spotlight: "war and destiny"

War and Destiny was actually one of my anticipated series from 2006 because it looks so appealing visually and the concept seemed intriguing. Also, I liked how TVB was saying that Myolie Wu's role would be their version of "Dae Jang-geum." I loved Jewel in the Palace, so I really wanted to see a TVB version of a strong heroine who would defy it all to reach to the top. I also was intrigued by the backdrop of the war that the series was slated to use and I hadn't seen a war series set in the 1930's for some time, so I was itching to see it.

When I finally rented War about six or seven weeks ago, somehow I wasn't as "excited" to watch it anymore. It didn't help that the semester was drawing to a close, so I was very busy and tied up with work and studying to do. Thus, I kept pushing back my War viewing. I had seen the first four episodes and quite liked it, but somehow, there just wasn't enough to draw me back. With Forensic Heroes, I kept watching even if I had work to do. With War, I just didn't feel the urge. However, I took around ten episodes with me to watch, so I just had to finish them before I came home for winter break.

I basically half-watched War from episodes six until maybe eighteen. The plot just felt too flat, nothing out of the ordinary was happening, and the characters seemed very one-dimensional. I didn't feel like it "deserved" my full attention, so I just let it run in the background while doing other things. Sure, I listened to what was going on on-screen and glanced at it most of the time, but for the most part, I didn't pay much attention because I wasn't interested. I felt it was so draggy and sometimes boring and frustrating.

I was off of work one day, so I decided to watch War. Perhaps it was because I gave the series my full attention, but I found War to be really good and I was loving it. It was surprisingly very engaging, realistic, and poignant. I loved episodes nineteen through the end.

I had five episodes to go when I read messages saying that the ending was "weird," so I was disheartened. I feared that my regained interest and faith in the series was doomed to crash. Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened. The last five episodes maintained the series' [regained] quality. As for the ending, it felt too perfect. Everything just wrapped up so ideally. I didn't like how they flash-forward and said that the war ended and basically showed us how the life for the "Koo" family just fell back into place and everything was "happy" again. Did "Sai Cheong" (Sunny Chan) really survive and came back to live "happily ever after" with "Ping On?" Or was it an illusion? I don't really care either way as long as it stops "Ping On" from whining and crying again. I'm just kidding. I take the ending to mean that "Sai Cheong" returns only in spirit to support "Ping On" and never to leave her side. Even if he did survive, it's illogical that he would look exactly like he did before the accident with his fine clothes and being so well-groomed. What "Ping On" needs most is closure; she doesn't know if he's dead or alive and that's what bothers her the most. By imagining that he has returned to her [because in spirit, after all, he will always be in her heart], she can move on. That's how I view the ending.

Leila Tong has regained by fondness. She did such a good job in this series and her role as "Yuet Fung" was quite good. She is strong, tragic, and admirable. I am so thankful that her relationship with "Hau Yee" (Ron Ng) was kept innocent and sweet until the end. I was so worried that they would do something inappropriate because that would have tainted how pure their affections were. They fell in love knowing it was "wrong" and taboo, but they couldn't help it. You can't control who you love. They tried to keep their feelings buried and move on, but it was useless. I liked how they helped and supported each other. It was a very moving relationship. I was so happy they eventually ended up together.

Unfortunately, I didn't like "Hau Yee" as much as "Yuet Fung." He is so stubborn, rash, and reckless. He never listens to anyone and is quick to jump to conclusions. I was quite frustrated with him in most scenes. I understand why he behaves the way he does, but couldn't help but roll my eyes and shake my head every time he would do something "stupid" or rash. His best scenes are with "Yuet Fung." In those scenes, he is soft and considerate and hence, quite likable. Ron's performance improved as the series progressed, but overall he's still not good. I find that he acts the same in every series. I don't know... he looks so "dead" and stoned to me sometimes. I know he's trying, but I'm just not liking him as an actor.

"Ping On"... where to begin? I had a lot of hope for this character because she is the title character, but I was greatly disappointed. The character is written too flatly and "perfectly." I hated how she was so "willing" to endure all of the abuse. I've said this before, but I truly feel that the character loses credibility because she is too excessively nice and self-sacrificing. I couldn't feel any sympathy for her pain or sorrow. Myolie cries so realistically and naturally; I've always felt that one of her best aspects was crying, but it becomes so typical when you see it in every single episode. It just didn't do anything for me anymore. Luckily, "Sai Cheong" did her good. Her character becomes way more likable with him.

I really liked all of the sweet and cute moments between "Sai Cheong" and "Ping On" in the last half of the series. For the first half, though, I just hated how they interacted. "Ping On" would always be so biased and against "Sai Cheong" and yet she expected him to help her time and again. I just groaned and rolled my eyes every time that happened. It was just so ridiculous. How can you openly despise someone and then expect one favor after another? I suppose "Sai Cheong" helped her because he wanted to protect her since she is so helpless. In any case, after they "faked" a relationship, things blossom wonderfully from there on. Myolie and Sunny looked sweet together. Their interactions were so fun and cute.

"Sai Cheong" starts off as a selfish and conniving businessman, but I knew right away that he wasn't a bad guy. He had his reasons and surely enough, he did. It was great watching this character unfold and see the layers that they built for him. He is the best developed character in the series and easily the most likable. He's admirable, smart, and cool. I liked the history of his character and how he grew to join the government. This is my favorite Sunny role and I've grown to like him as an actor because of War. I hope TVB will promote him more.

"Yi Ping" (Mandy Cho) was a likable character. I thought it was touching how she was so dedicated to helping her country. Her feelings for "Sai Cheong" were sweet. I was really surprised to see that "Matsudo" (Shek Sau) really cared for her. He slipped a ring onto her finger, symbolizing that he really did want to marry her and make her his wife. I thought he would hate her after realizing that she was a spy and was only using him, but I guess he really did fall in love with her. I liked the back story with "Matsudo" and "Hau Yee"'s mother and the scenes where he cared for his son and tried to build a relationship. Other than that, the role was one dimensional and only served to advance the plot. Shek Sau's performance was nothing special. I don't have any comments on Mandy. She has improved, but like Ron, she just doesn't feel natural on-screen; I don't feel comfortable watching her.

I was very impressed (and not surprisingly so) with Lau Dan and Angelina Lo Yuen Yan. The two of them are so good in War. I really enjoyed their scenes (whether together or individually). I was quite surprised to see Angelina be all "evil" in the beginning of the series. She usually gets those sweet, funny motherly roles in series, so it was quite a change. Nevertheless, she pulled it off and was very convincing. Her actions were understandable. She felt threatened and wanted to protect her position and daughters. She grew soft once all threats were gone. At the core, she is just a mother and a loving wife.

Halina Tam did a good job with her role. She is too excessively skinny though... I worry for her health. I was scared that they would dump her character after she split with the "Koo" during the evacuation, but luckily, they brought her back. I really liked how they gave her a second [and true] relationship/life. She is not a bad person. She knew very well that Lau Dan never loved her and only married her for a son - of whom she knew he was disappointed in because "Tin Yau" was "slow." It was hard for her because her position in the family rested on her son, yet, everyone kept saying he was "crazy." She is greedy and selfish, yes, but overall, not wicked. The young actor who played "Tin Yau" did a really nice job. I like Charmaine Li after this series. Her role as "Chiu Yee" was well-developed and written. She did a good job. I used to think that her eyes look "dead" and that something about her face was unnatural, but she is quite good after all. Chan Hoi-Yee was adorable as "Ngoi Yee." She looked very cute and the role was sweet. Besides the conflict with her health at the beginning and how she grew to overcome her asthma, the role was one-dimensional, however. Does anyone have any idea who acted as big sister "Tak Yee?" I have no idea who this girl is, but she did pretty well. Poor Ellesmere Choi - he is getting one creepy role after another. As if playing the "kidnapping clown" in the last episode of Forensic Heroes wasn't enough, his role as "Hong" in this series was another psycho. He seemed so nice in the beginning... I couldn't believe he could become such a cold-blooded killer and traitor at the end.

War is a big lie when it comes to the Japanese war. It merely uses it as a backdrop rather than focusing its plot on it. The scenes dedicated to the war were limited. The major focuses were on how the characters dealt with the Japanese invasion and the conflict between patriots and traitors and I felt they were interesting, so I'm not complaining. I was expecting more of a war-based drama, so I was a bit disappointed. Still, I really enjoyed the plots that the writers weaved. I guess War is more of a series set during a time of war rather than a series about a war.

Overall, I think War is an average series. The beginning was quite good and the last third of the series was superb. I could have done without the dragging middle parts. Frankly, the series would have been better as a whole if it was reduced to 20-25 episodes [somewhere in that range]. War just isn't a memorable production. Although it fares far better than other mediocre series, it is really not that great and doesn't leave a lasting impact. Don't get me wrong - I liked it and enjoyed it for the most part... but it stops there. My impression of it isn't that great and it's not a series I would "highly" recommend. I guess I just expected too much.

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