Super Junior, or SuJu, for short, is sometimes known as the “King Of Hallyu Wave”, a bridge between the 1st and 2nd generations of k-pop. They’ve had thirteen members during their time as a group: current members Leeteuk, Heechul, Shindong, Sungmin, Eunhyuk, Yesung, Donghae, Siwon, Kyuhyun, and Ryeowook, and former members Hangeng, Kibum, and Kangin. They debuted on November 9th, 2005, and thus, here I am, nineteen years on, writing this review!

Here are my credentials: If you’ve read my Yesung review, you’ll know that my interest in Super Junior all started because my lovely mother in her infinite wisdom (can you tell who my special guest is yet) accidentally bought me Yesung’s album during her trip to Japan, when she meant to buy me Jonghyun’s. Thus began our shared journey into the insanity that is SuJu, and so, since their 19th anniversary is coming up, I decided that now would be a good time for us to go through their discography together. So, I went home from college, and on a rainy day, we sat down and made our way through two decades of content. So, let’s get into it!

(Read Part One here) (Part Two)

Album #9: Replay

Black Suit is very Super Junior in a way that surprised me. The beat is funky, though not quite as much as Devil, moving back and forth and working in pops of brass. I like the video too; how it’s moving backwards, at an auction of a black suit, to show the story of an ultra-dramatic heist, and Shindong in the fur coat is so funny too. (My mother went “YESSS” as soon as he walked in). But the scantily clad women thing is just weird, stop. We didn’t need this, guys. Anyway, the dance breaks are solid, turning up the brass to full-throated flares of horns as the choreography goes wild. This is a pretty good song, and like their best works, it revels in it sense of fun, unapologetic in its ridiculousness until the very end.

Speaking of apologies, Lo Siento is kind of like an apology for Mamacita. The beat is solidly reggaeton, but marries that with k-pop hallmarks like that pulsing beat and a chanty post-chorus to deliver what’s a pretty solid track. Not only is the song good, though, it features an actual Latin Pop singer, Leslie Grace, who starred as Nina in the In The Heights movie. (Cue another rabbit hole my mom and I went down, I’ll spare you the details). I’m impressed with her dancing in those quite frankly insane shoes, by the way. She’s scantily clad, but it looks like she dressed herself, and she seems very comfortable, so I have no problem here. “I could be wrong,” my mother said calmly, “but I don’t think she’s very sorry.”

As for the MV…damn, I guess we’re going for sexy but mature. I’m surprised that a k-pop MV is so unapologetic about people sleeping together (the raspberry being squeezed, the states of undress, etc), but I guess, perks of being in the industry long enough. “Love how she’s wearing a bra after they slept together, that makes sense”, I said to Mom. Besides that, Heechul is being sad with his guitar, and doesn’t really appear in the MV besides the intro and outro as far as I can tell, I assume due to his leg injury. I half thought that the girl was going to come get him, but no. She leaves him to mope. It’s only a little bit funny.

From the album, I enjoyed the fast-paced call-and-response chorus of Me & U (despite its slow start), the gentle harmonizing in The Lucky Ones, and the vogue-worthy beat and snappy percussion of Spin Up. My hidden gem was easily Runaway, which speeds along at a mile-a-minute with a percussive guitar and brass led chorus and an intensely catchy hook. Also, shoutout to the lovely vocals in Too Late.

EP #1: One More Time / Otra Vez

One More Time is another collaboration of SuJu’s with a Latin Pop artist (this time Mexican band REIK), but instead of a more reggaeton beat, it’s a quasi-ballad with hints of Spanish guitar, and operates on solid hand-clap led percussion. It’s not a sound I would have expected for them, but it really works! And I’m glad that Super Junior sings in Spanish here. Its MV is lovely; it has a good use of color and a more relaxed style than SuJu usually does, and though the hip-thrusting is a bit dramatic, it’s not too distracting. I felt bad that they had to dance in water, though; that’s never fun. “This is a good feature,” my mom noted, “the parts fit together, the editing between them is nice, and they don’t overshadow each other.”

From this EP, which is actually their first, my hidden gem was easily Wow Wow Wow, with its fast-paced beat and up-and-down piano trills. It would have made a great single too, if Otra Vez wasn’t there.

Album #10: Timeless

“Do they know that the clap is old slang for venereal disease? So the super clap must be pretty terrible”, my mother said with a wince when we clicked on Super Clap. (This was after a good two Horus of SuJu and popcorn, so forgive us). This song is weird, that’s the operative word. And speaking of which, why does Donghae have blue eyebrows? What are these hairstyles? Why is Eunhyuk’s hair such a horrifying shade of green? (Mom: “Ach, my EYES”)

The chorus is solid, though I could do without the hook, as mentioned and overall, it just seems like a lot of fun. It’s not a song I would pick out as being a SuJu song, but it does have a couple of their trademarks, like the full-throated chorus and the electropop beat. “And just when you think the song’s gonna end, it doesn’t…a SuJu classic”, Mom laughed. I don’t know if I would listen to the song outside of the MV, but it’s fun.

The third and final single from this album is 2YA2YAO!, and my mother’s “well…it’s certainly a song” is a pretty good summary of how we both felt. From the line about being the boss of the mob, I knew we were in for an Ao3 worthy ride, and I wasn’t disappointed by the chaos at least. As for the song itself, let’s just say that I didn’t realize that the hook was “EE–II–EE–II–OO” until they sang it, and when I tell you that we fell off the couch laughing, I’m not kidding. Basically, I made the mistake of singing “Old McDonald had a farm~~~ in the Mafia~~eeeeiiieeeiiiohhhh~~~” and that was the end of that. I would give you a better review, but I don’t really have one.

From the album, I enjoyed the momentous, almost militaristic sound of The Crown, the great build in the pre-choruses of Game and Somebody New, and the “you-hoo-hoo” hook of Shadow. My hidden gem was Show, which I’m not sure counts.

Show is a special single, and its video is a behind the scenes look at their concerts. It’s sappier and quieter than most of their tracks are, as most fan songs tend to be, but it’s alright. It absolutely has its moments, bursting open with a kind of joy and showmanship that feels very classically 2nd gen. It’s nostalgic and sweeping, yet still feels like SuJu, “It doesn’t quite have the punch of their hits, but it’s sweet”, my mom said with a shrug.

Album #11: The Renaissance

I confess that my first thought upon the House Party MV starting was “are you kidding me right now??” because Donghae is wearing braids. I almost can’t believe that, after not doing cultural appropriation back in the 2000’s (not that it was okay then, but still), they instead did it in 2021. Come on, SM Entertainment. Do better.

Anyway. The song itself is quite good, marrying SuJu’s trademark electro beat and springy brass with a sledgehammer disco sound that would get even the most dance-averse person on the floor. And then Heechul comes in like an actual sledgehammer, rapping through a microphone to tell people to wear their masks and obey COVID regulations, because…of fucking course he does. And just when you’ve adjusted to the new beat, we return to the disco. Whiplash isn’t a strong enough word. Jokes aside, though, this was made in the midst of pandemic, and its message is a very sweet and meaningful one. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t also absolutely hilarious that they made a genuinely good (?) song about social distancing. Only three years on, it feels like a time capsule in a similar way to their oldest works, except this time, I actually lived through it. Cue a whole “God I’m old” crisis that I’ll spare you the details of, because we’re moving on.

The Melody was made for Super Junior’s 15th anniversary, four years ago at time of writing this. It stands out more than any of their songs, on purpose, relaxed and easygoing with a distinctive whistling hook, normally the kind of anti-drop I would decry, but I quite liked it here. I’d be lying if I said that the lyrics “We met with nothing in common, so long ago…the song only you and I know…the melody of our beginning” didn’t make me emotional, especially when paired with all the behind the scenes photos and videos and the clear delight the members take in being together. Again, it’s nothing showstopping, but “it’s delightful”, as my mother put it, feeling like a scrapbook in the best way, just for us and them.

From the album, I enjoyed the sun-drenched coffeeshop sound of Closer, the lovely (as always) vocals of Raining Spell For Love, and the acoustic guitar driven More Days With You. As for my hidden gem, it was easily the dramatic, string-led Burn The Floor, which honestly feels like it could be an Infinite song with that incredible build, not to mention its interpolations of opera.

Next time, we’re finally on the last part. Tschüss!