Variety shows featuring the “National MC” Yoo Jae-seok are at a crossroads of change due to a series of dropouts from its PDs.
Variety shows featuring the “National MC” Yoo Jae-seok are at a crossroads of change due to a series of dropouts from its PDs. MBC’s “Hangout with Yoo” was criticized for recycling concepts after PD Kim Tae-ho left the show, which led to it reorganizing the production team, while SBS’ “Running Man” also saw PD Choi Bo-pil stepping down and PD Choi Hyung-in taking over the main PD position. tvN’s “Yoo Quiz on the Block,” which is on vacation, was also embroiled in a controversy over political bias before PD Kim Min-seok and Park Geun-hyung moved to other broadcast stations. It is difficult for Yoo Jae-seok, who represents these programs, to completely avoid responsibility for such noisy situations.
“Hangout with Yoo” will have a three-week break after the episode on August 6th. The reason is that they want to have some time to prepare for future plans ahead of the 3rd anniversary of “Hangout with Yoo”. The production team said they would spend a fruitful time thinking about recruiting new members and coming up with various new special contents.
Recently, “Hangout with Yoo” has seen a decline in ratings and viral topics along with a lot of criticism as they have been working on the WSG Wannabe project for more than four months. This is because the audience are tired of the project that changed only the gender of the MSG Wannabe members. In addition, the MBTI episode, which was broadcasted earlier, also showed a tail-catching game that could only be seen in old-school entertainment shows, and failed to properly utilize the MTBI material. This has put a lot of criticism on the production team’s planning ability.
After producer Park Chang-hoon became in charge of “Hangout with Yoo” when PD Kim Tae-ho left MBC earlier this year, the appearance of familiar faces from “Yoo-line” and old content failed to bring fresh entertainment to the audience.
The same is happening to “Yoo Quiz” which has undergone changes in the crisis. In April, President Yoon Seok-yeol appeared after he was elected, but this led to the show being embroiled in a controversy over political bias. It is because “Yoo Quiz” has reportedly refused the appearance offers of other politicians, including former President Moon Jae In. Some viewers complained that the program’s purpose was not consistent, and some even required the program to be canceled.
Since then, the program’s co-director Kim Min-seok and PD Park Geun-hyung have moved to JTBC side by side, creating even more controversy. In addition to those two, tvN’s leading producers such as “Amazing Saturday” PD Lee Tae-kyung, “Mama The Idol” PD Min Chul-ki, and “Great Escape” PD Jung Jong-yeon resigned one after another, raising questions about the ongoing internal problems of CJ ENM.
“You Quiz” will spend about 3 months on summer vacation after its latest broadcast on July 20th. Although it has had two reorganization times since its first broadcast in 2018, it has a special meaning this time because it is the first break since it was stained with controversy.
“Running Man” has also been constantly under fire for its recent controversies over game plagiarism, excessive slander among members and illegal parking in the parking area for the disabled.
In this situation, “Running Man” chose to replace its PD. PD Choi Bo-pil, who has led “Running Man” for 2 years and 6 months, is leaving after episode 617, which is scheduled to air on August 21st. The new main producer is Choi Hyung-in, who led “Running Man” together with PD Choi Bo-pil. Choi Hyung-in will be the first female PD to be the main producer of “Running Man”.
Yoo Jae-suk’s entertainment shows face such breaks and changes because of these programs themselves rather than Yoo Jae-suk’s lack of ability. However, Yoo Jae-suk also has to take responsibility. There is a clear problem with his programs’ continuous criticism. Attention is being paid to whether “Running Man”, “Hangout with Yoo” and “You Quiz”, which have begun to reorganize, will be able to achieve new leaps and regain viewers’ hearts.
Source: daum
