After "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" concluded, its popularity remained undiminished, with viewers rewatching it repeatedly, causing viewership ratings to soar even higher.
Many directors and investors struggled to comprehend the dual success of critical acclaim and high ratings for the series.
The story of Empress Wu, known to nearly everyone, revolved around the same familiar tales. So why did "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" become so immensely popular?
Some attributed it to the excellent casting of actors, others to the exquisite production of costumes and props, and yet others to the high quality of filming.
However, in Jiang Ling's opinion, the most fundamental reason for the show's success was the superior quality of the script.
The script is the core of any series. If a script is messy and illogical, no amount of excellent acting or exquisite costumes and props can save it.
So, what made the script of "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" so good?
Jiang Ling pondered for a moment and summarized it in four words: "The Great Dao is Simple."
Previously, television dramas related to Empress Wu's story, in order to grab attention, always incorporated controversial and sexually explicit scenes.
For instance, scenes depicting torture of rivals, strangling their own daughters, Empress Wu's sister having an affair with Emperor Gaozong, their sister dying and then giving birth to a daughter who grew up to seduce her uncle Emperor Gaozong, Empress Wu's mother Yang and grandson Helan Minzhi engaging in incestuous relations, Shangguan Wan'er first being with Crown Prince Zhanghuai Li Xian and then being involved with Li Xian, Princess Taiping keeping male favorites and gifting them to Empress Wu when she grew tired of them, and mother and daughter sharing a man.
Piled together, these scenes made the entire drama melodramatic, thrilling, and sexually suggestive, yet also severely deviated from history.
If it were just one or two such dramas, it might be understandable. However, previous television series and films related to Empress Wu consistently used these plotlines.
After such a relentless barrage of melodrama, if the directors and production teams were not tired of it, the audience certainly was.
"The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" did not follow the trend. Instead, it stripped away the chaotic and sensational elements and focused on historical truth.
This approach was akin to the myriad of toppings in modern bubble tea – popping boba, bursting pearls, cocoa jelly, cheese foam, mochi, and glutinous rice.
What was originally a good cup of bubble tea, with too many additions, turned into a "Eight Treasure Congee," with half the cup filled with ingredients, making it cloyingly sweet.
"The Twin Saints of the Great Tang," however, added nothing, just milk and tea. This simple combination, paradoxically, brought out the most unadulterated and fragrant original flavor of the milk tea.
However, presenting such pure, original flavor required immense skill in production.
Fortunately, Empress Wu was a legendary woman; even without melodramatic and sensational scenes, her life was spectacular enough.
The screenwriter barely needed to conceive any new plot points. Simply arranging the subtle romantic relationship between Wu Meiniang and Li Zhi and filming according to the most authentic history would lead to success.
Currently, many people online are praising the screenwriter's brilliance, unaware that the screenwriter was merely recreating history.
Unfortunately, many in the industry did not understand this.
The explosion in popularity of "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" rekindled the market for historical costume dramas.
Major companies rushed to follow suit, eager to replicate the success of "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang."
Following Hua Ruyi's portrayal of Empress Wu, they feared the "uncrowned empress" of the Song Dynasty, the legendary woman Liu E, who possessed the talent of Lü and Wu but not their wickedness.
However, these individuals failed to grasp the reasons behind "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang"'s success. They blindly followed the trend, yet in their pursuit of audience attention, they incorporated the controversial historical anecdote of "The Cat for the Crown Prince" into their production.