#tae and queer media

[peachjagiya]

🚨⚠️ one more spoiler ⚠️🚨

His shirt says Love My Way.

His shirt... Says... LOVE MY WAY. You'll never in a million years guess what film THAT was in.

What a shock to us all! 💜🌈

[lemonfreshlysqueezed]

Our Dating Sim - Episode 7

Ki Tae likes plants because they stay in place. He got traumatised by Lee Wan leaving and plants can’t leave. Which give him a sense of stability and control.

Fifs by @ueasking

[mediaaddictsanonymous]

New Episode Drop!

Ep. 3 - "Women Love Women, but Who's Gonna Love Me?"

Following last week's episode on MLM ships, Sammie and Tae unpack WLW, or women loving women, ships! They open with the WLW media close to their hearts like "Wicked," "A League of Their Own," and "The Handmaiden." Things get a little personal as they explore what it means to not see yourself in sapphic stories and their thoughts on lesbian sex scenes.

Follow us on our socials (Instagram, YouTube), and send us asks on Tumblr!

Join Sammie (she/her) and Tae (he/him) on their weekly quest to unpack popular media. The two cousins will delve into the significance of queer media representation, the ins and outs of fandom culture, and how what we watch and read is influenced by and influences our world. Tune in every Saturday at 12 p.m. PST!

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Castbox, iHeartRadio, GoodPods, and Amazon Music!

[theside-b]

Don't forget Love For Love's Sake nearly had all the romance content cut from it, the director had to fight to keep it from becoming a bromance show.

They spent ONE YEAR searching for Cha Yeonwoon's actor, that's almost unheard of in any sort of media, least of all in the BL genre, development blocks tend to kill any show/film chances of getting made. That dedication got us Cha Joowan.

Taevin went for it, he was looking for a BL role after having his queer storyline scrapped in The Penthouse, so he made a mission to get the role of Tae Myungha.

Love For Love's Sake really is that show.

[bengiyo]

Love for Love's Sake Ep 8 (Finale) Stray Thoughts

Last time, the game world began falling apart around Myungha as he refused to choose between his grandmother or Yeowoon dying. With only 15 days left, Myungha began to pull back from Yeowoon, even as he tried to bulk up his relationships with his friends. Myungha received an item to change any part of the story, but could not change himself to admit to Yeowoon directly that he loved him. Despite Yeowoon asking all the right questions directly, Myungha couldn’t say what needed to be said, and chose to break up. We left with Myungha falling into the abyss as the world unwound before him.

Did Myungha erase himself from Yeowoon’s memory? I’m glad his friendships are intact, but it seems like he’s experiencing echoes of Myungha.

Episode 8: Answers

Wait, why does the brand lady remember Tae Myungha?

Oh, this is upsetting. Only the brand lady and Yeowoon remember Myungha. Even his grandmother doesn’t remember.

He wrote “Please make Cha Yeowoon happy” and then he vanished. I get his panic now.

Wait, is Cha Yeowoon a PC now?

Wait, was the brand owner Myungha’s ex in the main world?

Oh no…. Tae Myungha went to see his mom before and she had started a new family and refused to see him.

I approve of the letterboxing to let us know we’re seeing the history from the physical world.

This is putting me in my Sea, Swallow Me and Other Stories by Craig Laurance Gidney feelings.

Wow. I have a lot of thoughts about this writer creating a story because he loved his friend he missed so much that he wanted to give him a second life in a game where you help him see that he is loved and that he can choose to live. “Write me a poem to make me happy.”

ARE THEY IN DIFFERENT REALITIES? WHAT THE HELL??

He’s going to find his favorite person!!! 😭

Oh, romance, never stop hitting me with lens flares to show that the love is bursting.

Yes, let’s continue those kissing lessons.

Whoa, he’s wearing pink now.

Okay, seeing them make out by the sea and then play in it with their friends after that reveal about Myungha just sent me over the edge.

Final Verdict: 9, Highly Recommended. This final episode went to some really dark places, but this is the kind of queer media that I secretly love the most. I’ve written about how grief is a big part of my experience before, and how much Eternal Yesterday helped me cope with feelings that had been in me for 15 years. I think there’s something beautiful in the melancholy of the writer who is grieving their friend in their work. The thing about the fact that everyone dies, is that those who loved us will remember us and they will miss us. A version of us continues to live on in them. When we lose someone tragically, there is a need to process those feelings, and I appreciate the desire of a writer to immortalize their friend in a story where they recognize and receive the love they wished for in life.

I love that there’s a component of death of the author here, where Myungha wants to know who he is and why he wrote things like this, because I wonder if the writer infused some of the writings Myungha gave in life since we recognized Myungha’s handwriting in the missions. He’s trying to give Myungha what he wrote that he wanted and what he wrote about love. I love that we don’t exactly what the creator’s relationship is with Myungha, but the gay in me calls to the gay in him and says that he loved his junior in Myungha the way Myungha maybe connected to in Yeowoon. I like to think that he wrote Cha Yeowoon based on how he saw Myungha, and a part of him wanted to see Myungha happy. Perhaps he felt he couldn’t give that to Myungha in life for various reasons.

I loved the game mechanics so much. I loved the side quests. I loved it because it didn’t work all the time. I know I link Shane Koyczan a lot when I’m being especially emo around here, but it’s like his poem Stop Signs where he’s desperate to connect with his crush and he’s trying everything he can think of to reach them. What it does force to recognize is what’s important. All the running around and trying to get all of these things is about taking care of the person he likes. Earning the money forced him to work at something without just receiving it from someone else. Getting Yeowoon friends made both of their lives better, and they found the other gays! I loved the debuff mechanic because it makes you pay attention to the world around them and approach situations with caution.

This show was beautiful. I haven’t seen an It Gets Better project that hit the right way for me in so long. I like that this show kinda snuck up on us with the darkness. There have been so many high profile celebrity deaths in Korea in the last few years, and there’s gotta be so many more of regular people that we don’t even know. I really love that this story is about loving lonely boys and asks the audience not to give up. I love the notion that loving someone else is a pathway to learning to love yourself. You can love for the sake of love itself. This show surprised the hell out of me, but this is going to be one of the shows I think sticks with me from this year.

[lurkingshan]

Hi. I recently finished watching Coffee Prince based on a few recs posts that you had put out and MY GOD I'm so glad I decided to give it a try. (This was the first Kdrama where I got past 2 eps) I loved this sooo sooo much.

Do you have any recs for media (queer or otherwise) with similar strong characters as Eun-Chan? Even otherwise, thanks for your great rec posts!

Another Coffee Prince convert! Thank you for telling me, anon, it gives me so much joy every time someone gets to experience it for the first time. And I am not surprised Go Eun Chan captured your heart, everyone who meets her feels the same.

Since I don't know exactly what about Eun Chan captivated you, I am not entirely sure what kind of characters you are looking for. Is it her generosity of spirit? Is it that endearing mix of bravery and naïveté? Is it the way she keeps going through confusion and uncertainty? Is it that she is just so lacking in artifice and unapologetically herself? Or maybe it's her gender questioning journey that spoke to you.

Given that I am not precisely sure, I am just going to give you a mix of great dramas of various genres with strong characters that give me some aspect of that Eun Chan swag--feel free to come back and ask for more recs if you have something else in mind! In alpha order:

Be Melodramatic (Viki)

Shan found another excuse to rec Be Melodramatic? Must be a day ending in y. But seriously this drama is full of fantastic characters and there's a strong thread here about being yourself unapologetically and finding the people who love you for that.

Great Men Academy (grey)

Another character experiencing gender, but this time via a magical-unicorn-induced body transformation (don't ask I could not possibly explain it). This story is all about Love figuring herself out and the bisexual king who loves her in any body.

Healer (Viki)

Chae Yeong Shin is Park Min Young's best character ever and it's not close. She has a lot of Eun Chan's relentless spirit and optimism in the face of life's nonsense, and she's a spunky one. Healer is also just a great action romance with a lot of fun hijinks and a very swoony male lead, if you're into that kind of thing.

Joshi-teki Seikatsu (Life As A Girl) (grey)

Miki is an all-time great character. A trans woman rebooting her life away from home, she is more assured about who she is but has a lot of Eun Chan's core generosity and bravery. I love her so much.

Kieta Hatsukoi (Viki)

Chaotic confusion with a heart of gold, thy name is Aoki.

Koisenu Futari (grey)

Sakuko, my beloved. This show is about two people on the aroace spectrum connecting and finding companionship and family in each other, and it's so beautiful.

Light on Me (Viki)

Woo Tae Kyung is definitely sitting at the "unapologetically themselves" table with Eun Chan. And he has a love triangle, too!

My Lovely Sam Soon (Viki)

If you're up for an even older kdrama, I love this one to pieces. Kim Sam Soon has a lot in common with Go Eun Chan, in that she doesn't perform femininity the way people expect and she is trying to find her place in the world, all while crushing on a guy who feels very out of her league. This is a journey for both lead characters, and I was so moved by where they ended up that I burst into tears at the end.

She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat (Furritsubs)

My girls!!! I love every character in this show. I don't think it's possible to watch this drama and not find someone to connect with; it's all about exploring the many different ways to be a woman and finding the people who will love and respect you for who you are. And it's very queer while doing it!

Twenty-five Twenty-one (Netflix)

Na Hee Do is a legend, and not just because of the fencing. This show is her coming of age story and you will love her.

Weightlifting Fair Kim Bok Joo (Viki)

Kim Bok Joo, another heroine wrestling with her femininity as she navigates coming of age and changing relationships. She's fantastic.

As always, if you have trouble finding any of these, you can always hmu (off anon, because we don't share secret files in public lol). Hope you find something to enjoy among these!

[waitmyturtles]

Final Thoughts on The Trainee! (TL;DR That Last 4/4 Quarter Was a Major Fumble, But It Didn't Ruin the Whole Show For Me)

I had promised my friends @lurkingshan and @shortpplfedup that I honestly wouldn't write too much about The Trainee while it was airing, because I was mad sus about the crew of this show. Many of the crew of The Trainee had worked on an ill-fated GMMTV het drama called UMG, which aired last year, and which starred Nanon Korapat, Namtan Tipnaree, and Milk Pansa in an unfortunate, chemistry-devoid love triangle. It was a flop and I never finished it.

I had thought to think about where this crew came from about four episodes into The Trainee, when I realized that the MO of this series was to center not Ryan's and Jane's budding romance, but the inner workings of an office, and the infrastructures of making filmed content instead.

UMG was framed in a similar way. While the show struggled to contextualize romance among its characters, the center of each episode was actually about describing concepts regarding extraterrestrial life -- things like crop circles and whatever. (There were aliens in this show.) (Dammit, I can't find a gif of the aliens!) (Here's Milk with some boogie eyes instead, whatever.)

As @lurkingshan wrote often during her watch of the series, The Trainee was ultimately a workplace BL, and I'd add to that that it was meant to serve as an educational series to GMMTV's unique audience. I wondered, early on in The Trainee, if I was just too damn old, as a working professional, to be an audience to this show. GMMTV's audience, of course, skews Gen Z and maybe very-late millennial -- GMMTV's shows are equivalent to shows airing on MTV or The CW by way of its majority audience market.

I certainly had a lot of experience by way of how interpersonal relationships mostly played out in this series (although I reeeeeally needed Judy to acknowledge her kissing Ba-Mhee and to talk about it, the way Jane acknowledged the power gap between him and Ryan after they started dating).

But, honestly? I ended up LOVING the breakdowns of how creating filmed content works, especially in regards to how viscerally and intensely these concepts were depicted.

And The Trainee stepped into some other territory, y'all! Many of us had intense discussions regarding bisexual inclusion and erasure once Tae and Ba-Mhee got back together. These concepts are sophisticated and important to ruminate on -- again, especially for a younger audience being fed most binary male-male and female-female queer media and concepts by a giant like GMMTV, which makes a ton of money on branding same-sex actors together. Queerness has a lot of spectrums, and bi inclusion was something I was glad this series unexpectedly took on.

So, against all this good stuff, that last 4/4 quarter sucked. I felt terrible for Ryan's 20-something hormones. Jane went to get a masters', and didn't even *call* his.... his boo? (Ryan wasn't Jane's boyfriend, obviously, maybe we could call Ryan his crush, his boo-boo, whatever.) Like. Jane didn't even come back to Thailand to visit, ever? Come awn now. If a show is feeding realism to a young audience by way of how corporate workplaces work, and how the art of an industry is made, at least please make the final romance a little more realistic!

(All y'all 20-somethings who were watching this show and wondering if you should wait five years for a potential boo to come back from overseas, please listen to your auntie here, GO DATE OTHER PEOPLE. Don't be like Ryan. Focus on *YOUR* NEEDS. This has been your reality-based PSA.)

But the rest of the finale was lovely for me. Jo, to me, was a realistic boss. He had a priority in keeping on Jane as an assistant director, because Jane was a great assistant director, and served well in that role, which served well for Jo's company. When Jane expressed an interest in growing, Jo knew that Jane couldn't do it in Jo's shadow -- and Jo said so. Jane taking a risk to LEAVE is a kind of risk I've had to confront time and time again in my own career, as I grew out of a workplace, and grew out of what that workplace was demanding of me. It's a wonderful notion for young people to contemplate on -- that movement in one's career must be first and foremost driven by the individual themself, for the sake of their own accountability to their growth.

I was thrilled to see Sea Tawinan in them white pants Ba-Mhee and Tae's engagement, Tae setting guardrails for himself to focus more on Ba-Mhee, and omg Pie's and Ba-Mhee's breakdown had me howling. Poon's a new fave as well. The Trainee confirmed my continued deep love and appreciation for Piploy, I think she's cute and great-great.

I truly enjoyed this show. The crew ultimately de-centralized romance for most of the show to focus on how work lives and personal lives realistically intertwine. We are the same people at work as we are at home, with all of the messiness we bring to those tables, including unrecommended romances that may traverse age and power gaps. Things can get messy, but I think, other than the whole Judy thing and Jane ghosting Ryan for years (wtf man), The Trainee handled that messiness with empathy for the young people who did a lot of growing up during the course of this series.

[equalv]

South Korean tv shows with lgbt* characters

Because so many people liked my post for german tv shows with queer characters, I thought I‘d compile lists for other countries as well.

A-Z

A First Love Story (2021) (mlm) | YouTube

Jaesung (Kim Hyeongwon)

Mingyu (Jung Jaewoon)

Blueming (2022) (mlm, wlw) | IQIYI

Hyeong Daun (Jo Hyukjoon)

Cha Siwon (Kang Eunbin)

Cha Siyeong (Moon Hyein)

Choco Milk Shake (2022) (mlm) | YouTube

Jungwoo (Ko Hojung)

Choco (Lee Jaebin)

Milk (Kim Seonghyuk)

Uncle (Park Seungbin)

Girlfriend Project Day 1 (2022) (wlw) | YouTube

Ahn Gain (Park Hyunwoo)

Song Heeram (Bing Hyejin)

His Man (2022-) (mlm) | IQIYI, Gagaoolala | reality tv

Season 1

Kim Changyu

Kim Seonyul

Jeon Eunchan

Lee Jeonghyun

Kim Changmin

Leon Hyukjun

Lee Hyeon

Hokeep

Season 2

Shin Sungho

Oh Minsung

Kim Yoonghee

DABIT

DAENYOL

Lee Junseong

Yang Hyunjin

Joon Seonwoo

Jazz for Two (2024) (mlm) | IQIYI, Gagaoolala

Han Taeyi (Ji Hogeun)

Yoon Seheon (Kim Jinkwon)

Seo Doyoon (Song Hangyeom)

Lily Fever (2015) (wlw) | YouTube

Kim Kyungju (Kim Hyejoon)

Jang Serang (Jung Yeonjoo)

Love Class (2022-) (mlm) | Viki, Gagaoolala

Season 1

Cha Jiwoo (Han Hyunjun)

Lee Roa (Kim Taehwan)

Kim Namjun (Yoo Hyukjae)

Season 2

Lee Hyun (J-min)

Shin Maru (Lee Kwanghee)

Oh Minwoo (Woo Hyowon)

Kim An (Kim Yongseok)

Yoo Joohyuk (An Jeonggyun)

Kim Sungmin (Jung Woojae)

Love for Love's Sake (2024) (mlm) | IQIYI, Gagaoolala

Tae Myungha (Lee Taevin)

Cha Yeowoon (Cha Joowan)

Chun Sangwon (Oh Minsu)

Ahn Kyunghoon (Cha Woongki)

Love Tractor (2023) (mlm) | IQIYI

Seon Yul (Do Won)

Suh Yechan (Yoon Dojin)

Kwon Inseo (Yang Seungbin)

Merry Queer (2022) (mlm, wlw, trans) | Gagaoolala | documentary

Kim Minjun

Park Bosung

Yoo Taeyoon

Lee Minju

Im Garam

Lee Seungeun

Our Dating Sim (2023) (mlm) | VIKI, Gagaoolala

Shin Kitae (Lee Seunggyu)

Lee Wan (Lee Jonghyuk)

Semantic Error (2022) (mlm, wlw) | VIKI, Gagaoolala

Jang Jaeyoung (Park Seoham)

Chu Sangwoo (Park Jaechan)

Choi Yuna (Song Jioh)

She Makes My Heart Flutter (2022) (wlw) | YouTube

Gangseol (Byun Jihyun)

Jung One (Park Somi)

Yubin (Choi Jiwon)

Sarang (Kang Nayoung)

Leera (Ahn Yeonsun)

The Eighth Sense (2023) (mlm) | VIKI

Seo Jaewon (Lim Jisub)

Kim Jihyun (Oh Juntaek)

To My Star (2021-2022) (mlm) | VIKI, IQIYI

Season 1 & 2:

Kang Seojoon (Son Woohyun)

Han Jiwoo (Kim Kangmin)

Our Relationship Ended Before It Began (2023) (wlw) | YouTube (only Ep 1 and 2 are available for free right now, but I still wanted to share this series (Link))

Yoonah (Park Hayoung)

Kim Ahyoung (Park Sanha)

Note: For this list, I decided not to add a symbol for shows that center queerness, because in a way all of these shows do that and at the same time almost none actually do. Queer characters and their love stories are featured in every show in this list, but most of them do not address any other queer aspects of their lives and only some address the fact that they are queer at all. This is not a critique of South Korean shows, but just an observation of their current media landscape and added as context, in case you are interested in watching.

[eddiediazismyhusband]

Hi Louis, are there any plot points/mentions on 9-1-1 that you wish were expanded further on the show (not just Buddie related)? For myself I'm still a little bitter they never mentioned all Buck did during the tsunami.

And when Buck and Eddie get married, what song do you think will be their first dance to? (I already made 3 playlists for them but Strangers by Maddie & Tae makes me go This is so them every time I listen to it. )

Thank you for making scrolling through the Buddie tag so much fun, Carly

ooohhhh im so gald you brought this up bc ive been dying to talk about it—

but in all seriousness i love this question!!

1. plot points i wish were expanded on more

i have a few but im only going to narrow it down to this one because it is something that has always kind if rubbed me the wrong way… but i really wish they could have spent more time exploring Hen’s relationship with her mom. I might be in the minority here, but to me the whole arc of Toni coming back into Hen’s life felt very quick and almost…. too simple? (not that it was simple at ALL but) As a queer person who has had a rocky relationship with my parents, it is always something i love to see portrayed in media more rather than just automatically jumping to the “supportive ally” trope as a way to make a story more feel-good if that makes sense. And i saw the bones for that in the storyline with Hen and Toni, but because of the state of the show at FOX that season i understand why they didn’t make it a bigger deal….. however i really wish they had!

(also i agree them never mentioning what buck did in the tsunami has always rubbed me the wrong way— i definitely feel like they all should have already gotten medals at this point for other rescues in the past so the fact that they only just now are getting them has annoyed me, but im just glad the firefam is getting recognition for something)

2. Buddie Wedding Song

I am kissing you on the forehead for this question bc i love love love love LOVE talking about stuff like this….

This isn’t for their first dance, but i have always loved the idea of Karen singing “At Last” during the ceremony (a la bones, which wasn’t what inspired it in my head but upon further inspection is actually really similar to what i would want their wedding to look like) bc i think the fact that we haven’t heard tracie thoms’ voice on the show yet is a CRIME.

As as far as a first dance song, i love the idea of them dancing to something softer— a couple that come to mind are Love Like This (Ben Rector) and Love Me Tender (Norah Jones). If they wanna cash in on the Adele hype now, i DEFINITELY wouldn’t be opposed to Make You Feel My Love (maybe even sung by Maddie so that we get JLH’s vocals again??). i also could see You Are The Reason (Calum Scott). If they wanted to go the taylor swift route, i could see You Are In Love, Enchanted, or even Daylight (which daylight would admittedly have me sobbing like a baby).

Also strangers by maddie & tae is SOOOOOO BUDDIE…. this wouldn’t be their first dance song, but Friends Don’t is such a quintessential Buddie song to me 👌👌👌

thank you for the ask, and your sweet note at the end! I really loved getting to answer this ask 💕💕

[thv-jk97]

Sharing my thoughts about the negative take from that H*BE stylist about LWA because I need to put them somewhere, so forgive me for this post. For context, the stylist said that the MV is using disabilities and those who face discrimination as inspirational material and that they’re “romanticizing disabilities”, and while I can genuinely understand what they were trying to advocate for, their take also completely ignores massive elements of the MV as a whole, whilst also making grand assumptions about the artists (Tae and IU) that they cannot possibly know.

Listen, everyone has the right to interpret any piece of content how they see it and they’re also entitled to feel how they feel and share their opinions, but it becomes problematic when they start making baseless assumptions along with the point they’re trying to make. Claiming that IU and Tae are rich cishets with no disabilities(implying that they are privileged and not discriminated against) is such a WILD assumption to make (let’s not forget that IU does actually have a hearing impairment).

I do think that there should be conversations about who should be able to tell what stories or portray what character, especially in huge projects in mainstream media, but there has to be room for flexibility. Are we going to require people to reveal everything single thing about themselves in order to prove that they can represent a specific demographic fairly? That’s a completely unreasonable expectation, and in some circumstances, it could literally be unsafe. And their assumptions do not contribute to a constructive dialogue about this topic at all.

Not only that, but their critique sort of implies that the MV equates having disabilities to being a victim, but that isn’t what I personally got from the MV. Their characters literally fight until the very end, in their blind and deaf/mute states, and are never actually shown as weak. And it’s just another assumption that the “love filter” takes away their disabilities, when in reality, IU still uses sign language even when Tae is looking at her through the camcorder – what is shown is a world where they don’t have their injuries anymore (injuries that were sustained in this dystopian world) and their lives are more than just fear and running. The concept of “love wins all” is that they made it to the very end of the world together and are ultimately taken out by the shittiness of this world that they’re living in – not by their disabilities.

The stylist also goes on to imply that the ambiguity of the MV is an issue because they end up wearing traditional hetero outfits (since when is sexuality linked to pieces of clothing?), and if it were meant to mean something to the queer community, they wouldn’t have included that. Which makes no sense because that’s the beauty of art – it’s meant to be interpreted however the viewer sees it, and so many people in the queer community did actually take comfort in the symbolism they interpreted from the MV.

To be honest, I can’t help but question the motive of their rant, because from where I’m standing, this person works for a billion dollar company that literally capitalizes on using the queer community for good sales (fanservice, etc)(mind you, this is only one of H*BE’s many offenses) so their issues with this metaphorical MV seem to be a bit selective (aka taking issue with things that don’t affect their livelihood). Also gonna add that they literally have posts supporting Zionists (who raised money specifically for the IDF), so it really seems like selective activism atp.

Tae and IU have both consistently shown that they are massive advocates of inclusivity and equality, so to be accused of exploiting minorities and their struggles is actually so upsetting. People can label it whatever they want, but IU’s decision to change the title of the song was not about “saving face”, it was showing empathy for a minority when she learned that they were bothered by the original title. And for this person to insinuate that Tae and IU are tone deaf and clueless to the strife of those who have been discriminated against is just plain disrespectful and such a projection based on their own personal interpretation and assumptions.

Anyway, sorry for this long-winded post. There’s never a day of peace and I am siiiiick of it.

[kdramaxoxo]

Sorry if you've been asked this a million times, but who are your favorite couples from the last couple years?

Congratulations Anon! This ask is AMAZING and I've never been asked it before! Shocking right?? :P

My favorite K-Drama Couples 2023- Spring 2024

NOTE: I tried to include 2022 but my list got too long :)

Moving (Bong-Seok & Hee-Soo, Joo-Won & Hye-Won & Doo-Shik & Mi-Hyun): It's very obvious by this list how much I love this drama and how many blorbo-from-my-shows it created for me. And I know I'm only reviewing couples, but I was blown away by this drama. I don't even LIKE superhero shows, but I made an exception for this one and I'm so glad I did. If you like character development and plays on good vs. evil, I highly rec this! Bong-Seok and Hee-Soo are one of my favorite couples EVER and I loved the softness and epic romance of Joo-Won & Hye-Won. (And we all know that scene at the rainy window with Bong-Seok and Hee-Soo). These couples are really EVERYTHING.

Tale of the Nine Tailed: 1938 (Lee-rang & Yeo-Hee): This is the only time I've ever watched a season two and liked it better than season one. It's probably because it featured my favorite tragic half fox Lee Rang and gave him a love line with a mermaid. The two are SO sweet together---SOB!

Tell me That You Love Me (Mo-Eun & Jin-Woo): Wow. Maybe one of the softest couples I've ever seen in existence. Just watching them together was like a warm blanket in front of a cozy fireplace. I didn't like the ending choice which is a shame, but the drama was super well done and I still think people should watch it. There is also a very cute high school couple too!

The Eighth Sense (Jae-Won & Ji Hyun): not to be dramatic (just kidding!) this is the best bl kdrama I've ever seen. Literally this is it! I don't even want to tell you about the couple because I want you to just watch it! I'm dying for the writer to make another one because we need more queer media like this one!

Crash Course In Romance (Haeng-Seon & Chi-Yeol): Give me a noona romance featuring a man who has not felt warmth in 1000 years (ok not literally but this dude needs to have a warm meal made by an amazing lady!) This drama fell apart at the end (this seems to be a theme this year) but the couple makes it worth watching.

King The Land (Gu-Won & Sa-Rang): If you're looking for a low stakes, totally fluffy, rom com with TONS of chemistry (featuring MY BIAS!), King the Land is for you. Amazing skinship, kisses and just like a really fun duo to watch. Plot? Not so much but there are a billion good moments-- just look at the tags: They are full of cuteness.

Love After Divorce Season 4 (Benita & Jerome): Listen, I know I'm cheating by putting a reality tv show on this list but if you're in the mood for one, I highly recommend this season (it's on Netflix). Benita and Jerome will steal your heart and they are still together! I'm rooting for them. <3

See you in my 19th Life (Ji-Eum & Seo-Ha, Da-Hoon & Cho-Won): My bias Shin Hye Sun kills it in this drama featuring past life romance. Honestly it's not fair because this drama is totally my vibe so I'm obviously going to love the mains. But when a drama gives you more than one love line and they are both interesting and lovely?? Chef's Kiss!

Dr. Slump (Jeong-Woo & Ha-Neul): This drama TOTALLY fell apart at the end and left us all very disappointed, but that's not because our leads weren't a perfect couple! They bonded over mental illness and even took their meds together. Communication: check. Comfort/Healing: check. Chemistry: check!

The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (Yun-Woo & Tae-Ha). You probably don't know this but I've been following Bae In Hyuk's career since we was in silly little web dramas. Seeing him as a lead is really wild! To be fair, he's not nearly the actor that Lee Se Young is, but do we care about that when there's a time slip romance drama featuring a historical lady who's been thrown into the future and has to fake marry someone who looks just like her de*d husband for reasons??

Thank you so much for this ask - it was super fun!! Maybe I should do 2022 next?? :D

[peachjagiya]

Taehyung was associated with an LGBT image early in his career. In 2016 or 2017, he was photographed in a t-shirt featuring Keith Haring, a gay artist, during a period when BTS members were styled according to specific concepts. The song "Stigma," co-written by Taehyung and Bang Si-hyuk (the first author), was released in 2016 and is speculated to have LGBT undertones. In 2017, Taehyung wore a blue LGBT pride shirt during a performance. It's likely that their stylists chose their attire for them back then. He sang "Singularity," a song written by Namjoon inspired by Yukio Mishima's "Confessions of a Mask," which deals with hidden sexuality. In 2022, HYBE released "7FATES: CHAKHO," featuring Jooan, a character described by Taehyung as someone who loves beyond his species and whose love is forbidden and not easy. These instances suggest that the image of an LGBT person was assigned to him by his company. What are your thoughts on this?

Just to be clear, we're speculating that any queer coding we attribute to Tae is company mandate?

Why would they do that? To what end? In a country where homophobia is still a problem?

Here's Tae wearing a Keith Haring tee:

And a post showing what they're all wearing in this moment. Looks like their comfy clothes/pyjamas to me. I don't think they are styled that intensely that they can't pick their own loungewear.

Here's Tae at Disneyland Paris in July 2023 wearing the Disneyland Pride hoodie. Someone has bought two for his security too. Hybe?

Tees and hoodies don't prove queerness. But I find it easier to believe that Tae is either queer or a staunch ally than to believe the company dresses him in queerness like a jacket that he can shrug off at the end of the photoshoot.

Is the company instructing him to keep mentioning CMBYN? To seek out foreign language queer cinema? To reference Maurice in his photofolio? To champion queer photography?

Ask yourself why it's easier for you to believe he's been forced to portray queerness than to accept he might just be queer?

Ask yourself why it's easier for you to believe that than him just being an ally even?

This is so close to jkkrs rhetoric that he is super straight because they're casually homophobic enough to think gay means he's definitely into all the guys around him and therefore feel threatened by any suggestion of Tae not being hetero.

I'm side-eyeing it.

Please if I've misread your meaning here, feel free to come back, anon. But long story short: no I don't think Hybe did this.

[sageistri]

Can you please help me with understanding some points?

Today I saw a viminer that was clearly a Jimin anti and I’m so pissed that people claim to stan him just for a clout or because they believe in certain narrative that they have made up by themselves.

Their behaviour is truly hypocritical - she said Jimin has always been careful about lgbt community and v has been always loud about it - “Taehyung gifted Jimin “woman” clothes, so he started accepting himself”. But she never mentions that Jimin called out V for saying that man shouldn’t check selfies, called out members saying that he didnt get why they are so upset about wearing dresses.

But when in one ask someone said that V was being controversial about lgbt - “he called out Jimin for liking man, laughing at his attitude to Jungkook” that girl defended him🤡 like V has always been supportive more than Jimin

Tell me am I right or wrong? Do we have a masterpost about Jimin supporting lgbt or should we make one?

Ok I get this, and it's not like we can ever expect these people to paint him in a good light. The funny thing about how stans use idols or celebs in general talking about or engaging with queer media as proof that they're queer is funny because when you look at someone who's obsessed with queer media or at least wants us to think that they are, it's the straightest person ever. Enjoying a certain type of media doesn't mean you're part of that community, most times queer people engage with and consume straight media more, it doesn't make them less queer.

And I don't understand why we have to prove that Jimin supports LGBTQ.. is he getting an award for his support or does his support cause any significant change in the community?

Also if you ask the average kpop Stan who isn't an army that can't stand the idea of Tae with a woman so they try to convince themselves he's gay because he posted about a wong Kai war movie, to list 10 idols they think could be queer or idols who have helped to break gender stereotypes, Jimin will be the only BTS member on that list.

It reminds me of how armys diagnosed jk as autistic and call him "babygirl" when he would never be the first Idol anyone would think of when they hear the term "babygirl", also how years ago armys and Taehyung stans swore Tae was "unique" because he acted "weird". Everyone wants their fave to be "not like the others", stans and their neverending quest to prove that idols are queer or autistic because they think it makes them unique or because they want to see themselves so bad in the idol even if that idol is anything but.

I think we are past the era when we think someone is gay because they post about gay media. Most BL fans are literally straight women. I'm attracted to women and I consume more straight and mlm media than wlw, it doesn't change my sexuality.

A lot of people think Jimin is queer for reasons that are deeper than these.

Until a few years ago when certain BTS members discovered what the fans wanted to see and what was accepted by their international fanbase, they would literally say the most insensitive things to Jimin about his masculinity, Tae included. That man discovered that fans eat these things up and he's not looked back ever since.

Like I'm not accusing anyone of anything but I just don't think Tae is as close as he is with those wooga squad men and then he's actually queer, or that he could even push anyone to self acceptance. That's like the ultimate "bro club", they are misogynistic and I've heard homophobic too (although I don't know how true that is, I think people just say they are because they give that vibe and I get it). If he's actually queer and oh so forward thinking then being friends with people like that isn't a sign of self acceptance at all in my opinion or maybe wooga squad members are good people in private lol.

I don't think anyone should be making a post to prove that Jimin supports the queer community because he's the last idol that needs that defense.

Jimin has been subjected to homophobi* and transphobi* for years because he's always been himself but of course Tae is more progressive simply because he watched a gay Netflix movie and posted about it on Instagram 😭

[dearweirdme]

Taehyung was associated with an LGBT image early in his career. In 2016 or 2017, he was photographed in a t-shirt featuring Keith Haring, a gay artist, during a period when BTS members were styled according to specific concepts. The song "Stigma," co-written by Taehyung and Bang Si-hyuk (the first author), was released in 2016 and is speculated to have LGBT undertones. In 2017, Taehyung wore a blue LGBT pride shirt during a performance. It's likely that their stylists chose their attire for them back then. He sang "Singularity," a song written by Namjoon inspired by Yukio Mishima's "Confessions of a Mask," which deals with hidden sexuality. In 2022, HYBE released "7FATES: CHAKHO," featuring Jooan, a character described by Taehyung as someone who loves beyond his species and whose love is forbidden and not easy. These instances suggest that the image of an LGBT person was assigned to him by his company. What are your thoughts on this?

Hi anon!

I think this is a limited take, because you only use a few examples of possible company involvement, while ignoring a lot of situations in which the company was not involved.

I don’t think the company tried to make Tae their token queer guy. I think Tae is queer and that’s why we see these things from him.. all throughout the years, and in different settings. Tae is consistent in sharing queer media and in wearing queer coded clothing. When someone shows you their colors.. always start with believing them 🏳️‍🌈.

The company imo doesn’t want fandom to believe that their artists are queer (at least not now… who knows about later on.. when they feel it might profit them). I do think they see the benefit of being queerfriendly. And.. I really believe BTS members are queer allies and/or queer themselves.. so for queerness to come up every now and then (especially now they are established artists) isn’t a calculated move in order to gain attention or money imo.

[taekooktimeline]

April 24, 2023

April 24, 2023 - Tae and Jk attend a personal event for the movie premier of “Dream,” featuring one of Tae’s good friends, Wooga member Park Seo-Joon (also featuring IU). It’s Jk’s first movie premier event and he had this moment with Tae. And it’s also good to note they went as individuals Taehyung and Jungkook, not as BTS members, nor did they attend in any type of work context.

There is SO much to unpack so I’ll start off with my opinion, especially because I’m so emotional and overwhelmed (in the best ways) by what this means. This was 1000% a statement. Nothing is a coincidence with Taekook. In my opinion, this event explicitly states the obviousness of their relationship, without implicitly saying it in words. Some of the below was mentioned on my IG / Tumblr already but I can’t stress how pivotal this event was, so I won’t apologize for being repetitive.

Let’s start with their clothes, covered in more extensive detail below. Their attire alone is a statement, very queer coded - Tae’s jacket brand, his shirt, Jk’s quotes on his jacket. They didn’t wear their brand ambassador clothing, when this would’ve been a good opportunity to do that. They knew this event would be significant and they planned their outfits with meticulous thought to help convey their message of intent. Them choosing to wear queer coded clothes at their first non-work related premier together is not a coincidence in any way. It’s quite a statement and noteworthy in itself.

And it wasn’t just their clothing choices that were meaningful. Their body language and expressions were significant too. 

They’re familiar with red carpets and big events in their line of work (Jungkook recently performed solo for the World Cup 2022), and yes, Jk is more of an introvert, but he still was extra shy during this premier. And that’s because this was a statement. Both knew this moment was special, and IMO, Jk’s shyness was a result of this knowledge.

They didn’t walk with any other Wooga member, nor did any other BTS member attend. They walked together, just the two of them, knowing what this would signify about them and their relationship. They knew it would be impactful, the next step to normalizing their relationship to the public. This was about them. This was them showing us who they are to each other, how special their bond is. Not only that, this event shows how safe and secure they feel in their relationship, to want to take such a monumental, public step like this.

I’ll go over it in more detail below, but I also find it to be so sweet and telling that these two make sure to be each other’s pillar of strength when the other needs it. Tae made sure to be Jk’s safe space, as he always has been and always will be. When Jk hesitated to walk to the photo wall, he took his wrist. The way Jk looked at Tae when he turned back to take his wrist? He lit up when Tae turned and that speaks VOLUMES, and it shows his trust to Tae. Then they stepped out to the photo wall TOGETHER, as a duo, not individually. 

They prioritize and choose each other and they always will. No matter what any “fan” says on SM. No matter what nonsense lies or fantasy some random person on the Internet spouts. Their relationship will continue as it is, and they’ll keep getting louder, because this is reality. And they’ve shown as much at this event. 

It’s massive and beautiful and significant what took place. For me, as of now this was their biggest moment - bigger than Harry Styles, Atomix, Paradise Hotel, etc. And I couldn’t be prouder. They’re so brave. It honestly leaves me in awe seeing such an incredible display of courage, knowing the media and all these eyes - in person and online - were watching. They’ll change the world. I feel so strongly about that. And I will always support them.

Getting into the premier itself! This is Jk’s first movie premier, and Tae’s fifth. The other four movie events Tae attended are as follows:

11/26/2016 “Derailed” (Minho)

08/07/2017 “Midnight Runners” (Park Seojoon)

07/30/2019 “The Divine Fury” (Park Seojoon and Choi Wooshik)

06 /02/2022 “Broker” (Kang Dong Won)

https://twitter.com/doc_taetae/status/1650889516771852290?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Again, because this is important to remember - this is Taekook’s first movie premier event together, on their own, in an unofficial, not work related setting. And this is the first time Tae has brought a +1 to a friend’s movie premier!

Jk kept smiling as they walked closer to the photo wall -

https://twitter.com/oknaisyode/status/1650498974338654208?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

His smile -> he’s practically glowing as he acknowledges this fan 🥹

https://twitter.com/imgoldencard/status/1651758747642130432?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Walking closer to the photo wall - 

Tae looking so happy in these stills as he sees fans - (😭)

https://twitter.com/taeguide/status/1650473934872092672?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/dailyforjk/status/1650470591009370112?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

The sequence of these two photos 🥰

As they make their way closer to the crowd, Jk smiles - 

He then glances at Tae with a softer smile (his expression 😭) -

His smile widens again as he looks away -

https://twitter.com/evexece_kthjjk/status/1650575338580107267?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

I saw some have interpreted the next moment as the guards stopping Jk from walking to the wall with Tae. That’s not how I interpret this moment as the reason for Jk stopping. We see the guards stopping them both, but it looks like only Jk heard, and Tae initially didn’t hear.

View angle here - https://twitter.com/wintertaeta/status/1651226619556638721?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

One guard places a hand on Jk’s back for a moment -

And you can see another guard stopping them both from walking, before motioning for them to step forward -

The other guard briefly places his hand briefly on Jk’s back a second time (encouragement to head out to the photo wall) -

https://twitter.com/wintertaeta/status/1651226619556638721?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

The way I interpret this moment is - Jk was very adorably shy throughout this event. This was an important moment for them and they both knew that. Jk stops walking (because the guards instructed them both to). However, when Tae turned around, the indescribable emotions in Jk’s eyes as he looks at Tae is absolutely everything. I can’t stress enough how important, how special, how monumental this night was. “Their moment of truth.” And after this sweet exchanged look, the MC yells out, “BTS!” and they step out in front of fans, reporters - a crowd - together.

https://twitter.com/mariposa732/status/1650538846335954944?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Tae was very much encouraging, Jk’s safe space, his source of strength. He turned and gave assurances, giving him a small nod -

before confidently holding Jk’s wrist for a moment, unbothered by the people and cameras surrounding them. And, in turn, Jk trusted him and that speaks volumes too.

Front view of Tae holding Jk’s wrist -

Note Jk’s sweet, soft smile and gaze after Tae held his wrist -

When Tae turns to walk to the wall and the waiting crowd, his face looks very determined. For me, his energy throughout the event radiated that he was very mindful and protective of Jk. “I’ll take care of everything.”

Jk has a small smile on his face before they walk out together. It’s hard to see in a still so it’s encouraged to view the clip below. As OP mentions in the tweet, it seems as if he’s simultaneously anxious but excited (we can only speculate based on demeanor). This is a personal opinion, which you’re welcome to disagree with, but honestly this moment read to me like, “We’re really doing this,” accompanied by all the excited nervousness and butterflies of such an important moment. And then, they stepped out as a duo.

https://twitter.com/evexece_kthjjk/status/1650861346777600000?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg I’m going to leave a lot of links since this moment in itself was incredibly special - https://twitter.com/kookvtwins/status/1650468584693301248?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/_onlytkv/status/1650468023952875523?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/_k91230v_/status/1650475125266059264?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/regalkv/status/1650519708079362053?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/prashan57668544/status/1650672175966482432?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/regalkv/status/1650534829430280193?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/kazunessa/status/1650655293519585281?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/peachesminty/status/1651359920036671488?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

I found this so sweet. Tae turns back to check on Jk as they walk to the green wall - 

https://twitter.com/taekoomania/status/1663830729430814720?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs5o1yHtPCg/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Another adorable angle of shy Jungkookie🥰 - 

On the red carpet, Tae looks at Jk out of his peripheral vision -

Tae then nudges a bashful Jk -

who looks back at him shyly, asks “What?” and smiles. His expression to Tae is so endearing!

https://twitter.com/thetkglobal/status/1650467506740682753?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

While Tae gazes fondly, Jk closes his eyes and smiles widely.

Jk proceeds to cover his face in shyness.

Tae’s endeared smile towards Jk’s reaction -

Tae does an adorable copy / paste. 

https://twitter.com/dailyforjk/status/1650466844484968448?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

They proceed to pose for photos. 

https://twitter.com/briller__613/status/1650462451627065345?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

And they acknowledge people in the crowd - 

More posing and waves - 

Long clips (adding many in case one ever goes private or deactivates) - https://twitter.com/v_of_me/status/1650470523317657600?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/vantaemaybe/status/1650461397636222977?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/myu_kookv/status/1650461248604045313?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/prashan57668544/status/1650688583630753792?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg Threads - https://twitter.com/diortetae/status/1650471960017788930?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/yoongellic/status/1650469143223885824?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Another way Tae encouraged Jk was by passing him the mic and letting him speak first, when the MC asked him directly, “V-ssi, any word of support for actor Park Seo-Joon?” Taekook exchange a glance after her question. Their reaction when they make eye contact is so sweet, full of shyness and adoration.

Both smile when they turn away from the other -

https://twitter.com/dailyforjk/status/1650495457506779137?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/bxt321/status/1650527557966790658?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Tae then hands the mic to Jk to answer the question first. What’s interesting here is when Jk cheers on Seo-Joon, he doesn’t call him Seo-Joon-nim or Seo-Joon-ssi. And he doesn’t just call him Seo-Joon either. He gives him a nickname, adding an -ie to the end of his name and saying, “Seo-Joon-ie hyung, fighting.” Honorifics are important in Korea (and other Asian cultures, like Japan) so for Jk to use a casual nickname at a premier event indicates closeness. We’ve seen many instances of Jk spending time with Tae and his Wooga friends (Wooshik only following the two of them on IG (when Jk had IG) Hobi’s party, bowling, skiing and the musical, for example). This is another instance that shows his close friendship with Wooga. 

Small recap of Jk with Wooga on TW- https://twitter.com/kakostel/status/1633220597969743874?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/kakostel/status/1633220703917883393?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Tae’s fond expression towards Jk, covered in a few different angles -

https://twitter.com/sorte613/status/1650538970256932864?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/sorte613/status/1650468439541284864?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg YT recap - https://youtu.be/EU0EAaX3dmA

Taekook head back to the lounge area together.

You can see Tae glance back towards Jk in this last photo-

https://twitter.com/tcnckclnsmaek/status/1650513103832924160?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Taekook exit the theater with Wooga -

https://twitter.com/chatshirelore/status/1650528431887773696?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Stills of them exiting the theater -

Jk nods his head, smiles at OP and even briefly glances back -

https://twitter.com/taekoomania/status/1650553519508955136?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Preserving these photos because they’re so beautiful -

https://twitter.com/sorte613/status/1650480135211208706?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

As they head to meet actor Kim Soohyun, Jungkook visibly takes a breath. As others have pointed out, we haven’t really ever seen Jungkook exhibit this type of nervous energy - before concerts, work related events, or when he performed solo for the World Cup 2022. This is another indicator of how nervous (but excited, happy and brave) these two were

https://twitter.com/vcutath/status/1657087078230896642?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/mytaekooook/status/1657262532162142209?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg Close up- https://twitter.com/peachesminty/status/1657270571649081344?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/taekoomania/status/1657289089408974848?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Close up- 

Taekook also met Director Lee Byeongheon at the Dream VIP after party! (Remember, Tae mentioned he got drunk, as he briefly recounted in his live the next day- https://www.tumblr.com/emporium/716493153047363584/pg-hellsite-hecksite-patch-500 ) 

https://twitter.com/mybwits/status/1657250390004625408?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Taekook made a lot of statements at this premier, and I especially want to draw detailed attention to their clothing, as this wasn’t a coincidence. They’re both brand ambassadors - Tae for Celine, and Jk for Calvin Klein, but they, instead, chose LGBTQIA+ coded outfits to wear to a movie premier they attended together, knowing what the connotations of this would mean. 

Jungkook’s jacket (designer Enfants Riches Deprimes) is incredibly queer coded.

The front right pocket is covered in Biblical scripture. “For all sinned, and come short of the glory of God ~All we like sheep have gone astray ~Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

Detailed thread written by a good friend - https://twitter.com/heaven_borahae/status/1650493166938886144?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

According to another good friend, Jungkook’s Biblical scripture is about two men, Paul and Silas, that were jailed for their practices and for “causing a public nuisance” - one of the men being someone that many believe was gay.

More info here - https://twitter.com/koosyoyo/status/1650503243670208514?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/koosyoyo/status/1650500286052544513?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Jk’s left sleeve is an excerpt from “Anonymous Diary of a New York Youth, Vol. 3” which was written by columnist Taylor Mead, who wrote the first gay newspaper in NYC called “Gay Power.” He was also friends with Andy Warhol, a celebrated, famous gay artist, known for the Pop Art Movement. Andy was impressed by his writing and film roles by the time they met, and Andy would end up filming Taylor in “Tarzan and Jane Regained…Sort Of” “Imitation of Christ” and “Taylor Mead’s Ass”. 

https://twitter.com/_gcfofvante/status/1650529119363559425?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

Tae’s jacket is by Juntae Kim, a brand famous for creating gender fluid clothing.

https://twitter.com/taeguide/status/1650526602445332484?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/taeguide/status/1650476212039430144?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

His shirt is a “rare find” on Etsy - an Oscar Wilde and Morrisey print.

More info on Tae’s shirt:

Oscar Wilde paved the way for gay rights. He was intimately involved with Alfred Douglas, convicted of sodomy and was imprisoned for two years for this. After his release, he spent his final three years in exile. At the time of his “offense,” homosexuality was a criminal offense and serious societal taboo in Britain. Oscar went back and forth between hiding and attempting to gain public acceptance.

You can read more here - https://twitter.com/heaven_borahae/status/1650484860753186816?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg 

And here https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/oscar-wilde-is-sent-to-prison-for-indecency 

Morrisey, the other component to Tae’s shirt, is pansexual, and coined the term “humasexual” to describe himself.

More info here - https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2013/10/morrissey-confirms-attraction-humans-probably-not-attracted-you/309767/

The reason I went into such depth and detail with their clothing is because their choice of attire for this premier is not a coincidence in any way. As a moot (TaeJkForever) beautifully wrote, their outfits allude to the stigmatization of homosexuality. They’re both very smart, and they knew exactly what they were doing by choosing these queer coded outfits for their first movie premier together. There was intent in that choice. They came to make a statement about their relationship, and they absolutely did, in so many different ways. 

Getting into the media coverage: as expected, Dispatch covered the duo. On their IG, they posted their photos first, before IU and Seo-Joon, who’s premier this movie was for. 

This was their IG story -

Their YT reel featured the hand holding emoji -

https://youtube.com/shorts/4Ye5wVNp4CA?feature=share

Remember - Dispatch used the same 👬emoji for Taekook in March 2018 -

Recap - https://www.tumblr.com/taekooktimeline2018/625075008238125056

A reporter’s observation -

Another article -

And another - 

The entertainment agency for “Dream” used Taekook’s signature 💜💚 in their coverage - 

Elle Singapore called them Taekook -

World music awards called them Taekook also -

As an aside, I love that Jk said “my mom made me pretty.” It’s obvious he enjoys calling himself pretty and being called pretty by others. This reporter complimenting him as such is really sweet. (Also note the worldwide trends that showed up on the news - their national debut!) -

https://twitter.com/tcnckclnsmaek/status/1651103138257174528?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg https://twitter.com/ilykv_/status/1651100156102860801?s=46&t=StSwHjW0_Domk_lHUFMaCg

[transbian-hagumi]

why i think bandori isn't queerbait

i'm a bit curious about what bandori tumblr thinks abt this topic (feel free to reply etc but just don't attack anyone ofc!), i don't wanna get into really bad discourse so i will try to formulate this as subjectively as i can bare with me

i think a lot of the claims that the game/anime is queerbait kinda forget what the term means, because for a media to be queerbait it must be marketed as queer but never actually having any real payoff in media. bandori is always marketed as a cute anime girl band game/anime (afaik) n never as a yuri cute anime girl band game. the players/anime watchers saying the game/anime has queer undertones (or overtones at some points) doesn't equal marketing, they're just saying their interpretation/review.

in my opinion bandori is just queer. there's so many scenes which cannot be interpreted as anything but queer (eg. tae saying kasuari are flirting, "i-i never said love" which is about kasumi by arisa, the usage of aishiteru in "beautiful birthday" writted by PAREO to CHU², PAREO gaining her stage name being framed with lilies, the lyrics of "yakusoku" being written by lisa, "if you were a boy, i'd never let you go" said by himari to tomoe, pareo's character being a lesbian metaphor, moca and ran calling their meetups "dates", kaoru's entire character being based off of the neko/tachi lesbian trope, there's many more these just came up at the top of my head rn). just because there's no explicitly canon relationships outside of parechu doesn't mean the game is queerbaiting. as much as lots of people (including me) might wish there was more explicit representation, calling it queerbait (in my opinion) is inaccurate because the game/anime is extensively queercoded or has explicitly queer text like the examples above.

i have pretty strong opinions on this and i hope it made sense ....... let's hope i don't end up in discourse land with this. toodles!