Wu Xiu Ya (Li Geng Xi) works at a large conglomerate and is known for her hardworking nature and aptitude. It’s so much so that she is pushed around by her colleagues who palm off their work to her and even take the credit on her behalf. Many also see her as another case of nepotism since her boyfriend Zheng Hao (Wang Hao) is a marketing lead and also family friends with Xiu Ya’s manager. Xiu Ya’s sense of worth and individuality is often crushed, with her diligence being overseen and being regarded as just another woman with a cushy position and a powerful boyfriend. What makes things worse is her boyfriend’s overbearing nature, as he thinks it is okay to make decisions on her behalf. Xiu Ya comes across as a pushover, but what many don’t know is that the real Xiu Ya is an outspoken, fearless, and confident person who has been crushed by the weight of society and the environment around her.
It’s not until she meets her old classmate Shi Ye (Wei Da Xun), who often does standup acts at a club, that she is nudged in the direction of what she is already good at…. her knack for satirical and comical monologues which come loaded with truth bombs. When will the real Xiu Ya stand up? A slice of life drama, “Later, I Laughed” could well be the story of any one of us who have lost our voices amidst the noise around us.
Here are three reasons why this show should make it to your viewing list.
Will the real Xiu Ya please stand up!
When we meet 26-year-old Xiu Ya, she is a burnt-out office worker. She is good at what she does, but often gets pushed around by her colleagues. When she tries to say no, they make her feel guilty as if she’s using her privileged status of being Zheng Hao’s girlfriend and having the ears of their manager, Madame Hu. But that is far from the truth. Xiu Ya has made it on her own, she takes pride in her work, and is the hardest working member on the team. But it is all overlooked due to her relationship with Zheng Hao, who loves to interfere in her work, much to her displeasure.
Xiu Ya keeps quiet, and as you wonder why she is a mute spectator to everything around her, we are taken back in time to when she was a new transfer student in school. Friendly and carefree, Xiu Ya was unaware of how her easygoing personality was irking some of her classmates, until she landed in trouble for something that was not her fault. When she is asked to apologize publicly, Xiu Ya does what she does best: unfiltered talk. She speaks her truth and mocks those who instigated it. The school cheers her on, but the aftermath of the incident scars her. Her desk mate Shi Ye stops talking to her, her teachers humiliate her, and the worst is her father’s fury, which destroys her confidence and clips her wings. As her honest pleas fall on silent ears, Xiu Ya swears to never stand up for herself again. However, the final straw is when her credit for a project is taken by a slacker at work. She speaks up but is labeled a troublemaker. Her boyfriend withdraws her application for transfer, and when he finally proposes to her in a move to impress the seniors at work, she has had it.
It is during this phase that she meets her classmate Shi Ye, who is now a freelancer, and he tells her that he is rather disappointed to see her the way she is. She follows Shi Ye to a club, where he does stand-up. When she takes to the stage, she has the ease of a pro and holds the audience spellbound as she humorously talks about her plight and derides her high-handed boyfriend.
The stage is where Xiu Ya belongs, and her freewheeling spirit is her strength, but she seems to have lost it. Li Geng Xi breathes life into her character as the spirited teenager to the timid office worker. Watching to see when Xiu Ya will drop the mic and finally laugh out loud is something this drama makes you look forward to.
Realistic portrayal of hustle culture
As we get a birds eye view into Xiu Ya’s place of work, we hear about the maladies office workers suffer from. If not dealing with back and neck aches, office workers tend to suffer from insomnia, which affects their physical and mental well-being. Xiu Ya is the perfect example—she is perpetually tied to her desk and puts in long hours at work, even taking on her colleague’s assignments. Then there are those at work who waste time playing video games, gossiping, and lunching but take on the credit for other people’s work. When she has a project submission, her boyfriend tries to get in one of his friends to make the presentation for her. It is against her professional ethics, but she goes to meet the person, who introduces her to the freelance writer, who is none other than her friend, Shi Ye. Shi Ye is appalled to see the tired and worn down woman who is none other than his former classmate Xiu Ya.
Even though she singlehandedly works hard on her presentation, her manipulative colleague takes the credit. And though she questions it, she feels humiliated when her colleagues ask to her to report it to her boyfriend, which makes her wonder why she can’t stand up for what is right. Even though she speaks up, she is made to apologize for destroying the reputation of the department by her petty thinking. The unfairness and petty politics at work further wear her down, but she has no option but to keep her head down and work. As Xiu Ya’s life centers around work and meeting targets, she doesn’t have a life beyond her job, and there is also a lack of fulfillment.
The toxic impact of the hustle culture on an individual’s life is articulately shown through Xiu Ya’s lens. Even though she works hard, her achievements and individuality have been lost. It is not the survival of the fittest or talented but the smartest. Is Xiu Ya smart enough to take these people on? After all, she has the unique gift of voice, which she has never used for her own sake.
Being a woman in a man’s world
A constant theme in the drama is how ambition in a woman continues to be unacceptable. 16-year-old Xiu Ya recalls how her mother had a thriving job as a manager of a mall but quit for her father’s transferable job. She wonders whether her mother would be any different than the harried woman she is today had she continued to work. Her mother’s silence when her father scolds and humiliates her for speaking her truth is just a reiteration that an ideal woman is one who keeps quiet and minds her language. Her manager is another woman who admonishes her when Xiu Ya calls out the unfair practices at work. Her response is for Xiu Ya to focus on what she is doing and look at the bigger picture of setting a home with her boyfriend. To top it off, her boyfriend’s mother also tells her that in a relationship, the one with the less successful career tends to compromise, implying that Xiu Ya’s professional endeavors are not as thriving as that of her son. She is further told that ultimately once they get married, it would be Xiu Ya’s duty to look after the home while Zheng Hao earns the bread. She feels humiliated and looks back at the time how she had earned her place at work, only for it to be credited to her boyfriend.
The final straw is when her boyfriend proposes marriage at a colleague’s wedding in front of the entire office, giving her no option but to accept. She realizes that it’s his way of scoring points with the authorities who want to see their top brass with a thriving family life. Watching these scenes play out, you itch to shake Xiu Ya off her reverie and give it back to her overbearing and interfering boyfriend. Shi Ye’s words, “I am disappointed in the current Xiu Ya,” play out in her ears, and it is time she reawakens from her silent self. As the wedding party disperses, Xiu Ya takes to the stage, and all her pent-up feelings come out in a monologue as she laments her situation. As she chastises herself for being a puppet, she admonishes an imaginary audience for identifying her as Zheng Hao’s girlfriend, mimicking her high-handed boyfriend and those around her.
Xiu Ya seems to have found her calling, and the world is her stage. As Xiu Ya lives her life unapologetically, she ruffles a few feathers, but gets the courage to take the flight to freedom. And it makes you wait to see where Shi Ye fits into her scheme of things.
“Later, I Laughed” is a slice-of-life narrative and a relevant commentary of our times seen through the perspective of Xiu Ya. The background of stand-up comedy is a clever ploy, and it is well woven in as Xiu Ya finds the stage and humor to tide through the roughest decade of her life. With the stage bringing her catharsis, it also helps shape her as an individual. And though the pace seems a tad slow at times, the show has its heart in the right place.
Start watching “Later, I Laughed”:
Puja Talwar is a writer with a strong Yoo Yeon Seok and Lee Junho bias. A long time K-drama fan, she loves devising alternate scenarios to the narratives. She has interviewed Lee Min Ho, Gong Yoo, Cha Eun Woo, and Ji Chang Wook to name a few. You can follow her on @puja_talwar7 on Instagram.
Currently watching: “Love Your Enemy” & “When the Phone Rings.”