Slo-Mo Rewatch: Guardian episode 2, part 2

[trobadora]

Hi, welcome to this week's instalment of the Guardian drama Slo-Mo Rewatch! Watch half an episode a week, and then come and chat about it here in comments. Or you can just jump into the comments without rewatching, of course!

Here is last week's half-episode. On to the second half!

Episode 2, from 22:11

Summary: Zhao Yunlan puts some puzzle pieces together and confronts Li Qian, accusing her of killing her grandma. She doesn't deny it. Gao Tianyu intercepts Zhao Yunlan's car, drags Li Qian out of it and attacks her. Li Qian's grandma's spirit comes out of the Sundial to protect her (and to scold her for admitting to what she didn't do). The Envoy takes Gao Tianyu away. Zhao Yunlan and Professor Shen have a moment at Li Yufen's grave. At the SID, Zhao Yunlan summons the Envoy, and they talk about the Sundial. Chu Shuzhi meets up with the Envoy and draws some parallels between him and Zhao Yunlan. Meanwhile Zhu Jiu plans his next move.



Quote:

Li Qian: When someone you cherish is dying in front of your eyes, what would be the main thought in your mind?"
Shen Wei: "I'm willing to exchange my life for his."

(Yes, I know this is iconic and maybe doesn't need quoting again, but it gets me every time!)

Detail:

One of my favourite details that I only noticed during the last rewatch: Shen Wei interfering with Gao Tianyu's attack on Li Qian from inside the car! There's a moment when it cuts to Shen Wei very conspicuously and intently narrowing his eyes - and then suddenly there's a brief blue shield effect flash, Gao Tianyu's hold on Li Qian breaks, and he's thrown back.

Questions:

What's your favourite moment in this half-episode? How much are you feeling for Li Qian? Do you think Zhao Yunlan had sufficient reason to accuse her of murder? Any thoughts about how this compares to the novel? Which of the many things Li Qian says on the rooftop resonates the most with Shen Wei? What does Zhao Yunlan think about the Envoy at this time?

(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!)

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Comments

[trobadora]

He's done it before! :-)

Indeed! :D

I was thinking the other day that there's a parallel to YOHE!YZ stealing the Hallows, and the chief not being able to activate them, but now I can't remember what it was. ;-p

Oh, I hope you remember!

(The only parallel to YZ stealing the Hallows in YOHE that I can think of is Zheng Yi stealing them? Like YZ back then, she didn't do it for herself, but unlike YZ, she doesn't become the new big bad. *g*)

I meant after the scene at the car, once he knows she's innocent.

Oh, right. I thought you meant earlier.

I like donutsweeper's suggestion that he planned to notify the Envoy privately.

Yes, me too! That has to be what he's thinking.

I just thought SW wouldn't have reacted so alertly (summoning his dao) to the smoke messenger in his office, if there wasn't a chance it was something else. He must be used to the messengers, right?

That's an excellent point! I never thought about it like that before, but you're totally right - the smoke effect can't be only a sign of a messenger, or the dao wouldn't make any sense. *ponders* Hm, messengers can deliver objects - or at least written messages; see the one being delivered at ZYL's place. Maybe SW is worried that something weaponised might be delivered.

but I think in that moment, to have ZYL himself asking, that the Kunlun parts might be top of mind.

Idk, I feel like what's top of his mind is the difference between ZYL and Kunlun, which is part of what's keeping him from confiding the whole truth.

[china_shop]

> Like YZ back then, she didn't do it for herself, but unlike YZ, she doesn't become the new big bad. *g*

Ooh, but she is obsessed with finding her big brother (or big-brother-figure)!

> Maybe SW is worried that something weaponised might be delivered.

Oh, maybe! That someone nefarious had got them hands on some incense?

> Idk, I feel like what's top of his mind is the difference between ZYL and Kunlun, which is part of what's keeping him from confiding the whole truth.

Part of the difference between them is ZYL not knowing this about the Hallows, though? When he arrives in YOHE, he's all, "I need to find them to open a wormhole." Idk.

[trobadora]

Yes! So much mirrorring! :D

That someone nefarious had got them hands on some incense?

Yes, exactly!

Part of the difference between them is ZYL not knowing this about the Hallows, though? When he arrives in YOHE, he's all, "I need to find them to open a wormhole."

Yeah, so SW could tell him, because Kunlun will know - but he's not enough like Kunlun yet, his views on Dixing(ren) still need to evolve, and so he can't be trusted with that kind of info yet. It's a whole tangle.