NCT 127 Prove Why They’re Your “Favorite”
A review of NCT 127’s latest album repackage and its corresponding videos
As excellent as STICKER is, Favorite makes the album even more enjoyable. With three new tracks, a new music video, and a string of individual mini-movies that K-drama fans will adore, this album repackage leaves fans feeling spoiled. This comeback is an indulgence for both the eyes and ears, for reasons appealing to both next-level fans and casual listeners.
The “Story of Favorite” Teaser Videos
Leading up to the release of the “Favorite (Vampire)” music video, NCT 127 released some mini-films to provide some exposition. Each “chapter” features a member making romantic gestures or staying deep in thought while narrating a monologue, in which they contemplate how to reveal a big secret to a lover.
After revealing their vampire status to their mortal lover, they fret over how to stay together. Rather than portray head-over-heels bliss, this take on vampires’ relationships stays focused on the loss and loneliness that comes with immortality. This premise is reminiscent of the one in Interview With The Vampire, a movie referenced on a movie ticket Taeyong holds in his teaser video. However, NCT 127’s take on the premise is not derivative; nods to prior moments in the NCT Cinematic Music Video Universe fill these mini-movies. The concept is further personalized by staying light on horror movie elements and going deeper on the feelings in which their predicament is wrapped.
The characters show clear distress in their teaser videos, feeling selfish and inadequate for having a loved one as precious as theirs. They cannot give their loved one everything that person wants, not even the smaller things. For example, their lover dreams of going to watch the sea during the daytime, when the sun’s reflection adds color and beauty to the water. But being a vampire means the closest they can get to this dream date is going to watch the sea at night, when the sun is not shining. The feelings that come with being unable to give a loved one what they desire and deserve plague the members and add a surprising amount of weightiness to this story (although this weightiness might be less surprising to long-time NCT fans!).
Adding another layer to this narrative is the fact the members constantly reference dreaming and waking up in their monologues. Combined with the “Favorite (Vampire)” video starting and ending with images of all the members asleep, viewers are left wondering how much of this story is all just a dream. Are the members’ vampire identities what they dreamed up, or are their mortal selves the ones who exist in their dreams only? How many layers deep in the “dream within a dream” concept are they? When will the NCT Cinematic Universe make clearer where the lines are drawn between dreams and reality, between fantasized and real states of being? Leaving so many questions unanswered is what keeps the“Story of Favorite” so intriguing.
The “Favorite (Vampire)” Music Video
The music video for “Favorite (Vampire)” is a feast for the eyes, with the chance to take a cinematic screenshot occurring every second. In one scene, white butterflies swarm around the top of a gray cliff, against the backdrop of a dreary sky. These butterflies are replaced with red flower petals that rain down, just one of many pops of color added to dark scenes. Other scenes feature different skies, one dark and starry and another a beautiful blue-green. During an outdoor dance scene, the “brand new day” feeling of a sunrise comes alive with the blooming of red flowers lining the members’ stage. Interesting plot aside, the music video’s aesthetics are reason enough to watch!
Split-second clips interspersed between longer scenes show close-ups of brooding eyes and fangs. These moments, plus scenes with shards of glass covering the ground and other unnerving details, constantly remind viewers of the darkness underneath the polished, princely looks and otherwise picturesque settings. The dashes of horror are not gory enough to frighten anyone, allowing this video to stay mesmerizing to all audiences. This music video is as darkly alluring as it is visually stunning.
Why “Favorite (Vampire)” is Destined to Be a Hit
Story-wise and visually, “Favorite (Vampire)” arrives at the perfect time. As a new wave of Twilight nostalgia gains prominence online, K-drama viewership reaches new heights, and decoding the meanings hidden in artists’ work becomes the new normal for fandom members, “Favorite (Vampire)” checks every box. The video and its teasers pair a meaningful, romantic narrative with haunting and gorgeous imagery, Easter eggs galore, and an ending that leaves fans wondering what happens next. With plenty to gush over and read into, “Favorite (Vampire)” is perfect for today’s online fandom discourse.
Despite this video’s marketing advantage, “Favorite (Vampire)” does not come across as jumping on a bandwagon. It is not trendy just for the sake of being trendy; it is a stylistic direction that aligns well with the story arc NCT have been developing for years now. As discussed on a recent 17 Carat K-Pop podcast episode, a lot of puzzle pieces start to fit together when watching previous NCT 127 videos in hindsight. Their music video characters revealing they are vampires actually makes perfect sense!
The News Songs on Favorite
“Favorite” is Peak NCT, mixing together a memorable whistle, harmonies, an electronic dance break, and more to create a one-of-a-kind, unrepeatable concoction. The opening whistle detours into an alarm of sorts before returning to a whistle, and the rest of the track continues to have tricks up its sleeve. The song zigzags without losing its way, a feat that is par for the course for NCT.
The other new songs on Favorite also do what NCT 127 excel at, blurring and blending musical genres in unexpected ways. “Love On The Floor” is EDM remix material, and it manages to interrupt periods of instrumental consistency with moments that somehow sound like they are right where they belong. Also of note are the verses on which Taeyong and Mark build off of each other; this is thematically perfect, as they are a fan- “favorite” duo!
“Pilot” brings listeners on a sonic journey, making it easy to visualize and daydream about going on a trip with the members. Thematically, the song brings to mind “Fly Away With Me” and similar NCT 127 songs, but sonically, it is brand new. Playful synths work with harmonious choruses and fun whistling to make for the perfect follow-up song to “Breakfast.” Both in terms of its concept and sound, “Pilot” is the perfect transition, placed on the tracklist right after “Breakfast” and right before the album takes a slower, R&B-focused turn.
Conclusion
NCT 127 continue to surprise and excite. With Favorite, they execute their winning formula once again, adding intriguing chapters to their storyline and turning unconventional sound pairings into catchy tunes. For casual listeners, Favorite is a fun release and has a title track with a captivating music video. For long-time fans, Favorite is all that plus instant canon, giving them new theories to consider and new plot developments to anticipate. In short, Favorite lives up to its name.
Check out the new album here, listen to the corresponding podcast episode here, and catch up on all things NCT here!