MBC ‘Hangout with Yoo?’
On ‘Hangout with Yoo?’, Byeon Woo-seok arrived at the ‘Comma, Club’ like a spring breeze and set the hearts of the members aflutter with an eyecatching showing.
The April 11 episode of MBC’s variety program ‘Hangout with Yoo?’ (directed by Kim Jin-yong, Lee Joo-won, Kim Ki-ho, An Ji-seon, Bang Seong-su, Park Eun-jin/writer No Min-seon) featured the ‘Comma, Club Spring Breeze Tour’ with sysop Yoo Jae-seok (defunct organ), Haha (old mixed kimchi), Heo Gyeong-hwan (clammy sweat), Joo Woo-jae (Lee Yoon-seok), Jeong Jun-ha (Gangnam Station Byeon Woo-seok), and new member Byeon Woo-seok (Byeonsan Tower).
The household rating in the capital area came in at 4.2%. Reflecting changes in the media consumption environment, the core channel-competitiveness metric, the 2054 rating, posted 2.5%, continuing its run as Saturday variety No. 1. The top one minute was the scene where Yoo Jae-seok, having failed to escape the yacht, felt the futility of life, with the minute peak rising to 5.0%. (Nielsen Korea, capital-area standard)
Appearing as a new member, Byeon Woo-seok said, “I heard a fake has been going around pretending to be me,” and exchanged first greetings with Jeong Jun-ha, who had been impersonating him as ‘Gangnam Station Byeon Woo-seok’. Byeon showed up wearing the same outfit as Jeong like a doppelgnger, and the members pressed Jeong to sort the fake from the real. Branded an impersonator, Jeong said, “I am Gangnam Station Byeon Jin-seop,” deftly dodging the crisis with a quick name change.
Contrary to appearances, the new member Byeon Woo-seok drew attention with a klutzy streak and a saywhatneedstobesaid side. Yoo Jae-seok praised his handsome princelike looks, saying he resembled Grand Prince Ian from the drama ‘21stCentury Grand Prince’s Wife’, and suggested the nickname ‘Beanpole’. Byeon coolly volleyed back, “Not great,” cheekily landing a blow on Yoo with a sunny smile, and the nickname ultimately settled on ‘Byeonsan Tower’, a twist on ‘Namsan Tower’ that Yoo had suggested. Byeon also forced an attempt to mimic Heo Gyeong-hwan’s catchphrase ‘Unbalance’, only to plop down on the spot and spark laughter.
They then kicked off the tour in earnest with some shopping. Jeong Jun-ha tailed Byeon Woo-seok, eager to match couple items, while sysop Yoo Jae-seok busied himself keeping the ‘Byeon Woo-seok devotee’ members in line. When it came time to pay and the total exceeded 1,000 won, the members set out to find the culprit. Byeon first suspected Yoo Jae-seok, who had a history of embezzlement, but the suspicion turned on him and he was cornered. It turned out to be a simple mishap where someone had scanned a barcode incorrectly, and the matter was put to rest.
Even after the meal, the distrust among the members did not subside easily. When treasurer Joo Woo-jae mentioned a largerthanexpected food expense, the members went back to tallying. Watching the childish bickering, Byeon remarked, “It is exactly what I saw before. There is no normal here,” drawing laughs. Amid the chaos, the members ultimately appointed the most reliable newcomer, Byeon, as the new treasurer.
They had originally planned to view cherry blossoms, but Jeong Jun-ha said he knew a good cafe and changed course. Contrary to expectations, the cafe was packed, and as they searched for another, they drifted farther from the next destination. Grumbling erupted and the mood worsened, and they even set a rule to attach ‘~yong’ to the ends of sentences. With Jeong tacking on “~yong” at every turn, he got under everyone’s skin, including the newcomer Byeon Woo-seok.
Arriving at the Han River, the members took a commemorative photo under a scrawny cherry tree that resembled Joo Woo-jae, then attended a private yacht party prepared by sysop Yoo Jae-seok. Aboard the yacht, they decided to split the remaining dues with the ‘Son Byung-ho game’.
Calling out “people whose faces have really fallen apart” and “people uglier than me,” Yoo Jae-seok threw the members into agonizing choices, while Byeon Woo-seok, without hesitation, lobbed the outrageous line that he was uglier than Yoo Jae-seok and tried to escape. Jeong Jun-ha likewise set aside pride and chose being uglier than Yoo Jae-seok. Byeon, Haha, and Jeong escaped, and Heo Gyeong-hwan, even at the cost of revealing that he had never experienced growing pains, succeeded in escaping last. Only Yoo Jae-seok and Joo Woo-jae were left on the yacht in a dropout ending that left viewers laughing.
Meanwhile, the nextepisode teaser showed members shaking their bodies with abandon, raising curiosity about what suspicious operation they will carry out. MBC’s ‘Hangout with Yoo?’ airs every Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
