I put it on my list because I wanted to support his return and selective projects. Some of the clips convinced me to watch it earlier than expected. I liked Zhu Zhu’s performances, even if at times I didn’t like her roles. So, I thought I gave it a try. Considering how it was only 16 episodes. How was it? Mixed feelings.
Main Cast:
- Wallace Huo (霍建華) as Yu Yu (俞瑜). A famous architect. This wasn’t the first time that Wallace portrayed a stingy character. Yet, this type of character was different from the others he portrayed. He wasn’t hot-headed, brainless type either. But he was living on a principle he truly believed. I felt he was just more honest than most people. He knew exactly what he wanted and he lived unapologetically for it. He lacked social skills or at least those decorum because he didn’t have a filter. Or more like, he felt like he didn’t need to please others. At least, he knew what he wanted in life and that he wasn’t suitable for a relationship or marriage. Unlike some people who did it because it was expected of them, following a routine. He wasn’t a complete asshole either because he had principles and actually learned from his mistakes. He actually apologized when he knew he did wrong, unlike others who criticized him relentlessly yet didn’t pass the chance to take advantage of him. When he was ready to commit, he made changes and slowly built a world for two. Even if there were missteps and he had his doubts but that was normal. By this time, I think that I don’t have to critique his acting anymore. Yes, he gets a pass. Even if this feels a bit closer to his real life self. Okay, his real life self is more considerate and aware of stuff than this. But if you follow him consistently, you would see his quirks coming out at times. I’m just glad he didn’t lost the craft that he polish for so long through various projects. That happens sometimes when people take breaks. It wasn’t like he was completely off the radar. But he took a step back and wasn’t part of the spotlight as much anymore. It felt good having him back and taking on projects he likes.
- Zhu Zhu (朱珠) as Gu Ye Jia (顾叶嘉). A medical doctor at the local hospital. She was mature and professional at work but could be mischievous or somewhat cunning off work. A little busybody at times, but that was a balance between her personal and professional life. She was quite cute at times too, if you think of it. It was fun to see her in a different type of role and I felt she was really good in all. Because all the characters she portrayed were so different.
- Fei Qi Ming (费启鸣) as Shen Wu (沈武). Yu Yu’s assistant. He was fickle at first. It seemed that way. It was hard to blame Xiao Xiao for being suspicious of him. He was seriously interested in Xiao Man. I almost expected them to have a fall out before he somehow ended up with Xiao Man. Yet it was different. Still, super suspicious. Aside from that, in some ways, I did feel really bad for him regarding work. Yet, he actually enjoyed the strange relationship with him and Yu Yu as his mentor. Somehow, he understood Yu Yu more than others realized.
- Eleanor Lee (李凱馨) as Xia Xiao Man (夏小满). Yu Yu’s neighbor and Dr. Gu’s good friend. I don’t know what to make of her at first. I was still recovering from her role in The Journey of Legend so, yes, my bias was there. I tried really hard to focus on her character. And I tried to see it from her point of view. But it was really hard. Maybe because of how she continuously (along with the others) pick on Yu Yu when he just wanted to be left alone. She did learn and grow through time and realized she misunderstood him (and vice versa because he did learn some stuff too). Yet there was something missing. I just couldn’t get into her character completely. Or actually, couldn’t get into Eleanor. She wasn’t terrible acting wise. But there was something missing for me. Maybe in the future when I see her in some other role, I would be impressed or would see her in a different light. It’s not now.
- Zhang Yao (张瑶) as Lin Sa (林飒). Yu Yu’s agent. She seemed really familiar to me at first and I had to look her up and t hen realized she was also in Forever Young with Wallace (as his cousin-in-law). I liked this role of hers and felt it gave off a completely different vibe. She wasn’t the lady of the house, in charge of the household and kept the restaurant in top shape anymore. She was a career woman and showed another side of her capabilities. She was indeed the glue to the group because she kept everything in place and knew how to work around all members of the agency. Without her, they would fall apart. But she also wanted to be acknowledged. In fact, she had every right to be acknowledged. I was glad Yu Yu finally saw her for who she was. Well, he recognized her talent from the start. But time had passed, he seemed to take her for granted (like the majority). They really needed a reminder. In some ways, I felt she deserved all the recognition and fly high elsewhere. Yet, I was also happy to see that she got promoted and could stay at the place where she knew almost everyone. It was indeed scary to make a big leap toward a different city and all.
- Fan Jing Yi (范静祎) as Wang Xiao Xiao (王笑笑). Shen Wu’s girlfriend and Lin Sa’s assistant. Mixed feelings throughout. Sometimes, I felt for her and was on her side regarding Shen Wu’s ridiculousness. But what drove me insane and pushed me off her wagon was when she forced Shen Wu to take the dog away. She was so jealous that she wanted to kick the dog out? Sure, they soon found someone to step up and take the dog. But seriously? Taking it out on the dog when the dog was innocent? Lucky for them, Yu Yu caved, or what would happen?
Supporting:
- Chen Kui Xi (陈奎希) as Zhong Liang Chuan (钟良川). Yu Yu’s brother-in-law and Dr. Gu’s colleague. He was seriously pitiful. Yet somehow, I didn’t pity him. Hey, he chose to get married and stuff and wasn’t truthful to himself or his family. So, why should I feel sorry for him? He wasn’t a jerk or asshole or anything. But still, very cowardly and tried to get Yu Yu to get him out of sticky situations. It was just too weird. Some of his behaviors were done for the effect of humor but I couldn’t sympathize with him at all. So, I actually enjoyed it when Yu Yu trolled him.
- Wang Zi Tong (王梓桐) as Yu Jie (俞洁). Yu Yu’s younger sister and Zhong Liang Chuan’s wife. She wasn’t around enough to make an impression for me. Yet I felt she represented the typical side of the population in here. She was happy with married life and was on the side that thought her brother was weird for going against the grain. But she wasn’t completely hateful. She was just another character that was made that way because of the story.
- Liu Xiao Hai (柳小海) as Li Huai Qing (李怀情). Yu Yu’s friend. He owned a video store and often poked fun at Yu Yu when the latter came in at times. The thing about him was he seemed too mysterious at times that could lead to creepiness. I suspected him of some misdeeds at one time too. But he was just being mysterious on purpose and loved to troll Yu Yu at times.
- Dong Si Yi (董思怡) as Qing Qing (晴晴). Xia Xiao Man’s co-worker and friend. She was okay, I guess. Another gossipy person and contributed to the somewhat chaotic atmosphere but she wasn’t completely terrible. Just a character written in to give Xia Xiao Man some sort of friend and ally.
- Edward Zhang (张晓晨) as Ouyang Ping Fan (欧阳平凡). A famous architect who is under the same company as Yu Yu. He often antagonized Yu Yu and criticized him at every chance he got. He was also quite superficial and wanted to upstage Yu Yu at every turn as well. What made him had a change of heart was when he saw Yu Yu and his wife (it was Dr. Gu but he had mistaken her for Yu Yu’s wife) appearing together at the awards ceremony and realized how Yu Yu got the inspiration to build such warm houses that projected such harmonious feelings. That was when he refer to Yu Yu in a more respectful manner. It was a surprise but I guess the writers wanted to wrap up the show on a positive note by redeeming him.
Others:
- Liu Jia (刘佳) as Su Xiu Er (苏秀儿). Yu Yu and Yu Jie’s mother. I didn’t like her one bit. I don’t care anymore. So, I’ll be honest. But she nagged too much. It was typical parent who wanted grandkids. It didn’t matter how much she cared. It was very tiring to watch whenever she was on screen. I was just glad she wasn’t the reason for Yu Yu to get married. He had to find his own path and do that his own way. And that was how it should be.
- Yin Zhu Sheng (尹铸胜) as Papa Gu (顾父). Dr. Gu’s father. He was so funny. I thought he was going to be another typical parent who wanted to sold their daughter off and wait for grandchildren. It turned out, they made him goofy and I was there for it. He was really fun and entertaining to watch. Especially the part where he and his motorcycle crew were coming in to check out cars and then switching to cars for safety purposes. The motorcycle sent off ceremony told another story about the group. Another hilarious part was how he tried to get Yu Yu to ease into helping him with telling his daughter that he was going to remarry. I thought he was trying to get Yu Yu to convince her to get married. Yet it was different. He was seriously funny for choosing Yu Yu to deliver the news. And indeed, it proved a disaster, even if it turned out fine in the end.
- An Tian (安沺) as Fei Wen Li (费雯丽). A photographer who aspired to become famous and wanted to focus on more meaningful projects that the one she was currently involved in. She had to take side gigs to fund her passion. What was unexpected was her sickness and how she had to go in for surgery and lost her freedom for a while. Yu Yu tried to build a place for her new life and adapted those according to her situation. He said that it was all removable after she recovered. It was a strange turn yet highlighted some of the unexpected things in life.
- Ji Mei Han (季美含) as Ping Yang (平杨). A medical intern.
- Qu He (曲禾) as Ah Juan (阿娟).
- Yang Zi Yan (杨紫嫣) as Landlady (女房主).
- Zhou Mai Jie (周劢劼) as Chen Peng Yu (陈鹏宇). He worked for a big company in Beijing and was impressed by Lin Sa’s intelligence and capabilities that he wanted to recruit her. The funniest part regarding his appearances was when he felt self-conscious for the meeting in convincing Lin Sa right at her company, lol. It was indeed super weird.
- Ding Yu Chen (丁宇辰) as a client of Yu Yu’s at one point.
- Zhong Qi (钟祺) as Wu Yu Tian (武雨田).
- Wang Pei Han (王珮寒) as Curry Girlfriend (咖喱女友).
Likes:
- The chemistry between Wallace and Zhu Zhu were surprisingly addicting to watch. Okay, it wasn’t outright beyond awesome or anything. But it was cute in some ways and mature in others. Besides, Wallace’s not getting younger. It would be super weird to have those overly cute moments. But I liked it a lot more when he was paired with people closer to his age than the one in Forever Young. Yes, I’m still cringing over that disaster. (Yeah, I got it, it was different, but wasn’t a fan of it.) Anyway, I liked how their relationship built slowly and somehow ending at the point that it did. I was scared that it became rushed but it wasn’t so. It was just right.
Dislikes:
- How gossipy and judgmental everyone was to Yu Yu initially. Yes, he has a sharp tongue and can fend for himself the majority of the time. However, I would have expected more from them, considering how they dubbed themselves to be normal. What was more, having Dr. Gu being part of it was seriously a joke. Yes, she could make fun of him along with the other. But the writers forgot and slipped in the part where she said it was more fun and harmonious to gather around to eat and talk during mealtimes. Nothing is wrong with wanting companionship at times, gathering with friends and families, etc. However, as a doctor, she should know that eating and talking at the same time will lead to indigestion issues. Yeah, I got it they were making fun of Yu Yu for being an oddball. But they missed the mark on that, not thinking that she was a doctor and she should know more than that. At least, have her say something regarding that. She was an intelligent woman after all and she proved her capabilities already. Why the slip and inconsistency?
Discussions:
- Yu Yu was actually the one with the most humanity when it came down to it. Yes, I said it. It seemed odd. But each time there were things that happened, the others expected him to step up, to bend his principles, and give in. But when it came time for them to step up, they dodged. The support was severely lacking. Take Dao Ge, Xia Xiao Man’s dog, for example. When she was in the hospital, they kept pushing the duties back and forth and then eventually pushing it to Yu Yu. If he didn’t do it, he was selfish. Sure, he was responsible for her hospitalization after all. But it was an accident. He didn’t see OR realize it until it was too late. (He did apologize later because he was capable of learning and adapting.) Yet, somehow, he was pushed with the task when he had proven time and time again that he didn’t want to have anything to do with it. Not to mention how they thought he was weird and stingy, why were they calling upon him to do the right thing? They ended up guilt-tripping him into taking the dog. Sure, his time with the dog had taught him some things and he ended up liking the dog. I would cut Dr. Gu some slacks that time because she had to take on night shifts and couldn’t do it since she had to rest during day times, etc. But the others? Then came the situation with the Xia Xiao Man being harassed by that one asshole. They forced Yu Yu to take on the project although he explained clearly to them that he hated that jerk and they also had the knowledge of Xiao Man being harassed too. Xiao Man was surprisingly forgiving and understanding during that situation even though she didn’t have to take the BS from that asshole. Yu Yu was already annoyed with the asshole’s arrogant attitude and how he said he would tear the place apart again to build something else later–if he felt like it. Knowing that Xiao Man was being harassed by that guy pushed Yu Yu over the edge. Yet, he was forced to compromise because the others didn’t want to let go of that big project. How was Yu Yu the asshole in that situation? And I do understand that everyone needs money to live AND it would be hard to pass such a big account like that. BUT seriously? They would do it at the expense of Xiao Man’s safety?
- The AI slam. Yes, I was really surprised they approached the topic so boldly. Considering how the world’s moving toward embracing that part, unknowingly chipping away at the heart of creativity. It wasn’t completely slamming AI to the point of no return. But seeing how Yu Yu was an architect and did everything old school, it was hard to get past that. Yes, he did keep up with the technology and used different programs to help sharpen up his designs. He also had his own experiences with AI and tried to understand it. But his explanation to Shen Wu was the hallmark of the show and defined his character as a real artist. He also made it known that if Shen Wu wanted to establish his own style, he would have to do it by himself, not rely solely on technology because his designs were supposed to be part of his creative process, something he would put his heart and soul into. He even said that AI combined all artists’ styles, so it was a collage of all styles collected by the program to give Shen Wu the data to work with. It was important Shen Wu knew that and not take that fusion and run with it, which wasn’t his style.
Recommended? It depends on how much you love the cast. Because it wasn’t anything extraordinary but it could be counted as a light-hearted series. Although I was frustrated with some stuff, looking at the overall picture, it was already light regarding the dramatic stuff going on. It seemed like daily stuff happening for the most, wasn’t too over the top. I learned later that it was adapted from a Japanese series so I’m planning to hunt it down and check it out for myself, seeing the differences between the two and all.