A TV series on Netflix, Envious (中女人生之妒)

Today I want to write about a TV series on Netflix, Envious(中女人生之妒). Last night, I finally finished season 4 of the series, and I spent some time reflecting on it. Let me first share some brief information about this drama. Envious is an Argentine comedy drama television series, and it was my first time watching Argentine drama. It is an interesting TV series, and the actors’ performances are natural and powerful.

It follows the main character Victoria “Vicky “Mori, and her journey with envy. Vicky broke up with her boyfriend when she was nearly 40 years old. Vicky had dreamed of becoming a mother since she was a child. She planned to marry her partner, but things did not go according to her plan. She found herself single again while her friends were getting married and having children. Vicky often showed her envy, anger and even behaved in unacceptable ways towards those people who made her feel uncomfortable. One of the storylines in the series centers on Vicky’s therapy sessions with Fernanda. Vicky attended therapy regularly to address her envy and childhood trauma. 

Sometimes, Vicky’s envy and impulsive behavior really annoyed me. However, I suddenly understood why Vicky had these emotions and reactions when I watched the scene in which she was angry with her mother for being absent from her granddaughter’s kindergarten talent show. It was because her mother's absence triggered Vicky's painful childhood memories of her mother not showing up at her competitions or talent shows when she was young. Vicky deeply believed that her mother did not love her. She took the responsibility for taking care of her younger sister while mother was busy working. She might also have listened to her mother’s complaints about how difficult it was to raise two of them was difficult.

The experience led her to believe that she had to be a mother. She felt that she needed to build a stable and loving family. Her belief collapsed in her forties when her boyfriend refused to get married, her friends entered a new stage of life that she dreamed of for so long. How could she stay calm and tell herself that everything would be fine tomorrow? Going back to the scene that Vicky was yelling at her mother for not showing up at her granddaughter’s talent show. Vicky’s stepson, Bruno (Matias’ nine years old son), came to her, held her hand, and gently led her away. At that moment, Vicky was no longer facing her mother and her inner demon (anger and envy) alone. She had Burno and Martias by her side. Although Vicky often ruined things when she felt uncomfortable, argued with friends and family, blamed Fernanda for not understanding her, she had strong ties with people around her. Vicky made mistakes, but she also learnt from mistakes. Vicky did not receive the love she needed from her parents but found love and support from Matias and Bruno. That’s remind me of a saying “the universe may be preparing new people and opportunities foy you, but you first you may need to make room for them.” 

Since she was very young, Vicky had firmly believed that she would one day become a wife and a mother. In the end, she neither got married nor had a biological child, but she found a loving and supportive partner and gained a stepson who was mature enough to take care of himself. That can happen to all of us. Things do not always go according to our plans. Why do we become stuck and disappointed when things do not go according to our plans? What does achieving our plan truly mean to us? How do we interpret failure? For Vicky, becoming a mother and having a stable family represents unfinish business which she is trying to regain the sense of love and support that lacked in childhood. This is actually a very common psychological pattern. If a person received support from others when she was young, she may devote herself to helping others when she grows up. If a person grows up without experiencing love and support, she may desperately pursue them later in life, regardless of whether her methods are healthy and unhealthy. It can be a long and difficult journey to discover what we truly want when we are trapped in the fog of unfinished business.

I found that Vicky's ex boyfriend and Mr. Anthony Perry Wong (黃秋生) look alike .