Though not Chinese, as a fellow Asian who has went through the very similar, absolutely gruelling exam system, watching Asian high school dramas are next to impossible for me, it's almost like ptsd haha
If not for the cast members whom I absolutely love, and the premise of "how China held the exam in the midst of the pandemic" that intrigued me, I wouldn’t have pressed play. And I'm so glad I did.
IT'S SO RELATABLE IN THE BESTEST WAY POSSIBLE!!!!!

I laughed and cried with all the characters. I loved all of them. Even the flawed ones. The acting and character writing is so nuanced and realistic, the adults love for the children was almost palpable through the screen, though some of them might not have chosen the best way to show it, it was so obvious how much they were trying, and how much they cared. Which made me as a viewer care for them too and cheer wholeheartedly for their growth.
Gosh, the drama drew humor from the most mundane, everyday things, was highly empathetic and non judgemental, and was inspiring. It made me nostalgic about that era of my life, it made revisit and reassess my family values.
"This is how much my parents love me", I thought as I watched it. "My teachers were dedicated to us just like this".
It is a drama that actively made me proud to be an Asian.

So watch it, everyone! I know the subs are bad, but they are not impossible to get through with some context based guesswork. It's worth it, if you are interested in any of the things I mentioned above! ❤

P.s.-

**Mild spoiler for the last "challenge" in the story which happened in the final 4 eps**
This drama took the relatability to a new level when they did that last arc (flood), since that happened in my country as well, and under exact same context. I was bamboozled lol