In this ‘couples race’, sometimes we can see that one of the pairs has great chemistry together, almost like a real couple. And recently, the cast members and the audience agree that the hottest couple on Running Man is the duo of Hong Jin-young and Kim Jong-kook! Here are some of their best moments!
Couples Race and Couple Outfits
Hong Jin-young had been a guest on Running Man several times between 2014 and 2018. When Running Man has the ‘couple race’, Hong Jin-young always ended up paired with Kim Jong-kook, who’s a permanent cast member. Not just once or twice, either, but they’ve been paired for this event five times! Maybe it’s okay for being paired five times, but they also often choose similar outfits, unintentionally! Responding to this, the Running Man cast members are always teasing them. They said playfully, “Just date already!” And also stated, “Maybe they’re drawn to each other like magnets.”
Shy Jong-kook
Hong Jin-young is a playful woman, she teased Jong-kook often, acting like a real couple. But Jong-kook, the cool and strong man, acted very shy toward Jin-young. Watching shy Jong-kook made everyone laugh. It was adorable to watch.
Hong Jin-young, Conquering Jong-kook
In the March 25, 2018, episode of Running Man, Hong Jin-young and Kim Jong-kook had to eat rice and dry seaweed because they lost the game. The winners, Yoo Jae-suk and Jeon So-min, offered their meat to anyone who would act like a duck. The other guests, Le Da-hee, Han Na, and Lee Sang-yeob tried their best to show what they got, and Hong Jin-young also felt the challenge. She wasn’t going to do it alone, though, she ordered Jong-kook to do it, too! She said, “Wait a minute, Jong-kook oppa, let’s do it!” Jong-kook looked shocked, and asked, “Me?” He wasn’t the only one to doubtful about it, the other members did, too. Jin-young was persuasive, saying, “He will do it. Our team will try.” Haha was wondering, “Will Jong-kook do it?” Right after Haha asked, he was already walking in a squat while biting a paper cup, and acting like a duck. All of the members wre shocked, and froze. The cool tiger, Jong-kook, who would never want to do such an odd thing to get food, took the challenge for the first time! The production team wrote a caption “He create new history in Running Man!” Haha said, “I’m very touched to see this.” And Lee Kwang-soo said, “I almost cry.” Seems like the one who create the new history is Hong Jin-young!
Call in The Midnight
On one episode, Kim Jong-kook and Hong Jin-young were paired again in the game. On their way to their next location with another couple, Hong Jin-young talked about an issue in the previous episode. She said, “The last time I was on Running Man, did Kwang-soo said that? That I called Kim Jong-kook while I was drunk? Somebody said that I called Kim Jong-kook, but he didn’t pick up.” That statement earned her a lot of hate from netizens. One of the criticisms was, “She got rejected by Kim Jong-kook, but she keeps going after him.” Because of the ripples the incident caused, Jin-young asked Jong-kook to clarify what really happened. “Tell the truth. Was there ever a time when I called you drunk? I’ve never called you, right?”, she asked. Surprisingly, Jong-kook replied, “I don’t know about alcohol, but there were times when you called me late at night!”
Death Threats to Hong Jin-young
Even though many fans love to watch this love-line happening, there must also be critics. On one episode, Hong Jin-young said, “Honestly, after I’m being paired with Kim Jong-kook on the previous episode of Running Man, I got a lot of direct message in my social media from the international fans. They said they would kill me if I’m being close to Kim Jong-kook.” Haha said that they might be upset because Kim Jong-kook had a love-line before with Song Ji-hyo. Kim Jong-kook said that his fans couldn’t be serious. “My fans just like me. I often said I will kill Lee Kwang-soo, but it doesn’t mean I really want to kill him. They imitate the way I joked.” He said. Hong Jin-young laughed and asked Kim Jong-kook to say to his fans, “Please translate this for me. I will come and go like a wind. I will be the wind that never stay.”
How They Really Feel to Each Other ?
As interested as people are, watching this love-line continue, how do they actually feel about each other? On an episode of My Little Old Boy, Kim Jong-kook revealed his feelings about Hong Jin-young, at dinner with Shorry and his juniors. He said, “Hong Jin-young is great. She’s smart and has a lot of aegyo”. Well, it’s true that Hong Jin-young has a lot of it. He added, “I don’t have aegyo, so it’s nice when [my girlfriend] has aegyo… but Hong Jin-young can be too much.” Kim Jong-kook was also asked about which woman in the Running Man cast was closest to his ideal type. Surprisingly, Jong-kook choose Jin-young! He said, “Her personality and everything else is great.” Everyone was shocked and happy with Jong-kook’s answer, including Jong-kook’s mom (the happiest one) and Hong Jin-young herself. Jong-kook’s mother confirmed, “My son doesn’t joke often [so he’s telling the truth].” On the Hong Jin-young side, she talked about Jong-kook on an episode on the reality show, Happy Together. She was being asked to choose between Park Soo-hong or Kim Jong-kook. She said, “I choose Kim Jong-kook. I received a threat letter from international fans (as she said before) so that I actually don’t want to say his name (Kim Jong-kook). But Kim Jong-kook is a great and good man. He is a comfortable oppa for me.” Hong Jin-young also told the fans to not worry about their relationship. It’s just the excitement in a variety show. So, what do you think ? Do they deserve to be together in a real life or not?
