7
77
3
Great for Macau Tourism, but drama lost its focus on the leads in the last quarter of the drama.
As a Macau native myself, I was really excited to see that a drama was set in Macau and starring the sexy Elvis Han. Of course, I’ve got to check it out. I believe this drama was made in celebration of the 25th anniversary of Macau’s Handover back to mainland China from Portugal.
If the drama’s main goal is to celebrate and promote Macau to attract tourists, “Begin Again” scores a 10/10. It showcases the beautiful sceneries of Macau, both the modern Las Vegas of the East full of world class hotels and resorts, but also Macau’s Chinese and Portuguese cultures and influences. There are many food scenes of delicious and expensive-looking food, and local delicacies with neighborly and familial love. After watching this drama, you would definitely want to visit Macau.
However, if I judge “Begin Again’ strictly as a drama, then I am giving this an 8 out of 10. Despite excellent chemistry and acting performances from the four main leads, their romantic stories were not executed perfectly. This is due to the drama’s lack of focus on the main leads especially in the last few episodes. The drama wasted time on characters such as Casey, her family drama and the piano boy. Their friendship is unique and could have been fun if they had their own drama. But in “Begin Again”, their storyline feels out of place and takes away time from the leads. Additionally, too much time was spent on Howard and Jia Jia, and Jia Jia’s parents’ relationships. I fast-forwarded some of their scenes.
On a positive note, I really enjoy the collaboration of Chinese and Hong Kong actors. I was so glad the Cantonese wasn’t dubbed over into Mandarin. It’s just not the same as the Cantonese jokes and slang would be lost in translation. As a Cantonese speaker myself, I enjoy the Xu family scenes immensely - their banter, argument and nosiness. The Xu family brings out the warmth in a slice-of-life drama. I just need them, I don’t need the other side characters.
But as for the main reason for my watch, of course it’s for my big crush on Elvis Han, especially after seeing him in “Fake It Till You Make It”. I was glad to see Elvis in a different role. He’s a little shy and not the confident playboy that he was in the other drama. He’s actually quite adorable in his cute flirting and pursuit of Josephine/Chen Jia Hui. Elvis and Zhong Chu Xi have great chemistry together, though their romance peaks too early. I thought the flirting and the push-and-pull will last longer but I guess since they are mature and know what they want, they went for it. Nevertheless, they are a visually beautiful pair.
The other romantic pair is the more adorable couple of Mai You Ge and Xu Jun Le. Their opposite attracts romance develops a little more slowly from friends-to-lovers. They also have great chemistry, but not the sizzling version as the other pair. And like most viewers, I am more invested in them. Unfortunately, they seem to have disappeared in the last quarter of the drama. After the confession, I was expecting a little more of them as they navigate through these emotions and reality. Instead, they gave way to the other minor characters who took up way too much time in the last few episodes.
The leads careers also play a big part in the drama, especially when romance seems to have helped each of them grow and impact them in some of their life decisions. I enjoy scenes of their professions. I may not be a fan of car racing, but watching Elvis race (he’s actually a race car driver and has a license) is a pleasure. I was glad the drama did not gloss over the Grand Prix scenes as those were actually quite exciting. The Grand Prix is a big deal in Macau, so I actually doubt they would cut those scenes. Afterall, the drama wants to promote Macau.
I would recommend this drama if you are interested in learning more about Macau and are thinking of it as a future vacation destination. It’s also a good drama to watch if you are fans of the leads and are looking for something quite light-hearted. However, I would not say this is a must-watch.
Completed: 4/14/2025 - Review #566
If the drama’s main goal is to celebrate and promote Macau to attract tourists, “Begin Again” scores a 10/10. It showcases the beautiful sceneries of Macau, both the modern Las Vegas of the East full of world class hotels and resorts, but also Macau’s Chinese and Portuguese cultures and influences. There are many food scenes of delicious and expensive-looking food, and local delicacies with neighborly and familial love. After watching this drama, you would definitely want to visit Macau.
However, if I judge “Begin Again’ strictly as a drama, then I am giving this an 8 out of 10. Despite excellent chemistry and acting performances from the four main leads, their romantic stories were not executed perfectly. This is due to the drama’s lack of focus on the main leads especially in the last few episodes. The drama wasted time on characters such as Casey, her family drama and the piano boy. Their friendship is unique and could have been fun if they had their own drama. But in “Begin Again”, their storyline feels out of place and takes away time from the leads. Additionally, too much time was spent on Howard and Jia Jia, and Jia Jia’s parents’ relationships. I fast-forwarded some of their scenes.
On a positive note, I really enjoy the collaboration of Chinese and Hong Kong actors. I was so glad the Cantonese wasn’t dubbed over into Mandarin. It’s just not the same as the Cantonese jokes and slang would be lost in translation. As a Cantonese speaker myself, I enjoy the Xu family scenes immensely - their banter, argument and nosiness. The Xu family brings out the warmth in a slice-of-life drama. I just need them, I don’t need the other side characters.
But as for the main reason for my watch, of course it’s for my big crush on Elvis Han, especially after seeing him in “Fake It Till You Make It”. I was glad to see Elvis in a different role. He’s a little shy and not the confident playboy that he was in the other drama. He’s actually quite adorable in his cute flirting and pursuit of Josephine/Chen Jia Hui. Elvis and Zhong Chu Xi have great chemistry together, though their romance peaks too early. I thought the flirting and the push-and-pull will last longer but I guess since they are mature and know what they want, they went for it. Nevertheless, they are a visually beautiful pair.
The other romantic pair is the more adorable couple of Mai You Ge and Xu Jun Le. Their opposite attracts romance develops a little more slowly from friends-to-lovers. They also have great chemistry, but not the sizzling version as the other pair. And like most viewers, I am more invested in them. Unfortunately, they seem to have disappeared in the last quarter of the drama. After the confession, I was expecting a little more of them as they navigate through these emotions and reality. Instead, they gave way to the other minor characters who took up way too much time in the last few episodes.
The leads careers also play a big part in the drama, especially when romance seems to have helped each of them grow and impact them in some of their life decisions. I enjoy scenes of their professions. I may not be a fan of car racing, but watching Elvis race (he’s actually a race car driver and has a license) is a pleasure. I was glad the drama did not gloss over the Grand Prix scenes as those were actually quite exciting. The Grand Prix is a big deal in Macau, so I actually doubt they would cut those scenes. Afterall, the drama wants to promote Macau.
I would recommend this drama if you are interested in learning more about Macau and are thinking of it as a future vacation destination. It’s also a good drama to watch if you are fans of the leads and are looking for something quite light-hearted. However, I would not say this is a must-watch.
Completed: 4/14/2025 - Review #566
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