Back and Forth

I thought I was done with C-dramas, but then I saw a trailer for Road Home and decided to give it a try. Thirty episodes later I was still absorbed, a little puzzled and definitely impressed, although it's going to be tough to explain I liked this second chance at love series so much (unless you grew up in the sixties. Then you might understand.)

Here's the backstory: While in high school rich girl Gui Xiao (Tan Song Yun) meets poor boy Lu Chen (Jing Bo Ran), and they basically fall for each other at first sight. There are flashbacks to their first relationship throughout the series, too, so you know where they came from. After graduation they try to stay together, but Lu Chen goes off to the police academy, while Gui Xiao starts university. Maintaining the long-distance relationship becomes more difficult for both of them, as Lu Chen is a very mature, proud guy of few words and Gui Xiao is immature, talkative and emotional. When her parents get divorced, and his training becomes exhaustive, the couple finally break up.

Ten years later Gui Xiao works in the world of finance and investment, while Lu Chen is a SWAT Captain who specializes in explosive ordinance disposal. They basically live on different planets now, but when Gui Xiao and her coworkers become stranded where Lu Chen is stationed, he's the one she calls. They both realize that they still care for each other, and decide to give long-distance romance another go.

Upfront I have to say that this is a very G-rated romance, and develops so slowly it can be (and does sometimes become) boring. Most of the relationship was scripted to be so unrealistic (and politically correct for China) that it would never work in the west. Also, what Lu Chen does to Gui Xiao through both relationships while always putting his job first is likely to be a little hard for Western women to swallow. For me the way Lu Chen's lifelong problem with his drunken, abusive father is resolved evidently by magic didn't work, as Dad just decides one day to stop being a jerk (which does not happen in real life.)

That said, I found the story oddly charming, thanks to the intensity of the actors. They do not rush or overact their parts through this series. Weirdly it reminded me of a sixties romance, like Gidget, only from a Chinese POV. Although their priorities seem rather screwed up, everyone in the series does behave like an adult. There are no characters sabotaging the relationship or competing for the lead's affections, as is often the case in C-dramas. While there are subplots, mostly involved in Lu Chen's bomb disposal work, they're very much in the background and don't ruin the series. I've seen both lead actors in other productions, and they really brought their A game to this one. I think Jing Bo Ran was especially fabulous at playing Lu Chen's tight-lipped, complex character. Available on Viki.com.