Author: kpopreviewed

It is time we crown the next Queen of KPOP through the second season of Queendom. Following the success of Queendom Season 1 (which crowned Mamamoo as the winner), Road to Kingdom (which gave The Boyz a one way ticket to the next competition) and Kingdom: Legendary War (which crowned Stray Kids as the winner), Queendom is officially back with six new female participants. This season sees WJSN (Cosmic Girls), LOONA, Brave Girls, Kep1er, VIVIZ and Hyolyn battle it out for the Queendom title, while Taeyeon (from SNSD) takes the helm as MC this time around.

As I have reviewed part of Queendom, all of Road To Kingdom and Kingdom: Legendary War, I will also be reviewing the stages of Queendom 2, recapping the high caliber performances from each round and also putting forward my thoughts on what the ranking should have been for that round.

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Round 3 (Part 2) – FANtastic Queendom

In part 2 of Round 3 of Queendom 2, the competitors had to perform a song that was chosen by the audience.

In Queendom 2, the rankings were decided by three main criteria: audience votes, global fan votes and assessment from other Queendom 2 acts (i.e. their fellow competitors). These votes and assessments were tallied, and the act with the most points emerged as the winner of this round. The official results of that will be shown at the end of this post, along with my personal ranking from this round.

I will be reviewing the performances based on who went first, and will be looking at song arrangement, concept and choreography for this round.

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The Boys (Queendom 2 Version) – Kep1er
(Orig. Artist: SNSD)

Kep1er’s version of The Boys was pretty good. It shows Kep1er in a different limelight, one that isn’t cutesy and youthful, which is what we have constantly seen the group in so far since their debut. Instead, it takes the group down a darker and edgier path that I would like to see them explore in the future. Kep1er, for the most part, kept the melodies of the original the same. But on the other hand, they changed up the instrumental to suit the darker concept, but also add a dynamic flair to the song. I find this smart, as it still makes their version recognisable, but at the same time gives their version of The Boys a much needed breath of new life and modern profile. Vocally, this is the group’s best stage yet as all members sounded solid and well rounded during the performance (which was live). My only wish with this particular performance is that the members could have been a bit more aggressive with their delivery and I wished the producers of this version allowed that to happen. It would have matched the instrumental we got in this version and potentially taken the performance to the next level. We did get a taster for the final chorus, but it would have nice to have heard that earlier on.

At first, I wasn’t entirely sure of the cloaks at the start of the performance. But the more I watch the performance, I find I don’t mind it as much. And it is now to the point where I can’t remember why I felt this way to begin with. It made sense with the darker concept, and adds a bit of a mysterious touch to the performance. The wings moment in the performance, when it goes from black to white was an epic moment, especially since it was paired alongside the high note. I also liked how the lighting worked with the stage’s dynamic moments. The revamped choreography for this version had this strong, confident and powerful side to it, and I liked how it looked as an overall piece. I also liked that they incorporated the lunge and the hand over head moment from the original in the final section of the half.

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BOP BOP! – VIVIZ

Out of all the stages for this round, I have to admit that VIVIZ’s was probably one of the most boring. I didn’t really get to see anything new in the Queendom 2 version of their song. Yeah, they applied a pop instrumental to the song, which was decent and brought some good energy to the stage. It also made this version of the song cuter, which helped out the stage concept. But it wasn’t exciting like the other stages. I did appreciate the live vocals, but the backing vocals were too faint. For example, I think the ending of the performance could have been better with the BOP BOP backing vocals was a lot louder, whereas it was pretty mute and unnoticeable. Similarly, the same could be said about the dance break (which I felt was the stage’s most interesting sequence).

As mentioned earlier, the stage concept took a cutesy direction. To be more precise, it was a teenage cheerleading school concept. I don’t hate the idea, but I don’t find anything original with it. I did like the colourful nature of the stage, the dominance of the colour pink and Eunha’s epic ponytail, however. The members looked extremely pretty throughout the stage, as well. Also mentioned before, I liked the dance break, given it was the biggest ‘change’ in the performance. It brought an edgy vibe. It doesn’t go with the rest of the performance, but it helped drive up the interest for me. But as for the rest of the choreography, I didn’t see much too much change. Though, I did like the cheerleader lift the members underwent at the start (I have seen the behind the scene shots for this practice, and I know they struggled with the lift – but they successfully pulled it off for the stage!).

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Pantomime – WJSN

As far as I am aware, this is the first stage of Pantomime since the group released the song back in 2020. It is also the first Queendom stage to feature Bona, who hasn’t performed on the show due to her filming schedules for her latest drama. Though while I would have loved to hear a full version of the original, I really liked the old fashion Hollywood style they incorporated into this version. It felt original and added a classy and elegant vibe to the ‘busy’ song. The delicate start was well done, and helped make the first chorus feel super punchy. I also like how they maintained that ‘busy’ feel of the original, by going with similar synths that fits in with that classy and elegant vibe. Yeonjung’s high note, which is a new element to the song, was showstopping! Another new element was the wind-up doll sequence just before the final chorus. Personally, I initially thought they could have done without this sequence, but now I find that it definitely helps make the final chorus that more explosive (just like how the energy played out in the first verse and chorus).

Like the song, the performance took on an old aged Hollywood style, from the stage outfits to the overall concept. There was a few wow moments, which helps makes this a memorable (and one of the best performances of the round). The sleek start with the members dressed in black to mimick suits, the visual display behind the white curtain for the first verse (including when the curtain dropped away) and that very golden age ending, where some of the members were doing some aerial acrobat-like moves. I also like how busy the stage looked, with the number of dancers. Usually, I would feel like it is a bit much, but it really made the stage feel more alive. As for the choreography, I liked that old style influence and the ending sequence the most. But the doll walk section was also quite cool.

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Butterfly – LOONA

The song that I really wanted LOONA to cover in some form was Butterfly, so I am glad fans requested this song for LOONA. At first, I was pretty disappointed with this alternate arrangement of (what I think is) one of KPOP’s most aesthetic songs ever. It felt too much like the original. But the more I watch the performance and listen to the arrangement in greater detail, I find that this version of Butterfly is even more refined and aesthetic than the original. I really like the extra details we got in the instrumental, such the heavier presence of strings in the first verse and in the background of the first chorus, and the more heavenly and dreamy profile of the bridge. They kept their high pitched vocals the same as the original, which I now think is clever. It enables the audience to the recognise the song, but interestingly also keeps Butterfly grounded as the instrumental expands outwards into the heavenly and dreamy sectors. I liked how the final part of this stage was a bit more dynamic and powerful, allowing for a touch of intensity and also keeps the song grounded.

For the stage, they really kept with the heavenly and dreamy descriptors I have given the alternate versions. The moon in the background and the lights on the sleeves of the dances made the stage feel dreamy, while the members’ outfits felt as if they were goddesses. I really liked the expanding wings like formation the dancers did on top of the platform at the end of the bridge, allowing the performance to peak in a very clean manner. I wished there was more of that white fog across the entire stage, just to give off a stronger impression of clouds and dreamy vibes. For the choreography, I liked the revamped version and how fluid it felt. This perfectly matches the arrangement of this version of Butterfly. The best part of the performance comes at the end, when the members match the intensity of the song with their dance moves.

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Red Sun – Brave Girls

Personally, I didn’t pay attention to Red Sun when it was first released last year. Red Sun, for those who are not aware, was released as an advertisement song for Lotte Department Store. So I was genuinely surprised to see that the group ended up choosing the song, as requested by the fans. Anyhow, Queendom 2’s version of Red Sun has a slightly different instrumental. The original chorus was straight up just synths, but this version samples a famous classical piece before the synths from the second half of the chorus plays out. The second verse also features some classical strings, continuing the momentum from the chorus. I felt the classical and synths contrast was interesting, especially since the synths were very pronounced. And for the bridge, Brave Girls pushed their vocals out, stripping the instrumental of any dance influences before bringing the synths back for the final chorus. I quite liked how powerful the vocals were during the bridge and final chorus, and how it felt very satisfying. I did wish the high note from Minyoung was slightly cleaner. But still, an amazing effort.

The stage began with a video clip of Yuna at the end of 2020 expressing how she had no schedules and no future. For those who don’t know, Brave Girls was considering disbandment prior to their unexpected rise on the charts in less than a month time. We then hear a reflection from the members, before we see their struggles on stage. Then the actual performance began with the members winding up a toy ballerina and uses a pair of glass slippers to symbolise their hope and dreams. The members where stunning flowery dresses that make a bold statement and bring smiles to the stage whilst performing this version of Red Sun. Part through the performance, the members put on the glass slippers whilst playing a clip of them winning an award at the MAMA 2021 awards, symbolising their hopes and dreams have been reached. The actual choreography doesn’t had much value from how I see it, but it was a stage full of meaning for the group. It got to point where Yujeong was crying at the end and even the other competitors shed some tears as the performance ended. That’s how you know the stage had impact.

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SEE SEA BAE – Hyolyn

Last up before the finale is Hyolyn, who performs what sounds like should have been a mix of SEE SEA and BAE, two of her solo singles post-Sistar. But ultimately SEE SEA dominated the stage. I quite enjoyed SEE SEA when it came out, but I quite liked how Queendom 2 transformed it into a dynamic piece. I loved the second pre-chorus and thought of it being one of the main highlights of the stage. The dance break was also spectacular, going for a hardcore and powerful sound. Hyolyn’s vocals help also drive up the dynamic nature of the performance, particuarly during the first pre-chorus and very the end of the performance with her ad-libs. I wish the chorus was rearranged to be a little more explosive, just enough to give the chorus some more life and flair. But overall, Hyolyn rocks the stage with this performance.

Hyolyn enlists the help of Street Dance Girls Fighter‘s HARIMU, who acts as the school girl we see at the start and end of the performance. The performance’s concept is beach, which HARIMU arrives at via the subway and is invited to have a bit of a dance with Hyolyn and her dancers. HARIMU really puts her all into the performance and I really loved her expressions on stage. Alongside her, Hyolyn appears to have the time of her life, performing this stage. I love the use of the fluoro outfits and hats (and I found it funny that they got two rows of the audience to also where the hats during the performance). Again, best part of the performance has to be the second pre-chorus and dance break, though I love that she still managed to show off the sexy side that we saw in the original.

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And This Round’s Winner Is…

As cliché it might sound, this was another super tight round for me to choose a winner. I am surprised the global audience was quite decisive who they thought had the best and the weakest stage (Brave Girls ranked first with full points from the fans, whereas Hyolyn ranked last less than 2000 points despite being the front runner in rounds 1 and 2).

This resulted in Hyolyn dropping down to fourth place, making up ground with the live audience and assessment from her peers. Brave Girls took out the top spot, claiming full points for this FANtastic Queendom battle, and ultimately taking top spot for Round 3 in general.

I personally thought WJSN outshined the other performance slightly and so I place them first in my personal ranking, but Hyolyn did give them a run for their money for a moment. It pains me to put Brave Girls fourth, but this is the ranking that I feel most satisified with. For more of the rankings, see the table below!

Position	Official Queendom 2 Ranking	KPOPREVIEWED’s Personal Ranking
1	Brave Girls	WJSN
2	WJSN	Hyolyn
3	LOONA	LOONA
4	Hyolyn	Brave Girls
5	VIVIZ	Kep1er
6	Kep1er	VIVIZ

Up next: Queendom 2 – Final Round – Ep. 10

It is time we crown the next Queen of KPOP through the second season of Queendom. Following the success of Queendom Season 1 (which crowned Mamamoo as the winner), Road to Kingdom (which gave The Boyz a one way ticket to the next competition) and Kingdom: Legendary War (which crowned Stray Kids as the winner), Queendom is officially back with six new female participants. This season sees WJSN (Cosmic Girls), LOONA, Brave Girls, Kep1er, VVIZ and Hyolyn battle it out for the Queendom title, while Taeyeon (from SNSD) takes the helm as MC this time around.

As I have reviewed part of Queendom, all of Road To Kingdom and Kingdom: Legendary War, I will also be reviewing the stages of Queendom 2, recapping the high caliber performances from each round and also putting forward my thoughts on what the ranking should have been for that round.

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Round 3 (Part 1) – Position Unit Battle

For the first part of Round 3, the six competitors split off into groups of two for a battle of vocals and then into different groups of two for a battle of dance. Not all members of each competitor has to compete, but each team must be represented in the battles.

Each group of two for the vocals and dance battles are awarded votes based on their performance. And based on the rankings from these votes (i.e. whichever order they rank in first, second and third), they will be awarded with points that will go to towards their final ranking. I can’t find information on whether the votes are coming from a judging panel or a set number of audience viewers are voting in this round.

For these battles, I will looking at each performance individually, and then have a separate personal ranking for the vocal and dance battles at the very end of the post (where I usually display my personal ranks for the round). These personal ranks, per usual, will be compared to the official rankings from the show. These personal rankings will also be going towards the final ranking to determine the winners of Queendom 2.

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Vocals Battle

Don’t Go – Sun and Moon
Members: Haseul, Kim Lip, Jinsoul, Chuu (LOONA) & Kim Chaehyun, Seo Youngeun (Kep1er)
(Orig. Artist: EXO)

LOONA and Kep1er’s rendition of Don’t Go by EXO was extremely nice and pleasant. Just like the original, this version brought a smile to my face. What was really great about this performance was the fact they had harmonies. It was extremely brief and I wished there were longer harmonies. But it made the performance a bit more riveting in my opinion. I did also wish the vocalists were shown off a bit more in this performance. I am not exactly sure whether they had to stick to the original version to a tee (though a later performance specified otherwise), but a few more expressive moments should have been added to this version to better utilise the members, and allow the other members side from Chuu and Chaeyeon to show off their vocal powers.

The stage had a simple setup where the members sang whilst standing in one spot on some platforms. Flying about next to them (and later behind them) were some butterflies, which have consistently appeared throughout the competition. I wished the members donned some more colourful dresses, just to give the stage a bit of oomph. Nothing too loud, but white is a little too standard for my liking.

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Hold My Hand – Universe in Eunha
Members: Eunha (VIVIZ) & Yeonjung, Soobin (WJSN)
(Orig. Artist: IU)

You can’t go past a vocal battle without an IU song. We saw Eunkwang, Seungmin and Jongho tackle the likes of Love Poem in the Kingdom: Legendary War last year. This time, we see another trio cover another IU song, Hold My Hand. While the two version are quite similar, this Queendom 2 version seems to have amped the instrumentation to create a power-ballad like approach, which I thought was cool. It brought a a new breath of life to the song and made the performance captivating to listen to. Yeonjung handled the song extremely well and her soaring high note was impressive. Soobin pushed herself for this track, and I thought this was a great display of her vocal capabilities. As for Eunha, she handled her parts well just like the others. But I felt her higher pitch was at odds with the other members, simply because it sounded cutesy. I am not entirely sure if was the right way to go for her, given Yeonjung and Soobin’s more ‘standard’ approach with their vocals.

As for the performance, I liked that they moved about. It gave the performance a bit of a dynamic touch. I also liked the green scenery and the sets that Yeonjung and Eunha performed on stage with. They also looked pretty on stage.

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To My Youth – 33
Members: Hyolyn & Minyoung (Brave Girls)
(Orig. Artist: Bolbbalgan4)

This version of To My Youth was emotionally charged, and I loved every second of it. I liked how they slightly revamped this version by starting out with just piano and guitar, before kicking the song up a notch with the band instrumentation. I note the original version had strings at the start and brought in the kick a lot sooner. Hyolyn kicks off the performance and did a great job throughout to deliver some emotional vocals. Minyoung followed through with her powerful vocals, though I did have the thought that she needed a bit of work to match the emotional level that Hyolyn brought to this stage. I loved their version of the high notes at the end, and their harmonies during this sequence. So captivating and breathtaking.

I liked how the pair started of separated and finished together. The above performance did the exact same, but there is something with Hyolyn sitting on the stage and Minyoung standing elsewhere that really felt bold. I like how the lights shown over the member who was singing at the time, and dimmed when they weren’t singing, allowing the focus to be place squarely on the leading singer. And I liked how the lights were used to form a pattern at the end. The lyrics on the screen and the sketch a character on the screen was also a nice touch to the performance.

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Dance Battles

Purr – KeVIZ
Members: Sin.B, Umji (VIVIZ) & Xiaoting, Kim Daeyeon, Hikaru (Kep1er)

For this collaborative stage, I quite enjoyed the cat concept they went for. The green cat eyes on the big screen was very epic and sets the tone for the performance. The green on black is a very cool combination and I feel this video really honed into this (via the cat eyes and the green light that illuminated the gas on the edge of the stage). What was also cool was the image transformation that both the members of VIVIZ and Kep1er underwent for this stage. Both groups have been known for their brighter and cuter concepts, so this dark edgy change in image was definitely memorable and stands out.

As for the choreography, it was a good one. Nothing really stood out for me on an individual basis (both move or member-wise), but I quite liked the entirety of the performance as a whole piece. The dark concept and edgy vibes were portrayed extremely well in the routine. I also like the emphasis on wavy motions throughout the choreography. It was a movement type that I saw was recurring throughout the routine, and I really liked the slow wave that ended off the performance.

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Ka-Boom! – Ex-it
Members: Hyolyn & Eunseo, Yeoreum (WJSN)

For Hyolyn and WJSN’s dance stage, I quite like how they started off aggressive and powerful. This really set the ball in motion for the rest of the routine, which built on these vibes as the performance progressed. In terms of style, it felt like they went with a hip-hop centric routine with a hint of sexiness mixed into the routine. I quite like it, however, I was wanting from the routine by the time the performance ended.

As for the stage, I liked how boldness was the at forefront of the stage. The glitchy and lightning backgrounds made it feel edgy and electrifying. The fluoro outfits were a very bold choice and I liked how they were used at the start (and throughout the performance) for a bit of a wow factor. The ski masks also added to that. Another bold factor to the stage was the use of the body contortionists. Freaky, but definitely another wow factor to the performance.

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Tell Me Now – Queen in Me
Members: Eunji (Brave Girls) & Heejin, Choerry, Yves, Oliva Hye (LOONA)

The last performance for the night was by Brave Girls and LOONA. This performance, while it went with an edgy look just like the other two dance battles, separated itself by really focusing on the sensual side, as well. The slow motions and the sleekness of the choreography really highlighted this, and brought a different dynamic in which the members could play with that isn’t just powerful or edgy (and it isn’t like the other performances). The moves resemble a image of a cat, which makes this the second performance of the night that had a cat theme going on. Very interesting, indeed.

I really like how alluring and hypnotic the members looked throughout this performance, especially in the black and white scenes. This alone was very memorable and definitely was one of my favourite parts of this stage. The red highlights during the black and white shot was super bold, as well.

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And This Round’s Winner Is…

These unit battles were intense in their own right. It was a bit of a shake up to the playing field based on the official results. Hyolyn has held first place for the previous two rounds, but she placed second in both in the vocal and dance battle sections of this first part. Brave Girls and WJSN both emerged as winners placing first overall across the board for this first part of Round 3.

Interestingly, Brave Girls also emerged as overall winners of unit battle stages based on my own picks, which matches up (partly) with the official results released by Queendom 2.

Note that this is only the first part of Round 3, which also consist of the fan-choice round. And so, these are not the final winners of Round 3. For my personal rankings, I will be separating these units from the next lots of stages when I use these personal rankings to determine my personal pick for the final winner of Queendom 2.

But for now, here are my picks for the best stage in both the vocal and dance unit battles.

Vocal Battle Rankings

Position	Official Queendom 2 Ranking	KPOPREVIEWED’s Personal Ranking
1	Universe in Eunha VIVIZ & WJSN (Eunha, Yeonjung, Soobin)	33 Hyolyn & Brave Girls (Hyolyn, Minyoung)
2	33 Hyolyn & Brave Girls (Hyolyn, Minyoung)	Universe in Eunha VIVIZ & WJSN (Eunha, Yeonjung, Soobin)
3	Sun & Moon LOONA & Kep1er (Haseul, Kim Lip. Jinsoul, Chuu, Kim Chaeyeon, Seo Youngeun)	Sun & Moon LOONA & Kep1er (Haseul, Kim Lip. Jinsoul, Chuu, Kim Chaeyeon, Seo Youngeun)

Dance Battle Rankings

Position	Official Queendom 2 Ranking	KPOPREVIEWED’s Personal Ranking
1	Queen Is Me Brave Girls & LOONA (Eunji, Heejin, Choerry, Yves, Oliva Hye)	Queen Is Me Brave Girls & LOONA (Eunji, Heejin, Choerry, Yves, Oliva Hye)
2	Ex-It Hyolyn & WJSN (Hyolyn & Eunseo, Yeoreum)	KeVIZ VIVIZ & Kepler (Sin.B, Umji, Xiaoting, Kim Daeyeon, Hikaru)
3	KeVIZ VIVIZ & Kepler (Sin.B, Umji, Xiaoting, Kim Daeyeon, Hikaru)	Ex-It Hyolyn & WJSN (Hyolyn & Eunseo, Yeoreum)

Up next: Queendom 2 – Round 3 (Part 2) – FANtastic Queendom – Ep. 8 & 9

It is time we crown the next Queen of KPOP through the second season of Queendom. Following the success of Queendom Season 1 (which crowned Mamamoo as the winner), Road to Kingdom (which gave The Boyz a one way ticket to the next competition) and Kingdom: Legendary War (which crowned Stray Kids as the winner), Queendom is officially back with six new female participants. This season sees WJSN (Cosmic Girls), LOONA, Brave Girls, Kep1er, VVIZ and Hyolyn battle it out for the Queendom title, while Taeyeon (from SNSD) takes the helm as MC this time around.

As I have reviewed part of Queendom, all of Road To Kingdom and Kingdom: Legendary War, I will also be reviewing the stages of Queendom 2, recapping the high caliber performances from each round and also putting forward my thoughts on what the ranking should have been for that round.

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Round 2 – Cover Song Battle

In Round 2 of Queendom 2, the competitors had to select one (or two songs in some cases) from another competitor’s discography to reinvent on stage.

In Queendom 2, the rankings were decided by three main criteria: audience votes, global fan votes and assessment from other Queendom 2 acts (i.e. their fellow competitors). These votes and assessments were tallied, and the act with the most points emerged as the winner of this round. The official results of that will be shown at the end of this post, along with my personal ranking from this round.

I will be reviewing the performances based on who went first, and will be looking at song arrangement, concept and choreography for this round.

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NAVILLERA – WJSN
(Orig. Artist: GFriend)

WJSN chose NAVILLERA from GFriend’s repertoire and really hit the brief of reinventing the song to be their own, yet also maintaining enough of the original song (i.e. the melodies and chorus) to allow the audience to easily recognise the song. The addition of a dynamic post-chorus sequence following the first and final choruses was my highlight of the performance (with the shouty portion of this sequence really sticking in my head for some reason), but I also enjoyed the other new additions to the performance – that is Exy’s rap sequence and the instrumental break that honed into the dark concept (more on that in a second). These additions gave NAVILLERA a fresh vibe and adds a bit of unique/edgier zing. The vocals and rapping on this stage was amazing and so so strong, and Yeonjung’s high note blew me away. Definitely potential to be one of the best performances of the night.

NAVILLERA was known for its bright concept when it was first released, so it was interesting to see WJSN take a dark-ish route with this performance. I am all for the darker concept, though I did feel the arrangement could have really gone more down this direction, just so that everything is a bit more cohesive. But overall, a strong concept nonetheless. I did notice the presence of the hourglass at the end, so I am guessing their performances are all linked to one another. As for the choreography, WJSN changed it all up to be more of their style. The chorus was pretty meh in my opinion, but I liked everything else during the new sections of their version of NAVILLERA, the verses. In particular, I thought Yeorum’s dance break was very alluring and captivating. The only part I didn’t get was the piece of fabric that was pulled over Seola and Yeonjung’s heads during the bridge. We got no wide-shot of this, so I couldn’t see its effect.

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SHAKE IT – LOONA
(Orig. Artist: Sistar)

LOONA’s version of SISTAR’s SHAKE IT is one that I come back to regularly. While this version isn’t necessarily a departure from the original as both are summery and energetic, LOONA’s version was still a great one. I like how LOONA made their version slightly more intense in the choruses, and it is this that I continually come back for. Also, I just love the overall party feel that comes off from the choruses. I also enjoyed the jazzy bits that formed part of the bridge and allowed for an interlude, and the retro dance break which helps ties arrangement, choreography and concept together. Again, the vocal work is quite strong from all the members, though I think a bit of refinement would have helped make LOONA’s version of SHAKE IT even better.

This performance was cute! Not overly cute that has me cringing, but enough to make the performance vibrant and colourful, which I am sure the direction that LOONA was aiming for. But while it was a fairly strong summery retro concept of transformation from dull to attractive and having some fun, there were parts of the performance that needed some refinement. There was a scene at the start of the stage where the dancers picked up ‘imaginary’ glasses, while Yeojin was holding a physical champagne glass with a glass). It is small details like this that stick out and stays with me, and made the start a little cringy for my taste. Also, I wished the ‘male’ counterparts of the group has took part in the transformation, as well. Once the female counterparts had transformed into hip and colourful outfits, the suits and such looked really dated and felt misplaced. As for the choreography, I liked how energetic and vibrant their take on everything felt. It was fun and LOONA really showed off some cool moves. I also like how they brought back the original choreography at the end, just as a little homage for SISTAR.

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MVSK – Brave Girls
(Orig. Artist: Kep1er)

Brave Girls probably had the hardest pick of the night. To date, Kep1er has only one title track and a mini-album of three other songs, so Brave Girls had a pretty limited choice in terms of songs for this round. But they ended up going with MVSK. As per the brief for the second round, Brave Girls changed up the song considerably. They moved away from the electronic and synth based instrumental that dominated the original, and went with a more elegant and classy pop instrumental mix. It was very different and makes their version of MVSK clearer than the original. But while they did move away from the original’s electronic synths based instrumental, they did still incorporate some synths into the mix via the choruses and the dance break. For the chorus, it was present more as accents. The dance break, however, touched based with the original’s influence, brought on a fierce and powerful energy and infuses a bit of rock to the performance. It shook things up and while it doesn’t necessary match with the rest, it was cool to watch. I also liked the push for focus on the vocals throughout the performance and harmonies at the end, though the high note section could have been a lot tidier in my opinion.

The classy vibes of the performance made it through via the black and white filter that was applied to the start of the performance (reminding me of older black and white films), while the elegant vibes came through the golden glow of the lights. I quite like the suits in this performance, just because it made sense throughout the entirety of the performance. The dance break was a bit of an odd ball, simply because it goes against the classy and elegant vibes. But like what I mentioned before, it was fierce and powerful. The glow in the dark masks were cool, and it also served as a way for the members to take off their jackets (though over the top. in my opinion). Choreography wise, I think Brave Girls was probably the one of the weakest, just since there wasn’t much going on in the department. But they make it up in all other aspects.

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UNNATURAL – VIVIZ
(Orig. Artist: WJSN)

VIVIZ’s version of UNNATURAL was the one that seemed to push the boundaries the most. Not because it was daring or went for anything controversial. But instead, it was just because it felt the most different version when compared to the original. They brought a Latin influence to the performance, which is an overdone influence in KPOP in general. But for this stage, I thought was super cool and brought a lively dynamic to the performance. And mixed in alongside of the Latin influence is this Broadway show-like type of vibe during some parts, which also added a lot more flair to this version. Vocally, I felt VIVIZ dominated this round with their solid live vocal performances. Sure, they went with the same melodies for their version, but the instrumental really revamped UNNATURAL up. My only negative comment about the performance was the rapping. I wished there was more body to it in the instrumental, and the delivery was a bit more powerful.

Of course, with their version going down the Latin route instrumentally, it would make the most sense for this to be reflected on stage as well. And we got just that from the very start, thanks to their stunning red and black dresses. I also like how from the start and until the very end, the entire performance had this ‘on the edge of your seat’ type of feel thanks to the intensity. Definitely an impressive feeling to have exuded just from the performance. The grand ending with the flags and the stage pyrotechnics was also perfect. There was also two key moments that were really memorable. The first has to be the mirror shot with Eunha and SinB at the start of the performance, and the second has to be Sin.B’s slide into frame after Umji’s part in the second pre-chorus. With regards to the choreography, I loved that they made full use of their dresses and I love how they kept the Latin influence in throughout the entirety of the routine.

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Pool Party (Rollin’ Right Now) – Kep1er
(Orig. Artist: Brave Girls)

Kep1er brings summer vibes back to the stage with their mix of Pool Party and Rollin’. It is a very vibrant and colourful mix that definitely sets the scene for a great summery concept (more on that later). However, I felt the style was a bit one-dimensional and that unfortunately flowed onto the other aspects of the performances (i.e. vocals and instrumental). There wasn’t really much going on within the instrumental to comment on, and the vocals were not as showcased as they could have been. While I like the idea of incorporating Rollin’ into the performance, it did muddled things. I kind of understand why Rollin’ was needed (or else the Pool Party sections would have too boring). It should have been tidier and cleaner, in my opinion. However, points must be given for effort, as they are the only group to really go down the two song direction. The rapping faired much better and gave the performance a bit of a surprise factor. Like the other performances, there is a dance break where the bridge of the performance should have been, and I felt the strings and then rock style instrumental was a nice way of incorporating different dynamics (i.e. elegance to intensity) into the performance.

The performance started off with a Alice In Wonderland style introduction with Yeseo playing the titular character. However, this only lasted a short while, as Yeseo quickly underwent a costume change and we launched right into the undersea/ocean concept for this summery stage. I liked the energy that the members brought to the stage and the smiles instantly added brightness to the performance. The bubble was a cute touch to the performance, while the pink outfits brought a nice contrast to the predominately blue stage (as it was an under ocean concept). As for the choreography aspect of this stage, the group went with a completely new routine, though they did keep the iconic Rollin’ move for the first chorus. The dance break we got was super cool and was the highlight of the stage, especially when it was kicked up a notch via the rock influences.

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So What – Hyolyn
(Orig. Artist: LOONA)

Hyolyn without a doubt has proved herself to be a front runner in this competition and this stage just confirms that once again. LOONA’s So What allows Hyolyn to show off her vocals in a spectacular fashion and gives her an opportunity to be punchy about it. Hyolyn really uses a lot of vocal styles that we have heard from the soloist in some form before, such as lower registers, powerful high notes, emphasising husky and raspy tones. On the instrumental side, Hyolyn’s version of So What felt more aggressive and sleek, which hits the brief of reinventing the original, but also really showcasing Hyolyn’s versatility. Though, it isn’t really much different to the original version by LOONA. The surprising element of Hyolyn’s arrangement of So What was the inclusion of PTT and its ‘Ra Ta Ta‘ hook. It was unexpected, but it fitted in so well with her version of the song.

What a bold start to the performance. To see Hyolyn floating in the circular frame up above the stage with a Catwoman outfit get-up on definitely added a wow factor to the performance. The green lighting and white gas cloud looked very cool and suspenseful. For the rest of the performance, Hyolyn is aggressive when it comes to her live vocals and her dance performance as well. This performance also shows off her charismatic side, as well. And damn, she looks sexy in her tight black outfit. Again, I like how she engages with the audience, showing her experience on the stage. For the choreography, I liked the attitude filled style that she and the dancers went for. It just really concentrated everything from the song arrangement and concept into a powerful and fiery package that she and the dancers execute so well.

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And This Round’s Winner Is…

With this round, I don’t think we can tell yet who the winner is. Based on the official rankings, it appears that Hyolyn is currently in that hot seat, racing towards the finale. And congratulations indeed to Hyolyn for holding onto the top spot for the second round in a row. But from how I see it, things aren’t clear cut.

My personal ranking for this round disagrees with the official ranking, with the entire board reshuffled. So without any further delays, here are my rankings for the second round of Queendom 2. Do you agree with me? Let me know in the comments section below.

Position	Official Queendom 2 Ranking	KPOPREVIEWED’s Personal Ranking
1	Hyolyn	VIVIZ
2	LOONA	Hyolyn
3	WJSN	LOONA
4	VIVIZ	WJSN
5	Kep1er	Brave Girls
6	Brave Girls	Kep1er

Up next: Queendom 2 – Round 3 (Part 1) – Position Unit Battle – Ep. 6 & 7