Go Princess Go

I'm on a roll as far as this drama is concerned, warranting its 3rd posting on the same day. Everything about the production is average at best and certainly incomparable to the big budgeted wuxia dramas nowadays. Nevertheless, there's something unique to the story that leaves you wanting more.

Go Princess Go is a web drama made for the small screen and you might soon notice that the same sets are used repeatedly with minimal interior designs. Its most extravagant expenditure would have to be on costumes chosen from curtain linens that were sewn to make a dress. Honesty though, its HD filming translate beautifully onscreen so it goes to say that money isn't everything.

The fact that it's so short is a plus factor for me too, though I wonder why the version I'm watching on LeTV seems to be missing a lot of scenes (edited: it's because of censorship).

Go Princess Go 太子妃升职记 is a time-travel, body-swap, rom-com set in ancient China. It is based on a novel of the same name written by Xian Cheng 鲜橙, offering a hilarious twist to the typical period dramas. 

The cast is was relatively unknown but the drama has been consistently growing its cult following and its stars receiving some much-deserved attention. Its popularity is mainly due to its controversial storyline that is much too out there for conservative China. 

Bad publicity is good publicity, since word of mouth quickly catapulted this drama, ratings-wise, and it was actually very well-received by Chinese fans. If you are watching, be sure to check out the alternate endings.

Zhang Tian Ai 张天爱 headlines as Zhang Peng Peng, the modern man who finds himself waking up in the body of a crown princess. Where did they find this gorgeous lady? Aside from looks, she has the acting chops as well and her portrayal of Zhang Peng Peng was charming, witty and funny, easily claiming her spot as the breakout star of the drama.

Sheng Yi Lun 盛一伦 is the male lead Qi Sheng who is outwardly cold and arrogant so I have yet to reach the episode where he warms up as a character.

Yu Meng Long 于朦胧 stars as Jiu Wang, the second lead in the drama to complete the love triangle. 

Source: 1234567g, Baidu

Go Princess Go and Monster Killer in hot water

Pardon my far-from-perfect Chinese skills, but if my interpretation is correct, the highly-talked-about drama Go Princess Go has been taken down from video-hosting sites due to a breach of moral values. I have seen a couple of episodes of Go Princess Go and I can see that its quirky humor may not sit well with China's censorship agency known as SAPPRFT.

Go Princess Go would have been your average drama if not for its outrageous over-the-top storyline that you will either love or hate. If you are the former, you probably cannot stop watching. Fortunately, the drama is only blacklisted for the time being as its broadcasting company LeTV announced that scenes are being re-edited to accommodate SARFT's citations.

A second drama called Monster Killer, which I absolutely love, is also temporarily banned in China maybe for violence (again sorry for my weak translation skills). It's not all bad for Monster Killer because it just had a pretty good run in Hong Kong with its final episode ending at an all-time high. While Monster Killer still can't compare to mainstream dramas, it has amassed enough attention to boost the popularity of rising star Elvis Han (Chinese Paladin 5). Seriously, he is a good-looking guy with a six-pack. Who can resist?

Source: cankaoxiaoxi, People

First Look: Go Princess Go

I hate spoilers but aren't synopses kind of like spoilers depending on what major plot points are given away? Go Princess Go 太子妃升职记 is a Chinese historical drama that I knew nothing about until today and if you are also in the dark as I was, then let's keep the suspense because it's so much more fun that way. 

Episode 1 begins with three women on a high speed chase in modern day China and oddly enough, one of them was galloping on horseback along the highway. The trio finally arrive at a posh club where they have come to exact revenge on their ex-boyfriend / cheater Zhang Peng. Frankly, all the leather clad women and flashing strobe lights look like a scene straight out of a cheap knock-off movie.

The girls don't have an invitation but one of them nonchalantly seals the deal with a kiss and the bouncer happily let's them in. At the same time, we get a glimpse of Zhang Peng at the top of his game parading around women after women and scoping out his next target.

Things hit the fan the moment Zhang Peng notices the three and in a state of panic, he accidentally shoves a random girl into the pool. He dives in after her and what ensues is an out-of-body experience where he faints into oblivion beside a woman in ancient garb, which is basically cue for 'we just travelled back in time'.

First impressions: Now that I see where this is going, I feel like anything that was ridiculous or cheesy was intentional and the drama's direction becomes even more evident after the lead gets transported to ancient China.

The main guy is sporting an earring, the girls are wearing sleeveless dresses and I could have sworn the palace doctor donned a Chanel hat. I have seen so many time travel dramas and just blogged about one more recently but seriously, the twist at episode 1 was unexpectedly hilarious and I can honestly declare that I have never seen a drama like this. To sum it up, it's outrageously silly, yet could be quite entertaining if you like slapstick comedy. Check out my episode recaps.

Click here for the 2016 best c-drama recommendations (to be updated regularly).