Recasting: "How I Met Your Mother"

While American shows and actors are no doubt vastly different from TVB's, I always thought it'd be fun to do a "recasting" of American shows with TVB actors.

Here is my recast of one of my favorite shows, "How I Met Your Mother"...

Ted Mosby: Raymond Lam before 2008 or Edwin Siu

I have two choices for Ted...one of which requires a time machine. Since "Moonlight Resonance" and becoming an idol, Raymond Lam seems to have gotten the interesting sucked out of him. However, in his earlier series, he was such a fun and charismatic actor who had a good amount of comedic talent. He's played several more sensitive characters before and does it well. This makes him a good match for Ted, a hopeless romantic looking for the right girl. While I can see him playing such a character now too, I think the Raymond of yesteryear would have been able to portray Ted with the appropriate humor and quirkiness, but would just seem like a lovesick puppy playing him today.

As for an actor who could play Ted today, Edwin Siu could play the role as well. I can also see him as the sensitive and romantic but goofy guy. In fact, with his comedic timing, he could probably better bring out Ted's quirks and silliness.  

Tracy McConnell - Ella Koon

To play the infamous "Mother" Ted eventually marries, I would cast Ella Koon. While I think Cristin Milioti is in her own league of charming and adorable, Ella can also be very cute and sweet. She has that affability about her that could make viewers fall in love with her, much like viewers did with Cristin. Plus, she and Raymond have shown they share chemistry, even though "Highs and Lows" wasted her character. 

Robin Sherbatsky: Myolie Wu

Myolie is the best young TVB actress at playing the strong and independent career-minded woman. As Robin is an ambitious reporter who is always putting career before love, Myolie is an obvious choice for Robin. However, she would also be able to portray Robin's weaknesses and vulnerabilities.

Raymond and Myolie have already shown they have great chemistry in "Survivor's Law," so playing lovers would not be a problem, though I'm not sure how she would fare with Edwin.

Lily Aldrin: Selena Li

Lily is the more feminine one and a very sweet person, but don't let that mislead you, because she can also be incredibly intimidating with her surprising manipulativeness, which makes her a delight to watch. This makes Selena a very fitting choice for Lily. She is plenty sweet and feminine, but has also shown she can transition to look and act more manipulative, such as in "Slow Boat Home." I think she could portray this with the cute mischievousness Lily usually tends to do, which makes her appear "scary" to the guys. It would be incredibly fun to see Selena in such a role.

Marshall Eriksen: Ruco Chan

Marshall is my favorite character on HIMYM, and honestly, unlike the other characters, I can't think of anyone who feels really right and spot on for the character. Marshall is the most naive and homely of all the guys, but often the most grounded. I think Ruco could portray that, while also doing well in portraying his aspirations to be an environmental lawyer that saves the world (yet for many years, failing to do so). A few fan videos with clips of Ruco from his drama series and variety shows I recently saw reminded me he can be lighthearted and quite funny, particularly with his facial expressions. However, Marshall is arguably the character who can be the quirkiest and goofiest, and I highly doubt Ruco can pull it off with the hilarity Jason Segel does. Also, as Niki told me while I was telling her about this post, "I can't really see Ruco telling Big Fudge jokes."

The actors who play Lily and Marshall have to have a ton of chemistry, as they're the stable and "model" couple of the group. Ruco typically keeps his distance from his female co-stars, but his chemistry with Selena was off the charts in "Slow Boat Home," even though the series itself was bad. They were incredibly cute in the flashback scenes, much like how Lily and Marshall are. I can see them being that stable yet lovey dovey and sweet couple.  

Barney Stinson: Louis Cheung

I saved my favorite casting for last! The first character I casted, Louis almost immediately popped into my head for Barney. He is one of those few TVB actors who can pull off more flamboyant characters, which is definitely needed for a character like Barney Stinson, who is at times almost like a caricature whose larger than life. Louis' suaveness and charm would make him completely believable as a playboy, and he can really wear a suit. He'd be hilarious with his comedic timing, and I think he's also capable of giving Barney that lovable quality and heart that Neil Patrick Harris does, which keeps Barney from seeming like a one-dimensional cartoon. Lastly, I can easily imagine Louis getting up and saying "It's going to be legen - wait for it - dary!" 

While Myolie and Louis have not paired up before and don't look very compatible physically, I think the two talented and comedic actors would be able to hold their own against each other as love interests, particularly in the scenes where they bicker and poke fun at each other (with love of course).

Do you agree with these casting decisions? Who would you cast for the "How I Met Your Mother" gang?

Top 10 TVB Artists of 2011

Every year, Next Magazine holds an awards presentation.  The main component is the list of top 10 TV artists for that year.  The results have recently released, which is why I have decided to put together my own list.  The results are based off on the whole 2011 year, and does not include series that started airing in 2012.  These artists have been picked based on onscreen performance (i.e. notable performances in actual series) as well as offscreen performance (work ethics, personality, improvements, etc).

#10 - Steven Ma
2011 was a year full of ups and downs for the well respected and gentlemanly Steven Ma.   His series "7 Days in Life" was moderately well received, but like most of his series, aired at a bad time slot.  For the first time, his ancient series "The Life and Times of a Sentinel" was able to snag the "golden" time slot as it aired during the summer.  Known as one of TVB's most loyal artists, Steven's career took an unexpected turn when he shocked and saddened many by announcing he would be leaving the TV company after 18 years of hard work with little recognition. In an effort to get him to stay, TVB executives offered to give him the Best Actor award. No longer interested in awards and just wanting to peacefully leave the company and start a new life in China, a tired and worn looking Steven refused and put his effort into filming his final TVB series, "Daddy Good Deeds" and hosting variety show "Book of Words". Steven worked hard this year as well as all the other years he worked for TVB, and deserves a fresh start and success elsewhere.  However, he will definitely be missed.

#9 - Raymond Wong
Raymond may have played second fiddle to Ruco Chan in "The Other Truth", but ended the year with a bang with his captivating portrayal of lead character "Tung Book Sin" in the unexpected big hit "Bottled Passion". His performance was met with critical acclaim and gained him even more fans, securing his status as lead actor. Fans on JayneStars.com even voted him as the Best Actor of 2011 over Kevin Cheng!

#8 - Nancy Wu
Known for her solid and interesting performances in supporting roles, Nancy delivered a breakthrough in the role of the lawyer "Eva Chow" in "Forensic Heroes 3".  Despite only appearing in a handful of episodes, she maximized the screen time she had and left viewers with a deep impression.  Nancy's performance was met with praise and she became the "black horse" candidate for the race for Best Supporting Actress, making it into the top 5.  This year looks like it will be an even brighter one for Nancy.  Will she finally be boosted up to lead actress status?

#7 - Sharon Chan
Viewers only saw Sharon once in the whole year of 2011.  However, with a role like "Ho Lai Ching" in "Ghetto Justice", that was all she needed to make an impact.  Portraying a pitiable and well meaning prostitute, Sharon became one of the most successful breakthroughs of the year.  Her portrayal of "Ho Lai Ching" did not come without hardship, as she broke her collarbone while filming and spent many months recovering.  Instead of giving up, she toughed out the rough filming conditions that came with the character.  Deservingly and not surprisingly, she took home the Best Supporting Actress, after years of unappreciated and overlooked hard work.

#6 - Linda Chung
"Yes Sir, Sorry Sir" may have failed to boost the careers of Moses Chan, Tavia Yeung, and Ron Ng, but unexpectedly generated a huge amount of press coverage for Linda's "Ms. Cool", who was only playing a supporting character.  "Ms. Cool" was so successful and loved that a spin off series for the character was filmed.  In one of the year's biggest shockers of the year, Linda did not take home the "My Favorite Female Character" award despite predictions and buzz.  However, I think having an entire spin off series based off the character is enough to make up for it!

#5 - Kate Tsui
2011 was an extremely busy year for Kate.  She graced television screens in Hong Kong almost all year round, with six of her series aired (including the previously warehoused "A Great Way to Care" and mini series "Dropping By Cloud Nine").  Her partnership with Bosco in "Lives of Omission" was the most talked about on screen couple of the year.  What made 2011 a great year for the actress though, was the improvements made in her acting.  She appeared much more natural and even cute in "Forensic Heroes III", while still retaining the fierceness and power that makes her, well...Kate Tsui.

#4 - Bosco Wong
Bosco seems to have been demoted to second male lead lately, but this didn't stop him from achieving even more popularity and praise.  His performance as gangster "Michael/Bai Co" in "Lives of Omission" was critically acclaimed and generated a lot of buzz.  Despite only being second lead, he emerged as the black horse candidate for Best Actor as well as My Favorite Male Character, competing against co-star Michael Tse, "Laughing Gor" himself.  Some even noted that Bosco out shined Michael.  It seems being demoted to second lead has only made Bosco more likable and popular!

#3 - Kevin Cheng
As an actor who was starting to be more known for his good looks than acting, portraying the role of "Law Ba" in "Ghetto Justice" gave Kevin the career push he needed.  Usually appearing uncomfortable onscreen and even somewhat wooden, Kevin successfully emerged himself in the unique role of "Law Ba".  It seems that 2011 was not only the year his career was resurrected, but also the year he learned to be more laid back and not take himself so seriously.  The result?  A much more likable and charming Kevin.

#2 - Myolie Wu
Myolie has always been the young TVB actress with the most versatility and skill, but recent years had her plagued with undeserved criticism for weak roles.  This was the year she finally fought back and won over viewers again.  "The Rippling Blossom", "Curse of the Royal Harem", and the sleeper hit "Ghetto Justice" all did well and gave Myolie much praise.  She won Best Actress for "Curse", making her the first rising "fa dan" to win the coveted title.

#1 - Ruco Chan
Ruco may not have won any anniversary awards, but 2011 truly was his year to shine.  After 17 years of hard work in the entertainment industry, 2011 was his break out year.  He won critical acclaim for his first leading role as "Keith Lau" in "The Other Truth".  As a result, he became the new favorite among producers when casting people for their productions, particularly Amy Wong.  In a mere 3 months, he pocketed $500,000 HKD from promotions and functions.  He became the new hot topic and household name in Hong Kong, dominating the tabloids and tvb.com blogs much longer after "The Other Truth" finished airing.  To finish off the year, he won Jaynestar's Sexiest Man Alive poll, beating out Kevin Cheng and Raymond Lam.  With "Ruse of Engagement" to be aired soon and the upcoming "Chok Crew" and "Seaside Love", there's no doubt that 2012 will be an even brighter year for Ruco.  He has secured his status as leading actor, and there's no kicking him out.

In my opinion, these are the 10 artists in 2011 that stood out in particular.  They all exhibited something outstanding and made great accomplishments.  We are four months into 2012, so it will be interesting to see what they will be able to accomplish with the remainder of the year.

What are your thoughts?  Who do you think stood out this year?  Comment with your own top 10!

"Wish and Switch" Review

Supernatural has been a weak genre of TVB's in recent years and usually results in tacky and messy dramas (i.e. "Men With No Shadows").  However, "Wish and Switch was a fun and enjoyable comedy with creativity and sweetness...until the last week anyway.  Unfortunately, inconsisent chracterization is more obvious here than ever in the form of Johnson's character, "Ka Yan".  As a result, by the last five episodes, "W&S" becomes hard to stomach, ruining the overall product.  However, the first 15 episodes are still entertaining with a lot of laughs.

Characters and Performances
In an ensemble with familiar supporting faces yet headed completely by the younger generation, everyone did pretty well.

Myolie Wu in all her comedic glory brings hilarity to her housewife character.  She nails the stereotypical aspects of a housewife, such as talking to herself.

"Suk Heung" was rather foolish and silly at times, annoying me the later episodes.  Her character was not smart and even stupid at times, but Myolie still makes it works.  However, it wasn't without irritating me.

Johnson Lee has been one of my most well liked supporting actors since "Catch Me Now".  He always manages to be funny and stand out.  Unfortuntately, his first male lead role "Ko Ka Yan" fails to reflect that .  While I admit he portrays the useless husband in a very convincing fashion, he was still unlikable.

"Ka Yan" was one messed up character.  He started off as a dorky and uncharismatic yet loyal and sweet man.  I wasn't fond of him, but didn't hate him.  Then, he unexpectedly becomes the main villain.  This change was so out of character, unrealistic, and completely illogical.  The evilness of the character was so cartoon like and unjustified it was almost laughable.

Selena Li shines as "Hailey", and both the character and performance were lovable.  I find Selena such a cute and endearing actress, so I was happy to see she finally had room to show her acting and potential.  Hailey was so capable, intelligent, and clever!  My new favorite roles of hers.  While Hailey wasn't as fleshed out as she could've been, Selena portrays her in a way that tells me she can definitely be leading actress material.  Sher exerts the charm, cuteness, and does her emotional scenes well.  The short hair was also a nice change.

Although Vincent Wong isn't a great actor, he is decent and has a likable factor about him.

Though intriguing, "Wayne" was not developed to his full potential.  He became an interesting and likable character after the revelation of the true reason for his actions, but had little screen time.

Vincent and Selena were so cute and sweet together.  Their story was different, and I was rooting for them to reunite.  Sadly, they didn't share many scenes and I was never satisfied with how much they got.  They were my favorite part about what was otherwise a mediocre drama.

Ram Tseung was hilarious and once again proves how valuable of a supporting actor he is.  His switching back and forth between a male and female voice was effortless and cracked me up. 

The beginning of the series focused mainly on Suk Heung and her family.  While there were some funny bits, it aggravated me how annoying her family was and why she worked so hard to take care of them.

The middle when Suk Heung and Hailey switched identities was enjoyable.  It was fun seeing the two adjusting to each other's lives, and some hilarious scenarios occurred.

However, it becomes dragyy and ridiculous by the last few episodes.  After the girls switched back, there is nothing but illogical and irritating drama.

Overall, "Wish and Switch" was a major victim of poor scriptwriting.  The last five episodes screwed up a decent series.  It was like the scriptwriters just threw in the towel and made stuff up.  At the least, it was enjoyable to watch Selena and have her finally show her acting capabilities again.  On the other hand, I hope Myolie doesn't take up any more of these housewife roles.

Rating: 2 3/4 stars

The Next Top Fa Dan

Since TVB's loss of Charmaine Sheh, the TV station has lost their top actress and biggest cash cow.  As a result, they are grooming their current young actresses to take over the spot.  Although they are no longer too interested in one big star, they still want more strong first line actresses.  This post isn't trying to predict who can replace Charmaine Sheh, but rather, analyzing and evaluating who has what it takes to be the most successful actress in TVB overall.

My Top Choice
#1 - Myolie Wu
Favorite character/performance(s): The witty and professional lawyer Wong Sze Fu/Kris in "Ghetto Justice", Ling Ling in "Survivor's Law"

Favorite pairing(s): Myo&Sammul in "When Rules Turn Loose", Myo&Kevin in "Ghetto Justice"
Strength(s): Arguably the most versatile of all the young female actresses currently in TVB, consistently delivers solid performances despite receiving some mediocre roles
Weakness(es): Has been criticized by netizens for her performances in the past

In my opinion, Myolie Wu has what it takes to be the most successful actress in TVB and is the most versatile of today's generation.  In the blink of an eye, she has been in the entertainment industry for over 10 years, and her experience shows.  She was stuck playing weak and mediocre roles for a while, but has since overcome that rut.  Recently, she has been seen portraying a variety of roles that have garnered her praise and won over netizens again such as her roles in "A Chip Off the Old Block", "The Rippling Blossom, and "Ghetto Justice".  She does equally well in both comedy and drama.  Due to having the most consistent success this year, Myolie also has a very high chance of finally taking home the coveted "Best Actress" award.  I haven't started "Curse of the Royal Harem" and think she should've been nominated for "Ghetto Justice", but I still support her.  She has worked so hard and overcome so many obstacles as an actress, it is time for her to shine!

Honorable Mentions

#2 - Kate Tsui

Favorite character/performance(s): The tough yet adorable cop Ling Sin-Yee/Ada in "Forensic Heroes III"
Favorite pairing(s): Kate&Kenneth (in several series), Kate&Roger in "Wax and Wane"
Strength(s): Has determination that has consistently kept her working hard and improving her acting; works well with almost every co-star
Weakness(es): Has trouble portraying good and feminine characters due to her natural air of fierceness, still has many haters who refuse to accept her as an actress

Kate initially received a lot of criticism for being a bad actress, many people going as far as saying she should quit the entertainment industry.  However, she didn't let that criticism get to her and instead made it constructive by becoming determined to continue working hard to improve her acting.  This is why personality-wise, she has what it takes to be a successful actress.  Her narrow eyes give off this glare that can make her look evil, which used to be always present in her past performances.  This year has been a breakthrough for her acting-wise because she has successfully shed that "evil glare", but is still able to use that to her advantage when the time calls for it.  She possesses a natural air of fierceness that no other artiste has, which makes portraying tough and intelligent characters her specialty.  Her one major flaw is her inability to play good and gentle characters like Man Ka Fu/Peace in "Wax and Wane", where she seems tired, most likely from trying so hard to shed that natura air.  However, over time, I believe Kate can become a well-rounded actress.  Until then, she is still one of my favorite TVB artistes due to her determined personality, fighter girl spirit, fierce aura, and improvements in acting!

#3 - Fala Chen


Favorite character/performance(s): Szeto Ngan Ping in "Can't Buy Me Love"
Favorite pairing(s): Fala&Timmy in "The Stew of Life"
Strength(s): Has the widest variety of characters
Weaknesses(es): Fails to create sparks with co-stars on an emotional level

Compared to actresses like Kate, Linda, and Selena, Fala has the widest variety in the characters she plays.  Her acting has improved and she has shown us that she has comedic talent as well.  Fala was my top choice to be the next Charmaine Sheh a couple months ago, but that opinion has changed.  Her emotional scenes themselves are decent, but she has a lot of trouble creating sparks with co-stars on an emotional level.  By that, I mean she appears emotionally detached in romantic scenes.  She portrays lighthearted and sweet chemistry (i.e. she had chemistry with Timmy and Kenneth in the comedies "The Stew of Life" and "Can't Buy Me Love") just fine, yet struggles in going deeper.  Fala does not seem to like working with her on-screen love interests and particularly hates kiss and love scenes.  She avoids them at all costs and usually opts for camera angle tricks whenever possible.  Meanwhile, Kate manages to have chemistry with almost every on-screen love interest and can appear to be both lighthearted and passionate.  I've come to the sad realization that Fala acts well herself, but has not emotionally connected to any of her co-stars in a more dramatic series.

Also, in terms of character specialty, she is the opposite of Kate.  Feminine characters are her strength while tough characters are her weakness.  Of what I saw of "Lives of Omission", Fala was not believable as the tough and strong Madam Jo. This weakness may actually limit her more than Kate's.  In the end, both of these problems will hold her back as a serious actress.

#4 - Tavia Yeung


Favorite character/performance: Suen Ho Yuet in "Moonlight Resonance"
Favorite pairing(s): Tavia&Ruco in "The Other Truth"
Strength(s): Emotional/crying scenes
Weaknesses(s): Lack of variety in roles, has not done comedy

Despite possessing a natural elegance as well as major talent in drama series and emotional scenes, Tavia has been extremely limited in her roles lately.  Does she have the capability to be a lead actress?  Definitely!  But ever since she was promoted to lead actress, she has been restricted to weak and quite frankly, irritating characters that require her to cry way too much.  She has yet to show whether or not she has talent in comedy.  In general, her acting is much better than that of Kate and Fala's, but I question if her exquisite acting stretches beyond drama.  Tavia used to be my favorite TVB actress, but the repetitiveness and unlikability of her recent characters has caused me to no longer be excited to see her onscreen.  She could easily be much higher on this list if she had the opportunity to be more daring in the characters she portrayed.

Other Choices

#5 - Nancy Wu
Favorite character/performance: Hui Man Sze in "Gun Metal Grey", Eva in "Forensic Heroes III"
Favorite pairing(s): Nancy&Vincent in "Gun Metal Grey"
Strength(s): Overall a capable actress; consistently delivers in supporting roles
Weakness(es): Voice is not too pleasant and slightly irritating when she yells/screams

If an actress is truly talented and capable, they will leave a good impression on you no matter what the character they're playing.  This statement applies to Nancy, because while she has played irritating characters in the past ("Bing Bing" in "A Fistful of Stances"), she rarely fails to give a solid performance.  Her one and probably only major drawback in her acting is that her voice is not too pleasant on the ears when she yells and screams.  Maybe it's for this reason that I can not imagine Nancy as a lead actress, even though I absolutely love her.  However, I am pleased to see that she is a second lead in the boxing series with Kevin, Raymond Wong, and Selena Li.  Her character is a deaf and mute professional boxer.  I see another breakthrough for Nancy on the horizon.

#6 - Selena Li
Favorite character/performance(s): Cat Li in "Forensic Heroes II"
Favorite pairing(s): Selena&Kenneth
Strength(s): Does well in ancient series and emotional scenes
Weakness(es): Has a naturally sweet and innocent aura that could hinder her ability to portray evil

Selena is pretty as well as adorable.  Coupled with her solid acting, she is endearing to watch onscreen.  She has also proved she can play spoiled and somewhat conceited characters like in "To Grow With Love" and "The Four" without being too irritating.  She looks beautiful in ancient series and does well in her emotional scenes.  She can make improvements, but has a lot of potential and I hope to see her in more series in bigger roles!

#7 - Linda Chung
Favorite character/performance(s): N/A
Favorite pairing(s): Linda&Steven
Strength(s): Cries well
Weakness(es): Also has a naturally sweet and innocent aura that could hinder her ability to portray evil

Compared to the other potential fa dans, I think Linda has the least chances of becoming a top actress and I've yet to completely warm up to her.  Although she is a decent actress, she also has a naturally sweet and innocent aura like Selena.  However, I think this limits Linda more than Selena as she comes off as even more innocent to me.  This will keep her from portraying a wide variety of characters, especially villains.  However, she does do a very good job with her emotional scenes.

This is my evaluation and personal choices for who has what it takes to be the most successful actress in TVB.  What are your choices and thoughts?

TVB 44th Anniversary Awards: My Voting Ballot

Although the nominations list was quite surprising, disappointing, and odd, I can't change anything about it.  That is why I've made my decision on who to support this year and have cast my votes on tvb.com!

Best Actor: Ruco Chan

After lots of discussion, debate, and "TVB politics", an obvious winner is yet to emerge.  Will it be Ruco, Kevin, Michael Tse, Steven, or Chilam?  Either way, I will always support Ruco.  He was not nominated for Most Improved Actor, so at least TVB also acknowledges he's extremely overqualified for the award.  I keep hope that he still does have a chance of winning Best Actor as he truly deserves it.  

Best Actress: Maggie Cheung

Although this role isn't too much of new territory for the incredibly versatile Maggie, it is the first role I've genuinely enjoyed her in since her comeback to TVB.  I can finally say welcome back, Maggie!

 Best Supporting Actor: Patrick Tang

Black horse candidates rule!  And even though Patrick has no chance of winning, I can still say I supported this surprisingly hilarious and adorable underrated actor.

 Best Supporting Actress: Sharon Chan

It was a tough choice between Sharon and Nancy.  I chose Sharon because after all her hard work these years without recognition, I think the time has finally come for her to shine!  

 My Favorite Male Actor: Ruco Chan/"Lau Sze Kit/Keith"

Need I once again state why I love this character (and Ruco) so much?

 My Favorite Female Character: "Wong Sze Fu/Kris"

Witty, intelligent, professional, and adorable.  My favorite character of Myolie's...her whole career!

 Most Improved Actor: Jazz Lam

Jazz used to be an over the top actor, and while he still exaggerates at times, he has toned it down and improved.  His role in "Ghetto Justice" could've been a huge miscast, yet he pulled off the role well.

 Most Improved Actress: Mandy Wong

With so much potential and true talent, nobody deserves to win more than Mandy.  She has proved her ability in both comedy and drama, while Sire Ma still struggles in emotional scenes.

 Best Drama: Ghetto Justice

Hands down the drama with the best and most refreshing script, characters, and acting all year.

TVB Weibo Popularity Award: Ruco Chan

Who did you think I was going to vote for?  After experiencing a huge increase in followers on Weibo and skyrocketing to the #1 position on tvb.com during the airing of "The Other Truth", Ruco will most likely take home this award.

Who's on your voting ballot?  Who do you support, and who do you think will win?  Share your opinion with me! :)

New Feature : Typecast : Myolie Wu

New feature again everyone! This feature will instead of being divided into three artistes, will put the spotlight on one. Specifically, an artiste who has been 'type casted' lately. What is a typecast you may ask? It is when one gets stuck with only one type of role and is forced to portray that one type of role constantly. Typecast will put the spotlight on artistes who despite knowing how to act, are always stuck with the same boring thing.


Myolie Wu

At the age of 20, a woman named Myolie Wu Hang Yee entered the 1999 Miss Hong Kong pageant. She became the 2nd runner up, taking home the Most Energetic award. Whether you like it or not, fast foward 10 years later she has become one of our rising fa dans. Like any other rising fa dan, she's had her bumps on the road...

Her first series was 2001's Colorful Life. She later also appeared in Legal Entanglement, The Awakening Story, and At Point Blank. Although they were all small roles, all the series were released in the same year. She had a strong start in little time, which meant she would be able to rise fast. By 2002, she received more major roles in Eternal Happiness, Doomed to Oblivion, and The Family Man, all successful productions. Myolie ended the year with a bang in Golden Faith, which brought Myolie her first breakthrough. Playing the role of Yan Yan, a mental patient, the actress brought home the Most Improved Actress award that same year.

Myolie was quickly becoming a success. Right after her first breakthrough performance, she received a second. In 2003's Survivor's Law, Myolie portrayed Ling Ling, a tough, strong, but emotional lawyer. Her performance was fantastic, and she nailed all her emotional scenes. To this day, Ling Ling is Myolie's favorite role, and a huge fan favorite.

Although the roles she portrayed in the following years afterward weren't as nearly great as Ling Ling, Myolie filmed many series and developed a loyal fan base. Things brightened up even more for her...sort of.

2005's War of In Laws made Myolie one of the top 5 nominees for Best Actress that year. This unfortunately planted a vision into the series' producer Kwan Wing Chung. He loved using Myolie in his productions, and was determined to make Myolie become Best Actress. Now that could've been a good thing...too bad he gave her a bunch of crappy roles.

Producer Kwan's To Grow With Love was his first effort in his 'mission.' Myolie's role required her to gain 50 pounds. She had to gain the weight herself instead of wearing a fat suit as Producer Kwan wanted it to be as realistic as possible (which makes him one of my least favored producers, if not the one I hate the most). For the sake of her job, Myolie 'sacrificed' herself.

The sacrifice turned out to be a waste. To Grow With Love was panned by netizens and audiences. People didn't pay attention at the hard work and sacrifice Myolie put into her performance. They only thought 'this sucks.' Somehow, Myolie once again became one of the top 5 nominees for Best Actress that year. In the end though, she didn't receive the recognition she deserved.

It was after To Grow With Love that Myolie's typecast as the weak, nice girl began. When that typecast continued to live on, netizens grew tired of Myolie. They called her 'annoying' and a 'bad actress.' They were too close minded to realize that Myolie was not a bad actress, she was just getting bad roles.

In War and Destiny, The Drive of Life, War of In Laws II, The Master of Tai Chi, When a Dog Loves a Cat and Burning Flame 3, Myolie portrayed weak characters, making people annoyed with her. (Although as far as weak roles go, War of In Laws II's Chow Lai Man was one of the better. I found her cute and her emotional scenes were well done yet reasonable.) Seven similar and annoying roles made a huge negative impact in her career. She was no longer well liked. Of course, she still had her true fans and supporters by her side. They were the true fans and supporters who awaited for another breakthrough in Myolie's acting career...

2009's A Chip Off the Old Block brought Myolie her awaited breakthrough. The best part was that it was unexpected, and came out of the blue. People were surprised at Myolie's fantastic performance as So Fung Nei, a swindler who does anything for money, but only out of the care she has for her mother. The role was refreshing, hilarious, and Myolie's most unique role ever. A Chip Off the Old Block was an unexpected moderate success, and a majority of it was thanks to the portrayal of So Fung Nei.
*Credits to EverStar for character image

Myolie has always been the actress I had a lot of faith in, and I truly believe she'll have a long term career as a actress (and singer) with a big shot at becoming the next fa dan. She is one of the most versatile of her generation and has a lovable ambitious and hardworking personality. I'm even more confident with her skills after watching her performance in Chip. It had saddened me to hear that viewers were incapable of looking behind Myolie's roles and seeing the talented actress. It's relieving and reassuring to hear that Myolie has gained back a favorable impression from everyone. She has a bright future ahead of her. :)