DEVIL BESIDE YOU
Rainie Yang as Qi Yue
He Jun Xiang as Ah Meng
Wang Chuan Yi as Yuan Yi
Synopsis:
The story begins with Qi Yue planning to confess her liking to the basketball team captain, Yuan Yi. She wrote a love letter and plans to pass it to him. Being as careless as only she can be, she has made her confession to the wrong person, who happened to be the school's devil, Ah Meng! (her junior, a first year student in school). She is so shocked and embarrassed to see Ah Meng's face that she drops her love letter in front of Ah Meng and runs away. Ah Meng picks up the letter.
Ah Meng is amused by the whole thing and decides to have some fun with Qi Yue. He threatens Qi Yue to print a thousand copies of her love letter and let the whole school know of her liking for Yuan Yi. In order to stop Ah Meng, Qi Yue agrees to be his 'runner'.
With Ah Meng's continuous bullying of Qi Yue, she is driven to stop all the nonsense by confessing her liking to Yuan Yi again. In this way, she will not be afraid of Ah Meng's disclosing the love letter anymore. To Qi Yue's surprise, Yuan Yi has a similar liking for her.
While Qi Yue assumes that the whole ordeal with the devil is going to end, she receives another piece of bad news - her mom is going to marry the school's chairman who is also Ah Meng's father! That means Ah Meng is going to be her stepbrother.
Qi Yue's love letter is being put up on the school notice board and she misunderstands that it is Ah Meng who did it. She confronts him and storms off. After realizing that she has misunderstood Ah Meng, she apologises to Ah Meng and pleads him to hit her so that she feels better. Ah Meng kisses her instead! Yuan Yi happens to see them kissing and confronts their relationship, Ah Meng yells at Yuan Yi, saying that he wants Qi Yue. After Yuan Yi runs away in anger, Qi Yue looks at Ah Meng and begins to sob. After Qi Yue walks away in tears, Ah Meng has a strong feeling of guilt.
Yuan Yi regrets not believing in Qi Yue and returns to her, asking her out on a date. Qi Yue agrees happily. On their first date, they met Ah Meng again. Qi Yue and Ah Meng have some misunderstandings and they went separate ways.
After the date, Qi Yue left for home. After she took her bath, she fainted and was saved by Ah Meng's father. He brings her to his house to take care of her while her mom was away on a trip. Ah Meng and Qi Yue meet again at his house. She knows from Yuan Yi that she has misunderstood Ah Meng again. Seeing Ah Meng has injured his hand, she offers to clean the wounds for him. Sitting on Ah Meng's bed and putting medicine on his hand, she realizes Ah Meng is staring at her intensely and this makes her heart pound. Qi Yue wakes up and finds herself sleeping on Ah Meng's bed. Apparently, both have fallen asleep and Ah Meng's father has carried her to his bed.
Qi Yue finally realizes that the person she likes is Ah Meng. She tells Yuan Yi the truth and walks away. In the evening, she sits alone at the playground, crying softly to herself for hurting Yuan Yi. Ah Meng finds her and comforts her. She takes a ride on Ah Meng's bicycle. They had a minor accident and both fell on the road, unharmed. Qi Yue asks Ah Meng why is it always so dangerous to be with him. Ah Meng replies her that he cannot stop the dangers but he will protect her. Ah Meng kisses Qi Yue passionately on the road!
Due to their relationship as future stepsiblings, they keep their ?lover? relationship in the dark. Except for some close friends of Ah Meng & Qi Yue, nobody knows of their relationship.
Ah Meng's buddy, Yang Ping, who is in love with Li Xiang, is unhappy to see Ah Meng and Qi Yue together. He wants to get rid of Qi Yue so that Ah Meng can be with Li Xiang. At the school's rooftop, he ambushes Qi Yue and wants to kill her. Li Xiang hesitantly tells Ah Meng of Yang Ping's plan and Ah Meng rushes to Qi Yue's rescue. He beats up Yang Ping and brings Qi Yue home. At home, Qi Yue confesses her liking to Ah Meng and he hugs her, saying that he is happy to know that she likes him.
One fine day, there's this cute-looking young guy who comes to Qi Yue and confesses his liking for her. This shocks Qi Yue and her whole class as he storms into her class and tells her that he likes her and wants her to convey a message to her boyfriend that he wants Qi Yue! His name is Ah Rang.
Yuan Yi casually mentions this to Ah Meng and he storms away in anger. In the evening, he tells Qi Yue that nobody is more confident than him in liking her and she belongs to him only. Qi Yue smiles at his possessiveness.
Qi Yue goes to Da Zhi High School to look for Ah Rang and realizes that he is Ah Meng's younger brother. Yuan Yi tells Ah Meng about this and Ah Meng storms off to look for Qi Yue. At seeing Ah Rang and Qi Yue, he trips Ah Rang and makes him fall to the ground. Ah Meng grabs Qi Yue's arm and walks away. He does not want to talk about his brother at all. Ah Rang is actually harmless, his intention is to attract Ah Meng's attention. He longs for his brother's affection. While arguing with Ah Meng, Ah Rang suffers an asthma attack and Ah Meng rushes him to the hospital. Both brothers patch up. Ah Meng was told that Qi Yue fainted in the hospital. Ah Meng runs towards her. At her home, Ah Meng reprimands Qi Yue for being a busybody and tiring herself out, which is the cause of her fatigue. He is concerned about her and Qi Yue is happy.
Ah Meng's grandma suspects that Ah Meng and Qi Yue are seeing each other. She plans to matchmake Ah Meng with a rich girl, Mei Di. Qi Yue feels sad. At the same time, Qi Yue's first love reappears as her school lecturer (Ah Sheng)! This causes Ah Meng to be jealous and he feels insecure. Ah Meng rejects Mei Di and she left wishing Qi Yue and him happiness. Similarly, Qi Yue tells Ah Sheng that she likes Ah Meng and he goes back to his girlfriend.
While things seem to be going fine again, Ah Meng's mom comes back and wants Ah Meng to go to France with her to pursue his studies. When Ah Meng finally agrees to go with her, Qi Yue is heartbroken. At the playground, Ah Meng tells Qi Yue that she can continue to date other people while he is away but he will always like her only. They hug at the playground.
A year later, Ah Meng returns for Christmas and they meet at the place where Ah Meng first gave her a handmade Christmas tree. He tells Qi Yue that he's back and they kiss.
Review:
I like this drama. To put it simply, I can relate it to "Meteor Garden" which is one of my favourite dramas. Nice girl meets naughty boy and gets bullied by him; the naughty boy then falls for the girl and the girl falls for him too'the naughty boy's fiancée appears; a strong love opponent starts wooing the girl'too many similarities with "Meteor Garden". The plot is somehow more refreshing in "Devil Beside You" than in "Meteor Garden". In "Meteor Garden", it focuses on the strain between the very rich & the very poor, how the couple goes against all odds to be together. In "Devil Beside You", it is the sister-brother relationship that keeps you wondering if they are going to work out.
If "Meteor Garden" is a 5, "Devil Beside You" will be a 4. Reason being it lacks the punch to create a very deep & long-lasting impression of the drama. It is just another good and entertaining drama. There are various classic scenes in "Meteor Garden" that you will remember for life - the first kiss in Dao Ming Si's room; the kiss at the balcony; the beating scene in the warehouse; his love confession to Shan Cai again & again.
If there is a flaw in "Devil Beside You", it will be Mike's script lines or should I say lack of script lines. He is not expressive, the ever classic line that I can recall is ?your liking for me makes me happy??what kind of a romantic script line is this?
Rainie is good here, she looks beautiful and fits the role well. She makes the whole drama exciting. I laugh at her funny acts, get emotional during her crying scenes and of course touched by the various kissing scenes between Mike & her. Not forgetting the songs for the drama, Rainie sings well too.
Another flaw in this drama are the unrealistic characters in the drama. Ah Meng's father is too good to believe. With his level of social status, how could one possibly accept that his son is dating his stepdaughter? He accepts it without question or struggle, it is unbelievable! Ah Sheng's girlfriend is another one. She is too forgiving. She speaks to him as if she is a counselor and not a girlfriend even when he is going to try to woo his childhood sweetheart.
Conclusion:
I would recommend this drama if you are not looking for a strong plot or some heavy stuffs, This drama is entertaining with recommendable acting from Rainie and good chemistry between Rainie & Mike.
WHY WHY LOVE
Rainie Yang as Tong Jia Di
Mike He as Huo Da
Kingone Wang as Huo Yan
Judy Fukumoto as Yang Yan Shu
Chen Yan Xi as Jiang Xiao Nan
Ge Wei Ru as Liao Cai Juan
Xu Shi Hao as Bo Zi
PLOT
This romantic-comedy series begins in a special charity event that was sponsored by the Huo Family when Jia Di & her best friend Xiao Nan had a special booth for an exchange "service" coupon, that's where they met Hou Yan and Hou Da. When Jia Di celebrates her 20th birthday, one of the wishes to be done was that whoever the 10th guy who passed them, she should get the cell phone number. And that's where life of Jia Di got complicated. And not knowing it, the exchange coupons were fulfilled later on.
Things however change, when Huo Da decided to utilize his "Master & Servant" coupon with Jia Di which turned out to have a little small romance brewing between the two. However, there is still Hou Yan (Jia Di's 10th guy) and Hou Da's crush, Yan Shu (with interest to Hou Yan), in the picture.
And as the story unfolds, always one of the common features of Taiwan drama series, there is a love triangle between Jia Di, Hou Da and Hou Yan.
This series basically shows Hou Da being changed by Jia Di and finally becomes a person whom everyone adores. The story of Hou Yan basically revolves around a disrupted love life and troubling childhood memory. As for Jia Di, she simply shows us that kindness, determination, and to never give-up hopes and dreams.
Towards the end, Hou Da will come to realise that he had a Wilson Disease and a short time to live so he will leave Jia Di to suffer. And when his brother Hou Yan knows it, he donates his liver to his ailing brother even he had also a heart problem. Will both of them survive?
PERFORMANCE
Rainie Yang as Jia Di
A simple 20yr old girl who had a simple dream, to be happy and have no worries in life, a good daughter and sister, who always sacrificed for others and had a positive outlook in life. I just noticed that she always wore the same outfit, long sleeves with thick vest and cutie boots, not bad!. But I don't like her hair, I got distracted with her bangs!! There is only one scene (engagement party) that I've seen her adorable face, its better that way.
I always like her when she does funny faces. This role really fits her, the way she acts and how she portrays it. And she's really good how to controls her emotions. Her best moments is when she handles her emotions knowing that Hou Da is dying.
Mike He as Hou Da
The second son, who's always against with her father, hates his step brother, likes motor racing, does things what he wants, doesn't care about others feelings, only longing for the attention from a girl he loved since childhood, a selfish cold-hearted man but in spite all of this bad attitude he still has kindness in his heart, a "knight and shining armor" type of guy and its all because of Jia Di.
His best moments are when he cried in hospital to pretend Yu Hua's son and when he was diagnosed of Wilson Disease knowing that he had only short time to live and he preferred not to tell his love ones. He sacrificed his love even though it will hurt him that much.
Mike's character still had that kind of "devilish" look and attitude like in Devil Beside You but different from Love Contract, he's really good at it. So cute! He really knows how to portray the bad guy turn good guy all because of love. I'm really fond of watching him doing funny faces, not to mention he's one of the hottest and good looking actor of Taiwan, I think many girls will agree with it!.
Kingone Wang as Hou Yan
I just wonder why good people like Hou Yan's character don't end up with the girl they loved but instead chooses the bad guy? hhhmmm...
Hou Yan is the eldest-illegitimate good son, who always follows what his father wants, but not knowingly that he is really against with it. He is always concern for his brother up to the point that he sacrifice his love and life for him.
His best moments is when he saw again his mother and because of his hatred to what happened when he was young, he chose to reject her not knowing that she is dying. That was one of the scene that made me teary-eyed, really touching one. And also the confrontation with his father, telling what he really feels.
I think he got a little bit more mature here (character wise) compare to Devil Beside You and Silence and still have the good looks and also a good singer.
Judy Fukumoto as Yang Yan Shu
Yang Yan Shu works in Hou Corporation and a childhood friend both to the brothers but she had a special affection for Hou Yan, sadly he didn't love her in return.
One thing to say, she needs to improve more in her acting and I'm always bothered with her hairstyle. Sometimes she looks like she doesn't comb her hair (sorry for that), did she have any hairstylist? just asking...
Poor girl, the guy who loves her but she didn't give enough attention so instead falls for another girl, and the guy she loves, but did not notice it, was in love with the same girl, aahh feel sorry for her.
Chen Yan Xi as Jiang Xiao Nan
I love this girl, the best friend type who is always there in times of need, who will always support you and a friend to rescue at all times. I like how she portrays her role, it doesn't look that this is her first drama series. She's play the role simple but very energetic as well. A good performance, I must say.
Best moment - the confrontation scene with Jia Di after she knew that Jia Di gave money to her boyfriend and at the same time cheated her.
Xu Shi Hao as Bo Zi
A good friend to Hou Da, who has feelings for Xiao Nan, knows how to do comedy act. Very funny character.
Ge Wei Ru as Liao Cai Juan
Same mother of Rainie in Devil Beside You, still good at her role, I love seeing them together, how they developed their mother-daughter relationship.
FAVORITE MOMENTS
- definitely all the scenes where Hou Da and Jia Di are in together
- in the hospital, when Jia Di knows that the medical bills of her uncle were settled, how she reacts to it, shes so cute! without knowing that Hou Da is watching her
- when Jia Di rushed to Hou Da after knowing that he is the one who paid the medical bills
- Hou Da accused Jia Di of stealing his phone and scenes after that
- pink toothbrush and towel, little bear of Jia Di
- Hou Yan and Jia Di in shopping mall, fitting dress
- Hou Da doesn't have a hanky so he instead lends his hand to wipe the tears of Jia Di, aahh what a touchy scene!
- Hou Yan asking forgiveness to Jia Di
- Hou Da doing his 3 good deeds
- Jia Di post notes all over Hou Da's house, to help him prepare for his final exam, what an effort! duh! you can see how Hou Da appreciates it!
- Xiao Nan cried to Hou Da in elevator
- everytime Hou Da does a funny face
- when Xiao Nan and Jia Di got a little misunderstanding but managed to patch things up with the help of Hou Da
- Hou Da gives Jia Di a piggy-back because she is drunk, telling her that she's cute
- Hou Da's crying scenes
- Hou Da asking Jia Di to be his girlfriend, boy! is it really hard to confess huh!
- Hou Da thinks Jia Di chose Hou Yan over him
- Hou Yan ask Jia Di what's the reason why she fell in love with Hou Da, sadly Hou Da didn't hear it!
- Hou Da lets Jia Di suffers (by not telling her) when he knows that he was dying
- Episode 14 especially the "fake" engagement party
- wacky photos! love it!
MEMORABLE LINES
"If I said it three times, it means that's true" - Jia Di and Hou Da
"This is your circle, and I, the Devil Boy wants to come in" - Hou Da
"I can exchange lots of coupons if you just stay by my side" - Hou Da
"If there are a hundred things I hate about you, they will, quickly turn into the hundred things I love the most" - Jia Di
"I am the only person on this earth with the power and the capability to give you a liver, this only proves one point, that in this earth, I am you brother" - Hou Yan
CONCLUSION
I got excited seeing them again after watching Devil Beside You. I'm happy that it passed my expectations. I can't compare the two series because it has different plot and characters, though Mike He still has that "devilish" look and attitude, Rainie Yang's simplicity with a positive outlook in life and Kingone Wang's good-looking, good attitude, boy-next-door type of guy.
I always like the love-hate relationship. Brothers conflict not only in family but also falling in love with the same girl. And also seeing how they argue and showing their affection with the one they love in their own different ways. Not to mention that there is no parents-against-relationship in this story who do bad things just to contradict with the love relationship of their children.
The voice of Kingone (I didn't know that he is a singer!) and Rainie also spices up the soundtrack that was used in this series, but much prefer the soundtrack in Devil Beside You, but story wise, I like both of them.
If you're a fan of Rainie and Mike you should watch this, you'll definitely love it, they really have a perfect chemistry being together in screen. But if you're not, I also recommend this because you will like how the story unfolds, especially the funny scenes, it's not boring at all. While watching it, you will not be aware that you've been hooked to it for what I've experienced. Not knowingly it will made you laugh, cry, and in love with it.
I highly recommend this series. The twist and turns of events are common and predictable but still touching and interesting to watch.
HANA KIMI
Also Known As: Hanazakarino Kimitachihe / Hana Kimi
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Episodes: 15 + New Year SP
Broadcast Network: CTS, GTV
Cast
Ella as Lu Rui Xi
Wu Zun as Zuo Yi Quan
Jiro Wang as Jin Xiu Yi
Tang Yu Zhe as Liang Si Nan
Tang Zhi Ping as Mei Tian
Ruan Jing Tian as Shen Le
JJ Lin as Lu Jing Xi
Nissa as Julia
Synopsis - WARNINGS! Spoilers!
When Rui Xi (played by S.H.E's Ella Chen) was younger, she was overweight and hadn't really thought about what she wanted in life. However, while watching TV and eating snacks one day, she saw Zuo Yi Quan (Wu Zun) who was a high jumper and was deeply inspired by him. In fact, she was so inspired that she decided to lose all the weight and apply to his school. One problem: Quan goes to an all-boy's college.
Rui Xi disguises herself as a boy and gets accepted. At first, she completely embarrasses herself by telling him that she likes him, momentarily forgetting she was diguised as a boy. Then, she meets Jin Xiu Yi (Jiro Wang) and they become immediate friends. One day, Xiu Yi is playing soccer with Rui Xi, and he accidentally hits her in the face, causing her to faint.
And how convenient it is that Quan was passing by...
Quan sees what happens and rushes over. He immediately tells Xiu Yi to go get help, and he does so. Quan decides to lift her to the nurse's office and places his hand on her chest - finding out her true identity in the process! However, he keeps quiet. Mei Tian (Tang Zhi Ping) is the school's gay nurse, and he's also found out Rui Xi's true identity. However, he shows that he has no interest whatsoever in revealing her secret. Rui Xi and Mei Tian develop a unique relationship, as she constantly goes to him for advice, while he pretends like he dislikes her - but in reality, he has become quite fond of this young girl.
Back to Quan, why hasn't he revealed her secret? Well, one day he sees Liang Si Nan going off somewhere with Rui Xi. Knowing Nan's reputation as a playboy, Quan is worried and rushes after them - after all, Nan has already suspected Rui Xi's gender. However, when Quan catches up to them, he sees the two of them sitting in the auditorium drinking coffee. Soon, Quan and Rui Xi also become good friends.
Rui Xi decides to keep pretending because she's afraid her true identity will ruin their relationship, and the same goes for Quan. And as Quan finds out about Rui Xi's feelings for him, he begins to develop feelings for her as well. In fact, she has such a huge impact on him! She inspired him to take up high jumping again. However, Rui Xi finds herself confused when another problem rises...
Xiu Yi begins to question his sexual orientation when he, too, falls for Rui Xi - the boy.
Review
I fell in love with this series after the first five minutes. I really did! Ella was absolutely adorable (I don't care what anyone says, she's cute!) and Wu Zun is stunningly handsome. They have amazing chemistry on screen and off screen, which is so great! There were times during the series when I felt so sorry for Xiu Yi, who was played by Jiro Wang. His character made me laugh the most, second place after Ella's character that is. I felt that he played the role very well, and I also realized he played a similar role in "It Started With A Kiss".
Tang Yu Zhe is very good-looking too. He does a great job in portraying the playboy type of guy. And Tang Zhi Ping as Mei Tian! Oh my goodness, this guy drove me nuts. I couldn't breathe because I was laughing so hard! At first, the guy kind creeped me out because of his weird choice of topics for conversations. Besides, he looks much better with short hair, haha. Anyway, I really liked this drama. The actors and actresses did a great job and the plot was hilariously intriguing. However, the ending was rather disappointing.
Good thing there's a sequel coming out, right?
Soundtrack
The opening song is called 'Zen Me Ban' which is sung by S.H.E themselves! It's quite catchy and very cute. The ending song is called 'Zhuan Shu Tian Shi', sung by TANK. For both of these songs, Ella and Wu Zun starred in their MV's - I believe it was requested by most of their fans because they are just so adorable together!
The insert songs include:
Wo Yi Zhi Dou Zai - Lin Ji An & Chen Yu Lun
Chao Xi Huan Ni - Fahrenheit
Dong Le - TANK
Sha Sha De Yong Qi - VENK
Xie Xie Ai - Garden Sister
Last Words
"Hana Kimi" was a great drama, even though the ending may piss you off a little (...or a lot). However, there's still the sequel coming out in 2008, so keep your eyes open for more Wu Zun and Ella chemistry!
ROMANTIC PRINCESS
How long
20 episodes
Foreword
'Meteor Garden' shot F4 to fame. This drama is like Meteor Garden – the adaptation of another manga 'Romance Godankatsuyou'. This is the first time Wu Zun and Zhang Shao Han act as a couple. How do they fare in this classic Cinderella story?
Brief story outline
The 18 year old Xiao Mai is adopted by lower-class parents and has to work part time to make ends meet. Although they stay in a small run-down apartment, they are contented. One day, it is discovered that she is a wealthy heiress. She was kidnapped when young and her parents died in a car accident when searching for her. Her grandfather, nicknamed Emp knows that she is his kin by her birthmark on the butt. He gives her foster parents a house to stay in.
Xiao Mai moves in to stay in the Huang Fu mansion. Life isn't a bed of roses from then onwards. Emp has adopted 4 proteges when they are young. They are called the four Nan Feng Lords. They find it unbelievable that Xiao Mai is Emp's granddaughter as she is uncultured. Jing even requests to see if she really has a birthmark on her butt as claimed. All the four joke that she must be an imposter.
Xiao Mai offers to pay back the $500m that Emp has given to them by working in the home but he rejects her. Xiao Mai still visits her foster parents. Jin is her bodyguard, bringing her there. He admires them for sharing a close bond despite being simple. Xiao Mai sees that he has a big bowl of rice and offers to take away some from him but he insists that he can finish it as he feels comfortable with them. This is something lacking in Emp's home.
Emp sends her foster parents to Brazil after paying them handsomely. They are reluctant to leave Xiao Mai but have no choice. Xiao Mai cries when she is late to reach the airport. Jin consoles her the whole day and allows her to rest on his shoulder. He doesn't understand why he is so accommodating to her . if not for her status and his identity, all will be well.
Emp gives Jin an impossible task to groom Xiao Mai into a lady before she is presented to his business associates. Jin gets even more displeased upon knowing that Emp plans to let him marry Xiao Mai and he is to take over his business empire. But he realizes that Xiao Mai is a simple girl who also longs to have a simple life like him. The four lads start to accept Xiao Mai too and treat her like a sister. They attend the same school together – with only Jin and her in the same car.
Soon the other schoolmates discover that Jin has changed. He is unfeeling to others but seems to show concern only to Xiao Mai. Xiao Mai soon finds out that he has a gentle and caring side despite his distant appearance.
Lin is gullible to want to give Xiao Mai the $500m to help her to solve the problem and hugs her, saying that Jin has given her to him. Emp is angry and arranges Jin to move close to Xiao Mai's room to ensure her safety. Cai wants to see Jin's reaction so he gives Xiao Mai the $500m, wanting her to tell Emp that she wants to get engaged to Jin. She obeys him but later regrets after giving Emp the money. Xiao Mai is in the sauna room when Lin keeps apologizing to her for wanting to hug her earlier.
She wears very little so she doesn't dare to come up. She ends up fainting in the room. Lin quickly calls Jin for help. Jin pats her face and is puzzled why he is so anxious. She sighs – he is genuinely concerned about her but still conceals it. Jin wants to pay the money to Xiao Mai to get her to annul the engagement but she can't bring herself to do it. Jin told Xiao Mai about his ex high school classmate, A Jie. A Jie was a top runner but was bribed by Emp to lose to Jin in a race.
Jin felt worse when A Jie gave up the sport after that. He warns Xiao Mai that she could get hurt by others because of her wealth. She analyses that he is not afraid of getting hurt but he is afraid of hurting others. Xiao Mai wants to return Cai the money and he teases her for falling for Jin. Jin is attracted when she looks stunning as she tries the wedding gown.
She brings him to look at houses belonging to the commoners. Jin suddenly arranges all to have a celebration. Jin longs for freedom. So he arranges Xiao Mai and Cai to be in bed to escape from it. He knows Cai is a gentleman and will not touch her. Cai reprimands him for framing him. Jin shows Xiao Mai the photo that he has taken to threaten her.
Emp introduces Xiao Mai to all associates and also announces her engagement to Jin. Cai is pleased upon seeing Jin going near Xiao Mai to have a first dance with her. Xiao Mai feels blissful but he reminds her that she still has time to tell her. He will tell Emp if she can't do it. Xiao Mai knows that she has fallen for him so she tells Emp that to make Jin happy.
Cai finds it a pity that she hasn't been persistent to the engagement day. He wants to push Jin to the limit. Xiao Mai doesn't want to bully him anymore. Cai knows Emp too all – he will not give in easily. Lin suddenly announces that Jin has run away from home. Jin doesn't know why he is lost after Xiao Mai's announcement. Emp wants Sen Chuan to inform the customs to prevent Jin from leaving.
Xiao Mai decides to run away from home to divert Emp's attention. So Emp has to dispatch his men to look for both of them. Jin comes to Xiao Mai's home to look for her upon getting Lin's call. He hasn't left home – he just goes out for a breather and doesn't expect to be misunderstood. Jin gets to know the agreement between Xiao Mai and Cai. He is mad that they make fun of him and refuses to listen to their explanation. Since the Huang Fus love to use money to settle problems, he must leave them.
Cai apologises to him for causing the trouble but Jin still ignores him. This is the first time Ying sees him so angry. Cai presumes that Jin must be angry that Xiao Mai rejects the engagement. His pride is heart so he becomes so mad. Ying attributes to Xiao Mai's existence. The lads' relationship is strained ever since she steps into this house. Ying wants her to leave the home and even beats her if not for Cai.
He is pissed off with her for accepting the money and still trying to act noble. Cai is angry that Jin is so indifferent. Xiao Mai has wanted to get the money back from Emp to return to Cai. So Jin is unfair to her. Emp mistakens Cai's concern for Xiao Mai to try to be the third party. Cai knows that lovers can't tolerate the presence of rivals so he wishes to arouse Jin's jealousy.
Emp doesn't have so much time. He looks at Cai – why doesn't he think of getting him to be his successor?
Emp announces that Cai is going to be engaged to Xiao Mai. Actually he is doing this to test Jin's feelings towards his granddaughter. Jin gets disillusioned to leave home to go to sea. Lin lies that Jin is killed in a car crash. She cries to discover that it is only a hoax. Lin knows their true feelings and wants to help them.
The engagement party starts but Jin is nowhere to be seen. Emp has wanted to see how anxious Jin is but now even Cai gets nervous. Sen Chuan reports that the guests become rowdy but Emp ignores this. Jin regrets his choice when recalling their happy moments together. His yacht is out of order so he swims back to shore. Alas, it is still too late when he finds that all the guests have left.
Jin is in despair. Cai consoles him – not that both are engaged but Emp has cancelled the function. Jin cracks his brain on how to date her. The other guys want him to be true to her. Jin finally bares his feelings to Xiao Mai and gives her a ring which he has bought with the earnings he gets through taking on vacation jobs. His main aim is still to leave the family so both have to date in secret.
It is sure wacky as Emp comments during a meal on how a couple will behave. They will steal glances at each other, eat similar food and wears lovers' clothes. Xiao Mai and Jin realize that they are doing all these things right now. Xiao Mai pretends to be angry to storm out with Jin following suit. Emp can't stop laughing at this.
Emp gives monetary rewards to those who can manage to snap a photo of the two together. It is funny to see how the two try to hide from the rest. Xiao Mai finally has an idea – to escape from their eyes to go into the changing room of a department store. Both finally hug each other tightly in the small cubicle. Sen Chuan reports to Emp that they date secretly through sms or mms. Emp knows that both will not give in to him easily so he hatches another plan.
Mo Li is transferred to Xiao Man's class. She shows Xiao Mai the ring that her parents have left her. Xiao Mai feels close to her as they have the same birthday. One day, a bombshell drops again. Emp claims that has made a mistake and Mo Li is the real heir to his empire. The ring is the proof – it is the first present that he buys for his granddaughter as it has her birthday. He makes a mistake for Xiao Man as she resembles his late daughter-in-law. Xiao Man feels lost – she doesn't know her parents' whereabouts and is reluctant to leave the other family members.
He even wants Jin to accept her and Xiao Mai is to become her maid. Jin doesn't understand why Xiao Mai must torture herself to stay back but Xiao Mai concludes that this is the only way that she can get close to him and also to prevent him from marrying Mo Li. Jin is touched and hugs her close to him. Lin doesn't like Mo Li to greet them. Emp might have accepted her but not them.
The four lads maintain that their treatment towards her will never change and persuades her to stay on. Somehow, Cai finds Mo Li familiar looking but he can't recall where he has seen her. Xiao Mai nearly bursts upon seeing Mo Li to be so close to Jin. Emp laughs secretly in delight. She has moved into Xiao Mai's room so she has to move to the maids' quarters.
Mo Li stops Jin from kissing Xiao Mai in her room. He is the young master but it is inappropriate for him to do that. Jin hugs Xiao Mai – she might be Shan but it doesn't imply that she has the power to control him. Does she want to be controlled by Emp? She replies that she doesn't mind it since her life partner is Jin. Emp announces that he will finance Xiao Man's studies and Mo Li tells all classmates that Xiao Mai is her maid. Xiao Mai doesn't have money to buy food but the four lads bring food for her.
You will be amused. Ying lies that he buys the food but he is still full so this is extra. He is just too proud to admit that he gets it specially for her. Lin claims that his classmates from the home economics class cook too much food so he brings over. Cai gets food vouchers but upon seeing Jin approaching her classroom with 2 plates of food, he passes the coupons to him. He laughs that she will never go hungry.
Mo Li makes life difficult for Xiao Mai during dinner and Xiao Mai rebukes her. Emp chases her out of the room. Jin stands up but Emp orders him to sit down. He commands Sen Chuan to send Xiao Mai off to Brazil the next day. Jin is angry that Emp threatens him. Emp is cold – Xiao Mai isn't his granddaughter and isn't Jin's marriage partner anymore. The atmosphere only loses the tension after Cai walks in smiling.
Xiao Mai soon discovers that Mo Li is an imposter and vows to find evidence against her. Her imagination runs wild when she imagines Mo Li drugging Jin to be in bed together. Jin plants a kiss on her forehead to ensure that she trusts him. The four lads do not get to see Xiao Mai in the subsequent days – they wonder what she is doing.
Xiao Mai finds out that Emp deliberately makes this arrangement, wanting the two to be true not only to each other but also to make it publicly known. She threatens to set off for Brazil and this doesn't matter to her if Mo Li gets engaged to Jin. Jin overhears her and calmly accepts her decision. He refuses to listen to her explanation. Actually he isn't angry with her as he can read the guilt in her eyes. He is only puzzled why Mo Li appears mysteriously and often talks to Emp secretly. He knows something is amiss and decides to play along with them.
He tells Emp that he will get married to Mo Li – to their dismay. He also wants to be alone with Mo Li at a family villa. Jin is amused when he reads alarm in Emp's eyes to insist that Xiao Mai should tag along and they should not stay overnight. He must be thinking that his own granddaughter is very pitiful and sends her to spy on them. So Jin also suggests that Cai should join them since he is also close to Xiao Mai. Mo Li can't help feeling jealous over his remark.
Cai and Xiao Mai do not know what Jin is up too. They discuss with Ying and Lin. Lin and Cai are very sure that Jin still loves Xiao Mai but he is doing this out of anger. Ying finds it possible for Jin to fall for Mo Li who is more demure and attractive than Shan. Seeing that Xiao Mai jumps, they forbid Ying to say further but Ying still warns Xiao Mai to get mentally prepared for the setback.
Cai gets to know from Xiao Mai that Mo Li is an imposter but decides not to tell Jin to see what he is up to. The four get prepared for their trip. (The guys are cool, wearing their shades!) Seeing that Xiao Mai has difficulty carrying the suitcases, Jin offers to help her but she rejects him. Xiao Mai is angry when Mo Li wants her to prepare sandwiches for them.
It is Mo Li's turn to get hysterical when Cai offers to help Xiao Mai. He will also show Xiao Mai the way to the kitchen. Jin brings Mo Li to the garden and senses that she is inattentive. He detects that Mo Li is not interested in him but with Jin. Thus he wants to be with Mo Li in the same room. To spite him back, Xiao Mai wants to be with Cai in the same room.
Here are the two pairs in different rooms. Mo Li is so terrified that she locks herself up in the bathroom. Although Cai is in his pyjamas, he doesn't know why he is dragged into this game although he will not do anything to Xiao Mai. Jin hints to Mo Li that Cai is a player and he must be enjoying himself with Xiao Mai. He wants to force her to tell her her motive to come to stay with the Huangfus.
The girls meet each other at the corridor as they are afraid that both of them will seduce their men. Xiao Mai isn't afraid to confess her feelings. Although Xiao Mai tries to tell Jin the truth, he refuses to listen and wants Cai to bring Xiao Mai back into the room. Jin finally forces the truth out of Mo Li. She is actually here to get close to Cai as she loves him.
Knowing that Mo Li likes him, Cai disappears as he needs time to cool off. He later returns and decides to see if both are suitable for each other. The four confess to Emp their feelings and neither guy is willing to be his successor. Emp chase them out of the family. Although Lin and Ying also wish to follow them, Jin advises them not to provoke Emp angry.
They wish to stay at a luxurious hotel but Cai's credit card doesn't work. The same applies to Mo Li's card as it is produced by Huangfu holdings. The four can only afford to stay in a small room and feel down. Xiao Mai cheers them up. Emp bets that all will give in soon since he has told all branches to reject them if they apply for jobs. He wants Sen Chuan to spy on them.
Cai's friends avoid Cai while Xiao Mai and Jin manage to rent the old house. Both feel a sense of closeness when they dust the house. Cai and Mo Li find it old but have to stay too. Sen Chuan give Ying and Lin tough training to be Emp's successors. Jin finally gets a job but he isn't that well paid. Still, Xiao Mai is happy for him as he is independent now.
However, it saddens Xiao Mai to know that he actually works at a construction site to support them. He even disagrees to let her work as he wants her to be a homemaker. Xiao Mai then tries hard to save well. Cai and Mo Li can't withstand hardship but their family and friends refuse to finance them. They pawn their expensive watches and spend the money on luxuries. Xiao Mai blurts out the truth and Jin points out that Cai is unprepared to leave home.
Both men quarrel and Cai decides to return home. He pleads with Emp to give Jin a chance. Emp then transfers all the training to Cai. Jin gets a new job. The boss is the only person who dares to defy Emp to hire him. Sen Chuan reports to Emp that the little couple are happy with Xiao Mai sending lunch to Jin daily. Emp suddenly has a heart attack. All rush to the hospital.
Xiao Mai regrets making Emp furious but believes that he will accept their thinking one day. Sen Chuan announces that Emp has planned to give the management power to the other directors to let them fulfill their wish. Xiao Mai decides that she should not let his empire land into other people's hands. Sen Chuan predicts that she will face lots of opposition for not being a man. That is why Emp adopts the 4 lords.
It is best that she marries Jin since Jin is the successor but Xiao Mai disagrees. She decides to take up the challenge to undergo the training. Jin teases her by saying that his luck is good to know a caring and witty rich girlfriend. All hope that Emp will wake up soon. The lords are taken aback by Xiao Mai's decision but they try their best to assist her to pass the directors' test.
Xiao Mai gets exhausted by the training. Jin doesn't mind giving up his ambition for her sake but she wishes to continue it. She is used to taking hardship but her performance is less then satisfactory. Just then, Emp wakes up to tell the directors that he has made her his successor. The directors agree but she has to go overseas training for 3 years.
Emp jokes that he must wake up to see how she challenges the other directors. Lin confesses that she has the successor look but still lacks the brains with her poor memory. Emp allows the lords to take leave but from now on, they are under Xiao Mai's command. Sen Chuan sighs that Emp has changed a lot after his discharge. The overbearing old man is now so scared of his granddaughter.
Emp doesn't mind this – he wants someone to control and care for him. This can't be bought by money easily. Mo Li asks Xiao Mai if she is scared that Jin will have a change of heart during the 3 years. Ying jokes that it should be the reverse as Xiao Mai will be surrounded by handsome foreigners. Just then, Jin stands up to be with Xiao Mai. Cai wants both not to be so mushy but both are confident of each other.
Emp goes to Xiao Mai's old home and shakes his head to know that she has stayed in such a place for so long. She argues that this is where she becomes strong-willed. Xiao Mai is going to set off but Jin is late as he is signing his first contract with a client. He comes on time to pass the photocopied paper to her. This signifies their promise and he will wait for her. He will work hard like her before she is back. Both hug at the airport to give each other a deep kiss.
Introduction on characters
1. Mai Qiu Sui/Huang Pu Shan – Zhang Shao Han
Her poor plight changed overnight when she becomes a rich girl. Through hardship, she is unwilling to admit defeat to poverty. However, she gets less happier to get separated from her foster parents. Still, she gets used to befriend 4 lads. From bitter enemies, they foster a sibling bond. She also grows to love Jin to go through thick and thin with him.
What has happened to Shao Han? I wonder if Wu Chun feels that he is hugging a skeleton. She is too skinny. It doesn't help when she has very long and curly hair that covers almost half her body frame and her face. Acting wise, she has improved slightly.
2. Nan Feng Jin – Wu Zun
Jin's parents are close to Xiao Mai's parents. The four died in the same car accident. Emp loses his only son so he adopts the two brothers. He even makes him his successor. Jin wants to protect Lin and to repay Emp's kindness, he endures all kinds of strict training. But he yearns to leave this home to carve his own niche. He soon finds a job to work in a small company and works towards this dream.
Wu Chun doesn't need to act cool. He is cool – the rich air surrounds him when he walks or talks. However, I can't help feeling disappointed as I desire more progress in his acting but he fails to impress me. I don't think he shows Jin's determination when speaking to Emp in that soft voice and walking away silently !
3. Nan Feng Cai – Cheng Yi Ru
He is a playboy who seems to be open and also lazy. He seems to be a troublemaker but his capabilities do not lose out to Jin. He only puts up this false front because he doesn't want to be the successor. He doesn't want to compete with Jin and only wants to get on his life quietly. He is very pampered. Unlike Jin, he soon realizes that he can't live without money and returns to Emp.
He is far from being a playboy as he did not even get to kiss Mo Li! We are easily convinced that he is a weakling because he looks even fairer than Mo Li. How funny this can be - He wants to test how far Jin can go by provoking him every now and then while we can see how how little he goes when Emp tests him. What a joke! The way he speaks – isn't soft spoken but is girly to me. And why does he always choose light coloured clothes – this makes him look like a princess more than Xiao Mai!
4. Nan Feng Lin – Hu Yu Wei
He is Jin's biological younger brother. Being well-protected by Jin, he is frank and also genuine to others. You can even say that he is gullible. Many do not know whether to cry or laugh over his foolish acts. Oh my – this guy is cute and funny! I only feel that this drama exists because he brings life to the drama.
5 Nan Feng Ying – Li An Lin
He is Cai's biological younger brother. He seems to be a shy introvert but he can be a little scheming. He is against women because all only want advantages from him. Thus he announces that he is scared of women so that this will stop them from harressing him. He dislikes Xiao Mai initially, thinking that she is a money digger. But upon seeing how she sacrifices for Jin, his impression of her changes completely.
This guy is plain looking and it is not helped by the fact that he also has long hair which isn't trimmed nicely. Yu Wei stands out because of his short crop hair and warm hair while he is easily ignored. Most of the time, he looks arrogant, sleepy and it seems that nothing can please him.
6 Emp/Huang Pu Xiong – Gu Bao Ming
He is Xiao Mai's grandfather who expects all to obey all his commands. He has even planned their future. Jin and his granddaughter are the first to defy him but he is pleased that Xiao Mai becomes his successor. Thus he listens to her commands from then on. This is a veteran actor but he doesn't do that well too.
7. Yin Sen Chuan – the actor (as Xiao Xi's father in 'MVP Valentine')
He is a faithful butler who will never reveal his masters' secrets or thoughts to the others. No one can bribe him to do that. The young lads are never his match as he is always a step ahead of them. Oh – who invents this hairstyle? He already looks bad in 'MVP Valentine' – why must the hairstylist still torture him here?
8. Gong Mo Li – Zhuo Wen Xuan
She comes from a rich family but comes to stay with the Huangfus to test Xiao Mai's feelings towards Jin. She is also here because she is secretly in love with Cai since 10 years old. She manages to win Cai over with her sincerity. But like Cai, she is also a spendthrift and doesn't know how to save money. Her acting is only passable but lets not be too harsh on a newcomer as she has tried her best.
9. Mr Mai and Mrs Mai – Pu Xue Liang and Huang Jia Qian
They are Xiao Mai's parents who dote on her as their own. But for the sake of her future, they return her to Emp and leave overseas so that she will not be dependent on them. These two behave exactly like Shan Cai's parents – depending on their daughter to save up money and have problems saving up on their own.
Most favourite character
Jin, he is initially cold and unfeeling but he changes totally upon meeting Xiao Mai. He is also determined to build up his own empire with his own hands. Can you imagine the other three to be reliable on his pay when they are forced to move out? He becomes the most sensible person to be their breadwinner.
Most hated character
Cai, this man only talks but has no backbone to defy Emp. He is a burden to Jin when they move out. How can a man not work at all and keeps pawning whatever he has?! I simply despise him.
Song
The themesong is 'new nest' by Farenheit and S.H.E. It is strange that the three gals don't act in this drama but they lend their voices here. The song is well sung. The other subtheme songs are by Shao Han. 'I am in love' is a fast-paced song but I don't really like it because her voice is too high pitched. Her interpretation of 'don't wish to know' – a slower number is so much better. The other two 'mine' and 'paradise' are easily forgettable.
Interesting facts
Although many Taiwanese complained that it was a copycat from 'Goong' and a Japanese drama 'rich cop', they still watched this drama because of Wu Chun. It became the most watched drama, even beating F4 member, Zhou Yu Min's 'Delicious Proposal'. Still, The china netizens were critical of this drama.
Chun and Yi Ru were nervous driving the expensive cars. Yi Ru was so excited that he suffered from headaches and gastric cramps. He bought a Honda convertable when he was in Canada while Chun bought new car parts for his car.
How can a car take 10 minutes to reach the house from the gate? The part where Xiao Mai yells to Emp is too exaggerating. Even the shots on the mansion took so many cuts. They felt that the cars were outdated and they could tell that the mansion was only a holiday resort! (They are absolutely right - only the gate was made at a cost of NT$30,000 which is now lying in the TV station's warehouse.)
They also complained about the acting. Some claimed that the high ratings were due to Wu Chun's striping and Shao Han could not cry well.
Many thought that Xiao Mai's foster parents behaved exactly like Shan Cai's parents from 'Meteor Garden'. Wu Chun was still a vase in their eyes. Wu Chun was surprised with their reaction. The drama wasn't that childish to him as the initial arrangement was even more exaggerating. He thought that he had some breakthrough in here. Jin has some inner struggling scenes but the audience has failed to notice that.
Wu Chun comes from a wealthy family and all attribute this to why he has the rich man's air on him in the drama. Wu Chun was told to emanate a cool vibe. He reminded himself to stand straight and watch out for table manners.
Both also strike out on their own careers. Still, he maintained that he was slightly different from the role in some aspects. Jin suppresses his emotions but he is more communicative. Many praised him for improving his Mandarin but he found it stressful working with Gu as he was a veteran actor.
All found the weather unbearable and wondered how Taiwanese men can wear business suits for the whole year. But they were lucky to shoot most scenes in the air-conditioned rooms. They have thought of Shao Han to be an introvert but she ended up being lively and chirpy.
Chun was apologetic to hold up the shooting for 30 minutes as he sometimes forgot his long lines. He never gave marks for his performance as he wanted to improve. Yi Ru gave himself 80 marks so the remaining 20 would remind him to work harder.
Wu Chun jumped into the open sea unassisted while the film crew remained safely on dry land. It was only after he hit the frigid waters that he worried about sharks. This was the only act that he hardly enjoyed as most of the time, he had the chance to drive Porshes and wearing branded clothes. Fans marveled at his perfect physique in revealing his tattoo in the swimming scene.
Remember the scene where Jin became plump in Xiao Mai's dream? Chun had to stuff two sanitary napkins into his mouth.He joked that they were the same that Ella used for 'Hana Kimi'. After 3 hours, his face was numb but he was sure that he would not grow this plump when old since he often exercised.
Yi Ru was shy when shooting the sleeping scene with Shao Han in the presidental suite. He found it hard to portray Cai's reaction to Mo Li's love declaration. So did Chun as he also found it hard to get out of his role. He took more food and exercise to relax while Yi Ru talked to friends.
Even the food on the set was so expensive that Wu pinched some with the other male co-stars because it would be a waste to throw it away. On the numerous kissing scenes he shared with Shao Han, he complained that he looked too disheveled. He protested that they were done when he just came out of the sea and in the rain. His hair was all wet and messy. That was definitely unromantic.
Wu Chun wondered how a petite Shao Han can have a loud voice. Shan Han lamented that the kissing scenes were hardly romantic. One was inside a small changing room cubicle where 10 onlookers shot the scene. How can it be romantic since the place was so hot?
The other unforgettable scene was kissing her at the airport while shouting her name. Many onlookers witnessed how he kissed her. Still, the whole cast enjoyed the filming as they went to places that they had never been to. Some of the room and dining hall scenes were filmed inside five-star hotels.
Yu Wei didn't know that he applied too much force for the hugging scene. He left bruises on Shao Han and was apologetic. Yu Wei was back visiting relatives after he completed his degree in New York. His friend recommended him and he was happy to get selected. The TV station employees took note to help him improve his Mandarin.
So did An Lin who did the same when he pulled her out of the bed strongly. Many laughed over it – one was supposed to love Xiao Mai while another dislike her but both were the same to give her the violent treatment.
An Lin and Yi Ru participated in the Sunshine Boyz contest in Vancover. Yi Ru won and return to Taiwan before him after getting his Masters. An Lin was still an undergraduate so he remained to continue his studies.
There was a scene where Yi Ru kissed Wen Xuan in the garden. They had many n.g.s under watchful eyes. But this precious scene was cut as the producer found it unnecessary to help in the plot. The two joked that the producer should have made copies for them as remembrance instead of cutting it!
The four actors went to Singapore to hold an autograph session on the drama DVDs. They knew of Shao Han's poor heart condition and hoped that she could get well soon. Wu Chun found that it was quite unlikely for both of them to become a couple as they hardly had time to know each other better.
The whole cast went to Jin Men to promote this drama. Chun was excited to visit his grandfather's homeland and was touched to see his name on top in the donors' list in the ancestral temple.
They toured all the popular spots. They also pushed the gaoliang wine to each other. Seeing that Yi Ru was nursing a flu, he became the first one forced to drink it.
It was coincidental that Yi Ru, Shao Han, Ang Lin grew up in Vancouver in their teenage years. Ang Lin knew Shao Han from the same singing contest that both joined. Yu Wei was from the States. He had learned martial arts for 20 years and had won several martial arts competitions.
Conclusion
I agree totally with the China netizens' comments. This drama is very childish and falls short of its expectations from 'Meteor Garden'. Even if the four young masters in 'Meteor Garden' have long tresses, they look 100% men. I will prefer to call the four lords here as the four lads as they do look more like teenagers than men. They are far from charming – I just find them too weak and fair looking. They look like damsels in distress themselves. Do Taiwanese men look like this these days?! Don't they do some gym training before taking up the roles?
The young cast just read the script in a straight forward manner. When it comes to acting, almost all use the wrong expressions. They hardly display what is needed. Yawn – most of the time, I am not interested in their speeches but more interested to look at Emp's home deco. The leads simply lack chemistry with each other. They will bore you.
I don't really like the way Shao Han acts – especially when she always screams to talk. She looks like a princess but she doesn't behave like one. Her trying to act cute and nosey simply puts me off. Yes, I also wonder like Wu Chun how she has such a sharp and loud voice too! It is under good control in 'MVP Valentine' but getting annoying in here. With the smug look on her face, it is little wonder the lads question Xiao Mai's real identity.
But I must say that the classy parties are a bonus – it shows how the rich spend their money. The princess is hardly romantic as she is thrifty. However, if you are looking for Cinderella stories or Prince charming and do not mind the above flaws, this is still a choice.
SMILING PASTA
Main Cast
Xiao Shi - Cyndi Wang
He Jun - Nicholas Teo
Rita - Xiao Qiao
Ah Zhe - Gino
Synopsis
Chen Xiao Shi believes herself to be cursed when it comes to love, having been dumped 16 times. She is heartbroken when boyfriend number 17 breaks up with her too. He Jun is an idol singer who has just had his heart publicly broken by his longtime girlfriend, Rita, who left him for his younger brother, Ah Zhe. While evading a couple of reporters, He Jun bumps into Xiao Shi, who ends up falling on top of him and kissing him.
Pictures of their kiss are splashed all over the newspapers the next day. To avoid a scandal, He Jun’s manager/agent announces that Xiao Shi is actually He Jun’s fiancée. Xiao Shi agrees to the charade in order to not disappoint her family, who are expecting her to bring home boyfriend number 17. Thus begins the love story of Turtle Girl and Jinx (He Jun and Xiao Shi’s nicknames for each other).
Review
The main focus of this drama is of course the love story although it has a few worthy subplots, such as He Jun’s strained relationships with both his father and younger brother, Ah Zhe. It also comments on the disruptive behavior of the paparazzi and the creative truths they weave. Xiao Shi trips, falling into He Jun’s arms and the paparazzi reports that she fainted because she is pregnant. As such, it is unfortunate that the director and writers went a little overboard with the silly animations, physical comedy and unnecessary plot twists that ended up marring an otherwise decent drama. Some examples of silly include:
- The University students publicly protesting upon learning that Xiao Shi is He Jun’s fiancé because they don’t deem her worthy enough. I doubt even the most obsessive of fans would go to this extent.
- The whole University, including its Administrative Officer, and a highly respected Reporter becoming involved in He Jun’s juvenile bet with Xiao Shi, which ended with a ball kicking contest to determine a winner. Don’t the students have classes to attend?
- CK, the director of E-News, was confident that He Jun and Xiao Shi’s engagement is fake but changed his mind after hearing Xiao Shi publicly declare her feelings for He Jun, who then told her that he will forever protect her. If anything, I think this would indicate that their engagement was indeed faked. What couple gets engaged, then confess their feelings for each other later? Plus if CK was sure they were just acting the part of a couple, why did it not occur to him that possibly for his benefit, they were carrying on the act by confessing their feelings in order to protect their lie? A person of CK’s caliber and experience would not have accepted anything at face value especially after obsessively trying to expose their engagement as fake. This twist in the plot was too illogical for my liking.
Another thing I have a problem with is the way Xiao Shi is portrayed. Taiwanese idol dramas have a tendency to portray their heroines as extremely cute, naïve, simple-minded, but kind, optimistic and persevering. Xiao Shi is no exception. However, she is so dim-witted at times that it was frustrating to watch her. And Cyndi overdid the cute factor sometimes to the point of annoying me. She looks a little too old to play cute.
I felt that Xiao Qiao was miscast as Rita. Although her acting is competent, she neither had the attitude nor the right look for the role. And she had zero chemistry with Nicholas, making it difficult to believe that her Rita and He Jun actually dated.
However, for all its flaws, "Smiling Pasta" is incredibly charming, addictive and fun to watch, so much so I couldn’t help enjoying it. It has an entertaining love story and some decent subplots. It has a good soundtrack, my favorite song being Nicholas Teo’s “Tears from Polaris”. There is ample chemistry between Nicholas and Cyndi. I also liked the speed with which He Jun and Xiao Shi’s love story develops and the general pacing of the drama (although its length could have been shortened). Reasonably good effort by all actors, with the veterans hamming it up for laughs. Although it is not a stretch for Nicholas to portray an idol singer, he gives a credible performance, playing He Jun with lots of charm. His He Jun also displayed his vulnerability when interacting with his father. Nicholas definitely has potential to become a serious actor. Gino too gave a believable performance as the angry and rebellious, but good-hearted Ah Zhe.
Despite its silly moments, I was immensely entertained by "Smiling Pasta". As such, it merits a rating of between 3.5 and 4. However, considering that "Devil Beside You" (DBY), which I thought was even more silly (to the point of being ridiculous) and not as entertaining, has received ratings of between 4 to 4.5, "Smiling Pasta" ought to be rated a 5. But this would be misleading as it isn't perfect, although (in my humble opinion) it is superior to DBY. So I will rate "Smiling Pasta" a 4.5, with the proviso that on its own, it is at most a 4 but in comparison to DBY, it is at least a 4.5.
METEOR GARDEN
'Meteor Garden', a Taiwanese drama series, is an adaptation of a Japan manga (comic), entitled 'Hana Yori Dango' (literally translated: dumplings before flowers). It is written by Kamio Yoko, published since 1992 until now, and so far there are 31 volumes and still running.
The drama broadcasted on CTS April 2001, starring all-new fresh looks actors, Barbie Hsu and the F4 (Jerry Yan, Vic Chou, Vaness Wu, Ken Zhu). Just some info, boyband F4 was formed because of this series.
For convenience sake, I will use the Japanese names for the characters, so pls...read below first to avoid confusions:
Barbie Hsu : Makino Tsukushi = Shan Cai
Jerry Yan : Doumyouji Tsukasa = Dao Ming Si
Vic Chou : Hanazawa Rui = Hua Zhe Lei
Vanness Wu : Mimasaka Akira = Mei Zuo
Ken Zhu : Nishikado Soujirou = Xi Men
Winnie Qian : Toudou Shizuka = Jing
Edward Au : Kazuya = Qing He
Rainie Yeuang : Yuuki = Xiao You
Yip On Ting : Mikako + Sakurako = Li Zhen
Belinda Yip : Asai = Bai He
???? : Ayuhara = Qian Hui
SYNOPSIS
Tsukushi is a poor girl studying in Ying De University, an elite university with rich students in glamorous lifestyle. Tsukushi's parents insist and had worked very hard in order for Tsukushi to be able to study in that university, in the hope that Tsukushi will find a rich husband, thus their status will go up and be accepted in the elite community.
However, Tsukushi feels so uncomfortable studying in that university. She feels disgusted with the glamorous lifestyle of the students and their arrogant attitudes. She only has one close friend in that university, Makiko. A group of guys called the 'F4', holds the power in the university, as their parents are the owners of the university. F4 consists of four guys:
1. Doumyouji Tsukasa: the leader, a high-tempered, selfish and arrogant guy
2. Hanazawa Rui: the most quiet one, a kind-hearted and very cool guy
3. Mimasaka Akira: smiles often (especially to the ladies), and loves older women
4. Nishikado Soujirou: a playboy, 'nuff said^^
No one dares enough to go against the F4, if they do, they'll be red-tagged and forced to drop out from the university. Even the lecturers are afraid of them. Tsukushi has always hate their attitudes, but she tries to control herself from doing anything, so she won't get any trouble. All she want is to graduate immediately, so her mother will be happy.
However, one day, Makiko accidentally spilled ink on Doumyouji's face. She apologized over and over. But, Doumyouji (note: Doumyouji is actually his surname, but since Tsukushi used to call him with his surname, the readers got used to it too =P The other F4 calls him Tsukasa^^) is enraged and pushes Makiko aside roughly. Tsukushi just can't stand it anymore, so she does the thing she most want to avoid--that is getting into trouble with the F4. She yelled at Doumyouji and the rest of the F4.
The next morning, she got red-tagged, and starting then, lots of bad things happen to her. She got accused of cheating while taking tests, gets locked in a toilet, arms glued to the table then a firecracker blow right in front of her, etc. The next day, Tsukushi got really mad and stuck her own red-tag on Doumyouji's face, then she declares a war to the F4. Doumyouji secretly starts to admire Tsukushi's spirit.
All the while, Tsukushi have always seen Rui as the nicest one among all four, and she is attracted to him. One day, Tsukushi is chased by two men (Doumyouji's men) who wants to rape/scare her, and suddenly Rui comes to the rescue and tells them to let her go. Since this, Tsukushi grows a special feeling for Rui. However, Rui have someone else in his heart.
The next day, Tsukushi gather up her strength to hit Doumyouji on the face, she was really pissed with the last incident. Being smacked that way, Doumyouji is speechless, no one has ever dared enough to do that to him. Since then Doumyouji cannot stop thinking about her and grows feelings for her.
Meanwhile, Rui's first love, Shizuka is back from France. Shizuka has everything a woman could ever want. She's very beautiful, elegant, mature, and very kind-hearted. She's from a wealthy family, she's also a model. She is the F4's childhood friend. She is actually 3 years older than the F4.
However, later, Shizuka decided to throw away everything she has now, wealthiness, title, and even her long hair to become a lawyer in France. At first, Rui was just being quiet, but after Tsukushi supported him and pushed him to go after Shizuka in France, Rui changes his mind and even books a ticket for the next flight to France. Rui kisses Tsukushi's forehead and thanks her. After Rui left, Doumyouji asked Tsukushi out on a date. But, the sound of the plane machine beats Doumyouji's voice, she can't hear him. The next day, Akira and Soujirou are laughing at Doumyouji who's reading a book on dates. Later, Doumyouji only says 3 things to Tsukushi: the day (Sunday), the place and the time, which left Tsukushi's wondering. On Sunday, Tsukushi is shopping with her mother. According to Tsukushi, because Doumyouji was unclear about it, she doesn't have the obligation to go there. Despite the fact that she's reluctant to go to the place, she's very curious too, what does Doumyouji want?
At last, she decided to go and check. It's raining, so she has to take her mother's umbrella, then on the place she see Doumyouji in the middle of the rain, all wet without any umbrella, sitting.....
Up to here, I would have to let you watch the series yourself, because it's just full of surprises and thrilling plotlines^^ I would definitely spoil everything away, if I continue and those who haven't watched it or read it =P
When I watched episode 1, I had absolutely no idea who will Tsukushi end up with! At first, I thought I support Rui because of his kind heart and he's just different than the other F4 members, but then after he said, "If I had known you'll be following me wherever I go, I wouldn't have saved you yesterday". I just got the feeling he's not better than the others, either. And I realized he saved Tsukushi because he JUST felt like doing it.
How 'bout Doumyouji? Just for your information, if I'm Tsukushi I'd be thinking the same thing and feel the same, that is TO HATE HIM!! =P High-tempered, selfish, arrogant, I can't believe there's a main character with so many negative points (and leave a very small space for his positive points)! It's just a little hard to believe, that Tsukushi will end up with this guy. But, as I proceed reading the manga, and get to know more about Doumyouji, I can't think of anyone else in the story that can become my most favorite character!^^ I really didn't expect at all that the real Doumyouji does idiotic/childish things, BAD Japanese vocabulary (in the manga, ironically...he speaks fluent German and Italian =P) and just ridiculous! I mean, indirectly (again, in the manga), he's the clown of the story!!^_^ Kamio Yoko is really an expert in creating solid characters!
REVIEW
So, how was Meteor Garden?
Overall, as a manga adaptation, I have to say it is only average. If it wasn't because of the amazingly faithful storyline (even to the details) to the manga, I wouldn't get through finish watching it^^ I didn't really expect this faithfulness, since I had experienced watching most of Taiwan's wuxia novel adaptations usually to deviate a lot from the novel. So, I was surprised when I know Meteor Garden is like, 90% faithful to the manga.
So, why is it only average, you ask me?
The main factor is the low acting skill of the actors. It's just too bad, most of them acted so stiff. Well, I can understand that they're all new actors, and it feels great to see fresh new looks, it's just that I sometimes can't stand their acting. Well, at least, (and I'm just glad) they didn't over-reacted or exaggerated their expressions^^
Barbie Hsu can only act 70% of the perfect Tsukushi. She lacks on expressions. Her acting is just not up to standard. However, I think she's pretty acceptable as Tsukushi and I have to say, she's the best actress in this drama.
As for the so-called F4, well...I expected a lot more than those guys!!^^ In terms of handsomeness, I don't think they're handsome enough to be the 'F4'(aack! are the F4 fans strangling me?!). Moreover, their acting skill are below average.
Jerry Yan as Doumyouji?? 80% or so, thanks to the faithful script^^ The script made Jerry act out the character not far from the way he is in the manga. I laugh at scenes whenever he did those idiotic things, his expression is pretty funny. And, I'm glad the producer casted the most handsome one to be my most favorite character of the story =P However, it's just too bad he's not really a good actor, lacking of a lot of expressions, especially, angry, sad and embarrassed expressions. Oh, yes...by the way, I hate his standing hair! It looks so awful, I was just really glad whenever his hair got wet^^ In the manga, Doumyouji has this curled hair, and whenever it gets wet, the curls will straighten up, when it's dry, it'll curl up again. I guess, Jerry's hair can't curl, so they made that awful standing-hairstyle
Rui is just sooooo-typical Japanese guys character in Japan stories. Cool, quiet and mysterious. And, Vic Chou seems to struggle in doing those serious expressions. I thought Rui would be the easiest part to act, because all the actor has to do is to stay expressionless, but I guess Vic Chou can't do that part well.
I don't have much to complain on Vaness Wu's Akira, he doesn't have much role anyway. He's a playboy that smiles often and he has done that part quite well, but just as the other F4, his acting is below average.
Pretty much the same for Ken Zhu's Soujirou, playboy that smiles often, and usually teases Doumyouji together with Akira. He and Akira are just like, the best pals, and I'm having a hard time to find differences in their characters, because they're soo similar^^ These two even have a nickname, which is 'The Dynamic Duo' ^_^ Ever since Soujirou's love obstacles with Yuuki (Tsukushi's very bestfriend) arise, I'd reeeallly like to see this pair get together!! Apparently, up to vol. 31, there is no development on Soujirou and Yuuki's relationship =( Anyway, I was a little disappointed with his appearance, because Soujirou is supposed to have short hair, wear an earring and do not wear any glasses...
Oh, yes...I like Winnie Qian who played Shizuka, she's just perfect for the character!! (despite her acting not being any better than the others^^)
So, it's not about miscasts really, it's just, the producer only casted on their appearance but not their acting skills, in my opinion...too bad... But, hey...I guess the actors did improve their acting along the series, not much of an improvement...but, not bad!!^^
As for the adaptation script, I REALLY love it! It was 90% stick to the manga. And I really don't mind the changes they made. The changes they did make were, apparently, to make it look more real (since some scenes are just too...well, comic). The script is just perfect. But, sometimes, some (supposedly) funny dialogues goes unfunny...I wonder why.....
One of my favorite changed scene in the drama is where Rui saved Tsukushi who was attacked with garbage, and where Doumyouji pull her arm and Rui immediately also pull her other arm. Thus, Tsukushi is put in the middle of a tug of war. In the manga, Rui should've carried Tsukushi first, then Doumyouji pull her legs, while Rui don't want to let go of her arms, so Doumyouji pulling her legs while Rui holding her arms.
Can you imagine how Barbie Hsu will handle that scene? That's why, I was very satisfied with this changed scene, I think the scene was done very well.
As for the themesongs, I'm not really fond of the opening theme, 'Qin Fei De Yi by Harlem Yu', but I'm crazy over the ENDING themesong!! 'Ni Yao De Ai by Dai Pei Ni' I just love this slow romantic song!! The background musics are okay, few of them are memorable, but some also annoying.
Now, for the differences between the manga and the drama(I'll only mention some of them):
1. In the manga, Tsukushi and F4 were high school students. In the drama, they were university students. Actually, I think being high school students makes F4 look cooler, because they don't wear uniforms, while the other students do, it just shows their power more^^
2. In the manga, Tsukushi has a younger brother named Susumu. In the drama, she's an only child. Although Susumu don't really have any important role, I'm still a little disappointed with this, coz that makes the Makino house less merry. =P
3. In the manga, there are 3 annoying girls who likes to tease Tsukushi: Asai, Ayuhara, and Yamano. There are only 2 in the drama.
4. Apparently, the producer merged Makiko and Sakurako's characters to 'Li Zhen'. Makiko is Tsukushi's only friend in school and she's a sweet girl. Tsukushi meets Sakurako in Shizuka's birthday party, Tsukushi saved Sakurako from a pervert old man. Turns out, Sakurako likes Doumyouji and envies Tsukushi, she slanders Tsukushi with her naked pictures.
5. In the manga, Tsukushi and Kazuya went to Atami (a vacation place, mostly for old people) for their summer holiday, coz Kazuya's parents have a house for holidays there. As a matter of fact, Tsukushi's parents tag along, too (since they insist to =P)! Then, Doumyouji and company came, with his luxurious cruise ship, on the beach. In the drama, Tsukushi's parents do not tag along, and there's only a cruise ship, no vacation place.
6. In the manga, Tsukushi only stand in the corner alone on the cruise party. In the drama, Tsukushi dance with Akira, Soujirou and Rui.
7. In the manga, Doumyouji waited for Tsukushi as it was snowing, so when Tsukushi arrives, he's kinda covered with snow. In the drama, Doumyouji waited for Tsukushi in the rain.
8. In the manga, Doumyouji and Tsukushi are trapped in an elevator. In the drama, Doumyouji and Tsukushi are trapped in an emergency staircase.
The reason why this series ended abruptly is because in Japan itself, the manga is still running. The ending of Meteor Garden probably happened somewhere in the middle of volume 29. The very last one out in Japan was volume 31 and still running on Margaret Comics Magazine up until now since 1992 (Wow!! Such a long story, don't you think?!?).
A little spoiler, the last development on the story, is...Doumyouji gets stabbed in the middle of chaos. When he's up in the hospital, turns out, he can remember all of his friends and family, except his own girlfriend...Tsukushi!!!O_O Heheh...a little ridiculous, don't you think?? Then, a new rival for Tsukushi also appears, her name is Nakajima Umi, a very socialize person, who loves to smile a lot. She is so nice to people, kids and old people that they just love her. However, I grew to hate her, cos she always stops Doumyouji from trying remember too hard...argh! Poor Tsukushi... =(
Anyway, I'm not really enthused with METEOR GARDEN 2, the sequel. Obviously, coz the manga itself has not finished, I assume they will create their own story and ending, and I doubt the plotline will be as solid as Kamio Yoko's. But, we'll see....
METEOR GARDEN as an adaptation AND a self stand-up drama series is very enjoyable to watch, despite the lack of acting skills, because the solid plotline and characterizations over-shadow them, but as for this, of course...the credits goes to (besides the scriptwriter, for being so faithful to the manga^^) Kamio Yoko herself, the manga-ka.
I give it 5 stars for the script, 2 stars for the acting, and 3.5 stars OVERALL!^^ I really recommend you to watch this series for your entertainment!
Ranie Yang as :chen Bao zhu
Show Luo: Da lang/xua hai
Meeting sweetheart for the first time, innocent & pure little boy becomes an adult and turns into a Shanghai Prince! Meeting sweetheart for the second time, he wants her to pay the price for taking his innocence!
Show Luo plays Hsueh Ha(fake name: Da Lang). This innocent & pure little boy experiences the taste of love for the first time, but he suffers heartbreak, and turns into an arrogant Shanghai Prince! But when he meets her again, no matter how much he wants to torture her, he cant stop his love for her. So whose fault is this really?
Rainie Yang plays Chen Bao Zhu. She falls in love with the shy poor little boy but fate separates them. When they meet again, she realizes he's turned into a nasty man. Should she steer clear of him or fall in love with him?[/FONT][/COLOR]
Taiwan’s wealthy son (also known as Da Lang) heads to Hang Zhou to study. When his classmates bully him, senior Bao Zhu lends a helping hand, and the 2 begin their first relationship. One day, Taiwan’s advertising firm comes to the school to hold a ‘Queen Sweetheart’ competition. Bao Zhu wins first place, and from then on, everyone calls her ‘sweetheart’. However, Sweetheart’s father suddenly goes bankrupt, and he abandons her and her mother. Sweetheart has no choice but to move back to Taiwan with her mother, and due to a misunderstanding, she loses contact with Da Lang.
After being abandoned, Da Lang turns into a playboy, until one day he sees her ‘Sweetheart’s Time’ show on TV. Da Lang buys the TV station, and thus begins his revenge plan on Sweetheart. However, when he sees Sweetheart go on a date with another guy, Da Lang realizes that he is still deeply in love with her, hence he decides to pursue her again. At this time, Sweetheart’s mother discovers that Da Lang’s older sister was actually Sweetheart’s father’s first love, and hence she strongly opposes their relationship, and the 2’s love heads into turmoil.
20 episodes
Foreword
'Meteor Garden' shot F4 to fame. This drama is like Meteor Garden – the adaptation of another manga 'Romance Godankatsuyou'. This is the first time Wu Zun and Zhang Shao Han act as a couple. How do they fare in this classic Cinderella story?
Brief story outline
The 18 year old Xiao Mai is adopted by lower-class parents and has to work part time to make ends meet. Although they stay in a small run-down apartment, they are contented. One day, it is discovered that she is a wealthy heiress. She was kidnapped when young and her parents died in a car accident when searching for her. Her grandfather, nicknamed Emp knows that she is his kin by her birthmark on the butt. He gives her foster parents a house to stay in.
Xiao Mai moves in to stay in the Huang Fu mansion. Life isn't a bed of roses from then onwards. Emp has adopted 4 proteges when they are young. They are called the four Nan Feng Lords. They find it unbelievable that Xiao Mai is Emp's granddaughter as she is uncultured. Jing even requests to see if she really has a birthmark on her butt as claimed. All the four joke that she must be an imposter.
Xiao Mai offers to pay back the $500m that Emp has given to them by working in the home but he rejects her. Xiao Mai still visits her foster parents. Jin is her bodyguard, bringing her there. He admires them for sharing a close bond despite being simple. Xiao Mai sees that he has a big bowl of rice and offers to take away some from him but he insists that he can finish it as he feels comfortable with them. This is something lacking in Emp's home.
Emp sends her foster parents to Brazil after paying them handsomely. They are reluctant to leave Xiao Mai but have no choice. Xiao Mai cries when she is late to reach the airport. Jin consoles her the whole day and allows her to rest on his shoulder. He doesn't understand why he is so accommodating to her . if not for her status and his identity, all will be well.
Emp gives Jin an impossible task to groom Xiao Mai into a lady before she is presented to his business associates. Jin gets even more displeased upon knowing that Emp plans to let him marry Xiao Mai and he is to take over his business empire. But he realizes that Xiao Mai is a simple girl who also longs to have a simple life like him. The four lads start to accept Xiao Mai too and treat her like a sister. They attend the same school together – with only Jin and her in the same car.
Soon the other schoolmates discover that Jin has changed. He is unfeeling to others but seems to show concern only to Xiao Mai. Xiao Mai soon finds out that he has a gentle and caring side despite his distant appearance.
Lin is gullible to want to give Xiao Mai the $500m to help her to solve the problem and hugs her, saying that Jin has given her to him. Emp is angry and arranges Jin to move close to Xiao Mai's room to ensure her safety. Cai wants to see Jin's reaction so he gives Xiao Mai the $500m, wanting her to tell Emp that she wants to get engaged to Jin. She obeys him but later regrets after giving Emp the money. Xiao Mai is in the sauna room when Lin keeps apologizing to her for wanting to hug her earlier.
She wears very little so she doesn't dare to come up. She ends up fainting in the room. Lin quickly calls Jin for help. Jin pats her face and is puzzled why he is so anxious. She sighs – he is genuinely concerned about her but still conceals it. Jin wants to pay the money to Xiao Mai to get her to annul the engagement but she can't bring herself to do it. Jin told Xiao Mai about his ex high school classmate, A Jie. A Jie was a top runner but was bribed by Emp to lose to Jin in a race.
Jin felt worse when A Jie gave up the sport after that. He warns Xiao Mai that she could get hurt by others because of her wealth. She analyses that he is not afraid of getting hurt but he is afraid of hurting others. Xiao Mai wants to return Cai the money and he teases her for falling for Jin. Jin is attracted when she looks stunning as she tries the wedding gown.
She brings him to look at houses belonging to the commoners. Jin suddenly arranges all to have a celebration. Jin longs for freedom. So he arranges Xiao Mai and Cai to be in bed to escape from it. He knows Cai is a gentleman and will not touch her. Cai reprimands him for framing him. Jin shows Xiao Mai the photo that he has taken to threaten her.
Emp introduces Xiao Mai to all associates and also announces her engagement to Jin. Cai is pleased upon seeing Jin going near Xiao Mai to have a first dance with her. Xiao Mai feels blissful but he reminds her that she still has time to tell her. He will tell Emp if she can't do it. Xiao Mai knows that she has fallen for him so she tells Emp that to make Jin happy.
Cai finds it a pity that she hasn't been persistent to the engagement day. He wants to push Jin to the limit. Xiao Mai doesn't want to bully him anymore. Cai knows Emp too all – he will not give in easily. Lin suddenly announces that Jin has run away from home. Jin doesn't know why he is lost after Xiao Mai's announcement. Emp wants Sen Chuan to inform the customs to prevent Jin from leaving.
Xiao Mai decides to run away from home to divert Emp's attention. So Emp has to dispatch his men to look for both of them. Jin comes to Xiao Mai's home to look for her upon getting Lin's call. He hasn't left home – he just goes out for a breather and doesn't expect to be misunderstood. Jin gets to know the agreement between Xiao Mai and Cai. He is mad that they make fun of him and refuses to listen to their explanation. Since the Huang Fus love to use money to settle problems, he must leave them.
Cai apologises to him for causing the trouble but Jin still ignores him. This is the first time Ying sees him so angry. Cai presumes that Jin must be angry that Xiao Mai rejects the engagement. His pride is heart so he becomes so mad. Ying attributes to Xiao Mai's existence. The lads' relationship is strained ever since she steps into this house. Ying wants her to leave the home and even beats her if not for Cai.
He is pissed off with her for accepting the money and still trying to act noble. Cai is angry that Jin is so indifferent. Xiao Mai has wanted to get the money back from Emp to return to Cai. So Jin is unfair to her. Emp mistakens Cai's concern for Xiao Mai to try to be the third party. Cai knows that lovers can't tolerate the presence of rivals so he wishes to arouse Jin's jealousy.
Emp doesn't have so much time. He looks at Cai – why doesn't he think of getting him to be his successor?
Emp announces that Cai is going to be engaged to Xiao Mai. Actually he is doing this to test Jin's feelings towards his granddaughter. Jin gets disillusioned to leave home to go to sea. Lin lies that Jin is killed in a car crash. She cries to discover that it is only a hoax. Lin knows their true feelings and wants to help them.
The engagement party starts but Jin is nowhere to be seen. Emp has wanted to see how anxious Jin is but now even Cai gets nervous. Sen Chuan reports that the guests become rowdy but Emp ignores this. Jin regrets his choice when recalling their happy moments together. His yacht is out of order so he swims back to shore. Alas, it is still too late when he finds that all the guests have left.
Jin is in despair. Cai consoles him – not that both are engaged but Emp has cancelled the function. Jin cracks his brain on how to date her. The other guys want him to be true to her. Jin finally bares his feelings to Xiao Mai and gives her a ring which he has bought with the earnings he gets through taking on vacation jobs. His main aim is still to leave the family so both have to date in secret.
It is sure wacky as Emp comments during a meal on how a couple will behave. They will steal glances at each other, eat similar food and wears lovers' clothes. Xiao Mai and Jin realize that they are doing all these things right now. Xiao Mai pretends to be angry to storm out with Jin following suit. Emp can't stop laughing at this.
Emp gives monetary rewards to those who can manage to snap a photo of the two together. It is funny to see how the two try to hide from the rest. Xiao Mai finally has an idea – to escape from their eyes to go into the changing room of a department store. Both finally hug each other tightly in the small cubicle. Sen Chuan reports to Emp that they date secretly through sms or mms. Emp knows that both will not give in to him easily so he hatches another plan.
Mo Li is transferred to Xiao Man's class. She shows Xiao Mai the ring that her parents have left her. Xiao Mai feels close to her as they have the same birthday. One day, a bombshell drops again. Emp claims that has made a mistake and Mo Li is the real heir to his empire. The ring is the proof – it is the first present that he buys for his granddaughter as it has her birthday. He makes a mistake for Xiao Man as she resembles his late daughter-in-law. Xiao Man feels lost – she doesn't know her parents' whereabouts and is reluctant to leave the other family members.
He even wants Jin to accept her and Xiao Mai is to become her maid. Jin doesn't understand why Xiao Mai must torture herself to stay back but Xiao Mai concludes that this is the only way that she can get close to him and also to prevent him from marrying Mo Li. Jin is touched and hugs her close to him. Lin doesn't like Mo Li to greet them. Emp might have accepted her but not them.
The four lads maintain that their treatment towards her will never change and persuades her to stay on. Somehow, Cai finds Mo Li familiar looking but he can't recall where he has seen her. Xiao Mai nearly bursts upon seeing Mo Li to be so close to Jin. Emp laughs secretly in delight. She has moved into Xiao Mai's room so she has to move to the maids' quarters.
Mo Li stops Jin from kissing Xiao Mai in her room. He is the young master but it is inappropriate for him to do that. Jin hugs Xiao Mai – she might be Shan but it doesn't imply that she has the power to control him. Does she want to be controlled by Emp? She replies that she doesn't mind it since her life partner is Jin. Emp announces that he will finance Xiao Man's studies and Mo Li tells all classmates that Xiao Mai is her maid. Xiao Mai doesn't have money to buy food but the four lads bring food for her.
You will be amused. Ying lies that he buys the food but he is still full so this is extra. He is just too proud to admit that he gets it specially for her. Lin claims that his classmates from the home economics class cook too much food so he brings over. Cai gets food vouchers but upon seeing Jin approaching her classroom with 2 plates of food, he passes the coupons to him. He laughs that she will never go hungry.
Mo Li makes life difficult for Xiao Mai during dinner and Xiao Mai rebukes her. Emp chases her out of the room. Jin stands up but Emp orders him to sit down. He commands Sen Chuan to send Xiao Mai off to Brazil the next day. Jin is angry that Emp threatens him. Emp is cold – Xiao Mai isn't his granddaughter and isn't Jin's marriage partner anymore. The atmosphere only loses the tension after Cai walks in smiling.
Xiao Mai soon discovers that Mo Li is an imposter and vows to find evidence against her. Her imagination runs wild when she imagines Mo Li drugging Jin to be in bed together. Jin plants a kiss on her forehead to ensure that she trusts him. The four lads do not get to see Xiao Mai in the subsequent days – they wonder what she is doing.
Xiao Mai finds out that Emp deliberately makes this arrangement, wanting the two to be true not only to each other but also to make it publicly known. She threatens to set off for Brazil and this doesn't matter to her if Mo Li gets engaged to Jin. Jin overhears her and calmly accepts her decision. He refuses to listen to her explanation. Actually he isn't angry with her as he can read the guilt in her eyes. He is only puzzled why Mo Li appears mysteriously and often talks to Emp secretly. He knows something is amiss and decides to play along with them.
He tells Emp that he will get married to Mo Li – to their dismay. He also wants to be alone with Mo Li at a family villa. Jin is amused when he reads alarm in Emp's eyes to insist that Xiao Mai should tag along and they should not stay overnight. He must be thinking that his own granddaughter is very pitiful and sends her to spy on them. So Jin also suggests that Cai should join them since he is also close to Xiao Mai. Mo Li can't help feeling jealous over his remark.
Cai and Xiao Mai do not know what Jin is up too. They discuss with Ying and Lin. Lin and Cai are very sure that Jin still loves Xiao Mai but he is doing this out of anger. Ying finds it possible for Jin to fall for Mo Li who is more demure and attractive than Shan. Seeing that Xiao Mai jumps, they forbid Ying to say further but Ying still warns Xiao Mai to get mentally prepared for the setback.
Cai gets to know from Xiao Mai that Mo Li is an imposter but decides not to tell Jin to see what he is up to. The four get prepared for their trip. (The guys are cool, wearing their shades!) Seeing that Xiao Mai has difficulty carrying the suitcases, Jin offers to help her but she rejects him. Xiao Mai is angry when Mo Li wants her to prepare sandwiches for them.
It is Mo Li's turn to get hysterical when Cai offers to help Xiao Mai. He will also show Xiao Mai the way to the kitchen. Jin brings Mo Li to the garden and senses that she is inattentive. He detects that Mo Li is not interested in him but with Jin. Thus he wants to be with Mo Li in the same room. To spite him back, Xiao Mai wants to be with Cai in the same room.
Here are the two pairs in different rooms. Mo Li is so terrified that she locks herself up in the bathroom. Although Cai is in his pyjamas, he doesn't know why he is dragged into this game although he will not do anything to Xiao Mai. Jin hints to Mo Li that Cai is a player and he must be enjoying himself with Xiao Mai. He wants to force her to tell her her motive to come to stay with the Huangfus.
The girls meet each other at the corridor as they are afraid that both of them will seduce their men. Xiao Mai isn't afraid to confess her feelings. Although Xiao Mai tries to tell Jin the truth, he refuses to listen and wants Cai to bring Xiao Mai back into the room. Jin finally forces the truth out of Mo Li. She is actually here to get close to Cai as she loves him.
Knowing that Mo Li likes him, Cai disappears as he needs time to cool off. He later returns and decides to see if both are suitable for each other. The four confess to Emp their feelings and neither guy is willing to be his successor. Emp chase them out of the family. Although Lin and Ying also wish to follow them, Jin advises them not to provoke Emp angry.
They wish to stay at a luxurious hotel but Cai's credit card doesn't work. The same applies to Mo Li's card as it is produced by Huangfu holdings. The four can only afford to stay in a small room and feel down. Xiao Mai cheers them up. Emp bets that all will give in soon since he has told all branches to reject them if they apply for jobs. He wants Sen Chuan to spy on them.
Cai's friends avoid Cai while Xiao Mai and Jin manage to rent the old house. Both feel a sense of closeness when they dust the house. Cai and Mo Li find it old but have to stay too. Sen Chuan give Ying and Lin tough training to be Emp's successors. Jin finally gets a job but he isn't that well paid. Still, Xiao Mai is happy for him as he is independent now.
However, it saddens Xiao Mai to know that he actually works at a construction site to support them. He even disagrees to let her work as he wants her to be a homemaker. Xiao Mai then tries hard to save well. Cai and Mo Li can't withstand hardship but their family and friends refuse to finance them. They pawn their expensive watches and spend the money on luxuries. Xiao Mai blurts out the truth and Jin points out that Cai is unprepared to leave home.
Both men quarrel and Cai decides to return home. He pleads with Emp to give Jin a chance. Emp then transfers all the training to Cai. Jin gets a new job. The boss is the only person who dares to defy Emp to hire him. Sen Chuan reports to Emp that the little couple are happy with Xiao Mai sending lunch to Jin daily. Emp suddenly has a heart attack. All rush to the hospital.
Xiao Mai regrets making Emp furious but believes that he will accept their thinking one day. Sen Chuan announces that Emp has planned to give the management power to the other directors to let them fulfill their wish. Xiao Mai decides that she should not let his empire land into other people's hands. Sen Chuan predicts that she will face lots of opposition for not being a man. That is why Emp adopts the 4 lords.
It is best that she marries Jin since Jin is the successor but Xiao Mai disagrees. She decides to take up the challenge to undergo the training. Jin teases her by saying that his luck is good to know a caring and witty rich girlfriend. All hope that Emp will wake up soon. The lords are taken aback by Xiao Mai's decision but they try their best to assist her to pass the directors' test.
Xiao Mai gets exhausted by the training. Jin doesn't mind giving up his ambition for her sake but she wishes to continue it. She is used to taking hardship but her performance is less then satisfactory. Just then, Emp wakes up to tell the directors that he has made her his successor. The directors agree but she has to go overseas training for 3 years.
Emp jokes that he must wake up to see how she challenges the other directors. Lin confesses that she has the successor look but still lacks the brains with her poor memory. Emp allows the lords to take leave but from now on, they are under Xiao Mai's command. Sen Chuan sighs that Emp has changed a lot after his discharge. The overbearing old man is now so scared of his granddaughter.
Emp doesn't mind this – he wants someone to control and care for him. This can't be bought by money easily. Mo Li asks Xiao Mai if she is scared that Jin will have a change of heart during the 3 years. Ying jokes that it should be the reverse as Xiao Mai will be surrounded by handsome foreigners. Just then, Jin stands up to be with Xiao Mai. Cai wants both not to be so mushy but both are confident of each other.
Emp goes to Xiao Mai's old home and shakes his head to know that she has stayed in such a place for so long. She argues that this is where she becomes strong-willed. Xiao Mai is going to set off but Jin is late as he is signing his first contract with a client. He comes on time to pass the photocopied paper to her. This signifies their promise and he will wait for her. He will work hard like her before she is back. Both hug at the airport to give each other a deep kiss.
Introduction on characters
1. Mai Qiu Sui/Huang Pu Shan – Zhang Shao Han
Her poor plight changed overnight when she becomes a rich girl. Through hardship, she is unwilling to admit defeat to poverty. However, she gets less happier to get separated from her foster parents. Still, she gets used to befriend 4 lads. From bitter enemies, they foster a sibling bond. She also grows to love Jin to go through thick and thin with him.
What has happened to Shao Han? I wonder if Wu Chun feels that he is hugging a skeleton. She is too skinny. It doesn't help when she has very long and curly hair that covers almost half her body frame and her face. Acting wise, she has improved slightly.
2. Nan Feng Jin – Wu Zun
Jin's parents are close to Xiao Mai's parents. The four died in the same car accident. Emp loses his only son so he adopts the two brothers. He even makes him his successor. Jin wants to protect Lin and to repay Emp's kindness, he endures all kinds of strict training. But he yearns to leave this home to carve his own niche. He soon finds a job to work in a small company and works towards this dream.
Wu Chun doesn't need to act cool. He is cool – the rich air surrounds him when he walks or talks. However, I can't help feeling disappointed as I desire more progress in his acting but he fails to impress me. I don't think he shows Jin's determination when speaking to Emp in that soft voice and walking away silently !
3. Nan Feng Cai – Cheng Yi Ru
He is a playboy who seems to be open and also lazy. He seems to be a troublemaker but his capabilities do not lose out to Jin. He only puts up this false front because he doesn't want to be the successor. He doesn't want to compete with Jin and only wants to get on his life quietly. He is very pampered. Unlike Jin, he soon realizes that he can't live without money and returns to Emp.
He is far from being a playboy as he did not even get to kiss Mo Li! We are easily convinced that he is a weakling because he looks even fairer than Mo Li. How funny this can be - He wants to test how far Jin can go by provoking him every now and then while we can see how how little he goes when Emp tests him. What a joke! The way he speaks – isn't soft spoken but is girly to me. And why does he always choose light coloured clothes – this makes him look like a princess more than Xiao Mai!
4. Nan Feng Lin – Hu Yu Wei
He is Jin's biological younger brother. Being well-protected by Jin, he is frank and also genuine to others. You can even say that he is gullible. Many do not know whether to cry or laugh over his foolish acts. Oh my – this guy is cute and funny! I only feel that this drama exists because he brings life to the drama.
5 Nan Feng Ying – Li An Lin
He is Cai's biological younger brother. He seems to be a shy introvert but he can be a little scheming. He is against women because all only want advantages from him. Thus he announces that he is scared of women so that this will stop them from harressing him. He dislikes Xiao Mai initially, thinking that she is a money digger. But upon seeing how she sacrifices for Jin, his impression of her changes completely.
This guy is plain looking and it is not helped by the fact that he also has long hair which isn't trimmed nicely. Yu Wei stands out because of his short crop hair and warm hair while he is easily ignored. Most of the time, he looks arrogant, sleepy and it seems that nothing can please him.
6 Emp/Huang Pu Xiong – Gu Bao Ming
He is Xiao Mai's grandfather who expects all to obey all his commands. He has even planned their future. Jin and his granddaughter are the first to defy him but he is pleased that Xiao Mai becomes his successor. Thus he listens to her commands from then on. This is a veteran actor but he doesn't do that well too.
7. Yin Sen Chuan – the actor (as Xiao Xi's father in 'MVP Valentine')
He is a faithful butler who will never reveal his masters' secrets or thoughts to the others. No one can bribe him to do that. The young lads are never his match as he is always a step ahead of them. Oh – who invents this hairstyle? He already looks bad in 'MVP Valentine' – why must the hairstylist still torture him here?
8. Gong Mo Li – Zhuo Wen Xuan
She comes from a rich family but comes to stay with the Huangfus to test Xiao Mai's feelings towards Jin. She is also here because she is secretly in love with Cai since 10 years old. She manages to win Cai over with her sincerity. But like Cai, she is also a spendthrift and doesn't know how to save money. Her acting is only passable but lets not be too harsh on a newcomer as she has tried her best.
9. Mr Mai and Mrs Mai – Pu Xue Liang and Huang Jia Qian
They are Xiao Mai's parents who dote on her as their own. But for the sake of her future, they return her to Emp and leave overseas so that she will not be dependent on them. These two behave exactly like Shan Cai's parents – depending on their daughter to save up money and have problems saving up on their own.
Most favourite character
Jin, he is initially cold and unfeeling but he changes totally upon meeting Xiao Mai. He is also determined to build up his own empire with his own hands. Can you imagine the other three to be reliable on his pay when they are forced to move out? He becomes the most sensible person to be their breadwinner.
Most hated character
Cai, this man only talks but has no backbone to defy Emp. He is a burden to Jin when they move out. How can a man not work at all and keeps pawning whatever he has?! I simply despise him.
Song
The themesong is 'new nest' by Farenheit and S.H.E. It is strange that the three gals don't act in this drama but they lend their voices here. The song is well sung. The other subtheme songs are by Shao Han. 'I am in love' is a fast-paced song but I don't really like it because her voice is too high pitched. Her interpretation of 'don't wish to know' – a slower number is so much better. The other two 'mine' and 'paradise' are easily forgettable.
Interesting facts
Although many Taiwanese complained that it was a copycat from 'Goong' and a Japanese drama 'rich cop', they still watched this drama because of Wu Chun. It became the most watched drama, even beating F4 member, Zhou Yu Min's 'Delicious Proposal'. Still, The china netizens were critical of this drama.
Chun and Yi Ru were nervous driving the expensive cars. Yi Ru was so excited that he suffered from headaches and gastric cramps. He bought a Honda convertable when he was in Canada while Chun bought new car parts for his car.
How can a car take 10 minutes to reach the house from the gate? The part where Xiao Mai yells to Emp is too exaggerating. Even the shots on the mansion took so many cuts. They felt that the cars were outdated and they could tell that the mansion was only a holiday resort! (They are absolutely right - only the gate was made at a cost of NT$30,000 which is now lying in the TV station's warehouse.)
They also complained about the acting. Some claimed that the high ratings were due to Wu Chun's striping and Shao Han could not cry well.
Many thought that Xiao Mai's foster parents behaved exactly like Shan Cai's parents from 'Meteor Garden'. Wu Chun was still a vase in their eyes. Wu Chun was surprised with their reaction. The drama wasn't that childish to him as the initial arrangement was even more exaggerating. He thought that he had some breakthrough in here. Jin has some inner struggling scenes but the audience has failed to notice that.
Wu Chun comes from a wealthy family and all attribute this to why he has the rich man's air on him in the drama. Wu Chun was told to emanate a cool vibe. He reminded himself to stand straight and watch out for table manners.
Both also strike out on their own careers. Still, he maintained that he was slightly different from the role in some aspects. Jin suppresses his emotions but he is more communicative. Many praised him for improving his Mandarin but he found it stressful working with Gu as he was a veteran actor.
All found the weather unbearable and wondered how Taiwanese men can wear business suits for the whole year. But they were lucky to shoot most scenes in the air-conditioned rooms. They have thought of Shao Han to be an introvert but she ended up being lively and chirpy.
Chun was apologetic to hold up the shooting for 30 minutes as he sometimes forgot his long lines. He never gave marks for his performance as he wanted to improve. Yi Ru gave himself 80 marks so the remaining 20 would remind him to work harder.
Wu Chun jumped into the open sea unassisted while the film crew remained safely on dry land. It was only after he hit the frigid waters that he worried about sharks. This was the only act that he hardly enjoyed as most of the time, he had the chance to drive Porshes and wearing branded clothes. Fans marveled at his perfect physique in revealing his tattoo in the swimming scene.
Remember the scene where Jin became plump in Xiao Mai's dream? Chun had to stuff two sanitary napkins into his mouth.He joked that they were the same that Ella used for 'Hana Kimi'. After 3 hours, his face was numb but he was sure that he would not grow this plump when old since he often exercised.
Yi Ru was shy when shooting the sleeping scene with Shao Han in the presidental suite. He found it hard to portray Cai's reaction to Mo Li's love declaration. So did Chun as he also found it hard to get out of his role. He took more food and exercise to relax while Yi Ru talked to friends.
Even the food on the set was so expensive that Wu pinched some with the other male co-stars because it would be a waste to throw it away. On the numerous kissing scenes he shared with Shao Han, he complained that he looked too disheveled. He protested that they were done when he just came out of the sea and in the rain. His hair was all wet and messy. That was definitely unromantic.
Wu Chun wondered how a petite Shao Han can have a loud voice. Shan Han lamented that the kissing scenes were hardly romantic. One was inside a small changing room cubicle where 10 onlookers shot the scene. How can it be romantic since the place was so hot?
The other unforgettable scene was kissing her at the airport while shouting her name. Many onlookers witnessed how he kissed her. Still, the whole cast enjoyed the filming as they went to places that they had never been to. Some of the room and dining hall scenes were filmed inside five-star hotels.
Yu Wei didn't know that he applied too much force for the hugging scene. He left bruises on Shao Han and was apologetic. Yu Wei was back visiting relatives after he completed his degree in New York. His friend recommended him and he was happy to get selected. The TV station employees took note to help him improve his Mandarin.
So did An Lin who did the same when he pulled her out of the bed strongly. Many laughed over it – one was supposed to love Xiao Mai while another dislike her but both were the same to give her the violent treatment.
An Lin and Yi Ru participated in the Sunshine Boyz contest in Vancover. Yi Ru won and return to Taiwan before him after getting his Masters. An Lin was still an undergraduate so he remained to continue his studies.
There was a scene where Yi Ru kissed Wen Xuan in the garden. They had many n.g.s under watchful eyes. But this precious scene was cut as the producer found it unnecessary to help in the plot. The two joked that the producer should have made copies for them as remembrance instead of cutting it!
The four actors went to Singapore to hold an autograph session on the drama DVDs. They knew of Shao Han's poor heart condition and hoped that she could get well soon. Wu Chun found that it was quite unlikely for both of them to become a couple as they hardly had time to know each other better.
The whole cast went to Jin Men to promote this drama. Chun was excited to visit his grandfather's homeland and was touched to see his name on top in the donors' list in the ancestral temple.
They toured all the popular spots. They also pushed the gaoliang wine to each other. Seeing that Yi Ru was nursing a flu, he became the first one forced to drink it.
It was coincidental that Yi Ru, Shao Han, Ang Lin grew up in Vancouver in their teenage years. Ang Lin knew Shao Han from the same singing contest that both joined. Yu Wei was from the States. He had learned martial arts for 20 years and had won several martial arts competitions.
Conclusion
I agree totally with the China netizens' comments. This drama is very childish and falls short of its expectations from 'Meteor Garden'. Even if the four young masters in 'Meteor Garden' have long tresses, they look 100% men. I will prefer to call the four lords here as the four lads as they do look more like teenagers than men. They are far from charming – I just find them too weak and fair looking. They look like damsels in distress themselves. Do Taiwanese men look like this these days?! Don't they do some gym training before taking up the roles?
The young cast just read the script in a straight forward manner. When it comes to acting, almost all use the wrong expressions. They hardly display what is needed. Yawn – most of the time, I am not interested in their speeches but more interested to look at Emp's home deco. The leads simply lack chemistry with each other. They will bore you.
I don't really like the way Shao Han acts – especially when she always screams to talk. She looks like a princess but she doesn't behave like one. Her trying to act cute and nosey simply puts me off. Yes, I also wonder like Wu Chun how she has such a sharp and loud voice too! It is under good control in 'MVP Valentine' but getting annoying in here. With the smug look on her face, it is little wonder the lads question Xiao Mai's real identity.
But I must say that the classy parties are a bonus – it shows how the rich spend their money. The princess is hardly romantic as she is thrifty. However, if you are looking for Cinderella stories or Prince charming and do not mind the above flaws, this is still a choice.
SMILING PASTA
Main Cast
Xiao Shi - Cyndi Wang
He Jun - Nicholas Teo
Rita - Xiao Qiao
Ah Zhe - Gino
Synopsis
Chen Xiao Shi believes herself to be cursed when it comes to love, having been dumped 16 times. She is heartbroken when boyfriend number 17 breaks up with her too. He Jun is an idol singer who has just had his heart publicly broken by his longtime girlfriend, Rita, who left him for his younger brother, Ah Zhe. While evading a couple of reporters, He Jun bumps into Xiao Shi, who ends up falling on top of him and kissing him.
Pictures of their kiss are splashed all over the newspapers the next day. To avoid a scandal, He Jun’s manager/agent announces that Xiao Shi is actually He Jun’s fiancée. Xiao Shi agrees to the charade in order to not disappoint her family, who are expecting her to bring home boyfriend number 17. Thus begins the love story of Turtle Girl and Jinx (He Jun and Xiao Shi’s nicknames for each other).
Review
The main focus of this drama is of course the love story although it has a few worthy subplots, such as He Jun’s strained relationships with both his father and younger brother, Ah Zhe. It also comments on the disruptive behavior of the paparazzi and the creative truths they weave. Xiao Shi trips, falling into He Jun’s arms and the paparazzi reports that she fainted because she is pregnant. As such, it is unfortunate that the director and writers went a little overboard with the silly animations, physical comedy and unnecessary plot twists that ended up marring an otherwise decent drama. Some examples of silly include:
- The University students publicly protesting upon learning that Xiao Shi is He Jun’s fiancé because they don’t deem her worthy enough. I doubt even the most obsessive of fans would go to this extent.
- The whole University, including its Administrative Officer, and a highly respected Reporter becoming involved in He Jun’s juvenile bet with Xiao Shi, which ended with a ball kicking contest to determine a winner. Don’t the students have classes to attend?
- CK, the director of E-News, was confident that He Jun and Xiao Shi’s engagement is fake but changed his mind after hearing Xiao Shi publicly declare her feelings for He Jun, who then told her that he will forever protect her. If anything, I think this would indicate that their engagement was indeed faked. What couple gets engaged, then confess their feelings for each other later? Plus if CK was sure they were just acting the part of a couple, why did it not occur to him that possibly for his benefit, they were carrying on the act by confessing their feelings in order to protect their lie? A person of CK’s caliber and experience would not have accepted anything at face value especially after obsessively trying to expose their engagement as fake. This twist in the plot was too illogical for my liking.
Another thing I have a problem with is the way Xiao Shi is portrayed. Taiwanese idol dramas have a tendency to portray their heroines as extremely cute, naïve, simple-minded, but kind, optimistic and persevering. Xiao Shi is no exception. However, she is so dim-witted at times that it was frustrating to watch her. And Cyndi overdid the cute factor sometimes to the point of annoying me. She looks a little too old to play cute.
I felt that Xiao Qiao was miscast as Rita. Although her acting is competent, she neither had the attitude nor the right look for the role. And she had zero chemistry with Nicholas, making it difficult to believe that her Rita and He Jun actually dated.
However, for all its flaws, "Smiling Pasta" is incredibly charming, addictive and fun to watch, so much so I couldn’t help enjoying it. It has an entertaining love story and some decent subplots. It has a good soundtrack, my favorite song being Nicholas Teo’s “Tears from Polaris”. There is ample chemistry between Nicholas and Cyndi. I also liked the speed with which He Jun and Xiao Shi’s love story develops and the general pacing of the drama (although its length could have been shortened). Reasonably good effort by all actors, with the veterans hamming it up for laughs. Although it is not a stretch for Nicholas to portray an idol singer, he gives a credible performance, playing He Jun with lots of charm. His He Jun also displayed his vulnerability when interacting with his father. Nicholas definitely has potential to become a serious actor. Gino too gave a believable performance as the angry and rebellious, but good-hearted Ah Zhe.
Despite its silly moments, I was immensely entertained by "Smiling Pasta". As such, it merits a rating of between 3.5 and 4. However, considering that "Devil Beside You" (DBY), which I thought was even more silly (to the point of being ridiculous) and not as entertaining, has received ratings of between 4 to 4.5, "Smiling Pasta" ought to be rated a 5. But this would be misleading as it isn't perfect, although (in my humble opinion) it is superior to DBY. So I will rate "Smiling Pasta" a 4.5, with the proviso that on its own, it is at most a 4 but in comparison to DBY, it is at least a 4.5.
METEOR GARDEN
The drama broadcasted on CTS April 2001, starring all-new fresh looks actors, Barbie Hsu and the F4 (Jerry Yan, Vic Chou, Vaness Wu, Ken Zhu). Just some info, boyband F4 was formed because of this series.
For convenience sake, I will use the Japanese names for the characters, so pls...read below first to avoid confusions:
Barbie Hsu : Makino Tsukushi = Shan Cai
Jerry Yan : Doumyouji Tsukasa = Dao Ming Si
Vic Chou : Hanazawa Rui = Hua Zhe Lei
Vanness Wu : Mimasaka Akira = Mei Zuo
Ken Zhu : Nishikado Soujirou = Xi Men
Winnie Qian : Toudou Shizuka = Jing
Edward Au : Kazuya = Qing He
Rainie Yeuang : Yuuki = Xiao You
Yip On Ting : Mikako + Sakurako = Li Zhen
Belinda Yip : Asai = Bai He
???? : Ayuhara = Qian Hui
SYNOPSIS
Tsukushi is a poor girl studying in Ying De University, an elite university with rich students in glamorous lifestyle. Tsukushi's parents insist and had worked very hard in order for Tsukushi to be able to study in that university, in the hope that Tsukushi will find a rich husband, thus their status will go up and be accepted in the elite community.
However, Tsukushi feels so uncomfortable studying in that university. She feels disgusted with the glamorous lifestyle of the students and their arrogant attitudes. She only has one close friend in that university, Makiko. A group of guys called the 'F4', holds the power in the university, as their parents are the owners of the university. F4 consists of four guys:
1. Doumyouji Tsukasa: the leader, a high-tempered, selfish and arrogant guy
2. Hanazawa Rui: the most quiet one, a kind-hearted and very cool guy
3. Mimasaka Akira: smiles often (especially to the ladies), and loves older women
4. Nishikado Soujirou: a playboy, 'nuff said^^
However, one day, Makiko accidentally spilled ink on Doumyouji's face. She apologized over and over. But, Doumyouji (note: Doumyouji is actually his surname, but since Tsukushi used to call him with his surname, the readers got used to it too =P The other F4 calls him Tsukasa^^) is enraged and pushes Makiko aside roughly. Tsukushi just can't stand it anymore, so she does the thing she most want to avoid--that is getting into trouble with the F4. She yelled at Doumyouji and the rest of the F4.
The next morning, she got red-tagged, and starting then, lots of bad things happen to her. She got accused of cheating while taking tests, gets locked in a toilet, arms glued to the table then a firecracker blow right in front of her, etc. The next day, Tsukushi got really mad and stuck her own red-tag on Doumyouji's face, then she declares a war to the F4. Doumyouji secretly starts to admire Tsukushi's spirit.
All the while, Tsukushi have always seen Rui as the nicest one among all four, and she is attracted to him. One day, Tsukushi is chased by two men (Doumyouji's men) who wants to rape/scare her, and suddenly Rui comes to the rescue and tells them to let her go. Since this, Tsukushi grows a special feeling for Rui. However, Rui have someone else in his heart.
The next day, Tsukushi gather up her strength to hit Doumyouji on the face, she was really pissed with the last incident. Being smacked that way, Doumyouji is speechless, no one has ever dared enough to do that to him. Since then Doumyouji cannot stop thinking about her and grows feelings for her.
Meanwhile, Rui's first love, Shizuka is back from France. Shizuka has everything a woman could ever want. She's very beautiful, elegant, mature, and very kind-hearted. She's from a wealthy family, she's also a model. She is the F4's childhood friend. She is actually 3 years older than the F4.
However, later, Shizuka decided to throw away everything she has now, wealthiness, title, and even her long hair to become a lawyer in France. At first, Rui was just being quiet, but after Tsukushi supported him and pushed him to go after Shizuka in France, Rui changes his mind and even books a ticket for the next flight to France. Rui kisses Tsukushi's forehead and thanks her. After Rui left, Doumyouji asked Tsukushi out on a date. But, the sound of the plane machine beats Doumyouji's voice, she can't hear him. The next day, Akira and Soujirou are laughing at Doumyouji who's reading a book on dates. Later, Doumyouji only says 3 things to Tsukushi: the day (Sunday), the place and the time, which left Tsukushi's wondering. On Sunday, Tsukushi is shopping with her mother. According to Tsukushi, because Doumyouji was unclear about it, she doesn't have the obligation to go there. Despite the fact that she's reluctant to go to the place, she's very curious too, what does Doumyouji want?
At last, she decided to go and check. It's raining, so she has to take her mother's umbrella, then on the place she see Doumyouji in the middle of the rain, all wet without any umbrella, sitting.....
Up to here, I would have to let you watch the series yourself, because it's just full of surprises and thrilling plotlines^^ I would definitely spoil everything away, if I continue and those who haven't watched it or read it =P
When I watched episode 1, I had absolutely no idea who will Tsukushi end up with! At first, I thought I support Rui because of his kind heart and he's just different than the other F4 members, but then after he said, "If I had known you'll be following me wherever I go, I wouldn't have saved you yesterday". I just got the feeling he's not better than the others, either. And I realized he saved Tsukushi because he JUST felt like doing it.
How 'bout Doumyouji? Just for your information, if I'm Tsukushi I'd be thinking the same thing and feel the same, that is TO HATE HIM!! =P High-tempered, selfish, arrogant, I can't believe there's a main character with so many negative points (and leave a very small space for his positive points)! It's just a little hard to believe, that Tsukushi will end up with this guy. But, as I proceed reading the manga, and get to know more about Doumyouji, I can't think of anyone else in the story that can become my most favorite character!^^ I really didn't expect at all that the real Doumyouji does idiotic/childish things, BAD Japanese vocabulary (in the manga, ironically...he speaks fluent German and Italian =P) and just ridiculous! I mean, indirectly (again, in the manga), he's the clown of the story!!^_^ Kamio Yoko is really an expert in creating solid characters!
REVIEW
So, how was Meteor Garden?
Overall, as a manga adaptation, I have to say it is only average. If it wasn't because of the amazingly faithful storyline (even to the details) to the manga, I wouldn't get through finish watching it^^ I didn't really expect this faithfulness, since I had experienced watching most of Taiwan's wuxia novel adaptations usually to deviate a lot from the novel. So, I was surprised when I know Meteor Garden is like, 90% faithful to the manga.
So, why is it only average, you ask me?
The main factor is the low acting skill of the actors. It's just too bad, most of them acted so stiff. Well, I can understand that they're all new actors, and it feels great to see fresh new looks, it's just that I sometimes can't stand their acting. Well, at least, (and I'm just glad) they didn't over-reacted or exaggerated their expressions^^
As for the so-called F4, well...I expected a lot more than those guys!!^^ In terms of handsomeness, I don't think they're handsome enough to be the 'F4'(aack! are the F4 fans strangling me?!). Moreover, their acting skill are below average.
Jerry Yan as Doumyouji?? 80% or so, thanks to the faithful script^^ The script made Jerry act out the character not far from the way he is in the manga. I laugh at scenes whenever he did those idiotic things, his expression is pretty funny. And, I'm glad the producer casted the most handsome one to be my most favorite character of the story =P However, it's just too bad he's not really a good actor, lacking of a lot of expressions, especially, angry, sad and embarrassed expressions. Oh, yes...by the way, I hate his standing hair! It looks so awful, I was just really glad whenever his hair got wet^^ In the manga, Doumyouji has this curled hair, and whenever it gets wet, the curls will straighten up, when it's dry, it'll curl up again. I guess, Jerry's hair can't curl, so they made that awful standing-hairstyle
Rui is just sooooo-typical Japanese guys character in Japan stories. Cool, quiet and mysterious. And, Vic Chou seems to struggle in doing those serious expressions. I thought Rui would be the easiest part to act, because all the actor has to do is to stay expressionless, but I guess Vic Chou can't do that part well.
I don't have much to complain on Vaness Wu's Akira, he doesn't have much role anyway. He's a playboy that smiles often and he has done that part quite well, but just as the other F4, his acting is below average.
Pretty much the same for Ken Zhu's Soujirou, playboy that smiles often, and usually teases Doumyouji together with Akira. He and Akira are just like, the best pals, and I'm having a hard time to find differences in their characters, because they're soo similar^^ These two even have a nickname, which is 'The Dynamic Duo' ^_^ Ever since Soujirou's love obstacles with Yuuki (Tsukushi's very bestfriend) arise, I'd reeeallly like to see this pair get together!! Apparently, up to vol. 31, there is no development on Soujirou and Yuuki's relationship =( Anyway, I was a little disappointed with his appearance, because Soujirou is supposed to have short hair, wear an earring and do not wear any glasses...
Oh, yes...I like Winnie Qian who played Shizuka, she's just perfect for the character!! (despite her acting not being any better than the others^^)
So, it's not about miscasts really, it's just, the producer only casted on their appearance but not their acting skills, in my opinion...too bad... But, hey...I guess the actors did improve their acting along the series, not much of an improvement...but, not bad!!^^
As for the adaptation script, I REALLY love it! It was 90% stick to the manga. And I really don't mind the changes they made. The changes they did make were, apparently, to make it look more real (since some scenes are just too...well, comic). The script is just perfect. But, sometimes, some (supposedly) funny dialogues goes unfunny...I wonder why.....
One of my favorite changed scene in the drama is where Rui saved Tsukushi who was attacked with garbage, and where Doumyouji pull her arm and Rui immediately also pull her other arm. Thus, Tsukushi is put in the middle of a tug of war. In the manga, Rui should've carried Tsukushi first, then Doumyouji pull her legs, while Rui don't want to let go of her arms, so Doumyouji pulling her legs while Rui holding her arms.
Can you imagine how Barbie Hsu will handle that scene? That's why, I was very satisfied with this changed scene, I think the scene was done very well.
As for the themesongs, I'm not really fond of the opening theme, 'Qin Fei De Yi by Harlem Yu', but I'm crazy over the ENDING themesong!! 'Ni Yao De Ai by Dai Pei Ni' I just love this slow romantic song!! The background musics are okay, few of them are memorable, but some also annoying.
Now, for the differences between the manga and the drama(I'll only mention some of them):
1. In the manga, Tsukushi and F4 were high school students. In the drama, they were university students. Actually, I think being high school students makes F4 look cooler, because they don't wear uniforms, while the other students do, it just shows their power more^^
2. In the manga, Tsukushi has a younger brother named Susumu. In the drama, she's an only child. Although Susumu don't really have any important role, I'm still a little disappointed with this, coz that makes the Makino house less merry. =P
3. In the manga, there are 3 annoying girls who likes to tease Tsukushi: Asai, Ayuhara, and Yamano. There are only 2 in the drama.
4. Apparently, the producer merged Makiko and Sakurako's characters to 'Li Zhen'. Makiko is Tsukushi's only friend in school and she's a sweet girl. Tsukushi meets Sakurako in Shizuka's birthday party, Tsukushi saved Sakurako from a pervert old man. Turns out, Sakurako likes Doumyouji and envies Tsukushi, she slanders Tsukushi with her naked pictures.
5. In the manga, Tsukushi and Kazuya went to Atami (a vacation place, mostly for old people) for their summer holiday, coz Kazuya's parents have a house for holidays there. As a matter of fact, Tsukushi's parents tag along, too (since they insist to =P)! Then, Doumyouji and company came, with his luxurious cruise ship, on the beach. In the drama, Tsukushi's parents do not tag along, and there's only a cruise ship, no vacation place.
6. In the manga, Tsukushi only stand in the corner alone on the cruise party. In the drama, Tsukushi dance with Akira, Soujirou and Rui.
7. In the manga, Doumyouji waited for Tsukushi as it was snowing, so when Tsukushi arrives, he's kinda covered with snow. In the drama, Doumyouji waited for Tsukushi in the rain.
8. In the manga, Doumyouji and Tsukushi are trapped in an elevator. In the drama, Doumyouji and Tsukushi are trapped in an emergency staircase.
The reason why this series ended abruptly is because in Japan itself, the manga is still running. The ending of Meteor Garden probably happened somewhere in the middle of volume 29. The very last one out in Japan was volume 31 and still running on Margaret Comics Magazine up until now since 1992 (Wow!! Such a long story, don't you think?!?).
A little spoiler, the last development on the story, is...Doumyouji gets stabbed in the middle of chaos. When he's up in the hospital, turns out, he can remember all of his friends and family, except his own girlfriend...Tsukushi!!!O_O Heheh...a little ridiculous, don't you think?? Then, a new rival for Tsukushi also appears, her name is Nakajima Umi, a very socialize person, who loves to smile a lot. She is so nice to people, kids and old people that they just love her. However, I grew to hate her, cos she always stops Doumyouji from trying remember too hard...argh! Poor Tsukushi... =(
Anyway, I'm not really enthused with METEOR GARDEN 2, the sequel. Obviously, coz the manga itself has not finished, I assume they will create their own story and ending, and I doubt the plotline will be as solid as Kamio Yoko's. But, we'll see....
METEOR GARDEN as an adaptation AND a self stand-up drama series is very enjoyable to watch, despite the lack of acting skills, because the solid plotline and characterizations over-shadow them, but as for this, of course...the credits goes to (besides the scriptwriter, for being so faithful to the manga^^) Kamio Yoko herself, the manga-ka.
I give it 5 stars for the script, 2 stars for the acting, and 3.5 stars OVERALL!^^ I really recommend you to watch this series for your entertainment!
HI MY SWEETHEART
Ranie Yang as :chen Bao zhu
Show Luo: Da lang/xua hai
Meeting sweetheart for the first time, innocent & pure little boy becomes an adult and turns into a Shanghai Prince! Meeting sweetheart for the second time, he wants her to pay the price for taking his innocence!
Show Luo plays Hsueh Ha(fake name: Da Lang). This innocent & pure little boy experiences the taste of love for the first time, but he suffers heartbreak, and turns into an arrogant Shanghai Prince! But when he meets her again, no matter how much he wants to torture her, he cant stop his love for her. So whose fault is this really?
Rainie Yang plays Chen Bao Zhu. She falls in love with the shy poor little boy but fate separates them. When they meet again, she realizes he's turned into a nasty man. Should she steer clear of him or fall in love with him?[/FONT][/COLOR]
Taiwan’s wealthy son (also known as Da Lang) heads to Hang Zhou to study. When his classmates bully him, senior Bao Zhu lends a helping hand, and the 2 begin their first relationship. One day, Taiwan’s advertising firm comes to the school to hold a ‘Queen Sweetheart’ competition. Bao Zhu wins first place, and from then on, everyone calls her ‘sweetheart’. However, Sweetheart’s father suddenly goes bankrupt, and he abandons her and her mother. Sweetheart has no choice but to move back to Taiwan with her mother, and due to a misunderstanding, she loses contact with Da Lang.
After being abandoned, Da Lang turns into a playboy, until one day he sees her ‘Sweetheart’s Time’ show on TV. Da Lang buys the TV station, and thus begins his revenge plan on Sweetheart. However, when he sees Sweetheart go on a date with another guy, Da Lang realizes that he is still deeply in love with her, hence he decides to pursue her again. At this time, Sweetheart’s mother discovers that Da Lang’s older sister was actually Sweetheart’s father’s first love, and hence she strongly opposes their relationship, and the 2’s love heads into turmoil.
IT STARTED WITH A KISS
Chinese Title: "E Zuo Ju Zhi Wen"
Cast:
Ariel Lin (Lin Yi Chen): Yuan Xiang Qin
Joe Cheng: Jian Zhi Shu
Jiro Wang: Ah Jin
Tiffany Xu: Pei Zi Yu
Jason: Wang Hao Qian
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"It Started With a Kiss" boasts an impressive cast with Ariel Lin Yi Chen and Joe Cheng, two very famous and popular Taiwan actors. The storyline is full of spice and pizzaz, with lots of humour and funny scenes. Many of the interactions between Joe and Ariel are very cute, very sweet. When I first started watching this drama, it was just because I was bored. I had just finished a really sad series and wasn't ready for anything tearjerking or devastating. "It Started with a Kiss" swept me right off my feet! It was so funny and charming! The first episode started out fast, and only got faster to my great delight! By the time I had finished all 3 of the first episodes, it was already 3 AM in the morning and I had to reluctantly drag myself to bed. It didn't stop me from getting up a mere 5 hours later to watch more of it though, and the pattern went on for a few more days, and before I knew it, I had finished the entire 20 episode drama in less than 4 days! In fact, whenever I'm bored, I like to get out the DVDs and watch my favorite episodes again and again.
Storyline
Spoilers!! Be prepared, this is long!
"It Started With A Kiss" is about Yuan Xiang Qin (Ariel) who is in high school and although unintelligent, is very outgoing and confident. She has been in love with a smart A class student, Jiang Zhi Shu (Joe) since her freshman year of high school. The sad thing is that he is a classified genius with an IQ of 200 and the two are worlds apart. The drama starts out on the worst day of Xiang Qin's life. She gives Zhi Shu a letter professing her love for him but he cruelly rejects her with "I do not date stupid girls." That day, she goes home to her brand new house where she will be living with her dad only to have it totally collapse during a level 2 earthquake. Sad? It gets worse! Uncle and Auntie Li, her dad's good high school friends, want to repay him for introducing the two of them so long ago and offer them a place to stay. Xiang Qin is reluctant to intrude on a stranger's home, but ends up with the surprise of her life when Zhi Shu turns out to be their oldest son! The two of them will be sleeping across the hallway from each other and living in the same house!
Zhi Shu himself is pretty cold to her, but that doesn't stop her from liking him. He forbids her to tell anyone about living at his house to avoid rumors and she retaliates by blackmailing him with pictures of him dressed as a girl when he was younger. Her proposition? He must tutor her for 2 weeks straight so that she can become the first person from F Class to make it on the top 100 list for exam scores. She ends up making the list as the 100th person and Zhi Shu holds first place (again). High school is slowly drawing to a close and soon everybody is having their graduation parties. Zhi Shu's class and Xiang Qin's class both end up having their parties at the same place, but in different rooms. That night, an angry Xiang Qin shows his whole class the picture of him dressed as a girl. He drags her to a quiet corridor and yells at her. She tells him she will find a guy 1000 times better than him at college and he dares her to go right away. She is about to say that of course she can, but he leans down abruptly and kisses her!
In college, Pei Zi Yu (Tiffany) who is beautiful and intelligent, falls in love with Zhi Shu. The two of them join the tennis club. Ziang Qin also signs up, even though she doesn't play tennis, to be close to Zhi Shu. At Tennis Camp, Zhi Shu makes a bet with Wang Hao Qian (Jason) that if he can't train Xiang Qin to play, he must dress up in woman's clothing and walk around the tennis court where all can see him. Xiang Qin is determined to learn so that he can win the bet. The night before the competition, she injures her ankle while following him around. At the competition, after returning Hao Qian's hit, she lands on her ankle and can't get back up. Zhi Shu carries her home. The scene is very sweet because Zhi Shu gives her a piggy back ride while they walk all around Taipei for 20 something minutes.
While fighting with his parents, Zhi Shu gets mad and moves away to his own apartment. Zi Yu, in order to be close to him, applies for work at the same place he does and gets accepted. To prevent Zi Yu from getting her man, Xiang Qin goes to his restaurant every single night and orders coffee after coffee until it closes down. One night, she goes on a date with another boy (who ends up dating Zi Yu's younger sister later) to make Zhi Shu jealous. Ah Jin, who has loved her since they were young, and the other guy get into an all out brawl that Zhi Shu has to break up. He tells them that Xiang Qin only likes him, so they should forget about everything, and then leaves the restaurant with Xiang Qin. Because it is raining and his parents aren't available to take her home, the two end up spending the night at his house, and on his bed.
One night, while Zhi Shu's parents and Xiang's Qin's dad is on vacation and out of town, Yu Shu (the younger brother, don't get lost now) gets appendicitis and barfs all over the floor. She doesn't know what to do, so she calls Zhi Shu and they take him to the hospital. Xiang Qin, blaming herself for Yu Shu's sickness, refuses to go home until he wakes up. She falls asleep on one of the chairs, and Zhi Shu kisses her because he thinks she is a hardworking, adorable idiot! Yu Shu woke up and saw the kiss.
Zhi Shu's dad wants him to take over the company after he retires, but Zhi Shu only wants to be a doctor. His father gets so mad that he suffers a heart attack. Zhi Shu (again) goes to work at the company because it is slowly losing money and tries to save it. The only way is to marry the granddaughter of Da Qao, a company that is about 10 times more successful than his own. The girl is very sweet and pretty, and Zhi Shu even tells his mom that he really likes her. Xiang Qin is heartbroken and turns to Ah Jin for comfort. Zhi Shu is now engaged to Hui Lan, and Ah Jin is about to propose to Xiang Qin, too! When he finds out, Zhi Shu is devastated and breaks off his own engagement to be with her. He runs all over town to find Xiang Qin, worried that she will accept Ah Jin's proposal. They share a beautiful kiss in the rain. The two of them are now going to be married. Thinking quickly, Xiang Qin begs Da Qao to help their company even though Zhi Shu broke off the engagement. With Hui Lan's blessing, the company is saved and the wedding is underway.
Comments:
This whole drama was so cute and endearing. It was sweet and sends out the message of never giving up. Love may seem impossible between the two: a cool, smart guy and a clumsy, unattractive girl. They live in two different worlds, but their hearts still reach out to each other.
I gave it a 4.5 because I felt the romance took too long to unfold. Zhi Shu was always finding ways to be sweet to her and help her, but he was also being cold towards her at the same time. The last two episodes were so sweet though because he wasn't afraid to show his love for her anymore. What more did he have to lose?
The Cast:
I enjoyed the work of the main and supporting cast very much. They all had great onsreen chemistry with each other.
Ariel Lin was wonderful as Xiang Qin. Ariel is beautiful, but in this series she is supposed to be an unintelligent, unattractive girl. She was crafty (although her plans never worked) and she was hardworking and never gave up. You end up falling in love with her, even though she doesn't know any Chinese Philosophy and sometimes is too blind to see just how much Zhi Shu loves her. The fact that she kept loving him even when she thought it was pointless was impressive.
Joe Cheng is the funniest, most adorable actor ever. In his role as Zhi Shu, he was cold and distant. He always had on an annoyed face when Xiang Qin was near, but whenever she wasn't looking, the looks he sent her were loving and painful. He was totally devastated when he couldn't be with Xiang Qin. He knew he had to pay his duty to the family by marrying Hui Lan and tried his best to be a gentleman towards her, but there was no spark between them. The moment he realized that the one he loved was Xiang Qin, who he had loved for years and years now, he immediately left Hui Lan and went out into the night to look for her. The scene was so adorable!
His parents were so funny, also. His mom, Auntie, was always trying to bring the two together. Every chance she got, she would take pictures of the two, or film them sleeping together. The dad was trying to pave an easy road for his son. He wanted him to be successful and happy in life, even though he didn't know how much Zhi Shu hated company work.
Ah Cai was a sweet dad. He supported Xiang Qin in her love for Zhi Shu and never tried to make her forget him or anything. He tried to give her a good life after her mom passed away, and is very comical to watch because his moustache is hilarious!
Xiang Qin's two best friends are so funny! One of them wears a wig of fluffy hair all the time after she enters college to look more sophisticated and does the funniest things! The other friend is cute and has a voice that sounds like Rainie Yang. I LOVED listening to her talk because her voice was just so cool!
Jiro Wang does ridiculous things in his love for Xiang Qin. As Ah Jin, he was cute and sweet toward her, always telling Zhi Shu that he was blind for not seeing how great she is. The scene where she rejects his proposal and walks out is so sad because he sits there and does the greatest male crying scene I have seen in forever! He's such a great crier, and still manages to look pained and pitiful even without ruining his bad boy image!
Tiffany Xu is the girl, who for awhile is the antagonist - Pei Zi Yu. She is pretty and she knows it. What she doesn't know is that the reason Zhi Shu never pays attention to her is because he already loves Xiang Qin. In the end, she tries to help Xiang Qin break up Zhi Shu and Hui Lan. She turns out to be a loyal and supportive friend. She's sassy and smart-mouthed and always has something snide to say, but if you were one of her friends, she was going to stick by you no matter what!
Favorite Scenes:
-Any of the scenes where Zhi Shu brings his face really close to Xiang Qin's. She always starts to hyperventilate because of the closeness, while he smirks at her reactions.
-The kiss scenes: there are 6 main ones and about 5 others that don't get a lot of fame because they are short.
-The wedding ceremony between Zhi Shu and Xiang Qin. You'll never guess what they are wearing!
-When they are filming the wedding video. The couple is so adorable sitting on that couch talking about their relationship!
-The times when they spoofed "The Rose" and "The Leaf" MV. Good god, I couldn't stop laughing at how hilarious they were!
-Zhi Shu giving her a piggy back ride home from the tennis competition
-The mom filming them sleeping together. She thinks they're asleep, but Zhi Shu is awake listening to her the whole time.
-When he sneaks off from the company Christmas party to be with Xiang Qin. They order KFC and she gives him a present!
-When Xiang Qin spends the night at his apartment. She keeps kicking his butt and stuff in her sleep!
-On the couple's first date, they fell into the lake and just as they were out of the water, he fell and pulled her back in!
-The two end up going to a hotel to shower and dry off, and she gives him a hug from behind.
-When he leaves Hui Lan's side because he realizes that the one he has loved for so long is Xiang Qing. He runs around in the rain to look for her.
-The morning when he is about to take an entrance exam, he feels sick and takes some pills only to find out they make you drowsy. She rushes over to his side of the table and tries to stick her fingers down his throat to make him throw up the pills!
-When she faints, right before the entrance exam, he carries her to the hospital and stays with her even though it means that he misses his exam!
-On his birthday, she leaves him a big present outside of his apartment, only to find out that he has moved back home. When he found out, he rushed to his old apartment to get it before someone else takes it.
-The mom takes a picture of the two sleeping together and her friends accidentally find it. They set it to background on every computer in the school, and Zhi Shu rushes to her class to find it. He bysteps every single person and flies to the door, only to stop right outside and fix his hair and clothes to make it look like he hadn't been running (no doubt because Xiang Qin was going to take in his appearance).
Ok, ok, you get the deal. I love just about every single scene that was in this drama!
Have I got you hooked yet? Do you feel like you should check out this drama? I promise that it'll certainly make an impression on you. A lovable, unforgettable 20-episodes drama about never giving up on love and how powerful it can be - it's not something you see every day!
FATED TO LOVE YOU
Fated to Love You
FATED TO LOVE YOU
Title: Fated to Love You a.k.a. Sticky Note Girl a.k.a. 命中注定我愛你 a.k.a. Ming Zhong Zhu Ding Wo Ai Ni
Genre: Romance / Comedy
Synopsis (Warning - movie spoilers)
Chen QiaoEn's character in the drama is in the beginning, inconspicious and not given any respect from her peers and colleagues; however, her story of finding love is the dream of any ordinary girl. Chen QiaoEn has a very ordinary name in the drama, Xin Yi. She is plain, simple, law-abiding, wishes are simple, has never been a somebody and has never aspired to be a somebody. One day, in order to win back her philandering boyfriend, Gucci (Patrick Li), she splurged on a love cruise and ponders how to lose her virginity. A really unfashionable working class girl Chen Xin Yi has the desire to tie down her handsome boyfriend to be with her. Xin Yi got dizzy from her flu medicine and went into Ji Chun Xi (Ethan Ruan)'s room.
Chun Xi is the sole male heir to his family's company. He was every girl’s prince charming, rich and handsome, young and capable. He is in love with his girlfriend, Anna (Bianca Bai), for a long time. He planned to propose to Anna on the boat but she didn't turn up on the cruise. An island owner added drugs into Chun Xi's drink, and Chun Xi became disorientated and returned to his own room. Xin Yi and Chun Xi end up having a one night stand.
Chen QiaoEn's character in the drama is in the beginning, inconspicious and not given any respect from her peers and colleagues; however, her story of finding love is the dream of any ordinary girl. Chen QiaoEn has a very ordinary name in the drama, Xin Yi. She is plain, simple, law-abiding, wishes are simple, has never been a somebody and has never aspired to be a somebody. One day, in order to win back her philandering boyfriend, Gucci (Patrick Li), she splurged on a love cruise and ponders how to lose her virginity. A really unfashionable working class girl Chen Xin Yi has the desire to tie down her handsome boyfriend to be with her. Xin Yi got dizzy from her flu medicine and went into Ji Chun Xi (Ethan Ruan)'s room.
Chun Xi is the sole male heir to his family's company. He was every girl’s prince charming, rich and handsome, young and capable. He is in love with his girlfriend, Anna (Bianca Bai), for a long time. He planned to propose to Anna on the boat but she didn't turn up on the cruise. An island owner added drugs into Chun Xi's drink, and Chun Xi became disorientated and returned to his own room. Xin Yi and Chun Xi end up having a one night stand.
One month later, Xin Yi saw her pregnancy test results. A twenty-five years old staff at a law firm had to bear a debt of two hundred thousand dollars and was carrying the child of an unknown man. She took a one month’s leave from her company and prepared to return to her hometown to consider what she should do.
Eventually, Chun Xi finds out about Xin Yi's pregnancy. Chun Xi's grandma forces Chun Xi to marry Xin Yi by threatening to call his girlfriend, Anna, so Chun Xi has no choice but to marry Xin Yi. But Chun Xi discovered that he could not face the fact of his marriage and couldn’t decide whether to run away at the last minute or pluck up the courage to take responsibility. At this time, he discovered that they must date and romance under his granny’s request.
Chun Xi, without his granny’s knowledge, secretly signed a pre-marriage contract with Xin Yi which states that they would divorce after the baby is born. Chun Xi promised to give Xin Yi a sum of money and after that they would have nothing to do with each other. Xin Yi agreed after careful consideration for the sake of her baby. Chun Xi’s plan was that, after the baby is born and Anna returns back after her tour completed, he and Xin Yi’s contract would be due and he can resume his relationship with Anna.The unknowing Xin Yi moved into Chun Xi’s house and began to learn to get along with Chun Xi. The two strangers, from being unable to adapt initially, learned to get used to each other.
At the very beginning, Xin Yi meets Dylan, who is a popular artist. Xin Yi, thinking that he is poor, has shown him warmness that he has never gotten. When Dylan learns of her one night stand and the trouble that she has gone through, he feels pity for her. His friendship with Xin Yi causes Chun Xi to start feeling jealously.
When they thought that they are happy, Anna who had been kept in the dark returned. Chun Xi never thought that his unresolved relationship with Anna would hurt Xin Yi, who disappeared after leaving behind a divorce agreement. He had thought that this would be the best ending, but Xin Yi had unknowingly captured his heart. He vowed that if he can find Xin Yi again, he would start over and pursue her; and this time it would not be the way a father treats the mother of his child, but as a man treats a woman…
Credits to Caja's Blogger
Casts
Chen Qiao En as Chen Xin Yi
Ethan Ruan as Ji Chun Xi
Baron Chen as Dylan
Bianca Bai as Anna
Na Wei Xun as Anson
Chen Wei Min as Wu Qi Qi
Luo Bei An as Wu Lu Lu
Tan Ai Zhen as Ji Wang Zhen Zhu
Tian Jia Da as Ji Zheng Ren
Wang Juan as Ji Liu Xiu Ling
Yan Jia Le as Rebecca
Patrick Li as Gucci
Lin Mei Xiu as Lin Xi Shi
Song Xin Ni as Qing Xia
Zhong Xin Ling as Feng Jiao
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