Lü Zhi and Livia
When I first watched I, Claudius many years ago, I didn't really know anything about that dynasty. I knew the names Julius Caesar and Augustus and Caligula, but nothing else. It was only later that I read about it to learn more about the people in the show. Historical dramas can do that. Maybe a part of history I'm unfamiliar with is made vivid by character and story and performance, so I read to learn more.
What stays with me the most from that show is Livia, as played by Siân Phillips. It's an amazing performance. There's no way to ever forget Livia after seeing her be Livia. I don't know whether the real Livia Drusilla actually arranged the deaths of that many people just to bring her son into power and prevent the return of the Republic… I don't know. But it's a good story. And most of what I know about the Julio-Claudian dynasty, I learned after I watched that show.
Something similar happened after I watched Bu Bu Jing Xin. I knew nothing about Kangxi or the nine princes conflict, then suddenly I was reading about it to learn more.
Now I've seen an episode of 美人心计 (Schemes of a Beauty, Tactics of a Beauty) and I'm all "who are these people?" So I started reading. Yay internet.
Liu Bang is a familiar name, but I never knew anything about his wife, Empress Lü. And while reading about her, I keep remembering Siân Phillips' Livia. Lü Zhi seems to have arranged the deaths of quite a few people, sometimes in pretty horrifying ways. But I had to draw a picture to get this clear in my head:
First seven emperors of the Han dynasty. Like the Julio-Claudian dynasty, a murderously dysfunctional family. What is it about royalty and court intrigue?
So after trying to figure all of this out, I went back and watched the first part of 美人心计 episode 1 again. This time I was able to say "Okay there's Empress Lü, there's Concubine Bo and her son (future Emperor Wen)..."
Actual scene from history: Sixteen-year-old Emperor Hui has an older half brother Liu Fei. One day, Liu Fei comes to dinner and is seated in a place of honor. Empress Lü is annoyed, so naturally she arranges for Liu Fei to be served some poison wine. As you do. Emperor Hui realizes this and takes the cup to drink from it himself. Lü Zhi knocks it out of his hand. I can only imagine the awkward moment afterward. "Mom, can you like not come to dinner anymore?" is probably not something you say to the person who's actually running the country and kills people in the most sadistic ways she can imagine. (Liu Fei would have been getting an easy one with just poisoned wine.)
Eventually Hui became so horrified that he basically says "Okay, you know what? Run the country, I'm off to brothels for the rest of my life"... which is reminding me of Tiberius now. Anyway, it seems like quite a scary ride until you get to the stability of the later rulers.
So... history. Recklessly flawed people with way too much power. It can be so much fun watching actors become these people.
What stays with me the most from that show is Livia, as played by Siân Phillips. It's an amazing performance. There's no way to ever forget Livia after seeing her be Livia. I don't know whether the real Livia Drusilla actually arranged the deaths of that many people just to bring her son into power and prevent the return of the Republic… I don't know. But it's a good story. And most of what I know about the Julio-Claudian dynasty, I learned after I watched that show.
Something similar happened after I watched Bu Bu Jing Xin. I knew nothing about Kangxi or the nine princes conflict, then suddenly I was reading about it to learn more.
Now I've seen an episode of 美人心计 (Schemes of a Beauty, Tactics of a Beauty) and I'm all "who are these people?" So I started reading. Yay internet.
Liu Bang is a familiar name, but I never knew anything about his wife, Empress Lü. And while reading about her, I keep remembering Siân Phillips' Livia. Lü Zhi seems to have arranged the deaths of quite a few people, sometimes in pretty horrifying ways. But I had to draw a picture to get this clear in my head:
First seven emperors of the Han dynasty. Like the Julio-Claudian dynasty, a murderously dysfunctional family. What is it about royalty and court intrigue?
So after trying to figure all of this out, I went back and watched the first part of 美人心计 episode 1 again. This time I was able to say "Okay there's Empress Lü, there's Concubine Bo and her son (future Emperor Wen)..."
Actual scene from history: Sixteen-year-old Emperor Hui has an older half brother Liu Fei. One day, Liu Fei comes to dinner and is seated in a place of honor. Empress Lü is annoyed, so naturally she arranges for Liu Fei to be served some poison wine. As you do. Emperor Hui realizes this and takes the cup to drink from it himself. Lü Zhi knocks it out of his hand. I can only imagine the awkward moment afterward. "Mom, can you like not come to dinner anymore?" is probably not something you say to the person who's actually running the country and kills people in the most sadistic ways she can imagine. (Liu Fei would have been getting an easy one with just poisoned wine.)
Eventually Hui became so horrified that he basically says "Okay, you know what? Run the country, I'm off to brothels for the rest of my life"... which is reminding me of Tiberius now. Anyway, it seems like quite a scary ride until you get to the stability of the later rulers.
So... history. Recklessly flawed people with way too much power. It can be so much fun watching actors become these people.