Idols and Legends Flood the Entertainment Landscape

To capitalize on the five-day Golden Week holiday, KBS, MBC, and SBS released a total of over 10 new variety shows. As competition among these three terrestrial broadcasters intensifies, idols, dads, and legends have become the main protagonists.

KBS presented experience-based and physical-activity variety shows centered around fathers. “Baradeun Bada” depicts men fleeing on yachts under the pretext of wanting to be alone. “Superman Is Back” and “Star Baby Sitter, Come See Me” are parenting programs that feature fathers taking care of their own children alongside those of others. “Real Sports Show Tuhon” is a physical-activity show focusing on chicken fights between celebrities and ordinary people.

MBC revived the controversial sports competition “Idol Star Athletics Archery Futsal Championship,” which sees over 160 idols participate. Now in its seventh year, this program is known for frequent injuries as participants strive harder to perform. Additionally, “The Return of Kings” features “I Am a Singer: Top 10 Best Songs,” a segment long awaited by fans of “I Am a Singer,” with Yoon Min-soo, Park Jung-hyun, Kim Bum-soo, Park Wan-gyu, Kim Kyung-ho, Guukkassten, Jang Hye-jin, Insooni, and YB all appearing.

SBS prepared “Star Faceoff,” a show where top idols dress up in styles similar to legendary singers and imitate their performances. “Biography Customization Studio” has Kim Gura, Kim Sung-ju, Lee Ki-gwang (BIST), and Bora (SISTAR) creating biographies based on interviews with famous figures. “Song Po Yu” sees Lee Seung-chul and Uhm Jung-hwa forming teams with problematic high school students to compete in a world choir competition. “Awesome Guys” is a one-person-multi-role comedy show aimed at delivering laughter.

Additionally, “TXT’s Parenting Diary,” broadcast on WAVVE, is a 10-episode parenting observation reality show following TOMORROW X TOGETHER as they care for their 14-month-old son, Yujun. The members are shown soothing, feeding, putting the baby to sleep, changing diapers, and accompanying him through daily life and practice sessions. The production team explained that the narrative now centers on the child’s emotions and behaviors, with authenticity derived from real family relationships gaining viewers’ empathy.

As family-oriented reality shows like KBS2’s “Superman Is Back,” featuring real parents and children, have become mainstream, formats where idols temporarily care for babies have naturally declined. However, occasional encounters between idols and babies continue through YouTube and social media, and now there is a trend toward reviving these formats as regular series.

MBC explained that the long gap in idol parenting variety shows, which were popular in the early 2000s, was due to changes in entertainment trends, noting that this revival marks the first time such shows have returned in 13 years since 2025.

With member Key of TOMORROW X TOGETHER and member Lee Chang-seop of BTOB serving as hosts for the new variety shows, encounters between idols and babies are once again attracting attention.