Modern Farmer Drama Review

I love this show. I don't know what else to say. It was cute and not over complicated but it made you feel all sorts of emotions and by the end, you cared about every single character. There was at least one hole in the plot by the end, but I can forgive that because of everything else that happened.

Fall K-pop Favorites

The fall. The time of year where there are a lot less comebacks and many of the songs that do come out are ballads. As we have gotten closer and closer to winter and Christmas it has been rather quite in the K-pop world (song wise anyways) but I still have a nice little list here. At least I think it is nice, someone could think it was stupid but we are all entitled to our own opinion even if it wrong. There's going to be quite a few posts in the next few days - if I can get my act together - so without further ado, let's get to the post!

Secret Door Drama Review

Hey, guess what? Politics. And you know what else? Politics. Then, just in case you were unsure about my first two points: politics. One more time for good measure: politics. 

But then, the drama ended and it was an amazing ending. This is probably one of the best endings that I have seen in a drama in a while. It made me forget how bored I had been with the constant barrage of political intrigue and I even shed a tear or two at the beauty of it all. Then the final shot/line of the drama was the cherry on top of that magical ending.

The Three Musketeers Drama Review

I'm a little late to this drama but that allowed me to fly though it which is always fun. It was especially good right now because the students are taking finals which means I haven't had class for the last two weeks. I am crazy bored right now.

I didn't realize until I stared watching this drama, but I am watching another drama that takes place at the same time. The Three Musketeers is set in the period of King Injo and the second Manchu evasion. This same topic is also covered by lasts years sageuk Cruel Palace. As I was drafting this post it was so hard for me to not just write a big compare and contrast essay about the two dramas because they have a lot of the same characters and now that I have finished The Three Musketeers I am also starting to wonder if they will cover a similar story as well.

Liar Game Drama Review

Season two! Season two! 

Seriously though, I think that I aged ten years for each of the last two episodes I was so stressed out the whole time and then it had this wonderful open ending. It wasn't annoying open though like some other dramas that I could mention 

*coughcoughGuFamilyBookcoughcoughSurplusPrincesscoughcough* 

Sorry, one of my students must have given me a winter cold that somehow onomatopoeiaed itself onto my screen. I'll try to keep that under control in the future.  

The King's Face First Impressions

My newest sageuk. I have been on a big history kick lately with watching Secret Door and I would like some history books but that means that I would actually need to find one and then I would have to transport it back to the states when finally I go back. I think that I might just suck it up though because I also miss reading things. I miss my books! Someday, I will be reunited with them!

After doing a little reading about Prince Gwanghae, our main character, I have found that he was the king before King Injo who is the king in the drama Cruel Palace: War of the Flowers. I have recently been getting back in to watching that drama and maybe this will help me finish the last twenty episodes. I don't know where this drama will end, but it will give me more background information about the slight uselessness that was King Injo. From my reading, again, Gwanghae may have been dethroned, but he at least did good things. Injo took over the throne and just threw the country into war and because of that, ruined the economy. 

Mamamoo Piano Man MV Review

Did I not just say that I wanted more jazz in my life? I think I did. Thank you Mamamoo for filling my need for for jazzy swing in my K-pop. I now have the desire for a Mamamoo/SPICA collaboration project but I'm not sure if the world is ready for the magic that would happen if they were to do that though. They could probably destroy a small building with their voices.

I just had a though, can Mamamoo sing the Mulin Rouge version of "Lady Marmalade"? Not anyone can sing that song and I think that these girls could do it.

Pinocchio First Impressions

I'm a little behind in writing about this drama, I've been a little busy at work. So many essays, so little time. Especially when reading these essays is sometimes like defining hyrogliphics; bad hand writing plus bad English equals difficult reading.

I have been waiting for this drama to begin and I do not feel disappointed from what I have been presented with thus far. To be perfectly honest, it actually reminds me of I Hear Your Voice in some ways. It is the same writer/director team though so, I shouldn't be too surprised. You have our lead, Dal Po played by Lee Jong Suk (the most obvious connection) who has a traumatic past that connects him with our female lead. He can also read the female lead's mind in this drama too! In Ha played by Park Shin Hye can't lie so Dal Po always knows what she is thinking. Then, because of his past and the distrust that it caused him, he puts himself right in the center of the people that threw his life into chaos in the first place.

Hi Suhyun I'm Different MV Review

Thank you for this song and video. I feel like I haven't written anything in forever and now I have something to write about! The most exciting thing that has happened to me lately is Kyuhyun's solo debut, and even though that was really exciting because Kyuhyun has the voice of an angel, the video and song didn't give me much to talk about. The video was artsy, the song was beautiful, it made me want to drink hot chocolate and wear a sweater, that was about it. Super Junior!

Hi Suhyun's song is totally different from Kyuhyun's song is every way possible and I love it. If there was anyone in YG who can do a jazzy sound it is definitely Lee Hi who we haven't heard from in a while and I love Akdong Musician, I think Suhyun is adorable and her voice is great as well. Put then together and what do you get? Greatness.

Zhou Mi Rewind Mini Album Review

You know what I have been rewinding? This album. Zhou Mi has always been my favorite member of Super Junior M and I have been patiently waiting for the moment that he would be able to do this. It wasn't really until the Break Down album that I felt that Zhou Mi and Henry really got to show what they could do and now the two of them have done solo work. I personally like Zhou Mi's style better though so the feels are stronger right now then they were for Henry's solo debut. Sorry Henry, you're cool too.

Zhou Mi Rewind MV Review

The moment is finally here. The Gentleman Mimi has at long last put out a solo album. I could cry I'm so happy about this. When the teasers came out and there was all the speculation, I didn't really care who it was, but I knew that it had to be someone in an existing group, why else would they hide his face? I also knew that it wasn't going to be Kyuhyun like some people though because Kyuhyun is the TOP of Super Junior, he doesn't take his shirt off.

Super Junior Evanesce MV Review

So much Super Junior! I love it and Super Junior comebacks seem extra special to me because they are always doing individual promotions or subunit things so to see everyone together makes my little E.L.F heart happy. I'm not going to say that I am unhappy with the song selections for the repackage, but I did think that it was weird that they didn't make new songs like they usually do. I have come to the realization why though and even though it makes me sad, I have accepted it.

Liar Game - First Impressions

In a word: obsessed. The first two episodes of this drama were amazing and I need the next episode now. I wasn't even going to watch this, but then I read the Drama Beans recap and I knew that it had to happen. 

I knew even less about Liar Game than I did about Modern Farmer but a little research told me that this was originally a very popular Japanese manga that has a live TV adaptation, a sequel, and two live action movies. I take that people really like this story then. That is all I looked into though. I don't want to know what happens because that could ruin this experience. When I watched To the Beautiful You, I was a little grumpy about the drama because the manga Hana Kimi is one of my favorite mangas and I didn't think the adaptation was that great. Maybe after the drama is done I will read the Liar Game manga. We'll see. 

Modern Farmer - First Impressions

I think that it is pretty safe to say that this is my new drama crack. At the end of the second episode I was literally rolling on the floor laughing. That is mainly because in my tiny officetel I choose to do all my computering while laying or sitting on the floor, but that's besides the point. This show is funny.

VIXX Error Album Review

Because I sometimes have the attention span of a goldfish, I totally forgot that I wanted to review albums more often. It's a good thing that I was reminded about it or else I would have just let this go and never have though about it. Hooray for internet friends!

VIXX Error MV Review

I have a lot to say, strap yourselves in.

I am feeling a certain kind of way about what I have just viewed. I'm not sure that I am yet capable of coherent thoughts because that video and song were pretty legit.

*deep breath*

Okay, let's do this.

Surplus Princess Drama Review

Block B Merchandise!

I have stated this fact a few times on this blog I think, but the most recent time was in the Super Junior "Mamacita" review post and it is this:

I may look like I am 24, but I am actually a 12 year old girl. Why, you ask? Let me tell you.

My first K-pop group was Super Junior and because of that, they will always be number one my heart no matter what. The thing that makes me a 12 year old girl is that sometimes when I get too excited about another group, I feel bad because I feel like I am abandoning Super Junior. You may judge me now. I can accept that, I judge myself on this topic.

BTOB You're So Fly MV Review

New BTOB! Yay! I'm not a hardcore Melody, but I have watched their Diary season and their Weekly Idol appearances and they seem like super cool guys. They are so fun and I like when they do videos like this because it doesn't look corny or fake, they are, in fact, this insane.

Seeing the insanity of this video makes me think that BTOB and B1A4 are very similar groups. That may sound like crazy talk, but it's not hear me out! Both groups have very two different sides, B1A4 has their serious side and their quirky cute side; BTOB either goes for a 90s hip hop kind of thing or the weirdness that is shown in this video. Both groups have two distinct sides and they do it well because it fits with their personality. B1A4 will probably grow out of the cuteness one day though and I'm not sure if my heart is ready for that.

Boarding House #24 - First Impressions

I have been waiting for this to begin! I have never watched a sitcom before, it breaks up all the sageuks that I am watching, and it has Ken and High Top in it, what more could I want right now?

After the initial joy of hearing that two groups that I liked had people in this sitcom, I was then fascinated about the drama itself. It sounds easy enough: six strangers in their mid-twenties come to live together in a boarding house. The trailer and the poster are strangely ominous though, like they are all coming to this house and becoming trapped and so far, that is the vibe that I am getting.

Secret Door - First Impressions

I'm going to be straight with you all. I was on Allkpop and there was an article about this drama and the reason that I clicked on it was because it said that Block B sang the first OST for it. I am not ashamed of that. After watching the teaser though it was a good example of come for the music and stay for the actors. I couldn't stay for the story though because I had no idea what was happening in the trailer.

After some further investigation, I decided I should do some researching on the history of it and I have found that the subject matter of the drama is incredibly interesting! This drama focuses on the tragic story of Crown Prince Sado played by Lee Je Hoon. In the drama though he goes by the name Lee Sun because the name Sado was posthumously given to him. I also found out that Sado mean Prince of Mournful Thoughts. So after all of that, I guess I should get my tissues ready?

Flower Grandpa Investigation Unit Drama Review

Well, that drama was just as weird as I had hoped that it would be and then some. My life hasn't changed in any great way, but if I was ever having a bad day, I would turn this on and I know that I would immediately feel better. Even better than all that, this drama makes me feel better about watching Nail Salon Paris last year. Why? Because this drama did everything that drama did wrong right.

Both dramas start out with a crazy plot FGIU: Flower boys turn into grandpas and have to figure out why; NSP: girl dresses up like a boy to work at a flower boy nail salon, also, gumihos. They were also a short one episode a week drama, so far so good. That's where any likeness ends. Right from the beginning I knew that I would like FGIU. It was cute and funny and had a good cast of characters. NSP, while I was excited about the cast, right from the beginning I could feel the pain welling up in my soul. 

Summer K-pop Favorites

There are so many songs! I don't know what it was about July, but I just loved everything! That is one reason that I wrote the K-pop Rookies post because the list was getting really long and the month was only half over! It probably also has something to do with the fact that it is summer and summer songs are some of my favorite songs. We all know that I don't really like ballads, so, to me, the happiness of summer is better than the sadness of winter.

Even with a small post about rookies, this list got really long as we got closer to the posting date and it made me wonder what I could do to make it a more manageable sized post. This is a problem though because I picked all these songs because I like them and I think that other people should like them too! Not that people don't already like them, but I want them to be here because it's my post and I can do what I want. So I have created three categories: K-pop, soloists, and other, that way I can pretend that this long list is kind of organized in some way.

It's Okay, That's Love Drama Review

And another lovely drama comes to a close. I think that I have said this before, but there have been a lot of really good dramas this year. That's not to say that this drama didn't have it's faults, but some of the over the topness in the beginning can be forgiven for the great ending that it had. In Dramaland, endings are very hit or miss, but I think that this ending was a home run. It was beautiful.

I'm also wondering how to talk about one of the characters without putting in any spoilers. If you have seen the drama then you know who I am talking about. His whole existence is a spoiler so I will do my best to keep it as unspoilery as possible and make a warning if I say something that people may want to avoid.

2PM Go Crazy MV Review

I said this in a previous post, but I have been feeling a little poopy about writing. Not that I don't enjoy it, but I feel a little stuffy and I have just realized why. I am setting to many limits for myself. I have to do certain things on certain days in a certain way and I'm not allowed to do anything else. The blog is going to become a lot more fluid starting with this post and I already feel really good about that decision. Now, on with the song!

I think that this song is great. Aside from the fact that it is a really fun song, my favorite parts are all the harmonies that are in the chorus. When we heard that first "aniya" in the chorus I was in love. Seriously, if there is one thing that will get me hooked on a song faster than a piano solo it's some solid harmonies. This was also a really strong harmony it wasn't so much a lovely blending of sounds as a there are two people singing different parts and it is doing magical things to your ear holes.

Ranking of my favorite Super Junior Albums

Here we go, the last day of my Super Junior posting spree......at least for now *dramatic music* I also think I figured out what I want to do for their 10 year anniversary. Excessive? Maybe. Do I care? No. Could it crash and burn as I decide I've made a terrible decision? Yes.

This list, as stated in the title, is going to be about the Super Junior albums rated from least favorite to most favorite. There aren't any albums that I hate, but some albums are definitely better than others. I am also not going to be talking about any sub unit groups, that might be for another list. I also won't be putting in any EP's or singles in this list, it just going to be the seven albums that they have released since their debut. Here we go! 

Super Junior Mamacita MV Review

How's the song? 

I would like to begin this post by saying that this might be the best thing that SM has done for Super Junior in a long time. It took me a while to warm up to "Sexy, Free, and Single" and I don't really like "Swing" but I think that this song is awesome. It is has a different than what they have done in the past and I quite like it.

Speaking of "Swing" I have seen some people asking why the E.L.F's are so excited because it's not like Super Junior has been dead for two years. There have been two Super Junior M albums plus the Japanese album that they have done since Sexy, Free, and Single, but you don't understand. Super Junior M is Super Junior M, not Super Junior. Not that I wouldn't be 100% with Zhou Mi and Henry becoming full Super Junior members, but the groups are different. Also, a Japanese album is in Japanese and it wasn't all new things. So, there's a difference, okay? You'll just have to trust me.

Super Junior Mamacita Album Review

Just so you are all aware, this week is going to be the week of Super Junior, so if you don't like them, I would stay away from here for the next few days. I haven't had any new Super Junior for two years so I am latching on to this like the fangirling leech that I try to never be.

I think that I can pretty non biasedly say that this album is really good because I can also say that I didn't love the Sexy, Free, and Single album. I didn't buy that album right away and for a while considered only buying a few songs namely "Gulliver" and "Butterfly" because those songs are awesome. I did eventually buy it though and I like it, but it isn't my favorite album they have ever done.

Super Junior Mamacita MV Teaser Review

Hey! I definitely haven't posted anything in about two weeks now but that is not to say that I haven't written anything, I just haven't posted anything. I've been feeling a little uninspired and if I started something, I would decide that it was crap and push it aside and eventually erased the whole draft.

I think that the inspiration could be flowing soon though with the release of Super Junior's teaser and the video that will be coming out! Even with my great love for all things Block B and VIXX, Super Junior will always have a special place in my heart because they were my first group. Heechul will also always be my number one bias, I don't care what anyone says or who comes along, it will always be Heechul.

King of High School Drama Review

As I begin writing this review, I am still basking in the glory that was this drama. It started well, it had good characters, the story never got dull, and - most importantly - the ending was fabulous. It sounds too good to be true, but every once in a while, a golden drama does happen, and for me it was this one.

When I first heard about this drama, on paper, it definitely sounded like something that could either go horribly wrong or be the greatest thing ever. Thankfully, it was the later. The story is about a high schooler named Lee Min Suk (Seo In Guk) and he is a hockey player and the only thing he worries about is his future in hockey and his crazy stalker Jung Yoo Ae (Lee Yeol Eum).

It's Okay, That's Love - First Impressions

I would have rather posted this last week because then I could have written about Night Watchman this week, but last week I was in Japan, and that was far more important. Sorry, not sorry. I have been really excited to watch this drama because Gong Hyo Jin is my favorite actress after Yoon Eun Hye. Lee Kwang Soo is also in this drama and he is also a favorite of mine. Then, to a lesser extent EXO's D.O is in this drama as well. Other than the fact that D.O is adorable, I didn't really care about him. He's good in EXO, but this is his acting debut so we have yet to see what he is made of.

This is also another drama that I am starting late, but not as late as Flower Grandpas, this drama just aired it's sixth episode, so I am totally caught up. I hate it when all the actors and actresses that I like all do things that sound good at the same time. It also doesn't help that I don't always want to watch dramas after being surrounded by all things Korean all day long.

LYn and Leo Blossom Tears MV Review

How's the song? 

We all know that I have a great love for Leo and that he is my spirit animal, so when I heard that he was going to be doing a duet with LYn, who I don't really listen to but know has an awesome voice, I knew that it was going to be magical!

Block B HER MV Review

How's the song? 

We're talking about Block B this week! Woo~! Is anyone surprised, because you shouldn't be just like you better believe that as soon as Super Junior releases their new album in a few months, I am going to be all over that like the crazy was in this video which I will talk about it a moment.

With most songs, you have an idea of what the song will sound like, but the teasers that were put out didn't really give a clear sound for this song so I was really happy when it started. It doesn't sound like anything that they have done before, but it still a Block B song.

First Impressions: Flower Grandpa Investigation Unit

This drama is a special kind of stupid. It took me all of two seconds to fall in love with it as soon as the story line began. I am also aware that I am late to watching this seeing as it ends today and here I am writing about the first two episodes. I feel a little ashamed about that since Heechul is my number one bias and he is in this drama. I knew that this drama was going to happen, but I didn't hear that it had started until episode seven and I'm not watching it until right now. Better late than never though, right? 

K-Pop Rookies in July

Okay, so maybe that title is a little misleading because one of the groups is actually from June, that's just the way it's going to be though! I don't know what was in the water this month, but there have been some debuts that made me sit up and pay attention. Usually, when I hear a new group, I listen to the song once and if they put out a song in the future maybe I'll be excited to listen to it and get into them more as they figure out who they are as a group. These next groups though, I have actually listened to their songs multiple times on repeat and I bought one of their albums. I don't know what happening to me, I am usually unswayed by the babies!

B1A4 Solo Day MV Review

How's the song? 

Yay! B1A4 is back! Not only that, but they are back with a happier song than the one that they put out in January. Every once in a while B1A4 does a slower song, and while I don't think that they are bad, they are known for their weirdness, not their seriousness. 

"Solo Day" is my favorite type of break up song, it isn't sad. Just because you are alone, doesn't mean that you have to be sad! Being single is not the end of the world and you can make the choice to be happy and that is what is happening in this song. There needs to be more songs like this rather than mopey, whiny songs. I'm also glad that this song came out because I have been feeling a little poopy the last couple of days and having a happy, fun, B1A4 song to listen to is a surefire way to make me feel happier.

Onew - Dream Girl Doll

If I didn't like the finished product of the "Lucifer" Onew doll, I freaking love the "Dream Girl" Onew doll. Murphy commissioned me to make this for her friend who was graduating from college. It makes me feel cool to say I was commissioned to do something.

I had to pump this doll out though. I was working on him right up until I left and Murphy didn't even pick him up until after I had been in Korea for a while.

This guy is my new masterpiece I think. My other masterpiece dolls involved a lot of finger work and small pieces but this is a masterpiece in painting. I painted on his shirt and I painted the entire jacket which was both parts painful and fun. I also really enjoyed making the tie. Since it was a checkered pattern, I had to cut out tiny pieces of felt and glue them on to a tie shape. It went pretty well as long as I didn't breathe too hard. I learned that the hard way.

Another little detail that you can't see is that his pants are a little short and he has little turquoise socks. They're pretty adorable.

~ Alora

Onew - Lucifer Doll

It hit me the other day that I completely forgot to put up some pictures of dolls that I made before I came to Korea. It makes me a little sad to post this and the one coming after because they will be the last ones that get posted for a while. I miss making dolls. *cries quietly*

I have been making a set of SHINee dolls from the "Lucifer" era and this Onew doll was the last one that I was able to do. Someday they will be completed with Jonghyun, but who knows when the heck that is going to happen.

Onew actually took a really long time because I started him as a project to keep me occupied as I took the train from Utah to California, and then I didn't work on him for a long time. He obviously got finished though, and maybe it's because I wasn't super interested in this doll, but I'm not in love with it, especially his hair which I realize looks slightly tragic in this picture, but there is nothing to be done about that.

My favorite part about the Onew doll, aside from the fact that he has a furry vest like Key that you can't see, is that the bottom oh his shirt has fringe. That was an experience. I cut out a strip of felt and then make little cuts all around it for fringe and then glued it to the base of the shirt. So yeah, there is one piece of glory on the doll.

~ Alora

Gap Dong Drama Review

This should have gone up on Friday......oops.......

I am a little behind because this drama did end a few weeks ago, and that is okay! I am not the biggest fan of cop dramas/murder mysteries, but sometimes they can be fun to watch if they are done well. With these type of stories, as with most, the writer could just take an old story and not it reinvent it in a way that was interesting or fun. This does both very well though. They were able to take that psychological "what is a monster/psychopath" question and wrap it in the mystery of "who done it and how do we stop it?".

f(x) Red Light MV Review

How's the song? 

f(x) is back after quite a hiatus and may I say, I quite like this song. I am not the biggest f(x) fan, but I do look forward to their comebacks because I do like the girls personalities. There are a few groups that while I don't necessarily like their music, I do like the individuals in the group and f(x) is definitely at the top of that list. When "Rum Pum Pum Pum" (now to be referred to as RPPP) came out I did not like it right away but it did eventually grow on me where with "Red Light" I liked it right away. Maybe it's because it has that weirdness to it that I like where RPPP was a little cuter and I had to grow to like it.

First Impressions - Joseon Gunman

Look at that poster. It's beautiful. If that alone doesn't make you want to watch this, that fact that it stars Lee Min Ki should. I'm also a bit of a sucker for fusion saguks, especially ones that look like they will be extremely visually pleasing, which most of them are. I'm also excited for when Lee Joon Ki ditches his sword and his high born clothes for the outfit above. He is pretty awesome with a sword though.......and a fan, but that's in the past. 

First Impressions - King of High School

I have been really bad about writing about dramas since I got to Korea. When I first got here I didn't have internet at my officetel for a while so that made life difficult and I think that because I am around Korean speakers all day, I want to come home and read and watch things in English. I also don't need to focus as much if I am watching things in English. I have been trying to be better about my dramas though and I want to write more about what I am watching, hence, first impressions.

Spring K-pop Favorites

Happy end of spring/beginning of summer! How is the weather in your areas of the world? We have had some pretty grossly hot days here, but there have also been some really nice days. We have also had a few really good lightening storms which were pretty cool. It will only continue to get hotter though and monsoon season is not yet upon us. I'm sure that it will all be quite the experience when it starts.

For this season's songs that I liked there are less videos with a small view count and even the ones with a smaller count aren't nearly as small as the ones that I chose last time. There is a repeat from last time as well because the person in question is awesome!

Boyfriend Obsession MV Review

How's the song? 

I'm going to be honest, I don't really know anything about Boyfriend. I often think of them as the group with the twins and that's about it. I have listened to their songs before and I have enjoyed them, but their just not one of the groups that I have payed very much attention to. There's too many groups to pay attention to all of them, dang it! It's basically impossible and that makes me sad because groups often get brushed under the rug whether that be personally by me or on a more global scale which is never a good thing.

BAP Where Are You? MV Review

How's the song? 

I began this post as a joint post about U-KISS and BAP since the songs were so vastly different but the public response was slightly similar and I actually began writing the post, but then I changed my mind. I felt that there was more to talk about in BAP's video because I could make fun of people more and I wouldn't have to take awkward screen shots either. You know what I'm talking about.

VIXX Eternity MV Review

How's the song? 

Something magical happened during this song. Normally VIXX is pretty good about part distribution except when it comes to Hyuk. Not that he doesn't get parts, but they're normally small and he isn't really featured when he sings. The sun has shined upon Hyuk though and he got parts and he was front and center during them too. He also has a similar sounding voice to Onew which is okay by me because I like voices that had that type of sound.

G-Dragon - Fantastic Baby Doll

And here we have the last installment of dolls that would have gone on an Etsy account had I not got a job in Korea.

GD in the leader of the the boy group BIGBANG and "Fantastic Baby" might be one of the best song ever. Ever. He was also really fun to make and a little stressful because there was quite a lot to do on him.

Starting from the top and going down, there is the crown. I first only decorated the base and was then slightly hesitant to glue jems to the head parts because I thought it would collapse, but luckily the glue stiffened it so that didn't happen. It is still a little delicate though.

Then there is the jacket. In the video, there is a lot more detail, but I just left it at the "Hermes" on the front of the jacket. I had never made letters before and they were also really small AND I had to make an identical set. Wow. They turned out well though.

Last, there are his shoes. I made them in a similar manner to the Minho Etude House doll and then I painted them with some gold glittery paint for an extra bit of pizzazz. Something I forgot, I also made those white and black leg things he has with white felt and fabric paint. Yep, this guy was not easy, but it was fun! A good thing is that he didn't have a lot of hair to do on top of all these other things. Hair normally starts out fun, but the closer I get to the end the more tedious and boring it becomes.

~ Alora

Hongbin - VooDoo Doll Doll

Hongbin is the visual, or "artwork", of the boy band VIXX and I thought that it would be appropriate to post this since they are going to have a comeback on Tuesday! Yay!

I made this Hongbin doll as I was pumping dolls out when I was considering making an Etsy account. I knew that I wanted to make a VooDoo era doll because I thought that the clothes were really cool with all the exposed stitching; and as we know, if there is one thing that I like, it detailing that will make me blind.

Unfortunately, you can't see all of it in the picture, but trust me, it's cool looking. Something cool that you can see though is the little voodoo doll that I made for Hongbin. I tried to copy it as much as possible from all the promotional pictures and I think that I did pretty well. He has a little heart and the word VIXX on his arm and everything. I'm pretty proud of it.

~ Alora

K-pop Blondies, the Good and the Bad

Blonde hair, it can either be the most amazing thing that can happen to an idol's head or it could make you want to throw liberal amounts of hair dye at them in the hopes that they will use it to change their hair back to an acceptable color.

Not too long ago on Allkpop there was an article about a writer's favorite blonde haired idols which got me thinking, who are my favorite blonde idols? And then, more importantly, who are the people who should never, ever, be blonde again (and if it does happen, their stylist should be shot)?

The Good 

Gongchan - Beautiful Target Japanese Version  

Gongchan isn't my favorite member of B1A4, that goes to CNU, but I still really like him. He has grown into his face recently and he has a really versatile look. One minute he can be the cutest thing ever and the next he's got his smolder on and looking all mature and jailbate-y. Is he still jailbate? I don't actually know and I don't care enough to look it up. I don't think he is.........

Hyuk - Hyde

Blonde Hyuk, was the best Hyuk. His blonde was really complimentary to his skin tone so it didn't wash him out like some other people who will be on the bad list. I think that Hyde was also the time that Hyuk started to look more adult like than in previous videos. The baby's growing up and he is doing it well.

Sungmin - Sexy Free and Single 

There have been quite a few blondies in Super Junior but my favorite bottle blond in Sungmin. Yes, even with my great love for Heechul and Enhyuk who have also been blonde Sungmin pulls it off the best. I think that it is because Sungmin is already adorable and the blonde adds to that cute innocence that seems to follow him everywhere.

Dara - Falling in Love 

Everyone here knows that Dara is a goddess right? Good. I know that CL is the blonde of the group and she looks mighty fine with her honey hair but Dara looked amazing in this video. Her blonde hair with that white dress and gold jewelry was stunning. She was glowing and I could probably go on but I'll save everyone from that embarrassment and stop here.

PO - Nillili Mambo 

Like Dara, P.O. is not the blonde of the group, that title would normally go to Zico and while I like Zico's blonde hair, I like it better when he has more of a chocolate color like in "Tell Them", post dreads. His hair was so fluffy and beautiful then. I do kind of miss the dreads though, he rocked them. I loved P.O.'s long blonde hair during this era though, even when he had it down, kind of. That middle part was questionable, but then again what middle part isn't questionable?

The Bad 

Kyuhyun - Don't Don 

"Don't Don" was a dark time for Kyuhyun. First, he almost dies in that horrible car accident and is unable to promote with the rest of the group and then to add insult to injury SM poured a bottle bleach on his head. This hair is too light for his face and there are artistic dark roots to go along with the song's J-rock concept. I really liked this song, but I do not like what it did to Kyuhyun's hair.

Taemin - Lucifer Japanese Version 

Yes, I am aware that this isn't a flattering picture of Taemin, but I feel that if you need makeup and lighting in order for you hair to work with your face, something is wrong with that. His hair and his face are similar colors and it is making him look sick and gaunt. Taemin can look good with light hair but it needs to be a brown or red blonde. No more single tone light blondes on Taemin's head SM!

Gain - Bloom 

I wouldn't say this was bad in the same sense that Taemin is bad, but Gain definitely doesn't have the same appeal when she is blonde. In "Bloom" she was going for a more innocent look and it matched all the pastels in the video, but for me Gain should always be black. She is this powerful woman that pushes the boundaries that are set around her and I don't feel like she can do that with blonde hair.

Jaehyo - Jackpot

Luckily for the actually video he had silver/grey hair which I did like, but during the "5 Minutes Before Chaos" promotions he had this super weird blonde hair going on. It was also styled quite terriblely in one of the teasers too which made it look even worse.

And there you have it people who rock a blonde head and those who do not. I can think of quite a few others who I like blonde or with white hair but not as many who I don't like, what do you think?

~ Alora

Thoughts on Kris leaving EXO

I'm not sure if I'm going to post this, it is mainly to get my thoughts together because I have a lot of thoughts. What are these thoughts about? I bet you can guess since this is a K-pop/drama blog and some serious news has been dropped. Kris of EXO has filed a lawsuit Hangeng/TVXQ style against SM and the K-pop side of the internet is losing their minds.

I have been trying to keep up with things because this is very big and also very interesting, especially with all the other lawsuits that SM has had filed against them, and this is where all my thoughts come in.

Bride of the Century

You know what makes typing hard? Having a huge bandage encasing half of a finger. Last Sunday, I stabbed myself while dislodging a piece of frozen fish from another piece of frozen fish which resulted in three stitches. Seriously, if there was a mini Luke Skywalker around, he would have crawled into my finger thinking it was a Taun-taun. It was gross.

And now that you have that image burned into your brain let's talk about this drama!

EXO-K Overdose MV Review

How's the song? 

Wow! It feels like I haven't done one of these in forever! For good reason though what with the ferry tragedy. It would have been way wrong if people were still out promoting and acting like nothing was happening. This is also going to throw a huge wrench into a lot of companies scheduling too. Companies would want to release songs at a time when there isn't a lot of competition you would think, but now there is going to be a tidal wave of comebacks: 1. because it is summer and that is the time to release things and 2. there have been a lot of groups, both ones we know, and probably ones we don't know, who postponed.

I think that this is our first postponed release though and it's pretty good.

My K-pop Spirit Animal

Wow, it feels like it has been forever since I wrote anything here. What with my moving to Korea, no internet in my home yet, and then the Sewol ferry incident, there has been no time or opportunity to write about anything. All the students are taking their midterms right now though so I thought I would take this moment to write something pointless just for the sake of writing something. Hold on to your hats, here we go.

What do you think about when you aren't thinking about anything? Well that all depends upon what is going on around me. Am I in a quiet nature-y area? Who are the people that I am around, if any? What kind of music am I listening to and what language is it in? These are just a few variables that cause my mind to run rampant.

One such thing that I have thought about is if we as an F4Plus1 were a K-pop group, who would we be? I know weird. I thought about this when I first got into VIXX because Leo is totally my spirit animal. 

It's true! We both basically hate everyone except those lucky few we allow into our presence, and even then, sometimes we only tolerate them. But even though we would like to occasionally smack them, we still love them. We both are also more comfortable while performing than just being ourselves. Leo kills it on stage but then runs for cover from the camera off stage. I am much more articulate when writing than I am speaking. Talking to people is annoying.

But at the end of the day we do actually like the people that we hang out with even if we don't always show it. And then when we do, it gets weird.

 

After thinking about it more though, I realize that my friends and I would totally be VIXX if we were a K-pop group.......and guys........that could also help.

N = Autumn

How could she not be and not only because she is basically our fearless leader. Everything is done at her house and she is normally the one who plans the outings and get togethers. She is also loud and bubbly and likes to hug, much like N.

Replace N and Leo with me and Autumn and it's basically the same thing.

Leo = Me

As stated before, Leo and I would get along really, really well I think. We would enjoy each others mostly silent company while playing with animals and babies and be perfectly content. We would also need various snacks. Snacks are important.

Ken = Becca

I was debating putting Becca as Ravi because she is Autumn's sister and Ravi is kind of like the VP of VIXX, but I think that Ken fits her so much more. Becca is very excitable and loud, and just like Leo and Ken this has also happened with Becca and me

Ken and N are also really alike in temperament and weirdness levels too. They are both the ahjummas of the group and are very vocal and expressive when it comes to life in general.

Ravi = Alyson

Ravi, as the VP of VIXX is very responsible and when I first got into VIXX I thought that he was higher up in the age line than he actually was. Alyson, even though she can be very funny, I feel is one of the most responsible in our little group. I guess it comes with the territory of being a teacher. All she needs to do is work on her 'levels of swag' (writing that made me die a little inside) and she'll be perfect.

Hongbin = Andy

Oh, Andy, how we miss you. From what I have seen of VIXX, Hongbin's role in the group is to go along with what the other people do. He watches and laughs and then occasionally says things that are funny or just generally strange. Since English is Andy's second language, he would usually just watch the goings on and probably also judge a little. Sometimes, not very often, but sometimes we would also need a little clarification of what it was he was trying to get across as well.

I wasn't sure what picture to put up for Hongbin so I'll just make the masses happy (i.e. the friends being spoken about) and insert this picture. 

Nope, I found something even better

N and Ken (Autumn and Becca) forcing their love upon Hongbin (Andy)

This also makes me think of the Plan V episode where N forces Hongbin to wear this stupid scarf even though Hongbin does not want to wear it. Becca and Autumn liked to make Andy do "cute" things.

Hyuk = Murphy

This one is a little hard to explain, but it feels right. A lot of Hyuk's time seems to be spent laughing and making jokes and that is totally Murphy. For some reason I can also see Murphy doing something like this

I don't know why, but I see Murphy in this picture. Is it just me?

And there you have it. For all intents and purposes F4Plus1 is really VIXX. Now for the rest of you, who is your K-pop spirit animal?

~ Alora

Happy Birthday to Us!

One year ago this Saturday we posted our first post and continued to do so with a good amount of regularity. I guess that means that we like it or something. Or at least I do, I've kind of been abandoned and I mention that to people frequently and you'll notice what good that's done. Anyways........I guess that means I just made $40. I feel no shame about that either.

In this year (give or take a few months) a lot of things have happened. Becca went to Korea

Andy went on his mission to Australia

Becca, Autumn, and I went to KCON and met some pretty sweet people

I got to write a movie review on the site Soompi 

Becca and Autumn went to an Infinite concert and Autumn gave herself super awesome nails, as per usual

A large group of us, minus me, went to the LA K-pop festival and I would assume that was probably pretty awesome

And I got a job teaching English is South Korea! Side note about that, I'm only going to have internet at school for the next few weeks and blogging about dramas and K-pop at school seems wrong and stuff.  Right when Block B and EXO have their comebacks too. So sad. 

The only way this list could get any better is if I had been able to go to the Block B concert, because you better believe if I was in the states right now, I would have found a way to get there. They just came out with a new song though so I guess I'll just have to hang on to that and be happy.

And that is what has happened thus far! It has been fun and hopefully it continues to be!

~ Alora 

Golden Rainbow Drama Review

Since I stopped watching Cruel Palace: War of the Flowers, which I always berate myself for because I did like it, this is the longest drama that I have ever watched and it was even cut down by a few episodes. It was originally suppose to be 50 episodes but ended up being 41 instead. I definitely would have watched all 50 episodes had there been that many, but I'm glad that there wasn't. I think, had the drama continued, it would have lagged and become boring and that is always the worst way to end a drama.

This drama follows the story of that cute little family down there: Man Won, Baek Won, Young Won, Il Won, Yol Won, Shib Won, Cheon Won, and their dad Han Joo. They are all adopted children except for the twin Shib Won and Yol Won, and everyone thinks that Man Won and Baek Won are siblings until almost the end of the drama.  

About fifteen years after this scene the family has been reduced to this:

By looking at that picture you see that they are missing three of the children from the first picture. Two of the losses are really sad and one makes you cheer. Seriously, how is it that one person can suck so much? But I must say, the best moment ever happens in episodes 35 when we meet that cutie below. I was waiting for this moments for 23 episodes and when it happened, I may or may not have had a little party. It was a big deal, okay? And then, he turned out to be one of the coolest people ever!

 The main driving factor of their unhappiness stems from this man, Seo Jin Ki.

He and Han Joo, plus two others, Young Hye and Uk Jo, are all orphans that grew up together. Han Joo and Uk Jo became fisherman and Young Hye and Jin Ki married into the Golden Fishery company. For Jin Ki that turned out well, but for Young Hye not so much. Shortly before Young Hye gives birth to her daughter Ha Bin (later renamed Baek Won) her husband dies in a car accident and Golden Fishery's owner and Young Hye's Mother in Law blames her for the death. So, 100 days after Ha Bin is born, Young Hye is kicked out of the house, but without her daughter.

So, to make an already long story short, when Ha Bin is five she is "kidnapped" by Jin Ki, but she gets lost, then found by an eight year old Man Won whose grandma dies shortly after, then they are found by Han Joo and Uk Jo, Han Joo adopts them and eventually five other children.

Ten-ish years later the family is happy but poor and then Jin Ki comes and ruins everything, as usual, and you find that Uk Jo is the scum of the earth (one of the many in this drama) and Young Hye also comes back with grand plans of revenge against her mother in law. All these factors cause death, destruction, jail time, abandonment, general douche baggery, rifts between family and friends, but also one bromance and out future love line.

 

Moving forward another fourteen years and people are still suffering from the effects of all that stuff that went down before the time jump. Things do manage to get better for a while though which is a great breather for you heart which by this point is feeling pretty broken. The thing that made my heart the happiest was the reuniting of our lovely couple Do Young and Baek Won

 

They are definitely one my favorite couple of the year so far, the other being Min Joon and Song Yi. There is just so much happiness and teeth rotting cuteness when they're together you just can't help but love them. Jung Il Woo is also fantastic so that helps.

The second couple that is absolutely too cute for words is the second OTP. There were a lot of couples in this drama though, they could possibly be the third OTP. This couple consisted of Man Won and Hwa Ran who I mostly just called Little Polar Bear. She was seriously adorable and decided that Man Won would be hers no matter who he thought that he liked.

As for the ending of this drama, I felt that it was acceptable for the story that had been created. The two things that I had the most problems with was the three year jump epilogue and something else that I'm not going to talk about. Sorry. The reason that I didn't love the time jump was because I felt that it was a little heavy handed. I didn't expect it to happen even though it did kind of need to happen because of what happened before the jump that will not be mentioned. The reason that I didn't totally hate it was because all the characters got nice little endings which they deserve because by the end, they had all been through so much.

So, even though the ending wasn't perfect, it was a good ending that made you feel good which this drama definitely lacked in the last episodes. So much sadness.

As for whether or not people should give this drama a chance? Most definitely yes! Just be prepared for the length and feeling a lot of emotions.

~ Alora