I've ranted about titles before but this one is just plain weird. "Fantasy" is the English title but "It's Okay Fantasy" is the Korean title. I dunno. Anyways, Fei having a solo debut was an important process because not only is she the least thought-of member in terms of solo ability in her group, this release would at least hold down the fort in a world after Jia's departure put miss A's future in the uncertain air. Unfortunately, it came at a problematic time, what with all the Chinese politics everywhere. Regardless, I only care about the music. So let's dive in.
"Fantasy" plays out like a song from a fantasy alright. The instrumental is smooth and gives off R&B vibes, which assist in Fei's breathy vocals. Wait, hold up a second. Fei sounds like this? It's a serious surprise that Fei is capable of delivering such a vocal performance. You don't really get to hear much out of Fei in miss A's pop-oriented music, so that's neat. You'll note that I didn't say "pleasant surprise" because honestly, you can't convince me to say that she sounds great in "Fantasy." In terms of difficulty Fei gets high marks because I doubt she ever has to sing like this, but she's an average vocalist at best so she ain't making me swoon or anything.
The other problem with "Fantasy" is that the song overall isn't very impressive. This is what plagued "Hush" a few years ago, where the difference is that "Hush" was at least an exciting dance number. "Fantasy" is more laid back so the singing seems much more bland. The triple "gwenchana" sounds weird, and I can't pinpoint if it's Fei's pronunciation or just the awkward number of times it was said. I think she just barely missed the bar between "boring smooth" and "sensual smooth," and it's more on the song structure than it is on her voice.
Mark down another first in Kpop: choreography involving hula hoops. The prominence of these rings was unprecedented but Fei (and the other dancers) do make it work to their advantage. Like with Sistar and the curtains of "I Like It," the technical skill is noteworthy and the rings add a layer of mystique to the performance. Outside of any hoops-related moves though, this dance looks ridiculously boring. This is particularly true of the chorus, where Fei mostly stands around and relies on hand movements. Fei breaks new ground with the hula hoops and they give the dance character, because without them this would be really lame.
Is this music video just like a tease at all the virtual reality shenanigans and etc. gaining traction? If so, well done? A man walks into some massage parlor that doubles as a VR testing place of some sort. And naturally as any male would, he wants to watch Fei dance. I'm assuming he paid for it, presumably the lady that handed him the headset took money from his wallet while he was too busy admiring Fei. Fei gets all sultry and then through the power of magic appears before him, because of course she would. In truth, they could have done literally anything with this MV because the title "Fantasy" gives them a copout. This video could've been Fei dressed up as a cowgirl working on a ranch and you couldn't complain about that, technically. Unlike most of the general populace, I'm not on the Fei hair hype train. I just don't think it matches her very well, so I can only imagine her dancing around with hoops and strong black hair. That's the true fantasy.
Look, I really tried to find a way to make this song awesome. Fei is a star and this release was important in miss A's post-Jia world. But nothing about this "Fantasy" screams contender. The vocals are (perhaps predictably) pedestrian, the MV is kinda whatever, and the song itself isn't very memorable. Hoops choreography is breaking new ground but I hesitate to call it flashy. I tend to think of this song as another variant of "Hush," but the tempo is slower and there's no vocal diversity (for obvious reasons). A noble effort, but falls short compared to some of the other solo material out there this year.
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