takitakidancetillthesunriseyea

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

hongjoong gets it

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

Honglegs for the Hongjoong leg lovers | Part 3/3

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This just went up today, but especially in light of your excellent insights into San behaving at a meal/table.... I'm not sure how long they were drinking before camera's started rolling, but he was absolutely off his face by about 30 seconds in, bless.

https://youtu.be/SxPTgpdboiQ

Also featuring Mingi hyping up the tiniest room like he's in a full-on stadium (and doing a fantastic job!)

One of them - I forget, sorry- said they'd had about two glasses before the shooting for this began.

Disclaimer: Apparently getting to do this drunk content is meant to be an indication that your group has really Arrived. I don't quite get why but sure. This is where my being Korean does not alleviate my fundamental lack of information about what's normal or a milestone or whatever inside the Idol music genre, so I apologize in advance for the highly personal and specific nature of my response.

Ateez are so obsessively, compulsively, endlessly rehearsed that they can be really quite drunk and still perform these songs. Is this normal? I'm not a showbiz person, so I don't know, but I think that people who are part of a long running Broadway show or something also get like this, where they can turn in a professional performance under almost any physical condition as long as they are even halfway conscious. They must really live these songs day in day out.

This was a moment, during Wave, where my being a still relatively new Atiny who is also not terribly interested in like, the whole history of everything that's ever happened, is an obstacle. Yunho asks, "Do you know what this song is??" in a voice that sounds like he's mimicking Mingi, and then Mingi comes from behind to choke him, so I assume this is another one of those Eternal Yoke of Teasing that Mingi is trapped in?

Can anyone explain?

Unlike a Broadway play, though, when Mingi fumbles his lines, neither Seonghwa nor Yunho let it pass. At all.

If I was at an actual 회식 (hwesik) I would fight everyone to go sit next to these two, and only these two. Jongho is such a solid dude. He's really growing on me. And kind of like how I assume that people that my cat feels comfy with are great humans, the fact that the Untouchable Yeosang is so at ease with Jongho only adds to his aura.

If I were to conduct character analyses of this group based on just this one video, I would have to conclude that there's exactly one really cool guy, one really solid guy, and then six total doofuses, two of whom are exceptionally camera conscious and controlled, and four that are normal people.

One of the abnormal doofuses, of course, is Yunho.

There's always this guy. The overly strong one who gets suddenly very physical with the furniture in a drinking setting. And yeah, they're also usually the biggest one, and nobody can stop them.

Seonghwa says, with that air of surprise, "I'm actually getting drunk." This is Seonghwa being extremely relatable because I too (apparently) announce it to the table, unasked, when I feel myself getting drunk, with this same look and tone of surprise, even though I was the one drinking.

Then you get a demonstration from Yunho and Wooyoung of Good Drinking Etiquette. If you're someone who can hold his liquor, you're supposed to keep an eye on the weaker members of the pack to make sure they pace themselves. I'll say this for Yunho - he reacts fast, and correctly. The active body language of intervention is part of the correct behavior.

Wooyoung also running intervention. He suggests that Seonghwa needs to drink water, and when that doesn't really seem to work, he too stands up and engages in active body language to make sure Seonghwa keeps to a pace he can manage.

They have lost San, completely, pretty early on, and the Right Way to deal with someone like him, and there's again always that one guy, the ones who can't drink but also don't vomit, cry, or get violent. You include him in the group and socially reinforce his not-fun-but-just-fine way of being drunk by telling everyone (or him) that he's just real quiet when he drinks.

Jongho and Seonghwa play that role here, for San.

You know how I said there were two unusual doofuses, and one of them is Yunho? The other one is Yeosang. They are imbibing at what looks like the same pace as everyone else, and yet they never fail to address the camera. And Yeosang is cooler than Yunho - Yunho just does the choreo. Who is he outside the choreo? Does he know?

Seriously, these two are always somehow center frame, looking at the camera, hitting their angles.

So Wooyoung is the cool guy because he's the only one who actually brings up a general, relatable, light topic of conversation that can keep the mood bright and people engaged. For example, in answer to the question, What sort of performance stage makes you the most nervous? He has a creative answer - throwing the first pitch! Yunho relates so hard.

Wooyoung also tries to bridge the strange east-west divide that keeps happening at this table because Seonghwa and Mingi literally have nothing to say to each other, ever. He does it by addressing Jongho, who is usually a great partner for him in banter.

Which hyung is the least dignified these days, he asks, basically. (Literally he asks, Who's the hyung that comes crawling down to you, meaning, on the bottom of the hierarchy ladder where the maknae lives). And Jongho is like, I'm glad you asked, and says YOU. And Wooyoung pouts and they have a drink.

Then Mingi does the thing. The thing you're not supposed to do, actually at a hwesik or a drinking outing, but people do, constantly. And since Mingi specializes in doing stuff you're not supposed to do if it fits what he thinks is right, here goes.

Mingi tattles on Jongho to outsiders, kind of using their presence as a backup and a protection for the score settling attack he's about to launch. San is out of it, asleep, kaput, gone. Seonghwa generally does not really care what Mingi is saying, I think. But Yunho is totally alert, all systems on red, because he can sense the disturbance in the force.

All Mingi has said is, "I asked Jongho to go to dinner..."

But Yunho know something is up, and he looks to see if either Wooyoung or Hongjoong can be of use. I think he concludes that they cannot, because he runs intervention as soon as Mingi finishes the setup for his tattletale - "And Jongho said he didn't want to eat.."

"Take a shot! Take a shot!" And make up the spat, whatever it is. Yunho doesn't say it to Mingi because probably it's no use He's addressing Jongho. Mingi refuses to be led back to the socially smooth path.

He finishes telling the story, that after refusing Mingi, Jongho was spotted by Mingi going out with San. Meanwhile, Yunho has smiled for the crew (and the camera) and glares at Mingi. Mingi isn't supposed to do this, but he's doing it.

Hongjoong takes Mingi's side, and because the point is to make this awkwardness introduced by Mingi end as soon as possible, leans on the more socially adept Jongho hard by saying, We won't hear your explanation. Hongjoong is very often on Mingi's 'side' but I don't know if he genuinely is, or if this is the less costly method.

Then Wooyoung takes over the leadership for the mood again, and calls on San to do his cute aegyo.

Seonghwa speaks up, suddenly, to say, "It's a special weapon to save the day when the vibes are bad." (Because the vibes almost went bad just now). Yeosang is doing Yunho's same placating smile at the third party production crew. Jongho is just annoyed.

San gives it a hearty go, because he's a kind boy and drunk and he has heard the beseeching tone in Seonghwa's voice that said, Do the thing and please lift the mood please please.

Jongho recovers enough to do this killer follow up, to the delight of everyone.

During the next to final singing bit, the theater kid takes over again, and Wooyoung, as the one cool guy, puts a stop to it with a smile.

Wooyoung was MVP this outing, saving the day repeatedly.

I'm really excited for the upcoming concert. Despite it being the comeback song, Lemon Drop seems to already be residing in the members' bones. I can't wait to see it live.

Public health announcement: Don't drink the green bottle soju. It's shite. Absolutely shite. It's a cheap chemical bastardization of proper soju, which is delicious and doesn't give you nightmare hangovers. Soju in green bottles is SHIT, kind of like how wine coolers are not actually wine. Nobody I know voluntarily drinks the green bottle soju. I mean, all alcohol is carcinogenic, especially for women, but that's neither here nor there.

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

Jongho/Mingi Saga: Part 4: Mingi with the last word...?

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

After Jongho went on fromm to clear up the misunderstanding about the forgotten dinner invitation incident, Mingi came on fromm to deliver his final remarks.

Interesting that he asks "there's nothing wrong? with what I said?" but I take it as a rhetorical question, like, "I have nothing to be sorry about. I only said what was true." I wonder if he got called out for bringing up this story during the tipsy show, especially as it's become something atiny are bothering the other members about.

Mingi's pragmatic yet deeply loyal self demands that any tension be cleared through open and honest communication, something to which Jongho did not appear inclined. Or maybe it's more that, Mingi can't know Jongho's true thoughts and feelings and that's just a fact of life we should all accept.

"I don't love in an ordinary way" feels like the Song Mingi thesis statement. But he seems aware of the fact that it's a lot to ask of someone, even someone you regard as a younger brother, to reciprocate love in the same way. But that doesn't mean he'll be quiet about it! When he hurts, you'll know it.

But then we also got Jongho's revenge during the Spotify show, where the members took turns roasting each other. The person being roasted had the opportunity to overhear what the other was saying and even had the option to "silence" them, which Jongho (aided by producers) ignored.

Here's Jongho talking about another dinner date incident...

Jongho comments that when Mingi is loyal, he's "really loyal" but then he'll go off and do his own thing; he's just wired that way. Hongjoong calls it "selective loyalty."

I don't think he's being cruel or mean; I actually think that Mingi cares deeply about his members but does not always recognize or obey the invisible social contracts that bind groups of people who work and live together. To Mingi, care is shown by inviting the maknae to dinner and paying for their meal. All the niceties and etiquette that takes place during and after the dinner is less important than the act itself. I think that's why he took Jongho's "forgetting" about his dinner invitation so hard; to Mingi, it implied Jongho did not respect the care that went into Mingi's gesture.

It's similar to how Hongjoong repeatedly, during nearly every single variety show appearance, mentions that Mingi is the worst at responding to the group chat -- and in particular, he never answers Hongjoong's texts. According to Mingi, the act of reading them is enough. Why does he need to respond?

Yet in the same episode, Hongjoong reveals that he'd like to switch lives with Mingi.

"I think it would be fun."

The idea of being unencumbered by the fear of making a mistake in front of thousands of people or trying something new and failing. I wonder if that extends how Mingi, by virtue of his personality and his long-established role on the team as the proverbial "sin eater" for awkward, uncouth, or embarrassing moments (perhaps this is also what Mingi means by "does not love in ordinary ways"), gets to be free in a way that Hongjoong as captain does not.

Maybe that's also why Hongjoong indulges Mingi far more than the other members do when they're doing OT8 content: not (only) to mediate messy, unscripted moments Mingi creates, but because he's genuinely enamored by how Mingi moves through the world.

I'm not sure how to connect this back to my original post about the Jongho/Mingi dinner drama, but my mind kept making connections and associations. It's interesting, this many years into their idol career, that we get to see some mess; even with all their media training and attempts to put more distance between atiny and their personal lives, we still are privy to some TMI occasionally. It keeps things interesting.

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

Happy Joong & Mingi Friday =)

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

🌫️ #Yunhois3gram

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

I feel like something we don't talk about enough is how both windows and mirrors are banned in Strictland.

Windows represent glimpsing freedom.

As I sit in class looking out the windows at the trees glowing in the dying light I can't help but think, "I wish I were out there."

Inside the bright florescent lighting casts harsh shadows on the cold tables and chairs, but outside the sun warmly lights on each rounded leaf casting long soft shadows. Outside may be hot, but inside the artificially cold air chills my bones.

If there were no windows the walls would be smooth unending white. The light would never wax or wane at dawn or dusk. The world inside these walls would remain the same day and night as though time ceased to exist...

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

oh ok 😀

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

A whole Joong's compilation of "I GOT IT BAD FOR PARK SEONGHWA"

The background music deserves a 🏆

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

Woke up to a new Ateez side quest: Hongjoong delivering a speech at the British Embassy in Seoul in celebration of UK-Korea relations.

Looks like a few representatives from KQ gave speeches, including Sohyang, Maddox and xikers Minjae.

Sohyang is so cute!!!

Another appearance from President Hongjoong (one of my favorite fandom inside jokes)

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

His super cool-on stage demeanor- gorgeous visual- silky voice - nice attitude is just an act...irl he is just a Ruby-chan enjoyer?!?!? 🤣😂😆

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

Ateez for Billboard Korea!

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You know what I've changed my mind, let's have a Mingi Kindergarten Teacher For a Day episode and see how long before he cries

(alternatively he's shockingly good and just mesmerizes the toddlers with his deep soothing voice and silly food-themed raps; the rest of Ateez are fighting for their lives in other classrooms and it periodically cuts to Mingi just having the time of his life talking about the stock market or the plot of Chainsaw Man to a tiny rapt audience)

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

airport wooyoung so handsome that he must be doodled

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

🤍

@courreges

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

[takitakidancetillthesunriseyea]

I showed my friend one of the Hongjoong knee appreciation posts and they said it looks like my knees.

I'm lowkey flattered 😭