GCF In Budapest

GCF in Budapest

I have thoughts... but first a link, please have your own first impressions without any influence.

So...I don't know what it has been about the Golden promo period but there's literally nothing that hasn't given me mixed feelings. Nothing that I absolutely love or hate and this GCF is right along with it. And overall, that just makes me sad. I spent years being excited for whatever JK would finally give us if he ever did a proper solo project and I'm just kinda bummed overall.

What did I love?

'Directed by Jung Kook'.

Seeing JK when he's more playful. Always a serotonin boost!

JKs camera work, I just love the insight he has on camera placement and framing to help tell the story he wants to tell.

Yes or No. Still the only track I actually love from Golden so it's nice to hear it featured!

What bothered me?

'Edited by HYBE'. Bro... so much of GCF's charm and storytelling comes from the edit itself. (And not to nitpick but HYBE is a company...not an editor, so this means there were either multiple editors, or they're purposely trying to not have us associate any actual humans with this film other than JK. I also think they want ARMY to use the logic that HYBE is basically BTS and thus this work is basically completely JK's too... it's not, it's definitely not).

No English subs yet. I get it, I really do but it's a bummer.

The amount of camerawork by someone else. It's not uncommon for JK to include footage with someone else holding the camera but once we get to the gym scenes, the majority is from the perspective of someone else holding the camera, not JK. Which again, there's nothing wrong with that per se but it absolutely feels more like a bangtan bomb or episode rather than a GCF. This is also when we stop getting establishing shots and B roll. Again, nothing wrong with it but that's one of the fundamentals of a GCF for me.

There was so much dialogue that the song was interrupted pretty continuously. JK did that previously as a storytelling device which just further supports the feeling that this is bangtantv content and not a GCF.

Basically, I think I would have had very little issue with this if it wasn't packaged as a GCF. It feels a whole lot more like JK's camping vlog from a few years ago. Loved that, had no issues with it whatsoever.

...the irony is not lost on me that the only song from Golden that I love is Yes or No while my overall experience with this era is....maybe??

This has been part of conversations that I've been having with a few ppl here in recent weeks, but I'm only in a tiny kpop corner of tumblr. I'm curious though if y'all are experiencing the same thing we have been?

I guess I expect more from those I interact with here since there needs to be some baseline level of humility to be willing to engage in content outside of your culture? There are definitely some great individuals with whom I've has wonderful conversations but it's just that much more disheartening when I have an expectation of being understood..you know?

Anyway, tagging @aspec-kpop to let any of you know that if you're having similar experiences, you're not alone.

Queerness is not just about sex and romance. Since the concept of queer has been around, so have asexual and aromantic people. Lavender marriages, voluntary spinsters, vows of chastity used to cover a disinterest in sex. “Monosexuals”, “anesthesia sexual”, “anaphrodites”, category "X". Queer-platonic relationships, asexuality and aromanticism are an undeniable part of lgbtq+ history. Before there were any terms, any flags or acronyms, choosing to not conform to society’s romantic and sexual guidelines has been the very essence of queerness. The inherent queer experience of feeling alienated because you don’t love the “right” way or feel the right feelings for the right people, of trying to meet the expectations set for you while trying to build a life that doesn’t feel like a lie. These are all part of the aspec experience. We aren’t “invading” a space we don’t belong because it’s a trend, or an internet identity. We’re not “spicy straight”. We’re making ourselves known in a community we have always been a part of.

what’s the first song on ur wrapped playlist that starts with the first letter of ur name

Well this post feels appropriate to bring back now... for anyone looking, here's a link to the Justin Timberlake remix of 3D.

On first listen, I absolutely hate it more than the original version. The lyrics aren't as crude but the sound in JTs parts are horrific. And I am so over ppl referring to JK like they're best buds. I'd be shocked if JT and JK were ever even on the same phone call at any point in this. There's absolutely no basis for the familiarity... but whatever. Definitely not entering my Playlist.

LAST CALL: Which Jimin Dance Time was your favorite?

QUICK COMBO: LETTER | SPRING DAY | YOU NEVER WALK ALONE

My thoughts on this QC (below cut):

Wasn't planning to make a combo post today but the of my state of mind and the Playlist made it need to happen. I'm generally not one to show emotion but if I'm on the cusp of expressing my feelings and need help pushing myself to get it out, music absolutely helps me follow through with it.

I think this combo is pretty self-explanatory and I don't really want to share any of my deeper feelings here today but I will say one thing:

How come NO ONE ever talks about You Never Walk Alone??? I only found out about that song in my initial journey after playing BTS World. There's a screen you can open and it will play an endless loop of the backing/instrumental of YNWA and sometimes I just open that because it's so absolutely lovely. I adore this song and I fond it a shame that it's not mentioned more. (It's the only reason I'm spending a ridiculous amount of money for a hoody that I may never actually wear but that's beside the point!)

💜💜💜

Listening Links:

Go find Letter, the album version.

Prompted by a comment from -@jikook-married , I have more thoughts...(crazy, right?!?)

First, here are screenshots of the credits for all* of the GCFs:

*tumblr is being so weird with this, I had to leave off the 3J one but trust me, it's just a title card.

So...draw whatever conclusions you would like from this, this is what I'm getting:

The only GCFs that have any amount of detailed credits are Tokyo and Budapest. Tokyo shows just how excited and proud he was of his work. It also reassured us that this film was comjbg from him and fully contained what he wanted us to see. Budapest is a clear line that someone else was involved.

The other thing I've always noted with the GCF title cards was when he specifically had those secondary cards to highlight when the GCF was part of the promo for the seasonal packages. Again, showing us that there may be a little more at play behind the scenes.

Frankly, I'm feeling very much like I did in my rambling review of Jimin's Production Diary. I'm very grateful we got the footage we did but there's enough weirdness in the surrounding context to leave me unsettled.

Am I reading too much into this? Probably

Did I go looking for more confirmation bias to help me feel better about my negative opinions? More than probably

Overall, I'm just disappointed.

(I have attempted to post this update SIX times now and tumblr keeps eating them...why tumblr, whyyy???)

GCF in Budapest

I have thoughts... but first a link, please have your own first impressions without any influence.

So...I don't know what it has been about the Golden promo period but there's literally nothing that hasn't given me mixed feelings. Nothing that I absolutely love or hate and this GCF is right along with it. And overall, that just makes me sad. I spent years being excited for whatever JK would finally give us if he ever did a proper solo project and I'm just kinda bummed overall.

What did I love?

'Directed by Jung Kook'.

Seeing JK when he's more playful. Always a serotonin boost!

JKs camera work, I just love the insight he has on camera placement and framing to help tell the story he wants to tell.

Yes or No. Still the only track I actually love from Golden so it's nice to hear it featured!

What bothered me?

'Edited by HYBE'. Bro... so much of GCF's charm and storytelling comes from the edit itself. (And not to nitpick but HYBE is a company...not an editor, so this means there were either multiple editors, or they're purposely trying to not have us associate any actual humans with this film other than JK. I also think they want ARMY to use the logic that HYBE is basically BTS and thus this work is basically completely JK's too... it's not, it's definitely not).

No English subs yet. I get it, I really do but it's a bummer.

The amount of camerawork by someone else. It's not uncommon for JK to include footage with someone else holding the camera but once we get to the gym scenes, the majority is from the perspective of someone else holding the camera, not JK. Which again, there's nothing wrong with that per se but it absolutely feels more like a bangtan bomb or episode rather than a GCF. This is also when we stop getting establishing shots and B roll. Again, nothing wrong with it but that's one of the fundamentals of a GCF for me.

There was so much dialogue that the song was interrupted pretty continuously. JK did that previously as a storytelling device which just further supports the feeling that this is bangtantv content and not a GCF.

Basically, I think I would have had very little issue with this if it wasn't packaged as a GCF. It feels a whole lot more like JK's camping vlog from a few years ago. Loved that, had no issues with it whatsoever.

...the irony is not lost on me that the only song from Golden that I love is Yes or No while my overall experience with this era is....maybe??