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ILLIT, a well-known K-pop girl group, recently released its first Japanese EP. ILLIT’s first EP, SUPER REAL ME, really set them up to have a very magical concept, as the music videos and brand films depicted the members having individual powers. The new Japanese release really strengthens that Magical Girl concept for me. For reference, I define Magical Girls as a character/show stereotype that tends to be anime, with a group of girls who fight a force of evil using powers that are gifted to them (and those powers tend to add some degree of complications into their normal lives).
While it seems that Wonhee was the focus in “Do The Dance”, and Iroha was the focus in “Jellyous”, I think Moka is the focus in “Toki Yo Tomare”, which roughly translates into “Time, stop!!” Ever since the SUPER REAL ME era, it was established that Moka has the power to stop time when she holds her breath. So, straight away, we can see some connections from the title to the lore!Â
I personally theorize that Wonhee is reminiscent of the Magical Girl main character: she is the center of the group, her aesthetic often revolves around her cute and bubbly personality and features, her power is very esoteric and has something to do with light manipulation (very MC coded), and their Webtoon series starts with the story of Wonhee’s character. In “Do The Dance”, Wonhee is very clearly the main character of the music video, as it tells the story of Wonhee having a crush and the other girls just helping in trying to get him to notice her. Wonhee also felt like the main character in “Cherish (My Love)” as she is the one who gets a toothache/first love, and the other girls guide her through how to handle it.
Iroha feels like the super cool girl who is very technically skilled in her power and intimidates the MC when they first meet, but once she joins the group, she is very sweet and helps the others a lot. Her power is telekenesis, which feels like a very hard power to use to its full potential. For whatever reason, to me, it portrays Iroha as the trope of the girl who has gone through the struggles of being a Magical Girl before. She understands the gravity of the situation at hand, yet she still finds hope and the conviction to continue for the betterment of others. The insane choreography to “Jellyous”, and Iroha being their certified best dancer, also added to this vibe for me.
On the other hand, to me, Moka feels like the trope of the MC’s childhood best friend, who is equally cutesty and bubbly, and gets wrapped up in the MC’s Magical Girl world by virtue of being her friend. She has a very strong and cool power of literally stopping time, but it hasn’t been explored very deeply (very best friend coded). Moka definitely stands out to me in “Toki Yo Tomare,” and it’s her era FOR SURE, she just has the cutest and memorable lines in the song. And while I’m well aware that she has always been a fan-favorite of the group, it still feels like this is her time to shine bright.
I can’t wait for future comebacks, and hopefully Yunah and Minju will have their chances to shine!