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sid_guardian2023-02-12 11:47 am
trobadora) wrote in sid_guardian2023-02-12 11:47 am
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GUARDIAN REWATCH - Episode 5
Beginning of episode: Huang Linqi gets abducted from his bathtub
Ending of episode: Zhao Yunlan interviews Mirror Girl's boyfriend
Important scenes/developments:
- the university chancellor wants Shen Wei to move out of the teacher dorms
- Lin Jing makes popcorn (what? it's a very important development! :p)
- Shen Wei chooses his new flat
- Wu Tian'en shouts at a lake, is interviewed by Zhao Yunlan and sees a mysterious figure outside
- Shen Wei speaks with Wu Tian'en, and we hear about a mission 20 years ago
- Wu Tian'en pleads with his son, and they reconcile
- everyone pleads with the Black-Cloaked Envoy to save Wu Tian'en
- first glimpse of Dixing as the Envoy takes Wu Tian'en and Wu Xiaojun back and promptly has to save their lives again
- the Longevity Dial projects an image of the Mountain-River Awl
- beginning of the next case: Mirror Girl's disappearance
- Zhao Yunlan and Da Qing go jogging and discover Shen Wei has moved into their neighbourhood
- Guo Changcheng is learning (or not, heh) how to tail people
A random collection of thoughts:
- elenothar pointed out on Friday that they explicitly show Huang Linqi's pyjamas being pulled into the water with him, so he has a reason not to be naked later, LOL. Great thinking! :p
- The chancellor is the worst. "You've been seen with law enforcement, it's dragging the place down! People are gossiping about you, and this is your fault! Get out of here, and stop contaminating everyone! But keep doing your job for the sake of the university's reputation!" UGH. I mean, Shen Wei is already planning to move, so the impact on Shen Wei is mitigated, but that does not in any way improve the chancellor's character. (I think this rewatch is making me dislike him even more!)
You can see from Shen Wei's expression that he's not impressed. And I think his smile when the chancellor urges him to uphold the university's reputation is one step away from rolling his eyes. - Also, interestingly, after last episode's explosion proving to Shen Wei that the Envoy's association with the SID is proving a danger to the SID, here the SID's attention is proving detrimental to Professor Shen's life. Last week, china_shop wondered if the near-disaster might make Shen Wei keep his distance - and now he has twice the reason. But he does move in right across the hall from Zhao Yunlan in this episode, and he clearly never means to stay away from Zhao Yunlan himself. On the other hand, unlike the last episode, he doesn't involve himself in the case at all save for briefly talking to Wu Tian'en, so perhaps he is to some degree keeping his distance from the SID ...
- I love the popcorn scene, and the playfulness of the SID team here.
The only one who's not around for this is Chu Shuzhi, and I think that's meaningful. He's starting to become more integrated into the group, and I'd say his grumpiness is becoming more teasing - Zhao Yunlan himself says in this episode that Chu Shuzhi is changing - but he's still apart to some degree at this point. (Though I love how well he and Zhao Yunlan are working together!) - I love that moment when Huang Senior misnames the SID, Chu Shuzhi starts to correct him, and Zhao Yunlan coughs loudly to stop him. He's capable of deferring to people!
- Zhao Yunlan hones in on Wu Tian'en pretty quickly. He's got great instincts about who's involved, even if the people he seems to focus on aren't the culprits, but other people important to the case. This is the third time, after honing in on Li Qian and Zhang Ruonan!
- I had totally forgotten that little moment when Zhao Yunlan reaches for Wu Tian'en and Wu Tian'en moves away so quickly Zhao Yunlan notices something's up. (And he's not even using his power, though it's a hint at that too, I'd say - but just as much at his background, with the martial training!)
- I had also forgotten that when Shen Wei is shown the flat he intends to take (buy? rent? I'd assumed it was rent, but who knows) he spends most of his time staring out the door at Zhao Yunlan's door across the hall. :D
- I love that in the very moment when Zhao Yunlan asks Wu Tian'en if he's heard of Dixingren, a ~mysterious figure~ passes outside the window. Talk about excellent timing, Shen Wei! Also, I love that Zhao Yunlan (as it turns out in the phone conversation later) recognised him from that brief glance. :D
- Wu Tian'en and Shen Wei: That confrontation is amazing. Again with the dramatic turn, and taking off his glasses! And Wu Tian'en dropping to his knees! Shen Wei warning Wu Tian'en away from Zhao Yunlan! We get a hint at the Envoy's history, post-YOHE - a mission "back then", which must have been over 20 years ago, since after that Wu Tian'en was Boss Huang's butler. And at the very end we discover that Shen Wei had time-frozen the two guys trying to follow Wu Tian'en, so they could have their conversation in peace! DELIGHTFUL.
- Zhu Hong says they've gone through their data and have found "86 types of water-based Dixing powers" - wow! These can't all be SID cases, surely? What kind of records is this information drawn from? Enquiring minds want to know! (Anyone have thoughts? The Dijun Booklet would have that kind of info, probably, but the SID can't have access to it - doesn't even the Envoy need to go to Dixing to consult it?)
- I love that Da Qing suggests (more teasing Zhao Yunlan than seriously, it seems to me) they ask the Black-Cloaked Envoy over - and Zhao Yunlan refuses, and then promptly calls Shen Wei! :D
Also, this phone conversation is a delight. The teasing ("Where are you?" - "You called my landline."), Shen Wei bending the corner of his book, Zhao Yunlan calling him on his appearance outside the café earlier and Shen Wei immediately turning things around and asking whether there's a case at the university, Zhao Yunlan laughing as he recognises the subject-changing strategy ... Zhao Yunlan promising to get to the bottom of whatever's up with Shen Wei, and Shen Wei promising to help if Chief Zhao needs anything ... it's just a short scene, but it's a complete delight in that early-episode cat-and-mouse push-and-pull way. :D
- Wu Tian'en and Wu Xiaojun: It really struck me this time how much their relationship is a parallel to Shen Wei and Ye Zun! Wu Tian'en lost his son and thought him dead, never realising what really had happened; his son blames him for what happened to him and thinks his father wants him dead, never realising his father was desperate to find him again, and was told he was already dead. Wu Xiaojun is lashing out at not only the culprits (real and imagined) but also innocents, just like Ye Zun. And with Wu father and son, the misunderstanding is cleared up, and they reconcile - foreshadowing the very ending!
- Bosses Huang and Li really are pieces of work, what with everything they've done and are doing to Wu Tian'en and Wu Xiaojun - especially Boss Huang, what with all the while pretending to be Wu Tian'en's benefactor and friend. All the fake kindness and concern! And Papa Li tries to get his daughter to consider some other suitor basically the minute Huang Junior disappears. No wonder the Huang Linqi and Li Jiaqi both are fucked up - who wouldn't be, with such fathers? I do like that they have their own little relationship drama/misunderstanding going on in the background. *g*
(IIRC, Papa Li is the one who dies at the wedding later; we never see Papa Huang again, not even at the wedding. I want to believe that means at least one of them suffered actual consequences for what they did!) - MY HEART re: the SID begging the Envoy to save Wu Tian'en! They're all so good. Xiao-Guo is totally ready to use the Sundial himself; Zhao Yunlan is willing to take over and do it himself; Zhao Yunlan has a great speech to the Envoy about how people are people. It must mean so much to Shen Wei. No one in Zhao Xinci's SID would have said such a thing - non wonder he thinks the SID has changed. ♥ And the other way round, Zhao Yunlan gets to see the Envoy save someone's life, and so they both come away having seen something better than expected of the other ... ♥ ♥ ♥
- Shen Wei totally has a Zhao Yunlan-in-danger sense, appearing just when Zhao Yunlan has activated the Sundial! But more than that, he definitely has Hallows radar. We see it most clearly in the confrontation with Ye Zun in the park, IIRC - Zhao Yunlan is in danger there from the start, but SW only senses something and rushes to the rescue when Zhao Yunlan starts using the Sundial.
- Our first glimpse at Dixing, and isn't exactly good. The Dragon Gate looks great and the palace guards have fine uniforms, but we're immediately thrust into politics, backstabbing and attempted murder. The order is blamed on the Dijun here - (his first mention, I think, other than in the name of the Dijun Palace) - but that seems rather unlikely. And much as I'd like to blame the Regent for everything bad in Dixing, I don't think this one's on him either - this looks very much like Ye Zun cleaning up after his would-be minions once again turned out not to be suitable for his plans.
Also, some set-up for next week: Shen Wei gets a clue about that mission from back then and the captain who got away, became a criminal and was shot. (By Zhao Xinci? Very likely.) Now Shen Wei is looking for the guy's family ... - SHEN WEI'S LITTLE SMIRK when he's walking away after telling ZYL he's moved into the neighbourhood! :D (Alas, I could not manage a good screencap. *weeps*)
- Mirror Girl and her boyfriend have a giant bathroom! In any normal flat, someone would long ago have put in an extra wall and turned this into a tiny bathroom and a reasonably-sized extra room ... *g*
Also, the bathtub inside the shower is super weird to me. I hear this is a thing that actually exists in reality, but I've never seen it myself. - Most hilarious line of the episode: Zhao Yunlan's "If someone the Black-Cloaked Envoy took a way could come back as they pleased, I think the Regent's tears would flood all of Dixing." We've already seen Wang Yike, so the viewer knows better! (Also, this is the first mention of the Regent, I believe ...)
(And I do appreciate the continuity nod, since this is the second case in sequence where a person disappears from a bathroom - of course Xiao-Guo would wonder if Wu Xiaojun had returned!)
Discussion starters:
- Anything new you noticed during this rewatch, or had entirely forgotten about? It had been a while since I watched the reunion between Wu father and son, and if I noticed the parallels with Shen Wei and Ye Zun before, I had totally forgotten about it. I really love how this drama leans into its themes and puts ALLLL the parallels and foreshadowing in to reinforce things. ♥
- What's your favourite moment in this episode, and why is it Zhao Yunlan jumping onto the table? - I kid, I kid, my actual favourite bit is everyone begging the Envoy to save Wu Tian'en, but that jump onto the table really is something. :D
- Anyone have thoughts about the painting Papa Huang has on the wall - the one Huang Linqi painted in high school? Zhao Yunlan comments on Papa Huang's taste, but idk what I'm supposed to take from it. Just that it's out of place in their home? (It doesn't look that out of place to me, but then I know little about the sort of art rich people like, LOL.)
- Since Shen Wei takes off his glasses to talk to Wu Tian'en, does that mean he used to go without his mask, back when they knew each other? Why?
- After Shen Wei and Wu Tian'en talk, Shen Wei walks away saying, "Then how much time is there left for me?" What do you think he means by that? (I have never been sure myself. My best guess is the closing of the time loop ...)
- At the end of the Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan phone conversation, Zhao Yunlan says he has questions he wants to ask, but we don't get to hear them. What do you think he asks? (Beyond "are you free tonight?" *g*)
- "These people's crimes will be punished by the law," says Zhao Yunlan. Does that actually happen?
- When Zhu Jiu talks to himself about Wu father and son being useless, he then says it's time for the second stage of the plan. I feel like I'm missing something here ... Help?
- When Shen Wei turns the palace guards into smoke, what does he actually do? Kill them? Stash them somewhere? Him being able to vanish people like that isn't something we see elsewhere, that I can recall, but IIRC we see him pull people into a portal with a similar visual effect, so I wonder if it's related. Is it easier to do in Dixing, with all the ambient black energy, so he doesn't need a portal? (WHY ARE YOU NOT TELLING ME, SHOW. *grumbles*)
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 14
Most relatable moment in this episode?
View Answers
Zhao Yunlan jumping on the table for popcorn
5 (35.7%)
Lin Jing being forgotten at the crime scene
4 (28.6%)
Wu Tian'en shouting at a lake
2 (14.3%)
Xiao-Guo failing at tailing Lao-Chu
3 (21.4%)
other (see comments)
0 (0.0%)
Let's talk about episode 5!
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!
no subject
(Luo Fusheng's silk pyjamas are a great place to lay the blame!)
And great to hear you're enjoying the posts! I'm having so much fun with the rewatch, so happy we decided to do this!
no subject
I'm really enjoying watching together with a whole bunch of people who've already seen Guardian before, it's really fun
no subject