Here is your Open Thread, which is here for you to chat about anything you want, whether it be drama-related or not. Nothing’s off-topic here! Spoilers may be rife, so proceed accordingly.
A total of five Korean dramas have been invited for screenings at the 2025 Cannes Short Series festival. Established in 2018, Canneseries showcases outstanding TV series from around the world through four official sections -- Competition, Short Form Competition, Documentary Series Competition and Out of Competition -- as well as the Rendez-Vous section. Of the five dramas, only one has been released in Korea. The others appear to have no distributor or release date. It shows again how large the backlog of completed k-dramas is and how hard it has been for producers to get their inventory sold and shown.
Starring Lee Soo-hyuk, Lee Da-hee and Arin, “The S-Line” is the South Korean drama depicts a world where people who have had sexual relationships are connected by a visible red line, which can only be seen by those wearing special glasses. Based on the webtoon of the same name, the six-episode series will have its world premiere at the eighth edition of the annual festival in Cannes, which opened this week. "This Korean series with an extremely far-fetched concept plunges us into a supernatural atmosphere and confronts us with the consequences of losing intimacy and our secret gardens," according to Canneseries' website. This series is the only one in the competition category.
Four other Korean dramas premieres are, including MBC’s 2024 show "Doubt" and still-to-be released shows "Hunter With a Scalpel,” “Nursery Rhymes Ghost Stories/Children's Ghost Story,” and ‘Fairy’s Fasting” are the other dramas at the festival.
The S-line won best music award. I haven't been influenced by awards ceremonies for some years now, specially the western ones. Most of the times I look at the content that wins as a red flag to never watch it. Even in Korea right now, The Jeonju International Film Festival is taking place and it is airing a movie from a highly promoted woke director from Romania with the name of Radu Jude. I will see if S-line hides other agenda behind what it looks like a very interesting plot.
In other news, korean film industry is making gains in other areas besides streaming platforms: "The King of Kings’ becomes top-grossing Korean film in US, surpasses ‘Parasite’". https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/films/20250429/the-king-of-kings-becomes-top-grossing-korean-film-in-us-surpasses-parasite
Has anyone else been seeing Park Hyung-sik’s blonde hair on the socials? Anyone know if it is for a role or just for fun? I think Twelve must be finished filming (?), and blonde might be going in the wrong direction for a crow baddie unless it’s all very figurative. Any insights?
Found a few pics without any solid info. Seems like fanmeet/concert thing, but not sure how recent. Idk how I'm feeling about this color/cut either... BH sexy gangsta hair was much more to my liking for sure: https://x.com/nbslfff/status/1917466719658074230
I think Buried Hearts was the first show I found PHS really hot (am I allowed to say that? I don't want to objectify anyone, but he was/ is)
Of course, the only other one I've watched of his is Strong Woman, which really wasn't to my taste.
I like this new adult avatar.
Totally makes sense to me. He was only in his mid 20s when he did SWDBS, and while I found him adorable, it certainly wasn’t the same vibe that he has (and has cultivated) now. The first thing I saw him in was Our Blooming Youth, which was already post-military for him, so I didn’t have the same first impression.
That's exactly the vibe he's going for lately, so all is well)))
You missed his fantastic turn in HAPPINESS then - it was his first project after military and he still had his elite forces soldier physique in it, giving people who only saw him as a skinny idol flower boy before a huge eye-opener.
I’d seen him in his platinum blonde as far as even a month back— and his most recent Instagram post with said platinum blonde hair was on April 8th—but not sure now if he still is platinum blonde. At first, I also thought it was just for his fan meet, but he kept the looks even after, which made me think it’s for his role in Twelve, but again, not sure if he’s done filming that yet and if he’s changed up his look again and it’s almost been a month
I believe he somehow skipped blond era in his kpop days - lightest I remember him then was caramel brown - so let the guy have fun while at it. This color won't stay long anyway given the variety of roles he's currently vying for.
I have the same impression— he seemed relatively “tame” in his looks during his idol days, not that I mind 😍 I’m glad he’s experimenting and trying new things now, regardless if it’s for a role or not
His company at the time didn't spare him any attention whatsoever until he blew up with his variety and drama side gigs, so ofc his styling also stayed as bland as possible. Took the guy a few years to cut his bangs short enough to let the world see his wonderful eyes etc.
In one of pre-BH interviews he said he now wants to be seen as "sexy man" instead of "cute boy". Well, I think he's moving into right direction finally...
I know, and him being only 1 of the MANY vocals Z:EA had— and also being the more quiet, reserved ones (humble, but also maybe slight reservations, since he was picked on in his trainee days before moving to Star Empire Ent.) versus someone like Kwanghee, with the big personality— he wasn’t going to be made a focus and not going to be given many chances.
I’m glad he’s made such leaps and bounds in his career and seems to have eased into his own stride as the years went by 🥰🥰🥰
And after watching it, I could see the criticism haha. I mean I already know how I felt when I watched it but it wasn't like I felt this massive disappointment. Maybe cause I always thought they wouldn't be able to make a sequel as good as the original. Plenty of people like Taxi Driver 2 while I think S1 was way better. My fear was that WHC2 would go the path of DP2 and it sorta has? I think DP2 is still considered a worse sequel while WHC2 does have its fans and supporters.
For me personally, I didn't care about the ages. I cared about the performances and I thought Bae Nara did well with what he was given. There were some other characters who looked particularly older but my thought was more on how they didn't look like the webtoon characters haha.
As for as the dialogue, I honestly blame it on Netflix haha. Like I have no idea what's being said but I do know Netflix tends to sanitize the subtitles.
My biggest issue was the lack of development. With S1, our trio was built up over 3 or 4 episodes and they had common enemies that united them so how close they were felt earned which made how they were broken apart all the more devastating. Also Sieun was on Suho's radar even before they became friends so there was always something there. Even Yeongi getting so close to Suho and Sieun made sense cause of how strong her personality was and we were shown her interacting with them. With S2, there's no development anywhere. It's somewhat believable that Juntae could latch on to Sieun and Sieun would let him because because he sees some of Suho, Beomseok, and maybe some of himself in him. But why would the "top dogs" of the school befriend them? On the Baku/Baek Jin side, we're just dropped in the middle of Baek Jin having a fixation on Baku so none of their confrontations feel particularly tense or cathertic aside from what the actors bring. This isn't necessarily a bad thing because these characters existed before we were introduced to them and that's what the show was going for but it can make it harder to be emotionally invested.
I would've preferred it more if Sieun fought more or if the fights he did participate in were more violent because S2 is just basically having his legend precede him without him proving that "yeah, he really IS that guy if you push him".
I didn't personally have an issue with the union being like a crime syndicate because that's what it is in the webtoon.
And it's also not the first time I've seen shows where teens are involved in intricate crimes organizations and one of the reasons they do it is because they are minors who will either not be charged or will get light sentences/punishments. I figure it has some basis in reality.
However, even though WHC2 isn't as good as S1, I didn't think it was bad. Especially after reading the weecap on here. I...
...just thought the PD wanted to tell a story more about moving on from guilt and bad/toxic friendships. Si Eun may look older but he's also been through alot and that can age you. People will say he went through alot before when he was neglected by his parents but clearly the situations are different for him. Even though WHC2 may be lacking, I thought it was still a good story and had good performances.
And if people dislike it so much, they can always just rewatch S1 followed by the clip of Si Eun & Suho reuniting or read the webtoon. My go to when I like some parts of drama more than the whole is hoping someone makes a fanvid of it and that's what I watch instead.
Thanks for posting the critique! Since I had not read the webtoon, I was only disappointed in the second season in relation to the first season. But I did watch the whole thing! I want to support Park Ji-Hoon. I'm rooting for his growth and development, because he shows a lot of potential.
Sometimes I watch stuff and enjoy it because I can pick it apart. It's weird that I'm mostly doing this these days with Korean television, since I don't speak Korean and have never even been to Korea. I do find that reading the source material enhances my appreciation of the dramas.--either because the novel or webtoon was better or because the drama was. Sometimes the visual imagery enhances the story in unexpected ways, as in Extraordinary You (I only read a little of the web comic, the show impressed me more) or The Trunk, where the visuals were more exciting even though the story was focused on the ML instead of the FL. It's been a source of disappointment for me that I couldn't get I'll Come to You When the Weather Is Fine in English, because I had a lot of suspicions about which things were and weren't in the source.
I was disappointed I could never find an english translation of The Law Cafe. I saw somewhere that the webnovel is the male lead's perspective and the webtoon is in the female lead's but neither are available for me haha
When I watch a drama based on a webtoon I've read, I just like seeing how it's adapted. I like seeing what's kept or changed or alluded to.
Sometimes I don't remember the details of the webtoon so the drama feels new to me and I may like aspects more.
I haven't watched your two videos yet, and maybe I gravitate toward negativity, but everywhere I've gone on the internet, fans are disappointed in Class 2, so it definitely compares to D.P. 2 and Taxi Driver 2. The entire r/WeakHero subreddit criticizes it on the daily. I think what killed this season was the addition of Baku and Baek-jin's childhood connection. Baek-jin's character was reduced to an unexplained obsession with Baku, while Baku's storyline revolved around fending off his childhood friend, so our core friendship between Si-eun, Baku, Gotak, and Jun-tae had no time to be developed. I love Bae Na-ra, but he did not look like a high school student.
As disappointed as I am, I still love the actors, so I've been spending my time watching their interviews and press conferences and waiting for the Netflix K-Content YouTube channel (the name was so much better as The Swoon) to sub their BTS. For me, S1 was Choi Hyun-wook, while S2 was Lee Jun-young (and Choi Min-young).
Happy weekend Beanies and keep Beaning On!
The birthday hangout with my friends last Saturday started something that I will from now on refer to as “The Big Splurge”. During the following holidays vacations were finally booked, stores visited and packages ordered to replenish necessities, and small debts were repaid. The ‘Now or Never’ was enabled by both getting paid and having time.
Too late I realized that I am on week leave every month until September, most of it could have waited a couple weeks until my next holidays. Oh well, the burdens falling off my shoulders was well worth it!
I have some once in a lifetime events coming up, so I had to take leave off work and plan a whole vacation around the event in order to experience it. I had no choice in the matter! :D I hope you also can think of something to do and the rest will follow! ;)
Is Weak Hero 2 picture quality exceptionally high?
All the clips IG shows me are remarkably high resolution and clear compared to clips from other kdramas.
Singer/actor Lee Seung Gi said that he is cutting ties with his in laws as well as apologized for his "hasty" remarks where he supported them.
There are folks who say it's too little too late and that he's just doing this to save his career.
When I heard about it, I figured something must've happened to lead to this. Come to find out, apparently his father in law (or maybe both inlaws, I have no idea) committed another crime of some sort.
People say that he was warned about the type of people his in laws were and he still chose to marry into that family so he has to deal with all the fallout that comes with it.
I thought maybe he had a different insight into them and that's why he chose to see the best in them. Like obviously people on the outside looking in will villianize people before they have all the facts or context so maybe he was giving them the benefit of the doubt based on what he knew of them personally. Plus clearly he saw something in his wife that made him feel like this is the woman he wanted to start a life with and it does take a certain amount of courage to choose her when so many people were like "umm, maybe you should think again".
So the fact that it's come to this point makes me think he just had to experience it for himself. It's one of those cruel life lessons.
True love is hard to come by when you're a celebrity and I agree it took great courage to stand by his choice probably knowing full well how it may inflict his career. Because I do think he foresaw this.
I'm not surprised, and I'm not even asian. Asian netizens are as scary with their typing as americans are with their firearms.
I'm actually just happy finding out he has a wife and a daughter, he seems like such a nice person.
it's so messy when it comes to families. it must be heartbreaking for his wife to have to cut ties with her own mother, especially now that she has a child of her own. I just don't see how realistic this is to cut ties with your own mother unless their relationship was toxic already. It's hard on the heart.
Happy Friday and May, Beanies! For the time being every week is gonna be packed, so prepare to tolerate my looong essays^^ First big milestone goes to Yuning's performance of “The never-ending confession” on Beijing International Film Festival closing ceremony. Been a while since I saw him so deadly serious – poor thing was probably hella nervous, even nearly fell while walking off the scene. Which is a recurring theme with him, fandom even created #LYNsingssteadierthanhewalks hashtag to tease him this time lmao))) Ofc later in his livestream he blamed it on slippery (waxed?) floor. Might also be the fault of those fancy Louboutin shoes – just sayin'. Speaking of fashion, at first I thought he's once again went fusion with hanfu skirt pants to western suit jacket, but nope, this whole endless thing is one piece – latest collection frock coat by Julien Fournié (allegedly Yuning's very first haute couture look). Said fashion house was VERY pleased with result, writing an entire article on their home page and even keeping praising him on sns. Not that they're wrong – he wore it FAR better than runway model... Look for yourselves: https://www.julienfournie.com/en/liu-yuning-bejing-film-festival/
Performance itself was quite good too – very sentimental with tribute videos to many late veteran actors. Combined with Ning-ge's voice it made the audience mass sob. Official upload even subbed it, I'm impressed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zbtf5h3RAU
He also livestreamed, but did not sing due to catching cold – must be all that building climbing in the pouring rain and barely there pants. Poor thingx2, someone make him a hot soup! No singing rule led to him just chatting non-stop – gotta say, for a supposed patient he looked rather happy: about his recent variety shows (self-reviewing of TTV stages was so fun! not even as mean for lulz as he usually goes about it, man must've been in a truly good mood), how he just accepted “a mountain of OSTs” (direct quote), no plans to take a drama yet and, ofc, bickering with fans (if you were ever wondering, his heart is NOT for sale, even for 1M bucks... oh, and he claims it's not edible either ge, I don't think that commenter wanted it for a meal. hopefully). Turns out, we were this close to him opening an insta account... but certified Weibo King failed to get the logistics of said app (don't they have Mandarin option?) and gave up. Not before shifting the blame to “not having enough fans globally anyway” in a true male fashion tho. Are we a joke to you, Ning-ge?
Brand livestream (yogurt ad) from the next day – nice clean look, albeit still a little puffy from his cold. Didn't stop Dandong Dancing King (his studio words, not mine!) from attempting what I assume is some trendy choreo – man clearly dances to have fun and that's enough))) And singing too – host gave him keywords (“I/me” and “love”, iirc) he had to recall songs with. Lots of pretty acapella as result: https://x.com/Bigsislilred/status/1917725346092442063
Back to THE TREASURED VOICE, LYN-YXT version of “Seat” has been absolutely dominating mainland music charts across all platforms since Ep2 aired (latest report cited 35M certified listens and still climbing up), particularly doing rounds on song's OG “home” Douyin. Pretty neat consolation prize for not winning an entire episode again, if you ask me. Yuning's solo focus fancam to celebrate the fact: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5xmWGeP69k
We're done with sad breakup ballads for the time being – today's stage is of hot variety! Rocker!Ning and Sitar Tan performing Zhang Zhenyue's “Savage”, looking fire and sounding... Well, this may get controversial, but I expected a little more from these two collaborating. Thing is, both are strong vocalists, and I genuinely like Sitar's jazzy voice, but girl was overdoing it with her powerful high notes, milking the natural advantage of having higher pitch than her partner dry. It made Yuning sound like her back vocalist at times, and if while listening to duo performance you have to strain your ears to properly hear one of the 2, something clearly went wrong. Not sure what tho – perhaps she's not used to perform with guys? Or it was a bad directorial choice/tech problems with his mic/sound editing? Verses went fine, esp intro (hands down best part, sexy whisper edition), but choruses and bridge threw balance off. Made me think back to last year's duo with Shila Amzah, who's even stronger vocal powerhouse, but did not have such problem... Alas, still a stage worthy of attention: fun arrangement (I'm a huge sucker for synthwave), and visuals and energy delivered (disco lightning's back lol): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axWI78O2vIk
In case you found the song familiar – he covered it for Carnation 4.0! Time to refresh that memory and listen to his unmuted solo take. I can tell he's added more to it since: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpZvmooUxFA
To compare further, rehearsal short that sounds the best out of three. Sure, Yuning does always say he's generally doing better at rehearsals than actual stages because bigger audience makes him nervous, but I have a hard time believing that. Should've kept that smacking the mic stand away part, gege is so cool when riot! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZu64tWr56o
Short MV for last week's “Seat”, acted and directed by Ning-ge himself – did you think I was joking about show milking his newfound acting fame to the very last drop? Nah! They're not wrong tho – pretty gege angst prettily too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7chjW9Ksj0
Long vlog about preparation of that stage – there was clearly a problem with his shoes, bad fit, perhaps? I noticed he never wears anything but thick high socks, even during hottest summer days... Someone's got a soft sensitive skin, huh? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZp8RuSrJxQ
Subbed vlog from THE TRUTH S3 first case – his character is electrician on candy factory, hence the pinku-pinku look. To be fair, from tidbits I saw, man is quite handy with screwdriver (so sexy of him). https://x.com/LYNofficialfc/status/1917870649814741015
True fact - LYN's singing is as steady as they come. Seems like his walking and dancing is apparently as unstructured, asymmetrical and fluid as his high end designer duds. 😂 The fashun is really something nowadays.
Indeed. This is the man who magically managed to keep singing even with throat polyps so bad he couldn't TALK at the time, you just don't get steadier vocally than that!
He's got way too much limbs to have them properly coordinated)))
What, you didn't like the "we sewn it from 5 different leftover pieces and a curtain" coat? But it's French!*pretend outrage*
Did I get this right, that's a ONE PIECE Fournier? (Trying to figure out how you climb into that getup ...?) It's so Scottish! Beware a full length gown. Dang things are tripping hazards and ungraceful me gave up on that look after junior prom.
Well, LYN height does have its advantages. Here on full, glorious display.
Candy pink photos are for Ep1 of current season, titled "Blood-stained candy" and about a murder on candy factory, with cast roleplaying its workers.
Yuning, ZLH and show's youngest Zhou Keyu are all around the same "upper180s-lower190s cm" height, but I believe Yuning is the tallest by tiny margin. Based on fandom's hardcore detective work ~193-194cm. That's 6'4'', right?
Yes, it's sewn like a drunken puzzle, but one item overall. Guess it wraps like a robe after buttoning up? That he's got experience with thanks to his costume dramas at least.
If only he wasn't so adamantly against fashion brand deals! With that physique high end designers would've battle over him non-stop.
You know, the longer you live the less appealing these commercial endorsements seem. They are traps, lucrative traps. Everybody posing for the cameras, and they all look miserable. I probably waded through thousands of studio photos by the time I went to college (this was a job, not for fun). I got so I could spot the best couple of shots amongst hundreds. Modeling is no picnic in the park, it's grueling and unrewarding, and has a stark expiration date.
So if LYN limits his exposure to these contracts, to me it is just another example of his canniness and that he's got his priorities straight. He knows where he is going, he knows where his comfort zone lies, and it's not playing up to the camera for endorsement deals. His time is too valuable, and it won't make him happy.
All that wisdom said, he has been sporting some great looks. Just great. What a treat.
Fair points. I understand his lack of interest in posh fashion parties or posing for magazines every other day (with man's extreme hatorade towards cameras in general - he's worse than me in that regard, I swear! - that's hardly a surprise). But he did accept jewelry brand deal - on his own strictly limited terms. So perhaps there would also be a fashion house or two willing to let him wear their stuff for events regularly, do a small photoshoot once in a blue moon, and that's about it?
Hello! Just coming by to say hello and express my appreciation for you on the open thread. I've missed you posting on the fan wall. I'm not actually a 'fan' of Lyn, but enjoy checking out some of the stuff you post sometimes, its fun. I like the frock coat. It's also fascinating how asian celebrities can just wear something like that without anyone blinking, because of different cultural norms related to clothing. Anyway, waving, I'll go back to occasional lurking. :)
Sure you've missed that because I never posted on my own fanwall - it remained pure and empty until the bitter end - and only rarely commented of others' walls. Is there some confusion going on here, perhaps?
Doesn't really matter, fans or passerby, my essays are free to enjoy - or ignore or even hate, if some are so inclined - for everyone^^ After all, watching drama can be fun and all, but TALKING drama is where it's truly at))) And it just so happens that LYN is my drama... airing like a clockwork with barely any days off...
Huh? Aren't frock coats awesome? Sure, they don't look this good on just anyone, but that's hardly coats fault! You know the expression about wearing a potato sack? I've seen this guy donning stuff no better (sometimes worse) than that A LOT, so said coat, however bizarre, is super tame in comparison. Perhaps I should do "LYN's worst fashion moments" compilation for lulz someday... Maybe he'll personally come to beat me up for it then^^
Fanwall, other peoples fanwall, Normal posts- To be honest I never paid much attention, it was all on the recent 'comments' page, so I just called it all the 'fanwall'.
I know you can still see recent comments if you manually enter the link, but its not the same.
As @britney was sharing videos with critiques of Weak Hero Class 2, I was thinking about Heesu in Class 2. This was a webtoon that I read, a shounen ai/BL manwha. I have been commenting as I've been watching the live-action BL drama with Ahn Ji-ho in the title role. I was optimistic about this drama because the source material was perfectly suited to a rom com in a high school. It's mostly about emotions and resolving misunderstandings, and it places the romance of the main characters into context with other straight and gay friends. I kind of thought that was the direction that the drama would go, too, as there were high school lesbian characters in the first episode (looking for advice from Heesu.) This really could have been a great show, especially because Ahn Ji-ho is so good at looking naive yet enthusiastic and sparkly. But then, the writers inexplicably swerved off course. They focused more on the straight best friend and his romance. In the comic, that romance was there for sure, but the straight best friend and his girlfriend were mainly there to get Heesu together with his boyfriend Seung Won. The drama got kind of melodramatic and difficult instead of staying as light and fluffy as the original. There was just a little too much dwelling on the initial crush on the best friend and how hard it is to be gay and it was kinda icky TBH.
So I started watching a different BL, Something's Not Right, and that one has a stupid gimmick and two boys who don't realize they like each other, and it seems to be super fluffy. Except I'm nervous he's going to go for the second lead. (Also the entire premise of this show is that homosexuality is so far out of people's frame of reference that people forget it exists, which is...wild.)
I know that sometimes straight Korean rom coms go off the rails like this. But I guess what I'm looking for is, a sense that people like each other. I don't need passionate kisses if that's too difficult for the actors. It made me kind of sad when I realized that some of the best chemistry I've seen in k-dramas this year were in Way Back Love, where the ML was a ghost, and thus far in The Haunted Palace, where the FL seems to be getting on well with the imoogi/dragon/dybbuk who is possessing her first love.
XZ Studio posted this a few days ago, wishing people in advanced a good Labour Day Long holiday (it’s Labour Day holiday or long weekend in many parts of the world atm… Canada’s just weird and we have our Labour Day in September 🤣😅).
And now, it’s because the post came so early in the week, I’m missing him as I’m heading into the weekend 🥹🥹🥹 But I love bts clips like these wherein we get to see him at work and in the zone 😍😍 https://youtube.com/shorts/bv50fZiVFx4?si=Kkqc_EL6ZOtPfdQT
Our Labour Day is in March! It commemorates the day that the stonemasons went on strike in support of the 8 hour day. They had been working on the building for the University Law School, and famously, 150 years later, that University still has classes on the Labour day public holiday :)
In China, it is a holiday meant for workers to take time off to rest and celebrate their contributions that they’ve made to the workforce and workplace. It’s federally just a 1-day holiday, but many businesses will often give their employees an entire week off, dubbed “The Golden Week” 😊
In Canada, it’s something similar:
A day to recognize contributions of workers and the labour movement (collective bargaining, advocacy of workers’ rights, promotion of social justice) 😊
Hi how you doing
Day starts with me wearing wrong shoes that i have a hunch will break but must catch a train later
Then a person calls library, why did you not answer a question yesterday - me: spring holiday? Him: but is the speech robot not working anyway... um I am th "speech robot.
A Japanese diplomats digital id was left at our counter, I sent an email, snd she called b4 i closed the mailbox. Why they so fast? she came to get it and brought us japanese sweets
And our printer started printing all text tilted. I think it is drunk...
My shoe did break, i missed the tram, ran through the old town, caught it on the other side in the railway station. Home and back b4 the bus i was going to take orihinally arrived at station. All while being chased by rainclouds.
But now im so hungry
At least i have Japanese chewing gum...
I am watching this week’s K-variety shows and just now remembered OT Friday so I am popping on to say “HI beanies, happy May!” Resident Playlist is getting better as our newbies are getting the hang of what round the clock hours looks like and how they have to step it up. And they’re doing it fairly admirably. Did you catch Yi-Young’s smile and even laughter at the playground - first time in 6 eps that she genuinely smiled - and the worn, tired, uncertain expression she usually wears for many reasons melted away. I loved that.
Busy Saturday planting a small garden and potting a few posies, I love warm weather. Have a good one! 🦉
A few pisies turned out to be more than I batgained for. I'm pooped! But the pots look pretty, Hope it isn't a little too early and the nights get too cold 🤞🏻
Ajumma quietly and suddenly took a two week trip to Busan a month ago. Wasn't planning to, but serendipitously ran into the cherry blossom festival at a park near the airport. Ajumma loved it so much that she canceled her return ticket and stayed longer than planned. Everyday she went for a long walk on the cherry blossom path, sometimes with a kimbap roll in hand and other times with an iced coffee. The walk would end with a bowl of steaming handcut noodles at a shop run by a nice mother and son team. That kimbap and bowl of noodles were so delicious that ajumma still thinks about it a month later. And that cherry blossom walkway. Ajumma always thought her first cherry blossom experience would be in Japan but life unexpectedly brought her to Busan at just the right time of the month and year, booked her accomodations within walking distance to a beautifully designed cherry blossom walkway. Let's hope serendipity favors ajumma again in the area of romance too!
Thank you for sharing your delightful Spring adventure full of unexpected blessings. It really was a bonus that you had the resources to be able to stay longer than planned and fully immerse yourself in the experience♥️.
oh Mother Bean thank you. I wished my family and you and the lovely community here at Dramabeans could have been there too looking at the flowers. Maybe next year? It was nice to be able to say, "to heck with it!" and cancel my flight back. Of course then I had to deal with making up work when I finally returned to the real world. But for almost two weeks, I lived blissfully amongst flowers and Korean food. It was so nice to be a pedestrian-friendly city again, such a breath of fresh air. Got to stretch my legs instead of sitting all day. If you get a chance, please check out the cherry blossom walkway along the Nakdong River in the Samnak Eco Park in Busan not far from the airport. Everything is reachable by foot. Kimbap tastes extra good eaten under cherry blossoms. Now I can't imagine it any other way. I like that I just stumbled onto this cherry blossom walkway and it's not really advertised to foreign tourists. I was able to stay longer because I was able to move some things around and didn't have to get home right away. And found a very affordable "hotel" that was probably a love hotel in the past (the round bed was a giveaway). So I didn't have to shell out big bucks although cancelling an unrefundable ticket did make me wince a bit. But it felt like a once in a lifetime experience and I should savor it because who knows what next year will bring, what health challenges, etc. This was my first trip to South Korea and honestly had a bit of Paris Syndrome after 20 years of only watching Korean dramas and trying to reconcile the reality with TV was a challenge at times lol. Always had the truck of doom at the back of my mind whenever crossing an intersection !
I know the truck of doom haunts me even when watching J and C dramas!
I get the impression the delivery drivers are the ones to watch on their mopeds and cycles!
So glad your first trip was such an amazing one. I have wondered about that glossy presentation verses the grainy reality many a time. It’s the same when I visit London.
If I get to visit I just hope it is not rainy season. I do want to do a cherry blossom and an autumn leaves walk at some point somewhere in the world that showcase these seasonal events.
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1 welh
May 2, 2025 at 5:02 AM
A total of five Korean dramas have been invited for screenings at the 2025 Cannes Short Series festival. Established in 2018, Canneseries showcases outstanding TV series from around the world through four official sections -- Competition, Short Form Competition, Documentary Series Competition and Out of Competition -- as well as the Rendez-Vous section. Of the five dramas, only one has been released in Korea. The others appear to have no distributor or release date. It shows again how large the backlog of completed k-dramas is and how hard it has been for producers to get their inventory sold and shown.
Starring Lee Soo-hyuk, Lee Da-hee and Arin, “The S-Line” is the South Korean drama depicts a world where people who have had sexual relationships are connected by a visible red line, which can only be seen by those wearing special glasses. Based on the webtoon of the same name, the six-episode series will have its world premiere at the eighth edition of the annual festival in Cannes, which opened this week. "This Korean series with an extremely far-fetched concept plunges us into a supernatural atmosphere and confronts us with the consequences of losing intimacy and our secret gardens," according to Canneseries' website. This series is the only one in the competition category.
Four other Korean dramas premieres are, including MBC’s 2024 show "Doubt" and still-to-be released shows "Hunter With a Scalpel,” “Nursery Rhymes Ghost Stories/Children's Ghost Story,” and ‘Fairy’s Fasting” are the other dramas at the festival.
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Kodra aka Qanon something
May 2, 2025 at 6:19 AM
The S-line won best music award. I haven't been influenced by awards ceremonies for some years now, specially the western ones. Most of the times I look at the content that wins as a red flag to never watch it. Even in Korea right now, The Jeonju International Film Festival is taking place and it is airing a movie from a highly promoted woke director from Romania with the name of Radu Jude. I will see if S-line hides other agenda behind what it looks like a very interesting plot.
In other news, korean film industry is making gains in other areas besides streaming platforms: "The King of Kings’ becomes top-grossing Korean film in US, surpasses ‘Parasite’".
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/films/20250429/the-king-of-kings-becomes-top-grossing-korean-film-in-us-surpasses-parasite
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2 Unaspirated
May 2, 2025 at 5:12 AM
Has anyone else been seeing Park Hyung-sik’s blonde hair on the socials? Anyone know if it is for a role or just for fun? I think Twelve must be finished filming (?), and blonde might be going in the wrong direction for a crow baddie unless it’s all very figurative. Any insights?
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Found a few pics without any solid info. Seems like fanmeet/concert thing, but not sure how recent. Idk how I'm feeling about this color/cut either... BH sexy gangsta hair was much more to my liking for sure:
https://x.com/nbslfff/status/1917466719658074230
And this is simply gorgeous:
https://x.com/ria___1116/status/1917540733990662256
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Procrasti-NationFirstCitizen
May 8, 2025 at 10:01 PM
I think Buried Hearts was the first show I found PHS really hot (am I allowed to say that? I don't want to objectify anyone, but he was/ is)
Of course, the only other one I've watched of his is Strong Woman, which really wasn't to my taste.
I like this new adult avatar.
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Unaspirated
May 9, 2025 at 4:42 AM
Totally makes sense to me. He was only in his mid 20s when he did SWDBS, and while I found him adorable, it certainly wasn’t the same vibe that he has (and has cultivated) now. The first thing I saw him in was Our Blooming Youth, which was already post-military for him, so I didn’t have the same first impression.
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Gikata
May 9, 2025 at 7:20 AM
That's exactly the vibe he's going for lately, so all is well)))
You missed his fantastic turn in HAPPINESS then - it was his first project after military and he still had his elite forces soldier physique in it, giving people who only saw him as a skinny idol flower boy before a huge eye-opener.
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Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 9:23 AM
I’d seen him in his platinum blonde as far as even a month back— and his most recent Instagram post with said platinum blonde hair was on April 8th—but not sure now if he still is platinum blonde. At first, I also thought it was just for his fan meet, but he kept the looks even after, which made me think it’s for his role in Twelve, but again, not sure if he’s done filming that yet and if he’s changed up his look again and it’s almost been a month
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 10:01 AM
I believe he somehow skipped blond era in his kpop days - lightest I remember him then was caramel brown - so let the guy have fun while at it. This color won't stay long anyway given the variety of roles he's currently vying for.
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Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 10:19 AM
I have the same impression— he seemed relatively “tame” in his looks during his idol days, not that I mind 😍 I’m glad he’s experimenting and trying new things now, regardless if it’s for a role or not
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 10:40 AM
His company at the time didn't spare him any attention whatsoever until he blew up with his variety and drama side gigs, so ofc his styling also stayed as bland as possible. Took the guy a few years to cut his bangs short enough to let the world see his wonderful eyes etc.
In one of pre-BH interviews he said he now wants to be seen as "sexy man" instead of "cute boy". Well, I think he's moving into right direction finally...
Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 11:19 AM
I know, and him being only 1 of the MANY vocals Z:EA had— and also being the more quiet, reserved ones (humble, but also maybe slight reservations, since he was picked on in his trainee days before moving to Star Empire Ent.) versus someone like Kwanghee, with the big personality— he wasn’t going to be made a focus and not going to be given many chances.
I’m glad he’s made such leaps and bounds in his career and seems to have eased into his own stride as the years went by 🥰🥰🥰
Unaspirated
May 2, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Just curious - thanks for weighing in! I don’t have any strong feelings about it but I hope he’s having fun!
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Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 1:37 PM
🫰🏻🫰🏻🫰🏻
3 Britney
May 2, 2025 at 5:19 AM
I saw a video called Why Weak Hero Class 2 is so disappointing https://youtu.be/TjrZNwTYFNU?si=ivm7LSVaM6F1HllF
And after watching it, I could see the criticism haha. I mean I already know how I felt when I watched it but it wasn't like I felt this massive disappointment. Maybe cause I always thought they wouldn't be able to make a sequel as good as the original. Plenty of people like Taxi Driver 2 while I think S1 was way better. My fear was that WHC2 would go the path of DP2 and it sorta has? I think DP2 is still considered a worse sequel while WHC2 does have its fans and supporters.
For me personally, I didn't care about the ages. I cared about the performances and I thought Bae Nara did well with what he was given. There were some other characters who looked particularly older but my thought was more on how they didn't look like the webtoon characters haha.
As for as the dialogue, I honestly blame it on Netflix haha. Like I have no idea what's being said but I do know Netflix tends to sanitize the subtitles.
My biggest issue was the lack of development. With S1, our trio was built up over 3 or 4 episodes and they had common enemies that united them so how close they were felt earned which made how they were broken apart all the more devastating. Also Sieun was on Suho's radar even before they became friends so there was always something there. Even Yeongi getting so close to Suho and Sieun made sense cause of how strong her personality was and we were shown her interacting with them. With S2, there's no development anywhere. It's somewhat believable that Juntae could latch on to Sieun and Sieun would let him because because he sees some of Suho, Beomseok, and maybe some of himself in him. But why would the "top dogs" of the school befriend them? On the Baku/Baek Jin side, we're just dropped in the middle of Baek Jin having a fixation on Baku so none of their confrontations feel particularly tense or cathertic aside from what the actors bring. This isn't necessarily a bad thing because these characters existed before we were introduced to them and that's what the show was going for but it can make it harder to be emotionally invested.
I would've preferred it more if Sieun fought more or if the fights he did participate in were more violent because S2 is just basically having his legend precede him without him proving that "yeah, he really IS that guy if you push him".
I didn't personally have an issue with the union being like a crime syndicate because that's what it is in the webtoon.
And it's also not the first time I've seen shows where teens are involved in intricate crimes organizations and one of the reasons they do it is because they are minors who will either not be charged or will get light sentences/punishments. I figure it has some basis in reality.
However, even though WHC2 isn't as good as S1, I didn't think it was bad. Especially after reading the weecap on here. I...
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Britney
May 2, 2025 at 5:21 AM
...just thought the PD wanted to tell a story more about moving on from guilt and bad/toxic friendships. Si Eun may look older but he's also been through alot and that can age you. People will say he went through alot before when he was neglected by his parents but clearly the situations are different for him. Even though WHC2 may be lacking, I thought it was still a good story and had good performances.
And if people dislike it so much, they can always just rewatch S1 followed by the clip of Si Eun & Suho reuniting or read the webtoon. My go to when I like some parts of drama more than the whole is hoping someone makes a fanvid of it and that's what I watch instead.
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too_much_tv
May 2, 2025 at 8:19 AM
Thanks for posting the critique! Since I had not read the webtoon, I was only disappointed in the second season in relation to the first season. But I did watch the whole thing! I want to support Park Ji-Hoon. I'm rooting for his growth and development, because he shows a lot of potential.
Sometimes I watch stuff and enjoy it because I can pick it apart. It's weird that I'm mostly doing this these days with Korean television, since I don't speak Korean and have never even been to Korea. I do find that reading the source material enhances my appreciation of the dramas.--either because the novel or webtoon was better or because the drama was. Sometimes the visual imagery enhances the story in unexpected ways, as in Extraordinary You (I only read a little of the web comic, the show impressed me more) or The Trunk, where the visuals were more exciting even though the story was focused on the ML instead of the FL. It's been a source of disappointment for me that I couldn't get I'll Come to You When the Weather Is Fine in English, because I had a lot of suspicions about which things were and weren't in the source.
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Britney
May 2, 2025 at 8:53 AM
I was disappointed I could never find an english translation of The Law Cafe. I saw somewhere that the webnovel is the male lead's perspective and the webtoon is in the female lead's but neither are available for me haha
When I watch a drama based on a webtoon I've read, I just like seeing how it's adapted. I like seeing what's kept or changed or alluded to.
Sometimes I don't remember the details of the webtoon so the drama feels new to me and I may like aspects more.
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panshel
May 2, 2025 at 10:24 AM
I haven't watched your two videos yet, and maybe I gravitate toward negativity, but everywhere I've gone on the internet, fans are disappointed in Class 2, so it definitely compares to D.P. 2 and Taxi Driver 2. The entire r/WeakHero subreddit criticizes it on the daily. I think what killed this season was the addition of Baku and Baek-jin's childhood connection. Baek-jin's character was reduced to an unexplained obsession with Baku, while Baku's storyline revolved around fending off his childhood friend, so our core friendship between Si-eun, Baku, Gotak, and Jun-tae had no time to be developed. I love Bae Na-ra, but he did not look like a high school student.
As disappointed as I am, I still love the actors, so I've been spending my time watching their interviews and press conferences and waiting for the Netflix K-Content YouTube channel (the name was so much better as The Swoon) to sub their BTS. For me, S1 was Choi Hyun-wook, while S2 was Lee Jun-young (and Choi Min-young).
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Britney
May 2, 2025 at 10:37 AM
Hmm, and the things I've seen are people enjoying or gushing about it and wanting a 3rd season haha
Granted, I'm not reading many comments; I've been watching reaction videos.
People set their expectations too high and they're being overly critical in my opinion.
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4 TurtuallySarcastic
May 2, 2025 at 5:22 AM
Happy weekend Beanies and keep Beaning On!
The birthday hangout with my friends last Saturday started something that I will from now on refer to as “The Big Splurge”. During the following holidays vacations were finally booked, stores visited and packages ordered to replenish necessities, and small debts were repaid. The ‘Now or Never’ was enabled by both getting paid and having time.
Too late I realized that I am on week leave every month until September, most of it could have waited a couple weeks until my next holidays. Oh well, the burdens falling off my shoulders was well worth it!
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parkchuna adores YoungWon couples Forever 🍉
May 2, 2025 at 6:25 AM
It’s so nice having a holiday to look forward to! I’m thinking of one for the year end but haven’t had the drive to plan something.
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TurtuallySarcastic
May 3, 2025 at 2:22 AM
I have some once in a lifetime events coming up, so I had to take leave off work and plan a whole vacation around the event in order to experience it. I had no choice in the matter! :D I hope you also can think of something to do and the rest will follow! ;)
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Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 10:20 AM
Happy (belated?? Early??) birthday!!! I hope you had a good time and enjoyed yourself during the hangout 🥰🥰
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TurtuallySarcastic
May 3, 2025 at 2:23 AM
Oh woops, I meant my friend's birthday! :o But thank you for the very early birthday wishes! ;) And yes, we enjoyed ourselves, thank you! :)
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5 Britney
May 2, 2025 at 5:30 AM
In related Weak Hero news, I found a video about the webtoon version of Na Baek Jin (Donald Na)
🚨Spoilers for the webtoon🚨
https://youtu.be/Exm0xJbGCxM?si=R8FNFzwjZQc5Ozos
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too_much_tv
May 2, 2025 at 8:21 AM
You are the MVP today! ♥
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Britney
May 2, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Haha thank you😊
Weak Hero is a favorite of mine so like discussing it, be it the dramas or the webtoon.
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Midnight
May 2, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Is Weak Hero 2 picture quality exceptionally high?
All the clips IG shows me are remarkably high resolution and clear compared to clips from other kdramas.
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Britney
May 2, 2025 at 9:13 AM
Sorry, I have no idea.
too_much_tv
May 2, 2025 at 11:05 AM
It could be because they had money from Netflix to make it.
panshel
May 2, 2025 at 11:42 AM
@toomuchtv But @Midnight said "compared to clips from other kdramas," but that Netflix money has produced a lot of dramas.
Midnight
May 2, 2025 at 11:50 AM
@panshel @toomuchtv
Yes, compared to other dramas clips on IG, many also produced by Netflix.
6 parkchuna adores YoungWon couples Forever 🍉
May 2, 2025 at 6:22 AM
Finally weekend yeah! Waiting for saturday 10pm. Rewatching Alchemy part 1. Also found NF added Why I Dressed Up For Love, i might rewatch that too.
Also, i still miss the fan wall. Honestly never thought i would so much! 😩
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7 Britney
May 2, 2025 at 6:29 AM
Singer/actor Lee Seung Gi said that he is cutting ties with his in laws as well as apologized for his "hasty" remarks where he supported them.
There are folks who say it's too little too late and that he's just doing this to save his career.
When I heard about it, I figured something must've happened to lead to this. Come to find out, apparently his father in law (or maybe both inlaws, I have no idea) committed another crime of some sort.
People say that he was warned about the type of people his in laws were and he still chose to marry into that family so he has to deal with all the fallout that comes with it.
I thought maybe he had a different insight into them and that's why he chose to see the best in them. Like obviously people on the outside looking in will villianize people before they have all the facts or context so maybe he was giving them the benefit of the doubt based on what he knew of them personally. Plus clearly he saw something in his wife that made him feel like this is the woman he wanted to start a life with and it does take a certain amount of courage to choose her when so many people were like "umm, maybe you should think again".
So the fact that it's come to this point makes me think he just had to experience it for himself. It's one of those cruel life lessons.
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lillamy
May 2, 2025 at 8:49 AM
True love is hard to come by when you're a celebrity and I agree it took great courage to stand by his choice probably knowing full well how it may inflict his career. Because I do think he foresaw this.
I'm not surprised, and I'm not even asian. Asian netizens are as scary with their typing as americans are with their firearms.
I'm actually just happy finding out he has a wife and a daughter, he seems like such a nice person.
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Kurama
May 2, 2025 at 9:45 AM
I think it was an old fraud and he believed his in-laws could change.
But the truth they didn't and commited another fraud. So, now he cut his ties with them.
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Ahjummaaa
May 4, 2025 at 8:23 AM
it's so messy when it comes to families. it must be heartbreaking for his wife to have to cut ties with her own mother, especially now that she has a child of her own. I just don't see how realistic this is to cut ties with your own mother unless their relationship was toxic already. It's hard on the heart.
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8 Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Happy Friday and May, Beanies! For the time being every week is gonna be packed, so prepare to tolerate my looong essays^^ First big milestone goes to Yuning's performance of “The never-ending confession” on Beijing International Film Festival closing ceremony. Been a while since I saw him so deadly serious – poor thing was probably hella nervous, even nearly fell while walking off the scene. Which is a recurring theme with him, fandom even created #LYNsingssteadierthanhewalks hashtag to tease him this time lmao))) Ofc later in his livestream he blamed it on slippery (waxed?) floor. Might also be the fault of those fancy Louboutin shoes – just sayin'. Speaking of fashion, at first I thought he's once again went fusion with hanfu
skirtpants to western suit jacket, but nope, this whole endless thing is one piece – latest collection frock coat by Julien Fournié (allegedly Yuning's very first haute couture look). Said fashion house was VERY pleased with result, writing an entire article on their home page and even keeping praising him on sns. Not that they're wrong – he wore it FAR better than runway model... Look for yourselves:https://www.julienfournie.com/en/liu-yuning-bejing-film-festival/
Performance itself was quite good too – very sentimental with tribute videos to many late veteran actors. Combined with Ning-ge's voice it made the audience mass sob. Official upload even subbed it, I'm impressed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zbtf5h3RAU
He also livestreamed, but did not sing due to catching cold – must be all that building climbing in the pouring rain
and barely there pants. Poor thingx2, someone make him a hot soup! No singing rule led to him just chatting non-stop – gotta say, for a supposed patient he looked rather happy: about his recent variety shows (self-reviewing of TTV stages was so fun! not even as mean for lulz as he usually goes about it, man must've been in a truly good mood), how he just accepted “a mountain of OSTs” (direct quote), no plans to take a drama yet and, ofc, bickering with fans (if you were ever wondering, his heart is NOT for sale, even for 1M bucks... oh, and he claims it's not edible eitherge, I don't think that commenter wanted it for a meal. hopefully). Turns out, we were this close to him opening an insta account... but certified Weibo King failed to get the logistics of said app (don't they have Mandarin option?) and gave up. Not before shifting the blame to “not having enough fans globally anyway” in a true male fashion tho.Are we a joke to you, Ning-ge?Required fields are marked *
Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:27 AM
Brand livestream (yogurt ad) from the next day – nice clean look, albeit still a little puffy from his cold. Didn't stop Dandong Dancing King (his studio words, not mine!) from attempting what I assume is some trendy choreo – man clearly dances to have fun and that's enough))) And singing too – host gave him keywords (“I/me” and “love”, iirc) he had to recall songs with. Lots of pretty acapella as result:
https://x.com/Bigsislilred/status/1917725346092442063
Back to THE TREASURED VOICE, LYN-YXT version of “Seat” has been absolutely dominating mainland music charts across all platforms since Ep2 aired (latest report cited 35M certified listens and still climbing up), particularly doing rounds on song's OG “home” Douyin. Pretty neat consolation prize for not winning an entire episode again, if you ask me. Yuning's solo focus fancam to celebrate the fact:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5xmWGeP69k
We're done with sad breakup ballads for the time being – today's stage is of hot variety! Rocker!Ning and Sitar Tan performing Zhang Zhenyue's “Savage”, looking fire and sounding... Well, this may get controversial, but I expected a little more from these two collaborating. Thing is, both are strong vocalists, and I genuinely like Sitar's jazzy voice, but girl was overdoing it with her powerful high notes, milking the natural advantage of having higher pitch than her partner dry. It made Yuning sound like her back vocalist at times, and if while listening to duo performance you have to strain your ears to properly hear one of the 2, something clearly went wrong. Not sure what tho – perhaps she's not used to perform with guys? Or it was a bad directorial choice/tech problems with his mic/sound editing? Verses went fine, esp intro (hands down best part, sexy whisper edition), but choruses and bridge threw balance off. Made me think back to last year's duo with Shila Amzah, who's even stronger vocal powerhouse, but did not have such problem... Alas, still a stage worthy of attention: fun arrangement (I'm a huge sucker for synthwave), and visuals and energy delivered (disco lightning's back lol):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axWI78O2vIk
In case you found the song familiar – he covered it for Carnation 4.0! Time to refresh that memory and listen to his unmuted solo take. I can tell he's added more to it since:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpZvmooUxFA
To compare further, rehearsal short that sounds the best out of three. Sure, Yuning does always say he's generally doing better at rehearsals than actual stages because bigger audience makes him nervous, but I have a hard time believing that. Should've kept that smacking the mic stand away part, gege is so cool when riot!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZu64tWr56o
I can't even with them! To quote Huangzi: “Are we still filming a music show?”:
https://x.com/fandoestrans/status/1918276962550006123
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:28 AM
Bonuses: Beijing Festival photos started okay – handsome (esp love the hair), but visibly stiff - and then got better and better, peaking with closeup shot – the hands, the eyes!
https://www.tumblr.com/heymeowmao/781933632575111168/liu-yuning-x-beijing-international-film-festival
https://www.tumblr.com/heymeowmao/781933727273074688/liu-yuning-x-beijing-international-film-festival
Heavens bless that necktie – man doesn't wear them very often, but when he does... rawr!
https://www.tumblr.com/heymeowmao/781957908702412800/liu-yuning-x-beijing-international-film-festival
Some stage photos with lesser editing – tbh, I prefer those:
https://x.com/Bigsislilred/status/1916127295582204115
Short MV for last week's “Seat”, acted and directed by Ning-ge himself – did you think I was joking about show milking his newfound acting fame to the very last drop? Nah! They're not wrong tho – pretty gege angst prettily too:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7chjW9Ksj0
Long vlog about preparation of that stage – there was clearly a problem with his shoes, bad fit, perhaps? I noticed he never wears anything but thick high socks, even during hottest summer days... Someone's got a soft sensitive skin, huh?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZp8RuSrJxQ
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:29 AM
Subbed vlog from THE TRUTH S3 first case – his character is electrician on candy factory, hence the pinku-pinku look. To be fair, from tidbits I saw, man is quite handy with screwdriver (so sexy of him).
https://x.com/LYNofficialfc/status/1917870649814741015
More from Dandong Dancing King – what's gotten into him lately, I wonder? No complaints ofc, what a cute giant bunny^^
https://x.com/liu_yuning08/status/1917798961374544253
Yet another vlog from THE TRUTH – legend says he's still dancing lol^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRkaRU5jO_A
TVV today's photos – stage version:
https://www.tumblr.com/heymeowmao/782406758342819840/%E5%A4%A9%E8%B5%90%E7%9A%84%E5%A3%B0%E9%9F%B3-the-treasured-voice-s6e3-liu-yuning
And
fancy barista in his natural habitatrehearsal version. Once again, the less editing the better:https://www.tumblr.com/heymeowmao/782406749553557504/%E5%A4%A9%E8%B5%90%E7%9A%84%E5%A3%B0%E9%9F%B3-the-treasured-voice-s6e3-liu-yuning
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:31 AM
If you think that was long, nope - had to cut/postpone to next week plenty of footage. Ain't no rest for this man's fans *shrugs*
@kiara, @jillian, @zindigo, @isagc, @wonhwa, @seeker, @mochakat9, @wishfultoki, @cliosservant1846
🌸 Seeker 🌸
May 2, 2025 at 9:12 AM
True fact - LYN's singing is as steady as they come. Seems like his walking
and dancingis apparently as unstructured, asymmetrical and fluid as his high end designer duds. 😂 The fashun is really something nowadays.Thank you for your hard work Gikata.
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Indeed. This is the man who magically managed to keep singing even with throat polyps so bad he couldn't TALK at the time, you just don't get steadier vocally than that!
He's got way too much limbs to have them properly coordinated)))
What, you didn't like the "we sewn it from 5 different leftover pieces and a curtain" coat? But it's French!*pretend outrage*
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🌸 Seeker 🌸
May 2, 2025 at 11:22 AM
🙈 Their description, not mine. 😂
I like way he effortlessly carries off even upholstery as clothes.🫰
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Clios Servant
May 2, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Did I get this right, that's a ONE PIECE Fournier? (Trying to figure out how you climb into that getup ...?) It's so Scottish! Beware a full length gown. Dang things are tripping hazards and ungraceful me gave up on that look after junior prom.
Well, LYN height does have its advantages. Here on full, glorious display.
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Clios Servant
May 2, 2025 at 10:44 AM
I saw some of the candy pink photos of The Truth cast. What is the set up of THIS one?
And, it looks like Zhang Ling He and LYN are about the same height, 6'3" or so. The set photographer must be thrilled, think of the symmetry!
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 11:08 AM
Candy pink photos are for Ep1 of current season, titled "Blood-stained candy" and about a murder on candy factory, with cast roleplaying its workers.
Yuning, ZLH and show's youngest Zhou Keyu are all around the same "upper180s-lower190s cm" height, but I believe Yuning is the tallest by tiny margin. Based on fandom's hardcore detective work ~193-194cm. That's 6'4'', right?
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 10:52 AM
Yes, it's sewn like a drunken puzzle, but one item overall. Guess it wraps like a robe after buttoning up? That he's got experience with thanks to his costume dramas at least.
If only he wasn't so adamantly against fashion brand deals! With that physique high end designers would've battle over him non-stop.
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Clios Servant
May 2, 2025 at 11:50 AM
You know, the longer you live the less appealing these commercial endorsements seem. They are traps, lucrative traps. Everybody posing for the cameras, and they all look miserable. I probably waded through thousands of studio photos by the time I went to college (this was a job, not for fun). I got so I could spot the best couple of shots amongst hundreds. Modeling is no picnic in the park, it's grueling and unrewarding, and has a stark expiration date.
So if LYN limits his exposure to these contracts, to me it is just another example of his canniness and that he's got his priorities straight. He knows where he is going, he knows where his comfort zone lies, and it's not playing up to the camera for endorsement deals. His time is too valuable, and it won't make him happy.
All that wisdom said, he has been sporting some great looks. Just great. What a treat.
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Fair points. I understand his lack of interest in posh fashion parties or posing for magazines every other day (with man's extreme hatorade towards cameras in general - he's worse than me in that regard, I swear! - that's hardly a surprise). But he did accept jewelry brand deal - on his own strictly limited terms. So perhaps there would also be a fashion house or two willing to let him wear their stuff for events regularly, do a small photoshoot once in a blue moon, and that's about it?
Neolttwigi
May 2, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Hello! Just coming by to say hello and express my appreciation for you on the open thread. I've missed you posting on the fan wall. I'm not actually a 'fan' of Lyn, but enjoy checking out some of the stuff you post sometimes, its fun. I like the frock coat. It's also fascinating how asian celebrities can just wear something like that without anyone blinking, because of different cultural norms related to clothing. Anyway, waving, I'll go back to occasional lurking. :)
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Gikata
May 2, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Hello and thank you!)))
Sure you've missed that because I never posted on my own fanwall - it remained pure and empty until the bitter end - and only rarely commented of others' walls. Is there some confusion going on here, perhaps?
Doesn't really matter, fans or passerby, my essays are free to enjoy - or ignore or even hate, if some are so inclined - for everyone^^ After all, watching drama can be fun and all, but TALKING drama is where it's truly at))) And it just so happens that LYN is my drama... airing like a clockwork with barely any days off...
Huh? Aren't frock coats awesome? Sure, they don't look this good on just anyone, but that's hardly coats fault! You know the expression about wearing a potato sack? I've seen this guy donning stuff no better (sometimes worse) than that A LOT, so said coat, however bizarre, is super tame in comparison. Perhaps I should do "LYN's worst fashion moments" compilation for lulz someday... Maybe he'll personally come to beat me up for it then^^
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Neolttwigi
May 2, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Fanwall, other peoples fanwall, Normal posts- To be honest I never paid much attention, it was all on the recent 'comments' page, so I just called it all the 'fanwall'.
I know you can still see recent comments if you manually enter the link, but its not the same.
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Gikata
May 3, 2025 at 5:32 AM
They should really fix that feature at least, it was very convenient indeed.
9 too_much_tv
May 2, 2025 at 9:15 AM
As @britney was sharing videos with critiques of Weak Hero Class 2, I was thinking about Heesu in Class 2. This was a webtoon that I read, a shounen ai/BL manwha. I have been commenting as I've been watching the live-action BL drama with Ahn Ji-ho in the title role. I was optimistic about this drama because the source material was perfectly suited to a rom com in a high school. It's mostly about emotions and resolving misunderstandings, and it places the romance of the main characters into context with other straight and gay friends. I kind of thought that was the direction that the drama would go, too, as there were high school lesbian characters in the first episode (looking for advice from Heesu.) This really could have been a great show, especially because Ahn Ji-ho is so good at looking naive yet enthusiastic and sparkly. But then, the writers inexplicably swerved off course. They focused more on the straight best friend and his romance. In the comic, that romance was there for sure, but the straight best friend and his girlfriend were mainly there to get Heesu together with his boyfriend Seung Won. The drama got kind of melodramatic and difficult instead of staying as light and fluffy as the original. There was just a little too much dwelling on the initial crush on the best friend and how hard it is to be gay and it was kinda icky TBH.
So I started watching a different BL, Something's Not Right, and that one has a stupid gimmick and two boys who don't realize they like each other, and it seems to be super fluffy. Except I'm nervous he's going to go for the second lead. (Also the entire premise of this show is that homosexuality is so far out of people's frame of reference that people forget it exists, which is...wild.)
I know that sometimes straight Korean rom coms go off the rails like this. But I guess what I'm looking for is, a sense that people like each other. I don't need passionate kisses if that's too difficult for the actors. It made me kind of sad when I realized that some of the best chemistry I've seen in k-dramas this year were in Way Back Love, where the ML was a ghost, and thus far in The Haunted Palace, where the FL seems to be getting on well with the imoogi/dragon/dybbuk who is possessing her first love.
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10 Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 9:17 AM
XZ Studio posted this a few days ago, wishing people in advanced a good Labour Day Long holiday (it’s Labour Day holiday or long weekend in many parts of the world atm… Canada’s just weird and we have our Labour Day in September 🤣😅).
And now, it’s because the post came so early in the week, I’m missing him as I’m heading into the weekend 🥹🥹🥹 But I love bts clips like these wherein we get to see him at work and in the zone 😍😍
https://youtube.com/shorts/bv50fZiVFx4?si=Kkqc_EL6ZOtPfdQT
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Neolttwigi
May 2, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Our Labour Day is in March! It commemorates the day that the stonemasons went on strike in support of the 8 hour day. They had been working on the building for the University Law School, and famously, 150 years later, that University still has classes on the Labour day public holiday :)
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Nessa🌹
May 2, 2025 at 9:52 PM
In China, it is a holiday meant for workers to take time off to rest and celebrate their contributions that they’ve made to the workforce and workplace. It’s federally just a 1-day holiday, but many businesses will often give their employees an entire week off, dubbed “The Golden Week” 😊
In Canada, it’s something similar:
A day to recognize contributions of workers and the labour movement (collective bargaining, advocacy of workers’ rights, promotion of social justice) 😊
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11 redfox
May 2, 2025 at 9:18 AM
Hi how you doing
Day starts with me wearing wrong shoes that i have a hunch will break but must catch a train later
Then a person calls library, why did you not answer a question yesterday - me: spring holiday? Him: but is the speech robot not working anyway... um I am th "speech robot.
A Japanese diplomats digital id was left at our counter, I sent an email, snd she called b4 i closed the mailbox. Why they so fast? she came to get it and brought us japanese sweets
And our printer started printing all text tilted. I think it is drunk...
My shoe did break, i missed the tram, ran through the old town, caught it on the other side in the railway station. Home and back b4 the bus i was going to take orihinally arrived at station. All while being chased by rainclouds.
But now im so hungry
At least i have Japanese chewing gum...
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redfox
May 2, 2025 at 9:33 AM
And i just started singing along to a Taemin song coming on in my earphones.... before realising it was Sexuality and promptly shut up
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2025 at 8:22 PM
All in a day, hey? Hope your weekend is better redfox!
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12 owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2025 at 8:20 PM
I am watching this week’s K-variety shows and just now remembered OT Friday so I am popping on to say “HI beanies, happy May!” Resident Playlist is getting better as our newbies are getting the hang of what round the clock hours looks like and how they have to step it up. And they’re doing it fairly admirably. Did you catch Yi-Young’s smile and even laughter at the playground - first time in 6 eps that she genuinely smiled - and the worn, tired, uncertain expression she usually wears for many reasons melted away. I loved that.
Busy Saturday planting a small garden and potting a few posies, I love warm weather. Have a good one! 🦉
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 3, 2025 at 7:51 PM
A few pisies turned out to be more than I batgained for. I'm pooped! But the pots look pretty, Hope it isn't a little too early and the nights get too cold 🤞🏻
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 3, 2025 at 7:51 PM
posies
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redfox
May 3, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Here they keep threatening with night frosts but we have everything covered up
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 3, 2025 at 9:03 PM
I might have to cover them, I am a lightweight gardener and I can use this tip! Thanks!
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13 keiru
May 3, 2025 at 4:03 AM
Comment was deleted
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14 Ahjummaaa
May 4, 2025 at 8:35 AM
Ajumma quietly and suddenly took a two week trip to Busan a month ago. Wasn't planning to, but serendipitously ran into the cherry blossom festival at a park near the airport. Ajumma loved it so much that she canceled her return ticket and stayed longer than planned. Everyday she went for a long walk on the cherry blossom path, sometimes with a kimbap roll in hand and other times with an iced coffee. The walk would end with a bowl of steaming handcut noodles at a shop run by a nice mother and son team. That kimbap and bowl of noodles were so delicious that ajumma still thinks about it a month later. And that cherry blossom walkway. Ajumma always thought her first cherry blossom experience would be in Japan but life unexpectedly brought her to Busan at just the right time of the month and year, booked her accomodations within walking distance to a beautifully designed cherry blossom walkway. Let's hope serendipity favors ajumma again in the area of romance too!
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Reply1988 - 🍊Mother Bean🍊
May 4, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Thank you for sharing your delightful Spring adventure full of unexpected blessings. It really was a bonus that you had the resources to be able to stay longer than planned and fully immerse yourself in the experience♥️.
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Ahjummaaa
May 5, 2025 at 9:13 PM
oh Mother Bean thank you. I wished my family and you and the lovely community here at Dramabeans could have been there too looking at the flowers. Maybe next year? It was nice to be able to say, "to heck with it!" and cancel my flight back. Of course then I had to deal with making up work when I finally returned to the real world. But for almost two weeks, I lived blissfully amongst flowers and Korean food. It was so nice to be a pedestrian-friendly city again, such a breath of fresh air. Got to stretch my legs instead of sitting all day. If you get a chance, please check out the cherry blossom walkway along the Nakdong River in the Samnak Eco Park in Busan not far from the airport. Everything is reachable by foot. Kimbap tastes extra good eaten under cherry blossoms. Now I can't imagine it any other way. I like that I just stumbled onto this cherry blossom walkway and it's not really advertised to foreign tourists. I was able to stay longer because I was able to move some things around and didn't have to get home right away. And found a very affordable "hotel" that was probably a love hotel in the past (the round bed was a giveaway). So I didn't have to shell out big bucks although cancelling an unrefundable ticket did make me wince a bit. But it felt like a once in a lifetime experience and I should savor it because who knows what next year will bring, what health challenges, etc. This was my first trip to South Korea and honestly had a bit of Paris Syndrome after 20 years of only watching Korean dramas and trying to reconcile the reality with TV was a challenge at times lol. Always had the truck of doom at the back of my mind whenever crossing an intersection !
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Reply1988 - 🍊Mother Bean🍊
May 5, 2025 at 9:43 PM
I know the truck of doom haunts me even when watching J and C dramas!
I get the impression the delivery drivers are the ones to watch on their mopeds and cycles!
So glad your first trip was such an amazing one. I have wondered about that glossy presentation verses the grainy reality many a time. It’s the same when I visit London.
If I get to visit I just hope it is not rainy season. I do want to do a cherry blossom and an autumn leaves walk at some point somewhere in the world that showcase these seasonal events.
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15 Lostpanda is now Sadpanda. 🪦 fanwall 🪦
May 4, 2025 at 9:52 PM
A week and a half ago, I made a snarky comment on Caption this #130
“I hope they don’t tariff Kdramas”
Dude, that was a joke. Really, I was kidding.
When comedies become reality.
100% tariffs on foreign films.
U.S.A. leading the way to idiocracy
https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/04/media/movies-tariff-trump
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Ahjummaaa
May 5, 2025 at 9:19 PM
I think you should buy a lottery ticket lol
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16 9TailedVixen Loves Hanging Upside Down
May 6, 2025 at 2:18 PM
I have been travelling and also helping out a friend who was in a horrific car accident, so I have been quiet lately on DB.
Korean Women's News offerings will resume once I'm done with my travels.
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