Reunion Dinner

Reunion Dinner (simplified Chinese: 团圆饭) is a Singaporean Chinese drama which was telecasted on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp Channel 8. It made its debut on 6 January 2009 and ended on 3 February 2009. This drama serial consists of 20 episodes, and was screened on every weekday night at 9:00 pm.

Due to the series' heavy Chinese New Year theme, it was broadcast during the Chinese New Year season for 2009.

The series is partially sponsored by the Media Development Authority of Singapore.

Cast

Liang Family (梁家)

• Ah Ping (阿萍, portrayed by Chen Liping (陈莉萍))- A 43-year-old housewife, she is known as the "Iron Lady" (女铁人), maintaining the overwhelming demands of a family. Her husband, Liang Tianhua (portrayed by Wang Yuqing) works in a low-paying job, and as a result, Ah Ping has to bake pastries to supplement her family's income. In addition to the family, she also has to take care of her elderly father-in-law, who suffers from dementia. When her husband lost his job, the burden on her became even greater, and she began to break down.
• Liang Tianhua (梁天华, portrayed by Wang Yuqing (王昱青))- The husband of Ah Ping. A weak-willed man who works in a low-paying job. He has worked in the same job for 30 years, and not once did he asked for a raise, resulting in his salary still being S$3,000 per month. He also shrugs off unreasonable requests, making him a small and nearly invisible figure in his company.
• Liang Zhigao (梁志高, portrayed by Zhu Houren (朱厚任))- A former police officer, he retired some years ago, and now suffers from Dementia. Despite forgetting about almost everything, his memories of his police days are still pristine, resulting in hims still thinking that he is a police officer, constantly arresting people for various crimes.
• Liang Meiqi (梁美琪, portrayed by Ya Hui (雅慧))- The eldest daughter of the Liang family, she is a university student who is preparing to study abroad, she is relying on her scholarship and giving tutoring lessons to lessen her family's burden of sending her overseas. However, she fears that she might be pregnant, after she was intoxicated at a party with her classmates, and woke up next to a man she doesn't know.
• Liang Meihui (梁美慧, portrayed by Koh Zhengning (许政宁))- A first year Junior College student, she has a liberal mind, which created controversies. She once created a public furore when she was caught being intimate with her boyfriend in public, resulting in public complaints to her Junior College.

Liu Family (刘家)

• Liu Jiachang (刘家昌, portrayed by Chen Hanwei (陈汉伟))- A plumber, Jiachang is also a gambling addict, frequently losing his salary to the gambling table, as well as running up huge gambling debts. His wife, who is normally tolerating of her husband's gambling addiction, left the family and ran away after Jiachang lost a lot of money in gambling, resulting in the family not having enough money to buy rice to eat in the New Year. Realizing what his addiction has done, he vowed to change for the good, and went out to look for his wife. He got into legal trouble instead, and was detained by Police.
• Lin Fangfang (林芳芳, portrayed by Patricia Mok (莫小玲))- Wife of Liu Jinchang. A baker, and she usually lets her children take bread from her store. She left her family after her husband lost so much money that her family cannot have a decent meal for the New Year. In order to earn as much money in the shortest possible time, she worked as a bar lady to earn extra money.
• Liu Qiangqiang (刘强强, portrayed by Jerald Tan (陈杰乐))- The eldest son in the Liu family, he is addicted to video games, and can be seen with a black PSP in hand in many scenes.
• Liu Sisi (刘思思, portrayed by Xiao Zhiying (箫芷莹))- The eldest daughter in the Liu family, she neglects her studies, and always goes online to chat with others. only with her parent's disappearance did she turned around, and began to shoulder the burden of taking care of her brother and sister.
• Liu Yaya (刘牙牙, portrayed by Regene Lim Yong Yi (林咏谊))- The youngest child of the Liu family. She is academically inclined, and very cunning. Upon learning of her parent's separation, she tried to unite them together, just in time for the new year.
• Fang Mu (芳母, literally "Fang's Mother", portrayed by Chen Peiqing (陳佩菁))- The mother of Lin Fangfang, she never remarried after her husband's death, and dresses trendily. She urged her daughter to get a divorce. However, she is seen having an affair with Ah Gang (Wang Le)

Wang Family (王家)

• Wang Hao (王浩, portrayed by Hu Wensui (胡问遂))- A father from China, he took his son to Singapore to further his studies, while his wife, who worked in a high-level positing in a multinational corporation in China, remained there to further her career. In order to reduce his wife's burden, Hao, who was once a professional swimmer, taught swimming to supplement her income. However, he is a bit miffed that his wife did not send him money for air tickets back to China, so that the entire family can spend the New Year together in China.
• Li Tong (李彤, portrayed by Wang Huajing (王华婧))- A high level worker in a multinational corporation in China, she is the wife of Wang Hao. Her intelligence and ambition led to rumours that she "slept" her way up (having affairs with her supervisors), which led to a marriage crisis for her.
• Wang Jie (王杰, portrayed by Xiong Tianyang (熊天扬)- The only child of the Wangs, he is academically inclined, and under the strict supervision of his father, Hao Jie excels in school, and improved his English significantly.

Hu Family (胡家)

• Laksa Uncle (叻沙叔, portrayed by Liang Tian (梁田))- Father of Hu Daxiong, he operates a Laksa stall along with his wife (hence the name), becoming a moderately famous Laksa vendor. He always wanted to teach Daxiong how to make Laksa, but Daxiong just shrugged it off. His fiery tempers led to arguments between him and Daxiong.
• Laksa Auntie (叻沙嫂, portrayed by Zhu Xiufeng (朱秀凤))- An elderly woman, she sells Laksa along with her husband (hence the name). Working for decades meant that she suffers from many medical problems. Still, she thinks she will rest only when she is lowered into a coffin.
• Banana^[1] (Portrayed by Kym Ng (鐘琴))- The owner of the apartment flat where Wang Hao rented a room. She was a secondary school classmate of Lin Fangfang, and never studied beyond secondary school. In an effort to support her lazy husband, Hu Daxiong, she worked as a supermarket promoter and a beer lady. The income was great, until competition from China came. She decided then to train herself, in an effort to better compete with the newcomers.
• Hu Daxiong (胡达雄, portrayed by Alan Tern (唐育书))- Although he graduated from a university, he does not want to work, and only wants to enjoy life. He would resign a few days after starting a new job, and his business ventures would fail. He took over his father's Laksa stall, but ran it to the ground through mismanagement.

2010 Accolades

Reunion Dinner was widely applauded for its script and also its realistic depiction of everyday Singaporean life. In terms of viewership numbers, it was also a considerable ratings success. Many credit this success for the veteran cast led by Chen Liping and Wang Yuqing. Veteran actor Zhu Houren was widely praised for his performance as a demented former police officer and his character's catchphrase "我是警察!" (I am the Police!) was popular with younger audiences.The other dramas nominated for Best Drama Series and Best Theme Songs are Together , Housewives' Holiday , Perfect Cut 2 & Reunion Dinner

Star Awards 2010 Awards and Nominations

While the nominations were dominated by 2009 year-end blockbuster Together, Reunion Dinner still managed several wins in both the acting and technical categories.The other dramas that are nominated for Best Drams are Daddy at Home , Housewives' Holiday , Perfect Cut 2 & Together.

Notes