Hi everyone!

Thanks for enjoying my episode 1 notes on Extraordinary Attorney Woo! Today, I thought I’d share my episode 1 & 2 notes on Shining For One Thing [China], because I’m enjoying it nicely, and I was wondering if you’d like to join me? 🤗

These are my episode 1 notes, exactly as they appear on Patreon, ie, without screenshots (I’m saving those for the actual review).

I hope you all enjoy, and I hope you’ll consider joining us over on Patreon, for the rest of the discussions! ❤️

Episode notes:

E1-2. I like this. I like this a lot, so far.

I have a big soft spot for do-over stories, and a good chunk of the reason for that, is because I do sometimes wonder how my life would have turned out, if I’d made different choices.

Do-over stories are the perfect vicarious outlet for that, and that’s why I was so drawn to this show when I first watched the trailer.

I just loved the idea that our female lead Beixing (Karlina Zhang, who played Ru Lan in The Story of Minglan!) gets a chance for a do-over, and during that do-over, refuses to give her douche ex-boyfriend Zhan Yu (from the present) the time of day.

Pwahaha. Just the idea of that alone, made me want to watch this show. (Hm. Perhaps I have lingering issues, with douchey exes..? 😝)

Which means that I was really quite surprised by the execution of these first two episodes.

I’d assumed that Beixing would return to the past as her 18-year-old self, and that would be the beginning of her do-over journey.

I’d had no idea that Beixing would have to figure out how to actually stay in the past, without getting tossed back to the present, over and over again.

This was unexpected, and made me feel like this story’s got a rather fresh approach.

Although, I am admittedly hoping that Beixing solves the mystery soon, of why she keeps getting tossed back to the present, so that we can move on from this Groundhog Day-esque vibe, to spend more time on Beixing actually experiencing her do-over.

I am somewhat intrigued by the time travel concept that Show introduces, though. The idea that Beixing might be visiting a parallel universe each time she wakes up in 2010, is rather thought-provoking.

It makes me wonder what happens in each parallel universe that she leaves behind, once she wakes up.

I also find it interesting, that each time she winds up in 2010, she arrives a little earlier in time.

Even more interesting, is the fact that the events aren’t quite the same, each time. This indicates that each parallel universe isn’t quite identical, and therefore has the potential to have a very different outcome of its own compared to other parallel universes?

It’s an intriguing thought, and I do wonder whether Show plans to delve any deeper into the mechanics of it all.

In the meantime, though, I really like the glimpses that we get so far, of Beixing’s do-over.

For one thing, I love how she’s absolutely convinced that she would like nothing to do with douchebag ex Zhan Yu.

I was rather surprised to learn that he hadn’t been interested in her in high school, and she’d been the one chasing after him, wearing her heart on her sleeve.

Dang. So she’d succeeded in getting him to accept her feelings, and they’d dated, and then he’d dumped her right before the wedding?

I can see why she wants nothing more to do with him. And, I really like that she then sets her sights on doing better in her studies, so that she’ll be able to carve a different path for herself.

So practical, and also, so self-focused!

For someone who apparently spent way too much time caring about a boyfriend who doesn’t even really like her, recalibrating her approach to focus on herself instead, seems like an excellent choice, from where I’m sitting.

I find it quite hilarious, that no one in her past seems to believe that she’s decided that she doesn’t like Zhan Yu anymore. Her bestie Tengteng doesn’t believe it, and neither does Zhan Yu, even though Beixing repeats herself multiple times.

I guess that’s just how obsessive her affections for him had been?

With the way Tengteng keeps saying positive things about Zhan Yu, it does make me wonder if Tengteng herself might have a bit of a crush on Zhan Yu, but just isn’t saying anything about it, out of consideration for Beixing?

After all, Zhan Yu appears to be popular in school, for all of his self-absorbed ways.

If drama tradition holds true, I predict that Zhan Yu’s going to react to Beixing’s sudden lack of interest, by suddenly being very interested in her.

The thrill is in the chase and all that, right?

Happily, I don’t think Beixing’s going to fall for that, since she’s been thoroughly hurt by him, after actually dating him.

At the same time, I’m definitely drawn to quiet shy boy Wansen, who definitely seems more aware of Beixing than she realizes.

He doesn’t say much, but the way he looks when he’s around her, and the way he offers her his umbrella so that she won’t get wet, definitely indicates that he cares about her more than he cares about the average classmate.

Which makes me think that it’s quite likely that he’s squeeing internally, each time Beixing goes up to him and starts chatting with him. Aw. The idea of that is sweet.

Also, how very tragic, that each of Beixing’s timeslips ends with her learning that he’d jumped off the lighthouse tower.

That definitely makes my heart go out to him. Beneath his quiet surface, and beyond scoring top marks in school, he must have a lot of internal demons that he’s been battling, for him to end up doing such a thing.

Why would he commit suicide right after the college entrance exam? Was it because he didn’t think he’d done well? That’s the first thing that comes to mind, right now.

I’m already feeling rather protective of Wansen, so I really hope that Beixing manages to save him soon, and I hope that will be the key to Beixing managing to stay in 2010, instead of waking up in 2021.

All that to say, I really like what Show’s got going on so far, and I’m looking forward to more, and soon!

*This show is being covered on the Early Access Plus (US$10) Tier on Patreon*

To view episode 1 notes in Patreon, along with everyone’s comments, you can go here!

You can find my Patreon page here, where episodes 1 through 12 notes are already available. Just look for the tag “Shining For One Thing” or click here.

Episode 13-14 notes will be out on Thursday, 11 August 2022! I hope you’ll consider joining us!

It’ll be a way to have fun, and support me at the same time? ❤️

PS: For more information on what the Patreon experience is like, you might like to check out my Patreon update post for August, which you can find here!