RUNNING MAN CLASSICS Episodes 111-120
RUNNING MAN CLASSICS
Episodes 111-120
The classic episodes’ cast was Jaesuk, Seokjin, Jongkook, Haha, Jihyo, Gary, Kwangsoo--7 members.
Episode 111 (continues to episode 112)
Guests: Lim Haryong, Son Byeongho, Lee Jongwon, Shin Jungkeun, Go Changsuk
Location: Various in the Province of Busan
Games: Outdoor market Telepathy, Roller Coaster Karaoke, Baseball Team of Horror, Shoe Throwing Up The Stairs, Dangerous Village, Dangerous Bus, Name Tag Ripping
Highlights or notes:
The theme of this episode was “Busan Vacation Race” and all the guests were considered “Middle Aged Actors”.
All the teams were given the same “game board”. The race worked a bit like monopoly, where they would roll to determine the next destination, but it was done in real life, so some travel time was involved. When they returned to ‘home’ there was a game of name tag ripping, so getting around the board quickly was important.
The Outdoor market telepathy game required teams to split into 2 pairs, go find and eat a specific food, then return to the start with matching symbols on a card from the food stall. The pairs had to share an inflatable tube to get around the market.
Baseball Team of Horror was a game where one member of the team would hit a baseball. Then shout “Homerun”, holding out the sound as long as possible while the rest of the team ran around the bases…but, of course, the ones running around the bases didn’t simply run. Two had to carry the third.
For both Dangerous Village and Dangerous Bus, the teams that played had to protect their name tags for a certain amount of time (or until the final location was found). Anyone that lost a name tag in these games was out at the final location. There was also a mission to eat candy off a bungee cord hung on the hat where the failing members would be out.
My rating: 8
Penalty: none, continues to episode 112
Episode 112 (continued from episode 111)
Guests: Son Byeongho, Lee Jongwon, Shin Jungkeun, Go Changsuk, Taeyeon (singer - Girl’s Generation)
Location: Ulsan province, various
Games: Find your partner, Guess the Song the Elder is Singing, Name Tag Elimination Game
Highlights or notes:
Lim Haryong was replaced by Taeyeon for this episode.
The Name Tag Ripping Game was played a little differently in this episode. Everyone drew a number. The members entered the arena in order according to the number drawn every 5 five minutes. There were 12 people, so the final person had to wait an hour before ever stepping foot in the race.
This is a name tag race that I remembered, so it's worth a watch.
My rating: 8
Penalty: None - gold prize for the winner
Episode 113
Guests: Yum Jungah (actress), Jung Miseon (actress), Yoo Haejin (actor)
Location: Seoul - Various (fleamarket,
Games: Find the items at the flea market, Ssireum, Lunch game, Flip a coin in a pan, Ddakji Competition
Highlights or notes:
This was a family drama themed episode where each person had a character who was fighting to win an ‘inheritance’. It was also a ddakji king race AND the chuseok episode for that year.
During the item finding mission, each team had to wear a box (as a group) to move around the flea market. The item to be found was determined by kicking a jjegi onto a mat after doing elephant spins.
The lunch challenge was hilarious. The members simply had to finish a meal within the time limit. BUT their wrists were attached to bungees behind them, so it was a workout to even reach for the food.
After the first two games, the teams would get to choose a matter to make ddakji, so that each team ended with ddakji. The third game determined the order that teams could choose to trade or lock in a ddakji. The coin flip game allowed the teams to get an “upgrade” material such as tape or glue.
The final competition was to flip over “the ultimate ddakji” in order to win the inheritance.
My rating: 7
Penalty: None - the winner ‘inherited’ a sign made of gold.
Episode 114
Guests: Moon Geunyoung (actress)
Location: Incheon (various)
Games: Catch the Tail, Steal the (restaurant) Specialty, Elimination Metro Rock-Paper-Scissors, Group Jump Rope With Citizens
Highlights or notes:
X-Man special. X-man used to be a Korean variety show that several of the members had been a part of. In the show, one member was chosen as the X-man. The X-man’s job was to sabotage the team without getting caught. This race gave homage to that show.
After winning a game, the winning team had the option to trade a member with the losing team. They would also receive a hint about the goal of the X-man.
Elimination Metro Rock-Paper-Scissors was a fairly simple, but potentially heart pounding game. Everyone got onto a metro train. At each stop (5 in total) before the destination, everyone would disembark and a representative of each team would play rock-paper-scissors. The losing member would not be allowed back on the train (catching the next train instead). The team with the most members on the original train at the destination won the game.
At the end of the show, the X-man is revealed. If he completed the X-man mission, he would win alone. If not, the team that did not have the X-man would win the race.
My rating: 6
Penalty: none - gold prize for the winner(s)
Episode 115
Guests: Moon Geunyoung (actress), Changmin and Yunho (singers from TVXQ aka DBSK)
Location: Korean Coast Guard Base
Games: Mudflat Photozone, Dodgeball Quiz, Chicken (Leg) Fight, Bell Hide-And- Seek
Highlights or notes:
This was “The Bell Race”. Everyone began with bells on their shoes. After each of the first 3 games, one team (of 2) would be eliminated and their bells removed. The two teams that survived the first three games became the seekers for the Bell Hide-And-Seek.
This was Running Man’s first visit to a mudflat. Several of the members were hilarious. Photozone is a well known game by this point, right? Get to the platform and have the faces of both team members show in the picture when its taken.
This dodgeball game had some…umm…unfortunate shots for the men that were referenced for a long time. The team had to stay within a square while 2 staff members tried to tag them with a dodgeball. For each round, a team would be given a prompt such as “foreign actresses” or “capital cities”. The goal was to name 7 before getting hit by the dodgeball.
The chicken fight was played against the eliminated teams to that point 4 v 2. The teams that lasted the longest passed.
During bell hide-and-seek, the defending team could find golden balls with one of the attacking team member’s names inside. The member whose name it is would be out. If all 4 attackers were out, the defending team would win.
My rating: 9
Penalty: None - gold coast guard badges for the winning team.
Episode 116
Guests: Park Jisung (actor extraordinaire), Song Changeui (actor), Ji Jinhee (actor)
Location: Train, Movie Set Village
Games: Elimination Train, Name Tag Race
Highlights or notes:
The day’s race was called “Ten Masters: Future Forecasters”. The members needed to collect “future ddakji” for the final race.
The Elimination Train was just like episode 114 except that it stopped at 6 stops this time. A different game was played at each stop and one member was eliminated (to take a car to the destination). The order a game was played in was determined by a random draw before each stop. The games were coin flip (by slapping a book), random draw, cham-cham-cham, times table, hula hoop, (>>>>POP UP COUNTING GAME). The final 4 members received the ‘future ddakji’.
The ‘future ddakji’ could be thrown to ‘return to the present’...in other words go back a certain amount of time in the game. There were future ddakji hidden all around the village, but each was put in a box with an identical box beside it. Choose the wrong box and you would be chased by a man in black with a water gun.
Each time a future ddakji was used, there was a ‘penalty’. Sometimes women would swarm out and capture the person who used the ddakji. Sometimes two players would have their name tags switched. Sometimes everyone would be moved to a different location.
My rating: 9
Penalty: None - gold prize for the winner
Episode 117
Guests: Suzy (singer formerly of MissA), Yubin (singer formerly of Wonder Girls), Park Jisung (actor extraordinaire), Song Changeui (actor), Ji Jinhee (actor)
Location: Various around Gwangju (City Hall, Restaurants, Elementary School, Amusement Park, Asia Cultural Center Construction Site)
Games: Queen’s Morning Exercise, Quiz, Find the grade schooler, Disco PangPang Pedometer Race, Pass the Tissue, Vault on Target, Solve the Riddle, Rock-Paper-Scissors Tournament
Highlights or notes:
This is the “Riddle Race”. The goal of the day is to solve a riddle at the final location. After each game, a hint is given and a roulette is spun to determine how many steps forward they will travel toward the final location. The first team to solve the riddle wins the day, so it’s advantageous to arrive at the ending location first (skip steps), but having clues is also advantageous (going to more steps).
Each team gets one lady on it. The Queen’s morning exercise is a (very short) relay race where the ladies are the baton. They have to piggyback each member for at least some portion of the track without ever touching the ground. A team can move on only when they have finished a lap in under 20 seconds.
The team all had to ride Disco PangPang while wearing pedometers. The combined total needed to be lower than 300.
The vault on target was a classic game. The score the team was aiming for was 10 or higher, combined. One by one, they would vault over a vault horse, hopefully over the kiddy pool on the other side, and onto a target (a bit like an archery target). The landing point was the score for that member.
My rating: 7 - I liked all the games, but I found the end a bit forgettable.
Penalty: None
Episode 118
Guests: Park Boyoung (actress - personally adored her in Strong Girl Bong Soon), Choi Minsoo (actor)
Location: Various, beginning by the Han River and ending in a campground.
Games: Footrace to form couples, AVOID THE HUNTER
Highlights or notes:
Just as a note, Boyoung is a bit of a red herring in the episode and doesn’t participate at all after the show moves to the camp grounds.
The episode begins with the members believing they are doing a couple’s race and attempting to win the affection of the two ladies present. They have lunch and conduct the footrace to form ‘initial couples’, then head to the campground where the real game begins.
Minsoo comes as a hunter and begins picking off the members one by one. They have no idea what is happening so it’s a bit of a horror special for them for a while. At last, a method is discovered to oust Minsoo and the race is on!
My rating: 8 - I seriously love watching the members getting hunted.
Penalty: None.
Episode 119
Guests: Choo Shinsoo (baseball player), Ryu Hyunjin (baseball player), Jin Seyeon (actress)
Location: Various
Games: Name Tag Ripping, Thigh Wrestling, Ddakji, SUPER POWERS BASEBALL!!
Highlights or notes:
Fun Fact: Ryu Hyunjin was a player on my longtime favorite baseball team. Go Dodgers! (Choo Shinsoo was with the Cleveland Indians)
Jin Seyeon (or Seyun depending on where on the internet you look) was in a fantastic drama called Doctor Stranger with Lee Jongsuk. I watched this one as it aired (so I had to wait a week between episodes) and I had to watch the show from the middle of one episode to the middle of the next because the suspense was so intense at the end of the episodes that I couldn’t take it. Highly recommend this one, but be mentally prepared.
The first 3 games were played to determine how many super powers each member would be able to control.
My rating: 9
Penalty: None- gold trophy for the winner.
Episode 120 - continued to episode 121
Guests: Lee Seunggi (Singer, Actor), Park Shinhye (actress)
Location: Various, in Seoul
Games: Find the Members (and Guests), Water Gun Sniper Training, Flying Chair Sight Reading Test, Pass Through the Tool in 15 seconds, Water Gun Name Tag Race
Highlights or notes:
This episode was a Secret Agent Race. The theme was based around 007, so the goal was to earn the ‘license to oust’ for the final water gun name tag race. The last agent standing in that race became the best agent.
For the water gun sniper training, each team had 40 seconds to shoot 4 cans from their perches. …But they had to load up in a car, and avoid intermittent ‘enemy’ water cannons by rolling the windows up and down. I loved this game!
Passing through the tool was exactly that. There was a tennis racket without the strings, a hoop, and a wire hanger which was chosen at random. All the members of the team had to get through the item within 40 seconds.
My rating: 9
Penalty: None - Continued to episode 121
