Kpop Appreciation: Seventeen, SF9, Eric Nam, Taemin, Ateez, Treasure

I've been listening to Seventeen's newly released album called Heng:garae, and I really like their title song "Left & Right". It's just so catchy; you'll definitely have "left and right, left and right" stuck in your head after listening to it even once. And their dancing is always on point. It's just so satisfying watching a large group dance in sync even though you don't see that as much in the mv lol.

I'm still laughing at the end of the music video lol. And Vernon and Woozi look great in there, too.

I also saw that they did a mafia game with their song, and it's hilarious. I died laughing at their antics lmao. Poor Joshua just breathes and they automatically assume he's a mafia. XD This game reveals a lot of their crazy personalities. Jeonghan the con man, Dino the maknae who no one listens to, S.Coups the leader who randomly is accused, Woozi the cool cucumber, and so many more hilarious moments. 

SF9's new song, "Summer Breeze" is also really catchy. I like the whistling throughout the song. I don't know the group personally, but I've listen to their songs throughout the years and always liked their title songs. I only recently recognized one member Rowoon because he's one of the main characters in a drama, Extra-Ordinary You, I'm watching with my sis. Now, I only notice him and the shaggy hair maknae in the music video lol.

Eric Nam has a new mini album called "The Other Side". This was made during quarantine, so it's nice to know that he didn't spend the majority of the time going crazy lol. I remember seeing his tweets near the beginning of Covid-19 about how he was so bored that he was asking for his fans' phone numbers to text them and everyone just being "...is he okay???" lol.

I really like the beginning hook. It's really distinct and catchy. As usual, I'm always a big fan of Eric's music, so I like the song. It's catchy and you can sing along to the chorus. 

Taemin has a new song out! Unlike his previous songs which had a more sexy, mature concept, "2 KIDS" is a lower tempo song about looking back at the leadup to a breakup. I really like it. It still has Taemin's distinctive voice, but it shows a different side of him. I also found out from the comments that he freestyled the dance in the music video, which was awesome. He nailed showcasing the emotions in the song through both his voice and dance. What a pro lol.

Ateez recently had a comeback, too! I was excited to find out about it because I became one of their fans during the beginning of quarantine and really liked their past music. I'm used to hearing their music which usually has strong, poppy concepts, so "Inception" was a nice surprise. It's darker and slightly slower beat but still completely badass. I really like it. It's catchy and shows off their great choreo and singing. 

Also, I'm a huge fan of Hongjoon with blue hair and the dancing in water scene was great! I really like it when San is the center of the group dances because he makes the best facial expressions and he always goes hard with the choreo. 

Last but not least, my most anticipated group to debut this year: Treasure! As I've said in other posts, I've recently become their fan because of their covers performed on YG Treasure Box and have been keeping up with them ever since watching the show. They have a lot of subbed content on their YouTube channel, so my sis and I have been spending a lot of our free time watching Treasure Map and laughing our heads off because they're a bunch of crackheads lmao. 

They've been working their asses off since they were chosen for Treasure since the tv show, and it really shows. "Boy" is an awesome debut song with great choreography, and their live performance completely smashes any thoughts that they're just rookies. Probably because they had to perform in front of huge audiences during the show, but they look so professional during their first performance on Inkigayo.

And the music video is also awesome. I loved the stage at the beginning and the colors used throughout and the emphasis on triangles and shapes. They dance in diamond formation like their logo. I can't even! I also can't believe they put Haruto in a suit at a pool. This boy is only 15/16, but he looks so grown! And Hyunsuk and his rap parts are so YG style. The swag, the flow, and the attitude are all the style of YG rappers. And Yedam starting and ending the song with style like the main vocal he is! Ugh, I just love this song and am so happy that they finally debuted.

Mini Reviews: I'm Not Human, This Way of Transmigration Is Definitely Wrong!, The CEO’s Villainess Childhood Friend

Title: I'm Not Human

Author: Jiuyi

Chapters: 87 chapters + 8 extras

Publication: 2019

Summary from Novel Updates:

After suddenly dying while trying to meet a deadline, Gu Huai transmigrated and became a non-human race.

This race is cruel and cold, making them feared and shunned by everyone in the interstellar world.

As the new king of the race and facing the group of parents who see him as a baby, Gu Huai said he was under a lot of pressure.

3.5 STARS - I LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

This novel is actually adapted from one of the worlds in The King's Game. Luckily, you don't have to read that book to understand I'm Not Human. I recommend reading The King's Game, too, though because it's also really good!

This book was so sweet and fluffy and funny! If you don't like Mary Sue characters, then this novel is probably not for you lol. But if you like doting love interests, overprotective families, and sweet interactions, then this book is definitely for you. 

Basically, Gu Huai dies and gets transmigrated into another world where he is reborn as a Zerg. Zergs are notorious around the galaxies for being cold, unfriendly, and extremely fierce. He quickly learns that he is the new Zerg king and that all of the Zergs treat him as a baby and are thus extra fierce and overprotective about him. This leads to lots of hilarious misunderstandings around the galaxy lol.

The devil works hard, but Gu Huai works harder trying to reinvent his race's fierce image lmao. He wants sees how kind and loving the Zergs are and works hard to make their image better throughout the galaxy.

Anyway, I definitely recommend it!

Title: This Way of Transmigration Is Definitely Wrong!

Author: 水冰冷

Chapters: 169 chapters + 23 extras

Publication: 2014

Summary from Novel Updates:

The worst thing that Shui Ruoshan thinks he ever did?

He wrote the story of “The Strongest King in History”.

The unluckiest thing that happened to him?

He transmigrated into the novel he wrote.

The most depressing thing that happened to him?

His current character doesn’t exist in the original story.

The most frustrating thing that happened to him?

His current progress completely overturned the original plot.

Other than that, the most unreasonable thing is that he is actually being sheltered by the villain BOSS.

The YY, the level-ups and the ‘cool text‘ in the story that he wrote, why the hell did it suddenly change ‘flavor’?

It must be because his way of transmigration was not quite right!

He wants a redo!!!

Note :

– YY is OP-ness of MC

– ‘Cool text’ is a story with OP MC without much difficulties and drama

2.5 STARS - IT WAS OKAY

MY REVIEW:

Honestly, at the time when I was figuring out what to read next, I had narrowed it down to a couple of tabs with different options open on my phone, and this was one of them. I had originally decided to read The Transmigration Routine of Always Being Captured by ML but got mixed up and ended up reading this novel instead because the summaries were similar. It wasn't until I was a third of the way through the book that I went back to the summary to see if I was reading the right book and realized that I had picked the wrong one lol. But by then, I was already committed to reading it.

However, I should have just quit because it's only been a few weeks since I finished this book, and I don't remember anything about it. I just remember that the author rambles so much throughout the book, even the translator was complaining about it lol. Every chapter has these long, repetitive paragraphs that unnecessarily summarizes past events or conversations just in case you forgot what happened in the last chapter. Even short conversations would span half a chapter because between every time a character says something, there's at least three paragraphs explaining that one sentence or summarizing what the sentence refers to. It got boring real quick.

I think I'd recommend this book only if you're into transmigration or possessive male leads and don't have anything else to read.

Title: The CEO’s Villainess Childhood Friend

Author: Zhuge Lin

Chapters: 77 chapters

Publication: N/A

Summary from Novel Updates:

When Qiao Moyu awakened, she found herself in a novel world and had become the villainess who was loathed by the President, the story’s male protagonist.

Qiao Moyu, the President’s childhood friend, came to his door whilst holding a baby, but the man said he won’t take any responsibility since the child wasn’t his!

As she stared at her adorable and proud little toddler, Qiao Moyu decided to take this chance to raise her son while having a fresh start in her acting career. As for the other problems, she’ll just take it easy!

However, a few months later ~

President: “You’re not some disgusting mosquito blood, you’re my white moonlight (first love).”

Luo Luo: “Mama, he’s not Baobei’s father. Baobei doesn’t want him.”

A certain Film Emperor: “I want both you and the child.”

Online fans: “Qiao Moyu is ours!”

3.5 STARS - I LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

This was a pretty funny transmigration novel. You have your typical face slapping incidents, but you also have a super adorable little kid in the mix. 

Qiao Moyu wakes up and finds out that she transmigrated into a novel that she read a while ago. The person in the novel with her same name was a typical villainess who kept on trying to break up the male lead, her childhood friend, and the female lead. She even got pregnant because of him! 

After realizing her situation, Qiao Moyu decides to deviate from the original plot and live her life with her new son as well as she can. It's not mentioned in the summary, but you quickly find out that Qiao Moyu used to be regarded as a lucky koi in her previous life where even brushing shoulders with her would immediately let you find money on the ground. Her older brother had to help protect her all of the time since everyone was after her luck that she didn't get to live a normal life. That's why she decided to live normally after transmigrating into the novel lol.

The moments with her son were super cute, and all of the face slapping events, especially on the variety show, were really funny. The romance was sweet and the male lead likable. All-in-all, a nice romance story.

JUNE: Hangouts, Father's Day, & Goodbyes

June seemed to be both extremely long and short. 

One Friday, some of Shelle's friends came over. Tawanda, Tiet, and Nam came over to hangout. Shelle and I decided to make bun with shrimp egg rolls and pork chops because we were craving it, and we made che thai after much questioning from how mom makes it (her instructions are usually vague about the measurements lol). Dinner was a success, so we were stuffed. We spent a lot of time catching up and watching Kpop and reminiscing about the old groups that we liked in college lol. Good times lol.

The following Monday, my friends and I had a surprised Google Hangouts call since almost all of us were online. Lol, Emily was extra chatty because she was drunk from being upset that her husband wouldn't let her get another dog. We chatted for a while before everyone had to go to bed lol. We're gonna try to have group chats once a month since we miss seeing each other.

That weekend, we woke up early to go to the Asian grocery store to go buy more mussels since dad wanted it for Father's Day lol. We went down to visit the parents. They had ordered couches the month before, and they finally came in, so we had to move the old couches upstairs before the furniture people came, which was heavy. D: Other than that, we ate a ton like usual. I always leave home way too stuffed lol.

Work was both stressful and sad this month. There was lots of unexpected training updates that needed to be made, so I spent two weeks frantically updating old training that was created in 2018 on super old templates. Then, the last week of June was sad because a lot of my coworkers were let go or retiring. It felt sad saying goodbye to so many people, and I found out even more people were leaving the next week! :(

Not to mention the Black Lives Matter protests against all of the injustices that happened in June alone and the record numbers of people infected with Covid that keep on rising because people won't wear a damn masks, June was a rough month.

Mini Reviews: Transmigrating To Become The Boss’s Little Fairy, Stone Age Husband Raising Journal, & My Teammates Are All Crazy

Title: Transmigrating To Become The Boss’s Little Fairy

Author: Chun Dao Han

Chapters: 98 chapters + 21 extras

Publication: 2019
Summary from Novel Updates:

In her previous life, Qi Ying had been saved from the bandits’ cave by the General, and subsequently became the General’s concubine. The General never lost a single battle, and songs praising him spread far and wide. In the end, however, the General was mortally wounded, and died on the battlefield. When news of the General’s death reached Qi Ying’s ears, she hung herself from the beams without a moment’s hesitation — only to discover, upon waking up, that she has transmigrated to become a 17-year-old deaf and mute Qi Ying.

———————————————–

The youthful girl is neither able to hear any sound, nor is she able to speak; and yet, her eyes were as beautiful as the pure, white moonlight, and her character was extremely easygoing. One day, she met a cold and aloof male youth, whom everybody was afraid and wary of — her General.

———————————————–

The Ji Rang in everybody’s eyes:

Horridly short tempered! Extremely rich! It’s best not to cross paths with him!

The Ji Rang in Qi Ying’s eyes:

The General is simply executing Heaven’s will and punishing the evildoers! The General is simply robbing the rich to feed the poor! The General is superb and amazing!

———————————————–

Ji Rang pressed Qi Ying against the wall:-

Qi Ying: “Oh, when a boy presses a girl against the wall, he has every intention of kissing her, mua~!”

Ji Rang: ???

———————————————–

“Ji Rang, did you really bring your girlfriend along to spectate our fight? Are you looking down on me right now?”

“I’m not looking down on you. I just want to let my little fairy observe how I punish evildoers and reward kind people.”

———————————————–

Everyone’s afraid of Ji Rang;

Nobody loves Ji Rang, except for Qi Ying.

4 STARS - I REALLY LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

I MTL this novel, so there were some parts that didn't make sense, but you can easily get the gist of it. 

This was a cute, funny romance about a school tyrant who slowly changes because of a deaf, mute girl. Qi Ying, who fell in love with her general who saved her life, gets transmigrated to the present as a deaf and mute girl. She goes to school and recognizes her beloved general only to slowly realize that everyone fears him because he's a violent, rich bully who beats up anyone who bothers him. 

Qi Ying ends up being the only one not afraid of him because she sees that he's a good person and is misunderstood by their peers. This leads to a bunch of misunderstandings, which is hilarious. For example, Ji Rang saw that some girls were bullying Qi Ying because she was getting popular for being cute and took her backpack to throw it away, so he made the girls squat on the sidewalk and do her homework for her. Then, a rumor went around the school that the school tyrant changed his punishment method and were making people do their homework, making teachers happy lmao.

Throughout all of the fluffy romance, you slowly uncover why Qi Ying is deaf and mute and why Ji Rang became a school tyrant and how they slowly work through their problems with each other's support. The character growth and their small victories were just so heartwarming to see.

This book was so fluffy that I needed to read more fluff to feel satisfied lol. 

I also found out that is a side story to My Crown in Entertainment Circle. It only has four chapters translated so far, so I might MTL it as well because I want to see if Qi Ying and Ji Rang will appear in there as well.

Title: Stone Age Husband Raising Journal

Author: Jue Jue

Chapters: 161 chapters + 20 extras

Publication: 2019
Summary from Novel Updates:

What should you do when the person you like is no longer loyal? Find another one!

This time, in order to avoid trouble, Xiong Ye chose the weakest man in the tribe as his new companion.

In any case, he can afford him!

With his strength, he’ll definitely be able to let his own man eat meat every day instead of grass.

* *

Zhou Ji, the ‘weakest man’ who had just transmigrated over from the apocalypse and likes to indulge in eating ‘grass’: “…”

He’s not the same person anymore! He is clearly capable of killing the entire tribe by himself!

4 STARS - I REALLY LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

This was so sweet that I was getting cavities. And the worst part was that I didn't even mind!

I saw this book recommendation a few times before, but I wasn't really interested because I was never into the prehistoric setting. However, I read a couple of glowing reviews and decided to give it a shot, and I'm glad I did!

I also haven't read many beastmen type of novels where everyone's a human who can transform into their animal form. But I learned that even the scariest animals can be super cute in here. Xiong Ye is one of the strongest warriors in their tribe who can transform into their tribe's signature giant brown bear and is most likely next in line to be their next tribe leader. You'd never expect someone with those types of qualifications would be so cute, especially in his bear form like when he's sulking or happy lol.

Xiong Ye in general is just an adorable character. The whole tribe's primitive, so they're all pretty simpleminded and easy to trick, but they grow on you with their enthusiasm and antics.

This is sweet, slow burn, slice of life type of story, so if that's you're type of tea, I highly recommend reading this novel!

Title: My Teammates Are All Crazy

Author: Hu Sheng You Meng

Chapters: 140 chapters + 20 extras

Publication: 2019
Summary from Novel Updates:

Video game streamer Jing Yu, momentarily misstepped, and found himself in a strange professional gaming team.

Solo laner: Even if I have my eyes closed, asleep, dreaming, I can still kill you all!

Mid laner: Retreat? Not going to happen. Even if I only have one drop of blood left, I’m going to kill you all!

Marksman: Attack range advantage? I like to battle close-range! If you aren’t a coward then don’t run, let me kill you all!

Support: Support? As if! Wait until I switch to an AD build, then I’m going to kill you all!

Jing Yu: ……

Jing Yu: All of you, retreat! I’ll be the one to kill them!

4 STARS - I REALLY LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

I ended up MTLing this novel because I couldn't wait for the chapters to get translated. Luckily enough, other than the slightly differing character names per chapter, the book is pretty easy to read.

This is another eSports novel where it's more focused on the competition than the romance. Luckily, there's a lot of flirting in between in it all to keep me satisfied lol. That and all of the teammates are hilarious. In and out of the game, they all joke around and make crazy decisions in the game like accidentally banning their own favorite character or using a starter character lol.

Jing Yu is a video game streamer popular for using notoriously squishy, easy to kill but pretty characters like Frozen Heart. Most people in the game never use them because they die so easily, but Jing Yu is determined to show that these pretty, squishy characters can actually be useful and gets a following for unexpectedly winning games with Frozen Heart. In one game, he gets matched with a team who's players don't follow their typical roles and unexpectedly gets an offer to join their professional team.

What happens is an exciting rollercoaster journey for their team as they redeem themselves from their last year's failure all the way to the top with crazy team combos, character reversals, and exciting pentakills!

If you like eSports and comedy, I definitely recommend this novel!

Weekly Haul 127

I bought a lot of books and manga from RightStuf since they had their birthday sale recently. There's another batch that hasn't shipped yet since they're out of stock, so that'll be a pleasant surprise once that comes in lol.

Demon Slayer vol. 7-13 by Koyoharu Gotouge

Spy x Family vol. 1 by Tatsuya Endo

Yona of the Dawn vol. 17-24 by Mizuho Kusanagi

The Way of the House Husband vol. 1-3 by Kousoke Oono

I've Been Killing Slimes for 3000 Years and Maxed Out My Level vol. 5-7

One-Punch Man vol. 17-19 by One & Yusuke Murata

Webnovel Review: Rebirth on the Doors to the Civil Affairs Bureau by Grumpy Crab

Title: Rebirth on the Doors to the Civil Affairs Bureau

Author: Grumpy Crab

Chapters: 61 chapters 

Publication: 2017
Summary from Novel Updates:

“Then why don’t I marry you!” Yu Dong suddenly proposed.

“You…” Xia Feng thought he had misheard.

“You see, you’re looking for someone to marry to ease your mother’s heart, and I also want to get married. We’re right in front of the doors to the Civil Affairs Bureau, and with all our papers too!” Yu Dong exclaimed while holding up her red household book.

“And the most important thing is that we just broke up with our exes. This is fate, ah!”

Right up until they left the Civil Affairs Bureau again, holding a newly registered red book, Xia Feng remained dazed still wondering, how did he end up getting married?

Did he just pick up a wife at the doors to the Civil Affairs Bureau?

What Xia Feng doesn’t know is that Yu Dong traveled back in time from 10 years in the future.

Now, having a second chance in life and able to secure a good husband, Yu Dong will live her life at full throttle and without regrets.

4 STARS - I REALLY LIKED IT

MY REVIEW:

This was a really good slow burn, slice of life romance with a small twist where Yu Dong suddenly transfers 10 years back in time when she was first stood in front of the doors to the Civil Affairs Bureau. Instead of making the same mistakes as she did in the past, she decides to marry someone else and is determined to live a better life than before. 

What happens is a marriage of convenience where Yu Dong and Xia Feng slowly get to know each other throughout their busy schedules. I loved that it wasn't an insta-love and that they both went into their marriage with their eyes wide open. Even though it was an unconventional marriage, you see them both trying to adjust to each other in their lives in a realistic way, and you can see their slowly building trust and support for each other. It's just a sweet relationship overall.  

I also really liked Yu Dong as person. Here is a woman who has a second chance at life. Instead of trying to get revenge or do something petty, she just does her best at everything, including her new career that she turned away from in her previous life. I loved her opinions at her job, too, and loved how she impacted so many people because of her words. She also has some really awesome friends that are fleshed out and play a big part in her support system.

Xia Feng was also a great character. Here is a male lead who isn't afraid to show his confusion and concern. He's not some cold iceberg shown in a lot of books. Even though he's super busy as a doctor, he still shows his care and actually communicates with Yu Dong. 

There's no dog blood drama either, which was a nice break during these stressful times. This was a fluffy, heartwarming novel, and I appreciated it for that!

Books I Want to Read This Month

I'm gonna read something off of this list this month! I will! 

1. The Way of the House Husband vol. 1 by Kousuke Oono
2. The Way of the House Husband vol. 2 by Kousuke Oono
3. Yona of the Dawn vol. 1 by Mizuho Kusanagi
4. Yona of the Dawn vol. 2 by Mizuho Kusanagi
5. I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level vol. 1 by Kisetsu Morita & Beniso
6. I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level vol. 2 by Kisetsu Morita & Beniso
7. Beastlands vol. 1 by Curtis Clow & Jo Mi-Gyeong
8. Beastlands vol. 2 by Curtis Clow & Jo Mi-Gyeong
9. Someone Else to Love by Susan Polis Shutz
10. The Bride was a Boy by Chii
11. The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One by Amanda Lovelace
12. The Rain in Portugal by Billy Collins
13. The Anatomy of Being by Shinji Moon
14. Love Looks Pretty on You by Lang Leav
15. The Consumption of Magic by T.J. Klune

July in Retrospect

I didn't read as much as the previous months. It's mainly because I was in a slump and became ambitious thinking that I'll read a 700 chapter book called My Master Disconnected Yet Again. I spent 10 days reading it because it was hilarious, but then it got less funny, and I lost interest around chapter 420 (lol). I think I'll try get back into reading it again though.

I watched a variety of different shows this month lol. I unintentionally got interested in watching YG Treasure Box because I listened to some of their covers on YouTube and found out through the comments that the group is finally debuting sometime this month!

I read: 

• Perfect Fiance by Feng Duan Qing Yi Du
• Environment Protection After Rebirth by Xuāncǎo Yāohuā
• My Whole Family Are Villains by 咸鱼老人
• What if My Brother is Too Good? by Shi Liu Yue Xi Gua
• My Son Might Be A Villain by Gongzi Shang
• The Basketball Captain is Determined to Date Me by 晏十日
• It's Purely An Accident to Love Again by Yuan Yuan
• Gossip! The Prince and the Dragon, That Shameless Couple by 圆甜
• The Rice Pot Next Door by Jiu Xiao Qi
• This MC Is Kickass by Early Cloud
• Later, He Became a Royal Healer by 艳归康
• Rebirth of a Movie Star by J112233
• Fake Slackers by Mu Gua Huang
• Really, Really Miss You by Mo Bao Fei Bao
• Pampering My Cute Pet by Liu Mang Xing

I watched: 

• Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious (2019)
• The Big Flower Fight (2020)
• YG Treasure Box (2018)