Back to the Origin

Plot Synopsis

Back to the Origin Review: When aPhD Becomes a Mascot and an Anchor Becomes a Clown

Stopscrolling. You need to hear aboutBack to the Origin. Forget the glossy, unrealistic C-dramas you’re used to. This show takes a sledgehammer to the "returning elite" trope. Starring Ren Suxi and Luo Jin, it’s a messy, hilarious, andpainfully real look at what happens when your overseas dreams crash and burn, and you have to hustle in the wild west of China’s influencer economy.

Here’s the tea: Zhang Ran (Ren Suxi) used to be a fancy financial news anchor. She quit, went abroad, and... flopped. Hard. She drags her husband, Fu Yudong (Luo Jin), back to China with a job offer from an MCN agency.

But the twist? She doesn't become a star; she becomes a "funny influencer" (read: internet clown). Meanwhile, her husband—aPhD turned renovation guy—accidentally stumbles into becoming a "Mascot CEO" for a startup. It’s basicallySilicon Valleymeets a mid-life crisis, and everything that can go wrong, does.

This isn't a glorification of the internet fame game. It rips the MCN industry apart. It exposes the fake views, the desperate stunts for likes, and the sheer absurdity of "going viral." It feels less like a drama and more like a documentary on how ridiculous online culture has become.

Failing Upwards

Watching the wife struggle for relevance while the husband accidentally fails upwards into a CEO chair is comedy gold. It highlights the sheer randomness of success in the modetech world. It’s awkward, it’s cringey, and it’s impossible to look away.

Ren Suxi is apowerhouse. She doesn't do "pretty crying." She gives you raw, gritty frustration. You believe she’s desperate. Luo Jin sheds his usual suave image toplay the confused, slightly henpecked husbandperfectly. Their chemistry isn't about romantic sparks; it's about twopeople in a lifeboat trying not to kill each other.

Stream it.Back to the Originis theperfect antidote to boring, formulaic romances. It’s a chaotic ride through the dark side of the internet age. Come for the laughs, stay for the second-hand embarrassment.