When the teaser images for the After School comeback were released they attracted a lot of attention from fans and critics alike.

The images show the members of the popular girl group in erotic pole dance poses, and while they are relatively covered up, the content is overtly sexual.

This is not an uncommon trend in K-Pop these days. Many female idol groups are struggling to not only compete against their male counterparts for record sales and the highest spots on the charts, but also with each other to stand out as being different.

As female idols are walking that thin line between sexy and vulgar, the media is infiltrated by images of scantily clad pop stars with something to prove.

This fierce competition has created a sort of inner battle among girl groups to 'out-sex' one another - as if their music alone is not good enough and the only way to get noticed is to be as erotic as possible.

Talking about their new 'updated' image, the members of After School disclosed some of the details behind their recent pole dance theme.

"Our CEO ordered us to do the pole dance," said Uee at a press conference in Seoul on Thursday. "He didn't order it directly, but showed us a video about pole dancing and asked us if it was cool or not."

She then went on to explain, "We can't say anything other than agree that it's cool. He'll then choose it as our next concept and make us practice it."

Jung Ah added, "If we say we don't want to do it, then he says that he's going to make another rookie group do it. We end up having to do it anyway."

"It was the same for our tap dancing and marching concepts," said UEE.

The staging for After School's "First Love" single has the girls swinging around dance poles and moving their hips in a provocative manner - an performance that is interesting to watch, albeit a far cry from the lyrics and meaning of the song.

In the face of other girl groups making comebacks this month, namely SISTAR, will After School's concept be enough to put them on top?