This coming of age drama revolved around five friends, three of whose lives were poised on the edge of a knife. Their lives were complicated by poverty, lack of parental guidance and support, and lack of mental health resources. All these kids wanted was to have a better life, to live and to love. Beset by problems, they often made dangerous decisions out of desperation.

The production values of this older Taiwanese drama weren't terribly high yet it felt real and honest. If it had one flaw it's that it confronted too many social issues and was unable to spend enough time on each for the characters and the audience to fully digest their consequences.

Days We Stared at the Sun was gritty, raw, and devastating with glimmers of hope quietly woven through the unlikely friendships.