Gam (Louis Yuen) and Ying Gei (Yvonne Lam) moved out of the Kam family 8A apartment to Ying Gei’s apartment which she had been renting out previously. They could not stand being with a family that wasn’t on their side and didn’t support or believe the “truth” that Ah Lo (Bondy Chiu) had maliciously gone to Japan with the intention of playing them and having an abortion.

Nim Chi (Nancy Sit) pleaded with them to move back, but they wouldn’t have any of it. They were too angry.

Ah Yuet (Michael Tse) grew upset at Gam and Ying Gei for wrongly accusing his dead wife of such an awful crime.

Gam, Ying Gei, Ah Yuet, and Ah Mei (Cutie Mui) thus became “bitter enemies” when they interacted at “Ka Yan” company.

Ah Nin (Frankie Lam) and Joey (Bernice Liu) tried to intervene, but Gam and Ying Gei were too hurt over the loss of their babies that they refused to listen or believe anything else. Ah Yuet, too, wouldn’t cool down because he wanted to protect Ah Lo’s name.

The Kam family was falling apart. Ah Sing (Hawick Lau) had left due to his affair with Ah Lam (Linda Chung), Ah Lo had passed away, and now Gam and Ying Gei had moved out and refused to see or speak with anyone from the Kam family.

“We’re the Lau family!” Gam declares, “We have no ties with the Kams! The Kams are an evil mafia who only stick up for one another and cover up their wrongdoings.”

Man Gwai Fei (Stephanie Che) giggled happily in her office witnessing the drama and hearing “inside” updates from Ah Ting (Leila Tong). She had deleted all records of Ah Lo’s business trip as well as faked her “personal leave” request. Furthermore, she had shoved the abortion clinic papers into Ah Lo’s old desk and sent some home with Ah Ting to pretend that she had found them in Ah Lo’s bedroom. It was an ingenious plot that milked Gam and Ying Gei’s deep sorrows for having lost their babies — their last hope at being parents.

Ah Yuet moved Fu jai and Gwai mui’s crib as well as Foon Foon and Hei Hei’s bed into Gam and Ying Gei’s vacant bedroom.

“Ah Yuet! You can’t do this!” Nim Chi urges. “There’s no turning back if you do!”

Ah Yuet scoffs, “Uncle and aunt-in-law chose to leave! No one forced them! They’re their own family with their own apartment now! Poor my children, your grandchildren, who have to sleep all cramped! As their grandma you should be happy that they’re getting their own bedroom!”

Nim Chi sighs.

Gwai Fei was sitting alone laughing her head off re-watching “Gai Dai Foon Siu” when she received a phone call from the hit man she had hired many months before. She was informed that Ah Lo had been in a coma in the hospital for the last couple of months. She was asked if she wanted them to “finish her off”.

“No,” Gwai Fei smirks, “I have a better plan.”

Ah Mei was taking down clothes that had finished drying when Ah Yat (Joyce Chen) tapped her from the back.

“Wah! Ah Yat! You scared me!” Ah Mei exclaims, startled.

Ah Yat smiles at Ah Mei.

Ah Mei pushes up her glasses. “What is it?”

Ever since Ah Mei got together with Ah Yuet, she reverted back to her old style. She straightened her long hair and wore glasses again. Her wardrobe was now conservative. She became the Ah Mei that left Hong Kong four years ago again.

“I can’t believe you’re still busy daydreaming,” Ah Yat teases.

“Daydreaming? I was just humming a song while I take down the clothes!”

“You were humming a love song totally lost in your own world! Ah… to be freshly in love…”

“What are you talking about?”

“You and second brother! So sweet. Even when apart by only a flight of stairs and some floors you still think about each other.”

Ah Mei blushes. “Ah Yat!”

Ah Yat smiles at Ah Mei. “I’m so happy for you! You’ve been waiting to be with my second brother for so long.”

Ah Mei smiles back at Ah Yat. “I never thought this would be possible… but my dream is a reality. I’m really with Ah Yuet! I always pinch myself just to confirm that I’m not dreaming.”

“You’re silly! Of course it’s a reality. True love like yours doesn’t go unrequited. I can’t wait until we become real sisters!”

“Wah! You want to call me ’second sister-in-law’ so fast?” Ah Mei asks.

“The sooner the better!”

“I’ll let the heavens decide,” Ah Mei answers.

Ah Yuet, Ah Mei, Foon Foon, Hei Hei, Fu jai, and Gwai mui were a happy family of six. From morning until before bedtime except during work hours, they were together. It was a close, tight-knit family type of feeling. The only difference was that instead of Ah Mei going to sleep with Ah Yuet in his bedroom, she went across the hall and slept in her own bed in her family’s apartment. She had a walkie-talkie and keys to the Kams’ apartment, so whenever she heard Fu jai or Gwai mui crying, she’d run across the hall and into the Kam family apartment to tend to the babies.

One night Ah Mei had to keep running back and forth. She ended up falling asleep due to exhaustion in the Kams’ bedroom hallway.

Ah Yuet stepped out of his bedroom in the morning to find the sleeping Ah Mei spread out on the floor. The walkie-talkie was still in her hand and held close to her ear. He frowns at Ah Mei, feeling bad that she had to make so much effort. He felt his heart growing fonder and loving Ah Mei more every day. She was really a very sweet girl.

One evening Ah Yuet took Ah Mei up to the rooftop.

“Do you remember how we first met?” Ah Yuet asks.

“We were neighbors and my parents worked for your parents at ‘Tung Mat Yuen’.”

“We didn’t always get along,” Ah Yuet recalls.

Ah Mei nods her head. “You were mean! You liked to pull my hair and tease me because of my big glasses! I didn’t like you very much…”

Ah Yuet laughs. “That’s true.”

“It wasn’t until that one day when Auntie Sa took us to the park and some other bullies were making fun of me did I start to like you. You got into a fight with them and stood up for me. I was really touched.”

“You should be! I got scolded by Auntie Sa for fighting!” Ah Yuet nods his head, “Our friendship started from that day.”

“I was surprised you stood up for me.”

“Of course! You’re a weak little girl. I wasn’t going to let those bullies be mean to you!”

“Right… because you wanted to be the only person to bully me!” Ah Mei teases.

Ah Yuet muses, “You’re probably right…”

Ah Mei playfully hits Ah Yuet.

“Even though I messed with you and teased you, I couldn’t bear to see other people be mean to you. I had to stand up for you.”

“From that day I started to see you in a new light.”

“A new light? Really? It’s more like a new shadow! You always stood behind me, always following me!” Ah Yuet laughs.

“We became really good friends. We were like two halves meant to be together. What you didn’t like, I liked and vice versa. When our parts were combined, it became whole.”

“That’s true. When we did puzzles, I only did landscape while you only did the sky.”

“It was only together could we finish putting together a puzzle.”

Ah Yuet pulls out a box from behind him. “Want to relive old memories?”

“Oh my god! A puzzle? We haven’t done one in ages!”

Ah Yuet nods his head.

Ah Mei pulls Ah Yuet over to the table. They dump out all of the puzzle pieces, carefully dividing the sky to Ah Mei and the land to Ah Yuet. They spent hours putting together the puzzle.

As Ah Mei got closer to finishing her half of the puzzle, she noticed something weird about her clouds.

“Hmm…”

“What is it?”

“There’s something red on my clouds! It looks like writing!” Ah Mei observes.

“That’s weird! Maybe it’s the company name or something.”

Ah Mei shrugs her shoulders as she pushes her glasses up. “I’ll know once I finish the puzzle.”

When Ah Mei put the final piece of her puzzle together, she was stunned to read what was written in the clouds.

“Sek Mei, will you marry me?” Ah Yuet reads the message aloud.

Ah Mei looks up from the puzzle into Ah Yuet’s sincere eyes. He was down on his knees. Her eyes become watery. The heavens had decided. It was written on the clouds. “Yes! Yes! My answer is always yes!” She runs over and hugs Ah Yuet.

Ah Yuet and Ah Mei kiss under the moonlight.

“Ah Yuet… was it painful for you to put together the sky in order to write that message?”

“You bet it was! You know I hate clouds!” Ah Yuet shivers. “But… I had to do it… otherwise how could I pop the question to you?”

Ah Mei smiles at Ah Yuet. She was touched.

Ah Yuet and Ah Mei walked down into the Kam family apartment hand-in-hand raised up. They showed off Ah Mei’s engagement ring. Nim Chi, Ah Yat, and Ah Hong (Johnny Tang) were really happy for the couple. They all hugged them, offering sweet “Congratulations” and excitedly started planning their wedding.

Choice Series: Virtues of Harmony (I & II)

If I could only watch one series for the rest of my life, TVB’s 2001-2005 Virtues of Harmony would be it.

It is simply my most favorite series of all time. Would you be reading this in timeless: the VIRTUES OF HARMONY network @ www.virtuesofharmony.net if it wasn’t? This series impacted me a lot and means a great deal to me. I will never forget the Kam family. I’ve watched all 770 episodes at least four times and enjoyed it each and every time. It’s simply the most hilarious, charming, heartwarming, and entertaining TVB series to me. I love every single cast member and every character is likable and valuable to the series in his or her own way.

The cast and chemistry is extraordinary. I love the wit. The humor is incomparable. I will never get tired of re-watching Virtues. It will always have a place in my heart.

Choice Family Drama: Light of Million Hopes (aTV)

Family-oriented series are my most favorite. I just love watching ensemble dramas about big families. aTV’s 2003 Light of Million Hopes is the epitome of extraordinary family drama. Spanning over 40 years (1960’s to 2003), this series focuses on the huge Ko family. Every character has his or her own story. It is consistently interesting and was overall an excellent series.

Light is from A Kindred Spirit’s writer Chan Bo Wah and in essence, it is the “superior” version of Kindred. With none of the Kindred nonsense (for example unnecessary characters/relationships, pointless/bad stories, going too long, etc), Light plays very nicely in its 155 episodes. The pace is really fast (it constantly moves and always progresses with development) and the story is always evolving. There is always something to watch.

It is an extremely touching and interesting series that focuses on relationships among people. Not only that, but it focuses on the history of Hong Kong and offers many interesting tidbits about the city. It successfully weaves “real life” into the series by placing its characters directly into the history mentioned. I enjoyed watching how life changed from the 1960’s to 2000’s. The cast (although mostly unknown to me) was good and it was a very memorable series. This series really touched my heart.

No other family drama can hold a light to Light; it is the best of the best.

Choice Costume Drama: Jewel in the Palace (Korean)

It is the only Korean series that I have seen, but MBC’s 2003 Jewel in the Palace (Dae Jang-geum) is phenomenal. It is the most exquisitely done TV series of all time. The hard work that the cast and crew put towards this flawless and polished production truly shows. It was a massive hit all around the world and is arguably the most famous Asian TV series. At 70 episodes long (or 54 episodes — depends on the version that you watch), Jewel was simply superb — a true diamond of a series and a masterpiece for the ages.

I loved the storyline a lot (it was so interesting and exciting!). Jewel was well-developed, very well-written, and the acting was fantastic. I was addicted to Jewel. It was especially refreshing to watch because it was my first Korean drama (let alone a costume drama) and seeing the ancient Korean setting was something different. There were so many memorable moments. It was so beautiful and moving.

Excellent series — truly top-notch! It is a must-watch.

Choice Period Drama: The Good Old Days (aTV)

At 105 episodes long, aTV’s 1996 The Good Old Days took the viewer back in time and brought to life again the early 1900’s. Focusing on China in its most turbulent era, Days was an excellent series that had nicely fleshed out characters and believable stories. It never became too unrealistic and displayed real, human emotions, flaws, and problems. It is a story of family, hope, and life in hard times. It was a well-balanced and paced series. With many different characters, Days was never boring and never dragged. It proves that some series are long because they need that many episodes to adequately tell its story.

With a wonderful cast and a heart-felt storyline, Days is one of the best series ever.

Man Gwai Fei (Stephanie Che) couldn’t carry out her “revenge” plot by marrying Wong Sheung (Lau Dan) and becoming in-laws with the Kams. Instead, she decided to destroy the family from within by employing Nim Chi’s (Nancy Sit) heartless god-daughter Ah Ting (Leila Tong).

The first target was the childless couple Gam (Louis Yuen) and Ying Gei (Yvonne Lam), whose twins had died because of Ah Lo’s (Bondy Chiu) accident.

When Ah Ting came out of the bathroom, she heard some crying from down the hall. Curious, she walked down. Gam and Ying Gei’s bedroom door was open. Ying Gei was on the floor sobbing as she pressed some baby clothes tenderly next to her cheek. Ah Ting knocks on the door before coming in.

“Sister OK, is everything okay?”

“I bought these clothes in anticipation for the birth of my babies… I bought them after Ah Lo got pregnant.” She chuckles. “I was so silly, huh? We didn’t even know the gender of our babies… but I wanted to buy these clothes. I wanted to be ready — even though there were still many more months to wait. Gam Gam and I have been married for four years now. We tried every method to get pregnant. I prayed to the heavens. I drank black ashes! Whatever it was that people said could get someone pregnant, I did it. We thought we would never have a baby… but then Ah Lo became our surrogate and our wish came true. We thought we would have our children. It turns out that the heavens are cruel and like to play people. Not only did we lose our babies, but we lost a family member too. Poor Ah Lo…” Ying Gei continues to cry.

Ah Ting frowns. “Yes, it’s really a shame.”

“I should have thrown these clothes and these toys out… but I couldn’t. I’ve kept them for all these months. It’s been half-a-year! Half-a-year… and I’m still not over it.”

“Life is still long. There’s still hope for you to have a child.”

Ying Gei shakes her head. “That was our last hope. I guess… we were not meant to have children.”

Ah Ting pats Ying Gei on the back, “It’s okay! You have plenty of family members to love you.” She smiles at Ying Gei.

Ying Gei hands Ah Ting the box of baby clothes and toys. “Ah Ting, can you please help me and throw these away?”

Ah Ting frowns at Ying Gei. “There’s something that I found out… but I’m not sure I should tell you.”

“What is it?”

“I don’t even know if it’s true… No. I shouldn’t.”

Ying Gei gasps loudly. “Oh my god! Gam Gam is cheating on me?!”

“No!”

Ying Gei gasps again, “Gam Gam has cancer!”

“No!”

“Gam Gam wants to divorce me!”

“No! No! It has nothing to do with him.”

“Oh my god! So it has to do with me? Oh my god! How come I don’t know about it?” Ying Gei scratches her head.

Ah Ting wants to roll her eyes because of Ying Gei’s stupidity, but can’t. “It’s not about you either.”

“Oh my god! Ah Yat and Ah Hong are getting divorced? Aiya! I knew it… this divorce bug is spreading around. First Ivan and Michelle and then Ah Sing and Fiona-”

“No! It’s not them!”

“Oh my god! So it’s good news! Ah Yuet and Ah Mei are getting married?”

“No!”

“Oh my god! Auntie Chi is getting married?”

Growing annoyed, Ah Ting declares, “No! It’s about Ah Lo!”

Ying Gei looks at Ah Ting puzzled. “Ah Lo? But she’s dead! What discovery could you make about her?” Suddenly, Ying Gei opens her eyes wide and her mouth opens just as wide. “Ah Lo is still alive?!”

“No! I stumbled upon something that suggests why she went to Japan…”

“Huh? It was a business trip. Everyone knows that.”

“I was cleaning up Ah Yuet’s room awhile back… and I discovered some papers.”

“Ah Ting! How can you ignore people’s privacy and look at their things? Even an idiot like me knows you have to respect privacy!”

“The papers were in plain sight! I was cleaning up!”

“Oh. That makes sense then. What were the papers?”

“Abortion clinics in Japan.”

“What? Why would Ah Lo get an abortion?”

Ah Ting stares at Ying Gei. It was like talking to a wall. She just didn’t get it.

Ying Gei gasps loudly and covers her mouth. “She wanted to kill my babies?!”

Ah Ting silently lets out an air of relief. She shrugs her shoulders innocently. “I don’t know… but I found abortion clinic papers.”

Ying Gei thinks long and hard. She snaps her fingers. “I know! She was trying to suck up to Michelle at that time because she had threatened Ivan about aborting their baby! It all makes sense now.” She grins proudly.

“Then why did she go to Japan then?”

“For a business trip!”

“Are you sure it was for business?”

“That’s what she said.”

“Exactly.”

Curious, Ying Gei goes and researches Ah Lo’s supposed business trip in “Ka Yan’s” files. To her surprise, there was no record of the client Ah Lo was supposedly meeting. Furthermore, Ah Lo’s plane ticket was not paid by the company.

“Ah Lo really went to Japan to have an abortion?” Ying Gei wonders to herself.

Ying Gei told Gam about her discovery in their bedroom. It sparked into a huge, heated argument.

Nim Chi, Ah Yuet (Michael Tse), Ah Mei (Cutie Mui), Ah Yat (Joyce Chen), and Ah Hong (Johnny Tang) were sitting around the living room when Gam stomped in with Ying Gei running after him.

“Wah! Uncle, you don’t need to step so loudly! The neighbors will complain!” Ah Yuet chides.

“You’re one to talk! You should scold your wife first!” Gam shouts.

“My wife?”

“Wah! How can you put me on the table like that?” Ah Mei asks. “Ah Yuet and I just started! We can’t rush into a marriage!”

Ah Yuet nods his head. He feeds Ah Mei a chip. “Even though our feelings are developing well, we both want to take it slow!”

Ah Mei smiles at Ah Yuet.

“I’m talking about your wife Lam Yuk Lo!” Gam yells.

“Ah Lo?” Ah Yuet was confused.

“Ah Gam, what are you talking about?” Nim Chi demands.

“That evil woman deserved to die!” Gam curses.

Ah Yuet stands up, greatly offended. “Uncle, what are you saying?”

“I’m saying the truth! That bitch went to Japan to have an abortion!”

“What? That can’t be! Ah Lo went to meet a client!” Ah Mei protests.

Nim Chi nods her head, “That’s right.”

“I checked ‘Ka Yan’s’ files… there’s no record of that client Ah Lo was supposedly talking to. Furthermore ‘Ka Yan’ did not pay for her plane tickets,” Ying Gei reports.

“Maybe there’s no record because we never did business before and Ah Lo was initiating things and networking for ‘Ka Yan’! Plus, she was probably going to request ‘Ka Yan’ for reimbursement later,” Ah Yuet defends.

Ying Gei holds up a paper. It was a copy of Ah Lo’s request off work. “It was submitted two weeks before her trip. The date is very clear as is the dates she requested off. The reason is personal!” She hands the paper to Ah Yuet.

“This can’t be!”

“It’s in plain white paper and black ink! You can’t deny it!” Gam says.

“And these!” Ying Gei holds up more papers. “I found them in Ah Lo’s desk at work! They’re abortion clinics in Japan! She went there to have an abortion!”

Nim Chi, Ah Yuet, Ah Mei, Ah Yat, and Ah Hong all look at the papers stunned.

“I knew it was too good to be true! I knew she was too ‘evil’ and selfish to help us! I thought she did it for money… It turns out she never wanted to help us have a child. She never wanted to be our surrogate. She planned on giving us hope and then taking it all away by aborting the baby…” Tears drip from Gam’s eyes while snot runs down from his nose.

Ying Gei cries along with Gam.

“This must be a misunderstanding! This has to be a mistake,” Nim Chi argues.

“The evidence is all there! The timing is perfect. No wonder her trip was so mysterious. No wonder she didn’t call home once. No wonder! It was because she had the abortion done!” Gam shouts. “She deserved to die! It was heaven’s retribution for her evil deed!” Gam smiles smugly.

“Uncle! You can’t say that!” Ah Yuet was angry. “Ah Lo isn’t around to defend herself. All of this is just what you guys think! There’s no evidence!”

“I don’t need evidence! This isn’t a courtroom! My eyes are evidence!” Ying Gei screams proudly.

“Let’s be logical here,” Ah Mei pleads. “We mustn’t think too much!”

Nim Chi nods her head, “Ah Gam, Ah Gei, you two are overreacting over nothing! This is all nonsense! I don’t believe second daughter-in-law would do something like that.”

Ah Yat agrees, “Second sister-in-law was a bitch and tried to act hard, but she was soft. She would never undergo surgery, let alone something serious and damaging to the body like an abortion!”

“Even if she wanted to ‘play’ you guys, she would not do such a thing. It’s too much of a risk for her health, not to mention costly!” Ah Hong adds.

Gam and Ying Gei could not believe that not a single person believed them.

“We lost our babies… our last hope! Because of that evil woman… but no one cares.”

“Ah Lo is dead! Don’t insult or ruin the name of people who passed away!” Ah Yuet says.

“She died because she deserved it.”

Nim Chi couldn’t take it anymore so she slaps Gam. “You are to stop saying that! Do you understand?”

Gam covers his cheek with his hand. He shakes his head. “Even you…”

“Yes, we all feel your grief! We wanted to see your twins born too! It’s a grave tragedy for this whole family! Second daughter-in-law died along with your babies! We’re all crying!” Nim Chi tears up.

“Our babies died because she killed them!” Ying Gei says with conviction.

“For the last time second daughter-in-law did not do such a thing!” Nim Chi yells.

Gam takes Ying Gei’s hand. “We can’t stay in this family anymore.”

They both tearfully run out of the door.

Switcheroo
In 2005 Producer Kwan Wing Chung gave us Wars of In-Laws. This series spun the popular “Boscolie” couple and gave Liza Wang the “Best Actress” award. 3 years later we were given Wars of In-Laws II — the modern version. I anticipated hating the “sequel” (and originally was going to boycott it) as I did the original. I expected a trashy, exaggerated, and ridiculous “comedy”.

Unlike its predecessor, In-Laws II was not under the helm of the original Producer Kwan. Producer Cheung Gon Man was given the responsibility of this project. This “switcheroo” was for the best. In-Laws II was a hilarious and charming comedy with a sweet and touching script. There was none of the nonsense that I hated with the original in the sequel. It was an excellent series and definitely a TVB classic to be remembered. I loved it so much!

In-Laws II has Producer Cheung to thank for its excellence. I’m convinced that if Producer Kwan had done the series it would have been crap like the original.

In 2008 Producer Cheung released the successful D.I.E.. It was a supernatural-based crime solving comedy/drama. Due to high ratings, a sequel was planned and D.I.E. Again is currently releasing. Because Producer Cheung was busy working on You’re Hired at the time of D.I.E. Again’s production he could not be at the helm of the sequel.

TVB decided to pull the “switcheroo” again and gave Producer Kwan D.I.E. Again.

The first “switcheroo” was a success and saved a good cast from doing a crappy series. What will the result of this second switcheroo be? We’ll know for sure once D.I.E. Again concludes its run.

Everyone knows I boycott all of Producer Kwan’s series since Face to Fate. I absolutely loathe his atrocious series. I’ve never seen D.I.E. and don’t intend on watching either series so I cannot make any comments, but… Mark my words — even if D.I.E. Again does not “suck” it won’t be on-par with its predecessor.

Dropping two series
My patience for series is now low. Maybe it’s from so many years of watching TVB, but I find myself growing increasingly unimpressed and even tired of watching TVB.

The Link — I wanted to watch this 1992 series mainly for Ada Choi’s magnificent newcomer performance as a villainess. Ada did not let me down. The 19 year-old Ada was extremely pretty and her acting was great even back then. Her character was very interesting and I looked forward to watching her destroy the Lam family. Unfortunately her scenes (up to episode 16) were too little and the non-Ada scenes were not captivating so I decided to stop watching.

The problem with Link is that it is too typical and the “family drama” is tiring to watch. It lacks freshness and was therefore not interesting to me. The cast was good, but I just couldn’t stomach 24 more episodes of “family drama”. It was very mediocre to me and I wasn’t enjoying it. The storyline was too slow and there didn’t seem to be much of a pay-off.

On a side note, watching Eddie Kwan and Gigi Lai as a couple in Link reminded me of The Gem of Life. Back then they were a young and cute couple. I would like to watch their relationship and also Ada… so maybe I’ll resume one day (maybe not… who knows?).

Gigi’s character, Kei Kei, in Link reminds me of Linda Chung’s breakthrough role of Ka Ka in 2008’s A Journey Called Life. Both are unkempt and wild “bad” girls from broken families who change into “good” girls after a traumatic death. For Ka Ka it was her “sister” Hana (Elaine Yiu) who overdosed on drugs while Kei Kei watched her prison “sister” get stabbed to death. Not wanting to suffer the tragic fates of their “sisters” and thanks to the support of nice guys who love them, they redefine and reform their lives. Kei Kei and Ka Ka by the end of Link and Journey respectively are two sweet and lovable wives.

I wonder if Ka Ka was based off of Kei Kei because their characters are strikingly similar.

Sweetness in the Salt — I got to episode 10 before I called quit on the series. It was boring. Hearing from other people that the series falters towards the end and that the beginning half was supposedly “a lot” better I decided to stop while I was ahead. The story just didn’t appeal to me. I think I’m sick of Qing dynasty costume dramas or something.

The economy… 10 years ago
Watching A Kindred Spirit in its final year (1999) was a little eerie because the economic issues at that time reflect our contemporary concerns. Lack of jobs, job security, company cutbacks, and saving money were prominent issues for many characters. Unless you’re living under a rock, those issues shouldn’t sound foreign at all.

It’s disheartening to think that the economy is still suffering 10 years after Kindred’s end and that I can still relate to these characters.

When will the economy improve?

New appreciation for Looking Back in Anger
Watching the classic TVB drama The Greed of Man made me see the classic Looking Back in Anger in a new light. Greed and Anger were both done by Producer Wai Ka Fai. It’s not surprising therefore that I was reminded of Anger while watching Greed.

In my review for Anger I mentioned that I don’t refute its title as a “classic” series, but in my eyes it’s only a “good” series due to the fact that I was bored by its very dragged-out middle (I seriously took what seemed like forever to watch it). I still stand by my opinion that 50 episodes were too much and that it was draggy. However, I have renewed appreciation for it.

Anger is simply one of the best modern TVB dramas ever. Its script is so well-written and it’s a very unique and memorable series. It was intriguing and the storyline was daring and different. It definitely kept the viewer thinking. I don’t think I’ve mentioned a series as much as Anger in my blog when talking about other series. I’m always reminded of Anger in some way (and that is a mark of a memorable, long-lasting “classic”). There were many powerful and unforgettable scenes. I will never forget the brothers Ding Yau Kin (Felix Wong) and Ding Yau Hong (Deric Wan). Hong’s evil plots and unthinkable actions are very memorable; in particular, I will always remember the horrific scenes in which he pushed his pregnant girlfriend Chiu Ga Man (Maggie Shiu) off a moving train and in which he murdered his adopted mother by strangling her to death with his own hands. TVB just doesn’t make dark and intriguing modern dramas like Greed and Anger anymore.

My renewed appreciation for Anger has moved it from the “Good” rank to the “Classic” rank (where it belongs) on my Hall of Fame. My rating for it though remains unchanged.

Does TVB hate the Ding family?
After many years of watching TVB I can’t help but notice that the surname Ding is popular when it comes to villains. TVB has many villains, but the most popular antagonists seem to always come from the Ding family.

Ding Yau Hong (Deric Wan) — No other male antagonist can top this guy. He is the ultimate TVB villain of all time (regardless of the time period). This role was the most hated man in Hong Kong during Looking Back In Anger’s 50-episode run. Deric was scolded on the streets because of his despicable character. This man murdered his adopted mother by strangling her, killed his pregnant girlfriend by pushing her off a moving train, manipulated his brother into going to jail for him, married a girl he didn’t love to advance in the social ladder, poisoned his brother’s entire family (including his young son), manipulated his adopted sister into being a mistress, and so much more (I’m not even done listing all of the things he did!). He did it all because he was selfish and greedy, wanting to stroke his ego. This role and Deric’s great performance solidified his stardom.

Ding Hai (Adam Cheng) & sons — The Greed of Man has villains galore. The notorious Ding family led by Ding Hai is perhaps the most detestable family ever. I hate Ding Hai with a burning flame. He’s so stupid and always messes everything up. Actually, his stupidity is hilarious (I can’t help but roll my eyes and laugh) and therefore he is an “entertaining” villain. His four sons though… I hate them! I hate Greed’s Ding family. They hurt the poor and innocent Fong family so much! They basically killed the entire Fong family and ruined lots of lives, making it miserable for everyone named Fong while alive.

Ding Lik (Ray Lui) — In The Bund he was Hui Man Keung’s (Chow Yun Fat) “buddy”. He turned against him and “stole” his “brother’s” lover Fung Ching Ching (Angie Chiu). He wanted to advance himself and not be in Hui Man Keung’s shadow all of the time. He was always jealous of Hui Man Keung and always wanted to beat him. He accused Ching Ching of having an affair and caused her miscarriage. He was actually domestically abusive towards his wife. I hated Ding Lik with a passion. He annoyed me like no other character. He was just really irritating. I dreaded his scenes. I’ve never liked Ray Lui consequently (although Bund is the only series I’ve seen of his). Ding Lik is apparently the “protagonist” in Bund’s sequels (but I have no intention watching them because I hate Ding Lik).

I wonder if it’s just a coincidence that TVB’s most famous and biggest villains (who frustrated and annoyed the audience and earned lots of hate) are all named Ding… or… are these characters somehow all related and “evil blood” just runs through the Ding family in the TVB universe.

Everyone knows that Linda Chung’s nickname by the media is “Thrift Sister”. She rides the subway and only spends $20 HK a day. Furthermore her innocent good girl image reminds of “Jade Girl Master” Vivian Chow Wai Man. The name “Thrift Sister” is actually from Vivian’s role in the classic TVB production The Greed of Man.

Yuen Mui — The “Thrift Sister”
In Greed Yuen Mui (Vivian) values money like her life. She works all of the time in order to save up money. She always hunts for the best prices and the cheapest deals. She only spends money when she has to. Her lifestyle is very meager. She has a commendable amount of money saved up consequently (which often is the source of income for the main character Fong Cheen Bok (Sean Lau) in his pursuit to become rich).

The reason Mui cares so much about money is because she has an inherited heart problem. No one in her family has lived longer than 25 years. Afraid of being a financial burden and worried that her grandma wouldn’t have money to live off of after she dies, Mui therefore saves up every penny.

Not only is she “cheap” but she is also very closed to other people. She doesn’t let others in and has never been in love because she’s afraid of hurting others when her illness strikes. She knows her life is a ticking time clock so she chooses this money-conscious and lonely life.

Was Hung Bak Lam based off Yuen Mui?
After winning the Miss Chinese International 2004 pageant, Linda joined the Virtues of Harmony family (who hosted the pageant and saw her get crowned) and gained notice for her role as Michelle Hung Bak Lam.

Those who have seen Virtues II should have been reminded of Ah Lam when reading the character description for Mui.

Just like Mui, Ah Lam is a very money-conscience individual who values money and work above all. Actually she’s “money hungry” according to Lau Ka Sing (Hawick Lau). Exactly like Mui, Ah Lam believes she has inherited a heart problem and won’t live a day older than 28. Consequently she only cares about her career and earning as much money as she can to leave for her uncle.

Similar to Mui, Ah Lam also closed herself to love and others. She is often said to be an ice queen. She drove away her first love Ah Sing and also tried to send away her second love (and eventual husband) Ivan Sze Gee San (Steven Ma). The reason? Just like Mui, she doesn’t want anyone to be sad when she dies.

In the final scene of Greed, Mui and Bok finally get to be together in peace and enjoy a fun, happy, and carefree day. He thinks that she fell asleep on his chest due to being tired from their busy day. Sadly, we know that Mui has passed away (her inherited heart disease has kicked in). Her scarf flies away in the wind (symbolizing that she has died). Greed ends memorably and tragically on that note (because the message from that series is that everyone loses in the stock market and so Bok lost by losing all of his loved ones in the pursuit of justice by playing the stock market).

Virtues II took that same scene and gave it to Ah San and Ah Lam. After a long and happy day, the two end up walking on the beach at night. They’re talking just like Mui and Bok when Ah Lam suddenly “falls asleep” on Ah San’s chest. Her scarf blows away in the wind… Unlike Bok, Ah San notices Ah Lam falling unconscious and grows concerned, thinking that her inherited heart disease has attacked. He shouts out calling her name.



The big twist in Ah Lam’s character is that she actually doesn’t have a heart disease (her birth dad turns out to be someone else without any heart history) and so Ah Lam lives! Ah San and Ah Lam get to have a “happily ever after” ending unlike Mui and Bok.

I’m convinced that Linda’s debut role in Virtues II of Hung Bak Lam was based off of Greed’s Yuen Mui. The Virtues writers like to borrow ideas from past TVB series and then satirize it in one way or another.

Linda… destined to be “Thrift Sister”
Because Linda grew up in a poor family (her parents both worked multiple jobs) she learned from early on the value of money. Therefore she doesn’t spend frivolously. She likes to save her money so that she can give her parents a comfortable life because they’ve done so much for her.

After 5 years in the industry Linda is still the same. She rarely goes out. A good portion of her clothes are sponsored as are certain products that she uses. She rides the subway with “regular” people to go to work.

Linda reminds of Vivian, who made the “Thrift Sister” Yuen Mui famous. Both have innocent, wholesome, girl-next-door appeals and are famous for acting those types of roles. Besides acting Vivian also had a career as a singer. In 2008 Linda made her debut to the music world with promising results. Will Linda be the successor to Vivian as the next “Jade Girl Master”?

Linda was destined to have the nickname “Thrift Sister”.

Very early on I said the following about A Kindred Spirit: the series is a constant cycle of ups and downs; when it’s good, it’s excellent and when it’s bad, it’s unbearable. Who knew that this is the truest thing about Kindred? In its 1,128 episodes, there are many, many great stories that are well-written and developed and there are also many crappy and trashy stories that waste the audience’s time. Fortunately, the good usually out-powers the bad (except in the last 200 episodes).

I spent nearly two years watching every episode of Kindred and I don’t regret it. It was worth it because now I can say that I have seen one of TVB’s classic long-running productions. I love family drama so Kindred is right up my alley. The Li family (and what an extended family it is!) offers lots of great drama including some comical moments and plenty of touching and powerful scenes. Kindred is a true soap opera with many characters, complicated relationships (often love triangles), and twisted stories. A good number of TVB artists (past and present) participated in Kindred and it’s nice to see all of the faces. The themesong by Joyce Lee is one that will stick.

It’s a story-driven series so the quality and enjoyment of the series is directly related to the script. The cast is mostly likable and the chemistry is very good. Newcomers got a chance to jump-start their career while older actors/veterans were able to make comebacks and/or get to act in bigger roles than they otherwise could. Mostly every character gets a chance to lead his/her own story. There are many great couples and lots of memorable scenes and stories.

I’ve written 11 very detailed posts intricately highlighting my most prominent thoughts on Kindred’s 1000+ episodes, so I will not repeat myself here. You can find them all in the Kindred category.

What I will talk about though is some of the things that stick out to me about Kindred.

Sunny Chan & Kenix Kwok — I love their characters! They made the first 100 episodes of Kindred really enjoyable. Their love story, though short (rushed?) and simple was very sweet and touching. Their wedding scene (the first Kindred wedding) is easily one of the most touching weddings in TVB history. Sunny and Kenix’s chemistry was awesome. It’s a shame that they weren’t in the series longer. I can’t really blame them though because they wouldn’t have become the big stars that they did in the late 90’s had they stayed with Kindred.

Best storyline: “Upper Class Family” going bankrupt — This storyline hooked me on Kindred. It was a nerve-wracking and exciting storyline that developed over the course of many episodes. Guest star Maggie Cheung was marvelous as a hateful woman who plotted to make the Lau family go bankrupt. Although she was a newcomer at that time, she handled the role well. I thought it was a thoroughly very well-written storyline that was done exceptionally well. I love how it impacted multiple characters and offered lots of material for many episodes.

I grew to love Ah Wah (Lau Siu Gwan) & Ah Yan (Florence Kwok) because of this storyline — it was so touching watching them love and support each other as they rebuilt their home. Actually Ah Wah & Ah Yan are one of the most interesting couples and I really enjoyed their relationship. Ah Wah grew from someone I disliked (at the beginning he was cheating on Ah Yan and they almost divorced consequently) to someone that I really liked. It’s a shame that they mostly disappeared after the first 300 or so episodes and became “background” characters. I appreciated the scenes when they did appear. However, I’d rather they not appear and have a happy marriage/family than to have the Kindred writers contrive some drama for them. They are probably the most realistic couple.

Most tears dropped: Ah Kam’s death — I have never cried more watching a TVB series than I did during the arc of Lok Lok (Ding Lik) getting sick and his mom Ah Kam (Louisa So) consequently donating her liver and dying. It is easily the most touching and emotional story I have ever watched from TVB. I cried non-stop in practically every scene. Lok Lok’s love for his mom and Ah Kam’s great love for her son was just so moving! The script was beautifully written! I loved it. It was worth every single tear that dropped.

Most memorable characters
May May & Tsz Ho — I’ve always enjoyed watching Celine Ma because of her great acting. She’s a very unconventional TVB actress (and I often feel sorry for her for being the “butt” of jokes and constantly criticized as “ugly”). May May is the producer’s most favorite character and I can see why. She’s hilarious! She can get annoying, but usually May May and her antics and comments are amusing. I think she’s one of the best written characters and I really like how they treat her like a human being. Her emotions are realistically portrayed. I also like watching how she grew. It’s no wonder why she’s one of the most popular and memorable characters from Kindred.

Everyone knows and remembers Li Tsz Ho (Cheng Tse Sing) — Kindred’s big villain for nearly 300 episodes. He was the most hated man in Hong Kong during the time he wrecked havoc in Kindred. Tsz Ho saved the series in episode 500’s and made it interesting again. It’s always good to have a villain to “spice” things up. His character was ruthless and it was exciting watching him.

Auntie Ho — In the early 1990’s, Nancy Sit’s life as a housewife ended when her husband divorced her. With three children, she had to go back to work in order to support them. She admitted that she thought about committing suicide because her world had crashed due to her husband leaving her. However, in the end she couldn’t do it because she couldn’t leave her children. Luckily for her, it seems like Kindred’s Auntie Ho was custom-made to save her career and revive her life. With this single role, Nancy became one of the most popular characters in Kindred and enjoyed immense popularity. She was able to support her children and lead a good life, entering back into the audience’s heart.

Auntie Ho is a very fun and lovable woman. Nancy was perfect for this flashy, loud, over-the-top role. She really brought the role to life and in turn Auntie Ho brought life back into Nancy. Nancy looked very young and pretty in Kindred and her character often made me laugh. When she first appeared, she literally lit up the screen with her energy and charisma. Her relationships with Melvin (Melvin Wong) — her “Mao See” in its initial stages before it was tainted and dragged out with trashy soap opera plot devices — and Ko San Ching (Yu Yeung) were fantastic; tremendous chemistry and plenty of laughs and cute moments. She showed the world that middle-age people can date and have fun (which was provocative, daring, and different at that time).

“Upper Class Person” — I’ve never really liked watching Leung Sun Yi because she has that “mean” look to her. Her role as “Upper Class Person” appeared to be unlikable when she first appeared as Ah Yan’s haughty and barbaric mother-in-law who often criticized and mistreated her. “Upper Class Person” loves to criticize and talk about how she’s rich and refined. I remember when she went over to the “char siu” family’s house for dinner. She complained about everything. One memorable complaint was about the bathroom; she said it was too small because it could only fit two people at the most. She then bragged about how her bathroom at her new house could fit at a minimum six people. So hilarious! I loved her since. Her attitude and comments, though mean and insulting, just crack me up. I totally warmed up to the character and I enjoyed watching her become softer as the series went on.

Favorite bad girl: Sze Kam — Fiona Yuen’s debut performance as the complex Sze Kam was impressive. I’ve always liked her and found her to be a very underrated actress who was pretty and could act, yet TVB never promoted her. It’s a shame. Initially I didn’t care for Sze Kam and hated her because she was so fake, but as the episodes went by and I learned more about her, my heart just went out to her. Truthfully speaking, I probably felt for her the most compared to any other character. She was a sympathetic character despite her “evil” actions. I was touched by how she tried to change and I loved it when she wanted to be a real wife to Ah Fook (Cheung Chi Kwong) and daughter-in-law for the Li family. Unfortunately, it was too late and she had too many dark secrets… The scene in which she looked longingly at a picture of the Li family and then at Ah Fook & Lok Lok and declared, “I’m not fit to be their family member”, is so memorable and sad.

Most dynamic character: Lap Sang — Marco Lo’s acting is not very good (especially in those highly dramatic scenes — often painful and embarrassing to watch), but he is likable as Lap Sang. I enjoyed watching this character grow and the journey that he went on. He is probably the only character that’s consistently given good storylines and focus (besides the time when he was in jail, Lap Sang had a meaty role to play in all episodes whereas other characters “disappeared” sporadically throughout).

When Lap Sang first appeared, I didn’t like him. He was cocky, egotistic, and a not-so-nice person. He was full of himself and didn’t care much for family or love. His turbulent love story with Ah Suet (Joyce Tang) did not touch me until the climax of his affair with Rebecca (Mok Hor Yan) and kidnapping her for money. I became a Lap Sang & Ah Suet fan and was moved by his regrets about not appreciating her. His guilt and shame after getting released from jail was realistic and consistent with his character. I liked watching him get back on his feet with the help of Ah Jing (Wallis Pang). He became a much “softer” character who was more kind and caring towards everyone around him.

Ah Jing changed Lap Sang. I warmed up to their pairing and enjoyed watching their relationship develop. Lap Sang’s change from a selfish, uncaring, and arrogant guy to a kind and loving one was gradual throughout the series and thus credible and realistic — very nicely done.

Out of all the male characters I relate to Lap Sang the best. In some ways I am like Lap Sang (though not as extreme). Some of his dialogues and the dialogues said about him hit close to home for me. I can understand Lap Sang well. Luckily, my Ah Jing has appeared and I think I’m embarking on a journey like Lap Sang into becoming a better person.

Most dynamic couple: Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai — Ben Wong and Angie Cheung have so much chemistry and look great as a couple. I loved Ah Hoi & Choi Yiu (before Seung Seung (Candy Lo Lam) appeared) because they were such a unique and refreshing couple. I was happy to see Angie return as Ah Gwai. Unfortunately, Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai’s relationship initially felt slightly ridiculous and forced. Ben & Angie’s acting saved the not-so-good script. With time, the script complimented their acting and I grew to enjoy Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai as a couple. They were fun and cute to watch. I liked watching them fall in love and get together.

They grew closer by the episode and it was really touching seeing them love and support each other. My favorite story of theirs though is ironically their divorce. Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai’s divorce was wonderfully written. The breakdown of their marriage and seeing them drift apart was realistically done. I loved the drama of their divorce (especially once it was revealed that Ah Hoi had been cheating with Ko Nga Man (Cally Kwong)) and its impact. This divorce ironically allowed Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai to get closer again and redefine their love and marriage. Ultimately they were able to renew their feelings for one another and realize how much they meant to each other.

I really enjoyed watching the journey that Ah Hoi & Ah Gwai’s relationship took over the course of 500 episodes. They went through a lot and it was all nicely portrayed and developed.

Final thoughts
The biggest warning to give anyone embarking on watching the 1000+ episodes of Kindred is this: there are plenty of bad episodes that are so pointless and atrocious to the point that it’s hard to stomach, but there are so many good and very entertaining episodes that make the series so likable and worthwhile. The cast is one of the largest that TVB has pulled together and most actors are likable. You definitely won’t be able to find a cast of this caliber for TVB’s long-running series anymore. There are tons of veterans and rising newer stars.

Kindred is a wholesome, classic TVB production. It focuses on many different stories (some good, some bad) and in the course teaches “life lessons” and morals. At times it can be overly preachy and it is definitely a melodramatic soap opera (over-acting galore) with tons of drama, heartache, problems, and tears. It sometimes can also be unrealistic and exaggerated. Some stories aren’t exactly “bad”, but I just didn’t care for them. There are many “big group” scenes (those are usually the best) and the series rotates among several different storylines, so it is usually never too bad for too long (besides the last 200 episodes — which are mostly trash). The quality of the script fluctuates, but the quality of the cast is consistent (which plays into the series’ favor). At times the series can be tiring and repetitive to watch (lots of dreadful, dragging love triangles and annoying characters/stories), but it wasn’t until after the focus was taken away from the “main family” did I grow sick of the series. The Lo family kills the series in its final stretch, which is a shame.

I enjoyed the first 200-something episodes most because it was “fresh” and had only the original cast (all of which I love). Kindred at that time was just starting out and had many stories, characters, and relationships to explore. I loved those episodes a lot. Episode 300’s was bad until Ah Loi (Lui Fong) and the Na-Duk family came on the scene. Episode 400’s was bad because of Li Biu Hon (Kenneth Tsang) and his three children — I really didn’t care for them (besides Tsz Ho). Episode 500’s got better again because of May May and Tsz Ho. From episode 500-something to early 900’s, Kindred was excellent and at its peak creatively. The cast was great and the stories were wonderful. Everything was working really well and the series got better and better. Those episodes were the series’ best with very little boring/stupid/filler stories. I regained my love for Kindred in those episodes. Episode 900-something to the end was crap (save the rare moments of Lap Sang & Ah Jing and the Li family characters that we care about).

I definitely enjoyed my journey with A Kindred Spirit. It was at times very touching and addicting. Most of the time it was very entertaining (in fact, in the past year it was the only TVB series that I really wanted/needed to watch… I didn’t really care to watch anything else from TVB). It was overall a great series that blended a little bit of everything in life (drama, comedy, romance, family, friendships, etc.) into one. I’ll never forget having watched this series.

Rating:

“Thinking of You Day and Night” [日夜想你] – Linda Chung

This is the first single off Linda’s upcoming sophomore CD that’s going to be released in November (in 3 months!). “Thinking of You Day and Night” was musically composed by Linda (as are at least 6 other tracks off her second album). This second CD is said to have more musical variety (including light rock and R&B numbers) and be more “mature” and “refined” compared to the debut CD’s naivety and innocence (about first love).

Ah Fan (Tavia Yeung) went back to the mainland because of her ruined reputation. Ah Biu (Raymond Lam) resigned from his job as a policeman and joined Ah Fan in the mainland. They decided to open up “Sharing Sweetness” there. With no rumors, Ah Biu and Ah Fan could be together in peace.

Ah Ting (Leila Tong) put on a show and pretended to be a victim of Ah Biu cheating and Ah Fan being a “third party” in order to win everyone’s pity. Consequently no one objected when she suddenly began dating Ah Lok (Bosco Wong), her “rich prince”.

Through Ah Lok, Ah Ting met Wong Sheung (Lau Dan). At that time Wong Sheung was looking for a new model for “Ka Yan”. He was impressed by Ah Ting’s good looks and felt she fit his company’s image, so he signed her as “Ka Yan’s” new face.

Unlike Chan Hung (Sheren Tang), Wong Hau (Maggie Shiu) was instantly charmed by Ah Ting. She strongly approved of Ah Lok dating Ah Ting.

One evening Ah Lok and Ah Ting decided to rent a hotel room in order to have a night alone.

“Ah Lok, I love you,” Ah Ting confesses.

“Really? Are you sure I’m not a rebound?” He laughs.

“Don’t joke!” Ah Ting playfully punches Ah Lok. She pulls him over to the bed.

“Wait. What are you doing?”

Ah Ting blinks at Ah Lok, confused. “What every couple does?”

“Oh… um…”

“You don’t want to?”

“I do! It’s just that I never…”

“You never…?”

“I’ve never,” Ah Lok blushes.

“What? Are you lying?”

“No.”

Ah Ting was shocked. She couldn’t believe that the “playboy” that Ah Lok appeared to be was actually a virgin.

“I’m sorry. Everyone thinks I have because I talk and joke about it, but I haven’t. I don’t want it to be bad for you.”

“Don’t be silly! Actually… I haven’t either.”

“What?”

Ah Ting blushes. “I thought you wanted to… because I thought you were that ‘type’… so I pretended like I have experience… to make you happy.”

“You’re silly!” Ah Lok shakes his head at Ah Ting. He lets out a sigh of a relief. “Good thing you were faking! I was scared for a moment because I thought you weren’t as innocent as you seem!”

Ah Ting laughs uncomfortably. “I guess we’ll order a movie on the hotel’s TV then.”

“I haven’t… because I wanted to wait for that special someone. I think that’s you. Even though we just started I can tell it’s you. You’re going to change my life, Chung Ka Ting.”

Ah Lok and Ah Ting slept together. To commemorate their special “first time”, they took pictures.

Stealing a page from Edison Chen, Ah Ting pretended to take her broken pink laptop to the computer repair shop. A few days later she pretended to be a hacker and sent herself an e-mail, threatening to “leak” her private pictures that were “stolen”.

Ah Ting showed Ah Lok the e-mail in tears. “I’m so sorry, Ah Lok! I should have deleted those pictures before I took my laptop to the repair shop!”

“I can’t believe they would steal something so private from their customer! Which repair shop was it? We have to sue them!”

“Ah Lok, don’t! I don’t want this to be a big deal.”

“We can’t let a criminal like that live outside of the law! I won’t accept it. I’m a lawyer. I always want justice!”

“Ah Lok, please,” Ah Ting begs.

“This person is outrageous. Demanding $250,000 from us? I won’t be a piece of meat for someone to chop!”

The tears fall from Ah Ting’s eyes. “If these pictures are released, I’ll be ruined! I’m the face for ‘Ka Yan’ right now. I don’t want to bring trouble to your dad’s company. Furthermore, you’re building a name for yourself in Hong Kong as a lawyer. If this scandal breaks… I’m afraid it will negatively affect your future. The bottom line is that it’s my fault.”

Ah Lok hugs the crying Ah Ting. “It’ll be okay. Nothing will happen.”

“But you said you won’t let a criminal like that live outside of the law.”

“It doesn’t make me happy, but I’ll pay him to keep him quiet. I don’t want anyone using our precious ‘first night’ pictures against us.” Ah Lok kisses Ah Ting on the forehead.

Ah Ting happily counted the money that Ah Lok left for the “hacker” in a trashcan. She strongly approved herself for dating Ah Lok.

Ah Ting met Man Gwai Fei (Stephanie Che) at “Ka Yan” company.

One day after a photo shoot, Gwai Fei called Ah Ting into her office.

“Miss Man, I was told you wanted to see me?” Ah Ting walks into Gwai Fei’s office.

“Yes.” Gwai Fei smiles at Ah Ting.

“Is something wrong with the photos that I took? Are they really bad? I’m sorry! I’m an amateur,” Ah Ting apologizes.

“No, the pictures are fabulous.”

“Then…?”

“Miss Chung, I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Me?” Ah Ting laughs ignorantly.

“You’re Auntie Chi’s beloved god-daughter and currently living with the Kams.”

Ah Ting looks at Gwai Fei puzzled. She wasn’t sure what Gwai Fei was after.

“You used to date Sek Biu, the grandson of the millionaire Sir Chan. The next day after you two broke up you started dating our ‘prince’, Wong Tsz Lok.”

Ah Ting laughs nervously. “Miss Man, how come you know my ‘history’ so well?”

“People talk, Miss Chung. Actually… do you mind if I call you Ah Ting?”

“No, sure go ahead. It sounds more personal.”

“I don’t believe you’re a simple girl like you make yourself appear to be,” Gwai Fei states flat-out.

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Jumping from one rich son to the next… I don’t believe it’s a coincidence.”

“Ah Biu cheated on me! There was a third party! Everyone knows that! Ah Lok comforted me and made me feel wanted and beautiful again! It’s that simple!” Ah Ting defends herself.

“That simple? Or… did you arrange it?”

Ah Ting was shocked. “What? How can you suggest that? What kind of girl would set herself up to be cheated on and allow a third party to come in?”

“A girl who’s heartless and money-hungry and just wants to dig some gold. Am I right?” Gwai Fei smiles at Ah Ting.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ah Ting gets up. “If there’s nothing else, I’m going to leave now.”

Gwai Fei gets up and stops Ah Ting from leaving. “Why the rush? Scared that I’ll expose your lies to the world?”

“No! I just can’t stand to listen to crazy talk!”

“Ah Ting… or should I call you Katy?”

Ah Ting opens her eyes wide. “Katy” was the name she used back in the mainland when she was a performer at the rich gentlemen’s night club. She sits back down.

“I thought you’d be more interested in talking to me. I know all about you, Ah Ting.” Gwai Fei smiles slyly as she sits back down in her own chair. She pulls out some pictures. “You’re a very pretty girl. Your big eyes and soft face make you look so innocent. As Katy…” She whistles. “No wonder you got all of the richest customers!” She displays pictures of a sexily-clad Ah Ting in provocative poses with businessmen.

Ah Ting was nervous. “Please don’t tell anyone! I was a dumb little girl back then. They lied to me! They forced me to be a singer and dancer at that night club! I didn’t want to do it! I came to Hong Kong because I wanted a new chance at life. I wanted to escape!”

Gwai Fei laughs.

Ah Ting didn’t know what Gwai Fei wanted.

“You’re a marvelous actress,” Gwai Fei comments.

“Miss Man, please!” Ah Ting was at the brink of tears, scared to death that her “secrets” were going to be exposed.

“Don’t cry. There’s no need to cry. Your secrets are safe with me.”

Ah Ting was unconvinced.

“I called you in because I have a little… business proposal.”

“Business?”

“I’ll be frank. I don’t care that you’re a conniving, fake, gold-digging ex-showgirl. You can keep digging gold from that stupid boy for all I care. What I care about is your talent and connections.”

Ah Ting was still confused.

“I hate the Kams. I want to tear them apart. I never want them to have a happy day for the rest of their lives.” Gwai Fei had glaring, evil eyes. She laughs sinisterly.

Ah Ting was scared of Gwai Fei. It was her first time encountering such an “evil” person.

“This is where you come in. I want to use your relationship with the Kams to my advantage. With your exquisite acting, I’m confident you can carry out my plans. I want you to tear the Kam family apart from within. I want them to argue all of the time!”

“But… they already do argue all of the time!” Ah Ting raises up.

Gwai Fei stops, dumb-founded. She had forgotten that the Kams loved to insult one another and argue over petty matters. “Oh. That’s true. In any case, I want to break up their family! In return, no one will ever know ‘Katy’ exists. You’ll be able to continue being the innocent and sweet Chung Ka Ting in everyone’s eyes.”

From that day onwards, Ah Ting worked for Gwai Fei.

Ah Biu (Raymond Lam) ended his mistake of a relationship with Ah Ting (Leila Tong), but he could not openly date Ah Fan (Tavia Yeung) yet. To protect Ah Fan from being viewed as a “third party”, they decided to wait until some time had passed before getting together. In the meantime, they would keep their distance.

“Sharing Sweetness’s” grand opening day arrived. After several weeks of working with Ah Biu to prepare her bakery for its opening, Ah Fan’s dream bakery had become a reality. Everyone gathered to celebrate the opening of Ah Fan’s bakery. The Lams, Seks, Kams, and Wongs all came to support Ah Fan.

Just as Ah Fan was about to cut the red ribbon, Ah Ting suddenly shows up.

“Ah Ting? I thought you were sick, what are you doing here?” Nim Chi (Nancy Sit) asks.

“I’ve figured it out. I know why Ah Biu broke up with me!” Ah Ting shouts.

“Broke up? What?” Nim Chi looks at Ah Ting and Ah Biu, shocked.

“Sek Biu, you told me that there wasn’t a ‘third party’, that you just simply changed and believed we weren’t right. You said we had no future and that we shouldn’t have dated to begin with. It’s been months since we started dating! You really want to tell me that you have no feelings for me? I’ve been thinking about this all night… now I know who the third party is.” The tears fall from Ah Ting’s eyes. She points to Ah Fan. “It’s Lam Yuk Fan! She’s our ‘third party’! It’s because of her that you broke up with me. You’ve spent more time with her in the last few weeks helping her to open up this bakery than you have with me. At first I thought it was just you helping out a good friend… but it turns out that you two are more than friends. I am so hurt…” Ah Ting cries.

Extremely embarrassed, Ah Fan drops the red ribbon and runs off from her own opening.

Ah Biu runs after Ah Fan to comfort her.

Everyone gossips about Ah Fan being the “third party” like her mom and breaking up Ah Biu and Ah Ting.

Ah Ting continues to cry pitifully.

Ah Lok (Bosco Wong) hands her a handkerchief to wipe her eyes and nose.

“Thank you,” Ah Ting says.

Hoping to diffuse the situation, Chan Hung (Sheren Tang) steps up and takes charge of the opening ceremony. She brings the focus away from the “personal drama” that just erupted with Ah Ting accusing Ah Fan of being a “third party” back to Ah Fan’s delicious pastries. Hung successfully saved “Sharing Sweetness’s” opening day from being a complete disaster.

Ah Lok felt sorry for the crying Ah Ting who seemingly just had her heart broken. He decided to comfort her. He drives her up to the mountain to get some “fresh air” so that her mind could be cleared.

“I’m so silly. I thought it was my fault that our relationship ended. It turns out there was another woman…”

“I know Ah Fan. She’s not that kind of girl,” Ah Lok defends his good friend.

“Didn’t you see how Ah Biu ran after her to comfort her right away? You really think there’s nothing between them?”

“I don’t know about Ah Biu, but I believe in Ah Fan. She would never do anything to hurt anyone.”

“Then you think it’s my fault?”

“I don’t think it’s fair to put the blame for the failure of a relationship on anyone.”

“But we were going so well! We had no problems… then all of a sudden he wants to break up.”

“In any case, I don’t believe Ah Fan is a ‘third party’. Maybe it’s Ah Biu’s fault from beginning to end. Maybe he has a fickle heart. Maybe he was just playing you. Maybe-”

“Maybe I’m not good enough for him.” Ah Ting sobs.

Ah Lok frowns. “Don’t say that. It’s he who isn’t worthy of you.”

“You’re just saying that to comfort me. You don’t mean it.”

“I do. Chung Ka Ting, you are so beautiful.” Ah Lok places his hands on Ah Ting’s cheeks and wipes her tears to the side.

Ah Ting’s face grew hot.

Taking in the moment, Ah Ting kisses Ah Lok. He was surprised by the sudden advance, but the feeling of Ah Ting’s soft lips seduced him.

Ah Ting blushes and looks away after they break apart. “I’m sorry… I don’t know what came into me.”

“Sorry?” Ah Lok tries to kiss Ah Ting again, but she resists.

“I shouldn’t be doing this. I just broke up.”

“He broke your heart. You’re not wrong to move on.”

“I don’t want to rush into a relationship again. I don’t want you to all of a sudden say that we were a mistake from the start… that you didn’t know what got into you. I don’t want you to regret dating me.”

“Regret? I don’t know the meaning of that word.” Ah Lok gives Ah Ting a warm beam.

Ah Ting smiles sweetly at Ah Lok.

Ah Biu took Ah Fan home and told her not to worry because Hong Kong people easily forget, especially since the next scandal is always just around the corner. He told her to just continue life like normal and open up her bakery in the morning for business. As long as her pastries were delicious, people would come. He was confident that they would not be deterred from “Sharing Sweetness” because of rumors of the owner being a “third party”.

Ah Biu returned home to find Hung waiting for him.

“Mom.”

“Ah Biu, where have you been?”

“I was comforting Ah Fan.”

“So it’s true. You cheated on Ah Ting.”

“Mom, you can’t say it like that.”

“Then what can I say it as? You chose to date Ah Ting. All of a sudden you two break up and you’re already with another girl. If this isn’t the action of a cheater I don’t know what is.”

“Mom.” Ah Biu frowns.

“Ah Biu ever since you rushed into a relationship with Ah Ting, I could tell something was wrong with you. You weren’t serious about it at all. You two didn’t understand each other and never had any heart-to-heart discussions. It was always doing something together. I repeatedly asked you about it and you kept telling me that you wanted to take it ’slow’ and ‘easy’… now you’re in another relationship. What is going on with you? Do you want to play with love? Love can’t be played… people end up getting hurt.”

“I know. I shouldn’t have dated Ah Ting. I never had the ‘feeling’ with her.”

“Then why did you?”

“I was stupid. I wasn’t thinking. Actually all along I’ve loved Ah Fan.”

“Is she the girl you were telling me about before you started dating Ah Ting?”

“Yes.”

A light shined in Hung’s eyes as she connected the points and realized what happened. “If you truly loved Ah Fan, then why did you date Ah Ting in the first place?”

“I had told Ah Fan I had feelings for her too early. She rejected me. It was awkward. We couldn’t see each other again. I thought that if I dated someone else it wouldn’t be awkward anymore. We could see each other again…”

“Ah Biu,” Hung shakes her head, “That’s not a way to handle relationships! That’s just childish and immature. If you love someone, you’ll continue to love that person and wait for him or her. You won’t just rush into a relationship with someone else for the sake of ‘moving on’.” Hung sighs.

“I know.” Ah Biu sighs. “It’s such a mess because of me.”

“Do you know that you’re putting Ah Fan into a very difficult situation? It is the worst feeling in the world for a woman to be called or thought of as a ‘third party’…”

“But she’s not a ‘third party’!”

“The mouths of people are vicious. They like to gossip and believe the worst.”

Just as Hung had predicted, Ah Fan was ridiculed and scolded as a “third party”. Her bakery suffered and people avoided “Sharing Sweetness” because they could not support a business run by a woman who “steals” other people’s boyfriends. Ah Fan was extremely hurt. After opening for only a week, she had to close her shop.

“Ah Fan, you can’t close the bakery!” Ah Biu urges.

“Do you know what people are calling my bakery? ‘Sharing Her Boyfriend’! I can’t handle this.”

“Ah Fan, you’re stronger than this. Don’t listen to what other people say!”

“I thought I was… but it turns out that I’m not. I can’t handle this pressure. I can’t deal with the hate. People think this Lam Yuk Fan is a cheap ‘third party’ who steals boyfriends. There’s no place in Hong Kong for me. There’s nothing scarier than rumors…” Ah Fan cries.

Ah Ting’s scheme allowed her to break free from Ah Biu and run into the arms of Ah Lok. In the process she damaged Ah Fan’s reputation and ruined her dream.

Ah Ting (Leila Tong) decided it was time to withdraw herself from her “relationship” with Ah Biu (Raymond Lam) because she wasn’t getting any of the benefits she thought she would when she made him her target, but of course she could not just break up with him. She had to make it so that he would break up with her. She made it so that the two of them spent very little time together.

Ah Biu was not bothered by the fact that he rarely saw and spoke with Ah Ting. He was too busy with Ah Fan (Tavia Yeung).

Ah Fan’s baked goods were a success at “Tung Mat Yuen” and the demand was growing by the day, so Ah Fan decided that the time was right for “Sharing Sweetness” to open up its own store.

“With the bad economy, there are plenty of vacant stores and the price to rent is cheaper!” Ah Fan smiles. “I think I might make it since I already have a following.”

“Or… you might end up being another one of those ‘vacant stores’,” Ah Biu teases.

Ah Fan playfully hits him.

Ah Biu and Ah Fan went all around Hong Kong looking at different store locations and trying to find the best deal and perfect spot. It was a lot of work visiting all of the places, but they had fun going together. They visited dozens of stores before they found “the one”.

It was an unexplainable feeling, but they both looked at each other in understanding.

“I can see it…” Ah Biu begins.

“My bakery… ‘Sharing Sweetness’,” Ah Fan beams.

Ah Biu opens up the glass door for Ah Fan to walk into.

It was an empty store, but in their eyes, they could see Ah Fan’s cute and cozy bakery. Ah Fan imagined baking in the back and then bringing out her fresh pastries for hungry customers. Ah Biu envisioned Ah Fan’s cakes all lined up in the glass displays. He could smell the delicious aroma. They could see the tables, the happy customers, and the decorations.

“Ah Biu-” Ah Fan began.

Ah Biu nods his head. He smiles at her.

Ah Lok (Bosco Wong) stopped by to help Ah Fan with the details of her lease and rent. In the end they were able to bargain the shop for a good price.

Ah Fan gave Ah Lok a hug to thank him for his help.

Ah Biu felt jealous at the sight.

“Ah Fan,” Ah Lok gave Ah Fan a red envelope, “here’s a small blessing for your new bakery.”

“Ah Lok, I can’t accept this. I want to open up this bakery on my own. I don’t want to depend on anyone.”

“Ah Fan, don’t be too stubborn. The banks aren’t willing to give out loans to ‘risky’ new businesses like yours.”

Ah Fan felt hurt by Ah Lok’s words. “If I don’t take a risk on myself who will?”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that-”

“I know my bakery won’t end up a multi-million dollar franchise like ‘Ka Ho Yuet Yuen’. I don’t care. I just want to make people happy with my pastries. I just want to do what I like. This is my dream. I want to depend on myself to realize it. If I fail, I’ll suffer the losses. I don’t want to ‘risk’ anyone’s money.”

Ah Lok frowns. “I’m sorry, Ah Fan.”

“Ah Fan,” Ah Biu speaks up, “actually I already set up an appointment at the bank for you for your loan.”

“Really? That sounds great. Thanks, Ah Biu.”

Ah Biu smiles triumphantly at Ah Lok.

Ah Biu went with Ah Fan to the bank. Unfortunately, the bank did not have confidence in Ah Fan’s bakery or in her ability to repay her loan. Ah Biu suggested that he could co-sign the loan. With Ah Biu on the loan, the bank was going to approve it.

Ah Fan resisted. “Ah Biu, I said it many times. I have to open this bakery on my own. I don’t want anyone to help me.”

“Ah Fan, don’t be so stubborn! We all need help. I want to take this ‘risk’ with you… because in my eyes, there is no ‘risk’. I have full confidence in you.”

Ah Fan was touched.

With Ah Biu as a co-signer, Ah Fan got her loan and the capital to buy supplies and decorations for her bakery. Ah Biu helped her every step of the way. They cleaned up the store until it was sparkling and gave it a fresh coat of paint. They shopped for ingredients, baking supplies, tables, chairs, decorations, and many other things. Slowly, “Sharing Sweetness” was shaping into the bakery that Ah Fan envisioned. Whenever Ah Biu had a free moment, he was there with Ah Fan helping her.

Through the weeks that they spent together, Ah Biu and Ah Fan mended their broken friendship which had been strained ever since Ah Biu abruptly declared his feelings for Ah Fan. This friendship was then further tested when Ah Biu suddenly started dating Ah Ting. With all of the time they were spending alone together and with Ah Ting out of the picture, they started feeling comfortable around each other again, joking and laughing. It was a very intimate feeling as they worked towards making “Sharing Sweetness” a reality.

Ah Fan found herself unknowingly falling for Ah Biu while his feelings for her intensified.

After several long and hard weeks of working, “Sharing Sweetness” was ready to open for business.

Ah Biu was helping Ah Fan bake in the kitchen the night before the grand opening.

“Tomorrow is the big day!” Ah Biu grins.

“Yes,” Ah Fan nods with a big smile on her face. “I can’t believe ‘Sharing Sweetness’ is going to open its doors!”

“Of course you can. We’ve been working hard to make this bakery come to life.”

Ah Fan turns to Ah Biu and with warm eyes and a sweet smile, she sincerely says, “Ah Biu, thank you so much for helping me in the last few weeks. You’ve done so much for me.”

“Don’t mention it! I should do it. I want your dreams to come true. Your dreams… are my dreams.”

Ah Fan felt her face growing hot.

“Ah Fan, being with you makes me so happy.”

“Me too…”

“Actually… I really missed you during the time we didn’t see each other or talked at all.”

Ah Fan was quiet.

“I was really stupid. I was so scared of you! I blocked you online!” Ah Biu laughs, “How childish was I?” He pauses before confessing, “Ah Fan, I still really like you.”

Ah Fan’s heart was pounding. “Ah Biu…” She stops kneading the dough. Her eyes tear up. “I also like you! I shouldn’t have turned you down that day. It’s just that I wasn’t ready… now I am.”

Ah Biu and Ah Fan embrace in a kiss.

Their kiss ends abruptly because of Ah Biu’s phone. It was Ah Ting calling. They had forgotten about her and the fact that Ah Biu was dating Ah Ting at that time.

Suddenly Ah Fan felt cheap. Like her mom, she had become a “third party”.

“You should go… it’s your girlfriend,” Ah Fan was trying hard not to cry.

“Ah Fan, are you okay?”

“Just go. Please.”

“I don’t want to go. I want to be with you.”

“You can’t. I’m not your girlfriend. I don’t want to be a ‘third party’…” The tears fall from Ah Fan’s eyes. “Please go.”

“You’re not a ‘third party’! Ah Fan, I love you. I’ll break up with Ah Ting. She doesn’t mean anything to me.”

“You’re so heartless? Ah Ting is a good girl! We can’t wrong her…”

It suddenly dawned on Ah Biu how stupid he had been. He regrets dating Ah Ting when he knew from the beginning that the person he loved was Ah Fan. He never had feelings for Ah Ting. He was only using her to “move on” and show Ah Fan that they could still be “friends”. If he had just waited until Ah Fan was ready, this “mess” would not have happened in the first place. The phone kept ringing. “Ah Fan, I’m sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking. I wasn’t thinking! When you turned me down, I was so depressed! I wanted to see you again, but I couldn’t because it was awkward. I didn’t want you to think that I still had feelings for you so I rushed into a ‘relationship’ with Ah Ting. I used her as ‘proof’ that I had ‘moved on’ so that I could see you again.”

“Ah Biu, what do you take relationships as? Something to play with?”

“I don’t know what got into me at that time… I guess after getting rejected three times in a row, I became crazy. I wondered whether or not there was something wrong with me that I had such bad luck in love. I’m sorry, Ah Fan. It’s just that I had a feeling you were the ‘one’ and I wanted to be your ‘first’. I didn’t want to come too late again and not be able to compare to some other guy in your heart. It turns out that love isn’t just about coming first. It’s about timing. I was too desperate to rush into a relationship with you. We had only just met. Although we spent a lot of time together, it was too soon. I shouldn’t have told you I had feelings for you so fast. If I hadn’t, we would have continued to progress well and none of this mess would have happened.”

Ah Fan sighs. “We can’t undo the past. I’ll still be considered the ‘third party’ even if you break up with Ah Ting…”

Ah Biu embraces Ah Fan, “We’ll get through this together.”

Ah Ting had set it up so that Ah Biu and Ah Fan could develop their feelings. She wanted him to break up with her and for Ah Fan to be viewed as a “third party” so that the failure of their relationship would have nothing to do with her. She would then use the break-up to her advantage to get with Ah Lok.

Just as she expected, Ah Biu called her out to “talk”. Mustering up her emotions and preparing for her “crying scene”, Ah Ting went out to meet Ah Biu. He broke up with her, insisting that they weren’t working and that they had no future. He told her that he didn’t love her and that he was wrong for wasting their time and emotions.

With tears flowing down her cheeks, Ah Ting pitifully asks, “There’s a third party, isn’t there? All along we were going great! Everyone said we were a great couple. Now all of a sudden you tell me you never loved me and that it was a mistake from the start. There’s another woman! There has to be… Who’s the third party?”

“There’s no ‘third party’, Ah Ting. I’m sorry.”

“Sek Biu, I hate you!”

Ah Ting ran away in tears but as soon as her back was turned to Ah Biu, she had a big grin on her face.

It happened in the US. Gone are the days of “powerhouse” sitcoms (situational comedies) that used to score big in ratings and fans. Gone are the days of sitcoms that lasted for many long and fruitful years. Gone are the days… There are no longer shows like Friends, I Love Lucy, Cheers, Will & Grace, The Golden Girls, and so on. Sitcoms in the US are now short-lasting (they’re considered lucky if they make it past a few years). Ratings are now no longer impressive. Modern sitcoms in the US can only merely survive.

Who could have imagined that the death of the sitcom is also happening in TVB? TVB’s recent attempts at launching a successful, long-lasting sitcom has been futile after the beloved classic Virtues of Harmony concluded its 4-year run back in early 2005.

This leads many questions to be asked. Why is the sitcom dying? More importantly… can it be saved?

The ingredients for a successful sitcom
The top 3 most successful long-running productions that TVB has produced are 2000’s 100-episode War of the Genders with Dayo Wong and Dodo Cheng, late 1990’s 1,128-episode A Kindred Spirit, and early 2000’s 770-episode Virtues of Harmony. The sitcoms that TVB launched in-between or after these series haven’t been able to live up. In fact, they are generally forgotten.

What is it about these 3 series that made them garner high ratings and much love from the audience?

The answer is quite simple — they have the ingredients to be a “hit” sitcom.

The single most important factor of a sitcom is its cast. If a cast is not charming or does not contain enough “well-known” stars, then the audience will not be attracted to watch — no matter how hilarious, well-written, or creative the script is. For a sitcom (and a series at that), casting is extremely crucial. If the audience cannot accept the cast, they will not welcome the characters into their homes night after night.

The next factor is the storyline or premise of the series. Obviously, every series must have a “point” and a purpose for watching. The storylines of a successful sitcom has multiple running arcs that hook the audience into watching. If the audience doesn’t find a charming or interesting storyline, no matter how great the cast is, the sitcom will fail.

A good cast and an engaging storyline lead to an entertaining, successful, and fruitful sitcom.

TVB changed the well-established formula of its sitcom
To my knowledge, ever since TVB began doing sitcoms, they were always long-running versions of their regular series. There was a “concrete” and continuous storyline. Every episode followed the previous and after every few episodes was a new “subplot” focusing on another character/couple. This format worked wonderfully for series like Kindred, Virtues, and Gender. Every character/couple thus got its own focus at one point or another and the audience always had something fresh or new to watch every week or so.

For some reason, after Virtues concluded, TVB decided to change this formula — which had worked so well previously.

They first tried to launch the embarrassing and incredulous Sex and the City and To Catch the Uncatchable cross-over: Women On The Run — which was very short lived and extremely poorly-rated (it is perhaps one of the most lowest-rated TVB-produced series). The series aired once every week (during the weekend); it can be argued that this series never built a following because of this.

Christine Ng, Joyce Tang, and Kingdom Yuen were well-established actresses and likable, but the 4th member, Belinda Hammnet was not. The audience also could not accept Nat Chan as the male lead. Thus the unattractive cast was a big downer for a series said to be HK’s Sex and the City; the allure and attraction wasn’t there.

The other big flaw was the bad storyline. The storylines were not linked together; every episode was a different “case” and each case was self-contained and solved in the same episode. The suspense in watching and the need to watch the next episode was not there.

TVB tried to save the series by adding “Miss Hong Kong 2003″ Mandy Cho into the series as a villain, but it was too late — so they just let the series die and forgot about it.

You would think that TVB would learn its lesson and revert back to the plot format that made past sitcoms engaging, but no…

The downfall of TVB’s sitcom — product placement
In the summer of 2003, TVB allowed sponsors to advertise in their series. Of course, the sitcom was the target of advertisers as it aired daily and could reach the largest number of audience the fastest. Virtues of Harmony II was very successful with product placement, bringing in $4-5 million a month on product placement alone for TVB. The sponsors were very happy because the audience bought the products used by the beloved Kam family.

TVB thus saw the sitcom as its new “money making” venue. In 2006, it launched a new sitcom with a premise similar to Virtues — about the crazy antics and lives of a “big” 3-generation family. This sitcom, Welcome to the House, revolved around product placement. The response to House was not good. The ratings were lukewarm at best, but the series lasted for 239 episodes thanks to product placements. The ultimate cut came from the sponsors pulling the plug as it was rumored that they were not making much money from advertising.

As with Women, House’s episodes were self-contained — much like an American sitcom. Every episode was a different storyline and every storyline finished once the credits rolled for the day. There was some continuity of course, but it was not withstanding. It was as if TVB was trying to make its sitcom… well, a sitcom. The audience complained that House was “boring” and “pointless”.

House fared much better than Women though (but that isn’t saying much).

The reason why Best Selling Secrets was an improvement
In 2007, House finally wrapped and TVB announced its new sitcom plans. The buzz was big for this sitcom from the start because it was said that the beloved TVB “Best Actress” winner Esther Kwan would make her comeback to TVB with this series. Indeed, Best Selling Secrets was seen as the sitcom to “save” the sitcom.

Disappointingly, the ratings were not much better than House’s — even with a big star like Esther. The rest of the cast was not very attractive and mostly consisted of lesser known stars and kelefe’s. Even worse, Secrets followed the “self-contained episodes” format. However, there was some continuity in the storyline. The main “hook” was that Esther’s character was actually Vin Choi’s mother and she came back [after leaving him] to be a mother to him. There was a purpose in watching to see how the “big secret” about Esther and Vin’s relationship would develop and be revealed.

Unfortunately, once the “hook” was gone, the series somewhat lost its continuity and became almost exclusively self-contained like House was back 2006.

Fortunately, sweet romances between couples such as Vincent (Geoffrey Wong) & Wong Ka Lam (Esther), Kau Chun (Tsui Wing) & Diana (Elvina Kong), Mo Gei Yung (Stephen Au) & Queenie (Florence Kwok), and Ah Cheung (Wayne Lai) & Doris (Rachel Kan) made the series interesting and kept viewers happy.

Secrets fares much better in terms of script and entertainment merit than House because of one big reason — it has little product placement. Because of un-ideal ratings, Secrets failed to attract sponsors. The writers of Secrets therefore actually have to think of storylines rather than just writing to incorporate products into the script. This is the main reason why Secrets is actually pretty enjoyable for the most part. It is a refreshing and relaxing series sometimes and some episodes are very good. It’s not very funny or comical (although it tries to be), but its saving point (and the reason why I watch select episodes) is that it has some good dramatic storylines and once in a while is very touching to watch. A number of episodes do feel a bit “pointless” because there is no linkage and it lacks development because each episode is different.

The sitcom is dead…
In the past it would take a lot for TVB to extend a long-running production. Good buzz and good ratings were a given. These days? Not so much. It makes me upset when I see sitcoms like House, Secrets, and the current Off Pedder get extended so “easily”. It seems like TVB is just desperate to have a sitcom on the air to “fill” up the time/space that it doesn’t care that ratings are only in the 20’s. It’s like they’re lazy and don’t want to launch a new series so they keep the current one on for as long as possible.

Gone are the days of large fan bases for TVB’s sitcoms. Gone are the days where TVB’s sitcoms got ratings higher than the upper 20’s (let alone greater than 30 pts). Gone are the days…

As with the US, the sitcom is also dead in TVB. It can only merely survive.

It’s time to go back to old roots
It’s not that the audience doesn’t like the sitcom. It’s just that there isn’t a reason to follow a sitcom religiously anymore.

The “big” stars obviously do not want to be tied down by a long-running production, but there is a way for the sitcom to live on — and that is to be reborn… or more accurately, to go back to the way it was before.

In the US, pure comedies in the form of the sitcom are no longer popular, but comedy mixed with drama in soap opera-style plots excel. In fact, this new genre — the “dramedy” — is making waves. Desperate Housewives re-launched this genre in 2004 and has been very successful with it. Ugly Betty is also taking this genre into new heights. Even dramas such as Grey’s Anatomy and Brothers & Sisters have comedy mixed in. It was once thought that the US audience does not like series that have continuity [because series air only one episode a week] since they don’t have time to follow and remember what happened, but this is changing lately because of TiVo, iTunes, and streaming full episodes online. People are embracing and loving series that have linking episodes and continuing story arcs.

For TVB’s long-running production to survive and achieve acclaim and regain the “face” that it once had, it has to stop being a sitcom — and become a series again.

Casting issue aside, it’s crucial that there must be continuity in the plot. There must be a reason to watch. There must be a point in watching. There must be a purpose. There has to be dramatic storylines and points that hook the audience into watching. There must be character development. The series must feel like it is going somewhere. Pure comedies and self-contained episodes just do not fly well with the TVB audience — a modern audience that has time constraints and things to do.

Unlike the US audience and unlike the audience in Hong Kong, most of the TVB audience has to download rent in order to watch. Who is willing to pay time and money to watch every single episode of a sitcom especially if the episodes do not link and there’s no continuity?

In Virtues, every 5 episodes or so was a continuous subplot. Every week, the audience had a different storyline to watch and a reason to tune in every night to see how this storyline progressed. The following week, they would tune in for a new storyline. For Kindred, its multiple storylines and numerous characters also lasted as “arcs” every few weeks. There was a reason to watch every night to see how the series would develop. Off, Secrets, House, and Women all lack this “continuity” factor that is so crucial.

The audience doesn’t feel a need to watch every single episode. This explains the low ratings and why the TVB sitcom has been unsuccessful as of late.

It’s time for the “sitcom” to become a “long-running series” again. If TVB wants good ratings and buzz again, the “sitcom” must return to the old TVB roots.

“Auntie Chi!” Ah Biu (Raymond Lam) smiles sweetly.

Nim Chi (Nancy Sit) looks at Ah Biu suspiciously before gasping, “Oh my god! You want to ask for my permission to marry Ah Ting?! Yes! Yes! I approve!”

Ah Biu blinks at Nim Chi, dumb-founded.

“Auntie Chi! What are you saying?! You’re that eager to ’sell’ me off?” Ah Ting (Leila Tong) comes from behind with her arms folded, pretending to be upset.

Nim Chi blushes. “Of course not! I’m just eager to drink the tea of this god-son-in-law.” She smiles at Ah Biu.

“Actually… I wanted to ask you a favor.”

“Anything!”

“Well, not that I’m criticizing ‘Tung Mat Yuen’s’ egg tarts… but… what do you think about adding more pastry items?”

“More pastry items?”

Ah Biu nods his head. “Everyone loves to eat sweets, right? I think it will attract new customers and will help ‘Tung Mat Yuen’s’ business grow!”

“Ah, so you want to ask for a raise for your parents, huh?”

“What?”

“New items on the menu mean more work… which should mean an increased pay.”

Ah Biu shakes his head. “No! I meant selling pastry items from an ‘outside source’.”

Nim Chi gives Ah Biu an unconvinced look. “I don’t know… that sounds more costly than beneficial.”

“What if the ‘outside source’ is free?”

“Free? Who would take such a loss?”

“I have this friend who’s trying to open a bakery. I want to help her get a jump-start by getting her ‘name’ out there… or at least what she can make,” Ah Biu explains. He gives Nim Chi a box filled with baked goods. “My friend is Lam Yuk Fan. She made these. They’re really good. Why don’t you give it a try?”

“Lam Yuk Fan… as in Lam Sin’s daughter?” Nim Chi asks.

“Yes. How do you know?”

Nim Chi laughs merrily and teases, “Ah Biu, don’t you know that we’re all related in six degrees? Actually, Lam Sin is my second son’s father-in-law. I know Ah Fan! She’s a very sweet girl. She made these? Wah! They look good.” Nim Chi takes a bite out of a pastry. After chewing in ecstasy, she shoves the box back at Ah Biu. “Take these away!”

Ah Biu frowns at Nim Chi. “You don’t like it?”

“If you keep the whole box here, I’ll eat it all and end up having diabetes!” She laughs, “You know me, I’m healthy and round! I can’t afford to eat sweets… but I’m in love with these pastries!”

Ah Biu was pleased. “So you’ll allow Ah Fan to sell her pastries here?”

Nim Chi nods her head in agreement.

Ah Biu excitedly tells Ah Fan (Tavia Yeung) the good news. “Ah Fan! I’ve got you your first job!”

“Don’t pull my leg!”

“Remember that pastry box you gave me this morning?”

“Yes, it was for you and Ah Ting.”

“Actually… I gave it to a businesswoman to try and she loved them! She’s more than happy to allow you to cater for her café!”

Ah Fan was shocked. “Are you serious?”

Ah Biu nods his head excitedly. “Yes! Congratulations!”

Ah Fan gives Ah Biu a hug. “I’m so happy!”

“You deserve it. In no time I’m sure your bakery will be open!” Ah Biu grins at Ah Fan.

With Ah Biu’s help, Ah Fan became the caterer for delicious new pastries at “Tung Mat Yuen”. Her items were an instant hit. Students loved walking in after a long and hard day at school and buying a pastry. The pastries also made great, convenient items for breakfast for people on-the-go in the mornings.

Ah Fan enjoyed great success. The name “Sharing Sweetness”, the name of Ah Fan’s dream bakery, was making its way through Hong Kong.

One day Ah Lok (Bosco Wong) was helping Ah Fan bring her pastries to “Tung Mat Yuen”.

“Thank you so much for helping me, Ah Lok!”

“No problem!” He smiles, “When you first started, you only had a few boxes to sell a day. Look at how many boxes you have now!”

Ah Fan grins back at him. “People are really kind for receiving my pastries so warmly!”

“It’s because they’re so good!” Ah Lok pretends to grab a cake.

“You’re finally here!” Nim Chi is relieved to see Ah Fan. “People have been waiting!”

“Sorry! Sorry!”

Ah Biu and Ah Ting come out to help Ah Lok and Ah Fan bring in the boxes of baked goods.

Nim Chi teases Ah Lok, “Wah! Ah Lok, I can’t believe Ah Fan can ask a ‘Prince’ like you to help her out!”

Hearing the word “prince”, Ah Ting’s ears perked up.

Ah Lok smiles. “Unfortunately so… that’s one of the ‘requirements’ of being friends.”

“Auntie Chi, you really know everyone, huh?” Ah Biu asks.

“Oh! Ah Lok, this is Ah Biu and Ah Ting. I don’t think you’ve met yet.”

Ah Biu and Ah Lok shake hands.

Ah Ting gives Ah Lok a sweet smile. He was immediately attracted by her beauty.

“Ah Lok is a lawyer as well as the son of ‘Ka Yan’ company’s owner. Hence, he’s the ‘prince’,” Nim Chi introduces.

Ah Ting eyed Ah Lok up and down. She recognized his name-brand suit and shoes and his expensive cologne. The shimmering diamond stud in his ear also caught her eye.

Growing tired that her dating Ah Biu was leading to nowhere and that she wasn’t getting the approval of Chan Hung (Sheren Tang), Ah Ting decided that it was time to end the “relationship”. Ah Ting looked at the way Ah Biu and Ah Fan were smiling sweetly at each other. A plan popped up in her head. She smiles mischievously.

Ah Yuet (Michael Tse) sat peacefully in his bedroom looking at his pictures with Ah Lo (Bondy Chiu). He smiles fondly remembering their memories. He holds the album close to his heart.

“Ah Lo…”

A tear slips out of his eye.

There was a knock at the door. It was Nim Chi (Nancy Sit). She had a bowl of sweet soup in her hands.

“Ma Chi.”

“I thought you might want something to sweeten up your mood.” Nim Chi places the bowl on his desk.

Ah Yuet forces a smile. “Thank you.”

The two sit down on his bed.

“You’re looking at pictures?” Nim Chi asks, noticing the photo album out.

“Yes.”

Nim Chi picks up the album and glances through. Her eyes become watery looking at the pictures, remembering Ah Lo. “Second daughter-in-law was something special, wasn’t she?”

Ah Yuet nods his head.

“She gave me four beautiful grandchildren and she loved my son.” Nim Chi smiles warmly.

“I also love her a lot,” Ah Yuet answers frankly.

“I know.” Nim Chi pauses for a long time before saying, “Ah Yuet, you don’t have to punish yourself.”

“Punish myself? What do you mean?”

“You don’t have to be ‘chaste’ to prove that you love her.”

“Ma Chi! How can you even say that? Do you really want to ‘push’ me to Ah Mei (Cutie Mui)?”

“Ah Mei is a very sweet and good girl. She loves you a lot.”

“I know that! Don’t you think I know? Actually I’m very grateful to her. I appreciate everything that she’s done for me in the last few months. Without her I might not be alive today.”

“Then you should show your appreciation.”

“I can’t do something wrong to Ah Lo.”

“You’re not doing anything wrong. Ah Lo would want you to be happy.”

“Do you know what Ah Lo’s greatest fear was? She was afraid that I’d be like her dad. She was afraid that I would cheat on her and leave her. She loves this family. I can’t betray her.”

“You’re not ‘betraying’ her. She’s not here anymore.”

“She still lives in my heart!”

Nim Chi was deeply touched by Ah Yuet’s love for Ah Lo.

“Ma Chi, no matter what you or anyone says, I won’t change. I’m not being ‘chaste’ to prove my love for Ah Lo. I want to be like you. After dad died, you’ve never even considered dating let alone re-marrying. You only cared for us. You only wanted to raise this family and make a warm and happy home.”

“That’s because I’m a woman. It’s different.”

“How is it different?”

“A woman can raise a family without a man, but a man-”

“Ma Chi, what are you saying? This is the 21st century! Men and women are equal. If a woman can do it, a man can do it too. I don’t believe that I can’t raise my children on my own.”

“Ah Yuet, you’re only one person. You have four children! It’s a lot of work. You don’t have the maternal ‘talents’ to do it.”

“I may not be naturally gifted, but with practice and experience, I believe I can do it. Ah Lo is supporting me from the heavens. I will bring up this family for her on my own.”

“On your own?”

“Yes,” Ah Yuet says with confidence.

“Okay.”

Nim Chi walks out of the bedroom.

Ah Yuet looks at his family portrait with determination.

Nim Chi went over to see Ah Mei.

“Auntie Chi?”

“You didn’t come over for dinner tonight. I made some sweet soup, in case you’re hungry.”

“That’s sweet. Thank you.”

“Ah Mei, actually… we all know the truth now.”

“The truth?”

Nim Chi nods her head. “Your love for my second son is very touching.”

Ah Mei blushes and looks away.

“You don’t have to be ashamed. Actually, I support you and Ah Yuet.”

“What?”

“Call me selfish, but I want my son to have a good marriage and a complete family. You two get along so well and my grandchildren love you.”

“Auntie Chi, please don’t say this. It’s not right.”

Nim Chi smiles sweetly at Ah Mei. “This is why I adore you. Don’t worry. There will be a happy ending.”

Nim Chi devised a plan to get Ah Yuet to realize his love for Ah Mei. She specifically instructed everyone not to help Ah Yuet take care of Foon Foon, Hei Hei, Fu jai, and Gwai mui. She wanted to prove that he needed help. Stubborn and determined to prove his own point that he, as a widower, could take care of his family on his own, Ah Yuet stood strong. While everyone sat around laughing to “Gai Dai Foon Siu”, Ah Yuet was busy tending to his kids every second of the day. He lost his sleep at night. He became very tired.

“You give up?” Nim Chi asks.

“Never! I can do this!”

“Okay. If you say so.”

The next moment Ah Yuet passed out from exhaustion. He was rushed to the hospital.

In his unconscious state, Ah Yuet had a vision of Ah Lo.

“Honey! Honey! You’re back!” Ah Yuet runs up to Ah Lo and hugs her tightly.

Ah Lo pushes him away.

“Honey?”

“You want to join me?”

Ah Yuet nods his head.

“Keep doing what you’re doing and you will.”

Ah Yuet frowns. “Am I so useless? I can’t take care of our kids?”

“Ah Yuet, we all need help.”

“But this kind of help… I can’t afford. I don’t want to wrong you.”

Ah Lo caresses Ah Yuet’s cheeks. She kisses him softly.

“I love you so much.” The tears streak Ah Yuet’s cheeks.

“I know.” Ah Lo smiles at Ah Yuet. “I actually didn’t know how much… until now.”

“I want to be with you.”

“You can’t. Now I know what people mean when they say that if you love someone, you would want that person to be happy. Ah Yuet, I’m not happy.”

“Why?”

“Seeing you so miserable… I can’t bear it! Ah Yuet, I want you to be happy.”

“My happiness is with you and our kids!”

Ah Lo was touched. “I know… but I’m not around anymore. I don’t blame you. I just want you to be happy. I want you to give our kids a complete family.” Ah Lo faded away into the dark background.

“Ah Lo! Ah Lo!”

Ah Yuet had another vision.

Before Ah Yuet’s eyes stood a young Ah Mei with her big, dorky glasses and shy demeanor. Next to her was the young version of himself. It was the first day they met. He saw how they became friends. He saw how he protected her and how they played together. He saw their days in school and how she used to help him with his homework and projects. He saw them grow up. The years continued to flash by. Ah Mei was always there, always silently loving him.

When her secret crush on him was exposed, she chose to “withdraw” herself before a love triangle could happen. She did not want to hurt Ah Lo or put Ah Yuet into a difficult position. She left Hong Kong. She left her family and friends for four years hoping to change her life and get over him. She came back with a new look, but she was still the same girl. She thought her love for Ah Yuet had died, but once she saw him in a vulnerable state after Ah Lo died, she had to help him get back on his feet. It turns out that Ah Mei never stopped loving Ah Yuet.

Every moment of his life, Ah Mei had helped him. She supported him endlessly without ever asking anything in return. It seemed like all she needed was to see him happy. She was so happy whenever Ah Yuet paid attention to her. A small, “meaningless” gift from him meant the world to her.

“So what if I love him? We won’t have any results. I’m just a friend to him… a god-mother to his children… it will always be this way,” he recalls Ah Mei crying to Ah Yat (Joyce Chen).

Ah Yuet cries realizing how much Ah Mei had done for him and how much she loved him. He wakes up with wet eyes.

Nim Chi and Ah Mei were in the hospital room by Ah Yuet’s bedside.

“Ah Yuet, I’m sorry!” Nim Chi was crying. “I was silly and stupid. I was trying to prove a point and it caused you to end up in the hospital. I’m sorry!”

Ah Yuet looks at Ah Mei and apologizes, “I’m sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?” Ah Mei asks.

“Without you, I probably would have died many months ago. Actually, I kind of did… after Ah Lo died. I just fell apart. My world crashed. You put the pieces back together. You brought me back to life. You told me there was more to life and encouraged me to keep fighting. You allowed me to continue to walk on this journey called life.”

“You’re silly! I should do that as your friend. We’re childhood friends. Don’t make such a big deal out of it,” Ah Mei insists.

Ah Yuet continues, “I caused you a lot of pain for loving me. You’ve done so much for me and have never gotten anything back in return.”

“I don’t expect to get anything back!”

“I know… but you should.”

“Ah Yuet, please don’t say this. You love Ah Lo. She’s my good sister. I know this very well. We can only be friends.”

Ah Yuet gets up and surprises Ah Mei with a hug. “Over the past few months you’ve been by my side through it all. Actually you have always been there for me, every moment of my life. You help me in more ways than I can say and probably more times than I know. You brighten up my life with your laughter and your sweet smile. I didn’t realize it until I ‘lost’ you. I didn’t realize how much you loved me and how much you’ve done for me. Ah Mei… I want to be able to see your happy face every day. I want your presence in my life. I want you to be by my side. Ah Mei, I love you.”

Ah Mei hugs Ah Yuet back.

“Ah Yuet, I’ve been waiting to hear these words for a very long time!” The happy tears flow from her eyes.

Ah Yuet and Ah Mei smile at each other.

After waiting for over twenty years, Ah Mei’s love for Ah Yuet was finally requited. At long last she was in the arms of the only person she ever loved.

Ah Lo (Bondy Chiu) had been “dead” for many months. In those months Ah Mei (Cutie Mui) supported Ah Yuet (Michael Tse). She brought him back to life and allowed him to continue life without Ah Lo. With her endless encouragement, Ah Yuet was resurrected.

Foon Foon, Hei Hei, Fu jai, and Gwai mui all adored Ah Mei, especially the latter two. Ah Mei would read to them and play with them. She provided a softer, gentler, and more caring maternal side that these kids had not received before. Ah Mei loved these god-children like her own, especially in the wake of Ah Lo’s death. She did not want them to grow up without a “mom” and she knew Ah Lo would want her to help take care of her kids.

One day Ah Mei was rocking Fu jai and Gwai mui in their cradle when the two both spoke their first word.

“Ma,” they called.

Ah Mei gasps in delight. “Fu jai, Gwai mui, you can talk now?” She grinned from ear-to-ear. She picked the twins up and ran outside. She yelled excitedly, “Fu jai and Gwai mui can speak now!”

Nim Chi (Nancy Sit) smiles, “Really?” She kisses their cheeks. “Did they call ‘grandma’ (ma ma)?”

“Not quite… they called me ‘mom’!” Ah Mei beams.

Fu jai and Gwai mui both call out, “Ma” again.

Nim Chi and everyone else laugh merrily.

Ah Yuet quickly jumps in and corrects, “Fu jai, Gwai mui, sister Mei isn’t your mom!” He takes the twins from Ah Mei and brings them back to his bedroom. He points to the family portrait that hung on the wall. “You see that pretty woman there? That’s your mom. Don’t make that mistake again, okay?” He nuzzles them sweetly. His eyes become watery thinking about Ah Lo and what a shame it was that she could not hear Fu jai and Gwai mui speak their first word.

Hearing Ah Yuet’s words to Fu jai and Gwai mui woke Ah Mei up from her fantasy. She feels her eyes becoming misty, so she excuses herself and leaves before she cries in front of everyone. She did not escape the eyes of Ah Yat (Joyce Chen), her ever-observant good friend though. Ah Yat goes out after Ah Mei.

Ah Mei was crying on the couch in the Seks’ apartment next door when Ah Yat walked in. She quickly runs over and comforts Ah Mei. “Ah Mei, are you okay?”

“I’m fine!” Ah Mei insists. “It’s nothing. I don’t know why I’m crying…”

“Is it because of what second brother said?”

“Why would it be? He didn’t say anything wrong.”

Ah Yat frowns at Ah Mei. “You’re always like this, never thinking about yourself.”

“Ah Yat, please don’t tell anyone about this. I don’t want anyone to be sad. Actually, Ah Yuet is very pitiful and so is your family. So much has happened in the last few months. There’s no need to add any more drama,” Ah Mei pleads.

“Ah Mei…” Ah Yat sighs.

“Honestly, I’m fine. I’m happy! I love Foon Foon, Hei Hei, Fu jai, and Gwai mui. I just want to help in any way that I can. After all, I’m their god-mother!”

“You also love my second brother,” Ah Yat says flatly.

“What?!” Ah Mei looks away and blushes. “Why would you say that? I don’t love Ah Yuet! He’s just my good friend.”

“Ah Mei, you don’t have to lie to me. I found out about your crush on my second brother many years ago and even encouraged you to tell him! I supported you to be with him back then in the ‘fight’ for him from-”

“Those feelings died! Have you forgotten? I went to England to study fashion design for four years! Four years! I changed my complete look! I’m a new girl. I don’t love Ah Yuet anymore.”

“If you didn’t love him would you support him so much in the last few months? Would you always be by his side taking care of his every need? Would you help to take care of his kids?”

Ah Mei was quiet.

“Ah Mei, this isn’t fair to you.”

“Ah Yat, please don’t say any more!”

“Second sister-in-law has passed away. You and second brother deserve happiness.”

“Ah Lo has only been dead for a few months! Her bones aren’t even cold yet! How can you say such a thing?”

“Second sister-in-law’s passing was a grave misfortune, but it’s the truth. She’s not going to come back to life!”

“Even so, I can’t do anything to hurt her. Ah Lo loves this family. She loves Ah Yuet. I don’t want to break up her family.”

“What kind of logic is that? She’s dead!”

“Her spirit is still around.”

“Ah Mei! Do something for yourself! Stop thinking about others!”

“Ah Yuet still loves Ah Lo a lot. Her position can never be replaced. She will always be his wife and the mother of his kids. So what if I love him? We won’t have any results. I’m just a friend to him… a god-mother to his children… it will always be this way.” Ah Mei gets up and runs into her bedroom crying.

Ah Yat frowns at Ah Mei disheartened.

Ah Yuet stood silently outside of the Seks’ apartment’s open door. He was stunned by the revelation of Ah Mei’s feelings for him. It was completely shocking to him because he had been totally oblivious.

That night, Ah Mei did not come over for dinner. The seat next to Ah Yuet was noticeably very vacant. No one would sit in it.

“Do I have rabies or something? How come no one’s sitting here?” Ah Yuet demands.

“We’re not fit to be the owner of that chair, isn’t that right?” Gam (Louis Yuen) asks.

Ying Gei (Yvonne Lam) nods her head, “I’m perfectly happy sitting where I am!”

Ah Hong (Johnny Tang) picks up a piece of chicken and puts it in Ah Yat’s rice bowl. “There’s no separating us!”

“Only second sister-in-law can sit in that chair,” Ah Yat says slyly.

“Your second sister-in-law has passed away,” Ah Yuet answers.

“Yes, Lam Yuk Lo is dead, but that doesn’t mean there can’t be another second sister-in-law.”

“Only Lam Yuk Lo is fit to be Mrs. Kam Yuet, your second sister-in-law,” Ah Yuet says sternly.

The tension between Ah Yuet and Ah Yat was deep.

Nim Chi intervenes and says, “I’ll sit in that chair then!” She gets up from her head spot at the table and slides in next to Ah Yuet.

Ah Yuet and Ah Yat continue to glare at each other. It was a very quiet and awkward family dinner.

Abruptly, Ah Yat puts down her chopsticks and rice bowl, gets up, and then declares, “I can’t eat anymore! I can’t ’swallow’ it!”

“Ah Yat, what’s wrong?” Nim Chi was concerned.

“I can’t share a table with someone so heartless!”

“Heartless?” Nim Chi was confused.

“Ah Yat! That’s enough out of you! You are being rude. If you’re not hungry you can simply leave the table,” Ah Yuet scolds.

“Wah! Big big brother and big brother aren’t here so you want to play the ‘man’ of the house? You’re not fit to be a man!” Ah Yat rolls her eyes.

Ah Yuet was very angry. He stands up as well.

Nim Chi stands up and slams her hands on the table. “What is going on with you two?!”

“Ah Yat is being petty and a child like always. She’s never going to grow up,” Ah Yuet says.

“Second brother is also being a child. He’s never going to accept ‘responsibility’.”

“Enough — out of both of you!” She pauses before asking, “Ah Yat, you speak first, what is bothering you so much about your second brother?”

“He won’t accept ‘responsibility’.”

“What responsibility?”

“Ah Mei!”

“Oh! You’re mad because you think that Ah Mei didn’t come over for dinner because of your second brother?”

“No! Ma Chi, let me ask you this. Since second sister-in-law has passed away, who have we seen the most of around second brother?”

“Ah Mei,” Nim Chi answers instantly.

“Exactly. She has done so much for him!”

It suddenly dawned on Nim Chi what Ah Yat was driving at. Her mouth opens. “Ah Mei loves Ah Yuet?”

Everyone turns to look at Ah Yuet.

The return of Wong Hau (Maggie Shiu) postponed Wong Sheung (Lau Dan) and Man Gwai Fei’s (Stephanie Che) wedding indefinitely. At first Gwai Fei contemplated using a staged “suicide” to win back Wong Sheung. However, she decided that it wasn’t worth the trouble. Wong Sheung was no longer an “easy” target and she was too lazy to fight with Wong Hau for a man she didn’t love. Instead Gwai Fei staged a “miscarriage” and called off the wedding on her own. Gwai Fei would have to revamp her “revenge” plot and find another path.

The reunion of Ah Lok (Bosco Wong) and Wong Hau with Joey (Bernice Liu) and Wong Sheung brought much-needed happiness. After Ah Lo’s (Bondy Chiu) death, Gam (Louis Yuen) and Ying Gei’s (Yvonne Lam) lost twins, and the dramatic marriage dissolutions for Ah San (Steven Ma) & Ah Lam (Linda Chung) and Ah Sing (Hawick Lau) & Fiona (Sherming Yiu), the Kams needed all of the good news they could get.

Ah Lok and Joey instantly got along due to their happy-go-lucky natures.

Joey shared stories about Wong Sheung while Ah Lok filled Joey in on Wong Hau.

“Daddy was so bad! Sometimes he would be dating three different women on the same night in three different restaurants that were next door to each other! You should have seen him running from restaurant to restaurant and eating three different dinners!” Joey laughs.

“You think that’s bad? I remember one time pretty mom dated two guys in the same restaurant! She had me tag along to keep one of her two dates ‘busy’ while she went to the other table!” Ah Lok shakes his head.

“Wah! Pretty mom seems to have the upper-hand compared to Daddy!”

“She’s a sly one, but then again men are supposed to wait on women. So she always has the advantage regardless.”

“Our parents, huh?”

“Yup.”

Even though they just reunited as siblings, Joey and Ah Lok had so much to talk about. They didn’t feel distant at all. Perhaps it was because their experiences were similar because Wong Sheung and Wong Hau were so alike. Through each other, they were able to fill the void that they previously had in regards to their other parent.

Wong Hau and Wong Sheung smile at each other as they look at their kids laughing and sharing stories.

Wong Sheung thought that he could never forgive Wong Hau for leaving him. However, he realized that life was too short to remain angry at anyone. Furthermore, he realized that he still loved her very much and was just happy to have her back. He wanted to give his family a reunion. He adored Ah Lok — the son he always wanted. Ah Lok was as smart and handsome as he was when he was younger. He was very proud of the fact that Ah Lok was such a bright and successful lawyer at such a young age.

Wong Hau tried to learn how to cook and take care of the family from 7th sister (Teresa Ha). She had many comical ventures learning how to be a “housewife”. One time she broke all of Wong Sheung’s expensive collectibles trying to clean. Another time she almost poisoned the family with her cooking. She destroyed everyone’s clothes trying to do the laundry and nearly flooded the house forgetting to turn off the sink doing dishes. The final straw was the time she nearly burned down the house! In the end, it was decided that for the safety and well-being of everyone that Wong Hau would be “banned” from doing chores and cooking. As long as 7th sister was alive and well, Wong Hau would not need to take over such responsibilities.

“Even if I’m not around, I’ll make sure that I train someone other than you to take over!” 7th sister laughs. She teases, “I guess you made the right decision back then to leave! This family would have died many years ago if you were in charge of it!”

Everyone laughs good-heartedly.

Wong Hau was not good at house chores, but she was great at having fun. Joey found Wong Hau to be a very unconventional mother, so she took after Ah Lok and addressed Wong Hau as “pretty mom”. With a common interest in fashion, Wong Hau and Joey had plenty to talk about. They enjoyed shopping together and reading fashion magazines. Wong Hau gave her critiques for Joey’s fashion designs. The mother and daughter got along very well.

After being separated for over twenty years, the Wong family was now as complete as the full moon.

Ah Lok had a crush on Ah Fan (Tavia Yeung) because she was so different from the girls he was used to. After eating shark fin for so long, he wanted to give mung bean vermicelli a try. However, it turns out that eating “imitation shark fin” wasn’t as cheap and easy as he thought. Ah Fan was not infatuated by his good looks or charmed by his sweet words like his past girlfriends. She turned him down repeatedly. Unlike Ah Biu (Raymond Lam) though, Ah Lok persisted.

Annoyed that Ah Lok just wouldn’t give up, Ah Fan decided to give him a “chance”.

“You have an exaggerated and flowery mouth. I don’t know when you’re telling the truth and when you’re not. I can’t trust you,” Ah Fan declares.

“What? That’s not true! Every word I say,” Ah Lok points to his heart, “comes from here.”

Ah Fan rolls her eyes. “You’re a lawyer. You’re good with forming words and projecting words — even if those words aren’t truthful.”

Ah Lok gasps loudly and acts like he’s been stabbed by Ah Fan. “Lam Yuk Fan, are you suggesting that I lie for my clients?!”

“All lawyers do.”

“I feel so hurt! I only say the truth as I know and see it from my client,” Ah Lok defends himself.

“In other words, you lie when your client lies.” Ah Fan shakes her head. “If you can go one day, just one day, without lying then I’ll give you a chance.”

Ah Lok snickers. “One day? That’s a piece of cake!”

Ah Fan looks at Ah Lok in doubt.

Ah Lok wore a device clipped onto his suit so that Ah Fan could hear everything that Ah Lok said. It was an extremely hilarious day as Ah Lok struggled to only say the truth.

Early in the morning, Ah Lok passed by Wong Hau’s room and she asked him the question that all men fear being asked. “Ah Lok, do you think I look fat?”

Normally Ah Lok would come up with a clever way of sounding sincere and telling Wong Hau what she wanted to hear. However, that day, he could not lie. Ah Lok gulps and then says, “Pretty mom, you’ve worked hard for many years. Only recently were you able to enjoy the life of a ‘rich madam’. 7th sister serves you and makes you whatever you want. Handsome dad is always taking you out to eat. Big sister likes to bake goods. To make it short, yes, you’ve gained weight.”

Wong Hau couldn’t believe what Ah Lok just said. She was expecting him to tell her that she wasn’t fat. “Wong Tsz Lok, how dare you call your mother fat!”

“Pretty mom, if you didn’t want to know the truth and if you couldn’t see the truth from the mirror, then you shouldn’t have asked.”

“You naughty son!” Wong Hau chases after Ah Lok to “hit” him.

Unfortunately for Ah Lok, that day he had to go to court for a case. His client was actually guilty of the crime that he was being accused and had hired Ah Lok to get him off the hook. “My career… or Ah Fan?” Ah Lok debated a long time in his head as he sat waiting to present.

Alas, the moment of truth came.

“Your Honor, my client…”

For the sake of winning Ah Fan, Ah Lok screwed over his client. It was a shocking scene.

“I’m sorry,” Ah Lok apologizes in court.

After the case was adjourned, Ah Lok’s client and family cursed and hit him. Ah Lok endured the “beating” and just raised his hands up, surrendering. He apologized profusely. He received a big complaint and was scolded by his boss who called him “unprofessional” and gave him a warning letter.

In that day, Ah Lok was hated for the first time.

Not wanting to offend anyone else, Ah Lok hid himself away for the rest of the day. Ah Fan told him that she would call him with the “verdict” of his test. At long last, that call came. Ah Lok was sure that he had passed the test. He hadn’t lied all day. He excitedly went to meet Ah Fan.

“Ah Fan!” Ah Lok had a big smile on his face. “Where do you want to go for our first date?”

“Date? Why do I have to go on a date with you?”

“You said that if I pass your test then you’d give me a chance. I passed… so let’s go while the night is still young!”

Ah Fan didn’t budge. “Ah Lok, let me ask you a question.”

“What is it?”

“How come you were quiet for the last few hours?”

“I was sleeping.”

Ah Fan chuckles and shakes her head knowingly.

“I didn’t lie all day! I told my mom she was fat! I lost a court case! I got yelled at and offended lots of people!”

“You lied just now. You haven’t been sleeping.”

“Ah Fan, the bottom line is that for you I’m willing to tell the truth.”

“Ah Lok, I’m not right for you. Look at how painful you are not able to use your mouth the way you want to! You had to hide yourself from the world just so you wouldn’t get into more ‘trouble’ or offend others with the ‘truth’.”

Ah Lok was surprised. “How come you know?!”

“I heard everything you said today,” Ah Fan laughs.

Ah Lok blushes. “I’m sorry.”

“Ah Lok, you shouldn’t change yourself for me. I wouldn’t want you to either.” Ah Fan smiles at him.

“So I guess I failed…”

“I knew you would.”

“You have so little faith in me?”

“I just know you, Ah Lok. Come, let’s go have dinner. We can’t be lovers, but we can certainly be friends.”

Ah Lok and Ah Fan ate at “La-Go-Go”.

“Ah Fan, am I really such a ‘bad’ guy?” Ah Lok asks.

“You’re not… otherwise why would I be friends with you? Actually, you’re a really fun guy to be around. As a boyfriend though… you’re not my type.”

“What is your type?”

“Someone dependable and who can offer me a sense of security.”

“I can be that guy!”

“You can’t. You failed the test today.”

“Give me another chance!”

“Ah Lok, don’t force it. We both know that you simply can’t function not being able to use your witty tongue.” Ah Fan giggles.

Ah Lok sighs. “I guess you’re right.”

“I’m sorry about making you lose that case and also for making you upset so many people.”

“You should be! For the first time ever I have enemies!”

They laugh good-heartedly.

A romantic relationship between Ah Fan and Ah Lok wasn’t possible. Their personalities were too different and they both wanted and needed different things in life. As friends, though, they could more than fill those parts.

For a sitcom, Best Selling Secrets isn’t really funny to me. Wong Cho Lam makes me chuckle here and there, but I don’t recall laughing at any episode. I don’t watch every episode because I don’t have the time, interest, or patience for sitcoms. Secrets is mostly “enjoyable” to pass time. The thing that I like about Secrets though is that some episodes are gems. Secrets surprisingly can be very touching and sweet. Some episodes are very heart-felt (and those are the episodes that I watch and love) because of a well-written script.

Initially I was captivated to Secrets (and watched every episode) because of the extremely touching and well-written mother/son relationship between Esther Kwan and Vin Choi. After this storyline wrapped up (and the annoying May May (Jeanette Leung) got focus) I lost interest in Secrets and thus chose not to watch every episode anymore. I could not stand May May and Luk Jit’s relationship with her and I really didn’t have the patience to sit through most of the “pointless” episodes (I disliked Stephen Au’s “comedy” plots). I dropped the series for almost two years. Recently I started watching Secrets again (thanks to Anime Master 179002 — the Secrets expert — for letting me know which episodes to watch!) because I was still curious about certain storylines (mostly Esther — love her excellent acting!) and wanted to watch the “best” episodes.

The following are episodes that I love and recommend.

Episode 164 – “Son Against Mother”
How sweet are the mother and son Ka Lam and Luk Jit? The chemistry is really good. In this episode, they get into a fight because Luk Jit feels that his mom doesn’t “love” and support him like other moms. He tells her that he doesn’t feel the warmness with her and that being with her is “painful”. Poor Ka Lam is left in tears.

She recounts a very meaningful and touching story called “Mama Crow’s Story” [烏鴉媽媽的故事] to explain why she treats Ah Jit the way she does.

The story goes like this: A long time ago in the forest there were two mother birds — a crow and a swallow. They both gave birth to a nest of babies. Mama Swallow nurtured her babies meticulously, feeding them and always protecting them. On the contrary, Mama Crow kept pushing her babies out of the nest, forcing them to fly. Mama Crow’s babies would fall one-by-one, getting hurt repeatedly. Mama Swallow yelled at Mama Crow, asking her how she could be so “cruel”. One time there was a big fire in the forest. Because Mama Crow’s babies got practice from early on in learning how to fly, they were able to escape before the fire reached the nest. Tragically, the babies of Mama Swallow all died because they didn’t learn how to fly yet. It’s only then that Mama Swallow realized Mama Crow’s intentions.

“I know that because I abandoned my son for so long I cannot be the swallow’s mother. That’s why I choose to be the crow’s mom.” — Ka Lam

“Mama Crow, please forgive this Baby Crow.” — Ah Jit

I love this mother and son!

Episodes 240-247 are “must-watch” episodes. There was a continuous storyline going in those episodes and it was very exciting and interesting to watch. I enjoyed Sunny Chan’s guest star as a psychologist with a crush on Ka Lam. Louisa So was fantastic as the “evil” Lai Poon Yu Yuk.

Episode 257 – “Ka Lam’s Wish”
I absolutely love Vincent (Geoffrey Wong Chi Hong) & Ka Lam! Their love story is very, very touching and super sweet. He waited 18 years to be with her! He always secretly supported and helped her. The chemistry between Esther and Geoffrey is great. I love all of their scenes!

My most favorite scene of theirs though, is the heart-breaking finale of episode 257 in which a short “tribute” sequence dedicated to their relationship follows. Ka Lam wants to leave Vincent (after they just started dating) because she wants to resolve her “old” feelings for her dead husband.

“Wong Fa belongs to Luk Kin. … Your third wish… I want to ‘owe’ you for the rest of my life. I want you to know that you always have a ‘wish’ with me whenever. You can always ask me to do anything. … This time you’re leaving as Wong Fa. I hope, I really hope, that when you come back you’ll be a Wong Ka Lam that 100% belongs to me.” — Vincent

I admit I was moved to tears by the above scene.

I really like how they distinguished Esther by “two” names. I don’t doubt that she loves Vincent, but she also loves Ah Kin, her dead ex-husband. I like how Vincent says that Wong Fa belongs to Ah Kin and that Wong Ka Lam belongs to him. It’s true. We the audience fell for Vincent & Ka Lam, not Vincent & Ah Fa. Although I wish there were more “happy” scenes of Vincent & Ka Lam (and it would have been awesome if Esther stayed on for Secrets’s entire run) I’m really satisfied with this love story. It is the best thing about Secrets.

Episode 283 – “Wednesday’s Date”
Ah Cheung (Wayne Lai) and Doris (Rachel Kan) are a very cute couple. They started out as a bickering pair but then gradually developed feelings for one another. I really like how they help each other. I’m happy for Rachel that she gets a bigger role to act in Secrets as compared to the small supporting roles of other series.



Episode 283 was very touching to watch.

Every Wednesday Doris goes to Ah Cheung’s house to do housework (because his sister has exams and therefore can’t come home to tidy up). He doesn’t know it’s her because he’s out late working on Wednesday’s. One evening he comes home early and discovers that it has been Doris who has been cleaning his house for the last few weeks. In the end they continue this “date on Wednesday”. She will clean for him while he will cook a good meal for her.

It’s so sweet watching Doris reject her colleagues’ request to go shopping every Wednesday. She tells them, “As long as it’s not Wednesday, we can go”. Then she looks at the keys to Ah Cheung’s house and smiles. She really values her dates on Wednesday’s.

I can’t wait to watch Ah Cheung and Doris get together!

Rosy Business was widely praised and loved by mass audiences. Leading characters Fourth Wife (Sheren Tang) and Chai Gau (Wayne Lai), especially the latter, were worshipped. The hype and love was like those given to Laughing Gor (Michael Tse) from E.U.. Just as I didn’t understand the hype for Laughing Gor, I also don’t get the hype for Rosy. It’s no doubt one of the strongest series that TVB has churned out in recent years… but to say it’s the “best” series ever? Really?

Thoughts on the series
Rosy is a well-paced and well-written series that’s logically developed with nicely fleshed-out characters (in particular Fourth Wife and Chai Gau). There are no moments that drag and every scene serves a purpose. It never loses focus and doesn’t go off on any tangent with pointless peripheral stories and characters. Unlike the atrocious work that Script Editor Cheung Wah Biu did with Moonlight Resonance, Rosy fortunately doesn’t have any ridiculous plot holes and doesn’t feel the least bit contrived and pretentious. Instead, the series reminds of the greatness that Script Editor Cheung did with past classic series Safe Guards and Heart of Greed. By “remind” I mean “borrowing” ideas. Rosy felt like a female version of Safe and a costume version of Heart (with a little bit of Moonlight — thankfully only in very minute doses).

There were plenty of “juicy” confrontation scenes and exciting climaxes with many “classic” moments through the series. They were wonderfully done, but somehow lacked the “memorable” feeling. Perhaps it was because they were expected. At times I grew tired of the “evil people scheming”, “good people momentarily suffering”, and “evil people exposed” formula. Unlike with Moonlight where the drama and confrontations seemed extremely staged and ridiculous (practically one every episode) though, Rosy’s confrontations were all justifiable.

I just wasn’t as drawn into Rosy as I was expecting. It didn’t captivate my heart and I couldn’t really “feel” for the drama. There were many powerful and exciting scenes and I was rather touched and moved by certain scenes, but as a whole I wasn’t “immersed” like I had been with Safe and Heart. I actually didn’t start getting into the series until the last 10 episodes. It’s strange. I really don’t understand why. The series as a whole was always good and very watch-able and entertaining, but I didn’t have the feeling of wanting to watch the next episode until after episode 14. Episodes 15 and onwards were exceptional with high drama and very intense to watch, which was so thrilling! The series slowed down near the end (I kind of lost interest after the Taiping Rebellion storyline) and the ending was very peaceful and conclusive. I enjoyed “heaven’s retribution” for our most hated villains.

Thoughts on the acting and characters
Sheren is without a doubt the most exquisite TVB actress. The way she commands the screen whenever she appears is something to behold. I just love the “fire” in her performance and her acting is simply beautiful. Fourth Wife was a great character and worthy of Sheren’s acting. I loved every minute of her acting and her character kept me glued. My only complaint would be her ugly wig (actually all of the female hairstyles in Rosy are fake and terrible… what happened?).

Chai Gau was a very dynamic character with complex emotions. His character was wonderfully developed and carved out. He was very “human” with understandable flaws. I really liked how he helped Fourth Wife. Wayne was stellar in this strong, well-written role. He had many powerful scenes (just like Fourth Wife) and you just can’t help but root for him. I do hope Wayne is rewarded as the “Best Actor” for this performance. I really doubt there will be any male performances in upcoming series that could steal the thunder from Chai Gau.

Susan Tse was great as the scheming and evil First Wife. I’m glad her character did not turn “good” in the end but instead “gave up” (because she had lost it all) and could only repent. Her final look was haunting. I didn’t like Kara Hui as much as I usually do. ATV’s classic I Have a Date with Spring will probably be the only series where I like Kiki Sheung in. Rosy is definitely Pierre Ngo’s representative work; he can act and he does the villain roles well — it’s good to see TVB give him a meaty role, but I do hope he doesn’t get type-cast.

After E.U. and Rosy, I have to admit that I’m seeing Ron Ng in a new light. Before I thought his acting was hopeless and that I could only expect dull, dead eyes from him with wooden, awkward performances of brash characters. Surprisingly, Ron is likable as Cheung Bit Ching. He’s improved so much in his acting! I wouldn’t call him a great actor, but his acting is much more acceptable now. I was disappointed that Bit Ching wasn’t properly developed. His growth wasn’t evident to me (despite being told so by the script) and even in the end, I couldn’t really feel that he had changed much and would be capable of running the business.

Final thoughts
I do not fault the script. I do not fault the acting (besides Suki Chui). There’s really nothing for me to “criticize” about this series. It’s not boring. It very much stays on-track in its 25 episodes and is well-developed and written. It doesn’t go over-the-top doing “sensational” things to get high ratings. There are no plot holes. The characters are wonderful and the story is good. It’s well-paced and very reasonable. I’m not sure why I don’t love it. I should, but I just don’t. It didn’t surprise me or give me that “impressed” feeling. I mostly felt indifferent throughout the whole series, which was disappointing. I guess it’s because my heart is with Safe and Heart.

I’m not really sure how to rate this series so I’ll just do it based on its merit only rather than how I actually feel about it. It’s so difficult to review Rosy because it’s technically a “perfect” series (I cannot deduct any points for any flaws because honestly there are no glaring ones) but I just didn’t “feel” for it. I enjoyed it, but I’m not crazy over it and it won’t be one of the series I remember. It doesn’t leave a strong or lasting impression for me.

Although I don’t understand the high acclaim or “craze” surrounding it, I can say that Rosy Business is a highly recommended, worth-while, and very good series. It is one of the strongest series in many months (years?) with a superb cast (can’t go wrong with the power of Sheren and Wayne’s acting!). I think it’s as close to “flawless” as TVB can get (these days).

Rating:

Love Guaranteed – Clichéd, predictable, forgettable — guaranteed!

At Home With Love – It’s more like at home with boredom when you watch this series.

Marriage of Inconvenience – Toby Leung is the real inconvenience for the TVB audience.

Love Exchange – Can I just exchange the time wasted watching this instead?

Ah Sing (Hawick Lau) returned home soaking wet. Everyone else had gone to bed, but Nim Chi (Nancy Sit) sat in the living room waiting for her son. Seeing Nim Chi made Ah Sing feel shameful. He didn’t know how to face his mother after the mess he created. Slowly, he walks up to her and apologizes, “Ma Chi, I’m sorry.”

It hurt Nim Chi to see her son in this state. “Why did you do this?”

“I thought I was following my heart…”

“Sing jai, being people, we can’t just blindly follow our hearts and what we feel! We have to think about other people! Do you know that?” Nim Chi holds Ah Sing’s crying face and wipes his tears to the side.

“Ma Chi, I’m a disgrace to this family. I’m an embarrassment to myself. I destroyed my marriage. I hurt my wife more than any of the people in the palace who maliciously plotted against her…”

“Sing jai…” Nim Chi frowns at Ah Sing disheartened.

“I don’t deserve Fiona. She’s right to leave me. She’s right not to give me another chance.”

Nim Chi hugs Ah Sing as he cries.

“I left her when she needed me the most. I tried to blame her for my decision. I was stupid. I was chasing a fantasy, a past that was long gone. In the process I hurt so many people…” Ah Sing confesses.

After crying to his mom, Ah Sing went downstairs to shower and change. To his surprise, he found Ah Lam (Linda Chung) sitting on the couch crying silently. “Ah Lam?”

“I’ve lost him,” Ah Lam cries.

“What?” Ah Sing runs over to the couch.

“Ivan found out about us.”

“Fiona did too… She came to Hong Kong to find me, but instead she found the truth. I’ve hurt her too much. She’s left me. We’re over.”

“Ivan… is divorcing me.” In Ah Lam’s hand was Ah San’s (Steven Ma) wedding ring. “We’re over.”

Ah Sing and Ah Lam look at each other with sad eyes. They couldn’t believe how in one night their marriages had both fallen apart.

“I’m sorry, Ah Lam. If I hadn’t said all of that crazy talk… if I hadn’t kissed you… it wouldn’t have come to this,” Ah Sing apologizes.

“It’s not your fault. It’s my fault. I cheated on Ivan. He’s right. He should divorce me.”

“Fiona… is also right in divorcing me. I abandoned her. I broke my promises to her.” Ah Sing rests his head on the couch and looks up at the ceiling. “I’m such a horrible person.”

Ah Lam sighs. “I’m not any better. I guess this is the fate for cheaters like us.” She chuckles to herself. “I never thought I would be a cheater. I always placed myself on a pedestal. It turns out I’m not that great of a person after all. I always try to make Ivan become a ‘better’ person but it turns out that it is I who needs to work on becoming a better person.”

“I was wrong for rushing into my relationship with Fiona when I knew I was still in love with you at that time. I should have come back to Hong Kong first and resolved our issues back then. Why didn’t I do that?”

Ah Lam shrugs her shoulders.

“If we had acted on our unresolved feelings four years ago things would never end up like this,” Ah Sing comments.

Ah Lam nods her head. “Unfortunately, they have… and we cannot put the blame on anyone else.”

“What are we going to do now? We broke the hearts of two lovely people. We don’t deserve them.”

“I guess… we’ll have to get back together now.”

Ah Sing looks at Ah Lam with bulging eyes. “What?!”

“Isn’t that what you wanted all along? Now that we’re both truly divorced we can be together now.”

“Ah Lam, are you crazy? What are you saying?”

“Ah Sing, what else can we do now but get together? It’s quite obvious that the heavens want us to be together. There’s no way I can get back with Ivan and it’s impossible for you to reunite with Fiona. For the sake of a happy ending, we have to end up together.”

Ah Lam leans in to kiss Ah Sing. He slaps her and pushes her away. “Have you lost your mind?!”

Ah Lam laughs hysterically.

Ah Sing shakes Ah Lam. “Don’t scare me!”

“You should have seen the look on your face! You were so serious!” Ah Lam continues to crack up. “I was only joking!”

Ah Sing lets out a sigh of relief.

After calming down, Ah Lam explains, “I was testing you.”

“Testing me?”

“I wanted to see if our feelings were really over. Thank god they are.” Ah Lam smiles at Ah Sing.

“I realize now that I was just trying to hold on to our beautiful memories. I was lingering onto a fantasy. You’re right that we were destined, but ill-fated. However, I’m not regretful about it, at least not anymore. It turns out that the heavens arranged someone better for me to meet and love. It’s just that I didn’t appreciate her and don’t deserve her.”

Ah Lam nods her head in agreement, “The first love isn’t necessarily always the best. Time also isn’t a factor.” She looks at Ah Sing and says seriously, “Now that we know who we both really should be with, we have to appreciate and love that person with all of our heart.”

“You’re right.”

“It’s time that I do something for Ivan. I have to become a better person — someone worthy of him.”

“I need to fulfill my vows to Fiona. Even if she never forgives me and even if we never get back together, I have to make it up to her.”

Ah Lam pats Ah Sing’s shoulder. “Good luck.”

“Good luck.” Ah Sing pats Ah Lam’s shoulder in return.

They knew it was the last time they would see each other again, so they hugged.

“Hung Bak Lam, you take care of yourself,” Ah Sing says with tears building up in his eyes.

“Good-bye, Lau Ka Sing,” Ah Lam fights back her tears.

The romantic feelings between Ah Sing and Ah Lam had been resolved, but they knew they could not remain friends. Their lives had to move apart if they ever wanted to move on. That night both of them wrote long letters apologizing to the other’s spouse. Ah Sing sent his letter to Ah San while Ah Lam sent hers to Fiona. Ah Sing resigned from “Ka Yan” company while Ah Lam took a vacation. They did not see each other again.

The “Ka Yan” employees gossiped about Ah Sing and Ah Lam’s relationship, but they were quickly hushed and scolded by Ah Nin (Frankie Lam), who wanted to stick up for his big brother. No one said anything more of the matter.

Nim Chi, Ah Nin, Ah Yuet (Michael Tse), Ah Yat (Joyce), Gam (Louis Yuen), and Ying Gei (Yvonne Lam) all came to the pier to say their parting words with Ah Sing. He decided to go back to the Island.

“Sing jai, I’m going to miss you so much!” Nim Chi cries.

“Ma Chi, don’t you want me to get back your big big daughter-in-law?” Ah Sing asks.

Nim Chi frowns. She knew he had no choice but to leave. “We only met again after 30 years… then you left after only a few months. Then you came back for 2 years… now you’re leaving again. Are we so ill-fated as mother and son?”

“As long as we have each other in our hearts, it’s okay. Ma Chi, don’t be sad.”

“Of course she’s sad! All of her other children aren’t related by blood to her, isn’t that right?” Gam teases.

“Big big brother, please win big big sister-in-law back!” Ah Yat pleads. “I really like her.”

“I’ll try to,” Ah Sing answers.

“Don’t worry about this family. I’ve got it under control,” Ah Nin assures.

“You were the ‘big brother’ all along. I’m not worried,” Ah Sing smiles.

Ah Yuet says, “Have a safe trip! Don’t forget to keep in touch.”

“I will.”

Ah Sing hugs each and every one of his family member one last time. Nim Chi didn’t want to let go, but at last she did. He boarded the boat to return to the Island.

Nim Chi cries into Ah Nin’s chest.

“Ma Chi, don’t be sad. Big brother has to do this,” Ah Nin tells her.

“I know, but it doesn’t make the pain any less nor am I going to miss him any less. It seems like I’m just not meant to keep this son of mine around…”

Ah Yuet and Ah Yat both hug Nim Chi.

“Big big brother has to make up for everything he did. He hurt big big sister-in-law a lot,” Ah Yat states.

Everyone watches as Ah Sing grows smaller and smaller. He kept waving to them and they back at him… until he was gone.

When Ah Sing (Hawick Lau) went downstairs to the Kams’ apartment, he was surprised to find his family sitting around quietly in the living room with stern faces. There was no chit-chatting. When they saw him come in, they all got up and gathered around him.

“Wah! What’s going on?” Ah Sing asks.

Nim Chi very angrily slapped Ah Sing across the face loudly. Tears rolled down her cheeks. “How can you do this?” she demands.

Ah Sing winces in pain. The slaps he had gotten from Ah Lam (Linda Chung) and now from Nim Chi had left hand prints on his cheek.

“Big big brother, I’m so disappointed in you,” Ah Yat (Joyce Chen) sighs.

“Big big brother…” Ah Yuet (Michael Tse) shakes his head disapprovingly.

“Ah Sing, I thought you were better than that!” Ying Gei (Yvonne Lam) frowns.

“Huh?” Ah Sing looks at everyone perplexed. “Why is everyone disappointed in me? What did I do?”

“What did you do?” Nim Chi scoffs. “What people do the heavens watch!”

“Ma Chi, you’re not Hor Ma! Stop repeating her ‘golden words’!” Ah Sing laughs.

“You’re right… I’m not Hor Ma. I won’t so easily forgive! What you did was unacceptable! How can you do that?”

“Do what?! I have no idea what everyone is talking about!”

“You’ve gone too far!” Gam (Louis Yuen) speaks out. “I only joke about cheating… but you? I can’t believe you would actually do it!”

“Cheat? What?”

“We all know you’re having an affair with Michelle…” Ah Hong (Johnny Tang) states.

Ah Sing blinks. His heart starts pounding. He couldn’t believe that his “secret” had been revealed. He tried to pass it off and nervously say, “What? What nonsense are you guys talking about? Have you been watching too much TV? How can we have an affair?”

Nim Chi slaps Ah Sing again. She cries loudly, “It’s my fault that you’re immoral! I didn’t raise you… Not only are you committing adultery, you’re lying as well… Sing jai, what happened to you?”

“Ma Chi, I didn’t do anything!”

Ah Yat asks, “Why did you have to pick my good sister Michelle? Why destroy two marriages? You’re married, big big brother, and so is she!”

“Ah Yat, say no more! It embarrasses me to say something like this without discretion!” Nim Chi hushes.

“Why…?” Ah Sing looks around in exasperation.

“That’s the same question we have,” Ah Yuet says. “How can my kids look up to an uncle like that?”

“I didn’t cheat! I’m not having an affair!”

Nim Chi slaps Ah Sing repeatedly. His black-framed glasses fly off. “Do you know how much it hurts me to hit you? Do you know how much it hurts me to find out that my son did something so terrible? Furthermore, you won’t even admit your wrongs! You cannot deny it. Fiona saw you kissing Michelle!”

Ah Sing was stunned.

“Big big sister-in-law came back to Hong Kong to find you,” Ah Yat explains, “we told her you were up on the rooftop with Michelle. She came down in tears not long after going up to find you… she delivered the horrifying news of what she saw…”

Ah Sing steps backwards. His worst fears had come true. Fiona had discovered the truth. She had learned of his big secret.

“You still want to say it’s all a lie?” Nim Chi demands.

Ah Sing lowers his head in shame. He cries.

“Now you’re crying? It’s too late!” Gam yells.

“Poor Fiona is so heart-broken,” Ying Gei sobs.

“I can’t believe we have an adulterer in this family!” Gam shakes his head in disgust. “To think it’s between Auntie Chi’s son and her god-daughter-in-law…”

“Where’s Fiona?” Ah Sing asks finally.

“She’s at the pier… she’s going back to the Island,” Ah Hong answers.

Without another word, Ah Sing darts out of the door and runs towards the pier. He saw her about to board the boat to take her back to the Island. “Fiona! Fiona!” he calls at the top of his lungs.

Fiona (Sherming Yiu) stops in her step and looks back at the sight of Ah Sing approaching. Her eyes were still wet from her tears.

“Fiona! Fiona! Don’t go!” Ah Sing begs when he reaches her.

“What are you doing here?” Fiona’s voice was angry and her face cold.

“Don’t leave. Please. I’m sorry! We need to talk.”

“Really? You have time for me? Shouldn’t you be loving your precious Ah Lam instead?”

“Fiona, it’s all a misunderstanding! You have to believe me.”

“Lau Ka Sing, I won’t believe you ever again. From the moment you chose to lie to me and leave the Island… you lost me. You told me you would always be by my side to help me out. That was a lie. You told me you had to come back to Hong Kong because of your family. That too, is a lie. You know what the biggest lie of all is? Our whole relationship!” The tears flowed endlessly down Fiona’s two cheeks. “I cannot believe that in your eyes I am a cheap ‘third party’ who ruined your happiness…”

Ah Sing felt like a million knives were jabbing at him in the heart hearing the words he said to Ah Lam just moments before. He never hurt so much before in his whole life.

“This ‘third party’ won’t interfere anymore. We’re not a ‘golden couple’. The person you love isn’t me.”

“Fiona, I was talking nonsense back then!”

“Your words weren’t true? I doubt it.” She lifts up his shirt sleeve. “This tooth mark, you told me you got it after getting into a fight! Now I learn that it was Ah Lam who bit you. You may wear your wedding ring, but that means nothing to you. You value this tooth mark more than anything else. From the start you lied to me. I was just a replacement for Ah Lam, someone for you to forget your deep love for Ah Lam with. I should have known. We fell in love too fast. It was only a week. I was foolish. I was naive. I was too into the moment of our fantasy, my supposed fairytale love story. You never loved me!”

Ah Sing’s heart continued to smash into a million pieces.

“You said you would never leave me…” Fiona shakes her head. “You had said we would never part… but you left me… not only physically but emotionally as well. You left me alone on the Island. Do you know how lonely I was? I had no one to help me! I had so many duties to learn and responsibilities to do as the Island Chief. Uncle and Bo Gong Gong helped me and I really appreciate them, but the person I wanted and needed most was not around. I have been playing everything that happened leading up to you choosing to leave the Island over and over again in my head. Was it my fault that you left? Had I changed? Why was I so willing to let you go? Had I become cold? I was questioning myself, doubting myself. I came to Hong Kong to find you to apologize. I thought it was my fault that I ‘drove’ you away. It turns out that you couldn’t wait to leave because your heart was never on the Island with me. It was always here in Hong Kong with Ah Lam.”

“I know I was wrong-”

“Of course you’re wrong! It’s certainly not my fault!”

“I did love Ah Lam, but not anymore. My feelings for her are resolved! I came back only because I couldn’t move on without facing my past with her! You know about Ah Lam. I told you about her.”

“No. You told me about your ‘first love’. You never told me it was Ah Lam! I can’t believe I never suspected it was her…”

“It’s all in the past!”

“It’s not. You still love her. I know what my ears heard and what my eyes saw.”

“Fiona, I don’t! We’re just friends!”

“I don’t believe you anymore.” Fiona slowly removes her wedding ring. She tosses it into the ocean. “Our marriage never meant that much to you. You want a divorce? You got it. You can freely be with Ah Lam or whoever it is you supposedly ‘love’. I know that person isn’t me and it will never be. Lau Ka Sing, I never want to see you ever again. You’re dead to me! I thought you were the only person true to me, the person who loved me the most… but it turns out you are the person to hurt me the most.”

“We can work this out. Let’s sit down and talk things over. Divorce isn’t the answer! Please, don’t go, Fiona!”

“I’m already gone.” Fiona runs up onto the boat. The boat docks from the pier.

Ah Sing tries to jump into the boat, but he fails to and lands instead into the ocean. “Fiona! Fiona!” He calls repeatedly as he struggles to stay afloat. The water that covered him and his tears became one.

Fiona would not look back. She grew farther and farther away. His mistake was too grave. It was too late. There was no turning back. This was the road Ah Sing had chosen when he foolishly pursued his past. Chasing a delusional fantasy, Ah Sing had lost his reality.

Meanwhile Ah Lam excitedly and happily went back to the Sze family mansion to find Ah San (Steven Ma). Ah Sing’s confession forcing them to face their past made Ah Lam realize how wrong she had been in her relationship with Ah San. She had taken him for granted. She had closed herself off to him. She felt extremely sorry and blamed herself for their marital troubles.

“Ivan! Ivan!” Ah Lam calls out with a smile as she bursts into the living room to find Ah San sitting on the couch. She runs up to him and hugs him. “Ivan!” She wanted to kiss him, but when she got a good look at his face, she noticed that he wasn’t happy at all. Ah San wore a long, cold face. She had never seen him like this before. “Ivan?”

“Why are you back?” Ah San asks in an indifferent tone.

Ah Lam was taken aback. She was not expecting him to react this way. She had anticipated a very happy reunion. “I came back… for you.”

“Do you love him?” Ah San asks blankly.

Ah Lam stops breathing at the sound of that question.

“Do you love him?” Ah San repeats.

Ah Lam darts Ah San’s eyes. Her heart was thudding away loudly in her chest.

“Do you love him?”

Ah Lam didn’t know how, but Ah San seemed to have learned the truth about her past relationship with Ah Sing and the emotional affair she had been carrying for the past year.

“Do you love him?” Ah San keeps pressing.

“What ‘him’?” Ah Lam asks finally.

“So you do…” Ah San concludes.

“Ivan, what are you saying?”

“You love him. Otherwise you wouldn’t be lying to me. You wouldn’t be covering up for him.”

“Are you crazy? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I saw you kissing Ah Sing. I heard everything.”

Ah Lam’s heart dropped out of her chest and shattered.

Ah San had tears in his eyes. “You wanted to divorce me not because of what I did… but because you wanted to leave me. You wanted to be with someone else.”

“That’s not true! Ivan, please look at me! I don’t love him! Ah Sing and I are in the past! We’re over!”

“You finally admit it.”

“Yes, I’m sorry! I was scared. I didn’t know how you’d react.”

“I came over because I wanted to give you a present personally… Your uncle told me you were on the rooftop with Ah Sing. I thought you two were just discussing business… I walked up and saw Fiona, Ah Sing’s wife, standing near the door silently crying. I peaked and saw you two discussing heatedly… then, there was that kiss… My heart died at that moment, Michelle. Do you know that? Suddenly it all made sense to me. Why you were always with Ah Sing. Why you were talking with him so much. I didn’t think much of it because he’s Auntie Chi’s son and your old-time friend and colleague. I would never have imagined him to be your lover. How long have you been cheating on me?” Ah San was crying now.

Ah Lam’s eyes were red and wet. She didn’t know how to respond.

“Is that baby even mine?” Ah San’s voice cracks.

“What?! Yes, of course it is! Ivan, Ah Sing and I have never slept together. Never! Nothing happened between us and nothing ever will! You have to believe me!”

“Do you know I’ve been running through our marriage over and over again trying to figure out what I did wrong to give us our marital problems to end up in divorce? I’ve been blaming myself. I thought maybe it’s because I was working too much. Maybe I was too neglectful. Maybe… It turns out it wasn’t me. You cheated… even if not physically. I’m your husband — not him! How come I was always the last to know everything? You ran to him first and then just told me about it later! Do you know how left out all of the time I felt? Do you know why I wished I was working with you at ‘Ka Yan’ again? It was because we were close back then. In this past year? We may have shared the same bed, but it was like we led two different lives.”

Ah Lam covers her face in shame.

“I’m so hurt…”

Hearing Ah San’s words made Ah Lam’s heart continue to break. “I was wrong… I shouldn’t have been so close to Ah Sing. It’s my fault… I didn’t put effort towards our relationship.” She pauses before continuing, “Yes, Ah Sing and I used to date. We were lovers since childhood, but we broke up. Yes, I used to love him, but since I met you, I stopped loving him. He’s just a part of my history.”

“History? It seems like he’s still very much a part of your life — much more so than I am.”

“I know… he shouldn’t be. It’s just that it’s so easy to tell him everything. He just knows and understands without me saying much. I guess I took comfort in that too much… My old feelings for him somehow were dug back up…” Tears drip from Ah Lam’s eyes. “I guess it’s because our feelings and relationship weren’t properly resolved back then. It’s because back then I used the same trick I used with you to drive him away thinking that I would die at 28. But now we have resolved our past! I’ve moved on — completely. I don’t love him! He’s just a friend now. Honestly, Ivan! Please, believe me.”

“Who are you going to choose?”

“Of course you! You don’t even have to ask!”

“You’re divorcing me.”

“I’m not! I actually don’t plan on divorcing you. Initially I was very emotional and upset so I over-reacted and called the divorce. However, after I calmed down and learned the truth about everything, I realized what a mistake it was. However, after seeing you so down, I changed my plans of taking back the divorce. From that moment onwards it was my intention to use our divorce as motivation so that you’d get back your ‘fighting spirit’ and reform your life. It’s true. I never stopped loving you, Ivan. I never left you. We were always going to end up back together,” Ah Lam insists.

Ah San shakes his head and scoffs. “You’re always like that. You were like that four years ago and you’re still like that now. You’re so self-righteous and think you know everything. You think you have this world planned. You think you’re always right. You think you know best. It’s quite pretentious and sickening.”

“What?” Ah Lam couldn’t believe the words Ah San was saying.

“It’s true. Don’t deny it. You think you’re so smart, independent, and capable.”

“I don’t!”

“You do. You never ask others their opinions. You never look at other people’s perspectives. It’s always about you and what you think is right. Take this divorce for example. Yes, what I did was wrong, but unforgivable? We can’t sit down and talk it over? When you realized you were wrong you refused to admit it. Instead you changed it so that you would still be right. It’s always about you being right.”

Ah Lam never thought about her actions in that light before. “I-”

“You always try to plan and arrange things. You always want to have everything in your hands. Look at how you dealt with your ‘28′ scare.”

Ah Lam was stunned speechless. Ah San was right.

“I’m so tired,” Ah San admits. “I’m always chasing after you. I’m always working towards something to please you. You’re never satisfied with me. Maybe it’s because in your heart I cannot compare to ‘him’…” Ah San takes a long pause before declaring, “We’re over.” He removes his wedding ring and sets it on the coffee table.

Ah Lam sits on the floor crying hysterically. “Ivan! Ivan!” She tries to beg and plead, but it was too late. From the moment Ah Lam started her emotional affair, her marriage was doomed. Without realizing it, she had hurt Ah San too much. Ah Lam thought she could control everything, but as it turns out, the heavens always have the upper-hand. Ah Lam didn’t mean to divorce Ah San, but her actions made the divorce a reality.

Ah Sing and Ah Lam had wanted to keep their “affair” a secret, but the heavens wouldn’t go along. The heavens don’t protect secrets and lies of cheaters.