Who among us can hear that opening music and not feel emotional? 🥹
Happy 7th anniversary to The Untamed, the drama that played such an important role in bringing us all together! 🥳
I think many of us are feeling especially sentimental about this anniversary because it's 2026, and this year every anniversary and every significant moment seems to hold more meaning and consequence than usual.
When I think about The Untamed, I think about the very rare and precious opportunity for GG and DD to work together as romantic leads, on a story that is so beautifully written and with a cast and crew that gave them space to be themselves.
They could have gone through their entire careers and never had an opportunity like that, with all of these factors coming together so perfectly.
And it launched their careers - that's completely undeniable. The Magnolia Awards program featured a bio about each nominee (reportedly provided by the staff for each nominee), and GG's opened with an acknowledgment of that:
Xiao Zhan is a mainland Chinese actor and singer. In 2019, he gained widespread attention for starring in the costume xianxia drama The Untamed.
Not only did The Untamed give them a precious opportunity to work together, with a supportive cast and crew, on a hit drama that launched their careers, but it also gave them all of us. Make no mistake about it, they value us and the special kind of support we bring them.
Today of all days, GG made a personal post with the kadian 13:00 (yizhan). DD recently clowned us about his racing tires. They know. They're watching, and they share a special connection with all of us.
In a world where they can't be open about their relationship or show support for each other in a shared way, we can do it for them. I know this brings them strength and joy at times (even at as it undoubtedly brings them moments of anxiety 😅).
This fandom has long been about so much more than a drama from 7 years ago, but it was the spark that brought all of this together. It will forever be loved by everyone it has touched. Including GG and DD. After all, no one has been as impacted as they have been.
More than anything, fandom is about people, and about coming together to share all of our excitement, clowning, worries, joys and pains. This fandom and GG and DD have gotten me through some of the most difficult times of my life. I know from talking to so many of you over the years, that it has done the same for you.
And I see this expressed on Weibo as well so often from C-turtles. We've all come through so much together, and no matter how near or how far, we are a little family.
Maybe not so little, given that there are so many millions of us! 😅
I have been overwhelmed by real life lately - in some good ways, and in some not so good ways. Life goes on and pulls us away from fandom for various reasons, but GG and DD, and this beautiful family, always pull us back.
No matter how much time or energy I have to bore you with my long-winded posts lately, you are always in my heart next to GG and DD 💚💛❤️.
Happy 627 everyone! I hope you are all thriving in your own ways and on your own terms. May these experiences as a turtle continue to enrich your life, make you smile, give you strength, connect you with your people and teach you things you never thought to study.
The Road is Long, and I feel so fortunate to be traveling it with all of you! 😘🥲
There were so many 🐢 and 🏍️ at the race. There was such a massive fan presence there. But...
The ratio of turtles to motos is insane. Anyone else notice this? Especially if you look closely and realize that a lot of the fans whose clothing appears paler are actually wearing pale yellow, not white. A lot of turtles wore a sort of pastel yellow, which makes them not quite as immediately visible as the vibrant 'safety yellow' turtles.
I get it that there's a tone of fandom rivalry nonsense to this, but I don't bring it up to brag about how powerful turtles are. My main reason for pointing it out is to express a certain amazement.
We're always sold this story that turtles are 'only a small percentage' of fans, that the solo fans vastly outnumber us, and that we should take a back seat and stay quiet, but at least in terms of turtle presence at DD's events, this doesn't appear to be the case.
And there's another reason why this is just flat out false rhetoric: we are DD's fans too. I think that's something that often gets overlooked or glossed over.
More photos from the stands of this weekend's race.
When you look at the stands, the reality is, the yellow and green are all there for DD. They're all his fans.
There will always be two classes of fans - the solos and the turtles. That's just the reality of how fandom culture works, and the solos will always get more respect and more official recognition. But I don't think anyone should underestimate how numerous and dedicated turtles really are.
And we've seen this many times before in the past, but it was much easier to dismiss or wave away back then.
For example, back when motos were throwing a big tantrum and threatened to boycott the YH family concert and turtles bought up all the tickets, and the entire event was overrun with turtles. There were so many turtles everywhere!
It was easy to brush that off as a one-off, because it seemed like a special circumstance.
But when you look at the crowds at DD's races, I think it has to be acknowledged that turtles are nearly on par with motos in terms of numbers. At least with regard to who shows up.
Just an interesting reflection. Often CP fans are viewed as 'lesser than' because there's an assumption that one day the CP will be broken and that fan will either abandon both stars or 'choose a side' - or even turn against one of them.
The view from the paddock.
The conceit is that solo fans have always been there for that one person only, and therefore are more trustworthy and more dedicated, but I think all that goes out the window with GGDD's CP. You just can't measure things that way, because in reality turtles are deeply devoted to both boys, and show up for both boys, and always will. Even in the face of insults, marginalization and attacks.
And that's true when it comes to DD especially. The fact is, turtles have at times been more loyal and supportive than motos. They haven't been threatening to boycott his projects, they haven't been issuing lists of demands or trying to force his team to do things their way 'or else'.
And I believe turtles have a lot of purchasing power - likely on par or close to on par with motos - even in the face of abusive treatment from some brands.
Not much of a point here except to say, don't believe the hate or BS about turtles, or claims that we are marginal. BXG have been here for many years, and are here to stay. We're here for DD, and we support him for who he is, not for who we wish he was. We support GG as well. Motos attack and slander him. Shrimps attack and slander DD. We love and support them both.
Despite all the hate we get, I think we should take pride in that.
And this is also why I feel it's extremely valuable for turtles to show up as turtles, not as motos. More on that here.
In all my years of being a GGDD fan, I don't think any year has ever been better than this last one.
In the past I have watched them struggle and face incredibly difficult situations, be forced to spend almost all of their time apart, and deal with scandals and setbacks.
2024 was a year I could never have dreamed of for both of them. Watching them both thrive so well, take charge of their careers and their lives to a degree never before seen, and to have so much time for their personal lives - it's all I've ever wanted for them.
And you can see how well they are thriving, how much happier they are, how much healthier they are, and how much of themselves is stamped on every single thing they do.
I frequently see fans spinning negative fantasies about them, and it makes me sad. As if there isn't enough pain in the world, why generate more in your own mind?
A lot of turtles tend to overly romanticize 2018 and 2019 because they were the years that The Untamed was filmed, promoted and aired, and that's where a lot of our favorite GGDD content was born. I think that's rather self-centered and shortsighted. If we take five seconds to remove our rose-colored glasses, surely we can see how difficult those years were for them.
Yes, they got to work together for a few months, they got to spend some fun time together promoting The Untamed and even got to be somewhat open about their affection for each other in front of a crowd, but outside of that summer dream, they were both in pretty precarious positions in their careers, and both of them faced a lot of really gruesome anti attacks. Neither of them had very much control over their careers or their choices, and their management situations were atrocious.
We don't even have to talk about 2020. That was an incredibly difficult year. GG was the focus of one of the worst cyberbullying and nearly career-ending scandals that's been seen in that industry. He was being threatened, the people connected to him and the brands that he dealt with were being threatened.
Any time he tried to do anything in his career, whether it was an appearance or an endorsement, antis would come out in droves and protest until it was shut down. There were active organized hate campaigns whose entire purpose was to destroy his life and his career. People were trying to infect him with COVID, and there were other threats upon his life. Multiple times online hate campaigns tried to spread the rumor that he had died.
He couldn't go anywhere without people following him and chanting hateful slogans at him and trying to infiltrate the hotels he was staying at. It was terrifying.
DD was constantly overworked, exhausted, always on the move with barely any time to come up for air.
They had to spend most of their time apart, including some of the quarantine time, when DD was isolated so that he could begin filming LOF, right when the worst of the scandal broke. GG's grandfather died, and he faced so many personal burdens.
They did get some fun times together of course, and there were some huge successes for both of them, including GG's spectacular comeback at the end of the year with his sea of red for Tencent All Star Night. Even turtles worked to help ensure he had his red sea.
And GG and DD got to clown around and be silly as well, and they made a real effort to show us that they were getting through fine, they would be okay and that they were still the same people, still able to be happy. We got so much candy that year, and so many great LRLG messages as well.
But that was just a sign of their character and strength. Make no mistake about it, that was a difficult year.
The intervening years between then and now have been a bit of a mixed bag. There were a lot of COVID frustrations (scheduling issues, Kafkaesque hoops to jump through, inability to travel outside the country, risk of ending up in a prolonged lockdown, inevitable health stress), they had to spend a lot of time apart and there were more and more crackdowns on the entertainment industry, on the queer community and on fandom culture, which made things feel positively dismal and oppressive - at times even scary.
However, it's undeniable that things have been gradually improving for them. They've both been building more and more autonomy and control in their careers, and building more respect from audiences and within the industry. They've both been prioritizing their personal lives more and more. And yes - they've BOTH been looking happier, more relaxed, more balanced.
I've talked about that a fair bit over the past couple of years. Most recently in this post.
Looking at 2024, they have had so much more free time in their lives, have been able to spend so much more time together in the same city, have spent time with each other wherever they were filming, and even got to travel and spend some fun downtime outside of China.
They are in such powerful positions compared to even a couple years ago. They have made great connections and worked on some amazing projects.
GG has been working with some of the top directors on some of the most anticipated projects in C-ent. He recorded an entire solo album and several music videos, and did all of that on his own time and on his own dime, and released it to critical acclaim and massive success with audiences.
He has been the talk of the globe in fashion circles and entertainment circles, and has been the global face behind some of the most successful and exciting campaigns for some of the most prestigious brands in the world.
He got to travel a lot outside of China, and build on some of the great connections he's made over the years. He got to spend time with his parents traveling Europe!
He's given us so much incredible content with his vlogs and photo sets. It's just mind-boggling how much he's given us over the past couple of years.
DD took initiative to propose and participate in a documentary series where he got to explore interesting locations and engage in some of the most extreme outdoor activities. What could possibly be more exciting for someone like him?
He got to work with a team of conservationists who are fighting to save pangolins, and filmed a documentary there as well. Knowing him, that has to be one of the most rewarding things he's ever done in his life.
Both documentaries were highly acclaimed and award-winning.
Speaking of awards, he debuted as a film star and has been nominated for all of the top awards in China both for his film work and his drama work!
He has signed a new contract with his management company that will certainly have put him in a very powerful position in the company as their top breadwinner. He has been exceptionally successful with endorsements, holding more endorsements than anyone else in C-ent.
He got to play tennis on the top of The Great Wall with one of the top players in the world (regardless of how much I despise Djokovic).
He got to be an Olympic torch bearer! He is the ambassador for multiple high profile organizations and projects.
He earned his auto racing license, joined a racing team and finished in first place in his first ever auto race!
Make no mistake about it, they are both now solidly calling the shots in their own lives and careers, they are living their best lives, and they are both happier than I have ever seen them in all of these years.
And much more healthy! Just take one look at them and you can see how much healthier they both are. They've been playing a lot of sports and doing a lot of active outdoor activities together, and it shows in how much happier and healthier they are.
Frankly anyone who can't see that has their head stuffed firmly in a moist dark place.
I urge everyone to center GG and DD in all of our fandom explorations, theories and interpretations. The reality is that the more that they get to focus on their own lives and careers and personal freedoms, the less candy and CPN we're likely to see. We should be happy for them rather than try to spin sad tales about it.
Do you think what happened recently at DD's race has a negative impact on his image ( I'm talking about all the wedding banners ) honestly it felt pretty embarrassing to me even as a turtle. It might be possible that people were making fun of DD not directly but silently. Aren't Bxgs supposed to support and protect them but this kind of behaviour is putting them in more danger. I have a feeling that soon GGDD gonna ban all those cp things in their individual events. Well they have every right to do that and I will support it.
I am not against cp related stuff in their events but a wedding banner is too much. Support can be in more subtle ways. as an i-turtle I can only wish that our ways of showing support don't impact them in negative ways.
( I am really sorry if it sounded rude I didn't mean it in that way. It's just that english is not my native language that's why I couldn't find better wordings hope you understand what I meant.)
If you don't want to answer feel free to ignore. 🤗✨
Hi solitaryobserverghoul, I hope you're well. 😊
This is a question that comes up every time there is a big event. It's a controversial topic, and it generates a lot of disagreement and even conflict among fans.
I'm always wary of stepping into the topic for this reason. Whenever I share my perspective on it, my thoughts end up offending someone. People who disagree with me feel targeted by what I say (even though my views are about what I think, not about what anyone else thinks). No matter how I carefully I frame things, some level of social friction feels unavoidable.
I also think it's kind of pointless. The fans in China are the only ones who should really have any say in any of this. They're the ones in the trenches at these events. They know best what their fandom culture is, what their social culture is, and what is and isn't acceptable. I trust them to use their judgment and know what's best for their own situation.
A bunch of random people online, the vast overwhelming majority of whom will likely never go to China, let alone go to a fandom event where GG or DD is present... I just don't think the world has any burning need to hear our opinions on this topic.
What can we really claim to know about it?
So, I feel my opinion on this is less than worthless. What does it matter what I think?
Having said that, here's what I think.
Every single one of us decides how we want to show up as a fan. It's our right to do so. Reasonable people can disagree on most fandom activity. Disagreements should never lead to war or attacks.
Live and let live.
If I personally were to go to an event, I'd probably choose to bring/wear yellow. It's my fandom color. Green is not my fandom color. Red is not my fandom color. Yellow is my fandom color. Any way you slice it, red represents shrimps, and green represents motos. I'm neither of those, nor would I ever want to be mistaken as one of those.
Not just for the sake of 'showing fandom solidarity', but also because I would want GG and DD to know that there's a turtle here supporting them.
I would not personally feel comfortable bringing anything large and potentially disruptive (such as a light banner) to an event unless I was sure I could present it in a way that wouldn't create a hazard or obscure the view for others.
I would not personally feel comfortable bringing red to a DD event, or green to a GG event, not even as a yizhan colored LED headband. I wouldn't personally feel comfortable with the wedding photo either, or any other overt representation of their faces.
This is primarily because I believe they're in a real relationship - one that's mostly closeted - and it would feel presumptuous to plaster couple photos of them all over the place.
I can't claim - no one can claim - to know how either of them feels about their faces being plastered up there. It's entirely possible that they love seeing their faces together like that, so brazenly displayed. No one knows for sure, and anyone claiming to know is just making an assumption and claiming it's reality.
I can only speak for what I personally feel comfortable with.
I cannot speak for GG or DD, nor can I speak for other fans, beyond saying that I vehemently believe in everyone's right to make up their own minds and enjoy fandom on their own terms.
Especially turtles, who have my support and solidarity. I am a turtle - I support other turtles.
And by, "support other turtles" I mean that I will give them the benefit of the doubt. I won't immediately buy into the anti narrative being sold to me, I will use my critical thinking and enthusiastically question any negative claims being made about turtles before I pile on to criticize them or their behavior.
I know firsthand how dishonest and mean-spirited solos can be. I've dealt with harassment from them for years. They actively seek out turtle spaces to malign and attack us. They lie and misrepresent us and what we stand for. They go to great lengths to try to prevent turtles from enjoying GG and DD's events, they try to get BXG charitable projects shut down, they try to thwart everything we do.
I can't help but think about the vicious little witches who planned ahead to try to prevent turtles from showing their colors or enjoying or even getting a glimpse of GG when he was in Milan.
Here's the thing...
If turtle activity is truly harmful in any way, the only people on the planet with any power to put a stop to it are GG and DD. So far they've chosen to allow it*. That's good enough for me.
*Insofar as any fandom support items are allowed in venues. Moto banners and CP banners were both being confiscated during the race. That's because the position of venue staff on these things has always been that any disruptive material will be removed - regardless of fandom. Solos frequently share videos of turtle items being confiscated and claim that they are the only ones that were confiscated, or claim that DD or his staff directly asked for those items to be confiscated, which is misrepresentation and lies. There are always similar videos for these events, showing solo items also being confiscated.
I also think it's important to have some perspective, and realize that solo photos from the event tend to sensationalize just how prominent the turtle materials are. If you actually look at the photos of the stands for the event, you can see that they really weren't as obnoxious as they're being made out to be.
Bottom line: I always cringe a bit when I see the wedding photo at an event, but I recognize that for what it is - my personal reaction. It's not an objective reality that should be imposed on others, it's just my own reaction.
Ultimately I am here for GG and DD, and that's where I prefer to focus my attention. I find it frustrating that so many fans choose to focus on each other and go to war.
Big fan of your posts! What do you think of Huang Ziteng's [redacted]
Love to hear your thoughts!
Hi Anon. Thanks so much for your kind words, I am glad you're enjoying my blog! ☺️
I suppose you must be a bit surprised to see your name come up as anonymous, since your question was not submitted anonymously. It is because this particular ask put me in a bit of a dilemma and I decided to err on the side of caution. I don't want anyone getting offended by what I have to say about things like this.
The material in question
The content that you shared with me was indeed video footage of Huang Ziteng speaking on a livestream about GG and DD. I asked a dear friend who is fluent in Chinese to give me a rough overview since there was no translation, and this is what Shufu is saying:
They've been together for 6 years.
DD was the one who was more outward in the pursuit, but GG was expressing his love with his eyes, and it's impossible to say who was attracted first.
A bit of background about The Untamed, saying that an actor with the last name of Ma was already cast as Wei WuXian and only needed to sign the contract, but Ma was in a series that was popular at the time and decided he wanted more compensation. The production couldn't afford it, and switched to GG.
Turtles will have a lifetime of candies.
This video is also not new (based on other copies found online, it's at least as old as October of last year), and apparently this isn't the first time he's spoken fairly openly about them in a livestream.
My thoughts
I have somewhat mixed feelings about this, and I want to dig into a couple of issues because this really touches upon some of the core considerations of being a turtle.
1 ] Supporting closeted couples
GG and DD are closeted, at least when it comes to being in the public eye*. This isn't just because of their queerness, but it is also because they are celebrities and as such they're required to appear single.
*It is obvious they are out among their friends and close colleagues, but that is very different from being publicly out.
We need to consider audience expectations and the pressures of investors, brands and productions to be able to market stars on the perception of romantic availability. This is why stars in that industry tend to hide their relationships and even families and children.
As celebrities GG and DD are not able to be publicly out.
Being queer is undoubtedly also a complication. Even though many Chinese citizens are tolerant of homosexuality, especially the younger generation, many are only tolerant of it as long as it is not seen or discussed. It's highly likely coming out would result in a lot of backlash among audiences, even from people who aren't fans that dream of one day marrying them.
Chinese audiences can be absolutely savage towards anyone who takes up a certain type of public airspace. Anyone who sticks their head up too far for any reason stands a chance of having it chewed off.
That's quite apart from the political implications for them. The current government has had a very anti LGBTQ approach. GG and DD are not at liberty to be open about their sexual orientation if they want to be able to continue to enjoy a top spot in this heavily government-regulated industry, where they are frequently put in the position of being role models and ambassadors.
If they were to come out publicly about their relationship, or even just about being queer, it's very likely that a lot of queer people and queer allies would be inspired and emboldened by them.
While that might sound like a good thing to our Western ears, it's likely not so in the eyes of the government. This government treats LGBTQ people as potential political dissidents, which is why they crack down so much on opportunities for queer people to gather. Night clubs are shut down, queer organizations and agencies are shut down, Pride marches are no longer allowed.
The last thing they would want is for two of the top celebrities in the country to become poster boys for the queer rights movement. And this could easily happen whether GG and DD wanted it or not.
If they were seen as in any way leading or even just inspiring a politically subversive movement (as any movement that is critical of government policy is treated), it would not be good for them.
There is another, in some ways potentially more serious issue. This government has repeatedly characterized queer people as having a corrupting influence on youth. GG, and especially DD, are extremely popular among young people. If they were to come out about their relationship or about being queer, there is a possibility that in the eyes of the government they would instantly become 'corruptors of the youth', with all of the outcomes that one can imagine for such a corrupter.
In other words, it could be very unpleasant indeed.
Make no mistake about it, the government knows they are a couple. This government knows. But GG and DD are allowed to play the roles they play in the industry because they are useful to the government, because they are mouthpieces for political messaging, and because they keep a low profile with regard to their personal lives.
There's also the personal side to this.
As queer people, our identities and our personal lives frequently become a source of controversy and friction. Therefore our personal stories absolutely must be under our own control. We must always be the ones deciding how much about us is known, and who knows it.
All of this to say, this is not Huang Ziteng's story to tell, and as somebody who knows them personally and is publicly associated with them - having worked with them in the past - outing them like this to fans is extremely not okay. Unless he has their permission, he is seriously violating their privacy and potentially putting them at risk.
For this reason, I find it extremely difficult to imagine that GG in particular would have given him permission to speak openly about their relationship. He would have understood that it could make Huang Ziteng look bad, as there's no way for him to say or prove that he has their permission to discuss these things. I just don't see GG being okay with that.
And I absolutely do not see either of them allowing a third party to go out and reveal their relationship publicly like this. It's just not something they would do, let's be real.
2 ] The issue of veracity
Turtles love Shufu. Of course we do. He gives us candy, and we all love candy. There are many turtles who starve and suffer without candy. Some of our favorite candies came directly from him. What's not to love?
The problem here is, there's absolutely no evidence or proof of anything that he says beyond what we already know as turtles. He isn't giving us any new evidence or proof of their relationship (and that's probably really good thing given what I just talked at length about above), and most crucially he has not given any fresh insight into them as a couple. Nothing that might show he really has an inside perspective on them.
There's absolutely nothing to say that he isn't simply parroting everything we say back to us, telling us what we want to hear.
For what purpose? Well, people can be a bit strange, especially when it comes to fame and attention and popularity. I've actually seen this with my own eyes IRL. Humans can behave in puzzling ways when in the proximity of people who are very famous and popular.
Personal opportunism aside, the world can be very cold and lonely, and people will often go to great lengths to feel special, to feel powerful and to feel loved.
I just finished talking about how much turtles tend to love Shufu. That alone is something that should give all of us pause when it comes to a situation like this. We are vulnerable to being taken advantage of by somebody in his position. We need to proceed with caution and understand the possibility that he could be just saying these things for his own purposes.
This actually happened with Cheng Yi. Remember she used to share a lot of cartoons and candies and other things related to GG and DD. It turns out that she tried to profit from impressionable c-turtles a while back, in ways that made them uncomfortable. We all need to be very careful who we trust. And I say this as someone who has a chronic problem with being too trusting and naive.
I am by no means saying that Huang Ziteng is lying, or that he is setting out to take advantage of turtles, I'm simply pointing out that we do not know where he's coming from or why he's doing what he's doing, and there are a lot of legitimate reasons to be concerned. We don't even know what his current relationship with them is, or if he actually has any recent information about them.
So I know a lot of turtles are going to be extremely excited about the idea that someone who knows them personally is openly confirming their relationship. However, I would urge caution on this.
The way I see it there are three possibilities:
He is directly aware of their relationship, and was sharing this information with their permission. Of course anything is possible, but given all of the issues I just discussed above, I find it highly, highly unlikely. They already have the fake rumor house and their own social media accounts and various other ways of feeding us. I find it unlikely that they would authorize friends and colleagues to out them publicly.
He is saying all of this without their permission, and doing so for his own reasons, whether that be emotional validation or personal gain or some other purpose. Unfortunately we have to accept that this is a very real possibility.
He is a turtle himself, whether he has direct knowledge about their relationship or not, and is excited to talk about them with other turtles, and everything he is saying is just the ramblings of any turtle - without any actual validation, just like any other turtle.
Which of these possibilities am I leaning toward? For now I'm sitting somewhere between option two and option three - much more leaning to two. I'm going to reserve judgment for now, but I'm starting to look a little bit more carefully at past candies from him and thinking they might need to be reevaluated.
In other words, I'm starting to have doubts about him and his motives, although I am keeping an open mind. I will need more information before I can really make a decision on where I stand.
I would like to conclude by saying to everyone - don't be cynical, don't view everyone as a grifter or an opportunist, but also don't be naive and gullible. Things are rarely what we assume, whether we are assuming well or ill.
The truth usually falls somewhere between, in the grey area between the extremes.
Maybe one day we will get the answers to some of these questions, but for now we really don't have much information to go on. It's up to each turtle to chart their own path, I just hope we will all exercise critical thinking and discernment.
Final thoughts
Someone like this coming along and saying a bunch of stuff does not change a single thing for me as a turtle. I have no way of knowing whether he is speaking based on his own personal experience and close relationship with them, or whether he is speaking as a turtle who has been at some remove from them since filming.
I long ago stopped needing any validation of GG and DD's relationship. I trust my own judgment, so this kind of confirmation isn't really something I seek out or feel any kind of way about at all. I already believe BJYXSZD.
I feel like that insulates me somewhat from being swept away by something like this, and makes it possible for me to look at it with a skeptical eye.
If we analyze what he's saying, he sounds like somebody who has been watching the BTS. This is exactly the sort of thing I've seen many turtles say over the years. And if you examine his statements, for example, "It's impossible to say who was attracted first," a comment like that makes my spidey senses tingle.
If he was close enough to them to know the details of their relationship, and especially if he was close enough to be given permission to share those details, surely he would have some insight into such things, or at least some personal flourish to add.
So for reasons I already stated, I'm not able to take this at face value and just trust he is acting in good faith and out of complete honesty as someone who is in their close inner circle. If anything this throws everything he's previously shared into doubt for me, and makes me wary of his motives.
Like I said, every turtle has to chart their own path, and develop our own perspectives based on the available information.
It's not like we have to decide one way or the other, either. It's always an interesting thought exercise to explore a variety of different perspectives and possibilities, and keep our minds open. Since we are unlikely to ever get confirmation one way or the other, there's no point in jumping to conclusions.
In any case, I will be keeping my eye on him.
My friend said the most interesting thing about this livestream is what he says about GG and the role of WWX. I have to agree. Production talked during promo about GG being first choice for WWX, so this statement from Huang Ziteng is very interesting (and likely impossible to verify).
Standard disclaimer: this is my personal opinion based on my own experience and perspective. There may be people who will disagree with what I have to say and that is their right, but I won't tolerate any hostility. We can agree or disagree on friendly terms. Anyone who is unable to be friendly and civil in their disagreement is asked not to respond to this post.
Edit: I have since seen him doing more and more of these livestreams and it's become increasingly obvious that he doesn't have any direct contact with GGDD or any real information. He's just doing it for attention. He is not to be trusted.
Anonymous asked:
Hi! I'm new to this fandom and recently came across a video where WYB is emotional. Here's the link [redacted]
[Lengthy redacted message theorizing about why Yibo would be upset.]
I recently discovered your tumblr and I loved your rational analysis on their posts. I would love to hear your perspective on this.
Hi new turtle! 💛🐢💛
Thanks for your kind words, I'm glad you're enjoying my blog! 😊
I've put you as anonymous because I don't want you to feel uncomfortable with my response, as it's nothing against you personally - it's just my feelings on this kind of thing.
For some reason that I will never understand, there's a certain segment of the fandom that focuses a lot of their time and energy coming up with melodramatic edits of DD's public appearances, and then weaving elaborate fantasies about what's going on in his head. They paint him as a despondent, emotional, near-tearful man barely able to hold it together in the face of the cruel world that hounds him.
I want to state this as emphatically as possible without being too much of a dick: these videos are fantasies that bear absolutely no resemblance to reality. Once you get to know DD a bit better, I'm sure you'll see that too.
DD is a no-bullshit guy. He's not the sort of person to stand on a stage with a quivering lip. He's much more likely to get angry than to get sad about the kind of BS he endures or witnesses.
And this should be abundantly obvious if you look at raw, unedited footage of these appearances, especially from different angles. Even the video you've shared me, Anon, shows clearly that he is behaving absolutely normally, with no hint of tearfulness.
Here's my regular reminder that if you find it on TikTok, YouTube or Instagram, it's almost certainly BS. Those platforms are overrun with false and misleading edits, AI trash, anti garbage and the like. They are not reliable sources.
I invite you to go stand in a mirror and look at yourself from various angles. Notice how the light catches the very normal moisture in your eyes when you're looking from certain angles. You're not tearful, but your eyes shine. This is absolutely normal.
Yet there are fans out there who will go to lengths to find shots of our boys from these angles and present them as evidence that they're dramatic characters in their heartbreaking fanfiction fantasy.
This type of material is misleading, and (in my view) disrespectful of GG and DD.
I want to remind everyone to be very cautious about letting our own minds run away from us on these kinds of things. CPN is one thing, but when we talk ourselves into believing elaborate dramatic narratives about a couple of moments of video footage, it's time to step away from the computer and get some fresh air.
Ultimately none of us really knows what GG or DD is thinking at any given time, including me. It's exceptionally important for us to always remember that, and to take everything - including our own thoughts and feelings - with a huge grain of salt.
As a new turtle you might find my masterlist post helpful. There you can find a lot of resources, recommendations and older posts, including this related one you might get a chuckle out of.
Was DD crying in the 9 minutes of bickering on a boat BTS?
Anonymous asked:
Hi Rainbow. I hope you are well. I have been in and out of the Fandom. For some reason, this year I dived right back in.
Do other cpf in China behave in similar fashion to ggdd with kadians and allowing the cpf forum to remain up and running? Or are they an anomaly?
Please leave me anon. Thanks much and have a great week. P.s your blog is always a joy to read!
Hi Anon, thanks so much, I'm glad you're enjoying my blog! 😊
Other CP do exist in China, of course. Dozens and dozens of them. Including a few small ones shipping GG and DD with other people. I don't know much about what they get up to, because I think it's important to stay in our own lane. Live and let live. Other fandoms are none of our business (in my opinion).
And for the most part celebrities seem to tolerate this to some degree. In most cases, supertopics are harmless. Many of those CP are character CP, not CP between real people, so that also makes it a bit less potentially disruptive.
Do other fandoms look for kadian, couple's clothing, etc? Absolutely. Maybe not to the degree that turtles do, I don't know. We've stuck around for a lot longer than most CP fandoms tend to last, and we've likely become a bit more sophisticated at this kind of thing than most CP.
I would say, though, that the fact that the BXG fandom continues to thrive and be fed is definitely unusual, especially considering how relatively high profile and active we are as a fandom.
I do know that straight celebrity couples have been outed in the past via a few small coincidences that are the kind of thing that is routine for turtles, and something we have literal mountains of by now. A few overlapping flight schedules, a few similar clothing items, that kind of thing, and the couple is forced to acknowledge their relationship.
But as I said, it's none of our business. At least in my opinion - everyone is free to make their own choices. I personally prefer to stay in my own lane and focus on GG and DD - not on other fandoms or other fans.
As a returning turtle you might find my masterlist post helpful.
Here's a somewhat related post about the BXG supertopics.
There has been a lot of uproar about the Magnolia Awards nominations. Here are my thoughts.
Disclaimer: I'm going to preface this by talking about a life lesson I refuse to learn (to the dismay of those closest to me). The lesson is, "Don't make yourself a target." That can often mean, "Don't speak your mind if your perspective differs from popular opinion" or in this case, "When people are upset, don't put yourself in the position to become the outlet for all their anger."
But I respect diversity of opinion, and that means I want to hear from a variety of perspectives on an issue and I suspect some of my readers do as well. So I hope everyone can remain open to hearing things they might not agree with, and respect each other's views. I also want to add that everything I say here is about me and my views - not a commentary on anyone else or their views.
I also think it's important that I make clear that I have not yet seen War of Faith. I'm relying on reviews and on reports from other fans, from my friends, and from my sister for my understanding of the drama and the performances actors gave.
A bit of background
For those who aren't aware of this issue, I'll try to outline the broad strokes of it all.
The Magnolias are prestigious drama awards in China, somewhat on par with the Emmies. For months now there has been a lot of buzz building about the possibility of a nomination for GG and The Youth Memories, and/or for DD and War of Faith.
The nominations came through today, and there was just the nomination for War of Faith for Best Drama. DD was not nominated, but Wang Yang was nominated for Best Leading Actor.
A lot of fans and even a few passers-by have been very vocally upset about this, saying it's a snub to DD and his excellent performance. Some have even characterized it as a huge betrayal of DD to nominate Wang Yang, who was really only a supporting actor, over DD, who was the real leading actor.
There have been claims that DD wasn't even put forth for the award by the producers, which has made fans even more angry. Many are attacking the producers, speaking out against DD appearing in a proposed season 2 of the series, and threatening backlash if the producers celebrate the nominations the drama received.
Checking the facts
As far as I can tell, here's what we know for sure:
The drama was co-billed with three leading actors: Wang Yibo, Li Qin and Wang Yang.
While DD's character was the protagonist of the drama, he wasn't billed as the sole male lead for the series.
All three leading actors gave solid performances.
We do not know for sure whether Li Qin's or Yibo's names were put forth for the awards. I personally can't think of any reason the producers would hold back on submitting everyone they can for the awards. The more nominations and wins the drama gets, the better for everyone involved.
Edit: according to a document purported by fans to be the official record of the names put forward for awards, Yibo, Li Qin and Wang Yang were all put forth as leads, which is in line with the billing each had in casting.
Fans are treating this as damning evidence that the producers unjustly put the supporting actor forward as a lead actor, but we have to keep in mind that there are likely contractual and legal considerations here. If somebody is cast in a leading role, then they have rights to be billed and promoted as such. We know that Li Qin and Wang Yang were both billed as co-leads.
Edit 2: The studio and producer have released statements where it was confirmed that all the lead actors were put forth for the awards.
My thoughts
I understand the disappointment fans feel when one of our boys is passed over for accolades and recognition. We're all invested in their well-being and success. However, I don't think it does any of us - and especially not DD - any kind of service to get upset and up in arms over something like this.
There are some really good reasons to believe that DD would not be thanking people for reacting the way they have:
It is an insult to Wang Yang and the performance he gave, which from what I understand, was outstanding. DD would not want his colleague's successes to be in any way diminished by the behavior and attitudes of his fans. It's not the kind of person he is.
It's disrespectful to the project as a whole. As I've said before, "A rising tide lifts all boats." The fact that the drama was nominated at all is to DD's great benefit. Turning something positive into a negative doesn't serve any productive purpose.
This makes DD look really bad, frankly. We shouldn't fail to recognize the irony of burning down the internet with cries of, "DD's being treated like a traffic star rather than the great actor he is!!" "He was snubbed!" "What a betrayal!" Nothing makes DD look more like a traffic star than fans behaving this way. This is classic fan culture behavior. We want DD to be recognized as a serious actor, but we simultaneously rely on traffic idol data and numbers to try to 'push his case', and claim he's 'being used for traffic' rather than ourselves respect his serious role in this drama.
This type of awards entitlement is not DD's style. Quite the contrary. He is an extremely humble, hardworking guy who likely cringes at the idea of people being outraged on his behalf in a situation like this.
Everything good that happens for this project, whether it's directly connected to DD or not, benefits DD. Everything bad that happens - every bit of bad publicity - harms DD.
This is a propaganda drama that's of significance to the ruling party. This type of fan behavior in relation to it has the chance of really harming DD and his career. Just like the whole debacle with GG's fans and their reaction over Ace Troops, this is not the kind of thing people should be doing.
From what I've learned about the Magnolias, these awards are given to established career actors. Young actors and newer actors do not tend to get nominated for these awards.
Like it or not, DD is a newcomer with a career that's still in transition. He has a lot of talent and some great successes under his belt, but he is still pretty green as an actor. Wang Yang has a career that goes back 20 years. DD has only been a serious actor for maybe a quarter of that time. It was unrealistic for fans to expect the tiger to change its stripes just for him.
This is not some nasty conspiracy against DD, this is just the reality of the industry he is in. Major awards tend to go to established career actors - both in China and globally. We should know this by now.
As far as I can tell, DD isn't being 'singled out' in any way. He's being treated like any other newcomer; being expected to 'pay his dues' just like everyone else.
DD is young, he has his whole career ahead of him. He is so talented and hardworking - he WILL win major awards. The fact that almost every project he's involved with gets nominations and awards is a very good sign, and ensures he will continue to get solid opportunities to show his skills. He's clearly picking good projects and performing well in them. Directors and producers will take notice of that and want to work with him.
He is on a normal - even exceptionally strong - career trajectory. Given his successes we should be very happy for the trajectory he is on. He will continue to work hard, get good roles, perform well and grow his audiences and his credibility among those audiences.
On a personal level
I love DD so much. He has something truly special about him. I want to see him do well, and for others to see and recognize what's so great about him.
He deals with an outrageous level of hatred and slander from antis, some of it truly makes me sick to my stomach. Nothing would make me happier than to see him be in a position to slap those assholes in the face with prestigious awards and recognition for his talent.
Of course I was dismayed when he wasn't nominated, just as I was dismayed that GG wasn't nominated.
However, I recognize that for what it is - a personal emotional reaction. Ultimately nothing that has happened here appears to be unjust or underhanded. Disappointing, perhaps, but not a conspiracy, not a betrayal.
Quite the contrary. DD's drama was nominated for 5 awards including Best Drama! We should be celebrating. There are probably hundreds of dramas that hope for this type of recognition every year, and DD's was one of those chosen among the very few nominated.
It makes me sad to see something positive being turned into a negative in this way. For all the reasons I outlined, I think it's misguided and could come back to bite DD hard in the ass.
Just my opinion. Hopefully once everyone has simmered down a bit we can all take a second look at this and find another perspective. One that is more worthy of DD as the humble human being he is.
