Hello and welcome back to another Seoulbeats Roundtable, everyone!
Those of you who have read Nabeela’s article would be familiar with the concept of love-rage — just like the rest of the writers here at Seoulbeats. So we all decided to gather together and attempt to get all of that love-rage out of our systems.
Did YOU ever experience love-rage and had to re-consider your bias list?
Gaya: Basically, younger guys. I just sit there, look at their face, look at their date of birth, now back to their face: sadly, they can be as much as five years younger than me and that makes me so upset. Taemin is the latest example from my life — I’m one of the few people who love his long hair and long fringe (it just looks so nice swishing about everywhere while he dances), but his short hair in BoA‘s “Disturbance” MV really shows off his neck…
Yeah, anyway, I find that most of my love rage is in fact aimed at… Minho. I mean, Onew is just about perfect in every way, Changmin is smart and snarky, Chen is a darling and Mithra Jin can actually rap, but then all this idiot has to do is smile and I just give up. I break out into this goofy grin at the sight of his dumb face doing some cutie-cute aegyo and I HATE HIM HE IS JUST. SO. DARN. CUTE.
Fannie: Echoing Gaya’s sentiments about younger guys… I really wanted to avoid veering too much into the uber-noona fan category but I guess it becomes inevitable over time? The average age of idols active in the industry isn’t going anywhere, whereas slowly and steadily I’m getting older day by day. Younger idols replace older idols, younger fans replace older fans, it’s hard sometimes not to feel like K-pop has an expiration date unless you’re lucky enough to be a fan of a group like Shinhwa.
Back to love-rage: I was very determined to draw the line at Taemin as the ‘final maknae’ of my bias list, but then… Zelo came along. Goddamn it.
Gaya: I have thus far resisted Zelo’s maknae charms; I just hope the K-pop gods let me keep it that way… until he’s legal, at least.
Young-Ji: Is it just me or do I think only females feel love-rage towards liking younger idols? I don’t the uncle fans even think about the age difference — and the legality of it at all. In fact, they prefer the younger idols.
I don’t think us, females of the group, should be conscious of being a noona fan at all! Remember which song SHINee debuted with…whenever you feel guilty.
Fannie: Hahaha I love you, Young-Ji. I’ll try to remember that song and not the one that Teen Top came out with that forbids me from wearing any perfume.
Lindsay: Young-Ji, that is actually exactly the song I listen to when I want a self-esteem boost. Bless you, SHINee, and your noona-loving hearts.
As for my current love-rage, that would be Il-hoon of BtoB. He is an obnoxious camera hog with an attitude problem… That I could stare at all day long. Every time I think I can’t stand his antics for another second his ridiculously mischievous smile and laugh win me over again. BtoB is like that in general, so stupidly funny that it is endearing, even if you want to smack them up side the head sometimes.
Also, I still resent how much I love EXO, but what else is new?
Mark: I may be wrong, but I think this feeling is more inclined towards females, this idea of liking someone who you’re “not supposed to.” Closes thing that came for me was Tia of Chocolat who debuted at 14 but looked like she was at least 18. Then there’s Kahi, who is 32 but looks like she’s 25. If having looks that lie about one’s age is my biggest pet peeve, I still wouldn’t classify it as love-rage. It’s more of a fascination.
Nabeela: I don’t know if I should go on much more a tangent since my whole original article was about me crying over Kris and Dongwoo (side-eyeing you Gaya). But I will concede to Fannie’s comments about Zelo, though it’s not so much rage as it is self-loathing because he makes me feel so “pedo-noona”-ish even though we’re even that far apart in age! But, I am dying to here what or who has been driving you all nuts with their physical perfection.
Ambika: I frequently find myself just keyboard smashing at all of B.A.P. Just when I think I like one of them more than the others, someone else does something foolish and endearing and whoops, there goes my ranking. Same with SHINee’s Onew. And then Key speaks thoughtfully in better English than some people I know, and rearrangement strikes again. I don’t think I’ve been hit with any sort of noona guilt yet because my age is a fairly reasonable distance from most idols I like, but hey, 2013 might bring someone new.
All of the above are free to meander my bias list, but two that crashed it unexpectedly are G-Dragon and Infinite‘s Hoya. I was pretty firmly admiring T.O.P until at some point I was watching GD more. And then he performs so well and wears ridiculous clothing that makes me want to throw something at the screen. Hoya has been making a pretty good fight into my list since “Paradise” days because who doesn’t have a crush on “Paradise” era. But then his Weekly Idol snark plus Ranking King happened, and well, that’s that. And please, have you seen him move?
Nicholas: My bias rage tends to come from seeing performers I like really flubbing their live performances. As much as I like them as entertainers (and possibly people), the least you could do is to give me (and the audiences) a passable rendition of your hit-single.
Bias rage also comes from seeing the barely legal worm their way into my hearts with their skills (why are they so accomplished at that age, and isn’t it awkward for me to love them a bit too much).
I would agree with Ambika though that variety shows are one of those things that really mess about with bias lists, especially when idols show their characters (manufactured or real). Those bias wrecker behaviours are like extremely ditzy acts (not wife material for me, but great as short term girlfriends), caring personas (nice as dependable partners) or the very active on TV (great to have as friends) as well as the capable (would be great to have a friendship with them borne out of respect).
Cynthia: I can’t recall specific moments of love-rage mainly because 1) I haven’t had a bias list ruiner in SUCH a long time and 2) I’m in a constant state of love-rage so it’s hard to pinpoint an exact moment or idol.
I think my most frequent cases of love-rage involve me watching a new boyband or idol and knowing they are going to ruin my life. The first time I watched EXO-K‘s “History“, I just knew this band would cause my sleep and my sanity to slip away for the next few months. And that was the worst feeling because I didn’t even think they were AMAZING, but I just knew I’d be hooked regardless. And I know I’ve said “Wow you suck” to Kai a few times, because despite all my efforts to not like him due to SM shoving him down everyone’s throats in the teaser, good lord was I hooked the moment he popped up on my screen in the “History” MV. My EXO love (and thus my love-rage) has calmed down for the most part, but there are still instances when I see pics/vids of Lay, Luhan, or Sehun that make me ask “WHY DID I DO THIS TO MYSELF?”
Perhaps my most recent moment of love-rage has to do with the typical noona guilt, this time in reference to Teen Top’s maknae Changjo. It’s not exactly the age difference that bothered me (because it’s pretty small) as much it was watching Changjo go from this super adorable 14-year-old who still had lots of baby fat (cutest cheeks ever okay) to the guy I saw in “Be Ma Girl.” Why did he have to get attractive? Why?
(Images via YG entertainment, tumblr, Cube Entertainment, Babys On Fire. Ivy Club. Minho Image: Credit to owner)
