The Gauche in the Machine (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
china_shop) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
sid_guardian2025-09-07 09:20 am
china_shop) wrote in sid_guardian2025-09-07 09:20 am
Entry tags:
Slo-Mo Rewatch: Guardian episode 1, part 1
Hi, and welcome to the Guardian drama Slo-Mo Rewatch! Join us to watch half an episode a week (at your leisure) and then come and chat about it here in comments. If you already know the drama, of course you can jump in without rewatching if you prefer!
Episode 1, up to 22:28
Summary
The prologue explains Haixing's history. Professor Shen Wei presents a public lecture and turns down a job offer. Guo Changcheng reports to the SID in the middle of the night, where Zhao Yunlan is outrageous and the rest of the team scares Changcheng into fainting. Twice. An unseen threat chases Li Qian through the night. Zhao Yunlan investigates a murder at the university, where he and Da Qing dangle Guo Changcheng out a window while they discuss the case. Guo Changcheng's cries draw Shen Wei's attention. Cat!Da Qing gets strokes. Shen Wei is very intense, and Zhao Yunlan notices. Afterwards, Zhao Yunlan interrogates Li Qian about the murder; Shen Wei comes to pick her up for class and further arouses Zhao Yunlan's suspicions in the process. Zhao Yunlan sends Guo Changcheng to tail Shen Wei.
Quote
ZYL: By the way, I'm Zhao. I'm handling this case. What's your name, sir?
SW: No "sir". I'm Shen. Shen Wei. I teach here.
ZYL: Shen Wei? A good name.
Detail
I love the contrast between:
Zhao Yunlan: Damn Fatty.
Li Qian: What a fat black cat!
Guo Changcheng: It can speak?! *faints*
Shen Wei: *strokes* This is a very intelligent cat.
:D :D :D
Questions
Do you have any thoughts or feelings about the prologue? What was your first impression of Shen Wei -- good guy or bad guy? First impression of Zhao Yunlan -- would you trust him? Do you empathise with Guo Changcheng's fear? (If someone turned into a cat in front of you, would you be terrified, delighted, or both?) When Guo Changcheng falls from the window, is he unhurt or does Shen Wei surreptitiously heal his ankle? From Zhao Yunlan's POV, what is the most suspicious thing about Shen Wei at this point?
Do you have a favourite scene or quote? If you're familiar with the novel, any thoughts about how the drama adaptation starts? The absolute perfection of the casting? :D :D :D Anything else?
(These are all just conversation starters - feel free to answer all, some, or none, and to say as much or as little as you like! You don't have to be keeping up with the rewatch to join in!)
And here is our schedule, where you can sign up to host a post!
no subject
Shen Wei's got a vaguely "other"ness to him when we first see him - not just the comment about not being good with tech but he's also holding himself stiffly, I wonder if it was due to not just being in front of his students but also Professor Ouyang etc.
I always thought the intro of the team is a bit meanspirited. Zhao Yunlan knew he was Minister Guo's nephew and still throws him to the wolves with that kind of intro (pushes him into the room and lets everyone have their fun until telling them everything after Guo Changcheng's passed out) which is kind of mean but also does set up the whole Unit pretty well, even if they aren't really explained who is who/what they do - but that's fixed pretty much right after. It was sneaky to have the first cop at the murder scene have to be schooled in who Zhao Yunlan is and whatnot since it lets us know as well.
Zhao Yunlan's reaction in the window to being spotted by Shen Wei doesn't really make much sense? He doesn't actually know Shen Wei here/now, the reaction seems a little more extreme than it should be in that case.
*sighs at the business card* Mark Stewart? WHY show, why
and last but not least... the handshake and grab, THAT SCENE. sighs happily
no subject
Shen Wei's got a vaguely "other"ness to him when we first see him - not just the comment about not being good with tech but he's also holding himself stiffly, I wonder if it was due to not just being in front of his students but also Professor Ouyang etc.
That might be it. Though he doesn't seem nervous exactly. Maybe it's because he's talking about Dixingren (even if he's not calling them that) in public in Haixing?
Zhao Yunlan knew he was Minister Guo's nephew and still throws him to the wolves with that kind of intro
I think that ZYL probably doesn't realise the connection until after he's thrown him to the wolves. My guess is he either made a call or went and found GCC's paperwork, and suddenly started taking him seriously. I doubt he would have messed around with the lollipop business as much if he'd known GCC was so well-connected?
And everyone else is really just being themselves...
It was sneaky to have the first cop at the murder scene have to be schooled in who Zhao Yunlan is and whatnot since it lets us know as well.
Ha, yes, good exposition skills. :D
Zhao Yunlan's reaction in the window to being spotted by Shen Wei doesn't really make much sense?
I was thinking of doing a poll about that! I wonder if it's because SW just looks so respectable, and he's staring, and ZYL knows that dangling young men out the window isn't really a good look? g
the handshake and grab, THAT SCENE. sighs happily
Yessssss! :D
no subject
If it's anything like in the novel, he indeed doesn't know at first (“Tell me, whose relative is this, that he just got shoved under my eyelids? What a pain.” / “Apparently an important leader who recently arrived in the ministry is this kid’s uncle,” Daqing said.) But then again it's already different because novel!ZYL doesn't participate in scaring GCC, it's mostly just the ghosts being ghosts. :P
"I was thinking of doing a poll about that! I wonder if it's because SW just looks so respectable, and he's staring, and ZYL knows that dangling young men out the window isn't really a good look? g"
Ooooh, I'd love a poll about it! :D I threw in my two interpretations too (in a different comment), and I'm sure there are many more! :D
no subject
But then again it's already different because novel!ZYL doesn't participate in scaring GCC, it's mostly just the ghosts being ghosts. :P
I don't think ZYL is deliberately scaring GCC, but I do think he's testing his mettle in a variety of ways, and making him run the gauntlet of the rest of the SID team is part of that.
Ooooh, I'd love a poll about it! :D I threw in my two interpretations too (in a different comment), and I'm sure there are many more! :D
Noted! (I'm not sure how I'm going to manage the polls and the rewatch. The polls were mostly to keep some drama content on my flist during the readalong, so they might become a bit more irregular now... but they're fun!)
no subject
Yep, ITA, and tbh it is a good strategy - if he couldn't even handle them being chaotic, he really wouldn't be a good fit. :P
(And yep, I figured that there probably won't be weekly polls now that drama content it back. :D I love them though, whenever you have the time/feel like making them. :D)
no subject
no subject
Any of that would explain it and make sense, but we just don't know. It could be they wanted to establish ZYL's irreverent/joking nature early on or were following select book canon ideas (and GCC's overreaction to everything) but I just wish it had been explained a bit better/we were shown more on screen.
I would love a poll about the window scene! I think it'd have some fascinating discussions :)
no subject
but I just wish it had been explained a bit better/we were shown more on screen.
That's fair. I'm happy to extrapolate from ZYL's behaviour (the way he's telling the team makes it sound to me like he just found out and is scolding them for his own mistake), but I understand why you'd want it spelled out a bit more. :-)
I would love a poll about the window scene! I think it'd have some fascinating discussions :)
Noted! :D
no subject
Yeah, same!
ZYL knows that dangling young men out the window isn't really a good look?
LOL! Yeah, and not just dangling, but letting him fall. (And not just anyone; if Shen Wei makes a fuss and it comes out that Minister Guo's nephew fell ... I bet ZYL wouldn't like that, heh. Should have thought of that before dangling him, maybe? :p)
no subject
LOL! Yeah, and not just dangling, but letting him fall.
Ha, good point. And truly, Shen Wei is so extremely respectable (and shocked), staring up at him. ;D
no subject
Very neat exposition indeed! :D
"Zhao Yunlan's reaction in the window to being spotted by Shen Wei doesn't really make much sense? He doesn't actually know Shen Wei here/now, the reaction seems a little more extreme than it should be in that case."
Yep, I always wonder about this too! I guess it's something between 'oops, now we pissed off the professors' and 'a hot guy is staring at me'. xD
"and last but not least... the handshake and grab, THAT SCENE. sighs happily"
Saaaaame. ♡♡♡
no subject
I guess it's something between 'oops, now we pissed off the professors' and 'a hot guy is staring at me'. xD
He's supposed to be investigating on the DL! *g* I wouldn't be surprised if the Chancellor has asked him to be discreet, too.
no subject
Yeah, and (circumspectly) talking about Dixing matters in public, too, but probably especially in front of Professor Ouyang, who he presumably knows is aware of the truth.
Zhao Yunlan knew he was Minister Guo's nephew and still throws him to the wolves with that kind of intro
FWIW, my impression is that ZYL only realises he's Minister Guo's nephew after he's already pushed him into that.
It was sneaky to have the first cop at the murder scene have to be schooled in who Zhao Yunlan is and whatnot since it lets us know as well.
Hee! Yes, great way to insert necessary exposition. *g*
Zhao Yunlan's reaction in the window to being spotted by Shen Wei doesn't really make much sense? He doesn't actually know Shen Wei here/now, the reaction seems a little more extreme than it should be in that case.
He's just been caught not just dangling someone out of a window, but letting him fall. And the person who's seen this isn't a student; it's someone who looks very prim and proper and might make a fuss about it. So I think his wince makes perfect sense.
*sighs at the business card* Mark Stewart? WHY show, why
I always love that the designer apparently just reused a template already used for S.C.I., LOL.
and last but not least... the handshake and grab, THAT SCENE. sighs happily
:D :D :D