Super Junior The Last Man Standing is a two-part documentary released on Disney+ Hotstar on 18th January 2023. It will focus on the Kpop group Super Junior aka SuJu, where the members will share their past experiences, up until now and give the viewers a chance to get to witness, what went behind the scenes.
The documentary includes the current members of the group, Leeteuk, Heechul, Yesung, Shindong, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Siwon, Ryeowook and Kyuhyun. The episodes have a runtime of about 40-50 minutes.
The synopsis of the documentary series reads:
Top global artist SUPER JUNIOR tells their story, bridging into their present.
-Super Junior The Last Man Standing Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers-
On November 6, 2005, an unconventionally big-sized boy group Super Junior 05 made their debut in the music scene. Making their mark in Asia, they rise into the world-class artist Super Junior. The Last Man Standing is a behind-the-scenes exploration of the mega K-pop group and its members, offering fresher insight into the K-pop industry.
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The first song heard in the series is Superman, if you watch its music video then you will see how it aptly introduces every member to the viewer and gives you an idea about the kind of vibe the group have. From then on starts the birth of SuJu and the introduction of the members in the order they became part of the group.
Starting from Donghae, we get to know how the group with 12-13 members was revolutionary in their company itself. They first had the concept of graduation (new K-pop fans might get reminded of NCT’s concept) but SuJu was the first in the year 2005, to have the concept of members changing after some time. Although that concept went away once Kyuhyun joined, I guess SM Entertainment kept it to reuse in future as we saw with NCT but looks like even they are turning toward fixed members.
As we have seen in many K-pop groups, either the company put the selected trainees through a survival program, to find the final debut members or keeps on changing the line-up, as nothing is confirmed till the end. Similarly, the process of even becoming a SuJu member was not easy, from various debut projects being made and then cancelled, to suddenly having 13 members in one group, which was unheard of at that time.
If you have been familiar with the group then you know the members don’t shy away from revealing their inner conflicts and legendary fights; this documentary is no different as Heechul reveals it all, including how he was opposed to being in such a big group. There were even mentions of Han Geng, Kibum, Sungmin and Kangin, who left the group later.
We see their trajectory with every song including Twins, Miracle to finally U, which made SuJu what it is now. But even with success at their dormstep, their career wasn’t full of smooth sailing due to personal tragedies, road accidents and scandals. All of the incidents make for a great story now, but they made the members think that their fate can change anytime and thus they made up their minds about taking the group to the end.
Along with the members, we also got insight from their managers and staff, who have seen them grow all through these years. They are the OG Kings of the Hallyu Wave, who made k-pop a global phenomenon, as we all are witnessing right now. They were the start of it, as now the next-generation k-pop groups are taking it forward to the next level.
Final Thoughts: Super Junior The Last Man Standing
This documentary is a great way for the new fans to witness Super Junior’s journey and for the old fans to reminisce about the old days as the nostalgia hits them. Watching it I realised how members are really genuine about what they do and how their personalities remain the same, like Kyuhyun still making the members guilty for being cold to him at the start, or teasing Yesung about anything he does.
However, this is the only qualm I always have with many k-pop documentaries – they always show snippets of the songs and never a complete performance. I understand there are time constraints but the best way to end such films or series is to showcase one of the best stages which shows the group in all its glory.
Super Junior The Last Man Standing is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.