“Even Though We are Apart” Complete Report
Part 2

Written by satovic
Originally posted on JOB & BSJ on Dec.15
translated by flowerbossa
(abridged with satovic's permission)

If a good event can be described as something which betrays our expectations in a positive sense, in other words one that is full of surprises, this show in Yokohama Arena was definitely one fabulous event.

When I first heard that YJ was to appear in this event via live broadcast, being a skeptic, I had thought "ahh, he's probably just going to make a short appearance in the very end and say his 'kongan hashigo, henbokaseyo' to us... I 'm not going to expect much more than that..." But after presenting the first song, Kang Yo Hwan called out "hyeung~!"
What?! Was he going to appear so soon? Are you sure? Are you really sure?!!

When the camera moved back from the hard glass which showed the images of venue, we saw that it was a television built into the wall, and when the camera panned from there, BYJ who was watching it appeared in front of our eyes.

"OMG~~~~~~~Yong Joon~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!!!"

We all waved our hands toward the screen^^
If we were dogs, we would be wagging our tails - until they tore off^^

There are two kinds of live broadcasts; the first being the cheaper and easier method in which the sound and image are sent over, but because it is only one way, they are not able to see us. Only through a telephone, are they able to find out what is happening on our end, and that is how we communicate. The other way involves sending OUR sound and images to their side as well, and we talk to each other watching the respective monitors. When we take up the latter method, all the sounds of both ways get picked up, and there is also the problem of time lag when the relay stations of up and down are different and the handling of lines become quite complicated. But seeing that they still decided to adapt the way that is more costly and complicated, it must mean that they tried to create an atmosphere where we can become one, right? Yong Joon is actually looking at us! Doesn't that fact alone make one happy? It was a touch that really conveyed their intention, and we were off to a great start!

Yong Joon is sitting in a cream colored room with a Christmas tree behind the sofa - his long hair is that slightly wavy look, and he wears black framed glasses. In casual jeans and what seemed like a jacquard jacket of good taste, he had had a big black scarf wrapped around him, and he also wore the usual pinky ring and bracelet- elegance all around!



Responding to Yo Hwan-ssi's call, YJ started to call out to us saying "kajok yorobun...." and because it sounded so familiar like all his other messages, the fan wearing a big mask sitting on the right side of me mumbled, "tch, it's the same old message..." and those of us around her couldn't help laughing to her claim, but following that YJ started to say "Yo Hwan-a~! I always listen to your song on my site". This is great! When he calls out to the family, he tends to resort to the same message like a tape recorder, but this was different as it seemed more casual and we are able to listen in on a conversation between YJ and his friend. He continued with the words "Yo Hwan-a~,don 't be nervous now. I hope you family will give him your support too so he doesn't get tense." but when he tries to speak, there was time lag due to the satellite, plus the translator tried to do her job with his previous lines that ended up colliding with YJ's words. As a result, YJ stumbled a few times trying to speak.

If this was Kim Tei-ssi, she would have handled the situation accordingly and translated in the appropriate timing, so I was on the verge of shouting "Kim Tei-ssi! Please help!", but the expressions YJ showed when he was puzzled by the situation ("huh?", "what's that?") were quite cute. These type of unexpected occurences can only be seen in a live event like this. YJ is always at his best when he is natural!

Then, they introduced Ryu Seung Soo-ssi who was sitting next to him. Having his friend with him, YJ was very relaxed, but on the other hand Seung Soo-ssi seemed extremely nervous (^m^)

Even when he was handed the mike, he would not say a word - so remembering the episode we heard recently of how YJ would tell him to wake up early in the morning, I really got the strong urge to tease him and shout "hey, wake up early you hear~!" I was pretty confident that I could be heard among a crowd of 10,000 people, but it wasn't going to reach Seoul, so I decided not to ^^

"Ahh ... I ... I'm Ryu Seung Soo and I played the part of Kang Joon Sang's friend Yong Kuk in "Gyeoul Yeonga (Winter Sonata)". Nice to meet you..."
He was so tense that both YJ and the audience clapped with delight.

Then KYH sang song called "Hizashi (sunshine)" and then "You are My Everything" the BGM song on KOB. Running all over the stage, shaking hands and making high touch with the audience, he must have enjoyed himself in the atmosphere of "THE KYH SHOW!!" It would have been nice to have subtitles of the section spoken in Korean, but perhaps that's asking too much. We should try to understand Korean♪

Then Kim Tei-ssi entered the stage and asked him some details and he told us about how the song for KOB was created - once when YJ, KYH and RSS were having a meal together, YJ talked about how important his family was to him. Upon hearing this, KYH thought that he wanted to do something in return for all the support he has been receiving from BYJ. I had kind of suspected that some staff had done research on the Japanese family and commissioned the lyrics of the song using some keywords, but that was not the case. Along with the heartwarming story, I was impressed with his work.

He also mentioned that although he had a change of plans and arrived in Haneda Airport a day early, fans were waiting for him there and he was worried that they may have caught cold. Actually, there are people who go to the airport everyday to see if someone would come^^ But there were fans in the audience who already had the new CD that was released that very day and called out to him - surprised, KYH said "Wow, I saw that for the first time. Even I don't have one yet." I guess there actually were diehard fans that waited at the airport all night. It's good to see family produced by BYJ gaining popularity like this.

In the next project, BYJ is due to make his debut as a voice actor in the animation of "Winter Sonata". They said it was not decided what character he would be playing, and although Min Yeong was the only character which was made public until now, with Yujin newly introduced that day, we were able to see the trailer of the animation.

Yujin in the work looked just like the Yujin portrayed by Choi Ji Woo, and the story was set in France. She was on the way to a restaurant riding a bus in the countryside, but her expression is dark and something seems to be troubling her. But when she hears the sound of the seagulls on the sands of Mont Saint-Michel, it brings back the memories of the time they spent together on the shore chasing seagulls, and her expression lightens up instantly. In her bag, there was the cassette given to her from Chun Sahng on Christmas, where as CS held on to the 100 won coin which had been glued together. Watching the trailer makes us Winter Sonata fans very nostalgic, and the work seems like something worth forward to.

BUT!!
At the end of the clip, after Yujin squeezes out a scream "Chun Sahng-aaaaah" the screen goes white , it is followed by a narration "Have you ever loved someone so much that you are at loss for words?" and the trailer ends there.

SO?! Don't, don't tell me...
Could it be that Chun Sahng looses his eye sight and Yujin ends up suffering from aphasia due to stress?And that scene with her squeezing out her voice "Chun Sang-a" in the end - is it where she recovers her speech?

Does this mean they were not able to get CJW to participate in the production?
(now, if they censor this sentence, I'm probably mighty close to the truth^^)

(to be continued)

p.s. There was a post on JOB by a fan reporting on the press conference of the "Winter Sonata Animation Production" . According to her, there was a message from CJW, so she WILL participate in this work. I am so relieved^^I cannot imagine anyone else playing the part of Yujin...