Anyone watching All is Well 都挺好 would have known by now that the Su family is not your typical TV family, and their flaws bared for the enjoyment of television viewers have turned the drama into the talk of the town. Almost every day, All Is Well is trending on social media over something that happened. The other day, it was the troublesome father inviting public ire. Recently, it was the bout of domestic violence where Su Mingcheng, played by Guo Jingfei, beat his younger sister Su Mingyu, played by Yao Chen. Seeing a grown man beat the living daylights out of a defenceless woman had people talking for days.
After producing hits such as Like A Flowing River and The Story Of Minglan, Daylight Entertainment has managed to come out with another drama that is receiving praise. The emphasis on the family dynamic has resonated with a lot of viewers as it brings attention to real world issues like gender inequality and elderly care.
In the drama, Ming Yu is the least favored daughter of the family. She gets the scraps while her mother is willing to sacrifice everything for her sons. While her mother is against her going to university, her brother, played by Gao Xin, gets to study abroad.
After the death of his wife, the dad and head of the Su family, played by Ni Dahong, shows his true colors as a selfish and immature old man. However, elderly care leaves his three children to tackle the problems of who should be taking care of their old man.
But when it comes to people, it’s never really black and white. Selfish as he may be, it wasn’t difficult to empathize with the second son Su Mingcheng when he was pouring out his and his wife’s heartaches in caring for their elderly father. However, Su Mingcheng also goes on to commit the unforgivable act of beating his sister. Whether or not she should have let him off is still up for debate.
All Is Well is pushing forward with controversial topics and it’s safe to assume that later on, there will be more drama coming along. Thankfully, it’s not all negative for Su Mingyu because she still has the best boyfriend in Shi Tiandong, played by Tony Yang.
PkY
I've never seen this show but kudos to them for focusing on these very real family issues which to my knowledge, is common in Asian households. Growing up, my parents spoiled and favored my eldest brother. They weren't bad parents but there was a clear distinction bc he was a son and I was a daughter. My brother isn't a bad man but my parent's favoritism has definitely impacted the way he lives his life: entitled and selfish in certain ways. It wasn't until very recently that my Dad finally acknowledged that he may have been wrong to believe that daughters were not worthy after seeing mine and my sister's successes whereas my brother is very much dependent on us and my Dad.
Anonymous
This show is awesome! I was expecting boring long drawn out plot lines that always ends up in forgiveness and everyone is happy after a couple of episodes. This show is tackling all the topics that happens in Chinese families that are all too common in real live but are never shown on TV because TV dramas always have the best families. I am surprised at how much I like this drama. Kudos to the actors and actresses in taking up these roles, pretty sure the actor does not want an abuser role, but wow, I applaud him for taking the role and bringing this issue to light. How many Su ming yue is out there? Lots and lots….before the one child policy, many parents favored the boys more because they were supposed to be their retirement plan….
Adele Oroma
It looks so interesting. I'd love to watch it but can't find English subtitles anywhere. Please tell me if you know where I can watch it with subs