1 Night 2 Days S3 ep. 26 – Backpacking #1

1 Night 2 Days S3 ep. 26 – Backpacking #1

Aired: 6/15/2014

Overview

The members begin a backpacking hike, playing games to determine the weight of their packs along the way.

Staff Scores

Planning and Direction: 6

The basic concept of the episode is good in theory, as putting the members in difficult situations generally yields nice results. The sub-plot of determining the weights of their packs by playing games is also very good in theory, however it was not really executed as well as it could have been, as the games ended up making very little difference for the most part. Ho Jin PD seemed to mention that the first game would result in one member emptying his entire pack into the packs of others, however this seemed to have changed by the time the game was settled. There was also some confusion about the games from time to time, such as when Jun Ho and Joon Young did the ‘no laughing’ game, only to have it replaced by a stone skipping game without much explanation. On the upside, the episode itself was beautifully shot, with the crew really getting the most out of their HD cameras by employing many creative filming angles.

Postproduction: 7

Very nice work as usual, as good editing prevented a 100 minute episode of ahjussis climbing hills from becoming boring for the most part. The music was also typically well done, as was the sound the quality itself – the music and sound really ‘pops’ on 1N2D compared to other shows, and it makes a significant difference to the quality of the finished product.

Featured Music:

Camping (Children’s Song)
Ting Tings – Shut Up and Let Me Go
George Strait – How Bout Them Cowgirls
Mel Carter – Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me
Lee Pil Ho – Passion (Beethoven Virus OST)
Hugh Keice – Starry Night
Velvet Underground – Pale Blue Eyes
Ramin Djawadi – Main Title (Game of Thrones OST)
Carl Douglas – Kung Fu Fighting
Yolanda Be Cool – We No Speak Americano
Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 – Mais Que Nada
Wondermints – Austin Powers
Pokarakara Ana
Snap – I’ve Got the Power

Cast Scores 

Cha Tae Hyun: 6

Good reactions as usual, and some good one-liners and offhand comments throughout. Tae Hyun’s energetic and cheerful personality really made a difference in an episode where the members could easily have just given in to exhaustion.

Kim Jong Min: 5

Faded in and out a bit at times, but seemed to be up for the games as well as chances to prank the others.

Kim Joo Hyuk: 4

Not bad, but mostly a passenger for much of the episode.

Kim Jun Ho: 7

Jun Ho really led the way this week, and although his gags can be a bit hit-or-miss, his efforts contributed greatly to making the most out of a concept that could have easily become boring. Always ready with a gag, a prank, a joke, or a chance to interact with the others.

Defconn: 4

Missed much of the shoot after injuring his knee, but also didn’t do much when he was on screen either.

Jung Joon Young: 5

Joon Young was pretty good, particularly during the game segments where he tends to take charge a bit more. Worked well with the others this week.

Guests

None, but Yang Baechu’s clip from “Laughter Filling Station” was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a long time.

Episode MVP: Kim Jun Ho

Although it seems that people either love him or hate him, his importance to the show is becoming increasingly clear as time goes on – he’s one of the few (perhaps the only) member who consistently initiates the action on screen, while most of the others are primarily ‘reaction’ types. In this episode, despite having a heavy pack and being perhaps the least fit of all the members, he remained active and played a role in the vast majority of humorous bits, working gags with almost everyone on the cast (and staff) at one point or another.

Final Score: 6

Good solid episode that was very attractively packaged, and managed not to drag despite the repetitive nature of the mission. The only real flaw was the mini-games, which were simplistic at times and would have been improved if the results had more meaningful impact on the members as they climbed the mountain.