Begin Again

Unexpected

Story:
First, stumbling upon this drama that only had two episodes, I did not expect that this show would be this good. This drama was not like your cliche, the cast was delightful, with no frustrating dubbings that could make your head explode, especially with the female characters since they're annoying and act like their age, unlike many Chinese actresses who have their voices dubbed in childlike voices and act like literal toddlers. Furthermore, the male actors weren't your typical Chinese standard, which made it more realistic. The three different storylines were done well as they were entirely different, which catered to more viewers and made the show less boring. The first storyline with the thot racer and the art curator was hot and new; this was a new storyline for a drama which made it interesting, and the high emotions they had for each other made it intense in a good way, somewhat addicting... The second story with Mai and Junie was my favorite; it was a slow burn but a good what if you know what I mean. Jun le was patient towards Mai, and their scene with another was a chef's kiss ( although I was at the end, they had more screen time). Their situation was maybe one of the healthiest relationships I've ever seen in a Cdrama. The third story with Casey and the piano Prodigy was not my favorite, but it was very interesting since I did skip their scenes I was more interested in the other characters as I was watching this for the romance; it is still a great story if you needed the break from the romance.


Cast:
All actors and actresses suited this role perfectly, and I can't nitpick them since they all did so well! But even though Elvis Han is not my favourite actor as I don't see him as great as an actor but he pulled through

Music:
I didn't care for the music, but the variety was great.

Rewatch value:
I wouldn't rewatch it any time soon, but It's a new comfort show and background TV series whenever I'm bored or studying and need something on the TV.

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"We all have the right to choose what makes us happy"

The life that is happening now. There is no frenetic action that leaves you anxious to see what will follow. Just bits and pieces of life. Just, as one of the main characters says, moments that remain to exist forever in parallel space-time, not linearly.
Both female protagonists have a fear of commitment, and both male protagonists strive to experience love.

It's a series that has sadness, tranquility, passion, trepidation, beautiful cityscapes, copious amounts of food, Macau - enchanting day and night, great music that reflects the frozen moments.

A series that looks at the place of relationships in life, of work, of family.

The actors are very real, the situations are not fictional, but ones that can be experienced every day.

Two main couples, lots of additional characters, in the second part of the series they added another bunch of characters whose relationships the viewer follows, but unlike other commenters, I don't think it hinders the series, on the contrary, it broadens the perspective.

Cinematically, the series is very different from the usual Asian series and is more reminiscent of a European series.

Some quotes from the series that reflect the authors' conception:

"We all have the right to choose what makes us happy"

"We all want to make money, but we don't make enough. So not enjoying your life, at the expense of making money, would be a waste."

" Our lives are hectic and every landscape we pass by is a unique little poem."

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It's kind of a Chinese take on La La land with a tremendous amount of filler..

Sure this one is not at all a musical, but the mood, the ambiance and the circumstances felt quite similar to me. Instead of one couple there are two main couples here, but this comparison still fits alright for either of them. What they've shown of Macau is absolutely magical -and probably not all that realistic, but who cares- and in the first half of the show the romance is also mostly excellent.

So why is it only a 7.5? Well the second half of the drama only had like 30-40 mins of what I wanted to watch & there were all kinds of miscellaneous plots. While I knew very early on that we're faced with sort of an omnibus style storytelling & but there was so much there that I found incredibly boring. (Casey + kid | Older Brother + wedding | divorcee parents) The ending here is better than La La Land's, which is honestly not very difficult, however I expected way way more from a show this long & one that had so much filler and I mean SO EFFIN MUCH filler.

The OST & cinematography are top, about as good as it gets in this genre, It's almost worth it just for that.

People compare this to `Fake It Till You Make It`, other than Elvis Han acting in both there are not all that many commonalities I think. Even if we approach this topic with the "mature love" angle, I think everything is just too different..

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Drama Travelogue

The main couple in this drama were interesting and Warm. He was lovely and natural. His character held the rest together. The female lead was a sad, work abused workaholic with no life outside of her job. I am hoping that she extricates herserl from her empty life. The second couple of pretentious characters were really boring and misplaced. It was like watching 2 separate dramas. I was sorry Elvis had such a boring role. The warmth of the lovely lead's family was really nice. Their restaurant was a meeting place for the community. I didn't undersatnd why there were so many glamourous females in the pretentious couple's story. Neither of them gave off any depth or significance Just thrill seekers. Sadly China seems to have caught up with the US in terms of workaholic , money chasing, fake people. That is sad. Chinese Period Dramas leave the present day life ones look shallow and overly westernised.

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Mediocre melodrama story, but good cinematography of Macau.

Begin Again is a melodrama about young professionals who crossed paths in Macau and found inspiration for the meaning of life and love for each other.

The story is mediocre, and the ensemble's acting is the same. I love Elaine Zhong and Elvis Han, but the characters they portrayed in this drama were not that exciting. However, I love the cinematography of the city of Macau; it makes me want to visit it since I have not been there.

Synopsis: In the bustling city of Macau, where glittering high-rises and traditional districts co-exist in the same space, there's always something interesting taking place. Free-spirited art curator Chen Jia Hui has lived in Macau for years but lacks inspiration. Unexpectedly, she crosses paths with professional race car driver Han Jun Hao, who's come to Macau to participate in the International GT Cup. Although he's past his career prime, he's finally determined to win – or lose – on the track. Ambitious, career-minded Mai You Ge travels alone to Macau due to an urgent task from her company. Still, setbacks have her questioning whether she's made the right choices in life. She meets "Macau know-it-all" Xu Jun Le, whose carefree personality seems the opposite of hers. Still, his upbeat demeanor might be just a front. Will the magic of Macau help them all find their place in the world?

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

Overall Rating: 7

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Too many storylines

The drama follows the story of 4 main characters: Elvis, Joe, Mai and Le.
Elvis is a frustrated racer, who is starting to feel the weight of age without an substancial achievement in his career. Joe is an art curator that is scared of love. Mai is a workaholic whose whole lifestyle revolves around work. Lee is a laid back guy who seems to know everyone around the city. All of them are brought together in the charming city of Macao, where everything happens.
I very excited at the beginning, especially because it is directed by the same director from Fake it 'Till you Make it, one of my favorite dramas. Considering this, the scenes are beautifully shot and the soundtrack is amazing and able to convey the mood of each scene. However, from middle to end, the drama started to loose track of itself by the huge amount of storylines that are shown in such a short amount of episodes. The main characters are completely overshadowed by supporting characters that I honestly did not care about at all. We had episodes dedicated to them, and that made the main storylines loose their impact.

I will try to summarize my opinions in topics, so it won't be confusing:

- Casey and Frank's storyline felt out of place and weird. Although the show tried to portray some sort of mother-son/friendly relationthip, at times, it almost felt romantic, which was disturbing to me. I believe this happened because Frank does not act like a child and Casey does not act like an adult.

- Jia's parents' storyline was terribly boring. I just did not care at all about these characters that were introduced in the middle of the drama and completely destroyed the leads' screentime. It was also unberable to watch her father completely neglecting his current wife with his ex wife.

- Xu and Jia were a couple that I was not interested at all. The only good part about the screentime they received, was to solve the issues between Xu and his father.

- Xu and Le's parents were great. I only wish they would spend more time on them. The mom was amazing and very wise.

- Elvis and Joe were a boring couple. Because they started their relationship too early, it felt like there was no build up to their romance at all. At the end, Joe breaking up with him without allowing him to explain the situation seemed as a dragging plot device, especially considering that both had hidden intentions for starting the relationship. I also did not like how much they brushed it off Elvis struggles as a racer. Since they needed to add these new characters, his concerns about his career were shown in a very superficial way, which belittled the impact of his victory at the end.

- Le and Mai were the only reason that made me finish the drama and I was disappointed. The open ending they gave them broke my heart. They were the best couple in the show, with a perfect build up and such an amazing chemistry. He was charming and she was cute, and they were a delight to watch. I had butterflies everytime he looked at her and all of their interactions made me giggle. Also, I believe the complications of their relationship felt real. His laid back mindset was the complete opposite of her attachment to her lifestyle. That is why her rejection to his confession did not caught me off guard at all. However, I was not expecting their reunion as an open ending in the last minutes of the last episode. Especially because they spend the whole finale wrapping up the other uninteresting storylines.

In general, things felt rushed and superficial. If they had spent more time on the actual main characters and their struggles, the show would make more sense and the message would be conveyed in a clearer way. Half of the show seemed like a waste, and that made me very dissapointed.

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Fast & Flirtatious: Macau Drift!" ?

**Begin Again (2024) – 6/10: A Chaotic Cocktail of Romance, Race Cars & “Wait, what?”**

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WHY IT’S A GUILTY PLEASURE: 😏

Macau looks so good it deserves its own credit.
Sunny Sun is the kind of guy your mom wants you to marry—too bad the script treats him like background noise.
Language mix-ups? Hilarious. Love in translation, baby.

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THE “GIRL, PLEASE” MOMENTS: 🙄

Plot twists like a soap opera on Red Bull.
The dubbing sounds like someone left the GPS on.
Emotional arcs? Nah, just emotional drive-bys.

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ICONIC SCENES: 🔥

Motorcycle flirting—because helmets are for cowards.
Heart-shaped plants = peak romance capitalism.
That bus ride? Weirdly deep for two people avoiding eye contact.

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VERDICT:
“Like ordering romance and getting a side of car chase and mild confusion.”

**Paired with:** 🍜 Leftover takeout and your last ounce of patience.

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Wasted potential

This was such a frustrating drama. The first half I was interested and invested and then we completely switch focus to some randoms that we've never met before. I care about the other characters, I don't care about these people. I am baffled by that second half, such a waste of time.

I loved one of the couples and I wanted to see so much more of them. I can't believe they wasted their chemistry in favour of the new characters. The other couple was okay, but I was nowhere near as interested in them as in the other one.

I loved the setting. I was unfamiliar with Macau prior to watching this. Other than knowing of its existence, I knew nothing and now I know a lot more and it's a place I would love to visit so the drama did promote Macau well.

Overall, this was a disappointment. I really liked the first half and while I did enjoy the ending, the rest of the second half was a huge disappointment.

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