The Guardian Novel

[rheasilvia]

The m/m novel the Guardian series is based on can be read online – most of it has already been translated into English. It has a large fanbase, and many Guardian fans enjoy both canons. However, before reading the novel as a fan of the series, it may be good to know one thing:

The Guardian novel is very different from the Guardian series.

If you decide to check out the novel, I would strongly recommend reading it as its own thing, entirely independent of the series. Because otherwise, things get weird.

The series diverges from the novel significantly, in ways that go far beyond what censorship would have required. Sure, because of the censors, the world of the series was remodeled from a straightforward fantasy setting to scifi-fantasy. The explicit m/m relationship at the heart of the novel became a non-explicit gay romance, and Zhao Yunlan stopped smoking and took to lollipops (which I find infinitely more charming, and is also – ironically – occasionally borderline indecent).



But the series did not stop there. It blazed entirely new ground, both in terms of plot and characterization. It basically dismantled the novel and built select parts of it back together with a lot of original elements. Thus, the series isn't a scifi version of the novel, but rather something new that shares some of the novel's building blocks.

Most relevantly, at least for me: The series‘ Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei are not at all the same people that the novel features under the same names. Their relationship is also very different.

Trying to reconcile the two canons isn’t possible; they are simply too different. Trying to make the series and novel characters match up also doesn’t work. So I recommend letting both canons stand for themselves and enjoying them on their own merits. They are simply two separate things, and that’s okay. :-)



(Personally, I stopped reading the novel because I much prefer the series' characters and their relationship, and didn’t want the novel’s versions in my head. Conversely, some fans of the novel are disappointed in the series, which makes perfect sense – not the same story, not the same characters.)

ETA: For anyone looking for an English translation of the novel - anotherslashfan has made me aware of this post by dtriad, where they list all of the translations they are aware of. As anotherslashfan noted, the translations by dtriad and foxghost give something of the flavor of the original novel.

Comments

[asya_ana]

Thanks so much for sharing all your thoughts on this, as I had been working through which to tackle and in which order and whether simultaneously was a good idea or not. I'm still interested in both, but as I mentioned to you I'm going to stick with the show for now so things don't get too confusing. Thanks for posting this, and I'm curious what others will have to say! :)

[rheasilvia]

You should definitely check out both! But, yeah, maybe not simultaneously. :-)

I've heard from a few new fans who looked up the novel translation while watching the series, as a help to figuring out some aspects of the series - only to end up more confused and frustrated, and even fearing they'd completely misunderstood something. So I thought this kind of post might be helpful. :-)

[trobadora]

But the series did not stop there. It blazed entirely new ground, both in terms of plot and characterization. It basically dismantled the novel and built select parts of it back together with a lot of original elements. Thus, the series isn't a scifi version of the novel, but rather something new that shares some of the novel's building blocks.

This is an excellent and spot-on description!

I'm in pretty much the same position as you - I love the show, tried the novel translation and found it not only very different, but also not nearly as much to my tastes. I really appreciate it when people keep the two apart!

(And I wish people would tag their fic more consistently on AO3, but that's another story ...)

[rheasilvia]

I really appreciate it when people keep the two apart!

Me too! Trying to explain one canon by consulting the other can only confuse everyone, I think, because they're two completely different stories. They simply don't fit, so in effect, what you end up doing is constructing an entire *third* canon of your own, and picking and choosing which aspects of which canon you regard as the "right" one.

In fanfic, of course, I understand entirely that fans who enjoy both the novel and the series might want to bring aspects from both canons together, to have the best of both worlds.

But yes, authors, PLEASE TAG such stories with both canon tags, even if it's only the characterization that's changed! Otherwise it is bound to end up reading as massively out of character...

I wonder: Are there also stories that purport to be set in the novel universe, but use a series characterization? Or does it just happen the other way around?

[trobadora]

Otherwise it is bound to end up reading as massively out of character...

Yes, this! There's so much that's just fundamentally different, especially with fic that leans into backstory characterisation ...

I wonder: Are there also stories that purport to be set in the novel universe, but use a series characterization?

I haven't seen it in English fic, but I'm sure that's got to be around on the Chinese side! There's got to be a contingent of fans who prefers it that way, in a fandom this large.

[maggie33]

I too prefer the drama and the characters and their relationships in it. I didn’t read much of the novel. I read the first 7 chapters, and when that didn’t work for me at all, I decided to try two random chapters in the middle. But I didn’t like them either.

I wonder sometimes if I would like the novel better, not as something connected to the drama, but as a completely different story, if I could read it in the original language. The quality of translation can really make or break the text. I experienced that many times when I read a book or a poem in original English and then in Polish translation. Or vice versa. Some translations are sublime, some are really, really not. :)

[rheasilvia]

I wonder sometimes if I would like the novel better, not as something connected to the drama, but as a completely different story, if I could read it in the original language.

That is a very good question! The translation really can make a huge difference - even a good translation can't help but change the text, often in ways that do impact the reading experience.

For my part, I do think I would like the novel better if I had encountered it as a work completely unconnected to the Guardian series. I still don't think I would like it very much, but I might have read the entire book, at least. But since I already loved the series and its characters so much, I couldn't separate them enough in my mind, and ended up dropping the novel because I was afraid some impressions from the novel might "bleed over" into my view of the series.

[china_shop]

Ooh, great post! I haven't got around to trying the novel, because I'm terribly out of the habit of reading and I haven't heard anything about it that's made me bump it up my mammoth TBR pile. (And ha! I didn't know novel!ZYL was a smoker. That makes so much sense. *g*)

(Can I suggest you link this on sid_guardian?)

[rheasilvia]

I think whether or not it makes sense to read the novel really depends on: A) whether you can separate the canons in your head, and B), whether you enjoy the character types and the relationship dynamic in the novel. For me, the answer to both questions is NO, so. Simple. ;-)

(Sure, if you think it makes sense I am happy to link this post to the comm! I thought the audience might be a bit too specific - people watching the series who are contemplating picking up the novel... ;-) )

[china_shop]

I thought the audience might be a bit too specific - people watching the series who are contemplating picking up the novel... ;-)

That sounds totally relevant to the comm to me! :-)

[rheasilvia]

Cool! Then I will link it tomorrow, so as not to encourage myself to delay going to sleep even more. :-) Thank you!

[yantantether]

I'm looking forward to the novel's translation eventually being finished so I can reread the whole thing at once and get my head around it more. Because it's being translated fairly slowly and the translation doesn't seem as nuanced as some of the other stuff I'm reading in translation, it's hard to appreciate the story as a whole and feel much emotional connection to it.

I do really like the mythology and world-building, even if it's sometimes delivered in somewhat indigestible chunks, and I know there's a happy ending coming, which I'm looking forward to.

Also, I love always a cat!Da Qing and just how snarky he is to Yunlan!

[rheasilvia]

Yes, reading things in installments is definitely not the best way! I also like to read stories in one fell swoop - it's the only way I can remember all of the important plot details, never mind appreciate and get into the story properly.

BTW, anotherslashfan made me aware of this post by dtriad, where they list all of the translations they are aware of. As anotherslashfan said, the translations by dtriad and foxghost give something of the flavor of the original novel. Not sure if you're already aware of all of these...?

Ah, a happy ending. Le sigh. *sobs*

[yantantether]

I hadn't checked out other versions of the translation so far because they aren't complete, but you're right, it would actually be interesting to go back and look at selected bits, I'll take a look.

Different translation choices can make such a difference - there was one unclear word choice in a recent MDZS chapter that made the sense of a whole paragraph hard to understand, and when I read the other version of the translation it became obvious it meant Wei Wuxian was having a really important revelation about his feelings for Lan Wangji!

[rheasilvia]

there was one unclear word choice in a recent MDZS chapter

Oh, a relevation...? Now I am curious. :-) I am not that far along yet, but it's something to look forward to!

[yantantether]

Yeah, he does get there eventually, it just takes him...some significant time!

[solo]

I seem to be in a tiny minority of people who really like the novel, too, even though they prefer the series. To me the characters in the novel don't seem to be intrinsically different, just much more extreme (admittedly not always in a good way). I'm having fun with them! :D

[rheasilvia]

I don't know whether you're in the minority when it comes to liking both the series and the novel - I know there are several other fans in the SID comm who enjoy both, and I've been assuming there are quite a lot more out in the wild! But you are the first fan I've heard from who has felt that the characterizations were not intrinsically different. Interesting!

I'm having fun with them!

And ultimately, I'd say that's all that matters! :-)

[starandrea]

Yes! That resonates with me a lot: "the novel characterizations are more extreme." Thanks for saying that; it helps my thought process as I try to reconcile my feelings about the novel and the series!

[extrapenguin]

Thank you for this post! I see a lot of people who think that the show and novel are the same thing, right, and then try in vain to fit the very different things together with a kludge of duct tape that just falls apart. It's best to appreciate them on their own and separately. (This especially goes for tagging fic on AO3.)

[rheasilvia]

I see a lot of people who think that the show and novel are the same thing, right, and then try in vain to fit the very different things together

Yes, me too! Several new fans I know have had this issue recently; they either tried to apply novel explanations to the series and ended up completely frustrated because everything made even less sense - or thought the characters were completely incomprehensible because it was impossible to see both the novel and the series versions in them at once.

So I thought it might be helpful to write a note about this. ;-) I'm glad you like the post!

[jo_lasalle]

I really had no idea that fantasy was also an issue for the censors o__O That would explain the need to have sciencey explanations for all the magic stuff... Which works well for me, so I'm not complaining. But fascinating!

I'm reading the novel with breaks in between; the style - or maybe the combination of novel style and the translation I started with, I really am in no position to tell - doesn't lend itself well to binge-reading for me. And I'm very intrigued by the differences in the characters, but I can already tell that the show!characters are my preferred versions.

Also, LOLLIPOPS!

[rheasilvia]

My unsubstantiated assumption is that fantasy has been caught up in the larger category of "harmful and corrupting superstitions" - ghosts and demons and witchcraft and all that kind of medieval nonsense that a modern socialist state has no wish to tolerate. Oddly enough, the censors seem pretty tolerant when it comes to fantasy novels, and also when it comes to the "wuxia" type of fantasy series featuring immortal cultivators with flying swords and, ahem, mind-powers and the like... I guess I should research this at some point. ;-)

I LOVE THE LOLLIPOPS! They are so charming. How much less fun would cigarettes have been? The lovely thing about the series is that they can take even something like this and run with it until it becomes not a mere substitute, but something original and awesome. (I mean. The scenes with Kunlun and his near-sinful lollipop. Aside from every other scene where ZYL does... things with lollipops. *g*)

[mekare]

I started the Tv series and as soon as I heard there was a novel I started reading that until Wattpad wanted me to make an account to keep reading. He, no thanks.

But I appreciate you wanring me, so I know if I seek it out elsewhere to regard it as a different thing.

Also, yes to this:
lollipops (which I find infinitely more charming, and is also – ironically – occasionally borderline indecent).

SO MUCH more charming! I noticed the indecency right away in the first lollipop scene with Guo Chang Cheng.I was like, seriously? So obvious?!

[rheasilvia]

Many people really enjoy the novel, so I do think you should have a look, if you're at all interested. Just be aware that, yeah. Both canons are their own thing. :-)

The lollipops are so much fun. I love how imaginative and creative the series' writers were - and Bai Yu, too. That one element fits so well and adds so much to the characterization.

Poor Little Guo. It really is a tough first day of work for him, and the lollipop certainly doesn't help. ;-) Zhao Yunlan, you troll.

[tinny]

Well, the way I understand it, they changed the characters so they'd be more heroic and "good", which in itself is also part of avoiding censorship.

The novel characters are less human (because they are not human), they are less nice and act less out of altruism. I don't know how far that is true towards the end of the novel, since I have not read it myself. I am dependent on the translation, like pretty much everyone else.

Part of what the censors took out *after* the show aired was Ye Zun's redemption arc. A bad guy turning good, that's not allowed. (Those parts are still on youtube unchanged, they only censored the Youku version, apparently.)

So, I am ambivalent about the drama characterization. I don't hate it, but I am not entirely happy with the reasons for it.

[rheasilvia]

I agree with you on the problem of censorship - it is definitely not something to be happy about. Still, to me, disapproving of censorship doesn't mean that I have to disapprove of works that were created under conditions of censorship.

I didn't realize there had been a redemption planned for Ye Zun originally - how interesting. And how strange that redeeming antagonists is also something the censors object to... especially since plenty of the minor antagonists in Guardian are redeemed (or explained) in some form, or shown in a sympathetic light from the start. Inconsistent, I would say.

Interestingly enough, I am usually drawn to grey characters - occasionally very dark grey. I don't know why I like these characters' intrinsic goodness so much, but I really, really do.

[tinny]

I only have second hand knowledge of the ending myself. I have only seen up to episode 31. But the way I understand it, Ye Zun gives back those he swallowed and they (he and Shen Wei) leave hand in hand? I was under the impression that everything was still on youtube and that Ye Zun's arc was preserved. (I have no idea how redemptive it is/was at all.)

I may have gotten that wrong, since I am only picking up spoilers with half an ear. I'm really actively trying to avoid spoilers, but failing. So asking someone who knows more about this would be best? I know it'll take me another two months at least to watch the remaining 9 eps.

especially since plenty of the minor antagonists in Guardian are redeemed (or explained) in some form,

Yeah, that's also something a lot of Chinese novels and dramas do, I think. Although the Guardian novel punishes their villains pretty badly (Li Qian is the only one I have seen so far) compared to the show.

I really don't know what the censorship rules are for secondary characters. I've definitely seen shows where even the mean/evil characters were explained and turned good in the end, so I have no idea why they objected to that with Ye Zun.

Interestingly enough, I am usually drawn to grey characters - occasionally very dark grey. I don't know why I like these characters' intrinsic goodness so much, but I really, really do.

I am not averse to grey characters, myself. But I am swimming in unfinished canon for Guardian so much that I really can't decide what I like about which part, and where I would have liked each character to go, morality-wise. It's a dilemma. :)

[rheasilvia]

Hmm, I will think about whether or not to check YouTube for this alternate ending. I am not overjoyed with the official ending, but I don't think having a bunch of alternate versions can really help me. ;-)

Yeah, that's also something a lot of Chinese novels and dramas do

Absolutely - Asian media in general has a preference for redeeming antagonists, as far as I know. I first noticed it in Korean and Japanese dramas, and have - without any actual evidence - ascribed it to a culture informed by the Buddhist mindset (causing pain is itself a consequence of suffering, people must ideally be led to inner balance to end the general suffering, while causing further pain only increases the problem) rather than the Christian one (there is good and evil, and evildoers must be crushed).

I am swimming in unfinished canon for Guardian so much that I really can't decide what I like about which part, and where I would have liked each character to go, morality-wise.

I have many dilemmas about interpreting Guardian myself, but fortunately I am entirely content with the morality of the drama's characters. That really works for me. :-)

the Guardian novel punishes their villains pretty badly (Li Qian is the only one I have seen so far)

I did not know this, and I am very glad the drama chose to go a different route. I really like the role Li Qian in particular continues to play throughout the series.

(Also: LOL! Your icon! *g*)

[tinny]

Where did you watch it if not on youtube? afaik there is only one youtube version, only the youku versions got shortened. They did take the youtube playlist offline during that time, but simply turned it public again after, without any changes (that I know of - but i didnt check, since i had them all dled before that time already).

ascribed it to a culture informed by the Buddhist mindset

Yes, that makes a lot of sense!

(Also: LOL! Your icon! *g*)

I only have two Guardian icons in use, and wanted to use a grey character for a change. :D

[rheasilvia]

I watched (and downloaded) the Youku versions on YouTube. I was just saying that I might look for the redacted scenes of Ye Zun's redemption that are also around - although I don't think I will, because an alternate version of the ending (or even several, if there were more, which AFAIK there are not *g*) will not help me with the official version. ;-)

My Guardian icons are growing in number daily! I am fighting to prevent them from taking over all of my icon spots at this point. :-) I mean, clearly I need one for every occasion, soooo...

[tinny]

I've been meaning to link you to the censored scene roundup post (but was too lazy), but naye linked it in her censorship post, so I think you saw it by now.

No idea where they were going with it, honestly.