I'm Always Chasing Rainbows

Soompi Rainbow Promotion

   So about two months ago, Soompi offered up this awesome deal for Rainbow’s “Rainbow Syndrome Pt. II” CD- you could get the album autographed by all seven members and a set of members photos, all for only 21.99!! After missing out on Dal Shabet’s “Be Ambitious” autographed promo, I was determined to make sure I got my hands on THIS one! 
   Rushing to the Checkout Page, I immediately sent my order in, and all I had to do was wait for the promotions to end (the Special was set to end when they had gotten orders for 1000 copies)... or so I thought!
  After about three weeks, I remembered the Rainbow CD order, and wondered if the CD had shipped yet. Going on the Soompi site, I was informed that my order was still in “processed” status, leaving me to wonder if the promotion was still going on! Then I got this message from Soompi:

Oh Noes!!! If the girls were busy, then who KNOWS when ALL SEVEN girls would get around to signing ONE THOUSAND copies of their album! So you can guess how RELIEVED I was to receive THIS message last week:

Well, THAT was a relief, and JUST TODAY, I’m finally HAPPY to say that my autographed copy of Rainbow Syndrome Part Two IS HERE!!!

Wheee...! Rainbow Autographed CD

Haha, I can tell by their writing that this autograph session was probably a major pain-in-the-butt for the girls to work into their hectic schedules (strangely, the signatures hardest to make out are the ones I wanted most- Woori, Jaekyung and SeungAh) but I’m still so stoked to have ‘em- and the bonus photos are BEAUTIFUL! Even though I now have TWO copies of Rainbow Syndrome II  (since I’d already bought a copy when it first came out), it was so inexpensive that it was worth every penny, despite all the delay and such! 

Oh NO- I’ve just gotten a message from YESASIA informing me that the Autographed SPICA promotion I ordered is going to be delayed, too! OMO, here we go, back to the waiting game once AGAIN, LOL!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

My Latest K-Obsession: APink!!

My Latest Fave Group: APink!!

  YES, true believers, as you’ve probably predicted, I’ve FINALLY become a bonafide fan of APINK!!! And as you may have guessed, it all started with that silly clip of Eunji and Naeun dancing with Gary on Running Man. Sure, it was silly, but BOY was that dance move freaking CUTE!!!   As you may recall, after watching that clip over and OVER again, I downloaded some live performances of NoNoNo, and was SO blown away by it, I wanted to explore MORE about the girls, and I did it with the help of their THREE appearances on the show “Weekly Idol”…Now it was time to really get to know the girls!!

 The first episode I watched was the recent July Appearance they did to promote “NoNoNo” (this past July) and it was here that I got to "meet" the girls for the first time. learning each of the members and their characteristics...at this point, the two that really stood out for me was Namjoo and Bomi (the latter who I just fell in love with, she’s so candid and GOOFY!!!) but I have to say the others still looked “the same” to me.

Hilarious Bomi wi NaEun sharing a laugh

 Next I watched an earlier episode from May of 2012 where they were promoting “Hush”, this time Eunji was too busy so didn’t come, but it was SUCH a fun episode with lots of games and eating (Bomi and Chorong polishing off a plate of Chicken Feet and Namjoo eating 4 slices of pizza at once!!), I started loving the girls even more-

Eating, Eating and More Eating

Adorable Maknae HaYoung

 This time I got to know Hayoung better (she reminded me of a younger and more adorable Gyuri of KARA), and the way I could tell Yoo Kyung was that she reminded me of ChoA from Crayon Pop. Chorong was still kind of hard to recognize (as yet) though I realized she kinda reminded me of Japanese actress Aimi Satsukawa a bit. 
It was only when I watched their earliest (and first) appearance on Weekly Idol (from January of 2012 when they were promoting “My My”) that I started beginning to tell all the girls apart and recognized their specific "variety show" characteristics:  Chorong: The sensible and thoughtful leader, Eunji: The cool tomboyish chick, Bomi and Namjoo: The fun, energetic and comedic girls,  Yookyung: Shy and quiet, Naeun: the girlish "princess" type, and Hayoung: The sweet and cooperative maknae!

Yep, I was really starting to love these girls and as I began learning their back catalog of music, I wanted to see MVs and Live perfs of their older songs and so went onto the good old reliable Jpopsuki Tracker site (whod’ve ever thunk back when I was first using that site to download Arashi and  Morning Musume videos that it would be my main site to get K-pop as well, LOL) and began getting old perfs of songs like “I Don’t Know”, “Wishlist”, “My My”, “BuBiBu” and HUSH, as well as some absolutely KILLER perfs of “NoNoNo”!

Man, there's just something about watching cute girls performing catchy songs dressed in pretty outfits that just DOES it for me, and though I've mentioned it before, it MUST be said again how awesome EUNJI is- not only as the girl with the most KILLIN' voice ever, but easily one of the most sultry femme fatales out there! Eunji is the first to say that she doesn't think of herself as sexy, but watching THESE perfs at least, not only IS she sexy, ya know DARN WELL that SHE knows it, TOO!!!

"Yes, I know I'm sexy, but don't tell anyone...it's a secret!"

 After I exhausted those episodes and clips, watching them over and over, I needed MORE, so I knew it was finally time to GET SERIOUS and start watching those abundant episodes of “APINK NEWS” that are ALL OVER Youtube, and more importantly, ALL SUBTITLED! I dove in and right away began LOVING the show, and as usual when watching a reality show following a group, got to know them intimately, their personalities and quirks through their photoshoot sessions and MV filming...

...Their  outdoor activities and MT training...

(Where they're usually out doing challenges for food!)

...and ESPECIALLY the moments where they're just having FUN being themselves-like EunJi and Bomi hanging Chorong upside down on Exercise equipment, LOL! Things like this make me love them even more!

By episode 5, I really and truly felt like I “knew” them and could now REALLY tell each other apart, even Chorong! By the time they began covering their promotions for Seven Springs of APink on the show, I was TOTALLY gone for them, and NEEDED to have their stuff! I went online and ordered not only Seven Springs of APink, but also Une Annee, AND Snow Pink!!!! 

  As of right now I’m taking it slow and am trying to watch a couple of episodes a night, though of course there are some days I have to watch more, it's so much FUN! Just about the only drawback I can see watching these old episodes of Apink News is, of course, that besides the other members, I’m ALSO getting to know and love YooKyung as well, and feel rather sad knowing she'll leave/get forced out of Apink. Really bittersweet watching her with all the girls trying so hard to make it and knowing that she’d be dropped in only another year. I have to keep telling myself its for the best since she was never comfortable singing and only wanted to dance. Still so sad, actually...they seemed at their best when they were all seven of them!

Happy Days with Eunji and YooKyung

But anyway, so YEAH, I’m TOTALLY digging Apink right now, really love the main three: Eunji, Bomi, Namjoo (they’re so energetic and fun!) and I think Hayoung’s a Babe... (especially back when she had black hair, not a real big fan of her blonde look…omo, wait, she was only 16? Aigoo!) Chorong is cute as the mumbling leader (really started loving her towards the end of season one) and Naeun is super pretty (man, in the “U You” video, she looks just KILLER)... As I still have ways to go in getting to know ALL of the girls better, you can expect my opinions and rankings of them to grow more and more in the coming weeks!!!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

She Sees Dead People: Gong Hyo Jin in "Master's Sun"

"He's Right Behind Me, Isn't He?" Gong HyoJin in Master's Sun

 While I wait for the final episode of Hanzawa Naoki to get translated, I've been biding my time taking a turn for the fanciful with the sweet, funny and at times heartbreaking K-drama "Master's Sun"(Jugun-ui Taeyang), the story of a young woman who, yes, sees dead people, and ends up spending most of her time, credibility and sanity trying to help them right wrongs that have kept them on this mortal plane.

Gong HyoJin and So Ji Sub in Master's Sun

Tae Gong Shil has somehow acquired spiritual visions from some as-yet-unexplained  earlier accident, and since then has been haunted by hoards of ethereal stalkers of sorts, all wanting her to do things for her day and night, to the point where she simply cannot get away from them. One day she comes across a rich president named Jong-Woon whom she finds that somehow, when she is touching him, manages to keep the ghosts at bay. Only problem is, he's a selfish and money-hungry person who sees Gong Shil as nothing more than an eccentric nut who seems to keep hanging around no matter how much he dissuades her!

Gong HyoJin as Tae Gong Shil

So JiSub as Joo JoongWon

The drama's got a lot of original ideas going for it already, but the main draw watching this show for me was the cute antics of adorable Gong Hyo Jin, whom I last saw as the bride of Lee Kwang Soo in a hilarious romantic-comedy themed episode of Running Man months ago- she is SO DARN adorable in this show, I could watch it just for her expressions and quirks alone! Luckily, there'a whole lot of other reasons to keep tuning into this one and it already looks like it's shaping up nicely!!!
Below: the cutest single scene in episode one where someone wakes up Gong Shil and tells her that she looked just like a cat sleeping in the sun...

 AHAHAHA, Too Cute!!! 
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Some K-Pop Goodness In The Mail

Apink Secret Garden CD, SNSD's Galaxy Supernova Single, Japan Tour DVD 

Another banner day here as not only did my new Girls Generation releases come in (the new Japanese Single “Galaxy Supernova/Do The Catwalk” and the Japan Concert Tour DVD), the first CD of my new K-Pop Faves APINK  also came in!!! So Stoked!
  About a month or two ago, Soompi had a special on the new Apink album “Secret Garden” which not only came with a bonus photocard, but came autographed by all six members! Well, I was a bit too late to get it myself, but I DID manage to find someone selling theirs, (albeit at a slight markup, but that’s what I get for coming so late to the party!) and as I’m right now falling so much in love with these girls I couldn’t be happier!

Apink Autographed CD with HQ Photo and Namjoo Trading Card!

Now, onto the MAIN prize here, the Girls Generation Girls and Peace Japan Concert at Saitama Super Arena!!! Though most of the Japan releases have been mostly of the Jewel-Case type, Girls Generation's releases have ALWAYS gone just a little bit further, and this new DVD set is no exception! With a mylar slipcase containing a Concert T-shirt, thick glossy photobook, Two DVDs featuring the Concert as well as backstage footage of the Girls’ Tour, this was a collectible that I’m proud to add to my SNSD Collection! Ooh, and if THAT wasn’t enough, this DVD set came REGION FREE, so I was able to blast this baby on my Bluray Home Theater setup! SO COOL!!!

Girls' Generation Girls and Peace DVD

  As I’ve gushed and raved about before in an earlier post, the fancam concert coverage of the Girls and Peace Concert was of such high quality and shot so well, I was actually a bit worried that I might have a hard time enjoying the official DVD release, silly as that sounds! But I shouldn’t have worried- the concert was as awesome as any fancam footage, and all in crisp picture quality and sound! And one more thing that the official release has is the close-up shots of my beloved girls as well as multi-shot angles of the stage!

Girls and Peace DVD Booklet & Discs

  Like I’ve gushed before, this Concert Tour just has to be one of the best yet, awesome songs from both the first Japanese Girls Generation release as well as the songs from the new Girls and Peace album, as well as a few from the current “I Got A Boy” album like Express 999 and the titular IGAB, innovative stage sets (utilizing the huge widescreen as a backdrop) and BOY! Some of the prettiest and SEXIEST outfits ever!!!!

SNSD Concert T-Shirt (Front and Back)

 For me, some of the absolute highlights are their performances of “Paparazzi”, "Animal", “Reflection”, “Time Machine”, "Express999", “Diamond” and a moving perf of “All My Love Is For You” (Tiffany especially looked really into it, and the end where Sunny pops a bubble floating by her just MADE the song for me!), additionally some really cute and fun perfs of “My J” “Go For It” and “Gee”, and as an added bonus , disc two contains dance version shots of “Boomerang”, “Diamond”, and what is probably my favorite single performance on this DVD, a dance version of the hot “Reflection’!!
  Yup, seems like all my money is going to these K-pop releases here and there, but when they’re as awesome as these are, I’m gonna keep on keepin' on!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

The Dancing Clip That Launched the APink Fandom Ship

 Cube Entertainment Idols A PINK were among the very first K-pop groups that my friend tried to turn me on to when he was introducing  me to the new world of Korean music, but for some reason, at the time I just couldn’t get into them. I think a big part of it was that they seemed so…J-Poppy to me, and I was far more interested in the exciting new KPOP sound, ya know whut I mean?
   Don’t get me wrong, they had quite a few songs I really liked, among them My My, Bubibu, and their latest (at the time) single HUSH, but I wasn’t interested enough to go exploring further into them. Even as they got more popular and well-known, they always appeared to me as “those cute J-poppy girls”…at least until the Idol Special episode of Running Man, that is!!!
   In this episode, each Running Man member was placed in a team with two idols from a group (most hilariously Kwangsoo with MBLAQ), and Gary of Leessang fame was teamed up with APink's Eunji and Naeun! Now, by this point I DID know both girls a little bit, as they had become quite prominent in entertainment/variety circles, but there was something about their appearance that suddenly took hold of me-First off, they were WAY more beautiful than I remembered and secondly-THAT DANCE!!!!

EunJi and NaEun with Gary in Tow

The newly formed "Gary Pink", LOL!

Dancing to "NoNoNo"

  For their latest single "NoNoNo", the girls had come up with a catchy new dance move (which they explained during their appearance on "Weekly Idol" was called the "OngGoJu" dance move), and WOW was it captivating! Equal Parts Soft-Shoe Shuffling and Hawaiian Hula Dancing, this was the PERFECT accompaniment to the catchy tune, and it was here on the Running Man stage I saw it for the first time!

Watching them do the dance just blew me away with all that sassy hip swiveling, swinging and sashaying, and they looked like they were having so much FUN dancing with Gary (especially Eunji with her DEVASTATING Eye-Smile!!!), I thought to myself, “CRAP, what have I been missing out on?” Further investigation on these gals was warranted!!

 After the show was over, I immediately began looking for live performances of NoNoNo, and BROTHER, if I thought the dance move looked cool with the two girls and GARY, you can BET I was all the more blown away when I finally got to see ALL SIX of the Apink members performing it onstage!!!! Such stylish synchronicity and refreshing girlishness, and MAN, can that Eunji SING!!!!!!! I had No IDEA she had such a set of pipes!!!

Yep, I  was really beginning to appreciate them in a new light, and then, as if to give my newfound love an added boost,  someone in a K-pop forum I frequent uploaded the MV for their new song “U You ” and WHOA, after watching THAT, it was ALL OVER- I was a FAN! My GOSH, these girls were SO DAMN pretty, sexy AND adorable in this video, all I could think was “Was THIS what I’d been AVOIDING all these months???!!!” I HAD to get into THIS game!!!

  SO yeah, I’m an admitted LATECOMER to the whole APINK experience, but as they say, it’s better late than never, and so I’ve been out grabbing all the Apink Goodness I can get my hands on, beginning with their new album “Secret Garden” which contains both U You AND NoNoNo! Awww Yeah, looks like ANOTHER K-Pop group is poised to enter the fold of Zdorama FAVES!”

PS: I've been since told that perhaps the reason why I'm only NOW getting into Apink is because I'm getting used to the overt sexiness and sultry style of K-pop and now Apink looks like sweet and innocent diversion...don't know if this is the case, but for now, I'll be busy studying the evidence!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Goddesses In The House: KARA is Back!!

Kara New Albums "Full Bloom" and "Fantastic Girls"

   KARA came back this month in a glorious two-pronged fashion, releasing new full albums in both the Japanese AND Korean market, so I got the best of both worlds- the light J-poppy stuff  in their new Japan album "Fantastic Girls", and the harder-edged rocking stuff with the new Korean release "Full Bloom"!!
  As usual, the Japan CD came in a regular Jewel case which, though very pretty, was your standard non-bells-and-whistles release (though it DID come with a bonus pack of 6 photos from the girls' Go Go Summer Promotions) but the KOREAN one was impressive and beautiful as HELL!!!!

The CD came housed in a big 7"x7"x1" box which contained a fold-out card cover where the actual CD was stored, a thick 25 page picture booklet (featuring the girls in their "Princess" outfits, their regal "Queen" outfits and their masculine "Damaged Lady" pinstripe suits) as well as a packet of 5 huge photos of the girls (from the aforementioned "Princess" session)...WHAT AN AWESOME SET!!!!

Aw MAN, I was just talking to a friend the other day about how much Goo Hara has grown into a pretty little lady, but as these pictures from Full Bloom have reasserted, Han Seungyeon is my tried-and-true BIAS, OH MY GOSH does she look ABSOLUTELY STUNNING here!!! Soooo, soooo DAMN PRETTY!!!!!!
   Oh YEAH, I've got me some LISTENING to Do THIS weekend!!!!

PS, in a curious turn of events, I managed to get not one but two photos of our Goddess Gyuri in my photo set, leaving me to wonder if the duplicate pic was included instead of another photo (like, say, a group shot?) or if I'm simply extra-blessed with Gyuri Goodness!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

f(x)'s "Pink Tape" is Another Masterpiece!

  MAN! That f(x) Pink Tape...Though I’ve only recently gotten the fx album, I’ve been listening to it over and over again for a good month now, and I have to say, the Pink Tape album confirms that fx are one of the most ORIGINAL and innovative acts out there. God DAMN, almost EVERY single song on that album stunned me with its sheer UNPREDICTABILITY! This is ONE group that are ALWAYS pushing the envelope musically!

 From the first song Rum Pum Pum Pum (and BTW, when I blast it in my car, that’s when I realize how well the bass is recorded on these discs!) I'm hit with their tight sound, the way the song's minimalistic structure keeps you on the edge of your seat building up to its droning choruses gets you so amped up for the rest of the album!!! Definitely another classic to add to their already impressive clutch of singles.

The next song “Shadow” showed me the eclectic direction they were going with this dreamy swarth of toylike sounds-  I call this track their “Bewitched” song because the magical chime effect they use throughout the tune sounds just like Samantha casting a spell, I''m like, Wow, this sounds like the background music to someones' fantasy dream!!  “Pretty Girl” is just drenched in that 90’s alt music I love like LUSH and the like, though the song began with a sort of R&B vibe, soon guitars are added to the mix, and then when the chorus kicks in,t I get a VERY retro feel. Superb vocals, too, very desperate and moody sounding.

Though the structure of this song is a bit like “Electric Shock”, it's the hypnotic bridge that really makes the next song KICK for me, reminding me a bit of Bjork’s Homogenic album, very moody and spacey! And right after that atmospheric bridge, it sets you up for that ROCKING chorus! KICK KICK KICK, no wonder Victoria cites this as her favorite track off the album! And has Sulli ever sounded more adorable when singing the line "Hot Like Pancakes" LOLOL, that's PURE Sulli! Signal- Wow, what a song! This song sounds like it could have been taken right off the tracklist of SNSD’s last album because it is SO Girls Generation Power-Pop flavoured- Lot of focus on the energetic vocals, I can almost hear Jessica and Sunny singing it! Whenever I hear this one, I get SO into it, my mind starts imagining dance moves for it, such an awesome song!!

One of the most danceable tracks off this album, STEP's a real discotheque "Thumping" track, if you know what I mean! Ya better believe this song gets blasted in my car whenever it comes up! BTW, might be a good time to mention here how much I dig the way they utilize Amber's english sound-bites throughout the album, the looping line "You Watch My Step!" used so imaginatively as the canvas which the girls cheerfully sing over! (BTW funny, both Pretty Girl and Step are also KARA titles, huh?) Up next is the lone ballad off of Pink Tape, and here we see just how awesome the girls' vocals are! A duet of sorts, with Amber, Krystal and Luna singing with D.O. of EXO fame, I just love how they sound during the choruses. Amber sang a bit of this  backstage at Show Champion in English, which was cool! Funny that f(x) is primarily known for its electronic music, but you tend to forget how awesome they can sing, especially Luna, my GOSH do I love her voice!!! Aw, the extremely demented "Airplane"...The song starts off SO prettily and dreamy, and just when you think you've gotten ahold of another beautiful ballad of theirs, the song takes a 90º turn and literally warps into this cacophany of weird sound bites and spastic synth loops, the first time I heard it I felt assaulted by the barrage of sounds! I DID find the song catchy, however, and after a few listens, the song's structure "came together" in my head and now Airplane sounds like a surreal Salvador Dali painting set to music! I love waiting for Krystal's voice "Airplane! ...Love!"

In a side note, I saw the girls performing this song a few times on Music shows, and I 'm sorry to say I wasn't too impressed with the choreography for this song- it made the song seem boring and tired. But maybe I just haven't seen the right performance yet.  The chugging guitar riffs that accent the next song Toy reminded me of the licks in the old Faith No More song “We Care A Lot”, and one night as I was listening to Boy, the Faith No More lyrics from We Care A Lot came back to me: “We care a lot about Transformers “cause they’re more than meets the eye!”- Just as I thought those lyrics, Amber says the line “I’m Transforming Now!” which really knocked me out with its coincidence! THEN what I consider the album’s MASTERPIECE…though I’ve been raving about how avante-garte and innovative Pink Tape's songs are, my very, VERY favorite song off this album is just about the only song that sounds like "traditional" f(x), the swinging beat song “No More”, Holy CRAP do I LOVE this song- the melody is SO catchy and the girls voices are SOOOO, SOOOOO GOOOD, almost like 50's style harmonizing!!!! 

Reading the lyrics online its about them singing to a girlfriend who's always falling in love like a "fox-girl"over and over, so cute!!! I love the playful way they sing about getting sick of their girlfriend's lovelife games, but know they'll be there for her because they're friends. Already this is one of my top favorite f(x) songs of all time, I get such a freaking BUZZ listening to this, I love it SO MUCH!!!! Yeou Gateun Gijibae, Yeou Gateun Gijibae, you fox-girl, You fox-girl!!! So, So CATCHY!!!!!!!

As the album heads towards its conclusion, the girls decide to start wrapping things up with this solid dance track "Snapshot". When the song began I thought it was going to be like SNSD's "Romantic Street" with its "Olde Fashioned" flavor, but soon enough it turns into pure love f(x) with its catchy choruses and refrains!

And then we come to the final track to the Pink Tape Odyssey, the somber "Ending Page" where the girls sing thoughtfully about a failing romance, wondering how the story of their lives together will end- what will be on the final page? Gotta say, ending the album with this song always leaves me with a lonely feeling, but I STILL have to step back and say, "Wow, what an AWESOME album!!!" And then I go back and listen to it again!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

So, Which Idols Have Appeared Most On Running Man, Anyway?

Idols On Running Man

So I was watching the awesome latest episode of Running Man, this time it was their annual "Idols" Special, and when I saw MBLAQ's Lee Joon making yet another of his many  guest appearances, it got me to thinking...which K-Pop idols have appeared most on Running Man, anyway?  I ransacked my old files as well as online streaming to catch up on my Running Man episodes, and though I may have forgotten or missed a few, I think I've checked off the scorecard, and what I came up with is as follows... (I decided to only focus on the Idols that have appeared at least 3 times, 'cause otherwise I'd have WAY too much people to deal with!)

...so coming in at the NUMBER ONE spot of Guest Appearances with a total of 10(ten!) Episodes under his belt is CNBLUE's Jung Yong Hwa, a number of episodes that is ONLY tied with Lizzy of AfterSchool, and that's counting her stint as a regular cast member!!!

Okay, looks like next week Big Bang is all set to make their comeback re-appearance on the show, so Daesung and SeungRi's numbers will be going up soon as well! Better get my calculator out again...
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com