Pupusa
Terra Firma
This was a drama that never should have been, because it failed on the most basic level: the screenplay. The writing was amateurish, with illogical plot lines and inane dialogues. I felt sorry for Hawick Lau, who had to deliver ridiculous lines like this, “I hope this bottle of perfume will take you away from the dark days and be like the happiness that you give me.”
The main cast was gorgeous. The girls were stylish and the guys suave. Try as they might, the actors couldn’t save themselves from the trainwreck that was the writing.
Hawick was born to play this type of leading man. He was hot, cool, and ideal as the romantic hero who would do everything for the one woman he loved. Tony Yang, equally hot and less cool, was not so convincing as the blind lover. They made him reenact that dancing scene from “Scent of a Woman,” but he just couldn’t channel his inner Al Pacino.
Yang Rong may be too cute to play a menacing murderess. That said, she nailed the smug look so well that you want to slap it right off her face. Her evil schemes were predictable and dumb. She only got away with it because the script made her victims much, much dumber. Her biggest victim, our female lead Jiang Xin, was the dumbest one of all.
Tiffany Tang was very sweet and dainty, but still the weakest of the four main actors. She mostly acted towards the camera instead of towards her co-stars, thus ensuring that there was zero chemistry with Hawick and Tony. Her body language was awkward at times. It didn’t help that whoever dubbed her voice sounded so childish. Her acting was quite simplistic, too. She went from scene to scene, yet unable to make them connect. This was most obvious in the episode where her Jiang Xin faced a dilemma: do the righteous thing that might get people killed, or walk away to protect your loved ones. Of course she chose to do the “right thing” which led to a night of mayhem and death. She shed beautiful tears as they cued heart-wrenching music. The next morning, when asked if she slept well, she smiled cheerfully and said yes. No sign of emotional scarring or guilt, whatsoever.
This is one of those shows that I really want to love, but can't.
The main cast was gorgeous. The girls were stylish and the guys suave. Try as they might, the actors couldn’t save themselves from the trainwreck that was the writing.
Hawick was born to play this type of leading man. He was hot, cool, and ideal as the romantic hero who would do everything for the one woman he loved. Tony Yang, equally hot and less cool, was not so convincing as the blind lover. They made him reenact that dancing scene from “Scent of a Woman,” but he just couldn’t channel his inner Al Pacino.
Yang Rong may be too cute to play a menacing murderess. That said, she nailed the smug look so well that you want to slap it right off her face. Her evil schemes were predictable and dumb. She only got away with it because the script made her victims much, much dumber. Her biggest victim, our female lead Jiang Xin, was the dumbest one of all.
Tiffany Tang was very sweet and dainty, but still the weakest of the four main actors. She mostly acted towards the camera instead of towards her co-stars, thus ensuring that there was zero chemistry with Hawick and Tony. Her body language was awkward at times. It didn’t help that whoever dubbed her voice sounded so childish. Her acting was quite simplistic, too. She went from scene to scene, yet unable to make them connect. This was most obvious in the episode where her Jiang Xin faced a dilemma: do the righteous thing that might get people killed, or walk away to protect your loved ones. Of course she chose to do the “right thing” which led to a night of mayhem and death. She shed beautiful tears as they cued heart-wrenching music. The next morning, when asked if she slept well, she smiled cheerfully and said yes. No sign of emotional scarring or guilt, whatsoever.
This is one of those shows that I really want to love, but can't.
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