Meteor Garden Review (2018) – Watch Dramas, Learn Chinese

Meteor Garden (2018) – Review for Chinese Learners || PLUS Essential Vocab!

Meteor Garden (流星花园 liú xīng huā yuán) is a 2018 Chinese drama directed by Lin He Long. It is based on the Japanese manga Boys Over Flowers (花より男子 Hana Yori Dango).

If you are used to watching Asian TV shows, the name probably rings a bell as it has been adapted for TV several times.

The 49-episode drama is actually a remake of the 2001 Taiwanese version, which has the same name AND the same producer!

👉 Since originally airing in July 2018, the drama became very popular internationally. So, if you are looking for some Chinese TV series, this one is a must-see.

#1 Meteor Garden – Introduction

#2 Meteor Garden – Characters and Cast

#3 Meteor Garden – Useful Vocabulary

#4 Meteor Garden – How to Learn Chinese With the Show

#5 Meteor Garden – Where to Watch

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#1 Meteor Garden – Introduction

In short, the story follows Dong Shan Cai, an ordinary girl from a modest family who has been accepted in the most prestigious university in the country. However, it’s not all smooth sailing. Especially with the four most popular boys of the place (called the F4), all rich and spoiled, the absolute opposite of who she is.

After its Taiwanese release in 2001, producer Angie Chai announced a “fuller and flashier adaptation of the mangas” for 2018. This time, the story is set in Shanghai, mainland China with a budget 30 times higher than the original.

If this doesn’t even make you just a little bit curious about the show, I don’t know what will.

Oh wait, I know… the STORY.

If you are an avid drama watcher you are already familiar with the very typical and regular love story between a girl from a modest family falling in love with the rich guy she just met, who appears to hate her.

Meteor Garden is no different. This kind of story is always a success let’s face it, BUT… it is NOT your standard love story as it is a lot more funnier and realistic than just that.

This drama will make you laugh out loud, cry, cringe, feel upset, daydream, really root for the characters and shout at your screen in despair and frustration.

With 49 episodes of about 45 minutes each, you are in for a lot of WHIRLWIND OF EMOTION.

We follow Dong Shan Cai (董杉菜) through her new life in this big university for elite students and feel with her through the tough times and troubles the F4 bring her.

Will she ever have a day of school without attracting trouble? Is there really a love story in this drama? She is so out of her comfort zone, will she be OK? What about her friends?

Honestly, there is so much to say here, you’ll have to watch the drama to find out. And, why not, learn a thing or two in Chinese at the same time.

First of all, you should at least have a look at the trailer to see if this drama would be of any interest to you 👇

#2 Meteor Garden – Characters and Cast

There are five main characters in Meteor Garden, Dong Shan Cai and the four boys of the F4 group.

Dong Shan Cai

Dong Shan Cai (董杉菜) is the only female of the main characters.

She comes from a modest family and works hard in both university and her part time job.

She has a bold and strong personality, but is very compassionate and genuine.

Shan Cai finds herself in many troubles throughout the drama, whilst being involved in a love triangle between two of the F4 boys.

The character is played by Shen Yue (沈月), a Chinese actress popular for her roles in romance comedy dramas.

Dao Ming Si

Dao Ming Si (道明寺) is the leader of the F4 boys.

He is a very arrogant and spoiled person from a very wealthy family, and has a short-tempered personality.

However, throughout the drama we realise that underneath all this pride and entitlement, he is in fact a soft and romantic young man.

The character is played by Wang Hedi (王鹤棣), also known as Dylan Wang, actor, model and singer. He is the winner of the 2017 show Hyper Dimensional Idol (超次元偶像) where ten candidates compete against each other, displaying their best acting abilities.

Hua Ze Lei

Hua Ze Lei (花泽类), the F4 quiet member.

The only art student of the F4 group, who all study business.

He looks cold and unfriendly from the outside, but is in fact just introverted and has a very sweet personality.

Guan Hong (官鴻), also known as Darren Chen, plays the role of Hua Ze Lei. He is a Taiwanese actor whose role in Meteor Garden was one of his first.

Yan Xi Men

Yan Xi Men (彦西门), the pretty boy of the group.

Xi Men is very charismatic and flirty, but a bit moody.

Often playing the bad boy, he develops romantic feelings for Shan Cai’s best friend.

Wuxi Zi (吴希泽), also known as Caesar Wu, plays the role of Yan Xi Men.

He is a Chinese actor and model whose role in Meteor Garden was his first.

Feng Mei Zuo

Feng Mei Zuo (冯美作), the funniest of the F4s.

Mei Zuo is light hearted, friendly, very smart and quick witted.

Although he is a bit flirty, he has a good heart and always ends up doing the right thing.

The character is played by Liang Jingkang (梁靖康), also known as Connor Leong, a Chinese actor and model.

His role in Meteor Garden was the big push of his career as he got several other roles in comedy and romance dramas after this one.

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#3 Meteor Garden – Useful Vocabulary

Watching Meteor Garden you’ll learn of LOT of vocabulary, words and characters which are used everyday.

To illustrate this, here a few words to help you get started on the show:

University Specific Vocabulary

• 明德学院 míng dé xué yuàn – Mingde University
• 大一 dà yī – Freshman
• 学长 xuézhǎng – Term of respect for one’s schoolmate of higher grade
• 学姐 xué jiě – Senior or older female schoolmate. 学哥 xué gē is used for males.
• 奖学金 jiǎng xué jīn – Scholarship
• 营养学概论 yíng yǎng xué gài lùn – Introduction to Nutrition

Episode 1 Specific Vocabulary

• 英俊 yīng jùn – Handsome and smart
• 出色 chū sè – Outstanding
• 挑战 tiǎo zhàn – Challenge
• 桥牌 qiáo pái – Bridge
• 小丑拍 xiǎo chǒu pāi – Joker card
• 混蛋 hún dàn – B*stard
• 学习氛围 xué xí fēn wéi – Learning environment

#4 Meteor Garden – Where to Watch?

Meteor Garden is available on MangoTV, a Chinese streaming platform.

It is available on Netflix as well. If you plan to watch on this platform we strongly recommend you install the add-on Language Learning with Netflix.

LLN is a Google Chrome extension embedded directly into your Netflix. It allows you to watch movies and dramas with two subtitles, highlighting any word you don’t know and displaying its translation.

For example, you’d have Chinese and English subtitles, so you can read along the Chinese characters and the English translation.

Don’t worry, you can easily change both languages in the settings.

#5 Meteor Garden – Learn Chinese With the Show

The story of Meteor Garden takes place in today’s Shanghai. Watching the show is great to find out about life in China nowadays.

In addition to learning more about university, relationships and life in China, you will also get an insight into the Chinese culture and modern language.

Watching movies and TV shows in Chinese is a great way to improve one’s listening abilities and learn a few words and sentences at the same time.

In brief, the level of language used in Meteor Garden is not that complex, as it is a romantic comedy drama but you’ll definitely be able to learn lots of vocabulary and useful sentences.

Even though characters might speak a bit fast at times, you’ll easily follow with subtitles, so it is a great show to watch for beginners.

More advanced learners of the language can watch the show with Chinese characters subtitles only. With LLN you’ll instantly get the translation of any character or word you don’t know.

Learning Chinese on its own can be a bit difficult, so if you’d prefer a structured class and study plan based on your needs and requirements, you should definitely have a look at our Online Chinese Classes.

Have you watched Meteor Garden? Tell us what you think in the comments below 👇

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