REVIEW: ‘BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG’ Cements BTS As One Of The Greats

BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG is a long time coming. BTS has been out of the game for a few years. While each member has done solo work over the course of the group’s hiatus, the last BTS proper performance was BTS Yet To Come in Busan back in October of 2022. The group then stepped away, on a rotating military enlistment cycle, before finally reuniting last June.

BTS has been around for a while, debuting back in 2014. The group is made up of 7 members: RM (Kim Namjoon), Jin (Kim Seok-jin), Suga (Min Yoon-gi), J-Hope (Jung Ho-seok), Jimin (Park Ji-min), V (Kim Tae-hyung), and Jungkook (Jeon Jungkook). They were underdogs when they debuted, the only artists at the beginning stages of a new agency. Their rise to global stardom was one full of struggle, pushing to be accepted in an industry ruled by the big dogs. 

After reuniting, BTS quickly got to work on their newest album, ARIRANG, named after a traditional Korean song. It’s a song that’s hundreds of years old, with tons of regional differences. Verses change, melodies rearrange, it’s a song deeply rooted in Korean culture. It’s about longing, loss, love, resistance, and so much more. 

Then how does KPOP’s biggest returning act live up to hundreds of years of history? It may seem an impossible task, but BTS have been entrenched in high-stakes, long-shot situations their entire careers. They’re not interested in making Arirang their own, instead adding to it. BTS takes an incredibly cultural song and feeling and brings it to a global audience. They ground their return in heritage and history, a comeback centered on their home and the place they grew up.

BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG embraces their culture and builds something new at the same time.

BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG sees the group team up with Netflix to stream their return to the world. It sees them turning Seoul into their own personal stage, setting the concert in Seoul’s historic Gwanghwamun Square. The makeshift venue stretches back, enveloping other historical landmarks like a statue of King Sejong and another of Yi Sun-Shin. At the front stand BTS, on a stage built entirely for them, now adding to the history of Arirang, Gwanghwamun Square, and Korea itself.

The concert kicks off with a shot of the temple bathed in light, a group of people clad in black, electric guitars crooning in the background. They melt away, splitting apart to reveal BTS as the back. They’re back. Cameras swirl, mixing in shots of Seoul and the audience before finally returning to the main event. 

A moment of silence as they stand, group leader RM leading the charge. They launch into album opener “Body to Body”, a song that’s already becoming a fandom favorite. They sound incredible, confident, and sure. They seem right at home, grooving and dancing to a song that embodies everything ARIRANG. It’s most evident in the final section of the song, as the hip hop beats give way to a rendition of the classic arirang.

We see singers draped in hanbeoks, traditional Korean clothing, with others seated behind playing the traditional instruments that make up the song’s backbone. It’s a gorgeous shot, backlit by the temple, as Korean history reaches a global scale like never before.

The Netflix-produced comeback marks the first time all seven members of BTS have performed together since 2022.

“As Body to Body” closes out, we jump back to Jin, masking up as J-Hope leads into “Hooligan”. Another instant classic, J-Hope raps in the midst of a sea of dancers, all wearing similar masks to Jin. It’s electric and engaging, with the chorus kicking in and showing off some new choreography. BTS stands in the middle, drenched in red light and swaying with the moves of the ensemble. “This is international, make it unforgettable,” Jimin sings, which, yeah, they very much are. 

2.0 comes in kicking, with more new choreography that focuses on the group this time. V looks and sounds incredible on this one, clearly loving being back on stage with the gang. Even though RM is stuck sitting due to a last-second leg injury, he feels incredibly involved the entire time, matching what choreo he can from the stool. “Came back for what’s mine,” they declare confidently, returning the throne they left open just a few years ago. 

A short break comes in next, the group speaking about their intentions and return. “We are finally here and seeing you again,” Jimin remarks, with multiple members talking about how much they were looking forward to being back with ARMY. Suga talks about being honored to perform at Gwanghwamun, a choice that felt natural as they settled on the theme of arirang. 

BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE is also filled with emotion as the members speak about their anxieties. 

They kick into back-to-back crowd favorites. “Butter” leads into “Mic Drop”, with the latter being the Korean lyrics rather than the English version, a choice that feels appropriate given the venue. It’s fantastic hearing these songs live again, with the crowd seemingly agreeing, given how loud the fan chants are. 

The short rest that follows gives BTS a moment to reflect. They speak about anxieties and nervousness about the comeback, questioning whether ARMY and the world would even care they’re back. It’s these moments of vulnerability that always connect, real concerns for a group that’s been away for a few years. They speak about this comeback being one that they wanted to truly represent who they are as artists. 

“Aliens” ends the brief respite, Suga erupting into the opening. “This gon’ be the jam of the year’ feels like an apt descriptor. “FYA” is next, a party song that has the group playing with the camera as they pop off. It’s another track the fandom is devouring, a song that feels like a spiritual successor to 2016’s “Fire.”

BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG is an evolution of the world’s biggest musical group in real time.

Another quick break follows, where the gang excitedly talks about the new album and songs. “Performing our new songs in front of you for the first time is so nerve-racking but fun,” says Jungkook, clearly getting caught up in the moment. It feels like a watershed moment, one brimming with catharsis as the tracks they’ve kept to themselves take on new life with the audience. 

We move into another section of new tracks, with the title track “SWIM” leading the way. We get some new choreo here too, as the group flows around each other, clearly fitting the relaxed energy of the track. “Like Animals” keeps the slow vibes, with BTS seated around the stage as they sing. “Normal” closes out this part, the group bathed in blue and white as they reminisce on the life they chose and struggled to create. 

The final group chat session feels like classic BTS. They talk about their favorite new tracks to start things off, asking ARMY how they like the new album. It genuinely feels like a bit of uncertainty tinges the start, as if the group is making sure that the crowd likes the new stuff as much as they do. Jungkook shouts out “FYA” as his new favorite, while Jin calls out the album closer “Into the Sun.”

The tension breaks as they realize V is sitting in RM’s seat, jokingly questioning why he sat there in the first place. It’s a light moment that really shows them as the family unit they are, the ones that the world fell in love with in the first place. “BTS 2.0 is just getting started,” says J-Hope, a promise as much as it is a statement. 

“Dynamite” is the “last song”, and damn is it good to hear after all these years. It’s the song that really took them to the heights they’re at now, a symbol of change. The gang wraps up, heads out, and…RM is left sitting alone on the stage. He calls out to the group, asking if that’s really all they have left. Nope, one more. “Mikrokosmos” closes out the comeback, a perfectly galactic way to reconnect the group to the fandom they so clearly cherish. 

The music plays out, they bow, and come back over. They linger as they leave the stage, thanking everyone and wishing all a safe return home. But honestly, that’s the thing – this felt like home. For the many in ARMY, seeing this family back together feels like a warm space that’s been left open for too long.

Every section features sweeping shots of the city, staggering scale on display as thousands upon thousands of fans take in the comeback. Even in all the grandeur, it feels small and personal, like seeing an old friend again. 

Seoul is as important as the music on stage in BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG.

To Netflix’s credit, the stream was rock solid the entire time. While the camerawork was too distant at times and some key moments felt missed due to the crowd shots, the production here was top-notch.

The sound was fantastic, with each member clearly heard and not getting lost in the backing music. The lighting, especially on the palace in the background, looked fantastic. BTS looked small in front of the behemoth behind them, but that feels appropriate, as they cement themselves as part of the history here. 

BTS have talked a lot about the weight of naming an album after arirang. They’ve spoken about how arirang as a song and concept is always marked by complex feelings of love and longing. Their last concert, Yet To Come In Busan, now feels like a party – a celebration of everything that brought them to new heights while saying goodbye to that version of themselves.

BTS The Comeback Live | ARIRANG feels like a reintroduction, meeting the group on their own terms. Their version of arirang is a longing for who they were, how much they miss their old selves, while understanding they can’t go back. This comeback marks who BTS is now instead of who they were, embracing the concept of arirang entirely. 

BTS 2.0 is just getting started, but they’ve solidified their place as one of the greats.

It’s hard to put into words how it feels seeing them again, in this new version of themselves. Since they left, I’ve moved, had kids, lost and found jobs, came to understand and mourn my own youth moving by. This concert feels like BTS doing the same – they’ve gone through their own share of life in the last few years.

So much of their early work was built on the celebration of youth, and now as we as ARMY get older alongside them, BTS The Comeback Live | ARIRANG is them longing for that youth with us, while striving forward into who they want to be. It’s honest, sad, exciting, and a host of other contrasting and conflicting emotions all rolling together. Arirang. 

BTS The Comeback Live | ARIRANG is an incredible return, one that acts as a reminder to everyone that BTS hasn’t lost a single step in their time away. They all sound fantastic and confident, mixing in hard-hitting raps, gorgeous vocals, and visually captivating choreography with the energy that ARMY can’t stay away from. BTS is back, and here’s hoping that’s the status quo for a long time coming. 

BTS The Comeback Live | ARIRANG is streaming now on Netflix, and ARIRANG is streamable on all major platforms.