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Kingdom Ep. 9 (Patreon)

Published:
2021-06-11 23:12:52
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

I need to preface: The team I personally ranked last is ONLY because they didn't do the assignment. I've seen some comments after the fact and people are praising this team for their "limited" performance or because people expected something big and grand, it's a "twist" and that's what makes it the best performance.

I personally largely disagree but please note that on a personal level I think the performance was awesome and in any other round it would have ranked high but not here. But if you loved it and thought it was the best; that's all that matters!

Just had to clarify this as I don't want anyone to wrongfully misconstrue my criticism as saying it was a bad performance.

...

For more Kingdom content check out the Master List here.

To check out the entire Master List from other groups go here.

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Comments

Court V

My ranking would be Ateez SKZ SF9 BtoB Ikon The boyz I can see why some of the rankings may be that way such as I get some things can be confusing for ateez's storyline, but I think their unique stage and grandiose of it def deserved first place. The boyz I agree with too because their stage I just thought was boring

krista li

Unfortunately unable to see this episode (and your reaction to SF9). However when I watched this for the first time I saw their performance and was like THIS IS IT

Nana

can u upload this again pls???

Uzma Sirguroh

oh the video dosne't exist anymore for me

Luana Paes

Hey, just re-joined for Kingdom & Ateez content...is it possible to re-upload or make alternate links available please?

Anonymous

FINALLY I CANT WAIT FOR UR REACTIODFNSGD

Sakura

Whenever you're sad just remember ATEEZ was already in Madrid for the concert that started the European tour and a bitch was going to attend when they had to go back to Korea because of corona. It's me, I'm that bitch. I'm in Spain with and without the S.

minha

why do i love your faces during sf9s performance so much xDDD i'm a big fan of this kind of sexiness, i think this will forever be the sexiest kpop performance for me and mind you, i'm not a fantasy

kim

i agree with u! i feel like they could’ve done something more grand and unique/creative as the theme was “no limit” + it’s the last round before the finals so yeah i get it. their stage was not bad at all, but it unfortunately fell a bit short of my expectations and compared to what the other groups brought to the table. everyone’s opinions are allowed to be different so i hope no one gets hurt or offended in any way because of your ranking – it’s just a matter of personal preference!

Sakura

As PDnim mentioned the last episode the mentoring role of Eunkwang, I think TVXQ Yunho and Changmin were supposed to have a mentoring role too, but due to Yunho departure, it was not possible. As it's shown in SF9 segment, we see Yunho when Chani as "he told me" (not showing his face and even avoiding his name sounsd pretty disrespectful to me when he's actually a kpop legend, dear msnake). I don't know if the mentoring was supposed to be private and petit comité as it seems for the images but I wished TVXQ role in Kingdom was bigger and I wish we had seen some advice to the groups form them. ALSO, PDnim said before SM may have some agreement to "endorse" their songs in Kingdom. I also agree since is highly suspicious that every time they choose a SM song there is no discussions between members or second choices. SF9 is like "we are sexy, lets do move" and everyone agrees, same with IT'S ONE Spark, they say "it suits our team" when mayfly proposed MAMA before Love Poem. Same with EXO Monster and Wolf, they "suit the concept" all of sudden. As an EXO-L, gurl, I am living but THAT'S SUS.

Sandy Cai

Interesting, I honestly had the same reaction on the staging and creativity. That it lacked compared to all of their previous performances. I also felt that there were just a lot of dancing overall. Well thats just how I felt after watching the performance.

Form of Therapy
>>61704133

I’m 90% positive it was probably in some deal that SM songs had to be covered. I get it. SM has no groups getting promo from this and no offense but it’s not like TVXQ needs the boost from Kingdom either. Mnet had more to gain from this so SM had to get something more out of it. I also think TVXQ had a larger role in the show. Given how slow and not as fun the show was to watch in the first half, I think they cut out a lot of segments involving TVXQ. I think in episode 1 or 2? Weren’t there segments with TVXQ where they were in a room filming stuff? Suddenly after Yunho leaving there’s no pre filmed content. I think this is why the first few episodes felt like a drag because they lost a chunk of content and had to put in a lot of filler.

Sakura

I just wanna point out the fact that when Vocal Legend Choi Jongho throws away the kingdom's crown like the badass apple splitter he is, the stage transforms into a giant forge and the bridges that come down carry melted iron and the ATEEZ crown logo is made on the ground during the Ode to Joy dance break, symbolizing that they already have their own crown. REAL KING BEHAVIOR ME THINKS.

Samantha

I do love when there's a movie length PD reaction (or 2!) for my weekend! ^_^ But here we are with another (and nearly the final!) essay length review of this episode's groups + my personal ranking for this round. ******One thing before we begin is that I am so so so happy for all of these groups in the way that they all are starting to come around to the feeling of 'rankings don't really matter, what we feel as performers putting this piece on stage is what matters most.' I've been really worried for all of these groups that they'd start to get discouraged or even depressed with what all is going on in this show (bc let's face it, so far no one has had even the hint of a smooth ride this series started months ago). But now the fact that everyone is like 'this stage is for us, how we personally feel as creators and performers, and our fans, not really for rankings or trophies.' Just makes me all warm and happy inside for all of these severely talented men! ^_^ Here we go with this episode's performances: BtoB: I love that they went with a musical/film concept!!! It worked so well for this song choice along with their characters within this stage. However, I felt like we were missing a crescendo of the song and performance for a Kingdom stage. There was definitely a normal crescendo of the song, the one that already exists in the og version but this is a Kingdom stage. I think that just by adding maybe a more energetic jazz (or even tap!!!) dance break for more of a finale feeling could have just pushed this stage to be stronger and better. That being said, the storytelling, acting, and staging of this stage was fantastic!!! (Not to mention that we all know that the story of the the partner only being able to watch the person they love from the outside is defs something that all these idols along with their so's have delt with :(((( ) Truly I felt like there was a solid amount of collaboration between BtoB and their camera director. Also, this particular song and staging allowed for the cuts of the reactions to not really take away from the performance itself. I think that this song has good moments of rest and with the changing of the set and storyline it fit really well into the show. Overall I'd give this one an 8.5/10. (ngl would've been a 9/10 if they'd let them kiss!!!!!! ) Ateez: okay, honestly I'm ready to fight their camera director for a few of the shots in this performance bc honestly I feel like the bad camera directing was what took away some of the grandeur of this performance. But nonetheless, this stage was incredible ! ! ! ! Answer is my personal fave ateez title track so the second that I heard that they were going to perform it here my hopes were super high. However, this arrangement left something to be desired for me personally this time. The Ode to Joy wasn't a seamlessly threaded in like the choir parts from their MAMA version or when they added the classical piece into their Wonderland stage. I just felt like it was slightly off in terms of flowing smoothly. That being said, this stage was GORGEOUS! In what you were looking for in terms of wording for how they went "No Limited" I'd say they went No Limit in terms of a grandiose way. It was classical, epic, kpop, and theatrical all put into one. And then on top of it all they put their story front and center for this stage along with the fan favorite song. Truly this was a stage for Atiny (just like San said!) and honestly it wasn't all that shocking to me when the rankings were announced. I felt like this was going to be a stage that really only the fandom and those familiar with the Ateez lore (lmaoooooo) were really going to love. Yes, I can tell ppl liked it but fully loving it I think you really needed to be into Ateez beforehand. Overall I give my favorite lads a solid 9/10 for this one! SF9: oh boy oh man oh boy oh mEN ! ! ! This performance has me all kinds of shooketh for this one. (Also, happy pride from SF9 orrrrr ???? 🤣😂) First off before I get too thirsty in my breakdown of this stage, the message of not being a product but instead being a person; Y E S. Oh my god I was feeling the song and the dance for sure but the message of not just being the same or a robot made for others' consumption is just *chefs kiss*. Especially with SF9, we do get caught up in their gorgeous looks but it's always so important to remember that with these men and with idols as a whole that they are people before they are something to be consumed by buyers. I was super happy that they went with this message along with the set for this stage being a direct reflection of that message. Overall, the story telling and staging for this round was easily SF9's best so far. Now on to the thirst; sirs if u'd just let me take a quick ride I swear we can all be pleased with the outcome 😳🤪 lmaoooooooo!!!!! Okay, I'm done I swear!!!! (But these costumes were stunning, can I get their designer to get me some looks just like this pls???????!!!) Overall I've gotta give them a 9.5/10, they really sold both their own uniqueness as a gorgeous group of talented men along with a message that I think kpop and kpop fans really need to look, listen, and really hear. **** and the fact that Move never won a music show is just a crime tbh The Boyz: full disclosure, Monster is my second fave EXO title track ever (tempo is still the queen for me lol). So for this stage I had a lot of expectations, especially since tbz do such a great job with reimagining cover stages. I gotta be honest tho, the arrangement on the first chorus really does not do it for me. I feel like it took away the intensity that the og song really had in that moment. Also, they really did not need all the backup dancers for this round. I felt like the crowd on stage was waaaaaay too distracting for this late in the game. Just let the 10 of them fill in the space themselves with maybe a few backup dancers to fill in gaps on camera. I do have to say, the only thing I fully remember from this stage is the rap section because DAMN it was incredible. I really don't think this was their best stage tho and I would definitely agree with them not really doing the theme this round. Overall I give this one 7.5/10. It just wasn't my thing FINAL PERSONAL RANKINGS FOR THIS ROUND: 1. Ateez 2. SF9/Stray Kids 3. Btob 4. iKon 5. The Boyz Always find it so entertaining to see how differently I rank vs you PD ^_^ It makes me compare my thought process to both you and everyone here in the comments, I love it! Can't wait for the finale !!! By the end of all of this all I can say is that all 6 of these groups have really put their all into this and I'm so incredibly proud of all of them!

Anonymous

1. SF9 2. Btob 3. Stray kids 4. Ateez 5. Ikon 6. The boyz I think I definitely agree with what you mentioned about The boyz’ performance, it didn’t amaze me that much compared to the other teams. When it ended I was like “OH it ended?” because I was expecting something more. As for SF9 and Btob I just loved how they didn’t go for the usual intense and big kind of performances, it’s really like a breath of fresh air and truly showed their colors. But I think overall all the teams did really well for this round and it was hard to rank them

Kayla

As much as I loved Ateez's performance, I do understand why they ranked last. I think overall it would more impactful for people who are actually fans of them or are somewhat familiar with the storyline they have running through their MVs. But I'm sure Ateez knew that going in, since they expressed how performing Answer was primarily for all the Atinys who have been supporting them on this journey. Their Wonderland performance is probably more along the lines of what people expected from them in terms of scale, plus the pirate theme of it was a much easier concept to follow than things like the Masked Man and Halateez and all the time travel stuff. Honestly they most likely would've ranked higher if they did that performance this round instead, but I agree that the last portion of Answer with the fight sequence was one of their best yet so I wouldn't change anything.

Barbara
>>61702979

lol are you me? Because I was also ready for it and boom lockdown.

Holly

I do have to agree with u as a deobi. on a personal, very biased level, it’s one of my favorite performances from them on kingdom! having been a fan through RTK as well, i can tell that they’re legit tired of this show and just want to do whatever. i’m so proud of them for pulling through as they’re also prepping for a comeback at the same time too, and two members are actually injured! however objectively i do think this performance fell rly short. it reminds me a lot of TO1 and Verivery’s On performance from RTK- even the costumes were similar. i think for both of those, the fancy dark costumes and intricate background actually made the large group synchronization look less put together than they were. i was also a bit confused at the projector part- like i don’t really get the point of that part, it looked cool when it first appeared but then there was like 10 seconds of them dancing in like pitch black lol. i do also wish they did more with the snake. sunwoo coming out of the mouth was sooo cool but then the snake was just there in the background? when it started turning around i thought something cool was gonna happen but then it just ended. :( i think they had a bunch of really cool ideas but unfortunately i don’t think any of them really had the impact they wanted. nevertheless i’m soo proud of them for trying their best these past 1.5 years! they’re having a comeback soon too and two of the members are even injured :( i hope now that the show’s over they can get some proper rest!

Barbara

This show has made a full SF9 fan, like I fell hard in the rabbit hole. This men are just too much, no, but seriously, when I saw they were doing Move, THE Move, I was a bit worried because that song is iconic and the dance is just Taemin being Taemin, everyone knows the dance killing points and I though it was a risky choice but I’m glad I was wrong, because they killed it. For the rest, I have to say BTOB and Stray Kids were the ones that I liked the most so as you said, I’m happy with the first three places of the final ranking. For the bottom three I will have to put iKon, Ateez and The Boyz last, I loved their dance performance but overall it fell flat for me, same for ateez on some parts, maybe it’s because I’m used of seeing these two groups giving jaw dropping performances and I maybe was expecting something more.

Aurora

I think Ateez performance was awesome especially the last part it’s so unique they absolutely deserve to be on top 3

BaoziBang

BTW, Chani flexing that he has Taemin's Number is just peak SF9. They always randomly start to talk about a super famous person they just happen to know 🤣

nins

Just to let everyone know, SF9's version of Move is actually on Spotify so you can listen to it there!

Anonymous

Personally this is how I felt when I first watched this episode 1. SKZ 2. BTOB 3. ATEEZ 4. SF9 5. iKON 6. TBZ Funny thing is, I’m currently going through an ateez phase so you’d expect my initial reaction to be omg ateez first!! But I did not realize how much I actually liked that stage until I watched your reaction oh my god it is one if not the most emotional stage on kingdom and I may or may not have teared up during the 2nd half…. Now im conflicted on where I should put it in my ranking LMAO omg kingdom made me realize how ateez is genuinely my ideal group SKZ reallyyy outdid themselves here… a lot of people might not agree but their first 2 performances fell a bit flat for me. Even though I LOVE those dark edgy stuff imo they suit a fun kinda delinquent-y concept wayyy better and this stage was exactly that. THIS is stray kids and I’m very glad they showed us that BTOB… I was JUST talking about nobody’s done a proper musical stage AND THEN THEY DELIVERED. Well im ngl I expected them to LMAO cuz well I’m a big BTOB fan and this is just something that fits them perfectly. Insane vocals + having fun on stage + nation’s bf peniel that’s why everyone loves BTOB and that’s why this stage is one of the best in kingdom SF9 AHHHHH guys I’ve been watching them since debut and it makes me so happy/sad seeing how they grew up omg they used to be sooo cute and now they’re… men. As a fan I’m glad they got first and it feels so nice that they finally got recognized as performers. They managed to pull off Move which is a feat in itself and they did it perfectly! iKON I still have to give it to them for keeping it very iKON but finally giving us that high-scale performance. Personally it’s clear to me that iKON’s just here to have a good time and do what they’ve always done which is fine to me, they don’t have to prove anyone anything and as long as they’re having fun that’s what matters. Despite that this performance was definitely their best it’s just that the other groups have a different mindset which shows TBZ man… I feel really bad for them I genuinely do. Like I agree that they criticism for the first round was actually ridiculous. Personally they were 2nd best the song + performance + just the overall mood they managed to pull off was amazing. But then… maybe it might’ve also been because of the mistake in the 2nd round but yeah it feels like they lost the plot. I genuinely don’t understand why they decided to do such a basic performance for this round. I don’t get how they were ranked that high despite that… because they went last? Actually something I don’t understand is why weren’t the groups who got first allowed to pick the order for the next round? Because SKZ did it after they won the intro so why wasn’t ATEEZ allowed to pick for 2nd when they’ve been doing that in the other programs too? Ngl I feel like if the orders were just switched the round 3 rankings would’ve been much different. It’s a bit disappointing but it is what it is

Kiwi Space

1. Stray Kids : They stole the cake with a cherry on top and I loved every second of it! They changed the song enough to say "Yes, this is Stray Kids " but still kept the iconic parts of the song so everyone can still enjoy and follow along! Best cover/remix I've heard in a competition show in like FOREVER! 2. SF9/ BtoB : Honestly both performances showed each group in their own element! Their performance showed their strengths and who they really are as a group. I couldn't decide on who to pick and both ended up as my top 2. 3. Ateez: As an Atiny, I've never been prouder of a group who loves their fans this much. This grand performance will hold a special place in my heart. This version of Answer should be on Spotify or used a sound track because it is THAT good! 4. The Boyz: Monster wasn't bad, but I enjoyed No Air and the O Sole Mio performances better. Their arrangement of those songs and the elegant grandness of it, to me is what represents the Boyz and best suit them. To me Monster was like a step down, not up. 5. iKon: Gawd! I love my goofy babies but this performance fell very short to me. Maybe because of the Lisa hype, but this felt like a regular Blackpink track...featuring iKon. Even though I was expecting more, I'm still happy that iKon did what ikon does best.

Giu Bressani

I didn't finish it yet, but just stopping it to say that Move Yoo Taeyang has been on my mind 24/7 for the past month and I don't think I'm getting over him anytime soon

Gracie828

For me it was: 1. SF9 (that performance KILLED me), 2. Stray Kids (by far my favorite performance from them so far on Kingdom), 3 and 4. Ateez and the Boyz (I loved each performance, but there were also moments in each performance that fell flat for me) 5. BtoB (I think this is just a personal preference thing. For me it wasn't as strong as some of their other performances and didn't really keep my attention) 6. iKON (I really enjoyed the performance, except for Lisa's feature. I agree they didn't utilize her well. I honestly thought her part was more distracting than anything. I think it would have been better either without her or if she had actually interacted with the members during more of the performance).

Betânia Camille Backes

This was one of the hardest round to chose between groups, I think they all gave very strong performances! And, yes, first place is a tie, I couldn't choose! 1. Stray Kids: I did a whole dissertation in the comments section last week lmao. It was the most Stray Kids performance on kingdom, if it makes sense. Absolutely great. 1. SF9: It was jaw-dropping from beginning to end. I loved how, much similar to SKZ, the performance was 100% their own. They took their essence and used it to create a concept that was so creative and flawless. 3. BTOB: It was captivating and engaging. I loved the plot twist, and I really enjoyed Miyeon's participation, it really felt like she belonged in the performance, which was a problem that I pointed in iKON's performance last week. 4. iKON: I said a lot about it last week. Basically, I enjoyed their version of the song better than the original one, but Lisa's part seemed a lot out of place. 5. Ateez: In a lot of ways, this performance reminds me of SKZ's performance of God's Menu + Side Effects. The storyline was confusing, and I had to watch it multiple times to get it, since I am not a hardcore fan. I get that this was their intention, but it still made the performance confusing for me. I also did not like the new version of the song that much, and although the ending was great, I was not a fan of Jongho's high note. Ateez placed first in all my previous rankings, but this time I had a lot of things that I didn't like, and although it hurts my heart, I completely understand why they placed last. 6. The Boyz: It was their weakest performance so far. I dare to say that if they did this performance in some RTK rounds, they wouldn't have won back then. They did some of my favorite performances ever, but this one just felt very much like a regular music show performance.

Joey Cheung

personally, i believe the boyz performance would've been soooo much better if they went with different camera angles, and had some better lighting. I originally was going to place the boyz lower on my list too however watching the full performance after it I did end up liking it a lot more than i thought I would. My personal rankings for this round is 1. sf9/ikon 2- the boyz 3. ateez 4.stray kids 5. btob

Brianna

I haven’t even watched your reaction yet but I know what group your talking about. It was a great performance but it felt like we’ve already seen it, I personally didn’t feel like they added anything new to this performance. With that said I think each group did so well I honestly couldn’t put them into a ranking. My top 3 would be straykids, BTOB and sf9. Ikon I thought could have incorporated Lisa better and Ateez I feel made a special performance for their fans and as an Atiny I appreciated it. As a kingdom stage the storyline was probably confusing for the judges resulting in them ranking low but I feel they knew that would happen and didn’t really care 😂

GAMINHA

1. BTOB 2. Ateez & Stray Kids 4. SF9 5. IKON 6. The Boyz BTOB is really stand out for me coz every time what they did was so different from the others and I have a very high standard for vocals. Their stage was easy to understand and they made me feel they were so relaxing and effortless which I can just enjoy the show without worrying about they may get injured or voice crack. ATZ, SKZ & TBZ were amazing performers and always put up unexpected elements in their shows however I kinda tired for stages from them coz they were complicated and the music was always being chopped. I love IKON and they also did what IKON did, but not what Mnet wants..lol The featuring part was kinda weird, seemed like inserting a totally different thing into the performance, there were no interaction between IKON and Lisa so that is why I dun like it. I dun know how to talk about SF9... there are nothing to say about the music arrangement, no big different from the original song, and the AR is too large I dunno if they had sung. The performance to me was like a dance competition, and I dun like the ending scene for sure coz dunno what is the meaning. No hate. I still enjoy it coz the stage is smooth and the costume and set are great.

Phani

Allegedly the producer of kingdom got fired after the finale and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was because of the previews spoiling performances and confusing system that they came up with that made the show less interesting to watch

jiminycricket

I loved all the performances and pretty much agreed with much of PD’s notes. All I can say is for SF9 is RAIN ROOM Y NO DANCE?! I have a feeling it maybe a time restraint or maybe a sensory overload lol or it maybe too close to the original but stilllllll

BaoziBang

For The Boyz, if they had done a performance like monster in the first round and a stage like No Air in this Round I would probably have liked the stages a lot more.

Caitlin

SF9 TOTALLY DESERVED THAT 1ST PLACE! I’m so proud of them - I’ve just enjoyed watching all the groups on this show 💕

SanjA1800

I have to agree about The Boyz performance. It was underwhelming especially since that was the last performance of the round and the last performance before we go to the finale. Also not to jump onto the mnet bandwagon but I wonder how much they control the narrative during the shows. Like the whole The Boyz are losing their confidence Can they beat their RTK performances blah blah blah. That judges comment after the first round was unnecessary. I'm sure The Boyz feel the pressure but I also feel like mnet was trying to up the drama. Or maybe it's just me? Anyway its sad because The Boyz really set the standard for the show early on. And then there are other things like the suspicious SM song selections, the unnecessary previews (did anyone else think something had gone wrong again during The Boyz performance after they showed a clip of Sangyeon crying during the preview?), and the ranking system is sooo convoluted I stopped paying attention to it after round 2. Seriously Mnet what were you doing?

Tony Nguyen
>>61709846

Doesn't look like it. He just recently gave an interview where he said his team will be in charge of producing Kingdom Week for the winner.

PiscesGroove

Lol I guess I’m a bit biased because Answer is literally my favorite title tracks of all time & I have never heard of any song even coming close to giving me the emotional feeling that Answer does. So with that being said I would rank it in the top three (I get chills anytime they perform it) but I do understand why people felt the performance was underwhelming compared to others.

Tesa
>>61710522

i was 100% sure they we going to dance in the rain, i got so excited and then when it didn't happen it was such a let down :( still an amazing performance ofc, but why prolong it and get my hopes up for nothing lol

Giu Bressani

I totally understand why Ateez would be ranked last this week even if they are my favorites in the show (and in life). When I first watched the performance without their explanation I found it extremely confusing even if I could get all the references to their past MVs and performances. I also fell the stage a bit cramped and hectic by the end and i'm not a huge fan of when there's "too much" on a stage. I grew to love the performance after watching it many times, but in the end I totally get why they ranked so low

Anonymous

I don't know if I have a ranking of my own but I know I was shocked that Ateez was at the bottom Ikon: The previews did them dirty. I think had they not shown Lisa previously her reveal would hav been a lot more impactful. Would have loved for them to actually interact on stage though. Stray Kids: Honestly didn't really like it the first time I watched it but really appreciated it the 2nd time around. I'm glad they were able to show off a more playful side to themselves. Felix is an enigma to me my brain will never piece together how that face, voice and body are all 1 person. Btob: Man I've fallen so hard for them during this competition. Another group done dirty by spoiler reveals. Loved the use of a live band. I would like to say this is my fav performance from them but there's a lesser evolved part of my brain that still favors Back Door.....for reasons. Ateez: Imo I like their take on No Limit the best. While other groups put the emphasis on no limit on terms of production Ateez pushed the boundaries on the box people typically put Kpop in. When La Poem joined them I had chills and Jongho adding his voice to there's really showed just how good of a singer he really is. SF9: I think I'm in the minority on this one but the performance fell flat for me. Don't get me wrong it's a good performance but I feel like it could have easily been put in either of the previous rounds . Now had they actually did some of the dancing in the rain as opposed to just posing in it that would have been a different story. Idk why but I'm weak for people dancing in water lol. The Boyz: I like it but it also kinda missed the mark for me. I wasn't a fan of them dancing in front of the screen when it was really dark and I think the snake could have been more impactful. I would have liked to see it moving around or something while the boys were dancing in front of it as opposed to just laying there for the rest of the performance.

Anastasija

I pretty much agree with everything you said P.D. in terms of the ranking. Although I appreciate Tbz amazing knife cut choreography, the performance as a whole was arguably their weakest and considering the round was called NO LIMIT I found it quite ironic. I’m not good with rankings but if I had to give a rank it would probably be 1.Skz 2. Sf9/Btob 3. Atz 4. Ikon/Tbz Tbh my ranking changes slightly depending on my mood so Sf9/Btob/Atz are interchangeable as 2nd 3rd 4th I thought they were amazing but all three were extremely different so I can’t decide which I ultimately liked better. However Skz is definitely number one in this round for me without a doubt. As for Ikon I just thought their use of Lisa felt a bit shallow like they put her there for shock value but it didn’t pay off because the audience already knew about it?? And I felt they could’ve utilised her way more, it would’ve been way more impactful if she had actually interacted with the ikon members on stage and maybe changed up her rap a bit but that’s just my opinion.

Doyoungismyult
>>61709685

I’m very confused by your sf9 music arrangement comment. It sounded nothing like move did originally…they added rap, a dance break, and the song sounded like it could be there own

Di

My personal rankings: 1. SKZ - The more I watch this performance, the more I enjoy it. 2. SF9 - Honestly, SF9 have improved so much during Kingdom. There were so many parts of this performance that I just love 3. BTOB - Loved the storyline and the vocals, could be interchanged with Sf9 but I placed them 3rd since I preferred SF9's song choice 4. ATEEZ - I loved the grandiose feeling towards the end but the first half felt very confusing. 5. IKON - The integration of Lisa into their performance wasn't as good as it could've been. 6. TBZ - I'd have to agree with your comments about TBZ's performance in this round. I think the performance was great but it didn't necessarily meet the No Limit theme. While I like Monster as a song, but the TBZ didn't really change it in a way that really showed TBZ uniqueness as a group. This honestly could've been anyone else's performance

希文 王

my ranking is the same as you, PD. TBZ felt like a year end award show performance, the dance was cool, but it wasn't awesome in the way most of the other groups were

Alex Lee

"No limit" round for me means more about limits of group itself. Every group on kingdom has its own limits which reflected on their style, genre, concept, etc. And that's why for my overthinking ass the boyz is actually one of few groups that did assignment. And did it perfectly. All of their previous performances have that sense/flavor of elegance, grace, nobleness despite different concepts. While "monster stormborn" is different from what they usually do. It's tough, rough performance which shows power, anger. And it also fully focused on dance aspect which is also not usual for the boyz on kingdom (their previous performances focused more on storyline combined with dance and vocals). So I'm glad to see this kind of performance from tbz. And I love it so much. Aside from powerful choreo wanna highlight New's vocals (as usual a fan I am) but more Haknyeon's ones. His voice really shines in this stage. The only things I really dislike in this performance are camerawork and lighting. But overall did I pay any attention to this assignment? Not at all. Once again really enjoyed round 3. All performances were sooo good. So fck rankings except sf9. THEY HAD NO BUSINESS BEING SO COOL, SEXY AND ATTRACTIVE. So n1 is sf9 no matter what.

M.C.

This round was called "No Limits", but I really felt the limits other than Stray Kids and Ateez. It's interesting how they paired the groups too with the two who did BlackPink going first, then the two who did songs for their fans, then the two who did SM male artist. It made me compare more. Ikon- This just felt like they sung Pretty Savage and changed some of the words. Outside the team round, I feel like I've seen the same side of Ikon every time (except maybe love scenario). I feel like Lisa's reveal was the best part, but her utilization was underwhelming. This performance reminded me of the Inception one, but I really liked that one and they changed up the song there. The song here lacked punch like the original has. Their ending is getting repetitive at this point too, I love Ikon's group endings, but it's with every performance here. Stray Kids- They also did a BlackPink song, but I liked theirs more. I like that their interpretation of no limits was breaking the 4th wall. This was probably my favorite performance, although I do wish it had more comedic elements. Minho really stood out here. BTOB- This was very BTOB. I didn't know how Eunkwang and Peniel fit into the storyline within the production itself unless they were like narrators. This felt similar to the Stray Kids performance in the sense that it went outside the performance itself. This wasn't my favorite performance and I wanted BTOB to do more with it, but it was still enjoyable Ateez- The performance felt very chaotic and hard to follow, probably especially for non-atiny. I think they understood the "No Limits" description the best, because the end just feels so epic like some sort of Greek tragedy. Them traveling through time and working with their masked selves as well as fighting the masked men felt epic. I didn't like the arrangement, but Answer also isn't my favorite song although I do think it's epic on it's own. The pauses in the song where they do something else pulled me out. The ending with La Poem singing Ode to Joy overtop was really powerful and showcased the tragedy and chaos of it all. The lighting with the fire was really beautiful as well. SF9- I felt the best parts were when Taeyang took center and they were dancing, because otherwise there wasn't much of it. The EDM section was definitely not needed, they did it with the stealer too and I don't know why. The transitions with the screen were awesome. I don't think Chani's opening needed any words at all. Visually this was the most appealing stage and they tried a lot of things from the moving runway to the red bathed set Zuho was on, I noticed the 2nd time through that the "mannequin women" had little patches of color on them in the background of Inseong's part. The incorporation of color as a whole was really well done and I didn't notice just how much until you pointed it out. Also I can't be the only one who was disappointed that they didn't dance in the rain, the ending fell flat because of that The Boyz- This felt like an average Kingdom stage. I feel like The Boyz haven't surpassed their RtK stages with any of the ones here. The arrangement wasn't my favorite, but I felt the vocalist did well, especially Hyunjae. I liked the part at the beginning where Eric and Q slid under the structure and it pans up and Juyeon, Hyunjae and Sunwoo are on top. I think the screen dance part was an interesting idea, but it got too dark at point. I think it was meant to emulate EXO's planet, but I wish it was more like that one video TXT did where it looked like they were interacting with the backgrounds and each other, or a shadow show like they did with Shangri-la. The snake was underwhelming and it was easy to tell that one of the members would pop out of it. It reminded me of Ateez's Kraken tentacle, but it lacked impact, probably because the Kraken seemed larger because of it only being a part of it. The snake also didn't have any significant roll although I did like how Sunwoo came out of it and Eric was on top of it. The ending was disappointing because it felt somehow unfinished to me? They turned the snake around on screen, but nothing came of it

Tyisha

For me, I really liked SF9 and Ateez. They were my favorite performances of this episode. I felt like SF9 really brought it. Well Taeyong really shined for me. He knew what he needed to do and brought it. He was really eye-catching. I also really liked Ateez's performance. I saw so many things from their other stages and also from other M/V's. Now the performances I didn't really care for were BTOB and The Boyz. I thought The Boyz didn't really bring the energy that the song needed. I also felt like the snake was really unnecessary. It didn't bring anything to the performance. They didn't even fake fight the "monster". BTOB also could have done more. Miyeon could have sung a few lines and harmonized with them. I thought that would have brought more into the performance.

Anonymous

My personal ranking is : 1- BTOB 2- SF9 3- Stray kids 4- Ateez/Ikon 6- The Boyz My reasons for that ranking is that i'm biased as a Melody and Blue Moon has always been that song that shows off so perfectly the entirety of BTOB for me. It has emotions, it has grandiose vocals, it has humor in it (Peniel's "solo" piano is usually done by Sungjae and kind of a private joke with the fandom), it's impossible to get tired of it, it has amazing rap verses both in terms of flow and lyrics and I can't think of another group doing it but BTOB. And the way Minhyuk rearranged it, it's as good as his original for 7 yet it still feel new for 4. It's as fulfilling for your ears as it is for your eyes. It's fascinating both visually as well as musically. And Changsub being himself (funny and vocally incredible) without Mnet cutting him out because they don't like him clearly, was a huge plus. Absolute top winner for me. For sf9, I absolutely adored their sort of dystopian/scifi concept and holy moly that cold rain shower was very needed after watching it. I loved how they changed the song and the choreography, it's very different from the original yet you can still recognize it but they made it theirs. I was a bit confused by the ending which is why they get second place for me, but it's a high class treat for eyes and ears. (kinda want a collab stage with taemin and taeyang) 3rd stray kids because it was a great performance and smart but i just preferred btob and sf9. 4th ateez and ikon. Ikon i have the same criticism as everyone, i wish it was a real collab with lisa. You could very easily cut out her part and you wouldn't notice it in the song. As always with Ikon it was so much fun to watch and they're such amazing performers. For ateez i loved the last part in particular where it goes really grandiose (and special HOLY MOLY to jongho's final high note in the middle of the amazing opera vocals) and i don't really mind performance i don't "fully" understand because sometimes just the vibes are good. But i do regret the whole concept to be a bit blurry. lastly the Boyz for the same reasons as PD. And personally i didn't like how they rearranged the song

Nanathathalielie

Just FYI the singers in the Ateez performance were actually singing in german not Latin 😉

Emi R.

Ateez was first for me. I literally cried watching that performance. Answer is my favorite title track by a long shot and I love how they mixed it with Ode to Joy. It had a tragic feeling to the epic-ness that hit me right in the feels and the building progression throughout the song was so satisfying when they ended with the cool toned white lights and close up of Hongjoong. Everyone else had great performances as well but I kind of hate that this round was themed “no limit”. Because honestly not one group’s performance besides maaaybee Ateez(and I think their performance strength was the emotion with Atiny aka would fall flat for others) completely hit it all the way out of the park for me. It’s probably a combination of personal preference and that everyone has been going hard from the beginning so there wasn’t a lot of room for growth. Am I the only one that feels that round 2 was more of an overall “no limit” feeling from all the groups than round 3? Maybe because they had to focus on 2 sub rounds, original song release for final and everyone in general was reaching that burnout stage? My favorite performance from each group is still solidly in the first half of the show 😬

KPOP Stan Sara

While ATEEZ was my first for me, since they are one of my ult groups and it really spoke to me. I could see why they did not rate highly. I have watched this performance so many times and cry every single damn time. It really hits an emotional note for me and that's because of the preview we saw and how much ATEEZ said this performance was for us. Jongho threw the crown symbolizing it's not about winning - it's about performing for Atiny. That was my interpretation. Also this performance taught us the characters dressed like Hala Hala (Halateez or w/e they're called) aren't bad...and the guy in white with the mask IS bad. Big reveals for me lol I was overwhelmed with information and then emotions. Rankings? I feel like my top groups were ATEEZ (1st and completely biased sadly), BtoB, SF9 (I'd tie them second). I adored all three of those performance. I find myself watching them over and over still. While I enjoyed the other performance I'd have put Stray Kids 4th, iKon 5th, and The Boyz 6th.

Kpop_Platypus

I can't argue with fans & sentimentality, but I admit I was a little disappointed that BtoB & Ateez chose to do their own songs - straight up, that is; SKZ at least did a partial cover w/ their mashup.  I wanted to see a bigger variety of covers & how they'd adapt them like we did in RTK. 🤷‍♀️ That said, I enjoyed Blue Moon.  I liked the storyline & the arrangement of the song.  The staging was also well done, even if I have major personal ISSUES with the movie that inspired it. I think maybe Ateez's performance had too much fan service to hold any appeal for me (who's not a fan) & I don't think the opera section added anything.  It was also literally the opposite of what I've been looking for from them in terms of stepping out of their comfort zone & trying something new.  Answer was definitely my least favorite of their stages so far. Poor Chani was riding the struggle bus for this one.  No wonder he had to relieve some stress by teasing Dawon. 😄  He did a great job, though.  They all did.  That performance was gorgeous & an excellent reimagining of Move in their own style (though I think the dance break was unnecessary).  PD's stank face on second watch, though! I'll agree that TBZ didn't really follow the prompt of "No Limit[s]," but, as Q pointed out, they've never set limits for themselves no matter the theme, so they've already shown all the crazy stuff & in order to show something different they had to do something that was different for them, which is why I'm willing to give them higher points than some of the flashier groups.  I enjoyed the narrower focus of this stage, maybe because I'm a dance junkie & that was a CLEAN performance. 👌  To address PD's comments about them not seeming competitive anymore, I was never really in it to win it during my decade as a member of forensics (speech) teams.  I did it for the camaraderie, experience, & learning - and that's absolutely fine. I'll watch the finale reactions tomorrow & see what PD's got to say about those performances & the show as a whole!

Kei G

My ranking ended up being: 1. SF9 2. SKZ 3. BTOB 4. The Boyz 5. Ateez 6. Ikon Sf9- They KILLED this. The arrangement and the choreo were both excellent; both held a lot of the original but changed noticably in GREAT WAYS. The arrangement was lovely and I actually really loved the rap break. I was surprised they decided to change the choreo, as Taemins original was so famous for the smooth subtle choreo, but I loved the new vers. It was sexy, sultry, and very interesting musicalitywise but still held callbacks to the original, so props to them. I LOVELOVELOVE when they drop in that last chorus and the colored confetti drops, it's such a visual. Sf9 really have come a longgggg way and it's cool to see. Skz- this was just bomb all around as well. The concept was cute fun and original. Arrangement was also veryyyy well done. All aspects of this were amazing. Btob - Again, another standout performance. The thing that does fall short for me is the song choice, as a non-melody, I don't know the original, but I was hoping Btob would do something MORE interesting with the song or cover someone unexpected. The concept was really cute and I love the movie within a movie. The Boyz- now, let me preface this with my background as a competitive urban dancer. Watching this perf, I can completely understand how people would rank it low. BUT for me, I was kinda blown away by it. The changes to the choreo weren't as drastic or obv as sf9 move, but they did have some really nice alterations. Overall, it was just really impressive for the dance itself. The synchronization and power were nearly competitive dance level, which honestly is a cut above the normal. This is kinda what I wanted from the dance unit perfs, but didn't get. However beyond the dance, they didn't have much. The snake was just a random prop and the dance break was mutilated by that crappy lighting. Would have been better to just have a spotlight and show them dancing honestly. Ateez - Worst performance from them for me. I did enjoy the beginning sections with the cool callbacks to older MVs. I was very into the arrangement and remix up until the finale, where they have the feature. It felt really abrupt and I thought it didn't go well together honestly. Really wished they'd done something more to incorporate it to the song. The whole end part just felt so CHEESY to me, like when they started dancing when the singers increased tempo, idk was not a fan. The grandeur was a miss for me. Ikon - Man I've been consistently ranking them low and I feel bad but, this one wasn't actually that BAD per say. I did like the song arrangement, but the entire Lisa feature can be cut and I'd like the performance the same. Beyond the expensive set, I didn't really feel anything was 'no limit', just a nice somewhat remixed cover with.... questionable cultural overtones. That's likely another thing that made me dislike the performance, the whole savages concept and Lisa = goddess or queen in a golden temple with relics and stuff.

Kei G
>>61760878

It was NUTTY clean from the Boyz, and considering that they're already 10 members (minus injured member) PLUS their dancers?? Insane clean. Also considering how powerful but also fast Monster is??? Ugh 10/10 was clean af

Christopher Smith

It's sad the the most fair rankings in the -dom series was Queendom, and even it saw Mamamoo consistently get 2nd and even win when their performances weren't up to that standard comparatively, barring maybe the final. So far for me, it's: 1. Ateez 2. Btob 3. Stray Kids 4. Sf9 5. The Boyz 6. Ikon

Anonymous

I might be late to the discussion but honestly, I understood the "assignment" a little different. I thought "No Limit" meant that you can literally do whatever you want. However, that doesn't mean you need to show something that has never been done before. You could (& I think ATEEZ did incredibly amazing with this interpretation) - I mean this is where you get the chance to do these things. But if you want to do something else - like showing the best dance performance that leaves you proud and crying tears of joy, like TBZ did - you can also do that. "No Limit" means you don't have to conform to anything, you literally have total freedom. Expecting everyone to do the same type of "limitless" performance, kinda makes it so that you are not free in your choice anymore.

Anonymous

Oh yeah and here's my score btw: 1. ATEEZ 2. Stray Kids 3. The Boyz 4. BTOB 5. SF9 6. iKON ATEEZ as you said was just epic. I'm German and when I heard those german lyrics, I went nuts. The grandiose feeling that this song already had, enhanced with this electro-classical sound...it was mind-blowing! STRAY KIDS pleasently surprised me. I'm also a STAY but I had to admit that I was quite disappointed with their previous performances. However this time, I thought they were creative & funny & genius. THE BOYZ didn't do anything groundbreaking, I know. (The 'Danger' performance from RTK would have been awesome here) BUT they did something, I've been missing throughout the whole show: They focused on a group performance that was (from a dancer's pov) so satisying ans amazing to watch. I feel like in Kingdom everyone goes for a thousand set changes & there's just solo-part after solo-part where they don't even really dance much but rather act and everything is chaotic & conceptual. But this performance reminded me of RTK where I enjoyed their amazing (conceptual) group dances with a meaningful solo-part here and there. In the end, I thought it was quite refreshing to watch. I also really liked BTOB. I liked the jazzy vibe & the La La Land inspired performance. It was totally satisfying to watch and I could lean back and just enjoy it. However, it was quite...normal (which is fine btw) so it didn't stand out as much as the previous three performances. Now for SF9 my opinion might be controversial but I found it a bit...boring? (I'm sorry, please don't hate me) Yes, we all now they are sexy af & it was a nice performance for the eye but that was kinda it. It literally left no impact for me. And personally, as nice as the rain thing was, it was kinda wasted. They should have at least danced a part in this room but they went all out and built up the suspense and when they finally stepped into the rain, they just kinda...stood there. I thought that was wasted potential and quite disappointing. And lastly, iKON. I'm so sorry to iKON, I really love them but neither the song, nor the dance left an impact on me. I felt like they wanted to do something big and they tried so hard - with Lisa & the golden jackets and everything - but actually, nothing really happened...idk. They were good of course but also kinda forgettable. I preferred their previous performances more.

R875d

well for me (stray kids - sf9 - BTOB) was top 3 for sure ..but I disagree with ateez ranking, actually I came here to see your opinion about ranking, I heard what you're said about no limit. I kinda understand why... but ateez perf was epic and I feel like it should be the 4th at least (yah I am the last person to watch kingdom) .

Alison Renaud

I know Im late to this haha...for me ATEEZ, stray Kids, Sf9, BTOB, ikon, The Boyz. ATEEZS performance hits so much more epically because it was the biggest Fuck You to mnet and the whole competition!! They just didnt care they wanred to do Answer purely for us atiny and it was beautiful! The judges probably realized it and had to rank them last just because of it. Also I feel like the judges were only ranking based on dancing which explains why The Boyz ranked so high.

Alison Renaud

Also Im not being biased here being an atiny Im also multi fandom and love and support all these groups equally and now Im even stanning sf9 after this! But yeah all of ATEEZs performances are the biggest fu to mnet and its beautiful I love them so much! Them and Stray Kids are truely amazing performers and have the greatest stage presence Ive ever seen in kpop!! Also I completely agree with everything you said about The Boyz performance! It was good but it wasnt No Limit good.

LivKO

So I legit teared uo with ATEEZ performance. It was so impactful- up there with Pentagons Basques for most impactful perform of Kingdom. I was straight up yelling at my TV when they got last

Judy

I know I'm late to the party, but I only just now found time to watch all your reactions to Kingdom :) My personal ranking would be: Stray Kids, BTOB, Ikon, SF9/ Ateez, The Boyz I liked Ateez performance, but I am not the biggest fan of how they added 'Ode an die Freude'. Probably because I don't like that song that much. It is in German (so I understand the lyrics) and it's also the anthem of europe and I had to learn and sing it in school. So.... yeah.... But otherwise they did great. SF9 was a bit much for me. I loved most parts of the performance, but all together was a bit much. The Boyz performance was good, but it wasn't 'No Limit', so the just didn't hit the mark for me

Anonymous

I still think ateez didn't win because they threw the crown to shit for me - jajajaja