youfeng_yard
This review may contain spoilers
An acting masterclass, well-deserving of being 2024's top drama
The drama follows Zhang Guimei through the trials and tribulations of building and running a free girls high school in a poor mountainous county.
The best way to describe this drama is that its realistically unrealistic. Some of the things that happen in this drama, you'd find yourself in awe and disbelief. The things that Guimei achieves before and after the school is nothing short of miraculous. But this story is based on a real person with these very real achievements, and I find that it makes the story even more captivating. ZGM is not a perfect human being, she's incredibly stubborn and sometimes bad-tempered, she would sometimes make very similar mistakes twice. But despite this, you can tell how much she cares, for her students, her school and her teachers.
I wouldn't claim that this show is perfect. I wasn't a huge fan of the time skip when Gu Yu went missing, I feel like they could have explored the time immediately after she disappeared a bit more. At times the pacing went overwhelming as we couldn't sit with any victories before another issue pops up.
Despite the flaws, I still do believe its one of the best dramas of the year. I found myself crying in joy at points and sadness at others. There was a good balance of drama and humour, and all the characters were well-written and well-acted. Song Jia did an incredible job playing Zhang Guimei and had one of my favourite drama performances of all time. The teachers and students were all played incredibly well, especially Lan Xiya (playing Gu Yu) with all her heavy scenes.
Disclaimer to all the (fellow) foreign fans watching, Zhang Guimei (the real person) has heavy ties to the CCP and this is naturally reflected in the show itself. Apart from one episode (episode 9), I found it well incorporated without breaking the flow of the story. I don't think it should stop anyone from watching the show but it'll be better going in knowing about it.
I highly recommend this show to everyone! This show has a bit of everything, it's heartwarming and inspirational, there's a good balance of comedy to break the heaviness, and all the actresses and actors do a spectacular job throughout
The best way to describe this drama is that its realistically unrealistic. Some of the things that happen in this drama, you'd find yourself in awe and disbelief. The things that Guimei achieves before and after the school is nothing short of miraculous. But this story is based on a real person with these very real achievements, and I find that it makes the story even more captivating. ZGM is not a perfect human being, she's incredibly stubborn and sometimes bad-tempered, she would sometimes make very similar mistakes twice. But despite this, you can tell how much she cares, for her students, her school and her teachers.
I wouldn't claim that this show is perfect. I wasn't a huge fan of the time skip when Gu Yu went missing, I feel like they could have explored the time immediately after she disappeared a bit more. At times the pacing went overwhelming as we couldn't sit with any victories before another issue pops up.
Despite the flaws, I still do believe its one of the best dramas of the year. I found myself crying in joy at points and sadness at others. There was a good balance of drama and humour, and all the characters were well-written and well-acted. Song Jia did an incredible job playing Zhang Guimei and had one of my favourite drama performances of all time. The teachers and students were all played incredibly well, especially Lan Xiya (playing Gu Yu) with all her heavy scenes.
Disclaimer to all the (fellow) foreign fans watching, Zhang Guimei (the real person) has heavy ties to the CCP and this is naturally reflected in the show itself. Apart from one episode (episode 9), I found it well incorporated without breaking the flow of the story. I don't think it should stop anyone from watching the show but it'll be better going in knowing about it.
I highly recommend this show to everyone! This show has a bit of everything, it's heartwarming and inspirational, there's a good balance of comedy to break the heaviness, and all the actresses and actors do a spectacular job throughout
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