Running Man: Episode 215

by gummimochi

Getting married is never a simple affair, especially when you’ve got nosy (but still lovable) relatives like the Running Man family. Our couple will find out that making their union official will be harder than getting their families’ blessing ’cause this game will test their compatibility, loyalty, and love. Well, they do say that all’s fair in love and war. And gold.

EPISODE 215. Broadcast on October 5, 2014.

In a ritzy Gangnam hotel, our cast members—who have been separated into two families—are busy bickering like the prospective in-laws they are. While the bride’s family takes issue with Jong-kook’s relaxed posture, the groom’s side claims that they should be thanking their lucky stars that their families are being joined in marriage.

At the question if Suk-jin is the bride’s father, Kwang-soo chimes in: “He’s our great-grandfather!”

Amid their bickering, our first guest arrives: eee, it’s Jo Jung-seok! Despite an impressive repertoire in musical theater, dramas, and movies over the years, it’s his tiny, yet memorable role in Architecture 101 that people like Jae-suk still readily identify him by. But who am I to talk when he’s forever Earnest Bot to me.

Interestingly, he sits with the groom’s family instead of the head of the table. Oh, does this mean someone else is the groom? Then it’s time for the bride to make her entrance: the ever-lovely Shin Mina. Whoa, I knew from last week’s preview that she’d visit, but I’m still surprised by how Running Man snagged her.

Aww, Kwang-soo is so gobsmacked by her appearance that he can’t even be near her, let alone look at her face. Aha, so Jo Jung-seok and Shin Mina must be here to promote their new movie My Love My Bride, the remake of the 1990 romantic comedy that starred Choi Jin-shil and Park Joong-hoon.

Our families finally learn where they fall in the hierarchy: our mat-hyungs Jae-suk and Suk-jin are the bride’s older brothers, Ji-hyo is older sis, and HA—Kwang-soo’s her twin brother. That last revelation gets a big laugh out of Mina, and the others are in total disbelief. “We need a DNA test!” “This is a downright makjang drama!”

On the other side, I love Jung-seok’s relation to the groom the most: he’s a reaaalllyy distant relative to the point where he’s basically a stranger (the relation is something like a cousin forty times removed). Puhahaha.

Which means the husband-to-be is either Haha or Gary, and the latter starts flipping out already. And the astonished look on Gary’s face when he sees “Groom” is priceless.

When asked if this means he’s abandoning Ji-hyo now, Gary’s like, Ji-who? Heh. Still feeling the sting, the groom’s family voices their disapproval of the betrothed couple. Even Jung-seok (who plays Mina’s husband in the movie) gets in on the act.

He’s then asked to do some face reading on Mina (a throwback to The Face Reader) and claims that she doesn’t like his family. Ji-hyo voices her opposition as well, claiming that she doesn’t want little sis to go through the heartache.

Kwang-soo turns this scenario into a page right out of a makjang drama by declaring his romantic love for his twin sister. But anyhow, it seems like no one approves of this arrangement.

Looks like we’re starting off with some action right off the bat: In order to gain their families’ blessing, the betrothed couple must tear off everyone else’s nametags within the time limit. If they don’t succeed, the groom will be switched out. Hahaha, that’s one way to keep the guy on his toes.

Thirty minutes are on the clock as the family members run to hide. Jung-seok is sweatin’ looking for a hiding place, but repeats that he’s against this marriage because he feels like he should be the one getting married to the bride-to-be. He spouts more face-reading phrases, which basically boils down to: face reading is less valuable than someone’s temperament, which in turn is less valuable than their virtue.

Meanwhile, Mina and Gary practice outside before heading inside, and her eagerness is evident: she mistakes a billowing tablecloth for a person hiding, and also readily chases after Ji-hyo and Jae-suk.

Ji-hyo is cornered and eliminated right away, and Mina apologizes for dating someone Ji-hyo did. Ji-hyo: “[Gary’s] not that great of a guy!” Says the Monday Girlfriend who said this game makes her wanna marry Gary.

Inside, Jae-suk tips Gary off about Jong-kook’s whereabouts, but there’s no way Gary would pass up an opportunity to oust one more person along the way. Mina happens to stumble upon Jong-kook, but all it takes is one glance at Spartakook’s silhouette to convince Gary that they should look elsewhere.

Gary entrusts Mina to take care of the situation, and she remains persistent in that soft voice of hers, but maintains a strong grip on Jong-kook until he gives in..

While Jung-seok is still ranting about why he opposes this union, Suk-jin uses the flashlight on his phone to illuminate his darkened location (his VJ’s camera didn’t have a light, lol). It’s just when I recognize the Fantasy Couple soundtrack playing in the background does Suk-jin inch out of his hiding place… and Gary flies towards him.

Kwang-soo hides himself outside among the already eliminated to fool the couple, and his plan works like a charm—Gary and Mina run past him and hone in on Jung-seok instead.

They think that Haha’s the only one left afterward, whom they spot up in a balcony and eliminate. So Gary’s all smiles by the time he rejoins the crew outside, convinced that all there’s left to do is get married to the beauty.

… and that’s when he and Mina realize that Kwang-soo is yet to be eliminated. It turns out that the couple realized their mistake moments before and pretended not to know. So then Gary and Mina are promptly married, and the groom asks if this concludes their filming: “Do we get to go on our honeymoon now?”

Our newlyweds get to ride separately from their grumpy relatives (who all have to ride in the same car), and then check off all the items they want from their wedding registry. And it seems like Gary and Mina really get along during the car ride, as they establish cutesy nicknames for each other, and play the telepathy game.

Meanwhile in the other car, the families are busy boasting of Jung-seok’s musical background. Suk-jin breaks into song with “This is the Moment,” though he belts out the next line as “like a babo [fool]” instead of “like mabup [magic].” Hahaha.

Jung-seok is given the stage to sing the song properly, and… (*starry-eyed*). Ahem. I love how Jae-suk tries to imitate Jung-seok’s voice and gestures in the sidelines and Jong-kook has to forcibly restrain him.

Anyway, the in-laws arrive at the newlyweds’ abode before the lovebirds do. Holding hands, at that. Here, the families will work together as one collective unit—with each win, they’ll scratch a lottery ticket that could contain a nice sum of money.

The newlyweds already have pet names for one another (Mina: “Pretty”; Gary “Ri”), and then it’s time for their first game: a spin-off of the Pepero Game, with noodles. (In short, two people bite on opposite ends until it gets teensy; the squee-worthy moments being whenever their lips touch.)

After settling for three couples for 3 cm or less, they begin. Kwang-soo doesn’t hesitate to turn his head with Jae-suk. Then it’s Jung-seok and Ji-hyo, who leave what looks like a significant piece in comparison.

So it’s up to Gary and Mina to show ’em how it’s done, and they both go for it. I love how aggressive Mina is about everything, and this time is no different as they leave a sliver behind. They make it well under the 3 cm, especially with Gary and Mina’s 0.4 cm piece. But their lottery ticket is a dud.

Next up is a singing game where Mina must score at least 90 points in karaoke to win. Her dancing chorus line will help gain extra points, but if she fails, they’ll get air-blasted. Oooh, this ought to be fun. She chooses Lee Ji-yeon’s “Wind, Stop Blowing,” to which Gary says assuringly, “I won’t cheat on you!”

Everyone gets into the song as she sings, and their dancing earns them five points. And then Mina scores an 87, giving them a total of 92. They get another lottery ticket as promised, but call for another go for another ticket. And also for funsies.

Jung-seok decides on Cool’s “Sorrow,” and poor Kwang-soo is pushed out of the fun again. He and Ji-hyo sing it as a duet, and Jae-suk upstages them both by dancing alone up on the balcony. Their score: 98.

It’s funny how the staff stumbles over their words as they hand the cast their hard-earned tickets. Everyone carries on the trip down nostalgia lane with Roo’ra’s “3!4!” and they all know the choreography by heart. And whoa—Jung-seok can step.

I love the impromptu dance battle between Jung-seok vs. Haha. vs. Jong-kook, and they all look like they’re having so much FUN. I love these kinds of moments.

Unfortunately the other tickets they picked are duds, and Haha asks the staff to blast them with some air to cool off. Jong-kook wonders why the blast is so wet, and it turns out that Jae-suk had water in his mouth. Hehehe.

Now the families have a 50:50 chance to pick the winning ticket. For this game, two people must yell out synchronous answers to three questions to succeed. Jung-seok and Mina pass the first two questions, but then flub on the third.

Jae-suk and Kwang-soo match two answers two, but at the third (“What genre of movie does he like the most?”) we get two slightly different, yet hilarious answers. Jae-suk: “Thriller!” Kwang-soo: “Something… a bit of a thriller?”

They’re given another chance, but this time the attempt to drag out some time is way more obvious. Not that they have to worry since Jung-seok and Mina succeed on their next try.

To their luck, they’ve picked the winning ticket with a prize money of 3 million won. Cash. Wooooot.

After some more family bickering in the van, the families arrive at their next location, where they’re told that only one of the newlyweds can walk away with the cash. That spurs another argument between the families over who should take care of the finances in the family, with each side insulting the other.

Deciding that splitting up the families will be best, each family takes their leave. When Mina’s oppas gripe over the in-law, Kwang-soo mentions that he never got to attend school because he’d escort his sweet, naive twin sister there every day.

Here at their final mission, the teams must find the hidden items throughout the building that will light up dots on the wedding cake. By connecting the dots, the first team to light up the heart at the top, wins.

Remember that wedding registry list Gary and Mina jotted down earlier? Neither of them have the faintest memory of what items they listed in a specific slot, so basically both teams are going in blind. If anything, Mina remembers that the top two slots were empty, and Gary vaguely recalls a few items.

But then Kwang-soo is spotted running with something under his jacket. Everyone gives chase, and Mina hurries to grab it and run. Only to realize that it’s just a cosmetic practice head. Ha.

Jung-seok pulls Mina aside to try and fish a few items out of her; she of course plants some false seeds. Girl’s a quick study. Jung-seok eats up all of her answers, but then the speakers announce Kwang-soo’s elimination. Huh?

Muhaha, it’s just Haha pranking everyone with a megaphone. Haha does, however, find the first item which puts his team on the map. Cut to: Kwang-soo asking if a horse’s mask was on the registry list. Hahahaha, did Jung-seok take that at face value, too?

Ji-hyo finds another item; problem is, Jong-kook is only a few feet away from her and calls for backup. All three of her male teammates come to her aid, but she’s the one who ends up carrying the heavy air-conditioner anyway.

Elsewhere, Mina’s attempts at pumping info out of Gary proves futile since he doesn’t remember where the items are located on the map. He does, however, remember what was on their list, and is astounded when she starts rattling off items that they never even mentioned.

I particularly enjoy the moment when Jong-kook walks up and asks, “Did you tell Jung-seok that there was a horse? Do you know how long he ran with that thing for?”

Both Gary and Mina find separate items, and then we see Suk-jin wearing a bathrobe. He’s assaulted by the groom’s side on his way downstairs, and tries his best to hold onto the robe, but Jong-kook literally bites him so that he lets go.

Kwang-soo gets scolded for staring at the wedding cake map rather than looking for more items. He manages to find a mini-fridge, though, and Mina distracts Gary with a little aegyo so that Kwang-soo can make off with the item.

Gary hangs his head in disappointment, and dicloses to Jong-kook that he can’t help but melt at her charm.

The next major item is a toy car, which Kwang-soo hands off to Jae-suk, who in turn hands it to Mina. To their luck, it’s one of the top slots, and now both teams need only two more items to win.

We skip ahead to after both teams find another necessary item—now both teams need only one more item each. And in order to speed things along, the last few spots are revealed. The bride’s family needs to find blankets whereas the groom’s family are in search of a vacuum.

Mina asks her movie costar if he wants to split the prize money with her, then later we see Jung-seok carrying a vacuum with him. Too bad his discovery is radioed to the other team. Time to run!

It isn’t long before the bride’s family catches up with him, and Ji-hyo takes off with the vacuum. But then the staff points out that this vacuum doesn’t have an R sticker. HA, Jung-seok gave them a fake! Guess who’s learning the ropes.

Nearly everyone is exhausted by this point, and Kwang-soo cries helplessly, “Give me the blankets!” Haha spots the right vacuum this time and acts as bait to lure the others away.

His teammates notice the vacuum too and start whispering strategy. Ji-hyo suspects that the groom’s side has found something, but her teammates think they’re faking it. Gary waits for the opportune moment to take the vacuum, and at the same time, Jae-suk runs off with the blankets.

So now it’s just a matter of who will get in a booth first down to who will get there first, as we see both Jae-suk and Jong-kook head inside. The families gather together again to await the results…

… and it’s a win for Gary and his family. His in-laws immediately cut ties then and there, but then Gary’s given a choice— will he keep the money for himself, share it with his relatives, or the one he once loved? Gary asks, “Ji-hyo?”

Gary’s relatives tell him to snap out of it (“It’s over once the cameras stop rolling!” “Mina won’t be here next week!”), and then the moment of truth. Will it be money, love, or family?

It’s love (“I’ll share the money with my wife!”) and the newlyweds are also given a pair of gold rings as well. What wedded bliss!

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