Wednesday, November 30, 2016

TVB Sales Presentation 2017

The Unholy Alliance



Nina Paw is in charge of a large, powerful corporation. In coordination with other powerful figures, she controls the entire society from behind the scenes. Having done evil things, she is afraid that it will bring harm to her family. She is willing to sacrifice and gives up her biological son, Ruco Chan. She later adopts an orphan, Joel Chan, as a spiritual substitute. The two mother-son relationships become entangled into a story of blood and tears...

With family members fighting against each other, Samuel Kwok is unwilling to be just a vassal. He conspires with outsiders to turn against them. His daughter, Elaine Yiu, bearing the burden of the original sin, has a thorny romantic life...

Nina tries to change her ways and find justice and stability for her descendants. Her female bodyguard, Nancy Wu, tries to help her detach from the chaotic, interest-oriented world, but Nina discovers that she does not control everything and that there is someone else behind the scenes...

Besides the pleasant Taiwan scenery, there are gun battles, diving and speeding cars that are a feast for the eyes, as well as displaying martial arts techniques such as Krav Maga from Israel and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. The series aims to be refreshing for the audience and to make them feel passionate!

Interest level: 3.5/5. Sounds like the Overachievers-type drama that usually disappoint. 


The Unlawful Justice Squad



Lady Justice wears a blindfold, signifying equality, righteousness and non-discrimination as the spirit of the law.

Blind lawyer Vincent Wong has an extraordinary sense of touch that exceeds what one can see with their eyes. Owen Cheung is a private investigator that uses grey-area tactics to obtain evidence. The two are roommates and partners in investigation, and have a bromance. Not even Sisley Choi, a paralegal with a triad background, can squeeze in between their friendship. Ali Lee, a liberal judge who goes against the legal industry's conservative culture, has an ambiguous love relationship with the two men.

Interest level: 3/5. Can't wait to see how TVB screws up the law yet again. 


Oh My Grad



The school founded by Wu Fung and Helena Law, veterans in the education industry, is facing closure. Their eldest son, Roger Kwok, is passionate about education, while younger son, Bob Lam, is a popular tutor. The two of them are tasked with turning the school around. Public relations queen Ada Choi's method of handling matters is diametrically opposite from Roger's style, which leads to conflict, but they still mutually admire each other.

The students and teachers at the school each have different stories... the father-daughter teaching duo of Ram Chiang and Mag Lam, the Thai-Chinese transfer student Eliza Sam, the brash and unkempt Joyce Cheng, and the mysterious Wong Cho Lam who appears and disappears randomly... knitting together a heart-warming yet weird experience.

Continuing the Inbound franchise's concern for social issues, with higher education as the stage, the series uses a light-hearted approach to talk about the education system that changed overnight, the absurd behaviour of monster parents and the miserable life of Hong Kong children, and reflects on the joys and pains of teachers. Each character is by our side, giving the audience a sense of familiarity and resonance.

The story involves the equal rights under the law of special groups. These "special groups" are commonly encountered, including the elderly, women and children, the disabled, those with mental disorders and transgender people. In order to defend justice, the four main characters use borderline tactics and different perspectives to trigger the audience's thoughts on ethics.

Interest level: 0/5. This series should be named "Oh My Gawd Why Is This Being Made?". 


Descending Demons Taxi



Taxi driver Kenneth Ma has narrowly escaped death many times. He accidentally awakens Hubert
Wu, a spirit who has been asleep for a hundred years. Ever since, Kenneth acquires a vision that allows him to see "things" that ordinary people cannot see.

Temperamental doctor Mandy Wong is mysteriously hit by a truck and has an out-of-body experience. In order to save his crush, Kenneth bravely forges into "supernatural space" with the help of supernatural show host, Moon Lau.

A serial murder case has occurred in the city. The perpetrator is surprisingly police officer Hugo Wong... Are people hard to predict or was he influenced by demons?

Those who have the luck to ride in this "descending demons taxi", fasten your seat belts as it takes you to explore different urban legends and supernatural spaces. It is exciting yet heart-warming to follow this odd pair, Kenneth and Mandy, as they fight demons.

Interest level: 0/5. Was Blue Veins not horrible enough?


Destination Nowhere



CID officer Kevin Cheng is a little man who achieved meritorious deeds by fluke and is promoted to inspector. Opportunistic reporter Kristal Tin appears to be a blissful wife, but she is actually troubled by finances and is stuck between her daughter and second husband. The honest, dumb thief King Kong works hard to be a good person, but is forced to do desperate acts for a living. He and his partners Louis Yuen and Tyson Chak carry out a kidnapping, but abduct the wrong person. The "victim" Rachel Kan hijacks their kidnapping attempt and teaches them to kidnap her mother.

A plan that seems perfect, but along the way, there are mistakes... mistakes... mistakes...

Trying to cover up the mistakes, but instead creating even more mistakes; a supposedly loving and caring relationship, yet there is mutual suspicion. It sounds absurd, but real life is sometimes even more absurd than dramas! Using black humour to bring out a suspenseful plot and eccentric life, so surprising that you cannot stop watching.

Interest level: 3.5/5. Sounds intriguing!


Burning Hands



Life is like gambling. Win and it's money, lose and it's your life. All perspectives of life and mutual deception can be seen on the gambling table. Trust is the gambling chip, whoever is sincere is fated to be the loser!

In order to avenge his mentor, Ruco Chan, together with his sworn buddies Joel Chan and Rosina Lam, and fellow students of his mentor, each with a different specialty, challenge Gambling King Pal Sinn. But they fall into a scheme and are instead used to identify the mole in the casino.

The deeper into the story, the more intriguing it gets with schemes within schemes. The people that are closest are the people that cannot be close! It is difficult to distinguish between good and evil, a riddle that is never solved.

With filming in Macau, gambling, boxing matches, magic, speeding cars, gun battles... a teeming world that is a feast for the eyes.

Interest level: 4/5. This is the most interesting series that I look forward to!


Time Travelling Male Official



Three Ming Dynasty figures with unique talents – Edwin Siu who is highly skilled in martial arts, Raymond Cho who is intelligent and resourceful, and eunuch Matthew Ho who has exquisite culinary skills – search for the missing crown princess Grace Wong, who is being chased by an eunuch group. They accidentally travel through time and arrive in Hong Kong four centuries later! The three male officials use their ancient wisdom to help restaurant manager Kristal Tin advance in a large food corporation.

Everything seems to be settled, until they encounter a once-in-a-century fog. It is the last chance for them to return to the Ming Dynasty. Should they stay and become a modern person or return to the past and continue with the sorrowful fate that history has set for them?

Interest level: 2.5/5. There is now a mandatory time-travelling series every year. A poor man's The King of Yesterday and Tomorrow?


Revive Wulin



The Eastern Depot of the Ming Dynasty has decided to purge the wulin figures who portray themselves as chivalrous. All wulin sects are absorbed into the imperial court, heroes have vanished and eunuchs have taken over as leader of the sects.

The evil forces continue to expand, filling all of wulin with white horror. Everyone is afraid to speak out and hopes that a hero will appear to bring justice.

Edwin Siu, a storyteller who does not know martial arts, and Grace Chan, a former Eastern Depot official who had a change of heart and is skilled in martial arts, cannot stand to see this "plastic" version of wulin. They unite to lead a group of heroes who are past their prime to stand up again and save wulin together!

With a non-traditional wuxia world as the background, a series that is appropriate for ancient and modern times, it is humorous and will make people think back and smile.

Interest level: 1/5. TVB's wuxia series are a joke nowadays. 


My Ages Apart



The times change, but familial relations do not. When a middle-aged man goes back to being young, can everything really be unchanged?

The hottest investment banker Bobby Au-Yeung vows to defeat rival Moses Chan and dominate the investment industry. Because of a strange encounter, he transforms into a post-90s youth (James Ng)! Bobby poses as the illegitimate son of banking mogul Benz Hui to make his way into the bank and works his way up from the bottom, intending to become the successor. But his messy relationships with ex-wife Kristal Tin and confidant Maggie Siu, and Louis Cheung, whose identity is mysterious, are Bobby's biggest obstacles for advancement. Meanwhile, Moses, seeking to advance, marries Benz's daughter Ali Lee. The couple appears to be loving, but actually have their own ulterior motives.

A fantastical comedy for Hong Kong's 50 years, showing the conflicts between the old and new era. Only by changing our perspective can we see a different world.

Interest level: 3.5/5. May give it a try for the cast.


6 comments:

  1. Not interested in any of these series, though I may watch Unholy Alliance mostly for Nina Paw (great actress!!) and Samuel Kwok (since this will be his official return to TVB). I like Ruco, but not enough to watch a series just because he is in it and while I agree that Nancy is a good actress, her style has never been my cup of tea so whether she is in this series or not doesn’t matter to me. I have a feeling TVB is going to butcher this though – hopefully it doesn’t end up being super draggy…

    I love Roger and Ram, but still not interested in watching the third installment of the Inbound franchise (part 1 was good, but part 2 actually ruined the franchise for me). I also can’t believe this series is being made! What a waste of EVERYONE’s time (ours as an audience as well as the artists who have to film this thing).

    Burning Hands does sound interesting, but I’m not entirely fond of the cast plus the gambling theme has been done too many times already -- and with them putting Pal Sinn in there as the gambling villain, I have a feeling TVB is going the Wong Jing route with this one (Pal’s character’s name in the series better not be “Hussein”!!).

    Is it just me or does Revive Wulin sound like a comedic version of Face to Fate? In any case, definitely not watching this one – anything that has Grace Chan in it I’m basically not touching with a ten foot pole, lol!

    So they changed My Ages Apart to Crossing Eras? I thought TVB said this was the 50th anniversary version of At the Threshold of an Era? Or are they just ripping off the series’ name again in the hope that the housewife audiences won’t know any better? I like some of the cast (Bobby, Benz, Maggie, John Chiang, Louis Cheung, etc.), but the ones I don’t like might end up ruining it for me, plus not too interested in the story, since it sounds like the same stuff over and over again. Oh and the part about Bobby turning into James Ng – hmmm, so does this mean James is actually going to be the lead? I honestly don’t see how that part has any relevance to the rest of the story.

    No comment on the rest of the series (obviously not the least bit interested, lol)…

    So this is the best TVB is going to do for their 50th anniversary? How disappointing! Between these series and the non-overlapping ones in the calendar (see, TVB had enough series for all 12 months, so why the hell did they only put 9 in there?), looks like next year will be another “nothing to watch” year for me where TVB is concerned!

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    1. This is definitely a disappointing array for series for the 50th anniversary. I am honestly not that excited about any of them, as you can probably tell from my comments. Even for Burning Hands I'm not jumping up and down in excitement like for some other series in the past. There are a few more not listed here, like Line Walker sequel, Beyond the Realm sequel, Heart of Greed III, because I couldn't find/there weren't any synopsis. I'm not sure what happened with At the Threshold II. "My Ages Apart" is the correct title (Crossing Eras was just my translation from the Chinese name).

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  2. But just because the drama is included in tvb sales presentation, it doesn't mean it will shown next year since some dramas such as No Reserve and Rogue Emperor are finally getting aired.. :/

    some of these dramas may be shown through TVB Super.

    And isn't Bet Hur, that drama with Frankie and Jessica, and Provacateur being shown next year since there were so much hype surrounding these two as well.

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    1. No Reserve and Rouge Emperor are exceptions in taking so long to air. Most sales presentation dramas are usually shown in the next year/year and a half. But you are correct that some dramas, like the ones you named, were not featured in the sales presentation, but are likely to air within the next year.

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  3. I agree for their 50th anniversary series, it doesn't have that wow factor. But can't deny that TVB does know how to make the series presentations look appealing and actually got me interested in some but gotta be careful not to be fooled LOL

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