Science communicator Orbit (aka Gwedo) had some pretty pointed things to say during the press conference for Channel A’s new quiz show Brain Academy, and fans couldn’t help but notice the indirect shots at The Devil’s Plan.
At the online event on May 29 at 11 AM, the cast and crew of Brain Academy — including Orbit, Jun Hyun-moo, Hwang Je-sung, Ha Seok-jin, Lee Sang-yeob, and Yoon So-hee — showed up along with CP Seo Hye-seung and PD Moon Young-seok.
Orbit, Ha Seok-jin, and Yoon So-hee are all pretty familiar faces for fans of brainy survival shows — they all took part in The Devil’s Plan. Ha Seok-jin actually won Season 1, Orbit was the runner-up, and Yoon So-hee just wrapped up as runner-up in Season 2, which dropped on May 20 and is still getting a lot of attention.
During the event, Orbit said something that raised eyebrows: “I’ve turned down many competitive programs, but finally a program about harmony has emerged. It’s great to be in harmony with close friends, hyungs, and dongsaengs. We need to move beyond fighting, competing, and slandering, and become one through collective intelligence to advance to a new world.”
That didn’t go unchecked — MC Park Seul-gi jumped in and said, “That kind of remark could be problematic for those who create such programs. Many people also like those programs. You also received a lot of love (by appearing in them), didn’t you?”
Orbit doubled down though, adding, “While we grow through competition, our program is about harmony.” He then threw in a bit of tea: “However, in ‘Brain Academy,’ I witnessed unreasonable behavior where someone stole or claimed another’s idea as their own.” Hwang Je-sungtried to smooth it over, saying, “There’s a reason for it, so please check the main broadcast.”
Yoon So-hee also shared her experience on set, saying, “I’ve always wanted to appear on a quiz program, and it was great to do it with close oppas and good seniors. It seems like it will be fun.” She added, “Before we started, I felt the pressure of what kind of questions would come. It was almost the first time seeing these two (Lee Sang-yeob, Hwang Je-sung), so I worried if I could comfortably say ‘I think I got it wrong’ while solving problems with them. Everyone made it so comfortable and fun that after the first recording, I thought, ‘Could there be such a comfortable recording?’ It was that comfortable.”
Orbit and science communicator Gwedo (same person, by the way) both made it clear — for them, Brain Academy is more about teamwork than takedowns.
