Rain didn’t get where he is by dressing badly.

In the past week or so, with a lot of things I was trying to keep OFF my mind, I watched more Korean variety TV than I have consecutively…well, ever. And let’s hope never again.

My dreams get full of hubris and beautiful Asian eyes.

These are just two outfits from Rain’s promotions of…well, actually Ninja Assassin, I think? But maybe one is from one of the albums. These are at least in the same family of shows, if not the same one, so there may be some time separating them.

Like on the last post, they’re screencaps I took my own self from YouTube, and not on HD. But you’ll get the point anyway.

I kind of love the comment the host was making in this shot, which was “He’s not saying deep words, but when they come out of his mouth, they *sound* deep.”

Heh. Maybe his psuedopreppy look is helping? Though Rain’s best attribute, as far as his acting’s concerned, is his ability to go from fun-loving goof to very earnest in a split second.

It’s interesting that not just here, but in the next set of photos, he’s going for a classic combo of vest over collared shirt, with slacks. In this case, he’s got  glasses to take that image one step further, into hot Megane-kun territory, in the other case he adds more of a rocker vibe by wearing a tie layered with a large flashy necklace.

It actually looks like a riff off of school uniforms, though maybe I’m being influenced by the fact that the green and plaid look like one of the high school uniforms in my Japanese hometown… like, the thing a punk might do, or a manga artist might do on a front-piece of a chapter.

‘course if the sleeves weren’t rolled up it wouldn’t be the same.

OOH LOOK, I DO THAT TOO

okay, so I’m grasping at straws here. Any connection to Bi…

Weirdly in this photo I’m almost missing the glasses. I wonder if he really needs glasses at all? Because that would be kind of hot in that manga-secrets way.

TOP does, surely you can get with the program, Rain-sunbae?

d'aww you are so cute, but I'm sure you get that a lot

I really have tried to hold out against Rain, because he’s so superpopular he really doesn’t need my love. But at the same time…he’s a ferociously hard-working and talented guy. How’s a girl supposed to deal? Talent is like, my Achilles heel.

Unexpectedly Adorable: Lee Min Ho and Dara

I really like 2NE1’s music, more consistently than most K-Pop groups…which makes sense, since they’re largely produced and written for by one talent.

(The more I know about YG Entertainment, the more fond of it I am, despite being quite anxious about how K-Pop agencies are run in general)

This is true of EVEN their commercials music, starting with their debut “Lollipop” with Big Bang, “Don’t Stop the Music” for Fiore, and our topic of the day, “Kiss” for Cass beer.

cue one of the better styling choices of our time: Lee Min Ho in guyliner.

Not in love with his look as a rich playboy, but I don’t think I’m supposed to be. (Frankly, he looks a little Hwang Tae-Kyung, but in a sort of less edgy way? Anyhow. This is the Goo Jun-Pyo everyone can instantly place…we’ll hold out for a hint of humanity.)

Gold-Lame Jacket - from this we can be sure there is evil afoot

And it is all the more awesome to discover his alter-ego because of how delightfully fashion-show stuckup he looks.

they did a great job on the movie, but I wish there was less beer, it makes me feel dehydrated...

Clothes are more a focal point of character than the beer is–he’s still wearing a fashion-victim shirt and his jeans are probably 100x more expensive, but here they’re on the same general vibe, whereas their first encounter Dara was even more tomboy casual, as a DJ for one of his friends’ parties.

He shows up in his GreaserBouffant hair and red Lamborghini (maybe not, I wouldn’t know, but it’s that image anyway) to take her out and buy her clothes of his class and we’re sitting here wondering why she’s still sneering a little at him when she’s going the way even Jan Di would not tread…

when she throws away the clothes, and goes to his club as herself, not his arm candy.

The red is an obvious color of confidence, sexiness, and daring–the first time she’s been into primary color territory, really, with pastels and whites in the clothes she’s worn so far.

And she comes to take what is hers: she takes charge of their relationship, and makes it clear that the terms he’s set aren’t acceptable.

So he has to go meet her on her own ground:

Adorably, he’s in “commoner” clothes, the uniform at her job, which is the same monochromatic look of their concert encounter.

It’s a beer commercial, but the music was good, and it actually told a story in clothes…

Takes Maturity to Play Immature Right

Lawks, this show is so cute.

SO CHILDISH

it’s great.

The hero keeps trying to be That Chaebol Leading Man:

But he’s NOT. When he get’s a shower scene, we watch him spazzing over “How much did she see?” Literal flailing.

…When he was in his cartoony boxers and a T-shirt. Embarrassing but really, not that disastrous. He’s not  mature, not because he’s willfully self-absorbed, because his life has been so limited. You know a girl has never seen him in his PJs before. And he hadn’t chosen her to be the one…

This is something superior with a mature actor. Ji Sung, who plays Cha Ji Heon, is 34, has done his military service. He reportedly dropped 30lbs. before filming, which gives him a boyish look. His ability to look completely uncool, unconscious of the camera, is one I haven’t really seen in younger thespians.

And he manages, that way, to be completely adorable.

Though I actually am more drawn to him in his “mid-thirties” glory:

courtesy hancinema.com

…he looks like he could carry the groceries, but would put his foot down at carrying a purse. But also pay for dinner, right?

This kiddo? Not so much.

PROTECT THE BOSS HAS SUBS

I will go knit sleeves on my sweet-loli-kodona sweater while I watch it

but first:

I did already see enough to screencap some truly awe-inspiring sets we’ll be spending time with…

it's perfect that they've decided he's the one chaebol to live at home. Esp. since he's so hen-pecked

I love how much space there is. This is a theme–in fact, this house Chaebollie resides in kind of reminds me of the Taiwanese drama concepts of rich-people-houses, which tends to involve lofted ceilings (the ultimate waste of space and antithesis to most Asian housing, not to be rude) and useless objects d’art.

this grand dame is someone's granny at least once every year, but I don't mind, because she is awesome.

The living trees are something I saw a bit of in Lie To Me, being used well, but here they’re on a completely different scale. I love the “eco-grandeur” of even the office. I don’t know what this company does, but it believes in SCALE

this is like a Belle's Library room, except without the books to make it friendly. What is this room for?

what IS that on that museum-wall? action figures? That would make sense and also, be hilarious.

The whole company building feels a bit more like a modern-architecture-showpiece museum than any kind of industry center. Which is really kind of neat.

Also, I think some of the set pieces are also from City Hunter, which makes me feel a bit at home…

Tell Me Goodbye – Big Bang in Suits

Full Disclosure: I have a bit of a crush on probably two of the YG Entertainment music video directors. Whoever put together the aesthetic on “Goodbye”, is one of those.

Anyway. Not to hyperfocus on Big Bang…okay, well, running with the fact that I’m kind of obsessing about Big Bang (and 2NE1) [LOOK, Protect the Boss? Still not all subtitled!] here’s just a little screen-cap festival of the boys in suits…

first point: this person found the hottest way to present TOP: a little bloodied, through a cracked window

Wait, that doesn’t feature a suit, just an incredibly cute profile for a guy with such dark charisma. …excuse me. Fangirl moment.

This show blends an actual intriguing story (where you don’t know what’s going on for sure, but it doesn’t seem like the result of someone’s actual LSD-fueled trip, either) and getting all the guys in very different settings, personas that you can actually connect to the narrative.

actually, I don't really know what the connection is with TOP. but mysterious works for him

tbh, who knew maknae Seungri could make that earnestness totally fit the conflicted cop character?

VESTS, gah. This is a fetish within a festish, here–the bulk of my suit screencaps involve awesome vest/jacket combos. The rest involve collars.

bad screencap, but that shoulder-holster is unreasonably hot. had to include

It’s a point of tailoring that works to bring out the man’s shoulder-line, and accentuate their lines when standing alone [OR to help older guys mask lazy-stomach under a coat, too].

this graveyard was like a hot sixth character. The girl is more an idea, though her dress was pretty

Vests also serve up a contrast opportunity, a big trio with jacket and shirt, where the tie is an accent rather than the focal point.[DOUBLE BUTTONS, why are you so snazzy?]

They chose well, giving dark Daesun the boldest color here. He makes it seem less of a bold fashion statement, when the point of this videos clothing is to give it more of a classic feel.

no tie, but the collar buttoned all the way. Iiinteresting.

Whereas they give Taeyang, with the most clear-cut hiphop style, a subdued but modern-cut jacket. I can see Ne-Yo in this coat, no question.

Another point to ponder: all are in leather gloves. Almost as if they were pallbearers, in terms of story, but another period detail that makes it seem classic rather than just costume.

oddly...I have the least caps of this dude. His acting was more stand-out than costume. Oh, and he was mostly soaked or sitting on the floor side to the camera.

TOP in the car was the best part to watch, but the worst to try to screencap. Seungri actually steals the show for best scene-stills…

you're welcome, babe. Noona loves you, too.

Blast from the Past: Playful Kiss

I was rewatching a bit of Playful Kiss, partly to review Hyun-Joong’s acting, and was reminded of how enchanting the first episode was.

The BFFs and their weird little phrases…the school that feels like an actual school, just a particularly clean and nicely landscaped one…the uniforms…

If you’ve ever picked one of the many manga featuring an elite school, or a school with some form of elite class, you’ll probably see some wish-fulfillment uniforms. Not even joking, that’s really one of the criteria Japanese girls thought about in choosing a high school…and I kind of understand now.

The Japanese middle school I attend for some time had very mundane, but at least not ugly, uniforms. Navy blazer with no sartorial embellishment, red clip-on ties, a houdstooth check skirt with a pattern so small it had no personality.

If you haven’t worn such a set of clothing for months on end, can you understand how beautiful these ones are?

Cute little cap sleeves, piping on the sleeves to contrast, a tailored vest, and the cutest elements of the sailor skirt, without being too flat.

Ribbon ties for the girls, btw, are definitely one of the cuteness factor Pros.

‘course, this won’t keep anyone from trashing them to look a little more independent…

…how hilarious is it that the placement chart is *everywhere* at this school? It’s so true-to-life. It is VERY hilarious.

Asian schooling, FTW!

G-Dragon in Ink

Something that kind of surprised me to find as I watched the Big Bang documentary (lead-in to their debut, reality show-style) was to find that just as TOP and G-Dragon’s images were complimentary opposites, so were their personalities…and in different directions than you’d think, on first impact.

G-Dragon, for all his absurdism in dress, and kid-like looks, is a consummate performer.

If you want a style cue to his inner nature, how about a look at his tattoos?

kinda subdued for you, isn't it, GD?

the  font says more than the actual quote about him–sure, it’s one of the artsy-graffiti classics, but the understated nature of just text, saying what he wants to say… It plays into the same statement made by the ones on his arms, too.

reportedly (by blogger Jessie Zhao, heh):

If you put the tattoos from his forearms together, they read “Vita Dolce Moderato”, which translates into “Moderate Sweet Life”.

Italian is also the language of choice in music scores, in which it could be life played sweetly, at an easy pace…

they're cute in the way they fold into his elbow, actually...

There’s something outspoken about these, just black text, right where you can’t miss them, but slim and not claiming the spotlight, either.

 

Is that very G-Dragon like?

I think it actually is. Kwon Ji-Young was writing music before he debuted with Big Bang, has gone on to create music for his friends’ solo projects, became a lead singer when he’d started his training with no interest in it. He was the leader of his group because he was able to deliver criticism when his group wasn’t performing up to par. He seems a classic, ambitious type-A actually, behind the scenes: high strung, hard-working, but the kind to see something through no matter what.

And his persona as G-Dragon is just one (major) face he wears.

for some reason, this fresh-etched photo is really cool

Bonus: just as I was gonna go look up a little about “Hero” or JaeJoong of JYJ to be second-lead in Protect the Boss (STILL NOT SUBBED) I found out that he actually has kind of epic ink. So this may be a theme for the weekend…

Mr. President, We Have A Problem, Sir

You can tell you’re caught up in a show, when at the big Birth Secret reveal…

you think, “Yeah, he looks WAY more like him!”

Haha. Okay, so my actual thought was, “Right, that mom and that dad make more sense when it comes to creating a Lee Min Ho, though he’s a little tall for both of them.”

Still, they did a good job casting, right?

Something interesting I hadn’t thought of before: the fact that this father also makes more sense in the City Hunter that grew up than Jin-Pyo’s brother’s actual son probably would have. I did kind of wonder, what if this kid had been completely unadept at all this stuff? What if he’d grown up like the actual second-best dresser at the Blue House?

what if he didn't even have this guy's head for technology?!

But Jin-Pyo and the president are actual more similar to each other than any of the other men (except Yoon-Sung and Young-Joo, but in that generation). A man who can make hard decisions. A man whose emotions are actually quite vulnerable, but also support his moral code.

They haven’t gotten soft just because they’re in charge, behind the frontlines, either.

I mean, look at how hot this guy’s hands are…

Jin-Pyo and Yoon-Sung are both *way* too vain to ever wear a hat like that with complete unconcern for anything but comfort, but it’s actually quite cute. (Yoon-Sung *is* Jin-Pyo’s son by nurture…)

Anyway, it’s cool to think that Yoon-Sung could grow up like this–someone with regrets, sure, but able to live as a human despite it, not a one-dimensional passion for money, power, or…revenge.

while I’m waiting for Protect the Boss to be subtitled (hurry up, people!)

have a gratuitous art-shot from City Hunter, may it live forever:

someone was *really* pleased with themselves when they set this one up

This whole scene was about the unspoken, things we know and the characters don’t, and so the open-ended focus and back-profiles are just good cinematography as far as I can tell…

awwww, you GUYS. I'm so glad you get along!

The space is both obvious, but not awkward. And I notice, that the scenes of the president are all very uncluttered but not high-style, either. The only really exciting place in the Blue House is the security room, actually. This choice, to not glorify or stiltify the national headquarters, is one that both makes the tension not about lifestyle but moral code, and makes the accessibility of these places to our main characters much smoother.

And stuff. Probably.

Last: gratuitous art shot of Himself.

you're welcome.

Icon Watch: TOP of Big Bang

Here’s the face:

And here’s his crew:

TOP of Big Bang has held his own as a figure in K-Pop by no accident.

Think of the competition: he’s one of two rappers and five members in his boy-band. There are dozens of groups with some of the same song-writers, choreographers, and similar concepts out there.

Where does he stand out? Let’s look a bit at the roots here, and talk Big Bang.

Big Bang is actual sunbae to the last group I profiled, 2NE1. Both are under YG entertainment, and 2NE1 debuted under Big Bang’s aegis, alongside them for the “Lollipop” commercial song.

The house style is obvious both in the music (pop R&B that’s catchy but has body, too) and a style that would rather catch eyes than stay classy.

Kind of personifying this is the group leader G-Dragon*. He’s small with a loud personality, a signature kid-like voice as a rapper, and the ability to wear an exaggeration of rapper style that’s completely ridiculous. He actually makes an ideal counterpoint for TOP…

a little preppy layered with gangsta

Who actually does best when taking a classic and adding just a slight slant on it.

One of his solo pursuits has been acting, including a turn as an assassin on the extremely successful spy drama IRIS. This show (from the MV I’ve seen of his cuts, heh) plays up the slightly sinister charisma he has.

The promo posters have him looking a little weirdly sleek, but in the actual footage, the punk arrogance and chic style comes across much better…

All the agents wear black, as far as i can tell–that’s very much the aesthetic of this show–but he makes it seem a sexy fashion covenant, rather than a professionalism.

One of his recent stylings as a star (not a character) is to have silver or insanely blonde hair.

It’s something that instantly boots that classic look up to something a bit more edgy. It sometimes ventures into pastiche, but the boy works with G-Dragon. Give him a break.

What it really comes down to is that TOP is hot. But in a kind of unusual way, especially for K-Pop boys. Rather than charming, he’s a little stand-offish in image, which is only played up by the penchant for suit jackets and ice-queen hair. He has a voice with a rough edge, and of all the Big Bang members roughed up in the “Haru Haru” video sequences he’s the one who looks not damaged, just accessorized. Would he probably look decent in anything? Yeah. But his stylists do seem to get that it’s best if you keep it simple, with just a couple things to telegraph “rapper, K-pop phenom”

is that...a pink butterfly earring?

 

 

* G-Dragon is actually the one I came across first. He’s actually one of the insanely interesting to analyze dressers that I haven’t gotten to posting about yet, because where do you start?