6
2
This review may contain spoilers
How to turn a biting satire into a farcical pipe dream
Edit: Upon reflection I realise I got more and more snarky as I wrote this. You have been warned. ;)
Paraphrasing Mel Brooks, "satire must walk a fine line and take risk". This drama took that to heart in the first half.
It was packed with absurd moments that genuinely made me LoL. I binged a dozen eps in 2 days. Then the rest happened.
The initial setup was simple and delicious. An angel investor will provide the ML with funds to go into business. The twist is that he will only earn a stipend if he makes a profit, but he can take home a portion of the loss as bonus.
So he came up with a bunch of silly loss making ideas and go hard. What he didn't take into account is his anti-trend products started new trends. People love his generous, loss making deals rather than the usual money grabbing ones.
His collection of seemingly hapless, "unemployable" staff are talented and they repay his kindness and trust with an undying loyalty.
So far so good. The first half is deliciously anti-establishment and sets a cracking pace. The whole 996, nay, crunch work culture is laid bare. His cohort of goofballs are more creative and productive in a 40 hours week than those salaried slaves. Huzzah!
The wheels start to fall off when the original and whacky projects start to run dry. The show shifts focus onto the ML and his personal challenges in the second half.
It is obvious from the start that he is not a business wunderkind. He is earnest and hardworking. He has a heart of gold and he put fairness above all else. This means he is a lamb to the slaughter in the cutthroat business world. By focusing on him for several eps, it really pops the bubble that he has the Midas touch.
This also brought the high flying plot back down to Earth. We crash lands with a thud in midst of mundane stuff like making ends meet and paying off a big mortgage. The satire has lost its edge and became a blunt instrument.
Is this some kind of hidden chapter in the playbook? We are talking about an industry that gave us xianxia and wuxia dramas! What is this obsession with RL and the daily grind?
There are many plotholes by this stage, but the whole subplot about the ML working in a rival company is plain stupid. How can this work? Non-disclosure? Trade secrets? It might have worked if they frame it as a clever subterfuge, but alas, the ML is really trying to work there and earn a honest wage. It would be like Elon showing up as an intern at Toyota. Inconceivable!
For me, this series truly jumped the shark when it parachuted the 4 Sima brothers into the plot. Ye gods! That is so cringey and largely pointless. The show is now an aimless farce. Not a particularly funny one either. Just give me a psycho stalker, tyvm.
To seal the deal, the show totally stuffed up the OTP's romance.
The two female screenwriters made it clear who is the OTP from the start. They have been set up many times. Their coworkers are shipping them. Web novel has been written about their "office romance". Yet it all comes to nought.
Seriously, I would have forgiven half of this show's sins if there is even a spark. Why bother if we don't even get one confession. One hug? NOTHING.
As if to rub salt into the wound, people were teasing the FL in a staff meeting towards the end. She said "if I'm the female lead then who is the male lead?" The ML walks in on cue . . of course. I wish you can hear my teeth gnashing.
Do you know what really got my goat? There is more chemistry between two female co-workers than the OTP! I'll let you guess the pairing.
The HEA ending happened right on time. It is totally expected, yet nonsensical. How did the ML come up with enough funding to restart a whole business empire by selling just ONE unrenovated flat with a substantial mortgage. Does the writers not understand the concept of discharging a loan?
Then the business went ballistic while he is on an extended holiday? I missed the memo telling us the how and the why (or maybe I don't care anymore).
Normally, this is where I would use my "ask no questions, chingu" catchphrase, but I'm sick of not asking questions while watching this series. I want answers, dammit!
The final scenes are like a glossy real estate sales brochure and has about as much substance. It really is like a pipe dream. I don't know whether I'm angry, sad, confused or just numb.
Balanced against that are decent performances from the large ensemble. They are mostly second tier actors. Sadly, most of the roles are one dimensional. They played hard, but in a small sandbox.
The ML has the world on his shoulders and it shows. He was a live wire early on, but he just got more and more despondent as the show progressed.
We know his growth must be a pillar of this drama, yet it feels inconsistent. He shuffles back and fore. He stays true to his better qualities, but did he becomes better where it counts?
Production value is A tier. OST is inoffensive.
In the end, I'm torn about this show. This series is watchable. The show can be very funny at times and it has merits. It can be sharp as a pin and give you paper cuts. Then it settles into a hyperbolic business drama and ends on an artificial sweetener high.
I am disappointed that it couldn't sustain its initial trajectory to the end. Maybe 26 eps is a bridge too far. Mayhaps 16 eps will keep it tight and focused. Alas, that answer awaits in an alternate universe. Peace.
Paraphrasing Mel Brooks, "satire must walk a fine line and take risk". This drama took that to heart in the first half.
It was packed with absurd moments that genuinely made me LoL. I binged a dozen eps in 2 days. Then the rest happened.
The initial setup was simple and delicious. An angel investor will provide the ML with funds to go into business. The twist is that he will only earn a stipend if he makes a profit, but he can take home a portion of the loss as bonus.
So he came up with a bunch of silly loss making ideas and go hard. What he didn't take into account is his anti-trend products started new trends. People love his generous, loss making deals rather than the usual money grabbing ones.
His collection of seemingly hapless, "unemployable" staff are talented and they repay his kindness and trust with an undying loyalty.
So far so good. The first half is deliciously anti-establishment and sets a cracking pace. The whole 996, nay, crunch work culture is laid bare. His cohort of goofballs are more creative and productive in a 40 hours week than those salaried slaves. Huzzah!
The wheels start to fall off when the original and whacky projects start to run dry. The show shifts focus onto the ML and his personal challenges in the second half.
It is obvious from the start that he is not a business wunderkind. He is earnest and hardworking. He has a heart of gold and he put fairness above all else. This means he is a lamb to the slaughter in the cutthroat business world. By focusing on him for several eps, it really pops the bubble that he has the Midas touch.
This also brought the high flying plot back down to Earth. We crash lands with a thud in midst of mundane stuff like making ends meet and paying off a big mortgage. The satire has lost its edge and became a blunt instrument.
Is this some kind of hidden chapter in the playbook? We are talking about an industry that gave us xianxia and wuxia dramas! What is this obsession with RL and the daily grind?
There are many plotholes by this stage, but the whole subplot about the ML working in a rival company is plain stupid. How can this work? Non-disclosure? Trade secrets? It might have worked if they frame it as a clever subterfuge, but alas, the ML is really trying to work there and earn a honest wage. It would be like Elon showing up as an intern at Toyota. Inconceivable!
For me, this series truly jumped the shark when it parachuted the 4 Sima brothers into the plot. Ye gods! That is so cringey and largely pointless. The show is now an aimless farce. Not a particularly funny one either. Just give me a psycho stalker, tyvm.
To seal the deal, the show totally stuffed up the OTP's romance.
The two female screenwriters made it clear who is the OTP from the start. They have been set up many times. Their coworkers are shipping them. Web novel has been written about their "office romance". Yet it all comes to nought.
Seriously, I would have forgiven half of this show's sins if there is even a spark. Why bother if we don't even get one confession. One hug? NOTHING.
As if to rub salt into the wound, people were teasing the FL in a staff meeting towards the end. She said "if I'm the female lead then who is the male lead?" The ML walks in on cue . . of course. I wish you can hear my teeth gnashing.
Do you know what really got my goat? There is more chemistry between two female co-workers than the OTP! I'll let you guess the pairing.
The HEA ending happened right on time. It is totally expected, yet nonsensical. How did the ML come up with enough funding to restart a whole business empire by selling just ONE unrenovated flat with a substantial mortgage. Does the writers not understand the concept of discharging a loan?
Then the business went ballistic while he is on an extended holiday? I missed the memo telling us the how and the why (or maybe I don't care anymore).
Normally, this is where I would use my "ask no questions, chingu" catchphrase, but I'm sick of not asking questions while watching this series. I want answers, dammit!
The final scenes are like a glossy real estate sales brochure and has about as much substance. It really is like a pipe dream. I don't know whether I'm angry, sad, confused or just numb.
Balanced against that are decent performances from the large ensemble. They are mostly second tier actors. Sadly, most of the roles are one dimensional. They played hard, but in a small sandbox.
The ML has the world on his shoulders and it shows. He was a live wire early on, but he just got more and more despondent as the show progressed.
We know his growth must be a pillar of this drama, yet it feels inconsistent. He shuffles back and fore. He stays true to his better qualities, but did he becomes better where it counts?
Production value is A tier. OST is inoffensive.
In the end, I'm torn about this show. This series is watchable. The show can be very funny at times and it has merits. It can be sharp as a pin and give you paper cuts. Then it settles into a hyperbolic business drama and ends on an artificial sweetener high.
I am disappointed that it couldn't sustain its initial trajectory to the end. Maybe 26 eps is a bridge too far. Mayhaps 16 eps will keep it tight and focused. Alas, that answer awaits in an alternate universe. Peace.
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