Running Man: Episode 231

by gummimochi

It’s been nearly three years since the last time we’ve seen Yoomes Bond, but the one and only secret agent is back on the field and now faces his most difficult mission yet: training his successor. It turns out teaching the newbie the tips and tricks of the trade is easier said than done, and one wonders if the eager new recruit will ever be able to follow in the master’s footsteps.

EPISODE 231. Broadcast on January 25, 2015.

After a lengthy recap of the success of Yoomes Bond’s first two missions, we begin Jae-suk’s latest adventure today in Muju. He’s led, blindfolded, into a secret meeting with Taek PD, which can only mean one thing in Jae-suk’s head: he’s reassuming his role of Yoomes Bond.

However, today marks the beginning of the end: Jae-suk will pass on his trademark water gun to his successor whom he’ll train today. When Jae-suk starts to protest, Taek PD simply ignores him to finish his spiel that it’s Jae-suk’s job to teach the rookie Bond all of his tips and tricks. Ack, you can’t just bring back Yoomes Bond like that and then take his title away!

Even if Jae-suk could be upset at this turn of events, he takes the news in stride. He, for one, is more worried by how his fellow cast members are too quick to notice any sign of suspicion and betrayal now. Even this morning, Ji-hyo had asked him if he was a spy today.

Jae-suk runs through the list of possible candidates, although unable to pinpoint who might walk through the door. He’s told to welcome his apprentice warmly, yet should he feel that the rookie isn’t fit for the job or puts him at great risk, Jae-suk may eliminate the recruit himself. So at least the new Bond must be Yoomes Bond-approved?

That meeting took place at 1pm, so we need to turn the clocks back to 8am to wake our still-groggy Running Man cast. Anyone else surprised that Gary actually wore clothes to bed for once?

Each of them are given a mission card that explains today Find Myself Race. They’ve currently lost their own selves, as indicated by their outlined nametags. Jae-suk wonders, “Am I a spirit?” and approaches his human VJ Kwon-ryul, and Suk-jin takes his puffy face as a sign that he really has lost himself.

Aha, so a little digging on the Internetz reveals that today’s race is very loosely based off of the Korean title of the book and movie Gone Girl. Or maybe the episode title just shares the name since the phrases “find myself” and “gone girl” don’t convey the same meaning.

Anyhow, Suk-jin chuckles in disbelief that their all-white attire is to represent that they are all currently spirits without bodies. We see Ji-hyo bring up the possibility of a spy, arguing that the movie had a big narrative twist, too. Gary seems too tired this morning to add anything to the conversation, and Jae-suk remarks that Kwang-soo would be a poor spy.

All of our cast members are blindfolded as soon as they arrive and dragged away to individual rooms. It’s there they’re told (by white-haired professors) that they must recover their own bodies before they disappear. In order to do that, they must complete a series of missions in different-level rooms that will eventually lead them to where their bodies are kept in a cryogenic state.

A helpful animation shows what needs to be done: find the right room that matches their key, complete the mission, use the acquired key to find the next room, and so on. The first person who recovers his or her own body is today’s victor.

If this race wasn’t complicated enough as it already is, our cast will be betting a gem at each mission station. Losing all five gems will mean automatic elimination. Then Jong-kook’s faceless professor hilariously wheezes and collapses to the ground after relaying the mission.

For simplicity’s sake, we’ll tackle each level by color, and Jong-kook quickly finds out that his yellow-colored key doesn’t work on any yellow-colored door.

Somehow we skip a few hours to that secret meeting between Jae-suk and Taek PD in the early afternoon—and aha, I’d wondered how the show would manage to outdo the awesome revolving wall weaponry display a few years ago. This time, Jae-suk waits behind the revolving wall to make his grand entrance to his apprentice.

Remember when Jae-suk mentioned that Kwang-soo would make a terrible spy earlier? His successor is none other than Kwang-soo himself, who grins from ear to ear upon entering the secret room.

So Jae-suk makes his dramatic (albeit jerky) entrance and makes sure to remind Kwang-soo that he is nothing until Jae-suk approves of him. “You’re just a tall… worthless-looking guy.”

Jae-suk would also like to remind him that Yoomes Bond is an iconic character in the show’s history. Kwang-soo will be firing this water gun today, Jae-suk explains, then gets annoyed when Kwang-soo asks why he’s calling him “you” like a wise sage speaking to his pupil.

Kwang-soo first test will be to eliminate the other five cast members in secret. Once he succeeds, he must complete another test before he can be rightfully acknowledged as Yoomes Bond’s successor.

Jae-suk can pick up on the distrust and betrayal in Kwang-soo’s eyes right away, because what else would you expect from the Betrayal Icon? He does, however, throw in the caveat that they must both be present when Kwang-soo carries out the hit.

Jae-suk knows better than anyone that Kwang-soo’s a clumsy spy when he’s left to his own devices, which is why he’s going to teach the Giraffe everything he knows. It’s not a hero-sidekick pairing like Batman and Robin, but more like Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza. Or as Kwang-soo puts it: “Young-gu and Ddaeng-chil-ie.”

Meanwhile the other members are still looking for a match. When Ji-hyo says their keys will wear out at this rate, Gary automatically responds, “Like my heart?” It occurs to Suk-jin that the different colors corresponds to taekwondo belt ranks (the building they’re in belongs to the larger Taekwondo Park in Muju).

The secret room is more like a decked-out museum dedicated to Yoomes Bond. Jae-suk promises to autograph one of the photos for his recruit, who’s told to choose his weapon of choice.

Kwang-soo looks as happy as a kid on Christmas morning, and breaks the first rule of a covert operation by initially choosing a large water gun. After handing him a palm-sized one, Jae-suk shows off his ammo: a blue-ish liquid that disappears on contact. Which Jae-suk then uses as an example that these up-and-coming agents have it so easy nowadays.

Kwang-soo will also need a new code name should he pass today’s tests. Jae-suk suggests “Kwang Bool-am” (like the veteran actor Choi Bool-am), and when Jae-suk accuses his recruit for being disappointed by the name (“You think only foreign names are cool?!”), Kwang-soo backpedals and says he’ll graciously accept it when the time comes.

There’s one more finishing touch: the gold ankle bracelet. When Kwang-soo asks if he still continues his mission should Jae-suk’s cover blows wide open, Jae-suk glares back at him: “What is it that you want to do?”

Our two secret agents are off to a shaky start when Kwang-soo whispers that his gun is leaking. At the same time, Haha finally finds the right yellow-colored room. His mission is to catch five ping pong balls within 30 seconds… with a pair of tongs. How random.

Jae-suk happens to arrive just in time to watch as Haha grows increasingly annoyed by the task. As expected, Haha fails his first attempt, and Jae-suk asks if he can’t attempt this mission here in an effort to buy some time.

Not that it matters since Haha succeeds in a flash the second time around, even getting a knack for it. Jae-suk has to keep his word and is downright terrible at it. He keeps up the frustrated act until Haha leaves, then wonders where his recruit is.

Kwang Bool-am is busy talking with Suk-jin and Haha, and when Jae-suk joins them, he follows his master into the bathroom. Jae-suk whispers that he mustn’t hesitate when the opportunity is in front of him, then advises him to always keep his weapon loaded to take out his target with the first shot.

Kwang-soo is still on his training wheels when it comes to water gun elimination, asking the master to give him a signal at the opportune moment.

Gary succeeds in his Spot the Difference mission, and Jong-kook completes his Matching Game. Poor Suk-jin has to sift through hot stones to find his blue key. All four boys move on while Ji-hyo is still looking for her Yellow Zone room.

Jae-suk pulls Kwang-soo aside again for his second lesson: How to Not Arouse Suspicion. Kwang-soo’s at a disadvantage since anything he says (or doesn’t) can be used against him. So what he has to do is act like he’s following along with the mission and stop thinking about their own mission.

That’s easier said than done of course, since Kwang-soo looks pretty nervous. He’s not as nervous as Jae-suk, who’s totally on edge, wondering where his apprentice has run off to.

Jae-suk gets dragged into a 1:1 mission against Gary, where the person who withstands being tickled longer, wins. We already know that Jae-suk’s pretty ticklish, but as it turns out, Gary is too. Hahaha, I love how we hear the squeak of the recorder almost immediately.

Jae-suk squeaks at a record 0.18 seconds, but Gary manages to endure it for a second longer. Pretending to be upset, he congratulates Gary for moving on to the Red Zone.

Yoomes Bond takes a quick second to relay to Kwang-soo that they have to hurry before stepping out to talk to Suk-jin. Kwang-soo joins them moments later, acting shocked that Gary has advanced so far.

Jae-suk is called out to a 1:1 Blue Zone battle against Haha, then he suddenly breaks into girl group EXID’s “Up & Down” dance. It’s really just an opportunity to call over Kwang-soo while Haha’s distracted, but when it takes Kwang-soo a seemingly forever and a day to get ready, Jae-suk turns his head, and so does Haha…

… who then twirls around to check his bag in case Jae-suk tried to steal his gems. That’s a seriously close call, and Jae-suk uses the excuse that he doesn’t have that many. Kwang-soo’s water gun is somewhere down his pants now and he can’t get it out.

Jae-suk turns to Kwang-soo to question him about the stolen gem, though his real message is this: We nearly lost our chance! Get that water gun out! You better fire it this time! With that, Jae-suk creates another opportunity for his newbie, and this time Kwang-soo fires on target.

Yoomes Bond and Kwang Bool-am make a quick getaway afterward, and Jae-suk puts his apprentice straight once more. As for Haha, he’s led by one of those white-haired professors to jail.

Ji-hyo finally gets to move on to the Blue Zone after unlocking a safe with the key inside. She runs into Kwang-soo and Jae-suk, who sees this as a prime opportunity to eliminate her.

As promised, Jae-suk gives Kwang-soo a little nudge. Kwang-soo slinks over and hits the target with his first shot… though he’s still not stealthy when it comes to stowing his weapon away. So Ji-hyo joins Haha in jail, and the latter realizes that Jae-suk must be behind this, but he doesn’t know how he was ousted.

Elsewhere, the water gun accidentally drops to the ground from Kwang-soo’s belt. Thankfully, Suk-jin doesn’t turn at the sound and Jae-suk sends his recruit another death glare. He mouths to Kwang-soo that he’ll do the deed himself and takes the water gun.

Kwang-soo manages to pin Suk-jin to the ground, allowing Jae-suk to fire at Suk-jin’s nametag. Kwang-soo even wins against Suk-jin in the wrestling match, and Big Nose Hyung is led away, none the wiser.

Which leaves Jong-kook and Gary, the two toughest opponents in the game. Kwang-soo makes sure to reload his water gun, then walks around to where Jae-suk is currently playing against Jong-kook in a tile-flipping game.

As expected, Jong-kook uses his brute strength to pick up Jae-suk while flipping the tiles (the one with the most tiles in their color after the time limit wins). It’s a pretty funny sight as Jong-kook carries Jae-suk around, then squats down to calmly flip over a tile.

If you can believe it, Jong-kook manages to flip alllll the tiles to show his color. After acquiring his red key, Jong-kook wonders where Suk-jin has disappeared off to. Oh, he’s in jail. Furthermore, Jong-kook thinks Kwang-soo’s been acting strange today too. Uh-oh.

Kwang-soo stammers his way through his answers, and the conversation thankfully cuts short when Gary appears. As Kwang-soo walks away, Jong-kook wonders, “He’s really strange. Or is he always strange?”

Jae-suk does a good job of defusing the situation, then he and Kwang-soo follow Gary and Jong-kook into the Red Zone room. Jae-suk gets yelled at for wanting to participate when he hasn’t completed his Blue Zone level yet (supposedly), then the three start their game of trying to tear off their own nametags.

And while Kwang-soo gets close, it’s Jong-kook who comes out victorious by doing the smart thing of trapping one end in between the sliding door then tearing it off. It’s certainly more effective than trying to rub a nametag off, and so Jong-kook obtains the black key. Our spies will have to hustle if they even have a chance at winning.

Seeing as we’ve got about 20 minutes left, we’re bound to get a twist soon. Jae-suk and Kwang-soo trail behind Jong-kook, who immediately catches on that something’s off. He searches Jae-suk’s pockets and checks his nametag.

Jong-kook had noticed the momentary flinch in Jae-suk’s behavior, and now both his and Gary’s suspicion radars are on high alert. Again, Jae-suk defuses the situation by lying that he was trying to steal one of Jong-kook’s gems.

So Jae-suk just asks outright for a gem since he’s running low. Jong-kook replies apologetically that they can’t just give away gems to one another, to which Jae-suk retorts: “But they said we could steal them!”

Jae-suk walks next to Jong-kook down the halls, allowing Kwang-soo to get ready. And at the opportune moment, Kwang-soo fires his gun at Jong-kook’s nametag, then runs. Jae-suk sticks around to say goodbye to Jong-kook, and the caption reads: How mad will he get later?

That was another close call for our spies, and Jae-suk asks again why Kwang-soo keeps being so hesitant. He explains that gem-stealing incident with Haha earlier aided in downplaying the encounter with Jong-kook, but the point is that they need to be careful.

Kwang-soo sneaks into a Red Zone auditorium, where he gets caught up in reenacting as Yoomes Bond Caption: You must’ve been jealous at the time, weren’t you?

He has to quickly stow the gun away when Gary shows up, and thankfully Jae-suk joins them soon afterwards. In order to avoid suspicion, Jae-suk brings up how they haven’t seen their fellow cast members for a while now, and Kwang-soo starts to suspect Gary.

The trio must participate in a chair race where they literally have to scoot towards the finish line without letting their feet touch the ground. Jae-suk starts getting into a rhythm, but then Gary starts scooting sideways and gains a lead.

Kwang-soo needs to catch Gary before he can win and acquire that black key. He lunges for Gary’s chair… but Gary crosses the finish line. Once he leaves, Jae-suk asks why Kwang-soo didn’t fire at Gary, only to hear the excuse that his water gun is leaky.

The truth is that Kwang-soo used up all his ammo while playing Bond, and Jae-suk sighs in frustration. Jae-suk has had enough and quietly gripes that he would’ve already finished the mission half an hour ago. At least Jae-suk won’t abandon his recruit, even though he adds the warning: “The moment you waver, you’ll die.”

Meanwhile Gary opens up a Black Zone room, where he’ll have to memorize a sequence of steps from start to finish. The order flashes on and off pretty quick, but Gary get about six steps in before getting it wrong.

Jae-suk and Kwang-soo search the building until they find Gary, who’s still trying to figure out his board. With no time to waste, Kwang-soo takes out the water gun and is just about to fire… when Jae-suk falls into one of the squares.

But the chaos only makes Gary more flustered and Kwang-soo takes the next opportunity to fire his water gun and eliminate Gary. It’s a total mess as squares break through left and right and Gary yelps, thinking that he’s won.

Gary thanks them for helping him out, but they’re the ones thanking him… and that’s when Gary finally sees the water gun. Gary: “Again?!”

All that’s left is Kwang-soo’s final test before he can be named a true secret agent. Kwang-soo’s told to rip off Jae-suk’s nametag, and then he’s given a choice: either fire at Jae-suk’s nametag and assume his role as the new Bond…

… but even before Jae-suk gets to the other choice, Kwang-soo reaches for the water gun. Hahaha. The other choice is to not fire at Jae-suk’s nametag, and they’ll go forth as a spy duo. It’s a test of trust and respect for the teacher who taught him everything, and still Kwang-soo makes for the water gun.

Jae-suk tells Kwang-soo to think it through (several times, ha), then hands him the gun. Will Kwang-soo make a name for himself and walk the road alone or continue down this path with the master? Jae-suk: “I trust your judgment.” Kwang-soo: “I don’t wish for Yoomes Bond to disappear.”

… Then Kwang-soo shoots, but the water shoots back at his face. HA, this was Jae-suk’s doing, wasn’t it? The answer is yes — 30 minutes ago, Jae-suk picked up that water gun himself to test Kwang-soo’s loyalty.

As expected, Kwang-soo chose to betray him, a choice that totally backfired on him. Not only did his betrayal cost Kwang-soo a super-cool code name, but also the win. Which is why Yoomes Bond will live on now and for all the days to come.

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