Jin emerges…
As a very newly minted ARMY (I didn’t know BTS from Adam until March this year, and no, I haven’t officially signed up to anything but I consider myself a serious fan), I’ve been watching Jin emerge from his military service. And:
• Men look so good in uniform, even ordinary guys. Special guys look amazing.
• Namjoon with his saxophone!
• No mistaking the burly guy with the tats!
• I understand Yoongi is there, but didn’t come out, which leads me to…
• The privacy of such an occasion. Clearly this has been stage-managed for fans with the permission of those concerned. But I wonder if Yoongi didn’t come out because he wanted to reunite with his old room-mate in private. So much of their life they have voluntarily shared with fans, firstly as a way of creating fans, then staying connected with them. But for their own sanity, they surely keep a chunk of their life actually private.
• One important part of the the BTS charm, for me, is their intense camaraderie. Army service will change all of them. How they relate to each other will surely change too. Fans may be nervous of this, but I’m sure they are too!

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    I really know very little about BTS but I am fascinated with the mandatory Military service and the effect on famous men. I will be watching this next year with great interest as they come out and restart their lives. Thanks for the informative post

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      I mean BTS are famous off the charts, and it would be fascinating to know how they are treated in the military. I remember Ji Chang-wook saying that when he did his military service, at first he felt like he had lost his identity because he was used to being treated like a celebrity which was very much based on who he was. But after a while, he said he got to enjoy the anonymity and the company of soldiers.

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    Military service is indeed life changing. Hope they all emerge stronger.

    Thank you for sharing. 😊❤

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    Can I just say:

    1/ You don’t need to sign up to anything to be a fan of anyone. And while there are some ARMY members only events (I think on Weverse), 99% of those members will stream the event on free platforms for the rest of the non-paying members. And I’d also add (as you mentioned him), someone like Yoongi will be the first to applaud those free streamings (because the guy has a history of sharing codes and other shits he shouldn’t be sharing online). So, if there is one thing you can be certain of is that non-paying fans do definitely count too.

    2/ I somehow remember coming across a video of Namjoon in military band with a saxophone. It was a while back, and somewhere in the depth of TikTok or Instagram. But I’ll look for it and link it if you haven’t seen it.

    3/ Ah… Yoongi is here & visible too. [short story made even shorter: I once shared the BT21 keycaps on my keyboard on SM and since then my feed makes sure I never miss any BTS-related content.. that includes 1% of the stuff I care about and 99% of hormonal teens simultaneously mothering and drooling over a bit of skin which I care a lot less about; but yes, in case you didn’t know, men whose sole job is to dance and sing on stage are fitter than the average overweight accountant]
    I’ll dig through my feed, but I’m pretty sure there was a photo with definitely 7 heads in. It may take a while.

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      Okay, I said it would take time but it kept bothering me, so here are the things I mentioned:

      KNJ & military band: https://www.tiktok.com/@kpop7kings/video/7335822328879664391

      7 heads (with a very visible Yoongi)
      Can’t find the original content, but here’s another one: https://www.tiktok.com/@sadpartofme/video/7379450252824300806

      Now I can go back to work feeling content in the knowledge that I have at least achieved one thing today!

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        Thanks very much for those comments and links. Yes, the photo of all seven of them quickly came flooding out all over social media and it was gratifying to see. Then Jin being his usual hilarious self in his little broadcast. I also found the handwritten letters from the members that came out today really moving — that they are still so positive about BTS and the fans.

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