“Kara Project” Ep. 2 Recap

So I finally watched the second episode of DSP’s brilliantly evil Baby KARA show and all I can say is, I’m not consuming enough chocolate while watching these. I also finally realized that they’re choosing only ONE of these girls to be in KARA (or the SM translator hasn’t been fired yet) and all I can say is—What!? WHY?! Now I’m definitely crying in the last episode…

EP 2 Summary

For this episode, the Baby KARA members were tasked with learning the choreography and lyrics of KARA’s Rock U (one of my least favorite KARA singles). In the beginning of the episode, the girls decided to take some special time off: some visited friends, others family, and special, special Shi Yoon went on a bike ride (I’m starting to fall in love with this girl. You can tell that she’s just not all the way there in the mental department.). When it was time to rehearse, most of the girls struggled in the dance studio as this proved to be another mainly-cutesy concept that required a hand microphone. Their choreographer, who NEVER seems happy and has the absolutely most priceless resting bitch face, looked like she wanted to kill them. In the end of the episode, the girls found out that they would be performing in a gym auditorium in fellow member Yoo Ji’s performing arts school. Once again, the girls danced their hearts out and were ripped to shreds by the judges. I felt like I was watching American Idol (you know, like twelve years ago when it was still relevant) and there were three Simon Cowells.

Contestant #1: So Jin

We found out a little bit more about So Jin’s history in this episode. For her special time off, she went to go visit her friends who she hadn’t seen in four months. When she saw them (after they showed up hilariously late), she greeted the two girls with, “Ajummas!” Turns out, So Jin has been a trainee since her last year of high school (23 – 19 = 4 years) and even though she was relentlessly training, she still went to college (seriously, props, that’s dedication). Her friends then talked about how she was a very bright friend and had a lot of part-time jobs, so that she could stay living in Seoul because she was very passionate about her dream (more props, all the props!). After meeting her friends, So Jin dropped by her parents’ house but they weren’t there. She then confessed that every time she sees her father, he tries to talk her out of her training (he disapproves of her choices). While in the dance studio, she had the same issue as everyone else with synchronizing her dance and keeping her mic in mind. Then in the singing studio, she struggled a bit in the beginning (with the singing director giving a rather bitingly harsh comment in a sweet voice, “Sing like you’re 5 years younger.”) But she got it together quickly and met her lines. In the final performance, the choreographer critiqued her on her dance moves, saying they were far from mastered. However, the choreographer thought she controlled her movements more and did better than the previous performance (I thought she did great in the last performance so I’m disagree with her here!). The choreographer categorized her as the least successful member and I say, “Noooo! Whyyyy!” Then, the vocal trainer also picked So Jin as the least successful for being distant on stage, and, like a total pro, So Jin kept her cool and listened to the critique (orders another truckload of props). Then, in came the director, who actually picked So Jin as the best. He said that because the song was very cute and youthful, the challenge was the most difficult for So Jin but she came through. I swear, they act like she’s sixty.

Contestant #2: Shi Yoon

Ah, Shi Yoon! What a breath of strangely-smelling-perfume you are! There is just a quirk to this girl, like a serious 4-D personality that is waiting for its time to erupt. For her special time off, she went on a bike ride and looked as happy as if she’d just consumed half her weight in chocolate. She rides her bike to clear her mind (insert her always shaky, short, nerd laugh). In the recording studio, the singing instructor told her to do the very cute “Yo!” in the song. She was so embarrassed she could hardly utter the word in a whisper, making everyone in the studio laugh. In the final performance, the choreographer said she was short with the basics and needs to learn how to adapt the moves to her own style. I say, she only had one week and was probably too scared to deviate from the basic choreography because this is a group challenge after all (and she doesn’t want to screw everyone around her up). However, the choreographer noted that no one works as hard as her. Yay! My Shi Yoon gets praise!

Contestant #3: Young Ji

Young Ji started the episode off at the hospital because of her leg injury. That sad instrumental music is seriously starting to become her theme song. She made her bed and then left to cheer the girls on at the final performance, without telling them she was coming. Apparently she graduated from the same school that Yoo Ji is attending and was excited to return. She secretly hid backstage and when the other Baby KARA members ran on stage to perform, she suddenly burst into tears and had to turn away, before tearful looking on from around a corner…..no comment. Then when the girls finished the performance and were walking down the steps, she burst into tears again. The thing about these tears is, they aren’t happiness tears. They’re self-pity tears. It’s like, get yourself together. This is K-Pop. You’re going to be injured a lot. You’re going to miss performances. You’re going to mess up on stage. Your outfit might rip or you could face a terrible scandal. You can’t cry for everything. If she’s crying over something like this, I can only image the complete and total mental breakdown she would have had if she would have actually received critique from the judges on the first episode. At the end of the episode, she joined the other members on the bus, meaning she will be competing in the next episode. Joy…

Contestant #4: Chae Kyoung

Cutey Chae Kyoung started the episode by going shopping with her (impressively fashionable) mom for her special time off. Chae Kyoung stated that although she used to spend a lot of time with her mom, she hasn’t been able to do activities with her as often recently because of her training. Chae Kyoung’s sassy mom talked about her daughter getting her beauty from her genes and how she was bright (although Chae Kyoung had inadvertently confessed that she was a bad student in the previous episode). In the recording studio, the singing instructor thought she did a great job. However, in the final performance, she made mistakes with her dance moves and the choreographer was quick to point those out. Her cheeks were so red and I felt so bad for her. You could tell that she was really beating herself up for it mentally but was trying to keep it together. The choreographer said that she should have continued the performance as if she hadn’t made a mistake, but her face confessed her insecurity. The director picked her as the least successful member in the performance, and said that he “never noticed” her. Wow. That is very harsh but kind of true. She does blend in the group and needs to learn how to stand out. After the judges gave their critique, she cried because this was the exact same thing they told her last time. Awww. The other members wiped her tears and they all just smiled sadly and huddled into the van.

Contestant #5: So Min

So Min had no special time off shown, most likely because of her studies.While in the dance studio, So Min struggled a bit, which is likely to due to the pressure of having to stay on top in the judges’ eyes since she got the most compliments in the last mission. She did well in the recording studio, as she always does. Then the viewers were shown So Min on the train watching a foreign performance on her phone. So Min said that her commute was the only time she really had off to enjoy watching such things. She said that she couldn’t really hang out with her friends because she had other priorities, and she only truly went to one friend that she’d had for 11 years when she needed support. In the live performance, I personally thought she did great and was very natural. You couldn’t tell she was nervous at all. The  vocal trainer judge thought she gave one of the best performances (with Chae Won) and was very stable (i.e. cool and professional). After the critiques were finished and Chae Kyoung began to cry, So Min said that she’d been good friends with Chae Kyoung for three years and needed to learn how to be a better friend to her (e.g. tell her she’s appreciated more). I love this girl so much.

Contestant #6: Chae Won

For Chae Won, no special time off was shown, though I’m guessing its because she’s a normal student. While practicing the choreography, Chae Won lost track the most and struggled with keeping her mic still. Then, in the recording studio, the singing instructor told her that although her biggest strength was controlling the dynamics of her voice, she couldn’t use that skill for Rock U. The song was clean and cute, and didn’t require that kind of (R&Bish) technique. After receiving that critic, they cut to a scene that really confused me. They showed Chae Won in the back seat of her mother’s car practicing, as her mother drove her to only god knows where (DSP building? School?). But in the previous episode, Chae Won had said that she took the train to school, the DSP building, and home, and the entire commute was 4 hours (or did the SM translator strike again?). They specifically ask her mother, “You give Chae Won a ride everyday?” and she answers with, “Yes, I do. The transportation here is not good.” That was just a bad cut that needed explanation. Anyway, her mother said that she was very mature for her age and sometimes she relied on her like a friend (…whoa…). In the final performance, the vocal trainer said she didn’t hold the mic close to her mouth long enough to finish her parts but still thought she gave one of the best performances.

Contestant #7: Yoo Ji

This episode had a lot more Yoo Ji. In the recording studio, the singing  instructor loved her cute voice and told her to do the adorable/temperamental “Yo!” in the song. She pulled it off on her first try, impressing everyone. We then got to see her interacting in her performing arts school, where you could tell she is very popular (there were kids literally standing and circling her table at lunch.). Yoo Ji’s friends said what any other young kid would say about a friend, “she’s straightforward and cool.” Yoo Ji is apparently known as the dancing machine and started belly dancing in second grade, before trying other styles of dance like contemporary and hip hop. In the final performance, the choreographer thought Yoo Ji did the best and seemed the most genuinely excited. The vocal trainer also thought that Yoo Ji did the best.

**Results For KARA Project’s Second Round of Votes

1st. So Jin
2nd. Young Ji
3rd. So Min
4th. Chae Won
5th. Chae Kyoung
6th. Shi Yoon
7th. Yoo Ji

….how…..in….the WORLD is Young Ji still in second place? She. Did. NOTHING. If you look at the details of her score, you see that her judging scores are super low (obviously) and then the fan popularity vote is like super high. Are people even watching this show? Who is voting for this girl?! At least So Jin is first this time around, but my So Min! Down to three!

Next episode, Lupin! Excited!

Episode two is below:

(Sources)