Meteor Garden (2018)

(20190407-20190419)
I finished watching this show a few days ago but it took me a while to get over the fact that it was really over. It was the first time I watched a drama this long in less than two weeks. I couldn't stop watching!! It definitely has something special about it, which I will discuss in this review.
Boys Over Flowers (Korean version of this story) was my first drama ever. I gave it 7.5 stars because the nostalgia is real. When Meteor Garden aired I was like... this story isn't the most passionate so I'll watch this later. Looking back now I wish I had watched it sooner!
There might be some spoilers from now on so read this review at your own risk!




Plot/Story: ...so draggy. It dragged and it dragged and it dragged. Every two episodes they would break up then get back together then two episodes later they were breaking up again and so on. But for some reason I still enjoyed it??? This story is clearly the queen of the clichés but it's so charming at the same time. That's why there are so many versions. And I do like the changes in Meteor Garden 2018 because they had to adapt it to modern days, and it was done well. The humour was great and there were some breathtaking scenes in this show. Some of my favourites:
-Huaze Lei and Shancai at the beach (lol who am I joking, every scene with Huaze Lei in it is GOLD. But I could see the pain in his eyes in that scene and it hurt but it was beautiful)
-The cooking competition making Daoming Si almost have a heart attack. That scene with him trying to get Shancai's attention with that big poster... such a meme.
-The goodbye scene at the Tower Bridge. I cried my eyes out for HOURS. And not that related but the jacket Daoming Si was wearing was my absolute favourite. Those scenes of them visiting London look so good... that jacket gave him the perfect boyfriend look.
-F4 reuniting to help Meizuo make Caina feel like she was young again and that train trip hahaha Lei and Si were hilarious.
-Ximen and Xiaoyou... ah some good stuff.
-Daoming Si and Shancai's father talk when he asks her to marry him. He was so humble!
-Bed scene with Lei and Si. You know what I'm talking about.
-Si and Shancai sleeping together at Si's rented apartment next to hers.
-Lei eating Si's cookies Shancai had made for his birthday.
-Every scene with Lei and Shancai on the rooftop.
-F4 walking together. Every. Time.
-Meizuo being a mature af man and letting Caina go.
-And finally, my most favourite scene, THE BEACH PARTY SCENE WHERE JING HELPS SHANCAI GET READY AND THEN SHE SHOWS UP LOOKING EVEN MORE STUNNING THAN USUAL AND SHE'S LOOKING AT LEI WHO IS TALKING TO JING AND THEN THERE'S DAOMING SI LOOKING AT HER WITH HEART EYES LIKE LITERAL RAINBOWS AND HEARTS AND PINK AND SWEETNESS AND LOVE IN HIS EYES AND THAT'S THE MOMENT I FELL FOR DYLAN WANG.
I have to admit the ending was too weird for me. I wish they had just gotten engaged. Them not eating because of his mother and then Shancai fainted and then she went home, apparently, and then she was kind of kidnapped to attend her own wedding and ah Si's sister was there dancing... it was too strange for me. I wish they had found a different way to end the show but oh well, at least it looked good.
What a rollercoaster these 49 episodes were!


Characters/Cast/Acting: While I was watching BOF, I remember being soooo frustrated at Jandee because to me it was obvious Jihoo was a much better option than JoonPyo. Jihoo was a better character and a better match for her. However, I didn't have the same problem with Meteor Garden 2018. Huaze Lei is still my favourite character in the show (Darren Chen aka Kuan Hong stole my heart since the first scene he was in) BUT I do think Shancai and Daoming Si are just great together. A lot of people might disagree with me on this but, in my opinion, Daoming Si is a very endearing character. Certainly a very flawed human being, but still endearing. I was rooting for him since the beginning and I was so proud of him throughout the show because his development was amazing.
I have to say this F4 was way better than I was expecting. I liked every single one of them. Maybe because they weren't as douchebaggy as in the other version I watched. And, obviously, they are four of the most handsome men in the history of television, you guys know it's true. Their friendship is EVERYTHING. Honestly, couldn't have loved that part more. I also liked Shancai way better this time because even though she was flawed too, I think she wasn't as... dumb. She did kind of annoy me sometimes because she wouldn't say "I like you" when it was obvious that she did like him; but then I remembered that Daoming Si was actually very pushy and wanted to be with her while she was crushing on Lei. She might have feel conflicted too, and afraid to attach herself to him by admitting her feelings out loud, because of all the drama going on involving his family. Nevertheless, I think ShenYue did an amazing job. Her expressions are so convincing and her crying scenes were the best. And I don't know about you guys but to me she is absolutely stunning. I know some people didn't like her that much as Shancai because of her looks but... hello??? The girl is beautiful! Dylan aka Wang Hedi did a great job too; he made me love a character so flawed and that I previously didn't really like, and that means a lot to me. In episode three, during the beach party... That whole scene of her looking at Huaze Lei and Daoming Si looking at her was... majestic. Ah, Kuan Hong. I have found the love of my life through this drama. If you knew how many screenshots I have of him smiling... I have never seen anyone like him, I swear. All the other characters were great, as well as the acting. Meizuo and Ximen, XiaoYou, Jing, Shancai's parents and friends, Daoming Si's mother and sister... Couldn't have loved them more. But I have to say I wish they had worked more on Si's mother. Okay, we know she was greedy and she hated Shancai and wanted to protect her company but it was to a point where Si was dying in his bedroom and she was like "nope, I'm not giving up" and then she sees a video of him saying some BASIC BUSINESS RULES to innovate the company and suddenly she was sleeping peacefully with her oldest daughter (whose life she basically ruined) next to her??????????????????????????????????????????? Give me some character development please. Don't make her look like the literal ice queen of dramaland who doesn't let her son be happy and then break at a simple video.


Music: I. Love. Every. Single. Song. In. This. Soundtrack. River? ICONIC. Don't even have to think about it? Stunning (IT TURNS OUT THAT TRUE LOVE, TEARS ARE FALLING DOWN, YOUR LOVE UNRAVELS ALL REGRETS). ForYou? I would never skip the intro! Love Exists? The best song (If it weren't because of you, I wouldn't be crying and smiling like a child--- shut up I'm crYING).


Rewatch Value: I'm thinking about rewatching it right now hahaha.......help.




To conclude, I finished the show and thought "Okay, I love this but since I have to review it seriously I'll probably give it 8.5 stars because of all the flaws and draggy plot.". Then a few days went by and I created a fan account for the show lmao, meteor garden trash right here. Today, I rated the drama before writing the review and ended up giving it 9.5 stars because giving it 10 stars is giving it the same rating as my all time favourites, such as Weighlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo. But as I was writing this review, I decided to give it 10 stars anyway because I love this so much! I even created a fan account like... this is serious (by the way, follow me on twitter lol @kuannhongg). Even if it has flaws, even if it's dubbed (the sad life of c-dramas), even if it's a remake, even if it's full of clichés and impossible scenarios... I still love it and I'm absolutely in love with the cast. So if you're thinking wether you should watch it even if you didn't like the other versions, my honest answer is: obviously.

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To each their own when they're watching a drama and many people came into this one expecting the same feel as the complete original one which will always be a true classic. I came in to this show with high expectations and I honestly truly was not disappointed at all. This whole show brought me back into watching drama's after a long hiatus of a few years and it was really refreshing. I would say it's just as good as the original in my opinion and there was just something about Dylan Wang and Shen Yue that really got me, especially with how amazing Darren Chen is as an actor as well. Something about this one really pulled me in and had me sitting on the edge of my seat while netflix was still slowly but surely uploading episodes; to the point where I couldn't even watch Shen Yue in "A Love So Beautiful" until now because I absolutely loved the combination of her and Dylan Wang; even though this was his first show technically. Something about this show just made me feel a wonderful nostalgia and happiness and connection and I laughed, I smiled, I cried and all around was happy with how this went.

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OK to me this show was perfect some ppl may disagree but i loved it so much it was the first ever asian drama that i watched, probably the main reason why its one of my favourite dramas out there. I watched it when it was still airing so i couldnt get enough of it when new episodes were out. I have watched all the versions of boys over flowers/hana yori dango/meteor garden whatever u would like to call it but this is by far my favourite version. I couldnt believe most of them were rookies bcz I thought the acting was rlly good but something about leis acting i found weird maybe it was his character but i found him so plain and boring but i enjoyed everyone elses portrayal of their characters. In the beginning i couldnt help but hate daoming si but like i fell in love with his character throughout and shancai i loved how she stood her ground and wasnt weak tho the amount of breakups and get back together the main couple had annoyed me. The story isnt obviously original but i stll find all the versions unique in their own way. To some ppl this drama was way too long but i still want a season 2, my mum was also a big fan of the drama as we watched it together. The music was amazing i loved it the entire OST i found catch and i still listen to some of the songs. I would rewatch it but probs some time in the future bcz like i have way too many dramas to finish off already:) overall i would highly recommend it but if u dont like long dramas then this probs aint for u but idk watch it if u want dont if u dont:)

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Took me FIVE YEARS to slog through this drama

In the time it has taken me to scrape and crawl through this drama I have:

– Lived through 5 Covid lockdowns
– Changed jobs 4 times
– Moved house 3 times
– Learnt 2 semesters of Mandarin, and
– Breathed the 1 biggest sigh of relief when I reached the credits of the final episode.

Class dynamics, who even is she? I'm a hard agree with Graeme Smith who describes this version of Meteor Garden as "unwatchable". In his article for The Interpreter, he says, "A drama about class divisions set in present-day China – where class divisions aren’t up for discussion – was never going to work."

It's true. Everyone in the series looks like they're acting in a laundry commercial. The sets are sparkly clean, all the actors have amazing teeth, and there is no way Shancai would be able to survive off the occasional shift she does at the bubble tea store.

By removing the class tensions that drove the Taiwanese version (and that was still relatively sanitised – it is a soap opera, after all), the creators gutted the life out of the drama.

It's also just hella boring. I felt no chemistry in any of the romantic relationships. I didn't particularly care about anyone's fate. And I say this as someone who *loves* championing an underdog. But because the class divisions "aren't up for discussion", Shancai isn't really an underdog. And so I found it hard to care much about her so-called struggles.

It got to the point where I was using diversions to keep myself watching. One fun game was tracking the disappearances and re-appearances of Daoming Si's earring/s. It was like playing Spotto with continuity errors.

For the sake of pushing through the last dozen episodes, I put the playback on 1.5x speed (as fast as Netflix would let me), which added an unintended comedic element. It also demonstrated how much screen time went to waste.

However, I'm going to be reeeeeally nice and end on a couple of (backhanded) positives. I did appreciate the music covers and the cameos from the Taiwanese version (but this is nostalgia and should be attributed to the 2001 series). I did also enjoy bits of Darren Chen's performance as Huaze Lei. He made the character seem almost complex, particularly in comparison to the cardboard cutouts that accompanied him on screen.

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Worth to Watch..!

I’m very mad and crazy about the Korean series, Boys over flower is one of my favorites which I watched around 2013 while I’m doing my college. Now after 9 years in 2022, my eyesight moved for the Chinese Series and I watched Meteor Garden💫💫. Meteor Garden theme (Especially F4 concept) was quite similar to Boys over Flower. Still Meteor Garden has many different stories and cute scenes compared to its Korean version. In meteor Garden, F4 boys are lovely, cute and handsome🕴🕴🕴🕴. Each one will have equal parts and we can’t compare one with another. Especially Dylan Wang😍😘- I love you Man…! I loved Dylan Wang scenes with Bishop Briggs – River background Song and fell for it. Dao Ming Si's attitude and love towards Dong Shancai was too cute😍, I liked Shancai the way she called Si by his full name and while she argued with Si it was too cute. Huaze Lei ‘s care and friendship towards Dong Shancai has no words to explain. I loved Ximen Yan and Meizuo while making fun of Si love. Especially I liked Ximen with Eyeglasses😎😘 and Dao Ming Zhuang😘 while caring and hitting her brother. Zhaung is really a cute devil. I loved her role. The way He Xiaozi give-up her love for Si and helps Shancai. I will say each and every cast of Meteor Garden is well performed.

People who are beginning to watch Korean series, I would suggest watching Boys over Flower, similar to Chinese series. I would suggest that people watch Meteor Garden. No other words to explain.

I would say this, if anyone asks me, Boys over Flower or Meteor Garden which is better? I vote for Meteor Garden. I loved it…. I enjoyed, loved each and every scene and seconds of Meteor Garden. I was totally into the Meteor Garden while watching it.

Meteor Garden Episode 30(Meteor Necklace searching and lei consoling Shancai)😥😥 and episode 40 (Si ask Shancai to London and go back to Shanghai) made me cry. Lei's performance with London friends in a restaurant was wowwww and I was filled with tears. Episode 41 Si and Shancai last date in London and having hot pot together and those eyes filled with tears dialogues “ If apologies work, why do we need the police? “ made me cry aloud 😥😥😥and in episode 48 Zhaung's performance for river song is unexpected and wowwwww. Even though I hate episode 47 but loved the happy ending of the final episode. I felt satisfied with eyes filled with tears and Meteor Garden is worth watching.
I could give 100 out of 100 for Meteor Garden😇😇😇😇.

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I just finished the drama and I'm really
happy it ended well after what happened
on ep 47-48 and the actors really did well
on the drama.The drama was obsessive especially how the actors play their role,the lots of kisses and fighting scene.The cinematography was pretty awesome too.I really like the character of Shan Cai and Dao Ming Si and how their relationship is slowly turning out well even tho the circumstances are pretty obvious.I expect those cringey,cheesy
and sometimes OA acting because what
can you expect from a remake/reboot of
an old drama and live adaptation from an
old manga right? I really like the chemistry
of every couple in the drama and not
expecting Xiaozi ending up with Thomas
lol.The drama was sometimes boring and
dull and they added another storyline from
other actors that are not includes in the
Taiwanese version, I mean what can you
expect on 50 episodes and they finished it
like that no more sequels and expect that the main plot is slowwwwly progressing and bare and really wait for good things to happen on episodes 40 and so on unlike the original
one because it's more direct to the point
to the plot and I feel nostalgic really (hey
I'm not THAT old but yeah I watched the
2001 drama long time ago sksksk) but
the chemistry between the new casts
are unique. I would like to thank and
appreciate how they include those original
theme songs I really feel nostalgic hearing
that remembering my childhood watching
the taiwanese version; the final scene
seeing Harlem Yu singing with the cast is
really the plot twist of the drama sksksk

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I have to say that i am not much of a fan of this plot but the cast in this version really makes it likeable to watch. And I am not even talking about their gorgeous looks! (On a side note: how gorgeous are they really!?) But the way they act makes even the most annoying character of Shancai (for me) bearable to watch. Infact she was the most sane one out of all the girls in all the other adaptations. I have always found that character terrible! And ofcourse the F4..they are love. The guys are really good and have performed their parts well. Considering the fact that all of them are just starting their careers, they are shining. Everyone is well cast. This version is by far the best. It has less violence/bullying and less drama too. OST is wonderful. Overall it's a fun watch.

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I has zero expectation from this show. But I ended up loving it. Overall its a summer crack drama. Good looking leads, beautiful ost, cheesy but heart melting plot. I love the characters development of caisi love story. Undoubtedly they are one of my fav OTP both onscreen and offscreen.
The plot is closely following manga so don't expect some twist or turn. Casting is good, Dylan as Daoming si is simply adorable. His character goes through most transition. And he steals the limelight from the rest of the cast. His performance in epi 41 is best of the series. Shenyue is good I hated jandi characters in bof, but in this version she was bearable mostly because she shares amazing chemistry with Dylan and wasn't annoying like previous version . The characters of the shancai is itself quiet weak thats why many find her annoying. Darren as lei is amazing. He will caught your attention in the first epi itself because of his pretty looks and dimples. Rest of the cast is okay. Daoming si sister zhaung deserve a appreciation for nailing her character. She lights up the screen with her presence alone. Her scene with ahsi are hilarious to watch. Ost is amazing. I love instrumental bgm more than the song itself.
Overall a drama worth to enjoy. Keep your expectations low and enjoy this light fluffy drama.

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Chinese remake of the classic dorama from the Philippines of the same name. I haven't watched the original Meteor Garden or read Boys over flowers, so this review will make no comparisons. I'll rate this only on its own merits

First of all, Meteor Garden's story is fun and super entertaining, but a bit too overly complicated at times. This would make the series very heavy, if it weren't for the "light-heartedness" that constantly looms over. I personally like this because I'm not too keen on unnecessary drama in fiction. Meteor Garden balances its comedy and drama aspects pretty well, actually. It has just the necessary amount of both.
As for the acting, it's mostly good. Shen Yue is awkward at times, but it kind of fits her character, so no problems there. Dylan Wang is good, no bad things to say here either. The supporting cast does a great job as well, mostly the F4. However, the best aspect of Meteor Garden is, by far, the music. The soundtrack is simply amazing and complement the scenes very nicely.
I think my only problem with this drama is the last episode. The resolution of the conflict is satisfying, but I felt that the episode was unnecessarily dragged with musical numbers and the like. That time could've been better employed with closing certain sub-plots in a more satisfying way.

Overall, I really enjoyed Meteor Garden. It was fun and interesting enough to keep me watching almost non-stop.

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i watched the original version of MG in 2001 (TWN) starring barbie hsu & jerry yan, as well as the MG 2009 (KOR) starring ku hye sun & lee min ho. now, i'm done watching the first 18 episodes of MG 2018 (CHN) which i want to write a review for those who are curious.

so let me start with the story. i am quite glad that the newest version seemed to keep the original story that i've watched 17 yrs ago. although of course, there are minor changes like with the bullying & violence. everyone who watched the older versions know how shancai was extremely hurt physically by the bullies in her school & sexually harassed by dao ming si. but with the new version, those dark parts were changed into a softer ones. i guess the production simply considered their target audience which are the young ones so i think that's quite good. i also appreciated that they applied & showcased the modern way of how young people live & act nowadays involving social media, etc.

next is the cast.

• shen yue is undeniably cute in this drama! which is why her acting is somehow different in the original character of shancai who is supposed to be a boyish and a lot braver. her character as shancai turned out to be more of a cutie & innocent that i still see her character in her previous drama, a love so beautiful. maybe she needs to give more emotion to compete with barbie hsu's heavy drama acting skill. but i'm glad that shen yue showcased her talent in drama this time that is not much seen in ALSB.

• dylan wang, on the other hand, deserves a chance to prove himself as the new dao ming si. actually, his face really suit his character which is an arrogant spoiled brat, that when the pictures of the new cast appeared online, i somehow guessed that he would be the one for the role of DMS. i also like how this young actor tried to imitate & keep the remarkable & adorable facial expressions of the previous actors (JY, LMH) who played the role of DMS. there are actually scenes that i see jerry yan in him, especially in scenes where he tries to hide the kilig feels. though i wish he gained more weight before starting this drama since DMS should appear as very masculine, physically strong & someone to be feared.

• darren chen as hua ze lei is also good. like dylan, his angelic face also perfectly suit his role as the very timid & softest member of F4. i also noticed that he is able to imitate the clothing & movement (especially the walk) of HZL from MG 2001.

• the other cast are just okay for me. the other 2 members of F4 in the new version did well in acting although meizuo & xi men from MG 2001 are more playful and carefree. the mom of shancai in this version also seemed to be more poised compared to the veeeery talkative & naughty mom in MG 2001. and oops! i love the latest actress who played the older sister of DMS (who is barbie hsu's older sister in real life)! she added more personality to the character making it more fun to watch. the actor who played xhing ha is also good & perfect for the role!

lastly is the music. i was quite surprised that they included an english song (river) on the drama which is played everytime there will be a tension or fighting scene. i wish they just stick with their local songs coz it brings a different & unfamiliar feels and seem to eliminate the feeling that i am watching a chinese drama. but overall, i love the other songs used in this version. they are all catchy & and i do really get an LSS. also appreciated that they included ni yao de ai (ost of MG 2001) which really brings back the old feels of the heartbreaking scenes of the past.

overall, it's not that heavy drama just like the older versions but still a must watch drama esp if you prefer romantic, comical & lighthearted stories with a touch of drama.

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If sociopath had a child with narcissism, this would be their child and it's name would be toxicity!

The male lead of F4 is freaking crazy - he's literally a sociopath. I am currently watching episode 4, and I had to stop to write a review about this crazy character. I hope EVERYONE who decides to watch this drama, understand not to copy the behavior of any of the members of F4. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM ARE ALL TOXIC, in their own way! The reason why I gave this drama a 8.5 is because the storyline is good, meaning the concept of this drama is actually interesting. I believe if this drama was a thriller instead of a romcom, then it would have had the potential to be a 10, and wouldn't have been seen as toxic if the character was a sociopath stalker-killer because we would expect it.. However, in this drama the male lead of F4 is portrayed as a cool rich senior kid that everyone likes.

Kudos to the female lead character who doesn't take the male lead of F4 bullying. However, she allows the quiet one of F4 to manipulate her. How is it okay that he openly and publicly declare his love for his friend that's a girl, while kissing and flirting with the female lead? Just because he isn't aggressive like the male lead of F4, doesn't mean he isn't toxic. I hope that she doesn't end up with anyone from F4, and that she choose to be with her male best friend who obviously likes her. I am now on episode 8, and all I can really do is sigh at this moment lol. The second male lead of F4 is back in the picture, and while him and the female lead are at the beach, she's pouring her feelings to him. He literally says, "how come I don't love you," and then proceeds to kiss her, while he depressed over the one he loves. Can someone say rebound? Toxicity? Girl, he really didn't do that much for you to like him. Matter-a-fact, he rejected you more than he actually showed you any interest. I am starting to like the male lead of F4, better than the second male lead.

Whewwww child!

I like the Taiwanese version the best, then the Chinese version, and then the Korean version. I haven't watched the Thai version yet.

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