“The Hungry and the Hairy” (먹보와 털보)

By Jae-Ha Kim
Substack
January 13, 2022

Jung Ji-hoon / Rain
Noh Hong-chul
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

“The Hungry and the Hairy” is the reality series I didn’t know I needed. I’m a fan of mukbangs, but sometimes get grossed out by the sheer volume of food that mukbangers consume for their viewers’ entertainment. I also enjoy watching travel shows, but often get bored by the dialogue and staged settings.

This series offers the best of both worlds. Viewers get to see parts of Korea that may be unfamiliar to them, through the eyes of Jung Ji-hoon — known to K-pop fans as Rain/비 — and comedian Noh Hong-chul (aka the Elevator Guy in PSY‘s “Gangnam Style” video), who travel across South Korea by motorcycle.

At each of these destinations — Jeju Island, Gochang, Busan, Gangwon, Gyeongju, Namhae — the duo stop multiple times to eat.

And … OMG the food all looks mouth-wateringly delicious.

I knew that Rain was a talented singer/actor, but I had no idea that his cooking skills were top notch. Some of the best meals they enjoy are ones that he whips up for them at campsites or even at quaint restaurants (where the chef allows the star to use his kitchen).

I know people who carry kimchi, paprika and hot sauce in their handbags. But Rain goes beyond, bringing his own supply of truffle to sprinkle on jjajangmyeon/짜장면 (noodles with black bean sauce).

At the series start, Rain explains that he stays in shape by exercising daily and limiting his meals to once a day — a rule that he deliciously defies on the road trips. As many folks on the series point out, he has a way of eating with gusto that makes everything look delicious. (Noh is a little pickier about what he eats.) And at the end of the series back in Seoul, a noticeably thinner Noh said that he dropped weight once shooting the series ended and he stopped eating with Rain. ㅋㅋ

The one thing I didn’t like about “The Hungry and the Hairy” was all the references to Netflix — as if the network was doing them a favor producing the series. The finale shows the friends hoping for a second season overseas, where they could meet the streaming site’s co-founder, Reed Hastings.

Overall, this is a very easy series to watch. During this pandemic when most of us can’t travel and are stuck at home, we can live vicariously through Rain and Noh as we follow along their fun adventures.

Airdates: Ten hour-long episodes dropped on Netflix on December 11, 2021.

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