'AGT' Season 21 Episode 2 sees returning magician earn Golden Buzzer after Howie Mandel's hilarious move
Yu Hojin has spent years trying to win over Simon Cowell, and this week on ‘America’s Got Talent’, he may have finally done it. The South Korean magician made his third appearance in the franchise during the second night of the Season 21 auditions. For longtime ‘AGT’ viewers, Hojin is a familiar face. He first competed during Season 17 in 2022 and advanced all the way to the finale. However, he fell short of taking home the trophy, losing to dance group The Mayyas. When he stepped onto the stage this season, he revealed that one particular piece of feedback stayed with him. During his original run, Cowell praised his talent but felt the performances lacked a huge, memorable finish. Hojin admitted he had been thinking about that comment ever since and wanted his comeback to feel much bigger.
Instead of appearing alone, the magician arrived with a new concept. He introduced a team called Hundred Fingers, a group made up of 10 performers dressed entirely in black. The name is a nod to the fact that 10 people brought 100 fingers to the stage, and their hands became the stars of the act. What followed was a carefully choreographed display that blended illusion and movement. Cards appeared from nowhere and vanished just as quickly. Wands seemed to materialize out of thin air, and feathers floated through the air before transforming into something entirely different. During the performance, objects changed shape, disappeared in flashes of smoke, and reappeared moments later in unexpected places. By the end, the crowd in the theatre was on its feet, and the judges looked equally impressed.
Even host Terry Crews appeared convinced that he had just witnessed a Golden Buzzer-worthy performance. The moment the act ended, he sprinted toward the judges’ desk, seemingly determined to be the one to send Hojin and his team straight to the live shows. Unfortunately for Crews, he was a little too late. Howie Mandel had already beaten him to it. Mandel launched himself across the judges’ table and hit the Golden Buzzer with his face. As gold confetti rained down across the stage, Mandel showered the group with praise and declared, “You guys deserve your own hotel in Vegas.” The reaction was everything Hojin could have hoped for. Still, there was another opinion he seemed eager to hear. After all, much of his return had been fueled by Cowell’s earlier criticism.
When Cowell finally shared his thoughts, the verdict was exactly what the magician wanted. The notoriously tough judge told Hojin that this latest act had surpassed his Season 17 performance. Mandel jokingly appeared slightly irritated that Cowell was receiving so much attention, even though he was the one who had pressed the Golden Buzzer. Notably, the magician’s journey with the franchise did not end after Season 17. He later returned for ‘America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League’ in 2024 as a member of Heidi Klum’s team. Even then, his determination to impress Cowell was impossible to miss.
