HYD Battle Royale!
At the rate it's going (which is about one new adaptation/season of HYD per year for the past seven-ish years?) Hana Yori Dango might eventually have the dubious honour of being the manga series with the greatest number of adaptations. And thus, there are lots of heated fangirl debates about which is the best version and who are the hottest F4, blah blah blah, so on, so forth.
Well I'm breaking the pattern and putting the emphasis on Makino instead. HA! I have lots of really strong-but-dumb opinions that I feel compelled to dump somewhere.
.... which is really just me bitching about how much I came to dislike Korea's interpretation of Makino, and here's why!!! They turned bulldozer-Makino into nothing but a weepy mess who was incapable of doing anything for herself, so yeah. I'm annoyed.
I made a quick comparison chart with just the "main characters" because I'm lazy \o/ S-Sorry, Oneesan...
Meteor Garden Opening || Hana Yori Dango Opening || Boys Before Flowers Opening || Meteor Shower Opening
False promises of great prizes to those who can figure out which F4 member is which! And I included the necklaces because I lol'ed at China's combo-breaking Grandma's Pearl Necklace. O China, trying so hard to be unique, it's adorable. Also, apparently the Phillipines are looking into having their own production of the show too orz THIS CHART IS WIDE ENOUGH AS IS!!!
And for those who like the F4 better than Makino (which is probably 90% of the fandom. Except for Akira who gets shafted all the time, poor Akira), have a really awesome HYD F4 vs BBF F4 MV that someone made. Otherwise I am not going to comment on the F4 because they're not my ~*specialty*~ and this is going to be too long as it is!
Disclaimer
Just to make it clear: despite all appearances, I am not actually a huge fan of the Hana Yori Dango franchise. I really loved the JDrama because it's a lot of fun and the actors were great! But overall, I think HYD (especially the manga) is kind of a mediocre series at best and it's certainly my least favourite of the three canons I play from.
"But then why did you watch THREE DIFFERENT drama adaptations of the series AND take a stab at the manga??"
Because I'm dumb. When I like something as much as I liked the JDrama series, I tend to want to watch/read all the different versions I can find in hopes that they'll be just as good. This worked out well for Nodame Cantabile and Sekai no Chuushin de Ai wo Sakebu. It..... didn't work out so well for HYD.
That being said, my affection for Makino as a character has grown immensely since I picked her up in camp, which is probably why I'm so indignant about Korea's treatment of the character. Hence this ridiculously long essaying.
Let's Start With A Timeline!
Manga --> CD Drama --> Anime --> JMovie --> TWDrama (Meteor Garden I & II) --> JDrama (Hana Yori Dango/Returns/Final) --> KDrama (Boys Before Flowers) --> CDrama (Meteor Shower)
... which is all well and good, but this is my progression with the series:
1) I begrudgingly start watching the JDrama when it came out in 2005 because of my huge and embarrassing fangirl crush on MatsuJun. I go a little ga-ga for it ♥
2) After hearing announcements about a second season for the JDrama, I become impatient and turn to the Manga Series. Scanlators who have a habit of leaving speech bubbles blank quickly put an end to this attempt.
3) HYD Returns starts airing! Phwee! BUT IT'S NOT AIRING FAST ENOUGH!!! So I start watching Taiwan's Meteor Garden to tide me over between new episodes. Eventually, I get bored of it.
4) HYD2 ends and I am satisfied and pray to the TV gods that they won't come out with a third season because I am so not watching it! I can't take anymore break-ups/make-ups!
5) ... TBS announces the HYD Final movie. I reason with myself that it's not technically a third season, so I can watch it with good conscience!
6) STUPID MOVIE THAT I LOVE does a pretty good job of character assassination on Makino orz. A-At least it had some nice cute and fuzzy moments ;o;
7) Korea announces their own television production of HYD, known as Boys Before Flowers! I am excited! It starts airing! I am still excited! Except I don't like how Makino's portrayed... but it'll grow on me! And it's pretty funny! And charming!
... wait, why is it starting to suck D:
8) While mutually ranting about the crap-bucket that is Boys Before Flowers, a friend convinces me to give the manga and TWDrama another try because she prefers them to the JDrama and KDrama. I try! Valiantly! And do my best not to fall asleep. ANOTHER TIME.
9) I finish watching the KDrama and decide that I hate it with a burning passion (although Korean!Hanazawa Rui can stay ♥)
9) China announces Meteor Shower! Because Taiwan is just not cool enough for China. I decide to give it a wide berth because I AM SICK OF HANA YORI DANGO BY THIS POINT. Scratch that, it looks hilariously bad. I am totally watching it for the lulz.
10) I finally finish Meteor Garden two years after I started! I deserve cookies for this or something :|a I AM NEVER TOUCHING METEOR GARDEN II EVER EVER EVER.
I never watched the anime because LOL HORRIBLE ART. I also have zero interest in the old JMovie because I'm lazy.
And the Final Tally Is...?
Japan >>> Taiwan >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Korea
(Dunno where China fits in there yet because I am too lazy to watch it at the moment.)
Why?
Budget/Appearance: Without a doubt, Korea is the clear winner. The show and settings look gorgeous, glamorous, and expensive and they blew a lot of money flying the cast around to exotic locations. They also did a heck of a lot of product placement of luxurious items so that all the crazy Korea-fangirls would spend a lot of cash on stuff. Japan didn't do too badly, it just didn't have that kind of grand opulence that Korea did. Taiwan looked downright amateur in comparison with its crappy lighting, crappy camera work, crappy set design, and crappy wardrobe. I honestly would never have looked at the F4 and thought "Wow, I bet those guys are rich!"
Writing: Japan by a longshot. I know it was severely truncated in comparison to the manga, but the first season took all the best parts and melded it together into a streamlined and cohesive storyline! Season 2 wasn't quite as solid, but was still handled fairly well for the most part. Taiwan comes in second because they were so incredibly faithful to the manga! Unfortunately, with that comes the pacing problems and the really awful storylines like "DOMYOJI'S COUSIN WHO ISN'T REALLY DOMYOJI'S COUSIN TRYING TO STEAL MAKINO'S AFFECTIONS FOR HIMSELF" and "LOL LET'S DRAG OUT THAT AMNESIA ARC FOR A WHOLE SEASON 'KAY? :Db". Barf. Korea started out as funny and charming but still with a very serious undertone to it (the violence was sometimes excruciating to watch)! And then. The writer went on crack or something, I have no idea what happened. The plotlines and characterization all went to hell after the midpoint, and I went from liking my OTP reasonably well to DESPISING THEM WITH ALL MY SOUL and loving Hanazawa Rui madly instead.
Music: Japan's victory! If we're talking about opening themes alone (see: above the chart!), I honestly think they're all pretty comparable, being the sugary-sweet pop songs that they are. But HYD wins because it has quite an impressive collection of really great background music, and even if hearing the two insert songs every single episode drove me a little nuts at times, I had some pretty nice orchestral music to soothe me. Taiwan's music didn't strike me as anything special; the only time I really noticed it was when they played instrumental arrangements of the opening and ending themes, which they did a lot, but it didn't annoy me as much as it might have. Korea's music drove me ABSOLUTELY BONKERS. They cycled through the same five goddamn K-pop songs - which they would then switch for the next five K-pop songs ten episodes down the line - most of which COMPLETELY RUINED THE MOOD of the scene. I mean, there's supposed to be this tense and emotionally charged car race between Domyoji and Rui (... d-don't even ask) and suddenly-- "ALMOST PAAAAARADIIIIIIIISE~~~~~".
Acting Ability: I'll admit this is a little unfair because sometimes the actors were saddled with crazy-craziness (I'm looking at you Korea!!!), but I think Japan wins this one too based on Domyoji and Makino alone. They both brought a lot of charisma and energy to their characters, and the other F4 members were able to channel a lot of charm and personality into their roles as well! And I really came to appreciate MatsuJun's portrayal of Domyoji even more because he managed to make Domyoji seem a little unhinged but still mostly likable! Jerry Yan's Dao Ming Si had all the charisma of a wet paper towel, and to be frank he wasn't a very convincing actor at the time. Lee Min Ho had a good handle on Go Jun Pyo and might have given MatsuJun's Domyoji a run for his money if the writer wasn't stark-raving mad. Makino's actresses get a whole huge spiel dedicated to them below! I honestly liked all three Hanazawa Rui's, they all fit the role in their own way and played the material fairly well. All three Soujirou's were comparably good as well, though Korea got saddled with ridiculous storylines and Taiwan's just had horrible hair and glasses and I am shallow mmkay? Japan's Akira wins by a mile for actually having a personality and for macking on older women. Taiwan's was nice but rarely did more than fuss with his hair during dramatic scenes and look concerned. Korea's just uttered "YO YO YO MY BRUTHA, WAZZUP?!" every few episodes to remind people he existed.
F4's Attractiveness: Even with my horrible bias, I can admit that Korea wins this one. And I can base that on Lee Min Ho as Domyoji alone because he is tall and gorgeous and carried off the Domyoji persona really well at first, while his F4 crew are pretty easy on the eyes too (though Rui looked a million times better once he cut his hair). I think.... Taiwan kind of comes in second place because they are TALL and MANLY, even if their hairstyles and wardrobes suck. JAPAN'S F4 IS THE F4 OF MY HEART and they really grew on me! But my first reaction to them wasn't exactly "MAN THEY ARE SO GOOD-LOOKING". Meanwhile, China's F4 is all kinds of awkward, I can't even... pfffft. I don't know. They might grow on me if I ever watch the series.
Makino's Plain-ness: Because the Tough Weed can't be prettier than the Flower Four, okay? Japan wins this one, which isn't to say Inoue Mao is ugly, she's actually very pretty! But the make-up/wardrobe department really did their best to downplay that and made her look as normal and plain as possible. Taiwan's Shan Cai comes in second because even though she's kind of gorgeous, they didn't emphasize it too much and stuck her in very normal clothing. Korea's Jan Di is actually kind of cutely quirky-looking, but some of the make-up/wardrobe choices sometimes just made her seem more kooky than normal. China's Chu Yuxun is exceedingly pretty, but thaaat's about all I know.
Obviously the manga is like "the bible" of the whole franchise, but I think the Jdrama did a really good job of condensing, distilling, and streamlining the story while making a pretty high quality production. THAT AND IT HAS MATSUJUN IN IT, UHUHUHUHU~ Also, don't get me wrong; the JDrama and their version of Makino may be my favourite, but rather than it being a matter of "THE JDRAMA IS THE BEST!!!!", it really comes down to personal preference.
But if you like the Korean drama BEST OF ALL, I am totally sitting here and judging you :|
"ALL ABOUT MAKINO" STARTS HERE!!!!
Eitoku
Makino is "forced" to attend Eitoku in the manga and TWDrama by her family. JDrama's Makino initially wants to attend the school but quickly becomes disillusioned with how the place is run. KDrama's Jan Di is offered the opportunity to attend for free and the use of swimming facilities to fulfill her dream of being an Olympic swimmer! (Which.... lol she almost drowns in about two feet of water at least twice in this series. Her SWIMMING DREAM!!!1!1 is the most inconsequential thing ever, and then her dream is later SHATTERED because she was hit with a chair and then REFUSED TO GO TO THE DOCTOR. So. Can you tell I don't like or respect KDrama's Jan Di very much?) CDrama's Chu Yuxun seems excited about getting into her school. WE'LL SEE.
Family Relationship
For the most part, Makino's relationship with her family and her reasons for attending Eitoku are very closely tied. In all versions, the reason she remains at this uppity school and endures the bullying and ridicule is because of her family.
I adore JDrama Makino's family. They're kind of kooky, but they're sweetly endearing and supportive of Makino and play dumb games at dinner to help them save money for her tuition. She does get exasperated with them a lot, but she's also incredibly appreciative of what they're sacrificing for he because she was the one who originally wanted to attend Eitoku because of it's reputation - because she had ambition - and now her family is scrimping and saving pennies to make this happen. It's easy to tell that she loves them dearly and continues attending Eitoku when she finds out what a sham it is because she A) can't bear to let them down and B) wants to succeed so she can eventually earn her way to getting a better life for them all. Don't get me wrong, I thought it was kind of dumb in season 2 when she went "Hay guys, give me all your money so I can do another four years at Eitoku in the law program :DDD" because... really? She couldn't have found a cheaper school to go to? But they rallied behind her because this was what she wanted to do and they're actually very proud (and like the social implications) of having a daughter who managed to get into the private and prestigiousEitoku, BUT DON'T FORGET ABOUT FINDING A RICH HUSBAND OKAY, LIKE DOMYOJI-SAMA :DDDDDD YAY MARRYING RICH!!! \o/
In the Manga, the family is made up of the same members, but they're really overbearing about Makino going to Eitoku and finding some rich guy to marry. As far as I can remember, she had no desire to attend the school herself but was usually shouted down by her mother whenever she even brought up mention of leaving. I don't remember being very impressed with her family, and found them to be annoyingly selfish and inept, as her parents are so far from being responsible or capable of ANYTHING resembling adult behaviour. I was honestly disappointed that I didn't love them as much as I did their JDrama counterparts, but they were fairly one-dimensional in comparison and were certainly not the focus of the series at all.
Meteor Garden makes Shan Cai an only child, but her parents are incredibly faithful adaptations of their manga counterparts. Mama is especially loud, shrill, and extra annoying. Papa is a sad-sack that has to listen to Mama's every command. Shan Cai mostly yells and argues with her mother a lot about having to attend the university. Again, faithful to the manga! I do think that the missing younger brother does change the dynamics a little, and sometimes it really does come across like Mama is pretty much willing to sell off her own daughter to get where she wants to be.
Boys Before Flowers had the Geum family as the owners of a laundromat service, and they seemed kind of like the stock Overbearing Korean Mother, Sad-Sack But Sweet Korean Father, and Snarky But Adorable Younger Brother. They were cute and Jan Di's dad was especially sweet at times, although they were just as adamant about OMG FIND A RICH GUY TO MARRY!!! They were also the most affluent incarnation of the family, having their own business and luxuries like a van, a tv, a laptop! Which isn't to say that they were well-off by any means, but certainly living comfortably, and they're very happy and tight-knit. Jan Di comes by the opportunity to attend Eitoku when she goes to deliver drycleaning to some poor kid who's trying to jump off the roof, bleeding from an open wound on his face. A-And she's all "HEY! HEY! YOU HAVE TO PAY ME FOR THIS!" before she clues in that, y'know, he's trying to commit suicide. And then she has the gall to tell the kid that her life is harder because she's working and taking high school exams. WHILE THIS KID HAS OBVIOUSLY BEEN BEAT WITHIN AN INCH OF HIS LIFE AND IS SERIOUSLY CONTEMPLATING ENDING IT.
(An addendum: it may be me overreacting, but I was horrified when I was watching this. I know it's kind of comparable to JDrama!Makino shouting down that old man from the cliff, but to be fair she was trying to gently convince him back from the edge before launching into her rant of "IT'S MY BUSINESS IF YOU JUMP BECAUSE I HAVE TO WITNESS IT AND THAT IS PRETTY DAMN TRAUMATIZING, AND MAN YOU HAVE NICE CLOTHES YOUR LIFE CAN'T BE THAT BAD! MY FAMILY IS EATING NOTHING BUT SEAWEED EVERYDAY--- WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING AT ME!?". She had also lost a lot at this point: her whole family had to leave Tokyo to move to some tiny fishing village (even though her dad suffers from violent seasickness) and she had to crush Domyoji's heart (and her own) FOR THE SAKE OF JAPAN'S ECONOMY LOL!!!! just when things were going well. So even though it was played for laughs, it had a more weight behind it than Jan Di just going "WELL I HAVE TO WORK AND STUDY SO MY REAL WORLD IS SO MUCH TOUGHER THAN YOURS.... oh wait, is that blood? .... heeeeey, why are you standing on the edge of the building like that? :|a")
... but to make a long story short, she grabs the kid just as he jumps off the building and saves his life. And apparently the only way to clear up this scandal is to extend an invitation for her to attend the school for free. And she gets to use this gorgeous pool that no one else ever uses! Because she's aspiring to be an Olympic swimmer, you see. Obviously her whole family jumps on that. Free education! At a top notch private high school! Who could turn it down? Her family bullies her into going while she whines about a set-up that means free education and use of awesome swimming facilities. Other than that, she falls asleep in class and has the table manners of Nodame in the lunch room. I kid you not.
Personality
Personality-wise, they're all very similar (which... duh, right?), but there are some differences! I was surprised to find out that Manga!Makino is kind of cruder in her mannerisms and a lot more wishy-washy when it comes to what she wants. Shan Cai retains some of the wishy-washyness, but she's a bit tougher with more of a no-nonsense attitude and certainly comes off more poised (and possibly more intelligent) than the other two. JDrama!Makino is comparably straightforward and there's more emphasis on what a giant dork she can be. Jan Di took it to the other extreme and went from kind of embarrassingly ham-faced to sobbing outright to fiercely serious. They all have a lot of fight in them, but Shan Cai's on one end of the spectrum with a lot of bark and bite, Jan Di sits at the other end kind of withering into a weak damsel-in-distress, and Makino occupies that middle ground between them; not quite as fiercely independent and strong as Shan Cai, but not nearly as vulnerable to sobbing fits and doleful glances as Jan Di.
The Piano Scene
I'm sure there are better scenes to compare, but this is one of my favourite to demonstrate the ~*subtle differences*~ between the three different heroines of the live-action adaptations.
It makes me sad that I can't find a video of JDrama!Makino's piano performance on streaming anywhere, so this will have to do. Here's a better video of the MG scene, since most of the subtitles are obscured in the video below.
The context is essentially the same for all three: Makino is invited to some celebration for Domyoji, and once there his mother - aka Domyojiroth - does her best to humiliate her by putting Makino on the spot, asking her to perform on the piano for the crowd.
Short version: Jan Di pretty much put her (broken) heart on her sleeve for everyone to ogle. Shan Cai just seems so capable, setting out to prove that she is worth just as much as anyone there and that Dao Ming Si's mother is just a shallow bitch. Makino set out to show everyone that she was just fine and couldn't care less what anyone thought of her and here's proof BANG BANG BANG.
L-Long version:
Jan Di goes on stage and sits at the piano, all broken and dispirited, and starts to play a slow, sad ballad a little clumsily, which only serves to make the whole thing sound even more like a heart breaking. The song is specifically about losing love, and she sings it like she's about ten seconds away from having her heart shatter into a million pieces. It's lovely and sad and the actress is awesome at nailing scenes like this, but it's just a little too "wronged, pathetic heroine" for my tastes. I'm not saying Makino doesn't get weepy, but to basically rip out her own bleeding heart and hold it up for everyone to see seems like a distinctly un-Makino-like action. She's a very private person when it comes to her emotions, and her misery is no one's business but her own. Jan Di is just laying out the welcome mat for people to step all over her.
Shan Cai also starts off by making a raucous racket on the piano, but with far less indignant anger than Makino does. She actually looks very calm and somewhat dignified, just kind of casually banging random notes on the piano, and no wonder! Because she starts playing "Marriage D'amour" while launching into a spiel that almost sounds like a fable with the moral of the story being "You can't judge a person by what songs they play or who their family is. This is all I've got; so what?" which is... kind of badass. I think it's actually kind of cool that even though she could play a nice piece decently, she decided to assault everyone's eardrums first to make a statement. And the fact that she could keep her cool under that immense pressure and deliver something like an Aesop fable... well I can understand why people might prefer Shan Cai's approach!
Makino goes all "wtf that was not on my invite" and freaks out a little because she has zero musical talent and just found out about Domyoji's Surpraiz Fiancee #2 to boot! Hanazawa Rui helpfully goes "lol just do it" and Domyoji refuses to meet her gaze which is just another gutpunch in a long line of gutpunches that week. But she goes up to the stage, sits down at the piano, and just mercilessly bangs out the most awful sounding noises, all piss-n'-vinegar, spitting mad, not giving a damn what anyone thinks about her and refusing to be cowed. When Domyojiroth starts another round of ridicule, she merely stands up, stares at Domyoji with a level gaze and says "I wish you happiness" before storming off. And when Domyoji eventually gives chase and yells at her for being stupid enough to show up in the first place she's all "Seriously? Is it like impossible for you to not be a jerk at me?"
I just personally prefer Makino's spontaneous, fiesty, and slightly flustered "devil-may-care" performance and its lack of platitudes because this is the approach that matches her tough weed power the best, I think.
Reconciliation with Domyoji
S-SPOILERS!?!?!
So it's the end of the show. And you know, it's your typical "boy meets girl, girl punches boy in the face, boy falls in love and through trials and tribulations they end up together" story.
So. BIG DRAMATIC ENDING STORYLINES GO HERE!
Instead of saving the dreaded Amnesia Arc for the end, Taiwan decided to use it to make an entire second season out of it, making even those who loved Meteor Garden turn away from it in shaaaame. BRILLIANT IDEA, TAIWAN (/)_-)
In the end, Dao Ming Si's mother locks him up in his room with Special Bodyguards at every entrance and escape route, and tells him he is marrying Xiao Yu (Shigeru) dammit. So he rebels by... not eating and starts to waste away, prompting them to keep him sedated and hooked up to an IV. When Shan Cai is informed of this situation by a sobbing Xiao Yu to just give him up he's gonna diiiiieee, she marches into the house and announces she's going to give him up as soon as she talks to him and makes things clear. His mother allows this on the condition that they can't see each other during this discussion, so they miserably talk to each other on either side of the door. She can't convince him to eat, so she decides to go on Hunger Strike as well by standing outside their giant mansion in the rain and refusing everything. AND THUS DOMYOJIROTH'S HEART IS SOFTENED BY THE SUFFERING OF TWO PEOPLE AND THEY ARE REUNITED HAPPILY.
In the JDrama, right before their fifty-millionth reconciliation, Domyoji hits his head on a rock and gets selective amnesia because he remembers everything EXCEPT Makino. She hilariously tries and fails to get him to remember her before SCHEMING WITCH UMI steps into the picture and earns his affections with her sunny outlook and tough stance on whiny brats, but mostly by taking credit for THE COOKIES OF LOOOOVE that Makino baked for him. Makino tries to confront Domyoji only to find out that Umi's taken her place. Obviously hurt but trying her darndest to move on so everyone doesn't worry about her, she moves on with life at the fishing village where her family is, and shouts down an old man from jumping off a cliff, telling him to suck it up and have more faith in his own product. STUFF HAPPENS, and in the end when Domyoji gets his memory back, that old dude that Makino "saved" is offering to do business with Domyoji Corp. because now he's a filthy rich old dude and he heard that Makino is marrying into their family. So basically, Makino saves Domyoji Corp. from bankruptcy (apparently saving all of Japan's economy as well, iunno) and Domyojiroth is forced to accept her, because otherwise she will be cold and penniless on the streets or something. \o/
Korea also goes the WOE IS ME, AMNESIA! route too. It has pretty much the exact set-up as above - minus the old man jumping off the cliff and Jan Di trying to move on. Instead, she gets all mopey and weepy and pathetic and I kind of wanted to slap some sense into her through my screen. Then! Go Jun-Pyo and Yun-Mi announce they are going to study in Europe together at a grand party, yaaaaay! Jan Di is all ";o;" and Ji-Hoo goes to escort her from the upsetting party because he's the best fairy-godmother not-boyfriend ever. She ends up by the pool alone somehow and Jun Pyo comes out. Jan Di, still looking mopey and miserable, asks if he remembers her and he answers back all "Uh. No? Can you please stop stalking me now?" And then she tells him "Well I'll tell you one thing, you can swim," because Jun Pyo had CONQUERED HIS FEAR OF SWIMMING so he could save her (the Olympic swimmer wannabe) in the guaranteed event of her almost drowning again. Jun Pyo just kind of looks at her like she's crazy while she throws herself into the pool.
And then she just. Sits at the bottom of the pool, waiting to drown.
SLFSKJD:GLSKHALFJS I HATE THIS SHOW SO MUCH ALSKJF:LSDKGJ:ALG
Meanwhile Jun Pyo's hyperventilating because CRAZY PSYCHO CUCKOO GIRL JUST THREW HERSELF IN A POOL TO DROWN AND HE CAN'T SWIM AND WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON. Ji Hoo runs out with the rest of the crowd and is all "No, stand back! Jun Pyo can handle it!"
Riiiiiiiiight.
He has an epiphany, dives into the pool to save her, and she's all "yaaay, you remember me :DDDD" and they live happily ever after because Domyojiroth is kind of lame in Korea. I, on the other hand, kind of want to spend the next hour or so banging my head against a wall because that was awful and I want selective amnesia too so I won't remember ever watching it.
So basically! I loved that in the JDrama Makino is not a complete pansy and earns Domyojiroth's reluctant acceptance by using her own tough weed power to totally unintentionally SAVE THE COMPANY in a reeeeaaaally roundabout way. At this point even a complete stranger is like "Lady, this girl is pretty damn awesome and you're a dumbass if you don't accept her."
I..... can live with Meteor Garden's ending. It still makes me "nrrrggh" because I understand that Domyoji and Makino are supposed to be strong-willed and stubborn, but part of me thinks they would never resort to STARVING THEMSELVES because they're not actually that pathetic nor that easily defeated. Plus I don't think Makino could put their friends and her family through that kind of emotional turmoil. Granted it was just a day at the most for her, but it's the principle of it!!!!!
I HATE KOREA'S VERSION AND JAN DI WITH A BURNING PASSION. I JUST. SHE TRIED TO DROWN HERSELF IN FRONT OF HIM. WHAT. WHAT?! I MEAN. MAKINO TRYING TO COMMIT SUICIDE. WHO THOUGHT THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA?!?!?!
... so fffft, I totally did not intend to write that much, but it feels good to finally get all of that out of my system :D
Well I'm breaking the pattern and putting the emphasis on Makino instead. HA! I have lots of really strong-but-dumb opinions that I feel compelled to dump somewhere.
.... which is really just me bitching about how much I came to dislike Korea's interpretation of Makino, and here's why!!! They turned bulldozer-Makino into nothing but a weepy mess who was incapable of doing anything for herself, so yeah. I'm annoyed.
I made a quick comparison chart with just the "main characters" because I'm lazy \o/ S-Sorry, Oneesan...
Meteor Garden Opening || Hana Yori Dango Opening || Boys Before Flowers Opening || Meteor Shower Opening
False promises of great prizes to those who can figure out which F4 member is which! And I included the necklaces because I lol'ed at China's combo-breaking Grandma's Pearl Necklace. O China, trying so hard to be unique, it's adorable. Also, apparently the Phillipines are looking into having their own production of the show too orz THIS CHART IS WIDE ENOUGH AS IS!!!
And for those who like the F4 better than Makino (which is probably 90% of the fandom. Except for Akira who gets shafted all the time, poor Akira), have a really awesome HYD F4 vs BBF F4 MV that someone made. Otherwise I am not going to comment on the F4 because they're not my ~*specialty*~ and this is going to be too long as it is!
Disclaimer
Just to make it clear: despite all appearances, I am not actually a huge fan of the Hana Yori Dango franchise. I really loved the JDrama because it's a lot of fun and the actors were great! But overall, I think HYD (especially the manga) is kind of a mediocre series at best and it's certainly my least favourite of the three canons I play from.
"But then why did you watch THREE DIFFERENT drama adaptations of the series AND take a stab at the manga??"
Because I'm dumb. When I like something as much as I liked the JDrama series, I tend to want to watch/read all the different versions I can find in hopes that they'll be just as good. This worked out well for Nodame Cantabile and Sekai no Chuushin de Ai wo Sakebu. It..... didn't work out so well for HYD.
That being said, my affection for Makino as a character has grown immensely since I picked her up in camp, which is probably why I'm so indignant about Korea's treatment of the character. Hence this ridiculously long essaying.
Let's Start With A Timeline!
Manga --> CD Drama --> Anime --> JMovie --> TWDrama (Meteor Garden I & II) --> JDrama (Hana Yori Dango/Returns/Final) --> KDrama (Boys Before Flowers) --> CDrama (Meteor Shower)
... which is all well and good, but this is my progression with the series:
1) I begrudgingly start watching the JDrama when it came out in 2005 because of my huge and embarrassing fangirl crush on MatsuJun. I go a little ga-ga for it ♥
2) After hearing announcements about a second season for the JDrama, I become impatient and turn to the Manga Series. Scanlators who have a habit of leaving speech bubbles blank quickly put an end to this attempt.
3) HYD Returns starts airing! Phwee! BUT IT'S NOT AIRING FAST ENOUGH!!! So I start watching Taiwan's Meteor Garden to tide me over between new episodes. Eventually, I get bored of it.
4) HYD2 ends and I am satisfied and pray to the TV gods that they won't come out with a third season because I am so not watching it! I can't take anymore break-ups/make-ups!
5) ... TBS announces the HYD Final movie. I reason with myself that it's not technically a third season, so I can watch it with good conscience!
6) STUPID MOVIE THAT I LOVE does a pretty good job of character assassination on Makino orz. A-At least it had some nice cute and fuzzy moments ;o;
7) Korea announces their own television production of HYD, known as Boys Before Flowers! I am excited! It starts airing! I am still excited! Except I don't like how Makino's portrayed... but it'll grow on me! And it's pretty funny! And charming!
... wait, why is it starting to suck D:
8) While mutually ranting about the crap-bucket that is Boys Before Flowers, a friend convinces me to give the manga and TWDrama another try because she prefers them to the JDrama and KDrama. I try! Valiantly! And do my best not to fall asleep. ANOTHER TIME.
9) I finish watching the KDrama and decide that I hate it with a burning passion (although Korean!Hanazawa Rui can stay ♥)
9) China announces Meteor Shower! Because Taiwan is just not cool enough for China. I decide to give it a wide berth because I AM SICK OF HANA YORI DANGO BY THIS POINT. Scratch that, it looks hilariously bad. I am totally watching it for the lulz.
10) I finally finish Meteor Garden two years after I started! I deserve cookies for this or something :|a I AM NEVER TOUCHING METEOR GARDEN II EVER EVER EVER.
I never watched the anime because LOL HORRIBLE ART. I also have zero interest in the old JMovie because I'm lazy.
And the Final Tally Is...?
Japan >>> Taiwan >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Korea
(Dunno where China fits in there yet because I am too lazy to watch it at the moment.)
Why?
Budget/Appearance: Without a doubt, Korea is the clear winner. The show and settings look gorgeous, glamorous, and expensive and they blew a lot of money flying the cast around to exotic locations. They also did a heck of a lot of product placement of luxurious items so that all the crazy Korea-fangirls would spend a lot of cash on stuff. Japan didn't do too badly, it just didn't have that kind of grand opulence that Korea did. Taiwan looked downright amateur in comparison with its crappy lighting, crappy camera work, crappy set design, and crappy wardrobe. I honestly would never have looked at the F4 and thought "Wow, I bet those guys are rich!"
Writing: Japan by a longshot. I know it was severely truncated in comparison to the manga, but the first season took all the best parts and melded it together into a streamlined and cohesive storyline! Season 2 wasn't quite as solid, but was still handled fairly well for the most part. Taiwan comes in second because they were so incredibly faithful to the manga! Unfortunately, with that comes the pacing problems and the really awful storylines like "DOMYOJI'S COUSIN WHO ISN'T REALLY DOMYOJI'S COUSIN TRYING TO STEAL MAKINO'S AFFECTIONS FOR HIMSELF" and "LOL LET'S DRAG OUT THAT AMNESIA ARC FOR A WHOLE SEASON 'KAY? :Db". Barf. Korea started out as funny and charming but still with a very serious undertone to it (the violence was sometimes excruciating to watch)! And then. The writer went on crack or something, I have no idea what happened. The plotlines and characterization all went to hell after the midpoint, and I went from liking my OTP reasonably well to DESPISING THEM WITH ALL MY SOUL and loving Hanazawa Rui madly instead.
Music: Japan's victory! If we're talking about opening themes alone (see: above the chart!), I honestly think they're all pretty comparable, being the sugary-sweet pop songs that they are. But HYD wins because it has quite an impressive collection of really great background music, and even if hearing the two insert songs every single episode drove me a little nuts at times, I had some pretty nice orchestral music to soothe me. Taiwan's music didn't strike me as anything special; the only time I really noticed it was when they played instrumental arrangements of the opening and ending themes, which they did a lot, but it didn't annoy me as much as it might have. Korea's music drove me ABSOLUTELY BONKERS. They cycled through the same five goddamn K-pop songs - which they would then switch for the next five K-pop songs ten episodes down the line - most of which COMPLETELY RUINED THE MOOD of the scene. I mean, there's supposed to be this tense and emotionally charged car race between Domyoji and Rui (... d-don't even ask) and suddenly-- "ALMOST PAAAAARADIIIIIIIISE~~~~~".
Acting Ability: I'll admit this is a little unfair because sometimes the actors were saddled with crazy-craziness (I'm looking at you Korea!!!), but I think Japan wins this one too based on Domyoji and Makino alone. They both brought a lot of charisma and energy to their characters, and the other F4 members were able to channel a lot of charm and personality into their roles as well! And I really came to appreciate MatsuJun's portrayal of Domyoji even more because he managed to make Domyoji seem a little unhinged but still mostly likable! Jerry Yan's Dao Ming Si had all the charisma of a wet paper towel, and to be frank he wasn't a very convincing actor at the time. Lee Min Ho had a good handle on Go Jun Pyo and might have given MatsuJun's Domyoji a run for his money if the writer wasn't stark-raving mad. Makino's actresses get a whole huge spiel dedicated to them below! I honestly liked all three Hanazawa Rui's, they all fit the role in their own way and played the material fairly well. All three Soujirou's were comparably good as well, though Korea got saddled with ridiculous storylines and Taiwan's just had horrible hair and glasses and I am shallow mmkay? Japan's Akira wins by a mile for actually having a personality and for macking on older women. Taiwan's was nice but rarely did more than fuss with his hair during dramatic scenes and look concerned. Korea's just uttered "YO YO YO MY BRUTHA, WAZZUP?!" every few episodes to remind people he existed.
F4's Attractiveness: Even with my horrible bias, I can admit that Korea wins this one. And I can base that on Lee Min Ho as Domyoji alone because he is tall and gorgeous and carried off the Domyoji persona really well at first, while his F4 crew are pretty easy on the eyes too (though Rui looked a million times better once he cut his hair). I think.... Taiwan kind of comes in second place because they are TALL and MANLY, even if their hairstyles and wardrobes suck. JAPAN'S F4 IS THE F4 OF MY HEART and they really grew on me! But my first reaction to them wasn't exactly "MAN THEY ARE SO GOOD-LOOKING". Meanwhile, China's F4 is all kinds of awkward, I can't even... pfffft. I don't know. They might grow on me if I ever watch the series.
Makino's Plain-ness: Because the Tough Weed can't be prettier than the Flower Four, okay? Japan wins this one, which isn't to say Inoue Mao is ugly, she's actually very pretty! But the make-up/wardrobe department really did their best to downplay that and made her look as normal and plain as possible. Taiwan's Shan Cai comes in second because even though she's kind of gorgeous, they didn't emphasize it too much and stuck her in very normal clothing. Korea's Jan Di is actually kind of cutely quirky-looking, but some of the make-up/wardrobe choices sometimes just made her seem more kooky than normal. China's Chu Yuxun is exceedingly pretty, but thaaat's about all I know.
Obviously the manga is like "the bible" of the whole franchise, but I think the Jdrama did a really good job of condensing, distilling, and streamlining the story while making a pretty high quality production. THAT AND IT HAS MATSUJUN IN IT, UHUHUHUHU~ Also, don't get me wrong; the JDrama and their version of Makino may be my favourite, but rather than it being a matter of "THE JDRAMA IS THE BEST!!!!", it really comes down to personal preference.
But if you like the Korean drama BEST OF ALL, I am totally sitting here and judging you :|
"ALL ABOUT MAKINO" STARTS HERE!!!!
Eitoku
Makino is "forced" to attend Eitoku in the manga and TWDrama by her family. JDrama's Makino initially wants to attend the school but quickly becomes disillusioned with how the place is run. KDrama's Jan Di is offered the opportunity to attend for free and the use of swimming facilities to fulfill her dream of being an Olympic swimmer! (Which.... lol she almost drowns in about two feet of water at least twice in this series. Her SWIMMING DREAM!!!1!1 is the most inconsequential thing ever, and then her dream is later SHATTERED because she was hit with a chair and then REFUSED TO GO TO THE DOCTOR. So. Can you tell I don't like or respect KDrama's Jan Di very much?) CDrama's Chu Yuxun seems excited about getting into her school. WE'LL SEE.
Family Relationship
For the most part, Makino's relationship with her family and her reasons for attending Eitoku are very closely tied. In all versions, the reason she remains at this uppity school and endures the bullying and ridicule is because of her family.
I adore JDrama Makino's family. They're kind of kooky, but they're sweetly endearing and supportive of Makino and play dumb games at dinner to help them save money for her tuition. She does get exasperated with them a lot, but she's also incredibly appreciative of what they're sacrificing for he because she was the one who originally wanted to attend Eitoku because of it's reputation - because she had ambition - and now her family is scrimping and saving pennies to make this happen. It's easy to tell that she loves them dearly and continues attending Eitoku when she finds out what a sham it is because she A) can't bear to let them down and B) wants to succeed so she can eventually earn her way to getting a better life for them all. Don't get me wrong, I thought it was kind of dumb in season 2 when she went "Hay guys, give me all your money so I can do another four years at Eitoku in the law program :DDD" because... really? She couldn't have found a cheaper school to go to? But they rallied behind her because this was what she wanted to do and they're actually very proud (and like the social implications) of having a daughter who managed to get into the private and prestigiousEitoku, BUT DON'T FORGET ABOUT FINDING A RICH HUSBAND OKAY, LIKE DOMYOJI-SAMA :DDDDDD YAY MARRYING RICH!!! \o/
In the Manga, the family is made up of the same members, but they're really overbearing about Makino going to Eitoku and finding some rich guy to marry. As far as I can remember, she had no desire to attend the school herself but was usually shouted down by her mother whenever she even brought up mention of leaving. I don't remember being very impressed with her family, and found them to be annoyingly selfish and inept, as her parents are so far from being responsible or capable of ANYTHING resembling adult behaviour. I was honestly disappointed that I didn't love them as much as I did their JDrama counterparts, but they were fairly one-dimensional in comparison and were certainly not the focus of the series at all.
Meteor Garden makes Shan Cai an only child, but her parents are incredibly faithful adaptations of their manga counterparts. Mama is especially loud, shrill, and extra annoying. Papa is a sad-sack that has to listen to Mama's every command. Shan Cai mostly yells and argues with her mother a lot about having to attend the university. Again, faithful to the manga! I do think that the missing younger brother does change the dynamics a little, and sometimes it really does come across like Mama is pretty much willing to sell off her own daughter to get where she wants to be.
Boys Before Flowers had the Geum family as the owners of a laundromat service, and they seemed kind of like the stock Overbearing Korean Mother, Sad-Sack But Sweet Korean Father, and Snarky But Adorable Younger Brother. They were cute and Jan Di's dad was especially sweet at times, although they were just as adamant about OMG FIND A RICH GUY TO MARRY!!! They were also the most affluent incarnation of the family, having their own business and luxuries like a van, a tv, a laptop! Which isn't to say that they were well-off by any means, but certainly living comfortably, and they're very happy and tight-knit. Jan Di comes by the opportunity to attend Eitoku when she goes to deliver drycleaning to some poor kid who's trying to jump off the roof, bleeding from an open wound on his face. A-And she's all "HEY! HEY! YOU HAVE TO PAY ME FOR THIS!" before she clues in that, y'know, he's trying to commit suicide. And then she has the gall to tell the kid that her life is harder because she's working and taking high school exams. WHILE THIS KID HAS OBVIOUSLY BEEN BEAT WITHIN AN INCH OF HIS LIFE AND IS SERIOUSLY CONTEMPLATING ENDING IT.
(An addendum: it may be me overreacting, but I was horrified when I was watching this. I know it's kind of comparable to JDrama!Makino shouting down that old man from the cliff, but to be fair she was trying to gently convince him back from the edge before launching into her rant of "IT'S MY BUSINESS IF YOU JUMP BECAUSE I HAVE TO WITNESS IT AND THAT IS PRETTY DAMN TRAUMATIZING, AND MAN YOU HAVE NICE CLOTHES YOUR LIFE CAN'T BE THAT BAD! MY FAMILY IS EATING NOTHING BUT SEAWEED EVERYDAY--- WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING AT ME!?". She had also lost a lot at this point: her whole family had to leave Tokyo to move to some tiny fishing village (even though her dad suffers from violent seasickness) and she had to crush Domyoji's heart (and her own) FOR THE SAKE OF JAPAN'S ECONOMY LOL!!!! just when things were going well. So even though it was played for laughs, it had a more weight behind it than Jan Di just going "WELL I HAVE TO WORK AND STUDY SO MY REAL WORLD IS SO MUCH TOUGHER THAN YOURS.... oh wait, is that blood? .... heeeeey, why are you standing on the edge of the building like that? :|a")
... but to make a long story short, she grabs the kid just as he jumps off the building and saves his life. And apparently the only way to clear up this scandal is to extend an invitation for her to attend the school for free. And she gets to use this gorgeous pool that no one else ever uses! Because she's aspiring to be an Olympic swimmer, you see. Obviously her whole family jumps on that. Free education! At a top notch private high school! Who could turn it down? Her family bullies her into going while she whines about a set-up that means free education and use of awesome swimming facilities. Other than that, she falls asleep in class and has the table manners of Nodame in the lunch room. I kid you not.
Personality
Personality-wise, they're all very similar (which... duh, right?), but there are some differences! I was surprised to find out that Manga!Makino is kind of cruder in her mannerisms and a lot more wishy-washy when it comes to what she wants. Shan Cai retains some of the wishy-washyness, but she's a bit tougher with more of a no-nonsense attitude and certainly comes off more poised (and possibly more intelligent) than the other two. JDrama!Makino is comparably straightforward and there's more emphasis on what a giant dork she can be. Jan Di took it to the other extreme and went from kind of embarrassingly ham-faced to sobbing outright to fiercely serious. They all have a lot of fight in them, but Shan Cai's on one end of the spectrum with a lot of bark and bite, Jan Di sits at the other end kind of withering into a weak damsel-in-distress, and Makino occupies that middle ground between them; not quite as fiercely independent and strong as Shan Cai, but not nearly as vulnerable to sobbing fits and doleful glances as Jan Di.
The Piano Scene
I'm sure there are better scenes to compare, but this is one of my favourite to demonstrate the ~*subtle differences*~ between the three different heroines of the live-action adaptations.
It makes me sad that I can't find a video of JDrama!Makino's piano performance on streaming anywhere, so this will have to do. Here's a better video of the MG scene, since most of the subtitles are obscured in the video below.
Click to viewThe context is essentially the same for all three: Makino is invited to some celebration for Domyoji, and once there his mother - aka Domyojiroth - does her best to humiliate her by putting Makino on the spot, asking her to perform on the piano for the crowd.
Short version: Jan Di pretty much put her (broken) heart on her sleeve for everyone to ogle. Shan Cai just seems so capable, setting out to prove that she is worth just as much as anyone there and that Dao Ming Si's mother is just a shallow bitch. Makino set out to show everyone that she was just fine and couldn't care less what anyone thought of her and here's proof BANG BANG BANG.
L-Long version:
Jan Di goes on stage and sits at the piano, all broken and dispirited, and starts to play a slow, sad ballad a little clumsily, which only serves to make the whole thing sound even more like a heart breaking. The song is specifically about losing love, and she sings it like she's about ten seconds away from having her heart shatter into a million pieces. It's lovely and sad and the actress is awesome at nailing scenes like this, but it's just a little too "wronged, pathetic heroine" for my tastes. I'm not saying Makino doesn't get weepy, but to basically rip out her own bleeding heart and hold it up for everyone to see seems like a distinctly un-Makino-like action. She's a very private person when it comes to her emotions, and her misery is no one's business but her own. Jan Di is just laying out the welcome mat for people to step all over her.
Shan Cai also starts off by making a raucous racket on the piano, but with far less indignant anger than Makino does. She actually looks very calm and somewhat dignified, just kind of casually banging random notes on the piano, and no wonder! Because she starts playing "Marriage D'amour" while launching into a spiel that almost sounds like a fable with the moral of the story being "You can't judge a person by what songs they play or who their family is. This is all I've got; so what?" which is... kind of badass. I think it's actually kind of cool that even though she could play a nice piece decently, she decided to assault everyone's eardrums first to make a statement. And the fact that she could keep her cool under that immense pressure and deliver something like an Aesop fable... well I can understand why people might prefer Shan Cai's approach!
Makino goes all "wtf that was not on my invite" and freaks out a little because she has zero musical talent and just found out about Domyoji's Surpraiz Fiancee #2 to boot! Hanazawa Rui helpfully goes "lol just do it" and Domyoji refuses to meet her gaze which is just another gutpunch in a long line of gutpunches that week. But she goes up to the stage, sits down at the piano, and just mercilessly bangs out the most awful sounding noises, all piss-n'-vinegar, spitting mad, not giving a damn what anyone thinks about her and refusing to be cowed. When Domyojiroth starts another round of ridicule, she merely stands up, stares at Domyoji with a level gaze and says "I wish you happiness" before storming off. And when Domyoji eventually gives chase and yells at her for being stupid enough to show up in the first place she's all "Seriously? Is it like impossible for you to not be a jerk at me?"
I just personally prefer Makino's spontaneous, fiesty, and slightly flustered "devil-may-care" performance and its lack of platitudes because this is the approach that matches her tough weed power the best, I think.
Reconciliation with Domyoji
S-SPOILERS!?!?!
So it's the end of the show. And you know, it's your typical "boy meets girl, girl punches boy in the face, boy falls in love and through trials and tribulations they end up together" story.
So. BIG DRAMATIC ENDING STORYLINES GO HERE!
Instead of saving the dreaded Amnesia Arc for the end, Taiwan decided to use it to make an entire second season out of it, making even those who loved Meteor Garden turn away from it in shaaaame. BRILLIANT IDEA, TAIWAN (/)_-)
In the end, Dao Ming Si's mother locks him up in his room with Special Bodyguards at every entrance and escape route, and tells him he is marrying Xiao Yu (Shigeru) dammit. So he rebels by... not eating and starts to waste away, prompting them to keep him sedated and hooked up to an IV. When Shan Cai is informed of this situation by a sobbing Xiao Yu to just give him up he's gonna diiiiieee, she marches into the house and announces she's going to give him up as soon as she talks to him and makes things clear. His mother allows this on the condition that they can't see each other during this discussion, so they miserably talk to each other on either side of the door. She can't convince him to eat, so she decides to go on Hunger Strike as well by standing outside their giant mansion in the rain and refusing everything. AND THUS DOMYOJIROTH'S HEART IS SOFTENED BY THE SUFFERING OF TWO PEOPLE AND THEY ARE REUNITED HAPPILY.
In the JDrama, right before their fifty-millionth reconciliation, Domyoji hits his head on a rock and gets selective amnesia because he remembers everything EXCEPT Makino. She hilariously tries and fails to get him to remember her before SCHEMING WITCH UMI steps into the picture and earns his affections with her sunny outlook and tough stance on whiny brats, but mostly by taking credit for THE COOKIES OF LOOOOVE that Makino baked for him. Makino tries to confront Domyoji only to find out that Umi's taken her place. Obviously hurt but trying her darndest to move on so everyone doesn't worry about her, she moves on with life at the fishing village where her family is, and shouts down an old man from jumping off a cliff, telling him to suck it up and have more faith in his own product. STUFF HAPPENS, and in the end when Domyoji gets his memory back, that old dude that Makino "saved" is offering to do business with Domyoji Corp. because now he's a filthy rich old dude and he heard that Makino is marrying into their family. So basically, Makino saves Domyoji Corp. from bankruptcy (apparently saving all of Japan's economy as well, iunno) and Domyojiroth is forced to accept her, because otherwise she will be cold and penniless on the streets or something. \o/
Korea also goes the WOE IS ME, AMNESIA! route too. It has pretty much the exact set-up as above - minus the old man jumping off the cliff and Jan Di trying to move on. Instead, she gets all mopey and weepy and pathetic and I kind of wanted to slap some sense into her through my screen. Then! Go Jun-Pyo and Yun-Mi announce they are going to study in Europe together at a grand party, yaaaaay! Jan Di is all ";o;" and Ji-Hoo goes to escort her from the upsetting party because he's the best fairy-godmother not-boyfriend ever. She ends up by the pool alone somehow and Jun Pyo comes out. Jan Di, still looking mopey and miserable, asks if he remembers her and he answers back all "Uh. No? Can you please stop stalking me now?" And then she tells him "Well I'll tell you one thing, you can swim," because Jun Pyo had CONQUERED HIS FEAR OF SWIMMING so he could save her (the Olympic swimmer wannabe) in the guaranteed event of her almost drowning again. Jun Pyo just kind of looks at her like she's crazy while she throws herself into the pool.
And then she just. Sits at the bottom of the pool, waiting to drown.
SLFSKJD:GLSKHALFJS I HATE THIS SHOW SO MUCH ALSKJF:LSDKGJ:ALG
Meanwhile Jun Pyo's hyperventilating because CRAZY PSYCHO CUCKOO GIRL JUST THREW HERSELF IN A POOL TO DROWN AND HE CAN'T SWIM AND WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON. Ji Hoo runs out with the rest of the crowd and is all "No, stand back! Jun Pyo can handle it!"
Riiiiiiiiight.
He has an epiphany, dives into the pool to save her, and she's all "yaaay, you remember me :DDDD" and they live happily ever after because Domyojiroth is kind of lame in Korea. I, on the other hand, kind of want to spend the next hour or so banging my head against a wall because that was awful and I want selective amnesia too so I won't remember ever watching it.
So basically! I loved that in the JDrama Makino is not a complete pansy and earns Domyojiroth's reluctant acceptance by using her own tough weed power to totally unintentionally SAVE THE COMPANY in a reeeeaaaally roundabout way. At this point even a complete stranger is like "Lady, this girl is pretty damn awesome and you're a dumbass if you don't accept her."
I..... can live with Meteor Garden's ending. It still makes me "nrrrggh" because I understand that Domyoji and Makino are supposed to be strong-willed and stubborn, but part of me thinks they would never resort to STARVING THEMSELVES because they're not actually that pathetic nor that easily defeated. Plus I don't think Makino could put their friends and her family through that kind of emotional turmoil. Granted it was just a day at the most for her, but it's the principle of it!!!!!
I HATE KOREA'S VERSION AND JAN DI WITH A BURNING PASSION. I JUST. SHE TRIED TO DROWN HERSELF IN FRONT OF HIM. WHAT. WHAT?! I MEAN. MAKINO TRYING TO COMMIT SUICIDE. WHO THOUGHT THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA?!?!?!
... so fffft, I totally did not intend to write that much, but it feels good to finally get all of that out of my system :D