Uncovering The Trail Of Clues From BTS CCTV LIVE

As a build up to the release of 7 Fates: CHAKHO, pop titans BTS unveiled a cryptic 33-minutes long CCTV recording, leaving a bonanza of clues for their fans to decipher.

As announced on November 4th, 2021, at HYBE’s community briefing, the entertainment giant is all set to launch four original web stories in the form of webtoons and web novels, including BTS’ storyline, 7 Fates: CHAKHO. In a signature BTS fashion, the group took to their YouTube channel (BANGTANTV) to showcase a silent recording of the members in different settings. Though the event was announced earlier today, movement within the clips was seen after its premiere at 6:30 PM IST.

The live premiere began with vocalist Jin walking into a corridor lined with doors on both sides. The frame had a standard CCTV recording design with a timestamp. While none of the doors were open, one could vaguely make out the door numbers — the most prominent one reading ‘06764’. After a few minutes of observation, Jin disappears (an uncanny resemblance to the events that unfolded at the end of Marvel’s Infinity War). His disappearance time is noted as December 20th, 22:04 PM.

Soon vocalist Jimin is seen, and he walks into a room that has a bean bag placed centrally. Two paintings resting in the corner right of the room immediately catch the viewers’ attention. While one is a green, rectangular painting with five lines running across it diagonally, the second painting has two blue patches on it. Like Jin, Jimin too disappears at 22:07 PM. His disappearance immediately unveils the messages on the paintings; the rectangular one reads ‘2022’ and the one with blue patches says ‘0101’. Perhaps a possible date reveal — January 1st, 2022.

BTS’ leader RM joins the line-up next in a dance studio. Recorded from a top-right angle, the brightly lit space has a blue cabinet with a grey and grey abstract painting beside it. RM walks into the establishment nonchalantly and scrolls through his phone (an activity Jimin was also seen doing), and as expected, he disappears at 22:11 PM. Following his disappearance, the painting reveals the words ‘COEX’. Unlike the other members, RM notices the CCTV, and waves in its direction. 

This is a common theme binding all seven disappearances — the vanishing of the members leaves behind a clue.

SUGA has a slightly different storyline. While all common grounds are covered in his segment — like scrolling on a black mobile phone before disappearing — the rapper hears something before his disappearance (at 22:15 PM), prompting him to lift himself from the couch, focusing his attention towards the wardrobe bolted behind him. His disappearance (and that of the couch he was on) leaves behind the words ‘Super Casting’ on the floor. 

Rapper j-hope’s storyline shares some similarities with RM’s fate. Both seem to be in a similar dance studio setting, while RM’s storyline was recorded from a top-right angle, j-hope’s is recorded from the top-left corner. At this point, it’s almost like a game of spot the difference. The items in the blue cabinet remain untouched, but the black bag that was resting beside the bottle of water in RM’s frame seems to be missing this time around. The painting has also been switched and now is in hues of blue and black; the exact design is unclear though. Upon vanishing at 22:20 PM, the pattern breaks. Instead of the painting revealing clues, coordinates appear on the mirror, which the BTS ARMY tied back to the COEX convention center in Seoul.

Vocalists V and Jung Kook’s fates follow the same events. While V disappeared from inside a vintage car at 22:24 PM and left behind a Polaroid with seven silhouettes suspended from the convex mirror, Jung Kook disappeared within a building at 22:29 PM with the words ‘Webtoon’ appearing on the floor. Similar to SUGA, Jung Kook too heard something, drawing him closer to the window. Another interesting point from Jung Kook’s segment was the camera’s focus on a copy of Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson on the side table. 

While there’s little to know about the clues extracted, the recording concluded with the announcement of the webtoon, the release date of which will be revealed later. The Super Casting project is a joint collaboration between South Korean online platform, Naver and third party companies including DC Comics and HYBE. The collaboration will comprise various projects including 7 Fates: CHAKHO.

There were several elements during the recording’s duration that caught our attention, however. The lights illuminating RM, j-hope and Jung Kook’s frames intrigued us the most. As established, the recordings were being filmed between 22:00 and 23:00 PM. Another point to ponder over would be why V and Jin did not have a phone on them? While the other members spent their time scrolling through their phones, V and Jin spent the last few minutes before their disappearance looking around. 

The frames also carried a sense of nostalgia, tying it back to BTS’ Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa highlight reel from 2017. With Jin in a white T-shirt and grey blazer, the vintage car, j-hope dancing in the dance studio, many fans reminisced about the beginning of BTS’ engrossing universe.

Set in the near future, BTS’ forthcoming urban fantasy story is inspired by the Chakhogapsa (tiger hunters from the Joseon Dynasty). Based on the intricate BTS Universe, 7 Fates: CHAKHO will explore the life of seven boys brought together by faith, and why they must stay together despite the trials and tribulations they’ve faced.