Ciro Santilli OurBigBook.com $£ Sponsor €¥ 中国独裁统治 China Dictatorship 新疆改造中心、六四事件、法轮功、郝海东、709大抓捕、2015巴拿马文件 邓家贵、低端人口、西藏骚乱
This will likely be the best TV adaptation of Water Margin for all eternity, until AGI deepfakes a better one.
Official CCTV YouTube playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIj4BzSwQ-_sEAJsZnbcxV7sBc51XE8Z5. No English subs however.
The music is amazing. A full playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGOZmHa7O-aHQsIx_XVoGk8IwOCas6pgX. This is the opening: www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6p3ks3IyA8&list=PLGOZmHa7O-aHQsIx_XVoGk8IwOCas6pgX&index=19.
The only downside is the usage of slightly Supernatural Martial Arts.
It must be said that the series gets worse as it progresses. The best part of it is the backstory of individual characters, and how noble men are made fight their government. As things progress however, it becomes more of a mass battles thing, so less interesting. This is perhaps a problem of the novel itself, which an adaption cannot avoid. The good part basically ends with the end of Wu Song's story at episode 22.
One of the most amazing things about this series is learning about how people lived in the past. It feels very realistic. Some amazing details:
  • on the pharmacy, they used a leg powered grinder. Ciro Santilli's wife said she had actually seen one those in use in China
  • to indicate that something is for sale, the would attach some straws around it
  • it is totally fine to talk to an old person about giving them money to buy a nice coffin
  • some dudes drink baijiu from bowls. One wonders how much truth there can be in that.
Video 7. title sequence of The Water Margin. Source.
Features the amazing theme song "Hero song" (好漢歌) by Liu Huan (劉歡). Makes Ciro Santilli want to cry. Lyrics on mojim: mojim.com/cny105509x7x2.htm. The opening sentence is particularly remarkable:
大河向东流哇
天上的星星参北斗哇
说走咱就走你有握有全都有
路见不平一声吼哇
该出手时就出手哇
风风火火闯九州哇
translation:
The big river flows to the West
The stars in the sky gather with the Big Dipper
If you say we go, then we go. If you have me, you have everything
If on the road we see an injustice and someone shouting
When it is time to deal with it, we'll deal with it
We'll energetically rush through the Nine Provinces
The Big Dipper is reference is made in the novel itself as part of a dream one of the leaders of the rebellion has. The dream is a premonition of the number of men that will gather to plot to steal expensive birthday gifts corrupt officials are sending one another.
The song perfectly captures the camaraderie shown in the novel, the immediacy with which sworn brothers follow one another into the riskiest of tasks, and the fight against injustice, which is the central theme.
To get an idea of its popularity, Ciro Santilli's mother-in-law is able to complete sentences of the song by herself in her late 60's, and she isn't exactly a scholar! This was from before she stopped "having fun" (see also "No time for fun" from from the Orange Papers) and started watching nothing but Falun Gong media.
Video 8. Wang Jin beats Gao Qiu theme music from The Water Margin. Source. Chinese: 王进打高俅. One of the leitmotifs, played to great effect on the suona throughout the series in moments where the good guys have a victory, e.g.: youtu.be/lnshzmF6sY4?list=PLJxTQiKLmBibFit3q-SbRBjxiKtOJz5na&t=417. Amazing, so moving.
Video 9. Ruan Xiao's Seven Fish song 阮小七渔歌) Source. Used when they show Liangshen at one point, this song is particularly cool. www.bilibili.com/video/BV1Xg4y1b7qj/ shows the scene where a closely related song is sang. Lyrics at baike.baidu.com/item/阮小七渔歌/20358999 with all noises removed:
英雄哪不会读诗书哇
只在那梁山泊里住哇
虽然生得泼皮身哪
杀贼原来不杀人
quick translation by Ciro Santilli:
The heroes cannot read zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/诗书路
They only live at Mount Liang
Although he was born sloppy (lit. with a course leather body)
They only kill bandits, they don't kill people

Ancestors

  1. Water Margin
  2. Four Great Classic Novels
  3. Classic Chinese Novels
  4. Chinese literature
  5. Chinese art
  6. Chinese culture
  7. China
  8. Country in East Asia
  9. East Asia
  10. Asia
  11. List of continents
  12. Continent
  13. Earth
  14. Planet in the Solar System
  15. Solar System
  16. Orion Arm
  17. Arm of the Milky Way
  18. Milky Way
  19. Local group
  20. Virgo Supercluster
  21. Astronomy
  22. Natural science
  23. Science
  24. Ciro Santilli's Homepage