A Tale of Yearning (2022)

This shampoo has a gay agenda ;)

I'd say A Tale Of Yearning is probably the most sensual ad from the Adolph Shampoo series. There's something about bathing scenes that you really can't get past....

The production value of this series is what I'd describe as high-end Douyin – it would be unfair to pit it against mainstream TV ads.

As for the storyline, it does jump back in forth in time a little unnecessarily, but the narrative holds up well. The chemistry between the two FLs is all that matters really (sorry Adolph Shampoo) and it's at its most palpable here. That said, I would prefer if we did away with the violent tropes that often feature in these sapphic tales.

I'm not sure how shampoo sales are going, but I think they've found a narrative formula that works and are running with it.

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Too Good a Storyline for a Shampoo Ad

I just finished watching this and I'll have to say, this is my intro to GLs! I hope I see more in the future and that they're good ones.

The story is a very sad one. The title is "A Tale of Yearning", and somehow I yearned for Noble Lady and Madam Liu San to end up together, which unfortunately is not meant to happen. It is a very short piece, not even a full drama or movie, but a shampoo advertisement (this is too good to be one). It was edited in an FMV-like format except that the story was original.

The plot goes like this: A Noble Lady feels entrenched by the performance of an opera artist as she performs the script the Noble Lady has beem studying a lot in secret. She goes to the opera actress to seek her tutelage. What follows is a deeply special relationship that they have for each other. Seriously this is a tragically beautiful story that makes me feel things. I would've cried if the actors were better or are exceptional, but this is an advertisement anyway. The storyline is way too good for just a shampoo ad.

There's nothing much to say about the acting. Being an ad, we don't get to explore the characters enough. However, provided a limited amount of depth, both Sheng Wei Vivi and Ai Ye performed really well. It was nothing exceptional, but not unwatchable either. However, Sheng Wei and Ai Ye have electric chemistry. I'm thinking about them a lot as I'm writing this, nearly getting emotional. Whenever I see them together in this short, I'm like "THEY'RE DEFINITELY IN LOVE!!" Their characters had me feeling a lot of things, even the mentioning of the shampoo! But for me to be in tears, they needed to up their acting skills. I know that it's a short advertisement, so nothing wrong with that.

This short is aesthetically pleasing, from the costumes to the makeup to the sceneries, and the way it's edited, like an FMV. It is the aesthetics too that made me like this ad a lot.

If only dreams and wishes can come true, I'd love it if it gets adapted to a real GL drama with the same actors, because it has a lot of potential to be one. No matter how decent the acting is, I'd watch an entire drama just for Sheng Wei and Ai Ye. I hope they get more recognition internationally. The storyline is great, but if adapted into one, it would definitely be a masterpiece, plus we would get to explore each and every character. It was a beautiful tragic story.

It is an advertisement I'd watch again and again, breaking the rules of heteronormative society. Overall, I enjoyed watching it, though I wish I could cry.

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