NiF trailer [azdak]

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Thanks to tumblr, I have finally found the NiF trailer Nineveh_UK showed me all those years ago to tempt me in, so I'm parking it here.

I really think the universe might be telling me it's time for a rewatch...

Watch on YouTube

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There are 8 comments on this entry. (Reply.)

It's much the best trailer, I think.

Also, this line has just brought itself to my attention:

"The even more mysterious thing is, even though he is not capable of any martial arts skills himself, he is surrounded by top-notch fighters who listen to his orders. To achieve this, if it isn't for his unrivalled tactical genius, what else could it be?"

I feel this is characteristic of Prince Yu and his 'team'. They identify the important question, but they're satisfied with the easy answer, because MCS simply being a brilliant strategist suits their agenda. They're complacent, so they don't look further. Because while MCS is a brilliant tactician, he has his position and followers due to a shared political agenda.

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This is such a good insight (NiF: such a great show that you can glean important character insights just from the TRAILER). Yu and co. don't think further than the easy answer. It's the same thing MCS relies on when he lets them discover the identity hidden behind Sir Su and when he lets Qin Banruo find his hidden room.

And thinking a bit further, it's the same flaw that prevents them from working out what he and Prince Jing are up to until the Lin Shu reveal - why would a strategist ally himself with Prince Jing? For power, of course. It never occurs to anyone that MCS might have a motive that isn't about looking out for number one. And now I'm thinking of that line of C.S Lewis's (or is it in Lord of the Rings?) about how evil can't fathom the motivations of good, bad people always assume there must be something self-seeking behind altruistic behaviour. And since they can't imagine someone having a goal that really isn't selfish, they also can't take the steps to block the good person from reaching that goal.(I think it must be LotR, re. Frodo throwing the ring into Mt Doom instead of using it to become powerful).

while MCS is a brilliant tactician, he has his position and followers due to a shared political agenda.

Yes! There's a whole load of stuff going on behind the Jiangzuo Alliance which is absolutely not about power for its own sake. Their loyalty to MCS comes from the heart, not just from admiration of his brilliance or a "what's in it for me?" attitude.

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Again and again they take the easy way, are satisfied with the superficial answer. No wonder Yu's brother-in-law blows up the fireworks factory, it's easy to see as their obvious move, because thinking more deeply about things and doing it the hard way isn't the style he promotes. When your (apparent) enemy is the dim-witted Crown Prince, perhaps it is easy to become complacent.

I think it's Tolkien, Gandalf talking a out Sauron's desire to power and how their secret weapon isnthat it simply won't occur to him that anyone having the ring would seek to destroy it. It's a good analogy. They could perhaps imagine Prince Jing not being driven primarily by power hunger, at least until he starts to get some, but to think of a strategist like that? Impossible.

Yep, I'm going to have to rewatch.

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It's true that having the Crown Prince as your opponent wouldn't give you a lot of practice in deep thinking. He does have Consort Yue and Marquis Ning on his side, though, both of whom are capable of serious plotting, even if no one knows about the Marquis's involvement. But their motives are no different from Yu and co.'s, so there's no need to probe too far beneath the surface. Ultimately, with the Eastern Palace, Team Yu knows what they're looking for, and they look for the same thing with MCS.

Thank you for clearing up the Tolkien/Lewis mix-up! From what Yu says, he thinks the main reason Jing doesn't try for the throne is because he's stupid, and he only stops being stupid because he now has a strategist on his side. And I suppose at this point Banruo might have remembered the 6th Prince of Da Yu and concluded that MCS liked supporting underdogs because it vastly increased his fame and power when he succeeded - that bit of backstory really is an excellent cover because you'd have to think around twenty corners to come up with the idea that it was only a trial run for the Qilin Talent's REAL agenda.

Let me know when you start rewatching and I'll join in. I've been putting it off because I'm currently writing episode reviews for Alias Smith and Jones (there are 33 of them! I'm currently up to 10). Luckily, the plots are nowhere near as convoluted as in NiF, so this is not the time sink it would have been in my NiF days.

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Marquis Ning is really subtle at one thing. But only one. And as MCS memorably says, he's also stupid. Even if mostly intending to make him angry, he isn't wrong.

The Sixth Prince of Da Yu (poor man, he and Jingrui would probably have a lot to talk about, even if he makes it to the throne) is a fabulous cover story. MCS is so good at having cover stories.

It'll probably be a week or so before I start watching, as I'm currently watching Shogun on special offer Disney+. Verdict, the Japanese leads are fantastic, but I would probably have preferred Richard Chamberlain to the British actor this time, who is incredibly unsubtle, although not helped by the writing for the character. So you have a bit of time to get through those episodes!

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