Donghua and Fengjiu – Ten Miles vs. Pillow

As impartial as one might try to be, it is simply impossibly to watch Pillow Book (Eternal love of Dream) without thinking about Donghua and Fengjiu in Ten Miles, because, well, Ten Miles came out first despite it not being an official version. Also, that white hair and purple robe are hard to miss.

So, while I made a point not to associate Pillow with Ten Miles while watching Pillow, it’s time to officially compare them now that the drama is over.

*Peach and Ten Miles will be used interchangeably in this post.

DONGHUA

In both interpretations, Donghua is an aloof and ice-cold god who is placed (and places himself) above the rest of the world. He has lived for too long that very few things, if not nothing, can make him lift an eyebrow. At least that’s the idea.

As a supporting character in Ten Miles, Donghua remains a mysterious figure throughout the entire drama. Ten Miles stays faithful to the idea that an immortal like Donghua had better steer clear of romance.

Peach-Donghua is a little grumpy, a little ruthless, and a little vindictive. Enough intrigue to make you want a spin-off of him.

Pillow, on the other hand, puts a creative spin on Donghua. Besides being bored 90% of the time, he enjoys watching people get into embarrassing situations and actively wants to make their lives difficult with his cooking.

After knowing/falling for Fengjiu, we see another Donghua that… some of us like, and some of us wish would have stayed hidden forever. He is revealed to never have a normal childhood – he could also be born fully-grown and white-haired, we can’t be sure – and has the tendency to throw quiet tantrums as a result of jealousy.

In short, he turns to mush completely when he is happy with Fengjiu.

Which version is better is up to each viewer. One can argue that Peach-Donghua isn’t strong enough to pursue his love with Fengjiu, but we can also say that he is wise enough to calculate the consequences of his decisions.

Which Donghua would I have liked for Fengjiu? Even though the pranks and the cooking in Pillow are fun, I would have to pick Peach-Donghua. He just seems like a tougher nut to crack, further removed from mundane life, and it would have been nice to see someone as arrogant as him being brought down from his high horse.

FENGJIU

Fengjiu is largely the same in both versions – personality-wise and development-wise. She is a feisty, stubborn, love-struck fox in the beginning and gradually transforms into a mature woman who can let go of Donghua.

In Pillow, Fengjiu has a few more goals outside of her silver-haired man. She also has great interactions with other characters: Xiaoyan, Ye Qingti, Su Moye. But overall, her character is not explored much more deeply than the whimsical, adorable fox we see in Ten Miles. If you like her in Ten Miles, you will like her in Pillow.

THE ROMANCE

Pillow Book is basically an extended version of Fengjiu and Donghua’s romance in Ten Miles.

I have read somewhere that the writer of Ten Miles couldn’t use elements from Pillow because back then they did not have the copyright to Pillow. So they came up with… what we see in Ten Miles. It’s kind of like changing your name from Shang to Shaun.

In both dramas, it goes like this: Donghua passes by and rescues Fengjiu from a beast. Fengjiu sets out to repay him. They meet again when one of them has no memory. They both try to save the world from some explosive villain.

In this round, I would say the Ten Miles version leaves a better impression.

First of all, it is shorter. Because stories of this nature should be short.

In addition, it isn’t that Pillow couldn’t have benefitted from an extended length, but the problem is they emphasize the wrong parts of the story – Jiheng, mortal arc, the last misunderstanding, etc — and didn’t spend time developing what holds potential: Liansong and Chengyu’s contribution, for instance, or Fengjiu’s weapon making.

The next thing about the Ten Miles version is that Fengjiu and Donghua have minimal contact, which is probably why it was made sure that each one of their scenes counts – from Fengjiu getting drunk in front of Donghua to Donghua’s short visit to Kunlun after she cut off her fox tail. Each scene contains a balanced amount of humour and seriousness to keep you engaged.

The writing also pays more attention to the little details. Remember when the mortal king Donghua visits a nervous Fengjiu after she rescued him from the lake? She is so nervous that when they play chess, she puts two consecutive chess stones on the board without waiting for Donghua’s turn.

(It’s in episode 36 if anyone wants to re-watch.)

Their time in Ten Miles feels more precious and they are quicker to develop.

And that Fate Stone Donghua messed with, while it is only used as the last minute item on Donghua’s list of sacrifices in Pillow, Ten Miles makes it into a tragic twist and Donghua’s biggest secret regarding his personal life, which emphasizes how much he is willing to give up for his job.

So overall, their plot in Ten Miles has a clearer direction. They hit all the right marks (except for some whining scenes from Fengjiu) at the appropriate time, and they leave all the dragging to Bai Qian and Yehua.

THE TRIAL

Let’s see.

Ten Miles’ trial version is shorter. Donghua gets a weird beard but their outfits are beautiful. Donghua is also a lot more mature here, but… why can’t you swim, buddy?

And in Pillow’s trial, we have Ye Qingti.

This is a tough one.

The Ten Miles trial is tragic for Donghua. The Pillow trial is tragic for Ye Qingti. And in Pillow, Fengjiu seems to gain more life insights than Donghua.

So if the purpose of the trial is to make Fengjiu grow up, Pillow does a better job. But if the point is to torture Donghua, I would go with Ten Miles.

LOOKS

Fengjiu looks great in both versions. Although, her whimsical hairstyles and outfits in Ten Miles give her a more mischievous edge.

Donghua wears a darker shade of purple in Ten Miles. Sometimes he dons long, floor-sweeping robes that emphasize his height and his status in comparison to other characters. The screen filter in Ten Miles is also less intense, so he looks more, erm… ancient? And definitely more mysterious. And from every angle, it looks like he has a slight, permanent frown.

In Pillow, while the bright lighting has no effect on Dilmurat’s outlook, it makes Vengo Gao appear ages younger, which is more convenient when he needs to pout or pull faces around Fengjiu, I guess. Because it’s very hard to imagine Peach-Donghua making the expressions Pillow-Donghua does.

Personally, I prefer Peach-Donghua’s look. The guy looks more like he’s capable of both good and occasional evil, which is his character’s original intrigue.

ACTING

There isn’t much to say about Dilraba since she plays the same character in both dramas. Whatever is required of her, she does it well.

But there are a few things to note about the Rock.

In Ten Miles, Donghua’s character doesn’t develop a whole lot, but we do see subtle ranges of emotions that show how he is affected by his experience with Fengjiu.

In Pillow, Vengo Gao plays four different versions of Donghua: the original god, the giddy mortal teenager, the rogue Shenye, and the smitten-with-Fengjiu god. Kudos.

Although, while this is a good showcase of Vengo’s skills, it backfires on the character sometimes. The differences between the four Donghua-s are too blunt that they feel like four completely separate people with nothing of the original Donghua to tether viewers to.

Overall, both Vengo Gao and Dilmurat are not bad actors. But they do better with good directing, something that is consistent in Ten Miles, but on and off in Pillow.

There are some expressions the characters make that you just know immediately are the idea of the director, not the actors. They tend to go overboard sometimes, forgetting that this is an ageless god, so his expressions, no matter the reason, should always reflect that background.

This concludes my review. Now, which shade of purple do you prefer?