Please Be My Family (2023)

Was not what I expected but I liked this plot

The plot to this one was a bit unique from all the CDramas I have watched (that is a lot). If it is the same as another one then I have not seen it yet. It was based around the children and their “parents”. I loved watching the story of the “parents and kids” unfold. It was different for me and I liked it a lot!

Storyline - The plot was not bad. It ran smooth for me. I felt it was well done. I think I marked the storyline down 5% because the Fl was ticking me off about how she could not get over why he married her. I get it… I do! But even when he poured his heart out to her she still had thoughts of leaving him. I wanted to smack the writers. She really was not very bright in that she listened to a guy who tried to destroy her family with his lies. She was a bit blinded. I understand she wanted to know the truth about her sister and her death. I was glad to find that her sister was really to blame and not his family. I also give high praise to the writers for not making her feel episodes of guilt for how her sister tried to extort money from them through blackmail. Thank goodness it was not dragged out… like her not wanting to get over why he first married her. Those episodes ticked me off. Especially when she let the little boy chase her and she would not stop! Really??? So heartless! I could never have done that. Sit down and talk it out! Be a grown up! Don’t tear the kids apart because you are being dumb! Ok! I am done with my little rant.

That said… I really liked the story. It did not end the way I thought at first or midway through. I liked that it kept my interest. It was well done for my taste.

Acting/Cast - love love love them all! The main leads and the support were wonderful to watch! I loved how she became friends with the fist rival, Tong Luo Qi. They made me laugh often! All the cast did great! And those kids were stinking cute!! Oh my gosh! What good little actors! They had my heart from the start!

Rewatch - YES! I loved this one! The plot was great! So was the acting! Even with my hang ups (listed in the storyline) I liked this one and would watch again.

Read More

This was a very mature drama with a very immature relationship, too bad we still have a lot of misunderstandings, schemes, and poor communication.

Their strong suit is that they were able to create new and different relationships that are very complete. I loved how all the antagonists ended up becoming friends with Qi Sile, not because she is nice and kind, but mostly because it was a stupid reason, to begin with (man, haha).

Unfortunately, I didn't like the chemistry of the main couple. Firstly, the FL looks like a mature woman, perfect for the role, while the ML looked like a teenager, it really affected the whole story for me. Secondly, the ML was constantly scheming and lying, even when he started to like her and wanted to evolve the relationship, it was so childlike... Reading a book, jealousy at its peak, trying to get involved in her job, and many immature behaviors that I just didn't like. I can't blame it on the actor, because clearly, those problems relate to the script, but I also think he wasn't the best choice.

It's a fun, cute drama, but it's bad sometimes.

Read More

Despite all its faults, loved this with all my heart till ep 26

*Contains major spoilers, don't read unless you've finished seeing this*

What I loved about Please Be My Family compared to other popular idol dramas with little kids (such as The Love You Give Me) was that despite having all sorts of tropey sweet moments and over the top dramatics and hidden agendas, such as the kid having terminal illness, mysterious backstories about the characters' identity, the Exes returning, etc etc, keeping crucial secrets from each other ;
1. The couple were almost never unnecessarily cruel towars each other, even when they both had misconceptions about the other's feelings and believed they were pretending for the sake of their contract etc, they still treated each other with basic courtesy, didn’t force themselves on the other, had mutual respect and support for each other.
2. They both always loved the two kids from get go like their own, even before they themselves became a proper couple, they already considered themselves to be the parents of both children. And they never incorporated the kids into their personal antics and used them for psychological manipulation of the other. That they always put the kids first was honestly one of my favourite things about this show.

And these two factors kept me going despite all the ridiculous hurdles that kept coming on this family's way, and the less than ideal ways the story handled them. But they crossed my bottom line in ep 26, by having the FL discover the ML's original purpose for marrying her, and instantly decide she'd divorce, and leave with her daughter.
Like, her severe disappointment with the ML and desire to divorce? Fair. Totally valid.
But I HATED how she unanimously picked her original child and ran away, RIGHT in front of her baby step-son who ALREADY was suffering from serious mom-loss issues, traumatising both kids. I was like oh wow so suddenly you don't love him enough to be your own child. No matter how serious your family problems are, once you have kids, and especially impressionable little children, you should’ve acted in a more mature, discreet and responsible way. That scene added absolutely nothing to the story but reinforce the social bias that "a stepmom will never love you as much as her own child" which was fucking awful. And it was especially jarring considering how it wasn’t really consistent with the FL's character that she'd do something so rash just like that, especially when it came to kids.

Four eps left to the end, I hated that the showmakers employed this cheap tactic to get more audience sympathy at the wailing babies. I was furious and disgusted, however.
A story doesn’t need to have morally upright and perfect main leads all the time. They can make mistakes but the show needs to frame them as such, not downplay seriousness of scenes like this just for the heartstrings and cuteness or whatever.

Read More

Heart warming, happy ending, contract like marriage, cool executive who melts, cinderellaesque

9/10 is my rating. This is a 2023 Chinese Romantic drama with 30, 20 minute episodes.

First I provide a synopsis then review.

Synopsis

Qi Si Le (Jade Cheng) feels very fortunate to be a mom even though she is single and has to suffer the brutal corporate world where women in general and single mothers in particular are not held in the highest regard. However, she is willing to do whatever it takes (except compromise her morality) to earn enough to get her beloved daughter, Xuan Xuan (Huang Bo Si), life saving surgery. That is why, when she needs to land an important account, she sets her sights on convincing company President Hao Yu to select her firm for his advertising need. Running into each other outside of the business setting, Hao Yu notices that both children, who are the same age, have a very distinctive broach from their mothers. Not only are they the same age but they also have the same birthday. All the connections make Hao Yu suspect that Si Le and Xuan Xuan have ties to his family. When a secret genetics test reveals that Xuan Xuan’s is indeed genetically related, Hao Yu proposes to Si Le. Although reluctant at first Hao Yu’s generous and gentle actions toward Si Le and Xuan Xuan lead her to think he is being sincere so she ultimately accepts. However not all is as it seems and as real feelings develop it is uncertain if the budding relationship can survive the initial deception.

Review

Overall a heart warming romantic drama. She and he are both single parents which, right there, puts a unique spin on things. There is mystery surrounding the kids and who the other parent is. She is pretty but not beautiful so it has that sort of single girl next door vibe. He is the cold executive who warms up and becomes the perfect, doting husband. Their relationship was founded on deception without true love, but they grow to love each other deeply, so it has similar aspects as a contract marriage. The side characters are interesting and their romances are also compelling. The kids are adorable. She is a jewelry designer so that is a bit of a slice of that profession. I highly recommend it for those that like happy ending romances with a female character who sticks up for herself when it counts. If you like the Cinderella like story of an impoverished single mother climbing out of poverty this is a good one on that front. Cool executive type that melts for main girl this has that. Love triangles of course. Great friendships. It hits a lot of the tried and true tropes that drama fans tend to like.

Spoilers
This had one of the most second hand embarrassment/cringy moments I have experienced in watching over 300 Asian dramas. Hao Yu is rich, handsome and well connected and has many women chasing him for relationships and marriage. Si Le is barely making it and has no power or influence. She is pretty but not beautiful still men are interested but she is not what would be considered a catch because of her status as a single mother and a relatively unstable professional history. When Hao Yui unexpectedly proposed to her she turned him down as she thought it was pity. That made sense and is what any woman with an ounce if pride would have done. Then, when Xuan Xuan takes a turn for the worse, and he is right there caring for and nursing the little girl and comforting Si Le, she suddenly decides he cares about them both a lot. What would have made sense would be to ask if the proposal still stood now that he knows the child had a serious health condition. But no. Si Le decides to do him a favor and agree to be his son’s mother (okay that is a big deal) but announces she will be Hao Yu’s wife as if she is doing something big for him being his wife. And that is not the worst, she makes this announcement with some weird wedding veil she made from something in the hospital and a bouquet that materialized. He had expressed his interest with a trunk full of beautiful roses (which it turns out she was horribly allergic to but there is no way he would know that) and she reciprocates with a table cloth on her head and an I will do YOU the honor. I am still cringing the next day. So that was an unecessary way for her to accept his proposal and detracted a bit for me. I had to get over it and was nervous it would not be good enough to make up for the cringe but it was.

Later, when she finds out he tricked her and did not care for her when he proposed she is naturally hurt and is on the brink of divorcing him. Ok I get it he was a jerk the way he did it back then and deserved her anger but I thought she took it way too far. And she wasn’t believing him but was believing the villainous second guy who she knew had lied and also deceived her. She would believe villian guy over the man she supposedly loved. But the worst of that was when she decided to leave Hao Yui to go to her parent’s house then lies to the children and leaves the little boy behind. He chases the car down the street hysterically and falls in the road. Not only could I not do something that selfish and heartless to a child I loved and was the mother for but I could not be that heartless with any child. It made me mad at her character.

It was crazy and cute how Si Le was able to turn all her romantic rivals into close friends. I have never seen it like that but it was one of the most heart warming and cute aspects of the series.

The show was good enough even with these detractors I highly recommend it.

#PleaseBeMyFamily
#BinbinXie
#JadeCheng

Read More

I love kids!

Any drama that has little kids, that can act so cute, I’m a fan of. I was searching for something different than the regular Xianxia that I’ve been watching and stumbled upon this jewel. The story was predictable, but I just loved the main leads chemistry with the little ones! The two babies stole my heart in this show lol! It’s always an added bonus when there’s another on one the way! 😁
The music was okay, it really my cup of tea, but it fits the drama. There were many cute moments and a whole lot of sad ones as well. I cried a bit for the little ones!
Chechen, my little man! He’s so cute with his tantrums and crying! I hope he grows up to be the next best male lead in the future!
Xuanxuan she’s such a cute little princess!
Mommy and daddy did a good job as loving parents and giving the performance that a child doesn’t have to be yours biologically to love them unconditionally. Once you take up the role as a parent their life and happiness is in your hands, do not fail them. That’s what I loved about this drama,

Read More

Somewhat Confusing Secret, But Adorable Babies & The Couples are also good

ML & FL had good chemistry, however someone said it right the ML failed to show the range of emotions that FL presented flawlessly. The two children were just adorable and it was easy to miss them when the plot focused too much on the adults.

The story itself was okay, I was hoping a bit more from it. I'm still unsure about the role FL's sister played in the entire story apart from being the mother of those children. That part was so boring I had to speed it up.

The worst part of the show was the little boy chasing the car, asking his mother to not go. Worst decision made by FL, she was too hasty and selfish. We all know how much it had to hurt knowing ML married her with ulterior motives in mind, but in that moment, she failed to protect that little boy who adores her.

Read More

Lighthearted Family Drama

At this point I think everyone already know this - THE KIDS ARE ADORABLE.
The two children definitely added value to this drama. Of course there are areas that could be better, especially the dubbing since I watched it in mandarin but for what it's worth, they did good.

The story between ML and FL could get a little cliche at some point but it was not draggy. Misunderstandings were resolved quick (within 1-2 episodes, max) and if anything at all, the ML and FL knows how to communicate. When the ML came to realised he has fallen in love with the FL, we could see how he tried every ways to make up for his mistake in the past (even though he still didn't come clean, and she found out first).

Ok i know there may be viewers who disagree with this, but I do feel that the ML could work on his acting a little. It seems that the FL and children were able to evoke more emotions but the ML's was "limited". We know he's in (emotional) pain, we know he's trying his best to make amendments and he feels deeply for the FL, but it felt like the emotions weren't unleashed entirely. Despite this I'm not saying that it affected any part of the drama. It is still watchable.

By the end of it, there would still be questions about the mystery and how everything unfolded but by this point, I think everyone would be more attached to the love line between the leads. It would have been a better closure if they provided us with answers about how the twins were separated (and why exactly), how the SML got the edited audio etc, but it's fine. I guess always good to have some open-mystery huh?

P.S there's a bonus/special episode that comes after episode 30 so be sure to watch it!
(It's not quite a continuation of the story, but instead they focus on having the ML come clean with the FL before she finds out on her own so... still quite a watch.)

Have a good run!

Read More

LIGHT HEARTED CUTE FAMILY ROMCOM

I wasn’t expected the plot to be that good.
At first, I was expected a random contracted/family trope but it turned out to be better.

Even if, the last episodes seemed to be written in a rush, which is sad because there was a lot of potential to fully develop the plot. I really believe, it could’ve been more developped because sometimes everything was rushed.

I think this drama is worth your time, it’s easy to watch due to its short length and I haven’t seen the time while watching it ( 2,5 days to watch the cdrama). And, you will fall for the adorable kids and how smart they are !! It’s refreshing to witness the smartest of kids instead of them being only cute, it also pointed out how adults’ behavior can badly/ goodly impact on kids.

PS : I never thought I would appreciate that much the supposed mean girl !! What a suprise to see a drama with non girl’s toxicity !!

Read More

Twins separated under oddly mysterious circumstances is a very popular trope in Chinese pulp novels, as such I was kind of looking forward to watching this, despite knowing full well in advance how bad some of the plot is going to be. As far as this genre goes the setting could have been far worse, it's pretty bad of course, but due to a lack of explanations the parts that are told the audience are honestly not nearly as outlandish that I've seen, or rather I've read before. With that said most of the drama is very enjoyable, the fluffy romance is quite up there, the leads look great together and have good chemistry. While the children are not very skilled child actors compared to what's normal in a cdrama of this budget, they are of course very cute & adorable making the drama even better.

So why is this only a 7?
The big one is that the ML has made some questionable choices that made me dislike the character a little. Also the episodes (4-5) preceding the finale are quite bad, but stuff like this ALWAYS happens in this genre, so I suppose I should've known what's coming.

Can triangle haters watch this?
I think yes, because the ex is only present for a couple of episodes and she is rebuffed with resolve, for me at least this much is bearable.

Read More

The kids carried the show

Basically this serie revolved around the kids, but the story around them (the origin) never really got explored. Why? No clue, but it makes no sense. Why didnt the writer include it properly? No clue. The part where the kids basically didnt get any screentime felt flat. For me it wasnt because of the quality of the acting from either of FL or ML, it was because of the weird choices made in the screenwriting. The strong beginning of this show is what made it a decent production for me. The middle part felt flat and the ending felt rushed. The love story/part felt as it was a side story to the main story revolving around the kids.

Also a few other questions which didnt get answered in my opion, which shouldve based on the important aspects in the story.
- Why was it FL's dream to design jewelry? No clue
- How did the kids get back to FL and ML, respectively? No clue

The acting of FL and ML did not harm this production, the amount of questions and lack of explanation did that for me. For once I was surprisingly pleased with the quality of the acting of both FL and ML.

Read More

A typical family drama, good for those who want to watch something light but with some intrigue behind it. The little actors who played the roles of the children were really adorable. The plot has many flaws from my point of view, but this drama focuses a lot on the simple moments in the family and it is also normal that the plot is not very well developed, although it struck a chord at the end.

+ SPOILER ATTENTION!
Don't worry, it has a HAPPY ending so you can watch it without too much heartache.
PS: I personally would have liked the main characters not to argue so much about things that are not worth it, but I understand that it is part of the family plot necessary to keep us captivated, but what can I do, after all, I am just a drama fan who hopes that everything has a happy ending (heart emoji)

Read More