Tag: Review

K-Variety Review: Bounce Indo (두근두근 인도)

K-Variety Review: Bounce Indo (두근두근 인도)

by eastasianlover ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

One sentence for this show: Hilarious yet as an Indian and k-pop fan, downright embarrassing. Four episodes have been released for this series where some fan is subbing it on youtube, but KBS has started airing it officially on their KBS World YouTube channel with one episode out as of now.

Also known as Fluttering India or Exciting India, Bounce Indo is a variety show where five K-pop idols come to India to “exchange” their culture with ours, to see the scope of bringing k-pop into India. These five celebrities include: Kyuhyun from Super Junior, Suho from EXO, Minho from SHinee, Jonghyun from C.N.Blue and Sunggyu from Infinite.

I was actually looking forward to this, despite knowing that the stars were landing in Mumbai and not Delhi (which is nearer to my home town) because I wanted to see my country from their perspective (I love different point of views) and I wanted to know how would THEY like this relatively unknown place to South Koreans. I was utterly disappointed in the show and the cast as there were many other Indian fans which is evident from all the criticism I have read in articles and comments.

If the Indian K-pop fans are to believe, the Mumbaians weren’t allowed to meet their revered idols. I still don’t get the mentality. First of all, you’re coming in India to promote your culture and then you don’t deem the people, who are already familiar with your culture, worthy of the attention they deserve. In my honest opinion, they could’ve just let the fans meet, take pics and autographs and talk to them, off the camera, may be? One cannot deny the already established fan base existing in India. And how uncontrollable can a crowd of 20 odd people be? Agreed, the fans are, most of the times, a little difficult to manage, but we are talking about just a few.

Moreover, as one of the comments on the official video mentions, there were less preparations on the part of the people coming here. If one is going to survey a place for potential market, any common person would know to better equip themselves with at least a little cultural knowledge before diving into unknown waters. They needed it more so, because this was kind of an official expedition. I might be basing this on just first episode, but one can’t be expecting more from a five day trip after watching the first day.

In the first episode itself, they admit that India is not what they used to study about back in their school time. Also, the fan girl Babu, said that there are like a thousand k-pop lovers in Mumbai itself. I am pretty sure there are, a lot more in whole of India (they probably don’t know or are just underestimating the might of Indian population 😉 ) especially in big cities like Delhi and north Eastern States.

I am not criticizing every thing. Even if it was scripted (which I don’t believe), their acting is, no doubt, funny. The convivial environment they create and the way they bear strangers, who don’t even know them, taking pics with them, hats off! (I do envy Babu, who got to show them the way and click pictures with them). I also appreciate the pain they took, coming to a totally unknown country and trying to indulge in their culture (I would personally love doing that).

The major complaint is the way they tried to portray their popularity in India giving a somewhat false representation (Honestly, it was not surprising that they didn’t find a single fan on the Gateway of India. But if they had allowed the fans on airport, there might have been chances of them getting to know places where they could find more k-pop lovers. They did seem a little disappointed because no one recognised them here.).

All in all, with most of the comments and articles I have read from Indian fans, I am pretty sure I can safely say that it came as a little repulsive to Indian fans including me. Some things are embarrassing on our part and some on theirs. Even so, I do recommend it to people for the sole purpose of pure entertainment. As a proud Indian, I cannot give a green light to ALL the things shown in the show, but most of them are correct (It might take long posts to correct such things, which is going to be an excruciatingly painful process, so I would rather stay away from that. But IF someone has got any questions from the videos, or wants to ask something about India or anything else just out of curiosity, I would definitely answer them. Just post them in comments).

Here is the link to watch the official episode 1 from KBS World:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Szdx3WOUF9w

Enjoy!

Webtoon Recommendation: Pinocchio(피노키오)

Webtoon Recommendation: Pinocchio(피노키오)

by eastasianlover ♥ 20 Comments

If you’re thinking that this is spin off webtoon of drama Pinocchio, or if Pinocchio drama was made out of this webtoon but you never came to know about it, rest assured (or rather, be a little disappointed), both are totally different.

This webtoon, one of my absolute favorites, is on the verge of its ending (Only some extra chapters left). Written by Maru-ssi (Why do I suddenly remember Kang Maru from The Innocent Man?), this particular piece is so full of emotions and drama, that shoujo lovers would definitely go gaga over it, once they read the story.

Pinocchio 1

The story is about high school student Choi Ha Ram who, one day, gets to buy a beautiful necklace from a suspicious place. After she wears it, she starts seeing a ghost named Yu Ga On, who doesn’t have memories of how he died or what happened to him but has a feeling that he did something bad to his family .

Ha Ram rejects him first because she seems to find herself in trouble whenever Ga On is near her, but develops sympathy for his situation and lets him live with her. She even starts helping him to create fresh set of memories taking photographs and teaching him to write even though he can’t hold or touch anything. But she keeps Yu Ga On secret from every one else including her childhood crush Han Bit who is handsome, kind, pursued by a lot of girls, her senior and has recently come back to be her neighbor. She has been madly in love with him.

Pinocchio 2

During the course of the webtoon, she confesses to Han Bit too only to be rejected more than one time. The story continues to reveal Yu Ga On’s mysterious past, the truth of the guy who sold HaRam the necklace and obliteration of his soul ultimately. (This, in no way, is a spoiler since the actual ending is quite different, and a happy one, from what might seem from this summary. Keep guessing or go read the webtoon!)

I soo want to give spoilers right now, but well, I’ll hold back. Anyway, the webtoon is full of feels and unexpected twists including Yu Ga On’s real story and who Ha Ram ends up with. The “twistful” nature of this webtoon full of cliffhangers (no cliffhangers for people who read it now but one would definitely appreciate the flow it has been made with) has been kept up till the last chapter. Most of the readers would find it difficult to digest what shows in a chapter at first until they read the whole thing (which happened with me in the very last of the webtoon also) and have tears roll down their cheeks and heave a sigh of relief on reality of events.

Pinocchio 3

Pinocchio 4

It also compels the reader to think about life and how our regrets might be hurting not only us but others as well. And that feelings need to be told and forgiveness needs to be asked, you may not get a second chance at that.

Art is great with great use of vibrant colors (Han Bit’s hair color >.<) and there are a lot of touches of comedy. (I love rom com webtoons and manga)

The whole translated webtoon is available here by EGScans. This webtoon has a prequel too, though I haven’t read it, called One Winter which has Yu Ga On’s story of what he was doing before meeting HaRam. Anyway, highly recommended webtoon.

Side Story 1: I always end up not writing a Happy New Year post (or any other occasion’s post, as a matter of fact) and this year too I am tad late but I wish that may this year bring everybody great health, prosperity and happiness.

Side Story 2: One of my blog’s reader has asked me very recently (few hours ago) to keep my rants with myself. I got that comment once before too, so I have decided, I would stop writing about my personal life. I won’t stop writing about my travel or study experiences though. And I won’t remove the earlier posts either.

With that, I will take my leave. *Wanders off to laze around in warm sun after so many chilly days*

Anime Recommendation: Detroit Metal City (デトロイト・メタル・シティ)

Anime Recommendation: Detroit Metal City (デトロイト・メタル・シティ)

by eastasianlover ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

The anime starts and I hear “F***”. And I was like “F***! Is this kind of anime I should be watching?” Nonetheless, I kept watching. And lo! More words were to come with greater impact.

An anime full of “f” kind of words and a lot of pervert things with Death Metal as its theme, it’s one of the most f***ed up anime, it’s Detroit Metal City (DMC). They call its genre as vulgar comedy.

DMC 1

Plot – It’s a story about Soichi Negishi, who wants to make career in soulful music after completing his studies in Tokyo. He ends up being the lead singer of a band called DMC. His stage name is Johannes Krauser II who has a lot of infamous tales associated with him including that he raped and killed his parents in his childhood, is totally opposite to real Negishi who is kind of mama’s boy.

As the story progresses, he finds himself torn apart between him and his Krauser personality, which comes out whenever he gets excited or angry (usually very critical moments of his love life). And more legends are created in each segment of the episode.

More interesting is his company’s president, who has a peculiar way of enjoying excitement (Can’t write here. You gotta watch it for that)

Analysis – As crazy it sounds, this one is beyond my head to analyse, so I’ll leave it to your imagination. But it does have a lot of things which hint that even if Krauser is more like a death messenger, the good side of Negishi helps him help people. And I must say, I wasn’t interested in Death Metal before watching the anime and I am not interested now. Too extreme are the lyrics.

Other things – Animation is okayish. Characters aren’t of today’s general style – big eyes, shining colors but I think it won’t go with the theme either. The beats of the songs rock. Lyrics are all f***ed up. The most peculiar thing about the anime is that its all 12 eps are of 14:12 length, no more, no less. Its starting and ending though are 2+ mins each, so the actual content reduces to around 10 mins. Each episode has two segments A and B.

A live action movie is also there. Again my favorite character is the president (Don’t judge me on that if you end up watching the anime!!!). Also, you don’t need to worry about the f words being translated from Japanese to English since most of the times, they’re spoken in English only.

It’s not that I am recommending it from my side. I wouldn’t have watched it if this friend of mine hadn’t recommended it to me. But it’s hella funny and worth a try (I generally don’t like the obscure comedy. I never got Chromartie High School and such but this, even I found funny!). If you’ve a problem with the content, don’t blame me afterwards.

I think this youtube playlist with some of the songs will help clarify some things and help you decide to watch it or not: 

Manga Review: Boku wa Kiss de Uso o Tsuku (僕はキスで嘘をつく)

Manga Review: Boku wa Kiss de Uso o Tsuku (僕はキスで嘘をつく)

by eastasianlover ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I don’t know what happens to me sometimes and I stumble upon such things which aren’t worth the time. This time I bring you a review which says DON’T read the manga if you don’t want to end up hitting your head on your wall as to why even the story was made. I mean who can write 7 chapter manga on just one kiss? Yeah, this managaka did.

Boku wa Kiss de Uso o Tsuku 1

Plot – So the story goes like this. There is this girl Kitazono Meiko, who has a complex about her slanted eyes and hence, secludes herself in the library reading books. One day she falls asleep and is kissed by a guy. When she wakes up to find him, she is met by four super-handsome boys – Shindo, who is the library monitor, is a senior, Mikoshiba is another senior who is one of those cold kind of guys. Then there is Mogami, who is in her class and is outright about his feelings for her. Last one is Hachiya, a junior of hers who is cute type. And then the seven chapters are all about finding the guy who kissed her.

What I didn’t like – First of all, how can four guys fall for the same girl at the same time? I’m so freaking jealous. I mean, one or two is right as happens in a lot of shoujo mangas but this is too much. Second, how can one fall for a guy who has stolen her first kiss while she was sleeping without knowing who, how and what he is. There comes a time in the manga when one needs to ask herself, what am I doing, where am I? The story is something that can’t happen even in dreams. Meiko is just after knowing the name of the guy and then she would fall for him out of the blue? BOOM! What crap!

I became so thankful to the Mikoshiba guy when he confronts her about the same. What a dumb girl. And in the end, she chooses the one, who kissed her. If we talk about the probability of choosing the right person, its 1/4. And it happens. What in the world….. (-_-* )

Some would say it’s at least different. Yeah. And so are other lots of works which present an acceptable universe to comprehend. This one is just out of the bounds. I’m sorry for the harsh words but I just can’t do anything about that.

Boku wa Kiss de Uso o Tsuku 2

Other things – Art is good. I’m following the same mangaka’s another manga – Reimei no Arcana which I’ll review after it finishes (which I don’t see anytime soon) and that story has some weight. But this one seriously fails on the plot. I thought, since it is short and not as short as a one shot, it may be an interesting read but now I so regret reading it. I know seven chapters are not many, they won’t take much time too. But it’s still stuck in my head. So if you ever find this one in recommendations by your favorite manga site, DON’T get into the trap of lesser number of chapters. It could’ve finished in just one chapter, may be two at most. Has hints of humour too here and there and that’s it. I can’t find any other plus points since I’m so pissed off with the story itself.

I’ll give rest to it here. I don’t want to degrade the mangaka coz I like her other story and faithfully following that one, but I would rather not read any manga than dealing with these kind of plots. Of course, that is upto my discretion. but if you are still curious and end up reading it, tell me how you find it in the comments below. I won’t post the link here since I don’t want you to curse me when you finish it. ¯\(°_°)/¯

Oh, and it’s not colorful opposed to what is being suggested by above two pics. They are just the cover pages.

The family reunites on GU FAMILY BOOK

The family reunites on GU FAMILY BOOK

by eastasianlover ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

No. I won’t let the cat out of the bag. I am on 20th episode and I won’t say anymore about what is going on right now in the story. That you have to find out yourself!

I missed this series sooo much when I didn’t have net. And I finished its 10 episodes in two days in a go. So interesting this series is! The plot is awesome and the actors are my favorite – Lee Seunggi and Bae Suzy.

GuFamilyBook

MBC’s historical drama, Gu family book, is about a half human and half beast whose dad was a Gumiho (a nine tailed fox) and mother human. The main character’s dad, Wol Ryung falls in love with a girl from a noble family, Seo Hwah while saving her from the men of her father’s murderer who wants to make the girl his. Wol Ryung marries Seo Hwah without telling her, his true identity and seeks help from his only human friend to become a full human. The priest suggests him a hundred day fast where he can’t show his true form to any other human and can’t eat flesh. Just days before the hundred days were going to finish, he has to show his true form to Seo Hwah while saving her once again from her chasers. The girl gets scared, dumps him and instead asks the general in the chasing team to kill him. The guy dies and the girl finds out that she is pregnant with her dead husband’s child. She gives birth to a sweet baby boy, who turns out to be human. She abandons the child to go back to her father’s murderer in order to take revenge. He kills her too and the baby in a basket goes to river. Irony of fate, he is found and raised by the friend of the same general and named Kang Chi. He receives much love from the family, becomes good luck charm for them and is unaware of his powers. The history repeats itself and Kang Chi’s master and his family fall victim to the same fate as Seo Hwah’s family, due to same person, twenty years later. The master and mistress die. His beloved, the master’s daughter, is sent to gisaeng house like Seo Hwah. And tragedy goes on. Kang Chi’s powers come out and he is sent to get training under the same general who murdered his father. He now has a beautiful daughter, also master in martial arts skills. Now Kang Chi has to get trained, defeat the conspirer, save the master’s daughter and his wealth, clear his master’s name and above all, control his Gumiho powers. How he manages to do all that, this is the story.

Pretty complex right? But this drama has swept whole of South Korea with ever increasing ratings and going above 20% many a times. This drama, as usually happens in K-drama, gets a little slow in the middle episodes but that’s excused. After 16th episode, the story gets more and more interesting and now,  I can’t wait for the next episode (which is due tomorrow according to my time zone >.<). Here is the link for the episodes:
http://www.dramacrazy.net/korean-drama/gu-family-book/

And here is one of the OSTs, by Baek Ji Young:

Intimate Note: Bringing K pop idols together since 2008

Intimate Note: Bringing K pop idols together since 2008

by eastasianlover ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I was watching the episode of intimate note starring Super Junior for like the twentieth time! It makes me laugh whenever I watch it.

Okay, so what is Intimate Note? It is a reality show which aims to bring people (basically idols but nevermind) together and (sometimes) finish the awkwardness between them. Now since I have been able to watch the episode with very famous idols only (Subbing problem. *Sigh* Oh Lord! Why don’t I understand Korean properly? >.<), I can tell you about them only. But trust me, they are worth spending your time. The happy ones will make you roll in the aisles and sad ones won’t leave you without making you cry. I have watched the episodes only for Super Junior, Fly to the Sky (took a lot of effort to find but I was successful, anything for my love!), SNSD and the one involving one of the former members of DBSK (there are more and I’m starting to go to them too regardless whether i know the groups or not, considering the entertainment the show provides). The staff members give the hosts and other members (if present), instructions to give the concerned pair various missions and the pair has to accomplish them.

intimatenote

절

As far as Super Junior one goes, Leeteuk with Heechul talks to the producers about awkward relationship between Kangin and Sungmin and asks them to help the group in bringing them together. Surprise follows as there is one more couple with uneasiness between them. The weird missions and their reactions turn everything into hilarious situation. What comes after is Miss Intimate contest for the four members and you will fall down your couch when you see their witty and funny performances. You will also watch Hangeng’s perfect (err…?) Korean and Kyuhyun’s humorous love for his hyungs. Gotta love it!

200905-12-183811-1

Next is SNSD. Yeah, that was alright. Not as good as SuJu but for those who love these girls, you’ll get to know their weird habits and more, as they take their anger out on each other with much love. Eight girls out of nine are able to do the show and tell you more about stories related to their day to day life on this episode.

The DBSK one was not related to all the members (I wish it was but bad luck). Xiah Junsu was invited to someone else’s episode in order to find friends for this lonely soul. It was so-so, too. But the fans like me get treat to their eyes watching him complete missions.

The episode in which Fly to the Sky duo was featured, was totally heartbreaking. It was Brian Joo’s and Hwanhee’s last vacation before they were to go solo and break the duo. The friends around them asked the producers for help. Both of them had a lot of misunderstandings and this was the reason why they decided to go on their own paths. They had grown so apart that they had o record their last album separately as they didn’t want to see each other. When they meet on the show and have to do various activities together, they get a chance to talk it out with each other. Towards the end, the tears are shed (I was one of them TT_TT) as they reminisce about their journey and resolve the differences. This episode will make you laugh and cry. And if you exactly know their story (which Brian told himself on Strong Heart), you’ll cry more.

I haven’t watched more but these four were more than enough for me (No, actually, first and last were). If you wanna watch more, try now:
http://imeimo.wordpress.com/variety-shows/intimate-note/

For Fly to the Sky one:
http://koreapopshows.blogspot.in/2011/11/intimate-note-english-sub-w-fly-to-sky.html

Enjoy!

K-Variety Recommendation: Stalker (스토커)

K-Variety Recommendation: Stalker (스토커)

by eastasianlover ♥ 1 Comment

No, no. I wasn’t being stalked or anything. I am talking about SS501’s mini-series “Stalker” which aired on Mnet from 19th January 2006 to 16th February 2006. This 5 episodes series shows how popular idols and groups are stalked by some people and how, sometimes, it becomes so dangerous that people get hurt, not only mentally but physically too.

Stalker

The series starts off with a girl being carried on back of a person with members running along and you instantaneously know that this is some serious shit. Then they start introducing events which make them reach the conclusion that they are being followed each and every minute. Their house is messed up, their clothes go missing just before their stage performance, they receive threatening mails and calls, their staff member is attacked etc. etc. They try to solve the mystery of this person. They take help of cyber police, install CCTV cameras in their dorm and watch old tapes of their filming to track down any suspicious element.  And they do catch some people in the process but whether they are the actual stalker or not, that you can find out after watching the series.

mnetss501stalker

It’s actually scary stuff. The series is based on events which have actually happened in their lives and some other idols too but it’s not like real real. And it has been shot around the time when they were actually being tormented by someone like that. The series is to prevent such happenings in their real lives and tell people that it’s burdensome to them. Obviously, it is a kind of torture to a normal person too. If such things happen to someone, they can’t focus on anything. And human intuition is such that you get to know one way or other if you are being watched. Either you get chills or feeling of being constantly watched or some other form (I have experienced first two only but if you have other responses, I would love to know).

Thus, this series actually has a deeper meaning. It lets your imagination run wild and come up with various reasons why someone would do such thing. Is it just a crazy fan or someone who holds a grudge against them or some attention seeker or just some other maniac whom they have unfortunately fallen victim to? And you are compelled to think about human psychology and how their minds work. How can someone be like that?

What do you think?

Here is the link where you can watch the series with English subs : http://ithetimes.wordpress.com/mnet-ss501-stalker-eng-sub/

Enjoy!