The Three Kingdoms tells the story of three men at the end of the Eastern Han dynasty frantically competing to become the boss.
It opens with an iconic scene: Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei livestreaming their sworn brotherhood in the Peach Garden, pledging to “live and die together.” But later, Guan Yu is killed by Eastern Wu, and Liu Bei flies into a rage and charges to his doom. Their brotherly bond was fake all along.
Cao Cao is the ultimate workplace manipulator. He sings, “The Duke of Zhou spits out food to welcome the realm's hearts,” while treating the emperor like a collectible figurine. Everyone on Sun Quan's team is a notorious flirt. Zhou Yu is so furious with Zhuge Liang that he coughs up blood, and even on his deathbed he cries, “Why was Yu born if Liang was born too?”
The most ridiculous one is Zhuge Liang. While everyone else relies on the art of war, he dabbles in the supernatural every day: borrowing the east wind, using the empty fort stratagem, and extending his life with the Seven-Star Lamps. He's the Three Kingdoms' most overpowered player. But even a great god can't withstand having a laid-back boss like Liu Shan. In the end, the old fox Sima Yi simply outlasts him until his strength is spent.
The ending is pitch-black comedy: after the three kingdoms spend more than seventy episodes tearing each other apart, the Sima family swoops in and takes the prize. It should be renamed The Comeback of Office Drone Sima Yi: Live Long Enough, and Your Boss Turns Into a Dog. A friendly reminder: history teaches us that changing jobs is risky and starting a business calls for caution. After all, you never know when the hidden ending, “The Boss Runs Off with the Money,” might suddenly appear.
