18 BTS References You Might Have Missed In BTS’s MAMA “Intro”
BTS‘s stage at the 2019 Mnet Asian Music Awards was all about bringing the past to the present while looking to the future. Their “Intro” video for “Dionysus” is full of references from their past work. Check it out!
1. The BTS Universe
These film negatives are made up of shots from music videos that form the foundation of the Most Beautiful Moment in Life (HYYH) era and/or the BTS Universe.
The shots become much easier to see when inverted.
2. “I Need U” and “on stage: prologue”
The “Intro” video zooms in on one frame in particular from “on stage: prologue” MV: the campfire scene.
This campfire scene from “on stage: prologue” is a continuation of the one first seen in “I Need U”.
Notice the placement. The film strip shows screenshots in the order the MVs were released. “I Need U” (far left) was released in May 2015, followed by “on stage: prologue” in October 2015, and “Run” in November 2015.
3. “MIC Drop”
This shot of a mic in the air could be referring to the “MIC Drop” MV.
4. “Run”
This running man might be alluding to several BTS works, including “RUN” MV. In it, the members spend most of the time, well, running!
5. WINGS era
Toward the end of the “Intro” the running man becomes seven running men (one for each member) with different black and white patterns. The men merge into one…
…just like the WINGS circles do.
6. “Make It Right” MV and “Mikrokosmos”
This “Intro” shot of V is straight out of the “Mikrokosmos” MV (feat. Lauv).
It is combined with galaxy graphics that could be referencing “Mikrokosmos”. “Microcosmos” or “small world” is the idea that human beings are scale models of the universe, that it exists inside each one of us.
7. The hourglass
BTS’s Save Me webtoon confirmed what fans suspected all along: that Jin is a time traveler going back in time to change BTS’s future.
This hourglass, in particular, looks a bit like BTS’s logo!
8. V’s scene from “Blood, Sweat & Tears” MV
In the “Intro” BTS are concealed by translucent sheets…
…much like V was in the MV.
9. “Heartbeat” MV
The scene of a lone man in a fantasy-space setting could be hinting at RM‘s scene from “Heartbeat” MV. The lone man, who later splits into seven, could actually represent RM (BTS’s first member) himself.
10. “DNA” and “Serendipity”
This shot from the “Intro” may remind fans of the super close up shots of eyes in both “DNA” and “Serendipity” MVs.
11. The opera glasses from “Blood, Sweat & Tears”
Jin uses these glasses in the Japanese “Blood, Swear & Tears” MV…
…and J-Hope uses them in the Korean MV.
12. The microphone from “Airplane Pt. 2” MV
13. The framed paintings from the WINGS short films
Several BTS MVs have framed paintings in them, but they played a key role in the WINGS era.
14. The violin from “N.O”
15. Polaroids from the BTS Universe
Polaroids are a recurring image in the BTS Universe. Some show the changes that happen when time traveler Jin changes the past.
16. “DNA” MV
These light graphics form a double helix, referencing “DNA”.
17. The WINGS logo
“Intro” shows the members in circles that call to mind this iconic logo.
18. The empty hourglass
The hourglass is one of the most mysterious symbols in the MAMA “Intro”. Will Suga be a time traveler in BTS’s new era?
