#ep 3 was a LOT in a much quieter sense

[wordswhisperinthedark]

Link Click S2 EP3 spoilers

Ok so Shiguang softly touching hands (Lu Guang gently resting his on top of Cheng Xiaoshi's, Cheng Xiaoshi lifting his palm to support the weight) was so painfully soft, BUT what also got me was their conversation before hand.

Cheng Xiaoshi's just returned from Chen Bin's funeral (that whole scene was so sad omg😭) and he looks so tired and defeated — he practically slumps into the chair. Lu Guang doesn't say anything, just quietly supportive. And then Cheng Xiaoshi just has to say that he wants to help Chen Bin and his wife (wait, does she have a name? I can't remember), with such a pained expression and Lu Guang knows what he wants to do. Like, their relationship has developed in such a short time that Cheng Xiaoshi trusts that Lu Guang will allow him to use his powers, and Lu Guang trusts Cheng Xiaoshi to not try to change anything but provide comfort through the words Chen Bin's wife needs to hear.

They have a better understanding of each other's perspectives and have found a balance. And while the prolonged contact rather than their usual clapping could be a comfort thing (especially since we know Cheng Xiaoshi can dive by himself) and/or to minimise movement onu Guang's part, the gesture seems to convey: I am here and I trust you.

[karliahs]

i finished season 6!! i have...many thoughts. arguably too many. and please be aware that unlike my last screaming session, there's a fair bit of discussion here that isn't wholly positive! if negativity/criticism of this show is going to bum you out (genuinely no judgement if so), please don't click this readmore!

organised into a numbered list to pretend i'm capable of coherency. okay.

i am extremely biased and you shouldn't listen to me probably

there is a sense in which this show cannot win with me once it starts changing the status quo beyond approx the cultural festival, because i'm in the weird position of having spent literal years living mentally in this space that's like vaguely post-kamino to just post-overhaul. that's my comfy cozy little status quo zone and i like it there a lot. so when this show necessarily, very legimately wants to move its plot and characters forward from that point, there is always a part of me that feels a little like someone just ripped a big wall off my favourite playhouse - it's a legitimate story development but also hey :/

that said! when i was looking ahead at the stuff i knew happened from the point after i stopped watching, i kind of thought "huh, it sure does seem to escalate pretty intensely and become Just All War after a certain point." and i kind of thought that perception might be a function of my knowledge being all from spoilers, bc naturally that will focus on big plot developments and leave out quieter in-between moments. but uh... nope! again i cannot be trusted with perceptions about pace but...my feeling when watching is very much that at a certain point horikoshi decided he was barreling this thing right to the finish line

and that's fair! a lot of what's going on here with this status quo shake-up is like the objectively competent storytelling move where you don't give the audience time to slow down so they're feeling the same sense of overwhelm and fear that the characters are. basically it's me not them but boy would i have liked...space. for characters to slow down and react and feel things.

2. midnight was fucking robbed

she was robbed!!! why even kill her if you aren't gonna give it...weight. i know she's a minor character but best jeanist is a minor character and i feel like his fakeout death was borderline given more screentime and gravity than midnight's real actual death. and i know this show isn't about aizawa but fuck!! she had a big big place in the young aizawa arc, she mattered! to mic and aizawa! they were friends for 15 years! and they just don't really...do anything with it. i feel like if they'd killed mic off there'd have been...something. something that wasn't here. and she's not that much more minor a character than mic

3. the dabi reveal ruled

we all knew but christ. dance with your son in hell! the wilder and more bloodthirsty he gets the more i'm here for it. go for it you funky little maniac. love that he was animated like a weird little marionette while talking about shouto being a puppet. it's genuinely impressive that even with 0% surprise factor this still hit so good. i'm rotating him in my head like a microwave

and i say often that this show is better at creating problems than solving them for me but it sure is good at creating problems like. that fucking house. the pressure cooker of misery. tiny little touya soaking it all in. harrowing

4. the thing where dabi is a foil for shouto does not hit for me

i know i just said a bunch of good things about the dabi stuff but. okay.

i was conceptually never here for the concept of endeavour redemption arc and i will say! i was at times pleasantly surprised. the ep that basically concludes that the best thing he can do for his family is to stay the fuck away from them had more maturity than i expected. and again i genuinely enjoy the drama! it's very good drama!

but there is just. something about the thing where dabi is specifically there to be like. this is what shouto needs to try not to turn into with his anger towards his father, this is the path that could lead him down that just... for me it rings too much like vilifying the anger of an abused child. after they went so hard and so explicit on the domestic abuse angle.

i'm not saying you can't tell good interesting and valuable stories about anger after abuse, and even about how it's easy to become consumed by hatred when you've been wronged and let that take away your future. probably this story is that for some people. it isn't for me.

5. i love mirio but the missed potential of his temporary quirklessness fucking haunts me

idk if i can even say more about this like. i love him. i was happy to see him again. i long ago accepted that this show will never dig into quirklessness in a way that would satisfy me (and yes i know about Future Events and will be pleasantly surprised if that proves me wrong). but i truly cannot get over the missed potential of doing nothingggggg with this character who explicitly had a power that only let him be an incredible hero because of WORK. and effort. and training. and then having him lose the power but not the work and effort and training, and then shoving him gently out of the narrative until he just gets the power back one day. when your protagonist grew up quirkless!!! the opportunity for reflection on that is so obvious!!

okay apparently i could say more about that. sorry. read pez dispenser debris

6. hawks man

i already yelled (positively) about the twice stuff last time but it's worth yelling again because fuck!! again it's wild to me that after actively encouraging and seeking out spoilers, i still managed not to know this. and it fucking hit. toga's line where she goes "if [heroes'] purpose is to save people, did they not think jin was a person?" hit so fucking hard i had to pause the episode and put my hand over my mouth and stare at the ceiling for a while. it's...genuinely damning

and i think they did a really incredible job building hawks' character to the point where he does this. like. it's one of those perfect tragedy things where you can see all the pieces spinning into place. make someone into a weapon and they're gonna draw blood.

and then as always. i just vibe way more with the creation of those problems than their solutions. i'm sure they will do at least a little more with hawks but. idk. i feel like horikoshi is so good at breaking stuff and then he kind of hastily glues it back together and i'm like wait please. the wreckage was so fascinating. fixing it would be so long and hard and also fascinating. this is what fanfiction is for probably

7. lady nagant!!

i knew nothing about her going in and i liked her a lot. the music worked so well, there's this one specific kind of circussy little riff that i liked almost as much as AFO's theme, my other fave piece of music from this show

and again it's like...genuinely damning! holy fuck! and i'm trying to just enjoy the parts where they launch extremely cutting criticisms of hero society without remembering that my vague amalgamation of spoiler knowledge suggests we will not be....doing a whole lot with that

8. iconic yellow scarf era of sadness! at last!

in some ways i am the ideal audience for this narrative and in other ways i am again hopelessly biased. bc i have been craving content that addresses the fact that my boy is like this for so long, but also it's so My Favourite Subject that i have seen done well so many times that i'm like...would anything ever really be enough for me, an addressing midoriya's self destruction guy for literally 5 years now

in my head i expected this arc to be izuku going fully rogue so i was surprised when this was like...a semi-sanctioned thing, at least at first. but makes sense so you can then build to him being basically totally rogue. and oof the build. i really liked the visuals! let my son be fucked up and scary and haunted

and god when he admits he can't go back because he is so scared. i feel like the mall scene hit way harder for me this rewatch because there are so many horrible aspects to it, but particularly the thing of looking at these people all around you and knowing if you cry out too loud they will all get hurt. and it will be your fault, if you can't bear it quietly enough. and you are fifteen fucking years old. so the moment at jaku when izuku looks around at all the evacuating civilians and you can see him realising that him being anywhere near them could doom them. because they're near you, and this person with impossibly destructive power wants You. you're next...that inversion. that pressure. i love him forever and ever...

9. i knew aizawa would not be in this arc but i felt his absence so keenly

like i know i know. he's a minor character. he was busy not having a leg anymore. but i would have killed a man for anyyyy kind of OFA reveal reaction/one of his kids running around the city with a target on his back from the world-ending villains reaction. please. please. i knew i wouldn't get it but i still wanted it very bad

[ranchthoughts]

thoughts on genre, tropes, Bad Buddy, and My School President, cont. (part 2/3)

This is part 2 of a 3 part post: Part 1 here, Part 3 here, full text here

Pacing

Both MSP and Bad Buddy are also slightly unconventional when it comes to pacing. Both shows hit the standard BL narrative beats (falling for one another, confessions, first kiss, confirmation of relationship, conflict, beach eps, etc) but at unconventional timings, they utilize a lot of time skips, and they also condense plot lines which in other shows might have been much longer.

The Placement of Narrative Beats

I will focus on two of the main places where both Bad Buddy and MSP diverge from the usual BL placement of narrative beats. Firstly, the first kiss on both shows: while there is a lot of variety in the timing of first kisses for BL shows, Pat and Pran’s rooftop kiss at the beginning of ep.5 is perhaps a little earlier than usually, especially since the two do not truly  confess or get together until the end of ep.7; and in MSP, their first kiss comes quite late, especially given the numerous near-kisses that happen throughout the latter half of the show. The first kiss for MSP coming in ep.12 is not unheard of for a low-heat BL and really makes sense given the tone and setting of the show (lighthearted, high school), but combined with the early confession of feelings (hinted at as early as ep.3, and fairly confirmed in ep.6) as well as those fake-out kisses makes it feel a little more unusual.

Secondly, both shows eschew the typical ep.11 of doom structure of a BL, where ep.11 sees peak emotional angst and the narrative/plot climax, in favour of a ep.10 (and even ep.9 in Bad Buddy) of doom, an ep.11 denouement, and an ep.12 conclusion. Eps.9 and 10 in Bad Buddy are when Pat and Pran’s friends and parents, the two biggest barriers to their relationship, find out about them. Pat is shot, they learn the real story behind their parents feud, there are a lot of emotions, etc. In ep.10 of MSP, there is the finale of Hot Wave and Gun’s mother’s illness (culminating in her receiving surgery at the end of the episode). Neither show has the main couple break up in their eps. of doom, like is common in other BLs’ ep.11 of doom, though they do have their relationships tested. Ep.11 in both Bad Buddy and MSP are instead the denouement, a quieter, more introspective look at the emotions and plot event of the previous episode(s). Pat and Pran run away from their families for their “honeymoon” on the beach and come to terms with everything they’ve learned, and MSP focuses more on the aftermath of Hot Wave and the tensions and emotions among Chinzilla, though there is of course parts about Tinn and Gun’s relationship in the face of disappointment. The final ep. for both show is thus given a bit more breathing room than in other BLs - they don’t have to wrap up the emotions and plot lines of an ep.11 of doom AND conclude the series, and can instead focus on wrapping up the series and even introducing new ideas and a look into the future (there are timeskips in both ep.12s, Bad Buddy does their PatPran breakup fake out, and MSP explores homophobia).

Time Skips

While time skips aren’t unheard of in BLs, especially in the final episode, Bad Buddy and MSP’s usage of them interject a level of realism into the series that isn’t always seen. The time jump of 6 or so months at the beginning of ep.7 in Bad Buddy means the tension build of the Flirt-Off doesn’t happen over a matter of days or weeks but in fact months. Pat and Pran are stubborn, this won’t be resolved quickly, and it gives time for the tension to realistically reach a breaking point. MSP features several time skips in ep.9, ep.10, and ep.12, stretching both the Hot Wave competition schedule and Tinn and Gun’s budding relationship over a much more realistic full school year, instead of pretending the competition and build up of tension or feelings could be happening over a span of weeks. Paradoxically, the fact that the shows use time skips instead of showing (either in full, in part, or in a montage) the parts they skip (the Flirt-Off, the weeks of Tinn and Gun coming closer together and Chinzilla practicing) connects to my next point: the shows aren’t afraid to speed things up sometimes. The use of time skips both slows down the narrative and emotional arcs over a longer period of time while also demonstrating that the shows feel confident in their narratives: there is no need to stretch story lines out over episodes and episodes.

Condensing Plot Lines

The most striking thing about Bad Buddy and MSP’s pacing is how fast they move through plot lines, especially compared to other shows. In Bad Buddy, the plot line where Pat and Pran are anonymously and unknowingly flirting with each other through gifts and notes left at each other’s doors could have been the plot line for most of a show, if not a whole show, but it is introduced and resolved within ep.2. Ink is introduced in ep.4 and seems to be a potential faen fatale, but by the end of ep.4 this seems somehow unlikely and by halfway through ep.5 it is confirmed that she won’t be. The Flirt-Off happens in large part off-screen, in the 6 months or so time skip between eps.6 and 7, and is shown to us and resolved in ep.7. Other shows could have spent episodes if not half the show exploring that plot line.

I've talked at length about the pacing of MSP here and a bit here - like Bad Buddy, MSP moves quickly through plot lines that might have spanned episodes or even a whole season in another show. By the end of the first episode, MSP establish that Tinn is soft and pining hard over Gun (instead of keeping up the premise that he is cold and out to get the music club), the finale of Hot Wave comes two episodes before the end, the plot lines around Gun’s mother’s health are resolved in about one episode (the conflict around Tinn keeping Gun’s mother’s illness from him is resolved in a couple of scenes, and she has surgery and is pronounced ok by the end of the episode), any jealousy plot line around Nook is resolved in two scenes, the conflict introduced by Sound joining the band is resolved in one episode, and so on. Pretty much every problem introduced at the beginning of an episode is resolved by the end.

Bad Buddy and MSP feel confident, like they know they have narrative material to spare and don’t need to stretch plot lines out with twists, miscommunication, and jealousy. Thus, they move through plot lines much more quickly than other shows would.

Both shows feel so fresh because of this - they keep things moving, they surprise us by resolving things faster than other shows would, they don’t linger in jealousy and miscommunication like many other shows do, they skip over parts that other shows might have lingered on for the biggest punch, and they break the patterns that us, the audience, have come to expect from BLs (like the ep.11 of doom). Even the progression of the relationships, which we know will be romantic and probably happy in the end (these are BLs after all) and conform vaguely to enemies-to-lovers and will-they-won’t-they conventions, stay fresh: Pat and Pran have kissed and all but confessed their feelings, but they now embark on a months long Flirt-Off bet that delays them actually getting together. We know Tinn has a crush on Gun from the end of the first ep. and we begin to see hints that Gun might like him back from ep.3 onwards, and at first the show seems like it is going to go the typical romcom route wherein Gun doesn’t realize Tinn’s crush is on him (especially with him offering to help Tinn flirt with his crush), but like I talked about in my post here, they don’t and instead have Gun know it is him Tinn has a crush on, he’s just uncertain and a bit scared. Bad Buddy and MSP are both quicker and slower than other shows: they move through plot lines without lingering, but they use time skips to create realistic long term development of the core relationships, allowing the characters to build tension, live in hesitancy, and in the case of Tinn and Gun, be realistically slow in the physical progression of their relationship.

To be continued in part 3

[hanniiesuckle17]

i would like to bless your followers and dash, sooo can you give me a crash course in noir 😊😊

OMG YES OFCCCCCC💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

OKAY SO HERE IS THE DEAL

NOIR is a nine-member boy group under Luk Factory

(Not really pleased with how they are promoting my boys but imma get over it one day!)

Our fan name is Lumiere (or Lumi) and we don’t have any official colors or a lightstick yet.

Noir debuted on April 9th of 2018. With the mini-album Twenty’s Noir. Their title debut song was Gansta (SUCHA GOOD VIDEO) 

They also had a predebut song called As a Star and it makes me so soft.

Their next comeback is on the 27th (THIS MONDAY!!!!!!) The album is called Up the Sky and the title track is called Lucifer

IM SO FUCKING EXCITED YOU HAVE NO IDEA

MEMBERS 

Shin Seunghoon

Shin Seunghoon is our precious leader!!!! 

(He was what got me into Noir. I saw a video about the best leaders in kpop and I was like)

He is 27 years old. His birthday is May 30th, 1993 (He is a Gemini)

Boy is tallllllllllllllllllllll

like he’s 5′10.

but in pictures by himself he for real looks like he is 6′2

istg he is like 65% legs.

ALSO MAN AS A RIPPED CHEST SORRY BACK TO REGULARLY SCHEDULED NOIRING

He is the leader, main rapper, and also sometimes a vocalist (but the rappers in this group pretty much fo everything)

HE SPITS FIRE when he wants to. 

Really good at freestyling 

He makes mixtapes on youtube on Noir’s channel. (I think he has 5 out now)

He is a college-educated man!!!! (He went to Korean National Open University

He took taekwondo when he was younger

The man trained for 8 years

He and Hoyeon compose and format a lot of their songs with a team of producers from LUK

(I often think he and Chan from skz are really similar.)

Seunghoon is legit a father of 8 soft crackhead kids. istg he is so done with them most of the time

We call him our koala because he looks like one <3

Seunghoon is obsessed with accessories and wearing them to the point where stylists literally have to take them off of him. (I have never not seen picture of him not wearing jewelry. )

he is actually in the military right now and i miss him so fricking much TT

All in all hot boy on screen and soft dad in real life

Kim Yeonkuk

this boy I cant

Kim Yeonkuk. Damn.

he was on Produce 101 season 2

he was eliminated on ep.5 :(

He is the lead dancer and a vocalist

Yeonkuk is 25 years old. His birthday is February 8, 1995 (An Aquarius)

is totally the aegyo king but denies it

he seems cold at first but has a big ass bright personality its so freakin adorable

my personal favorite clip of him is and the boys dancing around on vlive to big bang and him saying fantastic baby (its sounds so cute when he says it)

He is also a 5′10 tall boy

he trained for 3 years

THIS BOY IS SO FREAKING SKINNY SOMEONE PLEASE EGIVE HIM A HAMBURGER OR SOMETHING TAKE HIM TO TACO BELL

not kidding

his waist is so fucking small its scary.

Yeonkuk=stringbean

literally a walking meme.

pause in any interview and he is pretty much gonna give you a memeable face

this boy is so loveable and goofy 

also if this boy doesn't post like 8 photos of him doing something on insta im convinced he thinks that it just didn’t happen

he never posts just one photo its always like 6-8

also I was highkey afraid he was gonna go bald last comeback when they legit turned his hair into smurfs pubes

Lee Junyong

Lee Junyong. When i say i love this man with my whole heart

also 25 years old

his birthday is March 1st 1995 (Pisces)

another 5′10 king

Main vocalist.

he is a former member of INX

his brother is Seungyong from N.CUS

he trained for 4 years

THIS MAN IS TOO ATTRACTIVE FOR THIS EARTH

vocals for days. VOCALS.FOR.DAYS.

Did a cover of BTS’s The Truth Untold with Siha and literally gives me chills.

He has little crooked front teeth so when he sings he has this tiny little breath in some of the words so his voice is even more distinct

BUT LIKE JUNYONG HAS THE CUTEST SMILE EVER (I love his teeth in that's a weird thing to say but i think they are so cute)

he is 1/2 of the Highnote Belting Club

talks. all. the. freaking. time.

he goes live alot

boy is obsessed with Yunsung someone save yunsung from him

total crackhead when not doing real interviews

never fails to make me smile

he is said to be the moodmaker of the group

APPARENTLY HE WAS IN ONE EPISODE OF MY FAVORITE DRAMA AND I HAD NO IDEA

he was in episode 6 of The Liar and His Lover

overall he is just so sweet and funny and its so easy to love him

Nam Yunsung

Yunsung is the Lead vocalist and Visual

24 years old His birthday is August 29, 1996

He is a virgooo

MAN IS 6FT EVEN

lead vocalist and LOOKS IT

he is the king of intense eye contact with the camera 

he looks like legit prince charming

2/2 of Highnote Belting Club

weird af

istg he is the biggest crackhead

very extra. (as you can see in gif)

he calls himself a vampire because of his super pale skin

he trained for 4 years

he raps part time

HE ACTUALLY ENJOYS EXCERCISE

he hides snack between his bed and the wall but apparently daewon and junyong steal them

I think he rooms with junyong? not sure

Someone save him from junyong. boy is going to be smothered to death

ngl their relationship is really cute

he was also in Produce 101 S2 but left bc of health issues.

cutest thing ever and then turns into a devil onstage

a literal puppy

he is big fan of ateez and he and another member actually went to the groups first concert in korea

he is just so precious and weird 

Kim Siheon

oml this smol bean

Kim Siheon god damn

He is 23 years old

Birthday is December 23, 1997 (Capricorn like meeeee)

also 5′10 babyy

Vocalist but also a rapper (he rapped suga’s part in their remix of BTS Fake Love)

LIKES TO BIAS WREKC FREAKING EVERYONE

Beware the Siheon

He has a hot older sister, Hanbit, from a group called Hot Place (Their debut song is called TMI and its pretty good.)

HOTNESS RUNS IN HIS FAMILY

he trained for 5 months

he really likes drawing and does caricatures of his members

he is the eyebrow king

idk his eyesbrows are just.... 

stylists do things to his eyebrows anf it just fucks everyone up

high key has the best fashion sense

others boys willshow up to vlive in like hoodies and he is wearing a freakin casual suit

BOY PLAYS TO WIN’

he is like a boss at every kind of game

claims himself to be sweet like “Heonie”

“Hi! I’m siheon! Heonie Heonie Siheonie!”

he is a litter quieter than the other guys 

BUT he is so funny 

he doesn't like spice on his food for some reason

yeah he's crazy

he trained for 5 years

he's just precious and hot and hot and really hot

Ryu Hoyeon

THIS MAN HAS GIVEN ME SO MANY PROBLEMS

Ryu Hoyeon.

So he is my bias wrecker. Boy climbed up my bias list so freaking fast

He is the main dancer, vocalist, and a rapper (he also composes and arranges with Seunghoon)

He is 22 years old

His birthday is February 6, 1998 (Aquarius)

anontherrrrr 5′10 babbyyyy

cheekkkkkbooonnneeeessss

SHARK BOYY

He says he looks like a shark and i agree

HE HAS A NICE FUCKING TORSO

There was a predebut photo of him half shirtless it was awesome

he was also on Produce 101 S2 

eliminated on ep.5 :(

he trained for 2 years

He, yeonkuk, and seunghoon were in the Japanese tour of the musical Altar Boyz with Teen top’s Niel,2PM’s Chansung, and many others

he has a semi viral video of him

when he was a trainee / on produce 101 he was dancing to nct127 cherry bomb and had an unfortunate but quite hilarious accident (just look it up its funny)

sucks ass at games. every game. ever.

he is a low-key crackhead. he is a calm crackhead lol

VERY ATTRACTIVE

he used to have a youtube channel

you can still see his insta (leaderyoo) its so freaking cute and has predebut stuff of all the boys

he made their entire remix of fake love

he choreographed their song Diamond and also their cover of Taki Taki (which was very hot)

becomes a beast when dancing

he has an original chore to WEight in Gold that is very.......(insert eyebrow wiggle here)

has that dorito torso

(tiny waist and broad shoulders)

also thighs god damn

He is also a HUGE Vixx fanboy

Alter ego is DJ Ironman

He is very close with Siha, Siheon, and Yeonkuk

they turned him into a traffic cone for the Doom Doom comeback

he speaks a little bit of English (just a little bit)

all in all I'm completely in love with this man

Yang Siha 

THIS MAN IS SO FINEEEEEEE (he's my bias btw I have never been so in love with a man other than jisung)

Yang Siha is just uugghghhh god damn

22 year old babyyyy

Birthday is March 9, 1998 (Pisces)

Lil baby is 5′7″ oml i love him

MAIN VOCALIST AND DESERVES IT

he likes watching youtube videos and anime

He trained for 1 year and 1/2

looks good in every freaking hair color

his voice does NOT MATHC HIS FACE 

but not like in a Felix level way

He says his most attractive features are his “feminine features” (he says his unpronounced Adams apple and his small noes and doe eyes

HE HAS SMOL EARSSSS and i lovethem

close with Hoyeon and Siheon

but like his voice though

its so freaking pretty

it gives me chills

everything about him is perfect

he has tiny lips lol

he can play guitar

legit i swear his entire closet is black he rarely wears color

legit EVERYONE LOVES HIM

if someone is hugging anyone in a vlive or something

its siha

its always siha

everyone cuddles siha

i wanna cuddle siha. fuck.

for some reason I've just noticed this

the boy likes to wear long sleeves idk why

he also always seems to wear this one necklace Idk why but its so pretty and i really love that he does idk

he says his favorite song by NOIR is Travel (its also my favorite. its on their debut album and omg his part <3)

he is just so pure oml everything he posts on insta just makes me so soft

he is just so freakin cute and makes me switch lanes so fast

Kim Minhyuk

ooooof this cutie

Kim Minhyuk is something else

i just don't know what he is lol

Lead rapper and lead dancer

22 years old

His birthday is March 18th, 1998 (Pisces)

5′11 boy yes sir

ALSO A COLLEGE EDUCATED MAN

He went to Seoul Arts College

he has an older brother

apparently he cooks in the dorms

he trained for 1 year

he likes to play basketball

he really loves taking photos on his camera

he HATES bugs. its kind of funny ngl

he also is deathly afraid of balloons (i will not apologize for laughing at this one)

He and yunsung loooove ateez. they went to their first concert.

HE SERVES LOOOOKKKSSS

I think he is the most versatile member (look wise) because sometimes its hard to recognize him with each comeback because they change his style

he has these really cute big circle glasses he wear and just uwu

he kinda looks like Simon or Theodore from Alvin in the chipmunks in the best way.

he has a thing about jumping

like whenever he gets excited or happy he just starts jumping

he smiles like sunshineeeeee

even though he is the second youngest a lot of the members say that they go to him for advice 

(probably cause he has permanent hold of one of the 3 braincells noir has)

he looooves girl group dances 

especially twice 

TIKTOK KING 

He owns Noir’s tiktok pretty much. also their insta

he's a precious chipmunk

Kim Daewon

Thhis baby oml

Kim Daewon is the cutest thing since that fluffy little dog whose name i cant remember

20 years old 

Birthday is April 18th, 2000 (Aries)

Lead Dancer, vocalist, maknae

PROTEC THIS BABY BOY

In pictures he looks tall af

actually...

5′7″ but looks like 5′4″

the cutest thing everrrrr

HIS CHEEEKS

the biggest fluffiest cutest cheeks

everything about him is smol except for them thighssss

trained for 1 year

he has one older sister

THE BOY NEEDS MORE LINESSSS LUK FACTORY GIVE HIM MORE LINESSSSSS

he goes off in the chorus of their b-side track “Between” though like fuuuuuuucccckkkk (lowkey one of my favorite songs by them)

literally one of the funniest people you will ever see

extra crackhead energy

makes all the boys laugh

he loves chicken and snacks (gotta keep those cheeks in top shape)

literally the softest boy

he's good at everything i swear

he likes to shimmy.

has a cute butt lol

he talks in tiny

literally the cutest maknae ever oml

I hope this helped guys!!!!! I really hope you can stan noir and support them in their comeback this Monday! I hope this helped @distrikt9 if you need videos or anything feel free to ask! I love sharing my boys. They really are so underrated. I did this so fast ngl. I've never typed so fast

[damnnjoon]

100 reasons to love Jeno

he’s allergic to cats but his family has 3 (bongsik, seol, lal) and he loves them dearly

he’s obsessed with cars like the little nerd he is 

hates math dearly 

he did enjoy both history and the sciences, though

even then, his favorite subject was phys ed, as expected

he can lie face down flat on the ground and raise himself up with bending his arms that is INSANE

can also get up onto just one foot without touching the ground

he cleans meticulously when he’s drunk

he also tries to get the other members to sleep early or sleep when they don’t want to,,, he essentially becomes dream parental figure no. 1

jenshow!!!! mc of the year!!!! king of mc-ing!!!!!!!

he’s grown up well throughout the years (from smrookies to chewing gum to now (boom)) but his smile has stayed exactly the same since when he was that kid from that commercial

speaking of: the milk commercial he was in

his and doyoung’s couple costume for 2018 halloween it was just so Valid

also him and renjun couples smurf costume it really went down in history i feel

i legally can’t go further without mentioning that one JSMR ep where he had the bathbombs and he saw the train bathbomb and went “choo choo!” that was so Good 

he named his airpods “Jeno’s showerhead” boy WHAT

his trademark confusion noise (”huH?”)

the mole near his right eye…

...and the one on his left cheek 

the fact that he’s awkward at aegyo in front of cameras but, according to jaemin, he has the most aegyo out of any of the dream members

he slaps his toner on so hard that it wakes renjun up every morning 

can and will eat most things with mayo (ex. celery)

all of his contact names for the dreamies are puns based off of their names 

current official hardest puncher of the dreamies 

jaemin got champagne for his birthday and jeno finessed it within like… a minute

the sound he makes when he’s trying to hold his laughter in is EXQUISITE

that’s another thing: he laughs soooo easily it’s so good

his dancing is so mf powerful i feel like not enough people appreciate how talented jeno is at dancing

exact same height, shoe size, and joining day as jaemin, his ‘destined best friend’

lets his members play games in his room into the morning even though he has work at the show

calls himself “no jam” (not funny) even though he’s a whole circus

his automatic wince that he holds for a few seconds when anything is too loud during JSMR

high pitched noise of annoyance

exceedingly gentle and has a self-proclaimed weakness for cute things

cries when he’s angry 

has gotten more and more confident as the eras pass by i am LIVING for it

says that he hopes to have another comeback with the original dream members someday (after they’ve all graduated… because SM is a Fuck and won’t make ot7 dream a fixed unit)

plays the guitar

composes songs! he’s so talented and musically inclined i am so proud of him

him, hyuck, jaemin, and jisung were forced to drop out of school to pursue being idols BUT before that he majored/focused in practical dance at SOPA (where his seatmate was jaemin!)

known for being bad at taking selfies (even though anything and everything with him is iconic, immediately,)

when filming for “go” hyuck fake kissed him and jeno started chasing him and that actually made it into the mv which is so funny

can eat half an apple in 2-3 bites

tied in arm wrestling with jaemin, who’s his lifting partner 

has never gotten blackout drunk even though renhyuck allegedly have 

really likes playing mobile games!! 

likes puppies and old dogs just the same he’s so good with animals

he can play the violin!

he’s the baby of his family and that really shows sometimes

his handwriting is very aesthetically pleasing in both english and korean

he still has “the tastebuds of a child” and eats like garbage but works out super hard to maintain his body (i hope he’s being healthy!!!!)

his assigned character trait (ex. renjun’s is “pureness/innocence” because SM can’t their artists seem more than 1 dimensional, apparently) is “boring” and he just runs with it and it gets funnier and funnier whenever he or the others call him boring because they all know he’s a whole clown

listens to music loudly 

his rapping improves with every song he’s really finding his flow!! it’s especially obvious in the we boom album in 119 and stronger imo

has a terrible sense of direction

he’s been wearing a lot of sleeveless tees onstage and offstage recently and you can tell he’s been working out which is rad because he’s mentioned how much he enjoys exercising so it’s good that he’s been doing what he loves!!

had a cameo on the drama a-teen... king of being an all around performer!!

resembles a samoyed (self-proclaimed) because of his eye-smile

loves cherry blossoms

he’s watched a lot of disney films but his favorite is the original Lion King

resembles (and loves!) donghae of suju

constantly compliments his members and has a tendency to compliment them even right after he clowns them

loves dark chocolate and can eat a lot of it

he really likes the sound of pencils against paper

his duality is insane he’ll go ham onstage and then be quieter and all smiles backstage like... true prince

his facial expressions are PEAK he is so expressive especially when he squawks at stuff

he genuinely liked studying (more or less) when he was a student and would like to go to university

has always wanted to and still wants to major in architecture!

that time he lit a candle and then accidentally blew it out directly after

when he shhhhed a lemon on JSMR

would love to go to Europe someday

his specialty is acting and I really hope to see actor!jeno some time in the future if he’s up for it

the way he says “oh my gosh!”

his soft vibrato when he sings where you can tell he’s not quite sure of his vocal capability (even though he should be because he’s iconic) but he still likes to sing

i know i’ve mentioned it but his dancing is so smooth and stylistic and powerful and tbh i feel it in my chest

boom shooting when he neglected to remind jaemin that he had his phone and pretended to take jaemin’s calls

that time renjun said live that jeno games til 4 am and jeno was like “don’t say that!!my mom might be watching”

boy can EAT

says he hates skinship but seems to enjoy initiating it

wears his watch everywhere because he’s the king of fashionable functionality

this (shoutout @iriiidescence )

i hate to focus on his physical attributes because I feel like he gets boxed in as just “pretty” way too often, but, with that being said, his hands are gorgeous and you can tell how much he respects the world around him by how gently and daintily he holds things

read and enjoyed Jonathan Livingston Seagull

is incredibly artistic but never talks about it

his eyes and gaze are visibly and obviously different on and off stage

he gets so flustered talking about his own duality it is the cutest thing

early days esp during mfal his smile was like :3 and it isn’t as pronounced nowadays but sometimes it’s still like that and that is very good

when dream got reflectors for their selfmade movie shoot thing (was it for the boy videos or something similar? I can’t remember) and he put it behind mark and was like “halo!” and hyuck almost beat his ass then and there

jaemin said “we’ve known each other for 7 years” and jeno was like “let’s stop meeting”

that nct life moment when him and jisung were “sparring” and jeno won but when he went to shake jisung’s hand he straight up pulled jisung’s mitten off but kept on shaking the empty mitten anyways to save face

the smrookies age vid where jaemin asks “am i cute?” in Thai and jeno straight up says “no”

ran DIRECTLY into a green screen during go mv filming and had the misfortune of it getting caught on camera

when jaemin said “i love you” and jeno (he was over the phone) panicked and stuttered out “no thanks”

when he sticks his tongue out in pics he is the CUTEST mofo

when he centered in black on black

when he was dressed up all hardcore in all black with a fake gun and still managed to look soft because of how his eyes shone with all the stars in the night sky

he always looks at his members like they each hung the moon

is always honest (even when it comes to shading SM 👌)

is always striving to become a better version of himself no matter what he is doing

spreads love in any way he knows how, whether it be verbally or through his actions or through the way his gaze lingers when reading comments or how focused he is on specific dance moves or how attentive he is to his friends... jeno always does what he can to brighten the world of those he loves and those who love him and he deserves the sun moon and stars because of this

[velteris]

Revue Starlight Song Analysis: ‘The Star Knows’, Ep 2

(For the optimal experience, have a copy of the song up and ready to play!)

The cool thing about the revue songs is that they have long stretches of instrument-only melodies built in to complement fight scenes where the dialogue may come in as the priority. That said, they’re crafted so that they maintain the flow of tension and “narrative” in the music even when they’re taking a background atmospheric role to the animation—so much so that even without the animation, they work as standalone music.

‘The Star Knows’ starts off with almost 2 minutes of instrumental that sets the tone for the revue to come. The percussion is light, soft cymbals that set up the time signature. 4/4 time is very orthodox, arguably one of the simplest and most common time signatures, fitting Junna’s classical nature. The piano and cello repeat the same phrase – four notes in rapid succession, an unwavering rhythm, with a melody of ti-do-la-mi that feels uneasy or incomplete because it doesn’t return to the tonic chord, creating a sense of urgency. Meanwhile, the violin and chimes provide a countermelody that soars but ultimately comes back down: Junna is reaching, but never quite reaches her goal.

At 0:25, the instruments’ roles change: the violin takes over the four-note phrase, softening it with a higher pitch, as the cello provides a smooth harmony for the piano’s fragile melody. This delicate approach accompanies Junna’s reflection on how she came to stand on the revue stage, how she worries this may be her last chance. The percussion falls even quieter; the driving force of the music is the piano’s chords.

As Junna’s resolve firms, the strings take the forefront at 0:48 with a sweeping, less subtle melody: she’s preparing for her performance, finding the classical music that will move her audience. The first brass instrument comes in at 1:11, soft, but quickly firming into a stronger introduction to the next passage at 1:20. The violins repeat the four-note phrase, more insistent now. Junna must act, and she must act now before she’s swept away by her doubts as the violins rise.

Tumbling piano notes at 1:41 precede Junna’s first verse. The structure of the revue she’d trusted in is falling apart, and so is she. But she powers through, determined to make herself heard.

‘The Star Knows’ is a sort of reprise or mirror of ‘The Reason We Are Here’, and accordingly, Junna does examine the reason why she is in the revue—and why she has not succeeded as she'd hoped to. But where Mahiru started with a soft, wistful tone, Junna’s singing is accusatory and defiant. “I don’t know the reason why,” she starts, staring Karen down; it almost seems as if she’s going to demand to know why Karen is here in the revue with her. But she goes on: “I am engulfed in flames”. Her melody seems to be in a major key, strong and projecting confidence, but the four-note phrase echoed over and over in the background piano belies her words. Karen has shaken her, and now that she sees her previous efforts haven’t been enough, her number one focus is on herself, justifying her own mentality, burning herself away for the stage. Anxious and growing more strident, the violins drive her on starting from 1:55. Her voice rises into a lament: “These flames will never go out.”

The fight begins properly; Junna’s first and second shot are deflected, and with them goes her hope of finishing the revue swiftly. The violins become frenetic, taking on their own melody, as she turns to trick shots and stage manipulation, ad-libbing anything she can think of to gain the upper hand. The percussion that’s been building becomes a steady dream beat that rolls through the second minute like the pulse of the fight. Junna is venting her loneliness, her frustration, her unmet desire for the stage; the repeated three-note step she sings at 2:25-2:28 is a cycle she cannot break out of, lest she fall out of time with the syncopated drum beats, which would break down her performance—until her desperation pushes her voice over the drum as she hits the second lamenting rise.

With a lull in the fight, the music eases as Junna gathers her thoughts and thinks of the stars she’s seen and wants to be. The frantic pace of the percussion washes away with the chimes at 2:32, letting the pure joy of the stage shine through for a moment. Insistent, the brass makes a reintroduction at 2:45, flaring through to 3:05 as she recalls the people she has yet to surpass.

But now Junna is losing her control of the scene. Even when she starts to sing again at 3:13, she is in constant danger of being overshadowed by the rampant strings and forceful percussion accompanying her. Her schemes grow wilder and wilder, yet somehow Karen thwarts each of them, until at last she does away with the subtle, hidden sniping and starts launching bright, confetti-filled shots. At 3:50, without the masking effect of the heavy instrumentals, she at last gives voice to her simplest fears.

I’ve seen a lot of different translations of the polyphonic duet part, but I’m trying out my own take on these lyrics. When Junna sings “Makerarenai koko de”—I can’t lose here—Karen’s line is “Make nanka nai”, which the subs I recall translated as “I won’t lose”. I’d like to offer a different interpretation. When Junna finally leaves all metaphor behind and sings in a high, clear tone her plain fear, that she will lose, it opens up an opportunity for Karen to respond: “It’s not a loss.” Junna goes on, “I cannot fail”; Karen sings back, “It’s not a failure.” Through this revue, Karen is trying to rewrite Junna’s very perception of the stage.

Frustrated, Junna accuses Karen, “You wouldn’t understand”—to which Karen refutes, “It’s because I don’t understand you” with a forceful emphasis on dakara koso that lets her seize control of the pace. The percussion returns, still a forceful beat but with (what sounds like) a tambourine or muted cymbal taps that reflect Karen’s more upbeat outlook. Junna’s protests become Karen’s harmony for that verse, taking the darker alto phrases that reflect her despairing mood, using the antonyms to Karen’s lines. There’s the beauty of polyphony—that each line enriches the other’s, that a monologue turns into a conversation.

At 4:13, for a moment, Junna’s enraged enough by Karen’s over-optimistic claims that she briefly seizes control of the conversation again, with a swell of agitated strings overcoming Karen’s percussion. Karen lets her have the phrase, then comes back stronger, cymbals coming through stronger now; her long held note that harmonises with Junna’s singing at 4:18 is both a demonstration of her own ability and a show of willingness to support Junna, even as Junna tries to push her away, saying “You can’t do anything”.

The fight hits a lull. Junna’s desperate enough to try for a frontal assault, even with her ranged weapon. As she gathers herself for the decisive blow, knowing it’s her last chance, the piano returns with the disquieted four-note phrase from the beginning of the song. A melancholic cello melody gives way to the brass and violins’ demand for theatrics at 4:45; even Junna’s private agony must be offered up to the stage as fuel for brilliance.

Karen’s victory works no immediate, mind-changing miracle. Even after her triumphant final verse ending at 5:34, the music remains distraught, unresolved, easing from the initial shock of defeat to a softer mourning cello and piano line. The revue is over, but Junna’s own struggle is not; there are things that can’t be said on the stage under the spotlight. She needs a bit more time to reconcile her loss. But for now, the song’s reached its end.