In each of the practice rooms the colour-coded trainees wait for one of the trainer to deliver the results of the final Pick Me evaluation. The song has been practiced, and evaluation video recorded, all that is left is the verdict.

Lim Eunha enters the pinkest room of all where the A trainees stand ready. “Good evening,” she says. “The trainers have watched your videos and based on what we saw we have sorted you into your final grades.”

“Now it is time for us to see who rises and who falls,” Yikwang says in the B room.

Bae Yoonjung is being intimidating in F. “In this room there are 13 girls who rose.” The girls glance at each other, anxiety mixing with hope.

“In this room there are 11 girls who rose,” Candy says in D.

“There are 9 girls who rose,” Woosung tells the C class.

“There are 7 girls who rose,” Yikwang tells B.

“How many of you do you think managed to stay in A?” Eunha asks her class. Anxious faces of the A trainees are shown as she lets the question simmer. “Today, 10 of you will drop to lower ranks.”

“Ten!” Chae Seulgi (WM) whispers, shocked.

“But first, all the other trainees will switch rooms,” Eunha says. “Then you will find out which of you will stay and which of you will go.”

“Those who received an F, please move to the training room,” a voice across the telecom announces.

Five girls from D enter the room, their green shirts bringing some colour to the greys. “Hi,” Ji Yona (MLD) all but whispers, voice hoarse and eyes ringed red. The scene switches to a shot of her sitting alone in the stairwell, legs drawn up and subbing as she clutches the grade card. Now, in the F room, she just sits down and rubs her eyes.

A handful of C girls enter as well, among then is FNC’s Shin Areum, beautiful as her name suggests.

“Isn’t she the Brand New girl?” Kim Eunbi (BBC) whispers. “Why did she get demoted?”

A quick flashback to Areum’s video shows her not even dancing, just bouncing up and down on her toes and humming the song, look of panic on her face.

“Maybe she really is just a visual?” Song Jisoo (BBC) answers.

“Then she can stop looking like she’s better than us,” Eunbi gives her some serious side-eye. Areum just keeps her head held high and pretends not to hear.

Not even B class is immune to the furthest demotion. Yong Jisun (WM) and Ren Huiyin (Starship) sheepishly open the door to the room.

The next trainees to move rooms are those who got moved to D. The Fs are first, those who got promoted, and the first girl to come in is Ito Chiyo (Sony Japan). “Chiyo!” Midori burst out, and Chiyo runs to hug her friend.

“I’m moving up in the world!” Chiyo says with glee.

They  show a clip of Chiyo’s dancing and she’s not the worst! She has the steps down, she’s just very clumsy in how she executes them, and lacks that youthful charm the song tries to depict. Somehow everything Chiyo does looks sarcastic. Still, she was deemed good enough for D and she’s happy as a clam.

Then there is the demotees. Ha Bada (EM) sheepishly opens the door, still wearing the orange of her previous B grade. “Helloooo,” she says, still cheerful. “Guess who’s heeeere?”

The show moves on to the trainees who received a final grade of C. Ming Fen (Woollim) opens the door and peeks in, still in her green shirt, eyes wide and smile on her face. “Hello,” she says, a little timidly.

During the video evaluation the trainer were very happy with her. “She’s so pretty,” Yikwang says. “Such an innocent face.”

“Her dancing improved a lot from her audition,” Yoonjung says.

“She picked it up pretty quickly,” Candy beams. “Just needed some encouragement.”

“If only she could sing,” Eunha sighs. “But she’s good enough for C.”

Im Mosu (Starship) is the next girl in. She doesn’t say anything and just sits down, for once lacking her usual energetic charm. Won Seoyun (Starship) scooches over to her and wraps an arm around her while Mosu lets herself lean on her.

Finally there is the call for trainees who got an A. There’s a girl in orange who runs up to the door and throws it open. “I am here!!” Jung Gaeul (SM) announces, wild grin on her face. “I told you I’d make it!”

A flashback to her video shows that Gaeul did a great job. She managed to sing and dance at the same time without losing breath, and while her moves aren’t exactly sharp she’s hitting them nevertheless.

“She should have been in A after all,” Chanhee says with a grin. “Good girl.”

Lexi Park (BNM) is another B girl who triumphantly enters the room, and she’s immediately greeted by her labelmate Juyeon. “I saved a seat for you!” she says, and all but tackles Lexi into a hug.

Then there’s a girl from C with pink hair. Jeon Taeri (Plan A) throws the door open with a huge grin as she bows and sits down, barely able to contain her happiness.

“She’s perfect,” Candy said when the trainers watched her video. “She can sing, she can dance, why was she in C again?”

Another C girl is shown next, and this one has a totally blank face. Lee Juri (YNB) just opens the door and bows to the other girls. “Hello.” There is, for those who can tell, just the most imperceptible smile at her corner of as she sits down.

Her video is quite well too, she managed to sing and dance without problem and it’s all quite clean. That aside, she also has the confidence of someone who’s been on stage before, a level of experience that is very hard to fake.

“She has the charisma of someone who’s debuted,” Yoonjung says with a nod. “You can tell she feels comfortable with what she can do.”

“I’m impressed with all of the Paradise girls,” Chanhee says. And indeed, Kyungmi and Liling are shown sitting in B and C respectively, each having gone up a rank. “We underestimated them.”

“They underestimated themselves, I think,” Candy says. “I’m proud of them!”

Then the door opens and two girls in grey shirts walk into the room, their faces obscured. The A girls gasp and whispers fill the room. “How?” Juyeon (BNM) whispers.

Back in the trainer room during evaluations, the trainers start the video of F girl Park Dain (MMO). She starts dancing and it’s nearly perfect, she’s even managing to hit the notes, albeit thinly.

“She’s good!” Chanhee says. “What is she doing wearing grey?”

Another video is shown, this time it’s Gong Sohyun (Urban Works), and her voice is very strong even while she dances.

“Did we judge them that badly?” Candy asks with a smile.

Both Dain and Sohyun are shown coming out of the F room moments earlier, Sohyun looks like she’s in a daze and can scarcely believe it, she’s staring at the letter in the little white booklet. Dain is ecstatic, she jumps up and down in excitement, grin splitting her face. “We got an A we got an A we got an A!!!” She throws herself onto Sohyun, laughing freely, and snaps Sohyun out of her daze.

“We did!” Sohyun smiles. "We did."

The girls sit down in the A room, completing the transfer of all trainees except for the A ones. Eunha clears and the girls snap to attention. “As I said before, ten of you will drop ranks. When I call your name you will receive your grade.”

One by one A trainees accept their grades while the tension is tangible. Han Moonae (EM) is shown glancing at the grade anxiously, face remaining tense. Na Chaerin (BNM) peeks into hers and nods once before sitting back down.

“Now it is time to move to your new rank,” Eunha says when all is handed out. “Those of you who got a B, please leave the room and go to class B.”

The camera focuses on Moonae who just looks around to see who gets up.

Na Chaerin stands up, and then gasps in surprise when her labelmate Choi Juyeon, stands up too. There’s a final glance at Lexi sitting with the newcomers before both of them leave the room with two other girls.

“Those of you who got a C, please go to class C,” Eunha continues.

Again the camera focuses on Moonae who’s watching tensely, but it’s Chae Seulgi (WM) and Park Haeun (Starship) next to her who stand up.

“Isn’t she from Starship?” Kim Jinri (Plan A) whispers to Jeon Taeri next to her.

“She was so good, what happened?” Taeri whispers back.

A flashback to the trainers evaluating Haeun shows exactly what happened. Her dance is sharp as it ever was, nearly perfect, but she can’t sing a single word. All she does is stare at the camera, and her eyes widen when she realizes but she can’t pick herself back up.

“Shame,” Bae Yoonjung says. “She had potential.”

“That looks like a C to me,” Woosung nods and her form is stamped.

“Finally, if you got an F, please go to Class F,” Eunha finishes back in A.

“Nobody here got an F did they?” Gong Sohyun (Urban Works) whispers to Park Dain (MMO). “They can’t have.”

“Why else would F be called though?” Dain whispers back.

There are more gasps and whispers when a girl does stand up. Girls watch, mouths agape, as Min Hwari (Cube) walks towards the door with tears in her eyes.

“Why is she just standing there?” Hana asks while the trainers watch Hwari’s video. “What is she doing with her face?”

“Oh no poor thing!” Candy exclaims. “I can’t watch this.”

“This is so disappointing,” Bae Yoonjung shakes her head.

Hwari walks down the hall, eyes down cast, until she gets to the stairwell and she collapses, clutching the railing.

“I don’t know what happened!” she says in her interview, even then on the verge of tears. “I practiced everything so much, dancing and singing and my expressions, but I just couldn’t move a muscle. Maybe Cube was right and I’m not ready for this.” Tears are flowing now and she’s trying to wipe them as fast as they escape her eyes. “I’m sorry I’m sorry.”

“I kept my A!” Moonae says in her interview section as she folds over, hugging her knees for a moment in relief. “I thought I was done for but I got to stay in A!”

In the next scene all of the contestants are sitting in bleachers surrounding a small stage, the logo of Produce 99 prominently displayed on top. They’re all sitting according to their ranking, with F in the back, D C and B in the middle, and A positioned up front.

Chanhee comes and the room erupts with cheers. “Girls!” he says with a grin. “I hope you’ve been preparing well for your music show debut!”

“Yes!” the girls all say in unison.

“And what is the most important thing of a Produce title track?” he asks.

“The center!”

“Trainees!” Chanhee addresses them again dramatically. “Do you remember who was the center of season 1?”

“Choi Yoojung!” the girls answer.

“What about season 2?”

“Lee Daehwi!”

“Correct! Who can forget the names and faces of the centers, I ask you? Last seasons both of them made it into the group, that is how important center is. Yesterday, while everyone else was practicing hard for the music show, the As got 12 hours to come up with a 30 second dance routine to a song of their choosing,” Chanhee says. “One by one they’ll perform their routine for you, and you, the B, C, D, and F trainees, get to choose who you think should be the center.”

There are the usual variety reactions, but one shot of Midori shows she looks legit surprised and excited. “Management always chooses the center for our songs,” Amano Midori (Sony Japan) says in her interview. “It’s really cool that we get a say here!” She looks determined and slams a fist on her palm. “I’ll pick well!”

“The center evaluation starts now!” Chanhee throws his hand in the air and the first trainee takes the stage.

 

“They did very well,” Han Siryung (Pledis) comments in her interview. “I was impressed, especially by Jeon Taeri!”

“I thought, was Park Dain really one of us?!” Yang Taeyoung (TS) looks awed. “She was amazing!”

“Han Moonae was so y!” Kwon Girim (MLD) says, fanning herself. “She’s a total girl crush!”

“It has to be Bitna, any Bitna,” Sunisa (Plan A) says. "Any will do. I mean- Taeri forgive me!"

“I’ll announce the first center candidate,” Chanhee says back on the stage. “Lexi Park, please enter the stage.”

Lexi glows as she makes her way up, a triumphant smile on her face.

“Her dancing was so smooth!” Ha Bada (EM) says. “She was like waves, honestly she should be the one named bada!”

“I thought she looked very charismatic and danced so well!”

“She was really professional,” Kim Dohee (WM) says. “And the dance was very well crafted.”

“And the second center candidate is Jung Gaeul!” Chanhee says.

“She was so pretty and charismatic!” Ming Fen (Woollim) says with big eyes.

“Why I chose Gaeul?” Lucy asks in English in her interview. “I mean have you seen her?! I don’t care that she wasn’t the best dancer, she was the most entrancing!”

“That SM polish is impossible to fake,” Kang Chaerin (Leon) says. “I think she will represent us well.”

“I thought really hard about it,” Midori says very seriously. “And in the end I decided that Jung Gaeul looked very charming, I think she could really make people interested in the rest of us. She looks likeable and she fits the concept and that’s what a good center is.” She nods with gusto. "I think I chose well."

“Out of these two, one of you will be the official Produce 99 center,” Chanhee says.

“I want center so much,” Lexi says in a voice-over while she looks tensely at Gaeul opposite her. “I’ve trained and waited so long for this.”

“It would mean everything for me to be center,” Gaeul’s voice over says in term. “I’ve been in the basement for so long, I want to show that I am worth the spotlight, that I have what it takes to be here and to debut.”

“And the winner is….” Chanhee pauses for just a moment. “Jung Gaeul, congratulations!”

Lexi’s expression turns to stone while Gaeul looks surprised and over the moon. “Thank you so much!” she says and blows kisses at the various bleachers with girls. “I won’t let you down I swear!”
 

And then it is the day of the M!Countdown recording. The girls come out of the various buses and company cars in casual clothes, sorted by company groups and waving at the cameras.

Im Mosu (Starship) is jumping up and down in excitement, clinging to Seoyun and Chaewon on either side of her. “It’s the day it’s the day!”

The Plan A girls merrily skip through the halls and wave at the camera. “Look forward to a terrific performance!” Sunisa says to the camera.

Taeri comes up behind her. “We’re gonna slay!!”

Lucy King (Helix) is turning circles in the hallways. “Kings and queens have traversed these halls,” she says in awe. “I am walking amongst giants.”

Freshly changed into the colour coded outfits, the trainees pour into the studio in their grade groups, gasping at the huge triangular stage that has been prepared for them.

“It’s so big!” Ming Fen (Woollim) gasps at the sight. “Is it bigger than me? It looks bigger than me.”

Song Liling (YNB) laughs. “You’re saying this and you’re tall! It dwarfs me.”

“Does it move?” Tanaka Yuki (Sony Japan) asks with awe. “How did they even build this?”

“I don’t know but it’s amazing,” Takayami Sora (Avex Trax) answers, also in C-yellow. “And I’m so very glad we get to stand on stage. I’ve never seen a stage like that in Japan!”

The stage is made of two huge triangles that can separate and rejoin to become a diamond. Lexi Park is standing next to one of them. “This is my triangle,” she says proudly, hugging the point of it. “I might not be center of Produce 99, but I’m center of this triangle.”

The girls in grey stay on the side while all the other girls rehearse on the stages. They look slumped together, all in grey. “I wish I could be on that stage,” Min Hwari (Cube) sighs, pink hair standing out against the blandless of the grey shirt.

“It looks dangerous?” Ji Yona (MLD) says as a question, like she’s trying to convince herself of it. “It’s probably scary up there?”

“Everywhere I stand is my stage!” Yang Taeyoung drapes an around around both Hwari and Yona’s shoulders. “I don’t need to be raised up there, just you wait!

“F trainees, please come join us!” Yikwang asks to the side of the platform.

A lot of the girls on top cheer as the grey girls join them. Girim, part of the D class, reaches out for Yona in grey and briefly grasps her hands. “They’ll probably see you more than me!” she says. “I’m all the way in the back, maybe you get to be in your own center!”

Yona smiles. “I hope so.”

“I’m here for you, okay? And Jinsil is up there somewhere looking out for you too.”

And then, after some serious hair and makeup, the girls all stand on stage in their colourful uniforms. They are legion.

This is Produce 99.

 

And then the glitz and glamour are over and the show pans back to a new morning at the familiar English Village. Inside, the trainees filter into what looks like a sports hall transformed with plenty of pink banners into a Produce 99 hall. They girls wearing the colours of their ranks again and line up on a little stair, A’s up front, F’s in the back.

The door opens and Chanhee peeks in, eyes closed shut. “Is everyone decent?” he asks. “Can I open my eyes?”

“Yes!” the trainees echo with giggles.

“Ah, there you are!” Chanhee’s eyes spring up and he smiles. “What a lovely sight to behold. Have you recovered from the recording or are you all still starstruck?”

“Yes!”

“Yes to recovered or yes to starstruck?” Chanhee laughs. “Today I am here to give you your next assignment! Now this is a hard one, and it will determine whether you get stay on or not.” He pauses to let the weight sink in. “It’s the group battle evaluation.

“You will team up in groups and perform in front of a live audience,” he continues. “There are 8 songs and twice that number of groups, two groups will battle it out against each other and the one with the most votes wins 1000 additional bonus votes added to your total.”

There are the appropriate gasps. “1000 votes!” Ito Chiyo (Sony Japan) says in her solo interview. “That’s so many points! Wouldn’t that guarantee the winner to stay in the show?”

“Let no time be wasted then!” Chanhee says. “Let’s reveal the songs!” Loud cheers from the girls show their excitement as the curtain drops from the board.
 

SNSD - Mr. Mr.

Miss A - Hush

APink - No No No

Gfriend- Rough

365 - Peekaboo

IOI - Wee Woo*

BLACKPINK - Boombayah

Lee Hyori - U Go Girl

Twice - Like Ooh Ahh!

((*In order to make it work we’re gonna have to pretend IOI debuted with Wee Woo k?))

There’s a cacophony of noise and girls gasps, point, chatter, and shout.

The wall contains two little signs labelled ‘flags’ (although they’re really light wooden signs on a stick)  for each song, each ever so slightly colour-coded to make them easier to distinguish.

“There are so few rap songs,” Choi Bitna (independent) laments in her confessional. “I must get Boombayah, that’s my only option.”

Lucy (Helix) squeals in hers. “Hush! Mr Mr! Rough! Peekaboo! Wee Woo! Boombayah! Even U Go Girl! Oh I’m in heaven!”

“I would kill to get Wee Woo,” Yang Taeyoung (TS) says with a total straight face before it cracks and she laughs. “I’m kidding of course-” her face goes straight again. “But I would do unspeakable things…”

“The members of each team will be selecter through a random draw,” Chanhee says. “The person drawn will pick their team, but of course before that there’s one person who gets to pick her team first: our very own center, Jung Gaeul!”

Gaeul (SM) comes forward with a giddy smile. “The first one I pick is A class Lexi Park!”

There are groans of ‘of course’ as Lexi comes forward to stand next to Gaeul, but she looks far from ecstatic.

“The next one I pick is D class Ito Chiyo.”

It takes a little nudge to get Chiyo to realize she’s been called and her face lights up. “Me?” she asks, pointing at herself.

Gaeul laughs. “Hai! Naekkoya!”

Chiyo breaks into a grin. “Ok!”

One after the other Gaeul picks her other members: B class Han Maeri (CT), D class Gyeon Youri (Urban Works), and finally F class Shin Areum (BNM).

“She didn’t take the girls I thought she would,” Han Moonae (EM) says in her confessional. “Aside from Lexi unnie and Areum none of them stood out to me much. I wonder why she chose them.”

“Is there a particular reason you chose these members?” Woo Chanhee asks Gaeul.

“I think each of them has a strong personality that will be brought out on stage,” she responds. "Trust me!"

The next randomly drawn girl is Im Mosu (Starship),who swiftly picks her team of Choi Bitna (independent), Amano Midori (Sony Japan), Park Jaeeun (FNC), Won Seoyun (Starship), and Kim Yuna (MMO). She, in turns, draws Go Yoonseo (FNC), who jumps up and down when she’s called. “Yes! Yes! Yes!” One by one she makes her picks. “A class Park Dain. A class Han Moonae. B class Han Siryung. B class Choi Juyeon.”

On and on it goes. Jeon Taeri (Plan A) picks a team, Lee Jaena (RBW) picks a team, Na Chaerin (BNM), Song Liling (YNB) picks a team, until there is only a fast forward of girls on lines and teams being formed.

Finally, only 6 girls are left over, and they automatically make a reject team of Sunisa (Plan A), Yang Taeyoung (TS), Jeon Seyoung (Brave), Shin Taerin (KQ), Ren Huiyin (Starshp), and Lucy King (Helix).

“Now it’s time to determine the songs,” Chanhee says when all songs have been picked. “So let’s have a race! Whoever chose the group has to run to the song flag, pick one up, and put it in its designated post. Then whoever gets the song they wanted gets to pick the team they battle against. So half of you get to perform the song you want, and the other half has to perform the song that’s assigned to them. You can now have some time to discuss with your team.”

With that said, the hall erupts in chaos as groups of girls huddle together and discuss fiercely.

 “There’s really only one song for us,” Na Chaerin (BNM) says to her team. “We need to get Boombayah. Look at us, we’re the perfect girl crush, that’s why I picked you!”

“I’m girl crush?” Seung Hyemi (Urban Works) asks.

“I see it in you,” Chaerin says. “Really! I have no doubt you’ll do great. Now we’re probably going to have to go against Bitna unnie’s team or Hyowon unnie’s team to get it-”

“Boombayah,” Choi Bitna (independent) says instantly to her own team. “We have the presence and swag for it. We need to go for it.”

Mosu nods.”I’ve been practicing for Running Man half my life, I’ve got this.” she punched the air excitedly. “Go go avengers!”

"We have to get a flag," Sunisa says to her team of rejects. "We have to fight this battle on our terms or we'll be instantly targetted.

"I knew we had to get Wee Woo or U Go Girl," Sunisa says in her interview. "There was no other song we'd be able to pull off."

“I’m so glad I got to choose!” Go Yoonseo (FNC) squeals in their corner. “This team is going to do great!”

“I think we’d be really good at something graceful,” Siryung  suggests (Pledis). “I think we could pull off Rough?”

“What about Mr Mr?” Moonae (EM) suggests. “It’s cool and has both vocal and rap parts*.”

“Oh, yes, that’s a very good idea.” Siryung agrees immediately.

“That’s enough deliberation!” Chanhee calls. “Team leaders, get on your marks! Get ready! 1...2… GO!”

 

 

 

 

 

The girls sprint forward while shouts from their team fill the hall with noise. They surge forward in slow motion, hair bobbing gently up and down as faces twist into decidedly un-ladylike canvases of determination. This moment is do or die.

One girl, Sora (Avex Trax), trips seemingly on her own feet before she’s even reached the board, tragically left behind as the stampede moves forward and no eyes look back. It is every idol trainee for herself in this jungle and nobody has time for the casualties.

True to her word, Mosu is the first girl to reach the flags and she lurches forward with all her mind, hands grabbing the handle and pulling it loose with all she has. A shot of her teammates show their cheering faces morph into abject horror when they realize the fatal error Mosu has committed. Cheers change to shouts of alarm and panic as Mosu starts sprinting back, misplaced triumph on her face betraying the sad fact that she has no idea that the sign in her hand does not, in fact, say Boombayah, but instead reads U-Go-Girl.

Meanwhile Jeon Taeri  (Plan A) rips the final Mr Mr flag right out of Go Yoonseo’s hands and sprints back, leaving Yoonseo staring at her hands in existential confusion. Why are they empty? Why do these things happen? What cruelty is this?

Taeri gives it everything she’s got, sprinting after Shin Kayeon (Pledis), weaving through bodies like a rugby player on her way to the goal line, pushing Kayeon aside just as the beauty was assured of her victory, and dunking the sign in the stand with so much force that both of them topple over onto the floor. Kayeon, realizing her flag is now useless wood and cardboard, throws her now useless sign to the ground in a fury with such force it breaks in half.

Yoonseo pitifully looks back at the wall where only the second ‘Gfriend - Rough’ flag remains, unwanted, rejected, discarded, and one might wonder if the girl might feel a sliver of solidarity in this very sad sad moment.. Jinsil  (MLD), meanwhile, jogs comfortably to the stand with the other Gfriend sign carried by her wings of a comfortable victory (sponsored by Nike), confident that no one pursues her.

Chanhee looks on in fascination and horror as the scene plays out, is it just his imagination or can he really hear lion’s roar in the hall? Is the jungle closer than he ever anticipated? Will he ever see another scene as raw as this in his entire life? He shudders to know the answer.

Song Liling (YNB) somehow manages to remain the picture of class and beauty as she delivers her APink flag while, behind her, Ryu Haesung's (independent) face is twisted with determination and rage, bubble of spit flying as she sprints for her life. Liling leaps like a graceful gazelle over the discarded body of Sora with appropriate use of slowmotion, and one could swear sparkles surround her effortlessly stunning visage as she inserts the flag almost calmly into its stand. Behind her Haesung falls to her knees, a shell of the woman she once was.

Further down, Yang Jeongha  (Cre.Ker) is on the floor curled up in existential dread, discarded flag for ‘Wee Woo’ by her side while Sunisa collapses, still clutching her own Wee Woo flag in the stand, all but crying from sweet sweet relief. Next to her Na Chaerin’s  (BNM) choice of victory dance is dabbing for the 10th time, Boombayah’s coveted flag firmly planted in solid stand ground like the American flag on the moon. One small step for girl, one leap for idolkind.

One by one the fates of the girls are sealed in victory or defeat. The final guttural life or death showdown takes place over 365’s Peekaboo stand as Jung Gaeul (SM), all out of special treatment, wrestles to insert the flag of destiny in its stand with Kayeon who is determined to free the flag of Gaeul’s oppressive ownership into the tyranny of her own hands. “Stop! Stop!” Chanhee begs as he forces the two apart. “Let’s solve this like civilized women, please.” Reluctantly the course of the battle shifts towards a conclusion through the ancient art of rock paper scissors to settle this delicate matter once and for all.

Kai…

Bai…

Bo!

Gaeul jumps in the air, experiencing the tranquility of a paper-induced win while Kayeon curses the day she chose to use rock and sealed her defeat once more.

The war is over.

The winners and losers have been decided and the Earth has shaken with the repercussions of this monumental life-changing race.
 

Chanhee helps Sora up, who had still been lying on the floor in acceptance of her own doom, and the room returns to a version of civility. “That was the most stressful thing I have ever witnessed in my life,” Chanhee says, voice shaking. “And I used to be in a group with Seojin.”

There is a moment of calm in the chaos of the aftermath. The teams who managed to pick their song deliberate over what teams to pick before they’re placed in lines behind the song stands. These stands each hold two signs, the original sign with the song title that signified what stand they were for and the flag that was placed inside.

“Now that all of the songs have been chosen,” Chanhee says when everyone is ready. “Jeon Taeri, you came in first with Mr. Mr., who does your team want to go up against?”

“We’ll go against Go Yoonseo’s team,” she says. “Since I kind of stole her flag, sorry Yoonseo!”

Yoonseo mouths a grateful ‘thank you!’ as her team takes their place next to Taeri’s.

"It seemed like the right thing to do," Taeri says in her solo interview. "Besides, we're both great teams, and what's life without an avengers showdown." She grins with confidence. "The chic avengers don't stand down from a challenge!"

“Im Mosu, you came in second, who will your team go against?” Chanhee continues the selection process.

“Kim Eunbi’s team,” she says, standing a little red-faced behind the U-Go-Girl sign.

“The visual team,” Gong Seulrin (Maroo) whispers down to her teammate Jinri (Plan A). Indeed 4 low-ranked visuals.

“Jinsil, you came in third, who do you choose to go against?” Chanhee asks the girls who picked Gfriend’s Rough.

“Not us not us, please,” Jeongha whispers, standing with her group of Fs and Ds.

“We will go against Yang Jeongha’s team,” Jinsil says.

Dread is what falls over the faces of the reject team. “Why did it have to be Gfriend?” Yuka sighs, lip trembling.

“Come on,” Jeongha leads them.

One by one more and more teams get picked until all of the songs are doled out. “So. Now we’re all done with the song selection, it is time to announce the big twist!” Chanhee grins as he says it. “You won’t be battling with the same song.”

There are gasps when the implications sink in and Chanhee is enjoying every second of it.“You see the signs with the song’s name on it?” he points to the ones attached to the stands that they had to insert the flags into. “Taeri, why don’t you peel it off to see what song your opponents will sing.”

Taeri leans forward and, after a few tries at finding the corner of the sticker, she peels it off to reveals SNSD - Lion Heart. 

Yoonseo groans and the show switches to a confessional. “Mr. Mr. is at least our style and it has some rap*, Lion Heart is a nightmare!”

Mosu peels off the U-Go-Girl sticker to reveal FIN.K.L - To My Boyfriend while Jinsil’s Rough gives way to Gfriend - Love Whisper, which doesn’t really alleviate the dread of Jeongha’s team. Ony be one the stickers are peeled until the final result is revealed:

SNSD
                         Mr. Mr.                                                                   Lion Heart                      

 vs. 

Lee Hyori / FIN.K.L
      U-Go-Girl                                                              Forever Love   

 vs. 

Gfriend
      Rough                                                                Love Whisper

 vs. 

Miss A
              Hush                                                              Bad Girl Good Girl   

 vs. 

APink
   NoNoNo                                                                        LUV       

  vs. 

Blackpink
      Boombayah                                                                Whistle         

 vs. 

Twice
        Like Ooh Ahh (Korean version)                            Like Ooh Ahh (Japanese version)      

   vs. 

IOI
         Wee Woo                                                            Very Very Very    

 vs. 

365
  Peekaboo                                                                      Step       

 vs. 

Just like that, all of the groups have been divided and the hall turns into various circles of girls trying to figure out what to do.

After a commercial break the show returns to a panoramic view of the CJ E&M studios where, inside, personnel is hard at work building the Produce 99 stage for the battle performances. People are seen lining up to be allowed to enter and decide the fate of these girls. There are banners and fans handed out with the names and faces of various girls.

Backstage the girls are shown getting ready in costume with stylists prepping their hair and makeup, carefully applying lipstick and glitter (the brands conveniently shown for some good old fashioned product placement) and attacking tresses with curlers, straighteners, and hair dryers.

Dain (MMO) looks dazzling in a white flapper dress with sparkly accessories, and pulls in Moonae (EM) dressed in a similar getup. “Everything is worth it for these outfits,” she says. “Twirl for me!”

Moonae does a twirl and the little ropes dance around her. “Lion Heart~” she sings with a smile.

"We have to have the best outfits," Dain decides. "It doesn't get better than this."

The stage itself is impressive, made up of triangles of course, with the Produce 99 logo prominent at the back. The studio is filled with audience members waiting for the show to start. And then Chanhee walks on stage,and the audience response is deafening.

“Hello!” he says cheerfully when the cheers have subsided. “I am the representative of the National Producers, Woo Chanhee.” More cheers as he bows to the audience. “There are 97 trainees backstage, probably trembling with nerves, getting ready to get on that stage and show you what they’ve worked hard for this past week. Their fate lies in your hands. Your votes will determine the team who wins their battle and will be awarded 1000 bonus votes! Two teams will perform a song from the same artist, and you get to vote for the one girl out of both teams who stood out to you the most or, if you think none of the girls deserve your vote, you’re welcome to abstain. The number for each member in a team will be counted together, and the team with the highest average score will be the winner.

Now I know I’ve yapped on long enough and you’re all eager to get started, so without further ado let the group battle evaluation begin!” The studio erupts into cheers and shouts again, people raise their banners up high for whatever girl they’re supporting while Chanhee grins at the energy.

Twice
        Like Ooh Ahh (Korean version)                            Like Ooh Ahh (Japanese version)      

   vs. 

“Now the first group is up for a herculean task,” Chanhee says. “They have some very big shoes to fill. What girl group do you think of when I say the dominant group both domestically and abroad?”

“Twice!” most of the audience shouts back.

“That’s right! Our first team will be stepping into the tennis shoes of Twice.  As a global group, the future Produce 99 girl group will have to perform both in Korea and in Japan at the very least, don’t you think? So why not start with a quick check if these girls are up to the task. With a Korean and a Japanese version of Like Ooh Ahh, let’s see if they’re up to the task!”

The two teams come onto the stage, one in white and blue and pink and the other in red and white and black. Polar opposites with the sae song.

“Hi, we’re No Borders!” the first team says in unison, Haeun and Jaena make a cool pose while the rest tries to look as cute as possible. Leader Seulgi continues alone. “We’ve got girls speaking Korean and girls speaking Japanese, border won’t stop us!”

“And we’re Holiday!” the other group says in unison before Juri takes the mic alone. “We will show you a performance so good you’ll forget all about your job at home and your responsibilities and let us give you a brief reprieve like a holiday!” she’s as animated as she’s ever been and even throws in a little wink.

“Aaah, greasy!” Liling (YNB) groans in the waiting room where all the other groups are gathered to watch.

“Is that really stone faced Juri unnie?” Taeyoung (TS) asks. “Did the bodysnatchers return?”

“Looking at you it’s like we have the twin towers!” Chanhee laughs at team Holiday where Juri and Kyunmi stand tall while the rest is average. “And then on the other hand we have a shortage?” The girls giggle while Yuki, at only 156cm, stands out as the shortie she is.

"She makes up for it with cuteness," Seulgi says.

“Gwiyomi!" Yuki does some aegyo and the particularly male side of the audience erupts.

“I heard you struggled a lot, Yuki?” Chanhee asks. “Is this true?”

Yuki nods. “Neomu neomu neomu,” she says. “I try!”

“She struggled a lot but she also practiced very hard,” Sohyun says. “We’re all very proud of her!” There are loud cheers from a lot of men in the audience with Nogizaka46 banners high.

“Let’s see this diversity in action then,” Chanhee says.  “Why don’t we take a look and see how team 1's week unfolded?” Chanhee asks the camera, and the scene switches to the beginning of the week.

The team is sitting at the bottom of the carpeted steps, bent around an ipad and several sets of lyric sheets. “We got Like Ooh Ahh!” Soyu claps her hands excitedly. “We have the best team and the best song!” She high fives the members of her team excitedly.

“Everything’s going to plan!” Soyu say in her confessional. “I thought: I must be crazy if I don’t pick both the Paradise girls if I wanted to make it, they have an existing fanbase after all.”

“First of all, I think Juri should be leader,” Soyu says back with the group. “I think you’d make a great leader.”

“Oh, eh, sure,” Juri says, from a slight twitch of the eyebrows she might be taken aback but it’s hard to tell. “I can be the leader if you want me to.” 

“I thought I’d done my part, you know?” Soyu continues in her interview. “I’ve conquered the song and chosen the team, but I’m not really a leader and Juri unnie seems so steady in everything, like a rock. I’m pretty sure we could get invaded by aliens and Juri would still be standing unphased. I just hope that her inability to experience emotion doesn’t carry over onto the stage or we’re doomed, ha ha.”

“Juri unnie is… interesting,” Nara says in her own confessional. “I think I saw her stub her toe once and all she did was raise her eyebrows a little. Just a little! When I stub my toe I’m convinced my life is over and I’m about to perish from this mortal plane!”

“I’ve never been a leader before but I’ll do my part well,” Juri says in her interview, face characteristically serious.

“First thing is center,” Juri starts her duties as leader. “I think Soyu or Nara should be center. Maybe Nara because this is a very fresh song.”

Soyu laughs. “Most of us have one foot in the entertainment grave already, don’t we?” Soyu, Juri, Kyungmi, and Yejin are all older contestants, all of them 96 liners, with only Nara a 98 liner. “Nara sounds like a great choice.”

“Me? Really?” Nara ask a little surprised before straightening her back. “I mean of course, I’d love to be center!”

“Next is main vocal,” Juri continues down the list of position. “I think Yejin is-”

Kyungmi raises her hand. “I’d like to try out for main vocal.”

“It’s okay, Kyungmi can be the main vocal,” Yejin says quickly. “I really don’t mind.”

“I know I was a little greedy but just- this is my last chance.” Kyungmi says in her confessional. “I have to show what I’m capable of. I just have to.”

The next scene, both teams are getting their vocals evaluated by Eunha. They’re standing around Eunha and her keyboard as she plays part of the song and Haeun is singing the high notes flawlessly.

“Very impressive!” Eunha says. “Now Kyungmi, it’s your turn.”

Kyungmi clears , obviously nervous. She glances at Haeun who's watching her with curiosity. Then she starts singing, and it's obvious she's nervous and scared and it ends up thin and timid and off.

Eunha shakes her head. “Are you sure you can handle main vocal? It seems out of your league. Is there anyone else in your team who can do better?”

Kyungmi shakes her head, the camera briefly focuses on her balled fist. “No, I can do it. Really, I can.”

Eunha raises her eyebrows. “Being a team is about making concessions and sacrifices. It's not about what gives you the most spotlight.”

Kyungmi swallows. “I can do it. I know I can. I'll work hard.”

“For your team’s sake I hope you’re right,” Eunha says. “Let’s move on, shall we?”

After the lesson the team gathers to discuss. “What does everyone think about the situation?” Juri asks. “We have to think about the option of switching to Yejin instead.”

Something in Kyungmi seems to break just then. She drops down to the ground, hugging her knees and crying.

“Kyungmi!” Soyu drips by her side instantly and throws her arm around the sobbing girl. “It’s okay.”

“I’m- I’m sorry-” Kyungmi manages to get out between the sobs. “It’s just- I have to do this. Please.”

“Of course we’ll give you the chance.” Soyu looks back. “Right Juri?”

“If you’re positive you can do it…” Juri says, conflicted.

Kyungmi nods. “I am. Please let me try this.”

Juri looks at the others. “If everyone agrees?”

Kyungmi looks devastated in her confessional but she remains determined. "If I can't do this then I don't deserve to be here," she says. "I have to show that I do and that I can. My team is counting on me." She shakes her head. "I won't let them down."

And thus Kyungmi remains the main vocalist. She’s shown practicing even when the others have gone to  sleep, struggling with the same final adlibs but she doesn’t give up. Kyungmi will prove that she’s a good singer. Even when she’s the only one left in the practice room she’s still practicing, up to the day of the final performance.

Will the 96 liners be able to compete with the other team’s youth?

 

 Jang Soyu (Natty / white shirt), Lee Juri (Song Hayoung / fringe), Kim Kyungmi (Park Jiwon / black shirt and skirt), Hong Yejin (Kim Joohyun / get the lights off), Yoon Nara(Lee Chaeyoung/ tartan skirt)

Eunha is beaming. "She did it," she says with clear approval. "She struggled but she did it, I'm proud of her."

There are cheers from the crowd and from the other contestants in the waiting room when they’re finished. “The intro was so cute!” Bada (EM) gushes. “They did a great job!”

The girls looked relieved when they exit the stage. “I did it!” Kyungmi beams. “I actually did it!”

Then it’s time for the other team to get on stage and perform, but first how did they fare behind the scenes?

Amidst all the teams seriously discussing there is one that’s filled with good cheer. Team Like Ooh Ahh (Japanese Version) is sitting together attempting to sing through the Japanese in good cheer. Sohyun is doing quite well, Haeun is managing, and Yuki is obviously doing fine, but the others are struggling, especially the two rappers.

Yuki giggles at Jaena’s mistake. “Ie! Ani ani! Su-re-chi-ga-i.”

“Agh this is so hard!” Jaena complains. “Why do we have to sing in Japanese?”

Haeun sits a little aside, regarding the the rest of the groups with curiosity. “Don’t your companies teach you Japanese?” she asks. “I’m not very good at it but Starship at least tried.”

“Mine did!” Sohyun says proudly.

Seulgi shakes her head. “We mostly trained our talents.”

“I only trained a few months,” Seulrin says. “And the company is kinda small…”

“It’s okay, Yuki and I can help you with pronunciation,” Sohyun says. “We’ll make it work.”

“Let’s focus on one thing at a time, now that we’ve got parts we should pick the center!” Seulgi claps her hands for attention. “I’m sure everyone would love to try out, but how about we nominate someone instead? I think Seulrin would make a lovely center.”

In the end Seulrin gets another vote from Sohyun, while Haeun votes for Jaena, and Jaena votes for Yuki.

“Yuki?” Sohyun asks.

Yuki blinks. “What’ going on?” she asks in Japanese.

“Who do you think should be center?” Sohyun asks.

Yuki points at herself. “Naekkoya?”

Jaena laughs. “Fair enough! What are we gonna do, there’s a tie between Seulrin and Yuki.”

“Yuki is Japanese, it makes sense to have a Japanese center,” Haeun says. “If it has to be either of them, she has the most spunk too.”

Seulrin huffs, visibly upset. “I have spunk, too!”

Haeun laughs. “You’re very pretty but no, you don’t really have spunk.”

“Alright Yuki,” Seulgi says, obviously pointing so the Japanese girl can understand. “We pick you!”

Yuki glows. “Kamsahabnida!”

Seulrin glowers. “I thought it was really unfair!” she says in her confessional. “We were supposed to vote for others but Yuki voted for herself and she gets it, too.” She crosses her arms and pouts. “She didn’t follow the rules.”

“I’m center!” Yuki glows in her interview, pointing at her sticker with all of the enthusiasm of a young girl. “I didn’t even think I’d make senbatsu like ever, but now I’m center! I can’t wait to perform, this is going to be amazing!”

“We’re gonna do awesome,” Haeun says with a grin, back on the steps of the Produce-clad hall. “Nothing can stop us, the other team will regret picking us for sure. We’re gonna slay!”

Then it’s time for one of the dance trainers to judge their exact amount of slayage, and Bae Yoonjung is waiting for both teams. Juri’s team goes first and they don’t seem to have any problems with the dance at all, it all goes smoothly and Yoonjung compliments them on a job well done.

Then it’s the turn of Seulgi’s team and it’s immediately apparent that Yuki doesn’t know the dance yet. “Stop, stop,” Yoonjung stops them. “Yuki, you haven’t memorized the steps yet? Do it again.”

They try again and again but Yuki keeps doing it wrong and she’s starting to look really distressed. “I’m sorry!” she says to Sohyun, the only one who can understand her.

Yoonjung sighs. “Why did you choose her to be your center when she can’t even dance to the song?” she asks. “Center is the most important position of the song and you give it to your weakest link?”

“We thought it would be good to have a Japanese center,” Seulgi says, eyes downcast.

“And how is that working out?” Yoonjung asks. “She has no impact at all because she’s too busy trying to remember what the steps are. Seulrin switch with Yuki.”

Seulrin taps Yuki on the arm and gently moves her to Seulrin’s spot and they try again. Yoonjung nods. “That’s a lot better. You can hide a bad dancer but you can’t hide a bad center. I can’t make you change your center but I strongly suggest you do if you want to stand a chance.”

Back in their own practice room, the team has some discussing to do. “So the way I see it we have two options,” Seulgi starts. “Either we trust Yuki and keep teaching her and hope she catches up, or we switch the center to Seulrin and they both have to learn the other’s lines.”

“I don’t think the change is very big?” Seulrin says, obviously hopeful.

“Are you sure?” Haeun raises an eyebrow. “You struggled enough learning this. It makes no sense to replace a faulty center with another faulty center.”

Seulrin huffs again. “Hey! I said I can do it!”

“Yuki, are you okay with it?” Seohyun asks.

Yuki is teary-eyed but she nods. “I can’t be center.”

“What was I thinking?” Yuki asks in her confessional. “I can’t be a center of a Korean song, I can’t even keep up with their dancing! There’s so many hip movements and details I keep forgetting, why are their dances so complicated?.” She brushes a tear from her eye. “I can’t be center.”

The team goes ahead with teaching Seulrin and Yuki their new moves and lines and Yuki works hard to catch up and learn the dance as best she can.

Then it’s time for the dress rehearsal in front of the judges. It’s the day before the performance and the girls practice on stage in full performance getup. Yuki is still stiff but she’s no longer messing up moves and her expressions are energetic and youthful. Seulrin, meanwhile, is struggling. She’s mixing concentrating so hard on not messing up that she’s completely forgetting to emote at all.

“What’s going on with them?” Eunha asks. “Why is Seulrin in the center, she has no impact at all, wasn’t it Yuki before?”

“Seulrin, you were in F before, right?” Yikwang asks.

Seulrin nods tensely. “I was.”

“Do you think you can perform well tomorrow?” he asks.

“You’re in real trouble,” Hana says to the girls directly. “The performance is tomorrow and you’re not even ready.”

Afterwards the group meets again and they all look miserable. “What if we make Yuki center again?” Seulgi suggests.

Yuki’s eyes widen. “What? But I only just re-learned the positions!”

Seulrin looks defeated and isn’t making eye contact. Meanwhile Haeun looks annoyed. “Look, damned if we do damned if we don’t,” she says. “Just make a decision. Someone’s gonna have to stand in center.”

“I can try if you really want me to,” Yuki says.

“Could you try?” Seulgi asks. “I’m worried we’ll stand no chance otherwise.”

Haeun snorts. “You have me! In no universe can Kyungmi go up against my vocals. But I do suppose you can’t rely on me entirely.”

Yuki nods. “I’ll try.”

The team goes right back to work even if it’s late, trying to teach Seulrin and Yuki the positions they had from the beginning and it’s… not a success. Yuki and Seulrin keep colliding or forgetting their lines as they get confused. At one point Yuki just crumples in tears. “I can’t do it!” she says. “I’m sorry I can’t do it. I’m exhausted! It’s too much!”

Sohyun hugs her. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

“What are we going to do?” Seulgi asks, defeated.

“We have to switch back,” Jaena says. “No other way. No one is getting any sleep tonight.”

“I guess we’ll have a weak center,” Haeun says with a shrug. “We’ll all just have to work hard to compensate.”

Can the team succeed with a weak center or will Seulrin step up? Let’s find out!

  Lee Jaena (Park Doa / bow headband), Gong Sohyun (Lee Chaewon / headband), Chae Seulgi (Hwang Soyeon / heart choker), Tanaka Yuki (Goto Moe / ponytail), Park Haeun (Park Haeyoon / reddish hair), Gong Seulrin (Lee Seunghyun / Mariners shirt)

They all hug each other when they’re done. “Oh my god we did it!” Jaena clutches her heart. “For better or worse, we did it.”

“I’m gonna sleep so much,” Yuki says, and Sohyun giggles.

“I think we all are.”

Chanhee returns to the stage with the other team. “So, those were quite the performances! Kyungmi, do you think you did better than Haeun?”

Kyungmi nods. “She might be more stable, but I think I was more sincere,” she says. “I gave my heart in this performance to show that I’m more than just a lead vocal in a failed group. I wanted to prove myself, to show you all that I have what it takes. That I deserve this second chance. Please vote for me and for my future.” There are screams in the audience as the camera pans to find guys holding Paradise banners high.

“What do you think Haeun?” Chanhee asks.

“I’m obviously the better singer,” Haeun says. “And I haven’t failed yet. Maybe I will, maybe I won’t, but the way I see it, if you vote for me you vote for the future, not the past.” She makes a little finger gun gesture.

“Now it is time for you to vote for your favourite!” Chanhee returns his attention back to the audience.

After shots of the audience feverishly voting on their little devices, the camera switches to both teams entering a small room with two benches and a screen in the center of a big Produce logo (in case you’d forgotten what program you’re watching). The teams each sit on one of the couch blocks, nerves obvious. Yuki lets out a shriek and almost jumps on Sohyun’s lap when the screen suddenly turns on and a countdown appears.

5...

4...

3...

2...

1...

The girls each gasp, and none as big as Yuki. “Is that me?!” she asks, eyes wide.

“It is!” Sohyun says.

Yuki just bursts out crying and Sohyun and Seulgi immediately coo over her. “Don’t cry!”” Seulgi says, her hair.

Haeun just stares at the screen with a frown, fists balled in the fabric of her skirt. Seulrin isn’t joining in on the celebrations either. “I couldn’t do it,” she says in her solo interview. “And then we won because of Yuki….” she sighs deeply and a little bitterly. “I can’t be happy about this victory because of that.”

Kyungmi is crying too, clutching Soyu’s hand.

“It doesn’t matter that we didn’t win” she says in her confessional, brushing tears from her eyes there, too. “That so many people would vote for me! That so many people would want me to have a second chance.” The smiles and sobs at once. “I will do my best for the national producers! From here on out there will be nothing short of total effort!”

IOI
         Wee Woo                                                            Very Very Very    

 vs. 

Back on stage, Chanhee is ready to announce the next group battle. He glances at the titlecard and smiles. “Ah the next songs that will be performed have a special place in all our hearts, no doubt. The next battle will center around IOI! The group formed by the first season of Produce 101 broke records and changed the face of the industry and now these teams are here to challenge their legacy. Teams, please enter the stage!”

The two teams enter the stage, one dressed in bright shorts and shirts and the other in white and red oufits.

“Hello we’re Superstar F!” the first team say in unison.

“We’re the Fs!” Taeyoung says brightly, joining hands with the other F trainees. Then the all make jazz hands around Sunisa. “And she’s the superstar!”

Sunisa laughs a little embarrassed while the other girls look completely sincere, with Lucy’s smile biggest of all,  and Chanhee can’t contain his laughter.

“I-” Chanhee, for once, is flabbergasted. “I can’t- just- take my votes.” He takes a moment to somewhat compose himself while the other team look at each other uncertain. “Team 2, please introduce yourself,” Chanhee manages.

“Hello we are Wait And See!” the other team introduces themselves.

“We’re all completely different,” Miyoung explains. “So you’ll just have to wait and see how we mix and match!”

Chanhee laughs. “The creativity in team names will never not be astounding. Now off you go, Wait And See, it’s time for team 1 to show us what they’ve prepared.”

“Okay,” leader Sunisa addresses the girls in the Wee Woo group. “Are you ready to get good?”

“Yes!” Taeyoung punched the air.

The camera gives a shot of each of the members one by one. Yang Taeyoung: F, Lucy King: F, Jeon Seyoung: F, Shin Taerin: F, Ren Huiyin: F, Sunisa: B.

“This group is filled with Fs,” Sunisa says in her interview. “And they’re all relying on me to lead them somewhere. I’m so relieved we managed to get Wee Woo! I’m not sure if we could have pulled off a different song.”

“Is any of you confident in your rapping or your singing?” Sunisa asks, and repeats herself in English for Lucy and Huiyin. She met with uncertain looks.

“I think I’m not bad?” Seyoung says not very convincingly.

“Okay let’s put it down another way, who wants to sing?” Sunisa tries again.

All hands go up.

Lucy, leaning forward to look at everyone else’s reaction, lowers her hand. “I can rap if I have to,” she says in English. “I don’t mind, I’ll just work hard! Gwenchana”

Sunisa smiles. “Great! There are two rap parts so I can tape Rapper 1 and you can take Rapper 2, okay? I’ll help you.”

“Ok!” Lucy smiles.

After the lines are divided there is one more matter to discuss of course. “So, center?” Sunisa smiles knowingly. “I know all of you want it, right?”

“You should be center,” Taeyoung says. When all the others look at her with surprise she laughs. “Hear me out. We have to make a good impression, right? And while some of us are prettier, sure, all of us are Fs and I know you’re all just about as bad at dancing as I am. Unnie, you’re a B and you’re a great dancer, you’ll definitely catch everyone’s eye much better with your moves, and we’ll catch the camera anyway with these faces, won’t we Lucy?” She nudges Lucy who blinks a little confused.

“Eeeh, ne!” Lucy says, obviously no idea what was just said.

“That’s more like it,” Taeyoung replies with a grin. “What do you guys say, do you agree?”

In the end the other girls relent and Taeyoung sticks the little sticker right underneath the leader sticker. “Lead us well, my center,” she says with a theatrical little bow. “Let’s show them that Fs can be great too!”

Sunisa laughs a little uncomfortable. “I’ll do my best.”

Will Sunisa be able to lead her Fs to victory?

But even best is not always enough.  A day later the team is performing in front of Yikwang and it’s awful. Sunisa is the only one who has the dance down. All of the others make mistakes every other step and Lucy can’t remember her rap, she just hums the beat while trying and failing to remember the steps. She’s either too busy trying to remember the dance to remember the rap or the other way around, but neither is coming out.

Yikwang sighs. “There’s- I-” he pinches the bridge of his nose. “There’s nothing I can do for you. There’s nothing there. Have you not been practicing? Lucy, you can’t even remember your lines. Taeyoung you’re a beat behind even when you do the correct step.  Taerin, I’m not sure if you’re on the same plane of existence.”

“Look, I want to help you, but there’s nothing I can ever work with,” he says. “There’s nothing here. You had better work hard if you want to stand a chance against them. Sunisa, you’re an excellent center, but that only goes so far when the rest of your team is in chaos. Good luck to you, you’ll need it.”

After the evaluation the team sits in a circle in their practice room. “Look,” Sunisa starts the meeting off. “We can’t win like this. If we continue as we have, we’re going to lose this battle. I know all of us want nothing more than to be here and fight for our chance in the spotlight, and I know that it’s difficult and you’re not good dancers, but we can’t give up. I’m afraid that, if we lose this, a lot of us will go home.”

Sunisa holds out her hands. “Come on, let’s all hold hands. I want to ask you why did you become a trainee?”

“I used to do acting,” Taeyoung says. “And I like acting, but one time my mom made me do this kid’s talent show, you know the kind. I really didn’t want to at the time, and I really did not have any talents.” She laughs softly. “I was horrible. But as those spotlights were on me and I looked at this mass of people who were cheering me on, I knew that I wanted to stand on stage again. Even if I’m not very good, I loved it. I wasn’t able to stand on stage during Naekkoya, so I’m really anxious for Wee Woo. It’ll be the first time since that day.”

“Oh, Taeyoung!” Sunisa squeezes her hand.

Lucy is next, after some translations must have occurred. “I wasn’t really in touch with my Korean roots growing up, you know? And sometimes I felt kinda left out, like an other. When I found kpop I was amazing! These people are beautiful and so talented and they look like me! Well not exactly like me, I mean how can I compare myself with the likes of Hana or Hyuna or Shiha. Anyway I saw them and they’re amazing and I wanted to be just like them!”

“What about you, unnie?” Seyoung asked.

“Kpop was really popular where I grew up,” Sunisa gives her own story. “I used to do cover dances and participate in competitions a lot. I used to think a Thai girl can never become a kpop artist, not a big one, but then Lisa debuted in Blackpink and I thought I can do that too! I don’t know if the national producers will want someone from Thailand in the group but I can try and give it my all.”

“I want you in the group!” Taeyoung says immediately.

“If you want me in the group then you’d better work it!” Sunisa says. “Come on, we have to prove that you’re more than Fs, right? Now that we’ve all remembered why we’re doing this, I’m sure we can make it work.”

With renewed confidence and motivation the team throws themselves into practice and Sunisa does her best to help the Fs. But will it be enough?

 Sunisa (Lee Seoyeon / navy stripes), Lucy King (Kim Myongji / yellow shirt), Shin Taerin (Park Somyeong / light pink shirt), Yang Taeyoung (Lee Nakyung / herself with pink shirt), Ren Huiyin (Jo Youngju / white shirt), Jeon Seyoung (Lee Saerom / blue stripes)

“They did well!” Yikwang says with pride. “They really got themselves together, I wasn’t sure if they would!”

Team 2 watched the performance tensely, but as soon as it’s done Yeeun nudged Jiho. “We can beat that,” she says.

“You did it!” Sunisa pulls all of them into a hug the moment they get off-stage. “I’m so proud of you!”

Lucy laughs and covers her eyes with her hands. “Bi ttang nunmul,” she sings.

“You’re damned right!” Taeyoung grins. “It cost blood, sweat, and tears but we did it.”

“Wasn’t that just impressive?” Chanhee asks. “Now we get to see if the opposing team can match that. These girls are performing IOI’s biggest hit: Very Very Very! Let’s see how this week has treated them, shall we?”

The girls are shown sitting on the carpeted steps, trying to decide on the parts.

“Eehm, I don’t really know the song,” Reni admits.

“What?!” Miyoung exclaims. “You don’t know IOI?”

Reni laughs nervously. “I’m mostly an acting trainee,” she says. “I like ballads.”

“I’m originally an acting trainee,” Woo Reni says in her interview. “But I’ve been working hard on my dancing and my singing and I won’t lag behind, I promise!”

“So positions!” leader Jiho gets things on track. “I think center and main vocal are the most important positions. Unnie!” she addresses Yeeun. “You’re the best vocalist in the group so you should probably be main vocal.”

“I want to try being main vocal too,” Miyoung says quickly.

“You can have it,” Yeeun says. “I don’t mind. I can take a sub.”

“Are you sure?” Miyoung asks, surprised a main position is handed away so freely.

“Yeah, take it,” Yeeun waves her way dismissively. “Seriously.”

“Okay, I’ll do a good job,” Miyoung says.

“Sungsook unnie is an amazing singer,” Miyoung says in her solo interview. “So she always takes the main vocal role. I want to prove that I can do it too, that FNC rookies have two main vocals!”

“Do we have any rappers?” Jiho asks. “I can take one rap part if we don’t,” she follows up quickly. “I don’t mind. But we have two parts.”

The girls glance at each other and stay very very quiet. Finally Reni raises a hand. “I can try? I’m good with articulation, that might count for something.”

“We might not be the Avengers team,” Jiho says. “But I think we’re great anyway. They might have visuals, but we have talent!”

And boy do they! During their dance evaluation they’re doing a great job. Only Reni and Sora are struggling a little bit, but Reni makes up for it in excellent facials and Sora at least keeps up. There’s a shot of team 1 watching team 2 with worried expressions, Taerin even swallows nervously.

Yikwang claps when they’re done. “This is how you show up to an evaluation,” he says. “You guys are doing a great job and Reni you were a great pick for center. I can see Reni and Sora struggling now, but I’m sure you’ll manage to get them into shape. I’m sorry I don’t have much to say about this.”

“There are advantage to being a good actress!” Reni says in her solo interview with a little wink. “I’m playing the role of my lifetime.”

Jiho glows as the leader and the best dancer as soon as they’re done.

Unfortunately, the vocal practice doesn’t quite work out so smoothly. Eunha is leaning onto her keyboard looking decided unimpressed while Miyoung is singing her main vocal lines. She sounds thin and shrill. “Why is Miyoung the main vocal?” Eunha asks. “Yeeun is a much better vocalist, why wouldn’t you let her have the position?”

Miyoung looks a little panicked. “She didn’t- I-”

“You give it a try, Yeeun.” Yeeun glances at Miyoung unhappily and sings her part flawlessly, her powerful voice giving dynamic to the notes that Miyoung sorely lacked. “See?” Eunha asks. “I strongly advise you to give the position to the one most suited for it.”

Miyoung looks very awkward when the training session is over, but Yeeun puts a hand on her shoulder. “You’re going to be main vocal,” she says with finality.

“But Eunha-” Miyoung tries to protest.

“But Eunha nothing. You want to be the main vocalist don’t you?” Yeeun asked. “You want to prove yourself?”

Miyoung nods. “I do.”

“Then prove yourself. I’m going to help you.” She grabs some paper and a pencil and sits down next to Miyoung. “Let’s start this super vocalist masterclass!”

Then it’s time for the dress rehearsal. They’re performing on stage in their outfits and Miyoung is about to do her high note. Eunha looks on with eagle eyes but Miyoung does well! The camera even shows Yeeun smiling proudly while dancing.

“Miyoung…” Eunha starts when they’re done. “That was very good, you improved a lot.”

“Thank you!” Miyoung bows deeply.

“Also props to your team where they’re due. You all stood by your decision and helped your struggling member reach her potential. If that’s not teamwork I don’t know what is. Jiho, you’re the leader, aren’t you?”

“I am!” Jiho says. “And I’m really proud of my team, especially unnie and Miyoung who made this work.”

“About Yeeun,” Yoonjung starts and the cheer immediately evaporates. “Where is your energy? You look and sound like you’re bored. This is supposed to be a cute and upbeat song.

“You like him so very very very much!” Yikwang says in an exaggeratedly high voice, batting his eyelashes. “You have zero youthful energy. You’re not that old!” He shakes his head. “You really have to step it up.”

 Takayami Sora (Shiroma Miru / headband), Jang Miyoung (Choi Yena / pigtails w red skirt), Kim Yeeun (Na Goeun / twin buns), Hwang Jiho (Ahn Yujin / pigtails w white skirt), Park Sunmi (Honda Hitomi / ponytail), Woo Reni (loose hair)

“Aah Miyoung did well,” Eunha nods in approval.

“Yeeun still had no energy though,” Yoonjung notes. “Disappointing.”

Both teams join Chanhee on stage for some final vote mongering. “Wow!” Chanhee says. “That’s sure to be a close call! How do you feel about the performance, Lucy?” Chanhee asks.

Lucy seems to think for a moment. “Oh! Simkoonghae!” She does the Heart Attack point dance, hand under the s and two heartbeats, nailed it!

Chanhee facepalms and cracks up. “I can’t handle this team. Okay, okay. Jiho, are you confident in your performance?”

“We did the best we could and I think the best is pretty great, how about you?” Jiho asks the audience and gets cheers back. “That’s what I thought!”

“Alright, time for you to go backstage,” Chanhee says. “And time for the audience to decide your fates!”

Next week on Produce 99:

First there is the IOI teams waiting for their results, with a shot of Reni gasping and Lucy crying. Then there’s Jeongha sitting alone on the practice room floor, face in hands looking devastated. There’s Hwari getting chastised by Yikwang for looking rehearsed. There’s Gaeul all dolled up in her stage outfit wiping tears from her eyes. There’s Hyemi looking stunning on stage. There’s Mosu gasping and clutching Midori in shock and finally there’s Kayeon storming out of a room.

Tune in next week!