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| The major cast of Chor Lau Heung 1984 from Wuxia Society |
You might notice (or not), that I’ve been inundating this blog with fanfictions from a series called the New Adventures of Chor Lau Heung (TVB 1984). It began two weeks ago when I found the online link to that TV series at Dramanice (thank you, dear subbers! You guys were Godsend!). See, I had a crush when I was 11 years old when I watched a wuxia (martial) series with my cousins. I fell for this beautiful actor on that TV series. I found him very charming, I smiled when he smiled, and I felt the pain when he got hurt (they tend to do that a lot in wuxia series). As time goes by, I then forgot about him. He then retired from the HK TV industry in 1987 to become a business man in the optometry industry. In 2002 he made a comeback, but I didn’t realise it until recently (cos I wasn’t checking the net for him anymore).
The charming actor’s name is Michael Miu Kiu Wai. TVB aired the New Adventures of Chor Lau Heung in 1984 and it has been my favourite series so far, even topping the modern series these days. After 30 years of hiatus, I’m very pleased to report that the series is still worth watching IMO, and Michael is still the dashing Chor Lau Heung that I remembered three decades ago.
Gosh... has it been that long, actually? ...It has. Michael is now 57, but he is still dashing even at his age. Of course he has lines and whats not, but I saw a snippet of his recent series, and he still made me swoon! Heh... he still makes me swoon as I watched his banters with Barbara Yung Mei Ling (my favourite 80s actress, God I wish she didn’t commit suicide on 14 May 1985). Speaking of Barbara, I just learned that Chor Lau Heung 1984 was her second last series before she died; which made this series even more special to me (check this excellent blog post for other Barbara Yung series).
Chor Lau Heung (Chu Liu Xiang) is a bit of the Song/Ming dynasty Robin Hood, James Bond and Napoleon Solo combined, I suppose, tho he’s not a womaniser. I mean, in the series and the book, he didn’t sleep around with women, tho he lived with three ladies he sort of adopted when they were young. Ladies tend to flock around him, for he was such a natural charmer. Chor Lau Heung adopted three girls when they were young, and the three ladies had since then lived with him on board the Fragrant Boat, their house and headquarter. Chor had a stuffy nose, so he would always carry aromatic snuff balm with him and would touch his nostrils and nose bridge every now and then, which then became his trademark gestures. Later in this series, his habit of carrying a snuff balm paid off, for it helped him identifying his opponent.
The literal meaning for “Liu Xiang/Lau Heung” is “Lingering Fragrance”, and it was said that he actually smelled nice (maybe the balm actually smelled nice?). The Indonesian translation for this series is actually “Pendekar Harum” or “The Fragrant Swordsman” – although ‘swordsman’ isn’t a correct translation here since Chor doesn’t use sharp weapons. He just fought bare hand or with a fan or anything he carried that time. He has an excellent gravity-defying skill – and brain (!) – that helped him a lot with the stealing business or defeating powerful opponents. Oh, and he actually would either leave a note that he would steal something, or that he has stolen something. Neat! Love it when he stole the Golden Dragon Staff and the Imperial Seal in this series! Wonder if we transport him to the 21st CE, whether he can defeat Catwoman! (Answer: he WOULD!). I bet Chor would be an excellent hacker in modern time too.
Chor Lau Heung is a character created by Gu Long (Ku Lung) in his Chor Lau Heung series. This series used the plots from the Legend of the Bat, which was in Books 4 and 5 of Gu Long’s Chu Liuxiang (Chor Lau Heung) series, but the script writers also infused the story with some of their own. As the result, some characters were non-canon created for this series only. I have never read Gu Long’s Chor Lau Heung, hence I have no problem digesting this TVB ver as my definitive Chor Lau Heung. I can’t resist Barbara Yung’s charming Song Siu Ching character anyway, so if I have to choose between the original version (where a lady called Zhang Jie Jie eventually married Chor) and the 1984 TVB version (we all assume that Chor would marry Miss Song eventually), I’d chose the latter in a heart beat.
Anyway, off now to review the series. Tho the conclusion is “Seriously, you’ve gotta see this series if you love oldies wuxia”, I will briefly provide the major plot and the characters here. Spellings are mostly in Cantonese instead of Mandarin, cos it was a HK production after all. Check the Wikipedia, the SPCnet and the Wuxia Society for other info on this series. Watch the series at Dramanice (thank you again, dear subbers!). Episode guides can be read here. It's 40 episodes long, but it doesn't feel that long. It was actually rather concise and nicely paced despite some editing that left out some nuances and I don't think the unabridged version will feel dragged either. It's a far cry from modern days series where 40 episodes can feel like a torture due to dragged story lines...
MAJOR PLOT
Chor Lau Heung and the girls went to see best buddy Zo Hing Hau. En route, Chor met Song Siu Ching, a brazen girl he immediately liked. Chor et al later found out that Zo’s daughter was ill and Zo was worried because he had a scheduled duel-to-death with another master (Sit Yi Yan). To make things worse, Sit’s daughter was also inexplicably sick. Chor, Siu Ching and the girls finally assisted Sit’s daughter to run away with an actor, while Zo met an unpleasant fate. Later Chor Lau Heung realised that Siu Ching was not an ordinary girl, for he had to rescue her from several kidnap attempts. Only when Siu Ching was truly kidnapped by former assassin Yat Dim Hung (he was actually Chor’s old friend), then Chor realised that Siu Ching was actually Princess Wing-Ching. The girl’s father (a.k.a. the Emperor) was in trouble because the Duke (SC’s uncle) tried to usurp the throne. Chor finally agreed to help reinstate the Emperor, which was not an easy task because the Duke was one crafty opponent. By then Chor Lau Heung and Siu Ching had fallen in love, but due to their different social status and Chor’s responsibility, their relationship wasn’t smooth and easy. Chor’s mission became more complicated because five masters of different sects were found dead without a trace of fight at all. Chor Lau Heung investigated the case with the help of Yuen Tsui Wan, the heir of the Peace Mansion, a sort of de facto leader in the wuxia society. They concluded that the Bat Prince and his Bat Clan must be behind the murders of the five masters. As Chor continued his investigation, he found that friends might turn out to be enemies, first impressions are not always right and one could have an inferiority complex despite being a ladies’ man...
TECHNICAL ASPECTS
The director (Johnnie To) did a really good job with the cameras. He’d zoom into the faces of some actors during some important scenes, mainly to better capture their expressions. Costumes were fine and dandy, tho I don’t mind a bit of dirt with some scenes...In terms of cinematography, I love the 80s TVB Golden Era. This series is one of my favourite, but other series like the Legend of Condor Heroes surely deliver the same grandeur. Johnnie To also directed the Legend of Condor Heroes, so expect the same quality (if not more) of that series. In the 1980s, film makers didn’t use CGI, so the fighting scenes in this series were more realistic. I read an interview somewhere that Michael et al actually really did the backflips themselves. The only CGI they used was the bat scenes (ouch), but no fights were using CGI to my knowledge. The last fight between Chor Lau Heung and the Bat Prince, when they were slashing their swords amongst the trees, was superimposed with the tree scenes (I think the fight was done inside the studio, actually), but not sure if that’s actually considered the real CGI.
The music for this series was superb. Check the YouTube video above to listen to the opening theme by Ramon Tam. Ramon Tam also sang the end credit theme with Liza Wang (click this post for the translations of both songs). I think Liza also sang the third song, which was the romantic theme, but I haven't been able to find the video or lyrics.
The music for this series was superb. Check the YouTube video above to listen to the opening theme by Ramon Tam. Ramon Tam also sang the end credit theme with Liza Wang (click this post for the translations of both songs). I think Liza also sang the third song, which was the romantic theme, but I haven't been able to find the video or lyrics.
CHARACTER GUIDE (and some more spoilers)
Chor Lau Heung (Michael Miu)
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| Chor Lau Heung flirting with Song Siu Ching, ep 1 |
Chor Lau Heung was by default an intelligent man, in addition to being super charming. In this series, the titular character was played by Michael Miu, who displayed Chor’s kindness, compassion, wit and intelligence (not to mention charms) to perfection. Michael had also played some famous wuxia characters before, notably Yang Kang. I’ve never watched the 80s Legend of Condor Heroes until finish, but I know many were taken by Michael’s take on the antagonist Yang Kang. Well, Michael’s talent is apparently not only to play tragic characters, but also charming and flamboyant characters. I never watched the 1979 Chor Lau Heung (played by Adam Cheng). I know many people like that version, and I don’t say that I won’t like it if I see it. But Michael’s Chor is the first Chor Lau Heung I’ve seen, and it sticks with me...
Some reviewers like Adam Cheng’s interpretation better because Adam infused a bit of tragedy in Chor’s character. Had I seen it, I might like Adam’s interpretation, but I won’t have much time to watch his series, so I will just comment on Michael’s. Besides, not all series need to start and end with tragedy, I think. It’s nice to watch something light every now and then, particularly when infused with a high degree of intelligence like this series.
Michael’s Chor was playful and fun and all smile, although he of course had his moments of regrets, sorrow and confusion. I loooove his banters with his friend Wu Tit Fa and the three girls, and I love it when he consoled his tragic friend Yat Dim Hung (played excellently by the late Austin Wai...). And of course I love the subtle nuances that Michael portrayed for Chor regarding his relationship with Miss Song. Michael’s Chor was always a flirt... but with Miss Song, he can be very mellow and self-conscious. He had that surprised look when one day he realised she left him, a look that was not easy to wipe off. He flashed a spark of regret in his slanted eyes, knowing that he wanted her but could not see how they could be together. He would also have a spark of delight in seeing her again, but after knowing she was the Princess, he’d recover from it just a tad too soon.
Despite Chor being playful, Michael also portrayed the titular character as being more subdue around episode 26 onwards when he found out that he misjudged some people and indirectly caused their demise. He was also shown hurt by his friend’s betrayal, and it hurt me too, tho their duel was very pleasing to watch from the technical perspective. Michael’s Chor could be very strict as well when it concerned larger welfare. When Song Siu Ching (SSC) a.k.a. Princess Wing Ching wanted to accompany him settling down some unfinished matter, he actually lectured her that she should put the country above her personal needs first. Almost like Mr Knightley lecturing Emma Woodhouse, I’d say, when she was behaving badly.
In the series, Chor Lau Heung was identical with white clothes. He always wore white clothes with just a bit of soft colour here and there, usually as a gossamer layer (in white or other soft colours) attached to his shoulder pads, giving the impression of a very flowing cape. He gave me the impression of an elf (in the Lord of the Rings series), for his hair was always neat and well kept (I am glad they didn’t do those funny knots on his hair a la Legolas...). Deviating from the pure Gu Long version, here Michael Miu almost never wielded a fan. He just fought barehanded most of the time, or he’d chosen a sword as his secondary weapon. I’d love to see Michael wielding a fan in a fight, actually, that would be awesome. But I tell you, his bare hand fighting scenes were so superb, I don’t think I miss that much anyway in the absence of the fan.
Chor Lau Heung was a calm and collected person when facing problems, but when at ease he would play jokes and be merry. He would be the excellent poster boy for the concept of friendship. He was a good leader, a great detective and a skilled battle tactician. He investigated some cases with a pleasing degree of intelligence (as in, the way he deducted cases enlightened us too, instead of insulting the viewers’ intelligence). He led some covert missions and open attacks in the series and all but one were executed perfectly. The Emperor actually wanted to offer him a strategic position at the Court, but Chor – being himself – politely refused because he preferred to be free.
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| Brother Chor unsure about his relationship with Miss Song, ep 27 |
Although Chor’s feelings towards Miss Song was totally like at first sight (they never used the word “love” between Chor and SC, but we KNOW it was actually LOVE!), their relationship became problematic when he realised he was flirting with the Princess of the Empire. He slowly withdrew himself, which caused SC (and me) pain and frustration. It was frustrating because he still cared for her, but he was hesitant to cross the line between friends and lovers. Michael portrayed that hesitance and confusion very well; it’s actually pleasing to see the charming and witty Chor morphed into a man unsure of himself whenever SC is concerned (see the opening theme video at 01:19). In his own words in front of the Emperor: “I don’t think I’m good enough for her.” And this is where I KNOW, I JUST KNOW that Chor loved SC too. The famous Lingering Fragrance wouldn’t be so unsure of himself if he didn’t love her that much. Right? Right?
Right you are, Miss.
Song Siu Ching (Barbara Yung Mei Ling)
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| Brother Chor and Siu Ching, ep 25 |
When Chor met Song Siu Ching (Barbara Yung) for the first time, he was intrigued by her. The spoilt brat Miss Song was actually a princess, which made her relationship with Chor difficult. It actually broke my heart because they hit it very well during the early episodes. Well, it was a rocky start due to Chor’s flirtatious habit and Song’s stubbornness, but eventually they realised they enjoyed each other’s company. Then Siu Ching was kidnapped and Chor tai-gor ('Brother' Chor) just had to inform her father about it and realised his (ahem) prospective father-in-law was actually the Emperor! I love that episode when Chor asked to talk to Siu Ching privately. As she was twirling her hair and blushed, expecting to hear sweet nothings from him, he actually kneeled and greeted her properly the way one would to a royalty. My heart broke for Siu Ching when I heard Michael’s (I mean, Chor’s) lovely deep voice uttering such a formal greeting, for it meant he was drawing the lines there.
Song Siu Ching had good enough kung fu, but not enough to protect herself against ex professional killer Yat Dim Hung and the Bat Prince. Because of her status as the Princess, she was often forbidden to join the fight, which frustrated her. However, SC was highly intelligent, albeit having the tendency to rush into action without careful consideration. She was, I suspect, similar to Wung Yung (Guo Jing’s wife in Condor Heroes, also played excellently by Barbara Yung) in intelligence, only too stubborn and impatient to sit and think of a plan. Due to her status, she was kidnapped several times (gosh...), which worried Chor Lau Heung. However, she somehow managed to wriggle herself out of the trouble one way or the other, interestingly without Chor’s help. Several times, she actually devised some plans to save Chor instead, which is also interesting. During her adventure with Chor Lau Heung, Siu Ching matured into a grown woman. She became more sensible and responsible, and she also realised her important role in the Court (tho she did need Chor’s lecturing her on this before she realised it). However, towards the end of the series, as she returned to the Palace, SSC still couldn’t get rid of her bossy attitude, which raised Chor’s concerns.
As for the actress, I don’t think anyone can copy or surpass Barbara Yung Mei Ling as Song Siu Ching. She defined SSC as a very likeable character despite the flaws a royalty usually had. When she was acting without Michael, she shone all the way. When Michael was there as Chor... well, let’s just say my poor heart is weeping in extreme delight to see Barbara’s SC lit up, as if her whole world just focused on that one person in front of her.
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| This was Barbara's, I mean Miss Song's face whenever she was with Brother Chor (ep 32) |
As for the actress, I don’t think anyone can copy or surpass Barbara Yung Mei Ling as Song Siu Ching. She defined SSC as a very likeable character despite the flaws a royalty usually had. When she was acting without Michael, she shone all the way. When Michael was there as Chor... well, let’s just say my poor heart is weeping in extreme delight to see Barbara’s SC lit up, as if her whole world just focused on that one person in front of her.
It’s true: for a big horde of fans, Michael Miu and Barbara Yung were the definitive on-screen OTP back then, and even stretching until today. TVB or others may write a different character that may pair up well with the 2015ish version of Chor Lau Heung... but it’s difficult to find an actress that can surpass Barbara’s charm.
By the way, I love Barbara’s clothes in this series, particularly the one she wore when she met Chor for the first time. The tunic’s rims were scalloped, hence creating a very nice butterfly effects on her petite figure. She also had nice fluffy hair ornaments on her which made her looked like a cute rabbit (Barbara did have rabbit teeth, which made her even cuter IMO).
Wu Tit Fa (Chan Wing-chun)
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| Brother Chor's best buddy Wu Tit Fa (with Yuen Tsui Wan at the background), ep 32 |
Chor Lau Heung wouldn’t have such amazing adventures without Wu Tit Fa. I love their bromance and find it funny how both of them seemed to accept each other flaws despite them grudging about it as well. Wu was a drunkard with bad temper and the inability to think straight when angry. Several times Wu got angry at Chor in the series (mostly because he couldn’t stand the three girls, actually, but there was one case that Wu’s anger seemed to be justified – and Chor couldn’t blame him for being angry either). Nonetheless, they were always there for each other. I find Wu Tit Fa not warming up quickly to Song Siu Ching, despite his best buddy’s obvious feelings towards the girl. However, later Wu finally accepted Siu Ching as his buddy’s woman. When Wu broke up with Koh A Lam, Siu Ching was one of his advocates in begging Koh’s forgiveness. Wu also had an on-again-off-again relationship with Kam Ling Chi (played by Chow Sau-lan) which made things complicated.
The three girls: Sue, Rosie and Sugar
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| The three girls finally accepting SC as Brother Chor's beau, ep 30 |
So Yung Yung (‘Sue’ or Su Rongrong in Mandarin/So Yung Yung in Cantonese), Li Hung Sau (‘Rosie’ or Li Hongxiu in Mandarin/Li Hung Chao in Cantonese), and Sung Tim Yi (‘Sugar’ or Song Tian’er in Mandarin/) were three girls Chor adopted when they were little. Since then, they’d been living with Chor Lau Heung on board the Fragrant Boat. I don’t know how Chor trained them, but they definitely grew up to be smart and capable women. Sue excelled at the disguise skill and chess, Rosie was their medical expert, while Sugar provides great music and food. They were smart too and had help Chor’s cases many times. They followed Chor almost everywhere except when they had to split up to work on some cases. In the Dramanice version, the subber changed their name to Sue (from ‘Su’ perhaps), Rosie (I don’t get how; perhaps because she liked wearing pink/purple dresses?), and Sugar (perhaps because she’s the sweetest). I originally found them troublesome due to their possessiveness to Chor Lau Heung, but then I grew to like them. Sugar was the most difficult tho towards Siu Ching. Even though her sisters grew to tolerate SC and started to treat her well, Sugar was still hostile towards SC until well into the middle of the series. However, the girls eventually accepted SC (and also Wah Jan Jan) in their circle. Perhaps they eventually realised that you can’t blame women for falling for Brother Chor...The girls were respectively played by Lui Ching-hung, Chi Pui-fan and Lau Miu-ling.
Edit 17 March 2016: Now that I've watched CLH 1984 so many times, I've concluded that I like Lui Ching Hung's performance the best for her sweet portrayal of So Yung Yung. If there's no Song Siu Ching, I don't mind CLH marrying this version of So Yung Yung. I also like Lau Miu Ling, I think her Sung Tim Yi was very cute, despite her constant jealousy to Siu Ching. OTOH, I don't think Chi Pui Fan portrayed Li Hung Chao very well. I just can't relate to this character, and I think it's more about Chi's portrayal of Miss Li. Her eyes were not just expressive enough for a character who adored and worshipped CLH...
Koh A Lam (Sharon Yang Pan Pan)
Edit 17 March 2016: Now that I've watched CLH 1984 so many times, I've concluded that I like Lui Ching Hung's performance the best for her sweet portrayal of So Yung Yung. If there's no Song Siu Ching, I don't mind CLH marrying this version of So Yung Yung. I also like Lau Miu Ling, I think her Sung Tim Yi was very cute, despite her constant jealousy to Siu Ching. OTOH, I don't think Chi Pui Fan portrayed Li Hung Chao very well. I just can't relate to this character, and I think it's more about Chi's portrayal of Miss Li. Her eyes were not just expressive enough for a character who adored and worshipped CLH...
Koh A Lam (Sharon Yang Pan Pan)
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| Koh A Lam (Sharon Yang - right) with her Hua Shan sister Wah Jan Jan (Mimi Kung) |
The actress Sharon Yang actually paired up with Michael Miu in the original 1982 Legend of Condor Heroes. She played as Mu Nian Ci (Mandarin; the Cantonese is Mu Lim Chi I guess), the lover and wife of Yang Kang (or Yeung Hong, played so excellently by Michael). I never watched the whole LoCH till finished (too small and too ignorant of it when I was 9-10 years old), but many people consider Michael’s Yang Kang as the best, the definitive Yang Kang ever. Like, ever. After watching some YouTube videos, I can understand why.
As for Sharon, I don’t know her chemistry with Michael in LoCH (a friend used to say how Yang Kang looooved his wife so much in the series), but here she wasn’t paired up with him (yay!). She was paired up with Wu Tit Fa for a while until they broke up. Sharon was a lovely actress, and she was certainly lovely without a bang!! Should have never donned the bang in the first place.
Edit 17 March 2016: Sharon had a good chemistry with Michael's character/Yeung Hong/Yang Kang in LOCH 1982. And by the Gods... Michael's Yang Kang was definitely made of gold, albeit evil gold at that... Click here for my posts on LOCH 1982.
Edit 17 March 2016: Sharon had a good chemistry with Michael's character/Yeung Hong/Yang Kang in LOCH 1982. And by the Gods... Michael's Yang Kang was definitely made of gold, albeit evil gold at that... Click here for my posts on LOCH 1982.
Yuen Tsui Wan (Simon Yam)
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| Brother Chor and Yuen Tsui Wan, ep 32 |
Gosh, Simon is haaawwt!!! He definitely matured well over the years. When I saw him the first time 30 years ago, I didn’t think him handsome. Now I’m rooting for him. He and Chor, I mean Michael, had the same build back then, height and muscle and all, and even had a knack of wearing white clothes, which made some scenes very pleasing. Simon played Yuen very well, including the subtle nuances. Anyway, Yuen Tsui Wan was the heir of the Peace Mansion, a very important hub for the wuxia communities in the series. His trademark weapon was a fan (which was actually Chor’s trademark arsenal in the Gu Long books). Yuen looked like the perfect poster boy of a great, a suave gentleman and an ideal son-in-law. However, slowly slowly, he showed his true colour and we just went with Team Brother Chor.
Chung-yuen (“Fell Cut”) Yat Dim Hung (Austin Wai)
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| Austin Wai in his trademark brooding swordsman role, here as Fell Cut |
Yat Dim Hung was an old friend of Chor Lau Heung and Wu Tit Fa who secluded himself for he had just enough of the rough wuxia world. He had to emerge from his seclusion when the Bat Prince tracked him down and killed his wife. He kidnapped Siu Ching under Chor’s nose and planned to deliver her to the Bats in exchange of the info about who killed his wife (turned out to be the Bat Prince himself). However, he later grew to appreciate SC’s friendship and left her to deal with the Bats alone. He eventually killed a bat guy he thought to be the Bat Prince. He resumed seclusion and became a monk. Yat was played by the late Austin Wai, who excellently portrayed the tortured former assassin.
Inspector Ying Man Lei (Kwok Fung)
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| Inspector Ying and Siu Ching, ep 33 |
Inspector Ying was a loyal follower of the Emperor. He had a task to safeguard Princess Wing Ching (Siu Ching’s true identity) and it was not an easy task due to SC’s stubbornness. He was the ideal bodyguard for Siu Ching. He was caring but also knew his duties. He originally objected to Siu Ching being too close to Chor Lau Heung due to their different social status. However, after witnessing so many times how he and SC came to rely on Chor’s wits and skills, Ying himself became the main matchmaker for the couple and had no reservation in trusting Chor with the Princess during crisis. Inspector Ying had a unique dynamic with the Princess; he was her guard but he often behaved like her big brother in his attempts to protect her. Siu Ching herself had an absolute trust on Mr Ying, tho she did enjoy giving him headache.
Inspector Ying died protecting the Emperor when the Bat Prince (whose identity Chor already disclosed by then) attacked the Emperor. Mr Ying is one of my favourite characters in the series, hence I was, still am, sad to see him go. I’d love to see him still being alive and be happy to see his charge/surrogate sister living a happy life with Chor. Who knows, perhaps Chor and SC later had a daughter and they decided to name the baby after Mr Ying...(I actually wrote a fan-fiction about it here).
By the way, Kwok Fung portrayed another inspector in another rom-com MB series. He was the funny Inspector Tse Cheung Yeung in Fearless Duo 1984, a guy who fell for Lam Chor Yin, Barbara's character in FD'84, despite Chor Yin being in a relationship with Szeto Man Mo (Michael Miu's character). No wonder Inspector Ying had a good chemistry with Siu Ching in CLH. Not in the romantic way... more like in a sibling way. I think Ying and SC got the brotherly chemistry when they were interacting in FD (click here for all episodes of FD 1984). In Chor Lau Heung 1984, Ying Man Lei, Song Siu Ching and Chor tai-gor were like trio. Ying trusted Chor's judgement, both men would trust that the other would protect Siu Ching with his own life if necessary. Siu Ching enjoyed giving Ying headache, but she also looked up to him almost the way she looked up to Chor's counsel. It is very pleasing to see YML, CLH and SSC collaborate in their fight against the Bats and the Duke, a nice change from the funny rivalry between Inspector Tse and Szeto Man Mo to win Lam Chor Yin's heart in Fearless Duo.
Inspector Ying died protecting the Emperor when the Bat Prince (whose identity Chor already disclosed by then) attacked the Emperor. Mr Ying is one of my favourite characters in the series, hence I was, still am, sad to see him go. I’d love to see him still being alive and be happy to see his charge/surrogate sister living a happy life with Chor. Who knows, perhaps Chor and SC later had a daughter and they decided to name the baby after Mr Ying...(I actually wrote a fan-fiction about it here).
By the way, Kwok Fung portrayed another inspector in another rom-com MB series. He was the funny Inspector Tse Cheung Yeung in Fearless Duo 1984, a guy who fell for Lam Chor Yin, Barbara's character in FD'84, despite Chor Yin being in a relationship with Szeto Man Mo (Michael Miu's character). No wonder Inspector Ying had a good chemistry with Siu Ching in CLH. Not in the romantic way... more like in a sibling way. I think Ying and SC got the brotherly chemistry when they were interacting in FD (click here for all episodes of FD 1984). In Chor Lau Heung 1984, Ying Man Lei, Song Siu Ching and Chor tai-gor were like trio. Ying trusted Chor's judgement, both men would trust that the other would protect Siu Ching with his own life if necessary. Siu Ching enjoyed giving Ying headache, but she also looked up to him almost the way she looked up to Chor's counsel. It is very pleasing to see YML, CLH and SSC collaborate in their fight against the Bats and the Duke, a nice change from the funny rivalry between Inspector Tse and Szeto Man Mo to win Lam Chor Yin's heart in Fearless Duo.
Wah Jan Jan (Mimi Kung)
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| Siu Ching, Brother Chor and Wah Jan Jan, Wuxia Society |
Jan Jan is the second disciple of the Hua Shan Sect. She was a loyal friend and an avid supporter of her sister’s relationship with Wu Tit Fa. Jan Jan herself loved Chor Lau Heung who, despite her wishes, “just” treated her like a dear friend. Once, Jan Jan even made Chor a pink fish ornament as a keepsake, which made Siu Ching jealous. Chor Lau Heung often found himself wrong-footed between JJ and SC because he didn’t want to hurt JJ but he just didn’t love her the way he loved SC. Jan Jan eventually left Hua Shan and joined Chor Lau Heung and the girls on the Fragrant Boat. I’d like to think she and Chor remained friends.
Other characters
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| The Emperor conversing with Brother Chor about Siu Ching, ep 32 |
The series was actually flocked with good actors. Even the two unnamed girls of the Hua Shan sect played their roles well. I particularly love the Emperor (played by the late Mr Cheung Ying-choi) for he was such a wise person despite being rather indecisive and gullible. He also supported the relationship between his daughter and Chor Lau Heung, to the point that he kind of shoved her to his proverbial throat, hehehe...
I rather dislike the Scary Nun (Khoo Mui) character, the actress did well to make me hate her. But she was a loyal protector of the Emperor and a fierce warrior too, so there's that side of hers that I admire. I also love the Emperor’s guard Auyeung Fei (I think he was played by Tsui Man Wah, but not sure); too bad he died later to protect Huang Shang.
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