TV Series Genre: Modern Drama/ Comedy/ Family

Episodes: 44 (22 Tapes) - Viet Version

Stars: 5/5

Characters/Cast List & Analysis:

Kevin Cheng Ka Wing - Tran Gia Lac (Chan Ka Lok)/ Ga Con (Little Chicken)
I thoguht Kevin's portraying in this series is very cute and lovable. I actually thought it's going to be one of those "boring guys who goes around and lectures you about your life". But his character is nice but down to earth too. Quite realistic and believable. He can be very nice and understanding at times but also can get into "mischievous" moments when needed to be.

Charmaine Sheh Si Man - Chau Van Hy (Chow Man Hei)/ Mandy
I really like Charmaine's Mandy character in here. Although she seemed mean and cold-blooded toward her father but I think it's pretty hard for her to put up that exterior cold-face. I think she really loves her father, but forces herself to hate him because of what happened to her mother. Her loyalty to her mother just tears her apart at times. Her character is very compicated and goes through different emotional stages that causes her to react strongly in certain situations. She could be sweet, nice, and protective towards people who cares about her. Sometimes you want to hate her at certain moments, but you just can't since you start to think of the reasons behind her actions.

Raymond Lam Fong - Du Hoc Le (Yau Hok Lai)/ Daniel/ Cau Ngong
This is my 3rd series of watching Raymond since didn't like him much before. This one kind of got my attention. Since his character is quite interesting. He's a rich boy but willing to hang around with some not so well off people. Unlike those rich boy that only sticks with their own class. But that doesn't mean he isn't lazy! LOL! He's just so funny and kept trying to talk himself out of responsibilities. His character develops and changes throughout the series that makes you think. Sometimes it seems that he's going to make it. Then he turns around doing something else and dodging responsibilities once again. Raymond portrays this role really well, through different events in the series.

Tavia Yeung Yi - Chow Chi Yan / Yan/ Chanh Vang (Lemon)
She is known as sweet, innocent, and lovable girl from the beginning until maybe 3/4 of the series. Well, she's still lovable, but somehow, things changes. She gets a bite annoying near the end. Ok, maybe just me but her character seems too "innocent" and seem sorta "fake" near the end. It creates an image that she's just putting up an exterior for you to guess. Probably just me though. Maybe because her eagerness to help people and then somehow ruin it by accident that causes her character to be somewhat ironic. Can't blame her though. No one is perfect, right?

Ben Yeo - Terry
For some reason, I don't really like his character that much. Although there are memorable moments but his reason for entering the competition and coming to HK was just too much. He is just too jumpy and unreasonable at times. His character was supposed to be the "nice guy" image or "too nice & got taken advantage" of all the time. But somehow I just don't sympathize with him. His "smart-a-leck" nature sometimes causes too much trouble. But he's fun to watch sometimes while he hangs out with the others.

Natalie Tong Si Wing - Tran Gia Bao
Unbelievable but I'm starting to like Natalie. Her acting has improved immensively. (Well, maybe I'm not strict like some people who likes to tear actors & actresses apart too much.) Her character is just fun and cool. Although she appears mean sometimes, but it's just makes it even funnier. She is considerate at times and helpful to her brother. Unlike her other characters, quite annoying or disrespectful.

Michelle Chia - San
Ummm....not trying to be mean but she's just too much. Her character was supposed to be like Raymond, loud but lovable at times. It doesn't really click for me though. She's only 20 something but she looks like an old lady and she doesn't have much charm. Her acting is a bit weird. But I read somewhere she acted a long time already and gotten some awards too? *shrugs* Maybe just me again.

Hui Siu Hung - Kevin & Natalie's dad
Can't complain about this guy's acting. Except maybe his character. Seems too unreasonable and greedy sometimes. Takes advantage of Terry too much.

Kiki Seung Tin Ngor - Kevin & Natalie's mom
Really like her performances lately. Although her character seem mean and cold-blooded towards people at first but she is much nicer than her husband (played by Hui Siu Hung) when you get to know her better.

Eileen Yeow Ying Ying - Raymond's oldest sister
Her acting is still the same. Due to numerous of her cunning roles, it's hard to tell when she's actually playing good or bad. Her expressions need to change to portray roles better. I thought she's the "wicked witch of the West" at first and that's why Raymond wasn't trying enough. But it's actually she's strict and wants what's best for him.

Mark Kwok - Charmaine's boyfriend at the beginning of the series
Reminds me of his and Charmaine's husband and wife relationship in Time Off (Long Ho Tranh Hung). Although last time, it was way better and he was a much better character. He is so cunning in here. His acting is about the same. Can't tell what he's up to at times.

Summary:

The series begins with a food competition called "Yummy Yummy". This is a competition between 16 people, who was put into 4 teams for the 2nd round. Two teams from HK and two teams from Singapore. The story begins with the trip to Singapore so they could continue the second round of the competition. Five young people meet and become great friends, despite their very different backgrounds. Although there are conflicts between them, but it's resolved in the end since they develop an understanding for each other and overcome differences, having respected each other's different point of views. There are also misunderstandings but it was also solved with sufficient time and reasonable explanations. By the end of the series, everyone has grown and chang, for the best that is.

Opinions:

I thought this is one of TVB's better series considering the downturn of their series lately. There are different relationships developing and unfolding in this series, such as love, friendship, family, etc. It's your typical modern series but added a different tone to it since this time it's about "young people starting business together" and there are some twists and turns that isn't the normal "TVB rules" that you see. For example, the family conflict with Mandy and Yan was thought to be Lau Dan and Yan's mom's fault and how it causes Mandy to be cold-blooded towards her father since she thought her mom died because of that. However, it's later known as a different reason. It's not really that predictable like some other series. You thought you got the whole picture but you don't. Got to give TVB some credit for it.

The relationships between the main characters are just incredible. What's different this time is that instead of two or three friends having the same background and that's why they became friends, it's five people and having totally backgrounds but somehow manages to stick together throughout the series.

Some reviews I read online points out the beginning of the series was just pointless but I thought it's essential and important. Why? That's how the main characters meet and begin their friendship. The interest in food and its arts was the link to those people. If TVB doesn't approach the series this way, they would have to put something in like "some concidential or some not so concidential" meet up between the characters. That would probably be "not so original". I guess no one is ever satisfied with anything so I'll just leave it at that for peace's sake. I actually like the beginning because it highlights the theme of the series. Also, there are lots of dishes that I haven't heard before, especially those Singaporean ones. That was very interesting learning how you could cook a certain dish. And what about those noodles? Didn't know you could make it so interesting with just noodles.

Recommendations:

Yes! If you like a series about friendship and how they bond - this is for you. But if you don't like how TVB does their series, then don't watch or you'll be disappointed that it doesn't live up to your standards. This series has its up and down just like other series, but the thing I really recommend is the twists because you thought you know why this person did this or the problem is set out to who's really right and wrong in certain situations, but you're wrong! The plot leads you into this whole idea and made it so believable and typical of TVB series that you got the formula down in your head but it isn't that way. It's like a modern romance with a mysterious touch. If you don't like the main cast, don't watch either because they're the "main characters" so they'll be around a lot, especially Kevin & Charm.

Bonus Section:
Usually reviewers put this part somewhere at the beginning or in between, but I like to put this in "Bonus Section" since it contains a lot more spoilers than above. I already spoiled half of it so I don't want to spoil the rest.

Couples:

Kevin Cheng & Charmaine Sheh
Before this series came out, I was following the news and actually "jumping up & down" because they're finally together in a series. I meant actually end up together, not just in the series together. At the beginning of the series, I thought it's not going to work because Charmaine looks more mature than him in this series. But as the series progress, Kevin's image changes, showing his maturity, and I can see why they're together. I must give TVB credit for showing the transition. I was waiting forever to see how they're going to start and when they're goin to be together. It seem like forever since it was tape 10 until Charmaine dumps Mark Kwok. I thought it would be so weird if she falls for Kevin right away. Another credit to TVB for developing their relationship so well and not so rush after the broke up. I like this couple so much that the wait was worth it. There's something really funny about their relationship too. Most of you probably hear the metaphor "Lay ga theo ga" (If you marry a chicken, you must follow it). In Charmaine's case, you could take it literally because Kevin is known as "Little Chicken" in here! LOL!

Raymond Lam & Michelle Chia
One word: ODD. Yes, their characters seem to match perfectly but the cast doesn't have chemistry. Their characters tells you they're meant to be with each other, given their backgrounds and personality, it's obvious. Michelle looks too old for Raymond. Although they're not so much apart ? Charmaine is supposed to be older than her but she looks even younger. If Raymond could have pair up with Tavia it would be great. But I guess maybe it's the collaboration between two production that they don't want to push the "Singapore" people out to the borders & playing extras like the other casts in the beginning. Although Raymond and Tavia's characters doesn't seem to match like Raymond's & Michelle's, but I thought they could have cook up some scenes like Raymond's touched by Tavia's innocent and lovable nature or something. Too typical? Yea, but it's one of those time I rather see that than seeing a part of the series being ruin.

Ben Yeo & Natalie Tong
Another bad pairing but not as bad as Raymond & Michelle's. Ben doesn't fit with her for some reason. Maybe he's too skinny? *shrugs* I thought Stephen Wong (the dude that end up with her in Love Bond) fit with her better. Probably collaboration thing again so don't really want to complain. They're ok, not that cute.

Favorite Scenes (Funny/ Romantic/ Sad):

• Charmaine caught Raymond sneaking out to play again while they're at the hotel. Charmaine told him to come back after midnight. He was like, "Yea mom." Charm was like, "I'm your bao mau, not your mom."
• Raymond & Charmaine left work. Ray tries to talk to Charm by revealing his interests - same as Charm. He goes further trying to impress Charm with all of these "trivial facts" about this one film-maker. Charm laughs so hard and say that he really has a way with comedy. She left and Ray finds out Michelle had tricked him.
• Raymond & Charmaine are trapped in the elevator. While in there, Ray sees his chance to declare his love for Charm. But he's so full of himself and is so sure Charm's madly in love with him that he ends up disappointed since Charm's so freaked out! After they get out of the elevator, his employeees congratulates him since they didn't really hear what happened. He's like walking away and pretending nothing happened, keeping his cool.
• Kevin & Charmaine are out drinking at this place talking about their problems. Charm got so drunk that she wanted to go to the hotel and rent a room with Kevin. (lol) Kevin ended up taking her back to his house. (The 3rd person to occupy his house and even worse - a girl! Totally getting his parents' attention the next morning.) Kevin wanted Natalie to take care of Charm, but Natalie went to his room and sleep instead. Kevin ended up taking care of Charm and tried to get her to go to sleep. However, she kept pulling on his ear and ordered him to sing for her or she won't go to sleep!
• Hui Siu Hung and Kiki Sheung are staring at Kevin in the eye, without flinching or blinking. Kevin felt uneasy and asked them why stare at him so much. They told him how he's trying to catch two fishes with one hand, etc. The misunderstanding is just funny.
• Hui Siu Hung pulled Kevin into his taxi, telling him how suspicious Natalie has been lately. Hui Siu Hung followed Natalie's taxi after he discovered she was meeting up with someone. The whole scene was just so funny I couldn't stop laughing since Hui Siu Hung was commenting on how the other guy was putting his hand on Natalie's shoulder, etc.
• Kevin & Raymond are getting answers out of Ben when Kevin told Ray how he found out that Ben's dating Natalie. They made him sit down on the couch and each one on either side - forcing answers out of him. LOL!
• Kevin, Charmaine, Tavia & Ben are trying to find Raymond, thinking he must have gone to the mountain to commit suicide. Kevin & Charm split up with the other two so they would make more progress that way. Charm sprains her ankle on the way but doesn't want to tell Kevin because she doesn't want to waste time. Later Kevin finds out and insists on carrying her. Charm asks, "Can you do it?" Kevin replies, "I carry pounds of chickens a day, I could handle it." Charm says, "You're saying I'm a chicken?" After that she gets on Kevin's back and lets him carry her. Somehow he moves even faster than before. Sweet and kind of funny scene. (How can he walk that fast or even run? Maybe he has a feeling he's in heaven? LOL!)
• Kevin and Charmaine are in the hospital. Kevin is on the bed, relaxing since he already has the cast on. His eye's getting dry and he tries to put some eyedrop in it. Charm asks, "Are you trying put eyedrop into your eyes or washing your face?" She grabs the eyedrop bottle out of Kevin's hand and helps him with it. She tells him to stare straight at her, saying, "Do you think I look strange? I don't think anyone has this face of mine." (Trying to get him to open his eye wide so the drops would go into his eyes instead of dripping down his face.) Kevin ends up staring big time! LOL!
• Charm wrote on Kevin's cast, on the bottom where he couldn't read it.
• Kevin reading what Charm wrote after he could read the part where she wrote!
• Kevin & Raymond had a little fun after the Ray got permission from his father to start out on his own without his father's help. Kevin and Ray celebrated a bit how they survived, etc.
• Kevin offered Charmaine a ride. She was surprised he actually has a car. However when they got out of the restaurant, she was full of laughter when she found out it's just a bicycle. Kevin pedaled slowly through the streets with the sea/ocean nearby, talking about his dream of having a restaurant near the ocean.
• Charmaine's sick and Kevin goes over to her place to help her. He wants her to drink her medicine. She doesn't want to. Kevin tells her a riddle and she doesn't know the answer. (Riddle: Why did the rabbit rejected him when the zebra proposed?") Charm wants to know the answer but Kevin said she has to drink her medicine first. Charm asks him the answer again. He answers, "Because the rabbit's mom told her that anyone who have tatoos is bad!" (That was hilarious!) After Charm laughs a little, she decides to take a nap so she would feel better later. Kevin says he's leaving soon. Charm wants to close the door after him but she couldn't even stand up on her own. Kevin wants her to rest and says he'll just locks her apartment when he leaves. Charm ends up falling asleep on his shoulder. He doesn't want to move and wakes her up. They stay in that position like til morning. (I think!) The song Triangle Three Side sing by Kevin comes up. Great scene.
• Kevin follows Charmaine to Charm's mom's litle worshipping place (there's this place where they put pixs up and has incense offering, not the grave but it's different - probably everyone knows if they watch Chinese series). Charm starts to tell him how she feels so complicated about her emotions for her dad and how she doesn't want to betray her mom. She's so confused. She cries and leans into Kevin. (Man, I love this part! LOL! Crazy, but one of the hug scenes without too much effort!)
• Tavia calls her dad, saying that he should come home immediately. He rushes home, finding food on the table. He tastes it and say "How come you and your mom's cooking detorate so much?" Tavia tries to shush him. Charm comes out and asks, "My cooking is that bad?" Lau Dan looks up and sees that Charm has come & cooks for him too! He's so overwhelmed with joy that he insists on eating all the food that Charm cooked. The four of them sit down and actually has a family dinner.
• Raymond's trying to follow Michelle around - stalking actually - seeing who she's dating. He spots her with this guy who has tatoos all over him. He couldn't stand it so he was asking her stuffs. She leaves with that dude. Ray shouts after her, "Do you know why the rabbit rejected the zebra when he proposed to her?" LOL!
• Kevin, Raymond, and Ben met Tavia at the airport when she came to meet up with them in Singapore. All three guys were surprised to see Charm there, especially Kevin. But they were happy that the two got along again. Kevin insisted on carrying Charm's luggage, although sorta looks like he didn't want to do it. However when he walked away with it and had his back to Charm, you can see his expression that he was celebrating inside.
• Charmaine found Tavia in the shower, soaked with her clothes still on. Charm comforted Tavia and realized how much Tavia had suffered trying to forget Kevin. She helped Tavia dry up and went back out to the living room where Kevin was. Charm said to Kevin (who already passed out from the alcohol intake), "Maybe it's better if you're with Yan. She cares for you more than I do." Triangle Three Side background music came on.
• Tavia asks Charmaine why Charm's so cold towards Kevin. Charm pretends she's tired and goes to sleep. However when Tavia has gone to sleep. Charm stays awake in the middle of the night, drinking away her sorrow. (Like she could but she tried!) The sub-theme came on again. (I think - wasn't sure.)
• Kevin & Charmaine tries to go to their meeting place near the ocean in Singapore. Tavia's trying to prove to both of them that they love each other and still has a chance. Kevin & Charm gives it one last try, not trusting each other much but half hope that Tavia's right. They keep missing each other because of the crowd and Kevin's near accident & how Charm thoinks it's him. She runs to the place of the accident and it's not him. Kevin comes to the meeting place and doesn't see her. The other version of Triangle Three Side plays. Only the background music is the same though. (I wish that someone else could have sing it instead of Tavia though since it was about Kevin & Charm, not her & Kevin. Maybe they should have let Charm sing it or maybe Flora Chan.) That scene was so sad though.
• At night when Charm comes home from the ocean-side, telling Tavia that Kevin didn't show up. Then the scene goes to Kevin talking to himself - sorta - asking why Charm didn't come. He keeps repeating, "Why didn't she come? Why didn't she come?" in his low, soft voice. Makes you wanna cry for him. Then finally the sub-theme comes on. The one with Kevin singing, not Tavia.
• Ben was leaving Kevin's apartment because he didn't want Natalie to catch him and say he broke their promise by bugging her & how she can't study. He was too late and Natalie caught him. Natalie acts like his "mother" (lol) and started to play "20 questions" with him, lecturing him, etc. Hilarious seeing Hui Siu Hung looking at them and the conversation afterwards.
• Kevin runs after Charmaine and try to talk to her. She says it's too late since he's with her sister now and that he should treat Tavia right, not running after her like that. Kevin grabs Charm's arm and tries to get her to stay. Charm tells him to let go. Kevin says last time he didn't hold on tight - that's why she left - he's not letting go now.

Touching Scenes(It's in the middle, not really loving it or hating it.):

• Tavia finds Charm at the place near the ocean where Charm's sitting on the bench. She reveals her feelings and how hurt she was after she found out Mark cheated on her. Tavia comforted her and they hug. Charm really knows how to cry! It was a million "kudos" performance.
• Ben's mom thought she would died and revealed all the reasons why she wants Ben to study instead of going into business without a decent degree.

Least Favorite Scenes (Annoying/ Frustrating/ Dragging):

• Ben's mom kept harrassing him about his education.
• When Ben reveals to Kevin & Raymond that he actually wants to go to HK to find his gf instead of "seeing the sights" or "making his dream come true".
• Ben's so dumb that he got tricked by his gf and yelling at Natalie for watching out for him.
• Tavia telling Kevin to go and learn the techniques of how to make the dish first before he eats up. She ended up eating his too when he was asking the owner about the dish. I find it kinda off and annoying because Tavia knows that her sister is with Kevin and she stills does that type of thing. I mean we know the writer's trying to show her playful and cute side, but it's too much. Although she couldn't help it, but she should hold back a little and keep her distance a bit.
• Tavia kept going after Kevin & Charm to ask "why, why, why" all the time when she should know that she's tagging Kevin all the time. That isn't really helpful on her part. (I do feel sorry for her that she didn't get her love returned but she should have tried to hook up with Kevin ages ago - she had like 10 tapes to do it!)
• When Eileen was yelling at Ray for having a gf like Michelle and brings out the past with making all these mean comments. Michelle heard her when she came back.