Best Choice Ever

very Asian family

When I read the first page of this drama review, mostly the comments are divided into 2. The one that feel the mom is so f*ck*ng annoying & the others that feel she brings life to the drama... Haha... But for me this drama really screams very Asian family drama... One dominant / over bearing mother and her filial piety child.

What I like:
+ The beautiful story about Asian's family. And in the end it become more beautiful...
+ How the relationship of Mai Cheng Huan (CH) & Yao Zhi Ming (ZM) shape. How they built each other trust & feeling.
+ CH is one strong woman. When she decided something, nothing can change it.
+ The funny & cute relationship of Mai Cheng Zao (ZZ) & Mao Yong Xin (MM).
+ The best grandma. She's one truthful woman, she honest with herself & have principle for herself, even from her youth.

What I don't like:
- At first, of course the over bearing mother. But I feel I can understand her feeling & put myself on her shoes. But that's doesn't mean I agree with every stupid decision she did, especially regarding CH & Xin Jia Liang (JL)'s relationship.
- The lousy JL. OMG... Several times I want to slap CH for choosing him as her man. Pity my Niu Jun Feng to get this role.
- The weak 'fear of wife' dad. Yes FL's dad almost have no voice in the family. But at the same time, this characteristics exactly what needed to balance her mother....

overall this drama is not about romance or workplace. It's more about family as a whole...

Below I'll write about the story, but that's also mean SPOILER ALERT!!! So read it at your own risk!!!












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SPOILER ALERT!!!
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Story about Mai Cheng Huan (CH), a girl from an ordinary family, who is urged to be married by her mother. (Reason? Only 1, she's 29 years old... Haha...). Feeling the urge, CH finally talks to her boyfriend, Xin Jia Liang (JL) about her mother's 'demand'. One day, CH accidentally finds out that actually JL is not from an ordinary family, but JL actually is the 2nd generation of a rich family. That made CH angry & feel betrayed, cause JL hid the truth about his family from her for 3 years. From this point, their relationship turns to the dark corner.

CH's mother, when learning the truth about JL's family, turns 180°. At first, CH's mom thinks JL is a lousy man with no future, but as soon as she hears that JL is actually a 2nd generation rich man, she's so happy & tries everything to make CH & JL relationship successful. It's a typical Asian mother, who dreams of marrying a rich man but unsuccessful & eventually gonna force her daughter to fulfill her dream, cause they're always thinking :"it's what is best for their daughter."

JL squeezed between his feelings for CH & his family disapproval, cause CH is not from the rich family. And JL is one of the weak & lousy men, he never can take a firm stand on where he's standing between CH & his family. And still added to the fuel by JL's sister, who shows the most disapproval of their relationship. And it's all really crumbling down in ep 16, where CH's mom & JL's sister just do the most outrageous things & make JL & CH relationship finally completely over.

Feeling enough with her mother's pressure & intervention, CH finally decided to live outside of her family. And begin focusing on herself & her career.

Now, about CH & Yao Zhi Ming (ZM). CH & ZM know each other from the workplace. ZM is CH's boss & later we found out he's also his step cousin, CH's grandpa married ZM's grandma. And because of their grandma, ZM is getting to know CH. And because of CH, ZM realizes his shortcoming when it comes to the warmth of the family. Over time, ZM is getting closer to CH's family & feel welcome & the warmth of Mai's family. ZM's feeling toward CH is more and more special & CH also learn more & more about ZM & later they finally start their relationship.

On the other side of the coin, there's also a story about Mai Cheng Zao (ZZ) & Mao Yong Xin (MM). ZZ from baby raised by his mother's family at the village. That makes him sometimes feel detached & unwanted by his parents. That's brought up many issues regarding him, his mother & his mother's family. MM on the other hand is god daughter of Mai's family, she's also CH's best friend. ZZ longed to adore MM & had feelings for her. And later, MM also feels how good ZZ is to her & they become a couple.

When CH starts to focus on herself & her career, comes a sad news, her grandma died. But her grandma left CH inheritance of her hotel, for CH to manage. And with her warm hand, the dying hotel bloomed to glory....

Overtime CH & ZZ also repaired their relationship with their mother. They're starting to be better at communication, their mother wants to bow down & listen to her kid (CH &ZZ). And when everything looks wonderful, comes devastating news of their mother. Their mother get sick & she decided to go back to her hometown. And in this hometown, CH & ZZ find the amazing past about her mother's youth. About her abandoned dream, about her youth, about what she sacrificed for her family....

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Less than stellar follow through

Overall story is good, one could even argue than it is almost great in the beginning. But midway through the writing seems more and more.... lazy is the best word I could think of to describe it. In the beginning, every conflict and thought process of the characters are told in detail, and so is the climax building. But then all of sudden the scenes are just fillers then they just tell us the ending, not in a novel way, more like news reports way, just informing us what happened, then The End. Other that that I think this drama is pretty good, especially the acting and chemistry between the main characters and the family

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Mixed feelings

It would have been better if this drama was not marketed as romance. To realize some episodes later that it is more of a family/life drama left me with a lesser impression by that time because the matriarch figure already annoyed me to no end by that time. I would say it is also partly my own fault; however when I started paying more attention to the credits song and understood the lyrics, it made more sense.

Honestly the “leads’” pairing kept me (barely) invested. I started watching because I wanted to see the Xu Kai/Yang Zi pairing. Jokes on me…The real leads are Yang Zi and He Sai Fei (the latter played the matriarch figure). Some episodes (many..) it felt like He Sai Fei is the only lead, especially the last few.

He Sai Fei’s character was overbearing, over-meddling, could be seen as self-centred at times but it also hit too close to home for many who could identify many traits in one of their parents. This could only turn out to be a disaster watch or some good drama.

At times, it felt like there was too much manufactured angst, especially towards the end.

If you noticed, I only mentioned Xu Kai once..this was by design, I thought the character he played felt like a prop at times, it was a real waste.

I added 1/2 star to the rating for the whiff of romance between the two “leads”.

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Should be called manipulative mother takes over

Very surprised by this drama as most things with Xu Kai and Yang Zi in are fabulous but this was very disappointing.
Plot was very thin and if her mother had been in my life I would have excommunicated her in about chapter 6. Who arranges an engagement party behind their daughter’s back to a man she broke up with months before and is surprised when it does down about as well as a pork pie in a synagogue.
The love story between FL and ML is flimsy at best although both Xu Kai and Yang Zi act their socks off, especially in the sadder parts of this story when some of the characters die.
That said most of the actors and their acting skills are believable and there are a few amusing moments (mainly at the expense of Xu Kai) even though the plot is terrible.
Wouldn’t bother again, sadly

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Not my best choice ever but…

Just finished watching this today. My thoughts below.

I honestly struggled watching this drama and complete all 37 episodes. Maybe I am not the intended audience as this is more of a family-centric drama specifically a mother-daughter dynamics. I started watching it because of Xu Kai while waiting for his other drama As Beautiful As You to air and was expecting it to be romance driven as implied by the trailers. Maybe that’s my biggest disappointment because it felt like I was duped and it fell short of my expectations. Don’t get me wrong, this drama is excellent on its own to its intended audience with lots of lessons about life and family. It’s just that this is not for me.

Xu Kai is ONLY a supporting role here with minimal screen time. The brother even has more screen time than him and his love plot was more focused than the so-called main leads. I love the acting especially the mom who successfully brought out my inner rage everytime she opens her mouth at least until episode 27 or 28 when she realized her wrong ways. I was prepared for an overbearing mom character but my preparation fell short for this level of mom that I have to skip her scenes for my sanity’s sake. Great job to the actress playing MCH’s mom!!!

My overall rating is 7/10 but just because this drama’s not for me. Plotwise, I didn’t enjoy it. The OSTs are also not catching my attention. However, the actors are doing a great job with their outstanding performance portraying their characters! The cinematography is also good with picturesque scenery especially with mom’s hometown. Boticelli and Xing’lan hotels’ façade are also eye catchers. These salvaged an otherwise poorer rating from me.

Thank you BCE for a roller coaster ride! Though watching this drama will not be one of my Best Choice Ever.

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Outlandish family antics makes a cringeworthy watch

I felt that by watching this show I would give Xu Kai & Yang Zi one more chance before I give up on using them as the primary reason to watch any of their shows. And how lucky that I can watch them both in one show before making my decision. I have enjoyed past shows starring each of them, but the enjoyment was due more to the power of the story & production, rather than their performances.

Best Choice Ever is another rich/poor CEO/employee set up in Shanghai. Yang Zi plays 29 year old Mai Chenghuan, a senior employee in the sales department of a luxury hotel. Xu Kai plays Yao Zhiming, the newly arrived, foreign educated, CEO of said hotel, of course. MCH is already in a tenuous 3 yr relationship with the son of a large design company, & of course gets off to a bad start with her new boss.

MCH's engagement to the future successor to a large business partner of the hotel she works at poses the ultimate conflict of interest as both businesses seek to use the upcoming marriage as leverage for their financial deals. The conflicts of interest don't just stop there. The drama presents a lawyer representing his girlfriend, & using work resources for personal issues while proclaiming not to be doing that, as being ok when it involves the main characters.

There's an interesting contrast between modern & traditional Shanghai. Rich families embody the modern, spacious lifestyle, while MCH lives with her 4-member family in a tiny, old apartment so cramped her younger brother has to sleep on a cot in the living/dining room. This living condition is what they can afford & allows them proximity to the business district, where the children can pursue career opportunities & still come home to a cooked meal. This is the commitment of MCH's working class parents.

Trope after trope follows, but the emerging themes are what role should marriage play in a woman's life, & how do you maintain professional integrity when personal conflicts of interest are constantly thrust upon you. It's a dismal world of pure transaction, where someone's interest in you is only as far as what they can get from you. That transaction can often apply to your own family, which drives children to spend their lives slavishly trying to appease their parents' regrets. And, as usual, success only comes with luck & circumstance, rather than how hard you actually work.

Unfortunately, as the drama progresses, the events that unfold become more & more bizarre. It also becomes apparent the story isn't really about MCH & YZM, but rather MCH & her mother. The dialogue is contrived & stiff. Lines are delivered in long, preachy sentences which is very unnatural. Plus, the lengths that the mother goes to in order to force what she wants from MCH was so outlandishly immoral & embarrassing it was painful to watch. Like throwing a surprise lavish engagement party just to publicly force MCH into marriage, or loudly barging in on MCH while she's literally heading a staff meeting just to order her to go eat lunch, would make you cover your eyes faster than the scariest horror movie. Such fodder would've been much better presented as comedy; instead, MCH's mother has to be the most irritating character I've seen in any drama. Does the screenwriter (or author) have an unresolved issue with their own mother to create such a distorted character? Towards the end of the show, the mother is firmly planted in the viewers' faces (as if you didn't have enough yet) by becoming the focus of the final 4 episodes, spiraling downward & taking everyone with her. Was she supposed to be the main character after all? And what is the "choice" referred to in the show's title? Is MCH choosing her mother? She has no choice but to deal with her.

Yao Zhiming turns out to be MCH's step-cousin by marriage, & they connect through their (step)grandmother, but their relationship is hugely overshadowed by the theatrical hysteria of all the other arcs in the show. YZM's character basically stands on the sidelines & clearly takes a back seat to MCH who puts in a gargantuan focus on her mother. He supports her just so she can support her mother, with the consequence being that they still remain unmarried at the end.

YZ seems to be caught in a loop of goody two shoes roles while XK has not changed from the muted, boyish & cocky rascal. This show has simply mixed the two together but nothing new has come out. All in all, Best Choice Ever is over the top & confuses who the viewer is supposed to sympathize with. Mother/daughter relationships are always hard but this show is next level cringe when you see how a mother can ruin a daughter's life.

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The Main Character is the Mom

If you are looking for a story about a relatable mother of grown children struggling with an empty nest, it's a great show. However because the story is theoretically not about the mom, the pacing, events, and character development feel off. Would have been better if the writer just embraced that the story they obviously wanted to write instead of pretending to be about the leading couple. The show has an ensemble cast but doesn't do a good job balancing time spent on the various relationships (familial or romantic, so it will feel like one conflict last forever and another is just glanced over or never mentioned again. Had potential, but fell flat.

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Sindrome di Stoccolma? oh yes!

Uno dei drama più brutti che abbia mai visto.
La vera protagonista di questo drama è una madre psicopatica.
Si inneggia alla pietas filiale quando è molto più una sindrome di Stoccolma.
Un'intera famiglia alla mercee delle brame di potere e ricchezza di una madre despota che ha instillato in figli e marito il sacro terrore di dispiacerle o anche solo turbarla.
Lei comanda e tutti scattano sull'attenti.
Anche quando cercano di avere una minima autonomia lo fanno sussurrando e pregandola in ginocchio di consentirglelo.
Arriva a imporle con l'inganno il matrimonio col suo ex (un debole vile) solo perché è ricco.
La protagonista finalmente si ribella un minimo, in piena cerimonia le dice il fatto suo (con pacatezza e garbo) e la madre che, nonostante si sia accorta di essere stata ingannata dalla famiglia dell'aspirante genero, che fa? La schiaffeggia e le dice che non è più sua figlia, se non lo sposa, salvo poi prendersela perché lei fa le valigie.
Le neffandezze che questa donna ha commesso nella sua vita sono indicibili.
Le sue scelte egoistiche hanno reso un inferno l'infanzia del foglio, costretto il marito a farla vivere una vita che non si potevano permettere lamentandosi costantemente di quanto fosse vile e inadeguato, reso la figlia una burattina pronta a sacrificare la sua dignità pur di renderla orgogliosa e rischiando di mandarle in malora la vita e il lavoro costantemente.
Ma tutti che fanno? La venerano come angelo del focolaio.
Un drama che è più una propaganda a valori che sarebbero sani se fossero applicati con amore invece che con regole mirate al predominio classista.
Schifo.

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Don't focus on the character actions but the meaning behind them

This is my first post in MDL, even though I've been using this site for many years. the reason is this drama deserves.

Actually, the first reason to start to watch this drama was because XuKai and Yang Zhi. But the main reason to stay was the story itself.

This was the best family drama I ever watched.

The focus here is not the romance, but how the main character got together to be a family. I loved the development of characters.

In fact, the development of the story, apart from the whole race in the workplace, which hotel is better, being president, getting a promotion and who gets Xian' Li is basically about the development of the family.

About a mother and daughter who love each other but have different views of the world and can't handle it without almost ending their relationship.

For many, her mother's abusive behavior during the drama is a reason to stop watching. And yes, I myself was angry at how Mai Cheng Huan is used by everyone at first. For the mother who dreams big but wants to use that so her daughter can have a better life and ends up passing over her. For Zhiming who uses her to achieve his ambitions at work. For the boyfriend who takes her for granted, lies to her but tells her he loves her, even though he doesn't lift a finger to defend her from his family. But through it all, as the story developed, I was able to see that her mother actually just didn't know what she was doing. Yes, she is clueless. But at the same time she only tried what was best for her family. That person who didn't get what they wanted during their life, and passes this expectation on to their children. Although I don't agree, I understand the vision. She wanted the best for her children: Happiness, but she needed to really get to know her children. She couldn't understand that there is no way to please everyone in life and there is no shortest way to live. And in all of this, she almost had to lose her family to be able to learn a little about life. She has a personality like that, but it doesn't mean she doesn't love her family. When at the end Zhiming joins the family, after both his grandmother and his father were gone I love how she in particular treats Zhiming like a son the most, worried about him, this warms my heart.
And, in the end, we can see Cheng Huan also needed to learn about her mother.

What captivated me in this drama was the reflections on family life. Zhiming, being a boy who never had the experience and love of a family, and only knew material pursuits, returning to China taught him what love is, he changes not only for Mai Cheng Huan, but also for his grandmother. That even though he doesn't know how to show it, he loves her and was looking for her love. And I feel that Cheng Huan didn't teach him how to love like in many dramas, but taught him to see that small actions are worth more than anything by showing himself what love is. At his grandmother's burial , when she says on the video that she took him to the Mai family so he could have a family, that's exactly what happens during the drama. He starts out alone, but gets a big family, full of problems, but united and noisy, that's what he needed in his monotonous life.

I also like Grandma’s teachings. She lived a lot, and learned a lot about life. She had regrets, especially when it came to family. But she lived intensely. She shows how she managed to achieve happiness by balancing her life. She doesn't always help everyone, but lend a hand to help them walk until they can walk alone. Learn to speak but listen. Be for yourself, but have others around too. She says so many things that made me think about life.

I like how each character develops and shows us important parts of the family, and that not all of them are perfect, just as a family is not made up of blood.

One of the most beautiful scenes for me was Cheng Huan's father and Zhiming talking, and he talks about how he lives with her mother. Giving up things for everyone's happiness, and cultivating their love every day.

This drama is more mature and made to think about many things in life. If you are a person who likes to analyze everything, appreciate the teachings without caring about perfection, this drama is for you. There is no right or wrong here in the story, it's about everyone making mistakes, no one being perfect, but still loving yourself and your family. And no matter what happens, a family is together through the ups and downs.

Everyone's performance was incredible, I laughed, I felt embarrassed, I cried and I was moved.

The choice of songs were also incredible, and if you pay attention to the lyrics of each one, it also has a lot to do with the scenes.

In the end, it's a simple drama, which definitely has many similarities in terms of story, but it's its simplicity that makes it so special.

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Best Family Drama

This is such a great family drama. If you are going to watch this for a romcom, this is not a romcom at all! It has romance dispersed throughout it, but it is mostly a family drama, and one of the best family dramas I have watched in a very long time. I absolutely loveddd this drama. I cried so so much, especially every time the FL cried. There were some really sad moments in this drama! All of the plot points, storyline, and acting were 10/10.

Yang Zi's performance in this drama was incredible. She deserves all the awards out there for her role, and it made me an even bigger fan of hers. Her character in this drama was great as well. She was a strong willed and independent woman. She never relied on anyone to help her or her family out, even when times were extremely tough. Therefore - for anyone who was a bit disappointed that there was no definite engagement/marriage for her and the ML by the end of the show, I believe this was done to show that this show is mostly about the FL's growth and the achievement of her personal/professional goals rather than a typical romcom ending of the FL getting married. It is clear that the FL + ML will eventually get married, as the ML said he is ready whenever the FL is, but this was not important enough to dedicate episodes on as the show isn't about their relationship.

I see that a lot of people have dropped this drama because they found the FL's mother to be annoying, which she is, but that just goes to show how fantastic of an actress they chose for her role. Although she may go over the top with what she does in the drama, her character is rooted in love for her children + trying to do what is right for them.

And finally, the ML did such a great job as well! I watched one of his dramas a few years ago, and it is clear that he has grown into an even better actor through his role in this drama. His character is so well written (as are all the other characters). I appreciated his character's growth and the evolution of his personality. I find it so cringe when a ML does a complete 180 twist and develops a whole new personality when they get in a relationship, and I am so glad that this was not the case for him. I also LOVED the way that he became a part of the FL's family, not only by relation to her, but being close to her parents as well. So darn cute and heartwarming.

I'll wrap this review up by saying that I absolutely loved how their grandmother knew that the ML needed a family, while the FL needed a chance to excel in her career, so she made sure to help them through her will. Ughhh so heartwarming. This entire show was so well thought out!

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Worst choice ever

Watching this was probably one of the worst choices I've ever made.

This is just my honest, personal opinion, I disliked both the story AND the way it progressed. The acting could've been better, but it generally wasn't that bad by most of the cast. The story though... Some characters were quite literally UNBEARABLE (yes I'm looking at you FL's mom).

The FL is written as a very kind yet resilient and strong person, or so we're supposed to believe... The thing is, she behaves like a dormant, especially with her mom. Disagreeing with your parents is perfectly normal, agreeing with everything they say and forgiving whatever they unilaterally decide for you, is what's not okay. I could literally write an entire essay about how dysfunctional the FL's relationship with her mother is.

The FL is 29 years old and her mom treats her as if she's 12. She literally designed an engagement ceremony for the fl without asking for her opinion... and I'm not even talking about the decorations... I'M TALKING ABOUT THE GROOM like- 👁👄👁 lady get it together, please. The thing that makes me madder is had the FL enforced healthy boundaries with her mom, nothing like this would've happened.

Boundaries are of utmost importance in every relationship and suitable ones should be enforced (obviously depending on what type of relationship it is and taking into consideration personal preferences). By not enforcing proper boundaries the FL is enabling her mom's behavior. No, it's not cute, it's not "but, she's just worried" or "she loves you and cares for you that's why she's doing it". Seriously I hate when behaviors like this are glorified or simply glossed over in dramas with the excuse of "being a loving parent❤️". No. She is smothering her own daughter. The woman is simply controlling! Not to mention that she gaslights her daughter when things don't go her way.

Another thing that I didn't like is the grandma being used as a plot device to bring the main leads together (or at least the particular way she was utilized as a plot device). Moreover her being all "I brought you into the Mai family" towards the ML, like she gave him the biggest gift ever made me so mad. If she sincerely wanted her grandson to know what love is, she should've brought him to live with her or helped him before things turned as bad as they did (with his family). I believe that she was kind of cruel to her grandson since the beginning of it all.

Also isn't it ironic how the FL was betrayed by her long-term bf hiding the fact that he was wealthy, when the grandma did the exact same, and for many more years...

All in all, I think this story just wasn't for me, I struggled and ended up skipping quite a lot, up until the 20th episode. I'm a bit disappointed as I am a fan of some of the cast, but I'll just drop it here.

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