Korean Kool: Mundane Halloween

[If you have experienced K-Pop Demon Hunters with your 7 year-old grand daughter, as I have, then you already know that “Korean Kool” is sweeping the world. Here’s both why and why not. SB SM]

from the Bored Panda:

https://www.boredpanda.com/mundane-halloween-costumes

If you thought that preparing for Halloween means investing a lot of your time and resources into an elaborate, tricky and unique costume, you’ll be surprised to see how people came up with smart ideas to avoid the hassle of spending all of their time creating crafty costumes. 

2 years ago was the first time when Bored Panda presented how the Japanese found a smart way to get involved in Halloween festivities with simple yet clever costumes. This funny idea spread throughout the world, and those who “borrowed” the idea also decided to share their interpretations of “ordinary” costumes depicting everyday situations. With this in mind and following the tradition of “Mundane Halloween,” Bored Panda is ready to present you with this year’s costumes. 

Which one do you find the most interesting or most surprising? Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments down below! And if you’re curious about the costumes from previous years, you can check them out here and here. 

#2 That One Person Who Lost The Right Timing To Throw Their Trash Away On A Plane

#4 The Guy At The Office Whose Turn It Is To Empty The Shredder

#8A Gaijin Who Is Upset Because He Accidentally Bought Doggy Snacks Instead Of Human Snacks

#9 Someone Who Got Eaten By The Zoom Background

… and, relative to it all:

Today’s selection — from The Birth of Korean Cool by Euny Hong. During the 1970s, rock music was banned in Korea, and police would stop women on the streets and take a ruler to measure if their skirts were long enough:

“Say what you will about the quality of K-Pop music, but Lee Moon-won, Korea’s most influential pop culture critic, made a shockingly frank pronouncement in describing K-pop: ‘Koreans are not good at creativity.’

“If he’s right, then President Park Geun-hye’s promise of turning Korea into a ‘creative economy’ is in trouble. 

“Sitting across from him, my eyes widened and I asked him to elaborate. ‘Koreans are better at packaging and marketing. Look at Samsung, for example. With K-pop, the songwriters are not Korean. They’re European. The people who do the editing studied in the United States; they’re multinational. The dance choreographers are from everywhere. It’s really a factory.’ 

“Many of the songwriters are European–Swedes especially. ‘Korean pop is based on Europop,’ Lee explained. Which totally explains why K-pop songs sound like Eurovision Song Contest entries. He elaborated, ‘The European sound influence is electronic and techno music. There’s a heavy electronic base.’

“K-pop boy bands TVXQl and Big Bang are examples of Europop-influenced acts; other K-pop bands fall into other mainstream genres like R & B (Rain or MBLAQ) or bubble gum pop (Girls’ Generation). 

“There’s a very good reason for the lack of an original, homegrown Korean sound: the Korean pop scene got a very late start because of censorship that stifled musical talent and creativity. For a critical period during the 1970s, rock music was banned in Korea.

“As a consequence of this ban, the Korean pop sound did not absorb any influence from the whole 1970s sound progression, including classic rock, punk, glam rock, and early heavy metal. No Led Zeppelin, no Sex Pistols, no David Bowie. 

“During his eighteen-year rule from 1962 to 1979 (ending with his assassination), President Park Chung-hee (father of current South Korean President Park Geun-hye) instituted on-again, off-again martial law. Park was the hero behind Korea’s rags-to-riches ascent (and–full disclosure–my grandfather’s employer). It’s now considered politically incorrect to refer to Park as a dictator, but I am failing to find another word to describe someone who amends voting laws to all but ensure his presidency for life. 

“Park’s iron-fisted policies were partly in response to North Korea, which was putting most of its resources into building its military; this made South Korea extremely nervous. In 1972, Park responded to the threat of invasion as any sensible ruler would: by banning miniskirts, long hair on men, and rock ‘n’ roll. That pretty much ruled out mods, rockers, and hippies–imminent threats to national security. 

“Police would stop women on the streets, take a ruler to their skirts, and force them to go home and change if the gap between the hemline and the knee exceeded twenty centimeters. They would grab long-haired men and cut off their hair on the spot. No doubt these tactics will go down in the annals of history as the most effective war prevention gesture of all time. I’m sure that the North Korean rulers were quivering in their boots when they got wind of it. 

“Wi Tack-whan, head of the Korean Culture and Tourism Institute, recalled, ‘You couldn’t have English words on your clothes or you’d get arrested. Even if you carried a guitar around, they would take it away. Songs were a way of protest.’”

author: Euny Hong
title: The Birth of Korean Cool
publisher: Picador
date: Copyright 2025
page(s): 107-109