FEARLESS TV series; Vincent Zhao is the Man without Fear

[Mike Leeder]

Vincent Zhao (Zhao Wen-zhuo) dons the mantle of Huo Yuan-jia in the new 50 episode  FEARLESS TV series

http://cityonfire.com/vincent-zhao-returns-as-huo-yuan-jia-in-the-fearless-tv-series-kung-fu/

[Drunken Monk]

It's a cause for concern when every single piece of action in the trailer is in slow motion.

[rdenn]

I know very annoying,  seems slow mo is a big thing in mainland china

[NoKUNGFUforYU]

Anyone ever get any real news stories that he actually fought these foreigners? I had heard a story that the locals were so enraged that the guy would dare put out a challenge (a very normal thing between athletes, actually) and left town before he got stabbed. Now the guy goes from Bob Baker to a giant roided up freak that would be very, very, very hard to beat in a real fight. These mainland movies take the worst excesses of U.S. 1980's film making and nationalism and up the ante to the point that it is unwatchable. OLD SCHOOL for me.

Meanwhile, Huo’s fame spread. In 1901, a Russian strongman was making the rounds in Tianjin, challenging Chinese fighters and calling the Chinese “The sick men of Asia.” According to legend, when no other Chinese fighter would answer the Russian's challenge, Huo stepped up and accepted the fight. The Russian then allegedly backed out claiming to be only a showman. The Russian was asked -- and apparently agreed -- to write a letter to the Tianjin newspaper retracting his claims slandering the Chinese people though I haven’t been able to find a copy or record of this letter so far.

In 1909, another foreign fighter, the English boxer Hercules O’Brien, put an advertisement in the Shanghai newspapers insulting the Chinese as weak. Huo asked his friends to go to Shanghai and arrange a fight. After considerable negotiations (O’Brien wanted only punches above the waist and no kicking), the terms of the fight were settled. According to most of the accounts I have read, O’Brien grew so concerned about Huo’s fearsome reputation that he ended up fleeing the country and apparently the fight never took place.

Huo capitalized on his fame and with the help of investors, including his old friend Nong Jinsun, established his legacy: the Jing Wu Athletic Society. (精武体操学校 later changed to 精武体育会) He attracted many students as well as the attention of some of China’s leading figures. Sun Yat-sen (孙中山) himself praised the school and said, regarding the Jing Wu Society, “To make a country strong, everyone must practice the martial arts.” (欲使国强，非人人习武不可) Dr. Sun even graced the school with his calligraphy (such as it was) inscribing the words for martial spirit (尚武精神) and giving it as a gift to the club.

Huo Yuanjia died relatively young, and his death is surrounded by myth and mystery. According to the story told by Huo’s descendants, the Japanese Judo Association came to Huo Yuanjia’s school to ask for a competition. A disciple of Huo disciples broke the arm of one of the association leaders. After that, the Japanese nursed a grudge against Huo but feigned friendship. When Huo became ill, they took him to a Japanese doctor who then poisoned Huo.

Other sources say that it was Huo who, in competition, defeated the head of the Japanese Judo association. At the banquet that night, Huo suddenly became ill, violently coughing. Huo was taken to a Japanese hospital where he was given, allegedly on purpose, the wrong medicine. He then died a short time later.

Like a lot of famous figures whose lives become encrusted by myth and legend, we might never know the actual truth. Huo apparently suffered from some kind of respiratory problem most of his life and it is not impossible that this might also have led to his death especially after nearly two decades in competitive fighting. Nevertheless, the story of the Japanese treacherously poisoning China’s most patriotic wushu champion persists and a version of the story, again with considerable creative license, figures prominently in the new movie as well.

After Huo's death, the leadership of the Jing Wu Association passed to Huo’s younger brother, Huo Yuanqing (霍元卿), and Huo Yuanjia’s second son, Huo Dong’ge(霍东阁). After his death, the Jing Wu School spread throughout China and the world. In the movie, Huo’s family is killed as a result of his reckless actions. In reality, Huo was survived by two sons: the aforementioned Huo Dong’ge and Huo Dongzhang (霍东章).

What interests me most about Huo Yuanjia's story is what Huo meant to the Chinese people of his day. How did the stories of Huo challenging the foreign fighters fit within the context of the times? What sort of symbol was he to those who saw a brighter future for China, a future free of foreign domination? The Qing dynasty was in its last few years and as the empire crumbled, foreign powers from Europe and elsewhere began plotting how best to carve up the remains. At the same time, it was also an age of considerable revolutionary fervor, even optimism, and the beginnings of a great quest for national identity.

 

PS, He was not a wealthy born aristocrat-

https://www.jeremiahjenne.com/the-archives/2018/3/1/a-historians-review-of-jet-lis-fearless-who-was-the-real-huo-yuanjia-

[kami]

I have yet to see even one chinese martial arts series that really delivers action-wise.

[rdenn]

fights from the series