"Soldiers Sortie," after "Drawing the Sword," is our second military production from Tangren Film and Television. However, the perspective shifts from before the founding of the nation to the construction of modern national defense forces and the honor of a new generation of soldiers!
The script comes from the meticulously crafted stage play "Elna's Assault" by Mr. Lan Xiaolong, which has undergone careful adaptation. The general plot synopsis is as follows...
In terms of casting, the lead role is played by Mr. Wang Baoqiang. Many of you may not be familiar with this actor. He is Tangren Film and Television's latest signed actor. Although he is not from a traditional acting background, his performance in the film "Blind Shaft" earned him the Best New Actor award at the 40th Golden Horse Awards.
Mr. Wang Baoqiang's acting possesses a natural, rustic charm, and he excels at character portrayal. The protagonist Xu Sanduo he portrays in the drama is nothing short of perfect, making him unforgettable to every viewer!
In addition, there are talented actors such as Chen Sicheng, Zhang Yi, Zhang Guoqiang, and Duan Hongyi. The entire production team is incredibly solid!
Hu Ge was talking enthusiastically above, but the audience below wore expressions of indifference.
From the introduction, the audience below could not discern any highlights or anything attractive about this drama. It didn't even feature a single well-known actor.
Especially that Wang Baoqiang, out of the ten people present, eight had never heard of him. After all, Wang Baoqiang hadn't even become the naive character in "A World Without Thieves" yet.
Only Li Jing nodded thoughtfully when she heard the name. A leader beside her, seeing this, asked curiously, "You know this Wang Baoqiang?"
"Yes, he's a quite famous extra actor in Beijing. He's from Shaolin Temple, daring and brave, and he risks his life when filming. He just seems a bit foolish and stubborn! I met him years ago when I was struggling in Beijing!" Li Jing replied.
"From Shaolin Temple? What is that!" The leader frowned, his impression of the drama worsening. He had no desire to purchase it.
It couldn't be blamed on the leader lacking foresight. In fact, anyone seeing the production's configuration would feel... it wouldn't be fair to say it was bad, it was just utterly transparent.
"Distinguished leaders, I know what you're all thinking, but I want to say that when "Drawing the Sword" first appeared six months ago, it was as obscure and underestimated as "Soldiers Sortie" is now!" Hu Ge said with emotion. "To use a Chinese saying, you'll know if it's a horse or a mule only when you ride it!"
"At the same time, borrowing a principle our Chairman Huang shared when addressing us, he said that 90% of dramas in this world are decided within the first three episodes whether they are dragons or worms. If the first three episodes fail to engage the audience, then there's no point in watching the drama!"
"So, please watch the first three episodes of "Soldiers Sortie" and see if this drama is a horse or a mule!"
"Since three episodes are close to two hours long, if any leaders feel bored, please feel free to leave. Don't feel embarrassed. The quality of a drama should be judged by the audience's feet!"
After Hu Ge finished speaking, the first three episodes of "Soldiers Sortie" began to play on the large screen in the conference room. At first, most expressions were dismissive, and some were already contemplating how to leave more gracefully.
For example, Li Jing's leader told her to call him in half an hour, and he would pretend to take a call and leave, saving himself two hours of torment.
Li Jing nodded and then started watching the drama. She saw a young boy passively receiving what could be called humiliating education from his father, and then the story of Xu Sanduo slowly began to unfold.
At 40:20
When the ending theme song finished, Li Jing suddenly jolted awake and then frightfully realized she had forgotten to make her call. She immediately looked at her leader with some concern, only to find that her leader's gaze was still fixed on the screen, completely unaware of her situation. Only then did she breathe a slight sigh of relief.
"It seems this drama will at least be a small explosion!" Li Jing scanned the surroundings and found that no one had left the conference room. Thus, she made her judgment.
The two hours passed in a flash. When the ending theme song concluded, the audience was surprised to realize that three episodes had already aired, and they immediately showed expressions of dissatisfaction, wanting to watch the fourth episode.
However, Hu Ge had already returned to the stage. Holding the microphone, he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time for dining and a break. Please return here by 7 PM to continue watching the first three episodes of the next drama."
Everyone then stood up and slowly left the conference room, still savoring the experience. The words of disparagement regarding "Soldiers Sortie" were no longer heard in their conversations.
They had all been in the industry for over a decade, or even decades. They knew very well what kind of dramas resonated with audiences.
The moment they saw "Soldiers Sortie," they understood. This was definitely a drama that could achieve high ratings. The only thing they couldn't be sure of was whether this drama could become a "king of dramas."
After all, there were still two more dramas waiting.
Before 7 PM, the audience had already returned. However, in the hours in between, they hadn't been idle. They had been calculating how to make an offer to acquire "Soldiers Sortie" at the cheapest possible price.
When Hu Ge appeared on stage again, they still hadn't figured out what to do. It wasn't until Hu Ge began introducing the second drama of the day.
"This second drama is quite remarkable, as it is a drama starring myself, Hu Ge, titled 'Joy of Life'!" Hu Ge said with a grin on stage, eliciting laughter from the audience.
Then, instinctively, they felt that this drama named "Joy of Life" should be quite good, as Hu Ge was indeed very handsome. Merely based on his appearance, it could lead to a surge in sales.
Hu Ge then continued to introduce the drama, "The drama "Joy of Life" is remarkable because its script outline was personally penned by our Chairman Huang He, and then meticulously polished by Mr. Zou Jingzhi, the acclaimed screenwriter behind "The Adventures of Emperor Qianlong" and "My Own Swordsman." This ultimately resulted in the magnificent and epic script of "Joy of Life"!"
"'Joy of Life' can be considered a groundbreaking drama in Chinese television history, because "Joy of Life" does not rely on any era in Chinese history, nor does it draw upon any Chinese mythical or fantasy stories. Instead, it has completely created a brand new worldview, an unbelievable alternate history, making it the first alternate history drama in all of China!"
"As for the true story structure of "Joy of Life," please forgive me for not being able to elaborate here. But I can guarantee to everyone that this is a story that no one can imagine, and it is absolutely not to be missed!!"
"The overall narrative style of "Joy of Life" is very cheerful, interspersed with many humorous yet profound segments, similar to the feel of 'My Own Swordsman.' At the same time, the entire story structure pursues a style of escalating climaxes, with no overly lengthy plotlines in the middle. The overall pacing is basically a small climax every two episodes and a major climax every five episodes, ensuring that audiences will not want to put down the drama once they start watching it."
"I personally can even guarantee to all the leaders here that "Joy of Life" is better than the previous "Soldiers Sortie"!" Hu Ge said unapologetically, causing another round of laughter.
"Finally, let me introduce the cast. The male lead, Fan Xian, is played by me, Hu Ge. The female lead, Lin Wan'er, who is my wife, is played by Tong Liya. We are both newcomers, so please give us your kind attention!"
"There are also some important roles, such as Emperor Qing played by Mr. Chen Daoming, Pingping played by Mr. Li Youbin, Princess Chang played by Ms. Zhu Yin, and also Mr. Zhang Guangbei, Mr. He Zhenjun, Mr. Zhang Jinlai, Mr. Yu Guangrong, and young actors Song Jia, Li Chun, Yang Zi, Yang Mi, Shen Teng, and others, all of whom have joined the drama, contributing their own brilliance!"
"Wow, this is truly the trump card of Jiangnan Group!" Upon hearing the cast list, all the representatives present exploded.
Regardless of the quality of the script for this drama, purely based on this cast list, they seemed to see this drama explode across China.
Putting aside other factors, the reappearance of the "Drawing the Sword" trio of Li Youbin, He Zhengjun, and Zhang Guangbei alone was the best publicity in the world, capable of propelling the publicity of "Joy of Life" to its peak.
After all, just using the original cast of "Drawing the Sword" to create this promotional slogan was enough to win over everyone.
Of course, this is assuming it was created by the original cast, and the phrase "original cast" hadn't been overused yet in 2003. If it were 2001, who didn't know that "original cast" was synonymous with a bad drama?
In fact, the best example of an "original cast" creation exists right now.
Furthermore, there is the concept of the "iron triangle." This trend began with "My Own Swordsman," where the "iron triangle" combination of Zhang Guoli, Wang Gang, and Zhang Tielin made a cameo appearance in "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre."
Although their roles were not extensive, especially Wang Gang's, totaling less than ten minutes of screen time, it still became the biggest promotional point for "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre," propelling the drama to the top of the ratings that year.
And now, the "iron triangle" from "Drawing the Sword" has appeared in "Joy of Life." It's no wonder the ratings are bound to explode.
Not to mention the presence of three legendary actors like Chen Daoming, Zhang Jinlai, and Zhu Yin. Just putting the names of these six people together makes it truly difficult to imagine what kind of drama this would be!