Honestly, I was not expecting this short web series to be so effective and poignant. But it truly is! And I was surprised by its effectiveness. Where it fell flat was its lack of fully committing itself to the romance.

It centers around a less than dynamic individual named George (Nathan Chung). He is what I would call a milquetoast. Handsome, but seemingly laid-back and passive. He looks and acts like he is in his own world. George is getting married to Cindy (Sherman Chan), his girlfriend of many years. She pretty much has to dictate every action for him to follow, as he is hardly a go-getter, and tends to not follow through. George has been working at a cosmetic clinic providing patients with beauty treatments. While this is not his dream job, he just sort of fell into it and got comfortable in its routine. He loves to draw but Cindy decided that pursuing that as a career would not be lucrative enough for the two of them to live comfortably. They are soon approaching their wedding day.

One day, their new boss arrives who is astonishingly handsome. His name is Mike (Lawerence Fok) and immediately the rest of the staff at the clinic can feel and sense the tension between George and him. Apparently, they have a ‘history’. They had known each other since childhood and as they grew up developed a closeness and later a fondness that, because of family and social pressures, could not continue or foster into intimacy. Mike suddenly took off without a word, leaving George feeling abandoned. They have not seen or spoken to each other for over 10 years.

Now, of course, with both being adults and at different stages in their lives, they have different values. But what remains is that they are deeply in love with each other and neither have they forgotten about the other. Mike still remembers much about George. To such a degree, he enrolls him in an art class with him, so he can help him reestablish his love of painting again.

Initially, I thought they were trying to picture Cindy as a negatively controlling character. Without a doubt, she is, yet that is not her completely. Cindy confronts George when she sees him and Mike embracing and asks about their relationship. At this point, she does confess that she sincerely has strong feelings for George. Yet it was difficult to see that separate from her demanding personality. Perhaps George did not see it either. Now that Mike is back in his life, George simply cannot reciprocate. While many might see Mike as being unfair to Cindy as he attempts to rekindle his relationship with George, I take the opposite view. Mike was first. Cindy is second. It would have been a far greater injustice if George had continued with the charade with her. He left making a clean break, so she can continue with her life, and he with his. No doubt a painful decision for both. I never felt as if their relationship was solid or even romantic; merely functional. I thought, in fact, his actions were noble and the right thing to do.

The two co-workers of George provide just the right amount of vivacity to make this series even more enjoyable. Abby (Maggie Kwan) and Pony (Mira Leung) are special. They are your office gossipers with a flair and a sense of being able to see through the smokescreens and get to the truth. The two of them ‘read’ situations, not only with a comedic flair, but with a truthful eye. They brought so much warmth to this series with their perfect timing of bantering with each other and their ability to establish their one-liners with a sense of honesty yet in a very tongue-in-cheek manner. These two are a joy to watch.

This is a decidedly short series, and a lot is crammed into this time. The whole drama is just about an hour or so. Yet, the production value of this series is surprisingly good. The screenplay is witty and sharp and at times rather poignant. I wish I could say that there is a strong screen chemistry between the two main leads, but I cannot. While they are stunningly handsome, both seem uncomfortable that becomes obvious with their closeness to each other, although they did try to hide that. There is little romance in this series. Ironically, it should have been overflowing. They made a great couple, if they only knew it. Their so-called ‘kiss’ was shot from a minimum of 2 kilometers away. Why show something that obtuse; utterly silly.

If you have a spare hour and want to be thoroughly engaged, this is a very good series to watch. It is entertaining and cute. Although the protagonists are attractive, they are not very enchanting as a couple. They just did not know how to be, or maybe did not want to be although they exude desire like crazy. The story, however, is surprisingly poignant. And I was not clouded by the feeling as if Mike had gone out of his way to break up the relationship with George and Cindy. That relationship was doomed from the start. Even Pony and Abby knew that as well. George was nearly clinically depressed before Mike came back into the picture. Mike merely rekindled what they already had. George was not at all vested in the marriage and Cindy knew that. In reality, it is a good thing Mike happened by. Marriage between George and Cindy would have been unfulfilling and to think otherwise is folly. For me, there is an honest sense of reality in its conclusion that is fair to all involved.

Rating- 4 out of 5

Streaming on- Our Golden Times YouTube Channel