Growing up, I spent most of my childhood leisure time watching TVB drama series played on the now defunct VHS tapes with my 'tv-addict' Grandma. Luckily, Grandma had my Uncle K as her trusty delivery boy. He would ride away on his motorbike to the nearby VHS blockbuster rental store in Ujong Pasir whenever Grandma needed her pick-me-up. After he came home with the prized catch, we would all gather in front of the TV to watch the latest drama import from Hong Kong on our VHS cassette video player - until the next saga arrives within a few days.
Without further ado, be prepared for a trip down memory lane into the Hong Kong silver screen as we bring to you: '4 iconic TVB series of the past decade and do they still ring a bell to you now?
The Greed Of Men, aptly known as "Dai Si Doi" among the Cantonese-speaking community in the world, is a 1992 TVB classic known best for its theme of vengeance during the rise and fall of the Hong Kong share market industry. Set in a chronological timeline that spans three generations of the vengeful saga, Greed focuses mainly on the feuding Fongs and the Tings family. As a vengeance-fueled drama, Greed has other elements like brotherhood chivalry, humor, forbidden romance, and the wicked committing heinous crimes, like in one highly-disturbing and graphic scene where the mafia-like Ting brothers fully instruct their army of crooks to ruthlessly exterminate the entire Fong family. By throwing them off one by one from the peak of the tall building, of course!
Without a doubt, the actor Felix Wong has to thank the iconic TVB series Looking Back In Anger for shooting him to fame during the late 80s. Unlike The Greed Of Men, the series starts in the present day with a "now" affluent Kin( played brilliantly by Felix Wong ) reminiscing back about the hardships of the past. Like its theme song sung by the late singer Danny Chan, Looking Back In Anger is so touching to the very core that it can make a grown man cry. Other than the brilliant acting chops of its lead actor, the series became a tremendous success due also to the acting prowess of the actor Deric Wan. In reality, Wan was so cunning and evil in his character for Looking Back In Anger that viewers in Hong Kong wanted to throw rotten fruits at him.
As beautiful as a deadly red rose like the actress Irene Wan, she played the part of the vengeance-seeking orphan Hoi Chiu perfectly. Despite that, the series kicks off with an infant 'Hoi Chiu' happily living with her humble but happy family. But due to one evil man's misdeed, the blissful life of her little family of four was tragically turned upside down overnight. As the years passed, the now-adult Hoi Chiu became a kind-hearted young woman combined with head-turning gorgeous good looks. However, after accidentally finding out about her family's oppressed past, the determined Hoi Chiu uses her seductive beauty and charm as a weapon to bring down all those who have harmed her and those whom she loved the most. On the other side, this series also starred a very young and handsome Deric Wan. He played the part of the kind-hearted 'Uncle Rain' effortlessly. In the series, Uncle Rain was akin to the knight of shining armour to Hoi Chiu since he supported and loved her through thick and thin.
When a young Malay dude randomly asked me whether or not have I watched the 1995 TVB series ‘Journey To The West’, I merely replied by laughing off at his silly question. Because everyone I know says they have seen it about an infinite number of times on the idiot box. To add on, they can relate and understand fully the universal comical jokes of this very humorous series; which talks mainly about the epic journey and adventures of the Monkey King or SunWukong, played to perfection by the actor Dicky Cheung. Even today, Cheung is hands down the 'numero uno' Sun Wukong. Besides that, another stand-out character is the haplessly love-struck Pigsy. The actor Wayne Lai, best memorable for playing 'Pigsy' could fit into this iconic character like a glove. My all-time favorite scene with ‘Pigsy’ was him accidentally becoming pregnant by drinking the magical elixir water meant only for the womenfolk who lived within the ‘Kingdom of All Women'. But later after giving birth, he tried placating his crying human baby by singing a hilariously slightly twisted version of a nursery rhyme ala lullaby to the bemused child. Alternatively, Journey To The West is also an excellent series to watch if you want to learn and understand more about interesting Chinese fables and myths.
The Bottomline:
In a wrap, these 4 leading examples above are not only considered icons in Chinese pop culture. In reality, they have a wide universal appeal that transcends beyond language and skin color. Just like how iconic silent film star Charlie Chaplin once so successfully connected with movie audiences everywhere despite the lack of verbal audio during the silent film era. Otherwise, we would like to know what's your take on the above list. If yes, do take some time to comment and kindly tell me which TV show you know deserves a place here!
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Lim Su Yee is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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