I was hoping the stylists would give Lin Gengxin a traditional topknot, because he just looks like Zhao Zilong lite here…
Princess Agents has released first stills of the leads just a month and a half into filming, and features Zhao Liying as Chu Qiao, Lin Gengxin as Yuwen Yue, Shawn Dou as Yan Xun and Li Qin as Yuan Chun. I recall being swept up in the high-stakes and torturous story of the original novel, though after a string of disappointing adaptions, I’ve learned to go into these types of dramas with zero expectations.
Female lead Chu Qiao time travels back to one of the most turbulent periods in history, and slowly climbs up the ranks to become the most respected female warrior. Of course, no romance story would be complete without a love triangle, and the drama has settled with royalty from the Northern and Southern Dynasties. This was a chaotic time characterised by war and civil unrest, hence it is becoming a popular choice for all the alternate universe stories being adapted for the small screen (recent examples include Nirvana in Fire, Princess Weiyoung).
Production company Ciwen Media’s recent credits include Journey of Flower 花千骨 and Lure of the Huaxu Song 华胥引之绝爱之城, which doesn’t exactly sound like a good thing whichever way you look at it. It does look like it will be a bonafide ratings hit though, since this star-studded 52 episode epic has been bought by popular satellite channel Hunan TV.
That outfit looks just like the one in Zhao Zilong. … And Li Qin’s blue dress looks just like it’s from Princess Weiyoung.
I remember liking the original enough to read it more than once, though, and happy that Zhao Liying’s finally trying a new type of role.
is it rare for dramas to be bought prior to filming? I heard Hunan TV bought the rights to broadcast this next summer in April or May
Not really. I’d say it depends on the distributing company and the star power of the actors e.g. Ruyi was bought by Jiangsu and Dragon TV for exorbitant prices simply due to Zhou Xun’s confirmed appearance as the lead character.
I’ll be surprised if Hunan actually sticks to that schedule. :p