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Michael's Thoughts on 'A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College'

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  • Michael's Thoughts on 'A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College'
• Michael's Thoughts on 'A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College'

• Michael's Thoughts on 'A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College'

  Michael > October 1st, 2023, 02:22 AM

  
  Xu Kai Cheng and Zhao Lu Si star in 'A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College'
  
  This is a fun 30-episode historical romance series from 2021. It's one of Zhao Lusi's breakout roles, from what I can see on the Web. But this show really allowed her to display her talents as an actress in various capacities. She lived up to the role.
  
  The show originally aired on Tencent Video and YouKu from late September through October 2021. So I'm guessing they filmed it starting in late 2020 or early 2021.
  
  The story is adapted from a Web novel titled "A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College" by Hua Qian. The screenwriter was Li Lin, who worked on A League of Nobleman (among several other shows). There are 2 directors in the credits (Xu Pei Shan and Cai Guo Li) but I've never seen anything else by either of them. I don't know who directed what, so I can't comment on the quality of either director's choices.
  
  BACKGROUND OF THE STORY
  
  The show is formally classified as Historical, Mystery, Comedy, and Romance but it's also got elements of Wuxia (Martial Heroes) stylized martial arts with people flying through the air and performing impossible stunts, including deflecting swarms of crossbow bolts fired at close range.
  
  Sang Qi (Xhao Lu Si) arrives in Bianjing, capital city of the Song dynasty, to apply for admission to the Imperial College. She would be the first female student in the centuries-old institution. She wants to do this as it was her elder brother's dying wish.
  
  Sang Qi is the daughter of Grand Commandant Sang Wei (played by Jiang Kai). He's the dynasty's most famous general, having defended the border against formidable enemies for years. Sang Qi grew up at his fortress and hasn't lived in Bianjing for many years.
  
  Sang Yu (played by Zhao Yue) was Sang Qi's older brother. He was living in Bianjing and attending the Imperial College when he died (before the show begins).
  
  Although the show is classified as a "Historical" series, there isn't much historical relevance to the show. The Song Dynasty lasted from 960 CE to 1279 CE and as far as I can determine none of the characters are historical figures.
  
  The "mystery" element develops slowly at first. Early episodes emphasize the comedic elements of the story.
  
  HOW THE SHOW BEGINS
  
  On her way to meet a childhood friend (Zhuo Wen Yuan, played by Ren Hao), Sang Qi sees a young woman (Song Jia Yin, played by Zhang Yue) frozen in the middle of the street as a carriage barrels toward her. The unseen occupant of the carriage orders the driver to head straight for Song Jia Yin and even to speed up. So Sang Qi leaps into action and saves the girl.
  
  As the two young women argue over what just happened, the carriage's occupant listens in a half-bored state of mind. He is Yan Yun Zhi (played by Xu Kai Cheng). Song Jia Yin has set her heart on him and wanted him to rescue her from impending death, but Sang Qi spoiled her plan. After the girls introduce themselves to each other, Yan Yun Zhi suddenly becomes interested when he hears Sang Qi's name.
  
  He emerges from the carriage and stares at her but doesn't say anything. She is both bemused and annoyed and walks off to meet Zhuo Wen Yuan at Qingfeng Restaurant (which is the setting for many scenes throughout the series).
  
  Some of the funniest moments happen in this first episode as Zhao Lu Si sets the pace for her character. Sang Qi is a light-hearted, carefree girl who doesn't care much for anyone's rules. She and Zhuo Wen Yuan start to catch up with each other but are interrupted as Song Jia Yin makes a fuss in the restaurant. Sang Qi intervenes and saves a waiter who was about to be punished by Miss Song's attendants.
  
  The two girls argue a bit and then Miss Song challenges Sang Qi to a bet. She must get Yan Yun Zhil to accept her pouch before the Lantern Festival or else perform like a common entertainer in front of the entire city. If Sang Qi succeeds, Miss Song will give the performance.
  
  Unfortunately for Sang Qi, just as she accepts the bet Yan Yun Zhi (who has been talking with his friend Yan San Lang in another room and heard everything) comes out and disrupts the conversation. Sang Qi makes a fool of herself and Yan Yun Zhi walks away.
  
  SOME OF THE INTERESTING SUB-PLOTS
  
  I can't go on with many more details or I'll give away too much of the story.
  
  Yan Yun Zhi is the Deputy Chief of the Imperial College. Sang Qi is upset when she finds this out and she assumes that he's making it difficult for her to enter the college. She convinced her father to ask the Emperor (played by Zhang Zheng Yang) for permission to apply to the college. The scholars held a meeting and decided to give her an entrance exam (something no other student was required to do). Unbeknown to Sang Qi, Yan Yun Zhi actually persuaded the faculty to let her take a test to prove she could keep up with the male students.
  
  All the major characters have some type of connection with the emperor, and their families participate in or lead various factions of the court.
  
  Yan Yun Zhi is the second son (by a concubine, I think) of the Chancellor, Lord Yan (played by Yu Chun). Zhuo Wen Yuan was raised by his aunt, Noble Consort Zhuo (played by Lu Xia). Yan Xiao Lang, aka Yan Yan (played by Ao Rui Peng), is the eldest son of the Grand Preceptor Yan Xiang (played by Liang Guo Rong). Song Jia Yin and her brother Song Luo Tan (played by Du Yu) are the children of Grand Tutor Song (played by Yu Rong).
  
  And there are numerous secondary characters who come and go throughout the story, or who play significant roles for brief periods of time.
  
  There are also a few notable attendants, including Zhuo Wen Yuan's bodyguard Jing Mu (played by Meng En), Sang Qi's attendant and foster sister Lian Pian (played by Li Xing Yao), and Yan Yun Zhi's bodyguard Bai Shi (played by Cheng Kang). I realize just mentioning their names in passing doesn't do their characters justice, but they all play important roles in the story.
  
  Bai Shi's role is mostly comedic, but he's a capable fighter. Jing Mu is probably one of the best fighters in the story. Lian Pian is cute and charming and her storyline gradually becomes more important.
  
  THOUGHTS ON ZHAO LU SI AS SANG QI
  
  Although I've seen Zhao Lu Si in some of her later performances, I had no idea of just how well she played Sang Qi in this series. I think it would have been difficult for another actress to do as well as this character because it seems to have been written for her.
  
  I think Lu Si was about 22 years old when the series was filmed. She had to appear in a few flashback scenes as a much younger Sang Qi. If we assume she's about 18 when she returns to Bianjing to enter the Imperial College, then she was probably supposed to be 14-16 years old in the flashback scenes. While I realize these shows utilize computer software to enhance the lead actors' appearances, I think she did amazingly well as a younger Sang Qi. As a viewer I felt convinced she was really much younger in most of those scenes.
  
  It could be as simple as makeup and costuming that gave the actress this appearance. I guess I'll never know.
  
  In some of her other scenes Lu Si also acts like a slightly immature 18-20 year old. She is a master of body language (and, yes, I realize they may have had to do several takes for these scenes but she still pulled it off). She conducts herself with a carefree, youthful exuberance you just don't expect of someone in their early 20s.
  
  And then there are the scenes where "mature Sang Qi" comes out. These aren't necessarily the romantic scenes with Yan Yun Zhi (although there are a few tender adult-like moments). They put Sang Qi into every situation imaginable, including some dramatic fight scenes. As the daughter of Grand Commandant Sang she proves she's got some martial skills, but at the same time the story makes it clear she's not ready to join the frontline soldiers or the top martial artists in the city.
  
  All in all, I think her performance in this show exceeds those of her other performances that I've seen (Who Rules the World and Love of Thousand Years). Admittedly, I've only watched 3 of the 20 series and 3 movies Zhao Lu Si has appeared in thus far, so I've got a long way to go in learning about her acting ability and her best performances. So I reserve judgment for changing my mind later on.
  
  NOTES ABOUT OTHER ACTORS
  
  Xu Kai Cheng is an even more accomplished actor than Zhao Lu Si, at least in that he has far more credits than she does. So this show was obviously led by 2 very experienced, capable actors and they both deserve credit for their experience.
  
  That said, I've only seen Kai Cheng in 1 other show - Novoland: Pearl Eclipse, in which he played Emperor Di Xu (Chu Zhong Xu). He filmed Pearl Eclipse right after this show and these two characters couldn't be farther apart in personality and temperament. Whereas Di Xu is a sullen, heart-broken, angry young man Deputy Chief Yan Yun Zhi is quiet but warm and thoughtful man. He meets a better fate than Di Xu, too.
  
  Ren Hao (Sang Qi's friend Zhuo Wen Yuan) has a huge list of acting credits, but most of them are given as "TV shows" (rather than as "Dramas"). The TV show format is more like America's Got Talent or Big Brother (just to give 2 illustrative examples). So Ren Hao is an established broadcast entertainer but he doesn't have much scripted Drama experience. Even so he gives a convincing performance, even if his character is required to be a bit over-the-top at times. I did NOT expect him to finish the way he did, but it makes sense and Ren Hao played it well.
  
  Jiang Kai, who plays Grand Commandant Sang, struck me immediately as someone familiar as soon as I saw him. And it turns out that he has appeared in several other shows that I've reviewed including Novoland: Pearl Eclipse, Eternal Love (or 10 Miles of Peach Blossoms), Who Rules the World, and Romance Of A Twin Flower. He's got a HUGE list of credits, but even so I was pleasantly surprised to realize I could actually recognize him as someone I've seen before. For someone who's only been watching Cdramas in earnest for only a few years, I'm still pretty vague on names and faces. There are so many actors and actresses that I'll never get to know them all.
  
  Guo Jun plays Yan He Xing, Yan Yun Zhi's uncle. His role in this show isn't very big but he's an interesting character. And it turns out I've seen him in My Heroic Husband. As an older actor he's also got a long list of credits, including some shows I've started to watch but didn't finish.
  
  MY FINAL THOUGHTS
  
  I really enjoyed this show. But it's also the kind of show you probably need to watch twice. Although I laughed at a lot of the jokes, it's more than just a silly romantic comedy. The show strives to be a serious drama in several ways. The sub-plot concerning Sang Yu (Sang Qi's brother) takes a while to become apparent, but it's really there from the very first scene. You just can't see that unless you know the story.
  
  I went back and rewatched much of the first episode while writing this review and I understood the significance of several things right away that either escaped my attention or made little sense to me when I watched it the first time.
  
  The love story is almost totally sappy. Really, it's not the main theme of the show. It's more like the glue that binds several sub-plots together.
  
  It doesn't take Sang Qi much effort to win Yan Yun Zhi's heart. Their challenges as a couple aren't things that really keep them apart. They're more like obstacles the two characters must overcome either singly or together.
  
  If I have any complaint about the romance, I would say it's how they handle some of the reveals. I'll just say there are red herrings spread throughout the story.
  
  Yet even so I think this show stands up well against many others I've watched. It felt right in many places because the acting was so good, even when the script may have left you wanting something slightly better.
  
  Many of the characters are stereotypes and I think that's just what you have to expect from these shows. The actors often film several of these series in a year, and when you consider they have to appear in 25-50 episodes per series, then you'll probably agree with me they achieve some amazing results. These folks must work really hard, so it's not surprising to me that so many character archetypes appear again and again. I don't hold that against the Cdrama industry.
  
  I highly recommend this show, but it will be hard to find something better than this one if you like period costume romantic dramas. I'd watch a few others first, get a feel for the genre, and then enjoy this one in a relaxed schedule. Well, I say "relaxed" but it was a page turner for me. I stole a few hours here and there to keep watching.
  
  

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