Yu-Chu Chiang

Directed by Peter Ho, the ten-part show with 60-minute episodes, explores relationship issues and marital challenges, and depicts painful dilemmas for the characters through a unique lens on their daily lives. The screenplay is by Ho and Chiang Yu-Chu.

Through the stories of nine kids living in the Chinese Shopping Mall, this film depicts their diverse and magical life experiences. In the summer of 1985, while Xiaobudian (the tiny one) was at the fourth grade, he was already a convincing street vendor, who sold stuff for allowance on a skywalk every day. Xiaobudian’s father is a shoe shop owner who was doing business in the Chinese Shopping Mall. One day, a magician from nowhere showed up in the mall. He had a treasure bowl and a zebra capable of emitting colorful lights, and he was able to make countless magic tricks. Xiaobudian admired this magician, and bought magic props for practice every day. At the same time, more and more boys and girls in the mall have met this mysterious magician, and gained life-changing power after they watched the magic show.

Adapted from the novel by author Wu Hsiao-Le, the series consists of five independent stories about parenting, as well as children's pressures of growing up, when faced with the tragic consequences of social pressure, parental oppression and family dysfunction. Each story is told in two parts in this ten-part series.

The story unfolds with an allegorical inspiration from the well-known fairy tale, The Little Mermaid, in which the mermaid princess falls in love with the prince it saves from drowning, with a surprising twist of the mermaid being a young boy…

After discovering that her son faked his report cards, a single mother uses a device to grant her utter control over his life -- but at a great cost.