3 (Personal) Theories That Link BTS' 2019 MMA Showcase To The HYYH Storyline
Last year, at the 2018 Melon Music Awards, BTS secretly revealed the name of their upcoming album Persona during the intro performance to Fake Love. At this point I think it’s safe to say they rarely release anything that doesn’t somehow tie into a bigger picture.
This past Saturday, at the 2019 Melon Music Awards, BTS’ showcase performance not only nodded toward the name of their next album— which, while unconfirmed at this point, is almost certainly Shadow —but they also included several hints during their VCRs that tie into the HYYH-era storyline. Like the rest of the BTS Universe story (which was only slightly clarified by the webtoon) the clues are mostly inscrutable, so making sense of them is hit or miss; however, I thought I would share what I noticed anyway.
Also included in this post are my personal theories, which may be lame. You have been warned.
Theory #1: The VCRs Represent An Alternate Reality?
The first VCR shows all the boys sleeping on some couches and chairs, which is immediately reminiscent of the ending shot of the I Need U music video. Since that era is where the storyline began, even though the boys aren’t positioned in exactly the same way, the setup probably isn’t a coincidence.
I also noticed that the furniture setup is quite similar to the For You music video. Although many people don’t think about the Japanese songs, For You was released around the same time as I Need U, therefore I refuse to discount the possibility of it being a part of the story.
Finally, the curtains in the back of the room. We’ve seen those lacy curtains in Seokjin’s Wings short film, the Love Yourself highlight reel, Euphoria, Fake Love… they’re definitely a link to the storyline.
Looking closely at their clothing choices in the MMA VCRs, I noticed how there are some striking similarities to the I Need U music video… and since nothing from BTS is ever a coincidence, there must be a reason why some of them are dressed the same.
Yunki is wearing the same plaid shirt that appears in I Need U (hanging on the wall of his apartment).
Jungkook’s outfit— notably the black jacket over a grey shirt —matches what he wore back then as well.
Taehyung probably has the closest replica of his I Need U outfit; wearing a black leather jacket in the same style, over a hoodie.
It’s my personal theory that every time Seokjin travels back in time to start over and save all his friends, a new alternate reality is created (which would explain some of the music videos that don’t seem to line up perfectly with the HYYH story). I suspect the 2019 MMA VCR links up to one of these realities.
I’ve yet to figure out the exact significance of the lighter as it pertains to the BTS Universe story; however, it’s a piece of imagery that appears consistently throughout their music videos and teasers. Usually we see Yunki with the lighter— his symbol throughout the story seems to be fire —but in the opening VCR from this year’s Melon Music Awards, Namjun is holding, and playing with, the lighter.
Theory #2: The Upcoming Album Will Be Connected To The Story?
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I’m positive the next BTS album will be Shadow because of the obvious shadow imagery in the MMA 2019 VCRs. When the boys’ shadows fill in to reveal them, it links up with their respective themes throughout the story, as seen in the Love Yourself Highlight Reel, some of the Wings short films, the HYYH Prologue, and the I Need U, Spring Day, Euphoria and Fake Love music videos.
Jungkook’s shadow fills in with smoke. I think this is probably an allusion to him saving Yunki from the fire in Euphoria, but in general, fire and smoke are actually pretty common imagery for Jungkook.
Namjun’s shadow fills in with leafs. His is the most confusing to me personally (not that any of them are glaringly clear), but I was able to find some imagery that was consistent with leafs and forests.
Jimin’s shadow fills in with water. This one is probably the clearest, since all of Jimin’s imagery throughout the story has to do with water; from the bathtub in I Need U to the rain in the Love Yourself highlight reel.
Hoseok’s shadow fills in with a rainbow scene. It’s a little hard to make out exactly what the scene is, but I’m pretty sure it’s the carousel, which is frequently part of the BTS Universe Hoseok’s storyline.
Taehyung’s shadow fills in with spray paint. If you look closely, inside his silhouette you can see the same graffiti from the Wings short film, and on top of that, spray paint is a common theme in his story.
Yunki’s shadow fills in with flames. Most of Yunki’s HYYH story revolves around fire and burning imagery, so there’s no secret this is connected to the BTS Universe.
Seokjin’s shadow fills in with what looks like a video glitching, and then very clearly, a train. Seokjin has the video camera through HYYH, and the train appears in the Love Yourself highlight reel.
Theory #3: The Dance Solos Symbolize Each Character?
Now, here’s the part where I get a little deeper into the crazy side of BTS Universe theories, possibly trying to connect things that aren’t there. Why am I sharing them if I know they sound kinda crazy? Because that’s half the fun of coming up with fan theories, isn’t it?
So bear with me while I analyze how each of BTS’ solo dance performances may have also been nods to their respective storylines.
First, during Taehyung’s dance in the archway, I noticed there are petals blowing all around him. These petals show up all throughout the HYYH story and seem to be a symbol of the timeline changing, or maybe an effect of Seokjin traveling back in time. The archway Taehyung dances in is also very similar to the aesthetic of the statue room in the Blood Sweat and Tears music video, and the way he appears to be dancing on a ledge made me think of when he jumps off the balcony. Since one of my own theories is that all the characters are dead in Blood Sweat and Tears— until Seokjin seals his Faustian deal to save them with a kiss —and the devil takes the form of Taehyung, the fact that the landscape seems to be burning around him in his 2019 MMA performance might lead credence to my theory.
Second, Jin shows up riding a horse. This is my most straw-grasping part of these theories, because I don’t know if the horse really represents anything, but I think there’s some symbolism there. Seokjin’s commanding performance could represent how he drives the story forward because he’s the one in charge of saving the rest of the group. If we presume it’s a Trojan horse (fitting with Dionysus’ ancient Greek aesthetic), it could symbolize how Jin keeps the secret of his power to go back in time, and the knowledge that the members might/will die, while pretending nothing is wrong.
Third, Jimin’s beautiful contemporary scarf dance. He’s dressed all in white, which makes me think of the Love Yourself Highlight reel, and the Run and Euphoria music videos, when Jimin is in the hospital and wears those sterile white hospital pajamas. His dance is done in an interpretive style, very light and flowing, with a dreamlike quality; not unlike the dreamy, drug-induced feel of his Wings short film Lie. I think his solo performance could represent an expression of the grief he endures during the Love Yourself highlight reel, or his coping with loneliness in the hospital (like how he runs around the empty cafeteria in Euphoria), or maybe even an attempt to drown himself as is suggested in I Need U.
Fourth, Yunki inside the burning square. As I said before, Yunki probably has the most straightforward imagery in the entire BTS Universe. Pretty much everything is fire with him. I would explain his being inside a cube at the Melon Music Awards as a symbol of him being trapped in the burning apartment.
Fifth, Jungkook’s dance in the water. I’ve already pointed out how much water imagery there is in the HYYH story, so I won’t bore you again. What I will say is that I noticed a lot of the gestures felt similar to other significant moments throughout BTS music videos; for example, when he falls down onto his back, he has his arms spread out and his head to the side just like the end of the intro to Euphoria. The way he reaches up, and then grabs his own hand, at the beginning of the dance looks very similar to the way he and Seokjin end the Fake Love choreography.
Sixth, Hoseok’s crazy Skrillex-sounding solo performance, which probably actually ties with Jin for the biggest stretch I had to make. Hoseok’s performance was very dark, with beams of neon-colored light shooting out around him. That reminded me a lot of his Wings short Film Mama as well as Boy Meets Evil, where everything goes dark and there’s splatters of neon-colored paint everywhere. Plus, in the storyline Hoseok is a narcoleptic, and I thought his performance seemed a lot like a dream… or a nightmare.
Seventh and finally, Namjun’s intro. I don’t say this theory is reaching because I honestly don’t have one for him. He had a short intro (probably because he performed Persona) and there wasn’t very much to it, but he still looked like a badass.
So those are the hints of the BTS HYYH story I noticed at this past Saturday’s performance at the 2019 Melon Music Awards. Thank you for bearing with me through all my silly fan theories; I hope you at least got a laugh or two, and hey, maybe you’ll actually look forward to more of my theories in the future!