Is Raymond Lam Ironman?

Explain this to me:

Raymond gets his head smashed into the window:

Hit by a car:

And escapes with barely a scratch on his pretty face.

Is he Ironman or what?

(Screenshots from Highs and Lows Ep 1)


Raymond Lam Ironman Part 2

Hong Kong Adventures

A little overdue, but here's the post about my time in Hong Kong!

A Good Heart Goes Haywire Location Filming

I stumbled upon another TVB filming session. I couldn't get the name of the drama from any of the production people, but I suspect they were shooting for A Good Heart Goes Haywire since the actors I saw are all in that series.

There was no dialogue throughout the scene. From my guesstimation, Jack Wu and Benz Hui are following/spying on the light blue shirt guy (any help here?), who was walking two dogs. This would make sense since Benz plays a police officer in the series.

Also saw Sammy Shum in the TVB van, but couldn't snap a picture of him.

Opening Day of Racing Season

I was at the opening day of the racing season when I spotted Eric Tsang at the race course. He and Nat Chan are well-known horse-owners in the entertainment industry. Eric's horse finished first in one of the races, so he was taking pictures with the horse and jockey at the podium. Only managed to get picture of him in the crowd. Can you spot him? (click the picture to enlarge)

Divas in Distress Promotional Event

I was shopping and what do you know? There was a promotional event for Divas in Distress at that mall! Most of the cast was there, minus Gigi Wong, who apparently was in Canada at that time. The event started with the child actor "Michel" playing the piano along with someone singing the theme song. Then all the actors came out for games. The first game was to decorate a lantern (in anticipation of the Mid-Autumn Festival), with Liza Wang being the judge. Him and Mandy's team won.

For the second game, each of the couples were called up: Him/Mandy, Chin Ka Lok/Eliza, So Gei/Lo Lo. The ladies had to throw balls at the guys who were holding big pink hearts. The objective is to get as many of the balls to stick on the heart as possible. Him and Mandy won again. They seem to have so much chemistry even when playing games.

The final segment featured a performance of the English songs used in the drama. Him and Mandy did a little dance during their song.

I also saw Heart Road GPS Location Filming!

"Highs and Lows" Theme Song

The theme song for Highs and Lows is "幼稚完" (Naivety Ends), sung by Raymond Lam and composed by none other than his good friend Tang Chi Wei.

Chris Lai in "King Maker"

All credits go to Lizzy @ http://tvbcartoons.tumblr.com/


Found a cute drawing of Chris Lai's character in King Maker.


Read King Maker Review.

Random Question

When a TVB artist shoots a commercial for a product, can that commercial appear on other channels (ie. ATV)?

King Maker Review

Producer: Leung Choi Yuen

Genre: Imperial rivalry

Cast: Kent Cheng, Wayne Lai, Pierre Ngo, Chris Lai, Kingdom Yuen, Florence Kwok, Kristal Tin

Plot: Essentially three ministers vying to determine the destiny of the faltering Song Dynasty. (Read more here)

Review:

With the same leads, same producer, same costumes, almost same setting, King Maker will definitely draw comparisons to The Greatness of a Hero. And the conclusion is… King Maker pales in comparison.  

Perhaps it was the length of the drama. The Greatness of a Hero was fast-paced with only 20 episodes. King Maker felt a lot slower with 28 episodes. There’s no need to repeatedly show the flashback montages. Nor the long heart-felt conversations paired with slow music. They can even cut some of the added attempts at drama, such as the whole Vivien Yeo jealousy act at Natalie Tong. I would have preferred it if everything was crammed into a much more intense 20 episodes.

Or perhaps it is the familiarity of it all. The same old plots are being recycled again and again. Where have I seen the voodoo doll scheme before? The failed delivery of rice? The is-he-the-real-son crisis always leading to a highly dramatized blood-test which never fails because of some type of trick? We need some new creativity. Also please end the recycling of those “golden” lines from previous dramas.

In what was billed as “TV King meets Film King”, the actors did their job BUT… For Wayne Lai, I feel like there’s nothing new. The holding-his-anger-by-clenching-his-jaw and the serious, non-smiling expression are things I’ve seen before. And especially when he does the yelling scenes, it reminds me of Chau Kau of Rosy Business. As for Kent Cheng, what is with those weird expressions, loud yelling and tone changes? He talks too fast as well. Nonetheless, they were still very, very good, along with everyone else that had an important role. Special praise should go to Pierre Ngo for his excellent portrayal of the traumatized prince when he returned to Song.

Mind you, the drama is not nearly as bad as I’ve made it sound. It is a drama full of schemes, deception and betrayal. There is a unique take with the First Prince having to recover from post-traumatic disorder. The character relationships were intriguing. Initially, the sons of the minsters weren’t on their father’s side. Elaine Yiu had complicated connections to all three ministers. This series will leave you wanting to watch the next episode, except you may want to fast forward within some episodes.

By the way, in real history, Pierre’s First Prince is indeed not the son of his predecessor. However he was still a descendant of the Song royal family. (Read more here)

Conclusion: Like No Regrets: exciting but needlessly dragged on.

Rating: 4/5

Banner

I'm back! Had a great time in Hong Kong. I'll update in the next few days of all the TVB stars I saw.

But first, BIG thanks to lynne for creating a banner for Casual TVB! Very impressive stuff.

Please visit her blogs at TVB Horizon and Linda Chung Thoughts.

Overview - Highs and Lows

Michael Miu is the Senior Inspector of the Narcotics Bureau (NB) Operations Unit. He is mentor and friend to Raymond Lam, Senior Inspector of the NB Intelligence Unit. The two cooperate seamlessly to solve many cases. But Raymond discovers hints that Michael may have ties to drug dealers, so he quietly begins to investigate. Meanwhile, Chief Inspector Ben Wong causes further conflicts between the friends.

Meanwhile, Raymond meets Kate Tsui, an informant. Mutual love sparks, but Kate declines to begin a relationship because of her background. Instead, she lets newbie police officer Ella Koon win Raymond’s heart, leading to a complicated relationship between the three. With nothing to lose, Kate becomes the new “Drug Queen”, trafficking and dealing drugs without any regard of the law. Raymond is extremely hurt by Kate’s actions and decides to team up with Michael to battle against her. 

Original Article

Pics: {1} {2} {3}

Heart Road GPS Location Filming

I randomly stumbled onto a location filming for the series Heart Road GPS while in Hong Kong. Such a simple scene, but it took them many takes and a long time to film. It was very exciting for me because I’ve never seen something being filmed before!

The scene is about Rachel Kan arguing with her boyfriend (an actor that I don’t recognize). He flings her to the ground and drives off. Ruco Chan and Louise Lee run across the street to her (almost getting hit by a truck, which Ruco stops). They help Rachel up and Louise comforts Rachel at the curb.