Debut or Die - Chapter 214

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 214
While Testa was in the midst of preparing for their move, those who had been waiting for the new Netplus variety show produced by ‘that Ajusa Production Team’ were making quite a commotion.
The released teaser had an exceptional ability to provoke outrage.
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[Ajusa Production’s New Variety – Am I the Only One Who Thinks It’s Off?]
Why are they begging K-pop haters to like K-pop… it feels like cultural inferiority complex
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-Right, that’s exactly what I thought
-lol
-There are so many people who like K-pop, but deliberately gathering haters and doing this really seems shameless
-It feels like watching some delinquent reformation survival show. Instead of wasting time on that, they should spotlight people who live well and are passionate lol
-?? I don’t think that’s the vibe… isn’t it more like ‘let these weak Americans get a taste of K-pop hell’?
└lol I watched the teaser with that same feeling
-Getting criticized from all angles – cultural inferiority on one side, nationalism on the other. Impressive lol
-It’s annoying that they’re making this trashy variety show but it’ll probably do well anyway. The teaser alone is causing a stir, ugh
-Top tier controversy lol
Moreover, the Production Team only released official materials about the program’s exact content once the discussion had grown most heated and controversial.
-So K-pop idols are mentors and they’re gathering American attention-seekers for a K-pop hell camp, with prize money only for survivors
└lmao
└They’ve lost it
└How do they even come up with this stuff? Did the production team do a camp in actual hell?
-Our kids are already swamped with work and now they’re doing this? It’s ridiculous but also kind of funny
└You’re a Testa fan. This is the karma from buying Ajusa stock and raising the production team lol
└I became a fan during their tour, damn it
And just as the controversy about the program began to die down, articles about the mentor cast started pouring out one after another.
People were shocked by the scale and began reproducing program-related posts again.
-VTIC is really appearing?;;;;
-Wait, Jae-hyun, why would someone as smart as you make this choice
-Golden Age is appearing too… did they include them because they’re from Ajusa… hmm…lol
└Stop judging quality tiers on this trash variety show. You guys are killing me lol
└Yeah next is some nobody
-It’d be hard to get this lineup on a weekend variety show all at once. What’s going on? It’s like a Dream Concert from back in the day
-Testa and Ajusa’s production team have marked them as elite, so they’ve been dragged along. Poor things
And since everyone had anticipated his appearance, and Testa fans had already given up the moment Park Moon-dae appeared in the teaser, they had already burned out once and cooled down.
-Yeah, what’s the big deal if he’s not the new season mentor for Ajusa
-They’ve appeared on a record number of variety shows this promotion cycle, so having one like this is just… you know… lol
-Testa will be Testa, they’re so good at everything that I’m actually looking forward to it (lying)
-I just hope the kids don’t suffer too much during filming
Most fan communities simply wrapped up their discussions with ‘I hope Testa’s hearts don’t get hurt during filming.’
Since this ‘Spring Out’ promotion had gone so textbook-perfectly and the overseas response metrics were good, there was less edge to things.
The minor controversy surrounding Ryu Chung-woo’s camera incident had long since faded away through his frequent appearances on major variety shows.
So the show aired its first episode amid lukewarm reactions from idol fans and unfavorable buzz from the general online community.
[K-NOW!]
[K-pop is pathetic! Attention-seeking participants who’ve only ever chased celebrity status find themselves trapped in an unexpected quagmire.]
True to the description, the production team skillfully introduced several extreme characteristics among the 24 participants, then used the magic of editing to heavily emphasize two common threads.
That they were starved for attention.
And that they looked down on K-pop.
Naturally, domestic viewers watching in real-time immediately reacted with extreme responses.
-Ugh, this pisses me off
-Is that really the American average?
-This genuinely bothers me… why is their sensibility like that
-That guy who said “this is real music” or whatever, I seriously want to punch him in the mouth
Hahaha, it’s just funny how Korean people are so obsessed with this.
-I actually somewhat sympathize with what the contestants said… These days, idol songs are all very similar.
└Oh my, elder
The participants bickered with each other, and briefly marveled at the sponsored products in the luxurious dormitory.
Then finally, that problematic scene arrived.
[The K-POP mentors are about to make their entrance!]
[3, 2, 1]
[Ta-da!]
[Oh my, screams everywhere!]
The participants who gasped, grew angry, or looked flustered were still portrayed with shameless lack of charm.
Viewers, struck by this unfamiliar sensibility, now stepped back entirely and simply watched as if observing idols appearing on a foreign variety show.
-They’re about to bolt
-I want to skip it laterㅠㅠ
Hahaha why am I dying laughing? Comparing all these idols who are actually so handsome and professional to him makes me feel so proud of Korea lol
If things had continued this way, K-NOW would certainly have seen its domestic buzz cool dramatically after just one episode and fade away.
But from the next moment onward, the atmosphere reversed.
[You’ll be facing off directly against the K-POP mentors!]
[The categories are singing, dancing, and photography!]
[That’s right, those “special skills” you listed on your application forms!]
-What?
-Wait
Hahaha, are you competing here too?
-Stop this madness
But it was true.
[Excellent! So if you win, that’s 50,000 dollars, right~]
[Honestly, I don’t think we’ll lose. No.]
[With pop songs? Mm-hmm, we absolutely can’t lose. Sorry, but you all made a mistake.]
Several arrogant participants were shown at considerable length once more.
They quarreled fiercely over song selection and photo themes, then took the Stage with nothing but baseless confidence—the very picture of amateurs.
In stark contrast, the idols came across as composed and gracious.
[Ah, so we have an hour~]
[We’d better give it our all.]
[Would this work if we put it here?]
-Looking at it this way, they really seem like a different species
└They basically are
Hahahahahahahaha
And in the latter half of the program.
The idols, entering with nothing but their bare talent, decimated the participants with overwhelming force.
[Victory, victory, victory!]
Coupled with Ajusa Production’s signature emphatic editing, the scene played across the screen with brutal brilliance and undeniable dominance.
[My, there’s nothing more to see!]
[Another victory for the mentors!]
[Absolutely overwhelming! So, are you still going to say the camp was useless?]
[Participant: Damn….]
Especially Park Moon-dae’s carefully edited first vocal stage, and even in the masked dance stage where everyone participated together—the results remained the same.
The Internet was instantly flooded with related reactions.
-Wow, this is insane
-Crazy Park Moon-dae, you madman, I knew it—that rank-one experience doesn’t fade
-Taste just a hint of K-pop’s hellfire
-Please give me a fancam of Keun Se-jin wearing a teddy bear mask and reveal the behind-the-scenes!ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
-Can’t believe only Americans got to see this, they should air it in South Korea too
-It’s so fun. As expected, Azusa’s production team has a good hand. Hahaha.
Survival Show Program viewers were naturally obsessed with formats where competition was purely skill-based.
Add to that the thrill of K-pop idols they felt emotionally close to winning decisively, and it felt like witnessing a sports victory.
Yet at the same time, some harbored doubts.
Is it really okay to promote this Korean pride flavor to English-speaking regions? lol
I’m worried it won’t do well in America and I’ll feel bad about it.
-Right, they might feel resistance to pushing K-pop so hard
They probably would’ve all deserted during idol hazing lol
But that wasn’t the case.
Abroad, they were watching the program through an entirely different emotional lens.
It was the taste of redemption.
They hadn’t yet felt any kinship with the participants; they were thoroughly enjoying watching them struggle.
The Production Team had brilliantly assigned the participants the archetype of “annoying people you’ve encountered in life.”
-Friends, take this chance to grow up a little (tongue-out emoji)
-Oh the blonde guy in the cap is exactly like my ex-boyfriend who was always posting weird stuff on Instagram
-This is actually pretty funny?
-Please, may you all be reborn as ‘K-pop’ stars with a PG-12 rating (laughing emoji)
One of K-pop’s most distinctive images was being heavily promoted here: wholesomeness.
Exactly that—wholesomeness.
And the composition where these wholesome, all-ages-friendly idols delivered a dose of reality to malicious attention-seekers proved both refreshingly unique and perfectly effective.
-It’s like watching a reality show where they round up misbehaving kids and send them to a special summer camp (dying laughing)
└Public consensus: accurate
└And this camp has K-pop instructors! (rainbow and unicorn emojis)
So for English-speaking viewers, the entire affair felt like a rather humorous parody.
And simultaneously, they found themselves naturally drawn to the K-pop idols who shined throughout the show.
-They’re all so kind and dignified! It’s actually touching
-That guy in the hoodie is genuinely an amazing singer
-I heard they train from a very young age, and clearly it wasn’t wasted effort
Meanwhile, existing K-pop fandoms worked hard to spread their promotions and information through the gaps.
-That hoodie guy never trained at all! He’s 100% a complete civilian from auditions! He’s just a bundle of talent and hard work♡
-Their latest song is incredible, I’d recommend it to anyone interested in the combination of Oriental and steampunk aesthetics (link)
-It’s surprising that people are finally appreciating K-pop’s strengths now. What, are we living in the 90s?
And before this reaction even made its way back to South Korea in translation.
The response from viewers with even a passing familiarity with K-pop converged into a single voice, prompted by the next episode preview that appeared at the end of episode one.
[Look at this—our greatest senior mentor makes an appearance!]
[Mentor: Hello.]
A close-up shot of VTIC Chung-ryeo had appeared.
The Production Team had deliberately avoided capturing his face during the K-pop idols’ first appearance on screen, only revealing it now in the preview.
-Whoa, Chung-ryeo
-So so so so handsome, I’m losing it
-What the—what did he do
-Shin Chung-ryeo, come back to South Korea right now
[Mentor: I hope you’ll learn many things during this camp and take them with you.]
Chung-ryeo delivered his lines with crisp English.
[Mentor: Ah, this evaluation’s name is… “Learn from VTIC.” It should prove to be meaningful training.]
[Mentor: We’re quite famous, after all.]
Chung-ryeo smiled with a slight grin.
As tense background music played, quick cuts of the participants’ wary expressions flashed by, and the preview ended.
-The Production Team really said “watch the next episode” lol
Thus, Ajusa Production’s new variety show secured its buzz once more.
It was a tremendously smooth yet spectacular beginning.
But despite Testa being the ones who’d vowed to watch “the moment it airs,” none of them had actually confirmed this reaction.
There was a reason.
“Ahhhhh!”
“Again! Do it again!”
“No, wait…! This, this is right!”
“Whoa, Ah-hyun’s being this forcefully resistant?? That’s suspicious, isn’t it?”
“You’re the suspicious one.”
“Guys… we’ve been at this for two hours.”
They were completely absorbed in an extended round of the roommate assignment game.
It was an unintended consequence of the fan service content we’d started lightly after moving.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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