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onlyoneofyouu · 1 year

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A Summary of Tomorrow X Together's storyline

While waiting for the new album, The Name Chapter: Temptation, to come out, I decided to write a summary of TXT's storyline, focusing on the main themes, motifs and references of the music videos to get a general picture of it!

Feel free to share your insights and/or theories, or to point it out if you see any inaccuracies!

Edit: I'm in the process of correcting a few things and properly add The Chaos Chapter and Minisode 2 to the picture!

— DISCLAIMER

Just a warning that I'm going to leave behind some additional details and references for this, because:

there are way too many and I still don't know all of them (yet) lol;

as I said, this is made to be a summary focusing on the main motifs;

I still need to fully catch up with the webnovel on Wattpad that has lots of more info;

I don't want to overwhelm you, especially if this is your first approach to the storyline!

— PLAYLISTS

I created playlists on both Youtube and Spotify with the songs in the order I'm going to talk about today:

YouTube playlist here

contains music videos in the storyline order to watch while reading!

Spotify playlist here

includes some b-sides, but in this summary I'm only going to focus on those with a music video and the title tracks, so feel free to skip if they are not mentioned!

In this post, I'm going to add only those specifically needed to be watched to follow and understand my analysis. All the others are in the YouTube playlist anyway :)

Okay, now we are ready to start!

— WHAT'S THEIR STORY ABOUT?

TXT's story is about growth: they talk about the transition from adolescence to adulthood and all those changes that characterise it, the fear and refusal to grow up, the desire to stay young forever.

They tackle the theme both explicitly, through music videos and lyrics set in our time, and through symbolism using a fantasy plot with magical elements.

Actually, we could say that their storyline is a story inside a story : the fairytale, in which they find refuge from the real world in a magical one, Magic Island, is the story of the board game (in the Dungeon's & Dragon's style) or the videogame they are playing in the real world to "escape reality". This is why both the fairytale concept and the game concept are crucial to understand the storyline!

— IS THERE A MULTIVERSE?

My answer is yes, there is. As we're going to see, there are various ways in which their story develops and can be developed.

Additionally, last year Hybe announced the release of a Webtoon and a Wattpad webnovel to further elaborate TXT's storyline, both called "The Star Seekers". These two differ from each other and from the storyline narrated through the music videos: they talk about their alter egos called Star One, idols in a version of the real world where magic also exists. However, as I said earlier, we won't go into the details of it and we will stick to the basic storyline related to the music!

— THE STORYLINE

Now let's see how their story unfolds through the albums Chapters, their songs and related music videos. We, of course, start our journey with...

THE DREAM CHAPTER: STAR

– NAP OF A STAR

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🎶 Memories of childhood dancing in the sky / Even if it's fading away now 🎶

This song and its music video tell us about the origins and also the final goal of the group. When TXT were still children they met for the first time, played together and made a promise to each other and with a Star: "even if we were to part, we will find each other".

They actually separate and consequently the light of the Star goes out. Why is that? Well, how many points does a classic star have? ⭐ Five, right? And how many members does TXT have? Five! Each one of them is a part of the Star, and without them united there is no Star: the Star symbolizes their friendship. ✨ The power of friendship ✨ is the key to their whole story. This also explains why in choreos often TXT form stars by uniting their bodies.

from: 1) TDC:MAGIC concept trailer, 2) MMA 2019 performance intro, 3) MMA 2022 performance intro.

Years go by and TXT enter adolescence, symbolically represented by the development of physical peculiarities: Yeonjun has horns, Soobin long ears, Taehyun an eye with a star, Beomgyu thorns on his shoulders and Hueningkai wings.

Yeonjun, scared by the horns, runs away into the woods, thinking he has become a monster. Here, for the first time, he meets the blue and green eyed Cat that will haunt us for the rest of our days (😔), he gets wounded in the throat and runs away terrified. The Cat here symbolises all the scary and dangerous aspects of the world we come in contact with once we leave our childhood.

Refusing his new condition (and therefore change and growth), Yeonjun snaps one of his horns. He is then rescued by HueningKai and the rest of the group, and now that they're together again the Star turns on once again! This is what should happen at the end of aaaall the journey, but the road is long and rough...

– CROWN

🎶 Are you my savior who found me alone? / Who you, you? / Are your wings created from the same pain as mine? 🎶

The lyrics tells us what we saw in Nap of a Star: entering adolescence, symbolized by the sprouting of horns, not knowing who you are and wanting to run away. But TXT are not alone in their pain and confusion: when they meet, upon discovering that each of them has something peculiar and is facing the same struggles, they are reassured and no longer feel alone. And so, the horns form a "crown": they are no longer something monstrous to be ashamed of, but a symbol, almost of pride, of what one is facing.

🎶 This moment of my name being called 🎶

This is the first time TXT mentions “names”, a main motif of the storyline we are going to further elaborate.

The symbolism of the colors, mirrors, windows and props in the music video announce events of the storyline we're going to elaborate later as well.

– CAT & DOG

🎶 Oh my God, what the heck is this feeling? / I become a puppy when I see you 🎶

Believe it or not, even this one has relevance to the storyline! 😆

TXT's are dealing with their first crush, they want to be with them always, they are clingy like a puppy looking for affection. It ties to 0x1=Lovesong, Lo$er=Lo♡er and Good Boy Gone Bad, but also to Puma! As we will see, the "dog" represents their "good side", while the "puma" their "bad side".

obligatory FEEL LIKE CINDERELLA NAEGABYONJE LET'S PLAY FOREVER I JUST WANNA BE YO' DOG WOOF WOOF WOOF

Now let's move on to...

THE DREAM CHAPTER: MAGIC

– ANGEL OR DEVIL

🎶 Tell me, what should I choose / Either angel and devil / This struggle in my head 🎶

As it can be read in Cat&Dog lyrics, that are also referenced in this song in the third verse during Yeonjun’s rap, TXT usually act naughty (devil), but with their crush they behave like angels. In this song they talk about struggling with convincing themselves to confess to them.

🎶 "It's gotta be you", "You're the one love" (...) / Again the angel says, "firstly slow down / What if you lose all, forever?" 🎶

TXT's good side (the angel) starts to doubt their friendship and to think that maybe their love for their crush actually is salvation.

🎶 Spinning round and round again, the worries of Moebius 🎶

Reference is also made to the Moebius strip. What is that? Common strips, seen as surfaces like any other, always have two faces. If we walk on one face, we cannot find ourselves on the other, right? In the Möbius strip, on the other hand, you can! This is because it is obtained by joining the two ends of a strip after having given it half a twist.

The Moebius strip has been used in relation to time travel theories, as a possible way to have a loop, specifically an infinite number of possible attempts to change the course of events.

Whether the Moebius time loop is a single universe, or that each "side" is a parallel universe, is something debatable.

So, what does this have to do with TXT? As we will see, someone in the group has the ability to have premonitions about the future and this leads him/the group to try to change the course of events, especially by rewinding time.

In terms of the game they are playing:

rewinding time = playing again;

parallel universe = different modes of action to try change the results.

This song connects to the fantasy storyline not only though lyrics, but also with the drawings in the music video:

the Cat

TXT are divided into two sides: Yeonjun and Taehyun have devilish attributes, Soobin and Beomgyu have angelic attributes. This could symbolise which side of them, good or bad, has more power over the other.

HueningKai, on the contrary, is standing in the middle of the group and has both horns and angel wings, that can be either angel wings, as we see in Nap of a Star (his good side), or demon wings, as we will see in Eternally (his bad side).

– MAGIC ISLAND

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🎶 Remember our star song / We were stars in it / The melody that was shining with dreams / Don't forget, forever 🎶

When TXT met again as teenagers but they don't remember the promise (it’s a song, quick, act surprised!) they made as children, nor that they already met.

🎶 Our clumsy promises / A small island from which secrets began 🎶

In the music video we see that Soobin starts having strange dreams/nightmares about the five of them, but he can't seem to open up to the group about it. This is where they start keeping secrets from each other.

In the meantime, they have discovered a magical portal, in this case the train (that references Harry Potter), which leads to a magical world, where they can escape from reality: Magic Island (reminiscent of "Neverland" by Peter Pan), where they spend their time playing.

IMPORTANT DETAILS in the video:

(min 6:40) Soobin's cell phone shows 5:54 pm, one minute after 5:53 pm aka blue hour, the moment when the space that separates the real world from the magical one it's thinner and allows you to travel between them! So, when TXT travel between Magic Island and reality, there’s always going to be 5:53 and the sunset involved.

Soobin hears strange noises: if we connect his peculiar feature, long elf ears, with the dreams, it symbolizes his prophetic being!

Yeonjun hears it too though, and this time it can be noticed that it resembles the sound of a bell. Who often wears bells around their necks? Cats. Moreover, in the story of Peter Pan, the fairy who always accompanies him is called Tinkerbell and it is her magic dust that tempts children, because it can allow them to fly. We could then overlap the elements: Peter Pan = Cat, Tinkerbell = Temptations.

Why are only the two of them aware of this disturbance? We said that Soobin perceives it thanks to his prescient nature, Yeonjun because he is the most tempted of all and he is the one who will make a deal with the Cat.

Yeonjun injures his finger while lighting the bonfire and we need to keep that in mind for the next song!

TXT then have the great idea of making fireworks, in a forest, starting a fire: it can be seen as a metaphor for the destruction that their dark sides can bring, and for the troubles that adolescence leads us to make.

At this point the Cat finally shows up and, in the form of a train, runs over the group. The Cat is a shape-shifter 👀 and he's the one that brought TXT to Magic Island, like Peter Pan did with the Lost Boys.

Each of them is struck by excruciating pain in the parts of the body where their peculiar features are, and in the end, they lay on the ground, dead... in terms of (video)game they lost the current match.

At the end of the video we see a dragon, which symbolizes the biggest obstacle they will have to face. In the (video)game version it's basically the final boss.

Going back to the lyrics for a second…

🎶 A familiar and unfamiliar river (…) / Remember our star song (…) / Don't forget that night / You can't forget this place (…) / Remember us here? (…) / That cat with the different eyes (Mm-mm) / I'm tired of those eyes 🎶

TXT reset the game (or die at Magic Island and then come back to it again) trying to win against the Cat and everytime they do it they forget what happened last time they played: everytime they play as if it was tge first time. With the concept of R, AR, and VR of Minisode 1 this was further confirmed.

This also ties in with their ultimate goal, which is to remember their promise, the star’s song.

– RUN AWAY

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🎶 The train is departing / Bibbidi bobbidi our magic island / When we go through this tunnel / When we open our eyes / Our dreams become reality 🎶

TXT want to escape from real life because it's too boring, painful and scary ...the amount of details in this video is scary... we'll only talk about the essential ones:

HueningKai draws two lines on the ground with chalks, one yellow and one blue, which intertwine and surround the school, with TXT inside of it. I won't tell you what that means yet because we'll come back to it later, but keep it in mind 👀

Soobin instead draws a door on the blackboard: a reference to the portals that lead them to Magic Island. We will soon find out why he is the one who draws it. When he puts on the 3D glasses, the door takes shape and opens, and a pentagram appears, a magical symbol consisting of a five-pointed star generally inscribed in a circle and used as a ritual tool.

Remember that Yeonjun injured his finger on Magic Island? His finger is injured at the beginning of Run Away! After TXT died at Magic Island, they went back to the real world, not remembering of having been there, as we explained earlier. If we talk in video game terms it makes more sense: their character lost the game and Yeojun’s got injuried so he has less HP (life points) than before. As for D&D, whenever a character dies or mess up or gets a low roll when rolling the dice, they can go back in time and start again, and this is exactly what they do in Run Away.

Besides, Yeonjun is the one that lights the bonfire in Magic Island, and in this video he is the one who sets things on fire. What does it symbolize? That he's the one who plays with fire, who takes risks and gets into trouble, even if his intentions are good.

Beomgyu puts a plaster on Yeonjun: he is the healer of the group in terms of powers. He’s also the one who brings the fire extinguisher to put out the burning book, but the flames do not go out: Beomgyu can't fix Yeonjun's or others troubles, no matter how hard he tries. The thorns on his shoulders therefore also represent him taking on the problems of others.

Taehyun instead reads a book titled "how to put out the fire": he is the rational one, the observer, the investigator, and we know that his characteristic is the eye.

At the end of the video, they go back to Magic Island during the sunset. This time the magical passage is a door at the bottom of the pool instead of the train.

Again, Yeonjun is the cause of another door (symbolizing coming of age) catching fire, while he leaves behind a teddy bear (symbolizing childhood) which Taehyun picks up.

The "rewinding time" motif returns in the lyrics:

🎶 When this night is nearly ending / Rewind the clock, rewind now / The forbidden games and this magic hour

As we said, TXT move to Magic Island during the sunset, but when night falls they are forced to return to the real world. And so, they roll back the clock (or restart the game) to return, something they shouldn't do ("forbidden games") since this way they are stuck in a loop of childhood, but they should grow up.

– RUN AWAY JAPANESE VER.

The video introduces us to the concept that the fantasy aspect of the story doesn't happen in real life: Magic Island is actually the location of the game they play after school to escape their reality. I still haven't deepened this one, so this is all i'm gonna say about it!

– THE DOOM'S NIGHT

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This is where The Dooms Night animation comes in, summarizing their story in all its versions.

Details we are interested in:

connects to Webtoon/webnovel for the idols using magic;

there is an 18-sided dice which symbolizes the parallel universes, and it’s magical: it can open portals and show visions of the future to Soobin, the one who finds it;

Kai is approached by an evil shadow in a moment of "weakness": it's a temptation that is trying to bring out the bad side of him.

Yeonjun makes a deal with the Cat: what is it about? Relating to the Webtoon/Wattpad, having more power to protect and save his friends from enemies, but it comes at a price...

we see TXT playing as children, each of them has a role in the game:

Yeonjun = paladin/knight

Soobin = elf archer/ranger

Beomgyu = druid/mentalist

Taehyun = sorcerer/adventurer

HueningKai = mystic/bard

there's the dragon, and it turns out that the weapon to defeat him is "the song of a star" aka the promise they made as children.

Next we have...

THE DREAM CHAPTER: ETERNITY

– CAN'T YOU SEE ME

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🎶 Can’t you see me? / Like on that magical day, say “Believe me” / (…) My friends don't understand me, no 🎶

Remember when with Run Away we talked about Soobin not being able to open up to the members about his dreams? Well, this makes him feel isolated, distance is created between the group as time goes by because everyone feels there are secrets between them. In the video we see exactly that.

Details we are interested in:

"who's a liar? " sings Soobin, and in the choreography he crosses his fingers behind his back: he is the liar, because he doesn't open up completely with the others and therefore omits knowledge that concerns them all.

the lyrics refer to the promise they made as children, e.g. "like on that magical day, say believe me"

Beomgyu with the red light = his dark side. Beomgyu is another member of the group who feels left out, we'll go into that later with another song. Also, him being a druid, which is related to nature, explains his duality: he can be the kindest and most caring person in the world (healing nature), but at the same time he can become violent (cruel nature): we see him smothering Taehyun with a blanket. Why him? The two often clash in the storyline, as we will again see, because they see things and act in opposite ways. It could also be because Taehyun discovered a secret of Beomgyu and the latter feels threatened.

Yeonjun whose hands are covered in tomato sauce, which stands for blood: Yeonjun tries to protect the group and, although his intentions are good, he gets into big trouble putting them all in danger. When fire appears in the video it is particular linked to Yeonjun (the oven, the house on fire), reconnecting to what we said earlier with Run Away. Yeonjun says "save me": he begs to save him from it all.

In the bridge Soobin sings "bad bad, hoping this is just a painful dream". In the concept trailer of this album there is Drama playing in the background, and the only line sung is "I dreamed this drama": Soobin's dreams are coming true, being premonitions.

In the final pose of the choreo, if you look closely, it seems that they are removing masks from their faces: each of them is wearing a mask because they are not sincere with the others, their dark side takes over.

– ETERNALLY

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🎶 please stop this recurring nightmare everynight / tell me the meaning of this sad dream / my heart deep in this memory maze, save me 🎶

There is a LOT to say here. The video (which is 19 minutes, after all) is divided into sections and we're going to follow them.

1) Night of the Last day

First of all we see TXT with their monstrous features in a dark version, they are in a stadium destroyed by the dragon (as seen in The Doom's Night we talked about earlier). Soobin looks around and has a book in his hand, takes it to Yeonjun but sees him wounded and gets scared, waking up: this is one of Soobin's visions of the future, the Doom’s Day in which they will have to face their worst enemy.

This song is also connected to the Webtoon/Wattpad because we see TXT as idols in the video. Now, when the alarm goes off in the rehearsal room, not just Soobin, but everyone has visions. Important details:

the clock goes back from 10 to 9 with the second’s hand;

Soobin sees writing on the glass that says "Remember my name".

2) Song of a Star

Soobin finds himself in an amusement park and finds the magic dice on the ground. Then, a little boy arrives: it's HueningKai as a child, Soobin recognizes him by the way he wears his shoes. This upsets him, due to the fact that he doesn't remember the past and doesn't fully understand those dreams that are exhausting him.

A ghost girl comes to console him. As we said before, TXT think that their crush is salvation, that's why they identify the "girl" with the Star. But she's also a representation of MOAs who stand by TXT’s side and support them.

3) Promises

Yeonjun finds himself in the destroyed stadium and sees himself dead as well as the eyes of the Cat. He sees the consequences of his actions.

At the end of his section it reads: "I thought it was salvation, then": Yeonjun is going to think that the pact is the way to save himself and the others, when instead is going to bring them more harm.

3) Room n.17

Beomgyu is in the midst of infinite mirrors, a reference to the parallel universes, but also to the reflection of himself and therefore to its doppelganger, its dark side which we talked about earlier. The mirrors then turn into a door, number 17, and he peeks inside seeing a future version of himself trying to protect a book from an unidentified person who wants to get it. Suddenly the rage becomes such that thorns sprout on his back. The present Beomgyu takes out his phone to film, while the other Beomgyu appears to have attacked and knocked out the enemy, before turning right at the camera.

5) Moratorium* of Rest

(*a period of time during which a particular activity is stopped)

Taehyun ends in a flower meadow in the dark. In the distance he spots a familiar figure: it's Yeonjun. He calls him but he doesn't answer: realizing that there is something strange he approaches him. Yeonjun is unconscious, wounded in the throat and covered by brambles and flowers: it's a similar scene to the one we saw in The Doom's Night animation, only that here Yeonjun is dead, confirmed by the flowers that change into a skull.

At the end of his section it reads: "We will find a way" (to save Yeonjun and all of them too)

5) Girl of Eternity

HueningKai looks at the door Soobin disappeared from earlier, yelling his name. When he crosses the threshold, he finds himself in a corridor similar to the one Soobin went through: it is reminiscent of the effect that distorts surroundings into lines when traveling very fast, usually at the speed of light, through space-time. This makes me think that this is set in a more distant future.

Then stairs appear with a door at the top: once opened, he finds himself in the sky, and in front of him there's another door suspended in the air, from which the rest of the group comes out. Kai tries to walk in the void to reach them and his feet find a surface that undulates like water.

I still haven't fully understood the meaning of Kai's vision, also because it seems connected with the new chapter, The Name Chapter.

7) Beginning of the End

Finally, TXT are all back in the rehearsal room, the clock starts ticking forward again, and Soobin re-emerges through the door of the room. Everyone seems to not remember their visions (like it always happens with the memories when they leave Magic Island) and goes back to what they were doing before. Soobin, on the contrary, looks at the dice in his hand and at the mirror. Beomgyu films him. The song restarts during its dark verse: on the other side of the mirror is the dark side of TXT.

– PUMA

🎶 West side, east side / Didn't know where to, where to go / West side, east side / It doesn't matter anymore 🎶

It is about a real event: a puma was shot dead by the police after escaping from its enclosure at Daejeon Zoo in September 2018. In addition to taking part in the protest for the incident, "the perspective of the puma finally gaining freedom only to meeting its tragic ending depicts the harsh reality that the TXT members have experienced since they debuted in March 2019, where they were faced with heavy scrutiny from people online as Big Hit Entertainment's latest boy group after BTS." (c. Genius lyrics) This can be found in particular in Yeonjun's rap.

🎶 Still too young to stand alone / This world is a jungle full of warriors / The sight is aiming at your throat / A thousand eyes are accessing the internet / Be careful, your enemies spread in an instant / How long does it take to reach your dream? / Only gunshots spread with that question all the time / So that I can continue to breathe, again run up 🎶

For the storyline it is relevant because it is linked to what we said before with Angel or Devil: the crossroad at which TXT find themselves, having to decide whether to stay on the "good" path or move to the "bad" one. With Puma they seem to chose the second one: they are rebelling and escaping in search of freedom, however dangerous it may be. In fact, they end up making the deal with the Cat, that promises more power and freedom when he actually has them under its control.

– DRAMA JAPANESE VER.

Many theorize that it is set in a parallel universe, in any case it is linked to what is told and seen in CYSM. In the video Beomgyu joins the group but is usually not included in the activities and left behind. He abruptly realizes it when he falls off his bike and the others don't go to help him as he would like/dream.

I put Drama at the end and not before because it connects perfectly to the next song, where we see Beomgyu being the target of others' jokes and feeling left out...

MINISODE1: BLUE HOUR

– BLUE HOUR

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🎶 In that sky / The orange-glowing magic / Before it comes to an end / Freeze this moment / I wanna stay here / In the gap between the two worlds / I wanna be trapped in magic / Clue to stop the sun 🎶

TXT are at Magic Island sitting in a tree that refers to that of the Lost Boys of Peter Pan. The song revolves around 5:53, when the sun sets in October in Korea, the blue hour in which, as we said, you can cross the border between the magical world and the real one. TXT would like to always stay at Magic Island, not by continuing rewinding the time (or replaying the game) but stopping it (stay inside the game forever), but they can't do that.

🎶 The glow of the sunset on my time machine / I know it that the end will come / The sun is down, down / Before you disappear into the night / I take you into my eyes 🎶

Once the night falls, Magic Island shuts down, and we know that means they have to go back to the real world. Beomgyu, who sings "I know that the end will come", seems to be the only one who is fully aware of it, an important detail for the future.

🎶 At the hour between dog and wolf 🎶

Is a very interesting line: this expression is taken from a French saying “L'heure entre chien et loup” and refers to the moments after sunset when the sky darkens and vision becomes unclear, making it difficult to distinguish between dogs and wolves, friends and foe (c. Genius lyrics annotations). We said that TXT are doubting their friendship after all.

But this also connects to the fight between their "good" and "bad" sides: we said that the docile and obedient "dog" is the "good side", while the wild and dangerous "puma", and in this case the "wolf", represents the "bad side".

In the beginning, Soobin sings:

🎶 I really hate the awkwardness, I just laugh / Baby, I know we were special 🎶

Refers to the tensions that now characterize the dynamics of the group. They look back with nostalgia to the days when this was not the case.

🎶 That look in your eyes, like an emptied gift box 🎶

This instead refers to the real name of one of the members 👀 we'll talk about it later.

At the end of the music video we see that autumn has come to Magic Island: the end of their youth is approaching and they can't help it.

– BLUE HOUR JAPANESE VER.

Very similar to the Korean one and I haven't delved into it yet, so let's move on for now.

– WE LOST THE SUMMER

🎶 Cause we lost the summer / When we lost each other / Return my seasons / Oh, it's all gone 🎶

It's not only a song perfectly depicting teenagers and young adults (but adults as well) feelings during the COVID19 Pandemic, it also references their storyline.

We saw that with Blue Hour autumn arrived, and We Lost The Summer brings winter... it's time to explain the seasons motif!

In literature and art, often the seasons have been used as a metaphor for the stages of life:

spring/summer = youth, adolescence

autumn/winter = growth, ageing, adulthood

So, Blue Hour announces that their time on Magic Island, and therefore as children, is coming to an end, and that they will have to face the transition to winter, to adulthood. They're losing the "summer" of their life, and that means losing their escape, Magic Island, as well, because it's not enough anymore for them to escape reality, as we will deepen with The Chaos Chapter and The Name Chapter.

The lyrics focus on the seasons motif for growing up and on the loss of Magic Island:

We also see s blue butterfly, related to Beomgyu but also Taehyun: in Native American cultures it symbolize the transition from summer to winter.

🎶 We lost the sunset, now don't know what to do / Our time has lost the weather / I'm standing still in winter / Eternal winter / I want to see you again, our bright summer / Long gone we lost the summer 🎶

The loss of Magic Island in real life context can be interpreted as TXT not being able to play the game because everywhere is closed due to lockdown, included the arcade where we saw them play in Run Away Japanese version!

Another detail: mirrors are also included, which, especially in the final scene where Yeonjun looks through it in the dark, refers to their dark sides. These are triggered by the loss of Magic Island, the place where they usually can escape together to avoid being crushed by reality, but now can't reach for two reasons: first, adulthood is approaching, second, the lockdown forces TXT to separate and only see eachother through a screen.

THE CHAOS CHAPTER: FREEZE

The title of this album references two things:

The arrival of winter and therefore their adulthood

The "fight, flight or freeze" instinctive response of our bodies and minds to danger and stressful situations. According to the title, TXT's response to their reality is going to be "freeze" aka the inability to move or act against it, but it's going to be "flight" as well, as we see in...

— 0X1=LOVESONG

TXT are now stuck in reality dealing with the problems that characterise the transition from adolescence to adulthood, but that doesn't mean they have abandoned the magical fantasies that give them comfort.

The main character of this music video is Yeonjun. We see him alone at home, playing videogames to distract himself while his parents are fighting. He then decides to escape by stealing his parents car keys and go for a ride. We see him with the members, but at the end of the music video it is actually revealed that he was alone the whole time: Yeonjun was imaging being with his friends, who turn reality into a fantasy when they escape together. This doesn't mean that the others are gone or dead, they're simply not together, missing eachother and going through the same kind of despair, depression, loneliness, as we can interpret from the clips where they're all separated but together with the others in the distance.

We also see Yeonjun alone in his room watching his fish inside the aquarium, and, later on, one ends up in his room: Yeonjun is imagining of being inside the aquarium. That's the same thing that happens with TXT seeing fish over them while in the pool, and with Kai seeing it on the sky: the aquarium represents the comforting fantasy they run away to. They can't go to Magic Island, so they imagine it.

Yeonjun gets so lost in his fantasy that, when Taehyun falls into the pool and then removes his cast, Yeonjun snaps out of it and doesn't see the fish anymore: he's now imaging his friends being there with him as he wishes. Fantasy and reality are mixing together.

He then starts dancing, and this is a reference to a movie called "Days of Being Wild", where music and dancing is used as a way of expressing the isolation, solitude, lack of direction and belonging, experienced by the characters. That's why Yeonjun walks into complete darkness: he's falling into the black hole of emptiness inside himself, the hole that is referenced in the quote in the beginning of the music video.

Unlike the video, which focuses on friendship bringing relief and happiness, the lyrics tells us about the crush we mentioned at the beginning:

🎶 In this world of zero / I know you're my one and only / In this endless darkness like / Oh my god, so holy / From the tip of my fingers / Everything runs far away / My life before you was a mess / Couldn't win one round of this chess 🎶

TXT believe that their salvation is given by the love they feel for this person. They are used to being "losers" in this life, but they feel like "winners" with them.

🎶 Now I can't stop thinking 'bout you / When I'm sinking alone / Angel who one day appeared to me / Take me away to your hometown / I know it's real, I can feel it 🎶

The pre-chorus references their friendship as well, though: in the music video we see that Yeonjun is "sinking alone" while thinking about his friends, and the "angel" is the same referenced in Crown and in Nap of A Star: it's TXT, and especially Hueningkai, that saved him when he was in his lowest point, sharing his burden. The "take me away to your hometown" could also be interpreted as asking the others to escape together at Magic Island, that feels like a home to them.

🎶 I'm full of problems, love sick / No way to go / I was fine to die / I'm a loser in this game / The only (one) rule of this world / Save me / Take my hand / Please use me like a drug (I know I love you) 🎶

The chorus is foreshadowing for The Name Chapter: Temptation, TXT are willing to be used and consumed by this love in order not to suffer anymore. "Save me" recalls Can't You see Me.

THE CHAOS CHAPTER: FIGHT OR ESCAPE

– LO$ER=LO♡ER

is a prequel-sequel of 0x1=Lovesong! Especially because in the music video we see how Taehyun got hurt and his "LOSER/LO♡ER" signature on the cast was made.

( work in progress )

Frost's music video then came out, anticipating and connecting to the new chapter of the story, The Name Chapter! It's part of The Chaos Chapter, but I think storyline-wise its music video comes after, because the events it contains depend on discoveries that are going to be made during The Name Chapter. Let's talk about Minisode 2 before talking about it then!

MINISODE2: THURSDAY'S CHILD

– GOOD BOY GONE BAD

– GOOD BOY GONE VAD JAPANESE VERSION

THE NAME CHAPTER

– CONCEPT TRAILER

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First of all, it's important to specify that it doesn't only concern the album that will be released now, Temptation, but also the following ones that will be part of this chapter (two more mini-albums are expected, like for The Dream Chapter).

We've already mentioned Peter Pan a couple of times before: their story, with the fear of growing up, taking refuge in a magical world that you don't want to leave (Neverland), the temptations to stay there are all clear references to it.

This new chapter is heavily inspired by fairytales, not only Peter Pan, but others as well, such as Alice in Wonderland and Land of Oz.

Let's analyze what happens in the video, going over things we've already seen and adding more...

1) we are at sunset = blue hour = the moment in which one can pass between reality and the magical world;

2) eyes of two different colors = Cat, the creepy smile references Alice's cat. Cat by the window: who is at the window calling the Lost Boys? Peter Pan, who tempted them to go to Neverland, like the Cat tempted TXT to go to Magic Island.

3) blue/purple tunnel/portal: open passage to Magic Island, we saw it in The Dooms Night and we will see it again shortly;

4) we hear a whistle: it is the "call of the devil" (in the past, whistling was associated with the devil), the one who tempts TXT, therefore always the Cat;

5) we hear a reading of the original dark version of Peter Pan and see Yeonjun=Wendy manipulated and tempted by the Cat=Peter Pan;

6) Yeonjun/Wendy brings the rest of TXT (Wendy's siblings), and the Cat/Peter Pan "teaches" them to fly: instead of Tinkerbell's pixie dust, he uses a red potion, connected to the Webtoon/Webnovel. TXT now fly to Magic Island/Neverland;

7) while the narrator says that "Forever will never end (at Neverland/Magic Island)", Beomgyu looks at us and he's the only one who does it, like in Blue Hour: he's the only one of the group aware that sooner or later they will have to leave the magical world.

8) Remember we talked about mirrors and bad alter egos? We see TXT with their doppelgangers, which have the black feathers and masks we had symbolically seen in CYSM, on opposite sides of the mirrors (=the hangers).

Let's analyze the choreography:

The good/white TXTs move and the bad/black TXTs copy them, but then the blacks grab them by the arm and take their place. The good/white TXTs then enter the same side as the bad/black TXTs and HueningKai guides them to put the mirrors one after the other in line: what we saw with Beomgyu in Eternally. Now, if you think about it, even when you go to a place (it is frequent in elevators) where two mirrors are positioned opposite to each other, they create a potentially infinite corridor whose end you cannot see. Remember the chalk lines Kai drew around the school in Run Away? HueningKai locks himself and TXT inside a labyrinth.

Here they fight, first their own dark sides and they win: this should mean that their dark sides are now totally part of them, and therefore TXT can switch from one side of the mirror to the other freely, without being tempted or deceived by anyone: they are the ones who choose it. TXT have embraced their inner Peter Pan, rather than totally rejecting it.

But then, they fight among themselves and the order in which they do it is important:

Yeonjun and Kai, being the most tempted, unite;

Kai fights himself, his fully good side specifically;

After that, Kai collides with Soobin and prevails, (temptations prevail over knowledge);

Followed by Beomgyu, who instead manages to prevail over Kai (awareness of having to leave Neverland prevails over the desire to stay);

Kai is replaced by Taehyun, the one who saw the darkest premonition. The two fight until Beomgyu prevails (the awareness prevails over the fear of leaving), or, perhaps, Taehyun surrenders;

Finally, Beomgyu passes to the other side of the mirror to find only his reflection on the opposite side, which does not react to a possible attack: he hasn't to fight with himself because he always accepted the reality of things.

(I used colors to try making this less confusing, hope it helped 🥲)

Based on this fight, I already connected the names of the versions (Daydream, Nightmare, Farewell, Lullaby) of the album TNC: Temptation with each member, here. I recommend you to read it but only AFTER this summary, because we still need to talk about their "true names".

NOW, the fight scene it's a vision of the future that is not Soobin's, but Beomgyu's, who then opens his eyes.

TXT are now in a flying house, their refuge at Magic Island (which refers to the Lost Boys tree, but also to Dorothy's house from the Wizard of Oz). The house begins to collapse: Magic Island is no longer safe, they destroyed it too many times while rewinding time/replaying the game: they can't postpone growing up anymore.

It is also a metaphor for the tensions within the group, the things left unsaid, the secrets, the isolation, which have led to deep rifts in the friendship between the boys.

Soobin urges the group to leave and everyone follows. Last one is Kai who jumps… ready to enter the labyrinth.

– NEW LOGO VIDEO

Another important detail for what will happen in Temptation has been included in the new logo video! Translation of what Yeonjun says, both in reverse and played normally:

1) “You run after the shadow uselessly”: refers to the shadow that Peter Pan keeps losing. In the beginning of the concept trailer Yeonjun=Wendy is the only one without a shadow: he is losing it like Peter because of the temptations. Talking about it is his bad side, driven by temptations.

2) “It's sweet, but I should find my name": Yeonjun’s good side says that temptation is sweet, but he knows he has to resist and find a way to do it. Why does he talk about "finding the name"?

Having knowledge of one's true name gives you power over them, and knowing your own true name enhances your power and gives you more control over yourself, making it harder to fall into temptation.

Often, in order to get out of a labyrinth, to pass over an obstacle or solve a quest, you have to guess something, a secret word, usually by solving a riddle...

– FROST

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🎶 Drawn by the name, I stand in chaos /My fate is what? What's the right answer, really / In an unfamiliar name / There's fate or something else / Meanings that I don't understand 🎶

(I can't add the full lyrics here lol, but I truly recommend you fully read them because they are very exhaustive!)

It's strongly related to the Webtoon/Wattpad storyline, and it's very important to The Name Chapter because it relates to the theme of "true names".

In the video, the spring nature of Magic Island (which we see in the photos of Temptation, Daydream version) freezes: winter arrives, and so their adulthood.

In the video we see TXT escaping from the portal while it's snowing, but then we go back to the past, when they go to Magic Island before it freezes...

Soobin finds a purple/blue glass sphere: it has the same colors as the portal, and what did we say creates/opens portals? The dice.

Taehyun's eye shines purple/blue: his special feature.

Kai finds a playground-style game (a reference to childhood) and sees blue butterflies.

Yeonjun finds a dog, and we'll come back to this shortly.

Beomgyu turns towards us spectators, again, and a gust of wind carries away the flowers. On Magic Island there are dry leaves on the ground, it's Autumn

Then, all together they find a fortune teller's tent, who gives them cards that make them have visions that symbolize their "true names". In the Webtoon/Wattpad novel they are given the riddles to interpret to find out what they are:

Soobin = "the one who is believed by no one"

Yeonjun = "the one who shall not eat dogs"

Beomgyu = "what was in the deepest part of the box"

Taehyun = "the one hanging upside down from an old tree with deep roots"

Hueningkai = "the one who builds the labyrinth"

In the visions of the video we see:

Yeonjun is in the desert surrounded by dog footprints and has to fight against a huge sand snake to survive (the snake of Adam and Eve = the temptations = the Cat);

Taehyun hanging from the tree and then falling down;

Kai with mirrors. The mathematical formulas reference designing the construction of the labyrinth. He is tempted by his doppelganger, enters the mirror and chases it. In the end he, that has now both sides of himself united, breaks the mirror and exits.

Soobin is in a place on fire, sees a rideable horse for children and through the glass sphere/dice he sees a child riding it: the visions of their childhood being in danger.

Beomgyu and the looped box: after all the things that come out, what remains is only him... did you understood what it could be? 👀 (we'll explain it in a second)

TXT wake up and winter has arrived on Magic Island: they escape and with the portal they return to the real world. But Taehyun takes away one item from Magic Island: the fortune teller's BOOK. What Soobin has and Beomgyu protects in Eternally!

We find it again in the Webtoon and in the webnovel: it is a very ancient and powerful spell book that Taehyun studies and uses. It can also be seen in his hand in The Doom's Night when TXT play with each other as children.

— TXT's TRUE NAMES

Their real names, and therefore the solution of the riddles, were actually revealed in their early days, in their individual debut trailers via morse code: they have been under everyone's noses since the start...

Soobin = Tomorrow (based on a Greek myth: Cassandra had the power of foresight, so she had visions of the future, but she wasn't believed by anyone)

Hueningkai = Secret (refers to the Greek myth of the Minotaur, a "monster" that resembles TXT due to its peculiar characteristics, because it was a boy born with a bull's head. He was the son of King Minos, who had a labyrinth built to hide him, also hiding the secret of escape it)

Beomgyu = Hope (the box is that of Pandora, who after opening it unleashes all the evils in the world, and the thing that is at the bottom of it and will come out after everything else is hope. And we have seen that Beomgyu is the last one left after the fights to escape the labyrinth: he is the group last hope.)

Yeonjun = Promise (the riddle is a saying that stands for humans who behave like animals and are willing to use even cruel means to get what they want: what Yeonjun shouldn't do)

Taehyun = Clue (referring to Odin, the Nordic god who hung himself upside down on Yggdrasil, the sacred tree that held up the cosmos, to obtain the "clue", the runes, which would give him all the wisdom and ability to be able to develop writing)

– 0X1=LOVESONG Japanese ver

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I think it sees TXT falling down to reality from Magic Island, after they abondoned it once and for all. While they are performing they all have blood in their uniforms: they're all rather dead or injuried at the end of the game. Beomgyu is the only one in an hospital: he's the only survivor, the only player with still some HPs left, after all, we saw that he won over the others in The Name Chapter Concept trailer. Taehyun, on the contrary, has angel wings and in the end he disappeared, leaving his uniform behind surrounded by feathers on the ground: he fully died during the game, perhaps sacrificing himself. A bit more about this, here.

Now they are back to the real world, forever.

And we have, for now, reached the end of our journey! Now we just have to wait and see what The Name Chapter will bring us in detail (and see if my headcanons and theories are right lol).

Thank you so much for reading!!

READ NEXT -> The Name Chapter: Temptation Analysis

Masterlist

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onlyoneofyouu · 1 year

Text

The Name Chapter: Temptation Explained

This analysis is going to include the lyrics of the songs, as well as the choreographies and the Sugar Rush Ride music video!

Feel free to share your insights and/or theories, or to point it out if you see any inaccuracies :)

TW: slight mentions of themes such as violence, death, drugs and sensuality. I decided to include them to not leave out core aspects, but I didn't go in depth for any of them to keep this as friendly as possible.

Before we dive in, just a reminder that I've already analysed The Name Chapter concept trailer and the new logo in my storyline summary here, while you can find my analysis of the tracklist posters here. I recommend reading both before this, if you haven't yet! Especially because I'm going to reference themes that I've already explained there, such as the game and seasons motifs, and their true names.

— INTRO: what the album is about

Let's start with the group’s official website that provides a description of the album:

"The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION depicts youth on the brink of adulthood. After experiencing conflict and chaos, the boys feel a desire to postpone their growth and linger in the freedom of Neverland. Their journey forward despite this desire is a representation of today’s generation as they continue to grow through the challenges of the world."

As we know, this Chapter is strongly inspired by Peter Pan, who has become a cultural icon symbolizing youthful innocence and escapism. Just like he leads children to abandon real life for Neverland, a place where they will never have to grow up, the Cat does with TXT, who find their escape at Magic Island.

(continues under the cut)

In the tale in it also hinted that Peter Pan used to "thin the Lost Boys" out when they got too old or when there was too many of them, meaning he may exile or kill them (cr. peter pan wiki). Some theories suggest that the Lost Boys who grow up become pirates who, with Captain Hook, try to fight Peter.

Especially with this album though, there are also numerous similarities with the story of Doctor Faustus, a play by Christopher Marlow which was later taken up by J.W. Goethe, in which this scholar is so greedy for knowledge that he is not satisfied with academic knowledge, venturing into the field of black magic. He makes a pact with the devil Mephistopheles, who makes him the false promise of enabling him to obtain greater knowledge, when in reality he'll only take his soul. Throughout the opera, Faustus is continually debating with two angels, one good and one evil, symbolizing the two sides of human nature.

Likewise, throughout their discography, TXT are always represented vacillating between their good side, "the angel", and their bad side, "the demon". See Angel or Devil of course, Eternally, but also the duologies New Rules-No Rules and Puma-What if I'd been that Puma (in Korean Balance Game).

It also perfectly connects with TXT's villain, the Cat: in The Star Seekers, he temps Yeonjun to make a pact with him, promising more power to defeat the Dragon Clan (see the animation The Doom's Night), when in reality he will bring their dark sides (which we see in Eternally) to prevail, so that he can control them at will taking advantage of the power that TXT already have. Its aim is to prevent them from reaching "tomorrow", their future, and therefore their goal: to remember the promise they made as children with the Star and renew it, so that the latter lights up again and restores hope for people's dreams. After all, their name, Tomorrow By Together, means a group that "comes together under one dream in hopes of building a better tomorrow".

"Tomorrow", defined as "the one in which nobody believes" is also Soobin's true name, the one who has visions about the future of the group. Certainly, the prospect of leaving behind the visions that make him suffer so much is nothing but a relief, but it also means giving up his crucial role in achieving their goal, and above all himself.

In real life these metaphors can be transposed as our inner demons that induce us to bask in the temptations the world offers, distracting us from suffering but also from achieving our goals, and finally leading to losing ourselves.

— THE SONGS

Temptation is a concept album, meaning that listening to the songs in the order they are put is crucial to understand the story it tells. That's why the first song we are going to talk about is...

— Devil by the Window

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It's Korean title "자정의 창가에서 만난 악마의 목소리는 달콤했다" translates into "The voice of the devil I met by the window at midnight was sweet".

The song depicts the devil, aka the Cat, tempting TXT with the false promise of taking them to a place where they can enjoy their youth forever, exactly as we saw him do in The Name Chapter concept trailer.

This is the Lullaby stage of the Temptation. Let's analyze the lyrics of the song integrating it with the choreography to see how it happens!

🎶 Lie, lie, lie, lie down / Go rest your eyes / Just fall asleep, sweet dreams / You can't get off the ride 🎶

These verses give the feeling of the devil luring the group by humming them a lullaby, however immediately revealing his purpose: prevent them to return to reality. The emphasis placed on "lie" is interesting: the word plays with its double meaning of "laying down" and "lying", and whose repetition gives us the idea of the incitement and impatience of the devil. In the choreography, Hueningkai plays the devil outside the window (represented by Soobin and Beomgyu's shoulders) waiting to enter their room once they are alone and under the covers, just like Peter Pan used to do.

🎶 A wolf in sheep clothes / His disguise / In the ni-ni-ni-night / You'll be hiding inside 🎶

Now it's Soobin's turn to play the devil: in the choreography he metaphorically takes off the mask that hides his true intentions. The alliteration of "ni-ni-ni-night" gives us the idea of the lullaby again, but also of the footsteps of the devil advancing in the room: in the choreography Soobin approaches and seduces Hueningkai.

The line "You'll be hiding inside" can refer to the devil hiding in the shadows of the room, but could also be a metaphor for inner temptations, anxieties and worries, which usually haunt us when we go to sleep, after a whole day trying to avoid them.

🎶 Oh, what ya doing? / You got some time today? / Oh, what a nuisance / Come, come, come out to play 🎶

The role of the devil passes onto Taehyun, who rhetorically asks Yeonjun if he has time for him, complaining about his possible negative answer, and rather inciting him to use the time by playing with him.

🎶 High, so high, the crimson sky / It's way too sweet to turn down / I scream and shout, but no one's 'round / There's no way to escape it 🎶

With the pre-chorus the mood of the song starts to change. TXT are tempted by the red sky, so by twilight, which we know is the moment in which it is possible to travel between the real world and the magical one.

The devil shows them a taste of what they will find if they follow him, and this is all too fascinating and sweet to be rejected. At the same time, however, the group (everyone's good sides) protests and tries to escape, in vain. In the choreography, Taehyun walks among the others to "exit", but they prevented it, turning him to "enter" again.

🎶 I met the devil by the window / Traded my life / Temptation touched my tongue / Spread the wings of desire / He's whispering / "Give up, don't you put up a fight" / Said the devil by the window / "Dream on, dream on, good night" 🎶

The chorus references the pact Yeonjun makes with the Cat, trading his life unwittingly as the Lost Boys do once they follow Peter Pan to Neverland. TXT themselves have explained that the move they perform during the line "traded my life" represents the devil who catches them when they try to escape from danger. The devil dissuades them not to fight him, supported by the temptations that are irresistible and greedy: after a taste they are won't stop wanting and asking for more.

🎶 Waste, waste away / In the gutter with me / No, I can't tell what is fake / In my reality / I see the waves, see the waves / Wash over me / Oh, stay, you can stay / When you're tempted to leave 🎶

Being in the gutter means being in a state of degraded condition, that's exactly the situation the group finds itself once they fall for the lie of the devil, but they don't really understand it because their reality is altered and they can't tear truth apart from falsehood. In real life these effects can refer to when you are under the influence of hallucinogenic substances, but "have your mind in the gutter" in slang also means constantly thinking about sex related things, in addition to the fact that frequently pleasure is compared to waves that wash over the body.

At this point, in the choreography we see everyone in the chokehold of temptation, Yeonjun literally (after all, we know that in the story he is the weakest one in the face of temptation), while Beomgyu reaches out towards the viewers (as we will soon see, also in Sugar Rush Ride), which can be interpreted both as an attempt to lure them in as well, but also as a request for help to get him out, since he is the one who's most aware of all of the dangers they face.

🎶 High, high, high / I feel my body drifting into the sky / I won't come down, come down, come down, I'll fly / Weightless without a worry into the night / He said, "Dream on, dream on, dream on" 🎶

The mood of the song changes completely now: these lines allude to when pleasure, whatever temptation it is caused by, hits. Therefore, TXT are surrendering to temptations. If before they were lying in their beds, now they start flying to be taken to Neverland, with the illusion of leaving their worries behind on the ground. This time the devil doesn't wish them good night: in his plans the group is destined to continue dreaming again, again and again, in a loop that never sees the arrival of the night, and so the end.

This not being able to stop reminded me of a legend in Irish and Welsh folklore concerning fairies (after all, Peter Pan is accompanied by Tinkerbell, a fairy), according to which one must stay away and respect the fairy mushroom rings in the woods or they risk being dragged inside by the fairies, to dance with them without being able to stop until you drop from exhaustion. This legend seems to be referenced in another TXT song: No Rules from The Chaos Chapter, whose lyrics are also strongly connected to those of Devil by The Window. Some examples:

"Close your eyes again/ And continue your dream"

"Is it A.M. or P.M. right now? / I'm confused because all of the broken patterns / Don't know what's right, I don't get it / Woo, my world is panic"

"The vi-i-ibe that I dreamed of every day / A dri-i-ive that can't be stopped / One more time, yeah / I just wanna dance / Dance until we can't no more"

The third chorus then changes into: "I don't wanna feel this vi-i-ibe / I want to stop this real vi-i-ibe / I'm getting tired / I don't wanna dance / Dance anymore"

Now, going back to the Devil by the Window's choreography, it's also important to note that most of the steps refer to being controlled like a puppet, just like the Cat does in the concept trailer:

The sigh that ends the song seems to recall waking up startled, only this awakening won't happen in their room...

— Sugar Rush Ride

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Now it’s time for the Daydream stage of the Temptation. The group awakens in Neverland and we can notice that they have been brought there by the train, a vehicle that appears frequently in the storyline, not only in Magic Island and Run Away, but also in Frost, in the Can't You See Me comeback show and in the scenes included in Act:Lovesick

An important detail is that the train has two engravings: "promise" and the number 304. The first refers to the promise that TXT made as children, but also to Yeonjun's real name. The second refers to their debut, which happened on March 4, and it's also the date associated with the Star Festival (which can be seen in Soobin's vision in Eternally) during which TXT met for the first time as children and made the promise.

The boys look around disoriented, but it doesn't take long before they adapt to the new environment: Yeonjun is obviously the first, who drags Taehyun with him, and the two start running along the beach.

🎶 The thoughts soon stopped breathing / When you get back / My determination comes instantly undone / For you 🎶

Thoughts and worries are suffocated by the relief and light-heartedness that Neverland and the "sugar rush" bring, as well as the determination to not fall into temptation.

The group becomes one with nature, their clothes are soiled with dirt and they have vines on them, to be exact, grapevines, symbol of fertility, transition and well-being, as well as being related to the Greek god Dionysus (which we will talk about again later on).

The fact that the victory of temptations is placed in an idyllic landscape is no coincidence: the figure of Peter Pan is connected to that of the ancient Greek deity Pan, whose flute Peter learns to play, thus acquiring his name. Pan is the god of forests and lives in Arcadia, an idealized land where men and nature live in perfect harmony. Does this name ring a bell? 👀 One of the two versions of the album The Dream Chapter: Magic has it, the album which includes TXT's first escape to Magic Island.

Pan is also linked to fertility and has strong sexual connotations, he is agile and perpetually cheerful, but also feared: his name derives from "panic" because, if annoyed, he causes havoc and terror. His image was then taken up by Christianity as an iconography of Satan, after all Pan has attributes such as goat foot, tail and horns. It's all coming together, right? Peter Pan, Pan, the Devil and the Cat are all superimposable figures.

🎶 Come a little closer / You whisper / Swallow / The sugar rush / Feast up in the night sky / Sweet desire / Taking me into the dream / The liar on the bedside 🎶

These lyrics, in addition to being very sensual, refer to Devil by the Window: the devil, "the liar on the bedside", takes them to the dreamy dimension that is Neverland where he incites them to take advantage of the "sugar rush". "Feast up" recalls the dissolute and wanton parties and rituals in honor of Dionysus (called Bacchus in Roman mythology), the archaic Greek deity of vegetation, later identified as the god of ecstasy, wine, inebriation and liberation of the senses. Dionysus also embodies the primal instincts of human beings, which can violently resurface if repressed and not properly elaborated.

It is no coincidence that this move is included in the choreography, which is very reminiscent of the representations of the banquets in ancient Greece and ancient Rome. TXT themselves have called it "the grape move", in which they metaphorically approach a bunch to their mouth. In the latest behind-the-scenes photos shared on Weverse, we can see that Yeonjun is holding grapes.

But the places depicted in the music video also refer to the iconic ones of Peter Pan: The Hangman's Tree, his and the Lost Boys hideout, and the Mermaid Lagoon:

🎶 I can feel it I can’t resist it / That sweet devilish smile / You open my locked door so easily / Oh my, I see the stars / The devil said

Gimme, gimme more / Come here, more / Let’s play, more* / Sugar rush-ush, sugar rush-ush, ah / Gimme, gimme more 🎶

The boys can't resist the sweet temptations that easily pervade them and make them metaphorically and literally see the stars. In the chorus we can hear the devil whistling: in many countries of the world, whistling is superstitiously associated with him. The "sugar rush" that boys experience is fast and addicting, and therefore pushes them to want more. The way it is sung, using the rhetorical figure of the climax, reflects this perfectly.

*In the official video the verse “같이 놀자 더” was simply translated as “let's play more”, but it has deeper connotations: it can also be translated as “let me give you a piggyback ride” because these lines come from 춘향가 (Chunhyangga), the most famous and one of the only five surviving traditional pansori (a folk genre of Korean musical storytelling) from the Joseon Dynasty era (1392–1910). They symbolize the whisper of the devil. During the press conference on the album release, Hueningkai shared: “We made a lot of new attempts this time, fusing different elements in an unfamiliar way. We used some parts of Chunhyangga in our lyrics and featured the movements of Korean traditional dance in our choreography.” And Taehyun added: “We believe our Korean fans will find this combination fresh, and our international followers will get the chance to explore Korea’s traditional culture and story.” (cr. Genius lyrics annotations)

In the choreography, apart from it clearly reflecting the corresponding lyrics, TXT take turns playing the devil who tempts the group, manipulating them like a puppet and preventing their escape, like in Devil by The Window:

🎶 You’re so addictive / My veins full of sweets / The forbidden lines slowly / Fade away / This daze-like anemia / But I prefer it that way / Every cell under my skin / Becomes more sensitive 🎶

I think these lyrics are pretty self-explanatory: this is how the "sugar rush" works once it enters the body. They seem to especially hint to the symptoms experienced when under the influence of drugs.

During their time at Neverland, each member of the group experiences their temptations and "sugar rush" in a different way, as shown in the video. Let's see how exactly 👀

HueningKai finds a gecko, and when he touches it, it changes color to purple. The gecko is the animal associated with him in his debut Questioning Film, while in Magic Island Kai is associated with a dragonfly, and in the debut Comeback Show, he turned the goldfish purple. Yellow and violet fishes can be seen in 0x1=Lovesong as well.

Now, which other semi-animal being in TXT's storyline is purple? The Dragon.

We know that Kai is the one who builds the labyrinth to contain their "secret", aka their dark sides or "monsters" or inner demons, but he is also associated with the role of videogame programmer, for example in the "Boy" version of the album The Chaos Chapter: Freeze: Kai is the one who made/will make the game that TXT are playing to escape real life, and it was therefore him who created the final boss, the Dragon!

Later in the video, Kai is the first to be shown covered in glitter, the fairy dust that allows the Lost Boys to fly to Neverland, while he experiences his "sugar rush".

Yeonjun on the other hand, both in the debut Questioning Film and in the music video of Sugar Rush Ride, is associated with two elements:

1) the caterpillar, symbol of transformation, metamorphosis, and growth. Caterpillars do not just become butterflies, but they go through many changes to get there: same thing goes for Yeonjun. (cr. animalhype.com)

2) pink flowers that in Sugar Rush Ride are fern flowers, which have magical connotations in Baltic mythology. According to the myth, they bloom for a very short time on the eve of the summer solstice. In Polish folk legends a person who manages to find the flower will be filled with exceptional supernatural wisdom, but the seekers had to be exceptionally careful, and used protective rites. For example, people were getting completely naked and girding their body with garlands made of an herb called mugwort... anything familiar? In the video, Yeonjun removes his shirt while running and has vines around his waist.

'Looking for a fern flower' was also often a pretext for young people to hide together in the woods and spend romantic time alone. In the Estonian, Lithuanian and Latvian tradition, in addition to the idea that the finder of the fern flower will become rich or happy, it is sometimes perceived as a symbol of fertility. (cr. Wikipedia and lamusdworski.wordpress.com)

Yeonjun, attracted by the flowers, approaches and crushes them in his hand, and their nectar causes him the "sugar rush". These scenes have a strong suggestive charge, hinting to someone indulging in their sexual desires.

The flower's nectar dripping down his hand made me think of the "gods nectar", Ambrosia, the god's food in Greek mythology. The word comes from the Greek a- (negation) and βροτός (mortal) and can be translated as "food that only immortals can consume" but also "food that makes immortal": TXT don’t want to grow up, they want to stay young forever, and therefore immortal. Plus, we know that TXT keep dying during the game they are playing, especially Yeonjun, so one of the temptations could also be obtaining immortality.

Next, we have Soobin, who is associated with:

1) the mantis, symbol of courage and persistence. The people of Ancient Greece and Egypt saw the praying mantis as a guide for those who needed direction, either in life or death. In Buddhism, the praying mantis represents patience and perseverance (cr. birdsandblooms.com)

2) a white flower, which looks like a Narcissin Anemone, delicate white flower similar to daffodils/Narcissus flowers. In his Questioning Film Soobin has Anemones!

3) water, the medium through which he experiences temptation, literally sinking into it. When they're on the beach in the beginning, he plays with the waves, and later he finds a puddle and looks at himself in it, like Narcissus did to admire his beauty. In Greek mythology, Narcissus was punished by the gods for his disdain for anyone who fell in love with him, making him fall with his own image reflected in water, in which he died by drowning while trying to reach for his reflection. Furthermore, Narcissus is also considered a symbol of autoeroticism. Soobin pushes himself further and further to achieve his "sugar rush", not realizing the danger he is in.

Taehyun is instead associated with the element of air, where we see him levitate. Precisely, his animal symbol are birds: in the Questioning Film we see a parrot, while in Sugar Rush Ride an eagle and feathers, that surround him when he experiences his "sugar rush" in front of the tree. The latter has a different appearance in this setting: in addition to recalling that of the Nightmare concept, it refers to Yggdrasil, the sacred tree in Norse cosmology linked to the real name of Taehyun. We have already seen Yggdrasil several times in music videos: in Magic Island, in The Doom's Night, in Blue Hour and in Frost.

Beomgyu has the butterfly as a symbol, which we already know stands for the announcement of winter's, and therefore adulthood's, arrival in We Lost the Summer and Frost. In this album the butterfly was used to announce the arrival of the devil, as in the tale Tinkerbell preceded the arrival of Peter Pan.

In Sugar Rush Ride the butterflies enchant and lure Beomgyu into temptation, but they don't have it easy: he fights back and tries to escape, taking refuge in a cave. Unlike the others, he opposes so much resistance because we know that he is the only one who is fully aware of the dangers they are facing, and he's the one who experiences the "tinnitus", ringing in his ears triggered by his subconscious that tries to keep him awake and alert. However, sooner or later, Beomgyu also succumbs.

🎶 You're bad, you liar / What did you do to me, sugar? / It's me who's bad / I know this bad desire, sugar 🎶

“Get away” Hueningkai yells. The Daydream turns into the Nightmare when the boys realize that the devil is a liar: the promised eternal bliss given by the sugar rush is actually only temporary and leads to addiction and to the arise of their dark sides.

We will deepen this with the analysis of Farwell Neverland, but, at the end of the music video, the group decides to leave Neverland. Kai turns to the viewer as he did in the Concept Trailer of The Dream Chapter: Magic, where he asked if "should we run away" to Magic Island, while here he seems to ask us if we should abandon it.

— Happy Fools

🎶 There’s a lot of things to do / But no plans to do them / They say the future’s always more important than the present / No matter what they say / I don't know, give it up / Already hopped on it, so I’ll properly enjoy this crooked ride

They say I'm stupid / Even if it’s a little delayed, I’m not afraid / It's happy every day / I’m trapped tightly in a sweet moment / Leave the worries to the me of tomorrow / This moment won’t come again, yeah 🎶

The lyrics of this song are pretty self-explanatory. As TXT themselves explained, they wrote it with the intention of expressing the desire to enjoy life and the present moment, without being pressed by things to do. However, this also means ending up procrastinating if a balance is not found between not taking life with frenzy and indulging in sweet-doing-nothing. That's why they become Happy Fools: enjoying their time at Neverland/Magic Island they ignore their responsibilities, leaving them to their "tomorrow" selves, and delaying their growth.

🎶 I don't want to leave / This path of pleasure / I'm like a butterfly (Butterfly) / A honeybee that only works / Even that sky where the sun’s setting / Won't know whether it’s pretty (Get it, get it) 🎶

The pre-chorus was written by Beomgyu, who revealed in his interview with Marie Claire Korea that:

(cr. @/translatingTXT on twitter)

🎶 Don't wanna do my thing / I won't regret it / I'll be the laziest Superman / So follow me / The pleasant taste of laziness / Is very sweet / A dream-like guilty pleasure is right in front of me 🎶

In this song, TXT's temptation is laziness, which they carry like a contradictory superhero who invites listeners to act like him. TXT themselves are the tempters, like in the Sugar Rush Ride choreography, as they themselves explained during the Comeback Showcase with the press.

— Tinnitus (Wanna be a rock)

🎶 Baby, I just wanted to be / Wanted to be hot stuff (You know?) / Party every day, like the weekend / Raise the volume, as if I am fish that met the water (Higher)

At the end of the day, feed is a disaster / Last night was overflowing with filters (Ah) / Momentarily let out a sigh / I know that I can't be a rockstar 🎶

Yeonjun and Taehyun participated in writing the lyrics to this track. They wanted to express the feeling of dreaming of becoming a big, famous, acclaimed rock star but thinking you don't have what it takes or the talent for it; as well as the disappointment when discovering that the entertainment world it's not all shimmering gold as it seems.

🎶 Even if I cover my ears, the daze gets louder / The empty sound is deafening / As if submerged in a fishbowl, the bruises and tinnitus fills it up / In the empty noise, feel so lonely 🎶

In the pre-chorus they refer to the “tinnitus” aka “when you experience ringing or other noises in one or both of your ears. The noise you hear when you have tinnitus isn’t caused by an external sound, and other people usually can’t hear it.”

In spirituality, Tinnitus can indicate that you are being influenced by someone who is negative in nature, the presence of a harmful energetic being in your space, causing a triggering of false belief systems and chaotic energy.

So, tinnitus it's used by TXT’s subconscious to alert them of the danger and lies behind the Cat, Neverland, and their temptations. They try not to listen, to deny the truth, but it doesn’t work and it keeps on dazing them. And they feel lonely because, as we said, the person that hears the ringing is the only one that can hear it, and TXT don’t share the experience with the others.

In Sugar Rush Ride Beomgyu is the only one experiencing it, but in TXT’s videos we have already witnessed this phenomenon: in Magic Island (minute 6:45, 7:40, 8:55) it happed to Soobin and Yeonjun and it resembled the ringing of a bell: it was a warning of the Cat approaching.

The line "As if submerged in a fishbowl" reminded me of the fish imagery they have been using especially in 0x1=Lovesong:

🎶 Rockstar minus the star / Just a rock, okay? / I had a dream / Without knowing anything / A noisy dawn / But a void at the end / Tinnitus filling my ears / It's deafening as if I am locked inside

I don't have that kind of talent / Deep story / I admit it, I'm not a "born to be" / Even when I see myself, I know I am nothing special / My twinkling dream / It's been long since it faded away / Waiting for every second / I want to become a rock 🎶

TXT feel hopeless in front of the hardships they have to face. It's easy to get discouraged by difficulties, especially when you fear that you won't succeed. Insecurities makes you think you're not made for something and/or that there are way better and more talented people out there, and you're nothing special in comparison, even if it's not true, because everyone has their precious contribution to give to the world.

These feelings perfectly connect to the storyline: their "twinkling dream" can refer to dreams they had as children that were lost once they separated, forgot their promise, and the Star turned off. While, the line “I had a dream / Without knowing anything” can reference how childhood dreams can seem unfeasible and illusory when you grow up and you know more of the world, but it can also be traced back to the dreams/premonitions TXT have been having but not understanding.

Being that TXT reach Neverland/Magic Island via dreams, when they wake up with tinnitus the dawn becomes "noisy", which leaves room for inner emptiness given by the loss of the carefree time spent there.

🎶 Wanna live a new life / But I'm a bit lazy / What is my existence? / Give me an answer / I think being a rock / I think it would good / Just rolling around / My own rock 'n' roll 🎶

One of the reasons behind their insecurities are the temptations that have led them away from the right path and from their goals, especially the laziness we talked about with Happy Fools. TXT feel lost and come to think they'd rather be an inanimate object that has no feelings or responsibilities to worry about, and console themselves with the ironic thought that it could become their way of doing rock 'n' roll.

— Farwell, Neverland

Ultimately, the temptations and Neverland only brought suffering to the group, and so they decide to abandon them once and for all.

🎶 Every day is warm, every day is the same season / Boys don't grow up / A kiss from the sun that never sleeps / No one can see the stars / A paradise, full of lies / I wanted to turn a blind eye 🎶

The "paradise full of lies" reminded me of another TXT song: Valley of Lies. Not surprisingly, the animation for the video closely resembles the location in Bali where they filmed Sugar Rush Ride:

🎶 My last refuge / I hoped for endless flying / It's the end, it's true

Everything that was beautiful / I know it's not true / Trying to spit out that cruel lie / To the paradise of irresponsible dreams / I'll say my last goodbye / My Peter Pan 🎶

In Neverland/Magic Island it's always summer and day, also because when sunset comes, before night falls, TXT are forced to leave it. Staying there TXT believe they can never grow up, and that's a beautiful lie promised by a lying devil: they can't delay or prevent adulthood, no matter how hard they try. Time is up for them at Neverland, they acknowledge and accept it.

🎶 Neverland, my love, goodbye now / And I'm free falling / Stars, sleep with comfort / 'Til I be calling 🎶

Yeonjun's says that "stars" can "sleep" comfortably until TXT are going to be "calling" them: this is of course a reference to the Star, that is still asleep and is going to wake up only when TXT sing the promise song.

🎶 No matter where I go / This is no home / Even if I'm afraid, I'm going down / Goodbye, Neverland, my love 🎶

If Peter Pan flew them to Neverland, which they realize can't be their home, now they're falling down to the real world.

These last two verses also reminded me of Icarus that flew too close to the sun, causing his wings to melt and him to fall down, free falling. After all, Icarus was the son of Daedalus, the one who built the labyrinth in which the two were then imprisoned by the king who had commissioned it. To escape, father and son built wings.

We know that Hueningkai is the one who builds the labyrinth, plus he is the member to which the wings are associated, therefore he is Daedalus (he has mechanical wings in Nap of a Star), but, who is Icarus?

In Sugar Rush Ride, we saw that Taehyun is the one associated with air, his temptation and "sugar rush" at Neverland consists in flying, we know that his animal symbol are birds, plus there's actually a TXT music video where we see TXT fall down from the sky and Taehyun has mechanical wings: 0x1=Lovesong Japanese Version!

So, later in The Name Chapter, after TXT will enter Kai's labyrinth to confront their dark sides (as seen in the Concept Trailer), they will abandon it, and Taehyun/Icarus, may not save himself. This seems to be confirmed also by the fact that, while the other members are in different locations wearing casual clothes and despairing about the stars (which are their dreams) falling from the sky, Taehyun wears an uniform in an abandoned school, and at the end of the music video he disappears, leaving it behind.

Taehyun himself said that this song already anticipates what we will see in The Name Chapter 2... does it include his death?

(Just a reminder that TXT die several times in the storyline but always come back to life, because 1) the events take place in Magic Island/Neverland, their fantasy and/or 2) their characters experiencing these things are inside the game txt are continuously playing in real life until they win and so conclude it.)

And that is all for now!

Thank you so much for reading!! Stay tuned for my The Name Chapter 2 predictions post and feel free to share your thoughts if you want <3

masterlist

#tomorrow x together #txt #tomorrow by together #the star seekers #the name chapter #the name chapter: temptation #sugar rush ride #tnc: temptation #txt lore #— txt lore #i've been working on this for a month lol can i say that i'm proud of it?#i had so much fun as well <3 #simply fashinated by the imagery and by how everything is connected and not a sigle detail left to chance #once again i am #kissing all txt's creative directors and artists that made these on the forehead like yeonjun did to soobin in blue hour era as we speak #long post

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