Masterfully done!
like a Greek Tragedy... an Operatic Death
This episode!!!.. even the drumming as Shaoshang tries to leave the manor, but most especially... from the moment they arrived to the banquet... the set, the lighting, the colours, the music score, the aural mood that greatly heightens the viewers emotions, the body movements... GLORIOUSLY SUBLIME!!!
Even the menacing laugh as he slowly walks towards Ling Yi... the syllable by syllable - clearly enunciated name, the crunch as the sword penetrates the flesh and the ‘schwing’ of the sword as it slices Ling Yi’s neck, the bodily attitude, the blurring and focusing again, the slow motion as he lets go of the Marquis’s head... Devastatingly beautiful!
So unhinged, it’s perfect!
and at the end, a brief moment of disbelief and then, a cathartic release of emotion. It’s done! The slightest flash of joy immediately extinguished with sadness and grief. Unbridled tears come. The blood, tears, snot, saliva... it’s not pretty, but somehow very necessary!* It’s like being brought to a journey of complex emotions while the heart is being ripped out and at the same time awestruck as you watch.
*Apparently this was Wu Lei’s sugestion, don’t know if it’s true. Too lazy to look it up.
At certain angles, his face looks gaunt, immaciated, skeletal even. Here he looks deranged... immaculately put together, not a hair out of place, controlled... but he looks deranged nevertheless.
I don’t know if this is by design... after all the carnage, he is still put together, just a few strands of hair out of place, a few rips on the clothes. I like the disparity of somehow still immaculate but with blood spatter everywhere.
And can I just say, A’Fei and A’Qi’s sacrifice are no less than anybody elses! Such devotion! Such loyalty! I love them! I was bawlin’ when he told them, “Please stay alive.” I’ve wondered if they knew for years who he really was, but that might have been too risky. I’m inclined to think that they didn’t until around Shaoshang knew or just slightly before/after. Judging from the Third Prince’s reaction when Shaoshang revealed to the court that he was Huo Chongs son, I don’t think he knew either.
A number times** I have watched this and still as impactful as the first time when it was released back in mid(ish) August. Episode 48 was... just... firecrackers blowing up in my head!!!!... The freakin dramagods delivered!!! I was awestruck and still am after rewatching.
**I watch episodes on different websites. It gives me the option of different subtittles because some of the dialogues are interpreted so differently, some actually changes the narrative! By and by, I think subs on Viki gives more information especially on traditions, social ranks, what those ranks mean, refers to what litterature, colloquialisms, etc., etc. Little details that we would otherwise miss when only refering to the subs on other websites.
