It is very well-deserved, but it's certainly very cheering to hear it from his teacher's mouth. And it's great to know that SITS has garnered high ratings in overseas countries.

As for SITS airing after Just Love II replacing Dogs, it is only a rumour, although I hope that SITS will really air after Just Love II. I mean, after all, Dogs hasn't been aired. It may and it may not be warehoused (I hope it won't be warehoused). They can air another series overseas. The thing I'm worried about if SITS will not air now is that who knows it will then be aired. Moreover, series that gets aired long after it is released overseas (not released in the same year), regardless of high rating, will not get nomination. I think this happens to Ten Brothers before (yeah, tamaya and I agreed that it is a stupid show but it gets high ratings nevertheless, both when it aired in pay channel and jade). I'm actually more worried that they will decide to air SITS in pay channel instead. That will like totally rob them from the chance of being nominated in the awards.

In consideration of Steven's chance of being nominated or winning an award, I think it will ever only be speculation until we see the real result and I think SITS deserves a chance. Maybe HK people will be bored of LTS's SG-style after RB, but maybe they won't. I personally am not bored of it yet, because although the style is the same, the content and the point it sells is different (just like we have thousands of same style clothes sold each year). I have only watched up to episode 1 of RB and few AOD previews (waiting for DVD to release). But from my impression, RB concentrates more on woman's independence, selling a bit of feminism. It does not contain much romance, while SITS has a romance selling point. The triangle relationship dominates besides the business affair. While the three series (SG, SITS, and RB) all talked about family and business affair, and it is fleshed out in similar way, I don't think people are easy to get bored of such thing. For one, I think HK people will never get bored of family series, just like both Family Man and Love Bond did very well in ratings. So, considering that point, I think SITS stands pretty good chance. And then, SITS will be the first series airing this year after Tavia won her Best Supporting award. People may still remember her performance in MR and looking forward to watch her next series. So it maybe an extra boosting point.

I actually have rather good feelings about the war between Yuen and Hin are revived. That shows that:
1. People have not forgotten the characters and the series yet. It left a deep impression on them.
2. People care about the characters hence care to put up a war for the characters. That means the actors have done well in bringing their characters to life.

Now onto whether Gong or Yuen will have higher chance to get Steven winning an award, I think tamaya's argument of HK audiences seem to like retarded or villain character is very valid. But then, I think the reason is because these characters allow the audiences to witness the actor's acting skill. Now I have no doubt Steven will score/scored aces in both series. The problem then goes to which series more audiences will watch (i.e. higher rating). I think that will lead us back to square one for speculations. HK audiences usually like comedy but it will also depend on what type of comedy Dog is. I can't comment on Gong yet since it hasn't been released, but then I think Yuen may fare better in HK than overseas for the exact reason of tamaya's argument of 'Villain/Retarded Fan Syndrome'. So who knows if they will prefer Yuen over Hin. The common characteristics these three (Yuen, villain, retarded) shared are they all have flaws. But I agree with tamaya that Gong may do better since Gong shared another common characteristic with villain/retarded which is they shock the audiences. But then, even 'normal' characters have taken over HK audiences before, i.e. Tavia in MR (Yuet), Wayne in TGC2 (Tai Chung Man). So in the end, we will never know until we watch.

I think Stephen Chan's motive of moving the anniversary to December is to allow for Beyond's nomination, even though Doors will receive the same privilege too. But most casts of Doors are not TVB-managed so will TVB really want to give the awards to them?

The recent report has added evidences to Steven's professionalism as an actor. It's very kind and special of him to teach Kelvin that way and just like him to remember and keep his promise. And my heart hurts for him to have to suffer from depression for acting as Yuen but it makes me even admire him more to get into his character so fully.

Extra note: I love the first pic of him as Li Bai, so handsome. I am for the idea of him acting as Li Bai, as opposed to against the idea of him acting as White Snake's husband. I think Li Bai will be a much more interesting character to portray than the White Snake's husband.

Tamaya, you have given strong reasons on why `Li Bai' is a worthwhile poll for Steven. I suppose a number of other polls carry some or even more weights on Steven which we have to support.

Like it or not, the TVB artiste website for Steven which ranks the TVB actors and actresses based on the number of hits received daily will be an important yardstick for our beloved Steven. Unfortunately, this site is not doing well. He is ranking averagely 20-30 and really is a pain to see esp knowing that many of the regulars of the website are doing their best to increase this ranking in an ongoing basis which is taxing. So, I do urge you and the rest here to visit it more regularly even for the sake of giving points to Steven, ie just clicking around Steven's site (mindlessly as you say).

BTW, I think I have used up my votes on Li Bai, can't seem to be able to cast after the 2nd or 3rd time.

Steven is at #5 now on the Li Bai list of 18 candidates. 98 points away from the 4th candidate, Chen Kun. Nikki01, you may need to wait 5-10 minutes before re-entering your next vote. Maybe the voting is limited to 10 votes - not sure of # but anyway many Steven fans including myself can't vote anymore. Maybe can vote from another computer, I don't know, haven't tried that myself.

Of the 2 ps Li Bai images sent to Sina, only one is being featured - guess which one. Not my preference.
http://ent.sina.com.cn/v/p/2009-05-25/19042537235.shtml

Nikk01, you're right about boosting Steven tvbblog's ranking, will do my part from now on. properly reprimanded.

Good news: Dog will not be released overseas. Overseas release is It's A Great Way to Care by Alex Fong and Kate Tsui. What a relief but that being said, I do wish TVB would reschedule its production better so that releasing of series overseas would not be so frequent, so unfair to the cast for many reasons, one of which is the stigma of being an inferior quality series, deserved or not. Maybe the present economy being the way it is, tvb has no choice but expedite stock clearance overseas.

Since TAGWTC is a 25 episode series, it is quite safe to assume that SITS will air after Just Love 2.

Hi Akazukin, glad to see you back. Will respond to your post later - out to bask in the sunshine now. Beautiful weather here.

Hurray! Steven is number 3 now in the Li Bai poll. I managed to cast another 2 or 3 the last two days. Will try further. But the next step on this ladder is too steep....the 2 guys in front are way ahead.

Good to hear that you are going to support Steven's TVB website.... .

Also good to hear the Dog is not going to be an `outcast'. Anyway, hopefully no flip flop on the decision. Until and unless it is aired, I guess anything can happen.

I still support that SITS be aired in HK and hoping very much that it will eventually get a very good rating.

They've had 2 months head start. Anyway, the purpose Steven fans' intense voting is to promote Steven to the media and the series' powers that be.



Will these images ease your mind. Steven fans have seen the Sits tvb promo on HKtv. Sits broadcast in HK is now an ironclad certainty.
Sending good vibes to Sits and hope for high ratings.

Agree, rest assured Sits will indeed be aired on regular Tvb channel. Its promo is out already on regular tvb channel.



“It does not contain much romance, while SITS has a romance selling point.”
Romance may or may not be a selling point to HK sinai. Their viewing preference often baffled me. I still remember buying "Quest for the Sutra (monkey king series) because of its high rating and good reviews, and after watching a few episodes, and without finishing the series, I sold it on ebay. Moreover, judging by the low rating romantic series like 7th day, HK audience does not seem very impressed by romantic series, but rather like you say, they prefer strong, even evil woman theme series or family feuds. Just like how the romance in Safeguards and RB is almost non existent. Sits with its triangle love is definitely a deviant from Producer Lee series. Steven fans wondered if Qiong Yao was hired as a script consultant for its mushy dialogues and scenes. “No, you need Sing Suet more.” “No, Sing Suet is better off with you!” “Are you two done yet? I’m not a sack of salt to be passed around, you know!” Sits is a good series on its own with brilliant performances but its immediate airing after explosive RB will only serve to magnify its weaker aspect, like the popo mama behaviors of the male characters, the watered down heroine, and the convoluted and dragging love stories of the Wu members. Not sure if HK audience will buy dragged out romance. Anyway to me, Tavia in her first female lead is a stronger selling point than romance to the HK audience.

That being said, I hope you're right about Sits and that I am so very downright wrong. Anyway, now that Dog is postponed not exiled, I fully support the airing of Sits in Hk. Despite my trepidation for Sits ratings, I'm so glad that its cast has the chance to strut their stuff before the HK audience. Here's to Sits' high ratings.

On a side note: One can help but notice the many similarities (down to same dialogues and key scenes) between RB and Safeguards, definitely a female version sg.



I can’t help but wonder if the war between Yuen’s and Hin’s supporters would even occur if Yuen’s and Yuen/Suet’s screentime had been longer and Yuen’s and Yuen/Suet’s story had been more developed? Although Producer Lee’s commendation of Steven’s acting was gratifying to read, it left a bittersweet taste in my mouth because though Steven is outwardly designated and promoted as Sits male lead, the storyline and screentime totally belied his status. But haiz, I sound like a broken record, so enough of my griping already.



Imo, a most unfair fray for Yuen who is not fully and properly equipped with the complete arsenal of a male lead but Hin is. Anyway, this Yuen/Hin war is getting old for me, and I hate sounding like a sour grape beating a dead horse.

-----------------------------

Btw, Steven baidu bi-monthly (changed from monthly due to writers' busy schedules) newsletter is out on The topic centers on Steven and his male co-stars namely: Moses, Bowie, Nick Cheung, Ron, and of course, Wayne. Too long for me to translate. Sorry! Akazukin, care to share your opinion on it? 各位就尽情的……挑……错别字吧！各位：momo家的，林保怡家的，卓羲家的，张家辉家的，祥哥家的…… 如果你们喜欢，请留言啊 作者：采苕


image designed by: 采苕@ steven baidu

-----------------------
eta:
On June 24, Steven will perform in Hong Kong Cultural Center singing Cantonese opera songs.
马仔会于2009年6月24日晚在香港文化中心唱粤曲，

Since owner prohibits re-posting of pix see 5 Pu songling photos @ steven-ma.org

--------------------------

Re: Li Bai voting.
Appealing to Steven thread’s drop-by guests, will you be so kind as to cast your votes for Steven in here. His charge for 2nd rank is obstructed by an enormous roadblock of rival votes. Scroll down to 《杨贵妃秘史》甄选：小生李白组 and check 马浚伟 the last name on the right. Thanks!

The tormented & conflicted Nip Ji Yuen.

Eyes filled with disbelief & hope - happiness not too far off.

created by: 温馨马仔小屋 @ http://www.xici.net/b284854/board.asp

Anticipating the airing of Sweetness in the Salt.

The Li Bai picture used in sina is not my favourite either. I prefer the one with white hat. I also can't seem to vote again. Currently, there is quite a huge difference between rank 2 and rank 3 (Steven ranking 3). But then, he still remains the top-ranking actor from HK in the poll.
As for the blog, I have to plead guilty, I only visit when I have the extra time (same to both Tavia's and Steven's). But I will try to visit more.

I'm glad they decide to postpone Dogs rather than release it overseas. It will just be unfair to Steven if they warehouse his series again like two straight back to back, like one is not frustrating enough.



Agree, sometimes I don't get why some series got high rating too, like TB, etc. But I think series like TB and Monkey King are more targeted at children, and therefore the housewives let them hog the TV and maybe watch together with them.

The 7th day had low ratings, but Under the Canopy of Love has high ratings. Both are romance series (and both even involving Kevin and Niki). I haven't watch these two series myself so I can't comment on the difference. Overall, I agree that HK viewers tend not to go after romance series. But then SITS is not a 100% romance series. It has a mix of family, business, and even laughters injected into it. Anyway, I can't say for HK housewives, but my sister, a housewife here, loved the series and the triangle relationship. Her husband loved the series due to the business aspects. But disclaimer is that they both have never watched SG, RB, and actually it's their first series watching Steven, Tavia, and Raymond. As cheesy and poma the “No, you need Sing Suet more.” “No, Sing Suet is better off with you!”, I actually heard laughters when I watched it with them. So, although the lines are cliche, when it's used in different context, it can have a different impact. And in Lee Tim Sing's production cases, it has usually been of comedic taste sprinkled on the series.

I agree that SITS has had a big disadvantage by airing after RB rather than before. Some of the business trick has been revisited and upgraded in RB and this may make SITS look outdated (eg. countering the pressure of lowering price with increasing price). But then, I think it's still an advantage to SITS to air now rather than much later or in tombstone period. Maybe... people feel they can't get enough of RB when it finishes and they are in the hots of following the same styled SITS. I mean, that's how I felt when I watch SG and then SITS.



I think it will be more beneficial to Yuen/Suet if the story has started out with them first and not Suet/Hin and couples of Yuen/Suet flashbacks. But then, you said you like it this way because it gives a mysterious feeling. I think no matter how much more screentime Yuen/Suet get, if it is allocated to the aftermath, it will lead the same result. A lot of people will be exposed and convert to Suet/Hin followers already and they won't shift camp just because of screentime. On another note, I think the writers were intentional in making the audiences feel the dilemma of choosing. Well, they don't feel the dilemma, they war against each other. But then, it just shows that it isn't an easy pick for Suet.

Will get back to you about Steven and his male costars later when I have time. Haven't got the chance to read them yet. I need to go now.

News blip, news blipppppppppp!

gather here, look here! Good news to announce!!
Fresh from the press --- of Steven Baidu, & Steven-ma.org.

《蛇咒》赚钱也“恐怖” 时间：2009-5-28 9:18:53 来源：东方今报
“Snake Curse” making money is also "scary"!

Yesterday, Oscar Movie Group (奥斯卡院线 cinema chain in China) revealed to this reporter that the horror movie, Snake Curse, originally pegged as a small fry with low expectations, unexpectedly charged through the tight encirclement of big-budget, high-profile movies that are now playing in the theaters. With its opening weekend box office sales reaching 100,000 yuan, it ranked right behind Star Trek 2009, and X-Men Origin: Wolverine. And within the colossal theater world of Oscar Movie Group, its box office sales even beat those of Nanking! Nanking!, and “I corrupt all cops” (金钱帝国) by Wong Jing. Because it does not have a big-name cast, (starring Steven Ma, 刘家辉, 徐敏、李钰 ) it is a rather small budget production compared to the other movies presently playing. Nevertheless, after viewing its patrons gave it good reviews.

Unearthing my snake curse previous post:
The movie that Steven made in China, "Snake Curse" will premiere next March nationwide in China, after finally passing China film censorship and reviews. But the video is available online. (Mandarin)
related snake curse post see # 1072


Go Steven go!! Yes, yes, yes, Steven fans are coming out of the woodwork to support him. And I guess a bit of off-the-wall marketing/promotional ploy didn't hurt either. Anyway, here's to Snake Curse continuing its success streak - all the way to a sleeper blockbuster!!

--------------------------------------

down to earth......to Akazukin



I guess looking back at that scene now, it was laughter inducive upon recalling how those 2 guys looked so very extremely earnest & sincere, and so very solemn & serious; so FULL of themselves that goodwill oozed from their very pores. The quintessential goody 2 shoes. One wants to either hug them tight for being so adorably selfless and clueless, or just take their heads and bang them together, and cuss aloud. Bah!! Men! I guess SS picked the latter. And that scene when Sing Suet blurted out if only she could marry them both: the look on the guys – one looking pretty amused; the other, aghast. Hahaa!

--------------------------------
“be more beneficial to Yuen/Suet if the story has started out with them first” vs more screen time and more developed story”

And so the debate rages: No, no, nooooo! Yes, yes, yessss!
Y/S story should start first. 先入为主ma!
Nooo! more screen time and developed Y/S love story. Ok, ok, I’m leaning towards your argument. Hit me more, and I might just land on your side. topic retired!


Agree.

Curious, which man did your sister root for?

Wallace Chung is from HK.

Okay, I'm back from reading the baidu essays on Steven's collaboration with male co-stars. Here's my opinion:

Steven and Moses
Series: Where the Legend Begins, Perish in the Name of Love, Land of Wealth (I have not watched the first two so I will base my comment on LOW and other series I have watched of the two)
Looks compatibility? I think looks don't matter too much when it comes to onscreen friendship. What matters is their chemistry. But I agree with the baidu writer that Moses isn't someone who you would regard handsome at first sight. But his height does give him the advantage because he appears to give a feeling of security through it. As for Steven, some find him handsome at first sight, some will need time to see him as handsome. Anyway, they both have looks that can lead a series.
Chemistry: Now both Steven and Moses are my top favourite actors in TVB. You guys have heard how much I praised Steven's acting skill. So I will not repeat. But for Moses, I think he is generally a good actor, but I find that he is doing too much thing on his own. When he was acting, I feel that he concentrates too much only on acting his part, that somehow his acting can't connect with his onscreen partner. This drags his onscreen chemistry down, such as in LOW and I personally think MR is also the case (despite the praise about A Kar, I find him weird and unconnected). Sometimes, his chemistry will come off good and I don't feel him as not connected, but I start wondering whether it's just a coincidence. Maybe it can be said that he is too characterised in his series, that sometimes his characters just can't blend in with the rest.

Steven and Bowie
Series: Ultra Protection (any other?)
Looks - let's skip this
Chemistry: I think Bowie does best in being funny in light-hearted series. Yeah, he got his Best Actor award in a serious heavy drama WAB, but somehow I often find him boring in serious drama. I prefer him in light-hearted series like Ultra Protection and Vigilant Force. Or I think he did a great job in GOL. Back to UP, although Bowie's character isn't someone outstanding in UP, I think he creates a good chemistry with Steven. Their scenes are very enjoyable. I used to think that Bowie is someone who performs best when he is in a group (i.e. having partner in a scene), sorta the opposite of Moses, but GOL changed my mind. He is pretty capable of doing a scene on his own.

Steven and Nick
Haven't watched their series so no comment.

Steven and Ron
Series: The Brink of Law
Look: Now I think this is worth commenting because I agree with the baidu writer that when Steven and Ron stands together, the picture is just so beautiful that they are a sweet eye-candy treat. They are both good-looking and they both look good together, maybe because their heights are around each other.
Chemistry: Sad to say that I find they have the best chemistry only when they sing. In TBOL, both were convincing in their roles, but they lack glowing sparks in their scenes together.

Steven and Wayne
Series: Safeguards, Steps, The Gentle Crackdown II
Look - once again, not important, after all, people were supporting them to be a couple in TGC2 (largely based on chemistry right?)
Chemistry - did I need to say? Their team rock! Wayne is a great actor on his own and I believe he did teach Steven a few tricks in acting. Now Steven is a great actor on his own. Put these two together, it's bound to create something good. So far I think Wayne is Steven's best male partner. Although I like Tseung Chi Kwong (the name of the guy who acted as Minister Yiu in SITS right?) and Kwok Fung too, I think Wayne still creates the best sparks with Steven, and I can almost say vice versa (remind me if there is a thirdwheel between them). I'm also aware that fans have praised the chemistry of Steven and Kent Cheng too but because I have not watched AJCL, I won't know whether Steven-Wayne is better or Steven-Kent is better. What do you guys think?


She roots for Hin (when it comes to character) although she said she prefers Steven (when it comes to the actor). Interestingly, she asked her husband whom he prefers and he said Yuen, but he is not against the idea Sing Suet raised about marrying both.



Oh, sorry, I didn't know him so I thought he is from China.

Congratulations to Steven for his movie doing so well!

First of, I've always preferred Steven's acting to Moses'. I think of those series mentioned and not forgetting Better Halves, Moses’ acting in LOW was not his best. I find his facial expressions too deadpan and his acting too wooden, as to be yawn inducive. Of the above 3 series, I like his PITNOL performance as the beleaguered last Ming Emperor the best. Like you say, his build and height give him an imposing and commanding stature, and also added the illusion of authority. He will do well in Beyond as the Emperor.



Your analysis on Moses reminds me of a poster’s lengthy comments on Moses vs Steven in TGC. If interested, read what this poster have to say about their respective performance in TGC comparison post 59

Not only did I not connect to his DDD but he annoyed me to no end. This time, I find his expressions and his bodily movements overly exaggerated and contrived. HOG, imo, is totally overrated, anyway. But I thought Moses was really good as the arrogant & overly ambitious surgeon in HH3. He wears his suits well.



Didn’t watch GOL, too long. Bowie/Steven were also in HH1 & 2. Bowie is another actor who looks better in modern series than in ancient. I’ve only watched Bowie in WAB, HH trilogy and UP. But his natural performance and character in HH bowled me over. Love his Dr. (?), he totally stood out from the HH1 cast, marvelous though they all were. HH1 is an outstanding series with a superb cast—don’t let your dislike for Ada stop you from watching it.



Two cutie pies in HH1. Their chemistry rocks! And to think HH1 was Steven 2nd series only. (discounting his cameo in FOJ) Anyway, Nick’s acting has always impressed me. Haven’t watched his award winning movie yet.



Of the younger male generation, Ron looks the best to me. Handsome though he is, his eyes lack 灵 lin (spirit/spark) in his performance, even in RB. He also has deadpan facial expressions, and his acting is still wooden. His good looks is better showcased in modern series than in ancient's. (only comparing BOL vs RB) The BOL themesong is my favorite Steven duet.



Nothing more for me to add to, only that it takes two people to light a spark.Wayne did well in TGC but so did Steven too within his character's constraint. As to who may be Wayne’s best partner besides Steven, I’m such a frog in the well when it comes to non Steven series, so can’t say. Of the names mentioned by you, they are all senior actors, therefore, their pairing depict more of a qian bei前辈/hou bei后辈relationship unlike a particularly explosive partnership that inflamed some viewers’ imagination of passionate love and evoked wistful thinking such as “I wish Wayne’s character would marry Steven’s.” What do I think? Yumiko’s character is the 3r wheel between them. Steven/Wayne's chemistry takes the cake!

eta:
summarized news report. RB almost didn't get to air on HK tv because the finished product was immediately warehoused, never to see daylight in 2009, or in the near future. Zhan Jie rescued it from such obscurity. There are these 2 factions in TVB - one led by Leung Ka Shu; the other, Zhan Jie. EU did well and Laughing Gor instantly became an icon. So Zhan Jie rummaged around the warehouse for a character hoping to combat LG's popularity, and sure enough, came up with a gem in the form of Chai Gou. Reality once again proves that a good bloodhorse needs a Bo Le (a revered horse trainer) to fully unleash and realize its latent potentiality. And Chai Gao has Zhan Jie. Riding on RB's popularity, Dog was subsequently preempted by another Producer Lee's series, Sweetness in the Salt. Her first time female lead after her win as the best supporting actress, Tavia will be the flag bearer of the series which also include Steven Ma and Raymond Wong.

No doubt in my mind that Sits was cast out overseas because the Leung faction got the upper hand in deciding its fate then, threatened as it was by Tavia's unexpected shot to fame. Now, though it is thrown to the wolves, at least it has a fighting chance despite its timing. Now its fate will be in the hands of its viewers, HK viewers that is. Hope they love it just as must as its overseas viewers did. Once again, Steven's series is airing at the same time as Roger Kwok's. Last time, it was TGC2 against DIE and we all know how that turned out. This time add RB to the equation.







news reposted from: steven-ma.org

How can I forget their collaborations in BH??? My favourite series of all time. Actually, BH is the series I grow to like Moses, although I watched it in conjunction with Love Bond, so I guess the two doubled up the power. I didn't like Moses that much before that. I didn't find him charming in Family Man like most do. Of course, I have liked Steven when I watch BH thus picking this series. I think their chemistry is much better in BH than in LOW. I did like their sharing sessions about Ko Fei's gender preference. Their expressions are well-timed. Perhaps saying LOW is not his best is an understatement, it's more like it's one of his worst. Irony is that he is the first lead there, and having most of screentime to himself. Anyway, I find that I like Moses better in his earlier series (BH, LB, TCB) than his recent ones (GOL, MR).

OT: More on Moses:



I didn't finish GOL, it's too long and draggy at times. But I watched few episodes here and there and Bowie did impress me during those episodes. I had a glimpse over HH when it aired years before and it didn't interest me much, maybe because I'm not so interested in Doctor series (the popular American series ER included). I tried to watch HH3 too but gave up by the third episode (if I'm not mistaken), if not earlier. But I may pick it just for the sake of Steven when I have the leisure of extra time.


Nick has always impressed me with his acting too, right from the first series I saw him in Secret of the Heart, and onto his other lead series like Game of Deceit, and even the Legendary Four Aces (although I dislike his scenes with Esther Kwan, funny that they are a real couple yet their chemistry in Four Aces can't even beat the other three pairs IMO).



Ron is someone whose acting I don't think highly of yet I still like him (rare case he is). Maybe because he looks like a fun person who has a good sense of humour and a harmless good friend offscreen. Or maybe because the love spreads from loving Tavia to liking her best friend too. Anyway, there is this strange notion in my head that I think he appears more genuine in his offscreen interviews with his lack of acting skill too. I think he did quite well in several series though, like Triumph in the Skies, and Men in Pain. Some series he did okay and some series he did badly. But what surprises me is Wayne especially praised Ron when he is asked to pick a young generation to comment on. He said Ron has great potential and I didn't see that, until EU. Okay, he wasn't too consistent in his level of performance in the whole series, but then there are a few scenes where he took me by surprise on how well he did with his crying scene I even cried with him. And only then I see the potential Wayne was saying.


LOL. I don't even regard Yumiko as the 3rd wheel. She is way out of league with them. Yumiko would have no chance if Wayne offers himself for Steven in TGC2. LMAO. How about Kent Cheng though? Do you think Steven shares better chemistry with Wayne or Kent?



Thanks for summarising the article in English. I don't know how true the report is but it's making me like Catherine Tsang even more. Days seem to be peaceful when she was in charge, especially before the joining of Ms. Lok. And true it is that Tavia's shot to popularity is unplanned or even unexpected by TVB when they try to promote Linda more by giving her two hotties when Tavia is forced to share with Kate. Who has expected such an ordinary character like Yuet will garner so much popularity votes? Being a Tavia's fan I am, Yuet is still not my most favourite character of hers. I'm just worried of the pressure exerted on Tavia these days, by labelling her as the flag bearer means she takes the responsibility if the series flungs while the other two similar types Lee Tim Sing's drama has had huge success. Second is the overhyping of Beyond and her character there as villain.

I hope SITS will do well. I'm not as worried about airing together with Roger's series because two series airing in the same period at different timeslots can do well together. I'm more afraid that people will compare RB and SITS (which is almost inevitable as I keep comparing SG and SITS, and SITS and RB) and they might find the middle part to the ending of SITS too mellow due to the love story. Anyway, we just gotta hope HK audiences buy their love story like the overseas audiences do (to the extent of 'discussing' which guy is better).

Hey guys, this seems to be the TVB trailer of SITS (found by Akane in Tavia's thread):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcNJy0Z-orA

Personally, I prefer the Astro one as the extra scenes filmed for the trailer looked weird with the exceptionally fake snow, although I shouldn't complain much since Tavia looks more gorgeous there with her bang swept to the side.

The expanse of fake whiteness made the whole scene look like a fantasy or a ghostly show - almost wuxia. Soon the characters will be flying all over the place. Not too fond of the trailer myself either. But would have to rake the back of my mind to remember Astro Sits trailer. Still no sign of Sits promo activities.

Meanwhile enjoy these magazine scans from TVB Weekly.




reposted from baidu steven http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=586252855
source: tavia's house

My god, look at this thread, i was away in melbourne for a week and now when i log on, i have so much to read. Will read it slowly and update myself on what's happening. Great job guys!!!

Not only the setting was off, I feel the whole speech they had to deliver was off. Why was Yuen declaring war with Suet's side on his own? It makes it as if it's in his initiative to cut relationship with Suet while he was actually reluctant. If anything, the only saving point was Steven's expression which did show he was in pain of dilemma. Shows how great of an actor he is to be able to rescue such script downfall. Why was Hin complaining about corrupt officials while his end of eyes flashed through Yuen? It's as if he was implying that Yuen was one (I know it isn't his fault, it was photoshopped, but they need to plan better). And why was Yuen pointing swords at Hin? It makes them look like they are enemies against each other while in fact they were not, thus the trailer looks off to me. And do they have to say "I'm not wrong, the wrong thing is having to be born in this era"? I mean, dilemma happens in every and each era and not solely on that era. So I think that's pretty off too. The whole series hasn't mentioned anything about them being regretted to be born in that era. What created dilemma for them is not unique to that era. Undercover cop falling for an innocent crime offender's daughter? Not exclusive to Dynasty Ching. Corrupt officials? Not exclusive to Dynasty Ching. People being innocent in term of morality while guilty in term of legality? Not exclusive to Dynasty Ching. So the sentence sounds very off to me.

Here is the link to AOD trailer:
http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/ovJjjV2dfLU/

Thanks for the magazine scan. I don't read every word of it since they are too small for my eyes. But from the pictures, doesn't it seem like they are spoiling the story too much?
(Edit: Okay, now that I click on the pic, I do see larger version and indeed, I think they are spoiling too much)
My stomach stirred when I read the Producer saying that this series is just like RB concentrating on woman power, which I don't really feel so in SITS case. In RB, Sheren is pretty much left alone when her husband died (I presume from the trailer and previews). Sing Suet was pretty much supported throughout the entire series, sometimes by Hin and sometimes by Yuen they take turns.

Bad news, tamaya, your earlier prediction seems to prove true. HK people turn out to be people with super easily bored tendency. I just visited hk discuss forum and most of them commented that they did not look forward to SITS because it's similar to RB and they are sure that the casts can't beat RB's casts. Moreover, knowing HK people, they usually like dramatic series more, and SITS is much more mellow than RB due to the less broken family and romance (unless they unexpectedly find fond in it to be more lighthearted that way - I hope they find the mellowness a breath of fresh air rather than yawning inducer). With so much prejudice casted against SITS even before its airing, I think we can only hope that it will cater to different market of audiences in HK (something like LOCH and ROCH catering to different audiences). Some did say they will tune in for Tavia but I'm afraid that's not enough.

The thing that pissed me off is how they claimed that SITS used RB's title (the similar "Hiu" in the chinese title) due to RB's success. I think it's really unfair to SITS since it's actually produced before RB and now they think SITS is copying RB instead of the other way round. They claimed that the Producer just changed the rice to salt, while in fact it's more accurate to say the Producer changed expedition business to salt and then to rice and later kungfu. All Lee Tim Sing's recent series have similar names: Safeguards ("Tit Huet Bo Biu"), SITS ("Bik Huet Yim Hiu"), RB ("Gan Gwok Hiu Hung"), Iron Bridge ("Tit Ma Cham Kiu"), so it's not fair to outcast SITS as a copied product. And I'm definitely not looking forward to their wishes of comparing Tavia to Sheren and Steven to Wayne. I just hope by the time they watched SITS, they find their characters too different to compare with. But then knowing them, they can almost compare anything. EU to RB???

Oddly, all these premature bashing of SITS actually makes me want to rewatch it.

Hi Strawberry, welcome back. I’ve never been to Melbourne, but I've visited Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra. Would have loved to visit Melbourne too. Heehee! Put 2 verbose writers together and volume is what you get.

So much I want to write but for now will settle on allaying Akazukin’s fear of HK viewers boycotting Sits. But first let me replace my prior gloom and doomsayer hat with my ‘dam-ding soothe’ sayer hat. 淡定


Nonsense, nothing of that sort has happenened..yet and probably will not, much less being proven true. Get a grip of yourself, Akazukin, cyber friend of mine. Calm down. 淡定, 淡定 dam-ding. Pay heed and take heart to what this battered fan of Steven Ma got to about this seemingly hopeless lose-lose situation. (aired vs not-aired) And to all the drop-in guests, be you my fellow Steven fans, or Steven-Ma thread regulars, or passers-by, feel free to share your thoughts. Disclaimer: this is a rant, not a thesis! Do not seek reason or rhyme in it.

First of, my commiseration to all those who are fans of somebody, for truly a fan’s life is not an easy one. (gulp! Haha!) Because we live vicariously through our idols (or whatever we may call the celebrities we admire and support) we pay inordinate and incomprehensible attention to their careers and even personal lives. And sometimes even feeling protective and proprietary towards them, wanting only the best for them. I am a Steven fan , so of course can only relate my experience and feelings as such.

Back to topics:

Cast off your worries over the forum opinions. They form only a small, not to mention much skewed, portion of tvb viewers. Though my stay there was brief, it was informative enough for me to form an opinion on it. Their opinions do not necessarily reflect that of tvb viewers watching the series. They are only the netizens of a specific demography.

Take AJCL lengthy thread, from start to finish, was filled with glowing remarks from the thread posters. But its ratings didn’t reflect the forum accolades. And then take TGC2 thread where the favorite pastime of its posters was Yumiko bashing and griping over the change of cast. Before its airing, the thread was saturated with posters swearing they would boycott the series because of the replaced cast. But TGC2 opening week garnered 28 points which is absolutely respectable, even better than expected, considering. TGC2’s ratings last episode garnered an amazing rating of 32 peaking at 37, breaking TVB all time record high for a series aired during the CNY period. So although TGC2 thread opened with hostile postings, its ratings were relatively good for that time slot and despite all the threats of boycotting.


We Steven fans sure know something about prejudice. Recall TGC2 - If you think the Yumiko bashings were bad in this forum, you should have seen those in HK forum. If malicious & vicious words could kill, she would have died a thousand deaths. Steven was called shameless for having the gall to ride on Moses’ success, as if any sane actors or actresses, for that matter, would want to do a sequel to a series they were not initially casted in.

In both HK forum and Asianfanatics, the TGC1 vs TGC2 comparison polls were the most frequented threads. And predictably, the votes all favored TGC1 and its cast, but get this, these landslide votes were casted even before the series was aired. Now, that’s prejudice.

Talk about prejudice, Steven and Yumiko and TGC2 cast were put in a very unfair and adverse situation. They were hated, (well, at least Yumiko was) ridiculed and reviled by TGC1 supporters . And then add all these to TGC2 graveyard time slot. If Steven fans felt bad over the predicament, how much worse was it for Steven, he having to put on a cheerful smile and promoting the series.

As a Steven fan who has been through stormy seas and weathers, a word to the wise --- what we can’t control, we can at least enjoy the wild ride; let the ratings take care of themselves, what will be will be. Ratings aside, with the airing, Sits cast will at least have a chance to gain new fans.

[quote]Oddly, all these premature bashing of SITS actually makes me want to rewatch it.[quote]
Then watch and enjoy. I'll join you at certain parts of the series - see if we feel any different about the characters second time around now that I know when to watch and when to skip. and not be filled with disappointed anticipation.

Thank you tamaya (and also my fellow friends at Tavia's thread) for peacing me down. I'm somehow encouraged after reading all your posts, even though some worries still stay. You are totally right in saying that as long as SITS gets to air, it will definitely have a new group of fans on its own, so it's much better than having the series warehoused for good or until who knows when. Of course, it would have been good if SITS has never been warehoused and was released before RB, but now that's a fact we can't change so just gotta accept it.

In fact, last night, actually past midnight (around 3 am), I started rewatching SITS from the first episode again. And after watching, I actually have more confidence than I was right just after visiting the hk discuss forum. I rewatched the first 2 episodes last night and find that it is way more light-hearted than RB's opening. And it was selling something RB probably don't sell, which is strong father and son relationships, which HK people buy most of the time, don't they? The opening was touching, funny, and there are some climax dramatic part on it. In that case, it was a different feeling to RB's opening which is super intense, and I hope people will feel that they are different stories talking about different things and get their mind off RB when they watch even though the style is similar. I feel that both series' openings are catchy but in different ways. My worries remain about SITS being a "tiger beginning and snake ending". I have to admit that SITS ending was quite weak, especially the last episode (this is talking about the plot and not the artistes' performance, which matters a lot nevertheless). I have only watched the first episode of RB so I don't know how its ending was, but I expect that it's going to be a lot better than SITS'. Anyway, I just hope those who complained that TVB shouldn't release SITS right after RB because it takes them time to digest RB and think it's too heavy to have two right back to back will find that SITS is more light-hearted and take it better that way.

As for comparing to the TGC1 vs TGC2 situation, I think RB vs SITS is quite different. TGC2 itself is a slow start followed by intense ending. SITS is the other way round. Of course, SITS has the upper hand over TGC2 in the sense that its story was quite different from that of RB. And talking solely of storyline, SITS is not that far behind RB while I find TGC2 storyline pales a lot in comparison with TGC1 (even when I watched TGC2 first). But yeah, I guess I should have more faith since it's not like Steven's or Tavia's acting is crap in SITS (like Akane said in Tavia's thread). Their characters are even very different from Wayne's and Sheren's. Sheren maybe commanding but I guess Tavia's character had something which Sheren's didn't have which is being mischevious in youth. Wayne is a dirty low class man working up who became what he is because of his situation, while Steven is a clean official losing his position because of his unwavering moral stand.

Just another note on TGC1 vs TGC2, I think both Moses and Niki had granted advantages because both their characters are smarter than Steven's and Yumiko's to start with. Most of the time in TGC2, Steven was relying on Wayne to solve cases, putting the spotlight on Wayne, while in TGC1, Moses was the one solving the case with the assistance of Niki. I won't say Yumiko's acting is good but she is okay for her first try. Most important thing is she can pull off her character's innocence and sincerity and like Linh.E.Pooh said, Yumiko has succeeded in doing so.

tamaya, I read one of the post from SITS thread that said that originally, Steven's role in SITS is supposed to be the second young master (Hin), but after Steven read the script, he requested to be Yuen because he likes the character. Anyway, here is what the poster said:



作者:219.242.214.*

http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=542162351

Is it true?

I have never heard of it, but if it's true, it fills in the gap how the first male character is not having more screentime than the second male character.

Anyway, the suggestion of having Steven act as Hin and Wayne act as Yuen cracked me up. While I have no doubt of Wayne's acting ability, I think that would sway even more audiences to Hin's camp. In that sense, Suet's fickleness would probably be most annoying, unlike how we can understand her fickleness because we do feel it's hard for her to choose.

True and false.
The poster was putting words in Steven's mouth based on his blog entry post 886 牛年大旺! replies 009-01-27 13:57 Read it for yourself and get what you will out of it. Anyway Steven was never supposed to be er shao, he was in fact given the choice of a pick -- he picked JY because he found the role more challenging than er shao. Don't know if it was the case with Sits, but from what I've read about series productions, in most cases, even as the production kicks into gear, most scripts and characters are still yet to be fully flesh out, and hasty revising of dialogue and story lines during during production was not uncommon.

009-01-27 13:57
Haha! Looks like many friends here are a bit disgruntled, wondering why Ji Yuen’s screen time in Sits seems rather limited. Let me say some words of fairness here. This is not the company's fault, nor is it my mentor, Tim Goh's fault. (Director Lee). It was my own personal choice to take on the character of Yuen.

I was going to copy the original entry here, his blog is taking too long to load and I really have to go.
read for yourself. 牛年大旺! scroll down the message board and look for posting 009-01-27 13:57 which is on the 2nd screen page. (which by the way won't come up for me)

http://hk.myblog.yahoo.com/stevenma_blog/article?mid=9951

Strangely, I have always been unable to click on the next page of comments too. Everytime I clicked on it, it will just redirect me to the first page of comments. Anyway, relying on your translation, which I have read before, I had always interpreted it as him choosing to take Nip Ji Yuen role as opposed to not being involved in the series. It definitely did not cross my mind that by that sentence, he meant he chose to take Nip Ji Yuen over Ting Hin, until I read that post, and I'm wondering whether the poster based it on something more explicit. Now that I read the sentence again, it could be interpreted that way too. I'm confused now.