Look Back at the Decade: Best TVB Dramas of 2010's!
Hello everyone,
We have a small surprise for you before this year comes to an end!
As the decade is coming to an end, we would like to talk about some of our top dramas in the past decade! Can’t believe it’s been another 10 times the Earth has passed around the Sun :) Our blog started in 2015, and we are so thankful for having this platform to share our thoughts and opinions about HK Entertainment within this decade. Thank you for always supporting us and letting us know about your thoughts.
For clarification, the dramas that broadcast between 2 years (Dec-Jan) are counted as dramas from the previous year of December.
First things first, we were curious to see the trend in dramas we have seen over the years so we ran some stats on it. It was no surprise to us that there has been a decline in dramas that we are watching over the decade. You may notice that the total # of dramas (sum of 3 lines) has also declined because now they are broadcasting more Mainland dramas that take up months to air (The Story of Yanxi Palace with 70 episodes, etc.).
In addition, we have also increased the # of dramas we don’t even bother trying to watch. This is in part due to our busy lives and the ease of streaming TV shows anywhere now. The 2010’s brought us streaming services such as Netflix, and now there is Amazon Prime, Apple+ TV, and DisneyPlus as well that are all competing in this huge market. This is why TVB launched myTVSuper a couple years back, but we aren’t sure if it ever amounted to much success. We have been watching more dramas from these other streaming services as well as some Mainland, Korean and Japanese dramas here and there.
What interests viewers is also changing. There is more emphasis on everyday stories that you and I would relate to. In fact, we see the appeal of dramas such as Lo and Behold and Wonder Women that aired this year because of their down to earth topics. As entertaining as the action packed cop shows are, they’re getting repetitive and viewers aren’t left with lasting impressions of them. This is why there is a shift to looking into the bureaucracy behind everything (The Defected, 2019)—at least that’s our two cents. We think there is a thirst for knowledge of what happens behind the glory of professionals (doctors, lawyers, etc.) and we want to humanize these characters to make them believable. We’re curious to know what changes you have noticed this past decade in HK TV Shows.
We did not count HKTV dramas into the graph because they stopped filming and releasing dramas. However, we did watch a couple of them and enjoyed them in 2014. It was nice to see diversity in this small industry, but too bad they did not continue on.
2010
No Regrets (巾幗梟雄之義海豪情) - One of the best dramas in the entire decade. Sheren played the complex Miss. Kau (九姑娘) beautifully, coming from a triad background and having a tough exterior to gradually showing her vulnerability to Wayne’s Lau Sing. We distinctly remember the amazing performances of Evergreen Mak and Pierre Ngo and their dynamic in the police team. The plot was suspenseful and full of twists.
A Fistful of Stances (鐵馬尋橋)- One of our all time favourite TVB dramas because it touches upon everything. From the importance of family and brotherhood, to martial arts action scenes, and an element of mystery. Of course there is good comedy and great acting, especially from the veterans.
A Fistful of Stances (鐵馬尋橋)- One of our all time favourite TVB dramas because it touches upon everything. From the importance of family and brotherhood, to martial arts action scenes, and an element of mystery. Of course there is good comedy and great acting, especially from the veterans.
Can’t Buy Me Love (公主嫁到) - This drama was funny with its talented ensemble cast. The dialogue was witty and it’s probably one of the only ancient series we’ve enjoyed in recent times. We do not recommend watching the 3rd one Deep in the Realm of Conscience though because it was a huge flop.
2011
Yes, Sir. Sorry, Sir! (點解阿Sir係阿Sir) - A comedic drama featuring good performances from Moses Chan, Tavia Yeung, Ron Ng, and Linda Chung (though she was mediocre) set in a low ranked high school. Hard to find a simple drama like this nowadays.
Ghetto Justice (怒火街頭) - This drama brought Kevin Cheng and Myolie Wu to a new light and showed their versatile acting abilities. It also demanded justice for the less fortunate in a biased society where the rich have the best resources to win lawsuits.
2012
The Hippocratic Crush (On Call 36小時) - An amazing drama of newcomers headed by Kenneth Ma and Tavia Yeung in a medical setting. This showed the realities of studying medicine and becoming a successful doctor with detailed surgical operation scenes.
Highs and Lows (雷霆掃毒) - Another crime thriller showing the entanglement of the Narcotics Bureau Operation Unit and drug dealers. It seemed like TVB really had a knack for making good crime dramas at this time.
2013
Brother’s Keeper (巨輪) - This drama was great for showing important events throughout 1980-2013 in Hong Kong and Macau as told by two brothers that grew up in different environments.
2014
Line Walker (使徒行者) - An intense drama about the complexities of leading life as an undercover with stellar performances from everyone. This drama was so successful that films and sequels were made from the original story. It created lasting characters such as Benz Hui’s Foon Hei Gor.
NOTE: For the following years, we have ranked these dramas in our countdown posts. The ones we choose to discuss in this post may not necessarily align fully with our previous rankings, as we want to showcase some different genres that were unique in these years.
2015
Ghost of Relativity (鬼同你OT) - A funny supernatural drama that allowed Nancy Wu and Kristal Tin to win Best Actress together.
2016
Over Run Over (EU超時任務) - An interesting concept of time travel with a great love story wonderfully put together, since it could have been disastrous with the complexity of the plot. Great job, TVB for producing this and casting Tracy Chu despite her lesser experience in acting.
2017
Destination Nowhere (迷) - A complex psychological thriller that rewards patient viewers with a great buildup of plot and well-crafted script.
The Exorcist’s Meter (降魔的) - This drama wasn’t included in our 2017 countdown as we didn’t finish it then. It’s an eccentric drama that’s heartbreaking at times and revealing the importance of cherishing loved ones.
2018
Daddy Cool (逆緣) - A drama that teaches us about greed, guilt, and the irony of fate as the lives of the characters intertwine.
Threesome (三個女人一個「因」) - Mandy Wong proved herself to be versatile playing three characters in this drama, with three funny surrounding male characters. It was entertaining and memorable.
The Learning Curve of a Warlord (大帥哥) - A hilarious series that pokes fun of the Warlord Era, made all the better with Dicky Cheung’s own flair.
2019
Barrack O’Karma (金宵大廈) - This supernatural drama had amazing performances from the entire cast that touched upon everyday topics in a thoughtful way with twists along the ride.
We have to keep in mind that the best dramas at the end of the decade are sometimes less impressive than the ones at the beginning. Having seen A Fistful of Stances at least 5 times is a testament to that. We cannot imagine re-watching Daddy Cool or Threesome, but who knows? Maybe we will in another 10 years down the line. Cheers to another decade and we hope the 20’s have amazing things in store for you.
-CeeJay
Images retrieved from:
https://www.themoviedb.org/
https://www.yesasia.com/us/en/home.html
https://mydramalist.com/
https://forums.soompi.com/
https://www.hotpot.tv/
Images retrieved from:
https://www.themoviedb.org/
https://www.yesasia.com/us/en/home.html
https://mydramalist.com/
https://forums.soompi.com/
https://www.hotpot.tv/
Wow! I took like a 5 year break from TVB dramas this past decade so it's quite interesting to see what dramas I've missed, as well as be reminded of the dramas I'd forgotten about! It's really sad that there less dramas in each year now because they'd seem to prefer airing mainland dramas instead. I agree, the action or investigative shows are getting repetitive and boring, and I certainly prefer the dramas that are more down to earth or have a deeper meaning. I've come to realise that I care more about the script than production value or acting, so it's the small productions that have left impressions for me!
ReplyDeleteMy top 3 dramas of the decade are probably The Exorcist's Meter, The Hippocratic Crush and When Heaven Burns. The Exorcist's Meter has terrible production value, but really shows that all you need is a good script. Even minor characters got to shine, and everything was pieced together so well that it actually contributed to the over-arching plot. Really hope the sequel lives up to it! The Hippocratic Crush was the classic 'professional-theme' drama, but I loved its balance of familiar faces with newer faces (at the time). It was inspirational and touching, without being cheesy or preachy. Kind of disappointed you didn't mention When Heaven Burns because I still think it's a 'god drama', even if it might not be rewatchable, or to everyone's taste. Never have I seen a Hong Kong drama do such a good job of questioning humanity as a whole, and it really did make me reflect on my own friendships and how we would change if put in a similar situation to the characters.
I also would never have imagined that we'd end the decade with the sitcom being so popular! Lo and Behold is really something different - it's not only down to earth, but also has some really crazy stories that would never make sense in a regular drama haha. I love how even the smallest of characters get their time to shine. It really fulfils the Chinese title of 'delivering happiness'.
I'm kind of curious, you mentioned HKTV dramas, but have you watched any ViuTV series? I've only watched one or two, but it's really nice to see TVB finally getting some competition within HK.
Hello Vaneffle,
DeleteThanks again for reading our post and taking the time to share your thoughts on the dramas this past decade.
We actually dropped When Heaven Burns so we can't comment on it but we have heard great things about it. Glad you enjoyed that drama though. Sometimes its the most unexpected ones that turn out to be great, especially the ones with low production value. The Shaw Brothers productions always promise a huge ensemble cast and lots of explosions but the plot never delivers. They could have the potential if they focused more on the storyline and not all the other extra stuff.
We haven't seen any ViuTV series yet, are there any you recommend? Instead, we've been seeing more mainland dramas or american/british dramas. There is better production and the stories are new and exciting. TVB is just a small circle of the same recycled plots and features the same actors for decades, which is why it's losing its appeal.
CeeJay
Hello again! Thanks for the reply! I haven't actually watched any of the Shaw Brothers productions for the exact same reasons you gave haha. I totally agree, if I want to watch good production value, TVB dramas is not where I'd go, because western or mainland dramas have better production value and much better writing. I mostly tend to watch TVB for its more relatable scripts, and I think that's why smaller productions that are down to earth tend to be much better. If a drama has good writing but terrible production value, I can just pretend it's an older drama (except that the actors are newer).
DeleteI think the good thing about ViuTV is that it feels refreshing to watch something in Cantonese that isn't the same old recycled stories that TVB has, but I also feel like they're still at the stage of trying to figure out what works and what doesn't, so their dramas aren't all that exciting so far. However, I would definitely recommend "Limited Education" (教束)! It's a small production in a high school setting that tackles some serious but very relatable issues in a very light-hearted way and I personally enjoyed it more than any of the 2019 TVB dramas.