Libera me, Domine, de morte æterna, in die illa tremenda

Again, literally nothing to do at work (I'm a fast worker, sue me). Soooo... meme time!

This is actually a kpop meme, but I'm making it a cpop meme. Because recently, I've been feeling the cpop love more.

( Cpop meme... with pictures! )

20 Minutes into Easy Fortune Happy Life, and I know I'm going to love it. It's typical Chen Qiao En fare; rich asshole falls for adorably quirky, righteous poor girl. It's a good formula though, and Qiao En is great at being the spunky heroine. I always enjoy Qiao En's dramas, but if you didn't like Prince Turns to Frog, or Ying Ye 3+1, you're probably not going to like this.

The opening credits are really pretty. Very obviously metaphorical, but pretty none-the-less.

Cheng Long in black (he looks a TON like Ming Dao in this shot!!)


Qiao En in white (looking super pretty! The long hair is good on her)

Also, I was watching, and was like "is that Xiu Jie Kai?!", and it turns out, yes, Jie Kai is in this too! I'm glad he's been having a comeback recently, he's a good actor, and deserves it. Now if only Megan Lai would get a comeback... Still waiting on Qinlin House of Love...

Dorky smile!! (I think I will either die of happy or die of angst if they make a love triangle with Qiao En, Cheng Long, and Jie Kai... I'm still not sure as to the specifics on that...)

Seriously, how did I not know this was happening?!
Qiao En and Ming Dao have a new drama together. One that has started (and I think ended) filming.

I had heard rumblings about a possible mainland MingEn drama, but I thought that they were just rumors. I was totally and completely wrong. Oh wow, I was wrong. And I'm SO GLAD I was!

Oh my, you have no idea just how excited I am now right now! I watched the preview all slack-jawed. Ming Dao and Qiao En are going to hit this one out of the goddamn park, I can feel it.

I can't believe I'm going to have not only a new Qiao En drama and a new Ming Dao drama, but ANOTHER drama that stars both of them!

Ming Dao and Chen Qiao En are my favorite onscreen couple. Anyone who has watched Prince Turns to Frog can deny their awesomeness. Side note: Prince Turns to Frog is one of my favorite dramas ever. I should make a list of my favorite dramas at some point...

Anyway, the plot of the drama is a bit confusing. What with; abandoned children, mistaken identities, dancing competitions, illnesses and blindness, childhood sweethearts, fraud?, jealousy, car accidents, ETC. But it doesn't matter because; A. MingEn are awesome, and I have no doubt in them, and B. it's a cdrama, which means plenty of awesome angst.

Course since it IS a cdrama, that means subs will be delayed in getting to me. If twdramas are neglected, cdramas are basically ignored.

They have this behind the scenes thing for My Queen, and in it Cheryl talks about meeting with Chen Qiao En, and THAT DID IT. Cheryl Yang is now, FIRMLY, one of my favorites.

I now have a trio of my most favorite, amazing, talented, awesome drama girls.


The Innocent - Ariel Lin Yi Chen


The Sexy - Chen Qiao En


The Awesome - Cheryl Yang Jin Hua

They are all goddesses and I simultaneously want to be them and be their best friends.

Also, Cheryl did a LOT of underwear modeling (as I found out when I did a photo search)... *is jealous of Cheryl Yang and her fabulous looks*

Thanks so much for all the good wishes re work! I'll try to get back to everyone tonight (unless I manage to fall asleep, which is looking more and more probable by the minute). It's been a long day, and I won't go into it more, but it's left me exhausted.

So yesterday I mentioned awesome (to me) drama news, but then put off writing about it, because Big Bang got in the way...

Anyway, I've heard rumors for awhile, but now, not only does it look to be happening very soon, but it's ALREADY IN PRODUCTION!

The drama I'm talking about; Good Health & Fortune (福氣安康, Fu Qi An Kang), starring my most beloved Chen Qiao En! The male lead? Why none other than Lan Cheng Long (Blue Lan)! He was in The Outsiders, but probably is best known for playing Yamen (the dude was was supposedly Ah Si's cousin, but was actually hired by Dao Ming Feng to seduce Shan Cai) in Meteor Garden. He also dated Barbie Xu awhile back.

Anyway, the plot of this drama is pretty interesting; Cheng Long plays a rich guy with a genial facade, but is really kinda evil. He is forced by his grandfather (somehow...) to marry Qiao En's character (an ordinary girl [with a heart of gold, of course!] who studies herbalism). Because he doesn't want to marry her, he decides to hire assassins to kill her. Up until the killing part, it's typical drama fare. But man, they had me at the assassins.

Of course, Qiao En will melt his heart, and everyone will be happy. BUT FIRST THERE WILL BE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATIONS!

I'm actually kinda glad Jerry didn't sign on to do this drama. I love him, but the role just doesn't seem right for him. I've only seen Cheng Long in MG, but his character was kinda evil and manipulative, so hey, it fits in my mind! It's supposed to air post My Queen, which is GREAT! I'll be losing the amazingness that is My Queen, but gaining a new Qiao En drama. Pretty even trade.

I also heard rumors that Extravagant Challenge was back on. Tenative of course, but still super exciting!

Also; How off the presses. A potential new drama starring Sam Wang; Mo Nu 18 Hao (魔女１８號, Witch 18). I know NOTHING about it, other than it possibly also starring June and Dou Zhi Kong. Which makes me think it's somehow connected to Your Home Is My Home. Or maybe not... maybe they just wanted to throw the actors together again. They ARE both on CTS...

Calling Big Star is supposed to start airing this month, but I haven't heard a specific date.

I hate whenever I go to look something up about a upcoming twdrama, my blog is always one of the first listings. Seriously, am I the only one writing about them?! That's kinda sad...

When you search google for "upcoming taiwanese dramas 2009", my site is the first one listed. Weird.

I was trolling the interwebs looking for news about upcoming twdramas, I came across a bit of news that made me SO HAPPY... until it didn't.

Ariel Lin is supposedly involved in a drama called Paper Rose. It costars ZHANG RUI JIA! And not in a side role either, I think he's the male lead! I proceeded to get super excited for around 5 minutes, until I read that production has been delayed and it probably won't be seeing the light of day for awhile. Ariel might have even dropped it. (Not terribly exciting to me, but will be to others; Baron Chen, of Fated to Love You fame, is also slated to be in it)

This makes me super sad, because Ariel is my favorite serious tw-actress (Qiao En is my favorite tw-idol-actress. I love Qiao En to pieces, but she's really not as good an actress as Ariel is). She's got a great range, and I enjoy all of her work. Rui Jia is, of course, one of my favorite tw-actors. He's really really fabulous (seriously, WATCH ETERNAL SUMMER), and it saddens me that he's always delegated to "best friend" roles. If this drama happens I will watch it and love it solely because I love those two actors.

But anyway, this brings me back to the one thing I hate the most about the Taiwanese entertainment industry; they cannot freaking STICK TO PRODUCTION. Compare to Japan; everyone knows about upcoming jdramas. They have planned casts, they go into production as planned, and they're generally set. Twdramas are a mess. They announce dramas, but then don't do them. Casts change frequently. Production halts all the time. It's so chaotic!

As of right now, the ONLY twdramas I know will be airing soon are Black & White, and Calling Big Star (maybe Quietly Falling in love With You, as well). And of those, only Black & White has an actual air date scheduled. Good Health & Fortune is another one that looks like it could be definite (I hope! Squee! Qiao En!), but honestly, I can't tell. Even Momo Love, one I thought was happening for sure, has been postponed.

Seriously, what the hell are they going to be airing in Taiwan next season is all the damn dramas are postponed?! (Yes, I know they have other shows... Dramas aren't everything)

*sigh* This whole rollercoaster over Paper Rose has made me upset. Angry beyond reason. Way to ruin what could have been an AMAZING drama, CTV.

So suddenly, while watching Green Forest, I felt the urge to do a picspam.

This is actually a mini picspam. I'm working on a huge one, but I'm PRETTY sure I'm getting sick (which never happens, I have a ninja immune system), so it's a mini picspam for now.

This is Chen Qiao En. The best, most awesome, sweetest, prettiest girl in the world. I have a major girlcrush on her. If I were a guy (or gay) I'd be so totally in love and want to marry her. As it is, I want to be her best friend. She's just so amazing. Thing about Qiao En is, she knows sex sells. And does she sell it. She did a shoot for GQ, and those pictures were quite risque (for Taiwan).

But I think the most amazing thing about Qiao En is that she isn't afraid to talk about her inadequacies. She discusses how she became depressed and an alcoholic. She talks about her disappointment in the industry. She's strong that way. She also has a blog (that I visit often, actually) where she posts lots of pictures of her adorable scottish fold cat that she takes everywhere.

So; her personality is great, she's gorgeous, she loves animals, is a good actress, has a lovely voice, writes books, and is modest about her success. Did I mention she's nearly 30? And she looks like a teenager... I would hate her if I didn't love her so much.




( click for more Qiao En goodness! )

Also, wanna see the cutest thing ever? I was browsing Qiao En's blog, as I haven't been there in a few weeks, and saw the most adorable photo ever (second to last picture). Yes, it's Ming Dao holding a baaaaby!! I'm almost positive this is Zax Wang's wedding. (Oh, and warning; don't repost any of Qiao En's pictures. She'll close down her blog)

It's good to see that the Edison Chen scandal didn't totally ruin Cecilia Cheung's life!
Deborah Lai confirmed Cecilia's second baby; Patrick Tse wants twins

*Dies!!* My dream of cross agency co-operation is coming true!! Mike, Joe, AND Qiao En in a commercial! So excited to see it when it comes out on youtube! (Article also totally mentions Mike's birthday! I meant to do a picspam celebration (mostly as a present for me...), but didn't get around to it.)
Mike He and Joe Cheng both appear like strangers

I'm now EVEN MORE excited for Starlit. Previously, the print ad was enough to make me want to see it, but these trailers make it so much better!! Jerry Yan + piano + tragic car accident involving broken hands + Terri Kwan without the ridiculous extensions they made her wear in WtSYA + angst = DRAMA GOLD.
4 New Trailers for Jerry Yan's "Starlit"; "Starlit" OST

I like the title of this story (it totally make Qiao En sound like a prostitute!) Plus, I ♥ Qiao En! She has a western boyfriend! How adorable! I'm still MingEn all the way though...(I know I'm being redundant in my news, but I thought this one was interesting because I never knew that Mike and Joe had issues with their friendship.... ohhh now I see why. (Hehehehe! Brokeback relationship! Even if Joe was in love with Mike, which I very much doubt he is, it'd be adorable! Joe is rather androgynous, and Mike is so pretty. So it works out...)
Chen Qiao En wanders between two men, passionately hugs Joe Zheng to earn money, rushes towards foreigner boyfriend

Um, crazy fans much?! Poor Alan! Apparently he can never get any action from his female costars, or else his fans will rebel and freak out... I know it's Asia, and things are different there, but COME ON?! It's ACTING.
Show Luo french Kisses with Alice Ceng, Wife fans accuse him of having an affair.

Stupid Taiwanese press, trying to make Ella look bad! I'm sure S.H.E can easily win awards with or without the presence of Twins.
S.H.E rely on Twins' absence to win awards? Ella gets angry

Qiao En and Ming Dao are doing a new drama!? MEEEEHHH! How did I not know about this?! Maybe it's just a rumor though, since I can't find any evidence... (Also, MingEn loves!!)
Chen Qiao En has Ming Dao; almost forgets about boyfriend

Awww the cuteness! I know Wu Zun is Ella's rumored boyfriend, but I had no idea Jay Chou and Alan Luo were rumored to be Selina and Hebe's boyfriends...
S.H.E holds Christmas party; fans imitate their rumoured boyfriends

Awesome Joe Cheng quote;
"Cosmo: So to you, what you like to do most for the environmental issues?
Joe: People around the world will wear nothing and will only eat vegetables! (Laughed)"
Joe Cheng’s sincere Q&A session

Oh wu Zun! You kill me your your adorableness! Wearing skirts, and joking around with Alan Luo (... about wearing skirts)! Adorable! It's kinda too bad that Taiwan doesn't have the crazy obsession with cross dressing that Japan does....
Wu Zun wears short skirt; invites Show Luo to compare femininity

I adore Ariel and Joe so much (I'm definitely an Arjoe fan), and they're so cute in this article. They also randomly talk about the US. And how Joe wants Christmas wishes from the leader of Mars....
Ariel Lin and Joe Cheng's Merry Christmas

Yay Extravagant Challenge!! And they're just WANTING us to suffer now, with the teasing that the second male lead is ALMOST confirmed! I'm dying to see who will play Shou!
Jerry Yan's new drama 'Extravagant Challenge' ; Director Niu says filming will begin soon

ANNNNNDDD Done!

Several things;

- I've been MIA for awhile due to my recent obsession with A Game About Love. I ADORE it (but then, don't I adore everything?!). It's so sweet, and lovely, and friendship-ey! Qiao En is really good in this role. Her character, Duo Li, is sweet and sincere. More like Xin Yi from Fated to Love You, than her characters in Prince Turns to Frog, or Ying Ye 3+1. Sam and Xun Jie are great too! Their friendship is portrayed so well. And both are fantastically adorable and hot in the drama. Yu Qiao, who plays Qiao En's sister in the drama, kinda annoys me though. I think it's her voice.

- Randomly speaking of Fated to Love You, I read somewhere that there is probably going to be a sequel! Sequels are rare (the only ones I know of are the Meteor Garden sequels, and They Kiss Again (sequel to ISWAK)), but it's not terribly surprising, considering FtLY is the #1 twdrama ever. I guess they originally were going to do a period piece, but then decided against it. That would have been awesome though!

- Haven't started my Love Contract project yet, but I will soon (maybe even tonight!). I've actually been taking notes to start my NEXT project... but that one is still a bit away.

- I just read about a kdrama called Love Story in Harvard that I so want to watch now! How could I NOT... I mean, it takes place in HARVARD. It's be so freaking awesome to watch an asian drama where the setting is a place I see EVERY DAY (yes, I see Harvard everyday... it's on my way to work, and very hard to miss).

- I've become more sure that my plan to study Mandarin in Taiwan is the right thing for me. It's still a ways away, so I have plenty of time to reconsider. Plus, one of the community colleges near me offers Chinese... so I might sign up for a beginners class. And apparently they don't teach hanzi in the class, which is good, since they'd probably teach simplified anyway. So this way, I can learn some basics, and then I'll be slightly prepared for Taiwan. Also, I want to learn in Taiwan specifically because they teach traditional hanzi. Right now, more than anything, I want to do Chinese studies (in particular, Taiwanese studies).

- It's also really annoying learning mandarin in simplified, and then having to translate it into traditional via my trust dictionary. Stupid simplified!

- Lastly, found a car today! Very possible that I will buy it. It's cheap, and looks nice. So yeah!

( Drama/Anime/Manga List update 11Oct08 )

Updating my list of Twdrama themes/etc.

1. Drinking/getting drunk (almost always the female lead)
2. Motorcycles
3. The setting is Taipei
4. Bad boy/good girl
5. Rich boy/poor girl
6. Set in College (a lot of dramas are based on Japanese mangas, which are usually set in high school. The Taiwanese always set them in college instead)
7. Girls passing out all the time
8. Token shot of the 101
9. The same scene being filmed from about 5 different angles...

I really kinda hate J-star! I mean, what's with the no dating within agency thing?! Maybe Qiao En and Ming Dao really are just friends, and don't want to be together, but it sucks that they can't have a chance to decide that! Yeah.... I'm a total MingEn shipper. It's kinda sad...

OMG How much did I love Ying Ye 3+1!! I just finished it, and it was so adorable! Ah Jiang was an asshole towards the end (a well intentioned on, but an asshole none-the-less), but then it all turned out happy! Yay!! I want Ming Dao and Qiao En to do more dramas together! (Kinda random, but Qiao En did another drama with Sam Wang (besides MVP Valentine)!! Awesomely, it's already been subbed by a subbing group who's main focus is subbing only things with Sam in them! Hmmmm I totally might have to watch that next! I adore Qiao En, and loved Sam in PTtF)

I totally need to make myself a Qiao En icon!

( Drama/Anime/Manga List update 05Oct08 )