Before I forget ('was supposed to be posted 12 hours ago but things happened)…

You have to admit that the #UniverseLeague ( #유니버스리그 ) format is very different and relies on fan votes 99% (random number for expression, not scientific). This is risky for F&F Entertainment, as far as the rounds we know, they might end up with a not-so-ideal roster.

Luckily for F&F, majority of the remaining contestants are not bad, and at least 14 of the remaining are talented. However, fan voting, as we've seen in the recent episode can completely upset everything.

1. The Managers/Directors of each team planned well their main 7 line-up because they're talented. Fan votes changed it a lot for one team, a little for the other.

2. We've seen the voting power of the International fanbase with the number of votes each contestant received. Two such are:

2.a. #JL ( #제이엘 ) ( #JLgaspar ) ranked number 1 in the 2nd Global Voting. While JL is very talented, who himself came from #Ppop, based on the votes he got he has full backing of the #Filipino people. Combine that with the on-site voting, who are mostly Korean women, he got 38k total votes. Rank 3 only got 25.6k votes, a big gap.

From his previous rank of 9th overall he jumped to number 2.

2.b. And then there is #ChaWoongki ( #차웅기 ) who was 2nd in the 2nd Global Voting. But after combining with the on-site votes, he ranked number 1 overall with a total of 41.8k. Small gap with JL.

Clearly, Woongki is a clear favourite for Korean women, at least for those who participated in the on-site voting.

And is also actually a favourite here in the Philippines. Without revealing too much, the organized Filipino online voting have Woongki as second choice after JL. So, yes, the massive 2nd Global votes he received also came from supporters of JL.

Universe League (유니버스 리그) is majorly a fan vote competition. The Managers/Directors are practically just there to:

1. Control the narrative on which contestant gets exposure, as we are going to see in S round later this week.
2. Ensure highly talented contestants are secured. Team Groove and Team Rhythm are the secure teams.

Look at Team Groove, there was no need to trade JL from Team Rhythm and Woongki from Team Beat. Those two are fan favourites and shines in their respective teams. I like #LeeChangsub ( #이창섭 )'s strategy. He understands well that it is a talent search, so he picks promising talents and gives them a chance.

At this point, we're now only searching for the next 5 members for the final lineup. So, training them is the best way to get their hidden talents out, AND find out if they are ready to take on the intense #Kpop idol industry.

@kpop @[email protected]