Odds and Ends: The KCON 2014 wrap-up
by javabeans
javabeans: Well, I know what I did this week—spent it recovering from KCON. I know technically we only were “on” for two hours (we had one hour-long panel on each day), but it sure took a lot out of me.
girlfriday: The heat might’ve had something to do with that.
javabeans: And the forty thousand con-goers at the event.
girlfriday: It’s also possible that we’re recovering from the weekend we spent eating and drinking.
javabeans: Is there such a thing as beef detox? I should really keep in mind that just because HeadsNo2 can eat her weight in cow doesn’t mean I have to beat her. Sometimes people can just win at things.
girlfriday: We all win, mostly because you brought homemade makgulli. And lots of it, too.
javabeans: Just be glad nobody confiscated the suspicious cloudy liquid in my bags at the airport. And that the containers didn’t leak so that I had to show up to KCON smelling like a wino on a three-day bender.
girlfriday: To be clear, we did actually go on a three-day bender. She just showered in between.
javabeans: Even though I then came home smelling like beef, because of course I managed to drop grilled meat on every single item of clothing I wore that weekend.
girlfriday: Maybe we should tell people about our panels. Or we could talk about the travesty in scheduling, where the Dramabeans panel was counter-programmed with Seung-gi’s fan-meet. *cries*
javabeans: Who would do that, who?! We should be glad they switched the time of Seung-gi’s event at the last minute, because otherwise we might not have had a panel. Or it would have been me on that stage talking to myself.
girlfriday: Hey, I’d do that for you if Lee Min-ho came around.
javabeans: That’s sweet, but totally a bald-faced lie. You’d be elbowing me out of the way, motherfucker.
girlfriday: Is it my fault that your face is in my elbow’s way?
javabeans: This is all moot, however, as we did not have time to go to Seung-gi’s event anyway, or Lee Seo-jin’s (what a random star to bring to KCON, isn’t he?). I was really really hoping this was some kind of top-secret Na PD stunt and that he was going to make Seojinnie and Seung-gi do some missions while there, and was probably more disappointed than was reasonable when that didn’t happen.
girlfriday: And for their safety’s sake, the other fans should probably be happy that I missed Seung-gi’s event. Waaaaaaaaaaah. Gummimochi tried to make it up to me and entered me in a drawing to see him, ’cause she’s a good friend like that.
javabeans: We weren’t sure how many people to expect at our panels, so it was nice to see a full crowd out there… although maybe they were just there to see Sean Oppa. (It was really cute how Heads, who has been calling Sean Richard “Sean Oppa” behind his back for a year, accidentally said it to his face and was totally embarrassed. I’m pretty sure he didn’t mind.)
girlfriday: Nobody minds being called oppa. Ever.
javabeans: Did you like how he got a hero’s welcome? He was a few minutes late, and basically got the whole crowd to erupt into cheers at his arrival.
girlfriday: Next year, I’m coming late too.
javabeans: The Saturday panel was hosted by Viki, which means they picked the topic (trends in dramaland) and we mostly just rambled on about things like genre trends, product placement, the production environment, and so on.
girlfriday: Also, it was nice to be on the Viki panel with Sean again, since we already knew him and it was easy to riff off of each other’s comments since we’d done this last year too.
javabeans: Yes, it helped have rapport. Last year I remember not being sure if I should talk more or less, or if I should speak up or cede the conversation to keep things smooth, but this year it was like chatting with a buddy.
girlfriday: And now we have a running joke every year at KCON, where we accompany Sean across the main thoroughfare and he gets to strut like a boss.
javabeans: I’m pretty sure he introduced us to his friends as his posse.
girlfriday: Then on Day 2 we had the Dramabeans panel, where Gummimochi and HeadsNo2 did a fantastic job of preparing lots of questions to throw at us.
javabeans: We’ve done a number of panels now, but this was by far my favorite—there’s just a level of rapport you have when you’re familiar with each other and know each other’s speech patterns and understand where the conversation is going in the moment. They had prepared questions and an outline to work off, but we mostly treated it like a fun conversation amongst ourselves.
girlfriday: Yeah it’s hard to interject with one-liners when you have to be polite. Interrupting you guys is just a regular thing I do—
javabeans: —right, it’s the stuff of our everyday conversations. We covered a pretty wide range of topics, such as why second leads always get bypassed even when they seem so much better for the heroine, why knives always get blurred out in crime dramas, how variety affects your image, how we feel about the idol influx in dramaland…
girlfriday: …Why there’s no such thing as a 60% ratings king in dramaland anymore, the new broadcast models we’re seeing in cable…
javabeans: The lightning round was a fun wrap-up, where Heads and Gummimochi made us describe dramas in five seconds or less, with no preparation. It was fun, except when I was struck speechless and scrambling for words to string together. “It’s about a girl! Who dresses as a boy! Who falls in love with a boy! Who thinks she’s a boy!”
girlfriday: I think the lightning round should be called the sweating round.
javabeans: Well yeah, ’cause when you say “Gaksital” and my only answer is to well up with emotion and be overwhelmed by my feelings, I’m not sure what to do about that.
girlfriday: I’m pretty sure that still beats my metaphor description of The Moon That Embraces the Sun as: “Two moons and a sun can’t be in the same place at the same time!”
javabeans: I totally left the panel and thought up way better answers and was bummed that I didn’t do a better job.
girlfriday: SO MUCH REGRET. Though really, you made up for all of our flubs by busting out in song: “Almost Paaaaradiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiise~!”
javabeans: It makes for a much better punchline than “RIch asshole abuses poor girl into loving him.”
girlfriday: Why does that description fit so many dramas?
javabeans: That should really be our topic for next year. We’d never run out of things to talk about, that’s for sure.
girlfriday: Should we mention the concert?
javabeans: I feel like everyone went to KCON for the concerts and therefore there is plenty of that already posted online, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to weigh in on it. Even if I don’t have much to say other than that Jung Joon-young’s weirdness is pretty epic (as opposed to being cute-quirky—he’s just weird).
girlfriday: He’s hilariously, genuinely weird. But a rock star who looks like Kang Dong-won can do whatever… even if it’s dance like a muppet.
javabeans: Or a Power Ranger. Oh, also SPICA is my new favorite girl group (…in that I now have one favorite girl group), Jung Yonghwa is a freaking rockstar when he performs (to the extent that everyone else rather fades into the background), and Girls Generation was more or less fine but lacking that choreographic military precision I was expecting of them (they were probably the flattest performance, actually).
girlfriday: I don’t think I’ve ever seen a girl group like SPICA where everyone actually SINGS. They were great.
javabeans: They do exist, but they’re oddly rare for the industry. (Remember SES?) Nowadays you need everybody to be a “concept” member—the face, the dancer, the rapper, the leader, and whatnot.
girlfriday: I loved SES! They were also like a gazillion years ago, sigh.
javabeans: I do think the whole convention was put together much better than last year, with more thought given to the types of panels, and the marketplace and food options, with more things to look at and buy. There’s still stuff that can be improved, of course (…like actually letting people inside in a decent timeframe, rather than making them stay in line for five hours), but I was glad to see general improvements all around.
girlfriday: It was fun for us, so I hope everyone who came had a good time, and thanks again for braving the crowds to fill our tent both times!
javabeans: Yes, we always love meeting you guys in person whenever we get the chance. We were happy to be invited back this year, and we hope you enjoyed it too!
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Tags: conversation post, Odds and Ends
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1 thetofurkey
August 16, 2014 at 8:13 PM
Honestly, your panel was one of my favorite moments of KCON. I had a total fangirl moment. I definitely would not be as enamored with Korean dramas and culture if not for your recapping and commentary. I hit this site daily.
Also, that older lady who requested your autographs was just ADORABLE. You all deserve the recognition.
Thank you so much for taking the time to come out to KCON and speak! It was truly an honor to see you in person!
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Saki
August 17, 2014 at 12:47 AM
Ok so this is off topic, and I'm sorry, but it's been killing me. When will you update the drama ratings? I really tried to be patient lol and I sometimes even check everyday. I haven't watched an airing show since BIG, I think(and I regret not waiting for it to finish first). Now I need to read the rating before I watch a show. I won't ask you to go ad update now, but maybe just advise on when should I check?.. :3 I also think it would be a great idea if you even rate shows you dropped. Or name some, and give reasons to why they weren't tolerable. Excuse me if I'm out of line
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windsun33
August 17, 2014 at 2:36 AM
You can get the Nielsen viewer audience ratings at Koreandrama.org but that only gives viewer ratings, not how good it actually was - some of the worst shows, Like Heirs, rated pretty high.
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Soyjade
August 18, 2014 at 8:21 PM
Hi. In case you are wondering about drama reviews by the viewers, there is a website named mydramalist.com? And it works like goodreads for books. They have dramas/movies from Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Thailand. People review them by episode and its entirety and give it s rating. That's how I ve discovered dramas I wouldn't have considered otherwise. Hope that helps. And also, not sure if it's .com or .net
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dpanda
August 17, 2014 at 2:10 AM
Same here. I loved the dramabeans panel. Can't wait for next year's.
And I got to see Seung-gi!!! SQUEAL
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2 reglest
August 16, 2014 at 8:21 PM
Oh... Well..
Really GF? You don't get Seung Gi?? Really?? But whyyyy??? *cries* ..but but, you saw him in real life didn't you? Because he is soo soooooo much morrrrreeeee handsome in real life... What a pity...
'Kay, bout the panel..hmmm... Would you two mind to make what exactly you're talkin about... I really want tooo heard those
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Rachel
August 16, 2014 at 11:42 PM
Technically it's not their content to distribute, it would belong to MNet/CJ.
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reglest
August 17, 2014 at 6:36 AM
oh no dear, I mean like how they talk about it in their podcast. Like last year :)
I know I'm asking too much, but please granted it if you had recovered already..and you don't need to open the door to fourth nor fifth dimension..
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3 bibapr57
August 16, 2014 at 8:21 PM
Wow, it sounds pretty AWESOME... I'm still mad/sad because I could not afford the airfare to California... (I live in Puerto Rico/ Boston, suffice to say it was upwards $1,500.... plus hotel, spending money and meals) It seems that in general things were better than last year, I've been reading posts and everybody I've read said the same thing about SNSD, which is sad because you expect them to be a bit livelier and well put together...
I'm sad That Girlfriday did not get to see SeungGi Oppa, because I know how you feel and I was waiting to hear your impressions about the panel and him.
In general it sounds like you guys could have some fun and do what you love, which is talking about dramas. Can you guys post pictures, so I can live vicariously through you?? THANKS!
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pogo
August 17, 2014 at 1:13 AM
yeah SNSD wasn't selling it as hard as they usually do, and then once they struck their ending pose I realised there were only 8 of them instead of the usual 9.
I guess that explains why the choreography kind of felt like there was a hole in the stage.
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JoyBells
August 17, 2014 at 3:12 AM
Which member was missing?
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Mayisoon
August 17, 2014 at 5:45 AM
Soo young
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4 korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 8:27 PM
Loved meeting you guys, and yes, Sean Richard was kind of like a rock star, especially since he let me take a picture with him! Believe me, I think you had it MUCH better sitting in the shade of the tent rather than waiting in the broiling pan for Lee Seungi. In retrospect, I think I would have preferred to attend your second panel, which sounds like it was really fun, instead of seeing Mr. Lee for a mere 5 seconds.
Also agree totally with your assessment of the Sunday concert - loved Spica and am now gaga over Yonghwa. I was so mesmerized by his charisma on stage - something we definitely don't see in dramas! Although I have to say you were kinder in your assessment of Girls Generation than I was.
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ilikemangos
August 16, 2014 at 9:26 PM
Yong Hwa knows how to work the crowd like no other, but i wish he was able to translate some of that charisma to the screen! if only.
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pogo
August 17, 2014 at 1:14 AM
yeah I wish Korea would realise that musicians don't have to act.
I mean, Beyonce can't act for nuts either and thankfully gave up trying but it doesn't take away from her stature as a musician.
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panshel
August 17, 2014 at 4:43 PM
But Korea doesn't want musicians to act neither, especially idols. It's music companies who keep sticking them in dramas and movies and stealing roles from real actors and actresses.
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mia
August 17, 2014 at 2:17 AM
The cnblue performance was great! They sang live but did not play the instruments live! The constraints of korean music show i guess? You guys should try to see cnblue in one of their concerts, yonghwa and the boys are super great live and their energy is unmatched. For some reason yonghwa holds back his performances when its going to be broadcasted on national tv, but gives his all during concerts. I have seen them on both occasion and i love them to death!
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5 hipployta
August 16, 2014 at 8:31 PM
5 hours...AGAIN?! So glad I skipped this year even though it meant missing Vixx (would have been my 3rd time seeing them...Leo!) and not getting to see Jessica or Sunny.
I'm going to Korea next week anyway
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 8:33 PM
Many people missed Vixx's meet and greet because they were still in line, if that makes you feel any better!
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danydanybobany
August 16, 2014 at 9:52 PM
yeah, I won the artist engagement thing or something for vixx, but it was at 11:00 and I entered at 12:30.
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6 MO
August 16, 2014 at 8:34 PM
I still wonder how you guys, Heads, and Gumminlooked like.
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 9:21 PM
They looked great!
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oozzeee
August 16, 2014 at 9:37 PM
Heads and Gummi have tweeted a picture of Sean Richard's and his "posse" so you might want to check it out. They're all there. I just am not sure who gummi and who is heads from the pic.
just search for Headsno2 twitter on google... :)
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Sam
August 17, 2014 at 8:37 AM
Thank you for that! :D Feel like a total stalker, but I immediately went to follow LOL
Have no clue who is who though :/
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7 Evelia
August 16, 2014 at 8:39 PM
My favorite groups from the concerts were SPICA and CNBLUE.
I was at the ViKi panel and I thought it was interesting to learn more about product placement in a drama.
I thought it was a better time, but still the waiting in line was too much. I stayed almost three hours waiting and just when I thought I was in, there was another line for checking the bags. She I got in I was tired. I managed to see both Lee Seung Gi when he passed by and said hi. He came out of a blue car and he was wearing a blue suit. I also saw Le Seo Jin's when they were doing the raffle to take a photo with him. Though not a lot of people in the crow knew who he was.
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 9:20 PM
It would have been great if they did a poll to see how many people at the panel were regular readers/commenters on here. I think there were a lot more of us there than we knew!
And I agree - line after line. And I made the mistake of going to get something to eat and then having to get in line again to get back over to the panels. When they told me I needed to wait in another line for my goody bag, I was over it!
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Chaerin
August 17, 2014 at 4:13 AM
I didn't even know where to get the goodie bag so i didn't bother with it til later in the afternoon. I wanted that lightstick! KCON is just one perpetual line, lol.
I was at the Seung Gi fansign watching him sign things for other people (...) and then after that we left the area and wandered into the crowd waiting for him at the CJ booth so we saw him there as well. I managed to see him 3 times that weekend and each time, he said a couple of words and then stood there for a few minutes then left, lol. He must've been really busy. Probably wanted to get back to the hotel and hang out with Yoona too, lol
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korazylady
August 17, 2014 at 6:04 PM
I didn't see you at the signing! Were you standing in line for the 2-1/2 hours? I was against the wall waiting, then I was on the righthand side so had the guard in front of my the whole time
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Chaerin
August 18, 2014 at 4:40 AM
I got there late because I went to the first half of the Dramabeans panel, so i just stood to the back and zoomed in with my camera to take photos. I should've just watched the whole DB panel and come after that, it would've been exactly the same view.
korazylady
August 17, 2014 at 6:20 PM
BTW, I did go back and get my goody bag late in the day. The light stick was totally worth it, lol
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jomo143
August 17, 2014 at 2:34 PM
That happened to me. I was so pissed.
We got our goodie bag Sunday when the lines were gone.
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8 Kay
August 16, 2014 at 8:40 PM
So sad I missed this, even sadder I was in LA exactly 3 weeks ago and could not extend my trip for this - le sigh. One day!
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9 panshel
August 16, 2014 at 8:51 PM
Found the lightning round on YouTube! Seems like a ton of fun.
http://youtu.be/EsamXM1iB1k
Jung Joon Young and Rap Monster's attempts at dancing is the cutest, most embarassing thing I've ever seen. Just look at them!
https://38.media.tumblr.com/2d524ba408213ad9061baf8dd5a934db/tumblr_naaj0wMGf81s0j7iyo1_500.gif
I will never forgive Mnet for completely editing out Spica from M! Countdown. What was the point of inviting them if you're not going to air their performances?
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katlyn
August 17, 2014 at 12:41 AM
Thanks so much for sharing! I would've loved to have seen this panel alas I reside in Australia.
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Aigoooo
August 17, 2014 at 1:39 AM
Okay, I was watching Javabeans in that panel scene and she immediately reminded me of Kim Hee Ae for some reason. She's got this aura of elegance around her. Maybe it's the hair. lol
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kumi
August 17, 2014 at 12:45 PM
They made the airing de-spicable. :)
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10 Cocoboo
August 16, 2014 at 9:15 PM
Aw, Kcon sounded like a lot of fun! Wish I could've been there.
I'm glad SPICA left a good impression on you two.
They're one of my new faves too. I hope they become more popular. ^^
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11 Afterrain
August 16, 2014 at 9:24 PM
You saw JoonYoung??? PaboYoung? *envy *envy
Yeah, he's one quirky weird odd alieanlike boy, and I think that's what makes him special and so interesting. He always said the funniest things on his interview. Like he's the ultimate peterpan who will never grow old and just likes to play and make jokes. And he's great in 1n2d.
I rather see him than boybands or girlbands lately. Coz there's just too many of them, its impossible to keep track. *but of course BigBang got a special place in my heart.
Mannnn...its sad you don't get to see SeungGi. T_T I love SeungGi.
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 10:48 PM
I was at JungJoon's audience thing and he actually took the time to answer questions in very good English, although it was strange to hear this deep voice with a British accent come out of him. Something about the way he moved his skinny little body during the concert reminded me of a young Mick Jaggar. He is kind of a weird dude, tho, not much different than the impression I got from him on We Got Married. Talented, but weird, lol
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kara
August 16, 2014 at 11:15 PM
He's definitely 4D. It's so entertaining.
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damianna
August 16, 2014 at 11:42 PM
On weekly idol where defcon is one of the host, he said 'some idols are 4d, this guy (joon young) is crazy!'.
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Afterrain
August 17, 2014 at 4:34 AM
I watched JoonYoung interview in youtube.
On the red carpet, he kept answering with "I'm sleepy"...."what? I'm so sleepy" lol. He's hilarious.
And on his other interview, he also answered in english. His answers are epic, like always. Lol. And he even bragged about how he's gonna dance and his dancing are more awesome than boybands.
I've watched his MJ cover, and my reaction was BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA. That guy is just flat out crazy, and I love him.
Anyway, does anyone knows what's his fans club is called? Or he doesn't have one yet?
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12 pigtookie
August 16, 2014 at 9:29 PM
Aww if only you could've hosted a panel with Lee Seung Gi and Lee Seo Jin as guests!!! If you could speak coherently, that is.
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 10:38 PM
Yes, but apparently they couldn't speak English, at least not well enough to converse. You can watch interviews with them from Kcon on Viki.
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Gg
August 17, 2014 at 7:25 AM
I thought seojin's English is actually pretty good from GOF? And he graduated from nyu too..
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korazylady
August 17, 2014 at 6:07 PM
I know. I was expecting him to talk at the signing, but he didn't say anything. He didn't on the Viki interview, either
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13 reeyah
August 16, 2014 at 9:39 PM
Are there online videos of the dramabeans panel? It sounds like you had so much fun.
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14 Jen
August 16, 2014 at 9:40 PM
Aww, is there a video of the panel anywhere? I really want to watch it.
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15 danydanybobany
August 16, 2014 at 9:48 PM
I loved your panels!! You always say interesting things. Sean Richard was great too and really handsome.
The sunday panel was awesome too and the five seconds game should be a recurring thing, maybe in the podcast.
And I met javabeans and girlfriday! I'm still embarrassed because I was trying to say how much i love this blog and the things they write and my English started to fail me (its not my first language) and I started to ramble, but they are relly really nice, smiling to us when we ask for pictures and being like they sound, intelligent and funny.
I was in the sunday concert too and CNBLUE has the energy. Jung Yonghwa, maybe I dont like you much when you act but you rock when you sing. Jung Joon-young, awww it's all i have to say, he is weird and cute and has a great voice. I really liked BTS. I bought "Boy in Luv" after the concert. I'm obsessed with the choreography in that video. I liked SPICA and Girls Generation were ok. Now that you mention I was expecting more choreography or something but they were, meh, good.
I was able to see Lee Seo-jin because he gave a price or something. He looks skinny but I loved his voice.
All in all, I really liked KCon, the sunday more than the saturday, but maybe because on Saturday I was for 3 and a half hours in the line. I finally eat some Korean food, I ate bread an tea from Tous le Jours (kim soo hyun´s face everywhere! I have a fan with his image), i bought an humidifier (just because it looked cool). Its great to see so many people from different and far places all reunites for Korean pop, dramas, food, even videogames (there was a league of legends thing, i saw it from the outside because it was always packed). Sorry for the long post but this is the place I can talk about the convention without explaining first.
On a final note, girlfriday´s hair is beautiful. Or maybe she knows how to move it because from my place it looked like it was from the shampoo hair comercials.
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pogo
August 17, 2014 at 12:29 AM
CNBlue is a pretty great band, really. Too bad we mostly know Jung Yonghwa as a not-so-great idol actor and not the actually talented musician he is.
(rather fond of the cute drummer too. Wasn't he in Heirs?)
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maldita
August 17, 2014 at 2:53 AM
Yup! Their drummer is Kang Minhyuk aka Bona's Chanyoung. :)
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anotheraddict
August 17, 2014 at 5:51 PM
LOL @ the fact that you bought a humidifier because it looked cool. (That, and the little voice in your subconscious that was saying "189 k-dramas cant be wrong~ humidifiers must promote healing!)
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korazylady
August 17, 2014 at 6:08 PM
Too bad they weren't selling its constant companion, the IV hookup ;)
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16 Ka
August 16, 2014 at 10:38 PM
You ladies missed seeing Seung Gi?
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10152201551115563&set=vb.614925562&type=3&theater
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korazylady
August 16, 2014 at 11:13 PM
Thanks for sharing! If I had known where to find him there, I wouldn't have waited over 2-1/2hours to try and see him at his audience greet.
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17 damianna
August 16, 2014 at 10:39 PM
Jung joon young's weirdness is epic. Crazy version of MJ. Youtube is my friend to stalk kcon. I wish I could be there. Gonna find videos of you guys next.
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18 A
August 16, 2014 at 11:11 PM
Wow KCON sounded amazingggg. I wish I could have been there :C
Also are you guys going to put up pictures? :D You really should!
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19 coffeenlucia
August 17, 2014 at 12:25 AM
OMIGOSH yes SPICA!!! They're my absolute FAVS. I can just go on and on describing their awesome acapellas and vocal abilities. They've worked so hard, I want them to gain more recognition :'( Hopefully after KCON it did wonders for their fanbase. All of them are adorbs, and the only kpop reality show I ever finished watching was theirs. ^-^
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20 pogo
August 17, 2014 at 12:26 AM
aw I wish I could get myself to a Kcon one day, they sound like so much fun!
And I was cackling all through the video of the 5 second summary portion of your panel that panshel linked. Hope you guys have better luck with Lee Seung-gi next time, he sounds pretty perfect. No wonder Korea loves him so much...
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21 windsun33
August 17, 2014 at 2:49 AM
If this had been mostly a k-drama event I may have gone, but I am not much into k-pop with a very few exceptions. After seeing 50 different girls groups that are almost totally indistinguishable in both choreograph and singing I pretty much gave up on it.
I was looking into the early history of trot and kpop early today, and came across a couple of interesting articles, such as:
"..Even in the conservative Korea of the 1970s, everything about Kim Chu-Ja was sexy. Her sultry, breathy voice charged Shin Joong-Hyeon's songs with implied debauchery. Unlike the emaciated female celebrities that would come to dominate the scene for the next 20 years, Kim Chu-Ja had plenty on her body that she was not afraid to show off in her dances. She wore tight jeans or mini skirts, with cleavage-boasting tops to boot. In short, Kim Chu-Ja was Korea's first female pop star who overtly used her sex appeal.
That is not to say that Kim Chu-Ja was no greater than the cheap pretty dolls that litter the Korean pop music scene today. Ultimately, it was her undeniable musical talent that made her the icon of the decade. But awakening the raw animal spirit that still animates Korean pop music to this day was Kim's defining achievement. If you got into K-pop because of KARA's butt dance, you have Kim Chu-Ja to thank..."
http://askakorean.blogspot.com/2012/01/50-most-influential-k-pop-artists-22.html
And you might want to check out the videos on YouTube about her also - she has a voice that puts 99% of the current k-pop singers to shame, even considering some of the bad recordings. Search for "Mix - Kim Choo Ja 김추자 거짓말이야"
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windsun33
August 17, 2014 at 3:00 AM
Forgot this: ".. Until Kim Chu-Ja, pop music in Korea featuring a woman was an ossified formula of the Japanese-influenced trot music sung in high pitch by a woman who was standing still, like a plastic mannequin with a voice box..."
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22 Viki
August 17, 2014 at 2:55 AM
Doh, I missed the panel again! Couldn't find the tent and didn't really look on the 2nd day 'cuz it was so HOT. I hope someone recorded it...
Lol, you guys and my mom thought the same. I got free tickets for her for both days and being someone who knows no K-Pop, she was wondering why GG have so many cheers 'cuz she thought they didn't dance that well out of all the groups haha. She did mention how she thinks Bohyung from SPICA is pretty though...::mission acoomplished::
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korazylady
August 17, 2014 at 6:11 PM
Did she also mention that GG all sound like Minnie Mouse when they talk? I was so underimpressed by them
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23 samsooki
August 17, 2014 at 6:27 AM
Aww. I didn't get my hug.
That's okay, next year I'll go and I'll get hugs and other things.
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24 Sam
August 17, 2014 at 8:49 AM
So glad that SPICA is getting so much love and recognition for their talent. They're my favourite girl group after BEG.
JJY is just awesome.
Once again bummed because I live in a completely different country and missed, what sounds like, a great weekend. LA gets all the good stuff :(
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jomo143
August 17, 2014 at 2:31 PM
SPICA! ♥♥♥
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25 karecity
August 17, 2014 at 11:27 AM
Yay for Spica love!
Recommend yall to check out Mamamoo and Kiss&Cry, two really talented 4 member girl groups that debuted this year and are absolutely FANTASTIC.
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panshel
August 17, 2014 at 5:14 PM
When I read "I don’t think I’ve ever seen a girl group like SPICA where everyone actually SINGS," I immediately thought of Mamamoo. They are fantastic. Rookies barely out of debut already featured on an OST. I love their Marriage Not Dating OST track.
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26 Z
August 17, 2014 at 1:26 PM
NPR did a little blurb on KCON on Monday and I was so excited... that is, until they mentioned Music, Dancing Video Games and all things Hallyu EXCEPT dramas! So disappointing! Anyway, glad you guys had fun.
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27 Sara
August 17, 2014 at 1:52 PM
I am so sorry I missed your panels! I was there but since this was my first KCon, I was completely overwhelmed with everything. I hope that next time I will be able to attend your panels and meet you in person!
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28 ana
August 17, 2014 at 2:10 PM
Speaking of SES, I was surprised to find out that they only lasted 5 years, so did H.O.T. I always thought 1st gen groups lasted longer than that. I keep having that Shinhwa mentality.
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panshel
August 17, 2014 at 5:48 PM
I thought that was attributed to the k-pop 5-year curse. A lot of groups broke up or lost members within their first five years (SS501, TVXQ, Super Junior, Exo).
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maldita
August 18, 2014 at 8:08 AM
It's because the 1st gen groups all had contracts that lasted only 5 years. Only Shinhwa and Fly To The Sky bothered to keep going after their 5 years were up. 3 members of H.O.T left, SES chose to stop group activities, Hyori went solo from FinKL, Yoon Kyesang left g.o.d, and Sechs Kies only lasted 3 years.
Hence why people called it the "5 year curse." Their contracts were up and they all chose different ways to break their groups.
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29 jomo143
August 17, 2014 at 2:30 PM
LINES, LINES and MORE LINES - full of very nice people.
That is how KCON was the first day since they opened late Saturday morning. Fortunately, Korazy Lady grabbed my daughter and me, and we were able to sweat and burn together for 5 and 1/2 hours. Somehow, looking back it didn't feel that long. It was disappointing, though, that we missed all the panels - including viki's and Koala's.
It was even more frustrating that all that was totally not necessary. Sunday's earlier opening made the line issue disappear.
We hung out with lovely folks who were with their lovely friends and family members. It was touching to see other mother/daughter teams waiting in line from all over the place.
My daughter and I got to attend Sunday's DB panel - which was brilliant. She is a non-kpop fan and non-drama fan - commented how intelligent the discussion was and how funny Gummi, Heads, JB and GF are. I am glad someone linked the lightning round. That was hilarious.
Sunday's concert was AWESOME and made the wait in line totally worth it. SPICA has 2 new fans in our family. While we drove around sunny California the week after KCON, we listened to everything these amazing voices recorded. CNBlue put on a high energy and fun performance, too. After listening to songs like Wetoria for years, my heart was racing to hear it finally in person.
For the record, GG underwhelmed, especially after hearing SPICA. Skinny singing Kang Dong Won was fun but his back-up band stood there like they were paintings, not actual performing musicians. It was eerie. BTS? Cute but so much the same as every other young male pop group.
I'd go again if I had free flights again. It was fun and with better planning by the hosts, it would have been less frustrating.
PS Park at the museum which had underground lots. We drove around for about an hour before figuring that out.
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anotheraddict
August 17, 2014 at 6:09 PM
Coming from across the country but then missing DB's and Koala's panels because you had to stand in line for 5 and 1/2 hours just to get in totally SUCKS! I feel so sorry for you! Thank goodness you had KL and the other wonderful k-peeps to keep you company, but that shouldn't have happened after last year's similar problems. I'm glad you had a good time anyway and that your daughter liked SPICA.
I was super disappointed that I wasn't able to go, especially when I found out that Gummi, Heads, Koala, you, and CNBlue were gonna be there. I'm hoping I can go next year. Thanks for the parking tip!
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30 DeeDee Wakabayashi
August 17, 2014 at 2:49 PM
So did anyone see Kim Ji Suk wandering around? I saw him in the VIP room along with Lee Seung Gi. I thought it was him but wasn't sure until I saw pics from the red carpet on the site saying it was him! He was with an actress that I've never seen in anything. I'm so bummed...he was sitting 5ft from me and I didn't get to appreciate it!! Both of them look VERY different off camera!!
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jomo143
August 17, 2014 at 6:05 PM
Someone spotted him at one of the concerts, too.
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31 dustdevil
August 17, 2014 at 7:26 PM
It was great to see the DB Team again this year! I had such an amazing experience last year, that I wasn't sure if everything would stand up to my memories, but both of the panels this time were even better. Kudos to dramabeans and girlfriday for the insight (loved the whole PPL discussion) and to headsno2 and gummimochi for stellar moderating.
My unexpected celebrity sighting was almost walking through Yoo In Na shooting some sort of promo/tv show thing in the Bibigo area. She and the other hostess were sampling the food with these "ooh it's so delicious" faces, and the second they yelled cut, they couldn't get the food away from their faces fast enough. It was sort of mind-blowing to see someone I've seen in so many dramas up close--she is tiny.
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32 salt n' pepper
August 17, 2014 at 10:43 PM
I can't express how happy I am to see SPICA mentioned here and even more so to see a lot of you guys become new fans. Going to Kcon was a very good move for them. They are such good singers and it's a shame how under appreciated they are in Korea.
I like Girls' Generation (a lot, in fact) but they can't hold a candle to SPICA when it comes to vocals. :P
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kaye
August 18, 2014 at 8:21 AM
If anyone still doubts how good their vocals are, check this cover of It's Raining Men that SPICA did: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ku-8ifqmCVQ :)
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33 cocoonedsoul
August 18, 2014 at 4:33 AM
omg i want to play that game at parties now.
name a drama and see who comes up with the best one-liner description.
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