On March 21st, BTS: The Comeback Live, the group’s long-awaited return from group hiatus due to military enlistment, was streamed live on Netflix to millions of viewers around the world. On Friday, Netflix released BTS: The Return, a feature documentary that takes viewers into the making of BTS’ latest album, Arirang.
HYBE, the entertainment conglomerate that grew from BTS’ success, has previously released similar behind-the-scenes production diaries through the platform Weverse and quieter collaborations with YouTube or Disney. If BTS were looking to solely reach their fans, HYBE has the technology, reach, and resources to make it happen. BTS: The Comeback Live and BTS: The Return represent something different: a desire to reach a global audience, perhaps one that does not know much about BTS past their identity as a K-pop group.
To that end, The Comeback Live and The Return act as kind of a one-two punch for Netflix subscribers looking to understand both the scale of BTS’ pop culture power and the complex artists beneath it all. For those who want to understand more about what went into the making of both projects, here’s a breakdown.
BTS’ first performance in years is rooted in history
After a nearly four-year hiatus due to mandatory military service, any space would have become meaningful with BTS’ performance. However, HYBE chose one of the most symbolically important spaces in all of Korea for the group’s comeback setting: Gwanghwamun Square.
In 1394, when King Tae-jo relocated the capital for the new Joseon empire to Hanyang (known today as Seoul), he built Gyeongbokgung Palace at the foot of Mt. Bugaksan. The road that ran from Gyeongbokgung’s Gwanghwamun gate and past the nearby government ministries was called Yukjogeori, or Six Ministries Street. During the Joseon dynasty, which spanned 600 years until 1897, Gwanghwamun Square was a symbol of the capital and the empire, and Yukjogeori (called Sejongno today) was a place where the king…
