Disregarding freshteen/coolteen, Seventeen can do cute in a way I wouldn't expect for a senior boygroup.
I don't even know how they do it, honestly, I spent today trying to convince myself that they weren't cute specifically, but in the end I have to admit it is cute, but still dignified, somehow.
Cute for me is pieces like "My My" and "Snapshoot." The fact that they can revisit their rookie pieces like Mansae, Pretty U and even Shining Diamond and it works is surprising. It doesn't feel like a wink to the audience, either, just an earnest celebration of their work.
Now that I've put my thoughts down, I think it might have to do with the extremely high level of quality in the execution.
For example, if someone makes a 50 foot long village out of legos, the fact that legos are "for kids" isn't really important. The fact that they did something very impressive is what you remember.
So the fact that Seventeen gives it all to the performance, the bit, the energy, the choreo, it really carries any genre they pick. That might also be why they can go from dark to cool to fun to fresh concepts so seamlessly.
I also wonder if it might have to do with the large pool of personalities in the group. Depending on the tone, a different member can sort of lead the way in the concept? Anyway, Seventeen is extremely diverse and I'm really happy that cute is one of the things they can do.