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Emperor Tai’an highlights in Dashing Youth episode 30
Dashing Youth Minor Character Appreciation
Every character has the potential to be someone’s favorite, no matter how little screen time they have. With as varied and colorful a cast as Dashing Youth, this is especially true. With many watchers nearly at the halfway point and others a little over three-quarters of the way through, I figured now would be a good time to start spreading some love!
Needle Granny
First off, we have the Needle Granny. She has a cool design and is pretty intimidating.
Tang Xuance
Next, we have Tang Xuance. His vibes in both shows are interesting, and I like the way he moves.
Eunuch Cheng
Finally, we have Eunuch Cheng. He’s pretty adorable and his interaction with Baili Luochen is amusing and intriguing.
Who are your favorite minor and/or side characters? Please share them and spread the love! 💜
Facing off against the City Lords 🗡️
The finale has left me with even more questions 😹 Dashing Youth’s Jin Wei is wearing the Blood of Youth’s Jin Yu’s clothes, and Jin Yu has a cool new outfit (and he’s played by an entirely different person than was listed on the cast list—what happened there?)
It’s interesting to see that Jin Xuan and Jin Yan swapped clothes between the shows, rather than Jin Yan merely stealing Jin Xuan’s.
Yes, many questions, but I’m definitely happy to see the five of them together again! 🍠 Here’s to hoping the Dark River show will give some hints or answers to the mystery of the Five Eunuchs’ switched clothing!
The tragedy of Yi Wenjun is that she traded a gilded cage for a wooden one, when all she wanted was to be free.
The keeper of the wooden cage gave her hope, yes, but would never have let her leave. His stories were just stories, and she never got to see the world.
Because of how Yi Wenjun’s oppressive father raised her, she constantly feels like a shadow of herself. The only time her character has ever truly felt alive to me was near the end of the Blood of Youth’s novel, when she was flying through the chaos of her son’s creation, bantering with Jin Xuan as he pleaded for her to return to safety. Her interaction with him near the end of Dashing Youth slightly reminded me of that scene and of why I like her novel counterpart so much.
Freedom is what Yi Wenjun desires above all else, but obligation weighs down her wings. And while her sons never experienced the gilded and wooden cages they were raised in as prisons, she did. Even then, she tried to do what was best for them, rather flawed as that attempt was.
The Four Guardians of Tianqi
Dashing Youth Relationship Chart: Amended Edition
There was a major character missing. I added him.
Original version below
Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 少年白马醉春风 | Dashing Youth (Live Action TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Xiao Zhongjing/Zhuo Qing, Jin Wei & Zhuo Qing, Implied Baili Luochen/Xiao Zhongjing Characters: Xiao Zhongjing | Emperor Tai'an, Zhuo Qing (Dashing Youth), Jin Wei (The Blood of Youth), Jin Yu (The Blood of Youth), Li Changsheng (mentioned), Qi Tianchen (mentioned), Baili Luochen (mentioned) Additional Tags: Injury, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Praise Kink, Age Difference, Introspection, Bathing/Washing, Canon Compliant, takes place during episode 32, Blood Kink, Intimacy Series: Part 6 of Small Fandom Summer '24 Summary:
With a troubled mind and a heavy heart, Xiao Zhongjing visits his Grand Eunuch.
What are your thoughts on the Eunuchs in Dashing Youth?
Thanks for the ask! 😺 I have many, many thoughts about how the eunuchs were handled. Though I’ll get into the show’s shortcomings regarding the Five Eunuchs, I will say that Zhuo Qing was the greatest highlight of Dashing Youth for me (especially regarding the captivating conflict centered around Zhuo Qing, Li Changsheng, Emperor Tai’an, and Baili Luochen).
More often than it should have, Dashing Youth had poor structuring and ill-timed dips in tension. However, the plotline involving those aforementioned four characters was carefully built up, well-paced, and high-stakes—with significant payoff. The thing is, Dashing Youth has something of an antagonist problem, where most of them are either killed off very quickly or cease to be antagonistic. Zhuo Qing and Emperor Tai’an stand as excellent exceptions to this dulling trend in the writing. For a show like this, antagonistic forces are incredibly important. While the “bloody youths” were the heart of the show and very entertaining on their own, the “dashing youths” could be better described as the center of the drama—and good drama needs compelling antagonists. Because of this, Zhuo Qing steals the show.
Zhuo Qing
His relationship with Emperor Tai’an is so fascinating. With their multilayered power dynamic and their decades of companionship, there is a palpable tension between Zhuo Qing’s careful, calculated submissiveness and the sharp edges underlying Emperor Tai’an’s familiarity. The actors have great chemistry and the camera loves both of them—especially their beautiful hands with gorgeous complementary thumb-rings.
Just as riveting is Zhuo Qing’s rivalry with the Immortal Li Changsheng. So many emotions churn under the surface, threatening to spill over with every interaction. Pride, fear, anger, respect—no one can get such a rise out of Zhuo Qing as he.
Overall, Zhuo Qing is a complex, entertaining, and formidable villain with strong motivations. As mentioned previously, the plotline focused on him has excellent pacing and intense stakes. His voice is incredibly calming and his actor is highly adept. Zhuo Qing was the character I was most excited to see, and that particular anticipation was satisfied in full.
Jin Xuan (positives)
I do have one significant positive thing to say about how Dashing Youth handled Jin Xuan. He makes for an amazing foil to Baili Dongjun and I appreciate how the show positioned him in that respect. It helped me think of some fascinating ways the two characters could also be considered foils of each other in the Blood of Youth and its novel.
Jin Xian
I love how his first scene with Zhuo Qing highlights both the kindness Zhuo Qing can show and the terror he can inspire. An intriguing duality, which Jin Xian mirrors in how he carries peaceful prayer beads in his left hand and a sword of violence in his right. Speaking of which, the significance of his Blizzard Sword is so fascinating to think about—even more so than before. Also, I love the way he protects Jin Xuan at one point, especially since Jin Xuan is wearing TBoY Jin Yan’s clothes—the visual makes my Jin Xian/Jin Yan shipping brain happy.
Jin Xuan (negatives)
There was a crucial moment in Zhuo Qing’s story which truly seemed like Jin Xuan should have been present for. Sweet as it was seeing Jin Xian supporting his shifu, it really seems like it would have been far more impactful to Jin Xuan’s psychology for him to witness it instead.
Overall, his character feels really off. There are moments that feel more like him, especially in the times he interacts with Yi Wenjun, but otherwise, for the most part, he feels like an entirely different character. Him wearing TBoY Jin Yan’s robes probably isn’t helping me in trying to find him recognizable, but, most importantly, I really find it hard to believe that Jin Xuan would ever involve himself in an affair with a prince other than Xiao Ruojin in this period of time, even if it is a part of Zhuo Qing’s plan.
Zhuo Xin, Zhuo Sen, Zhuo Luo
Of the same generation of the Five Eunuchs as Zhuo Qing, it really seems like these three should have been in the show, especially during Xiao Ruofeng’s destruction of the Dragon Seal Scroll—they were more or less implied to be present for it in Jin Xuan’s dialogue to Jin Xian in TBoY Episode 34. At this point, I’m wondering if the live-action universe is an AU where Zhuo Sen and Zhuo Luo died very early, forgotten by time and unmentioned forevermore.
Eunuch Li and Eunuch Cheng
These two were pretty interesting. They weren’t in the show a lot, but it definitely feels like there’s layers to them and their relationships with other characters. I would like seeing more of either eunuch, though I’m satisfied with what we got—I can use my imagination for how Jin Yan ended up incorporating Eunuch Li’s official robe into his casual outfit in The Blood of Youth and the implications thereof 😼
Jin Yu, Jin Yan, Jin Wei
I would say “last but not least,” but Dashing Youth essentially reduced these three to background characters, especially Jin Yan, who doesn’t have a single line of dialogue. I would have liked to see more of them in the finale, and really feel like we got shorted. Given how much more attention and focus the Five Eunuchs got in the Blood of Youth’s novel compared the live-action, I’m guessing that Dashing Youth’s lack is something of a departure from the source material. I really do get the vibe from the author that the Five Eunuchs are some of his favorite characters to write about—I don’t believe he would shortchange these three to this degree.
There is also notably the matter of the baffling clothing situation (Jin Xuan and Jin Yan switched official attire in the time between Dashing Youth and The Blood of Youth. DY Jin Wei wears TBoY Jin Yu’s. Jin Yu has a different outfit entirely). I’m hoping the live-action Dark River show that comes next will either clear up the confusion or increase the intrigue.
As for the sword situation… I can understand Jin Yan possibly wanting to have a sword if Jin Xuan does, though I don’t think Jin Xuan would have a sword in the first place. Jin Xian and Jin Wei are the swordsmen among the Five Eunuchs. Jin Xuan, Jin Yu, and Jin Yan all practice palm techniques—why would they be carrying swords? It also seems strange that the sword Jin Wei is carrying does not appear to be the Abyssal Eye Sword. I mean, the live-action version of the sword (a Bichen prop from The Untamed, seriously? Cool easter egg, but the Abyssal Eye is far too important not to have its own design) isn’t as imposing or ghostly or evil as the novel’s or the donghua’s, but it makes no sense for Jin Wei to not bring it along for the climax of the story, instead carrying an even less interestingly-designed sword.
As a side note, my theory about The Blood of Youth’s Jin Wei wielding a Bichen lookalike is that it was likely originally planned to be the Blizzard Sword. The novel describes Jin Xian as having worn white to travel the Martial Arts World, so Bichen’s design would have matched (and would possibly encourage the audience to see the mild similarities between Jin Xian and the owner of Bichen, particularly in the context of Jin Xian helping out Jin Yan when the world was against him). Live-action Jin Xian ended up having a costume design more similar to the donghua, however, and Bichen’s design would no longer match him so well. But, of course, the people making the show might still have wanted to use the prop—so they looked to the next sword-wielding eunuch: Jin Wei.
Overall, Dashing Youth was incredibly favorable for Zhuo Qing, and somewhat lackluster in its use of the rest of the eunuchs, except perhaps Jin Xian, Eunuch Li, and Eunuch Cheng. Despite Dashing Youth’s writing problems, Zhuo Qing and Emperor Tai’an bring enough to the table that I found it worthwhile. Some other characters I liked were Qi Tianchen, Sikong Changfeng, Lei Mengsha, all of Baili Dongjun’s family, Wu Fa and Wu Tian, Qixuan and Yuji, Li Hanyi, Ye Xiaoying, Xiao Ruofeng, Needle Granny, and Yan Bietian. My feelings about Li Changsheng are complicated, but he certainly does interest me.
Dashing Youth ring-related musings
There is no question that Dashing Youth loves its rings. The indulgent ways the camera lingers on them is most prominent in the case of Zhuo Qing and Xiao Zhongjing, but there are other ring-wearers in the show, such as Xiao Xie, Master Tu, and Yan Bietian. Unsurprisingly, considering what rings (particularly thumb rings) tend to symbolize, the thing they all have most in common is their power and/or wealth. There are possibly deeper connections to be drawn between these characters, but I thought I’d focus on sharing my discoveries on the materials Zhuo Qing’s and Xiao Zhongjing’s are likely composed of.
My initial thoughts were along the lines of black jade for Zhuo Qing’s and carnelian for Xiao Zhongjing. However, in my search for similar rings online, I found that, among other colors, agate can come in black and red. Carnelian seems to often be compared to red agate, so my guess may not have been far off. Individually, the symbolism of carnelian and black jade likely fit the two characters a bit better, though them wearing the same type of stone could be seen as representing unification in their relationship.
Notable in this respect is their sun-and-moon symbolism, where Zhuo Qing is heavily associated with the Moon in terms of aesthetics and scene framing/transitions. Associating Xiao Zhongjing with the Sun isn’t a far leap, particularly considering the plaque hanging in Zhuo Qing’s hall, as well as the gold Xiao Zhongjing wears and the power he holds as emperor. The ring colors reinforce these associations, red-orange for the warmth of sunlight and black for the cold of the night.
Dashing Youth Jin Xuan Official Poster Collection
Yesss, Zhuo Qing is finally officially introduced in the donghua! I love him and his sassy demeanor already 💜
So nice to see some Zhuo Qing action! With his reputation of fragmenting the heart and dissolving the bones, him full-on blowing up a guy shouldn’t have been surprising, but I’m still working on picking my jaw up from the floor 😹
And Zhuo Qing dressing up as Emperor Tai’an to foil an assassination attempt?!! I’m going absolutely insane over this and am so excited for the rest of the show
A conversation with Commander Vice Commander Luo
“I remember many years ago when I was just an unpopular prince, I didn’t really get to drink good tea. But your grandfather only loved liquor. He threw a lot of tea away, so I got to taste some good tea. I loved drinking tea since then. Tea is great stuff. I don’t want to drink it alone. I want the world to know how wonderful it is. All the strife in this world is caused by the loss of oneself, which is caused by ignorance. I will set the world right by cleaning up evil.”
I love this scene so much. The way it gives meaning to the time Zhuo Qing brought him tea in season 1, the way it lays out his motivations, how it conveys some difficulty and underlying sadness in his past… The contrast between the potential tone-deafness of saying all this to Xiao Ruofeng, who nearly died as a child because his mother was an unpopular consort, and the possibility that Emperor Tai’an sees something of himself in him because Xiao Ruofeng and he were both once unpopular.
The donghua has set itself up to be a chess game between Emperor Tai’an and Xiao Ruofeng, and this scene is very effective in developing it (particularly in the way it contrasts tea with liquor, which holds significance to Baili Dongjun)
Baili family behind-the-scenes silliness
On the steps before Pingqing Hall, past and present