Physical: 100 is a hit South Korean survival reality show on Netflix, and its premise is to find the ideal human physique. The show is formatted like a tournament, with 100 contestants, who are known for their physique and fitness, go head-to-head in a series of individual and team challenges. Each participant has a plaster cast of their torso on the set. When they are eliminated, they must destroy the cast with a sledgehammer. The winner of the show gets the prize of 300 million won (219k US dollars).
Physical: 100 fans have criticized the show for being unfair to the female contestants, considering male contestants can take advantage of winning by choosing female contestants during a strength or endurance challenge. Some audience felt female contestants were often a burden to the team, that the show should have separated the males and females.
Some of the online comments are as followed:
“This game isn’t fair…. Holding up a 100-pound stone for 2 hours… Others just lie down with a rope… Endurance doesn’t recover that quickly…. Unless there’s a three-day rest in between, it’s really unfair.”
“To be honest, after this show eliminated almost all the so-called weaker contestants, I lost interest. We, East Asians, face enough hardships in our daily lives. We watch variety shows to see the underdogs beat the strong. But the female athletes all fail to showcase their true charm.”
“It’s really unfair for the rope-pulling part. Some people have gloves, some don’t. The friction from the rope on the hands is really painful.”
“Why is it that they show most of the men’s battles, but for the women’s battles, they only show the results? Bad review.”
“Is this scripted? Otherwise, it’s very easy to get accidentally hurt.”
“It’s a shame their skills couldn’t be fully showcased. After all, they can’t really throw punches, otherwise it would be even more exciting.”
In the meanwhile, there are positive comments on the Internet as well.
“Taiwan should also promote more of these kinds of sports events, rather than those superficial beauty shows!”
“Koreans should be grateful because their military, fire department, and rescue services are among the best.”
“Fitness-obsessed Koreans have created a new sports-themed variety show. This show is like Squid Game. On Douban, it has achieved a high score of 8.7.”
“South Korean is truly a variety show powerhouse, they don’t even miss out on competitive sports, and they can film it with such passion that I finished the program in just three days.
The description itself is intriguing: gathering 100 contestants from various professions, including professional snowboarders, cyclists (Olympic competitors), rugby players, firefighters, prison guards, mountain rescuers, bodybuilders, CrossFit athletes, acrobats, dancers, and more, for a physical showdown.”
“The distinctive feature of this variety show production is its tight pacing and down-to-earth attitude. It’s not overly emotional, doesn’t play to the crowd, and doesn’t even have a host.”
“It is the first Korean variety show I finished watching and it left a strong impression on me. The beginning was impressive, but not everyone who starts strong can finish well. The mountain rescue guy had a very likable personality – humble yet firm and strong-willed. It was truly exciting, and the editing was very well done. I enjoy this type of show – it’s thrilling and thought-provoking.”
At the end of Physical: 100 Season 2, it teased that the next season will have a new format and the hint was “Physical 100: Asia”. It will be interesting and exciting to see international contestants coming from different Asian countries to compete and battle in new quests and challenges.
