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Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of ‘Kingdom’

Knets have speculated on which groups are considered ‘Mnet’s bias’ after episode 2 of Kingdom. 

On the evening of April 8, the music competition show between male idol groups called ‘Kingdom: Legendary War’ (abbreviated: ‘Kingdom‘) aired episode 2 on Mnet.  The show is only at the first stage, but the fierce competition and investment of 6 groups The Boyz, Stray Kids, ATEEZ, BTOB, SF9, and iKON have impressed viewers.

In this episode, the full results of the 100-second round and 3 performances for the first official round titled ‘To The World’ were announced.  However, besides enjoying the stages, Knets still expressed doubts about Mnet’s unfair treatment toward the 6 groups. They thought that 3 out of 6 teams have been given special favor by Mnet.

Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'

Before the first episode of ‘Kingdom’ aired, the media posted internal information that Mnet had a clear bias towards a boy group attending the show.  Accordingly, during the mission of the first round ‘To The World’, to ensure fairness, the groups are only allowed to use a maximum of 5 million won to set up the stage.  However, there is one management company that thinks Mnet has been biased towards another group when their stage is extremely expensive. 

During the recording, some of the groups’ agencies reportedly asked why a certain group had an extravagant set and props that appeared to be far over the budget and questioned if it was due to CJ ENM investing in the group’s agency. According to the report, the production team said at the time that it is because the group’s props were from their concert, but as the other groups have also had concerts with props that could’ve been used, their agencies continued to speak out.

In response to the report, Mnet’s “Kingdom” explained that it was true that there was originally a staging limit set to 5 million won.  However, after reconsidering, the production team decided to adjust the budget higher than that to facilitate better performance for the contestants.  However, there was a communication problem that resulted in only 3 groups being informed of this adjustment.  After that, the remaining groups were not notified of the change of rules, so they approached Mnet to complain.

At that time, the names of the 3 groups that were supposed to receive priority from Mnet and the groups that were treated unfairly were not made public.  However, Knets firmly believed that just by watching the stages of the ‘To The World’ round they would immediately recognize it.  They thought that it is very easy to tell the difference between a heavily invested stage and a simple stage.

In episode 2, only the stages of the 3 groups were announced as ‘No Air’ by The Boyz, ‘Love Scenario’ and ‘Killing Me’ by iKON, ‘Missing You’ (Theater ver) of BTOB.  After watching these 3 performances, Knets affirmed that The Boyz was the group that Mnet was biased toward when the stage of the group was invested with great prominence.  The group used a lot of props, scenes, and even fire and snow effects to impress their performances.

Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
The Boyz’s stage

Compared to The Boyz’s epic staging, BTOB and iKON have a simpler staging.  The highlight of BTOB is the forest scene, while the most unique scene of iKON is just the explosion effect segment.

Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
BTOB’s stage
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
iKON’s stage

Since then, Knet assumed that The Boyz stage had exceeded the allowed limit at first and caused other groups to realize the injustice of Mnet.  In addition, in Mnet’s announcement, they said by themselves that up to 3 groups had been notified of the change in the budget limit for staging.  And so even though the stages for the other 3 groups have not been announced yet, Knets said when looking at the trailer, they can guess the other 2 groups are ATEEZ and Stray Kids based on their stage set. 

Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Preview for ATEEZ’s stage
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Preview for SF9’s stage
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Knets point out three groups that was publicly biased by Mnet in episode 2 of 'Kingdom'
Preview for Stray Kids’s stage

Immediately, the post ‘Mnet bias 3 groups’ became the topic that caused Knet a stir.  Many people get frustrated that the difference between the stages is too large and makes viewers feel disappointed.  On the other hand, Knets believed that Mnet is blatantly biased towards the ZZZ*. However, many viewers also believed that Mnet deliberately created controversy to attract attention.

(* ZZZ: The way netizens call The Boyz, ATEEZ and Stray Kids because, in Korean, the names of all 3 groups end with ‘즈’ (letter Z))

Netizens commented:

1. The difference is too big…

2. The first group spent a lot of money

3. From the beginning, I had a feeling that Mnet pushed The Boyz, Stray Kids, and ATEEZ. BTOB and iKON’s stage was amazing today

4. Wow, I’m sad even though I’m not a fan

5. But this makes you feel that you spend a lot of money doesn’t mean you do well on stageㅋㅋ

6. No, the difference is too obvious

7. The difference is so big, and this has a big impact on rankings, crazy…

8. Mnet again!

9. The Boyz > 5 million won > BTOB > iKON

10. Poor iKON and BTOBㅠㅠㅠ

Source: theqoo

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