Go Ahead (2020)

The Story Line and the acting

This drama tells the story of 3 children from different families who meet as a child and become a family. And as adults they realize that there are different feelings that make them want to belong to each other.

Seven Tan, She already stole my heart. She is deeply immersed in her role as a girl who lost her mother when she was a child. Her character as Lie Jian Jian was so deep. I couldn't imagine if this role was played by other people. I think Seven Tan feels the feelings of Lie Jian Jian who have lost his mother. I love her so much. ^_^

Song Weilong, He played the role of the oldest and wisest brother. Although compared to other main actors, he is the youngest actor but he succeeded in playing the role.

Steven Zhang, As a child who is abandoned by his parents and entrusted to someone's family. In contrast to his two brothers, Steven has succeeded in delving into his character, which makes an emotion in every story.

This drama seems to explain that adult life is very complicated and the role of family is very important in life.
Where people who are always there will always steal your whole heart and mind compared to people who are not with you in your difficult times.

This drama has become the first Chinese drama that I can't miss a second of the story.

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Two Boys and a Girl

10 out of 10! It's a really good drama and for me it's the best Chinese Drama I have ever watched! It perfectly portrayed the sadness, happiness, warmth and healing of the families (major and supporting characters). It also showed that not only blood ties can form a loving and supporting family. I also love how great is the friendship of the three (Mingyue, Jianjian and Tang Can). There are instances in their life that one is successful and others are not doing great, thus having jealousy with one another but they were still supportive of each other and pushed each other's dreams. All of the characters were great but I really love Hai Chao. The adoptive father of the 2 boys and biological father of the girl. His love for his kids is immeasurable and truly one of a kind. There was a scene when his adoptive kid was getting scolded and then he got drunk and voiced out his thoughts. It's such an unforgettable scene in this drama for me. His love for his children is so sincere and so true that you can feel the love of a father thru the screen. I also applaud the main characters (2 boys and 1 girl) JianJian, Ling Xiao and Zuqi. They are the best main characters you could ever imagine in this kind of drama and they fit their roles so well. I really recommend this drama, specially for those who are living in Asia and knows how Asian families are, its traditions and culture because you will really connect with this drama. There is humor, love, sadness and other emotions you can feel while watching this drama. I hope there is a season 2, I'd like to see who they end up with and their journeys to their dreams and also how they start their own families as well. Great job for the director and writer. I hope they make more drama's like this.

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This is a must see drama!

This is a drama about family, and all families are comprised of the good, the bad and yes, the ugly. It shows the consequences and damage of those who have been left selfishly behind and the jarring reality of children growing into adults who are left the task of putting the missing emotional jigsaw pieces back together.

To start with, let's talk actors. I adore the three main leads: Seven Tan, Song Wei Long and Steven Zhang and they very much embody their characters to the point I can't tell acting from the real person. Tu Song Yan and Zhang Xi Lin as the two father's defy description; they are just that masterful at acting and this cast together with the script and direction has become my favorite drama to date. They pull off the impossible and that's to portray true life in the most engaged way. They are a real reflection of people, which is a rare quality in any script.

My favorite couple of all time are also the two dads and thank you, thank you! screenwriter for showing us the dynamics of being a part of a family of mistakes and courage blended. Although they are not a romantic couple, they are the classic narrative of what a parent is: loving and unknowingly flawed.

I'm at episode 31 and already mourning the loss of the story after the next 9 episodes. I dread and also look forward to the end to see how the major and minor characters travel towards resolution but this will be watched and re-watched many, many times. It's just that good.

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Brilliant family-oriented drama sprinkled with a tiny bit of romance

This drama was on its way to becoming my favourite romance drama of the year, but the director / screenwriter was trying to do too much in too little time in the later episodes, which led to a rather unsatisfying ending. Am I wrong to want to watch more of my favourite main characters, rather than the side characters?

However, if you would put aside the small mess in plot in the later episodes, this drama is definitely the best Chinese drama I have watched recently. I have never watched a drama whose characterisation of all characters were so in depth and on point. I couldn’t even bring myself to hate the antagonist, as frustrating as she was, because I understand and pity her. That was how good the director and screenwriter was. (Though the ending they gave her is something that I would rather forget.)

The dialogues were also very brilliantly written. During the scenes between family members, the happy scenes gave you the most heartwarming lines ever; the sad scenes gave you the most tearjerking dialogues; and the quarrelling scenes tears your heart apart with the sharp words exchanged. There were so many memorable lines throughout the drama, so thoughtfully written, that I’m sure can be compiled into a book. Also, all the 梗 (probably translated to jokes / dry humour?) were so cleverly woven into the plot, and they never fail to make me laugh out loud. This is no spoiler since it’s everywhere during the first round of promotions for the drama - He Zi Qiu’s “confession” to Li Jian Jian is by far a classic. I don’t know how many times I laughed till I cried in that episode.

I started this drama thinking that it would be a romance drama sprinkled with a bit of family. Turns out it’s the exact opposite, though I’m not complaining. I followed this drama while it aired, and the emotional rollercoaster MangoTV / HunanTV put me through because of how they cut the episodes was insane. I was even tempted to drop this drama, though I suppose that goes to say how good the actress was.

One point docked off for the most unsatisfying ending ever to probably the best character in the entire drama (in terms of characterisation and portrayal), and another point docked off for the mess of a plot in the later episodes. However, do not let this put you off - this is a drama that will stay with you for days even after you’ve completed it. Though I keep “complaining” about it, deep in my heart, I am 101% invested in this drama.

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A Heartwarming Story

From the first episode itself, you would know that Go Ahead is the kind of drama that requires quite a few pieces of tissues. The first 10 to 12 episodes will make you cry buckets. However, the sad moments are balanced out by heartwarming ones. Both will make you shed tears but they arouse different kinds of emotions. You will feel sad for the boys who got abandoned but you will also feel moved by Hai Chao’s love for them. If you like dramas that evoke deep feelings within you, Go Ahead is definitely one that you should watch.

Story
I find the story to be unique as there is not one but two abandoned kids. The circumstances that led to their fate are also different although both are tragic. There is hardly a boring episode for the entire drama with good pacing throughout. While there is always something happening with the characters, they are never overdone or exaggerated. In other words, the characters’ stories are very realistic and relatable.

Each of the characters has their own struggles and issues from unrequited love to depression. Some of them are carried over from childhood as the story tracks the ups and downs of the different personalities throughout a period of 20 years. So, the story will make you laugh and cry with them as it is told in a very vivid and engrossing way. At the very least, it made me eager to know what will happen to each of the characters as the drama progresses.

Acting
Seven Tan
Seven Tan certainly didn’t disappoint in her role as Jian Jian. She is way past being a teenager but still played the part of a schoolgirl convincingly. In the later episodes when she becomes a 25-year-old woman, she managed to display subtle changes to the character to reflect her age and maturity. I think she fits the role well with her adorable and cheerful look as Jian Jian is basically a happy and optimistic gal. If you have become her fan, you can also catch her in the costume drama called Under The Power.

Steven Zhang
As for the boys, I feel that Steven Zhang has outshone Song Wei Long in their portrayal as Jian Jian’s brothers. Perhaps it is because Zi Qiu is a more expressive character compared to Ling Xiao. Hence, Steven Zhang has the opportunity to showcase a more varied range of emotions which suits Zi Qiu’s personality. He also emits a brotherly vibe in his scenes with Seven Tan. Their chemistry as siblings is evident and heartwarming to watch. You can also catch Steven Zhang in Skate Into Love whereby he is paired up with Janice Wu Qian.

Song Wei Long
While Song Wei Long’s acting is acceptable, his portrayal of Ling Xiao is not totally convincing as someone with anxiety disorder. His chemistry with Seven Tan is only average to me as I can’t see the sparks and difference when the nature of their relationship changes. No doubt Ling Xiao is a challenging role to play with his reserved nature. One would need to rely on the eyes and facial micro-expressions to convey the emotions. In that sense, I just feel that Song Wei Long could have done a better job portraying Ling Xiao. Personally, I prefer him in Find Yourself than Go Ahead.

The rest of the cast also did a good job especially the 2 men who played Hai Chao and He Ping. They are central figures in the drama and hence, their performance is just as important. They successfully gave their characters the fatherly feel which contributed to the heartwarming emotions in the drama.

The Romance (Spoilers Alert!)
If there is one stain on this drama, it would be the romance. For me, I find it unnecessary although others may disagree. It is predictable who Jian Jian would end up with between the 2 brothers because it is laid out pretty early on in the drama. A few might even find the romance weird because they grew up as siblings although they have no blood ties.

While I’m fine with the transition from siblings to lovers, the way the romance started could have been better developed. Ling Xiao’s love for Jian Jian may have been there all along since high school but I get the feeling that his love has turned into an unhealthy obsession during their years apart. He has mental issues because of his toxic mother and Jian Jian is like his salvation. Somehow, I just find that is no longer a healthy way of loving someone.

After Ling Xiao returned home, he sort of pressured Jian Jian into a relationship. I guess some would say Jian Jian loves him. But to me, it is more of she didn’t have the heart to reject him then. Ling Xiao’s love for her is clouded by neediness and desperation. He needed Jian Jian for his mental well-being. So, there is an element of selfishness there which doesn’t quite jive with the loving brother image that has been crafted for the character early on. You can see the clear contrast with Zi Qiu who genuinely wanted to take care of Jian Jian and make her happy.

Hence, I’m not too keen on their romance. Alternatively, they could have allowed Jian Jian to slowly explore her feelings for Ling Xiao at her own pace. That would have been a better way to develop their love story for me.

My Verdict – Don’t Hesitate!
Generally, people prefer happy and sweet dramas and tend to shy away from tearjerkers. So do I. But after watching Go Ahead, my recommendation would be to give it a try. Don’t let the emotional nature of the drama put you off because this is indeed worth watching. At the end of it, you might just find it hard to let go of these 2 families. The story is realistic including the ending as not every character gets paired up for a fairytale-like conclusion which is typical of so many dramas.

While I’m not particularly fond of the romance, neither is it the focus of the drama. Hence, I could still enjoy this from start to finish. Basically, if you want a heavy dose of romance, then Go Ahead is certainly not the drama that you should watch. For that, you would be better off settling for rom-coms like Dating In The Kitchen or melodramas such as Here To Heart. Instead, watch Go Ahead for its heartwarming family ties, a father’s love, and close bond among siblings. If you end up liking the main couple as well, then that would be a bonus.

For this Go Ahead review, I would hand it a score of 8.5/10. The story managed to move me and get me emotionally invested. The characters are flawed with their psychological scars and emotional baggage which add to the realistic nature of the drama and makes it memorable. Some dramas are immediately forgettable after you have sat through them. But not Go Ahead. Give it a try and remember to have some tissues ready!

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Family is who you’d make sacrifices for, not necessarily defined by blood ties

Go Ahead is really a Family + Coming of Age drama about Selflessness versus Selfishness. Love how the drama brought out contrasting examples of what it means to be loving others selflessly and selfishly loving oneself over others, even if one is or not biologically related to the other.

Super Heart-warming Relationships between the 4 Lead Characters
-The way Li Ba (Li Hai Chao) takes pity and takes on Ziqiu without hesitation, raising him as if he is one of his own sons and not as a "lesser" offspring compared to his own blood daughter, Li Jian Jian. The humble working class father could have turned a blind eye (given his modest circumstances as a single parent) so as to not take on another financial and emotional burden to look after an abandoned kid. But he didn't, he took Ziqiu under his wing and cared for him all the way from childhood to adulthood without any expectations from Ziqiu to reciprocate.
- The way Jian Jian treats Ling Xiao and Ziqiu who aren't biologically related to her, as her blood brothers. I mean, this girl could have reacted in an insecure and selfish way if she thought of these brothers as an extra burden and competition for resources from her father who isn't that well off? She treated them like real brothers instead of step-brothers- their kinship is the second most heart warming element of this drama.
- The way Ling Xiao sacrificed his desires to study in China to be with the Li Family and fly over to Singapore just so that he can look after the very mother who abandoned him when he was young. He could have just cut his mom off and leave her to fend for herself since she walked out on him when he was such a young kid, but he didn't.
- The way Ziqiu sacrificed his desire to study and work in China and fly over to UK in order to please his real father Zhao Haoguang so that the Li family would not be harmed (or so he thought). He refused to take money from his father even though he was given an opportunity to and worked the odd jobs quietly to pay his uni fees without relying or expecting a single cent on Li Ba, his adopted father. Respect!

Realistic Toxic Relationships depicted by Secondary Necessary Evil Characters
- Chen Ting, Ling Xiao's mother portrays a believable narcissistic villain in this show. She is the "bad Guy" who blames everyone (except herself) for her misfortune as a way of justifying her self-serving behaviour. Everything in her life, from her daughter's death (which was an indirect result of her negligence as a mother when she locked the kids up so she could sneak out for fun), her failed marriage (the divorce was a decision she initiated because she gave up on her marriage to a workaholic husband) and her loneliness (because 2nd husband died from a car-crash and she realised she had no one to look after her financial needs).
When life cripples over, Chen Ting conveniently crawls back to the son she abandoned and demands Ling Xiao to take care of her, if not, no surprises for guessing, she threatens suicide. The actress who played this extremely unlikeable character is brilliant!
- Qin Meiying, Chen Ting's other daughter, portrays a second Villain character convincingly as the overly possessive step-sister to Ling Xiao. Like Mother Like Daughter? Lol. Maybe that's what the Script-writers wanted to hint at. ChengZi (her nickname) is seen to view Li Jian Jian or anyone who captures her step-brother's attention as a threat. Her backstory was sufficiently well explained - her mean bossy personality comes from the fact that she feels insecure despite growing up in a wealthy household. When a fatal car crash accident causes her father's death and her mother, Chen Ting, to be widowed, she becomes even more insecure and nastier towards other people. There is a small glimmer of redemption for Chengzi when we see her being humbled by our hardy and resilient Ziqiu who doesn't carry her airs just because she is wealthier than him, but treats her like an equal - you want my respect? work and earn it just like the others. Chengzi realises how she has been unfairly mean towards people who had done nothing but be welcoming and nice to her. She eventually becomes a less toxic version of her narcissistic mother, the big Bad Villain of the show. As the second little villain in this drama, this turnaround makes her less unlikable.

Unnecessary Side-Shows
The things that downplayed this drama for me was the numerous Love triangles between the supporting female and male characters. I felt that some of these love triangles that were stuffed into the script to for the sake of creating more story arcs to hold the audience's attention and these created more diversion instead of cohesiveness for the main storyline. If the scriptwriters could trim this down, the drama would have fewer episodes, but the storyline would also be more succinct.

Go Ahead storyline isn't particularly complex, so this drama is really simple and enjoyable to watch when your brain is feeling tired or dead and just wants a chicken-soup-for-the-soul pick me up.
This drama is a great show for the young and old to watch because the positive role models exemplify what it means to be selflessly loving to others, even if one is not biologically or legally related, while the bad villains give a realistic demonstration of what toxic, self-serving behaviours look like.

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it's overhyped but still good

after years of this sitting on my plan to watch list, i finally decided to pick this up as i thoroughly enjoyed its korean remake, family by choice.

overall, i love the concept. i love how theyre found family && the dynamic between the siblings is so fun.

my issues with the show:
- the romance between the leads was not explored well. i expected better of this show than the korean one as it has so many episodes. lingxiao always seemed to be in love with her, so he felt very natural. jianjian on the other hand i feel like them getting together happened so fast i didnt even realize at first. idk if it's the acting or the character itself but i never once felt a romantic connection between the two. love, yes but every strong emotion jianjian ever showed towards him was always a very sibling-like one. it felt off.
- of course i hated the initial love triangle but it's not too bad bc i realized ziqiu initially wanted to pursue her but didn't really show much romantic interest. he just loves her and wants her to be happy and confused that protectiveness as him being in love with her
- idk it was lackluster in general. esp after already having watched a remake of it. everyone hyped this up so much saying this is so much better than the korean one but i disagree completely half the series was filler and the acting was subpar, so was the plot itself.
- i thought the korean version made the connection between jianjian's dad and ziqiu much more emotional and overall much better
- although i think song weilong is gorgeous but his character here had that slight cha eunwoo vibe where it's only like 50-70% acting and the rest is just looking serious and serving face
- did not care for tang can and the other guy (forgot his name oop)'s random subplotline

what i liked:
- love the protective brothers vibe
- what this show did better than the korean one is make the fl actually feel like a girl who's grown up around boys her whole life it felt more natural
- the dad in this show was great and the connection between him and ziqiu's mom actually was better flushed out here
- overall the story is good like in the korean one so although i think it wasn't that great i like the general setup of this show still

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So I finally caught up to this drama and finished the remaining episodes. I must say the cast was what initially drew me in especially Song Wei Long. He has one of the nicest faces I have seen and he is damn cute. I also like Steven Zhang and the trailer was very interesting.

STORY:
There were some absolutely golden and some absolutely boring moments. It started off strong and remained consistently good till ep 25-26. I felt like child actors were too cute and the sentiment of family was captured perfectly. In spite of the hurtful childhood all 3 of our leads had, they were quite fortunate. That was a little fairytale-like for me and at the same unbelievable i.e. the amount of abandonment happening and tying people together. The latter episodes focusing on the parents were a snoozefest. The mothers were unforgivable and at times the entire situation seemed too melodramatic for my taste. Emotions were good and some struggles were real but there were some unbelievable moments also.

ROMANCE:
I am glad my ship was right and the one I shipped her with came true. At times 'Ge' was cringey for me but maybe it is the same as 'Oppa'?? There could have been more in the romance department, but too much was focused on work and family.

CHARACTERS AND ACTORS:
For me the characters and the actors drove the story. I wouldn't give all credit to the script. Right from the Dads to the friends- Mingyue and Tang Can, everyone was perfect. The leads were also casted perfectly but the age gap was a little weird. I like Seven's portrayal but I still inclined towards the male leads. Even the unlikable mothers were good at playing their part. Felt like the drama portrayed two ends of spectrum when it comes to type of parents - good and the terrible. In the end it tells you family doesn't mean kindness. Kindness can be felt even from strangedd and make anyone feel like family. I felt worst for Ling Xiao. His life was too bad and his dependency on Jianjian was pitiful. His mother was horrible all the time. The little sister was also freaking annoying. I didn't feel anything for other brother's mom also and didn't buy her story. The biological dad was also no good.

OST:
First time ever I am appreciating OST from a Mainland drama. Highly recommend listening to all the songs.

OVERALL:
Realistic yet melodramatic. Not enough of romance yet enough of good family moments. Nice way to show sibling and friendly love, gratitude and loyalty. I liked that it touched upon Mental Health but lot of it was unresolved and poorly handled. I wasn't as hooked till the end but I am glad I watched it. Maybe it was perfect for some but missed the mark for me in few areas.

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Mixed feelings after the drama

I saw a clip of Go Ahead on TikTok, which was when Jian Jian announced that she had gotten her first period. I was amused by the scene, and so i was already very eager to watch the Cdrama, but at that time I had never watched it before, so I added it to my list. I decided to start watching Cdramas after Hidden Love and remembered this drama. SWL is an extremely attractive man, and that pushed me to watch it even further. However, as much as I liked his show, I also hated it just as much. I was already aware that it was going to be an emotional rollercoaster, and it did bring out bowls of tears from me, but some things were just too annoying and overbearing for me too watch. I'm going to start off by saying what I enjoyed as I watched this show.

First off, I love Jian Jian's Dad. He is literally the best. The way he cares for the family even though he doesnt have a lot is just so comforting and heartwarming. I love the idea of the three of them being raised together and the whole idea of them being a family. It was also very fun to watch their interactions. It is unfortunate, though, that the bad things were more.

The characters all had mummy issues, with some being worse than the others. Whenever i watched Ling Xiao's scenes with his mom, i always cried. She was a terrible mother and, in my opinion, the most abhorred mother in both Cdramas and Kdramas. Her daughter died and she blames everyone in the family as if they also didn't lose their sister and daughter. I get that people go through loss and i understand what she was going through, but she never cared for Ling Xiao and it absolutely broke my heart. What also pissed me off was that Ling Xiao never expressed it properly to her. The woman literally abandons her son and walks back in expecting him to accept her with open arms. She hurt LX so much, and she never properly apologised for it, instead, she kept on playing the victim every single time. We saw ZQ let all his feelings out to his mom as well, but we just didnt get that for LX and it was very unfair.

After realising all the wrongs that she had done to LX, she tried to kill herself, abandoning them again. What was more annoying was that she had a daughter this time around, used her daughter to basically torment and force LX to relate with her and at the end of the day, didn't include her in her damned suicide letter. In all LX's moms role was over bearing and unrealistic and also very hypocritical.

The female lead was obviously older than them. Not saying that TSY didnt act well cause she did, but they could have picked someone cuter and younger. Many people may disagree with me, but Jian Jian didnt look good with Ling Xiao. It just looked very weird to me and as much as they tried to have chemistry, it was still very awkward to watch. Jian Jian also didnt really like Ling Xiao, we know this from when she tells her dad why she was going out with LX. It was so annoying cause eh genuinely loved her, but her feelings were so immature and shallow. When LX would want to touch her, she would shrug away and she also called him 'Older Brother' till the end which was so inappropriate. They just didnt feel like a couple to me at all.

There are other things that i also didnt like, but these are the most important. These things are also what maked the show even more interesting to watch. But it isnt something that i would rewatch. There arent any heart fluttering scenes imo. However, it ahs an amazing Plot and should be added to your watchlist as a cdrama watcher.

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You've heard of daddy-issues as tragic backstories now get ready for...MOMMY ISSUES!

*The characters are a metaphor for bad parenting!*
This show didn't leave a huge impression on me but it gets a 9/10 for being the first Chinese modern drama that I watched all the way through and that deserves recognition if anything does. It's also not a bad show.
You should check this show out if you like:
1. Found family trope
2.Second-hand embarrassment
3.Slice of life
4.Food
5.Watching other people eat food while you're not
6.Food as a love language
7.Extensive and blatant verbal abuse of children throughout childhood and well into adulthood
8.Barely-there romance
9.Friendship and girls-supporting-girls
10.Easily resolved misunderstandings that don't stress the viewer out at all
11.Half-assed, there-only-for-laughs love triangles
12.Stories that handle concepts of trauma
13.Barely hidden implications about non-traditional family units (aka families with same-gender parents) being healthier than forced traditional family units.
14. Mothers having weird things for their kids...it's...complicated!

Summary: The story follows a widowed man named Li Hai Chao who runs a small noodle shop and takes care of his daughter on his own. He ends up becoming the primary caretaker for two neglected boys in the neighborhood and together with the upstairs neighbor dude, they make up a sweet, unconventional family unit. Then years later, the abusive parents show up and take the boys away just to prove that it's never too late to deeply traumatize and scar your children if you are determined enough!

So this show...is so comforting and cozy while also giving the viewers terrible anxiety. It's truly awe-inspiring how much drama they fit into a show that essentially has no central plot. Like I mentioned, the show is a "slice of life" type of show so for the most part it's about these people dealing with the banal difficulties of real-life but the circumstances of the characters are so dramatized and heightened that their daily issues involve weirdly high stakes.

Story: I really appreciate the time the show takes to really drive home the level of abuse and trauma parents can unpack on their children, intentionally or not. The whole concept of this show as I see it is challenging parenting norms of China, revealing the dark side of filial piety and asking real questions about what a true family consists of, and if blood really is thicker than water, or more importantly...should it be?!
Every one of the younger members of the cast (That is the main three kids, Jian Jian, Ling Xiao, and He ZiQiu as well as Ming Yue and Tang Can) are each different manifestations of traumatized children who grow up with some form of parental deficiency.
Jian Jian: Motherless, great dad. she is the least f*cked up one of the bunch. Her thing is that she was pampered because her dad didn't have the heart to be hard on her and she ends up rather demanding and unruly. She's very normal. She has almost no drama going on a personal level (just romantic bs). Although I did find her lack of sexual identity a bit odd given that she is the main "romantic" lead of the show. But I'm just gonna assume that's a cultural thing since "cute" girls seem to outweigh "mature" girls in terms of likability.
Next comes, Ling Xiao: Abusive mother, absent-ish father. He's just SO traumatized. He is the result of the most uncomplicated form of abuse. Depressed, with anxiety disorder. (He has little sense of preservation because he thinks he is unworthy of love and deserves the abuse he gets.)
He ZiQiu: He is the result of abandonment. He is emotionally suppressed and a perfectionist. (because he thinks he has to prove he deserves love)
Ming Yue: Is the result of a controlling mother and an absent father. She is childish and helpless as an adult. She is incapable of making any decisions. Utterly paralyzed between pleasing her mother and resenting her.
Tang Can: Commodified child star, burnt out. She is the example of a child who was used by her parents and praised when she brought in a profit and then later beaten down and ridiculed when she lost her benefits.
The story takes such good care of showing how damaged each of these characters are as adults because of everything that happened to them as children. The big event of the plot comes around episode 10 when Ling Xiao and He ZiQiu who had gotten away with moderate trauma, end up getting dragged back into really terrible family situations, suffer a form of arrested development, get traumatized even worse than before. The show is so good at showing their frozen mental and emotional state once they return to the story.
Then there's a lot of random plots at every turn with each revealing a new level of awful things that have happened to these kids. There are unnecessary love triangles but they seem to mostly be there for humor and they are all resolved quite fast and easily.
My main issue with the plot is that it ends up debunking its own hypothesis. By the end of the show, every single bad mother (and OH they were all bad!) gets redeemed one way or another and the children just resume their filial piety. Sure, there are important conversations that come up but it feels a little pointless. Plots are either undone or swiped under a rug to make a happy ending possible. There's no real statement made about bad parenting patterns.
There is also the fact that the healthiest family unit in the story consists of two men raising three kids together which says a lot about the argument that families must look a certain way for children to grow up mentally stable and healthy but then three fourth of the way into the show, it has to make up a romance for one of the men, in a very meh performance of "no homo".

Acting: The older actors were amazing. The younger ones were good too. Particularly Steven Zhang whose fans will not let anyone forget just how great he was in the show! lol. Seven Tan is praised a lot for this show but except for a couple of scenes here and there, I didn't love the choices made for the character so I didn't love her performance even though I think she did great with what she was given. Song Weilong is the one member of the main cast I am hesitant to pass judgment on. He plays a deeply depressed character and his character comes across as extremely depressed and introverted, so I think he did do an amazing job portraying that but that also means his character is significantly less flashy than Steven Zhang's so he can seem like he didn't do a good job and was just awkward. Didn't love the supporting casts' acting much. But again. similar to Seven Tan, their childish and exaggerated performances do add up with their characters' personalities so maybe they didn't have bad performances so much as their characters were just exaggerated and irritating!

The music was fine. Except for when that one song keeps repeating a million times over every time something emotional happens. A lot of cdrama/kdramas do this. Much to my displeasure...

The production was good. Especially compared to all the modern cdramas I have dropped. The audio was good, set design, cinematography and etc. were good in the way that good things go unnoticed because they are natural.

Negatives: There is a romance between two of the main kids. I think it's best to know this and go into the show because some people tried to make a "this is incest" argument which, no it's not. Stop trying to make a mockery of a serious issue. It's like, people love the childhood friends to lovers trope until they actually get to see that transition and suddenly it's gross and "how can you fall for someone you played with when you were kids?!" well that's what friends to lovers looks like in practice, Karen. It's literally in the name! Don't like it, don't watch! Knowing what to expect, you can notice all the tiny easter eggs the creators put in the childhood era about a possible future romance. It's also decidedly melodramatic. Some would say the childhood era was better than the adult era. I think everyone needs to accept that people can't stay kids forever and it's weird to love watching grown-ass people acting like 15-year-olds.

I would not personally rewatch it. It's not really something that I was super wowed by. It was good but just for one watch.

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Found Families Forever

I love a good found families drama, which this does exceptionally well. The two fathers navigating raising their respective families and leaning on each other is absolutely adorable. You can feel the love and friendship they build over the years. Quite frankly, it's their relationship and the relationship they build with the kids that resonate with me the most. That, and the overall love of food that is intrinsically tied to the story. Some of the best food cinematography I've ever seen, even in cooking shows.

The relationships between the three main leads, particularly their romance(s), was less interesting to me. I didn't dislike the characters themselves and I liked the moments of connection between them, but I felt the various romantic entanglements derailed parts of the story. The side characters also took up too much screen time (although I do have a special place in my heart for Tang Can). That said, the parts that didn't work for me never detracted from the heart of the story. All of the actors did an amazing job with their role and I overall enjoyed all of their performances.

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A great family story that ended a little weak

This drama started out strong. It was new and refreshing. The story of two (three?) broken families that come together to raise their children and provide them with a happy home.
The family dynamics were amazing, the actors were able to convey great familial love in a very realistic way. We saw how families are not always perfect, but we are always there for each other when needed.
Honestly the relationship the two dads had was one that made us think they were romantically involved, and that was ok. It was honestly sweet and very heartwarming all around.
It also dealt with mental health issues, even if how that was addressed wasn't fully satisfactory.

Where this drama started to fail is when it rushed to the finish line. Things were glossed over. The relationship with the mother, how she reacted to not getting her way, all the harm that was caused to several parties, it was all just glossed over, like a switch had been flipped and now everything was ok.
Also the dad ending up with a woman all of a sudden just felt like they were trying to make sure there was no gay triggers to pass censorship.
It all felt rushed, unnatural, and kind of a WTF ending. I wish they had taken the time to resolve things in a less dramatic and abrupt way. Even the side stories were left hanging with no resolution.

Lastly something that bothered me quite a bit was how blood ties are glorified here. Maybe it is a cultural thing, but a mother that abandons her child does not have the right to come back when the child has grown and demand that he be her caretaker when she is going through some rough times. Much less does she have the right to ask from anything from that child after severely abusing him. But in this drama it is made to seem like as her child he should give up everything he dreams for to take care of his mother. No one seriously intervened and tried to make this situation stop and in the end no one made sure this lady faced some serious consequences for her actions. It was a bit upsetting.
Even the side stories had a recurring theme of the child having to yield to the parent even when the parent was being unreasonable and causing strife. As a mother this seemed wrong, we shouldn't teach our children that they should always bow to our requests, we are humans and make mistakes also.
Anyways that is my little rant and why this drama didn't score a 10 for me.

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