“From the moment I met you, I knew I would love you for a lifetime. Not for all of your life, but all of mine.”                     – Endless Love

Even after twenty years, people are still trying to diagnose everyone in Endless Love 天若有情. From kleptomania to borderline pedophilia to open cheating and medical malpractive, everyone in the show has so many issues that even their resident therapist needs help.

With a super tight script full of quotable conversations, dimensional and flawed characters, a stellar cast  –  Dong Jie, Cha In-pyo (the Korean actor actually spoke Chinese during filming),  Jerry Huang  — and a surprisingly nuanced take on plenty of controversial issues, the series remains a stable in the “remember when Chinese dramas still could do this”  conversations. You can watch it on Youku here.

Nineteen-year-old kleptomaniac Zhan Yan (Dong Jie) has been in love with her legal guardian (Cha In-pyo) since she first met him at the age of ten. Before then, she had been abused by her ascetic grandmother and had been stealing for the thrill.  When her guardianship is transferred to the male lead after her grandmother passed away, she begins to steal things from the mall he owns to gain his attention. Continue reading →