Skip Beat! (Mandarin: 華麗的挑戰, literally Glamorous Challenge) is a Taiwanese television series based on the manga of the same name. The series is a joint production between Taiwan and Japan, and is produced by Gala Television under executive producer Doze Niu. The series was first developed in 2008, where Ariel Lin and Jerry Yan were casted as the main roles, but production was postponed due to several financial setbacks and script re-writes, causing actors to drop out and the project was stuck in Development Hell. It was brought back into production following the signing of Super Junior members Siwon and Donghae in 2010 and Ivy Chen in 2011.
Although it is an Adaptation Distillation, the series follows the same plot as the original: upon graduating from high school, Gong Xi gives up her chances for university to support her childhood friend, Bu Po Shang, in his pop idol career. Moving from Taitung to Taipei and debuting as an idol, Bu Po Shang's popularity quickly rises, eventually becoming one of the top idols in Taiwan. Gong Xi starts working on multiple jobs day after day to support him and his lifestyle, but finds out that he only used her so she can help him with his living expenses. Feeling heartbroken, Gong Xi vows to get revenge by becoming more famous than him.
Provides Examples Of:
- Abusive Parents:
- Gong Xi's mother ignored her and left her at a young age.
- Shang's father slaps him in the face after Shang tells him that he wants to be an idol.
- Adaptation Name Change: Since the drama is set in Taiwan instead of Japan, the names were changed.
- Mogami Kyouko - Gong Xi
- Tsuruga Ren - Dun Helian
- Fuwa Shou / Fuwa Shoutarou - Bu Po Shang / Shang Jie Yong
- Kotomaki Kanae - Jiang Nan Qin
- Takenori Sawara - Shen De Yuan
- Yashiro Yukihito - Du Jin
- Takarada Lory - Luo Li
- Takarada Maria - Mary
- Adaptational Villainy: Just like in the original series, Gong Xi plays one of the villains in a remake of drama titled "Dark Moon". Her interpretation of Wei Xu has countless differences from the original, which causes conflict but is later accepted as the better interpretation.
- Bad Job, Worse Uniform: The "Love Me" uniform is a glaringly pink jumpsuit which makes Gong Xi and Qin the laughingstocks of the company.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Gong Xi was an Extreme Doormat but when she snapped, she became a creepy girl.
- Bishie Sparkle: Happens around Shang.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Bu Po Shang, who puts on a nice guy act in front of the cameras, but is actually a selfish person.
- Break the Cutie: Gong Xi.
- Bridal Carry: When Gong Xi breaks her ankle, Lian finds her and despite their bad relationship, he carries her up to the nearby film shoot.
- Broken Hero: Gong Xi.
- Broken Ace: Lian during the filming for "Dark Moon".
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Luo Li, the president of LME, always seems like he's playing around, but he actually sent Gong Xi to a film shoot knowing that she might fix Liu Li Er's attitude and he was on point with Lian's problems in acting. He also found out who Lian's father is.
- But Not Too Foreign: Though it wasn't explicitly stated in the series, Dun He Lian might still be a foreigner, since he has blond hair in his flashback scenes.
- Celebrity Resemblance: Shang thinks that the girl in the popular commercial looks like Gong Xi, leading him to hire her as the actress for his music video.
- Cloud Cuckoo Lander: Gong Xi.
- Cool Big Sis: Gong Xi to Mary.
- Crash-Into Hello: Happens in Gong Xi and Lian's first meeting.
- Determinator: Gong Xi.
- Enjo Kosai: Qin works by role playing Replacement Goldfish with men, so they could discourage a persistent ex-girlfriend and reconnect with a man's daughter.
- Fairy Tale Motifs: Shang's MV. He later notes that Gong Xi is a fan of fairy tales.
- Fluffy Fashion Feathers: Shang's outfit for his music video.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Gong Xi even slaps Qin, when she's all but given up upon the appearance of her old enemy Fei Li Hua.
- Good Angel, Bad Angel: Gong Xi has bad "angels".
- Gratuitous English: The "Love Me" department. English words sometimes appear in the dialogue as well.
- Green-Eyed Monster:
- Gong Xi had no friends beside Shang when they were children because all the girls were jealous of her and Shang's relationship.
- Upon imagining that Qin has a boyfriend, Gong Xi gets jealous.
- Shang really dislikes the idea of Gong Xi and Lian together.
- Groupie Brigade: Gong Xi has to get Lian through one of these during her stint as his substitute manager.
- Gyaru Girl: Unlike the original where Kyoko pretends to be a kogal by using distinctive slang and an airheaded persona so that Sho doesn't figure out that it is her, in the series, Gong Xi pretends to be a girl from Hong Kong with a really excited personality.
- Hero Stole My Bike: Gong Xi does this when she's assistant-managing for Lian and needs to get him to his next gig on time.
- Heroic BSoD: The series starts out with one: Gong Xi temporarily shuts down when Shang reveals his betrayal and she reboots as the Voodoo Doll-toting Woman Scorned.
- Hollywood Voodoo: Gong Xi makes a voodoo doll of Shang.
-
Hostility on the Set: Initially between Gong Xi and Liu Li Er, which was one-sided on the latter's part. - Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Gong Xi and Lian.
- Idol Singer: Shang, both in series and in real life.
- Imagine Spot: The characters are prone to this.
- Inspirational Insult: Shang calls Gong Xi a plain, boring, and uncultured girl, and that the only method of revenge she could use against him would be beat him in the entertainment world, which for a girl like her would be impossible, therefore setting the plot of the series.
- Jerkass: Shang towards Gong Xi, but flashbacks show that even though he brought Gong Xi to Taipei to be his servant, they initially enjoyed their time together.
- Large Ham: The president of LME.
- Like an Old Married Couple: Gong Xi and Shang.
- Like Father, Like Son: What drives Director Xu Fang to remake Dark Moon is so that people will distinguish him from his father, who directed the original. What drives Lian to be the lead actor is so that he can surpass his father, who played the original role.
- Little Girls Kick Shins: Instead of kicking the shin like in the original, Gong Xi kicks Shang's leg when they reunited.
- Love Hurts: The whole reason Gong Xi swore off love in the first place.
- Love Triangle: Gong Xi is in love with Shang, but after his betrayal, she finds herself with Lian, who also likes her back. Shang, on the other hand, does not have any romantic feelings for Gong Xi, or so he says...
- Method Acting: Gong Xi's main way of acting is getting Lost in Character.
- During her first acting stint, she plays the daughter of the wealthy owner of a Japanese place. She sits in seiza despite having a heavily sprained ankle, but retains a pleasantly smiling face towards 'the customer' Lian, as per her being taught to act like that by Shang's mother years ago. Despite being in tremendous pain while putting weight on the ankle, she doesn't slip up once... until the director realize she's pale, sweating and yet still remains in character until she faints.
- Shang's music video in which she uses her own relationship with Qin to understand the sadness of killing a man her best friend loves and having her friend forever hate her, but also relishing in the joy of saving that same friend.
- Her portrayal of Wei Xu for Dark Moon, where she would stay in character until someone would say "Cut" or if someone claps the slate.
- My Acting Is Stronger Than Yours: This is Gong Xi's motivation when it comes to even entering showbiz. Shang says she's too plain to ever beat him if she were to enter the business, so she's intent on learning how to act and beat him. It's also one of her main motivations, initially, when it comes to Lian. She wants to be such an amazing actress that she'll out-act him and have him acknowledge this.
- Nice Character, Mean Actor: Liu Li Er is a mean girl but has to play a refined, wealthy young woman in a TV series.
- No Hero to His Valet: Working in the Love Me section gives Gong Xi a close perspective on the private behavior of famous people, when they're not worrying about their images. A lot of them are jerks. Before that, she knew all Shang's private behaviors, although he was her hero then, despite not deserving it on any level.
- Parental Abandonment: Gong Xi's mother left her in the care of Shang's family and never returned.
- Parental Substitute: The couple at the restaurant where Gong Xi stays at.
- Pimped-Out Dress: Shang's costume
◊ for his music video. - Power Born of Madness: Gong Xi is able to control demons.
- Rags to Royalty: Had Gong Xi developed a relationship with Shang.
- Revenge Before Reason: One of Gong Xi's struggles.
- Rich Bitch: Fei Li Hua, who uses her connections to get acting roles.
- Satellite Love Interest: Meta/Deconstructed. Gong Xi realizes that she was Shang’s Satellite Love Interest, causing a brief Heroic BSoD when she realizes that she has no identity of her own. A lot of the series deals with her working to rectify this.
- Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: Lian and Gong Xi.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Fei Li Hua is the daughter of the owner of a large company. Overlaps with Screw the Rules, I Have Money!, as Erika is portrayed as a Rich Bitch who throws her father's money around to get what she wants. She used this power to keep Qin out of acting during elementary and middle school. She attempted to do so again during an audition for a role in a soda commercial that both she and Qin tried out for.
- Secret Identity: Lian doesn't know that Gong Xi is the one inside the Rooster costume, and Gong Xi doesn't know that Lian is her childhood friend, Corn.
- Security Blanket: "Corn," despite being a stone, manages to fall into this category.
- Seiza Squirm: During an audition, Gong Xi has to sit in seiza with a broken ankle. She pulls it off beautifully for several minutes... and then faints but not until the scene ends, though!
- Set Behind the Scenes: Most of the drama centers around this.
- She Is Not My Girlfriend: Gong Xi and Shang, upon their reunion.
- Qin doesn't like referring to Gong Xi as her friend and partner, despite her actions proving otherwise.
- She Cleans Up Nicely: Gong Xi, who never used make up on herself, because she can't afford it and believed that she would be okay without using it. But when she does get made up she really surprises everyone around her, and she even refuses to remove her makeup because she knows she looks pretty with it.
- Shipper on Deck: Mr. Du ships Lian and Gong Xi.
- Shout-Out: Shang imagines that after defeating Lian, the latter would be on his knees, apologizing and worshiping Shang. Lian then sings "Sorry, Sorry".
- Show Within a Show: Type 1, where "characters are involved in the production of the show." Most of the shows are the workplaces of the main characters.
- Stealth Mentor: Lian ends up as Gong Xi’s, frequently giving her advice on how to succeed in show business, in spite of their mutual dislike for one another.
- The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Shang feels this towards Lian, while Gong Xi feels this towards Shang.
- Unfortunate Names: Gong Xi Fa Cai is a New Year's greeting, and Gong Xi is usually ridiculed because of this.
- What Is This Feeling?: Lian runs into a problem when he cannot portray the emotions of love, since he hasn't experienced it before.
