I may abhor Lin Guan Jun with all my heart and soul in King Flower, but I really really appreciate having James Wen rising up through the ranks in the Taiwan entertainment industry with hard work and dedication. He’s fast approaching Susan Lucci status having been nominated for four Golden Bell Awards (Taiwan’s Emmys) and lost each time. Four is a lot for someone of his age and duration in the industry. He started off in cable on small networks like PTS and Hakka cable, he’s gotten nominated twice for Best Actor (for a small Hakka drama and most recently for The Fierce Wife), and twice for Best Supporting Actor (his indelible performance in My Queen as well as in the lovely The Year of Happiness and Love). He’s actually paired up with Sonia Sui twice and both times he got nominated for acting awards, the first time in The Year of Happiness and Love and the second time in The Fierce Wife. So it’s no wonder SETTV wanted them to do King Flower together. But because he had no chemistry with Nikki Hsieh and she had an abundance of it with Chris Wu, poor James was royally screwed by the drama he was supposed to be the headliner of. Since wrapping KF James jetted to Singapore for promotional activities and to film a new project, leaving behind his long-time girlfriend and their newborn baby daughter, whom he has said he misses terribly and hates being away from them. He’s on the pages of Men’s Uno Hong Kong June edition and he really looks so much better as a mature, sophisticated, and sexy man than trying to play a douchy street thug. I hate for folks to not see why James is a top dog in the Taiwanese acting industry and a well-deserved one at that (though my Chris really is incomparable talent IMO). James’ character and performance may have sucked in KF but that’s an aberration and not the norm. Check out these smoldering new pics of him in Men’s Uno and watch a few awesome clips from My Queen to relive when he also stole the thunder from a leading man before in a drama.
Lucas forces Leslie to admit the truth about why he missed the engagement party to Wu Shuang:
He missed the engagement because he was in a warzone covering the conflict and got injured, waking up two months later and getting her ring back in the mail.
Leslie calls off his wedding to Wu Shaung:
Leslie tells Wu Shuang that he called off the wedding, because he knows she doesn’t love him anymore and she’s only clinging on to her sense of responsibility. Fate really let them pass each other by because once the window is gone people move forward and can no longer cling to a past that doesn’t exist anymore.
It is interesting that you posted this and wrote what you did about James. I LOVED him My Queen (a show I watched on your suggestion – Thank you!) and so when you started recapping King Flower I was excited to see another show with him in it. I tend to like to marathon shows after they have finished airing (especially when they only air one a week!) so I held off watching and only read your reviews and was shocked by the anti-James vibe I was getting. When the show was completed I was eager to finally sit down and watch the amazingness that was Chris Wu and I could barely get through the first episode. I have always been a fan of the charming rogue character with a heart of gold – going back to the days of Clark Gable! But what James was TRYING to do was not working. He went for the charming rogue and ended up an immature, annoying and yes “douchy” street thug. When she kisses him on the cheek on her birthday and he mugs, grimaces and wipes it off I nearly threw things at the screen. I just couldn’t watch it. I may never watch it and that is too bad becuase I know that I am really missing out on Chris’s performance. So watching the clips above was a nice reminder of why I loved him Thank you!
James actually paired up with Sonia Sui three times (once for P.S. Man too).
The guy is seriously underrated. I adore him in most of his roles whether or not I liked his character.
I personally think he is way better than Chris Wu.
Oh! And on a unrelated note can you or any of our readers tell my there are no good English subs for Fabulous Boys? I was going to start watching it because I have a HUGE soft spot for YAB and couldn’t find any decent subs. Is the show getting no love in Taiwan? I was just curious. Thanks!
Dramafever has it.
I liked him in his other dramas.. I kinda feel bad he ended up with KF..
I loved James Wen and Sonia Sui in The Year of Happiness and Love!
Koala, I hope you don’t mind me pointing out an error in your post…
James was nominated 5 times at Golden Bell, 4 of which are for Best Actor and only once for My Queen.
He was lead actor of the Year of Happiness and Love and this was the role I like him best. He was neither suave or swoony in that role but so winningly earnest and dorky. Sonia was good too and had really good chemistry with him.
I had to admit that I ckecked out of KF after the first few episodes, not liking any of the main leads and the story was just too much of a train wreck.
I liked James in My queen but I think the Fierce Wife totally killed him for me because now when I see him I immediately think of Rui Fan, worst husband ever!!!!
I first saw James Wen in Office Girls, and I thought he was the most handsome and charismatic man I had ever seen in a TDrama. I blame the role rather than James Wen the actor for the complete failure of King Flower to charm me. It was a surprise to me how an actor I adored could become a person I cringed every time he was on the screen in KF.
Yes, now that I have seen Chris Wu, I have changed to think of him as the best TDrama actor, but James Wen is still someone I want to see in other dramas.
Such a good looking man. These pics are fiyah!