EXO Drops Retro, “Parallel Universe” Teaser

Taylor Amani
Aug 28, 2017 · 3 min read
From L to R: Chen, Kai, D.O, Xiumin, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Suho, Sehun

New week, new semester, new EXO teaser. Yep, you heard me. Seems like just yesterday the group unexpectedly released the ominous eclipse teaser that sent fans into a tail spin, and that feeling is spot on. It’s only been a week, but the boys are back with a new sneak peak, with a completely different vibe.

Watch here:

The song in the teaser, which fans have dubbed “Power”, boasts eighties synthesizers and drum machine beats, prefaced by arcade-esque interlude music. The sound feeds the chill vibe of the members who are all idly hanging out in a cramped room. “Koko Bop” had a relaxed aura about it as well, but this teaser reads “the neighborhood kids’ bikes are in the front yard”, rather than “tropical island vacation”.

The logo that pops up and then drifts to the upper right-hand corner has fans speculating a comic book/superhero themed comeback, which tracks. As with most K-pop albums, buying a physical copy comes with limited edition merchandise, like photo cards or posters. With The War, fans could have received these post cards (top) that when flipped over formed a comic poster (bottom):

cr: ShopKorea seller kpopflight
cr: ShopKorea seller kpopflight

The bottom image can also be seen twice in the teaser: a full poster on the wall to the left of Baekhyun and a on the cover of the comic/magazine Suho is holding. Each member, except Lay who has yet to make a definitive appearance for the repackage :(, holds an orb with their designated superpower represented inside. Additionally, the QR code on the portrait side of each post card takes the scanner to a video of the members tossing an orb of the same color. But what does it all mean?

Wouldn’t we like to know. Fans are scouring the internet, realizing anything could be a clue. Some have blown up stills of the room to better read the posters, while some are analyzing the number 2641 under the the logo. It’s speculated that at the time that the teaser dropped, the date would’ve been August 29th, which was the date of a total solar eclipse in Korea in 1886. In addition the 2641 number is thought to be part of the Unicode for “Earth”. Both of these speculations fit in with the space/alien folklore already established, but no fans are quite too sure how comics and the retro vibe fit in with the Total Eclipse teaser.

Do you have any guesses?

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