Despite the dated clothes, hair, slang and technology of this 2001 drama, you can feel the star power of the main cast and can believe that this was a drama that took Asia by storm when it originally aired. It stars Barbie Hsu, Jerry Yan and Vic Chou as the main leads and has a fairly good supporting cast.

It's a classic soapy story: a poor girl stands up to a group of rich and powerful boys at her school and they become enemies. Over time, it turns to love. There's a prominent love triangle, dramatic basketball, kidnapping, attempted rape, a rich and evil mother, the female lead works multiple jobs and at one point becomes homeless, and there's even several dramatic makeover scenes. All in all, it's basically a bunch of tropes in a trench coat calling itself a drama. BUT there is some magic to Meteor Garden, because beneath all of it there is some actual raw emotion. I think that's mostly thanks to the leads (particularly Jerry Yan, who has some truly excellent scenes), but the drama isn't hindered by any of the rest of the cast.

I think that the drama is elevated by the way the female lead is written. Her inner monologues and dilemmas are so relatable, and her inner thoughts are a lot of softer than her outer actions, which I think makes her more compelling as a character. In other versions we just see the outer actions of the female lead, but in Meteor Garden we can watch her start to fall in love with Daoming Si and struggle with those feelings. Jerry Yan also does great work as Daoming Si, managing to convey the sweetness and childlike quality of the character as well as the angry and foolish parts. At the end of the day there's just something so lovable about him that you can sympathize with him even when he's being an idiot, and you can actually understand why Shancai comes to care about him.

Jerry Yan and Barbie Hsu have great chemistry. Their kiss scenes are great, as well as their fighting and teasing conversations. Despite the high drama of the script, there's a natural warmth between them, which I think helps to ground (or at least centre) the drama emotionally.

Obviously, the drama has problems. The first issue is Doaming Si's violent action toward Shancai on two occasions: the forced kiss in the stairwell and the slap later on in the show. Both of these are inexcusable, and it's a great example of the way that violence toward women is depicted as just a 'rough patch' in a romantic relationship, rather than an unacceptable action. The double standard here is clear: if another man forcibly kissed or slapped Shancai, there would be outrage that he was a bastard, but because it's Daoming Si that does it, it's just an emotional low and dramatic high. It becomes more representative of the work they both need to put in to the relationship, rather than demonstrative of an intrinsic problem in Daoming Si's personality (which is what it should be). In no way do I condone or enjoy these scenes, and they do detract from the show for me.

There are other problems: the plot can feel repetitive, the dramatic tensions contrived, Lei is fairly flat and bland as the second male lead, but we're not really watching for any of that, are we? If you wanted a tightly paced and logical drama you have come to the wrong place. The plot is vehicle for romantic character moments and nothing more. If there are gaps or repetitions... well, you can look forward to another kiss scene or dramatic monologue in the rain, can't you?

I've rated this drama higher than it probably deserves, but I can't bear to make it any lower. As an example of a classic soapy drama, there's nothing better, and the sheer power and scope of the romance can be felt even twenty years later. It may be dated and flawed, but it has an earnestly emotional heart that makes many of the other adaptations feel bland and lifeless.

Greatest Weakness: The dated attitude toward violence in relationships
Greatest Strength: The ultra high drama romance between Doaming Si and Shancai