The limits of reality are tested in a new NCT concept video for the upcoming release of Universe, set to drop on December 14. With new elements of this dream being explored, NCT dropped the teaser entitled “NCT 2021 YearDream : Stage 3 – Synchronization of Dreams” on November 23. The trailer features members Hendery, Jaemin, Johnny, Shotaro, and Sungchan. 

Reality vs. Dream

The 6-minute teaser starts with Hendery sitting in a lime green egg chair in an empty pasture. Then, he picks up a whistle hanging from his neck, similar to what Taeyong and Sungchan held in the first trailer. The camera encircles him as he blows the whistle, and we see Jaemin sitting across from Hendery, mirroring his actions. The two members alternate playing tones on their whistles until Jaemin hits a specific frequency and thrashes backward into his chair. He is then seen in a bedroom, waking up from a dream. 

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Jaemin grabs for the whistle that is tied around his neck and sees that it is not there. Soon after this, the doorbell rings, and Jaemin goes to answer it. Hendery is on the other side of it with the whistle and hands it over.  When they part ways, Jaemin starts to make his way back to his bedroom, and the doorbell rings again. He opens the door and at his doorstep is a railroad track. His house seems to now be a train, with Jaemin standing in front of it. The train seems to be going through a cartoon-like environment, with red, green, and purple hints encompassing Jaemin’s new reality. As the train rides through the unknown world, we are then pulled through to Johnny’s reality. It seems as though we were in Johnny’s dream the entire time, which could be a Dream in a Dream. 

Johnny is to be on a train. He grabs his phone and types “what’s wrong,” sending it to an unknown recipient. He then reaches for a book entitled “A Dream within a Dream” by Edgar Allen Poe. In an NCTmentary, Johnny is the “experimenter,” so fans expect his role in the universe to be significant to the story. Could he be experimenting with the other members’ dreams? 

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Johnny falls into a deep slumber, and we are pulled into his dream and see Shotaro fixing his clothes. Then, he walks over to the mirror, puts on a bucket hat, and starts to show off his impressive dance skills to NCT 2020’s Interlude: Past to Present. 

He returns to the mirror and sees a shape start to form on it. As he looks closely at this shape, he sees a group of boys appear and is shocked. Many fans speculate that he could be looking at his fixed unit, as Sungchan and Shotaro are the only ones that do not have one. On the other hand, others theorize that it could be a new NCT U combination for NCT 2021. 

With the boys’ identities being unclear, fans try to take their best guesses for who they think it may be! 

After Shotaro’s shock, we are then pulled into Sungchan’s reality. Stylists surround him as they fix his hair and makeup. Confused, Sungchan looks around and spots the necklace with the whistle on it from the first scene. He examines it and looks around. The video ends with colors reminiscent of Jaemin’s train scene. 

What’s Next? 

As the anticipation for NCT 2021 increases, fans can expect to see much more content surrounding the world of NCT. The full-length album, Universe, is set to release on December 14. Be sure to follow NCT on Twitter and Instagram for more updates!

Check out our recap of NCT’s latest teasers here!

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