The Rippling Blossom (TVB 2011)
The Rippling Blossom – <魚躍在花見>
Number of Episodes: 20
Cast
Julian Cheung as Yue Chi Ying
Michael Tse as Yue Chi Hiu
Myolie Wu as Keung Keung
Tavia Yeung as Choi Sze Lung
Damian Lau as Mo Yung Ching
Pierre Ngo as Yue Chi Bo
Summary (May contain spoilers. Read at your own risk!!)
Yue Chi Hiu’s father owned a sushi restaurant and he has always been very good at making sushi. However, his father’s first wife disliked both Hui and his brother Ying. Thus the two brothers often face many different obstacles. The first wife decides to set a challenge for Hiu and in order to obtain the best ingredients for the competition, Ying had to go to Japan. During his trip, he came across Keung Keung (Myolie Wu) and a man called Mo Yung Ching who is an expert on fish. However, Hiu lost the competition because Sze Lung (Tavia Yeung) who was the first wife’s nurse, was sent to distract Michael and cause trouble. As a result, they lost the restaurant.
In order to obtain their restaurant back, Hiu must enter another competition. However, during an accident, he broke his arm and was therefore not able to compete. His brother Ying competed on his behalf with the help of Mo Yung Ching and Keung Keung. Ying won the competition which made Hui envy him and begin to seek revenge against his brother.
Keung Keung was actually Mo Yung Ching’s long lost daughter. When Keung Keung eventually found out, she could not accept the truth and refused to call him “dad.” Keung and Ying begin to develop feelings for each other. They start dating.
On the other hand, Sze Lung felt guilty for betraying Hiu and they start falling for each other again.
Hui tried to prove that he was better than his brother and wanted to compete against him. He started a competition against Ying. Ying lost the competition and became totally deflated. With the help and encouragement of Keung Keung, he was able to gain his confidence back and worked towards making good sushi. However, Hui spread a rumor that Ying was using fish that could make people ill. This had ruined Ying’s reputation and affected his confidence again. Hui discovered that Sze Long was the most important thing to him and he did not want to lose her. He decided that everything he did was pointless. The two brothers reconciled once again but Hui wanted to have one last competition with Ying. Ying accepted the challenge and in the end Ying won the competition. However, during the competition, Keung Keung was in a car accident and lost her memory. She forgot who Ying was until the very end, her memories returned when she ate a sushi.
Comments:
Overall I thought that this series was a bit like those holiday programmes with a storyline line. The series was set in Hong Kong and Japan. Not only did it provide a lot of information on Sushi and fish, it also provided a lot of information on the different kinds of fish and how to make good sushi. Basically, watching this programme made my mouth water constantly and I envied the cast for getting to film this series and eating so much stuff!!! I have noticed that many of the actors and actresses in this series have gained some weight. I do not blame them since the food does look very good. However, I did not think this series was amazingly great and did not watch every single episode. There were certain funny parts and I think that Julian did a brilliant job in this series. His chemistry with Myolie was brilliant. I also enjoyed watching Michael Tse play a villain sort of role. However, I still think that there is an element of “Laughing” in his roles again. I am not sure if this is a typical Michael Tse style of acting that has always been around, but I seem to notice it more now.
The setting of this series was very beautiful. I think they have captured the best part of Japan. The scenes from Japan are great and the snow made it a much more romantic film to watch.
Overall: 
This series was not that great but I would definitely give it a go if you like Julian Cheung since he is the highlight of the series and does not film many TVB series. The storylines were very lame and would just make you hungry!! It is like a travel programme or documentary on sushi and sashimi. If you are interest
Review written by Colly, a JayneStars.com contributing writer.
I totally agree with you it was more like a food special than a drama. But Julian’s and Myolie’s chemistry was really good. They were really funny at some points too. Lol xD
The storyline looks very formulaic
– Brotherly feud. Main character being the nice brother.
– Lose memory
– Learning to make good food from a sifu in an OTT way.
– Chirpy happy go lucky girl
– child cannot accept a parent due to some reason
– long lost parent/child
Sometimes in entertainment it takes a “tried-and-true” formula to make audience enjoy. Not many audience want to think too much and most just want to enjoy the drama. Why else would K-dramas and TW dramas are so popular? 😀
This is why new-formula or parody base series always get mediocre results(7 Days In Life, Fly With Me).
As for The Rippling Blossom, I enjoyed Chilam’s pretty face and cute character, and enjoyed watching Damian Lau losing himself and for once don’t become so serious
I also need to praise the cinematography, lighting and location aspect for the drama.
Ironically ‘7 Days in Life’ and ‘Fly With Me’ are 2 of the recent series I enjoyed very much. 🙂
Another unpopular series I enjoyed is ‘Life Begins At Forty’.
I enjoy 7DOL and Life begins at forty but FWM is not my cup of tea. It’s too gross
@Kidd –
Loved 7Days but hated FWM.
This is a series not many loved but I sure did =)
7 days in life was ok, the scenes with Steven Ma and Sonija Kwok were boring.
Fly with me was ok too.
Yes, Julian performance is brilliant in the series. Myolie is also good and I love the scenery.
The storyline is very cliche indeed, but the cast like Chilam and the pairings are a worth to watch.
Have anyone else noticed something is different about the poster? Myolie is on the same side as Michael, while Chilam is with Tavia.. but on the show they are soo.. opposite, usually it’s the other way around where the pair in the show will appear on the same side of the poster 😛 Just wanted to point that out. Seems kind of strange how Michael and Myolie barely even have that much face to face screen time.
I am just very shocked to see Myolie having to wear so much make up! The camera was right up close and the amount of powder on her face… she is a pretty girl, she didn’t need that.
And the typecasting in this series is terrible. Anyway take away the sushi it is run of the mill.
But you can see the trends for the ladies; short hair and I must say they look rather good.
I think Myolie always looked better in short hair. Short hair suits her more than long hair. she is one of those actresses that suits short hair very well.
The ending was bad.
After I finished watching the whole series, I felt that it is quite bad lol. The characters were interesting at first, but after that the storyline is bad and editing is so bad. And yes, the ending was horrible.
Now I wonder why I wasted my time.
My favorite part of the series was the random animation clips. They were quite funny.
Myolie’s character wasn’t as annoying as I had expected, and yes, she’s great with Chilam.
Chilam’s hot as usual, and executed the jokes well. Might have been lame if someone else said the same lines. Maybe I’m just biased ;p
Michael Tse – what’s with that pissed off look all the time? I felt he could have been much better.
Tavia – No comments. She’s one of those “no comment” actress, somehow I always feel that I have nothing to complain against/praise her. The acting’s there, she looks fine, but I wouldn’t take the time to download a series just to watch her.
Damien Lau – Quite refreshing to see him act cute. For once, he’s not the rich old master of the family.
Pierre Ngo – He’s perfect for his role. Seriously, I think he’s a fantastic actor. He just needs to talk less, appear humble and he will make it big.
I like the series overall, though I have to admit I only watched Chi Lam’s parts and the very beginning of each episode for the theme song. And I minimized my window whenever they talk sushi. And I skipped several episodes. It’s a great series to play in the background while you work!
Yeah – I like Pierre on screen but hate him elsewhere.
He’s one of those artist I hate to love.
Michael Tse is pretending to have the ‘chok’ look.
@moonriver
Although I only watched the first 5 episodes of this series I totally agree with you on the point about Tavia Yeung for all her other performances. She’s been an actress that always delivers competently but never makes you feel she shines in a particular series. I wonder why that is… her acting is surely at that game level.
Pierre Ngo was painful to watch.
I enjoyed this drama and there’s nothing wrong with using the same old recipe if it works. Myolie was really good and I don’t think she wore that much makeup, except for the heavy dark eye makeup. She looked smashing in this and I’m sure it was her who started this short hair trend.
Michael Tse was enjoyable to watch but I couldn’t help noticing how weird his nose looked.
Was Tavia even in this drama? Her acting is not worth a mention in this
Was she (Tavia) that bad? What is it about her that makes me people not like her? I think she did a great job considering the limited screen time she gets in the serie and yet have to portray her character as written by the script writer.
Well, she’s not bad… Just seems like nothing special compared to her other series. Her acting is so good/natural that in most series that she acts in, she is just herself. Nothing crazyyy. you know what i mean?
yeah – in other words, boring and not versatile.
scenes were weep weep, o i still love u, weep weep, mad at u, weep weep, i love u back now.
@ Pandamao: your comment is funny
@pandamao
LOOL, i laughed at that.
Ok, I see what you mean and I do agree to a certain extend. I blame it on the script bc lately, it seems like she has been given a lot of dark role, always with tears. If the scrip ask you to cry, what are you to do, laugh. LOL
I thought the series was worth a watch. I mean, as long as a series enthralls you all the way until the end deserves at least a pass. I can never say I hated or disliked a series if I actually finished watching it.
I really liked Chilam’s character in this drama, and basically all the humour revolves around him and Myolie. It was great that even though the humour is present, there’s Tavia and Michael contributing to the dark side of love. It gives the drama a sort of contrast, and you can feel the mood change. I do have to say that the relationship between Tavia and Michael was kind of unique, not those that are typically present in other dramas. On the other hand, Myolie and Chilam’s relationship was expected.
The ending was like a piece of puzzle that didn’t fit. I thought it was way too rushed, with everything happening in one episode. It would be better if there was no drastic change in the storyline. Myolie losing her memory after getting crashed by a car, then remembering everything again and getting married. Like, seriously? In just a few
minutes of time? It seems like all the problems in the drama were solved too early. So early that there seems to be nothing to broadcast in the last episode that they had to stick all those epic things in it, just to get an ending. But then again, it is a drama, so obviously things aren’t real. So as long as it’s entertaining, it did it’s job.
In overall, I liked the drama. It kept me entertained and I actually looked forward to something for the past few weeks. And I do have to say, it sure does some advertising for sushi !
Wasn’t this series a copy of the Japanese drama awhile back?
Watching this now, bits of it here and there. My review was “Meh, couldn’t keep me interested”. Hard to watch for some reason.
I kinda loved this series. It was very cute with lots of funny moments and it always made me crave sushi. XD
I watched up to episode 7 of “The Rippling Blossom” and aside from Chilam, I find little reason to continue watching this series. I think the ratings for this series is high (averaging 34 points in the finale and peaking at 38 points) thanks to Chilam. Gone from the TVB scene for many years, many fans missed him. Although I complained earlier that he is a little too old to be acting an lazy sunshine character, Chilam’s acting suited the role well. He is fun to watch and he probably modified the script a bit to include his own jokes.
Based on Colly’s plot description, many overly used plot devices are indeed present. Why did Myolie have to suffer amnesia? Was the purpose to just separate her from Chilam for a few episodes and increase the drama of the ending?
The plot is nothing special and even TVB acknowledged this, since they marketed the series as “Beautiful cast, beautiful scenery.” Is that enough reason to watch? Yes and for the quirky dialogue.
I found Michael Tse’s character to be annoying, due mainly to his continuous “chok” expression. The man looked so tense in every scene!
I also thought Lo Yuen Yan(as the 1st wife) overacted and was a poor protagonist.
Every TVB food series has to incorporate countless culinary competitions, yet the excitement in “The Rippling Blossom’s” food contests draw little excitement and perhaps this is due to the steps involved in sushi preparation. How much excitement can be generated through slicing fish and the sushi assembly? Without fire, wok throwing, and other fancy cooking involved, the sushi competitions were lame to watch in “The Rippling Blossom.” The contests fail to produce mouth-watering creations found on the original Japanese “Iron Chef.”
The ratings are so biased usually, and these type of series usually get high ratings too because it’s like a suitable show for families and children to watch. Whereas shows like No Regrets that is so violent didn’t quite get that high ratings at the beginning.
The only thing I look forward to in the show is not even the storyline at all or any of the competitions, I just wanted to watch Chilam and Myolie. I also hate how they were mainly only dealing with fish sushi which just makes people think is that the only type of sushi? WHO WANTS TO WATCH ABOUT FISH ALL THE TIME? And fish catching and fish slicing? There was wayy too much of those. So boring.
@ Star
So, they really only make fish sushi and nothing else? No Unagi?
Eel is also fish ah….
@ Danielle
So, do they make any unagi sushi in the series?
@Kidd:
They made anago sushi (salt-water eels). There was a whole contest dedicated to eel sushi (fishing for them, preparation, sauces, etc.).
There were also brief moments where they talked about squid sushi, udon noodle making, preparation of the rice, wasabi, egg sushi, soy sauce making, etc.
@Jayne, what does it mean to look “chok”? Is that similiar to looking cool?
Jayzemine, “chok yueng” is derived from “choke. It’s a Cantonese slang for a guy who always tries to look cool, thus making other people “choke” or gag upon his expression.
The press always makes fun of Raymond Lam having a “chok yeung.” Michael Tse looks a little ridiculous in his “chok” expression since he has a permanent frown and intense eyes throughout “The Rippling Blossom.”
A fun video from Youtube explaining the slang expression. It’ll be clear once you watch it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-CfO16o6T0
@ Jayne
Thanks for the link. The guy is funny. 😀
I look at Micheal Tse and all I can think of is pissed off. He looks like he has a permanent scowl on his face.
Agree with all your points, Jayne.
Imagine I sat through all episodes :X But then I watch almost every TVB series unless it’s abysmally bad (like Flying With me, Links to Temptations, In the Eye of the Beholder etc)
About Lo Yeun Yan, do you mean antagonist? 😛
Yeah, I thought she overreacted as well.
LOL-thanks for the link Jayne. My godness, than that wouldn’t be a compliment to Raymond, more like an insult LOL. Agreed, Micheal does looked more stressed in RB than “Chok” LOL
Watched it 100% for Chilam and the food~
I Absolutely Love him and his acting is amazing~
Chi Lam and Myolie and I were superb in the film and it was a joy to watch how compatible they in each other’s company. I’ve always liked Chi Lam with his engaging, boyish looks and dippled face. Just wonder if he’d do well, say, in a Ching period series with a bald look. As for Myolie, I think she’s definitely improved in her acting. She’s more matured than when I first noticed her. ;Besides, I like her facial expressions as she seems very focused in what she says and does. As for Michael Tse, I’mj afraied he’s just not my cup of tea but I enjoy his dancing though. Since her achievment in the Realms of Conscience Tavia is beginning to move up and improve where her acting is concerned. Damian was good. As fo;r the sushi making, I didnt mind mind all the lectures on the whats and whys and hows as I love eating sushi!
Sorry, I meant just “Chi Lam and Myolie” in the first sentence.
Do you know what’s that name of the song when it played on Michael Tse’s iPod and Tavia said that it was her favorite song in the movie?
The song’s title is – Because you loved me originally sang by Celine Dion if not mistaken. Not sure who sang the song in the series though
Oh that Robert Redford/Michelle Pfeiffer tearjerker? I think the song won an oscar.
Hi there 🙂 Does anyone knows that funny or dramatic song played in the background ??? 🙂
I love chilam<3 this movie was awesome!
So glad that I’ve decided to give this series a chance. Its an awesome series. I only fast forward Tavia/Michael scene. Boring!
truthfully i wanted to watch this series cause of Julian “chilam” & my love of “Sashimi”! so yah overall this movie wasnt that great.