I think it’s fair to say that when it comes to IZONE, things seem to just never went quite as smoothly as possible. All of the members are great and the content they put out has mostly been great, but then there’s always things that hamper their journey and growth, be it management issues or otherwise. With that said, I decided that I don’t really want to contemplate of what could’ve been or what I think should’ve been. I would rather just talk about the things I enjoy about the group as I follow their journey for the past 2+ years.

Coming from 48 group fandom, when I first learned about the whole pd48 project back in early-ish 2018, I looked at it with the mentality of ‘yeah sure why not’. Personally, since about mid to late 2017 I wasn’t really feeling any excitement or enthusiasm from the whole 48/46 group like I did when I first learning about them. I guess I was just at the point of fatigue back then, and if anything, pd48 and subsequently IZONE was rather timely for me. The project piqued my curiosity and interest almost instantly. Though I was interested, back then, I consciously decided to just follow the group casually.

I ended up enjoying most of the group’s content. First off, the releases. Outside of pd48, I’ve never paid any attention to kpop. (I’m that guy who never listened to Gangnam Style in full or on purpose when it was popular) I didn’t really know what to expect for their Korean songs. I ended up liking almost all of them. There are only a couple of songs that I don’t quite enjoy, but there is none of them I actively dislike. Bloom*iz is probably my overall favorite, and this is simply because of the content, and not for what that album represents. I have to say that the other releases aren’t far behind. The Japanese releases is unfortunately more of a mixed bag for me. Most of the songs are fine, but I like only a few of them while there are some that I thought are quite terrible. I guess part of it is due to the 48 fatigue that I have, and their Japanese releases have the same feeling to any 48 group releases.

Talking about idol group can’t stop at just the songs. I love the first and second seasons of Izone-chu. I liked the reality-tv approach for the show. I found that the seasons that follows weren’t as great but maybe they are limited with restriction. Eat-ing trip is also great, though to me, the second season is better than the first, because the games and the segments are generally more fun. Stuff like Enozi and Arcade are neat, to me those are nice extra content to keep me updated to things. It’s also good to see those behind the stage/scene interactions. Arcade was more fun when it was just them playing random games, but the other format is also not bad at all. Random variety shows and appearances here and there are also mostly very enjoyable. I believe that it's because the members are great. I thought the group has a great dynamic and each of their individual quirks and personalities complements each other nicely. It’s also nice to see how their chemistry evolved as the group progressed.

I wasn’t sure of how to approach talking about the members since I like all of them, and they all did a great job. I’ll just say what stood out to me the most.

Starting off with Eunbi. A great performer, good singer, and most often the funniest in anything they do. I think she has a right amount of self-awareness, have good timing, and willing to make fool of herself if needed to be. She’s also seems to take her role as the leader quite seriously and she appeared to have done a wonderful job at it. Although her clumsy side is also one of her most endearing charm.

One of my favorites in terms of vocals is Yujin. I love her voice, and there are songs that I like simply due to her vocal performance. She is also proven to be a very capable mc and at times she can even be more reliable than Eunbi in that regards. I like that she often takes initiative and lead the members, especially in the early days when they were still looked awkward. Her mischievous side coupled with that signature cute grin will always be able to brighten up my days.

Chaewon also has a very nice voice and is also one of my favorites in terms of vocals. I want to hear the full and clean version of her vocal guide of With One that Eunbi once broadcasted on vlive. I thought that she also is very cute. I guess she got more confident as times goes on, which lets her to express herself more and that is a wonderful thing to witness.

Chaeyeon is so good at dancing that I feel that it overshadows her own vocal abilities. Granted she was never really given the ‘highlight' parts in most of their songs. However, she is a very capable singer, and it would be nice if she has more chance to show it. Her laughter is also one of her charms, and it’s always nice to hear them. She’s also seemed to be the type who wouldn’t hesitate to help-out others, even when it means that she’d get less.

Although her voice is not really my cup of tea, I recognize that Yuri is a great singer. It is somewhat unfortunate that she’s always given that ‘belting' parts in every title track which makes her position felt more gimmicky than it should’ve been, even when she always nails her parts. Her carefree and can-do attitude is also very charming. Her pout is also one of the cutest things ever.

Minju is pretty and seems to be a really kind person. She often is the -end of the joke when they are together, but then she also has some zingers of her own. I noticed that she tends to talk a lot which I guess making her seem approachable and it feels like all of the members are the most at ease with her, not that I ever felt any kind of tension between members.

I thought Yena is one of the best performers in a group where the performance level is high. Though I feel that she often went overboard with being the clown of the group, it is great that she fills that spot. It seems to always be able to lift the mood, and I think she helps with the overall chemistry of the group. Especially in early days and perhaps even in difficult situations.

Being the youngest, I often associate Wonyoung with potential. Gifted with that supermodel physique and a pretty face, she easily stood out. This is one of the reasons why I think she suits that center position perfectly. Her competitive side is also one of her best attributes. It always amazes me of the things she’s able to do at such a young age.

It is quite unfortunate that Hyewon has not really given opportunity to do more. Though, in bits and pieces where she does get the opportunities, she always left good impressions to me. Those mlt appearances showed me that she can hold her own in varieties. She is also one of the best-looking members when all the members are great looking. I hope that she gets more opportunities to show her capabilities more. I love it when her calm demeanor fades and her cheerful and silly side appears when she is just with her members, mostly shown in their vlives. It is one of the best things ever.

Although coming from 48 group fandom, I’ve never been an HKT fan. The impressions that I had of Nako and Sakura prior to IZONE is only when they appeared in AKB related things, so they are quite limited. Being completely honest, prior to IZONE, I thought Nako was just another cutesy character while Sakura was just the one who overexaggerates when she does things, both of which weren’t exactly positive, again, I emphasize that I only had limited impressions of them.

However, I’ve grown to like them as I learn more about them in their activities as IZONE members.

Being one of the older members of the group, I thought Sakura was a cool presence in the group and seems able to be that reliable figure for the members, even when she did it quietly. I also think that she is one of the funniest despite of the language and cultural barriers. In that respect she surprised me in a way I hadn’t thought of before.

Nako on the other hand, while still being one of, if not the cutest of the group, is able to show the more mature and reliable side of hers as she grows with the group. I also noticed that she has a great timing and while she is never the funniest in the room, she’s always able to make funny situations funnier. Her cute reactions when she is teased is definitely one of her best charms to me.

The last, and of course, not the least, is Hiichan. Prior to pd48, she is one of the last tethers I had for my 48 group fandom. It was her and just a few other team 8 members, all of whom already left the group by now, not that I had paid close attention to them by the time they are graduating. Looking back now as I write this, I wonder if she had never participated pd48 and became a part of IZONE that I would even be bothered at all. I’m not even sure if I would still be Hiichan’s fan at all if she didn’t participate in the project.

For the 2+ years I’ve followed her journey as an IZONE member, my impression of her remains the same even when she appears to change a lot from her team 8 days. In my perspective, she has always been a very cute and somewhat timid girl who tries (too) hard to be perceived as cool. Though I don’t always agree or like the things she does, she seems to just simply doing what she believes in, even when her idol journey always seems to be a tough one. That aspect of hers makes me think that she is one of the coolest person that I know of. Her serious side has always been one of the best things about her. For as long as I follow her journey as an idol, I’m glad that she’s able to fulfill some of her dreams, whether as an IZONE member or as a team 8 member. I also glad that she took her chances and challenged herself which eventually led me to IZONE. I feel like I should’ve had a lot more to say about her, but for some reason, finding the right words felt so difficult. The one thing that I feel like I should say is “Honda Hitomi’s presence is not small” and I’m forever grateful that she becomes an idol.

Now that IZONE’s activity is about to end, even when there's a little bit more to come as I wrote this, I can’t help myself but to worry about what comes next. Then again, there’s no way to really tell what will happen in the future. Everyone simply just has to move forward, as cruel as it might sounds. Out of all the sadness that is caused by this disbandment, I also couldn’t help myself to, at least, be a little excited for the future. This somehow reminded me to the feeling I had when Hiichan participated in pd48, though admittedly, it felt a lot heavier this time. With all the misgivings, all the regrets, and all of the disappointment in the situation that I found myself in, I reminded myself that it is a miracle that IZONE is able to exist the way they do and went on for as long as they could. Maybe that was just my coping mechanism kicking in. I just hope that any other fellow Wizone that inadvertently shares the same journey, can also find their own closure.

In a perfect world, IZONE’s journey would be even better than what it was. It would be a journey in a literal flower path. There would be no scandals, there would be no history of bad relations of any countries, there would be no pandemics, there would be no hate, there would be no hardships, they would be in an agency that actually cares, and ultimately, they wouldn’t have to go their separate ways. I guess those things are just some sick reminders that the world had never been perfect in a first place.

However, in such an imperfect world we live in, where a lot of things can be crushing, when anything can feel suffocating, and some things never seem to fell into place the way we want them to, IZONE has been one of the lights that shine through me and made things better for me, even if it’s just for a short period of time. My plan was just to be a casual fan, but as I watched their last concert, I felt regretful that I ever had that thought in the first place. I wished that I had treasured them more from the day one.

The future might seem scary, but no matter what, I will always follow their journey as far as I allowed to. I will always support them to the best of my abilities, even though I’ve never had much to offer in the first place. I would do so even when they are not with each other. No matter how small the chance is, I would always hold on to the hope that someday, they would be together again. I guess that is just me being selfish. I once read someone wrote, even though their contract is not permanent, IZONE will always be forever, and with that, I feel easier even just for a tiny bit.

From the bottom of my heart, I would like to say thank you IZ*ONE and I wish you all the best.