The pop TV drama "Meteor Garden"(Liuxing Huayuan) has become so controversialsince its air
ing that it was banned from broadcast on TV stations across theChinese mainland this week
as a result of strong protests by parents andeducators. While the 18-episode love story ca
ptured the hearts of many teensand young adults with its good-looking cast and Cinderella-
style plot, parentswere upset over its campus violence and the excessive lifestyle of the
heroes.The worried that dream-like descriptions in the drama could lead their childrenaway
from real-life responsibilities. According to Beijing Youth Daily, thebanning order issue
d by the State Administration of Radio Film and Televisionreads: Meteor Garden is prohibit
ed from broadcast because of its tendency tomislead teenagers. The made-in-Taiwan series i
s set in an elite prep school foraffluent students. When a new, spirited girl from a middl
e-class family entersthe campus, the four most popular and affluent boys, the F4 , soon de
velop alove-hate relationship with her. With candy-eye casts, sentimental storylinesand ca
tchy theme songs, the romantic series appeals to local audiences lookingfor an alternative
to Hollywood. F4, namely Jerry Yen Cheng-hsu, Vic Zhou, VannessWuand Ken Zhu, already hav
e shot from total unknowns to pin-up idols. Their debutalbum "Meteor Rain" has sold over 1
80,000 copies in Taiwan alone. Auniversity student who gave her name as Ding watched the d
rama by downloadingevery episode from the Internet. She thought the story revolved around
school life,soshe could relate to it and she like to watch love stories in which the guyan
d girl have to overcome lots of barriers. Many college students also said theshow'sreally
funny. Not surprisingly, parents and teachers see something different inthe idol drama bas
ed on a Japanese cartoon. A man whose daughter is keen onF4 considered the drama's irony i
s that there is nothing really extraordinary about them,apart from the fact that they are
all lanky (1.8 m) and good-looking and he didn'tknow why so many people are infatuated wit
h them very much.