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This review may contain spoilers
Deliciously mediocre, immensely addictive arranged marriage trope
The fourth installment of the University Series is here to satisfy again yet one of your favorite romantic tropes: arranged marriage coupled with grumpy sunshine. No matter how cringy or cliché the plot is, I always find myself coming back for more for this mediocre OTT TV series.
Avenues of the Diamond revolves around Sam (Aubrey Caraan) a friendly, party girl who finds herself in an arranged marriage with Clyden (Lance Carr) a snobby medical student. Forced to live under one roof, will their personalities continue to clash, or will they prove that opposites do attract and eventually find themselves falling in love?
First off, there is a very specific time that I crave to watch a no-brainer tv series—full of predictable plot, subpar acting and overdone premise. Nevertheless, I find myself enjoying this kind of mediocre TV show. Primarily, it is because of how the fresh face in the cast offers a breath of fresh air that practically forces the audience to root for their unvarnished talent. I believe Aubrey and Lance are brimming with potential. They’ve got the aura and face card already. They just need more projects and acting workshops to hone their crafts.
Aubrey’s portrayal of an outgoing, fashionable college student hits the mark. Her pink outfits make her radiate and highlight how pretty she is inside and out. Her younger and older selves were differentiated through their hair length and both styles suited her well. Her lean, tall physique just even proves she is the right pick to pull off a model look.
On the other hand, initially I found Lance’s acting to be stiff and monotonous. I don’t know if it’s an incurable disease among actors but it’s always the leading man who acts as the freeloader because he can’t act well while his leading lady’s back hurts from carrying the entire show. To be fair, Lance does a good job portraying grumpy-turned-heart eyes over our sunshine Aubrey. I thank the heavens for those specs because they really make him look hot. As the story progresses, his face card started to grow on me but not his acting skills. His unnatural movements and monotonous delivery of lines are painfully obvious because Aubrey’s acting is way better. By the time we reached the midpoint of the show, I can see he’s appeared to be more relaxed and natural in his acting so I’m naturally proud of his improvement.
The show attempts to gradually build up the core conflict, however, the pacing stumbles, leaving the narrative overly drawn out. Some scenes come across as fillers, trying to foreshadow hints but lacks the compelling hook. The central conflict also revolves around mental health, which is a sensitive theme, so I expected a more nuanced direction, but the execution here feels incredibly surface-level and clumsy.
What makes Avenues of the Diamond stand out, though, is how the plot centers on balancing career and love. It teaches us that love comes at the right time. It should not be hurried. Healing takes time, making your dreams come true takes time and the right man will wait at the right time.
Clyden is the epitome of a man who understands and cares deeply for his lover. He was never selfish, never forcing himself on her and never making her choose between him and her career because he knows how her modelling career is important to her.
Thank God Aubrey doesn’t have to choose between dream career and dream husband and in the end, she got all of them. I’m glad both our main characters allowed their careers and love to fully grow and flourish because it really paid off and resulted in an unconditional love that truly stood the test of time and survived all the trials and tribulations.
Ultimately, Avenues of the Diamond shines brightest when it’s highlighting the foundational pillar of an emotionally safe, healthy, and nurturing relationship—being an empathetic and supportive partner. If only the number of episodes were reduced and the pacing was tighter, this romcom would easily hook anyone from start to finish. Overall, this was a decent guilty-pleasure watch but it’s such a shame this fourth installment wasn’t as popular as the previous installments. I hope that someday it makes its comeback or resurgence because this show is truly a hidden gem waiting to be discovered.
Avenues of the Diamond revolves around Sam (Aubrey Caraan) a friendly, party girl who finds herself in an arranged marriage with Clyden (Lance Carr) a snobby medical student. Forced to live under one roof, will their personalities continue to clash, or will they prove that opposites do attract and eventually find themselves falling in love?
First off, there is a very specific time that I crave to watch a no-brainer tv series—full of predictable plot, subpar acting and overdone premise. Nevertheless, I find myself enjoying this kind of mediocre TV show. Primarily, it is because of how the fresh face in the cast offers a breath of fresh air that practically forces the audience to root for their unvarnished talent. I believe Aubrey and Lance are brimming with potential. They’ve got the aura and face card already. They just need more projects and acting workshops to hone their crafts.
Aubrey’s portrayal of an outgoing, fashionable college student hits the mark. Her pink outfits make her radiate and highlight how pretty she is inside and out. Her younger and older selves were differentiated through their hair length and both styles suited her well. Her lean, tall physique just even proves she is the right pick to pull off a model look.
On the other hand, initially I found Lance’s acting to be stiff and monotonous. I don’t know if it’s an incurable disease among actors but it’s always the leading man who acts as the freeloader because he can’t act well while his leading lady’s back hurts from carrying the entire show. To be fair, Lance does a good job portraying grumpy-turned-heart eyes over our sunshine Aubrey. I thank the heavens for those specs because they really make him look hot. As the story progresses, his face card started to grow on me but not his acting skills. His unnatural movements and monotonous delivery of lines are painfully obvious because Aubrey’s acting is way better. By the time we reached the midpoint of the show, I can see he’s appeared to be more relaxed and natural in his acting so I’m naturally proud of his improvement.
The show attempts to gradually build up the core conflict, however, the pacing stumbles, leaving the narrative overly drawn out. Some scenes come across as fillers, trying to foreshadow hints but lacks the compelling hook. The central conflict also revolves around mental health, which is a sensitive theme, so I expected a more nuanced direction, but the execution here feels incredibly surface-level and clumsy.
What makes Avenues of the Diamond stand out, though, is how the plot centers on balancing career and love. It teaches us that love comes at the right time. It should not be hurried. Healing takes time, making your dreams come true takes time and the right man will wait at the right time.
Clyden is the epitome of a man who understands and cares deeply for his lover. He was never selfish, never forcing himself on her and never making her choose between him and her career because he knows how her modelling career is important to her.
Thank God Aubrey doesn’t have to choose between dream career and dream husband and in the end, she got all of them. I’m glad both our main characters allowed their careers and love to fully grow and flourish because it really paid off and resulted in an unconditional love that truly stood the test of time and survived all the trials and tribulations.
Ultimately, Avenues of the Diamond shines brightest when it’s highlighting the foundational pillar of an emotionally safe, healthy, and nurturing relationship—being an empathetic and supportive partner. If only the number of episodes were reduced and the pacing was tighter, this romcom would easily hook anyone from start to finish. Overall, this was a decent guilty-pleasure watch but it’s such a shame this fourth installment wasn’t as popular as the previous installments. I hope that someday it makes its comeback or resurgence because this show is truly a hidden gem waiting to be discovered.
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