#kbs just dance

[kitxvoss]

From... no. no, don’t ask. To...I’m so proud of you, Mrs. Bell

[faerenjun]

221216 KBS SONG FESTIVAL // RENJUN

[faceglitchsworld]

You get it, I have an hyperfixation with Same Scent (traditional version) but now I wonder if KBS will release full fancams for each member with the 8K quality 🤔

I would be so happy if they'll actually release them (and my hyperfixation will not go away🤣) ☺️

[bkgml]

I desperately need a part 2 to the head scratching obsession katsuki has with a few different scenarios preferably MAYBE reader scratches his head w her pretty nails while there hanging out w friends and he’s trying SO HARD not to let them see him fold 😭

OHHHHHHHH YESSSSS

car ride

i’m thinking of u and katsuki sitting in the backseat of a car idk who’s driving maybe it’s a bakusquad road trip and everyone else is asleep

(except kiri who has his eyes locked on the road)

and it’s getting super late but youre still a couple hours from the hotel.

i’m thinking it’s like a van situation and u and kats are in the back back bc kats hates having eyes drilling into the back of his skull.

and you can tell he’s getting super sleepy but he keeps saying he’s fine and he can wait until you’re out of the car.

i’m thinking you’re leaning up against the window with your legs in his lap and his body keeps deflating with tiredness and eventually you just tug at his arm and open yours in invitation.

he huffs but flops down onto your lap anyway but he’s still frowning as if it’s the biggest inconvenience in the world.

until he feels your heavenly nails graze his scalp, sending full body chills through him causing him to nuzzle into you and groan lightly.

it doesn’t take long for him to still, falling into a deep sleep.

and just know he’s going to be annoyed to the max when you get to the hotel. grumbles that you should just sleep in the car.

drunk

you’ve been at the club for 3 hours now, you’re dancing with mina and you look real sexy. if only it wasn’t so late. katsuki is dead tired and is ready to just flop into bed.

“bro take a shot, you look like you’re gonna fall asleep at the table.” kiri advises before downing three shots with denki.

“bullshit.” katsuki murmurs.

“why not bro? you’re not driving.” sero says with a hint of malice in his tone, stuck being the DD for the night.

“whatever. just order more shots.” katsuki groans.

****************************************************

“katsukiiii!” you cheer, skipping over to him giddily.

“that’s not katsuki anymore, yn. thats BIG KB!” denki cheers, earning a groan from mina.

“what is that stupid ass nickname.” she says, rolling her eyes.

taking a closer look at your boyfriend he does seem a little out of it.

“what’s the matter… big kb?” you tease, grinning.

you’re only a little tipsy. mostly high on life of the dance floor but sober enough to think straight.

“had some drinks.” he murmurs, fingers reaching over to rub against your cheek.

you pause, slightly stunned at his words.

“wow.. did you lose a bet kats?” you question, leaning into his touch.

he shakes his head, frowning at you thinking he would ever lose a bet to the idiots.

“nah he was just a sleepy guy, weren’t ya?” denki teases, pinching katsuki’s arm.

katsuki frowns, shrugging denki off.

you giggle leaning closer to katsuki.

“you a little tired, suki?” you whisper to keep the conversation private.

he frowns, offended.

“no? could stay here all night.” he mumbles, crossing his arms over his chest.

you make a ‘really?’ face at him.

he scoffs. as if you don’t believe him, ridiculous.

“go back out and dance.” he says, nudging you away softly.

you hesitate, wanting to settle down for the night yourself now.

katsuki’s so cute when he’s drunk, you just want to be at home with him.

“guys we’re actually just gonna uber home right now, but this was super fun.” you say smiling and katsuki frowns deeply.

the four had moved onto another conversation while you talked to katsuki, their attention now turning to you and your boyfriends big frown.

“wow, getting lucky tonight bakugou?” denki grins.

katsuki wraps an arm around you as if to protect you from his words.

“we’re not even going home, shut it.” he grunts.

you turn your head to look at your boyfriend.

“yes we are.” you say gently.

“no.”

“katsuki, yes.” you say firmly.

“no.”

you feel frustration bubble up in your head but push it down in favour of sneaking your arm behind katsuki’s head, fingers dancing on the very back of his neck.

“no. not this shit.” he groans, but doesn’t move away from your touch.

“shhhh, let’s go home big kb.” you whisper into his ear.

your hand toys with the hairs at the back of his neck before snaking up from his neck to the crown of his head, causing chills to spread throughout katsuki.

he groans deeply.

“fine.” he grits out between his teeth, refusing to look down at you.

“ha! did you see that mina?! did you see-“ denki gets cut off at katsuki shoving him off his place on the booth, making denki tumble onto the floor so you and kats can get out.

[the-roo-too]

kim minjeong x reader; idol au

foul language; mentions of fwb (kissing); Y/N KISSES A MAN

you and minjeong had this causal situationship going on even before aespa debuted. you called it a situationship, but who were you lying to? it was practically dating. just…

minjeong refused to ask you out officially. she just always expected you to agree to her outings that were clearly romantic. right now, you were walking off stage with your -favourite- member following behind you. it was another stage for black mamba, nothing special.

on kbs, there were other groups performing that day. amongst them was enhypen, performing given taken. as you were walking with your members, a boy from said group suddenly walked up to your leader, looking all shy. you cooed at him, thinking he was trying to ask jimin out but then he suddenly turned to you.

“hello, y/n!” he bows at you, a bright grin on his face. “i’m jake. from enhypen!” as if that wasn’t obvious. “would you be willing to give me your number?”

you wondered if there were cameras on you right then. your group just barely debuted and you were on your way to get into the first dating scandal. before you had a chance to reply, minjeong slipped in front of you with a small scowl on her face.

“i don’t think she would.” jake looked taken aback, clearly not expecting that from the lovable winter everyone has seen so far.

“i-i asked y/n-“ she cut him off quickly.

“and i replied. scram, boy.” before you could yell at her yourself, jimin and aeri beat you to it. the japanese gave her a warning look and subtly gestured at the people around.

“shut it, minjeong.” your group then scrambled to go hide in your changing room before you could attract any unwanted attention. you felt winter’s eyes boring into you the whole time.

“what the fuck was that.” fell from your leader’s lips when the doors to the changing room closed. winter shuffled to her corner, completely ignoring all of you. “minjeong, i’m talking to you.”

“i know, jimin unnie.” she said dismissively and looks at you. “what about you, y/n? what the fuck was that?”

you turned to look at her like she grew a second head. her gaze seemed accusing, but she had no right to be like that. it was only a casual fling, her words not yours.

“don’t bring y/n into this.” you could see minjeong’s blood boiling as ning walked over to you and hugged you with a exaggerated pout on her lips. the older girl stormed off angrily, leaving only the four of you in the changing room.

“…any clue what that was about, y/n?” you heard aeri ask and you suddenly remembered that they didn't know about your little affair. you and minjeong never told them—what was there to say in the first place?

“it’s nothing. i’m sure she’ll come back soon, maybe she just woke up on the wrong side of the bed?” you lied smoothly—although lying to your members felt wrong. they all nodded in understanding and you guys called it a day.

only a couple days later, when you were sitting alone in the dance practice room, polishing your moves, did minjeong finally approach you about that. she walked into the room, her gaze filled with hunger. you didn’t get a lot of time to react before she pinned you to the mirror, glaring at you yet licking her lips.

“y/n…” her tone was needy, her lips already leaving a trail of kisses down the side of your neck. then you pushed her away with a frown and she looked up at you with something between hurt and confusion. “y/n?”

“what are we, minjeong?” she rolled her eyes at the question, as you expected. you could easily predict what she’d say.

“we’ve talked about this, y/n.” her hands gripped your shoulders, trying to pin you again before you gently slapped her hands away. “oh, come on!”

“if its just a casual fling, why can’t i date other people?”

“date?” minjeong’s brows furrowed before an angry scowl appeared on her face. “is this about that jake guy-“

“wow! you’re so smart of a sudden!”

“shut the fuck up.” she leaned close, her breath hitting your lips. you could practically see the blood boiling in her veins. “why would you need to date an idiot like him when you have me?”

“do i have you? because i don’t feel like i do!”

“good!” she angrily pulled away. “then you don’t have me. fuck you, y/n.”

“cut! girls, take five. minjeong, y/n, come here this instant.”

you felt yourself blush in embarrassment as you were called over by the choreographer. you quite honestly knew what this was about. armageddon was about to be released and you guys needed to film the practice video, performance version, perform the song for promotions…

and the annoying part was the choreo—both you and minjeong could by then perform it flawlessly. the problem was the member placement. for the bridge, ningning had a solo part. while she sang, your members were supposed to kind of embrace her—minjeong was behind you then. that part wasn’t working out as the idol wouldn’t for the life of her touch you without looking stiff.

“girls.” the choreographer looked between the two of you with a disappointed gaze. “i get playful banter. i get making jokes during choreography. looking like you’re about to throw up because you’re touching your member isn’t something i want to see on stage.”

“i didn’t do anything!” you could feel the older girl’s gaze burning into you. “i can’t control minjeong unnie.”

“don’t put the blame on me, y/n.”

“shut it, both of you.” your frown deepened as the choreographer lightly pushed you both away from each other. “i don’t care who started it. what, are you five?”

“no, unnie.” you both gritted out. the choreographer nodded her head, deeming the problem as resolved.

you were about to turn to minjeong to give her a piece of your mind before she was called over by the group’s manager. with one final glare, she stormed off. just as you thought you’d have a second to take a breather and maybe relax, karina approached you.

“this shit has been going on for almost four years.” she groaned before looking at you seriously. “whatever it is between the two of you, solve it, y/n. it’s ruining the group’s chemistry.”

your eyes widened at the accusation and you angrily scoffed. “ruining the group, unnie? tell that to her! she’s the one with a problem.”

“your unnie, y/n. minjeong is older than you. have some damn respect.”

“you’re acting like my dear minjeong unnie respects me. take five my ass…” grabbing your water bottle and phone, you started walking towards the doors of the practice room.

“where are you going, y/n?”

“i’m meeting chenle oppa for coffee.”

“what? we have practice now, y/n.” you could hear the anger in her voice. “get back here. are you listening to me? y/n!”

you should have never met up with chenle. you were angry when you saw him, with your choreographer, your members, *minjeong*. chenle was always a good friend of yours, being in the same company and sometimes passing by each other in the halls made you close. he was always only that, a friend. despite the two of you being seen together in public often, the rumours weren’t that tragic and you two often mentioned each other as close friends.

what made you kiss him after yours fight with your group, you’ll never know. you picked the worst place to do that too—the coffee shop you two were scheduled to meet up in.

the scandal broke out before you could get back to the dorm. of course some passer-bys recognised you two and took photos. the angle was a little awkward so it could technically be turned around and into a ‘friendly hug’, but that would still mean you’d have a meeting with the company. and your members would rip your head off. jimin was just after her own scandal in april so she wouldn’t probably take that lightly.

you fidgeted with your phone nervously as the manager was driving you back. she picked you up when you called her and as you were riding, dispatch posted some of the photos. with how your manager was side eyeing you, you assumed she sneaked a glance at the horrific amount of notifications buzzing her phone.

maybe for the sake of your sanity, she wasn’t asking you about just yet. the manager was probably waiting until the board took action. you were around 5 minutes from the dorms and time was passing by a lot faster than you wished it did.

you already texted the boy at least, clearing the air with him. how you did it in the heat of the moment and how it really meant nothing. thankfully, he didn’t seem bothered at all. he sent you a laughing emoji and thumbs up, followed by wishing you good luck. you were glad you at least didn’t loose a friend because of your mindless actions.

the car stopped by the dorms. the manager slowly turned around in the driver’s seat and gave you something between a pitiful and angry gaze. “good luck with jimin, y/n.”

“thank you, unnie.” as slowly as you possibly could, you unbuckled your belt. maybe they didn’t know yet? maybe she’d be understanding? “i think i’ll need it.”

she winced and nodded her head. “you definitely will.”

with a heavy heart, you got out of the group’s car and walked inside the dorm’s building. the quiet hum of the air conditioner greeted you as you made your way to the elevator. it made a small ‘ding’ sound as it arrived, opening the doors to let you enter.

as you pressed the button for you floor, you nervously rocked back and forth on your feet. the tension was slowly eating you up alive. another ‘ding’ turned your attention back to the elevator doors opening. when you stepped out of the lift and they shut behind you, there was only one door separating you from the angry jimin.

almost on autopilot, you knocked on the heavy doors. shuffling could be heard from inside the dorm before a red in the face karina slammed it open. she rarely could be seen like this, but she must have already taken off her make-up.

“hi, jimin unnie…”

“get your ass inside.” you didn’t have it in you to try and argue now, in the middle of the hallway. you’d still get a chance to explain (and maybe defend) yourself, right?

when the doors slammed shut behind you, you were greeted with the 3 of your members. jimin was facing the entrance still, probably trying to sort out her thoughts so she doesn’t erupt on you. aeri had her arms crossed over her chest and next to her yizhuo was leaning on the table. they all looked rightfully bothered.

“chenle out of all people?” you heard the way ningning hissed when giselle punched her arm. “what?”

“don’t say anything. for your own good.” the japanese mumbled, looking at the oldest girl in the room.

“first, you and minjeong can’t act like adults for once. second, you storm off in the middle of practice because you’re a whiny kid.” you winced at karina’s tone. she turned to face you, you could see that in the corner of your eyes, but you tried to stay burning your gaze into the floor. “now you kiss a random boy without thinking?!”

“chenle isn’t a random guy-“

“shut up! i’m talking.” you’ve never seen the oldest member of aespa this angry before. “you don’t get to speak now. you’ve messed up as it is.”

“but, unnie-!”

“i told you to shut up!”

you felt your eyes watering slightly as she raised her voice at you again. aeri, who must have noticed this, slowly walked up to jimin and placed her hand on her shoulder.

“calm down, jimin unnie…”

“i won’t calm down! y/n needs to understand that her actions have consequences! you can’t just do shit like that because you’re mad at minjeong when it’s gonna affect the whole group!”

mad at minjeong. the first tear fell from your eyes and you weakly placed your hand on your face to shield it. “i-i love minjeong unnie… i'm mad at her but i love her… i’m sorry, unnie!”

the three of them looked at you uncertainly before you felt one of them hesitantly embrace you. ningning leaned her chin on the top of your head and hummed gently, trying to help you stop crying. jimin couldn’t bear to look at your tear stained face. her gaze was boring into the floor beneath you as aeri stood on her side, also contemplating it. seeing that the two eldest weren’t saying anything, yizhuo rubbed your shoulder softly and tilted her head.

“i’ll lead you to your room, okay y/nnie?” she sighed in relief when you nodded your head weakly. not minding karina and giselle, she led the two of you away to your bedroom.

“that was… unexpected.” aeri nodded as if to herself before leaning on the table again and gazing intently at the spot where you just stood. “actually, no, it was. minjeong has been giving y/n puppy eyes when she’s not looking for years.”

jimin ran her hand through the strands tickling her face. being a leader huff got more complicated. “i thought they were over it at this point. now we’re gonna have to deal with a lovesick y/n, stubborn minjeong, and the goddamn public.”

“gosh, she finally admitted it!” both heads turned to look at ningning, who just came back from your bedroom. “it was getting so tiring! i thought minjeong would melt her with those stupid puppy eyes but y/n likes her too!”

“…you knew? about everything?”

“you guys didn’t?” the two awkwardly looked at anything but the chinese member. she riled her eyes and pulled out her phone. upon typing ‘y/n and minjeong’ into the search bar, they were greeted with a series of pictures where either you or winter looked fondly at the other person, of course only if she wasn’t looking. “i knew minjeong unnie had it in her, but i’m glad y/nnie also feels it.”

“wow.” aeri glanced at the phone again before a small smile broke out on her face. “they’re cute together when they don’t look like they wanna rip each other’s throats out.”

“true.” clearing her throat and looking at her two members, jimin still looked a little lost. “so what do we do?”

“we get them together, duh.”

“but how?”

yizhuo hummed in thought, her face full of determination. “we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

the plan was put into action the next day, starting during vocal practice. giselle made it a point to try and make a face every time winter made the slightest mistake. riling the girl up, she ignored the questioning glances you’d been sending her.

“um, actually minjeong, in your line there-“

she didn’t get to finish as the girl angrily stood up and excused herself, saying she suddenly needed to use the restroom. your group’s vocal coach glanced at her watch and nodded slowly, signalling it was the time to finish nonetheless.

after leaving the room, the four of you glanced between each other a little awkwardly. you pulled up your schedule on your phone before gesturing to one end of the building. “dance practice? it should start soon, maybe winter unnie will come back until then.”

“good thinking. i’ll text the group chat.” jimin quickly sent a text to aespa’s chat about going to the practice now. then she suddenly showed something to aeri. “gosh, i just got a text from manager unnie… she wants us to meet her. it might be about the little stunt you pulled yesterday.”

you winced at the mention of the incident. they just had to bring that up on every possible occasion. the two of them scurried off without a second glance at you and yizhuo. you turned to the chinese girl and smiled.

“so, dance practice?” she nodded and you two started walking towards the practice room. on the way there, ningning suddenly stopped in her tracks and started frantically rummaging through her bag.

“oh no…” she looked at you with an apologetic glance. “i think i forgot my water. do you mind if i go get some real quick? i swear i’ll join you soon!”

without waiting for you reply she also scurried off to god knows where. your brows furrowed as you realised three of your members disappeared all at once. the situation was just the tiniest bit fishy. something in you was telling you this wasn’t normal. trying to ignore the feeling you walked towards the practice room. what could go wrong, right?

“do you seriously think it’s a good idea?”

“100% honestly? no. i hope we don’t have to pay for the cracked mirrors if they fight.”

“damn you’re right. is it too late to try and stop them now?”

“let the gay people have gay affairs.”

it’s been a couple long minutes and you were still alone in the practice room. sitting idly and waiting bored you out, so now you were laying down on the slightly chilly floor of the room. you texted the group chat a couple times, asking the others if they think coming back would take them long, but you never got a reply. having tossed your phone under the mirror with your water bottle, you were just staring at the ceiling now.

a soft groan interrupted your train of thoughts. you looked to the side and saw minjeong scowling at you lightly. wordlessly, you sat up and waited for her to come close too. the universe had to be playing you.

winter sluggishly walked over to the mirror, placing her water bottle and rolled up jacket on the floor, making it a point to lay it as far away from your stuff as she could. the slight scowl she was sporting upon entering the room slowly faded off her face. when she discarded her things, she walked over to the middle of the room and joined you on the floor.

after a couple of long and awkward seconds, you started stretching. it was a good thing to do before having to dance for hours. you didn’t want to wake up sore the next day. you could feel minjeong’s eyes boring into you every couple seconds.

“you’re staring.” you mumbled finally while standing up, begging to stretch your legs now.

winter wordlessly stood up and walked closer to you. your eyes were following her through the mirror until she arrived behind you and your gaze finally met hers. her eyes were slightly darkened, holding something unreadable. you shivered when you felt how close she was standing. for the first time in years, it didn’t feel like she was forced to be near you.

“you kissed that stupid boy.” she mumbled, more to herself than to you. despite that, her eyes never left yours. they were like magnets, pulling you in so you couldn’t look away. “that chenle guy. i never liked him.”

“he’s my friend.” the reply was slightly choked. you didn’t know why you felt like you couldn’t breathe with her this close.

“you have other friends.”

“why do you bother, minjeong?” faster than you could process it, she had turned you around and was staring you down. her eyes bore into yours but not angrily, like it’s been ever since your debut.

“i don’t like when you kiss other people.” her tone was barely a whisper.

a weak chuckle left your lips at that and you shook your head. “unnie, you lost the right to say that three years ago.”

“i don’t care.” she took another small step towards you. minjeong was now dangerously close. you didn’t think you’d see her like that again. “vixen… you did that on purpose, didn’t you? you wanted to rile me up, get me jealous…”

you didn’t think you did. at least, not intentionally. the way she was looking at you made you feel like maybe, just maybe, there was something true in her words. you didn’t want to admit it even in your head, but winter could’ve been right.

“tell me you love him…” she whispered. her face was just inches away from yours. you didn’t even notice when the two of you got so close. she was practically embracing you. “tell me you love him, and i’ll leave you alone. we’ll act like this never happened. please, y/n…”

you gulped heavily. her gaze turned pleading and you had to close your eyes. you didn’t want to give in so easily.

“minjeong unnie…” you heard the way her breath hitched. “i don’t love him… i don’t love chenle.”

“fuck.” she cursed under her breath before her hands gripped you, one arm holding you close while the other embraced you gently. she leaned her forehead on yours and gave you a second to calm down. “fuck, y/n… that’s now what you were supposed to say.”

“minjeong…”

“i love you.” she whispered against your lips softly. “i hate it. i think you hate me. i love you so much. y/n, i was so blind…. please.”

your hand slowly trails up her back until you’re softly gripping her hair. “minjeong, i… i don’t think i want to do the casual shit all over again.”

“fuck casual, i need you all to myself.” she mumbled before her lips finally met yours.

[nofollowgame]

🔶 Proxy's ~* bl0ggie of d00m *~ entry 3 in No Follow 「game」 :: File #000009

i just made ANOTHER friend!!! his name is kb n he likes to DANCE DANCE~ me n mel were lookin for teh mall again (spoilerz: we still didnt find it TToTT) BUT we did find a cool dance club n thats how we met kb!!! then me n mel were havin a lil dance partyyy but then kb kicked us out LOLOL kb ya big goof XD and THEN on teh way out i was tellin mel about teh layout i got from spiderrr n then kb was like o_O??? but he was kickin us out so idk maybe kb is friends with spider too i got distracted by mel bc she was makin a funny face like <3ww<3 how does she do that?! XD teh rand0mness…

[sonsband]

I need someone to acknowledge how smart and responsible I'm being right now

[pommpuriinn]

₍^ >ヮ<^₎ .ᐟ.ᐟ 2023 KBS MUSIC BANK GLOBAL FESTIVAL/BEHIND THE SCENES 

‪⋅˚₊‧ synopsis‧₊˚ ⋅ the last event of 2023 for txt and of course they had to end it with a bang

Red carpet outfit | makeup | nails | hair

᧔o᧓ the flashing lights were blinding and the photographers yelling out the members names was nothing new to the group. They kept their smiles on and continued posing until the MC came to ask questions.

᧔o᧓ “Joohyung-ssi how does it feel to finally perform one of your songs with a few of your members?” The MC asked. “I’m so excited! I always wanted to do this. I hope moa are just as excited and please cheer loudly for us.” Joohyung got embarrassed towards the end making everyone chuckle.

᧔o᧓ the MC made them each turn and say something nice to another. Beomgyu looked at Joohyung and even before saying anything the photographers went crazy with snapping pictures of the couple. With the sudden action made both of laugh. Beomgyu cleared his throat before speaking, “Joohyung is the definition of a perfect idol that our group is very proud of.” It was short and sweet which made Joohyung beam at him.

᧔o᧓ Joohyung turned to Yeonjun “um…” Joohyung was getting embarrassed again. “Y-you practice so hard and I admire you a lot for how hard working you are…um yeah.”

“Noona what was that?” Yeonjun laughed while hugging a flustered Joohyung. “I’m sorry, I was put on the spot.” Joohyung covered her face with her hands. “It’s ok noona.” Yeonjun rubbed her back comforting her.

᧔o᧓ Joohyung did go viral from her abs being more defined along with her elegant looks throughout the night. With her pearly white hair color Joohyung was called ice queen all over social media.

Gotta Go outfit | makeup | hair

᧔o᧓ the second those stage lights turned on the whole venue filled with screams. The trio just had a chic aura to them with this performance. Joohyung combined the original feminine dance moves with a masculine touch to them to suit Yeonjun and Beomgyu better in the company opinion. Joohyung would still dance to the original choreo towards the end of the main chorus.

᧔o᧓ Yeonjun and Joohyung got to share the high note with each other which moas erupted with cheer. Soon after the high note Joohyung got on the floor to so you iconic leg move. This performance was definitely the talk of the night and probably the most anticipated one.

The main performance outfit | makeup | hair

᧔o᧓ during ‘CTF’ the camera zoomed in on Joohyung during her part and she gave a flirty wink causing moas to scream. During the performance Joohyung felt her hair get caught on the gems on her jean jacket, so when it was time to take them off for ‘Tinnitus’ the jacket took some of Joohyung’s hair out of her braid. She held in her whimper from the pain and continued on performing.

᧔o᧓ many people praised Joohyung for doing hard choreo in heels, singing live while dancing, and for her amazing facial expressions.

✩┈┈∘*┈୨୧┈*∘┈┈✩

Practice outfit

᧔o᧓ “I miss the memo today.” Joohyung laughed, as she looked at her pink set and the all the members dark fits. The video then cut to the members looking at Joohyung’s abs, “I’m jealous of noona.” Kai pointed at Joohyung’s stomach. “You should come with us to the gym then.” Joohyung teased Kai. “I’m lazy~”

᧔o᧓ Soobin made Joohyung practice with him for his stage with Arin from Oh My Girl. He kept on smiling and laughing at Joohyung straight face while doing such a lively dance. “Noona you have to act cute!” Soobin whined, as he kept on dancing. “Fine.” Joohyung switch to being cute making Soobin burst out laughing.

᧔o᧓ the video shows the new trio practicing for ‘Gotta Go’. “Joohyung how about we do this-” Yeonjun shows what he thinks looks better in the dance. “Let’s try it.” The three continue practicing. Joohyung even practices her singing while dancing causing moas to go crazy on twitter with all the clips of her raw vocals.

᧔o᧓ Joohyung came to support Yeonjun as he was going to film his VCR intro. “It’s looks so good.” Joohyung watched Yeonjun through the tv. Once Yeonjun came back out of breath Joohyung immediately gave him a water bottle and hugged him, “you did so good junie-ah~”

᧔o᧓ it was now Soobin’s turn to perform his duo stage and just before leaving Joohyung stopped him to fixed his hair and outfit one last time. “There, you’re perfect.” She smiled up at him. “Thank you noona.” He just wanted to squeeze her with how endearing she was being.

᧔o᧓ “woah, woah, noona you look so chic!” Taehyun big boba eyes stare at Joohyung’s whole look. “Thanks, I really love it.” Joohyung looked into the mirror while fixing little things about her stage outfit. “Want me to take photos for you?” Yeonjun asked, already getting his phone ready. Joohyung gasped, “will you?” Yeonjun hummed ‘yes’ and already started pointing the camera towards Joohyung. They spent a good 10 minutes takes pictures, some solos pics then duo, and finally many trio ones. Just before leaving to the stage Joohyung started warming up her vocals and singing her parts. “I have to make sure my voice is in good condition before going.” Joohyung did feel a bit of pressure to perform the best she can, especially with this anticipated stage.

᧔o᧓ Joohyung came back to the waiting room squealing with happiness. “We were so good! I couldn’t even hear because of the cheers.” Everyone clapped and explained how good it looked. “I heard it through my ear-ins.” Beomgyu told the camera.

᧔o᧓ the group got a little break before their main group performance since they only had to perform short versions of their individual stages because they pre recorded the day prior. Joohyung mainly just fell asleep on the couch while Taehyun and Yeonjun did mini workouts.

᧔o᧓ the camera showed Soobin watching the ‘Gotta Go’ performance. “Woah they did a good job. Noona look so pretty with her makeup.” He chuckled while fixing his ear-ins and headset mic.

᧔o᧓ finally the members were done with all their performances and the cameraman showed them walking back into their waiting room. “Look there’s a chuck of my hair stuck.” Joohyung showed the camera her white hair strands clinging into the jewels of the jacket. “Did it hurt?” Yeonjun gasped at the sight. “It did! I had to hold in the pain.” Joohyung threw the jacket onto a makeup chair. “I had to suck in the tear that was coming out because of how hard I pulled it.” Joohyung cried, as she threw herself in the couch. 

᧔o᧓ “I think moas will enjoy all of our performances from today and we really enjoy performing all of our songs.” Joohyung did a mini clap, as she spoke. “Everyone did an amazing job today. Well done!” The members clapped before saying ‘fighting!’ 

[gunsatthaphan]

~ Monthly BL Breakdown: January 2024 ~ 

✨ Happy February!!! 🎭

Disclaimer: ALL shows can be streamed here or here, as well as on Youtube and other platforms. For more info on where to watch what, check out this post! 

New breakdowns are coming at the end of every month - feel free to add stuff! -> previous breakdowns

What came out this month? (green = seen/currently watching)

🌟 BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita: Crank In Hen - January 2nd (Japan) 

🌟 Ossan's Love Returns - January 5th (Japan) 

🌟 Refund Love - January 7th (Thailand) 

🌟 Time The Series - January 9th (Thailand) 

🌟 Intern in My Heart (BL side couple) - January 10th (Thailand) 

🌟 Sukiyanen Kedo Do Yaro ka (Although I Love You, and You) - January 11th (Japan) 

🌟 Beside You (mini series) - January 11th (Thailand) 

🌟 I Wish You Love - January 21st (Thailand) 

🌟 Happy Ending - January 23rd (South Korea)

🌟 Love for Love's Sake - January 24th (South Korea)

Monthly likes/dislikes

👎🏻 I've been catching up on some KBLs from last year this month and sadly most of them were very disappointing. I put a few on my watchlist that generally had good reviews but yeah let's just say I'm glad I didn't miss anything in the last 2 years lol. The only one I liked was Love Mate, the rest was pretty much pointless. Hopefully the upcoming ones will be better 🤞🏻

New series & movie announcements

🎥 Beating Again (dance-themed, starring Kaownah K., Earth K. and others) - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 Unknown - Date TBA (Taiwan)

🎥 The Book Store - Date TBA (South Korea)

🎥 Term Begins - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 Mafia Prince and the Bookworm - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 Black Forest - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 Go Alone With Me - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 Can I Love You? - Date TBA (Thailand)

🎥 The Shining Star - Date TBA (Vietnam)

🎥 At My Fingertips (Unintentional Love Story spinoff) - Coming May 2024 (South Korea)

🎥 Connecting To You - Date TBA (Taiwan)

🎥 The Star (movie) - Coming March 2024 (Thailand)

🎥 What's the Nong? - Date TBA (Thailand)

Other news from the BL world

❗️ Actors Mike Chinnarat, Fluke Pusit, White Nawat, Pluem Purim and Lee Thanat have left GMMTV.

❗️ After Korean actor Choo Youngwoo won an award for "Best Rookie Actor" at the recent KBS Drama Awards, he came under fire for not mentioning his participation in the BL You Make Me Dance which launched his career and earned him the award.

❗️ Actors Jin Hoeun (All Of Us are Dead), Kwon Hyuk (The New Employee), Byun Junseo (Perfect Marriage Revenge) and Nam Yoonsu (Extracurricular) have been confirmed to star in the upcoming BL Love In The Big City, which portrays the life and love of an HIV-positive gay writer.

❗️ ZeeNunew and GeminiFourth won an award respectively for "Best Thai Artists" at this year's Seoul Music Awards.

❗️ The Chinese BL Stay with Me is getting an audiobook. The series furthermore recently confirmed its second season, further details are unknown.

❗️ Over a year after its initial premiere, the Thai BL To Sir, With Love won "Popular Foreign Drama” at this years's Vietnam Face Of The Year Awards.

❗️ The Thai BL Playboyy will no longer air on youtube after the suspension of the channel due to explicit sexual content. The show will continue to exclusively air on Gagaoolala, as well as RakutenTV.

❗️ Actors EarthMix had a cameo appearance in Ossan's Love Returns; they will star in the Thai adaption of the same name later this year. Details about the production are still unknown.

❗️ MileApo (KinnPorsche) were announced to star in the upcoming series Shine. The show is an extension/spinoff of Man Suang and focuses on Khem and Chatra's story in more detail.

Upcoming series & movies for February

👉🏻 Anti Reset - February 2nd (Taiwan)

👉🏻 Perfect Proposal - February 2nd (Japan)

👉🏻 City of Stars - February 2nd (Thailand)

👉🏻 Love Syndrome: The Beginning - February 8th (Thailand)

👉🏻 Baka Pwede pa? - February 9th (Philippines)

👉🏻 1000 Years Old - February 14th (Thailand)

👉🏻 My Strawberry Film - February 16th (Japan)

👉🏻 A Secret Love - February 17th (Thailand)

👉🏻 Unknown - February 24th (Taiwan)

👉🏻 Wedding Impossible - February 26th (South Korea)

👉🏻 Kiseki Chapter 1 & Chapter 2 - February TBA (Thailand)

[spadesolace]

we make a great team

pairing: idol! minji x 8th member nmixx! reader

a collab stage with your secret girlfriend, minji, was an opportunity to maybe mess with her and lowkey flirt on stage... which lead to you two accidentally exposing your relationship.

warning/s: detectice sullyoon and haerin, mention of panties (not in a sexual way), crack, a bit of smau... not proof read but i enjoyed writing it

so maybe having two collab stages with your girlfriend was not how you expected the year would end. it's not a bad thing, you just weren't expecting to be in close proximity with minji along with other groups that you're close with.

sharing a stage with minji that you were highkey flirting during practice as you were one of the few members to teach the choreo of o.o. it was a difficult dance altogether and an excuse to get closer to minji without anyone asking questions except for sullyoon who would occasionally pull you away from minji to teach the others. then at the same time, minji would teach you their choreo while everyone was resting or polishing. to say the least, everyone in the collab stage knew something was happening between you two.

the first to notice was sullyoon but also haerin who in their separate way made you two confess to them. they were the quiet members, so you knew you could trust them and they kept their mouth shut. aside from them sometimes trying to take pics of you two without anyone looking. sullyoon technically caught you kiss minji on the cheek one time.

aside from the big gg mama collab, you also had another collab with minji, love like oxygen. your schedule was packed with polishing your group performances and three collabs (the other one being the jypnation collab). still, you'll take any collab stage just to spend some time with your girl even if it was for work.

on the day of mama, you were basically excited and a bit down to perform. this could be your last collab stage with minji so you basically lowkey flirted with her.

with the o.o stage, while singing you were looking at minji from time to time while delivering flawlessly. when you two were going back to your respective spots, with the bright idea of walking backwards, winking at minji and turning around to not trip. even waiting for the cheer up stages, you would somehow still flirt with her. mouthing the lyrics to hype boy towards her and making her laugh at your antics.

the cheer up stage was a blast, a clip of you doing shy shy shy was certainly going to circulate. you and cute don't exactly belong in one sentence and it was rare to see. minji was the one flirting with you this time, new jeans went first in the song and whenever you would go back to position she's just shooting hearts at you. sometimes mocking you a bit with how cute you actually were. two could play that game as you mouthed the lyrics at her, again.

the flirting banter didn't end there, at the last chorus you two were position next to each other. so by the end of the performance, you two posed together even arms around each other as you both smiled and waved at the camera.

after the stage as the entire rookie girl groups walked out of stage, removing your mics, minji was smacking you on the shoulder.

"you really took your chance out there."

"hey, this might be our last collab stage as far as i know. well, aside from the kbs gayo." minji was not off your case the entire walk back to your dressing room, a few flirtatious banter here and there before you were called back to change your outfits.

luckily, the love like oxygen was pre-recorded along with the rest of the collab stages you'll be doing so you flirting at her was limited as you were actually focused on your work. still, you teased her for having new jeans on her jeans, the rest of the group had like normal jeans and then you see minji rocking it with new jeans on her bottom.

"i honestly thought you were joking but... its funnier seeing it in person."

"i hate you."

"i love you too... can i smack it to see if its actually stitched on?"

"Y/N!"

on the day of kbs song festival, that's where you continued flirting with her. you kind of joined the stage late and when minji saw you she just laughed. it was a bit rushed as you were preparing for your jyp stage right after. sending a wink at her and a few hearts that was definitely caught on both your fancams. you did leave the stage with her and right after you stayed by the side to see jiwon and kyujin waiting for you.

to say the least, minji has your jypnation fancam saved on her gallery.

after collab stages, things died down a bit but stan twitter was a riot with the amount of clips you and minji flirting with each other. to the point that stan twitter even started digging on how long you've known each other only to find something more. with the amount of missing hoodies you have mentioned on live, not knowing who stole it that people noticed minji wearing it on phoning. your first dating scandal and its with your actual girlfriend.

[kfkr1ze]

[002-A16] Scissor Words

Summary — ✈︎ The egg that suddenly grew legs managed to escape Kiroku’s grasp and ran away. Kiroku chases it, but he quickly loses sight of it…

Characters— ✈︎ Kiroku, Akuta, Muneuji, Nanaki, Sakujiro

Location: Youkai Art Museum in Shodoshima

Kiroku: …………

Egg: ………

Kiroku: …… Ah…… there’s legs.

Egg: ………

Kiroku: ……Ah!

W-Wait……!

Kaede: (It’s around the time we agreed to meet up. 

… I wonder if Kiroku-kun had fun.)

Hm?

Kaede: Wow, what’s this? There’s an egg-like object with legs. Is it a youkai? Having something like this displayed at the entrance… It’s creepy but cute too!

I wanna take a picture. Where’s the camera app…

Kiroku: Hah, hah……!

Kaede: Wah!

Kiroku: Gh……!

Kaede: You surprised me…!

Why are you in such a hurry, Kiroku-kun?

Egg: ………

Kiroku: (Moving side to side) …………!

Kaede: (He’s panicking while trying to see what’s behind me…?)

Kiroku: Ah, wah…… Mn……!

(Please don’t look… over there……!)

Kaede: Eh? What is it?

Egg: ………

Kiroku: Uh……!

Kaede: … He ran away.

Huuh!? The egg-like object isn’t here anymore…!

Location: Maze Town in Shodoshima

Kiroku: Hah…… Hah…… Hah……!

(…I lost it… What do I do……)

(I have to tell everyone on the walkie talkie app……)

Dewawa: You sure you wanna tell?

You wanna be the one who tells everyone that you lost the egg that everyone tried so hard to take care of?

Kiroku: ………

Dewawa: They’re already gonna be upset won’t they?

And on top of that, you haven’t made any progress with the lantern art right?

Pinfu: Right～

They might think you’re so pathetic since you can’t do anything at all〜

Kiroku: …………

Rouzel: That’s not true! You should just contact them! I’m sure that everyone would be worried!

Ripris: It… doesn’t matter what you do…

Both chasing the egg… and contacting everyone… is such a pain… ZZZ.

KB: Personally, I believe the best solution would be to contact the rest of themーー

What will you do, Kiroku?

Kiroku: ………

……I’m not…… telling them.

Location: Otomari Chuuzaemon Inn in Shodoshima

Akuta: This olive soumen is SUPER good! I can munch on it as much as I want! Endless munching!

Muneuji: The fried soumen from the other day was good, but this soumen is good as well.

Nanaki: Is Chief here?

Akuta: Oh, nah he’s not here right now.

Muneuji: I believe he went out with Kinugawa earlier.

Nanaki: Yeah? Then I guess later will be fine. 

Akuta: By the way Nanaki, are you in a good mood? You’ve been all smiley lately. Did something happen?

Nanaki: Oh actually, I was just working on the song for the encore of the summer festival. The one that’s supposed to match the BPM of the fireworks, 

I just wanted to show it to the chief a little since I finished it. 

Akuta: EH!? Nanaki, you can make music!?

Nanaki: Well. Yeah I can.

Akuta: REALLY～～～～?! I also challenged myself to make music before, but I couldn’t do it y’know～～～～!

Man, I can’t even read sheet music. The notes just look like tadpoles dancing…

I really respect people who can make songs〜!

Meaning I really respect you, Nanaki～～～！

Nanaki: You’re going way too hard on the praise.

Akuta: You don’t gotta be humble! Actually, I really wanna make a song one day, so you gotta help me!

Nanaki: If I feel like it.

Akuta: Yayy!

I gotta make a plan to get you to feel like it soon～～～！

Muneuji: … By the way. 

Yesterday, Kinugawa was the one who got the egg, wasn't he? 

But I haven’t seen his face at all today.

In other words, that would mean he still has the egg.

Nanaki: Now that you mention it, you’re probably right about that.

Muneuji: And he hasn’t come online on the walkie talkie app at all today… If I’m being honest, I’m a bit worried.

Nanaki: You think something bad happened?

Akuta: Nahh I’m sure he’s all good! I mean that guy looks like he’s strong!

Muneuji: No… He could’ve been abducted by an alien. 

Nanaki: I-I’m not too sure about that.

Muneuji: I don’t think it’ll be a problem since Chief is also with him, but just in case, I’m going to look for him outside.

Nanaki: No, I’m pretty sure you’re getting too anxious. You should calm down. 

Muneuji: If he got abducted, it’d be too late to save him…! (Quickly runs away)

Akuta: Huh?

Kiroku: …… I finally…… found it.

(But… I think it got scared of a crow… and started clinging to the branch of a tree……)

Egg: …………

Kiroku: …… You can’t …… get off?

Egg: …………

Kiroku: (If I spread out my shirt… it can act like a trampoline.)

…… Come here.

Egg: …………!

Kiroku: …… You did it. That’s great.

Egg: …………!

Kiroku: (…Cute… Okay I have to… hurry and bring the egg to everyone……)

(But.)

(Looks around.)

Kiroku: (I don't know where this is…… And it’s getting dark. I should talk to the kids[1]… Ah.)

I… don’t have the finger puppets……

(No, before I look for them, I have to hand the egg over to the next person…)

(I’m getting a lot of notifications on the walkie talkie app… I should respond to everyone … No, but)

Dewawa: They’re already gonna be upset won’t they?

And on top of that, you haven’t made any progress with the lantern art right?

Pinfu: Right～

They might think you’re so pathetic since you can’t do anything at all〜

Kiroku: (I definitely can’t…… I need to do this… on my own.

I have to hurry and bring the egg home…!)

(But, I also can’t just leave those kids behind……

Especially on a trip to a place I might never come back to……)

(We’ve been together for practically my whole life……

Those kidsーー)

Ah……

Kaede: Kiroku-kun! Thank goodness…!

Sakujiro: So you were in a place like this.

Kaede: You did have a GPS with you, but I was really worried when you just up and left like that!

Kiroku: I… I’m… sorry……

Kaede: No, it’s fine. I’m just glad that you’re safe. But next time, don’t run around so much that you end up getting lost.

Also… Here.

Kiroku: ……Ah……!

Kaede: I found them on the side of the road. They’re yours, right Kiroku-kun?

Kiroku: …… Yes…… They’re… my friends……

Kaede: I thought so. Be careful not to drop them next time.

Okay, let’s go back to the inn!

Kiroku: …………

Kaede: ………

(Kiroku-kun… He’s been looking uncomfortable this whole time…

Almost like he wants to say something, but can’t.)

(Kiroku-kun is quieter than most people, but that doesn’t mean he’s not interested in his surroundings.)

(In fact, it feels like he’s more considerate about his surroundings than most people are. 

That’s whyーー)

(If only I could find a way to get him more comfortable…)

Oh right!

Kiroku-kun. Let’s use PeChat.

Kiroku: Eh……?

Kaede: If it’s hard for you to put something into words, maybe it’d be easier for you to put it down in writing. We can give it a try.

Kiroku: ……

Kiroku: ………

……My next message.

…… Is going to be…… a little longer……

Kaede: Got it. I’ll wait for you.

-

-

-

-

Kiroku: ………

(I’ll… open the walkie talkie app.)

Akuta: “Ahー Ahー Mic test! Testing, testing, one two three. 

Is Kiroku-san thereee? Go ahead.”

Kiroku: Ah……! He…llo…… Go …… ahead.

Akuta: “I’m glad we finally got in contact with you! Muneuji was really worried about you, y'know. He jumped up and ran out of the inn. Copy.

Kiroku: …… Co ……

Akuta: “So, so? How are things on your end? You still on planet Earth?”

Kiroku: I’m… I’m coming back…… Copy.

Previous — ✈︎ Masterlist — ✈︎ Next

Notes — ✈︎

“Those kids” referring to the finger puppets.

[rereisstuff]

TROUBLEMAKER !

summary: the kbs song festival was here and you and Jaehyun were required to do a collab, who knew that handsome man was so shy.

pairing: idol!reader x idol!jaehyun

“Jaehyun you need to control your ears, they’re so red!” Bada yelled as soon as he placed his hand in your hip and you leaned back to grab the back of his neck while pressing your back to his chest.

with a faint smile you continued with the rehearsal, while now all Jaehyun was red.

as you both are the visuals were required to do a collab stage to bring some emotion to the awards, just as SNSD’s Yoona and 2PM’s Junho do almost every year for MBC.

the song picked for you were Troublemaker, a super sexy and touchy song for total strangers.

now you were in SM’s dancing room with one of the most handsome men you’ve ever seen and a funny dance teacher.

“okay, i can’t with you Jaehyun” Bada exhaled as soon as the rehearsal was over and you were sharing breath with Jaehyun because of the final pose; again with a super red Jaehyun that tried to avoid your gaze.

“let’s have a 10 minute break, i’m going to get coffee i’ll bring you some”

as soon as Bada went out the room Jaehyun almost drop you to the floor causing you to laugh “i’m not sick or any of that sunbae”

“oh my god i’m sorry i’m just…i’m really nervous like, my solo stuff is always by myself and never with someone this pretty so…oh god i didn’t mean it….” Jaehyun just closed his mouth suddenly as he started to talk nonsense.

was this the man that everyone were thirsting all over tiktok when your searched it? was this the man you asked Yugyeom to arrange you a date with but he said no because he was ‘too serious’?

it must be a joke.

“you didn’t meant to say i was pretty or all the other things?” you tried to joke but he seemed close to cry of stress so you placed a hand on his shoulder.

“i’m not intimidating sunbae, i’m just a cute visual in a band of ten and i’m friends with Kim Yugyeom because we’re alike” you laugh it of causing him to faintly smile as he seemed more relaxed.

“this performance is really no personal space allowed, i think it’s a little uncomfy because we don’t know each other that well” Jaehyun scratched the back of his neck while going all red again.

you raised your eyebrow jokingly, making Jaehyun realize that he sounded as he was trying to say that the song could only be performed by having an intimate relationship.

“i didn’t meant it like that!”

“okay, it’s fine i mean we can start with having a nice dinner thursday nigh?” you inquired and even if you seemed calm during all the convo you were definitely crying of emotion in the phone with Lisa and Eunha at night.

Jaehyun exhaled, trying to think in how to explain he wasn’t doing a inappropriate invitation but gave up and nodded “i’ll pick you up, send me the address and the time”

“it’s a deal”

as in a magic trick, Bada stormed into the room again, holding a box with two iced americanos.

“okay Jaehyun, we need to film the behind the scenes so you better calm down”.

you smiled at each other and you couldn’t help to blush now.

“oh damn fine, now you too?!”

[kanmom51]

JK's all dance challenged up 14-15 October 2023

TXT

Chasing that feeling

3D

New Jeans

Ditto

3D

And we also had KBS 3D cute JK.

And we also had this:

Once again those two and their little hints.

This is not part of the 3D choreo. Just saying.

I do think it's about time we get a Jikook dance challenge, no? We know they can do it!!!

[thereaderinsertlady]

I saw you had King Boo in the tags for 'Quest Tober. So, I'd like to make a request of either King Boo and his boos decorating the mansion or place for Halloween scares or could be an x reader type.

Hellllllloooooo this is a bit late & shooort but oh wellb yhfudjc- here's the link on ao3 and I hope you enjoy.

King Boo x Reader - Rest

You hummed a merry tune under your breath while hanging a string of fake spiders along the wall, feeling very soothed. Putting up decorations with the Boos was one of your most favorite things to do. Fall decorations, Christmas decorations– all of it was fun to do. Though, your most favorite decoration was the Halloween decor, of which was mostly stored in the attic.

As you carefully arranged the spiders, you couldn't help but smile at the memories that each decoration held. The Boos, your quirky, large yet lovable family, had a tradition of going all out for every holiday, but Halloween was the crown jewel. After all, the Boos were ghosts. 

Next came the pumpkins, a vibrant contrast to the otherwise dark decor. You and the smaller Boos meticulously carved intricate faces and designs, setting them aglow with flickering candles. The mansion’s halls danced with the warm, golden light, casting playful shadows on the walls. There were already a few sitting outside on the porch, but a few usually went inside since there were far too many.

Once you were done, you glanced around… before pouting, realizing that there were a few more boxes left in the attic. You shuffled off, waving to a few Boos– who either waved in return or shyly hid behind their nubs. Although you’ve been with them for several years now, there were still a few Boos that haven’t grown adjusted to you quite yet. 

Just before you were about to reach the small section of stairs that led up into the attic, you noticed that the King of all Boos, your lover… was on a little couch in the hall, seeming like a deflated beach ball. If that wasn’t abnormal enough, he was laying next to a few small Boos, his eyes closed.

You faltered a little, standing there with wide eyes. KB almost never was physically affectionate. Maybe he was low on energy? 

Whatever the case was, you… weren’t sure what to do. Was he even ‘asleep?’ Ghosts couldn’t really sleep like normal mortals, but they could go into a sort of… trance…

You stared for a moment longer, glancing up at the attic. Bringing down boxes would be a bit too loud… You’d have to bring them down later, when he wasn’t resting.

After debating with yourself mentally, you quietly approached KB and the small Boos, careful not to disturb them. Gently, you reached out and ran your fingers through KB's translucent form. He stirred, his misty figure shifting slightly, but he didn't wake. It seemed he was indeed in some sort of restful state.

With a soft smile, you settled down beside him on the small couch, making sure not to disturb the little Boos snuggled against him. You watched the gentle rise and fall of KB's form, feeling a warmth in your heart that you rarely got to experience with him.

This was a rare moment of vulnerability for KB, and you cherished it. You leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to his ethereal form. "Thank you for all your hard work, my dear King of Boos," you whispered, your voice a tender caress. 

As if in response, KB let out a contented sigh, a soft, soothing sound that mingled with the quiet hum of the mansion. It seemed he was aware of your presence on some level, even in this semi-conscious state.

You sat there for a while, simply enjoying the moment of closeness. Though, not wanting to ‘wake’ him, you eventually walked off giddily, going to busy yourself with something else.  

[genichisojo]

Kagurabachi's Popularity: Familiarity Through Structure

Having a degree in writing and media is so fun because I can write an essay on why Kagurabachi can be defined as well written through craft standards and attribute its popularity overseas to its structure, which is framed similarly to western movies.

And I am!

After this interview confirmed that Takeru Hokazono, author of Kagurabachi, is a huge fan of western films, I went back to this idea I was playing with in October when KB had less than ten chapters. I had been reading since day one, and I knew it was good, and other overseas fan knew it was good. But what made it so good to us, overseas?

I made a quick thread on it on my Twitter account (that I never posted) where I mentioned Blake Snyder's Save the Cat book on script writing and story structure. I also brought up characterization and how it would've been really popular in my comic book class from undergrad. This thread discussed both Chihiro and Sojo, and the quick yet steady pace of the manga has given us more characters and moments to pinpoint. To not overwhelm myself, I'm not going to discuss the craft of characterization (maybe another time), and I'm not going to do a beat sheet for Sojo. For now, I'll try to stay under the first arc to map out why Kagurabachi has so far moved like a high budget film in manga form. So, spoilers ahead!

A quick lesson on Save the Cat, its three main characteristics are: Three act structure Fifteen plot beats Mostly applied to American Hollywood films

One of the biggest things I noticed right away was the resemblance a lot of the chapters, even the story as a whole, had to Snyder's beat sheet. This beat sheet that comes from Snyder's book is somewhat of an industry standard, so a lot of movies, even those that preceded Snyder, go through this structure of Act 1, 2, and 3. Snyder just identified the parts and broke them down to fifteen beats. Plus he dubbed the save the cat moment:

A decisive moment in which a protagonist demonstrates they are worth rooting for. Having the protagonist save a cat can be literal or figurative.

This was something KB needed and did have to have us warm up to Chihiro who post time skip, just gave gloomy orphan energy in the previous chapters. Here, Char would be our cat. Chihiro chose to save Char and chose to protect her, and continued to fight for her until she was rescued. He made this choice even before it's revealed that Char's mother died for her, something that would parallel Chihiro. This is what got readers to see him three dimensionally after being introduced to him. He's still the caring little 14 year old we saw at the start, who continues to take care of the innocent despite the tragedy he's been through. It is only natural for us to care for him, too.

Above are the fifteen beats of Save the Cat and although KB on occasion doesn't hit all fifteen exactly as specified, especially final image as it's continuing, the song and dance is quite similar. Here are examples of The Dark Knight (2008) and Inglourious Basterds (2009), two movies that have inspired Hokazono's work.

Before Chihiro meets Char, we get his opening image of him and his dad forging which is works well as the entire story revolves on the consequences of them creating weapons. We get the set up to his world where he lives with his dad who made famous katanas that wield the power to end a war. The theme is stated, and it's not kept a secret: The katanas they make are weapons made to kill people. Are they willing to carry the burden? In another variation of this question, is Chihiro willing to carry the burdens unintentionally passed down by his father?

The catalyst is his father's murder that catapults him into seeking revenge and recover the katanas.

Now, for the rest of the story, this structure can be applied to the first 18 chapters or even 1-3 chapters at a time which in my opinion, is kind of insane. There's story telling inside the story telling, and these moments are both subtle and grand, signs of a strong and captivating writer. Hollywood would kill for a script like this these days. In order to get you to believe me how prominent these beats are, I'm going to do arc one and Daruma's story. The main story line should be around act one and two right now as of chapter 20, if we want to get down into it, but if anything, this feels like it's moving like a second "movie."

Overall, this structure that comes from Hollywood movies can be identified in multiples parts of Kagurbachi's storytelling. I was going to do beat sheet's for Char and Sojo's stories as well, but I think this is enough of an example of a bigger picture versus smaller. Although other mangas also fall into three act structures, as most story telling does, KB masterfully uses the 15 beats to its advantage. I believe the familiarity of this pace is what hooked oversea audiences, and aside from that, the characters that quickly capture us.

Very quickly, because I don't want to make this about characterization, Chihiro is well written through his past, who he chooses to kill and save, his dialogue that can be surprisingly vulnerable at times, and his cool façade that melts because of how hot he truly runs. He is also straight up a badass. We get handed Char's background in an "all is lost" segment as well as some lore that can present her as a resource for the main cast. We see Azami's phone background photo that's minimum 3+ years old- a government employee with a soft spot for his friends, one who he is still clearly grieving. We get one tiny yet so fucked up bit of Sojo when we see him get a flashback where he's a child and his single dialogue of "I truly love Kunishige Rokuhira," that launched his type of villainy in the maniacal fanboy category. Who does it like that? Nobody but Takeru Hokazono.

Thank you for reading this essay! I do have two other essays drafted, one on Sojo's possible return (I'm a delusional Sojo fan) and just his overall significance and impact as the first villain even if he doesn't return, and on Hiyuki plus servant leadership versus self service.

[sonsband]

this little brat I was circuit training with saw the other two of us flagging a little and said "keep going! no matter how much it hurts, no matter how tired you are, no matter how much you want to quit, just remember... it'll be worse in two days when you get out of bed."