List of adaptations of Boys over Flowers

Hana-Yori-Dango-drama — *Hana Yori Dango* (2005), an official adaptation

Meteor-Shower — *Meteor Shower* (2009), an unlicensed adaptation

First published in 1992,^[1] Yoko Kamio's Boys Over Flowers has spawned and inspired many adaptations, including a film, an anime, several television series', and musicals. The first live-action television adaptation, titled Meteor Garden, was produced in Taiwan in 2001 and was followed by two sequels.^[2] A Japanese television series, Hana Yori Dango, was released in 2005. It was followed by Hana Yori Dango Returns (2007) and Hana Yori Dango Final (2008).^[1] In 2009, the manga was adapted into a successful Korean drama.^[3] A remake of Meteor Garden was released in 2018.^[4]

The premise of Boys Over Flowers has gained considerable popularity, probably due to the international success of its many adaptations. As such, this has lead to the production of several unlicensed and/or loosely-based versions. Siapa Takut Jatuh Cinta (2002, 2017), Meteor Shower (2009), Boys Before Friends (2013), and Kaisi Yeh Yaariaan (2014) are the best known examples.

Official

Japan

Hana Yori Dango (1993): an audio drama comprised of three parts, which was released in 1993 and 1994. Takuya Kimura starred as the voice of Rui Hanazawa.^[5]
Hana Yori Dango (1995): a film released in August 1995.^[6] The film starred Yuki Uchida, Shosuke Tanihara, and Naohito Fujiki. It was the first live-action adaptation of Boys Over Flowers.
Boys Over Flowers (1996): a fifty-one episode animated version that aired from September 1996 to August 1997. Maki Mochida and Naoki Miyashita were the voices of the series leads', Tsukushi and Tsukasa. A short film in the same style but in a different universe premiered in 1997, while the anime was still airing.
Hana Yori Dango (2005): the second live-action television adaptation of the manga. It starred Mao Inoue as Tsukushi, Jun Matsumoto as Tsukasa, and Shun Oguri as Rui.^[7] The drama aired for nine episodes from October to December 2005.^[8] Hana Yori Dango was successful and received high ratings.
Hana Yori Dango Returns (2007): the sequel to 2005's Hana Yori Dango.^[9] Inoue, Matsumoto, Oguri, Shota Matsuda, and Tsuyoshi Abe returned from the previous series.^[10] It aired for eleven episodes from January to March 2007. The drama also had high ratings, peaking at 27.6% for the finale.
Hana Yori Dango Final (2008): a film conclusion to Hana Yori Dango.^[11] The film premiered on June 28, 2008.^[12] It earned approximately 7.75 billion yen (US$83.5 million) at the Japanese box office.^[13] Inoue and Matsumoto again starred as Tsukushi and Tsukasa in the film.
Hana Yori Dango: The Musical (2016): a musical adaptation of Boys Over Flowers was first announced in April 2015.^[14] The musical opened on January 5, 2016.^[15] It starred Ririka Kato as Tsukushi, Yuya Matsushita as Tsukasa, and Jin Shirasu as Rui.^[16]
Hana Yori Dango (2019): a musical performed by the Flower Troupe of the Takarazuka Revue.^[17] It starred Rei Yuzuka as Tsukasa and Mirei Shiroki as Tsukushi.^[18]

Taiwan

Meteor Garden (2001): the series was the first television drama adaptation of Boys Over Flowers.^[19] The drama propelled its five leads into super stardom,^[20] compelling the four male leads to form the idol band, F4.^[21] Meteor Garden was a huge success and gained a fanbase in several countries throughout Asia.
Meteor Rain (2001): a four-episode follow-up to Meteor Garden. Each episode of the series follows a different F4 member, except Vic Chou, who was busy filming something else.^[22] It aired in late 2001, shortly after the end of Meteor Garden. Peien Chien, Aisa Senda, and Mai Sato guest starred in the series.
Meteor Garden II (2002): the sequel to Meteor Garden. Unlike its predecessor, the sequel is only partially based on Boys Over Flowers.^[23] It aired on CTS in 2002.^[24] The lead cast was joined by Michelle Saram, who played a rival to Barbie Hsu's Shan Cai.^[25]

South Korea

Boys Over Flowers (2009): a Korean live-action television version of Boys Over Flowers.^[12] The drama aired from January^[26] to March 2009 for twenty-five episodes.^[27] It starred Ku Hye-sun, Lee Min-ho, Kim Hyun-joong, Kim Bum, and Kim Joon as Geum Jan-di and the F4.^[28]
Boys Over Flowers: The Musical (2017): a Korean version of the Japanese musical that featured several high-profile stars, such as Min, J-Min, Lee Chang-sub, Ken, and Lee Sung-min. Yumi Suzuki, who directed the original, went to Seoul to direct the new version.^[29] The musical premiered on February 24, 2017.^[30]

China

Meteor Garden (2018): a reboot of Meteor Garden premiered on July 9, 2018.^[4] It was produced by Angie Chai, whom also produced the original.^[31] The series starred newcomers Shen Yue, Dylan Wang, Darren Chen, Connor Leong, and Caesar Wu.^[32]

Thailand

Boys Over Flowers (2021): GMMTV announced that they obtained the copyright to adapt the series in October 2019.^[33] The cast, namely Vachirawit Chivaaree, Tontawan Tantivejakul, Metawin Opas-iamkajorn, Jirawat Sutivanisak, and Hirunkit Changkham, was announced in September 2020.^[34]

Unlicensed

Note: the following television series are not official adaptations, but resemble Boys Over Flowers enough to be considered either unlicensed/unauthorized and/or loosely-based.

Siapa Takut Jatuh Cinta (2002): an Indonesian drama that aired in 2002. Early on, the series was accused by fans and the media of plagiarizing Meteor Garden.^[35]
Meteor Shower (2009): an unlicensed Chinese adaptation that aired August 2009. The series' creators have since stated that Meteor Shower is an "original work" and is only inspired by the manga.^[36] It was followed by a second season in August 2010, and was later adapted into an animated series and a manhua.
Boys Before Friends (2013): a web, loosely-based American version of Boys Over Flowers.^[37] The production was plagued with constant casting changes^[38] and concluded after six episodes.
Kaisi Yeh Yaariaan (2014): an Indian youth soap that was adapted from the Korean drama, Boys Over Flowers.^[39] The series ended on December 31, 2015^[40] with over three-hundred episodes. It was followed by a thirteen episode event series in May 2018.^[41]
Siapa Takut Jatuh Cinta Reborn (2017): a remake of the 2002 Indonesian series. The project was first announced in mid-2017,^[42] before premiering on November 13, 2017 on SCTV.^[43] The finale aired on October 28, 2018.^[44]

Notes

Several television series from around the world have been compared to Boys Over Flowers over the years. Fans sometimes call the following examples adaptations, despite having very few similarities:
- Güneşi Beklerken (2013): a Turkish soap that aired from July 2013 to July 2014.^[45] Like Boys Over Flowers, the series features a strong female lead that stands up to two rich boys.^[46]
- Moon River (2015): a Taiwanese drama based on a novel^[47] that shares a similar premise with Boys Over Flowers.^[48] It follows a transfer student and her run-ins with the school's exclusive clique.^[49]
Other series, such as Gakko no Kaidan (2015)^[50] and Cinderella with Four Knights (2016), have drawn parallels to Boys Over Flowers.^[51]
In November 2017, a proposed Filipino adaptation from GMA Network was announced.^[52] It currently considered cancelled, likely due to copyright issues.

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