Shout Out! A Blitzers Primer
Nov. 18th, 2022 12:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
boulevarddoubleTrying to get back into the fandom blog life so I thought - why not do a primer or two? I follow a lot of young or otherwise "nugu" groups, and primers are a good way to introduce them to people. So, who better to start with than my bestest boys, my sons, just some dudes who sing and dance real good.
(Look at them, they were freshly-debuted babies in that picture.)
Okay, first the basics:
Blitzers debuted in May of 2021. They chose the name Blitzers because they want to "with music and dance charge towards the world in a blitz". They're Wuzo Entertainment's first and only kpop group.
(I am not convinced Wuzo isn't a money laundering front.) (For legal reasons that is a joke.)
They were originally conceived as a 10-member group, however only seven boys debuted. Stylistically, they are high-energy performers who combine rock sounds with more traditional kpop elements. They are, and I mean this as unbiased as I can be while also being very biased, incredible dancers. Several reactors on YouTube have compared their dancing to early Ateez.
Unlike many 4th gen groups, they don't really have a "concept", however their "theme" is travel. For their latest EP, the members filmed teaser trailers all over the world, shot the MV in Lahore, Pakistan, and then released an MV for the ballad off the album that was filmed alongside the teasers. They've also done a short US tour and a surprisingly long Europe fanconcert tour.
The fandom name is Blee, and yes they do y/n the shit out of that.
Despite allegedly being a money-laundering front, Wuzo has done a great job helping fans get to know the boys. They each have their own YouTube content series, which I'll link in their profiles, and all of their videos are subtitled, usually upon release, in English and Japanese, and most have Spanish, too.
So far, Blitzers have escaped the usual scandal and controversies, though they do keep getting mistaken for BTS by large western media outlets.
As of November 16th, they have released three EPs and one single. They've also done three OSTs, including one for a Korean BL.
Check-In (May 2021) with the title track "Breathe Again"
Seat-Belt (Oct 2021) with the title track "Will Make a Mistake"
Bobbin' (Jan 2022) with the single "Bobbin'"
Win-Dow (July 2022) with the title "Hit the Bass"
My current favorite song is this b-side from Win-dow. It's so freakin' good. The guitar!!!
They also did this cover of "Age of Violence" by H.O.T. for a tv show, and I'm obsessed with it.
Meet the Blitzboys
Arranged by age order.
Go_u (Jang Junho)
Basic Info:
Born: June 15, 2001 (Gemini)
Position: Sub-vocal
Roommates: Jinhwa and Lutan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Go_u:
He always looks like he wants to murder someone. Like look at this. Look at this. They made them dress up in animal onesies. This is a bear that would eat a camper.
He's also a massive gamer, huge introvert, and is known for being able to sleep through anything. The oldest of the Blitzen, he is actually known for being one of the least likely to clean up at the dorm.
Other Notable Go_U Facts:
His baby brother is Jiho from Nine.i!
YouTube Content:
Go_u loves video games, so his content is all about gaming. Usually the other members show up to play with him. And then, of course, there are the Zombie Games. I'll link those later because they're *chef's kiss*. For now, here's a fun one featuring Chris & Jinhwa.
Juhan (Hong Seunghyun)
Basic Info:
Born: June 21, 2001 (Gemini cusp)
Position: Lead Vocal
Roommate: Sya
Pets: A dog named JJ!
Why You Should Love Juhan:
Juhan is one of those deep speaking voice, light singing voice weirdos. Blitzers are pretty easily divided into the arty types and the athletic types, and he's a chill, creative boy (though he did take Tae Kwon Do for a long time). He loves photography, and that's what his YouTube content is all about. He's also one of the 'good listeners' of the group, really balancing out the hyung-line with that much needed energy.
Also, look at this!!! A-goddamn-dorable.
Other Notable Juhan Facts:
He's the President of the Act Up Club. Like if you want a thirst trap selfie, you've got it. I didn't even have to try to find those. I think they're all from the same month, even.
YouTube Content:
Like I said, Juhan likes photography, so his content is all about that! This is a fun one featuring Chris as his night photography assistant.
Jinhwa (Choi Jinhwa)
Basic Facts:
Born: January 15, 2002 (Capricorn)
Position: Main Dancer, Main Rapper, Leader
Roommates: Go_u & Lutan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Jinhwa:
As far as leaders go, Jinhwa has probably one of the easier jobs in the industry. I suspect he became the leader not just because he is good at being in charge, but also because no one else wanted to do it. Jinhwa is the lone Extrovert in a group full of Introverts.
He is also possibly the most competitive kpop idol I've seen, and that's saying something. His YouTube content series is literally him doing challenges, usually against the other members. He gets so annoyed when he or his team is losing. I'm very fond of his exasperation.
That said, he's also very sweet, lets the maknae crawl all over him and beat him at chess (without too much complaining), encourages so many backstage shenanigans, and tells terrible Dad jokes to make the other members groan. Plus, look at him dressed as a FROG.
Other Notable Jinhwa Facts:
Did I mention he's the main dancer? Honestly, with how good of dancers they all are there isn't a "lead dancer" position like you see in some other groups, but Jinhwa's passion is clearly dancing, and (bonus!) he's a huge Taemin fanboy.
YouTube Content:
Honestly, I'm really impressed that they turned "competitive bitch" into an entertaining segment. This is the first episode of "Jolly Jinhwa" and I think it also shows some fun dynamics between them.
Sya (Lee Junyoung)
Basic Info:
Born: September 9, 2002 (Virgo)
Position: Rapper, Sub-vocal
Roommate: Juhan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Sya:
Listen, Jinhwa may be the leader but Sya? Sya is in charge. He has just an incredible amount of swagger, especially when you consider it's packed into a tiny person. (I don't believe there are good official heights, but I would doubt if he's taller than 5'7").
He's a huge iKon fanboy, as they're the ones that inspired him to be an idol. He even covered iKon - all by himself - for the It's Live anniversary special.
Sya's also very clever, good at the word games idols often play. He's also the only one they really trust in the kitchen (more on this in a bit). He's unsurprisingly a fan favorite because look at this shit:
Other Notable Sya Facts:
Sya looks like an actual video game character. When they came into the US, the customs agent told him he looked like Link from Zelda. Eddie Avila did a video of making him over like Hope from Final Fantasy.
YouTube Content:
Sya enjoys food and eating, and his solo content is called Syachelin, where he (and usually other members) review food or make up recipes and then review that. In this episode, they do a few challenges to identify various brands.
Chris (Han Chris)
Basic Info:
Born: November 19, 2002 (Scorpio)
Position: Lead Rapper
Roommate: Wooju
Pet: A samoyed named El!
Why You Should Love Chris:
Chris is... Gosh. How to put this. Chris is the platonic ideal of a Kpop Dog Boy. He's very sweet, very innocent, and you never really know what he's thinking. But he's always willing to put it out there.
He's also the member when shenanigans are happening, there's a 99% chance that he's involved. The group comedian (physical comedy category).
Despite being one the most out-there Blitzen, Chris gets both easily embarrassed and easily scared. It's So Goddamn Cute. And unintentionally hilarious. Not so shockingly, his Government Assigned Animal is Puppy.
Other Notable Chris Facts:
While he was born in Seoul, Chris mostly grew up in Las Vegas. On their US tour, they had an interpreter, however Chris did most of the on-stage translating himself! Also, he used to play hockey in middle school. When you hear him speak (English) you will be like "Ah, yes. That tracks."
Unsurprisingly, he is the VP of the Act Up Club.
YouTube Content:
Chris' is probably my least favorite, I'll be honest. It's called Chris' CrossFit and it's usually him showing how to work out, often with the members. However, this episode did get us an excellent peek into dorm life (featuring Wooju).
Lutan (Choi Gyeongseok)
Basic Info:
Born: December 6, 2003 (Sagittarius)
Position: Sub-rapper
Roommates: Go_u, Jinhwa
Pets: A turtle named Bbukyi!
Why You Should Love Lutan:
He is just a tall, shy, soft boy who wants his friends to do well!!!! Like, indescribably soft. Recently, Blitzers went on some camp-themed idol variety show, and during their "emotional segment" Lutan had to guess how many of the members he had upset or made angry, and while he guessed like, three, the answer was zero. Because he's too nice. That was literally what they told him.
Lutan is the member with the least amount of lines, and I do suspect that was a skill thing, at least at first. On Win-dow, he gets much better parts, and participated in some of the lyric writing alongside the other members. On the b-side, "Slide", he almost gets a full verse to himself. He has a great, deep voice, so I'm excited to continue to watch him grow as an artist.
PLUS, LOOK AT HIM DRESSED AS A SHARK!!! DEVASTATING!!!
Other Notable Lutan facts:
Like Chris, he posts a lot of selfies, but slightly less thirsty - most of the time, so he has been dubbed (by me) Secretary of the Act Up Club. He also likes to work out, like a lot. We know this because one time the official Blitzers YouTube captions called him a "Fitness Whore".
YouTube Content:
I'm not going to lie, I don't think I've watched more than five minutes of Lutan's content. However, conceptually, I adore it. Because the man does arts & crafts. How cute and relaxing is that!! He's a good, soft boy!!!!
Wooju (Cho Wooju)
Basic Info:
Born: January 21, 2004 (Aquarius)
Position: Main Vocal
Roommate: Chris
Pets: Cat named Leo!
Why You Should Love Wooju:
Oh, Wooju. According to my observations, there are three types of maknaes in the world. Maknae (On Top), Maknae (Baby), and Maknae (Baby and Hates It). Wooju lands firmly in the third category.
First, the hyungs seem all-too-happy to remind him exactly where he lands in their hierarchy, even though it's done with love. Second, he's a big brother himself, so he's used to being in charge. Third, even though he's underage in Korea, he clearly wants to be part of the Act Up Crew. The company doesn't let him (at one point they stitched his shirt to his pants so it wouldn't ride up during a relay dance) but that boy is itching to grow up. According to one of their behinds, he contributes the most money to their team "swear jar."
That said, everyone adores him. He's an energetic weirdo, and they all encourage him to be his best self. He, Chris, and Jinhwa are constantly in shenaniganland. Wooju also has the biggest Theater Kid Energy, busting out impressions and throwing himself into any skit wholeheartedly (you'll see what I mean in YouTube content).
He's also the official Cat Boy, since every group needs one.
Other Notable Wooju Facts:
Not only is Wooju their main vocal, he's already acting in a web drama!
YouTube Content:
Honestly, this is my favorite. Basically, Wooju decided to recreate scenes from iconic kdramas and movies, but he plays every role. It's fucking hilarious. Sometimes you'll get cameos of the other members' back or hands. This is the most recent and also my favorite, featuring the back of Jinhwa's head.
Boy Content
If you watch just one piece of Boy Content to better get to know the members, please let it be this one.
Yes, Chris isn't there for that one, but don't worry, they made a follow up Zombie Game on their European Tour and Chris is the main character.
Zombie Game #2: Part 1 and Part 2
They've also been on a few variety shows.
My favorite is their appearance on Hit Village, as it's like a 40-minute roast of Go_u. Perfect viewing experience. This episode also reveals Juhan and Wooju as their key Girl Group Choreo members and that Chris is freakishly good at limbo.
Five of them also combined forces with Bug-A-Boo and part of Omega X for an episode of Weekly Idol, which really cemented the "Why is it Always Chris" feelings.
I also very much enjoy their own content. This anniversary challenge video was just incredible.
Ships
As of writing this, there are five fics on Ao3 and one of them's mine so go goddamn nuts. There's no One Ship to Rule Them All or anything. Do whatever you want, pioneer some tags.
You want some Size Difference trope? May I interest you in Sya/Lutan.
And They Were Roommates? Chris/Wooju is a good one for that.
But really, the boys themselves put together a list of ship ideas, with the caveat that no one wants to date Jinhwa (and I bet he's salty about it). Read the whole interview, because it's hilarious.
"If you could date a member, who would it be and why?"
Anyway, this thing is already too long. I hope you enjoyed. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments, and let me know if there are things you'd like to see covered in future primers!
Shout Out Blitzers!
(Look at them, they were freshly-debuted babies in that picture.)
Okay, first the basics:
Blitzers debuted in May of 2021. They chose the name Blitzers because they want to "with music and dance charge towards the world in a blitz". They're Wuzo Entertainment's first and only kpop group.
(I am not convinced Wuzo isn't a money laundering front.) (For legal reasons that is a joke.)
They were originally conceived as a 10-member group, however only seven boys debuted. Stylistically, they are high-energy performers who combine rock sounds with more traditional kpop elements. They are, and I mean this as unbiased as I can be while also being very biased, incredible dancers. Several reactors on YouTube have compared their dancing to early Ateez.
Unlike many 4th gen groups, they don't really have a "concept", however their "theme" is travel. For their latest EP, the members filmed teaser trailers all over the world, shot the MV in Lahore, Pakistan, and then released an MV for the ballad off the album that was filmed alongside the teasers. They've also done a short US tour and a surprisingly long Europe fanconcert tour.
The fandom name is Blee, and yes they do y/n the shit out of that.
Despite allegedly being a money-laundering front, Wuzo has done a great job helping fans get to know the boys. They each have their own YouTube content series, which I'll link in their profiles, and all of their videos are subtitled, usually upon release, in English and Japanese, and most have Spanish, too.
So far, Blitzers have escaped the usual scandal and controversies, though they do keep getting mistaken for BTS by large western media outlets.
As of November 16th, they have released three EPs and one single. They've also done three OSTs, including one for a Korean BL.
Check-In (May 2021) with the title track "Breathe Again"
Seat-Belt (Oct 2021) with the title track "Will Make a Mistake"
Bobbin' (Jan 2022) with the single "Bobbin'"
Win-Dow (July 2022) with the title "Hit the Bass"
My current favorite song is this b-side from Win-dow. It's so freakin' good. The guitar!!!
They also did this cover of "Age of Violence" by H.O.T. for a tv show, and I'm obsessed with it.
Meet the Blitzboys
Arranged by age order.
Go_u (Jang Junho)
Basic Info:
Born: June 15, 2001 (Gemini)
Position: Sub-vocal
Roommates: Jinhwa and Lutan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Go_u:
He always looks like he wants to murder someone. Like look at this. Look at this. They made them dress up in animal onesies. This is a bear that would eat a camper.
He's also a massive gamer, huge introvert, and is known for being able to sleep through anything. The oldest of the Blitzen, he is actually known for being one of the least likely to clean up at the dorm.
Other Notable Go_U Facts:
His baby brother is Jiho from Nine.i!
YouTube Content:
Go_u loves video games, so his content is all about gaming. Usually the other members show up to play with him. And then, of course, there are the Zombie Games. I'll link those later because they're *chef's kiss*. For now, here's a fun one featuring Chris & Jinhwa.
Juhan (Hong Seunghyun)
Basic Info:
Born: June 21, 2001 (Gemini cusp)
Position: Lead Vocal
Roommate: Sya
Pets: A dog named JJ!
Why You Should Love Juhan:
Juhan is one of those deep speaking voice, light singing voice weirdos. Blitzers are pretty easily divided into the arty types and the athletic types, and he's a chill, creative boy (though he did take Tae Kwon Do for a long time). He loves photography, and that's what his YouTube content is all about. He's also one of the 'good listeners' of the group, really balancing out the hyung-line with that much needed energy.
Also, look at this!!! A-goddamn-dorable.
Other Notable Juhan Facts:
He's the President of the Act Up Club. Like if you want a thirst trap selfie, you've got it. I didn't even have to try to find those. I think they're all from the same month, even.
YouTube Content:
Like I said, Juhan likes photography, so his content is all about that! This is a fun one featuring Chris as his night photography assistant.
Jinhwa (Choi Jinhwa)
Basic Facts:
Born: January 15, 2002 (Capricorn)
Position: Main Dancer, Main Rapper, Leader
Roommates: Go_u & Lutan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Jinhwa:
As far as leaders go, Jinhwa has probably one of the easier jobs in the industry. I suspect he became the leader not just because he is good at being in charge, but also because no one else wanted to do it. Jinhwa is the lone Extrovert in a group full of Introverts.
He is also possibly the most competitive kpop idol I've seen, and that's saying something. His YouTube content series is literally him doing challenges, usually against the other members. He gets so annoyed when he or his team is losing. I'm very fond of his exasperation.
That said, he's also very sweet, lets the maknae crawl all over him and beat him at chess (without too much complaining), encourages so many backstage shenanigans, and tells terrible Dad jokes to make the other members groan. Plus, look at him dressed as a FROG.
Other Notable Jinhwa Facts:
Did I mention he's the main dancer? Honestly, with how good of dancers they all are there isn't a "lead dancer" position like you see in some other groups, but Jinhwa's passion is clearly dancing, and (bonus!) he's a huge Taemin fanboy.
YouTube Content:
Honestly, I'm really impressed that they turned "competitive bitch" into an entertaining segment. This is the first episode of "Jolly Jinhwa" and I think it also shows some fun dynamics between them.
Sya (Lee Junyoung)
Basic Info:
Born: September 9, 2002 (Virgo)
Position: Rapper, Sub-vocal
Roommate: Juhan
Pets: Unknown
Why You Should Love Sya:
Listen, Jinhwa may be the leader but Sya? Sya is in charge. He has just an incredible amount of swagger, especially when you consider it's packed into a tiny person. (I don't believe there are good official heights, but I would doubt if he's taller than 5'7").
He's a huge iKon fanboy, as they're the ones that inspired him to be an idol. He even covered iKon - all by himself - for the It's Live anniversary special.
Sya's also very clever, good at the word games idols often play. He's also the only one they really trust in the kitchen (more on this in a bit). He's unsurprisingly a fan favorite because look at this shit:
Other Notable Sya Facts:
Sya looks like an actual video game character. When they came into the US, the customs agent told him he looked like Link from Zelda. Eddie Avila did a video of making him over like Hope from Final Fantasy.
YouTube Content:
Sya enjoys food and eating, and his solo content is called Syachelin, where he (and usually other members) review food or make up recipes and then review that. In this episode, they do a few challenges to identify various brands.
Chris (Han Chris)
Basic Info:
Born: November 19, 2002 (Scorpio)
Position: Lead Rapper
Roommate: Wooju
Pet: A samoyed named El!
Why You Should Love Chris:
Chris is... Gosh. How to put this. Chris is the platonic ideal of a Kpop Dog Boy. He's very sweet, very innocent, and you never really know what he's thinking. But he's always willing to put it out there.
He's also the member when shenanigans are happening, there's a 99% chance that he's involved. The group comedian (physical comedy category).
Despite being one the most out-there Blitzen, Chris gets both easily embarrassed and easily scared. It's So Goddamn Cute. And unintentionally hilarious. Not so shockingly, his Government Assigned Animal is Puppy.
Other Notable Chris Facts:
While he was born in Seoul, Chris mostly grew up in Las Vegas. On their US tour, they had an interpreter, however Chris did most of the on-stage translating himself! Also, he used to play hockey in middle school. When you hear him speak (English) you will be like "Ah, yes. That tracks."
Unsurprisingly, he is the VP of the Act Up Club.
YouTube Content:
Chris' is probably my least favorite, I'll be honest. It's called Chris' CrossFit and it's usually him showing how to work out, often with the members. However, this episode did get us an excellent peek into dorm life (featuring Wooju).
Lutan (Choi Gyeongseok)
Basic Info:
Born: December 6, 2003 (Sagittarius)
Position: Sub-rapper
Roommates: Go_u, Jinhwa
Pets: A turtle named Bbukyi!
Why You Should Love Lutan:
He is just a tall, shy, soft boy who wants his friends to do well!!!! Like, indescribably soft. Recently, Blitzers went on some camp-themed idol variety show, and during their "emotional segment" Lutan had to guess how many of the members he had upset or made angry, and while he guessed like, three, the answer was zero. Because he's too nice. That was literally what they told him.
Lutan is the member with the least amount of lines, and I do suspect that was a skill thing, at least at first. On Win-dow, he gets much better parts, and participated in some of the lyric writing alongside the other members. On the b-side, "Slide", he almost gets a full verse to himself. He has a great, deep voice, so I'm excited to continue to watch him grow as an artist.
PLUS, LOOK AT HIM DRESSED AS A SHARK!!! DEVASTATING!!!
Other Notable Lutan facts:
Like Chris, he posts a lot of selfies, but slightly less thirsty - most of the time, so he has been dubbed (by me) Secretary of the Act Up Club. He also likes to work out, like a lot. We know this because one time the official Blitzers YouTube captions called him a "Fitness Whore".
YouTube Content:
I'm not going to lie, I don't think I've watched more than five minutes of Lutan's content. However, conceptually, I adore it. Because the man does arts & crafts. How cute and relaxing is that!! He's a good, soft boy!!!!
Wooju (Cho Wooju)
Basic Info:
Born: January 21, 2004 (Aquarius)
Position: Main Vocal
Roommate: Chris
Pets: Cat named Leo!
Why You Should Love Wooju:
Oh, Wooju. According to my observations, there are three types of maknaes in the world. Maknae (On Top), Maknae (Baby), and Maknae (Baby and Hates It). Wooju lands firmly in the third category.
First, the hyungs seem all-too-happy to remind him exactly where he lands in their hierarchy, even though it's done with love. Second, he's a big brother himself, so he's used to being in charge. Third, even though he's underage in Korea, he clearly wants to be part of the Act Up Crew. The company doesn't let him (at one point they stitched his shirt to his pants so it wouldn't ride up during a relay dance) but that boy is itching to grow up. According to one of their behinds, he contributes the most money to their team "swear jar."
That said, everyone adores him. He's an energetic weirdo, and they all encourage him to be his best self. He, Chris, and Jinhwa are constantly in shenaniganland. Wooju also has the biggest Theater Kid Energy, busting out impressions and throwing himself into any skit wholeheartedly (you'll see what I mean in YouTube content).
He's also the official Cat Boy, since every group needs one.
Other Notable Wooju Facts:
Not only is Wooju their main vocal, he's already acting in a web drama!
YouTube Content:
Honestly, this is my favorite. Basically, Wooju decided to recreate scenes from iconic kdramas and movies, but he plays every role. It's fucking hilarious. Sometimes you'll get cameos of the other members' back or hands. This is the most recent and also my favorite, featuring the back of Jinhwa's head.
Boy Content
If you watch just one piece of Boy Content to better get to know the members, please let it be this one.
Yes, Chris isn't there for that one, but don't worry, they made a follow up Zombie Game on their European Tour and Chris is the main character.
Zombie Game #2: Part 1 and Part 2
They've also been on a few variety shows.
My favorite is their appearance on Hit Village, as it's like a 40-minute roast of Go_u. Perfect viewing experience. This episode also reveals Juhan and Wooju as their key Girl Group Choreo members and that Chris is freakishly good at limbo.
Five of them also combined forces with Bug-A-Boo and part of Omega X for an episode of Weekly Idol, which really cemented the "Why is it Always Chris" feelings.
I also very much enjoy their own content. This anniversary challenge video was just incredible.
Ships
As of writing this, there are five fics on Ao3 and one of them's mine so go goddamn nuts. There's no One Ship to Rule Them All or anything. Do whatever you want, pioneer some tags.
You want some Size Difference trope? May I interest you in Sya/Lutan.
And They Were Roommates? Chris/Wooju is a good one for that.
But really, the boys themselves put together a list of ship ideas, with the caveat that no one wants to date Jinhwa (and I bet he's salty about it). Read the whole interview, because it's hilarious.
"If you could date a member, who would it be and why?"
Anyway, this thing is already too long. I hope you enjoyed. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments, and let me know if there are things you'd like to see covered in future primers!
no subject
Date: 2022-11-18 10:45 pm (UTC)Blitzers is a fun name and the loose travel theme seems fun. I will have to check them out more when I have time to dive in. It's neat to check out new groups. (Even if I always get reality checked by the birth years lol. 2004???? Truly, the passage of time is relentless.)
Thanks for sharing!
no subject
Date: 2022-11-18 11:20 pm (UTC)And yes, the 2004 makes me want to die, but at least it's not as young as sooooo many of the groups debuting this year. (That we're seeing so many 14yos is really kind of upsetting, actually)
no subject
Date: 2022-11-23 03:09 pm (UTC)