This weekend is a special one for me. Mrs. J-List has gone with a friend to South Korea, so I have the house to myself, which means I can sit around in my underwear playing video games and drink an extra six-pack of beer if I’m so inclined. (Married men know the joy I’m talking about.) Like many women in Japan today, my wife has been caught up in the Hanryu (“Korean style”) boom, watching Korean dramas for several hours a day, following K-POP bands and cooking lots of exotic Korean foods for me. It’s especially amusing to hear her talk about why Korean dramas are better than Japanese dramas — the more dramatic stories and engaging characters that draw you in — which always sound like me talking about why I was attracted to Japanese animation in the 70s and 80s. She also likes Korean actors, who are more hardened and manly than Japanese “talents” dominated by effeminate Johnny’s-kei stars. One big difference between Japan and South Korea is that over there, every man is required to serve two years in the military, which probably toughens them up compared to the “herbivore” guys in Japan. If you’re interested in K-POP music [iTunes link], consider the iTunes Japan prepaid cards we offer, which are the most popular item Koreans buy from J-List.
There’s a lot to like about female K-POP bands, IMHO.
