Hana Yori Dango: Cutting Through the Hype

I remember the first time I watched Hana Yori Dango (HYD), I was pretty much bored with the first scenes. I’m well aware when GMA-7 will premiere Hana Yori Dango on Philippines the ones who’ve never seen and heard of it will most probably compare it to Taiwan’s Meteor Garden. What is the first scene exactly? I t shows a girl named Tsukushi staring at her classmate’s extravagant possessions (Dior, Omega, Chanel –got it?) and feeling downcast because she can’t connect with the profligate material possessions of her high school peers.

Let me tell you now to stop right there if you intend to compare Japan’s F4 and Taiwan’s. The two shows are vastly different but pretty much the same at some core elements. For starters they are both based on the successful manga series of Yoko Kamio’s Boys Over Flowers. The difference is the casting, faithfulness to the manga, and attention to details.

My friend is adamant she’ll never watch Hana Yori Dango because she says Jerry Yan and the rest looks better. It’s sad when two women who share a bond since high school like the two of us are now at odds with each other “over a mere TV show”. The truth is the mark of true love is how much you can allow yourself to disagree with someone close to you because you know they’re wrong and they’re missing something great that you just have to make them watch it too to the point of intense disagreements. Methinks this applies on other aspects of life too doesn’t’ it? This girl is one of my closest friends whom I’ll call “A” is the type who I can always count on so many things and I’m surprised that right now we barely talk to each other all because of HYD. It’s so ridiculous that if it isn’t so painful getting used to not chatting anymore with A for hours about the every nuances of our lives I’d probably laugh---and rolling on the floor while doing so.

To be honest I am deeply disappointed by her reason for not watching another version of Hana Yori Dango. It’s basically because of Jerry Yan! When Meteor Garden exploded in the Philippine scene I was quietly disgusted with the hype heaped on F4. Day after day countless Filipinas gushed on the good looks of Jerry, Vaness, Ken, and Vic. Most of us forgot the true reason why the Taiwanese series became such a hit in the first place. It’s the story of the girl who pursued an impossible dream and got punished because of her audacity to mingle with the high and mighty. How many times as little girls have we been told to be mindful of our place? Even our own mothers give preferential treatment to their sons over their daughters. Today in some countries women eat less so that the men in the house have more food. Our brothers can stay outside to play while we remain in our homes being taught how to be more feminine and become fiends on house chores. True I almost watched the F4 concert in Manila if not for my parents who didn’t allow me to go, I also hang on every word spoken by the Taiwanese F4 when interviewed, and I too bought posters to hang in my room. That is until I realized why Meteor Garden seemed to be losing its magic on me. I became more focused on the gossips and rumors about the lives of F4 actors instead of tattooing the message of the story to my heart.

Shan Cai (Tsukushi Makino) is the true hero in the show and yet she was eclipsed by the boys who discovered such a gem of a woman. We praised the hunters not the treasure itself. For me Yoko Kamio’s love story is more worthy of recognition than the Disney spouted fantasy crap such as Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. When I was young I had such books and movie CDs and it left me doubtful of myself. The stories are about perfect princesses who are rewarded with a brave and handsome prince. I was a kid and those books tortured me. I wanted to enroll in a soccer summer program but I followed my mom’s wish and found myself in a piano class. It was a disaster and until now I cringe whenever I see a grand piano. I erased a huge part of me to please my parents, my relatives, my teachers, my society all in the hopes I'll meet a perfect prince too. It’s no wonder I cried so much when I watched Meteor Garden, it’s because this time the prince who seems at first a spoiled brute is actually smarter than most men. He demands strength in women, and rewards you for it with his whole love. The truth is women are not weak and dumb; they are not inferior to men. But it is more attractive to act like one or as my relatives would always caution us: “do you want to become spinsters?” And so we didn’t speak up whenever our boyfriends argued with us and drove us into the wrong part of town even if we know the right way is opposite to the direction he’s going.

This is the reason why I think it’s important for my friend to watch it once again and this time I hope the message will reach her more clearly. True I do gush about F4 (both Taiwan and Japan’s) but there are limits because I don’t want the story to be overshadowed by the actors’ popularity. Frankly I most probably will always cherish the Boys over Flowers story, even until I become a toothless ninety-year old grandma. By then all my granddaughters will have this story as their fairy tales not Cinderella. As for my friend, I'm still optimistic since a lot of Meteor Garden fanatics grudgingly began to like Hana Yori Dango. But for now I won't argue with her anymore because friendship should be above all else right? :)

Thank you Tsukushi…Arigatou gozaimasu Doumyouji.