Trivia / Word of Honor

• Approval of God: The author of the novel, Priest, has voiced her approval and recommendation for Word of Honor.
• Auteur License: Without the presence of any Executive Meddling, scriptwriter Xiao Chu had the complete freedom to adapt the novel the way she wanted.
• Completely Different Title: Like most Chinese series, the official English title is nothing like the original one.
• Dawson Casting: (At the time of the shooting) 22-year-old Zhou Ye plays 17-year-old Gu Xiang. 24-year-old Ma Wenyuan plays 17/18-year-old Cao Weining.
• "Do It Yourself" Theme Tune:
  • Zhang Zhehan (Zhou Zishu) and Gong Jun (Wen Kexing) sing "天涯客/Tiān Yá Kè/Faraway Wanderers". Zhang Zhehan also sings "孤梦/Gū Mèng/Lonely Dream".
  • Li Daikun (Scorpion King), Yuan Shuai (Mu Yunge), Ma Wenyuan (Cao Weining) and Sun Xilun (Zhang Chengling) sing "望天涯/Wàng Tiān Yá/Gazing at the Horizon".
• Dyeing for Your Art: In order to show how the nails took a toll on Zhou Zishu, Zhang Zhehan had to lose a lot of weight deliberately to look sick for the role. Zhang Zhehan actually fainted on set because of this.
• Follow the Leader: It's one of several adaptations of danmei novels made in the wake of The Untamed's success.
• Improv: The small cast and more freedom considering following the source allowed for many actors to improvise things for their characters.
  • Zhang Zhehan takes the lead in this, as he's the one to improvise the famous sunbathing scene, while adding many of his own characterizations for Zhou Zishu, as well as guiding Gong Jun regarding playing Wen Kexing.
  • Gong Jun implemented some scenes from the novel into the show, as he had read the first part of it.
  • Xue Fei says that he was given freedom on how he portrays Impermanence Ghost, giving him his famous ticks.
• Surprisingly Lenient Censor: Word of Honor has a very rich script filled with poetry, and the romantic subtext between the couple is so undeniable that many people were surprised that the show was able to get away with all the homoeroticism on TV. This is all at the cost of Youku not advertising the show on their front page, leading it to only have one sponsor, which led the series to be cut from 45 episodes to 36 plus a short special episode. Unfortunately, this also led the Moral Guardians in China to infamously tighten their leash towards the danmei genre, so nearly all live-action and donghua adaptations supposed to air after Word of Honor had to be indefinitely delayed.
• What Could Have Been: The series was planned to be 45 episodes long; however, due to budget restrictions and a lack of sponsors, it has been cut to 36 episodes. It was said that there were more fights planned and more interactions between the characters.

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