Alliance Reviews

Just watch it as a light-hearted drama, the sisters are all pretty. The screenwriter seems like they were drunk, the dialogues are particularly lofty. People in reality don't talk like that, it's like saying people who like iced Americanos, even if they don't cost tens of thousands, they still cost a few thousand.
That's not called having the same interests. If you both like adding two shots of espresso and three pumps of syrup without whole milk, then it's almost the same. Whether it's career women or housewives, they all have the same clichéd experiences.
Is this some kind of tribulation they're going through?

After watching two episodes, as a male viewer, I have some thoughts:

1. Married women must have their own independent income/job:
   - It's not necessary to achieve great success, but at least ensure that they can sustain their basic needs and have a fallback option in case of marital issues.
   - It prevents them from falling behind in society and allows them to keep up with the changing times.
   - It avoids the perception that the wife cannot survive without her husband, which undermines her value.

2. Men and women don't need to be overly perfect in the family:
   - I disagree with the notion that "men should fully devote themselves to work, and the household affairs are not their concern." The family is a joint effort and should be treated as a shared "career."
   - Being too perfect can make the other partner feel unnecessary, leading to a decrease in their time and energy invested in the family.

3. The growth stages of men (and the same applies to women):
   - As one ages, the allocation of energy varies, but life remains full. Here, I'm referring to the subjective allocation, i.e., where one's thoughts are focused.
   - During student life, the main focus is on studying, with hobbies such as gaming, sports, and reading serving as secondary activities. After marriage, the main focus becomes work, with secondary activities including family building and personal entertainment.
   - In addition to work, spare time is spent on family responsibilities (helping children with homework, going shopping with family, contemplating household decisions). Occasionally, playing games or having meals with friends is a regular occurrence. If someone finds it boring, they may seek other forms of entertainment, such as pursuing further education or taking on part-time jobs, or they may engage in gambling or infidelity.
   - Therefore, as a continuation of the previous point, wives don't need to be overly perfect. Allowing men to allocate their thoughts appropriately to the family is a matter of finding a balance. It's best to create a sense of fulfillment and necessity in the family for men, without going to extremes.

I'm truly amazed. What are you filming? After all the effort to fight for it, you ended up agreeing to a compromise of just 1.5 million yuan? The day before, Xiao Ping Guo had just sent a paper crane to report his safety, and the next day you couldn't hold your ground?

And what about the career development? Want to start a company? Just start it without hiring any employees. They will automatically jump ship from other established companies to join yours. That's just too absurd! You're holding back on the parts that should be portrayed as a smooth-sailing story, and you're adding unrealistic elements where realism is needed.
It's really frustrating...

Well, let's leave it at that. I won't change my rating.

Can we please stop forcing feminism in Chinese dramas? I've watched four episodes and it's already filled with flaws. The feminist agenda is being forcefully pushed to the extreme. The little girl not being allowed to sign up for ice hockey class, the housewife being disconnected from society, selling her wedding ring and donating to a girls' protection organization, and the second female lead suppressing her younger brother...
Oh my, it feels like they're trying to force-feed me a plate of pork head meat. It's really unnecessary. The writing lacks depth and only presents a bunch of phenomena without touching the essence.
The characterization of the female lead is absurd. She's a top student but instead of gathering evidence for divorce, she just gives the male lead a hard time and completely gives up her career for the sake of the child.
And she even applies for entry-level positions in job applications. That really made me laugh. It seems like the screenwriter has never submitted a job application before. The script and dialogue are extremely contrived and unnatural.
The acting of every character at double speed is unbearable to watch. Don't waste my enthusiasm for the two beautiful actresses.

Update: Oh my goodness, there are actually Zhang Xiaofei fans who are insulting me.
I even praised her, but her accent in the drama is really distracting. I hope she improves her Mandarin before acting again.

It's hard to believe that this is something directed by the same director of "Double-sided Adhesive," "Snail House," and "Naked Marriage Era." It might have passed as acceptable ten years ago, but in these past ten years, many new directors have emerged and produced some excellent works.
It seems like Teng's skills have suffered a significant decline, akin to a loss of vitality. The entire drama feels outdated, both in terms of its concepts and filming techniques. Nowadays, I really dislike how some dramas sensationalize extramarital affairs, making them appear as horrifying as encountering ghosts on a dark road.
There have actually been some good modern dramas in recent years. Perhaps it's time to learn from them.

The logic is inconsistent, the set designs are unrealistic, the characters lack depth, and the story is uninteresting. The plot relies on coincidences to move forward, and there isn't a likable character in sight. The cheating husband is even worse than Xu Huanshan; at least Xu Huanshan's actions and character background are somewhat consistent, while this cheating husband is simply a born scoundrel.
The female lead's supposed intelligence and wisdom exist only in the NPCs' dialogue. So far, she lacks any personal charisma. It's frustrating to see an award-winning actress stuck in roles like this... I'm speechless.

On another note, it seems that even the award-winning actors and actresses have delusional fans who can't handle objective criticism. I wonder which is more pathetic: starring in such a poorly executed drama or having fans like these who can't handle any criticism?
???????????

1. This TV drama really hasn't made any progress... Every step is predictable, every line of dialogue is expected, every character is a tool, and every plot is unnecessary and wasteful.

2. The character of Mi Xue is really strange. She lacks any clear motivation and indiscriminately gets angry at everyone.
Why does she keep targeting Jiang Xi?

3. In the past, TV dramas used to revolve around the female lead with the male lead, second male lead, and third male lead. Now it has become the female lead, second female lead, and third female lead revolving around the male lead.
What's going on? Has the audience changed? Have the male viewers become the ones who identify with the main character?

Motherly love being prioritized over all material pursuits can also be seen as another shackle on women. Despite claiming to be feminist, the female protagonist still relies on the male lead's extraordinary abilities, and the values conveyed in the drama cannot escape the traditional gender expectations imposed on women in family-centered narratives.
The workplace plotline is also absurd, with the entire team quitting their jobs to follow the female lead's entrepreneurial journey, resembling something out of a passionate anime. If only the screenwriters could spend more time working and experiencing life, they wouldn't come up with such ridiculous and nonsensical storylines.

This drama is just too malicious, even more malicious than those melodramatic ones. In the first half, it attracted viewers with feminist consciousness by portraying a collaboration between an older woman and a mistress fighting against a scumbag.
However, the plot takes a sharp nosedive, and the appearance of the overbearing CEO turns it into a cliché middle-aged idol drama. It seems to be telling awakened women that their unhappy marriages are only due to encountering a few scumbags, and there will always be a CEO to love them.
All the female protagonists portrayed in the drama are incredibly idealized. They must possess the highest morality. The female lead willingly gives up her substantial wealth in the divorce for the sake of her child.
The female CEO played by Ke Lan chooses to forgive her husband and give up her own career after discovering his affair. Zhang Jia Ni, burdened by her dysfunctional family, also chooses to reconcile with them in the end.
Ironically, the best and most well-played character in the entire drama is the scumbag husband of the female lead, whose character remains consistent from beginning to end.

Cliché, but it's satisfying to see the lover and the original partner team up to fight the scumbag. Finally, female friendship is no longer portrayed as a silly friendship where women unconditionally hold hands and go to the restroom together just because they are both women.
The portrayal of such friendship actually diminishes and trivializes women. Is the second lady too much of a tool? Falling for her boss? Why do you think a married man wouldn't be interested in your wealth and resources?
What happened to your education at Wharton School of Business (not targeting the actress, she looks beautiful and graceful)? But based on the direction, she will probably be persuaded to join the three-person team fighting against the scumbag.

Lastly, Zhang Xiaofei and Zhang Jiani are so beautiful, I can't even fast forward when they appear on the screen (or I fast forward a little). They have great image and acting skills. On the other hand, Xiaoming seems a bit off, but the scumbag character is not bad and shows some breakthrough compared to his previous role.

By the way, why isn't Beibei's married life being included in the storyline?

What sets this drama apart from previous ones about catching mistresses is its portrayal of the third party as a victim. It's a united front, turning the cannons towards the men is the right way to go. At the same time, the main focus is on the female lead's determination to start her independent life in her middle age.
As long as the subsequent storyline doesn't suddenly shift to relying on men, like what happened with Jiang Zhao's character, the drama will maintain its quality (after five episodes, the male lead has only had one scene, so he seems trustworthy).
However, there's nothing particularly innovative. The unexpected addition of a character arc for the daughter is a nice touch. The montage of the daughter learning ice hockey and Zhang Xiao Fei's job search was relatable, as it resonated with my own experiences at a similar age—parents divorcing and needing to re-understand life, not just from the perspective of the mother.
The actress playing the second female lead falls short of capturing the essence of the character, but she looks so much like Zhou Shuyi that it coincides perfectly with current events, giving her performance an extra boost of credibility.

The male characters are mostly despicable like Wei Ming, and they are both poor and ugly. The female lead is a bit too saintly, thanks to her halo, otherwise it wouldn't be acceptable to have a child, quit her job, and not ask for more money.
All the female characters are good, but among them, Jiang Xi is the most miserable, yet she remains kind-hearted. Xiao Ping Guo is really sensible, a good daughter.

Whether hxm's portrayal is pretending or not, I still enjoy watching the storyline of Wei Ming and Lin Shuang's entrepreneurship, although it feels a bit futuristic and boring.
Lin Shuang and Jiang Xi had a conflict.

It's just a ridiculously absurd drama. It's absurd how the original wife and the third party became best friends, and it's even more absurd how the fourth party, a rich girl, has a love-stricken brain.
The original wife gets divorced, and there's always a wealthy bachelor who has secretly loved her for years waiting for her. The scumbag manipulates the original wife, but in the end, he unexpectedly dreams of her at midnight?
Absolutely ridiculous!

The most absurd thing is that I stayed up three consecutive nights to finish watching this drama, haha (the support between women is quite cute).

The overall appearance is quite good, but there are quite a few plot bugs. I initially thought it was a drama about a strong and independent female lead who would tear apart the scumbag ex-boyfriend. But to my surprise, there wasn't just a third party, but also a fourth party involved.
And the most unbelievable part is that the third party is forgiven by the wife and becomes friends, and they even team up to expose the scumbag ex-boyfriend together? There are a few points that I find utterly perplexing: 1. Why is it that whenever the wife or the third party is being mistreated, the other conveniently appears to help?
2. The younger brother of the third party has a crush on the wife. 3. A wealthy girl falls for a married man and insists on getting married.