Young Underpaid Professionals

Meteor Garden was the first Taiwanese idol drama that captured the hearts of many people all over the world. F4 and Barbie Hsu became famous because of this show, they even went here for a visit and their concert was jam packed with fans. I also became a fan of this show and watched the whole series including Meteor Garden 2 (which was very draggy). Jerry Yan was the favorite among the fans maybe because he was the male lead so it naturally follows that more people will notice and like him. I can say that Van Ness was the least popular among the group because of his mediocre acting and difficulty with the Chinese language.

You see, Van Ness was born in the US so his native tongue is English, which makes Mandarin his second language. That’s why when I accidentally found a Youtube clip of Autumn’s Concerto, I became curious. I saw a totally different Van Ness Wu with short hair and it was the first time that I saw the female lead Ady An. From that short video clip, I saw the sizzling and strong chemistry between the leads and for me, this is quite rare especially in these Taiwan idol dramas. The last time I saw this kind of chemistry was between Joe Chen and Ethan Ruan in Fated To Love You. Their chemistry was so strong that it shows even if they’re only standing together.

That got me curious enough about the show that I decided to download and watch all the episodes that were already aired (luckily, English subs were available). I got hooked and finished watching them in 2 days. Since the show is still airing, I started to watch it live every Sunday night (even if I couldn’t understand their dialogues, haha). So what exactly got me hooked to this show? Everything! The story was well executed by the great director and crew, and the cast did a superb job playing their characters. The chemistry between the leads was very strong and with the addition of Xiao Xiao Bin in the story, they have formed the perfect family chemistry!

Let me tell you that Autumn’s Concerto (also known as Next Stop, Happiness) is not your typical Taiwanese idol drama. The show’s plot is very serious and there are many heart wrenching moments that you can’t help but sympathize with the characters. There’s also a myriad of misunderstandings between the lead characters that sometimes you just want to bang your head on the wall out of sheer frustration. Other dramas usually have lighter plots and lots of comedic elements in it, the actors tend to over react and that doesn’t impress me at all. The last drama that I watched and liked is Fated To Love You which is a romantic comedy and it’s also the highest rated drama in history. Right now, Autumn’s Concerto has gained the number 2 spot in terms of ratings.

The show is about the love story of Ren Guang Xi (Van Ness Wu) and Liang Mu Cheng (Ady An). Ren Guang Xi is a cocky lawyer student who doesn’t trust women and hates his mother because he believed that she caused his father’s death. That made him ruthless to all women and he considers them as playthings. He bets that he can get any woman that he wants and have them kiss him within 24 hours. Liang Mu Cheng is a good pianist since she was a child and was orphaned at an early age. She grew up with her stepmother who later on hooked up with a guy that she considers as her stepfather. Her family is handling the student canteen business and she works there as a bento seller.

Guang Xi and Mu Cheng eventually meet but things were not looking good at first. Guang Xi entered into another bet and this time, Mu Cheng is his target. Guang Xi eventually sees that Mu Cheng is a good girl worthy of loving and respecting. They fall in love but then, Guang Xi found out that he has a brain tumor. Mu Cheng found out and she supported him throughout the whole ordeal. However, Mu Cheng was forced to leave Guang Xi before the operation. She leaves with Tuo Ye without knowing that she’s already carrying his child.

Six years have passed, Guang Xi is now engaged to Yi Qian and has become a successful lawyer. Meanwhile, Mu Cheng is living quietly with her son Xiao Le in the countryside. Guang Xi lost his memory after the operation so he doesn’t remember Mu Cheng, although there are flashbacks of a woman’s silhouette in his mind. Fate brought Guang Xi to where Mu Cheng is currently living and they meet again. Guang Xi eventually regains his memory and found out that Xiao Le is his son. He then forced Mu Cheng into marrying him as part of his revenge.

I don’t want to give out the whole story but I can assure you that there will be a happy ending. Although the plot of the drama isn’t exactly new, the director, cast and crew were able to deliver a fresh approach to it. The show finished airing last month and a lot of fans are having withdrawals because of missing the show especially the Ren family. I wished they included a lot of happy family scenes at the end, that would make the ending perfect.

I fully recommend this drama and I do wish that Van Ness and Ady will collaborate again in the future. If you’ve watched, watching or will watch the show, I would love to hear your opinions, just leave your comments below.

A couple of Autumn’s Concerto collectibles that you might be interested in

Autumn’s Concerto Photobook

The Making of Autumn’s Concerto

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