I realised it has been exactly two months since I last posted! How time flies by. Blogging is just taking up too much of my time, that is the main reason for the intermittent posting lately. I'll try to do better from now on.
Anyway TVB have unofficially released part of their nominations list (though these could change), mainly in concern with the top awards and the "one person, one vote" system. Personally I think it is a stupid idea to award Best Actor on this basis because it just becomes a popularity contest and the majority of TV viewers are even more biased than TV execs! They should really have My Favourite Character as a popularity contest and leave the Best awards to a published and respectable jury but obviously they want to build commotion as Best Actor/Actress are the big awards of the night and Favourite is normally the "pork" award.
Anyway mini rant over, here's an overview (with commentary) on the released nominations list.
(p.s. I would have uploaded photos but my internet has been very laggy as of late so it would have delayed this post even more.)
BEST ACTOR
Wayne Lai - The Confidant
Moses Chan - The Last Steep Ascent
Kevin Cheng - Gloves Come Off
Kenneth Ma - The Hippocratic Crush
Raymond Lam - Highs and Lows
Bosco Wong - Witness Insecurity
Damian Lau - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
Roger Kwok - Queen of Diamonds and Hearts
Joe Ma - Tiger Cubs
Raymond Wong- Gloves Come Off
I have not actually watched all these series so my judgement comes with a bit of bias.
Wayne Lai is a great actor and thoroughly deserves to be recognised but as of late I feel he has been typecast into "Chai Gau" like roles. Saying that his role in The Confidant is more layered but I feel that I've seen it all before. He isn't achieving a breakthrough in his acting which warrants a third Best Actor award which would put him on par with Gallen Lo. I have only watched 6 episodes of The Confidant but I am enjoying it so I'll try to catch up. I will support him for a Top 5 nomination but at the moment it's a resounding no from me for Wayne to win it again.
Moses Chan was simply Moses Chan in the Last Steep Ascent. He did a decent job but was largely unmemorable. People felt he was wooden and "reading from the script" but I found him ok. His career has somewhat nosedived as of late, I believe, he isn't as loved anymore. However he is a mainstay in this list, speaking of which this could be his 8th consecutive nomination in the Top 5 - though he faces stiff competition if he wants to maintain that. I query whether he'll make the Top 5 as this is probably his least prolific year despite being in 4 dramas.
Kevin Cheng is overrated. I don't care what people say about Ghetto Justice he simply did not deserve a second win for that performance. I disliked his acting as "Law Ba" and I feel that people were just entranced by it because it was so different for him. But, do not get me wrong, I feel that Kevin has made a steady improvement but to label Kevin as an actor on the same level as Gallen, Louis, Wayne and to some extent Roger is a travesty. Anyway back on topic he did a decent job in Gloves Come Off for the vast majority of the drama and it was in contention to be my favourite drama until the last few episodes kicked in and it just became TVB drool. I definitely expected Kevin to be here and arguably he deserves it but to win would just kill me.
Kenneth Ma has had a breakthrough year. To be honest he should have got that from A Fistful of Stances. His performance in The Hippocratic Crush was good, he really became his character and led the series well. Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed the series I do feel it has received excessive hype. However I think Kenneth should definitely be a frontrunner for the award whatever happens though I will explain later why I think he shouldn't win this year.
Raymond Lam was much better in Highs and Lows. In fact he is my favourite for this award this year. He is still my favourite siusang in TVB but his recent roles have been so typecast it's unbelievable. I'm glad he now has more choice in picking his roles as he's doing one series a year but then I wished he filmed more. He is also next in line for this award I believe. He has been nominated since 2002 so it really is his time to take it. I say this simply because TVB has always worked this way - you build up experience before you achieve anything so to suddenly crown say Kenneth Ma or Bosco Wong before Raymond would be so wrong because Raymond has built up a stronger portfolio than the other two. Kenneth, who got a huge following after THC should not win because this would be his first Top 5 nomination. Which harks back to my "building experience" logic. Only Wayne Lai and Roger Kwok with their huge roles as "Chai Gau" and "Ah Wong" could justify winning on their first nomination. Kenneth's role simply isn't big enough it would be almost like when Kevin won out of the blue in 2006 where he was also nominated for Most Improved! Arguably I would have liked Raymond to win for a bigger drama but with this years competition he really should win. And because of the one person one vote thing people expect him to win, which is really a double edge sword because people think he's winning simply because he has the biggest fanbase rather than actual ability. I just hope he actually does win because it'd be a real blow if he didn't, with all the hype.
Bosco Wong only has Witness Insecurity in his portfolio this year, which I haven't seen, so it's a bit difficult to judge. But WI is still the top drama of the year so Bosco does have some clout coming with the nomination. However, from the snippets I saw of the drama, I don't think it was a sufficient performance to win this. His performance in Lives of Omission was much more captivating. It's a shame that I've heard Bosco considering leaving TVB because he looked like he was starting to gain some traction until his quite public split from Myolie Wu which looks to have hurt his career in TVB quite a lot.
Damian Lau is nominated for his very eye-catching role in Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles. I've only seen a few episodes of it but he looks like a worthy contender. I didn't use to like Damian but he really has grown on me with his last few performances i.e. Catch Me Now, The Rippling Blossom and Lives of Omission. Obviously he deserves to win but what use is it to TVB if Damian wins? Damian isn't asking for an award like Ha Yu did nor does he really need it so the there's no gain for TVB by giving it to Damian, that's just business. It's not like Damian is a biological son nor will he suddenly get more offers for roles from other countries so with the likes of Raymond and Kenneth in line Damian will probably be scoffed. Though a Top 5 nomination is way overdue.
Roger Kwok in Queens of Diamonds and Hearts. Come on now, we all know Roger is no longer favoured by TVB and he's only nominated to bring more "prestige" and to a certain extent fill the gap. I have not watched the series but it didn't seem to gain much traction when it aired so I'd almost argue that Roger should not be in this because he's simply not going to get a lot of votes. I have never been a fan of Roger but I don't think he will be in contention at all.
Joe Ma has had a tough year and a half, like many of TVB's "young" actors. It's like TVB has been defending it's crop of actors one by one since the start of the year. I still haven't finished watching Tiger Cubs but I do like it and Joe Ma does a good job here. If we are really going in line technically Joe Ma should win it before Raymond but his "peak" days have gone by already which is a shame because I think he's a decent actor.
Raymond Wong's nomination is quite refreshing. I liked him a lot in Gloves Come Off until the aforementioned drool that occurred late into the series. He will unlikely make the Top 5 but he is obviously a potential "next in line" candidate in a few years to come.
Top 5 Prediction: Wayne Lai, Kevin Cheng, Kenneth Ma, Raymond Lam, Bosco Wong (Darkhorse Damian Lau)
I think the 5th spot is between Kevin and Damian. It depends if Silver Spoon Sterling Shackles gains a bigger fanbase.
My 5: Wayne Lai, Kenneth Ma, Raymond Lam, Damian Lau, Joe Ma
Why are they not theres?
The only glaring omission is Michael Miu. He has had a good year I believe and Highs and Lows should have been enough to take him to the Top 10 over say Roger Kwok.
To a much lesser extent I was expecting Ruco as TVB seem to be pushing him up with him supposedly leading the grand production "Big Wheel", which I must say sounds the least grand out of any grand productions as of late with Louise Lee the only real big name in it. But with 3 other dramas in line to be aired, 2013 should be a big year for him.
Best Actress
Michelle Yim - The Confidant
Charmaine Sheh - When Heaven Burns
Myolie Wu - Ghetto Justice 2
Tavia Yeung - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
Fala Chen - Queens of Diamonds and Hearts
Linda Chung - Witness Insecurity
Kate Tsui - Highs and Lows
Aimee Chan - The Last Steep Ascent
Liza Wang - Divas in Distress
Niki Chow - Bottled Passion
Michelle Yim will forever be my favourite actress. She played my favourite character in my childhood "Ching Yu Chu" in Mind Our Own Business which I still can't wait to watch the full marathon of. I haven't seen enough of The Confidant to fully support Michelle for this award yet but I believe she is doing a good job as of now and a 2nd award isn't all too extreme. However I'm not sure she'll get it. I know it's one person one vote but my inkling is that Kate or Tavia will win this.
Charmaine Sheh was a huge question mark for these nominations because she was supposedly no longer in favour because of her change in contract. I haven't seen much of When Heaven Burns but from feedback she did a good job, though not enough to warrant her a second win. I'm just amused how Charmaine has suddenly become the "best" actress, from what a lot of her fans seem to think, because she isn't amazing. She has had some great performances I give her that but she is not a sure-win at all.
Myolie Wu won last year and that was really the start of the new era where the new century stars were beginning to receive the top accolade (see how my building experience logic comes back). However whoever believes Myolie will win this year are clearly mistaken. Yes she will have a strong following and she did well in GJ2 but to think Myolie could do a double is really absurd. I love Myolie and she really did deserve her win from the nominees last year but if we're really talking about who should be "next in line" for their "service" to TVB it should be the woman below.
Tavia Yeung started off the year with the well received character "Yu Jai" in The Hippocratic Crush, however she has been nominated for SSSS instead. I believe Tavia should be the one to win it next out of the nominees because she really does deserve it more than the other young contenders. It's a shame how people are now more fixated with the size of her nose than her acting as I don't find it annoying. I don't care if she has had a nose job, what should that matter, what people should remember is that Tavia has had great roles before such as Sau-ning in Twins of Brothers, Tam Chu-mei in Dicey Business, Ho Yuet in Moonlight Resonance and Yiu Kam ling in Beyond the Realm of Conscience. Sadly audiences seem to have forgotten this and her career has taken a turn for the worse since 08-09.
Fala Chen has had an unremarkable year which is probably a first for her since her meteoric rise to stardom. However with the other four fadans nominated TVB couldn't really snuff her. But she doesn't need to worry though as I believe 2013 should be her year and maybe even a Myolie repeat!
Linda Chung comes with the highly rated Witness Insecurity but her role hasn't really gained her much traction, if TVB was willing to let her go without an award last year I don't see how she's going to win the Best Actress award this year, maybe a Favourite Character award but not the best. I really should have a look at Witness Insecurity though since it was the highest rated drama but from a few episodes I watched it really didn't spark interest and Hong Kong audience have weird taste anyway.
Kate Tsui is the favourite along with Tavia. I like her as Pat in Highs and Lows but whether that's enough for her to win this award is questionable. Firstly she is nowhere near ready for this award and secondly I still don't believe it was a good enough performance to leapfrog Tavia, maybe on par but not exceeding. Kate has for a very long time been last on the list for TVB's 5 new fadans so taking it ahead of Tavia (and even Linda) would be quite odd. I would argue that 2011 was a better year for Kate.
Aimee Chan! Come on what! I have never disliked Aimee, in fact I was one of few who even supported her since her Burning Flame days but to put Aimee here is absurd. She is really the unofficial "6th fadan". People said her performance in The Last Steep Ascent was her best but I still did not find it "Best" worthy. An ok job but nothing great and how was her role leading? Nominating her is just a kick up the backside to Selena Li, Kristal Tin and even Maggie Shiu, Gigi Wong, Natalie Tong! The list goes on. Sorry but if TVB continues to over-promote her she will be the most hated artiste, if she isn't already.
Liza Wang as always is given a nomination. Her performance was ok, not her best yet not her worst. Obviously she'll not be in the running for this year but she's a respected filler like Damian Lau is.
Niki Chow is a pleasant surprise in the list. Whilst I'm not the biggest fan of Niki it's nice to see some variation in the nominations considering how the media made it into a big thing how Niki didn't sign as a biological daughter. This role garnered her a lot of fans earlier in the year but I wonder if it will be enough to secure her a spot.
Top 5 prediction: Michelle Yim, Myolie Wu, Tavia Yeung, Linda Chung ,Kate Tsui (Dark Horse Charmaine Sheh) ooh only Fala will be missing then!
My Top 5: Michelle Yim, Tavia Yeung, Kate Tsui, and for completions sake I'll give Charmaine and Linda the other two spots since their dramas were the most talked about out of the rest.
Why are they not there?
With Aimee in the fold I question the exclusion of Selena and Kristal, both much worthier choices. And then if we're simply trying to add more clout to the awards then Jessica should have been a consideration.
My Favourite TV Male Character
Kevin Cheng - Ghetto Justice 2
Moses Chan - The Last Steep Ascent
Wayne Lai - The Confidant
Raymond Lam - Highs and Lows
Kenneth Ma - The Hippocratic Crush
Bosco Wong - Witness Insecurity
Bobby Au Yeung - House of Harmony and Vengeance
Michael Miu - Highs and Lows
Raymond Wong - The Confidant
Damian Lau - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
This is rather funny as besides Bobby and Michael this is the same list of actors as the Best Actor category with a few changes in dramas. I think this is Kenneth's or Wayne's as long as Raymond wins the Best Actor, if not then its Raymond's - again!
My Favourite TV Female Character
Michelle Yim - The Confidant
Charmaine Sheh - When Heaven Burns
Myolie Wu - Ghetto Justice 2
Krystal Tin - King Maker
Tavia Yeung - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
Tavia Yeung - The Hippocratic Crush
Kate Tsui - Highs and Lows
Fala Chen - Queens of Diamonds and Hearts
Eliza Sam - Divas in Distress
Niki Chow - Bottled Passion
Firstly I'm shocked TVB excluded Linda from this list, it's like they really don't want to give her anything! Yet put Fala here despite her very low key year. And then Eliza! erm really? She had a lot of positive feedback but she definitely does not deserve to be here among these names. I'm shocked Eliza's here when not even Mandy's role in L'Escargot is mentioned! And Nancy's in Gloves Come Off. And wow at Tavia getting two!
I'm lamenting how Selena Li isn't even mentioned anywhere. I don't understand why she only took on 5 episodes of The Confidant as she was doing so well there and next year doesn't seem to be great for her either.
Most Improved Male Character
King Kong
Him Law
Edwin Siu
Oscar Leung
Vincent Wong
Is it just me who doesn't know what King Kong has been in drama wise this year? Anyway I would have thought it'd make more sense to push Jason a bit since he's already going to lead a series soon.
Him Law is my choice for the award but his chances are dwindling with every passing day. He is the most memorable out of these 5 this year but as he's not signed with TVB and doesn't seem to have many future TVB series his chances are slim.
Edwin Siu is the hot favourite this year and since he's going to lead in a grand production soon I guess it makes sense for him to win. Up to now I'm not in full support for him but The Confidant might just change that as I find him quite good there.
Oscar has also been one of my favourites for a long time but it seems like he is not being pushed next year in comparison to Edwin so even though he's Tommy Leung's favourite (whilst Edwin is Catherine Tsang's) I think Edwin has the stronger shot.
Vincent Wong is also one of my favourites. Surprisingly this is his first year in this! He is however only there to fill the spot I believe.
If Benjamin Yuen or Sammy Shum were in this it'd be perfect.
Most Improved Female Actress
Mandy Wong
Eliza Sam
Christine Kuo
Katy Kung
Cilla Kung
Whoever believes this award should be anyone's besides Mandy's should be shot! She is the only legitimate choice here and the others pale in comparison to her in terms of performance and exposure.
Eliza is supposedly a hot contender but if she wins she'll be on her way to becoming the next Aimee. She needs more experience.
Christine should not be here because she hasn't improved. She is by far the prettiest here but in terms of acting talent she is as good as a plank of wood! I have never liked her acting and at her rate of progression I never will.
Katy Kung is probably the only one I would consider here to take it over Mandy and even that is a stretch. She is typecast into these annoying roles which do not give the audience a good impression of her.
Cilla Kung will never be a favourite of mine, she just annoys me.
This is a weak group and if anyone besides Mandy wins I'll cry foul. A better list would include Queenie Chu, Yoyo Chen, Samantha Ko and even JJ Jia!
Expect next years list to be Rebecca Zhu, Lin Xia Wei, Christine Kuo, Eliza Sam and Priscilla Wong (maybe even a repeat appearance from Cilla Kung and maybe JJ Jia).
Best Supporting Actor
Power Chan - The Conifdant
Koo Ming Wah - Divas in Distress
Oscar Leung - L'Escargot
Elliot Ngok - The Confidant
Vincent Wong - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
Alex Lam - Ghetto Justice 2
Kenny Wong - The Last Steep Ascent
Ram Tseung - Witness Insecurity
Him Law - The Hippocratic Crush
Edwin Siu - Daddy Good Deeds
This is quite an interesting list and in my opinion there are no frontrunners.
Power Chan has been a favourite of mine and despite a few naff roles he has generally been a great supporting character. 2012 wasn't looking great for him, with a very annoying character in Gloves Comes Off - annoying in the sense that his character was just written badly rather than a good annoying. But his fate changed since the airing of The Conifdant, from the first few episodes I've seen he already deserves this accolade.
Koo Ming Wah was the overwhelming favourite for this award and I guess I wouldn't be shocked if he did win it since he gained so much support but I honestly did not find him that amazing. Yes he was good and very comical in Divas in Distress but whether his performance should garner him such support is questionable. I would support him but I'm just not sold like the others. Part of me just believes that he gained the support because he was literally a "ker ler fer" who suddenly gained attention from a role sparking netizens to criticise TVB for not supporting the green leafs.
Oscar Leung is a good choice I believe but he faces competition from fellow Most Improved nominees Vincent, Him and Edwin. If either of them win this and not win Most Improved it'd be rather odd, though it's not like TVB hasn't done this before.
Elliot Ngok must have been nominated a gazillion times right? In turns out he's only been in the Top 5 once. It'd be interesting to see if TVB favour the oldies or the newbies with this years Top 5 as it is clearly split half half in terms of old and new.
Vincent Wong has been quite memorable in SSSS but I'm still not sure because I've only watched a few episodes. However from what I've seen I like him.
Alex Lam is a good actor and Ghetto Justice is one of his best performances. He deserves the recognition but this is quite a strong field.
Kenny Wong, not sure I'm not yet sold with Kenny's acting though it does mean we have a former winner in the lineup.
Ram Tseung is one of those actors who people love but don't really get much attention. I'm on two sides with him, he tends to overact but stay stiff (if that makes sense) and I wasn't overly fond of the Paul Chun/Ram Tseung duo from about two episodes I saw of WI but maybe he'll make the Top 5.
Him Law was a favourite of mine in The Hippocratic Crush and I thoroughly enjoyed watching his series this year but to win this award might be a push too far.
Edwin Siu should be nominated for the Confidant but I guess there's already Power and Elliot holding up the line there. I'm really curious whether TVB would award Edwin this instead and give the Most Improved to Him or Oscar!
Top 5 Prediction (as usual the supporting list is much harder to predict)
Power Chan, Koo Ming Wah, Kenny Wong and... I can't decide between 2 of the 4 Most Improved guys. (Dark Horse Alex Lam)
My Top 5
Power, Koo Ming Wah, Vincent, Alex, Him
quite shocked not to see Ben Wong and maybe Raymond Cho.
Best Supporting Actress
Mandy Wong - L'Escargot
Rachel Kan - Master of Play
Mary Hon - Three Kingdom RPG
Florence Kwok - King Maker
Law Lan - The Last Steep Ascent
Christine Kuo - Ghetto Justice 2
Nancy Wu - Gloves Come Off
Elena Kong - Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles
Eliza Sam - Divas in Distress
Aimee Chan - The Confidant
This list makes me both excited and sick as this could be an amazing winner or the worst choice ever!
Mandy is definitely a good enough choice to place both in Most Improved and Best Supporting but how are we even considering Christine and Eliza!
Rachel Kan is a pleasant surprise though her chances of winning are near zilch. I've supported Rachel for a long time so its great to see her gaining traction - though she only seems to be in Lau Kar Ho stuff.
Mary Hon is a great choice for best supporting. I love Mary and would love for her to make the Top 5.
Florence Kwok is another underrated actress who would be an amazing choice for the win but I doubt TVB will give it to her.
Law Lan was so good in The Last Steep Ascent. I just love Law Lan in whatever she does! She is such a versatile actress and a real gem in terms of green leaf artistes.
Christine Kuo! From Law Lan to Christine, possibly the biggest leap in ability ever. I don't hate Christine I just think her nomination is even more premature than Aimee's.
Nancy is one of my favourites for this award because I simply loved her in GCO. Her portrayal of the mute girl was very on point and such an underrated character. She has always had late surges to the awards so maybe this would be the time when she gets it (with The Confidant at her disposal though).
Elena Kong has been shut out one time too many, its great she is nominated here and she might even have a shout depending on how well SSSS performs.
Eliza Sam... I just want to clarify I don't dislike Eliza but being nominated here on her first main character trumps all her predecessors - even Christine! moving on
Aimee Chan is nominated again! Whilst I can stomach a Best Supporting Actress I just find it annoying how she can traverse two nominations lists!
Top 5 Prediction
Mandy, Nancy, Elena, Aimee maybe Mary or Florence (Dark Horse, I don't want to say this but Eliza)
My Top 5
Mary, Florence, Law Lan, Nancy, Elena (a close 6th Mandy)
Actresses who are always forgotten Joyce Tang, Elaine Yiu, Rebecca Chan, Angela Tong, Kingdom Yuen, Ella Koon. I don't know how many times I've been disappointed not to see Joyce Tang in the listt, though it hasn't been a great year for her she surely did better than Christine! Elaine is also a favourite of mine who is never considered along with Angela. And I do really like Ella so I hope she films more despite her career move to Warrner - which probably means bye bye to her for now.
So a recap my current prediction is
Best Actor: Raymond Lam
Best Actress: Tavia Yeung
Favourite Male: Kenneth Ma/Wayne Lai
Favourite Female: Kate Tsui
Most Improved Male: Edwin Siu
Most Improved Female: Mandy Wong
Best Supporting Actor: Power Chan (A risky choice)
Best Supporting Actress: Nancy Wu (though this is by a very thin margin over Elena)
This list would truly be an ushering in of the new
My Choice
Best Actor: Raymond Lam
Best Actress: Tavia Yeung
Favourite Male: Kenneth Ma
Favourite Female: Michelle Yim
Most Improved Male: Him Law
Most Improved Female: Mandy Wong
Best Supporting Actor: Power Chan
Best Supporting Actress: Law Lan (though I'd be over the moon if Nancy does get this)
Just to clarify I believe Michelle probably deserves Best Actress solely based on acting but I think with all factors taken into consideration Tavia should get it.
