You won me over, Kim Hyun Joong.

Although, admittedly, it wasn't that hard.

It takes a pretty catch beat to make me pay attention, though. Said catchy beat has been the go-to on my ipod for the last week:

And then tonight (in avoidance of homework), I invested a little more time. All it took was one smiley adorable song and I'm a bonified Kim Hyun Joong fangirl. (It also has a catchy beat.)

I didn't take too much notice before, because the other video I had seen of his was Breakdown, which just frustrated me since the entire thing seemed to be leading up to a dance fight (Pop! Hit it! Cool! Yeah!), but the dance fight never appeared. I left the video disgruntled and angry, forgetting about him until Lucky Guy got stuck in my head. He's in SS501 as well - apparently all their members get to go out and do solo stuff, which is neat - but I haven't taken the time yet to really suss out all the different members of that group, although I did know he was one of the more prominent(ly pretty) members.

Kim Hyun Joong is borderline too-perfect looking. He's got the Siwon-esque asian-ken-doll thing going on a bit, but somehow his silly hair and grin makes me not discredit his perfection the way I do for Siwon. He is just crazy-gorgeous, though. An almost unbelievable blend of pretty-boy kpop idol and some actual masculinity. See example here (start at 4:00 for the extra hotness):

The top comments on this video are pretty indicative of his vast appeal (the second one being my favorite):

"When he ripped that shirt open I think he ripped open my heart as well! I mean WOW! O.O"

"Very nicely done, the work is amazing. He must have to hide out from all his fans trying to rape/marry him. The poor dear."

And all this Kim Hyun Joong love is probably going to spurn me into actually watching the entirety of Boys Over Flowers. I started it once, but got bored/annoyed with it quickly (I hadn't learned to appreciate Lee Min Ho the way I do now (I know, I know.... how can anyone NOT appreciate Lee Min Ho - but I was really distracted/un-attracted to the perm)), but now that I have TWO lovely korean idols to swoon at.... Yeah. I think I'll be able to stick it out this time until the romantic plot finally takes hold. Hurrah for the imminent arrival of Christmas break!

Long story short - this Thanksgiving day, one of the MANY things I'm thankful for?

Kim Hyun Joong. And his sassy smiley ways. :D

P.S. Oh, what's that? You (I) want a couple more pictures of him? Preferably with your (my) favorite korean actress? DONE.

Pout with your top lip.

Oh, you can't?

Sungmin can:

There are other things that Sungmin can do, as well:

1) Sungmin can twirl sticks.

2) Sungmin can be incredibly bendy. (0:24)

3) Sungmin can be incredibly cute.

4) Sungmin can be annoyingling incredibly cute.

5) Sungmin can dish it. (4:17)

6) Sungmin can be lady-sexy. (Well, kinda.)

7) Sungmin can be dude-sexy. (Well, kinda.)

Long story short: I heart Sungmin.

Korean Johnny Drama-Gold

I'm thanking myself right about now for making this silly blog. Because I was seriously lamenting the fact that I had no one to tell this to, and no forum I really wanted to post this in, and then I remember THE BLOG! ^_^

So I've returned to kdrama world. (yay!) I watched Heartstrings aka You've Fallen For Me last week (it was pretty mushy and ridiculous, but not horrific. The plot didn't do much, but I liked the characters enough to hang out - plus I liked getting to see Park Shin Hye not pretending to be a nun/boy-band-member). Then I decided to give the Hong sisters another shot (everyone gives them rave reviews, but they're a little iffy for me.... I loved My Girlfriend is a Gumiho once I got into it, but You're Beautiful was frustratingly addictive (but again, I had to really work to get into it, and I was constantly annoyed/distracted by how NOT boyish Park Shin Hye was - I've been thoroughly spoiled by Coffee Prince and Sungkyunkwan Scandal).

(These are both supposed to be girls dressed as boys. and this is just the face shot. If I had found a better full body shot, this would be an even more pronounced inferiority, as Park Shin Hye is one of the few Korean actresses out there who's actually got some T&A.)

I now get why the Hong sisters have the reputation they've got, and I finally think it's deserved. The Greatest Love is amazing. And it made me reassess their other dramas and realize that even when I was annoyed with something, it was with the actors or the acting, usually, not the dialogue or plot. I think the single greatest thing the Hong sisters have going for them is the ability to write a storyline that KEEPS MOVING. So many kdramas seem to pick one one problem and then beat. it. to. death. for 16+ episodes. With sisters' dramas, I never have any idea what's going to happen, and that's partially because things happen so quickly. (Which is awesome. They don't beat anything to death, except occasionally some second-male-lead angst, which is okay by me - there's got to be something out there to make you not like that second male lead so much.)

Anyway, I digress. The point of this post was actually just to mention that the reason I loved the main male lead in The Greatest Love, Dok Go Jin (Cha Seung Won), in all his quirkiness is that he is TOTALLY Korean Johnny Drama (if Johnny Drama were actually a successful actor). Same self-centered, egotistical dorkiness, complete with overacting and over re-acting. Actually, Dok Go Jin is more Johnny Drama + Ari Gold. (Seems impossible, right? Watch the clips. You'll agree, I swear.)

Johnny Drama is by far my favorite character on Entourage (took me 5 seasons to realize it, though). I think I really appreciate actors who can make ridiculous characters totally plausible. And I thank the Hong sisters for writing such a wackadoo character, and the director/producers for actually finding an actor who could pull it off, complete with some of the most ridiculous facial expressions I've ever seen broadcast. :D

Bad xeroxing skills will get you nowhere, Kpop.

TOP is amazing. Like, arguably the hottest/sexiest/deepest-voiced rapper in Korea (and the world at large), yes? Yes.

You know who else can be hot/sexy Korean rappers?

DUDES WHO DON'T LOOK AND SOUND LIKE TOP.

Block B has one of them. And while I know TKPA is totally in favor of P.O., I just have a hard time not seeing him as TOP.2 - which is sad, frustrating, and not-not-not the same. Even more frustrating, there's now a new group - "Taken" that has not one, but TWO TOP wannabes. The blonde one isn't too TOPish, but the first time I saw this video that's how it really struck me. (The darker haired one is seriously TOP.3.)

I appreciate the ways that Korean groups are able to spot successful trends and then remix/modify them to continue that success, but I think literally copying people/personas is going a little too far. I'm hoping it's just a rookie-group thing, and once they get a couple of songs under their belt they'll find let their agencies will let their members showcase their own personalities and styles, instead of already proven ones (I also thought the other main rapper in Block B was a pretty obvious GD knock off).

And the thing is, I don't think this is bad for TOP. Bitch, please. Ain't nobody better than TOP, and we know it, and he knows it.

I do think this is bad for Block B, Taken, and any other new rookie groups who have jumped on the TOP Rapper train, because it's just distracting and disappointing me as a potential fan. :(

It's also solidifying why I'm a fan of B1A4. They've got a crazy-low voiced rapper (Baro), who looks NOTHING like TOP. Huzzah!