Insect Detective (2020)

Excellent in many ways, somewhat marred by a weak final episode

The Story: Interesting and Nicely Intertwined Subplots

The mystery stories involving insects involve some interesting knowledge but I also wonder if they stretch the limits of plausibility. Sometimes I feel as though it is not likely that everything goes as planned by the killers, making their ingenious murder schemes turn out to be complicated schemes executed with tons of luck.

I like the use of flashbacks to tell the story in this series. The flashbacks can, unfortunately, be a little repetitive for some. However, they do reveal more with each repetition. I also like the rather daring move of having some extended flashbacks with very little dialogue because it shows the killers going about their plans alone. I suspect it won't be everyone's cup of tea though, and the series may be a tad too reliant on the same technique.

In the last episode, the use of flashbacks seems a little less skillful, giving the impression that it is to reveal things to the audience rather than to show the process in which the truth is unraveled. In fact, the characters do not even get to find out all the truth. It feels as if the series had suddenly been cut short by one or two episodes and there was a sudden need to wrap the story up quickly. When you see a sudden accident killing one of the criminals at large, you can easily feel the sense of hurry.

Characters: The Strength of the Series, with Some Quirks

The series features probably the most endearing detective figures I have ever seen. The main character, Tan Jingtian, is actually not a detective but an entomologist/postgrad student who happens to use his knowledge of insects (and other things) to help the police solve a few cases. An unassuming and affable character, he is really easy to love. Gala Zhang seems to have taken to the role very naturally.

Tan Jingtian is one of those people one would be glad to be friends with if he appears in real life. We can feel happy for him when he discovers that he has a half-brother and that his father is still alive, but we also cry for him when his brother and father die soon after.

Jingtian's relationship with Wen Bai is intriguing--he doesn't know that Wen Bai is his brother until towards the end of the series, and they are so close that even his girlfriend jokes about "matchmaking" them as brothers. There is no overt baiting of BL fans (since that the two characters are actually related by blood). Nevertheless, Jingtian and Wen Bai do often seem more like lovers /potential lovers than siblings whereas Jingtian and his girlfriend seem more like siblings than lovers.

Wen Bai, the second male lead, is the most complex and morally ambiguous character in the series, though it is believable that he is basically a good person who has committed some crimes, including murder. He recognizes Jingtian as his brother immediately upon knowing his name, but keeps the truth from him. We also see some obvious jealousy in see when the girl he likes becomes closer to Jingtian.

There are subtle changes to his character in the series. He is capable of harming others to protect his secret, but he is also increasingly touched by Jingtian's care for him and values their brotherly relationship. He's a bit of a tragic figure because he could really have been a truly good person had maybe one event in his life not taken place. He is responsible for causing the accident that causes the death of Jingtian's mother, and this is a secret he would literally kill to keep. The reason behind his obsession with keeping the secret is more complicated than it seems at first.

Some of the characters suggest that Wen Bai wants to keep the secret at all costs to protect Jingtian or his brotherly relationship with Jingtian. But he has been blackmailed for years before meeting Jingtian, so it's obvious that--at least initially--he wants to keep the secret for selfish reasons. (Then again, he was just a small kid when he was manipulated by someone into causing the accident. He is not legally or even morally culpable.) He clearly feels guilty about what he has done, and even breaks down before the tomb of Jingtian's mother.

What I like about this character is that the writer(s) could have taken the easy way out by making him one of the biggest villains of the show who is merely a hypocrite, cold-blooded enough to kill the girlfriend who has been blackmailing him. Yet, while he has killed someone to safeguard his secret, one can be convinced that he is not the one who has killed the girlfriend and that he loves his brother too much to be blackmailed into killing him even before the revelation of some truths in Episodes 22-23,

Ultimately, the exact motivations behind some of Wen Bai's actions are not fully revealed. This isn't necessarily a weakness though I think the characterization ultimately suffers from the rush in the final episode. Maybe he is more selfishly concerned about his reputation at some point, but also later becomes more concerned about not hurting Jingtian with the truth. Perhaps some groundwork is being laid for a sequel.

What is also commendable in the series is the attempt to depict a strong female character in Jin Ling, Jingtian's girlfriend and Wen Bai's initial love interest. At first a new forensic pathologist who faces discrimination against women, she overcomes the discrimination with her capability. Physically, she can easily overpower a guy like Jingtian. Her romance with Jingtian is nicely unconventional though perhaps their romance could have been better shown.

I guess the series suits those who are casually into the detective genre. If you are the type who tends to nitpick on the plausibility of and logic behind the events, it may not satisfy you. Nevertheless, there is enough of an interesting story about the characters even if you relegate the mystery cases to the background.

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