Military drama The King of Land Battle stars Chen Xiao (Finding Love on the Journey) and Wang Lei (Traditional Chinese Medicine) as PLA soldiers who go from rivals to best friends. Zhang Yaqin (Legend of Fuyao) costars as a fellow crew member. [Extended Synopsis]
The 50 episode drama airs daily on Zhejiang TV and Dragon TV beginning tonight.
Long Trailer | Teaser | Creative Countdowns (1), (2)
Two new dramas celebrating the 40th anniversary of China’s open-door policy have started filming, and there’s another handful ready to air (titles below). I’d say at least half of the shows are aiming for a Flying Apsaras award, which has a separate category for dramas relating to significant historical events.
Director Kang Honglei has churned out several solid dramas (See Without Looking, When We Were in France) over the years, but is still best known for 2006 hit drama Soldiers Sortie. He’s returning to familiar ground this time with The Lord of Land War 陆战之王, an upcoming military drama about tanks that stars Chen Xiao (Nothing Gold Can Stay) and Wang Lei (Rose Faith) as the protagonists.
Puzzle 拼图 (previously known as Tempest of Anti-Corruption 反贪风暴)
40 episodes, daily drama on Dragon TV and Zhejiang TV
Director: Zheng Xiaolong (ER Doctors)
Writers: Ren Yun (Metamorphosis), Gong Xiangdong (Editorial Department Story)
In the Name of the People 人民的名义 acquired a mass following when it aired, and has turned out to be THE national drama of the year, breaking 6% ratings during the latter half of its run (these days, dramas that surpass 1% are considered hits). Its success has led to the production of several more propaganda dramas that focus on corruption in government agencies.
The Last Visa 最后一张签证 is inspired by the true story of diplomat He Fengshan, whose heroic deeds during World War II allowed several thousands of Jews to escape persecution.
Please excuse me as I take a trip down memory lane…
The Golden Eagle Awards is a prestigious biannual television awards ceremony, and prides itself on being “the people’s award”. Unlike the Flying Apsaras Awards (government recognition) and Magnolia Awards (industry recognition), Golden Eagle spreads the love more evenly, and usually several dramas and actors are acknowledged.
In previous years, the Best Actor and Actress of the night were decided by online voters and a panel of judges, and presented with the Audience’s Choice award (golden statue) and Best Performing Arts award (crystal statue). This year the two awards were given to different actors, with the nominee that received the most votes from the judges winning the Performing Arts award.