Tears, tattoos, Cartier watches: fan frenzy at BTS army discharge / Photo: ANTHONY WALLACE - AFP
Tears, tattoos, Cartier watches: fan frenzy at BTS army discharge
South Korea's Yeoncheon county, just kilometres from the heavily fortified border with the nuclear-armed North, is best known for its honey. But on Wednesday, it was flooded with K-pop supergroup BTS fans.
Despite pleas from the band's agency HYBE to stay away from the area where members Jimin and Jungkook were being released from mandatory military service, a screaming, weeping frenzy ensued early Wednesday.
Decked out in the band's signature purple, and some even sporting BTS tattoos, fans began gathering at 3 am.
Some had flown in from Brazil and Indonesia, eager to catch the first glimpse of the pair after their discharge.
As the two BTS stars emerged, fans screamed, cried and hugged each other.
Wu Ruohan, an 18-year-old Chinese fan, said this was her "dream come true".
Their release means that six of the seven members of BTS have now finished their service. The final member -- SUGA -- is due out on June 21, bringing the group one step closer to reunion and new music.
Security moved the cordons to keep fans at bay as Jimin and Jungkook arrived, dressed in camouflage military uniforms, AFP journalists saw.
The K-pop idols, who have spent 18 months on the frontline with North Korea serving in the 5th Infantry Division Artillery Brigade, thanked the crowd for waiting for them.
"It's been a while since I've been in front of a camera, and I'm a bit embarrassed because I didn't even put on makeup," said Jungkook, who looked slightly flustered at the mass gathering.
Jimin confessed they had gone for a 5 am jog, hoping to look their best.
The pair bowed to fans and media before getting into a black minivan and driving off, promising to speak on their superfan platform WeVerse later.
- 'Not real fans'? -
Online, fans bickered about whether it was right to turn up at the bases, against requests from HYBE and BTS.
Before they enlisted, the BTS members had knelt during a live broadcast to earnestly entreat their fans not to show up at army bases as they entered military life.
"They're not real fans, the boys even knelt and begged for them to not come," one social media user wrote, sharing screenshots of those at the scene, in a seeming effort to shame them.
Experts have said the members will likely have a "visual adjustment period" of a few months, while they grow out their military buzz cuts and hone their K-pop look.
Even so, fashion enthusiasts were looking for any scraps of personality amid their military attire, seizing on the watch worn by member V who was discharged Tuesday. His Cartier piece was estimated to be worth around 20 million won ($14,649).
In contrast, his bandmate RM wore an affordable Casio. But to the disappointment of online sleuths, neither Jimin nor Jungkook wore a watch on Wednesday.
On Friday, the seven-member group celebrates the 12th anniversary of its debut, known as FESTA. Fans from around the world are pouring into South Korea for the occasion.
On Wednesday, thousands of people were seen outside HYBE's headquarters in downtown Seoul waiting for vans carrying the stars to arrive.
While waiting to see their idols, fans sang along to BTS songs and chanted 'Jimin, Jungkook,' as multiple local broadcasters aired the scene live.
Local media were seemingly taken aback by the huge interest in the releases and called the reunion a "revival of the K-pop industry".
J.Hoffmann--FFMTZ
