“Oh My Grad” Becomes Hong Kong’s New Phrase Coiner
Inbound Troubles <老表> is back for a third round and though it won’t be featuring original stars Joey Meng (萬綺雯) and Ivana Wong (王菀之), it’s introducing new blood like Ada Choi (蔡少芬), Babyjohn Choi (蔡瀚億), and Joyce Cheng (鄭欣宜) to the franchise, which hasn’t been affecting the show’s popularity at all.
Like its previous installments, the grand scheme of Oh My Grad <老表，畢業喇！> focuses on societal issues. While 2013’s Inbound Troubles <老表，你好嘢！> discussed China-HK relations, 2014’s Come On, Cousin <老表，你好hea！> tells the story of an environmentalist, a celebrity, and a wealthy family. Oh My Grad, on the other hand, centers on the theme of learning and education.
The first episode starts with Roger Kwok’s (郭晉安) role To Ming-chi, the headmaster of a boarding school, who loses his job after the school gets shut down. His father To Fu (Bowie Wu 胡楓) hires him to be the headmaster of his new tertiary institution Hong Kong Brilliance Institute. The college has low entry-requirements and has taken in many troubled students. Despite this, To Ming-chi remains patient with his students and does not show any discriminating through his teachings.
Many of To Ming-chi’s lines on the show are being quoted by netizens across discussion boards, with some saying that Oh My Grad is becoming the new When Heaven Burns <天與地>, the show that coined the golden term “This city is dying.”
Some of To Ming-chi’s quotes include: “Those with blonde hair can still study Chinese, and those with tattoos can still do liberal studies” (染金毛都可以讀到中文，有紋身嘅都可以讀到通識) and “Teachers teach you how to become a person. Famous teachers help you get a promotion. (老師係教你點做人，名師係保你平步青雲) “
To Ming-chi’s education philosophy clashes with Cheung Chun-keung (Ada Choi), the college’s public relations consultant, a “tiger mom” who is profit-oriented. Seeing how kids grow competitive when it comes to earning credits for graduation, To Ming-chi says, “Doing an activity together with a classmate is still learning. You don’t have to graduate to have learned something.”
Babyjohn and Mag Lam Film First TVB Drama
Babyjohn Choi, better known for his work in the film industry, was personally invited by Wong Cho-lam (王祖藍) to star on the show. Babyjohn plays a rich second generation who likes to use English in his daily speech. After erroneously using the phrase “RIP” on his father Si Bok-man (Chun Wong秦煌), his father sends him to Hong Kong Brilliance to further his education.
Oh My Grad is also Mag Lam’s (林欣彤) first television drama since her debut in 2010. She plays Ching Shu, a student who dreams of being a tutor, and chose to study in Hong Kong Brilliance to earn a degree in education. Because of this, she and her father Darling Sir (Ram Chiang) end up becoming classmates. Ching Shu has her own views on education and learning. She said in the third episode, “If there is a problem to Hong Kong’s educational system, then that should be c hanged. Nothing will be solved if you just leave to find something better, so don’t just sulk about it and say the city is dying.” It seems like Ching Shu was paying homage to When Heaven Burns!
Source: HK01.com
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
I like the series so far. Not as impressive as the 1st one yet but definitely better than the 2nd one. All of the characters are really likable.
@iciel Agreed. I like them all though. WCL is a genius. He might be short in height, but big in talent. He has a wonderful, positive heart that is willing to give up and coming actors a start. What is amazing is he looks talent and gives talent a chance to grow and improve. Right guys?
@iciel
it’s quite difficult to not be better than the 2nd one. the 2nd installment was downright dumb.
I am enjoying this series too and had a good laugh at the RIP scenes and the curry fish balls scenes. However I feel Mag Lam’s character is not logically written. Because she was supposed to be legendary top student with degree and all and she is a tutor? She should be doing masters or doctorate with scholarship to teach in universities. Makes no sense.
And Bob’s character is funny but in many ways the way he is depicted is offensive and I feel for a comedy about social issues, this series is a tad backward.
On the education front the Singaporean movie called I Not Stupid did it much much better, about same issues. However credit to WCL for making something I look forward to each night. And yes I do enjoy Babjohn’s character who is not a bad guy, just dumb which is quite funny. If WCL had time he should have done that role.
Agreed, this series is enjoyable, thus far…
Surprisingly this series didn’t turn out as bad as many of us have expected earlier due to the failure of the second installment. It also proves that WCL is someone who accept constructive criticisms positively. Unlike some in this industry who will blame audiences for not appreciating their works when they were criticised, WCL made efforts to improve and he did it successfully.
Meanwhile, both the anniversary series that are currently airing have been doing well so far. Hopefully TVB will not ruin both series with poor ending and continue their efforts to produce decent (if not good) series in the future.
I found it boring during the first 4 ep but start getting better after 5. Wish WCL was in it more. Other than that I think I will continue watching.
I take back what I said. It’s getting worse and worse and worse and louder and worse. Babyjohn is a joy to watch but the story is seriously so underwhelming.