Go Ahead (2020)

Great family drama

This drama isn’t a genre that I generally go for, but I decided to try it out after getting fatigue from other cliched dramas.

It turned out to be really refreshing and strangely gripping! I laughed and cried throughout the drama as the characters went through life and grew up. I was surprised that I could finish all 40 episodes (I generally drop long dramas halfway out of boredom from plots which are too similar). The characters are all well brought out, flawed but lovable (except for Ling Xing’s mom).

The acting and plot are amazing and heartwarming. A great drama to watch to appreciate your loved ones.

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? WOW ?

Quick trigger warning for physical abuse.

This show is pretty special as far as coming of age shows go. I really enjoyed watching this and appreciate the storyline. The show made me feel for the three main characters and it made my heart go through loops and feel happy and sad!

I love coming of age/university/young adult life shows. The family dynamics were really a special part of the show. They story really shows what a “found family” is and that was really touching. There we’re definitely frustrating moments, and there are events that feature physical abuse from a parent. But it’s wasn’t too much and it fit for the story. I think that there were a lot of highs and lows, there were melancholy moments and a lot of happiness too.

I hope you give the show a chance because it was worth it!

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I regretted procrastinating and not watch this first

This drama no doubt will bring you through a series of emotional roller coaster! With excellent casts, great story-line there is really nothing much to not like in this drama.

I honestly feel that the roles are specially tailored for the casts because I couldn’t imagine it with other actor/actresses.

The series really shows the growth of each and every character as you watch the episodes; with life lessons to learn as well.

Do prepare a box of tissue when you start to binge on this series and not flood your sheets with tears like I did!

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a well-constructed story about familial and romantic love

I usually have a hard time enjoying dramas about growing up or family because of the melancholy vibe that is always attached to the genre. I've become sick of the cliche sad background stories that are dragged on and cause characters to undergo forced growth.

The idea that three kids end up growing up together because of perfectly aligned unfortunate events is a bit unrealistic and cliche, but the problems that caused their positions in life are as realistic as it can get, which is why I love the drama. Nothing too weird or crazy happens throughout the show. The passage of time is depicted perfectly. The characters pass normal stages of life together, and at times grow distant because of such phases in their lives. It is shown that some relationships, even the strongest ones, can struggle to stay afloat because of time apart. Each character undergoes their own complex struggle with family, and their growth as individuals is well-paced. Every action characters take and the emotions they feel are supported by the strong plot. Throughout the story, there is a perfect balance of comedy, seriousness, and romance.

Three different families, each not following the normal family structure and undergoing their own unique struggle, are united into one. They created a new normal for themselves. The show portrayed how sometimes the relationships people choose to create can be stronger than the ones made by blood.

The only problem I had with the show was that some things were dismissed way too quickly. I understand it needed to be done for a complete story and happy ending, but it undermined the legitimacy of the problems. This is especially true for Ling Xiao's mom. It didn't bother me too much, since it was the ending, but it would've been nice for the problem to be taken more seriously.

I think the reason this show was executed so well is because of the amazing and talented cast. Sometimes I can find acting in Chinese dramas cringe, especially in the case of sad or crying scenes, but this drama didn't have that problem. The emotions were conveyed so well and it made the show seem so realistic.

I saw some people weirded out by the development between Song Wei Long's character and Seven Tan's character. I'd like to point out that if you look back, even to the episodes when they were still children, the relationship between Seven Tan's character and Steven Zhang's character are truly platonic. The show indicates how they tease each other and play around with each other like siblings would, while Song Wei Long's character has a completely different vibe with Seven Tan's character. It's true that Song Wei Long shows care for Seven Tan, but the fact is that they are not related at all. He has his own living parents and Seven Tan's character has her own living dad. His care for her was based in romantic feeling from the start. It's normal for a boy and girl, from two different families, who end up growing up together and spending so much time together, to develop some type of feelings. Steven Zhang's character was different, since his mother was no longer part of his life. Seven Tan's father became his only parental figure, while Song Wei Long's character still had contact with his mother and father. I personally, don't find it gross, because their different relationships were set up since the beginning.

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BAD ASS WOMEN

The only word I'd said for this drama is love..love..love and eat. I love 2 fathers who love their children unconditionally regardless if they're biological children or not...their loves shone through times, reproach to all parties. Song Wei Long, Seven Tan, Steven Zhang dynamic brothers and little sister relationship with a lot of emotional struggles as family came from different abandonment, the best Dads Li Ba and Ling Ba, the sibling would dropped everything to help out the others trouble. Ling Xiao's mom was kind of crazy, chronic PTSD after the lost of her first daughter that traumatized Ling Xiao as he tried to deal with his Mom's possessiveness over his guilt. He ZiQui reconciled with his mom finally after so much heartaches. A lot of eating scenes as family and friendship, all looked so delicious foods that I would gladly sat with them eating Li HaiChao's cooking. I like the most was the way Ling Xiao declare his relationship with Li JianJian in front of their dad....and he hesitantly accepted the relationship - ZiQui was the one firstly asked for his permission. Anyway....He ZiQui gave Ling Xiao and Li JianJian an ultimatum in their boyfriend - girlfriend relationship not to mess up 'sibling relationship' if their love didn't work out. ZiQui's seeking for kinship to the family who raised him while Ling Xiao had loved JianJian since high school in desperation of a drowning boy/man from sinking psychological burdens.

All bad Ass women were all in this drama; the women who abandoned their young children, or women who're forcefully dictating their children to go to what their best vision to their kids. These women didn't allow their children to make mistakes and learn life lessons. Tolerate, love, understand, hopeful, forgiveness won over regret, disappointment, sadness, anger, bitterness of these women. They became one family....and that's the best ending ever.

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So I finally caught up to this drama and finished the remaining episodes. I must say the cast was what initially drew me in especially Song Wei Long. He has one of the nicest faces I have seen and he is damn cute. I also like Steven Zhang and the trailer was very interesting.

STORY:
There were some absolutely golden and some absolutely boring moments. It started off strong and remained consistently good till ep 25-26. I felt like child actors were too cute and the sentiment of family was captured perfectly. In spite of the hurtful childhood all 3 of our leads had, they were quite fortunate. That was a little fairytale-like for me and at the same unbelievable i.e. the amount of abandonment happening and tying people together. The latter episodes focusing on the parents were a snoozefest. The mothers were unforgivable and at times the entire situation seemed too melodramatic for my taste. Emotions were good and some struggles were real but there were some unbelievable moments also.

ROMANCE:
I am glad my ship was right and the one I shipped her with came true. At times 'Ge' was cringey for me but maybe it is the same as 'Oppa'?? There could have been more in the romance department, but too much was focused on work and family.

CHARACTERS AND ACTORS:
For me the characters and the actors drove the story. I wouldn't give all credit to the script. Right from the Dads to the friends- Mingyue and Tang Can, everyone was perfect. The leads were also casted perfectly but the age gap was a little weird. I like Seven's portrayal but I still inclined towards the male leads. Even the unlikable mothers were good at playing their part. Felt like the drama portrayed two ends of spectrum when it comes to type of parents - good and the terrible. In the end it tells you family doesn't mean kindness. Kindness can be felt even from strangedd and make anyone feel like family. I felt worst for Ling Xiao. His life was too bad and his dependency on Jianjian was pitiful. His mother was horrible all the time. The little sister was also freaking annoying. I didn't feel anything for other brother's mom also and didn't buy her story. The biological dad was also no good.

OST:
First time ever I am appreciating OST from a Mainland drama. Highly recommend listening to all the songs.

OVERALL:
Realistic yet melodramatic. Not enough of romance yet enough of good family moments. Nice way to show sibling and friendly love, gratitude and loyalty. I liked that it touched upon Mental Health but lot of it was unresolved and poorly handled. I wasn't as hooked till the end but I am glad I watched it. Maybe it was perfect for some but missed the mark for me in few areas.

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Drama With A Lot of Heart

Story centered on found family and follows characters overcoming obstacles and caring for each other.
There's so much to love from the filming to acting.
Enjoyable Aspects:
- Clear love that these characters have for each other (not even limited to our main trio, parent-child relationships, friendships (between the three girls, dads, and more). The way this is conveyed is also realistic: there's horsing around and casual affection. Conflict arises and eventual reconciliation
-ALL THREE 'EPICS' of the main trio. Showing the adversities the characters went through their childhood, fun antics in their high school , and aftermath of separation in adult years. The child actors acted amazingly with surprising emotional depth (and adorableness). High school years was so fun, with wild Li Jian Jian getting into all sorts of trouble dragging along her older brothers. Character development as adults
- Realistic relationships and characters, with all these sensitive topics and traumatic childhoods it's all handled really well. We understand the rationale for 'villainous' characters like the negligent parents. But there isn't an immediate reconciliation, emotional trauma is clearly seen within the characters.
-Quick end and solution of Love Triangles: The ever detestable love triangle strikes again in this drama. But, they're relatively quickly reconciled and regular dynamics resume
-Romantic love takes a back seat. This drama is much more focused on slice of love and familial/friendship love between the characters, supporting each other with everything ranging from messy family dynamics to dreams. The love that blossoms between LJJ and LX doesn't cause a dramatic change in their interactions and luckily doesn't affect their bond with Ziqiu.
-LJJ's antics, her optimism and outlook on life is really admirable. She's really the glue or light that keeps her family grounded. High EQ from her childhood carries into her adulthood.
Regrets:
-Jealous of all of these dynamics. Where are my ride or die older brothers that choose their future career based on me? D: Where are my sisters (before misters) that don't hold grudges and unconditionally support me? Sign me up for a father like LJJ's
-Craving more content from the good ol' days of youth. The child actors are so good, it's a shame we couldn't see more of the bond and happy times of our found family unit. Same goes for high school days, so much humor content we missed out on!! Or maybe that's just me being better about annoying neglectful parents re-popping up into kid's lives and ensuing distress created
-Not watching drama earlier, though maybe this isn't a regret? I was able to binge the drama and overcome any sad drama times in 2 days! Steven Zhanggggggg <3333

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Story Ended

I like very much for the music / original sound track. it looked like the director want the story ended in the last episode, it mixed all the conflict and the climax.
The emotional connection between the casts is very good …. It's real. I love it.
Actually I am very selected to watch Chinese drama that have long episode. This is the first drama I watched streaming, and I'm curious for the next episode in Hunan TV although there's no English title. I don't understand what they are talking about but I'm still love watching them.

We need special edition to get good ending story or maybe there will be session 2.

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What an endearing coming of age family drama!

Likes: All the different layers/dynamics that comes from being in a non traditional family. The acting was great from everyone from the younger versions to the old. Song Wei Long was incredibly handsome.

Dislikes: The chances the 2 MLs return on the same exact day is a bit of a stretch. The 2nd half had more draggy parts and I didn't like how they wrapped up the drama at the end. Also the eng subs weren't the greatest so sometimes I was confused during some of the conversations.

Let me preface to say, I normally don't enjoy family dramas that much, but this one was done really well esp during the first half. I went in for Song Wei Long, but wound up really enjoying the story. It's endearing. You watch the 3 friends grow from kids to adults and watch how their relationships and personalities form from all the love, hurt, and trauma that's happened to them. What really stood out to me were the multiple layers that every character had that made them relatable and actually interesting to watch. The dynamic between the parents and their kids was also interesting to see play out. This drama handled the complexity that comes with family really well. Sometimes the people who love you the most can cause you the most damage.

I did think there were too many side characters however and I wished there was a bit more romance, but overall it was a great watch and would recommend it!

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Mixed feelings after the drama

I saw a clip of Go Ahead on TikTok, which was when Jian Jian announced that she had gotten her first period. I was amused by the scene, and so i was already very eager to watch the Cdrama, but at that time I had never watched it before, so I added it to my list. I decided to start watching Cdramas after Hidden Love and remembered this drama. SWL is an extremely attractive man, and that pushed me to watch it even further. However, as much as I liked his show, I also hated it just as much. I was already aware that it was going to be an emotional rollercoaster, and it did bring out bowls of tears from me, but some things were just too annoying and overbearing for me too watch. I'm going to start off by saying what I enjoyed as I watched this show.

First off, I love Jian Jian's Dad. He is literally the best. The way he cares for the family even though he doesnt have a lot is just so comforting and heartwarming. I love the idea of the three of them being raised together and the whole idea of them being a family. It was also very fun to watch their interactions. It is unfortunate, though, that the bad things were more.

The characters all had mummy issues, with some being worse than the others. Whenever i watched Ling Xiao's scenes with his mom, i always cried. She was a terrible mother and, in my opinion, the most abhorred mother in both Cdramas and Kdramas. Her daughter died and she blames everyone in the family as if they also didn't lose their sister and daughter. I get that people go through loss and i understand what she was going through, but she never cared for Ling Xiao and it absolutely broke my heart. What also pissed me off was that Ling Xiao never expressed it properly to her. The woman literally abandons her son and walks back in expecting him to accept her with open arms. She hurt LX so much, and she never properly apologised for it, instead, she kept on playing the victim every single time. We saw ZQ let all his feelings out to his mom as well, but we just didnt get that for LX and it was very unfair.

After realising all the wrongs that she had done to LX, she tried to kill herself, abandoning them again. What was more annoying was that she had a daughter this time around, used her daughter to basically torment and force LX to relate with her and at the end of the day, didn't include her in her damned suicide letter. In all LX's moms role was over bearing and unrealistic and also very hypocritical.

The female lead was obviously older than them. Not saying that TSY didnt act well cause she did, but they could have picked someone cuter and younger. Many people may disagree with me, but Jian Jian didnt look good with Ling Xiao. It just looked very weird to me and as much as they tried to have chemistry, it was still very awkward to watch. Jian Jian also didnt really like Ling Xiao, we know this from when she tells her dad why she was going out with LX. It was so annoying cause eh genuinely loved her, but her feelings were so immature and shallow. When LX would want to touch her, she would shrug away and she also called him 'Older Brother' till the end which was so inappropriate. They just didnt feel like a couple to me at all.

There are other things that i also didnt like, but these are the most important. These things are also what maked the show even more interesting to watch. But it isnt something that i would rewatch. There arent any heart fluttering scenes imo. However, it ahs an amazing Plot and should be added to your watchlist as a cdrama watcher.

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You've heard of daddy-issues as tragic backstories now get ready for...MOMMY ISSUES!

*The characters are a metaphor for bad parenting!*
This show didn't leave a huge impression on me but it gets a 9/10 for being the first Chinese modern drama that I watched all the way through and that deserves recognition if anything does. It's also not a bad show.
You should check this show out if you like:
1. Found family trope
2.Second-hand embarrassment
3.Slice of life
4.Food
5.Watching other people eat food while you're not
6.Food as a love language
7.Extensive and blatant verbal abuse of children throughout childhood and well into adulthood
8.Barely-there romance
9.Friendship and girls-supporting-girls
10.Easily resolved misunderstandings that don't stress the viewer out at all
11.Half-assed, there-only-for-laughs love triangles
12.Stories that handle concepts of trauma
13.Barely hidden implications about non-traditional family units (aka families with same-gender parents) being healthier than forced traditional family units.
14. Mothers having weird things for their kids...it's...complicated!

Summary: The story follows a widowed man named Li Hai Chao who runs a small noodle shop and takes care of his daughter on his own. He ends up becoming the primary caretaker for two neglected boys in the neighborhood and together with the upstairs neighbor dude, they make up a sweet, unconventional family unit. Then years later, the abusive parents show up and take the boys away just to prove that it's never too late to deeply traumatize and scar your children if you are determined enough!

So this show...is so comforting and cozy while also giving the viewers terrible anxiety. It's truly awe-inspiring how much drama they fit into a show that essentially has no central plot. Like I mentioned, the show is a "slice of life" type of show so for the most part it's about these people dealing with the banal difficulties of real-life but the circumstances of the characters are so dramatized and heightened that their daily issues involve weirdly high stakes.

Story: I really appreciate the time the show takes to really drive home the level of abuse and trauma parents can unpack on their children, intentionally or not. The whole concept of this show as I see it is challenging parenting norms of China, revealing the dark side of filial piety and asking real questions about what a true family consists of, and if blood really is thicker than water, or more importantly...should it be?!
Every one of the younger members of the cast (That is the main three kids, Jian Jian, Ling Xiao, and He ZiQiu as well as Ming Yue and Tang Can) are each different manifestations of traumatized children who grow up with some form of parental deficiency.
Jian Jian: Motherless, great dad. she is the least f*cked up one of the bunch. Her thing is that she was pampered because her dad didn't have the heart to be hard on her and she ends up rather demanding and unruly. She's very normal. She has almost no drama going on a personal level (just romantic bs). Although I did find her lack of sexual identity a bit odd given that she is the main "romantic" lead of the show. But I'm just gonna assume that's a cultural thing since "cute" girls seem to outweigh "mature" girls in terms of likability.
Next comes, Ling Xiao: Abusive mother, absent-ish father. He's just SO traumatized. He is the result of the most uncomplicated form of abuse. Depressed, with anxiety disorder. (He has little sense of preservation because he thinks he is unworthy of love and deserves the abuse he gets.)
He ZiQiu: He is the result of abandonment. He is emotionally suppressed and a perfectionist. (because he thinks he has to prove he deserves love)
Ming Yue: Is the result of a controlling mother and an absent father. She is childish and helpless as an adult. She is incapable of making any decisions. Utterly paralyzed between pleasing her mother and resenting her.
Tang Can: Commodified child star, burnt out. She is the example of a child who was used by her parents and praised when she brought in a profit and then later beaten down and ridiculed when she lost her benefits.
The story takes such good care of showing how damaged each of these characters are as adults because of everything that happened to them as children. The big event of the plot comes around episode 10 when Ling Xiao and He ZiQiu who had gotten away with moderate trauma, end up getting dragged back into really terrible family situations, suffer a form of arrested development, get traumatized even worse than before. The show is so good at showing their frozen mental and emotional state once they return to the story.
Then there's a lot of random plots at every turn with each revealing a new level of awful things that have happened to these kids. There are unnecessary love triangles but they seem to mostly be there for humor and they are all resolved quite fast and easily.
My main issue with the plot is that it ends up debunking its own hypothesis. By the end of the show, every single bad mother (and OH they were all bad!) gets redeemed one way or another and the children just resume their filial piety. Sure, there are important conversations that come up but it feels a little pointless. Plots are either undone or swiped under a rug to make a happy ending possible. There's no real statement made about bad parenting patterns.
There is also the fact that the healthiest family unit in the story consists of two men raising three kids together which says a lot about the argument that families must look a certain way for children to grow up mentally stable and healthy but then three fourth of the way into the show, it has to make up a romance for one of the men, in a very meh performance of "no homo".

Acting: The older actors were amazing. The younger ones were good too. Particularly Steven Zhang whose fans will not let anyone forget just how great he was in the show! lol. Seven Tan is praised a lot for this show but except for a couple of scenes here and there, I didn't love the choices made for the character so I didn't love her performance even though I think she did great with what she was given. Song Weilong is the one member of the main cast I am hesitant to pass judgment on. He plays a deeply depressed character and his character comes across as extremely depressed and introverted, so I think he did do an amazing job portraying that but that also means his character is significantly less flashy than Steven Zhang's so he can seem like he didn't do a good job and was just awkward. Didn't love the supporting casts' acting much. But again. similar to Seven Tan, their childish and exaggerated performances do add up with their characters' personalities so maybe they didn't have bad performances so much as their characters were just exaggerated and irritating!

The music was fine. Except for when that one song keeps repeating a million times over every time something emotional happens. A lot of cdrama/kdramas do this. Much to my displeasure...

The production was good. Especially compared to all the modern cdramas I have dropped. The audio was good, set design, cinematography and etc. were good in the way that good things go unnoticed because they are natural.

Negatives: There is a romance between two of the main kids. I think it's best to know this and go into the show because some people tried to make a "this is incest" argument which, no it's not. Stop trying to make a mockery of a serious issue. It's like, people love the childhood friends to lovers trope until they actually get to see that transition and suddenly it's gross and "how can you fall for someone you played with when you were kids?!" well that's what friends to lovers looks like in practice, Karen. It's literally in the name! Don't like it, don't watch! Knowing what to expect, you can notice all the tiny easter eggs the creators put in the childhood era about a possible future romance. It's also decidedly melodramatic. Some would say the childhood era was better than the adult era. I think everyone needs to accept that people can't stay kids forever and it's weird to love watching grown-ass people acting like 15-year-olds.

I would not personally rewatch it. It's not really something that I was super wowed by. It was good but just for one watch.

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A Thought Provoking Drama Gem

An unexpected thought provoking Gem of a drama ... this drama explores the sad sometimes frustrating and helplessness of family conflicts, the physical and mental anguish immature parents can inflict and damage on their children, told thorough laughter, tears and love in comic relief style can often be soul wrenching

Surprisingly enjoyable and touchingly funny reflecting lives ups and downs, with poignant references to "Humanist" theorists, Maslow's "Hierarchy of Needs" Model, the need for physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem before striving for self-actualisation ... as well as references to wider literature that supports and add weight to this drama

"Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans." (Saunders1957)

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