My Road to Kingdom First Performance Rankings - (I try to stay unbiased, I stan most of these groups. I have studied music production and dance, but remember it comes down to opinion - no hate is intended...)
1.) The Boyz - They really killed it. The concept/story was the best executed imo. Stunts were memorable, but not overbearing. I barely noticed any inconsistencies in choreo. Every move and transition felt purposeful.
2.) Golden Child - Popular opinion: they were robbed. I thought contemporary was a great place to go to make them stand out. The visuals were wonderful. There wasn’t unecessary acrobatics and camera tricks. It felt very raw which went well with the rock ballad arrangement.
3.) Pentagon - Pentagon and TOO’s are so close for me. Here’s why Pentagon managed to just get above them: first, out of all the groups this was the one that could convince me that Very Good was their own song. The feel from the vocals were the best imo. They could have done more with their concept, but they did a bit more than TOO. The arrangement is fire. I’m also a sucker for people who look like they’re having fun on stage.
4.) TOO - Honestly, these 2, 3, & 4 places could all be switched depending on my mood. TOO was the only group I didn’t know during episode 1 and I wasn’t super impressed, but mannnnn did they deliver. The song was a great fit for them. The choreo looked so much cleaner and well put together than the 90 sec. I’m also a sucker for groups that can put on a killer performance without major props. The fact that they are rookies seems fake.
5.) ONF - I really liked the idea and it really felt like they were trying to create a new song which I appreciate. But for me I think there were a few awkward points in the arrangement that didn’t feel right. I also thought the krumping, although really good, didn’t go well with the performance. That being said, Hyojin’s vocals were stellar and although Everybody is one of the hardest kpop choreographies EVER, the choreo was really well done.
6.) Oneus - Unpopular Opinions (please don’t hate me): Oneus “deserved” to be ranked low. But first, the concept was amazing. I appreciate the story they told and I’m impressed they picked such a deep topic to convey. It was a ballsy song to pick and I think it had good feel. I’m a little sad because I think Oneus has great vocals that they didn’t really showcase. They also felt so dependent on backup dancers (which I get because they’re only 6) but, I think partly costume/lighting design wise, it was hard for me to find which ones were the members (and I’ve stanned them since debut). The other thing that really disappointed me was the transitions. It felt a bit all over the place like sing now dance break now fight scene now act now sing. Oneus has some of my favorite performances outside the show, so I’m hoping the best for them next week.
7.) VeriVery - I tried to wait to watch all the performances in the episode instead of looking on YouTube, but when I heard VeriVery covered Mansae, I had to watched it before any other performances. It was a great performance (they all are - that’s why they’re idols), but in comparison, I had to place them last. I’m not a huge fan of the arrangement and the concept seemed a little confused. The “같이 갈을까/Wanna walk with me?” was an adorable killing point. They’re synchronization is really a strong point, and I was really excited for the dance break, but I hate that they did it in a straight line and the camera work didn’t help. It lost all impact for me. They were really cute and should’ve just stuck to a cute concept.
Bonus: After watching Pentagon’s “My Song” performance, I literally bawled. Also Hui straight up singing live while crying made me emo. It’ll feel weird to rank that performance because it’s purpose so wasn’t to compete on a show. Excited to see next week. Really sad someone will get eliminated.
Feel free to comment or dm if you have similar or different opinions.
