I remember it like it was yesterday when YG made the announcement that they were going to debut a brand new, shiny, fresh form the oven boy group. Big Bang's successors. One group to rule them all.
If you can't tell already, I was not very excited about this. What made it even more, well I don't know what's a good word for it, let's say interesting, was that this new group was going to be voted by the public. It was reminiscent to Mnet's Mydol two years ago, in which the current members of Vixx were put together partly due to fan voting. This however, honestly felt like the kpop edition of The Hunger Games, which is not a title you would want to have on your label.
There are many articles and great posts on why this was such a terrible idea, so I'm not going to discuss everything here, but I will say a few things that I thought of when heard of the format for YG's Win: Who is next?
So basically, this is a reality TV-show, broadcasting the development of two already formed groups under YG (Team A and Team B) as they fight against each other to become the next group to debut. It made me both sad and angry when I heard this, because not only would the losing team disband, they would also face the risk of having their trainee contract terminated. I just found it horrible that YG would actually film this entire process for these young boys, who work so hard and want nothing less but to get to debut.
It's all for our entertainment too, to see them cry and struggle and miss their parents and friends. Sure, YG might claim that it's "the real story" and "that's how harsh it is being a trainee" but I don't think that's a good enough reason to actually still film it. These 11 young talented men are real people and the battles they go through are 100% real as well, and now it's being turned into something that's not real. That these trainees are under the viewers control, voting for who they like best, as if they're just objects.
Sorry for ranting, but it's fair to say I was not happy with this decision and therefore promised myself not to watch it. I also didn't want to become so emotionally involved with the two groups, because my heart is weak and I would fall in so quickly I wouldn't have any chance of getting out.
I had almost made it through the entire show without getting even a little bit attached, but somewhere around episode 8 or 9, it went completely downhill. It was partly due to my tumblr dashboard suddenly flooding with pictures, videos and text posts, and also due to my own curiosity. I still told myself a strict no, keeping my promise that I absolutely would not care who won or who lost. It wouldn't matter to me.
Still, I found myself getting biased towards team A (thank you for that Song Mino) and before I knew it I was rooting for them to win the whole thing. When they won I was happy, although I tried to tell myself I still didn't care that much. They still had to improve it lots of areas, and the group chemistry was not very good either.
We could talk about the name itself, WINNER, but I don't want to. It's just too embarrassing. I do want to talk about why I now afterwards feel like the show maybe wasn't such a bad idea at all.
Don't get me wrong, I still find it utterly appalling, but I can see why YG did it. It's a trap, a huge, well set up trap, and it works magnificently. I know, because I fell in it. There's just something in seeing trainees practically fight for their survival that triggers our sympathetic abilities, and makes us care and root for whomever we find most worthy of it. It makes us care, and that's exactly the point of the show. It builds up hype and anticipation, and makes people interested. It's definitely necessary for YG at this point, because Big Bang, whilst still popular, are getting to that age where they either enlist in the army, have solo activities or go on hiatus. A new sensation is needed, and therefore a show like this is a good marketing technique.
Supposedly, WINNER is debuting next month (but I won't really believe it until it happens) and I am so excited. Like, I haven't been this excited for a debut for a long time. I just want them to release awesome music, kill it on stage, do the usual promotion cycle and so on. I want them to be popular and loved not only by fans but by the general public as well.
Now why do these five boys set off such an explosive reaction in me? There are a few reasons for it; the first one being the amount of potential and talent that is hidden within this group. They have strong vocalists, rappers and Kang Seungyoon is an excellent songwriter. Not to mention the visual strong points of this group, which I find so much more appealing than the typical pretty boys. Sure, not all of them are considered traditionally handsome (not by korean standards at least), but I like that. It's so much more satisfying to discover a person's inner beauty and then seeing it show on the outside than being told from the beginning that this or that person is good looking.
I have also been watching their variety show Winner TV, airing once a week (which is way too little), and I can honestly say I am so happy to be stanning them. It's crazy how much the energy and overall atmosphere between the members has changed since the reality show. I don't know if it's just the enormous amount of pressure that has been taken off their shoulders that made them relax and come out of their shells, but something has definitely happened. Long story short, they are a bunch of lovable idiots all of them.
Favorite moments include (so far); Mino rapping about his rubber ducks, Seunghoon screaming "Oppa" on a roller coaster ride, Jinwoo being adorably clueless pretty much always, Taehyun bossing over his hyungs whenever possible and Seungyoon having a private fashion show in his hotel room. If that's not enough to start watching, than I don't know what is.
All and all, I am happy with the outcome of Win, because I have a new group to stan, but I don't like the way they came about. However, it's not going to stop me from rooting for these boys and hoping they make it all the way to the top. With so much working for them, I don't see how it can go wrong.
To finish, I'll leave you with my favorite song of theirs that they performed in Win (composed entirely by Seungyoon), and the one that really made me a fan; Smile Again.
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