＂Hurricane＂： Human Nature Excavation and Realistic Reflection

　　Author: Wen Weihua (Associate Professor, School of Language and Communication, Beijing Jiaotong University)

　　At the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit, the TV series "Hurricane" became the first hit drama: the peak audience rating of CCTV’s eight sets exceeded 3, and the popularity of iQIYI in-app exceeded 11,000 for the first time. Related topics frequently appeared on hot searches, achieving a double harvest of popularity and reputation. The greeting that many people met changed from "Happy New Year" to "Have you watched" Hurricane ". Why is this TV series with the background of normalization of anti-gangs and anti-evil and the education and rectification of political and legal teams so charming?

　　"Hurricane" tells the story of the battle between good and evil between political and legal workers represented by An Xin and the underworld forces represented by Gao Qiqiang and their umbrella companies. It shows the complexity and arduousness of the fight against evil, highlights the firm determination of the Party Central Committee to "break the umbrella and break the net", and pays tribute to the brave and fearless heroes of the fight against evil. In addition to the ups and downs of the plot, the superb acting skills of many powerful actors, and the well-made Taoist costumes, "Hurricane" also provides new ideas for the creation of current criminal investigation dramas in terms of narrative structure, character shaping, and depth of intention.

　　The play unfolds the plot in the 20 years of grand social changes, using two-line cross-narrative techniques. One tells the story of the provincial education rectification guidance team sinking into Jinghai City to conduct inspections and thoroughly investigate the local "umbrella company"; the other uses flashbacks to review the fortune of the largest underworld and evil forces in Jinghai City through the perspective of An Xin, as well as the grudges and enmities between him and Gao Qiqiang. The main creator selects three time points in 2000, 2006, and 2021 to form a three-act structure, focusing on core events such as homicide, land acquisition disputes, and the handling of cases by the guidance team. It not only reflects social changes, but also constructs three stages of the character’s destiny development.

　　The double protagonist setting of police officer An Xin and local underworld forces Gao Qiqiang is not uncommon in previous movies and television dramas of the same theme, but "Hurricane" depicts the "unknowable and accidental fate" and complex human nature through the inextricable entanglement of the two. They met in a small time, and then gradually drifted away, and finally went their separate ways. Although An Xin, an idealist who maintains a society ruled by law, has been repeatedly beaten by the severe reality, injured many times, lost his master, comrades, and lovers, and was excluded and marginalized. He has changed from a hot-blooded young man to a cautious white-haired middle-aged man, but he has never changed his original intention and endured alone until the clouds clear. Gao Qiqiang, who is well versed in the rules of human love and society, was originally a hard-working and law-abiding bottom-level fishmonger who was bullied, but he made a mistake and slipped into the abyss of evil, becoming a gangster boss who entrenched one side. The play is written from the background of the times and proceeds from the logic of human nature to outline the fate curves of two opposing little characters in the torrent of development of the times. In addition to the two protagonists, the portrayal of "gray" characters such as Cao Chuang and Li Xiang in "Hurricane", as well as many characters such as gang boss Xu Jiang and sister-in-law Chen Shuting, is also remarkable. They have distinct personalities and are three-dimensional and multi-faceted, all of which leave a deep impression on people.

　　As a theme of anti-black and evil, the intention of "Wild" does not stop at telling a thrilling black-and-white contest, but more in-depth excavation of human nature and reflection on reality. It not only praises justice, but also objectively and deeply analyzes evil. The play tells a lot about how Gao Qiqiang, who was born in humble, hard-working and simple, gradually degenerated into a black boss who covered the sky in Beijing City. The work does not stop at the level of cool drama of the revenge of the little guy’s black fortune, nor does it simply attribute Gao Qiqiang’s degeneration to personal choice, but conducts a deeper excavation. With the monologue of Xu Zhong, the anti-crime supervision commissioner, it is pointed out that if Tang Xiaolong and Tang Xiaohu, the market administrators who dominate one side, are the fuse, it is better to say that there are indeed some unfair distributions in our society, which makes the grassroots people feel that they cannot get rich without illegal means, so some people who take risks appear. The evil forces and their umbrella companies are not formed in a day. In the face of many shady scenes, the political and legal police represented by An Xin did not forget their original intentions and adhered to the bottom line. After long-term hard work, and even paid the price of their lives, justice was finally served. Gao Qiqiang, Zhao Lidong and others were sentenced to death, the largest black and evil forces and umbrella companies in Beijing were uprooted, guarding the peace and happiness of the people, so that the audience not only deeply realized the complexity of the work of anti-black and evil, but also saw the light and hope, and then realized the two-way rush of realism and mainstream value.

　　Of course, "Hurricane" also has some problems. For example, compared with the villains, the positive characters can be more plump and three-dimensional; compared with the first half, the second half of the plot should be more realistic and logical. However, the flaws are not hidden. The creators use broad, warm, deep and powerful storytelling to reveal the root cause of the formation of evil forces, depict the process of weaving the "black web", reflect on the structural and institutional problems existing in social development, and further answer the question of how to completely eradicate evil forces and safeguard social fairness and justice. It has made a useful attempt for the creation of criminal investigation themes.