A Dream of Splendor really goes viral in China.
From June 2 on line began to hit 8.3 points, after that the Douban score rose all the way to 8.8 points. This score persisted for a week, and the play was broadcast less than halfway through, with more than 420,000 people already giving a score of 8.7.
With both word of mouth and popularity, A Dream of Splendor has become a well-deserved blockbuster drama in the first half of 2022, ushering in the revival of Chinese costume idol dramas.
So, what exactly does it rely on?
How about the face value of the actors of A Dream of Splendor?
As we all know, people like to watch idol drama, the first thing is to look at the face scores, which is the knocker of costume idol drama. As netizens said, not to promote the costume idol dramas with high face scores and good aesthetics, do you condone the rampant ugliness?
Liu Yifei as Zhao Pan’er
“Sister Fairy” Liu Yifei (nickname from her acting in the Chinese drama The Return of the Condor Heroes) as the heroine Zhao Paner is quite attractive. From the debut to 35 years old, the years do not seem to leave any traces on her.
It is worth noting that A Dream of Splendor is the first TV series that Liu Yifei starred in as an adult. It has been 16 years, and her beauty has not diminished, but she has become more easy-going and more human.
Chen Xiao as Gu Qianfan
The male lead, Gu Qianfan, played by Chen Xiao, is not as famous as Liu Yifei, but he has also starred in many high-quality Chinese dramas since his debut. What impressed me the most was Female Prime Minister with Zhao Liying and Nothing Gold Can Stay with Sun Li.
Chen Xiao has also been favored by the famous director Xu Ke, and starred in the role of Lu Li in the movie Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, which has received a lot of praise. This time with Liu Yifei cooperation, netizen’s favorite feelings have long overflowed the screen.
The appearance of the male and female protagonists is pleasing to the eye. Who doesn’t love such handsome men and beauties? In addition, with the participation of many high face value artists such as Lin Yun, Liu Yan, Yu Haiqiao, etc., A Dream of Splendor has distanced itself from the costume idol dramas with bad aesthetic about the casting.
It has been too long for Chinese audiences to endure low-quality aesthetic costume idol dramas.
The audience desperately hopes that the top face scores of the pyramid like Liu Yifei and Chen Xiao will come to the “poverty alleviation” in the costume idol dramas. Netizens have expressed the hope that Chen Xiao and Liu Yifei will stay in the world of costume dramas forever as CP.
How is the plot of A Dream of Splendor?
A good work, to have a good reputation, in addition to a high level appearance, a good plot is also indispensable.
Therefore, it is necessary to satisfy the eyes as well as to respect the IQ.
A Dream of Splendor is an adaptation of Guan Hanqing’s Yuan drama “Zhao Pan’er Feng Yue Jiu Feng Chen (赵盼儿风月救风尘)”.
The early plot of A Dream of Splendor mainly tells the story of Zhao Pan’er and Gu Qianfan’s acquaintance and her hard work in Bianjing with her best friends Song Yinzhang and Sun Sanniang.
In broad daylight, a group of robbers broke into Zhao’s tea store and held hostage Zhao Pan’er. It happened that Gu Qianfan also entered because of a case.
Hero to save the beauty? No.
Zhao Pan’er and Sun Sanniang went into battle together with pots and pans, worthy of the businessmen who have experienced the storm.
After several rounds of sparring, the robbers aimed at the time to kill the women boss a surprise. Gu Qianfan finally made his move. He dragged her slender hand in a perfect circle.
Want to see holding the beauty in arms with four eyes facing each other? No. Without any hesitation, he directly took the beauty to the ground.
During the investigation process, Gu Qianfan was almost silenced by the murderous men in black. Seriously injured, he saw a fleeing figure in the distance.
Beauty to save the hero? No.
Gu Pan’er didn’t plan to pay attention to him, what about him? Throwing a dart, hitting her in the shoulder.
“Save me, the dart is poisonous!” “If you don’t save me, you have to die too.”
There are many other counter-plots like this.
Later, they secretly fell in love, hearts throbbing, and they started the ultimate pull. Not only is the anti-Mary Sue routine, but the progress of love is also moderate and there are traces to follow.
Zhao Pan’er watched from the attic, with a lot of thought. Gu Qianfan pretended to look at her casually on the boat, without any words.
But the audience can feel the secret affection across the screen. You can’t hide the expression in eyes to someone you like~
The two sides looked at each other across the screen, lingering in love.
When helping to heal wounds, the eyes of both were entangled, and the hearts were stirred up and down, but they still maintained the rationality of adults.
When Zhao Pan’er finds out that she likes Gu Qianfan, the restrained twist when she talks to her best girl friend, and the other side sudden near and far away, making worry about gains and losses, it is especially easy to let people empathize. No wonder netizens say that it is exactly the same as the mood when in love.
The sweetness after confirming the relationship is like the scene downstairs in our university dormitory.
When the love is deep, the affectionate kiss makes many audiences scream of groundhogs.
The entrepreneurial plot is also very interesting.
Zhao Pan’er is good at tea, Sun Sanniang is good at cooking, Song Yinzhang is good at Chinese lute, three people show their strengths and support each other. There is no friendship of frenemy, there is no antagonism plot between them, only the sympathy of “gils help girls”.
Is the acting of the supporting cast of A Dream of Splendor good?
Vivid.
The “villain” Ouyang Xu, played by played by Yu Haiqiao, interprets the hypocrite perfectly who pretends to be affectionate.
Even if it is his fault of discarding, he can set up a forced character in front of friends.
He had no choice but to stay away from the capital, not forgetting to send affection to Miss Gao, so that Miss Gao would never forget him, leaving a way for him to come back later.
When he found the dagger hidden in the house, gentle and polite in front of outsiders, but he was not panic, there was only hatred for revenge in his eyes.
The little follower, Chen Lian, is witty and flexible, and always understands the duplicity of the commander Gu Qianfan. Even netizens call that this “housekeeper” is indispensable for the “Gu Pan” CP. The actor played the role very well.
The arty Mr. Zhuo Shi and Yuan Tuntian are inseparable and are regulars at the “Half-veiled” tea house. One talented, one loves music, they are real elegant people, also making Zhao Paner’s tea house famous.
There are also two veteran actors, Xiao Qinyan and Gao Hu, who should not be underestimated in the stages.
Xiao Qinyan is Gu Qianfan’s biological father, a traitor in the eyes of outsiders. And Gao Hu, who caught his son-in-law below the list, should be the Qingliu Party.
Xiao Qinyan loves his son very much. Gu Qianfan was in distress and had no choice but to find Xiao Qinyan for help. Xiao Qinyan’s flattered expression is very expressive, especially his sentence “Our son is as handsome as I was when I was young”, which is in great contrast to Xiao Qinyan’s identity as a traitor.
To outsiders, the noble and majestic Gao Hu, faceing beauty, was completely different. When meeting Zhao Pan’er alone, his bewildered and incoherent appearance was very expressive.
Extra points: scenery and costumes
Good scenery and costumes are indispensable in costume dramas.
A Dream of Splendor vividly photographed the quaint beauty of the south of the Yangtze River and the prosperous Song Dynasty. And most of them are shot on location.
The costume of this type drama not only lies in the gorgeous, but also in the details and elaborate.
For example, the clothes of the heroine Zhao Pan’er are divided into three periods: Qiantang Tea Store, Half-veiled House and Yongan House. The costumes are also different in each period due to different identities, and they are mainly light and elegant, which are close to the colors of Song porcelain, and add a sense of Chinese classicism.
The costume of the male lead Gu Qianfan is mainly in dark colors, highlighting the mystery.
The characters of Song Yinzhang and Sun Sanniang in the drama are musician and cook, and their costumes are also very close to their respective identities.
With high face sores, good plots, great acting skills, and beautiful scenery, how can such a high-quality drama not go viral?
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