#orange fandom

(by thsi i mean an orange slice)

STEP ONE, SLICE UP YOUR ORANGES ✨ make them into those little triangles where you can like put them in your mouth perfectly and only the skin is on hte outside. do that

STEP TWO, SLURP THE ORANGE SLICE ✨ basically you just like. squeeze the juice into your mouth w your teeth. suck that bitch dry like a vampire

STEP 3 (THREE), DISK CARD THE REMAINS ✨ put it in the trash or the garden. idk. whatever

So... This is not the first time Shinhwa Changjo (Shinchang) is having a fight with Shinhwa. I wrote a post regarding Dongwan's drunken rant not long ago, but the way I see it now, some of the fights are not Shinchang vs Shinhwa; it's actually Shinchang vs Shinhwa Company (Shincom). Yes, the way I see it, it is actually fans vs agency, like it usually is in the Kpop industry. It's rarely fans vs artists. It's just that in this case, the artists happen to be in the management of the agency. Hence, the complication.

And to avoid further complications, I'd just like to first clarify [read: disclaim] that I honestly don't know first hand about what's really been happening in the orange fandom, let alone in Shincom. Being a far away, foreign fan who barely knows any Korean has often left me in the dark and made me feel insignificant and left out; but that actually comes with the advantage of being able to retain 2 positions: as a Shinhwa Changjo and as an outside observer (plus, ignorance is bliss, and what you don't know won't hurt you. ^_^). So this entire thing you're reading is basically my personal reflection both as a Shinhwa Changjo and as a general observer, so you might find the point of views to be both biased and objective. What I write in here is purely my own opinion and not representing anyone else's, especially Shinhwa Changjo in general, as I can see that there are disagreements among us, which I think is something normal, natural, and healthy. Having said that, I would still be using 'Shinhwa Changjo/Shinchang/orange fandom/us/we/our' for the purpose of smoothing the flow of my writing and without the intention to make any generalization.

So my take upon the situation is that Shinchangs in general are basically happy that Eric, as a Shinhwa member, even as the leader of the group, is getting married. Based on my limited observation so far, many, if not most or all, non-Korean Shinchangs are totally in support of the marriage. Meanwhile, I heard (that's right, I've never actually seen any authentic statement by any Korean Shinchangs) some K-Shinchangs are against it. On the other hand, it seems that the majority of K-Shinchangs are supportive of the marriage, yet anxious and worried about the future of Shinhwa after the members are married. Some seem to be frustrated with how Shincom is managing, handling, and communicating things; and 'things' here means everything Shinhwa-related, not just regarding Eric's nuptial news. Thus, I believe that the general sentiment for Eric's personal life advancements and pursuit of happiness in the form of marriage is still quite positive.

However, I personally think that the timing for both the marriage and the negative feedback could have been better. And by this, I mean 2 things:

1. I personally do prefer him to get married after the 20th anniversary, and August 1st 2018 would also make a pretty date; but that's just my own emotion-based personal preference, and even as a fan, I have no right to say anything regarding my idol's private life. I heard Eric has personally explained his reasons directly to Shinchangs through his official post in the fandom's fan cafe, but I really think that was unnecessary. He doesn't have to explain himself. He doesn't owe it to anyone to explain his personal decisions regarding his personal life; not even to Shinchang. Even his parents are giving their blessings, who are we to object to it?!?

2. The seemingly negative feedback on Eric's wedding announcement is just the tip of the iceberg. The orange fandom seems to have been frustrated and anxious with Shincom's management style for quite sometime, and that nuptial announcement was just the trigger that set off the anxiety time-bomb. I just wish that the negative feedback could have been held back until after the wedding; but then again, the more invested your feelings are, the stronger your reaction would be; and it is perfectly human to be heartbroken and upset. That being said, acceptance and denial are what differentiate us from being reasonable or delusional fans; and in any case, mean words are simply unnecessary and unacceptable.

Unfortunately, like I've mentioned above, the fact that Eric is the CEO of Shincom makes things complicated. Both Eric and Shinchangs ought to know that they love each other. I have written about how Shinhwa-Shinchang relationship is just like a family. The check and balance really work in this relationship as Shinchangs, Shincom, and Shinhwa members (especially Dongwan) often remind and reprimand each other whenever something is not right. (Hmmm... Come to think of it, I've just realized that my ultimate OTP is actually Shinhwa-Shinchang! LOL!)

I do love both Shinhwa and Shinchang very much. Whenever there's a storm over the orange ocean, it always makes me upset, yet warm inside. The only thing that often makes me uncomfortable is how 'outsiders' would generalize and perceive the orange fandom as being old but immature and rude. Well, we do have to admit that there are some of us who are immature and disrespectful, like the ones who had enabled the sharing of Eric’s message in an online article when he had specifically requested that the message not be shared outside of the fan cafe (although I am grateful to see positive and supportive comments for Eric from the readers of the article).

As old as the orange fandom is, this is our first time experiencing a Shinhwa member’s marriage. Eric, who apparently knows his fans (and the general Kpop industry) very well, seems to have realized this. Being the leader and protector of Shinhwa, he has expected and been ready to take the strongest, hardest, most painful 1st blow. I, and perhaps Eric too, expect that the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th blow that would come along with the other 5 members’ marriages would not be as strong if not completely diminish. (And I sure hope that all 6 of them would eventually be married *glances at Dongwan... Hyesung too* LOL!)

Writing this reflection has brought me to a new, rather unsettling realization. I have just now fully realized how much power fans have and how much Shinhwa and Shincom depend on Shinchang, especially K-Shinchang. Indeed, one of the keys to Shinhwa's longevity is the undying support from Shinchang. A fandom consists of both the idols and the fans, and without one or the other, the fandom would cease to exist. Shinhwa members have already dedicated 20 years of their lives and have made a promise to themselves, to each other and to Shinchang to continue walking along the same road for as long as time allows them to; but they can only do so when Shinchang are walking with them, by their side until the end. This ship can only sail when the take and give from both sides are keeping it balanced. Sadly, the idols often have fewer choices in making personal sacrifices compared to the fans. As individuals, fans can, and often, leave the fandom anytime they feel like it. They can get married anytime they want to, and without having to inform their idols (d'uh! LOL!). Unfortunately for the idols, they would never have such choices without the risk of sinking the ship.

I guess all I'm wishing for is that Shinchangs, especially K-Shinchangs, would stay with Shinhwa and keep walking with them till the end, because an insignificant non-Korean fan like me definitely cannot balance the ship all on my own. T____T I once tweeted that I joined the orange fandom because of Shinhwa and stay in the orange fandom because of Shinchang. Now I've come to realize that Shinhwa members, especially Eric, may feel the same, and probably even stronger than I do. What if the only thing that keeps them going is us, their fans, their precious orange princesses/frying pans/bears? And no, I'm not talking about the money we spend on them, as if Oppas don't have or can't have other sources or means of income; I'm talking about appreciation, love, gratitude, and loyalty. Seriously, do we really have the heart to take that away from them? From Eric? They could have easily let themselves slowly drifted apart to disbandment during the 4-year hiatus, but they didn't. They came back for us. And I wouldn't even have been born as a Shinchang if they didn't return; but they did, and here I am.

Anyway, as after every storm, all of us can learn something. No matter how old a fandom is, there’s always something new to learn and some room to grow. After this, the Shinchangs who stay are the ones who are already mature or would definitely grow to be more mature. So I still have an unwavering faith in Shinhwa, and one can not do so without having the same unwavering faith in Shinchang. For 19 years, Shinhwa and Shinchang have been growing, learning, and weathering many a storm together, and this is just one of the many more (at least 5 more) to come. Shinhwa and Shinchang are family. We fight all the time, which gets us talking, and eventually be honest with each other and ourselves, as well as see and acknowledge the truth, no matter how ugly and painful it is. But in the end, we always resolve our differences, as we could see each other’s points. So after all the drama, we’d be able to move on again as one, for Shinchang exists only because of Shinhwa, and Shinhwa won’t last without Shinchang.

Having said that, I really think that we sometimes take fangirling (and fanboying) too seriously, which Dongwan had apparently observed and keeps reminding us about it. No matter how much we love our idols, we should never invest too much feelings, time, energy, and money in them (although the last bit is very difficult with Shinhwa, as we know that they need the money and their products are always so expensive yet very tempting! =_=').

[Meant to write and post this earlier, but life happened. So… yeah… Anyway, I’m writing this in light of the recent quarrel between Shinhwa Kim Dong Wan and (some) Shinhwa Changjos (SHCJs).]

Now this drawing by Eric, the leader of Shinhwa, can’t be more accurate in describing the relationship between Shinhwa and Shinhwa Changjos.

From time to time, I like to play my rookie Shinhwa Changjo card, step out of the fandom for a while and see it from the outside. It seems that SHCJs and Shinhwa like to fight each other. Shinhwa members fight fellow members (especially in their younger days, and probably not so much nowadays), Shinhwa members fight SHCJs, and SHCJs fight among themselves (and sometimes with other fandoms too). Does that mean Shinhwa and SHCJs are divided and weak? No, I don’t think so.

Despite the controversies, how Shinhwa members and SHCJs openly scold and complain about each other reminds me of normal families, who scold each other out of love and complain about each other because they are comfortable enough to do so. The way I see it, Shinhwa and SHCJs are that close and love each other that much that they can say or do almost anything without fear of losing each other. They fight, and then kiss and make up. Just like any other normal, real-life friends, couples, and families trying to communicate and sort out relationship issues.

This is one of the reasons I joined the fandom and stayed in it. It’s been 4 years and counting, and it still amazes me how you can fight (almost) at personal level with your idols! And to me, that’s like fan service at a whole new level! And nothing could get any more real than that!

And these fights, either Shinhwa vs Shinhwa, Shinhwa vs SHCJs, or SHCJs vs SHCJs, serve as a check and balance mechanism. It puts us in our places. Especially when it’s Shinhwa vs SHCJs. Just like what Dongwan did, Shinhwa members need and must stand by each other and their management’s side. They need to stay solid and strong first and foremost as Shinhwa the idol group, the legendary OT6, the sun that SHCJs revolve around, the center of the orange fandom. Shinhwa need to stay strong and solid together, even when they have to go against SHCJs, because they are the gravitational force that pulls and keeps everyone together.

Just like in a lion’s pack, SHCJs are the bread winner who brings food onto the table, but Shinhwa is the leader and protector of the pack. Both Shinhwa and SHCJs work together as a team for the family to survive and strive.

Now I believe Dongwan and SHCJs have apologized to each other and agreed to move on and work together to concentrate on the success of Shinhwa’s upcoming comeback. They will probably be more fights in the future, but I’m sure it would only bring Shinhwa and SHCJs closer than ever.

As for SHCJs vs SHCJs fights, well, all fandoms have their drama. But fights or problems in fandom world could also be a helpful distraction from our own fights and problems in the real world. A rule of thumb that could be useful is not to take things in the fandom world too seriously and too personally. Just like what our witty and wise Oppayam always say: “Shinhwa is not responsible for your life,” so obviously our real life is more important than our fandom life.