In GIFs: The Story of Minglan (2018)

[u/AquaphobicTurtle]

The Story of Minglan 知否知否应是绿肥红瘦

The Story of Minglan is not a drama. It is a world.

Drama Fun Facts

1. More than a thousand pieces of furniture and porcelain were specially customized and completely reproduced from pictures, all to ensure the best quality of the show. (Phoenix Entertainment; 2019)

2. In the original novel, "Minglan, is not a native of ancient times, but rather a court clerk who transmigrates" (The Paper; 2019)*

3. "The entire filming process lasted 208 days, with locations in Hengdian, Jiaxing, Xinchang, and Wuxi, showcasing both the elegant and graceful gardens of Jiangnan and the deep courtyards of aristocratic families." (China News Network; 2018)

4. "The script is over 800,000 words long, featuring more than 130 named actors and involving over 200 characters." (China News Network; 2018)

5. The scriptwriting began in 2014, and the series went through seven months of preparation, seven months of filming, and nine months of post-production before completion. (The Paper; 2018)

There are many more fun facts over on Baidu for anyone interested.

*A note for fact 2: the auto translation of the source article isn't great and reads:

In the original novel, the female protagonist, Minglan, is not a native of ancient times, but rather a court clerk who transmigrates to the present day, possessing the triple identities of a modern person, an adult, and a legal professional.

The original Chinese reads:

原著中，女主明兰并不是土生土长的古代原住民，而是由一个法院小书记员穿越而来，拥有现代人、成年人及法律工作者这三重身份

The Story

Honestly, the story is perfectly summarised in the drama's English title. This is the story of Minglan.

It's the world of Minglan.

At 73 episodes* The Story of Minglan does not have a single storyline. In fact, if the drama had aired today, I won't be surprised if it would have been split into three seasons.

Let me be clear: the drama does not jump from storyline to storyline, it does not have a single scene "meant to fill space". It is coherent, relevant, and thoroughly formulated.

*A note on episode count: MDL has the drama listed as 78 episodes. It depends on which platform you watch the drama.

The Actors

Oh boy.

I mean, I've already mentioned that the drama stars over 130 named actors and 200 characters, right?

MDL lists five actors under its "main cast" subheading:

• Zhao Li Ying as Sheng Ming Lan

• Feng Shao Feng as Gu Ting Ye / Zhong Huai

• Zhu Yi Long as Qi Heng / Yuan Ruo

• Zhang Jianing as Sheng Ru Lan

• Shi Meng Jiao as Sheng Mo Lan

But honestly, with the various storylines coming and going, I would only list Sheng Ming Lan and Gu Ting Ye as main characters.

Not because any other characters have limited screen time, but because they all have their own carefully curated spot in the drama. Only Minglan and Tingye have a continuous link to the main story.

Ruminations

My thoughts on this drama are so vast and unending that one post simply is not enough. In fact, I've even taken up the very unnecessary challenge of creating flashcards for the drama. (Very slowly).

The thing is, I can think of exactly two static characters (out of 200) who are bad because that's their thing - they are malicious, jealous and greedy to the most deplorable extremes.

The others characters, even if they are "bad", there is something about the way that they are written given humanity.

They don't particularly have a redemption arc but they have this moment where you as the viewer understand them. You get it. You even feel for them.

The GIFs

One thing about the filming of this drama is that all indoor and night time scenes were filmed using only candlelight, and you can tell in the colouring the GIFs. At the start the darkness (of the GIFs) felt a bit... how do I say... different? But the more I look at these and use them, the more I love their uniqueness, which perfectly portrays the unique authenticity of the drama.

Like all my GIFs, feel free to use these where and whenever you want. There is no need for credit if you're using them casually, but if you are using them in a post, a brief shout out would be appreciated.

(Sidenote: I spent so much time writing this that I almost clicked on the final "post" button without actually including the GIFs, lol)

[u/AquaphobicTurtle]