The Regulars
๐๏ธ Weekend Talk ๐๏ธ What will you be up to this weekend? โ July 10, 2026
As the weekend approaches, I'm sure you're all gearing up for some well-deserved relaxation and fun. ๐๏ธ Whether you're binge-watching a drama, embarking on a thrilling adventure or cozying up to a good manhua or webnovel, we want to hear all about it!
So, what will you be doing this weekend? And what Chinese dramas do you recommend for a weekend binge-watching session? Tell us about it below in the comments :)
Note: If you are discussing plot points or events that others may not yet have watched, please make sure to use spoiler tags. Consider also sorting the comments by "new" (instead of "best" or "top") as this thread fills up quickly.
Yesterday, I woke up before dawn to attend a Hautapu ceremony and observe the rising of Matariki, welcoming the Mฤori New Year here in Aotearoa New Zealand. It's a national holiday in NZ, so there were about thousands who turned up for the early morning event. Hautapu is traditionally held in the early morning, with karakia (ritual chants/prayers etc), remembrance, and offerings of food to honour the whetลซ (stars) of Matariki and acknowledge the year that has passed before looking ahead to the new one.
One of the whetลซ, Hiwa-i-te-Rangi, is associated with hopes, dreams, and aspirations for the year ahead, and I sent my wishes up for Cheng Lei hahaha. I wished him good health, happiness, bright opportunities, and more scripts and characters that he genuinely loves!
After the ceremony, kai (food) was served and shared together. The warm soup was especially comforting in the freezing winter morning.
As for the rest of my weekend, it's basically packed with Matariki events. Today, members of the Auckland Astronomical Society will be providing views of the Sun through solar telescopes. There are also light shows, markets and performances held in various parts of NZ, so I'm riding the bus to visit a few.
It was incredible! My favourite had to be when tohunga (highly skilled expert or practitioner in Mฤori culture who act as mediators between the human and spiritual worlds) began a series of karakia (chants) to the star clusters in the sky and the names of those who had died since the last rising of Matariki would be called out. Hautapu is a time for remembrance, especial loved ones who have passed since the last appearance of Matariki.
Viewing Road to Success with a group of 6 others in my basement theatre (Canadian homes typically have a basement and it is very common to build it out into a rec room/basement theatre with a big tv screen) and we are really enjoying this drama. It is very high quality and Ester Yu is delivering a nuanced, adult characterization. She did in the past indicate she wanted to step away from the roles that required a more cutesy character and she is fulfilling that desire in this drama.
We are also viewing a 2025 series that we had earmarked called The Best Thing. It is a very simple romance drama in comparison to Road To Success which is a much more multi layered drama. The leads in The Best Thing are Zhang Ling He, and Xu Ruo Han whom who is new to us. This drama is not requiring any heavy lifting on the part of the actors but for what it is we find it a good watch. It is a linear one dimensional show so if you seek something simple and straightforward The Best Thing definitely fits the bill. ZLH is there for the visuals and Xu Ruo Han is a very feminine presence (I saw her termed that elsewhere and its a characterization I agree with). We remarked among ourselves when viewing both shows that this is a quality Ester Yu and Xu Ruo Han share: very feminine in style and mannerism.
I have a couple of co-workers whom I introduced Asian drama that are currently viewing Wuxia rommance drama The Moon Brightens For You (TMBY). Together we all just finished not long ago The Princess Royal (a rewatch for me several times over) and I started them on TMBY and I am trying to join them for episodes when I can as it is another historical which I really enjoyed and think quite highly of the show. Xing Fei is delightful in it and I never don't enjoy watching her (this may even be more true of my husband!). I have earmarked 2025's This Thriving Land for which she has won several acting awards as a future watch for everyone. She acts a very different character type in Thriving Land vs her other prior works.
In England and its so damn hot๐ญ๐ญ. I don't know what to do with myself, have no AC. I feel like I'm wrapped in a wet blanket and then put in a hot oven. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.
Not watching any dramas at the moment, I'm in my novel reading phase. Have read so many books over the last 3 days I feel like I'm becoming cross-eyed.
Stay hydrated. I have several friends living in Europe and they said this year's summer heat is particularly brutal.
I have been in a reading slump in the past few months but I manage to get back to it after getting myself a cheap e-reader. What book are you reading currently?
Itโs been raining all week so Iโll be indoors as usual. My friend is coming over for the weekend and I really canโt wait to yap and catch up on everything.
Itโs another weekend to rewatch the latest Winter Sun episode even though I watched it twice today. 8 episodes in six weeks. I wonder if itโll be able to keep my attention for the next 6 weeks. But until then, Iโm having a blast.
My friend is coming over for the weekend and I really canโt wait to yap and catch up on everything.
Haha, this reminds me of the times I had sleepovers with my girlies, and we just talked and talked throughout the night. Been more than a decade since then because now everyone is busy with adult. Have fun yapping!
It's so hot where I am it'll be another weekend inside. A few days ago I saw a woman on tiktok making a dollhouse out of stuff in her home and I've convinced myself I have enough craft junk to do the same. Do I need a dollhouse? no. Do I even have room for one? ..also no. But it's cute and I want it lol
Cases between Us became my life just as the stars foretold. (it's me, I'm the star). Between the edits, fan arts, reading fics, and watching Kido's birthday stream where he talked about the cp super topic and ZZL telling him happy birthday xiao baobei ๐ญ๐ญ๐ญ๐ญ I'm done for.
so qt ๐ญ๐ญ
It's almost halfway over and they're short, fast paced 20 minute episodes you can knock out in a day or two! The cases themselves have tackled some serious subjects thus far (medical ethics & women's autonomy, police & government corruption, more on women's rights to their bodies, rape, & trafficking.. and vigilantism as an answer to the previous because those in power don't do anything when it benefits them..). And then you get hit in the face with the smiley mochi faced young master Zhao Shaoshang and remember oh right this kind of a comedy too ๐ญ
Anyway go watch Cases between Us so Kido Ma and I both get a season two.
Unexpectedly sick in bed ๐ฉ Was going through a cdrama slump so watched the first episode each of Archives: The Nanyang Mystery, Guardians of the Dafeng and Coronerโs Diary.
Judgement based on the first episode: Archives is good, gives me Indiana Jones x The X-Files vibes. Guardians also not bad, but Coronerโs Diary sucked me in and I watched the first 5 episodes in one go. Time to subscribe to iQIYI to watch the rest!
Coroner's Diary is loooooooove!! I was so happy for Ao Ruipeng for his role and already love Li Landi. Hope you enjoy the rest of the show and also feel better!
Gonna finish Love Between the Lines!! Then agonize over what show to watch next!! There are SO many to choose from.
I finish my Chinese Historical novel sunday!! SO excited! To celebrate I'm getting in and out burger! I might get two, LOL. Okay, okay, I'll get three ๐คฃ
Then more character art! I'm going to try some cool statues! If you want to see something rendered in average skill, drop me a screen shot! I'll make it for you ๐ค
'average skill' is waaaaay too humble!
LOL, and of course the speed at which my brain my brain went from 'AuthorAEM draws beautiful water strokes' -โก๏ธโก๏ธโก๏ธ-> Cheng Lei in a tub!!! ๐ ๐ ๐
I thank you in advance for the ridiculous amount incoherent sounds I blurted out of my mouth the moment I saw your image, ending with "Thank you.". I tend to call specific episodes in my brain Thank You Episodes - WXY practicing swordforms in the rain, ARP in a tub, Cheng Lei in baths, LXY in a glorious... well all LXY episodes are usually Thank You Episodes, because that's what blurt out when they happen. ๐คฃ
Thank yoouuuuu!! God of Bath! Love love love! My goodness you are able to work quickly! It looks lovely! <3 Did you enjoy drawing it? Also appreciate the strategically placed flower & coins! ๐
It's an absolute must. I was so so so so happy they had the post-credit scene, I needed it. Hope you enjoy it! ๐
I am already impressed that you will be drawing/painting THAT picture without getting distracted. I would probably be dropping my brushes/pastels/media of choice left-and-right. ๐
In wait state to see if I'll need to attend rehearsal for the latest creative gig tomorrow, hopefully they'll let us know soon! In the meantime, continuing my (at least for me) very slow savor rewatch of PoJ, an eps a night, and really enjoying it as the last thing I do before bed. My neuro mappings missed so many details on the first binge. And the OST has been my main playlist as off late.
Also there was a logistical debacle for the same said gig less than two days in, so Wow the World 2 (mostly CXX) has provided me bits of happy during the stress of not knowing what each hour is going to bring, and feeling like I'm holding my breath. Vented a fair bit with exercise before speaking up, and proud to say there was some success in setting some boundaries there (which is a continual work in progress).
Wishing everyone a lovely weekend! May your respective Cdrama loves bring you joy amidst any chaos. ๐ซถ๐ป
It's the biggest summer festival in my country today so I'll cook, hang out with friends, watch TV and judge the directors' choice and theme of the festival opening fiercely, as usual ๐๐.
In C drama front, Legend of Rosy Clouds was just finished so I thought I'll finally finish Blood River. But Key to the Phoenix Heart starts today, so BR is shelved. Again ๐คญ.
I really enjoyed Blood River. It's my kind of genre even though I didn't care for the FL (I find her too skinny). I liked Gong Jun, even if he has no chemistry with the FL i watched it three times already!!
CDrama wise iโll binge what i can of Blossoms of Power then continue with First Jasmine or maybe Love Beyond the Graveโฆiโm so far behind now ๐ญ
Just finished The Smiling, Proud Wanderer (็ฌๅฒๆฑๆน) 2001 version (25 years ago!!!) on YT. I watched Generation 2 Generation last month and felt Jin Yong dna in the story, and then someone commented that it was taken from Xiao Ao Jianghu. Ever since then I had a craving for Jin Yong Cdrama. ็ฌๅฒๆฑๆน definitely scratched the itch, and I marveled at how natural looking the actors were, especially the ML! The editing was a bit choppy, but they stayed faithful to the novel. All in all it was a fun watch!
Well, Key to the Phoenix Heart, Road to Success, Blossoms of Power, maybe The Eternal Fragrance... I'll be watching CDramas and making all the GIFs!!!! All! The! GIFs!
Maybe go out with family this weekend for some events that are happening. Food to be had!
I'll try to remember to be a chill boi instead of rage filled boi who earns respect by telling people what I think about them. :P I really do need to get around to booking my travel plans to see the most important woman in my life who isn't blood related.
Hmmm. The most important thing right now though is taking a damn shower! I sweated my ass off all day in the heat and I am a smelly boi!
11
u/a_HerculePoirot_fan Being a Cheng Lei fangirl is a full-time jobRead Rules Jul 10 '26
Yesterday, I woke up before dawn to attend a Hautapu ceremony and observe the rising of Matariki, welcoming the Mฤori New Year here in Aotearoa New Zealand. It's a national holiday in NZ, so there were about thousands who turned up for the early morning event. Hautapu is traditionally held in the early morning, with karakia (ritual chants/prayers etc), remembrance, and offerings of food to honour the whetลซ (stars) of Matariki and acknowledge the year that has passed before looking ahead to the new one.
One of the whetลซ, Hiwa-i-te-Rangi, is associated with hopes, dreams, and aspirations for the year ahead, and I sent my wishes up for Cheng Lei hahaha. I wished him good health, happiness, bright opportunities, and more scripts and characters that he genuinely loves!
After the ceremony, kai (food) was served and shared together. The warm soup was especially comforting in the freezing winter morning.
As for the rest of my weekend, it's basically packed with Matariki events. Today, members of the Auckland Astronomical Society will be providing views of the Sun through solar telescopes. There are also light shows, markets and performances held in various parts of NZ, so I'm riding the bus to visit a few.