sakana17: shen wei finds zhao yunlan on the street (guardian-shenwei-zhaoyunlan-ep08)
sakana17 ([personal profile] sakana17) wrote in [community profile] sid_guardian2022-11-05 01:01 am

Scene discussion: The Nosebleed Scene

(I wasn't sure what to call this scene -- there's so much in it! -- but I always think of it as "the nosebleed scene from episode 19" :D)

Location: episode 19, 11:00-13:47

Context: Guo Changcheng, Chu Shuzhi, and Yehuo have been kidnapped by Zhu Jiu. Zhao Yunlan, alone in the SID laboratory, looks at the glowing Mountain-River Awl and remembers Shen Wei telling him not to touch the Holy Tools [from episode 15]. But, hoping that the Awl will tell him where Zhu Jiu is, Zhao Yunlan picks it up and is immediately affected. He collapses to the laboratory floor and has a vision of finding Yehuo, Guo Changcheng, and Chu Shuzhi, who tries to strangle him.

Scene description: Zhao Yunlan wakes up from the vision, grimacing and rolling his head and shoulders. He's sitting on the laboratory's examining table. The camera angle shifts to over Shen Wei's shoulder and then we see Shen Wei's face. Shen Wei is very, very Not Pleased.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan sees Shen Wei's extreme Not Pleased-ness, grins, and tries to glib his way out of it. "I guess I keep keeling over recently. That's really not a good thing." (我发现我呀,最近特别容易晕菜。这可真不是什么好事儿啊。) As if keeling over randomly is nothing to worry about? Oh, Zhao Yunlan.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

He rubs his neck and Shen Wei looks at him.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei's expression changes to alarm/concern.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan reacts to Shen Wei's look.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

He rubs against his nose. Shen Wei angrily moves forward. Zhao Yunlan looks down at his hand. There is blood smeared on his face.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei grabs Zhao Yunlan's lapels. Zhao Yunlan is surprised.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei aggressively stares at him.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan rubs his face again, and there's more blood on his fingers. He gives Shen Wei puppy-dog eyes.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei releases his lapels so forcefully Zhao Yunlan rocks backward.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian drama episode 19

Shen Wei steps back, turns away, and angrily slams his hand against the metal pipe railing (the ladder that goes to the floor above).

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan reacts like he's not sure what Shen Wei is so upset about.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

And continues rubbing blood from his nose. Shen Wei clutches the metal pipe and breathes heavily.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

He turns around to look at Zhao Yunlan.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Who is not reacting with the same level of seriousness.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei pulls a handkerchief out of his coat pocket and goes over to wipe Zhao Yunlan's nose for him, not gently.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan grabs the handkerchief from him. They exchange looks of mutual frustration at each other.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei: "You touched them again, didn't you?" (你是不是又动圣器了?) Zhao Yunlan acts as if Shen Wei is overreacting.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan, in "it's no big deal" mode, says he thought he would get lucky and the Tools would help them deal with Zhu Jiu. But he didn't expect they'd be so useless. (我这不是抱着侥幸的态度想看看圣器能不能帮助咱们对付烛九。没想到没什么屁用。)

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei turns his head, steps back, and looks at Zhao Yunlan.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

He asks what Zhao Yunlan feels now. (你现在什么感觉?) Zhao Yunlan says he doesn't feel anything, but he thinks he had a dream about Lao Chu, Xiao Guo, and Yehuo. (没什么感觉啊。噢,刚才好像做了一个梦。) There's a brief clip of the vision he had earlier.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan: "They all seemed to be dead." (梦见老楚、小郭还有野火好像都死了。) At first, Shen Wei reacts as if this is worthless information (or, at least, was not worth the risk Zhao Yunlan took). But then he grows serious.

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei: "Dead? This may not be just a dream." (死了?你这也许不只是一个梦。) Zhao Yunlan also looks serious.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei from Guardian episode 19

Shen Wei paces back a few steps, rubbing the back of his neck. Zhao Yunlan stands up from the examination table.

Shen Wei: "Last time, I consulted a lot of books in the Dijun Palace archives. They were all about normal humans infected with dark energy. One example reported that, after infection, the victim suffered from temporal dysfunction. Sometimes he could hear or see scenes outside the timeline. It could be the past, or it could be the future. So the dream you had is probably a kind of prediction." (上一次在地君殿的档案室里我查阅了很多典籍,都是关于普通人感染了黑能量之后的反应。其中有一份案例说明,受害者感染了黑能量之后产生了时间性紊乱的症状,他偶尔听见或者看见时间线以外的场景,也许是过去,也许是…未来。所以你刚才做的梦很可能是一种预知。)

Screencap of Shen Wei in Guardian episode 19

Zhao Yunlan looks alarmed.

Screencap of Zhao Yunlan in Guardian episode 19

I love the physicality and body language in this scene. For such an impactful scene, there's not that much dialogue in it, but we see their reactions and interactions so clearly. It says a lot about their relationship, bringing in the recurring themes: Shen Wei's concern for Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei warning Zhao Yunlan away from the Tools, Zhao Yunlan ignoring the warning, Zhao Yunlan trying to joke his way out of trouble. But once the possibility that the dream is a prediction and members of the SID team could be dead, Zhao Yunlan takes it seriously. He doesn't seem bothered about effects to himself, but he cares if something's happened to his team.

I love Shen Wei's aggressive caretaking with the handkerchief: you can't be trusted to take care of yourself so I have to do it, and right now I'm furious about it. And Zhao Yunlan is startled by Shen Wei's ferocity, but still seems to think Shen Wei is overreacting. (Zhao Yunlan, why are you like this?)

Questions: What happened after Zhao Yunlan collapsed and before this scene begins? We can assume Shen Wei found him, and what must've going on in Shen Wei's mind at that point! Thoughts/theories? Fic ideas/recs?

Has Zhao Yunlan seen Shen Wei this upset/angry at him before? If he hasn't, what is Zhao Yunlan feeling now? (And if he has, did the puppy-dog eyes work on Shen Wei before...)

Is Shen Wei telling the truth about consulting books in the palace archives? What and why was he researching? I want the backstory about the normal human infected by dark energy who suffered from temporal dysfunction!

Any headcanons, theories, ideas, thoughts, reactions, squee, fanwork recs, etc. about this scene are welcome!
trobadora: (Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan - jacket grab)

[personal profile] trobadora 2022-11-11 07:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Shen Wei is angry and frustrated – yet it doesn’t even occur to him not to take care of Zhao Yunlan. He could just let him sit with his bloody nose, but no, he absolutely HAS to wipe his nose for him immediately.

RIGHT??? It's glorious. :D

Yeah, I think this is the first time Zhao Yunlan has seen Shen Wei in aggressively-protective mode like this - he'll see more during the blindness arc - and he doesn't quite get it yet here.

Totally agreed about the future visions - I wonder if they ever tried to deliberately induce this kind of black energy corruption, after they knew it could have this effect?
autodach: Brain floating in space (Default)

[personal profile] autodach 2022-11-12 04:56 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah, I think this is the first time Zhao Yunlan has seen Shen Wei in aggressively-protective mode like this - he'll see more during the blindness arc - and he doesn't quite get it yet here.

He doesn't know what he's in for just yet <3


Totally agreed about the future visions - I wonder if they ever tried to deliberately induce this kind of black energy corruption, after they knew it could have this effect?

That would be the obious thing to do, right?
Maybe they did but it turned out difficult or unreliable?
I doubt they would be held back by ethical concerns...

trobadora: (Black-Cloaked Envoy)

[personal profile] trobadora 2022-11-12 07:18 pm (UTC)(link)
Maybe they did but it turned out difficult or unreliable?
I doubt they would be held back by ethical concerns...


Yeah, I completely believe both of that.