This Week
Korea's first-birthday party has a divination ritual at its centre, a gold ring being priced out of existence, and a hotel booking so competitive parents call it an exam. Also: the ritual isn't Korean in origin, and one item on the table used to be bad luck.
Korea had 23,548 PC방 in 2001 and fewer than 7,000 by 2025 — while the industry's revenue rose 12.8% in a single year. A look at the strangest small business in Korea: one whose price hasn't moved in 25 years, that pays rent to game publishers by the hour, and that operates under a curfew most English coverage thinks was repealed.
English coverage treats yellow dust and fine dust as the same problem. Korea's own forecasters subtract one from the other before publishing. A guide to the two seasons, the alert thresholds, what KF94 actually certifies, and why 'it all comes from China' is a number swap.
On their fourth anniversary, NewJeans returned in a teaser — as a four-member group, at the very label they spent a year trying to leave, and without founding member Danielle. It's not a victory lap. It's the end of K-pop's biggest idol-versus-agency war, decided by a court. Here's the whole fight, and why the law made it end this way.
Two Korean occult dramas landed in Netflix's global Top 10 the same week — led by The East Palace. The folklore underneath: why a 귀 is a wronged spirit with a case to close, why the Joseon state literally scheduled a ghost-appeasing rite twice a year, and why that terrifying white-robed ghost is younger than you think.
On the hottest days of the year, Koreans queue for boiling chicken soup. But samgyetang now costs ₩18,154 in Seoul — while the same ingredients run ₩8,800 at a market. Jungbok falls on July 25. A guide to boknal, the logic of fighting heat with heat, and why the convenience-store version isn't the end of a tradition.
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What to binge, what to skip
14 stories
No. 02Korean cinema, from Cannes to the multiplex
2 stories
No. 03Comebacks, scandals, deep cuts
11 stories
No. 04Skin, hair, grooming, obsession
10 stories
No. 05From street cart to Michelin star
17 stories
No. 06Society, work, and modern Korean life
22 stories
No. 07Seoul, Busan, Jeju, and beyond
23 stories
No. 08Slang, shortcuts, survival Korean
10 stories
No. 09Who's dating who, who's rising fast
8 stories
No. 10Chaebol, chips, and the Korean economy
10 stories
No. 11Naver, Kakao, gaming, and AI
5 stories
No. 12Football, baseball, esports, and the roar
5 stories
No. 13Signed essays and arguments
2 stories
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