JPLH eps 21-24 - in which my OTP comes into its own: dangermousie

dangermousie

JPLH eps 21-24 - in which my OTP comes into its own

Mar 30, 2011 21:54

Finally, the post I have been planning to make for days only to get sidetracked into watching JPLH instead.

Some of my favorite scenes:

Su Yan, on finding Four loves Qing Chuan, snaps. She tells Qing Chuan about Four's manipulativeness and murder attempts. I find Su Yan both not likeable and very pitiable - she can't figure out why all the princes like Qing Chuan but it is because she's strong but also with a strong sense of self and principles she would not sacrifice for anyone, unlike Su Yan. And you can see it all sink in for QC. What I find most interesting is that QC is sad but somehow not surprised or denying - it really does fit into her feelings for Four being infatuation, almost willful blindless of one certainty in this new world - this is not a reaction of someone who found out the love of her life is not who she thought.

And then Eight appears (he followed them because Su Yan appeared to be sick and he thought QC might need help carrying her) and SY truly snaps and threatens to kill QC. Eight tells the resident lunatic to let QC go and she tells him she'll let her go only if he kills himself. I don't think Su Yan has any enmity for Eight and she's certainly past helping Four - in a way, it's a way of lashing at QC - to show that despite all their pretty words to her, QC isn't any more (un)loved than she, SY - Eight won't die for her, after all.

Only Eight tells her that if he does it, she has to release QC. How I love this scene, you have no idea! At this point, QC is not his girlfriend - in fact, she's dating his brother (he has no idea of the revelations SY just dropped on QC). I love that QC manages to choke out, even as she's being choked and about to go over the parapet, for him not to do it. And that he does it anyway. What I love the most is that he's insane about protecting QC but he's also smart - he wounds himself but clearly he did it do inflict the least possible damage while still inducing SY go from shock of it. There is no doubt if there was no choice, he'd die to save QC, but I love that he's not an idiot and won't do it unless as a last resort. Also, as far as ploys go, it's really desperate and kinda insane - because he stabs himself in the abdomen wihout a second's hesitation. Eeeek. I don't care if it's a flesh wound, it's got to hurt unbelievably and not a good thing in times before antibiotics.

Luckily, it works, using SY's shock, QC frees herself.

Completely snapping under this proof that it's not all men and women are like this, it's just her, Su Yan's 'lack', Su Yan jumps off the roof. And what really gets me is that after all of this, QC still feels horrified because this was her friend, and Eight is horrified because he knows how this hurt QC (man, you are the one stabbed here! And you are still only thinking about QC!)

Meanwhile, in a fine bit of tragic irony, Four just left all his property to his wife and told her he's leaving with QC because he wants to love her only.

Only for QC to show up and confront him about what SY told her and tell him it's over. Really, no woman in love would be able to be like this. A strong woman who saw an idealized image's bubble burst, would be like that though. Four lifting his face so the tears wouldn't roll down particularly gets me. But throughout this whole sequence I kept yelling at Eight to stop traipsing around with QC and get bandaged! It makes me think of SoaB where general and assassin kept getting stabbed or stabbing themselves and then prancing around as if it's a minor inconvenience. I don't care how fighting-fit you are, Eight, you have a freaking stab wound, see to it!

God, how much I love their interactions. Friendship and fun and chemistry out of this world. They are just really happy and compatible and sane together.

The whole ice block sequence taught me a few things (a) this is a dysfunctional family times 10. Oh, and Kang Xi is a shitty father (b) just because Eight is decently-adjusted doesn't mean he doesn't have issues or grounds for same - it's just he controls them instead of the other way around (c) QC is wicked smart (d) if Eight ever needs to make a living, he can work for a party planner making ice sculptures.

Isn't it the most gorgeous drama?

The thing the audience, just like QC, forgets is that Eight might be straightforward but he's nobody's fool - he can tell a lot of QC pushing Eight for the throne is a way of her trying to get back at Four and her own prior idealized belief in him. I love the bit where he tells her he wants her to care for him the way she does for Four and when she says she hates Four, he says he'd be OK with that too, because it's a strong emotion connected to that.

And speaking of Four...in another drama, I could really go for QC/Four dysfunction.

The thing that drives me bonkers with Four is that despite his 'woe is me, nobody loves me, everyone leaves me' attitude, he has people who love him unconditionally - see his wife. In a way, part of the reason he is shocked QC doesn't want to be with him after discovering he tried to kill her (!!!) is due to people like Su Yan and his wife - they would totally stick with him even after. While Eight wouldn't think to expect that but that is also because he's never had relationships that unbalanced and insane - the few people who cared for him (aunt, his two brothers) he has healthy relationships with them.

My favorite sequence in the whole drama. In the aftermath of them solving the issue of a man claiming to be a Ming prince - it was all so upbeat and then it turned out the whole family, including the newborn they helped deliver, killed themselves. As I said commented in a reply to hanjae "I love that he tries to comfort her but he wouldn't lie even for this - his pointing out that she averted civil war and thus saved many families is 100% true. But I also love that she won't allow herself for this to get her off the hook (and if she did, she'd be on the path to being Four, after all). And then his response to her question why do things end like this - it really went straight to my heart - because it shows that he may be boyish, but he's not really naive or has a pair of rose-colored glasses or anything, and it pretty much sums up his character and his behavior and his take on life (and makes him so amazing) - when he tells her that this is because the world is full of suffering and all you can do is do your best and find a person to help you and hold your hand, to minimize the suffering. And that she helped him and held his hand and so he will do the same to her, whenever she wants it. I think this may be my favorite scene in the drama actually, because whenever he rescues her, it's always part adrenalin, spur-of-the-moment etc. But this is something he's clearly thought through and part of his basic beliefs. And it explains so much."

I just like this shot.

Thirteen, who annoys the living daylights out of me.

I loved this bit. QC brings some fancy horse-milk pastries to Eight and he's all "yum" and stuffing his face until Nine and Ten burst in and are all "wtf are you doing, you idiot! You are lactose-intolerant and throw up for a week after a sip of milk!" Bwa. Adorable.

And speaking of adorable:

They go visit his aunt and we learn that Eight's childhood was even worse than Four's but he coped by being really positive and persistent and, if not given love or attention, trying to get it (by acting out or working hard or whatever). Yup, that fits. Also, these eps are full of people telling QC to stop waffling because you can lose your chance at happiness so easily and suddenly and aunt is another one to add to the chorus. This is making me nervous...

So on the way back, QC is trying to analyze her feelings (I love my analytical girl) but when Eight asks her what she's thinking about, she says it's about how to make him more prominent than Four, and Eight has had enough. He drops her off at Four's house and tells her if she wants Four, she should be with him, and not use Eight as proxy. And tells her he won't be seeing her for a while and she should think long and hard about what/who she wants and feels. Bravo! Honestly, that is why he has healthy relationships - he will do his best to win her love, but past a certain point he will stop. And this is really good because she's too secure of him, really, to ever feel the necessity to figure out what she feels.

Yeah, they are being really good at lashing out. By this point, even a blind person can tell they are both nuts about each other. But not them, darling thick-headed woobies. He tells her he's going on an inspection that will take a year and she says she hopes he won't come back ever and she's off to celebrate. Honestly, any emotionally-uninvolved person can tell she's saying the opposite of what she's feeling but Eight's too invested.

Oh, how I love this sequence. He's leaving and all of a sudden she freaks about not seeing him before he goes/him being gone a long time, and runs, runs just to catch a glimpse of Eight, who's by now pretty sure she'll never want to see him again. And then Nine points her out and he sees.

And then he's back. I love it when he says he's been only gone for 5 days and she corrects him 'eight' - she's been counting! And he tells her he left the inspection to Nine only after five days and rode back to see her for three days and nights straight. Ahhhh.

Concubine Xi is threatening her life (long story) and he asks her to run away from the palace with him (!!!!!) and she agrees (!!!!!!!). She tells him if she had to pick between the palace and him, the palace only gave her bad memories and he gave her good ones, so of course she's going to pick him. And he asks if she's worried about hardship and he says she's only worried about hardship for him. AWWWWW. At this point, does she even need to confess her feelings in a 'wo ai ni' to him?