Sexiest Side Eye In The Business - Tumblr Posts

My Journey to You Ep. 1-2, 24 visuals: Portraits of power and masculinity

I'm doing a rewatch of My Journey to You and I just can't get over how well the show introduces its two male leads, Gong Ziyu and Gong Shangjue. In under two minutes, these two scenes brilliantly establish one of the show's core themes around masculinity and power without a word of dialogue.

Ok, so I gasped when the first glimpse we get of Ziyu's character, the protagonist of a wuxia drama, is a delicate shot of his bare feet. He's a nobleman's son in a sect that is revered by the rest of the martial arts world and yet look at what he's (not) wearing: no military regalia, weapons--just a thin robe and his bare feet.

He's also shown napping, sprawled across his seat like a Victorian woman on a fainting couch. And then when he wakes up, we see him staring longingly out of the brothel's window, his face gently cast in the morning light, like a fairy tale princess locked away in a tower.

Visually, the show immediately communicates to us that Ziyu represents a softer, more romantic image of masculinity, which is reinforced over and over again throughout the show with other feminine-coded symbols (e.g., Ziyu playing music, wearing a red couple bracelet, carrying a bunny lantern). He’s not meant to be seen as a strong son ready to lead his sect but as an overly sensitive playboy wasting his time away.

And then we're introduced to Shangjue.

The music thrums menacingly as Shangjue rides into the Gong residence, his uniformed men carrying spoils of war behind him. As he passes through the main gates, we see each guard bowing in respect. All of this fanfare and the solemn blackness of his riding gear signal the important political role he occupies within the Gong family.

(Side Note: Ryan Cheng's side-eye is magnificent and one of the sexiest things to hit Cdramaland in 2023.)

But what I love most about this scene is the use of high and low-angle shots and central framing. At 6'2’’, Zhang Linghe (the actor playing Ziyu) is a giant, and yet the high angle and surplus negative space around him makes his character look small, almost pitiful in comparison to Shangjue.

In contrast, the zoomed-in, low-angle shot for Shangjue communicates his intimidating persona. There’s something ruthless (even kind of malevolent) about his character, and the show tries to convince us of this first impression with repeated use of shadow and animalistic imagery in its early episodes. He embodies the type of masculinity a powerful sect like the Gongs would want representing them in campaigns with the outside world.

From the jump, Ziyu and Shangjue are set up as antagonists, both by how the characters dismiss one another in the script and also by the show's visual storytelling.

Of course, as the show goes on, both characters gradually change their opinion of one another, and this change is mirrored once again in the visual storytelling. Their final scene in Episode 24 is a near reversal of what we saw in their intro scenes (many thanks to @kingsandbastardz for pointing out the costumes!):

Shangjue's hair is up in a ponytail, neck bare, his rich blue robes nipped in at the waist. He's no longer dressed in his villainous black robes and he doesn't look as physically imposing without his signature cloak. He is finally Ziyu's ally. And check out how the camera angle is also reversed, with Shangjue being shot from a high angle so he looks less dangerous--even fragile--while Ziyu is shot from a low angle to look more powerful.

Despite audience expectations about what type of man would make a strong leader, he has officially grown into the role of Sword Wielder.

I’m not usually into the blood spatter look but…

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: Sexiest Side-Eye in Cdramaland.

Photo source: Melon House

Literally everything I watch cdramas for in one poster.