Princess and I: Week 2 Review

wellflower's comments:

I think in a way, drama, shows and movies are like poems. You show and not tell. This is pretty much the reason why even though I know that Rio is getting ahead of Jao this keeps Jao unbalanced and cold and nasty. However, I don’t feel it. In an episode, the competition between Jao and Rio could have served a greater purpose if it was executed well. However, the show only told us that Rio proposed something really great in the council of Drukpah and we weren’t even given the opportunity to see for ourselves how great that proposal is. You see? It would have elevated the stakes nicely if Jao was able to see that great proposal and he starts to doubt himself and he takes such doubts on the people. Then, we pretty much get the reason why Jao is acting baldy and badly. We could have empathized with him. It’s also why it was hard to learn to like him even at the half part of the week. The only part I was able to believe in his character was in the fourth episode and that I think is long overdue.

I’ll talk about the language issue for the last time so please allow me. The show used two kinds of devices to overcome the differences in language, with subtitles and voice over. But this is problematic in a sense that the use of these devices is totally arbitrary. I HIGHLY SUGGEST, if any prod staff ever reads this, I HOPE THAT YOU PICK ONE DEVICE AND MAKE UP YOUR MIND. Another tricky thing is, when they use voice over the pauses do not cut the sentences per idea. In one of the dialogues, the king paused four times for just a one-idea sentence and I’m telling you it’s bothering. It’s like a pirated CD. Or Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face.”

I’m rooting for the bestfriend romance between Kiko and Mikay since they have good rapport for me. Although I’m kind of being swayed by Jao’s coquetry but sorry because of your manners, I have to let you down. The romance of the show is a good investment although as an audience you wish the show to offer more. They have expensive adult actors so they should play the political, more devious and more intellectual slice of the show. Jao and Rio’s competition could have been a good take off for this. The bittersweet could have beens.

neonkim's comments:

I think this drama's having an identity crisis. It's a Filipino drama with Filipino actors and a Filipino production team, but story-wise it's more like half-Yangdonese (and in reality it's half-Bhutanese) because it's really about the missing princess of Yangdon, who is half-Filipino and only happens to be sent to the Philippines because of an assassination attempt on her life. Now, considering the devices that they've been using for the drama-using a foreign language, dubbing over it for "easy comprehension", and now they're back to the original audio without the dubs (but subtitled!)-they don't seem to have their minds made up on what the drama actually is.

It's actually quite a big deal because it is language, and they're somehow obstructing communication not between the characters but between the drama and its viewers.

How? well, it confuses the audiences if the Yangdonese characters are really Yangdonese. I'm not implying that they should have employed Bhutanese(?) actors to make it realistic, but the fact that Filipino actors play foreign characters already slashes a bit of the foreign factor in the drama. Yes, actors wear foreign clothes and they incorporate a bit of Yangdonese culture into it, but the fictional language barrier is also a necessity in terms of this foreignness. They chose to do away with it and dubbed lengthy Dzongkha dialogues in Filipino. So instead, what the audiences see are Filipinos pretending to be Yangdonese mouthing Dzongkha dubbed in Filipino. And if that isn't confusing enough, they also sometimes talk to fellow Yangdonese peeps in English, or actually even in Dzongkha (but subtitled)! And then, they talk to Filipinos in Yangdon-accent English. Of course I'm not completely disregarding the major characters' acting prowess, but even with their acting skills, it's hard to imagine they're not juxtaposed in an incomplete setting. It's quite difficult to digest, therefore making it harder for a viewer like me to fully keep up with the progress of the characters' identities.

Oh and like what I said last week, it's distracting, especially since the production team can't seem to decide if they're going with Filipino, English or subtitles. Sad, dissapointed face here.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Episode 10

Ashi Behati visits the king and gives him gifts to "thank" him for the "help" he gave her last time that she was "wounded". The king tells her she shouldn't have done so as it is his responsibility to help his people. They also talked about how good a leader Jao is.

Mikay and Jao parts for real and while he goes into the vehicle Mikay whispers in Tagalog, "You are actually quite good-looking. But even when my elder sister has her period, she's not half as stingy as you." Because Jao knows basic Tagalog words, he asks her if she's calling him 'gwapo', which means good-looking. She denies and tells him that she's talking about kwago, which means 'owl'. She even imitated one for goodness’ sake. Nice pass.

Mikay decides to walk since she was abandoned by Jao. The driver asks if it's okay to leave Mikay alone. Jao seems a bit hesitant but says it's okay. After a while, his guilt picks on him so he commands the driver to go back.

Meanwhile, Bianca hands out her number to Gino. She thanks him for the food and asks him to text her since he's the first friend she had in her new school. He looks particularly happy, like a huntsman seeing a fish. HAHA. Mikay gets lost in Yangdon and Jao can't find her in the place he left her in. She did find a group of locals carrying goods whom she asks to lead her to a nearby public transportation. Jao finds her taking, again, a picture of the group and tells her to ride the vehicle. She declines as she's hurt (even though she proposed it) that he'd abandoned her. He tells her that if she doesn't come inside the vehicle he'll never come again and one of the girl's in the group says the bus stop is quite far. She accepts but tells Jao that he should let them come along. We then cut to a sardine-like vehicle with one of the girls giving Mikay a flower as a sign of thankfulness. She then gives the flower to Jao, who looks astounded and a bit flushed as well. Oh, feelings of tenderness.

The bickering pair goes to the palace of the king and Jao tells Mikay blatantly that she shouldn’t go inside the building. But such commands are broken as Mikay goes into the palace and we see her being ushered out by security guards. She sees the king from afar who also sees her.  

The king asks her who she's with and she points at Jao. Jao denies knowing her but later confirms the fact. "Are you a Filipino?" says the king. "Well, then, you are a special guest." Walking together, she tells the king that she'll be an incoming college student and is planning to study languages. She then goes further to ask the king if she can take a picture with him. He accepts and later confesses that she reminds him of someone familiar. Jao is pissed off and to annoy everything outta him, the king tells him to tour Mikay around the city. (HEHE)

Jao shouts, as it is his his hobby, at Mikay when they go out of the palace. He tells her that they should obey the king and he should meet her at her hotel tomorrow morning. Mikay says something in Tagalog that aggravates Jao further and tells her that she should always speak in English. To which Mikay replies that, "I'm happy to have met you." Inside the vehicle, Mikay says sorry and cries. Jao comforts her and they accidentally put their hands in the empty space between them. OOOOHHHH it sends them looking embarrassed afterwards. Mikay stops for a while and takes the gazillionth picture of Yangdon which makes me wonder if her camera has unlimited memory space. In any case, she says to Jao, “I’m happy because I’m in a beautiful place.” After which she sneezes at Jao’s face. HAHAHAHA. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I REALLY LAUGHED. They then go back to Mikay's hotel and they wait for the other (not in an obvious way) to go. AND I WAIT FOR NEGZT WEEK.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Episode 09

Like the scenes before, Jao declines letting Mikay go with him to the marketplace. But due to incessant pleading, he gives in. She tells him 'salamat' and with his linguistic aptitude he says he knows what it means and tells her to go inside the vehicle. Once they reach the market place, Mikay says, for the nth time, her thanks. She also introduces herself as a courtesy which Jao brushes off with his eyebrows clashing each other (the cold demeanor doesn't work for him).

Jao goes to the vendors and ask for ten kilos of whatnot (I'm not sure if it's taro or taho or what) to be delivered to the department of tourism. The vendor POLITELY tells him that she can't deliver the ten kilos because the vehicle that will be delivering it is not in good shape. The oh-so-good-natured Jao tells the vendor to deliver it herself to which the vendor says it isn't her work anymore. He then goes to the person in charge of the delivery and shouts at him saying, "that's your job! not my job, okay!". It's as if shouting can fix the car or deliver the goods needed.

Since Mikay didn't see her tour bus in the market, she asks to have a ride with Jao again since they still have the same itinerary. He unwillingly abides. She tries, then, to help by carrying the goods to the vehicle. Seeing from Jao’s face, he seems impressed. Jao’s mother, meanwhile learns that unlike Rio, Jao was assigned to be the festival coordinator. She apparently didn’t know.

In a miraculously much lighter mood, Jao helps in unloading the goods needed by the Tourism Department. An officer thanks him for bringing the goods all the way to the department and says he learned just recently that work will be finished faster if people will commit even if they are not obligated.

Gino, the sleepyhead, is called by his mother to remind him that they have to enroll him to the school today. This is our first glimpse of the grown up Gino. He acts a bit stiff and mechanical but I'm hoping he'll grow out of it since he's supposed to be the fluid, womanizer type of guy. Anyway, he comes to the school and everybody exaggeratingly says hi and then swoons at him. He then spots Bianca, slightly takes his glasses down and looks at her. I swear this doesn’t happen in real life but since this is Philippine drama, let’s just swallow things.

Jao and Mikay part ways and she comes to this beautiful place where I think people offer their prayers. After some wandering she end up at, I presume, Behati's place. Mikay accidentally steps on Behati’s foot while she backs away from the place. She really is Jao's mother, methinks their hobby is shouting. She shouts at Mikay to step aside and truts her way to the building with her head bobbing up and down. I don't get how this is supposed to be regal, though.

By virtue of classic Filipino drama, Bianca and Gino literally bump into each other. He then leads her to what seems like a canteen and an adolescent guy who dresses like Gino (HAHA) brings food over to them. Ashi talks to Jao and tells him that the work assigned to him is so petty. Demoralized, Jao goes inside the vehicle only to see Mikay waiting for him. Mikay senses that he's sad so she tells him that she's happy about coming to Yangdon. She also tries to give him food. He pops right then and there and shouts, "You know what, you eat it! Instead of talking and talking and talking, you eat it! You're so talkative you know?” How many times did that hothead shout? Really.

Mikay arrives at her last destination but was still unable to find her tour group. She sees good scenery near a mountain cliff and takes a picture of it. Jao, upon seeing her, comes a bit near. When she sees him looking over, he calls his assistant and commands him something unintelligible. Mikay continues to take a picture of herself with the background and almost fell over. Jao jerks and they both smile afterwards.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Episode 08

The candidates were gathered and evaluated based on the tasks they did for each department they were assigned to. Rio, of course, was praised by the king because of the proposals he gave to the Drukpah's council. It would have been nice to hear this proposal for us to really know if it really was any good, though. In any case, Jao was asked by the king to stay. The king pointed out how he was unable to treat his followers nicely, which was also the opportunity to lecture him about a good leader's characteristics and all.

Meanwhile, Mikay says her goodbyes to her family and bestfriend. Kiko earned another pinch in the nose and cheeks for this. We are given a verbal annoucement from the king to his adviser that the reason the candidates were delegated tasks is to train and choose from them a successor. The king broods about this decision once again and he goes to a hazy, daydream-like state where he talks to the late Queen Isabel and tells her of his plans. He, then, asks for forgiveness because he has to replace the lost Princess Areeyah. She goes in for a hug and disappears in haze.

Mikay, in a nice comparison to the previous manner, dreams of being in Yangdon and we first see her dressing up as Princess Areeyah. She's woken up by the plane's announcer (if that's what they are really called) and sees Mount Everest by the window. Plans of finding a successor of the throne was also announced by the king in the council's meeting.

Mikay comes to Yangdon and we are given some basic background about the kingdom which is pretty much the same things narrated before in the first few weeks of the show. A slew of pictures showing good places of Bhutan look particularly interesting. She comes to her hotel and bumps over a guest. She throws so many Japanese words to her (some quite familiar and I'm trying to rationalize this act but I can't) but responds to her in English. Mikay and Jao meet for the first time as she asks him to take a picture of her. He declines at first saying he's busy but gives in afterwards. He shows his hotheadedness again by doing everything half-heartedly and irritably.

Dinoy asks Bianca to clean the house but she tells him that she'll do it later when Dindi comes home. She tells her she can't do it because she's allergic (good strategy). Her father comments that without Mikay their house would look like a furrowing house. To this Bianca slyly remarks that Mikay is the one causing trouble in the house.

The tourist guide tells the story of the royal family and why the Festival of the Flying Kite is celebrated annually  - in celebration of the princess’ birthday. In an attempt at irony, Mikay says that the princess is so lucky as she's been loved and awaited by so many people. She tells that she doesn't even know her true birthday.

Mikay teary-eyedly eats a snack outside as she learns the cost of the food in the hotel's restaurant. She sees a child, sitting alone near a building and gives the snack to her. Mikay gets influenza and a Filipina friend gives her medicine. She's also left behind by the bus because she took her medicine upstairs (HAHA). Fortunately, a good-natured local asks her where the bus is headed to and says she can come with them since they are also going to the same place. There's some glitch, though, since Jao is with him.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Episode 07

Mikay's mother still dissuades her from going to Yangdon even though she tells her that they can use the pocket money to pay for the expenses in the house. Meanwhile, Behati tells Jao he must win, show himself worthy of getting the throne. By hook or by crook.

Mikay's father gives his first camera to her daughter, telling her to go to Yangdon. He says, "Bring Yangdon home. For me and for your mother."

Jao, spurred by his mother's words, came early to the training site. They played archery and Jao missed his first target leaving others and the king quite disappointed. Jao's rival, Rio, was the only person among the pack of men who hit the target. To heighten up the rivalry, the king expressed his praise on Rio's skills.

Mikay sees her parents quarrel over the Yangdon issue. Her mother, like Bianca, seems to be particularly irritable and jealous of Mikay.

Behati visits the training site of to-be Drukpahs and gives them food to eat. I don't know if I should apply Filipino concepts or culture here but if it can be applied, this gesture would, in a way, mean bribery. On the other hand, the king assigned each of the pack of men a department where they are to preside on meetings. Rio was given the department of Drukpah while Jao was assigned as the festival coordinator.

Kiko gives Mikay info about Yangdon and says, he will not enjoy her stay there because he will not be there with her. In all fairness, I like their rapport. Or maybe I'm just biased because I like men with glasses who at the same time can sing?

In another manipulation maneuver, Behati wounds herself and cries aloud so as to be heard by the king brooding nearby. The king comes to her and asks what's wrong. Playing the innocent child, she says she doesn't know that the king is here and tells him nothing is wrong (oooohhh, old widow is upping her tricks). The king commands her to let him see the wound and inspects her hands. Of course, the camera would focus on glinting eyes.

Jao prepares the Yangdon kite festival and is being abhorred (haha) by his subordinates because of his picky personality and very cold demeanor. The good thng is, they can report his behavior to the king and they are quite sure it will be acted upon. Now I'm quite thankful the show is not filmed only in the Philippines.

Kiko gives Mikay a bagful of snacks along with some pocket money, since Mikay has given hers to her mother. It was rejected at first but Kiko, thankfully, managed to persuade her to take it by saying she should buy him pasalubong. A souvenir that would serve as a memory from a place given to Filipinos who knows you are going out of town. In a very cute scene, the two bestfriends bicker and fight over a bracelet. Kiko tickles Mikay to ease off her anxieties (Y U NO EXIST IN REAL WORLD) and helps her put the bracelet in her hands. At the end of the episode, Mikay's mother visits her in her room while she's asleep. Mikay miraculously wakes up and before her mother leaves, thanks her.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Episode 06

After graduation, Mikay learns that her father had an accident. Her father was sent to the hospital because of some minor injuries. Upon hearing this from a neighbor, Mikay and Kiko rushes to the hospital and finds her father unconscious. 

King Anand's adviser, then, tells him that there are rumors about his successor and the most prominent of them is Jao. The adviser also asks if he considers having another child that can inherit the throne. The king dismisses the idea and says that he can't do that because he can only love Queen Isabel. Because it is still the king's responsibility to find a successor for the throne, he says that he will find one that is worthy. He is then asked about his daughter, his hopes of her returning to Yangdon one day. To that the king replies "As a father, I am still hoping that she returns. But I have to do something about this because I am also the king."

Mikay's father then wakes up to find her medals hanging over his neck. Mikay, by his side, also wakes up and asks if he's okay. Her father explains and says that he's sorry for being unable to attend her daughter's recognition. He then talks about how proud he is for having a good daughter like her while giving the medals to her. This is also the point when Bianca, rushing to tell her dad about her own accomplishment, sees the whole scenario, (somehow) looks jealous, takes off her crown and goes out of the room. I feel it should be her "evil" character growing but since the acting is not too good the build up is serving no purpose. (*sighs*) Mikay then tells her father that she participated in a raffle and she hopes to get the first prize, which is a van, so that her father would not have to borrow from other people. 

At home, Mikay gives her father breakfast in bed and tells him she'll be going to school to process the necessary papers for her scholarship. Here, she's actually not just telling her father but also asks permission. She wasn’t really after her father’s answer; it seemed done out of respect for his authority. Her father then tells her he's also leaving to ask if he can go back to work early. Mikay scolds him and tells him he should rest since the doctor says the same. Her father replies, "But, my daughter, we need money." To this she replies, "we also need a father," and advises him to do what he wants after he has taken his rest. Her father, with all the love in the world for his daughter (how sweet), gives in.

We cut to a scene where King Anand shows his skills in archery. Once he hits the target, the dancers, I mean, the council dances and chants in a circle as if to signify celebration (I hope not weirdness or tomfoolery). This is also the part where the King shows favor over Jao as he says he's impressed with how Jao hit his target.

Mikay’s sister tells all her woes, jealousy and everything else she has against Mikay. The build-up is a bit hasty but at the very least the presence of one should be a good indicator. They then fight over what not to say and what not to do, with Bianca contradicting even Mikay's apology.

Jao tells the king his desire to serve Yangdon and they then talk about the lost princess. The king compares hope to flying a kite. He also says that he promises to teach Jao and that he has a plan for him. Whatever that is we'll have to wait.

Mikay comforts herself with food and the company of Kiko. The topic is, of course, her being adopted which must have been spurred by the quarrel with her sister. This is one of the few scenes that I genuinely liked, especially the comfort food. Strikes a familiar chord eh neonkim? As a friend says, “food is the only friend who never fails to comfort me.”

Mikay learns that she won the raffle's 2nd prize, which is none other than a trip to YANNGGGDOOONNN~. But such happiness is always short-lived. Her mother wouldn't allow this to happen. She says it's too risky given that her father had just come out of the hospital and might experience heart attack in Yangdon. I don't know why that would happen since Yangdon's not a rollercoaster island. She leaves and says it would have been better if Mikay won cash and if she can convert the trip then she better do so.

Ashi Behati learns from his son that the king will be teaching him (something). Chumi tells her that there are rumors that the next successor for the throne is Jao. She also suggests that Ashi should become Queen as Isabel is already dead and she also has the capacity to become one.

By wellflower with No comments

Princess and I: Week 1 Review

neonkim's review:

For a 30-minute-per-day, wow. We were certainly put through a lot. The highlights of this week are: the Queen and the Vice-King's death, the disappearance of the Princess and her migration to the Philippines, Behati's evil schemes and the build-up of Jao, Mikay and Kiko's characters.

Anyway, what made things a little difficult for me was the use of language - at the beginning, some sort of reminder is read: the actors used Dzongkha but had been dubbed over with Filipino for "easy comprehension." This immediately shatters the overall setting and tone of the drama. Why? First, they reveal that Dzongkha is the national language of Bhutan which weakens the fictional setting of the Kingdom of Yangdon. Second, they dub the whole thing which simply comes off ridiculous, since dubbing is often employed in foreign dramas, which parodies usually poke fun at. It may be easier to understand, but it's definitely not effective. It's impractical, since viewers are completely aware that the actors are Filipino, speaking Dzongkha, dubbed in Filipino and mixed with weird-definitely-not-Bhutanese-English. It's a waste of utilities and must've cost precious time in post-production. This is like watching TV with your dog barking in the background. It's distracting and annoying.

The transitions are also too quick, which makes the scenes short-lived. I understand that time is flexible when it comes to dramas, but I'd like to think that it wouldn't hurt to let the viewers dwell on a scene for a while. This is probably one reason Filipino dramas aren't well-remembered. We know who hates who and the general picture why, but we don't remember the reasons how come. The little things aren't emphasized, but we are given the impression that these brief situations complete the bigger picture. Also, did I mention that I find their contextualization lacking? It just doesn't make sense that a certain character would be totally bitchy when she was just peachy earlier. Laziness would make you accept this fact without telling you why. A good, well-written drama wouldn't.

The whole thing is actually pretty easy in the eyes, with the colorful robes and the wonderful scenery of Bhutan, until bad CGI smacks you in the face. But only for a few frames, really. Nevertheless, they've done well with Bhutanese culture and even the subtle promotion of tourism here and there. I hear the government of Bhutan even let the production be shot in an actual palace. Wonder if it it cost them much?

Plot-wise, I could say that there are plenty of elements that are badly glued. Some situations don't make sense not only because of lack of context, but also because they're unrealistic. Overall, I'd give first week 3 stars out of 5. Quite disappointing for the pilot week, but enough material to continue watching. It is quite unique and fresh, as some viewers might say.

wellflower's review:

The first few episodes of the drama were supposed to be the foundation of the plot but I found the foundation shaky. I think because it lacks character building. In order for each character to struggle and/or be motivated by a certain cause (whether evil or good), you have to put them in the same situation over and over again. This way the struggle and/or motivation, although repetitive, become thematic and episodic. For example, we were given only the burning surrounding episode to let us know that the reason why Ashi Behati is so dedicated in having her revenge. We heard her cries for her father but we didn’t feel remorse. This is also the reason why I can’t seem to feel the revenge part. For me, Ashi Behati is just being immature. Like that little pesky brat child lurking around. This is also the same for the “supposed-to-be” assassin. At first he was like, “oh, I’m the bad guy. Be afraid of me.” Then all of a sudden he had a change of heart and decided not to kill anyone. See? Ridiculous. Taking into consideration that everybody’s human and he falls under the category of “everybody”, the point is he’s a hired assassin and without a catalyst to change his mind (like the baby crying or him being reminded of his own baby crying or whatsoever) a sudden change of heart and mind is impossible.

One of the things I hated was the disruptive effect of so many commercials in between the episodes. A friend even told me that the commercials are longer than the show itself which is quite true. To the super rich companies, thank you but I don’t think I’m that dim-witted to be reminded of what your shampoo does a thousand times. Please, just please. Bring us back to the DRAMA.

I’m also still not at ease with the code switching. English-Tagalog code switching is normal to us but it’s just too much if you put another element in the mix, which is Dzongkha. What’s even more frustrating is I don’t have any background on that language so it’s even harder to hear, understand the spoken language and read the translation all at the same time. It’s getting in the way of processing the drama and understanding what’s happening. It disrupts you all the way because the drama hasn’t decide whether it should use English, Tagalog and Dzongkha so they just put it all in, compromising the quality of storytelling and the drama itself. What’s funnier is people of Yangdon have this weird crossbreed of Italian, Filipino and what seems to be Japanese accent when speaking English. This show is so good in making language a laughingstock. My one and only suggestion, be consistent. Know what language you really want to use and stick with it. Don’t add another element that will give us more headaches. Your plot is enough.

To somehow lighten the load of the show though I'd say that Bhutan looks really nice in most of the background shots. The dresses also remind of those used in Mindanao, just like the dresses of Filipino noblewomen of Sultanato. They all look colorful and wonderful. I wonder, though, if the Bhutanese come from the same language family and culture as those of our prehispanic ancestors.

By episodeninjas with No comments