Hear Me Out... I Think These Could Have Been AI-generated...or By Someone Untrained. There's Just Something

Hear me out... I think these could have been AI-generated...or by someone untrained. There's just something missing. I don't know how to describe it yet but they don't feel like they've gone through the regular levels of development that i'm used to from BTS.

I really need to finish gathering my thoughts on a BTS and typography post I've got in mind.

231027 - 정국 (Jung Kook) 'GOLDEN' THE TRACKS PART ⅠⅠ

This question sent me on such an unexpected spiral. Thanks @rae-sense for sending it in to @bts-polls ! I had the pleasure of a Fake Love Era deep dive revisit and it was lovely! (Shoulda been making gifs for my Run bts series but always happy to procrastinate being at my desk!)

My initial reaction was: Easy peasy lemon squeezy, it's JK. Buuuuut, since I've been successfully bias-wrecked by Jimin, I was curious if rewatching the content would lead me to a different conclusion.

My discovery of Fake Love was extremely pivotal in my BTS journey as it facilitated my desire to dive deeper into the BTS world rather than just listening to the music. I was absolutely convinced before Fake Love that music videos were completely unnecessary for true music lovers, they were sometimes nice but ultimately sources of random trivia along the lines of "did you know the music video is actually about xyz...". Maybe it's because I grew up without cable and MTV access but I never thought an mv could ADD to the music enjoyment/experience.

Anyway, along comes the Fake Love mv with its pretty visuals and hints of a further storyline underneath (I wouldn't fully realize how much I was craving something like the BU in the music industry until I connected the dots between Run and Fake Love but the foundation was starting to form). And then there's the break in the middle... hearing JK's voice seep in with the astounding fire and water visuals has permanently changed me. I will never again be the same person I was before hearing seeing experiencing this. To this day, I have that moment as my ring tone and I keep the volume on so that when I get spam calls, it's like the universe was telling me I needed a reminder that I do have a soul in my body. (It's actually made spam calls turn into something of a treat for me instead of an annoyance, I highly recommend this!)

So...We've established that I was completely suckered in by the Fake Love mv and was falling for JK as my bias as I ventured through all of the rest of the Fake Love Era content. Buuuut! The question rises: Was JK my bias because I loved those specific moments OR did I love those specific moments because JK was my bias??? Now we have a quest!

I rewatched as much Fake Love Era content as I could before my pre-planned errands yesterday with the intent of noting what stands out to me for each member to see if anyone can usurp my answer of JK for this question.

RM: I'm sorry but I think one of RM's best contributions to the Fake Love Era was ripping JK's shirt in that one performance...as he said, he created a legendary scene.

JN: Jin KILLS the intro and all of his solo scenes in the mv! He doesn't really stand out to me in the performances though.

YG: Yoongi's tiny smirk during the flame explosion does me in everytime. The rest of his solo scenes are very compelling as well. I love his rap section in the performance, it always feels like a treat to watch.

JH: Hobi's storyline in the mv was a little confusing without being familiar with the BU. The Fake Love performances that I think of for him are 2018 MMA, 2019 MMA and 2018 MAMA, that mannequin rise!!

JM: I want to love the flooding scene, because it's so beautifully shot, and there are times I think I do but there's something that sticks about it, not sure what it is though. I wish his dance moments were highlighted more though, they absolutely would have suckered me in if with more coverage. As it stands, I have to look for them to properly appreciate.

Jimin absolutely stands out during all of their special stage performances, the marionette dances, the lift by JK and V. I honestly don't know why it took me so long to 'find' Jimin.

V: V's storyline in the mv was very forgettable for me. Pretty visuals in the moment but I move on quickly. the only performances that sticks out to me is 2018 MMA at the intro where the camera follows him and the members appear in the line behind him but that's more due the excellent blocking than Tae himself.

JK: The 'Love you so bad' hook after the break! Still gets me. he's such a great perspective character on the rest of the guys, and his hallway scene is extremely compelling as well. there's a reason why his shirt lift moment was the most memorable of the Billboard music awards or whatever they said it was. JK does a great mannequin rise with Hobi in the 2018 MAMA performance also.

In conclusion: there are definitely some other members in contention, but JK still owns the Fake Love era for me.

Which member do you feel fits the "fake love" era the most?

Thanks for the poll question @rae-sense ! Always happy to post a submitted question.

LAST CALL: Do you use Rock Paper Scissors to resolve disputes more now than before your BTS journey?

Run BTS: 011 | Back to School

Original Air Date: 31 JAN 2017 Episode Length: 26:22 Total Parts: 1 YouTube English Subtitles: Yes Title Song: Fire

Synopsis: Classroom skit

Production: Good set up and edit. We understand exactly what's going on.

Endearment: Much more effective to include the set up and assignment of roles and hear their opinions of how the last skit went. We get invested in wanting them to succeed with the skit.

Winner/Loser: none

Best Cheater: none

Member Moments:

RM: Namjoon was so good at putting on that voice and mannerisms while they were coming up with the plan.

JN: Aww, Jin flushing when practicing at the beginning and blows a hand kiss at Jimin.

YG: I mean, was this fate? This role was perfect to get him involved.

JH: Why does Hobi always end up with water all over him in the skits?? ok, not always but at least twice!

JM: The practice version with Jimin is so much better than what they did in the real skit!

V: Best.timed.sneeze.ever

JK: So many props! He's got a whole pile of them!

Bonus Content: Definitely worth the watch. it seems these were cut purely for pacing but some great acting by all of the guys, especially Namjoon!

CQ Rank: 3

(CQ Eval Date: 12 SEPT 2023)

Check out this post for my Masterlist of all episodes and descriptions of how I'm evaluating these.

Previous Episode: 010

Next Episode: 012

Run BTS: 012 | Cops

Original Air Date: 28 FEB 2017 Episode Length: 22:34 Total Parts: 1 YouTube English Subtitles: Yes Title Song: Blood Sweat & Tears

Synopsis: Police/criminal skit

Production: I really question if it was intentional to do two skits in a row. Was something else planned that fell through? we dont see as much behind-the-scenes for this one. Just a basic intro and then the skit itself.

Endearment: Really seems like the guys trying to make each other crack up and fill time with their dance skills.

Winner/Loser: none

Best Cheater: none

Member Moments:

RM: RM is such a great setup guy. He gives Jin perfect opportunities.

JN: The Jin acting skills are out in full force!

YG: This poor precinct...he stuck to his role of incompetent chief well though!

JH: Honestly, i think Hobi wins the game of flustering the others when he grabs Yoongi's face.

JM: Park Jimin behind bars is one of the most adorable things ever!

V: The guys must have really liked his set up because they all copy this basic outline for their bits.

JK: I get the feeling that JK absolutely loved his role as Jimin's interrogator

Bonus Content: Cute extra moments....and some jk workouts (seriously, i think he's diing the absolute perfect form for push-ups)

CQ Rank: 3

(CQ Eval Date: 12 SEPT 2023)

Check out this post for my Masterlist of all episodes and descriptions of how I'm evaluating these.

Previous Episode: 011

Next Episode: 013

Run BTS: 013 | The Spy Who Returned part 1

Original Air Date: 06 MAR 2017 Episode Length: 22:05 Total Parts: 3 YouTube English Subtitles: No Title Song: Blood Sweat & Tears

Synopsis: Mini games at a water park. Divided in two teams.

MC: YG

OLD: RM, JN, JH

YOUNG: JM, V, JK

A spy is chosen at the beginning

Production: They did such a better job with sound around water this time! Excellent job featuring the location and explaining the mini games as well as the spy set up.

Endearment: Letting us and them know about the spy at the beginning encourages us to pay close attention to their behavior against what we know of their personalities.

Winner/Loser: see final part

Best Cheater: none

Member Moments:

RM: RM absolutely has practiced the technique of falling properly. Did you see that mid-air twist to land on his back??

JN: Jin's attack during the balance game was amazing!

YG: Yoongi's hosting skills are in full force.

JH: He picked water!!! Definitely spy behavior for a random draw. Although it does tempt me to list Staff as the best cheater again, that's just mean!

JM: Excellent save during the balance game...only to immediately fall after

V: V didn't even get a chance at the balance game.

JK: I honestly expected JK to do better in the jumping race game. Did they tell the Young Guys to lose so that it'd be more interesting to watch??

Bonus Content: combined with the bonus content for ep 14

CQ Rank: 3.5

(CQ Eval Date: 12 SEPT 2023)

Check out this post for my Masterlist of all episodes and descriptions of how I'm evaluating these.

Previous Episode: 012

Next Episode: 014

Run BTS: 015 | The Spy Who Returned part 3

Original Air Date: 21 MAR 2017 Episode Length: 19:59 Total Parts: 3 YouTube English Subtitles: Yes Title Song: Blood Sweat & Tears

Synopsis: Still at the waterpark but now the minigames are focused on sussing out the spy

Production: Pretty simple for production, just need to keep riding the buildup from the previous episodes. I do think this was meant to only be a two parter but there was too much footage ao they aplit the first part into two.

Endearment: Nice glimpses of some of the woes of living together. It does feel a little like they were asked to specifically mention those kind of stories though.

Winner: JN

Loser: none

Best Cheater: none

Member Moments:

RM: RMs sweater looks too cozy, I'm distracted by it in all of his coverage.

JN: Jin sure knows how to make a JinMin interaction endearing.

YG: I love that yoongi gets to eat with jin, you've worked hard MC!

JH: Hobi has this face when he's being wrongly accused. if he could nail that when he's sctually bad, he'd be unstoppable.

JM: Jimin saw his chance to scold JK and he absolutely took it! Funny how no one suspects him of being the spy for this.

V: Havent quite perfected the art of not flinching yet, eh, V?

JK: JK is right, he can't win against Hobi's angellic face in this kind of game.

Bonus Content: Yoongi getting the coverage he deserves and more adorable JinMin

CQ Rank: 3

(CQ Eval Date: 13 SEPT 2023)

Check out this post for my Masterlist of all episodes and descriptions of how I'm evaluating these.

Previous Episode: 014

Next Episode: 016