82Major(에이티투메이저) - X-82 Mini Album Thoughts (K-pop/Hip Hop)

 

    82major is a South Korean Boyband that made their debut in 2023. I didn't know anything about them during their debut but, I did stumble upon them on Youtube. Their unique video Thumbnail made me click really fast and "Choke" pulled me right into these guy's musical world. X-82 is their newest mini album to date. 

    X-82 marks 82major highlighting more of a rap focus on this album. Their last album had choruses full of vocal harmonies that supported the groups strong force of rap. This time around the tracks are more hip hop based with less singing. Stuck was the exception with the track's smooth vocal runs in the chorus. I really thought this adds a cool vibe to the song. As an album, all the tracks are very adventurous for the current Kpop landscape. Not a lot of Kpop boybands are releasing mostly Hip Hop only albums. Plus, they guys seem to naturally love hip hop as an artist expression and not as a costume for a concept. The Wu Tang Clan shout out in the lyrics was everything! 

    I loved this album as well as their last release. 82major is on a good path so far. I would like to hear more in the future. A full album better be in the works. 

Kimi Ni Todoke(From Me To You): Soulmate君に届け 番外編～運命の人～ Japanese Manga Thoughts

 

   Kimi ni Todoke: Soulmate is a spin off series made after the ending of the original series. Kimi ni Todoke was a very popular long running manga series that spawned a an anime, a live action film, and a Netflix TV Show. Soulmate was completed in three volumes. 

      High School rivals turned friends go to college together. One girl, Kurumi is healing after her first love(which is now her friend Sawako's boyfriend). As love blossoms around her, she must find herself before she can come close to having a soulmate. 

   Let's cut right to the chase: Kurumi isn't a very likable character. If you read the original series, then you know the drama she brewed up and for Sawako to take her as a friend was such an amazing turn of events in the original story. I still don't really like her but Soulmate puts more in perspective within her inner dialogues. We see her have a lot of self doubt when she starts to have feelings for Sawako's cousin. We see her be a complete bitch as a defense against hurt. I think this was suppose to be her sympathy ark to a lot of fans of the series. However, I didn't really feel anything for her character. I was very indifferent to her as I read through each volume. The only thing that I felt for was her self reflection of where she went wrong in her action then and now. What I did love about this spin off story was the update on Sawako's life as a side character. Sawako's cousin as a new character was cool too. He was like a male version of Sawako which I adored. My favorite parts of the story were volumes one and two. 

   The art style is the same as the original series. I've always loved the kick back at home feel of the art and panels. The creator loves using random prints in the background of her panels as well. 

    You will enjoy this series if you're an original fan of Kimi Ni Todoke. If not, then you won't get too much out of this. Kimi No Todoke is a long series so maybe watch the Netflix show to get a feel of the story in a nutshell.