After eight years in the shadows, ICARIS returns for one last flight. A farewell album. A worldwide tour. A legacy finally given its proper send-off.
Their story is told in an eight-part docuseries, Sunbound: ICARIS’ Final Flight—mixing present-day footage with archival clips, livestreams, concert films, and video logs. Raw, intimate, and at times uncomfortable, it’s a look into the group that once soared together, burned to ashes together, and now rises together one last time.
Customize your Sparky. Design the group’s “face”: choose appearance, gender, sexuality, and even performance style. Will you be a playful and adorable puppy-like person or a mysterious and surly cat-like person? Were you close with your fans or were you standoffish? Were you clean or did you basically live in the tabloids?
Shape your journey. Experience the rise of ICARIS, the events that shaped their history — some moments are inevitable; there is no saving what’s already lost. In the present timeline, however, you can navigate regrets and grief, reconnect with old friends, and influence how the reunion unfolds.
Romance across timelines. Pursue any of the five romantic options. Rekindle old flames or explore new connections.
Content warnings: realities of the industry, abusive workplaces and schedules, substance abuse, mentions/allusions to suicidal thoughts, mental illnesses, disordered eating. Possibly more.
Sparky
You were the spark that lit ICARIS, the group’s most recognizable face — loved, hated, and dissected in equal measures. Years after ICARIS, you’re back on stage with your former members and surrounded by people from a past that seems so far now. Will this reunion bring closure, or will it reopen wounds that never fully healed?
Shin Jiwon — romantic option. Always the same gender as idol-era Sparky.
The leader. Cold, repressed, distant — Jiwon wielded their responsibility like a sword and their scripture like a shield. Words they’d never dared speak are scattered across ICARIS’ discography. Until now, they are determined to keep the ICARIS legacy alive. Burdened by regret and emotions they refuse to face, Jiwon keeps their heart locked behind walls of practiced silence and professionalism. You may have once breached past those walls, but breaking through them again will be far more challenging.
Saint Gatti — romantic option. Always the same gender as idol-era Sparky.
Talented on all fronts — a magnetic performer, an exceptional producer, and a delightful conversationalist. Sharp-witted, opinionated, and quick with a joke, Saint was one of the quiet pillars of ICARIS: the oldest member, the producer, the person everyone instinctively sought out during long, exhausting nights. They once knew you like the back of their hand, now even simple conversations are difficult. Can something that was once familiar be rebuilt?
Charismatic, cunning, and impossible to ignore — Kila is the face of your rival group, ECLYPS. Their name has always been placed beside yours: to compare, to criticize, to fuel rumors. Born into a long line of acclaimed creatives in the Philippines, they pursued fame relentlessly and eventually surpassed ICARIS in popularity after the group’s disbandment, even their solo career thriving. Now, they’ve drifted back into your orbit as once of the documentary’s interviewees. You no longer understand their motives — maybe never did. But beneath the sharp smile and playful cruelty, does the tenderness you once glimpsed at still remain?
Character Introduction.
Ethereal, serene, and incredibly unattainable — Valentine starred opposite you as your onscreen partner throughout ICARIS’ second trilogy of music videos. Paparazzi shots, matching items of clothing, and bashful denials have made for one of the most popular love affairs in the entertainment industry — too bad it was all fabricated. Behind their carefully constructed image lies a desperation for something incredibly ordinary. With their career newly revitalized and a beloved, highly public relationship now in the spotlight, would they still be willing to risk everything for what might have been?
Character Introduction.
Quiet, distant, and carefully avoidant — Tatum was your childhood friend, the person you first dreamed big with. You were supposed to stand on stage together, side by side, taking on the world as a pair, believing in a future built on the certainty that absolutely nothing would come between the two of you. Unfortunately, a few months into training, they were cut from the lineup and sent back home. Communication had slowed over time, but every trip back home reignited your relationship. Or so you thought. Today, they want nothing to do with you… except in a twist of fate (and partly their doing), their ten year old niece is now a die-hard fan of ICARIS. They really should have thrown all those albums away.
Character Introduction.
Angel Matisse
The visual of ICARIS — the pretty face, the one plastered all over covers of magazines. Angel was often dismissed for lacking skill, but you’ve seen how fiercely driven they were to improve. Publicly, they appeared icy and unreadable, the very picture of elegance and class but privately, there was warmth, humor, and unbreakable loyalty to the group. Today, they are an award-winning actor, married to their childhood best friend, and raising two children. Time has softened their edges, replacing empty confidence with quiet self-assurance, but their words remain as sharp and direct as they were years ago.
Devan Tiwari
The abrasive troublemaker, always kept on a metaphorical leash. Devan was infamous for speaking their mind without restraint, even when it came at the expense of the group’s reputation. But beneath all the noise and chaos, there is a gentle side of them most refused to acknowledge: fiercely protective of the members, and deeply committed to the safety and happiness of each one. They have stepped away from the spotlight since disbandment, choosing to spend their time managing an establishment for homeless youth.
Cloud Rattanakorn
Cloud is the kind of person people often described as “comfortable” — never too loud, never too sharp, never too popular. The public liked them for being the steady calm in the middle of ICARIS’ chaos. Accompanying that calm was an unyielding will to keep the group together. Cloud was often the one to step in, to soften the jagged edges of their members before they cut each other. Away from the spotlight, they now spend their days running their family’s restaurant, content to stay in the quiet presence of people they know would never abandon them.
Hoshino Mitsuki
The beacon of hope, the source of laughter, the sunbeam after curtain call. Mitsuki was an amalgamation of all of the older members’ personalities — a perfect mixture of each one’s best traits and their most human flaws. Mitsuki had a uniquely unbreakable bond with each of the members, and the fans, acting as a constant presence of warmth and reassurance — someone to lean on just as they had leaned on others. Among both the members and the fans, they has always been one clear agreement: Mitsuki is to be remembered as the warmth they all tried to protect. Nothing less.
the sickness (i suspect it might've been the flu) from earlier this week has turned my brain back to mush so i'm not so confident in the angel character introduction i'm posting later 😅 but it's good enough that i'm not going to exhaust myself more by revising and revising the rest of the day. hopefully tomorrow and the day after are much better in terms of writing brain because those will be a little more difficult to write compared to angel's for different reasons.
for everyone going through the drastic weather changes too, i hope you're all doing well and not falling sick!
got sick earlier this week so this last batch of character introductions will be posted starting tomorrow. i did always plan for things to be posted on fridays my time onwards but i messed up the queue last week and did it thurs-sat 😅
writing mitsuki's character introduction draft and just not knowing what to actually write so i'm listening to my playlist for them and i think i'll have to cancel the rest of my plans for the day 🥲 they give me so much heartache 😭
got sick earlier this week so this last batch of character introductions will be posted starting tomorrow. i did always plan for things to be posted on fridays my time onwards but i messed up the queue last week and did it thurs-sat 😅
In these intros you highlight everyone’s special talent in the group/in general but all I really got from Sparkys intro is that they’re the figurehead and charismatic, nothing actually specific like “they had the best voice”, “they could play the guitar better than anyone” or anything like that unless we get to choose what Sparky excelled at in the group ?
I know Sparky isn’t a shallow character but that’s kind of the vibe I get off of their intro surrounded/compared to everyone else’s.
sparky’s intro is vague because i want readers to fill in the blanks for their own sparkys. but also, sparky is not the best in either singing or dancing in the group, and not the best producer, composer, choreographer, etc. sparky is designed to be good (above average), but not the absolute best. they’re behind saint in terms of being an all-rounder (who is actually behind devan there but devan is heavily underestimated/underappreciated due to their controversies). sparky’s entire thing is that they’re not the best, yet their charisma is what brings icaris to the mainstream. so if there’s something sparky excels at, much better than anyone else in the group, it’s star power. they draw people in.
i won’t get into too much detail, but this actually brings up some tension points in the group’s relationships with each other and the solo-fans’/antis’ most common phrases when hating on sparky. saint (and to a lesser degree devan) feel like they’re in the shadow of sparky, who is not as skilled as them but much, much more popular. angel, whose position in the group (visual) is designed to bring people in, feels like they’re inadequate at their job. the higher ups severely underestimate sparky during their first years—less lines, no center positions in dance formations—but their virality gives them newfound attention from the people in charge and it strays too close to favoritism territory (there is favoritism, but the members being in charge of most of their content made it so it wasn’t so obvious). antis and solo fans dislike sparky for being the most popular too, they think they don’t deserve it and the more skilled members should be more popular.
Anyone who knew Devan Tiwari from a young age would know that Devan had always had a streak of rebelliousness in them. Rarely malicious, sometimes out of place, but Devan Tiwari knew their path in life since they were a child and stubbornly intended to follow it through to adulthood. So when their parents gave them a choice to make—a stable family home or to pursue an unpredictable singing career—Devan packed up and left at just 15 years old. For months, Devan took on odd jobs and lived in friends’ houses, moving whenever they felt they’d overstayed their welcome. It wasn’t until a few friends mentioned going to LA and asking Devan to go with them that Devan found their ticket into the industry.
“It wasn’t immediately easy,” Devan had said during the group’s first documentary, Sunborn, “but I had support.” Support for Devan had been in the form of older friends who’d bring them around everywhere, and an elderly lady who had lived alone and paid Devan to do her daily chores. When Devan auditioned for and got into the group—“I was promised trainee allowance,” Devan explained with a laugh, “and I was hoping for a solo career, not one in a group”—they’d moved out of this kind lady’s basement but didn’t fully cut off ties with her. She had spent the next few years supporting ICARIS’ career, being one of the twenty first audience members, and Devan paid everything back by supporting her financially. This elderly lady—unnamed to this day but abuela to Devan and the other members—was one of ICARIS’ biggest fans until her last days.
Devan is a vital and irreplaceable part of ICARIS—the main vocal who was also among the top dancers and Cloud Rattanakorn’s assistant choreographer. They had a strong, emotional voice that carried most of the group’s most demanding melodies and adlibs, and their background in street dancing had helped them guide the other members’ dancing. Perhaps this is why the company never let them go, despite many petitions to remove them for “ruining the group’s image.” Devan is one of—if not the—most controversial members of the group, known for late-night lives where they’d fight back against the haters who wouldn’t leave the group alone. They were always on the cover of tabloids, drowning in rumors of dating, drug-related activities, and sometimes physical fights.
But most of all, Devan is known for being the catalyst to ICARIS’ breaking away from their abusive company. They had gone on live at 3 AM one day, sporting a black eye and a split lip, and announced to the world that the members were being mistreated, abused, and exploited. The rest of the story of ICARIS VS Elysium Entertainment was a mixture of uncomfortably public moments and steady private conversations—a story where they ended up winning and taking control of the company. Devan is, and will always be, known for being the one brave enough to save the rest of the group, and perhaps this is why the public could never fully truly hate them anymore.
Today, Devan offers comfort and support to youth who are going through what they once went through. They’d founded a home for homeless youth that offers education and training on creative skills. A few trainees of Aurora Entertainment famously came from this establishment. With the coming release of Sunbound, we’re looking forward to getting to know the softer, more mature Devan Tiwari of today and to possibly to get more insight on the volatile but protective Devan Tiwari of the ICARIS days.
Anyone who knew Devan Tiwari from a young age would know that Devan had always had a streak of rebelliousness in them. Rarely malicious, sometimes out of place, but Devan Tiwari knew their path in life since they were a child and stubbornly intended to follow it through to adulthood. So when their parents gave them a choice to make—a stable family home or to pursue an unpredictable singing career—Devan packed up and left at just 15 years old. For months, Devan took on odd jobs and lived in friends’ houses, moving whenever they felt they’d overstayed their welcome. It wasn’t until a few friends mentioned going to LA and asking Devan to go with them that Devan found their ticket into the industry.
“It wasn’t immediately easy,” Devan had said during the group’s first documentary, Sunborn, “but I had support.” Support for Devan had been in the form of older friends who’d bring them around everywhere, and an elderly lady who had lived alone and paid Devan to do her daily chores. When Devan auditioned for and got into the group—“I was promised trainee allowance,” Devan explained with a laugh, “and I was hoping for a solo career, not one in a group”—they’d moved out of this kind lady’s basement but didn’t fully cut off ties with her. She had spent the next few years supporting ICARIS’ career, being one of the twenty first audience members, and Devan paid everything back by supporting her financially. This elderly lady—unnamed to this day but abuela to Devan and the other members—was one of ICARIS’ biggest fans until her last days.
Devan is a vital and irreplaceable part of ICARIS—the main vocal who was also among the top dancers and Cloud Rattanakorn’s assistant choreographer. They had a strong, emotional voice that carried most of the group’s most demanding melodies and adlibs, and their background in street dancing had helped them guide the other members’ dancing. Perhaps this is why the company never let them go, despite many petitions to remove them for “ruining the group’s image.” Devan is one of—if not the—most controversial members of the group, known for late-night lives where they’d fight back against the haters who wouldn’t leave the group alone. They were always on the cover of tabloids, drowning in rumors of dating, drug-related activities, and sometimes physical fights.
But most of all, Devan is known for being the catalyst to ICARIS’ breaking away from their abusive company. They had gone on live at 3 AM one day, sporting a black eye and a split lip, and announced to the world that the members were being mistreated, abused, and exploited. The rest of the story of ICARIS VS Elysium Entertainment was a mixture of uncomfortably public moments and steady private conversations—a story where they ended up winning and taking control of the company. Devan is, and will always be, known for being the one brave enough to save the rest of the group, and perhaps this is why the public could never fully truly hate them anymore.
Today, Devan offers comfort and support to youth who are going through what they once went through. They’d founded a home for homeless youth that offers education and training on creative skills. A few trainees of Aurora Entertainment famously came from this establishment. With the coming release of Sunbound, we’re looking forward to getting to know the softer, more mature Devan Tiwari of today and to possibly to get more insight on the volatile but protective Devan Tiwari of the ICARIS days.
Saint Gatti has always been promising. They were born into a large family that’d taught them plenty of valuable skills growing up—cooking, singing, dancing, even engineering. Saint loved bringing up how it was their grandfather who first taught them how to create tunes out of humming, and it was their grandmother who had taught them how to dance. Before ICARIS, before Elysium Entertainment, before flying to the US, Saint Gatti’s first audience—first fans and first critics—have always been their family.
Saint didn’t always want to be an idol. They first moved to the US to study aerospace engineering, having been granted a full scholarship to one of the best engineering schools in the world. “I liked flying and fixing things,” they’d said when asked about the unusual major. “My dad bought me all these little toy planes when I was younger and I was obsessed with learning how they worked.” Saint had seen flyers promoting the auditions for Elysium Entertainment on campus one day and was goaded by friends to try out. They weren’t expecting to be accepted—much less pursued by the company—and, intrigued by the training system and the promise to learn more about producing, Saint joined the system despite knowing how much of a strain it’d put on their already grueling schedule. Saint is anything but a quitter—stubborn to the bone, always seeing things through—and they proved that by painstakingly doing everything “by the book” to still earn their degree despite being a full-time idol, even if they graduated a few years later than their peers.
As for being a member of the group, Saint is the bones that built the flawless discography that is ICARIS’—they are the main producer for about 90% of their songs and secondary producer for the rest. As the oldest, Saint was one of the two pillars of the group—funny, always able to use their wits and, on rare times, slapstick comedy to make their members and the audience laugh. Introspective and deep, the one person the younger members go to for comfort, the one to go on late-night live streams to assure worried fans. Saint was not only a blazing ball of talent and magnetism on stage—the ace, the all-rounder—they were also a warm orb of sun off it. “We survived a lot thanks to them,” Devan had once said. “They really helped us not break apart.”
These days, Saint Gatti is thriving as a solo artist with three successful albums under their name. They are selling out stadiums, getting Billboard HOT 100 hits, and being nominated for the Grammys. By all means, they are in a position to reject the reunion so they can focus more on building up on their solo brand, but verified sources claim Saint was the first to say yes. When asked about their decision to join the reunion, Saint said, “The group always comes first,” and then left it at that. Though Saint had kept quiet about the group after disbandment like the other members, it was always quite clear to the public that they still very much adored and missed the group—especially with songs in their albums that are heavily speculated to be about their members. Hopefully, with the release of Sunbound and their next album—produced by Saint, of course—we’ll get to see deeper into the mind behind the irresistible and unforgettable melodies we’d all grown up hearing.
Saint Gatti has always been promising. They were born into a large family that’d taught them plenty of valuable skills growing up—cooking, singing, dancing, even engineering. Saint loved bringing up how it was their grandfather who first taught them how to create tunes out of humming, and it was their grandmother who had taught them how to dance. Before ICARIS, before Elysium Entertainment, before flying to the US, Saint Gatti’s first audience—first fans and first critics—have always been their family.
Saint didn’t always want to be an idol. They first moved to the US to study aerospace engineering, having been granted a full scholarship to one of the best engineering schools in the world. “I liked flying and fixing things,” they’d said when asked about the unusual major. “My dad bought me all these little toy planes when I was younger and I was obsessed with learning how they worked.” Saint had seen flyers promoting the auditions for Elysium Entertainment on campus one day and was goaded by friends to try out. They weren’t expecting to be accepted—much less pursued by the company—and, intrigued by the training system and the promise to learn more about producing, Saint joined the system despite knowing how much of a strain it’d put on their already grueling schedule. Saint is anything but a quitter—stubborn to the bone, always seeing things through—and they proved that by painstakingly doing everything “by the book” to still earn their degree despite being a full-time idol, even if they graduated a few years later than their peers.
As for being a member of the group, Saint is the bones that built the flawless discography that is ICARIS’—they are the main producer for about 90% of their songs and secondary producer for the rest. As the oldest, Saint was one of the two pillars of the group—funny, always able to use their wits and, on rare times, slapstick comedy to make their members and the audience laugh. Introspective and deep, the one person the younger members go to for comfort, the one to go on late-night live streams to assure worried fans. Saint was not only a blazing ball of talent and magnetism on stage—the ace, the all-rounder—they were also a warm orb of sun off it. “We survived a lot thanks to them,” Devan had once said. “They really helped us not break apart.”
These days, Saint Gatti is thriving as a solo artist with three successful albums under their name. They are selling out stadiums, getting Billboard HOT 100 hits, and being nominated for the Grammys. By all means, they are in a position to reject the reunion so they can focus more on building up on their solo brand, but verified sources claim Saint was the first to say yes. When asked about their decision to join the reunion, Saint said, “The group always comes first,” and then left it at that. Though Saint had kept quiet about the group after disbandment like the other members, it was always quite clear to the public that they still very much adored and missed the group—especially with songs in their albums that are heavily speculated to be about their members. Hopefully, with the release of Sunbound and their next album—produced by Saint, of course—we’ll get to see deeper into the mind behind the irresistible and unforgettable melodies we’d all grown up hearing.
ICARIS would’ve crumbled in its first few months without the firm and smart leadership of Shin Jiwon—this is a known fact and one the members themselves liked to remind everyone of. Shin Jiwon was the mind behind their messages, the words in the songs, and the pillar that makes the foundation of ICARIS so strong.
Born into a wealthy South Korean family known for their expansive healthcare network, Jiwon was always expected to one day be a doctor. However, as an extracurricular when they were younger, their parents enrolled them in professional singing classes and Jiwon had fallen in love so quickly. So when Aurora Entertainment—then Elysium Entertainment—held auditions in South Korea, Jiwon tried out behind their parents’ back and, unsurprisingly, with the voice they had, was accepted. Inexplicably attached to the idea of performing, Jiwon had begged their parents to allow them one year to prove themself—one year to get into the final lineup and debut. Six months later, the final evaluations for ICARIS were conducted and Jiwon was the first to be called into the group.
To the public, Jiwon was a strong and efficient—if a little cold—leader who stood in front of the members when facing public scrutiny but behind them when facing glory. To the members, Jiwon was a vital cog in the machinery that made up the ICARIS magic—the one who’d shaped them into the responsible performers they are today, the one who’d trained the less skilled members in singing, the one who’d faced all the difficult people for them. One special and unforgettable instance of Jiwon’s leadership on display was when the group fought back against their company, citing an abusive workplace environment and underpay as reasons to want a full restructure of how the company worked. Jiwon was the most public member during these dark times, and it was Jiwon who ultimately saved them. Their parents bought the majority of shares in the company, restructuring it into what would become Aurora Entertainment and ensuring each member held 7% ownership—because with ICARIS, seven had always mattered.
After ICARIS’ disbandment, Jiwon stayed as an executive at Aurora Entertainment, managing new groups, training vocals, and being one of the most prominent composers behind some of the biggest hits of the groups under the company. Slowly, without taking the shortcuts readily made available for them as the leader of the group that built the company from the ground up, Jiwon climbed the ladder and proved themself to be just as efficient in leading a new generation of idols as they were leading their members once upon a time. Just recently, they were placed as the executive chair of the company. The public speculates this recent change may be what made the ICARIS reunion possible, with rumors of Jiwon being the first to suggest the reunion and personally seeking out each member to ask them to join.
It’s been 15 years since we first met the intimidating and strong leader of ICARIS, and still they are a mysterious figure who’d rarely opened up to the fans. The members had often joked, “If you want to know Jiwon, study our lyrics,” but even the biggest Solace would have a hard time piecing together what makes up Jiwon through their lyrics. With Sunbound releasing soon, and producers saying this might be their most truthful documentary yet, we are all eager to learn more about the figure who led the group to astronomical heights: who Shin Jiwon truly is under the leader mask, what their unique relationship with the members truly is, and why they pushed for this much-awaited, once-impossible reunion.
ICARIS would’ve crumbled in its first few months without the firm and smart leadership of Shin Jiwon—this is a known fact and one the members themselves liked to remind everyone of. Shin Jiwon was the mind behind their messages, the words in the songs, and the pillar that makes the foundation of ICARIS so strong.
Born into a wealthy South Korean family known for their expansive healthcare network, Jiwon was always expected to one day be a doctor. However, as an extracurricular when they were younger, their parents enrolled them in professional singing classes and Jiwon had fallen in love so quickly. So when Aurora Entertainment—then Elysium Entertainment—held auditions in South Korea, Jiwon tried out behind their parents’ back and, unsurprisingly, with the voice they had, was accepted. Inexplicably attached to the idea of performing, Jiwon had begged their parents to allow them one year to prove themself—one year to get into the final lineup and debut. Six months later, the final evaluations for ICARIS were conducted and Jiwon was the first to be called into the group.
To the public, Jiwon was a strong and efficient—if a little cold—leader who stood in front of the members when facing public scrutiny but behind them when facing glory. To the members, Jiwon was a vital cog in the machinery that made up the ICARIS magic—the one who’d shaped them into the responsible performers they are today, the one who’d trained the less skilled members in singing, the one who’d faced all the difficult people for them. One special and unforgettable instance of Jiwon’s leadership on display was when the group fought back against their company, citing an abusive workplace environment and underpay as reasons to want a full restructure of how the company worked. Jiwon was the most public member during these dark times, and it was Jiwon who ultimately saved them. Their parents bought the majority of shares in the company, restructuring it into what would become Aurora Entertainment and ensuring each member held 7% ownership—because with ICARIS, seven had always mattered.
After ICARIS’ disbandment, Jiwon stayed as an executive at Aurora Entertainment, managing new groups, training vocals, and being one of the most prominent composers behind some of the biggest hits of the groups under the company. Slowly, without taking the shortcuts readily made available for them as the leader of the group that built the company from the ground up, Jiwon climbed the ladder and proved themself to be just as efficient in leading a new generation of idols as they were leading their members once upon a time. Just recently, they were placed as the executive chair of the company. The public speculates this recent change may be what made the ICARIS reunion possible, with rumors of Jiwon being the first to suggest the reunion and personally seeking out each member to ask them to join.
It’s been 15 years since we first met the intimidating and strong leader of ICARIS, and still they are a mysterious figure who’d rarely opened up to the fans. The members had often joked, “If you want to know Jiwon, study our lyrics,” but even the biggest Solace would have a hard time piecing together what makes up Jiwon through their lyrics. With Sunbound releasing soon, and producers saying this might be their most truthful documentary yet, we are all eager to learn more about the figure who led the group to astronomical heights: who Shin Jiwon truly is under the leader mask, what their unique relationship with the members truly is, and why they pushed for this much-awaited, once-impossible reunion.
will post character introductions on the weekends so next batch (jiwon, saint, devan) will be this weekend, then the last batch will be weekend after that. i’ve already finished writing jiwon’s and saint’s and the others will be fairly easy to write too, i just want to space them out a little.
in the meantime, i’m writing bit by bit for chapter 1. this book is surprisingly very different from tro. i mean, obviously it’s different because the genres are different, but it’s stylistically so different too. since it’s framed as a docuseries with bits and pieces of “off camera” moments, there are some scenes that don’t even feature sparky. there are montages, interviews, filmed scenes, all that. i really struggled a lot at first figuring out how to style each specific kind of scene so they’re distinct from each other (not to mention past vs present timeline) but writing it now with the setup i have in mind, it’s a different experience. not bad, though a little challenging. also incredibly satisfying.
i’m also listening a lot to arirang (bts’ album) and pureflow pt. 1 (le sserafim’s album) and the lyrics and everything are really inspiring me despite the agonizing heat right now. into the sun and need your company especially are such good songs for the ideas i have in mind.
just a little update on how i plan to spend this week! <3 hope everyone has a kind week ahead.
So we can be clear about how the Valentine stuff isnt real when romancing other ROs (especially Tatum who is mostly disconnected), righr?
yes, of course! the members will know regardless because the team has to let them know it’s all fake otherwise the other members might think there’s preferential treatment (there was tbh) or that dating publicly is fine, but sparky can definitely let kila and tatum know it’s all fake.
No two fans can agree on who Sparky truly is. To some, they were the magnetic center of ICARIS, the member whose raw charisma lit the spark of the ICARIS blaze. To others, it’s their personality and their different dynamics with the rest of the members that really speak of who they are. Some might remember countless viral moments — impossibly beautiful red carpet looks, ethereal on-stage moments, heartwarming or funny fan interactions — while others might insist on talking about their scandals — dating rumors, blind items, un-“idol-like” behavior.
Perhaps this is why discussions surrounding Sparky rarely settle on a single, peaceful conclusion. The public continues to argue on which version of them was the “real” one: the ambitious but authentic rookie who vowed to reach the sun alongside the members; the untouchable, almost mythical celebrity at the peak of the group’s fame; or the increasingly difficult to understand figure by the group’s final years. Some may even add in to the conversation: maybe they were someone the public never truly knew. Even now, fifteen years after ICARIS’ debut, Sparky remains impossible to define. And perhaps that is what makes them so alluring.
With Sunbound’s release soon, and the production behind it promising more vulnerable and intimate confessions from the members, fans and non-fans alike are looking forward to knowing more about the elusive spark behind ICARIS’ meteoric rise.
sparky’s personality is not fixed. but they are, like most celebrities as big as they were, someone people project onto a lot, so there’s a lot of conflicting things about them regardless of if they were more open with the public or refused to show too much. the character introductions and the icaris introduction are all written from a fan’s perspective (by a fan in-universe) so their perspective on these things can be quite limited and influenced by fandom and anti noise. which is also my way of saying that some things they say in these introductory posts may not be the most truthful/accurate.
It would be a rather shitty thing to say/think but could we maybe get a choice for Sparky to be glad that Tatum never joined because who's to say they cpuldn't have been in Mitsuki's place? (i.e dead)
so we already know that at one point sparky goes back home and meets up with tatum. at that point, the group is in a pretty stressful/awful place so yeah, i think certain sparkys might think that it’s a good thing tatum didn’t enter the entertainment industry because it’s quite awful when you’re the one actually in it. the conversation you’re thinking of will most likely come up at this point in the story (not about mitsuki though, but a general thing).
tatum throughout the years will realize fame isn’t for them anyway… or more like, they’ve got other things to worry about and can’t feel bitter about not making it. they’ll really mostly be bitter about the distance and most of that won’t be sparky’s fault. sparky had a lot on their plate too.
How would a fake dating stunt with Valentine work if Sparky is the same gender?
good question, simple answer: plausible deniability and “diversity” brownie points. they fuel but never confirm, so some people might think “good for the company for allowing them to be themselves, and also for protecting them”. but really the company only wants to be seen as inclusive while also actively oppressing any more direct expressions of the members (even if your sparky is hetero, three other members are queer).
the contrast between what the company allows and what they will not allow if your sparky is in a real queer relationship/flirtationship will be jarring. will be quite awful.
