Block B and the “Toy” Comeback
On March 28, 2016, Block B released track “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” and its music video. This track was a pre-release for their fifth mini-album, Blooming Period, and was the first single from the album, with the second being “Toy.” Released on April 11, 2016, almost two years after H.E.R., Blooming Period is described as bringing out the more emotional side of Block B, both musically and with their acting in the music videos. Members ZICO and Park Kyung were involved with producing the album and writing the lyrics to all but one track, “빙글빙글 (Bingle Bingle),” which was written and produced by DEAN.
The Music Videos
The music video for “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” opens with B-Bomb and his former love standing under their own umbrellas before going their separate ways. For most of the video, the Block B members are on their own, walking around a nameless city. However, there are cuts at times where a member will revisit a place tied to a time spent with his ex-girlfriend and then recall that memory. While the track itself is full of sadness and longing, the music video spends a lot of time with bright colors and lighting, giving the impression that while the relationship is over, they are making attempts at moving on.
The music video for “Toy” is much different, though. The colors are a lot more muted, with the music video opening with ZICO sitting in front of a dumpster, signifying that his emotions have been trashed and discarded by the girl. With the lyrics referring to the childish nature of emotions and feeling silly for having them, the parallel between exploding mannequins and the disposal of the members and the mannequins’ body parts is a glaring reminder that being too dedicated to a potential love interest can have nasty side effects and that it’s okay to move on.
The Comeback Performances
While Block B promoted “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” prior to the album’s release, their official comeback performance for Blooming Period was on April 15, 2016 on Music Bank, where they performed “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” and “Toy.” Both comeback performances were lowkey and toned down from usual Block B performances, matching the emotions evoked in the lyrics. The members stood in a line on a smoky stage for the performance of “몇 년 후에 (A few years later),” with the screens behind them displaying rain trickling down a window and a clock ticking by, and they only broke that formation during P.O’s final verse, with him stepping forward and the others following suit.
For the performance of “Toy,” Block B performed the choreography in black ensembles with a simpler stage setup than “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)”—this time with just red and white striped bars behind them. The true highlight is the choreography itself, with the members acting out poses associated with action figures and other toys.
The Legacy
Blooming Period debuted at No. 1 on the Gaon Album Charts and peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard U.S. World Album Charts. All five tracks from Blooming Period charted as well, with “Toy” debuting at No. 2, “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” at No. 3, “Walkin’ In The Train” at No. 16, Taeil’s version of ZICO’s track with Luna “사랑이었다 (It Was Love)” at No. 17, and “빙글빙글 (Bingle Bingle)” at No. 52.
Both singles from Blooming Period would go on to earn music show wins, with “몇 년 후에 (A few years later)” winning one trophy on April 10, 2016 on Inkigayo and “Toy” earning three wins from Show Champion on April 20, M!COUNTDOWN on April 21, and Inkigayo on April 24. Neither track was nominated for any end-of-the-year awards. Block B was nominated at the Mnet Asian Music Awards for “Best Male Group” and “HotelsCombined Artist of the Year” but did not win.