#i luv things th@ can b worn many ways

[tiphares]

attemptin to style this .. 🤔

[wheredidtheyallcomefrom]

The Future of the Trainees (part 10)

Spring Day

Yoo Seonho (Rank 15 -> Rank 11)

Chances – I like both Cube chicks, it’s pretty hard not to, they’re so damn likeable. But just like with Guanlin I don’t really want Seonho to make the final group (I will be supportive is he does). Unlike Guanlin he’s not a shoo-in. The 6th episode was the first time Seonho ranked within the Top 11 and I doubt that he will be able to keep that position. Firstly, I think that people for the most part understand that the Cube trainees require more training so only one has a chance of making it in which it seems like it will be Guanlin. Secondly, Seonho did a great job in the ‘Spring Day’ performance. The parts that were given to him were, for a lack of better word, doable for him and he sounded wonderful. I also appreciate his piano skills (moreso from all the BTS videos). But most people will agree that him getting the first place in his group and more points than Jaehwan for instance was a little undeserving. Is it his fault? Obviously not. Did he still do a great job? Yes. It’s hard to say things like ‘someone didn’t deserve something’ because it sounds like an attack on said person. But I really don’t mean to insult Seonho. He did an amazing job and I appreciate his growth as a vocalist, his hard work, his humility. And I don’t think that viewers really blame Seonho for it, but most of them do mention their own picks for first place in the ‘Spring Day’ group. So I think his ranking might fall a little. He’ll definitely make it into the Top 22 though. I’m actually super excited for Cube’s two possible new groups – a girl group with Jeon Soyeon and a boy group with Guanlin and Seonho. On a sidenote, Guanlin and Seonho have a very cute friendship for people who’ve only known each other for 6 months. I would guess that having realized he’s probably going to make it, Guanlin really hopes that so will Seonho.

Skills – From the first ranking performance I’d say Seonho is a better dancer than Guanlin. Still not good although he did just fine in his ‘Sorry Sorry’ performance due to the dance being quite simple for the most part. I’ll have to see how he does I the Concept Evaluation. His vocals are nice and stable when you give him parts that he can actually sing. But it’s what you expect from a young trainee of 6 months who’s probably been accepted into the company based on future potential rather than current skills.

Bae Jinyoung (Rank 12 -> Rank 14)

Chances – Here’s a trainee who really gained a lot of attention in the last episode. Before he was seen as a visual who’s not so skilled. Now people seem to think that he has bothe the looks and the skills (I will talk about his skills in its subsection). He wasn’t actually the focus of the his group’s practice but Mnet made sure to add scenes that have trainers and other trainees positively reacting to him so I would guess that Mnet actually wants Jinyoung to make it into the final group which they didn’t have to worry about until recently when he started falling in ranks. Honestly, I didn’t find Jinyoung super good-looking mainly because I don’t really understand what a small face is even after 5 years of listening to kpop. So he wasn’t really on my radar. But out of the F4 (part of B1F4) Jinyoung was actually my favorite pick because I actually though he had enough skills but just lacked confidence. And I appreciate people trying their best at something that doesn’t come naturally to them. I also think he has gained a bit of confidence since the start of the show so that’s nice to see. So if Mnet really pushes him (as I think they want to) he could make it into the final lineup. Otherwise, he’s just passing the two next eliminations and ending up in the Top 12. Also, fun fact – his company C( is the label Cheetah is signed to. Do with that what you please.

Skills – Before episode 7 I thought that he was a pretty good dancer and a decent vocalist. After the 7th episode I grew to appreciate his vocals a lot more. Now whether he’s a good singer has been a pretty divisive topic. Some loved him, some thought he sounded horrible. I personally really liked his vocals, especially his bridge part in ‘Spring Day’ which I think most people will admit sounded amazing. However, I did notice that during his part in the chorus he sounded very strained and out-of-breath despite standing in one spot. That doesn’t really make me think that he’s a terrible singer. Rather, I understand why he got one line in ‘Boy in Luv’ – he wouldn’t have been able to sing while dancing. It’s a problem that needs to be fixed and while I’m no vocal coach I think that shouldn’t be too hard. Another issue is his confidence o stage but that has been getting better with each performance so I’m excited to see how he does in the concept evaluation.

Lee Woojin (Rank 18 -> Rank 22)

Chances – I knew from the start that despite Woojin being very talented and extremely loved by all the viewers he wasn’t going to make it into the final group. I do hate that. Since he’s already a contestant he should have a chance to make it into the final group. But he’s just so young and he looks like he’s very young. If you compare him to Samuel it’s hard to believe that they’re only a year apart. Though to be fair, a year or so ago in a show with Seventeen Samuel also looked like a baby. So maybe people just mature between 15 and 16. But either way it’s just hard to imagine him in the same group as the older-looking trainees who are going to make it into the group (Daniel, for example). And his voice hasn’t broken yet – it’s most likely going to break during the time that B.O.I is going to be promoting which will rid Woojin of the main vocal status he has had so far. I think most audiences have agreed with this because while he’s always pretty high in the ranking, he hasn’t really been anywhere near the Top 11. So he’ll probably go as far as the Top 22. Thankfully, his future isn’t uncertain because despite being the youngest trainee on the show, he has already debuted with a group called The East Light (check them out – they’ve recently had a comeback and just like their debut song the new one is amazing, they also post great covers). I hope at least that he’s still part of it because that’s a great group where he also fits in perfectly because all of the members are quite young.

Skills – He is very talented especially for his age. While his voice obviously sticks out like a sore thumb in every performance on ‘Produce 101’, he always sounds absolutely beautiful so it doesn’t really matter. He made a mistake in the ‘Spring Day’ performance and the only thing that bothers me is why did they even leave the high note in if Woojin had so much trouble with it. The vocal trainers really should’ve said something. Its absence wouldn’t have ruined the performance. I’m glad no one is really blaming Woojin for it. His dancing ability is pretty good too – he can always keep up with the others.

Takada Kenta (rank 28 -> 24)

Chances – I’m going to assume that Mnet doesn’t want him in the group based on the fact that he barely gets any screentime (although he was shown to have moved up to B) despite being the center in the last mission and the leader in this one. Honestly, Kenta received quite a lot of attention from the fans right from the start. And I assumed that it was because he was the sole Japanese trainee this season. And while I definitely see the hardships that foreign trainees have compared to the Korean ones, it didn’t really endear Kenta to me. But after watching the cut ranking performances I was blown away. It was my favorite solo performance along with Samuel’s. So many other trainees who came alone chose the weirdest songs that just don’t work as solo pieces. But Kenta was actually really smart – he chose a solo piece that’s not really energetic (it’s hard to compare in energy to all the group performances when you’re performing alone) and is pretty hard. I wouldn’t say that he was perfect but he did great overall. And he’s been doing great ever since. I’m going to also assume that it wasn’t hard to be a leader in the ‘Spring Day’ team because Woojin, Seonho and Jinyoung are pretty young, Seonho hasn’t been a trainee for long, Jinyoung isn’t as confident as one might hope and Yongjin is initially a rapper. This group could’ve potentially had a lot of problems and I’m choosing to think that the fact that they didn’t is thanks to their leader. I’d actually really like for him to make it into the final group because he’s very talented and I’m very unsure about his future. But as it is he’s definitely making it into the Top 35 but he’ll need a little boost from Mnet (unlikely) if he wants to make it into the Top 22.

Skills – He’s so well-rounded. Good singer (I would’ve actually given 1st place to him in the ‘Spring Day’ team), good dancer, did pretty well as a rapper. I hope he gets to shine during the concept evaluation.

Kim Yongjin (Rank 53 -> Rank 53)

Chances – I really do feel bad for him because he got a lot of unnecessary hate for picking the last vocal position which would’ve been Woodam’s otherwise. Especially unfair because Yongjin wanted to do rap instead but couldn’t partially due to two vocalists (Gwanghyun and Donghyun) choosing Rap over Vocal. So Woodam wouldn’t have gotten his desired position either way. The Yongjin vs. everyone’s favorite Woojin for main vocal problem didn’t help. Honestly speaking, the main vocal part didn’t suit Yongjin at all but because it’s been engraved into everyone’s mind that being center is important I understand why he wanted to fight for it, especially with the realization that this is probably his last performance. Which it probably is. He’s passed the last elimination thanks to his heart-breaking story but its effects have worn off. He got some focus in the last episode but it was aired to serve Woojin’s story so it’s unlikely to boost him in ranks.

Skills – Honestly, his ranking performance was kind of cringey but skill-wise it wasn’t bad. I also loved his energy and stage presence. He did not give a fuck what people thought of his performance. He knew it was great and he had fun on stage and that’s really admirable and something not many trainees managed to achieve. He’s a decent rapper and decent dancer. And when given parts in his range he’s a good vocalist. He really didn’t sound good as the main vocal but his singing was very nice and stable when given the parts that he got in the end.