It’s Recess time at the Playground! Which of course means I’m on vacation, this time for two weeks (as opposed to a meager one week last August to Maui). Come sunshine or typhoon, clearly I’ll still be posting since I’m OCD like that, it just won’t be that often. Last time I took a long vacation, I inaugurated Recess posts to generate a discussion topic for folks to run with it and generate fun conversation. This first Recess post will be to share my favorite opening credits from Taiwan dramas. Unlike J-doramas or K-dramas, TW-dramas tend to actually spend time and effort to craft memorable and oftentimes stellar opening credits. It requires blending the perfect opening theme song with a series of creative montages from the drama (either footage or something outside from the actually story) to whet the appetite and engage the interest of the audience. More than anything, a great opening credit becomes something that can be enjoyed as a standalone entertainment piece. Even if you don’t watch TW-dramas, check out the opening credits below and try something new. Then tell me – what are your favorite opening credits from any drama? Continue reading
Tag Archives: Material Queen
I make no excuses for raving about Material Queen when it first premiered, waxing in recap after recap about its merits both superficial (its breathtakingly gorgeous) and substantive (tightly plotted story with exhilarating character development). So when it hit a … Continue reading
This episode was really hard to watch, and even harder to write about. Some things took me by surprise, while others were to be expected. Material Queen continues to astonish with it’s attention to detail, especially character depth and nuances … Continue reading
This episode was like the calm before the storm. Taiwanese dramas are predictable in that it deals with each plot development almost exclusively rather than simultaneously juggling multiple threads. The issues may be raised here and there, but the drama … Continue reading
I want to give Lin Chu Man a country to run. She would tell the politicians to stop bickering, accept no whining, think of creative solutions to problems, all with a “my dictionary does not have the word ‘failure’ attitude”. … Continue reading
Why did I use a picture of a scraggly unkempt dude holding a gerbil in a plastic ball for my recap for episode 6 of Material Queen? If you read the recap you’ll appreciate his uniqueness. We ought to first … Continue reading
Our Material Queen Lin Chu Man isn’t so material anymore. Lead actress Lynn Xiong returned to Taiwan this week for additional promotional rounds for her drama Material Queen with Vanness Wu. At this point if Lynn does one MQ promo … Continue reading
I feel like I just discovered a greater purpose for why I do recaps. While K-dramas are covered extensively by so many great writers, TW-dramas never really had the quality to lure people to write about it. Even the two TW-dramas I’ve recapped this … Continue reading
It’s official: Material Queen is the TW-drama equivalent of Firefly. No wonder I am so taken with this drama, and so damn appreciative and protective of it. Almost a decade later and I’m still stinging with the pain of what … Continue reading
It’s hard for me to describe exactly why I’m fascinated by Material Queen, but I do understand why it’s not a ratings juggernaut that the same directing-writing-acting combo of Autumn’s Concerto was. The dazzling directing finesse and cinematography aside, it’s … Continue reading
Material Queen feels like an anomaly. It’s like the incongruity of having The Sopranos air on the CW after an episode of Gossip Girl. It’s thought-provoking, with none of the characters being one-dimensionally stupid or as a plot device. Episode … Continue reading
Material Queen feels like a post-modern fairy tale. It tells a love story by going backwards, where everything will end with finding love, rather than love leading to a journey together. This drama is so brilliantly directed that your eyes … Continue reading
I am human, not a super-hero Koala or even a Koala who has discovered the means to bend space and time. With that said, I really am “my heart wants but my body cannot do” (a Chinese proverb for desiring … Continue reading