Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Controversy and Preparations
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Performance videos were uploaded to the Twisty Puzzle YouTube channel without any prior notice.
At the same time, a short post appeared on the community forums.
[Hello.
This is the second survival stage for Twisty Puzzle.
For this stage, ‘views’ and ‘likes’ will be converted into votes. We ask for your interest and support.]
Despite the sudden upload, the view count was climbing rapidly.
Furthermore, screen captures and photos from the performances were spreading widely across social media.
[So ‘likes’ are being converted into votes again this time. I mean, fans can just keep replaying the video to boost the view count, but you only get one ‘like’ per account.]
↳They’re probably doing it to increase participation. To encourage voting.
↳It seems like to be an idol fan these days, especially if your bias is on a survival show, you need at least five or six YouTube accounts.
↳I bet everyone already has multiple accounts. hahaha Of course, I’m one of them.
[Wow, Creatin’s view count is insane. I only looked it up because I saw a clip of them putting glitter on their necks on social media, but to see that and not watch the video? You’d have to be crazy.]
↳They just tore up the stage.
↳They were so good that I lost my vocabulary. All I could say was, “Ah,” “Wow,” “Uh.”
↳Seriously hahaha Why are they so good? It’s driving me crazy.
↳Everyone did well, but Creatin was on another level.
Among the uploaded performance videos, Creatin’s was at the center of the heated discussion.
It was a natural reaction, given how amazing their stage was, but their song choice was becoming an issue.
[Sigh… I mean, everyone’s loving Creatin’s performance, but it just makes me uncomfortable. Why did they have to cover the song that’s my biggest soft spot, a song I cherish so much? Leon wrote that song when he was at his lowest, pouring out his honest feelings. It’s practically a fan song, filled with his gratitude for us. Of all the songs, they had to touch that one? If they had covered any of Leon’s other songs, I would have applauded them for doing a great job, but because it was ‘STAR,’ I just couldn’t.]
↳So I wasn’t the only one. I was agonizing over whether I was being too narrow-minded.
↳Can you really call this narrow-minded? It’s a fan song, of all things. And not just any fan song, but one with a painful backstory where Leon laid bare his self-loathing. Shouldn’t that have been off-limits?
↳I’m not even a Leon fan, but I thought this was wrong. I get that they’re from the same company, so they can cover his songs. But it shouldn’t have been a fan song.
↳So it really is wrong.
↳This is just not right. I’m so angry that the company let it happen. They knew everything and didn’t even suggest they do something else.
[I’m seeing a lot of fuss about Leon’s song, so I’m genuinely curious. From Leon’s perspective, wouldn’t it be a good thing if his juniors performed his song so well? It’s good promotion for the song, too.]
↳You’ve never been an idol fan, have you?
↳Nope.
↳That’s why you don’t get it. This is a really sensitive issue among fans. A fan song is like a gift from an idol to their fans. And Leon didn’t just fill it with his love for us; he wrote a song that rawly exposed his disillusionment with himself, his loneliness, all his honest feelings. I’d be angry and sad if they touched any fan song, but this is a serious breach of etiquette. For example, say your boyfriend wrote a song to propose to you. Then you saw someone else rearrange it and perform it in a public place. Would you still be okay with that? It’s an unwritten rule among fans not to touch each other’s fan songs.
↳And most importantly, our Leon doesn’t need any promotion.
Because the song Creatin had chosen was so precious to Leon’s fans, a backlash was inevitable.
[Hello, it’s been a while since I’ve posted. Have you all seen Creatin’s and RE-V’s performances? I recommended the song to Creatin while they were preparing for the competition. I’m so proud watching them because they did such an amazing job that I don’t regret my recommendation at all. So please, look upon them kindly.]
↳What? Leon recommended it himself?
↳Well, if Leon recommended it…
↳I guess that makes sense. Leon’s not at a point in his career where he’d be forced by the company to write something like this. He must have genuinely recommended it. Seriously, why does our boy have such a cool senior vibe?
↳He never received anything from his seniors, yet he’s so good to his juniors. That’s amazing. I couldn’t do that if I were him.
Just then, Leon revealed on social media that he had personally recommended the song to Creatin.
[Wow, what a relief. Honestly, I really loved Creatin’s performance, but I couldn’t fully enjoy it because it was Leon’s song. I know what a fan song means. But knowing he recommended it himself is reassuring. Now I can watch it with a clear mind.]
↳Same here, hahaha. Phew. After seeing Leon’s post, I let out a sigh of relief and immediately rewatched the video from the beginning.
↳You should have told us sooner! I’m a delicate soul; I feel like I’ve aged a few years in that short time.
↳Now we can just enjoy it without any worries.
↳Right. Creatin wouldn’t have just chosen a song like that for no reason. They’re not from another company; he’s a great senior artist from their own label.
Public opinion immediately turned favorable.
[Analysis of Creatin’s stage (This is just my personal take, so read it for fun).
In the opening, RE-V appears with sparkling stars on their necks, right? I think that symbolizes aspiration. If you look closely at their outfits, RE-V is in white and Creatin is in black. I interpreted this as showing their opposing positions. It contrasts the popular idol group RE-V with Creatin, who were once promising but had fallen. That’s why they go straight into the chorus, the highlight of the song. For Creatin, it’s a new beginning from the song’s starting point.]
↳I thought so too.
↳The theme for this stage was to tell their own story, right? So this has to be it.
↳Wow. I didn’t get why they had an opening like that, but now it makes sense. It wasn’t to steal the spotlight, but to create a sense of contrast. And they didn’t just steal the show; they elevated the quality of the performance to a whole new level.
↳Does JR only scout idols who specialize in survival shows? hahahahaha
↳Following RE-V, it looks like Creatin will also be re-evaluated through Twisty Puzzle. JR should be thanking that producer.
[…?? Zero to the Boy? What’s with them? Is it because they haven’t debuted yet? The other groups are good, but this one… how should I put it? They feel disorganized. It’s so messy. They can’t even look at the camera properly, and their choreography is not in sync at all. (Attached: a screenshot of Zero to the Boy’s performance with their arm angles out of sync)]
↳Seriously. Shouldn’t some other group have gotten in? This is…
↳It was pretty bad.
↳What can I say? It’s not like they were just nervous; they just seem to lack skill.
[Zero to the Boy is a definite no. If you’re on a competition show, you should at least have the basics down.]
↳It felt like the roles were completely reversed.
↳Worse than a school club.
↳I’m speechless. If they were just a little bad, I’d think they should practice more. But they’re so bad, it’s just pathetic. Truly pathetic. Someone needs to tell them. That they’re not cut out to be idols.
↳It’s so obvious who’s going to be last. They need to practice more.
↳They haven’t debuted yet, so maybe they can use this as motivation to practice like crazy. You know, there are idols whose skills improve drastically after their debut.
↳But they were skilled back when they were GANGSTER-M.
***
I was at the practice studio, working on choreography and formations for our performance in the US.
“Hey guys, how’s practice going?”
The manager asked in a light tone as he entered the studio with drinks.
“It’s going well.”
“Here, have a drink, everyone, then let’s get back to it.”
The manager handed out drinks perfectly suited to our tastes.
The other members got iced Americanos, while my share was an iced chocolate.
As I took a sip through the straw, a sweet taste filled my mouth, and I felt my mood lift.
*Right. I need to drink something like this to get the energy to dance again.*
“You should all pack for the US in advance. It’ll be a hassle if you’re missing something later. I’ll be bringing a bunch of stuff too, but you never know.”
“Okay.”
“And since we’re going all the way to the US, our Haru is going to do some sightseeing.”
“Really?”
Lee Ho-jun’s face lit up as he asked the manager.
“Yup.”
I thought we would be returning right after the performance, but hearing that wasn’t the case made me feel a little excited too.
“It’s not like you’re in the middle of promotions or at the end of a comeback. We have some time, so you should have some fun while you’re there. It’d be a waste to go all that way and not see anything. It’s a ten-hour flight, after all. But we will be filming our own content. We’re not bringing a bunch of cameras to make it stressful, just a few people from the company to film something lighthearted, so you can just relax and have fun.”
Thanks to RED CUBE and the reality show, having a camera around wasn’t that uncomfortable anymore.
I had spent so much time with cameras that I’d even started to forget they were there, which said it all.
“What kind of sightseeing will we do?”
“We’ll rent a car and check out the tourist spots around the area. I think I heard there’s an amusement park nearby.”
An amusement park.
I wasn’t a big fan of high and thrilling rides, so the idea wasn’t particularly appealing.
*Still, if the members want to go, I should tag along even if I don’t ride anything.*
As long as it didn’t involve suddenly dropping from a high place, I thought I’d be okay.
Although, most amusement park rides did involve dropping from high places.
“Oh, and you guys will have to introduce yourselves on stage, so practice some basic lines, okay?”
“Aren’t we just performing?”
“Nope. There’s a short segment for introductions. You’ll each introduce yourselves.”
I thought all we had to do was prepare for the performance, but apparently not.
“In English?”
“Of course, in English. There will be an interpreter, but it’s better to greet everyone in English on stage.”
*Looks like I’ll need to study some English.*
“Don’t worry too much. We’ll write out some simple lines for you. Just memorize those like your life depends on it. That’ll be enough, alright?”
“Yes.”
“Great. Then let’s get back to practice.”