Overview - Armed Reaction 2021

Inspector Jessica Hsuan has always been comfortable with managing files behind the frontlines. By chance, she solves a case alongside the original gun-carrying female officer Joyce Tang and charming Special Duties Unit officer Moses Chan. Her boss, Benz Hui, arranges for her to join the cold-case task force. Along with other "unique" officers, Moses leads the team as they investigate cold-cases that do not attract public attention. Moses is displeased with Jessica and they bicker until it is revealed that Jessica is afraid of using her gun because she was once held hostage. This actually sparks romance between them! Jessica re-encounters her former tutee, Him Law, whose entire family was killed. Him has joined the triads... Fueled by emotion and her consciousness, can Jessica pick up her gun again and become the new gun-carrying policewoman?

Overview - The Witness

After a fatal shooting, plainclothes officer Him Law is assigned to protect the dull and thorny eyewitness Willie Wai. Initially they are resistant to each other, but the pair slowly learns to accept one another. Meanwhile, Willie's clothing company is discovered to be involved in illegal transactions. The company's senior executives, Lau Kong and his son Tsui Wing, are implicated in the scheme. Him joins forces with Willie and his lawyer sister (Kelly Cheung) to investigate. In the process, Him and Kelly develop a messy relationship, while Him's elder sister (Pinky Cheung) becomes foes with Willie. Fate pulls the four together, and a twenty-year old cold case is reopened...

Overview - Infernal Affairs

Him Law is a Probationary Inspector in the Hong Kong Police and aspires to be the fastest promoted Inspector in history. During a drug raid, he encounters a suspect, Edmond Leung. Seeking to avenge a personal matter, he allows Edmond to overdose on drugs. Later, Him finds out that Edmond died and feels extremely guilty. He is only able to slowly recover with the help of psychologist Jolie Zhu.

Mainland cop Wayne Yang, nicknamed "Bullet", comes to visit his friend Edmond, only to discover that he had fallen to his death after overdosing on drugs. Bullet is greatly surprised by this and believes that it is impossible. He resolves to find the truth to prove his friend's innocence. Soon after, Bullet discovers that Edmond's death is related to a drug network operated by the Hong Kong triads. The drug network is colluding with foreign drug cartels to open up the vast Mainland market! Bullet immediately notifies the Hong Kong Police. The Mainland and Hong Kong police join forces to destroy the cross-border drug network.

Infernal Affairs will be airing on iQiyi and myTV Super beginning December 21. The series has three seasons, consisting of 12 episodes each. 

Overview - Fashion War

The fashion magazine under the leadership of fashion icon Moses Chan is like the imperial palace with its constant infighting. Publisher Hanjin Tan appears to be fawning over editor-in-chief Moses, but is actually hiding a dagger beneath his smile. Hanjin purposely appoints Ali Lee to be the Marketing Director to balance against Moses' power at the magazine. Moses can handle the infighting with ease, but one time, he falters and is caught up in a lawsuit. The incident involves a rejected job applicant (Sisley Choi). Moses uses this opportunity to stir up the news story by hiring Sisley, a tailor from Sham Shui Po, as his assistant. It sets off upheaval at the magazine and causes the lazy fashion editor (Him Law) to change his attitude completely. Meanwhile, with her hard-working and sunny attitude, Sisley is able to break through many barriers and whole-heartedly works for her idol Moses. When the magazine falls dangerously close to shutting down, Sisley and Him join forces to create a miracle and help Moses win back all the applause. At this time, Moses decides to announce his successor and retire from the fashion industry...

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Young Charioteers Promo Clips

Overview - Young Charioteers

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Overview - Young Charioteers

Him Law and Sammy Sum became high school friends due to a cycling competition, but lost contact with each other after Sammy had to return to Taiwan for family reasons. Years later, they meet again at an accounting firm. Him's boss (Lin Xia Wei) likes to play office politics and often drives a wedge between colleagues. It causes a grudge between Him and Sammy. Fortunately, the secretary (Jinny Ng) is very considerate and encouraging towards Him. His mother (Michelle Yim) wants to make them a couple, but Him does not want to start a relationship because of his family burdens. This is until he meets Sisley Choi, who happens to be Sammy's childhood friend and a fellow accountant. However, Him is hesitant to move forward because of Sammy's feelings for Sisley. In addition, dealing with the office politics on a daily basis makes them lose sight of their goals in life. Finally, Him and Sammy decide to put aside everything and return to the cycling track to rediscover their fighting spirit and friendship.


Young Charioteers Promo Clips

Tiger Cubs II Review

Producer: Lam Chi Wah
Genre: Police, action
Cast: Joe Ma, Linda Chung, Him Law, Oscar Leung, Mandy Wong

If Tiger Cubs II proved anything, it is that TVB cannot make a good sequel. Everything that made the first series enjoyable - the action, the adrenaline rush, the brotherhood and the brilliance of the SDU - is gone. It is replaced with immaturity and incompetence. The bad guys (including a group of handicapped people) ran circles around this supposed "best of the best" squad. In the first series, the SDU always came back with mission accomplished. In the sequel, I can't remember a case where they didn't fail in some way. Even the guest stars paled in comparison to the original, with only Nancy Wu and Johnson Lee as the biggest names.

The cases themselves had potential, but the ideas were poorly executed. The criminals could do whatever they wanted against the ineffective SDU team. But the SDU would always manage to take them out in the end with ridiculously convenient ways. The plot holes turned the whole series into a big joke. The punch line is of course the finale with the SDU getting run down at their own headquarters until they receive divine intervention by way of a bubble. The overarching case about Linda's blown undercover identity was muddled among all the other things that were happening.

Unlike the original series, which focused mainly on the action, the sequel tried to incorporate more conflict and emotion. That turned out to be the biggest undoing because every single character became annoying to watch. Ah Lai (Him Law) was immature, with his stubborn defence of his colleague and the poor handling of his relationships. Chin Sir (Joe Ma) was too laid-back as his team was falling apart and never even tried to explain himself. Ah Yuen (Oscar Leung) spends far too much time grieving. Ah Keung (Mandy Wong) was weak. And Madam Chung (Linda Chung)... she was in a league on her own. It is beyond me how someone of her mental fitness could pass the test to become a police officer again.

The acting from the cast makes the series twice as difficult to watch. Linda's performance can only be described as torture for the audience. It was a nightmare seeing those bulging eyes and clenched jaw. Her acting was as fake as the scars on her body. Joe was majorly lacking on the emotional scenes and had zero chemistry with Linda. Oscar lost his charm from the original series and was trying too much to force his signature winks in. Him and Mandy are relatively better than the rest, although they need to lighten up. Benjamin Yuen was unnoticeable except in one early episode. Timmy Hung does not leave much of an impression either. It says a lot when the best performances actually came from the guest stars, including Pal Sinn, Jade Leung and Nancy Wu.

Rating: 2.5/5. Flying Tigers? More like Tiger Prey.

Lady Sour Promo Clips

Overview - Lady Sour

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Character Interviews

Overview - Lady Sour

Travelling around to practise medicine, Myolie Wu and her mother Gigi Wong successively encounter a man with a skin disease (Ron Ng) and someone from their hometown (Him Law). Myolie falls in love with Him at first sight and does everything she can to marry him. Unfortunately, the boss of the vinegar brewery (Alice Chan) tries all possible means to prevent the marriage because of a grudge against Gigi. Having been cured of his disease, Ron helps Myolie achieve her wish.

Myolie thought everything would settle down after the marriage, but unexpectedly, Him falls in love with his maid Eliza Sam. Myolie tries to disrupt them, but this causes Him and Eliza to accidentally have a relationship instead. Him takes Eliza as his second wife, arousing intense jealousy from Myolie, adding oil to the fire. Suddenly, a corpse is discovered. Gigi is accused of murdering her husband and sentenced to death. To protect the family reputation, Him's family demands that Myolie sever her relationship with her mother. At this time, Myolie finds out that she is pregnant, yet this begins a campaign to divorce her...

Tiger Cubs II - Preview of Cases

Case #1: When a triad leader dies suddenly, all fingers point toward Linda Chung, who has been exposed as an undercover. Johnson Lee, the triad leader's right-hand man, has Linda thrown into the ocean with heavy weights, yet she manages to survive. Johnson designs a nearly perfect hostage situation at the High Court, challenging the police and demanding for Linda's life.



Case #2: International drug dealer Pal Sinn and his personal doctor Sam Tsang are being escorted back to Hong Kong by Interpol to face trial. The SDU team prevents terrorists from attacking those two and inadvertently discovers a case within a case.



Case #3: A mysterious group has been robbing the rich and giving to the poor. The SDU have identified the suspects and take action to arrest them. Oscar Leung, with an extremely accurate shot, confirms that he has shot one of the suspects, yet they cannot find any evidence that someone had been injured.



Case #4: A popular Japanese game show has to come to Hong Kong. The SDU team pose as contestants to carry out their mission. Him Law falls into a dangerous trap. Meanwhile, Mandy Wong notices an unusual relationship between a contestant (Jonathan Wong) and the show's host (Ali Lee). They are shocked to discover that part of the competition involves biochemical weapons.

Case #5: The bar owned by retired SDU member Koo Ming Wah is a popular hangout spot for Joe and his team. Although Koo Ming Wah is no longer a law enforcement officer, he will use his own ways to help the police capture wanted criminals and collect the reward money. Joe is concerned about Koo Ming Wah's intelligence source, as well as his safety.

Case #6: Wai Ka-hung has committed all sorts of bad deeds. He is shot by a SDU member even though he has already surrendered. Surviving the injury, he files a complaint against the police and surprisingly, Linda helps him with exposing the SDU for firing at him illegally.

Case #7: Eric Chung, Li Ka-sing, Jack Wu and Jimmy Au met each other in Vietnam and became sworn brothers. Linda secretly investigates when she finds out that the rival of those four was involved in the earlier attempt to kill her. As the four open fire with the SDU, Joe and Him have a disagreement about the mission.

Case #8: Wealthy heir Alan Wan invests along with Him's friend, Stephen Huynh, and ends up losing his fortune. His sister Grace Wong asks Him to help and it is discovered that a money laundering operation is involved. For work and for personal reasons, the SDU team want to help Alan, but at the most critical moment, Timmy's appearance changes the whole situation.



Case #9: Linda sends her informant, Nathan Ngai, to monitor Timmy. Oscar reports that Linda has continued to take psychiatric mediation since resuming her duties, but Joe stands on her side, causing the brothers to become enemies. Afterwards, Oscar discovers a series of shocking secrets behind Vincent Lam's corporation, but all is too late...



Case #10: American CIA analyst Nancy Wu is invited to tour the SDU facilities to allow for better cooperation in the future. But it turns out that Nancy has a hidden identity, and Joe witnesses Linda fatally shooting Timmy...

Tiger Cubs II Promo Clips

Overview - Tiger Cubs II

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Overview - Tiger Cubs II

The Special Duties Unit (SDU), led by Joe Ma and consisting of team members Him Law, Oscar Leung and Mandy Wong, continue to work coherently together. Still, new challenges constantly come up, including having to adjust to the different working style of the new Chief Inspector (Timmy Hung). During one particular hostage rescue mission, Joe encounters Linda Chung, an undercover agent who is being chased by the triads. Her resourcefulness and bravery leaves a deep impression on Joe. He helps her return to the Criminal Intelligence Bureau (CIB) and they gradually develop romantic feelings. But Joe is uneasy about Linda's deceptive behaviour, as if she is hiding a secret. In addition, his leadership of the SDU is questioned when a team member is reprimanded after a failed mission. Seeing the growing internal strife, Joe decides to resign. Meanwhile, Linda resorts to any tactic to find the person who betrayed her as an undercover, including using intelligence reports which put the SDU team at risk. Faced with so many imminent threats, how will Joe and the SDU team work together to solve these problems?

The Hippocratic Crush II Promo Clips

Overview, Official Poster, Theme Song

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Overview - The Hippocratic Crush II

Although he is faced with dying patients at work and his pregnant wife (Tavia Yeung) at home, Kenneth Ma insists on shouldering the burden alone. But the heavy weight is leaving him with almost no room to breathe. Along with frequent disagreements with the master surgeon Lawrence Ng and Tavia’s sudden miscarriage, Kenneth is hard-hit with everything in his life.

To make Kenneth understand that he must let go of his stubbornness, Tavia decides to switch specialities and begin learning all over again. Kenneth finds this difficult to accept at first, but as he watches Him Law and Mandy Wong gradually mature to become independent doctors, and with inspiration from Lawrence and Tavia, Kenneth finally realizes that a doctor is like a warrior; he must know his own role and capabilities before he can help other people.


The Hippocratic Crush II Theme Song
The Hippocratic Crush II Promo Clips
Official Poster for the The Hippocratic Crush II

Official Poster for The Hippocratic Crush II

Wait a sec, how come Nathan's on the poster? Don't tell me there's going to be the lame lookalike plot again...

Triumph in the Skies II Review

Producer: Sharon Au, Joe Chan
Genre: Modern, romance
Cast: Francis Ng, Julian Cheung, Fala Chen, Myolie Wu, Ron Ng, Kenneth Ma, Elena Kong, Nancy Wu, Him Law

Review:
Imagine the series as a plane flight. After a lengthy delay, passengers finally get to board the flight, where they are unexpectedly welcomed by an unfamiliar tune. Nonetheless, it’s been a long wait and everyone is just happy to be on board. The plane has a smooth takeoff. As the plane makes its climb, the passengers look out the window, seeing the city they are leaving and looking forward to the journey ahead. The plane starts cruising along at 9,000 m. Everyone is settled in comfortably and the flight attendants hand out some snacks. The passengers were expecting the main course, but they accept it anyways. The attendants come around again, this time with drinks. Still no main course. By now, some people start to get restless. They check the flight tracker and find the plane is still at the same level. Nothing wrong with this height, just that we had expected the plane to fly higher. Then slowly but surely, the plane starts losing altitude. Why? Because Holiday is controlling it. Not everyone notices, because some are no longer paying attention. The few that do complain loudly. Finally, before anyone realizes, the plane has touched down for a safe landing.

Fans of the original have waited ten long years for a sequel, so everyone is understandably excited for this series. Not even a crappy theme song can change that mood. The first few episodes don’t disappoint. Bright, beautiful scenery, with everyone looking sharp in their uniforms. Captain Koo is especially charming and steals the spotlight just as easily as he steals women’s hearts. We relieve memories from the original and find out what our beloved Sam, Isaac, Roy and Coco have been up to in the past ten years. But further development of these characters eludes us for 20 episodes. Instead, we are served with random side stories and a lovesick Holiday. Gradually, some viewers get bored and find something else to do. For those who stuck around, we wonder: is anything exciting actually going to happen? The short answer is no. There are some bumps along the way, but it is mostly a calm flight from start to finish.

TVB sequels all have a common formula: forget about the very profession that enticed viewers in the original and insert as many love lines as humanly possible. Triumph in the Skies II follows this to the word. First, there’s the Isaac-Summer-Josie-Teddy rectangle. Then there’s the love not-sure-what-shape with Sam/Holiday/Zoe/Daniel/Jayden. And don’t forget the whole Heather/Roy/Tony/Mr. King pyramid. We’re learning more about geometry than aviation.

The original series was heavily focused on romance as well, but the problem with the sequel is: one, the imbalance between love and work and two, the ill-development of the love lines. Many things were missing, such as how Sam falls in love with Holiday or the cause in Jayden’s character change. 42 episodes is a long time; there should be no need to rush at the end. Too much time was wasted on irrelevant things (Eliza’s mom, anyone?), such that development of the main characters was stunted.

Still, Triumph in the Skies II is the highest rating drama of 2013, so there must be reasons for its success. There’s the nostalgia from the original and watching how the characters have grown up. Surely, the actors themselves have matured and it’s great to see the chemistry amongst the cast working together again ten years later. The series is light-hearted with no evil, back-stabbing, scheming sort of stuff. There’s the hot, steamy, sexy sort of stuff, but of course, we’re talking TVB here. There’s also a fair share of tear-jerking moments that will probably make you cry more than Fala. There’s laugh-out-loud moments, what-the-heck moments and many I’ll-never-fly-in-a-plane-again moments.

All in all, a series to laugh, cry, relax and enjoy, and before you know it, it’ll be end and you will realize it has been a wonderful journey after all.

Rating: 3.5/5

Him Law @ Toronto

Him Law was in Toronto to perform at the annual Scotiabank Chin Picnic. I saw Him before at a Divas in Distress event in Hong Kong, but this time, I scored a ticket at his autograph session and got to meet him up close! I even got to shake hands with him!

The second time in a month that I got to see TVB stars. Check out who I saw last month!

Triumph in the Skies 2 Promo Clips

Overview, Official Poster, Trailer @ FILMART

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Official Poster for Triumph in the Skies 2

 

 

Overview - Triumph in the Skies 2

 

Comment: Pretty ordinary poster, but I suppose it's the series itself that generates interest. Seeing the recent quality of sequels, I hope this is not going to be a disappointment.