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tranquilpetrichor · 2 years ago

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twister

synopsis: what begins as a lighthearted game of twister leads to you finally admitting your feelings for your dance friend.

cast: chen kuanjui x gn!reader ft friend!ricky

genre: fluff

wc: 2k (2025)

warnings: descriptions of physical affection, there may be grammatical errors

a/n: please freaking save me i don't need more boys planet trainees wrecking my life.. anyways if the links to this on my masterlist are weird please let me know, i’m on vacation right now and can’t really do much stuff on my laptop.

taglist: @restlessmaknae

you place the box labeled twister on the floor and open it, your friend kuanjui beside you. he takes the mat and carefully lays it out. you get the spinner and fiddle with it for fun.

kuanjui's set out the mat and is stretching on it—a familiar sight to you over your years of friendship. while you used to gasp whenever you saw him casually go into the middle splits or do a backbend, it no longer fazed you. he simply had no bones.

staring at the mat with colored dots on it gives you nostalgia. "oh my god, i haven't played this in a while," you say, groaning. "please go easy on me."

he only laughs at you. "we're literally both dancers. if anything, i should make it really hard for you!"

you sigh, knowing that he’s almost never lost a game like this. "ugh no. if you're gonna be that way, you should buy me food after we play."

it’s a joke, but you wouldn’t mind food. and eating with him.

he points over in the distance to a guy (aka another idiot friend of yours) listening to music with airpods in. "ha, why don't you ask ricky then? he's the rich one, after all. oh, and speaking of which, we need someone to spin."

you glance over again. “i'll get him."

he smiles knowingly. “you mean you’ll go annoy him, right?”

“yep!”

since ricky’s facing away from the two of you, it's easy to sneak up on him and you make your way closer, finally closing in on his shoulders. after you tap him with your hands, he groans.

“what the hell? not this again.”

you start laughing, amused by ricky’s annoyance.

"dude, you've been on your phone enough. you wanna spin the wheel for me and kuan jui while we play twister?"

you can't miss the undeniable smirk that appears on ricky's face.

"alright, it's not like i have anything better to do," he begins to whisper, "except help two soon-to-be lovebirds out."

"hey! it's not like that," you hiss.

he only shrugs in response. "if you say so."

the two of you walk back, and you try to remain composed. “we have our spinner,” you say, gesturing to a still-smirking ricky.

"dude, quit it with that look," you mutter to ricky, and he just laughs at you.

kuanjui claps, a smile on his face. “let’s start! prepare to lose," he says with a glare that you know isn't malicious at all. you could even say it's adorable, although that's not something you should admit aloud.

you both go on opposite sides on the mat, and ricky spins the wheel.

"right hand on blue."

the two of you move accordingly. even with simple movements like this, kuanjui is graceful.

“right foot on red.”

it's easy so far, but in a few minutes, you know you're sure to struggle. sure enough, you do end up in a precarious position which could only be described as being a human pretzel. he’s reaching over you, like a cat taking a stretch.

"please do not crush my back," you say with a groan. "i don't know if i can handle that."

he protests. "i'm not going to crush your back! i am perfectly capable of holding myself up. if you fall, it's your fault."

"what? i won't fall..."

ricky interrupts. "good one, y/n. a little late on that.”

you glare at him as best as you possibly can from your position. "shut it."

kuanjui is clearly confused. "huh? is something wrong?”

you try to laugh it off. "never mind. he’s just being annoying again.”

there’s no time for him to question you, because ricky keeps talking. “alright, let’s continue! left foot on yellow!”

at this point, you understand why you wouldn't play this game with anyone you don't trust. there's no way you could do this with anyone else without feeling incredibly awkward.

"are you gonna give up?" kuanjui asks, and although you aren't looking at him in an attempt to focus on not trembling, you imagine a satisfied grin on his face.

you barely register ricky’s next command.

“right hand on green!”

no, now is not the time to get embarrassed. you absolutely knew what you were getting into, playing this damn game of all things. your heart definitely wasn’t racing. not at all.

you readjust your hand slightly. “nope. never.”

right about now, he’s probably pouting. “please? if you give up, i’ll buy you strawberry ice cream…”

hm, would you really choose food over your pride?

“aw damn, that’s tempting. but no. also, i’m sure you would do that for me anyways.”

his lack of a comeback tells you all you need to know.

“i feel like a third wheel,” you think you hear ricky mutter, before his speaking volume returns to normal. “alright, left hand on yellow!“

you strain to reach your hand behind you, but manage to get it on a circle. kuanjui’s face is now visible, and the two of you laugh at the absurdity of this whole game.

“i wonder how long we’ve been here,” you say.

ricky checks the time on his phone. “12 minutes, honestly that’s kinda impressive. but can someone please win already?"

“ah, now my wrist hurts. actually everything hurts,” kuanjui whines.

you smile. “you're such a big baby, despite being older than me by a few months.”

he hits you softly. “am not.”

a response leaves your mouth before you can tell your brain to stop saying whatever the hell it wants to. “you are, so stop being so cute.”

he scrunches his face in confusion, but then smiles slightly. "you think i’m what now?"

ah, shit. i definitely said too much.

well, might as well own what you had said. “cute, did you not hear me the first time?”

a slight blush appears on his face. “well, uh—“

ricky yells exasperatedly, “left foot on red!”

kuanjui moves first, slipping his foot behind your back. you try to find a red circle, but it’s a rather inconvenient move.

now you’re pretty much in the splits with your hands spread semi-far apart, and while it’s not the worst position to possibly be in, you’re kinda sore and can’t wait to rest.

“ah, is this what being a worm is like?” you joke.

“i don’t wanna be a worm, i wanna be something pretty,” kuanjui says.

you try to think of a suitable representative animal for him. “a butterfly is pretty.”

that seems to make him smile, and you feel like you've done your job for the day.

at some point, your strength gives out and you drop to the mat, beads of sweat cascading down your face. you're panting heavily.

kuanjui lifts himself out of the weird backbend position he's in with relative ease. how he's not too tired to do that, you're not sure.

"yes! i win!" he says with a fist pump.

you dramatically sigh, placing a hand on your chest. “i humbly accept this fatal defeat. you have kicked my ass once again.”

he giggles. "i'm sorry, i'll make it up somehow."

you pout. "that's what i get, for playing twister against one of the most flexible dancers in our academy."

you try to get up, but he motions for you to stay on the mat. "i'll get water for all of us, be right back. you need to rest!”

ricky puts the spinner down after kuan jui’s left. “please. just kiss. please! you two are so flirty that it’s gross.”

you laugh at his show of pleading. well, at least he was being honest. “i mean, i might confess to him today. i don’t want it to be grand or anything, i just want to say it. now’s as good a time as any, right?”

ricky gives you a genuine smile, probably the first of the day.

“well, good luck. if anyone should be his partner, it’s you.”

he pauses, seeming serious for once, before continuing. “it seems like you guys have a lot of fun around each other. i remember meeting you during dance practice and you were so strict, i didn't think you had an unserious bone in your body!"

kuanjui's walking back, so you try to wrap up the conversation. "gee thanks, i can be fun. but i think some people really bring out different sides of you."

he gives a grateful ricky some ice water, then sets down another cup beside you. "i cut a lemon slice and put it on the side of yours, if you don't mind."

you take it, grateful for the sweet gesture. "thanks, i mentioned that i like that, but only once.”

he smiles, and even that simple action seems ethereal. “i remembered anyways.”

ricky seems more than eager to excuse himself from the conversation, citing “video games” as the reason to leave.

“but you always say that though,” kuanjui retorts.

the younger boy shrugs. “and it’s always true.”

“i’ll see you guys later, you should enjoy yourselves!” he adds with a wink.

that damn guy. but you’re not gonna complain about getting alone time with kuanjui.

you spend about a minute quietly playing with his hair, which you’re both used to. although you do it often, you usually do it when something’s on your mind and you need to focus on something else.

kuanjui traces mindless circles on the mat before deciding to break the silence that has settled between you two. “hey, y/n?”

“yes?”

“did you really mean it when you said i was cute?”

you smile, a little embarrassed. but of course, no going back now. “of course, i wouldn’t lie.”

"i didn't think you would, but it was a little unexpected," he says, laughing. "since when did you ever call people cute?"

you take a sip of water, feeling suddenly as if there was something stuck in your throat. "well, i don't call people cute, unless they're you," you say with a small giggle, averting your gaze afterwards.

you're surprised you can even continue to speak.

"and, i wanted to ask you on a date. i mean, you don't have to! i've liked you for a while now, but i didn't want to make anything awkward… even though it probably seems awkward coming from me anyways.”

there’s a relief you feel after your confession and a sense of nervous anticipation. your hands need somewhere to be, so you reach for the cup.

kuanjui gasps and ruffles your hair affectionately. his eyes seem to sparkle.“oh, i’ve liked you too, and i’d love to go on a date. it’s just that i’m a little bit cowardly and probably wouldn’t have confessed first!”

“ha, believe me, i know.”

he seemed to have another moment of realization. “no wonder ricky seemed so annoyed! it’s like he was waiting for.. well, something.”

“watch what you say, he could come back any moment,” you whisper.

he goes along with your little joke and whispers back.

“what if i say he’s short and poor, old and ugly?”

“then he’ll definitely come back.”

the two of you burst into a fit of giggles. you take his hand, as if you need tangible proof that you’re here, experiencing this beautiful moment.

“do you mind if i kiss you on the cheek?”

jeez, why are you embarrassed? you’re usually physically affectionate with him anyways. still, it’s best to ask about things like kissing, you figure.

he shyly smiles. “go ahead.”

you give him a peck, which elicits more giggling from him, and there’s the lingering feeling of fluttering in your chest. he's definitely happy from the physical contact. as he lays down, he tugs your shirt, bringing you to the floor with him.

"i'm sleepy," he says through a yawn. "could you stay with me for a little?"

you're more than happy to oblige, and somehow, you end up with both of your arms wrapped around him, the twister mat still below you both.

as you settle into a comfortable position with kuanjui (perhaps the most comfortable you've been the whole day), you're thankful for playing that little game of twister, and for finally giving into your feelings.

#kflixnet #kwritersworldnet #boys planet x reader #boys planet imagines #boys planet scenarios #boys planet fics #chen kuan jui #boys planet #tranquilpetrichorfic

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kankuroplease · 1 year ago

Note

What is Michi like as a parent?

Michi is very gentle natured, that wouldn’t change much as a parent

She would have baby in her room for convenience for feedings and she just wants him there. So no point in a nursery for the first year

Co-sleeps. She tries not to do it too often because it’s not the safest thing when he’s so little. But he does have a travel bassinet she can place him in on the bed

Does more baby wearing than putting him in a stroller. The only time he’s in a stroller is if she’s jogging

Calls Madara for advice if Mugen is being particularly fussy because he’s strangely knows a lot of baby things

She believes “it takes a village”, so she’d make sure everyone in their lives is familiar with Mugen and he respects them.

Sets up times to visit all four grandparents

Never expects him to be perfect but ask that he always tries his best

Doesn’t correct people when they think he’s a girl. She doesn’t care what others think, he looks cute

Does yoga with him

Cuddles and hugs him a lot

Tells him his beauty mark on his forehead is an angel kiss from grandfather Hizashi while the one on his mouth was to remind him to use his voice in life.

Let’s him run around barefoot and self dressed despite disapproval from some of the older Hyuga. “He’s a little kid. lighten up.”

Very enthusiastic about the horrid little kid drawings he makes for her

Brings Mugen to visit Neji, Hinata, and Hanabi

Also takes him to parks regularly for fresh air and wild life

Has some issues speaking up for herself, but tries hard to be heard for Mugen’s sake.

Definitely has a bag filled with everything from snacks to bandaids and more. She doesn’t want to be unprepared for things.

As he grows she’d mark his height on a doorframe sort of forced Tenten, Neji, and Lee (and the rest of Neji’s men) to get measured too so Mugen can see how tall everyone is and muses with him how tall he’ll be one day

She’s signing him up for jui-jitsu at an early age because learning martial arts gave her a lot more confidence and it’s a good form of self discipline/defense

Tells him to respect his elders but, they should be be respectful him too. It goes both ways

Encourages him to be nice to his classmates and friends

She’d teach him how to skateboard with Chiha and Tenten. This is their little secret because grandfather Hiashi might actually have a heart attack

Also let him work out with Lee and Neji

Plays restaurant with him and thinks it’s so cute how he tries so hard to be a waiter and gets huff if she or anyone else says something about their “order”

Once he starts at the academy, she’ll cry. HE’S JUST A BABY (he’s literally 4)

Also crying happily at all his accomplishments

Preteen - teen would be hard on her. Not because he’s a bad kid, he’d be a very respectable young man, he’s just really not a baby anymore and very independent. He also is a genius and would end up graduating early. Sending her young teen to college wasn’t on her bingo card 🥲

Still makes him his lunches and ruffles his hair.

Probably does that embarrassing face cleaning thing some moms do still

Definitely the “who’s your friend?” “You should ask them out!😃” mom if she sees he’s expressing interest in anyone.

#ask #tattoo shop au #oc: michi uchiha #my art #kpz tsau ℹ️

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incorrectboysplanet · 2 years ago

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Fun facts about Yoo Seungeon

He can speak Mandarin (according to Chen Kuan Jui he sings songs in Mandarin)

He is a former SM trainee

He graduated from Hanlim High School

He is a carat

He is from Busan

The other trainees call him a main visual vocal

He can compose

Please vote for Yoo Seungeon to debut in Boys Planet on the Mnet+ app!

#boys planet #yoo seungeon

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imgae-insertshockedgasps-16 · 8 months ago

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alright boiz it's time for a hyperfixation i haven't yet indulged in on rbis blog.

beetlejuice.

i'm placing a cut for convenience, cause i expect a long post honestly

okay. so. disclaimer: tim burton? don't like em. racist. not a great person. however: divorce the art from the artist. i loved the beetlejuice movie as a kid. i still love it. i have a 10yr old beetlejuice dvd that i watch. no money for tim burton! it's important to acknowledge the problems, but i still enjoy the media.

second disclaimer: it has been a long ass time since i watched the entire play and my memory is generally garbage. so, if i'm wrong, pls feel free to correct me. however, this doesn't mean be a complete jerk abt "how could you even get that wrong?!? have you even watched it!!!!" pls be kind and respectful. also keep in mind that i have multiple disorders that influence memory in various ways.

NOW ONTO THE GOOD SHIT.

"three times in a row, it must be spoken, unbroken"

it's very vague.

unbroken by what?

not unbroken by other people. beetlejuice talks under/through his name being spoken (well, sung), so we can assume that someone else speaking doesn't influence the sequence.

not by a pause. "beeeeeeeee (pause) cause!" it's a brief pause, but a pause. the question here becomes how long can a pause last before it's considered breaking the sequence? a average pause that applies in typical sentence structure? an hour long pause? could you hypothetically wait days in between calls of his name, and as long as you say nothing else in between he'll be summoned?

in the same phrase, we're given the drawing out of a syllable. so as long as the syllable isn't disrupted, it counts? could you break up the syllables? "be" now, "tle" in five minutes, "jui" three minutes after that, "ce" a few minutes later?

if so, could we combine pause and syllable? "be" today, "tle" tomorrow, "jui" and "ce" the next, repeat thrice and you've banished him?

and it doesn't have to be the person who summoned him that says his name, either, so could someone across the world (trying/tricked into summon him) accidentally banish him?

and then: it specifies "spoken". dictionaries generally agree that spoken means "said aloud" in some degree. so, whispered? said in some other language? what if someone puts 'beetlejuice' through a cipher, and then the result was spoken aloud three times? it's the equivalent of beetlejuice, does it count?

or what if someone has an auditory processing disorder? do they have to say "beetlejuice" or do they have to say what they heard? generally i would assume they have to say "beetlejuice", but if they genuinely believe that the term "fleetingbooth" is correct and will work, how does that affect the summoning/banishnent?

what about being read by a computer program? there's no specifier as to who/what has to speak, only that it has to be spoken. so if someone had their computer read beetlejuice aloud three times (perhaps writing/reading a book?) would he be summoned?

a baby sees a beetle and some juice, combines them, and promptly repeats their new favorite word three times, is he summoned?

and etc etc etc i could talk abt this forever

(shout out to the cartoon, loved that shit when i was a kid. been over a decade since i've seen it, so who knows how it's held up, but i remember it being great)

#beetlejuice

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boysplanetrecaps · 2 years ago

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Boys Planet Episode 11: Recap and Guide

Hey, fellow Star Creator! Are you ready to have your heart smashed to smithereens? …. No? Me either. In fact, I'm late getting this recap to you because it was hard to type with my heart next to me in a basin of saline solution. But I managed.

Let’s go!

At 0:38, we start off with the boys hanging out at their dorms after their third mission, high fiving each other and expressing some anxiety about the upcoming eliminations. They have to pack to go home now for a while. The staff has set up a photo booth for them to make some memories. In case anyone thinks that there’s animosity between Woongki and Zhuang Shai Bo, there definitely isn’t.

The trainees go back back home, awaiting the next elimination ceremony.

Pretty sure that’s Ricky, just being mysterious and painting roses in a graffiti covered studio, because how else would Ricky spend his time when he’s not performing?

We spend a little time with Han Yujin and his very popular pretty mother. We also see Keita and Kum Junhyeon hanging out with Eunho from Younite and Hwi from Ciipher -- it seems that Junhyeon used to be a trainee at Rain company and trained with some or all of the Ciipher, which explains how they both know Hwi, but I’m not sure the impossibly faced Eunho fits in (seriously, who has a face like that? He looks like a Bratz doll come to life, in a good way). I also don’t know how we never knew that Junhyeon and Keita have been friends this whole time??? They’re just out having a meal and talking about how young Kum Junhyeon was when they used to train together. We see a lot of other stuff, including Kim JiWoong at a dog cafe, even though he’s apparently allergic to dogs. They’re all visiting with friends and family.

Then we see the guys all packing to go back to Planet Camp, even though many of them know that they probably won’t make it through this elimination ceremony. It’s pretty sad. But remember, they’re all going to be ok, right, team? A lot of them are signed with good companies and will probably debut in 2025, if not sooner. So deep breaths. It’s ok!

Then we visit with Park Hanbin, who is wearing a very soft looking blue sweater, as if anticipating future MNET shows. He says he’s worried about not being able to debut. Park Hanbin, you silly goose. You’re going to debut whether or not you make it into Bepler. Listen to BPR Noona. I know of what I speak.

6:15 Now it’s time for the elimination ceremony!

So, I actually watched the live streaming ceremony, which popped up on my phone as I was getting ready to go to sleep. Cannabis is legal where I live and so I might have been particularly ready to close my eyes, you know? But I watched, my eyes blinking heavily, because I wanted to know! The things the boys were saying weren’t translated, so I was only able to catch the gist. Also, the live broadcast was just a raw feed of them, and without the editing and background music, it felt like I was watching a first rehearsal.

Anyway, as usual, we start with the boys backstage talking about how nervous they are -- us too, guys -- and then coming out in small groups based on their most recent challenge mission. They do various kinds of schtick, and once their whole team is out they do a combined schtick. It looked heckin’ awkward in the live broadcast, but edited down it looks much better.

Here’s the order they come out:

Kim Tae Rae, Na Kamden, and Zhang Shuai Bo (Switch)

Keita, Park Hanbin, and Yoon Jongwoo (Switch)

Wang Zi Hao, Ollie, and Haruto (Supercharger)

Woongki, Takuto, Seo Won (Supercharger)

Zhang Hao and Lee Jungheyon (Over Me)

Ricky, Chen Kuan Jui, Jay (Over Me)

Sung Hanbin and Han Yujin (Say My Name)

Yoo Seung Eon, Seok Matthew, and Kim Ji Woong (Say My Name)

Hui (Lee Hoe Taek), Hiroto, and Lee Seung Hwan (En Garde)

Kim Gyuvin, Kum Junhyeon, Park Gunwook (En Garde)

And who is their Star Master this time? In the live broadcast, she stood with her back to the camera for just a few seconds and then came in, but of course, in the edited version, there’s 15 minutes of guessing first.

But it’s Jeon Somi!

I would impale myself on those spikes every time I moved slightly, but she makes it look good.

If you’re not familiar with Jeon Somi, she is a successful soloist who went through the reality show gamut. First she was on a show called Sixteen, a reality competition show that created the kpop giants Twice (you know, the ones who sing “Feel Special”). She didn’t make the lineup of Twice, but she got pretty popular from being on the show. Then she was on the first season of Produce 101, the precursor of Girls Planet/Boys Planet, and ended up pretty much killing it, taking first place in the final episode and becoming the “center” of project group IOI (pronounced “eye-oh-eye”). Check out their song Very Very Very if you want to see what IOI is like.

After IOI disbanded, Somi became a soloist. I love her song Birthday -- my fella doesn’t like much kpop, but for whatever reason he loves Birthday. (He specifically loves how she she says “eyyy”.) Despite it being a pretty great song, Birthday wasn’t a huge hit because she was “f a a t “ at the time (she absolutely wasn’t, and even if she was, it shouldn’t matter, but people can really be The Worst, and also her stylist didn’t know how to dress a young woman with actual boobs). Anyway she has other songs now, like Dumb Dumb, and she’s frighteningly skinny now, so she’s a lot more successful. I think she’s always been a sparkly fun person. I wish she’d given her cue cards a bit of a read before she came out on stage, but… whatever. Oh, and if you’re wondering, she’s 22, half Korean and half white, and was born in Canada.

The boys go crazy when they realize it’s Somi -- Kamden says he won’t be able to sleep tonight, and a few of the others talk about how tall she is. She’s 5’8, which is fairly tall for a girl, especially in Korea.

She reads some usual stuff off a cuecard, and then adds, “It’s not easy being on a survival show, is it? I remember HATING this studio myself” (as in, when she was on Produce 101). The boys give her some serious snaps.

We find out that people in 182 countries voted a total of 31,750,293 votes, and that trainees ranked 1 through 18 will survive. We also find out that during the first phase of the announcement, they’ll only be announcing trainees from 11 through 17 inclusive, which is only seven people, so this is really silly.

After that, in the live broadcast, Somi said something that MNET translated thusly: “I know how much effort and sweat they have put into this far because not only I but so many world star creators are sending their cheers to them. Believe in your time and the sweat dedicated, and get with it to the end.” That part didn’t make it into the final airing, as far as I can tell, but I think it’s funny. She read it at top speed, sounding like a bored flight attendant reading the same safety instructions for the millionth time, and not looking up from the cue cards once. Maybe that’s why they didn’t air it.

Anyway -- so now that the stakes have been established, we bring up two teams to start with: Switch and Engarde.

First Round of Eliminations

Here are the 12 trainees who are waiting to hear their fate, in order of their rank in episode 8:

6 Kim Gyu Vin Love Me Right - K / Love Killa/ En Garde

7 Kim Tae Rae Back Door - K/ Man in Love/ Switch

8 Keita Kill This Love - G/ Zoom / Switch

9 Park Gunwook Kill This Love - K/ Tomboy/ En Garde

10 Kum Jun Hyeon Back Door - K /Gang / En Garde

11 Hui Love Me Right - K / Tomboy /En Garde

13 Park Hanbin Hot Sauce - K / Law/ Switch

15 Yoon Jong Woo Back Door - K /Home/Switch

20 Na Kamden Back Door - G /Law /Switch

21 Lee Seung Hwan Danger - K/ Gang /En Garde

23 Zhang Shuai Bo Back Door - G/ Feel Special /Switch

28 Hiroto Very Nice - G/ Rush Hour/ En Garde

Somi announces that they’re going to announce the trainee who is 11th place, who got 2,365,604 points. It’s someone who did the killing part.

Then she gives the clue that the person in 11th has the family name “Park.” Well, that’s either Park Gunwook or Park Hanbin. Gunwook doesn’t want to be announced in 11th place; Hanbin would be delighted to be in 11th. So they sort of awkwardly grin at each other from across the aisle.

At 17:13 And then we find out that it’s Park Hanbin! So they’re both happy! Everyone is proud of him and a little surprised.

Look how happy Z-Bo is for him, and everyone else, too! That’s their fearless leader!

He says, “I won’t be able to be the shiniest star on Boys Planet, but I want to be the one and only star. Since this could be my last chance to shine the brightest, I’ll try to give a great performance.” Somi tells him he shines brightly already, and his gives her a huge, eye squinting grin. That’s doing to be a “happy memory for a sad day” for him -- one of those happy memories you return to when you need a boost. But hopefully Hanbin won’t have too many sad days in front of him.

Kum Junhyeon says to Park Gunwook, “he didn’t deserve the low ranking,” which is so true. Park Hanbin has been great since the first day. It was just hard to get to know his personality at first.

In the live broadcast, Somi asked him to show his “favorite facial expression,” and he did, but it’s all so weird. Does anyone else think that Kpop is getting a bit too codified? Can there be any mystery or general stage technique that isn’t parsed down into the tiniest bits? Anyway, that doesn’t make it into the final broadcast, which is all for the best

As Hanbin walks up to lonely seat 11 all by himself, Jay says, “Park Hanbin serves and deserves,” which is a great way of putting it.

Here’s the floor plan to help you figure out who is sitting where as the episode goes on-- that’s P-Hanbin in 11th.

This is where the live broadcast ended, so I was a mixture of happy (I was so stoned and sleepy and just wanted to close my eyes) and contented (at least my Park Hanbin is safe!) and furious (seriously, MNET?). But that’s all they gave us, the fuckwits.

Rank 12 is next, and it’s someone from En Garde, someone who stood out because of best friend energy, so that could be a lot of people.

We find out that it’s Park Gunwook! He’s fallen from 9th place to 12 -- everyone is shocked, and there’s a silent pause before people start applauding. That peach, Lee Seunghwan, who probably isn’t going to make it through this elimination, gives him a high five and tries to cheer him up, but he looks really sad.

Sad, but still cute! I like the ruffly hair.

Ok, everyone’s super surprised that he fell out of the top9, but I’m not that surprised, really. Don’t get me wrong, I still quite like Park Gunwook and am rooting for him to succeed in life. I’ve heard that some people dislike him, but I think he’s essentially a sweet guy who jokes around in uncomfortable situations. I also think he’s talented, with a loveable face, and I hope that Jellyfish will figure out some way to promote him if he doesn’t make the top 9 here.

That all said, he’s been showing the same part of himself again and again on the show. It’s that super masculine, powerful style of dancing that he always does, you know? I think people are just a tiny bit tired of the powerful powerhouse of power. I feel that way a tiny bit myself. I didn’t need him to do something super cute like Say My Name or something mega sexy like Over Me, exactly, but I think I would have liked to see him in something more like Switch -- something that requires a different, more lighthearted style of dancing. I think he can do it, so I hope that he can show that in the next episode.

Who’s next? Rank 15. Who could it be?

It’s someone known for his unique facial expressions, and it’s an extrovert, so it could be a lot of them -- not Keita, Hui, Hiroto, or Lee Seunghwan who are introverts, but any of the rest. (Is anyone else surprised to hear that Kim Taerae is an extrovert? He comes across as more of an introvert -- probably MNET editing striking again.) Anyway, it could be almost any of these six…

And at 22:45 we find out that it’s Yoon Jongwoo, who had been ranked 15th in episode 8.

Everyone is super surprised, including Jongwoo himself. I think he was expected to be eliminated after his ignominious treatment in episodes 9 and 10, but seriously, watch his fancam from Switch. He’s such a good dancer and performer. He’d be a benefit to any team he’d be on. I really hope he does a cover of Over Me and puts it up on Youtube. Just putting that out into the universe.

Kum Junhyeon and Kim Gyuvin have given up on casting spells.

Who’s next? Rank 16. Who could it be?

Park Hanbin mutters to himself, “This is daebak.” I should have mentioned this in an earlier recap, but for those of you newish to K-culture, “daebak” means something like “amazing” or “surprising” or even “cool.” Sometimes people just say “daebak” as an exclamation, in which case it means something like “wow!”

Everyone is anxious but Zhang Shuai Bo, who already knows that there is a 99.99999% chance that he is eliminated. He probably didn’t even pack anything in his suitcase. His new brown hair looks nice, though.

It’s someone who’s rank has fallen, and someone who never had a killing part. That could be a lot of people.

And at 25:49 we find out it’s Kum Junhyeon. (The Viki subtitler spells his name Guem -- the G/K sound in Korean is sort of halfway between G and K, so you see it either way depending on the transliteration system in use. And there’s a lot of variation in how people transliterate vowel sounds in Korean, which is one of the reasons I learned to read actual Korean sybmbols!)

Kum Junhyeon has dropped a lot from 10th place. I don’t have a specific theory as to why he dropped, but I kind of think that he’s stopped looking like one of the it-crowd, somehow. Put on a team with Gunwook and Gyuvin, he sort of faded into the background. I like Junhyeon a lot -- he’s charismatic, funny, open-hearted, and a really great singer -- and hope he debuts, but I don’t think he’s going to debut with Bepler. I think he knows that too -- he looks like he’s going to cry.

We hear from each of them.

Yoon Jongwoo says, “Since I came here without expecting anything, my memories here are so precious. I kept telling myself to be in the final, at least. And I ended up being here. I’d like to thank the Star Creators who support me one more time.”

Park Gunwook says, “I really wanted to be on stage one more time. My goal coming here was moving on to the final. Thankfully, I’d be able to join the final with such a high ranking. I’m relieved. I’d like to express my love and gratitude to the Star Creators who support me.”

Then Somi asks Gunwook to do something aegyo, and he chooses instead to do something kawaii instead. He says, in Japanese, things like “I love you! I like you a lot!” (The on-screen words are transliterated Japanese with Korean translation underneath.)

Side note: “aegyo” is a thing in K-culture. It’s when idols and other performers do over-the-top, cloying, saccharine cuteness as a… mini performance. It’s quite popular among Koreans, and is often requested by variety show hosts, but international audiences often don’t like it. Personally, I don’t like it, but it’s not my culture and it’s not my place to say “stop doing thing because I don’t like thing,” you know? Though I really do wish they’d stop.

Anyway, Gunwook speaking Japanese spurs Kum Junhyeon to do his speech in Japanese as well, and he sounds like a first semester Japanese student. It’s much cuter than his old “I am 5 years old” shtick, though, I’ll say that.

So, this group takes their seats, and everyone wonders, Who’s next? But there isn’t anyone else in this group.

Though the show plays danger music to make it seem otherwise, it’s fair to assume that Kim Gyu Vin, Kim Tae Rae, Keita, and Hui are probably in the top 10. But unless Na Kamden, Lee Seung Hwan, Zhang Shuai Bo, or Hiroto is ranked 18th, they’ve all been eliminated.

The trainees think that Lee Hoetek/Hui might have been eliminated, but that seems extremely unlikely. The people who’ve been voting for him as of episode 8 are probably going to keep voting for him -- he just hasn’t done enough to attract new people to him. I don’t think he’ll make the final lineup, but I don’t think he’ll be eliminated today.

Then Somi announces that she’s heard that “on a beautiful day, the trainees spent a day full of doubts and suspicion.”

Oh no.

It’s…

30:05 FILLER TIME

If you’re not into Kpop -- and even if you are a little into it -- you may not know about the whole ecology that surrounds idol groups. There are these variety shows, such as After School Club and Weekly Idol, shows where idols come on and get made fun of and forced to do silly things, like dance to their songs at 2x speed, or chicken fight, or answer trivia questions, or whatever the show feels like doing to them.

There’s also a custom of idols creating content specifically for their fans, to hold up their side of the parasocial relationship. They joke around, they play games, they cook or eat food, and most importantly, they talk to the camera like it’s their girlfriend and talk about how much they miss their fans and want to see them again. This stuff makes me uncomfortable, but I know a lot of people like it.

Anyway, all the “filler” stuff we see on Boys Planet is a good introduction to the kind of content you often see on shows or videos like these. As such, even though it’s filler, it’s actually an audition for a big part of the job that they’ll be doing as idols. Plenty of idols are known as much for their reality show appearances as for their performance skills (if not more so).

That said, there isn’t a lot to say about this stuff -- it’s just cute fan service. Here’s a super quick recap:

The boys gather outside at an area with big platform tents, on what must have been a lovely sprint day. Park Hanbin is wearing that same soft looking blue sweater, and Kim TaeRae is wearing a sweatshirt that says Thrasher on it, with just enough dark tape over the logo that they don’t have to blur it. My 17 year old self fainted dead away when she saw that Thrasher logo. Is there anything cuter than a skater boy? (Other than my fella, who is the cutest boy of all boys.)

The trainees are told they will have to dress like cute animals and spend a self-sufficient day in the forest - - which is complete bullshit, but that’s ok.

First, they have to put on loose pajama pants without using their hands -- which is an excuse to help each other and touch each other’s crotchal areas with their feet and teeth -- in order to choose which team gets to wear which animal outfit. That part is actually pretty fun to watch, especially when Chen Kuan Jui uses his powers of stretchiness to get’er’done.

Once they get their animal outfit on (they’re just big loose onesie outfits), they’re all told that each team will have a “raccoon” in it (basically, like a mole -- someone who ruins everything) and that they have to figure out who it is. They have to go into a tent one by one to find out if they’re the raccoon or not -- it’s not as if they choose to be the mole. If the team can figure out who’s the raccoons amongst them, then everyone else wins the prize, but if they don’t, the raccoons win the prizes. The stakes are high.

Say My Name comes in first and chooses unicorn.

Switch comes in second and chooses something red; I can’t tell what it is.

En Garde comes in 3rd and chooses dinosaur.

Supercharger comes in 4th and chooses something pink; I can’t tell what it is.

Over Me comes in last and chooses something black.

Over Me’s raccoon is revealed immediately as Lee Jeonghyeon, and he says, “thank you” and that he’s confident he can do it. Just more MNET spotlighting him to try to get another K-group member in the top9 if possible.

They’re hungry and have to play a game where they spin around until they’re dizzy and have to poke at a board with ingredients written on it. The best things are in tiny boxes, which are hard to target. But most of the trainees get at least something decent for food.

Then they play another game to win dessert -- prizes range from shaved ice to “healthy tea” -- and this game is my least favorite Korean reality staple, “Scream in the dark.” It’s this game where they all wear huge headphones that block out most sound, and have to shout at each other and read each other’s lips. This game is played on all the idol shows, and it’s really not my favorite. Maybe it’d be more fun if I were a fluent Korean speaker…? Also, it’s obviously going to be hard for non native speakers from G-group.

This part goes on for approximately 3,791 years, so if you’d like to skip to the end of it, go to 49:18.

After that, the boys discuss who amongst them could be the raccoon (mole). We find out that each raccoon has a purple raccoon symbol stamped on his foot. So they choose who among them is the raccoon and then that person has to reveal their foot.

Though Over Me’s team seems to suspect Lee Jeonghyeon, they cast out Jay, almost as if they are the general public viewing the show. Of course, Jay is innocent.

Switch team picks Keita, but he’s innocent as well. Turns out the mole was Park Hanbin! Back when he found out that he had to be the mole, he said -- with his face hidden and voice distorted -- “I can’t lie!” and collapsed on the floor. But he was good at it after all! Have I mentioned lately that I really like Park Hanbin? Because I do.

Say My Name team picks Sung Hanbin, and he’s also innocent. Turns out it was really Han Yujin. Interestingly, when he was chosen as the mole, he said, “I’m good at this kind of thing.” A rare glimpse into the personality of Han Yujin.

Supercharger picked Wang Zi Hao, and he is in fact the mole.

En Garde team picked Kum Junhyeon, and he’s also innocent. Turns out the real mole was Park Gunwook.

The raccoons have won! Their prize is a variety of high fashion outfits -- in other words, their animal onesies. (Ten bucks says they all got to keep their onesies anyway.)

And that’s the end of the filler!

56:50 SECOND ROUND OF ELIMINATIONS

They joke about the game for a bit longer, and then go back to the eliminations.

Next up will be the other teams: Supercharger, Over Me, and Say My Name.

Ricky says to Jay, in English, “Let’s survive together.” Kim JiWoong leans over to Matthew and says, quoting from Love Killa, “Oh I’m sorry, did I make you anxious?”

Here’s everyone who’s up on the chopping block, in case you would like a refresher as to who is who. I’ve listed their most recent rank as well as their three challenge missions.

1 Sung Hanbin Love Me Right - K / Tomboy / Say My Name

2 Zhang Hao Kill This Love - G/ Tomboy/ Over Me

3 Han Yu Jin Back Door - K / Law / Say My Name

4 Seok Matthew Kill This Love - G/ Love Killa/ Say My Name

5 Kim Ji Woong Back Door - K /Love Killa /Say My Name

12 Jay Love Me Right - G/ Home /Over Me

14 Ricky Back Door - G/ Rush Hour /Over Me

16 Haruto Love Me Right - G / Zoom/ Supercharger

17 Yoo Seung Eon Very Nice - K Home Say My Name

18 Seo Won Very Nice - K Love Killa Supercharger

19 Wang Zi Hao Kill This Love - G Law Supercharger

22 Chen Kuan Jui Kill This Love - G Butterfly Over Me

24 Lee Jeong Hyeon Love Me Right - K Gang Over Me

25 Takuto Danger - G Rush Hour Supercharger

26 Cha Woong Ki Very Nice - K Feel Special Supercharger

27 Ollie Hot Sauce - G Zoom Supercharger

Who’s up first? 13th place. Who could it be?

Someone who’s noted for their talent (thanks, that’s unhelpful). It’s someone from Over Me. We see Park Hanbin with his hands folded, as if in prayer -- he’s hopeful it’ll be his WakeOne teammate, Lee JeongHyeon.

At 1:01:00, we find out it’s Jay.

We see that Jay’s Korean support is painfully low -- only 62,829 votes, while everyone else announced so far has had 200,000+ -- while his global support is super high -- 1,400,606 while no one else has broken into the millions. He’s a little sad because he’s dropped another spot, and it’s looking less and less likely that he’ll make top9 in the end.

Honestly, at this point, I think it’s better for Jay that he *not* debut in Bepler. Looking at what’s going on with Kepler, all the fan wars and stuff, I think he’s better of not in that kind of situation. Who wants to debut based on global vote and then have to go to fan meetings in Korea where literally no one acknowledges you? He’ll have a more fulfilling career using this as a spring board to make his own music and release it mostly online, the way that B.I. and Jackson Wang do. Let K-netz hate him all they want, and let him just sing in English like he’d probably prefer to do. I’d much rather have B.I.’s career than, say, Park Jihoon’s. (Though I do absolutely love all three of the songs I linked to, for the record. But Jihoon’s stylist noona deserves serious sanctions. His whole MV team does. Send them to the naughty step for a few hours to rethink their choices in life.) There’s life after Boys Planet and it doesn’t have to involve Bepler.

Who’s next? 14th place. Who could it be?

Someone indispensable -- so team Supercharger hopes it’s Haruto, as do we all, right? Haruto is everyone’s unproblematic fave.

At 1:02:34, we find out it’s Yoo Seungeon.

Yoo Seungeon is signed to Yuehua, along with current trainees Ricky, Zhang Hao, Han Yujin, Ollie, and Kim Gyuvin, and eliminated trainees Brian and Ji Yun Seo. He really is quite young to debut, and doesn’t really need to debut right now -- it seems quite likely that Zhang Hao and Han Yujin will make the final lineup, and Ricky and Gyuvin have a decent chance, so the Yuehua team that debuts in 2024 or 2025 will start off with a lot of momentum. It still can’t hurt for Seungeon to have more exposure, so it’s nice that he made it. He seems like a sweet kid and a genuine talent. All that said, I’m so worried about Haruto I can’t think straight.

Who’s next? 17th place. Who could it be?

Everyone is hoping that it’ll be themselves, and this is so painful. Cha Woongki tries to keep from hoping. The person is known for their rapping, so of course I’m hoping for Haruto, but there are a lot of rappers here.

Somi says that the person has two “ng” consonants.

Korean reading time! The little circles you see in Korean have a few different roles. Often, they’re silent, like when they come before a vowel. For example, the family name “Lee” (which is really pronounced more like Ee) is spelled 이, as you see above on Lee Jeonghyun’s name. (That straight up and down line thing is the -ee part. You also see it in the final syllable of Woongki’s name -- 기.) When you see the circle thingy at the top of a name, it’s more like “w-” sound. When it’s at the bottom of a word, it’s a -ng sound. That’s why you see it in the top and bottom of 웅 for Woongki (and for Kim JiWoong, also) and in 왕 Wang. You also see it in the bottom of Lee Jeonghyun’s second syllable.

Of course everyone has tons of little circles in their names since they do so much work in Korean writing -- even before I could read Korean I could always tell Korean from other writing systems by the little circles.

Who could it be in 17th place? At 1:05:05 we find out it’s It’s Lee Jeonghyeon. He burst into tears, which seems to surprise his fellow WakeOne trainees Park Hanbin and Kim TaeRae. Of course people are happy for him but sad that they (or their other friends) didn’t survive.

We get told that without the benefit, he would have been in 19th place.

The surviving trainees get to make a speech.

Jay says, in slow English (probably to make it easier for non-native speakers to understand): "To all my friends and family watching from all the way back in the states, I just want to say thank you so much for tuning in every week and screaming at the television.” Somi, who is Canadian and fluent in English, says “Blow them a kiss!” and he does.

Yoo Seung Eon says, “First of all, I never imagined that I’d survive in a high rank of 14, so I feel like I’m dreaming. I have no words to describe how I feel right now. Also, thanks to my Say My Name teammates who created the greatest performance, I really love you.”

Lee Jeonghyeon says, “At every survivor announcement, I was always on the verge of disqualifications. So today, I thought that I wouldn’t be able to make it. But I’m really grateful to the Team Over Me who practiced hard, so we could get benefits.” Then he says, in extremely halting Chinese and Japanese, things like “I love you” and “thank you”, with Hiroto and other trainees helping him from the sidelines.

They take their seats, and Lee Jeonghyeon regains his cool.

1:09:00 THIRD ELIMINATION SEGMENT - TOP 10

So, let’s look at the list of trainees, in their episode 8 ranking order. Those marked in green have already been seated in 11th through 17th place.

1 Sung Hanbin 2 Zhang Hao 3 Han Yu Jin 4 Seok Matthew 5 Kim Ji Woong 6 Kim Gyu Vin 7 Kim Tae Rae 8 Keita 9 Park Gunwook 10 Kum Jun Hyeon 11 Hui 12 Jay 13 Park Hanbin 14 Ricky 15 Yoon Jong Woo 16 Haruto 17 Yoo Seung Eon 18 Seo Won 19 Wang Zi Hao 20 Na Kamden 21 Lee Seung Hwan 22 Chen Kuan Jui 23 Zhang Shuai Bo 24 Lee Jeong Hyeon 25 Takuto 26 Cha Woong Ki 27 Ollie 28 Hiroto

Speaking of falling out and making room, Somi reminds us all that Park Gunwook has fallen out of top 9, leaving a space for a new person. From context, the only person it could be is Ricky -- unless in some weird world it’s Hui. I just don’t think Hui is doing well enough on the show to make top9. So yeah, given the obsessive nature of of Ricky’s fandom, I’m assuming he’s a lot of people’s one-pick and will probably be in the top 10, along with Sung Hanbin, Zhang Hao, Han Yu Jin, Seok Matthew, Kim Ji Woong, Kim Gyu Vin, Kim Tae Rae, Keita, and Hui. I’m trying to think, could any of these have fallen out of the top 10, leaving room for Haruto? And I don’t think so. I think Matthew will have fallen a few ranks, but I don’t think he’s fallen out of the top 10. And Hui -- I think he’s more nervous than he has to be. But we’ll see.

Next up, we find out the “candidates for 9th place”, ie, the people ranked 9th and 10th. And it’s Hui and Matthew.

Hui is relieved, as he’s been thinking the whole time that he’s been eliminated, while Matthew is resigned to what to him is bad news. Matthew was ranked 2nd and then 4th, so falling to 9th or 10th is a steep drop. I really wish he’d just been sweet and nice about the part switch, because he did a great job in Say My Name -- I think the best in the group -- and he definitely lost some fans. I’ll add, however, that he might have lost those fans anyway as we moved from pick-3 to1-pick. The dynamics always change a lot when we get to the 1-pick.

Matthew and Hui come up to the front to find out who came in 9th -- and it's Matthew.

Matthew says, “I want to thank all the Star Creators for allowing me to stay in the Top 9. Hanbin hyung, Ji Woong Hyung, Yujin-ee and Seung Eon-ee, I was just so happy to be with you. I want to become more cool like Hanbin hyung and JiWoong hyung. Thank you, and I also hope we’ll all be successful together.” Really putting on those retro-rockets, huh? I hope it helps -- I think he’s a great performer and would make a good member of Bepler.

Hui says, “I came worrying that I may have to go home today. I really want to thank the Star Creators for allowing me to get such an unexpectedly high rank. I also wanted to thank my En Guard team members who’ve worked so hard with me. I would like everyone to stay with me to the end, and although I cannot give amazing benefits like Boys Planet, I will becomes an amazing Hoe Taek and I will show you a good side of me.”

As Matthew goes to take his seat, you can hear Yoo Seungeon rush over to give Matthew-hyung a hug. Jay also comes over and says something in English but I can’t quite make it out.

Next is 8th place. Who could it be? Well it’s one of Ricky, Han Yu Jin, Kim Ji Woong, Kim Gyu Vin, Kim Tae Rae, or Keita. And at 1:16:42, we find out it’s Ricky!

Ricky says, “It’s so cool to enter the Top9 for the first time. I can’t believe it. Honestly, the sofa looked so comfy that I wanted to try sitting in it at least once. I will show an even more improved version of me during the final stage.” The show makes a big deal out of how “sofa” is probably not a Korean word or the right word for these chairs, but, whatever, everyone knew what he meant.

We hear Jay call “Ricky!” and it’s honestly very pleasant to hear someone pronounce it like that. (Not going to say “correctly,” just… correct to my ears, you know?)

Side note: with his hair styled down like this, I actually don’t recognize him. I mean, I know it’s him, but my brain doesn’t believe me.

Now it’s time to find out who is in 7th place. Well it’s one of Han Yu Jin, Kim Ji Woong, Kim Gyu Vin, Kim Tae Rae, or Keita.

And at 1:18:39, we find out it’s Kim Gyuvin.

I like the return to a messy mop of hair.

He says, “I want to thank you all for allowing me to end up in such a high rank. Through this final stage, I will prove to you why I need to debut.” Then he adds in uncertain Japanese, “I will become a more improved GyuVin. I love you.” Hiroto coaches him from the other side of the room.

I mean, I know that that interim ranking showed him really low, but it never occurred to me for a second he’d fall below 17. I think he might have been worried, though. He’s gotten some hate online. He sits down in the comfy chair and gives that weird smile of his.

Next is 6th place. Who could it be? Well, it’s one of Han Yu Jin, Kim Ji Woong, Kim Tae Rae, or Keita. Because it’s someone whose rank improved, it’s either TaeRae or Keita.

At 1:21:17, we find out it’s Keita. Nice! I knew he’d make it. I’m glad to see his rank improving. His Korean support is low, but his global support is insane. He’s the first person to outscore Jay in the global vote. (He outscored Jay’s Korean support, as well.)

Keita says, “I am just so happy and grateful to be able to move onto the final. I will keep doing my best.” Then he bows. That’s Keita for you.

Next is 5th place. Well, it’s either Han Yu Jin, Kim Ji Woong, Kim Tae Rae, or maybe Zhang Hao. The person is popular with teenagers, and his charming point is his shy smile. TaeRae doesn’t have a shy smile, but Yujin does.

At 1:22:58 we find out it’s Han Yujin, who at previous eliminations was 4th and 3rd.

Lee Jeonghyun turns around to look up at Park Hanbin and wonder out loud, “What place is TaeRae in?” Again, all three of them are signed together at WakeOne. And hopefully will all debut together ASAP.

Han Yujin says, “To the Star Creators who have shown me much love ever since Na Bina was released, I will work even harder from now on.” Then he adds in Chinese, “Hello. I’m 17-year old Han Yujin. I love you all. You’re so pretty. Thank you.” It doesn’t sound too bad to me but I don’t know Chinese.

Somi teases him about his legendary “Noona, I love you” thing and she asks him to say it to her. (Other trainees watching, including Kum Junyheon and Kim Gyuvin, mutter that they’d be happy to tell her that too.) He says, “Somi-Noona, I love you!” and Somi melts. It’s actually pretty cute, even though I have very little patience for this shiz.

As he goes to his seat, he’s mobbed by some of his friends, including his Yuehua teammate Ricky, who jokingly asks him to say “I love you hyung” to him, and his other Yuehua teammate Kim Gyubin, who seems happier for Yujin than he was for himself.

Next is 4th place, who only scraped past 5th place by a few thousand points -- I’ll do a point analysis at the end of this recap -- and it’s obviously Kim Ji Woong or Kim Tae Rae, or maybe Zhang Hao.

Almost immediately we find out it’s Tae Rae.

Hair stylist noona was really feeling the ruffley bang look today, wasn’t she?

TaeRae says, “To my Star Creators who have always supported me, thank you so much. I will do my best to repay you for your love and support with an even better performance on the final stage.” Then Somi makes him do a big weird laugh and it’s… weird. But he’s still cute.

He goes to take his place, and someone runs to hug him -- I’m pretty sure it’s his WakeOne teammate Park Hanbin.

Somi says she’s going to announce top 3, and Chen Kuan Jui says, in a big, bright, almost-not-sarcastic voice, “who on earth could it be? I’m so curious,” Big snaps for that, CKJ.

Obviously it’s Kim JiWoong, Zhang Hao, and Sung Hanbin.

Ok, so the show reminds us that the top placing trainee in the final episode will get to do a solo song on the group’s debut album, and we’re shown a clip of Kepler performing, with a focus on the first-place-winning Kim Chaeyoung. Thing is, though Chaeyoung came in first (and though she’s talented and sweet and I like her), she is definitely not the most popular member of Kepler these days. I checked a few different random rankings and she was ranked anywhere from 4th to last depending on which list I looked at. She has fans, definitely -- I’m sure plenty of people like her! -- I’m just saying that she’s not the runaway queen of the group or anything. Focusing on her just reminds us that it doesn’t matter AT ALL who comes in first, not even on the final episode, and definitely not now, a week out from first.

(Side note: Another example of this is Ni-Ki from Enhypen. He finished in fourth place in the show I-Land, and spent some time in the unfavored zone for the trainees, but is now the runaway king of the group, with his fancams showing millions of views. The public who votes for reality show trainees aren’t necessarily representative of the entire Kpop viewing population.)

Despite the show basically shoving that fact in our face, it continues to act as if we really care who will specifically will be first, second, and third. Also I think we all know who is third. But WHO COULD IT BE?

At 1:28:49, we find out it’s Kim JiWoong.

He says, “I am grateful and think of it as an honor to be able to provide comfort and happiness to others. Thank you.” I actually adore this guy. He’s a complete mystery of a human and I adore that.

Then there’s some dumb bit where Somi makes him do aegyo and it goes on way too long.

So now it’s time to announce who came in first between Zhang Hao and the impossibly, ridiculously perfect Sung Hanbin.

They say a lot of the normal, “what if confident, but polite?” type things, and then we find out that apparently Sung Hanbin helped Zhang Hao with the “Over Me” choreography to add some waacking elements. They weren’t even on the same team, and Hanbin still took time out of his schedule of providing solar power with his smile to go help his friend.

And at 1:34:19, we find out that Hanbin has taken first again.

He says, “Well, for this past Artist Battle mission, there was such a big benefit on the line, so I wasn’t really able to predict this. Please continue to cheer for me so I can run for the finish line, shining as bright as I can. My Say My Name members, I love you.”

Hao says, in his halting way, “I am so grateful and happy to be able to rank 2nd place again. I will continue running without stopping. Please continue being happy through my passion.” Then he adds in extremely halting Japanese, “motto ganbarimasu” -- kind of “I’ll keep going/ I won’t give up.” His vote tally shows that he is more than 800,000 points ahead of 3rd/4th/5th place (which are almost a tie).

But it’s nothing compared to Sung Hanbin, who is more than a million points ahead of Hao.

Sung Hanbin is dominating first place in a way we’ve never seen on the produce series. To put this in perspective:

In Produce 101 season 1, Jeon Somi and Kim Sejeong traded off between 1st and second, with Somi actually falling to 4th place at the 2nd elimination before finally finishing in first.

In Produce 101 season 2, Park Jihoon, Kim Jonghyeon, and Kang Daniel held first place at different times.

In Produce 48, Sakura, Lee Gaeun, and Jang Wonyoung held first place at different times.

In Produce X 101, Kim Yohan and Kim Wooseok traded off in first place.

In Girls Planet 999, Yurina was in first place in ep 5 and didn’t even make it into Kepler. Shen Xiaoting was in first place for most of the rest of the time, and then only made it into Kepler in 9th place, and Kim Chaeyhun came in first despite not ever ranking above 8th place before that.

Granted, all four Produce seasons were known for straight up vote rigging, so maybe one person really was the most popular the whole time. But regardless, Sung Hanbin’s DOMINATION of first place is completely unprecedented in previous seasons of this show, with or without vote rigging. If he comes in first on Friday morning, it will be something we’ve never seen before on this show.

Anyway, our top 9 is seated. Hey, if this is the debuting team, I’ll definitely follow them.

1:36:26 Chair 18

This is the part where they announce who is ranked 18th, ie, the very last survivor. I’m not going to go in much depth here because this part isn’t fun to recap, you know?

Haruto notices that Supercharger is still completely seated in the gallery -- no one has made it through the elimination. That’s the worst.

Here’s who’s left, with their episode 8 rank.

16 Haruto 18 Seo Won 19 Wang Zi Hao 20 Na Kamden 21 Lee Seung Hwan 22 Chen Kuan Jui 23 Zhang Shuai Bo 25 Takuto 26 Cha Woong Ki 27 Ollie 28 Hiroto

Who’s most likely to take that last spot? I hope Haruto, but really it could be any of them other than Z-Bo, Takuto, and Ollie, in my opinion. Let’s find out.

Somi announces the FOUR candidates for spot 18 -- that’s so cruel.

They announce Wang Zihao, Na Kamden, Cha Woongki, and Hiroto -- representing China, USA, Korea, and Japan.

Of course, this means that Haruto, Seo Won, Lee Seung Hwan, Chen Kuan Jui, Zhang Shuai Bo, Takuto and Ollie all have been eliminated.

I can’t believe it about Haruto. The way he hangs his head just breaks my heart. I don’t even want to screen cap it. I didn’t see it coming so it was just a punch in the gut.

I’m sad for all of them, really, but aside from Haruto, I’m also especially sad for Lee Seunghwan, who, you may not know, already went through the reality show ringer once and was a member of 1the9, a group whose promotions were severely impacted by covid-19. Poor Seunghwan -- luck just never seems to be on his side, though he’s handsome, sweet, and talented.

Side note: I was all up to date and ready to get this recap out on Saturday or something, but I just… didn’t… want to write it. I watched the whole thing taking quick notes to use as the basis of my recap later, and when Haruto was eliminated I just fast forwarded to find out who did survive and then turned the episode off and didn’t come back for several days. So if that’s how you’re feeling about it, me too. I guess maybe Haruto didn’t look like a viable candidate, so people gave up? Or maybe people thought that other people would vote for him, that he’d be safe? It’s strange to me that Hiroto beat Haruto in the final ranking. Nothing against Hiroto at all, but I’m just surprised.

Anyway, let’s finish this.

21st place turns out to be Hiroto, the only eliminated member of En Garde. From his spot on stage, Park Gunwook mutters to himself, “If we’d just gotten 1st place….” A general to the end, worrying about his troops. I will hear no talk about Gunwook being “mean” or anything like that.

Hiroto says (in slow, careful Korean), “I didn’t get a good result because I was lacking, but…” (Woongki interrupts quietly, saying “that’s not true,” and Somi looks heartbroken) “...I am happy if the Star Creators were happy while cheering for me.” It’s a very sweet speech.

Somi says, “You are not lacking!” and Hiroto’s face lights up. She continues: “None of you are lacking! All of you here are amazing!” There, that’s my girl. That’s my Somi. 💓 She is so much more human than pretty much any judge or host we’ve had on the show so far -- well, Sunmi was great too, but she was barely there. Somi knows exactly how these trainees feel and relates to them as equals, even though she’s successful and they’re not there yet. I’m glad she’s here. I bet she made this easier for them.

Next we announce 20th place: It’s Woongki.

His final speech is at 1:39:55 and it’s great. He says, “When I said that I would appear on Boys Planet, people told me that what I want is different from what I can do, that my time is up, and that I would learn to face reality. But I feel like that’s not true. Through Boys Planet, I was able to learn more about my potential as Cha Woongki. Woongki boy is just beginning. Thank you!” and then with a bright smile, he bows. Yeah, Woongki!

Somi says, shaking a cue card in the air for emphasis, “Don’t give up on your dream!” And Woongki cheerfully says, “I won’t!”

Finally, we announce 18th place, which means announcing 19th place at the same time.

18th place turns out to be Na Kamden. Jay practically falls out of his chair in relief, and we see Z-bo’s face is lit up with happiness. Ollie gives him a congratulatory hug -- probably the whole English speaking crew got pretty close at the show. Other trainees gather to console Wang Zi Hao, who is taking it in stride, as he takes basically everything in life.

Kamden says, “Honestly, when I wasn’t called before, I was organizing my thoughts and emptied myself of expectations. But thank you so much for allowing me to stand on such a large stage as the final.” Then he adds in English, “Love you Mom!” and then in Korean says, “I made it to the final!”

We check in with Wang Zi Hao. he says, in Chinese, “I was grateful to be able to experience these times together with everyone. I will treasure the fact that I was able to make good memories with you all at this starting point of my life. Thank you.” He’s such a sweetheart. Haruto mentioned that Wang Zi Hao joined Supercharger voluntarily in order to help Haruto -- isn’t that sweet. There’s often a G R E A T A G E N C Y R E S H U F F L I N G following a show like this, so I’m hoping that WZH ends up signing at another agency so we can see more of him in the future.

Somi wishes the ten eliminated trainees the best, and we pan over them. Haruto seems to be having the worst time of it -- the rest saw it coming, at least.

Here is the complete final ranking -- filling in the last few spots with some help from the internet.

Sung Hanbin

Zhang Hao

Kim Jiwoong

Kim Taerae

Han Yujin

Keita

Kim Gyubin

Ricky

Seok Matthew

Hui

Park Hanbin

Park Gunwook

Jay

Yoo Seungeon

Yoon Jongwoo

Kum Junhyeon

Lee Jeonghyeon

Na Kamden

Wang Zihao

Cha Woongki

Hiroto

Haruto

Chen Kuan Jui

Lee Seunghwan

Seo Won

Ollie

Takuto

Zhang Shuai Bo

Sung Hanbin is 1,046,481 points* ahead of Hao, who is 816,760 points ahead of 3rd place. However, JiWoong, TaeRae, and Yujin are all within about 25,000 points of each other, making them virtually tied. Then there’s 432,355 points between Yujin and Keita, so that puts Keita down kind of a tier. Keita is only 51,928 points ahead of Gyuvin, making them almost tied. The next few ranks are all about 130k-150k apart from each other, like a stair case, but then there’s a big gap (311,148) between Matthew and Hui. But from Hui down to Na Kamden, they’re all pretty close together, like 6000-60,000 apart -- especially if you remember that Lee Jeonghyeon got that 200,000 point benefit.

*I say points because they’re not straight up votes, due to the K/G weighting thing.

What I’m saying is that unless something drastic happens, I think that Sung Hanbin and Hao will be 1-2 on Friday; JiWoong, TaeRae, and Yujin all look like locks as well, and from Keita down to Matthew, things could easily move around, but it’s not looking super-duper likely that many people from Hui down to Kamden will end up in the top 9 -- unless Park Hanbin continues his meteoric rise and Matthew continues his sharp fall. If you're curious, here's the ranking of the top 18 if only Korean votes decided things:

Sung Hanbin

Kim Tae Rae

Kim Gyu Vin

Han Yu Jin

Kim Ji Woong

Zhang Hao

Yoo Seung Eon

Na Kamden

Kum Jun Hyeon

Park Hanbin

Hui

Lee Jeong Hyeon

Ricky

Park Gunwook

Yoon Jong Woo

Seok Matthew

Keita

Jay

And here's the ranking if only Global votes decided things:

Keita

Zhang Hao

Sung Hanbin

Jay

Seok Matthew

Kim Ji Woong

Han Yu Jin

Ricky

Park Gunwook

Yoon Jong Woo

Kim Tae Rae

Hui

Kim Gyu Vin

Park Hanbin

Kum Jun Hyeon

Yoo Seung Eon

Lee Jeong Hyeon

Na Kamden

I'll let you draw your own conclusions from that.

So... the next phase is the one-pick vote. I could rant at length about how dumb the one-pick system is in terms of creating a sustainable group. Groups that are truly successful tend to have multiple members that are popular among fans. There’s a popular boy group that I personally like only 2 members of, so I really can’t consider myself a fan of that group. Meanwhile in Exo, I basically can’t pick a favorite because I really like almost all of them. So letting us vote for multiple members would tend to create a situation in which the group is all loved by all the fans.

The rest of the episode was the boys preparing for their next song, and I have to admit, I don’t much care about those two last songs. The performances happen AT the finale, once the audience has already voted, so there’s kind of no point to them.

Here are the two groups for the two songs:

Hot Summer Sung Hanbin Kim Taerae Kim Ji Woong Ricky Lee Jeong Hyeon Kim Gyuvin Han Yujin Keita Yoon Jongwoo

Jelly Pop Hui Yoo Seung Eon Zhang Hao Park Gunwook Kum Junhyeon Park Hanbin Jay Na Kamden Seok Matthew

Who knows, maybe I’ll recap the rest later, but I wanted to get this posted.

Hope you’re all doing well, and I hope that your one-pick makes it.

#boys planet #haruto #sung hanbin #park hanbin #seok matthew #hui #ricky boys planet #kim gyuvin #na kamden #zhang hao #wang zi hao

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nicolos · 4 months ago

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student of the year gay agenda send post

#student of the year #jui speaks

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screampied · 6 months ago

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hi vegina i juy want to tell yoy i love u and yoy worms ❤️❤️❤️❤️ works ❤️❤️❤️❤️ i also think that yoy ae very smart! you is smart, you is kinddddd, y ou is loved!!! aoey if typpes i drinking 🍺 😕😕😕😕😕😕😕

hiiiii thank you 💋 i dunno what worms you speak of but thank youuuu so muchhhh 🫂🩷

LMAO go easy on urself and be safe nonnie !!! xo

#💬 anons.#🧁#i love you too!

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sungbeam · 1 year ago

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i saw someone doing this of another fandom but i thought it would be fun! your moots as tbz members? 😊

OMG THANK U FOR THIS ANON !!! i will try my best hehe >;3 (gonna try and do the moots i interact w most frequently :') i'm always super indecisive when it comes to these things sjfnr)

@justalildumpling — kim sunwoo or lee hyunjae; she and sunwoo r just two delulus in love 😔🤘🏻 and for some reason, she gives hyunjae sometimes, but maybe it's cuz they oftentimes don't realize their worth and how incredible they r 😔

@ethereal-engene — jacob bae (aheh); dude like,, she's such a ray of sunshine but very low-key in her humor and likes to call me out on my clownery so often 🤡 but she's also just one of the nicest people you'll ever meet

@jaehunnyy — lee juyeon; an absolute baby, an absolute gem, incredible, talented, beautiful, i love juy-chip— (but in all seriousness, chip def bodies juyo a lot, esp on the wholesome and talent aspect!! but they're also both incredible dancers hehe)

@winterchimez — lee sangyeon; skcnkdOKAY IM NOT TRYING TO CHEAT OKAY ally just takes care of me a lot and i feel like she's always giving that very warm sangyeon vibe :')) and maybe it's also the fact that now that i've gotten to know her, she's also def his type @_@

@hongyangi — ji changmin; high-key just a menace, always sending me sexc tbz pics and making me go feral 😭😭😭 but also like i read somewhere that changmin is usually the member who goes into others' rooms to just be w them, and dal kinda does that w the way she's always popping into people's inboxes to say hi <33

@hqrana — kevin moon; brooooo the way noa vibes is so kevin lmao like just a lot of good sass and attitude and i feel very alive yet comforted when i speak to her 🫂🫂 she and kevin r just so iconic as well, and it just feels like the right match if u get what i mean??

@loveliestfelix — choi chanhee; OMG like these two r absolute STUNNERS. im TELLING U wkfnksjf so much style, and also nana has such a sweet smile like chanhee (the quality goes hard guys 😔) but yeah nana is like, the person i admire (i get starstruck by her) and wanna embody just like new :'))

#sungbeam strikes again #moot ❧#lovely anon <3 #tbz </3

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inventors-fair · 2 years ago

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I’m Just Realizing I Messed Up the Quote On the Other Commentary Post So Pretend I Didn’t And Something Something Nail To Arms Commentary Part 2/2

No intro this time, just pure, uncut commentary!

@dimestoretajic - Pain Spike

Alright, so, I'm not super hot on that attach ability, mostly because I don't think it can work. I can just do it if sources I've controlled have dealt damage? This needs a trigger. I like the idea of having use while unequipped though, even if I think it should have a way to unequip itself then.

@yd12k - Phyrexian Leech

This card seems a bit all over the place for me. First off, it's a powerful creature, but not so powerful that it needs a drawback. And to be honest, I'm a tad worried that this is too strong, even if this nerfs my other creatures to all hell. Speaking of which, that math for that much disappointment would be another issue, but also can you even equip this onto a creature from the battlefield? What if I'd prefer an 8/8 lifelink to a 3/3 lifelink deathtouch? I like the flavor, but mechanically there are more than a few loose ends.

@greensunzenith - Progenitor's Armor

Okay, this is a very flavor forward design. The idea is that this is the big mamma jamma vampire, and as such everything feeds into them. I like that. Putting -1/-1 counters on your team to do it though feels really bad but I can see it. That said, since these are Inistraddi vampire colors, wouldn't most of your red/black creatures be vampires? I'd think it a tad gauche to feed off of other vampires, if that's even possible. I also think that making it a non-renewable resource for a temporary ability isn't great, since you'll have to re-equip it to do so, and as previously stated, re-equipping onto the creature it's equipping is odd.

@industrialsalad - Rebel's Board

I like this, and I also like how you're trying to make the playtest card unicycle into something actually feasible. My main problem with this is that it flips from creature to noncreature too much for my tastes. Like, I understand how giving someone else a skateboard would make them more menacing and collaborative, but I think that this is one of the times where mechanics bar a pretty decent idea from working. If I only could make one change though, it would probably be bumping up the toughness to +2, that way it's a nominal increase in case I want to actually crew it.

@reaperfromtheabyss - Renowned Laurels

This card is fantastic. I really appreciate how victory is represented as something that all colors get decent access to, as each color has their own form of evasion. This might be a tad worrisome for digital formats, seeing as this puts a trigger on the stack for each creature that hits, and I assume you don't want it to hop from each of your creatures. But I never really got into Arena, so

@yourrightfulking - Rioter's Banner

This is an interesting card, and I must say enjoy it. It rewards aggressive strategies, and it's highly versatile in where it can be leveraged. The forthmost issue I see is that this doesn't let you choose if you want to attach or not. This usually isn't an issue with activated abilities, since you had to activate them. But with things that trigger without the player doing anything, it's important to let them choose. Aside from that, awesome card!

@spooky-bard - Shambling Arsenal

This is a neat twist on Reassembling Skeleton that I think works really well. I think that the environment that it works best with would be artifact-based, since you're getting a lot of artifact ETBs off of this, but otherwise a neat card.

@hypexion - Surprising Knife

Okay, ninja equipment, that tracks. I like the idea, but why does it need to return a creature to hand if it's a knife? Was my friend a knife the entire time? And why does it need ot be unblocked? Is this just Soul Eater? It confuses me, but I suppose it could see play if it was more flavorfully tied together.

@little-red-rabbit - Thoughtgorger

Ooh, a nice powerful sword that takes my brain juice away. It's a cool design, but it also hinges on the fact that you have to equip it multiple times. You can do that, but the issue is that sometimes you want to equip it while it stays on your cool creature. In addition, this is bonkers late game, as you can activte the equip multiple times until your graveyard is empty and Thoughtgorger is full.

@i-am-the-one-who-wololoes - Unexpected Hideout

So, this is a good card, as it's essentially sneak attack but on an equipment. My main issue stems from the fact that unless I was given the art direction, I wouldn't have known what this was supposed to be. Unexpected Hideout sounds like either an enchantment, or a land. Giving this a name like "Unexpected Disguise" or "Violent Facsimile" would make this a much stronger design in my mind. I still appreciate it, and like how you included everyone's favorite inventor with it.

@casualcranium - Wakening Hedrons

I love this card so much, the flavor and oracle text wrap around each other so nicely, and it makes me want to go back to Zendikar just so that this card can become a reality. The one thing that I will point out is that you don't need to specify the p/t, as it is assumed to be zero unless stated by another source. Good job!

@dravidious - Warmage's Gauntlet

I really like the trend of charge counters for this contest, this card included. I could really see this card in a set like Strixhaven, and think it could be a really nice include in storm-y decks.

Runners and Commentary for Glorious Perfection in the coming days

-@gollumni

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom magic card #inventor's fair #to arms contest

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sabrin123 · 9 months ago

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hera-the-shoggoth · 1 year ago

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The following are the contents of the article, including a description of the infobox, listed in succession.

(title of infobox in Chinese and Manchu languages) Chinese Imperial Air Force (English) 中華帝國空軍 (Hanzi) Chung-hua Ti-kuo K'ung-chün (Wade-Giles, the most widely used Chinese romanization system in this timeline)

(Below is the name in Manchu script, it only renders sideways here) ᡩᡠᠯᡳᠮᠪᠠᡳ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ ‍ᡳ ᠠᠪᡴᠠᡳ ᠴᠣᠣᡥᠠ (Manchu) Dulimbai gurun-i Abkai Cooha (Manchu romanization)

Emblem of the Chinese Imperial Air Force:

Symbol consisting of the roundel with a blue-green-white-red dragon flying around the central red sun, vertical red and yellow banners with the name of the air force in white Hanzi and Manchu script, two outspread white bird wings, and the red imperial crown of the Great Qing Emperor

Founded: 10 August 1910; 113 years ago (as Army Flying Corps) 25 December 1929; 93 years ago (as current service)

Country: China Type: Air force

Role: Aerial warfare Airborne forces Air defense

Size: 300,000 active personnel (2023) 4,000+ aircraft (2023) Part of: Chinese Imperial Military Headquarters: Peking (this spelling remained popular in the English-speaking world) Motto(s) 盡忠報國 English: "boundless loyalty to the country" (the text of Yue Fei's famous tattoo) Colors: Blue, yellow, red (a medium cerulean blue, a slightly warm yellow, and a bright cherry red)

March: Quick: Dragon Aviators' March Slow: Five Thousand Years Anniversaries: Air Force Day (14 August) Aviation Day (10 August)

List of Engagements: Late Kuang-hsü Crisis

(Second Canton Revolt)

(Wu-ch'ang Rebellion)

(Hatchet Gang Rebellion) Sino-German War First World War Russian Civil War

(West Siberian Intervention) Warlord Era

(Imperial Protection War)

(Yün-Kwei War)

(Southern Expedition)

(Sinkiang Campaign) Outer Mongolia Insurgency Second Sino-Japanese War Second World War Chinese Civil War

(Tai-wan Strait Crisis) Korean War

(Yalu-Tumen Intervention) Sino-Indian War

(Battle of Bhutan) Tibet Uprising (1959)

(Operation Wind Shadow) Third Indochina War

(Operation Phoenix Eye) Spratly Islands Conflict Indonesia-Malaya War

(Operation Celestial Spear) Uzbekistan War

(Operation Black Tortoise)

Website: (Official website link)

Commanders: Commander-in-Chief: Jui-wen Emperor (era name 睿文, means "Forward-thinking culture") Director of the IDC: Li Kuo-t'ai Minister of War: Marshal Fan Sung-yün Chief of the Air Staff: Marshal Wei Chao-lin

Insignia: Roundel: Concentric circles of blue, yellow, and red, with a thin ring of blue on the outside, a large area of yellow inside it, and a small red circle at the center Fin flash: high visibility, Blue-Yellow-Red tricolor, low visibility yellow and red alone. Ensign: Black Ensign with Qing imperial flag in the canton. In the black field are depictions in white of the Little Dipper and the North Star, arranged in an arc from the middle fly to the lower hoist. The black field represents the night sky and commemorates the air force's famous night raids during World War II.

Aircraft flown: Bomber: Hsi-an JH-7, H-6 Electronic warfare: Russo-Balt RB-154, Shan-hsi Y-8, Shan-hsi Y-9, J-16D Fighter: Chʻêng-tu J-7, Mukden J-8, Chʻêng-tu J-10, Mukden J-11, Mukden J-16, Chʻêng-tu J-20, Samara Sa-27, Sa-30MKK, Sa-35S Helicopter: Harbin Z-8, Harbin Z-9 Attack helicopter: Harbin Z-19, CAIC Z-10 Utility helicopter: Harbin Z-20 Interceptor: Mukden J-8 Trainer: K'un-lun L-15, K'un-lun JL-8, JL-9 Transport: Hsi-an Y-20, Shan-hsi Y-9, Shan-hsi Y-8, Hsi-an Y-7, Zhukovsky Zh-76 Tanker: H-6U, Zh-78

Chinese name in various transcriptions used in this world: Traditional Chinese 中華帝國空軍 (used on the mainland) Simplified Chinese 中华帝国空军 (used on Tai-wan) Literal meaning: Chinese Imperial Air Force Bopomofo: ㄓㄨㄥㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄉㄧˇ ㄍㄨㄛˇ ㄎㄨㄥㄐㄩㄣ Wade–Giles: Chung-hua Ti-kuo K'ung-chün Cantonese Jyutping: Zung-waa dai-gwok Hong-gwan

(Below is the separate box for further reading on the Qing military that accompanies the main infobox in most such articles)

Armed Forces of the Great Ch'ing Empire Octagonal symbol known as "the Eight Corners" containing the colors of all the Eight Banners arranged to resemble the character 卐 (Wan, important to state-sponsored Vajrayana religion)

Executive departments:

Imperial Defence Council

Ministry of War

Staff:

Director of the IDC

General Staff of the Military

Works Department of the IDC

Censorate of the IDC

Services:

Chinese Imperial Military

Army

Navy

Air Force

Strategic Support

Independent troops:

Military Police Force

T'uan-lien Militia

Pao-chia Guards

Eight Banners

Special operations force:

Special Operations Department

Special Police Unit of the MPF

Snow Leopard Commando Unit

Mountain Eagle Commando Unit

Other troops:

CIM Joint Logistics Support Force

Military districts:

Eastern Theater Command

Southern Theater Command

Western Theater Command

Northern Theater Command

Central Theater Command

History of the Chinese military

Military history of China

Military ranks of China

Ranks of the Imperial Army

Ranks of the Imperial Navy

Ranks of the Imperial Air Force

(Main body of the article below here)

The Chinese Imperial Air Force (CIAF; Chinese: 中華帝國空軍; Wade–Giles: Chung-hua Ti-kuo K'ung-chün), also referred to as the Chinese Air Force (中華空軍) or the Imperial Air Force (帝國空軍), is the principal aerial service of the Great Ch'ing Empire, a part of the Chinese Imperial Military along with the Imperial Navy and the Imperial Army. The CIAF was officially established on 25 December 1929 and it is composed of five branches: aviation, ground-based air defense, radar, Airborne Corps and other support elements.

The development of the CIAF began with the creation of the Pei-yang Army Flying Corps in 1910, which flew French biplanes in reconaissance and bombing operations against rebels. With the splintering of the Pei-yang Army in 1916, elements of the Flying Corps entered the service of the various warlords vying for control of the government. During the First World War, ten bombers were shipped to Shang-hai for the Peking Government's use in dislodging the German Navy from Kiautschou Bay. The Flying Corps would participate in the Southern Expedition using primarily the Avro Avenger fighter aircraft and the Avro Aldershot heavy bomber provided by the United Kingdom, and in 1929, with the warlords brought together or defeated, the Air Staff was created as a separate branch of the military. The UK also assisted with the expansion of the Chinese aerospace industry during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Changes in the organization of the CIAF followed by modernization programs in the 1980s and increased technology development in the 21st century resulted in the J-20 stealth multirole fighter, the first of its kind for China.

The Air Force's mission is to secure the objectives of the Imperial Defence Council which are to "provide necessary security and defense of the Empire and to support the Government's international obligations". The highest-ranking military officer in the Air Force is the Chief of the Air Staff, who exercises supervision over Air Force units, while the IDC assigns Air Force components to unified combatant commands. Some units are also ceremonially affiliated with the Eight Banners, but since 1931 have been functionally integrated into the civilian command structure. The Helicopter Command contains most of the rotary-wing aircraft of the CIAF. Most of the air force is based in Mainland China, but some units do serve on foreign operations (principally over Manipur and Bukhara) or at long-established foreign bases (Havana, Ream, Djibouti, and Gorno-Badakhshan). Although the CIAF is the principal Chinese air power arm, the Imperial Navy's Fleet Air Corps and the Army Air Corps also operate armed aircraft.

Contents: 1 History 1.1 Origins 1.2 Warlord Era and Yüan Ch'en 1.3 First United Front 1.4 Second Sino-Japanese War 1.5 Chinese Civil War 1.6 Korean War to the Sino-Russian Split 1.7 1970s to 1980s 1.8 P'ing-hsiang era (平祥, Peaceful and Auspicious) 1.9 Jui-wen era 2 Personnel 2.1 Ranks and insignia 2.2 Commanders 3 Structure 3.1 Senior leadership 3.2 Headquarters 3.3 Commands 3.3.1 Transport command 3.3.2 Long-range command 3.3.3 Expeditionary command 3.3.4 Training and research 3.4 Order of battle 3.5 Airbases 3.6 Aerobatic display team 4 Aircraft 4.1 Combat air 4.2 Intelligence 4.3 Maritime patrol 4.4 Helicopters 4.5 Training aircraft 4.6 Advanced jet training 5 See also 6 References 6.1 Citations 6.2 Sources 7 Further reading 8 External links

History: (Further information: link to page "Aviation in China")

Origins:

Today's Chinese Imperial Air Force (CIAF) traces its roots back to August 10, 1910 when the government authorized the creation of the Army Flying Corps in an effort to improve intelligence and gain the upper hand on insurrections. On the same day, construction began on Peking Nan-yüan Airport as part of a program to modernize national infrastructure. Initiated in the wake of the Boxer Protocol in 1901, the Keng-tzu New Policies were ordered by the Empress Dowager Tz'ŭ-hsi to reform government bureaucracy along with the military, and by the start of the Hsuan-t'ung reign a group of preparatory departments had been organized for experimentation with new technology and administrative systems. In 1903 an imperial edict expanded the Wu-wei Corps to 36 divisions, creating the Pei-yang Army, in 1905 the Imperial Examinations were abolished, and in 1907 a new law code and judicial system were rolled out. That same year, the tax code was reformed and the rail system was nationalized, which greatly helped the empire's finances but caused significant unrest as well.

With the death of Jung-lu in 1903, General of the Right Division Yüan Shih-k'ai became commander of the Pei-yang Army. His role in the 1898 coup d'état against the Kuang-hsü Emperor made him many enemies, and when the empress dowager and the emperor died within a day of each other in 1909, he was forced to resign by Prince Ch'ün and return to his home village ostensibly for health reasons. In spite of this, Yüan remained in communication with his associates in the army. In the wake of the February 1910 Keng-hsü Army Uprising, he authorized the Pei-yang Army to found a flight school at Nan-yüan to train a group of eight pilots to fly reconnaisance using Cauldron Type D biplanes purchased from France, improving the army's ability to respond. In early 1911, the Aviation Research Institute was founded.[6]

Warlord Era and Yüan Ch'en:

(Photo labeled "Nan-yüan Air Force Academy drillmasters in front of Avro aircraft") (Photo labeled "Voisin V in Shang-hai")

In 1911, a major popular uprising began in Canton while another army mutiny occurred at Wu-ch'ang. In a panic, Empress Dowager Lung-yü convinced Yüan to come out of retirement and lead the war effort in exchange for the position of Prime Minister and the final adoption of the Hsuan-t'ung Constitution. The rebellion was crushed by the end of 1912, and the T'ung-meng-hui (TMH) revolutionary society was forced to flee to Japan once again with numerous dead. With the south pacified, Yüan feared he would no longer be of use to the Ch'ing court. In spite of the bureaucrats' protests, he brought his army into the capital in order to protect himself and his allies from execution, essentially holding the court hostage. For five years, he and his majority Han chinese cabinet ruled the country.

Reasoning that China desired a new Han-ruled dynasty, Yüan revised the constitution to make himself a dictator before announcing plans to seize the throne as the Hung-hsien Emperor of Great Ch'en, allowing his army to plunder Manchu estates as northern Chinese cities descended into racial violence. The Ch'ing court fled to Gan-su, where support for Han rule was lower, under the protection of Ma An-liang and Shaan-hsi governor Ch'ien Neng-hsün. With the divided country now in civil war, many of Yüan's closest supporters abandoned him, and the solidarity of his Beiyang clique of military protégés dissolved. The Hung-hsien Emperor was opposed by not only the Ch'ing and the minorities, but far more importantly by his subordinate military commanders, who believed that his usurpation would allow him to rule without depending on the support of the military.

A coalition of governors and officers led by An-hui governor Liang Tun-yen launched the Imperial Protection War against him, officially in the name of the Hsuan-t'ung Emperor, while the Air Corps rebelled as well and dropped bombs on the Forbidden City. Yüan's health continued to decline, and his death in 1916 paved the way for the return of K'ang Yu-wei and other anti-Yüan reformist exiles. The Prince Ch'ing Cabinet retook control of the capital, denouncing Yüan and purging his allies, while government authority was greatly damaged. Provinces broke away and the TMH returned in 1917 to start a Han-nationalist insurgency in Hunan.

The fall of Yüan Shih-k'ai created a power vacuum and fractured the army. Fearing for their lives, many of the southern Pei-yang generals revolted and took control of the provinces as military governors. Minister of War Wang Shih-chen, nominally in charge of the Pei-yang Army, abolished it and reorganized the loyalist forces into the Chinese Imperial Military. Expanding the airbases at Nan-yüan and Ta hsiao-ch'ang, Marshal Wang was able to acquire more machines from Britain and France when the new army attacked the German Leased Territory of Kiautschou Bay in 1917 and China was drawn into the First World War.

As part of the allied Operation Asher, ten Voisin V pusher bombers were produced in France and shipped to Shang-hai. In spite of having defeated the 1914 allied attack, by this time the garrison was low on supplies and the Chinese aircraft proved devastating to German morale during the Second Siege of Tsing-tao. An avid aviation enthusiast, the Hsuan-tung Emperor himself also took great interest in the development of the Air Corps, and when he assumed direct rule in 1924 he personally invested large amounts of his constitutional subsidy into it.

First United Front:

During the late 1920s, the Ch'ing Imperial Government formed the first united front with the liberal T'ung-meng Hui (TMH) party against competing warlords in a bid to reunite a fractionalized China, combining the liberal Wu-han Government with the Imperial Assembly. In this period, various airplanes were purchased and deployed by warlords in their struggle for power until nominal Chinese reunification in 1929 following the Southern Expedition which saw the use of Avro Aldershot heavy bombers to inflict serious damage on the infrastructure of several provinces in support of the government offensives. That year, the CIAF was designated as an independent branch of the armed forces. The eighteen graduate pilots of the military flight school included nine republican and nine monarchist pilots who were sent to the Russian Federation for two years of advanced flight training under the tutelage of the more experienced Russian Air Force. Two of the imperial graduates, Kuo Tzu-han and Sung Chien-yü, continued to serve in the Russian Air Force for five years until, in September 1928, they returned to Ti-hua as instructors.

At the same time, Tsai-chen the fifth Prince Ch'ing established the Bureau of Aeronautics in 1920. Subsequently, the organization continued to develop, and successively established an aircraft factory, an aviation command, and a new aviation school in Hsi-an. In May 1927, the Aviation Department of the Ministry of War was changed to the Aviation Committee of the Defense Council of the Imperial Government. By 1929, the government's aviation force was officially independent from the Army General Command and became an independent service.

Second Sino-Japanese War:

(Photo labelled "Self-developed Chinese transport aircraft during the Battle of Ch'ang-sha")

Following the abolition of many of their social privileges in the Hsin-wei Reform Act, many Banner families experienced poverty and violence. In response to perceived neglect, they became disaffected with the Hsuan-t'ung Emperor. Some sided with the northeastern Pei-yang Army generals of the Fêng-tʻien Clique, while some sought support from Imperial Japan.

A minor dispute known as the Wan-pao-shan incident between Han and Korean farmers occurred on July 1, 1931. The issue was highly sensationalized in the Imperial Japanese and Korean press, and used for considerable propaganda effect to increase anti-Chinese sentiment in the Empire of Japan. Believing that a conflict in Manchuria would be in the best interests of Japan, Kwantung Army Colonel Seishirō Itagaki devised a plan to provoke Japan into invading Manchuria by setting up a false flag incident for the pretext of invasion. The Independent Garrison Unit of the 29th Infantry Regiment (which guarded the South Manchuria Railway) placed explosives near the tracks, but far enough away to do no real damage.

On the morning of September 19, two artillery pieces installed at the Mukden officers' club opened fire on the Chinese garrison nearby, in response to the alleged Chinese attack on the railway. Chang Hsueh-liang's small air force was destroyed, and his soldiers fled their destroyed Pei-ta-ying barracks, as five hundred Japanese troops attacked the Chinese garrison of around seven thousand. The Chinese troops were no match for the experienced Japanese troops. By the evening, the fighting was over, and the Japanese had occupied Mukden at the cost of five hundred Chinese lives and only two Japanese lives, thus starting the greater invasion of Manchuria. By 1932, most of the region was under Japanese control and the Empire of Manchukuo was created, while a young member of the Hitara clan was enthroned in Ch'ang-ch'un as the K'ang-te Emperor.

The CIAF immediately dispatched combat aircraft to the Hung-ch'iao Aerodrome during the January 28th Incident of 1932, and aerial skirmishes occurred for the first time between China and the Imperial Japanese. In February 1932, US Reserve Lt. Robert McCawley Short, who was transporting armed Chinese aircraft, shot down an IJN aircraft on February 19, 1932, and downed another on February 22 before he was killed (he was posthumously raised to the rank of colonel in the CIAF). During the early days of China's war of resistance against the Japanese invasion, the Imperial Air Force participated in several battles, including attacking Imperial Japanese Navy warships along the Yangtze River and supporting the Battle of Shang-hai. By this time, the Imperial Air Force's main fighter models were the Curtiss Hawk II and Hawk III fighters. On August 14, 1937, Japanese Imperial Navy bombers bombed Hang-chou Chien-ch'iao Airport, but was defeated by the CIAF; therefore, August 14 was designated as Air Force Day by the Imperial Government. In May 1938, the CIAF dispatched two B-10 bombers to Japan to drop leaflets.

By the middle of the war, intelligence units of the Imperial Japanese Navy cracked the radio codes of the Chinese army, putting the Air Force under attack. In the middle and late stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War, the addition of Chennault and other foreign pilots, as well as the support provided by the United States after joining the Allies, restructured the combat power of the CIAF and participated in the Hsin-chu Air Attack, and air raids on Japan. After the end of World War II, in June 1946, the Aviation Committee of the Military Committee of the Imperial Government was changed to the General Command of the Air Force.

Chinese Civil War:

In January 1941, as intensifying clashes between imperial and TMH forces ended the second united front against invading Japanese forces, the government's Imperial Defense Council (IDC) established the Air Force Engineering School with Kuo as commandant and Sung as head instructor. In May 1944, just over a year before the Japanese surrender to Allied forces, the IDC established an Aviation Section in Hsi-an with Kuo as its director and Sung as deputy director. Two years later in May 1946 and after the withdrawal of Japanese troops, the IDC established the Northeast Old Aviation School in Kirin. By 1949 the Aviation Section of the IDC had 560 trained personnel (125 pilots and 435 ground support specialists), purchased 435 aircraft from the Russian Federation, acquired 115 republican aircraft, and operated seven military flight schools.

During the Second Civil War between the T'ung-meng Hui and the Imperial Government from 1946 to 1949, the Air Corps of the Republic of China participated in combat support and air strikes against the CIAF on the mainland and around the Tai-wan Strait. In October of the same year, the ACROC assisted in stopping the advance of the Chinese Imperial Army at the Battle of Ku-ning-t'ou in Quemoy, and in April 1949, the Air Corps retreated to the former Japanese colony of Tai-wan along with other government departments of the ROC. In October 1952, Marshal Chou Ên-lai and the battle-hardened army of the Chinese Communist Party broke with the T'ung-meng Hui and launched a successful revolution with the help of Indigenous Taiwanese, abolishing the National Assembly of the TMH and founding the People's Republic of China; the world's second socialist state after India. The ACROC sided with the revolution and became the PRCAAF. As relations soured between the left liberal governments of NATO and the right authoritarian governments of the Eurasian Pact, the United States intervened on behalf of the PRC and preserved the island's self-government. There have been at least 11 air battles in the area since 1952.

The real opportunity to obtain a large number of aircraft came from the Northeast Alliance Aviation School established in 1946 after the end of the Anti-Japanese War. At this time, the Imperial Government seized Japanese-made aircraft, trained pilots, and received a large number of American-made aircraft from the surrendered ROC Air Force in southeast China and Nanking during the civil war. On March 17, 1949, personnel were transferred from the Northeast Aviation School to establish the "Imperial Defence Council Aviation Bureau" in Peking. The director Ch'ang Ch'ien-k'un (the executive vice president of the Northeast Aviation School), under the Combat Education Department, Aeronautical Engineering Department, Civil Aviation Department, Information Section and Supply Section, staffed 64 people. In May 1949, the Navigation Management Office, the Secretariat, and the Imperial Office were added, and the number was expanded to 172 people. The major military regions have since successively established aviation divisions.

(end of finished part of article)

Notes:

While they are strange bedfellows, the strategic importance of Tai-wan Island was sufficient for the US to accept the existence of the PRC; the start of a similar reconciliation as began in the 1970s during Detente.

In this timeline, the White Movement won the Russian Civil War. Specifically, the Provisional All-Russian Government or "Ufa Directory" of Alexander Kolchak defeated the Bolsheviks in 1919, retaking Moscow and Petrograd partially with the help of a Qing expeditionary force which aided the Basmachi rebels in Central Asia and helped hold sections of the Trans-Siberian Railway alongside the Czechoslovak Legion. Kolchak was assassinated by a monarchist in 1920, which began a second phase of the civil war. The conflict ended in 1922 when the Ufa Directory combined with the Samara Government to form a federal republic of Russia dominated mostly by Kadets and Right SRs.

Primary Stage Socialism is still very young in this world and revolutionary parties have only been successful in the Global South. During the alternate Cold War, the western bloc was primarily fighting the Eurasian Pact of the Greater White Movement and gave military assistance to any allies it could find from the PRC to India to Iraq. Only after the main phase of the Cold War ended did the US and NATO begin to turn against these countries.

#China #alternate history #Qing #Cixi #Guangxu #Sun Yat Sen #Wade Giles #Manchu #Xuantong #East Asia #russian civil war #bolshevism #Zhou Enlai #Yuan Shikai #Xinhai #Taiwan #history #aviation

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