KBS2 ‘The Logic’

KBS2 debate survival variety show ‘The Logic’ fires an opening salvo by pulling out the labor sector’s ‘hot potato,’ the ‘4.5-day workweek,’ as its very first topic.

Premiering at 9:50 p.m. on Thursday the 22nd, KBS2 ‘The Logic’ (directed by Kim Tae-jun) is a debate survival variety show where 100 people in South Korea with sharp ‘logic’ gather in one place and clash using only logic to choose a ‘Logic Master.’ The 100 ‘Logic Players’ span a wide array of professionslawyers, professors, clergy, researchers, CEOs, comedians, singers, and even veterans of survival variety showsforeshadowing a ‘debate war’ on an unprecedented scale.

Meanwhile, AB6IX’s Lee Dae-hwi, stepping up as ‘Player 1,’ drops his jaw the moment he enters ‘Logic City,’ set to become a ‘battlefield of words,’ overwhelmed by the massive scale. He recalls the pressure of that time, saying, “All of a sudden, memories from nine years ago came back and I felt a touch of ‘PTSD.’ Back then I took part in a survival audition program and debuted (as ‘Wanna One’), and since then I have not seen this many people packed into a single space.”

At the scene where 100 Logic Players have gathered, the much-anticipated first topic is revealed: the ‘introduction of a 4.5-day workweek,’ currently the hottest issue in South Korea. The 100 Logic Players split into pro and con camps over this topic and enter the warm-up round, the ‘Rebuttal Cypher.’ The ‘Rebuttal Cypher’ is a ‘mic grab battle’ in which whoever seizes the mic first gains 100 seconds of speaking time to rebut the opponent, and the players reveal their tension, saying, “Wow! Not easy from the start.” At this moment, ‘Player 100’ Seo Chul-gu, with a meaningful smile, references his appearance on a past hip-hop audition program, saying, “I even developed some trauma from the phrase ‘mic grab battle’…” He then confesses, “Back then I took the mic in a round called ‘cypher’ and then yielded it.” Curiosity surges over whether Seo Chul-gu will show a completely different side in this ‘mic grab battle.’

Meanwhile, over the ‘4.5-day introduction,’ the 100 players square off sharply, heightening the tension. Even after the time limit ends, the players do not let go of the mic, prompting one player to step in to mediate, saying, “Let us stop now. We are not going to reach a conclusion here.” However, another player continues speaking, saying, “Do not try to take command here,” turning the scene into a sheet of thin ice.

The ‘Rebuttal Cypher’ scene, where players from all walks of life put forward their own logic and wage a heated pro-and-con debate over introducing a ‘4.5-day workweek,’ can be seen on the first broadcast of KBS2 debate survival variety show ‘The Logic’ at 9:50 p.m. on Thursday, January 22.