Scandalized

well, i have to say that went better than anticipated.

** MILD SPOILERS AHEAD! please be wary! **

it felt silly at first, especially now being so far removed from my k-pop days (k-pop peaked in 2013-2016 and that's all i'll say) but over the course of the book it became an interesting take on the netizen culture of k-pop and south korea (from an outsider's perspective). sure, it was a tad ridiculous at times, but it does touch on the root of the problem, which is the weird and sometimes harmful parasocial bully culture that transcends from fans to idols when fans aren't being pandered to.

interestingly, they touched on the fact that such scandals hurt women, regardless of status (e.g. idol vs. regular person), much more than men, but the conversation was never extended to female idols, who infamously receive the worst of internet vitriol (rip sulli and goo hara, i miss you both every day). again, not necessarily detrimental, but it stuck out to me.

did not care for the romance at all, and i'm still trying to figure out how i feel about a drummer singing. in the spheres i've been in, drummers are specifically not allowed mics for a reason. no, this is not something that should bother me as much as it is, but it does lmao