Last week I’ve finished watching Hana Yori Dango 1 & 2. I finally gave in and watched. Initially, I didn’t want to because I can’t help but compare the actors playing in HYD with those in Meteor Garden. The HYD actors are just not appealing. But surprise! They grow on you =) So much that I am now obsessed with Matsumoto Jun (Doumyouji)

Ok.. before I get sidetracked with my gushing (I’ll do it on some other post), I’ll talk about HYD first.

Being an MG viewer first, it’s impossible for me to watch HYD without making comparisons. One standout item in HYD is it is super fast-paced! Imagine season 1 having 9 eps and 2 with 11 eps. On the plus side, being fast-paced meant I never got bored. There were no dragging parts compared to MG where there are fillers every episode. On the down side, I felt like character and relationship build up are lacking.

Definitely, MG trumps the HYD actors in conventional good looks department. But as mentioned earlier, they grew on me. I think because I managed to get past the superficial layer (really?!?) and focus on their delivery instead. Esp. Matsomoto Jun (here we go….)

I liked Doumyouji in this version. Although he doesn’t fit the description physically, he got the character down to pat. First look you would think, “is this the guy whose supposed to be violent and mean? But he’s such a stick!” But he totally had me seeing Doumyouji not only as mean and cruel but that he can be kind and reliable also. And his swagger screams arrogance and self-confidence.

Inoue Mao as Makino Tsukushi is also a perfect for the role I think. She’s not overly gorgeous, but she’s cute. She looks tough and acts tough which often times look fake when acted on screen. But for her, it all seemed natural.

Rui as a character seems a bit different to me. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m used to MG’s Lei (haven’t read nor watched the manga/anime before). But is he really supposed to be that… chatty? And jolly? He talks a lot and he laughs out loud. It weirds me out a little. I liked Lei’s air of mystery and his silent support to Sanchai. I’ve nothing much to say on the actor, really. Just the character he played.

Throughout the series, I found myself rooting for Doumyouji instead of Rui. This is a surprise since I’ve always been an avid Lei/Rui supporter during the MG craze. I never saw the appeal of the immature and short-tempered Doumyouji then. In HYD, I managed to see what made Doumyouji appealing to Tsukushi and others. It could also be because of how the role was acted.

Last, I just have to mention this… I love, love, love the relationship Doumyouji has with his sister (Tsubaki). They showed how much he looks up to his sister, which is adorable. Considering how rough he is to others, he becomes a little brother when dealing with his sister =)

Disclaimer: I don’t want to start a HYD vs. MG war. Just to make it clear, I’ve nothing against MG. In fact, there was a period that I was obsessed with it. =)