LayarHijau — The 1990s tax mystery drama The Silent Storm (谷雨) has drawn heavy discussion since its premiere. The series stars Jing Boran, Zhang Songwen, and Sun Yizhou. The number of ads in its first four episodes has become one of the most popular topics on Chinese social media.
The Silent Storm is directed by Li Lu, who also directed In the Name of the People (人民的名义). According to data in circulation, the first four episodes contain 34 ads with a combined running time of 321 seconds, or about 5 minutes and 21 seconds. The ads come from 11 brands.
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The first episode opened with 8 ads. The highest number in a single episode reached 9. The ads appear in the opening segment, as mid-episode inserts, and as creative ads.
Compared with the contemporary drama When I Meet the Moon (折月亮), which premiered around the same time, The Silent Storm is far ahead in both the number of ads and the number of brands. Industry observers see the large advertiser lineup as a sign of confidence in Li Lu’s work and in the star power of Jing Boran, Zhang Songwen, and the rest of the cast.
Its television audience is also strong. In China, TV viewership is measured by real-time rating, which is the percentage of viewers watching a program at a given moment. According to data from Lighthouse and Kuyun, The Silent Storm’s real-time rating on CCTV-8 peaked above 3.0 percent. That means at its busiest moment, about 3 out of every 100 viewers in the measurement sample were watching the drama. Kuyun alone recorded a real-time peak of 2.34 percent.
After the first episodes aired, reviews began appearing on Douban and other platforms. Most viewers praised the period atmosphere, fast pacing, and cinematography, and said the main cast and crew delivered solid work.
There has been criticism as well. Some netizens said the dense ad placement breaks up the story and disrupts the viewing experience. Other viewers felt Jing Boran’s acting in some emotional scenes was too intense, with a lot of shouting, and that the background music was overdone.
The Silent Storm has opened with a high ad count and strong viewership. Whether its story can hold viewers and sustain the positive response in upcoming episodes remains to be seen.
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