Forensic Heroes IV
Forensic Heroes IV is a 2020 Hong Kong police procedural television drama produced by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB). It stars Raymond Wong, Selena Lee, Shaun Tam, Alice Chan, Rebecca Zhu and Roxanne Tong in the reboot installment and is the second reboot of the Forensic Heroes series, featuring new stories and characters. Mui Siu-ching, who also produced the original series, serves as the executive producer.
| Forensic Heroes IV | |
|---|---|
| 法證先鋒IV | |
| Genre | Police procedural |
| Created by | Mui Siu-ching |
| Written by | Leung Man-wah Yuen Mei-fung Sin Chui Ching |
| Starring | Raymond Wong Selena Lee Shaun Tam Alice Chan Rebecca Zhu Roxanne Tong |
| Theme music composer | Alan Cheung Ka-shing |
| Opening theme | Secrets and Lies (圓謊) by Justin Lo |
| Ending theme | No More Tears (不要流淚) by Fred Cheng The Second Choice (我不是她) by Hana Kuk |
| Country of origin | Hong Kong |
| Original language | Cantonese |
| No. of episodes | 30 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Mui Siu-ching |
| Producer | Ben Fong |
| Production location | Hong Kong |
| Camera setup | Multi camera |
| Running time | 45 minutes (per episode) |
| Production company | TVB |
| Original release | |
| Network | TVB Jade |
| Release | 17 February – 27 March 2020 |
| Related | |
| Forensic Heroes (2006) Forensic Heroes II (2008) Forensic Heroes III (2011) Forensic Heroes V (2022) | |
Synopsis edit
Senior Forensic Chemist Ko On (Raymond Wong) from the Forensic Science Division, Senior Forensic Pathologist Man Ka-hei (Selena Lee) from the Forensic Pathology Division, and Senior Inspector Kwok Fai-wong (Shaun Tam) from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit, formed a crime-solving triangle with their professional teams. The childhood regrets of hot-blooded reporter Chris Tsui (Roxanne Tong) who were closely related to Ko On sister abduction years ago. Scientific Evidence Officer Shui Wai-ming (Alice Chan) became a murder suspect upon her boyfriend's murder while Sergeant Ko Ching (Rebecca Zhu) who is a Sergeant who persistently investigating the truth of her sister's abduction alongside Ko On (Raymond Wong). The crime-solving triangle firmly believes that good always triumph over evil and fights for justice.
Production edit
A costume fitting press conference was held on 24 October 2018. Principal photography began in October 2018 and concluded in March 2019, with some scenes filmed in Taiwan. The blessing ceremony was held on 21 January 2019.[1]
In April 2019, Jacqueline Wong, who was cast as Chris Tsui, was found to be involved in a cheating scandal. Producer Mui Siu-ching confirmed that the role would be recast and all scene with Wong would be reshot.[2][3] Roxanne Tong took the role[4] and reshoots lasted from June 2019 to July 2019.
Cast and characters edit
Hong Kong General Laboratory edit
Forensic Science Division edit
| Character | Actor | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Ko On | Raymond Wong | Forensic Laboratory Supervisor / Senior Chemist |
| Queen Shui Wai-ming | Alice Chan | Scientific Evidence Officer (S.E.O.) |
| Charm Ting | Fred Cheng | |
| Ocean Lam | William Chu | |
| Howard Chan | Terrence Huang | Forensic Technician |
Forensic Pathology Division edit
| Character | Actor | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Man Ka-hei | Selena Lee | Senior Forensic Pathologist |
| Ivan Szeto | Fred Cheung | Forensic Pathologist |
Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit (RCU) edit
| Character | Actor | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| SIP Kwok Fai-wong | Shaun Tam | RCU Senior Inspector of Police |
| WSGT Ko Ching | Rebecca Zhu | RCU Sergeant |
| PC Yu Wai-ding | Arnold Kwok | RCU Police Constable |
| PC Mok King-chiu | Fei Wu | |
| WPC Tong Sum-yuet | Wiyona Yeung |
Main characters edit
- Raymond Wong as Dr. Ko On (高安), a senior chemist and laboratory supervisor from the Forensic Science Division.
- Selena Lee as Dr. Man Ka-hei (聞家希), a senior forensic pathologist from the Forensic Pathology Division.
- Shaun Tam as Kwok Fai-wong (郭輝煌), a senior inspector from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit.
- Alice Chan as Queen Shui Wai-ming (水慧明), a scientific evidence officer (SEO) from the Forensic Science Division.
- Rebecca Zhu as Ko Ching (高靖), a sergeant from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit.
- Roxanne Tong as Chris Tsui (徐意), an online news reporter.
Notable characters edit
- Fred Cheng as Charm Ting (湛霆), a scientific evidence officer (SEO) from the Forensic Science Division.
- Yumiko Cheng as Monique Hau (侯敏莉), a sommelier and Ko On's girlfriend, though they later broke up.
- Gabriel Harrison as Stan Sze (施見賢), a voiceprint expert.
- Kelly Cheung as Emma Ma Oi-mei / Ko Sin (馬愛薇 / 高善)
Supporting characters edit
- William Chu as Ocean Lam (林凱淳), a scientific evidence officer (SEO) from the Forensic Science Division.
- Terrence Huang as Howard Chan (陳浩榮), a forensic technician from the Forensic Science Division.
- Fred Cheung as Ivan Szeto (司徒勳), a forensic pathologist from the Forensic Pathology Division.
- Arnold Kwok as Yu Wai-ding (余偉鼎), an officer from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit.
- Fei Wu as Mok King-chiu (莫敬超), an officer from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit.
- Wiyona Yeung as Tong Sum-yuet (唐心悅), an officer from the Kowloon West Regional Crime Unit.
Cameo appearances edit
- Patrick Tse as Long Siu-tin (龍兆天), the founder of a famous Cantonese Opera troupe.
- Michelle Yim as Long Ying-suet (龍映雪), a famous Cantonese Opera actress and the leader of the Cantonese Opera troupe.
- Nina Paw as So Fong (蘇芳), a mother who sold her daughter because of poverty, but she was regretful and tried hard to find her daughter.
- Mak Ling-ling as Principal Mak (麥校長), a secondary school principal.
Reception edit
When TVB first announced the drama will air in February 2020 which is considered an unpopular time slot, it was expected the drama will receive lower viewership. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hong Kong went into a strict lockdown in February 2020, which gave viewership ratings a large boost, making the series the most watched drama since 2013.[5] However, the drama was criticized by audiences for its predictable and average plot compared to its predecessors, especially in the latter half of the series.[6]
Sequel edit
Due to the series' high viewership ratings, a fifth sequel was worked on with new cast members originally including Priscilla Wong and Pakho Chau but was changed to Bosco Wong and Benjamin Yuen.[7] Despite the sequel had a case following the final case shown in the end of the fourth installment and Fred Cheng and Wiyona Yeung's characters remained, the fifth installment had no connection to the previous 4 installments. Production of the fifth sequel began in September 2021 and ended in January 2022. The show first started airing on Youku, along with TVB Anywhere and TVB Anywhere Malaysia on October 26, 2022. It would later start airing on TVB Jade and Astro AOD on November 14, 2022, being the last of TVB's four 2022 grand anniversary dramas to be broadcast.
Viewership ratings edit
The following is a table that includes a list of the total ratings points based on television viewership. "Viewers in millions" refers to the number of people, derived from TVB Jade ratings in Hong Kong who watched the episode live and on myTV SUPER.
| # | Week | Episode(s) | Avg. points | Viewers in millions | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 February 2020 | 1 | 37.1 | 2.42 | [8] |
| 17 — 21 February 2020 | 1 — 5 | 35.7 | 2.33 | [9] | |
| 2 | 24 — 28 February 2020 | 6 — 10 | 35.8 | [10] | |
| 3 | 2 — 6 March 2020 | 11 — 15 | 35.5 | ||
| 4 | 9 — 13 March 2020 | 16 — 20 | 35.4 | 2.32 | [11] |
| 5 | 16 — 20 March 2020 | 21 — 25 | 36.8 | [12] | |
| 6 | 23 March 2020 | 26 | 40 | 2.62 | [13] |
| 23 — 27 March 2020 | 26 — 30 | 38.8 | [14] | ||
| 27 March 2020 | 30 | 39.6 | [15] |
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Forensic Heroes IV Blessing Ceremony".
- ^ "Forensic Heroes IV drama: Jacqueline Wong is removed and the re-shooting will take place".
- ^ "TVB Confirms Reshooting Jacqueline Wong's Scenes for "Forensic Heroes IV"". JayneStars.com. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ "Roxanne Tong Replacing Jacqueline Wong in Forensic Heroes IV". 7 May 2019.
- ^ "《法證先鋒IV》破紀錄 成為近七年最高收視劇集". 7 April 2020.
- ^ ""Forensic Heroes 4" Ends on High Ratings Despite Lack of Novelty – JayneStars.com". Retrieved 2021-08-31.
- ^ "袁偉豪直播自爆有份拍《法證先鋒V》 為角色要變白變瘦". www.singtaousa.com (in Chinese). Retrieved 2021-09-16.
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episode 1 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episodes 1-5 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episodes 6-10 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episodes 16-20 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episodes 21-25 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episode 26 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episodes 26-30 Ratings
- ^ Forensic Heroes IV Episode 30 Ratings