Katherine Does K-POP

Busted S1E3 Recap: Kwangsoo, a Murderer

In this episode: Kwangsoo wakes up in his Jeju Island guesthouse to discover a bloody murder scene… and he looks like the main suspect. He goes on the run, and the team must try and figure out the truth and get to him before the police do.

Busted S1E2 Recap: Treasure Island

In this episode: The cast meets the mysterious K and the final member of their group, officially forming the team of amateur detectives. They then head to Jeju Island on their very first case, which involves traveling all over the island looking for hidden treasure. However, things take a mysterious turn when a body is discovered during the search. And who are the mysterious people who suddenly join their treasure hunt?

Busted! S1E1 Recap: Forewarned Murder

Okay, I know Busted! is not *technically* K-pop, but two idols are members of the main cast and several others are guest stars… so I guess I’ll call it “K-pop adjacent.” Plus I love variety shows and I love mystery stories, so this kind of thing is right up my alley. Anyway, the final season of Busted! is dropping on Netflix today! I spent my winter vacation watching the first two seasons as a refresher, and then I had the idea todo recaps for my blog. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to add in a lot of pictures or GIFs because I didn’t plan my time as well as I thought. Apparently, it takes me as much time to write a recap for an episode as it does for me to actually watch it. So I’ve limited the visual elements to what I think is necessary and/or amusing – mostly what I find amusing – but I hope the recap is still informative!

Katherine’s K-Pop Recap: January 11-17, 2021

A summary of the news, current and upcoming comebacks, charts and music show wins, and more!

Review: “화(火花)(HWAA)” by (G)I-DLE

Like I said a few days ago, I’m bringing my reviews back! Writing reviews was actually one of the main reasons I started this blog in the first place, so I’m really excited to get back into the swing of things. Since I don’t have as much time as I used to, I’ve chosen to limit my reviews for comebacks or debuts where I really have a lot to talk about – as a result, they’ve become much more subjective in nature. (And they are LONG.) But I will still try my best to strike a balance between entertainment writing and my own personal opinions! My first review of 2021 goes to (G)I-DLE, a group that I’m very fond of. Now that they’re transitioning out of their rookie years, they’re looking to make maximum impact – and their latest song “HWAA” very effectively highlights their creativity and their ambition.

Knee Jerk Reaction: “What I Said” by Victon

I remember writing a review for one of Victon’s songs back in 2017 (maybe two), during their rookie days shortly after their debut. I recall saying something like I thought their music was good, but I feared they were going to get lost in the shuffle with all the K-pop groups out there… which unfortunately turned out to be true for a bit. Thankfully, Seungwoo’s and Byungchan’s appearance on Produce X 101 – and Seungwoo’s inclusion in the short-lived X1 (RIP) – brought some attention to the group overall. They’ve kicked off 2021 with their first full album, and their highly appealing single “What I Said” has definitely caught my attention.

Knee Jerk Reaction: “My Treasure” by TREASURE

As part of my New Year’s resolution to write more original content, I wanted to bring back my reviews. I really enjoyed writing them, and I’ve been looking for the opportunity to start them up again. However, they are INCREDIBLY time-consuming – it usually took me a week to write each one, and that was back when I didn’t have a job. Sadly, I know I won’t have time to write a full in-depth review for every K-pop song I’m interested in. BUT, I’m introducing a new column that will hopefully help me cover more songs! As you can guess from the title, it’s called “Knee Jerk Reaction.” (I tried to find a phrase with a “K” to match “Katherine” and “K-pop.”) A knee jerk reaction is typically an automatic response without thinking, so these posts will be my first thoughts right after I watch a new K-pop music video (and maybe a performance if one is available before I post). I’ll talk about my general opinions and initial reactions, and discuss my overall interest in the comeback or debut – so it’s very stream of consciousness and 100% subjective. For my very first post, I’ve chosen a group that I’ve become interested in over the last few months – rising rookies TREASURE.

Thank You GOT7

After all of the rumors and reports, the news is finally official: all of GOT7 will be leaving JYP Entertainment after 7 years. There’s been some information about each member’s future plans, and it looks like they will pursuing their own individual activities for the time being. But fans can take comfort in that it’s not an official disbandment – while nothing has been confirmed, it looks highly likely that they will try to find a way to stay together and/or reunite in the future. GOT7 has a very special place in my heart, so I wanted to take a moment to organize my thoughts and reflect on how much they mean to me.

Katherine’s K-Pop Recap: January 4-10, 2021

As part of my plans for 2021, I decided to bring back my weekly news recaps (though I tweaked things a little bit). Keep reading for a summary of this week’s news, current and upcoming comebacks, charts and music show wins, and more!

New Year, New Changes!

Happy New Year, all! I’m a little late because I wanted to finish my Top 50 of 2020 first (the perfectionist in me needs to keep continuity), but I just wanted to wish everyone a happy and healthy 2021. 2020 was pretty much the worst, so I’m glad we can all turn the page and look forward to new possibilities – and hopefully more positivity – in the coming year.