Been busy since coming back from HK. Pics and vids to come. But I’m sure you’ve already heard some of the stuff that happened in HK. I’m happy that Kangin was there. And yes, he was crying towards the last 3 to 4 songs of the concert. He was probably very moved because everybody in the audience was cheering him on. I still don’t get why everybody went crazy when Heechul and Leeteuk hugged him though. I wonder why. Hmn. On the other hand, nope. Still no Kibum.
I’m still trying to fix the audio of my vids because the bass is too damn loud. Anyone got suggestions on how to fix it?
Anyway, Super Show 2 just reaffirmed that Super Junior is still the best boyband in all of Kpop!!! Well, I haven’t seen DBSK and 2PM live yet (will I ever?), but even if I do, I think I’ll never see a show quite like Suju’s. I don’t think DBSK or 2PM can do a 3-hour show even if they lipsync all of their songs. I enjoyed every moment of Super Show 2 from start to finish, even if I didn’t understand a damn thing. Hehe. Anyway, here’s a little preview of the recap I’ll be doing. I’m still waiting for the pics and vids (still putting watermarks on them) from my friend’s cam.
Yep. There were 3 of us.
BONUS:
Here’s some mind-blowing statistics for you.
Super Show 2 Hong Kong male body count (not including the guards and ushers):20 (including all 14 of Super Junior)
Updated 2: I replaced the video with this one from Music Core. This performance basically made this entire post irrelevant. Dammit Music Bank. Fortunately, their Music Core comeback was a lot better, from the performance to the costume and stage design, than the one they did at Music Bank (is it me or do all performers these days give their least effort in their MB performances?). I just thought Ji Yoon took off her shades too early. Other than that, this performance was perfect.
Update: since this was from Music Bank, the video may no longer be available once you click it. Byane-yo.
INTRO
First, Hyun Ah! She’s insanely scorchin’ lately. And I found out that she just turned 17! Umaygaad! I definitely believe she’s the sexiest female idol below 18 today. She’s become such a temptress in their comeback. And she set the tone with her wicked (FIERCE is so overused right now) rapping in the first part. They went gangsta and pulled it off effortlessly. The all-white outfit was a nice touch. It was a refreshing change from all the black/dark leather costumes among the female groups today.
However, it would have been a lot better if they also included Ji Yoon’s part in For Muzik. I guess they had to do their perf within 4 minutes or something. Hopefully, they’ll include her bit from For Muzik in their subsequent performances, or better yet, do the entire intro, then Muzik. I would have also liked it very much if they showed a close-up of each of the member during For Muzik. The cameraman only focused on Hyun Ah the entire time.
MUZIK
Shaky start for Ji Yoon. I think her herky-jerky dancing is affecting her singing a bit. I also would’ve preferred if she lost the jacket. Show off that sexy body for crying out loud!!! After the MV gave us an overload of Ji Yoon’s oozing sexiness, her perf here left me wanting more. More, Ji Yoon shots I say!
I was surprised that Ji Hyun had as many parts as the Yoon Sisters (Ji Yoon and Ga Yoon). But more surprising was that I think Ga Yoon had the most lines out of the five. Speaking of sisters, what’s up with Ji Hyun’s twin So Hyun? She was like the odd woman out. She already has the fewest lines in the song, so did she really have to do her part in the corner? Poor maknae. She definitely needs to get more camera time.
It was fun watching how the backup dancers suddenly appeared out of nowhere, disappeared, then re-appeared again at the end. Ha! I really liked the systematic chaos in it before coming together in the last part. This got me thinking. If memory serves, with the exception of BEG’s Abracadabra, all the idol groups this year have gone on stage without backup dancers. Backup dancers used to be an essential part of a Kpop performance. Even balladeers had backup dancers. I think this trend of no backups started last year with 10 out of 10, then Gee and Sorry Sorry, all the way to Fire. Is the dancing of the current crop of idols so good that backup dancers have become unnecessary today? Or are companies just cross-cutting? Discuss.
I’m also digging the d-d-d-d-dancing music part a lot. The choreo kinda reminds me of the rap part of Mirotic. It’s as catchy as the song itself. I almost forgot, but did you see Hyun Ah’s legs? W0Ot! She should definitely do Abracadabra in Ga-in’s outfit at least once. But I think Hyun Ah’s rap part might have looked less awkward if she had a mic in her hand instead.
Overall, I was satisfied with their comeback stage. I was worried that Cube might have rushed the girls (again?) with their comeback but I think they did well. After the Muzik MV came out, I couldn’t wait to see them perform it live. Now, I’m very curious on what adjustments they’ll do for their next perf. Considering she “debuted” her eyes here already, is Ji Yoon going to lose the glasses for good next time? What outfits will they be wearing next time (please no jacket for Ji Yoon)? Next time, will Hyun Ah wear the wig and do the chair dance? Will they perform For Muzik again? And if they do, will they do a longer version with some Ji Yoon in it? Is somebody going to do the split next time? Who will be collaborating with 4minute this time? Will it be 2PM/2AM appearing as the backups next time? Will they put the car in their background next time?
Aigoo…so many questions, so many possibilities. When’s their next performance? I might be slightly disappointed if they don’t shake things up a bit later on. Cube has lots of options to keep 4minute’s Muzik perfs fresh throughout its run, and I have faith that they won’t screw it up. Also, I hope that the camera people/director get the shots right next time. I was borderline nauseous after watching 4minute’s perf. The spiraling shots were too fast and the “creative” angles were out of place. Keep it simple next time, ok?
Anyway, congrats to 4minute for a successful comeback. Yeah. The Queen has definitely, ehem, come.
…they really have become the most overrated group right now. But it’s not their fault.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not an anti-fan. Heck, I even had a 2NE1 addiction for a couple of weeks after watching 2NE1TV. It became so bad that I had to look at the picture below each day just so I could move on to normalcy.
She says, "I don't care." I say, "WTF?"
So what if she’s cross-eyed? I think CL still has the tightest body in all of Kpop right now, while Minzy is probably the cutest maknae around.
However, the recent influx of girl groups in the Kpop scene already had me on the brink of giving up my 2NE1 fandom. But what really pushed me off the edge was the sudden germination of 2NE1 fanatics who spam the comments section of Kpop sites, YouTube and other Kpop message boards. If you’re a fan of Kara, BEG, 4minute, SNSD or even T-ARA, I’m sure you know what/who I’m talking about.
Fortunately, my fascination quickly shifted to another quartet, a superiorly talented, albeit underrated one at that.
You see, as one of the many Kpop fans who can’t read/understand Korean, I mainly rely on websites that translate my daily Kpop news to English. These include the simple but always reliable K Bites, the always opinionated Seoulbeats, the glitzy Allkpop and the controversial Popseoul. Besides reading the latest Kpop news, which is practically the same in all 4 sites, I’m also interested in finding out what their readers (mostly non-Korean Kpop fans) have to say about the article.
The comments didn’t bother me at first because everyone’s entitled to their opinion. But as girl groups kept debuting and making comebacks one after the other, the once tranquil comments section became a venue for bashing and trashtalking. Although these fans aren’t required to be unbiased, these kindsofarticles (srsly?) only fueled the fire between 2NE1. But I guess the author didn’t know that. Or maybe she did and just wanted to express her fandom. Whatevs. Maybe I’m just looking for something to nitpick. But at least some writers were decent enough to put things in a properperspective.
Shocking news: 4minute is pretty good!
I have to admit that I was also part of those who doubted the originality of this group and dismissed them as one of those soon-to-be-forgotten acts right after they debut. Because let’s be honest. Even if they claim that their name was inspired from their desire to capture the audience with their charms in 4 minutes or whatever (also, check out how people shamelessly bash this group at the comments section), I know for sure that they got their name here:
listen from 0:40 onwards and compare it with the intro of this.
You can even argue that the 2:45 to 2:50 mark of Hot Issue sounds like the 2:00 to 2:05 part of Boom Boom Pow. Check it out below:
Then you can’t deny the fashion similarities between 4minute and 2NE1. Of course, this drew the ire of 2NE1 fans, who were quick to point out that it was Hyun Ah and friends who are the copycats. So I guess the debut of 4minute was the turning point that transformed the borderline-fanatic 2NE1 fans to crazier-than-SNSD-antis non-2NE1 girl group bashers.
However, before finally ignoring 4minute completely, one of the girls caught my eye. She single-handedly convinced me that I should give 4minute another chance. Maybe it was her cool voice. Maybe it was her sultry look. Maybe it was her overeager, overcompensating, exaggerated dance moves. Or maybe it was the mysterious vibe behind those sunglasses. Whatever it was, it made me interested. Plus, after digging the Google machine to find out more about her, I find out that her resemblance to Yoobin (hottest WG member) is uncanny. And she’s talented too. Ferrealz.
Who's who?
So little by little, I came to appreciate each of 4minute’s members. Hyun Ah, the central character who everyone wants to hate on. Ga Yoon, the main vocalist who is the least attractive in the group, for me, and looks more Chinese than Korean. And the Hyun Twins, So Hyun and Ji Hyun. They’re like the female version of the SHINee Twins, Onew and Key.
I know 4minute isn’t the most original group to come out these days, but who is anyway? Another thing I liked is that they sort of came out of nowhere and people didn’t really have any expectations about them. But they’re doing well now and it’s unfortunate that those delusional 2NE1 fans are raining on their parade.
In a way, this heated rivalry between the two newbies (although the girls will deny that there’s one), reminded me of last year’s rivalry between two rookie boy groups. Remember how SHINee burst out of the scene, topped charts and swept away rookie awards? This year, 2NE1 has done the same ever since they debuted. What 2NE1 lacks in talent compared to SHINee (what? 2NE1 fans please don’t tell me they’re more talented than SHINee), they more than make up in stage presence. So what does that make 4minute? And no, please don’t say U-Kiss.
Well, there was this other boyband that debuted late last year. Its members weren’t really strong vocally. They were pretty good dancers, but their debut song was kinda weak compared to SHINee’s and the song was just too gimmicky overall (you know how some fangirls’ go crazy over the tiniest guy-to-guy action). Still, their launch was moderately successful (probably mainly because they were from JYP, one of the Holy Trinity in Kpop), although nowhere near the magnitude of 2NE1′s or SHINee’s. It took them a little while, but this group really took off after they released their second album that showed their more serious side. Coincidentally, this group has collaborated with 4minute, at least once, already.
Going back to the 2NE1-SHINee comparison, if YG’s one perf per week strategy for her beloved girls continues, I’ll bet it will come back and bite him on the ass. will backfire. So I’m curious to see what YG will do to top I Don’t Care’s success. Although they won some awards, SHINee’s comeback this year was a disappointment overall, at least for me, mainly because of the high expectations that surrounded it. But YG is a pretty smart guy so I’m sure he’ll come up with something to sell albums. Heck, he was even witty to come up with a new meaning for 2NE1′s name. On the other hand, YG has failed before. Big time.
Like I said earlier, I’m not a 2NE1 hater, but I’m not a 4minute apologist either. I’ll even be the first to point out that they’ve had their share of shakyperformances. This happens when your company rushes your debut to cash in on a trend.
To make a long story short, watching 4minute’s performances made me realize that they actually have some talent. Although their stage presence isn’t as great as 2NE1′s yet, they might just be more talented than their YG rivals. Yeah, that’s right. I said it: 4minute might be more talented than 2NE1, as a group. Individually, I don’t know yet since I haven’t seen enough of their non-Hyun Ah/Ji Yoon members. However, I think 4minute has more potential than 2NE1. Ji Yoon’s voice can adapt to any kind of song, Hyun Ah’s rapping will shoot up once Cube lets her use her own voice and I’m sure the Twins have something good in store that will catch us off guard, at least I hope they do. In fact, the songs on their debut album shows how much they’ve improved in such a short time. The songs are so awesome that I can’t wait to see them performed live. Plus, Ji Yoon without glasses!!! Her new ‘do looks Rihanna-ish but whatever. It looks good on her and depending on 4minute’s comeback outfits, she might just take over CL as the female idol with the tightest body.
Maybe I just don’t know how else 2NE1 could top their success with I Don’t Care. I mean let’s be honest. CL is a pretty good rapper, but her singing voice is as good as Rihanna’s at best, and that isn’t a compliment. Minzy has a similar singing voice to CL’s, but her best asset is her dancing. She’s a fine dancer, albeit in a pedotastic, scandalous kind of way. But if she wants to pop and lock her way to the top, she still has a long way to go. I think she has the most potential in the group. Bom has a powerful voice and Dara can surprisingly hit them high notes, but can you imagine them singing other than those high-pitched tunes? Plus, I doubt if they can dance to a style other than what YG imposes on them. CL’s stage presence can only take them so far.
One thing 2NE1 has going for them is their great command of the English language, which is unprecedented among Kpop idols. This is one of the reasons why they’ve gained lots of fans outside of Korea. Unfortunately, some of them have trolled the Kpop sites we’ve come to love, which has totally ruined my 2NE1 experience. And don’t even get me started withGDandallthehoopla surrounding his first solo album. That’s for another post. Forget plagiarism (The Leaders? Heartbreaker). Two words: autotune overkill. I wonder what Jay-Z would say about his album… Oh wait.
Thank goodness these girls came back. And while we’re at the boyband comparison, they’re comeback this year was like DBSK’s last year. Calm down Cassiopeians. I know it’s sacrilegious to compare DBSK with another group but check this out.
Both came back with a very (!!!) sexy image.
Both groups aren’t really known for their dancing but pulled off the sexy moves perfectly.
Both groups still have the best singers among all the Kpop groups today.
Does this make Kara, this year’s 2008 version of FT Island? Not too bad.
I think I’ve ran out of boybands to analogize. And you still have T-ARA, Jewelry, the comebacking After School, and SM’s new baby, f(x), while SNSD and WG are in a league of their own. That’s a boatload of girl groups. Am I complaining? Certainly not. I say, bring it on!
Is it Ga-in or Ga In? Whatever. Because I still have Abracadabra and BEG’s hips stuck on my head, and more recently, Eojjeoda, eojjeoda, eojjeoda (!!!), I figured that posting Son Ga-in pics might be therapeutic for my BEGaddiction. I know she isn’t the prettiest girl in today’s Kpop scene, but Ga-in’s eyes are killing meeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! She’s very seductive and sexy even if she’s so delicately thin. And I’ve also realized by digging through her old unsubbed (can someone please sub them?) videos that her off-stage antics are sooo adorable .
I stole most of these pics from other people’s sites, except for a couple of GIFs that I made myself (yeah, my BEG addiction has been that bad) and some YouTube caps. Anyway, I hope this post helps OUR Son Ga-in craving. I haven’t really found a site that has a massive Ga-in photofest, which is another reason I decided to do this. Enjoy.
Idol Army caps that I made into a GIF
Another Idol Army GIF. Thank goodness Wooyoung saved her from that creepy Roora (Raymond Bagatsing lookalike) guy
This is too cute not to post. Tomato girl
This might set your PC on fire
Even Narsha is mesmerized by Ga-in
Ga-in covering CSJH's One More Time, OK? with WG's Sun Mi and SeeYa's Gyuri
Rawwwrrrr!!!
More Narsha and Ga-in lovefest
Looking kinda like 2ne1's Minzy here
Too much makeup but still a cutie
Shy or seductive? Both!
Isn't she just adorable here? Very innocent-looking!
Really, really pretty here
Scarily thin here but that look will melt you
Modeling for Nike. Perfect angle!
SNSD-inspired. Looks like a cartoon version of her on her shirt
I like how she doesn't look scarily thin here. Soooo sexxxy!
This fashionista look is soooo chic. The fit is perfect!
Covering Ivy's A-ha. To quote one comment on YT: "there's no way somebody's that hot!"
Her real hair underneath the wig. Not a big fan of this hairstyle but as long as she wears the wig, I'm ok
Long stockings + Ga-in's legs = hotnessssss
Tomboy look suits her just fine too. Omomomomo
Sailormoon outfit. I likey! They should make her an honorary SNSD member
Kinda looks like Tiffany here but that leather outfit is too sinful
The Snow White look
That oh-so-subtle tattoo on her left wrist just made her 1,000,000 hotter in my book. The summer outfit didn't hurt either.
1950's-inspired or Wonder Girls-inspired? Who cares?!!! They added their own flavor to it
Just look at those legs! Just look at them! After you're done, look at them again and repeat!
Surprise! Even Ga-in has some cleavage too! Hoooly!
This is why ABRACADABRA live is such a holy-shiznit-srsly-scorching perf everytime
Srsly. Can she get any hotter?
When she's not in seduction mode, her natural cuteness surfaces instead. Aigoo...
More wigless Abracadabra pics
It's always good to see her looking healthy. Please maintain this figure Ga-in!
From Family Shares. Look at that concentration. Too bad it only hit the floor. Hehe
How can you not resist that look? Grrrr...
Always fun to see childhood pics of celebs. Very cute! She kinda looks more Chinese than Korean as a kid
There goes those legs again. This begs the question: which is sexier? her eyes or legs? Discuss
She could definitely pose as Minzy's older sister
I don't know if Miryo is having fun with this perf or if she's laughing at Ga-in's position. This was at Kim Jung Eun's Chocolate. Can't wait for the vids!
More from Chocolate. This Rainism perf is making me really really antsy
Even with her shades on, she's still crazily seductive
Don't worry Ga-in, you're still cute even without makeup
I'm currently melting
Ok, so even after posting these pics, Ga-in fever still isn’t over for me. I think it became even worse. So, I’m going after you next. Yeah I’m looking at you Narsha.
Before anything else, congratulations to the San Miguel Beermen. It took them 4 long years to get back on top, but they did it. I’m a Ginebra fan and the Beermen made it painful for me to watch Game 7. I’d like to particularly give kudos to four Beermen who I had fun watching in this series.
Congrats to Ildefonso, who made me feel somewhat nostalgic watching him running and finishing fast breaks with his left hand. Marc Pingris loves you very much. Extra points for looking like this guy.
Congrats to Mike Cortez who came just in time to revert to his old form, with an even deadlier jumpshot.
Congrats to Jonas Villanueva, who was named the Finals MVP in just his second year in the league, leading a team of veteran superstars. Wow! He played just one year in the UAAP right? (Although I think he was in FEU’s Team B for many years before making it to Team A).
Congrats to Olsen Racela (Is he the oldest player in the league right now?). Although I find his tough guy act on the court to be very annoying and pretentious (Jimmy Alapag, anyone?), he’s still a class act off the court.
As for the Gin Kings…
What the hell happened to them? After a disappointing Game 6, they found a way to be even more disappointing in Game 7, except for Jayjay Helterbrand. He did everything he could to keep his team within striking distance ON A BAD HAMSTRING. I don’t care if Mico Halili and Jason Webb keeps mentioning that his production drops off dramatically in the fourth quarter of every game. He finished Game 7 with 25 pts, 7 asts, 4 rebs and only 2 TOs in 33 mins. Did I mention that he was playing with a BAD HAMSTRING? He also hit all 8 of his FTs, something the rest of his teammates didn’t do.
Yeah. I'm also wondering WTF happened to you in Game 7 (photo: PBA.ph).
If you’re wondering what happened to David Noel, the same guy who torched the Beermen with 6 treys in Game 5, well he finished Game 7 with a grand total of 8 (!!!) points on 3-11 shooting. Yeah sure he had 15 boards, but he also had 6 TOs. That’s the most by any player from both sides. I know I should be kind to Noel. He was, after all, the main guy responsible for turning Ginebra’s conference around. But no. His performance in the last game of the 34th season of the PBA was totally unacceptable. He’s too talented offensively to not take over a game as crucial as Game 7 of a championship series. Was he tired? Probably. He’s been playing over 40 mpg the entire series. But this is the PBA, not the NBA where rest days are scarce. Instead of hanging around the perimeter majority of the time, he should have been driving to the hoop trying to dunk on foul machine Gabe Freeman each possession.
After leading Ginebra to its first back-to-back titles in 2004-2005, this guy was surprisingly demoted to assistant coach of Jong Uichico in 2006 (photo: PBA.ph).
I don’t know what kind of voodoo Siot Tanquincen has over his former mentor Jong Uichico, but SMB repeatedly forced a Ginebra turnover each time Uichico’s boys came out of a timeout. And that was a recurrent theme throughout the game. Uichico did his best to quell each SMB run with those timely timeouts, but I guess Tanquincen’s was hell-bent on showing Uichico who the better coach is.
Sunday Salvacion’s ejection in the first quarter was probably a bigger blow to Ginebra than expected. With the entire team firing blanks from the perimeter all game (3-15 3pt shooting), the effects of missing your team’s best 3pt shooter were magnified.
So what else could Jong Uichico have done besides calling timeouts everytime SMB threatened to pull away? He was awfully calm in his interview at the half despite his team showing signs of lifelessness in the first 24 minutes of play.
Well he could have at least given Paul Artadi some court burn. Did he get injured in Game 3? I’m not sure. But in the first two games of the series, he was giving them 12 ppg in just 13.5 mpg, going 5-10 from deep. Lanete had one big game (Game 5, 14 pts, 15 mins, 3-5 3pts), and most of those came in the first half where he was 3-3 from 3pt land. But if you take out that game, Lanete averaged 12 mpg, 3 ppg and 0.8 apg on 26% FG shooting (6-23). I like Lanete’s controlled craziness on the court but those figures wouldn’t cut it in a championship series, especially if you become the team’s main point guard after the guy you should be backing up suddenly disappears after Game 3.
How about using Cyrus Baguio as a facilitator more? This is a guy who repeatedly shredded defenses during his time as the main guy for Red Bull Barako. We all know that he is a tremendous finisher once he gets in the paint. He can even hit the midrange jumper occasionally to keep defenses honest. Heck, he even looks like the missing link between the evolution of Vinci from PnE to Piolo Pascual, which is irrelevant but still worth noting. So why was he roaming on the perimeter looking to spot up most of the time? I know that he has a tendency to force the issue, leading to offensive fouls once he gets in the paint and does his spinning moves, but Baguio might just be a more suitable backcourt partner for Helterbrand right now if they plan to use Jayjay as a 2-guard.
In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed watching a series that pitted two of the most popular and historic franchise in the league. You know it’s going to be a packed house each game when Ginebra is in the Finals. One time, I tried to get tickets for a Ginebra Finals game right after Game 1 had just ended. I asked if they still had even bleacher tickets for Game 5 or 6 or even 7. And the lady said that they were all sold out! So yeah, I never tried again. I just ignored Quinito Henson’s clichés and Richard del Rosario’s recycled jokes and enjoyed the game.
Many people have written off the PBA, saying no one watches the games, especially live, anymore and that it isn’t as exciting as it used to be during the Crispa-Toyota days. But it’s games like these that remind us that the PBA can still be exciting. For the lazy guy who only watches at home, it’s the crowd that makes PBA games exciting. No offense, but that’s probably why it gets painful for me to watch games of Sta. Lucia Realty or Coca-Cola Tigers. Even if they reach the finals and flush out all their diehard fans to the Astrodome, I still might (haven’t tried) be able to get tickets 10 minutes before their Game 7.
Even with this guy doing this every night, the Realtors still aren't interesting enough for me (photo: staluciarealtors.blogspot.com)
I’ll post the box scores from Games 1 to 7 later. I’ll also tally the scores and post averages (you’re welcome). But no PER and all that complex sophisticated shiznit. Too lazy and too complicated.
Meanwhile, enjoy the offseason. Sure na ba si Japeth na papadraft?
