At the core of this complex drama is the relationship of three contemporary Chinese women living and working in the same city. They are around 30 years of age and well educated. They were in the same class in high school but their trajectory after school were completely different. What doesn’t change is their very closed sisterly bond.

Each FL seemed to lead a fairly stable if humdrum life. All that changed when covid-19 hit their city. It was a stroke of genius to coincide the start of the drama with a city wide lockdown. Each vignette of their lockdown life will strike a chord with most people. The enforced closeness wore down the veneer of civility and laid bare some home truths. Only then did they realised how they are all trapped in their individual life cycles.

One lead was confronted by her husband's cheating via a very public disclosure. She knew something was amiss but decided to ignore the telltale signs as a way of self preservation. Another realised the boyfriend of several years whom she has "collected" as a milestone in her successful and thoroughly planned out life was someone she doesn't really care for. The last member of the trio had to confront the societal and familial expectation of holding down a boring 9 to 5 job while being labelled a leftover woman. The pressure to get married is relentless.

This all happened very early on in the show, so I won't call this a spoiler. The rest of the show is a skillful piece of writing and acting as the trio try to find a "new" normal after the lockdown. This meant an almost complete realignment of their views and circumstances.

In terms of plot and pacing, it is a delicate dance of interweaving stories and the writer set a cracking pace. With only 20 episodes to play with and a lot of tales to tell, there is very little bloat. The lives of the three female leads pressed on ahead with scant pause for breath. The only time they slow down is when they are together, usually sharing a delicious meal or relaxing at home after work. Their conversation ebbs and flows naturally with an ease that only old friends can sustain. They knew each other so well that they don’t have to lie to each other, and they also knew when one of them is backward in coming forward. It was a joy to see how the writer used their seemingly mundane conversation to tell us their inter thoughts as well as provided a barometer of their emotional states. Some of those scenes are deliciously wicked. ;)

In terms of acting, it is very good all round. There are many characters in this drama. The leads, their ex’s, new love interests, family members, co-workers and more. Good actors filled the key roles but they are not A-listers. Even the young actress playing the daughter of one of the ML is a lively little minx. The writer gifted her with some killer dialogue, and she made the most of it.

There was no shortage of emotional scenes to test their mettle but it is not all gloom and doom. In fact, there are more genuinely funny moments than sad ones. The mood of each episode swings and changes with finesse. The FL's tackled their roles with gusto. It is cathartic to see their characters grow and heal over time.

The CP's have very good chemistry and there is a decent amount of skinship and even racy scenes. The Show did seek out its traditional rom-com root towards the end but it is a bit of fan service and I can't complain.

All in all, the show is very entertaining and rewarding but it is a thought provoking journey. It laid bare a lot of societal issues in present day China which will resonate with its target audience. Hat off to the production team for their commitment to breath life unto a challenging script. I would highly recommend this show to anyone who want something more than the artificially sweetened rom-com clones that are being mass produced right now.

P.S. You must not miss the forth wall breaking moment at the very end of the show. :) What does it signify? A sequel? That would be delicious!