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Ordinary Glory 平凡的荣耀 [2020]


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Details:

Chinese title: 平凡的荣耀 / Píngfán de róngyào
English title: Ordinary Glory (temp)

Genre: Office, Life

Episodes: 42

Director: Lu Xing

Broadcast Period: Sept/04/2020

 

Cast:

Bai Jing Ting as Sin YiQiu

Mark Zhao as Wu KeZhi

Qiao Xin as An QianYi

Wei DaXun as HaoShuai

Pang HanChen as Gao SiChong

Zuo XiaoQing as Yu WenLi

LiuChang As JiangNan

XIaoHao as Li XiaoXian

Hao Ping as Qu ZhongHui

Zhang ZiXian as Jin YuMing

Meng XiangLiang as Xie Ying

Huo ZhengYan as Ding LiBo

Zhao Lei as LiChao

Wu ChenChao as LaoLiu

 

Adapt from KDrama: Misaeng / Incomplete Life

 

 

Synopsis:

A workplace drama that follows a manager who has been repeatedly passed over for a promotion and his new intern. They work hard to make it in the financial sector in Shanghai.

 

As a manager of a financial firm, Wu Ke Zhi has a keen eye for investments, but his strengths are easily overshadowed by a glaring weakness. Because of his uncompromising personality, Wu Ke Zhi hasn't learned how to climb the corporate ladder nor how to play well with his superiors. As a result, he has failed to receive the support of the company and reached a plateau in his career. Out of the blue, a new intern named Sun Yi Qiu is assigned to his department. Sun Yi Qiu has no education background nor the experience to make up for it. Wu Ke Zhi initially rejected the idea of being stuck with the intern, but during a critical moment, Sun Yi Qiu cleverly convinces an important client to stay. Sun Yi Qiu is given the chance to complete his probationary period and a gripping story between a mentor and his intern begins. 

 

Cr: mydramalist

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Having waited 2 years for 平凡的荣耀 Ordinary Glory, I was absolutely thrilled when it finally aired. Its original kdrama Misaeng was one I shied away from for a long time despite glowing recommendations because its office life premise hits too close to home, and I was certain I did not want to watch something that is already so much a part of my own life. How mistaken I was, for it took me on a turbulent, unforgettable journey that I did not want to end as I hurt, cried, hoped, rooted for and cheered along with the staff of One International, particularly Sales Team 3 and the interns. So to say that I started watching the C-remake with exceedingly high expectations and no little trepidation is not an overstatement.

 

There are noticeable differences right off the bat. Unlike the original which begins and ends its narration with the intern, the opening focuses on Asst. GM Wu and his fall from grace, being demoted from Team 2 to the manager of the new Team 4, which handles unwanted projects. Am not sure why this is the case, when the rest of the narrative focuses predominantly on Sun Yiqiu. That aside, the premise is a familiar one thus far despite deviations in the details, with a poor, unqualified high school graduate being placed as an intern at King Capital investment corporation through some yet unexplained favour that his mother called in. Any reservations I have are quickly swept aside, when I feel the same ache for SYQ that I did for his counterpart as he struggles to get through obstacle upon obstacle, being put down, despised, mocked and outright kicked out of his own team on the very first day. His bewilderment and inferiority complex, the devastation when his every painstaking effort is put down and negated breaks my heart all over again, just as the glimmer of his smile sees an answering one in mine when he recalls the words "Our Yiqiu", "Our Team 4 members"... finally feeling a sliver of hope that perhaps, he belongs

 

Just as SYQ is slowly finding a sense of belonging, the short-fused Asst. GM Wu appears to be gradually albeit reluctantly thawing from his belief that it is best not to give pointless hope, hence his brutality towards the young man who tries so hard to fit in and contribute despite his many shortcomings. I love the camaraderie of Team 4 - Asst. GM Wu's gruffness which belie a righteous, compassionate heart; Mgr Lin who is protective and kind towards the hapless young man; and SYQ's eagerness to obtain their approval and find his footing. The way they rally around each other in more ways than one when it is to their own personal disadvantage highlights the unbreakable brotherhood of the two older men, and this very culture too becomes the impetus for them to slowly accept a clear underdog who by all intents and purposes, would merely be an impediment rather than a help. As for SYQ, Bai Jingting's portrayal gives me a perpetual sense of vulnerability and helplessness thus far, which is a far cry from Im Siwan's Jang Geu Rae of the original, who displays unexpected flashes of steeliness and level-headedness when push comes to shove, a clear throwback from his baduk playing days. At this point in time, I cannot see SYQ having the core strength or temerity to do so, though I am hoping that tonight's episode leading up to the internship presentation will prove me wrong. As for the rest of the interns, they are currently mere fodder to all that is happening around SYQ and Team 4, though it is early days yet, and they too should get their characters fleshed out soon enough. 

 

Suffice to say that Ordinary Glory has managed to hold its own admirably against the original, drawing me in, making me care for the outcasts of Team 4 within 6 short episodes. Fingers crossed it will continue to maintain if not exceed this standard narrative and performance wise. 

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Signal, Thank You, Missing:The Other Side, Children of Nobody, Misaeng, Tree with Deep Roots, Story of a Man

步步惊心, 长相思, 琅琊榜之风起长林, 平凡的荣耀, 大鱼海棠, 九州缥缈录, 风声, 剑雨

Ice Kacang Puppy Love, Garden of Evening Mists

Mother, 空から降る一億の星, Ouroboros

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  • 3 years later...

At long last, this drama is finally available to international audiences on Netflix! While I don't believe it managed to upstage the original, it admirably held its own to the end, incorporating local elements that makes it relatable to its domestic audience. Seems like a rewatch is in order. Now to find the time... :popcorn:

Signal, Thank You, Missing:The Other Side, Children of Nobody, Misaeng, Tree with Deep Roots, Story of a Man

步步惊心, 长相思, 琅琊榜之风起长林, 平凡的荣耀, 大鱼海棠, 九州缥缈录, 风声, 剑雨

Ice Kacang Puppy Love, Garden of Evening Mists

Mother, 空から降る一億の星, Ouroboros

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