#(also: this post really showcases my love of colons lol)

[e-b-reads]

I knew I would have an opinion on this and I have finally formed one, now that the week is up! So here is my thought: I think pretty much every book can teach the reader by giving them a chance to consider someone else's perspective. There are other things that can be taught but aren't always, but I think this one is pretty consistent.

To go into detail: my knee jerk answer to this question was "yes!" but then I started to consider some of the kind of fluffy cozy mysteries I read in the past year, and whether they have any sort of lesson, or are just fun to read. But even if my main purpose in reading these is to pass the time with something mostly mindless, I'm still learning about characters with different experiences and a different view of the world from myself. Sure, some of those experiences might be "keeps having people around them murdered for some reason," but others are "lives in this place w/ a unique culture" or "has to deal w/ this combination of family members that I don't have." And the same is true of other mostly mindless reading people do - there are still new perspectives to learn, even if the book doesn't have a larger moral or intellectual lesson.

The last thing I have to say about this is: because every book can teach this, it's something authors should be aware of and careful about. The worst-written books, with poor characterization, really just end up giving you the author's view of things, so readers are still learning, but they're learning things like, e.g., "oh, the guy who wrote this doesn't really value women beyond their looks." On the flip side, it can be really powerful! It's one of the reasons people call for diversity in fiction: the more we read about people who don't look like us and think about their perspectives (and the things that we do share), the more we'll value them.

Weekly Bookish Question #326 (February 26th - March 4th)

Do you feel like every book can and should teach something? Why (not)?

[korra-the-red-lion]

Let’s Talk About Cartoons.

Hey people, Korra is back with yet another long post, so be prepared.

Recently, I’ve found myself watching more cartoons again. So I just wanted to talk about some stuff on cartoons. So, the one thing I need you to keep in mind while reading this post is that these shows made be enjoyed by all audiences, the targeted age range is children. Children between the ages of 8-12 most of the time. So yeah, keep that thought.

I love Avatar, Korra (my username sake lol) Voltron, She-Ra and so many others. I would say these shows are some of the ones aimed at a bit of an older audience. But I also enjoy the Owl House, W.I.T.C.H., Ben 10, the Loud House, and others. I would say these shows are roughly aimed at that 8-10 range. What is it about these shows that I love? Hmm, there are many different reasons for as to why. But there are a few things that come to mind. Good representation, dark topics dealt with in a mature way, funny and lovable characters, silly buffer episodes, and endings that fit the show.

Voltron Legendary Defender had its issues, but I’m not focusing on that just yet. What the show did well is having a group of diverse characters. Lance, Hunk, Shiro, Allura are all PoC. Most of the characters in the show are in fact PoC, which is really awesome to see. The show dealt with themes of loneliness, war, colonization, loss, and found family. I think for the most part, everything was well done. Was the queer rep done pretty poorly? Yup, I think it’s fair to say it was. But it doesn’t outweigh the other things the show dealt with in a great way. Keith saying “I love you” to Shiro in a completely platonic way was SO IMPORTANT. Men saying I love you and crying and hugging and being able to be emotional and still considered strong is something that still needs to be normalized. It’s still one of the few shows I’ve seen this happen, and since the show is considered to be aimed at “boys” makes it even more important to me.

I could go on for days about how amazing the queer rep in She-Ra is. Adora and Catra was teased and I was worried for a little there that it was going to happen, but then IT DID. THEY KISSED. But not only that, we saw Scorpia have a crush on Catra, Mermista had a crush on She-Ra, Perfuma showed interest in both Bow and Scorpia. Seahawk is such a bi disaster. Double Trouble was one of the first non-binary characters I’ve seen on not just kid’s tv, but in all of tv. Queerness was the norm for She-Ra, it was more strange that Hordak was straight. Now, She-Ra also dealt with themes of identity, abuse, war, love, loss, and more. She-Ra isn’t perfect, but damn it is one of my favourite shows I’ve watched in a while. It’s really amazing.

There’s a reason why Avatar and Korra have a legacy. ATLA holds up. I just finished my rewatch and it still holds up. Are there some stinkers in s1? Yeah, haha. The Great Divide is a pretty rough episode to get through. But these two shows were things I watched growing up. I was the targeted age when Avatar first aired. The themes of abuse, colonization, genocide of a culture, misogyny, and like a billion other topics are addressed in such a mature way, but in a way that kids can understand without it being spoon-fed to them. Master Pakku is such jerk and it’s clear that people know this. The show doesn’t shy away from the damage caused by the Fire Nation. The Legend of Korra has a bit more of darker tone and mature themes, and I feel like they’re dealt with really well. And let’s not forgot that all characters are PoC and and Korrasami was a canon couple, the first of the time. Also, please remember that Korrasami was a BREAKTHROUGH FOR LGBTQA diversity for kid’s television. Respect, big respect.

Kipo and Owl House are two new shows I just started and I’m really enjoying them a lot. The Owl House s1 was so good and I loved all those goofballs. I think I would die for Eda, and Amity is such a dork. Kipo has been really fun and it’s got a great diverse cast of characters, hope it gets a s3! I’m enjoying the Dragon Prince as well, though I do find myself not enjoying it as much as some others are.

Now, after all that has been said. It’s okay to dislike an aspect of a show, or point out the flaws. But at the end of the day, it is aimed at kids. I’ve had people say to me “it’s aimed at kids but they know the audience are adults” and “kids aren’t watching this stuff, they’ve got other stuff to watch.” Yo, that attitude needs to stop please. Kids are watching this stuff. My younger siblings watched all those shows mentioned above, most of them before I even heard of them. My youngest sister LOVES Kipo, she thinks it’s amazing. All media has flaws. It’s silly to think that it doesn’t. Even ATLA has it’s issues, but they’re not large enough to take away from the show. We as the older audience need to stop gatekeeping and acting as if children aren’t watching, because they are. So remember when pointing out the flaw or tearing into something for whatever reason, maybe take a step back for a minute. Shows aimed at kids, regardless, have more constrictions. There are jerks out there who think kids shouldn’t have LGBTQA characters, people who think shows shouldn’t deal with heavy topics, that silly buffer episodes ruin the show for them.

You love these shows, but remember that kids out there do too. Themes that we are used to seeing are so much more nuanced and mature, because they have to be able to showcase it in a way that a kid may understand it, but not in a horrific Game of Thrones style gorefest. Themes that kids should see. I can’t imagine the emotional impact Catra and Adora finally leaving their abuser had. Or Zuko standing up to his father. Or Luz’s mother not understanding her quirkiness. Or so. much. more.

So yeah, I love cartoons. So do my siblings. Love them for everything they are, and be critical of them for sure, but don’t ruin it for the ones that it’s aimed at. Those kids are going to grow up and be amazing humans, and they’re going to create even more awesome things they wished they had when they were young. Remember that.

[jihoonscafe]

|| Kpop Questions Tag~ ||

Tagged by the lovely @jindongdongie

A. ALWAYS POST THE RULES. Answer all questions and then write 11 new ones

B. Tag 11 new people.

Q1: What’s your favourite hair colour on your bias?

Um, I will just go with the husbands then lol.

For Jihoon, nothing will ever beat his adorable pink hair [even though i am a hoe for those purple hair he had during ofd’s season 1]

For Junhui, blonde hair i mean he looked like a bloody angel, but i love him in black-blue hair like he had in HIghlight too.

For Seokjin, the natural black and brown are beautiful but pink is where it is for me.

Q2: Do you consider yourself a hard stan or a soft stan of your bias group/overall?

lol me? well i am hard core carat and a soft exo-l so?

Q3: Do you own any K-pop albums? If so which one(s)? If not what K-pop albums would you like to own?

I am broke af, so no album for me [YET]

But, I would love to have all of Seventeen’s album, all of EXO’s albums, all of EXID’s albums and all of BTS’s albums, because there is no harm in wishing now is there?

Q4: Do you try learning the Korean lyrics to the songs if you don’t speak the language? And if you do speak Korean, the question instead is what do you think is/would be the hardest thing about learning Korean/ about the Korean language?

When you are an international fan, the struggle is rEAL.

Especially when you have a Korean friend who knows all the shit before it gets subbed because guess who can speak Korean? 

So yes, I attempt to sing Korean as brokenly I can but as long as my parents think I am singing in Korean even if to me it sounds like gibberish, then it works man, it works.

also can anyone relate to that goddamn feeling when you can recognize like a word in the middle of a song and you are just like “wow i am so amazing” even if it is just like i am okay or something lol because k-dramas = education.

Q5: What are your favourite covers K-pop idols have done? Post links with the answer?

Okay so Jeongguk’s cover of Beautiful [The Goblin OST] got me like S H O O K as fuck oh my god. and tHE FUCKING COVER OF WE DON’T TALK ANYMORE, I cHOKED. dON’T FORGET THAT GODDAMN FOOLS COVER THAT BOY DID WITH FUCKING NAMJOON WHICH HAD ME CRYING FOR LIKE 1000000 YEARS. 

But, anything Kyungsoo sings is art so? Love Yourself with Chan, Chan’s All of Me stage and that Boyfriend stage they did like a million years ago. anD YES SABOR AMI FUCK ME.

Q6: Have you ever tried learning any K-pop dance routines? Was it successful? Did you upload a dance cover to YT?

lol i am a potato, i can’t dance.

i have attempted to dance to Baepsae by BTS like a million times and can do the choreo for the chorus but nothing else and also it is not like I don’t remember the choreographies, because I have that shit memorised but it is just that i am a lazy ass they are are too hard for me to do lmao.

Q7: List one of your favourite things about your bias’ physical appearance and one of your favourite things about their personality/mannerisms/habits:

um, since i am a hoe for both junhui and jihoon i am doing them both fight me.

For Jihoon, it is definitely his eyes because he is such a lovely person and when he looks at the carats in recordings of caratland, it is so obvious that even though he doesn’t say much, he writes songs for us, and loves us like we are a family and his eyes are just so beautiful when he sings because they hold so much damn emotion, i love him.

Jihoon’s personality is clearly one of my favourite things about him, he comes off as cold if you enter the fandom through memes and other shit, and he is quieter than most members, which is a quality most of my biases don’t actually possess since i tend to bias the one who catches the eye the most, and that is usually the loudest or weirdest member but jihoon is just special, he writes so many songs and works so undeniably hard that it is hard NOT to stan him, and just bless him and his emotions for not only the carats but also the family he calls seventeen.

wow i got real emo there

For Junhui, it is definitely his laughter? like i don’t know if that is an attribute i can call physical but it is so pure and uplifting like he is such a beautiful person and i just can’t okay? he is so beautiful, both inside and outside and he laughs so freely and just bless him okay bless HIM.

For Jun, I think I like his dedication to the group and the fans the best, the fact that he doesn’t mind not being in the spotlight to give it to somebody else, and doesn’t mind getting less lines of less screen time. The only thing he minds is if he has to leave the fans at any place first, and that he has to always be the last to leave in the group so he can say bye to all the fans makes me go giddy really, he is such a pure and gorgeous soul.

Q8: Is there a particular member of your bias group/ any K-pop group in general that you think the group couldn’t live without and why? ~ (so it doesn’t necessarily have to be the leader:)

For Seventeen, it is definitely the leader line, all three of them: Soonyoung, Seungcheol and Jihoon, since they make the base for the group, they are who build the group high enough so that the others can showcase their talents, Jihoon makes the songs they sing, Soonyoung makes the dances they dance and Seungcheol makes sure that all of them are well and happy, they are the pillars of the group and without even one of them, Seventeen really wouldn’t last a day.

Q10: Can you describe your bias wrecker as best as you can without mentioning their name so we have to guess?

[lol jun used to be my bias wrecker in seventeen, but now i am double biased for him so i am going to go with bts [where i am also double biased but still have wreckers lol] since i have no wreckers in exo, at all like i am the loyalest loyal af kjd stan ]

Hair which gets dyed like every fucking minute lol, probably has the a hair colour wheel in his stylist’s office, such a fucking savage i am not even kidding, sWAEG, a beautiful soul, a musician through and through, my sleepy hardworking soft beautiful amazingly caring and loving man who i can’t say the name of but literally everybody knows at this point who he is lol.

Q11: What are the three things you’d want your bias/bias group to know about you?

nothing lol i am a potato.

I am studying well : i work hard to get shit done and i want jihoon and junhui to know that they aren’t distracting carats from studying all together.

I will support them forever : they deserve so much love and i want to see them grow, and so i will.

i hope they never break up : i have witnessed bands i loved disband and there is nothing like seventeen in the kpop industry, no 13 boys who have made such deep bonds with not only each other but also me as a fan and i hope they always stay like that until the end.

> What was your age when you got into kpop?

I was 12? I think, yup I was 12.

> First Bias?

For Seventeen, it was Minghao because y’know attraction comes through with tHUGHAO lmao, i still adore him tho, my son.

>First song?

Hmm, it was Catch Me by TVXQ which was my first ever KPOP song, however my first Seventeen Song was Adore U.

> What is your fondest memory involving a kpop song? Link please?

Oh it has to be when I listened to Hold Me Tight by BTS on repeat and came up with the idea which some of you might know as Nightmare, which is my longest and best *according to @colon-d* series right now!

>What is your go-to kpop jam for when you’re happy?

AJUU NICE

>What do your parents/siblings/friends/people around you say or do while you’re fangirling?

Me : AJU NICE *attempts and fails dance*

Parents : where did we go wrong

Brother : *gets excited since it looks cool*

>Biggest bias wrecker of all time?

Junhui, I mean he wrecked me enough to be my double-bias, but then Seokjin who literally kicked everyone out and became one of my ultimate biases.

>Your favorite rude moment from your UB?

> A look you just can’t get over? (doesn’t have to be your bias ^^)

> How do you think you’d react when meeting your bias completely by chance?

die instantly lol.

> Something you and your bias have in common?

i am greasy like jun, make dad jokes like jin and cringe at everything like jihoon.

My Questions~

Which group(s) are you looking to stan?

Why is your ultimate group your ultimate group?

Why is your ultimate bias you ultimate bias?

How many songs from KPOP do you have in your playlist?

Which songs are your go to if you want to feel sad?

Which KPOP songs have you played the most?

If you could only learn one KPOP choreography in your entire life, which one would it be?

If you had to pick one bias from all your groups and kill them, who would it be?

Would you sing/dance in front of your bias if they were to see you and ask for you to do so?

Stance on the relationships of your biases? Would you be hurt if they began to date?

A message to your bias/ bias group~

Tagging some lovely beautiful angels : @colon-d, @darkperfectionuniverse, @kaori-yuki-chan, @aceangel-official, @mvnghaos, @choco-seventeen, @oneofthemillionarmy and @googlebts