Afternoona Asks

We had so much fun speaking with fellow Patreon member Lindsay about learning Korean. We share our language learning experiences, our favorite resources and strategies for learning, as well as our Korean learning goals and dreams of all the different ways we'll be able to use Korean as we improve. See how well you follow along with our snippets of Korean conversation and relate to the struggles and joy of diving into a new language or brushing up on an old one.

Korean Language Learning Resources:

King Sejong Institute (online and in-person classes)

Talk to Me In Korean (self-teaching books and resources)

Naver Webtoon App (Korean version) 

Busuu (self teaching app)

LingoDeer (self teaching app)

Teuida (self teaching app)

iTalki (language exchange/tutor app)

AmazingTalker (language exchange/tutor app)

Essential Korean Podcast

Go Billy (explanations from POV of native English speaker)

How to Study Korean  (explanations from POV of native English speaker)

HanBooks.com (source for books written in Korean or translated into Korean)

"Comprehensible input" (search term for beginner resources on YouTube)

We are delighted to be joined by actor and fellow Patreon member Katherine Bourne Taylor. We have a great chat with Katherine as she gives her views on KDramas from an actors lens and what the differences she sees are between how KDramas are acted, produced and shot versus Western media. We also manifest a KDrama for Katherine to star in and discuss what might be some upcoming trends for co-produced Korean and American shows. Tune in, it's a super interesting chat!

Notes:
Wondering where can you see more of Katherine's work? Find her at:

katherinebournetaylor on Instagram - check out her bio or click this link to find her Asian drama spreadsheet!

Go see her live at "Obsessed," a monthly comedy show at Nico's Wine in LA, the third Tuesday of every month (started in May).

Guest appearance on The Ms. Pat Show episode that aired at the end of May.

For more information, go to katherine-bourne.com

Note on the Korean in this episode: Grace isn't great at thinking in honorifics off the cuff, so the version of the phrase she gave Katherine to say to a kdrama director was the polite but not honorific form 잘 부탁합니다 (jal butak- hamnida). The honorific form, which is more proper for addressing a director you look forward to working with, is 잘 부탁드립니다 (jal butak-deurimnida). Also, technically it's -habnida and -deuribnida, but the romanizations in parentheses reflect what it actually sounds like when you run those syllables together.

We invited Erin & Gavin from previous podcast episodes to come and chat 2024 as a KDrama year for us so far. We cover what we've enjoyed, what we've dropped and what we're watching now. We also throw forward to dramas we're looking forward to. Come join us to find out if you agree with us, vehemently disagree or find some dramas that might tickle your interest.

Notes:
If you'd like to hear more about Gavin's KDrama tastes, we talked this through with him and about Costuming on an earlier podcast episode.
We also did a year end reivew with Erin and a short intro to her fave KDramas on this earlier podcast episode.

We're back with another Afternoona Asks ND episode. We recorded this episode during Autism Awareness month in April so thought it would be a good chance to revisit some of our favourite KDramas to guide us on how to be a good ally for Neurodivergency. Join us as we give insight into why autistic people often find Autism Awareness month difficult and the ways you could support them - all year around!

Notes from the show:

Previous episodes covered in this show:
Extraordinary Attorney Woo Part 1 (with Sarah) and Part 2 (with J & Franzi)
Suspicious Partner
It's Ok to Not Be Ok
Semantic Error/Light On Me

Advert on World Down's Syndrome Day

To read more on the specific Autistic Black experience, J recommends: "Autistic and Black - Our experiences of growth, progress and empowerment" by Kala Allen Omeiza

Sensory social cards - Sensory overload cards

Further reading on Spoon theory

A Manifesto for Allies Adopting an Acceptance Approach to Autism - Dr Melanie Heyworth

Today we're talking Chinese! But what is "Chinese" language? Discover the basics of Chinese language, its regional variations, its writing system and pronounciation. Grace and Sarah talk about similarities between Korean and Cantonese and we all learn some basic Chinese phrases.

Show notes:
Word that is used to describe passing a test or being accepted into a program: 합격하다 hab-gyeok hada - the infinitive form, to pass or, more literally, to do pass. The word discussed was just the first part, 합격 hab-gyeok, pass.

We hope you enjoy our show, and we hope to bring you a Chinese culture pod with your C-Drama related questions next time, email the show with any queries you may have!

Finally we're back, with the long awaited part two of our deep dive into Autistic Lan Wangji. "It has been 16 Years....", Well, two months, but we know you've all been at the edge of your seats. We’re finishing our discussion of The Untamed, starring Wang Yibo (王一博) and Xiao Zhan (肖战). It’s one of the most watched series in Asian television history with 10 billion views domestically in China as of 2022 in China on one service alone, never mind the huge international success and acclaim it garnered. This all with a cleverly crafted and nuanced production that captured the spirit of the original novel, while being able to stay within the framework of China’s strict onscreen morality laws. 

Franziska (@wanderingfranzi) and J (@theflowerthatbloomsalone) are joined by enthusiastic fandom guests and fanfic writers Jie (@JieJie_AiNi), Kaey (@Firebrd86) and PaidSubscription (@PaidSubAO3) for a deep dive into autistic-coded Lan Wangji. In this part two, we discuss the Cloud Recesses as a haven but also a constraint on an autistic Wangji, as well as how Wei Wuxian was the first one to really perceive Wangji and hear “the melody of his heart.” Add in queer symbolism, how an autistic Wangji articulates the drama’s themes, and a chat about the fics our authors have written. Join us as four fandom nerds and one very enthusiastic cohost (who wants to binge watch it all again) talk about the concept of expansive love, what we see the characters doing post-canon, and how Lan Wangji might just have the best arc an autistic character could have. 

PS this pod is not spoiler-free! Plus be sure to listen to part one (released for Valentines Day) where we discussed which of Wangji’s traits resonated the most for us, what we loved about his character development as an autistic-coded character (is it one of the best arcs ever?), and how and why his relationship with ADHD-coded Wei Wuxian just works so well. Don’t miss it!

For Transcripts for both Parts 1 and 2 please see our website: https://www.afternoonaasks.com/transcript

Links:
Jie’s fics 

https://archiveofourown.org/users/jiejieaini

Paid’s fics 

https://archiveofourown.org/users/PaidSubscription

Kaey’s fics 

https://archiveofourown.org/users/PixieLeader

zhiji explained 

https://www.tumblr.com/hunxi-guilai/612161034673946624/all-right-guys-lets-have-a-conversation-about

Post with quote about the melody of his heart 

https://hunxi-guilai.tumblr.com/post/620065749733720064/god-please-tell-us-more-about-who-you-think-lan

#kdramapodcast #kdramapodcasts #Idrama #cdramas #cdrama #chinesedrama #xianxia #koreandramapodcasts #asiandramas #asiandramapodcast #autisticcoded #autisticpodcast

In the second installment of our Confucian series, Sarah and Grace dive deep into the 2023 historical drama My Dearest. We discuss what made the drama "so Confucian," different characters and their varying levels of adherence to Confucianism, including our anti-Confucian hero and heroine, and try to clear up the confusing plot points and timeline. 

We had a lot of fun unpacking our joint favourite drama of 2023 and hope you enjoy listening it too!

For a preview/another take on the drama, check out our sister pod's earlier discussion at Apple Podcasts or Spotify Podcasts

Haeji, Sarah's tour guide from her Gwangjang Market night tour in Seoul, joins us this episode to talk about life in Seoul in the era of Hallyu. We get her perspective on accessibility for people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ life, feminism, and drinking culture in Korea. We discuss what hot topics are for young women in Seoul right now and also talk about the centrality of Seoul to Korean life. In our Korean language section, we have fun learning some slang.

Find Haeji on Instagram @gmt_haeji or see what her company's tours are like @jfromkorea, @goodmatetravel, and book her tour on AirBnB abnb.me/c3KME2UiYpb 

Sarah and Grace are joined by Youjeong Ssaem, one of Grace's Korean teachers, for a chat about the South Korean educational system. We go into technical details before discussing broader issues currently impacting students and teachers, like school violence and pressure to academically excel. In the language section, we talk about Konglish.

Find Youjeong ssaem on iTalki at: https://www.italki.com/i/reft/ABDHece/FeBBCe/korean?hl=en&utm_source=copy_link&utm_medium=share_teacher

Correction: 

During Grace's comments about early college admissions in the US, she misremembered the relevant terms - "early decision" generally describes early admissions applications that are binding, while non-binding early admissions applications are usually called "early action." 

This Valentine’s Day, the feeling of sticking to the single log bridge with us until it’s dark is not too bad! Finally, we’re covering the Untamed, starring Wang Yibo (王一博) and Xiao Zhan (肖战). Yes, one of the most watched series in Asian television history with 10 billion views domestically as of 2022 in China on one service alone, never mind the huge international success and acclaim it garnered. This all with a cleverly crafted and nuanced production that captured the spirit of the original novel, while being able to stay within the framework of China’s strict onscreen morality laws. 

Franziska (@wanderingfranzi) and J (@theflowerthatbloomsalone) are joined by enthusiastic fandom guests and fanfic writers Jie (@JieJie_AiNi), Kaey (@Firebrd86) and PaidSubscription (@PaidSubAO3) for a deep dive into autistic-coded Lan Wangji. 

In this part one of two, we discuss which of Wangji’s traits resonated the most for us, what we loved about his character development as an autistic-coded character (is it one of the best arcs ever?), and how and why his relationship with ADHD-coded Wei Wuxian just works so well. 

Join us as four fandom nerds and one very enthusiastic cohost (who wants to binge watch it all again) theorise a possible reason why the Lan clan has those 3000 rules and if in a modern alternate universe, Lan Wangji would make his own phone calls.

Note: this pod contains spoilers

Plus be sure to listen to part two (to be released shortly) where we will discuss the Cloud Recessess as a haven but also a constraint on an autistic Wangji, as well as how Wei Wuxian was the first one to really perceive Wangji and hear “the melody of his heart.” Add in queer symbolism, how an autistic Wangji articulates the drama’s themes, and a chat about the fics our authors have written. Don’t miss it! 

Link: 
The link to the translated portion of the interview with the author MXTX mentioned in the pod: https://asksythe.tumblr.com/post/716755273102082048/mxtx-interview-with-risa-wataya-for-subaru/amp

#kdramapodcast #kdramapodcasts #Idrama #cdramas #cdrama #chinesedrama #xianxia #koreandramapodcasts #asiandramas #asiandramapodcast #autisticcoded #autisticpodcast #theuntamed #mdzs #chenqingling #lanwangji #weiwuxian #lanzhan #weiying