After reading the news that Kim Hyun Joong has announced his intention to pull out of the drama City Conquest because of the controversy caused by KBS denial of a time slot, I am filled with a heavy heart. My poor jagiya, he must be mourning, even in the midst of his successful Japanese tour for Unlimited. I am sure it is easier because he is so busy, but I know he must be sad.
It turns out the rejection by KBS is politically fueled, just as I suspected. Of course, the station is recoiling from the accusations by Baek Media that they have tossed the drama aside because of the new President Elect of S. Korea and the desire to save face for the new government. The plot of the drama addresses some societal ills, and could possibly be seen as an attack on the government, so KBS has cowed to save face. This may have been foreseen by the production company, as they attempted to change the script and replace the actors to cater to KBS's fears.
KBS responded to Media Baek's accusations of political motivation with this statement:
The channel said, "We have held four meetings regarding the issue of City Conquest, and looked over it with care. We have continuously asked the drama for feedback on its quality, following our decision to wait before giving it a time slot."
It added, "After looking through the recent scenario and plot, however, we have decided that it is not very competitive, and contains too much violence as well as other issues unfit to air in a public broadcasting channel. This is why we made the decision to deny it a time slot."
This type of censorship is apparently still allowed in S. Korea. This leads me to believe they are not as democratic and 'free' as they want the rest of the world to believe. In the USA... if a public broadcast station admitted to such politically motivated censorship, free speech protesters would line the streets and fill their offices. They would be snowed with emails and comments on their bulletin boards. The American public would not stand for it. Thus, we have plots of all types on our public stations. Plots that directly question the actions of the American government I might add. There is no such censorship here in the land of free speech. This saddens me for the Korean citizens. If a T.V. station can enforce censorship of this type, what about their news programs and newspapers? It's a little troubling, to be quite honest.
Hyun Joong and the other two lead actors are in negotiations to exit the drama and have no further affiliation with it. This news deeply saddens me, and I am in mourning for the loss of time and energy for Hyun Joong and the crew and cast members who have put so much hard work and enthusiasm into the filming. *sigh*
And so, such is life. We put our energy and plans into a project, and then, for an unforeseen reason, plans fall through. It feels like the floor has dropped out from under us. We mourn, and we move on. If I know Kim Hyun Joong, he has already moved on. He probably has a plan in his mind and a project in his heart. We will hear soon what his next move will be. He does not keep his fans waiting.
I know he has heard our outcry and will give us something to look forward to soon. He is busy right now; touring is grueling. He will let us know before long. Just keep your heart full with his beautiful voice on Unlimited. I love to listen to 'Creep' and 'Your Story.' They keep my heart filled with hope. I will never stop loving and supporting my baby. He will always be ONLY ONE! Keep your chin up, baby! Keep Fighting for your dream of becoming recognized as an Actor. Your skills are not in question, you just need your exposure. I will keep praying for doors to open up. 2013 is the year of the snake, and we must be patient in waiting for a transformation. If I have gotten to know anything about Kim Hyun Joong, he will emerge victorious and looking better than ever before!
In brighter news, South American fans are going to get to see Hyun Joong performing in Brazil at 2K13 Feel Korea, a special celebration for the 50th anniversary of Korean immigration to Brazil. Lucky Brazilian fans! Oh, I am sooooo jealous. Hyun Joong wil make another stop in Peru and possibly other cities while in South America. His popularity there was demonstrated by his name topping several polls from 'Kpop star most wanted to visit S. America' to 'Most Popular Artist.' My question is... where are these polls for US fans? I want to vote in them so he will come to see me! I want him to come to Oklahoma City, of course, but realistically, I believe he could hold fan meetings in NY, CA, and Chicago. If he came to Chicago, I could go see him and stay with my brother. I would have to have a lot of advanced notice to plan for days off of work. But, I would do everything in my power! Right? :D
Totally unrelated to this... I am the (un)lucky winner of 2 tickets to see Lee Min Ho in Los Angeles at his fan meeting sponsored by Toyota March 10, 2013.. There were 250 winners of these tickets as the grand prize in the contest for The One and Only mini series starring Lee Min Ho. I say I am unlucky because there is no way I can afford the plane tickets at $440. Also, I cannot afford the time off it would take to ride a bus or train which would still be around $200. I could afford that... but not the time off. *sigh* I will have to forfeit my prize to someone who can make the travel arrangements. Ah... well, it would have been cool to see Lee Min Ho, but, he's no Kim Hyun Joong. If it was my Angel... I'd beg for help from my fellow fans! I have two tickets! Someone could go with me if they would help me with travel fare! Ha! Ha! :D
VALENTINE'S DAY IS COMING SOON! SEND YOUR CHOCOLATES TO HYUN JOONG, IF YOU WANT! I never did hear anything about my Christmas present... I don't know if he received it or not. I am just happy that my heart went into the gifts and they were very personalized for Hyun Joong. I do hope he received them. If you want to send anything to Hyun Joong for Valentine's day... the address is permanently posted in my side bar.
Well, that's all I have for today. My posts will be sporadic and intermittent... I apologize for that. If you want notifications be sure to sign up for them or join my blog in the side bar. Till next time Aliens! Love ya!
