Variety Review: Running Man Episode 597

May 18

May 18 Variety Review: Running Man Episode 597

Guests: Park Ahin (actress), Kim Heejung (actress), Roh Jeongeui (actress)

My Entertainment Score: 7 out of 10 laughs

They gave me too much of one of the games and not nearly enough of one of the others. Not a bad episode and it didn’t get super awkward like the last few couple races that they have done, but I wish the air-time balance of the games had been a little different.

What Happened:

Theme: Not Spring, Candy or Penalty Race

Opening/Guest Introductions (start of episode- 19:10)

Race Explanation (19:10- 21:30)

This week’s race is a couple’s race, but the couples aren’t fixed for each game. After each game, the guys, in secret, will give a candy to one of the girls (in honor of white day). Any girls that do not get a candy will get a penalty ball. The one with the most penalty balls at the end of the day will get a penalty (obviously) and the one with the least will get a prize.

On the other hand, the guys will get an advantage for a popularity vote that will be held at the end of the day amongst the girls. Each girl will get a ballot to vote for the guys. The most popular guy will get a prize and the least popular will get a penalty.

Seokjin, as part of his captain duties from an earlier race, was able to suggest a modification for the race. He suggested that one male and one female switch and play the opposite. So, for this race only, Jaesuk is considered a female and Somin is considered a male.

First Mission: Same Mole we Have (21:30- 29:20)

This was done to choose a partner. The guys and girls were separated. The guys chose a nickname and one of the other guys will draw on their face. The PDs put the drawings on a face on paper and allowed the female members to choose one of the papers. The girls had to draw on a matching mark in order to pair up.

Second Mission: Head Smack Detective (29:20- 50:25)

I wasn’t a super fan of this game. For this mission, one pair would sit facing forward as the guessing team. The rest of the pairs would move around behind them. One of the moving pairs would each smack the back of one of the guessing team’s heads (so each in the pair would get a smack). The guessing pair would then have to correctly identify the team that smacked them. When they were incorrect, they would play again. When they were correct, another pair would take the hot seat.

At the end of 5 minutes, water balloons that hung over the hot seat would burst. The team that got drenched would automatically be in last place. The rest would be ranked according to how well they guessed and how many smacks they got away with.

40:55 First Candy Giving Time followed by changing locations.

Third Mission: Hidden Mafia Lunch Mission (50:25- 1:05:34)

Pairs entered the lunch venue one at a time. They randomly drew a card to determine if they would get the mafia mission: to have only one member of the team have food on their plate at a time. I like the hidden mafia meal missions.

1:02:59 Second Candy Giving Time.

Third Mission: Heart Attack Quiz (1:05:34- 1:17:35)

Pairs battled one on one. They sat on planks above a foam pit. On their turn, they would pick the name of a fan that submitted a trivia question for the show. Based on the age and occupation of the person, they would bet a certain number of segments. The team that failed to answer the question would have that many segments literally sawed through behind them. The team that had their plank break and fall first would lose the mission.

I wish they had shown more of this segment.

Final Results (1:27:35- end of episode)

This segment includes the last candy ranking, a popularity poll for the men, and the punishment. The punishment for the losing members was to make a bouquet for a loved one. The winning male got a high-end designer tie while the lady got a high-end designer scarf. There was a lot about this ending that was pretty funny and ironic.

Preview: I am baffled after watching this preview. It looks like it begins as a race where the members are allowed to do whatever they want and their daily life will be the focus, as per captain Seokjin’s suggestion. But then it seems things take a weird and suspicious turn…

!!!Spoilers!!!

Same Mole we Have

Seokjin and Jaesuk pair.

Jongkook and Heejung pair.

Haha and Jeongeui pair.

Sechan and Ahin pair.

Somin and Jihyo pair.

Head Smack Detective