Spanning 30 years, TV show cooks up a feeling of nostalgia

Now a veteran, with an acting career spanning nearly two decades, Huang says Stories of Lion Rock Spirit reminds him of his teenage years, which he spent mostly immersed in Hong Kong movies and TV series in the local video rental shops.

"I still clearly remember that my first cassette recorder was bought by my father in Guangdong during a business trip," recalls Huang. His father's gift also included several audio cassettes of Cantopop singers Samuel Hui Koon-kit and Alan Tam Wing-lun, which was an eyeopener for the young man, leading Huang into the world of pop.

More than 30 years later, the experience of working on Stories of Lion Rock Spirit was like a journey through time, giving the actor a deep sense of nostalgia, making him feel like he was "walking onto the set" of an old Hong Kong TV series.

Currently garnering a lot of acclaim online, the TV series has also grabbed the attention of critics and industry insiders.

Yin Hong, deputy chairman of China Literature and Art Critics Association, says the tale has inherited the traditional narrative techniques of Hong Kong TV series, revisiting how Hong Kong has undergone huge transformations at a special historic period from a down-to-earth perspective and through the changing lives of nearly 20 ordinary people.

Through the characters' striving and struggling, he says, domestic audiences can see core values like honesty, diligence and mutual assistance inherited from one generation to the next, thus making them more familiar with the unique charm of Hong Kong.

Noting that most domestic audiences have got used to watching Hong Kong films and TV series taking place in the high-rise buildings of Victoria Harbor or the bars on Mong Kok's narrow streets, Yin adds that the new TV series creatively chose a tea restaurant as its setting. Such places originated in Hong Kong to sell Chinese and Western foods at affordable prices, symbolizing Hong Kong's distinctive culture that merges the West and the East.