TVfXQ are the freaking KINGS of Kpop

So, TVfXQ, or more easily DBSK, since I'm lazy to type is the only Korean boyband that I've ever had a long term interest in. Admittedly I'm not a very intense or dedicated fan, but I can say with certainty that of ALL the bands I've come into contact with, DBSK was the first and until now remains top on my list. I've spent some years not even listening to their songs, but the VERY MINUTE I do hear them, I'm back in love and addicted to their songs. I can't explain it. No other Kpop boy band has ever come close. Not  Beast, Nuest(whose existence I only know off since my sister is a major Kpop fan),MBLAQ, EXO, Super Junior, no not even Big Bang. Yes I know that there will be people who do not agree with my assessment (and a whole lot more who obviously will). Do bear in mind that this is my opinion. You're entitled to yours. Finally, when I say DBSK, I mean both the original DBSK and the current DBSK.

ChangMin and YunHo have really come a long way. It's reflected in their singing, their dancing, their charisma, their whole being in their performances and personalities. ChangMin has always been my favourite btw.

So what prompted this DBSK post? Well, my friend Sophie told me today, 'You HAVE to watch DBSK's new MV 'Catch Me'. So, I went home, got on YouTube and did just that. And was left drowning in epicness. DBSK has that effect on me. Keep Your Head Down(WHY) did that too when I first heard it. Still does by the way. This one even more so. I don't have the time at the moment to fully express just how that song sounded to me. But ChangMin's vocals.....wow...I literally felt chills run up and down my spine and arms. Goosebumps followed suit. The beginning intro where his voice climbed? EPIC. And that's just the beginning. It reminded me of Rising Sun. And YunHo, his vocals were damned good too. His dancing is as good as ever, and ChangMin has improved even more, at one point I couldn't tell them apart by dance alone. This dance choreography is going to be difficult to sing to. I cannot wait for them to perform this live. It might not come out perfect, but the both of them will pull it off. Omigosh I'm listening to it as I type and ChangMin just hit another high note, the one just before it goes into full dubstep mode. So.Many.Chills.Running.Down.My.Spine.
Just to say, another song in that new album, Gorgeous, is also great. I listened to it on repeat for a long while. I love the tune changes and the change in rhythm at points. With Catch Me of course. Not that the other songs aren't equally great. But currently these two are the ones that have me stuck like a fly on sticky paper.

I reiterate, DBSK= Kings of Kpop.

Now back to this darned assignment that's depressing me......less depressed now though since bf skyped with me. Had fun teasing xD.

NOTE: Ah~ it is not my first post of 2012 after all. I have not failed so bad then.

I think that this might be my first post of 2012. I didn't really check before I started writing this. If so, I've really failed at blogging. Big time. It is however the time of the year where exams draw ever near (exactly one month for me) It is a truly horrifying thought. I have 2 assignments due this Friday, one of which I can pass muster. The other...not so much. You people who understand statistics...I hate you all>< my brain can't process it. Yet my tutor insists that it be done. HOW on earth does one write the correct codes for R? I mean, one spacebar or accidental letter destroys the whole thing. Yet I have to do that assignment..it is the ONLY major assignment for this unit. Which means I'm a dead person. A very very dead person. I know joining the workforce is worse than studying. But I hate studying. I really do. What I'm studying isn't really what I want to do. But its the lesser of two evils.

Happy birthday to me though. It was my birthday a few days ago. I went from hell to heaven. When the clock struck 12, I could almost feel my skin sagging, wrinkles emerging, everything creaking. HOWEVER, it was all imaginary. But it felt so real. I'm only in my early twenties and I'm feeling that....this is not good

Lemons are bitter. Life is Bitter. Therefore Life is a Lemon

Weird title? Yeah maybe. Just occurred to me one day while I was frowning at my computer screen, trying to make sense of some sentence. How does a 'bitter feeling' feel like anyway? I know how it feels like, but how does one describe it other than, 'it feels so bitter'? I've had my fair share of bitter feelings. Kinda conflicted within myself since there are so many battles going inside my mind. There are things that I try to ignore but which hit with the force of a truck at random moments, be it regrets, unhappy moments or doubt. It's truly very frustrating. Especially if I can't do anything about it. Won't talk much about those coz who knows if someone stumbles on something I don't really want them to know. Hehe, that's kinda silly considering this is a blog. But at times, I just feel so very very very very bitter. And usually, it's almost impossible to tell someone because there's no way of letting them understand. therefore........LEMONS.

And happy 2012 to me! I hadn't realised how long it's been since I last wrote here. Back in Melbourne now and not very happy about uni. xD I can't express how much I want to go home. The workload is beginning to pick up after only one week. Things are due, tests are approaching...in fact, what I'm doing now is procrastinating. I have an abstract-y sort of thing to hand in tomorrow. I've started....reading what I'm supposed to be reading. But writing?Not so much. 

Speaking of reading, I was looking thru all those papers and I didnt hear a single word or registered a single tune of an entire tracklist that had been playing in my ears. They could've been silent for all the attention I paid to them i.e. none. LOL. That really proves my theory that when I read, I don't hear things around me. It's worse when I'm reading a story. I completely don't hear people calling me unless they do it near to me. Or even in front of me. My mom got mad at me countless times coz I had been reading and hadn't heard a single word she said for a good 10 minutes. 

So I felt more than a little depressed yesterday. I cheered up after reading all Nakahara Aya manga I could find. Some of them were meh. Kinda...weird and farfetched. But what I like about her is that alot of the stories she draws has this...real feeling to it. Like they aren't the typical characters that you see. I could see how her art style evolved. I didn't like her early drawings that much due to character proportion and face style. By the time she got to Nanaco Robin(whose storyline had some farfetched elements but was nevertheless worth a read) she got her drawing style down to pat. It rested well with my eyes. Apparently she's got a 'new' series called Junjou Drop. I call it new because I've never heard of it before but who knows that it could have been published in Japan for a year or so already. And try as I might, I have been unable to find any summary about it. Must.Search.Harder.

Current list of songs that I haven't got bored with

(i.e I don't listen to the first few seconds, go 'too many times I've heard this' and press next. OR that I didn't even bother to listen)

a) History - Exo-K

 : The pants shaking is a bit...strange. But the rest of the dance was interesting. I  liked the beat and the tune. It's very catchy and settled nicely with my ears. Although the guy called..Kai I think, sounded and looked way too much like Taemin at certain points. It's rather disturbing. They're cute but I kept seeing elements of other boyband members in them. Kai looks like Taemin. Actually, with that makeup, alot of them look like Taemin. Examples will be shown below. BUT bear in mind that its resemblance. Theres another guy from what I call their 'sister' band Exo-M, that looks vaguely like Ryeowook from Suju. Another that I think looks like Lee Teuk from Suju too.(Note that the 'I' is big and red because that's my opinion and that real fans might massacre me for saying so) Then another looked a little like YunHo from DBSK. The final two from Exo-M were strangely appealing to me.

NOTE: Just watched it again. I lied. The dance wasn't just interesting. It's scintillating. YUMMYLICIOUSLY(I know this isn't a word) BRILLIANT I still frown at the pant shaking though.

Now for the comparisons:

#1

This I believe, is Lay. To me, he looks like Lee Teuk. Exo-M guy.

#2

 To me, he looks like Ryeowook. His name apparently is Kris. Also and Exo-M

#3

Dontchu think he has some resemblance to YunHo? Me believes he be called Xiu Min. Exo-M

#4

I don't know about you, but he reminds me of Siwon. Or someone. I don't really remember. He's Exo-K. I THINK he's called Su Ho.

All these similarities make me think of plastic surgery. But if its true, no surprise there.

The two Exo-K guys whose dancing made me favor them above the others are as shown below

Yes, this is He-Who-Looks-Like-Taemin. Otherwise known as Kai. Can't you see le ressemblance? Dances good too. Makes me wonder if he's actually Taemin. LOL.

Looks a bit like Taemin too. But he's not Kai. He's Se Hun. As of now, these two are the ones I favor in Exo-K.

NOW for the two guys that intrigued me so much in Exo-M. 

First up, Lu Han. He really really really intrigues me somehow.

 Must be the sort of icy perfection around his face. He could put on a wig and I'd think he was female. I mean that in the nicest way possible. Especially since I think he's cute.

And the last one. The one that made me go Oo.

He is TAO. Let me tell you why he caught my eye. It's coz he's how I imagine a human, grownup Nishizono Tetora would be. Little bit of background info. Tetora's a main character in MPD Psycho, a manga that I admit is weird as heck. But Tetora is so hot that I don't care.

IMO, Tetora is the coolest character to ever step in MPD Psycho. Even if he has split personalities. Which is basically the whole point of MPD Psycho. Multiple Personality Disorder Psycho. And no, Tetora isn't a psycho. Sort of.

This color picture of him graces my iPhone wallpaper

akejfkraelksjgfalrglajrgarkjgag. That is all.

BUT let me clarify a few things. I'm not what one can call a fan of either Exo-M or Exo-K. Or even Suju and DBSK. I only like particular people inside each band. And it's not an intense fan attraction either. I can almost hear my sister screaming at me. She's a fan of Suju. Whereas, I operate on a well-out-of-this-entire-band-this-is-the-guy-I-prefer basis.

With that in mind, I believe its DBSK:ChangMin, Suju:KyuHyun, Shinee:Taemin. That's all so far. Since both Exo's havent debuted yet, I will reserve judgement xD. But goodness, I already know who I'm partial towards.

Anyways, next song

b) The Reckoning - The Getaway Plan

I heard the tune of the song randomly in an advert. And searched desperately for the song itself. The video is EXTREMELY DISTURBING. But I sorta get the message there. And the lead vocal, Matt is pretty good imo. I really like his voice. They're an Australian band too.

c) Yu Ren De Guo Du - Sun Yan Zi

To be really really honest. I like my friend's singing of it much better than the original. It's her singing at Karaoke that I first met this song. The MV has a strange beauty about it. Sorta like..fantasy world.

d) Viva La Vida - ColdPlay

I heard the tune. Loved it. Got it. End of story. It's one of the two Coldplay tunes I know. I'm too lazy to check if the rest of their songs are as nice

e) Everytime - Britney

It's just..nice. I can't explain. It's got some sort of a poignant feel to it.

f) Michiyuki - Hikita Kaori(not sure if that's supposed to be a 'da' or 'ta'

I actually caught myself singing this while I was sleeping. Which is damned weird. And it's written by one of my fav Jap composers, Yuki Kajiura. Figures. which leads on to....

g) Fairytale - Kalafina

This is a Yuki Kajiura composition. BUT not sung by her. It's used as the ending song for the...6th movie installation of Kara no Kyoukai, which is one of the most epic things I ever watched. The handling of emotions, the story telling, the story itself is so good. However I do not recommend watching it unless you are able to handle things. It's one of the Type-Moon worlds so its guaranteed to come with strange fantasy stuff, mages, spiral of origin, eyes that can see the death of things etc.

h) Closer - Ne Yo

It's catchy okay. Makes me walk faster to uni too, so it's good when I'm about to be late.

i) Countless epic music without lyrics

Let me tell you, listening to Day Becomes Night, The Crossing, Forbidden Friendship etc while walking back from uni is like being in an epic movie. Coz the music is E-P-I-C. The first two songs are from Two Steps From Hell(who compose epic music like nobody's business)

I....can't think of anything else I'd like to say for now. So, back to that assignment due tomorrow. Hmph

well, it's fairly obvious most blog walkers just walk

Why so?If they had, they would've seen what I said below about my feelings about blog walking. Whee. I DON'T WANT to read your newest entry especially if that's the only thing you say on the shoutbox.

One of the benefits of blogwalking is 'Generally, most bloggers are interested to know if people like their blogs, and appreciate your visit. They are likely to do a visit to your blog either out of curiosity or just as a courtesy.'
Right. That's kinda true. But not if you make that kind of visit to my blog. If you want me to go to your blog and read, at least extend me the same courtesy. Or at least, stop writing the same things. That's what's irritating me.

Rant over. Ok.

I need someone to teach me not to care. Because I care too much, things which people do can hurt me. I genuinely hurt when you do. And I hate that you're unhappy, so I try my best to cheer you up without pushing you. And the thing is, sometimes the people I care for, don't feel the same compulsion to care back. Which is not surprising, after all I can't expect you to care just because I do, but it does makes one feel...well, hurt. Sometimes, they say or do things without thought to how it could potentially wound not just me, but any person. I care too much. And it's killing me. The other party hurts, and you try to be there for them. Sometimes in the end, it means that no one is there for you. Because when they are unburdening to you, you listen. And since they are hurting from their own problems, you can't voice out your own so that you don't add to theirs. Picture this scenario. You are telling someone about your worries and problems that weigh heavily on you. Then once you finish(or sometimes even before then), the person goes 'That sounds terrible. Cheer up. Hey, you know what? I lost my phone the day before and------' and so on and so forth. It feels like the other person doesn't actually listen. I know that people will say things like 'so?does that mean you keep all to yourself?' or 'are you stupid?pushover much?' but there's a difference. It's a borderline difference that is in that grey area between black and white. You care, they don't. It does sound pathetic, like complaining and I get that. But it can feel like a sacrifice. And too much sacrifice can eat away at you bit by bit. At times too, the other party takes out their anger on you, not directly, but sort of. Is it because they don't actually care that they feel no compunction saying things that hurt? They might have not meant it, or is it that I take things too seriously. I don't know. I don't have the answers. I don't want to voice out those feelings above to my friends. I don't want them to think that I don't want to listen to them or that I resent them for it. I don't want them to feel like they have failed or think 'since she thinks this way, might as well not tell her'. I don't resent them for it. I just wish that it's not just me. It's really very hard to unburden to someone who doesn't care. And while I don't usually take too much to heart your words, at times, I also weaken and what would usually not hurt suddenly stabs in with the force of a thrust. But then, you don't notice or know. And that's when a smile truly hides away everything.

Emo time over. Cute kitty time starts.

and a very very very cute cat picture I saw.

that kitty is so so so cute. But Toothless of How To Train Your Dragon is cuter. Don't have a certain screenshot of him I want to take yet but~~~all in due time.

And today I had a shock. A friend on mine is dating another friend(whom I know less well actually). And I only found out today. It wasn't that I had never thought it wouldn't happen between them. I mean, I teased her about it months ago. It's just kinda a shock that she didn't tell me. Like how things can come as a shock even though you kinda anticipated it. Needless to say, I was bursting with questions. But it was neither the time nor the place. So I shall save my questions for later. Bleh. Going to bed nao.

I cannot stand the art of that bloody artist

Ok, it's rant time. I.HATE.GOONG. The manga i mean. Not that I like the drama either but I hate the manga. The normal art is so-so, rather unique and does have its own beauty...BUT..the author just HAS to add in stupid faces at the wrong times at the wrong places on her characters. It's like, she's trying for humour, but failing epicly. Like, instead of laughing...my face is like..bleh..trying too hard hey woman?..lemme give you an example below from that manga

 example 01

 As you can see, the art is originally normal, quite nice even. THEN cue sparkly eyes..which is the herald for major epic fail at humor...which leads us to the next page

Cue stupid face. Which is just disgusting. Look at that sniff sniff sniff nose. The, how do I describe it, hideous facial features. And then I have two more examples..below

 At the top left hand corner, you see her caricatured face. Which I wanted to tear apart. And it goes back to normal for the next few panels...until....

 BLOODY HELL..do you see what I mean? That face is just..disgusting. disgusting disgusting. Let me try and explain. When I read comics, obviously they caricaturise(is that even a word?I think it's supposed to be caricature but meh) faces in a lot of them BUT most of the time, they're cute..like a few examples I shall show below. But this manga Goong?It feels like they cheapen the value of the art with those caricatures. It's really really ugly do you know that? Reading it and coming across those exaggerated faces makes me feel dirty and put off. The two types of art just clash together very very badly, like...er..Neon pink and squash yellow? It just doesn't MATCH dammit. Hell, you probably don't agree with me or you probably even LIKE those 'drawings' but I sure as hell don't and I don't mind saying it. To each his own.
The examples I chose came from Mirumo de Pon. It's more of the classical shoujo style with sparklies, lots of toners and detailed lines. It was the only one I could think of for a counter example.

 The face near the bottom. The nervous, blushing, tiny eyed face. My point is, it blends very nicely with the original art without overdoing it.
 Next

This one has glee, joy, smugness and shock. Is it overexaggerated?No, is it clashing? No.
 Final one

Shock etc etc etc. Does it make you feel like neon pink and squash yellow? I don't know about you, but it sure doesn't for me. I rest my case
 Oh wait. There is kinda one more example of a Korean manga (coz Mirumo de Pon is Japanese) that has stunning art but doesn't resort to hideous gags to get its point across. Check out Bride of the Water God. I love the art. Example below

This is the artwork from Bride of the Water God. Super gorgeous. The story is killing me though as there is no ending yet....and the suspense is murder.

This is the artwork from Goong. As you can see, both have nice artwork(I personally prefer BotWG..Like Duh) but the distinction is that one has epic fail gags and disgusting in-between artwork.

One rant down. Let me think of some more. Meanwhile I shall announce.

 GAIDEN OVA 2 IS OUT. Made me cry I tell you. It was just so sad. And it wasn't even till Tenpou's story yet. Just Kenren's. I still prefer the manga better coz the manga is epic and as I said before, one of the best manga I have ever read. The way emotions are handled, relationships are built, the story telling...it was all so beautiful. What makes it so so freaking sad is that, you know from the beginning that the story would end in tragedy because its a prequel. I look forward to the day that Saiyuki Reload Blast finally reaches the point where all their past comes into play.Although I know that Sanzo will never be how Konzen was. I loved the father-son relationship between Goku and Konzen though. Sanzo might be Konzen's reincarnation. But he isn't Konzen and he can't act like him. Oh the beautiful beautiful Gaiden. I might even make an entire post all about Gaiden. Characters, story, relationships..etc..but that's for another day. Btw, I'm not a fan of yaoi. Not at all. Maybe the tiniest hint of shounen-ai...but even then no..I think what draws me is not shounen-ai(which I don't like) but the closeness of the relationship, that intimacy between two people that doesnt have to translate to you know....say for example, Prince of Tennis. Heck, I love Fuji and Tezuka interactions, I squeal when I see pictures where they are both inside, laughing or smiling, or just enjoying the breeze. Like being the close friends they are. But give me a picture of them kissing, or God forbid, making out....I run...in the opposite direction. Something about it just doesn't sit right with me. I love it when deep friendship is portrayed. But not more than that. Lemme show you a few of Tezuka and Fuji. Or wait, just one would suffice since I want to use the other's in my still-under-thought Gaiden post.

 There, they're both studying in the library. Nice and happy. Great friends. Yay.

Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro. Firstly, anyone who first begins reading it, might be put off by the art. Or just feel weird. I was, I admit. The art is really unique. For me, I have not seen any other manga artist who draws just like MTNN's artist does. But if you continue reading chapter by chapter, you begin to appreciate the uniqueness of the art, you begin to realise that its actually reaaaaallly difficult to draw the way the person does. And then finally, you see the beauty in the art. You begin to think Neuro is hot(which he is btw). Sure, there's some disproportionation at times, but you get used to it. Plus, it just suits the ambiance of the entire story.

And after I wrote this post,  I went and re-read the entire MTNN series again. It's still as good as ever everytime I re-read it. Took quite awhile to get thru 202 chapters in a few hours. But I did it. And I remembered again why Neuro is one of my favourite characters. Sometimes in the series, you forget that he's really sadistic but then one bad guy comes along and does something that Neuro doesn't like, say for example, killing people and thus killing any chances of puzzles forming. THEN we are reminded once again that Neuro is a sadistic and powerful demon, with emphasis on the sadistic.

Well, that isn't what he usually wears but it looks good on him. I couldn't find a satisfactory one of him in his normal clothes though.

Here's another when he was in a ponytail and stole. And looking great. The only sad thing is that he only wears these when his power has been drained really badly. Which doesn't happen often. Pity that.

And that is kinda how he looks normally, with that misleading bright smile and supposedly innocent mien. To contradict that, that scorpion creature belongs to him, just fyi you know.

HAHA!I guess that's as long as the post is gonna be today. I'm tired.

I decided to make this post from before(12/10) permanent instead of temporary. SO.rewriting...

I have three pictures that represent my(supposed) views towards facing a problem. Why supposed? Coz I don't necessarily follow them. HAHA

Firstly, we have Perseverance. You have to persevere, in order to work out how to solve that problem. If you give up halfway, it's never gonna get done. Therefore I present Perseverance. The picture is a leeetle strange. Would you persevere in the face of a huge....er...is that a tornado or a cyclone?..well, whatever, it had to be either one..or even a hurricane. I vote tornado. Anyways, I would run if I had to face that thing. Perseverance in the face of that cannot be labelled perseverance. We normal people call it stupidity.

Say hi to the cute dust tornado up there. HI.

Next, we have CHARGE. Once you have figured out how to solve your teeny problem, it's time to charge and fix it! Not to dawdle..or procrastinate...or go on facebook(hehe..guilty). And here we have a picture of a cute kitty, stampeding its way through a nice green field of flowers. ARE those flowers?Hard to see from the blurry edges. Such determination on that small face. There must be a mouse or two somewhere in the grass. Or fish.

 Finally ACHIEVEMENT. When you've fixed the problem that is being such a pain, you feel a sense of achievement! Or, if not that, relief that you got it over with. That's how I feel most of the time anyway. The picture is very boring by the way. If I get an achievement for every basket I throw, I would be so successful. And my aim isn't all that accurate.

ANYWAYS. its GRACE WONG'S BIRTHDAY TODAY. She is now 21. Same as I am. And she can't deny it any longer. She persists in saying that she's nineteen. In the words of a friend......'PSH...LIES' She can't be born in 1990 and still be 19 in 2011. Unless she went back in time. Or did plastic surgery.
...............ok...that didn't make sense at all. Back to topic. HAHA, I hope that she doesn't get 'sabo' today. 'Sabo' as in sabotaged. Like an initiation ceremony into the revered ranks of those who are one and twenty. Last year, she was water-ballooned. And screaming, 'NOT MY HAIR!'
But when all is said and done, I really do hope that she has a memorable birthday, a really great one. I liked my birthday, but I know better than anyone that mine can't compare to hers in some aspects.
Here's how her last year birthday splashing looked like

 

The one throwing the balloon is me, just so you know. Of course, in the actual thing, there were more people, but I don't have the space or time to draw them. Drawing Grace and I are sufficient. Its kinda amazing how she and I and two other guys have known each other for the 21 years we have existed in this world. Grace, Gabriel(one of the guys) and I have known each other from the time we were born. Probably even before then. We maintain that we skyped while we were still unborn. We conveniently ignored the fact that Skype didn't exist then. We even have pictures of our mothers taking a picture together, all heavily pregnant with us. Amos( the last guy) came a bit later. He's the oldest out of the four of us but we knew him a little later. Still, the guys are idiots. I say that with the utmost affection.