Zhong Kui 钟馗
Zhong Kui is recognized by his beard, heavy gaze and scholar's robes. He looks formidable even in paintings depicting his sister's wedding. This appearance suited the people who hung his portrait on their doors to ward off evil spirits. And on screen, Zhong Kui acquired both cases resembling the investigations of Judge Bao and a love story of his own.
Legend has it that the first person to see Zhong Kui (钟馗) was Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. He was ill, and one day he dreamed of a little demon running about the palace. Then a bearded giant appeared, caught the demon and ate it. When the emperor woke, he ordered the court painter Wu Daozi to paint a portrait of his savior. Accounts of who Zhong Kui had been in life varied. According to one legend, he was a scholar who was denied first place in the examinations because of his ugly appearance. After death he was entrusted with driving out demons.
Portraits of Zhong Kui were hung on doors at the New Year and during the Dragon Boat Festival. In Japan he became known as Shōki: he was believed to protect against smallpox, among other things. Painters and opera writers readily took up the story of how he married off his younger sister. In some versions the demons he usually catches join the wedding procession and help carry the gifts.
In Heavenly Ghostcatcher (1995) he was played by Jin Chao-Chun, whom viewers already knew as Judge Bao. In this series his character likewise works out who needs help and who deserves punishment, except that the dead may also turn out to be among the parties to a case. And in Zhong Kui: Snow Girl and the Dark Crystal (2015), the character played by Chen Kun falls in love with a demoness. He has to decide anew whom to protect, and from whom.
