(Trans)national digital fandom: Online engagement of Japanese Crash Landing on You fans during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic caused people worldwide to spend more time at home, looking for entertainment on the internet, including video on demand services. In Japan, the growing popularity of Netflix resulted in an increased consumption of Korean content, a trend that manifested itself particularly in the massive popularity of a South Korean drama Crash Landing on You, the most watched programme of 2020 on Netflix Japan. This article analyses various manifestations of Crash Landing on You’s popularity, focusing primarily on fan digital practices: online fan meetings, drama food recreation video sharing and virtual tourism. Based on the data gathered via online content analysis, digital ethnography and interviews, the author argues that these practices allow deeper immersion into the narrative world and intimacy building with the characters, offering entertainment, safety and comfort. Moreover, even though digital practices are not limited by national borders, thus often associated with transnational fandom, provided case studies suggest that intimacy building with the object of fannish affection has close ties to the national focus of presented practices.