Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Through It All

Through It All is a Chinese drama produced by Singapore's free-to-air channel, Mediacorp TV Channel 8.

Cast


*Li Nanxing as Guo Xianghai
* as Guo Yihai
*Jesseca Liu as Huang Qianyun
*Apple Hong as Cen Anqi
*Jeanette Aw as Cheng Xiaoxuan
*Richard Low as Huang Baiwan
*Darren Lim as Wu Ximing

Jeanette Aw's role in this show was initially meant for another Mediacorp actress, Felicia Chin. But due to filming commitments in Malaysia, the role was given to Jeanette.

Three Women and A Half

Three Women and A Half 三个半女人 is a drama series in Singapore filmed and screened on MediaCorp TV Channel 8 in 2001. It starred Huang Wenyong, Aileen Tan, Huang Biren, Lin Meijiao and Vivian Lai.

Nominations & Awards


The serial was nominated and won awards at the Star Awards 2001 such as Best Drama Serial. Huang Biren and Aileen Tan were nominated Best Actress for the show, which Aileen won, while Huang Wenyong was nominated Best Actor. The show has also achieved the highest viewership of the year during its telecast.

The Vagrant

The Vagrant is a Chinese drama. It was produced by Mediacorp, a television station in Singapore. The cast includes Mediacorp's Ah Ge, Li Nanxing, Huang Biren, Zhang Yaodong, Le Yao, Huang Yiliang, and Tracer Wong. ''The Vagrant'' was one of the highest rated drama serials in 2002.

Story



The story centers around a young man, Ah Bao , who grew up in a violent environment and how he deals with life after his term in prison. At the age of 21, Ah Bao landed up in jail after his friend and girlfriend betrayed him during a robbery he took part in. While in jail, Ah Bao plotted his revenge against the people who betrayed him.

Upon his release from prison, he discovers that his friend is now mentally retarded and that his friend's ex-girlfriend has remarried. He learns that the couple has left behind children, who are abused by their foster family. Feeling sorry for them, Ah Bao decides to take care of the children.

Ah Bao ends up renting a place from Shushu , a chicken rice seller, who is infamous for her weird temper. Living under the same roof, Ah Bao learns that Shushu's temperament is due to her husband's betrayal when she had breast cancer. As time goes by, the couple discovers the nicer side of each other and learns about trust again.

Just when life seems to be turning better for Ah Bao, he discovers the truth about his downfall 10 years ago. He decides to uncover the mastermind behind. Is Ah Bao taking a wrong step in his life again?

Cast


Main Cast


*Li Nanxing as Ah Bao/ Liu Xiaoming
*Huang Biren as Gan Shushu

Supporting cast


*Edmund Tay as Ah Lang
*Huang Yiliang as Huang Jinlang
*Huang Shinan as Du Wei
*Joey Swee as Cecillia
*Ang Ching Hui as Ke-ai
*Zhang Jiaqi as Kele
*Tracer Wong as Mao Nana
*Yao Wenlong as Liu Dehua/ Yiyang Zi
*Zhang Yaodong as Gan Yuan
*Le Yao as Xiaomin
*Lin Xiangping as Song Xintian

Nominations and awards


Star Awards 2002

*Won: Best Actor, Li Nanxing
*Won: Best Supporting Actor, Huang Yiliang
*Nominated: Best Supporting Actress, Tracer Wong
*Nominated Best Drama Serial
*Nominated: Young Talent, Ang Ching Hui

The Undisclosed

The Undisclosed is an action thriller drama produced by Mediacorp TV Channel 8. The drama made its debut on 3 April 2006 in Singapore, and ended its run on 28 April 2006.

This is the first drama Li Nanxing acted in after his divorce with Yang Libing.

This show was ranked at 9th position for Year 2006 in terms of viewership ratings, while Li Nanxing won the Best Actor award in the Star Awards 2006 for his role in this drama.

It is currently re-broadcasted starting from 16 June 2008 at every weekday night, 11pm on MediaCorp TV Channel 8.

Story


Carol, who works in a bank in Hong Kong, returns to Shang City to throw her wedding dinner after her marriage to a Hongkonger, Superintendent Cheng Musheng in Hong Kong. She disappears on the 2nd day of her return after meeting up with her longtime buddy, Rachel. Yan Kexin, a detective who knew Carol in their university days, volunteers to take on the case and devotes all her time to locate the missing Carol. Meanwhile, Musheng also embark on a relentless search for his fiancée with the help of Rachel.

During the investigation, Kexin discovers that there may be a plot against Carol by her stepmother, Zeng Bixing and her son Zeng Tianci due to a will left behind by Carol's mother. Musheng also discovers that members of a secret society are also looking for Carol. Just then, someone claims to have spotted Carol. Does this mean that Carol is still alive? Why did she pull a disappearing act? Did she concoct and set up her own disappearance and how did she get herself involved with the secret society?

The case becomes more intriguing when Carol's body was discovered. With the combined efforts of Kexin and Musheng, both of them began to unravel the evil mysteries revolving around Carol's disappearance.

Cast


Main Cast


*Li Nanxing as Cheng Mu Sheng
*Huang Biren as Yan Ke Xin
*Constance Song as Rachel

Supporting Cast


*Ong Ai Leng as Carol
*Andrew Seow as Zeng Tian Ci
*Zhu Hou Ren as Longtou
*Rayson Tan as CK Chong
*Huang Shi Nan as Ivan
*Brandon Wong as Raymond
*Kyle Chan as Roy
*Chen Guo Hua as An-ge
*Weng Xing Ang as Steven

Triva


It is rumoured that The Undisclosed seems to be copied from the American drama,

The Unbroken Cycle

''The Unbroken Cycle'' is a drama series produced by MediaCorp , starring Singapore actors Fann Wong and Thomas Ong. A television adaptation of a mystery novel by Singaporean novelist Wu Weicai about the fate of two star-crossed lovers over three lifetimes in pre-war , post-war and modern Singapore, this 1996 drama serial won Fann Wong her first regional nomination as Best Actress at the Asian Television Awards.



Cast


* Fann Wong - Ye Qin, Li Xiangmei, Zhu Zhiyue aka Xibao
* Thomas Ong - Zhou Xinghuan, Zhang Hai

The Unbeatables III

''The Unbeatables III is a 30-episode Singaporean drama serial which was telecast in 2003 and is a drama serial by MediaCorp. It is the second sequel of The Unbeatables series.

Cast


Main Characters


*Li Nanxing as Yan Fei
*Zoe Tay as Luo Qifang
*Lee San San as Jiang Yexue
*Cai Yiwei as Yan Xing
*Willy Liu as Yan Xing
*Tay Ping Hui as Luo Shenfeng/Luo YingFeng
*Huang Yiliang as Huang Yunjiu

Supporting Characters


*Chen Shucheng as Yan Kun
*Zhu Houren as Long Tingguang
*Vivian Lai as Dong Meiyao
*Allan Wu as Ding Wei
*Joey Swee as Ding Jiajia
*San Yow as Jiang Xueming
*Wang De Yuan as Wu Youkang
*Henry Thia as Ding Shiyi
*Le Yao as Jiang Xiaotong
*Jin Yinji as Auntie Qian

Synopsis


Ever since he defeated Ye Zhong, Yan Fei had decided to bow out of the gambling scene. However, things were not as peaceful as he had hoped. His wife, Luo Qifang, got embroiled in a mysterious case of casino murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Eight years have passed and Yan Fei has become the most philanthropic gambler king on Coral Island. His generous deeds greatly move the authorities that they decide to release Qifang on a reduced sentence. Just then, illusionary gambler Luo Shenfeng challenges Yan Fei to give up his monopoly of the gambling business. Yan Fei refuses and thus gets into several rounds of tussles with Shenfeng.

Yan Fei’s grown-up son, Yan Xing, is finally back from abroad. The latter dreams of being a reigning gambling king just like his father. To his great disappointment, his father forbids it and refuses to pass on any of his skills to him for fear that he’ll get enmeshed into the whirlpool of the gambling scene.

Instead, Yan Fei chooses to impart his skills to his 3 disciples, Wu Youkang, Dong Meiyao and Ding Wei, in the hope that 1 of them can take over his gambling empire. But because of this decision, Yan Fei creates a rift in his relationship with his son. The rebellious junior decides to go against his wish and makes a bid for the coveted throne as well.

Antagonist Huang Yunjiu, changes his looks and poses as a professional gambler so he can rid Qifang to avenge his wife’s death. He first befriends Luo Shenfeng to join forces against Yan Fei. Later, he schemes to ensnare the gullible Yan Xing into his plot of revenge by baiting him with the promise of the gambling king’s throne.

Yan Xing succumbs to temptations and acknowledges Yunjiu as his mentor. He turns his back on his parents, breaking their hearts. Huang Yunjiu sends assassins after Qifang but a nurse, Jiang Yexue, saves her. Yexue was once forced into an immoral deal with Luo Shenfeng when she tried to pay off her brother’s gambling debts. Luckily for her, Yan Fei appeared and helped her out of it. Since then, she begins to develop feelings for him.

One of Yan Fei’s disciple, Dong Meiyao, turns out to be Yunjiu’s daughter. She is forced by her father to betray Yan Fei, thus causing the latter to lose his memory. Yan Xing makes use of this opportunity to force his mother back to the gambling arena. With no one to turn to, Qifang is at a loss. The discovery of her amnesic husband’s amorous relationship with Jiang Yexue adds to her sorrows.

Yan Fei finally regains his memory. When he finds out his son had forced his mother into a life and death gamble, he decides to take his wife’s place, hoping that he can bring back Yan Xing’s conscience.

The Unbeatables II

Cast



*Li Nanxing as Yan Fei
*Zoe Tay as Luo Qifang/Long Jiajia/Huang Yuefang
*Zhu Houren as Long Tingguang
*Chen Shucheng as Yan Kun
*He Weiming as Yan Xing
*Liu Qianyi as Huang Wu
*Kenneth Tsang as Ye Zhong
*Chew Chor Meng as Ding Zhaohui
*Zio Zio Lim as Huang Jia-er
*Cassandra See as Luo Wenxin
*Yu Rongguang as Zhuang Weicheng

Synopsis



Set 4 years after end of The Unbeatables I.

In Las Vegas, a senior of Long Tingguang, Ye Zhong, was having a gambling competition with four other gambling sorcerers from around the world. After he won the game, the media present at the event claimed him to be "King of Gamblers". He refused to accept the title, and instead showed 4 different people on the screen and did the introduction:
* King of Deception, Long Tingguang - turned insane after he lost a gambling match to Yan Fei four years ago.
* Queen of Gamblers, Luo Qifang - rumored to be dead.
* King of Gamblers, Yan Kun - disappeared after his son won the match against Long Tingguang.
* New Generation King of Gamblers, Yan Fei - still active and his gambling skills has improved.

Ye Zhong declared that only when he beats Yan Fei on the gambling table will he be fit to be the "King of Gamblers".

Although Wenxin kept telling him that Luo Qifang is dead, Yan Fei insisted otherwise. Over 4 years, he travelled the world with his and Qifang's son, Yan Xing, hoping to find Qifang. When Yan Fei and Yan Xing got back to Coral Island, Wenxin refused to meet both father and son. As the pair stood in the rain waiting, Wenxin had series of flashbacks.

* 4 years ago, Qifang took a bullet in the head for Yan Fei. Before she went for surgery, she wanted Wenxin to promise her 2 things: let Yan Fei have the custody of their son, and if the surgery is successful, she doesn't want anything to do with Yan Fei anymore. After the surgery, Qifang lost her memory and forgotten her past with Yan Fei. Wenxin decided to fulfill her promise by faking Qifang's death, sending her to Switzerland, and giving her a new name - Huang Yuefang, and a new father - Huang Wu.

Trivia



* Locations shoot includes San Francisco and in the US.

The Unbeatables I

Cast



*Li Nanxing as Yan Fei/Lin Jianfei
*Zoe Tay as Luo Qifang/Long Jiajia
*Zhu Houren as Long Tingguang
*Chen Shucheng as Yan Kun
*Cassandra See as Luo Wenxin
*Lin Yisheng as He Xiangnan
*Liang Weidong as Cai Haijie
*Hong Huifang as Qiu Huaifeng


Synopsis



King of Gambler, Yan Kun and King of Deception, Long Tingguang, both set their eyes on Coral Island - an undeveloped empty island- for their future casino landmark. Through an underhand method, Tingguang won the gambling match with Yan Kun and thus acquired the right of the island. He even forced Yan Kun to blind his own eyes, forced Yan's wife to commit suicide and left Yan's five-years old son an orphan.

18 years later, Yan's son grew up under disguised name, Lin Jianfei. His happy go-lucky attitude is a cover for his ultimate goal: to avenge his parents' misfortunate. His high gambling skills drew the attention of Tingguang's enemy, Qiu Huaifeng. She hired Jianfei to work for her family's casino and Jianfei used this opportunity to perfect his gambling skills.

Jianfei and his friend, Xiangnan were arrested for illegal gambling mistakenly by policewoman, Luo Qifang. Qifang and his sister, Wenxin, both turn out to be his neighbor. Over time, the once bickering partners become romantic linked. Jianfei was so trusting of the relationship that he revealed his true identity as Yan Fei, the only son of King of Gamblers.

Just as the romance blossom between this young couple, Qifang discovered that she was actually Long Jiajia - the long lost daughter and the only surviving child of Long Tingguang, Yan Fei's arch enemy.

Trivia



* The only Singapore series with gambling theme.
* The drama was nominated and won "The Most Popular Drama" in 1994 Star Awards - Singapore annual award ceremony.
* Both lead actor, Li Nanxing and Zoe Tay were voted "The Most Popular Male Artiste" and "The Most Popular Female Artiste" respectively in 1994 Star Awards

The Unbeatables

The Unbeatables is a Chinese produced by Singapore's Mandarin channel, Channel 8.

''The Unbeatables'' is best remembered for being the first Singaporean show on gambling, and featured two of Singapore's biggest actors, Zoe Tay and Li Nanxing, who played the roles of Luo Qifang and Yan Fei respectively. The show is set on the fictitious Coral Island, and is essentially about the intense rivalry and animosity between the families the two protagonists are in. However, the latest sequel Unbeatables III in 2002, features a completely different storyline and plot which involves sorcery, epic fights and the like, although Zoe Tay and Li Nanxing reprised their roles as they did for the previous two series.

It spanned 4 seasons:
*The Unbeatables I - released in 1993
*The Unbeatables I - 1996
*The Unbeatables I - 2002
*The Unbeatables IV - 2008

The Truth (TV Drama)

The Truth is a Singaporean modern suspense drama, which was telecasted on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp TV Channel 8. It made its debut on 7 April 2008 and ended its run on 2 May 2008. It was screened at 9pm every weekday night. The serial consists of 20 episodes.

Cast


Cast


* Tay Ping Hui as Lu Zhiwei
* Joanne Peh as Chen Shuxian
* Shaun Chen as Alex Su
* Rebecca Lim as Chen Shufen
* Zhu Houren as Su Zhenyuan
* Richard Low as Lu Rongguang
* Zhu Yuye as Susan Ong

Minor Characters


* Jack Neo as Psychologist
* Huang Wenyong as Loanshark #1
* as Loanshark #2
* Wang Fa as James

Sypnosis


Murder Conspiracy


Su Zhenyuan is the president of a conglomerate and he finally receives the will and a priceless treasure map his father Su Jincai left behind 20 years ago.

Chen Shuxian has just been employed by Zhenyuan’s company and her sister Shufen is here in Singapore to perform with her orchestra. Mum Cai Ximei arrives from Malaysia to watch Shufen’s performance but soon dies suddenly.

As CID detective Lu Zhiwei takes down Shuxian and Shufen’s statements, Zhenyuan appears out of the blue and claims to have met Ximei before she died. He also claims his friend Chen Chunsheng is the girls’ father and has asked him to hand $10,000 to them.

Shuxian is shocked to realise Zhenyuan is her boss, and that Shufen’s boyfriend Alex is Zhenyuan’s only son and also the company’s Human Resource manager.

Revelation of the conspiracies


Zhiwei unearths a photo of Ximei with Chunsheng at Shuxian’s old home; Chunsheng is in fact Zhenyuan! He finally confesses that he is indeed Shuxian and Shufen’s biological father. Shuxian cannot bring herself to tell Shufen the news and could only beg her to leave Alex, now her half-brother.

When Zhiwei’s father Rongguang hears of this secret, he proposes a revenge plan to Shuxian. The latter pretends to forgive Zhenyuan; but allies herself with Rongguang, managing director of the company, to embezzle company funds. Rongguang has eyed Zhenyuan’s treasure map for the past 20 years and to lay his hands on it, even ‘sacrifices’ the woman he loves, Susan , to Zhenyuan to become the latter’s wife. Zhenyuan divorces her upon discovering her affair with Rongguang. When Susan realises she’s only Rongguang’s pawn in this game, she attempts suicide. Although rescued, she soon dies mysteriously.

Zhiwei begins to suspect his father. Rongguang denies all involvement and spills another secret: Susan is Zhiwei’s biological mother and Alex is Zhiwei’s half-brother!

Climax


Alex confronts Rongguang after finding out his mother’s affair. The latter raises doubts about Zhenyuan’s true identity and hints that Alex should be the rightful heir! Consumed by greed, Alex conspires with Rongguang to drug both Shufen and Zhenyuan and take photos of them in bed together. News of their ‘incest’ erupts; and being unable to face the world, Shufen jumps off a building to her apparent death.

Zhenyuan reveals his true identity to Shuxian: he is in fact Chen Chunsheng and Su Zhenyuan is his twin brother. How did he managed to switch identities? How far will Rongguang go to get the treasure map? Why did Ximei and Susan die inexplicably?

The Shining Star

The Shining Star is family drama produced by Mediacorp TV Channel 8. The drama made its debut on 6 March 2006 in Singapore, and ended its run on 31 March 2006.

This show was ranked at 7th position for Year 2006 in terms of viewership ratings and was awarded ''Best Drama Serial'' of the year.

Synopsis


A-Li is a very pretty young girl. However she was born visually handicapped and has never known how she looks like, much less her surroundings and the happenings around her. Despite this, she is an optimistic character who never blames anyone, striving instead to be as independent as possible in her daily life, sometimes even going out of her way to help others.

Her own father had abandoned her since young and she followed her mother when she remarried a sloppy and lazy man. The family depend on the declining trade of hand puppetry for their living. Due to this, A-Li has no choice but to search for jobs in order to earn enough to send her half-brother to university.

A father and daughter pair moves into the old block which A-Li is staying. The youthful father refuses to tell people what his name is so A-Li just calls him 'Nameless'. Nameless has a mischievous 8-year-old daughter named Anqi, who together with him, turns the block topsy turvy with their antics. In frustrations A-Li terms her 'little monster'. Anqi retaliates by calling her 'hideous'.

As time went by, A-Li comes to know the pair better and finds out that Nameless was actually born into a wealthy family. He later fell out with his father because he insisted on pursuing music studies in Vienna. Later, he met a girl named Xu Ling and had Anqi with her. However at this point in time, Nameless fell into depression as he was not able to make any progress in his music studies. Things became worse for him when he found out that Xu Ling was having an affair. In anger, he took the month-old daughter with him and left. All these years since then, both father and daughter have depended on each other and share a very close relationship.

Anqi's school results have been extremely disappointing and she is always getting into trouble, garnering many complaints from parents and classmates alike. In the end, she even gives up going to school. When A-Li finds out about this, she decides to help Anqi find a new school. She even swears to help Anqi realise her potential so that Anqi can prove the teachers and classmates who looked down on her wrong.

Under her tutelage, Anqi's schoolwork makes great progress. While appreciating her help, Nameless also begins to respect her "handicapped but able" spirit. In contrast, his own predicament of living life without goal and taking each day as it comes despite his healthy body is a poor comparison.

Gradually A-Li develops a positive impression towards Nameless. She hopes that he will eventually pick himself up and start afresh, but Nameless has not even finished playing an entire music piece for a long time. A-Li throws herself into thinking of ways to help him regain his confidence.

However, A-Li is suddenly sent to hospital where the doctor discovers many injuries caused by scratches and bites. She is suspected to have been abused and the police is notified immediately. The police is unable to get any further information from A-Li or her mother and thus seeks the help of a social worker Yin Qi. A-Li makes friends very readily with Yin Qi. Yin Qi finds out that A-Li trusting nature makes her very vulnerable to be taken advantage of. In spite of Yin Qi's repeated questioning, A-Li refuses to tell the truth of how she got hurt.

At about this time, Yin Qi is also facing a bottleneck at work, as well as her husband's extramarital affair. Under pressure and in exhaustion, she closes A-Li's case shoddily. It is not till A-Li is once again sent to hospital that she remorsefully takes it upon herself to find out the truth.

Through investigations, Yin Qi finds out many untold truths and hidden facts and in the process learns to face her husband and his infidelity with magnanimity. She also decides to stay on her job to continue and help the lost youths in our society!?

Cast


Main Cast


* Dawn Yeoh as Ah-Li
* Pierre Png as ''Nameless''
* Hong Hui Fang

Supporting Cast


* Zheng Ge Ping
* Eelyn Kok
* Constance Song
* Huang Shi Nan
* Wang Yu Qing
* May Phua
* Adam Chen

Trivia


* Dawn Yeoh was the first lead actress of the drama serial, despite this being her first television appearance.
* Pierre Png received his first ''Best Actor'' nomination in the Star Awards 2006 for his performance in this drama.
* Hong Hui Fang's role in this drama series was originally intended to be played by MediaCorp actress Huang Biren. The latter had to reject the role as she had fallen seriously ill due to asthma and had to take 1 year worth of medical leave.

Awards in Star Awards 2006


* Best Drama Serial
* Best Theme Song
* Best Supporting Actress

The Peak (TV series)

The Peak is a Singaporean drama which is telecast on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp TV Channel 8. It made its debut on 8 January 2007 and ended its run on 5 February 2007. The show was initially slated for a 20 episode run, but was extended to 21 episodes due to over-runs in the recording of the drama.

Despite several negative reviews, the show was watched by almost 1 million viewers, making it one of the highest rated local dramas, breaking records previously held by A Million Treasures and Measure of Man.

Cast


Main Cast


* as Fang Hong'an
*Dawn Yeoh as Cai Zhenya
*Qi Yuwu as Chen Tianjun
*Jeanette Aw as Zhong Xiaoyang
*Elvin Ng as Cai Zhihang

Supporting Cast


*Ben Yeo as Lu Ka
*Ann Kok as Xiu Ping
*Lin Meijiao as Ling Ling
*Huang Wenyong as Tie Tou
*Eelyn Kok as Lin Shuanghui

Basic Information


This 21 episode Mandarin drama of bittersweet romance, friendship and passionate pursuit is against the backdrop of the dynamic and global arena of the offshore and marine and maritime industry of Singapore.

Set primarily in Keppel FELS in Singapore, the span of this serial reaches to the picturesque Keppel FELS Brasil in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and has a multinational cast from the two Americas, Middle East, Europe and Asia.

Trivia


* One of the lead actors of the show, Qi Yuwu had to strip naked for a scene in the toilet in the first episode, though his private parts were blocked from audience exposure by a piece of soap. Many audience were shocked to see that scene and some even complained to MediaCorp that this scene was not suitable for young children to see.

Watch The Drama Here


*

Viewership Rating

The Invincible Squad

The Invincible Squad consists of six short stories that evolve around mysterious and unusual cases that require a special team to solve.

Heading the special task force is Z whose bright future with the police force was cut short when he dipped into depression after his wife disappeared mysteriously.

The task force also consists of Si Feng , a loner with an unhappy childhood and Zi Ling Phyllis Quek, a psychic who is secretly in love with Z.

Cast


*Xie Shaoguang
*Phyllis Quek
*Jeff Wang

Story


Red Heart


Investigation and the search for a killer start when Z is struck by a series of death nearing accidents. The ML task force narrowed it to Zhenbang , a previous instructor of the Special Force, mentor and best friends with Z till the day he was arrested for corruption. Resentful and bitter, Zhenbang blames Z for exposing his guilt and is relentless in his pursuit for revenge. Unknown to the rest, he has planted a bomb in Zi Ling's cellular and later, he proceeds to kidnap Z's daughter, demanding a ransom for her return. While a time bomb is ticking away unnoticed in Zi Ling's mobile, will Z follow his mentor's footsteps and cave it to bribery in order to raise money? Can he ever get himself out of this situation?

Red Delusion


Possessing psychic abilities, Zi Ling has an ominous premonition of death. She learns later that her brother has been arrested for killing his wife's lover. Her brother Zi liang is suffering from a strange illness. Suspecting his wife for sorcery and infidelity, he attacks his wife and murders her lover. During the attack, he suffers from a fall and he takes the opportunity to feign amnesia to avoid the law. Zi Ling and Si Feng are bent to recover his memory, the reason behind his wife's infidelity and more importantly, the cause of his elusive illness.

Evil Shadow


Two gangsters are murdered and fingerprints found at the crime scene point to a triad leader Wang Shuqiang who has been dead and cremated. Huishan , the daughter of Shuqiang is also on the hit list. The task force suspects power strife within the triad. The task force needs to find out who is the mastermind behind these killings, and whether Shuqiang is really dead. The mystery deepens when the ashes of Shuqiang are found in the hands of Huishan, confirming his death. Can the dead resurrect to exact vengeance or is it just a case of foul play?

Buried Alive


Parental abuse has distorted the mind of Wenqing , a seemingly good-natured man who hides a dark streak behind his demeanour. Having a fetish for older women, he lures them through the Internet only to subject them to psychological torture. He buries them alive if they do not cave in to his demands. Zi Ling discovers his activities and is abducted. Z also falls in Wenqing's trap while searching for Zi Ling. They are thrown into coffins with the impending fate of being buried alive. Can they ever crawl themselves out of this situation? Will the truth remain buried along with their mysterious disappearances?

Abandoned Baby


The ghost of the mental patient seeks Zi Ling's help in locating her baby. Upon investigation, the ML task force discovers her identity as an illegitimate daughter of a wealthy man. The wealthy man's wife tries to stop them from pursuing this case and to no avail. The wealthy woman has a grandson who is in need of a kidney transplant and she is suspected of collaborating between the Chief Nurse and resident doctor. It was discovered later that in her bid to harvest a suitable kidney, the wealthy woman had instructed for an impregnation of the mental patient. The important task for the team is to locate the missing baby and stop the kidney transplant procedure before it is too late.

Alchemy


The puzzling reappearance of Z's wife who has disappeared years ago troubles Z. She tells him that she is back to take her child Wei Wei back. While Z battles with domestic problems, the ML task force is puzzled by a case where a professor was found dead with a postmortem analysis of him having gold ribs. Tingguang, a boyfriend of the professor was suspected of murder but the investigation comes to a dead end when he is also murdered. Meanwhile, Z's problems triple when his wife gets murdered and Zi Ling becomes a prime suspect for the crime. Amidst all these, romance sparks fly between Si Feng and the professor's assistant Jiawen . 3 deaths have occurred. Who is the real murderer? Will Zi Ling get jailed for a murder she was not responsible for? Will Z be able to save her?

The Hotel

The Hotel is a Singapore Chinese Horror drama which was telecast on Singapore's television station, Mediacorp, in 1999. It is a large-scale production, which has a total of 20 episodes, with more than 95% of Mediacorp Artistes appearing in the drama, mostly either as cameos or as guest characters.

The main cast of the show incluses Chen Hanwei, Zoe Tay, Fann Wong, Phyllis Quek, , Edmund Chen, Huang Biren, San Yow, Chen Liping, May Phua and Yang Libing. Many of the main cast are veteran actors and actresses who have won many awards. They include Best Actor winners Chen Hanwei and Best Actress winners Zoe Tay, Fann Wong, Huang Biren and Ivy Lee.

Synopsis


The Hotel revolves around a family-run business named Queen's Hotel which has been around for 2 decades. Jointly run by Seto , her sister, Rainbow , brother, Ah Boy and sister-in-law Lychee , their 3-star hotel goes downhill due to poor management. Alarmed at the poor financial situation, sleeping major shareholders and Emil and his younger brother Sunny step in to salvage the failing business. Emil introduces a series of budget cuts, which results in friction between the brothers and Seto's family.

Very different in character, Seto and Emil do not see eye to eye with each other on many issues. Emil however admires Rainbow's frankness and decides to court her. Seto, who deems men as good-for-nothings, is unexpectedly drawn to Sunny's manliness. Sunny and Rainbow are dreadfully worried about the affections of each other's elder siblings; they pose as lovers in order to fend them off. However, the 2 fall genuinely in love instead, leaving Seto and Emil devastated.

As fate would have it, a series of events in the hotel dissolves the animosity between Seto and Emil and they soon develop feelings for each other. However, pride prevents them from admitting their feelings.

Under Emil's management, the hotel business sees some improvement. A businessman offers to take over the hotel but is rejected by Emil as his beloved has a stake in it as well. Just as he finally decides to express his love for Seto openly, the hotel receives a lawyer's letter and the person who is determined to sue the hotel turns out to be Seto's cousin.

The End.

The Homecoming (TV Series)

The Homecoming is a Singaporean drama being telecast on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp TV Channel 8. It made its debut on 3 April 2007, and ended its run on 30 April 2007. The show consists of a total of 20 episodes.

Cast


Main Cast


* Li Nanxing as Dong Wei Hong
* Constance Song as Sessy
* Rayson Tan as Chen Han Yuan

===Supporting Cast

as Sandy
as Huang Zhen Fa
*Odie Ng as Qian Yi
*Brandon Wong as Lai Guo Qiang
*Lai Kai Thai as Ah Long Jiu
*Ong Ai Leng as Sessy

Synopsis


Dong Weihong returns to Singapore from the United States with his 9-year-old son after many years. He catches up with his old-time army buddies, Chen Hanyuan , Lai Guoqiang and Huang Zhenfa to reminisce the past. Although they shared a secret past, they have now taken different paths in their life. Weihong, who is jobless, helps out in Zhenfa's car dealing business, while Hanyuan is a successful lawyer. On the contrary, Guoqiang earns a living by becoming a professional "scapegoat" for criminals. Before too long, the past catches up and the old feelings of betrayal start to brew among them.?

The four friends committed arson and were sentenced to jail and caning many years ago. But Hanyuan was given a heavier sentence: He was given an extra stroke of caning. That was because he was the one who instigated his friends to commit arson, effectively making him the true leader of the crime. However, nobody else would have known of that fact, unless one of his friends betrayed him to the police. Deeply traumatized, he vowed to find out which of his friends betrayed him. To find out the real culprit, Hanyuan stops at nothing, causing harm to those around him...

A love triangle began between Hanyuan, Sessy, Weihong and Qing Yi. Qing Yi, being a childhood friend of Weihong, was in love with him for a long time, but yet Weihong doesn't reciprocate. Weihong's return threatened the relationship between the married couple Hanyuan and Sessy, because Sessy still has feelings for Weihong. His mind slowly being deranged, Hanyuan is becoming suspicious of Sessy and Weihong, and he even grew to believe that it was Weihong who betrayed him many years ago.

Possible award winner


* Many audience, executive producers and entertainment industry players have said that one of the lead actors of the show, Rayson Tan, is a possible ''Best Actor'' winner in the upcoming Star Awards 2007. This was due to his real and excellent portryal of a scheming lawyer who later turned crazy.

Viewership Ratings

The Greatest Love of All (TV series)

The Greatest Love of All is a Singaporean drama which was telecast on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp TV Channel 8. It made its debut on 29 May 2007, and ended on 25 June 2007. This drama serial consists of 20 episodes, and was screened on every weekday night, 9pm.

This drama serial mainly showcases cases of children who are autistic and those suffering from dyslexia. Through these cases, the drama hopes to reitterate to the audience to give children suffering from these type of illnesses a little more respect and care. A heartwarming series to tug the heart strings.

Cast


Main Cast


*Joanne Peh as Luo Wen Xin
*Zhang Yao Dong as Zhao Jia Xuan
*Chen Hanwei as Zhao Jia Ming
*Apple Hong as Yang Qing Ru

Supporting Cast


* Huang Hui as Tang Cai Ning
* Chen Shucheng as Zhao Zhi Peng
* Constance Song as Zhang Ying
* Huang Yi Liang as Li Ying Xiong
* Aileen Tan as Mo Li Hua
* Zhang Wen Xiang as Hong Jian Ping
* Chen Hui Hui as Chen Xin Lin
* Lin Yu Yun as Liu Feng Yi

Synopsis


When Wenxin was a child, she had severe dyslexia and was kept out of all mainstream educational institutions. Fortunately, her parents' unfailing love and support gave her the strength to complete her studies and graduate from university. She then becomes a social worker to help more disabled children lead healthy lives.

Kaixin is a little girl with a slightly lower I.Q. and is enrolled into a school for students with special needs. Her parents, Yingxiong and Lihua are not highly educated and do not know how to cope with a child like her. Furthermore, they are under a lot of pressure because of their financial difficulties, therefore, Wenxin is often quarreling with Kaixin's parents whenever Kaixin fails to attend her classes in school. New counselor Jiaxuan thus regards Wenxin as a hot-tempered social worker.

Although Jiaxuan does not agree with Wenxin's way of doing things, he respects her for her undying devotion to her work. After some time of interaction, Wenxin and Jiaxuan begin to develop feelings for each other. However, Wenxin notices that rich girl Caining is always around Jiaxuan. Caining even becomes a volunteer because of Jiaxuan. It turns out that Caining is secretly in love with Jiaxuan, although his father Zhipeng sees her as his elder son Jiaming 's girlfriend. Wenxin remembers her own medical record and cannot muster enough courage to tackle the prospect of love.

Caining runs a modeling agency and Qianru is one of her outstanding models. Many years ago, Qianru was studying overseas and had a boyfriend whom she was going to marry. Unfortunately, her fianc¨? was killed in an accident while she gives birth to an autistic daughter, Huanhuan . Qianru, who only wants the best for her daughter, often loses control and beats Huanhuan while trying to discipline her. Qianru's mother, Fengyi tries to talk her into accepting the fact that Huanhuan is autistic but Qianru is unwilling to face reality. After some time, under Wenxin's patient persuasion, Qianru finally agrees to send Huanhuan to a school for children with special needs.

Qianru gets to know Jiaming during a performance and both have a good impression of each other. Fengyi suggests pretending that Huanhuan is her daughter instead of her granddaughter so that Qianru can pursue her own happiness without any burden. Qianru is caught between kinship and love and feels tormented.

Meanwhile, Jiaxuan's father Zhipeng, who lost his wife a long time ago, gets to know a starlet Zhang Ying overseas and they had a child together. The child Jiaxi is born deaf and dumb, and has a cleft lip. Zhipeng, a manufacturer of branded attire, is afraid of ruining his reputation, and so forbids Zhang Ying from letting others know about Jiaxi. Zhang Ying overly-protects her son, and he ends up being very dependent on her and unable to communicate with people.

Under Jiaxuan and Wenxin's persuasion, Zhang Ying finally changes her attitude and sends Jiaxi to the school for children with special needs. Qianru intends to reveal Huanhuan's true identity to Jiaming. At the same time, Zhipeng finds out that Jiaxi has been attending classes at the special school. He is outraged and creates a big fuss. Therefore, Qianru is still unable to tell Jiaming the truth.

Huanhuan feels that her mother has become more distant to her. One day, she disappears after school. Qianru experiences the fear of losing her daughter for the first time and panics. Qianru looks everywhere for Huanhuan, and is touched when she finally hears Huanhuan calling her "Mother". She finally decides that she will give up everything for the sake of her child.

Caining discovers that Jiaxuan likes Wenxin. She also finds out from Qianru about Wenxin's past. In order to steal Jiaxuan from her, Caining spills the secret of Wenxin's past, bringing about a huge commotion.

Just as Wenxin is troubled by affairs of the heart, Yingxiong is arrested for drug abuse. The family is thrown into chaos and financial hardship. Lihua wants Kaixin to perform at the Ghost Festival events to earn them some money. Wenxin voices her objections but to no avail.

Yongle is a disabled boy who is in the PSLE class of the school for children with special needs. When his father Jianping , a senior executive, first found out that his son was disabled, he turned cold towards the child. In the following years, the hardworking Yongle was constantly supported and cared for by his mother Xinglin . A few years later, Xinglin gets pregnant unexpectedly and Jianping insists that she goes for an abortion. Xinglin refuses. Under immense pressure, Xinglin develops pre-natal depression and the task of caring for Yongle suddenly falls on Jianping. Yongle begins to question his existence, wondering if his parent's problems will cease if he does not exist anymore.

Wenxin encounters one blow after another. She witnesses the pain the children are going through and is thrown into despair. Fortunately, Jiaxuan and a bunch of children she has helped in the past quietly appear at her side to help her through this difficult time of her life...

Viewership Ratings




Awards and nominations


This drama serial had received 4 nominations in the Star Awards 2007, MediaCorp's annual awards ceremony. The nominations are as follows:

* Zhang Yao Dong was nominated Best Actor, but lost to Zheng Ge Ping
* Huang Hui was nominated Best Supporting Actress, but lost to May Phua
* The theme song of this drama was nominated for Best Theme Song, but lost to Honour and Passion's theme
* 3 children who acted in this drama were being nominated for the Young Talent Award, of which Kyle Chan won for this drama.

The Golden Pillow

The Golden Pillow is a 40-episode epic drama produced by the Television Corporation of Singapore in 1995.

The Golden Path (TV series)

The Golden Path is a 30-episode blockbuster drama serial. Set in 1982 and spanning 25 years, it tells the story of a family embroiled in conflicts of interest, webs of deceit, love, hatred and vengeance. The drama was produced by MediaCorp in celebration of the company's 25 years of local Chinese drama production and incorporates scenes from past dramas such as , The Flying Fish, Pretty Faces, , Finishing Lines, The Last Applause, , Beautiful Connection and .

This serial was telecast on MediaCorp TV Channel 8, from 11 December 2007, weekdays at 9pm. The series finale aired on 21 January 2008.

Meaning of title


As the series revolves around the pursuit of wealth , the series was named to reflect that. Coincidentally, and perhaps intentionally, the first two characters of the Chinese title, "黄" and "金", are the surnames of the two main families in the series. In that sense, the title would mean "The path travelled by the Huangs and the Jins".

Cast




Ng Family


First Generation

*Xiao-gu - The pivotal character of the entire series. She is the matriarch of the Ng family. Xiao Gu's first husband, Ah Shun , died early, forcing her to raise her three children alone. She insisted on marrying Ah Jin against all odds, and adopts his two children when he commits suicide after a confrontation with the police.

*Ah Shun - The first husband of Xiao-gu. He died before the start of the series in 1982, and appeared only in flashbacks. His connections with the criminal underworld almost cost Xiao-gu's life very early on in the series.

Second Generation

*Kaida , portrayed by Chew Chor Meng , young version portrayed by Chen Yongming )- The eldest son of Xiao-gu. Always the most academically inclined member of the family, he became a medical student, and served as a doctor at a local hospital. When Kaida discovered the crime his brother, Kaijie, had committed, he covered up for his brother. The pressure of such a cover-up drove Kaida to insanity, costing Kaida his medical licence, as well as his love interest, Lu Simin.

*Kaijie , portrayed by Tay Ping Hui , young version portrayed by Ma Weihan )- The youngest son of Xiao-gu. He has always been the person who resorted to unscrupulous methods to attain his goals. He, along with neighbour Fatty Ying, tipped off police as to the real identity of Ah Jin, thus causing Ah Jin's death. Although Kaijie had lagged academically in his youth, he attended university, and entered the police force after graduating in Law. He has a love interest in his own adopted sister, Jinfeng, but when he made her pregnant, Kaijie pushed Jinfeng into the sea during a cruise, which eventually killed her. He eventually married Lin Fei despite the latter's affections for Jin Long, and went into hiding after his crime was investigated by his superiors, and was killed by a robber or an assassin at a hotel.

*Kaiqi , portrayed by Joanne Peh )- The only daughter of Xiao-gu, Kaiqi is a good-natured, justice-minded individual who aspires to be a journalist. She was only one who could communicate with Jinlong. When she discovered Jinlong's exploits in the underworld, she tried to persuade Jinlong to leave the underworld and return to the family, without avail. She marries David , who is a dentist, and becomes a mother soon after.

Jin Family


First Generation

*Ah Jin - On the surface, Ah Jin appeared to be a kind person, albeit with a rough edge. However, it is soon discovered that Ah Jin was a criminal who participated in one of the biggest jewelry store heist in Singaporean history. Xiao-gu, unbeknownst of his horrifying background, eventually decided to marry him, only to be pursued by the police on their day of their marriage after a tip-off from Xiao-gu's second son, Kaijie. His children Jinlong and Jinfeng were entrusted in her care after he committed suicide.

Second Generation

*Jinlong portrayed by Li Nanxing ), young version portrayed by Fraser Tiong )- The son of Ah Jin, he was entrusted in Xiao-gu's care after Ah Jin committed suicide. Throughout the series, Jinlong was resentful towards the Xiao-gu's family because of his perception that Xiao-gu was responsible for his father's death and that she used his jewelry heist loots as a springboard for her future business successes. He had a love interest towards Huang Kaiqi, but eventually left the family after the death of his sister, Jinfeng. He joined the triads in order to repay his grandfather's debts, and marries Bak Kut Girl.

*Jinfeng , portrayed by Joey Feng )- The only daughter of Ah Jin. She had been, in contrast to her brother, on endearing terms with Xiao-gu's family. She was not academically inclined, and always dreamt of being a celebrity. She was the love interest of Kaijie, who made her pregnant. Refusing to acknowledge the relationship, and unwilling to give up his chance at millions of dollars with Lin Fei, Kaijie pushed Jinfeng into the ocean during a cruise, which put Jinfeng into a coma that eventually killed her along with her unborn child.

Other Characters


1982 Era


*Ah Ying - The wife of Ah Lin. She operated a wanton store alongside Xiao-gu's cookery stall. She was a gossip-monger, always gossiping about others. Ah Ying held Xiao-gu responsible for Ah Lin's insanity, and became hostile towards her after her husband's arrest. She appeared several times throughout the show, often weaving a cleaver at Xiao-gu and threatening her.

*Ah Lin - The husband of Ah Ying. He is a cowardly man, and frequently abused by Ah Ying. This drove him into becoming the "Oily Man" : a man covered in motor oil who rapes women across town. When Jinlong found out, he attempted to blackmail Ah Lin, but Ah Lin could not come up with the money, and went insane. After chasing Jinlong, Kaiqi, and Kaijie across Chinatown with a butcher's knife, Ah Lin was arrested and committed to a mental institution, though years later he recovered, and began a life without his dominating and demanding wife, operating a Karung guni business.

*Chua Ah Hai - A police officer in Chinatown, a well-meaning but seemingly muddle-headed man who doesn't gave much thought to the idea of Ah Jin being the robber.

*Chen Ge - A close friend of both Xiao-gu and her deceased first husband, Ah Shun. He helped them out when Ah Shun was gravely ill. He was a member of the triads, and was betrayed and murdered by his wife's lover, Ah She in the first episode. Before he breathed his last, he entrusted a key to his hidden ill-gotten money to Xiao-gu via Jinlong. The money was destroyed in a house fire during a struggle between Xiao-gu and Ah She.

*Ah She - The lover of Chen Ge's wife. He ordered the killing of Chen Ge, and when he and Chen Ge's wife found out about the key to the safe that Chen Ge gave to Xiao-gu, they kidnapped Xiao-gu and Kaijie. They safe was found at an abandoned house, full of money, but a scuffle between Xiao-gu and Ah She broke out, and a fire was subsequently started . Ah She died in the blaze.

*Chen Sao - She had an affair with one of the members of her husband's triad. She collaborated with her lover, Ah She, to murder Chen Ge and set their hands on his ill-gotten riches. When they discovered that the key to the safe that held the money was in Xiao-gu's hands, they kidnapped both Xiao Gu and Kaijie. The money was discovered, but it was lost it in a fire set by Ah She in an attempt to kill Xiao Gu and Kaijie. Xiao-gu, after escaping the house with Kaijie, returned into the burning house to save her life.

1995 era


*Lin Fei - Born into a rich family, Lin Fei suffered from a grave illness with a bone marrow transplant only possible from Kaijie to save her life. She fell for Jinlong first, but married Kaijie after some misunderstandings arose between Lin Fei and Jinlong. Despite that, she still had feelings for Jinlong, and was in a dilemma after she found out about the dark secret Kaijie has been hiding for years.

*Bak Kut Girl - A runaway from Kelantan, Malaysia, where she was forced to marry a rich but retarded man to clear her father's debts. She worked at Jinlong's grandfather's bak kut teh stall. She is rough and brute, but caring for her friends inside. She developed a love interest in Jinlong, and eventually married him. She was killed by Kaijie.

*Lin Desheng - A famous lawyer in Singapore, his investments have earned him millions of dollars. Aware of his daughter Lin Fei's grave illness, he dotes on her and gives her free will to do anything she wants. When she was saved by a successful bone marrow transplant operation, however, his relationship with her begins to worsen as he starts to plan for her life. Unbeknownst to him, Lin Fei is actually the beneficiary of a trust fund worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The trust fund was left by Lin Fei's mother, who hated Lin Desheng.

*Lu Simin - Love interest of Kaida. She gave him up after his insanity got the better of him, and got maried o another colleague .

*Grandpa - The grandfather of Jinlong, who ran a Bak Kut Teh stall and employed Bak Kut Girl. His love of gambling got him in much financial troubles with loan sharks.He was almost killed by the triads,but saved by Jinlong.

2003 Era


*Old Monkey - Rival gang member who tried to kill Jinlong, but ended up dead instead during the attempt. Although it was an accident, Jinlong was nonetheless implicated for the murder, and was acquitted by the help of the top lawyer in Singapore, Su Ma.

*Su Ma - The top lawyer in Singapore, whom amongst the Huang family, only Lin Fei was able to afford to hire to help Jin Long in his case with the dead Old Monkey.

Synopsis


1982


Introduction


The series began in Chinatown in 1982, where Xiao-gu, a young widow with 3 children , opened and operated the "Happy Restaurant" roadside stall. Xiao-gu is an optimistic woman, even after the death of her husband and her tight financial situation.

One night, Xiao-gu received a visit from a young man , who was sent by a dying man to give Xiao-gu a key. The dying man, as it turned out, was Ah Chen, a triad member who helped Xiao-gu when Xiao-gu's husband, Ah Shun, was dying from a grave illness. It later transpired that Ah Cheng was killed by fellow triad member named "Ah She" , with Kaijie and the young man who gave Xiao-gu the key as witnesses. When "Snake" and Chen-sao discovered Xiao-gu's knowledge about the events, in addition to the key Xiao-gu received, they attempted to kill her and Kaijie, but the attempt was thwarted by a mysterious man. "Snake" gave up on his murder attempts, but kidnapped Kaijie to force Xiao-gu to give up the key she received. The key, as it turned out, led to a cashbox that was stashed in an abandoned house. The safe contained tens of thousands of dollars in cash. When "Snake" and Cheng-sao opened the safe and emptied its contents, "Snake" doused the house with petrol, in order to kill Xiao-gu and Kaijie, and silence the only witness to Snake's murderous deeds.

As fire raced through the house, Xiao-gu and Kaijie were able to escape, but Cheng-sao and Snake were still inside. Xiao-gu reentered the house to save Chen-sao, but Snake was burnt to death when burning pillars fell on him.

New Neighbours, New Terrors


As Xiao-gu and Kaijie recover from that traumatic episode, a new neighbour moved into the flat that Xiao-gu rented. Little did Xiao-gu know that her new neighbors were the young man who delivered her the key to Ah Cheng's safe - Jinlong, and his father, Ah Jin - the man who saved Xiao-gu from certain death by "Snake". As the new family settled in, Ah Jin used the money he earned to buy his children clothes, blankets, and a television set . Ah Jin shared his new television set with his neighbours, whose children were mesmerised by it.

Meanwhile, word of mouth began to spread on information about a rapist terrorizing Chinatown. The rapist, who covers himself in motor oil, renders his victims defenceless and unable to resist, thus earning him the title "Oily Man". Xiao-gu made light of the situation at first, thinking it was merely an urban legend, until she was attacked by the Oily Man. Luckily, Ah Jin was in the flat when it happened, and stopped the Oily Man from raping Xiao-gu. Jinlong, on his father's orders, went after the Oily Man. Jinlong subsequently discovered Oily Man's true identity. Oily Man was, in fact, Ah Lin, the timid co-owner of a wanton store next to Xiao-gu's restaurant. Jinlong went on to extort money from Ah Lin, with a threat of revealing the truth behind Oily Man to everyone. When Ah Lin failed to produce the money, Jinlong exerted more and more pressure, until Ah Lin lost his temper, and chased Jinlong, Jinfeng , and Kaijie across Chinatown with a chopper, threatening to kill them all. Afterwards, Ah Lin was arrested by Lao Cai, a police officer who lives and patrols in the area, and sent to a mental facility.

Revelations


As time goes by, Ah Jin and his family were settling well into their new surroundings, but Ah Jin's past began to unravel. Contrary to Ah Jin's claim that he is a sailor, Ah Jin was, in fact, a criminal who, along with two accomplices, robbed a jewelry store. One of the accomplice, despite Ah Jin's efforts to save him, was shot dead in the midst of the escape, and a third accomplice successfully fled the scene with Jin. Ah Jin, along with his surviving accomplice, buried their loot in an undisclosed location. Finally, Ah Jin's secret came out in subtle ways, which led to Kaijie knowing about this dark secret. In the meantime, Xiao-gu and Ah Jin began to grow closer together everyday, and decided to marry each other.

This came, of course, to the extreme displeasure of Kaijie, who did not fancy having a criminal stepfather. To stop the marriage, Kaijie collaborated with Ah Ying, and called the police on Ah Jin. As Ah Jin and Xiao-gu completed their marriage ceremony and exchanged their vows, police surrounded Xiao-gu's flat, and forced Ah Jin to escape. Before Ah Jin went on the run, he held Ah Cai as hostage, and entrusted Jinlong and Jinfeng to her care. When Ah Jin realised there was no chance for him to escape, he committed suicide.

1995


After Ah Jin's suicide, the area where Xiao-gu lived in was being redeveloped, and Xiao-gu, along with her family, moved to another area to start anew. Years went by, and by 1995, Xiao-gu's Happy Restaurant became a reputable restaurant in Queenstown. Her five children have matured into adults. All of Xiao-gu's three children: Kaida, Kaiqi, and Kaijie, went to University. Kaida majored in medicine, Kaiqi majored in Mass Communication, and Kaijie majored in Law. Meanwhile, Ah Jin's children are a different story. Jinlong did not receive much education, and worked in Happy Restaurant as a delivery boy. Jinfeng worked as a receptionist at the Happy Restaurant, but her dreams of being a television artiste virtually locked her in front of a television set, rendering her unproductive.

Tensions Within


All seems to be going well for Xiao-gu, but under the surface, arguments arise. Jinlong resents the entire Huang family because he believes Xiao-gu married Ah Jin for his loot, and that Xiao-gu's family is responsible for his father's death. This became a source of argument between Jinlong and Kaijie, with whom he was never on cordial terms with. Meanwhile, Kaijie developed an interest for Jinfeng, but due to the source of tension between the two families, he cannot make his feelings public.

Love and Conflict


One day, a woman came into the Happy Restaurant, and ordered everything there is on the menu. The woman turned out to be Lin Fei, whose father, Lin Desheng, is a famous and prestigious lawyer in Singapore. Lin Fei did not have money to pay the bill, but Xiao-gu laughed off the entire matter, and told Lin Fei to come back when she has the cash. She paid off the bill before she left Happy Restaurant, and began a deep friendship with Xiao-gu, and fell in love with Jinlong at first sight. Jinlong did not reciprocate the love at first, but gradually began to warm up to Lin Fei.

During a visit by Jinlong of his grandfather, Jinlong discovered that his grandfather hired a young woman from Kelantan to run his bak kut teh business at a local marketplace. Bak Kut Girl, as she is known, is brute and rude, but this is merely a facade for a kind and caring interior. These relationships began to ferment, until a fateful yacht trip. During that trip, Kaijie attempted to soothe a distraught Jinfeng, who was dealing with a relatively recent pregnancy furore caused by Kaijie. Under much pressure to keep the unfortunate event secret due to her fledgling rise to become a television artiste, Jinfeng was taken onto a yacht owned by Lin Fei to unwind and relax. During the yacht trip, Jinfeng discovered Kaijie's motive for dating Lin Fei: to gain access to her billion-dollar trust fund, which will be freed to her when she is married. Jinfeng vowed to tell Lin Fei the truth, and this forced Kaijie to throw her overboard. No one onboard the ship noticed until it was too late, and Jinfeng was in a Persistent Vegetative State when she was rescued by David and Kaiqi. This happened when Jinlong was in prison for assault, and Xiao-gu opted to not tell him until it was absolutely necessary.

Revelation, Coverup


When Jinlong was released from prison, Xiao-gu treated him to a big meal, before attempting to tell him the truth about Jinfeng. However, Jinfeng was dying at the hospital, and Jinlong was called to the hospital while he was out shopping with Bak Kut Mei. Jinfeng eventually died, along with her unborn child. Prior to the tragedy, Kaida discovered that Kaijie is responsible for Jinfeng’s death. It turned out that Jinfeng was using a camcorder when she was thrown overboard, and Kaijie, after discovering the camera had a recording of the incident on its tape, hid it in a clothing drawer.

Kaida covered up for his brother at first , but quickly, the stress and guilt that came with the coverup began to overwhelm Kaida. When Jinlong came across facts that made Jinfeng's death suspicious, Jinlong proceeded to pressure Kaida into telling the truth, which contributed to Kaida's mental meltdown. Kaida's mental instability led to his suspension as a doctor, and also led to the loss of his love interest, Simin, whose love was split between Kaida and another fellow doctor in the first place.

As Jinlong was alienated from the Huang family because of their perception that he was responsible for Kaida's insanity, he began to settle into an independent life. After he learned that his grandfather's latest gambling streak left him with a $100,000+ debt, Jinlong decided to enter the Triads to work off his grandfather's debt.

2003


Years passed, and by 2003, all of Xiao-gu's children have graduated from university. Kaiqi became a television journalist, and Kaijie became a police officer. Meanwhile, Kaida, who is still mentally unstable, worked at the Happy Restaurant for Xiao-gu, watching television for the entire time he was there- just like what Jinfeng did when she worked for Xiao-gu.

Discovery


One evening, Kaiqi was late for the usual family dinner that Xiao-gu had with her children. It turned out that Kaiqi, while doing an investigation into the triads, discovered that Jinlong was working for the Triads as an illegal bookie/prostitution operator, and that the triad member that Kaiqi was shadowing was, in fact, Jinlong's fellow member. Jinlong met with Kaiqi later to persuade her to drop the report. Kaiqi refused, but she stated that she will blur out the triad member's face. This marked the first time that Jinlong had any contact with Xiao-gu's family since his departure from the family, and into the Triads. Although Jinlong was still cold to Xiao-gu and Kaijie, Jinlong's receptive attitude toward Kaiqi remained the same, proven from the fact that as Kaiqi planned her wedding with David, Jinlong bought her a necklace.

Meanwhile, Lin Fei, ever wanting to meet Jinlong once again, even though she is in a relationship with Kaijie, decided to go search for Jinlong, even to the point of becoming a prostitute to seek out Jinlong, much to the chagrin and displeasure of Kaijie. Jinlong, on the surface, did not care for Lin Fei, but deep inside, he knew that Lin Fei cannot be dragged into his criminal lifestyle, and that he had to repel Lin Fei.

Triad Murder


In the Triad Underworld, however, many things are coming to a head. Jinlong's rival in the underworld, Old Monkey, was fighting with Jinlong for supremacy, and this culminated in a rooftop confrontation that ended in the accidental death of Old Monkey. Old Monkey's followers decided to testify against Jinlong in court to put him behind prison for a long time. However, at the last minute, a prestigious lawyer named Su Ma came to Jinlong's defence. Because of Su Ma's prestige within the legal community, it was obvious that Lin Fei was the one who retained Su Ma for Jinlong. Jinlong was subsequently found not guilty.

Climax


Meanwhile, Kaida began to recover from his mental instability, and this meant that Kaida is about to tell the truth about Jinfeng's murder years ago. Kaijie, determined to not let the truth get out, attempted to compromise Kaida's mental state, so that the truth never comes out. However, when Kaida was involved in a car accident, he finally told Jinlong the truth. Devastated by the news, and determined to exact revenge, Jinlong took up an earlier offer by a Triad elder to become the head of the Triads, thus paving the way for a showdown between Jinlong and Kaijie. This showdown cost Jinlong sight in his right eye, and also the life of Bak Kut Girl , who had always vowed to be alongside Jinlong at all times, even following him into the Triads. 6 months later, Jinlong found out that Kaijie had killed Bak Kut Girl in cold blood, and left her body to decompose in the woods. Lin Fei told Kaijie that she knew the truth behind Jinfeng's murder, and that Kaijie married her only for money. She comtemplated suicide, only to learn that she was pregnant with Kaijie's child.

Jinlong confronted Kaijie in an old warehouse, where Kaida and Kaiqi were also present. Under the persuasion of Kaida and Kaiqi, Jinlong decided not to kill Kaijie. Jinlong later collected Bak Kut Girl's ashes, scattered them over the ocean, and then committed suicide . As for Kaijie, his criminal deeds were discovered by the police, thus forcing him to flee from the country.

3 years later, Xiao-gu, mindful of the predicaments his children has ended up in, decided to sell all her businesses, donate the proceeds to charity, and restart Happy Restaurant at another place. Kaiqi now has a daughter, and Kaida has resumed work as a doctor, having completely recovered from his mental illness.

While all family members began their new phase of life, Kaijie, still fleeing from the law, called his mother for the last time, moments before he was killed by an unknown assassin at a hotel. Just before the end credits, Lin Fei was seen with a young boy, most probably the child she had with Kaijie.

CD/DVD Release


The Golden Path was released on CD/DVD in 2008 and is sold at some TS Stores Outlets -.

Viewership Rating


This drama serial had recorded the highest viewership rating for Year 2007.

The Champion (TV series)

The Champion is an idol drama produced by Mediacorp in Singapore. It was telecast from Oct 20 2004 to Nov 16 2004. The show stars idol , Yan Xingshu, Qi Yuwu, Julian Hee, Jeanette Aw, Felicia Chin, Fiona Xie and Joyce Zhao, all young actors and actresses. This show also marked Jesseca Liu's acting debut.

It received one of the highest viewership rate during the telecast of the show, especially since there were a few semi-nude scenes such as Qi Yuwu stripping on-screen and Fiona Xie and other members of the Flying Fish running down Orchard Road in their bikinis.

This was also the first drama which allowed viewers to vote via a SMS competition on Nov 16 2004 for the viewers' favourite 2-minute short ending which was aired on Nov 17 2004 at 8.58 pm just before the debut of the next drama My Mighty In-Laws.

Plot


The series mainly dealt with the trials and travails of a Singaporean swimming team, the Flying Fish , and its constituent members. The team is locked in a vicious competition with the Seagulls swimming team , whose superior swimming abilities bred an intense arrogance that shows everywhere within the swimming complex they practice in.

After the Flying Fish lost a bet with the Seagulls, which resulted in the Flying Fish team running down Orchard Road wearing only bikinis, the team's manager hired a new swimming coach to rescue the team from the brink of dissolution. The coach, Alan Jackson , was very strict about the rigorous training, and this drew massive opposition at first, and earned him the title of "Polar Bear" . However, the team's performance eventually improved, thanks to the training.

Subplots


The main subplot revolved around Guo Jingwen. Her constant tardiness earned her the dubious title of "Tardy Queen" . The new coach, at first, kicked her off the team because of this, but what the coach did not know was Jingwen came from a dysfunctional and poor family, where the father works low-pay jobs to feed his two daughters and son. Jingwen's younger sister was paralyzed during a childhood illness, and is wheelchair bound. Jingwen's brother is a rebellious teenager, whose antics with his hooligan friends have drawn the ire of his father. Meanwhile, Jingwen works as a swimming coach to bring extra income to the cash-strapped family. Once the coach learned about this, he relaxed his strict rules on timeliness for Jingwen. The close relationship Zhenkang had with Jingwen almost cost Zhenkang his wife. Later on, Lu Kaiwei falls for Jingwen, after being dumped by his girlfriend He Yixuan.

Another subplot, developed later on in the series, was between Lu Kaixin and He Yilin. They are both in love with Xie Jiajun, and this resulted in Yilin, who believed she was superior in all aspects to Kaixin, to lace Kaixin's water with steroids during a swimming competition. This cost Kaixin her gold medal, and put the team in jeopardy. Another contributing factor was the fact that Kaixin's older brother Kaiwei had broken up with Yilin's older sister Yixuan. Yilin later defected to the Seagulls to try to defeat Kaixin, but Kaixin defeated Yilin in a swimming duel, and Yilin was subsequently kicked off the Seagulls for the Steroid scandal, in addition to her poor attitude towards the coach of the team, and an incident where Yilin allegedly posted defamatory posters inside the Swimming Complex against the Flying Fish. Completely defeated , Yilin gave up on her quest for superiority, and allowed Kaixin to have Jiajun. The Flying Fish members eventually forgive Yilin.

Cast


* Qi Yuwu as Lu Kawei
* Jeanette Aw as Guo Jingwen
* Fiona Xie as Lu Kaixin
* Felicia Chin as Wang Tong
* Zhao Hong Qiao as He Yilin
* as Xie Jiajun
* Yan Xingshu as Wu Zhenkang
* Jamie Yeo as Zhenkang's wife
* Huai En as Guo Jinglong
* Jesseca Liu as He Yixuan
* Joey Ng as Tao Yan
* Rachel Lee, Caroline Cheong and Jacquline Chow as the other members of the Seagulls
* Moses Lim as Lu Kaixin's Dad

The Beginning (TV series)

The Beginning is a 30-episode Mandarin Chinese episodic drama produced jointly by Singaporean broadcaster MediaCorp TV and Malaysian broadcaster . It was the first joint production between the two companies, and is a remake of the 1997 Television Corporation of Singapore drama .

Main Cast


Shi Family


*Shi Dongqing - Father of Jianing, Jiamin, and TIngli . He abandoned Jianing, Jiamin, and their mother in order to expand his business empire, marrying a rich woman while tolerating the condescending and quasi-abusive behaviours of the woman. He and his wife went bankrupt after the dodgy financial dealings of their company were exposed, and were eventually killed by Jay Fang.

First Shi Family


*Shi Jianing - A fish stall operator at a bazaar, she is called "Grouper Maid" by her friends. Her father, in the pursuit of wealth, abandoned her when she was young, which generated much hate between the two persons.
*Shi Jiamin - The younger sister of Jianing. Due to the lack of supervision, she has turned bad, and was eventually murdered by Jay Fang.

Second Shi Family


*Ma Lilian - Mother of Tingli. She came from a rich family, and built the Ma Corporation from the ground up. She is a domineering figure, tolerating no dissent to her orders, and treats her husband, Shi Dongqing, quite badly. Her relations with Shi Dongqing's estranged family were bad, and her demeanors towards Shi Jianing eventually led Jianing to exact revenge, bankrupting Ma and her husband. Both were later killed by Jay Fang.
*Shi Tingli - A medical student at the university, her life is controlled by her domineering mother. She befriended Jianing, who, unbeknownst to her, is her elder sister. She was raped by Jay Fang, with whom she had a relationship before.

Fang Family


*Fang Huakang - An elderly businessman, who is the founder of Huakang Berhad . His ascent to wealth has been tainted by selling fake medicines and deaths of one of his relatives, who was Fang Yucheng's father.
*Fang Yucheng - An educated professional who is on good terms with Dongliang and Jianing. His father was
*Fang Zhiyang - The elder son of the Fang Family. His pursuit for wealth led him and his other brother, Fang Zhirong, to hatch a kidnapping plot on their father.
*Jay Fang Zhijie - Returned to Malaysia after recently graduating abroad. Unbeknownst to all, he is mentally ill, and exacts revenge on women through rape and murder. He murdered Shi Jiamin, but was not punished. He also raped Shi Tingli, and murdered her parents. He was eventually accidentally killed by Fang Yucheng.

Other Characters


*Tie Dongliang - A young man whose hot-headed demeanors earned him the title "Iron Head" . He, along with Jianing and Yucheng, are the central three characters in the entire series.

Synopsis


The story centers on the struggles of two of the three main characters of the series: Fang Yucheng and Shi Jianing. Shi Jianing was born in a moderately rich family, but her father, Shi Dongqing, abandoned the family to seek greater wealth by marrying a rich woman, even when his first wife was gravely ill. Jianing, faced with the loss of her mother, hated her father ever since, and vowed to exact revenge, especially after her father, upon orders from his domineering second wife, accidentally ran her over with a car, and later went to jail on assault . The death of her sister, Jiamin, also spurred her to exact revenge.

Jianing eventually succeeded in destroying her father's business empire after her discovery that her father's company, the Ma Corporation, succeeded in getting listed on the Stock Exchange after committing accounting fraud. Shi Dongqing's family went broke overnight, while his second wife suffered a stroke after went to Jianing's house to attack her. Successful as it was, Jianing's revenge came at a cost: her friend, Tie Dongliang's father, was accidentally murdered by an accountant of the now defunct Ma Corporation, who provided Jianing with the evidence of the fraud and was now ruined. This severely damaged her relations with Tie Dongliang, with whom she had a on-and-off love relationship. Jianing only let go of her anger for her father after he and his second wife were killed by Jay Fang.

The second arc focused on Fang Yucheng, who lost his father in an accident early in his life. He vowed to attain great wealth, going to no ends to achieve them, even working for the man who was responsible for his father's death: Fang Huakang.

In the end, the drive for revenge and wealth had ruined many person's lives, and all the characters realized that they can return to a happier time when they return back to where they started.

Differences between Rising Expectations and The Beginning


Although this drama was based on the 1997 Television Corporation of Singapore drama series , many plot differences exist between the two series.

*Jiahui's character in the original was much colder and uncompromising in her quest for revenge, compared to the remake.
*Shi Jianing's father in this remake was more sympathetic towards his daughter, although he is still as submissive to his wife.
*In this remake, Tie-Tou was a hothead as compared to the original .
*In the original, Shi Tou's character had his leg crippled by hitmen sent by Xiaofei, while in the remake, Yucheng and Tie-Tou fought Jay their common enemy. Jay was the one who injured Tie-Tou and he wasn't sent by Yucheng.
* In the original, Xiaofei was the illegimate son of the boss he works for, while in the remake, Yucheng was the son of his boss' older brother.
*Jay was the character in both versions who raped Tingli and caused misery among the four leads. However in the original, Jack isn't infatuated with Tingting .
*The settings of the original is at the Singapore river, while in the remake, the settings is now based on Malaysia.
*Shi Jianing's nickname was "Grouper Maid" in the remake, while the original had her nicknamed as "Fish Maid".

Airing Dates




Viewership Ratings


This drama series has recorded one of the lowest viewership ratings to date in Singapore, while recording the highest ratings in Malaysia.