on the subject of Produce 48
The show's been done for some months now, even the group from the show's debuted a few days ago but I need an outlet to talk about it (for some reason).
It's the 3rd from the Produce series that gave the world the K-Pop groups I.O.I and Wanna One on a contractual period no longer than 3 years; it varied per season. 101 Trainees from different Korean agencies join and in a span of 3 months, voting is opened to the public and they decide who gets to stay or go each elimination until the final 11 are selected as members of the group. Unlike previous seasons, this is the first time they have partnered with a Japanese agency to send participants. The Japanese participants (39) are active idols went through a selection process, just like the Korean trainees (57). Instead of 11 members forming the group that will be active, it's 12 members this season with a contract of 2.5 years.
This was interesting since both countries have different ways of creating an idol. On one hand, you have the Korean idols who are already experts in their craft before they get to debut. When one signs on to be a trainee of an agency, they train for years with vocal coaches and dance teachers until they get selected to debut. Some can start as early as 13 years of age (maybe even younger) to do this to have more time to train and hopefully be selected to be part of a group that debuts. After debut; popularity and sales drive the wheel on whether or not the group stays on and continues to do more things or disband or go in to hiatus.
On the other, the Japanese idols; or atleast the AKB group, they scout and hold contests for kids with talent and potential to be a great performer and if chosen, debut already. They can debut as young as 12 years old and learn from their seniors in the group on what to do. They primarily focus on fan interactions and the more attention they get, the more likely they get to be more visible in the group. In that way, their progression is seen.
Voting was initially supposed to be opened to both Japan and Korea and the idea was to have 6 Koreans and 6 Japanese in a group. Voting was then changed to only Koreans and the idea scrapped; it became a free for all regardless of what country they come from. If I had to guess, either a lot of people didn't like the idea since the popularity of the Japanese would be too much for a fair judgment. I honestly feel that the voting aspect and reception was not well-thought out initially; causing some eyes raised on the intention.
The trainers except for Lee Hongki (F.T. Island) and May J Lee (dance instructor), do not speak any Japanese. Neither do some of the Korean trainees. Few of the Japanese contestants know a bit of Korean as some studied a bit beforehand or had studied due to their interest in Korean culture, K-Pop included. Trainees from the Korean agencies also sent Chinese and American representatives but can communicate in Korean.
Difference in cultures primarily. I didn't fully follow the previous Produce series because survival shows, to be interesting to the watcher, most of the time would emphasize the drama and those things don't really appeal to me. They did do the same thing here, with Mnet known to edit it in the narrative they want to portray and in this case, they made the Japanese contestants look worse in skill than they really were. The battle for center was never-ending but it didn't happen all the time. A lot of the interactions between the trainees were also fun, since they had to learn the main song in both Korean and Japanese and had to work in teams to perform.
And can I say, as a fan of Team 8, I was so happy to them participate in this. In general, I think the AKB group got the most out of this experience as the culture shock and training must have been stressful for every single one of them, but I have no doubt a lot of them plan on getting better with their craft now; noticable for those that danced in Sentimental Train and the last single before 3 of them go into activity hiatus, No Way Man.
Plus the show highlighted something that has been very sad about the entertainment industry there in Korea. They can have really good trainees but the public's attention isn't on them, thus making debuting so hard, with the market really saturated that they can get lost in a haze of so many songs, so many groups the same as them. Also in a way, it's why Sohye (Season 1) was likeable. People see her progress and her earnest intentions. She gets a lot of crap for getting in each ranking, but her prorgression was just more visible than the rest so it was easier for people see someone really improving and empathizing with her was easier because she was relatable in that way.
At the end of the day, it wasn't just talent that gets them through; which is what I think the other trainees needed to learn from the Japanese. Appeal and charisma are not exactly taught. Stage presence and projection cannot be taught with a mirror. And that's what I think Soyou and BYJ based their grade on Sakura during ranking evaluation was. Same as what they saw in Somi. And BYJ saying the Japanese getting better quickly was true. Almost half of the Jp trainees (upon getting the grades, I call them trainees now) have improved. Almost half of the Kr trainees had their ranks go down. It's not to say they were bad, but my feeling had always been that they were complacent. The ones who want it bad enough, will work the hardest. They didn't have any deficiency with language, it was an advantage for them. They knew what the training was more or less like, so you can't say they had to adjust greatly to it. And honestly, most of them didn't bother to learn the Jp verse of their evaluation.
For the Jp trainees, some of them may have been stuck on their ways; while the others may have been just too timid; which is a bit of their character and can't really be helped until they get it out of their system. A little part of me believes it's why Murase Sae didn't make the cut. Rumor had twerking as a dance step and she didn't really do it; aside from the near 0 screen time she gets but manages to top live performances and survived that way. Actually, a lot of not too popular members got far in Produce rankings than they did in their elections. In a sea of so many candidates, it was easy to get lost and never get noticed, especially for the girls that were more timid and withdrawn.
So many of them I rooted for.. but I fully disliked a couple of people: Choi So-Eun, Cho Sarang, Shin Su-Hyun, and Yoon Haesol. Telling the other trainees that they have nothing to lose just because they have something to go back to is underhanded and unprofessional. Every performance is done as if their last on the show and they don't seem to get that. If they are not talented enough, not interesting enough, not impactful enough, that is no one else's fault. Everyone at some point was did dirty by the Mnet editing. But in honesty, none of them improved during their ranking evaluation.
But what about those that should have gotten more screen time but didn't? A lot of them really didn't, both Jp and Kr trainees. It would have been great to have seen the likes of Naiki Kokoro, Asai Nanami, Lee Ha Eun, Kim Hyunah, Hwang Soyeon, Park Jieun, Kojima Mako, Kim Do Ah and Lee Yujeong last a bit longer. I liked all the performances they were in, especially Handclap! and Mamma Mia (Team 1). It was painful to see Sae get eliminated considering she always got good scores during live performances. No screen time though meant for Mnet, she wasn't good content outside of performances. A lot of the more timid but talented girls got cut early. It is a survival show afterall.
Especially for Kim Hyunah. All her performances were really fun and enjoyable.
I keep wondering why everyone nominates Seoyoung as leader. Head of class C but I don't have a good memory of her leading them. 9 went up while the rest including her went down or stayed in C. Team Ooh Ahh had Lee Ha Eun leading them in the right direction. Cheetah saw through it immediately. Team Ddu-ddu Ddu-ddu went the wrong direction and she was the only one who made a mistake. Cho Gahyeon (from Starship) was right to question the direction and if not for Kim Do Ah's stage presence, Sakura's charisma, Cho Gahyeon, Juri, and Bibian correctly expressing the lyrics, the performance would have fallen apart...styling choice was questionable. NakoMiku in their school uniform fighting off bullies had more impact than they did. Heck, Sakura in Majisuka Gakuen was more bad ass wearing a uniform too.
Rankings aren't based solely on talent. It helps to have a fanbase already there for you but it becomes a double-edged sword as the episodes keep going. That's why Sakura and Nako's rankings tugged around the top 12 area, that's why Lee Kaeun and Kwon Eunbi's popularity also went up and down, same goes for Mirurun and Minju. Being in the right group and song made or broke them too. It's why Hii-chan shot up from rank 47 to a stable place on the lower half of the debut line, why Han Cho Won fought from 88 to 25 to 13 and why Shitao Miu's moved up all of a sudden. And also, Nako's solid performance helped the team a lot.
Same reason also applied for the fall of Murakawa Bibian (concept and style didn't suit her as well as the others), Yamada Noe (vocal prowess of her teammates hid her in the background that not even her personality can save) and Bae Eunyoung (Touch could have been something more if someone with choreo experience joined the group; it wasn't bad but probably stands at the last of my list on the dance position evaluation)
And the hate for Boombayah Team 1 and the Short Hair Team 2 (Sian's team). For Short Hair, it was a bit harder to dive in.. Between the members, Imada Mina and Matsuoka Natsumi were the older ones and probably thought it best to give it to a sempai; Mina being more appealing as a center as she's more likeable. Or something. Her profile says she's like the motherly figure, might be something along those lines..plus her being older, possibly out of respect the other Jp trainees voted for her over Sian.. Point is, it was a little bit of cultural difference and lack of understanding at what the point of center was from a K-Pop standpoint for the Jp trainees.
Now, for Boombayah Team 2, it was editing and drama. Yes, it must have been easy to pick on the weakest team, but with the public watching would see it more as just being bullies than anything. Take note that 3 of the members from Team 2 were the youngest of the Jp trainees too. It wouldn't have been irrational to think they'd be stressed out to the point of crying. They're completely out of their element. But hate is undeserved for Team 1. Karma thought otherwise as the only memorable member in that was Go Yujin. BUT, it was live voting, so no backstory to accompany the struggle and Team 2 still won. Cuteness always wins.
As for the Never Never Never battle..had Minju been more confident with being center and owning it, the battle with Yujin's team would have been epic. but alas, she wasn't confident yet. Also, Yujin was extremely lucky having Hii-chan in the group.
Mamma Mia battle was too easy of a win but seriously, I wished all members of Team 1 survived, they were too good. I don't know why the RBW trainee didn't rank higher after the performance. Team 2 was just a mess. I really disliked the Kr trainees with Miho there. I've already said enough about it.
So. The final 12. Lee Chaeyeon. Kim Minju. Kim Chaewon. Honda Hitomi. Kang Hyewon. Kwon Eunbi. Yabuki Nako. An Yujin. Choi Yena. Jo Yuri. Miyawaki Sakura. Jang Wonyoung.
Do I still feel the same way I did when they first announced the results? Of course not. Lack of imagination and not seeing the potential because of emotions felt during the moment. My opinions back then..
1. Wonyoung seemed too young to debut, let alone command the center position with very charismatic girls around her.
2. Yujin did not know how to express herself.
3. Chaeyeon's rank should have been higher.
4. I was in disbelief of Yuri's high rank.
5. I was in disbelief of Hyewon still getting that many votes and got in.
6. The lineup definitely needed 1 more Jp trainee.
7. Sakura isn't the only one who can be center... I was rooting for Chaeyeon after her climb to rank 3 on the last evaluation.
8. Chaewon pulled off some fairy magic
Those no longer matter though. They were irrational thoughts, truly.
It's the 3rd from the Produce series that gave the world the K-Pop groups I.O.I and Wanna One on a contractual period no longer than 3 years; it varied per season. 101 Trainees from different Korean agencies join and in a span of 3 months, voting is opened to the public and they decide who gets to stay or go each elimination until the final 11 are selected as members of the group. Unlike previous seasons, this is the first time they have partnered with a Japanese agency to send participants. The Japanese participants (39) are active idols went through a selection process, just like the Korean trainees (57). Instead of 11 members forming the group that will be active, it's 12 members this season with a contract of 2.5 years.
This was interesting since both countries have different ways of creating an idol. On one hand, you have the Korean idols who are already experts in their craft before they get to debut. When one signs on to be a trainee of an agency, they train for years with vocal coaches and dance teachers until they get selected to debut. Some can start as early as 13 years of age (maybe even younger) to do this to have more time to train and hopefully be selected to be part of a group that debuts. After debut; popularity and sales drive the wheel on whether or not the group stays on and continues to do more things or disband or go in to hiatus.
On the other, the Japanese idols; or atleast the AKB group, they scout and hold contests for kids with talent and potential to be a great performer and if chosen, debut already. They can debut as young as 12 years old and learn from their seniors in the group on what to do. They primarily focus on fan interactions and the more attention they get, the more likely they get to be more visible in the group. In that way, their progression is seen.
Voting was initially supposed to be opened to both Japan and Korea and the idea was to have 6 Koreans and 6 Japanese in a group. Voting was then changed to only Koreans and the idea scrapped; it became a free for all regardless of what country they come from. If I had to guess, either a lot of people didn't like the idea since the popularity of the Japanese would be too much for a fair judgment. I honestly feel that the voting aspect and reception was not well-thought out initially; causing some eyes raised on the intention.
The trainers except for Lee Hongki (F.T. Island) and May J Lee (dance instructor), do not speak any Japanese. Neither do some of the Korean trainees. Few of the Japanese contestants know a bit of Korean as some studied a bit beforehand or had studied due to their interest in Korean culture, K-Pop included. Trainees from the Korean agencies also sent Chinese and American representatives but can communicate in Korean.
Difference in cultures primarily. I didn't fully follow the previous Produce series because survival shows, to be interesting to the watcher, most of the time would emphasize the drama and those things don't really appeal to me. They did do the same thing here, with Mnet known to edit it in the narrative they want to portray and in this case, they made the Japanese contestants look worse in skill than they really were. The battle for center was never-ending but it didn't happen all the time. A lot of the interactions between the trainees were also fun, since they had to learn the main song in both Korean and Japanese and had to work in teams to perform.
And can I say, as a fan of Team 8, I was so happy to them participate in this. In general, I think the AKB group got the most out of this experience as the culture shock and training must have been stressful for every single one of them, but I have no doubt a lot of them plan on getting better with their craft now; noticable for those that danced in Sentimental Train and the last single before 3 of them go into activity hiatus, No Way Man.
Plus the show highlighted something that has been very sad about the entertainment industry there in Korea. They can have really good trainees but the public's attention isn't on them, thus making debuting so hard, with the market really saturated that they can get lost in a haze of so many songs, so many groups the same as them. Also in a way, it's why Sohye (Season 1) was likeable. People see her progress and her earnest intentions. She gets a lot of crap for getting in each ranking, but her prorgression was just more visible than the rest so it was easier for people see someone really improving and empathizing with her was easier because she was relatable in that way.
At the end of the day, it wasn't just talent that gets them through; which is what I think the other trainees needed to learn from the Japanese. Appeal and charisma are not exactly taught. Stage presence and projection cannot be taught with a mirror. And that's what I think Soyou and BYJ based their grade on Sakura during ranking evaluation was. Same as what they saw in Somi. And BYJ saying the Japanese getting better quickly was true. Almost half of the Jp trainees (upon getting the grades, I call them trainees now) have improved. Almost half of the Kr trainees had their ranks go down. It's not to say they were bad, but my feeling had always been that they were complacent. The ones who want it bad enough, will work the hardest. They didn't have any deficiency with language, it was an advantage for them. They knew what the training was more or less like, so you can't say they had to adjust greatly to it. And honestly, most of them didn't bother to learn the Jp verse of their evaluation.
For the Jp trainees, some of them may have been stuck on their ways; while the others may have been just too timid; which is a bit of their character and can't really be helped until they get it out of their system. A little part of me believes it's why Murase Sae didn't make the cut. Rumor had twerking as a dance step and she didn't really do it; aside from the near 0 screen time she gets but manages to top live performances and survived that way. Actually, a lot of not too popular members got far in Produce rankings than they did in their elections. In a sea of so many candidates, it was easy to get lost and never get noticed, especially for the girls that were more timid and withdrawn.
So many of them I rooted for.. but I fully disliked a couple of people: Choi So-Eun, Cho Sarang, Shin Su-Hyun, and Yoon Haesol. Telling the other trainees that they have nothing to lose just because they have something to go back to is underhanded and unprofessional. Every performance is done as if their last on the show and they don't seem to get that. If they are not talented enough, not interesting enough, not impactful enough, that is no one else's fault. Everyone at some point was did dirty by the Mnet editing. But in honesty, none of them improved during their ranking evaluation.
But what about those that should have gotten more screen time but didn't? A lot of them really didn't, both Jp and Kr trainees. It would have been great to have seen the likes of Naiki Kokoro, Asai Nanami, Lee Ha Eun, Kim Hyunah, Hwang Soyeon, Park Jieun, Kojima Mako, Kim Do Ah and Lee Yujeong last a bit longer. I liked all the performances they were in, especially Handclap! and Mamma Mia (Team 1). It was painful to see Sae get eliminated considering she always got good scores during live performances. No screen time though meant for Mnet, she wasn't good content outside of performances. A lot of the more timid but talented girls got cut early. It is a survival show afterall.
Especially for Kim Hyunah. All her performances were really fun and enjoyable.
I keep wondering why everyone nominates Seoyoung as leader. Head of class C but I don't have a good memory of her leading them. 9 went up while the rest including her went down or stayed in C. Team Ooh Ahh had Lee Ha Eun leading them in the right direction. Cheetah saw through it immediately. Team Ddu-ddu Ddu-ddu went the wrong direction and she was the only one who made a mistake. Cho Gahyeon (from Starship) was right to question the direction and if not for Kim Do Ah's stage presence, Sakura's charisma, Cho Gahyeon, Juri, and Bibian correctly expressing the lyrics, the performance would have fallen apart...styling choice was questionable. NakoMiku in their school uniform fighting off bullies had more impact than they did. Heck, Sakura in Majisuka Gakuen was more bad ass wearing a uniform too.
Rankings aren't based solely on talent. It helps to have a fanbase already there for you but it becomes a double-edged sword as the episodes keep going. That's why Sakura and Nako's rankings tugged around the top 12 area, that's why Lee Kaeun and Kwon Eunbi's popularity also went up and down, same goes for Mirurun and Minju. Being in the right group and song made or broke them too. It's why Hii-chan shot up from rank 47 to a stable place on the lower half of the debut line, why Han Cho Won fought from 88 to 25 to 13 and why Shitao Miu's moved up all of a sudden. And also, Nako's solid performance helped the team a lot.
Same reason also applied for the fall of Murakawa Bibian (concept and style didn't suit her as well as the others), Yamada Noe (vocal prowess of her teammates hid her in the background that not even her personality can save) and Bae Eunyoung (Touch could have been something more if someone with choreo experience joined the group; it wasn't bad but probably stands at the last of my list on the dance position evaluation)
And the hate for Boombayah Team 1 and the Short Hair Team 2 (Sian's team). For Short Hair, it was a bit harder to dive in.. Between the members, Imada Mina and Matsuoka Natsumi were the older ones and probably thought it best to give it to a sempai; Mina being more appealing as a center as she's more likeable. Or something. Her profile says she's like the motherly figure, might be something along those lines..plus her being older, possibly out of respect the other Jp trainees voted for her over Sian.. Point is, it was a little bit of cultural difference and lack of understanding at what the point of center was from a K-Pop standpoint for the Jp trainees.
Now, for Boombayah Team 2, it was editing and drama. Yes, it must have been easy to pick on the weakest team, but with the public watching would see it more as just being bullies than anything. Take note that 3 of the members from Team 2 were the youngest of the Jp trainees too. It wouldn't have been irrational to think they'd be stressed out to the point of crying. They're completely out of their element. But hate is undeserved for Team 1. Karma thought otherwise as the only memorable member in that was Go Yujin. BUT, it was live voting, so no backstory to accompany the struggle and Team 2 still won. Cuteness always wins.
As for the Never Never Never battle..had Minju been more confident with being center and owning it, the battle with Yujin's team would have been epic. but alas, she wasn't confident yet. Also, Yujin was extremely lucky having Hii-chan in the group.
Mamma Mia battle was too easy of a win but seriously, I wished all members of Team 1 survived, they were too good. I don't know why the RBW trainee didn't rank higher after the performance. Team 2 was just a mess. I really disliked the Kr trainees with Miho there. I've already said enough about it.
So. The final 12. Lee Chaeyeon. Kim Minju. Kim Chaewon. Honda Hitomi. Kang Hyewon. Kwon Eunbi. Yabuki Nako. An Yujin. Choi Yena. Jo Yuri. Miyawaki Sakura. Jang Wonyoung.
Do I still feel the same way I did when they first announced the results? Of course not. Lack of imagination and not seeing the potential because of emotions felt during the moment. My opinions back then..
1. Wonyoung seemed too young to debut, let alone command the center position with very charismatic girls around her.
2. Yujin did not know how to express herself.
3. Chaeyeon's rank should have been higher.
4. I was in disbelief of Yuri's high rank.
5. I was in disbelief of Hyewon still getting that many votes and got in.
6. The lineup definitely needed 1 more Jp trainee.
7. Sakura isn't the only one who can be center... I was rooting for Chaeyeon after her climb to rank 3 on the last evaluation.
8. Chaewon pulled off some fairy magic
Those no longer matter though. They were irrational thoughts, truly.