Half a year has passed in a blink of an eye and our favorite idols haven’t slacked off at all. They’ve been throwing amazing comebacks at us nonstop. It’s almost exhausting but at the same time all so satisfying. And this first part of the year has seen mini-albums galore. So, let’s check out which ones that seem to have captured the hearts of fans the most (in no particular order).

IU - Spring of a Twenty Year Old

IU, Korea’s adorable little sister, came back with three amazing songs which showed off her growth and her true style. Staying at the top of Gaon Charts since its release, her new album has definitely been able to capture fans with her fabulous vocals. Showing three different emotions with each song, it really is a great comeback for IU. And she even got to go to Venice for the music video filming!

SHINee - Sherlock

Before releasing “Sherlock,” SHINee had been actively promoting in Japan and Korean fans had missed them like crazy. So, obviously, their comeback had to be big. Sherlock was the perfect hit. It showed their growth and their never-ending improvement (and the dance was really awesome too). Fans are still ordering the album like crazy.

Big Bang - ALIVE

After so many hardships in 2011, Big Bang came back with a BANG and proved that they were alive and better than ever. This mini-album is absolutely amazing, and it proved that by hitting no. 3 on iTunes once it was released. Songs “Blue,” “Bad Boy,” and “Fantastic Baby” all received music videos to drool over. Let’s just say that move was a triple kill.

INFINITE - INFINITIZE

The boys of INFINITE really know how to please fans. With such a diverse collection of songs, there is something for every fan to enjoy. It showed the boys’ growth and gave each member more time to shine. The album has stayed on the top parts of many music charts since its release, proving INFINITE’s popularity.

TaeTiSeo - Twinkle

SNSD’s first sub-unit which allowed the talented girls that form TaeTiSeo to show off their vocals and a slightly different style than usual. This album was an instant hit and the girls stole the hearts of many fans and non-fans alike. With their “Twinkle” fingers, they’ve definitely released a great mini-album to listen to.

EXO - MAMA

After teasing like crazy, fans were ecstatic when the mini-album finally came out. And it certainly did not disappoint. With a fresh new style and great songs, EXO was able to live up to the expectations placed on them by their teasers. With quite a big fanbase even before debut, it’s no wonder that they’ve done so well.

There were so many mini-albums that were amazing that it’s hard to include all of them, so what other mini-albums have made your first half of the year?