Proving that the original often is the best, “The King of Mask Singer” is knocking it out of the park. And not just with its entertaining panel of judges, but with its A-list competitors. The latest to surprise viewers was NCT 127’s Doyoung (né Kim Dong-Young).
Sure, the idol is super busy with his group’s promotions and world tour, which may have tricked some viewers into thinking that Assistant Manager Kim — the persona he competed as — couldn’t possibly be Doyoung.
For his first song, Doyoung sang Lee Moon-Sae’s “A Little Girl” against Section Chief Park (celebrity interior designer Jasson, who’s married to actress Hong Hyun-Hee). Doyoung seemed genuinely surprised when he beat the latter with a score of 72 to 27.
Showing off his versatility as an entertainer, Doyoung’s “personal skills” segments on the show ranged from imitating characters from “SpongeBob SquarePants” to dancing like the idol he is.
For the third round, Doyoung sang Nell’s “Time Spent Walking Through Memories” and soundly beat his competitor Paper Airplane (Hangzoo of Rhythm Power) with a score of 74 to 25.
Then came the finals. Did Doyoung become the “The King of Mask Singer“? You can find out by subscribing to KOCOWA.
Doyoung isn’t the first (or last) well known celebrity to appear on “The King Of Mask Singer.” “Deadpool” himself (aka actor Ryan Reynolds) made an appearance last year that earned him headlines not only in South Korea, but also the United States. (This was two years after Reynolds did a photo spread in Korea with HyunA for High Cut magazine, where she portrayed the bride of Deadpool.)
Reynolds came out on stage disguised as a unicorn. It was a fitting costume, since Hollywood A-List actors competing on Korean variety shows is about as rare as finding the mythical creature. Reynolds sang “Tomorrow” from the musical “Annie.” He doesn’t have the greatest singing voice, but the judges — assuming he was a Korean guest — praised his pronunciation of the English lyrics.
![What is DEADPOOL Doing Here?! [The King of Mask Singer Ep 153]](https://i0.wp.com/i.ytimg.com/vi/W28-DAAfvEg/hqdefault.jpg?w=1170&ssl=1)
One of the reasons why “The King of Mask Singer” is superior to its international spin-offs is because of this caliber of stars. Granted, not every guest is as well known as Reynolds or Doyoung. But because idols and are accustomed to appearing on television variety shows to promote their work, you’ll get performers from groups such as EXO, Super Junior and Blackpink to sing compete. Can you imagine Shawn Mendes, Beyonce or the Backstreet Boys appearing on FOX’s “The Masked Singer”? No, because it won’t happen (although I’d be delighted if it did).
In 2016, a very young Jungkook (né Jeon Jung-Kook), wowed the panel with his pitch-perfect version of Big Bang’s “If You.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa1Ia0JdEAY
Though BTS’ golden maknae didn’t win the overall title, he impressed the judges with his impassioned vocals and his charm. “I came on the show, because I wanted to have a coming-of-age ceremony,” he said at the time. And with characteristic modesty, he added, “I’m still really lacking vocally. I’ll continue to grow and become a singer that melts hearts.”
Mission accomplished.
Watch Doyoung on Episode 210; Ryan Reynolds on Episode 153; and Jungkook on Episode 72. You can see all this and more episodes of “The King of Mask Singer” by subscribing to KOCOWA.
Be sure to follow @GoAwayWithJae, where I tweet about all things Korean.🇰🇷
7 Comments
Pingback: Stephanie
Superb post that made me curious about both series. Thank you for loving Korean talent so much!
great website and I love the King of Masked Singer. Jungkook’s episode was my all time favorite!
This is such a great series. I love all the contestants even thogh I can usually guess who theya re hehe
Ꮋowdy outstаnding blog!
Thanks!
Doyoung oppa thanks for singing #GuriCity6thEmperor
He was so good!