Running Man (TV series)

Current

As of episode 48, the members take part in a series of missions (see Missions below for details) to become the winner(s) at the end of the race. The format of the show moves away from the "race mission + others".

Episode 1

The MCs and guests were locked in a landmark during closed hours and were required to leave before opening hours. In the first episode, they were divided into two teams and raced to find the codes hidden within the landmark that were required to unlock the main doors. With a total of 5 numbers, after one was found, a game was played to determine which team would start first in the next race, and the losing team received a punishment while the other team was given a head start. After all the numbers had been found by either of the teams, they approached the main door and entered the code which they believed was correct. The exact team was allowed to leave the landmark while the losing team was required to complete a punishment inside the landmark.

Episodes 2–5

From the second episode to the fifth episode, both teams competed to find golden pigs filled with money that was hidden within the landmark and participated in games in the attempt to win more money. At the end of each episode, the team with the most money was declared the winner and was allowed to leave the landmark while the losing team received a punishment. The money collected by the teams was donated in the winning team's honor. Viewers could vote on the official Running Man homepage on who they believed would be the winning team, and a lucky audience who guessed correctly was allowed to have his/her name included in the donation.

Episodes 6–10

From episodes 6 to 10, a consistent game format was used where both teams competed to obtain the most Running Man Balls (shortened to Running Balls in future episodes). Running Balls were awarded to the team that found a ball, and were also given to individuals who won a game, who received a Running Ball of their team's color (blue or red). Each of the games and races was referred to as missions, and were as follows:

At the end of each episode, the Running Man Balls collected throughout the night were placed into a lottery machine, and the color of the first ball ejected determined the winning team for the evening. The losing team was required to commute home using public transportation while undertaking an embarrassing punishment.

Episodes 11–25

As of the eleventh episode, the Running Man members and guests were no longer split into two main teams except for during the race mission, with smaller teams or individual game-play being used during the other missions. Everyone individually earned Running Balls throughout the missions and the balls selected during the lottery machine segment represented the individuals who were the winners for the night. The format of missions was also changed:

As of the eighteenth episode, only those who had earned no Running Balls at all throughout the night were the ones to be punished.

Episodes 26–43

Beginning with the twenty-sixth episode, the race mission, Bells Hide and Seek, was replaced with a Find the Guests mission. The MCs and guests were locked inside a landmark and were required to earn Running Balls for a chance to escape punishment. Through a series of missions, the Running Man members were divided into teams and/or individually earned Running Balls. The format for the missions in episodes 26 to 43 were:

If there were many members with no Running Balls, they were automatically punished and no lottery was conducted. Additionally, if the members succeeded in the One Chance mission, they were all relieved of the punishment regardless of how many Running Balls each of them possessed.

As of episode 38 and onwards, there were some episodes which included spy/spies. These spies could either be part of the cast, guest, or both.

Episodes 44–47

From episodes 44 to 47, staff (of the landmark location involved in the game) voted for who they believed would be the overall winner of the games and became supporters of that member/team. Teams were decided by the winner of the race mission, who received the first Running Ball, and the two teams then competed for more Running Balls throughout missions spread over two days (two episodes). The format for the missions was as follows:

The team with the most Running Balls was declared the winner and their supporters received a bonus from their boss.

Episodes 119, 131, 144

In these episodes, the members would arrive at the starting venue separately. An announcer would announce that "The XX Running Man is entering the arena". This announcement would include the guests for the day. After all the guest were introduced, the announcer would immediately announce their first mission. The race would officially begin after the first mission ends. The winner of the first mission would be given an advantage to his/her team in the race. The format for the missions are as follows:

Special series

Throughout the history of Running Man, special series have progressed with storytelling and movie-like episodes. Many of these series have been praised for their thrill and excitement, and are considered some of the more higher quality episodes of Running Man.

Yoo-mes Bond

The Yoo-mes Bond series is famous for its protagonist, Yoo Jae-suk as Yoo-mes Bond, who is known to use a water gun to eliminate his foes to complete his mission. This series features Yoo Jae-suk against the other Running Man members, who do not know Yoo Jae-suk's identity or mission. In episode 38, during the Find The Guests mission, there was no guest and Yoo Jae-suk was given the mission to secretly eliminate the other members by spraying their name tag with a water gun. This was the first time Yoo-mes Bond appeared as a character. A year later, Yoo-mes Bond returned for his first anniversary in episode 91, where he faces the members once again. All members were arrested for various crimes they have committed. Yoo Jae-suk was given the opportunity of a pardon, where he must re-imprison the rest of the escaped members by spraying their name tags before they can escape the building. If he is successful in re-imprisoning the other members, he will be free to leave while the other members continue to serve time. In Episode 140, it marked the second anniversary of Yoo-mes Bond, where he was framed for spreading the "anger virus" and infecting his fellow members. He must find that person impersonating him and eliminate them to retrieve the vaccine. At the end of both episodes (91 & 140), the words "Yoo-mes Bond Never Die" appeared, hinting at future episodes in the series.

The later two episodes have been praised for being like a movie instead of a variety show. In episode 196, the members "travelled back in time" to the second Yoo-mes Bond episode (Jail Breakers), giving the members a second chance at changing the results with a new protagonist. In episode 231, Yoo-mes Bond made a comeback but with a Successor this time. Yoo-mes Bond must work together with The Successor to take the members out, but with the rule that they must stay together and that Yoomes Bond has to hand over the water gun to The Successor and order him to eliminate everyone. All members were barely eliminated, with one final step to pass the test of becoming the 2nd Yoo-mes Bond by shooting Yoo Jae-suk's nametag to end Yoo-mes Bond, or cease the shot and continue working together in the future as partners. However, The Successor chose to shoot Yoo's name tag, thus failing the mission. In the end, Yoo-mes Bond wins the entire race. At the end of this episode, Yoo Jae-suk promised that the Yoo-mes Bond will "keep going".

Yoo-mes Bond eventually returned in episode 318. Now designated as a "Scene Stealer", Yoo-mes Bond must obtain the highest number of views by stealing others' views. He made another appearance in episode 336, as part of Gary's week project: Best of the Best Supernatural Match. He had to shoot other members' nametag with a water gun to get them ousted in the final mission.

Best of the Best Match

The Best of the Best Matches take place once in a while as the opportunity to decide who the best Running Man is. The first Best of the Best Match took place in episode 42 as a race to complete missions first then eliminate each other, with the last standing member declared as the first generation best Running Man. The second Best of the Best Match took place in episode 74 with a special twist. Each member was granted a superpower, which can be used to aid their efforts to eliminate the other members. Two times in a row, Gary emerged victorious becoming the best 'Running Man'.

The third Best of the Best Match took place in episode 130 with a special story, where half of the race takes place in the year 1938 and the other half in 2013. The members are reincarnated in the process, and must find who the final surviving member was in 1938, and who they have been reincarnated as the present time, to solve the mystery and win the race. Haha became the third generation best 'Running Man'. In episode 196, the members "traveled back in the time" to the second Best of the Best Match, giving the members a second chance at changing the results.

The fourth Best of the Best Match took place in episode 257 with a twist. Instead of being alone, now the Running Man members are accompanied by heroes with special powers. However, the heroes do not know of their superpowers so they must complete a mission to obtain their superpowers. Later, the members with their own heroes face-off in a nametag elimination match, with the heroes being invincible, acting as helpers in the match. This time, Yoo Jae-suk received the title as the Best 'Running Man'.

The fifth match took place in episode 285, where the staff came up with missions created specifically for the cast using data from the past 6 years they have been together on Running Man; involving strength, nerve, and agility. The first mission decided which member was cautious in keeping their name tag on at all times at several locations, whereas the second mission tested the nerves of each of the members while trying to pick up beads inside covered fish tanks containing various objects. The third mission, which was based on strength, features the members trying to grab things while their arms are stuck in a rubber band. The final mission, which was the combination of all three, was a simple "Standardized Name Tag Elimination" race. With Haha and Suk-jin noted for their disadvantages in the past, the members were equipped with name tags of various sizes based on ranking with additional gear (example: Kim Jong-kook wore a giant name-tag with wings since he was the strongest, as well as wearing wristbands containing sandbags for extra weight, Gary wore bells on his shoes). The final survivor of the race eventually turned out to be Haha.

The sixth match took place in episode 336, as a part of the Member's Week Special project. At the beginning, each member was given different missions to determine their superpower levels and/or the gear they would use throughout the game, which were dependent on their mission results. The second mission was to perform a group jump rope so as to collect points to be exchanged with additional superpowers that would be used in the final mission. However, the number of points they could get was also dependent on how many times they have jumped over. The members then decided to scatter the points earned to five members only by putting the chance cards behind the six doors. In the third mission, members had to bet on their points in a competition; their points would increase by two times when they won, but would lose the same amount of points if they lost. The final mission was a Name-Tag Elimination race, where members have to oust others while preventing the unknown host of this week to become the ultimate winner. Later the members found out that Gary was the host for the fourth member's week. In the end, Lee Kwang-soo was the winner for this match.

Running Man/Grasshopper Hunting

The Running Man Hunter series originated from episode 52, where Choi Min-soo was featured as a guest and was tasked to eliminate all the members. He was later betrayed by Yoo Jae-suk in episode 53. During that race, Yoo Jae-suk agreed to work together with Choi Min-soo to place name tags on the other team's back first, before turning on each other. However, Yoo Jae-suk quickly placed Choi Min-soo's name tag on his back, eliminating him from the race. Choi Min-soo announced that he will return in a few months for revenge with what he calls, Grasshopper Hunting. He eventually returned in episode 69 as the Running Man Hunter, where the other members are tied up to a chair and confined in rooms in the landmark. Yoo Jae-suk was given four name tags and must save the six members and to find the way to escape together before Choi Min-soo eliminates him four times. However, the way Choi Min-soo approached this caused great fear for Yoo Jae-suk. Choi Min-soo succeeded and Yoo Jae-suk proclaimed that the score was 1:1, one for eliminating him in episode 53 and one for being eliminated in episode 69. Choi Min-soo returned a year later in episode 118 to finish off his rivalry with the grasshopper. Once again, he ferociously eliminated the other six members and provides Yoo Jae-suk a chance to face off with him for the final time: If Yoo manages to find all 6 pieces of his nametag placed in the location where the members were eliminated, he wins. Although Yoo Jae-suk nearly eliminated Choi twice, the Hunter once again succeeds, marking an end to the Running Man Hunter series. At the end of the episode, Choi Min-soo hinted at a possible return to the Running Man Hunter series in the future.

Running Man Football Special

The Running Man members first participated in the 2012 Asian Dream Cup held in Thailand. Kim Jong-kook and Gary were selected after completing missions by Park Ji-sung. Since then, Park Ji-sung has invited the members to participate in the succeeding Asian Dream Cup games. The match was also held in China in 2013 and Indonesia in 2014. In China, Yoo Jae-suk, Ha-ha, Kim Jong-kook, and Lee Kwang-soo were selected to play. In Indonesia, all members played except Song Ji-hyo. Each year, the members would participate in training missions with Park Ji-sung to prepare for the Asian Dream Cup prior to the actual match.

After a year absence, the series returned in 2016, this time in the 2016 Smile Cup, a charity event in which Park Ji-sung was invited. This time, all members played in the game. Many of these episodes have featured past and current football stars that would otherwise be hard to see on television.

Tru-Gary Show

Tru-Gary Show began at episode 60, where Gary being assigned as a spy and was tasked to eliminate the members. Unbeknownst to him, his entire actions and plans were watched by the rest of the members, knowing that Gary is the spy. The members were later tasked to fool Gary until the end of recording. The hidden camera was a success and the members were awarded with prizes, much larger than Gary's. The series returned 4 years later, now set on the island. In this episode, the members and the guests were trapped on an island and must find and complete their nametags to escape. Gary was desperate at that time, as he needed to be present the next day to finish recording his new album. This eventually prompted the producers of the game to resurrect Tru-Gary Show, where the members and the guests must escape the island, leaving Gary alone in the island. The mission was eventually a success, with Gary completely tricked. At the end of the episode, it was revealed that Gary was allowed to go home with the rest of the members.

Member's Week Special

This is a series of 2017 Running Man projects which allow members to pick a theme for each week where they can do whatever they want. The first week was Ji-hyo's week and she decided to go on an MT Trip, but with a twist by the PDs, the trip was set during the freezing cold weather. The second week was Jong-kook's, and he decided to leave his theme to the PDs, so they decided to "Marry Jong-kook Off", where he had a blind date. The third was Suk-jin's and he planned a special prison for the members. In the end, the mission was to escape from prison and attend Suk-jin's renewal vows with his wife. The fourth was Gary's, and he was the host for the sixth Best of the Best Match; but as a twist the members were not told whose week that was and the fact that Gary was invited as the host for this member's week. The fifth was Haha's, and the producers had prepared various missions where he had to choose between options. Eventually, the final mission was to prevent Haha from winning because the other members already prepared a surprise to congratulate Haha's second to-be-born son. The sixth week was Jae-suk's, where he held an athletic competition and invited several guests to join with a twist in the final mission. The seventh and the final week was Kwang-soo's, and he started a night trip with other members so as to prove their loyalty and bond of friendship as well as to get revenge for always making him the first person to be suspected in the past episodes.

Of all members (with exception of Gary), Lee Kwang-soo is the only member that did not get waterbombed, while Yoo Jae-suk is the only member that got waterbombed twice during Member's Week. However, Ji Suk-jin's waterbomb moment during the first episode of Member's Week was not aired for unknown reasons.

Missions

Missions form the basis of Running Man as members try to avoid punishment in earlier episodes or to win prizes. Multiple missions are presented in each episode, with the highlight of Running Man being race missions.

Cast

The original members of Running Man are Yoo Jae-suk, Ji Suk-jin, Kim Jong-kook, Haha, Lee Kwang-soo, Song Joong-ki, and Gary. Song Ji-hyo was originally a guest for the second (episode 2-3) and third landmark (episode 4-5). She officially joined the program in the fourth landmark (episode 6) but was unable to attend until the fifth landmark (episode 7). In April 2011, Song Joong-ki recorded his last episode (episode 41) in May, and has left the program to focus on his acting career but returned on episode 66 as a guest after leaving for almost half a year, and later made cameo appearances in several episodes. Lizzy was initially a guest for episode 13 and episode 14, but later officially joined the program, starting episode 18. However, she has left the crew since episode 26 due to schedule conflicts with After School, the K-pop group she joined. She later makes a comeback as a guest in episode 292, after 5 years since her last appearance. On October 25, 2016, Gary announced to be leaving the show to focus on his music career after being with Running Man for 6 years, but later returned as a guest, only a week after his final recording.

Production staff

The staff run the games, often showing up on cameras either by actively participating in the game or influencing the outcome of various missions. This includes the personal cameramen (VJs), production directors (PDs), floor directors (FDs), stylists, boom operators, etc.

Chief producer, Nam Seung-yong, is responsible for the production of the program, with PD Jo Hyo-jin, Im Hyung-taek, and Kim Joo-hyung mainly responsible for the directing and production of the recordings of the program since inception. Other PDs have joined the program to assist as the program shifts from a single landmark to multiple locations for recording, notably Hwang Seon-man and Lee Hwan-jin. FD Go Dong-wan assists in the recordings of the program and is known to be shown on camera many times, as well as delivering and assisting the members in missions. Producer Kim Joo-hyung has left the show as of episode 182 as he was reassigned to Inkigayo.

Each member has their own personal cameramen who follow them around exclusively during recordings. Notable cameramen include Ryu Kwon-ryeol (Yoo Jae-suk's primary VJ), Kim Yoo-seok (Ji Suk-jin's primary VJ), Choi Yoon-sang (Lee Kwang-soo's primary VJ), Yoon Sung-yong (Haha's primary VJ), Sung Gyu (Song Ji-hyo's primary VJ), Jo Seong-Oh (Gary's primary VJ), and Kim Ki-jin (Kim Jong-kook's primary VJ).

On November 19, 2014, the show's head director, Jo Hyo-jin, announced his departure from the show after working with the members for four years.

On March 20, 2016, the show's main PD, Im Hyung-taek left the show (as of episode 291) as he became the producer of Hurry Up, Brother, resulting in new generation PDs to take over, notably PD Lee Hwan-jin, PD Jung Cheol-min, and PD Park Yong-woo. FD Go Dong-wan also announced his leave via his Instagram.

On July 3, 2016, the show's main PD, Lee Hwan-jin confirmed the return of producer Kim Joo-hyung to the show. That same month, it is confirmed that he will be the new main PD of the show. However, this didn't last long as PD Kim Joo-hyung announced that he will leave the show shortly after. PD Lee Hwan-jin has since taken over as the main PD of Running Man.

Most Appeared Guests

During its run, some of the guests were occasionally featured or invited to the show. These guests were notable for their constant appearances and were often considered to be the "8th Running Man". The following list is the list of the guests who appeared the most often as of 17 October 2016.

List of guests

Many guests have taken part in Running Man. The following is a compilation of guests and the number of times they have been on the show. With regards to guest-turned-members (Song Ji-hyo) or former members of the show (Lizzy, Song Joong-ki, Gary), only the times they were a guest are counted. The guests were sorted according to their appearances and the number of episodes appeared.

Reception

The first episode of the show received mixed reviews. According to Asiae the show concept was promising but the crew could not use the location to full potential and the pace was not fast and dynamic enough.

Despite a slow start, Running Man became increasingly popular in South Korea and throughout Asia. In its home country the show is watched by 2.1 million people on average. Due to the existence of fansubs, it is watched outside of Asia as well, being translated into English, Spanish and Arabic, among others.

According to the The Straits Times, the popularity of the show is due to its unpredictability, the comedy involved, the celebrity guests and the chemistry between the regular cast members. Assistant professor Liew Kai Khiun at the Nanyang Technological University attributes the appeal of Running Man to the ability of using public space in a creative way: "Running Man is about taking audiences to the various corners of not only South Korea, but the region as well. In the rather fast-paced urban societies in Asia, the show helps to provide release from the daily tensions that such streets and buildings are associated with." Liew thinks that the cast members are not particularly good looking, thus have nothing to lose, even if they "wrestle with one another like children".

According to producer Jo Hyo-jin, the show is popular because the concept of having to choose a winner is culturally easy to understand. He also named the good relationship between the regular members as one of the reasons for the show's success. Celebrity guests like Super Junior, Girls’ Generation and f(x) play an important part in the success as well, although they sometimes induce criticism. For example, after the airing of the Big Bang episodes, some viewers complained that the band won too easily. Jo Hyo-jin, however, denied any special treatment of the celebrities. Jo explained that fans are also highly critical of the games, therefore it is not possible for the crew to reuse games without changing them.

The regular members of Running Man have held several fan meetings throughout Asia. In October 2013, their Singapore fan meeting drew a crowd of 3000. When the cast arrived for shooting in Vietnam and other countries, they were greeted by thousands of fans at the airport.

Ratings

In the ratings below, the highest rating for the show will be in red, and the lowest rating for the show will be in blue each year.

International

In November 2011, the rights to air the show was sold to nine areas in Asia, namely Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Cambodia, and Malaysia, proving Running Man's rise in popularity as a Hallyu program. In January 2013, SBS announced Running Man in Asia as one of the big projects of 2013. Producer Jo Hyo-jin stated that the program would be touring two countries in Asia in the first half of 2013. The program has previously travelled to Thailand, China, and Hong Kong for filming. Jo Hyo-jin has also mentioned interests raised by Singaporean television stations in purchasing the Running Man format, which reiterated Running Man's popularity in Asia.

Producer Im Hyung-taek confirmed that the program would be filming in Macau, China and Hanoi, Vietnam in early February, and the respective episodes were aired on television in late February and early March. In February 2014, Jo Hyo-jin announced that the program was invited by the Australian Tourist Commission to film in Australia, and did so in mid-February which aired in March.

A spin-off of Running Man, titled Hurry Up, Brother, was announced in May 2014. The spin-off, which is the Chinese version of Running Man was scheduled to air in the fourth quarter of 2014 on Zhejiang Television. Cast from the Korean version will participate in the Chinese version as well. The spin-off was a success, and currently the show has aired its fourth season. There was also an Indonesian adaptation of the show, titled Mission X, following a similar format on the show, with the exception that the members would using armbands, and the games would be played just for fun rather than playing it to win the prize.

In February 2016, it was reported that the crew were considering an episode set in Dubai, UAE, which they eventually filmed in the end of February. The episodes were aired in March.

International episodes

The popularity of Running Man throughout Asia provided the opportunity to take the show outside of South Korea. Running Man has traveled to various countries including China, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates. International episodes are notable for their ability to draw large groups of fans to mission venues.

Tour

The popularity of Running Man throughout Asia has also provided the opportunity for the production team to organize fan meeting tours in Asia since 2013.

Merchandising

In order to "relay the feeling of Running Man", Running Man has made merchandises available on sale since 2015. The products ranging from stickers, socks, hats, shirts, and shoes

On 26 May 2015, a special project called the "Running Man Challenge" was made in collaboration with a footwear co-created platform, ROOY. Its main objective is for the fans to design a shoe that "would unify and coordinate between the cast members." 777 submissions were made, and in June 2015, a design made by a fan named Noh Seung-soo is selected to be the official design for the shoes. The shoes went on sale on February 22, 2016. Currently, a second "Running Man Challenge" is held. The winner for this challenge will have his/her design to be the new shoes.

In 2016, Running Man collaborated with NBA to make a 300th Anniversary special hats and shirts.

Controversy

On December 14, 2016, it was announced that Kim Jong-kook and Song Ji-hyo were leaving the show, and that a new season with a new format starring the remaining cast members and new member Kang Ho-dong will air in January 2017. Initial reception were mixed. However, it was revealed that Song Ji-hyo and Kim Jong-kook were not given any notice about their removal, resulting in an overwhelming negative reaction. In addition, news of Kang Ho-dong refusing the offer to join the new season results in a possible cancellation of Season 2 of Running Man.

On December 16, 2016, an emergency meeting was held with the consensus reached of all members agreeing to leave and ending the program altogether in February 2017 with a subsequent program taking its place.

However, on January 24, 2017, SBS announced that the show will continue airing with all of the remaining cast members. The decision came after Nam Seung-young, the new Vice President of SBS Entertainment Headquarters, who was involved in conceiving Running Man, had further conversations with every member in regards to the show's future. Particularly, after apologizing to Kim Jong-kook for all of the issues regarding the program, the latter then actively involved in convincing the other members to continue working on the program.

Awards and nominations

Running Man has been nominated for 59 awards, winning 44.