Barbie Xu as Shan Tsai/Makino Tsukushi in Meteor Garden

I've done my analysis on Jerry Yan, now it's time for Barbie Xu.  Okay she may have retired from acting due to her marriage but I'd say it's unfair not to give tribute to her.  I haven't seen much of her nor am I a big fan BUT I believe i should credit her as the best live version of Tsukushi Makino ever... or two, I could dare compare her to the likes of Liu Xue Hua, Lin Ching Hsia and Lin Feng Jiao's younger days.  Now moving on...


The role Barbie Xu plays is the feisty heroine Shan Tsai or known in Japan as Tsukushi Makino.  It's not a very easy role to play especially it takes a gutsy woman to play it.  Barbie Xu managed to break that role and became for me, the best live version of Tsukushi Makino to which Mao Inoue wasn't really able to match her though both are good.  Her interaction with the F4 is pretty good especially with lead guy Jerry Yan and how she was able to support the Doumyoji/Rui/Tsukushi love triangle (well she was later paired off with Vic Chou instead for Mars and had a short relationship with him).  I would also admit she might be comparable to the actress Mika Katsumura who played Yuuri in Timeranger in skill.


Maybe I should mention the chemistry she had in Jerry Yan whether it was the gutsy Shan Tsai of Meteor Garden I or the more Qiong Yao feel she had in Meteor Garden II.  For Meteor Garden II, she ended up for me unintentionally playing the heroine roles that Liu Xue Hua played in her younger days.  The part where she goes from strong weed to becoming the weaker heroine, she does it all with a consistently good performance that I would like to praise- the very performances that launched her career until her decision to retire.  It was just a disappointment she and Jerry Yan didn't do any more lead roles since it felt like the chemistry that Qin Han and Liu Xue Hua had years ago.  Hopefully she'll become a mother soon.

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