Perish in the Name of Love

Charmaine Sheh as Princess Cheung Ping/Chu Fai Lei
Steven Ma as Chow Sai Hin
Sonija Kwok as Princess Chiu Yan
Michael Tong as Cho Sing Hing
Moses Chan as the Emperor
Maggie Siu as Chow Yuk Fung (Queen)
Jay Lau as Choi Theep (Tin Fei Concubine)
Annie Man as Lee Yok Han
Marco Ngai as Ng Sam Gwai
Anne Heung as Chan Yuen Yuen
Maggie Wong as Little Cheung Ping
Shing Jin Kuen as Little Sai Hin

*SPOILERS*

SUMMARY

The beginning shows Sai Hin and Cheung Ping growing up together. They were best friends, and it shows how deeply their friendship grew as each day passed by. Unfortunately, Yuk Fung, the Queen, was punished for killing Tin Fei's child. She was framed for this because Tin Fei wanted to become Queen by getting rid of Yuk Fung. Therefore, Yuk Fung and her two daughters got kicked out into a place where all the people who used to be concubines lived. Tin Fei tried to kill them once and for all by setting the place on fire, but they escaped. After that, they lived in the country, suffering year by year of over-working themselves just to put a little food on the table. They lived in a small shack.

Chiu Yan's dream was to become a dancer while Cheung Ping, the most loved and respectful daughter, worked extremely hard to help her mother get money. Cheung Ping moves to another place to work because she needs to make money for her family. She promised her mother she'd bring home a pack of rice each time she was able to go home while her sister, Chiu Yan, attended a dancing school. There, she met Cho Sing Hing, who was the son of the owner who produced cannons. She also found her long-lost friend, Chow Sai Hin, there. She didn't reveal herself, because if she did, her mother was afraid Tin Fei would come after them. Therefore, she went under the name was Chu Fai Lei and Chiu Yan went under the name Chu Fai Lan. Sing Hing liked Fai Lei, not knowing she was once a princess of the palace. Chow Sai Hin suspected that Fai Lei was Cheung Ping because he knew Cheung Ping wasn't dead. He found a wish paper stuck in the tree that had her name on it. He continued to investigate until he finally got it out of her mouth that she was Cheung Ping.

When the King found out that his wife and children were still alive, he let them back into the palace, but hardly paid attention to them. This is where Chiu Yan causes trouble. She joins up with Tin Fei to destroy her mother and family, especially her sister, Cheung Ping. She is jealous of her sister because she gets all the attention. Sai Hin is arranged to marry Siu Han. Siu Han got angry when she found out Cheung Ping and Sai Hin were together, but soon after, she couldn't be angry at Cheung Ping anymore. The four of them, Siu Han, Cheung Ping, Sai Hin, and Sing Hing were the best of friends. Unfortunately, when Siu Han was trying to help Cheung Ping prove that the Queen did NOT poison Tin Fei's child that day, she got killed accidentally by Tin Fei. After that, Sai Hin was arranged to marry Cheung Ping, while Chiu Yan is forced to marry Tong Bo Lun, a somewhat perverted and fierce commander. Sai Hin then goes to war with Sing Hing to fight for their country. Cheung Ping made Sing Hing and Sai Hin both promise that they would come back without a hair missing from their heads. Chiu Yan harmed her mother so much that she became a servant in the palace. The Emperor still had strong feelings for Yuk Fung, but his mother and Tin Fei kept on trying to tear them apart.

Then comes the war. The country is in chaos. Tin Fei became ill. Ng Sam Gwai, who is a very smart and powerful commander did not support the Emperor because he though the Emperor killed his lover, Chan Yuen Yuen. But it was really that Tin Fei's father kidnapped her and made it look like she died in order for the fall of the kingdom because he hated the Emperor. After that, the Emperor lost the war. Ng Sam Gwai joined up with the enemy team. Unlike the old version, the Emperor did not chop off Cheung Ping's arm or make the Queen hang herself. He let them go and they decided to meet up somewhere else safer. Unfortunately, on the way, the Emperor died and was hung on a tree atop a mountain so people can laugh as they walk by at the bottom.

The Queen was left in charge of the army and the country, along with her son who was pretty much useless as a King. Many opposed because they thought the Queen was trying to become a Female King. Cheung Ping supported her mother the whole way. Chiu Yan was supposed to be taken to Tong Bo Lun's camp because she attempted to kill Cheung Ping (because she somehow fell in love with Sai Hin). Cho Sing Hing was ordered to escort her there. In an attempt to escape and frame Sing Hing, she ripped her own clothes and poured water in the barrel-like "tub". Then she made it look like Sing Hing tried to rape her while she was taking a bath. Tong Bo Lun busted into the room. He made his men beat up Sing Hing, then break all the bones in his leg. Then Tong Bo Lun left with Chiu Yan. Sing Hing was left on the streets with nobody to help him.

After this, Chiu Yan returned to the palace to stir up some more trouble for her mother. She sided with the enemy and gave them all the maps. One day, Cheung Ping followed her out of the castle and caught her betraying her country. Chiu Yan was put into jail. On the day of Cheung Ping and Sai Hin's marriage, Chiu Yan hung herself in the jail. The Queen stopped the wedding and ran down to see what happened. Chiu Yan pretended she was half-dead and then surprisingly shot her mother with a pistol. Then she pretended she was still knocked-out so the Queen's bodyguard, who was waiting outside, wouldn't suspect she killed the Queen. After that, the Queen died in bed, making sure that the people of her country would be safe in Cheung Ping and Sai Hin's hands. The opposing men, Tong Bo Lun and Fok Wong, tried to knock her son off the throne. Cheung Ping was forced out of the kingdom in order to have a fair fight, because they didn't want him to get any help. Sai Hin was forced not to help him, too. Cheung Ping lived outside the palace, and met up with Sing Hing. After many years, he lost the war to Fok Wong. Fok Wong then became the new ruler. While Sai Hin was in a temple, he found Cheung Ping there, and also, the long-time-no-see Sing Hing. He found out that Chiu Yan had done this to Sing Hing, and was more than just a little angry with her. Chiu Yan became Chiu Yan Ge Ge of the enemy country. Ng Sam Gwai found out that the King never killed Chan Yuen Yuen and regretted not helping him. He felt he betrayed the King in a very hurtful way and framed him. He and Chan Yuen Yuen went back together, and Ng Sam Gwai sent people to kill the man who kidnapped her, and who also caused the fall of the Emperor's kingdom.

Chiu Yan decided to join the war on the enemy team. She kidnapped Sai Hin and blackmailed Cheung Ping to come there. That is when Chiu Yan accidentally blurted out that she killed their mother. Now she was going to kill Sai Hin and Cheung Ping. They were about to die together, but then the Ching ruler stopped them. He wanted peace and to take over their country without hurting anyone. Cheung Ping agreed to let him, as long as nobody got hurt and Chiu Yan was sent to jail for killing the Queen. He agreed to this, and even with Chiu Yan's pleading, he sent her to jail for life. After that, Cheung Ping and Sai Hin were to marry to calm the Han people. Sing Hing didn't want them to get married because he knew they would commit suicide under these circumstances. Instead of committing suicide, they made it look like they killed themselves on the wedding night, then ran off into the country and became villagers. The 'death' was to make it look like they died so they could leave and live a peaceful life. The Chings took over after Cheung Ping and Sai Hin supposedly 'died'. Sing Hing, Cheung Ping, and Sai Hin lived together and passed each day happily. Cheung Ping was pregnant, and Sing Hing was to become the godfather. Although Sing Hing's leg never recovered, he still lived each day happily with his best friends.

CHARACTERS

Charmaine Sheh as Princess Cheung Ping/Chu Fai Lei- I must say this was a very impressive performance from Charmaine. She was the perfect person to play Cheung Ping. She acted very innocent, and made people feel very sorry for her. Although this performance was still not as impressive as her role in Country Spirit, it still leaves a strong impression on people. One thing I must admit is that Charmaine looked extremely pretty here. Her costumes were very nice, probably because this is a grand production series. All the costumes looked nice on her, excluding the poor country-side costumes. Her hair was very pretty too. This is by far one of her best series.

Steven Ma as Chow Sai Hin- Although Sai Hin was a bit annoying in this series, Steven Ma still portrayed him very well. I was a bit concerned when I found out he was replacing Julian Cheung, but after I watched it, I couldn't imagine Julian playing this character. I think Steven Ma did a fairly good job on this series, and I look forward to seeing more of him. Although he wasn't very good-looking in this series, his acting made up for it.

Sonija Kwok Sin Lei as Princess Chiu Yan- I admit, I really hated Sonija's guts in this series. I'm sure you did or will too because you'll just feel like shooting her right on the spot. She did so many wrongs that I couldn't understand why Charmaine kept on forgiving her! She even attempted to kill her! I have to say that Sonija was a really bad actress, but after this series, I felt she improved a LOT. In Where the Legend Begins, she was supposed to be evil, but she was rather snobby instead. In this series, she was pure evil. It shows how much effort she put into acting her evil character. I feel you might not like Sonija after this because she played an evil character, but note that her acting skills have improved tremendously.

Michael Tong Man Lung as Cho Sing Hing- You'll love Michael in this series. He was the comic relief, and he was extremely sweet to Cheung Ping. His dad was really funny too because he knew his son was a player and loved to play tricks on people, but he was actually serious when it came to Charmaine. His character was incredibly selfless, in other words, too good to be true. He was so hilarious in this series because he loved to play tricks on Charmaine. Even after Steven beat him up, he was still funny. Well, basically, you'll love Michael. He should get promoted!

Annie Man as Lee Yok Han- Annie was good as the rich, spoiled girl. Although she was rich and somewhat spoiled, she still loved Steven and did anything for him. She loved Charmaine a lot as a friend too. I found Annie very likable in this series, except the part on the horse where she was screaming for help. It was a bit fake. Annie did a fair job as Yok Han, I felt really sorry for her when she died. She died for Charmaine's sake, anyway. Overall, Annie was good, but I was a bit disappointed with her acting. I think she did a better job in other series.

Maggie Siu as Yuk Fung (Queen)- Not much to say about her. She has given nothing less than her usual excellent performances. I felt that she fit the role very nicely because she looked kind and acted great as a Queen. Overall, Maggie did a very good job as the Queen.

Moses Chan as the Emperor- Moses was great in PITNOL. He's taken on different roles... The gangster in Armed Reaction 3, the evil guy in almost every series, the funny and extremely likable person in Family Man. I started liking him in Family Man, but I never imagined him as a crazy Emperor. I think he did so good in this series! Even better than Family Man. He's very convincing, although the mustache he has on is a bit funny. Regardless of that, Moses was superb.

Jay Lau Kam Ling as Choy Theep (Tin Fei)- Jay was nothing but at her best in this series. First, she was this little innocent girl. Then she showed her true colours as her evil self...and finally, she went crazy in the end because she was ill. I think Jay was excellent in this series as the evil concubine, but I must say that Sonija was the ultimate villain in this series. Well, like stated before, Jay did an excellent job.

Anne Heung as Chan Yuen Yuen- Err...can I say that there was no use for Anne's character? They should have just asked some unknown actress to be Chan Yuen Yuen instead of a known actress like Anne Heung. Chan Yuen Yuen only had about five minutes in each of her scenes, and of course, those scenes were very rare. If you like Anne Heung, she looks incredibly pretty, but I must say that she doesn't appear in this series much. It's more like a cameo appearance and the sake of just being in the series. I don't think she's that pretty to be Chan Yuen Yuen, the most beautiful maiden, but I think she was good enough to watch.

Marco Ngai as Ng Sam Gwai- Like Anne Heung, he wasn't a big character. Just appeared a few times, got angry for not having Chan Yuen Yuen, then running away somewhere. Fighting wars...appearing in an army outfit. That's about it. He doesn't appear much in here either, in fact, as little scenes as Anne Heung has, I think Marco has less. Anyway, he did a good job for the little time he appeared in the series.

Maggie Wong Mei Kei as Little Cheung Ping- For a young teen, she is very talented. Her acting was very natural. She could still improve, but I think her acting is already very impressive. Although her looks don't really match modern series, she still looks wonderful in ancient. She looks like a candidate for a promising TVB actress in the future.

Shing Jin Kuen as Little Chow Sai Hin- He's not as good as Maggie Wong, but he is not bad. I think they made a cute couple in the series. I believe he is the older brother of Jenny Shing who was Ada's daughter in Fate Twisters. I personally think Jenny Shing is a better actress than he is, but he's not bad-looking and quite a good candidate for an actor in the future as well.

OVERVIEW

Overall, this series was one of the best of 2003. It got low average points, however, people find an excuse that it's because of SARS that people didn't watch! Well, it IS a depressing series...plus the meaning of the song is really sad (you can find a translation at TVB space) Basically, this was a very heart-moving series. If you don't like mushy-mushy stuff, you probably won't like this series because it's based on evil behind the palace, explanations of how the kingdom fell (the Ming dynasty) and although TVB changed a lot of things, it's still worth-watching.