Dein Kind ist nicht dein Kind

Basically, it is a Chinese version of Black Mirror. Even the problems are culturally Asian such as overbearing parents, enforcing strict discipline and forcing children to study and pick specific careers. Though it was somewhat relatable in a cultural sense, I cannot find any means to internalise the concepts because they were too unrealistic or far-fetched. This is where Black Mirror shines, and this show sadly doesn't. In many instances, they pit the idea of technology, social standing, amongst other things that the parents deem more valuable than their own children's wellbeing. Although it does show an extreme side of Asian values, the concocted scenarios are rather impossible since the biggest value in Asian culture is valuing your family.

The show was unnecessarily slow, boring at times, I had to skip past quite a lot of fillers. I cannot believe this was rated as a psychological thriller. It was so slow that I felt absolutely no thrill, and I am extremely easy to scare. I avoid horror at all cost because I'm such a wimp. This show, however, I felt absolutely nothing. Some of the stories were more creative than others. The only two worth watching for a 'plot' would be the first episode and last episode, the rest is trash or so predictable, it would be a waste of your 2 hours. As for the acting, it was a hit or miss. Some actors were great, but many were terrible. It was such a mix of good and terrible acting, that I can only conclude it was an average cast. The filming was fine a little amateurish at times, such as one of the episodes where they tried to turn the camera upside-down to annoy the hell out of me. It gave no other purpose than the idea of 'viewing from a different angle', could've been executed in any other way. The music was probably the only thing that salvaged the show.

This series makes you think and rethink again what it is really to be a parent, a parent who just simply needs to help your kid to figure out this world and his/her place in it.

On Children is a 2018 Taiwanese TV Series currently airing on Netflix. It's probably best described as a family drama with some fantasy and horror elements, and it makes for a terrific blend of melodrama and craziness.

SPOILERS AHEAD!

This TV show (I guess you'd call it sort of an omnibus miniseries) essentially consists of 5 different movies that are about 90 minutes each. Each episode/movie is its own self-contained story, and they each have a different cast (although several actors & actresses appear in different roles in more than one episode/movie). You can watch any episode/movie on its own, or in any order; it doesn't matter as they aren't really interconnected in any way. However, they do all share a common thread that's based on mothers wanting a better life for their children and/or themselves, and the effects this has on everyone involved (for better or worse; mostly worse).

I imagine this series would resonate better in Asia than in the West, but the general message translates very well anywhere; after all, doesn't any "loving" mother on the planet want their child to succeed? And as such, many parents will spend a great deal of time, money, and effort in order to accomplish this, and this is particularly true in countries like Taiwan and Southeast Asia in general. The overall goal is for parents to improve their children's lives and futures, and this is obviously a good thing (in theory). But is that what they're really doing, or are they doing it for more selfish reasons? And, are these parents actually causing more harm than good to their children with the ever increasing pressure they put on them to do better?

This series explores the consequences of this "try/work/study harder at all costs mentality" via several themes that are actually quite common, such as; tiger mom syndrome, families trying to rise out of poverty or improve social status, confused young kids trying to cope, parents counting on their children in the future, or controlling or living vicariously through their kids, etc. These are all rather simple stories at their core, and if you didn't know anything about this show at first, you might mistake it for a quaint or semi-serious drama about mostly high school kids and their families, friends, first loves, etc.

Each episode primarily focuses on a mother and her prized child; fathers are only occasionally relevant to these stories. It's clear from the start that most everyone involved has problems and relationship issues, and this often leads to the child or parent being depressed, falling behind in school, getting divorced, losing face, going crazy, committing suicide, or worse. The mothers come across as rather unlikeable in most every instance; too demanding, too controlling, and too self-centered. They view their offspring more like a property investment that must produce dividends, as opposed to a child that also needs some fun and love every now and then.

While watching these stories unfold, you're often momentarily lulled into forgetting that this "melodramatic family mini-series" also happens to be VERY dark and surreal much of the time. It is excellent at mixing melodrama and sci-fi/fantasy genres together very effectively, as all of these stories are each set against the backdrop of a dystopian future, a parallel universe, a world that has a wish granting animal or a time altering remote control, and so forth. These settings and circumstances serve to augment the main story lines, and this series did a terrific job of weaving its way back and forth between simple or serious (and sometimes endearing) everyday moments, to the often bizarre and crazy fantasy world that it coexists with.

Each episode was well written and directed, and all of them were quite effective. The actors were very good in their roles overall, and some the younger ones were outstanding. Production values aren't lacking either; Taiwan doesn't have "Hollywood money" to throw around, so don't be expecting a lot of super-duper special effects or CGI, but nothing looks cheap at all (except for maybe the goofy Stormtrooper dudes of the future). In fact, this show is shot and framed very well, and the bulk of these episodes look downright gorgeous with their wild imagery and use of various visual themes (from sterile white environments, to a variety of hues, on up to some extremely vivid color palettes).

This show/series does many things well, but storytelling is what it does best. And, in typical Asian cinematic fashion, it often blurs the line between protagonists and antagonists, and you never quite know which direction a story will go. Maybe things will work out for everyone, or someone, or maybe nobody; Good Luck trying to figure out what will happen to the primary characters in any given episode, and how each story will be resolved.

You might not quite understand some of the customs and differences of another culture (if you're not already familiar with it), but it's not so "foreign" that you can't understand the overall theme and story. And yeah, you'll have to read subtitles to watch this (if you don't know the language). NOTE; there may be an option for you to watch this dubbed in English (or another language), but DON'T DO IT! If you cannot watch a foreign production from any other country in their native language (with subtitles as/if needed), then you are wasting your time; you will just miss out on the nuances and subtleties of the actor's performances that post-production voice over artists simply can't replicate.

Ratings: No sex or nudity whatsoever. Some blood and occasional violence. Occasionally creepy. Not for little kids. Do your diligence otherwise.

Summary: This is a highly entertaining genre mixing project that combines common timely themes with some creative storytelling and a good dose of the bizarre to great effect.

Bottom Line: VERY GOOD! 8 out of 10 stars.

Loved the combination of sci-fi and fantasy...very good. Hypnotic music track of Don't Cry Don't Cry. Found it on YouTube and listened over and over.

If you are familiar with either of those, then I recommend giving this a try.

It primarily deals with so-called "tiger moms" and the high pressures of academic success, but also covers a wide-range of emotional topics including individualism vs. conformity and mental illness without being preachy. Although the main theme is the same, each episode is distinct and has a unique sci-fi twist to keep you guessing throughout.

At 90 minutes apiece, personally, I felt each episode took a little too long to get to the main setup, but after that things snowball into heavily dramatic levels. So you might have to hang on for at least 30-40 minutes if it doesn't click at first.