Welcome to my episode five review of Make Mate 1.
If you have not read my introduction post yet to this reality survivor competition show, please go back and read it to get a great idea of what to expect from this show.
If you do not want spoilers, please do not continue reading because I will not hide anything in my review. Besides, this episode already aired a while ago.
I am a bit behind on posting episodes since I took a week long vacation break, but I am back to finish up mission two or should I write, mission one because in episode 6, I was informed that the next mission is actually mission two so this mission is considered mission one, "One Artist, Two Stages," since this mission introduces the eliminations. I guess the previous missions were warm-ups or intro missions. Therefore, I will refer to this round of the competition as mission one even though in my previous episode four review, I mentioned that this was mission two. I won't change the description in my episode four review at this point since it is already published.
Let's continue the review where we left off in the 2PM, One Artist, Two Stages battle with Mate Group B 2PM team on stage for their chance to shine.
Mate Group B 2PM "Again and Again" Performance:
Han Yu Seop
Yoon Ho Hyeon
Lee Do Ha
Choi Han Gyeol
Jeong Hyun Uk
Kim Hak Seong
It is clear that when leader Han Yu Seop walked on stage that he was the main star. There was no question that this performance would be his turn to shine. If I didn't notice him before, I definitely notice him now.
Miraku from Mate Group B already determined that Mate Group B 2PM would win just by Mate Group B 2PM team's presence on stage.
Han Yu Seop introduced himself as the one with fiery charisma. Seo Yoon Deok from rival Mate Group A team mentioned that he shouldn't have mentioned pumping muscles to Han Yu Seop before Han Yu Seop went on stage because now it looks like Han Yu Seop had the advantage. I would have to say that this is a competition, but basic sportsmanship characteristics are still in place and that is what I love about Korean culture.. I think, deep down, about the purpose of the Make Mate 1 show is to cheer and support each contestant including the contestant themselves.
Yoon Ho Hyeon introduced himself as the one with fiery visuals. Visuals? Yes. Fiery Visuals? I didn't see it. I think when somebody adds the fire characteristic to describe themselves, it's all about the eye gaze. There must be a stare that makes the receiver a bit uncomfortable at least to exude a fiery characteristic. Lee Do Ha described himself as having fiery passion, but he gave such a weak one-two punch. I would recommend that Lee Do Ha become more confident and give me an eye gaze worthy of being fiery. Choi Han Gyeol was trying to be the fiery maknae (youngest member). This could work since he is showing innocence which contradicts the fiery part. This is just enough tease to make me curious about the fiery part which he has not shown yet. Jeong Hyun Uk introduced his fiery charms. I am not sure how to envision fiery charms, but he looked to be on the cute side. Kim Hak Seong went a step slightly further to display fiery sexiness with his attempt to pull his collar back a bit to show his bare neck. I like that attitude. So far, Han Yu Seop and Kim Hak Seong are already top contenders for the fiery style. Actually, I think the male contestants could benefit from some female opinion or perspective to make their stage and personality fit the concept better. I do not know what happens behind the scenes. Also, they shouldn't appear shy on stage, but there are certain times in which it looks adorable, but I prefer if they stick to the concept as a default.
Since MC Mate Xiumin mentioned that the team returned as real men, Lee Do Ha and Choi Han Gyeol tried to copy Kim Hak Seong's concept of playing with his collar in a cute way. MC Mate Xiumin then announced that the song this group will perform is 2PM's "Again and Again."
Back in the C mate panel room, C mate Ingyoo mentioned that this song is difficult to do and Vata was a bit concerned about this group.
MC Mate Xiumin continued by commenting that Han Yu Seop's happiness as a leader was short-lived and asked which members gave Han Yu Seop a hard time, in which Yoon Ho Hyeon, Lee Do Ha, and Choi Han Gyeol raised their hands. They were the most inexperienced contestants, it seems since they were mostly performing like rookies so far in the competition.
The Mate Group B 2PM story started off with the interim assessment, but they did not finish the choreography. I saw Jeong Hyun Uk's powerful efforts during the interim assessment. MC Mate Ingyoo thought the beginning choreography was a disaster. All he could see was Lee Do Ha and his snake attack movements. Leader Han Yu Seop was blamed for the shortcomings of the group.
In the beginning, Han Yu Seop started one-on-one lessons with the weaker members of the group: Lee Do Ha and Yoon Ho Hyeon, who unfortunately, were on the same team so there was a lot of work to do. Because doing the one-on-one lessons slowed down the group's progress, the group was not able to complete the choreography on time for the interim assessment.
Han Yu Seop decided to change the direction of practice for the group. Basically, members who fell behind would need to practice until they are satisfied with their own performance. I didn't quite catch what Han Yu Seop meant, but he went down to teach the basics like a simple hip-hop walk with Lee Do Ha and Yoon Ho Hyeon. Amazingly, this seemed to have worked as I see major improvements from Lee Do Ha and Yoon Ho Hyeon. They still seems a bit rushed with their movements, but at least it was better than the original interim performance. I think a great dance performance is achievable if the dancer puts in enough time and effort into it. I know that they didn't have enough time, but they have to work with what they have at the time to achieve the best outcome that they can achieve in this situation.
During the final rehearsal, the Mate Group B 2PM team encountered another setback. As per C mate Solar, Han Yu Seop's facial expressions were not good when he sang. C mate Vata added that the song will not work if the members only scowl. The song requires manly charms and sexiness. Vata advises the team to go home and practice in a drenched state like how they are drenched on stage at that moment. C mate Ingyoo continued the thought of asking the team to relax and focus on the emotion of regret that is conveyed in the song.
Four members of the team, Han Yu Seop, Lee Do Ha, Kim Hak Seong, and Yoon Ho Hyeon did as suggested to turn on the shower in their dorm bathroom. However, the shower was not big enough for the four of them. Han Yu Seop ended up drenching Lee Do Ha the most. Leader Han Yu Seop believed that they would put on a good performance simply because the team members have been helping each other.
The Mate Group B 2PM team was on stage and ready to begin their performance and Han Yu Seop, who lined up in the front of a vertical line, looked a bit nervous. Rival Seo Yoon Deok was impressed by Han Yu Seop's looks. Mate Group B's Midori also commented that Han Yu Seop looked sexy. Rival Mate Group A 2PM were also in awe of Han Yu Seop's handsome looks, but leader Kim Seung Ho (07) tried to snap them out of it by asking the team not to be too impressed. The C mates weren't sure what to expect since rehearsals did not go smoothly.
Han Yu Seop started off the song with strong movements and the team matched up to create an awesome background formation for him. I was impressed when the group naturally split up into a V formation and danced in sync and they didn't sing yet. Unlike what C mate Solar mentioned in the rehearsal, I thought Han Yu Seop's expressions were fine and he sang stably with a longing emotion. Jeong Hyun Uk sang really clearly, but he didn't particularly match the concept that Han Yu Seop built up for Jeong Hyun Uk. Yoon Ho Hyeon and Lee Do Ha seemed a little bit unsure of themselves. Lee Do Ha displayed a bit of cuteness as he switches his gaze from one camera to another, but this didn't match the concept and made him look a bit confused. Han Yu Seop surprised the C mates with his facial expressions as he sang his part. There must have been a major improvement since the rehearsal, but I couldn't compare since I could not see the rehearsals in detail. Choi Han Gyeol performed a chorus part and he sang just as clearly as Jeong Hyun Uk and Choi Han Gyeol did well to stay in character so I would say Choi Han Gyeol performed better than Jeong Hyun Uk. Kai from rival group mate A 2PM team was the most impressionable by Choi Han Gyeol and Han Yu Seop. When I saw Kim Hak Seong perform his chorus part, I thought he most resembles the 2PM concept. In the second verse, Jeong Hyun Uk stepped up his game and went back into character. I can tell that his dance movements are are polished.
In the dance break section, I love that superman jump move that all the members do at the same time. With Han Yu Seop in the middle, the dance break looked strong and stable. I'm glad that Kim Hak Seong took over the center position in the last part of the dance break because he really fits the 2PM concept. Jeong Hyun Uk came back to deliver a strong rap to keep up the momentum, but unfortunately Lee Do Ha couldn't maintain the momentum when it was his turn. I can't exactly remember why I was so impressed with Lee Do Ha's rap skill in Lee Do Ha's very first stage performance, but it seems that he is not very consistent with rap skills. I thought if he at least had one strong point, I can continue to support him in the competition, not as my top mate picks, but support him to stay in the competition as long as possible. Lee Do Ha's rap had a little mumble and it seemed that he had trouble keeping up with the beat. I think, with more experience in the future, he should he have more opportunities in this industry. Lee Do Ha can definitely improve his performance skills. However, C mate Solar commented that Lee Do Ha was better than yesterday's rehearsal so I have to take her word for it that Lee Do Ha improved on some level. When Yoon Ho Hyeon took the center to sing the chorus, I didn't see him commanding the stage so he had a missed opportunity there. I can hear Jeong Hyun Uk so clearly in the chorus parts while Han Yu Seop took the lead vocal/adlibs to finish the song off. C mate Lim Han Byul commented that the performance was so much better when the Mate Group B 2PM team members are relaxed. Apparently, as per C mate Lim Han Byul Special C mate Ni-Ki gave his first applause in the competition after Mate Group B 2PM finished their performance.
Mate Group A tried to console themselves with leader Kim Seung Ho (07) commenting that the Mate Group A 2PM team had a louder applause.
In the C mate panel room, C mates were praising Han Yu Seop's relaxed sexy image on stage. Special C mate Jungwon highlighted Jeong Hyun Uk since Jungwon stated that one cannot overdo or downplay the performance and Jeong Hyun Uk knew how to moderate that part. I guess I was nitpicking on the beginning part of Jeong Hyun Uk's performance, but I agree that Jeong Hyun Uk ended up being a stronger contender as the performance went on, but there is still something missing, something bland that I can't quite state that stops me from elevating Jeong Hyun Uk into my top mate pick radar. Unfortunately, Choi Han Gyeol and Kim Hak Seong were more memorable to me.
If I were to vote for any of the contestants on stage, I think there is no question that there is no reason for me to not vote for any contestant so all contestants will get my vote by default if I were in the audience. I have to vote after seeing them work hard to put on a performance. This reminds me of when I went to a KCON event in New York years ago and even rookie acts were giving over a 100% effort into their stages so I was really wowed by everybody on stage. I can be more picky when it comes to my top 7 make mate picks, but overall, this "Again and Again" performance is a performance that I would like to rewatch for fun and the performance can garner an encore from me.
Conclusion: After this performance, it is clear that I need to add Han Yu Seop to not only my mission pick, but for my final mate pick as well. I think he is a necessary team member for the final team. So far, I had Jo Min Hae and Jia Hao in my mental final lineup so now I have three people reserved in my mind for the final lineup. I guess the vision is getting clearer for me, but I still do not know how many members are in the final lineup. Han Yu Seop is needed in the group to be the center and visual. I did not notice him that much when he was in the "Very Good" team, but now my eyes have been opened.
I wanted to give some special mentions to Choi Han Gyeol even though he had a small part and Kim Hak Seong who appears to be a natural for the 2PM concept. However, I need to scrutinize to seven contestants so only Han Yu Seop made it to to my final mission round one pick from this team as the fourth contestants in my mission one pick along with Jang Hyun Jun, Takuma, and Jung Hyun Jun.
There was still funny banter between the two 2PM mate groups to hype up their own team to win including who was the tallest. MC mate Xiumin shot down that topic since he was much shorter than the tallest contestants.
The special C mates weighed in on who they think would win. Kwon Eunbi rooted for Team B since the song was more difficult to perform and the group managed it well. Jungwon thought Team A had better teamwork and Team B had better facial expressions. Considering the camera cuts, Team B probably looked better on screen. Jungwon had a lot of considerations in his mind. In the end, the C mates all agreed that the live audience might have a different view altogether, which I think could be true and also audience members might have their own biases already so it might not be an objective vote. Personally, based on what I wrote and especially when I wanted to watch the performance again (and again?), I personally rooted for Mate Group B 2PM team.
Once again, MC mate Xiumin explained that the total scores from each group will determine the winner. Mate Group B 2PM team was announced as the winner. Han Yu Seop thanked his group members, They received a good result from their hard and difficult work. I would think their journey was rough. Han Yu Seop felt like he was a leader that their group can be proud of so he was extremely happy. Han Yu Seop was visually emotional. Jeong Hyun Uk added that the team was worried that they would let Mate Group B down, but now the team can't wait to tell their Mate Group B team the good news.
From the Mate Group A team, Jo Jae Hyeon explained that their group also put in a lot of effort as well so the results were disappointing.
Back in the green room, it was time to reveal the individual results. Since Mate Group A 2PM team only had five members, the lowest score from Mate Group B 2PM team with six members would be excluded from the final count. Yoon Ho Hyeon had 470 points so his score was excluded.
In fifth place was Aki with 473 points and Choi Han Gyeol with 488 points.
In fourth place was Jo Jae Hyeon with 498 points and Kim Hak Seong with 496 points. That was very close.
In third place was Kai with 507 points and Lee Do Ha with 535 points.
In second place was Ki Hyeong Jun with 522 points and Jeong Hyun Uk with 584 points.
In first place was Kim Seung Ho (07) with 703 points and Han Yu Seop with 691 points. I'm surprised that Kim Seung Ho (07) beat Han Yu Seop in points, but it was a close match. Han Yu Seop thought he would win, but that was a big surprise that he didn't get the top score.
C Mate Hanhae mentioned that Kim Seung Ho was the only 2PM contestant that went beyond 700 points. I wonder why Han Yu Seop did not score high. It's not clear to me where Han Yu Seop went wrong.
Now, it's time for the last battle: SHINee teams. Both Mate Groups were hyping this battle as the highlight. I think so since SHINee songs are no joke and the choreography for a lot of their songs is mindblowing. If there is a God level in difficulty, this could be it.
Both SHINee teams walked on stage and the Mate Groups were hyped up because this battle will be the tiebreaker. Mate Group A SHINee team gave a strong, sharp and strict introduction while Mate Group B SHINee team did the gentleman bow with a flourish just like the "U" team did in the pre-mission round.
MC Mate Xiumin announced that this will be an "ace" match. Leader Jung Jae Young mentioned that they have two leaders on the team (with Jeon Joon Pyo) and four members on the team who previously won first place (Bing Fan, An Xin, Seo Yoon Deok and Jo Min Jae) in the pre-mission round.
Mate Group B SHINee team leader Jia Hao tried to counter that his team has no weak members and every member is good which is why they are confident that they will win. That sounds like a bold statement given that none of the team members except for Jia Hao is on my top mate pick list.
Mate Group A SHINee team will perform first. I am not sure how it was determined that Mate Group A always performed first. Maybe it was part of their benefits.
Mate Group A SHINee "Everybody" Performance:
Jung Jae Young
Bing Fan
An Xin
Seo Yoon Deok
Jo Min Jae
Jeon Joon Pyo
Leader Jung Jae Young introduced himself as the captain robot. Bing Fan described himself as the energy puppy. The crowd was screaming for Bing Fan so much that Midori from the Group B SHINee team asked teammate Lin why Bing Fan was so popular. I wish the show aired Lin's response because I would like to know as well. Perhaps Bing Fan was already famous before he joined the Make Mate 1 show. An Xin introduced himself as the Chili boy. I have no idea where these ideas come from so far. Seo Yoon Deok described himself as the mischievous robot. Jo Min Jae started with singing the chorus of "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" and described himself as the Brave Orgel Doll. I have no idea what this means. The best I can search in Google is that an Orgel doll is a Japanese musical doll that can be found in a music box. Special C mate Kwon Eunbi was drawn to Jo Min Jae's voice. For some reason, we no longer get any more scenes of special C mates Enhypen for the rest of the show. Did they leave early? Lastly, Jeon Joon Pyo named himself as the Big Hero Jeon Joon Pyo who will rescue the viewers. I guess this is a reference to concept of the "Big Hero 6" Disney film. The introductions are too random for me.
MC Mate Xiumin proceeded to reveal Mate Group A SHINee's song: Everybody. Xiumin mentioned that he heard that the team was determined not to look human. Seo Yoon Deok answered that they tried to act like robots in their everyday lives and they practiced in a synchronized state. Should I say those that match their concepts well are likely to become winners?
In the Mate Group A SHINee's practice story, they began taking a relaxed approach to practice while Mate Group B SHINee team already started working on the choreography. Mate Group A SHINee group had a false sense of security since they had all high ranking contestants. Given the volatile ranks so far, I would not be so sure about it. I might see another Han Yu Seop rise from the dead. The fact that Jung Jae Young became the leader without explanation made me believe that this might have been one of the 200 songs that he has memorized. Otherwise, I assume Jeon Joon Pyo might have led the team instead even though he is one of the leaders. The team flew through the first verse of the song. Mate Group B SHINee team kept diligently practicing while Mate Group A SHINee team relaxed some more.
The interim check was a different story. I guess some type of humbling is needed. C mate Vata asked the Mate Group A SHINee team what their goal was and leader Jung Jae Young responded that they wanted to display energy on a grand scale. After Mate Group A SHINee's performance, rival Noh Gi Hyeon thought that his Mate Group B has a chance to win. It seemed that the producers wanted to point out that the group was the opposite of their goal as they ran out of energy and steam by the end of the song. C mate Ingyoo asked Mate Group A SHINee team if they understood the concept of the song. Bing Fan answered that they should be like a robot. C Mate Ingyoo then questioned who became a robot in this dance. Nobody answered in the group so C Mate Ingyoo concluded that the team looked too human. An Xin missed the mark completely according to C Mate Ingyoo. The group needed to figure out what kind of robot soldiers they want to become. C Mate Vata added that the group needs to also be convinced that this is 100% cool to be a robot. If the group was not convinced that they were robots, they will tend to do the movements too fast (without restraint).
After the interim assessment, an "emergency" meeting was held with the Mate Group A SHINee team. However, I don't really understand why that was an emergency meeting. It would have been a good, standard practice to schedule a meeting to regroup after the interim analysis to discuss the feedback received as a team. I think the show's editors were being dramatic. They ended up discussing the robot concept further as expected.
During practice, to make the robot concept more realistic, Bing Fan suggested a robot turn instead of going straight and because that was still not enough, he suggested a electrified robot turn with his head electrified as well. Jeon Joon Pyo needed to match the concept with Bing Fan in the back. It made that performance more visually appealing when I saw the whole robot start-up section altogether. The story continued with the group refining the aspects of the robot dance.
Before Mate Group A SHINee started performing on stage, the Mate A group is already hyping them up with Kim Seung Ho (07) stating that they were the pride of the Mate A group. This meant that there were high expectations. In the actual performance on stage, Seo Yoon Deok started off the performance, but he was not fully convincing as a robot, but I loved his deep voice. Jeon Joon Pyo was professional as a robot and matched Seo Yoon Deok's deep voice well for a continued deep sound. Jo Min Jae combos the effect with a SHINee like power vocal. To have Bing Fan in the center was genius for a awesome stage. In my opinion, Jeon Joon Pyo has always been stable in all his performances and his voice is very clear. Seo Yoon Deok's breathing techniques seems to need some improvement. I was always taught in music that each musical phrase has a beginning and end and we need to learn to begin and end it beautifully as the situation calls for it. I think what drives the audience crazy is that Bing Fan knows what details to add to his dance to enhance his charms on stage. Maybe he does it naturally as he sweeps his hand over his hair before he moved on to the next dance move. When he impressed all the C mates with his finger snap that lets his hair fly up due to the sudden motion, he secured himself a lot of points. Flying hair during dance movements reminds me of Jungwoo of NCT 127 as Jungwoo is the master of it though for SHINee, it's definitely Taemin, especially when he had a mushroom cut hairstyle. C mate Ingyoo told C mate Vata that Bing Fan's move deserved a perfect score. I loved An Xin's facial expressions as he started up all the robots on stage. Thinking about An Xin, I don't think I heard him sing yet. I did get to hear him sing in the next verse, but An Xin has some trouble with securing strength in his high notes. I understood that Jo Min Jae wanted to shine with lots of ad-libs on his part, but I felt that it was too much for me. Jeon Joon Pyo was slightly weak in his high notes for the dance break, but I appreciated June Jae Young and Seo Yoon Deok's accelerating arm-moving pinwheels, which left rival Midori with Midori's mouth wide open. I felt that Jo Min Jae felt rushed to sing his parts since there were so much dance movements so he couldn't sing to his potential. Overall, this was a strong group and definitely not a group to underestimate.
Conclusion:
It's not a question that I would add Bing Fan, who excelled as the center of the "Everybody" performance, to my mission one make pick list. He seems to naturally have charisma as the center. Jeon Joon Pyo is another top mate pick for mission one as he gave an excellent performance overall. These two contestants are top talents.
I know this is a team with popularity. Jung Jae Young is still vocally weak for me in the two performances that I have seen so far. An Xin's high notes worry me and he is not considered a stable contestant. Seo Yoon Deok is needs more general experience before I consider him a top pick. Jo Min Jae is a natural top pick, but for this mission, I find his ad-libs overbearing for the song. He definitely has the "SM" sound.
Since I have already six top picks for mission one, there is only one spot left for a seventh pick if it applies to the last performance, but if not, I will have to decide among all the performances for a seventh pick.
Mate Team B SHINee are overwhelmed by Mate Team A's performance and the audience's cheers so they now have a lot of pressure to do well. Meanwhile in the panel room, C mates are buzzing about Bing Fan and how amazing he was during the performance. Jo Min Jae is another contestant whose vocals blew the C mates away. I admit that he gave it his all with his mouth wide open as he sang and that is what I expect in these reality survival competition shows, but I think most contestants are uncomfortable with the stage, shy, and have stage fright, which is natural so there needs to be a lot of willpower and mental preparation to fight through it. I know that every time I needed to go up on stage, I give myself a mental prep talk, envision that I can do it well, and no matter what happens, keep going. Even in the Green room, contestants are buzzing about Bing Fan as the highlight of the performance.
I don't think I have to mention that I would have voted for all six members if I were part of the live audience.
Mate Group B SHINee "Sherlock 셜록 (Clue + Note)" Performance:
Jia Hao
Noh Gi Hyeon
Lin
Midori
Jo Seung Hyeon
Choi Min Jun
The Mate Group B SHINee group's introduction was introduced in the style of SHINee's Minho's dibidibidi "My Name is Minho" rap.
Interestingly, the song is from their SHINee World album. I typically slept on SHINee's album music because I wasn't ready for their musical direction.
Jia Hao introduced himself as broad shoulder leader Hao. MC Mate Xiumin was confused since I think he did not immediately understand the Minho reference. Noh Gi Hyun introduced himself as "comic relief" Gi Hyun. Lin described himself as A.I. Robot, maknae (youngster) Lin. He actually performed the A.I. movements better than Mate Group A. Midori referred to himself as the "Frog Prince Midori" as he bent down into a frog squat position. Jo Seung Hyeon introduced himself as "Little Giant Seung Hyeon," ready to pounce. Choi Min Jun gave himself the introduction of "small face Min Jun." For those who are not familiar with Korean culture, having a small face is a desirable trait. Each member then posed a different pose to end their introduction.
MC Mate Xiumin introduced Mate Group B SHINee's song: Sherlock 셜록 (Clue + Note). C mate Solar and C mate Lim Han Byul commented on how difficult this song is to perform. MC Mate Xiumin also observed that there are a lot of foreign members on the Sherlock team, which is about half the team (Jia Hao, Lin, and Midori).
Xiumin asked how the leader was decided and Noh Gi Hyeon explained that the team members voted for Jia Hao. Jia Hao is an unofficially leader in this show. I don't see him as a leader for the final group, but when need be, I feel that he can step up to do the role, so I can see him as a sub-leader. In the green room, fellow Mate Group B team members commented on the revelation from MC mate Xiumin that Jia Hao cried. Kim Sun Yub explained that Jia Hao never cries and if Jia Hao does, that meant things are ready hard. Miraku followed up with powerful and cute cheer, "Jia Hao, it's okay!" I also agree that based on what I observe, Jia Hao is the type of person who will internalize his feelings and not let it out until he is forced to do it. I can tell that he felt a great amount of pressure to be on this show as he couldn't crack a smile easily and he is putting his soul into it.
Back in the practice room for the backstory, the group was beginning to decide the leader. Midori had to join the group meeting by video chat and Noh Gi Hyeon boldly represented the group to ask Midori to be the leader. Midori promptly waved his hand to reject the proposal. It was unanimous that all members voted for Jia Hao to be their leader. Jia Hao cannot escape leadership in this show. I knew it was a reluctant decision for him. In his solo interview, Jia Hao confessed that he felt a lot of pressure to be a leader. The shadow of his Mate Group B loss also weighed heavily on him. As I suspected, Jia Hao blamed himself for not leading the Mate Group B team well so they ended up losing the mega (dance crew) mission. In a Mate Group B meeting, Jia Hao mentioned that he was a hundred percent confident that they would win, but because they did not win, he lost his confidence. Jia Hao was grateful that his Mate Group B members encouraged Jia Hao to take on the challenge once again to lead his team to victory.
Jia Hao's strategy to practice is a lot of repetition. Under Jia Hao's direction, I can see the team is taking shape with all members becoming one team. His team members almost fainted from practicing repeatedly and in hot and exhausting conditions, but Jia Hao either knew it and ignored it or just ignored it and practiced like a true robot.
Hard work certainly did not betray the Mate Group B SHINee team because at the interim check, they gave a good performance in front of C mates Vata and Ingyoo. C mate Vata expressed that Mate Group B SHINee team was more immersed into the dance than the Mate Group A SHINee team. C mate Ingyoo thought it was nice that the dance was centered around Jia Hao and I can see that Jia Hao definitely had his own dance style. However, Noh Gi Hyeon was pointed out to be dancing too fast during his part to the point where it was uncomfortable to watch for the C mates.
In Jia Hao's solo interview, he mentioned that he was the most concerned about Noh Gi Hyeon. Back when the group was dividing the vocal parts, Noh Gi Hyeon ended up with many parts since he was the only member who can sing high notes with strength. However, I thought Jia Hao could sing high notes too and I thought about his "Very Good" performance, but perhaps Jia Hao's high notes didn't sound as good as Noh Gi Hyeon's high notes. Noh Gi Hyeon had to start rejecting extra parts because he took on too many vocal parts already. Noh Gi Hyeon explained that Jia Hao and Jo Seung Hyeon are dancers and Midori, Lin, Choi Min Jun, and Noh Gi Hyeon are rappers. Since there were no vocalists, Noh Gi Hyeon took on the vocal position for this performance. Now, that sounds like a big mistake. Mate Group B's leader, Jia Hao, supposedly could determine the performance group for each member by switching contestants to another group, but why didn't Jia Hao put in a vocalist for this team? I wish the producers asked Jia Hao to explain this situation.
During practice, it was clear to me that Noh Gi Hyeon was struggling to sing and if I were the leader, I would need to address this huge gap and imbalance. Members need to step up and help bridge the gap. I don't expect every team to be like NCT Dream where other members can perfectly fill in the gaps of missing members Haechan and Mark as needed or do I? I have such high expectations. I remember when Jeno filled in for Taeyong in NCT and that was a big position to fill, but Jeno did a good job. I know we are talking about singing parts here, but how bad could it be? At least I know Jia Hao can sing high notes and I also know that he has been burdened as well since he is also the leader.
As Noh Gi Hyeon mentioned, this song has a difficult (killer) dance because it's SHINee so we can't have gaps in vocals or dance skills. Mistakes or subpar performance won't be easily masked. Noh Gi Hyeon should have discussed his difficulties with Jia Hao to work out a solution as I am not sure if pushing himself to the limits is the answer in this case. I've seen miracles like when Park Woodam worked out his high notes in time for the Seventeen's "Mansae" performance in Produce 101 Season 2 (pretty legendary in my mind), but we can't expect a good outcome every time because it's a gamble (I could make a D1CE pun since Park Woodam was part of that group, but I won't). I don't want to be holding my breath when Noh Gi Hyeon sings during the performance.
During rehearsals, the C mates saw how much effort Noh Gi Hyeon had to put in for the performance. C mate Solar told Noh Gi Hyeon that his voice sounded raw in the beginning. Noh Gi Hyeon's performance sounded like yelling more than singing to Solar. I also agreed that I felt he was yelling throughout the performance and based on this limited view of the performance, I am really nervous for the team. Noh Gi Hyeon's way of remedying the criticism is to go back to the dance practice room to practice his singing skills. Again, there was no discussion on how the group can help him or was it too late to switch parts? From Noh Gi Hyeon's "Be Mine" performance, I already thought he was not that stable so it was a different feeling than when Han Yu Seop was struggling during rehearsals. I am genuinely concerned and I hope Noh Gi Hyeon doesn't lose his voice before the performance from over practicing because that was what happened to two main vocalists, Daeyoung (Jaehee) and Jungmin in NCT Universe: LASTART , another reality survival competition show. Noh Gi Hyeon knew the team was depending on him.
Now, the Mate Group B SHINee team is ready for their actual performance. The group started off strong with three members on each side before they spin into the snapping fingers move with their backsides to the audience. I thought Lin could be a little more enthusiastic with his "Yeah" phrases. I suddenly think that maybe Lin and Jo Min Jae should switch teams as an ideal situation since Jo Min Jae could have ripped the stage apart with his vocals in this song and Lin's robot dance would be very appreciated in the other team, but I also think the other team wouldn't want to let go of their main vocalist either. Noh Gi Hyeon started off his verse one in a strong way. Now, it's all about stamina from hereon. I think Noh Gi Hyeon acted more of a detective than Lin. Hearing Noh Gi Hyeon sing his verse made me think that these weren't high notes so the first part could have been given to somebody else, but it is a key introduction to the song. I was really surprised to hear Choi Min Jun sing because Choi Min Jun totally fell off my radar in this show. I barely had a thought about him in the "Be Mine" performance. I wanted to hear more from him. Jo Seung Hyeon sang well, but I didn't particularly like his facial expressions during his part where it felt like he was scowling at the audience. I am especially concentrating on the vocal parts because I wanted to understand why Noh Gi Hyeon was the only contestant who can sing the difficult parts. Choi Min Jun was really into the detective character and I am loving his interpretation of it. I am sure Choi Min Jun will get some recognition from this performance. Unfortunately, Jia Hao is lost in his facial expressions. I expected more from Jia Hao. Before the chorus, Noh Gi Hyeon matched well with Jia Hao singing an octave higher. I think Noh Gi Hyeon gave it his best. I wish Jia Hao matched Noh Gi Hyeon's energy. I can see why Jia Hao wasn't a candidate to sing high notes because he doesn't have the strength to maintain his high notes. If he worked on that more, he could be an all rounder (can sing, rap, and dance well). I didn't know that he had vocal weaknesses before. Unfortunately, Midori's vocal performance was shaky and I did not think his performance added anything special to it. Choi Min Jun matches the concept the best. Even when he wasn't the highlight, I saw him and he was still in character. Choi Min Jun had the confidence of Minho of SHINee. Interestingly, Noh Gi Hyeon also had a move where he brushed his hair with his hands as in confusion to match the concept. I liked that even though it didn't have the same impact as when Bing Fan brushed his hair with his hand. Noh Gi Hyeon was singing the chorus, but I didn't understand why there was no accompaniment from his members. It would have possibly masked Noh Gi Hyeon's shaky note somewhat at the end, but because there was no one else singing, the audience could probably hear Noh Gi Hyeon's instability. The only time Jia Hao showed some emotion was when he was doing his "Woo!" like Michael Jackson. At least Lin tried to help sing some the high notes, but he didn't belt it out like how Noh Gi Hyeon does it. We move to the dance break where Jo Seung Hyeon takes over with no problem. Unfortunately, when Jia Hao does his spin, he performed a traveling tornado instead and I don't think that was what he intended so it was a little bit sloppy. Lin ended it with a cartwheel of charisma which is definitely worth highlighting as the climax of the song. I think this is Lin's best performance so far. He totally took control of my attention at that moment and I felt his power of attraction.
Special C mate Kwon Eunbi thought she could tell that Noh Gi Hyeon focused a lot on his vocals so his dance performance suffered as a result. This thought caused her to watch the performance in suspense. C mate Kim Sung Eun mentioned that in this situation, nobody could become the main vocal. Kwon Eunbi had personal experience of this type of situation as she said she was not a main vocal in her reality survival competition show (Produce 48), but had to step up to become the main vocal. C mate Solar said it the best when she mentioned that the SHINee performances were a great learning experience for the contestants to grow faster. I agree that they all took the difficult road.
Conclusion: I really want to give Noh Ki Hyeon an A+ for effort, but unfortunately, I am not confident enough to put him in my mission final lineup as he is a bit unstable. Even one of my favorites, Jia Hao would not make it to my mission final mate pick. I expected more from him. I was impressed by Jo Seung Hyun's dance and Choi Min Jun, who went above and beyond in this performance, surpassing my expectations, but only entered my radar from this performance.
I am giving my last mission vote to Lin because I felt his confidence and charisma on stage. He commanded the stage during his cartwheel part. I didn't understand why Lin was popular in the beginning, but I am beginning to understand it now. I had some criticism for Lin, but I am willing to overlook it if he can show his true charm on stage.
Therefore, my final mission one picks are:
Jang Hyun Jun, Takuma, and Jung Hyun Jun, Han Yu Seop, Bing Fan, Jeon Joon Pyo, and Lin.
Also, there is no reason for me not to vote for all six members as a member of the live audience so if I were there, I would have voted for all of them because performing a SHINee song was no joke. Lin gives off a tsundere attitude that I find charming on stage. It felt like he didn't care if the audience voted, but he does one last thing like a cute robotic "I love you" in Mandarin to ask for a vote as if he is checking up on the audience.
As both SHINee teams are on stage, Jeon Joon Pyo mentioned that it would be hard to predict the outcome if the opposing team performed so well. Choi Min Jun was confident about their win. C mate Vata commented that SHINee was all about charisma regardless of the song or dance. Special C mate Kwon Eunbi thought that SHINee songs were too difficult (for a competition show) and C mate Kim Sung Eun heartily agreed and responded that SHINee songs should be banned from competition.
Special C mate Kwon Eunbi predicted that Mate Group A team did better since they had better energy and balance. In my opinion, this is why some K-pop groups fail if they cannot maintain a good balance in the team.
The votes agreed with Kwon Eunbi because Mate Group A SHINee team won. I felt so bad for the Mate Group B SHINee team, knowing how much effort they put in. I felt like if they strategized better, they might have a better chance.
Bing Fan commented that the song was hard for their group and they practiced really hard. He was grateful for the members. Jeon Joon Pyo who was already in tears said that since the teams were tied, he could have felt ashamed to face his team if they had lost. Jo Min Jae said that he was a bit embarrassed to cry so much and that his team members made up for his shortcomings.
In Mate Group B SHINee team, Noh Gi Hyeon started off by apologizing to the Mate Group B team because he thought that he was not able to dominate the stage. He will reflect on himself and work harder. Hearing this, Jia Hao had a harder time to contain his tears. These words also made Team Mate B's Kim Hak Seung to also cry. Jia Hao apologized to all of Mate Group B before he almost bursted into tears again. This time, it was hard for Jia Hao to recover and I understood his situation because Team B is seriously in the elimination zone since they won zero benefits. However, Jia Hao had no regrets over the great performances that the Mate Group B team gave in mission one.
In the panel room, the C mates were saddened to hear Jia Hao's speech. C mate Ingyoo said that Team Mate B did not lose because of any one person. It was a matter of who did better than the other. I understand that, but I still had my opinions about how SHINee Mate Group B could have possibly won. C mate Ingyoo hopes that the contestants do not think it was because they performed badly.
Individual scores await the teams when they come back to the green room. C Mate Vata said that he had a hard time grading the SHINee performances. From the lowest rank to the highest rank, the individual scores are shown below:
Sixth place: Seo Yoon Deok with 540 points vs Jo Seung Hyeon with 528 points.
Fifth place: Jung Jae Young with 579 points vs Midori with 565 points
Fourth place: An Xin with 584 points vs Choi Min Jun with 601 points
Third place: Jeon Jun Pyo with 619 points vs Jia Hao with 630 points
Second place: Jo Min Jae with 660 points vs Lin with 647 points
First place: Bing Fan 797 points vs Noh Gi Hyeon with 665 points
I'm thinking that if the top possible score (without the online votes) is 800 in a 1000 point structure, then Bing Fan almost had a perfect score. He somehow missed three points. I am thinking simply since the audience and online votes count as 40% and if I divide that equally in half with 20% of the votes coming from the live audience and 60% of the votes coming from th C mates then Bing Fan could have as much as 800 points in a 1000 point structure. There is no way that Mate Group B could have won even if we took out the first place set of points.
Choi Min Jun was also a surprise winner and definitely somebody I have to pay attention to in the future.
C Mate Lim Han Byul theorized that Bing Fan could have been the deciding factor because other contestants had around the same scores. However, that is why I added up the scores without the first place rank just to see that Mate Group A SHINee team came out slightly better so Bing Fan, to me, was just icing on the cake.
It was comforting to see how many contestants tried to cheer up Jia Hao who was continuously crying. I think Jia Hao supporters will start furiously voting for him because of this sad story. We have to keep looking forward so a few failures isn't the end of the world. In the end, the Chinese contestants escorted Jia Hao away as they exited the Green room.
The show wanted to tease the audience by announcing ranks before the online votes. What a tease as we know none of this counts until the very end. This time, there are only top 9 spots on the podium instead of 10 spots. However, I understand from MC Mate Ximun's explanation, the ranks are needed to divide the contestants into teams again for the next round where nobody will be eliminated just yet.
I'm assuming it's announcer Lim Ji Woong again to explain that the points are derived from 300 audience members excluding online votes (for now, at least), the votes of the six C mates, and benefits received (if any). All scores excluding benefit scores had the first ranking proportional scores applied. Now, this explanation is tricky. The audience and C mates point can equal to 7,000 points. There are three benefits that can total 1,500 points. The first place winners (correction: winner) receive(s) 8,500 points.
I can't recall what three benefits there were on the show: Winning the mega dance crew contest, winning the overall artist battle, and winning the Mate Group battle. However, they put first place winners in a separate category so maybe those are extra points. I don't really understand it all. Why is it so confusing?
This means that TXT "Blue Hour" team, 2PM "Again and Again" team, and SHINee "Everybody" team wins a winning benefit.
I think I understand it a bit better that those who ranked in first place receive the 8,500 points since they came in first place in their respective teams (except I was wrong).
The ranking is as follows (and take it with a grain of salt):
35th place: Yoon Ho Hyeon (Dropped 17 spots) with 4,695 points (Funny how Lee Do Ha commented that this is his future as they are both viewed by me as the lazy trainees) (B)
34th place: Chen Shaiu Fu (He said that he lost some of his drive, but he said he will hold on until the end) with 4,715 points (B)
33rd place: Choi Han Gyul with 4,733 points (B)
32nd place: Kai with 4,827 points (A)
31st place: Ki Hyeong Jun with 4,875 points (A)
30th place: Aki with 4,930 points (A)
29th place: Jo Jae Hyeon with 4,938 points (At this point, 2PM "10 out of 10" team was wiped out except for Kim Seung Ho (07)) (A)
28th place: Jo Seung Hyeon with 4,940 points (B)
27th place: Lee Do Ha with 4,972 points (B)
26th place: Kim Hak Seung with 5,016 points (B)
25th place: Midori with 5,129 points (B)
24th place: Kim Sun Yub with 5,288 points (B)
The ranks above are in danger of being eliminated (탈락 (tallak) zone).
23th place: Lee Jang Hee with 5,397 points (B)
22nd place: Choi Min Jun with 5,597 points (B)
21st place: Lin with 5,693 points (B)
20th place: Seo Yoon Deok with 5.748 points (A)
19th place: Seo Ji Ho with 5,753 points (A)
18th place: Noh Gi Hyeon with 5,773 points (B)
17th place: Jia Hao with 5,835 points (B)
16th place: Kim Seung Ho (06) with 5,875 points (A)
15th place: Jeong Hyun Uk with 5,946 points (B)
14th place: An Xin with 6.053 points (A)
13th place: Jung Jae Young with 6,175 points (A)
12th place: Yoon Jae Yong with 6375 points (B)
11th place: Miraku with 6,456 points (only Han Yu Seop and Jun Hyun Jun left from Mate Group B) (B)
10th place: Jeon Joon Pyo with 6,553 points (A)
Standing on the podiums:
9th place: Kim Shi On with 6,591 points (He's just happy to be on the podium this time) (A)
8th place: Han Yu Seop with 6,609 points (I don't get it. Don't first place winners get 8,500 points or is that just the ultimate rank 1 of each battle? Han Yu Seop was proud of himself as he was previously ranked 26.) (B)
7th place: Jung Hyun Jun with 6,778 points (This is as high as a B team member can get) (B)
6th place: Jo Min Jae with 6,850 points (A)
5th place: Shin Won Cheon with 7,018 points (A)
4th place: Kim Seung Ho (07) with 7,114 points (A)
3rd place: Takuma with 7,236 points (I am not sure how Takuma had more points that Kim Seung Ho (07), but my theory is that Takuma scored major C mate points) (A)
2nd place: Jang Hyun Jun with 8,208 points (A)
1st place: Bing Fan with 8,500 points (Did I previously interpret the mission one score wrong? The first place winner can only have up to 8,500 points, which is exactly what Bing Fan has in 1st place.) (A)
This concluded the rankings and MC Mate Xiumin announced that Mate Group A will be the odd number contestants and Mate Group B will be the even number contestants. Since Bing Fan is the odd man out, he had the benefit of choosing which Mate Group that he wanted to join. After all, there are an odd number of contestants due to one contestant dropping out of the competition. Bing Fan choose A group again since he was in the A group in the last round.
I am glad to have survived this mission. The point system is really confusing me. It doesn't seem like benefit point is that useful, but it will help for contestants on the verge of elimination.
For this round one mission, I vote for the following contestants (in no particular importance):
- Jang Hyun Jun (trustworthy performer)
- Jang Hyun Jun (trustworthy performer)
- Takuma (great expressions on stage)
- Jung Hyun Jun (Very talented and stable performer)
- Han Yu Seop (has an alluring presence)
- Bing Fan (An excellent center position and performer)
- Jeon Joon Pyo (consistent performer overall with a clear voice)
- Lin (Has a powerful stage presence)
For the overall competition, I will support the following members (unknown how many members in the final team and contestants are listed by order of discovery):
1) Jo Min Jae (A great main or lead vocalist)
1) Jo Min Jae (A great main or lead vocalist)
2) Jia Hao (An experienced dance performer with potential to be an all-rounder. I worry about his rank though with the possibility of elimination before the final round.)
3) Han Yu Seop (A charming contestant and great singer/potential musician arc. He can possibly be a main vocalist or sub vocalist. I predict that he will stay in the top ranks for the rest of the competition.)
The following Make Mate 1 contestants are on my radar list along with the three top mate picks:
Jang Hyun Jun - I can tell that he is a really great performer with potential to be in my final lineup.
Kim Shi On - I am starting to forget this contestant, but I will not let him go yet.
Shin Won Cheon - This contestant is almost leaving my radar list as I haven't seen anything that so far leads me to include him into my final mate pick.
Takuma - I am keeping a close eye on him as he has great expressions while dancing and a great voice.
Jung Hyun Jun - He has a lot of talent and a potential all-rounder, but I cannot yet commit to him being in my final lineup.
Miraku - This contestant is going in and out of my radar. He is vocally unstable, but I like his attitude and I think he has potential to reach success, one way or another.
Yoon Jae Yong - He is someone I am not sure about, but my impression of him is improving with each performance.
Chen Shiau Fu - It is a shame that he barely has parts in the performance. I am worried that he will be eliminated. I see a lot of potential in this contestant.
Kim Seung Ho (07) - He still has a lot of room to grow and improve, but my impression of him is better than before.
Kai - He did not get many chances to shine so I am worried he will be eliminated. I saw potential in him.
Aki - This is the first time I listed Aki on my radar. He doesn't have a lot of parts, but I can tell he is a great performer. Unfortunately I don't see him in my final lineup unless he starts doing something amazing on stage.
Choi Han Gyeol - I always say that this contestant needs protection. He has a great power singing voice, but he is a rookie in his awkward stage and the only way he can debut is with more experience. He needs more time.
Kim Hak Seong - I did not include him on my radar list before, but I finally see his potential when he improved his presence on stage with better dancing and singing skills. I see a rapid development in him, but I am not sure if others see it as well.Bing Fan - I saw the power of Bing Fan in this mission one round. I wasn't sure about him before, but he looks like he is ready for debut. I'll keep an eye on him until I am sure he can join the final lineup.
Seo Yoon Deok - He is memorable, but not enough to keep in my final lineup. I will keep him on my radar for now.
Jeon Joon Pyo - He is an excellent performer with consistency. At this rate, he may be in my final lineup.
Noh Gi Hyeon - I have mixed feelings about this contestant as I can see his weaknesses vocally, but he put in so much effort in this round that I need to keep him on my radar list a bit longer.
Lin - I came to see the power of Lin through the mission one round. He has amazing stage presence that forces the audience to focus on him. He has entered my radar for the first time.
Lin - I came to see the power of Lin through the mission one round. He has amazing stage presence that forces the audience to focus on him. He has entered my radar for the first time.
Jo Seung Hyun - He is a strong and powerful dancer with a strong voice. Somehow, for this performance, he was lacking something like better expressions when I was impressed by his expressions in the previous mega dance mission.
Choi Min Jun - He is somebody who entered my radar out of nowhere. I had no idea he was such a strong performer and why didn't I see it sooner?
Leaving my radar list:
Jung Jae Young - I wanted to see some potential in this contestant, but I had trouble finding it so he will exit my radar for now.
Jeong Hyun Uk - Unfortunately, he naturally left my radar. I might be making a mistake, but if he might come back as he has potential to come back.
Leaving my radar list:
Jung Jae Young - I wanted to see some potential in this contestant, but I had trouble finding it so he will exit my radar for now.
Jeong Hyun Uk - Unfortunately, he naturally left my radar. I might be making a mistake, but if he might come back as he has potential to come back.
There were 21 contestants on my radar, but now there is 23. My list keeps growing, but it's possible that I could narrow this down if I became more brutal with my critique. I wanted to leave it open since the competition is still underway.
Who are your favorite contestants? Is there anybody definitely in your personal final lineup? What is in store for the next mission round two? Who will be eliminated? I think I will be disappointed to see some of contestants leave the show as I became emotionally invested in them.
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