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sid_guardian2023-01-06 02:59 pm
miss_ingno) wrote in sid_guardian2023-01-06 02:59 pm
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Scene Discussion: SID sets a trap, Zhu Hong and Da Qing are kidnapped
I’m using Solo’s subs for the quotes! I apologize for the lack of Chinese, though. This is my first scene discussion, I hope I'm doing it right :)
Location of scene: episode 4, several snippets between 18:35 to 26:40
Context: Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan ran into Zhang Danni in the park as she was running from her attacker again. After taking her to a café to recover, Zhao Yunlan is very suspicious of her and shares these concerns with Shen Wei. He sends Xiao Guo to walk Zhang Danni home. They set the trap for that same night, as Da Qing is wearing the same clothes as he does when trailing Xiao Guo and Zhang Danni. The scene before the trap, Zhang Danni and Jia Hui discuss how she’s happy with her new face and that Zhu Jiu has a job for them.
Summary: Zhu Hong plays bait for the face-stealing Dixingren, with Chu Shuzhi and Da Qing as back-up, plus Lin Jing on the surveillance cams. But the SID gets ambushed and Zhu Hong and Da Qing are kidnapped instead.
Timestamp: 18:35 to 19:50
Da Qing is playing look-out in a red sports jacket. Zhu Hong shashays onto the scene in a stunning red dress, brushing back her hair to reveal a rather clunky earpiece.
Lin Jing watches from the street corner’s surveillance cam. Zhu Hong plays into the spy tropes of using a make-up mirror to check the corners, and we see Chu Shuzhi is also on back-up duty.
Lin Jing cracks up at Zhu Hong’s acting.
Chu Shuzhi uses his phone to stay to contact Da Qing instead of the earpiece. Maybe it offends his fashion sense.
While CSZ has line of sight on Zhu Hong, Da Qing doesn’t. Da Qing says “I really wish I could see Zhu Hong pretending to be a lady.” while looking amused.
The scene is interrupted by Weilan having a moonlit walk through the park.
Timestamp: 21:06 to 21:11
A high-pitched scream interrupts the team’s bait plan. Zhu Hong barely stops herself from investigating, Chu Shuzhi runs off to check. She clutches her bracelet.
21:11 to 21:19
Weilan find Lin Yusen lurking around, Zhu Jiu traps Shen Wei with dark energy to the ground again. What a one-trick pony! (Is this when Zhu Jiu got to Lin Yusen to prep him for the later explosion? Or is it afterwards, considering he turns up with a molotov?)
21:20 to 21:38
Da Qing gets hit by green poison gas, falling unconscious. Chu Shuzhi hurries onto the scene of the screaming, only to find a (clunky again!) music player on a bench instead. (Seriously, what’s with the disco vibe of this thing?) Lin Jing sees the kidnapper approaching Zhu Hong and screams her name, but nobody reacts (not even Zhu Hong, who is the only one with an earpiece!)
22:16 to 22:30
Chu Shuzhi hurries back to Zhu Hong, only to find her gone. He does find the earpiece, Zhu Hong’s purse and the chloroform rag the kidnapper kindly left behind for clues.
We interrupt for another Weilan moment with bear traps and tetanus shots. (Read the scene discussion here!) Also we get Zhao Yunlan being a softie with Lin Yusen :)
26:23 to 26:40
Guo Changcheng comes running out of the SID to inform ZYL about the situation. Cut to Zhu Hong, who is tied with thin ropes to a pillar so she can free herself later. She jerks her wrist to jingle the bell charm on her bracelet – and activating the tracker within!
Meanwhile the team somehow tracked the perps back to their lair, even though that’s not where either the perps are nor Zhu Hong is kept…
Lin Jing is posited as the tech guy who runs the op from home base. However, there’s several flaws in this setup that makes me wonder how often the SID has done similar things before. At a guess, I’d say not a lot – besides, the increase of cases is recent, so it seems they haven’t had much chance to practice. A major flaw, imo, is the fact that only Lin Jing and Zhu Hong are connected via earpiece. If Chu Shuzhi and Da Qing had been, he’d might’ve gotten a warning off in time (though Zhu Hong doesn’t react to his ineffectual shouting either – maybe instead of just crying her name, he should’ve added a warning like “behind you”? I assume he’s also inexperienced in this sort of job.)
Zhu Hong herself is supposedly new to field work, but I wouldn’t say she does a bad job personally? While the others (particularly Lin Jing) are cracking up at her acting, it doesn’t feel too on the nose to me compared to the general level of acting I’ve come to expect from characters. Granted, irl I would think it’s a bit too much and obvious, but I don’t necessarily think it’s filmed that way. Zhu Hong does well pretending to be alone and attractive, and while adding more red lipstick to already bright red lips is maybe a bit much, she isn’t super obvious in checking behind her with the mirror.
She does get distracted by the screams but then, so does Chu Shuzhi, I’m not holding it against her (though her situational awareness could’ve been better, and she doesn’t react to Lin Jing at all). Plus she’s not a field agent, so I think overall she does well enough. My one big criticism of her performance is that she doesn’t hide said earpiece, but I’m aware that’s for audience’s convenience/reminder. (Though it does go missing on Lin Jing’s camera footage! Prop department didn’t catch that one :’D)
Overall I think they did really well, and Zhang Danni and Jia Hui set up a convincing enough distraction + divide and conquer strategy to reverse the trap on them (possibly with Zhu Jiu’s help, since it’s implied they’re doing this on his orders). And considering that Jia Hui tries to steal Zhu Hong’s face, I think the bait was very successful!
Next time, though, I think they should add a tracker to their bait that doesn’t need movement to be activated xD plus earpieces for everyone! And post-SNAFU protocol should be updated, too, Lin Jing doesn’t contact either Chu Shuzhi nor Zhao Yunlan once he sees Zhu Hong getting taken, which is really ineffectual imo. If Zhao Yunlan hadn’t happened to return to SID with Lin Yusen, Xiao Guo wouldn’t have been able to inform him of the situation.
this counts for my Bingo's "free square". Only three squares left!
Location of scene: episode 4, several snippets between 18:35 to 26:40
Context: Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan ran into Zhang Danni in the park as she was running from her attacker again. After taking her to a café to recover, Zhao Yunlan is very suspicious of her and shares these concerns with Shen Wei. He sends Xiao Guo to walk Zhang Danni home. They set the trap for that same night, as Da Qing is wearing the same clothes as he does when trailing Xiao Guo and Zhang Danni. The scene before the trap, Zhang Danni and Jia Hui discuss how she’s happy with her new face and that Zhu Jiu has a job for them.
Summary: Zhu Hong plays bait for the face-stealing Dixingren, with Chu Shuzhi and Da Qing as back-up, plus Lin Jing on the surveillance cams. But the SID gets ambushed and Zhu Hong and Da Qing are kidnapped instead.
Timestamp: 18:35 to 19:50
Da Qing is playing look-out in a red sports jacket. Zhu Hong shashays onto the scene in a stunning red dress, brushing back her hair to reveal a rather clunky earpiece.
Lin Jing watches from the street corner’s surveillance cam. Zhu Hong plays into the spy tropes of using a make-up mirror to check the corners, and we see Chu Shuzhi is also on back-up duty.
Lin Jing cracks up at Zhu Hong’s acting.
Chu Shuzhi uses his phone to stay to contact Da Qing instead of the earpiece. Maybe it offends his fashion sense.
While CSZ has line of sight on Zhu Hong, Da Qing doesn’t. Da Qing says “I really wish I could see Zhu Hong pretending to be a lady.” while looking amused.
The scene is interrupted by Weilan having a moonlit walk through the park.
Timestamp: 21:06 to 21:11
A high-pitched scream interrupts the team’s bait plan. Zhu Hong barely stops herself from investigating, Chu Shuzhi runs off to check. She clutches her bracelet.
21:11 to 21:19
Weilan find Lin Yusen lurking around, Zhu Jiu traps Shen Wei with dark energy to the ground again. What a one-trick pony! (Is this when Zhu Jiu got to Lin Yusen to prep him for the later explosion? Or is it afterwards, considering he turns up with a molotov?)
21:20 to 21:38
Da Qing gets hit by green poison gas, falling unconscious. Chu Shuzhi hurries onto the scene of the screaming, only to find a (clunky again!) music player on a bench instead. (Seriously, what’s with the disco vibe of this thing?) Lin Jing sees the kidnapper approaching Zhu Hong and screams her name, but nobody reacts (not even Zhu Hong, who is the only one with an earpiece!)
22:16 to 22:30
Chu Shuzhi hurries back to Zhu Hong, only to find her gone. He does find the earpiece, Zhu Hong’s purse and the chloroform rag the kidnapper kindly left behind for clues.
We interrupt for another Weilan moment with bear traps and tetanus shots. (Read the scene discussion here!) Also we get Zhao Yunlan being a softie with Lin Yusen :)
26:23 to 26:40
Guo Changcheng comes running out of the SID to inform ZYL about the situation. Cut to Zhu Hong, who is tied with thin ropes to a pillar so she can free herself later. She jerks her wrist to jingle the bell charm on her bracelet – and activating the tracker within!
Meanwhile the team somehow tracked the perps back to their lair, even though that’s not where either the perps are nor Zhu Hong is kept…
Teamwork makes the dream work
The face-stealer case has several great moments for the SID team. They banter and tease each other, but also visibly care about each other. This is one of the first times we see the SID work in the field, and I think their methods and levels of skill is very fascinating! Chu Shuzhi is clearly the field agent among them, the one with the combat training. Da Qing I’d rank next, since Zhao Yunlan isn’t part of the trap. He’s obviously used to surveillance, but with his position in this plan being out of sight of the others, he’s not very effective and gets ambushed himself by Zhang Danni’s gas power.Lin Jing is posited as the tech guy who runs the op from home base. However, there’s several flaws in this setup that makes me wonder how often the SID has done similar things before. At a guess, I’d say not a lot – besides, the increase of cases is recent, so it seems they haven’t had much chance to practice. A major flaw, imo, is the fact that only Lin Jing and Zhu Hong are connected via earpiece. If Chu Shuzhi and Da Qing had been, he’d might’ve gotten a warning off in time (though Zhu Hong doesn’t react to his ineffectual shouting either – maybe instead of just crying her name, he should’ve added a warning like “behind you”? I assume he’s also inexperienced in this sort of job.)
Zhu Hong herself is supposedly new to field work, but I wouldn’t say she does a bad job personally? While the others (particularly Lin Jing) are cracking up at her acting, it doesn’t feel too on the nose to me compared to the general level of acting I’ve come to expect from characters. Granted, irl I would think it’s a bit too much and obvious, but I don’t necessarily think it’s filmed that way. Zhu Hong does well pretending to be alone and attractive, and while adding more red lipstick to already bright red lips is maybe a bit much, she isn’t super obvious in checking behind her with the mirror.
She does get distracted by the screams but then, so does Chu Shuzhi, I’m not holding it against her (though her situational awareness could’ve been better, and she doesn’t react to Lin Jing at all). Plus she’s not a field agent, so I think overall she does well enough. My one big criticism of her performance is that she doesn’t hide said earpiece, but I’m aware that’s for audience’s convenience/reminder. (Though it does go missing on Lin Jing’s camera footage! Prop department didn’t catch that one :’D)
Overall I think they did really well, and Zhang Danni and Jia Hui set up a convincing enough distraction + divide and conquer strategy to reverse the trap on them (possibly with Zhu Jiu’s help, since it’s implied they’re doing this on his orders). And considering that Jia Hui tries to steal Zhu Hong’s face, I think the bait was very successful!
Next time, though, I think they should add a tracker to their bait that doesn’t need movement to be activated xD plus earpieces for everyone! And post-SNAFU protocol should be updated, too, Lin Jing doesn’t contact either Chu Shuzhi nor Zhao Yunlan once he sees Zhu Hong getting taken, which is really ineffectual imo. If Zhao Yunlan hadn’t happened to return to SID with Lin Yusen, Xiao Guo wouldn’t have been able to inform him of the situation.
Questions:
- What’s up with the tech!? Why is it so clunky??? Can’t the SID afford anything better? Except for the bracelet, that one is damn elegant – and closer to magic with how it work, really. A tracker should constantly broadcast it’s location, which would be much more helpful when Zhu Hong gets knocked out.
- What’s cracking Lin Jing up about the situation? Is it that Zhu Hong takes her role as bait so seriously? The spy tropes she pulls? Zhu Hong in a pretty dress? The applying of make-up? Pretending to be a lady? The entire situation?
- Both members of the SID that get kidnapped are dressed in the same bright red. Coincidence? Is red a signal colour in Dixing? Dixing is rather drab, maybe it’s because bright red stands out?
- This is one of the first times we see the team out in the field together, ignoring the early stake-out on the same case. What’s your impression? SID is never going to be all professional, but I feel like they set up a decent trap, and the perps used decent means to distract them. Though their emergency response leaves a bit to be desired…
- Zhu Jiu has been pestering Shen Wei a lot during this case. What’s his ultimate goal? He seems to be targeting the SID in particular, since Zhang Danni and Jia Hui are working for him, targetting Zhu Hong and Da Qing in particular and reducing Chu Shuzhi’s effectiveness. Is Lin Yusen blowing them (and then himself) up supposed to take as many members of the SID out as possible in the blast radius? Considering that even Heipaoshi doesn’t manage to get a shield up in time and ruins his sleeve, it seems a particularly deadly mix… although that’s not really part of this scene, sorry, my thoughts are running away from me :’D
this counts for my Bingo's "free square". Only three squares left!
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So much going on! I need to rewatch the scene properly before I comment on the details, but I just want to say Zhu Hong in the red dress is GORGEOUS. :D
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I am utterly obsessed with episode 4 right now xD there's so many details I didn't notice first time around! Or just took for granted/didn't pay much attention to. I might end up picking *all* the remaining scenes of this episode for discussions eventually xD *quickly hides the three started drafts behind her back and smiles innocently*
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Episode 4 is so full of good stuff! I would love more scene discussions from this ep, that would be fantastic. *nudges you towards those drafts*
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I don't think I need much nudging, but I appreciate the enthusiasm <3 (on that note, I need to check when ep 4 rewatch is and if it's feasible for me to do the post that week...)
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(I think
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Ooooh, yay! :D :D :D
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I have no idea why the tech is so clunky, but I find it sorta endearing - I wonder if it's meant to evoke a kind of low-key 'this world is not precisely earth' vibe, like with the very extra use of english in various places, or if it was more a "we have no budget but let's make it shiny" thing.
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It's definitely a Choice 😂
Zhu Hong is absolutely on Fire in that dress, and she's definitely feeling it. I wonder how much this is connected to her trying for hyperfeminity to blend in/appeal to Zhao Yunlan, like with learning to walk in high heels? *ponders* because this is not her usual look, but she seems to enjoy it. (On my first watch, I took the team's comments on it not suiting Zhu Hong's personality, which is snappish and bossy.)
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Yes! I've always got that feeling, too.
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However, there’s several flaws in this setup that makes me wonder how often the SID has done similar things before. At a guess, I’d say not a lot
Yeah, I feel like this is their first time. Previously, they may have solved a few cases after the fact, but I think pre-canon, Chu Shuzhi was the only field agent, with Da Qing doing surveillance and recon. And this was Zhu Hong's idea, I think? At 6:58 she says, "We did not catch him this time. Who knows when he will act next. If this doesn't work, then I'll have to attend to it personally. Draw the snake out of its hole." and Da Qing and Lin Jing pretend they didn't hear until she forces them to acknowledge her.
So I suspect Lin Jing bodged some last-minute tech together for it, and that's why it's not up to his usual steampunk-style standards.
The culprits' boombox was presumably scavenged or bought cheap, since they don't seem to have any money (beyond, presumably, what they took from their victims).
While the others (particularly Lin Jing) are cracking up at her acting
Yeah, I think that's about her being a) a Snake and b) a mean office manager. In the scene at 6:58, she's dressed in a loose-fitting suit jacket and grabs Lin Jing by the ear to bully him, so the idea of her playing sexy and vulnerable is quite a contrast! She's showing cleavage! (I wonder how much Lin Jing's reaction is because he himself suddenly sees her as attractive; my first watch through the show, I half-expected them to get together at some point.)
She does get distracted by the screams
And it would be pretty suspicious if she didn't to react to the screams, I think? :-)
My one big criticism of her performance is that she doesn’t hide said earpiece, but I’m aware that’s for audience’s convenience/reminder.
Yeah, definitely for the viewer's benefit. And I think it looks enough like a phone earpiece that maybe it doesn't matter...
Overall I think they did really well, and Zhang Danni and Jia Hui set up a convincing enough distraction + divide and conquer strategy to reverse the trap on them (possibly with Zhu Jiu’s help, since it’s implied they’re doing this on his orders). And considering that Jia Hui tries to steal Zhu Hong’s face, I think the bait was very successful!
Agreed! They just needed a better exit strategy in place. (Did they know at that stage they were facing not just one culprit but two? It might have worked for one.)
Lin Jing doesn’t contact either Chu Shuzhi nor Zhao Yunlan once he sees Zhu Hong getting taken, which is really ineffectual imo. If Zhao Yunlan hadn’t happened to return to SID with Lin Yusen, Xiao Guo wouldn’t have been able to inform him of the situation.
True, that is weird. Ohhh, I wonder if Zhao Yunlan even knew they were doing the sting. Surely if he had, he'd have wanted to supervise? (Or does he mention it and I've forgotten?) Except for Chu Shuzhi, the others are kind of approaching it like a game.
Both members of the SID that get kidnapped are dressed in the same bright red. Coincidence?
I assumed it was a coincidence. There are only three people on the ground, and Chu Shuzhi wouldn't wear red in a thousand years, and he's the least catch-able. Otoh, I guess it is an unusual colour for Da Qing, so maybe it was deliberate...
Zhu Jiu has been pestering Shen Wei a lot during this case. What’s his ultimate goal?
Weaken the SID so he can get the Hallows, do as much damage as possible on the way -- and if he's figured out who Shen Wei is (I can't remember when he makes that connection), he does have a personal grudge there, too.
Kudos again for such a great post. :D
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*blushes* thank you :) and yes – I didn’t realize until rewatching how much gold there is in this! My first watch, I was so busy looking out for Weilan moments I didn’t really register much of the other details. I was pleasantly surprised on rewatch <3
Previously, they may have solved a few cases after the fact, but I think pre-canon, Chu Shuzhi was the only field agent, with Da Qing doing surveillance and recon.
This is my read on their work, too! Plus Zhao Yunlan probably has some police academy training + however long he spent as a cop/detective before getting promoted to head the SID? Everyone else feels like they mostly work in the office.
And this was Zhu Hong's idea, I think? At 6:58 she says, "We did not catch him this time. Who knows when he will act next. If this doesn't work, then I'll have to attend to it personally. Draw the snake out of its hole." and Da Qing and Lin Jing pretend they didn't hear until she forces them to acknowledge her.
Oh! Oh this is such a great point, I didn’t think to connect those two moments :D! Yes, this feels right. And it works too with the Zhao-Yunlan-is-unaware vibe we’re both getting (I need to rewatch to see if he mentions the case itself or the trap… but I agree with your estimation that he’d want to supervise, especially with one of his office worker’s going out as bait)
So I suspect Lin Jing bodged some last-minute tech together for it, and that's why it's not up to his usual steampunk-style standards.
Tbf I feel like Lin Jing’s usual technology is very much in a similar design aesthetic as the clunky earpiece – which is actually good on visibility factors too, now that I think about it. They didn’t have to zoom in a lot to make it show. And you’re right, the boombox is likely scavenged… makes me wonder if one of the victims was a mom though and they stole her kid’s toy music box ó.ò
Yeah, I think that's about her being a) a Snake and b) a mean office manager. … (I wonder how much Lin Jing's reaction is because he himself suddenly sees her as attractive; my first watch through the show, I half-expected them to get together at some point.)
That seems to be the consensus! The more I rewatched it (for screencgrabs and stuff), the more I landed on this interpretation, too. Oh! Seeing them in a shippy light is new to me, though I guess I can see it? They do have the… not tsundere, exactly, but Zhu Hong has a vibe along those lines, and tsunderes tend to end up with cute nerds… hmmm…
Yeah, definitely for the viewer's benefit. And I think it looks enough like a phone earpiece that maybe it doesn't matter...
If I weren’t so tired from work I’d be /so tempted/ to go on a research binge when that type of wireless headphone became popular. I was definitely way behind on the trend when I bought mine!
Agreed! They just needed a better exit strategy in place. (Did they know at that stage they were facing not just one culprit but two? It might have worked for one.)
Zhao Yunlan shared his suspicions about Zhang Danni with Shen Wei, but not really anyone else as far as we get to see, I don’t think. Da Qing possibly, but that seems to happen off-screen if it does. It’d be in line with his behaviour during other cases, where he doesn’t always share his insights until he’s certain of something… <.< So they likely expected one culprit!
(I wonder if it would’ve worked with just one enemy. They would’ve had to go for Da Qing or Zhu Hong, definitely not both, but Da Qing doesn’t have line of sight on Zhu Hong and he doesn’t seem to notice the screams? Likely because he was being poisoned at the same time, the scream-box could easily work as Zhang Danni’s cue to attack. Considering the pretty faces targeted to this point, the one perp would’ve definitely gone for Zhu Hong, which might mean Da Qing being able to intervene to some degree. I’m not sure I see it working 100% but then, they didn’t expect their trap to be obvious to the perp and thus reversed on them.)
Can I just say that I love our villains du jour being good at teamwork, too? And clever in springing the ambush this way. Also, now I wonder what they intended to use Da Qing for, since their plans get derailed from there on.
Except for Chu Shuzhi, the others are kind of approaching it like a game.
They really are! Or like a movie sting, playing at badassery. Which really works as a point in favour of their inexperience (or in Da Qing’s case, being unused to consequences mattering much to a cat).
Otoh, I guess it is an unusual colour for Da Qing, so maybe it was deliberate...
Who knows! I like to think the costuming department did it on purpose to visually tie them together, but it might’ve just been a coincidence, too xD
Weaken the SID so he can get the Hallows, do as much damage as possible on the way -- and if he's figured out who Shen Wei is (I can't remember when he makes that connection), he does have a personal grudge there, too.
I think he does? I need to rewatch, but he definitely talks to him during the first cat-and-mouse game at the end of episode 3, before the interrogation. I remember being surprised he knew Heipaoshi = Professor Shen that early due to some meta and rewatching it, but I honestly forgot by now when exactly that early part happened xD my brain is a sieve (thanks to work).
<333333
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Ha, I always forget about that. He really doesn't seem to me like he's suited to be regular police. (Could he have been shunted directly into the SID because things had been quiet on the Dixing front for so long it was assumed to be a regular token desk job, I wonder?)
Can I just say that I love our villains du jour being good at teamwork, too? And clever in springing the ambush this way. Also, now I wonder what they intended to use Da Qing for, since their plans get derailed from there on.
Leverage against the SID? Idk. Kind of depends what Zhu Jiu wanted them to do, I think.
I remember being surprised he knew Heipaoshi = Professor Shen that early due to some meta and rewatching it, but I honestly forgot by now when exactly that early part happened
Me too. Something to keep an eye out for in the rewatch. (Oh, no! So many things! *g*)
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It's his casualness, I think xD plus he's more... situation-smart than book-smart? Though he has book-smarts too (tho it's more obvious in the novel, he gets several research scenes and gets to show off rare occult knowledge), he just doesn't like showing it lol it ruins his reputation
I'm not expert, but I think there's a difference between normal copper and those who get the higher ranks in the police? Sasa was talking about the police academy in discord recently, they have degrees similar to university and that's a requirement for anyone who is to lead a department. Plus in the novel, Zhao Yunlan's time at university is mentioned, so I assume he has that kind of police degree?
(Could he have been shunted directly into the SID because things had been quiet on the Dixing front for so long it was assumed to be a regular token desk job, I wonder?)
Ohhh, hm. I bet that made it easier for him to gain the position at his young age, ignoring Zhao Xinci's recommendation. OTOH he still needs the right qualifications because regardless of impression, it's still a department head position and that's politically useful. Also I doubt Zhao Xinci nor Zhang Shi expected the position to remain conflictless forever... 👀
Leverage against the SID? Idk. Kind of depends what Zhu Jiu wanted them to do, I think.
Would make the most sense. He would make a good hostage against Heipaoshi, too, since HPS clearly cares about the SID not knowing his secret... and yet still wants them to be allies... hm. Unfinished thoughts, gonna let them percolate first.
Me too. Something to keep an eye out for in the rewatch. (Oh, no! So many things! *g*)
Too many things! XD
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That's a very good question, I don't think I've ever heard anyone speculate about that!
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I'm just watching ep 8, and Zhao Yunlan plays a fanfare on an ancient-looking tape deck to welcome Xiao Guo to the SID, so it might just be the aesthetic of the whole show?
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Could be! Though it feels at odds with the stated "technological boom" thanks to aliens arriving with a spaceship lol. Alternatively, maybe the SID is so underfunded they have to work with what they got?
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That's my take, too!
And this was Zhu Hong's idea, I think? At 6:58 she says, "We did not catch him this time. Who knows when he will act next. If this doesn't work, then I'll have to attend to it personally. Draw the snake out of its hole." and Da Qing and Lin Jing pretend they didn't hear until she forces them to acknowledge her.
Oooh, excellent point!
(Did they know at that stage they were facing not just one culprit but two? It might have worked for one.)
I think they knew something - doesn't Lin Yusen talk about a guy? And Zhao Yunlan definitely suspects "Zhang Danni" to be involved, which the others should be aware of, especially given how weirdly she acted towards Xiao-Guo. (Or do we think he said nothing about that?) Anyway, they don't know she's not the real Zhang Danni yet. So maybe they think they only have one Dixing power to contend with. They defintitely had no way to see that green mist coming!
I wonder if Zhao Yunlan even knew they were doing the sting. Surely if he had, he'd have wanted to supervise?
Yeah, that's my impression as well - Zhao Yunlan is busy strolling through the park with Shen Wei (and Zhang Yusen) and seems to have no idea any of this is going on.
Except for Chu Shuzhi, the others are kind of approaching it like a game.
True. That's probably the biggest sign of their inexperience - that they're not really taking the danger seriously.
and if he's figured out who Shen Wei is (I can't remember when he makes that connection)
I think later in this episode is the first time where he explicitly addresses Shen Wei as the Envoy, but he must have figured it out a bit before then. IIRC he starts figuring it out from the Wang Yike case, where he notices Shen Wei managed to neutralise Wang Yike's power.
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... focus on Lin Jing. He's being a jerk, laughing at Zhu Hong the way he does, but I still find it a little bit endearing because they have such a sibling relationship--as far as he's concerned, Zhu Hong is the big sister he teases and gets teased by, who has his back in a tight spot, not, like, a beautiful sexy woman, and he's cracking up at the cognitive dissonance.
Oh, interesting interpretation! I can see that :D definitely cognitive dissonance at seeing bossy Zhu Hong play small and vulnerable girl to attract a predator. They do have a very teasing-mocking relationship going on (Zhu Hong offering him the dried fish snacks in that one scene was a great prank xD)
It's also possible that when he first met her she was less polished and put-together than when we see her, still getting used to not being a snake, and that image of her stuck with him.
...this is gonna be stuck in my head now, damn. I want a first meeting fic for them now, like Lin Jing's first impressions of everyone. Kinda like Guo Changcheng's SID introduction, but a little better prepared (and yet! Lin Jing internally screaming BUT SCIENCE! would be hilarious)
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Oh man, that would be so much fun!
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Yeah, that's very similar to how I see it! I think she's sometimes the big sister who bosses him around, and sometimes the little sister who he can't fully take seriously, and either way seeing her as sexy/seductive is just a "does not compute" kind of LOLOLOL to him.
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He's a cat. It might be days later!
Zhu Hong's dress is so hot, it BURRRRNS!
I guess the show couldnt afford any better? Maybe one of the actors donated it after finding it in their loft.
The lady thing, I'd say. She's a BAMF snake anf BAMF manager and now she's acting little-girl vulnerable. It jars when you don't know her inner life.
Red-shirts. *shrugs*
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True! xD though based on cinematography I think we're meant to think of it in a close time-frame, if not the same day ;) (and Zhu Hong's dress is SO HOT agree!)
I guess the show couldnt afford any better? Maybe one of the actors donated it after finding it in their loft.
It's interesting to think about where the props came from. Might be whatever a crew member had lying around, too. Maybe one of them has a kid and offered the colourful light-up music box for that shot? *ponders*
The lady thing, I'd say. She's a BAMF snake anf BAMF manager and now she's acting little-girl vulnerable.
It's a lovely contrast, and she pulls it off well until she's teased and reveals her fangs! XD
Red-shirts. *shrugs*
*cracks up* I didn't even think of the Star Trek connection omg, you're so right!
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Ahahahaha, perfect! :D
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Is this when Zhu Jiu got to Lin Yusen to prep him for the later explosion? Or is it afterwards, considering he turns up with a molotov?
I think that happens later – here Lin Yusen seems to still be at the "set traps" stage, not the "blow things up" stage. But this may well be where Zhu Jiu got the idea of using him. He probably got to him after ZYL kept sending him away.
She jerks her wrist to jingle the bell charm on her bracelet – and activating the tracker within!
This is so weird and so nonsensical a function for a tracker that I have to wonder if, when she clutched it earlier, perhaps she turned it off? But then I can't see why she'd have done that either ...
Meanwhile the team somehow tracked the perps back to their lair, even though that’s not where either the perps are nor Zhu Hong is kept…
It's very strange! From the dialogue it sounds like they were tracking down Zhang Danni, and they do find the real Zhang Danni's faceless dead body there. Maybe it's meant to be her home, but then that doesn't look like a normal person's living space. It's very Villain Lair Chic™.
Lin Jing is posited as the tech guy who runs the op from home base. However, there’s several flaws in this setup that makes me wonder how often the SID has done similar things before. At a guess, I’d say not a lot – besides, the increase of cases is recent, so it seems they haven’t had much chance to practice.
Yeah, that's my impression too. They haven't done this much, if at all, and definitely not all of them together.
(though Zhu Hong doesn’t react to his ineffectual shouting either – maybe instead of just crying her name, he should’ve added a warning like “behind you”? I assume he’s also inexperienced in this sort of job.)
Yeah, she probably just thought he wanted to make fun of her some more!
Zhu Hong herself is supposedly new to field work, but I wouldn’t say she does a bad job personally?
Agreed, she does fine!
While the others (particularly Lin Jing) are cracking up at her acting, it doesn’t feel too on the nose to me compared to the general level of acting I’ve come to expect from characters.
I don't think it’s so much at her acting, more like at the role she’s playing. Seductive vulnerable femininity, you know? Zhu Hong is pretty femme, but the kind of vulnerability she does have is very different, and she's not seductive at all. Add to that the fact that probably none of them, but least of all Lin Jing, are used to looking at her as someone they might be attracted to, and the whole thing becomes inherently comical, like your sister playing at being a stereotypical seductress. *g*
My one big criticism of her performance is that she doesn’t hide said earpiece, but I’m aware that’s for audience’s convenience/reminder.
That, and also, it could just be a wireless earbud? It wouldn’t necessarily seem suspicious to anyone.
(Though it does go missing on Lin Jing’s camera footage! Prop department didn’t catch that one :’D)
When is that? I looked for it but must have missed it.
Lin Jing doesn’t contact either Chu Shuzhi nor Zhao Yunlan once he sees Zhu Hong getting taken, which is really ineffectual imo.
100% agreed!
What’s up with the tech!? Why is it so clunky??? Can’t the SID afford anything better?
Tbh I never even noticed anything unusual about that, except for the earbud's blinking. *g*
(I guess Fake Zhang Danni and Jia Hui just grabbed whatever was available for their purposes, which explains the disco box.)
Both members of the SID that get kidnapped are dressed in the same bright red. Coincidence?
Coincidence, but a hilarious one – redshirts indeed! :D
What’s your impression? SID is never going to be all professional, but I feel like they set up a decent trap, and the perps used decent means to distract them.
Yeah, they're unpracticed, but they're doing well enough! I think their main mistake was not to wait for Zhao Yunlan; it would probably have gone better with him on the case. But they didn't take the danger seriously enough. (They won't make that mistake again!)
Zhu Jiu has been pestering Shen Wei a lot during this case. What’s his ultimate goal? He seems to be targeting the SID in particular
I think Zhu Jiu's main goals are the Hallows (for Ye Zun) and revenge on the Envoy (for his own grudge).
He's only recently become aware of the SID, through their involvement with the Sundial case. Now he's trying to a) get at the Hallows, b) deprive the Envoy of allies and c) remove a possible danger to his long-term plans.
Is Lin Yusen blowing them (and then himself) up supposed to take as many members of the SID out as possible in the blast radius? Considering that even Heipaoshi doesn’t manage to get a shield up in time and ruins his sleeve, it seems a particularly deadly mix…
Yeah, I think he baited Lin Yusen by telling him he can give him something to take out the murderer, and Lin Yusen throws himself into it but has no idea just how devastating the explosive mix of black and white energy can be. Probably Zhu Jiu was hoping to take more if not most of the SID out of commission.
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I think I agree! It feels a bit early for him to be contaminated, and Zhao Yunlan would notice... hm. Iirc Zhao Yunlan gives Lin Yusen a whole speech at the SID building after this? (Once Lin Yusen leaves, GCC comes to find him and tell him about their missing people.) So maybe that's when Zhu Jiu snatches him? It would give him enough time to prep the bomb and encourage Lin Yusen's fantasy of revenge to the point of blowing himself up... after Zhao Yunlan rejected him for the SID (but, and that's what I'm struggling with, Lin Yusen leaves relatively determined and happy since Zhao Yunlan promised him a chance post-graduation...) Zhu Jiu doesn't have Ye Zun's mind powers, so how *did* he manage to convince him at that point, when he was slowly turning towards the "right" path?
This is so weird and so nonsensical a function for a tracker that I have to wonder if, when she clutched it earlier, perhaps she turned it off? But then I can't see why she'd have done that either ...
There's no visible off switch and it wouldn't really make sense to add it there :'D Also, how would shaking it switch it back on then? x'D I think we're gonna have to live with it being nonsensical (maybe it's a Yashou artefact? Or Lin Jing made it, thinking himself all clever, since they're all treating it as a spy game...)
Maybe it's meant to be her home, but then that doesn't look like a normal person's living space. It's very Villain Lair Chic™.
Maybe that's all OG!Zhang Danni could afford xD but yeah, agree. Weird. Especially since, iirc, the jingling and setting off of the tracker happens exactly before this scene, which would imply a connection between the two? Unless the tracker only gets them to the right neighbourhood... but then again, they move to the right hideout just before Zhu Hong escapes... I need to keep an eye out during the rewatch on the exact order of things xD
Add to that the fact that probably none of them, but least of all Lin Jing, are used to looking at her as someone they might be attracted to, and the whole thing becomes inherently comical, like your sister playing at being a stereotypical seductress. *g*
I'm convinced! XD Especially if it's a bit of a tomboy-ish/yandere big sister like Zhu Hong... she really does give a different first impression lol!
That, and also, it could just be a wireless earbud?
I guess XD I was late to the trend getting myself some, so idk if they were A Thing back when this was shot or not. Hearing aid would work, too, as an excuse *ponders*
(I guess Fake Zhang Danni and Jia Hui just grabbed whatever was available for their purposes, which explains the disco box.)
Agreed! They don't really have a lot of funds (unless they thought to empty out their victims accounts before switching faces, but that doesn't come up as part of the case...)
I think their main mistake was not to wait for Zhao Yunlan; it would probably have gone better with him on the case.
Probably! But it's good for them to gain some experience without having him to rely on :D helps them grow!
He's only recently become aware of the SID, through their involvement with the Sundial case. Now he's trying to a) get at the Hallows, b) deprive the Envoy of allies and c) remove a possible danger to his long-term plans.
Good points!
-- (Though it does go missing on Lin Jing’s camera footage! Prop department didn’t catch that one :’D)
- When is that? I looked for it but must have missed it.
Timestamp 19:39 (not actually a cam footage moment, whoops! we don't actually see Zhu Hong's right side from the camera's perspective, I messed up there)
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Hm, it probably wouldn't be that hard to convince him that ZYL had just placated him with pretty words (because it's actually true, LOL), and Zhu Jiu telling Lin Yusen he needed to take things into his own hands because the SID wouldn't is an argument that would probably have fallen on fertile ground ...
Especially since, iirc, the jingling and setting off of the tracker happens exactly before this scene, which would imply a connection between the two? Unless the tracker only gets them to the right neighbourhood... but then again, they move to the right hideout just before Zhu Hong escapes...
I think that's one of those fake-out cuts you get often in police dramas and such: Lin Jing gets the signal -> ZYL et al. at a location, making you think they've followed up on the signal, but actually this is still happening before/at the same time as Lin Jing getting the signal, and they only move on to the place where the signal's coming from after this scene.
Timestamp 19:39 (not actually a cam footage moment, whoops! we don't actually see Zhu Hong's right side from the camera's perspective, I messed up there)
Thank you! Now I see it! Yeah, suddenly vanishing earbud, LOL. ♥
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Maybe! It's likely how Zhu Jiu approached it, I just find Zhao Yunlan pretty convincing (and his little oh-shucks moment of going "Zhao Yunlan, Zhao Yunlan, what are you doing" afterwards makes me think he was being much more sincere than he intended to be ó.ò *pats him*)
I think that's one of those fake-out cuts you get often in police dramas
Clearly I don't watch enough police procedurals! (Though I used to watch a bunch of NCIS and Criminal Minds, nvm Murder She Wrote, Columbus, and similar detective shows.) It's very confusing for me, and I guess if it's meant to be that's fine, it just failed for my viewing XD
Thank you! Now I see it! Yeah, suddenly vanishing earbud, LOL. ♥
Maybe all of SID's tech is experimental dark energy powered and that's one of its side-effects lol!
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1) It's called "Lin Jing's communicator" at the end of episode 3! I had totally forgotten about that.
2) During the episode 4 rewatch, someone suggested it might need to be activated to save battery power since it's so small; today I wondered if it might work like an old-fashioned self-winding watch, powered by movement. Or is that too low-tech for Lin Jing? *g*
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2) I feel like that's too low-tech for Lin Jing xD but might not be for Zhu Hong?
probably also something we should consider: it's made to go with her outfit (and definitely better hidden than her earpiece, which the kidnapper removes) so it serves its function well. Even with the drawbacks of needing her to be awake to activate it :')
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