While the Siren members were rejoicing about their unexpectedly high screen time, the community forums and SNS sites were buzzing with content about The Showcase 2.
Sirens dorm is seriously crummy
Can you even call that a dorm?
How could their company make them sleep in a place like that? Are they out of their minds?
The first responses were all about Sirens dorm since the condition of Sirens dorm could be considered the first highlight of The Showcase 2s first episode.
No. Isnt this abuse?
Look at the state of this place. Its seriously in shambles.
Its hilarious that they are trying to grow idols with their capital lol
As expected, people empathized with Siren and insulted WD Entertainment.
Wow, but Woo Yeon-Hoon is seriously good looking
Reply: Its straight-up insane.
Then, after a wave of insults about Sirens dorm conditions, the responses shifted to talking about the members visuals. Normally, these wouldve been the first responses to pop out, but the conditions of Sirens dorm had been too memorable.
In terms of visuals, Siren is the best in The Showcase 2
Reply: ?? You are crazy. Kang Hyun-Sung is the best
Reply: You are just a delulu fan
Lee Woon is so handsome
Reply: No, he is so pretty
Who is the cute guy sitting in the corner...?
Reply: Its Sirens cutie-pie, Park Dong-Jun!!
Why is Bong Tae-Yoon so quiet?
Reply: Thats probably his personality
Reply: The only introvert among peak extroverts hahaha
Ah, **! Am I the only one who finds Tae-Yoon eating solemnly by himself so cute??
Reply: You sound so angry haha
Reply: I cant help it!
Kang Do-Seung totally looks like a mean gangster but can make soybean paste stew. Its such a nice contrast
Reply: Do-Seung...Its your grandma...My last dying wish is to eat the soybean paste stew that you made...please give me the address to your dorm...
Reply: Doesnt seem like your goal is to just eat stew...?
Though most of the responses in the beginning were about Woo Yeon-Hoons appearance, as time passed, attention also divided among the other members. It seemed after everyone came for Yeon-Hoon, they were dispersing according to their individual tastes and interests.
Isnt Woon Yeon-Hoon the visual?? Why is he so good at singing?
Reply: I know right? Im shocked.
Whats with Yeon-Hoons singing?
First time Im shocked at someones singing abilities.
Then, the next line of conversation naturally flowed to discussing the members skills.
Lee Woons dancing skills are no joke.
His dance moves are sick
Did you all hear Bong Tae-Yoons singing voice?
Reply: Even Park Dong-Jun is pretty good at singing
Reply: Kang Do-Seungs voice is seriously my style
Since Siren had one of the most noticeable visuals among the cast members and had outstanding talents, it was only expected that a lot of attention would pour over them.
At this point, Im curious who the people working inside WD Entertainment are.
Reply: Yeah, where did they find guys like them?
Reply: Were these guys originally in a pre-debut group for a big company?
People were curious how a small company like WD Entertainment managed to find such outstanding talents. There were cases when individuals with eye-catching visuals and good skills failed to debut in companies and dropped out, so they wondered if the same happened in this case.
You know, these guys practice rooms are in an even worse state
Reply: Yeah, its too much. What kind of sane person thinks this is okay?
Look at the difference between Only Ones and Sirens practice rooms (Only One and Sirens practice rooms.jpg)
Reply: Wow, Only Ones practice room looks really nice in comparison
Reply: Im not lying but their practice room looks smaller than my houses living room
Posts about Siren seemed to form and rise on top searches nonstop on par with Only One, who was predicted to become the main character of this show. Perhaps, Siren even had a slight lead. Yet, the majority of the posts about Only One were positive while a large part of Sirens comments were made in shock or mockingly about Sirens poor accommodations.
But apart from Sirens poor accommodations, they were also amassing interests and fans because of their individual talents and visuals. Comments reviewing The Showcase 2s first-round performance piggybacked on these interests and accelerated Sirens popularity.
I got a ticket to go to the shows first-round performance and went there. Though my purpose was to find a new group to stand, honestly, I went there with low expectations. But I can summarize my whole review of the first-round performance with just these four words: Siren is the bomb. I will write my review of each of the groups below, but Sirens are truly the guys to look out for. Im seriously shocked by how amazing their performance is and dont understand why they have to suffer under a **ty agency like WD.
So, this is my review of each of the groups...
Reply: I was also chosen to go. (Im adding pictures in case people dont believe me.) And I also felt the same as you. Siren really surprised me. Honestly, except for them, everyone else felt like amateurs or didnt really have the wow factor that could draw peoples attention. Only Siren truly felt like idols.
After The Showcase 2s first episode was released, reviews about the first-round performances rushed in. But of course, there were also plenty of people objecting to this too.
People are hyping up Siren too much
Its so obvious that they fabricated the whole thing
Why did the show focus so much on Siren?
Reply: Its because they are the most interesting. When other groups came out, it made me yawn
Reply: So true. This is the screen time Siren achieved by doing things like eating a bug
There were even conspiracy theories that suggested the broadcasting show was collaborating with Siren behind the scenes.
Doesnt The Showcase 2s winning group make a joint contract with the Jaeil company?
What if they already chose the winning team and are now using all the other groups as extras? Nww hapters will be fully updated at (n)ov()l/bin(.)com
Reply: But do you think they will seriously use Kang Hyun-Sung as an extra?
Reply: Siren has a lot of screen time, but it isnt to that level
Reply: No way the show will be able to withstand all those angry Kang Hyun-Sungs fans if they do that
Jaeil Group has always been going on about making an idol group
Reply: You are going too far just because they got a bit more screen time
Reply: Ah, seeing how there are already getting conspiracy theories, it seems like they will become big~ hahaha
Reply: This is why I left the idol community...
Reply: Why did you come back?
Reply: How could you abandon your home...?
Since Siren members had all the traits that were difficult to find in a doomed idol group that came from the worst company, some people questioned whether or not everything was fabricated. Some proposed that WD Entertainment could be a small agency created by the Jaeil Group and so on.
Why the heck will the Jaeil Group disguise itself as a small company? Do you think they are cosplaying as the poor?
Reply: Its so that they can gain empathy for how dire their conditions are and gain fans.
Reply: ?? It will be much more beneficial for them to just release this group on their own channel
Reply: Stop spreading your nonsense as fact~~
But because these were simply rumors with no basis behind them, these suspicions were met with a lot of scorn and ridicule and fell under the surface. And the true highlight comments were responses about the first-round performances.
It almost makes me mad seeing how good they are
Reply: Saame
I cant believe they are in a show about doomed idols
Woo Yeon-Hoon is so good at singing
They are so good :0
Ah damn it! Woo Yeon-Hoon is too darn cute!!!
Who will dislike this? Their cute looks perfectly match the sailor uniforms
Reply: I agree 100%
The most noticeable performance among the first-meeting performances was Siren, so posts about Siren continued to rush out.
Whos the guy at the center singing? Its super urgent
Reply: Woo Yeon-Hoon! Sirens leader and main vocalist!
Wow, look at the size of Bong Tae-Yoon and Kang Do-Seungs arms (Picture of them lifting Woo Yeon-Hoon.jpg)
Reply: I can understand why only those two are wearing navy sailor uniforms while the rest are wearing white
Reply: It makes my heart thump seeing how different their styles are
Wow, Lee Woon is so good at dancing
Reply: For real. When he stood in the center, I could only pay attention to him.
Reply: Yeah, he moves really lightly but not in a weak, energy-less way. He knows when to put more force at the right times.
The Showcase 2, which everyone had believed would become Only Ones backstage, was rolling around with Siren at the center. But of course, it wasnt like Only One was just losing either.
Im dying from Kang Hyun-Sungs gaze
Hes killing me with those eyes
When he glares at the camera after landing on the ground, its seriously spectacular
Ah, my heart is thumping so fast
When there were many posts about Sirens, posts about Only One also quickly rushed in. Since Only One also showed an outstanding performance comparable to Siren, Only Ones fans also had a lot to focus on and discuss. Yet, the problem was that the vast majority of their responses were concentrated on Kang Hyun-Sung. At rare times, posts about other members were made but the count of that wasnt even one out of ten posts.
All in all, Sirens fandom and Only Ones fandom didnt clash much yet. There were some trolls, who fought people in the comments, but it wasnt to the point that it could cause an all-out fan war. Yet, there was a point where things seemed to be heading towards that direction.
Did Siren seriously get last place?
What? Am I imagining this??
It was then Sirens rank was revealed, and they were placed in last place. Then the fact that the rank had been decided by each of the groups voting was also revealed. In other words, everyone knew that Siren had placed last because other groups had been wary of them, while Only One placed first thanks to the other groups support. Knowing that this rank wasnt based on performance or skills, Siren fans and those who had felt positive feelings towards the group expressed their anger.
Theres no way Siren should be last place with their skills
Reply: How the hell did they get last place?
In terms of skills alone, they were similar to Only One
Honestly, I thought they were better than Only One
They all wondered why Siren got last place when they did comparatively similar or better than Only One, who placed first. Of course, Only Ones fans couldnt just sit back and watch either.
Its so ridiculous that they will compare these no-name idols with our boys. It blows my mind.
The ridiculous thing is that Only One would have gotten zero attention without Hyun-Sung.
Its so annoying how Siren fans keep dragging Only One down
Whatever you say, Sirens are just no-name idols~ And it doesnt change the fact that Hyun-Sung is a first-tier idol
Perhaps, because some Only One fans took things too far, the public was more sympathetic towards the calmer Siren side.
How long are you going to go on with the first-tier stuff? It wasnt even an official group but a temporary one
Reply: Whatever you say, these guys will never even get first place on a music show even temporarily
Reply: Isnt that just what you are wishing for?
Its funny how Only One fans are going on about doomed idols when Only One is also from a small company
Honestly, Sirens visuals are generally better than Only One
In the first place, Siren did a good enough job to be placed as rivals with Only One. You are literally going on about things that dont even make sense
Reply: Thats what Ive been saying. Siren doesnt lose against Only One
The rivalry between the two groups became stronger, and as it became more established, the more people who became invested in the situation increased. Harsher words were said while a sense of unity among different groups solidified.
And then, there was one person quietly scanning through the flow of responses after the show was over Sirens maknae, Bong Tae-Yoon.
He turned off his phone and thought deeply, This is huge.
The show had been edited in their favor and their rivalry against Only One was established much sooner than he had expected. Furthermore, he was also astonished by how quickly the conversations were heating up on the internet.
Thus, after the show was completely over and he prepared their bedding to go to sleep, he said, Guys.
What?
What is it?
Hm?
Yeah?
All the Siren members turned their heads and looked at Tae-Yoon. Then Tae-Yoon said, I think we need to move now.
This was the most pressing problem they had to solve right now.
Novel Bin 