We Make Better - A Vanner Primer
Jan. 7th, 2024 09:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
boulevarddoubleDo you like unbelievable underdog stories and men who kiss each other? What about unprompted role play? Boy, do I have the group for you!
Vanner debuted on February 14th, 2019 under a company no one has ever heard of called VT Entertainment. The name Vanner is a combination of "victory" and "banner" and as such have had some very flag-themed comebacks. The fandom name is VVS - yes, the diamond term - chosen by Gon, because their fans are precious diamonds. More colloquially, the fans are often called "ppippis" because when you sound out V-V, it kind of sounds like ppi-ppi in Korean. For once, I don't hate it.
The most important thing to know about Vanner's early days is that they were wildly unsuccessful. Just absolutely ignored, lost, forgotten. As a nugufan, I like looking at album sales numbers to see if my groups are trending towards growth, and the Vanner numbers pre-2023 are just fucking depressing. Don't worry, this story has a happy ending.
It is extremely unlikely that VT Entertainment was a money laundering front, simply because no actual money appeared to pass through the company at all. Remember how the 50/50 CEO was like "I sold my car to pay for them!" well the VT CEO worked as a delivery driver.
By the time 2023 rolled around, Vanner only had the debut full-length album, and three single album comebacks.
Every member was working at least one part time job. When they first went on tour, they couldn't pay for many staff, so Gon was in charge of styling, Taehwan makeup, and so on and so on. Taehwan, the leader, ran all of the Vanner social media, up to and including filming, editing, and subtitling their YouTube content. I'll get more into their part time jobs in the individual section.
What changed?
Vanner applied for a strange new reality show called Peak Time. And they dominated.
During their Peak Time run, Vanner trended on Korean social sites because of their incredible live performances. After their win, they signed a 3-year contract with KLAP Entertainment, which should take them up until the '96s have to enlist.
KLAP is an interesting company; they're brand new, with Vanner as their first-ever signees, though at the end of 2023 they added Sistar19 to the roster. Very exciting! KLAP was originally formed in 2020 as a subsidiary of NCSoft, the developers of the "Universe" fan/idol platform (like bubble - iirc, it was mainly used by Cube artists and a few others). However, NCSoft decided to get out of the idol business and the subsidiary was divested. The new owners had worked with KLAP under NCSoft and also brought in some outside C-Suite leadership from industry giant CJ ENM (owns MNet, Wake One, 143 Ent. and more).
From what I can tell, KLAP is actually really well run, and the staff and company seem incredibly invested in Vanner's success. I don't agree with their decision to feature Taehwan on the upcoming MNet "Build Up" show, but really that's not super unusual in the grand scheme of kpop company shenanigans. The big thing is that they're willing to spend to keep these boys in the spotlight.
And their efforts are paying off. Their first comeback post-Peak Time sold over 140,000 albums and landed in the top 100 bestselling kpop albums of 2023.
Vanner don't have an overall concept, except as I mentioned earlier, they're big on flags. And making life better. Which they do so well!
As far as I know, they have never been involved in any scandals, which shouldn't be surprising because who really gives a shit about an idol who sells 2,000 albums.
As of January 7th, 2024, they have 1 full length album, 3 single albums, and 1 EP. They just announced a comeback on January 30th, 2024 with the EP "Capture the Flag", which is why I'm finally writing this primer.
V (Feb 2019) with the title track "Better Do Better"
5cean: V (Sept 2019) with the title track "Crazy Love"
Life (Dec 2020) with the title track (and my beloved) "Form"
Take Off (Feb 2022) with the title "Rollin"
Veni Vidi Vici (Aug 2023) with the title "Performer"
There has been one good survival show ever made and it is Peak Time. And by that, I mean, "a survival show with its heart in the right place."
The premise of Peak Time was to take 23 groups who were stuck in nuguland, disbanded, or were otherwise unsuccessful, and give them a second chance at fame and fortune. They also assembled a 'super group' in Team 24 of hand-picked soloists with the same ambition, led by the sexy-cute Moon Jongup.
Peak Time had no evil editing. No drama for drama's sake. The judging was nearly impeccable. The mentors were real mentors, who gave actual advice and really worked with groups. All the costumes, choreos, and music was paid for by the show so that the groups were on even footing. Some people can complain about screen time, which sure (as a Blitzers fan, I am aware of how they did get shafted), but overall it is the most heartwarming watch.
(The Karam "scandal" I don't blame on the show. I blame that on crazy fans who think 30-year-olds shouldn't date.)
With every performance, Vanner won the hearts of fans - and the other contestants. To this day, they're basically besties with the Bae173 kids. Not to mention the ships that came out of it. For instance, Ghost9's Jinwoo fell in love with Taehwan watching him perform. Gon is in a jagiya-ship with Bae's Junseo. It was Hyesung's idea for Team C - specifically Jongup and Hangyul (his mom's fave) - to show off their hot bodies for "Bad".
I strongly recommend watching Peak Time for something truly uplifting.
This is arranged in age order, as usual, but as there's only five of them, I've added more thoughts than I have in other primers. Also I have a lot of feelings.
Basic Info
Born: January 15, 1994 (Capricorn)
Position: Leader, Main Vocal
Roommate: Hyesung, Yeongkwang
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Dog
Part-time Job: Front of house at a tteokbokki restaurant
Why You Should Love Taehwan
God, okay. Where to start. All Taehwan has ever wanted to be is a singer. Emphasis on the singing part. The members and the fans call him "Killing Vocal Lee Taehwan". When he was in middle school, he attended auditions in secret, because his mom didn't support his dream. His dad did, though, and eventually his mom came around.
Unfortunately, his dad passed away before Taehwan could debut and never got to see him realize his dream. Taehwan is also exempt from enlistment because of this - he is the sole money earner in his family, as his mother is older and likely retired and he has no siblings.
His nickname for a while was "Ten Jobs Taehwan" because as Vanner's leader, he literally did everything he could to keep the group together including working multiple part time jobs, giving the group vocal lessons, vocal directing, and is person who convinced them to go on Peak Time. He still has his vlog (HwanTV) though they are further and farther between than they used to be because he's a busy bee these days!
The reason that I'm obsessed with him, however, is because he a) loves to do drag b) looks super hot in it. You put this man in a wig and his entire personality goes from Cute Puppy to Sassmaster 3000 on some Hot Girl Shit. (Though I will say he's low-key sassy all the time). His favorite singers are Beyonce and Hwasa, and his favorite musical is Rebecca. Take from that what you will.
He also smiles and laughs as his defense mechanism. Like. When he's being picked on. Smile. When he's upset. Smile. It's so *clenches fist*
Taehwan is just a super-talented, hard working, no thoughts head empty, (gay gay gay) main vocal.
Other Notable Taehwan Facts
The "I want to be a singer" part is important because he doesn't ever really say "idol". And that's because Taehwan and dancing don't get along. There are lives where the other Vanners are like "OMFG Taehwan is practicing choreo by himself???!!!!"
Taehwan was originally part of Pledis and trained with 17, and I suspect the dancing thing is why he left/was cut. He then was at WH Creative with Sungkook and Hyesung (and Sunghyuk from TAN!) before they finally joined VT entertainment.
Even now, Taehwan still has a hard time with choreo.
Important Taehwan Performance
This one was hard because as a Singer Who Sings, he has like 8000 live performances. However, I consider this a foundational Taehwan video.
Basic Info
Born: August 7, 1995 (Leo)
Position: Main Rapper, Main Dancer, Lead Vocal
Roommate: Sungkook
Pets: A snake named Mumu! (seen in the Better Do Better and Form MVs)
Representative Animal: Dinosaur
Part-time Job: Barista at Ediya
Why You Should Love Gon
Because he's a weirdo. Just like. Bizarre. But also really competent? Gon is the designated "good at life skills" member, which is devastating for me, personally. He is very hot, very sexy, very good at rapping and singing and dancing and also just an incredible silly billy.
Gon is a fantastic dancer (literally one of the only idols to make the smoke challenge look good), and originally, was simply the Vanner boys' dance trainer & choreographer. The legend is that the VT CEO asked him to join the group five times and Gon turned him down every time. But the sixth time the CEO asked, he said yes, because it "seemed rude to say no again".
We're also lucky because, while he has always wanted to be an idol, it took Gon some time to find his way to Vanner, which means he completed his enlistment when he was young! Yay! A 95 I don't need to cry about!
Other Notable Gon Facts
Gon is the baby of a big family, with two older sisters and an older brother. His parents seem very supportive of his life choices, to the point where his dad was planning on getting a tattoo with him & his brother, Wonho. He didn't care about the tattoos because it was 'alright since they work in entertainment'. Very progressive, Papa Gon!
Meanwhile, Wonho, also known as Tabasco, produced three of my favorite Vanner songs ever! Form, Lachata, and Purge Day. He also apparently sounds exactly like Gon on the phone, and they have pulled pranks on their parents because of this.
Important Gon Performance
As you may have guessed, as their main dancer and main rapper and a leo, Gon is frequently the star of the show. This one, however, is what put him on the map for most new fans.
Basic Info
Born: January 17, 1996 (Capricorn)
Position: Lead Vocal
Roommate: Taehwan, Yeongkwang
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Hamster
Part-time Job: Sales associate at Lush, and I believe also worked at the tteokbokki restaurant with Taehwan
Why You Should Love Hyesung
HOO BOY DO I HAVE FEELINGS ABOUT THIS ONE. First and foremost, Hyesung is a cutie. In his own words "You act cute. I was born cute." He's technically an introvert, but on camera he's very outgoing and is frequently their MC. Peak Time basically treated him like the leader. He's also the member most likely to kick off the loving bickering, especially with his fellow 96-liner, Sungkook.
However, what really gets me about this guy is his continued belief that he's a bad person. (I have my theories on why, but I'll stick to actual canon for now). He's said multiple times how he feels like he's deeply flawed and is always trying to be better -- and not in the usual idol way. Like it's a personality issue. He's called himself the worst roommate, as well.
Meanwhile, no one in the world thinks this but him. All his members think he's cute and kind. Fans have run into him at his part time jobs and only have good things to say. Random non-fans who found out he was famous later have only good things to say. There's a great story about a guy who needed presents for his girlfriend's family and dropped like $400 on bath bombs at Lush and apparently Hyesung helped him for like two hours and was just the nicest guy.
He is a good person who thinks he's terrible!!!!
Other Notable Hyesung Facts
Hyesung is a plant dad! He has plants all over his room/the big apartment, and also gives them to the other members.
He also has a blog (Honeylog) where he writes about his daily life and uploads cute anecdotes and we often get funny behind the scene pictures of him and the other members. This is a carry over from the ~Broke Days~ and it's cool that even now that they have a real company, the Vanners get to keep doing what they enjoy.
Important Hyesung Performance
As the resident cutie pie, Rollin would work here, but since I've already linked that above, here is the first ever Peak Time performance. Pink-hair Hyesung stands OUT.
Basic Info
Born: March 27, 1996 (Aries)
Position: Lead Rapper
Roommate: Gon
Pets: Miniature poodle named Roy
Representative Animal: Chinchilla
Part-time Job: Delivery driver
Why You Should Love Sungkook
Because he's a giant loser!!!! But in the best way!!!! The most Some Dude to ever Some Dude in a kpop group!!!!
Not only is Sungkook the owner of Vanner's single braincell, he's also an actual parody of a "T" MBTI type. Like. Literally a quote from a live just a few days ago.
Hyesung: I don't think I've ever seen a sunrise.
Sungkook: I have.
Hyesung: Can you describe the feeling of a sunrise?
Sungkook: It's nothing special. The sun just rose.
Sungkook tends to be one of the more anxious members of the group, but that said, he's also deceptively silly. Sungkook is frequently the initiator of Vanner's brand of unprompted roleplay, and is almost always the "husband" of any other member when they pretend they're a couple. This happens. A lot. Like. A LOT.
Other Notable Sungkook Facts
Along with Gon, Sungkook tends to write a lot of the lyrics for Vanner songs, especially the rap sections. He's actually an insanely talented rapper, and while it never got aired, Jay Park praised him for being the most stable live performer in the rapping subunit.
Sungkook also likes to work out and is particularly proud of his strong thighs. This is a problem for me, personally, and also other people who will be mentioned in the shipping section.
Important Sungkook Performance
While my favorite Sungkook verse is on Nasty, this one is the one that literally made my jaw drop and shot him up my "Oh no... him" list.
Basic Info
Born: September 22, 1997
Position: Visual, Sub Vocal, Sub Rapper
Roommate: Taehwan, Hyesung
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Fox (but formerly a frog)
Part-time Job: Worked at a Cinema
Why You Should Love Yeongkwang
I'm not going to lie, it took a while (read: about a month) for me to get Yeongkwang. He is pretty, quiet, and doesn't get as many parts, so he can fly under the radar.
But he's also really dang weird. He and Gon are basically like the same person. There's a great clip of Gon ducking under a lampshade and then popping up over it like a whack-a-mole during a photoshoot, and then an hour later, Yeongkwang doing the SAME THING.
He also really comes alive during variety. The minute there's a game to be played, it's like a switch flips. Not only will he win everything, he's also going to be the most entertaining one.
Recently, the Vanners played mafia. And spoiler, he was the first person to die. And yet, he was the funniest member. How is that even possible???? He just has that kind of charisma. If you watch Picnic Time (which I will link, obviously), there is no way you don't fall in love with him.
Other Notable Yeongkwang Facts
Yeongkwang is the biggest Highlight/Beast fan ever. I mean that seriously. One of the very first HwanTVs (from the Broke Years) shows a built and shirtless Gikwang as his phone lockscreen.
Also his stagename? Yeong + kwang from Yeongjun/Gikwang. Yeah. He named himself after his favorite singer. Who he later got to meet as a judge on Peak Time.
He is an active member of the Highlight fanclub. Went to their recent concert. And even well before debut, he auditioned at Cube several times specifically because he wanted to be a junior of theirs.
Important Yeongkwang Performance
As I mentioned, he can really fly under the radar, and frankly, in the early days he wasn't very confident in his singing (or rapping - and he's a pretty dang good rapper). At their recent fanconcerts, though, he & Hyesung did a cover of NCT Dream's version of Candy and he really shines.
Boy are we blessed for content. The new company has really gone above and beyond, and unlike some other nugus who will remain unnamed, they subtitle everything in English, Chinese, and Japanese.
Obviously, I recommend watching Peak Time, which can be seen on Viki in the US (and I believe the UK).
They also have a post-Peak Time show called Picnic Time. You can start here at episode 1, however if there is just one episode you watch, make it Ep. 3, "Upset Staircase".
In non-PT content, Vanner started their own variety series, Vanner Has a Dream, which is a fucking riot. Again, you can start at the beginning, but if there is ONE episode you have to watch, it's the one with gay-on-gay crime. And punishment!
I also find HwanTV to be generally hilarious. Taehwan does all the editing himself, so it's interesting to see what he leaves in.
This is from their pre-Peak Time era, and is a great example of how Vanner can take the most heteronormative concept ever and turn it into a gay dance party.
This Funny Moments clip video and the sequel funny moments video are pretty foundational.
Okay, so there are a few popular ships: Taehwan/Gon, Gon/Sungkook, and Hyesung/Sungkook, with Taehwan/Yeongjun being a not that popular but very passionately shipped, mostly by Taehwan.
Let me start by saying that Vanner has an extremely "found family that fucks" vibe, so I am a huge fan of all of it. There are also very few english-language fics on the ol' Ao3, so if you feel the need to write, idk, Gon/Hyesung, go ahead. Do it. Hell, I wouldn't be shocked if they have fucked irl (especially given how explicitly thirsty Hyesung is about Gon AND his brother and how neither of them read as straight).
However I don't want this to go on forever, so I'm going to highlight the few things in canon that make me insane (positive).
First, Taehwan has explicitly called Gon his husband (and those two are extremely Mom & Dad coded) and Yeongjun his soulmate. His soulmate. These are real words he wrote on paper about his members during an episode of Vanner Has a Dream. And everyone knows it too.
Gon explicitly calls Taehwan jagiya and his wife. He is an aggressive flirter, but with Taehwan it's softer and sillier.
Yeongkwang gets jealous when Taehwan's attention goes to other boys (not Gon). This has happened MULTIPLE TIMES. In their pre-debut days, when they were doing the Japanese Live Performance BootcampTM a lot of groups do, Taehwan and Yeongkwang earned the ship name HwanChuru - Churu was his Japanese nickname.
And then there's the Somewhat Close Friends. Who are they? The 96-Line. Why? Because they named their regular Instagram Live Show that because they "didn't get along".
Do you like ships that bicker? Do you like ships that are achingly romantic? Do you like seeing people fall in love on viewable radio???
I literally can't write a better romance than what's happening right now.
Here are some real quotes from EBS Night Radio, hosted by the wonderful Wooseok (former pentagon, who must have the patience of a saint for dealing with this shit). For context, their regular guest spot is for discussing "every day villains" (aka annoying people and situations).
Wooseok: Doesn't Vanner live together now?
Hyesung: Yes! But we're already starting to get bored of it.
Sungkook: I'm not.
Hyesung: Well... aren't you sick of [implied: me]
Sungkook: I'm fine.
~later~
Hyesung: There's a villain who makes me very mindful
Wooseok: A neighbor?
Sungkook: *face like he knows what's about to happen*
Hyesung: when we eat, or when we're getting styled, or in dance practice. Its regretful but there's a person who always appears in my peripheral vision, no matter what we're doing he catches my attention...because of this attention villain I'm unable to do other things
Wooseok: If you really hated it you wouldn't pay attention... but this is a bit like because there are lots of feelings there, like if you lived together for a long time and thoughts developed then you'll be like this
(Big thanks to twitter user inductiveset for that last translation)
Also the Hyesung proposal????? Where Sungkook is just like "I've been waiting for this".
Or when Sungkook just casually wrapped his scarf around Hyesung who was complaining about being cold????
FUCKING. I CAN'T.
*deep breath*
Anyway. Please, please write for the Vanner tag. They're so good and hot and weird about each other.
This primer clearly can't cover everything. And I'm sure I'm leaving out things that even I think are important because frankly, my memory is not as good as it used to be. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments or over on my twitter BoulevardDouble.
The Basics
Vanner debuted on February 14th, 2019 under a company no one has ever heard of called VT Entertainment. The name Vanner is a combination of "victory" and "banner" and as such have had some very flag-themed comebacks. The fandom name is VVS - yes, the diamond term - chosen by Gon, because their fans are precious diamonds. More colloquially, the fans are often called "ppippis" because when you sound out V-V, it kind of sounds like ppi-ppi in Korean. For once, I don't hate it.
The most important thing to know about Vanner's early days is that they were wildly unsuccessful. Just absolutely ignored, lost, forgotten. As a nugufan, I like looking at album sales numbers to see if my groups are trending towards growth, and the Vanner numbers pre-2023 are just fucking depressing. Don't worry, this story has a happy ending.
It is extremely unlikely that VT Entertainment was a money laundering front, simply because no actual money appeared to pass through the company at all. Remember how the 50/50 CEO was like "I sold my car to pay for them!" well the VT CEO worked as a delivery driver.
By the time 2023 rolled around, Vanner only had the debut full-length album, and three single album comebacks.
Every member was working at least one part time job. When they first went on tour, they couldn't pay for many staff, so Gon was in charge of styling, Taehwan makeup, and so on and so on. Taehwan, the leader, ran all of the Vanner social media, up to and including filming, editing, and subtitling their YouTube content. I'll get more into their part time jobs in the individual section.
What changed?
Vanner applied for a strange new reality show called Peak Time. And they dominated.
During their Peak Time run, Vanner trended on Korean social sites because of their incredible live performances. After their win, they signed a 3-year contract with KLAP Entertainment, which should take them up until the '96s have to enlist.
KLAP is an interesting company; they're brand new, with Vanner as their first-ever signees, though at the end of 2023 they added Sistar19 to the roster. Very exciting! KLAP was originally formed in 2020 as a subsidiary of NCSoft, the developers of the "Universe" fan/idol platform (like bubble - iirc, it was mainly used by Cube artists and a few others). However, NCSoft decided to get out of the idol business and the subsidiary was divested. The new owners had worked with KLAP under NCSoft and also brought in some outside C-Suite leadership from industry giant CJ ENM (owns MNet, Wake One, 143 Ent. and more).
From what I can tell, KLAP is actually really well run, and the staff and company seem incredibly invested in Vanner's success. I don't agree with their decision to feature Taehwan on the upcoming MNet "Build Up" show, but really that's not super unusual in the grand scheme of kpop company shenanigans. The big thing is that they're willing to spend to keep these boys in the spotlight.
And their efforts are paying off. Their first comeback post-Peak Time sold over 140,000 albums and landed in the top 100 bestselling kpop albums of 2023.
Vanner don't have an overall concept, except as I mentioned earlier, they're big on flags. And making life better. Which they do so well!
As far as I know, they have never been involved in any scandals, which shouldn't be surprising because who really gives a shit about an idol who sells 2,000 albums.
As of January 7th, 2024, they have 1 full length album, 3 single albums, and 1 EP. They just announced a comeback on January 30th, 2024 with the EP "Capture the Flag", which is why I'm finally writing this primer.
V (Feb 2019) with the title track "Better Do Better"
5cean: V (Sept 2019) with the title track "Crazy Love"
Life (Dec 2020) with the title track (and my beloved) "Form"
Take Off (Feb 2022) with the title "Rollin"
Veni Vidi Vici (Aug 2023) with the title "Performer"
Let's talk about Peak Time
There has been one good survival show ever made and it is Peak Time. And by that, I mean, "a survival show with its heart in the right place."
The premise of Peak Time was to take 23 groups who were stuck in nuguland, disbanded, or were otherwise unsuccessful, and give them a second chance at fame and fortune. They also assembled a 'super group' in Team 24 of hand-picked soloists with the same ambition, led by the sexy-cute Moon Jongup.
Peak Time had no evil editing. No drama for drama's sake. The judging was nearly impeccable. The mentors were real mentors, who gave actual advice and really worked with groups. All the costumes, choreos, and music was paid for by the show so that the groups were on even footing. Some people can complain about screen time, which sure (as a Blitzers fan, I am aware of how they did get shafted), but overall it is the most heartwarming watch.
(The Karam "scandal" I don't blame on the show. I blame that on crazy fans who think 30-year-olds shouldn't date.)
With every performance, Vanner won the hearts of fans - and the other contestants. To this day, they're basically besties with the Bae173 kids. Not to mention the ships that came out of it. For instance, Ghost9's Jinwoo fell in love with Taehwan watching him perform. Gon is in a jagiya-ship with Bae's Junseo. It was Hyesung's idea for Team C - specifically Jongup and Hangyul (his mom's fave) - to show off their hot bodies for "Bad".
I strongly recommend watching Peak Time for something truly uplifting.
Meet Vanner
This is arranged in age order, as usual, but as there's only five of them, I've added more thoughts than I have in other primers. Also I have a lot of feelings.
Lee Taehwan
Basic Info
Born: January 15, 1994 (Capricorn)
Position: Leader, Main Vocal
Roommate: Hyesung, Yeongkwang
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Dog
Part-time Job: Front of house at a tteokbokki restaurant
Why You Should Love Taehwan
God, okay. Where to start. All Taehwan has ever wanted to be is a singer. Emphasis on the singing part. The members and the fans call him "Killing Vocal Lee Taehwan". When he was in middle school, he attended auditions in secret, because his mom didn't support his dream. His dad did, though, and eventually his mom came around.
Unfortunately, his dad passed away before Taehwan could debut and never got to see him realize his dream. Taehwan is also exempt from enlistment because of this - he is the sole money earner in his family, as his mother is older and likely retired and he has no siblings.
His nickname for a while was "Ten Jobs Taehwan" because as Vanner's leader, he literally did everything he could to keep the group together including working multiple part time jobs, giving the group vocal lessons, vocal directing, and is person who convinced them to go on Peak Time. He still has his vlog (HwanTV) though they are further and farther between than they used to be because he's a busy bee these days!
The reason that I'm obsessed with him, however, is because he a) loves to do drag b) looks super hot in it. You put this man in a wig and his entire personality goes from Cute Puppy to Sassmaster 3000 on some Hot Girl Shit. (Though I will say he's low-key sassy all the time). His favorite singers are Beyonce and Hwasa, and his favorite musical is Rebecca. Take from that what you will.
He also smiles and laughs as his defense mechanism. Like. When he's being picked on. Smile. When he's upset. Smile. It's so *clenches fist*
Taehwan is just a super-talented, hard working, no thoughts head empty, (gay gay gay) main vocal.
Other Notable Taehwan Facts
The "I want to be a singer" part is important because he doesn't ever really say "idol". And that's because Taehwan and dancing don't get along. There are lives where the other Vanners are like "OMFG Taehwan is practicing choreo by himself???!!!!"
Taehwan was originally part of Pledis and trained with 17, and I suspect the dancing thing is why he left/was cut. He then was at WH Creative with Sungkook and Hyesung (and Sunghyuk from TAN!) before they finally joined VT entertainment.
Even now, Taehwan still has a hard time with choreo.
Important Taehwan Performance
This one was hard because as a Singer Who Sings, he has like 8000 live performances. However, I consider this a foundational Taehwan video.
Gon (Lee Wonseo)
Basic Info
Born: August 7, 1995 (Leo)
Position: Main Rapper, Main Dancer, Lead Vocal
Roommate: Sungkook
Pets: A snake named Mumu! (seen in the Better Do Better and Form MVs)
Representative Animal: Dinosaur
Part-time Job: Barista at Ediya
Why You Should Love Gon
Because he's a weirdo. Just like. Bizarre. But also really competent? Gon is the designated "good at life skills" member, which is devastating for me, personally. He is very hot, very sexy, very good at rapping and singing and dancing and also just an incredible silly billy.
Gon is a fantastic dancer (literally one of the only idols to make the smoke challenge look good), and originally, was simply the Vanner boys' dance trainer & choreographer. The legend is that the VT CEO asked him to join the group five times and Gon turned him down every time. But the sixth time the CEO asked, he said yes, because it "seemed rude to say no again".
We're also lucky because, while he has always wanted to be an idol, it took Gon some time to find his way to Vanner, which means he completed his enlistment when he was young! Yay! A 95 I don't need to cry about!
Other Notable Gon Facts
Gon is the baby of a big family, with two older sisters and an older brother. His parents seem very supportive of his life choices, to the point where his dad was planning on getting a tattoo with him & his brother, Wonho. He didn't care about the tattoos because it was 'alright since they work in entertainment'. Very progressive, Papa Gon!
Meanwhile, Wonho, also known as Tabasco, produced three of my favorite Vanner songs ever! Form, Lachata, and Purge Day. He also apparently sounds exactly like Gon on the phone, and they have pulled pranks on their parents because of this.
Important Gon Performance
As you may have guessed, as their main dancer and main rapper and a leo, Gon is frequently the star of the show. This one, however, is what put him on the map for most new fans.
Park Hyesung
Basic Info
Born: January 17, 1996 (Capricorn)
Position: Lead Vocal
Roommate: Taehwan, Yeongkwang
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Hamster
Part-time Job: Sales associate at Lush, and I believe also worked at the tteokbokki restaurant with Taehwan
Why You Should Love Hyesung
HOO BOY DO I HAVE FEELINGS ABOUT THIS ONE. First and foremost, Hyesung is a cutie. In his own words "You act cute. I was born cute." He's technically an introvert, but on camera he's very outgoing and is frequently their MC. Peak Time basically treated him like the leader. He's also the member most likely to kick off the loving bickering, especially with his fellow 96-liner, Sungkook.
However, what really gets me about this guy is his continued belief that he's a bad person. (I have my theories on why, but I'll stick to actual canon for now). He's said multiple times how he feels like he's deeply flawed and is always trying to be better -- and not in the usual idol way. Like it's a personality issue. He's called himself the worst roommate, as well.
Meanwhile, no one in the world thinks this but him. All his members think he's cute and kind. Fans have run into him at his part time jobs and only have good things to say. Random non-fans who found out he was famous later have only good things to say. There's a great story about a guy who needed presents for his girlfriend's family and dropped like $400 on bath bombs at Lush and apparently Hyesung helped him for like two hours and was just the nicest guy.
He is a good person who thinks he's terrible!!!!
Other Notable Hyesung Facts
Hyesung is a plant dad! He has plants all over his room/the big apartment, and also gives them to the other members.
He also has a blog (Honeylog) where he writes about his daily life and uploads cute anecdotes and we often get funny behind the scene pictures of him and the other members. This is a carry over from the ~Broke Days~ and it's cool that even now that they have a real company, the Vanners get to keep doing what they enjoy.
Important Hyesung Performance
As the resident cutie pie, Rollin would work here, but since I've already linked that above, here is the first ever Peak Time performance. Pink-hair Hyesung stands OUT.
Park Sungkook (former stagename: Ahxian)
Basic Info
Born: March 27, 1996 (Aries)
Position: Lead Rapper
Roommate: Gon
Pets: Miniature poodle named Roy
Representative Animal: Chinchilla
Part-time Job: Delivery driver
Why You Should Love Sungkook
Because he's a giant loser!!!! But in the best way!!!! The most Some Dude to ever Some Dude in a kpop group!!!!
Not only is Sungkook the owner of Vanner's single braincell, he's also an actual parody of a "T" MBTI type. Like. Literally a quote from a live just a few days ago.
Hyesung: I don't think I've ever seen a sunrise.
Sungkook: I have.
Hyesung: Can you describe the feeling of a sunrise?
Sungkook: It's nothing special. The sun just rose.
Sungkook tends to be one of the more anxious members of the group, but that said, he's also deceptively silly. Sungkook is frequently the initiator of Vanner's brand of unprompted roleplay, and is almost always the "husband" of any other member when they pretend they're a couple. This happens. A lot. Like. A LOT.
Other Notable Sungkook Facts
Along with Gon, Sungkook tends to write a lot of the lyrics for Vanner songs, especially the rap sections. He's actually an insanely talented rapper, and while it never got aired, Jay Park praised him for being the most stable live performer in the rapping subunit.
Sungkook also likes to work out and is particularly proud of his strong thighs. This is a problem for me, personally, and also other people who will be mentioned in the shipping section.
Important Sungkook Performance
While my favorite Sungkook verse is on Nasty, this one is the one that literally made my jaw drop and shot him up my "Oh no... him" list.
Yeongkwang (Ahn Yeongjun)
Basic Info
Born: September 22, 1997
Position: Visual, Sub Vocal, Sub Rapper
Roommate: Taehwan, Hyesung
Pets: None
Representative Animal: Fox (but formerly a frog)
Part-time Job: Worked at a Cinema
Why You Should Love Yeongkwang
I'm not going to lie, it took a while (read: about a month) for me to get Yeongkwang. He is pretty, quiet, and doesn't get as many parts, so he can fly under the radar.
But he's also really dang weird. He and Gon are basically like the same person. There's a great clip of Gon ducking under a lampshade and then popping up over it like a whack-a-mole during a photoshoot, and then an hour later, Yeongkwang doing the SAME THING.
He also really comes alive during variety. The minute there's a game to be played, it's like a switch flips. Not only will he win everything, he's also going to be the most entertaining one.
Recently, the Vanners played mafia. And spoiler, he was the first person to die. And yet, he was the funniest member. How is that even possible???? He just has that kind of charisma. If you watch Picnic Time (which I will link, obviously), there is no way you don't fall in love with him.
Other Notable Yeongkwang Facts
Yeongkwang is the biggest Highlight/Beast fan ever. I mean that seriously. One of the very first HwanTVs (from the Broke Years) shows a built and shirtless Gikwang as his phone lockscreen.
Also his stagename? Yeong + kwang from Yeongjun/Gikwang. Yeah. He named himself after his favorite singer. Who he later got to meet as a judge on Peak Time.
He is an active member of the Highlight fanclub. Went to their recent concert. And even well before debut, he auditioned at Cube several times specifically because he wanted to be a junior of theirs.
Important Yeongkwang Performance
As I mentioned, he can really fly under the radar, and frankly, in the early days he wasn't very confident in his singing (or rapping - and he's a pretty dang good rapper). At their recent fanconcerts, though, he & Hyesung did a cover of NCT Dream's version of Candy and he really shines.
Boy Content
Boy are we blessed for content. The new company has really gone above and beyond, and unlike some other nugus who will remain unnamed, they subtitle everything in English, Chinese, and Japanese.
Obviously, I recommend watching Peak Time, which can be seen on Viki in the US (and I believe the UK).
They also have a post-Peak Time show called Picnic Time. You can start here at episode 1, however if there is just one episode you watch, make it Ep. 3, "Upset Staircase".
In non-PT content, Vanner started their own variety series, Vanner Has a Dream, which is a fucking riot. Again, you can start at the beginning, but if there is ONE episode you have to watch, it's the one with gay-on-gay crime. And punishment!
I also find HwanTV to be generally hilarious. Taehwan does all the editing himself, so it's interesting to see what he leaves in.
This is from their pre-Peak Time era, and is a great example of how Vanner can take the most heteronormative concept ever and turn it into a gay dance party.
This Funny Moments clip video and the sequel funny moments video are pretty foundational.
The Ships
Okay, so there are a few popular ships: Taehwan/Gon, Gon/Sungkook, and Hyesung/Sungkook, with Taehwan/Yeongjun being a not that popular but very passionately shipped, mostly by Taehwan.
Let me start by saying that Vanner has an extremely "found family that fucks" vibe, so I am a huge fan of all of it. There are also very few english-language fics on the ol' Ao3, so if you feel the need to write, idk, Gon/Hyesung, go ahead. Do it. Hell, I wouldn't be shocked if they have fucked irl (especially given how explicitly thirsty Hyesung is about Gon AND his brother and how neither of them read as straight).
However I don't want this to go on forever, so I'm going to highlight the few things in canon that make me insane (positive).
First, Taehwan has explicitly called Gon his husband (and those two are extremely Mom & Dad coded) and Yeongjun his soulmate. His soulmate. These are real words he wrote on paper about his members during an episode of Vanner Has a Dream. And everyone knows it too.
Gon explicitly calls Taehwan jagiya and his wife. He is an aggressive flirter, but with Taehwan it's softer and sillier.
Yeongkwang gets jealous when Taehwan's attention goes to other boys (not Gon). This has happened MULTIPLE TIMES. In their pre-debut days, when they were doing the Japanese Live Performance BootcampTM a lot of groups do, Taehwan and Yeongkwang earned the ship name HwanChuru - Churu was his Japanese nickname.
And then there's the Somewhat Close Friends. Who are they? The 96-Line. Why? Because they named their regular Instagram Live Show that because they "didn't get along".
Do you like ships that bicker? Do you like ships that are achingly romantic? Do you like seeing people fall in love on viewable radio???
I literally can't write a better romance than what's happening right now.
Here are some real quotes from EBS Night Radio, hosted by the wonderful Wooseok (former pentagon, who must have the patience of a saint for dealing with this shit). For context, their regular guest spot is for discussing "every day villains" (aka annoying people and situations).
Wooseok: Doesn't Vanner live together now?
Hyesung: Yes! But we're already starting to get bored of it.
Sungkook: I'm not.
Hyesung: Well... aren't you sick of [implied: me]
Sungkook: I'm fine.
~later~
Hyesung: There's a villain who makes me very mindful
Wooseok: A neighbor?
Sungkook: *face like he knows what's about to happen*
Hyesung: when we eat, or when we're getting styled, or in dance practice. Its regretful but there's a person who always appears in my peripheral vision, no matter what we're doing he catches my attention...because of this attention villain I'm unable to do other things
Wooseok: If you really hated it you wouldn't pay attention... but this is a bit like because there are lots of feelings there, like if you lived together for a long time and thoughts developed then you'll be like this
(Big thanks to twitter user inductiveset for that last translation)
Also the Hyesung proposal????? Where Sungkook is just like "I've been waiting for this".
Or when Sungkook just casually wrapped his scarf around Hyesung who was complaining about being cold????
FUCKING. I CAN'T.
*deep breath*
Anyway. Please, please write for the Vanner tag. They're so good and hot and weird about each other.
This primer clearly can't cover everything. And I'm sure I'm leaving out things that even I think are important because frankly, my memory is not as good as it used to be. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments or over on my twitter BoulevardDouble.
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Date: 2024-01-14 08:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-01-16 02:49 pm (UTC)My answer, in short, is Internalized Homophobia.
Hyesung is objectively a good person!! Like he does good things, he's nice and kind, and his brand of impishness is only ever done with love. However he talks about how letting people in will let them see his flaws. What do you keep on the inside?
Things like your sexuality. Things that you're not allowed to show, not just because you're an idol, but because your entire society has told you it's bad.
Hyesung is SO CLEARLY a gay man (whose best friend is another gay man! Taehwan is out here loud and proud!) but he is the one who has the harshest, "Don't DO that" reactions when Gon or Hwan or YJ or Sungkook get up to some homosexual shenanigans.
I'm convinced he knows he's gay and thinks being gay is letting everyone down.
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Date: 2024-01-17 03:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-01-22 11:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-01-24 11:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-01-26 01:42 am (UTC)