How authentic are the accessories worn by the empress and concubines in hit TV drama?

The 70-episode Qing dynasty imperial drama Story of Yanxi Palace concluded on August 27 on video platform iQiyi, garnering more than 15 billion views by its finale. Yet, in Hong Kong, the final episode will air on TVB Jade this Saturday.

The whole city is astir over the drama, from its Qing dynasty settings to the ancient Chinese make-up and the intricate costume design.

What made the drama so successful? Thanks to the high standards and meticulous research of the production team, which made the whole drama come alive and immerse its viewers, employing an array of highly authentic props and remaining true to history.

Here we take a look at the accessories of the concubines who appear in the drama, find out the origins of these items and compare some of them with authentic ones from the Palace Museum in Beijing, in order to appreciate the Chinese imperial aesthetic.

Binge-watching, China Style

It's not even October, but already the 70-episode Chinese soap opera "Story of Yanxi Palace" is poised to be one of the biggest Chinese pop culture phenomena of the year. Since its first episodes were uploaded to the Chinese streaming platform iQiyi less than three months ago, the series has drawn more than 15 billion total views, making it one of the most-watched TV shows in Chinese history.

In terms of content, "Yanxi Palace" is typical of the sudsy Chinese genre known as "palace dramas," which has origins in the 2004 Hong Kong TV series "War and Beauty." As the name suggests, palace dramas are generally centered around the vicious court struggles of imperial China, and set against lush, opulent backdrops. Although this description may call to mind Western dramas such as "The Tudors" or "Game of Thrones," palace dramas are unlike these shows in that they are distinctly female-oriented — they focus not on the deeds of brave knights or ambitious lords, but the emotional entanglements and political power struggles of royal concubines as they vie for the emperor's affections.

Yet while "Yanxi Palace" clearly draws on this genre for inspiration, its runaway success is at least partly due to the way the series innovates structural conventions found in palace dramas. These tweaks have resulted in a show so addictive that netizens have coined a new word to describe it: shuangju — a term that roughly translates to "a show that demands to be binge-watched."

The word shuangju is actually an adaptation of a literary term: shuangwen — a binge read. Shuangwen are common in China's massive internet fiction industry, in which binge-ability is a key element of the business model. Popular internet novels such as "Fighter of the Destiny" and "Martial Universe" tell the tales of hot-blooded young men from the bottom rungs of society who, with the help of fate, are able to master mystical martial arts and transform themselves into legendary warriors — one chapter at a time. These novels — some of which have been adapted into shuangju of their own, though none as successful as "Yanxi Palace" — keep their readers engaged by offering up a steady stream of villains for their heroes to defeat as they rise through the ranks and eventually bring peace and prosperity to all the land.

Shuangju follow a similar pattern. By focusing relentlessly on the rise of an audience-insert underdog character, they give watchers frustrated with their own lots in life a chance to live vicariously through the action onscreen. No matter how banal or unremarkable our real lives may be, these bingeable stories offer an escape to a world in which the heroes — us — always win, and the villains — the people in our lives with power and authority over us — get what's coming to them, swiftly.

This last point is key. What makes shows like "Yanxi Palace" so addictive is the immediacy and frequency with which they provide viewers the emotional high of vicarious victory. In classic palace dramas, protagonists suffer frequent defeats. Their triumph is a long and incremental process, delaying viewers' sense of gratification until the very end of the series — if it comes at all. In "War and Beauty," for example, the emperor's concubines continue to scheme and fight, even as rebels storm the castle walls. In the end, they are all either driven from the palace or killed. It may be cathartic to see them get what's coming to them, but it's not particularly empowering.

"Yanxi Palace" dispenses with these narrative conventions in favor of an almost video game-like structure, with the show's audience-insert character — Wei Yingluo, a young woman from a good, though not particularly high-status background — jumping quickly from one level to the next. From the moment she enters the palace on a quest to avenge her murdered sister, hardly an episode goes by without her outwitting or outfighting one of her many rivals — the show's equivalent of a boss fight. It's an intoxicating formula, and one that lets viewers live out their own fantasies of empowerment and social mobility.

Unlike other popular genres — such as China's star-power-driven "idol dramas" — while "Yanxi Palace" has romantic subplots, it never loses sight of this central conceit. The show seems to recognize that its biggest draw — and what keeps viewers coming back for more — isn't romance, but Wei Yingluo's rise to the top.

Not everything about "Yanxi Palace" is new, however, and at times the show's palace-drama DNA betrays itself. Although the Chinese government has recently evinced concern over the morals and values being espoused by popular television programs, the characters in palace dramas in particular can be almost aggressively amoral. Although good — personified in this case by Wei Yingluo — always triumphs over evil, justice on these shows bears a distinct resemblance to eye-for-an-eye mentalities, and Wei is just as likely to poison her enemies outright as to try and get them arrested.

Also indebted to the conventions of palace dramas are the show's sexual politics. Although, like many palace dramas, the cast of "Yanxi Palace" is almost entirely female, many of the women on the show are depicted as conniving sex objects, constantly bickering with one another in their attempts to win male attention and approval. Even Wei Yingluo falls into this trap at points: Once her sister is avenged, she becomes just another concubine fighting for the emperor's affections.

What's more, for all the ways the show indulges in wish-fulfillment and empowerment fantasies, it never actually considers that Wei Yingluo could work her way to the true top of the food chain. She may be able to win over the show's avatar for patriarchy, but she'll never supplant him. And the show never even considers that she might not want to struggle at all, but rather leave the palace entirely and live out her own life in peace.

For those wondering how a show with such retrograde sexual politics could be so popular with modern viewers, it may be because they can sympathize. In "Yanxi Palace," the emperor is the ultimate authority: He has the power to make or break anyone at any time. The only way for the women of the palace to acquire a share of this power is to win the emperor's affection — most often by forcing their rivals out of the picture. While this may sound antiquated, it's not all that far-removed from the reality of modern Chinese society. In the workplace, for example, men dominate the managerial ranks, while women are often hired or promoted based on their looks and willingness to entertain their bosses' advances as much as for their professional qualifications. And with so few management slots open to non-male applicants, competition between women can be cutthroat.

Yi Zhongtian, an author and scholar of ancient Chinese literature at Xiamen University, once pointed to classic Chinese works ranging from "Zuo Tradition" to "Dream of the Red Chamber" as evidence that China has historically had a fascination with infighting — whether among the rich and powerful or the family next door. The days of true palace intrigue may be in the past, but these struggles clearly still resonate with Chinese audiences who see in them shades of their own experiences.

Young people in China can sometimes feel like crabs trapped in a bucket: stuck, and unable to get out without someone else pulling them back down. It shouldn't be a surprise, then, that both male and female viewers alike have found something to admire in Wei Yingluo's ruthless competence. Since "Yanxi Palace's" premiere, there has been a wave of online articles claiming to teach readers how to apply lessons from the show in the workplace or the dating scene.

The incredible success of "Yanxi Palace" is sure to spawn a raft of imitators. Some of these will be good, some will be bad; but as long as many Chinese feel vulnerable and disempowered in their real lives, there will continue to be an audience for escapist fare that lets viewers imagine, if only for an hour or two — or 70 — that they're the hero of the story.

Quasi-religious callout culture

Against the background of the more individualized lives of citizens in postindustrial nations like America today, social media callouts provide a potent means for participating in ersatz collective identities and ersatz social justice movements. They enable people to mobilize quickly behind vague, racialized notions of "Asian” or "black” culture and against equally vague, essentialist notions of white supremacy, and to claim cultural ownership, or gatekeeping authority, over the wearing of kimono, cheongsam, cornrows and dreadlocks, over hip-hop performance, or over choices of actors for "Asian”-themed movies.

The quasi-religious character of this callout culture finds expression in ritualized shaming and demands for atonement, and for recognition of cultural ownership from those who sacrilegiously transgress against it; and in the ritualized atonement and recognition duly offered up by repentant transgressors.

Cultural appropriation outrage persists because — at the touch of an electronic screen — it serves powerful emotional needs to belong to a particular collective identity, and to social justice causes with highly inclusive lists of victims, such as those with no plausible national connection to the "appropriated” culture. All this is bad news for advocates for the popularization and internationalization of Japanese arts, anime, manga, cosplay and kimono fashion. What should they do?

They can take to social media to highlight the incoherence in cultural appropriation outrage, and show that more racialized understandings of culture play into the hands of actual white supremacists and nationalists, who are busy creating their own Wagnerian variations on the themes of "white” and "European” culture.

They can remind Twitter and Tumblr that Japanese practitioners of traditional arts like the shakuhachi are gladly sharing that art with non-Japanese musicians. They can also point to the internationalist ambitions of kimono designers such as Hiromi Asai, who explained her vision to me as follows: "I believe kimono is a universal fashion that is beyond cultural and ethnic boundaries.”

Rather like Johann Herder and his intellectual heir, Lafcadio Hearn, they can demonstrate that the survival and flourishing of minority and non-European arts, folklores and traditions can depend upon their internationalized transmission.

Venerating the past, traditional costume fever grips Thailand

“Out of the 30 years I’ve been running this shop, this is the peak for us,” 53-year-old Siri told Reuters as she stitched a Thai sarong for a client.

History fever is gripping Thailand and a growing number of Thais are wearing traditional dress, a phenomenon encouraged by the junta and the palace, and fueled by a popular television soap opera.

But the trend, which began with a ‘winter fair’ initiated by King Maha Vajiralongkorn in February, has also been criticized by some as an attempt to glorify an era of absolute monarchy and gloss over the junta’s shortcomings nearly four years after it took power.

“History has long been used by the elite to maintain their status in politics,” said Anusorn Unno, Dean of the Faculty of Sociology and Anthropology at Thammasat University.

“Right now the junta is facing new challenges from a new generation of people so they have retreated to history to say that the past is better and more suitable for Thailand.”

Among the popular costumes are those worn during the reign of former King Chulalongkorn, known as Rama V, who ruled from 1868 to 1910 and is credited with saving Thailand from Western colonialism.

Television has also played a part.

“Love Destiny”, a soap opera set during the 1656 to 1688 reign of King Narai the Great, has taken Thailand by storm.

Many Thais are visiting the ancient capital of Ayutthaya, north of Bangkok, where scenes from “Love Destiny” take place. They pose for “selfies” dressed in traditional garb against the backdrop of the ruins.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha met with cast members this week at Government House and hailed the series as an example of the government’s longstanding policy of promoting ‘Thai-ness’.

Prayuth’s own cabinet has held some recent meetings in the traditional dress of a 19th century elite. He dressed in a buttoned up silk jacket, breeches and a wide sash.

A coup led by Prayuth in 2014 followed months of unrest as demonstrators supporting the urban middle class and military-backed elite demanded the resignation of then-Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, whose biggest following was among the rural poor.

That long-standing division shows little sign of having disappeared despite four years of military rule.

Although the junta has now promised elections for February 2019, signs of frustration over repeated delays to the ballot have prompted protests in recent weeks.

Colorful and Majestic Costa Rican Costumes

Costa Rica is identified as a country full of love for its culture, generated precisely from the multicultural ancestry. Before talking about the typical costumes, it is important to know a little bit about the history and traditions that originated all those typical costumes are used for both women and men.

This country is part of Latin America and like other countries in the same continent, they often include in their clothing a diversity of colors, accompanied by an authenticity that makes them be different and widely recognized all around the world.

Costa Rica’s society takes into account that the elaboration of its typical costumes must be perfectly made. That is why those costumes are usually based on their cultural traditions.

In the case of women, they use to wearing a skirt adorned with a lot of bright colors, drawing much attention from the surroundings. For the top, it is usual to wear a shirt which reaches the shoulders preferably white since it cannot be as colorful as the skirt so they can stand out at the same time. The hair should be full of showy flowers.

With regard to men, Costa Rican culture focuses on making them look like gentlemen. This is always achieved by placing a completely white suit with a bright color handkerchief that attracts a lot of attention.

The typical Costa Rican costumes demonstrate how friendly this culture is, through the chosen colors that will highlight all the typical costumes that exist.

Typical costumes always keep the features of the ancient indigenous tribes that populated this territory. Costa Rica has an extraordinary wealth of cultural manifestations, legends, popular festivals, music, local traditions, and dance. All that is an important part of the nation´s identity.

When one refers to a typical costume of a country, it goes hand in hand with other important aspects of the culture like its meals, the way of speaking, expressions, customs, symbols of identity, flags, dances, and so on.

Much of the typical costumes of the country are used in specific scenarios: festivities, carnivals, or other events that commemorate facts of the history of Costa Rican society. Let’s mention some examples:

Province of Guanacaste. The typical costumes of this province will depend on the celebration and have evolved according to their history. However, one of the most common dances is the Batijuela, with costumes characterized by its abundant lace, high hairstyles divided according to the age of the ladies taking part. The younger wear a blanket; the older ones put on a pair of pants.

There is no variation to the typical costumes of Costa Rica for men. In general, it is practically the same with a red scarf, but without a hat.

Province of Puntarenas. They maintain a classic range of clothing brought from colonial times. During Holy Week they were characterized by a scarf full of sequins and bright colors

Province of Heredia. This province differs from the others because it does not use lively colors like the others, instead characterized by using dark and opaque colors. Silk and cotton is the ideal for their clothing. This fabric can be either unicolor or printed. The type of dress of Heredia is extremely conservative, distinguished by having details with buttons,

Province of San José. Women often use many decorations in their hair, which they wear with natural flowers. They usually identify themselves by including colors like purple and white, while men are dressed in black.

Province El Limón. They usually use turbans made with colored fabrics, this is an essence of the Afro-Caribbean garments, and the rest is very similar to the typical national costume.

Women wear white with colorful fabric ornaments. A turban is always worn in carnival dresses, the skirt of high flights up to the ankles, elastic at the waist. Men are accompanied by a machete, a kind of long knife, a colored belt, cut down pants and leather shoes.

Cartago. Some of the costumes were brought from Great Britain, adorned with fine laces. Men wear ties of canvas, jackets or vests, and hats in white or black.

Reliquary

Known as an indispensable part of the national costumes of Costa Rica, it consists of a burgundy colored ribbon, the function of which is the same as a usual string. Most women used this as a symbol of love, as they carried pieces of hair of their loved ones inside the reliquary.

Garments

They use large rings around the ears, likewise decorating their hairstyles with generally natural flowers. Within the garments, we can mention the selection of underpants with abundant laces and, in the case of women, reaching the knees.