Stray Kids, Episode 1: our own game that no one can copy
We’re going way back for this one. The year is 2017. COVID hasn’t happened yet. Brexit is happening, but no one can figure out why or how. Beyoncé is pregnant with twins. Kendall Jenner has ended racism forever with a Pepsi commercial. And over in South Korea, one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world has already been formed, before their survival show has even started.
That’s right. This show is going to be different. Not only are the competing groups already formed, but one of them is a girl group. This will be my first time writing about a girl group. There’s going to be a lot to unpack. Let’s get started.
First, since this is JYP Entertainment, let’s welcome back the man himself, the one who sent our 2pm and 2am trainees to get beaten up on an island as a gift. Hello, Mr. Park Jin-Young!
JYP tells us his company is under pressure to produce a new group. So he’s setting up a trainee showcase where a girl group and boy group will compete. The girl group is called 2TEAM. The other is a self-formed boy group, so far unnamed, led by a veteran trainee named Bang Chan. And in this very first episode, JYP will pick the debut group to work with, and the rest of the series will focus on that group. Like I said, this show is going to be different.
We’re wasting no time. D-Day is here. I have really missed these one-hour episodes that get right to the point. We see a young group of junior trainees rehearsing, and then a solo artist named Lily M. Finally, the main event. 2TEAM gets ready to rehearse. (Apologies in advance for the grainy screenshots, but I’m working with a YouTube upload.) They’re a seven-member group, and as they practice, we see the boy group watching them from the audience seats. We get our first look at Bang Chan.
2TEAM and Bang Chan
He looks worried. The girls are really talented singers, and this isn’t just dance-pop fluff. It’s a solid rock beat. 2TEAM is a promising group. In fact, I like their performance so much, I look them up and am sad to learn they never debuted. A few of them went on to find success in the K-pop industry, which I find reassuring. More on that in a minute.
“We need to be nervous about this,” one of the boy trainees mutters as he watches the girls perform. Dang right. We get a confessional with this trainee, whose name is Jisung on the show. As a member of Stray Kids, he goes by the stage name of Han. He knows 2TEAM will be tough competition. We also meet Changbin, who shares his concern but is a bit distracted by 17 year-old Chaeryeong of 2TEAM, who really stands out. (She will go on to graduate from Hanlim Multi Arts School and debut with the group ITZY.)
Jisung (Han), Changbin, and Chaeryeong
I want to give these women a spotlight, especially since this is the only time we’ll see them on this show. We meet 17 year-old Ryujin, an incredible dancer.
Ryujin
The way this show describes Ryujin gives us a look into gender expectations in the industry. In a confessional, she describes herself as “kind of like the guy” of the group. The show then gives us evidence through footage of her with the rest of the group. She says something silly and lightly slaps herself on the cheek. The subtitles tell us that this is, and I’m quoting, “explosive manly woman charm.” In another scene, she playfully shakes her finger at another group member. The subtitles say she is “full of reversal charms that are contrary to her innocent looks.” She still looks sweet and innocent, just full of spirited, self-depreciating humor, but apparently that’s considered masculine energy. I find this whole thing fascinating.
Ryujin also stands out for appearing in the BTS teaser video for “Love Yourself.” She will also go on to debut with ITZY and graduate from the same arts school as Chaeryeong. That manly explosive energy will take her far.
Next up is Yeji, who leads the group’s rehearsals. She’ll also debut with ITZY, which means I really should be checking out that group. Her dancing during the onstage rehearsals cause the guys even more anxiety. This will not be an easy team to beat.
Yeji
Now it’s the boys’ turn to rehearse. I count nine members in the group, which is interesting since the current group has eight members. We learn that Bang Chan has been at JYP the longest, approaching his seventh year. He does not look old enough to have been training that long, but he does have that world-weary vibe to him. He’s a kid who has seen too much for his age.
Then we get a clip of his 2010 JYP audition in his homeland of Australia. He’s barely larger than the guitar he’s holding.
He’s thirteen years old in that clip. He’s nineteen or twenty years old at the time of this show and is a little embarrassed that all his fellow JYP trainees he came up with have gone on to debut, and he’s still here. He’s desperate to debut.
We watch him lead his group’s rehearsal with a parental type of authority. We learn that he and current teammates Han and Changbin are part of a self-produced rap group called 3RACHA. (I’m going to use the stage names in these recaps to help me keep everyone straight.) I know I’ve mentioned the self-produced part before, but that’s because it’s really impressive. And not that common. Not all entertainment companies encourage this. Many prefer that the group members record the songs they’re given. Some groups have to prove themselves before being allowed to contribute to the songwriting and production.
Han tells us his specialty is voice impersonation. Changbin tells us he’s in charge of rap in the current boy project group. Changbin’s style is dark and gloomy, which is a real contrast to the cartoon voices Han was just showing us. I like finally getting to know the members of Stray Kids and get a feel for their group dynamic.
As Bang Chan pep-talks the group during rehearsal, we pan around the room, and OH MY GOD is that Felix?
He’s been onscreen several times so far, and I did not recognize him at all. We’ll get to him in a minute. First, 20 year-old Lee Minho introduces himself. In Stray Kids, his name will be Lee Know. He used to tour with BTS as a backup dancer. Wow.
Lee Know now and on tour with BTS
Now we get to Felix. He looks so young and small here, but he already has that deep voice. (I love YouTube reaction videos to his voice.) As I mentioned in the intro, he’s also from Australia, and at the time of this show, he’s still learning Korean. We watch the other members teaching him the language through games and repetition.
Now for Hyunjin, and the fact that we’re spending so much time with every group member has to be the show’s way of telegraphing that they’re going to win the showcase. He’s also a dancer and visual stunner. He seems a little self-conscious and embarrassed by the breathless response he gets from women just by smiling.
Now for our vocal team. We meet 20 year-old Woojin. He used to be with SM Entertainment and trained with the group that went on to become NCT. He was brokenhearted when they debuted without him. It’s a story we hear many, many times on these K-pop reality shows.
Next up is 17 year-old Jeongin. His stage name will be I.N, simply because foreigners have trouble pronouncing his real name. He’s from Busan, the sacred city to BTS fans.
Hyunjin, Woojin, and Jeongin (I.N)
Now we meet the soft-spoken Seungmin. He may speak quietly, but he’s a powerhouse vocalist.
Seungmin
Before I can check to see if we’ve met everyone, suddenly we’re back at the showcase, and the boys team is rehearsing. Now it’s 2TEAM’s turn to look anxious. But it’s not a done deal, especially when two of the boys drop their mics and have to scramble after them. Oof. Han also forgets some of the lyrics. Backstage, Bang Chan gives them a reassuring pep talk and tells them to shake it off. They still have the final performance to get it right.
With final rehearsals over, we get a montage of both teams getting ready for the showcase. 2TEAM had a flawless rehearsal and keeps sounding better with every practice, and Bang Chan looks like he needs an early jump on blood pressure medication. And to add to the stress, there’s going to be an audience for this. They’re lining up outside, and I can hear Bang Chan’s teeth grinding over the dramatic music.
As the audience files in, Bang Chan is greeted backstage by the JYP girl group Twice, who are here to support him. He tries to smile at them, but I worry he’s developing an ulcer.
The girls in Twice tease him over how small he was when he first joined JYP, which I’m sure is what this poor guy really needs right now. When they remember that he’s been a trainee for seven years, they gasp and exclaim that he’s been a trainee for WAY longer than some of them have. Well! Thanks for stopping by, ladies! Need help getting to your seats and being told to put a sock in it?
They finally wish him well (“Hwaiting!”) and let him leave. The showcase begins. Our opening act is the junior boy team called BoyStory. This is actually a Chinese group that went on to debut. They’re still active. We get more opening acts, including the dance line from 2TEAM and Bang Chan’s side project 3RACHA. The crowd loves it.
Now for the main event. 2TEAM is up first.
These girls are amazing. I need to check out ITZY. Honestly, if I were watching this show back when it first aired, I’d be rooting for the girls to win this showcase. The song is high energy with a pounding rock beat, and their cheerleader vocals remind me of the 70s rock band The Runaways. Their performance is perfect, with no mistakes. The bar has been set very high.
The crowd loves it. It’s hard to tell what JYP thinks because the man has not smiled once. He has spent the entire performance staring intently at the girls, which is really kind of creepy. Let’s quickly move on to our boys team.
They gather backstage for one last pep talk from Bang Chan. “Let’s make this our last showcase,” he says. They make their way to the stage, where they had their clumsy rehearsal earlier. They have to be perfect now if they want any chance of beating 2TEAM. It’s showtime.
They pull it off perfectly. It’s a fun song with some gymnastic dance moves, and I notice that Felix’s voice isn’t very deep in this performance. The song is high energy but doesn’t yet have that dark vibe of danger we’ll see from them when they debut later. But I easily see what they’re going to become.
JYP actually smiles. He raves about them in a confessional. There’s no mistaking it. The boys group was meant to be the winner here.
The audience leaves. All the performers, including BoyStory and Lily M, gather onstage. A member of 2TEAM whispers to her bandmates that she’s more nervous now than she was during the performance. JYP arrives, and they all bow and greet him loudly.
We find out this was Bang Chan’s eighth showcase. No wonder he’s so eager to make it his last. JYP tells them he’s ready to choose the next group to debut. Everyone freezes. If it weren’t for the dramatic music, you could probably hear a pin drop on that stage.
In true K-pop survival show tradition, JYP drags it out. He tells Bang Chan he did a great job but needs more charisma. Changbin did the best rapping. On 2TEAM, Chaeryeong and Yeji gave the strongest performances. But the decision has been made. The boys project team will debut.
The boys look stunned while the other trainees cheer for them. They barely move. They need time to process this, especially since some of them have been chasing this dream for years. Now that it’s happening, they don’t know how to react. If you were watching this with the volume off, you would think they’d lost.
JYP keeps stressing how great the nine members look together. “The nine of you were like one body,” he says. “I liked seeing the nine members.” Okay. I know at this point that Woojin will be leaving eventually, since he’s not in the current lineup, but I don’t know the details and don’t want to know yet. Let’s see what happens.
Bang Chan tells us in a confessional, “We will get to debut as nine.” This show is really drilling that number into the ground. Is this foreshadowing that Woojin will be eliminated on the show?
In the ten minutes we have left in this episode, we’re going to see the boys group get ready for their debut. We get a look at their dorm, which is cramped. My college dorm was the size of one of their bedrooms, and I only had to share it with one other person. I’m guessing one reason trainees are so desperate to debut is so they can get rich enough to not have to stand in line for the bathroom or spend the night listening to their bandmates snore.
The boys are all given video cameras, because now they will be filming their lives 24/7. We follow Changbin as he starts packing to live in the dorm. He lives in what looks like a mansion. The place is huge, with high ceilings and a chandelier. What is this guy’s deal?
We switch to Woojin, who plays guitar for us. He looks like a sweet kid. I wonder what’s going to happen with him. We also see Lee Know packing. He packs his clothes in wrapped bundles instead of suitcases. At first I thought this was a normal thing in Korea, but then the subtitles tell me it isn’t. What is THIS guy’s deal?
Okay, time to end on a serious note. JYP is waiting at a conference table. He looks impatient. His new debut group is keeping him waiting. But when they do enter, he’s smiling, so I guess he won’t fire them today.
He tells them the company will be filming their debut process. Rather than testing their dancing and singing, he’s going to be evaluating the team as a whole. The company is in an unusual situation, since they’re not the ones who put this team together. They will be taking a look at the results of Bang Chan’s work and seeing if they agree.
JYP assigns the group its first mission: They must write and perform their own song.
My first thought is, are you kidding me? Bang Chan and his 3RACHA crew have already been doing this. But on second thought, this isn’t 3RACHA. This is a nine-member group that needs its own image and sound. Bang Chan and crew will be starting from scratch. For once, we have an entertainment company with no idea of what their new debut group will sound like.
One more thing: JYP tells them that if the company doesn’t like what it hears, some of these boys may be eliminated.
The weight of the world is on this boy’s shoulders.
See you next episode.
Go to Episode 2 recap
