Parents' Guide to BTS: The Return

While the members of this boy band come across as sweet, united, a little confused by fame, and still young, this feature-length documentary will appeal exclusively to ARMY, aka BTS fans. BTS: The Return focuses on two things—the boys, reunited after their compulsory military service, and their newest album. Not much new is gleaned about the band members, and scenes of them hanging out, sharing meals, talking about what fame means to them, and writing songs don't offer much to appeal to non-fans. More about their military service would have been interesting, for example.

Meetings where label representatives present a pre-packaged album theme or dispute creative decisions with the singers offer behind-the-scenes insights into how this globally successful band functions. Though the artists are all now in their early 30s, they still come across as quite young, maybe even a little sheltered, wrestling with each other, playing in the pool, and still figuring life out. That portrayal is surely intentional, but it may undermine more mature lyrics and other aspects of their lives. Perhaps a new entry to the significant body of work about BTS could scratch through that public image and show us more of their real lives and feelings.