How did you first get into Guardian fandom? By early summer or so last year it felt like so many people on my DW list were in love with it that it seemed like the obvious next thing to try from my to-watch list (many of you know that my media-to-consume lists are terrifying and already way too long to ever be gotten through in my lifetime), so I gave it a try...and it took me quite a while to bond, in large part because the YouTube subs kept completely jarring me out of it. I lasted about ten episodes before I cried for help on Twitter, and after that I enjoyed it a lot more. But for me it was still a very gradually-then-suddenly tumble into being in love with the show, although there's still no specific moment or episode I can point to where I knew it had me by the heart.
I also really enjoyed what I read of the novel (and am looking forward to reading the whole thing, and hoping to someday get an official English edition), although the drama is what I'm in love with.
What is one thing you love about the show? Its dedication to showing us Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan's relationship for what it is + Zhu Yilong and Bai Yu's ludicrous chemistry together.
What is your favourite terrible special effect? I don't think I have one? (I know which one makes me cringe the most. ^^;)
What is (one of) your favourite relationship(s) on the show (either romantic or friendship) and what do you like about that relationship? Weilan! I love how they're so many things to each other--friends, lovers, partners, brothers-in-arms--and the depths and varied manifestations of their trust and intimacy. I love that it's such a bedrock-solid connection that simultaneously has genuine and understandable conflicts and tensions.
I also have a special love for Zhao Yunlan and Da Qing's relationship, with all its deep familiarity and comfort and squabbling.
Do you have a favourite character? If I have to pick, it's Shen Wei. He's so very much my type of character. But on paper, Zhao Yunlan doesn't tick many of the boxes that tend to go with characters I especially love, and I completely love him anyway, so that's more remarkable than my love for Shen Wei. *g* (And in terms of the supporting cast, I love Zhu Hong and Da Qing best.)
Do you have a favourite villain? Hmm...the Regent is the one I most love to hate? But probably Ye Zun, really, thanks to Zhu Yilong's unfairly good acting and the number of people who write him in a persuasively sympathetic way in fic. The show set him up with all the notes to make me feel terrible for him, and Zhu Yilong made them feel real enough that the fleshing-out in fic works for me.
Talk to us about one (or more!) of your favourite Guardian-related canons: Alas, the only other one of Bai Yu or Zhu Yilong's shows I've seen all the way through is Fairyland Lovers, and I didn't really bond with it. I'm hoping to love Detective L when I get back to it (I've only seen three episodes) and am excited for Zhu Yilong's Lost Tomb series.
Do you like RPF? In general? It's never been my thing. But then this series. And those two. And so many fic writers doing interesting things...! So in practice, what seems to be happening is that I don't go looking for Zhu Yilong/Bai Yu RPF but so much of it crosses my radar that sounds interesting that I'm reading and enjoying a fair bit of it anyway. ^_^
Do you have a favourite ad campaign (such as Bai Yu's rentboy photoshoot or Zhu Yilong's ReFa ads)? Not at this time, no, although I very much like looking at the pretty pictures.
What other fandoms are you in or have you been in? As many people in this comm know, I'm very monofannish and only move into new fandoms occasionally (although I love plenty of shows/books/etc. that I don't feel fannish about). My primary online fandoms before Guardian have been Sailor Moon ('90s anime), Revolutionary Girl Utena (anime), Fruits Basket (manga), and Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy (English novel series); my secondary fandoms have been Evangelion ('90s anime), X (manga), and Warehouse 13 (English TV series). The Untamed should probably be on the secondary-fandom list now too, although I've had zero impulse to write fic for it. And to make this really quite exhaustive, in childhood/adolescence I was fannish about New Mutants, X-Men, and ElfQuest comics.
What are some of your general fanwork likes: Having it be character focused and intensely emotional are the key things for me, more than any particular tropes or genres. Vividly intimate and emotional smut is amazing.
Where can we best find you to squee more about this thing or other things? Here on Dreamwidth is my favorite place, and on Twitter my outright fannishness is mostly on MermaidLure . (I'm also ysabet_m, but that's where I do tons of RTing and talk to manga-industry folks and stuff.)
Anything else you want to say? Only that this is a marvelous fandom and I'm so glad to have wound up here. ^_^
no subject
Pronouns: She/her.
Language(s): English only, alas.
How did you first get into Guardian fandom? By early summer or so last year it felt like so many people on my DW list were in love with it that it seemed like the obvious next thing to try from my to-watch list (many of you know that my media-to-consume lists are terrifying and already way too long to ever be gotten through in my lifetime), so I gave it a try...and it took me quite a while to bond, in large part because the YouTube subs kept completely jarring me out of it. I lasted about ten episodes before I cried for help on Twitter, and after that I enjoyed it a lot more. But for me it was still a very gradually-then-suddenly tumble into being in love with the show, although there's still no specific moment or episode I can point to where I knew it had me by the heart.
I also really enjoyed what I read of the novel (and am looking forward to reading the whole thing, and hoping to someday get an official English edition), although the drama is what I'm in love with.
What is one thing you love about the show? Its dedication to showing us Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan's relationship for what it is + Zhu Yilong and Bai Yu's ludicrous chemistry together.
What is your favourite terrible special effect? I don't think I have one? (I know which one makes me cringe the most. ^^;)
What is (one of) your favourite relationship(s) on the show (either romantic or friendship) and what do you like about that relationship? Weilan! I love how they're so many things to each other--friends, lovers, partners, brothers-in-arms--and the depths and varied manifestations of their trust and intimacy. I love that it's such a bedrock-solid connection that simultaneously has genuine and understandable conflicts and tensions.
I also have a special love for Zhao Yunlan and Da Qing's relationship, with all its deep familiarity and comfort and squabbling.
Do you have a favourite character? If I have to pick, it's Shen Wei. He's so very much my type of character. But on paper, Zhao Yunlan doesn't tick many of the boxes that tend to go with characters I especially love, and I completely love him anyway, so that's more remarkable than my love for Shen Wei. *g* (And in terms of the supporting cast, I love Zhu Hong and Da Qing best.)
Do you have a favourite villain? Hmm...the Regent is the one I most love to hate? But probably Ye Zun, really, thanks to Zhu Yilong's unfairly good acting and the number of people who write him in a persuasively sympathetic way in fic. The show set him up with all the notes to make me feel terrible for him, and Zhu Yilong made them feel real enough that the fleshing-out in fic works for me.
Talk to us about one (or more!) of your favourite Guardian-related canons: Alas, the only other one of Bai Yu or Zhu Yilong's shows I've seen all the way through is Fairyland Lovers, and I didn't really bond with it. I'm hoping to love Detective L when I get back to it (I've only seen three episodes) and am excited for Zhu Yilong's Lost Tomb series.
Do you like RPF? In general? It's never been my thing. But then this series. And those two. And so many fic writers doing interesting things...! So in practice, what seems to be happening is that I don't go looking for Zhu Yilong/Bai Yu RPF but so much of it crosses my radar that sounds interesting that I'm reading and enjoying a fair bit of it anyway. ^_^
Do you have a favourite ad campaign (such as Bai Yu's rentboy photoshoot or Zhu Yilong's ReFa ads)? Not at this time, no, although I very much like looking at the pretty pictures.
What other fandoms are you in or have you been in? As many people in this comm know, I'm very monofannish and only move into new fandoms occasionally (although I love plenty of shows/books/etc. that I don't feel fannish about). My primary online fandoms before Guardian have been Sailor Moon ('90s anime), Revolutionary Girl Utena (anime), Fruits Basket (manga), and Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy (English novel series); my secondary fandoms have been Evangelion ('90s anime), X (manga), and Warehouse 13 (English TV series). The Untamed should probably be on the secondary-fandom list now too, although I've had zero impulse to write fic for it. And to make this really quite exhaustive, in childhood/adolescence I was fannish about New Mutants, X-Men, and ElfQuest comics.
What are some of your general fanwork likes: Having it be character focused and intensely emotional are the key things for me, more than any particular tropes or genres. Vividly intimate and emotional smut is amazing.
Where can we best find you to squee more about this thing or other things? Here on Dreamwidth is my favorite place, and on Twitter my outright fannishness is mostly on
Anything else you want to say? Only that this is a marvelous fandom and I'm so glad to have wound up here. ^_^