Reviewed on August 22, 2015
ZE:A J – Marry Me (Music Video)
Personal Message: After skimming my prior review of Wonder Girls’ “I Feel You,” I do feel rather shameful. While the length is more concise, I feel that the conducted analyses were poor in quality, and thus, the reason for the conciseness; rather than the review being shorter due to proper compact writing, it is, most likely, due to the lack of given analysis. Of course, however, instead of glooming over a horrendous review, moving on through reflection and correction will be done (and it was the second trial of a newly adjusted review outline). That said, in attempts to bring the blog back to its usual rate, and to slightly redeem the past review, a bonus one has been prepared: ZE:A J’s music video, “Marry Me.” Furthermore, to build upon the idea of “bonus,” rather than this being a Korean Pop song, it is a Chinese Pop song (or ballad, more accurately, and it is in Mandarin). To clarify, though, the group is a Korean group, and specifically, a sub-unit.
Partially continuing the latter topic, although ZE:A may be a Korean group, there are no issues with them deciding to tackle a Chinese song (minus potential pronunciation mistakes, but based on many, the men did well for this song). In fact, by them doing so, in a social lens, it is highly beneficial as it showcases acceptance of multiple cultures, languages, and so forth. Coincidentally, the miniature digression in the review of Wonder Girls’ “I Feel You” reflects here: music can be a catalyst to promote understanding and acceptance of differences. Due to already discussing this subject, for those interested, reading the mentioned review should be done.
For what has yet to be discussed, however, and in the review itself, will not be as it is a music video review, to address “Marry Me” in a musical context, although it is not an exceptionally outstanding ballad, it is still rather solid. If it were to be reviewed (for its audio), I predict a seven for “above average.” The vocals are to ZE:A’s usual, high standard, and for other categories, such as with the instrumental and sections, all are equally promising. Now, in terms of the music video, offering brief opinions, biasedly, I adore it as I absolutely love romantic plots and wish, one day, I will be able to experience love due to its overarching theme, and furthermore, its appealing visual content. However, for what is disliked, a weaker plot does exist. Admittedly, however, with ZE:A being in spotlight, with the men being my favorite male group, automatic support is granted. Nevertheless, the review will determine, unbiasedly, if the music video is worth praising.
Before truly beginning, for a short digression based on ZE:A being a personal, beloved group (for those interested in solely the review, feel free to skip to it), interesting remarks were made from a friend when I shared the music video, and additionally, from discussing “ideal types.” As always, I do not intend to antagonize my friend or anyone, but, for the purpose of critically challenging certain replies, a discussion must take place. Many readers may relate to the given scenario, and thus, it is worth spending time to dissect it. With such, to offer context, though I was certainly quite excited with sharing the video, a friend responded with: “Stop fanboying this much, it’s not right and gross.” Peculiarly, though, when it comes to female groups, I have not received this reply from her, hence why this is can be considered more than a request to quit acting excessively (and with past “fanboying,” I was certainly more excited, such was with AOA’s “Heart Attack,” of which she accepted).
First of all, to humorously continue the use of the term “fanboy,” nothing is wrong with, as a male, “fanboying” over male groups (or persons). There is no shame in admiring the men of ZE:A for their skills, sweet manners, intelligence, and even physical beauty. As shared in a past review, I greatly adore Kevin from ZE:A for his attitude and work ethics, and furthermore, for providing me confidence with using makeup as a male. Blatantly, there is nothing “gross” or “wrong” with that admiration (or using makeup, as discussed in Infinite’s “The Chaser”). Offering a disturbing find, for an opposite example, females “fangirling” over females tends to be accepted, or at least, more so than when a male does it, and most likely, that is not a mere coincidence. Arguably, gender norms are the reasons for why males tend to be shamed for admiring other males, and diving deeper with such leads to unfortunate discoveries.
Summarizing two main parts, male standards and, once again, undervaluing femininity, are the reasons for why it is “gross” for a male to highly admire males. Addressing the component of male standards, homophobia arrives: males are supposed to be heterosexuals; not being a heterosexual as a male can be equated to not even being a male. Therefore, with the possible chance of being associated with homosexuality, such as through affection for other males, many opt to hide any form of affection for males. The current result from such reflects in that, for males admiring other males, it is considered “gross.”
On that note, there are many issues with this current norm. Most importantly, for one aspect, homosexuality should not be considered as disgusting. It is highly inequitable for heterosexuality to be considered “right” when there is never a “correct” sexual orientation (heterosexuality has been socialized and pushed as “normal”). Furthermore, assumptions towards sexual orientation can never be made; it is impossible to gauge a person’s sexual orientation through behavior as, unlike what is often time showcased, sexual orientation does not relate to a person’s behavior (current stereotypes exist to degrade homosexuals as if they were savages and so forth). As I have already allocated much time towards the discussion of homophobia and its connection to masculinity, I will link the review that discusses it: Teen Top’s “Ah Ah.” Perfectly timed, the review uses an example of “fanboying,” and thus, for the purpose of time, I will halt the discussion here. (For a side note, it is pleasing to be able to link reviews that have already discussed certain social topics. This showcases how much I digress that many important, rarer discussions are taking place.)
That said, for the second piece of undervaluing femininity, though that has been ubiquitously discussed in my reviews, I have yet to do so in the context of male gender norms. In terms of how male-to-male admiration shaming reflects such, being affectionate is connoted as feminine; acting caring and loving is considered an act that females do. To clarify, though it is worth challenging why that trait has been socialized as a gender norm, it should also be acknowledged that being affectionate is not negative. In fact, it is a highly beneficial, essential trait that, arguably, the world is in shortage of. But, returning to the main topic, if being affectionate is far from negativity, it would then appear illogical for males to be shamed for showcasing such. Masculinity, or more accurately, toxic masculinity, and, as stated, undervaluing femininity, are why male affection is disapproved.
Males are socialized to be dominant, and with defining dominant, being open to opinions and displaying care, for examples, are not a part of the description (and if asking why males are taught that, it can be linked to continuing the idea of male superiority, and with it being continually perpetuated, it allows sexism to keep thriving). Therefore, for one aspect, being affectionate, especially towards another male, is failing to uphold the “manly” standard of being dominant and authoritative. Now, connecting the piece of undervaluing femininity, due to how affection is associated with females, males doing so are downgrading in social rank; a male acting feminine is disliked as, for androcentric societies, females are not rendered as equal to males, but rather, inferior. Disclosing an example, a woman who acts dominant and apathetic is often time praised as, with those behaviors, masculinity is in place, yet when a man displays emotions, such as crying to shows or greatly adoring male idols, he is insulted and shamed as, based on current norms, those feminine acts are repulsive, and more so when by a male and in no way am I coincidentally mentioning that I have fell into the latter via crying a river to “Jessica & Krystal” and highly adoring ZE:A.
For additional discussion, a much older review on Apink’s “Luv” dives into this gender value disparity. Overall, it is shameful that positive, feminine traits are disliked when, as explained, feminine traits are not poor. Also, to explain, masculine traits in themselves are not horrendous, but rather, current standards of those traits are. Instead of teaching males that being authoritative and dominant is to shut down various opinions and emotions, males should be taught that being authoritative is to advocate for those who are, indeed, ignored, and that it means to be open to opinions. Furthermore, males should not be limited to being taught “masculine” traits, but also, “feminine” ones, and anticipatedly, females should follow suit with being taught both “masculine” and “feminine” traits as, if standards were equitable, both labels are worthy of praise, unlike the current standard where one is not.
Delivering a final message, and the one I simply told my friend (and could have stated at the start to save two hours), there is nothing wrong with “fanboying” over ZE:A, or other males, since, real men know how to love people, regardless of who they are. Rather than continuing the toxic trends of masculinity, it is best to reconstruct it so that, in the future, both masculinity and femininity is admired. In this specific case, and for a personal message to male readers, remember what “being a man” is truly: being sweet, friendly, smart, open for opinions, helpful, expressive, and so forth. It is manly to cry, to love, and to compliment other males. That said, it is also manly to love sports, cars, and other, typical male-related activities, but likewise, it is still manly to be into makeup, fashion, and so forth. In the end, being a man is to be able to embrace femininity and masculinity, and to be a kind, decent human being. It should not, and does not, mean what the current, perplexing standards showcase.
As this digression has ran a longer length, I will save the embarrassing discussion of “ideal types” for a future review (in short, my friend and I shared qualities we would love in a partner, and with my list, she found it highly “absurd”). On topic, with the sub-unit group of ZE:A J, the five, lovely men, in addition to unveiling what real masculinity is, will also, hopefully, showcase a decent music video.
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Plot Score: 4/10
So that readers understand my personal interpretation of the plot, and thus, the reasons for possible criticism, I will offer my personal summary of the music video. Concerningly, however, the plot can already be summarized in one sentence: five men are followed, and each presents their own method on how they propose to their partner, or charmingly phrased, soon-to-be-wife.
Diving into specifics, the video opens with (for the purpose of simplicity, members’ names will be used for the characters) Dongjun and his partner walking under serene, vivid trees. The two hold hands, and later, decide to take pictures. Afterwards, a transition is made to another character: Heechul. He and his date enjoy a dinner. Hastily progressed, the music video then switches to Minwoo, the third character. Differentiating from the prior scenes, his date and him are not on land, but instead, on water: the two are in a rowboat in a pool. Fast forwarding, the song’s title is finally upheld: a toy boat arrives with a ring, and as depicted, Minwoo proposes to his love-interest. Continuing to the fourth character, Taeheon and his partner are witnessed playing games, such as pool and, for a lack of name, the “lucky alligator.” Lastly, for Kevin, a magic performance is given by him for his partner. After mystically changing his clothing and turning a rabbit plushie into an actual one, he unveils a final trick: placing a wedding veil over her head, of which can be considered his way of proposing.
With the remaining duration, and likewise, for other segments throughout the video, standard singing is showcased. Nonetheless, in terms of the music video’s plot, its end will be assumed at the wedding veil placement.
– Analysis: Although the plot is infatuating, that moreover is due to the general, sweet and romantic theme, not the plot directly; the plot, in essence, is plain, though on the surface, it appears as enticing due to its love concept. Praising a few notable aspects, however, for one, the use of five characters’ perspectives does allow variety. If the music video was centered on solely one member, a more stagnant, linear plot could have potentially been the outcome. Positively, with five characters in spotlight, rather than one affectionate relationship, five are observed. Furthermore, although it would be predicted that every character was to propose, solely Minwoo and Kevin did (or at least, for the depicted scenes). While inconsistency from such may seem troubling, in the case of “Marry Me,” with solely two characters proposing, redundancy is prevented. A few of the characters’ relationship were at the point of marriage, but for the others, different points existed, and that diversity aids in keeping “Marry Me” unique and interesting.
Switching to the negatives, and for why the score is a four, of which indicates a slightly below average plot, reiterating the earlier point, though the plot is lovely in the context of genuine love and marriage, that is solely what is displayed. There is no complexity to the music video’s plot. Utilizing the term of “eye-candy,” that is “Marry Me” ‘s music video; the video to ZE:A J’s song is one that focuses moreover on visual appeal than a mentally stimulating story. The plot is, sadly, lackluster, and even with the exclusive methods of proposing and the adorable scenes, there is a minimal story.
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Structural Score: 8/10
Optimistically, despite a lower score for its plot, for the structural score–the category that relates to visual content and how the music video is edited or “structured”–a higher-end rating exists: solid. “Marry Me” is fantastic in the realm of visual appeal, as stated earlier.
Addressing a usual, yet effective, component for music videos, “Marry Me” manipulates transitions between plot scenes and singing scenes. Elaborating, the loving, cuter scenes involving a character and partner would alternate to a single shot, or, at specific times, an entire group shot, involving the ZE:A J members. With a plethora of scenes lasting for shorter lengths of seconds, the constant alternating allows more visual content to be compacted in the music video’s timeframe. Additionally, with minimal time to truly consume every scene thoroughly, this constant switch maintains visual appeal as, overall, analyzing is relentless.
Focusing moreover on the visual content, in the lens of settings, the multiple backgrounds were attractive: the walk under the blossoming trees; the single and group shots involving an ostentatious mansion; the outdoor, shining pool; the inside of said mansion where games were played; and lastly, the outdoors, though specifically at night. Although, overarchingly, the settings were of a single, general one involving a mansion and its surrounding, with precise attention towards certain points of the overall background, variety is still in place. Also, it is preferable that “Marry Me” adopts its current background route: rather than backgrounds that would be highly abstract and random to one another, with all of the settings relating, organization is in place, and of course, general consistency, both of which greatly build upon the music video’s romantic theme versus, for an undesirable outcome, distracting viewers.
For an ultimate piece to the video’s structural layer, for how the members and actress appeared, needless to state, all are very chic. The copious, stylish clothings and equally stunning hair styles for the men and lady are gorgeous, and furthermore, with it all flawlessly meshing with the given backgrounds, all of them unequivocally contribute to the music video’s visual appeal.
An eight will hold as the structural score. Though “Marry Me” possesses a weaker plot, with its visual component, much compensation occurs.
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Overall Score: 6/10 (6/10 raw score)
Averaging out the two categories, ZE:A J’s music video of “Marry Me” can be considered a slightly above average video, and that I partially agree to; biasedly, I hold this video at a seven, but realistically, as with the review, I do accept that it holds at a six. For a new release, the men of ZE:A J continue to showcase their charms, both with vocals and their acting, and personally, I am glad the group is active once more. It has been more than a year since the group as a whole returned, and although this is a sub-unit release, it is better than none. ZE:A is highly underrated despite their consistently proven talents.
Before proceeding further, once again, I am writing past midnight. Therefore, should the writing significantly falter, I do apologize. On topic, thank you very much for reading. As there has been a significant delay with the blog, I am relieved to have finished this within two days of the prior review. Nevertheless, with this being a music video review, and thus, exceptionally shorter than standard song reviews, that is to be expected. One more bonus review is planned: Girls’ Generation’s “Lion Heart,” and specifically, akin to this review, the ladies’ music video will be of focus. Due to a request for both of Girls’ Generation’s latest releases, “Lion Heart” and “You Think,” as time will restrict both songs from being reviewed, I have decided to split the request: “Lion Heart” will be reviewed for its music video, and “You Think” for the song itself. To the requester, I greatly apologize for modifying the request, but with time restraints, I hope for understanding.
Afterwards, unless if more requests arrive, the current, personal list will be continued. Because of university coming up on August 31, I will be attempting to post as many reviews as possible, and with this review taking solely two days, I feel encouraged. That said, as this is the end, thank you once again for reading, and stay tuned for another music video review. And though I would normally insert my reviews’ iconic conclusions, as I unfortunately do not speak Mandarin and that no translations have been posted, I am forced to confess my emotions: I hope readers “marry me.” And by the phrase, I do mean that many will continue reading my reviews. Keep checking back for a review on the music video to Girls’ Generation’s “Lion Heart.”
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