If your feed just screamed âFirst-gen legends back on my screen,â youâre not alone. H.O.T. appeared as a full group on JTBCăNewsroomă and dropped a fun nugget: the boy group âLion Boysâ in Netflixâs upcoming animation K-POP Demon Hunters (nicknamed âěźë°íâ in Korean fandom) drew inspiration fromâwait for itâH.O.T. themselves. The members said they were surprised by the connection and flattered by the homage. ë¤ě+1
What happened on air?
- Full-group appearance: Moon Hee-jun, Jang Woo-hyuk, Tony An, Kangta, Lee Jae-won sat down for a rare, all-five interviewâtheir first âcompleteâ TV sit-down in years. The segment doubled as a mini-reunion vibe and promo moment. EduKorea News+1
- âLion Boysâ shout-out: When asked about the rumor that K-POP Demon Huntersâ in-story idol group Lion Boys was modeled after H.O.T., the members laughed that they hadnât knownâone even joked he assumed it might be modeled after a current-gen visual like Cha Eun-woo. Cue studio giggles and a wave of nostalgic tweets. ë¤ě+1
Why fans are loving this
- Cross-gen handshake: A 90s idol blueprint showing up in a 2025 K-pop animation? Thatâs like your bias list meeting your childhood playlistâcanonized in cartoon form. ë¤ě
- The âOG stage DNAâ lives on: Even if stylized, the Lion Boys idea nods to H.O.T.âs formation, choreography impact, and fandom culture that helped define the boy-group template. (First-gen invented the playbook; new-gen keeps remixing it.) ë¤ě
- Reunion energy: Seeing all five on a serious news program (not just a music show) gave fans that âthis is pop historyâ feeling, and reminded newer fans why H.O.T. were once the definition of âidol.â EduKorea News
Quick refresher: What is âěźë°íâ?
- Full title: K-POP Demon Hunters â a Netflix animated project where K-pop meets supernatural action.
- The in-world group: Lion Boysânow hilariously (and sweetly) linked to H.O.T. lore after the Newsroom mention. ë¤ě
Fandom soundbites you can quote
- âLion Boys = H.O.T. easter egg? Thatâs peak multiverse.â
- âFrom âCandyâ to cartoonsâthe legacy arc we didnât know we needed.â
- âFirst-gen blueprint, next-gen canvas. We see you, animators.â
Watch/Read pointers
- JTBCăNewsroomă channels regularly clip interviews on YouTube after broadcast (check their official feed). YouTube
- Multiple Korean outlets already summarized key moments from tonightâs interview and the âLion Boys = H.O.T.â chatterâhandy for translation threads. ë¤ě+1
TL;DR
H.O.T. appeared on JTBCăNewsroomă as a full group and reactedâbetween laughs and nostalgiaâto the idea that K-POP Demon Huntersâ Lion Boys were modeled after H.O.T. Itâs a perfect cross-gen wink: first-gen DNA showing up in a new-school K-pop animation. Fandom timeline = delighted. ë¤ě+1
Comments
One response
As someone from a generation older than H.O.T., I’m a huge fan of the group that younger generations loved. Now, they’re all active, each fulfilling their own roles. As pioneers of K-pop, I’m proud of them, and I hope they continue to pave the way for their juniors.