I want to like Taiwanese dramas, I truly do. However they keep on making me fel that they are just.... Kind of meh. Usually they have a god premise and interesting story, but as you keep on watching, episode after episode, you come to realize that the series has nothing new, nothing captivating and leaving you with a disappointment that can't easily be removed. So for the most times I don't even bother looking for taiwanese drama anymore, considering the fact that I seem to be unlucky with them. But there can plop up a random drama here and there, and without any major hopes I start watching it. This is the story about how I came to watch Sunny Happiness. So let's see how this one turned out. Let's just say that I still have the same feeling about taiwanese drama as I've had until now.
And why?
Firstly, the story:
The story is one that I have the tendency to actually look up, meaning that the kind of premise used in Sunny happiness is one that I love to watch. A contracted marriage AND a baby on top of that. It all just scream interesting to me. However after a episode in, one realizes that it will take the drama some time to actually get to the point. Sure i get that we'll need some time to get the story about all the characters and how and why they act the way they do, both to the people around them and to each other. Plus the fact that the series has a lot of characters, you know, as many taiwanese dramas tend to do. Putting all this aside tho when we finally get introduced to the actual story we've been waiting for, the party seem to get started!
But alas no. After the long time of waiting and getting to know everyone, we get disappointed about the fact that the drama has no originality and takes from it's predecessors. I mean i remember the first taiwanese drama that I ever saw, and that was "Fated to love you". and while watching Sunny Happiness I saw all these similarities between the two shows, so much that when the big Thing happened a was pissed off. Nothing was different, all was the same and when i understood this, I couldn't watch the show as anything else but a rip off from other things I've watched so far. So to finalize it all. I would say that the story had something going for it because I (ME) love this kind of plots, but when one get's deeper into it you see all the faults that the story makes and in the end it just feels like a waste of time.
Secondly, the characters:
The characters is better than their story, not to mention that the differ from the characters in Fated to Love You. Sure there is your stereotypical rich and mean guy meeting your typical poorer but extremely strong girl, and already there we see the difference between the two shows. Fated to love you uses the shy and insecure female character instead of Sunny Happiness strong and independent one, and only that makes it a little better situation. The character of Fang Yong Yong alone however, is not my favorite one, after all she is not the most interesting character. She acts the way one would expect her to and she has no problem with her attitude towards other people, tho she always acts out of love and justice towards people around her. And for all that expectedness, I feel her to be a boring character. however good a job the actress did with her.
The second main character is better by far, Xiang Yun Jie. Sure, he's much more from the typical character list, but he was both mean and sympathetic at the same time. Once you got into everything you kind of understood that he wasn't a mean person, only that he was strict and tough as a person. I do like that there wasn't so much drama in his character. He saw everything as they were and acted accordingly. And thanks to his character I had the power to watch all the way til the end.
Of course we also have to mention the so called "love rivals" because when don't I. This time our love rivals are the ex-wife and the brother. Let's start with the Ex- wife. After having enough of Yun Jei's ways she separates from him and raises their child alone, with Yun Jie not even knowing about his existence. And when their son finally meets his father, she realizes that she may have feelings for him still. And bla bla bla. Anyway I don't have so much problems with her as i expected. Sure I was bored whenever she and her problems were onscreen but her as a character, not so much problems there. Because she isn't a person that wishes bad on anybody. She is a fare and considerate. Compared to our second love rival. In the beginning you think that he will be a cute and caring character as like being a little brother looking up at his older brother. Guess what, not the case. He is scheming and always treating people badly to reach his goals. Just like he uses love to get his hands on thinks so that his brother will lose to him. This could work if one could buy the reason to why he acts that way. But I really can't see why he must be such a bad person just because he is seen as the lesser capable one of the sons. After all he seem to be less picky than Yun Jie and so that is kind of proof that he isn't as capable as the him either. He's just all over the place and he is hard to pin point at times too, so he's not one of my favorites. However the actor that played him did a good job, I'll give him that.
I do remember liking the music here but looking back I have no clear memory on how it sounded and if the songs themselves were good or bad so that's a bad thing in and of itself. If i can't even remember the music that means that the music didn't have the capability to actually leave an impression on me at all. The thing that I did like tho is that the music didn't have singers in them, which i've noticed is a common thing in taiwanese dramas and a thing I find to be rather meh. So background music that only relaid on tones and melodies was a much better choice here, making room for the watcher to actually hear the feelings in the scenes.
And finally we're here again. With the big question about the rewatch value. And as i have a tendency to do, I will be my usual self and say that this series wont have me watching it again anytime soon. And looking at the things that I've mentioned so far that wont be such a hard thing to understand. I mean The story failed in keeping me invested all the way, especially sense it made such a bold move of just F:ing everything up. The characters a mediocre and aside from a few of them, they seem to be rather one dimensional and only having few certain character traits. Sometimes breaking free from them to have some kind of character development and that's it. Music breaking free from the taiwanese drama norm but being unmemorable is just as bad as anything else. So as you all can see. me watching this again would for real only be a waste of time. I know the characters already, I know were the story is going and i know how everything end so there is really nothing left for this series.
However much i've complained tho, the series isn't super bad and I can definitely say this, Sunny Happiness in one of the better Taiwanese dramas I've seen. So there's always that. It's really up the the person reading this review whether to watch or not. As I always say. It is up to you, if you wanna watch, do, if you don't, don't.
I do hope this review helped a tiny bit either way.
Happy Watching!
Mivaaa
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