Go Ahead Review

If you have had enough of rom-coms and want something different, try watching Go Ahead (以家人之名). This is a family drama that touches on father’s love, siblings bond, friendship, and growing up with a dash of romance. In contrast to rom-coms’ sweetness and fluff, this one is an emotionally heavy drama. But don’t let it hold you back though because it is a beautiful story. I recommend a watch for this one and the Go Ahead review below will spell out the reasons.

My rating: 8.5/10
Episodes: 40 or 46 (Depending on channel/network)
Type: Family
Aired: August 2020
Images Credit: MGTV

The Cast Of Go Ahead

• Seven Tan Song Yun as Li Jian Jian
• Song Wei Long as Ling Xiao
• Steven Zhang Xin Cheng as He Zi Qiu
• Tu Song Yan as Li Hai Chao / Li Ba
• Zhang Xi Lin as Ling He Ping / Ling Ba
• Sun Yi as Qi Ming Yue
• He Rui Xian as Tang Can
• Yang Tong Shu as Chen Ting
• Luna Yuan Ran as He Mei
• An Ge as Zhuang Bei
• Song Fang Yuan as Qin Mei Ying / Xiao Cheng Zi
• Sunny Hao Wen Ting as Jin Yu Xiang
• Liu Jin Long as Zhao Hua Guang
• Vian Wang Wei as Du Juan
• Yu Zi Yang as Zheng Shu Ran
• Cui Er Kang as Zhou Miao
• Zhao Pei Lin as He Lan

Main Characters

Li Jian Jian

Jian Jian is a happy-go-lucky and optimistic girl. She is playful as well as tomboyish. Jian Jian is doted upon by her father and 2 “brothers” who are not related to her by blood. Jian Jian is poor in her studies and a late bloomer but talented in art and sculpture. She loves desserts.

Ling Xiao

Ling Xiao is an introverted and reserved boy. He becomes withdrawn due to a tragic incident and constant quarrels between his parents. Ling Xiao is also Jian Jian’s upstairs neighbor. He becomes close to her family and ends up as her big brother when his mother left the family. Ling Xiao is a top student at school.

He Zi Qiu

Zi Qiu is taken in by Jian Jian’s father out of love and pity when his mother abandons him. He becomes Jian Jian’s second elder brother. He is a good and helpful kid who is always grateful to his adopted father. Zi Qiu can be determined and stubborn with a lot of pride in him.

Li Hai Chao / Li Ba

Hai Chao is Jian Jian’s father and runs a small noodle shop in the neighborhood. He is a kind and generous man. He loves kids and is a doting father. His wife died due to complications while pregnant with their second child leaving him to become a single dad. Hai Chao also becomes a father to Ling Xiao and Zi Qiu following some unhappy events for the boys.

Ling He Ping / Ling Ba

He Ping is Ling Xiao’s father. He is a police officer and workaholic. His wife left him and their young son due to constant quarrels and blame. He becomes good friends with Hai Chao as the latter helps him to take care of Ling Xiao while he is at work. He Ping is also Jian Jian’s godfather.

Supporting Characters

Qi Ming Yue

Ming Yue is a timid girl who is one of the top students in school. But she is constantly under the thumb of her strict mother which causes her to have low self-confidence. Ming Yue is also Jian Jian’s classmate and best friend. She has a crush on Zi Qiu and then Ling Xiao. Her dream is to become a journalist.

Tang Can

Tang Can is a child star who is constantly being pushed by her mother to do commercial shoots. But her real ambition is to be an actress. Tang Can is also Jian Jian and Ming Yue’s classmate and ends up as their good friend.

Chen Ting

Chen Ting is Ling Xiao’s mother. She suffers from depression and is always picking a fight with her husband, He Ping. Eventually, she divorces him and leaves the family. Chen Ting can be manipulative and selfish.

He Mei

He Mei is Zi Qiu’s mother. She abandons Zi Qiu and gives him to Hai Chao after leaving for another city. He Mei seems cold and uncaring towards her son.

Zhuang Bei

Zhuang Bei is Zi Qiu’s buddy in school and they remain good friends when they are adults. He is an assistant lawyer and a helpful man. He has a crush on Ming Yue.

Qin Mei Ying / Xiao Cheng Zi

Mei Ying is Chen Ting’s daughter and Ling Xiao’s half-sister who grows up in Singapore. She hates Jian Jian for taking away her brother’s affections. As a teenager, she is rebellious and often quarrels with her mother.

Jin Yu Xiang

Yu Xiang is Ming Yue’s mother. She is a tiger mom who is constantly pressuring her daughter to be the top student in school. She is controlling and likes to dictate Ming Yue’s every decision.

Zhao Hua Guang

Hua Guang is Zi Qiu’s biological father. He used to be a poor man but struck gold after re-marrying a woman from a wealthy family. Hua Guang is an unethical man who would resort to devious means to get what he wants.

He Lan

He Lan is Zi Qiu’s aunt and He Mei’s sister. She is a poor woman who farms in the countryside. But she does keep in touch with Zi Qiu and always feels indebted to Hai Chao for his generosity in raising her nephew.

Du Juan

Du Juan is Jian Jian’s senior in college as well as good friend. She is a fellow sculptor and Jian Jian’s studio partner.

Zheng Shu Ran

Shu Ran is an artist and sculptor who likes sculpting human bodies and women’s behinds. He is a harmless young man and Jian Jian’s first boyfriend but is misunderstood by Jian Jian’s brothers due to his “pervert” interest.

Zhou Miao

Zhou Miao is Du Juan’s boyfriend and also employee. He is an opportunistic and greedy young man who would choose profits over principles and friendship.

Synopsis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqCVck2QOXA&ab_channel=VikiGlobalTV

Jian Jian’s mother died when she was a young girl. Not long after, the Ling family moved to the neighborhood and became Jian Jian’s neighbor. Their apartment is directly above hers. The Ling family consisted of a married couple, He Ping and Chen Ting, and their son, Ling Xiao. He Ping and Chen Ting quarreled all the time and Jian Jian’s father, Hai Chao, would offer Ling Xiao shelter and food during their fights. Eventually, Chen Ting left and abandoned Ling Xiao. Hai Chao ended up taking care of Ling Xiao most of the time as He Ping has to work. Over time, the 2 men also became good friends and part of a big family.

As Hai Chao’s wife had passed away, the neighborhood matchmaker tried to pair him up with a divorcee named He Mei. He Mei has a son, Zi Qiu, who is the same age as Ling Xiao. But He Mei wasn’t interested and left for Shenzhen. She abandoned Zi Qiu and Hai Chao took pity on the little boy and raised him. Hai Chao treated Ling Xiao and Zi Qiu like his own sons. Hence, Jian Jian ended up with 2 elder brothers and the 3 of them grew up together.

The 3 of them shared a very deep bond. But will that bond lasts when they have no blood ties? What happens to their relationship when separation is inevitable? Can Ling Xiao and Zi Qiu overcome their psychological scars and forgive their mothers?

Go Ahead Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

The good thing is Go Ahead has a happy ending after having tugged at your heartstrings. The last scene shows the 3 of them together with their 2 fathers and He Mei taking a family photo at a studio. They are celebrating Hai Chao and He Mei’s marriage. Jian Jian is happy that her father has found a companion and readily addresses He Mei as mother. Hai Chao and He Mei became close due to their common interest in Zi Qiu. You can check out the Go Ahead episode summary for the full drama recap.

Who Did Jian Jian Choose – Ling Xiao Or Zi Qiu?

Jian Jian chose Ling Xiao as her boyfriend. Although Zi Qiu also confessed to her in Episode 22, the love triangle gets resolved pretty quickly. Zi Qiu has always wanted to take care of Jian Jian and make her happy the way he did when they were kids. But Zhuang Bei planted the idea in Zi Qiu that he is in love with Jian Jian with all the attention he showered on her.

When Zi Qiu found out that Jian Jian and Ling Xiao have started dating, he was angry and felt abandoned again. However, Jian Jian convinces him that he is her brother and a part of her family.

Who Did Zi Qiu End Up With?

Zi Qiu did not end up with anybody. The screenwriter did not try to pair him up with any of the characters. But the consolation is he gained back a mother.

Why Did He Mei Abandon Zi Qiu?

He Mei had no intention to abandon Zi Qiu. She left the city because she was accused of being a home-wrecker. Her managed lied to her that he was single. His wife then created a scene at the cosmetics counter she was working at and the wall outside her rented home was vandalized. He Mei was evicted by the landlady. So, she decided to move to another city. Before she left, she promised Zi Qiu that she will return for him after settling down at the new place.

However, He Mei was jailed after 2 months in the new city when she tried to intercede between a colleague and a problematic client. The client died when she accidentally fell and hit her head. He Mei was jailed for 4 years. She wrote a letter and asked He Lan to pass it to Hai Chao in which she stated that she would give Zi Qiu to him. He Mei was afraid that Hai Chao would not take care of Zi Qiu if it is only a temporary arrangement. She also asked He Lan to tell Zi Qiu to forget her.

In actual fact, He Mei has always cared about Zi Qiu. But because she had agreed to give Zi Qiu to Hai Chao, she didn’t want to go back on her word. So, she felt that it was best that they don’t meet and hence, she pretended to be cold and uncaring. In the later episodes, she also pretended to be re-married with a young kid.

When Zi Qiu found out the actual story about He Mei, it paved the way for their reconciliation.

Did Zi Qiu Forgive His Biological Father?

Hua Guang didn’t know He Mei was pregnant when they divorced. But even when he found out, he didn’t want Zi Qiu because he claimed he was too poor to raise him. He came back to claim Zi Qiu 10 years later when he has got rich and he and his wife were childless. Eventually, he did have a son with his wife and the pressure to get Zi Qiu to continue the family lineage eased. With that, Zi Qiu also became dispensable.

Zi Qiu didn’t hate Hua Guang and hence, there was nothing to forgive. He even recognized that Hua Guang is a filial son in Episode 39. But they just cannot get along as they have different values. Zi Qiu also felt that their relationship has no trust as there were always conditions attached to their dealings. In their end, Hua Guang decided that there was no necessity for them to meet again.

Did Ling Xiao Reconcile With His Mother?

Yes, Ling Xiao encouraged his mother to continue living if she wanted to correct her past wrongs. Chen Ting suffered from depression after the death of her young daughter. She was always moody and quarreling with He Ping. She abandoned Ling Xiao and then re-married and moved to Singapore.

10 years later, an accident left her with serious injuries while her husband died. Ling Xiao was forced to go to Singapore to look after her and his half-sister. He remained there for 9 years. His mother attempted suicide and then became moody, selfish, and controlling. Chen Ting would resort to emotional blackmail to make Ling Xiao stay by her side. All these caused Ling Xiao to develop anxiety and panic attacks.

When Ling Xiao finally left Singapore and return home, Chen Ting moved back as well. She didn’t accept Jian Jian as his girlfriend and made things difficult for everyone. An online post by Jian Jian reminded her of the past. She knew she had hurt her son and attempted suicide again but was saved. In the end, she decided to return to Singapore with her daughter.

Ming Yue And Tang Can

Ming Yue finally broke out of her mother’s control and decided to go to Beijing as a journalist. She had a big quarrel with her mother but the latter’s controlling ways also caused her marriage to crumble. Ming Yue’s parents divorced and it forced mother and daughter to open up their hearts to each other.

Tang Can had been running an online Cosplay service before shutting it to take a stable job in a museum to keep her mother happy. But her love for acting had never ceased. Zhuang Bei introduced her to a stage play director and she got a chance to take up a role. So, Tang Can quit her museum job to resume acting although her mother wasn’t happy.

Tang Can used to have feelings for Zhuang Bei who loved Ming Yue instead. But Ming Yue rejected him in a harsh way. She eventually apologized to him and they remained friends. Zhuang Bei then started to develop feelings for Tang Can. But she had already gotten over him by then and kept treating him as a buddy.

Go Ahead Review – A Heartwarming Story

From the first episode itself, you would know that Go Ahead is the kind of drama that requires quite a few pieces of tissues. The first 10 to 12 episodes will make you cry buckets. However, the sad moments are balanced out by heartwarming ones. Both will make you shed tears but they arouse different kinds of emotions. You will feel sad for the boys who got abandoned but you will also feel moved by Hai Chao’s love for them. If you like dramas that evoke deep feelings within you, Go Ahead is definitely one that you should watch.

Story

I find the story to be unique as there is not one but two abandoned kids. The circumstances that led to their fate are also different although both are tragic. There is hardly a boring episode for the entire drama with good pacing throughout. While there is always something happening with the characters, they are never overdone or exaggerated. In other words, the characters’ stories are very realistic and relatable.

Each of the characters has their own struggles and issues from unrequited love to depression. Some of them are carried over from childhood as the story tracks the ups and downs of the different personalities throughout a period of 20 years. So, the story will make you laugh and cry with them as it is told in a very vivid and engrossing way. At the very least, it made me eager to know what will happen to each of the characters as the drama progresses.

Acting

Seven Tan

Seven Tan certainly didn’t disappoint in her role as Jian Jian. She is way past being a teenager but still played the part of a schoolgirl convincingly. In the later episodes when she becomes a 25-year-old woman, she managed to display subtle changes to the character to reflect her age and maturity. I think she fits the role well with her adorable and cheerful look as Jian Jian is basically a happy and optimistic gal. If you have become her fan, you can also catch her in the costume drama called Under The Power.

Steven Zhang

As for the boys, I feel that Steven Zhang has outshone Song Wei Long in their portrayal as Jian Jian’s brothers. Perhaps it is because Zi Qiu is a more expressive character compared to Ling Xiao. Hence, Steven Zhang has the opportunity to showcase a more varied range of emotions which suits Zi Qiu’s personality. He also emits a brotherly vibe in his scenes with Seven Tan. Their chemistry as siblings is evident and heartwarming to watch. You can also catch Steven Zhang in Skate Into Love whereby he is paired up with Janice Wu Qian.

Song Wei Long

While Song Wei Long’s acting is acceptable, his portrayal of Ling Xiao is not totally convincing as someone with anxiety disorder. His chemistry with Seven Tan is only average to me as I can’t see the sparks and difference when the nature of their relationship changes. No doubt Ling Xiao is a challenging role to play with his reserved nature. One would need to rely on the eyes and facial micro-expressions to convey the emotions. In that sense, I just feel that Song Wei Long could have done a better job portraying Ling Xiao. Personally, I prefer him in Find Yourself than Go Ahead.

The rest of the cast also did a good job especially the 2 men who played Hai Chao and He Ping. They are central figures in the drama and hence, their performance is just as important. They successfully gave their characters the fatherly feel which contributed to the heartwarming emotions in the drama.

The Romance (Spoilers Alert!)

If there is one stain on this drama, it would be the romance. For me, I find it unnecessary although others may disagree. It is predictable who Jian Jian would end up with between the 2 brothers because it is laid out pretty early on in the drama. A few might even find the romance weird because they grew up as siblings although they have no blood ties.

While I’m fine with the transition from siblings to lovers, the way the romance started could have been better developed. Ling Xiao’s love for Jian Jian may have been there all along since high school but I get the feeling that his love has turned into an unhealthy obsession during their years apart. He has mental issues because of his toxic mother and Jian Jian is like his salvation. Somehow, I just find that is no longer a healthy way of loving someone.

After Ling Xiao returned home, he sort of pressured Jian Jian into a relationship. I guess some would say Jian Jian loves him. But to me, it is more of she didn’t have the heart to reject him then. Ling Xiao’s love for her is clouded by neediness and desperation. He needed Jian Jian for his mental well-being. So, there is an element of selfishness there which doesn’t quite jive with the loving brother image that has been crafted for the character early on. You can see the clear contrast with Zi Qiu who genuinely wanted to take care of Jian Jian and make her happy.

Hence, I’m not too keen on their romance. Alternatively, they could have allowed Jian Jian to slowly explore her feelings for Ling Xiao at her own pace. That would have been a better way to develop their love story for me.

My Verdict – Don’t Hesitate!

Generally, people prefer happy and sweet dramas and tend to shy away from tearjerkers. So do I. But after watching Go Ahead, my recommendation would be to give it a try. Don’t let the emotional nature of the drama put you off because this is indeed worth watching. At the end of it, you might just find it hard to let go of these 2 families. The story is realistic including the ending as not every character gets paired up for a fairytale-like conclusion which is typical of so many dramas.

While I’m not particularly fond of the romance, neither is it the focus of the drama. Hence, I could still enjoy this from start to finish. Basically, if you want a heavy dose of romance, then Go Ahead is certainly not the drama that you should watch. For that, you would be better off settling for rom-coms like Dating In The Kitchen or melodramas such as Here To Heart. Instead, watch Go Ahead for its heartwarming family ties, a father’s love, and close bond among siblings. If you end up liking the main couple as well, then that would be a bonus.

For this Go Ahead review, I would hand it a score of 8.5/10. The story managed to move me and get me emotionally invested. The characters are flawed with their psychological scars and emotional baggage which add to the realistic nature of the drama and makes it memorable. Some dramas are immediately forgettable after you have sat through them. But not Go Ahead. Give it a try and remember to have some tissues ready!