Corner Café

The theme song has already been released and here it is…

True Love รักแท้ – NuNew

Update October 5, 2022: Just watched the first 2 episodes, as addictive to watch as House of the Dark Shadows from last year! Again no need to use your brain for this, just enjoy the sometimes ridiculous but hilarious plotlines, like the quick solution to the snake-bite storyline, LOL… Also love the opening theme song…

Episode 1 (Eng Sub), Episode 2 (Eng Sub)

It’s Enough Just to See that We Love Each Other แค่มองว่าเรารักกันก็พอ – Ice Sarunyu ไอซ์ ศรัณยู

Update October 11, 2022: So much happened in Ep 3! They actually put in the cut-sleeve (duanxiu 斷袖) scene, LOL… It will be interesting if they also do a share-peach (分桃) symbolic scene in later episodes… We also finally see Jiu’s background, I sort of suspected something like that after he killed the Japanese soldier without batting an eye in the previous episode. And Yang, emotional scene when he worked out about Tian and realized the burden his brother is carrying. Bua, Tian and Yang are more like mother and sons than their real mothers! The servant girl, Mat (?), was a bit of a surprise whom she was really working for!!! And wow, the servant of Tian’s mother, the magician with medicine has risen again and the last scene, the way she tackled Ah Tong…. She’s more like a bodyguard than a servant! Can’t wait for the next episode.

Episode 3 (Eng Sub), Episode 4 (Eng Sub)

MDL has updated that this maybe a 28-episode drama instead of the 10-episode previously being reported.

Update October 12, 2022: This is getting complicated and very interesting with Ep 4. Bua has officially been recognised as Tian’s second mother (similar to godmother in the western world) with Lee’s approval, is Lee preparing for the future in case something happens to her? Also the relationship of the other characters are being revealed… We already know Jiu is a hired assassin for Ma, and now Jan is colluding with Ma to find Tian’s secret, getting interesting… Also revelation that Jiu’s parents died early, wonder if that has any connection with Chang who committed suicide 12 years ago in Ep 1? We were told he’s gay but not if he was also married and had children? If Jiu is Chang’s son, he could be getting Ma’s trust in order to take him down in the future, and the reason he’s trying to distance himself from Tian for now because he wants revenge from Tian’s father too. But once they got together, they could be the two powerhouses within the Five-Dragon in the future! Haha but now I am just making up my own plotlines, LOL…

Update October 18, 2022: Oh, good, just found out they have an official playlist of full episodes with English subtitles (maybe a few days after each episode aired) so I don’t have to link each episode here.

Ep 5… Horror alert! Horror alert! Don’t watch this episode at night if you can’t stand horror plotlines… Yang and Pim’s storyline is just the right sweetness to offset the horror! Also I found too much flashbacks in this episode, the flashback to the suicide again makes me wonder about the possible Jiu’s backstory again, LOL… We are told Jiu’s siblings are 9 and 7 years old, more than ten years younger than Jiu, if my theory that Jiu is Chang’s son, is it possible that Jiu’s mother left Chang after Chang was outed, hence leading to the suicide… Then after Chang’s death, re-married and had the two younger children?

Update October 19, 2022: Welcome to the latest episode of To Mushroom, With Love!!! I did not know seeing a family having a mushroom feast can be so funny to watch, LOL… But will this mushroom storyline ever end, I don’t think I can look at mushrooms in the same light again!!! It is also hilarious everybody knows Tian has a secret but 6 episodes in, it is amazing nobody has figured it out yet except his brother who is so loyal to him, LOL…

Update October 20, 2022: Came across the Mandarin cover of True Love…

True Love 真愛 รักแท้ (Mandarin version) – HowdyFirzt

Update October 21, 2022: I was reading some reviews of episode 6 at a Taiwanese site and found a couple of interesting facts. This show is the 6th most watched primetime shows in the second week of October according to the ratings. It is a very good result for a show with LGBTQ+ theme as the top 5 shows are from the top two TV stations in Thailand, Ch7 and Ch3, and I think One31 only ranks about the 7th most popular TV station in Thailand. So that also means To Sir With Love is the most popular drama on One31 in the second week of October. The other thing I found out is that the actor who plays the evil homophobic Ma was in 2 seasons of a gay comedy series in 2014 and 2015 called Club Friday 5: The Secret of Mint and Mew. It is difficult to get my head around that after having the Ma character in my mind and seeing him played a kind hearted man and the object of desire to his hysteric drag queen neighbour in that old series, LOL…

Update October 23, 2022: LOL, we all know this show is lakorn and not really a BL drama, so they put together this video just for the BL fans… All the moments of Jiu × Tian so far… Also I just realized in Chinese Jiu can be translated phonologically as 久, and Tian as 天, so 久天 could be their CP name meaning 天長地久 (forever and ever)…

https://youtu.be/pOgBKiiEDuU

Update October 25, 2022: Ep 7 things are hotting up! At least the only mushrooms are the ones Bua and Yang kept as evidence for enquiring… Tian nearly told his father, but of course his mother appeared to disrupt the conversation… Then unexpectedly the first kiss happened, LOL… Assassination! What assassination? It is an opportunity to steal a kiss! But poor Tian, did he know who the assassin was that kissed him? AND HE STOPPED STRUGGLING WHEN KISSED! I don’t think he knew it was Jiu because when Jiu was wearing the bandana, it looked very solid and Tian couldn’t see who he was… Then Jiu can’t see properly after Tian threw dirt into his eyes… By the time Jiu recognised Tian, the bandana was pulled loose by Tian and covered Tian’s face, even though we were shown the outline of Jiu’s face through the bandana which magically became transparent, I think that was just for cinematic effect for us the viewers and Tian in fact could not recognised Jiu through the bandana in the dark of the night… But the most hilarious thing in this episode is Jan pretending she wanted to become a monk as a ploy to lure Tian outside to be assassinated… The next episode looks like Jiu went to work for Tian, but could that be part of Ma’s plan… If so, Ma is doing a good job in pushing the two closer and closer together unwittingly, LOL…

Update October 26, 2022: Why oh why did they end it there in ep 8! Now we have to wait 6 more days to see if Jian switched the box she was trying to bury…. Urghhhh…. But why did she pull out a knife secretly, which suggests the box did contain the dead insects??? Knowing the way soap operas go, Jan will be disappointed again, LOL, after rounding up the household to watch the downfall of Lee and Jian… Another slap in her face… Also the ways Song, Bua and Ah Bao trying to guess Tian’s secret was too funny… At least they got one thing right, Tian’s secret have nothing to do with girls, LOL. Lee has as much admitted to the crime to Tian without actually saying it. So Tian and Yang are both unable to reveal what Lee and Jian did; Tian couldn’t reveal because that would send his mother to the gallows, while Yang knew if he said anything Tian would be the one to suffer… Lee and Jian will not end well, just how we’ll just have to wait and see, my guess is Lee will die protecting Tian, maybe from the Japanese… Jan won’t end well too, so that leave Bua to take over as the main wife in the end I guess… I knew something was not quite right when Jiu told Tian he sent Fu and Mei to their relatives and sure enough they are being kept as hostages at Ma’s house… Mat trying to seduce Jiu, then wondering what’s wrong with the men in that household after being rejected again, well guess what, you are not their type… They would rather spend time together like this cute moment… Although Jiu being illiterate destroys my theory that he maybe Chang’s son, haha…

https://youtu.be/cvb8Ik1aMjY

Update October 28, 2022: Was reading discussions of Tian’s secret in a Taiwanese forum and viewers are trying to come up with a fake reason (for the plotlines) to cover up the gay secret, and some suggested that they could lie that the secret was Tian has fertility problem (like Bua) and cannot produce an heir. However the problem with that fake reason is that the secret started 12 years ago when Tian was still a child of maybe 8-9 years old, so it will be hard to convince people that they found out Tian has infertility issue at that young age! Unless of course they can go the soap-opera way and say that the snake bite caused him to be infertile, LOL… Anyway Song is just a stupid man obsessed with heirs, how he became the president of the Five-Dragon is a mystery… What’s the use of heirs if your business is going to collapse with your stupid decisions… On the one hand he lamented that Ah Chang was his most trusted and dependable “brother” in the Five-Dragon Guild, yet kicked him out because he’s gay, then his only love, Bua, was relegated to a mistress status because she’s infertile. He then kept by his side, “brother” Ma (whom Ah Chang had suspected of embezzling and apparently had been doing so for 12 years until Tian found the evidence) and “sister” Chai who would stab him in the back without a second thought as both have planted a spy each under Song’s nose (although Ma’s spy is Jiu, LOL) and two worrying wives who fought for power constantly, LOL… Although there’s the fifth “brother” who has been MIA since ep 1, wonder if he will appear in future episodes as ally or foe, but maybe not as he did not get a billing in the opening credits…

Came across this free 48-page Behind-the-Scenes Khun Chai e-book, lots of images but articles are all in Thai, hope they put out an English version…

Update October 30, 2022: No way! I read that the powder that Lee and Jian scatters in the next episode is an aphrodisiac powder made from cicadas, LOL… So the dead insects in the box may not be the mushroom insects, but cicadas? Is it true, is it true? Can’t wait to find out!

Update November 1, 2022: Here’s the first 5 minutes of ep 9… Why have they stopped uploading ep 9? In the past 4 weeks, they would have the new episode up straight after the episode aired on TV, in 5 parts. Then the full episode in one video within 24 hours. But there are no 5-parter to be found today, only highlight videos!

Haha, nevermind what I wrote above about 2 hours ago, the 5-parter of ep 9 is available now… BTW the 5-parter don’t have subtitles, they only sub for the one video full episode…

Ep 9, Jiu is jealous and throwing a very manly silent “tantrum”! When Tian was very upset and said it would be better if he’d die then everything would be better, and Jiu comforted him saying all the servants love him, then he added, “Me too.” Immediately he tried to correct himself, “I mean Fu and Mei love you.” Haha… Yang found Jiu’s murder weapon and pages full of Tian’s name, but he did not get a chance to see the writing. Instead it was Song who saw it after Jiu tried to burn them but got blown away, LOL… And elicited the funniest question of the episode, “Why did you practise writing Tian’s name and not your own name?”… Fu found out Ma is trying to harm Tian… At least the starry starry night insects are finally destroyed by Tian but he is now sure what his mother has done! I think the aphrodisiac is going to cause unexpected results in the upcoming episodes! Now the horror mushrooms are done with, it looks like we are going to get the looooooooove mushrooms, are we going to see different types of mushroom for different types of potions from Jian, LOL… I am now sure I am watching To Mushroom With Love!!!

Also at the moment Yang knows Tian is interested in Jiu. But now after he’d found Jiu’s scissors, and think he’s a dangerous man. Just wait till he figures out Jiu is also the assassin, and HE SAW THE ASSASSIN KISSED TIAN! Then not only has he to keep Tian’s secret but also that Jiu is in love with Tian too!

Update November 2, 2022: What? The number of episodes has been revised again, now it is reported as having 16 episodes in total!

Episode 10… Oh, boy, Tian finally took the first step and came out of the closet and told Yang, even though Yang already knew… The interaction of the brothers is just too precious, Tian didn’t want the heir position, Yang refused to take over from Tian, Song’s business is going down the drain at this rate… and Yang teased Tian calling him big sister… Song in fact subconsciously knew Tian is gay, I think, that’s why he had that dream… The misunderstanding after Fu told Jiu he heard Ma sent someone to hurt Tian… Jiu, that’s you all along, even though the mission now was to find out Tian’s secret… Yes, don’t be surprise to learn later you yourself are Tian’s secret… So when Jiu saw the masked Jian collecting the cicada, he thought that was another assassin sent by Ma, LOL… Well at least that gave him an excuse to finally hug Tian. Everyone started to suspect Jiu, Jian thinks he’s more to the eyes than just a simple worker with such good reflexes. Ah Bao found out Jiu used to live in Ma’s territory, so now Song suspect Jiu’s working for Ma… Well at least Song’s brain cells are finally clicking after he suspected Chai had a spy in his household the previous episode… Ma had the dead cicada that remarkably resurrected (no wonder Jian had to burn them) but he’s still in the dark thinking that’s what killed Tong… Also the land sale, Yang nearly blew it by pretending to be another buyer and bid higher and higher, LOL… So now that cleared the way for the wedding to be called off… And that brought a wry smile from Jiu after he heard the news. That also pushed Lee to start the get Pim pregnant campaign, and cleared the household in preparation to use the aphrodisiac (in the tea) for Tian and Pim. But come on, that flimsy door, Yang, you should have enough strength to break through that, or the windows… Just look at Jiu breaking through the door last time which looked more solid than this door, LOL…

Update November 4, 2022: Another day, another revision… Now it is rumoured to have 17 episodes in total! Also did anyone notice the title of the opening theme song by Ice on YouTube, it was written all in Thai before (I remember because when I embedded the video, I had to google translate the title of the song & the name of the singer into English), but when they added the Eng sub to the lyrics this week, they also changed the title into all English!

Live performances of Just Love is Enough, the first one is a duet with Film (Tian)…

แค่มองว่าเรารักกันก็พอ – ไอซ์ ศรัณยู × ฟิล์ม ธนภัทร

Also found this, Jam’s (Jiu) cover of True Love…

This was a first-look trailer released way back in March when Film and Tongtong were promoting the show on a talk show, I haven’t seen this old trailer until now… Can’t understand a word of what they said, LOL…

Update November 8, 2022: Ep 11, OMG, the plotlines are going in all directions… I just knew the aphrodisiac will not go the way Lee imagined, LOL… Locking Tian and Pim in a room, to then come back and find a naked Tian and a naked Jiu together… That’s one heck of an aphrodisiac! Also about locking the door when there are two rows of windows in the room, then I realised it was to prevent some unsuspecting person coming in while they are doing the deed, LOL, and not locking the two of them in because we know Jiu and Tian did escape through the window… Well, how far did they walk to find that empty house, that’s what I want to know? So they both confessed they are in love with each other and Tian TOLD Jiu his mother murdered someone to keep his secret!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And so while they are getting on with their “honeymoon”, everything is happening at home… Chai found out Jiu might be connected with Ma somehow, so everyone suspected Jiu might be an assassin and Ma hired him to kill Tian… Jan is not having a good time either, being abandoned by her son once again (so that’s the reason Yang couldn’t break down the door so Jan could be imprisoned a bit longer, LOL…) while he went off to rescue Pim, and being suspected of colluding with Ma to harm Tian… Pim, the clever girl, is the heroin in this episode and might have figured out about Jiu and Tian, while Yang is still as confused as everyone else maybe because of Jiu’s scissors, use your brain, Yang! Fu is also clever and know exactly where to kick Ma, GOAL! Hope he’ll be fine while Yang rescued Mei, and Pim was still hanging around to rescue them after Yang repeatedly asked her to go home, LOL… The end of the episode turned into a mafia gun scene 😲 and Song might have revealed something such as he’d also killed before!

Update November 9, 2022: Episode 12… Jiu is being very romantic this episode, and trying to hold on to Tian for dear life… First buying paper flower for Tian but unfortunately got interrupted by Ah Bao… Then he said to Tian, “Before I met you, I’ve no future to look forward to…” It seems Jiu is so in love he has forgotten about his poor siblings, oh well, maybe all these happened in just a couple of days, LOL… This lakorn is rom-com, comedy, horror, fantasy, action, kungfu, suspense triller all in one series and even a little bit of mushroom gardening and culinary “education” thrown in for good measures! What are you so sad about, huh, Mr. Song? It is all because of your stupid stubbornness that all these things happened! Lee and Jian may have done some unforgivable things, that was what they could do, even though totally wrong, to protect Tian as they didn’t want Tian to end up like Chang. Really felt for Lee when she told Monk Chi that if she didn’t go to hell protecting Tian, who would? Jian also didn’t blame anyone but fate for making Tian, who is such a good and kind person, gay… and if fate hasn’t intervened, she wouldn’t need to do what she had done… She also swore to kill herself once Tian became the head of Five-Dragon to repay her debt to Monk Chi (weird to call him a doctor, he’s more a medicine man, or healer, even closer to wizard than a doctor, not sure if he’s also a monk but he seemed to be living in a monastery, so I’ll just call him Monk Chi) who incidentally had created the antidote so he maybe resurrected. Jan and Nuan are just providing comic relief in every episode! Nuan hit the nail on the head saying if Jiu and Tian were a man and a woman, people would think they had eloped together… and of course Jan immediately dismissed that as nonsense, LOL… No wonder Jan had her ears stuck to the wall eavesdropped for 12 years and still had no clues about Tian’s secret! Yang is very slow the last two episodes, he still thinks Jiu is deceiving Tian because he worked for Ma while almost everyone else had questioned why Jiu hadn’t handed Tian over to Ma! If Jiu was keeping Tian for ransom, he hasn’t demanded that either, so did Yang think that Jiu is just using Tian as a sex toy, LOL… Even Pim had it figured out so quickly! Also have I missed something, Tian was supposed to meet Bua in the morning but it was dark and thundery when he arrived at the temple? Also Tian, LOL, can’t you recognise your own mother’s silhouette? And suspicious that the person did not turn around, and why are you speaking from so far away and so loud… that could’ve been a total stranger! Also Jiu’s surname is Lee 李 (not the same character as Tian’s mother’s name which is most likely 麗 meaning beautiful), well that totally squashed my theory that he may be related to Chang 張, haha… Also the suspicious “medicine” that Ma had given Mei has been identified as illegal drug, could it be opium?

Film and Jam reaction to their love scenes… Where’s the subtitles?

Update November 11, 2022: Live version of True Love…

Update November 15, 2022: Ep 13… What a ride! Jiu the fugitive is being targeted from all directions… Afraid that Ma is going to kill Tian, he reluctantly told Ma Tian’s secret is that he’s gay! Ma wanted a repeat of history to happen again planning to reveal the secret at the next Five-Dragon meeting in five day’s time hoping Tian will do a Chang in front of everyone! While Lee is determined to kill everyone who has a whiff about Tian’s secret, the latest targets being Jiu and even Yang! But rewinding back to the temple, Lee tsk tsk at Tian saying my stupid boy, Jiu is Ma’s man, he doesn’t love you… Tian was like nooooooo, I don’t believe you… and ran off. Back at the hut, Tian arrived just in time to hear Jiu telling Ma the secret and immediately fell apart, then he ran off again, this time into the arms of his daddy dearest, who may kill you himself once he knew your secret! And a new song… Meanwhile back at the house, Bua and Yang who were rendered unconscious by Jian’s magic smoke, were finally woken up by Jan and Nuan… which led to Jan accusing Lee of trying to murder her son, and Lee accusing Jan of working with Ma to murder her son, OK, they are both even on this, LOL… In the middle of all of these, we found out Ma is a bird whisperer, that was so out of the blue, but hilarious… And with injuries, Jiu the ninja sneaked into Song’s palace to rescue Tian, but Tian being sick and all that, not being in full mind capacity, accused Jiu of deceiving him, you only love money, you don’t love me… Tian, Tian, Tian, think back, Jiu even brought you to his parents grave, if he doesn’t love you he wouldn’t do that, and he didn’t hand you over to Ma, your brain must have gone mushy from all that running in the rain!!! Jiu then got scattered with the starry starry night powder, and witnessed by Jan, but he got it on his left hand only, where are you Monk Chi, have you resurrected yet? Jiu needs your antidote quick smart! But Pim the heroin is there to help first… Maybe Pim also saved the floating Monk Chi? Next thing you know, Tian also got the starry starry night powder on his hands, trying to save Yang from being the next victim of the masked duo… And that roti-dough-tossing move with the scarf jacket, you are indeed Lee’s son alright! And Lee, after all that efforts of trying to weed out anyone who knew Tian’s secret, only to be told by Tian, “Mommy dearest, you are too late, Jiu already told Ma my secret…”

Update November 16, 2022: This series is getting more and more exciting to watch! But only 3 more episodes left 😭… Ep 14… Continuing on with the killing spree… Lee and Jian decided to get rid of Ma before he has a chance to reveal Tian’s secret… In the meantime, Lee convinced Tian to get married first, to Mat the spy! The conversation between mother and son is full of double meaning… Lee said she knows her way out of all these killing, she will do ANYTHING as long as Tian becomes the head of Five-Dragon. Tian also has his own plan, it seems… Meanwhile Jiu was re-united with Mei, and found out Yang rescued her from Ma and Ma has been drugging her with opium… He also asked Pim to arrange a meeting with Tian so he could explain everything. Yang at first refused to help because he thinks their love will have a lot of obstacles, but bless her Pim asked him if he really will give up just because of the obstacles as she and Yang will also face obstacles in the future because she was supposed to marry Tian but ended up his brother. Yang relented and helped to pass on a letter from Jiu… Jiu asked to meet Tian to explain and ended the letter with I love you Tian💖… However Tian seems to have his own secret plan because he told Song everything will be solved before the Five-Dragon meeting! So he told Jiu he has to carry on the responsibility for his family but he will forever keep Jiu in his heart. Poor thing Jiu was heartbroken and told Mei he will rescue Fu and they will go away together! While at the brothel, Chai put two and two together and figured out Tian’s secret! She also thinks she can become head of Five-Dragon with that information… Back at Ma’s mansion Jiu overheard Ma colluding with the Japanese but successfully rescued Fu… However the poison spread and he asked Fu to run away… Then Jiu finally was able to hide from Ma’s men but that legs, they have to be Monk Chi!!! Meanwhile Fu finally escaped and bumped into Tian who was apparently carrying out his own plan at the police station saying he has leads on Ah Tong’s cause of death! THEN Fu blurted out Jiu is dead, oh dear, oh dear… Tian broke down but then what is he doing with the starry starry night powder! Did he steal it from Jian and it looks like the pure form and not mixed with other medicine! Don’t tell me he’s going to confess he killed Ah Tong with the powder!!! No, no, no… Meanwhile Ma is getting a beating from the masked duo, getting his fingers cut off, his eye stabbed and sprinkled with the signatured powder of this drama… But hang on for more bumpy ride because didn’t he appear at the wedding ceremony in one of the MV? Also in the first-look trailer there’s a scene with the silky bedsheets which I hope is in the final episode, 😉…

OK, I watched the MV again, it was the fifth “brother” at the wedding ceremony standing beside Chai, then they edited in Ma’s sneer from previous episode, not the wedding ceremony, LOL…

Update November 17, 2022: Spoilers for ep15 & ep16, with analysis of possible upcoming plotlines… Although it has Eng sub but they are machine translated and disappeared in parts of the video…

Update November 19, 2022: Was just thinking it is interesting that the scriptwriter wrote in the letters plotline again… Last time it was the love letter that ended in tragedy for Chang, who was in love with Pot, who worked for him. Now we have Tian and Jiu, again master and servant relationship but this time it was a farewell letter… Is it an indication that this time it will be a happy ending? Anyway here’s the second reaction video from Jam and Film, reacting to ep 13… Wish they would add Eng sub since they already took the trouble to have Thai sub, I would happily take it even if the Eng sub is machine translated!

The official Chinese version of True Love 真愛 by NuNew will premiere on Monday, November 21, 2022… The lyrics will be different to the cover version as linked above…

Also found the song used in ep 13 with Tian crying in the rain… It is actually an old song released in 2009!

The One You Trust … The Worst คนที่ไว้ใจ..ร้ายที่สุด (audio version) – Namcha Sheranut น้ำชา ชีรณัฐ

Update November 20, 2022: With only 3 episodes left, below are the quick reviews of best scenes from the previous episodes to refresh our memories, but no Eng subs in these videos…

Ep 1-2, Ep 3-4, Ep 5-6, Ep 7-8, Ep 9-10, Ep 11-12, Ep 13-14…

Also found the Chinese cover of the opening theme song, Just Love is Enough…

迷藏 – 宸菲

Update November 22, 2022: The official Mandarin version of True Love 真愛…

Ep 15… I know this episode is supposed to be suspenseful and exciting, but why did I burst out laughing at Jan’s apologetic scenes! Well at least everything is out in the open, Tian’s secret is out thanks to that letter from Jiu, how Lee and Jian tried to kill Ma, and Jan colluding with Ma… And Tian did confess he killed Tong at the police station! Well he thought he had nothing to live for thinking Jiu is dead and also he realised Lee is going to take her own life as a way out! However Yang and Bua did not believe Tian was able to kill, only silly daddy dearest did… Also may I ask how long did the police took to just walk Tian to the front gate, LOL… In the meantime while they leisurely strolled to the gate, Lee and Jian had found out Tian had switched the powder, Bua had time to plead with Song to save Tian and Jan had time to demand Song to give Yang the heir position! So Ma got scattered with sleeping powder, LOL … and it seemed he slept with severe injuries without bleeding to death, somehow got rescued, got seen by doctor and probably had surgery, bandaged and still has enough time to come back within maybe just one or two hours to take his revenge!!! I know this is soap opera but LOL… The timeline in this episode is just too fantastic! But, but, but then again silly me how can I forget the magical powder that’s the linchpin of the whole series… maybe Ma also has a magical underling who can cure with more magical powder, who knows under the bandages could be a new mushroom eye and two mushroom fingers to replace the two the got cut off!!! LOL… And the purpose of the fifth member of Five-Dragon is just there to be killed, poor man he finally got to say a few words and wham bang…. dead! And I can’t believe they also killed off Nuan! Also when Jiu finally appeared at the end of the episode, that smile from Tian! I wish Jiu would at least give Tian a quick kiss in front of Tian’s father, and see if Song’s eyes would pop out like what happened in cartoons and spring back, haha…

Update November 23, 2022: Ep 16… Girl power… Why do I get the feeling Five-Dragon will be taken over by Chai and the 3 wives once all this is over! OK, the antidote mystery… At first I thought Lee took the antidote from Chi after she tried to kill him but how did she know because only Song and Ah Bao knew about the antidote! And if she took the antidote how did Chi survive? Then I thought maybe Jian also found a way to make the antidote? And it turned out it was all a ruse, Lee and Jian never had the antidote, LOL… So the antidote only worked for breathing in or on surface of skin, but not if the powder entered the bloodstream… So another one bite the dust, Jian is gone… And it looks like a happy ending is on its way in the final episode now daddy dearest and mummy dearest have accepted Tian for who he is and let him live his own life.

Update November 26, 2022: Interview hightlight on Daily Show…

Update November 29, 2022: OK, thoughts on final episode… The second half was very satisfactory to watch but the first half was very rough, the execution of the mind games with Ma was like what the hell happened? For example Yang and Jiu kept disappearing at crucial moments so the main fight scenes can be concentrated on Lee and Ma, and just let Jiu come in at the last moment to do his flying scissor, LOL… Also the way they kept rushing in into dangerous situations and couldn’t be helpful at all… As for the girl power set-up from previous episode, it just turned into one woman power of Lee… After Ma took Tian hostage, everbody was hovering over the injured Song and no one chased after Ma… Did the scriptwriter forget they wrote Jiu’s character as an assassin in early episodes? Now he’s more like a knife (scissor) thrower from a circus than an assassin! It was hilarious to see Jiu became useless in this episode, apart from killing Japanese soldiers, so they could write a death struggle between Lee and Ma… Then same thing happened in the warehouse after Ma tried to set fire, it is again up to the dying Lee to do something! Also the thing with the antidote, if she mixed the antidote with the starry starry night powder, wouldn’t the antidote cancel out the starry starry night powder and render it harmless? At first I thought maybe that wasn’t the antidote but something else, maybe the sleeping powder again, LOL… Again how much antidote did they make and was that all there was in the bottle, I thought it would be cleverer if she put a little antidote away just in case for emergency, but then the scriptwriter has to kill off Lee, so there could not be any leftover antidote, LOL… However the scene of the last moments with Lee was very moving and I was very happy with the ending especially with the symbolic rainbow scene at the end.

Another thing that I find hilarious is that the whole plotline about the heir, it seems none of the other four members of Five-Dragon has any children! Mat is the “adopted” daughter of Chai, so to speak, so there’s one successor for her business… So bring on season 2 where we find out Jiu is actually Chang’s son, yes I’m sticking to my earlier theory, but was switched at birth with another baby in the hospital, sadly the other baby died, or maybe not but create havoc with Jiu… Also we never found out if Pot, Chang’s lover, was still alive, so maybe he can appear in season 2, seeking revenge from Song and somehow reveals the back-story of Jiu being switched at birth!!! And then we find out Ma also has a son, he can be the next villain… The mysterious fifth member of Five-Dragon, Sun, also has a son and come back to claim his position in the new Five-Dragon… OK is that getting too soapy, LOL…