Miss Crow with Mr Lizard

After watching some latest pathetic Hindi serials with abusive language, horrible scenes and unnecessary crime, after which I just could not sleep, I experimented with a Chinese series- Miss Crow with Mr. Lizard. 

One of the cleanest series watched off late. A simple Romantic comedy with not many twists and turns. A story of love and friendship of the modern times. 

The hero Gu Chuan is played by Allen Ren (I guess he is a Chinese superstar) and the heroine Jiang Xiao Ning by Xing Fei. The hero gets a mechanical heart implanted after an accident in which the heroine’s parents die. This heart needs to be recharged to stay alive. If Gu Chuan becomes emotional and his heart rate rises up beyond 100 bpm his body discharges electricity. If it goes beyond 120 bpm it can create blackouts or even electrocute a human being. So, he just manages to divert his entire energy to become a top-notch architect with a protective shield of a long face and rude behavior. To complement him is shown his best friend, an easy-going, fun-loving rich brat who downloads the software connecting Gu Chuan’s heart on his mobile. Anytime the hero lands up in an emergency he tracks him to help. The other story is of the heroine who comes from a not-so-rich Chinese family who struggles to pay the monthly bills. She has the liability of a middle-aged aunt and a grandmother who suffers from Dementia.

What makes the serial special is not the impractical mechanical heart and its glitches, but the awesome chemistry shown between the hero and heroine. How their relationship evolves from being a complete stranger in the first episode to the most mature couple in 36 episodes is worth watching. As always, there are many good takes from the series.

An excellently played strong character of Gu Chuan is very attractive. A person who is constantly on guard towards his own feelings develops a peculiar intuition while dealing with the world. Speaking in the yogic way, his senses and thus, consciousness is completely internalized for the maximum amount of time. He is also an example of how instead of sulking in want of a need for affiliation he goes for the higher need for achievement. (Everybody knows which need is higher as per Abraham Maslow, but I choose to differ here. Wait for a few more days to read about my take on affiliation and achievement). When such a person gets involved in a relationship, he gives his 100%, san doute. 

The cuteness of the heroine just cannot be ignored. Though she seemed to overact at times, she played a strong character towards the end. Her family is shown to be very simple and grateful. She loses 27 jobs and her aunt teaches her to bless every boss! So, we know from where she gets her tremendous willpower and positivity, which helps her towards the end. Would it not be great if we too after being knocked down in life again and again, keep fighting with the same optimistic spirit. She believes in prayers. That’s what saves Gu Chuan in the end. Jiang Xiao Ning is shown as a strong character with self-respect and goodness. 

The icing on the cake is their doted friends, who selflessly help them whenever they need. Another thing I started contemplating is that instead of having multiple friends with the least concern in most of them, why not have a few with complete concern. (Not sure of the practicality of the thought, though). Another peculiar thing I admired about the series was that both the women characters, the heroine and her friend, are shown to be full of self-respect (not like the women of Hindi-Marathi series who go on people-pleasing all the time). Ok, there is a very thin line between self-respect and ego, but let’s not get into that! In the end, both of them work hard and support their loved ones in every way. 

What makes the series even more special is the phenomenal music. I often play its songs on Youtube while cooking nowadays. I read the subtitles to understand while watching, but always with a loud volume. It’s the emotions of the words that we can connect to and not the language. 

All in all, a good watch for our generation. A beautiful story of how to stick to each other in times of ailing health, improving technology, and changing priorities. 

This series and obviously the daily happenings around have triggered the thought of the tussle between the head and heart again in my mind. Gu Chuan’s achievement reaches its peak and affiliation has just started. Jiang Xiao Ning’s affiliation is always there but achievement has just started. She balances both needs through her phenomenal attitude and faith. Faith is again a part of the affiliation. How beautiful these two needs take on our lives even if the lower needs are fulfilled or not is worth the watch. 

After watching the series if a similar battle triggers in your mind too, feel free to give an opinion. Miss Crow with Mr. Lizard on YouTube!