Fox (Photo : North Carolina: Museum of Natural Sciences/YouTube)
Chinese viewers love period dramas and other local shows that tap into Chinese mythology. One new streaming drama that caught the attention of Sohu TV viewers is the newly launched “Foxes in the Screen.”
The series debuted on Monday strongly. After six episodes, the average views of “Foxes in the Screen” was more than 10 million, Global Times reported.
The new Sohu TV show is a period drama about a female painter selling antique furniture screes in Beijing. Life becomes difficult when she gets sick with a strange ailment and her fiancé and best friend cheat on her.
On the night her two exes – that is former boyfriend and former BFF – would marry, she used a magic brush by accident. The brush released three fox spirits that promise to help the distraught painter to reach her dream of becoming a royal painter. But sometimes, the assistance provided by the fox spirits bring more trouble than help.
Chinese mythology have frequent mention of fox spirits. One example is Pu Songling’s “Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio” written during the Qing Dynasty. According to Sacred Texts, the legends were related to Pu Songling by different people as their own experience. The original work of Pu Songling was titled “Liao chai chih i” which were party translated into English by a Professor H.A. Giles who compiled the translations into a two-volume book.
In Chinese mythology, the fox is often considered an animal of ill omen with a long life of up to 1,000 years. Its tail could produce fire, while the fox’s eye could see into the future.
“Foxes in the Screen” is Sohu TV’s response to tighter regulation of content, especially overseas shows, so even steaming sites are now moving into self-made programs.
