Sexy Men and Empowered Women: That's what my online store is all about!

Dongfang Qingcang and Orchid "Love Between Fairy and Devil"

My store, http://www.sageukparadise.com is all about sexy men and empowered women.  Yes, you read that correctly.  It's about time that door swung the other way, as the market is oversaturated with sexy women and empowered men since, well, forever, and crossing more cultures that I even know exist.  It's also one of many reasons why I DO NOT WATCH AMERICAN TELEVISION, PERIOD.  Instead, I watch K-Dramas and C-Dramas instead, and my husband has noticed out of alll my various interests during our 11 year relationship, I have been my happiest while engaging with K-Drama and C-Drama.  There is most definitely a reason for that.  In the K-Dramas and C-Dramas there is unapologetically a nice selection of very sexy men, and we've got a solid selection of strong and empowered women.

기황후

Of course, 기황후 is my favorite because it isn't just the 1st and 2nd lead males who are sexy.  Though Emperor Toghon's whiny and co-dependent behavior is a turn off for me, but unfortunately his behavior is a mirror of many men here in the Good Old US of A.  They want to look tough, but when it comes down to the real deal, it's their wife or girlfriend who has to do the hard stuff. Just like with 기승냥.    Anyway, aside from the first and second lead, there are many other sexy men such as 탈탈 (my favorite), 당기세 (my second favorite), 탑자해, and even General Bayan.  All the female leads are very strong and well written, instead of being a blank slate who wears overly sexy clothes and just happens to kick and punch.

기승냥 and 왕유

 

탑자해

Emperor Toghon and 기등냥

탈탈

In K-Drama and C-Drama do we have the whiny women? Of course we do!  But I'm a bit more forgiving, and perhaps hold a double standard, as the whining is more surface level, while there are additional aspects to the character that balance her out.  It doesn't define her entire character.  Oftentimes, the whining is used as a tool to put the male character back in his place, especially if he's acting like a boob.

왕소

When it comes to the sexy men of K-Drama and C-Drama, there are many of them, and I am enjoying them all!  Some women in the fandoms try to be one man women.  Not me! Why should I? I'm married, 41 years old, overweight, and a monolingual English speaker.  There is no way that I would have any sort of intimate involvement with ANY of these men, so I may as well enjoy having multiple favorites.  I will also admit that I do not know the deep details of many of their personal lives, and honestly I don't care to.  You get some of these folks who want to say that means you aren't a true fan.  Rubbish! It's none of my business, and I feel knowing the deep details of their personal lives is not only creepy, it destroys the fantasy that I enjoy.  Instead, I just like to enjoy how good looking they are, and appreciate their artistry as performers.  If that makes me a casual fan, fine.  I'm totally good with that.  Because honestly, with all the fans they have, they aren't going to know who I am anyway.

기승냥 and 당기세 artwork by Arutean

I have found in my fine tuning of my illustration team that it wasn't too much of a stretch to get people to illustrate empowered women well.  All I ask is they maintain their attractiveness, as most women in real life want to identify with someone beautiful.  And I also specifically ask not to put any woman in a chainmail bikinni or ridiculously sexual poses.  We have more than enough of those!

당기세 and 기승냥 artwork by Two_ii

Sometimes, I have had illustrators struggle with keeping a woman attractive while she is doing something (such as swinging a sword) that is traditionally a man's gender role.  I understand, and these are certainly minor things.  What I have found most challenging is finding illustrators who can illustrate these male characters and keep their distinctively attractive look.  I remember I had one illustrator who really struggled with 당기세 and 탑자해. Or, when it came to getting illustrations for 화랑, I had to contend with illustrators who wanted to make the characters homoerotic...I get it because some of the characters may look that way according to the male gaze, but there are little nuances that are challening for non K-Drama and C-Drama fans to pick up in their work.

So, I was thrilled to pieces when I decided to do fan art for "Love Between Fairy and Devil," and my current illustration team, Two_ii nailed it!  Especially in keeping Dongfang Qingcang's distinctive look, while being able to put him in anime form.  For people in the Dylan Wang fandom, that is extremely important.

With my business model, I'm not too concerned with your usual popular K-Pop Merch, which is targeted to a much younger crowd.  I'm more interested in the women closer to my age who also love this stuff, but are also wiser, a bit more defined in male preferences, and aren't hung up on what other people around them may think.  For instance, I have no problem telling my husband that I think American Rom Coms are laughable for the wrong reasons.  The female lead is a super model type, and the male lead looks like Seth Rogen, Adam Sandler, or David Schwimmer.  Ew! No!!!!!  Give me Dylan Wang (and I even said that to my husband).  That's a fantasy I can get onboard with.  Of course, my husband was a bit uncomfortable, but I've spent years tolerating his oggling of various celebrity women and telling me about it.  So actually, it's a very fair trade.  And if you think the same way? Guess what? You're my kind of woman!

You can purchase my merch here:http://www.sageukparadise.com

사극 Paradise-Sageuk Paradise