#and korea has a bad bad track record

[khaotunng]

Oh nooo she’s not a good person!! She is manipulating them! She’s a terrible person exploiting the fact he is depressed and the entire family is in shambles!

I DARE YOU TO FIND A MORE COMPELLING STORYLINE. give me messy evil people I don’t need a morality lesson. Especially when until now she hasn’t harmed the family in any way

[pommpuriinn]

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪. 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉’𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝑒, 𝑒𝓈𝓅𝓇𝑒𝓈𝓈𝑜 1

｡𖦹°‧ pairing ｡𖦹°‧ - idol!yeonjun x superstar!oc x idol!jungkook

｡𖦹°‧ synopsis ｡𖦹°‧ - a love triangle between Hollywood’s sweetheart, Korea’s golden maknae, and Gen Z’s IT boy. Estrella is a very busy woman never had time dating with all her photoshoots, movie offers, recording sessions, dance practices, and public appearances. As she’s doing a little world tour promotions for her latest mini album ‘You & Me’, and let’s just say that stop last a little longer and it becomes a little too interesting.

Italics = korean

“We are so happy you stopped by in Australia to promote your new album called ‘You & Me’ out now! Thank you again and what’s next? Where are you heading to next?” The kind morning talk host asked Estrella. “Um…it’s a secret.” Fans in the studio whined wanting to hear new info. “I know! I want to say what’s next, but all Megan is allowing me to say that it’s worth the wait and there will be many opportunities to see me. So don’t miss me too much starrys~” Estrella had a cute pouting face, making starrys cheer even louder. “And to where I’m heading next is Seoul, South Korea. I didn’t think I had such a big fan base over there, but I’m so grateful that they love me so much and want me to promote over there and experience their culture. I’m excited.” Estrella smiled at the thought of experiencing another culture and trying new food along with meeting new people.

“That’s beautiful and I hope you continue having an amazing time during this mini promotion tour. Once again please listen to Estrella’s new album ‘You & Me’! And don’t go any where Estrella will also be performing her title track ‘Eleven’ after this commercial break.” Estrella was mimicking the talk host’s action making the audience laugh, but was all light hearted because once the talk host took notice Estrella giggles and pulls her into a hug. “We’ll be right back!” Estrella finished the monologue for the talk host.

Estrella’s makeup staff member quickly made her way onto the stage to do some touch ups. “Sana-chan~” Estrella jokingly gasped, making Sana chuckle at Estrella’s cute characteristics. “She must be a sweetheart to work with.” The female talk host compliments. “She is, but she can be a bit mischievous at times and that’s when you have to be careful.” Sana has many stories of Estrella pranking her with “accidentally” messing up her makeup, or when Sana gets close to Estrella’s face while doing her makeup and Estrella would try and kiss her.

Luckily, Estrella stood still for her touch ups and fixing her outfit before getting into position to start her performance. “Let me retuck your hair real quick,” Sana gently pulls Estrella’s under the white flower chocker (hair like in the photo). “Kill the stage.” Sana whispers, before running to stand next to starrys so she can get the perfect view. The second the lights tone down and shine on Estrella and her dancers the audience went crazy.

ೃᰰ࿔eleven (sorry the audio is bad the person that made the video said the artist of the original song was singing live and the person tried their best to blend ive’s ver and original ver together)

ೃᰰ࿔choreography

The room was filled with fanchants which made Estella smile while singing. Also seeing her lightsticks being waved around excitedly shows how many people came and took time out of their day for support her. Just as the song came to an end Estrella made sure to blow kisses at everyone, as her ending pose.

To many people it’s still weird that a non Kpop artist does and has everything an Kpop artist does, but something about Estrella just fits it so well. Maybe because she was trained like one without all the ridiculous harsh criticism instead was given constructive criticism, and actually helped her work on it. She was taught about fanservice, having fanchants, how important photocards and lightsticks are, always being thankful for your fans who got you where you are today. Estrella didn’t much help with any of those because it just came to her like a second nature; she made the fanchants and posted it on her twitter, she made sure to practice taking selfies for her future pcs, the second Megan mention making a lightstick Estrella already drew it with the thought of how pretty it will look in pictures and with starrys waving it around, and ever since the beginning Estrella was thankful of her fans even if it was just one she would give them a massive hug and express how appreciative she is with just knowing her name.

As Estrella was the last segment in the show she was able to wave ‘bye’ to all her starrys that were in the studio. Estrella was making sure to look at each and every one remembering their faces and all the small details. “Estrella could you sign this?!” A fan holds up a recent magazine cover Estrella did. “Of course!” Estrella runs to the fans making everyone around scream with how close she is to them. “What’s your name?” Estrella looks right into the fan’s eyes. “P-Priscilla.” Poor Priscilla was captivated by Estrella’s big doe eyes causing her to stutter her name. “What a pretty name~” Estrella still holding eye contact smiles while signing and gives back and now signed magazine. “I’ll make sure to come back to Sydney, bye starrys!”

⭒˚‧ ︵‿⭒ཐིཋྀ ཐིཋྀ⭒‿︵ ‧˚⭒

“Another one down and one more to go.” Megan crosses off the list in her IPad Pro. The crew was currently driving back to their hotel finally being able to relax a bit before their flight the next day to Seoul. “Make sure you write down Australia for a tour stop, please.” Estrella drags out the word ‘please’, making Megan open the tour stop list. “Estrella you practically have the world map on your tour stop list already.” Megan snicker. “Good that means starrys all over the world will have a chance to see me.” Estrella looks out at the window, daydreaming about how her tour is going to look like fill with starrys and their lightstick singing and dancing– “Nuh-uh, don’t start planning the tour already missy. You still need to take a break from working so much before you burn yourself out.” Daya who is now Estrella’s assistant manager, scolds Estrella from the passenger seat erupting her daydreaming.

“Yeah after during some promotional work in Seoul let’s take a mini vacation there–oh! We can also go to Japan and I can show you guys what I grew up with. Plus don’t you love Pokémon mine chīsana hoshi?” Sana was trying to convince Estrella. “I do! Let’s do it.” Estrella’s eyes sparkle at the thought of purchasing all the little cute Pokémon plushies plus the thought of all the cute theme cafes they can go to. “Let’s just rest before planning something else.” Megan couldn’t handle booking more plane tickets and hotel rooms. The migraine was slow seeping through again.

Once everyone showered and all went to rest in their respective rooms for a good amount of time, Megan texted the group chat to meet in her room to give a little run down the schedule in Korea Estrella has. To no one’s surprise both Estrella and Sana walked in with their matching Chiikawa pajamas and matching Sanrio headbands. “Oh was I erupting something important?” Megan holds in her laughter, as she sees not only the matching pieces but they both had a pink skincare face masks on. “No. Not at all.” Estrella innocently answered. “Ah Estrella never loose your bright spirit.” Daya and the rest of the team love how oblivious Estrella could be. They just want to protect her from the world.

“Ok moving on,” Megan cleared her throat. “So once we land we go straight to our hotel rooms and immediately start getting Estrella ready for her interview with very popular television personality, Yoo Jaesuk. Have you been studying more Korean?” Megan looks up at Estrella. She hums ‘yes’, “hi, I’m Estrella Blue and please take care of me.” Everyone clapped. “That was good, and don’t worry you will still have an ear-in so they can translate for you. Next we have music bank promotions only for a week to test out the waters. During that time you can do tiktok dance challenges with some idols, and speaking of tiktok challenges we have this company called Hybe which is the home to many big artists originally know for groups like BTS and Tomorrow x Together. Who want to show you around the building and film again tiktok dance challenges with their artists including showing you around the company. The next one is the ‘You & Me pop up shop.”

“Wait! They aren’t trying to recruit her right?” Daya rises an eyebrow towards Megan. “Hell no! What they emailed me and talked through the phone is wanting to film a little video showing Estrella around that’s it.”

“Good just making sure.” Daya nods. “Then finally attending some Seoul fashion show/parties and that’s it.” Megan sighs, finishing reading the schedule. “I hope I do well guys.” Estrella was stressing a bit about the language barrier and all the new mannerisms she had to learn to make sure not to offend the people of there. “Hey, you got this mine chīsana hoshi.” Sana wraps her arms around Estrella’s shoulder hugging her. “Plus you have a large group of fans waiting for you there already ready to support and cheer you on.” Sana gives some comforting words, hopefully bringing Estrella spirits up. “Yeah, don’t stress Estrella.” Daya affectionately pets Estrella’s head. “Trust me our precious star we will always be by your side. And when things get too much just signal to us, and we’ll be there.” Megan takes a hold of Estrella’s hand gently caressing her knuckles. “Thanks guys.” Estrella pouts, feeling emotional with all the love they are giving her.

⭒˚‧ ︵‿⭒ཐིཋྀ ཐིཋྀ⭒‿︵ ‧˚⭒

Waking up at the crack ass of dawn, going to the airport and checking in, finally flying then landing. The whole team were like zombies coming out of plane dragging their feet following everyone out. Estrella’s security got close to the team, as they were getting closer to the door leading out to the main airport lobby. “Wait! Before went enter chaos. Let me fix your outfit.” Sana quickly stopped Estella was moving to fix tiny details. “Ok,” Sana sighs. “You’re perfect.” Estrella snickers at Sana. “Thank you~” Estella sings.

The second those double doors slide open bright lights start flashing and the yelling starts. “Oh my god.” Estrella really underestimated the popularity she holds in Korea. Just as Estrella was going to start walking the Korean press was telling her stop and pose for them. “Just give a couple of cute poses.” Megan whispers before getting out of the shot.

“Estrella over here!”

“Heartu heartu Estrella!”

Estrella was trying to do all the heart poses she remembers. Some fans were showing her which ones to do. “Ok that’s enough we have to get going, thank you.” Megan announces to the reporters. Security immediately goes back to Estrella’s side and start their walk out of the Incheon airport. Estrella is surprise with all the phones and cameras that were filming every second of the walk along with fans trying to hand her letters and gifts. “Oh, thank you.” Estrella smiles, and took the gifts. Some fans were trying to get Estrella to complete their hearts which she gladly completed them. What really took the Korean fans’ hearts were when Estrella was saying ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’ in Korean as well as giving small bows at them. The team safely made it to their car and Estrella rolled down the window to wave ‘bye’ at everyone who were still filming and yelling encouraging words at her.

“I will enjoy m-my time…”

Estella quickly asks for help, as she forgot some words. “Here in Korea.” Megan quickly helps her. “Here in Korea, thank you.”

“See nothing to worry about.” Daya hands over some more fan letters that Estella missed. “Thanks, and I guess not.” Estrella said, as she looks back at everyone that was waiting for her getting smaller and smaller. “Wow~ they work fast look-” Sana shows everyone the newly posted article of ‘Estrella Blue landing in Korea!’ Megan takes Sana’s phone and starts reading, “The mega superstar Estrella Blue finally lands in Seoul, South Korea and immediately shows her beautiful visuals and amazing fanservice. A born to be artist who has the talent, fashion, and goddess like visuals.”

“Goddess like visuals?!” Estrella is shock at all the high compliments they are giving her. “They also say your Korean sounds so cute and might be a new trend.” Megan adds. “I sound like a baby though.” Estrella chuckles, while looking at all the buildings and people that they were passing by. “Korea will definitely be interesting.” Sana has a feeling Korea might not go the way they thought it will, but in a good way.

[roo-bastmoon]

With 17 versions to buy and 8 versions combined for 160 streams per Spotify account, plus Melon and FLO streams now counting, of course Jungkook’s Seven is charting high and sweeping awards. Firstly because it’s Jungkook of course, and secondly because it’s been given every possible advantage.

My (perhaps controversial) opinions about that are below the cut.

Honestly? I really can’t feel good about any “first” or “most” or “fastest” records achieved by this single—catchy as it is—which wasn’t written or conceived by Jungkook and has nothing much personal or deeply meaningful about it. It’s a fun feel-good summer pop song, for sure, but no more groundbreaking than, say, Bad Decisions (in my opinion… I have no musical expertise.)

But I can’t feel super great about all the records and awards because this many versions immediately restocked and shipped and auto play and promoted to radio and ads and leadership hyping only this while Jungkook says he wants to be the one and only artist to conquer kpop and pop for the next thousand years… it all just doesn’t really sit right with me.

When compared to the 10 months Jimin forewent sleep, food, and showers to have a hand in every aspect of his first (and deeply personal and symbolic) album, which was never sent to radio or restocked, got split tracks and delayed playlisting and shady articles, plus not one kudos or congratulations from leadership even after he made history for South Korea and stocks soared…

Forgive me, but it all leaves a bad taste in my mouth. It is ruining the song for me.

Some things like culled streams and sales are out of the company’s control. But the things I mentioned above were all possible for Jimin’s Hot 100 #1. Even if every Tannie has total say in their projects' sales and marketing, and everyone was on board with only Jungkook getting the Hybe America "red carpet" treatment, I can’t lie and say the stark difference feels fine. It doesn't, and I confess I leave the headphones in every time Seven comes up in the playlists now.

I’m not jealous. If anything, I have a warped sense of pride that Jimin has done so fantastically well despite so many, many obstacles stacked against him. I love to champion an underdog and I’m glad I never need to doubt his success was organic. I actually feel extra admiration for how humble and hardworking he continues to be—no resting on any laurels for the It Boy. I'm so glad he is my ult-bias.

*sigh*

Listen to me.

I know Jungkook and Jimin are both genuinely good people. I know they are sincerely talented and hard working. I know they truly love each other. I know all members are legitimately happy for each others' success.

I know what’s important to me may not be important to them, nor what they want for their careers. And even if I feel their company’s making shitty decisions, I know my place as a fan.

So I trust them. And I simply hang in. I hope lessons were learned for smoother, fairer future releases. Because neglecting assets makes zero business sense, and perceived favoritism can erode the group’s bonds and tear ARMY apart. It is, frankly, just plain stupid.

So I may dislike things about their solo era rollouts and I can't bring myself to sugar-coat it; but I mostly try to keep my negative thoughts to myself and find things I CAN celebrate with other fans on an open timeline.

I never want another Tannie to feel anguished and misunderstood the way Hobi did about JitB’s physicals.

Watching Jungkook’s face here on his London live when he talks about people hating him just haunts me. It guts me. I can't stand it. That kid was going through it and I don't believe he has a malicious bone in his body, so it just really upsets me seeing him like that.

There’s so, so much about this company, this industry, this culture that I just don’t understand. But I trust Park Jimin completely. As long as Park Jimin loves and supports his members, God knows, I will too.

So!! On that note...

We have Jungkook’s birthday to celebrate next week and Taehyung’s album to support the week after that. I’m going to do my best to rest up and gather some good energy for these things!

And of course, we must congratulate our Jimin, who made history again today, and no matter what, will always set the standard. I just know he's cooking up something else for us with all these weeks of silence, and I cannot wait to go BERSERK for it whenever it drops.

I’m not really sure I had a point to this post. It’s just that I have been mulling all this over for a long time, and finally felt well enough to sit up long enough to come online and type up my thoughts.

I guess what I mostly wanted to share with my friends here is that it’s okay to feel really disappointed and even enraged at the way some things play out over the (hopefully life-long) careers of BTS members. Don't let folks gaslight you. Call it like you see it. (Maybe keep sensitive things behind a cut or in the DMs--and of course, please change your mind if you get better insight. In the end, only the Tannies really know what's going on with the Tannies.)

But while I’m still side-eyeing the company so hard right now, I’ve decided to love and support the boys as people and artists. I'm trying to believe the best in everyone. I’m still an OT7 Jikooker.

You don’t have to agree with me, and if you need to unfollow, I understand. But I figured I should just tell you guys (especially the new followers) where I am at with all this.

Love, Roo

[collapsedsquid]

Equally clear are Trump’s preferred means of getting what he wants in world politics. The former and future president is a strong believer in using coercion, such as economic sanctions, to pressure other actors. He also subscribes to the “madman theory,” in which he will threaten massive tariff increases or “fire and fury” against other countries in the firm belief that such threats will compel them into offering greater concessions than they otherwise would. At the same time, however, Trump also practices a transactional view of foreign policy, demonstrating a willingness during his first term to link disparate issues to secure economic concessions. On China, for example, Trump displayed a recurring willingness to give ground on other issues—the crackdown in Hong Kong, the repression in Xinjiang, the arrest of a senior executive of the Chinese tech company Huawei—in return for a better bilateral trade deal. Trump’s foreign policy track record during his first term was decidedly mixed. If one looks at the renegotiated deals for the South Korea Free Trade Agreement or the North American Free Trade Agreement (rebranded as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA), his attempts at coercion produced meager results. The same is true with his summitry with Kim Jong Un. But one can argue that this might have been because of the rather chaotic nature of the Trump White House. There were plenty of times when Trump seemed at war with his own administration, often leading to the characterization of his more mainstream foreign policy advisers (such as Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster) as the “adults in the room.” The result was a lot of personnel churn and inconstancy in foreign policy positioning, which degraded Trump’s ability to achieve his aims. That should not be an issue for Trump’s second term. Over the past eight years, he has collected enough acolytes to staff his foreign policy and national security team with like-minded officials. He is far less likely to meet resistance from his own political appointees. Other checks on Trump’s policy will also be far weaker. The legislative and judicial branches of government are now more MAGA-friendly than they were in 2017. Trump has indicated numerous times that he intends to purge the military and bureaucracy of professionals who oppose his policies, and he will likely use Schedule F—a measure to reclassify civil service positions as political slots—to force them out. For the next few years, the United States will speak with one voice on foreign policy, and that voice will be Trump’s.

I feel that this piece by Drezner is contradicting itself, Trump administration did not and will not speak with one voice, having more people like him is not what he does, he appoints people to rattle the cage and then tries to swoop in personally in a sort of good cop/bad cop thing. Or maybe he just doesn't really care if they speak with one voice.

[ppeonppeonhan]

2023 BL Breakout Actors

I really hope to see more of these actors next year.

Louis Chiang | Kiseki: Dear to Me

He played a tiny lovesick tyrant who pined for his childhood bff and fellow gang member. I could've watched an entire drama just about him and his journey from impulsive orphan thug to feisty romantic. He was simply electric.

Suggested Role: There's a sports trend in BL right now, and he's so good at the physicality of acting that I'd love to see him play a competitive professional tennis player who's conflicted when he's forced to partner with his nemesis.

Lim Ji Sub | The Eighth Sense

He had to play such a heavy character -- a college student and surfer suffering from depression and survivor's guilt -- and his heartbreaking performance made you want to reach through the screen and give him a hug.

Suggested Role: South Korea does slice of life SO well that I'd really love to see him switch it up and pine for someone in a quasi comedic role. He could play a young real estate agent who starts to fall for one of his picky clients, and they learn together that the perfect home is one you make and not one you find.

Film Thanapat Kawila | Laws of Attraction

I honestly did not enjoy this drama, but I did enjoy his performance. He is so captivating as Charn -- this scenery-chewing, maniacal, traumatized, good-boy-turned-bad lawyer -- that his romantic love interest could not manage to keep up.

Suggested Role: I dunno. I feel like I'd happily watch him play this role again, and take down another corrupt politician.

An Jeong Gyun | Love Class 2

It's so easy to get lost in an anthology when there's three couples and when you're not traditionally attractive, but his character stole the whole damn series. He was so bold and upfront about his emotions in a mature and refreshing way that it made you ignore the beige flags of playful manipulation that comes with courtship, and root for him to win his crush's heart.

Suggested Role: He's actually older (30), and I appreciate that South Korea is exploring more love stories between older men as Thailand conquers the under 25 demo. So for him, I'd say a divorced storyline. Maybe explore the story of how two ex-husbands rebuild their lives apart and rediscover their friendship while they fall for other people.

"Silvy" Pavida | The Warp Effect

Speaking of bloated casts, this series had like a million people in it playing characters of a variety of genders and sexualities, because it was intended to be -- in part -- a modern sex guide that pushed against traditional constructs. But in the midst of all that was a brief performance by Silvy, who was only tasked with playing an aspiring "plus size" actress, but managed to leave a lasting impression, making you want more.

Suggested Role: She's a singer and she's half-Italian. There's gotta be something we can do with that. Maybe the story of a shy singer, who is often hired to record tracks for rising tone-deaf artists, and is encouraged by one to make her debut as her opening act and help her write a romantic duet in Italian for her international audience.

***

Now...most of us agree that Step by Step was...not great. But it did have a lot of Thai actors that I hope to see again soon -- in an entirely different storyline far away from whatever the hell that was.

"Saint" Paramee Matthanadul | Step by Step

Was his character a whiny little shit? Yes. Is he so gorgeous you almost forgot how hot his big brother was? Also, yes. The fandom was pissed his romantic subplot did not get a resolution, because there was so much he could've done with this character if given the opportunity.

Suggested Role: I think he has baby girl potential, so I really want to see him either play a spoiled mafia kid who falls for his mentor OR a rich kid pretending to be a working class waiter at the restaurant he owns, marinated in gay panic every time the head chef scolds him.

Zorzo Nathanan Akkharakitwattanakul | Step by Step

I have yet to watch a proper GL series, but if she was starring in it, I'd clear my TV schedule. There's something so femme fatale about her and her features. She had no business stealing scenes from the nearly full cast of dudes, but she did. Every time.

Suggested Role: I really want to see her in a mystery produced by whoever is doing The Sign right now. Maybe she could play an undercover cop trying to solve a missing person's case in a small town, and her love interest is married to her prime suspect.

"Ben" Bunyapol Likhitamnuayporn | Step by Step

Last, but not least, is the adorable Ben. Who, in spite of wasting our time with the most anticlimactic drama ending, played a character that was an inspiration to every office employee who has been dying to tell their ungrateful and abusive boss to step back and let a bitch cook. He played him with such naivet�� and earnestness that it made you want more for his character than a lustful boss who struggled not to abuse his power.

Suggested Role: It's so easy for him to get sucked into passive roles opposite the zaddys of BL, so I'd like to see how he fairs against an equal. Maybe another workplace ensemble comedy where he plays a reporter posing as an intern at a new social media company run by an unhinged mogul spreading fake news, and falls for another intern who helps him take the company down.

[minsungchronology]

I think you mention m1nsung being able to utilize things in the industry to hide in plain sight in your latest post. Can you expand on why you think that and why they wouldn’t make an effort to hide themselves?

Ok this is gonna be long cause it's a good question:

I personally think it largely depends on the type of fanbase they have, the other members and people around them, the industry that they’re in, the type of "marketing" that the group does, and the number of years that the idols in question have been in the public eye.

I’ll use a parallel as an example.

There’s the group Mamamoơ. A good proportion of their fanbase (larger than most popular groups) identify as queer. I think this applies to both their international AND Korean fanbase. One of the members, MoonbyuI, has strongly hinted/implied that she herself is into women. (First, through the type of music she writes. She literally wrote a sapphic love song. Second, her shutting down an interviewer by boldly changing male pronouns to feminine ones when they tried asking her about her love life). She, like many other idols, have done heavy fanservice on stage with their bandmates as well and part of that aligns with what fans want to see. Yet, she’s not shy about toeing the line and expressing herself through her music/words. The group as a whole has a very good track record with their lgbt fans/people as well (in Korea and outside of Korea). 

I feel like she’s able to share that side of herself because of her fanbase, the type of fanservice/marketing that they do as a group, and the reception it gets amongst their fans.

Compare that with Skz:

You have a fanbase with a good portion of shippers (a lot of them who ship Han and LK whether it be in a casual or serious light). Like Mȧmamoo, Skz as a group has a very good track record with lgbt fans, and the group as a whole do plenty of ship-heavy fanservice and the fans react well to that.

Also, a lot of what public figures do/show to us largely depend on fan reaction (especially in the idol industry). This can also extend to more personal things. You’re more likely to share something personal if the fans have a track record of reacting positively to it. Couple that with the amount of years that they’ve been in the industry (both groups in question have been with us for awhile now, with idols who are experienced when it comes to knowing how much to show).

Which plays into a part of how open they can be without compromising the trajectory of their career.

MoonbyuI writing a sapphic love song (to a fanbase that is largely queer)

Han writing a love duet for himself and his bandmate (that a lot of the fans ship him with)

MoonbyuI strongly hinting that she likes women (on a show)

Han strongly hinting that Want So Bad is indeed about LK (on 2 Kids Show) - he literally said he kept thinking of LK when he went over the lyrics...and LK's reaction to that 😶‍🌫️

And, again, I feel like the nature of the industry allows idols to utilize the glass closet. (For LK/Han, it's the shipping and fanservice surrounding that imo).

As long as they don’t explicitly come out to the GP, there's still that plausible deniability. No official statement through the company/press = it doesn’t truly count. You’re still going to have people (a majority probably) who think that they are close friends who sometimes do fanservice for their fanbase (which technically is true b/c the group as a whole does it), simply because of how the industry historically works.

Finally, in both cases, I don’t think they would be as “open” if they didn’t have the type of fanbase that they have. (As well as members who have a track record of being explicitly supportive)

[thehaniverse]

absolutely loooove your coverage of the ador vs hybe legal battle. the absolute gag of the century was reading that the whistleblower was a potential investor ador higherups met with. I want to know what you think of mhj's plagiarism allegations. is it plausible for her to have a legal standing in saying that hybe did not have the right to use her old concept art from the source music x bighit audition as inspiration for illit?

Hello! I'm glad you enjoyed my coverage! And also your question is very interesting!

I'm by no means a legal expert but put simply, no, I don't think she has grounds for anything.

The difference is basically plagiarism vs copyright. Copyright (in most cases) includes a process in which an idea or creation is registered legally as a person's creation (sometimes automatically) and people can still replicate that idea if they add their own transformation to it. Plagiarism on the other hand is a copy that doesn't intrude on someone's copyright (ie not transformative) but also doesn't give them credit - it isn't illegal and is also much harder to prove as a well-known song doesn't need explicit credit to be recognized. (For example, if you covered Michael Jackson's 'Bad', you don't need to directly credit MJ for people to know it's his song.)

If you record a song cover and post it on YouTube as an example - this is not a copyright violation because it involves the original vocals of the person doing the cover, and thus is transformation. Similarly, if you add some variation to the original song such as in the vocals, but still label it as a cover then it is not plagiarism. The difference becomes when you try to pass it off as your own. As mentioned, because the vocals are different you can say the vocals are your own creation, but the backing track is technically being copied and violates the copyright. Ironically it isn't necessarily plagiarised because you could argue that the song is well known enough to not need credit.

Bringing this back to this situation, MHJ's '2YK concept' is technically based on an acclimation of various pre-existing ideas, images, and sounds from the 2000s, while she can say the combination she's made is unique, she can't copyright that interpretation because they aren't her original ideas. Similarly, with plagiarism, it's even harder to prove because she's complaining about individual dance moves instead of the whole routine - it can be argued that not only does she not have rights to those individual moves, but their incorporation into a technically new routine makes it transformative.

Put simply, she can't prove that she owns the move nor that the new routine isn't transformative so she has no legal case. However, I don't think that's her intention, it's all about public perception. Actually, a lot of K-Pop dances are not completely original or pay homage to other existing dances, but she's framing it as 'copying' to win public sympathy, and ultimately the public is the consumers. Many people are boycotting or picking apart both ILLIT and NewJeans depending on which side they stand on, and they will ultimately vote with their dollars.

Ironically, the fact she doesn't seem to have a legal case could be further grounds for BELIFT's case against her, as he publically accused them of copying NJs and she could be sued for defamation (which they are currently trying to do.) The only saving grace is that she said plagiarism, not copyright, but in Korea, you can be sued for defamation even if what you said is true. Even if she could prove it was plagiarism, she still doesn't have any legal standing as it's not covered by law.

Again, I'm no legal expert (especially not in Korean law) but that's how I personally understand the situation! It'll be interesting to see the results of everything, and I hope this helped at least a little bit~ I focused more on dancing but the same logic could be applied to the concept art too.

[twistifiedz]

"i'm the female monster! twist, let's go!"

TW1ST is the eponymous first extended play by South Korean girl group TWIST. The album was released on January 1, 2017. Consisting of seven tracks which feature various genres such as Hip Hop, Trap, Pop, and R&B, the album is supported by the lead single, “Crazy”, produced by Pdogg and Supreme Boi while the lyrics were written by Chaeyoung and Hyerim. Prior to the release of the lead single, "Crazy" made its' debut performance at MBC Gayo Daejun's 2016 Music Festival as a surprise for a stellar debut era of TWIST.

The EP was a commercial success, topping the Gaon Album Chart for the week of January 8, 2017 with 300,000 albums sold in the first week and remained atop the chart for six consecutive weeks. Prior to the release, TW1ST received a record-breaking pre-order of over 400,000 physical copies, the highest for a girl group in the first half of 2017. The album also became the group’s first entry on the Billboard 200 at no. 30, the highest charting position for a Korean girl group at the time. By the end of 2017, TW1ST had sold over 800,000 copies. The album topped the Gaon Monthly Chart for January, as it was the album that sold the most copies that month.

The album has two singles; Crazy and Whistle. 

With the surprise release of “Crazy”, Crazy was a commercial success in South Korea and debuted atop the Gaon Digital Chart for the week of January 1. It also peaked at number one on the equivalent Download Chart, selling over 532,191 digital copies in its release week. “Crazy” remained atop the charts for ten weeks, becoming the longest-running number one song in the chart’s history. 

“Whistle” was released as a single on February 1, 2017. Although blocked by its predecessor, “Whistle” also experienced success in South Korea. The song debuted and peaked at number two on the Gaon Digital Chart for the week of January 8, 2017. It sold over 200,000 digital units and earned 5 million streams in the album’s release week.

TRACKLIST:

Crazy

Cut It Out

WHISTLE

Love Song

Every Night

Lady

Boy

ERA Highlights:

This was an extremely ambitious project that TWIST and JYL Records collaborated in regarding budget. The girls take WORLDWIDE to a whole different level as they showcase various performances in different cities, showing the endless possibilities of TWIST.

You thought you had enough of Twist? TOO BAD! They opened the year up with the plan of DOMINATING 2017!

The lead single, Crazy, was praised for its production and hip hop sound. The girls also sounded amazing! 

When I say the girls were ALL OVER South Korea with this album?!

Crazy was choreographed by Sohye and Son Sungdeuk from Big Hit!

Composer!Sohye made her debut! She has a credit for “Love Song”, where she wrote and played the violin!

“Boy” is a track written by Hyerim, and she explains that she was influenced by Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name” in terms of harmonies and a Darkchild-inspired sound.

The album earned 400,000 preorders and sold over 800,000 copies by the end of 2017, becoming the best-selling girl group album of the year.

The girls first performed “Crazy” at the 2016 MBC GAYO DAEJUN MUSIC FESTIVAL as a surprise performance! Netizens roared! 

This was Hyerim’s era! She said the rent was due and she was gonna be a beast on stage!

Mina made her debut as a host on Mnet Countdown! 

Crazy earned 15 wins and a grand slam across all music shows!

The girls had their first solo concert “Let’s Get Twisted!” in Seoul, South Korea, which was an album showcase for the release. The girls had a sold out concert of 15,000 fans. 

Whistle was a certified hit in South Korea!

Performance Highlights (Popular Performances / Iconic Moments):

For the debut surprise performance (123116) of ‘Crazy’, Hyerim is shown dropping from MBC Gayo’s ceiling and onto the main stage as an entrance. She was previously stated by JYL Records to not be attending the festival due to an undisclosed injury, nor was she on the red carpet. (Which was suggested by Hyerim to create high expectations for the performances that night)

For the official comeback stage of ‘Crazy’ (01117), the performance takes place at night, in which the girls are dropped off via helicopter on a helipad rooftop and surrounded by 30 backup dancers. Hyerim kicks the camera in her opening verse and leads a dance break, Mina makes her debut as a sub-rapper in Twist, Chaeyoung gets the bridge where the backup dancers and the rest of the group drop around her. At the end of the performance, the girls are seen exiting the rooftop via helicopter, in which Sohye makes a run and hangs off the rope ladder as the helicopter flies off. The performance sets an all-time high viewership record in Korean television history with 10 million viewers.  

On 010817, the stage for ‘Crazy’ took place at the Summit One Vanderbilt Skyscraper in New York City. The girls are seen performing intensely atop glass floors above the bright city. The reasoning behind the international performance connects to Chaeyoung’s verse in ‘Crazy’; “You can’t step to me, I go crazy wherever I go New York, Paris, Milano, Tokyo, London”. The performance goes viral, earning a television viewership of 8.7 million viewers. 

On 011217, the stage for ‘Crazy’ took place in Milan, where the girls performed an opera version of the song at the Teatro alla Scalla, an 18th century theatre for Italian opera and ballet. Twist’s ability to switch up the rendition of ‘Crazy’ garnered praise for the girl’s creativity. The performance received a total of 7 million viewers in television history.

On 012117, The performance took place at the Musée d’Orsay museum with 50 backup dancers. In the second half of the performance, the setting cuts to the Eiffel Tower, where the girls perform in front of. 50 backup dancers surround the Eiffel Tower in circular unison as they dance in sync. 

For the final stage of ‘Crazy’, the girls were seen performing in the streets of Tokyo and London, leading a flash mob with fans.

BONUS: LIMITED EDITION ALBUM COVERS FOR 'TW1ST'

hey guys! i know it's been a while since i've posted content, but i want to let you guys know that i do have stuff lined up and i'm working on everything! i would preferably like to post everything in chrono order while also fleshing the members out. side note: this is easily one of my favorite twist eras, honestly? i would say its a top three era. please stay tuned for future twist content! enjoy the holidays and be safe!

[mjohnso]

Quarterly Debut Review: Q1 2024

Quarterly Debut Reviews are a supplementary series to my biannual Periodic Rookie Group Reports, which are published quarterly. Each installment covers three rookie groups that debuted over the past three months. For the fifth installment, I covered ALL(H)OURS (January), YDS (February), and Heimish (March).

As always, a full list of rookie groups that have debuted thus far in 2024 is available here: 2024 Rookie Groups Debuts

January / ALL(H)OURS Debut: January 10, 2024 Debut Song: “GOTCHA”

Although I have been tracking rookie groups for over a decade, I am no soothsayer. I cannot predict with any accuracy the number of new groups that will debut in 2024 or if more groups will disband this year than last year. Nor can I tell if the recent reversal of a multi-year decline in the number of boy groups I covered in Periodic Rookie Groups Report No. 22 is permanent or a temporary deviation. At best, what the numbers tell me is. 2024 is not off to a bad start, especially regarding boy groups. The four boy groups that debuted this year in January mirrors the previous year's total. While this may not crack 2019’s record of nine boy groups in January, it is better than 2018's where boy groups' poor performance was foreshadowed by a single debut at the start of the year.

No matter how this year shakes out for boy groups, it cannot be said that boy groups did not try like ALL(H)OURS who was one of the four boy groups to debut. Their name externalizes their ambition signaling, according to Korea JoongAng Daily, their intention to “pour everything it has at all times.” Their debut song doubles down on this message with the chorus, punctuated by a deep bass sound, emphasizing their laser focus on their goal.

Of course, it takes more than focus and hard work for idols to achieve their dreams—or stardom —in the industry. Those are only parts of an equation with multiple variables, many of which idols have no control over, including their image, musical director, or whether a group gets to come back and try again or build on the momentum. But at least ALL(H)OURS are committed to doing what they can do and working with what they have control over.

February / YDS (YeoDongSaeng) Debut: February 21, 2024 Debut Song: “A Fluttering Love”

YDS’s debut single “A Fluttering Love” can claim more so-called ‘firsts’ than your average debut single. The song is the group’s first release under a proper label, as well as, their official debut and first single. Contrarily, it is also the first song in the industry's history to qualify as both a debut and a comeback single, a fact that the marketing has not hidden but highlighted. On a teaser image released to promote the song’s release, above the two members seated back-to-back on a white table, it reads “YDS 7TH DIGITAL SINGLE ALBUM.”

This discrepancy in qualification is a byproduct of YDS’ unorthodox career trajectory. The duo began their career uploading covers of k-pop songs to their YouTube channel, before pivoting to producing their original songs in 2022. They released six singles and built up a small following before according to their December 2023 Instagram post, signing with HO Entertainment. Then as established above, in February they released their seventh single that doubled as their major label debut. In other words, unlike most k-pop groups who debut after being assembled through the industry’s traditional top-down method, YDS debuted in reverse.

While there are tradeoffs for both YDS and HO Entertainment for bypassing this usual path, I see the appeal. For HO Entertainment, in particular, it is a cost-saving measure. A group with a pre-determined lineup eliminates the need to recruit and train future members of a group, a process so expensive that according to the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA)’s 2023 Pop Culture & Arts Industry Survey, most agencies do not even maintain a pool of trainees. They also come with a pre-defined image and sound, which although certainly adjustable, HO Entertainment has left unchanged. Indeed “A Fluttering Love”, features their signature sweet acoustic sound and lyrics about a love confession. This is consistent with their previous releases, only this time it comes with a name attached to it and an accompanying promotional rollout, typical of your average group.

March / Heimish Debut: March 15, 2024 Debut Song: “Golden Hour”

So far, this year has gone according to Rainbow E&M’s plan. That plan, laid out across their 2023 year-end Instagram posts, indicated that they aimed to debut one group per month – a feat they have pulled off. Three months into 2024, they debuted at least one group under the Future Idol Asia banner every month: Flora in January, Bluebell in February, and now Heimish and Pearlys in March.

Practically speaking, these are all new groups in the sense that Future Idol Asia has never debuted a group under these names or with these lineups. Of the four groups that debuted, Flora and Heimish’s lineups are partly a patchwork of members from prior Future Idol Asia groups. In the case of Flora, of the group’s six members, four previously debuted under Redplum and Closer, respectively. As for Heimish, their group is comprised of one new member, two members of Blossom, and one member of Winsome. This is a byproduct of the nature of the project. As I have written before Future Idol Asia groups are not intended to be permanent homes for aspiring idols but a temporary waypoint on their journey. Ideally, a member who debuts as part of a Future Idol Asia group would catch the attention of an entertainment agency scout at a showcase who invites them for further auditioning before inviting them to join their agency. In reality, though not every member gets picked. For example, in the case of Closer, two of whose members re-debuted this year as part of Flora, only one of the ten members in the group was chosen for additional auditions with other agencies.

This poses a conundrum for the Future Idol Asia project, as they are left with groups with gaps in their lineup, although groups like Flora and Heimish point to their solution. Since last year they have been repackaging members from their previous groups into these new groups. That allows the project to pad its numbers, giving the illusion that the project has more recruits than it actually does, especially if recruitment does not meet expectations. More importantly, it also gives those not picked the first time another chance. With a new group, concept, song, choreography, and opportunity to perform at the showcase this time might be the charm.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

hi bpp,

i hope this isn't a controversial ask. i really want your opinion. do you think another kpop group can win a grammy before bts? another group or singer winning a grammy first or even getting a nomination before bts returns - do you think it is possible?

***

Hi Anon,

Of course it's possible. BTS isn't the only group in k-pop putting out incredibly good music, after all. So it only tracks that before BTS returns in 2026, another k-pop artist or group may get Grammys recognition. In fact I expect it because of BTS, because BTS has put the spotlight on k-pop in a way no artist or group before them has ever done. Not even BoA and she's a legit g.o.a.t. in the industry. BTS has elevated k-pop to what is still widely considered to be the highest echelon in music. There's more attention on k-pop globally than there's ever been, and BTS is a big reason for that. So it's only a matter of time before good music coming out of Korea is more widely recognized.

Personally (and some of my friends agree), there's no group in the history of k-pop that has put out a better song than Dis-ease by BTS. And I do think they are the absolute best performers in the business. So my verdict is if the universe was fair, BTS would've been walking away with a Grammy every year since 2015. Nobody ever has done a better remake than Come Back Home by BTS, Fake Love by BTS is the song that caused the decisive shift in the dominant 4th gen sound or formula. I mean, much of what we understand as k-pop today is undeniably influenced (and to some degree, even forged) by choices and achievements BTS has made so far. Including the music, and some of that music happens to be pretty good.

There's also the fact the k-pop industry will push very actively for that sort of recognition, and they certainly see an opportunity to do that while BTS enlists. Expect any of the groups people try to force into the 'next BTS' discourse, the usual suspects being Blackpink, Stray Kids, Twice, Seventeen, and any random SM group (for some reason the animus is especially high with SM). Just calling a spade a spade...

In any case, let's hope good music wins because the Grammys don't have a good track record on that note.

Some favourites in the current Grammys eligibility period (October 1, 2022 - August 31, 2023):

On The Street - J-hope ft J. Cole

Indigo - RM

Set Me Free Pt. 2 - Jimin

Ay Yo - NCT127: The song is decent but it’s the performance that elevates it to something special. Too bad the beauty of the performance is in the details which would be lost in a grand concert setting.

NewJeans' Summer 2023 Release

Hurt was the best non-BTS k-pop song to be released in 2022, but NewJeans was much too green to submit their debut EP for consideration at the Grammys. So I really do hope they take the chance to be considered for the Grammys next year by dropping another smash-hit album/EP before August/September 2023. Ditto and OMG are nice but we know they can do better, and I expect them to in their upcoming album this summer.

*

This isn't to say I don't think BTS will win a Grammy ever. I'm personally indifferent, but I do think if they ever win it, it won't be soon. But I’ve been told I’m a k-pop pessimist, so please take all I’ve written with a pinch of salt.

[alottamoney]

I feel like fans also need to grow up a little bit, not everyone is going to like what Tae does, and when he goes into acting, there will be more of this stuff happening. His acting won’t always be Oscar-worthy and he won’t always be in the best shows or universally liked shows, and that’s ok. Feeding into this negative shit just ruins fan experience, yeah it’s weird that it’s coming from a Hybe employee, yeah Hybe doesn’t have a great track record with him, but he’s everywhere in SK right now, he’s enlisted, but his face is plastered all over, there’s media calling him the treasure of Korea, like 😅 I’m down bad for the man too, I don’t think I’ve ever liked a celeb as much as I like Tae, so I get the want to defend, but not everyone has to like him for me to like him. And not every dumb take needs a response, that person’s story would’ve disappeared in 24 hours, and the few media articles will be read today and forgotten tomorrow, meanwhile the song is on it’s 18th RAK or something so 🤷‍♀️

"His acting won’t always be Oscar-worthy" You know what, I won't ruin it for you lol but agreed, no need to center the discussion around him when he's just playing love interest in IU's song.

[etherchive]

[Pann] "NCT Mark's schedule that makes you wonder if it's possible to be carried out"

"Starting with the 2023's first schedule..

1. U.S. and South American tour (the 'and more..' here is the South American tour)

2. NCT 127 'Ay-Yo' comeback music show activities (1st comeback [in 2023])

3. NCT DREAM's overseas tour (it ends in May on the picture, but the encore concert announcement came out [after that], so they did an overseas tour until June)

4. Solo track release (he released his own solo song in the middle of the tour)

5. NCT DREAM 'Broken Melodies' music show activities (pre-release track) (2nd comeback)

6. NCT DREAM's 'ISTJ' music show activities (full-length album) (3rd comeback)

7. NCT 127 and NCT DREAM Fanmeetings (he's in two groups, so he participated in both)

8. NCT DREAM 'Yogurt Shake' music show activities (follow-up song) (4th comeback)

9. NCT U 'Baggy Jeans' music show activities (5th comeback)

10. NCT full-team concert (tour in Korea and Japan) ended in September 17th

When (we) thought he would rest a bit after the tour ends...

11. NCT 127 comeback schedule on October 6th (6th comeback schedule)

In 2023 alone, because he's in 3 different teams, he did 3 overseas tours, 5 comebacks and music show activities, and even filmed a lot of contents in between.

Whenever the fans sent messages full of concerns to him, the replies are mostly like this:

"I went to the hospital as soon as I woke up todayㅠ" [5:10 PM] "I will get better soon" [5:10 PM] "I'm sorry for making you worry" [5:10 PM] "Mark Lee who's not sick is here!" [10:49 PM] "Don't mind about anything else, don't worry about anything else, let's just have fun waiting for the days coming ahead of us and be together!!" [10:58 PM]

The schedules in this post are only the ones in 2023, and he's been on this kind of schedule for 8 years. Except for the time that he got Covid-19, he has never been absent in any schedule.

Without including recording and dance practice, if the schedules that can be seen (official schedules) are of this extent, I think the fans would all understand if he unintentionally shows bad attitude or suddenly wants to rest."

Comments:

[+12, -0] "Actually, all of the idol are busy, but I think no one is as busy as him.. so I feel thankful and I appreciate that he always does his best. Even if he suddenly takes a break, I think I would understand. I love you, Mark."

[+9, -0] "He even did (activities with) SuperM too, back then"

🔗 Original Post

[mariacallous]

China’s economy is limping back to life after President Xi Jinping’s ill-fated “zero covid” decree, but there is one big victim: the country’s efforts to tackle climate change. China’s carbon emissions recently recorded their largest annual jump and are on track to reach an all-time high. Fueled by new Chinese Communist Party (CCP) language that posits coal as the mainstay of the energy system, domestic production and consumption have ticked up. As has approval of new coal-fired power stations.

Xi’s signature “dual carbon” goals—for China to peak emissions before 2030, and to reach carbon neutrality by 2060—are not yet at risk. But that’s only because of Beijing’s preponderance for setting its climate targets so low to begin with. However, the cost of China now meeting these goals is only going up, and the room for them to do more is shrinking.

The problem is that for the CCP leadership the only thing that matters at present is ensuring a short-term economic bump. Xi’s modest annual growth target of 5 percent must be achieved at all costs. That’s why if we are to have any hope of stopping runaway climate change in time, the West needs a strategy that is as much about climate sticks as it is about carrots. It’s about time we see climate inaction on the same par as human rights abuses or even incursions to international peace and security.

By far the biggest stick available to the west is implementing new green tariffs. These tariffs would increase the cost to China of exporting carbon intensive goods such as cement, steel and aluminum to regions like the European Union where local manufacturers are already subject to strict regulations on their own pollution. For the first time, it would mean a direct hip pocket cost for climate inaction on the Chinese trade balance sheet. It would help force Chinese manufacturers to adapt to lower polluting methods.

In October, the European Union will begin implementing a “carbon border adjustment mechanism” (CBAM), due to be fully operationally in its coverage by 2026. In the United States, both Republicans and Democrats have already taken steps to prepare for a similar scheme. A bill to calculate the emissions intensity of industrial materials produced domestically was recently passed, and there is a possibility of a follow-up to the CHIPS and Science Act or a new standalone “Foreign Pollution Act” bill will put in place the cornerstone of a future scheme—though that is still some time away. In the meantime, the United States and the European Union are also negotiating a green steel deal that will be an important placeholder by individually placing some tariffs on China absent a wider scheme.

The Middle Kingdom hates the idea of green tariffs. For them, trade and climate should never be discussed in the same sentence. It’s easy to see why. Deloitte estimates China will be the most exposed market (behind Russia) to the EU’s new scheme, with €6.5 billion of trade from China affected to begin with. The United Kingdom and Canada are also considering similar schemes. Persuading others like South Korea and Japan—which already have or are implementing domestic carbon markets—to follow suit would help tighten the screws on Beijing by covering over a quarter of their export market. Just as important will be getting developing countries like South Africa (and perhaps even India over time) to also do so to avoid fragmenting the global trade environment they already complain of.

It’s crucial these countries can not only come together, but that they then stick together. When dealing with China, it is always better to move in packs. Unfortunately, Brussels has a propensity for wanting to play the good cop with China to Washington’s bad cop. For instance, a recent commitment by the EU to “better understand and address China’s concerns” with their scheme has raised eyebrows.

Diplomacy therefore still matters. It can also show the foreign policy hard heads in Beijing who continue to set the small playing field for China’s international climate agenda, that this issue is fundamental to China’s global standing and not one that cannot be geopolitically horse traded. Given his proclivity for the opposite, Wang Yi’s return as foreign minister has likely made that job harder in recent weeks.

The bottom line is the world is running out of time for dialogue alone to solve the climate crisis. In May, the World Meteorological Organization said that by 2027 we were more likely than not to breach the 1.5 degrees Celsius temperature limit, widely considered by scientists to be a climate tipping point.

Yet in the face of this, Xi is only standing firm. During a recent visit by U.S. climate envoy John Kerry, Xi defended the pace and intensity of China’s actions, which he said “should and must be” determined free of outside interference. And while the resumption of climate talks between the United States and China is a welcome step forward in the geopolitical milieu of the broader relationship, Beijing clearly feels it owes nothing more to Washington.

It’s time get tougher. For the last decade or more, the cornerstone of the West’s approach to China on climate change has simply been to encourage the country to play a part in combatting it. That has had some impact. In 2009, China was prepared to walk away from a proposed global deal in Copenhagen that posited developed and developing countries should be treated the same. But by 2014, China stood alongside the United States and put forward its own plan to reduce emissions that helped pave the way for the Paris Agreement. A shifting domestic zeitgeist as air pollution in Chinese cities, and a greater awareness of the impacts of climate change taking hold was far more consequential for changing the attitude of the CCP leadership. The west needs to help that shifting domestic sentiment along.

For its part, China would say its installed more renewable energy last year and sold more electric vehicles than the rest of the world combined. China is also on track to double its goal for installed solar and wind capacity this decade. But absent a more concerted effort by Beijing, none of this is likely to matter much. More than two-thirds of the world’s installed coal-fired power capacity will soon be in China, if over 300 mooted new plants are built. By the middle of the century, China will also overtake the United States as the world’s largest historical emitter. This will remove its bifurcated defense against responsibility that because it did not cause the issue, it has no responsibility for fixing it.

If the West can move quickly to implement new green tariffs, it won’t take us long to know if they have been effective. In 2025, China along with the rest of the world will be required to set new targets to reduce emissions for a decade ahead. For its part, the United States will be under particular pressure to take a big step up from its goal of a 50 percent to 52 percent emissions reduction by 2030, buoyed by the Inflation Reduction Act’s new measures. Having finally peaked emissions at the end of this decade, the key question for China will be whether they can put them into structural decline. If it doesn’t, the consequences will be felt by us all.

[1004sface]

1996.04.04 TV Times Magazine - R.ef article

Scans credit: yours truly!

No such thing as secrets!

'Sung Daehyun death rumor' happening

Return to retro, the 2nd album's secret

On the evening of the 22nd, Lee Hyundo makes an international call in tears

"Is it true that Daehyun died?"

"Is it true that Daehyun oppa died in a car accident? People say it was on the news this morning."

Early in the morning of March 22, R.ef fans sent the TV Times office phone into flames. A week before, a rumor that Seong Daehyun had died had peeked its head through, but today the phone exploded with calls. PC communication must have been swept up by the rumor.

Another funny happening! The same evening, Lee Hyundo, who was in LA, called sounding close to tears, "Is it true that Jeongsik (Daehyun) died?". It was Chae Rina, who was staying close to Hyundo, who ran crying and delivered the news.

To get to the point, R.ef finished their last recording at 6 P.M., March 22nd, and soon after went to Kimpo Airport, where at 8:30 A.M. they rode a plane to Singapore and arrived safely at their destination. As soon as they took out their travel gear, they notified their company that they had landed safely - they plan to return to Korea on March 27.

Recording lasted until 6 P.M. before leaving to Singapore

Park Chulwoo wore a mask due to his swollen throat

2 A.M., March 22, at the Paju King Records recording studio just hours before leaving to Singapore. Opening the studio door, Sung Daehyun, the man of the hour, was alive, but a little haggard on account of staying up late.

"Staying up all this week has made me out of my head."

The other members are the same. It felt bad to even talk to Park Chulwoo, who wore a mask because his throat was swollen, or Lee Sungwook, whose nerves were frayed having to finish recording on the day of departure.

Nearing the final stretch, they pulled a week-long all-nighter, and even worked intensively on the day they were set to leave for Singapore. Due to this, production on the album is almost finished; the rest—mixing, mastering, and jazz session playing for one song—are technical processes that will be handled in America, with R.ef not directly participating.

The final touches will be finished in America by Kim Gukhyeon, an engineer who participated in the production of Seo Taiji and Boys' 4th album, and their producer Choi Minhyeok. It will take place in Ocean Tower Studio, a spot Kim Gukhyeon found, located in the vicinity of LA.

11 songs themed on love, with rave as the main genre

Gathered an orchestra and the world's top artists

As the D-day of R.ef's second album, to release around the middle of April, approaches, its secrets are being unraveled one by one, drawing curiosity. As its title, Back to the Black, implies, the album's songs seek a "return to retro". To bring a new feel to the retro sound new generations are unfamiliar with, a sound designer—a position new to general audiences—was appointed into their team for the first time in Korea. Additionally, to differentiate the album from the digital music of other dance groups, producers scoured American instrument stores for analog instruments that they would work with.

As expected of the group that first introduced the genre to Korea, R.ef's second album is composed of various types of rave music. About five rave tracks are included on the 11-track album.

"In order to strengthen the color of R.ef's unique rave music, we made unique attempts, like adding orchestral instrumentation or metal guitars. It'll probably sound new."

One of this album's other features is the diverse range of genres, such as US house, hip hop, jazz, techno, and pop ballads, aside from the 5 rave songs. For the jazz song in particular, itself a hard feat for a dance group, more work will be put into it than the title track. While in America, the country's top notch jazz artists will be hired to participate in session recordings; Michael Miller, a famous jazz guitarist famous for his work with Chuck Korea, has already been scouted. They plan to invest generously in scouting A-class musicians.

One song composed by Lee Sungwook, 2-3 written by Sung Daehyun

Choreo and outfits will be prepared at their return to Korea, on March 27

A song composed by Lee Sungwook will be included in this album, which will show how much the group have grown musically. Lyrics will be written by Hong Jaesun, Lee Yongmin, and Sung Daehyun, who all wrote for R.ef's debut, as well as the rising star lyricist Kang Eunkyung. Sung Daehyun wrote lyrics for 4 songs, two to three of which are being considered for the album.

This album's main theme is "love". It includes stories about lovers, self-love, love for a departed partner, and things one would want to say while parting with a lover.

Aside from "Brilliant Love", which serves as a part two to "Heartbreak" off their debut, the rest of the tracklist has not been decided on—only the title of the song "Forbidden U-Turn", composed by Lee Sungwook. Kang Eunkyung wrote the lyrics off of Lee's idea, and it reportedly contains autobiographical lyrics about how he chose to become a singer.

On another note, R.ef will be busy finishing up their dances and outfits, when they come back from Singapore, appearing on various TV and radio programs and shooting a music video with their travel companion Kim Sehoon.

[that-spider-witch]

Ok, this pissed me off. Let's try to break this down:

"a group with no official ties to Project Moon and who slandered the company relentlessly and wanted to bleed every penny from the company because....really just because they could."

Wow so greedy. So greedy in fact that now that the fundraising has finished and they have what they need, they have stated that they will send you your money back. Ain't that greedy?

It should be noted that this whole "They are greedy scammers" narrative seems to be rooted solely on misinformation and personal bias. The PMUA, now known as the KGCS, appears to have a good track record of helping artists and not keeping funds and donations to themselves for personal use. And yet the Project Moon fandom calls them scammers because... They once rented a truck with a sign written in broken english? Back when they were still getting started? If you are gonna make that heavy of an accusation, please at least make it make sense. Show evidence.

As to why they have a grudge against Project Moon ever since the Vellmori incident: Project Moon filed defamation charges against them (which got dismissed, btw), all the while they did nothing against the incel hate mob that harassed their own former employee. No legal charges, no direct condemning of their actions. Nothing.

This isn't even something they say. This is just me writing about actual stuff that happened. That's the context of the situation here.

"Her work is non-canon and can no longer be viewed officially so why would she even try and fight for the copyright?"

Because this has nothing to do with money. This is not a legal battle to keep the comic because she wants to publish it and keep earning profit from it. She has stated that she had a bad time working for Project Moon and no longer wants to have something she did be associated with them, so she wants WonderLab gone.

From here it is speculation, but given Monggeu's allegations against Project Moon, it is probable that she has a similar motive: Characters and story may belong to Project Moon, but she no longer wants them to use the pages she worked on. Project Moon may have also started this since apparently in Korea, freelancers (contractors) actually keep their copyright by default, so this might be more of Project Moon trying to make Monggeu give up the copyright she has over the part of Leviathan she worked on to them, rather than the other way around.

Also: If the allegations of work mistreatment are true, wouldn't it make sense that the artists would want to keep ownership of their work from a company that has repeatedly shown them disrespect and disregard for their wellbeing?

"Vellmori WAS NOT FIRED. She left OF HER OWN ACCORD AND PM WAS FINE WITH IT."

Here's the thing: I have yet to be presented with a single news article, a single video or interview or tweet, or any other piece of media or information in which Vellmori herself is saying that.

If you want to believe on Project Moon's official statement on the matter, cool. But please understand that in the current state of both South Korea and the gaming industry, it is not unheard of female employees "leaving of their own accord" after the company peer pressured them to quit. I don't blame anyone who thinks that's what happened given the world we live in.

Am I saying that this was an example of this? No, because I don't know if there's enough actual proof of that. But I'm also just not gonna buy the whole "Vellmori left of her own accord and everything was dandy" because of that very same reason: I haven't seen enough proof that's what happened other than the fact Project Moon themselves said that's what happened. And I'm sorry, but anything a company says should always be taken with a grain of salt. Yes, even if it is an indie company. Yes, even if it is a company you love.

You say that Vellmori leaving was her own decision. Ok, show me the damn proof.

"Regardless of your feelings and KJH (Kim Ji Hoon), that does not give you any right to not only go against everything PM says simply because you dont like the guy, and by every god, does not under any circumstances mean you get to spread misinformation."

Ok, allow me to ask you the very same thing, then: Regardless of your feelings towards KJH (Kim Ji Hoon), that does not give you any right to go against everything everyone else is saying simply because you like the guy, and by every god, does not under any circumstances means you get to spread misinformation.

I'm just gonna make this a full post because why not. As some of you may know, Project Moon has found itself in more drama. And surprise, it involves misinformation because people dont know how to read. Currently PM is in a legal battle against Monggeu, Mimi and the Game Consumer Association because Monggeu and Mimi are filing copyright on their respective works (Leviathan for Monggeu and Wonder Lab for Mimi).

I'm just gonna start with the GCS. If you've been a fan since before 4.5, you might remember the incredibly stupid Vellmori drama, where a bunch of incels hot mad at the CG artist because the ID artist drew Ishmael in a skin tight wet suit rather than a bikini. I bring this up because the GC went by a different name then, the PMUA, or the Project Moon User Association, a group with no official ties to Project Moon and who slandered the company relentlessly and wanted to bleed every penny from the company because....really just because they could. They are a group who will do anything to see Project Moon burn to the ground, and so in another brilliant idea, are backing Monggeu and Mimi in the lawsuit....except they arent because they themselves have stated that they do not have the money to do so and are asking for donations.

Getting to the copyright stuff, Monggeu and Mimi are filing copyright claims for Leviathan and Wonder Lab respectively, two comics/mangas that are set in the Project Moon universe. However they have an issue, they do not own anything within those comics. Nothing in either of them are by right theirs and are instead owned by PM in their entirety. The best they could hope for is owning the names. PM has already show proof that they worked with Monggeu when it came to Leviathan which completely destroys any claims they could make to owning Leviathan, as PM was working on it as well. Mimi......Mimi is in a weird case as her work would also technically not be hers as Wonder Lab is still set in the PM universe. But PM did take it down when she asked and also made Wonder Lab non-canon....but that just brings up the question of why even do this then? Her work is non-canon and can no longer be viewed officially so why would she even try and fight for the copyright? I dont have an awnser, I'm just asking the question.

This last segment will be used as a PSA for everyone. Please for the love of everything wait till both sides get their side of the story out and actually read what both sides say before making judgments. Regardless of your feelings and KJH (Kim Ji Hoon), that does not give you any right to not only go against everything PM says simply because you dont like the guy, and by every god, does not under any circumstances mean you get to spread misinformation. I have already seen a post showing the GCS/PMUA post about this and in that very post is misinformation. Specifically from GCS/PMUA, but since someone spread it here and others have reblogged it, they are also spreading misinformation. Vellmori WAS NOT FIRED. She left OF HER OWN ACCORD AND PM WAS FINE WITH IT. Not liking KJH because is isnt the sharpest tool in the shed does not mean you are allowed to spread any misinformation, and if you spread it unknowingly, then atleast they to correct it. And for the last gods damned time. VELLMORI LEFT OF HER OWN ACCORD, IT WAS HER OWN DECISION, PROJECT MOON DID NOT FIRE HER.

tldr: Project Moon is fully within their right to fight this false claim as these claims are coming from an outside source that does not own any of the IP and were simply contract work. And these false copyright claimers are also being backed by an organization who hates Project Moon and will do anything to see the company burn, and use misinformation to do it. Dont spread misinformation and if you do it accidentally, try to correct yourself. Misinformation is how innocent people get canceled, lose their jobs or possibly lose their lives. Dont. Spread. It.

I do wanna add something on here (so this is an edit fyi), but Project Moon isnt a perfect company. Perfect is an impossibility. Perfect cannot exist. PM has made mistakes and will keep making them, we all will. Does that mean they should be excused? Absolutely not, that's not how this works. PM isnt perfect, KJH isnt perfect, none of us are perfect, and no one can be perfect. PM has done some stupid things in the past, but they dont deserve this. They do not deserve to be continuously slandered against by a group who is out for their own gain when that same group said they were here to help people. PM is not perfect, but PMUA/GCS is far less perfect than PM could ever be. They are greedy and selfish and will continue to spread misinformation to make PM look bad. You do not need to support or even like PM, but please understand that the other side is far worse and do not care for anyone other than themselves. (This is not talking about Monggeu or Mimi, as far as I'm concerned, they are good people and nothing I'm adding here is against them. Just the PMUA/GC)

2nd edit: it has been confirmed with the official english translation that Mimi and Monggeu were both not just contract work, but effectively temporary PM employees during their contract. These means they were paid as much as any other employee. I did not mention this as I wasnt sure if this was accurate from the translations available. Along with this, according to PM, while Monggeu said it was PM's decision to cancel the manga for Leviathan, it was in fact Monggeu's choice and PM respected and accepted this. I would also like to mention that the letter from the PMUA/GCS stated that because PM didnt directly contribute to Leviathan or Wonder Lab, that PM owned nothing and only Monggeu and Mimi owned everything. One, this is false as PM has already said they worked with both during the creation of Wonder Lab and Leviathan (Wonder Lab had more freedom) and two, personally, that is incredibly insane. Just because I make a new comic in the DC or Marvel universe with some new characters does not mean I own everything in the comic.

link for anyone wishing to read PM's statement in English: https://x.com/LimbusCompany_B/status/1816630063154233644

[agentcable]

Taxi Driver 2 Ep. 9 and 10

A man, who appeared to be drunk and smelled bad, was protesting alone in front of a large hospital. He claimed that his daughter was in a coma due to malpractice during surgery. Rainbow Transport has taken him on as a client, but they are unsure if this is a legitimate case or just an unfortunate accident. Beofre taking any action, Do-Ki investigates Ahn Young-Sook, the director who performed the surgery.

To infiltrate the operating room, Do-Ki poses as a patient. During his anesthesia, Go-Eun discovers that a proxy performs the actual surgery while Young-Sook leaves for a drink. The team now knows that she is a complete fraud, and they devise a meticulous plan to bring her down.

Season 2 Episode 9 "Save My Daughter!" Season 2 Episode 10 "I Know Kim Do-gi The Best"

The series is based on real-life heinous crimes committed in Korea and has received praise from viewers for its performances and storylines.

If you want to watch the series for yourself, stop reading! This post contains spoilers to the storyline.

Episode 9 "Save My Daughter!"

In Episode 9, we learn how Do-Ki obtained the Cotaya files, which were discovered by Ha-Joon during his visit. Do-Ki enters his house and sees Ha-Joon looking at some pictures, Ha-Joon quickly makes an excuse and leaves in a hurry, leaving Do-Ki with doubts. The next day, Ha-Joon questions his subordinate about how the files ended up with the taxi driver. The subordinate has no explanation and is now threatened by Ha-Joon to investigate the reason for the leak of the files.

The Rainbow taxi team is having a typical day when Do-Ki notices a man protesting outside a nearby hospital for the truth. Later that day, the man saw a Rainbow taxi advertisement and called them. Do-Ki meet with the man and listened to his story. A year ago, the man's daughter, Han Su-Ryeon, was admitted to hospital for surgery by a renowned director.

During the procedure, the director noticed something unusual but dismissed his concerns when his daughter was brought out of the operating room. However, he soon discovers that his daughter has fallen into a coma. He attempts to take the surgeon to court, but without evidence, the trial is unsuccessful.

He stands outside the hospital demanding justice and documentation of the surgery room. The Rainbow taxi team considers this a medical malpractice case, but the surgeon in question has a clear and positive track record.

This makes them reluctant to take the case, and Sung-Chul ultimately decides not to take it. However, the others are still unsure and express their concern for the man. Do-Ki is hesitant to abandon this case. He meets Cheon Ji-Hun, the One Dollar Lawyer, who helps him understand that he cannot give up on it.

Later, he meets the man and assesses his situation. Meanwhile, the others sneak into the hospital to steal their records, but find nothing. Do-Ki also sneaks in and searches through the handwritten files. He discovers that Su-Ryeon's files were destroyed due to a leak.

Do-Ki becomes suspicious and investigates the crime scene, the operation room. He is unable to enter due to camera sensors at the entrance, so he pretends to be a patient and puts on an act with Sung-Chul.

Do-Ki asks Go-Eun to turn off the camera on his glasses for three minutes. After that, she can turn it back on, and the hospital staff can pretend that the sensors have become faulty. The plan is put into action, and Do-Ki is successfully put on the operating table and given anesthesia.

As he slowly loses consciousness, Go-Eun turns on the camera and sees the director leaving the room while another doctor enters instead.

Episode 10 "I Know Kim Do-gi The Best"

The tenth episode starts with Do-Ki entering the operation theatre. However, someone else takes the position of the surgeon, and director Ahn Young-Sook is seen leaving the surgery. Go-Eun witnesses this, and the other man is about to begin the surgery when the nurse informs them that they have the wrong patient in the room.

Do-Ki wakes up and is pleased with what he found. He stays at the hospital for a longer period and follows the man who replaced Ahn Young-Sook. He discovers that the man works in sales at a pharmacy company associated with Young-Sook.

He discovers a schedule packed with surgeries and uncovers the true identity of the person performing them. The Rainbow Taxi team reconvenes to discuss the case and Go-Eun discovers that Young-Sook changed her name and has a criminal record under her previous name.

She was caught for fraud after making a salesman perform surgeries for her and paid a fine before changing her name to continue her work. Later, Young-Sook meets with the man who replaced her. She threatens him to continue performing surgeries for her, or else he will be in deep trouble.

She instructs him to get into the waiting car and return to performing surgeries. However, Do-Ki is not willing to let this happen and kidnaps the man. He questions him about Su-Ryeon and discovers that an error was made during the surgery, which Young-Sook quickly covered up.

Do-Ki is angry and tells the man that his actions were wrong and inexcusable. Young-Sook has found out about the man's disappearance and orders him to be replaced. Do-Ki then returns to the hospital and questions Young-Sook's true motives.

Ha-Joon arrives and tells Do-Ki that he has come to visit someone. This makes Do-Ki realize that the hospital hardly receives any visitors. The lack of visitors reveals that most of the patients in this hospital are elderly and have no family around them. Therefore, their treatment brings money into Young-Sook's pockets from the government.

Young-Sook receives a message that another elderly man's condition is not optimistic. Upon arriving, she orders the nurse to write it off as death due to a chronic disorder. This leaves Go-Eun and Do-Ki speechless. They plan to move the elderly man to another hospital with the whole team.

The man is soon brought out, and Do-Ki leaves to confront Young-Sook. First, the team informs Young-Sook that her entire fortune has been donated. Then, government officials arrive to assess the hospital and discover many surprising factors.

Additionally, the man who used to work for Young-Sook turns himself in and exposes her truth. Later, Young-Sook returns to the now-destroyed hospital and plans her escape, but Do-Ki arrives and gives her a taste of her own medicine.

Meanwhile, Ha-Joon has something in store for Do-Ki, and Do-Ki's taxi is soon bombed, exploding in front of the others.