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Running Man: Episode 293

This week’s episode might be dedicated to voting, though I’ll say it does little teach any of us about the national voting system itself. Our cast will get a say on who will be the majority leader of the hour, but those power trips are short-lived compared to the large chunk dedicated to all of the celebrity sightings before any of the actual elections. And when you think that majority will rule by avoiding unanimous results, you’ll find that true power is in the hands of the few, or in this case, just one.

EPISODE 293. Broadcast on April 3, 2016.

Today’s preview highlights the upcoming legislative elections set to take place on April 13 (to vote on members of the National Assembly) and questions the idea of a ruling majority. Er, with a Hitler clip? Surely there could’ve been other examples.

But for now we open on the day before filming when our cast members are approached to cast their votes on tomorrow’s call time: 9 AM or 1PM. The catch? A unanimous vote means their call time is at 7AM.

Early afternoon appeals to everyone, and then we see everyone show up… at 9 AM. It was a 4:3 vote in favor of the morning, and when Jong-kook complains of how difficult it is getting into Seoul during rush hour, Haha exclaims, “You work out in Gangnam!”

Today’s race is entitled “Dangerous Unanimity” where a unanimous vote spells out doom for them all. No one should be coerced into their votes, which everyone points out is a warning for Jong-kook. There’s a quick change of subject to why Kwang-soo will attend the cast and crew dinner for Descended From the Sun on April 1 (which was paid for by lead actors Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-gyo) for his cameo appearance.

After Kwang-soo argues that he was invited, the conversation shifts back to the actual subject matter: selecting today’s team outfit.

This decision is also put to a vote in their respective booths, where they must choose between two outfits: a normal black and white attire or a sweater stamped with statements. Again, if they all choose the same one, they’ll be wearing the sweater paired with hot shorts.

It’s a 4:3 split in favor of the sweaters, and Jong-kook asks the crew why his has a picture of him in a pink sailor dress. (He explains it was for his concert). Gary’s has actual dried squid attached.

Three elections will be held today, and the majority leader will be in charge for one hour. Additionally, that person will be given two badges allow him (or herself) and another member to clock out.

This means one person will be left behind… to spend the night in an abandoned amusement park. However, that person won’t be alone—he or she can call back any member who is supposed to leave.

Everyone is tasked to find supporters, and the first two to complete their mission and arrive at the house will be considered nominees for the first election. Ji-hyo needs to find someone who shares her Chinese zodiac sign, and this time she’s determined to find someone younger than her.

While Gary calls AOA Seolhyun through her manager, Kwang-soo think of another FNC Entertainment member: actor Kwak Dong-yeon, his co-star of the drama special Puck!. Unfortunately, Dong-yeon’s busy.

Haha’s looking for someone who was once school president, so he offers to give Kwang-soo singer Yoo Seung-woo’s number in exchange for actor Yoo Yeon-seok’s. Kwang-soo calls the number to make sure it’s correct (it is), then in true Betrayal Icon fashion, runs.

While Jae-suk speaks with a college student who can wrap an arm around her waist, Suk-jin is at an outdoor market to hear a compliment about his hearty appetite. He stops at a stand, takes a huge bite of food and downs some water, but neither gets the reaction he’s looking for.

Determined to find Park Bo-gum, Ji-hyo calls his Answer Me 1988 co-star Ryu Joon-yeol, who jokingly asks if it’s okay that he asks for Bo-gum’s permission first. He does send the contact info, and when she’s told he’ll be free in half an hour from now, she accepts that as a small sacrifice.

Gary meets Seolhyun at the salon, where he’s told that she saw the Q&A episode where his brain activity flared at the sight of her photo. Seolhyun is an honorary ambassador of the general elections; it’s his job to grant her a request, so she asks him to give her a ride to her next gig.

After Kwang-soo hands over Yoo Yeon-seok’s number, he calls the actor to tell him that he needn’t turn up for Haha. But Yeon-seok had already agreed to meet him, so Kwang-soo says to make things difficult for him then.

HA—Haha is doing the exact same thing by telling Seung-woo to stall for time.

In the car, Gary’s heart sinks to hear that Seolhyun can believe that he resembles dried squid. She’s also been a longtime fan of Joong-ki’s, so when Kwang-soo calls, he responds with: “I’m prepared to tell her all of Joong-ki’s secrets so her affections for him disappear.” Unfortunately for him, her love for Joong-ki is unwavering.

Seung-woo keeps Haha updated and is told to stall for time in whatever way he can. That’s the same advice Kwang-soo gives to Yeon-seok, and Kwang-soo is asked to wait because nature calls for Seung-woo.

But it isn’t long before Kwang-soo figures out what Haha is up to and immediately calls him out for it. They both end up waiting for their respective celebs for a while, and Haha catches Yoo Yeon-seok on the phone with Kwang-soo.

He tells Yeon-seok that he’s here to grant him a request. Yeon-seok hands him an electric razor per Kwang-soo’s suggestion to give him an absurd task like shaving off his goatee in under 10 seconds.

After Haha does a haphazard job, Yeon-seok kindly helps him shave the bottom portion, but feels bad when Haha starts to bleed. Haha gets impatient when Yeon-seok keeps stalling on stamping his supporter’s card, but hopes that Yeon-seok appears as a guest on RM one day. Yes, please!

Kwang-soo keeps waiting until finally Seung-woo appears… but it’s not the ’97-er cutie Yoo Seung-woo he’d been expecting. This is Lee Seung-woo who is part of the R&B trio Soul StaR.

Turns out Haha had been expecting Kwang-soo to turn on him, so he gave him Lee Seung-woo’s number, and Kwang-soo had only confirmed the “Seung-woo” part of the name. So after an awkward farewell, Kwang-soo calls Haha with an annoyed “yah”. I have to say that was a devious yet brilliant prank.

Jong-kook meets up with Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun who asks for a piggyback ride. He gladly obliges. Elsewhere, Ji-hyo shrieks at hearing Bo-gum’s voice. She offers to meet him, but he says he’ll come to her.

It just so happens that he needs to be in her neighborhood, so Ji-hyo gets up to wait for him. Aww, and then he comes running to greet her. His wish is take a selca with her and get her autograph. So they exchange autographs and take a couple of pictures together. So. Cute.

Kwang-soo calls up Apink’s Jung Eun-ji, who tells him that Ha-young is currently filming Law of the Jungle. He’s the only one who hasn’t succeeded yet, but the others are already headed to the house. Haven’t we seen that house before?

As expected Kwang-soo looks ready to rip into Haha upon seeing him. Gary and Jae-suk were the first ones to arrive, so they’re our first pair of candidates. Gary’s platform is simple: he won’t cause unnecessary stress to the team.

The group casts their votes—it’s 4:1 in favor of Gary, and we’re also told another set of rules: those who vote in the minority will receive a punishment. Suk-jin has taken one for the team by voting for Jae-suk, and he’s rewarded with getting his fauxhawk spray-painted neon green and pink.

As the new leader, Gary sends out the mat hyungs for groceries. The others take a break in the house, where Kwang-soo bluntly confirms that if Gary doesn’t choose him to clock out early, then he’ll take Gary with him to the abandoned amusement park.

But when Gary decides to punish Kwang-soo ahead of time for the trouble he’ll most likely cause, Kwang-soo insists that he was only joking. Haha suggests they write up a contract instead, and Gary names the terms: Kwang-soo will not choose Gary if he’s left to spend the night alone.

Gary states: “If I, Kwang-soo, break these terms….” Haha: “I will reveal each one of my ex-girlfriends on Gary’s social media account.”

The hyungs return with snacks and Kwang-soo is tasked to wash Gary’s favorite fruit, strawberries. With Suk-jin’s encouragement, Gary hints at him to cut off the stems.

Gary’s reign ends soon after snack time is over, then it’s time to play another game for the second pair of candidates. They head out to a fishing spot where the first two to catch a fish will be in contention for the election.

Jae-suk pulls up his line thinking he’s caught something. He hasn’t, but Haha has. A little later, Jae-suk asks Kwang-soo where his fish head mask went (from the movie Mutant), then everyone crowds Ji-hyo’s space when they’re told that’s a good fishing spot.

And then Kwang-soo, Jae-suk, and Ji-hyo all have something at the end of their lines. Jae-suk and Ji-hyo lose their fish, but Kwang-soo succeeds… with a tiny fish.

The group votes between Haha and Kwang-soo—the votes are tied 2:2, then Gary cheers with Kwang-soo. Could it be that he voted for him?

But no, he voted for Haha, who is now the second majority leader. The minority are given neon hair: Jae-suk gets pink polka dots, and then Gary belatedly realizes that Kwang-soo doesn’t need to be spray-painted as the candidate.

But it’s too late—Kwang-soo’s already sporting a pinkish ‘do. Haha puts one of his go home badges on the line for the winner of a ping pong tournament. The Neon Trio pull ahead with a 2:0 lead, then pick up two more points.

A little later, the score is 7:10 in favor of the Neon Trio. Jae-suk and Gary volley for a bit until Gary hits the ball out of bounds. Only one of the Neon Trio can get the badge, in which they choose between three cups held by Haha, Jong-kook, and Gary…

… and Kwang-soo is the only one who stays dry. Next, the Pop-Up Pirate is used for their third game. The pirate pops up for Suk-jin, which is a good thing this time, and then it pops up again for Kwang-soo.

To prove there were no editing tricks, we rewind to Suk-jin’s celebratory moment. The game is reset, and the pirate pops up at Kwang-soo’s very first turn.

When asked if Suk-jin will give up one of his badges to his Neon Trio members if he wins the election, he promises that he won’t. Jong-kook is willing to put that to the test, saying that he’ll keep Suk-jin here with him if he’s stuck here tonight.

After voting, they tally the votes and Suk-jin celebrates his current 2:1 lead by accidentally letting one rip. He ends up getting a 4:1 victory, and then Jae-suk—who voted for Kwang-soo—realizes he has a punishment. Gotta take one for the team!

We see that Jae-suk sported stockings and hot shorts as his punishment, and this decision of who to save from tonight’s punishment drives Suk-jin batty. He knows Jong-kook will keep his word but Jae-suk will also pull him back to stay with him out of spite. Jong-kook: “All you have to do is decide who will stay with you tonight!”

Kwang-soo: “Or you may as well give both of your badges since you’ll spend the night here anyway!”

An hour later, it’s decision time. Gary and Suk-jin must hand over one of their badges… and Gary chooses Jong-kook. It’s an unexpected choice, and Suk-jin thinks about it for a moment before he adds jokingly to Kwang-soo: “Should I give both of them away and we’ll go together?”

He ends up giving one to Ji-hyo and keeping the other, giving Jae-suk the most powerful decision of the day. He teasingly taunts that the last person to run to the car will stay with him, and as the cars pull out, he says he’ll make the call.

Jae-suk calls someone… and it’s Gary. Jae-suk: “Why did you give the badge to Jong-kook?” Gary cries out in protest, and Jae-suk lets him off the hook. HA.

He calls Ji-hyo next and makes her feel guilty for leaving, then lets her go too. Perhaps the third time’s the charm, and then Suk-jin’s phone goes off. Jae-suk: “Where are you going?”

Needless to say Suk-jin gets called back and their mission is to find a worn piano and sing a song. There’s only one terrifying thing about this nighttime mission: the screeching, off-tune two-part harmony.

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Awww i wish the celebs can stay longer for this episode!

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Honestly, RM is less entertaining after the new PD came in. Is it only me who thinks this way?

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Not only you at all. They even look more scripted and there is hardly once or twice that I actually laugh.

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RM is more funny now, the last pd was the worst PD ever, the ratings are better now too.

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Agreed. This episode was funnier than 95% of 2015's episodes. New PD knows what he's doing...I hope at least.

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same here.previous pd started better but after a while it became boring and edit was off.they played too much childish games but edited out them but again 2016 episodes became better. after changing pd I didn't find any of RM's eps.

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Honestly, the episodes look more scripted and are getting more boring compared to the previous episodes made by Im PD . I hope the new time slot brings improvement in the ratings as well as the content.

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it's not like I don't respect your opinion, but scripted? seriously? which part was rigged? tell me, tell me coz I can't see any. From what I had watched, the interaction was spontanious, the games were fun.

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Chilbong and Taek in RM!!!

Plus, Junghwan's voice cameo! <3

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And Sung Shi Won's voice cameo :D

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This episode was really hilarious!

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lol my favourite part was finding out Ji Hyo had Ryu Joon Yeol's number.

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Could anyone please translated the writing in their sweater? I know kwang soo's was like "i'm friend with SJK" (in military speech manner) because it was an article on soompi, but what was the others?

Thank you for your kindness before :))

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Me TOO! I kept thinking they were going to translate the shirty words, but they never did.

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Here's a translation by Lunien on Reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/koreanvariety/comments/4d60sz/running_man_e293_majority_decision_race_160403/d1oochk):

"Ji Suk Jin: I am Yoo Jae Suk's hoobae (junior).
Yoo Jae Suk: I am a bad person.
Song Ji Hyo: I had a dream, I dreamed I saw a ghost.
Lee Kwang Soo: I am not close with Song Joong Ki, it is only talk.
Haha: I am uglier than Gary.
Kim Jong Kook: I am a manly man.
Gary: I am a squid."

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Kwangsoo: "I AM friendly with Song Joong-ki" (overly, formerly insisting that he actually is)
Kim Jong-kook: embarrassing picture
Song Ji-hyo: "Ji-hyo dreams, a ghost dream" (in cutesy-talk slang)
Ji Suk-jin: "I am Yoo Jae-suk's junior"
Gary: "I am a squid"
Haha: "I am uglier than Gary"
Yoo Jae-suk: "I'm actually a bad guy/(punk)"

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thank you.. i really curious about it :)

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Thank you! (And I meant to write "shirt" not "shirty.")

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Thank you so much, CZ! *hug tightly*

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*thumbs up*

but OMg brain fart, I meant "formally insisting" not former. D:

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Thanks for the translation :D

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I like this episode. jihyo was so cute. she plastered park beo gom autograph card on her shirt all day long.. uri eonni must be really like park beo gom :) thank for the recaps gummy

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lol Bo-gum just got over a scandal linking him to Jang Nara and now he going to get hit with another nuna 'love' interest on top of that. Korean netziens need less that what was on RM to start a scandal out of nothing.

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I'm willing to give the new PD a chance, it's hard to come onto a show that has been running for 5+ years and has a set formula to it & try to do something different. The comparisons with the old PD & new PD are funny cause there have been numerous criticisms too for the old PD, so really there is no win-win situation here.

I quite liked this episode, I was in stitches laughing at Haha & Yoo Yeonseok (he definitely needs to come back on as a guest). Well played by Kwangsoo but Haha one upped him with the Seung-woo switcheroo lol. How cute was fangirl Song Jihyo with Park Bogum !!

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I agree with you. I don't really care about the show being scripted actually because all shows are. I don't know why they kept saying that running man is getting boring. From what i see, there's a lot of improvements. They rarely invites the guest which makes the interaction between members so lively. It's been only a few episodes with the new PD so there should not be any judgements about him yet.

No matter what people say, i will support running man forever and i hope you will too (just ignore what people might say). And i really hope that Park Bogum will be invited to running man one day. Just love seeing how cute Song Jihyo was in this episode.

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Exactly.

Prior to the old PD leaving, there had been numerous complaints nearly every week about how RM had lost its touch, wasn't as good as the early years and/or how the ep really stunk.

Think the new PD is doing a decent enough job; while there hasn't been a great/instant classic ep yet, at the same time, there hasn't been a complete stinker and at least the new PD is trying new/different things.

Even the early years had some stinkers, but people's memories tend to get clouded.

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I enjoyed this episode, the celeb scenes were a bit boring but the rest was fun

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Seolhyun is going to have to compete w/ Bora (Sistar) and I'm sure a bunch of other young actresses/idols for Joong-ki’s affections (poor Kwang-soo).

Seolhyun was pretty forthright and Seohyun and Bo-gum were good sports.

The best guest (not surprisingly) was YYSm while nice - has a mischievous streak in him.

Haha was better off shaving that fuzz on chin that he tried to pass off as a goatee (should shave off that fuzz on his upper lip as well).

Love that after all of Haha's attacks on Gary for his looks, the writers turned the table on Haha w/ his shirt.

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Maybe I'm weird but I looove this episode.

1. The 3 unlucky brothers hair color, especially Jae Suk. He really looked like a ladybug(and a frog as per Ji hyo) :D
2. KwangSoo's epic play on table tennis and their celebratory actions whenever he scores a point.
3. Lastly, Sukjin's unexpected "bomb's away" on the new King's votation

I keep replaying those parts and still laugh so hard. HAHAHAHA! RUNNING MAN FIGHTIIING!

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*as the new leader's votation i mean :D

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I love this episode.. Rm aja aja fighting.. I will support rm forever..

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I just read an article saying that the rating for next episode is the second lowest in Running Man history. Now I'm feeling scared. I feel 'something' is going to happen. Is there any way we can help to boost the ratings again? Can't we send ideas again? Anything?

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I want name tag ripping in any incarnation. I want the fear of hearing the bells while hiding from Kookie. I don't want RM to become like any other variety show. They can stay true to the show but refreshed as what happen to 2 days 1 Night.

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Hi does anyone know what does Ji Hyo's phone say when Jae Suk called her at the ending? Can someone be so kind as to translate it to English? Thanks!

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