L’Escargot (缺宅男女)

[galvatron]

English Title: L’Escargot
Cantonese Title: 缺宅男女
Cast
Michael Mui
Michael Tse
Sonija Kwok
Ron Ng
Linda Chung
Joyce Tang
Him Law

Oscar Leung
Mandy Wong

Yoyo Chen
Jason Pai
Airing date: 3 January 2012 (Airing After When Heaven Burn)
Episodes: 30

$this->handle_bbcode_img_match('http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tO0DmeVgvjk/TvawHucHvbI/AAAAAAAABbA/ohBW-AhjTLg/s1600/Lescargot.jpg')hHello ,have anyone here watch this drama here since it air more than 2 week already ?is this drama better than Wish and Switch ?
Thanks.

[smurf120]

So far the only character deserving my sympathy is the long suffering wife Sonja plays. Linda's crying and self pity (after episode 14) is driving me crazy!

[charbydis]

I think I am one of the few who does not like the Michael/Linda pairing. Linda does look good with Michael but their story fails to fascinate me like it has done to others when they get together. I hate Linda's weak crybaby of a character and Michael looks very chok. I just feel sorry for Joyce, even if she is going to get revenge on Linda.

Ron is faring slightly better than when i last saw him in WAW and I do feel sorry for him. I actually wnat him to get together with JJ instead of Linda because Linda is just so annoying, even in her repenting scene in ep 19.

Yes, I feel very sorry for Sonija having to put up with a husband who puts his family first ahead of her. The whole family just annoys me in their stereotypic roles. Mandy Wong is doing great as the mean sister-in-law but apart from her, no one else really stands out. Thy are just there to create family conflicts that would probably be solved in a 10 minute rushed ending to make everyopne happy.

It is better than "Wish & Switch" but I don't get why this has better ratings than "When Heaven Burns"?

[smurf120]

I hate the Michael/Linda pairing too. Michael is not coming off as rich suave suitor with women on the side, he is strangling the line for stalker, sexual harassment of female employee, and cheater with no regard for his wife's feelings. (The show indicated that he has always had women on the side, but he always put his wife first with tacit agreement from his wife - now he just ignores Joyce).

click to show/hide spoilers

I really got mad at Michael when he opted to take Linda to watch beach sunset and missed long planned trip to Japan. The scene was stupid too with Linda oohing and ahhing about sunset and whether if the sun is closer to the earth because they are by a beach

Linda's Lok character also reached a new level of self pity in episode 22 when she justifies Ron going into the firm as his pursuit of riches. Only in TVB land can people get passes for bad performance or crying at work when they have relationship problems. Real World (or semi real world) no one gives a crap about what happened to you outside of work unless you are pivotal to the revenue stream or operations of the company - everyone is replaceable. Could not believe Linda can walk out of work during important meeting, I was happy Ron called her out on being unprofessional.

As for the rest of the Guan clan:
Michael Miu as eldest - think he acts very well here and I do know real life example of older brother becoming bankrupt for sake of younger siblings and foregoing wife and children's feelings. However, I think the script tried to sledgehammer this point home by letting have more than 10 examples of doing this.

click to show/hide spoilers

He is an idiot for throwing hard earning $300,000 HKD at Michael Tse - what was the point of that at all? I don't even know how that somehow brought honor back to the family. Your sister is still working there, dude, and she kinda likes the boss now!!!

Sonija Kwok - most notable character in the series simply for not overacting. I want her character to divorce Michael's character. I do not often want that to happen for a protagonist.

Oscar Leung - read somewhere that Oscar's character is bipolar, so now the whole first 10 episodes makes sense. I think he does very well for the character within the confines of the script.

Mandy Wong - Oscar's wife - I usually really hate petty, lazy, gossip crazy "si-lai" types, but she does this extremely well without overworking the negative aspects.

Linda Chung - to me Lok Lok (as played by Linda Chung) feels like a 15 year old trapped in a 25 yr old body. Please stop her crying!!!!

Him Law - Nothing special

Yoyo - it was strange how overbearing she is and a bit too perky but brought much needed sunshine to the Guan family.

[zoey]

It is better than "Wish & Switch" but I don't get why this has better ratings than "When Heaven Burns"?

Probably because people living in HK can relate to this more. Housing prices going out of control, 10 people living in a 300 sq. ft apartment, working multiple jobs to save money for down payment, etc. When Heaven Burns is more an exploration of our lost dreams and aspirations as we grow older. Like my mom will say, if you can not even earn enough to eat - who has time for dreams.

[topten]

Not too interesting series as L'Escargot is inspired by Mainland's Dwelling Narrowness
The producer is same person (Nelson Cheung) who produced Wax and Wane so the outcome isn't much difference...

[charbydis]

I watched "Dwelling Narrowness" last year and it was 10 times better tham L'Escargot. I didn't actually like "Dwelling Narrowness" but I appreciated the depth and realistic characters that you would love and hate. The younger sister, Hai Zao was willing to spend a thrifty lifestyle with her poor oyfriend, but to help her sister repay her debts and also being affected by the value of materialism in society, slowly became a politician's mistress. While her elder sister Hai Ping was not supportive of her decision, she did not slap the living daylight out of her younger sister and stood by her when she needed support. You can see the strength and weaknesses of family ties in there.

I just find the similar plot in "L'Escargot" too pretencious for a dramatic effect. The relationship between the Kwan family members is too fake and exaggerated. The supposed love story between Linda and Michael disgusts me in its development. Lok Lok just keeps finding excuses for her actions as if she was pushed into it and that she was the victim, but she really did it because she was seduced by Michael. I am pissed off because she says she wants to get back together with Ron yet she is still leading Michael on amd tells Joyce that it is not her fauly as Michael is not leaving her alone. Her refusal to take responsibility for her own actions makes me want to slap her.

[hahaha]

i'm watching this series right now and i think it's interesting. I do agree that the plot isn't very realistic and most of the dialogue is very scripted. A lot of the times I find myself thinking, nobody actually talks/acts like that in real life! But I do enjoy watching the family dynamics and the struggles people in HK face when looking for a decent place to live. I've never lived in HK so I never realized how difficult it could be to live there. The idea of 9 people crammed in a tiny apartment complex, sharing one bathroom amazes me. It makes me reflect on how fortunate my life was growing up.

I also like Michael Miu/Linda's brother/sister relationship. It's something that I can relate to bc I also have a very supportive older brother. They have a very sweet and loving bond.

And in terms of Michael Tse and Linda...they really don't make a very good pair...watching their "love" scenes makes me cringe a little. He just seems way too old for her. And please, there are plenty of other ways to repay your debt besides selling your body.