GUARDIAN REWATCH - Episode 1

[trobadora]

Beginning of episode: Opening narration ("Haixing, an ancient planet ..."); then Professor Shen holding a lecture
Ending of episode: the Black-Cloaked Envoy's appearance on the rooftop; then Li Qian and Zhao Yunlan, leaning over the edge of the roof looking for Professor Shen

Important scenes/developments:

• Professor Ouyang tries to recruit Professor Shen
• Guo Changcheng's introduction to the SID
• Shen Wei sees Zhao Yunlan looking out of a window
• Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan shake hands ("Good name!")
• flashback to young Shen Wei and Kunlun
• Li Qian: "Is it really worth giving all you have to protect someone?"
  Shen Wei: "It's worth it."
  
• Zhao Yunlan: "I really don't know why, but the moment I saw you you seemed very familiar somehow."
  Shen Wei: "Who knows, maybe we have indeed met before."
• Shen Wei protects Li Qian from the Shadow Man
• the Black-Cloaked Envoy appears on the rooftop

I hadn't rewatched this episode in one go in forever, only bits and pieces here and there, so I had forgotten just how many important scenes are in this episode already! *flails*

Thoughts:

Rewatching this gave me so much joy! This drama is just perfectly designed to make me go :D :D :D every time. After we finished watching, I was so tempted to just keep going with the next episode! (And lose my whole weekend to watching 40 episodes non-stop, LOL.) So instead I put on up my favourite Guardian vid, Man on a Mission, which it perfectly captures that joy and that energy. ♥ ♥ ♥

Have a few random thoughts, feelings, and pics:

• "We Won't Be Falling": every time I hear the intro song, I feel compelled to sing along. "The story will keep on going ..." Same with the end credits song, tbh - "到底都分离 ..." The songs are so good! ♥


• I really like the visuals in the opening narration. So pretty!


• Our respective first look at our main characters:
  
  
  
  They both get such ominous intros! Shen Wei's practically screams "this is a very suspicious person", and Zhao Yunlan's entrance is all him being vaguely dangerous and threatening. :D
  
  (Something that didn't occur to me before: Shen Wei is the one with the black mask, but Zhao Yunlan is the one we see with the black motorcycle helmet first, obscuring his face!)


• The intro to the SID has more special effects than usual, and they're very effectively deployed! Such a good introduction to everyone's peculiarities: Zhu Hong's tail, Wang Zheng's ghostliness, Lin Jing's whole Mad Scientist thing, and Da Qing being very cat. It's a lot, even without Zhao Yunlan being all Maximum Weird™ at him! Poor Xiao-Guo. ♥ ♥ ♥


• Guo Changcheng's intro hits my embarrassment squick, but not as badly during this rewatch, which was great to discover. *g*
  
  


• Shen Wei finds Kunlun again ... and he's so very not Kunlun! And Da Qing doesn't recognise him either. So many feelings ...!
  
  


• Also, I always love this bit with the handshake where a) Shen Wei forgets to let go of Zhao Yunlan's hand, and b) when he does let go, Zhao Yunlan totally forgets to put down his own hand. *g*
  
  


• Our first flashback! And how do I love that the lollipop is right there? The show is totally playing fair, and yet I don't think anyone realised what was really going on when it was first airing ...
  
  


• Zhao Yunlan lounging on everything is always great, but him reclining on his motorbike is a particular delight:
  
  


• Guo Changcheng seems to be afraid of almost everything in this episode, but he takes to Chu Shuzhi so fast! Already he's clinging to him:
  
  


• I love the way Shen Wei tries to help Li Qian, physically protects her, and is totally prepared to expose himself on that rooftop by fighting the Shadow Man, until he notices the SID arriving:
  
  


• Zhao Yunlan recognising Shen Wei on the phone just from "It's me"!


• The whole scene with the Envoy's first appearance! Stopping time! Zhao Yunlan being all passive-aggressive and complainy, right until Xiao-Guo puts his foot in it, and then he's immediately stepping up to try and appease the Envoy. So good!

Discussion starters:

• What's your favourite moment in this episode? Which moment had you totally forgotten was already in the first episode?
  
  I have a hard time choosing a favourite thing, but I think it's probably the conversation that I'd count as the proper beginning of the cat-and-mouse game between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan, where Shen Wei very conspicuously dangles his knowledge of Dixingren in front of Zhao Yunlan, and Zhao Yunlan then claims Shen Wei seemed familiar to him ... - That, or the Envoy's appearance. But then I'm weak for that cloak and mask. *g*


• Speaking of Zhao Yunlan claiming familiarity - do you think that's just a line? Is he just trying to tease some info out of Shen Wei, or does he genuinely feel something?
  
  (Leading theories for how he could be feeling something despite not actually having met Shen Wei before: Hallows interference; having seen pictures or video of the Envoy; having seen the Envoy from a distance as a kid while sneaking around. Thanks to oracularmayhem for that last!)


• Zhao Yunlan talks about new offices for the SID - why do you think he wants them? The SID set is such a delight!


• If you've rewatched this episode just now, did you notice anything you never thought about before?
  
  One thing that occurred to me was that the flashback has Kunlun putting a lollipop in the young Envoy's mouth, while earlier in this episode, we see Zhao Yunlan pull a lollipop away from Xiao-Guo's mouth. Apart from drawing attention to the Significant Lollipop™, do you think there's something in that parallel/contrast?


• Last night, shadaras pointed out there's a parallel between Li Qian's necklace here and Shen Wei's in the mugging scene (episode 6/7). The way Li Qian touches her necklace definitely is reminiscent (foreshadowing?) of Shen Wei ...
  
  Of course Guardian has three Emotionally Significant Necklaces™ - Shen Wei's lollipop pendant, Li Qian's Sundial, and Da Qing's bells. I'm going to pay more attention to that during this rewatch, to see if there are more parallels ... Thoughts, anyone?


• What's your favourite fanfic or fanart relating to this episode? What fanart or fanfic do you wish existed?

Let's talk about episode 1!
Come and talk about this episode - anything from favourite scenes or lines of dialogue to notes/questions about continuity or translation, most gorgeous (or angsty) smile, or anything else that strikes your fancy! And share links to your own and/or others' episode-related meta, picspams, and fanworks, new or old!

Comments

[autodach]

I totally forgot we get a flashback to ye olde Haixing that early on!

Shen Wei dropping the pretense, preparing to protect Li Qian and The Envoy’s dramatic appearance are tied for my favourite moments – though one could argue it’s the same scene anyway.
It’s so funny to see the big show Shen Wei puts on, knowing it’s not necessary at all. I wonder what the SID thinks of the Envoy’s dramatic antics once they realize he could just portal in without the fanfare?

[trobadora]

Yeah, I had forgotten it was right there from the start, too!

The whole rooftop scene is so good! Shen Wei and Li Qian! Chu Shuzhi in action! All the ... everything ... between Zhao Yunlan and the Envoy! Xiao-Guo being worried about what happens to the Shadow Man! And the final "... oops, Professor Shen?!" too. :D

I wonder what the SID thinks of the Envoy’s dramatic antics once they realize he could just portal in without the fanfare?

Haha, good question! Now I want them all to have a reaction the first time they see him appearing without any great fanfare. :D

You know, thinking about it, when it starts, Zhao Yunlan kind of goes "ugh" before the Envoy even properly appears - he recognises what is happening. So Shen Wei must have done that before. Maybe he felt he had to up his game to impress his power on Zhao Xinci, because back then the SID was uncooperative? *ponders*

[miss_ingno]

You know, thinking about it, when it starts, Zhao Yunlan kind of goes "ugh" before the Envoy even properly appears - he recognises what is happening. So Shen Wei must have done that before.

Ohhh, good point! Considering this is the first time Chief Zhao Yunlan and Heipaoshi meet, you'd think he wouldn't know? I kinda waved it off as part of Zhao Yunlan's intuitive leaps of knowledge, the lack of worry, but yeah he comes across as exasperated and knowing. Instead of worrying it might be another Dixingren coming to back up Shadowman or similar *ponders*

(I can totally imagine Zhao Xinci testing Shen Wei's patience and him having a little snap of temper and summoning thunderclouds! Or doing the glaive-thump, that's always very dramatic and intimidating *nods*)

[trobadora]

I think from his reaction, either he's seen this kind of appearance before (from a distance or on video, since he didn't actually meet the Envoy), or at least had it described in detail ... Here's support for oracularmayhem's theory that kid!ZYL managed to catch a glimpse of the Envoy once!)

(I love the image of Shen Wei glaive-thumping at Zhao Xinci, no lie. :D)

[oracularmayhem]

Haha, thank you! I do wonder about ZYL's effortless familiarity with the Envoy - either he's bluffing (very likely!) or maybe he's watched enough video that he's basically fan-boying like crazy.

[trobadora]

Haha, do you think his reaction on the rooftop (the "did you get lost on the way? why have you never visited before?") is because he really wanted HPS to notice him? I love that. :D

(I think it's mostly ZYL habitually projecting an image, but still!)

[china_shop]

You know, thinking about it, when it starts, Zhao Yunlan kind of goes "ugh" before the Envoy even properly appears - he recognises what is happening.

That's such a great observation! (And I love what you did with it in your drabble. :-)

[trobadora]

♥ ♥ ♥

And it's not like I never noticed that moment before; I just ... somehow ... never thought about what it actually meant?! *headdesk*