Slo-Mo Rewatch: Guardian episode 8, 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 8, from 22:19:

Summary: In Dixing, the Regent sends a smoke message. In Haixing, Shen Wei pours his drunk mentor into car and then finds Zhao Yunlan ill on the kerb. He takes him home in a taxi (where he serves as a pillow), then discovers Zhao Yunlan's disaster apartment (featuring: wine bottles, dirty dishes, THE FRIDGE). During the night, Zhu Jiu finds the pillar with the Mountain-River Awl, but can't approach it. Meanwhile Shen Wei discovers that Zhao Yunlan asked Dixing about him and the Regent is ratting him out. He alters the message. In the morning, Zhao Yunlan wakes up to a tidy flat and Shen Wei sitting next to his bed. He tries to recruit Shen Wei for the SID again, but fails again. Wang Zheng sees a newspaper report about an earthquake in the Hanga mountains, passes out and regains her memory. Da Qing comes to tell Zhao Yunlan and finds Shen Wei there in the early morning. The Sundial begins to glow and resonate with the Awl; Lin Jing traces the source to the mountains.



Quote:

Shen Wei: "I suggest you eat regular meals. I don't want to find you on the road again."

Zhao Yunlan: "If you want to know whether I eat regular meals, why don't you just join ourSID, and you'll know?"

Shen Wei: "So your SID doesn't need a consultant, it needs a nanny?"

Detail:

I always notice that when Shen Wei takes off Zhao Yunlan's boots, he accidentally slips one of Zhao Yunlan's socks off his heel and doesn't pull it back up, argh! :p

Questions:

What's going through Shen Wei's head in the taxi? How is Zhao Yunlan feeling about Shen Wei taking him home? What's your favourite detail in Zhao Yunlan's flat? What's Shen Wei's favourite detail? Why do you think Zhao Yunlan keeps trying to recruit Shen Wei after Shen Wei has refused more than once? Do you think Shen Wei is seriously hoping to warn Zhao Yunlan away from leaving Dragon City? Why is Da Qing surprised to find Shen Wei with Zhao Yunlan in the morning? Why does Wang Zheng try to leave the SID? Any thoughts about how any of this compares to the novel? Or about parallels with other parts of the drama?

(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!)

For the next two weekends, we're taking a break for the holidays - time to catch up on the rewatch, if you've been meaning to! Regular posts will resume on 9 January.

Here is our schedule for the current batch of episodes - please do sign up to host a post if you can!

Comments

[china_shop]

But I think that night, after getting to properly look beneath the mask for the first time, this is a reminder that they are still at the cat-and-mouse stage.

Yes, good point. That makes sense. *pets Shen Wei*

So I do think it has to be sunlight in particular.

The lack of shadows is so confusing. The trees in the background have shadows, but for everything else, the lighting is too diffuse. I think I'll just keep my wrong headcanon. I like the idea of ZYL and DQ hiking under the stars. ;-p

I think I see one of them with the empty bottles next to the bed?

Ah, okay. Thanks! (I am still intermittently distracted by the fact they wear outdoor shoes in their homes, lol.)

Yes, that all sounds right to me! And good point about #3 being true in the end.

\o/!! And now I think about it, #3 only comes true after a) the Envoy reveal, b) Zhu Jiu has escalated his attacks on the SID, c) SW's attempts to work alone have led to a fatality, and d) ZYL specifically divorces the recruitment from the flirting and appeals to their shared values instead. SW is definitely not in the right headspace to join hands with the SID just yet.

Yeah. I just think it's really interesting that she immediately jumps to this, no hesitation!

True! I guess living as Wang Zheng for however long hasn't given her a strong enough survival instinct to overcome her deep-seated guilt. :-(

[trobadora]

#3 only comes true after a) the Envoy reveal, b) Zhu Jiu has escalated his attacks on the SID, c) SW's attempts to work alone have led to a fatality, and d) ZYL specifically divorces the recruitment from the flirting and appeals to their shared values instead. SW is definitely not in the right headspace to join hands with the SID just yet.

Yeah, all excellent points! Shen Wei absolutely isn't there yet, he'll keep trying to work alone for as long as he can possibly manage! And ZYL isn't there yet either, still trying to flirt his way into it. I love them and their arcs so much. ♥ ♥ ♥

[china_shop]

Yesss!

And oh, so maybe ZYL keeps asking not because he expects SW to change his mind right now, but to show that he won't consider SW's no as final; the door is still open if SW decides he wants to join later. Something like that?

[trobadora]

Keeping the door open makes sense! Though I think overall I fall on the less thought-out side compared to you, when it comes to ZYL's reasons. *g*

[china_shop]

Yeah, fair, and even I don't think it's conscious -- more instinctive?

[trobadora]

Ah, okay, I thought you meant consciously. Maybe our views are closer than I thought. :D