Now for the second of the Super Junior series: The Members
Leeteuk;
Being the oldest member in the Super Junior lineup, and the member who had spent the most time in training when the group was formed, Leeteuk was named leader. The oldest are almost always the leaders in K-pop groups due to the importance placed on seniority in Korean culture. Leeteuk’s actual name is Park Jeongsu, but he took on the stage name, meaning “special”, instead.
Leeteuk is considered to be in the upper-middle of the pack when it comes to singing and dancing talent in Super Junior. Leeteuk also plays piano and composes for the group occasionally. He focuses more on variety show appearances and has been recognized for his skills in MCing, taking over as host on Star King after Lee Hodong was forced to leave to take care of legal troubles.
Leeteuk is known to be one of the best leaders in K-pop. He has been praised on multiple occasions for his polite and enthusiastic greetings to everyone, and was the only member of the special celebrity recruit unit of the army not to be reprimanded and punished when the unit was disbanded due to the misbehavior of the majority of the members.
Leeteuk can act a bit dictatorial and emotional as leader, showcased by his snubbing of their youngest member Kyuhyun, when he was added to the group last-minute against the members’ wishes. However, it seems that his group mates like to tease him about this behavior quite a bit more than he actually displays it. Leeteuk himself has stated that he tries to be a leader his members can feel comfortable teasing and playing with.
Leeteuk reportedly did not have a good relationship with his father as a child and was very close to his grandmother. Her death affected him quite heavily. Recently, not too long before his discharge from army duty, Leeteuk’s father and grandparents died under circumstances that were reported as possibly being suicidal.
Leeteuk always attempts to but on a bright and silly front, but has admitted he struggles with depressive symptoms and being a workaholic. He also has a strong, obsessive attachment to the color white, being unable to calm down without having it around. He revealed that he and Taeyeon, leader of SNSD, created a club among celebrities called “Milk”, meant to allow depressed members of the K-pop community to receive support from their peers.
Among Super Junior members, Leeteuk is known to be close to Heechul and Kangin, who act as foils for his personality. Where Leeteuk can be quite soft-hearted and delicate at times, Heechul is known for his brash honesty and Kangin for his rough-around-the-edges approach. Leeteuk is also close to Eunhyuk, who acts as a sort of protege as well as being his friend.
Han Geng/Hankyung:
Han Geng, or Hankyung in Korean, is the only person officially listed as a former member of Super Junior. He was the only Chinese member in the group upon formation and often struggled to express himself as well as he would like in Korean. The members often joked that he actually used this to his advantage in shows by pretending not to understand questions he didn’t want to answer.
Han Geng was among the top 3 dancers in Super Junior and was also known for his strong vocals, although he often didn’t get as many solos as his voice might normally warrant, possibly because of the language barrier. When Super Junior-M was formed, Han Geng was announced as the leader, and he seemed to bloom much more in their activities. After departing from Super Junior, he founded a very successful career at home in China.
Due to restrictions on the number of networks a non-native person could appear on in Korea, Han Geng was forced to wear a mask while performing during Super Junior’s debut. SM also reportedly turned down an offer for him to appear in another artist’s music video, but then allowed two other members of Super Junior to take part. Due to discrimination such as this, as well as being forced to work while sick and exhausted, Han Geng eventually sued SM to cancel his contract and won.
While Han Geng was with the group, the members of Super Junior seem to have had a hard time becoming close to him. Based on comments to this effect, it appears to have largely been a problem of understanding and expression due to language and culture barriers. The exceptions to this rule were Heechul, whom Han Geng formed an extremely close friendship with, and Siwon to a lesser degree. Han Geng was also close to Henry from Super Junior-M, in a relationship similar to an older and younger brother.
There has been almost no public interaction between Han Geng and the remaining Super Junior members since Han Geng quit. This is likely something that is heavily encouraged by SM, which has a history of not allowing their current artists to interact with anyone who leaves the fold of the company. However, despite some initial hurt feelings, it appears that both Han Geng and Super Junior have no hard feelings lingering, and would probably perform together in the future for an event if they ever got the chance.
Heechul:
Kim Heechul is known as a 4-D celebrity. This term, unique to Korea, means that he tends to act a bit out of the dimensions anyone would normally think of. In Heechul’s case, this is defined by his unapologetic, honest, and often sharp-tongued attitude. He breaks the idol mode in that rather than enforcing the fantasy of perfection for fans, he instead explicitly tells them that they can’t obsess over him so much that it affects their decision-making. He claims he doesn’t want to have to feel responsible if fans are giving up things for his sake, so he very clearly tells them not to and means it.
(big space star, Lee Sooman leniency- seen with Jaejoong, chocoball, misunderstandings with Eunhyuk, closeness to Leeteuk, Siwon, Kibum, Donghae, Han Geng, acting, near departure)
Yesung:
Kangin:
Shindong:
Sungmin:
Siwon:
Eunhyuk:
Donghae:
Zhou Mi:
Ryeowook:
Kibum:
Kyuhyun:
Henry:
Hyena Harmony Official Site 