KpOp & JpOp 2013/02/24

Eugene Shows Off Her Glamorous Body in "Cosmopolitan"
Recently on the March issue of "Cosmopolitan," actress Eugene revealed her glamorous body in a pictorial for women's body shaping wear brand "Spanx."
For the concept of "Cosmopolitan Cover Girl," Eugene wore various outfits that showed off her lean body. In one photo, Eugene displays her beautiful legs in a tight black dress and a pair of matching high heels, while in another picture, she looks elegant in a simple and chic white dress.
Eugene, who has admitted in the past that she prefers slim-lined dresses for red carpet events, proved via this pictorial that her nickname "Red Carpet Goddess" does indeed fit her well.
Meanwhile, a complete pictorial of beautiful Eugene can be seen on the March issue of "Cosmopolitan."

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Who Is Sexier? Son Dam Bi vs After School for MIXXO
This is a beauty competition of the ages! Recently label mates Son Dam Bi and After School were both picked to model for the SPA brand "MIXXO." Son Dam Bi and the After School members participated in MIXXO's spring photoshoot. The singers wore items and clothes from MIXX's classic, feminine, and casual lines.
A representative of MIXXO stated, "We are planning on entering into Chinese and Japanese markets. We chose Son Dam Bi and After School because they are Hallyu stars that customers felt were approachable."
The representative continued, "Son Dam Bi and After School's healthy beauty and confidence fits in well with the type of feminine ideal that MIXXO is going for. We believe that MIXXO, Son Dam Bi, and After School together will create a synergy that will help MIXXO grow in South Korea, China, and Japan as an SPA brand."
Behind the scenes clips of the photoshoot are planned on being introduced through social networking services.

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Celebrities and Their Historical Doppelgangers
When a photo of actor So Ji Sub and famous Joseon Dynasty scholar Yi Hwang cropped together emerged last year, everyone buzzed about their uncanny resemblance.
However, So Ji Sub isn't the only celebrity with a historical doppelganger. There are actually quite a few celebrities who could possibly pass as descendants – or clones – of former monarchs, scholars, artists, and more! Scroll through the gallery to see which Korean celebrities have a historical doppelganger!

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FILM REVIEW: The Cave of the Yellow Dog (Mongolia/Germany, 2005)
As technology makes the gulf between cultures even narrower, a very noticeable homogeneity has begun to creep in. With English taking hold as the lingua franca of business, politics, and education, the variety of languages that currently exist around the globe will shrink in number in the coming decades. Though this "one world, one language" mentality might narrow the cultural gap that people must make to understand one another, we may also be made poorer as more and more voices and modes of expression are silenced in the name of progress.
For the Mongolian filmmaker Byambasuren Davaa, the three films she has directed have taken audiences to alien landscapes, i.e. the Gobi desert and the mountains and valleys of the Mongolian steppes, and explored the lives and rituals of isolated pastoral herders. Her films explore a way of life very few in the West are privy to and which also are becoming an obsolete as the demands of the modern world force history's most famous nomads to give up their wandering ways.
Her sophomore feature The Cave of the Yellow Dog (2005) is ostensibly a children's fable, though it is not just a kid's movie. The film is more like a tone poem dedicated to the harsh and unforgiving Mongolian wilderness where Genghis Khan's descendants once galloped on fierce warhorses. First time viewers will quickly realize the main theme in the picture is the spiritual concept of reincarnation. Davaa peppers the film with shots of characters praying to a Buddhist altar, enacting age old superstitious rituals, and retelling myths and legends about animals and men in a constant cycle of birth and rebirth.
Opening ominously on a mountainside right before dawn we catch sight of a man and a little girl, in silhouette, walking up the side of a mountain. It's a mystery what they are doing, but soon we understand from their conversation that they have come there to bury a dog. We learn from the father that it is apparently a traditional custom to position a dog with its tail behind its head so that its spirit may have the chance to come back as a man and not another animal. Those with the impression that The Cave of the Yellow Dog is some sort of cutesy Disney-esque movie are sadly mistaken. From the first scene, Davaa doesn't let up with the death imagery: sheep splayed on the grass and skinned for their fur, vultures circling around the family's yurt, and storm clouds which appear out of nowhere and threaten danger abound in the movie and lend it a documentary feel.
Davaa doesn't pander to her audience and shows the viewer the brutal and beautiful of nature. Many films that deal with the theme of man vs. nature usually establish early a delineation between civilization and the savage force of nature, but in The Cave of the Yellow Dog, there is nothing that separates the little girl Nansal and her family from that world. Though no great tragedies occur in The Cave of the Yellow Dog, even upon re-watching the movie, it is hard not to be a little worried at times as the threat of death looms heavy over the children in many scenes.

Having seen The Cave of the Yellow Dog countless times now, I am in awe at how simple this film is. Clocking in at roughly 90 minutes, the story goes by quickly and Davaa has such command that there isn't a wasted shot or cut in the film. In an interview she gave for the Tartan DVD release, the director mentioned that, although she had written a treatment for the film, when it came time to finally shoot, all her ideas went out the door. And like the nomadic herders in her film she had to depend on whatever the kids and scenery were willing to give her on that particular day. This organic development of the story makes it more than just a heartwarming tale but also a historical document of an endangered way of life.
Song Seung Hun's Wax Figure Coming to Busan
Song Seung Hun's wax figure is coming to Madame Tussauds Busan. Madame Tussaud is internationally renowned wax figure exhibition. There are currently 13 Madame Tussauds galleries including London, New York, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Berlin. Madame Tussauds exhibits wax figures of celebrities like the Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, and so on.
Madame Tussauds Busan stated, "General popularity affects our decision greatly in choosing an individual to make a wax figure of. We are very happy to exhibit the wax figure of Song Seung Hun, internationally renowned Hallyu star, in Busan." For this wax figure, Madame Tussauds measure 500 different parts of Song Seung Hun's body to recreate every little detail, including his thick eyebrows. The whole process of making the wax figure lasted almost six months and the total cost comes down to nearly $200,000.
Madame Tussauds galleries in Australia and Japan are already requesting to host Song Seung Hun's wax figure once he is done in Busan.

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Yoo Seung Ho's Last Pictorial Before Enlistment Unveiled!
Yoo Seung Ho's last pictorial prior to his mandatory enlistment has been revealed!
The young actor recently flew to Hawaii for a photoshoot with "Harper's Bazaar." As shown in the released photos, Yoo Seung Ho shed his boyish image and gave off a manly appeal in Gucci.
In the interview that followed the shoot, Yoo Seung Ho talked about his 10 year acting career and his impending enlistment. He also shared a couple behind-the-scenes stories from his recently ended drama, "I Miss You."
A representative of the production team commented, "Yoo Seung Ho gave his best as he jumped into the cold ocean water. While it was a physically draining shoot, he tried hard to keep a happy atmosphere throughout the shoot.
Meanwhile, Yoo Seung Ho's enlistment date has yet to be announced.

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My First AKB48 Handshake Event Experience
Today I went to Nagoya's handshake event for the single UZA. I want to first go over the basic process for other noobs before I write about my experience. The tickets for the handshake events that take place at various major cities are included in the limited edition versions of singles. (The handshake tickets for the events with all the members tend to be included with the albums.) However, there are people who sell them online or outside the venue the day of. On the ticket it will list a couple of websites which will post the information of when and where the event is taking place. Keep in mind that they don't release the information for like a month after the single comes out. Therefore, I recommend checking a website every so often. You'll have a pretty good idea when the event will take place based on when the previous single's event is. Okay, so now the dates and locations are posted. I then recommend to wait till the week of the event to check the AKB48 schedule page on their official website. It will be below the TV appearances schedule. This will have a breakdown of when the line up starts, when the event starts, and the members who will be in attendance (plus who will be paired up together under a tent). You should come up with a ranking of which line you want, especially if you only have one ticket. Unless you don't mind waiting a long time, then just go with whoever you prefer. The reason why you want to have back up options is because for one reason or another some lines will be more popular than another. I will explain more in a bit.

As you walk to the venue you will likely see people selling merchandise or handshake tickets. Outside the venue there are multiple lines. There is at least a line for people who have multiple tickets and one for people with just one ticket. So be careful if you are not fluent in Japanese, which line you get in. When in doubt (for this whole experience) show your ticket to someone who is working at the event. They will be familiar with where you should go. It is best to go with a friend, but if you are flying solo (especially if you are willing to invest time to wait for a popular member) bring a book to read (or a kindle) or load some movies onto your ipad or iphone (whatever). You will need to wait outside and then again inside.

As you enter they will hand out two tickets. One for your seat in the venue where you can wait and watch the festivities. The other has a number and that indicates when you can go get in line. So it isn't the case that once you arrive you can go straight to your desired line. The event starts around noon so you can get food at the venue. It might be the case that it is best to arrive at the beginning because there may be a performance of the single before they start shaking hands. I'm not sure because I didn't arrive till about 2pm. I didn't think there would be performances due to the schedule posted online (the event goes on for hours and I didn't see any indication of a performance time). Based on a photo I'! ve seen o! nline today I bet there was because the dome looked packed. They have the younger girls rotate and perform stage units every so often. They also do MCs and play music. The performances aren't constant, but there are large breaks in between. It also means if you want to meet the younger members (who are in sets of three) then you need to pay attention to the rotation. If you have a lot of time then I suggest before sitting down to walk around because they have various things to participate in. For example, they had people trying to get fans to write messages. I wrote one for Itano Tomomi. They got really excited when they spotted me and then when I agreed to do it one of them yelled that they got a foreigner to do it. I guess it is better than them trying to speak to me in broken English.

Now I'm going to get more into my experience. My game plan going into it was that I was going to meet Itano Tomomi (plus Paruru was in the same line). I like both members. I've been a fan of Tomochin since day one and she has announced her graduation. (Besides, it wasn't like my favorite, Minegishi Minami, would be there.) This plan soon was tarnished once I figured out how the event works. I was in the 17000s, and Itano's line was in the highest demand and still in the 3000s. Oshima Yuko was a close second at 5000s (and she was flying solo). Oshima Yuko was my second choice. However, I quickly decided that because I have a lot of homework this weekend (the reason why I didn! 't ge! t there at the beginning) that I wouldn't spend that much time. My third choice Takahashi Minami (with Kitahara Rie) was one of the faster lines. So I worked on homework until Takamina's line hit the 17000s.

At this point, I was standing in line for Takamina. I was going through my head of what I wanted to say or how I would respond to the typical foreigner=English reaction. You can't see the girls till you are the next person in line (and those OJ~someting~48 guys are still working security). So I got the best look at Kitahara. She at first said hello in Japanese and then quickly said hello in English. Unfortunately I've adapted a quick Japanese is fine (in Japanese) response to people speaking to me in English. This completely backfired because I was looking back as I said this while I was pushed forward. I got only a glance at Takamina as she said hello (in Japanese) and then made a face of surprise. (The girls seem to have adopted a Japanese shop worker style.) After I was pushed out of the tent I was so disappointed. I heard someone say that it was too short. Then I left to go work on homework. In the end I am happy that I tried something new. I don't think I want to do it again, even if I had multiple tickets. The time is much too short to be worthwhile. I didn't have time to say a word. I was considering putting my iphone in a small breast pocket in my jacket and have it shoot video and I would look for good screenshots later. I decided against it because it is against the rules and I thought I would be too distracted trying to be stealth like. Japanese phones can't be silenced, in order ! to discou! rage perverts. I have an American phone, so I could get around that. I was also worried about the technicalities because I didn't know how long I would need to shoot. I now regret that I didn't do it because how little time I had. The photos would at least be a memento.
torefurumigoyo4: All sizes | リボンの仕方、新発明！乗せるだけ。 | Flickr - Photo...

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All sizes | リボンの仕方、新発明！乗せるだけ。 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
K-Pop Trend for February: Female Duos
With comebacks from SISTAR19 and Jevice, the debut of EXID's subunit Dasoni, and Davichi releasing the theme song for "Iris 2," the undeniable trend for February is female duos. Let's do a run-through.
SISTAR19 – "Gone, Not Around Any Longer"
The subunit of Hyorin and Bora made a comeback at the very end of January and their song has held the number one spot ever since. Adopting a more urban sound for this comeback, "Gone, Not Around Any Longer" reminds us that Hyorin is one of the best idol singers out there. Featured in this track is a talking segment from Bora, before Hyorin goes back to hogging all of the lines.
SISTAR had the classy fart wave dance in "So Cool" a couple of years ago, and "Gone, Not Around Any Longer" introduces the butt wipe dance. I don't know what SISTAR is trying to signal to us, unless maybe they're asking fans to donate them toilet paper.

Dasoni – Goodbye
EXID's subunit features the two vocalists of the group, Solji and Hani. This a pop song that deviates from the hook song trend and instead showcases the mature vocals of Solji and Hani. Shinsadong Tiger shows that he can produce different types of songs with this track instead relying on the hooks he produces for T-ara.
To go along with their sexy look in the MV, Dasoni has a seductive folding fan dance. (Pass a couple to SISTAR and everyone should be set.)

Jevice – Cause of U
Jevice released an upbeat pop track recently that shows off a different side, deviating from the ballads that they had done before. Dream T still hasn't given these girls a proper music video yet despite how good their songs have been; instead, we see the girls during their recording session, which works all right because their vocals are good enough to get away with it.

Davichi – Don't You Know
Davichi's "Don't You Know" is the theme song for "Iris 2″ and another great OST to put on their resume. Over a beautiful piano melody, Haeri and Minkyung portray the sadness within the lyrics of the song. If you're a fan of any other Davichi song, this is a must listen.

Which is your favorite song released by a female duo this month?
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kojimblr: Misaki Nito

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Misaki Nito
Yoon Eun Hye Reveals Her Thoughts About Park Yoochun, Yoo Seung Ho, and Filming "I Miss You"
In her most recent interview with Hankyung, Yoon Eun Hye talked about the cold weather on the set of "I Miss You," being a former idol, and acting with two younger men.
The actress admitted that the filming conditions in the cold weather caused her to break down during the final week of filming. "I continued on and I was becoming more exhausted, so my body started to become abnormal. In the end, I collapsed during the final episode. I withstood it the exhaustion the whole week, but with one day to go, my body broke down. I received a checkup at an emergency room in Seoul, got four IVs, and then I returned back to the filming location."
Yoon Eun Hye also reflected on her experiences starring in hit dramas such as "Goong" and "Coffee Prince." After being a member of Baby VOX, she attempted to legitimize herself as an actress. She recalls the lesser-known drama "Take Care of the Lady" as her most difficult drama experience. "I was removing the image that I was originally a singer, and I thought I was finally being acknowledged as an actress, but in reality, as the drama aired there were many cold responses."
In "I Miss You, "Yoon Eun Hye acted with two younger actors, Park Yoochun and Yoo Seung Ho. In regards to Yoo Seung Ho, she stated that she was worried about portraying a relationship with someone nine years younger than herself. "I couldn't even imagine it. I couldn't think of the younger days of Yoo Seung Ho while filming. We talked a lot and became close because I was very worried about how to act a loving relationship with someone who is nine years younger than me. Before filming there drama, there were some actors who were older than me who were candidates for the role of Harry which Yoo Seung Ho played. I couldn't accept his appearance. However, after he was cast, I thought it was a good thing. I didn't know he was 21. (Laughs)"
She added that she thought Yoochun was very awkward the first time she had encountered him, but found out how sociable he was during the filming of I Miss You. "I didn't even get to eat with Yoochun once. I first saw him as a junior about eight to nine years ago, and he honestly seemed very awkward. However, he is very sociable by nature, so matching up with him in the drama wasn't burdensome. As a result of those two being younger than me, I comfortably acted and put in a lot of effort. Those two are the type that act genuinely, so they became more helpful to me."
Yoon Eun Hye stated that she was comfortable acting with two younger men. "Though there were a lot of scenes where I just cried, the atmosphere on set was really good. We were able to have fun filming because of that atmosphere, even in the cold. If I exclude the cold weather, this drama didn't cause any difficulties compared to other dramas. There was a time my staff told me that it would be great if I didn't show any signs of having difficulty in front of Yoochun since he suffered by running outside. (Laughs)I'm sorry to Yoochun and I like how kind he is."
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Cosmetic Spotlight: Etude House's "Sweet Recipe"
Just when you thought that Etude House couldn't get any sweeter, the top-selling Korean makeup brand launched its first campaign for 2013 — and it's centered around sweets! Candy, dessert, chocolates, and jellies have been used as the inspiration behind this super cute and delicious collection of cosmetics. Let's explore "Sweet Recipe" together with this very informative and cute infographic created by the super-talented Selkaine!

Our favorite cosmetic has to be the "Dear My Jelly-Lips Talk Lipstick" — not because of its interesting name, but because of its interesting jelly texture that delivers vibrant color that's in between that of a tint and a lipstick. Who's your favorite Etude House spokesmodel — Krystal and Sulli, SHINee, Sandara, or someone else?

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Ratings Continue to Slide for "IRIS 2″
Despite its high-quality action scenes, it looks like KBS's "IRIS 2″ is continuing to see its ratings drop. According to AGB Nielsen, the blockbuster series recorded 10.7% for last night's episode, a 0.1% drop. Unfortunately, the drama starring Lee Da Hae and Jang Hyuk saw its ratings drop every episode. Initially, it started out as the leader of Wed/Thurs. night dramas, however, it came in last in its time slot this week.
MBC's "Level 7 Civil Servant" came in second with 11.4%, allowing SBS's "That Winter, The Wind Blows" to secure its lead with 14.1%.
Meanwhile, there was a lot of hype surrounding the premiere of "IRIS 2." As the sequel to the popular "IRIS," starring Kim Tae Heeand Lee Byung Heon, the sequel reunited two big names from "Chuno," Lee Da Hae and Jang Hyuk.
"IRIS 2" story picks up three years after the death of Hyun Joon (Lee Byung Heon) in "IRIS," and revolves around the mysteries surrounding Hyun Joon's death and Baek San (Kim Young Chul), who had been arrested for being part of the secret organization, IRIS. The NSS agents, headed by Yoo Gun (Jang Hyuk), will struggle to fight against and expose IRIS, which has gotten larger and even more powerful than before.

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kojimblr: Maya Koizumi

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Maya Koizumi
Will G-Dragon's March Solo Concert Be a Success?
Big Bang and G-Dragon fans rejoice! Big Bang's G-Dragon will start off the first leg of his world tour in March. This will be G-Dragon's first world tour and will open up on March 30-31 at the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Gymnasium. The title of the world tour is "2013 G-DRAGON 2013 WORLD TOUR: ONE OF A KIND." The first concert is planned to hold an audience of 24,000.
Big Bang's world tour last year, the "2012 BIGBANG ALIVE GALAXY TOUR" amassed a total of 800,000 fans. Every single that was a part of the tour was sold out.
The reason G-Dragon's solo tour is titled "One of a Kind" is not only because of the hip hop track released because he wants to show himself in free way without any restrictions.
Ticket sales for the tour will open up on G Market's homepage beginning on March 5 and 6 at 8pm each.

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Park Shi Hoo to Appear at Police Station on Feb 24
On February 22, Seoul Seobu Police Station announced that Park Shi Hoo notified the police station that he will be coming in on February 24 at 7pm KST. Initially, Park Shi Hoo was summoned on the day after the alleged rape was reported, on February 19, but he postponed it for various reasons like having to find a lawyer to represent him . Later, the Police summoned him again on February 24 at 10am and Park Shi Hoo requested for 7pm on the same day through his lawyer.
Meanwhile, Park Shi Hoo was charged with rape on February 18. According to the police, the victim, "A," filed a lawsuit against Park Shi Hoo after having drinks with the actor. Park Shi Hoo denied all allegations claiming, "I did not force her to do anything. We were drawn together as a man and a woman and spent the night with mutual consent." Currently, the Police requested the National Scientific, Criminal, and Investigation Laboratory to study if there is any sign of the victim being drugged in this incident.
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Twitter / karin_ogino: さーむーすーぎーてーしかめっ面 http://t.c …
Pack 53 (2013.02.23)
All photos from posts made after Pack 52 till now.
- Bang Eun Young - 24
- Han Ga Eun - 65
- Han Song Yee - 33
- Hong Ji Yeon - 12
- Im Soo Yeon - 31
- Jang Jung Eun - 16
- Ju Da Ha - 34
- Jung Se On - 29
- Kim Ha Yul - 48
- Ryu Ji Hye - 44
- Yeon Da Bin - 87
- Yoon Joo Ha - 46
184 MB - 469 Photos
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