He implied he didn’t design his zeroni character.
Although ZEROBASEONE (also known as ZB1) member Ricky has been a fan-favorite since Mnet‘s Boys Planet, ZEROSES (ZEROBASEONE fans) have long been concerned about WAKEONE‘s treatment of him.
Earlier in the month, ZEROSES shared their anger about the “erasure” of Ricky from ZEROBASEONE content, including Mnet’s reality show trailer and even the group chant from the KCON behind-the-scenes footage.
ppl who say riyangis are overreacting can stfu cuz why is ricky the only member who didn’t get a close up shot for the magazine, got wrong subtitles, got no screentime and didn’t talk in that behind vid and now why would they put a clip of an ot8 chant when there was an ot9 one?
— ^•-•^ฅ🍓 (@rickkoyangi) June 8, 2023
i know i’m overreacting or something but this has been reoccurring since the show. riyangis have already had enough of ricky erasure.
and like there’s only nine members and they are all close with each other… is it really hard to give them equal treatment?
— ۟ (@shenqrui) June 8, 2023
what i don’t get is why people are calling riyangis dramatic for being (rightfully) upset about the ricky erasure in the recent content. if ur bias barely had screentime on the show and is now being treated as if he’s not even a part of the group you’d be upset too no?
— jenn (@loveandrene) June 8, 2023
When they filmed CAMP ZEROBASEONE, WAKEONE seemingly forgot about the two Chinese members, Zhang Hao and Ricky. They were initially denied entry into Jeju because they did not have their passports. Koreans do not need passports to travel within Korea.
ricky following hao hyung to show his boarding ticket then the security saying “if u dont have a passport u cant pass” then both looking very worried. this could have been avoided if w1 inform them to bring passports#WakeoneTreatRickyBetter#RICKY_IS_ZB1pic.twitter.com/4B5le9QwGw
— ☘️ (@haobinsplanet) June 11, 2023
This is so heartbreaking, he went to the airport with a smile on his face and after his flight got delayed his smile disappeared☹️
ZEROBASEONE IS 9#WakeoneTreatRickyBetter#RICKY_IS_ZB1 pic.twitter.com/CmksYkCToN
— mei | 沈泉锐✿ (ia) (@rickysehn) June 11, 2023
we voted for ricky in the group because we want to see him in the group, this constant mismanagement that always end up in ricky not being shown is frustrating and they haven’t even debuted yet
ZEROBASEONE IS 9#WakeoneTreatRickyBetter#RICKY_IS_ZB1 pic.twitter.com/NkmPoKXswi
— jia (@sillybabycat) June 11, 2023
On October 31, 2023, ZEROSES were shocked by ZEROBASONE’s management’s actions during a set of live broadcasts. A manager could be heard yelling at Ricky for beginning his live broadcast without their permission, which outraged many netizens.
Ricky got scolded by the manager for not asking him a permission for bubble live..
Wakeone staffs treat ZB1 badly every time.#Ricky #ZB1 pic.twitter.com/eZqMthK184— rachel_p (@rickyshen52004) November 1, 2023
when ricky was forced to end the live:
🧸ricky, check kakaotalk
🐱*nods*
🧸no (they said) check your kkt & end your live
🐱oops
🧸they said get permission & then do it
🐱i…have to end the live now. byebye, i don’t think i can continue any longer, sorrypic.twitter.com/W04I360ItN https://t.co/FodcGWNxiu— 🍰 (@rickyourlove) October 31, 2023
These are just a few examples of WAKEONE’s alleged mistreatment against Ricky specifically. Now, Ricky has implied he is unhappy at WAKEONE, and the company is well aware of this.
Previously, ZEROBASEONE and LINE FRIENDS collaborated on the members-inspired characters, zeroni.
zeroni are ZEROBASEONE’s special friends
who give cheers to the shining journey of ZB1.9 of zeroni all have Z mark,
and this mark also represents a symbol connecting ZEROBASEONE and ZEROSE.— LINE FRIENDS
Ricky’s character is Rinini. Rinini appears to be an angry cat. Cat is Ricky’s represenative animal.
ricky with rinini 🐱 pic.twitter.com/2KIPjI3cUs
— َ (@haeshion) June 1, 2024
Recently, a ZEROSE asked Ricky to imitate Rinini’s expression during a virtual fancall. Ricky questioned why his character looked so upset. He implied that the company must have designed it knowing he was unhappy since the character is representative of him. He attempted to laugh off his comment.
op asks Ricky to imitate Rinini and Ricky asks why Rinini looks unhappy.
Ricky: it seems that even the company knows I’m not happy. (laughter)#RICKY #리키 #沈泉锐 #リッキー pic.twitter.com/YmNQxj2hix— Ttopazz_lovericky_ver (@TTtopazz) June 16, 2024
ZEROSE: Can you imitate Rinini’s expression for me?
Ricky: Why does its mouth always go down? Am I so unhappy?
ZEROSE: Right… (subconsciously)
Ricky: It seems that the company also… It seems that the company also knows that I am unhappy. Ha ha.
This video went viral, with 235K views on X (formerly Twitter) at the time of writing. ZEROSES questioned if Ricky was even part of Rinini’s creative process. Other members previously claimed that they had assisted in designing their characters, and previous LINE FRIENDS collaborations, such as BTS‘s BT21, were created with the idols’ participation. Additionally, a previously released LINE FRIENDS’ zeroni image that showcased doodles of the characters featured Rinini with a smile.
we actually need a background story or video about how they made their zeroni ain’t no way ricky would draw himself all angry when all that boy do is smile and being a sweetie https://t.co/xBRz2RyxaQ
— 𝜗𝜚eva (@lovegyubrik) June 16, 2024
“why does he (rinini) have downturned mouth?” didn’t ricky design his zeroni? pic.twitter.com/lqr57GodI1
— mouna🐱ྀི (@sqrysl) June 16, 2024
Recently, ZEROBASEONE allegedly “protested” at their recent fanmeeting. Read more below.
ZEROBASEONE On Strike? Members “Protest” At Their Fanmeeting
