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Unpacking All The References In TXT’s 2022 MMA Performance, As We Prepare For The Name Chapter

Unpacking All The References In TXT’s 2022 MMA Performance, As We Prepare For The Name Chapter

And the crowd goes wild…! TXT continued their tradition of revealing the title of their next era during their MMA performance in 2022’s edition, and MOA are in shock.

Our 4th Gen It Boys picked up the MMA for Best Performance – Male, and with the show they put on, is anyone surprised? Within their twelve-minute performance, they managed to fit in multiple dance breaks, references to their entire discography, a killer rendition of ‘Good Boy Gone Bad,’ and reveal the title of their new chapter. Talk about keeping us on the edge of our seats.

We’ve watched the performance and the dance practice video more times than we’d care to admit, and we feel like we’re still spotting new things! As there are so many hints and references, we thought the best bet was to sit down and try to unpack this whole thing. Wish us luck!

Title Track References

In the four years that TXT have performed at end-of-year shows, they’ve always revealed hints for their next era. This time though, they stepped it up a notch, not just revealing the future, but reveling in their past. TXT’s MMA performance referenced nearly all of their title tracks to date, and here’s how!

‘CROWN’

As MOA know, the Korean title for TXT’s debut song ‘CROWN’ translates to ‘One Day, A Horn Grew From My Head.’ And what happened to Yeonjun during his solo intro at the MMAs? Exactly that. This moment also references b-side ‘Nap of a star,’ but more on that later…

‘9 And Three Quarters (Run Away)’

TXT are bringing the magic back! There are so many fantastical references throughout TXT’s discography and stages, and we know so many MOA will be happy to see them return. A lot of the imagery, like the clocks, in the opening intro of TXT’s 2022 MMA performance was so similar to ‘Run Away’ that we could barely believe our eyes! There were references in the choreo too, especially the part when TXT are in a line forming a clock. But as some super smart MOAs (couldn’t be us) pointed out that the clock is moving both forwards and backward in time now, whereas before it only went back. What does it all mean?!

‘Can’t You See Me?’

‘Can’t You See Me?’ is another title track that TXT referenced in the dance break choreo. Those head tilts seem familiar, anyone? And to add to that, when Beomgyu set the stage on fire with a lighter, it really reminded us of the house burning at the end of the ‘Can’t You See Me?’ music video. Having said that, TXT literally play with fire every era, so maybe they’re just starting as they mean to go on.

‘Blue Hour’

This reference was less about the song itself, but rather a specific performance of it. In their 2020 MMA performance, TXT sang ‘Blue Hour’ and then, in a dance break outro, revealed that their next era would be The Chaos Chapter. As that title appeared on screen, a CGI hole appeared on Yeonjun’s chest. Fast forward two years and it’s happened again! We don’t know what it means, but we know we’re not emotionally ready for this comeback.

‘0x1=LOVESONG’ And The Chaos Chapter: FREEZE

One of our fave moments of the performance had to be when Yeonjun jumped off a dancer’s back and flew through the air, just like in the iconic Chaos Chapter: FREEZE trailer. The jackets that TXT put on midway through the dance break were also really similar to the FREEZE styling, and we love to see TXT’s awareness of how iconic that trailer is within the fandom!

‘Good Boy Gone Bad’

Well, this one’s easy – they literally performed the song. We hope you figured that reference out for yourself, TBH. But, to be fair, it goes a little deeper than that too! In Huening Kai’s VCR, he’s seen trapped inside a mirrored room, much like he is in the ‘Frost’ music video. But this time, the glass is shattered, like the mirror Soobin breaks in ‘GBGB.’

TXT Universe References

Every time we think we might finally understand the TXT Universe, it gets more complicated. In their 2022 MMA performance, TXT referenced so much of their universe, dating all the way back to ‘Nap of a star,’ a b-side from their debut album. In the music video for ‘Nap of a star,’ Yeonjun wakes up to find out he’s grown horns, just like the MMA intro we talked about earlier. To add to that, Huening Kai is also seen in their performance with wings, just like he is in ‘Nap of a star’ and ‘Frost!’

It’s all coming together! We don’t understand how or why, but apparently it is.

Maybe the sweetest moment of TXT’s entire 2022 MMA show was when their star reappeared. This star has popped up time and time again throughout their career and represents the promise they made to each other. Even more than that, the intro narration began as follows:

Five boys lived on a planet named Earth. One of the boys said, “Even if we get separated, let’s meet here again someday.” The five boys made a promise under the stars.

TXT on 2022 MMAs, translation by @TranslatingTXT on Twitter

As the five members of TXT enter this new chapter and begin the fifth year of their career, it’s so meaningful to see them continue to honor this promise!

The MMA Dance Practice

Some especially eagle-eyed MOA spotted Beomgyu looking for something in his jacket pockets and coming up empty during the dance break. Well, the mystery has been solved! In the official dance practice video, Beomgyu doesn’t just play around with the lighter before the stage bursts into flames – he was meant to set a rose alight whilst it hangs from his mouth. Not only does his on-stage improvisation when the rose went missing display his professionalism, but now that we know the full picture, it’s the signal that we’re officially leaving the Thursday’s Child era.

See Also

We’ve seen Beomgyu set flowers alight more than once in this era, but most notably in the music video for title track ‘Good Boy Gone Bad.’ This time though, he throws the rose behind him, so is this a sign that the next concept will show them moving on from their past love?

Wanna see their practice choreo in all its glory? Luckily, BIGHIT have blessed us and you can watch it right here!

The Name Chapter

We may have literally just given you a few hundred words on this performance, but in actuality, we’ve been left completely speechless. TXT absolutely blew us away.

But where does that leave us now? To be honest, other than the name of The Name Chapter, we’re really not sure what to expect in this next album. We think it will continue the TXT Universe and their magical lore, but where will that take us? Were the dance break instrumentals hints for the next album’s sonic direction? We don’t know about you, but we have a headache just thinking about it.

No matter where we’re headed, we can’t wait to see what comes next in The Name Chapter. January can’t come soon enough! What did you make of TXT’s performance at the 2022 MMAs? Got any predictions for The Name Chapter? Let us know over on Twitter @TheHoneyPOP! Or if that’s not your thing, you can also find us on Facebook and Instagram!

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