TVB Anniversary Awards 2020: Predictions and Picks

This year has without a doubt been a complete mess, and it's time for a sense of normalcy (if only for my own sanity) with TVB Interaction's yearly anniversary awards post.

Every year we joke TVB is nominating everyone, but TVB has truly outdone itself by nominating nearly every last person, including many in the wrong category.  Complete newcomers are nominated in the Most Improved category, guest stars who barely registered a blip in their series are nominated in the supporting categories, and supporting actors are competing in the leading actor categories.  

See the full list of nominations here.

Best Actor

Top 5: Moses Chan, Wayne Lai, Raymond Lam, Kenneth Ma, Vincent Wong

Predicted Winner: Raymond Lam

Personal Choice: N/A

Snub: Frankie Lam for "Life After Death" 

Ouch to a petty TVB not even bothering to nominate Frankie, who recently wrapped up a stint as Vice President of ATV, despite a whooping 22 nominees in this category.  Mark Ma, who I was cheering to win Best Supporting Actor, was instead nominated here.  Admittedly, it can be difficult to categorize second lead roles, particularly for series with smaller casts, but Mark would have made for very strong competition in the supporting category.  Moses and Wayne are the perpetual top 5 nominees, but I wouldn't be surprised if Shaun or Joel kicked out one of the TV Kings for their performances in "Brutally Young."  It's hard to see anyone besides Raymond Lam winning to make up for all the years he narrowly lost, though I have heard rumbles of Lau Dan being a black horse.  While it was enjoyable to see remnants of the Raymond of yesteryear who got be more lighthearted and charming, he was severely sidelined and underdeveloped, much like everybody in "Line Walker"'s painfully over bloated cast ensemble.  He did what he could with the material given to him, but it will very much be a delayed win rather than one deserved for the particular series he is nominated for.  And with a lack of competition, I don't particularly care either way.

Best Actress

Top 5: Selena Li, Katy Kung, Mandy Wong, Ali Lee, Sisley Choi

Predicted Winner: Mandy Wong

Personal Choice: Ali 

Alrighty guys, if Katy wins for a clearly supporting role (and more importantly, not even a good one - for the last time, bulging your eyes is not acting!) in "Death by Zero," I will be livid.  I feel like I say this every year, but this is definitely the weakest competition for Best Actress yet.  Even with a lesser 18 nominees here, while no one in the Best Actor category is less than a second male lead, this category is littered with supporting actresses including Crystal Fung and Samantha Ko for "Al Cappuccino."  The "Lo and Behold" actresses arguably should be in the supporting categories still, but I am more forgiving for a sitcom where the focus shifts much more between characters.  

I've heard Mandy is the hot favorite to win after going home empty-handed despite an acclaimed performance in "Threesome" in 2018.  I don't have particular issues with Mandy winning, but she was also clearly a supporting role in "Line Walker" and hardly had room to really display her acting chops.  Mandy is someone who is clearly capable of giving a memorable, strong performance, but in recent years has been relegated to boring, uncomplicated roles (she played a straight-edged cop in both her series this year) and this in turn has also made her performances boring.  Hopefully, a TV Queen win will finally give her meaty roles again. 

Like with Best Actor, there is no one I am supporting to actually win, but if I had to choose, Ali probably gave the best performance of the bunch.  While many current actresses seem to only excel in one type of role, after watching her as "Cash" in "Death by Zero," I am persuaded Ali is the most versatile and chameleon-like, having played villain, dramatic, and comedic roles well.  She is uninhibited in her acting, which allowed Cash's silly and funny side to shine without making her cartoonish or exaggerated.  Though not Best Actress level (then again, who is these days?), I was also impressed with Sisley, who noticeably improved from the first "Legal Mavericks 2" and did much better in her emotional scenes.

Favorite Male Character

Top 5: Joel Chan, Moses Chan, Vincent Wong, Raymond Lam, Michael Miu

Predicted Winner: Joel

Personal Choice: Joel

I am surprised how much I have come to genuinely enjoy Joel's acting in recent years and how much screen presence he now has, especially in "Brutally Young" as the charismatic gangster with a good heart.  Vincent could possibly win again, but given Joel went unrecognized last year for "Barrack O'Karma," hopefully he will be able to go home with something this year.  Moses' "Zero" is also Moses at his best, playing a suave, confident, and clever yet humorous assassin but just restrained enough he was not over the top and annoying (the same cannot be said for his performance in "Beauty and the Boss").  

Favorite Female Character

Top 5: Selena, Sisley, Mandy, Ali, Katy 

Predicted Winner: Katy

Personal Choice: Ali

I'm throwing stones a little here, as Selena, Sisley, and Ali have all won this award already.  Mandy could win if someone else pulls an upset for Best Actress, but after that, Katy is probably next in line.  She garnered buzz for "Death by Zero" (admittedly, not the good kind), and she is nominated for "Hong Kong Love Stories," which has been receiving praise despite its bad time slot.

Best Supporting Actor

Top 5: Brian Tse, Tsui Wing, Benz Hui, Bowie Wu, Kent Tong 

Predicted Winner: Brian

Personal Choice: N/A

Snub: Anthony Ho for "Brutally Young"

While he certainly effectively creeped me out in "Death by Zero," I'm still not convinced Brian Tse is a strong actor.  With the moderate buzz he received for the series, and the excessive amount he was hounded by the press this year because of the Ashley Chu and Jackson Lai scandal, TVB may be looking to give him some encouragement.  

Although not a nominee in this category, I would have supported Mark.  I always get nervous when TVB dramas portray characters with any kind of disorder, but Mark clearly took great care in portraying a doctor with autism spectrum disorder, nailing subtle mannerisms while making the character lovable and realistic.  It was particularly impressive after watching him as the guy next door in "Lo and Behold," and I look forward to seeing him in more roles.  I was not a fan of Tsui Wing's character in "Al Cappuccino" at all, but he is always a solid supporting actor so I'd love to see him win one year.  

Anthony got to play a very substantial and meaty role in "Brutally Young" compared to his usual characters and was sympathetic and likable, so it's surprising he did not even get a nomination.  

Best Supporting Actress

Top 5: Moon Lau, Yoyo Chen, Angel Chiang, Winki Lai, Suet Nei 

Predicted Winner: Winki

Personal Choice: Winki

Snub: Vivien Yeo for "Brutally Young"

There's actually some competition in this category!  It's a difficult toss-up for my personal choice between Moon and Winki, but Winki edges out for me.  Moon's sweet and affable "Bei Bei" character admittedly has a special place in my heart and her passing over storyline in "The Exorcist's Second Meter" was touching thanks in large part to Moon's performance.  Similar to Yoyo, Winki showed in "Al Cappuccino" she is capable of playing far more than the "leng mui" characters she started off in.  She played the tough-as-nails big sister character well while conveying the character's more tender side who just wanted to a regular OL.  And of course, she had wonderful chemistry with Owen.  Winki is probably my favorite of the more up and coming actresses and I'd be more than happy for her to win.  

Yoyo is a black horse, having received good buzz for "Life After Death," and based on merit of performance alone I wouldn't go with Yoyo as she had a rather small supporting role where she mostly got to play the loyal, flirty, and fun friend.  However, she has gone from mostly only believably playing cute, young girl characters to naturally playing a charming and sexy mature young woman here.  With her focus on being a mother, TVB has put her on the sidelines for years, and if she does win, I hope it will propel her to be promoted and receive major roles, much like this award has done for previous winners. 

Although she received a Favorite Female Character nomination despite departing TVB this year, Vivien was snubbed for her performance in "Brutally Young" in this category.  This is the most emotive Vivien has been, having needed to communicate without speaking, and it is sad her best performance came just as she decided to move on from TVB.  

Most Improved Actor

Predicted Winner: Mark Ma

Personal Choice: Mark Ma

In a more ideal situation (for me at least), Mark could win Best Supporting Actor and Brian Tse could win Most Improved, as this is more reflective of their acting progress and experience.  Hopefully, Mark has this in the bag.  Of all the categories, this is probably the only one I'd genuinely be a bit upset about if my personal choice didn't win, especially if it went to one of the much more green actors I can barely remember the name of. 

Most Improved Actress

Predicted Winner: Moon Lau

Personal Choice: Gloria Tang 

If we're talking about actual improvement, Gloria has easily improved the most, having been unwatchable during her debut but becoming much more natural and likable in recent series such as "The Exorcist's 2nd Meter."  Moon is a relatively heavily promoted actress that has yet to win this award, but Angel Chiang may very well pull a win for "Al Cappuccino," though I still don't find her very believable as the sexy, flirty triad boss. 

Best Partnership

Predicted Winner: Vincent Wong, Owen Cheung, and Brian Chu in "Al Cappuccino" 

Personal Choice: Vincent Wong, Owen Cheung, and Brian Chu in "Al Cappuccino" 

While Vincent's romantic storylines with all four females in "Al Cappuccino" were haphazard and undeveloped (and overall just plain confusing), Vincent and Owen once again pulled off a great bromance and Brian was a welcome added dynamic.  Vincent and Owen are probably my favorite male partnership overall, as they are unafraid to get physical with each other while also being great banter partners.  I'm also a big fan of Kenneth and Hubert's partnership, but much more so in the original than in this year's sequel given their characters were often more at odds with each other. 

Best Theme Song

Predicted Winner: Raymond Lam and HANA's subtheme for "Line Walker"

Personal Choice: Man, I don't care. 

Best Drama

Predicted Winner: Line Walker 3: Bull Fight

Personal Choice: Death By Zero

"Line Walker 3" is the big anniversary production with the big cast and overall just part of a major franchise (that I wish would end).  While it started off promising, the series already had obvious difficulties integrating characters from the original and the prequel, particularly Benjamin and Priscilla's characters.  With the addition of numerous new characters, there was always too much going on and no individual character could be fully developed, leading to a mostly convoluted and disjointed storyline.  I was looking forward to watching Kenneth as a villain, but he mostly bulged his eyes.  

The dark comedy vibe where a heavy and rather violent subject matter is balanced with witty humor is common in American media such as superhero shows, but not at all with TVB, so I was very hesitant about "Death by Zero."  While the tone takes getting used to because of its novelty for a TVB series, it is executed well.  This tone and style is of course not everyone's cup of tea, especially much of TVB's target audience, but is very much up my alley so I was pleased with the freshness.  While I wish some characters such as Samantha's were better utilized and some minimized, Moses and Ali in particular shined, along with supporting players like Timothy Cheng.  Sure, it gets a bit absurd at times and some of our assassins seemingly just kill in plain sight, but it's a hell of a fun and fresh ride and more than deserving of "Best Drama." 

"Two Steps From Heaven" Review

*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!

Anniversary series "Two Steps in Heaven" tries to have a little of everything, from drama through fights for power and office politics, to romance, to sitcom-like comedy, to some outrageous plot twists. The result is that there should be something you'll enjoy, however small, but the series is disjointed and lacks a cohesive plot or direction.

Bosco Wong leads out the cast of this effort to be everything as what has got to be the most unlikable main protagonist in years. "Sheldon" is ambitious and manipulative, to a point where he is willing to betray his friends and leave his family to the dust, even though he already has a pretty darn good job (especially after Priscilla/Edwin become the boss of Rainmakers).

Flashbacks show that he used to be a paparazzi reporter who was seriously beat up and subsequently went into PR, but dead set on more. Despite the flashbacks, viewers are left still unsure of how Sheldon became the way he did. It also still remains unclear why he carried on an affair with "Emma" for over two years. What should have been a complex character was missing layers. In fact, a few scenes seemed to hint he was suffering from PTSD or some kind of mental disorder (such as when he severely assaults a drunk man who threw up on him, and throws away the birthday cake his daughter gives him), but in typical TVB fashion, this potential storyline is thrown under the bus to just make Sheldon despicable and unreasonably ruthless.

With that said, Bosco gives one of the best performances of his career, bringing out all the not so flattering and glamorous traits of Sheldon. Of course, this is just as he announces he is officially leaving TVB.

If there is something the writers really deserve props for though, is killing off Sheldon, and in one of the most cruel and slow ways I have seen for a protagonist. It was incredibly bold, unexpected, and satisfying, but his death-bed redemption was a total cop out. It's as if the writers realized at the last minute they had made Sheldon too bad and unsympathetic, so they tried to claim he actually did love his wife and daughter all along, but it certainly did not fool anyone. I guess every smart writing move has to be balanced out with a bad one.

Similar to "Sheldon," Priscilla Wong's "Sing Seung" leaves the audience still unsure abo
ut how she became so scheming and aggressive. The backstory with her ex-boyfriend does little to explain this, and instead acts as an annoying plot point brought up every once in a while. At a length of 35 episodes, you would think the writers would have actually utilized the length to properly show character development.

Priscilla actually performs relatively well in her most mature role to date and first villain role. I did not originally see her in this kind of role at all. While she is too calm in her portrayal at times, it does reaffirm my belief that she is not as bad of an actress as a lot of people claim she is. At times she left me scared or uncomfortable, which I never thought I'd say about the fun and happy-go-lucky Priscilla. Comedy remains her strength, but I liked seeing her in a more "adult" role for a change.

Meanwhile, Edwin Siu proves that just being one of the main characters in an anniversary drama does not mean you need to be interesting or have any story of your own. He's an all-around too good and nice guy who marries Priscilla and realizes she is not the person he knew her as. He also wears a lot of turtle necks. That's about it. Surely Edwin has been bored at work lately?

Louis Cheung rounds out our trio of male leads as a balance of Bosco and Edwin's character's overly bad and overly good qualities. The sometimes foul-mouthed and sassy "Tim Siu," who is actually a really great guy who would do anything for his friends, is a type of character that Louis has perfected, and gave audiences at least one character to root for. Louis has always excelled at bringing out subtleties and layers in his characters, even if he does not have much to work with, just by nature of his acting. He really showed how "Tim," despite the humor of his character that could suggest otherwise, was such a caring  and genuinely good person. The actor has truly been a gift for TVB.

A news article released shortly before the series started airing suggested that there would be breakthroughs to look for in our three leading men. Perhaps the real breakthrough though was Luk Wing, as "Ted." The introduction of his typical spoiled rich boy character makes it seem like he'll be one of the most annoying characters you will have ever laid eyes on. Yet, as the focus starts to shift to him, and he discovers his passions and how to apply himself, he becomes the heart of the series. As a result, it is heartbreaking when Ted is driven to death, and a void is left for the remainder of the series.

Luk Wing is hilarious and lovable as Ted, stealing the screen in all his scenes without goi
ng too over the top. Instead, he's just entertaining and gives the audience something to laugh about while Bosco and Priscilla are running around doing...whatever it is they were doing, to his complete oblivion. He also proves he can do drama as well, showing Ted's increased frustration and hopelessness before he finally decides to plummet to his death. His top 3 nomination for best supporting actor is well-deserved and I hope TVB will continue to give him meaty roles such as this.

As mentioned earlier, "Two Steps" tries to be a little of everything, and this meant at times it felt like a sitcom, especially in the scenes Louis and Luk Wing shared together. Perhaps one of the writers should have pitched a sitcom with these two instead, because some of the series' best moments is when they are just bickering or horsing around with each other. Gloria Tang's "Maple" throws in some fun to their dynamic as well, but her acting is unnatural and at times awkward. It also annoyed me that despite being his best friend, she seemed to have no reaction to Ted's death and gotten over it in five seconds.

Also worth mentioning is Kandy Wong as "Da Jie," who becomes an unlikely couple with Ted. It was enjoyable seeing her in a mature role despite her babyface and height, and also proves perhaps TVB shouldn't always put their youthful and petite actresses into a box where they're always playing the little sister.

Bosco, Louis, Luk Wing, and Kandy may have turned in some solid performances, but apparently TVB thinks otherwise, as the only person who received recognition for their performance is Katy Kung. Also a victim of the little sister typecast, Katy gets to play a wife and mother here, and a good chunk of performance is adequate and sympathetic. However, her crying scenes are incredibly cringeworthy and show she was trying way too hard. While I'm glad Katy is finally getting some acknowledgement for her work over the years, it's unfortunate that it had to be for a performance where she was actually a weaker link.

No character is weaker than Moon Lau's "Emma" though, who went from the mistress who didn't want to give up, to disappearing, to returning as someone who was just plain crazy. Moon's popularity spiked this year after an endearing performance in "A Fist Within Four Walls," but "Emma" exposes just how many weaknesses she still has an actress. Her emotional scenes are unnatural, and the character itself is hard to have any sympathy for. She should have stayed gone after Sheldon dumped her, but I guess someone had to kill Sing Seung? While that move was also unexpected, it just felt like overboard and one last ditch attempt to shock the audience. I'm just really glad the writers did not have her end up with Louis.

As mentioned earlier, the series tries to be a little of everything, then makes poor attempts to string it all together. While I greatly enjoyed Louis and Luk Wing's comedic scenes, it was always bizarre to remember that this was part of the same series where Bosco beats the lights out of a drunk man, Luk Wing eventually jumps off a building, Priscilla slowly poisons Bosco to death, and Moon stabs Priscilla multiple times with a huge knife out in the middle of the street. To reach the 35-episode length, they also gave random moments to supporting characters, such as Snow Suen's mummy-fetus and Claire Yiu finding out William Chan is a fan of hers from her modeling days. Instead, they could have used this time to better explain how Bosco and Priscilla became the way they did, and oh, I don't know, give poor Edwin a personality.

Overall

Some may disagree with me, but I still found "Two Steps From Heaven" to be quite entertaining at times, if only in a soapy, mindless way. With better execution, it had the potential to be a very compelling series balanced out with elements of comedy. Instead, when looked at objectively, we're left with a bunch of strings that weren't tied together. However, for fans of Bosco (if you're fine with spending 35 episodes hating his guts that is), Louis, and Luk Wing, the series was not a complete waste of time and has its moments.

Rating: 3 stars

"A Fist Within Four Walls" Review

With the anniversary awards season quickly looming, TVB finally has a worthy contender in "A Fist Within Four Walls," which had all the makings of a great series: strong cast and characterizations, an intriguing storyline, and appropriate pacing. "Fist" is also the first notable series this year to receive positive reception that was a grander production. While a larger budget has never been a guarantee for an amazing series, this martial arts drama utilizes its budget to make it visually appealing and convincing to compliment, instead of try to compensate, for the script. After the mediocrity and endless disappointments TVB has been feeding us the last few years, who would've thought efficient utilization and good execution was still in their vocabulary?

Cast and Characters

It doesn't come as a surprise that Ruco Chan, as usual, gives another natural and emotive performance, with his dramatic scenes not being an obstacle for him at all. However, what makes him really shine here is the humor and playfulness of his character, which makes him so enjoyable to watch as "Kuen Lo." Kuen Lo could be a bit too naive and idealistic at times, but Ruco's charisma makes the kindhearted character endearing instead of annoying. It was especially cute seeing him slowly realize he was falling for "Tiu Lan" (Nancy Wu), as he started to act more and more shy around her.

It's a shame that Nancy won Best Actress a bit prematurely for "Ghost of Relativity" last year. While her character in the supernatural comedy shares similar characteristics to Tiu Lan, such as her stubbornness, Tiu Lan is a much more developed character that allowed Nancy to show off her range. Like Ruco, she does
very well in both dramatic and comedic scenes. She's feisty, bossy, and stubborn, yet funny, compassionate, upbeat, and fun. She was definitely the scene stealer here and this is her most memorable role of the last few years. This is the closest to a Best Actress-worthy performance from a young actress the last few years.

Ruco and Nancy have undeniable chemistry, and their relationship was also written well. The script really fleshed out their relationship while the actors brought it to life, allowing the audience see Kuen Lo and Tiu Lan go from being just friends, to caring increasingly more for each other, to finally starting a relationship. They were funny, sweet, romantic, emotional, and natural. The chemistry was easy and lighthearted when it had to be, and passionate when it had to be. Ruco and Nancy are respectively each other's best costar in years. It's been quite a while since I've really "shipped" and fangirled over an onscreen TVB pair, but Ruco and Nancy have definitely secured a place on my list of favorite onscreen pairs.

As much as I like Benjamin Yuen's personality and affability in real life, I continue to be disappointed in the lack of any drastic improvements in his acting. The character is a straight man type who is quiet and well-composed, which allowed Benjamin to get away with his stoic acting more, but his weaker acting really showed in more dramatic scenes alongside Ruco.

Grace gets to show off her seductive side as usual in this series, but this time in a role with much more substance. The character was quite intense as "Fa Man/Chiu Ha" was very much blinded by revenge, but Grace does relatively well. Her death was saddening and while it served as a catalyst to Benjamin realizing who the big boss was, probably could have been avoided.

Moon Lau is finally able to deliver a memorable performance portraying the sweet, bubbly, yet spunky and brave "Audrey." It's obvious that her emotional scenes need a lot of work, but she really does play her already likable character with such charm and brightness. I do hope that she gets more good roles such as this.

Philip Ng is very wooden in the beginning of the series, though it's fitting for the character. He seems to get more comfortable in the role later on, and the scene where he references his own lack of expression was hilarious. As expressionless as he could be at times, when he was able to be funny, such as when he practices what to say to his mom when returning her soup thermos, he was indeed amusing and endearing. His lighthearted scenes with his mother, played by Yuen Qiu (who was funny and bad ass), as well as Moon, were heartwarming and funny. While Ruco and Nancy were my favorites, Moon and Philip were very sweet and enjoyable to watch as well. It broke my heart when Philip died trying to save Moon, and his death was very unnecessary.

In addition to the strong performances and likable characters, "Fistful" has great action and stunt choreography. TVB for once did not slack off, investing in intensive training for its cast before starting filming, and getting Yuen Qiu and Philip, who is a professional martial artist and stunt choreographer. They did overuse slow motion in the earlier parts of the series, but the martial arts was overall still satisfying to watch.

For me, the series is not as "on the edge of your seat" good in the last 8 or so episodes, after the original three villains are all wiped out and the focus shifts to the real big boss. With that said, I don't think the series becomes draggy, as much as it's no longer as fast-paced as previously. It simply didn't grip me as much as before, but the characters and action were more than enough to keep me around until the very end.

Overall

"Fist" is not without its flaws, from its cartoonish portrayal of villains to Boss Yeung's inhumane body and martial arts talent (but hey, no supernatural element here!). However, with a strong cast and tight plot that spends very minimal time dragging its feet, I can easily look past these flaws to appreciate its entertainment value without feeling like I have to dumb myself down. "A Fist Within Four Walls" sets out to tell a story and develop its characters, and it succeeds to do so while using the time allotted, not more or less. That's an accomplishment for a TVB series in general, which is known for trying to meet specific episode counts, never mind in the context of TVB's usual quality these days. It's easily my favorite series this year.

Rating: 4.5 stars

"Raising the Bar" Review

I knew going in "Raising the Bar" would not be case-driven, which allowed me to enjoy it a lot more. However, as a heavily character-driven series, there was very little character growth despite the great potential for it.

First, let's look at the titular "four girls"…

After having experienced sexual harassment by her former mentor, Giselle Tong gave up the year of training she already completed to pursue her ultimate dream of being a barrister. Of all the girls, the real female lead Grace Chan had most potential for a dynamic storyline. I had looked forward to see the intelligent, sweet, ever hardworking, but somewhat reserved Giselle mature and become a great lawyer throughout the series. However, after the first few episodes which heavily focus on Marcus (played by Ben Wong) teaching new pupils Giselle and Quinton (played by Louis Cheung), this storyline is thrown into the background and largely implied. By the end, we don't necessarily feel like she hasn't grown as a person or lawyer, but that we had just missed out on seeing it, and that is a shame.

As an actress, I did not find Grace to be bad in her debut performance in "Overachievers. Yet, she and the character left a sour taste in my mouth and I dreaded seeing her here, especially as she was paired up with one of my favorite actors. Thankfully though, I liked her much more here and only had one major problem with her performance. Giselle did not learn English until she was in 8th grade, yet her English is perfect. I have a lot of trouble believing she could learn at such a stage without even a hint of an accent.

Coming in second in terms of screen time is Brittany Fok, played by Jeannie Chan, who surprisingly went from my most disliked character to one of my favorites. This is mainly because in the episodes that focus on her, Brittany is really the only one who goes through any substantial character development. This is rather ironic as she is the only girl already practicing at the start of the series. Starting off as a spoiled rich girl who treated her friends like dirt (especially Yiu Chui-Fa), midway through the series she matures to become a much sweeter and considerate person while still being assertive and confident. It is quick, but still happens reasonably. I absolutely hated watching Brittany in the early episodes, but enjoyed seeing her become humbled at work, and having that spread to her personal life as well.

Jeannie comes off heavily pretentious in her performance early on (then again, it is in-character) but becomes likable and more natural in the second half. I also loved the character's fun but still professional wardrobe the times her outfits weren't dominated by huge bows.

Newcomer Moon Lau is the most pitiful - and by pitiful, I mean I feel bad that Moon got a character that has no personality for her debut performance. Holly Tsang is nice, is said to be diligent at work, and seems to be a pretty good friend. However, there's really not much else to her. She is bland and boring, and though Moon was decent for a newcomer and neither wooden or exaggerative, there isn't much anyone could do to save the dull character.

The wedding storyline with her and Jayden is the most jarring of the series.  Holly already knew Jayden was cheating. Even more confusing was Jayden's perspective. He did not get Holly pregnant, is a self-proclaimed player, and was not a rich son being pressured to get married by his parents. Why marry her then? What gives guys? I am however vey relieved the writers did not put her into the love triangle with Grace and Louis, instead opting for her to be the friend who observes the obvious attraction the two had for each other and trying to push them together.

The most underused female character is Stephanie Ho's Yiu Chui-Fa, who is mostly around for comic relief. Following her and Lincoln (King Lam) becoming a couple, her screen time becomes virtually nonexistent (Apparently in this series, once you had a storyline that focused heavily on you, you got banished to the sidelines). While Ah Fa may have been irritating played by another actress, Stephanie is absolutely adorable and hilarious, shining in her few scenes. I loved any scenes or interactions that featured her with her mentor Duncan (Timothy Cheng) and love interest Lincoln. Unfortunately, she has absolutely zero development, especially as a lawyer. She's just the funny and cute short girl that fades into the background the second half. My favorite part about the series though is her ridiculously catchy and fun theme song, which is reminiscent of those for older warm and lighthearted TVB series from the 2000s.

Now the titular "Three Bars"...

The three bars refer to the three law firms, headed by mentors Ben, Elaine Yiu and Ram Chiang, and Timothy. All have minimal screen time, and unfortunately the one with the most is also the most irritating and unnecessary to watch.

Ben surprisingly has a few very comical moments in the series, but for the most part has little to do. I did like the balance between him being shown to be very professional and intelligent at work, yet still rather laid back with friends and at home.

Portraying the funny and charming Duncan Yam, Timothy's character and performance was a nice change of pace for an actor who is usually stuck in evil roles. He had great comedic timing in the few scenes that allowed him to show it. On his own, he is great. Yet his and Natalie Tong's storyline is left mostly vague only to be suddenly put together in the end. Natalie is given too "cool" and mature of a character here, and the result is that the usually youthful and natural actress comes off as pretentious and cold instead of professional and reserved due to her tough childhood.

No complaints on Ram's character and performance as the kind and lighthearted solicitor Woody Lam here, other than he does not get enough screen time. But then there's his firm partner Elaine Yiu…

Elaine wins the award for least likable lead. On paper, the character is already hard to warm up to, always giving everyone including her own husband the stink eye, except bookstore owner Don. Vivian is unsympathetic, cold, and treats an otherwise great and understanding husband unfairly. Their affair was incredibly unnecessary and a waste of time that could have been allocated to the development of the four girls instead. Performance-wise, she perpetually gives everyone the resting bitch face and like Natalie, seems to think acting professional means acting cold and pretentious.

And finally, the two guys…

It would have been amusing if the Chinese title was translated to "Four Girls, Three Bars, and Two Boys." It is not, which does not seem fair to Louis and King's characters, but I digress.

Aside from Giselle, Louis' "Quinton Chow" also had the most potential for great character growth. He is implied to be around 30 years old and having already worked in the construction and engineering field for several years. Despite this, he gives up what he already has worked for in favor of pursuing his dream of becoming a barrister. It sounds like the story of considerable sacrifice, hardship, and questions of whether Quinton made the right choice. He breaks down once early on as he starts to follow Marcus and becomes overwhelmed with his new path. However, afterwards, he seems to easily float through. By the time he becomes a barrister, we are under the impression his career change was a piece of cake. I didn't want a bunch of emotional scenes, but I did want to see Quinton grow as a student of the law and eventual barrister and feel at least a little rewarded at the end when he is finally shown in the wig and gown.

With that said, Quinton is still perfectly lovable enough. Having portrayed many heavy semi-vilain roles lately, Louis appears very comfortable and laid back here. It was nice to see a quirky and playful side of him, especially when he would lovingly talk to his plants and speak about aliens to his parents. I enjoyed his scenes with Grace. The friendship turned mutual romantic feelings came about rather organically. I loved when he playfully pushed Grace to admit she is "Black Angel" with the stuffed bear (which ended up in hilarious awkwardness for him when she gives it to Brittany). Louis makes Quinton a very endearing character to watch even though the writing of the character leaves much to be desired.

"The Voice" alumni King Lam is a surprising treat to watch as the slightly goofy but goodhearted and
blunt lawyer with a crush on Ah Fa. I loved whenever he wasn't afraid to speak his mind in situations even when not exactly appropriate. (For example, the scene where he suddenly yells at the girl who flushed her baby down the toilet that she had given birth to a kid, not a piece of BBQ pork honestly had me laughing so hard). I was sad to see his screen time was significantly reduced by the final episodes.

Louis and King round out the dominantly female friend group well, and make the friendship aspect more dynamic. I loved the scenes the two shared together, especially whenever they would make fun of each other about the girls they had feelings for.

Overall Thoughts

The few cases that the series manages to churn out are either boring, convenient (such as the case of Brittany's family friend getting acquitted of assault against his mistress with CCTV footage), or sloppily concluded (such as the compensated dating and rape case). As a result, I'm still looking for another great legal drama from TVB.

As for the series itself, the script apparently decides they want to focus on the friendship of the four girls and to a lesser extent, the two guys. I would have been welcoming of that, only this focus on friendship is largely on superficial things like them going on trips together (Do pupils and trainee lawyers have that much free time?). I don't doubt they are all great friends, but it is all skin deep and fails to show any deep connections. This is not necessary for a series in general, but I believe this is necessary for a series that decides to be so character and friendship-driven, or else you have little of any substance.

"Raising the Bar" ends up being the stringing together of some entertaining and fun scenes between the core friend group and some bad story lines. The cast is too large, which led to a strange allocation of screen time. After 23 episodes of not doing much, the finale also strangely decides to shove in a large rape case against a main character, a parent's death, another parent dying of illness, a wedding, and two surprise cameos from Tony Hung and William Chak. Other than that, the series is easy to watch while easily forgettable. This is the norm for TVB lately, but what makes it disappointing in this case is that it could have been something much more.

Rating: 3 stars