Chapter 23

Name:Debut or Die Author:
Keun Sejin led the arrangement meeting. And I got a fair amount of it.

[Kwon Heeseung: It’s a relief that Keun Sejin Hyung-nim is the leader, well!]

[Ha Iljun: He is definitely a friend with leadership.]

Given how the interviews for Gold 1 and 2 turned out, it seems that the production crew purposefully pushed Keun Sejin’s leadership.

“Oh, thank you, everyone~.”

“If you’re thankful, talk about me in the next interview.”

“Me too!”

“Ah, of course~.”

And in contrast to Keun Sejin’s relaxed expression, another participant was staring at the screen in the living room.

I glanced at Choi Wongil.

“….”

Choi Wongil, who was quiet when he came to today’s meeting, now had a tense look.

Indeed, how would the production team edit Choi Wongil’s argument about me?

From my point of view, it would be fine as long as I didn’t come out like I was trying to start a fight. Because in fast, if it’s not that, I don’t even care at all.

However, the editing also went in an unexpected direction.

They completely edited Choi Wongil’s argument.

[The idea is good, but if something goes wrong, wouldn’t it be like trying to make fun of the original song?]

Furthermore, Keun Sejin’s rebuttal to my words was cut off.

Instead, the figure of Keun Sejin, who raised his head seriously, appeared.

[I’ve been thinking about it, but I think— there’s a way to go strong while keeping the original song’s sensibility.]

And it immediately connected as I gave my opinion.

‘It seems like they don’t need Choi Wongil’s story.’

In order to keep the dramatic flow of the arrangement, the ambiguous argument in the picture was edited into nothing.

‘Come to think of it, they just skipped it when we changed the parts at the beginning.’

Choi Wongil seemed relieved, but well, I don’t know if that’s the case.

In the end, Choi Wongil didn’t get any good cuts until the very end.

Even at the very least, the interview did not come out well.

Maybe there wasn’t much to write about in the interview because he complained a lot about parts and arrangements.

Anyway, that was probably good, and the important thing was my editing.

Just then, Park Moondae, on the screen, finished what he was saying with a faint smile.

[Let’s mix it with horror.]

[…!!]

Then, they did close-ups of each team member to show how surprised they were.

‘…I think that’s too much?’

If anyone saw it, the edit seemed to show that I had come up with a unique idea.

There was even another interview.

[Ha Iljun: Wow! (Moondae) is saying that!]

[Kwon Heeseung: I thought this was it.]

[Lee Sejin (A): That’s… So it’s a talent.]

Child actor Lee Sejin’s words sounded somewhat bitter. But more than that, I couldn’t believe this guy had this kind of interview.

Thanks to this, there were a lot of jokes and boos in the living room, and people shot each other with cheesy interviews. Lee Sejin kept his mouth shut and looked at the screen steadfastly.

When Keun Sejin’s interview came out, everyone started to laugh.

[Lee Sejin (B): Moondae is really funny, isn’t it? (Laughs) No, it’s so funny to have an expression like a Tibetan fox and explode with ideas, really!!]

In the background of Keun Sejin’s words, ‘Park Moondae’ was cut and edited to react to all kinds of situations.

[I, I… I… W, when I was young, I had an accident…]

[What should I do…]

As the general public felt sorry for it, Park Moondae’s face began to close up.

“….”

As far as I can see, it’s calmness itself.

And the subtitles that come up.

[Park Moondae: (Nod–ding).]

“Ah! That’s right!”

“He was really like that! Hahahaha!”

And in the trainer’s harsh criticism scene.

[This kind of review is a compliment you should get at a talent show on a school trip.]

[….]

Park Moondae’s calm face was seen among the team members who bowed their heads and bit their mouths.

[Park Moondae: (Ca–lm.)]

That’s right.

In any situation in which other participants are restless.

Park Moondae was alone and had the same cloudy eyes.

“Hahahahaha!”

“That face! So funny!”

“….”

Only then did I realize that I had lost.

I was alone among the over-action participants, so it didn’t look calm, but it—looked like something was wrong with my mind.

‘I didn’t mean to curse the production team.’

I reflected on myself alone, avoiding the hands of Keun Sejin, who laughed like crazy and hit me on the back saying sorry.

In later broadcasts, the arrangement process went smoothly, which wasn’t meant to be a short spoiler.

[Lee Sejin (B): We will do well!]

[Park Moondae: …Fighting.]

I don’t know why I shouted “Fighting” so uninspiredly—.

And it wasn’t long before the stage started.

The team members, who had been making a lot of noise, quietly focused on watching at this moment.

I looked unfamiliarly at the face of ‘Park Moondae’ with stage makeup. I can’t believe I’m that guy.

[Whooo—]

Soon, a gloomy prelude flowed along with the introductory choreography, and the performance unfolded in earnest.

And each time the part changed, the shocked faces of the other participants who were waiting were inserted. Oh my.

It was fortunate that the stage didn’t feel like it was cut off due to the effort put into the editing.

‘Hmm.’

Anyway, the stage surely came out well.

In particular, I could see Seon Ahyun flying like a fish in the water. It was to the extent that the main dancer looked like Seon Ahyun, not Sejin. (t/n: 물 만난 고기 means a fish that met water or is in your comfortable field. Or in other words, when you are good at something, you feel very comfortable doing it.)

‘I think Seon Ahyun’s ranking will go up.’

The next good thing to see is Big Sejin, and the rest of them did their parts well.

Surprisingly, Lee Sejin didn’t look awkward because he used his facial expressions well.

When Choi Wongil appeared in the center of the chorus, the choreography made it seem like the cut went to Seon Ahyun, so it seemed like he had lost a bit.

And for me…fortunately, the bridge part came out well.

[Can’t You feel me?]

This line was followed by two or three reactions that overlapped.

‘…I think it’s almost like a troll song?’ (t/n: 돌림 노래 meaning troll/round. But the meaning is a method of singing, in which two or several teams sing a song repeatedly in the same order, with a certain time gap.)

I feel thankful, but at the same time, the intentions were questionable.

‘Isn’t it going to be a gimmick of a tactless talented person again?’

So when the trainers’ dialogue was inserted in the bridge part reaction, I was suspicious and looked at the screen.

[Mudie: Was that Wongil’s original part?]

[Jeok Taesong: Really?]

[Mudie: Yeah. Wongil said he couldn’t do it, so (Moondae) gave his own chorus part and rearranged (by himself).]

But I didn’t expect to save this story here.

In addition, when I heard the trainer’s conversation, it sounded like I did a good thing and swapped parts with Choi Wongil.

Well, the result is correct.

Mudie even came out with an interview cut.

[Mudie: Moondae is surprisingly soft-hearted.]

[Mudie: But he has a strong voice!]

Thank you.

Even if the character is the same, “Tactless but a good kid” is better than “Tactless and crazy kid who makes me mad.”

If I could avoid the sudden death, I thought I should repay the kindness by sending red ginseng.

The stage ended with an enthusiastic response from the audience shouting for an encore.

[Encore! Encore!]

And the image of the team hugging and celebrating was also successfully aired.

“We were awesome.”

“Honestly, it’s my stage, but I liked it even when I saw it.”

“Agree.”

The conversation of happy former team members filled the living room with meaningless applause.

Since it was me, I only talked about my part, but in reality, the team members received the part relatively great.

Thanks to this, the living room atmosphere was still harmonious.

I don’t know, but I think there are a lot of participants there who feel like they are in a house of mourning.

For example, Ryu Chungwoo’s team came out after us—was at the level of wanting to pay a silent tribute.

Here are some parts of the subtitles.

[Choose the best song selection?]

[Ho.we.ver]

[Team members who can’t stay focused on practice.]

[Leader Ryu Chungwoo’s struggle to fight alone]

The finishing touch was an interview with Ryu Chungwoo, who seemed to be having a hard time.

[Ryu Chungwoo: …I have to do it.]

‘Wow, you sent it right.’

Even though I already knew it wasn’t to that extent, it made me feel bad watching it.

The guys on our side saw it, and they talked so much and said everything that they ended up sounding like they were sympathizing without realizing it.

“Hey, what about them?”

“Chungwoo Hyung had a hard time. Huh. still..”

To summarize roughly, it was a picture of Ryu Chungwoo completing the stage and enduring it with the rest of the team, who didn’t have any skills but were displeased.

“Chungwoo has a good personality, but… hey, he looks like a saint.”

Gold 1’s shaky self-talk accurately explained the editing composition accurately.

Anyway, the broadcast even showed that we easily beat Ryu Chungwoo’s team.

[The score is… 82 vs 401!]

[Whoaaaa!]

It was a cut that was especially good.

Regarding individual voting, it was edited in a weird way that made Ryu Chungwoo cheer for his individual vote.

[Ryu Chungwoo: I think I still lack a lot.]

[Park Jeongseob: Honestly, shouldn’t we win (individual votes)?]

[Lee Dojun: The person who led the team is responsible…]

Well, it was nice and clean that our team didn’t even mention individual votes.

It was a complete victory for the team, both on the scene and in the broadcast.

When episode 3 was over, the entire team fell to the floor and sofa here and there.

“Wow… This is fast.”

“I thought I was going to die of nervousness!”

“I, I was scared.”

Even Seon Ahyun talked about it.

Everyone seemed to have used up a lot of their mental energy.

Keun Sejin lay down on the sofa and said.

“Ah, that’s a strange thing to say— everyone worked really hard. Hey, watching the show, everyone was so good!”

“Keun Sejin, you did a great job too~.”

“I’m glad it came out well.”

Gold 2’s eyes flashed with anticipation and left these words.

“Our reaction is really good, right?”

And as if someone had granted a wish, the word came true.

* * *

It was WeTube that the first reaction appeared as an indicator.

The stage video of 〈 October 31 〉, the team that Park Moondae belonged to ranked 9th in the real-time popular videos.

The comments were crazy.

– From the arrangement to the stage’s control, everything is amazing

– Such a precious stage in the shabby RII;;

– Everyone, this is the stock that will rise right away.

– What? Vampire? Just wait, I’ll drive the blood donor car

– I’ve organized the names! 0:12 Seon Ahyun, 0:21 Lee Sejin (B)…(More)

– Octobers let’s debut like this ㅠㅠ

– Looking at the preparation process, everyone was so pure and so cute ㅠㅠ. Is the stage and gap true story?

As soon as the broadcast was over, similar recommended or liked articles were posted one after the other or shared 10,000 times.

[Idol Inc.’s performance reinterpreted the debut song of a girl group.]

[Participant team who made art with MallangDalkom.]

[Idol Inc. episode 2, likely to change the ranking]

Even after coming into contact with <Idol Inc.> on this stage, the viewers slowly started to flow into it.

– I saw the vampire concept stage, is it Idol Inc.’s new season?

– I thought it would be ruined, but what happened to the stage quality?

– I’ve never liked idols, but how do I vote for this? ㅠㅠ

That’s why I was able to see a strange article that said they liked this team by gathering it all together.

– It would be nice to debut like this!

– The kids are taking turns voting occasionally ㅠㅠ Ah, why aren’t they in a group already!

Some KPOP reaction channels moved quickly as well.

It was a response that compared the stage of MallangDalkom’s original song to the stage of October 31’s arranged version.

[WOW! It’s like, one of a kind, right?]

The video was re-uploaded on the reaction translation channel with subtitles, which keeps bringing in people from domestic and overseas.

In this process, the frequency of mentions of team members in related communities such as SNS has also increased overwhelmingly.

It was at the level of crustal movement.

The finishing touch was when MallangDalkom put a video of his reaction to this performance on WeTube.

[Idol Inc. topic stage! Did MallangDalkom watch it directly? October 31’s ‘To the New World’ reaction video]

The members of MallangDalkom, whose heyday passed and their group activities ended, were continuing their lives in the position of SNS celebrities, except for one member who succeeded as an actor.

Two of them have a mutual understanding and have joined the trend by creating a WeTube channel.

And just in time, they didn’t miss out on this hot content related to them.

So, except for one member who was busy with the actor’s schedule, all of the members sat down and watched October 31’s arrangement version.

“Whoa~”

“Ah, this is the difficult part.”

“The person who sings Yueun’s part, Seon Ahyun-ssi? Now it’s my stock.”

“Oh~ the main vocalist is our fan! Park…Moondae-nim!”

“Thank you~”

The reaction began with a formal exclamation, was followed by an appreciation for the details, and ended with praise for the participants.

“Ah! Dry flowers on the costume!”

“They put it in each flower that is our symbol. Wow…”

“They’re very detailed.”

Of course, everyone was shocked when the bridge came out.

“They raise the key like this?!”

“It’s one key!?”

“Wow, that’s so cool…”

“They must be our real fans.”

And the meeting ended with people crying.

“N, no, why are you crying? Why am I crying?”

“Ah~ They did so well, I think we were very moved.”

The members who were crying and fanning their hands slowly opened their mouths.

“Our… fun B-grade concept received more love than it deserved. But originally, the debut song was like this.”

After making their debut as a flower fairy, MallangDalkom made a comeback with the so-called ‘sick taste’ concept. (t/n: 병맛 means something like terrible.)

So there was a meme that became famous on the Internet at that time.

– A flower fairy with X flower on their head ㅋㅋ

It was the day they wore hairpins that symbolized their flowers on the 〈POP☆CON〉 stage.

Someone made that comment while comparing the captured photo with the photo from the first album stage.

“Actually, we… it’s true that we were loved more because people liked our debut song and the gap, but it’s still a little…It was too bad.”

They also had good feelings rather than bad memories about the terrible cutie concept that brought them back to their heyday.

But that didn’t mean they weren’t sad at all.

“We were able to come up with various concepts…”

There was no one who couldn’t be hurt by the constant ridicule.

So, they were deeply moved by the participants who took a serious approach to their debut song, which had not received much public attention.

“Thank you so much. MallangDalkom… Uhm, thank you for portraying the innocent concept nicely!”

“Yes. The reinterpretation is really nice. Vampire… If we get a chance too! I really want to try it.”

It was also impressive that they liked the stage, which had been reinterpreted in a great way without harming the feelings of the original song.

They ended the conversation with a slightly tearful voice.

“Really… It was a wonderful stage. We will all buy stocks!”

“October 31 fighting!!”

“Fighting~”

As the captured version of the video was uploaded to the community and SNS, the number of views of October 31’s stage video rose sharply once again.

And before 4th episode came out.

Individual fancam videos of all team battles were released first.