Sammy’s Children’s Day

Sammy’s Children’s Day

CompletedTV Series🇨🇳

What happens

Sammy's Children's Day (初三的六一兒童節, Chū Sān De Liù Yī Ér Tóng Jié) is a 2026 Hong Kong-set Chinese BL crime romance adapted from the web novel of the same name by danmei author She Xie Dian Dian. It opens in the Kowloon Walled City of the 1980s, a stacked, lawless warren where the triads set the rules and the police take their cut. He Chusan (He Changxi) is a university student and aspiring financial strategist who has decided that study is the only clean way out of the slum: calculating, patient, fiercely devoted to the few people he counts as his own. Xia Liuyi (He Yanzhao) is the deputy leader of one of the triads that own the district, and he has other plans for him.

Liuyi has Chusan taken and put to work as the screenwriter on a film production that exists mainly to move his boss's money. What begins as captor and captive turns, over weeks of forced proximity, into a working alliance, and then into a partnership built on shared grievance, as a power struggle between the gangs and a corrupt police force pulls both men into its middle. Xie Jiahua (Matthew Han), a detective circling the same conspiracy, complicates every calculation either of them makes. When Liuyi is wounded and framed for killing his own, hunted through the alleys he used to control, it is Chusan who hides him and dresses the wounds, and Chusan who has to admit that the gangster he had every reason to hate has become the one person he cannot do without.

Directed by An You from a script by Yan Lan and produced by EASTONE Entertainment with Thai co-production support, the nine-episode series premiered on 13 March 2026 on GagaOOLala and Rakuten Viki, releasing weekly on Fridays through its 1 May finale. The title is a piece of wordplay: Chusan (初三) means the third year of junior high and Liuyi (六一) means June 1, Children's Day, and both are the given names of the leads, a joke about lost childhood in a place that never allowed one. The finale leaves plot threads open, and the leads have since spoken about a continuation.

CONTENT DETAILS

Native Title
初三的六一儿童节
Original Title
Sammy's Children's Day
Also Known As
初三的六一兒童節, 初三的六一儿童节, Chu San De Liu Yi Er Tong Jie, Chusan's Liuyi Children's Day, Absolute Possession, Liuyi Children's Day
Adaptation
Adapted from the Chinese web novel '初三的六一儿童节' (Chusan's Liuyi Children's Day) by Chinese danmei author She Xie Dian Dian (蛇蝎点点), a 'top-tier IP with over ten million fans.' The novel was originally serialized as a danmei (boys' love) web novel before its acquisition by EASTONE Entertainment for screen adaptation. The title is a wordplay using both protagonists' given names: 'Chusan' (初三) means 'third year of junior high,' and 'Liuyi' (六一) means 'June 1' (China's Children's Day).
Themes
Key Themes
Forbidden LoveTriad UnderworldCorruptionRevengeSacrificeFound FamilyIdentitySurvivalCaptor and CaptiveHunted LoversHong Kong Walled City1980s Period
Language
Mandarin, Cantonese
Seasons
1
Episodes
9
Duration
49 min
Aired Start
Aired End
Release Year
Content Rating
MA

Where to watch Sammy’s Children’s Day

YouTubeVikiGagaOOLala

MAIN CAST & CHARACTERS

SUPPORTING CAST

Before You Watch

  • Sammy’s Children’s Day is a 2026 Hong Kong-set BL drama produced by EASTONE Entertainment in co-production with Thailand, directed by An You, with 9 episodes that aired March 13 to May 1, 2026 on GagaOOLala and Viki.
  • Stars He Changxi as He Chusan (the calculating student) and He Yanzhao as Xia Liuyi (the triad deputy leader).
  • Set in 1980s Kowloon Walled City, with triads, corrupt police and a film production used to move money.
  • Adapted from a Chinese danmei web novel by author She Xie Dian Dian (蛇蝎点点). The Chinese title is a wordplay on both lead characters’ given names.
  • Where to watch Sammy’s Children’s Day: GagaOOLala (English subtitles), Rakuten Viki (subscription, English subs), and the show’s official YouTube channel.
  • Season 2: in a post-finale Instagram and TikTok live stream on May 1, 2026, He Changxi and He Yanzhao spoke about Season 2 development, and the finale leaves plot threads open.

Reviewed by Renkaze

9/10

Picture this: you are a university student with a spreadsheet brain and a plan to study your way out of the Kowloon Walled City. Then a triad deputy has you taken and hands you a new job. Screenwriter. On a film that mostly exists to wash his boss's money. That is where Sammy's Children's Day starts, and it only gets more tangled from there.

Kidnapped, Then Hired

If captor and captive is your trope, pull up a chair. He Changxi plays He Chusan as a man who counts everything, including the people he is willing to protect. He Yanzhao plays Xia Liuyi, the gangster who decided Chusan was useful. Forced proximity turns into a working alliance, the alliance turns into a partnership built on shared grievance, and by the time Liuyi is wounded, framed and hunted through the alleys he used to run, it is Chusan hiding him and dressing the wounds. This is slow burn with a knife in its pocket.

Triads, Crooked Cops and One Nosy Detective

The mood is dark and tense, a 1980s crime story first, with the romance running underneath it. Gang power struggles, a police force on the take, and Matthew Han as Xie Jiahua, a detective circling the same conspiracy and spoiling every plan either lead makes. If you came for fluffy campus cuddles, this is a very different flavour. If you like your BL with stakes and shadows, it is exactly your cup.

The Title Is a Pun, and It Hurts a Bit

Chusan means the third year of junior high. Liuyi means 1 June, Children's Day. Put the two given names side by side and you get the Chinese title, a joke about childhood in a place that never let anyone have one. I adore a show that hides its thesis in the characters' names. Bonus for music lovers: the two leads both came from music, and four of the six soundtrack songs are sung by them, so the men chasing each other on screen are also singing over the chase.

How to Watch Without Losing Sleep

Nine episodes of about 49 minutes, released weekly on Fridays after a two-day opening, with a finale on 1 May 2026. You can find it on GagaOOLala, Viki and an official YouTube playlist. It is rated MA, so plan accordingly. Fair warning: the finale leaves threads open, and the leads have since talked about a second season, so you may be refreshing the news for a while. If danmei adaptations are your thing, line it up next to Double Helix, which also comes from Chinese danmei web fiction.

OFFICIAL TRAILER

OFFICIAL OST

Episode guide: Sammy’s Children’s Day

9 / 9 episodes aired · Completed
EP 1
13 Mar 2026
Aired
EP 2
14 Mar 2026
Aired
EP 3
20 Mar 2026
Aired
EP 4
27 Mar 2026
Aired
EP 5
03 Apr 2026
Aired
EP 6
10 Apr 2026
Aired
EP 7
17 Apr 2026
Aired
EP 8
24 Apr 2026
Aired
EP 9
01 May 2026
Aired

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Are the two lead characters named after a date?

Both of them, and the title is the wordplay. Chusan (初三) means the third year of junior high, and Liuyi (六一) means June the first, which is Children's Day in China. The Chinese title simply sets the two given names side by side.

Where and when is it set?

The Kowloon Walled City of the 1980s, the densely stacked settlement that stood in Hong Kong until its clearance. The series combines crime, mafia and historical elements with romance, so the setting drives the plot and is never just decoration.

Did the novelist work on the adaptation?

Yes. She Xie Dian Dian (蛇蝎点点) wrote the source danmei web novel and is also credited on the screenplay alongside Yan Lan, with An You directing for EASTONE Entertainment. The book is billed as a top-tier property with over ten million fans.

How were the nine episodes released?

Not on a flat weekly pattern. The first two arrived on consecutive days, 13 and 14 March 2026, then episode three followed on 20 March and the run settled into Fridays through to 1 May. Episodes are about 49 minutes.

Who plays Chusan and Liuyi?

He Changxi plays He Chusan (何初三) and He Yanzhao plays Xia Liuyi (夏六一). Zhang Mingbo appears as Lu Guangming, Matthew Han as Xie Jiahua and Huang Shichao as Qing Long.

Do the leads come from an acting background?

Both came to the series from music. He Changxi, born on 24 November 1997 in Yueyang, studied Chinese vocal music at the Beijing Contemporary Music Academy and reached the screen through the 2019 survival show Youth With You.

How well regarded is it?

It holds a 9.4 audience rating. GQ India included it among the 7 Best C-dramas of 2026, and the two leads appeared at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2026 in connection with the series.

On which services can it be watched?

On GagaOOLala, Viki and a YouTube playlist. It is a China and Hong Kong production in Mandarin and Cantonese.

Where a title can be watched, and who is credited on it, may have changed since publication, as our disclaimer explains.

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