Love and Again

I was hesitant to watch this series since I’m not a real fan of any actor/actress of the series. The only actor that I really have any appreciation for is Michael Tse Tin Wah. Alex Fong Chung Sun always seemed a bit stiff to me while I wouldn’t call Moses Chan handsome or appealing. Sonjia is rather new and her acting in “A Step Into The Past” left little room for high expectation. However, the series turned out to be quite entertaining and the cast delivered a rather strong performance.

The series is basically about love that defies all odds, even death. Lau Fook Wing (Michael Tse) is a hard-working and loving husband whose only goal in life is to take care of his family. He owns a building supplies store but he drives taxi at night. On one fateful night, Leung Tak Wah (Alex Fong), a record manager infamous for his playboy reputation, gets on Fook Wing’s taxi. Tak Wah argues with his girlfriend and causes the tragic accident. As both of them are brought into hospital, the soul collector Yat Yat (Fiona Yeun), makes a terrible mistake and collects Wing’s spirit while it is Tak Wah who is meant to die. However, as Yat Yat realizes that she has called the wrong spirit, Fook Wing’s body is already cremated. To be able to remain in the human world and to take care of his family, Fook Wing’s spirit borrows Tak Wah’s body with Yat Yat’s help. As Fook Wing takes up the new identity as the infamous Tak Wah, it is a challenge for him to win his wife Siu Yuet (Sonija Kwok)’s love. Then entering the picture is Ying Chun (Moses Chan), a famous dancer who shares Siu Yuet’s passion of dancing and also falls in love with her. However, with his undying love and sincerity, Fook Wing eventually gains Siu Yuet’s love. Unfortunately, Tak Wah’s spirit comes back and demands Fook Wing to return his body.

Well, there are other subplots in the series like how Fook Wing’s younger sister becoming a singer and falling in love with the famous pop-idol Feng, who uncannily looks like Nicholas Tse or how Fook Wing in the body of Tak Wah mends the relationship with Tak Wah’s father.

So is it just another regular series about ghost? Yes and No. The story sounds cliché but a good script really saves the day. I was skeptical to see a ghost series set in modern period yet after the first episode, I was really moved by Fook Wing’s love for his wife that I forgot all about the spirit business. It was heartrending to see this man’s life taken away from him so suddenly and cruelly while he still had so many dreams and wishes that he had not fulfilled.

Credit also goes to Alex Fung’s fine performance. His acting engaged the viewers and really made them feel for his character. Alex Fung breaks away from his usually stiff image of a “cool” man to step into the role of the sweet Fook Wing. Sonjia Kwok turned in an average performance, a vast improvement from her stiff and somewhat awkward acting in “A Step Into the Past”. The rest of the cast provided strong support except Moses Chan. I rather liked him in “Family Man” and changed my opinion about him. However, he just did not fit into the role of a suave renounced dancer. In fact, he looked ridiculous in the role. Two other performances are worth mentioning here are Michael Tse’s cameo appearance as Fook Wing and Fiona Yeun as the soul collector Yat Yat. Fiona Yuen is a fine actress but she is often given small roles in the series. Her costumes and headgear bothered me a bit. Actually, the costumes of the whole underworld population were drab. It was like they stepped out from some old and cheap sci-fi movie. The theme song was irritating to the ear with two silly English words “Try Again”.

Well, so is it the best ghost series that I have watched so far? No! The script was consistent and was spared of mishaps until the last two disastrous episodes. When Tak Wah’s spirit came back to demand the return of his body, it really ruined the whole series. Tak Wah returned in the form of Fook Wing. He just turned up to his house and told his mother that he was not meant to die so the people in the underworld released his soul. I mean if anyone turned up at my doorstep and told me so, I would gladly deliver him to the nearest Psychiatry institute. Yet Fook Wing’s mother happily welcomed back her son as if it was not his body that she cremated. I can accept a bit of fantasy and myth for the sake of entertainment but going overboard with it would be unconvincing and ridiculously demand too much of a viewer’s imagination and tolerance.

Overall, the series is a pleasant surprise with an engaging and touching script and good performance from the cast. It is a nice, romantic break from the usual cops and guns series. However, watch out for the last two episodes!