Yoo Jaeseok again this year?Entertainer without a new face, “Oksun” filled in
This year’s ‘SBS Entertainment Awards’ grand prize went to Yoo Jae-seok won the grand prize. 19th Grand Prize in his career. Yoo Jae-seok, who set an unprecedented milestone, further strengthened his status as a “national MC.” He was also ranked No. 1 for 11 consecutive years in the “Entertainment Broadcaster of the Year” survey conducted by Gallup Korea. It won more than a majority of 52 per cent. Although the entertainment landscape has changed a lot due to the diversification of media platforms, it still proves its unwavering position.
Yoo Jae-seok has been leading SBS’s flagship entertainment program “Running Man” for 12 years. What else do you do when you play on MBC?’, He has been active in popular programs such as tvN’s “You Quiz on the Block” and “Sixense 3.” He also appeared in web entertainment shows such as “Play You,” “Korea Number One,” and “The Zone: You have to endure to expand your scope of activities.” It is evaluated that it is showing irreplaceable competitiveness by flexibly responding to the rapidly changing entertainment trend.
However, some point out that entertainment centered on Yoo Jae-seok is somewhat inferior in terms of freshness. This is why the “Yoo Jae-seok Crisis Theory” is often heard inside and outside the broadcaster. Nevertheless, Yoo Jae-seok’s influence on established broadcasters is still significant. Yoo Jae-seok once again made history by winning the grand prize trophy at this year’s SBS Entertainment Awards.
The fact that Yoo Jae-seok’s position has not changed also proves that it is difficult to find a new face to replace him. Although Cho Se-ho, Yang Se-hyung, Seo Jang-hoon, Boom, and Hwang Je-sung have drawn attention as latecomers to take charge of the next generation, analysts say that there are still limitations in terms of influence that can encompass the entire content. Park Na-rae, who had her heyday with MBC’s “I Live Alone” and “Save Me Holmes,” is still active, but has slowed down in recent years after being embroiled in rumors.
As it became difficult to find new stars, entertainment producers and viewers began to turn to non-celebrities. It is not unrelated to this that “love entertainment” have sprung up this year.
SBS Plus, ENA Play’s “I Am Solo” has been reborn as Korea’s leading romance reality entertainment show, producing numerous Young-soo, Young-ho, Young-chul, Young-sook, and Ok-soon. The cast of “I Am Solo” enjoyed as much popularity as celebrities, with the number of SNS followers soaring after the broadcast. In particular, Ok-soon won the official beauty title of “I Am Solo,” and was at the center of the talk every season. Thanks to this popularity, the 9th generation Ok-soon also secured the MC position of “I’m Solo” spin-off “I’m Solo, After I Solo, Love Continues.”
In addition, love entertainment shows such as MBN’s “Doll Singles” for divorced men and women, tvN’s “Transfer Love” where divorced couples gather in one house, and IHQ’s “Eden,” which caused controversy over sensationalism, drew attention from viewers.
Entertainment shows dealing with the deep stories and concerns of non-celebrities also generated a lot of attention, creating empathy for reality. KBS 2TV’s “Is it possible to recall separation?” KBS JOY’s “Interference in Love 3,” MBC’s “Marriage Hell-Oh Eun-young Report,” and Channel A’s “Child Care These Days-My Baby Like Gold.” In line with this entertainment trend, Oh Eun-young, a psychiatrist who was reborn as a “national counselor,” benefited considerably. However, some programs called “Oh Eun-young’s Entertainment” were criticized by public opinion as they were buried only in provocative materials, away from their original purpose.
The strength of sports entertainment is also related to the absence of star entertainers. Entertainment producers have expanded the talent pool of entertainment to sports areas to give viewers fresh fun.
MBN’s Back to the Ground and JTBC’s Strongest Baseball are entertainment shows in which retired professional baseball players form a new baseball team and play, drawing keen attention. Channel A’s “Cheonha Jeiljangsa” showed a match without concessions by men with “power” based on ssireum and JTBC’s “Over the Top” arm wrestling, respectively. Dodgeball entertainment channel A, “Steel Ball-Dodgeball War,” stuntman survival entertainment tvN “Super Action,” and martial arts survival entertainment SBS “Pure Fighter” also met viewers one after another.