Introduction:

The urban family drama "As Long As We Are Together" currently airing on CCTV-8 has arrived as anticipated by the audience. However, since its premiere on November 23rd, it has received widespread criticism from netizens. Complaints include the focus on buying houses, the portrayal of middle-class anxiety, a miniature version of "The Xiaomin Family," and the notion that all the misfortunes of women are caused by scoundrels. In my opinion, the major flaw of this drama lies in its scattered plot, with the narrative style of the writers lacking coherence and leaving viewers confused about the main storyline. It lacks visual stimulation and fails to resonate on an intellectual level, resulting in a lack of interest and a feeling of drowsiness.

Section One: Recap of the Episodes and Issues Arising

"As Long As We Are Together" revolves around the young couple Ye Yi Fan and He Jia Ru, who consider purchasing a house in a good school district for their son, Yue Le. Throughout the drama, we witness Ye Yi Fan's relentless pursuit of buying and changing houses, as he tirelessly works day and night to raise money and search for suitable properties. His determination to acquire a school district house demonstrates his sense of responsibility as a young father. Furthermore, when He Jia Ru becomes pregnant with their second child, it strengthens their belief in changing houses. However, their quest becomes more anxious as they need to sell their current house to afford a larger school district property. Unfortunately, just when Ye Yi Fan is in a hurry to raise money, the house he desires suddenly increases in price by 500,000 yuan. This dilemma leads him to seek help from colleagues, friends, his father, and his mother-in-law, resulting in scenes where everyone around the couple actively contributes ideas to solve their financial predicament.

Indeed, financial anxiety is relatable to many young people, but despite airing eight episodes out of a total of 38, Ye Yi Fan's house-buying issue remains unresolved. The constant focus on buying a house has tested the audience's patience to the extreme.

Section Two: Review of the Plot Development

After eight episodes, the overall viewing experience is extremely frustrating. Instead of the rapid progression of Ye Yi Fan and He Jia Ru's storyline, the drama presents a mix of secondary characters and their stories without clearly distinguishing their importance. Characters such as Tian Tian, who escapes from the mountains, the remarried strong-willed woman Lv Jing, the long-distance mother Hou Yuan Yuan, the 211 university student Jiang Xiao Shan who falls for the real estate agent Ding Wen Bo, and the domestic violence victim Feng Dan, all have storylines that surpass the main characters.

While Ye Yi Fan and his wife remain stuck in their house-buying conundrum, these secondary characters' stories progress rapidly. Tian Tian returns and discovers her husband's bankruptcy. Her senior sister suddenly arrives and, after a feast, leads them back to the mountains. The various conflicts and interactions between Tian Tian and her husband on the mountain, their subsequent return home with their child, the sealing of their house, Tian Tian's forced move, and her desperate attempt to recover some jewelry all overshadow the main protagonists.

The storylines of Chen Li and Hou Yuan Yuan are also captivating. Chen Li is a refined scholar, while Hou Yuan Yuan is a petty-minded woman who constantly tries to control her husband. In order for their daughter to study in their hometown, Chen Li and Hou Yuan Yuan are forced to temporarily separate. Hou Yuan Yuan resigns from her job to focus on their daughter's education, which adds to the misery of her unfortunate husband. She secretly installs surveillance cameras in their home and places a tracking device in his car, allowing her to monitor his every move.

Conclusion:

The drama "As Long As We Are Together" suffers from a disjointed plot, with the focus on secondary characters overshadowing the main storyline. The constant emphasis on house-buying has tested the audience's patience, leaving them frustrated and disengaged. A more coherent narrative and a better balance between the main and secondary characters' stories would greatly enhance the viewing experience.

However, when Chen Li returned to his hometown to send a cat to his daughter, he unintentionally discovered what his wife had done. The changes behind his silent endurance will have an impact on their relationship, and his life will take a different direction. Will there be a new story between him and Feng Dan, the woman who has suffered domestic violence? I believe Chen Li's storyline will be more interesting.

Lv Jing is He Jia Ru's mentor and also her competitor in her career. Her appearance is unforgettable, clearly portraying a powerful career woman and a skilled player in love. She remarries a much older man because this renowned teacher can provide free tutoring for her daughter. Therefore, when He Jia Ru and her husband visit her home, we see a superior wife and a parent who knows how to push her child to excel academically. The story between her and He Jia Ru will continue, and the outcome of their career competition will undoubtedly be exciting.

Jiang Xiao Shan, He Jia Ru's colleague and assistant, becomes interested in Ding Wen Bo due to the house-buying issue of the Ye family. This slightly cunning woman starts their story. As a graduate of a prestigious university who settles in Pingcheng, she wants to become a true local resident. Her first thought is to find a local guy as a spouse. Ding Wen Bo, who is an orphan but owns a house and a car, becomes a potential partner for her. Will they become a couple and live a happy life together? The storyline seems worth anticipating!

One can say that these character stories overshadow the main characters' storylines of Ye Yi Fan and He Jia Ru. However, it is more regrettable that the writers have brought them all out together, causing the main characters to be overwhelmed and their story to become monotonous and calm.

Thirdly, the writers are mostly newcomers, unknown because they have participated in training for TV and film drama narration. When I saw the presentation of the storyline in "As Long As We Are Together," I was reminded of the mistakes I made in the past.

I remember that at that time, the training teacher would criticize us when revising our scripts: "Don't always use transitions like 'cut to,' 'on the other hand,' 'at a certain location,' etc., to link the storyline and advance the plot. Instead, follow the development order and logical thinking of the main character's story, introduce and interpret the storyline, so that the audience can feel it is reasonable and interesting to continue listening."

Therefore, when I finished watching the eight episodes of "As Long As We Are Together" that have been aired, I felt that the writers made a mistake. Out of curiosity, I couldn't wait to look up their information, but I found out that this TV drama has more than one writer. According to the information provided by Douban, the writers of "As Long As We Are Together" include Gui Ronghua, Liu Fengxian, Li Yuefan, Luo Yiting, Mu Wenjie, Xu Hong, Lv Hui, and others.

However, except for Gui Ronghua, who has some reputation, the other writers are all newcomers. It is evident that this drama has left the audience feeling confused.

Gui Ronghua graduated from the Drama Literature Department of Shanghai Theatre Academy in 1998 and started working as a scriptwriter.

In 2006, she completed the independent script "Mother's Confession"; in 2007, she collaborated on the script for "The Great Salvation"; in 2012, she collaborated on the script for "North Shanghai 1950"; in 2013, she collaborated on the scripts for "Sharp Lovers" and "The Fruits of the Family." It can be seen that Gui Ronghua has only a few independent scriptwriting works, while other writers like Liu Fengxian, Li Yuefan, Luo Yiting, Mu Wenjie, Xu Hong, and Lv Hui are relatively unknown.

Online sources indicate that "As Long As We Are Together" is their first scriptwriting work. It seems that in this era of rapid development of films, TV series, and short videos, the writers' resources are somewhat insufficient and stretched thin. However, this makeshift team of writers has ruined an initially promising work. Their scattered narrative approach has greatly discounted the viewing experience of the work.