kerpingtack | o-ver-in-vest-ed

I’ve never seen people say as shitty things about people/characters than I have in kpop. Or at least I’ve never seen people go as in-depth into negative opinions, on such little justification, than I have in this fucking fandom. There is lots and lots of the standard ontd-type bitching (he’s fug, she’s untalented, they’re all fake assholes, etc.) but there is also the truly awful, faux-psychoanalytical bullshit where people will call idols hollow or say that they’re unable to form meaningful human connections or claim that they’re douchebags because they enjoy having their inherent self-worth acknowledged. What the fuck? This is not okay.

I guess this is part and parcel of the unusual level of investment kpop inspires in fans because I haven’t seen people dedicate themselves as much to the celebrities as I have in kpop either (CASE IN FUCKING POINT RIGHT HERE). And yeah the gushing kind of meta can definitely get over-the-top too (lololol omg I’m just talking about myself right now ;__;). But I don’t think that too much love is bad, even if it is hardcore delusional. (Unless it results in you being an asshole and putting down other idols in order to demonstrate how superior and special your favorite is.) Like, I think love and hate are reactive to one another, but at the same time, I don’t think these negative, convoluted perspectives are necessary at all. And if you really HAVE to express it, please OWN where the fuck it comes from, because these idols are, for the most part, so harmless and they haven’t done anything to warrant this kind of judgment. So at least some of it is your personal issues. Which isn’t great but at least it’s understandable, in my opinion (like, I’m harsh with Onew because I can’t parse out what I project onto him), as long as you acknowledge it. OR it is because you are lazy but still want to talk like your inherent gift for insight makes up for the fact that you haven’t paid attention and that you’re making these sweeping judgments with little to no thought. (I know it’s dumb to complain about fans being uninformed but seriously, if you’re going to comment on something potentially touchy or if you’re going to write an entire fic, it would be nice if you did some research.)

I wonder if, because kpop is SO much surface, fans go nuts trying to see what’s hidden below the idol polish. And I get that, because obviously I’m “metaing” about SHINee all day everyday. (Also my personal half-assed theory is that ifans have a kind of stir-craziness from being so far from their idols. Like, the distance makes us feel like we’re always on the outside and, like, we get sadcat that we can’t understand the culture from where our idols come. Or something. So, at times, we can get kind of desperate for any “understanding” of them that seems meaningful to us? And we can really start reaching. Okay I haven’t thought this through lol.) But okay, too many people just spout offridiculous and unfair generalizations in pursuit of their Deep Special Insights. Just, seriously, aside from a few exceptions, what exactly have idols done to deserve this carelessly harsh critical examination? Is this some kind ofcarryover of netizen culture? Or Western tabloid culture? Just because a person is in the public eye doesn’t mean that it’s reasonable to wank all over them with your hate boners. Or that it’s fine to dissect them with your bored disaffected ennui. Like, you don’t NEED to have an opinion on everything and everyone. You don’t need to be a dismissive dick about the things or people you don’t like or are uninterested in. You don’t need to be so fucking entitled. Your opinion is not absolute, so please stop talking like it is.

idk, I just think it’s fucking exasperating. Why do people not know how to just be reasonable?? Or recognize human emotions? Or be fucking aware of life, LIFE!

Believing you have self-worth is not a bad thing. Enjoying attention is not a bad thing. Trying hard is not a bad thing. Having insecurities is not a bad thing, and equally as important, neither is not having (visible) insecurities. None of these lessen a person. Idols are manufactured and far from us but they’re all still people. Even if our ifandom anon meme shit doesn’t affect them (like... at all lol), and even if it’s just fandom on the interwebs, just on principle, you should treat them with some dignity.* People are people. They are not constucts you made up in your head. They are not empty vessels for your fantasies. They are not less just because you can’t see their appeal.

And now to branch out~ I hate all the layers of patronizing, condescending bullshit from fans to other fans. Who let all these fucking hipsters into the universe? Having a thesaurus.com vocabulary and knowing how to spell doesn’t make you any better or more intelligent than others. What you fucking say does, whether you can express yourself without coming off as a dick does. And caring about an idol a lot doesn’t make you stupid or delusional. Like what is this hipster mentality, that not caring means that you’re justinherently more reasonable? Of course it’s better for all involved if you’re not foaming at the mouth and blinded by love, but just caring enough to take offense at... something offensive is not irrational. Okay I lost track of what I’m arguing against right now, lol. Elitism is annoying!

I’m not trying to police anyone or take away ~fandom rights~. If you’re not interested in analyzing or whatever and just want to imagine them all fucking, fine. (If you just want to look at them and be oblivious to them as substantive people so you can copy+paste their name and image in your projections without complication, fine!!) I’m especially not saying that people should be hemmed in by universally agreed-upon interpretations. But I see a lot of discussion that seem to come out of fucking nowhere to me, just really untethered to the people and interactions I’ve been seeing. And a lot of them are worded in such terrible, dismissive ways that treat idols like they’re legit fictional, not real. Yeah RPF is about the persona, not the person, but really, when you talk about them, you still involve them, especially when you start talking about their moral character. Does that make sense? It’s not absolute compartmentalization. And like, you don’t know these people. Be aware of your distance as a fan. And omg I haven’t even talked about how gendered these kinds of judgments are. idk everyone juststop being assholes.

*lol footnote. Caveat: unless they’ve demonstrated that they don’t deserve your respect or consideration. Your mileage may vary of course, but personally I think only a few idols have done this.