ON THE FIRST BEAT (THE ACADEMY II)

Episodes: 30

Cast:
Ron Ng as Chung Lap Man 鍾立文
Sammul Chan as Lee Pak Kiu 李柏翹
Michael Tao as Cheung Ging Fung 張景峰
Joey Yung as Chueng Niem Yun 張念恩
Sonija Kwok as Yuen Wai Nei 袁慧妮
Kate Tsui as Man Jing 文靜

This is the sequel to TVB's "The Academy" (2004). This series to me seemed a bit rushed and they made a lot of careless mistakes. I think due to the ratings "The Academy" had they thought this would be a hit, that it would be easy to make and they slacked off. The storyline of this would have been really good but the way they did it all and put it together wasn't the greatest thing.
Unlike other TVB series that are very fast-paced this one was a bit slower than normal series but still fast. The theme song gets stuck in your head but gets really annoying after like 10 episodes.
I think the way they broke up the original couples, Ron Ng (Man) and Tavia Yeung (Fa) and Sammul Chan (Pak Kiu) and Fiona Sit (Fiona) was a bit extreme but turned out great. At first I was mad that they split Ron and Tavia up but then when they brought Joey Yung (Yun) in and paired them up it was really cute. I didn't like how they were only together as a couple for the last like 10 minutes or so of the series but the way they lead them up to it was really cute.
I felt really bad for Sammul though, because of Fiona's death, then Sonija didn't like him and he ended up getting no one. The way they killed Fiona off was kind of sad and sudden as well and I liked how they waited until the last few episodes to tell you what really happened when she got killed. How they made Sammul go through that much really was some of the high points in this series.
As for the on and off couple, Micheal Tao (Fung) and Sonija Kwok (Winnie), was another high point in this as well. They let them get back together and then split up again even though it got many viewers mad but it kept them watching to see if they would ever get back together. But when they killed Sonija in the end of the series so many viewers were really upset about this and how they didn't let Micheal and Sonija be together in the end was really sad but at least they got a lot of viewers and good ratings during this. The bad part was in the opener when they showed Winnie's parents and brother crying and wearing all black let us know that she will end up dying which really ruined the series for a lot of us since the first episode but we all hoped she didn't die.
And the two new actors Kate Tsui (Man Ching) and Kenny Kwan (Fu), even though they aren't new to TVB they are pretty new to acting, did alright in this series. Kate's character as the tomboy cousin was really annoying. The way Kate acts really annoys me. I think she did really well in "The Brink of Law" though. I think she's more fit for more girly characters then tomboyish ones like in "La Femme Desperado". She has a lot of room for improvement as she is new to acting. As for Kenny, he was good as the part of a shy mama's boy but when his character was supposed to grow up a bit and stand up for what he wants he didn't really act like that's what happened and he seemed like his old self. I think it's his voice sounds like a little kid.
In the long run this series was good not as great as "The Academy" but it still had the same points - friendship, love, and family. I think they did a great job filming this but it could have been better.
PS I do not own this review.