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[Penna]

I feel like I should take this yoga time to de-lurk before all the SMTM- and Mix and Match-related flailing happens.  Hello!  I'm Penna.  I pretty much joined OH because you guys have this forum here, and I have been searching the internet far and wide for a place to talk Team B.  Seriously, thanks for existing!  I was going crazy trying to find a conversation that wasn't being done in hashtags.

 

I was always more invested in Team B as WIN aired but after re-watching the show recently, for some reason the second time around I really got swept up in the feeeels.  Don't get me wrong, I also fully support Team A/WINNER and I'm happy their debut campaign seems A+++ well-designed, but I'm really all about Team Fetus.  

Also, while I'm pretty uncomfortable calling such a young kid my "bias" especially considering I am a certified pedonoona... let's just say I look forward to Koo Junhoe's, er, development.  In all areas.  

[Penna]

 

Well, hello there.

And please do share those feelings, it's not good to keep them pent up.

Junhoe practices it.

 

It was exactly these stupid commuter diaries that started to get me during the re-watch.  He keeps talking in this weirdly chipper "smile for the camera" voice, but when he forgets he's being recorded he does things like threaten to face-punch B.I with a brick.  Once he said something like "pfft I'm always confident" with a total lack of ego, then swags out the door!  I can't even talk about that time he sings part of "Wedding Dress" and then starts babbling about jjampong!

 

I fucking love him.  

 

And his voice is, obviously, to die for.

[Penna]

i'm even older than Jinwoo   

 

 

Gurrrrl I'm a few months older than the unnis of 2NE1!  So maybe I should say I am a certified pedo-ajumma.  Part of me is ashamed about liking Team B because of this... but eh, only a very small part.  Uncle fans spazz over IU all day; let me spazz over the ragin' hotties of Team B.  

 

Question: does anyone know approximately how tall Team B are?  Watching the Japan fancams, I feel like Junjun and Yoyo got taller?  I don't even know why this is relevant to anything, but somehow I want to know.  

 

Love Yoyo more and more btw.  Bless him, still not sure if he can actually sing, but he's clearly destined to do amazing things on variety shows.  

[Penna]

 

 

Junhoe looks about the same height as Mino who's 180 cm (which I researched), during WIN that is. So, Bobby must be about 178+/- and for the others, you just subtract and subtract and subtract until you get to Jinhwan hyung's who looks like around 165+/-.

 

EDIT: Wait, Hanbin, Yoyo looks around the same height, so no subtraction but damn, it's really difficult. We need new pictures for this question. And I personally think Yunhyeong can sing, in fact, I like his singing.

 

 

Wow, that is pretty tall actually.  Oh Jinhwan!  It's okay, if Taeyang can get away with it... 

 

IMHO Yunhyeong's tone is exactly what they need to bridge Jinhwan/Donghyuk's vocals with Junhoe's, but in the "Climax" and "Ringa Linga" fancams I struggle to discern his live from the MR.  That said, on JAB he's much better.  But hey, they've all improved!

 

I'm pretty impressed, or is that horrified, to know that there are a bunch of kids who fly from Thailand to SK on the regular just to stalk Team B.  

[Penna]

Oh,halmeoni

Yeah I'm feelin the pain, trust me.  Before WIN/Winner/Team B all I followed in k-pop were BEG, Big Bang, and 2NE1, and even then I wouldn't say I fangirled over the BB guys except maybe for TOP.  Ugh YG why you do this to us old ladies.

[Penna]

Bless you for existing. I get frustrated at times when they disregard Yunhyeong's ability. In the M&M program, he'll definitely show us and everybody else.

Personally I think Yunhyeong has a nice, warm-sounding tone, but in a way Junhoe's talent works against all the TB vocalists because he creates this giant sound that just plows right through a song like a train, and the others sound weak in comparison.  

 

But I have a soft spot for Yunhyeong, Junhoe, and Donghyuk precisely because they were totally shafted by the editing in WIN.  If that show had really been meant to be a true contest between the two teams, they would have given equal airplay to:

 

1) the fact that Junhoe is arguably the best male main vocalist to come out of YG since Daesung;

 

2) that Donghyuk is in fact one hell of a dancer and that he rejected SM and JYP to join Swag HQ; plus he apparently works with B.I on choreo, and

 

3) that Yunhyeong is hilarious and randomly super athletic (dat long jump at the beach, holy shit!) and pretty much born to be on television, doing any-fucking-thing.  

 

I mean, currently I don't think Yoyo is a very good vocalist, and might never be more than a competent one, but I feel that it doesn't really matter in the k-pop game.  (I mean, look at JINWOO for crying out loud.)  Being a convincing idol means being good at a whole range of things, not just the ability to belt out a high note.  He showed a distinct on-camera personality (even in the ten minutes he was given throughout all of WIN's run) and, despite his lack of vocal skill, he has the ability to sell the mood of the song he's performing.  I mean, k-pop's an audio-visual-sensory experience, right?  If he just had his face but limited charm, limited vocal ability, AND limited dancing ability, then that's a different matter.  He might as well be Random Dude #9 in EXO or SuJu or whatever.

 

And I think I keep repeating myself but if he becomes a member of their line-up, he is totally the guy they need to send to variety shows.  I can see him boosting the group's popularity that way.  He's Team B's answer to Seunghoon.

 

ETA: grammar

Edited June 28, 2014 by Penna

[Penna]

Also: necessary to the cohesiveness and effectiveness of any k-pop team is a member who knows how to diffuse tension.  WIN called out Bobby as a "mood-maker" but I bet it's also Yunhyeong, if not more so, in the same way that Daesung carries the label as "the funny one" in Big Bang but it's actually TOP who instinctively does eccentric random shit -- yes, partly to be entertaining, but also to mellow out the mood in the room.

[Penna]

...so maybe I shouldn't swear so much in my posts here.  Sorry kids, this ajumma has a filthy mouth.

Re: fashion and Team B, KYE and Astrid Andersen would be perfect.  Right now I'm fascinated by this almost "luxe normcore" direction Winner's styling has taken (so far), so I anticipate that Team B's starting concept will be more aggressive in contrast.  I don't know much about menswear apparel -- I'm in jewelry/accessories -- but if they could rock some Ambush like their sunbaes, or Chris Habana out of NYC, that'd be great.  Anything to break that YG Chrome Hearts habit, really.

[Penna]

off topic since you said you're an ajumma how old are you??

you don't need to answer if you want to keep it hidden it's all good :]

 

I'm also loving Winner's matured chic look kinda reminds me of some outfits from Zara.

(Sorry, I realized I accidentally downvoted your post!  Was trying to turn off the sig.)

 

I'm almost a year older than Park "Adderall" Bom. 

[Penna]

 

 

Todays the day?

 

 

---------------

I'd like to see them start the trend of crop tops over in KPOP.

Something thats already crawling back in the west.

I vote Kim Dongdong for that red crop top and BAPE underwear combination in particular. He can do his aegyo thing while wearing it. Brains would melt.

[Penna]

 

I think 'bin is gonna have a tough time but eventually get his shit together.

 

Amen. 

 

Also this kid's been directing a bunch of other boys for the better part of (at least) two years.  I can imagine he's put his own self-development a bit (a bit!) to the side for the sake of advancing the group as a whole, and probably because for YG's in-house purposes he's already reached a certain "level" that he doesn't necessarily need to surpass.  Why and how would he spend time perfecting one skill when he has a bunch of other shit to do? 

 

That said, it doesn't look good for him as YG's golden boy to fail at this juncture.  But I think this'll be good for him -- he can take this opportunity to work on his own identity as an artist, not just 'B.I wunderkind leader of Team B.'

Edited July 4, 2014 by Penna

[Penna]

Journalist Emma Kalka (@Roxey20) of The Korea Herald covers the Korean hip-hop scene, among other things.  She had some thoughts on SMTM3's first ep on her Tumblr.  It was interesting to read the objective opinion of someone who's knowledgable not only about Korean hip-hop but also the show.  Double B relevant part:
 

"With the YG guys, they are talented, no doubt. I’m a bit iffy on whether they should be there just because YG producers are judges and while I’m sure they probably did their best to be impartial and such, during the next stage when all the producing teams have to judge each contestant, you have to think it’s a bit unfair because they are already more familiar with them and their skills and might show a bias. However, I’ve heard they don’t make it past the preliminaries, so it’s probably a moot point anyway. And something to remember is that just because someone is in K-pop doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t be talented rappers. These guys at least showed they could freestyle, which I respect. And they were good. So, while I’m kind of eh on them being there, I think it’s only fair they get a chance like everyone else."

Regarding Double B not making it past the prelims, according to another of her posts it looks like we don't actually know that yet and that they just filmed the prelims as the first few eps.  I guess we'll find out in a few weeks if either of them make it to the final lineup for the real stages.

[Penna]

ohh so how many stages should the double b passed before getting to the real competition? 

I'm guessing there's one, or at most, two more prelim rounds that will be featured in one more episode.  I can't imagine they'll stretch it out to a third ep of prelims, so I think we'll know by the end of next week's ep.

 

On one hand, I want one of them to pass (Babi I'm lookin at you; Hanbin love you too but maybe sleep more hours in a day, your memory will thank you) not only to prove the doubters wrong but because imho Team B badly needs at least one of Double B to earn real credibility as a rapper on his own account -- because this is what they lack in, compared to say Winner who has Mino and even Big Bang who has TOP/Tempo.  If at least one of them squeezes into the finals with all the experienced rappers (and some of them are experienced; I was shocked to learn about some of the other competitors shown -- people with legit careers, past record deals, followings, etc), that bodes well for Team B's ability to go toe-to-toe with similar hip-hop based male groups like BTS, Block B, etc.

 

On the other hand, if one of them does make it and the weekly battles are filmed as they go, then this means that they'll be filming SMTM and M&M at the same time.  In which case: genius timing from YG artist management as usual.   

 

But hey if they both flame out next ep I hope they at least go out with a bang and don't get some kind of tragic sad edit.  Get your sh*t together ~charisma leader~, we're counting on you.

[Penna]

I read somewhere that this year the candidates will pass through 5 rounds of auditions

 

I guess that makes sense considering there was a f*ckton of people auditioning.  

 

Does anyone have a breakdown of how this worked in SMTM1 and 2?  

[Penna]

so basically their chances of getting into the final lineup are pretty slim 

 

well at least they tried 

Hey we don't know that yet!   

 

After all, looking at these photos Double B are all styled and looking like they're on an official schedule today.  

[Penna]

I heard double b managed to make it into top12

Hoping that's the case because mmhmm B.I versus Bobby on separate crews is the aperitif for Mix & Match I didn't know I wanted.

[Penna]

^

I'm getting confused. That one journalist said that neither of the two made it to final lineup and I heard that Babi is gonna be with the 1llionaire and Hanbin with SanE.

 

So the final lineup is when they have a crew already..? 

Nah she was confused too.  She first heard they didn't make it and thought that was a fact (the part that I quoted above), but then in another post she corrected herself to explain that it had just been a rumor.  

As for what it means to be in the final lineup and the format... actually I'm not sure.  Up to this point I had assumed they get put in a team led by one of the judges, but I've only seen some unsubbed clips myself.  Someone please correct/clarify if they know.

 

That isn't too bad right?

 

 

talking about mix&match, I really wonder how YG is gonna manage them. I can't imagine Team B doing  group evaluation as nine

Am currently re-watching Big Bang Documentary on YT to see how YG did this back then.  That was like a mix of individual critiques and then being put into separate teams and given challenges (like that old GD vs TY story they trotted out for WIN), with the final elimination at the end (that guy from Troublemaker got axed, for those who don't know).  In BB doc they admit from the onset that GD and Taeyang already had contracts, but the rest of the guys were still "in consideration."  I can see M&M going down a similar route, though this time I don't think they'd openly state that either B.I or Bobby are already signed, whether they are or not.

 

What I wonder is if they'll have guest judges again, or audience voting. 

[Penna]

Did you read the fanacc about hanbin dissed olttii? It was a top12 stages

Oh right that was the diss battle where someone dissed Bobby and B.I rampaged back?  I didn't realize that was a top 12 stage -- I guess that makes sense, since they had a studio audience already.  

[Penna]

Ad in Hongdae for YG Family at AIA this August, cred @YGWinnerPh.

Of course, no idea if the fact that all six are on it actually means anything...

[Penna]

It seems so stupid to me to have Team B in this original 6 format on posters and in concerts and then to go and cut someone off or add someone else   Like, what's the point in promoting this group if they're not going to remain like this? 

I feel ya.  Am still hoping M&M is a faux contest hype-machine for the original configuration a la WIN for Team A.  

[Penna]

 

New SMTM3 Ep 2 preview

Go Babi go

Edited: sorry still learning formatting here

Edited July 7, 2014 by Penna

[Penna]

 

That would be cool since I like all of their tones but too much saturation of thick voices so I'd probably add one with a thinner voice. But that's just me.   

 

Agreed, June needs a voice he could do a roof-destroying power harmony with.  

 

Or he could do a track with Bobby.  There's this mash up of TOP's "Oh Mom," Daesung's "Baby Don't Cry," and "Halo" which is pretty brill:  

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqiU3G38wwY

 

June + Bobby doing something similar would be eargasmic, especially if it has Bobby singing in some parts.  Because I think Bobby's holding out on us and is actually a pretty good vocalist.  

 

Re: that Teddie kid who does look like a tool I do feel bad for that "in between" generation of boys who formed the early version of Team A, especially the Kwon twins.  They never really had a chance.

[Penna]

 

I'm rewatching all of their videos tonight and I actually think that Dodo might surprise us one day. 

I watched some of his JYP auditions performances recently.  Cringing from watching fetuses attempt "Troublemaker" tbh.  But now that he's grown a bit and been properly corn fed, I also sense he's gonna kill it in M&M. 

 

June gets love for having that idgaf headstrong personality but I think Dodo is pretty similar, and is probably why the maknaes have this undercurrent of competition/tension between the two of them.  It's just not obvious because Dodo does that winky aegyo thing, but as the shirt-ripping showed he is probably the best in Team B at selling the sexy image.  I mean Bobby can go shirtless all he wants but Dodo seems primed to actively ~seduce the masses~.

 

He's pretty much the jailbaitiest jailbait ever.

[Penna]

competition between team mates is pretty normal and you're right, Dodo plays it off on screen but surely, those 2 likes to compete to some extent, it does them both favors, they grow a lot under pressure.

 

I have a pretttty good feeling TB would murder expectations in several ways on M&M

 

Y'all know June is my fave but that kid is cocky and I'm glad the others seem ready to check his ego, including Dodo.

[Penna]

Just a little push from YG and Dodo can be the Hyuna type tbh- cringy worthy aegyo but still can pull of the sexy moves.

 

And yeah I am so sorry for the Hyuna analogy 

 

 

Also Dodo is a natural dancer. I can say he's the best dancer in the team together with Jinny. And the good thing is he got that physical advantage over Jinny. Just give Dodo a few more years pretty sure he's not just gonna end up as Team B's backup dancer. 

Lol I don't think the class president needs a lot of prodding, I sense he's more than ready to volunteer for the sexy.  EroMaknae is much more interesting than just Regular Maknae anyway.  

 

Yoyo can go for the weird/funny/princely/chilled out hyung vibe a la TOP.