1. Dec 1-8 Television Page 117
Code of Honour
New Serial!
Mon, Ch 8, 7PM
In this 30-part drama set in 1960s Singapore, Zheng Geping plays a wushu master trying to save his school from two scheming disciples (Andie Chen and Zhang Wenxiang). Caught in the power struggle, too, is a fishmonger (Elvin Ng) who bears an uncanny resemblance to the master’s dead son (Yes, we smell something fishy, too). Shot in KL and Muar, this production also stars Rui En, Paige Chua and Chris Tong.
2. Spoilers Pages 128-129
Code of Honour
Martial arts drama about honour and reputation
Code of Honour æ£ä¹‰æ¦é¦† debuts 5 December 2011 7pm on Channel 8.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, Code of Honour æ£ä¹‰æ¦é¦†, EN.
1. Scene & Heard Page 17
The perks of stardom? While 550 Singaporeans queued overnight for the Versace for H&M collection, Fann & Zoe were among a handful of celebs who got their hands on the coveted goodies days before the launch. We hear Stefanie Sun, Rui En, Joanne Peh and Ann Kok also made the list.
2. Watch it! Nov 24 – Dec 1 Page 118
ComChest TrueHearts 2011
Ch8, 7pm
Foreign (Michelle Yim and Alien Huang) and homegrown celebs (Michelle Chong, Andie Chen and Rui En) gather at Marina Bay Sands Plaza to raise fund for 70 charities.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, TrueHearts 2011.
1. Scene & Heard Page 26
Story: Jonathan Fam
Give Face!
Oh, the things some male stars do to their faces.
They scruff it up…
Elvin Ng and Tay Ping Hui are taking the road unshaven for their new drama, Unriddle 2. The two stars play police officers in the sequel to last year’s popular crime procedural. Maybe it’s a hint that the show will be grittier, or maybe the stars were inspired by the ‘Movember Movement’, the growing-a-moustache-in-November charity event raises awareness and funds for prostate cancer. Whatever the reason, we think Elvin and TPH have never looked hairier..we mean hotter. The 20-episode serial, which also stars Rui En, Chen Liping and Rebecca Lim, is slated to air next March.
Unriddle 2 最ç«ææ¡£ II debuts 5 March 2012 9pm on Channel 8.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, Unriddle 2 最ç«ææ¡£ 2.
1. Scene & Heard Page 22
Story: Jasmine Teo
Love Thy Ratings
Lessons Ch 8 can learn from their most-watched drama serials of 2011 thus far.
For the record
Top 3 dramas of 2011:
1. Love Thy Neighbour (*941,000)
2. C.L.I.F (924,000)
3. A Tale of 2 Cities (904,000)
Online (via xinmsn’s Catch-Up TV):
1. On the Fringe II (*1.37mil)
2. The In-Laws (over 1 mil)
3. C.L.I.F (over 900,000)
(*Numbers refers to average viewership/clicks)
1. For better or For Worse Hog the Headlines
They came, they saw, they complained. Love Thy Neighbour and On the Fringe II aren’t just Ch 8 dramas that people had the most grouses about. They also ranked tops in viewership so far this year. Hit a raw nerve by extolling the sensitivities about living next door to foreigners? By all means. Co-stars who engage in a passive-aggressive spat over a ‘rape’ scene? Why not? Who’s getting the last laugh now?
2. The Rui En – Joanne Peh Factor
Rui En hogged the screens with On the Fringe II, A Tale of 2 Cities and The In-Laws, while Joanne Peh kicked butt in C.L.I.F and A Tale of 2 Cities.
Idle drama
We imagine what the ultimate Ch 8 ratings winner could look like.
Brothers and teen idol boyband duo trying to break into the regional market
+
Leticia Bongnino, long-suffering maid and occassional bodyguard / personal assistant to the boyband. She is later found dead, stabbed by her waiter boyfriend
X
Slave-driver, employer of Leticia and devious older sister and manager of boyband brother duo
+
Human rights activist, cop-in-charge of investigating Leticia’s case, and Rui En’s childhood arch-nemesis who’ll never let her get away with murder
=
Ratings gold!
Categorised in 8 DAYS, A Tale of 2 Cities ä¹åœ¨åŒåŸŽ, EN, On The Fringe 边缘父å, Ratings 节目收视率, The In-Laws 麻婆斗妇.
1. Scene & Heard Page 25
Story: Jasmine Teo
The Big Three-Oh, Joy!
How do you turn 30 in style? By inviting your friends from out of town to join in the party.
The soiree in this case is Joys of Life, a Ch 8 mega-production to commemorate 30 years of local Chinese drama. Taiwanese multi-hyphenatos Xiao Gui (or, um, Alien Huang) and Cynthia Wang Xin Ru are in on the act. Set in the ’60s and ’70s, the story will allude to well-known entertainers of the day like Sakura Teng and comedy icons Wang Sha and Ye Feng. Joining the two foreign talents is a heavyweight local cast. Think of it as the TV version of Great, Great World, if you will. There’s Chew Chor Meng, Yvonne Lim, Zheng Geping, Chen Liping and Pan Lingling et al, plus whispers of a romance between Zhang Yaodong and Rui-en – onscreen lah. Now that’s what we call drama.
Joys of Life èŠ±æ ·äººé—´ debuts June 2012 9pm on Channel 8.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, Joys of Life èŠ±æ ·äººé—´.
1. SPECIAL FEATURE Page 99
7PM LOCAL DRAMA REDUX
THIRSTY FOR LOCAL FLAVOURS?
QUENCH IT AT 7PM!
GENRE LOCAL
PERIOD PRE-MODERN
Code of Honour æ£ä¹‰æ¦é¦† debuts 5 December 2011 7pm on Channel 8.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, Code of Honour æ£ä¹‰æ¦é¦†, EN.
1.Bad Boys Finish First Pages 48-51
Now that you are bona fide teen idols, what teen idol things have you found yourself doing?
EDWIN: I hardly go online. I just don’t like to stare at the screen for too long so I don’t really converse with my fans.
IAN: I think this is what people like about Edwin. He’s kinda like Rui En – she’s so icy yet people go crazy for her.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, On The Fringe 边缘父å.
1. Color Her Blue Pages 40-50
When you lost the Best Actress award to Rui En at this year’s Star Awards, did it turn you a depressing shade of midnight blue?
(Shrugs) I’m hopeful with every nomination, but I guess I’m still not good enough? I get over it real fast, though. Whenever I’m down, I usually spend some time by myself, and I’ll be okay. Plus, having a short memory helps. I forget what I’m angry or down about easily.
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, Star Awards, Star Awards 2011.
1. BOOS & BRAVOS Page 112
BRAVO to the kiss-ass car chase scene in On the Fringe (weekdays, Ch 8). The three-minute sequence, which saw a sleek black Mercedes in a high-speed pursuit that climaxed in a fiery explosion, provided some much-needed excitement to the predictable drama about an ex-con (Li Nanxing) struggling to stay clean but ends up working for a queen bee of a triad (Fann Wong is too porcelain-looking to be a bad-ass, but that’s another story for another time). Moral of the story: When the tough gets boring, wreck a Mercedes to spice things up. Michael Bay would’ve approved.
2. TV Synopses Pages 121 – 122
Categorised in 8 DAYS, EN, On The Fringe 边缘父å.
