Before the event
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| Capsule toys booth |
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| Goods display |
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| Goods list |
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| Goods display |
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| Two tokens |
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| My two Eunhyuk capsule toys! An Eunyuk pin and an Eunhyuk standee. 😍 |
After lunch at a Korean booth in a food court at Saitama Shintoshin's Cocoon City Shopping Complex, I met up with my seatmate for the first time. The Indonesian ELF was friendly. We helped take photos of each other at the giant lightstick photo spot and the advertisement on the LED screen. We had to wait three or four times to get the perfect shot before the ad disappeared. 😂
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| The giant lightstick |
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| Forgot to stretch my arm out while doing the ELF greeting 😂 |
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| 💗 |
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| Managed to take a photo with the ad before it disappeared! |
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| Freebies from Chinese ELFs |
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| Met more ELF mutuals 💙 |
At around 3 PM, we got our e-tickets scanned. We wrote a question for Super Junior to answer during their talk session.
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| My question: "Which member do you want to do a music video collaboration with for Super Junior L.S.S.? Sadly, mine didn't get picked, but that's okay! I was very thirsty by the time we got to our seats a few rows away from the middle stage. I asked the staff at the front whether I could go out and get some water, but they forbade me. To my relief, I found a candy store on the second floor of the concert hall, so I hurriedly went there and got a freaking 200+ yen bottled water. 😑 I mean, it's the only way to quench my thirst for the next three hours. I reunited with two Japanese ELF friends. One of them wanted to visit me in Kawahoe someday. She gave me a packet of tissues and a prawn cracker. The tissue packaging was a cute potato chip brand. The other friend surprised me with an armful of gifts: a framed photo of Eunhyuk, a couple of candies, Eunhyuk's fan from Super Show 9 special package, and a generous number of nicely printed photos of my two biases, Kyuhyun and Eunhyuk, D&E, and Super Junior. She said she hadn't seen me in a while and wanted to give me all the gifts. 🥺 I think my little Kawagoe treats couldn't beat their generosity. Still, I'm grateful for their kindness. Yesung had a stomachache and kidney stone problem. He visited a doctor before the show and was advised not to perform that night. The sudden announcement shocked us all. The concert was delayed for nearly 20 minutes. I predicted that the members were having an emergency meeting on how to carry on with the show without Yesung's important ad-libs. |
Welcome to the blue world!
"Song For You" echoed from the speakers. The lights faded to black, signalling the audience to turn on their fan lights and stand up. Then, a VCR accompanying the Japanese song of the event's title, "Blue World," flashed on the screen. We screamed when the names of our bises appeared.
The opening VCR
Super Junior were in a mix of light blue, grey and white blazers, matching pants, and black and dark blue dress shirts at the front stage. The first song was the classic 2006 hit "U." Heechul joined the performance, but Yesung's absence made the formation empty. 🙁 The members left a space when Yesung's lines came. They did the same for "Black Suit" and "House Party".
The boys switched from cool, charismatic looks to cheerful, playful ones in the introductory speech segment. Donghae and Siwon told us to clap for them and praise them for their hard work. Eunhyuk allowed us to sit down, but Leeteuk persuaded us that we could stand, too. Eunhyuk quickly changed his mind and told us we could sit or stand. 😂 Leeteuk spotted a fan wearing a completely different colour (I forgot what colour exactly) and advised her to leave in a jocking tone. The fan meeting was called "Blue World," so the dress code should be blue. The members said those who didn't wear blue should leave the venue. 😂😂😂 They also explained Yesung's absence and how much they've prepared for their upcoming stages, including a KRY song. They joked that Heechul had practiced for two hours and was ready to take Yesung's place as a vocalist for the night. 😂 Heechul joined Kyuhuyn and Ryeowook in singing the chorus of "Dorothy." They did this several times throughout the show. 😂😂 I could imagine Yesung laughing at them as he watched from backstage.
They sang their next song, "Celebrate". Yesung appeared from a stage lift! 🥹 We all cheered. He sounded tired, but he sounded great, as always.
Subunit showdown!
Leeteuk, Shindong and Siwon were the first subunit to perform. They did their Japanese version of their first official track, "Close the Shutter." They also showed a mini preview of their new song, "Suit Up"! I felt lucky to watch their performance LIVE for the first time because I couldn't attend last summer's concert. They sang so well, and their energy matched perfectly with the upbeat tempo. Then, they passed the baton to D&E, who hyped the audience with their iconic number, "Oppa Oppa." Eunhyuk waved to my side as he walked down the center stage, and I was stunned by how handsome he looked. 😍💘 Finally, the duo let the ballad trio, KRY, take over the platform with their beautiful tear-jerker "Dorothy." Yesung gave his all, pulling it off and making us all proud of his efforts and concerned about his health.
Time to learn more about SJ!
Donghae and Heechul attempted to sing a chorus of "Dorothy" as they gathered in the brightly-lit front stage with the rest of the group. They walked to the central stage, where chairs were set up for a Q&A session. Leeteuk drew a question from a pile of paper slips, and the members had to share their thoughts.
The first question was, "Which member do you want to be manager for?" Shindong chose Heechul because of his generous pocket money. Ryeowook picked Leeteuk because Ryeowook himself sometimes had a busy schedule. Donghae chose Ryeowook because he's very good to the staff. Siwon and Kyuhyun chose Heechul too. Heechul chose Donghae because all he would do was stay home. Leetuek was a pass because he was obsessed with golf. Heechul didn't go for Siwon, too, because he speaks English almost daily. 😂😂 He didn't want Ryeowook as well because of his musical schedule. Eunyuk and Leeteuk chose Kyuhyun because they wanted to try working for Antenna. 😆 As a result, Heechul had the most votes!
Another question was what poses would they do. Shindong made his face look like he had a slim jawline. Ryeowook acted super cute by making bear-ear-hearts and many hand-hearts. Donghae leaned back on his chair while posed like a model. Siwon attempted to do three types of poses: idol, model, and CEO. He activated his maknae mode as he presented lots of adorable finger hearts. He wiggled his eyebrows as he did his model pose. He held his fist like he was encouraging people to vote for him in his CEO pose. 😂Kyuhyun made everyone laugh with his new favourite shoulder-to-chin flirting gaze inspired by one of the Singles Inferno 3 contestants. His cute, cheeky smile made his post look cuter rather than flirty. 🤣🤣 Leeteuk challenged him to do a Ben-Hur pose, but he stared at the camera blankly. 😂 As for Eunhyuk, he flashed his gummy smile and covered it with his hands like a shy kid. Heechul tried to do a cat heart with his fingers, but they hurt. 🤭 Other members could do the heart. Lastly, Leeteuk did an authoritative pose with his arms folded and shouted in a menacing boss voice, "Be quiet!" His pose made everyone roar with laughter. 🤣 He also turned the atmosphere's heat a little higher by stripping his jacket off and showing his chest and abs visible through his fishnet top. The fans shrieked, but the other SuJu members looked cringed and disgusted. 😂
There's a question about which member they would choose to marry. Eunhyuk wanted to live alone but chose Heechul because of his finger (?) 😂 Kyuhyun's smitten by Donghae's visuals, as we all know, so he would pick Donghae. Donghae chose Kyuhyun to return the favour. Leeteuk chose Kyuhyun because he described Kyuhyun as an "ikemen" (handsome man in Japanese). Ryeowook chose Eunhyuk. Our cute Gu-Gu pair! 🥺
A fan challenged Donghae to do 10 pushups on the spot. He did two when the other members asked whether he could do 12. He did 11 more while the other jokingly sounded pessimistic for not believing in him. Heechul even sneakily counted back to 1 when Donghae was nearly done with his pushups. 😂😂 Donghae succeeded!
I didn't really pay attention to the visual ranking segment. Such ranking wasn't necessary. Every member of SJ is good-looking, and they have amazing qualities. A fan asked Kyuhyun how many times he looked into the mirror. He answered, "About 20 times." The members realized why he wanted to marry Donghae. Kyuhyun added that if he married Donghae, their kids would be just as good-looking. 😂 He also removed his jacket, and the other boys felt his toned shoulders. He has worked out a lot! 🙈🔥
The second half of the show!
As the group left to change their outfits, we watched a nostalgic video of a show compilation. The screen showed footage from SJ's debut days to their recent ELF Japan events. I'm happy to participate in some events since moving to Japan. Every moment I spent in a LIVE event with SJ was truly memorable! 🥰💙
Super Junior returned with sparkly black jackets, matching tops and pants. They performed four of their famous title tracks: "Devil," "2YA2YAO", "Mr. Simple," and "Sorry Sorry." They killed every performance as expected.
The stage lights faded away, which meant it was the audience's turn to get the spotlight. We waved out light sticks vertically while looking for the wave pattern approaching our rows. When the encore started, we were greeted by Yesung, who joined the group to sing the second last song, "Way." It is one of my favourite Japanese songs, so hearing them singing it LIVE was surreal.
In their last talking segment, Donghae said he would study Japanese hard. Kyuhyun came to pat Donghae's head like a baby. 🥺🥰 They also dropped a bombshell about a new D&E Japanese album in the works! 😮🤩 Kyuhyun was inspired by Siwon, who spoke a little English in his goodbye speech. All he said was, "Hello! I'm Kyuhyun! God bless you." He immediately moved on to Japanese. 🤣 He sang the chorus of his new solo song, "The Story Behind," which melted me inwardly! 😍😍😍💓💘 He sounded heavenly! Donghae suddenly butted in, asking Kyuhyun to sing the second last line again. Donghae changed the last line to "hitori janai yo" from the song "Way." 😂 The youngest member looked dumbfounded, and the other members teased him. He reminded everyone about his upcoming solo concert tour. I can't wait to see him LIVE in Yokohama this April! 🤩😄 Eunhyuk advised ELF to make good money because the group has prepared a lot of gifts for us this year! They'll do their best for their 20th anniversary next year, too. Leeteuk told us a wonderful meaning behind the latest hand-shaped light stick. He said that the hand symbolizes the hand Super Junior will reach out and hold with ELF till the end. 🥺
The boys ended the event with their go-to song: "Bambina." We waved our lightsticks and danced together with them. Kyuhyun made his chin-flirting gesture when he sang the last line of the bridge. Oh, Kyu! 🤣 At the last part of the song, streamers rained down the arena. I caught one just before they finished singing. Before they left, they took final pictures and videos with their phones and waved good night to us. Leeteuk, the grateful leader and last member to leave the stage as always, bowed at every corner of the massive stage. I couldn't express enough how grateful I am to encounter such a wonderful person in their precious group. 🥺🥹😭💙
Members saying goodbye
Leeteuk saying his thanks and byes
More official images, photos, and videos
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| Bambina 💙💙💙 |
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| Look at the capacity of this venue! 😱👏 |
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| I love this picture! 😍🥹 |
The streamer 😄😍
My Eunhyuk standee 💕My seatmate and I saw pretty sapphire blue lights illuminating the trees in the dark as we exited the venue. This is one of the many reasons why I love SJ events at Saitama Super Arena. The organizers know how to make the event worthwhile with plenty of seats, excellent stage view, fantastic goods, convenient facilities, and even a beautiful tribute to the artists after a show. If you're joining a Super Junior event in this venue, you'll for sure have the time of your life from the beginning to the end.
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| Blue illumination outside Saitama Super Arena 🥹 |
I really enjoyed my time with my seatmate and fellow ELF friends I reunited. One comment I'll never forget from her is that she got to know me because of my blog! 😮 She read the blog posts of my past Super Junior event recaps. She's impressed by the details I remember. As a writer, I care immensely about imagery. That's why I always make sure that I jot down as many notes as I can during a show so that I can remember. I guess I have the same note-taking habit as my bias Kyuhyun. 😂
I'm happy that my blog has reached out to so many people. And trust me, I'll never stop writing and sharing my experiences in Super Junior concerts and fan meetings. If you're reading till the end here, thank you from the bottom of my heart for appreciating my writing and love for Super Junior. This motivates me to hustle in more writing projects, including my long-awaited first novel. Fighting! ✊
My next blog post might be about Kyuhyun's solo concert in Yokohama this April! Stay tuned! 😉😄
Oh! And I've finished my SJ journal! I'll have to look for a new blue notebook to continue my SJ journaling saga. 😁
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| My SJ journal |
