No Beta 05: Breaking Waves

Week of 7th of March

An early happy International Women’s Day to all!

This week, fanquan is talking about…

#14 唐探2这一集演的是萝莉岛吧

This episode of Detective Chinatown 2 is about the Lolita Island

The “Lolita Island” in question is actually Chinese for the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s private island Little St. James. This crime thriller web series produced by iQiyi featured a case where young girls are exploited by powerful men at fancy parties, which reminded the audience of Epstein’s story that made the headlines in China too.

Although this is not a particularly noteworthy franchise, I included this entry because it sheds light on a broader phenomenon that’s far more interesting. China’s Anti-US diplomatic stance is giving rise to, quite ironically, a permeation of progressive discourses. Democrat-leaning critique on the current US government and its conservative tendencies gains traction in China, because it aligns with the overall position that our foreign policy takes. I read a recently published book on Asian American discrimination last month, a title that probably wouldn’t have been translated so swiftly had it not been about a dark side of America. The same goes with the unusual attention Epstein’s case attracted, alongside the overturning of Roe v. Wade, or the Capitol riots. On the one hand, amplifying news like this does introduce a set of vocabulary to Chinese audiences regarding rights, democracy and abuse of power. But the underlying intention when disseminating this message is to outcompete the U.S. The inevitable effect is a heightened rivalry.