NCT 2021 is upon us, with teaser images of NCT members released within the past week. This concept’s theme boasts an almost mechanical vibe, with engineering-inspired designs, crisp white settings, and outfits that put the “blue” in blueprint. The beauty styling is cohesive with this theme, too–let’s take a look at some of the highlights. 

Clean Canvas

Possibly one of the main focal points of the teasers, lettering was projected over the members’ faces, spelling out “NEW AXIS.” To keep the letters sharp, each members’ skin was left fresh and seemingly matte to minimize reflection or flashback. There was virtually no visible contour or blush, no faux freckles this time either. Leader Taeyong had wording cast over the majority of his face, while Sungchan had them confined to his clean cheeks.

Harsh Hair 

Fast becoming on-brand for their styling, a handful of members sport short and structured hairstyles. Ten’s vivid blue locks solid match the color scheme of the shots, cut short similar to his “Paint Me Naked” style from earlier this year. 

Continuing with the short cuts, members Jaemin, Jeno, and Xiaojun all rock rigid styling. With central parts, sections of hair defy gravity as they stand upright or slicked back. Styles akin to this have been previously seen throughout past comebacks such as in Kick It and Hot Sauce. 

Sensational Shadows

Throughout the teaser images, there were clear tonal schemes used – warm peaches, grey golds, and monochrome. With the skin staying fresh, the eyes are deepened with satin, smokey looks.

Some members, such as Chenle, Jaehyun, and Mark, each had heavier shadows applied to the lids. The color was focused on the outer corner of their eyes to form a more intense look. 

In contrast, members like Renjun and Haechan wore softer, peach-toned shadows to match their light hair. 

Johnny, Yuta, and Yangyang had gold lids, contrasting the blue outfits of the teasers. 

 

Perfect Pouts 

Members were given softly blushed pouts for the teasers. The color varied but kept to muted pink tones to balence out the eyes. Members Taeil, Jisung, Shotaro, and Kun kept shine to a minimum with a matte-satin finish on the lips. 

Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Yuta had a more visible sheen to their lips, wearing a satin finish.

Best Brows

It wouldn’t be an NCT yearbook comeback without an eye slit. During NCT 2018, leader Taeyong sported a slit, and this year, it’s Jeno.

The look was reminiscent of many NCT unit comebacks, such as Winwin’s brow slit in WayV’s Turn Back Time era. This truly feels like a connection between all units. 

Fan Can’t Hold Back Excitement!

Fans couldn’t contain their excitement when the teasers were released and took to socials to express their feelings. Some NCTzens praised the styling and looks, while others shared their comedic responses. 

https://twitter.com/jaehyunsab/status/1462240777279455236?s=21

The Final Say 

NCT 2021 has proven to be on-brand with its beauty styling. The motifs used in this year’s teasers have seen past era’s styling reappear. Such details have been used to unite the group and keep the overall mechanical, sci-fi theme coherent. We look forward to recalling future teaser images as the NCT 2021 era progresses. 

If you want to read more about this year’s comeback, check out EnVi’s coverage on the group teasers!

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