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(Written on March 28, 2024)
Settle in, class, because we have a LOT to cover today. It’s the final mission and the reveal of Monsta X. We’ll find out what happened to those who were cut from the show. We will also learn how this show revealed way more about the Korean psyche than I had expected. (I had expected none.) It’s been a lot, so let’s just dive right in.
We kick off with a highlight reel. The original twelve. The K-pop Thunderdome. The sailor hats. The cranky expert guy (remember him?), the abs, the rotating number badges, the confessionals, the slingshot move, the shopping districts, the amusement park, the barbecue, the timelines from hell. I can’t believe I’ve covered all this in a two-week period. Seriously, I just looked at the calendar, and I wrote the Episode One recap two weeks ago. I was so young and well-rested then.
So now we’ve arrived at the CJ E&M Center. The show has built a whole new stage for the finale.
This place is HUGE. Exactly how big is this television station? Never mind – that’s not important. Do you realize what this MEANS? (tingling with excitement) It means I get to come up with a new venue name! Let’s see … the stage is massive, with tall LED panels reaching to the ceiling and glowing steps leading from a higher stage in the back to the main stage up front. This is wild. This is exciting. It’s big enough for chariot races. This is … THE K-POP HIPPODROME.
Oh come on, that’s a great name. I originally was going to name it the K-pop Big Top, so consider yourselves lucky.
Back to the show. Our boys, dressed in black and white outfits, are waiting backstage to perform for the crowd they can hear screaming and cheering. There are 600 people in the audience this time. We see them lined up around the block with their banners and lightsticks and signs and cute animal masks. We watch them file into the Hippodrome and surround the stage. A lot of their signs glow in the dark, which is really cool.
When everyone is in, the lights go down to start the show. Are we really moving forward with this? No flashbacks? Dare I hope? YES! The LED screens light up to introduce our trainees like they are already major K-pop stars. We are watching a live concert about to begin. This is over the top, and I love it. Stage fireworks shoot up into the air. No Mercy did not skimp on the stage production.
The LED doors open, and our nine trainees stand like rock stars before their adoring fans. I know it’s the end of the line for #GUN and Seokwon, but at least they get to be a part of this amazing performance and see how much the fans love them.
Hyolyn is back at the judges’ table, as well as Mad Clown, a guy I’m actually going to miss. What a weird dude. We get some information flashed on the screen, saying that these finalists have survived three months of missions. Three months of living crammed together in that dorm, rehearsing at the North Pole, doing confessional interviews, being told by their own mentors that they’re terrible and deserve to be eliminated … (sniff) good times.
K.will welcomes the crowd. We learn that the winners will be chosen by 50% audience votes and 50% judges’ votes. And, of course, because No Mercy loves faking us out, we are doing a flashback after all. I will not miss the raging alcoholics at No Mercy who created this show’s timeline. I hope they all find recovery.
Our trainees are at a photo
shoot for 1st Look Magazine with their celebrity mentors. This magazine features famous celebrities and
models, so they’re very excited to be included.
They look amazing, as always. We
then move to the North Pole for final mission rehearsals. Junggigo meets them there. He tells them that in order to find the seven
who will form our final band, the mssion will be a 3:3:3 unit battle. And the teams are:
We start with Unit 3. At first, I’m a little concerned that Hyungwon’s low, mellow, smooth vocals wouldn’t hold up against the combined force of Jooheon and I.M’s rapping, but it sounds like they’re trading lines. I can’t wait to see the final performance.
We see our team backstage at the Hippodrome. I.M says, “I wish people would see me as No Mercy’s I.M instead of the guy who came in midway through.” I.M, soon they will be seeing you as the savage maknae of Monsta X.
Time for the
performance. They are doing Yella
Diamond’s “Interstellar.” We start in
pitch darkness with a single flashing light in the middle of the stage. A slow, sexy beat brings Jooheon to the stage
as the LED walls show a universe exploding around him. The beat picks up, he starts to rap, and we
are off and running.
Hwungwon joins him and trades lines – a smooth vocal and then a rap line, and back and forth. I love it. Then the LED doors slide open, Jooheon yells out I.M’s name, and here he comes, rapping, “No mercy, OK I have no mercy.” Chills. Total chills.
The crowd is swept up in this. Hyungwon comes back and holds his own against the power rap duo. He’s the smooth, soulful center that the rappers swirl around, physically and vocally. He looks more confident than I’ve ever seen him on this show. The song is a total groove, and it’s over far too soon.
The judges, who are giving their critiques in front of the audience, agree with me about Hyungwon’s confidence, and I love seeing him get singled out for praise. They loved the whole performance. This and the prison break are my two favorite performances from this series.
Now for Unit 1: Kihyun, Wonho, and Seokwon. They’ve chosen the song “Hug Me,” by Crush. We see them rehearsing with the female dancers. (These dancers were also with Unit 3, but they mostly marched around in space uniforms with blank expressions, like the models in Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” video, so I didn’t mention them. They really weren’t necessary.)
Wonho is in full flirt mode with the dancers. Kihyun and Seokwon are blushing and stammering, which is kind of weird for K-pop idols. Later, when they are in a confessional together, Wonho says the theme will be “sexy.” Seokwon agrees and then blushes again. Wonho demands to know how Seokwon is going to pull off “sexy” if he keeps blushing like that. “I mean, I’m BORN sexy,” Wonho says. “I’m NATURALLY sexy, so I don’t know how to ACT sexy.”
Wonho, as someone writing from the future, I am happy to report that you have not changed. I’m hoping you never will.
We go back to the Hippodrome,
and our boys are dressed in all black. Wonho
stands up, and his jeans are so tight, I don’t know how he was able to sit in
the first place. They hit the stage, and
we’re swept up in a steamy R&B grind.
Kihyun and Seokwon seem to have found their swagger, and of course,
Wonho is in his element. The girls in
the audience are swooning.
The dancers are way better utilized in this performance. In Unit 3’s performance, they felt more in the way.
There’s an
interlude where the guys dance in a maze of green lasers, and it’s
electrifying. I really hope this is an
age 20+ show. This is the sexiest I’ve
seen Wonho all season, and he doesn’t show his abs once.
When it ends, the girls in the first few rows may need medical attention. Mad Clown is the first judge to weigh in, and he has nothing but praise. Now I may need medical attention. He says he “had a lot of fun” watching the performance, and then he smiles. Mad Clown, you are a deeply bizarre man. I do hope our paths cross again in my recaps.
Okay, now for Unit 2: Minhyuk, Shownu, and #GUN. We flash back to rehearsals. I will not miss the North Pole. When No Mercy packs up and leaves this place, it needs to be torn down and replaced with a tanning salon. Anyway, Unit 2 renames themselves Age Flip as the result of a rock/paper/scissors game, the stakes of which I do not understand, and I’m pretty sure if the translator writing the subtitles tried explaining it, my screen would just be a wall of text.
The song they have chosen is “So Good” by Jay Park. I like the song, but it’s obvious why #GUN is going to be eliminated. The poor guy just isn’t a dancer. He needs to debut as a solo rap artist.
We get to the stage. This is the most elaborate set design yet – a city street with a marquee and street lights. They have male dancers this time. This is a bright, happy pop song. This puts me in such a good mood. They throw roses out to the audience, and I’m surprised none of these girls have been carried out on stretchers yet.
The performance is not as high-energy as the first two. The song choice may be partially to blame since it’s not very challenging. It just feels a little off. Even watching backstage, Jooheon comments, “Shownu tried to be a lot brighter than he is.”
The feedback from the judges is the same. Honestly, if I were watching No Mercy when it first aired back in 2015, my predictions for the eliminated trainees would be #GUN and Shownu. Thankfully, the judges see the potential in Shownu better than I would have.
Hyolyn says that #GUN should have worn a suit like the other two. The writing is clearly on the wall for #GUN. I respect him for trying the boy band thing, but he’s more of a hardcore rapper.
It looks like we are going to get one more performance from the entire group of trainees. We flash back to the North Pole, where Shownu, Jooheon, and Wonho are watching music videos for inspiration. One of the videos is EXO’s “Overdose,” which is one of my favorite songs and videos from that group. EXO is also one of the first groups that got me into K-pop, so this is a nice bit of nostalgia.
Back to the Hippodrome. K.will announces the final group performance. The song is “No Exit” by Rhymer. The stage lighting is stunning. The dancing is stunning. This looks and sounds like an honest-to-God Monsta X song. The pyrotechnics kick the energy up even higher.
It’s a brilliant final performance, ending with a real bang. I can feel their exhilaration and exhaustion as they take their final bows. Rhymer, one of the judges, praises their performance and says, “If you get eliminated, come to Brand New.” Wow. That’s his own label.
We all know what’s next. Time for the voting. The members line up onstage and say their final words of thanks. I really think Hyungwon believes he won’t be in the final group. There’s a quiet resignation about him. I’m getting that vibe from Minhyuk as well.
They go backstage and wait while the audience and judges vote. Each ballot has all nine trainees’ faces, and voters mark the seven they want to be in the group. The production team interviews some of the women in the voting audience (I hardly see any men). They offer words of support and encouragement to their favorites. Finally one girl just shrieks, “Goooooo!” Yes, sister! I’ve felt that way all season. Let’s do this already.
I’m guessing the judges heard this woman from all the way in the balcony, because they decide it time to form the band. The trainees return to the stage.
Now, here’s where the vibe drastically changes. The audience is not there when the judges announce the winners. The room is silent except for the tense music No Mercy plays over the proceedings. I was expecting the audience to be there to cheer the winners. Without them, this whole thing feels different. Yes, seven trainees are finally about to debut and have their dreams realized. But two of them are about to be devastated in a way that only K-pop trainees can understand, and the silence of the room is really underscoring that.
In American shows, contestants audition, and if they get picked and don’t win at the end, they may be upset, but it was a fun ride for however long the show lasted. On Korean shows like No Mercy, these are trainees who have been in the system for years. This is a chance they’ve sacrified their youth to finally get access to, and if they don’t make it, they have to question whether it’s worth putting themselves back into the system again. This is a way of life that doesn’t really happen in American show business.
As an American, I could spend my entire life trying to make it into show business in Los Angeles or New York, but I would decide my own schedule. I would have a personal life while deciding what auditions to go on, which part-time job to take to keep me financially afloat, and when to take days off so I don’t burn out. That is not the life of a K-pop trainee. If you make it into the trainee system of an entertainment company in Korea, they own you. They own your time, your energy, how many hours you sleep, and whether or not you get one or two precious days off a year. Many trainees have their cell phones taken away. I can’t think of any system in the United States that does that, or even if it would be legal for them to do that. As with many other things I’ve seen on this show, there would be lawsuits.
So when the winners on No Mercy are chosen, it’s not a huge spectacle. When a winner’s name is announced in this finale, the winner does not cheer and dance, because it means that the other trainees just watched another spot get taken away, and the winning trainee is VERY aware of that. This may be an extreme way of describing it, but to me, it looks like survivor’s guilt is mixed with the shock of realizing they’ve won. And to help preserve whatever dignity they can for these trainees, the show takes the audience out of the room.
I wanted to write all this to explain where my head was at while watching the winners get announced. So now that I’ve turned this into a total bummer, let’s see one of the best K-pop groups in music history come together! Yay?
K.will gets ready to announce the final winners. Each one will walk down the steps and stand on a lighted platform. The announcements begin:
Number One: Jooheon. Boy, did he keep that promise to guard his Number One spot. All the way to the end. He bows, thanks the judges, and makes his way down to the first platform.
Number Two: Shownu. He looks stunned. No more standing back to watch others debut and walk away, surrounded by fans. It’s finally his turn. Not only is he about to debut, he’s going to be a dad to six crazy kids.
Number Three: Kihyun. Makes sense that the mom would be next. He is overcome with relief.
Number Four: Hyungwon. I really wanted to see his reaction. Those beautiful eyes widen in shock.
Number Five: Wonho. And now I’m about to cry. All I can think about is his mom. He’s fighting back tears. And it’s at this point that #GUN knows. I can see it in his face.
Number Six: I.M. When his name is first called, we don’t get a close-up shot of his face because he’s got his hood pulled up, and besides, his reaction is in the way he staggers backward a step. He seems dizzy. He collects himself and takes his place on the platform, keeping his head down.
Number Seven: Minhyuk. He’s frozen in shock. Seokwon has to nudge him to get him to move.
Seokwon and #GUN are devastated. Just a few feet in front of them, all the spaces are taken. They both thank the judges for the opportunity and leave the stage.
We are left with seven shell-shocked trainees, and I’m realizing that they are still not a band. They will need to bond and become a family. Right now, they’re a mess. Kihyun struggles to speak and then just bends over in tears. Jooheon, who has been looking back hopefully at #GUN after each name is called, turns his back to the camera as he cries over his friend not being chosen. I.M keeps his hoodie on and his head down. Even the judges look drained. This is the most traumatized winners circle I’ve ever seen.
K.will tells our band that there’s a lot of work ahead of them. The debut may be guaranteed, but not the success. The judges congratulate them, and now silver confetti rains down from the ceiling. It’s a bit jarring, like a celebration at the scene of an accident. Our idols-to-be shake off the survivor’s guilt and transition into people who realize they get to call their parents with the good news.
We do get to end on an upbeat note, one that brings a smile to my face. Offscreen, the group has been told the name of their band. They gather in front of the camera to introduce themselves with their band name. They are clumsy, all bowing at different times, completely out of sync. They laugh, and Jooheon says, “We’re a mess!” But they pull it together, and we get this great shot:
And boy, did the fans ever support Monsta X.
Okay, so let’s find out what happened to the trainees who got eliminated along the way, according to what I can find on the web.
Kwangji and Yoosu
After being eliminated in
Episode 5, both Kwangji and Yoosu completed their military service. Both have been mostly quiet since then. According to posts on his Instagram account, Kwangji
seems to be building a small home studio.
Minkyun (Mosquito)
Minkyun was eliminated in
Episode 7, but he’s doing fine. He moved
from Starship to WM Entertainment, took the stage name MK, and debuted with a
group called ONF (pronounced “on and off”).
He’s a lead vocalist and sub rapper with the group, and according to
Wikipedia, he eventually dropped the stage name and went back to using his real
name, Minkyun. He did have to put his
career on hold to complete his military service. He was discharged in June 2023, and ONF made
a comeback in October 2023. As I type
this, ONF will be releasing their eighth EP Beautiful Shadow in just a
few weeks.
Yoonho (the fossil)
Yoonho was eliminated in
Episode 9, after being the first one to show kindness to I.M and surviving that
weird prank his bandmates played on him.
He also left Starship and joined A Team Entertainment, and after so many
years as a trainee, he joined a group called VAV (Very Awesome Voice) in 2017. The band had already debuted, and he took the
stage name Ayno. He had a big role as
the group’s main rapper, dancer, vocalist, and visual. They had some moderate success and won a
couple of awards in 2018 and 2019.
However, just last month, A Team Entertainment announced that they were
terminating the group’s contract. No
word on what Yoonho will be doing next, but I’m rooting for him.
#GUN
Good news here. #GUN stayed at Starship, and happily, he
debuted in 2016 as a solo rapper. He has
released several singles, his first one (“Crazy Guy”) making it to number five
on the South Korean music charts. He
also did two collaborations with Mad Clown (that really surprised me) and
others in 2016, with one song going to number twelve and the other to number
six. As far as I can tell, he’s still
making music, and I hope his mother and grandmother are happy and well.
Seokwon
Things initially went well
for Seokwon. After No Mercy, he
got his military service out of the way, and then he moved from Starship to
RAIN Company. He finally debuted in
March 2021 with a group called Ciipher. He was the group’s lead vocalist under
the stage name Tan. Ciipher had a couple
of their songs hit the top ten on the South Korean charts. They also won a Korea Culture Entertainment
Award in 2021. However, in August 2023,
he and several other members left the group.
I can’t find what he’s doing now, but thanks to the overabundance of
information about K-pop celebrities available online, I can tell you that his
blood type is B. Tragically, his
Myers-Briggs Personality Type is not available.
Next up, I will be recapping Wild
Idol, the show with real outdoor survival challenges that brought us the
group TAN. I will be taking a break
first to go outside and touch some grass. I’ll be back in early April.
Whew.
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