The entire comment section was in an uproar upon realizing that one team had really hogged the majority of the votes.

└ You’re telling me that only one team got 53% of the votes at the performance? Without it being rigged?

└└ Maybe it’s a mistake.

└└ Is that even legal?

└└└ Why wouldn’t it be legal? Did the production team hold a gun to the head of the audience? People voted for who they wanted!

└ Guys, guys, maybe we’re overreacting, and there’s another explanation.

└└ Maybe?

└└ What kind of explanation could there possibly be?

But unfortunately for those who were trying to cling to their delusions-

[Team Bad Boys]

[Members: Ariel Matisse, Benjamin Moore, Carlos Rodriguez, James Jones III, Levi Temple, Mathew Bennett]

[Voters Ranked: 1st Place.] 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

[Combined percentage of votes earned: 50%]

As with all the other teams before them, the stats were posted on the screen and announced by MC Ryan Leary.

└ 50% of the votes! You’re telling me 6 people got 50% of all the extra votes?? It’s definitely rigged!

└ This literally makes no sense.

└└ It makes perfect sense! Have you watched the performance?

└└ Do you see the people on one team? I’m surprised, they didn’t get 60 or 70% of the votes.

└ What happened to the last 3%

└└ Who the heck cares about the last 3%? Why are 6 people hogging 50% of the vote? Huh?

└ What could they have possibly done to get 50% of the votes?

└└ Just watch.

As the people in the comments were crashing out, the screen faded away to black and stayed that way for several seconds.

└ Is it broken?

└Why is nothing happening?

Slowly, the sound of helicopter blades could be heard as the previously black screen faded into a sunset-colored sky.

Then, like a blot of black ink, a black object began circling around in the sky before its spotlight turned on and pointed downwards as it hovered in place.

The sound of the helicopter slowly blended with guitar riffs that brought an intense energy to the screen, almost as if it were a scene from an action movie.

As the camera zoomed in on the hovering helicopter, the helicopter door opened, showing Mathew, who playfully saluted.

Whoa whoa, whoa whoa~

Ari’s distinct singing voice could be heard, cutting through the guitar sounds just as Mathew backflipped off the helicopter and was slowly lowered by a wire to the stage.

The camera followed him down, tracking his playful expression as he landed and struck a pose on the stage before returning to the helicopter.

Then, following Matthew’s lead, the remaining team members sang their lines before jumping off the helicopter as the instrumental guitar riffs intensified.

By the time Levi jumped off with Ari on his shoulder, the chat was completely silent since they couldn’t believe what was happening.

Wasn’t this supposed to be a last-minute showcase? Where the hell had the helicopter come from? How come only one team got to use it?

Before complaints could begin, the camera briefly panned to the pilot’s seat, catching a quick glimpse of a handsome man who gave them a wink and thumbs up before turning the helicopter away.

Wait, wasn’t that Jason Lee Temple?

The action movie actor!

So Levi had asked his dad to fly his team in with a helicopter?

What the heck? Wasn’t that cheating?

As the performance continued, it was clear that the production team had put their heart and soul into editing everything.

From the spotlights that flashed around before focusing on the helicopter above, to the close-up shots of the boys as they were carefully lowered to the stage, to the multiple shots of the stage and audience, to each and every angle lovingly captured and edited to its fullest potential.

In fact, PD Emily had used every trick she knew in the book, personally splicing, masking, and color grading every single clip to make sure that it was as perfect as humanly possible.

And when the performance was over, and an ad came on, the previously quiet chat got rowdy once again.

└ I understand why they won, but it isn’t fair at all!

└└ Definitely not fair! Even in the editing, you can see the production team’s bias. I guess we found out their favorite contestants.

└ Team Bad Boys should be disqualified for cheating. How the heck were other contestants supposed to beat jumping out of a freaking helicopter? It’s not fair to the other contestants on other teams! They should have shared.

└└ How did they cheat? Answer me quickly! Tell the other contestants to do better and spend some money if they want to compete.

└└└ Why are you acting like Team Bad Boys spent money? Didn’t that fake tough guy, Levi, just cry to his daddy because his skills are trash and his daddy came to drop him off in a helicopter? Pathetic cheater

└└└└ Instead of worrying about Levi, worry about how William is going to JAIL!

└ Has anyone noticed how the top team is full of boys who basically form a clique that excludes others? This performance really showed me their true colors, which is selfishness. I expect this from the selfish French one and the buzzcut loner, but Benjamin and Jamie have really disappointed me. They had such an amazing opportunity for their performance, and instead of sharing it with the other contestants, whom they claim are ’friends’, they chose to oppress them. It’s sad that they’ve allowed themselves to be influenced by money and let that change the core of who they really are.

└└ How did they oppress other teams? Answer me quickly!

└└ Allow money to change them? Did you forget that Jamie’s family is also rich while writing your fanfiction? You may not recognize it, but all his clothes are expensive brands, his cowboy hats and boots are extremely expensive, and all his guitars could buy your family several times over. What kind of nonsense are you saying?

└└ The buzzcut loner is the one whose dad provided the helicopter, so I don’t understand what kind of high horse you think you’re on.

└└ What the hell are you talking about? This is a competition? Why would they share things that would make them win with their competitors?? Are you crazy?

└└└ It’s just really bad sportsmanship and makes me not believe in the brotherhood that Benjamin is always trying to sell. Notice that he no longer groups up with lower-ranked contestants. They had a chance to choose teammates, and he chose all the top ones. He’s just a disgusting hypocrite who is sucking up to those at the top.

└ I don’t understand why Team Bad Boys is suddenly the villain for doing everything they can to win extra votes for themselves when we should be blaming the production team! They were the ones who refused to give contestants props or a budget, so the contestants had to make do with what they could scrounge up for themselves.

└└ Who told you that? The voices in your head?

└└└ If you paid attention to the freaking performances, you would REALIZE that the contestants were reusing outfits and props from previous performances (picture attached, video attached). The production team is stingy, so they probably refused to give them anything new to save money.

└└└└ So the helicopter was used in a previous performance. I guess I must have missed that. Stupid a** AA making excuses as usual.

└└└└└ Calling me stupid when you have the reading comprehension of an amoeba is a choice

└└└└└└ You think you’re so smart for using big words to call me names?

└└└└└└└ Amoeba is a big word? Child Left Behind⬆⬆

└ This all circles back to Ariel, you know? If you notice, Team Bad Boys is made up of all his friends. And if you’re not Ariel’s friend, I guess the production team doesn’t give you good edits, the nepo baby association doesn’t let you use their fun toys like bringing a freaking helicopter to the performance, and you can just buy from the audience because they saw something flashy.

└└ Chat, is it wrong to make a team with your friends?

└└ I told you, from the beginning, I’ve always had a bad feeling about him, and I’ve been right. He cosplayed as being poor, and come to find out, he’s secretly rich with a connected family. Plus, he somehow managed to get all the rich kids of the show to be his friends? He’s a calculated demon!

└└└ I completely agree. And William was the only one who knew his true colors and fought against him, and you see what happened to William.

└└└└ He was probably framed lowkey. After all, every time something leaked, it ended up making Ari look good and everyone else look bad.

└└└└└ Woahhh, you’re right!

└└ I think you’re all idiots. William is a cheater, and the only people who’ve looked bad from those leaks are violent people like him and the toxic ass PD that was rightfully booted out for covering up William’s abuse, and the production team for being shady!

└└└ sybau!

└└ Why can’t all of you keep Ari’s name out of your mouths? Instead of blaming the audience that didn’t vote for your favorite, you’re blaming him for having a good and creative performance? You all suck!

As Grace read through the comments, she could only laugh incredulously as the fight broke out.

With just a few words of text and a change in the order of things, the production team had managed to start a raging fire among fans by somehow turning the team with the best performance into the ultimate villain of the day while their hands were kept clean.

There was absolutely no need to reveal which team received more votes or even the vote percentages, because that would all be tallied at the elimination ceremony.

But because they did, the top team members were all getting so much hate.

"So, the producers decided to make Ari’s entire team the villain this time, while William gets a pass. I have to give it to the editing team, they’re skilled, the producer really got guts, and Ari and all the boys have the patience of a saint because if I read what people are saying after I worked hard for an amazing performance, I would riot."

Especially Ari, because if Grace were in his position and had experienced what he’d gone through in the show, instead of just occasionally giving people dirty looks or complaining about not getting paid when he had the opportunity to speak, she would have fully crashed out by now and quit.

Because what do you mean that I’m always getting dragged into situations, get my name used as clickbait, get painted as a bad guy and scapegoat, and then still expect me to perform at a high level, and to pretend to be happy, get along with people I don’t like, and sing the production team’s praises?

She would actually become the greatest villain ever seen on a survival show, and it was a testament to Ari’s mental strength and what made so many of his fans love him so much.

Apart from being handsome, smart, and talented, Ari had a personality that came across as cocky, but was usually backed up by his success, which was attractive to a lot of people. Additionally, his personality was not fake in the slightest. Based on those judgmental eyes, you could tell if he liked someone, was annoyed, and he always spoke his mind, which made him relatable to a lot of people.

He refused to shrink, despite everything he’d been through, and had grown at an incredible rate, which made Ari’s fanbase so solid and kept it growing at a fast pace.

Part of it was due to good management and organization by her and by other big accounts, who were constantly pushing his good points, but the other part was due to how the production team had set everything up.

Ari’s fans were mostly unified because they knew their contestant was going through literal hell on a corrupt show and had to deal with other fanbases that were more unified and toxic.

For them, there was no time for infighting since their unspoken goal was to get Ari to first place and keep him there by any means necessary.

The more production hated on Ari, the more his appeal to the general population grew as people felt protective of the young, handsome, orphaned French kid who was smart and a bit cheeky.

Most of his fans were locked into voting and promoting Ari everywhere they could, and for the fans who were feeling argumentative, use that energy to whack the production team and focus on promoting Ari.

Based on what was shown so far in this episode, Grace knew that once they got to the elimination portion, they would somehow find a way to drag Ari into it, so if anything, once the ranks were announced, a plan needed to be drafted to push Ari to the top within these last couple of weeks of the show, and to keep him there.

As the episode came back on, Grace focused back on the screen while wondering what nonsense the production team was cooking up next.