''War and Destiny'' (Traditional Chinese: 亂世佳人) is a

TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and TVB ...

period drama series released overseas in July 2006 and broadcast on

TVB Jade TVB Jade (), or simply Jade, is a Hong Kong Cantonese-language free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) as its flagship service, alongside its sister network, the English-language TVB Pearl. Bro ...

Channel in March

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Production note

The background of the plot is set in the

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and the characters live through the infamous

Rape of Nanjing The Nanjing Massacre (, ja, 南京大虐殺, Nankin Daigyakusatsu) or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China, immediately after the ...

. The Chinese title for this series shares the same Chinese name with the 1939 film ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Win ...

''. To fit the general ratings on TVB, the series toned down much of the violence and bloodshed.

Synopsis

The Ku family are living in the

Republic of China era The Republic of China calendar, often shortened to the ROC calendar or the ''Minguo'' calendar, is a calendar used in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu. The calendar uses 1912, the year of the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC), ...

(1930s) as a prestigious household in a wealthy part of Nanjing. Soon, words spread that the city is being taken over by Imperial Japanese forces. The Ku family, which had all daughters and a father and mother of weakening health, are soon forced to pack their belongings to leave the war torn area. One of their servants recommends they move to the rural areas. To their dismay, life is incredibly difficult and they live in poverty. The family is in pieces as each daughter struggles with numerous difficulties in the countryside. However, all members of the family eventually grow closer together as they work in the rural area. Eventually, Nanjing falls to Japan. One of the daughters, Ping-On, was shocked to find out that Hao-Yee, a childhood friend, is actually the son of Japanese military officer Chung Tin-Ngai (

Shek Sau Shek Sau (, born Chan Shek-sau, Bill, 21 November 1947) is a Hong Kong actor working for TVB. His son Sam Chan also works for TVB as an actor. In 2005, they appeared in a cooking show together for a Father's Day Father's Day is a holiday o ...

). She also discovers that Hao-Yee, whom she considers to be her fiancé, is actually in love with Cheng Yuet-Fung (

Leila Tong Leila Kong ( ;born 5 December 1981) known professionally as Leila Tong / Tong Ning () is a Hong Kong actress. She was born into an Indonesian Cantonese family. Her birth name is used in her works during her childhood and adolescence. Career ...

), the 4th wife of her father. Meanwhile, he is also treated as a spy and traitor by all the Chinese villagers he grew up with. In the end Ping-On unexpectedly falls in love with Poon Sai-Cheung (

Sunny Chan Sunny Chan Kam-hung (born 1 January 1967) is a Hong Kong television and film actor. Career His film role the 1998 Hong Kong film '' Hold You Tight'' was the role that made him well known to the Chinese and East Asian public, and for which he ...

) whom she had first hated with a passion and believed to be a traitor…

Cast

Comparison with reality

* The Japanese troops did not commit much atrocities in the series. The killing was portrayed in a manner that was often quick and very clean. Especially during the grave scene where the hundreds of innocent citizens were buried, the bodies were all intact. * In the story Ku Man-Chai had 4 wives, each trying to give birth to a male son. Up until the 1930s Republic of China era, this was common practice in the culture. And was a major problem in China up until it was fixed by the more extreme

One Child Policy The term one-child policy () refers to a Human population planning, population planning initiative in China implemented between 1980 and 2015 to curb Demographics of China#Population, the country's population growth by restricting many familie ...

. * The earlier Ku family owned a private truck, while Poon Sai-Cheung owned a

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

. Both attempted to escape war-torn Nanking by car, while the other 99% of the population escaped on foot. This demonstrates the huge wealth gap between the rich and poor.

Viewership ratings

Awards and nominations

40th TVB Anniversary Awards (2007) * "Best Drama" * "Best Actress in a Leading Role" (

Myolie Wu Myolie Wu Hang-yee (born 6 November 1979) is a Hong Kong actress and singer. She is previously managed by Hong Kong TVB television station and Neway Star. In 2011, she won Best Actress for her role in ''Curse of the Royal Harem'', Most Favouri ...

- Ku Ping-On) * "Best Actor in a Supporting Role" (

Lau Dan Danny Lau Dan (; born 13 January 1944) is a Hong Kong actor. Works Lau is known to portray good characters, but could play cunning and sly characters with ease (includes ''The Bund'' and ''Land of Wealth''). He is most noted for being the on ...

- Ku Man-Chai) * "Best Actor in a Supporting Role" (

Bill Chan Shek Sau (, born Chan Shek-sau, Bill, 21 November 1947) is a Hong Kong actor working for TVB. His son Sam Chan also works for TVB as an actor. In 2005, they appeared in a cooking show together for a Father's Day Father's Day is a holiday o ...

- Chung Tin-Ngai) * "Most Improved Actress" (

- Cheng Yuet-Fung) * "My Favourite Female Character Role" (

- Ku Ping-On)

References

External links

TVB.com
''War and Destiny'' - Official Website
Butterfly's Place.net
''War and Destiny'' - Synopsis {{in lang, zh TVB dramas 2007 Hong Kong television series debuts 2007 Hong Kong television series endings Television shows set in Nanjing