Wuyizidi wrote:.Q. wrote:I've read some. Most changes feel annoying and shows that it's just a money grab attempt.
Examples?
From what I saw, those changes were mostly done to:
1. correct errors: Jin Yong's novel references just about every aspect of traditional culture. But the origin of a lot of things we have today are unknown/unclear to most people today unless they are specialists in that area. So the famous example is where he had people from one dynasty singing famous song from another dynasty founded several hundred years later.
2. improve the overall structure, flow, and logic of the plot. Remember, these novels were originally published as serials in his newspaper under daily pressure. Now in his leisure, he can look over the whole thing and make overall improvements.
3. changes to plot: since we wrote them as daily serials over decades, occasionally he would ask two friends to take over when he was on vacation. His friends, like most of us loyal readers, have strong opinion about his characters. In Tian Long Ba Bu for example, the character Ah Zi was first blinded then killed off in the middle of the novel by his friend Ni Kuang the famous sci fi writer during one of his vacations. Coming back from Europe, Ni Kong met him at the airport and just said "I killed Ah Zi". Jin Yong just smiled and said "ok, I'll fix that". In the revised editions he changed the killed off part, but let her remain blind.
My father and my uncle knows Jin Yong's older siblings pretty well. My uncle worked in the same hospital as Jin Yong's older brother for several decades. They came from a very well-known family of scholars, well known for their disdain for money and power. In fact, the story of Lian Cheng Jue was based on family history. His grandfather risked his government career to save a poor innocent peasant, and later took him into the family and took care of him until his death. In Lian Cheng Jue Jin Yong borrowed the story of that poor peasant's famous trial, and reimagined him as the martial hero set up and betrayed by people who raised him.
People call Jin Yong the richest intellectual in the history of China. He has the set of word "put it down, be natural" inscribed on stone on his nightstand. He finally did that when he sold his newspaper more than a decade ago. He's also a very serious Buddhist. I'm still waiting for his translation and annotation of Diamond Sutra.
So taken together, I tend to give him the benefit of doubt when it comes to money-grabbing. It's probably more of a perfectionist instinct.
Wuyizidi
I don't remember it too well but a few that I remember that seems to be pointlessly added were:
1) Ah Zi's master was getting a bit too 'close' to her and that's why she left. Seemed completely pointless and unnecessary, not to mention it didn't lead to any plot changes.
2) Mei Chao Feng (white bony claw woman) became a love interest of Huang Yao Shi (Eastern Evil). Took up a lot of words but seems to add nothing to the story.
I haven't read too many but it seems like old guys having feelings for really young girls is a recurring theme among the stuff he added. I mean if they lead to some significant plot twists or whatnot then fine, but they don't.
3) This I haven't read, but I heard in the Shen Diao Xiao Lu (dude w/ one arm) supposedly he added in a new 'martial' move where the guy (or the gal) sticks a sword out from between/underneath the other person's dang to strike the enemy? Come on man, that's just dumb.
Also, he added some rebuttals to reader complaints in there. WTF? Why is that in the book? I don't need to be entrenched in a historical novel and all of a sudden read something like: some reader complained that white camels don't exist, but I actually rode one.
I guess by your explanations he's trying to make things more accurate, which is good, but they're fiction anyway and there's no need to be THAT accurate if it means he won't be writing NEW stuff because of it. I mean come on, they're like Chinese Lord of the Rings. No need to be that detailed.
Maybe he's not trying to grab money, I don't personally know. but I also wouldn't assume he's not out for it just because he's already rich. Rich people usually get there by not stopping (this is just a general observation, not personally against him).
I would like to read the original edition where someone told me some crazy animals were in it. Sounds like a much more different story. Unfortunately I couldn't find those. So far the 2nd edition I feel is much better than this new one. I wouldn't get this worked up if I didn't like his books, but he seems to be ruining it (for me) instead of helping.
BTW: Ah Zi should be dead. Hated that psycho b*tch.