Three days after the teaser was released, the music video for the title track of the full-length album ‘Aeronautics,’ titled ‘Flight,’ was unveiled.
Inside a spaceship where old, multicolored cables tangled like vines across gray walls, Seo Hoyun appeared, wearing black wired earphones and gazing quietly out the dome-shaped window.
Just as the drop of water running down his jet-black hair was about to fall, an emotionless mechanical voice came through the in-flight broadcast like a narration.
【This is The Dawn bound for sunset. We will depart soon.】
Along with that, an 808 bass and synthesizer intertwined, spreading a dreamy intro.
When Seo Hoyun silently stared at the beautiful planet beyond the glass—a blend of white clouds and blue sea—the earphones were suddenly yanked from his ears.
【Please fasten your seatbelt—】
As he frowned slightly and turned his head, he saw Kang Ichae grinning mischievously, twirling the cord of the earphones. Snatching the cassette tape, he strode down the aisle as if in a run and began to rap.
【Say who’s back again?】
Heading toward the cockpit, Kang Ichae tapped the shoulder of Kim Sunghyun, who was dressed in a white turtleneck.
【Some noise tries to fill me with doubt (what?)
Pushed me away, maybe I lost it all
In the dark night my worries only deepen】
Then he leaned over, checked the dashboard, tapped the touchscreen a few times, and pressed his index and middle finger to his temple before pulling them away with a playful smile curling his lips.
【Well, what can I do, it’s the path I chose
Bid me Bon Voyage!】
The scene changed—an eagle flew in an oval across a bright blue sky. Beneath it, in the Gothic-style stone building, Jung Dajun sat by the first-floor window, folding a sheet titled ‘Astronaut Application Form’ into a paper airplane and sending it out the window. He then spotted the members walking toward him, grabbed the window frame, and jumped out to run to them.
【Some days I regretted it
Thinking it was all downhill from here
But it’s time to take flight, don’t be afraid】
The paper airplane drifting on the wind landed beside Kim Sunghyun, who was seated before the spaceship’s control monitor. His eyes, glowing red, were illuminated as the numbers on the control panel flickered unstably. His hand gripping the stick trembled violently.
【You pull me like gravity
Remember the day we heard the sound of the waves
Even the smile you gave me so faintly】
In the midst of fierce turbulence, the lights in the cockpit flickered. As they went out, the setting shifted to a greenhouse garden.
On the melody rushing toward its climax like a race, colorful harmonies layered thickly, and as gravity went wild, vines and trees were torn from their roots, scattering through the air along with moist clumps of soil.
Amid it all, Sung Jiwon stood upright alone, brushing a blue leaf with his fingers as he took calm steps forward.
【Between disaster and miracle
We are standing, hand in hand】
Flames erupted along the corridor, and the members appeared one by one, urgently calling for help.
Jung Dajun, repeatedly pressing a dead button, threw off his headset and grabbed a fire extinguisher.
At that moment, Seo Hoyun, who had ripped open a control panel and pulled a lever to open the emergency escape hatch, caught sight of Jung Dajun running past—and,
【Now, it’s flight time
Across the tidal waves of a planet—!
I’ll take you to the place you long for】
—he yanked him by the arm and flung him inside the escape pod.
Before the startled Dajun could scramble back out, Sung Jiwon shut the door, tilting his head back and covering his eyes with his palm.
【I think I understand a little now
How to finish our flight to the end
Belief, (Ah— Ah— Ah—)
Even in a universe where meteors burn,
You’ll land safely】
Beyond the glass, Jung Dajun pounded desperately with his fists as if pleading.
While the red warning lights flashed wildly, Kim Sunghyun and Kang Ichae exchanged glances. Kang Ichae swept up his long, crimson hair that nearly brushed his shoulder, smiled faintly, and tapped his toes lightly as he gripped the yoke steering wheel.
【—We do not know where to land
Even endless waiting doesn’t scare me
Is this bluffing? Am I bragging?
It doesn’t matter ‘Cause I feel this is gonna be happy ending
Our ending grows clearer, our closing credits】
Just like the greenhouse garden, the cockpit, too, began to shake under erratic gravity.
Sung Jiwon and Seo Hoyun clung to various instruments, swimming through the fragments of shattered parts. Kim Sunghyun, half out of his seat, reached to pull their arms and help them sit.
Looking around, Kang Ichae tightened his grip on the yoke. Over his hand, Sung Jiwon’s hand overlapped.
Then, the wheel was pulled.
【Now, it’s flight time
Across the tidal waves of a planet—!
I’ll take you to a new place】
As the cello and violin duet played in a furious tempo, the inside of the spaceship spun clockwise, shaking violently.
【Between disaster and miracle
We are standing, hand in hand】
With a thunderous explosion, the screen turned blinding white—....
【—Thank you for flying, we hope to see you so—oo—oon....】
The drawn-out, static-laced mechanical voice echoed again before fading into the reflection of rippling waves at sunset, glowing red.
Woof!
The next shot showed Jung Dajun petting a dog nearly as big as himself, staring at the sea. Sitting quietly as if waiting for something, he let out a small sigh and stood up.
Then,
“What are you doing?”
At the voice, he lifted his head, and the sunset’s round light colored his cheeks. He broke into a bright smile and kicked off the ground, running.
Beside the dog wagging its tail and lying down, five pairs of feet stumbled and fell together.
The gentle sound of waves sweeping over the sand resonated softly, and at the end of the long sequence, the title appeared.
【 Flight
THE DAWN 】
Like movie credits.
***
[Shiiiiiit
What did the agency just give me
└Youth... a cosmic disaster film...
└└Please don’t describe it in words, my heart hurts like it’s bursting dynamite
└└This storytelling screams Lee Jihyun again, the form is insane.. I swear my taste is perfectly synced with Lee Jihyun’s, I’ll never leave The Dawn]
[Ah I finally get it now, the dark concept is a perfect metaphorical extension of Ocean Train]
[There were rumors the MV was rushed... but holy crap the production quality’s insane;;
└The Dawn must be making bank now.. I’m crying]
[Forget the MV, the song is so f*cking good;;; I listened to the whole album and every track slaps
Aeronautics is a god-tier album, period]
As soon as The Dawn’s new song ‘Flight’ MV dropped, the fandom exploded in chaos.
The track’s slick perfection, the dazzling choreography, and the layers of meaning behind the imagery all pierced straight into fans’ hearts.
[Title: Sung Jiwon’s comment on PopPop just now
‘Flight’ is a tribute song to Noeul
Then that means the lyrics about ‘gravity’ (You pull me like gravity) and ‘home’ (I’ll take you to the place you long for) symbolize Noeul...
So it’s about The Dawn, who’ve finished their flight, returning to us.
└And the line about taking us to a new place... it’s like a message telling us to look forward to what’s next.
└The Dawn bound for sunset...
└└With the eagle symbolizing courage and freedom,
and the creeping vines symbolizing trust and friendship...
└└Just kill me now
└└A creeping vine—that’s Dajun’s birth flower, isn’t it TT__TT the maknae waiting for his hyungs TT__TT
└Wait, it’s a tribute to Noeul...?
So it wasn’t a ‘Save the Maknae Operation’ after all..?
└└LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I can’t breathe this is hilarious]
[Title: The wave sound at the end of ‘Flight’ MV..
It’s the same sound from Ocean Train.....
“The day we heard the sound of the waves” — it’s that moment three years ago from Ocean Train....
└It’s the most romantic gift possible to Noeul, who endured all those vicious comments.
└└Who said love was sweet, f*ck]
[Even though the choreography wasn’t fully shown, what glimpses we saw looked brutal
Kim Sunghyun said it’s the fastest choreography in The Dawn’s history
└Professional dancers did reaction videos
└└They’re shocked asking how it’s even possible.. saying the practice time must’ve been insane
└F*ck if The Dawn makes this into a challenge, junior idols better run for their lives
└└Exactly lmfao if it were me I’d pretend I don’t see it
└└Only someone on Joo Woosung’s level could pull this off fr]
The effort The Dawn poured into this comeback was finally shining through—the album sold like wildfire.
[???? Wait it’s already in the millions?]
[Wow I didn’t expect it to blow up like this;; the rise is insane]
[Even considering inflation these days;; the sales are nuts]
[Maybe it’s because Kang Ichae got all that controversy coverage, people checked out the title track out of curiosity
└But even the B-sides charted
└Are we about to see a full chart domination holy sh*t~~~~~]
[Hahahahahahahahah it’s too perfect...TT_TT]
However, as The Dawn’s popularity skyrocketed, the attacks toward them grew equally fierce.
[[HOT] The most successful current-generation boy group
is The Dawn
In both digital and physical sales...
It looked like no one could catch up to The Dawn anymore.
└ Agreed.
└└ 100% agreed.
└ Even accounting for inflation, I agree... They’re almost 400,000 copies ahead of Hi-Five, who made their comeback earlier this year.
└└ But The Dawn hasn’t released anything in a while, right? Hi-Five came back after only three months. Of course there’s going to be a difference in sales—what a stupid comparison lol.
└└ Maybe think about why The Dawn had such a long break despite being under the same agency??
└ Don’t groups usually hit this kind of number when they come back anyway? lol such overreactions.
└└ Still, it’s something to celebrate. They’re officially the best-selling boy group this year besides Black Call.
└ Aren’t they topping the daily charts too?? NerdyFreak’s song has been climbing nonstop lately.
└└ Maybe on the real-time chart, but for the weekly and monthly ones, Black Call’s still unbeatable. The Dawn can’t take that spot yet lol.
└└ Yeah, true... maybe after six months once Black Call’s promotion cycle’s long over.
└ Ugh, why is this even on the hot page? The jealousy is so obvious.
└└ 222222
└└ 333 just ignore them lol
└ I’m just honestly jealous of Kang Ichae.
└└ That’s the truth hahahahahahahaha
└└ A registered member of the Copyright Association — the real winner here.
(See 1,821 more comments)
Disguising hostility as politeness or ignorance was common, but there were also plenty of posts and videos openly mocking The Dawn.
[It’s kind of embarrassing though. They recorded the title track in English too and released a separate version, but didn’t even make it onto Billboard T_T]
[They said they were targeting international fans, but it was so obviously a calculated move... secondhand embarrassment T_T]
Above all, Billboard became the perfect [N O V E L I G H T] bait. Critics swarmed, tearing into them like they’d found fresh prey.
[Forget that—did you see the site traffic for Rayvism today?? It’s insane. Preorders were huge too, where are all these people coming from?
└ Probably all the fans who’ve been saving up for ages? Or maybe Song Camp hype??
└└ Don’t know, but the influx is record-breaking... I probably won’t even get a seat.]
[I clicked the registration form too early TT__TT
└ Same... when the Rayvism site turned red, my brain went blank and I just hit submit early...
└└ I hate that Kang Ichae writes songs this good.]
[Failed to get prerecording tickets.
Me. The legend who once got front-row seats for ‘King of Trot,’ the highest application rate in history.]
In truth, Noeul barely had time to care about those things. With album sales, digital rankings, and MV view counts all breaking records, The Dawn’s surge brought a flood of new fans — making competition fiercer everywhere.
[Title: 1st place on YuYu Bank, Day 1!!
Dajun, as YuYu Bank’s MC, joking about whether to hand the trophy to the members or not at the end was too cute.
The encore was so refreshing.
Seo Hoyun’s pitch was still crazy precise, whoaa, and Sung Jiwon is a literal god of K-pop...
When they promised to carry an elephant if they won first place, Kang Ichae tried to piggyback Dajun and immediately stumbled over pathetically.
└ Their live performance was amazing;; at first I thought they were just playing the audio track.
└└ Honestly, it sounded way better than the studio version.
└ Kim Sunghyun bowing and saying he’s so grateful to Noeul for waiting... I criedㅠ
└ But when Kim Sunghyun tried to lift Dajun’s arm, he dropped it right away like he’d just lifted a heavy barbell lmfao.
└└ Don’t forget, Kim Sunghyun’s pureblood The Dawn too.
└ Jiwon: “Heh.” (does not carry)
Hoyun: “Haha.” (does not help him up)
└└ (Elephant: emotionally wounded)
└└ hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha]
[Title: I love how Ichae’s been active in the group chat lately
DajunAndTheDog.jpg
Looks like Dajun posted a behind-the-scenes MV photo with himself on the right and the dog on the left, and Ichae screenshotted it to show the chat LOLOLOL
Maknae: (photo)
Which one is The Dawn’s dog?
WaterManDu: Left
HouHouHou: Left
Me: Left~
RapMachine: Left!!
LOLOLOLOL absolute offense vs. defense
Dajun’s failed attempt to self-moe himself vs. his cold-hearted hyungs refusing to play along.
But Dajun doesn’t give up.
DajunAndTheDog_Reversed.jpg
Maknae: Correct answer!!
HouHouHou: Right.
└ Seo Hoyun seriously LOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
└└ They mess around like kids LOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLL
└ Seo Hoyun would be amazing with kids LMAOOOOOOOOOO
└ Am I the only one dying over the fact that Ichae saved Hoyun’s contact name as ‘HouHouHou’? LMAOOOOOOOOinsane.]
[Jung Dajun is just too, too, too, too much like a puppy, I need to stop involuntarily moe-ing over him every time I breathe.
└ Did you see Ichae on PopPop yesterday?
└└ Not yet?
└└ He seriously asked if the dog in the MV looks like Jung Dajun. Dead serious.
└└ My idol is better at fangirling than me...]
[If The Dawn feels too unreal now that they’re superstars,
go watch the newly uploaded MV behind-the-scenes.
You’ll see Kang Ichae and Jung Dajun failing to hold back laughter just from making eye contact and collapsing on the floor.
└ Total high school energy LOLOLOLOLOLOL
└└ They’re still the same LOOOOLL
└ Seo Hoyun said he launched Dajun first because letting him go alone would save spaceship rations.
Then Sung Jiwon added that he did it because Dajun tried to eat the plants lolololol
└└ Jiwon please T_T
└└ Meanwhile Dajun’s in the back asking if those plants were actually edible in space.
└└ omg lololololololol why does he even care LOOLL
└└ I don’t know but Kim Sunghyun’s warning him not to eat random stuff again.
└└ Parenting is hard.]
With the comeback ongoing and the results already more than satisfying, Noeul tried to stay calm about the chart rankings.
[1st] Blackout – Black Call 【—】
[2nd] Eyes – Black Call 【—】
[4th] Flight – THE DAWN 【NEW】
[5th] Garage – NerdyFreak & Ichae Kang 【▲6】
[9th] Wave – THE DAWN 【NEW】
[28th] CanIsayNow – THE DAWN 【NEW】
After all, Black Call—the immovable king of the charts, whose songs stayed at number one for months even after promotions ended—still reigned supreme.
Still, the fact that every single track from ‘Aeronautics’ entered the charts on release day helped fans find some peace of mind.
Then, by the end of the album’s first week—
[1st] Flight – THE DAWN 【▲2】
[2nd] Wave – THE DAWN 【▲6】
[3rd] Blackout – Black Call 【▼2】
[4th] Garage – NerdyFreak & Ichae Kang 【▲1】
[5th] Eyes – Black Call 【▼3】
—an unexpected shift occurred on the daily chart of the music platform.
