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sid_guardian2019-04-17 08:31 pm
extrapenguin) wrote in sid_guardian2019-04-17 08:31 pm
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Guardian Episode by Episode: 09
Welcome to episode 9 of the Guardian rewatchalong! Due to Easter, this one is early and the next one will be late (~Saturday). The imgur screencap album has 75 images.
Previously on:
Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8
This week, we start the Hanga arc properly, and drive to the mountains. We end with Wang Zheng walking into the cave.
Introductions
In flashbacks, we get our first glimpses of Zhao Yunlan's parents and Wang Zheng's fiancé (husband?).
Zhao Xinci, shooting the gun. Shen Xi, being held hostage and then dying.
Sang Zan, introduced as the Patriarch, bewitched by the daughter of the previous Patriarch.
Characterization
A bunch of interesting stuff!
We see Zhao Yunlan be a responsible team leader who brings them all on a road trip for Wang Zheng's personal mission, and doesn't press her to tell too much (just like he later won't press Shen Wei too much). He's also genuinely sorry for her about the sex doll Guo Changcheng purchased.
On the road, when he discovered the suspicious Professor Shen (who had taken up an interest in ... archaeology???), he very successfully got all the information out of Jiajia while Shen Wei facepalmed in the background, then got Shen Wei and his students into the SID convoy with his manipulation skills and charmed Shen Wei's students. Shen Wei never stood a chance.
When in doubt, ask the children.
He also says one very thematic thing to Shen Wei: "Our destination is the same, would it not be better if we could look after each other?" Like episode 3's case, this line encapsulates a thing about their relationship. Cat and mouse has partially turned into seduction, and this is Zhao Yunlan seducing Shen Wei into becoming a consultant for the SID.
We get more about Zhao Yunlan's backstory here – when he's shooting the Dixing Revolver, he gets a flashback to his mom dying and loses his nerve, either as nerve-losing (or "What if I shoot at these evil things in between my people and me and my people die like my mom did?"), or being distracted by the flashback.
There's two pieces of interaction between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan I'd like to highlight. The first one is when Zhao Yunlan walks up the slope and interrupts Shen Wei's usage of dark energy to peek, then fusses over him and gives him his jacket. Shen Wei protests, but later puts the jacket on properly and doesn't take it off. He's also very visibly shocked at someone taking care of him, and extremely touched.
Shen Wei's beating heart is not staying still.
The other is when the village leader comes to apologize for the attempted spooking. Zhao Yunlan says a few very plain words then lets the weight of his disapproving gaze do the rest, and Shen Wei joins in with more condemnation. Teamwork!
"We are both very disappointed in you."
Another relationship we see here is Zhu Hong taking care of Wang Zheng. She practices her hypnotism to make the delivery guy forget he brought the package – and then declares she'll take care of Wang Zheng, dresses her in a way so that she doesn't have to use the sex doll as a transport device, and holds on to her during the way to the hotel.
Hold on to the energy being so she doesn't float off!
We also see Zhu Hong grab the gun from Zhao Yunlan's hands and shoot when he is frozen in place by the flashback.
Wang Zheng is sad at the SID office, is sad in a car, and then does Hanga-style prayer for the dead in the village yard. When the ghosts come, she (accurately) says that they're out for her, and wishes to sacrifice herself to atone for her mistakes. Then she goes out to the cave – I wonder how she knew the cave was significant; did it call out to her, or do we see it in the flashbacks?
Wang Zheng does things, goes off to disappear into the mountain.
Guo Changcheng is this episode's butt monkey. First he screws up by buying Wang Zheng a sex doll (though I wonder why the doll thing didn't go to puppetmaster Chu – office politics?), then he spends the entire car ride being sick and having his snacks stolen, and finally he discovers his true calling of "alarm siren".
Meanwhile, Lin Jing wonders why he drew the short straw in car allocations.
For a moment I thought Zhu Jiu had in a fit of jealousy acquired his own bush friend, but it turned out he was only using it to spy on xiao-Quan pissing. He's also recruited the Hanga slaves' ghosts and the ghost-beasts to go after Wang Zheng to get at the Mountain-river Awl.
Zhu Jiu has zero plant friends. His only friends are the ghosts and ghost beasts.
Canon notes
Cinematography
Please notice how Zhao Yunlan stands on the downslope side for this whole conversation:
This one is just beautiful. The mist is very nice.
Zhao Yunlan watches Shen Wei listen to the Hanga story.
This is also a nice shot – I like the diagonal.
The lab around the Hallows has some very odd lighting.
Obligatory shot through framing device.
Zhao Yunlan jacket watch
He starts off in the same denim jacket we saw him in last episode, then sets out in a North Face jacket he gives to Shen Wei, under which is another under-jacket. Bonus: Shen Wei in Zhao Yunlan's jacket, looking happy.
Shen Wei shoe watch
No clear shots of the shoes.
Did Shen Wei take off his glasses?
Yes, when at home with his ridiculous hairstyle.
Previously on:
Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8
This week, we start the Hanga arc properly, and drive to the mountains. We end with Wang Zheng walking into the cave.
Introductions
In flashbacks, we get our first glimpses of Zhao Yunlan's parents and Wang Zheng's fiancé (husband?).
Zhao Xinci, shooting the gun. Shen Xi, being held hostage and then dying.
Sang Zan, introduced as the Patriarch, bewitched by the daughter of the previous Patriarch.
Characterization
A bunch of interesting stuff!
We see Zhao Yunlan be a responsible team leader who brings them all on a road trip for Wang Zheng's personal mission, and doesn't press her to tell too much (just like he later won't press Shen Wei too much). He's also genuinely sorry for her about the sex doll Guo Changcheng purchased.
On the road, when he discovered the suspicious Professor Shen (who had taken up an interest in ... archaeology???), he very successfully got all the information out of Jiajia while Shen Wei facepalmed in the background, then got Shen Wei and his students into the SID convoy with his manipulation skills and charmed Shen Wei's students. Shen Wei never stood a chance.
When in doubt, ask the children.
He also says one very thematic thing to Shen Wei: "Our destination is the same, would it not be better if we could look after each other?" Like episode 3's case, this line encapsulates a thing about their relationship. Cat and mouse has partially turned into seduction, and this is Zhao Yunlan seducing Shen Wei into becoming a consultant for the SID.
We get more about Zhao Yunlan's backstory here – when he's shooting the Dixing Revolver, he gets a flashback to his mom dying and loses his nerve, either as nerve-losing (or "What if I shoot at these evil things in between my people and me and my people die like my mom did?"), or being distracted by the flashback.
There's two pieces of interaction between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan I'd like to highlight. The first one is when Zhao Yunlan walks up the slope and interrupts Shen Wei's usage of dark energy to peek, then fusses over him and gives him his jacket. Shen Wei protests, but later puts the jacket on properly and doesn't take it off. He's also very visibly shocked at someone taking care of him, and extremely touched.
Shen Wei's beating heart is not staying still.
The other is when the village leader comes to apologize for the attempted spooking. Zhao Yunlan says a few very plain words then lets the weight of his disapproving gaze do the rest, and Shen Wei joins in with more condemnation. Teamwork!
"We are both very disappointed in you."
Another relationship we see here is Zhu Hong taking care of Wang Zheng. She practices her hypnotism to make the delivery guy forget he brought the package – and then declares she'll take care of Wang Zheng, dresses her in a way so that she doesn't have to use the sex doll as a transport device, and holds on to her during the way to the hotel.
Hold on to the energy being so she doesn't float off!
We also see Zhu Hong grab the gun from Zhao Yunlan's hands and shoot when he is frozen in place by the flashback.
Wang Zheng is sad at the SID office, is sad in a car, and then does Hanga-style prayer for the dead in the village yard. When the ghosts come, she (accurately) says that they're out for her, and wishes to sacrifice herself to atone for her mistakes. Then she goes out to the cave – I wonder how she knew the cave was significant; did it call out to her, or do we see it in the flashbacks?
Wang Zheng does things, goes off to disappear into the mountain.
Guo Changcheng is this episode's butt monkey. First he screws up by buying Wang Zheng a sex doll (though I wonder why the doll thing didn't go to puppetmaster Chu – office politics?), then he spends the entire car ride being sick and having his snacks stolen, and finally he discovers his true calling of "alarm siren".
Meanwhile, Lin Jing wonders why he drew the short straw in car allocations.
For a moment I thought Zhu Jiu had in a fit of jealousy acquired his own bush friend, but it turned out he was only using it to spy on xiao-Quan pissing. He's also recruited the Hanga slaves' ghosts and the ghost-beasts to go after Wang Zheng to get at the Mountain-river Awl.
Zhu Jiu has zero plant friends. His only friends are the ghosts and ghost beasts.
Canon notes
- Based on some of Shen Wei's comments, his teleportation has a distance limit, since he noted that if trouble struck in Dragon City while he was in the Northwest, he wouldn't be able to help. (There goes the plan to turn him into an environmentally friendly alternative to budget airlines...)
- Chu Shuzhi can drive a car. Despite the copious switching around of drivers, we never see Shen Wei drive a car.
- Shen Wei visited a hairdresser (see evidence below), decided he didn't like it, and banished the hairstyle before he next appears on screen, never to be seen again.
- The Hallows seem to be giving Zhao Yunlan colds?
- Dragon City has long roots, and has been there for hundreds of years. Perhaps even before the Hanga tribe formed?
- Either the SID or Guo Changcheng now owns a sex doll.
Cinematography
Please notice how Zhao Yunlan stands on the downslope side for this whole conversation:
This one is just beautiful. The mist is very nice.
Zhao Yunlan watches Shen Wei listen to the Hanga story.
This is also a nice shot – I like the diagonal.
The lab around the Hallows has some very odd lighting.
Obligatory shot through framing device.
Zhao Yunlan jacket watch
He starts off in the same denim jacket we saw him in last episode, then sets out in a North Face jacket he gives to Shen Wei, under which is another under-jacket. Bonus: Shen Wei in Zhao Yunlan's jacket, looking happy.
Shen Wei shoe watch
No clear shots of the shoes.
Did Shen Wei take off his glasses?
Yes, when at home with his ridiculous hairstyle.
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