Manga to Drama: Thumbs up or down?

[septembermoon16]

Lately everywhere I turn people are discussing Hana Yori Dango, Yukan Club, 1 Pound Gospel, Hana Kimi and even before these were the sensations of Taiwan's Meteor Garden, Mars etc.

This has been an ongoing trend in the Japanese entertainment industry and spilling over to the rest of Asia as well. Many viewers are basing their decision to what a drama on whether or not it is manga-based.

So I'm wondering what you guys think of them. Love or hate? WHY? (name specific dramas please!)

[JonDoe]

Given that my favorite show is Cutie Honey The Live(Yes, I am kinda hentai) , I have no problem watching them, as long as production is decent.

[beansprouts]

Manga to drama adaptations, definitely the trend nowadays, some of them are really good while some are just really bleah. I don't think there's a success formula, doesn't matter whether the original manga is really popular or not, the drama adaptation usually turns out very differently.

A few examples of the adaptations that I like/don't like would be:

+ Meteor Garden, I know people are going to disagree with me on this, I just prefer the TW version over the Jdrama version. Probably cause I watched it when I was a dreamy school girl years and years ago, HYD doesn't hold the same magic for me.

+ Nodame Cantabile, very successful adaptation, probably one of the most successful ones. Excellent cast, comedic moments over the top yet tastefully done, a very memorable series. I read some of the manga, it was almost a frame by frame transformation from manga to drama, down to the expressions.

- Hana Kimi, major fan of the manga, sorely disappointed at both the TW and Japanese adaptation. Bad cast, butchered storyline, Miyuki was completely wrong in both shows, I failed to finish either series.

- Honey & Clover, only 5 episodes but the verdict is already out, perhaps the best for manga adaptation is for it to stick very closely to the original manga. The storyline was butchered here, the characters were not portrayed accordingly to the manga as well, oh my god, Morita turned into an arrogant pig, what the heck? Waiting for the TW to come up to see if they can outdo the Japanese version... a very easy job actually.

-Yuukan Club, it was WTH from the first episode, couldn't bear to continue watching, the bad acting and over-the-top-ness 'comedy' was just too painful to watch.

[septembermoon16]

hahahaha yea gotta agree about Yukan Club. i tried and tried to watch for Jin's sake but ended giving it up all together after the episode with Mike He as the guest star - could it have been any more ridiculous? >.<

however i found the J version of Hana Kimi enchanting. admittedly that is in large part due to the awesome supporting cast. Nakatsu & Nanba!!!
i didn't mind the storyline since i didn't read the manga and had nothing to compare it too.
i've noticed that whenever i DON'T read the manga the drama is much more enjoyable. wonder if its because there is no comparison or simply mangas are better then dramas?

however Mars is the exception. The drama was much much better then the manga. i didn't really like Kira until Barbie made her into a character that could be identified with and cheered for. I don't even need to say much on Vic except for - 110%
if only every adaption was this good...

[bellamia]

Meteor Garden, I know people are going to disagree with me on this, I just prefer the TW version over the Jdrama version. Probably cause I watched it when I was a dreamy school girl years and years ago, HYD doesn't hold the same magic for me.

whoa, I didn't know there is a Japanese version of "Meteor Garden." I just can't picture any other Do Ming Chi more lovable then that of Jerry Yan.

[septembermoon16]

whoa, I didn't know there is a Japanese version of "Meteor Garden." I just can't picture any other Do Ming Chi more lovable then that of Jerry Yan.

It's a completely different title that's why - check out Hana Yori Dango.
What's interesting is that the original manga is called Hana Yori Dango, but the Japanese drama version doesn't stay as true to the storyline as Meteor Garden does.

Do Ming Chi is played by Matsumoto Jun (member of Arashi idol group)

[999roses]

Please tell me you are being sarcastic...PLEASE.

I still remember that scene where I laughed for a good HALF hour where Jerry Yan is on the street with his hand outreached.."Shan Cai, pleasee comeeeeeeeeeeee backkkkkkkkkkkkk". If I was Shan Cai, I would run far far far away.

[septembermoon16]

Please tell me you are being sarcastic...PLEASE.

I still remember that scene where I laughed for a good HALF hour where Jerry Yan is on the street with his hand outreached.."Shan Cai, pleasee comeeeeeeeeeeee backkkkkkkkkkkkk". If I was Shan Cai, I would run far far far away.

hahahaha. i just got a great visual from that.
meteor garden wasn't that bad, or maybe it was because the first time i watched it i was still an idol loving fobby asian? ;p
however it was the second one that i can't forgive them for. WHY WHY WHY?!!!!!!!!!!!

[Suet Seung]

It's a completely different title that's why - check out Hana Yori Dango.
What's interesting is that the original manga is called Hana Yori Dango, but the Japanese drama version doesn't stay as true to the storyline as Meteor Garden does.

Do Ming Chi is played by Matsumoto Jun (member of Arashi idol group)

Meteor Garden relied on those teenybopper fans who had no taste or no preference in acting skills. Meteor Garden wasn't that accurate to the manga, I mean they totally wrote out Makino Tsukushi's little brother. Yes, She had a little brother, however, little his role is but he's there. I'm sure there are more inaccuracy too like when Shan Cai sung and played at Do Ming Chi's birthday in front of his mother. Shan Cai was suppose to be too poor to even know how to play piano. She doesn't drink with any of the F4, she supposely eats too much and throws up on DMC.


Hana Yori Dango (j-drama) though they did change the sequence and blended some minor characters and also cut some characters out, at least they had the decency to not change high school students (as it was in the manga) to college students. I mean who believes college students having a highschoolish type school yet they're suppose to be in college. Barbie's tattoos were hard to look at and Jerry Yan was suppose to have curly wavy hair like in the manga, but instead there were times when he totally had straight hair and just styled hair, it was not curly. The kissing scenes between Jerry and Barbie was hard to believe. Vic Zhou and the others and like Jerry Yan and Barbie were completely, absolutely, entirely STIFF! Barely enough emotion expressed. I refuse to recognize Meteor Garden as an adaptation of HYD manga. It's a bunch of BS. No offense to MG fans, it just stinks more than rotten eggs.

I rate Japan's Hana Yori Dango higher than MG because the acting, costume, and set was tenfolds better than MG. Kissing scenes weren't awkward between the main couple.

I also did not finish Yukan Club, I dropped it after Mike He's episode and I haven't picked it up since.

Yamada Taro Monogartari or whatever, It was okay but I had a hard time seeing Nino? as a princey character. The air-guitar contest sequence was fun but it was ridiculous.

I'm usually fine with manga to drama, I just require GOOD acting otherwise, don't waste my time.

[beansprouts]

Oh well, HYD was pretty much crap to me in more ways than I care to list. Meteor Garden II fall along the same ranks of too crap for me to list also.

I nearly forgot Yamada Taro, probably cause it was really forgettable, I can't even remember how many episodes I watched, 2 or 3? As boyish and cute Nino can get, he's no way near princely.

Nobody mentioned It started with a kiss, the Japanese version was played by Kashiwabara Takashi and Sato Aiko more than 10 years ago while the TW version was by Joe Cheng and Ariel Lin. I like the original Japanese version when I watched it years and years ago, it was over the top, bad acting, ridiculous comedic moments, all the makings of a trashy show, but I enjoyed it very much, probably cause of Kashiwabara As for the TW version, I watched a couple of episodes here and there, it was over the top, bad acting, had ridiculous comedic moments as well, pretty much LOL material but too bad I didn't have the time to complete the series.

By the way, Honey & Clover TW adaptation is going to be played by Joe Cheng, I manage to catch some of the behind the scenes folks posted online, can't find the links now but it looks pretty promising.

[Jilly]

Manga to drama adaptations, definitely the trend nowadays, some of them are really good while some are just really bleah. I don't think there's a success formula, doesn't matter whether the original manga is really popular or not, the drama adaptation usually turns out very differently.

A few examples of the adaptations that I like/don't like would be:

+ Meteor Garden, I know people are going to disagree with me on this, I just prefer the TW version over the Jdrama version. Probably cause I watched it when I was a dreamy school girl years and years ago, HYD doesn't hold the same magic for me.

+ Nodame Cantabile, very successful adaptation, probably one of the most successful ones. Excellent cast, comedic moments over the top yet tastefully done, a very memorable series. I read some of the manga, it was almost a frame by frame transformation from manga to drama, down to the expressions.

- Hana Kimi, major fan of the manga, sorely disappointed at both the TW and Japanese adaptation. Bad cast, butchered storyline, Miyuki was completely wrong in both shows, I failed to finish either series.

- Honey & Clover, only 5 episodes but the verdict is already out, perhaps the best for manga adaptation is for it to stick very closely to the original manga. The storyline was butchered here, the characters were not portrayed accordingly to the manga as well, oh my god, Morita turned into an arrogant pig, what the heck? Waiting for the TW to come up to see if they can outdo the Japanese version... a very easy job actually.

-Yuukan Club, it was WTH from the first episode, couldn't bear to continue watching, the bad acting and over-the-top-ness 'comedy' was just too painful to watch.

Seems like we have the same taste expect for Hana Kimi.
I don't think it's as bad as you've said. I've seen a lot worse

Some more good and bad ones:

+ Mars
Awesome. I didn't expect the story can go so deep and dark, covering teen angst, suicide, molestation, mental problems, etc.

+ It Started With a Kiss
Very cute series

+ The Rose
I have to admit that I like this series mostly because of Joe Cheng's excellent acting He portrays the character so well that you'll laugh and cry along with him.

- Peach Girl
Needless to say, awful plot and casts! I should have expected that when I saw Vanness' name on the credits.

[Suet Seung]

+ The Rose
I have to admit that I like this series mostly because of Joe Cheng's excellent acting He portrays the character so well that you'll laugh and cry along with him.

- Peach Girl
Needless to say, awful plot and casts! I should have expected that when I saw Vanness' name on the credits.

Yes, The Rose was awesome! I'm hoping to read the manga or continue it actually, barely finish volume one. I'm surprised how Ella's counterpart in the manga looks. Joe Cheng's superb acting as Kui made me love him as an actor and possibly more. Hahaha! Jerry Huang's acting sadly couldn't hold a candle next to Joe. It's actually the series I began to like Joe, not It Started with a Kiss (at all).

Peach Girl - I think I have reviewed this in some Taiwanese series thread. But I'll say it again, Annie Wu was possibly equal or worse acting than Barbie, well, same difference. I cringed every time she shouted or cried. Vanness...he's quite the shortie. Blah.

[Jilly]

Yes, The Rose was awesome! I'm hoping to read the manga or continue it actually, barely finish volume one. I'm surprised how Ella's counterpart in the manga looks. Joe Cheng's superb acting as Kui made me love him as an actor and possibly more. Hahaha! Jerry Huang's acting sadly couldn't hold a candle next to Joe. It's actually the series I began to like Joe, not It Started with a Kiss (at all).

Why don't you like ISWAK? I actually like him from this series. From then on, I started collecting and watching all his other series. I still think his performance in The Rose is still the best though. Ella is also surprised me with her decent acting. Jerry Huang... is he even in the movie? When you got megawatts personality like Joe, you'll barely notice Jerry in it.

Peach Girl - I think I have reviewed this in some Taiwanese series thread. But I'll say it again, Annie Wu was possibly equal or worse acting than Barbie, well, same difference. I cringed every time she shouted or cried. Vanness...he's quite the shortie. Blah.

Totally agree. She's horrendous!! Can't they pick a better lead actress? I thought Barbie is a pretty good actress

[beansprouts]

Seems like we have the same taste expect for Hana Kimi.
I don't think it's as bad as you've said. I've seen a lot worse

I am a manga elitist I admit, that really explains why I don't like both adaptation of Hana Kimi, I might have enjoy it more if I didn't read the manga.

I managed to dig up the link to TW's adaptation of Honey & Clover starring Joe Cheng if anybody is interested.

[Leen_zhihai]

whoa, I didn't know there is a Japanese version of "Meteor Garden." I just can't picture any other Do Ming Chi more lovable then that of Jerry Yan.

u really should watch hana yori dango..
i used to think that meeor garden is the best, but after i watch hyd.. i felt like meteorgarden is one of the worst drama.. matsumuto jun is the real domyouji

i give thumb ups to drama like hana kimi (only the jap version) and also honey and clover.. yamada tarou is great too

[LuvJoJo]

u really should watch hana yori dango..
i used to think that meeor garden is the best, but after i watch hyd.. i felt like meteorgarden is one of the worst drama.. matsumuto jun is the real domyouji

i give thumb ups to drama like hana kimi (only the jap version) and also honey and clover.. yamada tarou is great too

I agreed with you...um, some manga adaptions huh?

How about "Ying Ye 3+1" that was a manga adaption too!
I thought the acting were very good, but the story-line seems to drag a bit in the series, but read the manga and you'll fall in love with it....when ever I read the manga, I'll think of the cast in "Ying Ye" haha, like Ming Dao and QiaoEn...

"Devil Beside You" I belive that was a manga adaption too! I saw the book the other day at Borders and I started on it, and thinking that it won't catch my attention like the series, I was wrong. The book was really good!! The series did a bad job at making this into live actions. I know Rainie is good at singing and acting, but her portray of the manga girl character don't really match...

"Mars" was pretty good, it goes alot like the manga. That's why I liked it even though Barbie wasn't really my choice of a leading girl..but I liked her in this series, she did a good job of portraying the innocent girl in the manga..

I was thinking and I hope this isn't a mistake but is Ming Dao series "Magicians of Love" the adaptions from the manga book "Beauty Pop"? I watch "Magicians of Love" and then bump into the book later and find it that these two really have a similar story-line, especially the hair cutting part....

[L4love]

Mars - i thought it was one of best taiwanese series i've seen. i mean, it was the first series that caught my attention and got me to learn more about the taiwanese entertainment.

ISWAK - this was a good a one too. i became a fan joe chen and ariel after watching this series. i thought of watching the japanese one, but it's too old for me.

Hana Yori Dango/Meteor Garden - i saw both versions, i have to say i like the japanese version more. MG was good too, it's just the acting and the extra boring scenes they had. but i have to admit i used to think MG was one of the good ones i've seen. but then realized i have wasted lots of time on it. i can watch HYD more than twice, i can't make myself to watch MG the second time.

Hana Kimi - i love both version, but i like maki more than ella. i just hate her facial expression and overdone things. I like the supporting casts for both. it seemed like i was watching two different storylines.

Devil besides you - i don't know why i even thought of it. i guess it was when i first learned about taiwanese entertainment and became so addicted to random series.

Nodame Cantabile - very fun to watch. i liked it a lot.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

i didn't even know the Rose was also a manga adaption. i thought it was boring, but i don't hate it.