Not gonna lie, but my first thought was: Another franchise movie? Are you serious?
But due to the lack of choices in the cinema these days, Mission Impossible 7 was the most interesting thing around, so my friend and I decided to give it a try.
Well, it was more than okay, I actually enjoyed it a whole lot, but not as much as Indiana Jones. Perhaps it is because I was more attached to Indy the character than I was with human assassin cyborg Ethan Hunt, but the main culprit of my not-as-enthusiastic response is due to Mission Impossible 7‘s terrible dialogue.
Mind you, the movie hit its action plot points like a pro, but the people are talking like, to quote my friend: “Mansplainers.” To be more specific, “Mansplainer robots”.
Take that opening scene where a bunch of CIA spooks sat around in a top-secret room looking all smug and schemey. It was basically an info dump scene where each of the character was telling us what was happening. They were telling, not showing. It was lazy ass writing. And it was awful.
My jaw dropped, and I turned to my friend. “Nobody talks like that in real life, not even CIA agents!”
Especially CIA agents.
This weird dialogue quirk continued to be distracting throughout the nearly three-hour movie. It didn’t help matters that there was a noisy toddler yelling his head off at random moments during the movie. I don’t know why, but Malaysian parents love taking their toddlers to movies that they shouldn’t be in. I was particularly nervous about the baby sleeping at a young mum’s lap a few seats away, but that infant seemed to regard the yelling, screaming and shooting sounds as a form of lullaby. Can I have what he’s having?
So, anyway, it’s not a bad movie, but I have no idea how it deserved its 96% score at Rotten Tomatoes. Are they saying it’s as good as one of the Lord of the Rings movies? It is definitely not that good.
I have a theory: The deluge of Marvel Cinematic Movies and superhero flicks are making people desperate for something different. Just anything but superheroes. Also, it doesn’t help that these movies have become a tad preachy. People are just so starved for quality, unique, non-preachy cinema these days that Mission Impossible 7 felt like a breath of fresh air.
It’s more like we’re going back to the 90s and early 2000s and that may not necessarily be a bad thing!
This kinda makes me feel slightly depressed for the state of cinema in general — Western movies and television have stopped being fun, experimental and adventurous. It has become politically correct, safe and preachy. I’ve been turning more and more to Chinese and Korean dramas, only because you can still find some originality there.
People just want to go back to good ol’ days where you can just chuck your brain aside and enjoy yourself.
To my surprise, I loved Indiana Jones: The Dial of Destiny. It had a lot of good ol’, classic Indiana Jones moments: The crazy chase, the ancient tombs and traps, bugs and snakes. It’s a movie where you need to switch off your brain off and enjoy it. Watching it made me feel like a kid again. It was a perfect send off for one of cinema’s most iconic characters.
Yet, if you had looked online, especially on Youtube movie channels, you would have thought it was terrible.
These days, I do my best to avoid any information about upcoming movies. I’ve long realised that reviews or even the non-spoilery opinion of people tend to colour my perception of movies.
We don’t seem to enjoy movies for the sake of it this days. We always have to tie it with some serious commentary on culture, politics and gender.
Maybe it has to do with the need to create content in a way that pleases the algorithm: saying something that will provoke a big emotional reaction. And creators love to provoke anger and indignation because that’s where you get all those juicy comments that algorithms like.
That said, let’s talk about the most controversial Indy movie: The Temple of Doom.
Naturally, after returning from watching The Dial of Destiny, I rewatched Raiders of the Lost Ark and then, The Temple of Doom.
And yeah, it’s as wildly politically incorrect as I remember it. đ All the unflattering depictions of india that you can imagine. That meal at the palace, for one, was especially cringe worthy. As far as I know, Indian cuisine did not include snakes, monkey brains or other manner of creepy crawlies. As many Indians are vegetarians, I can imagine the indignation that must’ve provoked!
Temple of Doom would have been eviscerated in today’s social media and would probably never have been made.
Yet, I loved The Temple of Doom because of its sheer over-the-top hamminess. It was just a fun movie, and while it was not my favourite, it sure gave me a good time when I watched it — even in the politically correct times of 2023.
Creativite works will always be confronting and challenging. Not to say that The Temple of Doom was right in what it did (I think they could at least not insult Indian cuisine!), bu it was an over-the-top, straight out of a pulp novel story and was never meant to be taken seriously.
I think we have forgotten to just park our brains aside and enjoy movies. Everything must be evaluated for political and cultural correctness these days. Every movie is now yelled at for being “too woke” or “anti woke”. Why have we gotten so stodgy?
Finally, a Chinese drama that is not just beautiful to look at, but is well acted, authentic, and celebrates womanly ideals and the female gaze.
The story
Zhao Pan’er, an intelligent and resourceful teahouse owner stumbles on a big conspiracy when she happens to be on the site of an ambush. Gu Qianfan, a leader of the elite Capital Security Office and nicknamed the “Living Devil”, forces her to help him escape.
This fateful meeting changes her life forever.
After that terrible night, Pan’er life takes an unexpected turn. Her fiancĂŠ Ouyang Xu, whom she had supported for many years, has abandoned her for a woman of higher social standing after gaining a prestigious position in the Capital.
Pan’er decides to travel to the Capital to find out the truth. She ends meeting Qianfan again. On the run from people who want him dead, he ends up having to rely on her to survive. (Unexpectedly, so does she.)
They are later joined by her two friends, Sun San Niang and Song Yin Zhang, who were both wronged by their husbands as well.
When they reach the Capital, all four have to face numerous trials. Fortunately, they now have each other.
The episodes (slight spoilers)
Episodes 1-16
My favourite arc of all. Our lovers meet, and what a messy meeting it was! Pan’er stumbles on Gu Qianfan as he is fleeing for his life. Instead of being the noble hero, he strikes Pan’er with a dart and tricks her into helping him escape. This one incident forces the two to rely on each other for weeks as they try to achieve their own goals. Qianfan wants to find out who is trying to get him killed. Pan’er wants to find her good-for-nothing Ouyang Xu who ditched her for a noblewoman once he became the Third Scholar.
Episodes 17-26
Our lovers have now confessed their love for each other and despite needing the keep their relationship secret, they are openly being lovey-dovey all over the Capital ⌠not that I’m complaining, but I really doubt this was how people behaved in ancient China. But I forgive all things because Chen Xiao and Crystal Liu have such chemistry that, seriously, who cares about history and cultural norms when the guy can make your ovaries melt with a gaze?
Episodes 27-34
The “troubled” episodes. After such a strong and solid start, it’s as if the writer ran out of ideas to raise the stakes, so she throws the most eye-rolling plot contrivances imaginable including a period of noble idiocy from our until-now faultless Qianfan. Also, the jealous and half-insane Ouyang Xu returns to plague our couple with nefarious and frankly, stupid schemes. Various other political shenanigans get in the way of our couple’s happiness, and so on until the bitter end.
A reviewer on Youtube commented that it was best to forget everything that happened after episode 27 and just end it there. Can’t help but agree with her!
What I liked
The leads’ natural, explosive chemistry. Far too often I cringe at kissing scenes or the skinship in Chinese or Korean dramas. But Qianfan and Pan’er not only has explosive chemistry but a very mature relationship where they (gasp) discuss things. I was particularly impressed by Pan’er’s refusal to flirt any further until Qianfan tells her what’s his true intentions were. When he finally declares it, he does it in such a charm and chivalrous way you can help but sigh with happiness.
The exploration of Chinese tea culture. This is sad but I never knew that the Chinese had such a deep culture around tea. In this drama, we learned how tea was made and celebrated among the masses. I really appreciate that.
It’s all about Girl Power but not it’s not in your face. I really enjoy watching the three women overcome their humiliation at the hands of men they loved and finding confidence in their abilities.
The beauty of the costumes, the sets, heck, even the food. I love that the filmmakers stayed as a true as possible when it came to the period’s clothing and architecture. I felt as if I was looking at a painting.
What I disliked
That noble idiocy arc. Communicate, people! After doing so well in the first 27 episodes, our couple suddenly stops communicating with each other. I totally understand why Qianfan was afraid to face Pan’er, but to do what he did felt out of character. Fortunately, the two regains their marbles and starts talking like adults again, but after far too many episodes of not communicating. That arc should’ve been cut short.
Ouyang Xu as a villain. He was, at first, a sympathetic villain. I almost understood why he did what he did. He was a weak man with little courage to go against social norms to really have a life with Pan’er. He never deserved her in the first place, but for him to suddenly go all mustache-twirling villain in the last ten episodes was not very believable nor convincing.
The plot stumbling towards the end. It’s truly odd how the show stumbled towards the end. The stumble wasn’t catastrophic and it certainly didn’t render the show unwatchable, but it had been so perfectly crafted until episode 30 or so.
Last verdict
Is it worth watching? Most certainly. It also has a good ending, if you’re one to worry about that. (Chinese dramas have a very notorious reputation of turning tragic at a dime)
Mastodon log (spoilery)
I occasionally post my thoughts to social media. Here’s my log (please forgive the spelling mistakes!)
19 March 2023
Everything about A Dream Of Splendor is stunning. The sets, the costumes, the music, the actorsâŚyes I am shameless enough to say that the eye candy is a big part of why I am enjoying the show. Too few Chinese Dramas have this standard. And I wonder why they don’t bother reaching this level. I also love Pan’er, the female lead in this one. Strong, witty, yet flawed ⌠She’s not the typical squeaky-voiced female in a CDrama I hate so much đ
23 March 2023
Sanniang eavesdropping on our couple; Gu Xianfang’s “logical” explanations on why it is ok for him to take off Pan’er’s robe to “see if her injuries have healed” and his reminder that she already took off his clothes before, so what’s the fuss? And Sanniang’s scandalized expression to this – priceless!!
Enjoying this CDrama so much!
Spoilers ahoy – from 5:33
25 March 2023
Can these two get any swoonier?
PS: Spoilerific video
But seriously this amount of public skinship is not a thing in ancient China and would probably land these two in a lot of trouble.
But do I care? NOOOOAAAAHHHH
7 April 2023 That besotted look in Xianfang’s eyes when he spies Pan’er dancing – first, at the tea house during a a tea ceremony, and then alone under the moonlight. Can’t blame him for being smitten, of course!
13 April 2023
What I love about A Dream Of Splendor is that I can enjoy it at a leisurely pace. I love the natural chemistry of the main couple and learning about China’s ancient tea culture. It’s a slice of life drama so some people complain about the pacing, but I find it perfect. I just watch an episode a day and feel satisfied. Maybe this is something I need at a time like this when life is so hectic.
Liking Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty as much I did really surprised me. It wasn’t a popular, addictive, idol-driven drama that tends to get a lot of attention, but it delivered solid storylines and performances.
I love Wuxia dramas. And the type of shows that I’m drawn to are shows like Nirvana in Fire, Ancient Detective and Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms. Sweeping, majestic, heart-wrenching addictions.
I wouldn’t describe Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty this way at all.
It’s certainly not heart-wrenching, although there are sad moments. And while it has amazing sets and beautiful costumes, it does not come close to the majesty and beauty of Nirvana in Fire.
But it just works.
Perhaps it’s due to the fact that I needed a show like this during this period of my life. I’m currently at a busy time at work and my personal life is fraught with usual middle-age anxieties (sans children, fortunately). After a day of staring at code and wrestling with software that toy with your patience, I wanted something soothing to watch.
Watching something tragic and heart-wrenching like Nirvana in Fire was the last thing I want to do, no matter how beautiful and well-crafted the story is.
The story
We are first introduced to our heroic duo, Lu Ling Feng and Su Wu Ming, when they cross paths at Chang’an. A strange, addictive tea popular among the nobles has taken Chang’an City by storm. But there’s a lot of mystique around the tea. It seems to be tied to a mysterious “Ghost Town” in the dark parts of the city, and is supposedly distributed by a mysterious immortal. And someohow, it’s tied to the case of missing brides in Chang’an?
Lu Ling Feng, a general of the Jin Wu guards, was given the task to get to the bottom of this mystery. And he ends up crossing swords (okay, maybe it’s more of a pointing sword thing) with Su Wu Ming.
Su is a disciple of the famed detective Di Ren Jie, and Lu doesn’t like his shifty, sly attitude. But the two ends up working together, though Lu is a very, very reluctant partner.
Political machinations end up upending a lot of things, however. And Lu ends up following Su on his adventures to reclaim his name and honour.
From left to right: Fei Ji Shi, Pei Xi Jun, Su Wu Ming, Lu Ling Feng and Xue Huan.
Characters
Lu Ling Feng A hard-headed, fiery-tempered general who likes to point his sword at people who annoy him. (And that happens quite often!) When we show starts, Lu isn’t very likeable — he looks down on Su Wuming, thinking that he’s beneath him, thinking that he’s up to no good. But, when his life goes downhill without warning Lu is forced to reflect on his choices.
Su Wu Ming A disciple of the famous detective Di Renjie, Su is witty, crafty, and definitely very, very smart. He hides this by pretending to be a nice, humble bloke; a harmless commoner who doesn’t know anything. But believe you me, there’s a lot going on behind that affable demeanor.
Pei Xi Jun The daughter of a high-ranking official who had a massive crush on Lu, Xi Jun ends up tagging along in the duo’s adventures.
Fei Ji Shi A beggar on the outside, a brilliant physician in reality, he has saved the team from one scrape on another. As long as he’s paid in chicken and wine.
Xue Huan Xi Jun’s servant and a budding martial artist.
A story of many cases
Strange is probably one of the most well-constructed Chinese dramas I’ve seen. It’s never too draggy, there are not many unnecessary fillers, and every story is interesting.
I think one of the reasons why Strange was so good for me in this time of my life was because of its structure: About four to five episodes will be centred around a mystery. And with every case, the characters, especially Lu, grows.
Watching Lu and Su’s relationship develop is a real delight. Some fans complain that Lu was unnecessarily haughty in the beginning, but it befits his background and the time. As a scion of a very prestigious family at a time where lineage gives you power, Lu’s haughty arrogance is almost expected. And unlike most people, Lu doesn’t buy Su’s “humble, common man” act.
The cases are also unique as they exist in a world where magic is real, so it kept me guessing throughout.
And towards the end, we watch how Su and Lu struggle with the poltics of the Tang dynasty. As the “police” of the empire, they still have to navigate the powerful, Game of Thrones-esque courts of the Crown Prince and the Princess Taiping. And this was done in a realistic way and there was a surprising, satisfying twist to come out of this political intrigue too.
What I loved:
The sets and costumes – It’s quite faithful to the period. (I’m no expert, but at least there’s no weird modernesque hanfus and hairstyles.) One of the reasons why I’m finding myself bored of Marvel movies is because of its over-reliance on green screens. What a delight to see characters walking around in actual buildings and sets for once!
The fighting choreography – I cannot count the number of times I rolled my eyes as the lame fighting, flying scenes of modern-day wuxia dramas. Sure, there’s still flying, but there’s more emphasis on acrobatic manoevres and swordplay. Lu’s fight when he uses three swords was fun to watch!
The performances – the standout performance is Yang Zhi Gang’s Su Wu Ming.
The stories – one of my favourite Youtubers, Avenue X, complain that Show’s stories were not particularly remarkable, but I really enjoyed the supernaturally-tinged cases. They kept me guessing, and that’s enough!
The 4-5 episode story arcs — I really appreciated the structure. Because I could just watch a number of episodes, take a break, and easily come back to continue the story. With other 40+ episode Chinese dramas, I had to ask myself – what happened again? Who is this person? Show’s structure allows me enjoy the show at a comfortable pace without losing the plot.
What I disliked:
What in the world is Xi Yun’s role, really, except to be a romantic love interest to Lu? I found her inclusion in the series odd and rather forced. But it’s really a minor, minor niggle in an otherwise great show.
Mastodon log entries
I was live-blogging the show on Mastodon as I watch it. As I’m following the Publish On Your Own Site, Syndicate Elsewhere, and since it’s a waste to let my thoughts fade into the ether, I thought it was a good idea to keep a record of my thoughts here too.
Feb 10, 2023, 24:20 Yup of course I need to watch Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty đ
The fighting scenes, for once, is decent!
Feb 11, 2023, 19:20 Watching up to 3rd ep of Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty and I’m liking it so far. It’s the kind of drama that is not too intense so you can enjoy without too much emotional angst. Also, ngl, I like how Yang Xu Wen looks when he fights.
Feb 14, 2023, 20:30 Currently on the 10the episode of Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty. I am actually quite surprised I am still #watching – thought I’d be bored by now. Maybe cos I really like the dynamics between the two main characters – the cunning and witty investigator, and the hot tempered general, who are always at each other’s throats.
We love the odd couple police drama, don’t we?
Feb 25, 2023, 19:55 Can’t believe I am on episode 20 of Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty! It is compelling in a way I cant really fathom. But perhaps it has something to do with the short 3-5 episode mysteries that makes it more digestible than most 40+ episode #CDramas But I also like the friendship between Lu Linfeng (right, pic below) and Su Wuming.
Some complain that Lu’s arrogance was not a good way to start their partnership, but I thought it was perfect. Lu’s journey from hot-headed asshat to less-angry asshat is what I enjoyed and kept me going. Also, while the mysteries have a supernatural bent, they are solved by real-world wits.
Btw you can actually watch Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty on Youtube!
Feb 26, 2023, 20:53 This is hilarious but they sure exhume a lot of corpses in this #CDrama đ
Mar 07, 2023, 23:12 I finished Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty! When it comes to #CDramas that is a rare feat for me as I find it tough to “last” a #CDrama‘s usual 40-episode run. Tbh me liking Strange this much was a surprise. It isn’t sweeping, dramatic or addictive like some #dramas but perhaps this is why In like it; when you have a hectic life, you need something light and not too angsty. It also has great acting, sets, writing & the story is finely constructed. A fun, rare gem.
Final verdict
Give this show a chance.
I know it is not as sexy as the idol-driven dramas, or the trendy ones right now, but it is absolutely solid and delivers.
A big part of me hopes that there will be a Season 2, even if the chances are terribly slim. (I’m still waiting for Ancient Detective!) It’s one of those rare shows that truly deserves another run.
PS: Just found out Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty was ranked No.4 in the top 10 highest costumed dramas of 2022 in Douban! That must mean something, don’t you think??
Watch it here
In a move that I don’t quite understand but 100% appreciate, iQIYI has released the episodes, fully English subtitled, onto Youtube. So, you can watch it free in the playlist below:
The Lord of the Rings fandom was mostly cautiously optimistic when news broke that Rings of Power will be made. Now, The Lord of the Rings fandom is a particularly fussy one; I remember Peter Jackson’s trilogy getting a frosty reception, which, fortunately in the end, became celebrated.
But when first-look photos were released … Rings of Power received a toxic reception on a level I’ve not seen before. Especially on Youtube. This has mostly to do with some Youtube channels that are “anti-woke”, and who often see female lead characters in a misogynistic light. They picked apart everything about Galadriel, called the actress names that I wouldn’t want to mention here. They were also very hung about the racial diversity of the Rings of Power.
Now, I’m Chinese from Malaysia. I’m a minority, mind you. However, I did find the diversity of the show forced and not very natural as per the way Tolkien set it up. I wondered why they didn’t want to include the Haradrim and Easterlings, instead of doing this?
But anyway, anyone that criticises the diversity of the cast gets instantly slapped with the racist label, so, yeah, I’m not going to do this on Twitter/Mastodon right now.
Still, it’s a small issue for me. The biggest issue, really is how badly the story flows. The first episode was too slow, and I have a hard time trying to focus because there are just so many characters.
Anyway, I think I was somehow influenced by the negativity; I refused to even give the show a chance at one point. But now I think that’s terribly unfair — I should form my opinion of the show after watching it, not after hearing what others are saying about it.
So here I am, giving this show a chance.
First episode … I hope this gets better
Watched the first episode of Rings of Power and I’m just not impressed. This is sad because they got some things really right. For one, the aesthetics of the world is spot on. The soundtrack is lovely and Elrond, I like him almost immediately.
I’ve heard a lot about how Rings of Power played fast and loose with the lore, and frankly, it was distracting. There were moments when I just got pulled out of the show to wonder, “Wait, isn’t this wrong?”
But honestly, I don’t mind that they had not stuck faithfully to the lore, but the problem is the storytelling, and it was apparent even in the first episode. Uneven, lots of unnecessary tangents and a very unlikeable protagonist đ Galadriel, your teenage phase is not very pleasant! (And I know she’s not a teen but she sure behaves like one lol.)
I’ll give it a few more episodes but I don’t think it’ll improve for me.
Second episode, and I have an epiphany
I try to make myself watch another episode of Rings, but I almost inevitably choose to watch The Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty, Who Rules the World and Fear the Walking Dead instead. When I realised that I don’t even remember what happened in the second episode, I realised the writing was on the wall.
Rings of Power isn’t terrible per se. The worst film I’ve ever, ever watched was Adam Sandler’s You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, which my friends made me watch till the bitter end because it was hilarious to see my wince. It’s nowhere near there; it was a passable fantasy series. Passable in the sense that it is a very pale shadow of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings series. Something to watch when there’s nothing to watch on a slow Sunday afternoon.
Here’s the problem, there are far too many great things to watch these days. There’s the much praised The Last of Us and the Korean and Chinese dramas like Nirvana in Fire and Love like the Galaxy waiting for me. If you have limited time would you choose to spend it on critically-acclaimed shows which have far more appeal to you … or would you give a passable fantasy series that barely kept your attention in the first episode?
I may give it another episode but that will be in the distant future. But for now, I’ll have to bid Rings of Power adieu.
Among some fantasy readers, I had done something sacrilegious. Most were horrified when they discovered that although I had read almost every fantasy book on the planet, I had not bothered to touch the fantasy tale of all fantasy tales â The Lord of the Rings (LOTR). They would probably be in despair if they had found out that my first brush with LOTR when I was 13 ended with an exclamation of: âMan, this is boring!â And I made that conclusion just after reading the first page. Then came the movies, and the mania that came with it made me aware that some people really, really liked the book. Actor Christopher Lee, who plays Saruman in the movies, would read The Lord of the Rings every year. On the Internet, fans write essays upon essays about the bookâs themes, plots and characters.
I then realised that there was this huge devotion around the book I once brushed off and felt somewhat silly. Still, being a person who hated her movie experience spoiled, I refrained from reading the book. Perhaps I would read it after I watched the movies. And that was a big âperhapsâ.
This was, of course, met with much indignation from LOTR devotees.
âAnd you call yourself a fantasy fan?â they accused.
âI just hate knowing what will happen,â I tried to reason with them. âI mean, whatâs the fun of watching something only to know whatâs going to happen?â
âBut you donât get it. If you watch the movie first, youâll be letting one manâs vision dictate yourinterpretation of the book,â one told me.
If he meant having to imagine Orlando Bloomâs face in place of Legolas, I thought it wasnât such a bad trade-off.
Later, after being blown away by the first movie, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, I realised that perhaps my LOTR-devoted friends were right. The book was something. I was such a nincompoop. I should read it. So, I bravely bought a huge three-in-one The Lord of The Rings omnibus and promptly got stuck in the prologue.
This canât be right, I thought. I thought I was reading a story, not a dictionary. And whatâs up withthese hobbits? Do I really need to know their eating and sleeping habits?
Two minutes into the book I realised that I was still staring at the same paragraph. A minute later Iwas asleep. So, my first attempt was not successful. My friend Christina, who is an LOTR devotee, cheered me on and promised that it would get better. âJust skip the prologue,â she told me. I wouldnât reallymiss anything, and I could return to it later.
My question is: Why write a prologue if you can skip it?
A rash question like that somehow always raised the ire of LOTR readers, so I wisely kept silent. Right. Bilbo has the Ring. Bilbo leaves said Ring with Frodo. Then 17 years pass. Seventeen years? Man, the pacing is incredible.
Chapters went by at snail speed. And I eventually discovered that the characters like to: a) sing alot, b) talk a lot, and c) recite poetry a lot. But, and I should win prizes for this, I continued reading until The Council of Elrond chapter.
If I was stuck at the Prologue, I was fossilised in this one. I was a corpse in the Dead Marshes,trapped forever. I found less strenuous diversions and a whole year passed. Then I watched The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and convinced myself that if I wanted to go beyond discussing the facial qualities of its actors, I could at least familiarise myself with the books. The endless conversations in The Council of Elrond did not get any shorter, but somehow I managed to press on.
Christina was right, it did get better as things started to heat up. Eventually I discovered bits in the book that were not in the movies and vice versa. Sometimes I felt indignant about what director Peter Jackson had changed, and sometimes I felt glad about what he did. However, Tolkienâs dialogue was, to put it mildly, awkward reading. I never fail to laugh when Legolas goes âAi!â or at Tolkienâs over-fondness for the word âfarewellâ. But like Shakespearian English, it grows on you. Some lines are truly immortal, deeply poetic, meaningful and at times funny: âI donât know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.â (Bilbo says it at his party; what a mind-twister) and my favourite, King Theodenâs line as he charges out to battle:
âArise, arise, Riders of Theoden! Fell deeds awake: fire and slaughter! spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered, a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor!â
Strangely, I truly became interested in LOTR when I delved into the Appendices on a whim. In it I discovered the history of the peoples of Middle-earth and was amazed at the detail that went into it. After reading it, one could appreciate the subtle nuances of the story and the interaction between the characters.
As I read on, I became attached to some of the characters. Perhaps over-attached. There are some scenes in The Return of the King that have such tremendous impact on some characters that they are seared into your imagination. At this point I realised why Tolkien was considered a genius. I donât regard him as a great writer. Storyteller, yes. Writer? No. There are characters in the book that donât contribute to the story (Tom Bombadill) and the story sometimes loses momentum with scenes that should have been edited out or moved to a more appropriate section in the book.
However, when it came to world building, Tolkien was second to none. No one had ever built a world so real, so detailed that you could speak languages from it. The detail that went into his efforts reminded me of the miniature sets that Jackson built for the movies. Although they were tiny, they had to be very detailed to withstand close scrutiny. Therefore, every pattern on brick and every bit of carving had to be done in painstaking detail. Tolkienâs work is the same; at high magnification, when you take the story apart and analyse the characters, they become more intriguing.
So, I admit it â I am taking quizzes to test my LOTR knowledge, reading essays over the âNet, engaging in LOTR discussions and hissing over the mistakes I sometimes spot. Such is the pull of Middle-earth. Still, and this may surprise some, I regret reading The Return of the King before watching the movie. Not only was the surprise factor gone, my first viewing of the movie was tinged with disappointment because my favourite parts of the book were not in the film.
I suppose the same thing could be said of my enjoyment of the books. If it had not been for Peter Jacksonâs overwhelming and incredible vision, I probably wouldnât have had a hard time picturing Legolas go âAi!â I could relate to the hordes of indignant readers out there who complain about the changes made in the movies; if you have committed so much emotion to a character or a scene, you just hate it when someone presents a totally different version on screen.
Despite this, I find book-versus-movie gripes like âwhy is Arwenâs role expanded?â and âI hate movie-version Faramirâ amusing (and a little silly).Telling a story on film is different from telling one on paper. And the fact is, despite having the difficult task of condensing a massive story into a mere nine hours (12 for the extended DVD versions), Jackson has made an amazing movie trilogy. Why mar your enjoyment of them with such pointless debates?
So, yes, I can understand why LOTR is the Book of the Century. Iâll probably peek into it again once in a while, but I probably wonât be rereading the entire thing every year. I donât think I can bear a second round of The Council of Elrond.
This was originally published in the newspaper, The Star, when I was a journalist. I can’t find the original link to the article, alas, but I suspect this article was published way back in 2001 or earlier, back when The Lord of the Rings movies first aired. My fangirling over Legolas was embarrassing on hindsight!
So thrilled to finish this 590-page book, something I struggled with after the pandemic hit. (I couldn’t seem to focus long enough to finish a novella, let alone a chonker of a novel.) Admittedly, I used a combination of physical book + audiobook which really sped things along.
Why a physical book? Well, I found reading on an iPad nigh impossible because I’m always tempted to explore other things such as my Feedly or social media. I could’ve bought a Kindle version, I suppose, but I wanted the feel of a physical book. And I’m glad I did buy a paper book even if it cost me an eye-watering RM54.90.
Initially, I just told myself to finish two chapters a day. But I was caught up by the story quickly enough. Sometimes, I would go shopping while having the audiobook play in the background. Thanks to Scribd I could access a dramatised audiobook version and while some of the voice acting left something to be desired (Sarene sounded far too peppy), I really enjoyed the dramatisation.
This was Brandon Sanderson’s debut novel, and I felt that the story could’ve gone on for another book as there were many unanswered questions. Some of which Raoden, the main character, pondered about in the last few chapters!
That seems to tease a potential second book, which to my understanding, never materialised. I mean, I dislike 12-volume fantasy epics and was grateful for a self-contained story for once, but after reading the end, I just wanted more.
I also enjoyed the book’s appendices, which in the tradition of Tolkien, Sanderson discussed the magic system, listed a bunch of “aons” and wrote about how he felt after the book was released.
Hope of Elantris
To slake my thirst, I listened to the dramatised audiobook version of the short story, The Hope of Elantris.
It’s a small story that takes place somewhere at the end of Elantris. It featured a character that was not in the book, but it was sweet and added to the satisfaction we got from the really nice ending of the novel.
We also got hints about what happened to our favourite couple after the events of Elantris. (Thank you for the fanservice, Brandon Sanderson.)
But, again, I wanted a lot more! Anyway, I loved the magic system in this world, though I wonder how secure Elantris can be thanks to the way the magic is set up. (I can’t say anything else without spoiling anything.)
Elizabeth Tai 