12 Pop Culture Easter Eggs in K-Pop MVs

AKP STAFF

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey

Big Bang's "Bang Bang Bang" is a strange video in and of itself, however, one scene, in particular, was directly influenced by famous American film director, producer, and screenwriter, Stanley Kubrick. The scene in which T.O.P. interacts with the astronaut version of himself in the fancy white room is a direct homage to a scene in Kubrick's 1968 film: "2001: A Space Odyssey".

2. Dragon Ball Z

In Gugudan's video for "Chococo", there are a number of fun and playfully edited scenes, however, one sticks out a little bit more than others as a pop culture Easter egg! A little over the three-minute mark, Sejeong of Gugudan can be seen channeling her inner Dragon Ball-Z powers as she seems to go Super Saiyan with chocolate all around her!

3. Stranger Things

Monsta X's music video for "Fighter" was a goldmine filled with parallels from the hit show "Stranger Things"! The video begins with a title track similar to the title screen for the tv show. Then begins a slurry of parallels including frequently seen motifs in the show such as bicycles, labs, sensory deprivation, game playing, lights, and many more! See if you can spot them all!

4. Moulin Rouge

Though the video for SISTAR's "Give It To Me" isn't necessarily a hidden Easter egg, there is still a noticeable pop culture reference as the MV employs the thematic elements from Moulin Rouge! From the showy costumes to the story told in the video, the girls of Sistar do a great job playing off of the theme. We would have loved to see them do "Lady Marmalade"!

5. Pink Floyd

The iconic album art for Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" was featured in BTS' "Fire" MV- and aptly so! The original image depicted two men in business suits shaking hands as one of the men caught on fire. In "Fire", Yoongi shakes hands with a hooded figure who proceeds to catch on fire. This direct homage to Pink Floyd is also seen in Yoongi's short film for "First Love". A truly iconic reference!

6. Pringles

It's no secret that Seulgi of Red Velvet absolutely loves to eat Pringles! But, if you watch RV's "Rookie" music video, at precisely the minute-and-a-half mark, Seulgi shows up with a mustache akin to that of the logo of the mustached man on the Pringles can! She even has yellow on to match the font of the chips and red in her hair to match the canister! Pringles UK even gave Seulgi a shoutout on Twitter!

7. A Slurry of Easter Eggs in Cheer Up!

TWICE's "Cheer Up" is simple in plot, but the Easter eggs are bountiful! Each member's outfit and theme is a reference to pop culture. Dahyun is an homage to Hwang Jini, Tzuyu is an homage to "Breakfast at Tiffany's", Sana as Sailor Moon, MoMo as Resident Evil and much more! See if you can name all the pop culture references each girl represents when you watch the video!

8. Alice in Wonderland

IU's MV for "Twenty-three" is obviously Alice in Wonderland themed, but can you spot all the Easter eggs hidden away? From white rabbits, cake, a tea party and more, try to find all the references to Alice in Wonderland in the MV!

9. Detective Conan

Detective Conan, or Chanhyuk, in this case, is a huge Easter egg and thematic element! The video has a misleading plot that makes you assume that Soohyun is the culprit, but through Detective Conan- er, Chanhyuk's crime-solving skills, they figure out the person who is trying to take the actress out of her role! A cute homage to a great detective!

10. A Clockwork Orange

Heavily dystopic in nature, f(x)'s "Red Light" has a hidden homage to the film adaptation of Anthony Burgess' "A Clockwork Orange". The menswear in combination with top hats and particularly dark and specifically uneven under eye makeup is a clear Easter egg to the film! SM has a very good track record using dark concepts to make edgy music videos and pulling from "A Clockwork Orange" seemed like the perfect move for the video.

11. Rocky Horror Picture Show

SHINee's "Married to the Music" MV has a slew of "Rocky Horror Picture Show" influence. From seemingly toxic beverages to ghoulish and ghastly deeds, the video has a number of slight references to Rocky Horror. The spooky woman in the MV aims to take body parts from all the members of SHINee and the dark plot takes directly from the film.

12. Every Member of AOA in Get Out!

Similar to TWICE's "Cheer Up" MV, AOA's "Get Out" MV has each of the member representing a commonly referenced pop culture figures! From Harry Potter to Kill Bill, Leon the Professional to Legally Blonde, and The Fifth Element to Romeo and Juliet, all the girls stand for common pop culture figures. Can you name them all?