Fin.K.L. : One of my favorite Korean pop bands, Fin.K.L. which is short for Fine Killing Liberty. The Fine being French for "end" or something. The name was chosen by internet fans while the group members were still being auditioned. The weird name is supposed to mean "an end to all those who suppress/kill liberty." Only in Korea.

And the design for the (illegal) T-shirt and tanktop I made for myself (I couldn't find any for sale on the web).

The pictures represent each member's personality / image for this particular girl band. I'd have too much to say about any given K-pop artist but I'll try to focus for this drawing's explanation.

On the left is the youngest one, Yuri, the "cute jail bait" of the group (no longer jail bait). She was still a schoolgirl when the band started. She dances in a schoolgirl outfit and sings Britney Spears' "Baby Hit Me One More Time" in their second live concert in Seoul, 2000. The earphones became her trademark for me after their "Pride" video. The younger girls probably identify with her the most.

Next is Hyo Lee (or HyoRi, same difference in Korean), "the model." She's the designated "leader" mostly because she's a year older than the others and she's "the prettiest one" per polls in Korea. Trademark smile and smiling eyes. Occasionally misses her dance steps but smiles so cutely when she does that nobody cares (as demonstrated in their second live concert when she stops to tie her shoe and the crowd cheers). She's the Farrah Fawcett of your typical 14-year old Korean boy's dreams (and over 14-year olds too).

Third from left is Jin, "the angel." She's supposedly religious. She's the Korean girl next door, the beautiful kind moral angelic one who goes to church twice a week and whose smile illuminates souls and is still fun to hang with ... um, or something like that. She's the most conservative in dress (always shows the least amount of skin) and hairstyle (usually just straight black). Seems the least concerned with fame and most down-to-earth in backstage clips and interviews (not that that means anything). Actually said in a "slumber party" video, "This is not fun." She's my favorite.

Ju Hyun is on the right. She's "the singer." Ju Hyun doesn't get the credit she deserves because she's not as "cute" as the others, and is also the heaviest one per Korean standards. But this girl can sing -- incredibly. She's the only one with true singing talent actually. She can belt out high notes live while running across stage. In the video "Now," she plays an assassin (from the movie "Shiri") who gets shot in the head. Poor Ju Hyun.

I better stop now.