Nirvana in Life and Dongli Hospital

生 birth, 老 old age, 病 illness, 死 death.
It’s the passage of life we cannot avoid.
It’s the passage that’s explored in The Heart through our Medical Team at Dongli Hospital and the patients we come across... The passage where everyone battle with illness and death so we can continue living.

Medical dramas aren’t anything foreign. In fact, it’s precisely the familiarity of the profession and the amount of shows featuring them that makes this genre a tough nut to crack. On one hand, this genre deals directly with emergencies and deaths - perfect ingredients to string our emotions. On the other, it can be overtly cheesy at best, and a turnoff at worst if they overdo with the dramatic stories.

That’s what stood out about The Heart - it draws this balance perfectly, almost.

While we go through this show through our 3 main leads - Doctor Zhou, our physician, Doctor Lin, our surgeon and Doctor Fang, our ICU and post care doctor - the patients’ stories in The Heart makes them more alive than ever. None of the patients were fillers, even if they only take up 1 episode or less. None of the patients’ arcs were predictable, even if they appear to be the familiar troupes we come across in other stories or our day to day lives. This says a lot about the heart and sincerity that goes towards the cast and story plot.

The depth of patients’ stories made me afraid to watch this show in public transport as I go back and forth to work. This is because they draw tears at every juncture. Tears that I don’t feel cheated of.

Besides the patients’ stories, they also explored the politics of the doctors in The Heart delicately, pragmatically, and realistically. One can argue that politics shouldn’t be present in the face of life and death. But Doctor is another profession that requires management, systems, budget, and communication structure to continue its operations, even if they are in the line of saving patients.

Instead of taking time away from the patients or medical team, the political affairs of Dongli Hospital add color and life to The Heart. Even if we do not enjoy or agree with the political moments or the decisions that the characters take, I feel that those plots cement the fact that these doctors are people too.

~~~~
“Everyday you have to worry about this, consider about that, aren’t you tired?” Dr. Lin asked.

“Tired. Very tired.” Dr. Zhou remarked.
~~~~

At The Heart center, the dynamics of our 3 main leads are the core of the stories. Doctor Lin is the medical genius that learns to work in a team. Doctor Zhou is the workaholic that learns to rely on his team. Doctor Fang is the cherry one that reassures everyone. From these 3 lines, it’d sound like Doctor Fang has a shorter end of the stick with her character arc compared to the former two. And this is somewhat true.

That said, these trio won’t be complete without her. In a story that has so many things going on, Doctor Fang is a steady and warm presence that plays a more important role than people would give her credit for.

I love how they become comrades together with the medical team in Dongli Hospital. It made me wish that I too, will be in the hands of such a team.

~~~~

“每个病人都像一本书 Every patient is like a book。
医生能做的是尽量弥补他们的破碎 What doctors can do is try their best to mend their broken things -
不管是心脏 be it the heart，
还是心灵 or the soul.”

quote Dr. Fang.
~~~~

Besides the story, the OSTs of main theme are apt. Especially the ending song, 活着 Living. Deep and impactful lyrics.

Here is the official MV: https://youtu.be/5bOhd4oT6yg

Lyrics extract

生life, 死 death, 离别 separation，
若不由人选择 if it’s not up to people’s choice,
那就向前走 then let’s move forward.
~~~~~

To sum it up, there’s only ever 1 medical drama you have the quota for, give it to The Heart. It’ll pull your heart’s strings like no other.

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Living each other’s lives, literally

We often talk about being more empathetic and understanding of others’ perspectives - but how much do we really understand when we are not facing the same experiences or live in their shoes before?

Enter “TDOBY” as Jiang Yi’s (Steven Zhang) and Yu Sheng Sheng’s (Liang Jie) souls got swapped in an accident and literally got to live in each other’s shoes until they figured out how to swap back.

We naturally have a lot of comedic moments that comes with a gender swap story, and the leads really delivered these scenes. When Steven Zhang had to act as Yu Sheng Sheng, I can really see that “the lady in Jiang Yi”. Similarly, Liang Jie’s portrayal of Jiang Yi was passable as well - it is not easy playing a reserved character. Coupled with the impeccable timely background sound effect, the funny scenes were funnier, the awkward moments were “awkward-er”, which in turn make it funny for us, the audiences.

The pacing and progress of the relationship between the main leads were done well too. They started from tolerating each other (mostly on Jiang Yi’s part), to developing a friendship (that drives Jiang Yi’s manager nuts due to Sheng Sheng’s job as a reporter), and then eventually falling for each other.

I personally like relationships that are founded on friendship, and it’s great watching Jiang Yi’s growth and development throughout the show with Sheng Sheng’s influence. When they both officially became a couple, oh boy, those sweet moments and chemistry would make your toes curl.

What’s more, funny / light hearted and romantic moments were not all TDOBY have. It has a number of heartwarming scenes on family and friendships as well.
While the supporting cast was mainly in the scenes to progress the story forward, they are not 1 dimensional characters.
While I am a tiny bit disappointed that certain characters weren’t expounded further, I recognise and accept that at the heart of it, TDOBY is a story about Jiang Yi and Yu Sheng Sheng. Fingers crossed for a sequel or spin off!

Also, if one pays attention, TDOBY touched upon current social issues such as stereotypes, fanatic behaviours, social media commentaries / critiques, healthy dating mindset / attitude as well as accepting consequences of own choices.

It has been such a long time since I have watched an entire show, rom-com no less, without skipping any scenes. Nada, zippo - I sat through the entire 26 episodes and thoroughly enjoyed the show.

I personally like the ending concept that the scriptwriter has chosen. The dialogue in the last 10-15 mins really drives home the message on empathy, which I believe is what the scriptwriter really wants to share. My only complain is this choice leaves a couple of questions and untied loose ends for me. Also, I thought it would’ve been nicer if they extended a couple more episodes to properly reconnect Jiang Yi and Yu Sheng Sheng after the time skip. Okay, that makes two complains.

Nevertheless, I still love TDOBY and would highly recommend everyone to watch the fun journey of Ms. Jiang Yi and Mr. Yu Sheng Sheng.

And, Summer 21 best female lead goes to … Steven Zhang

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Making our youth counts with the right guidance

Ray of Light is like your typical coming of age, school drama - with a crucial additional pillar, Hao Nan Lao Shi. Indeed, great teachers do make students care more for their studies.

What is enjoyable about Ray of Light is being able to see this story from Hao Nan Lao Shi perspectives, on how he believes his students’ potential, on how he advises them as a friend / peer, on how he spend the time with them to get through their current largest hurdle.

On the students end, I particularly like one of the students arc, Jia Kun, who wants to go Shanghai because his first love is there. Through Hao Nan Lao Shi’s words, he comes to realise that the most reliable support to protect their love is through getting a stable job which education can provide. That’s the kind of adult’s perspective, influence and guidance a lot of teenagers need in crucial juncture of their lives - and it‘s nice to see this play out well on screen.

Ren Zhen’s and Gao Yuan’s relationship dynamic is also cute. They share a side with each other that they don’t show to others, they listen to each other’s worries and support each other, they study together and know to prioritise the practical things first - it’s the kind of high school romance I ship. The romantic buff in me is interested to see more of their development as working adults.

Hao Nan Lao Shi’s backstory is a little dramatic, but I guess it grounds the character, knowing his what, his when and his why. Special mention to his mum visiting his workplace - cool mum.

Despite the aforementioned highlights, I only rated Ray of Light at 7.0 because I wasn’t pulled in by all of Qingyun Class 14. What makes high school time highly reminiscent is because of the shared camaraderie of going through the same intensive public exam that seemingly make / break everyone’s future and a celebratory graduation trip that symbolically marks the start of adulthood. While there were these in Ray of Light, I don’t feel that camaraderie bond between Class 14, which is a key ingredient for school dramas. They can’t seem to evoke that mixed feeling of anxiousness and anticipation which I once felt about graduating high school / university.

(Oops, looks like you guys could probably guess my age range now. :P)

Maybe it’s the pacing of the stories, maybe it’s the execution, maybe it’s the cast, or maybe I have past that stage in life. Regardless, Ray of Light is still worth to check out, especially if you are into coming of age stories. If it’s not for Class 14, for Hao Nan Lao Shi, who’s that ray in this story.

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Slowing down admist all the hustle and bustle [of dramaland]

Meet Yourself is likely the type of show where you’d either love it to the moon or feel meh about.

To some, 40 episodes of a healing drama is too long; to a few others, the show probably inspire them to take intentional steps, as required, so they’d be able to appreciate the things that matter to them, before it’s too late.

For me, I quite like Meet Yourself for its lovely characters, awesome cinematography, mature romance, and nuggets of wise conversations…but it has to catch me at the right mood. Even this review has been a long time coming, which ironically fits into the show’s iconic slow pacing.

First things first, on the story premise, we follow Xu Hong Dou journey of healing in Yunmiao Village after feeling burnt out from the grief she felt of her best friend’s death. As she settled in and eventually got “coaxed” to take up an advisory position to assist the local cafe, she started to get more involved in the affairs of people at Yunmiao Village. And then, slowly but surely, Xu Hong Dou felt pockets of fresh air from this place and people, which gave her the energy to connect with herself and begin again.

While there may seem that the stories were unfolding in its own timing and there are many moments in the show that seems more like local tourism MV promotion, I’d say that’s how life kinda is. After all, we don’t necessarily stop to hear or remember the stories of people we deal with in our day to day life. Only when the interactions increase and we start to care about these stories of people who were once strangers to us would we then feel the impact in our hearts. It’s not a process that we can and should rush. And this is the timing that Meet Yourself follows - through Xu Hong Dou’s lens and timing.

Each character’s arcs and stories make Yunmiao Village a warm place. And the greatest anchor is Xie Zi Yao, a promising young lad who had the capability, heart and determination to work on his vision - a vision that Xu Hong Dou seems to understand and support. Neither of them were looking for romance. Yet, they found life is better with each other in it.

In the world of hustle bustle, in real life or drama land, Meet Yourself firmly cement itself as the place that everyone wants to rest and relax in, but unsure if they want it for that long. Still, I’d recommend everyone to give it a shot - perhaps at some point of your life, Meet Yourself may be what you need to reconnect with what you want to work towards to and what matters to you.

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Values and characters worth to learn from

It was an unexpected day for He Huan. On her 10th year marriage anniversary, her husband went MIA, and 4 debtors soon came to collect million of debts owned by her missing husband. As if this news weren't shocking enough, her long term program got cut due to critical reviews by her friend, her mum diagnosed with cancer, oh and her missing husband - turns out he cheated.

Thus, we have our story's premise for Be Your Own Light, a story of a woman requiring to step back up on her own feet after her world crashed oversight.

What works well for a seemingly cliche plot is the element of surprise. The show smartly use our bias to make us enjoy the show. It has grounded and likeable characters. It has smart, witty slightly over the top approach for moments that were supposedly cringey or dramatic. It has sincere dialogues and positive messages for us to learn from - on career, on life struggles, on beliefs.

And the show smartly turn its focus to He Huan's, Bai Yang's and Yuan Yuan's career line after the necessary context of He Huan's situation was established.

~~

Starting with our main female lead, He Huan played the role of a woman who seemingly had it all, with stable career and loving family. When her world crashed before her, I was impressed with how the show laid out her growth and development. Here, we saw a strong woman who picked herself back up steadily and decisively after going through the proper stages of grief. Yes, there's a tad teeny idealistic cliche-y moments. No, there is no domineering CEO boyfriend to the rescue nor some untapped special potential that He Huan unlocks. If anything, her talent is always recognised before she left the news industry 13 years ago to prioritise family.

I like that He Huan is kind, but not a Mary Sue, principled but not a preacher. She had clear and admirable motivations for her actions. He Huan accepted the reality that her skills may not be able to meet the current fast paced environment and humbly chose to start again. She worked through the ranks again, and gained the rightful recognition through effort, sincerity, and tenacity.

~~

Bai Yang played the foil of He Huan's character - the successful career lady who remained single. With her blunt, no nonsense, demanding, rigid and prideful personality, she can be a character that's easy to dislike or sympathise. To Bai Yang, she says what she means and she means what she says. If anything, Bai Yang, though the most expressively critical of He Huan, is one of the few that truly believed in He Huan's capability and often helped the latter in tangible ways.

While Bai Yang's arc may feel a little outdated in 2023 for some modern single ladies, I enjoyed how the show highlighted her vulnerable sides and how the few perceptive ones in the show could see through as well. I love they knew the right opportunities to offer words of comfort which Bai Yang needs to hear. Sure, Bai Yang has a strong steel of armor, but she is no machine. These moments ground her characters and made Bai Yang real.

~~

Last but definitely the most refreshing, we have Yuan Yuan. Yuan Yuan resembles a lot of more what people who term as "masculine" traits. She is ambitious, competitive, assertive, courageous, calculative, and decisive. With people, she is direct in expressing her thoughts whenever the moment is right. She is the first one that helped He Huan and gave the latter a much needed dose of reality checks. At work, she is resourceful and almost never let emotions get in the way. While certain actions toe the line, Yuan Yuan has her principles that she doesn't cross. With the right reminders, she focus on her own pie and value. In relationships, she is clear with what she wants, and is quick to honor her thoughts when she changed mind too.

~~

To wrap up my review, Be Your Own Light shows that light can come in many forms - so long it is our own effort.

While my review did not highlight much of Liu Yu Ning's character and arc, he did a great job too and his character, Jiang Jun Hao, is one of the cutest onscreen debtors. The pacing is by and large okay, with the last part a little rushed. I don't quite get He Huan's husbands' motivation / actions, and I personally also didn't feel we need Jiang Jun Hao and He Huan falling in love. But I guess we won't have a story if the husband isn't a jerk and each of these lovely females having a "worthy happily ever after" partner. Oh well, the silver lining is their love stories aren't that forced, cliche or not.

And thus, Be Your Own Light is an enjoyable series with admirable characters, especially the ladies.

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Figuring out as we go along

Central business district (CBD) - a place where people come, meet, and go.

In CBD, we talk ambitions, we talk schedules, we talk business. As CBD folks
(1) juggle through various demands of bosses, clients, parents and colleagues,
(2) keep up with (or ignore) trends and assumed social expectations,
(3) battle with conflicting desires at different phases of life, there is little to no energy left for dreams, relationships and rests.

Every characters have various fake "masks" CBD folks would be familiar with.
(1) Tang Ying's 躺平 "tang ping" boss is a worker who have lost all work motivation after decades of high stress lifestyle that broke her health. Translation: The western equivalent social trend to "Tang Ping" are quiet quitters.
(2) Tang Ying's cringey client, Liu Mei Ling, is a lonely woman who wants to maintain her happy marriage bubble.
(3) Tang Ying's materialistic younger cousin, Xin Zi, is a young 20's who thought that successful and good enough man can provide her a stable life she wants.

Enter our main character, Tang Ying, a seemingly professional elite lawyer who had it all. But 1 episode in, all her fatigue looks, polite smiles and "yeses" on phones break this bubble. Indeed, the life of a true blue working class.

Her meeting with Xu Zi Quan, an investment banker who works nearby her workplace is a series of coincidences that unexpectedly turns to something more. I love the pacing of how they develop their relationship - the push and pull, the tango, the cautious (and kinda fun) testing. I love their individuality, and emotional stability - they are no prince charming nor damsel in distress. They have their life priorities and similar outlook that remains consistent and in tact throughout the stories - sure, Tang Ying and Xu Zi Quan are attracted to each other and enjoy each other's company, but they also have deadlines and demanding stakeholders to take care of first.

None of them were chasing for marriage or forever. They just happen to connect and enjoy the flirting, one interaction after another, until they decide to take the leap.

In the era where many people (and series) idolise "finding purpose", "chasing dreams" and "romance where women must have it all", I am glad to see a relatable contemporary dramas of people with relatable struggles that perhaps hit slightly too close to home as well as a grounded onscreen CBD partnership that I can believe happening in real life.

"Fake It Till You Make It" is a true blue, hustle bustle lives of busy professionals in CBD. We can feel the characters' pressure, anxiety, confusion under the layers of masks.

Some eventually decides to take down these masks, while some decides to push on. More importantly, none of them dwell on their past choices nor stay down after a fall or two. They regroup, and start again...until they make it.

Some of my favorite relatable quotes from FITYMI, just because
~~~
There is a phrase that suits you a lot - it's called 拧吧 (twisty - refers to someone who awkwardly makes things more complicated than it has to.)
Actually there're a lot of things, you think too much. It's better if you can keep it simpler.
The world isn't as complicated as you imagine.
But it's okay. Youth is a process of twisting. I was like that when I was 20.

~~~
Do I really want to be a lawyer? I don't know.
Between the lawyer I had in mind and my present life - the stress, anxieties, insomnia, and walking on thin ice I am facing now - which one is more authentic?

But I do know, there is nothing more absurd than talking about dreams in CBD.

People who stay here only have goals. 5 year goals, 10 year goals. Their thinking is realistic and rational, having weigh all the pros and cons. Those crazy people who wants dreams, have already escaped.

~~~
This city is still bustling, and it will not stop for anyone, just like life.
Recalling the people I met, who didn't wish to have a great head start and stay ahead?
Boss. Subordinate. Friend. Rival.
Trapping oneself in one role after another.
Say what one should say. Do what one should do. Believing that this is our life.

But they, somehow seemingly have great tacit understanding.
When they have perfected their pretense, they somehow come to one truth.

Happiness, success, and joy can't be determined by some scriptwriter. It can only be our own tangible experience.

I've met many people in this city.
And they eventually taught me, that the world is very big, bigger than what we can imagine.

So walk your own path, and not according to a written script.
Throw away the script, and struggle to find your own life. It's okay to fail. It's okay to walk the wrong path.

Live freely [at your own terms].
Isn't this classy?

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For corporate millennial ladies in late 20’s and beyond

“Ever since I started work, I worked hard to be of value to my boss so my contribution at work will transcend my gender.

…but I am wrong…

If your boss can’t leave you, you cannot “graduate from” your boss.”

With the rise of working female and talks of feminism in social media over the years, the show biz is quick to capitalise on the market opportunities through commercialisation and stories that center on these themes. What makes Nothing But You stand out among the lot of crappier stories, rather considerably is the realistic portrayal of Liang You An (LYA)’s corporate struggles in today’s middle class’ ladies.

This is a modern corporate lady contemporary show done right.

How many late nights, urgent calls and contemplative car rides we have taken, thinking about our progress at work, recognition, value and purpose. How many times have we thought about quitting the stressful and meaningless job, but came up with a blank because we also do not know what we want to do next. Our parents and society would say we are thinking too much. Yet, shutting the voices down also dulls us, gradually but surely. And that’s on the career aspect.

On the relationship aspect, LYA’s perspectives were also spot on. I like that the show didn’t characterise her as an ambitious woman who didn’t want love. Yes, she takes a long time accepting her feelings and undeniable attraction to Song San Chuan (SSC). Yes, she has her fair share of reservation through their journey. Which is realistically, how a lady who had built a decade of independence, would feel and behave.

It’s easy to think that SSC represents the idealistic side with his career and theme focusing on sports and career switch. Represents the beacon of hope because he is young and full of possibilities. Look a little beyond the stereotype though, 20’s in sports can feel like our corporates’ 30’s, or even beyond, as many competitive athletes retire by SSC’s age.

Hence, they met at the right career juncture of their own. An athlete who found renewed spirits to step on the court again, a corporate worker who found renewed purpose to take charge in her career.

And then, only when they had their direction in life, they found “Nothing But You.”

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Fun when it does not take itself too seriously

This drama requires a low expectation to be enjoyable.

With a short 8mins of 18 episodes, there isn't a lot of time to flesh out the details of the plot. But it works precisely because of this short format.

The humor is light, playing around the female lead's determination to escape her loop of not dying and maintaining her modern personality in an ancient world. The main leads' acting is good and have believable chemistry. I enjoy this troupe of bubbly female lead warming the male lead's lonely heart - enjoy it enough to not nitpick too critically of the few plot holes here and there.

I presume this drama took inspiration from Romance of Tiger and Rose's plot - all shorten to 3 full length episodes. It's perfect when one wants to relax the brain and wind down.

For an idol drama to work, audience has to buy-in the main leads chemistry. If the plot wasn't too bad to the point that it distracts us from the chemistry, the idol drama is good enough. I presume most idol drama production team can consider to adopt this format in coming years rather than assembling a team to produce 16 to 24 full length episodes, only for audience to skip two thirds of them.

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Dreams are means to an end

Part 1 - One step at a time, together and independently

The thing about pair skating, it’s about pair work as much as it’s about individual work. Part 1 story was set in the 80’s, and it was a story that’s centred on pairs figure skating, a time when times were tough and opportunities were limited.

When I first tuned in, I thought it would be a story of hard work and true love triumphed the nationals. Little did I know, Part 1 was more about the story of Yan Zhen Hua and Li Bing He’s thin-ice romance, and excruciating hard work to fight for a spot in national ice-skating sports team. Alas, while they shared the same dream and true love, it’s a story about what happened when a pair of figure skaters did not share the same motivation, attitude, and talent / potential.

One of the key themes in Part 1 of the story was the contrast of our main leads’ family background. Coming from a poor family background, Yan Zhen Hua had all the reason and grit to struggle through arduous training on the ice so he can be his family’s pride. His greatest Achilles' heel, as all main characters would have, was this pride of his. Not that having pride was bad, in fact, it was a great motivator for YZH to push through the hurdles, so he can win the nationals. The pride did however limit his growth in ice-skate, and to a certain extent, blinded his empathy to his friends’ challenges.

In contrast, LBH, who started off as the innocent rich girl, whose eyes only had skating and her “Da Hua ge”, slowly came to develop her own comprehension about skating through her life experiences in latter part of the story. And when the rift started to become apparent, they both unfortunately decided to part ways.

It took me awhile, I surprisingly came to like this consistent characters portrayal and realistic story execution. While we can empathise with YZH’s situation and may even applaud him for gritting through and staying loyal to his dream, family and friends, truth to be told, it was hard to root for him - especially if we have also been through one or two life’s curveballs ourselves. After all, we don’t live life in vacuum. What the production team wanted to portray was the real and gruesome road to the nationals.

Part 2 - Focus on what matters

For part 2, we came to the short track speed skater story, featuring YZH’s son, Yan Yang’s training in Beijing in 00’s.

The pace was a lot faster and focused in part 2. In the present days, we can clearly tell that the facilities and support for young athletes were more matured. I particularly loved it when Coach Chen entered the picture - her no nonsense, tough love approach that focused on results might be harsh, but it’s clearly effective.

Comparatively to his father, YY is a lot more confident, calmer, and firmer on pursuing his goals. His approach when faced with setbacks were more matured. The only time he raised his voice was when YZH forcefully stopped him from a competition. It made sense, YZH and YY had quite different childhood experiences. Watching how YZH came to accept and eventually supported his son’s short speed track skating was heartwarming.

JY, as the female lead for part 2, is a determined, quiet, and awkward character. She had certain attachment to her past experiences to overcome. Watching how she warmed up to YY and going through it was enjoyable.

Apart from YY and JY’s development and journey, both on ice and off ice, there was also a clear arc / representation for each character:
- Yan Yang: The unsung heroes, those who helped trained their team but may not get the chance to compete at nationals
- Jin Ying: Athletes who had exposure in overseas training system, and how they adapted back to their country’s training system
- Jia Chang An: Talent vs Hard Work in competitive sports
- Tang Han: Impact of injuries to an athlete’s career
- Tian Miao: Competitiveness, which can serve as a motivator or downfall
- Coaches: The different training philosophies and how to instil the “right” attitude. When to step in, when to take a step back, when to push, when to remain as observer

All in all, I enjoyed Part 2 story a lot more as it’s my cup of tea for a sports series, that’s centered on training progress, characters’ motivation, and team members’ dynamics / support for each other, albeit a little propaganda-ish. Part 1 story would be lovely for those who liked melodrama stories that’s centered on the main characters’ journey, speck of life’s realism, and bittersweet romance.

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Getting to know each other, with heart

It baffles me as I am writing this sentence, Let's Fall in Love 3 is more than a dating reality show - it's about connecting and exploring, with others and with yourself.

In a dating reality show where a bunch of strangers stay together for a couple of weeks, LFIL3 is by far one of the more drama-free ones, thanks to the maturity of the participants and the commentators / observers. Credits go to the production team for good pacing the "dating injects" for the participants and good editing of the narrative.

When we watch a dating reality show from a third party perspective, we have a tendency to forget that this bunch of people only knew each other over 10 days, hence, the tendency to get invested way too fast over certain "couple lovelines" or too judgmental about a person's actions during the course of the story. This is where the commentators / observers play a part - and I like that this season's ones have rather matured discussions to provide a more objective view. They also visibly able to empathize with the participants' actions / decisions. I particularly find Annie Yi's comments in one of the latter episodes insightful and I translate - "In relationships, use your heart, don't use force. 在感情里, 用心, 不要用力." Helps one to ponder and reflect.

When it comes to dating reality shows, the "dating injects" do help to make or break the pacing and development of "love lines". In this season, I like the way they are set up. They aren't too many last minute surprises or overly intentional "dating injects" that's meant to direct a particular couple's progress. This makes LFIL3's participants feel more genuine, and the overall vibe of the show more comfortable to watch. We are able to relate to their decisions more.

In terms of the participants, I find this season's the most relatable for some reason. They are not only focused on being fancied by their "crush", they care about making friends with everyone too. They participate in the games and hangouts at nights after their day date. They are conscious of not letting their personal feeling affects the group's dynamics. Towards the latter episodes, we can see genuine friendships built as they share their thoughts with each other. This development is one of a kind, and one that likely would last for a long time.

Concluding my review, I believe we sometimes forget that dating is about getting to know another person and being honest about how you feel through the process. There's no one kind of love for there are also friendships, family, and self love. There's no rushing in love for we have a lifetime to experience it.

Special shoutouts:
- I admire how Yang Yang balances between pursuing for opportunities and respecting the choices of Xiao Loong and Ah Shuang. And she is only 21.
- I respect Wen Jun's courage in making the first move, follow by confronting and breaking the ice of awkwardness with Shun after it's getting clearer that he fancies Tan Nee more.
- I empathize with Ah Shuang's dileema on her choices and feelings over her current stage of life.
- I am touched by Shun's out-of-the-box thoughts and gestures in writing 2 letters in one of the episodes - one to Tan Nee, one to encourage his friend Ah Xing.
- I like Tan Nee's and Danny's steadiness and steadfastness, as they're both the oldest in this group.
- I also wish the best for 2 couples: Shun and Tan Nee as well as Danny and Wen Jun from this show. May they be able to bridge through the distance as they resume back to their respective life.

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Choices, consequences, and (2nd) chance

I think it's fair to say most of us have thought about what would've been different if we had made a different choice way back when. I would also bet my money to say that most of us also thought about how nice it would be if we are given a time machine to make that different choice given a chance, especially if we aren't at a good place right now. Cue to our wonderful series, Go Back Couple as we explore the different choice our 38 year-old main couple, Choi Ban Do and Ma Jin Joo make (or will make) when they find themselves back in their 18 year-old self after filing for divorce right at the first episode.

To say this story doesn't know how to tug our heartstrings is an understatement. This series really explores in depth the journey of couple relationship from falling in love to married to divorce, first loves as we remember them (vs what actually happened), our idealism about life in our younger self vs our realism (and jadedness) about life in our adult self. These are moments, stories, and messages that one would appreciate differently at different phases in life, making this series one of the top for rewatch.

Choi Ban Do and Ma Jin Joo were really well portrayed and well cast. Both were able to capture the nuance and character of both their older and younger selves. As working professionals, it's easy for us to neglect our loved ones and more importantly, ourselves in the day to day grind of trying to just survive; as university students, it's easy for us to feel like the world is our oyster and we will get whatever we set our mind to. This journey to the past is one that is very much needed by Ban Do and Jin Joo to mend their broken and battered hearts, from realities of life, and it's one that is enjoyable to watch and appreciate.

The supporting casts' stories were also well relayed, especially the second male lead, Jung Nam Gil. Through him, we learn that what we truly seek for is for someone to see us for who we are and to remind us of our strengths we sometimes fail to see in ourselves. While the second female lead's influence is less in the series in comparison, through her, we learn that it's important to do what we really want to do (responsibly of course) because there might come come a day when you can't even if you want to..... Yes, let these messages sinks in for a moment.

All in all, it's a story that's centered on healing and appreciating the moments in life, as fleeting as they may be.

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What Romantic really means

This story is rather well paced. They didn't take too long to establish the characters and their relationship with each other. For the younger doctors, they provide the hook for more common understanding of romance to audience. As we watch the show further though, we get to understand who Dr. Romantic really is, the meaning Kim Sabu provides to "Romantic" through the patients and incidents in the show, and how his own idealised view of reality influenced others, in particular the two aforementioned younger doctors, Dr. Kang and Dr. Yoon. In fact, everyone in Doldam Hospital holds their idealised view of how the medic field shall be. While I am not in the medic field and do not watch a lot of medical drama (the other ones I've watched which I think are good are Hospital Playlist and The Hippocratic Crush), I think this show balance the jargons well enough to not lose my attention.

Overall, I feel that this show has different flavors served on a platter to different kind of audience. Whether you are looking for a medical drama where the plots move along, a romance, a coming-to-age story with completed past, a persistence to live out one's values - this show provides it all.

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A story of redemption - of yourself and your family’s

Life has no redo - what if it does?

Hua Qian got what she wished for as she found herself back to 2 years ago. And she wasted no time to right her and her family’s wrongs, one at a time.

The early parts of the story was intriguing, figuring out the dynamics between the characters and their respective reactions to Hua Qian’s changes. Hua Qian, in her 2nd life became ever the wiser and determined to stay on the right path, as it meant staying alive. And her greatest struggle comes was from changing her closest family, making the story and characters feel rather grounded - after all, change is hard when they hadn’t experienced what Hua Qian had already “experienced prior”. I liked that it was not a walk in the park for her just because she had additional knowledge about the events. And once she changed her earlier behaviours, they logically lead to different chains of events that would no longer give Hua Qian the same advantage.

Another thing I enjoyed about Scent of Time was how Hua Qian rely on her wits most of the time to get through her valuable 2nd chance. Sure, she earned her admirers and respect. But she was no damsel in distress and played an active role in her redemption arc. This made up for the rushed ending and [somewhat] plot twist on how she got her 2nd chance…just a little bit.

Another aspect that could be improved was the supporting cast’s characters development. There were many moments in the show I felt their involvement were just pushing the plots along. Though…since it’s Hua Qian’s story of redemption, I guess this is acceptable.

Overall, I would say Scent of Time had cohesive story line and an independent female lead who stayed focus on her goals. Can give it a chance if redemption and 2nd chance stories are your thing. For those who are into romance or comedy, I’d suggest to check out other stories.

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小城故事多 - Small town has many stories

Where is home?

Is it the bustling city where there’re many opportunities?
Or is it the small hometown where we are born and raise?

For folks that has their origins from smaller towns, this may not be an easy question to answer. For Mu Di in Small Town Stories, she was very sure of her answer until she was not, after having to return home to heal from an injury.

Small Town Stories is one of those family centric stories that ask us to remember pausing and pay attention to life’s little things. It asks us to enjoy life and care for ourselves. It subtly shares that passion and ambition can come in many forms.

What I enjoyed most about Small Town Stories was Bai Lang and Mu Di’s dynamics. Mu Di was a headstrong lady who felt stuck between her ambition and family subtle pressure to give it up. Bai Lang was a “rascal” she unexpectedly and unwillingly got entangled in, yet, seemed to be the “medicine” she needed to heal from her injury. This is an opposite attracts couple that’s rather charming to watch. I especially like Gao Zhi Ting’s portrayal as the street smart, savvy small medium enterprise business owner who was good at taking care of his people.

I also enjoyed the music performances in Small Town Stories. With utmost respect, I am not a fan of loud sounds and folk musics - thus, finding myself being captivated with Mu Di’s Suo Na was definitely a pleasant surprise. I appreciate folk music a little more through Small Town Stories.

What fell through for me was the slight draggy pacing and cliche plot lines. I wasn’t able to fell completely drawn in with the people in Small Town Stories besides Bai Lang.

That said, it’s still an enjoyable show if you are in a drama drought or want something simple. After all, there are many stories. And Small Town Stories is one of the many.

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Back to Initial D-ream

What’s your dream?
Let me ask in a different way - what’ll be your dream if you can go back in time?

Zhang Chi, a professional car racer who unexpectedly found himself back to 5 years ago after a serious car accident, never hesitated one bit - he raced to right his past track record. There’s 1 slight problem in this dream, instead of going back to his past self, his consciousness got into Lin Zhen Dong, a “fu er dai” who will become his fiercest competitor on car racing in time to come.

Time travel transmigration stories are nothing new. I, for one, am a fan of this genre and have watched many series. What makes Pegasus stand out among this common story setup?

First thing first, great casting choice - Hu Xian Xu who plays 2 roles as future Zhang Chi and young Lin Zhen Dong is perfect. He is that kind of actor that can captivate the audience to care for the characters he plays and story. This alone contributes to a lot of enjoyment of Pegasus as we immerse ourselves into the world of professional car racing through the pairing of a veteran car racer and potential budding rising star.
‘Future’ Zhang Chi’s main motivation was to change his fate, after given this “2nd chance” in this alternate timeline, while young Lin Zhen Dong found himself unable to deny his growing interest towards a sport he wanted to stay away from since childhood. All these nuanced feelings and character development of 2 different characters were portrayed well by Hu Xian Xu onscreen.

Second, any charming sports series has great rivalry relationships to root for. Hu Xian Xu generally pairs well with other actors and actresses he works together with. In Pegasus, Hu Xian Xu and Wang Yanlin work well together onscreen as young Lin Zhen Dong / future Zhang Chi and young Zhang Chi. There are lots of facets to this pairing due to the setup of the story, making it fun for both actors and audience to watch.
One thing I like about Zhang Chi’s character - he’s action-oriented, adaptable, and quick witted. There’re always some form of “fish out of water” moments in time travel and transmigration story. Refreshingly, I enjoyed watching how ‘future’ Zhang Chi navigated this situation - no dwelling, no over explanation on his incredible “foresight”, no care of people’s perception of him and his odd behaviours. I guess that’s why he is a successful professional car racer.

Third, I love the plot of this time travel transmigration story particularly - ‘future’ Zhang Chi was not able to right all his regrets even with his foresight. Some unfortunate events still happened, in a different way. Sure, it’s a dream (literally), but no, you still can’t have everything your way. This made for a realistic, closer touch to life. Psychologically, it also made Pegasus more interesting as audience got thrown a curveball - yes, we all like some doses of surprise, even the most dogmatic of us.

The last icing of the cake is the lovely team spirit and camaraderie among the characters. Pegasus has lovely cast overall. Fei Chi Car Team is the main beacon, the racer-trio cross team between Zhen Dong, Ai Fei and Ao Duo was a pleasant touch. Professional race track is a niche sport after all. Pegasus manages to balance the reality on securing sponsorships and characters’ determination to stay on track with their passion.

With 28 episodes, Pegasus has a fast and tight pace. This leaves for a lot to be desired. Then again, when it comes to racing and working towards your dreams, try not to blink.

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