Metro of Love Review Episodes 18- 20

[Episodes 18 - 20] Couple #7 : Mad King of Taipei Town (West side story)

If you have been following this series you'll know that this is the final installment of the six other short stories featured earlier, all revolving around Taipei's metro train line. It has taken several months for this last couple story to air (I'm not sure why) and it does seem a bit disconnected from the rest. Very clearly you can see the black background of the series title block as compared to the others which were in white. 

So, what's this story about?

Set in the Ximending district, it is about a hobo guy named Ximen Qing and a street-wise fashionista girl named Xiao Hu. Ximending is famous for theatres, movies and the street walls are filled with graffiti, neon lighting and such. I am not familiar with west side story but this story does give off similar vibes with street gangsters and the red light district feeling. 

The story starts with Xiao Hu meeting the hobo guy on the street. Thinking that he was a flasher and trying to harm a little girl, Xiao Hu attacks the hobo with a broomstick. 

She meets the hobo again at the Ximen metro station and finds out that he's a crazy lunatic that is afraid to go into the train station.

Xiao Hu decides to start a small styling kiosk behind her best friend's clothing shop. I do like the chemistry between the two. At first I thought he was a close friend who secretly likes her but apparently he's into guys... oops :D So it's bff mode! 

As expected, not long after opening her kiosk the local gangsters came to ask for protection fees... (We usually call that here) but it's re-named "management fees" Hahah! They manage the area and you need to pay them money so they won't disturb/ mess-up your stall. Something like extortion fees... Feisty Xiao Hu refuses to pay them and even made fun of the term management... The head gangster wanted to teach her a lesson when the hobo guy suddenly came and ran off with a t-shirt. Then the street became chaotic when it started to rain... money. Yes, money! Money falling from the sky... 

Intrigued by the hobo, Xiao Hu decided to find out more about him. She went around asking the neighbourhood people and everyone seemed to have different conclusions on how he became crazy! Haha!! From a high powered stock broker to an ex-secret agent theory it was really funny...

Xiao Hu decides to follow the hobo, Ximen Qing to find out where exactly he is staying... or hiding... Actually to be honest, in real life this is a very dangerous thing to do... I mean following a hobo and being a female some more...Of course not all are bad people but just saying especially those with mental problems can be dangerous. So I'm taking this as purely a drama, the guy is a nice guy with some mental issues but not dangerous... She finds out that he is staying in an abandoned theatre...

The rest of the story goes on with Xiao Hu dealing with her mum and money... Also the truth behind Ximen Qing's mental illness, fear of the subway and the mysterious money rain.

Overall thoughts?

It was an okay story. After the delay of airing and when it was finally aired it was a bit of a let down. Maybe because I expected something bigger with a wow factor. However, it does have a theatrical feel to it. I enjoyed the cinematography, the graffiti streets, back alleys and the abandoned theatre.

Best parts of the drama?

Like I've mentioned, the graffiti streets, back alleys and the view from the top of the abandoned theatre is really nice...

The part where Xiao Hu tries to give Ximen Qing a makeover... Wow, he seriously does look like a fashion model! :D I don't know about you but I do think that Ximen Qing is somewhat hot... ;P He's got the Japanese badass guy kind of swag... ;D

I particularly enjoyed the ribs/drumstick- eating moment on the staircase... The supporting cast has great chemistry with each other and it makes the show heart-warming...

Some sad but also funny moments when Xiao Hu and her bff were crying... They are both from a single parent family and they miss their mum and dad respectively... I did cry too being able to relate to them but the funny moment when the bff asked if his eyeliner was messed up or not after all that crying! Hahaha!!

Conclusion

So, what actually caused Ximen Qing to be crazy and afraid of the subway? September 21st 1999, there was an earthquake. He was on his way to work or something, he was buried inside the building before being rescued. His wife and daughter died in that earthquake. Ximen Qing was given compensation and also a new house but he refuses to sign the strata title document. He had all the money in the world but he lost everything, his family and home.

That's why he's afraid to enter the subway station and lives in a semi-open theatre. He would also go into a shock mode whenever there is an earthquake. He loathed the compensated money and what he does with it is to drop it from the building to make it rain money. Yes, he's the rich guy who is making money rain from the sky!!

The little girl from earlier is his accomplice. She would load up the money into a leaf blower and the money will fall onto the ground below. Ximen Qing will be standing at the bottom with his arms stretched out like a lunatic, laughing while watching his money rain down. I know!! He is really crazy! Hahah!!

Now, the street gangster found out about this... Oh noes! Omo! He wants the money but Ximen Qing refuses to give him a single cent. The gangster decides to kidnap Xiao Hu, as he realised she is an important person to Ximen Qing. Ximen Qing had rescued her many times from the gangster when he was trying to extort money from her.

Xiao Hu managed to escape the first time but then the gangster cornered her again in front of the metro station. Ximen Qing was there and tried to follow them but then he stopped right at the entrance because of his fear of the subway.

The gangster caught up with Xiao Hu in the subway staircase area... Meanwhile, Ximen Qing was struggling to overcome his fear of entering the subway. In true drama style the hero bursts in time to save the girl! Hurrah! I really like this part, it's just like the movies when everything is in slow motion.. all the doors were flung open and Ximen Qing came rushing through the doors...

The gangster is arrested but he still attacks Xiao Hu one more time outside the metro station. He grabs her bag and flings it up into the air, causing all the money to rain down. In the end, the gangster became a lunatic himself for wanting money so much...

Did Ximen Qing and Xiao Hu end up together? Alas, no. I was a bit disappointed that they didn't become a couple... but I guess this ending is more believable. After all, she's a lot younger than him and he is still not fully cured from his mental illness. The ending shows that Xiao Hu lives a happy life with her mum, not loving money as much as before. Ximen Qing continues his hobo life with his hallucinations as well... :O

This story features the Ximen station of the metro line. There is also a tie-back to the red haired girl earlier who does the sketches from the earlier episodes.

That's about it. I did enjoy this drama series, it is very different from the usual ones that you might be familiar with. It has a somewhat indie, experimental feel to it. Thanks for reading! Until the next drama review, let's have another look at the crazy money rainmaker Ximen Qing! ;D

Metro of Love Review Episodes 15- 17

[Episodes 15 - 17] Couple #6 : Welcome to the Happy Days

Fang Ru is a twenty something young lady who basically bums around all day and hopes to go to the US someday to further her studies. 

Allen Thompson is also a twenty something young man who came over to Beitou, Taiwan in order to follow the footsteps of a famous violinist, Tomoo Yamada. The reason he is doing that is because of his ex-girlfriend who loves this violinist. He hopes by doing this he would win her heart back. 

Fang Ru's grandmother runs a small hot spring hotel. One day, she had a fall and it will take months for her to recover. Fang Ru offers to help run the hotel as she thought with the money she can finally make her US trip come true. However, she didn't know that her grandmother's hotel is not doing well at all and has a lot of debt. (What's up with all these Taiwanese dramas with debts yo?!) 

Fang Ru quickly learns of the debt and was fretting on what to do... Along came Allen Thompson, who was looking for a place to stay. He offers to work in exchange for food and lodging. Fang Ru thought it would be excellent to use Allen to help boost the popularity of the hotel. She asks Allen to start moving heavy stuff, cleaning up the place and take selfies while he was doing all that. 

Allen stumbles across an old violin while cleaning out the whole hotel. Upon inspecting it, he realises it had Tomoo Yamada's signature on the back. Super excited, he offers to buy the violin from Fang Ru. Fang Ru, taking advantage of Allen again demands a deposit of USD20,000. Allen gives her the money and pledges to work hard so he can have the violin. 

Despite all their efforts, the hotel was still empty and running a lot of debt. Fang Ru's grandmother returns and Fang Ru finds out that the violin belongs to her grandmother. The grandmother refuses to sell the violin as it is her symbol of love. Yes, turns out that Fang Ru's grandmother's first love is Tomoo Yamada. Mr Yamada is Fang Ru's grandfather. 

Allen was okay about not being able to buy the violin so he asked Fang Ru for his money back. But Fang Ru had already used his money. He was really upset and decided to leave. All seemed lost for Fang Ru because the bank people had also come and demand closure of the hotel within a month. 

Allen had a change of heart after saying good-bye to Fang Ru's grandmother and decided to come back. They had only one month left so everyone worked their best to restore the hotel. Allen wrote about Fang Ru's grandmother's love story but he accidentally posted it on the hotel's Facebook page instead of Tomoo Yamada's fanpage. His story made the hotel famous overnight and many people came including Tomoo Yamada himself. Yes! Wow! 

There was a sweet moment of reconciliation between Fang Ru's grandmother and Mr Yamada... Apparently the grandmother's close friend had been the cause of their lost of correspondence all these years. Mr Yamada does a solo performance and announces that all the profits he earned from the song he composed in Beitou to be donated to the hotel, saving it from closure. 

There were some really funny moments with Fang Ru and Allen. Although Allen did leave Beitou, he came back a year later and it ends there with the suggestion of a new relationship blossomed from friendship. 

Overall thoughts?

Another hilarious story, I had plenty of laughs from Fang Ru and Allen. This story was told in a narrative sort of way, engaging us the audience as the third party. It is a light-hearted love story, with comedy and not too much sad moments. The grandmother's love story was the real story behind these few episodes. 

There were quite a number of scenes in the metro line. From Allen's arrival to his departure, there was also a PSA scene as well. Also, the red haired girl is seen here again at the parting scene of Fang Ru and Allen. Actually, Allen appeared in the red hair girl's episodes as a tourist asking for directions. I guess this is how the directors tie in the different love stories, as they were all running concurrently and only now we get to see it in depth. 

We've reached the end of all the episodes available so far. I do hope the final episodes of this Metro of Love series will be subbed and uploaded soon. I'm looking forward to the next story, the male lead looks like an eccentric hobo style guy. 

Metro of Love Review Episodes 12- 14

[Episodes 12 - 14] Couple #5 : Heart Trob

Qiu Ah Gei is a young man who doesn't really have any goals in life. One day he found a pregnancy test result in the wastebin and freaks out as he thought his girlfriend is pregnant. Meanwhile, he decides to help out his boss with some money at the bar which he works at in order to keep it from closing. He did not know that the boss ran off after that and left a huge debt behind in which Ah Gei had stood guarantor for. He had put his mother's fishball restaurant as a collateral. 

Ah Gei was still freaking out over his girlfriend's pregnancy (actually she wasn't pregnant) and decided to take a whiz at the river at his uncle's house (Yeah, I know right?!) and he saw someone drowning. He pulled the man out and it turns out to be Qiu Min Hui, his father. The thing is, his father did not age at all. What??! Yes, apparently Min Hui has discovered time travel and that's why he disappeared all these years. Yes, what again... 

Qiu Min Hui used to be a popular singer in the 80s under the pop duo, Butter and Cheese. Due to his fame, he couldn't publicly acknowledge his family and wife, Yang Zhen Ying. Eventually he got kicked out of the house and he disappeared, leaving Zhen Ying to bring up the two children.

Ah Gei couldn't accept that Min Hui was his father at first and to make matters worse, the debt collectors came to take the pub. They gave Ah Gei three days to settle the debt, failing to do so they will take his mother's fishball restaurant as well. Min Hui wanted to jump off the bridge again in order to travel back in time but then he realised that he never was a good father so he decided to follow his son around and went home with him. There were some funny moments when Ah Gei's mum looked at Min Hui's butt to confirm if he is indeed her missing husband... 

Ah Gei finally believed that Min Hui was his father when he had the keys for the motorbike named Monroe. It had been there for years and nobody has the keys. I really liked this part, it was really funny and Min Hui really looked so cool riding on his bike with the wind effects! 

The story goes on with Ah Gei trying to find a way to send his father back in time so he can help them to win the lottery and settle the debt. There were some really nice father and son bonding scenes as well. But it turns out that Min Hui was an escapee from the local mental hospital after Min Hui appeared on a TV show about time travel. He was captured and returned to the hosital.

Defying all odds, Ah Gei and his whole family including his girlfriend; stage a break-out plan to free his father from the mental hospital. They finally cracked the code of the location for the time travel and Min Hui finally gets to travel back in time. There was a closure between Min Hui and Zhen Ying. Awkward moment for Ah Gei to see his parents kissing there haha! 

Unfortunately, Min Hui forgot to take the winning lottery book back with him so Ah Gei was left broke. The fishball restaurant was gone but they decided to open a food truck business instead. Ah Gei did win the lottery after all when a little girl left some clues on a notebook she doodled on. A happy ending for Ah Gei and his family... 

However, Min Hui was still travelling in time! Hahaha, yes what the... !! The ending shows that Min Hui returns to the mental hospital through the cupboard and the year is 2034... 

Overall thoughts?

This is the craziest story by far... I had plenty of laughs from it! Although it doesn't make any sense but it was quite entertaining. The father and son moments are nice. The mental hospital patients actually spoke Cantonese so it was refreshing to understand what they said instead of reading the subtitles. 

There were just a couple of scenes with the metro line. Both father and son riding in the train and that's about it. Let's look at the crazy father and son duo again... :D

Metro of Love Review Episodes 9- 11

[Episodes 9 - 11] Couple #4 : Shotgun Wedding

Jiang Xiao Xian is a thirty something woman who works as a customer service rep at a telco company. She has always been the bridesmaid and she wants to be the bride for once. 

Lin Xiang Hai is a part-time bartender, wedding photographer who dreams of being a film director someday. Filming a movie with the Odyssey concept has always been his lifelong dream. 

The two met at a wedding reception. Xiang Hai was immediately turned on by Xiao Xian's sexy legs. But she has a long-time boyfriend already. However, Xiao Xian and her boyfriend do not see eye-to-eye on the concept of marriage. There was a funny scene where Xiang Hai was caught between the couple in the lift. 

Xiao Xian's boyfriend eventually gave a ring to her but he does not want to settle down immediately. He asked her for another two years. She got angry and had an argument with him. Later that night the boyfriend was at the bar where Xiang Hai was working. Apparently he had arranged to meet some girls for a good time that night. Unfortunately for him, he was caught by Xiao Xian while making out in the car. 

Xiao Xian ended up at the same bar after that incident and kept drinking the drinks made by Xiang Hai. While he was mixing the drinks he kept looking at her chest... Yeah, I know right?! 

Xiao Xian was drunk and Xiang Hai took her back to his room because he doesn't know where she stayed. It was supposed to be a hilarious scene while she was drunk lying in his bed and he had to fight off his urge to sleep with her but I didn't find that quite tasteful. The camera kept focusing on her legs and boobs, with her nipples protruding underneath her shirt even. I guess some might enjoy this part but I generally felt a bit uncomfortable... 

Xiang Hai didn't sleep with her but she did give him a kiss while in her drunken state. She left her mobile at his room and he met up with her the next day to give it back to her. 

The story goes on with Xiang Hai running into Xiao Xian at the coffee bean shop, cafe etc and eventually moved into her house because he was evicted by his landlady. Xiao Xian's friend is dating Xiang Hai's friend so she helped him get a room in Xiao Xian's house. 

Xiang Hai tried very hard to woo Xiao Xian and finally they slept together one day. Xiao Xian became pregnant and Xiang Hai was really not ready for anything. Xiao Xian's father found out and made Xiang Hai marry his daughter but it didn't work. 

The couple did get married in the end, after Xiao Xian giving birth to a baby boy. (I think it's a boy since it's a blue towel) Xiang Hai did manage to film the Odyssey movie but it was turned down by the producers. Xiao Xian suggested that he should post it online and it garnered a lot of views so he was really happy. 

Overall thoughts?

This couple is my least favourite. For starters, the guy only wanted the female for her body. He seemed so horny most of the time. I felt there was not really any deeper connection between the two. But I guess in real life this is reality. A lot of men go after the woman solely for their looks and body... 

Not much metro scenes, just a couple here and there. Meeting at the station and on the train where the red hair girl gives the female lead a sketch or something. 

However, I loved the scene of her printed photo on the wall. It was really tastefully done, with some wind effect as well!