When it comes to Korean media, the biggest mediums in the game are Webtoon and K-pop. In the case of the latter, no band is bigger at the moment than BTS, a South Korean boy band who've found just as much fame in international waters as they have in Korea. They've parlayed this success into several non-musical ventures, and one of them happens to be a Webtoon comic.
Save Me was named after one of BTS's popular songs, and the series is a time travel drama based around fictional versions of the band's members. Needless to say, it's a must-read for BTS fans and manhwa readers in general. Here's more about the premise and where the book can be read.
Who Created BTS's Save Me?
As mentioned, the 2019 series Save Me was inspired by the title of the 2016 BTS hit track of the same name. It was a collaboration between Naver Webtoon and Big Hit Entertainment and is set in the same fictional universe as many of BTS's works. The protagonist is Kim Seok-jin, who's based on Jin from the real-life BTS band. Returning home to Korea, he thinks back to the experiences that he and his high school friends had together in their younger years. However, this nostalgia is cut short when he learns of the harrowing circumstances that have befallen or even ended their lives.
Afterward, he begins to wake up reliving the same day: April 11th. Realizing that he can change the future through this scenario, he becomes determined to reunite with and save his friends from their dark and twisted fates. The road to saving their friendships and lives isn't easy, however, and the end result is far from a happy ending. The twists and turns in the story are made more dramatic by the fact that, while the characters are based on the BTS members, their lives don't necessarily mimic their real-world counterparts, and can go in some wildly different directions.
Upcoming HYBE and Webtoon Collaborations
The series was a huge success among both BTS and Webtoon fans, having received over 50 million views by the time its story concluded. So far, it and the book HYYH are the main entries in the "BTS Universe." The latter is receiving a sequel, with all of these stories acting as coming-of-age tales featuring fictional versions of the band members who are uncertain of how to make their way in the world. The universe itself was started with the release of the song "I NEED U." The storyline of Save Me will also be expanded upon with the upcoming live-action TV series Youth. It's been announced that several other Webtoons will be adapted in a similar fashion, making the platform more and more of a springboard for drama ideas.
Given how big both Webtoon and BTS themselves have become outside of Korea, it makes sense that Western readers would easily be able to read Save Me. The series is currently available to read on the English version of the Webtoon service, with Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian and Thai translations also available. Fans were even able to submit their own fan translations during the time the series was being produced, tapping into just how much of a phenomenon the Bangtan Boys have become.