‘Running Man’ Cheorwon Race Ranks 1st in Sunday Variety Ratings for 2049 Demographic

SBS ‘Running Man’, which returned after three weeks, recorded 1st place among all Sunday variety programs in the 2049 viewership rating. In the broadcast on the 4th, comedian Heo Kyung-hwan appeared as a guest, and the members participated in the ‘Cheorwon Tteudeo Ppuseuyo’ race, where they performed missions within a time limit while visiting tourist attractions in Cheorwon. The broadcast included the temptation of snacks encountered while climbing a mountain, a game to choose a meal menu, jokes regarding the members' periods of appearance, and a final bingo mission.

Based on Nielsen Korea's metropolitan area households, the 2049 viewership rating for this broadcast was 1.7%. It ranked 1st among variety shows in the same time slot and 1st among all Sunday variety programs broadcast that day, with the peak viewership rating per minute rising to 4.4%. At the end of the race, the Green Team defeated the Yellow Team and completed the bingo. Heo Kyung-hwan, Ji Ye-eun, and Yoo Jae-suk, who received the penalty, filmed a promotional video for Goseokjeong.

Broadcast returning after 3 weeks, 1st in 2049 viewership rating

In the ‘Running Man’ broadcast on the 4th, comedian Heo Kyung-hwan joined as a guest. The program introduced Heo Kyung-hwan as a ‘family-like guest’. The name of the race the members participated in that day was ‘Cheorwon Tteudeo Ppuseuyo’. It was structured to visit various tourist attractions in Cheorwon, perform missions within a time limit, and complete one line of bingo. They had to fill the bingo by performing missions at each location, and the members moved to Soyisan Observatory, the dining location, and Goseokjeong Flower Garden according to the race order.

In terms of broadcast performance, it ranked 1st in both the same time slot variety shows and all Sunday variety shows based on the 2049 viewership rating. The figures announced based on Nielsen Korea's metropolitan area households are as follows:

The 2049 rating of 1.7% corresponded to 1st place among variety shows in the same time slot and was 1st among all Sunday variety programs broadcast that day. The peak rating per minute was recorded at 4.4%. This broadcast was centered around the missions of the race conducted in Cheorwon and the conversations of the members. It was a method of completing bingo based on the mission results at each location, and the team that won the final mission filled one line of bingo.

Snack temptation encountered while climbing Soyisan Observatory

The first place the members visited was the Soyisan Observatory in Cheorwon. While climbing the mountain, they had to resist temptations placed on the path. The temptations that appeared in the broadcast were protein bars and cola. Yang Se-chan gave Ji Ye-eun a variety show tip, saying, “You must eat what they tell you not to eat. You must do what they tell you not to do. You must do it secretly from others.” In a situation where they had to endure the temptation of the mission, Yang Se-chan actually drank cola contrary to his advice.

Even after drinking the cola, Yang Se-chan pretended he hadn't drunk it, saying, “I didn't drink it.” He then shouted toward Yoo Jae-suk and Kim Jong-kook, “A traitor has appeared.” Watching this, Ji Ye-eun reacted by saying, “As expected, a variety show expert.” The snack temptation given while climbing the mountain and Yang Se-chan's behavior surrounding it became a topic of conversation. In the situation where protein bars and cola were placed, Yang Se-chan spoke as if teaching Ji Ye-eun how to approach the mission, but added laughter by appearing to hide the fact that he drank the cola.

Afterward, Yang Se-chan asked Ji Ye-eun, “What did the ‘bride-to-be’ say after watching the broadcast?” Ji Ye-eun replied, “It's not ‘bride-to-be’, it's ‘groom-to-be’. They just say I'm cute.” Following this, Ji Ye-eun cheered for Yang Se-chan, saying, “Oppa, I hope you find a good partner.” The broadcast conveyed the context that the two had a past romantic interest using the expression ‘former fling partner’. The conversation exchanging variety show tips led to Ji Ye-eun's answer regarding the groom-to-be and her cheering for Yang Se-chan.

Members' jokes about appearance period following the choice of sujebi

The subsequent bingo mission was a game to choose a meal menu. The options were handmade sujebi and ramen noodles. The person to receive the penalty for the meal mission was pre-announced as Heo Kyung-hwan. Heo Kyung-hwan said, “There will be one more person besides me who chooses sujebi,” and set a condition that if he were the only one to choose sujebi, he would jump into the Hantangang River. In the actual selection, Song Ji-hyo, Ji Ye-eun, and Ji Suk-jin chose sujebi. After making their choices, the members headed to the next restaurant.

During the process of choosing the menu, Ji Suk-jin exchanged words with Yang Se-chan regarding the members' periods of appearance. When Yang Se-chan said, “It's 16 years,” suggesting they make the same choice like members who have been together for 16 years, Ji Suk-jin said, “It's not 16 years for you. You must be certain about what is certain.” Yang Se-chan countered, “It's been 10 years. No one loves ‘Running Man’ as much as I do.” Ji Suk-jin added, “I cheer for Se-chan's future and hope he does well, but it's not 16 years. For Ye-eun, it's 2 years.”

Ji Suk-jin drew a line by mentioning the appearance periods of Yang Se-chan and Ji Ye-eun respectively. In response, Yoo Jae-suk said, “I made up my mind today. Let's gather at 12:30 today.” The broadcast continued with a scene where Yoo Jae-suk announced he would gather Ji Suk-jin. The conversation, which started at the gathering to choose the meal menu, spread to words comparing the members' periods of appearance, with Yang Se-chan's 10 years, the 16 years mentioned by Ji Suk-jin, and Ji Ye-eun's 2 years being mentioned in turn.

Green Team victory at Goseokjeong Flower Garden, three people film promotional video

The final mission was ‘Grab it first to survive’ held at Goseokjeong Flower Garden. The Green Team and the Yellow Team faced off, and as a result of the mission, the Green Team achieved a complete victory. With this victory, the Green Team completed one line of bingo. As the goal of the race was to perform missions at each location within a time limit to create a bingo, the final bingo was filled according to the result of the last mission. The broadcast summarized the win and loss of the race with the confrontation between the Green Team and the Yellow Team.

The penalty recipients were decided as Heo Kyung-hwan, Ji Ye-eun, and Yoo Jae-suk. The three people filmed a promotional video for Goseokjeong. Previously, Heo Kyung-hwan was pre-announced as the penalty recipient in the meal game, and in the last mission, Ji Ye-eun and Yoo Jae-suk received penalties in addition to Heo Kyung-hwan. They finished the missions shown on the broadcast by filming a promotional video at Goseokjeong Flower Garden, the last location of the race. The race of visiting tourist attractions in Cheorwon and completing the bingo ended with the Green Team's victory and the three people filming a promotional video.

The broadcast on the 4th sequentially captured the snack mission at Soyisan Observatory, the meal game conducted between handmade sujebi and ramen noodles, the conversation surrounding the members' periods of appearance, and the final confrontation at Goseokjeong Flower Garden. SBS ‘Running Man’ recorded 1st place among both variety shows in the same time slot and all Sunday variety shows with a 2049 rating of 1.7% on this day, and the peak rating per minute was 4.4%.

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