"Momentary Lapse of Reason" Review

I had a lot of reasons to just completely skip "Momentary Lapse of Reason." Premodern dramas are my least favorite to watch since they tend to be tragic in nature. Despite being a big fan of Louis and happy he received his first leading role, I also wasn't interested in seeing Tavia. However, with the quiet but strong critical acclaim, I finally decided to give in because I wanted to check out Louis, Mat, and Rosina's performances for myself.

I'm glad I finally gave this series a chance, and didn't just give up after the first two episodes. It took maybe 5 episodes, but once I got into it, I was hooked and binge watched it over the course of my 3 day weekend. Against all my (non-existent) expectations when first hearing about this series, "Momentary Lapse of Reason" has become my favorite series of 2015.

Although all four leads deliver, the main reason I enjoyed "Momentary" so much is because of Louis Cheung and Mat Yeung's performances. The changes of their characters as well as their friendship drive the series forward and are what make it compelling.

There is not much romantic chemistry present in this series, which may make it sound like a failure, but romance was ultimately not integral to the series despite what some people may have thought initially. Mat and Tavia Yeung are by no means wooden and awkward with each other, but didn't create any sparks either. Same goes for Louis and Tavia, but this is because Louis' love for Tavia remains one-sided for the entire series.

Instead, all the "sparks" happen between the incredibly close brotherhood that develops between Louis and Mat - and I have no complaints about it. It was very rewarding to watch these two characters go from being foes who were completely different cops with contrasting morals, to two people who cared so much about each other and made such a huge impact on the other's life (which is why part of the ending was such BS - but more on that in a bit).

There was a split second where I was not sure if Louis was ready to be a leading actor, although it was only because he (deservingly) had bounced up so quickly. I'm now slapping myself for ever thinking that, because Louis absolutely shines in his first leading role. He and Ruco are one of few TVB actors who excel in these gray characters. In the early episodes, he does well as the clever, "Corrupt Wah" who has no problem taking credit for other people's work and being mean-spirited. Some of his best acting though is when his character slowly starts becoming more conscientious. From feeling guilty over indirectly causing the death of an innocent man to showing compassion over his widow, and standing up for Mat when no one else would, Louis' portrays the character's change in nature after befriending Mat very well. With another actor, the transition probably would've felt sudden, but Louis' expressiveness allowed you to see "Kam Wah" rethinking himself. Although the character becomes easier to play once he is no longer corrupt, Louis does wonderfully in his emotional scenes, particularly when he found Ng Chin's lifeless body.

Kam Wah is also a character who, even when he was a corrupt cop, is very humorous and playful. This made him a lot of fun to watch and prevented "Momentary" from becoming too tragic or "heavy" to watch like most other premodern series. Some of his funniest moments are when Mat catches him doing good deeds and expressing sympathy early on, only for Louis to deny it profusely and claim he is just a creep. It was also hilarious when Louis decided to go into the walled village (where there is no police jurisdiction) to help save Mat, but not without getting himself drunk to work up the guts first. I am happy to see that Louis was able to get into the top 5 nominations for Best Actor despite this series not being a big ratings hit.

Mat had a tough task of leading alongside Louis and is not nearly as expressive as him, but certainly rose up to the challenge in his first shot at second male lead. He was able to portray the character of "Sam Yat Yin" as the righteous and serious cop he is without being wooden, and tender in his scenes with Tavia's Leung Sum. He shows the internal emotional struggle of wanting to be a good cop in a precinct full of greedy and corrupt ones who actively dislike him and what he stands for very well. His most memorable and absolutely heartbreaking scene is when he forces himself to collect the bribes from the market sellers against all his morals and beliefs. 

With the path the character was taking in the early episodes and TVB's usual predictability, I had expected Yat Yin to become a full-on villain. Although he does make a terrible jerk move towards the end in a desperate attempt to move up so he can continue to fight police corruption, Yat Yin never becomes evil or even mean-spirited and simply becomes more dire in the lengths he'll take to fulfill his goal. Until the very end, he still remains a hero. This was a direction I appreciated because it made the character much more realistic as well as allow the plot to move along logically, instead of hurriedly turning him into a caricature, a la Ruco's "Ah Lik" in "Eye in the Sky." As far as secondary leading characters go, Yat Yin was absolutely integral to the story (just as much as Kam Wah) and in moving the series along. Mat got a great opportunity, and he took advantage of it. 

While this is both of their first time as leads, Louis and Mat were my favorite leads to watch all year, and I hope to continue seeing them in major roles.

Tavia once again receives the least interesting role of an entire main cast, but unlike in the
previously mentioned "Eye in the Sky," is not irritating to watch. In the end, I don't have any praises to sing, but I also don't have any nit picks with her performance. Leung Sum is likable instead of a suffocating goody two shoes. While she thinks lowly of Kam Wah initially, she does soon come to the realization he is not what she judged him to be after she gets to know him. The character cries from time to time, but it's also not an endless waterfall like some of Tavia's past dramatic series. The most heartbreaking moment for the character is in the very last episode when she sees someone who she believes is Yat Yin, but is really Willie Wai in Yat Yin's clothes. 

Although playing a character who goes through many major events that can be considered either unfortunate at best or highly traumatic at worst, Rosina gives a very natural performance as "Fa Ying Yuet." There are no huge dramatic acting moments, and that ended up being what I liked. It's so easy to start equating dramatic yelling and crying with good acting. Rosina had many opportunities to overact and it would have even been understandable for the character to be portrayed as over the top. Yet, she never does, but still shows the emotions of the character. Ying Yuet ended up not having as much screen time as I thought she would, but she was a character that could have easily become grating to watch where the actress could take every opportunity to try to steal the scene. Instead, Rosina injects just enough emotion and makes her a sympathetic and intriguing character without trying to steal anyone's thunder, allowing the focus to remain on Kam Wah and Yat Yin's brotherhood. 

With such solid performances playing such intriguing roles, it is very disappointing that Mat and Rosina did not win Most Improved. Based on acting merit alone, they definitely had it in the bag, but much like Vincent before his villain role in "Will Power" came along, simply did not have the buzz (or favoritism) Grace and Tony possessed. (On the bright side, Mat did win Most Improved Actor in Malaysia, while Rosina took home Best Supporting Actress in Singapore, although she was nominated for "Young Charioteers" instead.)

I enjoyed the friendship between the core four characters and the few scenes they all shared, and only wished that there had just been a few more. Unlike in recent series that try to portray friendship (ahem, "Raising the Bar"), you could feel the bond between the four despite them not sharing many scenes altogether.

In addition to our leading actors, the rest of the cast performs well too. Also providing some comic relief were Brian Burrell, who appears to be playing an important role for the first time, and Amy Fan. The two were very sweet to watch as a married couple. Hugo Wong was convincing as the corrupt and cruel police inspector. Lai Kong does well as always, but him as the villain is getting increasingly predictable.

Ending Commentary (Spoilers ahead!!)

A very satisfying ending overall, with just one major complaint. On his death bed, Yat Yin tells Leung Sum that she is the reason Kam Wah changed to be a better person, not him. While the writers do not try to drill into our heads the importance of Leung Sum on Yat Yin and Kam Wah too much, doing so at all was a disservice to how important the two guy's friendship truly was. This was inconsistent just timeline-wise, as Kam Wah had already become more conscientiousness before even developing a crush on Leung Sum. Yat Yin's death was terribly sad, but fitting, though I also wish he and Kam Wah were able to share more of a "final" scene together. 

Lai Kong, Akina Hong, and Joe Tay's endings were incredibly satisfying and poetic. Akina and Joe trying to outsmart each other by poisoning the other to receive all the money for themselves, only to both die at the hands of the opposite, was brilliant and a bold writing move.  

Finally, I have mixed feelings towards Kam Wah feigning memory loss. He had already lost Yat Yin, and by pretending to not remember, he was isolating himself from his two remaining best friends. However, I am glad the writers chose not to have him and Leung Sum end up together, as the latter never expressed romantic feelings for him and it would have been too sudden and convenient for her to do so so shortly after Yat Yin's death. Kam Wah continuing to watch over Leung Sum from afar may not be the happiest ending, but it was the most fitting one. A bittersweet ending was the most appropriate for "Momentary," but the characters also ended up all pretty content.

Overall

As stated before, Louis and Mat are the heart of the series and it is ultimately about how Kam Wah and Yat Yin come to impact each other as they try to rid Tong Sai of its rampant corruption. The series makes full use of its 20 episodes, and the writing feels very tight, with none of the inconsistencies or wackiness present in many series' writing today (I enjoyed you "Captain of Destiny," but I'm looking at you). Despite being a premodern series, "Momentary Lapse" also manages to succeed more as an action series than recent typical police procedurals. Its elements of drama, action, and suspense along with its fast paced writing and strong leading performances makes you want to keep watching once you get past the set up of the first handful of episodes. "Momentary Lapse" is the most underrated series of the year, and one of the best.

Rating: 4.5 stars

"Eye in the Sky" Review

The time seems to have passed for me to write a review on this series (I was already pretty late in starting and finishing it), but it's summer and I've got a lot of free time and no other TVB series from this year that I've watched.

"Eye in the Sky" becomes yet another series that generated moderate Best Actor buzz for lead Ruco Chan but is ultimately too weak of a series on its own to do Ruco any real chance (see 2013's "Brother's Keeper" and 2014's "Ruse of Engagement"). The series picks up quickly, and the first ten or so episodes are intriguing and appropriately paced. Unfortunately (but unsurprisingly), "Eye" could not have lost momentum any faster than it did once Kevin's character found out Ruco is his long-lost twin. The plot fizzles, then crashes and burns as we go around in twists and turns I can no longer remember since I was on the fence about writing this review for so long for the remaining two thirds of the series.

Kevin Cheng does both outgoing, laid back and cocky type characters ("Ghetto Justice") and the quiet, cool, introverted ones well, but when acting alongside Ruco, it quickly becomes apparent that Ruco is the more versatile and natural actor. Although I got a kick out of the scene in the first episode where "Szeto Shun" saves Tavia Yeung's character, catches a criminal, then calmly proceeds to whip out his phone and finish his sudoku puzzle, Kevin's character still left much to be desired. In particular, I totally missed the part where Kevin started to fall for Tavia... Oh wait, the script just neglected to show that. Doh.

Tavia fell out of favor with me a long time ago, and not only did this series and character "Jan" do nothing to
help that, it possibly made it worse. The nerdy glasses and bad wardrobe of the character were the least of my problems. She was supposed to be this very clever and sneaky private investigator but scenes of her following people she was investigating showed otherwise. Also, she was WHINY. She's a grown woman, but for over 18 months after sleeping with Ruco's character (who she thought was Kevin), she moped around and half-assed her work? I don't have complaints for Tavia's performance. I just have complaints that she received such a terrible character that didn't flatter her at all. 

Ruco does all that he can with what he's given in "Cheng Nik Hang," like he does with all his performances. For this reason, I was still able to sympathize with Ah Nik and see how his spite emerged from such a tough past instead of hating him the last few episodes. By then, I had gotten fed up with his stubbornness and his increased blindness and inability to see things from another perspective. And yet, until the last two episodes, his behavior still mostly made sense. Episodes 19 and 20 throw any hint of rationality the series had left to the dogs by turning Lik from an insecure, hurt person driven to act with manipulation and spite into a ridiculous cartoonish, mentally unstable, drug-injecting villain. Notice the character also undergoes a drastic wardrobe change these last two episodes that sees Ruco going from wearing lots of colored plaid shirts with t-shirts to lots of grungy black and gray pieces. Because TVB clearly thinks we're idiots and we have to SEE a physical change in appearance to know Ruco's a full-on villain now. Ruco draws sympathy from the audience until a certain point with his performance, and is able to bring his creep on in the finale. He deserves praise for being able to do quite a bit with a sloppily written character, but I'm still waiting for a series after "The Other Truth" where he is able to be boosted by a strong script and character, instead of trying to lift up a lackluster one.

Despite loving Ruco and Tavia in "The Other Truth," I dreaded seeing them here. In fact, I think "Eye" can just be summed up as the series where I kept yelling at the screen "Why do two such attractive and cool guys (until Ruco lost his marbles) like such a plain and annoying girl?!" for 20 episodes. But I rest my case. 

While a flirty womanizer, Tony Hung as "Terry" ends up becoming the voice of reason in the second half of the series, constantly trying to talk some sense into Ah Nik. By the end of the series, he is the only character I liked and cared for and I kept worrying he'd die when Ah Nik begged Terry to help him one last time. Since I'm used to seeing Tony playing more dorky characters, I couldn't help but laugh in the scenes Tony was trying to be suave and flirty, where he came off as trying too hard. However, he's still very likable and more natural in other scenes, particularly in playful friendship scenes with Ruco.

Samantha Ko has the least to work with of all the characters but "Ah Ling"'s upbeat and youthful personality was a nice and welcome contrast to Jan's mopey one. She and Tony make a cute couple, but their relationship was unimportant and unnecessary to the overall story other than to give the guy who has supported and put up with Ah Nik's increasing nonsense over the years a happy ending.

Vivian Yeo seems to be the new go to girl for these mastermind, hit man type roles, which at the least is an interesting thing to be typecast in. She can certainly look cold and detached.

I'm sick of saying this for TVB series these days, but it had potential and could have been so much better. Instead it became increasingly unrealistic, draggy, and prone to driving around in circles. It's yet another typical case of the cast not being able to save a bad script (and certainly not with the characters they had).

Rating: 3 stars

"Finding Life's Sweetness" Chapter 6

It was Friday night again, a time for working people everywhere to relax.

Simon was tending to his bar when Ethan walked in.  "Ethan, good to see you!  What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I wanted a drink, and who better to patronize than my old friend?" Ethan replied.  "One beer please."

"Coming right up", Simon said, and decided to spark up another conversation.  "So how are you and Ella?" he questioned.

"Pretty good.  We're going to the beach to watch the sunrise tomorrow", Ethan told him.  "Hopefully she doesn't fall asleep or get bored", he added a bit nervously.

Simon laughed at the remark and handed him a beer.  "That sounds like something she would enjoy.  She needs the relaxation", he said.

Ethan nodded.  "I think the peace and serenity should be great", he noted.  "Also, if things go along like I hope, we might spend the whole day together."

"Sounds interesting", Simon replied.  "What are you going to do and where are you going?"

"I don't know yet", Ethan shrugged.  "I want to plan it as we go, see what she'd like to do."

"Aw, if I was a girl I'd be so swooned by your thoughtfulness", Simon joked, poking fun at his friend.

"Har har", Ethan replied, sarcastically.

"So what's going on in the great Simon Ng's love life?" he moved on.

"Like a desert experiencing an extreme drought", Simon replied.

Ethan wrinkled his eyebrows.  "Really?  A young good looking guy with a lot of money who's surprisingly not a jerk isn't getting any love?  What's wrong with this picture?" he made fun of Simon.  "Maybe your magnetic attraction force that seems to surround every rich young guy is broken", he added with a laugh.

"Very funny", Simon sarcastically replied.

"Here's a weird story though", he started.  "I am currently the fake boyfriend of someone", he straightforwardly said.

Ethan choked on his beer.  "I'm sorry, what?  What made you agree to do that?" he asked, curiously.

Simon shrugged.  "I'm doing it as a favor to her", he replied.

"You must like her if you're willing to do that", Ethan smiled.  "So who's the special girl?" he probed.

"Kristy, the assistant manager at my dad's agency.  And I find her interesting, I don't exactly like her", he defended.

"Come on, Simon.  We're adults now.  If you like someone, just say it.  We're not kids anymore", Ethan teased.

"I'm not even supposed to tell you about this", Simon replied, but then his face softened.

"She's different though.  Ambitious, tough, intelligent, and a feisty and fiery spirit unlike any other girl I've met", he talked about her fondly.  "Very stubborn though", he added with a chuckle.

Ethan started pointing at Simon.  "I've never heard you talk about a girl like this, you are definitely in love with her", he said.

Simon laughed.  "I guess I am", he replied.

"Be careful though, she sounds like a potential heartbreaker", Ethan warned, jokingly.

"We'll see about that", Simon said.

Quinn and Vince entered the bar in commotion.

"Why did you drag me here?" Vince complained.

"So you can have a little fun!  You've been so boring lately!" Quinn complained back in a huff.

Simon and Ethan looked up and caught sight of the two.  "Quinn, hey!" Simon called.

"Hey, Simon!" she yelled.  She nudged Vince.  "That's the handsome son of the owner of the agency I was telling you about", she told him and skipped over to him.

Vince followed Quinn over to the two guys and took a good look at Simon.  "Hmph, what's so special about him?  I'm just as handsome as him", he thought to himself.

Simon pointed to Vince.  "Your boyfriend?" he asked Quinn in a friendly tone.

Quinn looked appalled.  "He wishes!  This is Vince, my good friend and flat mate", she introduced.

"Nice to meet you", Simon and Ethan said to Vince and shook his hand, who appeared annoyed at the "He wishes" comment.

"So what are you two talking about?" Quinn asked, enthusiastically.

"Our love lives.  Or in my case, lack of it", Simon joked.

"Interesting", she replied, intrigued.  "I still find it hard to believe you wouldn't have a girlfriend", she pondered.

"That's the same thing I said to him", Ethan agreed.

"How hard is it to believe?  You've made several of my girlfriends run away", Vince teased her.

"Whoa, Quinn, what did you do?" Simon asked in deep interest.

"Nothing!  Girls just don't like the presence of another girl at their boyfriend's place", she replied, defensively.

"I can see how that would cause some problems", Ethan laughed.

A guy from the other side of the bar came over beside Quinn.  "Hi there, what's your name?" he asked, flirtatiously.  Clearly, it didn't take him long to take a liking to her cute and fun personality.

Simon and Ethan watched without much reaction, but Vince's nose flared.  What was this chump doing talking to Quinn?  Looking for a quick hook up?

"Quinn, what's your name?" she replied with a smile.

"Johnny.  May I buy you a drink?" he shot Quinn a smile.

"Sure!" she said with her usual enthusiasm.

Another guy came over, ready to sweep Quinn off her feet as well.  "I'm Daniel, I couldn't help but noticing your cute face from over there", he said with a smile.

Vince's eyes widened.  Another guy?! he yelled to himself.

He reached over and put an arm on a grinning Quinn's shoulder.  "Hey, Daniel, can't you see she's with me?" he told the guy.

Not wanting to pick a fight, the guys simply left.

"Huh, cheap and undetermined", Vince said about them, satisfied.

Quinn threw his arm off her shoulder and yelled "What did you do that for?"

"They were obviously trying to hook up with you!" Vince replied.

"So?  I wasn't going to follow any of them to a hotel room!" she said, angrily.  "They offered me a free drink!"

"If it really means that much to you, I'll pay for your drink", Vince offered.

"That's not the point!" Quinn screamed.  "But you can definitely pay for my drink", she added.

"Ok then, everything's fine", Vince said.

"No, everything's not fine!  Why did you ruin my fun?" Quinn whined.

"Nothing good was going to come out of that!  Who knew what those guys were really like?" Vince claimed.

Quinn groaned.  "Who are you to say that?  I know you've picked up girls at bars before.  I've seen you do that once, and it was not much different from what they did!" she said.

"Yeah, but you know me and what I'm like", he answered.

"I wasn't trying to find a boyfriend here, Vince.  I only wanted to mingle a bit", Quinn rolled her eyes.

"I'm going to go to the restroom", she said, and left in a huff.

Vince bit his lip.  Ok, maybe that was too much, he thought.  But who knows what they could've done to Quinn?

Simon and Ethan had been observing the two's bickering in amusement the whole time.

"So what's up with you and Quinn?" Simon asked, curiously.

"We told you.  We're friends and flatmates", Vince repeated.

"That didn't just look like an argument between two friends", Ethan said.

Simon nodded.  "Somebody seemed jealous", he noted.

"Rich boy, what are you talking about?" Vince grumbled.

"It's pretty obvious.  Why else would you have such a big reaction?" Ethan questioned.

"She's my friend!  I have to look out for her", Vince said.

"Even if you're just looking out for a friend, you don't have to look like your eyes are going to pop out of your head at the sight of her with another guy do you?" Simon joked.  Simon and Ethan both burst into laughter.

Vince faked laughter.  "Har, har, har, are you two done laughing at me yet?" he asked, annoyed.

"Ok, sorry, Vince.  We aren't trying to make fun of you", Simon apologized after he managed to stop his laughter.

"Yeah, sure you didn't", Vince rolled his eyes.  "I'm going to go to the restroom", he said and left the two guys.

He turned the corner to where the restrooms are and saw Quinn standing there talking to...another guy?!  Seriously?

He hit his head against the wall.  Come on, Vince, why do you care? he thought to himself, extremely annoyed.

===================

Comments: A very dialogue driven chapter with several character interactions.  I am slowly developing the relationship between Simon, Ethan, Vince, and Quinn.  These four will quickly become close friends in the near future, while the three girls will under go more bumps.

It was pretty fun writing lines for Simon and Ethan, as the two are supposed to be good buddies who make fun of each other a lot. :)

Aw, poor Vince!  He seems to be in denial that he loves Quinn, doesn't he? :P I love writing their scenes, hehe.

Preview of what's coming up: Ethan and Ella go on their first real "date".

"Finding Life's Sweetness" Chapter 5

"Excuse me, I have a package for a Ms. Ella Yeung", a delivery man said to Quinn, who was dozed off at her desk.

Quinn jumped up quickly.  "What?" she looked up in confusion to see a bouquet of roses infront of her.  "Oh, sorry.  Ella!" she called.

Ella stepped out of her office.  "What are you yelling about Quinn?" she asked and caught sight of the roses.

"Someone sent you roses", Quinn said with a mischievous smile.  Ella signed off on the delivery and opened the card that was hidden in the roses.  The card simply read "From, Ethan".

Quinn peeked over Ella's shoulder to look at the card.  "Is it from the guy who was waiting for you outside the bar the other night?" she asked, curiously.

"Yes", Ella bluntly replied, not sure what else to say.

"Get back to work", she told her, and took the roses into her office.  She stared at them as she thought hard.  She and Ethan had only met twice, but he had managed to leave a heavy impression on her.  He was the only one who had ever challenged her in such a way, and she wasn't sure what to think about that.  She agreed that there were some things that she should change in her life, but didn't want to listen to someone so easily.  Was he worth listening to?  Only time would tell.

**********

Kristy sat impatiently at her desk.  For some reason, she felt...unfulfilled.

Her eyes landed on the plaque sitting on the front of her desk.  It read "Kristy Wong - Assistant Manager".  All of the sudden, the words seemed to stare at her in the face.  She had been working as an assistant manager for about a month, but was already growing impatient and yearning to get higher up.  Ella was alright, but she wouldn't be satisfied until she found herself at the top, over Ella.

That wasn't the only thing bothering her though.  Her mom had visited her last night.  She wasn't nearly as angry as she had been on the phone the other day.  Even so, their encounter last night managed to be even more unpleasant than their phone call.

Knock, knock!  Kristy ran over to look through the peephole at who was at the door.  Who could possibly be looking for her?

She saw her mom (Mary Hon) standing outside and froze.  If there was someone who managed to even come close to slightly frightening Kristy, it was her mom.  She wasn't intimidating, mean, or scary in anyway.  However, Kristy had gotten her bluntness from her mother.  Only, she was an entire different kind of bluntness.

"Sweetie, it's so nice to see you!" she said after Kristy hesitatingly opened the door for her.

"Mom, what are you doing here?  It's Friday night, how did you know I was home?" Kristy asked, trying to feign politeness.

"Who are you trying to kid, Kristy?  You're always home", she answered, making fun of her.

"That's not true, I went to the bar with a couple colleagues a while ago", Kristy attempted to defend herself.

"Oh, a bar isn't the best place to meet men, sweetie", her mom said.  She paused and added "Then again, I'm happy you're going out at all."

"I didn't go there to meet men, mom.  I just went to blow off some steam", Kristy replied.

"I didn't realize you knew how to do that", her mom laughed.  "Anyway, I was just in the neighborhood meeting up with some friends and decided to stop by."

"That's very nice of you, mom", Kristy said, biting her lip to keep herself from saying something rude.

Kristy's mom proceeded to sit down and pulled a couple of pictures from her purse.  "Many of my friends showed me pictures of their sons.  Some are quite handsome and seem to have good character", her mom informed her.

Her daughter replied with a groan.  "How many times do I have to tell you I don't want to be set up?" Kristy complained.

"You and I both know you're not going to find a boyfriend any other way", her mom stated.  Before Kristy could get too offended, she quickly added "It's not because you're not pretty!  You just never put yourself out there."


Kristy squirmed in discomfort.  Getting a boyfriend wasn't in at all in her interest, but she'd take any opportunity to prove her mom wrong.

"I will find a guy, mom.  You'll see", Kristy said.  Her mom didn't look too convinced.

Kristy walked into the pantry to pour herself a cup of coffee.

What was she going to do?  Even if she could find a boyfriend, she didn't want to deal with having one.  Too much baggage, like she needed anything to keep her down.  She stood there pondering while slowly sipping her coffee.

"Hello, pretty girl", Simon greeted her as he came in.  Kristy cringed at his greeting and suddenly thought of a brilliant idea.

She nudged him and straightforwardly asked "Do you want to be my boyfriend?"

Simon dropped the cup he had been holding, feeling shocked, then smiled.  "My charm finally got to you, huh?  You really don't beat around the bush do you?" he asked.

"Don't be so flattered", Kristy scoffed.  "I'm asking you to be my fake boyfriend to prove to my mom I can find my own", she cleared up.

"So you're using me?" Simon feigned offense.

He thought about it for a moment.  "Okay, I'll do it.  Then again, technically that means you can't find a boyfriend on your own.  A real one anyway", he joked.

"Whatever", Kristy rolled her eyes.

"Fake or real relationship, you will fall for me eventually", Simon stated.

"Yeah, keep thinking that", she replied, sarcastically.

"I have a few conditions", she proposed.  "You can not say a word of this to anyone, you may refer to me as your girlfriend, and you most certainly can not touch me when my mom's not around."

"Why don't you just tie strings on me and control me like I'm your puppet?" he joked.

"If everything goes my way, I will be able to do that", Kristy added in a sneaky tone.

Simon looked slightly taken aback.  "So...when are we meeting your mom, sweetie?" he asked.

"Don't call me that", Kristy grumbled.

"You said I can't call you my girlfriend", Simon defended.  "Well, now you can't call me any other pet name that makes me want to vomit either", she added, and started to walk away.

"I'll tell you when we'll meet her", she called out.  She said that as if their "relationship" was just another business deal.

Simon admired her as she walked away.  Something about her blunt, feisty, and headstrong personality was (to him anyway) very attractive.

"I'll get through to her eventually", he thought to himself.  "She's one tough cookie though."

==========

Comments: There was so much more I wanted to include in this chapter, but decided to leave it for the next one to keep the length consistent.  It seems a lot more easier and organized to focus on specific characters each chapter as opposed to trying to squeeze in a scene with each person.

We got to see what Kristy's mom is like, and it's rather clear where she got her bluntness from, heh.

I used (attempted to anyway) a couple instances of foreshadowing, especially with Kristy.  I'm not too good at it though, so it isn't too clear but I have some of you will be able to catch it.

More of Ella and Ethan soon, I know I haven't focused on them much.  I'll do my best to not make it as boring and underdeveloped as it has been.

Preview of what's coming up: Focus on all the guys and Quinn, as well as Quinn and Vince.  :D  Really looking forward to writing this chapter.  Stay tuned!

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?

"The Other Truth" Review

"The Other Truth" is the most case driven drama of the year, which is a shame since it had so much potential for intriguing and sweet love relationships and enjoyable character interactions.  While it is above average compared to other series this year, it falls significantly short of the preceding lawyer drama "Ghetto Justice", which better balanced cases and characters.  Putting aside my love and bias for Ruco Chan, I neither hated "The Other Truth" nor loved it.

Characters and Performances

Ruco Chan - "Keith"
After 17 years of struggling in the entertainment industry despite immense talent and good looks, Ruco finally landed a lead role and received the recognition and praise he deserves for his portrayal of "Keith".  The character feels tailor made for him, as Ruco excels at portraying gray characters.  Ruco has consistently delivered solid performances as semi-villains since returning to TVB, which caused many people to be biased against him.  I am very satisfied that not only did he get the chance to portray a good guy for a wider audience to like him, but was also given the chance to portray such an intriguing character that allowed him to showcase his talent.  Keith highly believes in justice, and is not afraid to take risks and come dangerously to the bottom line in order to achieve it.  Not only does Ruco have charisma that makes Keith ridiculously attractive, but he flawlessly brings out the rebellious and independent nature and unconventional thinking the character is supposed to have.  Ruco portrays Keith in such a charming, subtle, and natural fashion and has my vote for Best Actor as well as Favorite Male Character.

On a slightly off topic note, I usually don't like Producer Amy Wong much, but she gets major bonus points for seeing the talent in Ruco and finally letting my favorite artiste the chance to shine!

Tavia Yeung - "Mavis"
When I learned that Tavia would be portraying an independent and strong lawyer, I was ecstatic.  I thought that she would finally be able to break out of the weak and emotional characters she has been portraying lately.  However, other than being independent and intelligent, Mavis is a flat and uninteresting character.  In return, you wonder why Keith and Wallace both fell for her so hard.  Tavia brings nothing new with this portrayal.  She was sick during filming, which resulted in her screen time being distributed to others.  This makes me wonder, had Tavia not been sick, would Mavis have been more developed?

Raymond Wong - "Wallace"
Although Raymond Wong is another one of my favorite actors, I am glad the writers sidelined him more in favor of promoting Ruco, who has been in the industry a couple more years than Raymond.  "Wallace" was a more laid back and playful character compared to the ones Raymond has portrayed since being promoted to lead with less challenging material.  As a result, he portrays Wallace with ease.  Raymond is a handsome and great actor, but when standing with Ruco, the latter seems to outshine him in both aspects.

While Tavia and Raymond did share many cute scenes together, I preferred Ruco and Tavia together since I think they were more compatible personality wise.  They had things in common, but also had many differences that compliment each other.  Mavis encouraged Keith to be more structured and responsible while Keith encouraged Mavis to act outside the box and be more unorthodox.

Natalie Tong - "Cecillia"
Cecillia was perfectly likable, and her crush on Keith was sweet.  Natalie's performance was average, but I'm starting to feel like all her performances are the same.

Louis Yuen - "James"
Due to him not being nowhere as attractive and professional looking as Keith or Wallace, James is a hardworking and modest yet klutzy lawyer who strives to be taken seriously as a professional.  Although I don't like Louis too much, this was a nice role change for him.  I was annoyed with the amount of screen time he had in the beginning, but he grew on me later on.

Kenneth Ma - "Alex"
Kenneth's portrayal of Alex generated much discussion while the series was airing.  He takes a break from his usual righteous roles, which is a nice change.  There were certainly flaws in his performance (he seemed innocent at times), but overall he delivered.  His last scene was very chilling and realistic!

Highlights 

• Ruco's performance as Keith.
• The jury trial.  It was refreshing and interesting to see the jury interactions.  Not only was it a fantastic new spin on handling the cases, but we got to learn more about how a jury worked.  I commend all the actors featured in the case's jury as well, especially veteran Angelina Lo.
• Keith and Mavis' bickering and bantering scenes.
• Wallace's pursuit of Mavis.  Love how their code for help is "I love you"!
• The scene with Mavis, Keith, Wallace, and James at the restaurant where Keith and Wallace fight over the cheesecake, which is supposed to symbolize Mavis.  James takes the cheesecake away from them, but ends up being too scared to eat it himself.

Overall

The second half of the last episode felt like a slap in the face for me due to most of the time being spent on Louis and Kristal Tin.  I wouldn't mind seeing them get their happy ending if it didn't drag on so long.  It angers me even more that the disappointing conclusion of Keith, Mavis, and Wallace's storyline was simply squeezed into the last minute.

While "The Other Truth" was certainly entertaining and addictive, it left much to be desired.   Some of the cases were poorly executed, such as the "kill the cop" case.  It had a lot of potential and started off strong, but the conclusion could've been better.  Meanwhile, the case with Rosanne Lui and Leanne Li dragged on way too long.  We were introduced to great characters with so much potential.  However, with the exception of Keith, the script fails to dive in and fully explore these characters and their relationships.

Do I want a sequel?  Yes, especially since it will be a direct sequel.  That way, the scriptwriters and producer Amy Wong get a second chance at further developing these characters.  Hopefully, the sequel will balance the cases and relationships better.  I am wary of how it will turn it, but I'm looking forward to it.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars

New Feature: TVB In Court

TVB Interaction introduces its second feature, and first satire feature: TVB in Court. Why such a random name? It's because TVB is going to court. Ok, fine, not really. However, what if they did? What kinds of lawsuits would they face? TVB Interaction takes a sarcastic and amusing look at what could possibly happen...

10/24/09
Case #1
Lawsuit- A TVB viewer, Kristen Lee, complains that TVB gives newbies who can't act no proper training and hands them main and first supporting roles.

Kristen Lee - Plaintiff
Producer - Defendant

Judge: Please state your case Ms. Lee.
Kristen: There's something wrong with TVB! They give these pretty-faced pageant winners with no acting experience main and first supporting roles! And they don't even get proper training! Ever heard of acting school? You know, where Tavia Yeung came from?
Judge: Interesting. Defendant, what do you have to say to that?
Producer: It's called on job training, miss.
Kristen: [yells] On job training?!
Judge: No yelling in the court please.
Producer: *smirks* Yes. After all, the best way of learning to do something is putting yourself out there, and doing it. Don't you think, Ms. Lee? [smug expression]
Kristen: *grumbles* Tell that to all the Kate Tsui haters.
Producer: *starts to get annoyed* Every actor or actress is bound to have 'haters.' Not everyone likes Tavia Yeung.
Kristen: At least her haters don't hate her because her acting sucks! You know why? She's a trained actress!
Producer: It's not our fault! Practically none of our artistes have gone to college! You think they'll want to go to an acting school?
Judge: *thinking* They're so loud. Argh, the only reason I decided to become a judge for entertainment related cases was because I thought it'd be easier on me. You don't need half a brain for it. Who would've thought I'd find myself with a headache instead?
Kristen: Then why won't you give more opportunities to those who are trained?
Producer: Like who?! Tavia Yeung?
Kristen: Yeah! And not ten years after they've joined TVB! You didn't even give a second glance at the girl before then!
Producer: Well, she doesn't stand out.
Kristen: Why not? Because she doesn't have a bunch of rumors around her? She doesn't reveal her skin? Doesn't have rumors about dating co-stars?
Producer: Enough about Tavia!
Judge: *clears throat* Again, please no yelling in court.
Kristen: Fine! Then what about the ones that have actually gone to university? Like Mandy Cho? She joined TVB after participating in the pageant and received main roles then left a while after to get a college degree. When she came back a couples years later after graduating, she's only received small supporting roles!
Producer: I believe you're getting off topic.
Kristen: How so?
Producer: You filed a complaint against us because we're supposedly giving main and first supporting roles to pageant winners without giving them proper training. Mandy Cho has taken part in a pageant. Isn't that right, your honor? [smug]
Judge: *moves uncomfortably in seat* Um, yes. That's right.
Kristen: Well while I'm being 'off topic' I'd like to point out that the pageant winners are getting worse and worse each year. What's so special about Leanne Li? She's pretty, but Fala is beautiful! And Tracey Ip? Come on! All these ladies are pretty, but not Miss Hong Kong or Miss Chinese International material.
Producer: *nervously and unsure of what to say* It's what's on the inside that counts?
Judge: *thinking* That's the stupidest excuse I've ever heard.
Kristen: What's on the inside that counts?! What more phonier reason could you give? If it's what's on the inside that counts, then why would you hold pageants every year and judge ladies based on their appearance?
Judge: *thinking* She took the words out of my mouth.
Producer: Well...*stutters*
Judge: *thinking* This guy's an idiot. If I wasn't a judge and have to maintain my attitude, I'd give him a piece of my mind. Or make HIM go to college. But he wouldn't make it in.
Kristen: Speechless, eh?
Judge: *rubs temples* Owie.
Producer: *bursts and starts yelling* Well, what do you expect?! It's more expensive to pay the veterans! It's cheaper to hire the newbies!
Kristen: So you're cheap?
Producer: Course I'm not! TVB's not cheap either! But you gotta do what you gotta do! Everyone's suffering from the poor economy and so are we!
Judge: *thinking* If it were up to me I'd just lay off you.
Kristen: Not necessarily, everyone. If I was suffering from the poor economy as well, how would I have enough money to battle you in this court? [smug face]
Judge: *glances at watch* Speaking of which, your time is almost up. [lying]
Kristen: There's a time limit?
Judge: Um, yeah. New regulation...we haven't added it to the paperwork yet.
Kristen: Well...ok. Do you have a verdict, your honor?
Judge: Uh...yeah.
Producer: *plays with hands silently*
Judge: There is no verdict. This case is ridiculous. *leaves court room without letting Kristen or the producer a chance to reply*

****10 minutes later***
Judge: Boss?
Boss: Yes?
Judge: I quit.

Ok, not the best. Not very funny either. It didn't turn out the way I had hoped. I'm working on trying out different writing styles though. I'll let you guys decide on whether this is good or not. :)

New Feature: "In Their Face" #1

TVB Interaction presents it's first feature: "In Their Face.

Every person has their own personality, as well as their own attitude and more. Now, did you know that you can sometimes tell these things by just looking at them? Of course, you shouldn't simply judge a book by its cover. However, examining specific factors such as their facial features, appearance, and style, we can get a general impression of that person, or the impression they give off.

Please comment and give feedback! I will continue this feature if the response is good. :)



Tavia Yeung

With 10 years of experience with TVB under her belt, she has matured into a fine actress. Her facial features themselves make her appear more mature than her colleagues, despite being around the same age. A certain serenity is seen in her and her eyes. She has elegance, something other twenty something fa dans are usually missing.



Selena Li


One of the prettiest/cutest of the pageant participate bunch, Selena is a wholesome beauty. She is rarely seen revealing large amounts of skin. The sweet smile she loves to wear shows the youth and inner child in her. Her eyes give off a friendly and gentle feeling, which is like her personality in real life.

Kate Tsui

Her narrow shaped eyes give off a "mean" look, which is probably why she's been given villain roles recently. She is aggressive as opposed to Selena's gentleness. Her style and look tells that she is bold and daring in terms of sexuality and life. Kate has defined herself from other 'good girl' fa dans with her personality, attracting more criticism than praise.

Patrick Tang : 3 Great MV's

TVB actor Patrick Tang has been working with TVB for 9 years, but he has yet to gain a very large fan base. This year, he has been featured in 3 series back to back, which is getting viewers very annoyed and sick of him. (The King of Snooker, Just Love ll, and The Threshold of a Persona) I've watched all 3 now, just not in order. In his defense, it's unlikely he filmed all these series back to back. It was just TVB's decision to air those series in that order, which is probably their method of promoting him. Of course, the purpose of promoting someone to become more popular is somewhat ruined when they just complain about his presence on TV for so long. I actually think he's not that bad of an actor, maybe not as good as siu sangs Raymond Lam and Sammul Chan, but not horrid. I don't mind watching him, and I think I quite like him. He exaggerates at times which makes you able to easily tell he's acting though.

For those who still think he's a bad actor, you have to admit he's a good singer. Patrick is probably better off with a career mainly focused in singing. He has a very nice and low voice which is better than all the TVB actors turned singers. As I searched on YouTube for his music today (with no knowledge of whether he has released any MV's or songs not linked to TVB), I managed to find most of his MV's. I have only watched a couple, and I liked the ideas/plots of the them. Hong Kong music videos seem to running on a low budget lately, thus most videos are nothing special and rather plain. That's why his videos seem to stand out to me so much. They can be either explained as : creative, meaningful, or unique and unused. I've chosen to point out 3 of his MV's.

A Creative Video
????



This is my personal favorite. The video is about how Patrick is a smoker and has a girlfriend who hates people who smokes, and wants him to quit. She tries to get him to stop, but he can't. He uses many methods to cover up smoking, such as simply throwing out the cigarette when he sees her coming hiding it in places likes his shirt collar, sleeve, and pants; and eating lots of mints and spraying himself with perfume. Throughout the video, his girlfriend gets close to him various times to either kiss or hug him, only to notice he's been smoking by his scent. We also see both of them holding anti-smoking signs.

I find this video very creative, because not only is it nicely done, it also boosts the message that you shouldn't smoke. It shows how someone is addicted to smoking and just can't stop, and all the things he does to hide it from his girlfriend. I love this video because it's so creative and just very cute.


A Meaningful Video
???



This video features Tavia Yeung as his lover, who suffers from an illness and will die soon. She uses a voice recorder to record her thoughts during her last days which Patrick soon receives. Patrick is seen several times passing her hospital room outside, giving her flowers. He carries Tavia outside so she can enjoy the world one last time. The video then switches to Patrick running to the hospital as fast as he can with flowers in his hand, knowing Tavia is about to take her last breath. Just as he reaches her hospital bed and is about to put the flowers on her bed, she passes away, without being able to see Patrick one last time. The video ends with Patrick recording a message on Tavia's voice recorder, saying he will always remember her.

Although not my absolute favorite, I still really love it. It is really meaningful and at the same time so sad. The whole video is only 4 minutes, but plays out like a tragic love story. A music video most of the time will just feature the singer lip syncing to the lyrics, and although they exist not that many play out as a story.


A Unique and Unused Video
???

(For some reason, there is no embed code for this video, so below I've posted a direct link.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olrdIo4IWhE

Featuring Natalie Tong.
The video starts out seemingly like a decent MV, with Patrick and his girlfriend. Natalie is seen starring at them from afar. You'd think that she is jealous of Patrick's girlfriend as she is in love with him. If you keep watching, you realize it is the exact opposite. Patrick's girlfriend and Natalie are in fact bisexual, and share a relationship which they hide from Patrick. Natalie becomes jealous of Patrick whenever he is with her 'lover.' One of the scenes feature Patrick waiting outside the ladies' room waiting for the two to come out, thinking they are just taking a long time. We see that the two are inside being intimate, clearly showing they're bisexual. When Patrick and his girlfriend get in their car, she tells him about her relationship with Natalie. The MV ends with her taking Natalie's hand.

Hong Kong is definitely less daring than the U.S. when it comes to working gay, lesbian, and bisexual statuses and relationships into their productions. This is what makes this video more unique as the theme is much less used in HK. The portrayal wasn't too explicit or strong either, which makes it less awkward for the general public to watch while still getting the message out there that not everyone is 'straight.'

Me discovering this MV came at a good time as I'm watching The Threshold of a Persona, which features Patrick and Natalie in a love triangle/quadrangle with Toby Leung and Benny Chan.


As I've said before, Patrick is not the best actor, but he's improving and I like watching him. However, I fully support him in his singing career. I hope he will release another album soon. He sings better than any other TVB actor, so I don't care what you say about his acting.