The Winter Melon Tale (Traditional Chinese: 大冬瓜, translated literally into Big Winter Melon) is a TVB costume drama series broadcast in March 2009.

The Winter Melon Tale
Official poster
大冬瓜
GenreCostume Drama
StarringLiu Kai Chi
Sunny Chan
Louisa So
Rain Lau
Nancy Wu
Country of originHong Kong
Original languageCantonese
No. of episodes20
Production
Running time45 minutes (approx.)
Original release
NetworkTVB
ReleaseMarch 9 (2009-03-09) –
April 3, 2009 (2009-04-03)
The Winter Melon Tale
Traditional Chinese大冬瓜
Simplified Chinese大冬瓜
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinDà Dōng Guā
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingDaai6 Dung1 Gwaa1

Synopsis

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Fan Tung (Liu Kai Chi) is one of the four deities under the Stove God. He has offended the Queen Mother of the West of being ravenous and gets imprisoned for 500 years in the winter melon. By chance Tin Dai Kwai (Sunny Chan) and his wife Chung Bik Yuk (Louisa So) free him from constraint. Tung gets flattened by Kwai's older brother Tin Tai Fu (also played by Liu Kai Chi) accidentally and his spirit enters Fu's body inexplicably while losing all his instincts.

Tung starts living in Kwai's house and getting closer to the family. Yuk finds Tung suspicious and she tries to unmask him by all means. Having failed in his attempt to return to Heaven, Tung becomes reliant on the help of six little deities who assimilated his instincts released from the melon, and since then Tung is aware of the fickleness of human nature. One day, Fu's truant wife Ling Fung (Lau Yuk Chui) suddenly returns. She ruins everything and even causes the death of Kwai. In order to get his life back, Tung illicitly breaks into the netherworld.

Cast

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Peasants

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Cast Role Description
Liu Kai Chi Tin Dai-Fu
田大富
Tin Dai-Kwai's older brother.
Ling Fung's husband.
Sunny Chan Tin Dai-Kwai
田大貴
Tin Dai-Fu's younger brother.
Chung Bik-Yuk's husband.
Louisa So Chung Bik-Yuk
鍾碧玉
Tin Dai-Kwai's wife.
Rain Lau Ling Fung
凌鳳
Tin Dai-Fu's sister-in-law
Ellesmere Choi Wut Gei
屈機
Doctor
Chung Bik-Wun's husband.
Natalie Wong Chung Bik-Wun
鍾碧雲
Wut Gei's wife.
Chung Yiu-Jo and Chung Bik-Yuk's sister.
Jack Wu Chung Yiu-Jo
鍾耀祖
Inventor
Chung Bik-Wun and Chung Bik-Yuk's younger brother.

Gods and Monsters

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Cast Role Description
Liu Kai Chi Fan Tung
范統
Stove God's Deity
Yuen Sa Sin-Tsi's husband.
Louisa So Yuen Sa Sin-Tzi
浣紗仙子
Stove God's Deity
Fan Tung's wife.
Nancy Wu Fok Sze-Sze
霍思思
Fox Spirit
Helen Tam Wong Mo Leung-Leung
皇母娘娘
Queen Mother of the West

Viewership ratings

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Week Episode Average Points Peaking Points References
1 March 9–13, 2009 1 — 5 27 29 [1]
2 March 16–20, 2009 6 — 10 26 [2]
3 March 23–26, 2009 11 — 14 26 [3]
4 March 30 - April 2, 2009 15 — 19 27 [4]
April 3, 2009 20 26 [5]

References

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  • TVB.com The Winter Melon Tale - Official Website (in Chinese)