Television and film consumption of global phenomena has not only entertained generations, but has also built a shared culture and identity. In the eighties we grew up with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, ET either Star Wars; in the nineties, with Harry Potter and PokémonGeneration Z experienced the explosion of Frozen and teenagers fell in love with High School MusicalThese universes, far from being mere entertainment, shape the character of each generation and help us understand their values and cultural codes. That's why it's necessary to observe them critically, because they contribute to the formation of self-perception and the aspirations of future generations.

This week, the Paral·lel 62 venue hosted a K-pop concert that sold out 1,500 tickets in a minute. K-pop is highly produced Korean music, with spectacular choreography, captivating videos, and the singers' commanding stage presence, perfectly aligned with Korean dramas and films. This latest concert is a clear example of that. soft power. "Soft power" uses culture, in this case music, to project South Korea as a key strategic power in the future of international affairs and as a country entirely distinct from North Korea. Since 1963, the two Koreas have used sonic propaganda as part of their psychological warfare strategy, and K-pop has been the most lethal weapon lately, since June 2024, when North Korea launched balloons filled with garbage and South Korea blasted K-pop over loudspeakers. And I say it has been the most destructive music because it has led young people in North Korea to pirate these addictive and highly exportable songs.

It's an animated film, initially aimed at a younger audience, but it has managed to become a global phenomenon. The warriors of K-pop, released on June 20, has marked a before and after on Netflix: not only is it the most viewed animated film in the history of the platform, but it has also conquered the first position in the global ranking of the most watched films on the streaming service since its inception. According to data from the platform, it has accumulated 236 million views since its premiere and has already surpassed what was previously the most-watched film, Red alert. What are the elements that have seduced the audience? A soundtrack full of K-pop songs that hook your brain as soon as you hear them, and a plot that's hard-working and plays with the classic contrast between good and evil. Plus, the running time isn't even an hour and a half.

"It's like being little again with stickers, but now this is what jackpot "of toys for grown-ups," Pau admits, holding two cardboard boxes about 10 centimetres in his hands. He and his friend Marc are just two of the more than 2,600 people who flooded Barcelona's Portal del Ángel this Saturday to be among the first to get their hands on a Pop Mart figure. collectors and has now landed in the heart of Barcelona with Labubus – plush toys that hang from your backpack – as its main attraction. And, as with the packs of stickers, you buy a figure for about 15 euros without knowing which character you'll get. Labubu The Monsters Wacky Mars, which is made up of characters dressed as food items such as a pot of Chinese noodles or a tempura-battered shrimp, one of the products that has already sold out on the first day of the new store in the Catalan capital.

It's six o'clock in the evening on any given Tuesday. Although the sun is already setting, the gray clouds of a rather disenchanting day are still reflected in the windows of the 22@ skyscrapers. The office workers in the area are starting to leave their jobs. They punch out and file toward the subway. And among men in blazers, with ID tags hanging from their necks, headphones being pulled out, and a few students with backpacks... "Baby can't you see, I'm calling a guy like you, you should wear a warning, it's dangerous"A group of four girls and a boy dance a version of the song Toxic by Britney Spears.

BTS fans are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. After the South Korean Ministry of Culture decided not to give the singers of the K-pop group BTS a break from completing their military service, fans of this globally successful band have seen how singer after singer temporarily left the group. to meet their obligations to the state. Eighteen months after leaving the group, JIN has been the first to return from the army. And to celebrate, an event was organized in which JIN hugged a thousand fans.