This review may contain spoilers
A drama with a lot of family heart!
After watching Song Wei Long in another show this past week (Shine on Me) I wanted another fix, so I went back and re-watched Go Ahead. I saw this when I first got into Asian dramas, and I wanted to rewatch it to see if I still felt the same about this family story.
Now I knew what to expect, the slower paced, longer episodes, I did appreciate the family dynamic a lot more a second watch. The siblings closeness was enjoyable as before. I loved their banter and tight bond.
The dads were fantastic – Mr Lin, especially. Those moments when he was cooking for the family were perfect and I loved how peaceful the family was when it was just the five of them. One of my favorite scenes was when Xiao’s dad took him to the Chinese medicine doctor, it just felt very real and his love for his son came through clearly, though he wasn’t always able to show it.
I wasn’t entirely sure I believed in the romance aspect of the show. It felt like Jian was talked into it instead of falling for Xiao naturally. I did adore how devoted to her he was. His yearning eyes gave me butterflies. And standing up to his disapproving mother had me giddy!
The girl friends were perfect additions and I really enjoyed their side stories. And I covet their cute little apartment!
What stuck with me most from the show were the moms. Oh, they made me have the biggest feelings! And most of those feelings were boiling rage!
These were fully grown adults yet the moms were pulling the strings in their lives! By the end, I could understand Tang Can’s mom maybeeee changing for the better. But there’s no way sweet Ming Yue’s shrill, overbearing mother changed. If we’d had a look into the future, she would still be the same. I was glad the dad wanted a divorce!
Now, let’s get to the vilest villain in this show. Xiao’s mother.
What a vicious piece of work she was.
She was the most insincere snake, and I never once felt she was being genuine in anything she said. She abandoned her young son, blamed him for her mistake, and yet wanted to force him to take care of her while she treated him like crap.
I was furious watching her on screen, her attempts to manipulate Xiao were infuriating.
She could see how utterly miserable she was making her son and yet she clung to him like an octopus on his face. Were we meant to feel sorry for her in the final episode with her inexcusable last ditch action? Were we supposed to feel redeemed by her “nice words” and seemingly changed attitude toward Jian? Because I felt nothing. She did exactly what a narcissistic would do and that was manipulate everyone’s emotions to turn the tides her way again. The best thing Xiao could have done was go no contact with that emotional succubus.
The parents are my biggest pet peeve with these types of characters that appear in most of the shows I watch. (sadly, it’s usually the mothers, which saddens me) Despite the parents' terrible behavior, the child is pushed to forgive and reconcile. Oh, I get steaming mad! I try to understand it’s a cultural difference, but as I see it, you don’t need to redeem every vile character by the finale. This mother was a fine example, I would have been happy if she’d fallen into a bubbling volcano.
It's a testament to all three actresses who played the mothers how great their skills are because the objective was met and I hated them all, lol.
Overall, lovely watch and I’d watch it again one day (fast forwarding through the mom!) The acting was exceptionally good, especially the emotionally heavy scenes. Those guys sure can cry so well!
(Also, I didn't intend for my review to become this long - that's how big my feelings were lollolol )
Now I knew what to expect, the slower paced, longer episodes, I did appreciate the family dynamic a lot more a second watch. The siblings closeness was enjoyable as before. I loved their banter and tight bond.
The dads were fantastic – Mr Lin, especially. Those moments when he was cooking for the family were perfect and I loved how peaceful the family was when it was just the five of them. One of my favorite scenes was when Xiao’s dad took him to the Chinese medicine doctor, it just felt very real and his love for his son came through clearly, though he wasn’t always able to show it.
I wasn’t entirely sure I believed in the romance aspect of the show. It felt like Jian was talked into it instead of falling for Xiao naturally. I did adore how devoted to her he was. His yearning eyes gave me butterflies. And standing up to his disapproving mother had me giddy!
The girl friends were perfect additions and I really enjoyed their side stories. And I covet their cute little apartment!
What stuck with me most from the show were the moms. Oh, they made me have the biggest feelings! And most of those feelings were boiling rage!
These were fully grown adults yet the moms were pulling the strings in their lives! By the end, I could understand Tang Can’s mom maybeeee changing for the better. But there’s no way sweet Ming Yue’s shrill, overbearing mother changed. If we’d had a look into the future, she would still be the same. I was glad the dad wanted a divorce!
Now, let’s get to the vilest villain in this show. Xiao’s mother.
What a vicious piece of work she was.
She was the most insincere snake, and I never once felt she was being genuine in anything she said. She abandoned her young son, blamed him for her mistake, and yet wanted to force him to take care of her while she treated him like crap.
I was furious watching her on screen, her attempts to manipulate Xiao were infuriating.
She could see how utterly miserable she was making her son and yet she clung to him like an octopus on his face. Were we meant to feel sorry for her in the final episode with her inexcusable last ditch action? Were we supposed to feel redeemed by her “nice words” and seemingly changed attitude toward Jian? Because I felt nothing. She did exactly what a narcissistic would do and that was manipulate everyone’s emotions to turn the tides her way again. The best thing Xiao could have done was go no contact with that emotional succubus.
The parents are my biggest pet peeve with these types of characters that appear in most of the shows I watch. (sadly, it’s usually the mothers, which saddens me) Despite the parents' terrible behavior, the child is pushed to forgive and reconcile. Oh, I get steaming mad! I try to understand it’s a cultural difference, but as I see it, you don’t need to redeem every vile character by the finale. This mother was a fine example, I would have been happy if she’d fallen into a bubbling volcano.
It's a testament to all three actresses who played the mothers how great their skills are because the objective was met and I hated them all, lol.
Overall, lovely watch and I’d watch it again one day (fast forwarding through the mom!) The acting was exceptionally good, especially the emotionally heavy scenes. Those guys sure can cry so well!
(Also, I didn't intend for my review to become this long - that's how big my feelings were lollolol )
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