We recap a glorious era of idol series that contributed to the fame and acting credentials of artistes such as F4, Rainie Yang, and Mike He.

For those who grew up idolising, watching and listening to erstwhile idol boyband F4, you have exactly less than three weeks to revisit your neighbourhood karaoke joint and revise their cheesy pop tunes to prepare for the group’s reunion at the end of this month. Never mind that it’s set to be a televised joint appearance and not an album comeback of sorts (thank God!), but it’s been almost five years since they last shared the stage and that’s enough reason to celebrate, we think…

Before we go off-tangent trumpeting F4’s comeback, this feature is a special dedication to Angie Chai (aka Chai Zhi Ping), THE godmother of idol drama series (and F4, of course) in Taiwan. For those who aren’t familiar, she is the very brain and producer who paved a starry road for the F4 boys through yesteryear idol serial, Meteor Garden and introduced the trend of “idol dramas” to the Taiwanese market.

Sad to say, the 50-year-old will be bowing out of the drama industry following her recent decision to shut down her production company due to various reasons such as lacklustre ratings and the loss of acting talent in her company. While some attributed her departure a result of weak drama ratings, many believe that the astute producer has yet to lose her magic touch – her debut film production, You’re the Apple of My Eye, broke box office records in Taiwan and lifted its two young leads - Kai Ko and Michelle Chen - to superstardom overnight. For all you know, she might be progressing into the world of silver screen projects next.

If you’re still scratching your head going “Angie-who?”, here are some of her more popular drama works that will hopefully ring a bell or two: Devil By My Side, Hi My Sweetheart, Why Why Love, Mars, and Endless Love.

Below, we revisit some of her most iconic productions that have brought fame to a string of artistes who are now established actors or singers.

Read on for more.