Japanese comic strip claims the Hallyu Wave was fabricated
A Japanese comic series belittling and attacking Korean idol singers has been circulating on the web and recently caught the attention of Korean fans.
Titled “The Investigation of the Fabricated Hallyu Boom,” the comic was first uploaded on Japanese web boards and images can still be found on Yahoo! Japan and other portal sites.
The comic begins with a former Korean idol, who now works as a hostess, meeting with her client and a reporter in order to tell the ‘truth’ about the lives of Korean idol stars.
She claims that SNSD and KARA, who are both ‘trending stars’ of Japan, all perform sexual favors, and that the Korean government invests $150 million USD into a Japanese entertainment agency that ‘fabricates’ the Hallyu wave.
Using the case of SNSD’s airport entrance in Japan, she claims that the government lied about 800 fans waiting to greet them and that there were actually only 100 people consisting of employees from a company that fabricates the Hallyu wave.
The comic features other scenes such as KARA dancing their famous ‘butt dance’ naked, and even mentions actress Jang Ja Yeon, who committed suicide in 2009 due to pressures to provide sexual favors and her slave contract with her agency.
The comic claims, “Providing sexual favors in the Korean entertainment industry is something that is definite. This comic was based off of investigations,” further enraging fans.
Fans have found that the comic is a part of a literary coterie magazine created for and by ‘otakus’ of a particular fetish.
Regarding the controversy, officials of SM Entertainment and DSP Media revealed, “We will be prioritizing our understanding of the issue first, and will be paying close attention to the case.”
Source + Photos: MT News, Sports Chosun via Daum