Unriddle 2

Unriddle 2
(最火搭档2)
Genre Police procedural
Thriller
Written by Phang Kai Yee (彭凯毅)
Starring Rui En
Chen Liping
Tay Ping Hui
Elvin Ng
Opening theme Music
Country of origin Singapore
Original language(s) Chinese
No. of episodes 20
Production
Producer(s) Paul Yuen
Running time approx. 45 minutes
Release
Original network MediaCorp Channel 8
NTV7
Original release 5 March – 30 March 2012
Chronology
Preceded by Rescue 995
Followed by Pillow Talk
Related shows Unriddle (2010 Sequel)
External links
Website

Unriddle 2 (simplified Chinese: 最火搭档 2) is a Singaporean Chinese drama which was telecast on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp Channel 8. It made its debut on 5 March 2012. This drama serial consists of 20 episodes, and was screened on every weekday night at 9:00 pm. In Malaysia, it will be broadcast on the ntv7 primetime drama slot at 10:00pm around May. It is a sequel to Unriddle, one of the first sequels in Mediacorp dramas in nearly 10 years. The sequel is also noted for its much darker tone as compared to the first series.[1]

Reason for sequel

In the Season 1 ending, Xiaoman (Rui En) and Zhengyi aka Bun (Chen Liping) were about to find out the mystery of a new case. This cliff-hanger leads into a new season of 20 episodes.

Introduction

The show sees the return of the two main characters Xiaoman (Rui En) and Zhengyi aka Bun (Chen Liping), where picking off from the cliff-hanger ending at the Season 1 they continue to solve cases of complex crimes beyond their imagination. Each case leads to another, quickly taking on a darker and edgier tone, with many friends and loved ones getting killed and pushing the duo to their limits. As the story progresses, they realize that there is yet another mastermind behind these events and that the reasons for their own involvement in these cases may be more than simply being part of their work...

Elvin Ng, Yuan Shuai, Adam Chen and Sora Ma join the cast as Xiaoman's fellow CID officers. Xiang Yun, Zhou Ying, Joshua Ang and Wee Kheng Ming will reprise their roles from the first season. Tay Ping Hui will only appear in the first 7 episodes despite still being a main character. Other actors from the previous season such as Brandon Wong and Chen Tianwen return but play different characters.

Story

Picking up from where the story left off in Unriddle, the feisty duo Xiaoman and Zhengyi continue to be beleaguered by cases of complex crimes beyond their imagination. Worse still, a loved one gets incapacitated by a mysterious mastermind. Faced with doubt, can the duo overcome all obstacles and capture the perpetrator?

Zhengyi Trapped (ep 1-3)

Day 8. After leaving a dagger in the eatery, Asura disappears without a trace. Zhengyi confirms that Asura’s purpose in coming to Singapore from Tokyo is to avenge the death of his brother, Shanfan. But why has Asura not made his move yet? During these eight days, Zhengyi lives in fear that Asura will appear any time.

In the meantime, Xiaoman is transferred to the CID to assume the position of Deputy Director. Together with Yuze, who has resumed duty, she oversees the case involving Asura. She deduces that Asura was acting mysteriously to instill fear in Zhengyi. The elusive Asura finally strikes on the night of the eighth day, with an attempt on Zhengyi’s life. Xiaoman happens to appear on the scene, and both of them are thrown into a fierce battle.

A murder case surfaces shortly after. The victim is a triad member from Japan. Xiaoman and Yuze link the victim to Asura. Using the victim’s identity as a lead to their investigations, Xiaoman and Yuze chance upon some Japanese triad members operating secretly in Singapore. As Xiaoman and Yuze go into action to arrest them, a clash ensues. The leader, Kuroda Yutaka (黑田丰), is arrested, but they lose track of Asura.

Through Kuroda Yutaka, Xiaoman and Yuze learn that Asura is not only seeking revenge on Zhengyi but was hatching a plot….

The abyss of suffering (ep 4-10)

Dylan continues to woo Xiaoman, but Xiaoman indicates point blank that Dylan is not the man for her. Although disappointed, Dylan is determined not to give up pursuing Xiaoman’s love.

Soon after, Xiaoman discovers that Yuze is secretly investigating Dylan, whom he suspects of murdering his ex-girlfriend, Fan Huizhong. Xiaoman is aware that Dylan and Huizhong were once in love and suspects that Yuze is convinced that Dylan murdered her out of jealousy. Yuze’s unit adopts unlawful procedures to monitor Dylan’s movements covertly in an effort to nail him.

Xiaoman finds nothing suspicious about Dylan, and feels that Yuze is too eager to avenge his ex-girlfriend’s death. He has no evidence whatsoever to charge Dylan. She also suspects that Yuze is abusing his authority, seemingly to punish Dylan personally. To stop Yuze from committing more mistakes, she has no choice but to suspend Yuze.

Yuze pursues the case relentlessly but is killed by Dylan and Jieyu.

Xiaoman's former rival from police academy and fellow CID officer Xie Langfeng is switched to her team to be her deputy.

The Missing Prostitute (ep 11-16)

A young woman named Chen Xinyi has gone missing and Zhengyi encounters Fu Hongbo, a young man confined to a wheelchair. Hongbo pleads with Zhengyi to help him find his deaf-mute sister who has gone missing. Zhengyi and Shishan scour the streets of Geylang and find her after she had been sold into prostitution by a man known as "Big Little Eyes". Zhengyi later discovers that "Big Little Eyes" is actually Hongbo's abusive stepfather and saves Hongbo from nearly being hacked to death.

Xiaoman, Langfeng and the team investigate the Chen Xinyi case. It turns out the girl's parents had no idea she had been earning five-figure sums through prostitution. The kidnappers call them demanding a ransom, and the team stakes out the drop-off location hoping to track down the suspects. Not only are they outwitted, Langfeng and Xiaoman are outmuscled by a mysteriously strong and well-trained suspect. Later, they are led to a part-time funeral home worker "Monkey", who happened to be a friend of "Big Little Eyes". Langfeng deduces that they could be dealing with a case involving a group of psychopaths. They have their work cut out as they uncover a highly organised kidnapping ring who takes pleasure in sadistically torturing and killing their victims and cremating the bodies to destroy the evidence. Unfortunately, they must look elsewhere when their best lead, "Monkey", is found dead in a warehouse.

Meanwhile, Langfeng continues to make Xiaoman feel uncomfortable by questioning her real motives for going all out to track down criminals and exposing her self-destructive behaviour. Although she realises the truth in it she refuses to admit so. Langfeng is one of the few people able to see through her cool and calm facade and warns her that if she lets her dark side get the better of her she will eventually go down the road of no return. Unable to face the truth, Xiaoman finds herself in an emotional struggle....

The final battle (Ep 17-20)

Xiaoman recalls the string of events six years ago, which seem unconnected to the present events. But after piecing everything together, she realizes that someone was manipulating the chain of events to target her, in an attempt to land her in trouble. Xiaoman and Zhengyi are determined to fish out this mysterious person.

Zhengyi has already sensed that Xiaoman seems to be obsessed with capturing the murderer. Zhengyi is worried that her best friend is slipping into the fringe of the dark side and that, if she does not pull her up, Xiaoman will eventually commit an unpardonable mistake.

Langfeng suddenly gets hold of evidence on Xiaoman’s crimes of six years ago and threatens her to quit the police force under threat of exposure. Did Xiaoman really break the law by killing criminals as a way of punishing them? What was Langfeng’s stance? Was he trying to help Xiaoman or destroy her? Who was the manipulator out to get Xiaoman?

Cast

Cast Role Description Episodes Appeared
Rui En Hu Xiaoman
胡小曼 		Main protagonist, nicknamed "Bai Gu Jing" by Da Bao working as a CID Officer. Now portrayed as an Anti-hero. Partly to Gao Jieyu's manipulations, her character grew darker, and was revealed to have committed multiple morally questionable acts so as to fit her own idea of justice: Framing her professor Fang Rongge of a murder he did not commit just so she could get to arrest him for another crime, allowing Dylan Cai to die from a seizure without notifying the hospital staff, killing Fu Hongbo for allegedly murdering people when the opportunity strikes, and allowing "Big Little Eyes" to hang to death while confronting Liang Zhichao. Langfeng did not agree with her actions, and got her to agree to resign from the Police Force once she solved the final case. Xiaoman contemplated killing Jieyu in revenge for murdering her mother, but chose not to, and became a fugitive so she could personally confront the alleged true mastermind. She meets up with Fang Rong Ge in Korea in the ending. 1-20
Chen Liping Lin Zhengyi
林正仪 		The second main protagonist, nicknamed "Da Bao" (literally, "Big Bun") and owner of an eatery. She is also a volunteer to help look for missing people. She is the other anti-hero of the show, and exists on the other side of the law as an informer for Xiaoman. Although not a police officer, she had a strong sense of righteousness and played as the voice of reason to Hu Xiaoman's increasing darkness, despite having personally lost one of her friends and another family member to serial killers. When Ah Ni was murdered in her attempts to help Fu Hongbo and Fu Lelin, Da Bao desperately worked on the case to bring the perpetrators to justice, but was left unsatisfied when she uncovered the truth. She continued to help Xiaoman in the final case, and talked her down from killing Jieyu. In the finale, when interrogated by Langfeng, she vehemently maintained her faith in that Xiaoman will no longer cross the line, and hopefully awaits her return. 1-20
Rebecca Lim Gao Jieyu 高婕妤 Main Villain of part two
She is a Psychiatrist, and Xiaoman's friend and university classmate. She was the Criminal Mastermind behind the serial killings committed by Dylan Cai, Fu Lelin, and Yao Wanyi. Portrayed as cold with little regard for human life in the way she manipulated her patients, who are both serial killers and victims. She was also responsible for Zhang Yuze's death. Back in University, Jieyu believed in Fang Rongge's theories regarding murderers being defined as such from birth, and accuses Xiaoman of framing and betraying her professor, which is why she planned all the murders so as to avenge her professor and hurt Xiaoman. She was exposed and arrested in Ep 18 when she went to Zhang Xinyun's house to retrieve evidence of her crime but was subsequently bailed by Yang Qiujun in Ep 19, whom she subsequently murdered. In the final episode, Jieyu revealed that her father was a murderer, vindicating her own beliefs and claimed to have completed Fang Rongge's research, goading Xiaoman to kill her as a final confirmation she was right all along about Xiaoman being a murderer. She was shot by Xiaoman badly and she fell off the top storey of the house. Xiaoman chose not to and left her for the cops, broken and injured. In the end, Jieyu received an SMS from Fang Rongge thanking her for completing his research, and cried bitterly when she realized her acts of revenge was for naught. 		2
4
6
7-10
15-20
Tay Ping Hui Zhang Yuze
张雨泽 		Xiaoman's Boss. Revealed to be suffering from a brain tumour early on, but delayed his operation as he wanted to get evidence that Dylan was the one that killed his former girlfriend Huizhong. His urgency to pin down Dylan leads to him doing some questionable acts, and put himself at odds with Xiaoman as a result. Devising a plan to lure Dylan out, he contacted Zhibing, the supposed suspect in Huizhong's murder case, but he fled and was stabbed by Jieyu. Yuze witnessed the killing, and tried to ask Zhibing as to who was the real killer, but he dies. Soon afterwards he collapses after resisting arrest by Xiaoman, and undergoes surgery in hospital. Yuze would become amnesiac for a while, but he regained his memories and confessed that he was cold towards Xiaoman because he was afraid of falling in love with her. Just when he was on the verge of recovery, Jieyu and Dylan killed him after he put up a brief struggle. The last thing he remembers until the end, was still Huizhong. 1-7
Elvin Ng Xie Langfeng
谢郎峰 		Nicknamed "Wolf" (狼), and Xiaoman's colleague and old rival. He is a CID Officer who joined Xiaoman's team and was in the same batch with her and Wu Zhiyun at police academy. Although he often appears aloof and eccentric he is intelligent and quick-witted and able to accurately read behavioural cues. There are times when he appears as though he is trying to upstage Xiaoman, but in truth he genuinely wanted to help her and repeatedly hints that he knew of her dark nature and warned her about it. He eventually revealed that he liked her but he knew nothing would come out of such a relationship since they are fierce rivals. It is because of this he was left in a dilemma when Xiaoman repeatedly went beyond her line of duty in punishing criminals, and when the last straw broke he forced Xiaoman to agree to resign from the police force after she solved the final case involving Yao Wanyi. In the finale he interrogated Da Bao after the final confrontation with Gao Jieyu with regards to the details of what happened, a scene reminiscent of the initial interrogation scene between Xiaoman and Da Bao in season 1. 8-20
Zhou Ying Zhong Ah Ni
钟阿妮 		Da Bao's "Family" Member. Encouraged by Da Bao to be more positive in life, and she resolved to help Fu Hongbo and Fu Lelin. Fell to her death after being stabbed and pushed down a building by Fu Lelin's alternate self. 1-14
Joshua Ang Liu Shisan
刘拾叁 		Da Bao's "Family" Member. He took a liking to Xiao Na, an AIDS victim. In his attempt to rescue her from the violent patrons of the brothel, he accidentally killed the Pimp in charge. Upon some last minute advice from Da Bao, he gave himself up to the police because that would give him a chance of seeing Da Bao and Xiao Na again. He was sentenced to 8 years in the prison. 1-14
Adeline Lim Xiao Na Dabao's new "family" member as of ep 13. Victim of AIDS, worked as a cleaner at a brothel, and was rescued by Shisan. Her positive outlook in life encouraged Shisan, and was encouraged by Shisan in return as she never had any friends who had treated her so nicely. 9-17
19-20
Oh Ling En Ah Bi Da Bao's "family" member. Sorely missed her foster family, whom were either killed off one by one or were sent to prison. She may have appeared in Season 1. 1-2
4
8-15
17
19-20
Yuan Shuai Dai Baolun
戴保伦 		New CID Officer, and an IT expert. 1-3
5-8
10-20
Adam Chen Wu Zhiyun
吴志云 		CID Officer who graduated with Xiaoman and Langfeng from police academy. 1-3
5-6
8-20
Sora Ma Sun Mingwei
孙明薇 		New CID Officer 1-3
5-8
10-20
Xiang Yun Yang Qiujun
杨秋君 		Xiaoman's Mother, a lawyer. Although angered by her former husband's pedophilia many years ago, she already forgave him and was appalled when she learnt Xiaoman exposed him to danger as a bait for Dylan Cai and even had him killed, which devastated both mother and daughter. She forgave Xiaoman later on. She was revealed to be the lawyer who successfully defended Lu Jianye during a court case against Yao Wanyi years ago, and thus Wanyi was chosen as a target for Jieyu's manipulations. Killed by Jieyu in the final episode when she dug out her heart, her corpse being discovered by Da Bao. 7-9
12
17
19-20
Desmond Shen Asura Real name is Luo Jianshan. Shan Fan (Savage)'s older brother. Killed by Hei Tian. 1-3
Chen Tianwen Kuroda (Hei Tian) Japanese man and Asura's Enemy. He killed Asura in Ep 3, and was arrested 2-3
Zhang Wei Hong Chao
洪潮 		Da Bao's "Family" Member. He bravely stood up to Asura and was murdered by him. 1-3
Wee Kheng Ming Dylan Cai Zhiming Birth name Lin Peiyu. Lawyer working at Yang Qiujun's firm. A supposed suitor of Hu Xiaoman. In reality he is a serial killer targeting people who abused their family and children, and chose to woo Xiaoman because her father was a pedophile who sexually assaulted his childhood friend Thomas (Who died back in Season 1). He became a serial killer partly due to allegedly witnessing his father and mother killing each other during a fight when he was a young boy. He eventually managed to kill Hu Guangming, but loses his memory after Xiaoman knocks him out. Gao Jieyu restored his memories along with his childhood memories, and he realized to his horror that he was the one who killed his own father. He confesses that while his main reason for getting near Xiaoman was to kill her father, he fell in love with her and deep in his heart he actually wished Hu Guangming would never return so he would never have to kill him. Jieyu injected an allergic medication to his drip, giving him a seizure. Xiaoman silently watched without alerting the hospital staff, denying him the bell and refusing to press it as he died. 1 (Appeared on photo)
4-10
Bernard Tan Hu Guangming
胡广明 		Xiaoman's Father. He returned in hopes of seeing his daughter and former wife for one last time. Yang Qiujun forgave him although Xiaoman refused to. Knowing Dylan Cai is targeting Hu Guangming, she used her own father as bait. Although she confidently believed that she will be able to apprehend Dylan without getting her father killed, she failed in that aspect. 7-9
Romeo Tan Fu Hongbo
傅宏博 		Fu Lelin's Brother. Wheelchair-bound due to his step-father "Big Little Eyes" physical abuse when he was still a child. Possibly due to Jieyu's manipulations he and his sister believed their sufferings were due to them having been kidnappers of their parents in their previous lives and now they are atoning for their past sins. He had actually been practicing to walk for months, and tried to protect Lelin by making a false confession that he murdered Rookie and Monkey for raping his sister. Held Jieyu hostage before being shot dead by Xiaoman. 9-15
Julie Tan Fu Lelin
傅乐琳 		Main Villain Of Part 1
She was mute and partially deaf due to her step-father "Big Little Eyes" physical abuse when she was still a child. She was the one who accidentally killed her baby sister. She developed a split personality soon after, in which she is able to talk in her alternate self. She was timid and reserved in her outward appearance, but violent and capricious in her alternate self. It was her alternate personality that led her to kill Ah Ni for being close to her brother Fu Hongbo, and was co-planners with Gao Jieyu in systematically tracking down and killing the four kidnappers who raped her. Held Da Bao prisoner and asked to be killed after all the kidnappers were dealt with. Da Bao suspected her to be schizophrenic and refused grant Lelin's request to kill her despite the latter being the one who murdered Ah Ni, but Lelin committed suicide by throwing herself towards Da Bao's knife blade. 		9-16
Lin Meijiao He Yazhi Mother of Hongbo and Lelin. Suffers from mental illness. She supposedly had stabbed and killed Ah Ni in Ep 14, but Fu Lelin was the true culprit. Currently resides in a mental hospital 10-16
Wang Yuqing Ou Yongtai 欧永泰
"Big Little Eyes" 大小眼 		One of the four serial kidnappers who abduct girls, physically and sexually abusing them and then killing them off for the thrill of it. He and the three other kidnappers gang-raped Fu Lelin, causing her alternate personality to emerge. He was also Fu Lelin and Fu Hongbo's stepfather, who physically abused them in the past in anger for having caused his baby daughter's death. He is portrayed as a dirty old man who sometimes visits brothels. In revenge, Fu Lelin left him hanging by the neck and kidnapped Liang Zhichao's daughter so that Liang Zhichao can confront "Big Little Eyes" and had them fight to the death. Instead, Hu Xiaoman intervened, although she intentionally left him to hang to death while she confronted Liang Zhichao to force him to confess to his crimes. 9-16
Brandon Wong Liang Zhichao
梁志超 		Mastermind of the four serial kidnappers who abduct girls, physically and sexually abusing them and then killing them off for the thrill of it. He and the three other kidnappers gang raped Fu Lelin, causing her alternate personality to emerge. He was also a patient of Gao Jieyu and thus hinted to be another victim. On the surface he appears to be a book author and inspirational speaker on the concept of fear. In revenge, Fu Lelin kidnapped his daughter and Gao Jieyu manipulated events such that he ironically caused his own daughter's death by a car accident during his attempt to rescue her. After being exposed, he confessed to his crimes and was taken into custody. 10
12
15-16
Li Yuejie Shen Luoqi 沈洛奇
"Rocky" 		One of the four serial kidnappers who abduct girls, physically and sexually abusing them and then killing them off for the thrill of it. He and the three other kidnappers gang-raped Fu Lelin, causing her alternate personality to emerge. He was an adept boxer, having fought off Xiaoman and Langfeng. He was shot by Xiaoman but escaped. Fu Lelin eventually showed up and stabbed him to death while he was still in an injured state. 11-14
Luis Lim Xu Jianbang 许建邦
"Monkey"		 One of the four serial kidnappers who abduct girls, physically and sexually abusing them and then killing them off for the thrill of it. He and the three other kidnappers gang-raped Fu Lelin, causing her alternate personality to emerge. His main role in the kidnappings was to dispose of the corpses but showed he was the weakest link when the coffin he was carrying accidentally dropped and revealed one of his victims' bodies. He is portrayed as a dirty old man who frequents brothels and spends most of his pay there. He went into hiding after being exposed but was killed by Fu Lelin. 11-12
Allen Lew Pimp Owner of an illegal brothel. Liu Shisan accidentally killed him while trying to escape with Xiao Na. 9-13
Dick Su Big Head Reappeared with a gang, confronting and suspecting Da Bao of being an informer. 12-14
Ng Hui Yao Wanyi Serial Killer, who was another victim and patient of Gao Jieyu. Wanyi's first victim had his eyes gouged out for alleged negligence in operating on her baby daughter years ago. The second victim had his fingers cut off for taking her money as a bribe without helping her during her lawsuits against the surgeons, and the third victim had his tongue cut off for alleged broken promises to do his best to save her child. The fourth target was initially believed to be her own husband, but was revealed to be Yang Qiujun, mother of Hu Xiaoman, the lawyer who defended her. When Yao Wanyi was caught, Gao Jieyu realized that she had outlived her usefulness and tried to force Xiaoman to kill Yao Wanyi, having hold Yang Qiujun hostage. Yao Wanyi never made it to her fourth victim (Jieyu did it instead), and was accidentally run over by a car on the final episode as she tried to flee from Xiaoman and Da Bao. 17-20
Francis Chang Fang Rong Ge Gao Jieyu's and Hu Xiaoman's Professor back in University. Came up with a theory that serial killers act the way they are due to their own DNA. While Jieyu adored Fang Rongge and believed in his research, Xiaoman disagreed with that theory. In a past case, it was revealed that Xiaoman believed that Fang Rongge was the mastermind behind a serial killer who went about cutting off people's vital parts (Which is now emulated by Yao Wanyi). Fang Rongge remained silent during his trial and was released due to lack of evidence. Xiaoman decided to transfer his fingerprints to a knife on the dead serial killer's body, framing him for murder. He allegedly committed suicide by blowing up his own car while he was still inside, which devastated Jieyu and turning her onto the path of a vengeful serial killer. He was apparently revealed to be the true mastermind in the finale, having faked his own death and manipulated both Xiaoman and Jieyu to go at each other from afar. He currently resides in Korea as a police commissioner and Xiaoman escaped from the police force so she could meet up with him, in yet another cliffhanger ending. 17-19 (Appear in flashback)
20 (Real)

Trivia

an unplanned pregnancy. The role was given to Chen Liping instead for all Unriddle seasons.

References from other productions

Viewership

WeekDateAverage Number of audience in 5 weekdays (Round off to nearest thousand)
Debut 5 March 2012921,000
1 6 March 2012 to 9 March 2012

International broadcast

Country of Broadcast Broadcasting Network Debut Finale Notes
 Malaysia ntv7 16 May 2012 11 July 2012 It was planned to be broadcast on Astro Shuang Xing if ntv7 does not broadcast before on May 31, 2012.
With Mandarin dubbing and Malaysian subtitle.
After Episode 14, it stopped nearly a month for broadcasting Euro Cup 2012 repeated showing every midnight football match from 9 June to 2 July.
It resumed again Episode 15 on 3 July.

2013 Accolades

The other dramas nominated for Best Drama Series are Don't Stop Believin' , Game Plan , Poetic Justice , Pillow Talk

Year Award Date Category Result Recipient
2012 Star Awards 2012 红星大奖2012 Show 1 上半场 22 April 2012 Best Programme Promo Nominated N/A
2013 Star Awards 2013 红星大奖2013 Show 1 上半场 21 April 2013 Best Diretor Won Chen Yi You
Nominated Loh Woon Woon
Best Screenplay Nominated Phang Kai Yee
Best Drama Cameraman Won Toh Meng Teck
Favourite On-screen Couple Won Elvin Ng and Rui En
Show 2 下半场 28 April 2013 Best Actress Nominated Rebecca Lim
Won Rui En
Best Supporting Actor Won Tay Ping Hui
Best Drama Serial Nominated Unriddle 2

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Unriddle 2 crosses over to the dark side".
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