Meteor Garden (2018)

Rollercoaster of fantastic and terrible.

Where do I even start with this? The male leads were awesome- very distinct personalities and complex issues. Si alternated between annoying and adorable. Ximen and Meizou were awesome through the entire show. (Caesar Wu never disappoints.) I never did fully figure out Lei, but he was like a puppy I wanted to take home. Female lead was lackluster. Best friend female was pathetic and I didn’t enjoy the way she worked to turn herself into someone else. It annoyed me that this sad tactic worked. The other sidekicks were all entertaining and fun.
The plot was a rollercoaster ride of intriguing and ridiculous- so much so that I had to take some breaks from watching it. It just got too ridiculous sometimes. I would have liked to see Ximen resolve his issues without the use of a pathetic doormat. He deserved better. They probably could have eliminated 10 episodes worth of sad people staring at each other. I fast forwarded through a good chunk of it. And then we arrived at the last few episodes. I’ve never seen anything so crack addled. Longest and most painful dream sequence ever… and I’m still not sure if or when it ended. It hurt to watch, though.
I might rewatch a few select episodes, or just the first half. The flying face kick was a riot. The continuous head slaps kept me giggling. A lot of it was cute. But it just kept jumping way out into left field.

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I had read so much about this and was quite excited to watch it. I have to start by saying that although I have many criticisms about the drama, it managed to lure me to watching till the end. The main plot is interesting enough (girl from simple background meeting boys from another world) but the story gets so convoluted along the way. The leads went through one drama after another - from kidnapping, stabbing incident, lost in snowstorm, getting scammed, starvation antic etc etc - it is like the producers wanted to do multiple plots within one show. There was also an irrelevant side story (Terence and Caina) - what was that about? And the character of Dao Ming Si's mother - is it possible to have such a wicked mother who can turn around so abruptly at the end? I also didn't appreciate the dubbing - Dao Ming Si's voice sounded like a comic character. 50 episodes are too protracted and can be easily shortened as there were too many unnecessary scenes and flashbacks.

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..........

Hmm idrk where to start but I guess ill just start with what I didn't like and what i liked

What I didn't like:
I hated how every time they actually progress in their rs, It gets ruined again due to a petty fight. Then boom progress, oops another fight nevermind. It's basically a cycle of them fighting and fighting. And It's not even romantic.. they act like stray cats fighting most of the time. It's just fights and fights, and when it's not fighting it's the male lead's mom breaking them up. How did they get to the conclusion that they both like each other? What did they even like about each other... he's obsessive, constantly stalking her and is so paranoid, suddenly liked her after bullying her so much, he's soo violent too like he has SO. MANY. RED. FLAGS! and as for her? idek AHAHHAA she's clueless all of the time i hate it.... and soo ungrateful. okay i get that in a majority of the episodes she didn't like him yet but still whether you like him or not, shouldn't you at least thank him for the efforts he did for you? She's just constantly receiving and receiving.. idek... my memory is bad ahah i forgot a lot about why I didn't really like her that much. OH and another thing, i hate how he forces a kiss please and the kisses r always so.. so awkward. The music? LOL all I can remember is that song that goes 'say something I'm giving up on u' everytime they fight over petty things. I like enemies to lovers... but idek if this was enemies to lovers. This was kinda like enemies to friends to enemies to friends to enemies to friends to frenemies to lovers.

What I like:
The actors are cute. That's all. Especially Dylan Wang (The male lead) hez handsome and his smirkss KSHDLSFLSD


I don't think I would rewatch this.... I wouldn't say it's a waste of time but like... idek.... I guess I'm just picky when It comes to romance dramas, or i think i just didn't like the role Shen Yue played here. I like it more when she's bubbly and expressive just like that role she played in 'A Love So Beautiful', i don't really like how they made her so naive and innocent when Daoming Si expresses himself lol.

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Unhealthy relationships

Bear in mind that everyone writes their opinions based on their specific thoughts of the show. I know that this is considered a classic by many; however, there were just too many things in this show that made me wonder why I was wasting my time:
1) His hair. I know it's because of the manga, but you couldn't mention it and then fix it? It was so ugly and distracting.
2) Ming Si was mean, a bully, and physically/verbally abusive. Shoving her up against walls, throwing food at her, calling her stupid and other names throughout the entire show.
3) why in the world would she like him? I re-watched the early episodes to see if I could figure out when and why she started to like him. Still a mystery. So, in addition to not liking him, I didn't like her, because she obviously had self-esteem problems.
4) The idea that F4 would run a college campus was just laughable. It made a bit more sense in Boys Over Flowers, because it involved a smaller high school, and his parents basically owned the school.
5) Then you've got a crazy girl that did something terrible to Shan Cai, the whole school hated Shan Cai because of it, and Shan Cai forgave her and they became besties. Just no.
6) The F4 characters were flat. I get the idea that they are supposed to be totally popular and unapproachable, but cold and flat it what we got.
7) The dubbing. I don't think they could have possibly found people with worse, more irritating voices for some of the people.
8) The acting was not very good. Especially the two leads - he was just angry all the time and she was always wide-eyed and just seemed like she had no idea of what was going on.
9) The storyline was choppy. The writers gave Shan Cai a storyline with a problem for her that needed to be solved. (1) trying to adapt to college. 2) Trying to deal with F4. 3) needing money to pay off a loan. 4) Crazy girl. 5) Liking 2ML. 6) Mean girls lying and putting her in danger. 7) Kidnappings. The list goes on...) They would run with that story and as soon as it was resolved, they created a new problem. So, the show seemed more like a series of vignettes, rather than a cohesive storyline.
10) Too many problems for Chan Sai. Was this done just to make the number of episodes that there were? Because there were too many episodes. A lot of the "issues" could have been completely left out and turned this into a more watchable show.
11) The dynamics of the main couple were to be arguing ALL THE TIME. This was not, in any way, a healthy relationship. The word that kept running through my head was "toxic".
I might have rated it slightly higher if there had been half the episodes, but by the end I was pretty angry that this was time I was never going to get back. I blame myself for my obsessive compulsion to finish shows, no matter how bad they are.

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Waste of a good start

I started writing this review on episode 30 something and it had a higher rating, then the show just went all crazy and made no sense to me.

First I have not seen the original show so I cannot say if this is better, and I have no idea of the source material so I cannot say of this is just following the material. I had heard the bullying aspects were toned down, which is good for me since I cannot imagine any female should find that attractive.

My biggest issue is like the last 10 episodes.... I mean the break up in London made no sense, then the day together in London was cute but again they keep breaking up and it was annoying at that time, then there was the fake kidnapping and the deserted island, I guess cause everyone has one. Then there was the next "break-up" this time forced by the mom and then the starving to death. In the end the most horrible mother of the year - who should be in jail for letting her son starve to death almost, is suddenly sympathetic, and the female lead outside in the rain for days is fine and nothing happened - in reality she would have been dehydrated and gone into kidney failure and caught pneumonia... and you really do not even see what happened to her after she collapsed, Unless the stupid last episode with the dream and the weird wedding was really she was dead - then that would at least make sense. After writing this I feel like I should lower more score more.

The acting was fine, nothing great. Dylan Wang was fun and cute as the male lead and probably had the most growth, but let's face it no one had any growth and development. In fact I found the lack of growth from the female lead disappointing. Maybe that is acting since she seems to play the same character all the time at least from what I can see. The friends were generally annoying, her crying clinging best friend and his group of friends. I did like Hua Ze Lei bit even he got annoying after awhile. Plus was he just always going to be the third person? I mean in the end everyone is doing something and he is just with Dao Ming Si and Dong Shan Can? Just odd since he had potential to be an interesting character and was definitely well acted.

The music was fine, until the one song played every time anyone in the show had a break up - which was twice every episode I think. So even the music was annoying by the end,

I will stop writing or I will lower my score even more. Just sad cause it started off fine, just a fluff show and that is all I expected, but then it kept getting worse.

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Good drama if you like Dylan Wang.

I will say, the action scenes in this show are not done as well as the Taiwanese adaptation. I like Shan Cai's character development throughout this series, though. The Korean and Japanese dramas don't show too much character development with their main heroine.

The music was better than all three KN, JP, and TW adaptations. With one of the popular American produced song, "Say Something'. It's a decent drama. Just the editing is a bit cheesy, but quite a few Chinese dramas have noticeable special effects. Panning to the same shots more than 4-5 times is a little bit... meh? Still, good show to watch. Dylan Wang is an amazing actor and a great choice to have him play as the male lead. I've seen his other works, I have to say, this one is a favorite of mine.

(Watched on: NETFLIX US)

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Nothing

Dont compare this to the original one both of all versions are good but something is not good about here 1. The Clothing of the Characters are extremely poor just like the original hoping it will have a season 2 but it not the show has been ended in one season cause they all gather all important details here and in complete version of the manga 2. The acting of all the characters are not strong as the original one the original version has been strong and powerful and their aura on this their acting skills are only beginners 3. So many people are generally favored airing original than the remake you will see all their post when this one is reairing but some people dont know that all of the remakes have all different casts now cause of their past prime and their age are not enough than i todays generation 4. Unfinished business the show should have a season two cause they are all graduating in the University just like the original one but they couldnt the director says its over

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Before I start rambling about this wonderful drama: I never saw the original Meteor Garden (the chinese version), but I saw a lot of HYD remakes, even the japanese ones, and I have to say this one wins it all for me.

Spoiler alert!
Let's start with the things i didn't like:
- Caina & Meizuo: unnecessary drama, a bit dragged on, didn't feel like Meizuo was really into her (not the way Si is into Shancai for sure) and I admit I skipped many fragments of this storyline cause I found it boring to say the least.
- Unnecessary cringy moments in episode 48. Another filler just to see if they can pull it off and gain some more viewership i think

So-so moments:
- the full force push and pull between the two leads is sometimes too much, expecially approaching the last 20 episodes.
They said goodbye to one another so many times. I get that this is the plot and it's fine, but I wish I could've seen some logical actions going towards the end (i would've prefer they drag a little bit more the mom's debate with Si since London instead of giving us hope it was all over and then hit us during the last 4 episodes).

What I liked:
I must admit this is one of that dramas that I was waiting for every single week. It was thrillin' from the very beginning, and even though they didn't go into much detail with Lei's storyline (i wish they did) I loved every single character.
Dylan Wang is exceptionally good at portraying Daoming Si, he got the sass, the charm and he's adorable.
I knew Shen Yue from "A love so Beautiful" and i'm not surprised by her acting skills (i wish she would kiss with a little bit of emphasys, but it's okay).
Caesar Wu. I LOVEEEED HIM. He's just perfect in my opinion. (I also admire his vocal skills)
Along with Darren Chen, of course. Connor Leong was okay, but didn't blow my mind.
The chemistry between the leads was phenomenal and the main story was never boring.

Overall, I recommend this drama to slice of life and romance's lovers.
You'll not regret this!

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Hmmmm I have to say this, I did enjoy this drama a lot. I enjoyed it more than the Korean version. But, I do have to say that the plot was dragged out and I wished that there were not as many episodes. It is a very cliché though and I had wished that Shang Cai and Daoming Si had gone through far less problems then they had to go through. After watching them go through problem after problem I started to get annoyed and angry. I was questioning, "can they not enjoy one moment of peace together?" I do have questions remaining as well, "what happened to Daoming Si's dad? (They did mention it briefly) but, the the one thing that bothered me is that they did not go into depth about Daoming Si's dad and what their relationship was and why Daoming Si became so angry after his father had passed.
I do think that there should be at least one episode that explained that.
One more thing that I had wished they had done, and people can either agree or disagree, but I do enjoy Ximen and Xiao You's characters a lot. I enjoyed watching them grow from their struggles and past. I had wished they had done more episodes that focused on them. I do understand Shang Cai and dooming Si are the main characters, but with all their problems it got annoying and it was a nice break to see how Ximen and Xiao You's relationship was developing. Like we saw Meizuo's character go through hardship with love for many episodes. But we did not see a lot for Ximen's until the end. Throughout the drama you just see them flirting, but no moves until later and the scenes we kinda brief to me. So for me when Ximen and Xiao you had a long segment in episodes 44, 45, 46, and 47 it made me happy. Lei's was also explained in a few episodes, but I wished to see more.
The cast hands down all did an amazing job. They all played their characters well. The music was also awesome. Do not get me wrong I did enjoy the drama, but I feel like I enjoyed it because of the actors and actresses, not the plot so much.

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"We have hated,loved and hurt each other.After all that regardless of the outcome and the challenges,in every minute of my life,i love him with all my heart." -Shancai

What a blasting news it was when "Meteor Garden" got released in 2018 and it took me 2 years to find the right time to finally sit down and watch in on Netflix.I have been so much busy with studying and catching up with my life that i haven`t simply had the time.But watching this new version of "Boys over Flowers" and re-capturing all the moments of struggle,heartbreak,unrequited love,love-triangles and friendship and love between the main-heroine and the legendary F4 members was fun and entertaining and romantic!I never get tired of this story,as i have watched (and loved) the earlier korean,japanese and taiwanese adaptions of "Boys over Flowers".

This is a hate-to-love romance about the star-crossed lovers Daoming Si and Dong Shancai.The romance is high,and so is the drama.If you want high-school drama,love-triangles,irresistible male-leads,kidnapping,bullying,threats of Joker cards,main-leads stranded on a Island,attempted murderer,blackmail, competitions and a male-lead who swears that he will follow his heroine to the end of Mars if he have to...this 2018 version of "Meteor Garden" has it all..so look no further!

I was at first worried if Dylan Wang could pull off the beloved character of the bad boy heir Daoming Si like Jerry Yan,Jun Matsumoto and Lee Min-ho did in their adaptions of the character.But wow how he astounded me with his devilish smile and charm.Dylan did great in expressing his undying love for the first girl who have ever stood up against 4F,his beloved Shancai played by Shen Yue.Shen Yue is a incredible actress who pulled off the character of Shancai with honorable dignity and spirit.The chemistry between the co-stars are super,which really made me stuck with this story from the first episode.Dylan and Shen on-screen are fireworks and i never tired of watching them together!

"If apologies worked,why would we need the police" -Daoming Si (a famous quote this character uses in every version of BOF)

Daoming Si is rich,arrogant and impulsive and the leader of 4F.He is one of the most beloved Anti-heroes in Asianovela with his passionate outbursts in pain and love,his loyalty and devotion to the people he love.He is a guy who destroys everything against him,as he tries to do with Shancai before realizing that he loves this spirited girl early on in the story.His temper and cruel antics is what really hurts Shancai from the start,especially when he out of raging jealousy forcefully kissess her.Her tears makes him realize that he can`t go on that way anymore.In bullying and hurting her...he only made her hate stronger.Her love for his best-friend,the calmest of the F4 Huaze Lei (played by Darren Chen) is heartbreaking for Daoming Si to bear,but he insists on wooing Shancai and tries to win her heart in the only way he can.Its a beautiful journey where we watch Daoming Si redeem himself,with the guidance of his F4 friends and mostly his love for Shancai.He is defenitely my favourite character in this series!(AND in all the other versions of BOF)

"Because you`re the only one I`m willing to trade all the meteors in the sky for" -Daoming Si

Shancai is the perfect match for the mighty Daoming Si,but doesn`t know it until later on.With heR strong will and strength,she fights on toe to toe against Daoming Si and never surrenders.What she doesn`t know is that he will be the one to surrender due to his irrevocable love for her.Her youthful crush for Lei is painful to watch (in every versions) but the actress had good chemistry with Darren Chen and there are many cute scenes with them.And how glad i was when Daoming Si finally succeeded in catching Shancais heart!Shancai and Daoming Si are incredible characters that complements and are perfection together.They speak the same language,touch the same way,walks the same and breathes the same.They are in one bubble no one can destroy,and they are soulmates that are fated to be mated.So many challenges and heartbreak these two had to over-come...but Oh how bittersweet it was!I loved it!What a beautiful couple with a beautiful love-story!!!

I love the 4F gangs in all adoptions of "BOF",and the characters of Daoming Si,Huaze Lei, Yan Ximen and Feng Mei Zuo are all talented,handsome,seductive,irresistible young males that made my heart beat faster!I love Daoming Si`s childish nature..where he is the dark bad boy everyone fears but has a golden heart hidden deep down.Huaze Lei with his musical nature and looks of innocence,he smiled like an angel and i was done for!Yan Ximen with his casanova ways of charm and seduction swooned me with his uprightness and loyalty.Mei Zuo are kind of cheeky and fun with his ironic remarks and usually only dates older women.All these four men are absolutely amazing creatures and i envy Shancai for befriending them and stealing the leaders heart.

"Dong Shancai.I like you...i don`t know why.Even i am surprised by how much i like you.No matter where i go,you`re the only person i see...Shancai,i know that i am annoying.If you want to run away then i will chase after you.If you run to Mars,i will still chase you to Mars." -Daoming Si

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