The Ministry of National Defense on Sunday confirmed plans to produce a Taiwanese version of the popular South Korean military television drama Descendants of the Sun, aimed at improving the military’s image and morale.
Ministry spokesman Major General Chen Chung-chi (陳中吉) said that bidding for the NT$12.8 million dollar (US$419,300) series had been completed, and the series, tentatively titled The Best Choice (最好的選擇), would have a total of 16 episodes and would be helmed by award-winning director Liang Hsiu-shen (梁修身).
Liang said he plans to start filming in the middle of next month, with a large opening ceremony being held before filming starts.
While he would not reveal casting specifics, Liang said the male lead would be someone who is in top physical shape, as he is to play the role of a special forces soldier.
Some actors are currently in the military, including female officers in the military’s news agency and political warfare divisions, he said.
“We have created a vivid story that is lively and romantic. It is not a stereotypical drama,” Liang said, adding that he is deeply grateful for the ministry’s support.
Responding to a question from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tsai Shih-ying (蔡適應) at the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee meeting yesterday, Colonel Chen Yu-lin (陳育琳), director of the political warfare department at the Matsu Defense Command in Lienchiang County, said the series would be available for viewing online through the ministry’s Facebook page and other social media sites, in addition to cable and over-the-air TV broadcasts.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) voiced skepticism, saying the military’s problems are rooted in its leadership and discipline, and that the TV series would not be helpful in improving the military’s image.
DPP Legislator Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄), pointing to a photograph of Descendants of the Sun lead Song Joong-ki that he brought to the meeting, asked Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬): “Is he more handsome than you were back in the day?”
“Not quite,” Feng answered, eliciting laughter when he responded similarly to another comparison with Taiwanese-Japanese actor Takeshi Kaneshiro (金城武).
Feng later said he was only joking with the legislators.
Chuang said he hoped the series would not turn out to be a “Regret of the Sun,” playing on the Chinese word for “regret” (hou hui, 後悔), which shares a character with the word “descendant” (hou yi, 後裔).
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
RSS