neotiate

the premise of the show itself may not be the most creative nor interesting thing i’ve come across, but the production crew manage to make it compelling thanks to both the cast and the tasks they included throughout the show. it shows a clear beginning, middle, and end, and in the end we see that what the cast went through wasn’t all for naught and had an actual purpose, which is something many shows seem to forget when creating something with a similar premise to this.

cast (spoilers):
i can’t think of a better cast than all the kids and uncles that were featured in this season, and honestly i think this is the best cast between all 3 seasons of this show. at first i got frustrated constantly at jim yu, not because he was strict, but because of his views and how he kind of butted heads with ray over their difference in teaching methods involving kids, but i soon understood where he was coming from and found myself gradually agreeing with him as i continued watching. i also thought that he was kind of lazy and didn’t like how he always relied on ray to do most of the housework, but after watching episode 4 my prejudice against him disappeared. although jim was very strict with the kids he only had pure intentions in mind, and it was evident in episode 10 that jim loved the kids and had grown attached to them just as much as the other 3 did. neo (minghao) was the uncle who i felt i understood the most. mainly because he was only 19 when he appeared on the show, but also because i saw the amount of effort he put in trying to get closer to the kids and understand them more. despite only being 19 he didn’t use it as an excuse to laze around and leave everything to the eldest uncles, instead he worked harder in order to be of help to the other uncles. he also learnt to become more stricter instead of always being soft towards the kids and allowing them to act out. ray out of all the uncles may be my favorite, and it’s mainly because my own values and beliefs align with his when it comes to taking care of kids. my favorite moment was when he talked about how physical punishment isn’t the way to raise kids, saying that it may work for a while but in the long run it won’t do any good. as someone who grew up with beatings it really doesn’t help with anything besides instill fear into the kids and result in them hating you. i also really loved his bond with the much younger kids like jackson and halin. the kids for this season to me can never be replaced. they are the kids i grew attached to the most watching this series and i cried so much watching the last 3 episodes of this season. i watched all the kids go from whiny with bad habits to being more mature and losing those bad habits. it really moved me watching them get closer with one another but also with the uncles. sometimes i’ll randomly remember this show and think about how the cast is doing and where they are now. i often wonder whether or not they still keep in touch with the uncles till this day, which i think just goes to show the amount of impact the show has had on me as i don't usually think these things.

overall thoughts:
'let go of my baby!' has officially become my comfort show. it has everything one could want in a variety show centered around kids, wholesome moments, funny moments, sad moments, and so much more. a must watch for those who want a palate cleanser. just make sure not to get too attached like i have!