Most Improved Actor: Louis Cheung (張繼聰)
Comment: Yes! I am very happy for Louis to win this award. He is to be to me the most stand-out actor in TVB's recent history and he is fascinating in every role that he takes, whether it is the calculative Marco, funny Mario or the mighty 9th Prince, he out-shined everyone. Some might say he should get Best Supporting instead but for me getting Most Improved Actor is perfect because one he deserves it more out of anyone else in the list (yes including Sammy Shum if in terms of both popularity and acting skills) and two Most Improved Actor recognises all of his roles this year, rather than just his Marco role (since he was equally amusing in all roles). His speech was also very thankful and well-said. Frankly I think he has improved a lot from his supporting roles and he is somewhat restricted with limited screen-time and character development, perhaps it's time for him to take on leading roles? I say yes.
Most Improved Actress: Priscilla Wong (黃翠如)
Comment: I certainly didn't expect this result but I was surprised in a good way. I was frankly expected Grace Chan to win since she is both so obviously and heavily promoted by TVB. Priscilla on the outside looks nice, but for me it is her acting that counts. She has improved tremendously since 'Karma Rider' where she is much more clear in her lines and shows much more appropriate emotions. Samantha Ko is in the same league but I'm fine with Priscilla grabbing the award for this year. Samantha has plenty of chances in the future. Also, I have heard from people that she was supposedly frozen by TVB for some reason but perhaps this award demonstrates that she is still favoured by TVB? For Priscilla now I hope she gets more challenging and breakthrough roles because she needs it or otherwise I might not see much in her anymore. But anyway again an eloquent speech filled with gratitude. Well done.
Best Supporting Actress: Josie Ho (何超儀) for Tomorrow is Another Day <再戰明天>
Comment: I have a lot to say about this award. For a start yes I suspect this award is rigged by TVB. Like many others, Josie Ho is the daughter of a billionaire (known as Stanley Ho) who possesses enormous amounts of wealth and power in Macau. I am convinced that the award was given to her because of TVB's relationship with the Ho Family and like some said it was to 'give face' to the Ho family. When Benz Hui announced the award I could already see the audience's reaction as sort of giggling and the applause seemed a bit forced and stiff. Nevertheless, whether this is true or not though it is no longer important to me because she really deserved this award. In the series 'Tomorrow is Another Day' she was very convincing as a battered and inspired 'Ding Ho Ho'. She showed her lack of confidence, the pain she went through, the anxiety of not being able to see her son and the joy of being able to have a second chance in life. That being said, I thank TVB for rigging this award then because I probably will cringe if Sharon Chan (the media favourite) won this award because she pales in comparison compared to Josie or the others. Besides Josie Ho's speech was also thankful. Josie you truly deserve this award!
Best Supporting Actor: Ram Chiang (蔣志光) for Come On, Cousin <老表，你好hea!>
Comment: I also have a lot to say about this award. Again I was a bit shocked when Elena Kong presented the award to Ram because I thought Benz Hui would win for a start but it was Ram. If you want me to be honest I will and I genuinely think Benz Hui deserved it more in terms of acting. In terms of popularity Ram Chiang was very popular this year for people discovering his music talent and appearing as another 'hidden gem' (like Fred Cheng), but in my humble opinion his acting in 'Come On, Cousin' was rather mundane. His speech though was a highlight of the ceremony where he thanked Jesus and he sort of knew the audience would question whether this award is for his music talent or his acting skills. Ram answered well by saying '20 years ago I won an award for singing, 20 years later I won this year for acting. But this time it is different because I am acting as a singer so therefore I am a professional actor'. Whilst Benz Hui may be a more deserving candidate, I am still very happy for Ram because he didn't disappoint at all in 'Come On, Cousin' as a wise advisor in the series and he mastered the body movements and facial expressions necessary for a comedy drama. Add oil Ram!
Best Theme Song: Line Walker <使徒行者> ending theme by Jinny Ng (吳若希)
Comment: Not much to comment but I seriously think that there were many better candidates for best theme song like Constellations from the series 'M Club' or even Fred Cheng's 'Surrender' for the series 'Overachievers' and others. At the end of the day it's best theme song not best singer so I am fine with the award. For me if some-one else sang this song it would have sounded better because in my humble opinion I think Jinny Ng has a lot of room for improvement in terms of singing in tune and etc. The song itself is nice and very relevant to romance plot of the series 'Line Walker' though so I am not going to complain too much about this award since whether a song sounds good or bad depends on people's preference and is subjective in nature.
Best Hosts: Nancy Sit (薛家燕) and Wong Cho Lam (王祖藍) for Walk the Walk, Talk the Talk <Sunday扮嘢王>
Comment: Great win for Wong Cho Lam and Nancy Sit! They both did a marvellous job at the show 'Walk the Walk, Talk and Talk' and made themselves looking as ridiculous as possible which not everyone is able or willing to do so. They are both also good hosts because they share a refreshing couple as hosts and both speak share great chemistry that makes the show go smooth and enjoyable to watch. Not much people will pay attention to this award but for me they really deserve a mention. At the same time their speeches were quite funny and humble!
Best Variety Special：A Time of Love <愛情來的時候>
Comment: Honestly I believe that TVB just added in this award category just to recognise the series 'A Time of Love' after spending so much money on it and hoping it will become a hit. To be fair though this series is well-deserved if compared to the other Best Variety Special candidates such as Anniversary Gala and Miss Hong Kong 2014 etc because it was enjoyable to watch and gave a unique feel I guess. Not much to comment.
Best Informational Program: Guardians of Life 2 <守護生命的故事2>
Comment: Too bad Lawrence Cheng wasn't here to accept the award since he was the host for the program but another deserving win! I did watch parts of this show and this was indeed very informative talking the stories and facts of health conditions and sick patients. I could tell that the director for this show used up a lot of time and effort for this show to become alive. I also like how the people behind the stage got a chance to share their thoughts so kudos to everyone!
Professional Acting Awards: Chu Wai Tak (朱維德), So Yan Chi (蘇恩慈), Li Ka Ding (李家鼎), Law Lok Lam (羅樂林), and Ram Chiang (蔣志光)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Tam Ping Man (譚炳文)
Comment: This is another highlight of the show. Since 2012 TVB has been honouring green-leaf artists for their long-time commitment to TVB and although viewers might claim they are 'pork-chop' awards, for the winners it is a touching recognition for their career as an actor or actress! Same goes for the Lifetime Achievement Award!
My Favorite Female Character: Charmaine Sheh (佘詩曼) for Line Walker <使徒行者>
Comment: Expected win. Charmaine is also well-liked by the public and her roles as 'Sister Deng' was very likeable with viewers. Hence positive plus positive equals a win. Well-deserved win for her.
My Favorite Male Character: Benz Hui (許紹雄) for Line Walker <使徒行者>
Comment: Yes! Another deserving win as Benz Hui was intriguing as 'Foon Hei Gor' in the series 'Line Walker' even if an odd for that role. If you think about it this means he has won awards three years consecutively (2012 he won Professional Acting Award, 2013 Best Supporting Actor and 2014 My Favourite Male Character). Best Actor next year? Who knows?
Best Actress: Charmaine Sheh (佘詩曼) for Line Walker <使徒行者>
Comment: Expected, expected and expected. Charmaine Sheh again did well in the series 'Line Walker' and her speech was great in the sense she was humble and acknowledged that she won because she is lucky to be in a role with a good script and well liked by the audience. Even though she has a lot to improve she exceeded all of my expectations set for her in Line Walker so I am happy she won!
Best Actor: Roger Kwok (郭晉安) for Black Heart White Soul <忠奸人>
Comment: Woohoo! Roger Kwok truly deserved this award for his fantastic performance in 'Black Heart White Soul' as the selfish Matt. That was a funny moment when Chilam said prior announcing Roger Kwok was the winner by saying 'Hey guys you know that you can win an award even if you are not attending the awards ceremony?' (implying that Raymond Lam was the winner) and we got a glimpse of the audience's reaction as 'no way', 'What?' and 'No this can't be true', and then finally a sign of relief for Roger when he heard that he won.
Best Drama: Line Walker <使徒行者>
Comment: Expected win and I guess a deserved win even though I can list five other series that excelled Line Walker in terms of plot consistency and having a refreshing and breakthrough story.
My overall thoughts? Yes I would of hoped that TVB announced the top five for both the Best Actor and Best Actress award. Rating wise TVB didn't do so well with the peak of only 34 points when Charmaine was announced TV Queen compared to last year's 41 points when Dayo Wong was announced TVB King. Dodo's croaky voice was also a bit of a distraction but I applaud her for still trying her hardest to continue hosting and trying to seem relaxed about it. Overall like 2013 all winners are well-deserved which adds credibility to the TVB Awards!
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