This Is The Netizen Behind Those Viral KDrama-Related Memes And Fashion Lookbooks On Facebook

People have different ways of expressing their love for the celebrities they look up to. Supporting these famous stars' projects is a given. But some even join fan clubs or groups and purchase merch related to their idols. And then there are those who take their fangirling and fanboying to social media, freely expressing their thoughts about their faves. 

In the Philippines, the fascination for everything Korean, especially the K-Drama scene, is so palpable that an elective on the analysis of K-Dramas is even offered at the University of the Philippines - Diliman. The K-Drama fandom in this country is amazing and amusing—we see netizens recreating certain scenes from Korean series, doing covers of the OSTs, and creating viral-worthy memes. 

Now, when it comes to creating K-Drama-related memes, netizen and "visual storyteller" Nelson Adrian stands out. His original memes are interesting, well-researched, relevant, and hilarious (sometimes naughty). If you're a K-Drama fan yourself, it's highly likely that you've already chanced upon Nelson's Facebook account or perhaps even visit it regularly for your dose of good vibes.  

Nelson shared with Metro.Style that his first taste of K-Drama was way back in 2003. His gateway K-Drama was the classic Endless Love series that features dramas Autumn in My Heart and Winter Sonata. He then moved on to another series that also starred a young Song Hye-kyo alongside actor Rain: Full House. There was no turning back since; those few series were enough to make him stay hooked in K-Dramas even 16 years later.

Asked why he thinks K-Dramas are extremely addictive, he says, "For me, number one is the story. The story is not predictable. I’m really amazed by their writers. Aside from the story, it's the cinematography, the quality, the production value, and of course, the wardrobe."

Nelson has been a K-Drama fan for so long, but it's actually just early this year, in February, when he started putting up Hallyu content on his Facebook account; yes, it's just his personal account for now and it's not a page yet, but he already has more than 36,000 followers. The phenomenal Korean series Crash Landing on You (CLOY) was what inspired him to start creating those fan-made content. 

"My very first post was Yoon Se-ri's (Son Ye-jin) fashion lookbook. When I posted that, in the first few hours, it already gathered 7,000 likes and then overall it earned about 46,000 likes and then 72,000 shares, and that’s really a lot," Nelson reveals. "Aside from Filipino fans, there were Indonesian and Malaysian fans messaging me also. Na-shock ako." 

Overwhelmed by the positive feedback he received for posts that he merely created out of his love for K-Dramas, Nelson decided to spend his days under quarantine putting forth one content after another. His CLOY fashion lookbook was followed with more wardrobe inspiration from series like The World of the Married, Itaewon Class, The King: Eternal Monarch, Hotel de Luna, Encounter, and most recently, It's Okay to Not be Okay. 

Aside from the K-Drama fashion lookbooks, Nelson's other viral posts are about Korean actor heartthrobs (or "oppas"). His posts on imagining some of the famous Korean actors as university students in the Philippines, as TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority) instructors, as teachers, and as ice cream flavors are just too hilarious. 

"Kung anu-ano na lang ang pumapasok sa isip ko. Sometimes I would just sit down, and then there’s a eureka moment," Nelson says about his thought process. "I have a 'Battle of the Oppas' series. Since Pinoys are into oppas, I thought of coming up with different categories for that."

Nelson is in touch with what's trending, and he's quick to ride on the hot topics. For example, considering that online schooling is relevant today, he also thought of creating a fun fan post on "Online English Class with My Korean Students," wherein he did a collage of a video of himself with selfie videos of Park Seo-joon, Lee Min-ho, and Ji Chang-wook; it garnered 64,000 likes, 11,000 comments, and 47,000 shares—you have to see it to appreciate Nelson's sense of humor. 

Check out Nelson's funny oppa posts below:

Nelson hails from Bacolod City. He used to work for a BPO company, and now sidelines as an events host. He resigned from his corporate job because his mother got sick. "Nag-focus ako sa mother ko because she’s undergoing hemodialysis. My life right now revolves around our house and the hospital because I usually go with my mom to the hospital," Nelson shares.

He may be going through a tough time, taking care of his mother and making sure their family is safe against COVID-19, but thanks to K-Dramas, he found an outlet that doubles as a stress reliever. And little did Nelson know that he and his content, too, would have the same effect on other people. He says, "I started what I'm doing out of boredom and I'm just very happy that people would message me from different parts of the world. They would message na they’re very happy kasi natatawa sila sa captions ko, nalilimutan nila na we're in a pandemic. There was one time a user said, 'Salamat sa post mo kasi nawala 'yung kaba ko because I was going to the hospital for a check-up and then I saw your post and then I smiled, nawala 'yung takot ko.' It makes me feel good that I am able to make other people feel good as well because of my posts."

In the gallery below, Nelson shared his favorite Korean actors, actresses, and K-Dramas:

Photos from Nelson Adrian on Facebook and Engin Akyurt on Pexels