“I dont see the problem?”: Fans defend RIIZE’s Seunghan as photos of him allegedly kissing a woman go viral

RIIZE's Seunghan recently found himself in the midst of a controversy that has now taken over social media. On August 27, pictures of the 19-year-old idol seemingly kissing someone went viral on the X platform, after they were posted by @BBOSONGEEEEE and a few other accounts.

It is not certain whether the photos were taken in the past or are current.

However, as per Pannchoa, another Korean netizen, @xxxxjsi, claimed that the pictures were taken during the idol's undergraduate years. The account shared the pictures with the caption (translated via Pannchoa):

"RIIZE Hong Seunghan took his underaged girlfriend to a hotel."

The issue once again highlighted the clear divide between Korean and international fans’ perspectives towards idol relationships. International fans resorted to making funny and sarcastic comments about the pictures, with one even saying that they "dont [sic] see the problem" with the pictures.

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RIIZE continues to get tangled in controversies - Seunghan the latest member to get into trouble

SM Entertainment's newest boy group, RIIZE, has been attracting both negative and positive attention ever since all the members were revealed on August 1, 2023.

Earlier, pre-debut pictures of Sohee hanging out in an alleged 'hunting bar' went viral. Weeks later, on August 27, a Korean netizen posted several couple photos, alleging that the man in the picture was Seunghan.

In all three photos, the female's face is either blurred or drawn over, to protect her identity. However, the man's face is clearly visible, thus intensifying speculation that he is the new SM group's 21-year-old member, Seunghan. All three photos also showcase the man kissing the female - both on the lips and the cheeks.

The K-pop fandom, especially RIIZE fans, defended Seunghan from criticism that arose after the pictures went viral.

Although conversations around K-pop idols dating have increased in recent times, it still receives a lot of ire from traditional fans. This gap was widely seen through the reception that the pictures garnered from Korean and international fans.

As translated by X account pannchoa, Korean netizens had mostly negative things to say about Seunghan.

On the other hand, international fans went into defense mode.

They shared their opinions about how Seunghan living an ordinary life should not rile up fans, adding that there were no issues with K-pop idols having love interests. While some joked around, others had a more serious reaction against the criticism.

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RIIZE comprises seven members - Seunghan, Sungchan, Shotaro, Eunseok, Wonbin, Sohee, and Anton. They are set to make their much-anticipated debut on September 4, 2023, with their 1st single album, Get A Guitar.

Out of the seven, fans had especially looked forward to four members - Seunghan and Eunseok, who were introduced earlier as SMROOKIES, and Sungchan and Shotaro, who were only recently transferred to the new group from NCT.

SM Entertainment has also collaborated with Kakao to release the group's first web novel, titled Rise & Realize.