By Jae-Ha Kim
jaehakim.com
April 5, 2018
☆☆☆☆
Before I watched Episode 3 of “BTS: Burn the Stage” last night, I saw Stevie Wonder’s homage to Dr. Martin Luther King, where luminaries such as Barack and Michelle Obama, Paul McCartney and Samuel L. Jackson spoke about their hopes and dreams. Amongst all these well-known celebrities, BTS appeared, encouraging everyone to love themselves. According to Korean news, Wonder had personally sent the band a letter asking them to participate in his tribute.
As far as I could tell, the BTS members were the only Asians included in the video. Why there were no others is better left to ponder elsewhere. But the fact that they were featured is a marker of the band’s global relevance not only in music, but for the charitable work they do, such as their Love Myself campaign with UNICEF.
When I review documentaries about people that I already know a lot about, I try to look at it from the point of view of how it would (or would not) appeal to someone who tuned in without any idea of the subject matter.
Music and popularity aside, these young men have interesting stories to tell.
As they’re enjoying a meal in Chile, the band members reminisce about their earlier, more difficult years. Suga talks about how he was so poor that he bought lottery tickets, hoping to help himself and his family. He was still a trainee with BTS and working as a delivery boy to put himself through college. While out on a delivery, he was hit by a car and severely damaged his shoulder.
He had kept much of this to himself. He feared that his agency wouldn’t want a rapper and break dancer who could no longer perform difficult b-boy moves. He worried that since he was damaged, he would be cut. When he couldn’t hide his injury any longer, he told his management company. They asked why he hadn’t come to them for help and said they would wait for him to recover. And from that point on, they covered his tuition. (As Agust D — his rap nom de plume — Suga references this accident in “The Last.”)
Note: I am too much of a cynic to think that all businesses do good things for the sole purpose of helping others. That’s not how businessmen become (and remain) successful. But I am also of the mind that a pragmatic businessman knows that investing money into quality people can be win-win for everyone involved.
As they sat around discussing how they got to where they are, I felt as if they had forgotten the cameras filming them. If it makes any sense, I momentarily forgot the cameras were there, too. In my mind, I flashed forward to these friends reuniting as 40- or 50-year-olds, sipping wine and remembering a time in their lives that no one else could understand.
Much has been made of Jungkook, then 19, collapsing from heat exhaustion. After receiving oxygen, he willed himself to finish the concert, because he knew their fans had waited a long time to see them.
The level of professionalism is so strong in this group. I have been to countless live shows where Western acts walked off the stage, because someone threw a shoe at them; or performed for less than an hour and called it good; or didn’t like the requests for certain songs and left in a huff. And here’s this teenager saying he has to go on stage, because his not being there isn’t the memory he wants to leave with their fans.
It was bittersweet watching Jungkook talk about his role in BTS. He said that in some ways, he felt that he stopped growing mentally at 15, the age he became a trainee. He didn’t mean that he stopped learning, but rather that he had absorbed the knowledge (and idiosyncrasies) of his older bandmates. Always smiling, he presents a happy-go-lucky image to the world. But in a video that he made when he was 15, you can see how homesick he is as he talks about missing his parents, who he had moved away from to train with BTS in Seoul.
The person I most related to in this episode, though, was Jimin. While the others were spending their down time writing music, practicing the guitar and playing video games, Jimin devoured books. (I once read five books while on vacation in Mexico. To some people, this may sound horrific. But, for me, it was a dream come true to bask in the sun and read.) He spoke of wishing he didn’t have to sleep, so that he could get more things done, which reminded me of Steve Aoki‘s documentary, “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead.”
In an interview with me a year ago, RM said that eating Korean food on tour connects them with home, regardless of where they are. While on the bus ride from the airport to their hotel in São Paulo, the guys look forward to the rice soup they’ve been promised. Later, while devouring supper in their hotel room, RM is amazed that they’re eating kimchi in Brazil and wonders if they’ll be able to eat Jajangmyeon.
Still hungry, Jimin gingerly asks RM and Jin if he could have some of their grilled beef. Jin tells him, “Of course.” The way RM answered — almost insulted that Jimin felt the need to ask — reminded me of my mother. Their food is to be shared with each other, he said.
정 (jung) is a Korean word that is difficult to define in English. 정 encapsulates a feeling of love and loyalty that people have for one another. They will do things out of the kindness of their hearts, rather than as quid pro quo.
As I watched the members of BTS drinking and laughing together, I realized that it was this 정 they had for each other that was as much of a component of their success as anything else.
Airdates: The eight-episode series premiered on March 28. The finale will air on May 9, 2018, on YouTube Red. Read more of my reviews of “BTS: Burn the Stage” here: Episode 1 & 2. Episode 4. Episode 5. Episode 6. Episode 7. Episode 8. My review of “Burn the Stage: The Movie” is here.
There’s a scene in #BurnTheStage‘s 3rd episode where @BTS_twt shares a meal. 정 is a Korean word that is difficult to define in English (love/loyalty). But it’s this 정 they have for one another that’s such a key element of their success. My review:⏭https://t.co/8k86DwK4yC pic.twitter.com/7lm2LXDgbg
— Jae-Ha Kim 김재하 (@GoAwayWithJae) April 5, 2018
© 2018 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved
This was my favorite episode. I cried when Jungkook was hurt. Thank you for this review.
Thank you for the review Jae. I dont really care for others opinions about this series except for a select few including yours!
What a compliment. Thank you so much!
while watching details are lost and some feelings overcome others, reading your review could realized so much that on the time passed by careless.
Thank you, with your review tears are rolling down once again !