Kerotan

Considering that apparently the Forbes Korea list showing them as the #2 money-making girl group of 2013 was actually true (Oniontaker seems to think it's legitimate), I'd say their re-debut and all of 2013 was a great success in terms of money, which I think is pretty important in most businesses.

Apparently it was ranked number #5 on the Gaon Monthly chart with 26,080 copies sold. To put it in perspective, the last girl group with comparable sales this year (as far as I know) was 4Minute's "Name is 4Minute" with 10,847 copies sold last month (and not counting Girls Generation - "2011 Girls' Generation Tour" with 21,607). Most other girl groups don't reach 10,000 sold the first month. So a decline, but definitely a hit, no matter how you look at it, or what you compare it to, unless you think only SNSD level sales qualify as a "hit".

@FreakyFlyBri: I was going to post something, then I realized you pretty much made my points already. Spot on post, especially the part about no one in the US caring about the scandal lmao edit: For anyone curious, the physical mini-album on Hanteo debuted at number 2 with about 3500 sold, then rose to number 1 the next day. Apparently, the Gaon numbers are always bigger (total physical album sales for May should be revealed early next month). So even if it sells half of Mirage and ends up with about 20k in physical sales, that's not a bomb. It's less than what they used to achieve, but I feel everyone and their dog figured this would happen, even if they hoped otherwise. So that, coupled with their recent TV appearances (which all finished without any significant backlash), upcoming TV gigs, and even Boram in a new CF, even if it's all tiny compared to what they used to have, it's pretty much a certainty that CCM won't view this comeback as a failure, regardless of the opinions of fans and antis.

Thanks so much for the translations! I'm glad us fans got to hear all this. It was obvious to many what happened (fight, venting on Twitter). But of course the tweets themselves are alone damaging enough, simply because it was poor behavior, as they admitted. And I imagine all the immature young people using them as scapegoats for the "bullying" they've felt in their own lives (not to mention the freaks who wish them harm) will shut their ears and believe what they want. Wow, but it sure is great to see them on so many tv shows again, more proof that even most of the adults in the Kpop industry knew the whole scandal had no real credibility.

Wow, I remember seeing reruns of that show a long time ago. This is a great idea, that show was so popular, many people from older generations will definitely be curious to see them again. Can't wait to see the full video, it'll be great for the fans who've been waiting all this time. And I'm sure the reactions of the netizens who wanted them to go on "hiatus" or disband will give me something to laugh about.

Yeah, it really is a reason to celebrate! Some Queen's (including myself) were concerned fans would be upset with 10 different versions, since most of their previous singles had 3 versions, but obviously it worked and it shows how devoted their Japanese fans are. (I wonder if anyone else will try this 10 version strategy, I almost hope not for the sake of all Queen's wallets! xD)

Wow, likely part of the reason it's selling so well is because it's an original song and not a remake. I hope they continue that, because these are huge sales no matter how you look at it! So I guess they knew what they were doing with the 10 different versions!

Wow, I call that a successful promotion! It looks like they got tons of fans and people who were just curious about them to attend, which is a great way to expand their fan base. I hope it has great sales just like their last single!

That strange purple thing in the top pic is staring at her in awe lol. XD Great set of pictures, so happy to see her on tv like this!

You're right, I meant her MC gig, I just tend to call everything a "show". I edited what I wrote for clarity, thanks for pointing it out. Sorry for any confusion!

MBC Show Champion will be on tonight (I'm not sure of the time yet), but I don't think I can post links here, so I sent you a PM. Also, MBC has an official Youtube channel where they upload shows including Show Champion, it's "MBCkpop".The link I sent might not work (they keep getting removed), but if you keep checking the shoutbox today, usually someone will post where to watch it streaming live. Jiyeon's MC appearance will be in March, I hope we can watch that, too!

I applaud MBC for having the guts to add Eunjung, it's about time! With Jiyeon's upcoming MC gig, it looks like we'll be seeing a lot more T-ara on the television this year than I expected (still hoping Eunjung gets that movie/CF deal lol).

Great news! 10 versions is excessive, but I imagine they have plenty of Japanese fans willing to buy them all, if Sexy Love was any indication. March feels so far away lol...

Well, the netizens already tried something similar to this with Areum, and nobody cared. It's girls gossiping about looks and clothing. I know this is more sensitive since Soyeon is the target now, but this is not really "controversial" and not even close to "bullying". Netizens won't be able to prove who she's talking about either (though I'm sure they'll desperately try to make something up). I doubt this will be a big issue, just like the pachinko thing that nobody even remembers now. (And the first thing I thought of when I saw the headline was Boram's "Stitch" doll from Lilo and Stitch lol)

Did KBS even say they offered? I thought they only said she was being "considered". xP This isn't that surprising, but it's funny, they all say they would like to hire T-ara, but don't actually have the guts to go through with it. xD Who knows how many shows these stations had planned for them before the controversy. I'll bet the producers are all waiting to see who will be the first to just go ahead and hire one of them. I'm glad they said good things about her (which never would have happened a few months ago), but still, it's obviously wrong to use her name for publicity if they weren't even considering her.

Guess the netizens failed with their ridiculous pachinko controversy. And I'm a bit surprised producers for such a big show are speaking openly about them in a positive way, it's nice to see someone not being a coward for a change. While the statement is probably meant to test public reaction, it's definitely showing the production company's support for T-ara, so it doesn't really matter if she gets hired in the end or not (it would be nice though ).

I understand. But please remember, the netizens blow every stupid thing out of proportion. The real problem is South Korea's obsession with internet culture, and the cowards in charge who drop sponsorships when bad comments start spreading. I was sad too when one of my favorite Korean actresses took her own life over netizen rumors. And I was disgusted by the lack of support the industry gave her when the rumors were spreading. I left all Kpop for over 3 years, only coming back because of T-ara and 'Roly Poly'.Just remember their success in Japan and overseas. The South Korean entertainment industry has always had these problems, and T-ara knows this. As they've said in interviews, I think most of their sadness is from disappointment in themselves with those tweets, not from netizen comments. Remember their new President is even a fan, and that is certainly a good sign that normal people don't think T-ara represents evil!

I don't care if people on Diadem don't like the pachinko deal. And turning down one, accepting another of negative influence...that's unrelated to what I'm saying. I agree, CCM makes too many dumb statements. But I'm seeing people believing the lie that the alcohol CF and the pachinko deal are seen as equally bad in South Korea. The blame should be placed on the netizens for blowing this out of proportion with a false argument.The fact is, South Korea DGAF when it comes to idols stars promoting pachinko in Japan, as seen in my examples of other Hallyu stars. And T-ara expressly said they wanted to avoid promoting youth drinking. A pachinko deal in Japan does not promote youth drinking. The statement didn't hurt anyone, as goofy as it was, and no one would have said the pachinko deal contradicted it, had the netizens not said it first. So how can we expect CCM to predict this? So they should keep completely silent out of fear of the netizens? Some may like that strategy, but I sure don't. Netizens are saying T-ara is contradicting the South Korean standard of an idol, not just contradicting the CCM statement. That is the controversy they're trying to create. They're implying T-ara wants to be friendly to all ages (which CCM never said, that's more like SNSD anyway) and that an alcohol CF in Korea and pachinko in Japan are equivalent, which they are not. Maybe to you they are, but not to South Korea. I always agreed the statement was unnecessary (like most CCM statements), but not out of line with the other statements of turning down "luxury treatment", which gained a ton of praise around here and elsewhere. So that brings me back to my point: people are letting netizen reactions define what is a "good" or "bad" move for CCM and T-ara, and that's a slippery slope, because netizens will find something bad in everything T-ara is doing. Instead of blaming CCM for not anticipating the netizen argument based on a lie, it's better to check whether the netizen arguments hold any water, and in this case they do not. That's my opinion, and obviously of the general South Korean public, not including netizen trolls. And I disagree that being invited to events doesn't show a healing public image. That is actually the best sign of a healing image, since public appearances leads to sponsorships, which is where the majority of their income lies. Invitations show the people with money and influence now want them to be associated with their events, because the public wants to see them, leading to exposure to a bigger audience. T-ara's image will likely never fully heal, but to say that it's not getting better is contradictory to the evidence. CCM's statements will only bring further hate to T-ara, from people who have made up their mind to hate them forever anyway. You really think any significant number of those people will turn around and start loving them if CCM stops talking? Not likely. Feel free to not reply to this. I've made my point, and you've made yours.

lol I know what you mean, but who's saying they do everything right? They screw up more than any company I can think of. But then again, I can't think of any company that's been put in the position they're in now. And through hindsight, many now blame CCM for not predicting this idiotic controversy.And it's only hypocritical if they are equivalent, but to most South Koreans who know the culture differences between Japan and Korea, they are not. Isn't this all about what T-ara's homeland thinks of them? Some of the biggest stars of the Hallyu Wave (Winter Sonata, Dae Jang Geum, KARA) all had pachinko deals in Japan, and netizens said nothing. Even Goo Hara actually had a soju ad, and there was no backlash. This further proves netizens are creating an illusion of what is acceptable behavior for an idol, simply to bash T-ara. So if the statement is not hypocritical, why should CCM be blamed for it? I for one hope CCM continues to release statements which anger netizens, all while T-ara is invited to more events and gathers more public supporters (which is happening right now). More and more people will see how deranged the netizens are, and maybe it will set an example to the industry and diminish netizen influence (not likely, but I can hope).

Yep, it's a double standard. I'm shocked so many people are actually convinced by the netizens that the pachinko deal in Japan is equivalent to the alcohol promotion.I keep seeing the statement meant they wanted to appeal to all ages. Since when? They said they didn't want to contribute to the youth drinking culture, since drinking is a big deal in South Korea. However, pachinko is not a big deal in South Korea, and is very mainstream in Japan, so how does the pachinko thing in Japan contradict their statement of not wanting to contribute to the South Korean youth drinking culture? Who cares about the statement? Netizens are telling us to care, and apparently some are listening to them. Even Korean news is saying it's not the same since it's a different culture. If normal Koreans are saying they're not the same thing, we are seriously going to contradict them?

No, we don't really know the extent, and pay no attention to the ominous titles of all the Korean news headlines, they are purposely blowing things out of proportion to bring in readers, they are loving all these "controversies". They haven't had any invitations to events cancelled yet, and that's the real sign of how great the issue is.

And I realize you're more upset with the bragging than the pachinko, so my post wasn't really directed towards your way of thinking lol. I just don't think it's fair to say CCM should've predicted this and thus never bragged, because few people would have predicted this. Only netizens would say pachinko in Japan is equivalent to an alcohol endorsement. Sorry if I didn't make it clear.

I agree, that was goofy of them to brag, just like the other similar bragging statements KKS made recently. And I agree with everything you said about how the bullying controversy was handled. But I don't think goofy statements are a big deal, the netizens are making them a big deal, not normal people.And also, I don't believe this pachinko thing is that harmful to their image, and I think pachinko and alcohol can't be compared so easily. This is only escalating because many are now fearful of the netizens. It was natural for them to pick an endorsement in Japan with something as mainstream as pachinko. Like you said, no one would have said anything normally, so that means we're criticizing CCM for this endorsement, just because netizens reacted to it badly? But if netizens said nothing, we'd be happy with the endorsement? I agree with being overworked etc., but lumping this in together with those issues seems to give the netizens more power. All I'm saying is that it feels like some people want CCM to be extra careful, just to avoid making netizens upset, and that's ridiculous to me. Netizens are just seeing how far they can push their power now, they'll pick on anything they can. And while I completely dislike many of the decisions of KKS, I can't say I want them to leave CCM either, because they have the best songwriters and concept designers in Kpop in my opinion.

I disagree with the opinion that this is CCM/KKS's fault. As much as I dislike T-ara's management at times, I don't place blame on them for every little thing the netizens complain about. If the netizens were silent, and T-ara made a ton of money from this, I doubt most people would be objecting to CCM choosing this endorsement. This pachinko news was actually spread on Twitter more than a month ago, and no one said anything negative. So netizens now influence our opinion of right and wrong? So CCM should plan every move around what may potentially be criticized by netizens? Sounds like that's giving them more power, not a great idea to me. I know very well the bad that can come from gambling and how it's viewed in Korea, yet I have no problem with this endorsement whatsoever. I don't think pachinko is the greatest evil on earth. I literally laughed when I saw netizens were actually trying to create an issue out of this. Who cares what the netizens say? It's a bunch of losers competing for the most 'liked' comment. A Queen's on Twitter is even reporting the majority of Korean news is siding against the netizens on this issue. T-ara is making public appearances, has a Presidential endorsement, so maybe this isn't worth getting excited about.

I think the previous one was the Freedom in Paris photobook, which only had 300 copies. From what I can tell, and what other people are saying, this one has many different places in Europe, so it should be different, but as you said, probably from photoshoots taken near the same time as in Paris. But I'm not sure if any of the Paris photos are in it. I can't wait to see it!