Murder Diary

Murder Diary is a Hong Kong crime thriller produced by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB),[3] starring Kara Wai, Vincent Wong, Philip Keung, Benjamin Yuen, Mandy Wong, Lai Lok-yi and Venus Wong as the main cast.

Murder Diary
刑偵日記
GenreCrime
Thriller
Suspense
Created byKwan Shu-ming
Written byChu Kang-ki
Lau Siu-kwan
StarringKara Wai
Vincent Wong
Philip Keung
Benjamin Yuen
Mandy Wong
Lai Lok-yi
Venus Wong
Joey Thye
Alice Chan
Hana Kuk
Shiga Lin
Theme music composerAlan Cheung
Alex Lau
Damon Chui
Opening themeSkylight (天窗) by Vincent Wong
Ending themeTrust Nobody (不相信別人) by Hana Kuk
Cared Too Much (太在意) by Shiga Lin
Butterfly Effect (蝴蝶效應) by Hana Kuk and Vincent Wong
Country of originHong Kong
Original languageCantonese
No. of episodes25[1]
Production
ProducerKwan Shu-ming
Production locationHong Kong
Camera setupMulti camera
Running time45 minutes (per episode)
Production companyTVB
Release
Original networkTVB Jade
Original release28 June (2021-06-28)[2] –
2 August 2021 (2021-08-02)
Related
  • Fraudsters
  • AI Romantic

The drama first premiered on Youku, myTV Gold, TVB Anywhere, and Astro GO at 8:00 pm on 15 June 2021.[4] It premiered 9:30 pm on TVB Jade and Astro AOD on 28 June and will air 10:15 pm starting from 19 July due to the Tokyo Olympic Games broadcast.

Synopsis

Years ago, Yeung Bik-sum (Kara Wai), who suffered from schizophrenia, almost killed her son, Ip King-fung (Vincent Wong), and her daughter, Ip Long-ching (Joey Thye). This caused King-fung to suffer from Dissociative Identity Disorder. His split personality, Chu Kei (Vincent Wong), studied hard to be a handwriting expert and criminal profiler, who helped King-fung, an undercover agent, to uproot a criminal organisation.

Due to a series of complicated case, Chief Inspector of Police Kong Ching-fun (Lai Lok-yi) invited King-fung, psychiatrist Wai Yui-kit (Benjamin Yuen), bomb disposal officer Yau Ngan-sing (Mandy Wong) and forensic anthropologist Fong Yuen-chin (Venus Wong) to the Special Crime Unit. After being cured from Bipolar Disorder, Superintendent Nip Shan (Philip Keung) returned to lead the Special Crime Unit. Meanwhile, he found out that Bik-sum is linked to his wife Leung Yat-sze's (Alice Chan) disappearance...

Cast and characters

Special Crime Unit
Cast Role Notes
Philip Keung Nip Shan (聶山) Superintendent of Police from the Crime Unit
Lai Lok-yi Kong Ching-fun (江政勳) Chief Inspector of Police from the Crime Unit
Mandy Wong Yau Ngan-sing (游雁星) Madam Sing
Senior Inspector of Police and No. 1 bomb disposal officer from the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau
Vincent Wong Ip King-fung (葉勁峰) An undercover agent and Police Constable from the Crime Unit
Chu Kei (朱璣) A graphologist and criminal profiler
Benjamin Yuen Wai Yui-kit (韋睿傑) Dr. Wai
A psychiatrist and criminal profiler
Venus Wong Fong Yuen-chin (方菀芊) A forensic anthropologist

Ip family
Cast Role Notes
Kara Wai Yeung Bik-sum (楊碧芯) King fung and Long-ching's mother
Suffered from Schizophrenia
Vincent Wong Ip King-fung (葉勁峰) Bik-sum's son
Long-ching's older brother
Suffered from Dissociative Identity Disorder
Chu Kei (朱璣) A split personality of King-fung
Matt The original personality of King-fung, fell into a deep sleep since fourteen years old
Joey Thye Ip Long-ching (葉朗晴) Bik-sum's daughter
King-fung's younger sister

Nip family
Cast Role Notes
Philip Keung Nip Shan (聶山) Yat-sze's husband, suffered from Bipolar Disorder after her disappearance
Alice Chan Leung Yat-sze (梁日思) Nip Shan's wife, left home three year ago

Other cast

Production

A blessing ceremony was held on 3 June 2020.[5] Filming lasted from May to August 2020.

Reception

The series was mostly praised in mainland China for its unconventional and unique plot. The cast, particularly Kara Wai, was highly praised for her acting. The series currently has a fair rating of 7.4 on Douban.[6] It reached the top ten trending dramas in China, which is considered rare for Hong Kong dramas especially in recent years.[7]

However, Hong Kong viewers found the plot to be too confusing and difficult to follow. For TVB's live broadcast, the series is rated the lowest of the year in viewership with its first week averaging 17.5 points, which was its highest, and its second week averaging 15.5 points. Early online streaming on several platforms may have had an impact on its ratings.[7][8] Airing at a later time due to the 2021 Olympic Games, the series dipped to its lowest rating of 10.2 points, averaging 13.8 points overall, one of the lowest dramas in TVB's 54-year history. Despite this, actor Vincent Wong thanked fans on social media for their support for the series.[9][10]

Sequel

On 14 March 2022, TVB confirmed that a sequel, Murder Diary Series 2, is in the works. It was announced as 1 of 4 sequels and 1 of 14 dramas in the pre-production stage at the FilMart marketing event.[11]

References
  1. Murder Diary (25 episodes)
  2. "Murder Diary Premieres on 28 June on TVB". TVB Anywhere Official Instagram (in Chinese). 10 June 2021.
  3. "《刑偵日記》實力派演員大鬥戲". TVB Weekly. 4 June 2020.
  4. "Murder Diary Premieres on 15 June on Youku". Murder Diary Official weibo. 10 June 2021.
  5. "電視劇《刑偵日記》眾藝人出席開鏡拜神儀式" (in Chinese). 3 June 2020.
  6. "刑侦日记 (豆瓣)". movie.douban.com. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  7. "Did "Murder Diary's" Unconventional Plot Backfire? – JayneStars.com". Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  8. ""Murder Diary's" Viewership Ratings Plunge to 15.5 Points – JayneStars.com". Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  9. 林迅景 (5 August 2021). "刑偵日記｜收視不理想未有氣餒 王浩信發文致謝：我哋好畀心機做". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  10. "Vincent Wong Thanks Viewers Supporting "Murder Diary" Despite Low Ratings – JayneStars.com". Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  11. 李婉文 (14 March 2022). "影視博覽2022｜無綫14套新劇4部續集 《刑偵日記》換班底開第2輯". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 14 March 2022.
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