Can You Fight Your Demons with (KPop) Demon Hunters?

Media on streaming platforms (Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, YouTube) are increasingly being consumed globally — including by students and patients. Yet there is a lack of systematic tools to evaluate streaming media content (SMC) for therapeutic purposes. Music and Narrative therapies are established non-pharmacological approaches, but their applications in SMC are still relatively unexplored.

The KEMA (K-Wave Element Mapping and Assessment) Framework was developed through a mixed-method study comprising of a systematic review of 90 music and narrative therapy studies across 5 databases (PubMed, Google Scholar, Korea Citation Index, ScienceDirect, PolylibSearch), and a thematic analysis of Netflix’s animated musical movie KPop Demon Hunters (KPDH), which gained over 500 million views worldwide as of early 2026. Nine therapeutic themes were identified from the systematic review using the PICO framework. Together with evidence-based mechanisms and observable elements, these themes were then mapped onto KPDH’s story narrative, character arcs, song lyrics and musical elements to create a structured, actionable checklist.

Have a look at the music video below and see whether you can identify all 9 KEMA themes?