Saturday, December 31, 2022

Justin Lo - Next Time, No Next Time

Long time no see, Casual TVB readers! I am resurfacing just in time to say goodbye to 2022 and welcome 2023. 

Before we bid farewell to 2022, I wanted to share a song that deeply touched me in 2022. It is Justin Lo's "Next Time, No Next Time" (下次無下次).  The song was originally released in 2015 in his Never Odd or Even album. I didn't pay much attention to this song before, but when Justin sang it at his Fresh Start concert in Atlantic City earlier this year, he told the audience to pay special attention to the lyrics. 

The lyrics describes someone living a mundane, unsatisfying life.  They open the newspaper and learn about people whose lives are ended suddenly - from disease, from war, from disasters. Their last words are written hastily on scrap paper.  The song makes you realize that even if you are not completely satisfied with your life, take a moment to count your blessings.  The song is especially meaningful in a year when disease and war affected so many.  Live each day to its fullest because you don't know if there will be a next time. 

Wishing everyone a happy 2023! 

            

Justin Lo performing in Atlantic City

Thursday, September 23, 2021

Aeren x Steven - We Will Not Say Goodbye Again

過去那污點 成了優點
終於都發現 感激可再見

Stains from the past become a virtue
Finally realize, we are grateful to see each other again


Rumoured couple Aeren and Steven from Stars Academy recently released a MV for their cover version of Joey Thye and Oscar Tao's duet "We Will Not Say Goodbye Again" (我們再不講再見). I didn't pay attention to this song when it came out, but Aeren and Steven performed it with a whole new level of sweetness. With the way they gaze into each other's eyes, it's hard not to believe the rumours of them dating.

The song is about a former couple who meet again and realize the good in each other. Hearing the lyrics, I wonder if we meet each other again, whether we can mutually put the past behind us and appreciate the beauty of our friendship. 

Another version of the song and MV was recorded by Sherman and Aska, but they seem to be missing the sweetness that a real-life couple would have.  


Which version do you like better?

Friday, July 23, 2021

TVB Olympic Team

The Tokyo Summer Olympics are finally upon us! If TVB had its own Olympic team, who would be on it?

Swimming 

Alex Fong: Alex famously represented Hong Kong in swimming at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He once held nine Hong Kong swimming records and his 200 m backstroke and 400 m individual medley records were only recently broken. In 2019, he set a new swimming record for fastest swim around Hong Kong Island (45 km).


Dickson Yu: Dickson was a member of the Hong Kong swimming team in high school and represented Hong Kong abroad in youth competitions, including at the 2004 Queensland Open & Age State Championship and 2005 Australian Youth Olympic Festival. He retired in 2013 after not qualifying for the Asian Games. Dickson specialized in the butterfly style. 


Susan Tse: Susan was a formidable swimmer back in the day and excelled in the backstroke. She was already swimming in competitions by the time she was 3 years old. At age 6, she was the youngest swimmer at the Hong Kong cross harbour swim. By age 12, she already had an instructor license. Susan achieved her best finish (5th) in the 1968 cross harbour swim.


Tennis

Cindy Lee: Cindy was a professional tennis player. At the highest level, she played at the Federation Cup (now Billie Jean King Cup), one of the top international tournaments for women’s tennis. Cindy is also an accomplished golfer, claiming multiple awards in charity tournaments. Athletics is in her DNA, as her mother and cousin were on the Hong Kong bowling team, her father and sister were avid tennis players, and another cousin was an Asian Games bronze medalist in swimming.


Golf

Stephanie Ho: Stephanie started golfing when she was 6 and by age 10, she was part of the Hong Kong national golf team. In 2010, she represented Hong Kong at the Asian Games. She retired from competition to focus on her music career, but in 2018, she dusted off her clubs to rejoin the national team. Stephanie said she hopes to make it to the Asian Games again. 


Table Tennis

Ruco Chan: Ruco was recruited into a sports institute at the age of 13 and made it onto the Hong Kong youth table tennis team at age 15. At that time, he was the youngest table tennis player to represent Hong Kong in competition. He competed at the 1994 Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships. He quit after his coach left the team. 


Triathlon

Tony Chui: Tony, who plays “Andy” in Come Home Love: Lo and Behold, is a former triathlete. He represented Hong Kong in three World Triathlon Championships and in five consecutive Asian Triathlon Championships from 1992 to 1996. His best result was a silver medal in the team event and 7th overall finish individually. Tony was an all-round athlete, participating in soccer, track and field and swimming competitions as well. In 2019, Tony proved he still had in it him by representing Hong Kong at masters (age 35+) track and field competitions in Singapore and Asia.  


Rhythmic Gymnastics

Tania Chan: Tania was a member of Hong Kong rhythmic gymnastics team. Tania started learning rhythmic gymnastics at age 7 and fell in love with the sport because of its elegant movements. She represented Hong Kong in many competitions and specialized in using a ball in her performances. Tania was a 2018 Miss Hong Kong contestant and won an audience favourite award for her rhythmic gymnastics talent performance.


Sharlene Wong: Sharlene was also a member of the Hong Kong rhythmic gymnastics team and a national level athlete. She was awarded that recognition in 2009 when she placed first in the ribbon competition and fourth overall in the National Youth Competition. She retired in 2012 when she realized her body was not flexible enough anymore. Sharlene appeared on TVB even before joining the industry. She performed as a rhythmic gymnast at the TVB Anniversary Gala in 2014 alongside actresses from Never Dance Alone. She is now a host of Kids, Think Big.


Track and Field

Tiffany Tang Yi Ching: Tiffany is a rising star in high jump. She has won in intercollegiate and Hong Kong wide competitions and represented Hong Kong at the 2015 China National Youth Games. She recently recorded a personal best of 1.77 m. Tiffany had a short stint as a host of Young and Restless, but left TVB last year to focus on training for the Asian Athletics Championships. 


Fencing

Last but not least, one of TVB's very own will be competing at the Tokyo Olympics!

Lawrence Ng Lok Wang: Lawrence is a former TVB child actor who has appeared in over 30 dramas. As a kid, Lawrence became interested in fencing because he thought the uniforms looked cool. Using the foil as his weapon, he is a five-time medalist in the Asian Fencing Championships and finished in fifth place at the 2016 Junior World Fencing Championships. He served as the fencing director for the fencing scenes in OMG, Your Honour before leaving TVB to become a full-time athlete. Last year, Lawrence and the Hong Kong team won bronze at the Fencing World Cup tournament in Cairo to secure a spot at the Tokyo Olympics. Look for Lawrence in the men's team foil competition at the Olympics. 


Monday, July 12, 2021

Artist Spotlight: Carman Kwan

This is a new feature where I will be highlighting some of the new and old faces at TVB. 

Carman Kwan (關嘉敏) is the captain of the girl group, Bingo. She first became known to audiences for looking like Chrissie Chau when she appeared on a ViuTV reality show. She also competed on ViuTV's King Maker III, making it to the Top 20. 

Carmen drew criticism from netizens for being a “turncoat” when she signed with TVB earlier this year, but she clarified that it was because ViuTV did not offer her a contract. After signing with TVB, Carman has appeared on a number of variety shows, including Mean Talk, Prelude to TVB All Star Games: The Ring and Dance for Life. She has also had cameos on Forensic Heroes IV and Sinister Beings.

Carman’s talents include Chinese dance and gymnastics. 

As a wedding dress model in Forensic Heroes IV (right)
As an e-sports gamer in Sinister Beings (center)