Running Man: Episode 83

by gummimochi

Are you ready to reach in to see what lies ahead? You better guard that bundle with your life before someone takes it away right from under your nose. The stakes are high, alliances are made and broken, and you won’t know how things will turn out until the very last second.

EPISODE 83. Broadcast on February 26, 2012.

Early in the morning, all is quiet in the hotel as our Running Man “spies” lay sleeping. The doors of the lobby open and we’re greeted by another guest: Oh Ji-ho (Sector 7, Chuno). He’s a returning guest from last March, when he attempted to evade the Running Man cast. With a dark expression, he comments that he’s always so tired after he films this show. Hehe.

Ji-ho reads his mission card and it allows him to choose two team members. Yeah, running around as a spy tends to be easier when you’re not in it alone.

Ji-ho mentions that he’s here as per Da-hae’s request, and he resolves that she’ll have to be on his team, lest she curse him. So he’s off to choose his partners.

He did NOT expect to be greeted with a sleep-deprived Haha at the door. Needless to say that Haha is genuinely surprised; the words about being teamed together don’t stick in his mind. ”

Unsurprisingly, Ji-ho also chooses Da-hae, who is more than relieved to see him. He says, “You know Da-hae and I ran away together for a year right?” Cut to the endless scenes of them running away. These two are already so affectionate with each other that Haha’s presence already screams third wheel.

Their team now determined, they read today’s mission – it’s a Package Race where the team with the one real package will win. The cast were previously asked what they wanted, and the answers ranged from a tablet PC to $1000 of spring water.

The three, who now form the Red Team carry the real package with them to the first mission location. With determined eyes, Da-hae declares that it won’t be taken from her. The race is on!

Back at the hotel lobby, Jong-kook has already deduced that he is waiting for his team members. So he’s less than pleased to see the Easy Brothers come in and run to line up, and belatedly realize that they’re one team.

The Easy Brothers and Spartakooks make up the Blue Team. In the car, Jong-kook comments that both Haha and Da-hae was missing, which means there should be another guest. Now it’s just a matter of figuring out who it is.

Eagle-eyed Jong-kook mentions that he heard a third name from the cleaning lady that sounded like… Choi Ji-woo. Ooh, you’re going to think that Choi Ji-woo looks a bit more, mannish, than you thought.

The Red Team wonders if they should mark the real package and Ji-ho suggests that identifying it by a distinct smell could be inconspicuous. Then Da-hae rubs it on herself using her “womanly scent.” Oh that 4D personality is in full force first thing in the morning, isn’t it?

They arrive at the mission location and notice that there are two more bundles when they drop off their real one.

Here, one person will have to stick their hand in to identify a fish and the team will carry that team member to buy the correct item. I don’t blame Da-hae one bit for having to touch something you can’t see and being completely weirded out by it.

HA – her description: “It has scales, and a tail, and eyes.” Yes honey, nearly every fish does.

With only her sense of touch to go on and the chance of losing the real package to another team, the Red Team go on their first hunch and head back.

The Purple Team consists of the Monday Couple and Jae-suk. I love it how scaredy-cat Jae-suk is the one coaching Ji-hyo through this, assuring her that it’s probably just a fish. Okay, Spartakooks, pushing her hand further into the box WILL get the Ace to lunge for your neck. And no, I don’t think there are scorpions at a fish market.

Ji-hyo reaches in, her hand inching towards the fish, and flips out as soon as she touches it. When she goes in again, she says, “It’s a fish, but it’s not moving…” and then the mullet whips its tail around. More screaming.

Gary: “Who is hitting you with its tail?!” which also works as a pun as a two-timer, cheater, etc.

He lowers her prematurely, pointing to one of the fish, but Jae-suk sees right through the act, and asks if he stopped because he was getting tired already. Hehehe. Punch by Monday Girlfriend.

If you’re going to be on a team with Jong-kook, he’s going to make sure that you win, securing Suk-jin’s hand in the box so that he’s certain before they leave to buy anything. The downside of having three men in a team is that you have to carry one of them and Kwang-soo huffs, “The other teams get to carry a woman!”

They run through different kinds of fish based on Suk-jin’s description, until an ajumma suggests a sea eel. When they ask the merchants where they sell it, and their jaw drops at the fact it’s underground.

The Red Team incorrectly identifies their first on the first try, and now Da-hae has no qualms about reaching into the box, even telling the fish to stay still. Dae-hae utilizes her sense of touch to buy their second item, but before they leave, their eyes and noses are drawn to the sight and smell of freshly grilled fish.

I love that each are initially tempted by just the sight of it and Da-hae knocks some sense into them that they can always come back for it, but one word from the ajumma lures them in to try a piece and savor it. Haha: “Do you have any rice?”

This time, Jae-suk starts to reach in but backs away – just the thought of the unknown sending chills down his spine. Despite some encouragement from the crowd, he barely touches it before their team is sent off.

Meanwhile, the Blue Team who arrived last succeeds first, and they linger at the table, trying to choose a bundle. The Red Team looks on – they’re a bundle of nerves, hoping that they don’t take the real one (the one on the far right).

They rest assured after they spy the Blue Team take the one on the far left, and try to identify their real package by scent.

Each team unwrap each of their bundles to check who has the real one… and the Blue Team yell in excitement. We see that indeed, they had chosen the genuine bundle, and mixed the fakes to confuse the rest of the teams.

To make sure they don’t grab another fake, Da-hae applies a little lip gloss to identify it.

The Purple Team finally get in the car after they pass the first round and they comment how their guests already have a plan to win it all. Jae-suk calls out into the camera, “Da-hae, dahae.” (dahae = do it all).

They note that Haha must be the third wheel, almost like their servant, and we see him pretending to sleep in a corner as the Chuno couple live in their own world.

The second mission requires the Running Man to find a book with a R sticker attached to it. The thing is that there are hundreds of thousands of books on the shelves and only three the staff has hidden.

The cast sifts through the shelves, thinking of any associations Running Man might have to a subject: English? Sports? Caption: It’s a dictionary…

Ji-hyo finds one first, careful not to draw any attention to herself and Ji-ho finds another soon afterwards.

The number of packages has now doubled and each team can take two at time. The Purple Team unwrap their bundles in the car, and lo and behold – it’s in their hands.

Da-hae muses that the team who possess the real one must be bursting with excitement.

That is excitement = sleep as the Ace dozes with her mouth open.

RM staff, you must be kidding me. In order to pass their third mini-mission before the final one, they must dig up the Running Balls with their own names in the sand. And the area is a sizeable field. Hehehe – those in the crowd call out “Lol Lol” when they see Gary.

They start digging everywhere, and the PD assures them that they’re not dug deep…but there’s plenty to find – because there are 800 of them. Oh boy, they’re going to be here for a while, huh?

I find it so enjoyable that whenever Gary comes across a ball, he goes, “Oh! That’s not it.”

Oddly enough, Jae-suk enlists the help of the seagulls and they suddenly begin to swarm the place. But just when you start to think that Jae-suk has acquired a new superpower, the flock flies away as quickly as it appeared.

Soon all the teams have arrived, and the Blue Team gets to work searching near the flag posts. And literally two seconds later, Kwang-soo shouts in excitement, having found Jong-kook’s name. And the dunce that he is continues to search in the same spot. HA.

Jae-suk, however, keeps discovering other names, particularly Da-hae’s. Haha sees them trying to stomp it into the ground, his suspicion radar piqued. The Purple Team tries to the bitter end to prevent Haha from finding it.

Starting as a childhood catfight, it ends up as a bit of physical comedy for the spectators.

Speaking of whom, Jae-suk comments that they must find some sort of entertainment from watching them dig into the sand, and Kwang-soo gets the crowd to interact with him. That’s quickly short-lived by one look from Jong-kook, his anger bubbling under the surface.

The Purple Team pull in first again, and this time they’re allowed to grab three bundles before they head to the final mission location. And lucky for them, the real one is among their three.

The final mission is a Hide-and-Seek where the team who holds the real package at the end of the hour will be declared the winner. Jae-suk gripes, “The other teams have a tiger [Jong-kook] and a lion [Ji-ho]…” They start to panic, and give the real bundle for Ji-hyo to keep safe.

Ji-ho smiles, “It’s about time I started exercising my strength…”

Knowing that the neither team holds the real package, the Blue and Red Teams pleasantly exchange the fakes between them. They create an alliance to take out the Purple Team.

The Purple Team roams around, and the allied teams follow behind them. Ji-ho deduces that the person holding onto their package the tightest is likely to be the one carrying the real one.

Allied teams in Running Man Land never last for long. As soon as they exit the elevator, Ji-ho fails to rip Kwang-soo’s nametag, and Kwangvatar bolts to tell Jong-kook.

The gloves are off and the Blue Team takes Haha hostage. Ji-ho reasons that he was just practicing because he’s never torn off anyone’s name tag before and Kwang-soo defiantly shouts, “What kind of practice is so forceful?!” Ji-ho adds, “That’s why I only tore off half.” HAHAHAHA.

With 30 minutes left on the clock, the allies scour the building as the Purple Team tiptoes around the building. The Blue Team is on the other side of the door, when Jae-suk turns around and smiles… to see Ji-ho mention that he’d been looking for them.

They take the opposite route, where the Blue Team lie in wait and chase them down the hallway. With nowhere to turn, they end up at jail and Jae-suk tightens his grasp on the bundle.

The teams decide to settle this outside of jail, each letting the other exit first, but neither wishing to show their backs. Jong-kook leaves first, leaving Kwang-soo easy pickings for the others. But they fail to tag him out and Kwang-soo cries, “I told you not to leave my side for a second!”

Everyone converses outside when we hear a ripping sound… and Jong-kook’s name tag is cleanly missing from his back. The culprit? Haha.

Jong-kook falls to his knees in disbelief as the truth that his beloved dongsaeng betrayed him. Haha argues to his team that it had to bed done, and then sends a quick text of apology. Yeah, I think you’re going to have to beg for his forgiveness.

Oh man, I just love that we get to see this picture again.

The three teams circle around in an open space when Haha does it again by eliminating Kwang-soo. Vulnerable as the only member left on the Blue Team, Suk-jin makes a run for it.

Jae-suk hides in a stairwell to trap Haha, and he walks right into it, noting his VJ. Haha cries for help as Jae-suk reaches for his back. Meanwhile, Gary tells Ji-ho that it sounds like his team needs help and he shrugs. “Nah, it’s okay. There’re two of them.”

Da-hae comes Haha’s rescue, but it’s no use — both of them are easily eliminated.

Yep. Begging for forgiveness. In jail, Haroro. Scary Jong-kook is frightening, but Scary Kwang-soo is just hilarious.

The Monday Couple finally hunt down Jae-suk, praising him for guarding the real bundle. Jae-suk recounts the entire tale though he’s completely exhausted.

They notice that Suk-jin is lurking nearby and attempt to persuade him to help them out. Wary at first, Big Nose Hyung warms up after he hears that they’ll promise to give him his computer he so wanted.

Ji-ho appears from around the corner, surprised that Jae-suk came out of the tussle in one piece. He scratches his head saying taking 3:2 is difficult, and Jae-suk clarifies that it’s 4 against 1.

The teams circle each other, until Jae-suk slips, sending Ji-hyo to the floor with him. Suk-jin jumps at the opportunity and tags Ji-hyo out, procuring the real bundle for himself. But then Gary rolls Suk-jin on the ground and eliminates him.

There’s 8 minutes left on the clock with three men remaining: Jae-suk, Gary, and Ji-ho. Gary suggests they play rock-paper-scissors (and Ji-ho readily agrees, stating the loser be automatically eliminated).

The speakers give a five minute warning now and they try playing rock-paper-scissors. Ji-ho wins, but it’s useless as the men resort to using their strength. Ji-ho grabs Gary and Jae-suk grabs Ji-ho’s back and all three men tumble to the ground…

And Gary comes out victorious, Ji-ho’s name tag in hand.

Even though they eliminated everyone else, Mr. PD reminds them that they must be carrying the real bundle. The first is a fake and they scramble to untie the second… it’s clean?

Ji-ho darts to check his, but Gary flips the cushion over to reveal the sticker and the Purple Team sighs a deep breath of relief.

As the winners, the Purple Team collects all the prizes and Kwang-soo steps in that he wanted to gift his prize to his younger sister for her birthday.

Jae-suk asks, “What month and day?” Silence.

Next time, buddy. Next time.

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