Beanie level: Chaebol’s poor doppelganger

My Favorite Korean Songs Released in 2018

This was surprisingly more difficult than I thought it would be. A lot of great music came out this year! This list is a mix of the songs that I listened to the most and the ones that I loved the most.

(18) Honestly – Eric Nam
(17) NO AIR – THE BOYZ
(16) NANANA – IMFACT
(15) LOVE BOMB – fromis_9
(14) Love Line – TVXQ!
(13) Baby Don’t Stop – NCT U
(12) Heroine – SUNMI
(11) 5TAR (Incompletion) – A.C.E
(10) Airplane mode – NOIR
(9) My Youth – GOT7
(8) Way Back Home – SHAUN
(7) Shine – PENTAGON
(6) Hellevator – Stray Kids
(5) La Vie en Rose – IZ*ONE
(4) Euphoria – BTS
(3) Starry Night – MAMAMOO
(2) Monochrome – Bily Acoustie
(1) Forever Young – BLACKPINK

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    Just have to say, I’m really happy to see a GOT7 song on your list! My favorites of the solos were JB’s Sunrise, Jinyoung’s My Youth, and Youngjae’s Nobody Knows 💚

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      I remember liking those other two as well when I first listened to their last album. They have a great chill vibe for these songs.

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    Sunmi is a diva through and through. I loved all her releases this year. Honestly is a song which should have gotten more love and recognition

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Looks like Viki’s got the license for Devilish Joy!

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All my posts for the recent Children of Nobody recap has gotten me the prestigious title of ‘noble idiot’. It’s weird how excited I got when I saw I’d leveled up. 🎉

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New Kingdom trailer. Looks intense, though I hope it won’t be too gory. But what zombie show isn’t? 😞

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Got a quick question about Just Between Lovers. Will post in the comment section so as not to potentially spoil it for someone.

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    I’m over halfway through episode 3 and just wanted to clarify that Kang Doo recognized Moon Soo from the accident, right? Though she won’t remember him as she’s lost some of her memories about it.

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Some of you will be very happy to know that I have finally decided to start Just Between Lovers. I\’ve watched most of the clips of this drama Viki has on YouTube, so here\’s to hoping that my interest stays (even though I know some of what will happen)!

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Does anyone know how long it takes to upload Korean albums to Spotify? I need this song. Seriously, it’s pretty much perfection.

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    Spotify got the new Highlight album out in a couple days recently.

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      I guess I’ll try to refrain from checking every hours then. 😅Thanks!

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        It may have been closer to 24 hours. But definitely on YouTube first.

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Love the whole sound of this. Very retro. The song “days gone by” gives me Stranger Things vibes.

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Absolutely insane choreo, and they’re so incredibly in sync! I’m literally in awe right now.

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This is the title song for Where Stars Land. I was really hoping it would be a full-length song. 🙁

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Ah, I’m so excited! The vocals are so on point.

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@mary Just wanted to give you a heads up that the layout is messed up in the Beanies tab for me and in blog view for @transient and @ndlessjoie.

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I didn’t realize this drama had a sci-fi/fantasy side to it. Suffice to say, it is now my most anticipated drama for the rest of the year! 😍

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Someone please tell me what happened in The Smile Has Left Your Eyes finale! Spoilers in the comments, so beware.

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    Check out vee’s recap:
    https://www.dramamilk.com/the-smile-has-left-your-eyes-episode-16-recap/

    I’m not watching this show but I also wanted to know what happened 🙂

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      So were they siblings or not? Wasn’t clear to me from the recap, haha.

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        They were not. Jin-kang was the daughter of the two other cult members killed by Moo-young’s father.

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    Last Warning: Spoilers!!!!

    MY and JK are not siblings. JK is the daughter of the couple that MY’s dad killed (as far as I understood).

    The chaebol dad (who we haven’t seen before) send the secretary to kill MY. JK is in the way so they both die. MY tells JK he loves her for the first time and they die in each others arms.

    JG comes in after the fact and is totally bereft at seeing them both dead on the floor.

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      🤦 then why play the siblings game at all?

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        1. give MY an incentive to kill SR to protect JK from the horrid truth, so it gave them a reason to kill him in the ending
        2. have an element of the original and ALSO deceive the viewers.

        Honestly this whole narrative worked so well in the original drama maybe because they really went with it. The fact that they were siblings was so disturbing and disgusting Ryo wanted to protect Yuko from that truth and not let it destroy her life like it did his. He always “killed” people without actually killing them, but this time he crossed the line and killed Se Ran with his own hands for love (irony)

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What are some dramas that made you cry (or get very emotional)? I think someone asked this not long ago, but, of course, I forgot to bookmark it. Thanks in advance! 🙂

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    Answer Me 1988 — especially in the first half, I cried in every episode. They tackled family issues with realism and warmth.

    Misaeng — it’s hard not to feel emotional when watching Jang Gu Rae try his darn best and succeed.

    Answer me 1997 — 1. when Mom called the writer to change the story of her drama. Brilliant. 2. When Dad wouldn’t want to leave the bus knowing his daughter is moving to another city. 3. “Because it’s you. Just you. There’s no other reason.”

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      Answer me 1997 just gets me everytime.
      When Yoon Jae gets upset at his bro. When his bro decides to sacrifice again. When Si Won feels betrayed that Yoo Jung likes Sechkies and what Yoo Jung does to make up with her. When Sung Jae helps the old lady to change her lightbulb. When Hak Chan shows up to comfort Yoo Jung on her loss after all those years. When Dad told the story of his brother. When Mom cries to beg the writer to make happy ending. I honestly cried lots of happy tears with this drama.

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    Life On Mars. The bleakness of Jae Joo was very real and very raw up until the end.

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    “Marriage Contract”, “Reply 1988”

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    The only drama that has made me cry so hard that I needed tissues was Gaksital 😭😭😭😭😭😭
    Others that made me tear up a bit are King of Drama and Shut Up Flower Boy Band 😥

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    Believe it or not, Coffee Prince 😀
    When Hangkyul snapped at Eun-chan for ordering the wrong amount of coffee beans I could feel how’s Eun-chan’s feeling at the time; embarrassed, angry, also frustrated because she couldn’t tell to truth (that basically it’s not her fault).
    I never have a psychopath and a son of a murderer boyfriend, or met an amnesia crown prince living in my neighborhood. So I can’t connect with Jinkang or hongshim on spiritual level. But we’ve all to some extent had experience being treated unfairly at work, so eunchan’s experience really hit home.

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    Dear My Friends

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    The Village Achiara’s Secret: when Yoon Ji-Sook talked with her sister, but her mental state deteriorated so much because of her trauma that she ended up being in denial about it and her sister just stared at Yoon Ji-Sook pitifully. Mentally unstable people always move me to tears.

    Mirror of the Witch: I didn’t mind the sad ending, but when Heo Jun as an aged man recalled wistfully the first time he met Yeon-Hee in the forest made me weep buckets.

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    Chicago Typewriter, My Ahjussi, Just Between Lovers and Shut Up Flower Boy Band got to me several times.

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    Marriage contract: it was where it fell in love with UEE and also the drama that made me cry my eyes out.
    Mother: I cried almost every episode. It’s still the freshest in memory and a drama i don’t think I’ll rewatch.
    Dear my friends: The relationships between them were so beautiful. The one scene where Na Moon Hee’s character loses her mom on the beach and cries. There was a line that went ‘everyone loses their mom for the first time no matter how old you are.’ I’m just paraphrasing but it made me cry.
    49 days: it was such a long time ago but I think I cried. I’m not so sure though.

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    Mother: just wiped me out with copious tears about what it means to be a mother.
    Marriage Contract: was also powerful and I wept a lot at Uee’s pain and sadness and finally acceptance of her fate.
    Mr. Sunshine: well the last episode at least left me totally wrung out.

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    It’s very hard for me to cry or even get emotional watching a drama.
    my Ajushi gave me all kinds of feeling. I virtually lived in that neighborhood when the drama was airing.
    And there were some dialogues in matrimonial chaos that made my eyes a bit wet.

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    Also loved Go Back Couple. Loved the balance of the comedy with the drama

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So what\’s the overall verdict on Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter? Is it worth a watch or just so-so?

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    Too ridiculous, bad CGI. I don’t see any worth to spend my time for it. I suspect it’s going to be another Habaek.
    If you need to watch something as bad, I recommend Fluttering Warning/Love Alert/Fluttering Alert. I bet you gonna need to buy new pillow every week since it will be tattered from squealing. Everything is beyond ridiculous in Fluttering Warning, but at least the couple is adorable.

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      Looks like I’ll be skipping both, then. Thanks for the heads-up!

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      Habaek 🤣🤣🤣
      The first two episodes by a hair better than Habaek imo.
      I’m yet to watch FA. Wanted to but the dated teasers/plot kinda throw me off but YEH and CJM in romcom sounds perfect.

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Yay, I leveled up! But what drama does water maid refer to?

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    Congrats 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

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    Congratulations!

    For reference, check out the drama Dong Yi. Dong Yi was a water maid who ended up in the palace, the king fell in love with her and she became mother to a future king of Joseon. Of course there are other details I’ve missed here, but that’s the basic story.

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      I looked it up and it’s 60 episodes! Thanks for the info.

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        You’re welcome!

        Yes, it is a long one for sure, but it is pretty good!

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    It also refers to IU’s demotion to the water maid status in Moon lovers, it’s a slave status which is much lower than the prestigious court-maid status.
    But with luck, you can catch the eye of a handsome prince or even king, who will think it’s SO picturesque to see a fresh-faced girl with mussed hair and doing all the dirty work rather than a dolled up court-maid serving tea! 😉
    It happened to Dong-yi, Hae Su and Jang Ok-jung, so who knows, you might be able to win your majesty’s favor and cosplay as his personal eunuch! (Which is I’m doing now,btw)
    Congrats, nightmoon!

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      Did you like Moon Lovers? I’ve heard mixed things about it, but it still sounds wonderfully intriguing. But I also don’t want to waste my time with so many other great dramas to watch.

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        Oh it sure is quite a peculiar drama. It was SUCH a hot mess of TONS of wasted opportunity and everybody who watched it knew it, yet every week on DB recaps comment threads reached thousands in numbers within few hours. And NONE of the commenters were “I luv Oppa!” fangirls but the most witty and senior beanies we have here. They weren’t there to bash the drama either, but to discuss its lost potential and analyse every episode.
        I’ve NEVER seen something like that, and I call it a phenomenon at that time.
        So yes. There’s something charming about Moon lovers and I don’t think anyone can exactly put a finger on why is that despite the fact Lee Jun-ki is responsible for the most part of it. Think what an epic Asian classic it could’ve been if it was well made!
        I recommend. It’s very enjoyable, but at times, you’ll have to focus on the unseen potential and let YOUR imagination take the reins. (Which is fun, believe me. Reading the beanie theories and poems on the threads was even more fun.)
        THEN you’ll name the drama as a strange but memorable experience, otherwise you’ll think of it as a waste of time.

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          That sounds amazing! Just checked the comment section on a cuple of the recaps and the amount of convos going is insane. Hopefully there will be another drama like that soon.

          Hopefully I’ll be able to watch it at some point. It seems it was a DF exclusive…

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            I suggest reading the recaps and see whether it’s your cup of tea. The recaps were done by the most experienced and wittiest historical drama recapper we had here: HeadsNo.2 (First 3 recaps are done by the head recappers JB and GF because Heads was in an emergency), so recaps are SO detailed and vividly written and stuff so the experience would be only few levels below the actual watching experience.
            ☀ML is available on non-official sites, if you don’t mind it.😜
            ☀ There are plenty of people who disliked the drama, so if you too feel like that, don’t worry and just drop it without forcing yourself! You won’t be alone in your opinion😃.
            ☀ One of the weakest points of ML is its historical-drama-inappropriate pop songs, with the exception of two and half of songs. But also, one of its strongest points are its highly appropriate INSTRUMENTAL track, which is just lovely. It’s only second to the Dae Jang-geum and Arang and the magistrate tracks in my opinion. So when you’re watching the drama, just ignore the silly rapping and English lyrics, and let yourself be captivated by the instrumentals.😉

            Happy watching/reading!

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            @peony I’ll definitely check out the soundtrack for sure. I absolutely love some good instrumental music.

            I can’t stand it when music doesn’t match the time period, so I might just be giving the recaps a look-over.

            Thank you!

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    Congrats!!! 🎉🎉🎉

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So I\’ve held off on The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, but I\’ve heard so many good things. And I know the big spoiler from the Japanese ver. so I\’m a bit scared. Should I start it or not? 😕

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    Definitely start watching it! I can’t praise it enough. While J-version is quite dated now, K-version is very fresh and the quality of this drama is really high. I especially enjoy their dialogues which have so many memorable lines. There are some changes in this version so it’s not clear whether they’ll go with the original ending.

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I have this horrible habit of never starting dramas that I think I will absolutely love. So I want to change this, because that\’s just weird. So which of these should I start (or complete first)?

– Age of Youth
– Chicago Typewriter
– Familiar Wife (on episode 2)
– Just Between Lovers
– Life
– Live
– Misaeng
– Mother
– Pinocchio
– Prison Playbook (on episode 4)
– Reply 1997
– Your House Helper

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    Just Between Lovers or Reply 1997

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    Chicago Typewriter

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    Another vote for Chicago Typewriter. ^^

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    Chicago Typewriter and Misaeng

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    … All of them? Lol that’s not helpful.
    Repply 1997

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    Mother! Then Misaeng.

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    I believe since you have already started PP, complete it first. Moreover, all of these shows lie more or less in the same genre so watching 2 shows back to back will exhaust you. Watch age of youth, CT and Reply 1997 when you are exhausted of the rest. I would personally recommend you Misaeng but leave it for later because I personally didn’t like any other show for six months.

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    Reply 1997
    Prison playbook

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    Age of youth or Live. JBL will gut your soul but also make you happy during said gutting. Age of youth is slow but fun. AOY 2 is even much more fun. Live is just an experience. I loved it more after it ended and had it wash over me. You have to experience it.
    Misaeng is another experience but it’s a slow burn.
    Mother – if you think JBL will gut your soul, Mother fillet it. I don’t remember smiling much but the tears, oh the tears. It was amazing!
    Chicago Typewriter is fun, intriguing and engaging.
    Prison Playbook is one of my absolute favorites. It’s so fun and funny and insightful. Some people found the episodes too long, I loved the fact that it was long.
    Your house helper – another slow-burn show but it was enjoyable.
    Familiar wife – it’s Ji Sung in romcom. I didn’t need much convincing.
    Reply 1997 – I haven’t seen it but I love 1988 so yeah.
    Pinocchio, on the other hand, I never enjoyed. But this is just my opinion.

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      Forgot about Life. Don’t go into Life with the expectations you had for Forest of Secrets (if you’ve watched it). That’s the mistake I made and was slightly disappointed because I was expecting the same vibe or feels. Once I detached such expectations, I was able to love LIFE for it was. It’s not like most Kdramas but it was brilliant in its own right. Jo Seung Woo is an absolute treat.

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        damn… I just started watching LIFE… I found the 1st 2 eps stellar! I guess I’ll lower my expectations right away, in order to not be too disappointed… *sniff*

        PS: I’m a huge Forest of Secrets fan…

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      very accurate descriptions of my feelings for most shows on your list, @iampligrim !
      Misaeng was indeed a slow burn but oh, so worth it. I mildly enjoyed Your House Helper but just couldn’t bring myself to watch the last episode… and I have no regrets…

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    Reply 1997 is fun, others are more in melo and heavy category.

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    First, finish Prison Playbook (worth every minute of it!)
    then, watch Just Between Lovers (Awesome OTP)
    finally, enjoy the coming-of-age fluffiness of Age of Youth.

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    Reply 1997 and Chicago Typewriter are both in my top favs and JBL is amazing too, it’s so hard to choose lol
    With that list you really can’t go wrong no matter which you start first ☺

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It seems like everything lately leads back to NCT 127 lately. This was a random song that played from my recs on Spotify. Absolutely lovely. Reminds me of Christmas time. Translations below.

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    Oh oh
    A night of walking with you
    I have these heart fluttering dreams
    Walking, just us two, it’s so sweet
    (My 1 2 step)
    What happened to me?
    Secretly, I’m looking at you

    When the white starlight blooms
    I’ll hold your hand
    And endlessly fly
    The hours of the night
    Are drenched with the yellow moonlight
    I’ll remember it for a long time

    A night of walking with you
    We’re fill up our empty silences
    With small conversations
    You are so bright
    More than those stars
    You are growing so clear

    Every night is like a fairy tale
    Tonight is also a gift
    Oh, I will, oh I will
    Match my steps with yours

    When the white starlight blooms
    I’ll hold your hand
    And endlessly fly
    The hours of the night
    Are drenched with the yellow moonlight
    I’ll remember it for a long time

    Alright look at the stars
    They’re shining for you
    Everything is so beautiful
    Just like when you walked over to me
    You’re shining so bright

    When the white starlight blooms
    I’ll hold your hand
    And endlessly fly
    The hours of the night
    Are drenched with the yellow moonlight
    I’ll remember it for a long time

    Source: https://colorcodedlyrics.com/2017/10/doyoung-nct-x-sejeong-gugudan-star-blossom-byeolbichi-pimyeon

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    Such a feel good song.

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    I”m super in love with this song since I first heard it…the video is sweet, Sejeong and Doyoung’s voices sound gorgeous together, the music is like a waltz

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