Fact Check: BTS And LINE FRIENDS Release New NSFW BT21 Toys
Since October 2017, when BTS and LINE FRIENDS‘ collaborated to create BT21, ARMYs have eagerly supported by purchasing many products of their favorite characters.
It’s been six years, and LINE FRIENDS is continuing to release unique BT21 products to meet the high demand. But a circulating image of alleged new products has ARMYs shocked.
An ARMY’s tweet went viral with 3.1M views on X (formerly Twitter) at the time of writing. It appeared to be a collage of screenshots from Weverse Shop for new BT21 lightsticks.
my poor bt21 what is this😭 pic.twitter.com/gakCI2Bzy7
— mere ⋆ (@haegeumhuh) August 28, 2023
Lightsticks sound like a great idea, as they are an important part of K-Pop culture. Yet, ARMYs could not believe their eyes as the lightsticks looked more like adult toys.
lighsticks🫶🏼
— mere ⋆ (@haegeumhuh) August 28, 2023
they said love yourself https://t.co/bbyKYnOJiP
— nikol ⁷ Layo(ꪜ)er (@jiminssikookies) August 28, 2023
It takes the meaning of “Love Yourself” to a different level. ARMYs joked that it is merchandise related to Jungkook‘s “SEVEN.”
The character placements at the end…..may lord help us all https://t.co/EP7upi58B2
— Shai ⁷ (ꪜ) 🪴 (@snowducktan) August 28, 2023
Namjoon when he logs onto his Stan account and sees this pic.twitter.com/Q2wLts4hn7 https://t.co/hPuN4dfAd0
— DAMN IT LAUREN⁷ (@Starlit_Lauren) August 28, 2023
But would LINE FRIENDS really release such a suspicious design, even if it’s lightsticks?
If you look closely at the photo, you will see that not only are the members’ names included in the product listing, but their name is on the “handle” of the lightstick for each character. While BT21 are the representative characters for and created by BTS, only knockoff merchandise online usually mentions the members by name. Official websites, such as Weverse or LINE FRIENDS, simply refer to the products by the character names. There’s also an odd watermark on each one.
The OP (Original Poster) later confessed that they searched Weverse Shop and couldn’t find the listing. They revealed it was just an edit.
also the dildos aint real, i dont think weverse would go that far for merch,,, pic.twitter.com/NqQo539oFW
— mere ⋆ (@haegeumhuh) August 28, 2023
However, there are BT21 lightstick charms. They resemble lightsticks and light up but can be attached to other things.
❣お菓子売り場にてまもなく発売❣
「BT21 Light stick charm」
スティックライト型チャームが登場！
詳細は⇒https://t.co/JBKfAtEpql#BT21 pic.twitter.com/QTDPf4gZRK— バンダイ キャンディ【公式】 (@candytoy_c) August 18, 2023
