Rise of empowered women on Korean variety shows

Trend to depict strong-willed female characters follows limited representation in past

"Physical: 100," starring Jang Eun-sil (Netflix)

Korean audiences have been thrilled by wrestling athlete Jang Eun-sil pushing a massive boat with burly men in "Physical: 100," female Korean police officers, firefighters and soldiers competing in the reality competition series "Siren: Survive the Island," as well as female celebrities passionately participating in soccer matches in "Kick a Goal," in recent years.

These shows are among the popular women-led Korean variety shows -- including "Unpretty Rapstar," "Street Woman Fighter," "Sister's Slam Dunk" and Netflix 2023 series "Siren: Survive the Island," which prominently featured strong, charismatic female leads.

In September, Wavve is set to release an original survival reality show called "Queen Bee Game," featuring six female leaders who choose male competitors to face off against other teams led by women.

Empowered portrayals of women have become a norm in Korean variety shows. But why are strong female figures now popular on such shows, when women were rarely featured in them in the past?

Experts say one must first understand how female personalities were viewed on past variety shows.

"In the past, if female celebrities were featured, one or two women joined predominantly male-centered variety shows. And when they did, they were often featured in limited ways. Typically, they were portrayed either as romantic interests or as figures who displayed vulnerability and needed male assistance," said pop culture critic Jung Duk-hyun on Tuesday in an interview with The Korea Herald.

Korea's "real variety show" programs -- largely unscripted shows with various formats --which were the dominant variety show trend from the 1990s to the early 2000s, require the cast members to make people laugh under extreme conditions, such as taking on challenging missions in the wilderness or wearing exaggerated makeup, Jung explained.

In this environment, female celebrities often risked damaging their public image and sparking public controversy. Consequently, variety show producers often avoided featuring women in prominent roles, contributing to their representation being rare on such programs.

In fact, during the 27-year period between 1990 and 2017, there were a total of just five instances in KBS, MBC and SBS entertainment awards in which a female cast member won the grand prize for her performance on a variety show program.

"This type of content led to growing discomfort among the public, who have since sought more dynamic portrayals of women. Also, audiences crave uniqueness in variety shows. With a plethora of male-centric programs saturating the market, there has been a clear need for new approaches," he said.

"Such audience needs have since resulted in positive reception for strong-willed women on variety shows," he said.

Beginning in 2010, the trend shift from real variety show to talk-centered programs increased the visibility of women.

In 2018, comedian Lee Young-ja became the first female celebrity to win a grand prize for her performance in KBS talk show "Hello Counselor," since 1990. Her record was quickly followed by Park Na-rae and Kim Sook, who each won grand prizes in 2019 MBC and 2020 KBS entertainment awards for their performances in popular variety shows.

Entering the 2020s, although women-led variety shows have not yet become mainstream, their presence has notably increased.

According to Jung, these novel approaches seem to be universally praised by audiences of all genders.

"Allowing women to express their autonomy in a healthy way benefits everyone, not just women. It’s equally beneficial for men," he said.

The Writer of "Queen Bee Game" added she expected the program to appeal to audiences of all ages and genders.

"Although the concept of 'queen bees and males' is unique, I believe it is a concept that people of all ages and even viewers around the world can easily understand and enjoy," Kang Suk-kyong, the writer of "Queen Bee Game" told The Korea Herald on Wednesday.

By Lee Yoon-seo(yoonseo.3348@heraldcorp.com)