Point of No Return

MAIN CAST:
Damien Lau Chung Yan
Angie Chiu Nga Chi
Julian Cheung Chi Lam
Charmaine Sheh Si Man

PROLOGUE:
Looking at the cast alone, I really thought that it would be an interesting drama to watch. Furthermore, TVB set this as one of its anniversary dramas for 2003, besides Triumph In The Skies. I found the latter quite enjoyable to watch and thought that it would be the same for PONR.

SYNOPSIS:
It?s a typical conventional story about a rich family facing a lot of troubles. Business problems & fights among family members (for monetary gains, of course) are the main elements of this drama. And having a ?Bai Kar Chai? (spendthrift) in the Chow family makes matters worse.

As the family are operating a shipping company, they always encounter predicaments which require big amounts of money to settle. With the brilliant Damien as the head of the Chow family, they are able to overcome these obstacles.

Julian is the only son in the Chow family. So his grandparents & other relatives spoil him with money & a luxurious life. His love encounters with Charmaine are not of smooth sail due to her background.

A few of the family members try to cheat the company and family of money, and cause a lot of chaos. The Chow family are unable to turn their fortunes after Damien?s death and go broke. Though Angie is a capable person, the family always regard her as an outsider and have never completely trusted her. However, it is she who helps the family after their downfall and revives the shipping company.

ON THE PLOT:
In this family saga, the infighting in the family and obstacles in business cover more than 70% of the plot. The third uncle & the brother of Damien?s mother are the main culprits of the family fights, while business problems are usually caused by Damien?s brother-in-law. All these things start from the first episode until the very end, excluding the last episode. It just makes you feel sick when the elements stated above keep on happening.

Another unavoidable theme is the love life of the main characters. Damien and Angie were lovers, but he married another woman due to business politics. Angie, who was a former maid of the family, keeps on assisting Damien in family & company issues. They finally get married but Damien dies soon after their marriage. Angie bears another son for him. Sounds tragic? Nah, tedious...

Another romance is of course between Julian & Charmaine. One is a rich guy while the other is a sewage cleaner, get the clue? They are enemies at the beginning, but love develops later on. Charmaine wants to end their relationship, thinking that they are not compatible at all due to the difference in status. Julian persistently pursues her, but to no avail. Charmaine marries a doctor, Bong, but he also passes away due to sickness. They ultimately get together at the very end of the serial. Sounds heart-rending? Mind-numbing, rather.

Because of the above factors, the drama drags and is boring.

ON THE CAST/CHARACTERS:
TVB seems to be making the same mistakes over & over again. Whenever veteran stars (such as Damien Lau, Angie Chiu, Adam Cheng, Lisa Wong, Lydia Sum etc) were picked to act in dramas, they were usually over-focused. Almost more than 50% of the plot was about them, & this restricted the development of other characters.

In this case, Damien was written by the scriptwriter as a very brilliant man who could overcome almost all obstacles. It didn?t show much of Damien?s capabilities & it would definitely have been better if TVB had given him a more outstanding character to portray. I still think that his performance in The Greed Of Man was the best!

Angie?s character was too good to be true. She was always misunderstood, but still kept quiet & helped the Chow family no matter what. Do you really believe that there?s such a person in this world?

Julian as a spoil brat was really irritating in this drama. He spent money like water & had no consideration for other people. He liked to play tricks on others, especially Charmaine. His only plus point was his loyalty towards love as his undying love for Charmaine never changed.

Charmaine was a sewage cleaner in this drama. This family background of hers proved to be the biggest hurdle in her romance with Julian. She loved Julian, but at the end tried to evade him due to some circumstances. Her loud & bossy character was also quite annoying. Is she trying too hard to change her image?

EPILOGUE:
Disappointed is the word to describe my feelings after going through the 30 monotonous episodes! However, there?s one consolation, which is the main theme song sung by Julian. Take note of the lyrics as they are very meaningful.