Excerpt

Anyone who has visited Korea in recent years has likely found out, even before taking a step outside of Incheon Airport, that variety shows are very popular there. Rather than a one-on-one talk show format, these shows feature a pack of male performers standing in a semi-circle in a quasi-public space, such as a parking lot, a playground, a city park, or a large convention hall. They talk, giggle, and hit each other in a juvenile manner before dispersing to play silly playground games such as hide and seek, capture the flag, jump rope, wordplay, and pass the cellphone—games that…