Married

Sometimes, It's Just Not a Happily Ever After

Well, this is not the “married” you probably were thinking of when you read the synopsis. It is more to me of a woman who finds her place and voice in a marriage that was crushed by her drowning from being controlled by her husband.

We are happily introduced to the married couple of Hu Cheng (Feng Shao Feng) and Ning Yue (Elvira Cai) and their beautiful son, Hu Zi Yuan (Andy).

Ning Yu was an award-winning employee on the Wall of Honor, a senior lawyer, a courtroom champion who rarely lost, and a rising star with a bright future in law. Her life was one written for a powerful career woman. But that was four years ago. Her home life was her new battlefield. She now stayed at home and took care of her husband, Hu Cheng, so he could focus on his work – Yaofeng Technology which he established.

Ning Yu gave up her career at the peak for her family. Did she regret. Not in the least. Not at the time. She felt that this was just a temporary retreat. She now felt she was taking her first steps to returning back to work. Over the past six months she had been offered consultation work with her husband’s support, working as a pro bono lawyer at a nonprofit service center. Her income was not that much, and the cases were trivial matters, but helping so many people in need made her realized she was valued.

Hu Cheng with his partner and confidante Zhou Wei (Victor Huang) were best friends who from college had gone through so much with making Yaofeng Technology a fortune 500 company. Zhou Wei knew all of Hu Cheng’s shortcomings and secrets. He always tried to balance him and counsel him to make sure he understood there is a difference between his family life versus his work life. Nothing or no one should come between that, if only he would have listened.

Cracks Being to Show…
Ning Yu loved her husband and was always easy going towards his every need, but somethings were a bit too much. She was not allowed to drink, focus on just getting pregnant again, because he felt Chinese woman looked good in a cheongsam dress that was all that she was pretty much allowed to wear at any event--so much so, when she had gotten her outfit wet when they were camping out, he brought her one of those dresses instead of jeans and lastly stopping at all cost her having a career again.

This was a poignant moment for Ning Yu when she told Hu Cheng that she was going to take a job offer to leave the pro-bono, nonprofit service center. Oh, that did not sit well with him. He tried various ways to convince her not to take the job until he relented. Or did he.

But as she was closing the deal to leave within a month, Ning Yu was given a case for a wife who wanted to divorce her husband. Her son found out and came to the center and blamed Ning Yu for trying to separate his parents. Not listening to anyone, he went to the second floor of the building and jumps.

This was the downfall of Ning Yu’s restart of her career. Hu Cheng took the opportunity to not only pay off the mother, the hospital bills but to also besmirch her name on the intranet to make sure that she would not get any job. He wanted to put her back in her “place” of being at home.

Meanwhile, Hu Cheng meets Tian Qiu Zi (Jia Nai) who becomes his mistress.

Lies…Lies…Caught
After the incident, Hu Cheng decides Ning Yu needs to get pills for depression. Again, another controlling way to keep her at home. Ning Yu believed that she didn't need any medication, but again to appease her husband she did. Still bothered by the incident at the center, Ning Yu went to confront Hu Cheng after seeing Zhu paying the woman at the hospital whose son jumped from the building, she wanted answers. Her answer was in the form of seeing him walking out of the building and putting Tian Qiu Zi in his car. This was a gut-wrenching moment for her. To see the man, she loves putting another woman in his car, her heart sank, and so did her believing him.

She did talk to him at home, but everything she felt was just more twisted way of him lying.

Knowing now that there is more than meets the eye with everything that Hu Cheng was saying she met up with Mu Xiao (Xing Yu Jing) her lawyer friend who now would become the ally she needed to start the process for a divorce. Ning Yu finds out everything with regards to Hu Cheng’s affair with Tian Qiu Zi and begins putting her plan into motion.

Mu Xiao does hire a man who follows Hu Cheng and gets damaging evidence to solidify Ning Yu's case to divorce him. The catalyst for her reconsidering is their son Hu Zi Yuan. They both love their son but at what cost could she leave her son in the environment with a husband who acted as he did. She did not want him to be this way. Divorce was the answer or would she give him another chance.

Trust One More Time...Short-Lived
After two incidences which we have Hu Zi Yuan being in the hospital for suspected leukemia and Hu Cheng being in a car accident. The car accident, I feel was the turning point for Ning Yu. She truly realized how much she still loved Hu Cheng. He in turned saw the look of desperation and anguish so he felt that he too needed to readjust his attitude and ways. So, with a serious talk, Ning Yu and Hu Cheng put everything out. All transgression, doubts, fears, everything to start fresh once again.

This was a good point of love for them both until we had Hu Cheng bring in his parents, as well as his man. he sent to investigate who had been following him. Only to find out that he worked for Mu Xiao who was a divorce lawyer and friend of Ning Yu. All bets were off. Hu Cheng was now out for revenge. He felt everything she said was betrayal and she really did not want to reconcile.

We get an opportunity to see how Hu Cheng was raised and why in some respects he was the way he was. His father treated his wife not like a wife at all. More like a slave to wait on him hand and foot, literally. The man would just hold out his cup to her and she would go and get the tea. Always washing the dishes instead of using the dishwasher. Cooking, I mean, you get to the point where enough already.

But Ning Yu sees what is happening and quickly puts a stop to this. With the help of her mother, they empower Hu Cheng’s mother to being painting and doing things for herself. Ning Yu hires help in the house to which this young woman sets Hu Cheng’s father straight. So much so that you will see the complete turnaround when you see the expression on Hu Cheng’s face when his father literally puts tea in his mother’s cup. This is where you see the perplex look on his face, not once but twice. When his father actually cooks dinner with the help of his mother.

His father talks to him and explains to him his faults and how he needed to let his mother teach him thinks and trust her in knowing that they will grow better as a couple if he would just treat the relationship as equals. Explaining further to him, that there is nothing wrong with a woman working. All this as you will see is a surprise to Hu Cheng.

During the time Hu Cheng's parents are there, you will feel your blood boiling when you see how the father is. It is so unnerving that you just want to cheer for Ning Yu and how she handles the situation to bring this closure about for everyone. I was happy to see it because I was hot to say the least.

Good Friends Lost...Deception Everywhere
Zhou Wei was always in the corner of Hu Cheng. No matter what his misdeeds, he was always there, never wavering in his dedication to him. But things finally took a turn when he just disappeared. This was where you see the true cracks in the armor of Hu Cheng. He is a man that likes to control every situation but, in this case, it was not meant to be. Zhou Wei had gone into the hospital -- liver cancer advanced stage. Finally, going to see his friend he was so apologetic and crushed to see him like this. He felt loss, remorse, anger, and wanted to help him only to have Zhou Wei blame him for everything that befell him. These were his last heartfelt words that he said to him before he finally passed away.

Zibo his nephew justified to his uncle, Hu Cheng his attempt to take out Mu Xiao. He thought that is what he wanted him to do.

And lastly, the woman that he deceived in his hometown who he stashed his money and property, took everything from him and fled. The day of Zhou Wei wake, the police came and arrested him for embezzlement.

Breaking Free
Ning Yu created an elaborate way to once and for all to break free from the grasp of Hu Chang. Her friend Qin Can (Xing Zhao Lin) who worked with her previously was an advocate who helped her as well as Luo Ya Ting (Sophia Hu) ex-wife of Hu Cheng. She made a clause in her contract, once she was able to work, for the company to sue her and mortgage her house should she choose to leave before her contract. Hu Cheng made her leave. Once Ning Yu showed him the contract, she knew he would fight her. This caused an all-out fight in the conference room. Knowing how to push his buttons, Ning Yu forced Hu Cheng to shove her putting her through the glass. This caused him to be arrested and put into detention. Allowing Ning Yu to file for divorce.

Freedom
Ning Yu planned well. She had her home established along with her mother. Hu Zi Yuan was becoming adjust to his new surroundings and loss of his father, since he was charged with embezzlement. Ning Yu took over Yaofeng Technology. Rises it from the ashes.

After serving his time, you will see a changed Hu Cheng. No longer is he a driven man for profit but a self-reflecting man on the loss of his family. You feel and see that he is a man that doesn't know which way to go. But you still have Tian Qiu Zu still pushing him to go back to his former self of running Yaofeng Technology. She feels that she has won her battle with Ning Yu only to have Hu Cheng come to the shareholders meeting and give over all his shares to Ning Yu, crushing Tian Qiu Zu. He gives his final blow to separate once and for all for Tian Qiu Zu by giving her all of his savings and breaking free from her,

I have to digress and say Hu Zi Yuan is such an outstanding young talent. His scene when Ning Yu takes him from Hu Cheng is the most heartbreaking moment to hear him cry. Hearing the words to Ning Yu asking why his father doesn't come to see him anymore, will make you feel like you just want to hug this boy. He is amazing throughout this drama.

New Beginnings....
We finally see that Hu Cheng gets his life together and begins working at another company once again. There is a good relationship with his son and Ning Yu. And it looks like there will be a budding relationship between her and Qin Can.

I have to say this was a drama that makes you go through so many emotions and makes you think about marriage. You see how it starts out so well but just falters because of several reasons because there is not just one. Not all marriages are like this, if only...well, one can only hope that all are not this way.

I definitely did enjoy this and the performances by the leads was exceptional as was all the cast.

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Not everything is black and white in a marriage.

I really enjoyed this drama and felt it was written well. I’m with a partner whom I enjoy life with and raised pretty good kids. As good as it is, definitely it’s not free from rough edges and heavy patches. I think though the key is honesty and willingness to compromise…of course love isn’t questioned. This drama at least put perspective into what Not to do for a healthy marriage so if anything, learn from this relationship.

Hallelujah we have a very strong minded smart female character. I’m very satisfied with her performance and I’ve been on the fence with this actress until Fake It Til You Make It which I feel her character is similarly acted(Elvira Cai) . Male lead (Shao Feng) was good acting as the pompous ass jerk. His credit though is that he adored his son.

@Dedra70 in her review has an excellent breakdown of this drama if you want to know more. I just wanted to give credit to the cast and producers/writers of this story and hope that more people will give it a chance. It’s not rom-com, rather, it’s a look at how to build good and better relationships. Give this show a try as there’s some things to take away.

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Outstanding performances and a remarkable production of a contemporary drama.

I came across a teaser on YouTube, then searched on MDL for where to watch it, and voila! I decided to give it a try mostly because I really like the lead actor. I discovered him in the story of MingLan and have never looked back since. He is a very talented actor.

I am generally not fond of modern dramas. First, many of them often start with a woman who is bullied by her family, colleagues, or peers at school. Typically, it takes more than half the series for the female lead to get her revenge, only to end up falling for another man while the initial cheater or villain regrets their actions eternally. It's the same old story.

However, because this particular actor was in it, I decided to give it a try, and it turned out to be a good choice.

The drama "Married" does have the classic elements of ‘mistress’ and ‘cheating,’ which are necessary to drive the plot. What makes this story stand out is that it portrays a believable narrative. The characters aren’t strictly good or bad; they are a mix of both.

The central theme is that many women will resonate with the female lead — an ambitious and talented woman who left everything behind when she married an equally ambitious and talented man who ultimately succeeded in his career. It touches on the stereotype of married women who are expected to stay home and raise children. Of course, there’s the typical wake-up call after five to ten years when the husband neglects his wife, leading to the discovery of the ambitious and beautiful mistress working alongside him.

This storyline corresponds with the experiences or feelings of many women, capturing their pride and struggles.

The story is well-constructed and well-acted from beginning to end. One memorable scene is when the husband is released from jail and spends time with his son, and they both cry in each other's arms. He realizes, too late, just how much he missed, and how much his ex-wife sacrificed and loved him and their son.

Again, it's a stereotypical narrative, but the ending was not the happy conclusion everyone might have expected.

(Spoilers)

The couple remained divorced but reached a compromise for the sake of their son. He gave all his shares to his ex-wife to support her in remaining the CEO. He broke up with his mistress for good, recognizing that the age gap and her ambitions did not align with what he wanted for his new life. He became a devoted father and returned to the company, but as a creator rather than the CEO. Meanwhile, his ex-wife managed to balance work and personal life and realized she was falling in love again with another man.

In the end, everyone found peace and moved on, which is often what happens after a divorce.

I definitely recommend this drama!

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Strong story and acting

I ended up binging this; the story is well-written and strong, and the acting is brilliant.
The synopsis here on MDL is very weak and a bit misleading, though, in my opinion.

So, brief synopsis from my POV:
Ning Yue was a lawyer with a successful career ahead of her, but after marriage, childbirth and other life obstacles she has been out of the workforce for several years. Her husband is the CEO of a company about to go public. He is extremely devoted to her and their son, and in everyone's eyes, the perfect husband. When Ning Yue wants to enter the workforce and re-establish her career as a lawyer, she finds that her husband might not be so supportive of this. As she fights for equality in their marriage and independence to make her own choices, will it be possible to change her husband's mindset and maintain the marriage, or will divorce be her only option? And if so - will he let her go?

The cast:

Feng Shao Feng as the ML Hu Cheng delivered a very strong performance - how he managed to switch from having a tender, loving look, to absolute scary the next moment, was impressive.
Elvira Cai who portrayed the FL Ning Yue was also good. I felt her struggle with conflicting emotions.
I kind of felt the 2nd ML Qin Can played by Xing Zhao Lin was a bit in the background, and disappeared too much.

The story:

I found this to be very well-written. The characters were well-developed and had depth; there were no character that was pure evil/villainous - we got glimpses into their backgrounds or other sides of them. The FL was not flawless either, even if she was "the victim".
The flow was good - it kept me wanting to continue watching. It was a bit intense at times, but also gave you some breathers. There were small drops and hints that made you think you knew what might happen later, but did it?

I also believe it is an important topic; that abuse can also be in a non-physical way. The way they also showed the generational gap/differences was well done. The episode(s) where ML's dad was left on his own: Brilliant!

As for the ending, it was kind of non-conclusive. I wouldn't call it exactly for an open ending either though, but if you absolutely detest open endings this might disappoint you.

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Surprisingly Good True to Life Modern Drama

The drama is a bit jarring for audiences who are married with kids because it perfectly depicts the golden cage some women are placed into, especially those who have been forcibly asked to quit their careers to become a stay home wife/mother. The drama explores the ups and down from both the FL's perspective who feel trapped in a controlling marriage, and the ML's perspective of feeling incredibly insecure by his pasts and failures that he feels like he is grasping at sand to control everything in his life. I particularly love this drama because it explore modern family issues at the intersection between generations. I wouldn't consider this as a romantic drama, but rather a family drama, as it explores the complexities of what chinese families are facing - a fight around gender norms and tradition.

Every single minute of this drama was thrilling - and when you feel like you're frustrated with the pace it is going, it throw one plot twist after another. I also love that it is not a drama that triggers at your tear ducts, but one that really trying to get you to empathise with each of the characters.

The casting for this drama was amazing, every single person casted and the role they played were so appropriate, there wasn't a single actor/actress that did not play their role and their stereotypes perfectly. I watched this drama because Elvira Cai is an incredible actress who has so much versatility - with the exception of the fact she is always in legal/lawyer based dramas.

Incredible drama, highly recommend it for those who love modern true to life dramas.

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A good portrayal of psychopath and control freak husband with great acting from the main CP

Married is a melodrama that starts with Feng Shao Feng, Elvira Cai, Xing Zhao Lin, and Jia Nai. The main CP acted awesomely and convincingly as a troubled married couple. This was the first time I saw Feng Shao Feng play a bad guy, and he did an excellent job.

He played such a good psychopath and a control freak, and the story's pace is quite good. It also shows that it took a long time for the battered wife to get the courage to break free from this toxic relationship, and Elvira did a great job at it.

I enjoyed this drama until the last episode when it was an unnecessary filler. It would have received a higher rating if it had ended with episode 23.

Synopsis: It tells the story of Ning Yue's husband, Hu Cheng, cheating on her when she was pregnant. Ning Yue decided to divorce but found that she might not have the basic ability to make a living. She worked hard to stabilize herself and integrate into society.

My Reviews:
1. Acting: 8
2. Script: 8
3. Music/OST: 7
4. Production Quality: 7
5. Cinematography: 7
6. CP Chemistry: 8
7. Rewatchable: 7

Overall Rating: 7.5

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Nothing New but Worth the watch in Intrigue!!!

I don't like long reviews so here is a short one.....

"Women should not be so assertive,assertive women will not be happy" Ep20

We have all watched these Makjang type dramas where the woman is trying to set herself free from the confines of marriage and the limitations that it puts on career and life choices for women. This story is no different as our FL was once a brilliant lawyer who gives up her career to be a housewife manipulated by her husband with anger issues. Of course there is always cheating and a crazy mistress that doesn't want to give up either.
What I liked about this drama is how even with 24 episodes, there is no moment to waste.If you watch cdramas you know how they can be sometimes with wasting time. The pacing was very good, there are a few episodes that were draggy but I mostly liked it.The only parts I hated were the FL's workmates who were feather brained for people that are supposedly lawyers. The ML's parent's plot was also a bit annoying, but thankfully it was shortlived.

The ML was very good actor, he was able to switch on the hot cold character very well. He even scared me sometimes with his coldness and those eyes.The FL wasn't that convincing though both as a weak and strong woman. I find it unbelievable that she never found her husband's behavior weird, her plotting also wasn't portrayed very well either. The kid actor was so exceptionally good, his crying scene for dad was gut-wrenching and he was cute overall. I maybe biased but I think Chinese child actors are advanced,professional little beings (so good).

Overall : It's not a new story line, but still very entertaining drama that kept me intrigued and waiting for more. I watched most of it in a day. That's how much it motivated me to watch it.

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Man can’t cry; Zen me Shuo?

The jack of all trades masters none!

*Married* is a story that has been told multiple times. The overall framework is basically going to bed with an angel and waking up to find the devil next to you. *The Perfect Husband in the Mirror *is an interesting spin on that beaten-to-death subject. The antagonist of that show extracted his good qualities into a clone that could handle dreary husband duties while he lived it up as a playboy. His wife got suspicious, and the clone got clingy, so shenanigans ensued. That show was far from perfect too. It goes to show there are only so many ways to keep the story of Chen Shimei fresh. Time to move on, folks!

*Married* has elements of a refreshing perspective, but it shies away from that path for reasons I’m uncertain about. It could be the showrunners’ rigidity or societal expectations. Regardless, this is an uneven show uncertain whether it wants to be a soap opera or provide social commentary.

A soap opera would have made the antagonists — husband Hu Cheng (Feng Shao Feng) and his mistress Tian Qiu Zi (Cai Nai) unsympathetic. This show does not. In fact, they’re the show’s best couple. If this were a harem drama (*RIP GOAT genre*), Ning Yue (Cai Wen Jing) would be the conniving empress trying to keep true love apart. In this, her devious actions and the hypocrisy of Hu Cheng’s other antagonists are manipulatively portrayed as positive. 怎么哭?

Social commentary would have stuck to its guns — some marriages don’t work out. And it’s best to pull the plug early and lance the sore before either side does permanent damage.

This is an average production by committee. It lacks the vision thing. I likely won’t remember it tomorrow! That said, it isn’t without its positives. First on the list — at least in my books — is a star-making turn for Cai Nai. She was the most memorable part of the show. Her hilarious Douyin might make me a fan. *Give Bricsters a tunnel past the firewall, Bytedance, you cowards!*

Ahem.

The second is a stellar soundtrack. In my headcanon, *Married* is the mediocre music video accompanying superb songs. 怎么笑!

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An absolute gem

I arrived at this title following the director's name, the same one directing the gorgeous epic "Three Kingdoms", of 2010.
That was a monumental film, both literally and figuratively.
This one is a 24 episode long little gem which is a thrill to watch, and bordering on thriller, at some point.
The chilling story of an abusive husband, which deployes the whole arsenal of isolating the victim, unfolds before our eyes.
No verbal abuse and little physical abuse, towards the end, and yet one watches gasping for air how the spider web entangles the victim to the point of anihalation.
Superb acting, chilling few notes as musical background, and lines spoken in low, husky voices makes this another kind of gem delivered by this director.
Of course, there is the mandatory redeeming ending, which is rushed in the final three episodes.
But that is a small price to pay, given the previous 21 episodes of sheer evil unfolding.
Masterpiece !

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