My Favorite Reality Show to Learn Mandarin
Fast spoken natural speech is nothing like C-Dramas
The speech in Chinese reality shows is completely different from that in C-Dramas. The professional actors in C-Dramas tend to over-enunciate their speech, making it artificially easy to understand. The contestants on reality shows speak much more naturally, similar to how people would on a city sidewalk.
Mandarin reality shows are much harder to understand and an excellent training ground for natural, fast-spoken speech.
I’ve scoured YouTube for these reality shows and found a lot of varying levels of production quality. But one in particular I always keep coming back to, and that’s Under the Same Roof (同一屋檐下).
Under the Same Roof is a wholesome dating show, where young contestants who have “failed” in some aspect of their lives live together in a house in Shanghai. A lot of these young people are far from “failures,” but rather are facing temporary personal or career struggles.
Under the Same Roof is great for learning Mandarin for multiple reasons:
