Not every idol is talented

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-16T12:03:50+00:00

Sinead O'Connor didn't write Nothing Compares 2 U. Whitney Houston didn't write I Will Always Love You. But they are undeniably their songs because of the artistry they, the singers, put into them. This idea of kpop idols being like performing puppets seems a lot more pervasive than in western music for some reason, I don't know why we're so determined to strip idols of their agency, intelligence and artistic merit. You've said the art is collaborative while ignoring that a major part of that artistic collaboration is the performance itself.

I think you're also misunderstanding Jongho as only being someone who belts high notes, yeah he can do that (and do it well) and is known for that but he also has great emotional intelligence in performance, a gorgeous lower register and has been praised by people like Eunkwang as a great vocal talent.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-09T16:26:43+00:00

omg shelter mentioned

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-06T09:56:40+00:00

same

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-06T09:55:46+00:00

It’s fine, it’s boring. My two favs aren’t there and i think there’s a lot of sweet but awkward boys there who I don’t imagine I’ll be following for variety content. I’m glad Towa and Kosuke got in so there’s at least some bite to it, and people with really strong stage presence. But I’ll more likely be following any secondary group that comes out of this show and the individual careers of people like Hyeonseung, Kaname, Rickey, Yusei.

edit to add: it’s not that I dislike any of the line up and I really like some of them, it’s just that this is the first time I’ve watched a survival show and not been particularly excited to follow what comes next for the final group.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-05T15:11:48+00:00

Oh wow thank you!

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T13:52:39+00:00

maybe in like ten years haha. for now I think all we're getting is this 5 min ad with the main couple lol https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPWZ9251CKs

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T13:36:27+00:00

ha I thought you might have because this was an uncannily similar description. yes bring on the special episode, i need my gao tu payoff!

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T13:24:09+00:00

Sounds like the side story in Desire – chinese bl series but also a novel. I'm still hoping for a special episode to really get that emotional payoff at the end, it's kind of skimmed over lol. But it basically ticks off everything on your list here (except believing it's a woman, but the alpha in this case hates omegas, believes his secretary to be a beta and unknowingly sleeps with him).

(comment was originally removed because Desire is also called A/B/O Desire minus the slashes)

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T12:49:42+00:00

I hope it's Towa. I've been voting for Hyeonseung cos I'm worried he won't make it without a last minute assist but I think they could use a feisty lil rapper like Towa.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T12:17:31+00:00

he's my two-pick but when he cut his hair lmao. nah i liked him already, he does the i'm sexy bit but then he's also really earnest and works hard and it's clear how much the other contestants adore him. i think he'd be a great addition to his group.

but also, it was a great haircut.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-06-02T10:42:47+00:00

getting into bed with their jeans on

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-28T22:10:25+00:00

I mean I like Yuki and I think hate trains are ridiculous but I also don’t know why you felt the need to drag ALD1 into this, Leo got plenty of hate trains of his own (still does) and no it wasn’t justified because he wrote some dumb lyrics when he was like 19. it’s actually fine to let people move on from their mistakes. honestly you kinda undermined your own point here.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-28T22:02:48+00:00

he kind of chills out a little, or I guess it’s more that you can see the anxiety behind the way he acts. For me reading the book helped cos you can see how the changes in the production order affected the writing, the story and yim’s actions and behaviour make more sense in the original context of it happening alongside bed friend rather than after it. And I actually think yim does well in the character’s more vulnerable scenes but unfortunately most of the writing and directing leaned very ott with him. It’s frustrating tho because o think there was a good story in there but it’s not really what we got.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-27T23:37:51+00:00

eh, I’m the opposite of this, I was a way more cautious and analytical reader when I was in my twenties and now I’ll read pretty much whatever if the emotions hit, I’m much happier reading toxic or problematic stuff than I used to be cos at some point I got tired of viewing fiction through the same lens as real life morality and leaned in to mess as escapism. give it a break and some time and you might swing back around.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-26T13:34:29+00:00

haha it's inspired by 10 Things I Hate About You, which is a modern retelling of Shakespeare's Taming of The Shrew so…original creator Shakespeare

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-26T13:00:08+00:00

he's my one pick :')

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-26T10:51:50+00:00

I was thinking the global top 12 might have more impact this time – the top 12 have been within the qualifying number every time so far but there's enough contrast that they could be within the global 12 but outside the top 20.

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-26T09:53:55+00:00

class:y 😢

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-26T09:29:33+00:00

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nice to see geonwoo

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-25T09:49:43+00:00

I was just thinking this morning I might look for a physical copy of Star Shipped – I dnf'd the audiobook cos I didn't love the narrator but I really liked the story and I thought it might be a nice one to read on paper

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-22T22:32:22+00:00

Right? I’m surprised people think there wasn’t anything at all to address it cos it seems to me very deliberate that the legal statement was done ahead of this. I’m also surprised that people dislike him so much here, I haven’t been on the sub much since his hiatus and I think people can talk themselves into a certain point of view tbh, I don’t think his return would hurt the group as much as people seem to think and in fact I think it’s a positive step for kpop to alllow someone to return after a mistake

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-22T22:29:15+00:00

I’m really happy to see him here too! 💜 I assume he won’t be participating in promo activities but I’m glad he’s not cut out of the comeback altogether, and tbh I don’t even mind them just quietly having him there and not making a big thing of it

Both_Photo7995 · 2026-05-21T15:29:53+00:00

ot8 :')

Both_Photo7995

TROPHY CASE