Meteor Garden (Chinese: 流星花園; pinyin: Liúxīng Huāyuán) is a 2001 Taiwanese television drama series produced by CTS. The show is based on the Japanese manga Boys Over Flowers (花より男子, Hana Yori Dango) by Yoko Kamio, which inspired many other adaptations. Directed by Tsai Yueh-hsun, the series features actors Barbie Hsu, Jerry Yan, Vic Chou, Ken Chu, and Vanness Wu. It first aired from April 12 to August 16, 2001, and was followed by a sequel in 2002 with the same cast.

The series became a great success in Asia. It helped start the careers of four male actors who formed the boy band F4, named after their group in the story. It also helped establish Barbie Hsu as a leading actress. The show is credited with starting the idol drama genre and the golden era of Taiwanese television.

Synopsis

The story follows a teenage girl named Shancai, who attends a school for wealthy students because her parents insist. The school is controlled by four wealthy, attractive, but proud students—Daoming Si, Huaze Lei, Meizuo, and Ximen—known as the F4, short for "Flower 4." These students are the children of four powerful families in Taiwan. They scare other students by giving red cards to people they dislike, allowing others to bully those who receive the cards until they leave the school.

When one of Shancai’s friends is punished by Daoming Si, the leader of the F4, Shancai speaks out against him and receives a red card herself. Shancai dislikes Daoming Si’s arrogance and rudeness. Her courage in standing up for others earns the F4’s respect, and Daoming Si begins to admire her. At first, Shancai is interested in Huaze Lei, but Daoming Si’s persistent, though sometimes annoying, actions make her reconsider her feelings for the two F4 members.

Daoming Si’s mother arrives in Taiwan and immediately dislikes Shancai because of her poor background. Both Daoming Si and Shancai face challenges created by his mother to keep them apart. Although Shancai has not yet told Daoming Si she loves him, Daoming Si remains determined. The story follows the growing relationship between Shancai and Daoming Si.

Soundtrack

The Meteor Garden Original Soundtrack (流星花園 電視原聲帶) was released on August 14, 2001, by EMI. It has thirteen songs, ten of which are in English. The opening theme song is "情非得已 (Qing Fei De Yi)" or "Can't Help Falling for You" by Harlem Yu. The ending theme song is "你要的愛 (Ni Yao De Ai)" or "The Love You Want" by Penny Dai.

The song "情非得已" (Can't Help Falling In Love With You) was ranked number 21 on Hit Fm Taiwan's Hit Fm Annual Top 100 Singles Chart (Hit-Fm年度百首單曲) for 2001.

Release

The show Meteor Garden was broadcast on Chinese Television System (CTS) (華視) from April 12 to August 16, 2001. A follow-up mini-series titled Meteor Rain was produced from September 13, 2001, to January 17, 2002. A later version of the series, Meteor Garden II, was shown from November 11 to December 25, 2002.

Legacy

F4 (Flower Four) was a Taiwanese boy band made up of Jerry Yan, Vanness Wu, Ken Chu, and Vic Chou. The group was formed in 2001 after the TV show Meteor Garden ended. They released three albums: Meteor Rain (2001), Fantasy 4ever (2002), and Waiting for You (2007). According to Forbes, F4 sold 3.5 million copies of their first two albums across Asia by July 2003. In 2007, the group changed their name to JVKV because of copyright issues. The new name used the initials of the members, listed from oldest to youngest.

The group stopped working together in 2009.

The Filipino version of Meteor Garden aired on ABS-CBN from May 5 to July 25, 2003. It replaced a show called E.T.C. and was later replaced by Meteor Rain. The show became one of the most popular programs on Philippine television and created a large fan group called "Meteor Garden fever" in the country. Its popularity led to many local parodies of F4 music videos and scenes from the series. Television networks also aired the series completely at least eight times. However, some Filipino parents and teachers criticized Meteor Garden for showing romantic scenes that they thought were too explicit for high school students.

In September 2003, Barbie Hsu, Ken Chu, and Vanness Wu visited Manila for a concert at the ULTRA indoor arena (now called the PhilSports Arena). To avoid overwhelming the actors with fans, ABS-CBN and airport security used actors wearing wigs and security guards to meet fans, while the real actors went through regular immigration and customs checks with other passengers. Two months later, on November 6, Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) was on high alert for Jerry Yan’s first visit to Manila. Yan met with then-president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo at the Malacañang Palace. During a photo session, fans became too excited, and both Yan and the president had to leave the area for a short time.

Later, Meteor Garden was also shown on GMA Network from July 9 to October 5, 2007. It replaced a show called GTO Live and was later replaced by Meteor Rain.

For more than 20 years, Meteor Garden helped increase the popularity of Asian dramas and films in the Philippines. Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean, and Thai shows and movies filled all regular time slots on Philippine television from early mornings to late nights. The show and its sequel were rebroadcast on ABS-CBN and Jeepney TV from March 31 to May 9, 2014. They replaced Kapamilya Blockbusters on ABS-CBN and Rubi on Jeepney TV and were later replaced by Meteor Garden II. After the death of Barbie Hsu, the show and its sequel were shown again on Kapamilya Channel and A2Z, with streaming on iWantTFC from March 10 to May 9, 2025. They replaced reruns of Kapamilya, Deal or No Deal and were later replaced by Meteor Garden II.

Starting October 14, 2008, Meteor Garden was rebroadcast on Xing Kong. The channel later aired the drama again, along with Hana Yori Dango (Japan) and Boys Over Flowers (South Korea). Meteor Garden II also aired on the channel, starting November 4, 2009.