[ANALYSIS] BTS - ‘We Are Bulletproof: The Eternal’
The ‘We Are Bulletproof’ songs are a perfect representation of how BTS grew up and matured through the years but also a summary of their journey for the past seven years. ‘The Eternal’ seems to be the last but it is such a beautiful way to end it. That no matter if good or bad is coming their way, they will face it head on because they have ARMY now.
The MV starts with RM meeting his old self. RM from today’s side seems to be in a brighter place compared to where his old self resides. But as he walked towards the embodiment of his past, his face didn’t show joy but a complicated expression of someone who might have gained light but lived in darkness for way too long to be his innocent self again. He goes back to look at the old him to forgive the bruising past and then be able to embrace the future. However, he knows that he would never forget his origins, so even when his present self is at the top, he will never set aside that he was once at the bottom. This explains BTS’ humble attitude to this day.
The next scene will show the members from the early days in different past eras and MVs walking in a depressing way. Not many know this because the members of BTS are extremely close today. They are individuals who worked together, lived together, suffered together, cried together and shared the same struggles together but…they never forget that they were put together by their company. They are seven people with very contrasting personalities and views on things, they didn’t always get along. They fought a lot in the past. I mean, even if you put lovers in the same place for24/7 wouldn’t it get suffocating eventually? That’s why at the start of the MV, the members are separated. It is also when they tussle the most. They each, had nothing but themselves and dreams.
Each of them will then try to fight his own demons and problems, but lose miserably.
Many times they tried to stand up and move on. Just to fail again and again. There are sharp objects trying to shred them which represent the haters and the poor public opinion they had. The road they walk in will fall apart and that will represent how frail their career was. So at some point they felt like they were drowning in the sea. Drowning in the sea indicates that there are obstacles in your path. Struggling for breath in the water signifies struggling for self-confidence in your real life. And dreaming of being rescued means there are many who rely on you. And yes, many ARMYs replied on BTS’ music and that’s what saved RM and made him float again be saved from drowning.
In the past some members even thought of ending it all. Suga talked in AGUST D #1 about his mental illness. Depression and such do not go away like a simple flue, it takes years to fight and it gets easily triggered. Imagine his suffering seeing that no matter the sleepless nights, no matter his exhausted body that he continuously needed to starve, no matter the shattered pride and humiliating industry…he was still in that bottomless place that many call “failure.” RM even wrote a song called “Always”, where he says: “One morning, I opened my eyes and wished I was dead. I want someone to kill me. In this loud silence. I live to understand the world but the world has never understood me, why. No, that half is missing. It’s trying to hurt me. I miss me miss me baby. I wish me I wish me baby. Wish I could choose me.” There were times V would cry together in the bathrooms of TV stations after receiving hate for a word he said but the public twisted it into a scandal. Jimin would end up with an eating disorder trying to fit in into what everyone labeled as an attractive body. There were a time JHope wanted to leave BTS because some signed petitions for him to disappear. There was a time Jin who seems like the happiest person today had to be called FAT and starve himself by going into crazy diets or else he will breach his contact with his agency. There was a time when Jungkook who was just a kid back then had to act like a grown up and work harder than anyone just to be criticized of taking the spotlight from the other members to the point that to this day, this boy is nervous of coming online. You know what encouraged them to keep on fighting? It was YOU. Yes it was ARMY. These boys still think that their fans are their main saviors. Because even if BigHit helped them in so many ways, it was still a company that wouldn’t have hesitated to show them the exit door if they didn’t bring back any profit at some point. Indeed, they were only seven…but they have us all now.
BTS who finally realized that even if they were different, they share the same goal and path, will meet up together. From then on, they became no more mere coworkers but shared a relationship that words would fail to describe.
At the start they were each alone and struggling, but then they started to run together. Since the beginning it showed many Music videos, but they only start to run during the MV of “I Need U”. This was the song that literally saved BTS from disbandment. It also gave them their first win at music shows. Billboard said: “When considering the South Korean septet’s legacy, 2015’s “I Need U,” the first single off of their-game changing The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt.1 album, was less of a song and more of a revolution – laying the groundwork for the future of the group, and in turn their rise to international superstars…But “I Need U,” when viewed in the larger context of BTS’ career, is even more important than just as a milestone of sonic development: the song was a tonal shift for the act’s musicality, and also brought their long-standing creative narrative, typically known as the “BU” or “BTS Universe,” to the forefront through its music video… it propelled the act’s momentum further than ever before, with both local and international audiences taking note.”
Later they will run a bit more before camping in the MV of “Spring Day”, Another legendary song for the group. That is still charting to this day. But you would ask, who would camp in the middle of snow, warming up only by a small campfire? That was how it felt being in their shoes. BTS stopped to rest there because they thought this was their limit. A cold industry but still enough warmth to survive.
The campfire also looks similar when BTS got together and Suga said teh infamous line:”What a relief that we are 7 members. What a relief that we have each other.”
Finally, the boys realized that even in that harsh weather, they were no more alone. For the first time they were able to see the little purple lights that represent their loyal fans. Maybe they were there since the start and BTS knew that they existed somewhere but only then they could see them.
The few lights will come together and do what many thought impossible. They will send the boys to higher places. It will be the start of BTS becoming a worldwide phenomenon. ARMYs will take the form of a huge purple whale that will fly higher than the clouds. But why a whale? Whales are associated with compassion and solitude. ARMYs were always alone because they supported the underdogs. Let’s talk about BTS’ first BBMAs that changed their career. ALL kpop fandoms laughed at us and when we were voting for BTS, they came together to vote against us. Little did they know back then, that they did what we did back then. Whales were symbolic of the ocean, a foreign environment that was vital, and what’s more, fatal to men. So ARMYs carried BTS through the unknown dark ocean that no Korean artist walked through in the past.
Remember the few purple lights that created the whale? Well once it arrived at the top and it dropped BTS into the highest place there is, it changed again to its original form but now there were millions of purple lights. Yes, that’s the ARMY fandom growing and becoming a huge force.
When BTS opened their eyes, they were welcomed by tremendous support. It might seem like an exaggeration, but this same scene happened during a concert while they sang “Born Singer.”
There is also this scene were one of them start crying but get comforted by the members. That looked similar to BTS’ 2018 MAMA speech after they won the grand prize and announced that even after all the fame they accumulated, the burden was huge, and they considered disbanding.
Many think that BTS already achieved that many failed to and there is no higher. But then the MV shows that at the top there is a door that has the shape of the ARMY logo. Yes, ARMYs made BTS who came from a very small company in a small country into legends and BTS think that if there is something higher than the sky and the universe, only ARMY would be able to open the portal to that new dimension for the group. That’s how much they believe in us.
The MV ends showing the current BTS in a flower field. It is indicative of rebirth, new beginnings and eternal life. There is an expression that many Koreans use, “Let’s walk on the flower path.” It is used when you wish all the best for someone in the future. Back in 2016, BTS made a song for ARMYs called 2! 3!. At the time no matter how good it seemed they were doing, they didn’t believe in that expression as the lyrics were: “Let’s only walk on flower trails. I can’t say that. Let’s only see good things. I can’t say that either. Saying that there will only be good things from now on. Saying that you won’t get hurt. I can’t say that. I can’t lie like that.” The boys who didn’t even acknowledge a mere flower path are now residing in a flower field.
I really hope you liked this analysis. These always take me some time so thank you for waiting.
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